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Peace process: The international dimension

In a landmark address to the United Nations General Assembly on Friday, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe assured the international community that the government "will do everything in its power to keep the peace process moving forward to a successful conclusion".

A successful conclusion to the peace process is what most right thinking Sri Lankans here and abroad earnestly seek. That Prime Minister Wickremesinghe chose the august assembly of the UN to enunciate this very sentiment to the world is very significant in the context of unprecedented global interest in resolving Sri Lanka's ethnic conflict.

In the Prime Minister's own words, "the role of the international community in enabling us to move from war to peace has been outstanding". Even a brief review of the peace process will confirm his observations: Norway acts as the facilitator while the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission consists of members from all Nordic countries.

Japan has appointed a special peace envoy, Yasushi Akashi, to Sri Lanka. US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage has visited Sri Lanka and is playing a pivotal role in the international arena vis-a-vis the peace process. India, the European Union, Canada, Australia and many other countries are closely following developments on the peace front.

Their commitment to the peace process has not been confined to words. Donor countries and agencies that met in Tokyo pledged US$ 4.5 billion in aid to Sri Lanka over the next four years in tandem with the progress in the peace process. They reaffirmed their pledge at a follow-up meeting in Colombo.

Indeed, the peace process would not have come this far had it not been for the 'international safety net'. With the global community following the events in Sri Lanka closely, both sides cannot veer away from the path to peace. This is even more apt today, when the peace process is facing a hurdle resulting from the LTTE's temporary withdrawal from negotiations in April. The hiatus would have served its purpose if both sides can come together again with renewed aspirations for peace after the government reviews the LTTE's proposals for an interim administration.

The Prime Minister told the UN that the government would look positively at the proposals put forward by the LTTE, whose legal and constitutional experts are due to meet shortly in Ireland for further discussions on this matter. Peace talks could re-commence before the end of this year if everything proceeds smoothly.

Both major parties in the South agree that negotiations are the only option for achieving peace in this war-weary land. The LTTE too cannot be oblivious to the fact that returning to a protracted war would not serve the interests of the people in the North-East who the organisation claims to represent. After all, a significant part of the billions of dollars pledged by donors will be allocated to develop this region devastated by war. The donors have rightly pointed out that this will not be the case if war resumes.

War cannot be an option for both the North and the South, given the rapid progress achieved by Sri Lanka in just 20 months of peace. Economic growth is tipped to reach six per cent this year, a far cry from the recession of 2001. The momentum of the peace process must be maintained until a successful conclusion is reached so that Sri Lanka can turn its attention to becoming formidable economic powerhouse in the region.

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