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| Saturday, 20 November 2004 |
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| Mangala: No hasty decision on Norway by Bharatha Malawaraarachchi No hasty decision should be taken for the 'immediate withdrawal of the intervention of Norway from the issue concerning the North and East' as proposed by the Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU), Media and Information Minister Mangala Samaraweera said yesterday. He was replying to an adjournment motion moved by JHU member Ven. Athuraliye Rathana Thera who urged the Government to remove Norway from the role of facilitator in the current peace process. In his reply the Minister further said: "Many years ago President Kumaratunga decided to invite the Royal Norwegian Government to act as facilitators in an attempt to resume negotiations with the LTTE which had been discontinued by them in April 1995. A number of foreign governments had offered their good offices to the Government of Sri Lanka to get the peace talks moving again. Norway was one of them. After a process of consultation between the Government and the LTTE it was decided jointly that the Norwegian Government would be invited to become the facilitators. This was a free choice made by President Kumaratunga 'without any influence or pressure whatsoever' with regard to the selection of the Government to be invited. It was made clear to the Norwegian Government, and accepted by that Government, that its role was to be that of a facilitator and not a mediator or arbitrator. The task of a facilitator is to provide a channel of communication between the parties and to help bring the parties together in order that they might commence direct negotiations. The facilitator has no judgmental role to play in the process of negotiations. There have been occasions when President Kumaratunga has had to inform the Norwegian Government of her concern at the way some issues have been handled by them. Likewise, she has had occasion to inform the Monitoring Mission, which is headed by Norway, of the Government's dissatisfaction with certain actions taken, or not taken, by the Monitoring Mission. Disagreements between the Government of Sri Lanka and the Government of Norway on the approach to the peace talks have to be resolved by discussion. Such discussions have taken place and will continue to take place when the occasion for them arises. President Kumaratunga has indicated that overall, the Norwegian government has played a useful role in helping her governments to deal directly with the LTTE. After the recent visit of the Norwegian delegation headed by the Foreign Minister, President Kumaratunga thanked the Foreign Minister for the sustained effort that the Norwegian Government has made to assist the Government of Sri Lanka in reaching a peaceful solution to the conflict. Diplomatic practice and good sense require that dealings between two sovereign Governments must always be conducted with dignity, discretion and sensitivity. Therefore, no hasty decision should be taken in such an important matter as the proposed "immediate withdrawal of the intervention of Norway from the issue concerning the North and the East". Presenting the motion, Ven. Rathana Thera said Norway has acted in a dangerous manner to the country's sovereignty and national security. "Norway has no right to interfere with the country's security and sovereignty. They have even provided training and communication equipment to the LTTE. This is a serious threat to the country's security," he said. Ven. Rathana Thera explained that his party is not against the Tamil people. "We are against the fascist activities of the LTTE which had killed even prominent Tamil leaders. We urge the Government to sign the Defence Pact with India." TNA MP Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam said Ven. Rathana Thera is unaware of the ground realities. "We must be responsible at this hour. This kind of motion will not help improve the situation." Requesting the Government to commence peace talks, Ponnambalam said: "we must act in a responsible manner. We are at a very crucial hour. The ground situation is deteriorating. You cannot play politics with the lives of the people." UPFA MP Wimal Weerawansa stressed that this conflict should be resolved through negotiations. "We are committed to find a solution acceptable to all the communities in this country. We will not allow anyone to interfere with the country's security and sovereignty." |
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