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It is indeed a noteworthy fact that of late there is a tangible
upsurge of pressure for the resumption of the stalled peace process. The
successful conclusion of the peace talks culminating in a conclusive and
comprehensive peace settlement requires the fulfilment of certain
essential prerequisites.
The LTTE came into the forefront of the Tamil campaign two decades
ago vowing to achieve the Tamil aspirations through an armed struggle.
After twenty odd years of ruthless offensive, the futility of the armed
struggle has unmistakably been demonstrated. Their relentless struggle
has failed to take them anywhere towards their cherished goal.
On the contrary, it has only resulted in the devastation of the
villages, towns and infrastructure in the North East and in inflicting
immense and severe suffering and hardship on the downtrodden and
underprivileged people whom the Tigers have sought to liberate.
The TNA Parliamentarians, the henchmen of the LTTE terrorists, have
vividly highlighted the dismal plight of these people. Thus the armed
struggle of the LTTE has proved to be counterproductive warranting a
revision of their strategy in line with the call made by President
Rajapaksa in his address at the UNGA - to espouse the democratic means
to achieve their objectives.
A significant development on the Southern political front in recent
years has been the acknowledgement by the enlightened leaders that the
minorities have been wronged and that they have some genuine grievances
which need to be redressed urgently in order to end the catastrophic war
that has been ravaging the country.
Peace, they have accepted, is sine qua non to achieve political
stability, social cohesion and economic development. Realization of this
basic truth impelled Ranil Wickremesinghe to sign the Ceasefire
Agreement which ushered in a period of much sought after peace.
It was followed by peace talks where he offered to resolve the ethnic
conflict through devolution of power on the basis of a Federal System
within the framework of a United Sri Lanka. This solution to the ethnic
problem was endorsed by former Pesident Chandrika Kumaratunga who
invited the LTTE in vain to resume the peace talks.
Now it is the national obligation of President Rajapaksa, who has
unequivocally pledged his commitment to a negotiated settlement, to take
these initiatives to the logical conclusion, taking advantage of the
positive signals emanating from the North.
However in this regard, the President has to surmount the obstacles
erected by two of his allies-JVP and JHU, whose chauvanistic and
extremist policies are a stumbling block for the resolution of the
ethnic conflict.
In the supreme interest of the nation, the President is obliged to
take the bold decision to sideline the chauvanistic forces and espouse
the solution based on devolution of power through a Federal system
without injuring the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the
country.
The Unitary Form of Government which the chauvanistic forces seek to
perpetuate was one evolved in Britain - a country with homogeneous
population. When it was transplanted in Sri Lanka, which is
characterized by a heterogeneous population, it logically became
disruptive.
Based on the principle of the rule of the majority with the consent
of the minorities with the Governmental power centralized and exercised
by a Legislature composed of elected representatives, this Form of
Government in the course of time inevitably led to the hegemony of the
majority community at the expense of the minorities.
It has become imperative to supplant this system with one that
provides for equitable power sharing by the governed, and ensures
restraint upon the abuse of Governmental power.
The LTTE has a responsibility to respond positively to the reasonable
offers that have emanated from the South. Their demand for a separate
state needs to be shelved. Returning to the negotiating table, they
could negotiate with all their ingenuity to secure the maximum
devolution of power within the framework of United Sri Lanka.
Equally crucial for the success of the Peace Talks is the recognition
by the LTTE that no Peace Talk is complete and could be successful
without the participation of the Muslims who are also an aggrieved
party. The right to be represented at the future peace talks by a
separate and independent delegation have to be accepted.
Going by the past experience there is a need to extract a gurantee
from the LTTE that they would engage in sustained and uninterrupted
negotiation in pursuit of a final settlement and would desist from using
the talks as cover to rearm themselves to bolster their military
capability.
A. S. AHAMED FAROOQ,
Moratuwa, via email.
The overhead destination boards on Colombo roads are quite impressive
and informative, but unfortunately, the English names on a few of the
boards have been spelt incorrectly and sometimes inconsistent. 'Colpetty'
is spelt as 'Kolpity' on the overhead board near Ethul Kotte on the
Parliament Road.
The rest of the boards are spelt as 'Kollupitiya', in keeping with
the Sinhala version on the boards, apart from the overhead board at the
Alexandra Place end of Horton Place, which carries the word 'Colpetty',
while on the other side of the board 'Parliament' is spelt as 'Parliment'.
Coming back to the board at Ethul Kotte, the destination given on it
is 'Kolpity' alias 'Colpetty, alias 'Kollupitiya', instead of say,
Rajagiriya or Borella or for that matter, even Town Hall, which
destinations are reached much earlier.
The other interesting statement on the same board is the direction to
'Keep up to your lane'. Does the word 'up' mean that even 'high flying'
vehicles are catered for? However, an accolade is due to the inventive
constructors of the traffic lights near Kanatte, near Devi Balika
Vidyalaya, for their innovativeness in providing a 'count down' clock,
which is extremely helpful to motorists.
Many letters have been published on these misspellings as well as
about the wrong spellings on name boards in Panadura and Moratuwa.
Some misspellings have been corrected while others are still
unaltered. For instance, 'Holy Emmanuel Church Road' had been spelt as
'Holly Emmanuel Chuch Road' and Lady Evelyn de Soysa Road as 'Lady Ewlin
de Soyza' Road.
There are many boards in honour of members of the philanthropic 'Soysa
Family', at Moratuwa and Ratmalana which are spelt with an 'Z' instead
of an 'S', which show disrespect to these illustrious people. So far,
the authorities concerned seem to have turned a blind eye to these
complaints. Hope those concerned will take quick action to correct these
mistakes.
When agreements are made or concessions given to individuals or
organisations for putting up name boards, it may be advisable for the
authorities involved, to call for proofs and approve them before the
final painting is done in order to avoid any future repetitions.
DESMOND Z. DE SILVA,
Moratuwa.
Having read Anura Lokkuhetty's speech on domestic tourism promotions
to assist the hotel industry which has been trying to lift its head up
after the tsunami and now the resurgence of the hostilities, I really
think that the industry and tourism leaders should pursue this avenue.
Even New Zealand who has a Robust Tourist Industry has launched a
huge domestic tourist drive,with a 101 must see sites in the country.
For over 20 years in the Hotel Industry in Sri Lanka, I saw the constant
struggle we had to acheive profitability whilst upkeeping the required
standards, whilst the Local market was tapped for Sunday Buffets etc.
Although New Zealand is a relatively young country, they have taken
historic places of interest and developed them, put sound and secure
amenities and made it an interesting place to visit, for adults and
children.
Sri Lanka has many more Must See Sites, but have they been developed
into more interesting places? Will the present generation want to
revisit them just for Nostalgia and will we be able to convince our
children to visit them with us? All this is possible with commitment,
modern thinking and a few more leaders like Lokkuhetty.
CEDRIC THIELE,
New Zealand, via email.
Reference to earlier statements by the Government spokesperson that
without Prabhakaran, the Government won't go for peace talks at this
time, as past Governments of last 25 years did it and failed.
Double-tongued Thamil Selvan who represented early peace negotiations is
a person who cannot be trusted any more.
But recently announced governments 'Seven Issues' for peace talks,
Prabhakaran's representation has not been included.
As a very concerned person of this terror problem in Sri Lanka in
which we suffered for last 25 years with many a thousand precious lives
and billions of worth property, I feel at least this time under the
historic new alliance with the main political parties do something
different for a last and final permanent solution to put a fullstop to
this menace.
As Prabhakaran is not in a position to come out from his terror-den,
he can negotiate the peace talks through Satellite to show his
dedication for peace to the entire world.
The Government should provide satellite facilities if requested by
the LTTE, or Prabhakaran's plenipotentiary authority should be vested to
his sole representative at peace talks - not Thamil Selvan. We wish
every success to this effort in Geneva, Switzerland.
JOE PERERA.
Muslim Congress leader Rauf Hakeem's accusation levelled against the
STF over the Pothuvil massacre is irresponsible and unwarranted.
His views were to please a few supporters of his as well as the LTTE
and also to gain political mileage.
His selfish remarks have caused a lot of anxiety to all the Armed
Forces, as well as the entire Muslim community, living peacefully among
the majority Sinhalese.
A. M. MUHSIN,
Puttalam. |
