All must support Govt to eradicate LTTE, achieve peace - Devananda

Nadira Gunatilleke

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After Indo-Lanka Peace Accord was signed, the situation changed and the pathway was cleared to hold discussions and get a solution for the ethnic problem through a dialogue. But since the LTTE did not come into the democratic stream the problem still drags on. One thing is very clear. This should be stressed. The problem of the LTTE is very different from the problems of the Tamil community. The problem of the LTTE is about terrorism and the problems of the Tamil speaking community is about their political rights. I think the problem will be solved soon through the APRC.

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Social Services and Social Welfare Minister Douglas Devananda, in an exclusive interview with the Daily News, expressed optimism of a political solution to the ethnic problem through the All party Representative Committee. The EPDP will contest the local polls in the East and discussions are on with the Karuna group, he added.

The interview:

Q - Now the Eastern Province is under full control of the Government. What are your plans to strengthen social services and social welfare sector in the East?

A - The Social Welfare and Social Services Ministry mainly focuses on the welfare of elders and disabled persons. Therefore, the Ministry will make sure that the people living in the Eastern Province get all the services delivered by the ministry.

Apart from this, the Ministry will collect all data on people's requirements and do the needful by coordinating with line ministries. The data will be provided to the relevant ministries and solutions will be provided through relevant ministries.

Q - What are the main problems faced by the Tamil community in Sri Lanka at the moment and how can they be addressed?

A - At the beginning we took arms and fought for a separate state. None of the former leaders of Sri Lanka could hold discussions and implement a democratic strategy to solve the ethnic problem and therefore we had to take arms.

But after Indo-Lanka Peace Accord was signed, the situation changed and the pathway was cleared to hold discussions and get a solution for the ethnic problem through a dialogue. But since the LTTE did not come into the democratic stream the problem still drags on.

One thing is very clear. This should be stressed. The problem of the LTTE is very different from the problems of the Tamil community. The problem of the LTTE is about terrorism and the problems of the Tamil speaking community is about their political rights. I think the problem will be solved soon through the APRC.

Q - NGOs have a very bad reputation in Sri Lanka. As the Social Services Minister, what is your opinion on their duty and what they should not do?

A - In Sri Lanka there are some serious allegations and complaints against some NGOs and therefore we appointed a committee to look into the matter.

The recommendations of this committee have already been submitted to the President and we will be able to amend the relevant laws soon in order to rectify certain defects of the existing law.

NGOs play a major role in development and social welfare in all countries. NGOs come into scene because the State cannot solve all the problems. When they act genuinely there is no problem but when they act with hidden agendas such as profit making and implementing their own plans there are a lot of problems. There are very good NGOs working with dedication and there are some NGOs which are not so good.

Q - As a representative of the Tamil community, what do you have to say to the International community regarding ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka?

A - The International community should very clearly understand the Sri Lankan ethnic conflict and the terrorist problem. Unfortunately the International community look at the problems existing in other countries in one way and look at our problems another way.

Certain NGOs create a very inaccurate picture in the mind of the international community on Sri Lanka because of their hidden agendas. Due to this situation the International community has a very shaky policy towards Sri Lanka. But they should clearly understand the real problem and act accordingly.

Q - What are the latest developments in the All Party Representative Committee?

A - In the beginning we took part in several different committees in the past. But all of them failed. All the discussions were failed. The main reason was none of them had a genuine desire to solve the problem. But the present APRC is very different from the former ones and has a sincere aspiration to solve the ethnic problem.

There is a significant progress in the present APRC but all cannot agree for everything all the time. It is not possible. The present APRC is very flexible and will let the President know the result soon. I hope we will be able to find a solution that satisfy all ethnic groups.

Q - Do you plan to contest in the elections to be held in the East? What will be the challenges? What about Karuna faction?

A - We will definitely contest the Local Government Elections and we will contest in the Provincial Council Elections when a political solution is being found from the APRC.

We are discussing about it at the moment and we have not taken any decision about contesting the Provincial Council Election.

It was us who welcomed Karuna first when they left the LTTE. But we are not satisfied with some of their activities and currently we are discussing about it with them. We will continue to hold discussions with them and solve it.

Q - What will be the future of the LTTE?

A - I have no trust in Prabhakaran and I do not think that he will come into the democratic stream ever.

Because of that the terrorist problem will be there till he dies. The LTTE will fight and die. That is their future.

I request every and each Sri Lankan to support the Government without any political or other inclination to eradicate the LTTE and find a solution for the Tamil speaking people.

This is my request to all individuals and political parties.