COLOMBO: With the hardliner Buddhist monks of the National Heritage party (or JHU) calling for India to play a stronger role in Sri Lanka’s deteriorating peace process, opinions vary on the part that India can play to usher in a stable peace between the government and the LTTE.
Meanwhile LTTE claims that former Tiger commander Karuna, who broke away from the organization last year, was operating from India was completely dismissed by the Indian High Commission in Colombo.
“It’s absolute nonsense. There is no truth in the accusation whatsoever,” Indian High Commission spokesperson Nagma Malik said.
Two Karuna Group cadres who had surrendered to the LTTE claimed early in the week that the renegade leader and his followers were based in India.
Two LTTE members identified as Gnanatheepan and Puhalventhan made the allegation at a press conference in the eastern district of Batticaloa in an area controlled by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).
Meanwhile Tiger bashing Buddhist monks of the JHU have been applying pressure on the government to minimize the role of Norway in the peace process.
Demands by the monks for Norway’s removal from the Nordic ceasefire monitoring team came after President Mahinda Rajapakse last week formally informed Norwegian Ambassador Hans Brattskar that he wanted Norway to continue its role as peace facilitator.
“We have held talks with the president on the importance of getting maximum Indian support,” JHU administrative secretary Udaya Gammanpilla said stating that the party had suggested to President Rajapakse that a parallel ceasefire monitoring body consisting of Asian countries be appointed.
“The accusation levelled against Norway is that they are biased towards the LTTE. Since we cannot remove Norway from its facilitator role without re-hauling the ceasefire completely according to certain clauses in the agreement, our suggestion is to immediately appoint a team of monitors consisting of renowned world leaders who will work impartially. Our best choice is Asian countries with the possibility of India playing a key role,” Gammanpilla said.
The Marxist JVP who had also been huffed by the decision to let Norway continue as facilitators is to strongly push for Indian intervention, JVP party sources said.
However as analysts note the fact that the LTTE is an organization banned in India as a terrorist group presents a problem for Indian government officials to take on the role of either facilitator or ceasefire monitor which would involve direct meetings with the rebel group.
The fact that Vellupillai Prabhakaran, the leader of the Tamil Tiger movement is wanted by India for the assassination of former Indian prime minister Rajiv Gandhi, makes matters no less complicated.
“The role that India can play is a political role bringing about political pressure. There is the need for India to play a stronger role in this regard. The modus operandi is up to them,” opined a retired armed forces personnel, Sarath Munasinghe.
However heavy lobbying against any such move is expected to be made by Tamil Nadu politician and LTTE sympathizer, MDMK leader Vaiko.
“There are those who advocate that India should enter into a defence treaty with Sri Lanka. This will undermine Tamil interests,” Vaiko had reportedly stated following a discussion between him and Indian Defence Minister Pranab Muhkerjee.
India, after a disastrous experience in 1987 when it was plunged into a full-scale war with the Tigers following signing of the India-Sri Lanka accord and deploying of the Indian peacekeeping force, has now been notably cautious in responding to overtures by Rajapakse’s government for direct involvement in the present peace vacuum in the country.
Dr John Gunaratne, head of the government peace secretariat in Colombo, admitted that India ‘for a variety of reasons’ has preferred not to take on an ‘increased profile’ in Sri Lanka’s peace quest.
“Since India is a substantial donor the government of Sri Lanka has invited India to be a co-chair of the peace process. It is up to India to respond,” the peace secretariat chief said.
The present co-chairs are the European Union, United States, Japan and Norway.
The government peace secretariat chief added that the scheduled visit by President Mahinda Rajapakse to India later this month would pave the way for more discussions on how India could play a more dominant peace ushering role.
Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera who held talks with Indian Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh and Minister of State for External Affairs, E. Ahmed, in Delhi early this month, had affirmed that Sri Lanka would continue to apprise India on how the peace process could be made more effective.
Peace activists, while supporting an active Indian participation in the peace process say it is important that India is not portrayed by anti-peace elements in an ‘antagonistic’ perspective.
“Indian moral support is vital to the peace process. It is important that anti-peace elements do not portray the image of India as a pro-war antagonist,” Dr Jehan Perera, Media Director of the Colombo based peace lobby, the National Peace Council, observed.
