Talks with all parties a must, says EPDP

By Nirupama Subramanian

COLOMBO, NOV. 2. The Eelam People's Democratic Party (EPDP) said today that a political solution to the ethnic conflict had to emerge from discussions with all parties concerned and not just the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).

The EPDP leader, Mr. Douglas Devananda, who is also the Minister for Rehabilitation and Reconstruction of the North, told presspersons that the only democratic method to arrive at a political solution was for all Tamil parties to be involved in talks with the Government. ``Talks on stopping the war can be held only with the LTTE, but everybody has to participate in finding a political solution to the conflict.''

The EPDP, a former Tamil militant group, is a constituent of the ruling coalition. It won four seats in the Jaffna peninsula in the last elections while the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) got three, the All Ceylon Tamil Congress (ACTC) one and the United National Party one.

This time, it is pitted against the four-party alliance of the TULF, the Tamil Eelam Liberation Organisation (TELO), the ACTC and Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front (Suresh). The alliance is contesting on an unabashedly pro-LTTE platform and has nominated the militant group as the only party with which the Government can hold talks for the resolution of the conflict.

Mr. Devananda said the goal of the EPDP was to work towards the development and reconstruction of the war-ravaged Jaffna peninsula and a just political solution in tune with Tamil aspirations. Governmental authority and power were essential for anyone who wanted to do good for the people of Jaffna, and the EPDP had chosen this path, Mr. Devananda, who has escaped several attempts on his life by the LTTE, said.

Skirting a question on whether his party would support the UNP if the latter won enough seats to form the government, he said they would decide on the course of action only if such a situation arose. He described the alliance as ``opportunistic'' and said it was powered by the fear of the LTTE on the one hand and the EPDP's growing popularity on the other.

Minister held

The Deputy Minister for Ports, Mr. Reggie Ranatunga, was arrested today in connection with the death of an UNP activist. The Minister, father of the former cricket captain, Arjuna Ranatunga, is alleged to have led the assault on the activist which ultimately caused his death.

Mr. Ranatunga was produced in court following the assault and was released on bail, but a warrant for his arrest was issued on Thursday after the victim's death.

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Section  : International
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