The Hindu : PA's charge against Norwegian envoy

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Nov 16, 2002

International

International

PA's charge against Norwegian envoy

By V.S. Sambandan

COLOMBO. Nov. 15. Fifteen years after the then Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, J.N. Dixit, was criticised by the then opposition party as an Indian "viceroy" in the island, the present Opposition, People's Alliance (PA) today alleged that Jon Westborg, Ambassador of Norway, was behaving like a "viceroy".

Objecting to a comment attributed to Mr. Westborg that the recent Colombo High Court verdict, sentencing the LTTE leader, V. Prabakaran, to a 200-year jail term, could have "torpedoed" the peace process, the Opposition Whip, Mangala Samaraweera, said at a press conference that the Ambassador should "stop behaving as if he is the Viceroy of Sri Lanka".

India's attempts to find a solution to Sri Lanka's ethnic crisis came under sharp criticism from the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), especially after the1987 Indo-Sri Lanka Accord and the induction of the Indian Peace Keeping Forces.

The SLFP (an earlier version of the PA), which was the Opposition party then, was against Indian "interference" in Sri Lanka.

Mr. Dixit was criticised by the party as adopting the attitude of a "viceroy".

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