Minister meets LTTE cadres

By Nirupama Subramanian

COLOMBO, AUG. 14. A senior Minister met LTTE cadres in northern Sri Lanka on Monday, the first contact between the Government and the rebel group in many years.

``I met and spoke to LTTE cadres. They were not senior people, they were local leaders, they were all heavily armed and they gave me full protection,'' the Minister for Aviation, Mr. Jeyaraj Fernandopulle, told The Hindu.

Mr. Fernandopulle, who took additional charge as Minister for Christian Affairs last week, said he crossed military lines into LTTE-controlled territory on a pilgrimage to the Christian shrine of Madhu.

The LTTE cadres arrived in four motorcycles and two cars with `Tamil Eelam' number plates and escorted him during the pilgrimage.

Mr. Fernandopulle said the cadres told him that they had lost faith in the Government and blamed it for not negotiating with the LTTE. ``I asked them how a Government could negotiate with anyone asking for separation,'' the Minister said. ``They told me they do not want separation, they only want to live like the Sinhalese in Sri Lanka,'' he said.

When Mr. Fernandopulle asked them how the Government could be sure this was also the view of the top leaders, the cadres said it was, and invited him to visit them.

``I have told them I will do so. That way, at least I can put the foundation for a peace process. They say they have no faith in us, so we must take steps to build confidence,'' he said.

The Minister said he would brief the President, Ms. Chandrika Kumaratunga, and his colleagues on his visit when the Cabinet meets.

The Government is in a battle for its survival at the moment and has all but shelved the Norwegian-assisted process for peace talks with the LTTE.

The LTTE last month carried out a suicide attack on Sri Lanka's main air-base and the airport, and the as Aviation Minister, Mr. Fernandopulle was one of the first members of the Government on the scene.

The Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna, with whom Ms. Kumaratunga has been in talks for one-year conditional support to her Government, has said one of its conditions is that the Government should not pursue talks with the LTTE during this period.

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Section  : International
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