PA-JVP pact a blow to peace: LTTE

By Nirupama Subramanian

COLOMBO, SEPT. 11. The LTTE representative in London, Mr. Anton Balasingham, has described the People's Alliance Government's survival deal with the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna as a ``serious blow'' to peace in Sri Lanka.

``Is there any meaning in entering into a peace process if we cannot discuss any proposals for a negotiated settlement?,'' Mr. Balasingham asked referring to the JVP's condition on the Government that proposals for devolution had to be frozen for a year, in an interview to the London-based journal, Tamil Guardian, reproduced on the TamilNet website.

He dismissed declarations by the President, Ms. Chandrika Kumaratunga, and the Foreign Minister, Mr. Lakshman Kadirgamar, that the peace process would be unaffected by the pact.

``The truth is that the PA-JVP agreement has made the peace talks an impossible task. The utterances made by the President and by the Foreign Minister are simply propaganda stuff intended for the consumption of international Governments who are disillusioned with the unholy matrimony (of the two parties),'' he said.

His remarks came as a newspaper here reported that Mr. Kadirgamar, held discussions with the Norwegian envoy, Mr. Jon Westborg, and speculated that the two might have talked about a recent Government announcement that it was considering the possibility of inviting the LTTE for talks.

The Government has also said that before talks, it is prepared to declare a ``mutually agreed'' temporary cessation of hostilities and alleviate conditions for civilians in LTTE-held conflict zones.

Mr. Kadrigamar said in an interview to State TV last week that the Government was exploring ways to revive the Norwegian process for starting peace talks with the LTTE which has remained deadlocked since May.

But Mr. Balasingham, in his interview, said that the process could not be resurrected unless Sri Lanka reinstated Mr. Erik Solheim as the chief Norwegian facilitator and lifted the ban on the LTTE, as well as took ``measures to annul'' the clause in the PA-JVP agreement that forbids the Government from bringing in devolution proposals for a year.

He said if the Government was sincere about talks, it must do all of this and create conditions of normality in the Tamil homeland for ``a specific period'' by totally lifting the economic embargo on LTTE-held areas.

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Section  : International
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