The Hindu : Sri Lankan military optimistic about peace talks

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Jan 02, 2003

International

International

Sri Lankan military optimistic about peace talks

By V.S. Sambandan

COLOMBO. JAN. 1. Sri Lanka's military leaders today struck a confident note that difficulties over de-escalation of the high security zones (HSZs) in the north will not affect the peace process and saw the possibility of the impasse being resolved through discussions with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) later this month.

"We hope that the peace effort succeeds'', the Commander of the Sri Lanka Army, Lionel Balagalle, told a press conference this morning. Holding the same view, the island's Defence Secretary, Austin Fernando, said he was "optimistic'' that the two sides "can discuss these matters and come to a compromise''.

The two sides will be meeting twice this month - first at the fourth session of peace talks in Thailand between January 6 and 11 and then at a meeting on January 14 between the military commanders of the two forces in the northern Jaffna peninsula called by the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission.

All through December, the SLA and the LTTE differed on the sensitive issue, with the former linking a rebel demand for relocation of high security zones to disarming by the Tigers.

Moreover, some headway is also on the cards after a high-profile visit by the three service commanders, the Defence Minister, the Defence Secretary and a key Cabinet Minister, Milinda Moragoda, to Jaffna on Tuesday.

According to indications, a compromise is likely to be worked out in at least two positions, where the army would "re-adjust'' its lines in two locations. Conceding that there were difficulties, Lt. Gen. Balagalle expressed confidence that "these can be ironed out.''

At the centre of the controversy is the rebel demand for de-escalation, particularly in the Valikamam sector, which has important strategic installations such as the Palaly airbase and the Kankesanthurai port.

Mr. Fernando, who heads the Sri Lankan Government's delegation at the sub-committee on de-escalation and normalisation (SDN), saw scope for negotiations based on the Government proposals. "I am a firm believer that every problem has a solution'', he said.

The SDN, formed in the second session of talks, was dismissed as ``irrelevant'' by the LTTE's chief negotiator, Anton Balasingham, a few days ago. Declining comment, Mr. Fernando said, "I am cool as ever. I have been optimistic all along and I am even now''.

Varying estimates

Differences on principles apart, estimates vary on the magnitude of the problem. Three different figures have been put forward to Mr. Fernando for the areas surrounding the Palaly HSZ alone: the Army's estimate of 7,200 to 8,000 houses, the figure given by the Government Agent (the equivalent to a District Collector) of 15,000 - 16,000 houses and the LTTE's version that there are 29,000 houses. Apart from the emotive issue of the number of persons displaced, the varying estimates have financial implications. The Defence Secretary also refuted a charge that the Government had given in to the rebel demands without gaining anything.

On issues such as the continued presence of the Eelam People's Democratic Party (EPDP), a former militant party opposed to the Tigers, permitting LTTE-registered vehicles into Government-held regions, the HSZs, among others "we have not given in'' he said.

Despite the confident positions held today, much of the progress of the peace process will depend on how the two sides reconcile to the sensitive issue of de-escalation in the discussions to be held during the month.

Political and military observers see a possible stalemate in the coming months, if not a collapse of the fragile peace, which has held for a year. The year 2002 also had just two military deaths — the least during the past 20 years: one from the Army, one from the Navy and none from the Air Force.

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