FRONT PAGE
 NEWS .
 CLASSIFIED .
 DHAMMAWEB .
 SANDUN UYANA .
 ANTENNA .
 EVENTS DIARY .
 LONDON DIARY .
 FEATURES .
 LETTERS.

Unfortunately for the LTTE they have gone about their approach to peace in the land with too many ambiguities which have hardly shown any real sincerity towards a genuine desire for peace other than orchestrated theatrics which the UNF Government too have indulged in as the unravelling Peace Process full of contradictions have shown. All the while "The Phantom Of The Opera" languishes in the safety of the Wanni in feigned leadership substituted by a bungling sidekick!

The truism has never been more significant that Nationwide skepticism is ever increasing over the sudden softening of LTTE attituded from being a group of ruthless killers who spared no mercy at the best of times and are now transforming themselves and their stance into lambs of a different mentality and posing the ultimate challenge to anyone who wants to accept their approach and accommodate the needs of their community yet never dispelling the need to be cautious as their past track record looms uneasilty in the minds of the inhabitants of the Nation.

It is now upto the Administration, regardless of who it is, to convince the Nation of the sincerities of the LTTE which really is a hard sell as neither do they represent the entire Tamil Community and neither do they have the real credentials as they are represented by individuals who have incurred the wrath of the Nation in the past (although all smiles and handshakes at the present!) with double standards and their so called real leadership still in hiding in the jungles and afraid to come out into the open especially now that there is an added warrant by the High Court in addition to the existing international warrant out for his arrest.

If the Wickremasinghe Government really believes that they have transformed the idealogies of the LTTE sufficiently and completely as an entity to risk presenting them with an opportunity to enter mainstream politics they must be truly mistaken as they have not oveviewed the danger such a move would pose realistically to to the Nation as there still remains divisions within the LTTE in the North and North East running around, commiting attrocities (lower in key as they well might appear to be) yet until there is a signed treaty by the LTTE officially denouncing all their intentions towards secession, a complete de-comissioning of weaponry and indicating a willinness to be subject to the constitutionally installed laws of the land and be administered to by the Head of State there will never a lasting peace within the land.

The area of parellel autonomy for the North and North East administered by the LTTE being a misnomer within the fecund imaginary recesses of the G.L..Peiris / Balasingham Bandwagon which needs to be derailed is being blatantly explored notwithstanding the dire ramifications it presents not only to the Peace sought after but also to the entire Nation unsure of where it will all end up!

There ar far too many negative variables and inconsistencies displayed by the LTTE representation at the Peace Talks and to compound matters there is the Norwegian Government involvement which at times tends to be a spoke in the wheel rather than a lubricant towards its smooth circumvolutions and hence a deterrent rather than a facilitation.The Sri Lankan Government truly has an Everest to climb in order to appease its majority inhabitants together with the rest of the population and until the foremost of core issues relevant to Security, Territorial Integrity , Economy and Minority Rights are resolved (which cannot be with 'loosed tigers' running around at random) the norms of a lasting peace will be an eternal metaphor and unattainable.

Naturally one needs a degree of optimism towards the expectations of a lasting peace now that the once belligerent LTTE seem to have softened their stance whether in their best interests or not one is unsure, yet there remains a contingent of hope within the Nation that there has to be a degree of risk taking at present in accepting the LTTE's approach, the same attitude taken by the Prime Minister but there can be no room for regrets.The risks in short have to be calculated in favour of the Sinhala Nation synonymously incorporating its minorities.

The Sri Lankan Administration cannot overly compromise any areas of security through conciliations which may provide platforms to the LTTE and are faced with the tumultuous task of appeasing a population whose needs to reconstruct their lives have been imperative and desperate long before the Peace Accord was set in place and have no choice but to heed the wisdom of all National parties and forge ahead towards National Unity and the self preservation of a Unitary State.

To trust them (The LTTE ) implicitly and unconditionally would be suicidal (no pun intended), to attempt to rehabilitate their trend of destructive morals objectively an obligation and a dire need and to accomplish a lasting peace conducive towards a tranquil Sri Lanka the ultimate challenge!

The eternal question is! in the present unfolding of current events, would this be realistically possible?And rather than grope around in the dark towards a speculated peace, why not have it ratified on paper as a Signed Decree in a manner feasible to the entire Nation rather than a favoured few, some of whom have envisioned it as an escape route from their past sins!

There can be no theatrics or charades this time around towards the restoration of an embittered and embattled Sri Lanka to normalcy with so many tranquil and peace loving people and to hold the LTTE to their projected sincerities, likened to the recognition of 'tigers with changed stripes' and if this could be accomplished even to a degree by the Administration, it would have accomplished an incredulous victory.

This then is a realistic overview of a lasting peace which leaves much to chance along a very rugged path which nevertheless has to be pursued cautiously.

Copyright © 1997-2001www.lankaweb.Com Newspapers Ltd. All rights reserved.
Reproduction In Whole Or In Part Without Express Permission is Prohibited.