Advancing the peace search

PRESIDENT Mahinda Rajapakse's broad approach to ending our conflict seems to have won the day with almost every democratically - oriented political party endorsing the continuation of the negotiatory process.

Accordingly, whatever reservations anyone may have about the final outcome of the Geneva ceasefire talks, the consensus across the wide spectrum of political opinion is that State - LTTE talks should continue, with the upcoming mid - April talks too coming in for full acceptance.

However, if the process of reaching a national consensus on resolving the conflict is to be further upgraded, it is vitally important that all sections of relevant opinion constantly interact with the State and help out actively in the task of formulating a broad consensus.

This is the reason why all political parties need to seriously consider President Rajapakse's request that they engage in monitoring the negotiations.

This will certainly help in consensual decision - making because no relevant voice in the peace - making context would go unheeded.

Such modalities would help in not only making the negotiatory process a highly inclusive and broad-based one but a lucidly transparent exercise too.

As frequently pointed out, the several rounds of negotiations conducted under the UNF administration, failed on these two counts-inclusivity and transparency.

The non-inclusion of important stakeholders in the peace process, such as the then President of the country and opposition political parties, coupled with the fact that the talks were kept mostly under wraps, hindered the emergence of a national consensus on resolving the conflict.

Hence it is small wonder that the negotiatory process proved a highly troubled one from the start. President Rajapakse's approach of having a wide consultative process through the all party talks mechanism, helps in obviating these difficulties.

This accounts for the wide public endorsement of the Geneva process. While constant consultations with political actors is sound peace strategy, we hope that an effort would also be made to sound out people's views on ways of taking the negotiatory process forward.

If it is a Southern consensus that we are after, then there is no escaping the need to consult the people too.

As a general precaution, the State would do well to base the negotiatory process on the points on which near consensus has been already achieved; such as the need to engage the LTTE and the requirement that a political solution be found.

In the days ahead, the negotiatory process would need to base itself firmly on these consensual points. Besides, the sides to the conflict should agree on a series of confidence building measures which would facilitate the search for a negotiated solution.

It would be a wasteful exercise for the negotiating partners to fasten their attention on divisive issues which would trammel the search for peace and not advance it.