Speeding-up a solution
In a most timely pronouncement, Foreign Minister Rohitha
Bogollagama has told US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice that the
State remains committed to a negotiated solution to our conflict.
The Foreign Minister explained that the current military operations
in Eastern Sri Lanka are undertaken with the aim of preventing the LTTE
from taking military advantage under cover of the CFA. Besides, they are
also aimed at convincing the Tigers that they cannot succeed in
exercising the military option to the conflict.
Thus the Foreign Minister has succeeded in focusing on the
complementary roles played by the political and military approaches in
defusing the conflict. The State is not relying absolutely and wholly on
the military approach, although this has its uses in preventing the LTTE
from abusing the CFA. Instead, it would be using limited military
operations to hold the LTTE in check while it evolves a political
solution to the conflict.
The political solution assumes centrality in the State’s conflict
resolution exercise because it knows fully well that the conflict could
never be resolved satisfactorily until the legitimate needs and
aspirations of our communities are met.
Therefore, there is no escaping the need to swiftly evolve a
political solution to our conflict and the majority of the public are
certain to have been relieved on hearing the Foreign Minister himself
say that a political solution would be finalised within the next few
weeks.
That said, there is no escaping the need to convince the Tigers that
there is simply no possibility of achieving a military victory against
the Security Forces in the battlefield. A number one world power, such
as the US, would need no extra convincing on this score.
It stands to reason that a solution needs to have both a political
and a military component. If the Tigers are not convinced that they are
up against a no-win situation in the battlefield, they are unlikely to
give the political solution a try. This is the reason why limited
military operations against the LTTE are necessary. They need to
experience the futility of relying on the military option.
Meanwhile, there is much the world community could do to speed-up the
peace process here. As indicated by Minister Bogollagama, the US, and by
extension the West, could do much by way of blunting the military muscle
of the Tigers. They could crack down hard on LTTE front organisations,
for example, which play a principal role in raising funds for the Tigers
and, consequently, help in sustaining their military capability.
This is a task for not only the US. The West as a whole should take
it on itself to crack the whip on the LTTE and its front organisations
on their soil. It is plain to see that the military arsenals of the
Tigers are being regularly replenished. For example, shiploads of LTTE
arms are being destroyed by the Navy. This points to efforts at a steady
strengthening of the Tigers’ military capability.
The world needs to act more toughly and concertedly to blunt the
military capability of the LTTE. Meanwhile, the State should evolve the
intended political solution to our conflict with the utmost urgency. |
Icing terrorism with human rights
Human rights have to be safeguarded whether in
Sri Lanka, in Iraq, in Afghanistan or in Sudan. It is the duty of
the state concerned. But is it justifiable to shout only when one
party violates human rights while keeping silent when the same is
done by the other party?
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Terror from the Deep Blue
“The sea is a dark area of India’s intelligence
gathering system. It did not get a priority because our
bread-and-butter was something else,” said MK Dhar, former joint
director of the Intelligence Bureau. “You can’t make sense of
coastal security when the logistics are almost non-existent.”
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With peace, Nepal’s movie industry plans to revamp
“Kollywood,” the nickname given to Nepal’s
fledgling movie industry, is planning a major revival in the wake of
a peace deal that has brought renewed national hope and calls for
home-grown films including stories by former Maoist rebels.
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