The Pooneryn Victory

The fall of Pooneryn a formidable bastion of the LTTE after 20 years can certainly be described as a prominent landmark in the Security Forces’ journey towards the total liberation of the North from the clutches of LTTE terrorism.

Saturday’s dawn seige of the strategic Sea Tiger bastion would certainly have dealt a body blow to the outfit’s fighting capability. Pooneryn is the latest in a string of hitherto ‘impregnable’ Tiger defences to fall into the hands of the troops underscoring the valour and resourcefulness of the Security Forces.

Its capture no doubt would make a severe dent on LTTE pride. Pooneryn was believed to be one of the Tiger strongholds considered impenetrable. That it could not defend this vital fortress from the Security Forces’ onslaught is a sure sign of the decay and disintegration of the LTTE as a fighting outfit.

The capture of Pooneryn no doubt is a tremendous morale booster to the Forces who now seem poised to go for the kill. They have succeeded in demolishing the myth of invincibility of the LTTE and shown all and sundry what could be achieved with proper military leadership and political direction.

It is this guidance that was woefully lacking in past military operations when our soldiers were infused with a defeatist mentality by the then powers that be with constant claims of the war being unwinnable.

Even military leaders who were supposed to give inspiration to the soldiers were of this mindset which impacted negatively on the troops. Earlier no wilful effort was made to go the whole hog following the capture of territory and the Forces were content to fighting a defensive war.

It is to the eternal credit of President Mahinda Rajapaksa that he dismantled this negative mindset of the soldiers and infused them with the courage and vigour by his positive guidance and leadership to take the battle to the enemy.

In this effort he was ably assisted by Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa and Army Commander Lt.Gen. Sarath Fonseka who did not flinch from the challenge and steered the war on the right course. To them the nation owes a debt of gratitude.

The capture of Pooneryn has crippled all vital LTTE supply lines via the sea and also neutralised all Sea Tiger bases. It is a huge strategic victory for the Security Forces and one which may prove catalytic to the ultimate victory. Perhaps the biggest gain is that now it is possible to open a land route to Jaffna via the A32, thus obviating the need to depend on costly sea and air supplies to the troops and the general population in the Jaffna population.

This achievement has also dealt a slap in the face of those whose constant refrain had been that the war is unwinnable. It has also given the lie to the claim by critics of the Government that it had abandoned all offensives caving into international pressure.

What more does the Government needs to prove and in any case, the Forces are already knocking on the gates of Kilinochchi and Mullaitivu, the other two Tiger strongholds. They will be regained soon. Similar claims were made by the UNP earlier like its attempts to belittle the capture of Thoppigala.

The UNP leader has now come to the standpoint that LTTE terrorism should be defeated, going by his speech made in Parliament during the current budget debate. It is gratifying to note that the Opposition Leader is on the same wavelength as the Government today.

Had this attitude prevailed in the past much head way would have been made by now in the fight against terrorism. This new stance however augurs well for a national consensus on the need to defeat terrorism. This may well be an ideal opportunity for both major parties to sink their differences and rally to the support of our soldiers.

This, while being a huge morale booster to the troops could also bring to a close the chapter of terrorism in this country that much expeditiously. It could also pave the way for a national consensus for an acceptable political package to the minorities.

The LTTE leader has only a few options left. He needs to realise the futility of holding out against the Security Forces juggernaut that is closing in on him. He would do well to harken to the call of the President and lay down arms and take up the offer of a negotiated settlement.

This is the only way he would be able to salvage the future of the Tamils whom he claims to represent. He should seize the opportunity fast because time is running out for him.