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South Asia Analysis Group

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Note No. 169

12. 12. 2002

 

Sri Lanka: Third round of talks brings a surprise: Update 40.

by Dr. S. Chandrasekharan

It has become customary for the media and the analysts to detect "breakthroughs" after every round of talks between the LTTE and the Sri Lankan government and the third round of talks is no exception. The fact that the LTTE agreed to look for a federal structure within a United Sri Lanka has been welcomed and hailed as a break through.

The LTTE’s position was made out by the leader Prabakaran in his Heroes’ day speech this year that they are willing to favourably consider any proposal of self rule and regional autonomy and if denied there will be no alternative but to go for secession. ( see update 39). Earlier also the standard position of LTTE had been that if there is an alternative model to meet the just aspirations of the Tamil people they will go along with such a proposal.

The three principles of Thimpu reiterated by Prabakaran was also clarified in detail by Anton Balasingham in his interview with Tamil guardian of London on June 4, 2002. He said- we quote "We hold the view that the Tamils have the right to both internal and external aspects of self determination. The Tamils would examine a proposal for a fully autonomous Tamil homeland with a system of self government in realisation of their inalienable right to self determination. But if Sri Lanka denies the right to internal self determination and continues to subject the Tamils to genocidal oppression they will certainly attempt to realise it externally by struggling for secession, political independence and statehood."

In the press conference on the first day of talks this time, Balasingham reiterated the Thimpu position that the Tamils are a nation of people, having a distinct language culture, history, a contiguous territory and the consciousness of a national identity.

This position may therefore be read with the official statement of the Royal Norwegian Government on 5 December (Appendix I), where in response to the proposal of LTTE leadership the parties agreed to explore a solution founded on the principle of self determination in areas of historical habitation of the Tamil-speaking peoples, based on the federal structure within a United Sri Lanka. The sentence following this is of equal significance that the solution has to be acceptable to all communities. Here is an exit route for the majority Sinhala community.

The real surprise is that the Sri Lankan government has at last realised that nothing short of a radical departure from the present constitutional dispensation would satisfy the Tamils. Until recently the term "federal" was a bad word in Sri Lankan government lexicon and the fact that the government has formally agreed to consider a federal structure as a solution to the ethnic strife is a major surprise. Earlier pacts later reneged by the Sri Lankan government like the Bandaranaike-Chelvanayakam Pact of 1957 and that of the Dudley-Chelvanayagam Pact of 1965 had elements of federalism. ( Appendix II & Appendix III).

But what the LTTE is looking for is not clear yet, but it can be surmised that it has to take into account the ground realities when the LTTE is in full control of a large territory occupied by the Tamils. After the conclusion of the talks, the LTTE delegation flew to Berne, Switzerland and discussed with senior Swiss officials the Swiss model of federalism. A team of Canadian experts met the LTTE delegation before the talks began and explained the Canadian political structure and the position of French-speaking Quebec Province. In fact, to one of the questions from the media, Balasingham is said to have shown his interest in the Quebec system which has the right for internal and external self determination. (Tamil net of 5 December 2002). Another model which is likely to come up and discussed at length by the Tamil groups earlier is the Cyprus model. A solution to the Cyprus situation is now being discussed by the international community on the basis of "one common country and two components."

Other issues of importance relating to the talks were

* The LTTE brought up the issue of High Security zones in Jaffna Peninsula and the presence of a large number of troops. The Sri Lankan government promised to take remedial measures soon.

* The question of opening of police stations and courts by the LTTE came up for discussion. The position of LTTE was that they were opening Police stations and Courts only in areas under their control and this has been going on for the last twelve years. While the area under control of the LTTE in the north is clearly defined by the line of bunkers on both sides, in the east there is no such delineation and this is where the LTTE has opened two stations recently. There is an assurance from the LTTE side in the communique issued by the Norwegian government that their law and order mechanisms will not be extended beyond the areas dominated by them. Balasingham is reported to have opined (LTTE Tamil broadcast of 3^rd December) that there should be no objection when in any future setup, the Tamil Eelam Police and Justice departments will have to be formally recognised.

* A more delicate issue has been that of the situation in Delft island. Prior to the peace talks, the EPDP with the support of the Sri Lankan Government had full control of the island to the exclusion of other groups. Now the LTTE is making inroads into the island and the EPDP is under pressure from the civilian population. This was discussed by the two parties in the talks and the LTTE has again reiterated its readiness to accept the rights of political groups to carry out political work, including in the Jaffna peninsula and the islands, provided that they are unarmed, as stipulated by the Cease fire agreement. Delft appears to be test case as other Tamil Groups excluding the TNA are still not sure whether they will be allowed to operate politically not only in areas controlled by the Sri Lankan government but also in areas held by the LTTE.

* After a long time the Indian government formally responded to the ongoing peace talks. The statement issued by the India High Commission on the conclusion of the visit by the Foreign Secretary on 10^th December noted the positive signals emanating from the latest round of talks at Oslo and said "India supports a peaceful, negotiated settlement that meets the just aspirations of all elements of Sri Lanka society, besides ensuring that the principles of democracy, pluralism and human rights are respected on the ground." The latter part of the statement appears to be directed towards the LTTE.

* In a related development a delegation of the People’s Alliance (PA) led by Anura Bandaranaike visited New Delhi and besides meeting the officials called on the Prime minister. The delegation is said to have carried a letter from President Chandrika to Prime minister Vajpayee.

There is no doubt that there has been a forward move in the talks, but tough negotiations are likely when the core issues are to be discussed from the next round onwards.

Appendix I

Statement of the Royal Norwegian Government

Oslo, 5 December 2002

The third session of peace talks between the Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) was held in Oslo, Norway on 2 to 5 December 2002. In a frank, open and constructive manner, the parties focused on three major areas:
- Consolidation of the ceasefire
- Humanitarian and rehabilitation action
- Political matters

The parties agreed on a working outline defining the objective as well as a number of substantive political issues for negotiation.

Responding to a proposal by the leadership of the LTTE, the parties agreed to explore a solution founded on the principle of internal self-determination in areas of historical habitation of the Tamil-speaking peoples, based on a federal structure within a united Sri Lanka. The parties acknowledged that the solution has to be acceptable to all communities.

Guided by this objective, the parties agreed to initiate discussions on substantive political issues such as, but not limited to:

- Power-sharing between the centre and the region, as well as within the centre
- Geographical region
- Human Rights protection
- Political and administrative mechanism
- Public finance
- Law and order

The parties recognised that progress on political issues must be supported by the continued consolidation of the Ceasefire Agreement. New concrete measures will be taken to facilitate further de-escalation and to improve normalcy:

-The GOSL will shortly return one of the hotels in Jaffna to its original use

-The LTTE will ensure that all future transportation of area commanders will take place under the supervision of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM)

-The LTTE will accept the right of political groups to carry out political work, including in the Jaffna peninsula and the islands, provided that they are unarmed, as stipulated by the Ceasefire Agreement

-The GOSL will, in consultation with all relevant parties and groups, evolve a solution to the problems arising from recent developments in the Delft island-

-The parties will facilitate restoration and rehabilitation of places of worship in the north and the east belonging to all religious communities.

On the basis of their firm conviction that the maintenance of law and order in the north and east is of paramount importance, the parties agreed to request the Sub-Committee on De-escalation and Normalization to propose a common approach to settling cases involving the disputed use of private property, where such use has been impeded by the conflict. Furthermore, the LTTE will ensure that the activities of their law and order mechanisms will not be extended beyond the areas dominated by the LTTE.

The parties strongly underlined the need to move rapidly on humanitarian and rehabilitation efforts in the north and east. For this purpose, the early establishment of the North-East Reconstruction Fund will be critical. The parties agreed that the custodian of the fund should be selected and modalities for its operation agreed at the next meeting of the Sub-Committee on Immediate Humanitarian and Rehabilitation Needs. The parties expressed their appreciation of the strong support extended by several governments to the peace process at the Sri Lanka Support Meeting held in Oslo on 25 November, and urged these governments to rapidly release funds needed for humanitarian and rehabilitation efforts.

The parties acknowledged the need to ensure that the priorities and needs of women are taken into account in all aspects of the peace process. To this effect, they agreed to establish a permanent advisory committee which will, on a regular basis, submit proposals relating to women’s interests to the sessions of negotiations and to the sub-committees of the peace process. The committee will consist of four representatives of each party.

As a priority area identified by the parties for humanitarian action, the parties stressed the need to improve the situation for children affected by armed conflict. Inspired by the international norms protecting the rights of the child, the parties underlined that children belong with their families or other custodians and not in the workplace, whether civilian or military. The LTTE will engage in a partnership with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to draw up an action plan for restoring normalcy to the lives of children, and the parties called on the international community to provide financial support for such an action plan.

The GOSL will, in order to arrive at the broadest possible consensus, establish an appropriate mechanism for consultation with all segments of opinion as part of the ongoing peace process

Appendix II

Bandaranaike – Chelvanayakam Pact of 1957

Part A
Representatives of the Federal Party had a series of discussions with the Prime Minister in an effort to resolve the differences of opinion that had been growing and creating tension.

At the early stages of these conversations it became evident that it was not possible for the Prime Minister to accede to some of the demands of the Federal Party.

The Prime Minister stated that, from the point of view of the Government, he was not in a position to discuss the setting up of a Federal Constitution, or regional autonomy or any step which would abrogate the Official Language Act.

The question then arose whether it was possible to explore the possibility of an adjustment without the Federal Party abandoning or surrendering any of its fundamental principles or objectives.

At this stage the Prime Minister suggested an examination of the government's Draft Regional Council Bill to see whether provisions can be made under it to meet, reasonably, some of the matters in this regard which the Federal Party had in view.

The agreements so reached are embodied in a separate document.

Regarding the language the Federal Party reiterated its stand for parity but in view of the position of the Prime Minister in this matter they came to an agreement by way of an adjustment. They pointed out that it was important for them that there would be a recognition of Tamil as a national language and that the administrative work in of the Northern and the Eastern Provinces should be done in Tamil.

The Prime Minister stated that as mentioned by him earlier it was not possible for him to take any steps that would abrogate the Official Language Act.

Use of tamil; After discussions it was agreed that the proposed legislation should contain recognition of Tamil as the language of a national minority of Ceylon and that the four points mentioned by Prime Minister should include provision that, without infringing on the position of the Official Language as such, the language of administration of the Northern And Eastern Provinces be Tamil, and any necessary provision be made
for non-Tamil speaking minorities in the Northern and Eastern Provinces.

Regarding the question of Ceylon citizenship for the people of Indian descent and the Citizenship Act, the representatives of the Federal Party forwarded their views to the Prime Minister and pressed for an early settlement.

The Prime Minister indicated that this problem would receive early consideration.

In view of these conclusions the Federal Party stated that they were withdrawing their proposed satyagraha.

Part B
1. Regional areas to be defined in the Bill itself by embodying them in the Schedule thereto.

2. That the Northern Province is to form one regional area whilst the Eastern Province is to be divided into one or more regional areas.

3. Provision is to be made in the Bill to enable two or more regions to amalgamate even beyond provincial limit; and for one region to divide itself subject to ratification by Parliament. Further provision is to be made in the Bill for two or more regions to collaborate for specific purposes of common interests.

DIRECT ELECTIONS
4. Provision is to be made for the direct election of Regional councillors. Provision is to be made for a delimitation commission or commissions for carving out electorates. The question of MPs representing districts falling within regional areas to be eligible to function as chairman is to be considered. The question of Government Agents being Regional Commissioners is to be considered. The question of supervisory functions over larger towns, strategic towns and municipalities is to be looked into.

SPECIAL POWERS
5. Parliament is to delegate powers and specify them in the Act. It was agreed that regional councils should have powers over specified subjects including agriculture, cooperatives, lands and land developments, colonization, education, health, industries, fisheries, housing, social services, electricity, water schemes and roads. Requisite definition of powers be made in the Bill

COLONIZATION SCHEMES
6. It was agreed that in the matter of colonization schemes the powers of the regional councils shall include the powers to select allottees to whom land within their area of authority shall be alienated and also power to select personnel to be employed for work on such schemes. The position regarding the area at present administered by the Gal Oya Board in this matter requires consideration.

TAXATION AND BORROWING
7. The powers in regard to the Regional councils vested in the Minister of Local Government in the draft bill to be revised with a view to vesting control in Parliament wherever necessary.

8. The Central Government will provide block grants to the regional councils. The principles on which the grants will be computed will be gone into. The regional councils shall have powers of taxation and borrowing.

Appendix III 

Dudley Senanayake - Chelvanayakam Pact of 1965

Mr. Dudley Senanayake and Mr. S. J. V. Chelvanayakam met on the 24-3-1965 and discussed matters relating to some problems over which the Tamil-speaking people were concerned, and Mr. Senanayake agreed that action on the following lines would be taken by him to ensure a stable government:

(1) Action will be taken early under the Tamil Language Special Provisions
Act to make provision of the Tamil Language to be the language of Administration and of Record
in the Northern and Eastern Provinces..

Mr. Senanayake explained that it was the policy of his party that a Tamil-speaking person should be entitled to transact business in Tamil throughout the island.

(2) Mr. Senanayake stated that it was the policy of his party to amend the Language of Courts Act to provide for legal proceedings in the Northern and Eastern Provinces to be conducted and recorded in Tamil.

(3) Action will be taken to establish District Councils in Ceylon vested with powers over subjects to be mutually agreed upon between two leaders. It was agreed, however, that the government should have power under the law to give directions to such councils under the national interest.

(4) The Land Development Ordinance will be amended to provide that citizens of Ceylon be entitled to the allotment of land under the Ordinance.

Mr. Senanayake further agreed that in the granting of land under colonization schemes the following priorities be observed in the Northern and Eastern provinces.

(a) Land in the Northern and Eastern provinces should in the first instance be granted to landless persons in the district.

(b) Secondly, to Tamil-speaking persons resident in the Northern and Eastern provinces.

(c) Thirdly, to other citizens in Ceylon, preference being given to Tamil residents in the rest of the island.

signed, Dudley Senanayake
24.3.65

signed, S.J.V. Chelvanayakam
24.3.65

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