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| Sunday, 21 August 2005 |
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Features |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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Tsunami diverted rebels to democracy by Rashomi Silva Tsunami, one of the worst natural disasters in living memory, that claimed over 200,000 lives in South Asia and South East Asia became a blessing in disguise to the conflict ridden Indonesia, when the calamity provided a golden bridge for the Free Aceh rebels popularly known as GAM to revert to the path of democracy. According to media reports GAM who had been fighting for a separate Islamic state in the Northernmost tip of Sumatra, sealed a peace pact with the Indonesian government early last week with blessings from the international community. If the agreement worked well, Free Aceh Rebels who had been fighting the government for the past thirty years would be allowed to contest in upcoming local elections scheduled next year. This was in a sharp contrast to the Sri Lankan situation where just few months after the natural disaster even the very existence of the Ceasefire Agreement was challenged with the assassination of the country's deeply respected Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar. The killing despite the LTTE's clumsy denial bore all the hallmarks of the LTTE. Whilst it is too early to be too optimistic about the Indonesian peace deal, it is safe to say that the Indonesian government and the rebels were prompt to grab the opportunity that emerged as a silver lining in the tsunami dark cloud. GAM who were militarily weakened due to dissidents within the outfit, tsunami disaster and series of military setbacks against the Indonesian government troops responded positively to the government call for peace and agreed to lay down arms within period of three months. In another example of displaying solidarity in the face of national disaster, the Irish Republican Army. (IRA) laid down weapons after the London 7/7 underground attack, In both cases the message was clear. 'Let us be united and face the challenges'. There are enough food for thought for the LTTE, if they are as genuine as they claim about achieving a peaceful solution to the bloody ethnic war that took over 60,000 precious Sri Lankan lives. Like the GAM, the LTTE too was badly affected by tsunami. Internal dissidents, added to the no-war situation in the North-East had an impact on the morale among the cadre ranks, making it difficult, if not impossible to wage another war. But unlike the GAM who responded positively to the government call for peace, the LTTE just few months after tsunami disaster jeopardized the fragile peace bid with series of killings. Their most valued trophy was the assassination of Lakshman Kadirgamar, a champion against terrorism. While claiming that they were totally committed to peace they did target a man who had been actively campaigning for a peaceful solution. For the last three and half years the LTTE with over 3000 cease-fire violations under its belt kept security forces on their toes. But this time it was far too serious to term it a ceasefire violation. There is no debate that the peace process should be continued despite the killing. We could honour the slain Minister's memory only if we take forward his mission of bringing peace to his motherland, but it is also equally important to take concrete measures to punish those who are responsible for this act of terrorism. As experience had shown us allowing the first act of horror go unnoticed is encouraging thousand more to follow. Perhaps it was not just rhetoric when the international community said that perpetrators be brought to justice whilst keeping the Sri Lankan peace process on track, at least let us hope so. President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga had pledged to keep the CFA and to continue with the peace process despite the assassination. However President Kumaratunga in her address to the nation shed more light into our own weakness before laying the blame on someone else's doorstep. In no uncertain terms she said that the extremist elements within the Southern polity were also responsible in an indirect manner for the killing of the Foreign Minister, at a moment when country needed him most. The challenging the P-TOMS, opposition to have any kind of communication with the LTTE and the defiance by the Southern extremists to budge a single inch from their hard stance had not only hardened the LTTE stance but had also given an excuse to the LTTE to revert to a path of violence. All in all we could perhaps say that it is our own miscalculation and
mishandling of opportunities, that kept us far away from the light at the
end of the tunnel. |
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