NEWS

LTTE prepares delegation for talks

Preparations for the proposed Norwegian facilitated peace talks between the Sri Lankan government and the Liberation Tigers in Thailand next month continued this week, with delegations being organized and the venue being prepared.

The LTTE will be sending a four person delegation led by its chief negotiator and political advisor, Mr. Anton Balasingham, to the 3-day negotiations scheduled to begin on September 16, LTTE sources told Tamil Guardian Monday. The other members of the delegation will be Mr. V. Rudrakumar, the LTTE's legal advisor, Dr. Jay Maheswaran, a rehabilitation and development expert and Mrs. Adele Balasingham, who will function as secretary, the sources said.

The Sri Lankan government has not formally announced its delegation either, but it is widely expected that it will be lead by Sri Lanka's Constitutional Affairs Minister, Prof. G. L. Peiris and will include Economic Reforms Minister Milinda Moragoda and Mr. Bernard Gunatillake, Secretary General of the Peace Secretariat.

Diplomatic sources told journalists in Colombo the venue for talks had been decided on, but in deference to Norwegian wishes, refused to disclose details except to say it will be 'close to Bangkok.' The Thai government was preparing the venue ahead of the delegations' arrivals, they said.

Describing the September talks as 'a preliminary round,' LTTE sources said the historic event would beg-in with opening statements to the press by the chief negotiators of both parties. Officials of Norway, the facilitator of the talks, and Thailand, the host, would also make opening statements to the press. Thereafter, the negotiation teams and the Norwegian facilitators would sit down behind closed doors, the sources said.

The talks would focus on the "urgent existential problems of the people of the north and east," the sources told Tamil Guardian. The matters would include the resettlement and rehabilitation of the large numbers of internally displaced people, the release of political detainees and demilitarization of high security zones in the Tamil areas.

Matters like the interim administration for the north and east would be taken up at the second and subsequent sessions, the sources said.
With France last week joining the United States, Britain, Japan and the European Union in welcoming the announcement of the talks, there is mounting optimism, diplomatic sources in Colombo told reporters. "Both sides are prepared to do what is necessary to keep the dialogue non-problematic and constructive," the sources said.

Meanwhile, in a goodwill gesture amid the preparations for talks, the Sri Lankan military and the Liberation Tigers are to exchange prisoners this Saturday, LTTE sources. The event, scheduled to be held on the frontline north of Vavuniya, is expected to be attended by senior military commanders from both sides.

Sri Lanka to lift LTTE ban on September 6

The Sri Lankan government said Sunday it will de-proscribe the Liberation Tigers on September 6, ten days before direct talks between both sides commences, press reports said. On Saturday, Defence Minister Tilak Marapone met with members of the Buddhist clergy to discuss the issue and later told reporters that the Tigers would be made legal.

Speaking to Tamil Guardian Monday, LTTE officials welcomed the government's decision. Responding to Sri Lanka press reports that the ban will only be lifted for one month, the officials said a time-bound de-proscription was "unacceptable."

Meanwhile Sinhala hardliners this week vowed to protest the lifting of the ban on the LTTE. The Sihala Urumaya described the government move as a "betrayal" and said it would launch protests to prevent the administration lifting the ban. "We are planning to have a united effort to sabotage the government's efforts," Sinhaya Urumaya leader Tilak Karunaratne said.

There was no immediate reaction from the Janatha Vimukthi Perumana (JVP) to Sunday's announcement by the government, but the Marxist party has said it will oppose moves to lift the banning order on the LTTE.

Sri Lanka seeks $500m for Tamil areas

Sri Lanka will appeal to international donors for much of the $500 million it needs over the next five years to rebuild its war-shattered north, cabinet minister Jayalath Jayawardena said on Monday.

Jayawardena, Minister of Rehabilitation, Resettlement and Refugees, told Reuters in an interview the investment would depend on the progress of peace talks aimed at ending two decades of ethnic conflict.

Jayawardena said the Tamil north an east needed large amounts of aid to make up for two decades of underinvestment. "We are starting from zero. As far as we are concerned the province is totally devastated," he said.

"No proper development has been done in the northern province for the last 20 years. Now we are in a position to assess what their needs and priorities are.”
Jayawardena said the $500 million figure was a target. Much of it would have to come from international donors because of the difficulties of the cash-strapped government, which saw its economy grow just 0.1% in the first quarter this year. He said even though the cease-fire was in place, investors and donors had been hesitant to invest in the north -- the Jaffna peninsula and the Tamil Tiger-controlled Vann - until the peace process was more firmly rooted. "It is in the pipeline with the peace process. There were delays, but at least now it has started and I hope that within a short period of time they (donors) will be convinced," he said.

On Monday, a special team of development experts and bank officials flew to Kilinochchi in a special Sri Lanka Air Force helicopter Monday to hold talks with the leadership of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam on development relate matters.

Mr. Bernard Gunatillake, Secretary General of the Peace Secretariat, which comes under the direct supervision of the Prime Minister, led the special team, which consisted of four officials from government and private-financial institutions, including two representatives from the Japan Bank for International Cooperation, one from the National Development Bank and another from the Janasaviya Trust Fund, Ambassador Gunatillake told the Daily News.

The talks "went on quite well," Gunatillake told the Associated Press after returning to Colombo following the one-day meeting. He said the government and representatives of several private banks, including a Japanese one, made proposals on what they could do to develop the area. He did not give details.

The discussion between the government special team and the LTTE leadership focused on issues that were agreed last Friday, in the first round of talks held between Mr. Bernard Gunatillake and Mr. S. P. Thamilselvan, the Head of the LTTE's political wing. Reconstruction of road networks, irrigation projects and the rejuvenation of agriculture and fisheries in the region have been discussed at the meeting which lasted two and a half hours.

Several matters including allocation of funds to the Northeast development and rehabilitation were discussed during the first round of talks held last week. The Japanese Ambassador had earlier visited the Vanni and held discussions with the LTTE regarding the reconstruction of the northeast.

Jayawardena said some 800,000 people were categorized as internally displaced and at least three million had been affected by the fighting in the north. "The first thing is humanitarian emergencies such as food, water and shelter. De-mining is also an immediate priority," he said.

Protests after Navy assaults civilians

The vicious assault by Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) personnel on Tamil civilians in Naranthanai last week has created outrage amongst the general public, Tamil press reports said. This week Ta-mil MPs and the Liberation Tigers' political section in Jaffna registered strong protests with international monitors. Plans for a demonstration campaign by civil society groups is pending the outcome of assurance by the SLN of an investigation.

Navy personnel in civilian clothing had attacked people at the Coconut and Palmyra Development Cooperative Union's (CPDCU) offices in Naranthanai. One staff member had been kicked around 'like football.' Customers were also indiscriminately attacked. An elderly man was beaten up and thrown into a well. He was later rescued by the public.

The victims went to the LTTE's political office in the region and described the attack, showing the injuries they sustained.