Next round of Geneva talks may be critical

The first round of talks between Lankan Govt and the LTTE was admittedly tough, writes PK Balachandran.

The first round of talks between the Mahinda Rajapaksa government and the LTTE, held in Geneva on February 22 and 23, was admittedly tough.

But the next round, to be held from April 19 to 21, could be tougher.

Firstly, some of the most ticklish issues in the 2002 Ceasefire Agreement (CFA), such as those relating to "normalisation of life" in the war-affected North Eastern Province (NEP), will be coming for discussion.

The attitude that the two sides show during the April talks may have an impact on the entire talks process or the peace process.

Secondly, there is the implementation of the CFA as per the agreement reached at Geneva.

Events between now and mid-April in regard to the implementation of the CFA are going to shape the future course, even determine if the April round will be held at all.

Thirdly, what happens in the political field in the Sinhala South as well as the Tamil-speaking North East in the coming month-and-a-half, will impinge on the talks.

The LTTE would expect the government to implement its February 23 undertaking to disarm the "Tamil paramilitary groups" including the Karuna group, a breakaway group of the LTTE which is the most troublesome of the lot.

The LTTE would expect attacks on its cadres and Tamil civilians to stop.

The government, on its part, would expect the LTTE to carry out its promise not to attack personnel of the armed forces and the police.

The killing and abduction of civilians, and the recruitment of children, would also have to end, or be drastically reduced.

The government as well as the LTTE would have to keep the people, who they are in charge of, and the personnel they command, on the peace track.

If a mood of confrontation is built up and the stress is on contentious issues rather than finding common ground, the April talks would be bumpy and the talks process itself could get derailed.

Issues in normalisation

The LTTE's chief negotiator, Anton Balasingham, has given a clear idea of what one might expect from the LTTE in the next round.

In an interview to The Sunday Leader immediately after the Geneva talks, he said: " Second time (in the second round) we are going to take up the issue of High Security Zones. It is a very sensitive and critical issue because it is concerning the security of your country and your military in the north-east, and as far as we are concerned, it is fundamentally a humanitarian problem."

"Thousands and thousands of people were thrown out of their houses, their villages and their farmlands, and are languishing in refugee camps. So, this is a very important problem. For the last 10-15 years people are suffering."

"Time has come for the government to take some action because we will definitely come out with some proposals for the government."

"We are not asking the government to withdraw its troops from the north-east. At least there must be some re-location of these camps to enable, and facilitate, these people (the refugees) to go back."

Balasingham then referred to another key military cum humanitarian issue, namely the fishing rights of Tamil civilians in the North East.

The 2002 CFA's stipulations regarding fishing rights had not been met by the Sri Lankan government and the armed forces in their entirety.

This was partly because of continuing tension, and partly because of an inherent lack of faith in the CFA and the LTTE.

The government is bound to have difficulty in meeting the LTTE's demands as regards the High Security Zones (HSZ) in the Jaffna peninsula because strategically vital military installations like the Palaly airport and the Kankesanthurai harbour are in the HSZ.

Large areas had to be cordoned off and designated as HSZ also because the LTTE had acquired long-range artillery.

During the earlier peace process in Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe's time, the government had invited a retired Indian General, Satish Nambiar, to advice on what to do about the HSZ.

Nambiar recommended that in the first phase, the HSZ in some areas could be dismantled.

In the second phase, the reduction of the HSZ around Palaly airport and Kankesanthurai harbour could be examined in the light of perimeter security.

Nambiar suggested that in return for the government forces' reducing the HSZ in these vital areas, the LTTE should dismantle some of its military positions, remove its long-range artillery further away, and put them under international monitoring.

The government had to shelve the Nambiar report because the LTTE trashed it. Any negotiations on the HSZ in April will have to tackle the same issues.

The two sides may also quarrel over the number of civilians affected by the existence of the HSZ.

The LTTE puts the figure at 30,000, while the government says that only about 10,000 are involved.