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LTTE to guide
TNA
LTTE Chief negotiator Anton Balasingham has declared that he intends
giving guidelines to the Tamil National Alliance parliamentarians
on conducting matters within parliament, a news report said.
Dr. Balasingham speaking at a ceremony in the Pudukuirrippu area
said that the TNA parliamentarians had been invited to meet the
LTTE leadership next week where the guidelines would be spelt out
to them, the Tamil daily Thinakural said,
He said they were giving the guidelines as the TNA had accepted
the LTTE as the sole representatives of the Tamils. He said the
guidelines would be given keeping with the policies of the LTTE.
Dr. Balasingham said that in the coming weeks he hoped to invite
parliamentarians representing the upcountry Tamils as well and thereafter
Muslim parliamentarians.
TULF and TNA leader M. Sivasithamparam declined to comment on Dr.
Balasingham's statement without verifying the accuracy of the Thinakural
report.
Meanwhile a meeting between LTTE leader Veluppillai Prabhakaran
and Tamil politicians has been put off for Friday, Tamil National
Alliance sources said yesterday.
The meeting was earlier scheduled to be held on Thursday but was
put off after some Tamil MPs pointed out that their presence in
parliament was necessary during the vote on third reading of the
UNF government's first budget, the sources said.
Though Tamil MPs of the TNA were willing to attend the meeting,
other Tamil politicians had different views on the LTTE leader's
invitation. Former Northeast Chief Minister Varatharaja Perumal
said the meeting could be an important one for the TNA which had
endorsed the LTTE's leadership, but it need not be so for the EPRLF
faction he leads.
Commenting on the peace process, Mr. Perumal said it was a hunt
for peace without democracy, but his party would agitate for peace
with democracy.
EPDP spokesman S. Sivathasan said his party did not accept the LTTE
as the sole representative of the Tamil people.
"We have not received an invitation so far. Even if we do,
we will not attend the meeting. The EPDP is an independent party
and we have the right to work for the people. Mr. Prabhakaran cannot
dictate terms to us," Mr. Sivathasan said.
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