It seems that the Prime Minister is keen to play the role of unrepentant messiah, first attempting to usher in peace and then introducing an expensive electronic voting system to Parliament to restore legislators' collective conscience! Whilst technical problems plagued the House, Thursday saw an opposition attempt towards militant debating as the ceasefire agreement between the State and the LTTE was debated again. In contrast to the original debate moved by the JVP, this debate lacked lustre and somewhat superficial.

While many made glossy observations on the MoU, it was PA's Mangala Samaraweera who demanded responses to questions that plague the minds of the public. Charged with emotion, he thundered that people were clueless about the negotiations, accusing the MoU of being a mere blueprint for the establishment of a defacto Eelam. Finding fault with alleged LTTE attempts to equate Prabhakaran to Nelson Mandela, he said it was a joke to even consider, as Mandela was a man who had made numerous sacrifices for a righteous cause.

"This barbarian has sacrificed nothing to achieve peace. The SLFP reiterates that a claim for Eelam is non-negotiable but extensive power devolution within a 'united' Sri Lanka is acceptable." There should not be any de-proscription until talks achieve substantive progress and a permanent de-proscription if talks successfully end," he declared.

He added that the SLFP stood for the 1997 draft constitution which proposed the creation of a union of regions and stated that an interim administration should only be a stopgap, and one that should be essentially pluralistic in character. If Samaraweera's passionate claims reflected public trepidation about the ongoing process, Mahinda Rajapakse in contrast sounded somewhat muddled when he opened the debate. The opposition leader put his foot in the mouth, while expressing grave concerns about the process, also stated that the SLFP was opposed to an interim administration.

He noted with concern that over 300 violations of the MoU had been committed by the LTTE leading to questions on the validity of the effectiveness of the monitoring mission.
He alleged the LTTE was fortifying itself despite army presence and was preparing for war again."The LTTE recently assaulted an eastern based SLFP organiser, extorted his money because his son could not be conscripted," he charged.

Firing his salvos early morning was Nimal Siripala de Silva. He dubbed incumbent Premier as Don Juan Dharmapala of the present day, willing to sacrifice territorial integrity for a mess of pottage. Breathing fire, the burly MP thundered that a letter sent by 123 distinguished signatories including Bishop Desmond Tutu questioned the legitimacy of the peace process. "There were questions about the focus of the MoU and the sustainability of the accord. This letter has been carefully concealed from the public. The Amnesty International too recently condemned the LTTE's proscription of children," he said.

Adding that the PA had no wish to scuttle the peace process but to ensure that aspects of national security were not overlooked in the prevailing euphoria, he thundered that the LTTE had recently received massive supplies of arms by boats that had been apprehended by the Navy. He said the worst travesty was that the Defence Ministry concealed the truth from the world.

Prof. G.L. Peiris, the man who spearheaded the peace mission for the PA and today for the UNF was next. The law professor attempted to impress upon the members that their inability to conduct the census in the east proved that the writ of the government did not extend there.

" We cannot simply wish away this reality but should grapple with it. It is unfair to say that the government was turning a blind eye to the violations of the MoU by the LTTE. Whenever LTTE cadres roamed areas under government control, in uniform or with arms, they have been apprehended. Recently the Navy blew up an LTTE's arm-laden vessels.

"We don't condone atrocities nor are we lax about national security. This is why we wish to initiate a dialogue with the LTTE urgently," he said. Making his customary passion filled speech was JVP's Wimal Weerawansa who thundered that peace could not be a mere word, a piece of paper but a ground reality that has a future.

The JVP group leader claimed that The Sunday Times defence column had reported about the arrival of 11 arms-laden LTTE vessels, a fact the government took pains to conceal.

Drawing attention to the incident of holding 130 civilians in house detention for refusing to allow the conscription of their children, he said, "While you bend backwards to please the Tigers, what assurance have they given us? Their demands for a separate state and a traditional homeland remain the same while they have not yet handed over a single weapon as a symbol of peace. We have opened roads, relaxed security and allowed infiltration. When the entire nation pays for UNF policy, Minister Peiris will be overseas, Minister Moragoda serving the Pentagon while we will have nowhere to go," said.

After Weerawansa's fire, minister S.B. Dissanayake's delivery was unusually diluted as he attempted to balance the act. Amidst opposition wisecracks about his fortunes altering lately, the cherubic minister noted that it was tragic that two communities that have nurtured each other, shared religious, cultural and language bonds were so divided that they could not sit together to talk.

"Before you pick holes in the process, turn the search light inwards. The opposition leader claims that the SLFP is opposed to an interim administration, the PA having promised a 10 -year rule during its tenure. How was it acceptable to you then while you oppose it now? If this is not the answer, suggest an alternative power sharing arrangement" he said adding that if the war breaks out, the UNF would go for a military solution with the full backing of the international community.

Not to be outdone by Wimal Weerawansa's skillful delivery, the UNF fielded Dr. Rajitha Senaratne who waxed eloquent. "The communal tune is 50 years long, too long for an evolving nation to desperately cling to. The country has undergone vast socio-economic and political changes. But it is the same rhetoric with new faces. R.G. Senanayake has been replaced by Dinesh Gunawardene and Rohana Wijeweera by Wimal Weerawansa, that is the only difference," he charged.

Enjoying his kill, the lands minister said President Kumaratunga in an interview with the CNN has claimed that she fully backed the peace effort and was actually the first to offer an interim administration as a solution to the problem.

"But she also committed hara-kiri by admitting that she was being regularly briefed by the Prime Minister on the ongoing process, contrary to the SLFP claims that they were clueless. If you are clueless, get a clue from your President who's being regularly briefed, and don't pick bones with us," he said, tongue in cheek.

Amused by opposition claims that Prabhakaran should attend talks after relinquishing all his demands, the minister said that if Prabhakaran did that, there would be nothing to talk about.

"It is the height of immaturity to believe that a man who has led a military struggle would drop his demands now. We need to negotiate on his demands to arrive at a consensus. If he gives up his demands, do we discuss his health when formal talks begin," he scoffed.

Back to Top

Back to Columns

Copyright © 2001 Wijeya Newspapers Ltd. All rights reserved.
Webmaster