In the shadow of increasing reports of harassment of Muslims in the east by the LTTE , the debate on the Ministry for Eastern Development and Muslim Religious Affairs that took place on Thursday was dominated by calls by both Muslim and Sinhalese MPs from the area for the government to ensure that their rights were not ignored when negotiating with the LTTE.

The debate also produced some tension between the Muslim and Tamil MPs, when some TNA members and UNP Jaffna district MP T.Maheswaran alleged that the Tamils in the east had been discriminated for years by the Muslims, a charge strongly denied by Rauff Hakeem, the Minister in charge of the subject.

"I have even scarified my political career to fight for peace. We have never asked for a separate country. We are asking in a very civilized way for a separate unit for us," the Minister said.

Earlier S.Adaikkalanathan, Wanni district TNA parliamentarian warned those trying to disrupt the on goring peace process between the government and the LTTE. "Some forces are acting against the peace process. We must not allow any third party to disrupt it. We will hold them responsible if the talks break down," he warned although he failed to identify who the so called forces were.

Next it was H.M.M.Harees- the Digamadulla SLMP MP who gave an emotional speech asking for the rights of the Muslims to be recognized.

"We should not be treated like slaves. The LTTE is only paying lip service to granting the rights of the Muslims. We have been called traitors, acting against the peace process because we have spoken for our rights," he charged.

Another veteran Sinhalese eastern province legislator M.K.A.D.S.Gunawardena spoke about the rights of the Sinhalese who he said were the rightful owners of 76 per cent of the land in the province. He along with several other legislators called for the creation of a separate provincial council for the east as the temporary merger of the north and east was not valid anymore as the emergency regulations under which the amalgamation was done had been allowed to lapse.

"In the hurry to grant rights to the LTTE, do not forget the rights of the Sinhalese and the Muslims. Otherwise you will be unable to stop a future generation of Dutugemunu's and Vijayabahu's raising their heads against such actions," he warned.

The upcoming conference to be held in the Norwegian capital, Oslo was also discussed in the house on Friday when the votes of the Ministry of Constitutional Affairs was taken up for debate. The matter was also raised as an adjournment question by JVP legislator Anura Dissanayake the same day calling on the government to disallow any LTTE representative from attending the Oslo conference.

PA MP Dinesh Gunawardena said the government had violated the constitution by talking to a group that was advocating the separation of the country. Today he said the situation was such that it was "uturata kiri, dakunata kekiri."

Constitutional Affairs Minister G.L.Pieris came in for a scathing, mostly personal attack by the JVP's Wimal Weerawansa who accused him of acting as an international agent to break the country into a confederation of states. He also said it was shameful that the Minister sat next to LTTE theoretician Anton Balasingham in Thailand while he mocked a judgment passed by a Sri Lankan court against LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran.

"If someone asks us who the Constitutional Affairs Minister of the country is, we have to say it's Professor G.L.Peiris But we don't need Ministers like this. We can even make them out of "pol pithi," Mr.Weerawansa said.

The Minister who sat stone faced through all the accusations levelled at him later said the government would not be deterred by statements made out of jealousy, envy and hatred.

"We have the courage of our convictions to continue with this process. Any final solution will be one with justice and honour for all and it will be submitted to the people for their verdict," the Minister said.

Defending Prof. Peiris was Lands Minister Rajitha Senaratne who lambasted the JVP saying it was the only Marxist party in the world which toed a racist line while using the hammer and sickle in its party flag.
"If the JVP says the LTTE must come for talks after laying down arms, I want to ask whether the JVP laid down arms before coming to Parliament. Where are all the weapons you stacked in the late 1980's? If the LTTE cannot come to Oslo, then the JVP cannot come to this Parliament," he said.

He also said the greatest achievement of the government was that an LTTE representative was going to be at the Oslo conference. "Earlier it was the LTTE supporters who were picketing outside our donor conferences abroad. Today they are sitting with the government and asking for funds for the country," he said.

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