Shimali Senanayake in Colombo,  Wed Jan 25 08:39:53 EST 2006

    Tamil Tiger rebels on Wednesday agreed to hold face-to-face talks with
the Sri Lanka government in Switzerland, breaking an almost three year
deadlock, officials said.


The agreement was reached after talks between Norway's top peace envoy
Erik Solheim and Tiger supremo Velupillai Prabhakaran, in the northern
rebel-capital of Kilinochchi, officials involved in the talks said.

Solheim is scheduled to meet Sri Lanka's President Mahinda Rajapakse
on his return to Colombo.
Full Story


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- The Academic

This is most welcome news.  But certainly a plus point for the LTTE, who all along wanted the talks in Europe while the Government continued to ask the EU for a total ban.  Now there is a strong possibility that the EU would reconsider the travel ban as, there are no direct flights from SL to Switzerland, and the fact that Switzerland has several EU member countries bordering it and the travel ban could cause a logistical problem for the LTTE delegation to get there (for sure the LTTE will create a travel plan thru another EU country on their way to Geneva).

Also the Tamilnet News Item on this arrangement is a cause for concern.

Quote:

LTTE, GoSL to hold talks on truce implementation in Geneva

[TamilNet, January 25, 2006 08:23 GMT]
Liberation Tigers said Wednesday that they have agreed to hold talks in Geneva with the Government of Sri Lanka on "smooth implementation" of the February 2002 Cease Fire Agreement. Chief Negotiator and Political Strategist of the Liberation Tigers, Mr. Anton Balasingham, told reporters that the talks, expected to begin in mid-February, would be limited to the implementation of the truce which has come under increasing strain recently. Talks on further matters could only take place after complete cessation of the Sri Lankan military's violent repression of the population in Government held areas of the Northeast, he said.

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Agree to have a talk is very good. But still there is no talk about what to talk and how soon can come to a solution.
The longer they talk, only the people are getting affected.

And, about US statement made them to come to talk, that is a child talk. Every one knows they do not bend over
for any immoral therads.

Had Mahinda agreed to the venue 2 months ago, a lot of lives would have been saved.  Even now, they are only going to talk about the ceasefire.  There are more pressing isseues like tsunami reconstruction, real political solutions, etc.  AS for the JVP, they should eat the humble pie and go away for good.  Leave peace making to the major two political parties, if they can get together of course.

Who is really scared ?

First peace talk only in India, then on Asian country, now came down to Swiss.

During election,  ceasfire agreement to be amended, now further talks on implementaion of ceasfire.  Has Mahinda accepted the ceasfire agreement between Ranil and LTTE ?.  or are they going to talk on a new ceasefire agreement.

I reaaly appreciate the cleverness of reporting of Shimali Senanayake of omitting certain section of the news and giving headlines to the tune of Mahinda.  Please let me know where journalism was learned so that it could be useful (al least to be alive).


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Be patriotic .. think of the motherland

After meeting Eric & tiger leaders, Anton Balasingham have mentioned that the peace talks will be started only if para-military troops have to be removed from N-E and normalcy has to be achieved (as agreed earlier CFA on para-military troops). I don't think GOSL will do this. So, still talks are not very near as everyone expected. This cannot be achieved as it has been for last 4 years.

So, ball is now in GOSL's court and MR has called the security council meeting last night urgently??

MR is surrounding by JVP, JHU, Douglus Devananda, Kotakadeniya and co. They wont let Karuna go away. And all of those have to take the responsibility, if the peace talks brakes because of that. Every one of them should understand that this could be the last chance.

A good step from MR. All SL politiciens should give up self ego and think serously about peace and prosperity of SL.

even if LTTE does not come to agreement I request GOSL to put a reasonable solution on the table and implement it.

LankaWeb EDITORIAL 24-01-06

This is no time to dispatch angered messages of dissapointment and question the President's integrity over how he is handling Sri Lanka's confrontational issues with the LTTE nor expect a head on collision with them for obvious reasons!

The LTTE need to be dealt with through strategy and cunning distanced from biased world opinion perhaps even sheltered from it undoubtedly despite the tremendous provocations of the LTTE and it is probably not a lack of acumen nor strategy which appears to be the state of affairs of his leadership as some seem to emphasize but the unfortunate timing of it all.

While prudence needs to be exercised and all the tricks of the trade needing to be employed to deal with the current cowardly tactics of the LTTE there has to be a way to deal with them where the retaliation as demanded by many indeed has to be covertly and expertly executed if need be. It cannot be done with fanfare and the blaring of trumpets and the beating of tom toms.

It is certainly a Presidential dilemma for which it is expected he will find a way round with the best interests of Sri Lanka at heart and the use of all the resources available!


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One Nation, One Country, Multiple Ethnic Groups in Harmony - SRI LANKA

The message Minister Solheim took from President MR to Kilinochi must have been more than the venue issue.  It must have contained some concepts and framework for the peace process and solution, interim and/or final, which is apparently satisfactory for the LTTE.  

It is naïve to think otherwise because the indications by the LTTE in the recent past were to give up on the CFA and intensify the struggle.  Therefore, reasonable people could feel relived, happy and optimistic in the high likelihood of achieving an amicable negotiated settlement from the entire peace process as it is the main goal rather than the venue agreement itself.

It is also that Burns and co-chairs, in private, must have criticised the government for not sending a positive message on the reasonable solution framework as they see it.

Hats off to Minister Solheim!


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They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety - Benjamin Franklin

Let's hope LTTE will not ask for an arm, a leg, sun and the moon as pre-conditions to start the "talks"

At most it will take another week before we see unjustifiable demands start flowing from Vanni.  

No need to wait a week to re-read the press conference held after the Eric and LTTE leaders meeting.

LTTE has said that the talks will begin (in mid feb-2006) only if para-military groups have to be removed from N-E. So, if karuna group does any activity before the talks begin, thats it. Do not raise eyebrow and say they have change the minds.

Can MR remove karuna from his group of comrades?
RW could not do this for 4 years.. That is what I said peace is not near......

Silly me. We all thought Karuna issue was LTTE internal matter.
I guess if Pottu leaves tomorrow GOSL needs to clean LTTE's mess.

LTTE never wanted any talks. It's just a pretext to fool the guys like you.

If I am a betting man I would say LTTE "agreed" to talks, because it S***T in it's pants when whole world start to condemn the attacks/CFA violations. Specially after the tight slap across the face from US couple of days ago. There is a very high probability that Solhime adviced VP and the gang to show some respect.

Peace talks are scheduled for Feb 16th and 17th. Who is going to give in? Will LTTE accept MR's unitary state concept? or MR will agree to a Federal State and abandon his firm promise on a Unitary state? Will LTTE agree to the presence of SL armed forces? or MR will withdraw the SL armed forces from North and East allowing LTTE to have complete control?

A positive development no doubt but these questions remain
1) What has the SLG achieved now that they could not have done earlier before the killings?
2) Are the JVP lot hiding their heads between their legs now that first of all Norway and ES brought about the talks, secondly, the LTTE will be going to Europe for the talks and thirdly, the talk is going to be about the enforcing the old ceasefire? I suppose they will be defending the new developments, it might be amusing to feature some here!
3) So many innocent soldiers, some of them possibly even new recruits, died as a result of a totally unnecessary situation created by the coalition government, will they be accountable for this/will the people wake up to what was done or is it that down south they may not really care cos most of them wont be fighting the LTTE anyway?
4) Who will be talking when they start the talks.  I suppose Thamilselvan & AB will represent the LTTE but wont VP be the deciding authority and wont the talks centre around what he would have already decided and told them to talk?
5) Looks like LTTE have clearly spelt out on what issue the talks will begin and continue?  So if there are any violations to that, SLG and SLA will be totally accountable. So does that mean that the SLG acknowledge this issue and are merely gonna work out a face saving deal to feed to their people?
6)So far the SLG has done nothing either at Colombo or in the North East that would make an average Tamil SL citizen trust or want to support them? Not even verbal gestures and it looks like there is no government policy to win them over or make life better for them or even an attempt to create a multi-cultural social environment? So what sort of future is in store for the Tamils in SL?

THE_ACA_USR wrote:

No need to wait a week to re-read the press conference held after the Eric and LTTE leaders meeting.

LTTE has said that the talks will begin (in mid feb-2006) only if para-military groups have to be removed from N-E. So, if karuna group does any activity before the talks begin, thats it. Do not raise eyebrow and say they have change the minds.

Can MR remove karuna from his group of comrades?
RW could not do this for 4 years.. That is what I said peace is not near......

We all know LTTE's main agenda is removing other Tamil parties from the SL's political arena, and then VP can declare he is the only king in NE.
I hope MR is not going to make the same mistake as RW  to betray Tamil people by appeasing  LTTE's hidden agenda unless other vice LTTE lay down their weapons.