A President's concern

Sri Lankan President Chandrika Kumaratunga uses her visit to India to apprise the Indian leadership of her perceptions and concerns about the peace process.

in New Delhi

SRI LANKAN President Chandrika Kumaratunga was in India on a four-day working visit in the second week of April. Kumaratunga had a packed schedule during her stay in New Delhi. The talks between her and Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee centred mainly around the ongoing Sri Lankan peace process.

Kumaratunga apprised the Prime Minister about the progress of the talks. She is known to be apprehensive about the manner in which they are being conducted. She has consistently emphasised that the LTTE is not serious about a negotiated settlement to the ethnic conflict. She has pointed out that even as negotiations were proceeding, the Tigers were on a recruiting spree. According to her, the number of LTTE recruits has gone up from 6,000 to 16,000 after the talks began. She has accused the LTTE of reneging on its promise to stop recruiting child soldiers. She has on many occasions criticised Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wikremasinghe's handling of the negotiations; she has said that the Prime Minister, who heads a United National Party-led government, has made too many concessions to the LTTE.

Since Kumaratunga's last visit to New Delhi, six rounds of negotiations have taken place between the government and the LTTE. The UNP swept into power on a pro-peace mandate. Kumaratunga said that the Sri Lankan Prime Minister had virtually given the LTTE a free rein in the areas under their control. In New Delhi, she claimed that the LTTE had established a separate "de facto" state. There had also been violent incidents in some areas under the control of the LTTE in recent months, she said. Kumaratunga insisted that the Tigers had been smuggling in arms as the talks continued. She also accused the LTTE leadership of distorting her position regarding the talks and issuing "death warrants" against her.

Kumaratunga's view is that her country's "national interests" are seriously undermined by the actions of the UNP-led government. At the same time, the President emphasises that she will not do anything to derail the peace process.

She warned that she would take recourse to radical measures if there was a threat to the country's integrity and unity. During talks with the Indian leadership, she indicated that she wanted India to play a more "proactive role" in the peace talks. The Bharatiya Janata Party-led government is treading warily on the issue.

Kumaratunga had talks with President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, Deputy Prime Minister L.K. Advani and External Affairs Minister Yashwant Sinha. At the meetings she conveyed her strong views on the talks. She said that India, given its close economic, political and cultural links with Sri Lanka, should play a more meaningful role in the process. An External Affairs Ministry spokesperson said that the Sri Lankan President conveyed her feelings and "concerns" about the peace process.

Wickremasinghe, along with senior Cabinet Ministers, have also been making frequent visits to New Delhi to keep the Indian government abreast of the developments relating to the peace talks. Senior Muslim politicians from Sri Lanka have also been visiting New Delhi to convey their perceptions. The LTTE is known to have used strong-arm methods against the Muslim population settled in the eastern part of the country, since the peace process began. The Muslims fear ethnic cleansing if the Tigers are allowed to enjoy unbridled power.

The Norwegians and the Japanese facilitators have also been careful in seeing that India is kept in the loop. When Kumaratunga was in Delhi, an External Affairs Ministry spokesperson said that many personalities were involved in the peace process and that Kumaratunga's viewpoint was one among many. He said that the Indian government took into account the viewpoints of all the important players while formulating its Sri Lanka policy. However, the official emphasised that the LTTE remained a banned organisation in India. The LTTE, on its part, has urged the Indian government to reconsider its policies towards the organisation.

The discussions between Kumaratunga and Vajpayee also focussed on the refugee issue. Thousands of refugees from the strife-torn island have been staying in camps in Tamil Nadu. Even now, despite the lull in hostilities, refugees are trickling in. If a durable peace is achieved, many of these people will have to be reintegrated into Sri Lankan society. The recent clashes between Sri Lankan and Indian fishermen near the maritime boundary, which resulted in the abduction of some Indian fishermen, have become a political issue in Tamil Nadu. During her trip, Kumaratunga also met with Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa in order to try and work out an amicable solution to the long-festering problem.