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Tigers place monitors on the
spot
By Amantha Perera
COLOMBO - The refusal of Tamil Tiger rebels to
dismantle a camp in northern Sri Lanka highlights the
supposed clout - as well as weaknesses - of Scandinavian
peace monitors whose presence is supposed to keep the
ceasefire going.
The multinational Sri Lankan
Monitoring Mission (SLMM), as the monitors are called,
ruled as early as June 26 that a new Tiger camp in
Manirasakulam in the northeastern Trincomalee district
lies in government-controlled territory - and must be
removed.
But despite several communications by
the SLMM, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE),
as the Tigers are officially known, have refused to
budge.
In the ceasefire agreement signed by
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremasinghe and LTTE leader
Vellupillai Prabhakaran in February 2002, both parties
agreed to abide by the SLMM's rulings. However, this has
not happened.
The Tigers argue that the camp in
Manirasakulam, surrounded by several Sri Lankan army
camps, has been in existence for a while and that they
have just moved in after an absence. But the lack of
action on the SLMM's findings brings to the fore
questions about how the ceasefire is being implemented -
and the role of the SLMM that is supposed to ensure that
it is followed.
"It has created a problem for
us. With the LTTE not moving from the camp, next time
the other side will not listen to us. It has undermined
our role," said Hagrup Haukland, the deputy head of the
SLMM.
The SLMM, which consists of 53 monitors
drawn from Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Iceland and Norway,
have repeatedly come under pressure to keep the former
warring parties apart.
Away from the glare of
television cameras that have followed the negotiators
for the Tigers and the Sri Lankan government since peace
talks began in September 2002, the ceasefire between
them has been much harder to keep going on the ground.
The tussle over the Tigers' camp in
Manirasakulam is but the latest in a string of incidents
that have threatened the ceasefire - including the
bombing and destruction of LTTE ships suspected of arms
smuggling by the Sri Lankan navy.
The ceasefire,
the longest in Sri Lanka's history, continues today even
if the Tigers, citing lack of progress, suspended
participation in the talks in April. But many are asking
what the real role and utility of the SLMM is.
"I wonder whether the SLMM ever looks at itself
in the mirror. It most certainly is suffering from a
wimp factor," said Dayan Jayathileke, a senior lecturer
attached to the political science department of Colombo
University.
Jayathileke said that while the SLMM
has been strict with the government side, it has not
shown the same attitude in dealing with the LTTE. He was
referring to SLMM's request to inspect the Sri Lanka
navy's logbooks following a sea confrontation between
the Tamil Tigers and the navy earlier in the year. "Will
the SLMM demand the same from Soosai [the Sea Tiger
commander]?" he asked.
Opposition legislator
Sarath Amungama agrees with proposals that the
composition of the SLMM be changed to include regional
powers like India, which had previously intervened in
the Sri Lankan conflict. "The SLMM has overstepped its
mandate," Amungama said, referring to a suggestion by
the SLMM to declare parts of the sea firing areas for
the LTTE's naval wing.
Many Sri Lankans'
perceptions of the SLMM also differ. "I think they try
to do the job but are scared of the LTTE," said Upul
Jayathileke, who hails from the majority Sinhala
community. But Kandiah Ganesharatnum, a Tamil from the
northern Jaffna peninsula, said, "The SLMM is doing
their job pretty well."
A recent poll conducted
by the Center for Policy Alternatives, a Colombo-based
non-government organization, found that while 32.1
percent agreed that the SLMM was impartial, 30.1 percent
disagreed. Almost 75 percent of Tamils polled perceived
the SLMM as impartial.
Meantime, the impasse
over the camp in Manirasakulam has put the monitors in
an unenviable situation. The SLMM is still waiting for
the reaction of S P Thamilselvan, leader of the LTTE's
political wing, to its latest communication on the
matter. "It is advisable for the parties concerned to
leave the matter [of the camp] aside," he said of it
recently during a tour of Trincomalee.
Haukland
said that he is not sure what action can be taken if the
LTTE insists on remaining in the camp. For now,
Jayalitheke and Amungama say that the way to make the
most of the SLMM's presence is for it to become more
assertive. "It should make sure its rulings are adhered
to, either through sanctions or through elements of
coercion," Jayathileke said.
But such a
changeover looks unlikely - and far from easy. As the
impasse over the camp persisted, media reports hinted at
the SLMM suggesting the use of force to enforce its
ruling. The reaction of the Tamil Tigers was equally
drastic.
S Pulideevan, who heads the LTTE's
peace secretariat, raised the issue of using force with
Haukland and defense secretary Austin Fernando during
meetings in Colombo two weeks ago.
Pulideevan
told Fernando that if the government had any intention
of using force, it should give the LTTE two weeks'
notice as per the ceasefire agreement. In effect,
Pulideevan was citing sections in the agreement that
dealt with the breakdown of negotiations - and the
resumption of war.
The government and the SLMM
moved quickly to dismiss reports that the use of force
was an option. Ironically, Pulideevan was in Colombo to
discuss plans for the resumption of peace talks. The
LTTE is planning to hold a discussion with legal experts
in Paris to draft a response to the government's
proposals on an interim administration in
Tamil-dominated areas.
These discussions are
seen as the first step towards the resumption of talks.
But while the deadlock on the talks may be starting to
unwind, the one over the LTTE's camp seemed to be
getting even tighter. "We are waiting till the SLMM and
the Norwegians act on the ruling [on the Manirasakulam
camp]," said a high-ranking officer with the Sri Lankan
army.
(Inter Press Service)
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