Sri Lanka peace process R.I.P. (IANS Book Review)
Oct 4th, 2008 | By Sindh Today | Category: WorldBook: ‘My Belly is White’; Author: Austin Fernando; Publisher: Vijitha Yapa Publications, Colombo
This is a revealing book on Sri Lanka’s now dead peace process, written by one who was in the thick of it all. Austin Fernando was Defence Secretary when Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe signed the Norway-brokered ceasefire agreement (CFA) with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in February 2002. In no time, critics, dominantly from the Sinhalese majority, began to accuse the government of betrayal.
The opposition and the media viciously targeted Fernando, whose job was to ensure that neither the military nor the Tigers spiked the prospects of long-term peace. He had no direct control over the LTTE. But he could influence the military. Critics thought he was stifling the armed forces while allowing the Tigers to blossom. In this packed-with-information 927-page volume, he argues that the allegations against him were mostly false, at times bordering on fantasy and libel.
Fernando has written the book so that the ‘misconceived notions’ about and derogatory attacks on the Wickremesinghe government’s actions do not ‘become historical truths’. He admits there was ‘evidence based criticisms too’, especially in the English media.
‘The much maligned government paid a huge political toll because of its commitment to the peace process,’ he moans. ‘Superficial and sometimes immature rationalization of highly complicated, intricate and sensitive issues was routinely used by political opponents and the media for hypocritical advantage.’
The reference is to the defeat Wickremesinghe’s United National Party suffered in April 2004, coinciding strangely with an event that severely dented the Tigers from within: an unprecedented split in the LTTE, led by Karuna, the group’s then eastern regional commander.
But unlike many who whitewash their errors, Fernando comes across as one of those rare individuals who admit that he and his government also slipped on occasions. He is bitter vis-Ã -vis President Chandrika Kumaratunga, who came from the SLFP. She tried to score brownie points over Wickremesinghe and eventually undid the sagging truce by virtually sacking the prime minister in November 2003.
By then, the LTTE had walked away from the peace talks. Fernando’s grouse is that for all her bluster, she did nothing concrete to weaken the LTTE. ‘Our approach was different. It was to corner the LTTE through negotiations and international pressures.’
As one who was left wing in his student days, Fernando thought that peace could be brought to Sri Lanka through give-and-take, without compromising the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. But making peace was no easy task. The military, he says, had no faith in the LTTE; the ceasefire pact was not a perfect instrument; the Sinhalese radicals were opposed to truce; the militarist LTTE would not trust the government; the media did not give the government breathing space. Thus the search for the elusive peace took place ‘under great difficulties, complexities and under great stress’.
Why did Sri Lanka sign the truce in 2002? One key reason was that the war was bleeding Colombo. One sortie attack by the air force costs Rs.2.5 million, and ‘we fire 5 to 10 of these attacks per day on the average when the war is on’. When he took charge, the defence ministry did not have pellets for training. Add to it, the LTTE would just not give up.
Fernando is no admirer of the LTTE. He calls them ‘unpredictable’, ’stubborn’ and ‘ruthless’ and accuses them of trying to have their way at every turn, of creating ‘many-faceted problems’. For one accused of appeasement, his understanding is revealing: ‘LTTE cadres suspected everybody, and breaking into their hearts was extremely difficult. The outer rim of the LTTE mind was very thick and rigid and also the core. Their hearts were of hard rock.’ But the Tigers ‘had a long range vision, mission, strategizing and action planning.’ Fernando however contradicts himself. ‘LTTE cadres would not change their stripes just because their leader has signed on a dotted line.’ Eighty pages later, he says: ‘They changed their stripes (so) fast (that) one cannot place trust on promises made by the LTTE.’
Fernando has a grouse against Erik Solheim, Norway’s first Special Envoy to Sri Lanka. He calls him ’stubborn’ and accuses him of ‘favouring the LTTE for some unknown reasons.’ In the same breath, he gives credit to the Norwegians for persisting and coming up, in December 2002, with what came to be called the Oslo declaration, in which the LTTE agreed to explore a possible federal solution to the ethnic conflict. But what is the point of giving out Solheim’s phone number in the book?
Among the reasons the peace process failed, he says, were shortcomings in the CFA as well as ‘negative media reporting’, which turned many against the truce. He admits that both ‘the government and the LTTE … were guided by military considerations’.
Fernando candidly admits that the government he worked for followed a strategy: ‘giving a sense of dignity, a relatively free hand to the LTTE other than in HSZs (high security zones), building an international safety net for further stabilization of the peace process, strengthening of confidence building measures to consequently lock the LTTE to peacemaking.’
And ‘compromises were possible if properly approached, planned and executed, even with the LTTE’. But critics saw ’such close understanding and public relations by us as our sympathy towards the LTTE! In both parties there were individuals or groups who would consider that war was the panacea to every illness.’ No wonder, the peace process kept getting weakened. ‘Its abrogation in January 2008 (by the present regime) sounded like issuing a delayed Death Certificate to a decomposed corpse!
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Respected Sir,
Please accept my Salutations, Greetings and best wishes for the dawn of a bright future to everyone.
In my humble opinion, Peace is neither elusive nor evading us, but on the contrary we are evading Peace by not viewing the problems sincerely in the correct perspective and with the correct attitude that will automatically take us on the correct track to reach Peace.
Please consider the view, attitude and the track pointed out in the extract given below – not thought earlier by any of us as being available – for its ability to lead us on to the correct track to peace. I am sure we will be able to meet peace in double-quick time since no sooner we get on the correct track towards Peace; Peace too would automatically start traveling towards us on this track.
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Sharing Power is essential
for Peace and Democracy in our Country
It is not the impossible which gives cause for despair
but the failure to achieve the possible
The conflict arose, in my humble opinion, due to the turmoil in the country. This conflict is often portrayed as a bi-polar conflict between the Sinhalese majority and the Tamil minority by-passing the substantial minorities like the Muslims and Upcountry Tamils. This sad state of affairs has to be changed. All efforts must be taken to change the mindset of ‘dividing’ the people as “majorities” and “minorities” not by words but by deeds. It is a well-known fact that these “majorities” and “minorities” are living together in many parts of the country as kith and kin, helping each other in times of need. So it is the duty of all rationale minded people of this country to converge this idea to integrate the nation if we are to end the turmoil in this country and forge ahead as a nation.
Everyone agrees that power should be shared as a means to end the present national crisis. But the stumbling block is in the way the power has to be shared. The various suggestions proposed centre on a system with a central government and other governments under it, with the central government holding wide powers.
But the need of the day is a system of governance that will truly portray the sprit of democracy, while preserving the sovereignty and dignity of the people. These people should be empowered at gramasevaka area level so that even a small area will be able to project its needs without going through others. It is to this extent that we should go, if sustainable peace, solidarity and development with a pleasant living to all inhabitants, is our goal.
Therefore, a suitable system of democratic governance that would be acceptable to all rationale minded people (or one that cannot be rejected by these rationale minded people), must replace the present system of governance.
“My notion of democracy is that under it, the weakest should have the same opportunity as the strongest” so said Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela for his part said, “For to be free is not merely to cast off one’s chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others”
Keeping the above views in mind, a democratic system of governance that is rationale and based on equality of all has been developed on the basis that all powers flow from the sovereignty of the people. The peculiar concept in this system is an unprecedented mode of sharing power –horizontal and not vertical – developed in the true sprit of democracy. This system would unite all the divided communities and resurrect the “Paradise Isle” that existed some time back.
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In the present system the people cannot elect their own representatives but have the option of electing one set of party representatives who are empowered by the party to participate in the governance of the country. But in the proposed system the people have the option to elect and empower different sets of their own representatives based on different extent of areas (villages and villages grouped) to perform defined, distinct and different functions of the same parliament through different segments of that parliament like the different organs of our body – brain, heart, lungs, kidneys, eyes, nose, ears etc – performing different functions and helping us to govern ourselves. To be more explicit the concept is as follows:
1. Segment A – a group to enact laws for – good governance, defining policies, collection of revenue and other connected affairs – with the concurrence of all the groups in Segment C, but excluding implementation of any policy (at National level and consisting of 10 members elected from each district area, 100 members elected nationally on trade basis and 50 members elected nationally on ideological basis).
2. Segment B – a group to coordinate the activities of all the groups in Segment C, manage the country fiscally including collection and disbursement of revenue, foreign affairs, national planning in consultation and with the concurrence of the concerned groups in Segment F and the like and complying with all policies laid down by Segment A and implementing its proposals through concerned groups in Segment D by directly providing them with the necessary funds (at National level and consisting of not more than15 members elected from each regional area).
3. Segment C – Groups to administer different regions of the country based on the laws enacted and policies laid down by Segment A with the concurrence of all the groups, maintain law and order, approve project proposals submitted by concerned groups in Segment E and to obtain the necessary funds for expenditure from Segment B and allocate same to concerned groups in Segment D for implementation (at Regional area level and consisting of 04 members elected from each divisional area within that regional area).
4. Segment D – Groups to implement all project proposals approved by Segment B or by concerned group in Segment C and with funds provided by them – Segment B & C (at District area level and consisting of 03 members elected from each sub-divisional area within that district area).
5. Segment E – Groups to coordinate and confirm project proposals submitted by concerned groups in Segment F and forward them for approval to concerned group in Segment C (at Sub-divisional area level and consisting of 03 members elected from each gramasevaka area within that sub-divisional area).
6. Segment F – Groups to prepare project proposals for their area and approving concerned proposals submitted by Segment B and submit all proposals to concerned Segment E for confirmation and overseeing all the proposals that are implemented by concerned Segment D (at gramasevaka level and consisting of 05 members elected from within that gramasevaka area).
7. Segment G – Groups to monitor the functions of all the Segments for transparency, accountability, and take necessary action to curtail irregularities with an eye on the elimination of bribery and corruption (at Divisional level and consisting of 02 members elected from each gramasevaka area within that divisional area)
In these proposals, gramasevaka (G.S.) area is the smallest unit and these gramasevaka (G.S.) areas are grouped to form sub-divisions, sub-divisions are grouped to form divisions, divisions are grouped to form districts, districts are grouped to form regions and the regions grouped to form the country.
There would be only one institution – the Parliament with seven different segments with different functions that do not overlap –to satisfactorily govern the entire country. Presently we have the presidential secretariat, cenk
Due to the fratricidal violence that we are now embroiled in, it is far too easy to lose sight of these matters, so much to rob us of the very ideas that can be our salvation.
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If your good self is of opinion that this system merits consideration, please be good enough to render moral assistance by promoting the idea through the internet, print and electronic media and create awareness among all stake-holders that there is an easy way to solve the national crisis – by sharing power in a way that will satisfy the aspirations of all the people.
In promoting and discussing these ideas, it is my humble opinion that we make use of the email in addition to the print and electronic media as it would save money, time, and the environment and reduce the workload of the postal department.
Thanking your good self in advance in anticipation of an early response,
Yours in Service,
Sie.Kathieravealu
IF THERE IS A WILL, THERE IS A WAY
I am only one, but I am one. I cannot do everything but I can do something.
And because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do the something I can do.
What I can do, I should do. And what I should do, by the Grace of God, I will do.
– Edward Everett Hale (1822 – 1909)
NB: The above proposal was published in the “Sunday Island” of 8th June 2008
The basic idea is promoting the eradication of corruption, planning from the village level with the needs of the village being given top priority and the powers, duties and functions now vested or usurped in by parliament be SEPARATED and different and distinct powers, duties and functions be given to different and distinct groups of representatives directly elected by the people at different levels of groupings. These powers, duties and functions MUST NOT OVERLAP and the different groups of representatives are connected to form one unit - the Parliament.
It is not the present federal or quasi-federal system where there is a Central Government directly elected by the people with powers to dismiss Provincial Governments that too are directly elected by the people.
In the present system one elected institution is above/below another elected institution and powers, duties and functions are DELEGATED and overlap and power is shared vertically - one above/below another - from Delhi unto a remote village Council. People elect and authorize an elected body to administer BUT the powers to administer are DELEGATED by Colombo
In the system proposed/suggested by me nor elected institution is above/below another elected institution and cannot be dismissed by any other elected institution. All institutions are in the same level and enjoy equal rights given directly by the people.
The powers to perform and administer the duties and functions specifically assigned to elected institutions are directly given by the people who elected the institutions and not by ANOTHER institution directly elected by the people. This is a great deviation from the present system of governance that breeds corruption..
Sie.Kathieravealu