COLOMBO: In a further conciliatory move Sri-Lankan President Premadasa called upon the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam to come back to the negotiating table with the declaration to eschew violence.
“Negations can commence with a declaration fo eschew violence as a means of achieving political Objectives” the president said inaugurating the third session of parliament.
“I do so in the name of the millions of innocent civilians in the northeast. They are compelled to undergo much suffering for no fault of theirs” the president said. Besides the declaration to eschew violence the only two other conditions laid down by Premadasa Friday for recommencement of the negotiations were that the democratic rights of groups representing other shades of opinion be safeguarded and that and all parties and groups that would come for the talks must be “leaders who are able to subscribe to agreements which will be honored.”
Friday’s offer for talks to the LTTE by the president was much more conciliatory in tone as compared to the tough stand taken by his government earlier.
Rejecting reciprocation of the unilateral New Year ceasefire by the LTTE the government had taken a tough stand in January insisting that the LTTE supremo Velupillai Prabhakaran or some other senior leader from the military wing of the rebels must come for talks.
The government had also insisted at that time the any future negotiations must follow a declaration “against possession and use of arms” except by persons authorized by law.
Observing the government had majority tolerated innumerable provocations” from the LTTE when they were continuing with the peace talks with the government last year. “in the interest of peace and conciliation”, Premadasa regretted that the militants restarted “unprovoked attacks” on the security forces last June leading to the current conflict in the Tamil majority northeast.
The president told the Members of Parliament that the government was “ready to make necessary accommodations and comprises.”
Saying that the government was determined to “break away from the past and cut through years of prejudice and suspicion” the president observed that there was “no other road to prosperity and a united Sri Lanka.”
The inaugural session was boycotted by the dominant opposition Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) of former Prime Minister Bandaranaike and several other left parties having their support base among the majority Sinhalese community in the southern parts of the Island.
Article extracted from this publication >> April 26, 1991
