How does Sri Lanka view recent clamours from Tamil Nadu – firstly for India to take a hard-line stand on the resolution at the United Nations Human Rights Council and then for New Delhi to stop treating your country as a friendly neighbour?
We are surprised by these unfortunate aberrations in our very friendly ties with Tamil Nadu. The people of Sri Lanka and Tamil Nadu in India have close ties. In the past, not so long ago, even in the 1960s, there were close links between Sri Lanka and Tamil Nadu. After the conclusion of the conflict, Sri Lanka looked forward to nurturing our natural people-to-people ties including improving connectivity with Tamil Nadu once again. We were keen on reviving the annual Gopalan trophy cricket match that used to take place between the then Madras and Sri Lanka. Current developments therefore are most unfortunate. Sri Lanka and India at large share very friendly relations that predate modern history.
Recorded history of links between the two countries dates back to 3rd century BC, when Ashoka, the greatest emperor of India, sent his son and daughter, Mahinda and Sanghamitta, to Sri Lanka to spread the message of Buddhism and thus established links with his Sri Lankan contemporary, King Devanampiyatissa of Anuradhapura. All communities in Sri Lanka have connections with India – Tamils with Tamil Nadu, Sinhalese with erstwhile Kalinga. Our connections are very deep. Even in the modern era, our leaders fought together against British colonialism and won independence for both India and Sri Lanka. India, as our President says, is our relation; all other countries are our friends. But even closest neighbours like us can have episodes of stress and strain in their relations. The current situation, primarily driven by groups with vested interests in Tamil Nadu, and fueled by groups outside India, is such a period. But, it will not upset or derail our long-standing robust friendship. It does cause some dissonance and some distress though.
How do you react to Tamil Nadu Government’s move to bar Sri Lankan players from the Indian Premier League cricket matches and the State Assembly’s resolution calling for Tamil Eelam? Do you see a long-term impact on India’s relation with Sri Lanka?
What is currently happening in Tamil Nadu is disconcerting to us. These are happening as a result of a campaign by groups of people, who live faraway from both Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka, mostly in western countries. They are sympathetic to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. They are aligned to the ideology of the LTTE. They are the driving force behind the campaign against Sri Lanka in Tamil Nadu. But we think we can get back to the golden days of our relations with Tamil Nadu. We need to act sensibly and talk to each other on issues of concern to both sides. The focus should primarily be on welfare of the Tamils living in Sri Lanka. The Tamils have come out of a long-drawn conflict and have suffered a lot for decades.
They are in need of assistance from all concerned. The current campaign in Tamil Nadu against Sri Lanka and even resolutions and other measures taken by political leadership of Tamil Nadu do not relate to the ground realities of Sri Lanka. There is no call for Tamil Eelam in Sri Lanka. So extra-regional forces calling for such an end and being supported by Tamil Nadu political leadership is misplaced and only vitiates the atmosphere for reconciliation and political settlement for all communities in Sri Lanka. We feel pained when we see that even the youth in Tamil Nadu are being misled to the extent that some have embarked on self-immolation. This is very unfortunate.
How does Sri Lanka view the resolutions adopted by the United Nations Human Rights Council, both last year and this year?
We think Sri Lanka situation need not be internationalized. The resolutions at the UNHRC are uncalled for. They only vitiate the atmosphere in Sri Lanka. The contents of the resolutions do not help because the ground reality is that we have already been doing whatever is in the resolution. We think we should be allowed time and space to complete what we have embarked upon. Any attempt to force us towards the objective that we share with the international community will be counter-productive and will not lead to any immediate result. We are in favour of home-grown solutions that can be sustained over a long period of time.
The three-decades of conflict have created many issues for all communities in Sri Lanka. So we have to rebuild our country, not only physically, but also in terms of creating conditions for promoting communal harmony and confidence among communities and to make each and every Sri Lankan citizen – Tamils, Sinhalese and others - feel that they are equal and their political rights are secure. We can do that, because we are a democratic country. We have held regular elections since 1931. We have robust institutions. We should be allowed time and space to do what we have embarked upon. We share with the international community the objective of consolidating peace in Sri Lanka and providing our citizens social and political rights. But we have to create our own model. Our model may not be similar to that of India. India is a big country. Ours is a small one.
Did India disappoint Sri Lanka by voting on the resolution last year and again this year? India also called upon Sri Lanka to ensure satisfaction of the international community while conducting an independent and credible probe into alleged human rights violations by your country’s armed forces during the 2009 military campaign against LTTE. Do you think such a call could set a dangerous precedent that might even go against the interests of India?
We are disappointed by the stance taken by India. But we do recognize that India is a responsible country and it has its own compulsions. These are just blips in our long-term relations. Our position is that external or extra-regional intervention in regional affair is not a good trend and we need to be very careful while creating precedents. And, in our view, these apply to all countries and all situations in our region.
India always maintained that the end of the conflict had given a unique opportunity to pursue a lasting political settlement, acceptable to all communities in Sri Lanka, including the Tamils. India was also asking for early progress on a meaningful devolution building upon the 13th Amendment and leading to national reconciliation. Could you please update us on the efforts and progresses being made by Sri Lankan Government on these?
Soon after the end of the conflict, we have embarked upon a massive resettlement and rehabilitation programme. India supported our effort and provided us a lot of assistance, starting from de-mining operations and building houses to laying rail-tracks and reconstructing other critical infrastructure. We were able to resettle all the 295000 people, who were displaced and rescued from the LTTE custody. We are now providing them with livelihood support. We set up the Lessons Learnt and Resettlement Commission and now we are in the process of implementing its recommendations step by step. The Government is also trying to evolve consensus on acceptable constitutional provisions to accommodate political aspirations of all communities. Our President has set up a Parliamentary Select Committee to discuss all issues, but unfortunately Tamil National Alliance – a major Tamil political party - has not joined it yet.
The Government’s expectation is that it should join the process and participate in discussions that could lay the foundation for a process which could be finally led by our President. We are seeking a bottom-up political solution, not a top-down approach, which was tried earlier and did not work in Sri Lanka. We are sure we can find a political settlement acceptable to all our communities, if we are not disturbed by extra-regional forces. What we want to make clear is that separatism and ethnic nationalism espoused by the LTTE and its sympathizers are not based upon ground realities of Sri Lanka.
We have a standing invitation for Chief Minister and other political leaders of Tamil Nadu to visit Sri Lanka. We will be very happy to receive them and facilitate their visits to Jaffna and other areas which were affected by the conflict so that they could see for themselves the efforts being made for rehabilitation and resettlement of the displaced as well as for reconciliation and political settlement. They could also interact with the people of these areas and ascertain first hand, their concerns and their views.
Could you please update us on devolution of power under the 13th amendment of the Constitution of Sri Lanka?
The 13th amendment is an integral part of our Constitution. It was adopted 25 years ago as a solution to the conflict. There is however a general feeling that it has not succeeded in the last 25 years. That is why we have to suitably adjust the 13th amendment.
The latest wave of allegations about war crimes and human rights violation started with the release of the pictures purportedly showing the final moments of the LTTE chief Velupillai Prabhakaran’s 12-year-old son Balachandran just before he was allegedly shot dead. Don’t you think instead of dismissing the pictures and allegations straightaway, the Sri Lankan Government could have ordered a probe?
The pictures are morphed. Former Sri Lankan Army chief General Fonseka said that the bunker in which the boy has been photographed does not resemble a Sri Lankan Army bunker. The Sri Lankan Government could have ordered a probe, had they first shared the pictures with us. But they preferred to release it to media and launched what I would call a trial by media. This is not acceptable to us.
The issue of Indian fishermen being detained by Sri Lankan Navy is also an emotive issue and Tamil Nadu chief minister has now demanded that the 1974 pact should be scrapped and Kachchateevu Island should be reclaimed. How do you react to this and cannot there be an amicable solution to this dispute?
The 1974-1976 agreements were the result of long drawn negotiations for demarcating the International Maritime Boundary Line between the two countries and there was give and take of fishing rights. Palk Strait is an eco-sensitive region and fishing must be conducted according to international standards. Internationally banned fishing methods such as Bottom trawling and nylon nets cannot be allowed as it is harmful to the marine eco-system.
Tamil Nadu fishermen should not cross the International Maritime Boundary Line and fish in Sri Lankan waters especially since northern Sri Lankan Tamil fishermen who have not been able to exercise their fishing rights for nearly 3 decades due to the conflict now require to be allowed to fish in their own waters without hindrance and without being overwhelmed by Tamil Nadu fishermen who cross the International Maritime Boundary Line in large numbers, often numbering over 600 boats. However, it is a livelihood issue on both sides and must be handled in a sensitive and responsible manner and we have agreed to treat fishermen in a humane manner at all times.
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