S. Lankan Gov't Makes No Immediate Response to Peace Talk Offer by Rebel LeaderSri Lankan government made no immediate response to keenly awaited Separatist Tamil Tiger rebel leader Velupillai Prabhakaran's unconditional offer of peace talks on November 27 in his annual Hero's Day speech aimed at ending the 17-year bloody ethnic war in the country.The state-run Daily News carried a detailed front-page story on Prabhakaran's speech on Tuesday, November 28, but no comment were offered. The paper said that broadcasting over his clandestine radio The Voice of the Tigers, Prabhakaran said they were not imposing any preconditions for peace talks but insisted on a cordial atmosphere and conditions of normalcy conducive for peace negotiations. He called for the lifting of the economic embargo to create a conducive atmosphere, but this should not be misinterpreted as a precondition. "For 20 years there had been bitter fighting and one cannot suddenly sit down and talk. A proper atmosphere should first be created," he said. His statement made no mention of previous demands that the government declare a ceasefire, withdraw troops and lift the economic embargo, which the government had rejected. He said that the Norwegian facilitator had proposed several confidence building measures. Accordingly both sides should take action to de-escalate the conflict with a view to ending hostilities. He added that if the government took the initiative they would respond positively. President Kumaratunga, who is currently on a European tour, said at the ceremonial opening of the 11th Parliament earlier this month that she was waiting for LTTE's final decision on the ethnic problem and government's military campaign against the Tiger rebels will not stop. Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickremanayake, who is acting defense and finance minister held by Kumaratunga during her absence, expressed similar position towards LTTE on Saturday while commenting on British Foreign Office Minister Peter Hain's remarks on the ethnic issues in the country during his two-day visit here last week. There would not be an end to hostilities soon and the military option will continue till the enemy is totally eliminated, he said. The government is not in favor of a ceasefire as earlier experiences have shown that the enemy wants a ceasefire only when it is weak, he added. Prabhakaran offered an unconditional resumption of peace talks with the government during his rare meeting with Norwegian envoy Erik Solheim late last month in his jungle hideout in the north of the country. British Foreign Office Minister Hain urged both the government and LTTE to immediately start peace talks to bring an early end to the long-running ethnic war. The LTTE rebels have been fighting against government forces for a separate Tamil homeland in the north and east of the country. |
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