The Hindu Business Line : Kadirgamar's assassination shatters Lankan peace

WITH the brutal assassination of the Sri Lankan Foreign Minister, Mr Lakshman Kadirgamar, on Friday night in Colombo, the fragile peace process has been shattered.

If it is indeed the LTTE which has carried out the killing, as is widely believed, this would be the realisation of a long-term goal for the Tigers as Mr Kadirgamar was one of its most high profile targets.

A state of emergency has been declared by the President, Ms Chandrika Kumaratunga, and the security forces are on full alert.

Mr Kadirgamar, a close confidante of the Sri Lankan President and a key player in the peace process, was grievously injured by a sniper who fired bullets on him from a neighbourhood building, and emergency surgery failed to save his life.

In the last three days, everybody this correspondent interviewed in Colombo described how the peace process with the LTTE, signed in 2002, was "in a state of limbo", and that all eyes were on the announcement of the elections which were expected to be held in November this year.

On the status of the peace process, Mr Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu, Executive Director of the Colombo-based Centre for Policy Alternatives, in an interview to Business Line a day before the assassination, said: "At the moment, the peace process is very much in limbo; and indeed it is more serious than that insofar as the ceasefire agreement. The key agreement within the peace process seems to be under constant and serious challenge. There have been a number of killings, a problem with the movement of the LTTE armed cadre, and child recruitment by the LTTE continues.

"In a sense, we have come to a situation on the ground as far as the intensification of tension is concerned which could well be described as the closest that we've come to hostilities since the ceasefire was signed (February 2002)."

Commenting on the direction of Sri Lanka's fragile peace process after Mr Kadirgamar's assassination, Mr Saravanamuttu said, "This terrible tragedy leaves the peace process in great challenge and terrible danger of being put on the backburner for some time. He was a highly respected politician of this country and now there will be a lot of questions raised on what the

LTTE, assuming it has carried out the killing, really wants. This step really retards the peace process and a lot of people are now going to say that through this the LTTE is giving a clear signal that it is not really interested in peace."

Apart from being a highly "respected person", Mr Kadirgamar was considered quite close to India. He would frequently travel to India to keep the Indian Government informed on the ethnic conflict and, more recently, the progress of the peace progress.

In a few interviews to this correspondent, he had always maintained, though off the record, that the LTTE could not be trusted. He always said even though the road to peace was "long and tortuous," the Sri Lankan Government would have to "chip away" at the mistrust and suspicion between the two major players, so that the country could finally see peace and prosperity.

The key role he had played in getting the LTTE banned by countries such as the US and the UK - it continues to be banned by them even today - had put Mr Kadirgamar at the top of the LTTE's hit-list.

He was soft-spoken and a thorough gentleman - during interviews he never failed to show common courtesies such as inquiring in detail about one's stay in Sri Lanka or seeing one off to the door of his heavily-guarded house in Colombo, at the end of the interview.

In the rough and tumble of politics, one has come across few politicians, especially those in top posts in the government, who make it a point, as Mr Kadirgamar always did, to apologise if he had kept you waiting even for a short while.

Obviously, Mr Kadirgamar's assassination will put Sri Lanka's already tardy peace process under great pressure. The LTTE has denied a role in the killing, but there are no takers in Colombo that the Tigers have no hand in his assassination.

To a foreigner, particularly an Indian from the land of Dravidian politics, what was amazing was the sense of calm in Colombo on Saturday. Normal Saturday traffic was seen on the roads and it was business as usual on Colombo streets; the shopping malls and restaurants did brisk business, but then the patrons were mostly foreigners.

But what is tragic is the consequences this assassination is bound to have on this tiny country's tourism industry. However fragile the peace during the last three years, the ceasefire agreement between the Sri Lankan Government and the LTTE had ensured the steady return of high-end western tourists who have always adored this island nation with its lovely beaches, clean cities, and above all, gentle people who never scared away tourists by their aggressive approach when it comes to peddling services or goods. Travel advisories against visits to Sri Lanka could really hurt this trend.

With the Indian economy strengthening and Indians being offered visa on arrival, Indian arrivals have also increased steadily. Sri Lanka has emerged as a hot favourite for honeymoon couples from India.

Mr Kadirgamar's assassination will also make the ensuing elections - both the Presidential and Parliamentary elections are due - a more keenly fought battle between the two major arties, the United National Party and the Sri Lanka Freedom Party.

Mr Kinsley Roderigo, Chairman of the People's Action for Free and Fair Elections, said his organisation will campaign for both the elections to be held simultaneously as the country's economy, already under pressure, could barely afford two different elections.

Response can be sent to rasheeda@thehindu.co.in

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page

Stories in this Section
Kadirgamar's assassination shatters Lankan peace