US embassy cable - 04COLOMBO116

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 COLOMBO 000116 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR SA, SA/INS, H; NSC FOR E. MILLARD 
 
PLEASE ALSO PASS TOPEC 
 
E.O. 12958:        DECL: 01-22-14 
TAGS: PGOV, OTRA, PINS, PHUM, EAID, CE, LTTE - Peace Process 
SUBJECT: Staffdel Gilley/McCormick visit:  Interlocutors 
note concerns about cohabitation situation, aid delivery 
 
Refs:  Colombo 109, and previous 
 
(U) Classified by James F. Entwistle, Deputy Chief of 
Mission.  Reasons 1.5 (b,d). 
 
1.  (C) SUMMARY:  A bipartisan delegation of 
professional staff members from the House International 
Relations Committee visited Sri Lanka, January 15-18. 
In addition to a full plate of meetings in Colombo, a 
highlight of the visit was a day trip to war-torn Jaffna 
District in the north.  Interlocutors in both Colombo 
and Jaffna underscored deep concerns about Sri Lanka's 
ongoing cohabitation impasse and its impact on the peace 
process.  Jaffna contacts also expressed concerns about 
what they characterized as slow delivery of humanitarian 
assistance to the north.  END SUMMARY. 
 
2.  (U) A bipartisan delegation of professional staff 
members from the House International Relations Committee 
(HIRC) visited Sri Lanka, January 15-18.  The delegation 
comprised: 
 
-- Kristen Gilley, Senior Professional Staff Member. 
-- James McCormick, South Asia Subcommittee staff 
director. 
-- Renee Austell, Professional Staff Member and Counsel. 
-- Hans Hogrefe,  Member of the Professional Staff. 
-- David Killion, Member of the Professional Staff. 
 
================ 
Colombo Meetings 
================ 
 
3.  (C) The delegation participated in a series of 
meetings in Colombo, January 15-16.  In the delegation's 
Colombo meetings, interlocutors underscored deep 
concerns about Sri Lanka's ongoing cohabitation impasse 
and its impact on the peace process.  Highlights of the 
delegation's meetings in Colombo included those with 
Minister G.L. Peiris, Secretary to the Prime Minister 
Bradman Weerakoon, and Opposition People's Alliance (PA) 
Spokesman Sarath Amunugama.  Key snippets from these 
three discussions follow: 
 
-- G.L. Peiris, Minister of Constitutional Affairs and 
Enterprise Development and chief GSL spokesman, told the 
delegation that President Kumaratunga's November 4 
takeover of three key ministries (Defense, Interior, 
Mass Communications) had caused a serious cohabitation 
rift and had had a "grave negative effect on the peace 
process."  Peiris questioned the constitutionality of 
the President's actions, and noted that in the GSL's 
view her actions had been "irresponsible and unlawful." 
Continuing his aggressive tack toward Kumaratunga, he 
charged that she "had done nothing for (Sri Lanka's) 
security needs" since she took over the Defense 
Ministry.  He dismissed her actions as a "clear power 
grab." 
 
-- Bradman Weerakoon, Secretary to the PM, briefed the 
Staffdel on a wide range of issues.  He acknowledged the 
seriousness of the cohabitation impasse, indicating that 
he hoped the two sides could overcome their infighting 
so that they could refocus on the country's pressing 
concerns.  Regarding the peace process, he remarked that 
informal discussions with the Tamil Tigers were ongoing 
in the absence of face-to-face negotiations (which have 
been on hold since April 2003).  He said it was crucial 
that the major political parties in the south work 
together, as, in his opinion, a constitutional amendment 
would be needed to implement any negotiated settlement 
reached with the Tigers.  This amendment would require 
two-thirds support in Parliament, which was only 
attainable if the major parties cooperated with each 
other.  While he did not have a strong opinion regarding 
the recent alliance reached by the President's Sri Lanka 
Freedom Party (SLFP) and the radical Janatha Vimukthi 
Peramuna (JVP), he did not think that general elections 
would take place in the near-term, as some feared.  When 
asked about the recent string of church attacks in Sri 
Lanka, Weerakoon said it was "a new phenomenon," which 
the government was very concerned about.  On a related 
front, Weerakoon said he did not think that proposed 
"anti-conversion" legislation would ultimately be passed 
by Parliament. 
 
-- Sarath Amunugama, senior PA MP, indicated that he did 
not foresee any near-term resolution to the cohabitation 
impasse.  He dismissed the idea that the President would 
respond to the PM's calls for her to take control of the 
peace process and ceasefire agreement with the Tigers in 
light of her takeover of the Defense Ministry.  He 
characterized the SLFP/JVP alliance as an electoral 
pact, uniting the two parties against the ruling United 
National Party.  Despite the JVP's traditional 
opposition to devolution of power as a proposed means of 
resolving Sri Lanka's ethnic conflict, he insisted that 
the SLFP would remain open to the concept of devolution. 
In negotiating with the Tigers, he felt that a 
bipartisan approach must be taken by the south, 
regardless of which party was in power. 
 
=============== 
Visit to Jaffna 
=============== 
 
4.  (C) A highlight of the delegation's visit was a day 
trip to the northern city of Jaffna on January 17. 
Poloff and Pol FSN accompanied the delegation on the 
trip.  In contrast to a December visit by Mission and 
SA/INS personnel (see Reftels), there were far fewer 
soldiers patrolling the streets, which bustled with 
activity.  The visit kicked off with a briefing by the 
military commander of Jaffna, Major General Susil 
Chandrapala.  General Chandrapala, who has just assumed 
his post, outlined the GSL's security concerns in the 
Jaffna Peninsula.  He asserted that the military's "high 
security zones" served a strategic purpose in protecting 
GSL operations in Jaffna, as well as providing security 
to Tamil civilians living in the area.  Chandrapala 
underlined the need for additional financial assistance 
for the resettlement of internally displaced persons 
(IDPs), as the Jaffna peninsula had the highest number 
of IDPs in Sri Lanka. 
 
5.  (C) Other contacts in Jaffna also asserted that the 
delivery of aid to the north was very slow.  For 
example, Additional Government Agent (AGA) for Jaffna M. 
Paul claimed that GSL money for resettlement assistance 
fell far short of the needs of IDPs.  Jaffna University 
professor N. Sitralapam charged that the government had 
done "virtually nothing for rehabilitation" in the 
north.  Also of deep concern to interlocutors was the 
cohabitation dispute between the President and Prime 
Minister, which was characterized by M. Paul as "petty, 
minor differences between two leaders dragging down the 
peace process." 
 
6.  (SBU) During the Jaffna visit, the delegation also 
visited a demining site, where USG-trained and equipped 
humanitarian deminers from the Sri Lanka Army 
demonstrated mine clearance techniques in an area slated 
for eventual resettlement by IDPs.  In addition, the 
team visited a USAID-funded center that provides 
prostheses and wheelchairs to disabled persons in the 
Jaffna District.  (Jaffna has a high instance of injury 
due to landmines and unexploded ordnance.) 
 
7.  (U) The Staffdel did not have an opportunity to 
clear this message before it left Sri Lanka. 
 
8.  (U) Minimize considered. 
LUNSTEAD