US embassy cable - 04COLOMBO1219

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 COLOMBO 001219 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR SA, SA/INS; NSC FOR E. MILLARD 
 
PLEASE PASS TOPEC 
 
E.O. 12958:    DECL:  07-22-14 
TAGS: PREL, CE, NO, LTTE - Peace Process 
SUBJECT:  PEACE PROCESS TIDBITS 
 
Refs:  (A) Colombo 1216 and previous 
 
(U) Classified by Ambassador Jeffrey J. Lunstead. 
Reasons 1.5 (b,d). 
 
1.  (C) SUMMARY:  An LTTE official requested and 
received a meeting with the GSL on July 20.  Meanwhile, 
when Parliament reconvened, TNA MPs broached the ISGA as 
a basis for talks.  The discussion was postponed. 
Violent episodes between LTTE cadre loyal to the Wanni 
and those loyal to breakaway eastern leader Karuna 
continue to plague the east.  In Trincomalee, Muslims 
staged a hartal (strike) to protest LTTE abuses of the 
Muslim community.  In ongoing "shuttle diplomacy," the 
Norwegians continue to pressure the Tigers and the GSL 
to return to peace talks END SUMMARY. 
 
Tigers Warming Up to GSL? 
------------------------ 
 
2.  (C) A Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) 
official requested and received a meeting with the GSL 
on July 20.  Secretary General of GSL Peace Secretariat 
Jayantha Dhanapala met with Secretary General of LTTE 
Peace Secretariat S. Puleedevan in Colombo.  Media 
reports described the meeting as a "courtesy call," and 
noted that it was the highest-level meeting between the 
GSL and the LTTE since the parliamentary election in 
April.  Dhanapala told Ambassador that Puleedevan (who 
travels frequently to Colombo) called him up out of the 
blue and suggested the meeting.  Dhanapala saw no reason 
not to oblige.  Puleedevan, however, is not a decision- 
maker within the LTTE. 
 
TNA MPs broach ISGA in Parliament 
--------------------------------- 
 
3.  (C) Meanwhile, the Parliament convened for the fifth 
time on July 20.  Tamil National Alliance (TNA) MPs 
wanted the Interim Self Governing Authority (ISGA) as a 
basis for peace talks to be the first item debated, but 
the topic was postponed until August. On July 21, 
Kajendran, (a new TNA MP from Jaffna, and rumored to be 
Prabhakaran's future son-in-law) accused the GSL of not 
taking an interest in the peace process and said that an 
outbreak of war was possible.  Should that happen, he 
continued, the 60,000 Sri Lanka Army personnel in the 
North and East could end up going to Colombo in body 
bags.  After a UPFA MP moved toward him (and was 
restrained by other MPS,) Kajendran clarified that he 
really meant that there should not be an occasion for 
war to break out.  A Jathika Hela Urumaya MP asked that 
Kajendran's remarks be stricken from the record, which 
was done. 
 
Violence in the East Continues 
------------------------------ 
 
4.  (U) Violent episodes between LTTE cadre loyal to the 
Wanni and those loyal to breakaway eastern leader Karuna 
continue to plague the east, especially near Batticaloa. 
In a Batticlaoa prison, an LTTE cadre killed two pro- 
Karuna cadres and injured a third on July 15.  One of 
the victims, known as Maran, was the LTTE military 
leader in Ampara prior to the LTTE split in March. 
After the split, he briefly acted as Karuna's spokesman. 
Karuna had proposed Maran as the Secretary of his new 
party, the Democratic Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. 
 
5.  (C) The LTTE is also targeting other groups in the 
east.  On July 21, a cadre from the anti-LTTE Eelam 
People's Democratic Party (EPDP)was killed near 
Akaraipattu, south of Batticaloa.  The EPDP cadre was a 
Pradeshiya Sabha (town council) leader.  His 
predecessor, also an EPDP cadre, was also killed by the 
LTTE. 
 
6.  (C) Near Trincomalee, Muslims in Kinniya held a 
hartal (general strike) on July 20 to protest LTTE 
kidnappings of Muslims near the Maniraskulum camp. 
Thirteen Muslims who had been gathering firewood and 
rubble for livelihood purposes were held by the LTTE and 
forced to gather rocks for the Tigers, who are rumored 
to be building in the area.  Typically, Muslims "caught" 
working in this way are fined, but not held. In this 
case, ten of the Muslims were released, except three who 
were held for several more days.  One of the three was 
badly beaten and required hospitalization. 
 
Norwegians Keep Up the Pressure for Peace Talks 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
7. (U)  The Norwegians continue to pressure the Tigers 
and the GSL to return to peace talks via ongoing 
"shuttle diplomacy."  One July 22, Sri Lanka Monitoring 
Mission Leader General Trond Furuhovde met with LTTE 
leadership in Kilinochchi to discuss safeguarding the 
Cease-Fire Agreement(CFA) and recent CFA violations. 
Media reports indicate his meeting was in preparation 
for Norwegian Deputy Foreign Minister Vidar Helgessen's 
July 25 visit to Sri Lanka. 
 
 
LUNSTEAD