US embassy cable - 02COLOMBO1719

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 COLOMBO 001719 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR SA, SA/INS; NSC FOR E. MILLARD; 
LONDON FOR POL/RIEDEL 
 
E.O. 12958:  DECL:  09-16-12 
TAGS: PGOV, PTER, PINS, CE, TH, NO, LTTE - Peace Process 
SUBJECT:  Sri Lankan government-Tamil Tiger talks 
kickoff in Thailand on conciliatory note 
 
Refs:  (A) Colombo-Sa/INS 09-16-02 unclass e-mails 
-      (B) Ops Center/Colombo 09-16-02 telecon 
-      (C) FBIS Reston Va DTG 160520Z Sep 02 
-      (D) Colombo 1693, and previous 
 
(U) Classified by W. Lewis Amselem, Charge d'Affaires. 
Reasons 1.5 (b, d). 
 
1.  (C) Summary:  The opening ceremony kicking off talks 
between the GSL and the Tamil Tigers on September 16 was 
constructive, with both sides making conciliatory 
remarks.  The talks, which are being held at a naval 
base in Thailand, are now in closed-door session until a 
closing ceremony and press conference on the afternoon 
of September 18.  Mission continues to hear that this 
initial round of talks will be more of a get-to-know-you 
opportunity than substantive in content.  End Summary. 
 
2.  (SBU) Mission watched the opening ceremony kicking 
off talks between the Sri Lankan government and 
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) beamed live from 
Thailand on local TV on September 16.  In a positive 
note, the opening speeches by GSL and LTTE 
representatives were conciliatory.  Norwegian and Thai 
government representatives also gave brief speeches. 
After the opening ceremony, the two sides entered into 
closed-door face-to-face talks with only Norwegian 
government officials present as facilitators.  The 
closed-door talks are scheduled to continue until 
September 18 when a closing ceremony and press 
conference will be held. 
 
3.  (U) Per Ref A, Mission has e-mailed SA/INS the texts 
of speeches given at the opening ceremony.  Some of the 
highlights of these speeches included the following 
snippets: 
 
-- G.L. Peiris, a senior GSL minister involved in peace 
process issues, stated, in part:  "Our nation has 
resolved, with a firmness of conviction that has served 
us well at the most critical moments in our long and 
eventful history, that a sea change is necessary, now 
that the tempests have abated.  Nothing is as evident in 
all substantial shades of public opinion in our country 
today as the unquenchable thirst for peace, dignity, and 
opportunity for all our people...Despite the color and 
drama of this event, however, it behooves us to remember 
that the unfolding panorama of history represents a 
continuum.  President Kumaratunga, soon after her 
election for the first time eight years ago, committed 
her government to the goal of peace...We stand 
unwaveringly for the amplest degree of devolution and 
for the establishment and strengthening of institutions 
designed to achieve this purpose.  But these reforms 
must necessarily be effected within the framework of a 
state whose unity and territorial integrity is ensured 
in fact and in law by the envisioned structures." 
 
-- Anton Balasingham, the LTTE spokesman, stated, in 
part:  "We (the LTTE) are optimistic that the peace 
talks will succeed because both Mr. Velupillai 
Prabhakaran, the LTTE leader, and Mr. Ranil 
Wickremesinghe, the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, have a 
genuine and firm will and a firm determination to 
resolve the conflict through the process of dialogue. 
As far as the LTTE is concerned, I can assure you that 
we are seriously and sincerely committed to peace and 
that we will strive our utmost to ensure the success of 
the negotiations...Though the leadership of the LTTE 
had, on several occasions, opted for cessation of 
hostilities and peace talks, the previous government 
rejected our conciliatory gestures and intensified the 
conditions of war that caused heavy loss of life and 
monumental destruction of Tamil property...The situation 
has radically changed with the assumption to power of a 
new government with the overwhelming popular mandate for 
peace and negotiated political settlement." 
 
-- Vidar Helgesen, Norwegian Deputy Foreign Minister, 
stated, in part:  "The government of Norway feels 
privileged to have the opportunity of facilitating these 
negotiations, thereby assisting the parties in their 
quest for peace.  We feel privileged to witness at close 
range the leadership the parties provide.  Trying to 
bring a long and bitter war to an end through peaceful 
means, they are sending a powerful message to us.  At a 
time when the world is facing a magnitude of armed 
conflicts and violent threats, and at a time when the 
use of armed force is too often predicated as a primary 
means to address such threats, the parties in Sri Lanka 
are setting an example for the world." 
 
4.  (C) Comment:  It may be a sign of the success of the 
peace process thus far, but most Sri Lankans seem more 
fixated by the results of a large international cricket 
tournament taking place in Colombo than what is 
transpiring in Thailand.  In any case, sources in 
Colombo have told us that both the GSL and the LTTE are 
satisfied with how the opening ceremony went.  There is 
still no word about the results of this afternoon's 
closed-door session.  Mission continues to hear that 
this initial round of talks will be more of a get-to- 
know-you opportunity focusing on assistance-related 
issues than substantive as to the means to attain a 
negotiated settlement.  End Comment. 
 
5.  (U) Minimize considered. 
 
AMSELEM