Uncle Sam negotiates for ceasefire with Tigers

GOVT. READY FOR 48 HOUR PAUSE, NOT TWO WEEKS

Powerful countries were exerting pressure on the government to initiate a ceasefire at week’s end. Meanwhile, the government has agreed to halt military operations for a period of 48 hours if the LTTE will release trapped civilians in the ‘No Fire Zone’.

The ambassador for the United States in Sri Lanka, Robert O. Blake has told the government that the US had contacted the LTTE leadership through a third party and that the Tiger leadership was demanding a seven- day ceasefire if it was to release civilians.

However, the government has told Blake that if the US could guarantee that the LTTE would release civilians, government would halt military operations for a period of 48hours only. “The LTTE is designated as a foreign terrorist organization by the US thereby preventing direct contact with the Tigers. Hence a third party was a requirement for negotiations. However, it is not known who the third party was, though some sources suggest that it may have been the peace facilitator, Norway”, military sources said. However, the Commander of the Army, Lt General Sarath Fonseka had vehemently protested against the ceasefire proposal warning that it is a ruse by the guerrilla leadership to flee the country, sources said.

The Commander had said “Escape by the LTTE leadership would mean the relocation of the command structure of the LTTE out of the country for the reorganization in the future, as most of the middle ranking leaders of the LTTE were killed in the recent military operations leaving its top rung leadership still functional”.
The five seniormost leaders of the guerrilla hierarchy- Prabhakaran, Pottu Amman, Nadeshan, Soosai and Swarnam were still operating from the ‘No Fire Zone’. In addition, Jeyam, Lawrence and Banu are surviving; the latter escaped with injuries during pitched battles in Pachcha Pulmudai in the first four days of this month.