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Tigers include Indian Tamils in landmark peace deal
Colombo, Oct 26: Sri Lanka`s Tamil Tiger rebels have for the first time included Tamils of recent Indian origin in their comprehensive power-sharing plan aimed at ending three decades of ethnic bloodshed.
Colombo, Oct 26: Sri Lanka's Tamil Tiger rebels have for the first time included Tamils of recent Indian origin in their comprehensive power-sharing plan aimed at ending three decades of ethnic bloodshed.
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) envisaged representation from Tamils of recent Indian origin in an interim administrative council they want to run for six years
before re-writing the country's constitution.
The 'Sunday Leader' newspaper quoted a rebel draft in limited circulation as saying that the Tigers wanted an interim council of 100 members nominated 50 each from the northern province and eastern province. They are also going back to the 1987 Indo-Sri Lanka peace accord, seeking for the interim council all powers conferred on a provincial council set up under the bilateral pact that saw the creation of the 13th amendment to the Sri Lankan Constitution.
LTTE also want 25 per cent of the seats in the council preserved for women and ethnic ratio of the northern and eastern regions as of 1981 reflected in the governing body.
The council is to have a 20-member executive council which will act like a cabinet and have ethnic ratio maintained, but it will also have equal representation of 10 members each, which will function separately catering to the needs of the northern province and the eastern province. Analysts believe that this will in some way address concerns of the majority Sinhalese of a "merged north-east" that would account for one third of the land area in the island.
Bureau Report
The 'Sunday Leader' newspaper quoted a rebel draft in limited circulation as saying that the Tigers wanted an interim council of 100 members nominated 50 each from the northern province and eastern province. They are also going back to the 1987 Indo-Sri Lanka peace accord, seeking for the interim council all powers conferred on a provincial council set up under the bilateral pact that saw the creation of the 13th amendment to the Sri Lankan Constitution.
LTTE also want 25 per cent of the seats in the council preserved for women and ethnic ratio of the northern and eastern regions as of 1981 reflected in the governing body.
The council is to have a 20-member executive council which will act like a cabinet and have ethnic ratio maintained, but it will also have equal representation of 10 members each, which will function separately catering to the needs of the northern province and the eastern province. Analysts believe that this will in some way address concerns of the majority Sinhalese of a "merged north-east" that would account for one third of the land area in the island.
Bureau Report