Colombo, June 01: Sri Lanka's peace prospects have dimmed as Tamil Tiger rebels resist international pressure and insist on political power ahead of a final settlement, diplomats and officials said today.
After labelling six rounds of negotiations with the
Colombo government as a "waste of time," the Liberation Tigers
of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) on Friday rejected an offer of greater
financial authority in return for ending their boycott of
peace talks.
"The Tigers are making a serious miscalculation by not
attending talks, and particularly the donors meeting in
Tokyo," a senior western diplomat here said referring to the
aid pledging conference Japan is hosting on June 9-10.
The diplomat said the Tigers may be underestimating the
will of the United States, European nations, Japan and
neighbouring India in strongly backing the Norwegian-led peace
initiative to end Sri Lanka's ethnic bloodshed.
However, the LTTE's London-based chief negotiator, Anton
Balasingham, said on Friday the rebels were unhappy with the
international community's increased role in Sri Lanka.
"We are also concerned over the growing involvement in
the peace process of formidable international forces from whom
you have been soliciting not only aid but the setting up of a
grand international 'safety net' to bring undue pressure on
the freedom of our people to determine their political status
and destiny," Balasingham said in a letter to Prime Minister
Ranil Wickremesinghe.
The LTTE pulled out of peace talks on April 21 and since
then there have been growing demands, including from the G8
foreign ministers, that the Tigers resume talks and attend the
Tokyo donors conference.
Bureau Report
