Colombo, Jan 03: Sri Lanka's Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe publicly admonished President Chandrika Kumaratunga today and warned her against undermining the
country's fragile peace process.
In a five-page letter Kumaratunga, his arch political rival and head of the uneasy cohabitation government, Ranil warned her against undermining the Norwegian-led attempt to end ethnic bloodshed.
He was reacting to a terse letter by Kumaratunga four days ago demanding a "full report" from the Prime Minister over the importation of a radio transmitter for Tamil tiger
rebels through the Norwegian embassy.
The president has said the tigers imported Vsat communication equipment which she said even the Sri Lankan
authorities did not posses and that the radio broadcast could
undermine security of Sri Lanka's neighbours.
However, the Prime Minister said that dozens of VSAT (very small aperture terminal) satellite communication equipment were already in use in Sri Lanka and that the
president's agitation about Vsat was unclear.
He said that even foreign correspondents in Sri Lanka used Vsat terminals and that the authorities had liberalised the use of such equipment in the November budget.
Bureau Report
