Colombo, June 04: Tamil Tiger rebels today formally
rejected Sri Lanka's latest offer of talks to end the deadlock
in the Norwegian-backed peace process and insisted on
political authority ahead of a final settlement.
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) said there
was no change in their stance despite a letter from Prime
Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe on sunday calling for a dialogue
on the rebel demands.
The LTTE's London-based chief negotiator, Anton
Balasingham, said they were, however, willing to resume
negotiations only if the government agreed to an "interim
administrative structure" proposed by them.
In a letter to Wickremesinghe released to the media
here, Balasingham said it was up to the government to define
the powers and the composition of a political authority for
the embattled region.
"We wish to assure you that we are prepared to resume
negotiations if you reconsider your position and offer us, for
our consideration, a draft framework for an interim
administrative structure along the lines proposed by our
leadership".
"We hope that you will consider our suggestion
favourably", Balasingham said.
The Tigers announced April 21 that they would abandon
peace talks after accusing the government of failing to
deliver on promises made at six rounds of talks since
September last year.
Bureau report
