Peace conundrum in post-LTTE Sri Lanka? – Dr. Ameer Ali

From which ever angle one may look at it, it appears that the end is well nigh to the LTTE. One of the ugliest chapters in the history of Sri Lanka is hopefully coming to an end. Missed opportunities, over confidence in military might, tactical blunders, and above all, the wrath of the masses, are the sum total of LTTE’s achievements. However, the eventual demise of the LTTE is not something to be celebrated even by the victors, because, firstly, it will be a pyrrhic victory achieved at a colossal cost in terms of human sacrifices and material waste; and secondly, the forces of Buddhist chauvinism that has driven the final advance against the LTTE, will no doubt be looking further to outright domination over the nation’s failing democracy, struggling economy and receding cultural plurality.

To the fair minded, the defeat of the LTTE should not be assumed as a victory over the Tamil community or the end of divisive ethnic politics that is the main culprit behind the present catastrophe. The political leaders of the nation stubbornly refused to learn the lessons from 1957 and 1983, and because of it the country as a whole is enduring the punishment that history meets out to truant students. Will they take this opportunity at least to catch up with lost lessons in the past? 

The Muslim community in particular should avoid schadenfreud and start thinking introspectively about its own future in the country. This community should be at the forefront of negotiating for a multi-ethnic coalition of moderate political forces that would put national unity and peaceful coexistence as the primary objective and would disavow ethnic particularism and individual interest. Ethnic politics should have no place at all in post-LTTE Sri Lanka.

From the point of view of the Sri Lankan government the post-LTTE scenario calls for extraordinary magnanimity towards the Tamils, who have suffered enormously over the last three decades, both under the tyranny of the LTTE and its propagandists on the one hand and the indiscriminate violence of the national security forces on the other. Hundreds of thousands of Tamils have lost their immediate kith and kin, their homes and property, and above all their psychological and mental fortitude. The last of these is the most difficult to rectify. The future rehabilitation of the Tamils goes far beyond simple material compensation. This of course is not to belittle or ignore the losses to the Sinhalese and Muslim communities although the scale is smaller in comparison. Before even discussing the devolution of powers and regional autonomy within a unitary state there are other more immediate issues that have to be confronted. 

Will the Tamil character of the north and east be restored after the demise of LTTE or will it be diluted with waves of Sinhalese settlements and colonization? Will the Muslims of Jaffna be allowed to go back to their place of birth and will the land and property the Muslims lost in north and east returned to them? Will the government disarm the other paramilitary groups that are roaming in the east now and will the security forces get back to the barracks once the anti-LTTE mission is accomplished? Or, will they demand a share of the spoils? Or, as another alternative, will the army change its role and win the hearts and minds of the Tamil masses by becoming reconstruction brigades? Will the government relax its iron grip on the media and allow competing views to debate the aftermath of the war and the future direction of the nation? In short, what is the peace dividend that the government is going to deliver? Without tackling these fundamental issues and resolving them disp assionately, perhaps under an independent peace commission, peace will remain a conundrum in post-LTTE Sri Lanka. 

Dr. Ameer Ali

Business School

Murdoch University 

Western Australia