|
|
 |
| Sunday, 10 March 2002 |
 |
|
 |
News |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
|
Consolidate Ceasefire Agreement - NPC The National Peace Council has urged to consolidate the Ceasefire Agreement between the Government and the LTTE through a principled approach. A statement released by the NPC urging to strengthen the implementation of the Ceasefire Agreement is as follows: "The Ceasefire Agreement and the role given in it to the Norwegians as a third party, is a testimony to the trust that the two sides have placed in its non-partisan and constructive role. The upgraded role of the Norwegians is something to take assurance in especially to guard against a sudden breakdown of the ceasefire. The failure of the previous round of peace talks in 1995 was due in part to the unavailability of a trusted third party to bridge the gap in trust that had arisen over five decades of ethnic conflict, broken political promises and broken ceasefire agreements. "The relatively incident-free nature of the ceasefire at present has greatly strengthened public confidence in the viability of a peace process that has been dismissed as impossible by sections of hardline opinion and vested interests. At this early stage of cessation of hostilities, extremist nationalist sections are seeking to misdirect the people and increase their sense of apprehension and threat. Opportunities to further the peace process need to be seized by civil society organisations in mobilising peace constituencies to ensure that the space for a just and negotiated settlement is not overrun. Likewise the Government, the Opposition and the LTTE should create a conducive environment for a people's movement for peace rather than mobilise people for sectional purposes." |
|
News | Business | Features
| Editorial | Security Produced by Lake House |
