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| Sunday, 11 August 2002 |
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Reduce level of political conflict to sustain peace process The confrontational relations between the government and opposition has taken a turn for the worse with increasing tensions between the government and opposition creating the possibility of dissolution of Parliament and a snap general election. The National Peace Council is concerned that this bitter contest for political power will undermine the peace process at a sensitive time when the ceasefire agreement is entering a new phase and when the gains of peace are becoming more apparent, a statement issued by the NPC said. One key lesson from the years of government-LTTE confrontation is that unilateral efforts to defeat each other spelled new rounds of ever escalating conflict. The NPC appreciates the present government's policy of dialogue and political negotiations with the LTTE. This has been done on an equal footing that has brought a six month respite from war. "We ask the government to act in a similar principled way with the parliamentary opposition, said the statement. The rivalry between successive ruling and opposition parties in the past has been one of the major reasons for the failure of past attempts to resolve the ethnic conflict since 1957. Hence it is unlikely that a policy of accommodation with the LTTE on the one hand, and confrontation with the opposition on the other hand, can succeed in the longer term. Instead there needs to be a spirit of bipartisanship in addressing the serious problems that the country faces whether in terms of the ethnic conflict, good governance or economic recovery. The NPC calls on the President and Prime Minister to demonstrate maturity and patience and resolve their problems through dialogue and not through threats and unilateral actions. The central issues of the political conflict revolve around the President's arbitrary power to dissolve Parliament on the one hand and Parliament's power to impeach the President on the other hand. These issues need to be dealt with in a principled manner that gives both parties the assurance that neither will be undermined by the other. Further the dignity, authority and position of the President and Prime Minister need to be respected by the members of the government and opposition in terms of the cohabitation that the voters of this country have imposed on the two rival parties through their vote at two separate elections. At this time we wish to reaffirm that the peace process should not be seen as the efforts of any one party or as beneficial to one party. The objective of the peace process must be the well-being of the country. Where we stand today is the culmination of the collective efforts of all parties, including the present and former governments. In these efforts the people, especially those caught up and sorely affected, have shown considerable patience, restraint and collective wisdom. We insist that the country's political leaders take a lesson from the people and evolve supportive democratic mechanisms to resolve their own conflicts. |
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