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| Sunday, 6 November 2005 |
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Editorial |  |
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Editor, Sunday Observer. E-mail: [email protected] Snail mail : Sunday Observer, 35, D.R.Wijewardana Mawatha, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Telephone : 94 11 2429239 / 2331181 Fax : 94 11 2429230 Dangling spectre of war As D-Day approaches, politicians use everything in their propaganda arsenal to entice voters or if that is not possible to intimidate them or blackmail them into voting for them. The latest trick up their sleeve is dangling the spectre of war. The UNP candidate has argued that a vote for his opponent is a vote for war whereas a vote for him is a vote for peace. Do you want war or peace is his question. War and peace, however, are not so simple. It is not a question to be answered in monosyllables. We have seen war being prosecuted by both the UNP and the PA. We also have seen both these parties seeking peace. War is nothing more than the continuation of policy by other means. The war is nothing but the result of political blunders and shortsighted policies of ultra nationalism and chauvinism followed by both leading parties for a long time. The rise of militancy was a direct consequence of the 1983 pogrom against the Tamil community, which was orchestrated by the then ruling party, the UNP. To label one as pro-peace and the other as pro-war is too simplistic. It is a naive attempt designed to grab votes by means unfair. The truth is more complex. Why did the LTTE agree to a ceasefire? Why did the Sri Lankan government agree to the ceasefire? Was it a sell out? If so, why did the PA continue it? These are legitimate questions. As international experience shows ceasefires in internal armed conflicts are made possible whenever a military stalemate emerges after protracted war. That is exactly what happened. Through its Operation "Unceasing Waves" the LTTE was able to roll back Government held territory in the North right up to the gates of the city of Jaffna. The security forces, in spite of their military reversals could hold on to the Jaffna city. The LTTE realised that it was a no win situation for both. The Sri Lankan government with the aid of the international community could not only hold fort in Jaffna but could even threaten it at a future date. The ceasefire is the result of the LTTE's acceptance of this military stalemate. The ceasefire opened for both parties a new opportunity for solving the intractable National Question. Despite the fact that we have not been able to arrive at a solution still, the next President, whoever he is, whatever his policies are cannot evade the issue. He will be forced to open negotiations with the LTTE to find a peaceful solution. Nor could the LTTE defer such negotiations indefinitely. Economic compulsion as well as political expediency point towards the resumption of negotiations. Both major political alliances as well as the LTTE are aware of this. The UPFA Presidential candidate has publicly declared his intention to pursue peace through negotiations. It was only two days ago that he reiterated in Jaffna that he does not wish to declare war but wants to seek a peaceful solution. The LTTE has also declared that it does not wish to re-start the war. In such a context, the attempt to misrepresent the UPFA candidate as a warmonger and create a fear psychosis among the voters is opportunistic and irresponsible. It is an act of desperation. Unfortunately a section of the media has also joined this campaign of dangling the spectre of war. The media are full of seemingly authentic but actually cooked up stories about preparations for war and the inevitability of war in case the UPFA candidate wins. The people, however, are not so naive to believe that questions of war and peace rest upon individuals and their desires or purported desires. Plamegate Scandal has plagued the Bush administration during its second term. Shortly after President Bush announced that there was evidence that Sadam Hussein had tried to buy "yellow cake" uranium from Niger, former diplomat Joseph Wilson publicly denied the report as false. He was the official sent by the CIA to check on the veracity of the story about Iraq's uranium purchase from Niger. He reported there was no evidence. A week later Valerie Plame was identified in the New York Times as a CIA operative. She was Wilson's wife. Speculation is that she was named in retaliation for Wilson's exposure of the truth about the Niger deal. Now Vice President Dick Cheney's Chief of Staff Scooter Libby has been indicted for perjury and obstruction of justice and lying by a Federal Grand jury. US media are speculating about possible involvement of Senior White House Advisor Karl Rove and even Vice President Dick Cheney in the CIA leak affair. The trial is expected to last some months. As the investigation proceeds more light will also be placed on the role of the media, especially the role played by New York Times reporter Judith Miller. It is not only the credibility of the Bush regime that is at stake. The credibility of the media is also open to question. The outcome of the case would have significance far beyond the borders of the United States. |
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