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Malinga H Gunaratne.

The conflict with the LTTE is not the only problem that Sri Lanka faces. The media, the present and past governments, all seem to think so.

All discussions are about before, and after Geneva. The fact is that the Sri Lankan delegation handled the peace talks  far better than the any of the previous participants in these charades between  conflicts. The talks can be held in Geneva,Thimpu, Sattahip  or any other Capital city in the world.The drama ,the  words will be stereotyped. If you play back the proceedings, the  litany  by Balasingham will be identical.You need to talk, because talking is far more  civilized  than fighting .Ranil Wickramasinghe too made the same mistake.

‘Norway, George Bush, Oslo declaration’,he intoned but that did not put him  back  in the driving seat.This is the peace  trap .The NGO’S and all the international do  gooders  seem to think that placating the Tigers is the only way forward. He who pays the piper calls the tune’. The NGO’S are merely singing for their supper.The Tigers are inflated into the best and the most ruthless fighting outfit in the world.  The Tigers have lost  control of the East.The Eastern  Tamils are backing Karuna To the hilt to get rid of this scourge.The Muslims are ready to meet The LTTE on a level playing field. They have refused to pay taxes.The goods are therefore, cheaper in Muslim areas and the Tamil people are flocking to buy cheaper goods.More high ranking desertions and even challenges may occur to the LTTE leadership soon.

 An outfit that has broken into splinter groups, rife with desertions and betrayals led by a man who is now paranoid for his safety, begging the Government of Sri Lanka to disarm his former Eastern Commander.Despite the bluster in Geneva , they were begging  the government to help them !.No. Nothing in return.They are arrogant even when they beg. It is about this motley bunch that the whole nation is wasting all the valuable time.

Niccolo Machiavelli in his advise to ruling prince’s says Your enemy’s enemy  is your friend’.Sorry LTTE, we did not create Karuna.You did.We have no control  over  him.We are not gloating over the threat that he is posing to the very existence of Pirapaharan. We cannot protect you till you disarm completely and swear allegiance to Sovereign Sri Lanka. Balasingham  cannot have his cake and eat it .Nemesis has caught up with the traducers.  The LTTE is now telling the Norweigians that the fragile ceasefire will soon end If Karuna is not disarmed .They know the end is near. They have not only Karuna but several armed groups to contend with. We have to prepare for another round of assassinations and even a short sharp conflict. Colombo will be targeted because the LTTE knows they can scare the fat cats in the capital city.

 We are a nation that has not come to terms with reality. The media is largely  to blame for our dilemma. They have brought into the political nomenclature of this country, words  like, ‘central government, border villages,LTTE controlled areas,LTTE courts, taken into LTTE  custody’ etc, conferring on the Tigers a legitimacy that they do not possess.’The LTTE IGP’ some of them exclaim, when we have only one IGP for the Democratic Socialist  Republic of Sri Lanka.Who is giving the Tigers these  symbols of nationhood? Let’s stop it.

The whole Sri Lankan nation waits with bated breath for the speech by Pirapaharan  on his birthday. Radio, TV time is liberally given to him.Crews rush to KiIlinochi to interview his minion Thamil Chelvam and we complain that he has already got his separate state. He has got nothing. He has no military ability to get anything. We are trying our best to give him, what he does not have.He controls no area.They Would not plead with us to disarm opposing Tamil forces, if they had control.

‘Yield to all and you will have nothing to yield’Aesop fables (appeasement) The orient is bursting with a massive economic revival. China is a super power. India is recognized today as a big five nation. The world is paying homage to this region.We are grappling with our own creation.We are kicking the ball into our own goal.

We have not beefed up our intelligence services.We do not know what is happening to the  LTTE.Their desertions,internal conflicts.The selective recruitment to the baby brigades, while the children of the LTTE leaders are living it up in western educational institutes,all go by default.

The massive propaganda advantage that can be obtained by dropping leaflets, by asking the Tamil people if they chose to follow double standards,is lost. Cake for the leaders, not even bread for the others! The western media is full of stories regarding LTTE extortion attempts in the UK/Canada.We need now, to press this home to our advantage.To tell the truth, because ‘truth was the first casualty in this war’. The Tigers took the west for suckers. The time has come to deal with this  differently, unconventionally.The problems of the Tamil people suffering the effects of a war thrust upon them goes unattended to.

The previous UNP government made the same mistake.All they did was talk peace, while the LTTE prepared to wage war.

We cannot continue to be the poor relation in a region entering a new economic order. We have to increase production.Curtail the innumerable holidays.Develop our massive tourist potential. Teach English to the new generation.Improve health benefits.Develop alternate and additional sources of power. We have to get strong.Economically.

We cannot let the LTTE drag us down into the path of economic ruin.An example can be taken from India. They too have their sectarian conflicts, but the economy grows .Ultimately economic and strategic power brings in its wake military power. Whether there is war, or peace, we have to have the most efficient military machine. Not the largest but the  best.

The best is  easy to create, it takes only training and preparation for battle at anytime. Intelligence however, is the first line of defence.

This is poker. Big time. You do not show your hand .If you can, you take a peek at the others hand. Winner takes all. There are no prizes for losers.

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