Saturday, Nov 15, 2003
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By V.S. Sambandan
"Our options here are now exhausted. We will go home and wait," the Norwegian Deputy Foreign Minister, Vidar Helgesen, told journalists here, concluding a four-day visit. Though the "peace process is in good shape", it was unclear as to who had political authority "on behalf of the Government" over it. "Until such clarity is re-established, there is no space for further efforts by the Norwegian Government to assist the parties," Mr. Helgesen said in the first public pronouncement by the facilitators since the political standoff started 10 days ago. Since his arrival here on November 10, Mr. Helgesen met the Sri Lankan President, Chandrika Kumaratunga, twice, the Prime Minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe, thrice and the chief of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), V. Prabakaran, once. On the political standoff, Mr. Helgesen said it was "not within Norway's mandate to facilitate between political parties in the south". Though "all parties have confirmed" that the "ceasefire agreement (signed in February 2002) is being respected" the stalemate had led to "a very serious situation, not because the peace process is fragile, but because it might be made fragile". Striking a note of caution, Mr. Helgesen said that in the absence of negotiations, "there is always the risk" that "minor events" could flare up into a serious situation. "If progress in political negotiation is made impossible, the ceasefire will become increasingly fragile," he said. "The single impediment" for the resumption of talks, according to Mr. Helgesen — who chaired the six rounds of direct talks between Colombo and the LTTE between September 2002 and April 2004 — "is the political crisis in the south". Though there was "overwhelming public support for the peace process", Norway emphasised that "the ceasefire will be much more difficult to sustain in a political vacuum". Mr; Helgesen also emphasised that the "freedom of operation and security" of the members of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission "is of particular importance". A visibly tired Mr. Helgesen, who took a flurry of questions from journalists, categorically stated that Norway would "not facilitate between the political parties in the south". The present political standoff has sent "mixed signals" to the Norwegian facilitators, who were invited by Ms. Kumaratunga's People's Alliance Government and were continued with by the Ranil Wickremesinghe administration. The peace talks "could have started tomorrow, provided there were clarity about who is holding political authority and responsibility on behalf of the Government and the resumption of the peace negotiations", he said. The resumption of the peace process was "seriously impeded by the political crisis in the south", Mr. Helgesen said, adding, "This has caused serious concerns in the international community."
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