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Chandrika, Ranil discuss LTTE proposals

By V.S. Sambandan

COLOMBO DEC. 10 . The Sri Lankan President, Chandrika Kumaratunga, and the Prime Minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe, today discussed the broad parametres of Colombo's possible response to the proposals by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), sources close to the President and the Prime Minster, told The Hindu.

The details of the meeting have not been made public. However, according to sources in the Presidential Secretariat, the two leaders "widely discussed the peace process, particularly the Prime Minister's offer to the LTTE" earlier this year. The parleys centred on "the maximum and the minimum" that could be offered to the LTTE. For the first time, the two leaders discussed a possible response to the proposal made by LTTE on October 31 for an Interim Self-Governing Authority (ISGA), with a majority stake for itself and plenary powers for running the North-East.

On November 4, Ms. Kumaratunga took over the Ministries of Defence, Interior and Mass Communication, exercising her constitutional powers. Subsequently, Mr. Wickremesinghe said he would not accept responsibility for the peace process and the facilitators, Norway, put the attempt to find a negotiated settlement to the island's separatist conflict formally on hold. Ms. Kumaratunga and Mr. Wickremesinghe also appointed a committee of officials to find a way out of the current political impasse.Impasse continues:

While today's meeting signalled the first formal approach by the two leaders towards a negotiating position with the LTTE, the political impasse continues. The committee of officials, jointly headed by the Secretaries to the President and the Prime Minister, is scheduled to meet tomorrow. According to Presidential Secretariat sources the committee meetings could continue beyond the December 15 indicative deadline set by the President. " The deadline would be flexible," the sources said.

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