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Rajapakse for separating roles of facilitator and monitor

V.S. Sambandan

Rajapakse said he would welcome monitors from Japan and South Asia

COLOMBO: Sri Lankan President, Mahinda Rajapakse on Friday said that the facilitator for the peace process and the monitor for the ceasefire agreement "cannot be from the same country."

The President's view on separating the twin roles currently played by Norway was reported in the state-run Daily News.

"There should be two entities to facilitate the peace process and to monitor the ceasefire," between the Government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), the newspaper quoted Mr. Rajapakse as telling the visiting Japanese Special Envoy, Yasushi Akashi.

The role played by facilitator, Norway, and the Sri Lankan Monitoring Mission (SLMM), which is a team comprising Nordic representatives and headed by a Norwegian, was one of the key issues raised by Mr. Rajapakse's election allies — the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) and the Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU). The two parties want a review of the ceasefire agreement, which was facilitated by Norway.

During his meeting, Mr. Rajapakse also told Mr. Akashi that he would welcome monitors from Japan, South Asia and other Scandinavian countries, the newspaper said.

On December 7, Mr. Rajapakse invited Oslo to continue its role as facilitator in the peace process.

The Norwegian Government has said that it would hold consultations with Sri Lankan political parties.

Its envoy, Hans Brattskar, met the LTTE's political wing leader, on Friday.

A Norwegian statement, however, said Mr. Brattskar went in his own capacity "and not as a representative of the facilitator of the peace process." The Norwegian Government, which is a facilitator since the late 1990s, " will not be carrying messages between the two until consultations on the future Norwegian role has taken place," the embassy said.

Indian naval ships' visit

Meanwhile, two Indian naval ships INS Sukanya and INS Kirpan, sailed into Colombo on Saturday as part of a global goodwill visit by the Indian Navy.

The ships have visited Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, Oman, and Vietnam and other countries, the Indian High Commission said.

Vice-Admiral, Suresh Mehta, the Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Naval Command will also pay a courtesy visit to Sri Lanka as part of the goodwill visit of the ships.

For the offshore patrol vessel, INS Sukanya, Saturday's visit was significant as it was the first foreign ship to have reached Trincomalee for tsunami-relief operations after the December 2004 devastation.

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