The appointment of All Party Representatives’ Group by the British House of Commons to go into the question of Lankan affairs and the visit of Richard Boucher, the US State Minister for South and Central Asian Affairs, to Sri Lanka is the latest development in Sri Lankan national conflict.

It is no doubt that the new initiatives by the international community are the results of the air strike in Jaffna and the two air strikes in Colombo by the LTTE. It appears that America and UK failed to realize the worsening situation in Sri Lanka until the air strikes by the LTTE.

Although the international community has awakened to the reality in Sri Lanka, the Sri Lankan government and President Rajapakse seem to be living in an imaginary world.

The government has no intention whatsoever to present proposals for a viable solution and move towards peace.

President Rajapakse, addressing a ceremony at the Temples Trees, stated that he has received the support of the country to crush terrorism and that he doesn’t propose to leave the challenge to be faced by the next generation.

It is obvious that the government proposes to crush the LTTE through a war and then thrust a political solution that they have in mind on the Tamil people. The solution they have is to devolve powers at the district level-a proposal that was rejected outright by the Tamil people- a quarter of a century ago.

Presently the international community including America and Britain is interested in preventing a full scale war. Britain believes that it can break the deadlock in the dialogue among three parties-the government, LTTE and the Norway. Britain also believes that the national conflict can be resolved on the lines of its experience in the Northern Ireland.

It is unfortunate that the Sri Lankan government is refusing to extend its cooperation to the offer by Britain.

An English translation of the Editorial in The Sudar Oli, a Tamil daily, based in Colombo

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