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Journalism of Courage
JAFFNA, Sept 12: The killing of Mayor Pon Sivapalan and 11 others in a powerful explosion here on Friday is yet another blow to President Chandrika Kumaratunga’s tottering experiment with local government in the peninsula.However, the experiment is in a shambles today and has demonstrated only that normalcy is not possible while the larger issues of the conflict continue unresolved. This city is now reeling under fear and tragedy with two mayors violently eliminated within four months of each other.
Despite government claims of restoring civil administration, of the 15 local bodies to which elections were held, only the Jaffna Municipal Council was fully functional while four others have held sporadic meetings. Of the total number of 256 members who were elected, many have not yet taken oath of office for fearing of becoming LTTE targets. Some have already received death threats. A large number have even resigned.
After the successful holding of elections, even the government’s interest in the future ofthese bodies seemed to have fizzled with constant complaints from both the deceased Jaffna mayors and other elected members about their inability to get funds for projects.
Though the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF), which is the single largest party in the Jaffna municipal council, has bravely declared that it will nominate yet another from its fast depleting ranks to take over as mayor, party members believe local government in the peninsula in the present unsettled conditions is a mistake.
“We have no shortage of people willing to become mayor of Jaffna, but we still stand by our statement that it was not the time to hold local elections,” declared V Anandasangari, who flew here from Colombo to make funeral arrangements for yet another colleague.
Sri Lanka’s military established control over Jaffna peninsula in April 1996 in an operation that had the LTTE fleeing the area along with civilians. To the government’s satisfaction, many civilians returned after a few months but the influx back intothe peninsula also brought with it LTTE infiltrators.
In the last two years, several violent incidents have rocked the peninsula, which was the main reason for the TULF’s belief that `ground conditions’ were not conducive for the revival of a civil administration. However, like the other Tamil parties not wanting to be accused of blocking the political process, it played along with Kumaratunga.
Friday’s incident, the biggest since the military moved in over two years, once again showed the LTTE’s ability to hit important target almost at will and has left even seasoned army officers shaken. There was an admission of defeat as Thenmarachchci division commander Major General Sarath Munasinghe said they would not have been able to locate the claymore mine that caused the explosion even if the building had been subjected to a search.
Major General Balagalle who holds overall command of the peninsula said the army was tough enough to take such incidents in its stride, but also admitted it was a `setback’.
“They (the LTTE) have succeeded in killing 12 of us. They got more than they could have hoped for,” a tired-looking Balagalle admitted.
The magnitude of the incident is certain to spark off another round of resignations by elected members from the Jaffna municipal council, just as Yogeswaran’s assassination did.
