Lanka talks start, crucial issues still untouched

Sri Lanka Government and Tamil Tiger rebels began talks on Monday to end one of the world’s longest-running wars but their opening rema...

Sri Lanka Government and Tamil Tiger rebels began talks on Monday to end one of the world’s longest-running wars but their opening remarks, while guardedly optimistic, highlighted a deep gulf.

After the speeches at a beach resort in Thailand, delegates were whisked away to a nearby naval base at Sattahip for their first direct talks in seven years. Investors in Sri Lanka latched on to the mood of optimism. Stocks closed at their highest for five years, with the Colombo all-share index rising 1.38 per cent to break the key 800-point level.

‘‘We are seriously and sincerely committed to peace and we will strive our utmost to ensure the success of the negotiations,’’ Anton Balasingham, chief negotiator for the LTTE, told the opening ceremony.

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‘‘A firm foundation has been laid for peace negotiations by the principal parties in the conflict,’’ he said, calling for international help to rebuild Tamil areas of the island.

Chief government negotiator G.L. Peiris described the 19-year-old ethnic war as ‘‘unique in its ferocity’’ but said that now lay in the past. ‘‘Together we repudiate a legacy of rancour and hatred which has torn asunder the fabric of our nation for decades,’’ he added. ‘‘A sea change is necessary now the tempest has abated.’’

Balasingham walked into the ceremony talking politely with Peiris, something unimaginable until earlier this year. There were also no government or LTTE flags on display, an issue in previous failed talks. But the talks will initially focus on aid and rebuilding war-torn areas, leaving contentious issues, such as Tiger demands for a separate state, until later rounds. (Reuters)

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