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Sri Lanka rejects latest Tamil Tigers truce offer
Sri Lanka's government rejected the latest Tamil Tiger truce offer out of hand on Monday, again demanding the separatist rebels surrender or be destroyed by a military offensive rapidly gaining ground. The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eeelam (LTTE) at the weekend reiterated what they say is a long-standing desire for a truce in the 25-year-old war, one of Asia's longest insurgencies. The government has previously called such offers disingenuous. The military said troops on Monday captured the north-western Kiranchi area and were crossing the marshes surrounding Pooneryn, a strategic spit of land from where LTTE artillery fires to stops troops from coming south from the Jaffna peninsula. The seizure of Kiranchi came after a day of heavy clashes that the military said was leading toward taking control of an important road and opening up a land route to Jaffna for the first time in two decades. No casualty figures were available. In parliament, Agriculture Minister Maithripala Sirisena repeated President Mahinda Rajapaksa's stance, which has been in place since the government scrapped a 2002 ceasefire in January after accusing the LTTE of using the truce to rearm. "The government will not go for a ceasefire with the LTTE. We will not have any form of discussion with the LTTE. We have already told them to lay down arms and there is no change in our stand," Sirisena told the legislature on Monday. Sirisena is the latest government official targeted by a Tamil Tiger suicide bomber. He escaped unhurt from an October 9 blast that hit his convoy in Colombo, killing one and wounding five including his deputy. Diplomats and analysts say the government has little incentive to negotiate now because their military offensive since January appears to have put the rebels on their heels as it nears the LTTE's headquarters town of Kilinochchi. "Why would the government want to stop riding this wave now? It is making progress in terms of territory gains," said John Drake, an analyst with the AKE Group risk consultancy. He said the government and Sri Lankan public are "very much aware that the LTTE is not a trustworthy organisation that would lay down its arms and honour agreements". The Tigers have less diplomatic traction in the post-Sept. 11 world since they are on US, EU and Indian terrorism lists after carrying out suicide bombings and assassinations for years, a point Sri Lanka has increasingly made in its foreign relations. Posted by: Fred 2008-11-11 |
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