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LTTE BACKS UNP OPENLY

By Walter Jayawardhana reporting from Los Angeles

The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam backed Tamil political party alliance will help the United National Party(UNP), the rebel group announced.

The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam’s main organ, The Tamil Guardian, said, favourable conditions proposed by the UNP compelled the Tamil Tigers backed Alliance of Tamil Parties to throw its growing weight behind the country’s main opposition party, the UNP.

In a leader editorial published in the November 21 issue of the Tamil Guardian, the rebel group said, in no uncertain terms, that it preferred Ranil Wickramasinghe led United National Party to President Kumaratunga led People’s Alliance to capture power of the country’s parliament on December 5 General elections.

The London based official organ of the Tamil Tigers accused the Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickremanayake, for showing strong opposition of the People’s Alliance to ,what it said, the Tamils rights , by calling on the Sri Lankan armed forces to defeat the “conspiracy” of an interim administration for the Tamil North- East. The Tamil Guardian described it as, “ an idea mooted by the main opposition United National Party (UNP) for de-escalating the conflict and paving the way for a negotiated settlement.”

Very supportive of the UNP-proposed interim administration for the Northern and Eastern provinces the LTTE organ said, “ The UNP has carefully avoided discussing the make of any such interim structure, but the notion itself has provoked outrage amongst the Sinhala supremacists.”

Commenting on a recent survey by Social Indicator whose published results suggested that the Sinhalese were more concerned about the economy than the war and overwhelming number of Sri Lankans were in favour of talks by the government with the LTTE, the organ of the rebels said, this suggested “the capitalist UNP with its strategy for ending the war should enjoy buoyant support, (but) the reality is both Sinhalese and Tamils do not seek peace alone but the fulfillment of their national aspirations with it.”

The rebel journal pointed out that was why the People’s Alliance was fanatically opposed to make any concessions to the rebels and that formed the central plank of its campaign.

The leader editorial of the Tamil Guardian in no uncertain terms indicated that even in the economic field their great preference was Mr. Ranil Wickramasinghe led UNP to Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga led People’s Alliance. Comparing and contrasting the two main parties, the PA and the UNP, the LTTE organ said, “Both the PA and the UNP fully understand that the disintegrating economy and the ethnic war are interrelated. However, while the UNP appeals to the sound logic of stabilizing the former by ending the latter, the PA’s call is emotional, patriotically seeking to win the conflict at any cost to the country’s economy.”

The editorial also praised the UNP for recognizing the Tamil Tigers cannot- for now at least- be defeated militarily and that protracted war will reduce this possibility further.

The LTTE journal said whilst the Tamil community understood that neither Sinhala party was going to meet their aspirations, “the UNP will –at least in the short term – attempt to discuss these and more importantly, explore ways to cease hostilities.”

“The much needed respite this could bring the people of the North and East compels the alliance of Tamil parties to throw its growing weight behind the UNP,” The Tamil Guardian categorically stated.

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