{"id":117160,"date":"2021-08-15T16:01:10","date_gmt":"2021-08-15T23:01:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=117160"},"modified":"2021-08-15T16:01:10","modified_gmt":"2021-08-15T23:01:10","slug":"erasing-the-eelam-victory-part-23c","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2021\/08\/15\/erasing-the-eelam-victory-part-23c\/","title":{"rendered":"ERASING THE EELAM VICTORY Part 23C"},"content":{"rendered":"

KAMALIKA PIERIS<\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n

Norway wanted to see the country divided, and Eelam become a\nreality.  Norway tried to create Eelam\nthrough the Ceasefire Agreement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\nCeasefire Agreement\u201d (CFA) was signed on 22nd<\/sup> February 2002  by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremasinghe on\nbehalf of the Government of Sri Lanka and by Velupillai Prabhakaran on behalf\nof the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). Norway was its creator and its\ngo \u2013between.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Norway and LTTE had reached\nagreement on the CFA by the first week of Dec 2001. India had met secretly with LTTE. Norwegian\nForeign minister Eric Solheim had held discussions with Anton Balasingham in\nLondon and with   G.L. Pieris and others\nin Sri Lanka. Pieris was the chief\nnegotiator for the government. Others who played key roles in the matter\nincluded Minister Milinda Moragoda, Defense secretary Austin Fernando and\nBradman Weerakoon. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\nCFA went through several drafts.  Prime\nMinster Ranil Wickremasinghe and Pieris\nreviewed these drafts and approved the final document. he government had agreed to the conditions\nmade by Norway and LTTE, but Norway and LTTE had refused to consider government\nconditions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The CFA was signed secretly\nwith only few persons knowing about it. President\nChandrika Kumaratunga and Cabinet were not told the terms and conditions. Norway\nstrongly opposed any move to scrutinize the CFA.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The CFA was\ndecided without consulting the armed forces. This was most unusual and had no\nparallel in the world, said critics. Norway\u2019s military had had worked out the technicalities\nof withdrawing the Sri Lanka army. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\narmy and navy chiefs were allowed to see the CFA only a few days before the\nsigning, after the matter had been finalized. \nThey had requested an audience as they were concerned. They were not\nallowed to take away copies of the CFA. The\ndefense forces were   aghast  when they finally saw the agreement. They had been pounding the LTTE successfully\nand Jaffna was under them. CFA put a stop to this. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Agreement prohibited\nfighting, on land, air or sea and the Eelam War ground to a halt. But that was\nnot all. The CFA gave the LTTE full control of the lands they were holding at\nthe time.  A large chunk of territory in\nthe north east   including strategically\nimportant places  came into their hands.\nThis territory was clearly set out  with\n\u2018lines of control\u2019.  The LTTE army was\nallowed to continue and the state army was prohibited from going anywhere near\nthem. A \u2018zone of separation\u2019 was set between the LTTE and the \u2018government\ncontrolled\u2019 lands. CFA also called for the disarming of all groups opposing the\nLTTE.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thanks to the CFA, LTTE now\nbecame legitimate. It set up a de facto state. \u2018Ceasefire lines\u2019 were converted\ninto state borders. Customs and immigration posts were set up. There were 17\ncheckpoints.  Place names were in Tamil\nand English. The LTTE set up LTTE   law\ncourts and LTTE police.  This \u2018police\u2019\narrested Sri Lanka policemen when they entered the area. Twelve \u2018Thamileelam\npolicemen\u2019 went to Northern Ireland for three month training. The government\nissued them passports. Sophisticated hi-tech communications equipment was\nobtained and LTTE   set up a high powered\nbroadcasting and TV station which could broadcast all over the world.    LTTE delegations visited Europe.  Norway helped in all this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The CFA prohibited search\noperations and arrests under the Prevention of Terrorism Act. Arrests were to\nbe made according to the Criminal Procedure Code. The government released all\nLTTE prisoners over 1000 of them and made no arrests under  the\nPrevention of Terrorism Act. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

LTTE     strengthened its defenses  and established camps in strategic areas.\nFourteen camps were set up south of Koddiyar bay in Trincomalee.  122 heavy artillery guns and 120 mortars were\nplaced within striking distance of the harbour. A journalist who exposed this\nand other LTTE build-ups was forced to discontinue his column.  CFA wanted the High Security Zone reduced in\nsize and army camps decreased from 152 to 88 in Jaffna. LTTE also wanted the\nSri Lanka Amy\u2019s\u2019 air reconnaissance   and  \ndeep penetration unit operations stopped.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The army was confined to\nbarracks    while the LTTE were free to\ndo whatever they wished. LTTE mocked\nthe soldiers now confined to camp,  <\/em>urinating and showing backsides. The army\nfelt humiliated. The armed forces could\nnot retaliate even on the gravest provocation. \nWhen confrontations arose government ordered the armed forces to\nretreat. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The navy once intercepted a\nLTTE logistical movement at sea. There was a fierce confrontation and the\ngovernment ordered the navy to pull back. The navy was furious. They had lost\nmen. Army camps came under attack, but\narmy was not allowed to retaliate. The CFA said unarmed security convoys could\ngo on the A9 road.  Army remarked that\nonly a fool would send unarmed convoys through LTTE infested jungles. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

LTTE received their largest\nconsignments of arms and ammunition, during the CFA. Massive quantities  arrived in  \n13 consignments.  Karuna said \u2018we\nunloaded ammunition 40 days after the CFA was signed\u2019. The government did\nnothing to stop this. There was no customs inspection. One consignment of\neleven containers went without inspection to Kilinochchi. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Had the LTTE succeeded in\ngetting more   equipment, such as SA-18\nsurface to air missiles, the war would have taken a different turn, critics\nsaid.  The\nLTTE strengthened its army. People were forcibly recruited  and put into training camps. Within one and half years LTTE had trained\n6000 new cadres . LTTE also created a\nrudimentary \u2018air force\u2019 of light planes, able to bomb government areas without\nbeing shot down. . SLAF spotted the Iranamadu runway when it was at an initial\nstage of construction. Sri Lanka Air Force had spotted two fixed wing aircraft\nat Iranamadu but could not bomb them because of CFA. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

LTTE upgraded its navy.\nThey obtained powerful, high tech boats. These\ncame into Colombo harbor in containers. \nLTTE also acquired equipment that could cripple the state navy, such as\nunderwater fighting craft (submersibles). Experts in sea warfare came in to\ntrain the LTTE cadres. The government had allowed foreigners unhindered access\nto the LTTE held territory. Ukrainian\nspecialists trained Sea Tigers in underwater fighting skills. Japanese showed how to launch submersibles.\nIn time, these submersibles would have put a stop to the Trinco-KKS supply\nroute.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

LTTE ships could now move\nfreely along the coast up to Vadamarachchi. \nThey used this to launch boats and stealth craft laden with\nexplosives.  They     carried out naval exercises. The Sri Lanka\nNavy objected,  but had to stay away.\nLTTE   also asked for a special sea lane\nfor their ships, 200 nautical miles off the north- east shore. The navy\nobjected strongly to this. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

CFA gave LTTE had\nfreedom of movement in government areas while preventing non-LTTE persons from\nentering LTTE controlled areas. LTTE\ncould enter government held territory, unarmed, \u2018to visit family and friends.\u2019\nThe LTTE used this to fan out to all parts of country. They infiltrated the\nhill country and established cells. They infiltrated Colombo,  sent in suicide cadres    set up safe houses    and created sleeper cells. They systematically killed key operatives\nand informants of the armed forces. They were permitted political work, so they\nset up political offices.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018CFA activities\u2019 were\nclosely watched by those who opposed Eelam. \nThey noted that on 27.11.2002 a container with sophisticated\ncommunication equipment left Colombo, escorted by a police inspector in a\nDefender jeep, crossed the Omanthai security checkpoint and moved into LTTE\ncontrolled territory without any checking. They also noted that several container\nloads of weapons has been passed by the BOI and transported to LTTE territory\nin BOI vehicles <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Critics reported that\naccording to the official count, LTTE had violated the CFA 5461 times  and the government had done nothing about it.\nInspector Dale Gunaratne, President of the Police Inspectors Association\nstrongly criticized the government for allowing the LTTE to use the CFA to its\nadvantage.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The CFA\nwas    strongly condemned as an appalling\nact of treachery and betrayal. Critics said that \u2018even thinking of such an\nagreement was a disgrace\u2019.  The CFA\nequated the LTTE army with the legally constituted state army  and gave LTTE equal status with the\ngovernment of Sri Lanka.  Critics noted\nthat no country in the world has given equal status to a terrorist outfit in\nthis manner.  Further, the CFA gave LTTE\nfull control over the land, air and the sea of \u2018their\u2019 territory. Observers\nnoted that by doing so, the government had ceded   sovereignty to the LTTE. The LTTE would have\nused this to announce a Unilateral Declaration of Independence . The west would\nhave promptly recognized the new state of Eelam, said analysts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But that would\nnot have been easy. The CFA was not a strong document. The signatures on it were\nnot powerful enough. Ranil Wickremesinghe was not the Head of state.  President Chandrika Kumaratunga was the head\nof state..  Prabhakaran was not the head\nof a political alternative. His sole qualification was that he came from\nValvettiturai, where all were smugglers, to a man.\u2019  LTTE was only a liberating force . Therefore,\nit would have been difficult to go from the CFA into Eelam.  More recognition was needed, such as ISGA and\nPTOMs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Norway was\nnot only the midwife for the CFA; it was also its supervisor. The CFA was\nsupervised by a Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM). The Head of SLMM was\nappointed by the government of Norway. The Head was the final authority\nregarding interpretation of the CFA. The government and the LTTE were to\ncooperate fully with the SLMM.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are the\nrelevant clauses in the Ceasefire Agreement:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3.1 The name\nof the monitoring mission shall be the Sri Lankan Monitoring Mission,\nhereinafter referred to as the SLMM. 3.2, the Royal Norwegian Government  shall appoint the Head of the SLMM, who shall\nbe the final authority regarding interpretation of this Agreement.<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

3.5 The SLMM\nshall be composed of representatives from the Nordic countries.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

3.7 A local\nmonitoring committee shall be established in Jaffna, Mannar, Vavuniya,\nTrincomalee, Batticaloa and Ampara. Each committee shall consist of 5 members,\ntwo appointed by the GOSL, two by the LTTE and one international monitor\nappointed by Norway. The international monitor shall chair the committee.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

4.2 The\nAgreement shall enter into force on such date as is notified by the Norwegian\nMinister of Foreign Affairs.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

LTTE and government were seen as equal.  Norway would hold the balance between them\nwhen conflicts arose.  This was even\nincluded in the Modes of Operation clauses. \nRajiva Wijesinha found Modes of Operations very inacceptable, very patronizing.  He said it was absurd to allow foreigners to\nsit in judgment over Sri Lanka government and hold a balance on behalf of the LTTE.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Norwegians and other Scandinavians who headed the SLMM were\nsupporting the LTTE against the government. Norwegian ceasefire monitor\nThorfinnur Omarsson was very anti government, said Rajiva Wijesinha. SLMM head Maj\nGen Tellefson gave information provided by the security forces to the LTTE of\nan arms shipment.  Hargurp Haukland accused\nthe security forces of killings committed by other groups. Lars Soveberg\nattempted to decide the territorial boundaries of the two states.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 The SLMM helped the LTTE on several occasions.\nOnce when the\nSri Lanka navy spotted a LTTE ship carrying arms the SLMM officers on board the\nnavy patrol boat warned the LTTE  and the LTTE ship escaped. SLMM had immediate\naccess to trouble spots. but SLMM delayed to go when the LTTE had fired at Somadevi Vidyalaya\nat Kantalai.. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The SLMM was\nallowed to go on Sri Lanka Navy patrol boats. On one such instance, a foreign\nnaval monitor forced the SLN to abort a mission targeting an LTTE arms\nshipments. the government of Sri Lanka then did away with the controversial\npractice of taking on board SLMM naval monitors. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

CFA was\nunilaterally abrogated by President\nMahinda Rajapakse in January 2008.The\noriginal document is now declared missing from the Prime Minister\u2019s Office. The\nFederation of Buddhist Organizations called the CFA an \u2018agreement signed by two\npuppets at the hands of a gang of international looters. \u201d They welcomed its\nabrogation.  (continued)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

KAMALIKA PIERIS Norway wanted to see the country divided, and Eelam become a reality.  Norway tried to create Eelam through the Ceasefire Agreement. The Ceasefire Agreement\u201d (CFA) was signed on 22nd February 2002  by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremasinghe on behalf of the Government of Sri Lanka and by Velupillai Prabhakaran on behalf of the Liberation […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[104],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-117160","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-kamalika-pieris"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/117160","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=117160"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/117160\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=117160"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=117160"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=117160"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}