Round The World

New Delhi, 9 March 2010

Rao’s Lanka Visit

TIMELY, LENDS A HAND 

By Monish Tourangbam

Research Scholar, School of International Studies, JNU

It has been stated more than often that it is much more difficult to win peace than a war, more so to sustain peace. This statement is truer every time it is made. As the neighboring island nation of Sri Lanka walks, stumbles and walks towards a political solution and reconciliation, India can use its good offices and diplomatic sources to help the Colombo government. It can help the Rajapaksa administration in walking that extra mile to resolve the grievances of the ethnic Tamil minority and usher in a new Sri Lanka that would not sow the seeds of a new Prabhakaran and a new LTTE help again.

Though President Mahinda Rajapkasa came back to power in a very controversial presidential election early this year, the Manmohan Singh administration has taken the right diplomatic step in recognizing his administration as the legitimate decision-maker on whose shoulder the future of the fragile nation lies. Validating the presidency of Rajapaksa puts him in the centre of the reconciliation process and the onus is now on him to deliver on the promises he had made. In this context, the recent visit of the Indian Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao came at an opportune time, when India’s diplomatic stance and material assistance were made known to the nation, grappling with the regeneration of the Tamil-populated regions.  

The international community raised serious questions on how the Rajapaksa administration handled the offensive against the LTTE. Now, it sets its eyes on how the President goes about the resettlement of the displaced Tamils and delivers on his electoral mandate of bringing about a unified Sri Lanka. The poll statistics during the presidential election did not really reflect any favorable change of Tamil attitude towards the Rajapaksa administration. The ethnic divide looked more emphasized and the opinions fractured and cynical.

The symptoms of the disease that the new administration has to grapple with are right there for all to see in the form of the mandate provided to the new government. The challenger General Fonseka won in the north and the east, largely dominated by the Tamils and Tamil-speaking Muslims. As such, the challenges in front of the president, whose popularity among the Sinhalese is undoubted, is immense.

At this juncture, the international community will also take note of the diplomatic signals sent out by the Indian government, concerning the Sri Lankan peace process. Nirupama Rao’s visit was meant to hold discussions with her counterpart on a wide range of issues of mutual interest and to assess as to how New Delhi can assist in their efforts to bring stability and re-instill confidence in the ethnic minority. Her visit also assumes significance keeping in view that she has been closely acquainted with the island nation, having served as the High Commissioner for India in Sri Lanka from 2004-2006.

The Sri Lankans are indeed at a critical juncture of their history. After being ravaged by civil wars for years, cutting short any chances of reintegration and regeneration of the society as a whole, they have a second chance and should be a step ahead of the situation. After the end of the storm, they have a unique opportunity to rebuild the society and assuage the grievances and misunderstanding that gave birth to the storm in the first place.

Congratulating Rajapkasa on his electoral victory, Rao welcomed the relaxation of movement restrictions on Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), and also expressed the hope that the resettlement process could be expedited, especially in Killinochchi and Mullaithivu, so that the IDPs could resume normal lives in their original places of habitation. President Rajapaksa had mentioned that around 70,000 IDPs remained in the camps, many of their own volition.

Rao also commented favourably on the prospect of the forthcoming general election in Sri Lanka. India’s assistance towards rehabilitation and reconstruction of the Northern and Eastern Sri Lanka and for the resettlement of the IDPs was highly appreciated, particularly the extension of US$ 425 million as Lines of Credit for railway projects in Northern Sri Lanka.

According to the Ministry of External Affairs, the importance of the October 2008 Joint Statement of Fishing Arrangements was reiterated and it was agreed to convene a meeting of the Joint Working Group on Fishing to discuss issues related to fishermen on both sides. Rao also announced New Delhi’s support for housing projects to be taken up in the Kilinochchi and Mullaitivu districts for the benefit of the IDPs and its decision to supply 55 buses for various educational, social and cultural organizations and locally elected bodies in northern, eastern and central Sri Lanka, to facilitate transportation and connectivity.

Various joint projects in the important areas of cultural engagement and shared cultural heritage were announced including the setting up of the International Buddhist Museum in the Dalada Maligawa Complex and the restoration of the famous Thiruketheshwaram Temple in Mannar. A onetime grant of Indian Rs. 15 million was announced to the corpus of the India-Sri Lanka Foundation engaged in crucial areas of art, culture, education, human resource development, training, etc.

The Foreign Secretary also inaugurated the Sri Lanka-India Centre for English Language Training in Peradeniya, Kandy. The Centre has been set up with the assistance of the Government of India in collaboration with the well-known English and Foreign Languages University, Hyderabad and is meant to support the Sri Lankan Presidential Initiative for English as a life skill.

New Delhi also intends to open a Consulate General in Jaffna and the Government of Sri Lanka has agreed to the proposal. While Sri Lanka has three consulate offices - Chennai, Mumbai and Kolkata, India has only one consulate office located in Kandy. According to officials the modalities on setting up of the Jaffna Consulate are to be worked out and the basic objective behind the move is to cater to the needs of the people of the peninsula. “It would help India strengthen the cultural links between the Northern Province in Sri Lanka and Tamil Nadu besides making it easier for the people to obtain visa to travel to India”, a senior official said.

Rao was successful in communicating India’s concern for the critical yet hopeful situation in neighbouring Sri Lanka. She made it known to Colombo that New Delhi’s assistance towards the reconstruction and rehabilitation process would always be forthcoming. India’s symbolic gestures, diplomatic assistance and material support assume equal importance in its policy towards the island nation.

Indian policy towards the Sri Lankan situation should serve as a reminder of New Delhi’s non-aggressive nature of policy-making towards smaller countries in the South Asian region and beyond. As a result of India’s overwhelming cultural, geographical and economic presence in the region, the ‘big brother syndrome’ to a large extent affects how smaller nations look at its policies. As such, India should do the extra bit to allay fears and suspicions on the part of these countries.--- INFA

(Copyright, India News and Feature Alliance)