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Sri Lanka’s Peace Activists Find It Hard to Identify With Anti War Big Noise in the Diaspora

by Malathi de Alwis, 16 April 2009

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The Guardian

Sri Lanka’s divided demonstrators

Sri Lankan peace protesters, at home and abroad, are caught between the government and the Tamil Tigers

by Malathi de Alwis

The mass protests of diaspora Tamils across the globe have drawn attention to the current state of the 30-year civil war in Sri Lanka. The routing of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) by government (GoSL) forces has led to thousands of Tamil civilians being trapped in a "no-fire zone" along with the LTTE.

The vocal protests of the diaspora contrast sharply with the deafening silence of peace activists within Sri Lanka. The Sri Lankan conflict is a complicated one with an extremely complex history. The divergent responses to the current situation must be understood in similarly nuanced ways.

The well-organised and orchestrated public demonstrations belie the fact that many diaspora Tamils have been coerced into marching under LTTE flags. Many wishing to carry placards appealing to both the GoSL and the LTTE have been beaten and intimidated into marching only under anti-GoSL slogans. This has resulted in a one-sided protest campaign that ignores the fact that civilians trapped in the "no-fire zone" are held hostage by the LTTE, who shoot those seeking to escape, plant suicide bombers among escapees and conscript civilian children to fight alongside them. This has made it impossible for Sri Lankan peace activists to declare their solidarity with the demonstrators.

Sri Lankan activists have also had to contend with an authoritarian GoSL which, like all modern regimes, only allows embedded journalists access to war zones and displacement camps, and also intimidates, arrests, disappears and murders those who question the legitimacy of the war. Nor does it have a clear set of political proposals that address Tamil grievances.

On the first two counts, this regime is no different from its predecessors. On the third, it is a lot worse. Nevertheless, previous political proposals acceptable to peace activists have been rejected by the LTTE, leading to growing support for a military option among the general populace. This is also the only regime that has been able to make steady and successful inroads into LTTE ranks and territory. There is a desperate thirst among Sri Lankans for an end to the war and the decommissioning of a liberation organisation turned fascist.

The possibility of an end to the war has created fissures among activists in the south and a re-defining of political stances. Some celebrate GoSL victories and argue that the LTTE should surrender without further jeopardising civilian lives. Others seek to mitigate war’s effects through humanitarian ventures or pushing the GoSL to demilitarise IDP camps. Some denounce GoSL’s recourse to militarism and continue to call for a ceasefire, despite this possibly prolonging the war. Others are too scared to speak because they will be construed to be partisan, either towards the LTTE or the GoSL. Such a context is not conducive to massed street protests.

Sri Lanka seems to have reached an impasse. Though the GoSL declared a two-day ceasefire in honour of the New Year, a festival shared by both communities, the LTTE has refused to honour it and prevented civilians from leaving their areas of control. The LTTE, in turn, has requested a longer, internationally-moderated ceasefire, which the GoSL rejects on the grounds that they will use such an opportunity to re-arm and re-group, as they have done during previous ceasefires. The real need is for the formulation of a set of political proposals that will be acceptable to democratic elements in all three communities – Sinhala, Tamil and Muslim (a crucial component of this conflict, who are too often ignored). This seems like a viable challenge that can be taken up by peace activists, even if we are unable to agree on the legitimacy of the war.