Sri Lanka's Endangered Peace Process & the Way Forward

by Centre for Just Peace and Democracy

Media Release  

SRI LANKA'S ENDANGERED PEACE PROCESS AND THE WAY FORWARD      

In its latest publication  "SRI LANKA'S ENDANGERED PEACE PROCESS AND THE WAY FORWARD" (ISBN ISBN: 3-9523172-1-7 978-3-9523172-1-1), the Centre for Just Peace and Democracy (CJPD) points out.

The  central axiom of the International Community that there is no military solution to Sri Lanka's conflict has been asserted time and again, yet the strategies pursued by the stakeholders (the GoSL, LTTE and the Co-Chairs) have led to the collapse of the CFA and endangered the peace process.   

According to the CJPD

The first few years of the CFA have amply demonstrated, it is possible to silence the guns. But history cannot be undone. In order for a credible and viable peace process to evolve, there will have to be attitudinal shifts, not just on the part of the GoSL and the LTTE, but also the international community. The initial optimism produced by the CFA foundered amongst what, in hindsight is plain to see, was a hurried effort in containing the LTTE.  

The publication examines the current stalemate and proposes that in order to rule out a military solution, it becomes necessary to address the concerns of all parties (local and foreign), who clearly have a stake in the outcome.    

CJPD says that the search for peace in Sri Lanka will have to primarily involve exploring 'imaginative associative structures' whereby the Sinhalese and Tamil peoples can peacefully coexist, and freely associate and cooperate in certain vital spheres of common concern (and there are many), so that the welfare of both people can be safeguarded and enhanced.    

The publication can be obtained by contacting the CJPD.  Contact: cjpd@bluewin.ch