Ilankai Tamil Sangam
Association of Tamils of Sri Lanka in the USA
Published by Sangam.org
by Tamil Centre for Human Rights, March 2008
Rest of report to UN Human Rights Council
Failed Talkes & Abrogated Pacts in Sri Lanka
| Year | Type of Political Solution | Result |
| 1957 | Banda-Chelva pact – Regional Councils | Unilaterally abrogated by GOSL |
| 1965 | Dudley-Chelva pact – District Councils | Unilaterally abrogated GOSL |
| 1970 | Proposals placed by the Tamil Federal Party
(A federal form of government with an autonomous Tamil-Muslims state and three autonomous Sinhala states) |
Rejected by the GOSL |
| 1979 | Presidential Commission to report on (creation of District Development Councils) | This did not fulfil the Tamils’ aspirations. Not intended to provide a different political or administrative structure for any particular part of the country |
| 1983 | All Party Conference (Proposals merely extended the scheme of decentralization at District level to the Provincial level with limited co-ordination) | TULF rejected these proposals as it was not the originally formulated set of proposals, known as Annexure – C. |
| 1985 | In Thimpu - The devolution proposal by Sri Lanka (District councils without executive power) Thimpu (principle) proposal placed by Tamils (Homeland, Nationhood, Right to self-determination) | Rejected by the Tamil representatives Rejected by the GOSL |
| 1986 | “19 December” proposals by Indian envoys (Formation of a new Eastern Province by excising Sinhalese majority areas and the creation of two Tamil Provincial Councils in the Northern and the reconstituted Eastern Province) | GOSL expressed reservations and eventually rejected this proposal. |
| 1987 | Indo-Lanka Accord (Provincial Councils) (North and Eastern Provinces were merged under this accord. 95% Tamils didn’t support this accord) | After 18 years, the Sri Lanka Supreme Court rejected this merger 16 October 2006 |
| 1989-90 | Premadasa Talks (LTTE formed a political party-PFLT and prepared to contest in the elections) |
The holding of fresh elections in North East never took place. Prevented LTTE from demonstrating its support from the people in North East |
| 1992-93 | Parliamentary Select Committee Reports |
Eyewash to International Community No progress was made |
| 1995 | Devolution Package (Refused to recognise the existence of the Tamil homeland, rejected an asymmetric approach, continued to treat all the provinces in the same way) |
Rejected by Buddhist Maha Sanga and other Sinhala political parties |
| 2003 | ISGA proposal by LTTE (Interim Self-Governing Administration) |
Rejected by the GOSL and other extreme Sinhala political parties |
| 2005 | Post Tsunami Operational Management Structure – PTOMS | Rejected by the Sri Lanka Supreme Court |
| 2007 | All Party Conference* Sinhala political parities UNP, JVP, JHU strongly against its proposals |
Not ALL political parties invited to participate in its discussions. Tamil National Alliance, especially was kept away. |
*Mr. N. Satyendra, a scholar and legal expert who participated in the earlier political negotiations with GOSL, described the legislation as a "comic opera." The provisions of the 13th Amendment are impossibly "burlesque and farcical," he stated. Further Parliamentarians and academics described this proposal as ‘political mockery’.
GOSL = Government of Sri Lanka
LTTE = Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
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