Tamil Guardian editorial, London, January 14, 2004
If the consequences for Sri Lanka’s peoples didn’t threaten to be so tragic, the dynamics of the constitutional crisis gripping Colombo would be farcical. President Chandrika Kumaratunga’s dramatic announcement Tuesday that she intends to remain in office till 2006 – a full year longer than expected – would have come as a body blow to Premier Ranil Wickremesinghe’s strategy to stave off his arch-rival’s accelerating rise to political supremacy. To begin with, the revelations of a secret swearing in ceremony should not have come as a total surprise to observers of Sri Lankan politics. After all, the Sunday Times broke the story several weeks ago. The ruling United National Front (UNF) government’s silence spoke volumes then. But press reports are one thing, official declarations another. As such, Mrs. Kumaratunga’s smug assertions this week underlined both the UNF’s impotence in the face of her constitutional manoeuvres – if such a term is applicable to the President’s hamfisted lunge for power – and the erosion of its political authority.
Above all, the entire matter epitomizes the sham that democracy is in Sri Lanka. The country’s all powerful President holds a private swearing in ceremony that effectively extends her term well beyond the date the public expects her to quit – a not insignificant development given that she is constitutionally precluded from another term in office. Furthermore, this crucial event is attended only by the chief justice – one of the President’s personal appointees – and her loyal confidante and former Foreign Minister, Mr. Lakshman Kadirgamar. Incredulously, the matter remains so secret – even the date of this self crowning ceremony are seemingly unknown – that no one in the country is aware (least of all, the UNF government which supposedly took charge in December 2001). One wonders what the often vocal proponents of good governance theories would make of Sri Lanka now. And so much for the ‘vibrant democracy’ that the Tamils are piously exhorted to participate in.
Most importantly for the outcome paralyzing standoff in Colombo, Mrs. Kumaratunga’s unilateral extension of her rule has removed a key plank of Mr. Wickremesinghe’s calculations, namely that she was fast running out of time to engineer a constitutional arrangement that would permit her to remain in power beyond her second term as President. The strain is showing. Having fluttered for so long between unconvincing defiance and platitudes for compromise, the Premier was this week – for the umpteenth time – shamelessly appealing for cohabitation. As we have often pointed out before, Mr. Wickremesinghe has only himself to blame for his unenviable position, having repeatedly ignored pleas from those concerned with the safety of the Norwegian peace process to impeach Mrs. Kumaratunga or, at the very least, curtail her powers. The simple fact is that Mr. Wickremesinghe coveted the President’s powers for himself and wasn’t prepared to whittle them down.
That legal experts are broadly in agreement that the President’s actions are, once again, well within her constitutional rights further narrows the Prime Minister’s limited options to respond. This, combined with the UNF’s embarrassingly startled response, have severely undermined the government’s authority, not least to negotiate a lasting political solution with the Liberation Tigers – a moot point, however, given that the Norwegian brokers have long quit their formal involvement pending a resolution to the conflict.
After two months of studied silence, the LTTE offered its first official comment on matters in Colombo. Both the LTTE’s theoretician, Mr. Anton Balasingham, and the head of its political wing, Mr. S. P. Tamilselvan, met Wednesday with Norwegian diplomats to assure them of the movement’s commitment to the peace process and the cease-fire. The officials stressed two central planks of their movement’s position. Firstly, that the Tigers would continue to observe the cease-fire – whilst maintaining a state of preparedness that would deter military adventurism by the Sinhala leadership. As Mr. Tamilselvan said, “[we] will not be the ones to commence [the war].” Secondly, the movement would only negotiate with a government that has both the popular mandate and, most importantly, the executive and constitutional authority to implement agreements reached.
The LTTE’s position stems from the bitter experience of several months of futile negotiation from September 2002, as well as a realization that Mr. Wickremesinghe’s much vaunted claim to a popular mandate may soon be tested. Despite Mrs. Kumaratunga’s nonchalant assurances that parliamentary elections are not imminent, assertions this week that her Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) is to formalise an alliance with the radical Janatha Vimukthi Perumana (JVP) suggest otherwise. Despite the further uncertainty that elections will inevitably introduce, the coming weeks are expected to see a flurry of activity by key diplomats from several countries involved with the Norwegian peace process. The LTTE’s declarations this week have introduced clarity – if it were needed – as to positions in Kilinochchi. As such, the future of Oslo’s initiative rests entirely in Colombo – where both Sinhala leaders have now ceased cloaking their personal ambitions for power in moral rhetoric.
January 14, 2004
Originally published January 16, 2004