My response to the Article 'Pro-Tiger groups gang up against Lanka in Australia'

The following response sent to The Sunday Times Editor on 1 November 2011 was not published:

The Editor

The Sunday Times

Dear Editor

I refer to the article Pro-Tiger groups gang up against Lanka in Australia, in particular, the sub-title Tigers on the offensive published in the Political Column of your newspaper of 30 October, 2011. The article refers to me and contains a number of statements which require clarification,

On 20 October 2011, I presented a paper at a conference held in Sydney on the theme: Accountability in Sri Lanka: Common Justice in the Commonwealth. My presentation is in the public domain (Refer http://groundviews.org/2011/10/21/national-reconciliation-transitional-justice-rights-and-accountability-in-sri-lanka/) and anyone including your reporter can have the opportunity of reading it.

My message was that for the reconciliation process to begin, all parties should be honestly committed to develop and foster new, mutually beneficial relationships, which will essentially involve a two-way process involving confession and apology, and commitment and absolution. Until now, no attempt has been made to reconcile the island’s fragmented society; despite its history of three armed insurrections.

I went on to argue that war crimes, whether committed in times of war or times of peace, are international crimes. To defuse accumulated hatreds in a society, amnesty might be granted; however, it should be used to defuse tensions, not to provide impunity for assassins.  That is why, after an armed conflict, under the international law, a state is obliged to establish the fate of victims, identify perpetrators, provide compensation to victims, take affirmative measures to prevent non-repetition, and prosecute and punish those found guilty. Instead, the government of Sri Lanka has rejected all allegations of crimes and even the pro-LTTE groups have not admitted to the alleged war crimes committed by the LTTE.

I added that the current situation in Sri Lanka reflects the lowest ebb in terms of relationship among its diverse peoples. The end of the war did not provide the means to achieve peace. Genuine efforts to redress historic grievances that precipitated the conflict need to be made. Instead sadly, the state has further reinforced its authoritarian mechanisms and tendencies.

The conference was not a gathering demanding a separate state; rather it made an appeal to the government of Sri Lanka and its people to demonstrate their commitment to justice and fairness by providing a political solution that will deliver long lasting peace and prosperity for the country, which will be  acceptable to the people of Sri Lanka. This cannot be ensured without accompanying independent mechanisms to ensure accountability and good governance.

Reconciliation will only become a reality when the majority of Sri Lankans support this idea. This is why facilitating public debate and discussion is an essential task. Such an exercise needs the leadership and commitment of the President, the government, the opposition and other relevant stakeholders.

Thanking you in anticipation

Dr Lionel Bopage

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The original article by the Sunday Times Political Editor is available at:
http://sundaytimes.lk/111030/Columns/political.html