Fall of Killinochchi and rise of hopes?

“President Rajapaksha needs to be complemented for not yielding to unwanted jingoism in this hour of victory. In a level headed address he tried to unite all the communities and regions of the Island by saying “One must not belittle this victory as one that has been won by one community over another. It should not be interpreted as defeat of the North by the South. This is a victory for our entire nation and country.”

by Commodore RS Vasan IN (Retd)
AN EXCLUSIVE TO SRI LANKA GUARDIAN

(January 03, Chennai, Sri Lanka Guardian) After of two months of siege and intense battle between the LTTE and the SL armed forces, Killinochchi the de facto capital of Eelam fell to the advancing troops on the second day of the New Year. . In a multi pronged attack, the troops launched their thrust from three different directions in Paranthan, Iranamadu and Adampan areas to take over the city commencing with the railway station. While the president had pronounced that the rebel capital would fall in 2009, the leader of LTTE had indicated that it would not be possible for the SL Army to run over a determined LTTE force.

The fall of this administrative, military and political headquarters after a decade of being the symbolic capital of Eelam has dented the image of the LTTE and has once for all demonstrated that the LTTE after all is not invincible .The Tamil net’s proclamation that the SLA “has entered a virtual ghost town as the whole civilian infrastructure as well as the centre of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam had shifted further northeast.” is a tacit admission of their defeat. It is this town which changed hands thrice since the departure of the IPKF that housed the entire machinery for collection of funds, for administration of the Kangaroo courts, banking structures, operating space for many NGOs and most importantly for running of their propaganda machinery through broadcasting and cyber stations..

The fact that they moved away to protected jungle areas closer to Mulaitivu seems to suggest that the end for the LTTE is near. From the point of view of the Sri Lankan army that fought hard to regain the control of Killinochchi, this has eased its logistic/transportation vows as the Jaffna-Kandy highway A9 is now available for its exclusive use. The logistic support ships/troop carrier ships that sailed to Jaffna were vulnerable to attacks by the sea tigers and increased the risk of transportation. The restoration of the A 9 highway has strengthened the logistic chain of the SLA.

The president of Sri Lanka while addressing the nation said “I call upon you to continue with your commitment to the country until the final act of this false Eelam struggle is played to its finish in the small territory of jungle in Mullaitivu(where) it is confined to today, and the LTTE is fully and finally defeated”. While seeking the commitment and patience of his citizens for a short while longer, the President sent out a clear message to the LTTE, by asking the LTTE to lay down the arms and surrender. But having known the ways of the LTTE, it is highly unlikely that they would heed to any such sane advice.

Mahinda needs to be complemented for not yielding to unwanted jingoism in this hour of victory. In a level headed address he tried to unite all the communities and regions of the Island by saying “One must not belittle this victory as one that has been won by one community over another. It should not be interpreted as defeat of the North by the South. This is a victory for our entire nation and country.

“It is a decisive victory over savage terrorism that was playing around with the blood, muscle and sinews of humans. It is a victory over venomous separatism that sought to divide people on grounds of race and religion”. It is evident that his address was also meant to be heard by those across the Palk Straits, the international audience as well as other nations with stakes in the return of peace in the tear shaped Island.

The LTTE which retaliated with a suicide attack on Air Headquarters soon after the fall of the fortified town on Friday, will go back to its old ways of suicide bombing and guerilla warfare while trying to shore up its failing defenses on all fronts. However, it is not an easy task this time for the LTTE to reclaim lost territories with defeat staring them in the face on all fronts. The biggest hurdle for the LTTE has been its inability to obtain military hardware and essential supplies through the sea routes that are so crucial for even basic sustenance. The drying up of the supply lines, the sinking of over thirteen logistic ships of the LTTE and the tightening of the coastal security in India post 26/11 has not helped the cause of LTTE. The Mumbai terror attacks by the sea routes have rendered it difficult for the LTTE to obtain its required stores and supplies from the southern states of India. The incessant clandestine efforts on its part to obtain critical arms and ammunition have failed due to the watchful eyes of US and allies who mounted the surveillance on all such transactions post 9/11.

The tremors of the fall of the LTTE Headquarters have been felt already in Tamil Nadu. Some of the members of the DMK including the daughter of the Chief Minister have reacted as was expected by supporting the LTTE indirectly by drawing attention to human right violations, the misery of Tamil brothers and sisters in Sri Lanka. Some of the regional parties have urged that the External Minister Pranab Mukherjee visit Colombo immediately to bring about a ceasefire. It looks like New Delhi is not in a great mood to oblige. The fears of the DMK pulling out from the coalition have receded with the desire to continue the alliance during the ensuing elections. Even if the support is withdrawn now, with only a few months before the elections, it is hardly likely to make any difference to the overall policy of the UPA with regard to Sri Lanka. Regrettably, the regional parties have vied with one another to identify themselves as the true champions of the Tamil cause in the Island with out differentiating between the LTTE and the suffering Tamils.

There have also been no efforts to promote legitimate representation for the voice of the Tamils in the Island which were suppressed by the atrocities and violent acts of the LTTE. The almost inevitable defeat of the LTTE would need to be used as an opportunity to find the right candidates in the Island who can truly represent the aspirations of the Tamil population and work with the Government to restore peace and normalcy in the north and the east. The Sri Lankan Government would be looking at many candidates including Karuna to gather support to the scheme of rehabilitation and restoration of peace in the Island.

For the president of Sri Lanka, the road to peace is long winded still despite this victory. By no means is the war over and the President knows it too well For Mahinda, it has become that much more important to ensure that the devolution packages are made even more attractive for the Tamils to be able to hard sell the idea of a unitary state in which the chosen representatives govern their own areas with in the framework of the constitution and feel that they are part of Sri Lanka.

(The Writer is presently the Head, Strategy and Security Studies at the Center for Asia Studies at Chennai and can be contacted at rsvasan2010@gmail.com. ) - Sri Lanka Guardian