Requirements for reconciliation to face future challenges

Statement issued by the National Peace Council

( May 21, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) President Mahinda Rajapaksa has appointed an eight member Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission to report in six months on the lessons to be learnt from the events in the period, Feb 2002 to May 2009, their attendant concerns and to recommend measures to ensure that there will be no recurrence of such a situation.In view of the short deadline given to the Commission, the National Peace Council believes that a focus on the period after January 2008, when the war increased in intensity, can be more helpful to the government in dealing with issues of human rights in the last phase of the war about which several international organizations and governments have been expressing their concerns.

The National Peace Council is aware of the fact that a great deal of literature is available on the period of the Ceasefire Agreement from February 2002 to January 2008. This information could possibly be collated by a group of professionals to come up with recommendations that which can form the basis of national reconciliation as given in the mandate for the Commission. There could also be a survey that covers the different war affected areas and all ethnic communities and ascertains the number of deaths, total and partial disability, number of houses destroyed, number of public establishments, places of worships, schools, public utilities such as water and electricity destroyed by war, the total cost of the war and the circumstances under which such incidents took place.

Interviews with the war affected people, ascertaining their views and listening to their stories can be a healing exercise in addition to finding out the true state of affairs. An effective response would be for the government to ensure a situation on the ground that convinces the affected victims of war that their grievous losses are acknowledged, needs are met and justice is done. There are many Non Governmental and civil society groups including the National Peace Council that are already endeavouring to promote reconciliation and could be invited to join in a credible process of fact finding, healing and reconciliation.

We believe it is unfortunate that at the very time the government has appointed the Commission on Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation the situation in the North and East, particularly in Jaffna, should be deteriorating in terms of human security. There is once again a heightened presence of security forces on the streets and a revival of fears of people of kidnapping and killings by unknown groups. Much of what happened in the past, and is continuing to happen, is shrouded in mystery and secrecy. The government needs to put an immediate stop to this type of activity and demonstrate its seriousness about lessons learnt and reconciliation.

For reconciliation to become a reality, the war affected people must feel safe to articulate the true position based on their own experiences of suffering and losses. They should also feel that the government trusts them and considers them to an integral part of the polity. Government spokespersons have said that they will be emphasising indigenous values and experience in coming up with its findings and conclusions. If indigenous experience is taken into consideration, it needs to be based on trust in the ethnic minorities and in doing justice to them and enable them to live in safety and dignity in their own areas of habitation. Peace and confidence cannot be borrowed but is built on unbroken trust.

Governing Council: The National Peace Council is an independent and non partisan organisation that works towards a negotiated political solution to the ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka. It has a vision of a peaceful and prosperous Sri Lanka in which the freedom, human rights and democratic rights of all the communities are respected. The policy of the National Peace Council is determined by its Governing Council of 20 members who are drawn from diverse walks of life and belong to all the main ethnic and religious communities in the country.