Political package to be prepared before GoSL-LTTE peace talks

[TamilNet, Saturday, 07 October 2006, 16:04 GMT]
Political package for solving the ethnic crisis would be prepared by the All Party Conference (APC) before the peace talks between the Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) which is scheduled to begin during the last week of October, APC Chairman Professor Tissa Vitarana said Saturday.

APC is to be reconvened next week to prepare the political package in consultation with all political parties. Once the package is prepared it would be handed over to the GoSL to be taken to the negotiation table, Professor Tissa Vitarana who is also the Minister of Science and Technology in the current UPFA government said.

APC has been appointed by President Mahinda Rajapakse to evolve a political package in consultation with all parties to resolve the ethnic conflict.

Observers had earlier pointed out that strident anti-federalists of the calibre of H.L.de Silva and Mr Gomin Dayasiri, forming the core of the expert panel formed to advise the APC, the APC has little chance of making any progress towards peace, nor would it be successful in crafting a proposal package that would come near to satisfying aspirations of Tamils.