JVP demands debate on SLMM, Muttur violence

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 22 April 2003, 19:04 GMT]
The Marxist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) demanded in a letter to the Speaker of the Sri Lankan parliament that a special meeting of the parliament to discuss the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission’s 'Initial discussion paper' of April 03 to the Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) on recognizing Sea Tigers as a de facto naval unit, and the recent incidents of violence in Muttur, Mr. Wimal Weerawansa, the parliamentary group leader of the JVP and its propaganda secretary, said at a press conference held Tuesday at the Nippon hotel in downtown Colombo.

Mr. Weerawansa said that the Speaker, Mr. Joseph Michael Perera, has not responded to their letter and if no response is received soon, the JVP would convene a meeting of parliamentary party leaders.




Addressing the press conference, Mr. Weerawansa said that the SLMM and the Norwegian Embassy in Sri Lanka were “masquerading” as neutral parties, while in fact acting as a “front for the LTTE.” They have not acted independently and honestly, charged Mr. Weerawansa, and said that the SLMM’s reports on the sinking of a fishing vessel with mostly Chinese men on board and the attack on the SL Army’s transport ship were one-sided.

Alluding to the SLMM’s letter of April 03, which was reported in the Sri Lankan press as seeking recognition to the Sea Tigers of the LTTE and free movement for them in certain areas close to Mullaitivu, Mr. Weerawansa said that Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and ministers of the GOSL have not publicly rejected such a demand and questioned whether they are ready to accept the demands.

Mr. Weerawansa said he believed that the LTTE would not attend the seventh round of peace talks, that their notice to suspend the peace talks had implied that the LTTE would resort to war again, and that the time is now opportune for President Chandrika Kumaratunge to use her executive powers to “safeguard” the country.