Sri Lanka's Evolving Civil War
Sri Lanka has announced the closure of Tamil refugee camps, remnants of war with the Tamil Tigers, after months of international pressure. Refugees will be freed after December 1st, 2009 and the camps are scheduled to be shutdown by January 31st, 2010.
The UN and human rights groups had criticized Sri Lanka’s policy during the war and its aftermath; last month the State Department and European Union released separate reports alleging humans rights abuses. Rajiva Wijesinha, of Sri Lanka’s disaster management and human rights ministry, denied the government was coerced by the international community.
“This is entirely in accordance with government policy," Wajesinha told Al Jazeera on Saturday. “We made it very clear in May that we would resettle people as quickly as possible but we did have very serious security concerns."
As Sri Lanka’s civil war resembles an insurgency more than conventional warfare, poor conditions for civilian Tamils prompted anxieties of fresh fighting. Basic infrastructure in Tamil territory needs reconstruction once the population returns. With 10,000 surrendered Tigers left in detention camps, a million land mines to clear, and fears of sympathetic Tamils, the military battle could be dormant instead of over.
These concerns should be enough for Sri Lanka to realize the value of resettling and rehabilitating the Tamil population. Guerrilla warfare, being comprised of multiple areas, demands military and social action for total victory. Now Sri Lanka’s president, Mahinda Rahapaksa, who promised and delivered military victory, could be challenged on the political battlefield.
If an outside factor did influence the government’s decision to close refugee camps, former chief general Sarath Fonseka is a better bet than the US, EU, or UN. Fonseka alleged that Rahapaksa had lost faith in him and was forced out of his post on November 12.
Rahapaksa subsequently remarked, “Yesterday’s patriot may become tomorrow's traitor,” saying Fonseka’s attempt to divide the country would please Velupillai Prabhakaran, the Tigers' founder.
Fonseka responded by condemning the government’s treatment of refugees and told his troops in a farewell letter, “I want to assure you that I will commit myself to protect democratic freedoms which we are rapidly losing.”
It’s widely believed that opposition parties, including Tamil parties which have rejected Rahapaksa, will support Fonseka for the presidential election next April. Fonseka’s opposition to Rahapaksa and support of the refugee plight has been interpreted as going after Tamil votes.
Political reconciliation remains the true finality to Sri Lanka’s civil war and political figures must prevent a return to the military days. A fair and transparent electoral process is essential to moving the country forward.
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