The LTTE is unlikely to accept India's condition that it should accept other Tamil parties as members of the proposed Joint Mechanism for post-tsunami reconstruction in the North Eastern Province (NEP), according to an informed Tamil source in the north. "The LTTE guards its status as the sole representative of the Tamils zealously. The only Tamil party it will accommodate in the mechanism is its proxy in parliament, the Tamil National Alliance (TNA)," the source said. "By insisting on the inclusion of other Tamil parties, India has in effect scuttled the Joint Mechanism proposal," the source added. The source was reacting to a report in the NDTV on Friday in which India's National Security Advisor, MK Narayanan, said that India had agreed to the Joint Mechanism proposal on the condition that other Tamil parties, and not just the LTTE, were also included. "We have agreed to the proposal as long as it is not with the LTTE alone, but with other Tamil parties too," Narayanan told the TV network in New Delhi after the end of the talks between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and the visiting Sri Lankan President Chandrika Kumaratunga. Kumaratunga had sought India's support for her bid to establish a Post-Tsunami Operational Management Structure (P-TOMS) for reconstruction work in the Tamil-speaking North Eastern Province (NEP). The proposal mooted first by Norway, and then accepted by the LTTE, envisaged the participation of the Sri Lankan government, the LTTE or its nominees, and representatives of the Sinhala and Muslim minorities. But the proposal ran into a severe storm in the Sinhala-dominated South Sri Lanka, where key political parties said that it would give legitimacy to the LTTE, make it the sole representative of the Tamils and the also give it access and control of reconstruction in areas of the NEP over which it has no control now. A key coalition partner, the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JHU) threatened to walk out of government and bring it down. The Buddhist monk's party, the Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU), threatened to make it a hot social-political-religious issue which could inflame Sinhala-Buddhist nationalist passions. On the other hand, the international community led by the US, the donor countries who had pledged US$ 3 billion for post tsunami reconstruction, and Bill Clinton, UN's special envoy on tsunami relief, strongly backed the proposal for a Joint Mechanism as proposed by Norway and accepted by the LTTE. This put President Kumaratunga on the horns of a dilemma. On the one hand, there was the domestic political threat, endangering her government and the chances of her party in the 2006 Presidential elections. On the other hand, there was the possible alienation of the international community and a cut in the much needed development assistance, a cut which might affect reconstruction work in the tsunami-hit parts of South Sri Lankan also. Kumaratunga then rushed to New Delhi to consult the regional power, India, and apprised Prime Minister Manmohan Singh of her efforts to establish the Joint Mechanism which she called P-TOMS. According to the Joint Communique, Singh "expressed understanding of and support for these ongoing efforts." India's conditional support But clearly, India had more things to say than this, as Narayanan's statement to NDTV reveals. India's support is tied to the inclusion of other Tamil parties and not just the LTTE or its proxies. "Although the only other Tamil party in the Sri Lankan parliament from the North East is the EPDP (Eelam Peoples'' Democratic Party), and the EPDP has only one seat, the LTTE will not accept the EPDP on the mechanism. The LTTE and the EPDP are sworn enemies," the northern source quoted above said. Now that a top Indian official has said that the LTTE cannot be taken as the sole representative of the Tamils, the JVP and JHU will take up the tune, and will be chanting it, forcing the President to accept the Indian formulation. But if she does accept it, the LTTE opts out of the process! Plan to get parliament backing for JM To fight the opposition from the JVP and the JHU and draw the main opposition party, the United National Party (UNP) out of its shell, President Kumararunga is reported to be thinking of presenting the Joint Mechanism proposal to the Sri Lankan parliament. If parliament passes the proposal (with a simple majority with the support of the UNP), she could go ahead and establish the Joint Mechanism legitimately. The JVP and JHU may lose face as a result. She would get a simple majority even if the UNP abstains. But if the UNP abstains, the victory will be considered a politically illegitimate one, as only a minority of MPs will have been present and voting. But a victory, however got, will certainly alienate of the JVP and will adversely affect her party's chances in the 2006 Presidential elections or any election for that matter. Kumaratunga's Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) cannot win national elections without JVP's support.
Ericsson Gets GSM Deal With Mobitel In Sri Lanka
STOCKHOLM -(Dow Jones)- Swedish telecommunications equipment maker Telefon AB LM Ericsson (ERICY) Tuesday said it has been selected by Mobitel as the exclusive vendor to expand Mobitel's telecommunications network in Sri Lanka.
Ericsson said it will supply both core and radio access network equipment, including Global System for Mobile communications, General Packet Radio Service, Enhanced Data rates for Global Evolution equipment, as well as turnkey network design, deployment and integration services.
The agreement complements the another contract that was previously awarded to Ericsson, leading to Mobitel's launch of mobile services in 2002, for both consumer and corporate market segments.
The current contract together with the existing will enable Mobitel to more than double its network capacity and offer the latest and advanced features and services to its end users, thereby strengthening Mobitel's leadership in Sri Lanka.
Edited Press Release
STOCKHOLM -(Dow Jones)- Swedish telecommunications equipment maker Telefon AB LM Ericsson (ERICY) Tuesday said it has been selected by Mobitel as the exclusive vendor to expand Mobitel's telecommunications network in Sri Lanka.
Ericsson said it will supply both core and radio access network equipment, including Global System for Mobile communications, General Packet Radio Service, Enhanced Data rates for Global Evolution equipment, as well as turnkey network design, deployment and integration services.
The agreement complements another contract that was previously awarded to Ericsson, leading to Mobitel's launch of mobile services in 2002 for both consumer and corporate market segments.
The current contract together with the existing one will enable Mobitel to more than double its network capacity and offer the latest advanced features and services to its end users, thereby strengthening Mobitel's leadership in Sri Lanka.
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