Tigers offer truce, Lanka calls it a joke

A cornered LTTE on Sunday announced a unilateral ceasefire, but Sri Lanka quickly dismissed the offer, calling it a “joke”, as troops captured Vlayarmadam area from the Tigers and encircled the remaining strip of land where rebel leader V Prabhakaran is believed to be hiding.

Defence secretary and president Mahinda Rajapaksa’s brother Gotabaya Rajapaksa was quoted as saying: “That is a joke. They were not fighting with us, they were running from us. There is no need of a ceasefire. They must surrender. That is it.”

A halt to the fighting at this stage, where the LTTE is facing a complete rout is not something president Rajapaksa would ever consider, despite pressure from India, US and the entire international community.

“This is the first time in 25 years that we have come to a stage when the LTTE is about to be wiped off, no government in Colombo can afford to let this opportunity slip,’’ said a senior official in Sri Lanka over telephone.

“No other country perhaps realises the LTTE’s game plan. If they were bothered about civilian casualties, they would have allowed people to get out of the war zone weeks ago. They are cornered and want the opportunity to regroup,” the official, who did not wish to be identified, explained.

Early on Sunday, the LTTE website announced: “In the face of an unprecedented humanitarian crisis and in response to the calls made by the UN, EU, the governments of India and others, the [LTTE] has announced a unilateral ceasefire.”

The Tigers’ truce declaration on Sunday came as the UN’s top humanitarian chief was in the Indian Ocean island to press for the protection of tens of thousands of people trapped in the apparent final conventional battle of a war that started in 1983. The Tigers have offered a ceasefire repeatedly as the military juggernaut has pushed them to the brink of defeat, but have refused international calls to free stranded civilians, whom witnesses say are kept from leaving by deadly force.

Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara, a spokesman for the Sri Lankan military, was quoted by news agencies as saying:  “We have very clearly indicated to them from the beginning that they have to lay down their arms and come and surrender.”

Colombo is well aware that a ceasefire at this stage will mean regrouping of the Tigers. With an outpouring of support for the LTTE in Tamil Nadu, Sri Lanka is worried India may once again begin supporting the Tigers. So it is unlikely Colombo will heed any advice or even any warning from India, US or any other country to stop the fighting. President Rajapaksa is waiting to announce victory and call for a fresh mandate, one in which he need not be dependent on smaller parties like the JVP.  – With agencies