SPUR Welcomes President Rajapakse - the Leader of Resurgent Sri Lanka

The Society for Peace Unity and Human Rights for Sri Lanka (SPUR) a 10-year-old Melbourne based organisation with the objectives of promoting peace and sustainable development in Sri Lanka warmly welcomes the election of Mr. Mahinda Rajapakse as the 5th President of Sri Lanka.

The President should be congratulated and his consummate interpersonal skills and patience admired for developing the strategy adopted for securing this magnificent victory benefiting all communities living in Sri Lanka.

In addition to his major political opponents, President Rajapakse faced an unholy alliance of individuals and organisations hell bent on destroying the heritage and the territorial integrity of unitary Sri Lanka.

The concoction making up the opposition included moneyed businessmen, private newspapers TV and radio, NGOs such as the National Peace Council and the Centre for Policy Alternative and unfortunately, even a misguided religious leader. As well, the comical roles played by the past President and her tragic brother, surreptitiously subverting the Rajapakse campaign should not be forgotten by the masses in Sri Lanka.

It is best we speak the least about this unholy alliance as its members have been condemned to the scrap heap and justifiably tagged as a colony of lepers. We urge those that were unintentionally coerced into supporting their dastardly agenda to dissociate publicly. Failure to do so will risk ongoing public ridicule.

President Rajapakse is the future. Let us savour the moment, rejoice his win and focus on the key challenge facing him.

To usher in sustainable peace and to control the terrorist menace, SPUR urges the President to:

1. Not to be stampeded into beginning peace talks with the LTTE terrorist: The peace talks should begin after reviewing the Cease Fire Agreement to rein in the ongoing terrorist activities of the LTTE and clearly setting out the minimum critical specifications or boundary conditions for beginning discussions. If the LTTE refuses to cooperate, a unilateral review may be required.

2. Articulate to the people of Sri Lanka and the international community, the alternative to the P-TOMS mechanism designed to provide Tsunami relief. We urge the President to give this action a priority and consider adopting SPUR's Distributing Aid for Recovering from the Tsunami (DARP) Model as a viable alternative as it addresses most of the concerns justifiably raised by the opponents of the P-TOMS arrangement.

3. Review the role played by Norway in facilitating talks between the Government and the LTTE terrorist. Many in Sri Lanka and abroad believe the Norwegians to be biased in their dealings with the LTTE. The President should not be handed over a poisoned chalice. Hence SPUR believes it is best that we retire Norway from the peace process and the role it plays monitoring the CFA. Replacing Norway with an alternative Asian nation and the merits of SARC countries taking over monitoring compliance with the CFA should actively be pursued.

4. Encourage the international community to establish a 'Safety Net' to protect Sri Lanka from uncontrolled LTTE terror: The President should encourage leading nations such as India, USA, China, UK, Russia and the European Economic Union to form an alliance and to provide a safety net to back fresh peace initiatives introduced by the President.

5. Strengthen the armed forces by reviewing the current management arrangements. There is an urgent need to restore the pride of the armed forces, modernise the forces and re-appoint competent senior officers disenfranchised by the past President to posting that would strengthen National security.

We also urge the President to consider appointing retired officers who carried out their military duties with distinction to important position in the defence forces as key advisors.

6. Review of the CFA based on protecting human rights; The CFA must be tightened to stop blatant violations by the LTTE terrorists and reflect protecting human rights. These include assassination of military personnel and civilians, kidnapping and recruiting children as fighting carders, taxing civilians, destroying Buddhist archaeological sites and violating fundamental human rights.

7. Educate the international community: We urge the President to dispatch a multi ethnic group of eminent persons including Mr. Anandasangaree the Leader of the TULF, Ms Fereal Ashraff, a member each from the JVP and the JHU on a tour of key countries in Europe, the Middle East, USA, Canada and Australia exposing the repugnant activities of the LTTE.

The group should be lead by a senior SLFP politician such as Hon Rathnasiri Wickremanayaka (or a person of similar stature) with secretarial assistance from an outstanding diplomat with military experience such as General Janaka Perera.

8. To take urgent action to restore the rule of law and foster respect for law and order. In conclusion we urge your Excellency to be beware of NGOs and individuals who worked day and night to subvert your campaign. Some of them, with the intentions of befriending you have turned a full circle overnight, praising the Mahinda Chinthanaya and talking up your human rights record. Among these organizations is the National Peace Council which was a persistent saboteur writing weekly to the Daily Mirror undermining your campaign and vilifying the JVP and the JHU.

We also humbly request your Excellency to give top priority to ensuring your security and urge you to consider working with experts responsible for ensuring the safety of the likes of the President of Pakistan. They are deemed to be the world's best as they have avoided a number of assassination attempts.

May you have the vision, strength, good health and the spiritual guidance to lead Sri Lanka for the next six years as she extricates herself from the grips of LTTE terror and reclaims the throne as the economic hub and the granary of South Asia.

Dr. D. Jayasuriya, President, SPUR Victoria, Australia.