'Tough position to be taken against terrorism and the LTTE'-U.S Ambassador

This is not an ethnic conflict per se: People have lived very harmoniously together. - Robert O.Blake

The Ambassador for the United States of America Robert O.Blake speaks to C.A.Chandraprema about the LTTE, the nature of the Sri Lankan conflict, the confidence shown by expatriate Tamils in Sri Lanka's long term prospects and the possibility of a political settlement in Sri Lanka.
The full text of the interview published in 'The Island' a popular Sri Lankan news portal is as follows.

Q. How would you read the situation in Sri Lanka at the present moment?
A. We are concerned about the situation, but we also think there is hope. We are concerned because the ceasefire has broken down and there has been a lot of fighting in the past year and there have been severe humanitarian consequences and human rights problems for the people of Sri Lanka. But we also think there is hope for the people of Sri Lanka because there is a process already under way in the All party Representatives Committee, that can lead to a political solution to the conflict.
Q. How would you characterize the Sri Lankan problem - is it case of a popularly elected government fighting terrorism?
A. Certainly that is a part of it, but part of the problem is that terrorism exists because of the failure of successive governments to address the grievances that have given rise to terrorism in the first place. That is why we advocate a political solution to the problem and not a military solution.
Q. Isn't it the usual case that once something starts due to underlying reasons, it tends to gain a momentum of its own?
A. That has been the case in many conflicts but there is no such thing as a conflict that has no solution to it. If we look around the world, we see many examples of so called insoluble problems that the international community has in fact been able to solve. In many cases, it was because of the courageous leaderships within the countries themselves. Take the case of Northern Ireland and the Aceh settlement in Indonesia. I believe that Sri Lanka is capable of developing its own solution as well. I spent most of my career in the middle east where there is deep enmity between the Arabs and the Israelis. But Sri Lanka is very different from the middle east. You have Tamils and Sinhalese and Muslims who have lived together for centuries and even in Colombo 40% of the population is Tamil. And there is intermarriage between the communities. So this is not an ethnic conflict per se. people have lived very harmoniously together and are capable of doing so. So the outlines of a solution are much easier to define here than in a place like the middle east. It is basically a case of all the parties getting together and setting aside their partisan differences for the sake of the nation.
A. Would you agree with the assessment of the LTTE given in that US Defense Department document which The Island serialized some weeks ago?
Q. You will have to refresh my memory on that...
A. In a nutshell, the analysis was that the LTTE is a terrorist organization, that they are very intransigent, and that the notion of a negotiated settlement will be a non starter with them.
Certainly I would agree that the LTTE is a terrorist organization. The United States was one of the first organizations to ban the LTTE back in 1997 And ever since then, we have been working with our friends in the Sri Lankan government, to restrict the LTTE's activities, in every way that we can think of, mostly by trying to stop arms flows into Sri Lanka and also to stop financial flows going to the LTTE and to those who are buying arms for the LTTE. So we have taken a very tough position with regard to terrorism and the LTTE. At the same time, I believe that all organizations should be given a chance to change their policies and their behaviour and I think there is a lot of pressure on the LTTE not just from the United States but from many countries around the world.
If you look at the law enforcement front, there has been a lot of constructive action taken in France, in Britain, Australia, and many parts of the world. There is a growing international consensus against the LTTE and that would encourage them to come to the negotiating table in good faith.
And I think another factor that is important is that the Tamil Diaspora is getting weary of the conflict just as the Tamils in this country are getting weary of conflict. If the government can come up with a solution through the APRC process, that will have a very powerful effect in mobilizing the Diaspora and all the Tamils in favour of a political solution and thereby force Prabhakaran to come to the negotiating table in good faith.
Almost every Tamil that I speak to, wants a federal solution within a united Sri Lanka. They do not want a separate Eelam. One of the arguments against any kind of negotiations is that Prabhakaran will never agree to anything less than an independent state. I don't believe that's true. I believe that there is great pressure on the LTTE to agree to some sort of federal solution or a power sharing proposal within a united Sri Lanka, and that the overwhelming majority of Tamils here and overseas will support such a solution.
Q. We have a situation here where certain countries are exerting pressure on the Sri Lankan government. There is also pressure on the LTTE. But it so appears that the pressure on the Sri Lankan government is more effective than the pressure that they have been putting on the LTTE.
A. I wouldn't put the blame on governments that are providing assistance. Let's take the case of the United States. I don't want to discuss the policies of other countries. The United States has been a strong supporter of the government of Sri Lanka for many years in its fight against the LTTE. We have supported it with law enforcement and various kinds of technical assistance.
We supported it with military means. We very strongly support the right of the government to defend itself, and to defend the people of Sri Lanka against terrorism. But at the same time we believe that there cannot be a military solution to this conflict and that there must be a political solution. Take one of our aid programmes, which is called the New Millennium Challenge Account. With the advice of Congress, the New Millennium Corporation which runs the New Millennium Challenge Account, has decided not to proceed with our programme of assistance here in this country. And the reason for that was that the MCA programme was originally conceived at a time of peace in this country in 2003 and it was conceived to support the ceasefire agreement and as a way of supporting good governance.
In the last year, the cease fire agreement has more or less evaporated, fighting has resumed and good governance has also suffered in the last year particularly on the human rights front. On account of that, the Millennium Challenge Corporation does not think the conditions are ripe to proceed with a programme which was designed to support the peace process and good governance. And I think that's the right decision. But we do hope that if the APRC process comes up with a credible solution and the President is able to work on improving human rights, then we will be able to resume that programme again.
Q. The problem with the APRC is that whatever problem that they come up with, has to be acceptable to the LTTE. They are the people who decide.
A. I wouldn't put the blame on the LTTE. I think the first challenge before the APRC is the consensus power sharing proposal that is widely acceptable to all the Tamil people. Don't worry about the LTTE in my view. You should try to come up with something that will attract the support of the broad majority of the Tamil people, both inside the country and outside the country. If you have their support, they will be able to put a lot of pressure on the LTTE and Prabhakaran to accept a credible proposal.
Q. When you find a population living under terror, is it really practical to expect them to make free choices without consulting the people who are terrorizing them? The LTTE controls the area, they control the minds of the people.
A. It is true that the people in the Vanni are living under extraordinarily difficult conditions. There is a lot of forced recruitment going on, and its not a democracy as we understand it in that part of Sri Lanka. But at the same time, there are a large number of Tamils outside the so called uncleared areas. So they can be consulted on a democratic basis and also the Tamils of the Diaspora can have a role in helping to convince the LTTE to support the power sharing proposal that meets the needs of the vast majority of the Tamil people.
The message that I would send to the LTTE now is that life's going to get more difficult for them - Robert Blake
Q. Today, this problem is no longer just a case of grievances. The late Kumar Ponnambalam put it very bluntly when he said in a TV interview that the Tamil people have graduated from 'grievances' to 'aspirations'. The Tamils don't have an independent state and the conflict here has become a kind of spectator sport for Tamils living in Tamil Nadu, Malaysia, South Africa and elsewhere in the world, where the state is far too strong for them to even think of doing what they do here in Sri Lanka. So this conflict is bound up with aspirations for an independent state and has gone beyond mere grievances.
A. I am not sure what the point of the question is. Certainly the Tamils around the world are concerned about the situation in Sri Lanka and the plight of the Tamils living in this country and I think most of the international community feels the same way. But at the same time, that should not be an excuse to not arrive at a solution. I think there is now the opportunity to come to a solution, a power sharing proposal that allows Tamils a greater say in the things that are important to them - how money is spent in the areas where they live, about education, healthcare and so on.
Those are decisions that they cannot make now. By the way, those are things that the Sinhalese people, the Muslim people and all the other minorities want as well. So we are not saying that the Tamils should have anything special. We are just saying that the Tamils should have the same rights that every other Sri Lankan citizen now enjoys. That's why the power sharing proposals that are being considered in front of the APRC are the way forward and will benefit all the people of Sri Lanka.
Q. The point of my previous question was this. The Jews living scattered all over the world, had no state before 1947. Then the Jewish state was created. Its true that all Jews do not live there. But before it came into being, that was a kind of Jewish dream. So there is a Tamil dream of having a separate state.
A. I disagree with the premise of your question. Most of the people that I talk to are in favour of something on the lines of what is being considered in the APRC.
Q. The American government and the government of Sri Lanka have something in common in that they are both engaged in a war on terror. Now, when you are engaged in a war on terror, what really is the priority - safeguarding human rights or stopping the terror?
A. I don't think there is a contradiction between the two. I think you can do both and that's what we have been trying to do around the world. We attach great importance to defeating terrorism everywhere. We prepare an annual report on terrorism and an annual strategy on terrorism. And we designate a number of groups that we call foreign terrorist organizations - the LTTE is one of those foreign terrorist organizations, but there are many others. And we worked with our allies around the world to beat those various terrorist organizations. But at the same time, we are a democratic nation, and we favour democratic processes of all kinds and we have been working on promoting human rights all over the world including Sri Lanka.
We promote human rights in our own country as well. There was a debate in the United States after 9/11 that the executive branch of the government, the President, had gone too far, in for example, asking for wire taps of American citizens. The judiciary decided that he had gone too far. It is very important to have that balance of power in any democracy. Its important to have an effective Parliament, an independent judiciary, a free press, and so on.
Q. When compared to other underdeveloped countries, Sri Lanka is far ahead with regard to all those. But the country is in a state of war. This is not like the United States fighting overseas. Even if you lose such wars, the impact back home on day to day life will not be too negative. But when you are fighting on your own soil, doesn't the priority simply become stopping the terror? When you stop the terror, human rights flows on naturally from that.
A. I will go back to my original answer on that. I don't think there is a contradiction between fighting a war on terror and human rights. You can do both. I think the best way to improve the human rights situation in this country would be to arrive at a political solution to this conflict.
If you look at charts that show human rights violations and deaths as a result of conflict, these went down to virtually zero in 2002 and 2003 because the nation was at peace at that time. So there were very few human rights violations and very few deaths. So that's the situation that we think Sri Lanka should get back to. A situation of peace where everybody is working together and there is no need for security measures against terrorism or anything like that.
Q. We are not talking here of just another Islamic terrorist organisation. We are talking of the most effective terrorist organisation in the world. They inspire others. They have got this thing rolling without oil money. Its entirely their sweat and blood. They have ships, a few planes and they carry out precision attacks. They are not like Al Qaeda attacks or the London bombings or these little things that have been happening in the West. So Sri Lanka is dealing with a force that even the Americans are not up against.
A. I wouldn't want to get into comparing Al Qaeda with the LTTE. I think Al Qaeda is one of the most lethal organisations in the world and had been adapting its tactics and its network of operations continually and has proved a very difficult adversary in the war on terrorism. The most recent battlefield has been in Iraq as you know. We have resolved to try to defeat Al Qaeda and I think you also can defeat the LTTE but the way to do so is through political means. You are not going to achieve victory through military means alone.
We found that in Iraq as well. We are not pursuing a one track policy of trying to defeat Al Qaeda militarily. That would be impossible. We are trying to achieve national reconciliation within Iraq. We are trying to involve all of the neighbours of Iraq in a solution. We are talking to the Iranians, the Syrians, the Saudis, the Egyptians, and many other important countries in the region. There's go to be multi track solution that involves economic growth, the growth of democracy and reconciliation in the country to stop the sectarian strife. It is a very similar track that has to be pursued here in Sri Lanka as well. You need to have a political solution and address the underlying conditions that have given rise to the LTTE's terrorism in the first place.
Q. Lets talk about Iraq. The Americans went in, removed Saddam Hussein, and gave the Shiites and the Kurds a certain amount of freedom and they represent the majority of the population. The Sunni's also have whatever the Shiites and the Kurds have. I believe that all of them know that if they just stopped all this violence, and allowed democracy to flourish in that country, they will all benefit. The Americans will be pumping in aid - they know all that. Despite all this, war rages there. I feel that it is the same situation here. Most Tamils would love to live in peace. They live in peace in all other parts of the country except the North and the East. They all know that Sri Lanka will benefit economically if the war stops, but they are unable to do that because of a coterie of intransigent individuals. A few intransigent individuals who control the whole thing. Aren't Iraq and Sri Lanka in a similar situation?
A. It's very difficult to make a comparison. Iraq is an enormously complex situation. There is a sectarian issue and also one involving the terrorist group Al Qaeda that has tried to exploit the situation for its own purposes. So I don't think its wise to compare the two. They are completely different situations. Most Tamils would like to live in peace in Sri Lanka and not just in the North and East. One interesting phenomenon that we have seen over the past couple of years is of expatriate Tamils investing in this part of the country, in the Western province. So there's heavy investment going on here. They wouldn't be doing that if they did not have faith in a solution that involves a federal system. In a way that is a show of confidence that there will be a long term solution. As I said earlier, that solution is much easier to reach here than in many other parts of the world.
Q. But as I said earlier, we are dealing with the smartest terrorist organisation in the world. And they have not been given an incentive to move away from their present course of action. Every time the Sri Lankan military starts a campaign in the North and East, the Western powers come to the aid of the LTTE and put a stop to it. If LTTE operatives start disappearing here in Colombo, again the question of human rights come up. The LTTE is thus able to manipulate almost at will, the entire Western community of nations.
A. I would deny most vigorously that the LTTE has been able to use the international community. The message that I would send to the LTTE now is that life's going to get more difficult for them. The international community s working together to stop the flow of arms to the LTTE. We and a number of other like-minded countries is trying to stop that whole network. We are also trying to stop the terrorist financing side and I think there has been some success there. There have been a number of arrests in the United States and other countries, of people trying to procure arms and other things for the LTTE. I would argue that the activities of the LTTE overseas are becoming more and more circumscribed. They should not believe that the negotiations this time is going to be another opportunity to use the negotiations to rearm. Things are going to be much more difficult for them. Now is the time for them to sit down and negotiate in good faith. I also believe most importantly that the Tamil people who support them from around the world, will rally around a proposal put forward in good faith by the APRC, that meets the aspirations of the vast majority of the Tamil people. That more than anything else will help to rally Tamil support for a federal solution within a united Sri Lanka and that would help to isolate Prabhakaran if he is not willing to go along with that kind of a proposal. So I don't think the LTTE is going to be able to manipulate the international community. Things have changed now, dramatically.
Q. If you take the recent House of Commons debate, almost every MP who spoke that day said that they had been approached by their Tamil constituents who had expressed concerns about Sri Lanka and that led to the debate. Because they have citizens in those countries, they are able to deliver bloc votes which has led to a situation where the democratic system itself can be manipulated from within those countries, to their advantage. In a situation like that politicians will not say anything against the LTTE. Even if they do voice criticism, they'll try to balance it by saying something even harsher about the government. You have this situation even among the Muslim communities in various Western countries.
A. I don't want to comment on the House of Commons debate. But I will not say that every Tamil who expresses concern about the human rights situation is an LTTE supporter. There are many Tamils who have concerns about the human rights situation here who are not supporters of the LTTE. The reason why the LTTE has been able to thrive for so long is because it has been able to argue with some reason that it is the only organisation that supports the rights of the Tamil people, and that successive governments here have failed to deliver on promises to improve the rights of the Tamil people. But if the current government can do that, it will undercut the appeal of the LTTE. That's where the opportunity lies.
Q. The only reason why the LTTE has become the only organisation appearing for Tamil rights is because they killed off everyone else. They have managed to get away with that as well. They now claim to be the only representatives of the Tamils and the western governments go along with that.
A. I wouldn't say we go along with it. We consider them one of the most ruthless terrorist organisations in the world. We in the United States and many other countries have banned them as a terrorist organisation. So in no way have we gone along with their brand of terrorism. Far from it.
We are doing everything we can to circumscribe their activities but the best way to circumscribe their activities is to come up with a political solution that will address the underlying grievances that gave rise to the terrorism.
Courtesy: The Island