Prime Minister Rajapakse's visit to India affords us an opportunity to reflect on the role that India must play in our internal war in her own interest.

India has categorically stated and repeatedly that she will not permit the establishment of a separate state or an autonomous self governing entity within the state of Sri Lanka, India has also emphasized that there cannot be any third Army, Navy or Air Force and no exclusive areas of the sea in violation of international law. India has also called for the securing of equal rights for the Tamil people and most important of all for the political parties in the south to arrive at a consensus on the re-imaging of the state and the powers that the centre would devolve to the Tamil people. Beyond setting out the parameters for a settlement India has regrettably not done much else to ensure a settlement of the problem.

India has been merely an observer and other outside powers have stepped into the breach and today pose a certain threat to her status as the predominant regional power. The time has now arrived for India to play its legitimate role. India must wrest the initiative from the outsiders and ensure that this issue is settled once and for all time. She has it within her power to do so and she must act.

I would suggest that India invite the political leaders of the South including the JVP and preside over a meeting where they would be asked to state their positions and work out a consensus. India owes it to the Tamil people whose cause brought about their initial intervention to do this. We sadly recall the fact that the game of political football which is now being played out between the Sinhala Parties first commenced in 1958 when the UNP were the spoilers and was followed by the SLFP playing the same role in 1968. The next generation is at it now and this criminal exercise which has cost the lives of thousands, decimated our people and pauperized this country must be ended. The political parties of the South must be forced by India, if necessary to reach a consensus.

India's next duty is to invite the Donor group to Delhi and inform them that whatever may be their sympathies, they must issue a statement and stand firmly by the position they and the LTTE agreed to in Oslo which was that the settlement should be based on a federal structure within a united Sri Lanka. The fact that the government in Colombo is weak does not give anybody the liberty or license to depart from what was agreed to at Oslo and support an ISGA. India must be firm on this. The donor group must be called to order. In any case our unity is not for sale for 4.5 billion US -90% of which is loan money (incidentally what is the rate of interest in Japan now? One percent and do we have to pay the very low rate of course of 04% over 30 or 40 years? – seventy five percent of the money is for the North and a small part for the east – monies we in the south and our children, grand-children and great grand-children would have to pay back for many years to come) Yes India is indeed the country which has a vital interest in the stability of this country, no country of the donor group shares the same interest; India must therefore take the initiative and set the donors on the right track. India should also make a public statement and also send out a direct message to the LTTE through the Norwegians that the ISGA is unacceptable and a revised proposal should be submitted for the consideration of the government of Sri Lanka.

India meanwhile should also push through two earlier initiatives which are today dormant. President Kumaratunge's initiative of a Free Trade Agreement was taken to another dimension by the then PM Ranil Wicremasinghe, who formulated a wide ranging economic cooperation agreement; That government also half-heartedly initiated a Defence Cooperation Agreement (appearing to us to be looking back all the time as to how the LTTE was reacting to it – I believe it was more the initiative of Moragoda than Wickremasinghe) The present government perhaps also seeking to use it as a n concession to the LTTE has not pursued the DCA with the same alacrity as they did immediately they came into office. This to say the lest is more than unfortunate for they must realize that the no policy of appeasement will succeed (the UNP's peace process was in fact not a ‘Peace Process' but an ‘Appeasement process' – they were throwing steaks to the tiger hoping to transform the brute into a vegetarian). The government must enter into a comprehensive Defence Cooperation Agreement at the earliest.

The present government too appears to be following the UNP's approach to the ‘peace process. They have even indicated that they would be prepared to commence negotiations on the basis of the ISGA. This government has made a proposal for the resumption of talks. There is no way that the LTTE would agree to discussing the co-issues outside the frame that they have proposed and that too only after they have finished off Karuna and taken total control of the East. Re the ISGA. it has been very succinctly pointed out by another correspondent recently is for a "Self-Governing Authority" and it is exactly what that means. It is a final arrangement and not an interim one. There is no reference to any relationship with the centre other than to provide it with money. The ISGA provides for a huge institutional structure with its own Judicial Service Commission, Human Rights Commission, Elections Commission, Auditor General, Financial Commission and what have you. There is no mention of their military; it is taken for granted that they would have their own Army, Navy and perhaps their Air Force. No self-respecting government can even think for a moment on negotiating on the basis of such a document. The ISGA is, as was stated recently, a "Trojan Horse, once pulled in will only release the evil forces of separatism from its belly". I fear for the Tamils living in the south who have over the years suffered as much as their brethren in the north. The ISGA is ominous.

The government must show spine, if not the LTTE will take advantage of it as has been the case from the time of President Premadasa. The attitude of the government to the latest human bomb is a case in point, The government did not express outrage or condemn the cowardly attempt to assassinate one of its own Ministers. Perhaps they did not want to damage the peace process, this was also the attitude of the UNP, they never uttered a word when the murderous LTTE assassinated over 40 men who worked for this country as ‘Intelligence' operatives -they did not want "to damage the peace process"!! One feels sick in the gut, – how that murderer of Rajiv Gandhi and President Premadasa, amongst others must be laughing his sides out at our politicians – he must surely hold them in utter contempt. No wonder then that he makes such a preposterous demand such as the ISGA. He knows that there is a good chance that our spineless politicians could give in.

Re the attitude of the government to the most recent bomb, I am reminded of the then government's statement when Ms Amirthalingam and Yogeswaran were assassinated – on 13th July1989, (President Premadasa was courting the LTTE at this time) they sought to absolve the LTTE as they did when Sam Thambimuttu MP and his wife were assassinated outside the Canadian Embassy on the 7th of May 1990. The Indians too must be making quite an effort to hide their contempt; all the more reason for them to take command, for if left to our politicians on both sides of the political divide, they may sell out India's security interests too.

The foreign Minister of India of the last BJP government asked Minister Kadirgamar to tell them what they should do and what role India should play, when invited to involve themselves in our peace process; without offence to modesty the role we the people think India should play is suggested for India's serious consideration in this short article.

We do hope that the visit of the PM which would be followed by a series of visits by senior politicians from this country to India both from the PA and the UNP would be utilized by India to take the initiative to end this war and establish a permanent and enduring peace in this country.