Blair wants to be peacemaker here
N. Ireland peacemaker for Lanka
From Neville de Silva in London
British Prime Minister Tony Blair is sending a special envoy to Colombo this week to assist in getting the peace talks with the LTTE back on track.
The appointment of Paul Murphy who was closely involved in the Northern Ireland peace negotiations that eventually brought a political settlement is an indication that Britain intends to take a much more “hands on” role to revive Sri Lanka’s stalled talks than it had done before in the hope of bringing about a lasting political solution, informed political sources said.
The Sunday Times of September 17 exclusively reported that Mr. Blair had decided to appoint a special envoy with experience in negotiating peace following discussions he had with President Mahinda Rajapaksa during the latter’s visit to London in August.The two leaders met at “Chequers”, the British prime minister’s country residence where they discussed the Sri Lanka situation.
Following President Rajapaksa’s request, Mr. Blair is sending Paul Murphy, a former Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, who had earlier served as political development minister for Northern Ireland.
Mr. Murphy was at the heart of the Northern Ireland negotiations which led to the signing of the Good Friday Agreement in 1998 that brought an end to the menacing problem of IRA terrorism.
Mr Murphy is remembered as a skilled problem solver during his time in Belfast from 1997 to 2005 first at the Northern Ireland Office and later as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when he was succeeded by Peter Hain in a cabinet reshuffle.
Mr. Murphy is currently heading the security and intelligence committee of the House of Commons. The tireless and soft spoken negotiator will be assisted by Christopher Maccabe, a senior civil servant who is director of the Northern Ireland Office in Belfast. How long the two men spend in Sri Lanka is not quite certain yet but it is expected that they would want to meet a range of persons who are stakeholders and have direct interest in the issue.
This could mean a stay of anything between a week to two weeks, the sources said.
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Blair wants to be peacemaker here
Will former British Prime Minister Tony Blair be the latest peace maker in Sri Lanka’s reconciliation process?
The talk in the corridors of the Foreign Ministry in Colombo is that the prospects are high. They say the overtures to join in came from Blair, Britain’s Labour Prime Minister from 1997 to 2007. His main occupation now is a consultancy business and engaging in charitable work. He was also a West Asia peace maker who made more than 150 visits to the region, alas, to no avail.
One FO source whispered that he is now in contact with Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera with regard to his possible new assignment. The Foreign Minister was in Britain on holiday recently. The FO source pointed out that it was during Blair’s tenure that the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) set up its so called headquarters in London despite an official ban on the terrorist organisation. Then, when even former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, sought meetings with him through diplomatic channels during her frequent visits to Britain, she was understandably, rebuffed. The British Premier’s office took up the position that the then Sri Lankan President was merely trying to make what was a private visit seem an official one back to her constituency at home.
Now, that peace has arrived in Sri Lanka, the man who allowed Tiger guerrillas to direct a war from Sri Lanka is hell bent on accelerating the reconciliation process which is largely under Kumaratunga. Has he given up on West Asia and looking for a new assignment? Well, at least some of Blair’s new friends in Sri Lanka believe so.
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British Prime Minister Tony Blair be the latest peace maker in Sri Lanka’s reconciliation process?
The talk in the corridors of the Foreign Ministry in Colombo is that the prospects are high. They say the overtures to join in came from Blair, Britain’s Labour Prime Minister from 1997 to 2007. His main occupation now is a consultancy business and engaging in charitable work. He was also a West Asia peace maker who made more than 150 visits to the region, alas, to no avail.
One FO source whispered that he is now in contact with Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera with regard to his possible new assignment. The Foreign Minister was in Britain on holiday recently. The FO source pointed out that it was during Blair’s tenure that the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) set up its so called headquarters in London despite an official ban on the terrorist organisation. Then, when even former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, sought meetings with him through diplomatic channels during her frequent visits to Britain, she was understandably, rebuffed. The British Premier’s office took up the position that the then Sri Lankan President was merely trying to make what was a private visit seem an official one back to her constituency at home.
Now, that peace has arrived in Sri Lanka, the man who allowed Tiger guerrillas to direct a war from Sri Lanka is hell bent on accelerating the reconciliation process which is largely under Kumaratunga. Has he given up on West Asia and looking for a new assignment? Well, at least some of Blair’s new friends in Sri Lanka believe so.
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