By P. Karunakharan,IANS,
Colombo : The Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) party Monday accused US ambassador Robert Blake of meddling in Sri Lanka’s affairs and warned that no country had the right to tell Colombo how to resolve its ethnic problem.
Referring to the remarks by Robert Blake at the University of Madras Friday that the tactical relationship between the US and India could be used to Sri Lanka’s advantage, the JVP said that such a statement is “not only subversive to Sri Lanka but to other countries in the region”.
“The tactical relationship between the US and India is to establish Indo-US imperialism in the region and therefore such statements should be condemned not only by Sri Lanka but other countries in the region as well. We should unite to prevent such an eventuality,” the JVP said.
According to media reports, Blake had rejected Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s view that political talks could take place only after the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) was wiped out or disarmed.
“A military solution is going to be very, very difficult,” Blake reportedly said, while urging everyone in Sri Lanka to accept a political solution to the conflict.
Taking strong exception to his remarks, the JVP said that Blake “should realise that successive Sri Lankan governments have wasted time for the last 20 years to discuss political solutions that were imposed on Sri Lanka by the so called international community and not to militarily defeat the LTTE.
“We the JVP are of the firm belief that no other country, whether it be the US or India, has any right to influence the Sri Lankan government on how to solve our national question. If anyone is against the military action undertaken by the Sri Lankan government against terrorism, they are aiding terrorists,” the JVP said.
The party stressed that the Sri Lankan government should continue its campaign against the LTTE.
“Blake together with India is now getting ready to drag Sri Lanka back to discussing so-called political solutions. The Rajapaksa government, which is talking of political solutions with the so-called international community, when the security forces are engaged in defeating terrorism, is undermining the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the nation,” the JVP charged.