Credible peace, a mirage or reality?

Until the liberation of Kilinochchi on January 2, 2009 the military had an enviable record of collateral damage during their two and half year campaign. Though there were occasional claims by pro-LTTE media of civilians dying in aerial bombings there were but few verifiable cases of civilian casualties during his period. The military and policy makers should be commended for their performance in minimizing civilian casualties up until the capture of Kilinochchi. However since January the situation has changed dramatically. Most of the good work done by the military by safeguarding the physical safety of civilians in LTTE controlled areas has been undone with the number of reported casualties dramatically increasing.
Last Friday, Navanethem Pillay, the UN High Commissioner for human rights, issuing a scathing statement said that she believed 2,800 people had died since January and that a further 150,000 to 180,000 were trapped in the war zone. Her figures were hotly disputed by the government which received the High Commissioner’s statement with “dismay”. Whether there are discrepancies in the numbers or not we are now dealing with not tens or hundreds of casualties but in the range of thousands for a period of less than two months. The argument that the LTTE is mostly responsible for these deaths and injuries, either directly by involving the trapped civilians in combat or indirectly by holding these civilians in an ever shrinking piece of land against their will, may not hold for much longer. Contrary to many extremists, politic expedients and conspiracy theorists the international community has no love for the LTTE. The UN, many governments and even human rights organisations have severely criticised the LTTE for holding civilians as human shields. Yet they have also pointed out that as a responsible democratic institution, the onus of protecting ones own citizens falls mainly on the government. Simply blaming the LTTE will not exonerate the government of this fundamental responsibility. There are many things the government could do, short of a ceasefire which would demonstrate that it is genuinely serious about safeguarding the interests of the civilians.
To begin with the government could take measures to improve the conditions of those who have managed to escape. Reports from Vavuniya indicate that civilians who managed to escape since January are still living in temporary shelters. Almost all of these camps are situated in the heart of the Vavuniya town. Though they live in a town they are confined to a mere school premises for they are not allowed to move out of camps. Nor are relatives allowed to visit them inside the camps. Armed soldiers guard these camps with barbed-wire fences around them. Then there are the more permanent structures which are built some distance from the Vavuniya town. Though conditions there are said to be better, only a few thousand people have been moved into those locations. These permanent structures have also drawn criticism from many quarters as a measure by the government to hold the civilian population for a considerable duration of time. Due to these many shortcomings in handling this emergency situation the government is fast losing the propaganda war. If civilians are going to be held for a long duration of time inside fenced areas without any freedom of movement and access to outsiders, the enormous opportunity of winning the hearts and minds of these people who were harassed by the LTTE for many years would be lost.
It is true that there are security considerations and the fear of LTTE infiltration in the guise of civilians. Yet it needs to be borne in mind that a militarily defeated LTTE can only carry on its struggle with the support of the community. The government is presented with a fabulous opportunity to demonstrate its commitment to treat this segment of our population with the dignity they deserve. Such measures will not only silence the many critics who have pointed out the numerous flaws in the current set up but also win over the hearts and minds of the Tamil people. The fire of contempt that burns a person’s heart cannot be doused by cannons and tanks alone. It needs human gestures of kindness too. If we miss this opportunity to win the hearts and minds of our fellow citizens who have gone through enormous difficulties throughout the last three decades, it would no doubt ensure that peace would only be a mirage that keeps disappearing each time we seek it.