War will end soon – survey

Over 85% of respondents to TNS Lanka poll believe both Govt. and public are ready for a post-war Sri Lanka

Most people believe that the conventional war in the north will end soon and that Sri Lanka is ready for peacetime again, leading business magazine LMD reports in its April edition.

“An overwhelming majority of respondents (over 85%) to the LMD-commissioned TNS Lanka poll believe that both the Government and the general public are ready for a post-war Sri Lanka,”
The journal’s ‘Talking Point’ column notes. After living in the shadow of a bloody conflict for more than 25 years, is Sri Lanka really ready for peace?, an exclusive poll commissioned by LMD and carried out by TNS Lanka asked.
The magazine says that 76 per cent believe that we will “witness an end to hostilities in the near future, citing the clearance of LTTE-controlled areas by the military, while also pointing out that the Tigers have been severely weakened”.
Some 16 per cent though do not believe that a war that has raged for so long can be “completed within 12 months”. And they contend that “there are people who focus on the benefits that they gain from the war”
The pollsters also asked participants to the nationwide survey whether those who are directly affected by the war would be in for better days, once the hostilities end – and almost 70 per cent of respondents think they would be, “given that they could live in dignity once again in a society sans the threat of war and displacement”.
The people also feel that the private sector should work with the Government to establish long-term plans that will assist entrepreneurs, LMD reports. And the state could provide land for farming as well as for the establishment of businesses, they suggest.
The April issue of LMD releases to supermarkets and bookshops on Friday April 3. The magazine features the Chairman of Singer Sri Lanka in its Cover supplement – he says that marketers must pay attention to branding even during tough economic times.