There will be
greater transparency in Peace Process - G.L. Peiris
[February
20, 2003 - 11.00 GMT]
Prof. G.L.
Peiris today promised greater transparency in the ongoing peace process to
mark the first anniversary of the Ceasefire Agreement, February 22.
Speaking at
the Cabinet press briefing held this morning in Colombo, Peiris said
arrangements have been made to make the public fully aware of the happenings
of the peace process, past, present and future.
“The
government is making arrangements to inform the public comprehensively of
the benefits of the process. There is going to be direct involvement of
civil society, ” he said.
The
government spokesman further said steps were being taken regarding electoral
reforms. “There is a great deal of interest in this country regarding the
electoral reforms. I think there is almost a universal conviction that the
present system is not satisfactory and needs to be changed in significant
ways. A sub-committee was appointed, which prepared some terms of reference
for consideration. A select committee will then check the matter and make a
full report to parliament within six months.”
He said that
there would be no increase in the number of members of Parliament, in the
event changes are made in the electoral system.
Responding
to a question about progress of the peace process over the past year Peiris
said, “The fear that stalked our generation has become a thing of the
past. Any peace process has issues, the path is not always smooth, and that
situations should be considered in ‘perspective and proportion’. We now
have a situation where the LTTE is fully exposed to international
pressures.”
Speaking on
the issue of child recruitment he said that UNICEF would now have a definite
role in this regard, while Ian Martin would have a role in the issue of
human rights. He also said that he hoped that the Jaffna library would be
re-opened soon.
The next
session of peace talks between the government of Sri Lanka and the LTTE is
scheduled for March 18-21, in Japan and will deal with the “fiscal aspects
of power sharing.”
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Last Updated
Date: February 20, 2003 - 11.00
GMT. |
