Many factors will determine long-term India-Sri lanka ties. Colombo and New Delhi must build on the renewed trust
Sri lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe is not a stranger to New Delhi, and his three-day visit to India this week will likely turn over a new leaf in the India-Sri lanka relations. Since expectations were not too high on either side, the visit went off well, with talks conducted in a cordial atmosphere. The fact that Mr Wickremesinghe chose India for his maiden visit after he took over as the Prime Minister speaks volumes.
Mr Wickremesinghe is known for his pro-India sentiments, although he claims that he is pro-Sri lanka than pro-India or pro-Sri China. There were several matters, including the fishermen issue, economy and trade, security, the ethnic Tamil problem, implementation of the 13th Amendment-plus, the UNHRC resolution, and China, which were on the discussion table.
While the Modi Government is keen on security cooperation, Indian Ocean and defence ties, the prominent issue during the talks was the reconciliation of the minority Tamils in Sri lanka, which has an echo in Tamil Nadu. This continues to influence the Sri lankan policy not only owing to Tamil Nadu politics but also in the interest of national security. Although Prime Minister Narendra Modi has come with his own majority, he cannot ignore the sentiments of Tamil Nadu where his party is trying find a foothold. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa is his good friend. Also, Mr Modi has been talking of ‘neighbours first’ and cooperative federalism policies.
Mr Wickremesinghe has assured Mr Modi during the talks about the plans for reconciliation and rehabilitation of the Tamil minority. This is a complex subject, although the Wickremesinghe Government has made efforts to break the impasse in resuming the dialogue process with the Tamils who had supported the Wickremesinghe coaliton in the recent parliamentary election as well as the January presidential election. Mr Wickremesinghe is confident that the political situation in Sri lanka is favourable for forging an enduring political solution to the Tamil question. He said after the talks, “We are looking at how power-sharing takes place within the Constitution.” But it may be difficult for his Government to grant land and police powers as envisaged in 13A of the Constitution to the provincial councils. The Tamil National Alliance has demanded that it should be a federal solution. There are administrative barriers which have to be removed. The real issue in the north and the east now is the re-settlement of people who got evicted from their land — in Jaffna and in the east. These are complex problems, which the new Government is grappling with.
The second issue discussed was what happens after the UNHRC report on the Eelam War 4 genocide. The report damns the Rajapakse Government in which the present President, Mr Maithripala Sirisena, was a Minister. The incumbent Prime Minister is reported to have told The Hindu after the talks, “We were relaxed about the findings.” The question here is, whether the inquiry should be domestic as suggested by the US or international war crimes tribunal as demanded by the TNA and Tamil Nadu’s parties like the DMK. India has always supported domestic inquiries in preference to international ones.
Interestingly, the visit also demonstrated a shift in foreign policy focus from a conventional peace and cultural cooperation towards economic diplomacy as the two sides concentrated on expanding the trade and economic ties. However, the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement was not discussed during the visit. During his Colombo visit in March, Mr Modi had revived the idea of CEPA between India and Sri lanka which had almost come through in 2008. For the Wickremesinghe Government, it is probably a no-go area in Sri lankan politics.
The third complex subject which came up during the talks was the fishermen issue. As expected, Mr Wickremesinghe pushed Sri lankan concerns, especially of the lankan Tamil fishermen in northern Sri lanka, and about the relentless poaching by Tamil Nadu’s fishermen in Sri lankan waters. Although complicated, the issue needs to be resolved once and for all.