Although Sri Lankan President Chandrika Kumaratunga has won another six-year term to set her house in order, she is not any better poised to deal with the Tamil Tigers than she was before the polls. But she is trying. She has been helped by the main opposition United National Party's support for her constitutional package, which envisages a sort of federal system for the country and, therefore, greater autonomy for the Tamil majority provinces in the north. The government seized the opportunity to announce that a draft constitution will be presented before parliament within three months. Nonetheless, a consensus between the two principal Sinhalese parties is not good enough to ensure renewal of the stalled peace process.
Ms Kumaratunga, in her bid to explore various options for a settlement with the rebel Tamils, has also approached Norway for brokering a peace deal. The Norwegians are at present making moves to establish a communication channel with both sides. At the same time, the military option exercised by the government, in top gear since the failure of earlier peace talks, has only created an illusion of victory. Each time the Lankan army thinks it has broken the backbone of the rebellion, the Tamil Tigers come back with vengeance. The reality is that they still call the shots in the Tamil-dominated areas, and most people know how fearsome their strikes can be. Perhaps the solution to the chronic problem of peace is constructive engagement. As a moderate Tamil leader told a correspondent the other day: "The Tamil Tigers are the key players and unless the government finds a way to sit with them and talk with them, this war will never end".
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