Lankan war over but not conflict, says retired Brigadier

The Sri Lankan war is over but not the conflict, noted a retired Brigadier and former civil affairs administrator, warning that ‘until the wounds are healed and the Tamils feel safe (in Sri Lanka), this conflict will rage on.’

Brigadier (Rtd) L.C. Perera was expressing his views at a recent panel discussion on “Post-war Reconciliation “Role of the Armed Forces” organized recently by the Consortium of Humanitarian Agencies (CHA) and held at the Lakshman Kadirgamar Institute for International Relations and Strategic Studies in Colombo.

The discussion in which the other panellists were former army commander and diplomat Srilal Weerasuriya, former airforce commander Oliver Ranasinghe and corporate lawyer Mahinda Per- era, drew interesting points of attention like a need to downsize the military and transfer the excess numbers to a volunteer force; the need to maintain a strong military as the threat was still there, among other issues. The session was moderated by senior lawyer and former ambassador Javid Yusuf.

Brigadier Perera reflected on a poignant moment when a youngster, at a refugee camp in Colombo during the 1983 riots looking at the fires burning outside, said these fires will linger on for a long time unless solutions are found to resolve the issues facing the Tamils.

“Yes we have stopped the war but is the conflict over? No, not until the wounds are healed. Unless the Tamils feel safe and secure this conflict will rage on,” he said, adding “the Diaspora who left after being traumatized (and reside abroad) must be healed and touched.”

Defending the military, he said the armed forces know the value of peace more than anyone else.

UPFA MP Rajiva Wijesinha, while criticizing sections of the international community for their ‘biases’ in the conflict, said there were a few elements in the army that behaved badly.

“They were not many and we should have taken action against them. I have stated this earlier too. Furthermore we need to probe the White Flag issue more thoroughly,” he said.

He noted that the recruitment of northern and eastern residents to the police and the armed forces should be fast-tracked.

Dr Wijesinha said the armed forces need to be de- veloped to work in a productive partnership with civil society.

General Srilal Weerasuriya said it was unfortunate that Sri Lanka lost an entire generation owing to the war and noted that whatever one may say, the military acted with decorum.

Reflecting on winning the support of the people, he said hearts and minds is always a common strategy of military operations and spoke on many operations that he was involved in 1995 and how they worked with the people.

He said there was a role for the armed forces even after the war as there was still work to be done in building roads, bridges and buildings which the army is capable of.

Air Chief Marshall Oliver Ranasinghe noted that there was collateral damage not only in Jaffna but all over the island. “This is inevitable in a conflict and is not intentional,” he said, strongly pointing out the need to have a strong military at all times because the ‘terrorist’ threat is always there.

“The moment you drop your guard, you are in serious trouble,” he noted, adding “I feel that because we had a weak force in 1971 (during the first JVP insurrection) and thereafter, these elements were able to launch these conflicts. A strong force will be a deterrent.”

The former airforce chief said the people need to be given the independence to live freely, physically and mentally and in a secure environment and that can happen only if their security is assured.

“The military was not fighting against the people but a terrorist group,” he said, lamenting that still the forces are unable to protect the 600 nautical miles of sea from Yala to Mannar which is a serious issue.

Mahinda Perera, a corporate lawyer who spoke on how the private sector views these issues, reflected on the need to absorb a bulk of the military into economic development.

“Do we need such a big army when it is a drain on the resources? Yes, there is a need to ensure security but do we need (all these numbers)?” he asked.

He said for armed forces personnel to be absorbed to the private sector they need to undergo a mindset and attitudinal change.

Giving one example, he said soldiers working on a construction site threatened a civil engineer when they were reprimanded.