R. K. Radhakrishnan
Work on translating the voluminous report of the committee that had studied the years since the collapse of the truce with the Tamil Tigers in 2002 to the end of the war in 2009 is set to begin soon. One official in the know said the report prepared by the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission, which submitted its report to President Mahinda Rajapaksa on November 20, will be presented to Parliament in three languages — English, Tamil and Sinhalese.
“The report will form the basis of reconciliation attempts by the government,” said the official.
Dismissing the criticism that the translation of the report, prepared in English, was yet another ploy to delay the start of genuine attempts to offer a solution to the Tamil minority, the official said it was imperative that everyone was able to read what the report contained. While the government does not intend to table the complete report, it is certain that the recommendations will be tabled in English and the translated versions.
The official assured that there would be no delay in the report being presented to Parliament. The government had aimed for tabling the report in December, and it would stick by the deadline.
President’s appeal
Independent of this, Mr. Rajapaksa welcomed the diaspora and wanted them to contribute in the development of the Tamil-dominated North. “We have launched several programmes to develop the North and help our people there…Both the private sector and the Diaspora could play an active role in the North” he said.
Inviting the diaspora to visit Sri Lanka and Jaffna, he said this was the right time for them to come and lend a helping hand. He said a Sri Lankan Tamil businessman is now operating a helicopter service to Jaffna and much could be done by the Diaspora. “There is free access and people can visit Jaffna as they wish,” he said.