The present government in Sri Lanka headed by the Prime Minister Mr. Ranil Wickremesinghe deserves applause for its courageous moves in resolving the ethnic issue in that country. Mr. Wickremesinghe went ahead with the peace negotiations involving Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) against the backdrop of protests from the Opposition and the President of the nation. The Norway government has been persistent all along and but for its support, the peace negotiations would not have progressed to this extent. The Norway delegation has to be appreciated for their persistent efforts. There is no doubt that the recent breakthrough (achieved on 5th December 2002) in Oslo, according to which Sri Lanka and LTTE had agreed to develop a government that would give the rebels regional autonomy, would become an important milestone in the modern history of Sri Lanka. This signals the end of two-decades old ethnic conflict in the island nation. The government and the LTTE had agreed to pursue a peace path on the basis of "internal self-determination" in the Tamil-dominated North and East of Sri Lanka.

This points to a formation of Federal structure within a united Sri Lanka. According to the latest agreement the rebels would let competing political parties stay in their regions as long as they were unarmed, and that the activities of their courts and police would not extend to Colombo-held areas. India always maintained that North and East of Sri Lanka should not be ceded from the rest of the island. It also insisted that all sections of the society to be involved in the peace negotiations. It is heartening to hear from Mr. Anton Balasingham, the Chief Negotiator of LTTE that a Muslim delegation would be included in the next round of talks. The Sri Lankan Prime Minister deserves all support when he is asking for help to reconstruct the war-torn areas of Sri Lanka. He is currently on a fund collection mission from the world countries.

The Prime Minister Mr. Ranil Wickremesinghe, Sri Lankan government's negotiator Mr. Gamini Peiris,
LTTE's Chief Negotiator Mr. Anton Balasingham, Norway's Deputy Foreign Minister Mr.Vidar Helgesen, Oslo's Special Envoy to Sri Lanka's peace process Mr. Erik Solheim deserve the Nobel peace prize one day when the complete peace is brought back in Sri Lanka. That day is not far from today. The peace-loving people from all over the world send their best wishes to the peace negotiating team for the next round of talks in Japan where the ways and means to include LTTE in the government would be discussed. They should capitalize on the recent breakthrough. The determination to cross all the hurdles to achieve the ultimate success shows the ray of hope for those Sri Lankans who were affected by the ethnic conflict. Till the ultimate success is achieved the existing cease-fire should be continued and tension to be de-escalated.