LTTE rejects Rajapakse's offer for direct deal

Colombo, June 26 : The Tamil Tiger rebels tonight have rejected President Mahindra Rajapakse's offer of a direct peace deal with the rebel outfit mainly to curb the threatening truce-related violence, which has taken the lives of over 800 people since last December.

According to the BBC Sinhala service, LTTE's Peace Secretariat head, S Pulidevan has ruled out any direct links with the Sri Lankan government and wants to continue with Norway as ''the official channel between the parties.'' ''There have been some attempts by Mahindra Rajapakse government to make direct links with the LTTE sidelining the Norwegian facilitators.

We firmly informed the Norwegian facilitators that we would like to keep them as the official channel between the parties,'' BBC Sinhala language radio 'Sandeshaya' quoted Mr Pulidevan as saying tonight.

The LTTE's Peace Secretariat head has also said that the history of the peace process in Sri Lanka has ''proved that the parties lack 'confidence on each other to bring the process forward.'' The LTTE's response have come out in the wake of a Colombo-based media report, which said that President Rajapakse had sent a message to the LTTE through Tamil-language newspaper Sudaroli's editor, N Vidyatharan, and its publisher, E Saravanapavan seeking a direct deal with the rebels, which would halt attacks in return for controlling the breakaway rebel faction, better known as Karuna group.

''Both the LTTE and the army are preparing for war and the people and I are caught in the middle. We don't have to work through Norway, why don't we deal directly?'' the Sunday Leader newspaper quoted President Rajapakse as saying.

It said the Tamil newspaper editor confirmed his meeting with Mr Rajapakse, but declined to divulge details of it.

UNI

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