The Southern Conflict

Having entrusted the responsibilities of dealing with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) to the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF), President Jayewardene took a respite to look into other needs of the country that awaited the attention of the Government. One such matter was the Provincial Councils Bill which he believed would make amends for the boiling situation in the country. President Jayewardene was not deterred by the serious repercussions he had to face after signing the Peace Accord. One of his MPs had been assassinated. He too escaped death in the bomb attack inside the Parliament building. He prepared himself to face the next agent of terror, this time from the South - the revitalized People’s Liberation Front (JVP).

After the insurrection of 1971 the leaders of the JVP were serving a jail sentence when the UNP came to power in 1977. With the hope that the offenders would shed their terrorist activities and fall in line with the democratic process, President Jayewardene released them unconditionally.

The democratic process was only a temporary change of colour for the JVP. Even Rohana Wijeweera's candidature for the Presidency did not receive a full house approval from the party. The party was proscribed in 1983. The main accusation was that the JVP instigated anti-Tamil riots while the JVP accused the Government that they were proscribed for being anti-Eelamist. By this time the JVP was preparing for an armed struggle against the Government. However, the public was not quite certain as to what the objective of the JVP was. They proclaimed that they were the guardians of the sovereignty of the Sinhalese people and hence they opposed the Eelam separatists. They opposed the Indian intervention for the same reason although the IPKF was basically meant to suppress the separatist armed factions. Whatever obligations they declared towards the helpless Sinhala brothers they never fired a bullet at the IPKF or the LTTE. Had they done so at Batticaloa or Trincomalee they would have gained the allegiance of the entire army. The JVP's inaction against the IPKF and the LTTE, in spite of the threats they uttered, was due to their expectation that there would be a revolt within the army. They anticipated a sort of mutiny, after which the majority of the soldiers would cross over to their side. This line of thought was proved to be wrong in the end, though there were a few soldiers that sympathised with the JVP who never came forward.

President Jayewardene was quite clever in his mind about the ultimate objective of the Tamil separatists. They struggled for their separate state. He was not prepared to sacrifice the armed forces to quell the uprising. The southern conflict was different in that the JVP struggle was directly aimed at the Government to seize power through insurgency. They resumed their collection of arms, revitalized the student movement by instigating violence in the universities and consolidating the student wing by the formation of the Socialist Student Union, infiltrating places of work and forming their trade unions and starting a massive poster campaign against the Government and its activities. They blamed the Government for permitting the United States embassy to open an Israeli Interests Section. They interpreted this move as an exercise to invite Israeli support in the event of a 'peoples' uprising. They vehemently opposed private ownership of the means of production. They believed, or so they preached, that mass nationalization was the panacea for all economic ills. They believed in Marxism, adapted to suit Sri Lankan conditions. The educated but underprivileged youths in various parts of the country were easy targets who fervently believed in the JVP ideology. Those who volunteered to join the ranks were requested to attend classes which consisted of a course of five lectures. Seminars and residential camps were conducted in jungle hideouts where lectures on various political and economic theories were delivered and discussed. Their original grievance against the Israeli Interest Section gradually assumed other forms of protests, first against the Indo-Lanka Accord and the presence of I.P.K.F. and then against the devolution of power.

In spite of opposition by the SLFP in Parliament on one side and the JVP on the other with death threats against the Government MP's, President Jayewardene was successful in persuading the reluctant Prime Minister Premadasa to support the Provincial Council Bill through Parliament. It was a personal triumph for President Jayewardene though the terrorist arm of the JVP managed to creep into Parliament premises to stage a bomb explosion in a committee room where the Government group meeting was in session. The President escaped unhurt though one MP died and many Ministers were injured. This unique incident was followed by several sporadic attacks throughout the country where the UNP cadres and Government sympathisers were assassinated. The MPs and UNP sympathisers faced a great danger in the Southern part of Sri Lanka. The JVP finally assassinated the UNP Chairman Harsha Abeywardene and the Secretary Nandalal Fernando. The danger was so imminent it even discouraged Prime Minister Premadasa and Finance Minister Ronnie de Mel from associating with the President's campaign against the JVP It was a peculiar situation faced by the President. His own Prime Minister and the Finance Minister were opposed to his campaign against the JVP He was reluctant to use armed forces in direct confrontation against the JVP not quite knowing the pulse of the general public. He did not want unnecessary bloodshed in order to save the Government. The army and other service Chiefs too were uncertain of their role in the situation. A plot to kill President Jayewardene's son Ravi was foiled after the arrest of a doctor in Colombo. Ravi, one time Security Advisor to his father, was a simple man with no political ambitions and no desire to hold any position in the Government. The JVP intended the murder plot to be a personal blow to destroy the mental stamina of the President. The end of this episode was that the man in custody was released on a personal appeal to the President.

The JVP's next blow against the Government was to organize a work stoppage for two days in July 1988 in protest against the Indo-Lanka Accord. The Government assured complete protection to those who attended work but people did not heed this assurance since they were mortally scared of the threats of the JVP They knew that the threats were not false threats. By that time the JVP executioners had accounted for quite a number of individuals in almost all villages and towns of the country. The JVP not only killed but imposed certain restrictions about the final rites of the victims. The stoppage of work was a complete success.

The JVP believed that if they intensified the attacks, the Government would succumb and their walk into power would be inevitable. But it was not to be. President Jayewardene had only six more months to go and he was determined to hold on. The final thrust of the JVP aimed at destabilizing the Government was launched in late November 1988. Strikes in factories, work places, offices and universities were engineered under threats of physical violence or death. They declared 'curfew' in villages at their will where day to day life came to a standstill. Men, women and children were prevented from going to work and schools, boutiques and shops were forced to close down. The JVP's success to this extent was due to a lack of consistency in Government policy in dealing with the threat. The members of the armed forces were placed in an unenviable situation torn between their sense of duty and concern about the safety of their families. It was only towards the end of October 1988 the forces began to show any stern attitude against the JVP

As the end of the Presidential term grew near its end, the SLFP formed an electoral alliance of seven parties including the JVP under the name and style of Democratic People's Alliance for the presidential election. They presented a 10-point programme to President Jayewardene. Some of the conditions were: the release of student and political prisoners; a Government cease-fire; the suspension of Provincial Councils until after elections; the appointment of an Interim Council of Political Parties to govern the country until after the presidential and general elections.

President Jayewardene after lengthy discussions agreed to a cease-fire provided the JVP agreed to abandon all violence directed against civilians. He laid down his own conditions for others. The JVP obviously did not agree to the solutions and added a condition that President Jayewardene should step down immediately.

President Jayewardene continued in office not withstanding demands on his Government and threats on his life and finally retired on 1st January 1989, passing the torch to President Premadasa.