SC splits province claimed by Tigers

Japanese Peace Envoy to Sri Lanka Yasushi Akashi (L) shakes hands with Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa prior to a meeting in Colombo yesterday. PHOTO: AFP

The creation of the province was a key Tamil demand accepted by a 1987 peace accord that gave limited authority to minority Tamils in the northeast of the island.

Its division back into two smaller provinces will likely inflame political tensions ahead of scheduled peace talks later this month between the government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), which say they cannot expect any autonomy under the current constitution.

Chief Justice Sarath N. de Silva overturned the 1987 presidential decree creating the Northeastern Province, saying there were no executive powers to merge the two provinces.

The court's review was sparked by complaints from Sri Lanka's main Marxist party, the JVP, or People's Liberation Front.

The JVP opposes any concessions made to the Tigers, as well as the presence of Norwegian peace brokers on the island.

Meanwhile, a Japanese peace envoy opened talks with Sri Lankan leaders yesterday as the international community stepped up pressure to salvage peace talks many fear have been doomed by an upsurge in violence.

Yasushi Akashi, who arrived in Colombo late Sunday, began his peace bid amid continued shelling overnight between the government and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).

He first met with Sri Lanka's former chief peace negotiator Nimal Siripala de Silva, and was to hold talks with other Colombo-based political parties later in the day, government officials said.