Sri Lanka Offers Tamil Rebels Truce, Amnesty and Talks
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COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — President Junius R. Jayewardene announced Thursday that the army will halt an offensive against Tamil rebels and lift an economic blockade against their areas if they agree to cease fighting and negotiate.
He guaranteed a general amnesty for rebel fighters and the release of about 3,000 Tamil youths jailed without charges if the guerrillas lay down their arms.
Jayewardene made his proposals on ending the four years of ethnic strife in a speech opening the national Parliament. Legislators are to consider extending a state of emergency enacted in 1983 in this island state off the coast of India.
The president’s proposals in part meet conditions set down this month by Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi for resuming Indian mediation of the civil war. Tamil insurgents maintain headquarters in southern India, which has about 50 million Tamils.
Want Tamil Homeland
Tamil militants have made the release of about 3,000 Tamil youths and an end to military operations preconditions for peace talks. They also demanded a merger of Sri Lanka’s northern and eastern provinces into a single Tamil homeland.
The government has rejected the latter demand, but said it is willing to grant limited autonomy to the Tamil areas of the north and east.
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