Reconciliation is not one sided or government choreographed

By Ranga Jayasuriya

The inaugural conference on national reconciliation held last week at the Lakshman Kadirgamar Institute of International Relations and Strategic Studies was pretty much a feel good affair. 
Precious little was spoken of political reforms or political engagement with Tamil political parties, and a question about ‘uncovering and acknowledging’ the past was responded to with an assurance that a list of civilian deaths that occurred during the conflict is forthcoming. Perhaps, too little, too late. The conference was expected to showcase the government’s achievements in post conflict transformation. But, it was a reference which was relegated to the latter end of the keynote address of defence secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa that caught the attention of the media.
He said that the government was preparing a list of people who died during the conflict. “The approach the government took in this regard was a very professional one. The Department of Census and Statistics, which is the official government arm for these matters, conducted a complete census of the concerned area,” Rajapaksa said.
Excerpts from his speech:
It is important to note that the number of dead    FullStory>>>