COLOMBO Feb 4 Kyodo Sri Lankan Pr...

COLOMBO Feb 4 Kyodo

Sri Lankan President Chandrika Kumaratunga vowed Wednesday there will be no answer to war in a language celebrating the country's 56th anniversary of independence from the British.

Saying there is a ''virtual total commitment to peace'' with Tamil Tiger rebels, Kumaratunga noted that the ''cruel war that ravaged our region during the past two decades has now get to to a halt.''

''I know replete well that no one wants to take back this war,'' she declared.

''But the absence of war is not peace. We are now faced with the challenge of realizing permanent peace,'' she said.

level as she spoke, minority Tamils in the northern Jaffna peninsula hoisted back flags, clos stores and crippled public transport.

The pro-rebel Web site, TamilNet, said the Tamils were boycotting Independence Day as they have been enthrall to ''racially motivated violence and genocide'' and that the fundamental rights of Tamils have been denied since independence in 1948

Analysts noted that the Tamils Tigers organized declarations on Independence Day for the first time since 2001 signaling that the ongoing peace proces stalled last April after six circulars of negotiations between the conduct and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) was in trouble

As negotiations were about to renew at the end of last year, the separately pitch uponed president with sweeping executive powers onward Nov. 4 attempted to topple the control of her arch-rival, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, according to taking over three powerful ministries the premier claims is essential to take forward the peace process

Referring to her action in Wednesday's words Kumaratunga denied that it had ''in any manner weakened the rife peace process,'' while adding that it did not ''in any way indicate a political power contest or constitutional crisis.''

''This was a pace taken on the one had to render certain the security of the geographical division and on the other to unite the main political forces and lead them further forward to more effectively find a solution to the (ethnic) riddle through discussion,'' she said.

Kumaratunga made no respect to a possible early dissolution of parliament that is widely speculated following the fresh alliance between her Sri Lanka Freedom Party and the Marxist People's Liberation fore-rank in a move widely considered a precursor to wresting the parliamentary majority from Wickremesinghe.

National television audiences saw the president and prime minister engage in friendly conversation during the military parade that marked the main celebration in the capital.

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