Indian consulate opens in Jaffna

JAFFNA - India opened its consulate in this Tamil heartland Saturday, with External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna using the occasion to call for national reconciliation in post-war Sri Lanka.

On the penultimate day of his four-day visit, Krishna inaugurated the Consulate General in Jaffna that will be headed by V. Mahalingam, a former head of the passport office in New Delhi.

Present on the occasion were Sri Lankan Foreign Minister G.L. Peiris, Indian Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao, a former Indian envoy to Sri Lanka, and some Sri Lankan MPs.

Speaking on the occasion, Krishna said that even as Sri Lanka was focussing on the immediate task of providing relief and rehabilitation to those displaced by the war, long-term reconstruction was vital.

He reiterated India’s commitment to help Sri Lanka in this task. And he renewed New Delhi’s appeal for a lasting political settlement of the Tamil ethnic issue.

“The end of armed conflict in Sri Lanka in May 2009 provides an unparalleled opportunity to address all outstanding issues in a spirit of understanding and mutual accommodation and to work towards genuine national reconciliation,” he said.

“We are convinced that a meaningful devolution package, building upon the 13th Amendment, would create the necessary conditions for a lasting political settlement,” Krishna said, referring to the constitutional amendment that for the first time dented Sri Lanka’s unitary structure.

“We hope that (a) process of dialogue and discussion would start soon with the participation of all communities. The ultimate goal is to live in dignity and peace,” he added.

Jaffna, located in the northern tip of Sri Lanka, is where Tamil militancy began in the 1970s before consuming the entire country with devastating effect.

Besides its high commission in Colombo, India has a consulate in Kandy, in the tea-growing region populated by “Indian Tamils”.

Now, besides Jaffna, another consulate has opened in Hambantota, in the Sinhalese-populated south which is the political hub of President Mahinda Rajapaksa.