It appears from Mr. PV Narasimha Rao’s statements in Parliament that the Sri Lankan government might have had second thoughts on its decision to ask for help from the US, the UK and some other countries. The Pakistan and Bangladesh foreign ministers, who happened to be in New Delhi, had denied the report that their governments had been approached for assistance before the Indian minister for external affairs spoke in Parliament on Tuesday afternoon. But President Jayewardene’s government would now have us believe that it had not asked any foreign power for assistance. To carry conviction with this country, it has expelled the correspondent of UPI who was responsible for the report. Those who believe for whatever reason that western agencies are out to create misunderstanding among fellow Asian (or for that matter all third world) countries may find it convenient to take Colombo’s word at its face value. But in this case they will be well advised not to rush to any conclusion. Colombo has taken almost 18 hours to deny the report. Its denial reached Mr. Rao after he had finalized his statement to Parliament. His, which means the government’s assessment, was that there was substance in the report. Apparently it had got in touch with the governments named in the report. Indeed, Mr. Rao has said explicitly that New Delhi had done so. Even otherwise, there was evidence to support the report in question at least partially. For the British foreign office had confirmed on Monday that it had received a request for help from Colombo. It did not specify the nature of the request. But it does not require much imagination to conclude that the request related to troops.
It is of course, sheer nonsense for anyone to believe that Pakistan and Bangladesh can send troops to Sri Lanka capable of resisting an intervention, should this country be forced to take such a desperate step. It is equally silly for anyone to believe that the US, much less the UK, would wish to involve itself in this sorry mess against New Delhi’s wishes. But it does not follow that such things are not being said in Colombo. In any case, the UPI correspondent cannot be blamed for the column in The Sun, Colombo, quoting President Jayewardene as having told his cabinet last Wednesday: “If India decides to invade us, we will fight …”. We cite this quotation not because we are convinced that it is accurate but because we wish to show what kind of atmosphere is being built up there. In the circumstances, New Delhi has no choice but to be vigilant and firm. It cannot allow foreign troops to land in Sri Lanka without its prior agreement. It is, therefore, only proper that Mr. Narasimha Rao has seized the first opportunity to make this point abundantly clear.
If President Jayewardene was a wise ruler, he would have known that his and the Indian government’s interests were identical – to avoid developments that would in the long run lead to a de facto partition of the island. For that would, on the one band, undermine the economy and well-being of Sri Lanka forever and, on the other, make it extremely difficult for India to avoid intervention in its affairs (witness the fate of Cyprus). This would have persuaded him to keep in close touch with Mrs. Gandhi. It is plain absurdity to suggest that this would have involved any loss of sovereignty for the country. On the contrary, it would have strengthened his ability to cope with the situation in the island and thus reinforced its genuine independence. If he were a far-sighted statesman, he would have thought not in theoretical terms but in terms of the twin realities that no government in New Delhi can be indifferent to a systematic attempt to drive out the Tamil minority and that the Tamils are too large a minority to be driven out. He has not displayed any such statesmanship. This, if anything, places a heavier responsibility on New Delhi than need have been the case.
This is, of course, only one side of the story. It is far from clear whether the Indian government was well posted with the gathering crisis in Sri Lanka and whether it had warned President Jayewardene of the dangers ahead. It does not look as if it had. But what is past is past. It is useless to cry over it. The pertinent issue now is that while warding off foreign intervention which can prove extremely dangerous for peace in the region and rushing supplies of food, medicine and other such assistance as Colombo may request, it must use all its influence to ensure that Mr. Jayewardene behaves as the president of all Sri Lankans (and not a leader of only the Sinhalese). He has not so acted so far. His broadcast last week contained not a word of sympathy for the suffering Tamils or a word of condemnation for the troops who ran berserk in Jaffna or the jail authorities who connived at the massacre of Tamil prisoners. New Delhi must persuade him to open talks with the Tamil United Liberation Front. The sooner he does it the better. He cannot restore normalcy without its cooperation. India can perhaps help in this respect provided he is able to impose control on his own army and police forces and compel them to behave as they should in a civilized society – as guardians of law and order. These issues cannot be shirked and the time is running out. Mrs. Gandhi is as much on test as President Jayewardene. No soft option is open to her as none is open to him.