Sri Lanka is a country of misty tea estates

Tag : Sri Lanka Tea.
But in the dingy restaurant at the Nelly Star Hotel, the waiterjust smiled and continued serving ginger beer and plates of spicychicken and rice.
No problem, he shrugged, it was only the Sri Lankan Army base downthe road, firing its big guns into the jungles inhabited by TamilTigers guerrillas.
Then the rebels hit back.
At just after 3 a.m., gunfire erupted and rebel shells startedraining in, whooshing as they descended before exploding on impact.
An air raid siren whined and red gunfire spat into the sky. Aspotlight scanned the dark, looking for the two Tamil Tigersaircraft that were overhead dropping bombs.
The city lost power. Troops closed the roads and went on patrol.The fighting was still raging at daybreak.
This civil war is supposed to be almost over; the government saysits victory over the Tamil Tigers is imminent.
That may be, but clearly not yet.
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Sri Lanka is a country of misty tea estates, noisy commercialstrips, serene Buddhist landmarks and palm-lined beaches that canmake you forget the island's tragic storyline.
For 25 years the country known as Ceylon during British colonialtimes has been consumed by civil war. The Sri Lankan armed forcesare fighting to keep the country united, and well-armed guerrillasare fighting for independence for the country's ethnic Tamilminority.
The northern province where the civil war is mostly being fought isofficially off limits to the press. Military checkpoints havesealed the region from the south and entry is prohibited withoutgovernment permission.
But earlier this month, the National Post was able to enter thenorth for an exclusive tour of the frontline areas. Armed with aflak jacket and a letter from the Ministry of Defence, the Posttravelled through the war-torn northern districts of Mannar,Vavuniya, Jaffna and the eastern Wanni. A reporter travelledunescorted, except in parts of Jaffna that the military deemed toodangerous for foreigners. A request to visit the rebel capitalKilinochchi was denied.
The newspaper also interviewed the country's most powerful figures,including the president and defence secretary, as well as leadingTamil politicians, former high-ranking Tamil Tigers guerrillas,human rights campaigners, soldiers and civilians.
This is an "island of blood," as the Indian journalist Anita Pratapcalled it. The Tamil Tigers control the northern Wanni region, andperiodically venture south to the capital Colombo to bomb buses andassassinate politicians. The government uses artillery, air strikesand ground forces to weaken the rebels.
More than 60,000 people have died. Attempts at peacemaking havecome and gone. Hundreds of thousands have fled the country, many toCanada, which is now home to the world's largest Tamil diaspora -as well as an illicit terrorist financing network that the RCMPsays has raised millions to arm the Tamil Tigers.
The Conservatives responded by banning both the Tamil Tigers and,in July, a Toronto-based non-profit group called the World TamilMovement. It was the first time Canada had used the powers of theAnti-Terrorism Act against a non-profit group.
Canada is one of the Tamil Tigers' "biggest resource pools in termsof fundraising, in terms of propaganda," Sri Lanka's ForeignSecretary, Palitha Kohona, said during a recent visit to Toronto."And they have also begun to influence lawmakers."
But all of a sudden, many in Sri Lanka are talking about victory,possibly by the end of the year. The government forces have beensteadily advancing into rebel-held territory, capturing one townafter the next, and are now only a few kilometres from theguerrilla stronghold of Kilinochchi.
Critics complain the government has failed to protect civilians inthe war zone, trampled human rights and lacks a political solutionto the country's ethnic divide. But riding a wave of popularity,President Mahinda Rajapaksa has pushed on and confidently predictsthe Tamil Tigers are near collapse.
That may be wishful thinking but the Sri Lankan forces have madesignificant territorial gains. In two years, they have pushed theTigers out of the country's east and into a shrinking pocket in thenorth. Rebel bases have been captured and destroyed, and keycommanders killed in air strikes. The government claims to havekilled more than 6,000 rebels so far this year, while losing some600 of its own troops.
Expectations are high. "Total victory imminent for securityforces," read a recent headline in the Daily News. "If theterrorists are kept under similar pressure, I don't think they willlast even a year," Lieutenant-General Sarath Fonseka, the ArmyCommander, said in an interview. "We have gotten stronger andstronger, they have gotten weaker and weaker."
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