MADRAS, India -- The five rounds of talks in as many months between the Sri Lanka government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, or LTTE, are perhaps the most significant development in South Asia in almost two decades. The discussions began after the two sides called a truce.
Under leader Velupillai Prabhakaran, the Tigers had waged war for nearly 20 years to gain independence for Sri Lanka's Hindu/Christian Tamil-speaking minority. However, this goal has now been dropped, much to the relief of the country's Buddhist Sinhalese majority.
The Tamils and the Sinhalese are now grappling with issues such as how to rewrite the Sri Lanka Constitution, and when the Tigers should be disarmed.