Sri Lanka to face challenge of peace

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — After more than a quarter-century of civil war, peace could be even more daunting for Sri Lanka.

When many in the Sinhalese majority heard that Tamil Tiger rebel leader Velupillai Prabhakaran was killed Monday by government forces, they erupted in cheers, banged drums and set off fireworks.

Many in the Tamil minority, however, worried that their lives would only grow more difficult following the rebel group's battlefield defeat.

The far different reactions underscored the difficulty Sri Lanka will have in trying to reconcile and rebuild in the wake of a civil war that killed more than 70,000 people.

State TV played Sinhalese nationalist songs and many Sinhalese poured into the streets in celebration.

On the beaches surrounding the southern port city of Galle, overjoyed Sri Lankans ignited chains of firecrackers. Groups of motorbike riders raced through the city streets, waving flags. As night fell on the nearby beach town of Unawatuna, a group of 30 children paraded near the beach, banging homemade drums and singing.

"We are happy today to see the end of that ruthless terrorist organization and its heartless leader. We can live in peace after this," said Lal Hettige, 47, a Sinhalese businessman.

But Tamils feared the government would not be magnanimous in victory.

"The general triumphalist mood is only an indication that Tamils may never get their due place," said S. Prasanna, a sales representative.

Many other Tamils refused to speak on the record after what they said was years of police raids, harassment, arbitrary detentions and even abductions.

"I believe the arrests and detentions will only increase from now on," a 34-year-old Tamil businessman said. "The government will be suspicious with everybody, thinking the Tigers may have come out and mingled with the civilians."

One of the world's most sophisticated insurgencies, the Tamil Tigers were brought down by a string of fatal misjudgments and an unrelenting government onslaught aimed at crushing the separatist rebellion at all costs.

President Mahinda Rajapaksa, who plans to officially declare victory Tuesday in a speech to parliament, has promised a power sharing deal with the Tamil minority. But the end of the war, which killed more than 70,000 people and displaced 265,000 others, could complicate efforts to forge a lasting peace.