Observers believe that the Jaffna peninsula will be the prime target of the Tigers in the New Year. Mr Prabhakaran describes President Chandrika s rule, as the worst form of tyranny ever suffered by the the Tamils and says that she does not have the honesty and determination to resolve the Tamil national conflict in a fair and reasonable manner . The Tigers say they rejected at least three recent offers by President Chandrika for secret talks. The personal attack on President Chandrika has left peace activists worried. If she wins the presidential election in December, the possibilities are that she will be able to guide the People s Alliance to victory in the general elections next year.
Analysts say that in the circumstances, peace efforts are unlikely to succeed in the next six years.
The two main candidates accused each other of secret links with the LTTE, but promised peace talks with the Tigers on being elected to presidency. President Chandrika s campaign was boosted when five UNP MPs pledged their support to her on 5 November.