No longer, of course, after the bloody and brutal end of a quarter a century of civil war.
When the prime minister arrived here in Jaffna to visit a public library that is seen as the cultural heart of the Tamil community, he was greeted by two rival demonstrations.
On one side of the road, there was a group of clearly pro-regime demonstrators who, amusingly, carried almost identical printed signs written in English.
When I approached this group I could not find a single one of them who spoke English.
They were calling for an inquiry - not into the crimes of the civil war, or the alleged war crimes of their own president, but into colonial abuses, Britain's behaviour here many decades ago.
Their rival group, composed largely of women, was equally well-organised. As the prime minister arrived they rushed forward to try to see him and were held back by police.
They were carrying in their hands identically laminated pictures of their loved ones, the so-called disappeared - sons, daughters, mothers and fathers who went missing during the civil war.
The prime minister is walking a tightrope on this trip. When he returns from meeting Tamil leaders in the north he will go back to the Commonwealth summit, in the capital Colombo - a summit boycotted by Canadian, Indian and Mauritian leaders - for a face-to-face meeting with the Sri Lankan president.
Mr Cameron has said there are sufficient allegations of war crimes - and ongoing human rights abuses - against President Mahinda Rajapaksa and his government to warrant international inquiries.
He says he is shining a light on what is happening in this country - and that there is some value in diplomacy. In not merely boycotting what is going on.
As his entourage was leaving the public library, a group of screaming women - desperate to make their representations directly to the first world leader to come here - pressed photographs and petitions into our hands.
One of them was thrown to the floor as she tried to get to the prime minister's convoy.
Mr Cameron has certainly been made aware of the human price of a bloody civil war.

Swiss-based Falcon Travel is to operate weekly charter flights from Zurich from May.
A 100-seater Fokker 100 aircraft will operate into Inverness until August. The service will also return in 2016 and 2017.
It marks a return to Inverness by Falcon, which previously operated flights between the two cities.
Highlands and Islands Airports Ltd (Hial) said the new service could lead to a tourism boost worth almost Â£1m for the local economy.
Inverness Airport general manager Graeme Bell said: "We are delighted that Falcon Travel have committed to operate this service for three years.
"Inverness and the Highlands have a great deal to offer Swiss visitors and we will be working closely with Inverness and Loch Ness Tourism BID and other tourism agencies to ensure we make the most of this opportunity."
David Cameron has just landed in Northern Sri Lanka, becoming the first prime minister, the first world leader, to travel to the north of this island, once controlled by the Tamil Tigers.
[NEXT_CONCEPT]
Charter flights from Switzerland's largest city to Inverness are set to make a return.