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Speaking to the diplomatic community in Colombo yesterday Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera explained the Mavil Aru anicut situation and the action taken by the Government to resolve the crisis. He said despite attempts by the Government through the SLMM to persuade the LTTE to restore the flow of water to the farming community, the LTTE continued its intransigent attitude and made a series of demands from the Government, amounting to blackmail, through the use of water as an instrument of coercion. Samaraweera said the Government had received the clear impression through consultations with the SLMM that the LTTE was looking for a pretext to intensify the conflict rather than address development problems as claimed by them. “The Government has
given, even written commitment to fulfill the LTTE demand of a water
tank. We know that the SLMM did at it can do to try to persuade the LTTE
by pointing out to Mr. Ellilan of the LTTE that by denying the water,
paddy harvest would be completely destroyed and the LTTE would not have
any leverage for achieving the development objectives they claimed to
entertain. Minister Samaraweera pointed out that the Government was left with no other option but to use legitimate force to provide security cover to the irrigation officials to restore the water supply. He stressed that this was not an offensive operation on any military or other target but a judicious use of force to ensure that objects and services indispensable to the survival of the civilian population are available, especially to the civilian population who are already under grave hardship due to terrorist instigated violence. He said the Government has always taken very seriously the humanitarian requests made by leaders of civil society, particularly when it concerned the livelihood of the civilian population, despite security constraints. He cited the Government facilitating Daya Master, the LTTE spokesman being brought to Colombo for medical treatment, despite wide public opposition was an example. “These facilities were provided by the Government as a confidence building measure. It is very unfortunate that the LTTE has not reciprocated these gestures and resorted to an act against humanity – cutting off water to a large section of the civilian population,” he said. The Minister said the supply of water by bowsers was underway, but that is was neither adequate nor sustainable in the long term. He said negotiations had gone on for six days, from the 20th of July to the 26th . SLMM Minister Samaraweera said the Government recognized that when security guarantees were withdrawn by one party to the conflict there arose a genuine concern regarding security. Following the EU listing of the LTTE as a terrorist organization, the LTTE announced that “the ban had seriously disturbed the neutrality of these countries” and insisted that EU nationals of the SLMM be removed. An ultimatum was issued by the LTTE for the EU nationals to leave by September 1, 2006. “It is important to recognize as a matter of principle, that the withdrawal of Finland, Denmark and Sweden is not because these countries are EU States, rather it is because the LTTE withdrew the security guarantee to a selective group of members in the SLMM” , the Minister told the diplomatic community. He said the Government believed that the SLMM had established an institutional structure on which the ceasefire was dependent and that it was vital that the institutional structure of the SLMM as the most critical component of the peace process remains unaffected. “The Government has communicated this position to the Nordic countries, and urged the three countries, even if their nationals have to withdraw from uncleared areas due to LTTE threat, not to withdraw from the SLMM as an institution in Colombo thus further giving currency to LTTE blackmail,” he said.
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