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Monday, April 06, 2009 - 04.12 GMT |
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Govt deeply concerned over the plight of
trapped civilians |
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The Government attaches the highest priority
for the safety and welfare of the civilians,
who are currently being held hostage by the
LTTE in the narrow coastal strip in
Mullaitivu. Thus, the military operations to
free the entrapped civilians have been
painstakingly slow, in order to avoid
causing civilian casualties. Despite
enormous logistical and other operational
constraints, the Government has been sending
an uninterrupted supply of food, medicine,
fuel and other essential items for these
civilians, said Foreign Minister Rohitha
Bogollagama when he met the Representative
of the UN Secretary General on the Human
Rights of Internally Displaced Persons,
Prof. Walter Kaelin at the Foreign Ministry
on April 3.
The UN official arrived in Sri Lanka on
April 2 on a four-day visit.
The Foreign Minister briefed Prof. Kaelin on
the steps taken by the Government to provide
basic amenities at the IDP villages and
transit points, which are receiving ever
growing numbers of civilians who have risked
their lives to flee from LTTE captivity.
Already, over 62,000 civilians have braved
the bullets of the LTTE and come to the
Government controlled areas, and are being
well cared for.
Acknowledging that there are still several
shortcomings in the IDP camps, the Minister
said that the Government is addressing these
issues expeditiously. It has already
arranged family reunions of several inmates
as well as provided telecommunications
facility to the camps.
Referring to his last visit to Sri Lanka in
September 2008, Prof. Kaelin recalled his
meeting with the Defence Secretary, Gotabaya
Rajapaksa where he had commended the role of
the Sri Lanka Army in its military
operations, which had kept civilian
casualties to a minimum. However, he
expressed concern that as the Army
approaches the no-fire zone, civilians could
get caught up in the fighting. He said that
the UN and the Government of Sri Lanka share
a common interest in saving the lives of
these innocent civilians, which is a major
challenge.
Prof. Kaelin also said that it would be
necessary to provide additional space to
accommodate the anticipated influx of
civilians fleeing from LTTE control to the
Government areas. Admitting that a temporary
congestion in the IDP camps in the initial
phase would be inevitable, he called upon
the Government to expand the facilities to
the residents, so that they could stay in
these facilities in reasonable comfort,
until their return to their original places
of habitation.
Foreign Minister Bogollagama stated that it
is the policy of the Government to ensure
the expeditious re-settlement of the IDPs in
their own areas, but that de-mining and
re-building of the damaged infrastructure
and housing should be undertaken on a
priority basis before this could be done. He
appealed for assistance from the UN System
and the wider international community in
this endeavour. He also briefed Prof. Kaelin
on the Government’s firm commitment in
evolving a durable political solution to the
present conflict, through an inclusive
process which would be acceptable to all
communities in Sri Lanka. In this regard,
the Minister also referred to the recent
dialogue with the Sri Lankan Tamil diaspora
that the Government has launched on his
initiative, which has been extremely useful
in understanding the concerns and
aspirations of the expatriate Tamils of Sri
Lankan origin.
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