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Tuesday, October 13, 2009 - 13.06 GMT |
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President meets Tamil Nadu MPs |
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Tamil
Nadu MPs
said
that they
came
with a
different
mindset
but
having
visited
the
welfare centres
for IDPs,
they are
returning
with a
more
positive
attitude,
when
they met
with
President Mahinda
Rajapaksa
this
evening
(Oct
13).
The
Tamil
Nadu
delegation
thanked
the
President
for the
invitation
extended
to them
to visit
Sri
Lanka
and
appreciated
the
arrangements
made for
their
visit
and also
the
meeting
with the
President.
They
were
concerned
about
the
speedy
resettlement
of IDPs
but were
also
appreciative
of the
actions
taken by
the
government
so far,
in this
direction.
The
President
emphasised
that
de-mining
must be
done
first
before
any
resettlement.
With
regard
to
discussions
on a
political
settlement
to the
ethnic
question,
the
President
said
that any
settlement
must be
one that
is
accepted
by all
communities
and by
Sri
Lanka's
neighbour.
The
President
emphasised
the
multiethnic
nature
of the
Sri
Lankan
society
referring
to the
65% of
Tamils
who live
in
Colombo.
The
delegation
expressed
fears
about
oncoming
monsoon
rains
but they
were
assured
that
required
steps
have
been
taken to
ensure
that no
hardships
are
caused
to the
IDPs.
Senior
advisor
to the
President,
Mr.
Basil
Rajapaksa,
MP,
explained
that
within
two days
the
crowding
in the
centres
will
begin to
be
reduced
with
increased
resettlement.
President
also
said
that he
is glad
that the
MPs came
because
it is
important
for
people
to
assess
the
situation
themselves
as there
were
many
misconceptions
and
false
information
being
spread
regarding
Sri
Lanka's
IDPs.
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