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Friday, November 20, 2009 - 4.27 GMT |
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UN welcomes
govt progress on resettlement |
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"We are
very
much
encouraged
by the
government's
progress
to
resettle
people.
There
were
about
288,000
people
in May
(when
the
conflict
ended)
and now
it is
much
less,"
said
United
Nations
Under
Secretary
General
for
Humanitarian
Affairs
and
Emergency
Relief
Coordinator,
Sir John
Holmes.
He
stated
this at
a joint
press
briefing
with the
Minister
of
Foreign
Affairs,
Rohitha
Bogollagama.
The
Under
Secretary
General
welcomed
in
particular
the
halved
number
of
people
in the
main
welfare
centre,
Menik
Farm.
He
further
said
that the
government
appears
to be on
track to
resettle
displaced
people
by
January
2010 and
that
when he
met the
returnees
during
his
visit to
the
resettled
areas,
they
were
pleased
with
their
current
circumstances.
Holmes
was in
Sri
Lanka on
a
three-day
tour on
an
invitation
by the
Foreign
Minister.
He
visited
Jaffna
and
welfare
centres
including
Menik
Farm in
Vavuniya.
Holmes
stated
that
timeframes
are not
important
but what
is
important
is the
commitment
of the
Government
which
has
impressed
him.
Although
the UN
had
previously
entertained
concerns
over the
timing
of
resettlements,
this
process
had seen
a rapid
change
over the
past
three
months,
with the
number
of IDPs
in Menik
Farm
falling
to
around
135,000,
said the
United
Nations
Under
Secretary
General.
"Both UN
organisations
and NGOs
are
ready to
continue
to help
support
IDPs in
camps
and
assist
returnees
with
their
humanitarian
needs,
especially
in terms
of food,
shelter,
basic
services,
and
livelihoods.
The UN
is also
keen to
support
longer-term
recovery
and
reconstruction,"
Mr.
Holmes
said.
With
regard
to
confidence
building
between
communities,
he
welcomed
the
recent
progress
in
facilitating
returns
as well
as the
increased
government
flexibility
in terms
of post
conflict
normalization,
for
example
the
recent
opening
of the
A9 road
which
links
northern
and
southern
Sri
Lanka.
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