Trinco SLA commander meets NGO representatives

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 31 January 2006, 16:51 GMT]
Maj. Gen. Tissa Jayawardene, General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the Sri Lanka Army in Trincomalee district Tuesday held a two-hour discussion with delegates of the international and national non-governmental organizations (INGO and NGO) regarding the ground situation and other related difficulties in taking forward the tsunami rehabilitation and econstruction work in the district. The discussion was held at the Tincomalee SLA headquarters located in Plantain Point in Orr's Hill, NGO sources said.

The GOC was told that a few INGO's working in the Trincomalee district are planning to pull out due to the prevailing situation. Local NGO representatives pointed out to the GOC that fishermen in the district are deprived of their livelihood due to the ban imposed by the Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) to fish in Trincomalee sea. JOC replied the harbor is located in the high security zone of the SLN and he is has no authority to override the ban, sources said.

NGO representatives pointed out that main roads in Muttur area are impassable. Some roads have been washed away not only due to rain but also by spill water from Minneriya tank in the Pollonaruwa district. Hence NGOs are finding very difficult to transport materials for the rehabilitation and reconstruction work in rural areas, sources said.

NGO representatives made a request to the GOC to deploy more police personnel for duty in the Trincomalee town and elsewhere. But the GOC replied that it could not be done due to shortage of officers in the Police Department, sources said.

At the commencement of the discussion Maj. Gen. Jayawardene said the security in the district is improving and hoped that it would improve further in the coming days, sources said.

INGO and NGO representatives were told that similar discussion would be held monthly in future, sources said.