2ND LEAD (Adds details)

No peace moves until Colombo respects CFA borders - LTTE

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 September 2006, 11:52 GMT]
The Sri Lankan government’s aggression on LTTE-controlled territory has blocked progress towards peace, the Liberation Tigers told Norwegian facilitators Wednesday. The LTTE’s Political Head, S. P. Thamilchelvan, told Norwegian Ambassador Hans Brattskar that Colombo’s invasion and occupation of LTTE-held territory has put an end to peaceful ways of stabilising the 2002 Ceasefire Agreement (CFA). Sri Lankan jets overflew Kilinochchi as Mr. Brattskar met Mr. Thamilchelvan.

"As far as we are concerned, the GoSL has withdrawn from the CFA," Mr. Thamilchelvan told reporters after the meeting.

"We consider the Sri Lankan aggression on Sampoor as having put an end to the CFA," Mr. Thamilchelvan said.

"There can be no efforts at peaceful resolution [to the conflict] unless Sri Lanka withdraws its military forces to the positions held by the parties when the CFA was entered into," Mr. Thamilchelvan said.

The Tigers would be compelled to respond militarily if Colombo did not cease its aggression with immediate effect, he told reporters.

The "passive pressure" adopted by the International Community has not worked to convince the Sri Lankan government to respect the CFA, Mr. Thamilchelvan told reporters.

The Tigers also urged the International Community to take proactive steps to address the needs of the hundreds of thousands of internally displaced people in the Northeast.

Mr. Thamilchelvan criticised the International Community for being impassive while a major humanitarian crisis was being deliberately escalated by Colombo's aggression.

"The humanitarian situation on the ground is worsening rapidly," he said.

The Tigers were fully prepared to cooperate with the ICRC to allow humanitarian supplies to the civilian population in Jaffna through the A9 land route, he said.

The Tigers were only prepared to allow supplies through A9, he added.

The visit by Norwegian Ambassador and his deputy to meet the LTTE comes days before a meeting of Co-chairs scheduled to take place next week.