Police holding MSR request transfer

[TamilNet, Friday, 05 February 1999, 15:07 GMT]
More than ten thousand Sri Lankan Policemen deployed in 12 sectors on the A9 highway between Vavuniya and Kanakaraayan Kulam have petitioned the Inspector General of Police and Police department's appeals board seeking their immediate transfer.

The Policemen have pointed out in their appeals that they were originally sent to their positions on the Main Supply Route (MSR) on a guarantee that they would have to serve there only for six months.

Many of them will be completing two years of duty on the MSR later this year.

The Sri Lankan army, severely short of manpower to hold that part of the A9 highway to Jaffna which it captured from the Liberation Tigers, had recourse to deploying the police in the rear areas.

This helped the Sri Lankan Army (SLA) to redeploy a large number of its units that were tied down to holding the MSR in the forward areas, close to territory controlled by the Liberation Tigers and for offensive operations ahead of its positions along the Mankulam-Ottusuddan axis.

The Police were given special military training and army weapons before they were deployed along the MSR.

Flooding of bunkers, malaria and yellow fever during the heavy monsoons have hit morale. The monotony and rote have also contributed to low morale, said a Police officer in Vavuniya.