More civilian traffic expected

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 24 August 1999, 23:19 GMT]
Five hundred stranded people in the LTTE held areas of the Vanni are expected to cross Mankulam access route with an escort of ICRC delegates tomorrow, officials in Vavuniya said today.

K.Ganesh the Government Agent Vavuniya said that 590 people who were stranded in the Vanni reached Vavuniya through the Civilian Safety Zone at Mankulam yesterday.

University students and government servants were among them he said.

Ten buses were specially arranged for them to travel from Mankulam to Vavuniya, a distance of 30 miles.

Local media personnel were taken to Mankulam furthermost forward defence lines of the SLA to see the arrivals of the first batch of people from the Vanni.

K.Ganesh, Sugathadasa the Senior Superintendent of Police, Max Haddorn the chief delegate of the ICRC in Colombo, Brigadier Piyasoma the Co-ordinating officer in Vavuniya were present at Mankulam.

Twenty lorries carrying relief foodstuff to the areas held by the LTTE were also allowed to cross load yesterday.

Meanwhile The cargo vessel "Lanka Muditha" left Trincomalee harbour to Kankesanthurai in the Jaffna peninsula with about 1250 passengers today evening.

Of them about 217 were refugees displaced from Vanni region, divisional office sources.

The vessel is expected to return to Trincomalee on Friday or Saturday with passengers from Jaffna.

The vessel is expected to take another batch of 1250 passengers including displaced refugees from Vanni during the second trip from Trincomalee, divisional sources said.