UNF confirms Hakim participation in Thailand peace talks

[TamilNet, Friday, 03 January 2003, 16:31 GMT]
The participation of Mr.Rauff Hakim, Minister and the leader of the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress at the forthcoming peace talks scheduled to begin in Thailand on Monday has been confirmed by the United National Front government Friday.

The Media Unit of the UNF government confirmed in a statement issued Friday that Minister Rauff Hakim would be member of the government delegation at the next round of Thailand peace talks. The UNF media unit further said that this time each member of the government delegation would be allowed to bring two advisors to the peace talks.

However the media unit of the Port Development Ministry in a press release said Mr. Hakim would participate in the peace talks as the leader of the SLMC. He would be taking some members of the Muslim intelligentsia to the Thailand peace talks, the statement said

In the meantime, a delegation of the Athaullah group of the SLMC is scheduled to meet the Prime Minister Mr. Ranil Wickremasinghe Friday night to press that one of their representatives should be included in the government delegation.