SL President appoints committee to report on IA proposals

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 23 July 2003, 05:04 GMT]
Sri Lanka’s President, Chandrika Kumaratunge, has appointed a four member committee to study and report on the interim administrative structure proposals which have been submitted to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam by the United National Front government of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremasinghe, political sources said.

Ms.Chandrika Kumaratunge is also the President of the People’s Alliance, the main opposition in the current parliament of Sri Lanka.

The former Foreign Minister, Mr.Lakshman Kadirgamar, is to head the four-member committee. The other members are former Ministers Nimal Sripala de Silva, Susil Premajayanth and the current leader of the opposition, Mr.Mahinda Rajapakse. Mr. Kadirgamar is a close confidante and special adviser on international affairs to the Sri Lankan President.

Kumaratunge has appointed the four-member committee on receipt of the four-page document on interim administrative structure proposal from the UNF government Friday. The proposal has already been handed over to the political head of the LTTE by the Norwegian special peace envoy, Mr.Jon Westborg.

Meanwhile, Mr.Mahinda Rajapakse has requested the Speaker of the parliament to allocate time for a two-day debate on the interim administrative structure proposal submitted to the LTTE by the UNF government, political sources said.

Kumaratunge is to speak to the nation Wednesday through the electronic media, the Presidential Secretariat said in a statement.