LTTE, SLMM discuss deteriorating situation in NorthEast

[TamilNet, Thursday, 18 August 2005, 10:30 GMT]
Head of Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission Mr. Hagrup Haukland and the Liberation Tigers' Political Head Mr. S.P. Thamilchelvan met Thursday in Kilinochchi and discussed the deterioting situation in the NorthEast. Mr. Thamilchelvan, talking to press after meeting the truce monitors, said that he has conveyed in "clear terms" to Colombo that abiding by the CFA agreement on which the whole proces has been based upon for more than three and a half years is the "immediate need of the moment." Mr. Thamilchelvan accused the Sri Lankan armed forces in Jaffna for violating CFA agreement by "abducting" a disabled LTTE cadre who was on vacation for medical treatment with his parents.



Acknowleging that the Norwegian Foreign Minister Mr. Jan Petersen, has sent a message to the LTTE leader Mr. V. Pirapaharan, Mr. Thamilchelvan told reporters that the Norwegian FM has invited both the parties to engage in discussions to take forward the Cease Fire Agreement. The LTTE leadership will soon send a reply to the specific invitation made by the Norwegian FM, Mr. Thamilchelvan told the reporters.

Talking briefly to the reporters after the meeting, SLMM Head Mr. Hagrup Haukland welcomed the continuous commitment expressed by the parties to the February 2002 CFA agreement.

Thursday's meeting with the monitors focused on the detoriating situation in the NorthEast, Mr. Thamilchelvan said.

"Abiding by the existing Cease Fire Agreement is the need of the moment," he told reporters.

There is a serious responsibility on the part of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission to ensure the terms of the agreement are implemented in full, Mr. Thamilchelvan told the press after the meeting with the truce monitors at the LTTE's Peace Secretariat in Kilinochchi.

Mr. C. Ilamparuthy, LTTE's Political Head in Jaffna, was present in the meeting with truce monitors. He briefed the detoriating situation in Jaffna to the Head of the Mission, LTTE sources said.

The disabled LTTE member, who had lost one of his arms and was on leave with his parents for medical treatment for his wounds in stomach and the leg was "abducted" and not "arrested" as claimed by the Police in Jaffna, Mr. Thamilchelvan told the reporters.

This abduction is a serious violation of the CFA, he said.

The CFA provided special provisions for the LTTE cadres who were engaged on political activities and those who were on leave visiting their families in the SLA held areas of the NorthEast, he added.

Responding to a question about the Emergency Regulations imposed by the Sri Lankan president, Mr. Thamilchelvan told the reporters that the regulations that affect the terms of the CFA in the Tamil homeland were of serious concern and that he discussed the matter in detail in the meeting with the SLMM Thursday.

The situation in the East was also disucssed in the meeting, according to the website of the LTTE Peace Secretariat.

Colombo should prohibit the paramilitary groups operating in the SLA held territories, Mr. Thamilchelvan had told the Head of Mission, who was concerned over the recent spate of killings in the east.

"Colombo should cause the military to desist from this serious violation of the CFA clause relating to prohibition of armed groups," the LTTE website said.

The website further said that the Head of SLMM had made reference to a formal complaint made by the Sri Lankan government, accusing the LTTE of committing the assassination of the Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Mr. Lakshman Kadirgamar.

"Rejecting the allegation as totally unfounded, unsubstantiated and aimed at a malicious political agenda of discrediting the LTTE," Mr.Thamilchelvan had told SLMM chief that it is "very unfortunate that those responsible for crime investigation too jump on to the political bandwagon and pass verdicts well before investigations proper commence, enabling the offenders to go scot-free," the website reported.