6TH LEAD (adds full text of the statement)

GoSL to disarm armed groups

[TamilNet, Thursday, 23 February 2006, 18:09 GMT]
Norwegian Minister of International Development released a statement on behalf of the parties to the Sri Lanka conflict, the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Thursday evening in Geneva. The GOSL is committed to taking all necessary measures in accordance with the Ceasefire Agreement to ensure that no armed group or person other than Government security forces will carry arms or conduct armed operations. The LTTE is committed to taking all necessary measures to ensure that there will be no acts of violence against the Sri Lankan forces and the police. The parties are to meet again in Geneva on April 19th for a second round of talks.



Full text of the statement released by the Norwegian Minister of International Development follows:


STATEMENT

Sri Lanka Talks
22-23 February 2006, Geneva, Switzerland

The Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) met in Geneva 22-23 February 2006 for talks on the Ceasefire Agreement.

The parties discussed issues related to the ceasefire, including the concerns of the Muslim, Sinhalese, and Tamil civilians.

The GOSL and the LTTE are committed to respecting and upholding the Ceasefire Agreement, and reconfirmed their commitment to fully cooperate with and respect the rulings of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM).

The GOSL and the LTTE are committed to taking all necessary measures to ensure that there will be no intimidation, acts of violence, abductions or killings.

The LTTE is committed to taking all necessary measures to ensure that there will be no acts of violence against the security forces and police. The GOSL is committed to taking all necessary measures in accordance with the Ceasefire Agreement to ensure that no armed group or person other than Government security forces will carry arms or conduct armed operations.

The GOSL and the LTTE discussed all issues concerning the welfare of children in the North East, including the recruitment of children.

The SLMM will report on implementation on the above agreements at the next session of talks.

The parties requested the Swiss Government to host the next round of talks in Geneva on 19-21 April 2006.