Vanni protests suspended

[TamilNet, Sunday, 01 August 1999, 11:22 GMT]
The Voice of Tigers (VoT) radio said last night that the picketing campaign around the offices of the UNHCR and the ICRC in Mallavi in the Vanni had been temporarily called off last evening.

The campaign had gone on for the past 16 days and the functions of the two international non-governmental organisations were at a standstill.

To mark the call off of the campaign, its organisers including the Vanni Lorry Owners Association and the Consortium of Vanni NGOs handed over memorandums to the officials in charge of the ICRC and UNHCR offices.

The leaders of these picketing organisations addressed the rally. Head delegates of the ICRCC and the UNHCR also addressed the crowd. They assured the picketers that the memorandums handed over to them will be forwarded to the relevant authorities immediately.

They further said that they were able to understand the feeling of the affected people and promised that they will do whatever they can to find a settlement between the government and the LTTE with regards to the issue of opening an access route to the Vanni.