New York: Sri Lanka`s Prime Minister vowed anew that Colombo would quickly resettle civilians still in state-run camps after being displaced by the government rout of Tamil separatists.
Ratnasiri Wickramanayaka told the UN General Assembly yesterday that a key priority for his government was to meet the immediate humanitarian needs of the roughly 290,000 Tamil civilians who "were liberated from the decades-long hold" of the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).
He said the resettlement would be carried out in cooperation with international partners.
He, however, warned that "the stability and security that we have restored at great human cost cannot and must not be compromised, particularly when a large number of self-confessed ex-LTTE cadres continue to mix with the IDPs (internally displaced persons)."
Wickramanayaka said Colombo was "committed to complying with its international obligations" in the area of human rights and humanitarian standards and would push through "further domestic measures aimed at reconciliation and in the light of lessons learnt."
Bureau Report
