Co-chairs urge LTTE to end violence

BRUSSELS, Tuesday (Reuters) The co-chairs of a group monitoring Sri Lanka's peace process called on Monday on the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) to put an immediate end to violence, warning of unspecified serious consequences otherwise.

"The co-chairs condemn the LTTE's enforced boycott of the presidential election in parts of the North and East, which deprived Tamil voters of the right to vote," the group-European Union, Norway, Japan and the United States-said in a statement. "The co-chairs also condemn in the strongest terms the recent escalation of violence in the North and East," it added.

"The co-chairs call on the LTTE to put an immediate end to their on-going campaign of violence ... Failure to demonstrate a willingness to change would not be without serious consequences."

The co-chairs said that the prospects for long-term peace now rest in the hands of the Government and the Tigers."The Sri Lankan people want peace. A failure to respond to this desire would be a tragic step backward," the four said.

But the group welcomed an agreement between the Government and the LTTE to hold talks to review implementation of a ceasefire agreement between the two sides, which Japan has offered to host, urging both sides to meet without delay. The LTTE on Saturday rejected Japan's offer to host peace talks, saying they wanted only to go to peace broker Norway.

The EU has barred LTTE delegations from entry and has said it is considering listing the organisation as a terrorist group, as Britain and the US have.