People in North-East must enjoy freedom and democracy - Mangala

BRUSSELS: Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera expressed hope the LTTE would accept the rule of law in the near future renouncing separatism and violence so that the people in the North and East can enjoy freedom and democracy like others.

Addressing the Foreign Affairs Committee of the European Parliament on Monday, Minister Samaraweera said this would be the day all peace loving Sri Lankans would roll out the red carpet to welcome the LTTE into the multi ethnic and multi cultural Sri Lankan society.

"The LTTE are a Sri Lankan polity," he stressed.

Samaraweera said the LTTE should enter mainstream politics to give freedom to their underage combatants and the innocent Tamils who are trapped in the North without means to travel elsewhere.

"Even for a moment, we cannot forget those underage combatants, with cyanide capsules hanging around their necks, are also children of our land. They have had their childhood and innocence snatched away at an impossibly young age, fighting for a cause most probably they do not even comprehend."

"The innocent Tamils who are trapped in the North, who can neither afford an air ticket overseas nor have the freedom to move elsewhere in Sri Lanka, are over citizens too."

"They also must have the opportunity to live in peace and reap the benefits of democracy and freedom that the rest of the country enjoys," the Minister said.

Appreciating the EU's role as a co-chair to help resume talks, he stressed it was important to be mindful of the sensitivity and the vulnerability of the delicate efforts of the Government to bring back peace to all Sri lankans, until it matures into a final solution.

He also called upon the EU to continue its support at this crossroads of the peace process.