Clear titles for Kilinochchi, Mullaitivu lands before long - President

President Mahinda Rajapaksa yesterday expressed confidence that the day residents of Kilinochchi and Mullaitivu get clear titles for their lands is not far away, hinting that the two areas will soon be liberated from the clutches of the LTTE.

The President also said that the East was not liberated just to hand over to it to some other party.

"We have done so to create a situation in which all the people could live without fear or suspicion," the President added.

President Mahinda Rajapaksa made these observations yesterday at a ceremony held at the Presidential Secretariat to hand over deeds to land recipients under the islandwide 'Bim Saviya' programme implemented by Lands and Land Development Ministry.

"We see the people of the East living happily after it was liberated. We have enjoyed the friendliness shown to us by the people at Vaharai," the President said recalling his experiences during his visit to Vakarai after it was liberated in early this year.

"We cannot live separately from one another. We have one country which we call our motherland," the President remarked.

President Rajapaksa said that a Draft Bill formulating a national land policy on the alienation of lands has been submitted to Cabinet approval.

"I fervently hope that we would be able to overcome many of the difficulties relating to lands, once the proposed land policy is implemented," the President added.

He also said that the Government was not prepared to allocate land among foreign firms in a haphazard manner.

""We are prepared to allocate lands for local firms to encourage them and will not lease lands to foreign firms.

"We must develop the country whilst protecting our motherland," the President added.

"What is the use of development by sacrificing one's own country as done by certain other Governments in the past ?," the President queried.

"We have been preserving our resources and we abstain from selling them to outsiders.

"We have a clear path to follow and an objective to be achieved," the President said. President Rajapaksa pointed out that the Government engaged in vast development projects whilst fighting terrorism.

"We never consider development programmes from a political point of view. There is no discrimination whatsoever on the basis of religion or community.

All people are placed on an equal footing," the President remarked. "We fulfil the needs of the people. We do it for the benefits of masses and our posterity.

The suffering we experience today should not be bequeathed to the future generation."

He disclosed that Rs.500 million has been allocated from Budget 2008 to distribute 75,000 deeds. No investment has been made in the 10 million blocks of land in the country. But with clear titles investments will be possible.

The Government has also suggested alienating 100,000 blocks of land for the landless.