UN, INGOs to relocate operations to Vavuniya

Chair of the Consultative committee on Humanitarian Assistance (CCHA) and Disaster Management and Human Rights Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe informed the CCHA that the Defence Secretary had communicated a decision by the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) that all UN agencies and INGOs working in the Wanni should relocate their humanitarian and development operations to Vavuniya with immediate effect for the safety of personnel and property at a high level policy meeting of CCHA on Monday a release by the disaster Management and Human Rights Ministry said yesterday.

This decision was communicated at a discussion Minister Samarasinghe held prior to the CCHA with Senior Advisor to the President, Basil Rajapaksa MP, Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, Additional Secretary Ministry of Foreign Affairs Prasad Kariyawasam, the UN Resident Coordinator, Heads of Agencies of WFP, UNICEF, the Senior Advisor to the UN on Safety and Security (UNDSS) and representatives of UNHCR and the ICRC.

The Minister stated that, as the UN and INGOs are working in the Wanni at the GoSL’s invitation, the Government has an obligation to ensure the safety and security of all those working there.

Expressing his appreciation to the agencies for contributing and complementing the GoSL in providing assistance to displaced persons in the Wanni, the Minister requested them to continue with their good work by supporting the GoSL in the provision of humanitarian assistance by relocating their operations to the humanitarian hub established by the Government in Vavuniya.

Minister Samarasinghe announced to the international partners that the Government will ensure that the IDPs in Kilinochchi will continue to be looked after by the Government through the District Secretaries (Government Agents) as was done in Vaharai.

The Government is fully committed to further strengthening the Government Agents of Kilinochchi, Mullaitivu, Vavuniya and Mannar Districts in order that they can carry out their responsibilities in providing humanitarian assistance to the people in the Wanni. The CCHA also appointed a committee to be chaired by Basil Rajapaksa, MP to discuss operational issues with the UN and INGOS.

The CCHA, chaired by Disaster Management and Human Rights, Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe is a high-level committee appointed to deal with important policy issues concerning humanitarian assistance.

The CCHA meets monthly and is attended by Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, President’s Senior Advisor Basil Rajapaksa, MP Secretaries of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Nation Building and Estate Infrastructure Development, Resettlement and Disaster Relief Services, Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, Health, the Commissioner General of Essential Services (CGES); Secretary General of the Secretariat for Coordinating the Peace Process; Chairman of the CO-chairs and US Ambassador Robert O. Blake: Representative of the Presidency of the European Union - France Ambassador Michel Lummaux; Japanese Ambassador Kiyoshi Araki; Head of Delegation of the European Union, Neil Buhne the Resident/Humanitarian Coordinator of the UN; Heads of ICRC, UNHCR, UNOCHA; ECHO and the Consortium of Humanitarian Agencies (CHA).