Prime Minister tells UNGA:

IDP resettlement will be quick

Walter Jayawardhana

Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickramanayaka promised anew that his Government would quickly re-settle all the civilians in the IDP welfare centres but he said the country cannot risk its hard won security from terrorism by being negligent of terrorist combatants hiding among the civilians.

He was addressing the United Nations General Assembly sessions in New York on September 26. Prime Minister Wickramanayaka told the UN the top priority of his Government was to meet the humanitarian needs of the nearly 280,000 civilians who were freed from the decades long hold of the LTTE terrorists.

He pointed out that the resettlement of the civilians will be carried out with Sri Lanka’s international partners.

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).

We have entered a forward-looking, post-conflict phase, recognizing at the same time the urgent need to deal with the scars and unresolved challenges of the past, Prime Minister Wickramanayaka told the annual high-level debate of the General Assembly.

In May the Government declared an end to its military operation against the LTTE, ending more than two decades of fighting.

Premier Wickramanayaka said one of the Government’s highest priorities following the end of the conflict has been to meet the immediate needs of the IDPs as well as to ensure their safe, voluntary and dignified return to their homes.

The Government reiterates its firm resolve to resettle the IDPs expeditiously, he said. The Prime Minister acknowledged that in the aftermath of conflict, peace cannot last without reconciliation and said the Government had put in place a broad and comprehensive foundation for long-term peace and security encompassing reconstruction, development, political empowerment and reconciliation.

“The end of conflict provides us with a historic opportunity to address the grievances and aspirations of all communities, in expediting a long-term political solution”, he said.

He further said that Sri Lanka is committed to complying with its international obligations in the field of human rights and humanitarian standards.