Top Ambassadors witness Mannar IDP plight first-hand

Tuesday, 2 April 2013 01:12 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

A delegation consisting of seven top Ambassadors to Sri Lanka and a First Secretary witnessed the plight of Muslim IDP settlements in the Mannar region when they toured the region on 30 March.

The delegation, led by UAE Ambassador to Sri Lanka Abdulaziz Bin Abdurrahman Al-Jammaz, consisted of several diplomats. They were the Ambassadors to Sri Lanka from Iraq Kahtan Taha Khalaf, Iran Dr. Mohammad Nabi Hassani, Palestine Anwar al-Agha, Pakistan High Commissioner Maj Gen (R) Qasim Qureshi, Turkey İskender K. Okyay, Malaysia Azmi Zainuddin, High Commissioner and Indonesia represented by the First Secretary Albert Abdi.

The y12 aircraft carrying the delegation landed on Mannar’s Thallady Camp Air Strip at 8:25 a.m. on 30 March and was promptly escorted to be welcomed by Minister of Industry and Commerce in Mannar Rishad Bathiudeen.

Under the guidance of Minister Bathiudeen, the delegation visited Muslim IDP resettlements in Talaimannar Pier area, the Museli division, and the Marichikatti divisions.

“They witnessed the plight of these helpless IDPs firsthand and lent a sympathetic ear to their issues. I thank the UAE Ambassador to Sri Lanka Abdurrahman Al-Jammaz for his leadership in this delegation,” said Minister Bathiudeen addressing the media when the tour concluded at 7 p.m. on 30 March.

Minister Bathiudeen, addressing the delegation in his pre-tour briefing, said: “According to para 5.137 of the LLRC Report, 75,000 families were expelled from the Northern Province by the LTTE in a systematic and organised manner during a two-week period in 1990. They were mainly living in Puttalam and other districts such as Anuradhapura, Kurunegala, and Colombo, etc. According to the report, around 14,000 Muslim families have returned to Mannar in 2011, and 2,455 to Mullaitivu District. Due to landlessness, the original land becoming jungles, non-availability of infrastructure facilities and lack of assistance from the donor communities, they couldn’t resettle themselves fully in their places of origin. The displaced during the height of war and later were accommodated at Menik Farm and the new IDPs were all resettled. However, the protracted IDPs expelled in 1990s are yet to be resettled. Also, the process in this regard is taking place as per the Government promise.”