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| Sunday, 16 October 2005 |
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Security |  |
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SLMM says direct local dialogue urgent by Ranga Jayasuriya The Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission Chief, Hagrup Haukland has urged the Tigers to meet the local Security Forces commanders to discuss an end to the cycle of violence in the North-East. He described the resumption of direct local level meetings between the two parties as an urgent necessity in order to stop routine killings. "A direct dialogue at the local level (between military commanders) is crucial to stop the cycle of violence," he told the Sunday Observer. He, however, lamented that the response by the LTTE political leader "is suggestive that the Tigers are not interested in direct dialogue at this point". Haukland said he briefed Gen. Furuhovde on the prevailing situation in the North-East. Gen. Furuhovde is visiting the island to consult the government and the LTTE to review the ceasefire. He was quoted in the LTTE official website as requesting Thamilselvan "to take extraordinary initiatives" to resume political discussions and "explore all avenues to break the ice". The Ceasefire Agreement envisaged a direct dialogue and direct communication between the Security Forces and LTTE military leadership at the local level. The LTTE, however, withdrew from routine direct meetings with the Security Forces, which were chaired by the ceasefire monitors citing alleged Army complicity with the loyalists of renegade LTTE Eastern leader, Vinayagamoorthy Muralitharan alias Karuna. Haukland also said the truce monitors were concerned about the increase in violence in the Jaffna peninsula in recent weeks referring to the recent killings of civilians. |
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