Govt. refutes TNA allegations

by P. Krishnaswamy

The Ministry of Nation Building and Estate Infrastructure Development, in charge of de-mining operations in the North, rejected as false the allegations of the TNA that the Government is not availing itself of the services of foreign de-mining organisations for this purpose.

Ministry Secretary, W.K.K. Kumarasiri told the Sunday Observer that the Government has engaged the Sri Lanka Army's - Humanitarian De-mining Unit and eight international de-mining agencies, including the UNDP, Halo Trust, Danish De-mining Agency and the Horizon Group for the de-mining operations.

The Government was doing everything possible to expedite the de-mining process to resettle IDPs now in Vavuniya and Chettikulam. The Government recently imported latest de-mining machinery - five Docking and five MV 4 - to the value of Rs. 520 million which were airlifted on account of the urgency of the matter. He said that the SL Army was responsible for seventy per cent of the total area cleared so far. The National Mine Action Programme operates under the leadership of the National Streering Committee on Mine Action (NSCMA) and is chaired by the Ministry, he stated.

TNA leader R. Sampanthan recently accused the Government of not engaging the services of foreign de-mining organisations in a deliberate effort to delay resettlement of over 250,000 IDPs now housed in welfare villages at Vavuniya and Chettikulam. According to a statement of the UNDP Support to Mine Action Project: "Mine/Unexploded Ordnance (UXO) clearance is a pre-requisite for resettlement and recovery in contaminated areas. Clearance is expensive, time consuming and requires stringent security measures. Clearance is slower because the land is cleared M2 by M2. Manual and/or mechanical methods can be applied depending on the terrain. For manual clearance, productivity ranges from 420 square metres per day per de-miner".

Military Spokesman Brig. Udaya Nanayakkara said that Army Engineer Troops that commenced humanitarian de-mining in the Mannar 'Rice Bowl' area soon after it was liberated from LTTE terrorists have completed their work in a 32.8 sq.km. area, out of a total area of 37 sq.km. Six hundred and twenty-nine engineer soldiers, assisted by seven well-trained dogs and 14 flail machines are presently at work, clearing ten Grama Niladhari Divisions in the Rice Bowl area. Eight Grama Niladhari Divisions have already been cleared. Work on providing the infrastructure for the resettlement of IDPs has begun, he said.

Troops have recovered 4,391 Anti Personnel Mines, one Anti Tank Mine and 1,110 UXOs, including Improvised Explosive Devices and booby traps, he stated. Troops are now being moved to clear the Mannar-Pooneryn (A 32) Road. The Madhu Church and its surrounding areas, the area around the Madhu Road junction, the railway track from Vavuniya to Thandikulam and to the Kokavil Tower, and the surrounding areas have been declared as free of mines.