During the past few days, the
parties to the Sri Lanka Ceasefire Agreement, the Government of Sri
Lanka and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), have engaged
in intensive military operations following the LTTE’s closure of
the water supply from the LTTE-controlled area to the
government-controlled area. The situation is deadlocked and could
easily lead to an escalation of the armed conflict. The hostilities
violate the 2002 Ceasefire Agreement.
“Norway urges the immediate
cessation of hostilities on both sides in order to pave the way for
negotiations aimed at resolving the water dispute. The LTTE must
reopen the water supply to prevent further civilian suffering and
damage to crops, and both parties’ military forces must withdraw to
the positions they held when they entered into the Ceasefire
Agreement in 2002,” said Minister of International Development Erik
Solheim.
The escalation of the conflict
coincides with the deterioration of the situation of the civilian
Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM). The LTTE has refused to
cooperate with Danish, Finish and Swedish monitors since the EU
included the LTTE in its list of terror groups earlier this year.
On 3 August Special Envoy Jon Hanssen-Bauer will make a
long-planned visit to Sri Lanka for talks with the parties.
“I am sending Hanssen-Bauer to Sri
Lanka to discuss the future of the SLMM with both parties. The SLMM
monitors from Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Sweden and Norway have
done and are doing a great job in these difficult times. Their
efforts have undoubtedly been decisive in getting the parties to
respect the Ceasefire Agreement,” said Mr Solheim.
Press contact during the visit: Executive Officer Sondre
Bjotveit, mobile phone +47 98 03 20 70
