Sri Lanka tells UN team no civilian land will be used for military purpose

Source:Xinhua Published: 2012-9-19 20:44:50

Sri Lanka's army has told a visiting United Nations (UN) team that there are no plans to take over civilian land to establish camps, a local website posting said on Wednesday.

Army Commander in the northern town of Jaffna Major General Mahinda Hathurusinghe has told the visiting three-member United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) team that the government had reserved State lands to establish army camps, according to the website colombopage.com.

"We have no plan of acquiring civilians' lands to establish military camps in Jaffna. Army has already earmarked government lands for that purpose," Major General Hathurisinghe was quoted as saying.

He had added that the government would acquire lands needed for the expansion of domestic airport in the north and a strategically important harbor after paying compensation to legitimate owners.

The UN team had met with the official on Monday as part of a range of meetings since their arrival in the island on 14 September.

The review mission is expected to monitor the reconciliation process initiated by the government as well as the implementation of a key accountability report released last December.



Following the review mission U.N. human rights Chief Navi Pillay is expected to tour the country.

Relations between the two parties have been tense at times over Pillay's criticism over Sri Lanka's human rights record.

Sri Lanka has also presented an extensive document to the UNHRC on the country's post war progress that will be taken into consideration under the resolution.


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