|
|
 |
 |
 |
| Wednesday, 10 September 2003 |
 |
|
 |
Security | |
| News Business Features Editorial Politics World Letters Sports Obituaries
|
by Ranga Jayasuriya The follow-up meeting of the Tokyo aid conference scheduled on September 12 will go on as planned irrespective of the LTTE's absence, a Japanese embassy spokesman said yesterday. The Tigers who have been tightlipped on their attendance at the meeting are reported to have informed the Japanese that they would not attend the meeting. "They (the LTTE) are not coming but the meeting will go on as scheduled," the spokesman told the Daily News. Japanese special envoy Yasushi Akashi due in Sri Lanka on Thursday (11) will chair the meeting, a follow-up to the Tokyo aid conference which is expected to be attended by Government leaders, donors and multilateral organisations. The Tigers are yet to make a public announcement on their absence, though the speculation was rife since last week over a possible LTTE boycott of the meeting. The LTTE boycotted the Tokyo aid conference in early June demanding a setting up of an interim administrative mechanism in the North-East prior to the aid parley, which however was held despite the LTTE's absence and yielded an unprecedented 4.5 billion US dollars for four years. Akashi who is arriving here on a six-day visit will meet President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, Ministers Prof. G. L. Peiris, Milinda Moragoda, Rauff Hakeem, Opposition Leader Mahinda Rajapakse, President's Foreign Affairs Advisor Lakshman Kadirgamar and SLMM chief Tryggve Tellefsen. He will meet the LTTE hierarchy in the Wanni on Sunday (14). Akashi is also scheduled to meet Eastern Muslim leaders in Ampara and Kalmunai to discuss their interests and views in the proposed interim administration for the North-East. Meanwhile, Peace Secretariat chief Ambassador Bernard Gunatillake and his counterpart in the LTTE, S. Pulidevan were expected to address a seminar on power sharing on the same day, but in two separate presentations in Switzerland. The one-day Seminar titled "power sharing and decentralisation: Federalism as a possible solution for Sri Lanka," was held in Berne, Switzerland. Gunatillake, the Peace Secretariat chief has also been a member of the Government's peace delegation since the first round of peace talks. Pulidevan, the LTTE's peace secretariat chief was a member of the LTTE's high profile constitutional team which met in Paris to workout their counter proposals. Meanwhile, Norwegian Ambassador Hans Brattskar making his first official visit to Batticaloa district on Monday, held discussions with Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) members, Government Agent, R. Monagurusamy, MP Joseph Pararasasingham and LTTE Eastern Leader Col. Karuna, reported our Batticaloa roving correspondent. Brattskar arrived at the Batticaloa military air base in a special aircraft accompanied by his first secretary Thomas Strangeland. He had discussions with SLMM members at the Batticaloa office. The ambassador met Karuna at the Thenakam Restaurant, Karadiyan Aru in Batticaloa at 7.30 p.m. and discussed Muslims' problems and re-settlement and rehabilitation. |
|
News | Business | Features
| Editorial | Security
Produced by Lake House |
