Trinco displaced suffer discrimination in provision of relief- Elilan

[TamilNet, Thursday, 06 July 2006, 11:35 GMT]
Mr.S.Elilan, Trincomalee district political head of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Monday charged that the Sri Lanka Government, while rendering relief and other assistance to displaced Sinhalese families following Kebbitigollawa claymore blast, has totally ignored Tamil civilians displaced in Trincomalee town and other areas in providing basic relief supplies.

"These Tamil civilians have been displaced due to indiscriminate arrest, abduction, killing and intimidation by members of the State armed force and its paramilitary groups from their villages and homes in Trincomalee town and its suburbs," said Mr.Elilan addressing a group of volunteers engaged in relief work in Muttur east earlier this week, sources said.

"The government is giving high priority to people displaced in Kebbitigollawa for political reasons. But the government is ignoring the welfare of displaced Tamils in North East without even providing dry rations and other assistance. The discrimination shown by the Sinhala government towards the Tamil community for the last five decades has driven the Tamils to fight for their legitimate rights," Mr.Elilan said.

He said the government authorities in Trincomalee have said that Tamils displaced in Trincomalee and sheltered in public buildings would not be provided with relief and other assistance and those displaced should return to their villages and home immediately.

Civil authority in Trincomalee has also said that the government would expedite tsunami rehabilitation and reconstruction works in Tamil areas. How they could expedite such works in Trincomalee when materials needed for rehabilitation and reconstruction are not allowed to be taken to Muttur east villages, Mr.Elilan asked.