2nd Lead (Adds details)

Brattskar, Harrold meet Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 23 March 2004, 11:10 GMT]
Mr. Peter Harrold, Country Director for World Bank in Sri Lanka and the Ambassador for Norway Mr. Hans Brattskar met with Mr. S. P. Tamilselvan, Head of the LTTE Political Wing in its Head Quarters in Kilinochchi Tuesday. The meeting focussed on issues related to NorthEast development, current political situation and forthcoming general elections, sources said.

Head of the LTTE Planning and Development Secretariat Mr. Thuyavan and Mr. Irenius Selvin, Director, SIHRN, also participated in the meeting.

"We had a very good discussion.. and on humanitarian and development needs of north and east. We also had discussions on the political situation," said Hans Brattskar after the meeting.

"It was constructive, as these meetings usually are; and we discussed a lot about the issues of generating more resources to finance development and humanitarian assistance of north and east...we have a lot of work to do. We hope we will be able make very good progress soon. It was a very constructive meeting and we made good progress today," said Peter Harrold when he talked briefly to the press after the meeting.

The Norwegian Ambassador paid special attention to the political situation in the context of the forthcoming election and the arrangements in place for the people in the Vanni to exercise their franchise on April 2nd, LTTE's Peace Secretariat website said.