The United Kingdom has expressed concern at the Sri Lankan military’s involvement in civilian activities in the North and noted the British Prime Minister David Cameron has called for demilitarisation, stated Minister of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Hugo Swire earlier this week.
Responding to a question raised in parliament, Hugo Swire, stated,
“We continue to monitor closely civil and political rights as well as land issues in Sri Lanka.”“We have expressed concerns at military involvement in civilian activities in the north and are aware of reports that the military are involved in education.”
Noting that British Prime Minister David Cameron had called for “demilitarisation”, the Minister said,
“The Prime Minister raised land rights and militarisation in the north of Sri Lanka during his November meeting with the Sri Lankan President Rajapaska.”
Swire also welcomed the recently held Northern Provincial Council elections, noting that the Tamil National Alliance won over 80% of the vote, adding,
“We continue to underline to the Sri Lankan authorities the need for a long-term political settlement to address these underlying grievances and will continue to monitor these issues.”
See his comments in full here.
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