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united kingdom
& the Struggle for Tamil Eelam
Letter from British Foreign & Commonwealth
Office
12 August 1997
Foreign & Commonwealth Office
London SW1A 2AH
Telephone 0171 270 3035
12 August 1997
Dear Dr Ilanko,
Thank you for your
letter of 10 June (which was received on 2 August) to the Prime Minister
enclosing an appeal on behalf of civilians in Sri Lanka. I have been asked to
reply.
We are following the situation in Sri Lanka closely. Both we and
our High Commission in Colombo regularly consult relevant interested parties,
including NGOs, and also have meetings with Tamil groups in the UK. We are very
much aware of alleged
human rights abuses by the Sri Lankan armed forces, including
disappearances.
When we have well-founded reports, we raise individual cases with the Sri
Lankan authorities.
We also maintain a general dialogue with them on human rights,
stressing the importance of bringing those responsible for abuses to justice. In
the case of Murugesupillai Koneswary, I understand that the President has
ordered an inquiry into the killing. This is now underway. We believe that the
present Sri Lankan government has improved Sri Lanka's human rights record. We
shall continue to press them to maintain their efforts to make further
improvements.
We are not aware of government-imposed embargos on medicine, food and
building materials destined for Tamil areas and have been assured by Non
Government Organisations (NGOs) that, after initial supply problems following
the latest offensive, there are sufficient food supplies. However, the LTTE have
recently refused to allow the ICRC to escort vessels carrying food for civilians
in Jaffna from Trincomalee.
We
have strict controls on the sale of British arms to Sri Lanka. Each
application is considered on a case-by-case basis and takes into account,
inter-alia, human rights issues.
We believe that a lasting solution to this tragic conflict in
Sri Lanka can only be achieved through a political settlement, which takes the
views of all parties concerned into account. We support the
Sri Lankan government's efforts to find a lasting solution to the conflict.
Since her election in August 1994, President Kumaratunga has
made a solution to the ethnic conflict her major priority. Initially
she offered peace talks to the LTTE which led to a short cessation of
hostilities. Since this was broken,
without warning, by the LTTE in April 1995, the government have continued
their efforts to secure a solution to the conflict. They launched a
wide-ranging package of devolution proposals in August 1995. We believe this
offers an opportunity for the Tamil people to negotiate a long term solution.
The UK was involved in helping the government and the opposition
to come to an agreement on a bipartisan approach to a settlement of the ethnic
conflict, which they concluded on 3 April. We stand ready to provide further
help if asked, but in the first instance a solution has to be found by those
immediately concerned. We hope that both the Sri Lankan government and the
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) will work actively to reach a peaceful
settlement.
Yours sincerely,
R S Rimmer
South Asian Department
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