
Japanese Ambassador Meets with Tamilselvan
His Excellency Mr. Seichiro Otsuka, Japanese Ambassador to Sri Lanka, visited Kilinochchi earlier today and met with Mr. S.P. Tamilselvan, head of the political wing of the LTTE. In addition to the ambassador, the Japanese delegation comprised of second secretaries Mr. M. Yasuda, Mr.K. Yagi and Mr.K. Miyata. The meeting lasted ninety minutes and centered around the present impasse in the peace talks.
Mr. Tamilselvan briefed the press after the meeting. "We have once again explained to the visiting Japanese delegation, the position taken by our leadership with regard to the peace talks and the recently concluded Tokyo donor conference. We expect the decisions taken at the Tokyo conference to lead to solutions to the urgent humanitarian problems faced by our people. I have also pointed out the disillusionment of our people over the previous rounds of peace talks and their failure to deliver on the agreements. The Sri Lanka government should take into account the failures so far and propose a interim administration with sufficient powers to deal with the crisis faced by our people. The Japanese ambassador understands our position" he said.
In turn the Japanese ambassador put forward the expectations of the international community and the Japanese government. However, Mr. Tamilselvan said, that he pointed out that the decisions taken by the international community always favoured the government. "We have also highlighted the vicious political conflicts that exist in the south, especially the differences between the President and the government of Prime Minister Mr. Ranil Wickremesinghe. They need to work together to arrive at visionary solutions that satisfy the aspirations of our people and enable peaceful resolution of the ethnic problem. We have also urged the Japanese ambassador and the international community to bring about appropriate pressure on the government and the forces working against peace in the south in order to achieve a peaceful outcome" he added.
30 June 2003
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