UN official discusses recovery process in Sri Lanka

A top United Nations official has said that there is a steady improvement in camp conditions for internally displaced persons in Sri Lanka as the government is taking steps for resettlement of refugees. The acknowledgment came from the UN Assistant Secretary-General Jordan Ryan who recently visited Sri Lanka from July 12 to July 15. The World body has been pressurizing Colombo for an early resettlement of the internally displaced Tamil people by early disbanding of the special camps.

Ryan held discussions about the recovery process with senior government,non-governmental organisations and civil society representatives in Colombo,Vavuniya and Jaffna. Briefing reporters at the UN headquarters here,the UN spokesman,Marie Okabe said during his visit Ryan raised and discussed issues and concerns about security,access,freedom of movement,the rapid release and return of internally displaced persons IDPs,and reunification of families.

The government is taking the lead on the resettlement and recovery processes,and note was taken of the continued improvement in camp conditions for IDPs and the gradual handover of camp management to civilian authorities,Okabe said. On reports of detention and torture of two UN staff members in Sri Lanka,Okabe said the Secretary-General had raised the issue with the Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa on the sidelines of the NAM summit last week in Sharm el-Sheikh,Egypt.