A consortium, of international humanitarian and relief agencies, recently acknowledged that the area where internally displaced persons (IDPs) are being currently resettled in the Batticaloa district is favourable for resettlement.

The consortium - Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) Country Team said that an inter-agency mission, that included the UN, UNICEF and UNHCR, toured Wellavelli on May 18 to assess the situation. Subsequent to the visit, IASC declared that the majority of the displaced wished to return home and that the area was conducive to return.

The military appreciated the IASC’s assertion, particularly as it comes against the backdrop of efforts to undermine the resettlement programme. A section of the media and other interested parties have accused the government of forcing the displaced to return to their villages, the military. "We aren’t doing this at gun point," a senior police official said, adding, "This is a tremendous boost and a welcome sign as some expatriate workers have been generally critical of the resettlement effort."

UN Resident Co-ordinator headed the IASC which included over a dozen agencies and organizations, including UNDP, UNHCR, UNICEF, WHO, WFP, World Bank, Oxfam, Care, World Vision and Save the Children.

A senior official yesterday said that about 28,000 people had returned to Wellavelli (Porativu-pattu) in the Batticaloa (west) during the first stage of the resettlement programme which began on May 14. Although the military concluded the first stage of the resettlement programme by May 24, the displaced would be allowed to return, he said.

The government intends to carry out the resettlement programme at Pattipalai (Manmunai Southwest) and Vavunativu (Manmunai West) next month. The elite Special Task Force (STF) is in charge of security in areas earmarked for resettlement of the displaced.

The IASC welcomed the commitment of the government to ensure that the return of the displaced to their homes in Batticaloa West would be wholly voluntary and take place in ‘safety and with dignity.’ Noting that the returning families were registered and photographed with food rations provide for a week and additional food rations once they returned to their homes, the IASC warned that agriculture-based livelihoods and sustainable food security would pose challenges. The agency urged the government to clear the area of mines and other unexploded explosives devices.

The agency also emphasized, "…it is essential that the return process be civilian in character to ally fears concerning the heavy presence of security forces, strengthen confidence and motivate return." The influential group also called for unrestricted access to areas where the resettlement is taking place to ensure constant monitoring and the re-establishment of civil administration.

The military pointed out that these areas were held by the LTTE for years. Unfortunately some people tend to conveniently forget that fact, the military said, emphasizing the need to effectively police the area to prevent the return of LTTE tax collectors and child abductors.

Troops cleared LTTE strongholds in the Batticaloa district beginning with the recapture of Wakarai. Army’s 23 Division, headquartered at Welikanda, supervised offensive action spearheaded by the elite Special Forces and Commandos. Once the enemy lost their main bases, they made a final desperate attempt to regroup in an area situated in Somawathie (east) and Mavilaru (west) several weeks ago. "Once we established their presence, troops targeted them resulting in the deaths of 13 cadres including a senior cadre holding the rank of ‘Lieutenant Colonel’ Ashok," the official said, adding that they trapped another enemy unit in the Eravur area last week. Among the LTTE cadres killed at Eravur were Nagulan, formerly of their Charles Anthony ‘Brigade.’ Of some ten cadres killed in action, the army recovered bodies of seven and six of them were sent to the LTTE through the ICRC.