President Mahinda Rajapaksa had requested Norway to assist in the government’s continuing humanitarian efforts to bring relief, especially to the people of the North, by providing such assistance directly through the government rather than other organizations.

He made the request to the Norwegian Minister of Environment and International Development Erik Solheim, on Monday when the latter called him at his hotel in new York. Solheim was accompanied by Jon Hansen Bauer, Special envoy associated with the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission.

Discussions on current developments in Sri Lanka included the President’s approach towards a sustainable peace and the need to eliminate terrorism. It was shown that the government’s current policy mirrored the developments taking place in the East, with the defeat of terrorism of the LTTE there.

This was seen as a positive step towards the achievements of Sri Lanka’s overall goal of peace and democracy, island wide. It was seen that results of the recent elections to the first ever Eastern Provincial Council was a clear reflection of the endorsement of the government’s policies by the people of the East, their willingness to embrace democracy over terrorism, and a recognition of the de-merger of the Eastern province from the North.

President Rajapaksa said the Government was now addressing humanitarian issues in the North, and that the LTTE was trying to use civilians as human shields in the areas it was faced with the advancing Sri Lankan troops, which efforts by the terrorists had to be prevented.

It was shown that humanitarian assistance was being extended to the people in the North, with decisions taken at the highest levels of government, to ensure the safety of civilians and adequate provisions for them.