O 161127Z APR 09
FM AMEMBASSY COLOMBO
TO SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 9806
INFO AMEMBASSY ATHENS 
AMEMBASSY BANGKOK 
AMEMBASSY DHAKA 
AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD 
AMEMBASSY KATHMANDU 
AMEMBASSY LONDON 
AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI 
AMEMBASSY OSLO 
AMEMBASSY TOKYO 
AMCONSUL CHENNAI 
AMCONSUL MUMBAI 
AMCONSUL TORONTO 
USEU BRUSSELS
USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 
USMISSION GENEVA 
HQ USPACOM HONOLULU HI
DIA WASHINGTON DC
NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC
SECDEF WASHDC
CDRUSARPAC FT SHAFTER HI//APCW/APOP//
CDR USPACOM HONOLULU HI//J3/J332/J52//

UNCLAS COLOMBO 000425 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
STATE FOR SCA (BOUCHER), SCA/INS AND PRM 
STATE ALSO PASS USAID 
AID/W FOR ANE/SCA, DCHA/FFP (DWORKEN, KSHEIN) 
AID/W FOR DCHA/OFDA (MORRISP, ACONVERY, RTHAYER, RKERR) 
ATHENS FOR PCARTER 
BANGKOK FOR USAID/DCHA/OFDA (WBERGER) 
KATHMANDU FOR USAID/DCHA/OFDA AND POL (SBERRY) 
GENEVA FOR RMA (NKYLOH, NHILGERT, MPITOTTI) 
USUN NEW YORK FOR ECOSOC (D MERCADO) 
SECDEF FOR OSD - POLICY 
PACOM ALSO FOR J-5 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREF MOPS PHUM PGOV PREL ASEC CE
SUBJECT: Northern Sri Lanka SitRep 54 
 
Ref:  A) Colombo 418  B) Colombo 414  C) Colombo 413  D) Colombo 412 
 E) Colombo 411  F) Colombo 402  G) Colombo 401  H) Colombo 400  I) 
Colombo 396  J) Colombo 393  K) Colombo 384 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: UNSYG CoS Vijay Nambiar met Ambassador  and noted 
that the UN should play a "continuous," rather than "one-off", role 
in promoting an end to hostilities.  Ambassador met Minister for 
Resettlement Bathiudeen and urged progress on benchmarks for the 
treatment of the IDP population.  UNHCR presented its "balance 
sheet" to the GSL on April 15 highlighting achievements and deficits 
in the GSL's treatment of the IDP population.  UNHCR outlined 17 
areas of improvement for the GSL.  UN sources reported resumed 
fighting concentrated along the A35 highway on the border of the 
safe zone.  End summary. 
 
Ambassador Meets Nambiar 
------------------------ 
 
¶2. (SBU) Ambassador met April 16 with UNSYG Chief of Staff Vijay 
Nambiar who is on a two-day visit to Sri Lanka to quietly explore a 
possible role for the United Nations in encouraging the LTTE to 
surrender.  Nambiar noted that the UN should play a "continuous", 
rather than "one-off", role in promoting an end to hostilities. 
Ambassador agreed that the focus must remain on efforts to get the 
LTTE to release civilians rather than on negotiating a political 
settlement.  Nambiar expressed some optimism that it may be possible 
to persuade the Government to give the UN a chance to broker a 
surrender by the LTTE, but acknowledged that getting the LTTE leader 
Prabakharan to agree to such a meeting would be a challenge. 
Nambiar, who was accompanied by UN Resident Representative Neil 
Buhne, also met today with Defense Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa and 
Indian High Commissioner Alok Prasad.  On April 17, he will meet 
separately with President Rajapaksa and Foreign Minister 
Bogollagama, as well as with Co-Chair Ambassadors, and plans to 
return to India later the same day.  Ambassador will attend a lunch 
in Nambiar's honor hosted by the Foreign Minister after the meeting 
with the President and will provide a readout. 
 
Ambassador Urges Progress on Benchmarks for IDPs 
--------------------------------------------- --- 
 
¶3. (SBU) The Ambassador and USAID/OFDA Representative met today 
(April 16) with the Minister of Resettlement Bathiudeen to discuss 
international and GSL humanitarian efforts on behalf of the 
displaced population, given the influx of new IDPs to transit sites. 
During the meeting, Ambassador emphasized the importance of setting 
concrete timetables and benchmarks -- as publicly agreed during the 
Kaelin visit -- as a way to assure donors and the international 
community that the Government was serious about meeting 
international standards in terms of freedom of movement, camp 
management, and returns.  Ambassador emphasized establishing clear 
timetables for the issuance of ID cards (resulting in freedom of 
movement of IDPs) and for de-mining (resulting in returns) were two 
benchmarks that would promote confidence among donors who had become 
increasingly skeptical of the Government's long-term intentions. 
Bathiudeen pointed out that the presence of LTTE cadres in the camps 
is an impediment to freedom of movement.  Ambassador stressed that 
separation of known cadres from the general IDP population would be 
helpful to relax movement restrictions on the IDPs, and noted that 
 
absent clear benchmarks and their timely implementation, US and 
other donors would be unlikely to provide significant new 
assistance. 
 
UNHCR Presents Balance Sheet to GSL 
----------------------------------- 
 
¶4. (SBU) Following the meeting Ambassador requested and received 
from UNHCR the "balance sheet" UNHCR had shared with the GSL on 
April 15 assessing achievements and deficits the GSL had made in the 
agreed upon benchmarks for the treatment of IDPs.  The balance sheet 
noted: "The juxtaposition of the IDPs' rights and the Government of 
Sri Lanka's concerns over national security are negatively impacting 
UNHCR's ability to carry out its mandate in Sri Lanka. In addition, 
UNHCR and its humanitarian partners will have difficulties in 
obtaining donor funding for continued emergency assistance under the 
present circumstances."  UNHCR highlighted 17 different areas the 
GSL should focus on including establishing a transparent screening 
process for escapees with better UNHCR access, full freedom of 
movement and the establishment of a confidential reporting system to 
combat various forms of abuse in the camps.  UNHCR is currently 
working on a memo UN Special Rapporteur Walter Kaelin will send to 
Presidential Advisor Basil Rajapaksa on April 17 to highlight areas 
in which the GSL needs to improve its performance. 
 
IDP Camp Access 
--------------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) CRS and IOM report that phone lines are being installed at 
the IDP camps in Vavuniya.  IOM reports that relatives were allowed 
to visit the camps for New Year celebrations and exchange gifts. 
 
Demining Progress in Mannar 
--------------------------- 
 
¶6. (U) De-mining by three agencies is ongoing in fifteen villages in 
Mannar District's Musalli Division.  According to Mine Action Group 
(MAG) Country Director (one of the de-mining agencies), four of the 
five villages assigned to MAG have now been surveyed, and IOM/Mannar 
reports that those four villages have been found to have "zero 
contamination."  Another de-mining organization, Sarvatra, has also 
completed surveys for four villages, and UNDP has issued a "low mine 
risk" certificate for them.  The third organization, FSD (Fondacion 
Suisse de Deminage), is focusing its work in some of the more highly 
populated villages.  The Government Agent of Mannar -- responding to 
the central government's request to give high priority to returns -- 
plans for a first batch of 122 families (409 individuals) to return 
on April 28th, and for a second batch of 400 families to return on 
May 11th.  Return packages and requirements are being developed by 
local officials and the UN. 
 
Local NGOs Meet Gotabhaya 
------------------------- 
 
¶7. (SBU) Local NGOs Sewalanka and Sarvodaya as well as 
representatives from the Consortium of Humanitarian Agencies (CHA) 
meet Defense Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa on April 15 to discuss 
GSL resettlement plans and GSL restrictions on NGO activities in 
Vavuniya.  According to CHA, Rajapaksa stated that he supported 
 
caling up demining activities but also indicated tere needed to be 
more demining groups than the 3NGOs currently operating in Mannar. 
Returns in te North would follow the same process as what the GSL 
instituted in the East; planning of returns would follow UN 
clearance certificates after demining work was completed.  Rajapaksa 
also indicated that the GSL had identified two new "transitional 
sites" for IDPs in Mannar.  The Government Agent in Mannar has 
forwarded these sites for official security clearance.  Rajapaksa, 
responding to NGO difficulties with harassment of staff at the 
Medawachchiya checkpoint promised to speak to the Inspector General 
of Police about the incidents. 
 
Military Pushes to Split Safe Zone 
---------------------------------- 
 
¶8. (SBU) UN sources in contact with NGO staff in the safe zone 
reported fresh government offensives in or near the safe zone at the 
Iraddai-Vaaykkaal junction on the A35 highway.  The UN believes the 
military is trying to cut the safe zone in two, a strategy similar 
to what Defense Secretary Rajapaksa outlined to Ambassador on April 
15 (Ref A).  The UN also reported that the LTTE has forcibly moved a 
large number of civilians towards the southern end of the safe zone 
to prevent escapes.  Recently casualty figures are still incomplete 
but estimates are that approximately 4,700 civilians have died and 
another 11,300 have been injured in fighting since January 20.  UN 
Resident Representative Buhne reported as of 4pm 35 deaths and 77 
injuries in fighting April 15.   Tamil sources reported 219 deaths 
and 432 injuries. (Note: Such reports from Tamil sources cannot be 
confirmed and are frequently exaggerated.) 
 
President Visits Kilinochchi 
---------------------------- 
 
¶9. (U) State media reported that President Rajapaksa visited 
Kilinochchi today, the first time a Sri Lankan head of state has 
travelled to the former LTTE administrative capital in nearly three 
decades.  The President visited during the traditional Sinhala and 
Hindu New Year period to meet with the troops stationed there. 
 
Food Shipment Loading Begins 
---------------------------- 
 
¶10. (U) UN Resident Representative Buhne reported that WFP began 
loading a cargo ship with food aid yesterday (April 15).  Buhne 
stated that the soonest it could set sail for the safe zone is April 
¶19. 
 
Kouchner-Miliband Statement 
-------------------------- 
 
¶11. (U) French Foreign Minister Kouchner and British Foreign 
Secretary Miliband released a joint statement on Sri Lanka on April 
¶15.  The statement condemned the LTTE use of civilians as human 
shields and called on the government to extend a pause in fighting 
to allow civilians to leave the conflict zone and abide by 
international humanitarian law. 
 
LTTE Recruits Children; Fires on Civilians 
------------------------------------------ 
 
¶12. (U) BBC Tamil language service reporters gained access to IDPs 
who were evacuated from the safe zone.  These IDPs confirmed reports 
of shelling in the safe zone, child recruitment by the LTTE and the 
LTTE firing on civilians attempting to escape Tiger-held territory. 
The BBC also quoted IDPs describing shortages of food with one 
reporting that his family had gone 5 days without eating.  The 
Ministry of Defense website posted the text of an April 15 briefing 
by U/SYG Holmes at the UN in which he "regretted" the LTTE actively 
preventing civilians from leaving during the recently concluded 48 
hour pause in fighting. 
 
Rhetoric Against International 
Community Heats Up 
------------------------------ 
¶13. (U) Following the attack on the Sri Lankan Embassy in Oslo, (Ref 
B) Media Minister Lakshman Yapa Abeywardana charged that Norway had 
given a free hand to LTTE supporters to carry out terrorist acts 
against Sri Lanka in that country and Sri Lankans have irretrievably 
lost confidence in the country.  In a separate article, the website 
Asian Tribune attacked Ambassador for, "actively persuading the 
Government of Sri Lanka to allow the LTTE leadership and cadres to 
obtain safe passage to another country using the good offices of the 
United Nations."  The article went on to state, " Ambassador Blake 
has been taking advice from these LTTE supporters and had been 
verbatim repeating their requests to the senior officials in 
Government and thus he has emerged as the unofficial mouthpiece of 
the LTTE terrorists within the Diplomatic Corps and the 
international donor Community in Sri Lanka."  PAO subsequently 
called the author of the article to register Embassy complaints 
after Ambassador had cooperated by answering questions submitted 
from the website. 
BLAKE