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Norwegian envoy holds talks with LTTE over tsunami relief

* UNHCR asks Sri Lanka to rethink buffer zone plan

COLOMBO: A Norwegian envoy held unexpected talks on Monday with a senior Tamil Tiger leader as part of peace broker Norway’s bid to ensure even distribution of tsunami relief to all parts of the Island, officials said.

The meeting between Norway’s deputy foreign minister Vidar Helgesen and Tamil Tigers political chief SP Thamilsevan took place in the northeastern town of Kilinochchi, they said.

“The discussions centred on how to get the two parties to cooperate to ensure relief aid is distributed in all parts of the country,” one source said.

The talks in the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) capital follow a flurry of separate meetings at the weekend between a high-powered Norwegian delegation led by Foreign Minister Jan Petersen and top rebel and government figures.

The Norwegians want to see a joint body set up to ensure equal distribution of aid to rebel areas, according to sources close to the talks.

According to latest government figures, 30,957 people died in Sri Lanka, 5,637 are still missing and 396,295 still homeless from the tsunami.

Meanwhile, the UN’s refugee agency on Monday called on the Sri Lankan government to rethink plans to create a coastal buffer zone, arguing it would swell the ranks of the hundreds of thousands already displaced by last month’s tsunami.

The government, in a bid to save lives and property should another tsunami strike its shores, wants no destroyed buildings rebuilt within 100 metres of the beach and those that were partially damaged to be razed.

“We believe this will create significant further displacement,” UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) External Relations Officer Robyn Groves told AFP in Colombo.

“We are concerned that the principles of voluntary resettlement should be adhered to,” she said, adding that the UNHCR had submitted its concerns to the government and was now awaiting a reply.

“We have also called for clarity and transparency in the proposal. Let’s see what response we get,” Groves said. agencies

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