TNN | Jul 16, 2011, 03.03am IST
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NEW DELHI: Reacting to a query on UN Secretary-General's Panel of Experts' report on Sri Lanka,India on Friday said it is concerned about the welfare of the Tamil population in the country. It said "all ethnic groups should have feeling of being equal citizens of Sri Lanka".
"Sri Lanka is home to a number of ethnic groups of which about 20% are Tamil speaking. They have friends and relatives in Tamil Nadu and other parts of India. It is but natural that we are concerned for their wellbeing, as well as that of all of the people ofSri Lanka with whom we enjoy historical ties of affinity," said MEA's official spokesperson Vishnu Prakash.
Sri Lanka has dubbed the UN panel report which called for a probe to examine alleged war crimes during the last phase of the civil war with theLTTE as a Western ploy to halt the country's progress since the end of the over three-decade-old conflict in May, 2009.
On being asked about the Channel 4 documentary titled, Sri Lanka's Killing Fields, he said the sequence of events during the last days of the conflict was unclear. "The government of Sri Lanka would need to go into the matter in greater detail. The concerns that are being expressed in this regard need to be examined," he added.
The official said India has consistently emphasized that rehabilitation of the Tamil population should be of the highest and most immediate priority. "A fair and reasonable settlement of the political issues concerning the minorities in Sri Lanka is of utmost importance and the historic opportunity offered by the end of the conflict should be availed of at the earliest," he added.
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NEW DELHI: Reacting to a query on UN Secretary-General's Panel of Experts' report on Sri Lanka,India on Friday said it is concerned about the welfare of the Tamil population in the country. It said "all ethnic groups should have feeling of being equal citizens of Sri Lanka".
"Sri Lanka is home to a number of ethnic groups of which about 20% are Tamil speaking. They have friends and relatives in Tamil Nadu and other parts of India. It is but natural that we are concerned for their wellbeing, as well as that of all of the people ofSri Lanka with whom we enjoy historical ties of affinity," said MEA's official spokesperson Vishnu Prakash.
Sri Lanka has dubbed the UN panel report which called for a probe to examine alleged war crimes during the last phase of the civil war with theLTTE as a Western ploy to halt the country's progress since the end of the over three-decade-old conflict in May, 2009.
On being asked about the Channel 4 documentary titled, Sri Lanka's Killing Fields, he said the sequence of events during the last days of the conflict was unclear. "The government of Sri Lanka would need to go into the matter in greater detail. The concerns that are being expressed in this regard need to be examined," he added.
The official said India has consistently emphasized that rehabilitation of the Tamil population should be of the highest and most immediate priority. "A fair and reasonable settlement of the political issues concerning the minorities in Sri Lanka is of utmost importance and the historic opportunity offered by the end of the conflict should be availed of at the earliest," he added.
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