The visiting US Assistant Secretary of State Robert Blake Thursday morning met R. Sampanthan, the parliamentary group leader of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) at Colombo Hilton Hotel. Mr Blake showed interest in knowing about the tug-o-war between the parties in the forming the next administration of the EPC, the sources close to TNA told TamilNet. Referring to the Action Plan submitted to the UNHCR by the Sri Lankan Government about the implementation of some of the recommendations of the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC), Sampanthan pointed out to Blake that the SL government had diluted those recommendations in its Action Plan
Mr Sampanthan, who was accompanied by the national list parliamentarian, M.A. Sumanthiran, briefed Mr Blake that the TNA and other political parties that opposed the ruling United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) at the election had polled more than thirty percent votes against the 22 percent of the UPFA.
TNA with the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) and the United National Party (UNP) has 22 seats in the 37 member-council against 15 seats by the ruling UPFA.
Sampanthan also briefed Blake about the situation prevailing in the North and East.
The discussion lasted for about an hour.
No action has been taken by the government authorities to resettle the displaced Tamil families from Champoor in Trincomalee district and Valikaamam in Jaffna district, Mr Sampanthan told the visiting US Assistant Secretary of State.
The displaced were still suffering without their basic needs and were not attended by the civil authority of the Sri Lankan state, Sampanthan and Sumanthiran told Blake.
Many Tamil youths arrested after the war are still held in detention and detained in prisons without any prospect of release.
“Instead of focusing on demilitarization, more lands are being appropriated by the SLA in the North and East for its military purposes, the TNA politicians further told Mr Blake.”
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