[Daily Mirror (SL), Sunday, 22 January 2012 12:53]

The JVP which expressed somewhat favourable sentiments on President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s recent pledge to convert Sri Lanka into a trilingual nation, called for its quick implementation while opposing the full implementation of the Indo Lanka accord and 13 plus.

JVP General Secretary Tivin Silva told a news conference today that the Tamils in this country should be given the right to get their administrative matters done in their native language while they should be treated equally. “This had been given a lip service,” he said. Mr. Silva said this and the other genuine grievances of the Tamil people should also be addressed as soon as possible.

Accordingly he said compensation should be paid to the relatives of those who have disappeared while there should be a genuine resettlement of the displaced.

“The resettlement today is nothing but dumping the people here and there but they should be allowed to go back to their original dwelling places instead,” he said.

He stressed that the land grabbing by the Sri Lankan and the Indian government should also be stopped. Citing an example he said the original settlers of the lands in Sampur that had been handed over to India are still in displaced camps. JVP General Secretary charged that the government which had succumbed to Indian pressure had agreed for the 13 plus and to implement the Indo Lanka accord the fullest instead of addressing the genuine problems of the Tamils. He made this point referring to a statement made by the Indian External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna that Sri Lanka had agreed for a devolution package which goes beyond the 13th Amendment of the constitution.

He said the government should come out with a set of proposals so that the other political parties could study it and come out with their stance on it .Mr. Silva charged that the government is confused about the whole situation as the ministers’ express different ideas at different times. “Some Ministers are opposing the 13th Amendment while others are talking about bringing a senate,” he said stressing that the government should come up with a detailed set of proposals on how it intend to implement all these.