As intense fighting continued yesterday, tens of thousands of civilians were facing a food crisis as Government and UN officials ran into a deadlock over a safe area for the delivery of essential items.
The Government has decided to put on hold future aid convoys to the conflict zone in the Wanni after the UN failed to name a safe area which could be used as a delivery point, a senior official said yesterday.
Essential Services Commissioner General S.B. Divaratne said the decision was taken because of the complexity of the situation in the Mullaitivu area, and the UN’s failure to name a safe area where the food aid could be delivered.
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| A girl who escaped from the war zone and arrived in Vavuniya yesterday lulls her younger brother to sleep at a government set-up transit facility |
“At present the security forces and the LTTE are engaged in pitched close quarter battles and we don’t know how these aid convoys could enter such areas. There is no guarantee of safety, and so it was decided to put on hold future convoys until the situation clears up,” Mr. Divaratne said.
The Commissioner General said there was a high risk that any food aid could fall into the wrong hands, an apparent reference to the LTTE.
“ICRC and UN officials stationed in the area are in a better position to point out a safe area where the aid could be delivered without it falling into the hands of the LTTE,” Mr. Divaratne said.The UN’s World Food program (WFP) official, Azeb Ashrae, said they were negotiating with the Government to get more food into the conflict area.
“All we need is a four hour humanitarian window into the area where the aid could be delivered. We are hoping for a positive response from the authorities at least by some time next week,” she said.
Ms. Ashrae said they were mindful of the risk that the food could be grabbed by the LTTE which was desperate as the security forces closed in on its remaining strongholds.
“We have urged the Government Agent of the area to demarcate a safe area where the food could be delivered and are awaiting a response,” she said.
The Sunday Times learns that the WFP is seeking a guarantee from the Mullaitivu GA on a safe location to transport the food, but the request has been turned down on the grounds that the GA cannot give such an assurance.
Meanwhile WFP and UN officials said that the entire population of the Wanni region where fighting was taking place was facing a food crisis due to displacement of the population as well as crop failure and recent floods. “Livelihoods have been almost completely lost, coping mechanisms have been exhausted and people are dependent on humanitarian food aid for survival,” a WFP report said.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Thursday spoke to President Mahinda Rajapaksa by telephone about the worsening humanitarian crisis, a UN statement said.
Mr. Ban also conveyed his grave concern about the heavy civilians casualties, including children, the statement said.
“The Secretary-General reiterates the responsibility of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam to allow people to move to wherever they feel safe and the obligation of the Government to conduct its military operations with due regard to the need to safeguard civilian lives,” his spokesperson Michele Montas said.
The last WFP food aid convoy of 818 tons of food and other essential items rolled into the conflict zone on January 29, she said.
The UN says that there are an estimated 200,000 plus civilians caught up in the fighting, while the Government says this figure is much less. |
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