|
Sri Lanka 's foreign minister urges U.S. to stop fundraising by Tamil Tiger front groups
Associated Press,
Fri March 16, 2007 17:53 EDT .
FOSTER KLUG - Associated Press Writer - WASHINGTON (AP) Sri Lanka's foreign minister urged U.S. officials on Friday to stop Tamil Tiger rebel groups he said were raising money in the United States to pay for continuing violence against his government. The Tigers have been fighting since 1983 for a separate homeland for the country's 3.2 million ethnic minority Tamils, accusing the majority Sinhalese of discrimination. The European Union and Sri Lanka join the United States in designating the Tigers, also called the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, a terror organization. Both the Sri Lankan government and the Tigers have faced criticism for abusing human rights. Bogollagama said Sri Lanka has set up commissions to investigate claims of human rights abuse. ``We want to say to the world that we want to see there are no human rights violations in Sri Lanka. We are mindful of it,'' he said. On Friday, a Tamil Tiger mortar and artillery attack in northern Sri Lanka killed four soldiers and wounded 12, the military said. The rebels said they repulsed a military attempt to penetrate their stronghold. A Norwegian-brokered cease-fire signed in 2002 resulted in relative peace, but a resurgence of violence since late 2005 has killed 4,000 people, according to European truce monitors. More than 65,000 people died before the cease-fire was signed.Discuss this story
Published: Fri Mar 16 22:08:18 EDT 2007
|
Express your opinions, meet others at the
