UN receives assurances of safety, esential staff to return to work
July 8, 2010 07:20 am
The United Nations said it is closely
monitoring developments in
Hundreds of people took part in the protests, which were reportedly led by Housing Minister Wimal Weerawansa in response to the setting up of a UN advisory panel on human rights violations committed in the final stages of the conflict between the Government and the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), which ended in May 2009.
According to UN spokesperson Farhan Haq, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s
chief of staff, Vijay Nambiar, met yesterday with
He added that Mr. Weerawansa himself said in a press conference that UN staff would be allowed to move in and out of the compound.
“We trust that the Government of Sri Lanka will honour the commitments made
in ensuring the safety and security of our staff so that they can continue the
vital work being carried out by the United Nations each day to help the people
of
The UN Country Team (UNCT) confirmed that essential staff will return to normal work starting today.
“However, as there are some indications of demonstrators remaining outside the compound, the UNCT will assess whether all staff could return soon,” said the spokesperson.