A senior Norwegian diplomat has questioned the European Union's decision, taken last May, to classify Sri Lanka's Tamil Tigers as terrorists. John Hanssen Bauer told the BBC that the move had damaged the chances of renewed talks, aimed at ending the recent upsurge in violence. He said the EU ban had only served to harden the Tigers' position.

The group is now insisting that all peace monitors from EU countries must leave Sri Lanka.

EU monitors leaving

"We see now that the Sri Lankan monitoring mission will be reduced to half its original capacity in a situation where it's badly needed, and where the work has been more demanding than ever. I would have hoped that the situation would have been different," Hanssen Bauer told the BBC.

He said such reduced numbers were clearly insufficient.

The non-EU members of Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) have meanwhile decided to increase the number of monitors from their countries as members from Sweden, Denmark and Finland are leaving soon.

SLMM spokesman Thorfinnur Omarsson told BBC Sandeshaya that members from three EU countries would leave by 31 August due to the demands of the Tamil Tigers after the EU ban.

Iceland and Norway

Iceland and Norwegian governments have decided to increase their members from 4 to 10 and 16 to 20 respectively.

Norwegian officials to announce the replacement for the current head of SLMM, Swedish national Ulf Henriccson, Omarsson added.

Aid agencies warned on Friday that fighting between government troops and the Tigers had totally cut off the northern Jaffna peninsula, and was preventing the delivery of vital help to trapped civilians.

Source: BBC
Date: 20 August 2006