This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/world/south_asia/8032159.stm

The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 1 Version 2
British MPs start Sri Lanka visit UK MPs meet Sri Lankan leadership
(about 10 hours later)
A team of British MPs has arrived in Sri Lanka to discuss the difficulties facing tens of thousands of civilians affected by the conflict in the north. A cross-party delegation of British MPs has held meetings with politicians and civil society figures on the first day of a two-day visit to Sri Lanka.
The delegation includes former defence secretary Des Browne, whose appointment as Britain's special envoy to Sri Lanka was turned down by Colombo. The visit is intended to focus on the emerging humanitarian crisis in the war-torn country.
The MPs are to visit camps for displaced people in the north. Among the MPs are former defence minister Des Browne, whose appointment as special envoy to Sri Lanka was rejected in February by Colombo.
Meanwhile, Tamil Tiger rebels have praised the UK and French foreign ministers for their visit last week. The MPs insist they are friends of Sri Lanka on a fact-finding visit.
The Tigers have been fighting for an independent home for Sri Lanka's minority Tamils in the north and east of the country for the past 25 years. The BBC's Charles Haviland in Colombo says that the government and its many supporters in the media are growing impatient, sometimes derisory, towards Britain and some other Western countries over their appeals for a stop to the fighting in the north-east.
In the last few weeks, a sustained army offensive has pushed the rebels to a tiny patch of land in the north-east.
See map of the region See map of the region
The cross-party group of five MPs will be visiting camps for displaced people in the north, and its discussions will focus on the humanitarian crisis, the British High Commission in Colombo told the BBC. The UK Foreign Secretary, David Miliband, said during a visit to the country last week that there was a "desperate need" for combat to stop in order to protect tens of thousands of civilians in the war zone.
The BBC's Charles Haviland in Colombo says the atmosphere may be strained at times. The Tamil Tigers praised the UK and French foreign ministers for their visit, which they said highlighted the plight of civilians.
In February the Sri Lankan government rejected UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown's attempt to appoint Des Browne as Britain's special envoy to the island. The TIgers have been fighting for the past 25 years for an independent homeland for Sri Lanka's minority Tamils in the north and east of the country.
Colombo rejected the nomination, describing it as "a disrespectful intrusion" conducted "unilaterally".
'Turning sour'
Sri Lanka's ties with several Western nations are turning sour over Western appeals for a ceasefire to let trapped civilians out of the war zone, our correspondent says.
The ordeal that about 19 million people have been living with for more than quarter of a century is about to be over Sri Lanka defence ministry websiteThe ordeal that about 19 million people have been living with for more than quarter of a century is about to be over Sri Lanka defence ministry website
Both sides were urged to initiate a ceasefire in the far north-east by the UK and French foreign ministers during their visit. In the last few weeks a sustained army offensive has forced the rebels into a tiny patch of land in the north-east.
The government says it is about to defeat them permanently and has accused Western leaders of hypocrisy in bombing suspected al-Qaeda hideouts yet trying to stop Sri Lanka from crushing the Tamil Tigers.
A statement on the defence ministry website at the weekend accused some diplomats of being responsible for "the plight of civilians under the clutches of terror".
Our correspondent in Colombo says that the atmosphere in relation to the visiting delegation of MPs may be strained at times.
Perhaps because of Sri Lanka's sensitive relations with the West, our correspondent says that the parliamentarians are keeping their visit low-profile and have not made any public statements.
However they are due to visit refugee camps in the north on Tuesday and are likely to renew appeals to both sides to initiate a ceasefire.
The Tigers have repeatedly said they want a ceasefire.The Tigers have repeatedly said they want a ceasefire.
The Sri Lankan government says a ceasefire would get in the way of its objective of finally defeating the rebels, an aim it says is in sight. But the government says a ceasefire would get in the way of its objective of finally defeating the rebels.
"Sri Lanka is about to conclude her war against terror," a statement on the Sri Lankan defence ministry website said on Sunday.
"The ordeal that about 19 million people have been living with for more than quarter of a century is about to be over," it added.
Tens of thousands of civilians are still believed trapped in fighting between the army and Tamil Tiger rebels in the north-east.Tens of thousands of civilians are still believed trapped in fighting between the army and Tamil Tiger rebels in the north-east.
The defence ministry has said that hundreds more Tamil civilians have fled the war zone, while others trapped by the fighting are being used as "human shields" by the rebels.
The Tigers have in turn accused the army of shelling civilian areas, including hospitals.
About 50,000 soldiers are pressing the Tigers into a patch of north-eastern jungle after taking the key areas of Kilinochchi, Elephant Pass and Mullaitivu.
The government has demanded the rebels lay down their arms.
The Tigers have said they will not do so until they have a "guarantee of living with freedom and dignity and sovereignty".
Click here to returnClick here to return