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UN to press for Sri Lankan access UN chief in Sri Lanka access plea
(about 8 hours later)
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is to press Sri Lanka to ensure unrestricted access by aid agencies to displaced people in the north of the country. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has urged Sri Lanka to allow "unhindered access" by aid agencies to displaced people in the war-ravaged north.
Mr Ban said more than 300,000 people who had fled the fighting between Tamil Tiger rebels and government forces were in need of food, water and sanitation. He spoke after visiting a huge camp for refugees who fled fighting between Tamil rebels and government forces.
He is the first senior world figure to visit since the government said it had ended the 26-year insurgency this week. Following talks with President Mahinda Rajapakse, Mr Ban said the government was "doing its utmost" but that more could be done to assist victims.
Mr Ban said it was extremely important to initiate talks with minority groups. Earlier this week the government said it had defeated the 26-year insurgency.
A BBC correspondent travelling with him says he will later urge the Sri Lankan government to win the peace as well as the war.
'Humbled''Humbled'
On Saturday, the UN secretary-general saw at first-hand the main government-run camp for refugees at Manik Farm, near Vavuniya, where an estimated 220,000 displaced people are being held. On Saturday, the UN secretary general saw first-hand the main government-run camp for about 220,000 refugees at Manik Farm, near Vavuniya.
"I was humbled by what I saw," he told reporters afterwards."I was humbled by what I saw," he told reporters afterwards.
It's time for Sri Lankans to heal the wounds and unite without regards for religious and ethnic identity UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon class="" href="/1/hi/world/south_asia/8063409.stm">How Sri Lanka's military won class="" href="/1/hi/world/south_asia/8058322.stm">Humanitarian challenge class="" href="/1/hi/world/south_asia/8056734.stm">Winning the peace class="" href="/1/hi/world/south_asia/8062207.stm">Eyewitness: Treating the Tigers Humanitarian agencies say access to hundreds of thousands of refugees has been restricted and the distribution of aid hampered by a ban on vehicles from the UN and other groups.
Humanitarian agencies complain that access to the refugees has been restricted and that the distribution of aid has been hampered by a ban on vehicles from the UN and other groups. It was a very sobering visit, very sad and very moving UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon class="" href="/1/hi/world/south_asia/8063409.stm">How Sri Lanka's military won class="" href="/1/hi/world/south_asia/8058322.stm">Humanitarian challenge class="" href="/1/hi/world/south_asia/8056734.stm">Winning the peace class="" href="/1/hi/world/south_asia/8062207.stm">Eyewitness: Treating the Tigers
The government says it needs more time to find any Tamil Tiger members hiding in the camps, and is suspicious of some agencies which it has accused of helping the rebels. It plans to resettle most refugees with six months. The government says it needs more time to find any Tamil Tiger guerrillas hiding in the camps, and is suspicious of some agencies which it has accused of helping the rebels.
It plans to resettle most refugees with six months.
"We will try to work hard to keep that promise realised," Mr Ban said. "They need to be resettled as soon as possible.""We will try to work hard to keep that promise realised," Mr Ban said. "They need to be resettled as soon as possible."
"There clearly seem to be some limitations in [the camp's] capacity." After talks with President Rajapaksa at his residence in Kandy, Mr Ban said: "The government is doing its utmost best", but added that there was a "wide gap between what is needed and what can be done".
Mr Ban then flew over the conflict zone where the military declared a final victory over the Tamil Tigers. He will later hold talks with President Mahinda Rajapaksa at his residence in Kandy. Sri Lanka has appealed for $151m in UN funds to improve the camps.
INTERNALLY DISPLACED Vavuniya: 25 camps, 255,000 peopleJaffna: 12 camps, 11,064 peopleMannar: Three camps, 845 peopleTrincomalee: Two camps, 6,642 people Source: Sri Lankan human rights ministry as of 22 May Mr Ban also called for political reconciliation between the majority Sinhalese and minorities, including Tamils.
On the plane to Sri Lanka, the UN chief said his first priority would be "unimpeded access to the sites of the displaced by international, humanitarian organisations, including the United Nations." "If not history could repeat itself", he said.
Mr Ban said he would also appeal to Mr Rajapaksa to open political reconciliation talks between the majority Sinhalese and the Tamil minority.
"It's time for Sri Lankans to heal the wounds and unite without regards for religious and ethnic identity," he added.
Without a political settlement that gives Tamils real rights, UN officials believe the fighting will begin anew, says the BBC's Laura Trevelyan, who is travelling with Mr Ban.Without a political settlement that gives Tamils real rights, UN officials believe the fighting will begin anew, says the BBC's Laura Trevelyan, who is travelling with Mr Ban.
Senior UN officials acknowledge there is a risk that Mr Ban's visit could be used by the Sri Lankan govt to give international approval to its victory, our correspondent says. Battleground
Mr Ban told the BBC this would not happen, and that he was here to convey the concern of the international community. On Saturday, Mr Ban also took a low-level helicopter flight over the coastal area where the final battle was fought.
Sri Lanka officially announced an end to the war this week, after its troops took the last segment of land held by the rebels and had killed the Tamil Tiger leadership, including its chief, Velupillai Prabhakaran.
War toll
It is thought at least 80,000 people have been killed in the war.
The UN says 7,000 civilians have died since January alone, although the government disputes this figure.
Aid agencies want greater access to the camps for the displacedAid agencies want greater access to the camps for the displaced
"It was a very sobering visit, very sad and very moving," he said of the scene of the battle.
Sri Lanka officially announced an end to the war this week, after its troops took the last segment of land held by the rebels and killed the Tamil Tiger leadership, including its chief, Velupillai Prabhakaran.
It is thought at least 80,000 people were killed in the war.
The UN says 7,000 civilians have died since January alone, although the government disputes this figure.
At a rally before Mr Ban arrived, Mr Rajapaksa dismissed any attempt to take him to an international war crimes court.At a rally before Mr Ban arrived, Mr Rajapaksa dismissed any attempt to take him to an international war crimes court.
"There are some who tried to stop our military campaign by threatening to haul us before war crimes tribunals."There are some who tried to stop our military campaign by threatening to haul us before war crimes tribunals.
"I am not afraid. The strength I have is your support. I am even ready to go to the gallows on your behalf.""I am not afraid. The strength I have is your support. I am even ready to go to the gallows on your behalf."
In the first official statement on casualties among the government forces, Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa said more than 6,200 security personnel were killed and almost 30,000 wounded in the final three years of the war.
There are no official figures for the number of Tamil Tiger rebels killed in the civil war, although estimates vary from between 15,000 and more than 22,000.