Amnesty slams violence by army and Tamil Tigers against civilians

Sam Zarifi, director of Amnesty International’s Asia Pacific region, has called on the United Nations and international donors to put pressure on both parties to allow access to refugee camps to avoid a “major humanitarian catastrophe.”

Most independent observers estimate there are between 150,000 to 200,000 civilians trapped in the area affected by heavy fighting.

Both the army and the rebels are guilty of firing deliberately on civilians, which “constitutes a war crime,” Zarifi said.

The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) is holding civilians hostage, preventing them from fleeing the Vanni region, Zafiri said.

The LTTE is said to be using civilians as a buffer against the Sri Lankan armed forces.

President Mahinda Rajapaska’s government is making matters worse for refugees by preventing international humanitarian relief from getting into the area.

Amnesty has also slammed the government’s so-called welfare villages, where northern refugees are herded in order to pacify areas currently affected by the fighting.

Said to have health facilities, schools, banks and post offices, these villages are temporary installations according to the government. However, for Amnesty they are an excuse to discriminate against large groups of ethnic Tamils and detain families for indefinite periods of time.