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Sri Lanka refugees 'to be freed' | Sri Lanka refugees 'to be freed' |
(20 minutes later) | |
The Sri Lankan government says people living in camps since the conflict with Tamil Tiger rebels will have freedom of movement as of next month. | The Sri Lankan government says people living in camps since the conflict with Tamil Tiger rebels will have freedom of movement as of next month. |
The camps were set up to house Tamils fleeing the final stages of the 25-year civil war which ended in May. | The camps were set up to house Tamils fleeing the final stages of the 25-year civil war which ended in May. |
A special adviser to President Mahinda Rajapaksa also confirmed an earlier promise to close the camps, which still house 130,000 people. | |
He said all the residents would be resettled by the end of January. | He said all the residents would be resettled by the end of January. |
The special adviser, Basil Rajapaksa - who is also the president's brother - made the announcement during a visit to the largest refugee camp, Menik Farm. | |
The facilities were hastily built in the north of the country for people who had fled the war zone during the government's victorious offensive against the Tamil Tigers. | |
The refugees have been detained while they are screened for possible links with the rebels, and while land in the north is demined and cleared. | |
The barbed-wire enclosures are run by the military, and many of those displaced had complained about poor food and sanitary conditions. | |
Sri Lanka has been under international pressure to allow all the refugees to leave. | |
The government had earlier said it intended to release 80% of the refugees by the end of the year, and had stepped up releases in recent weeks. |