COLOMBO: The Sri Lankan Government said on Thursday that the Geneva talks with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) would focus on a "meaningful ceasefire," against the backdrop of the large number of violations committed by the Tigers during the last four years.

Releasing the latest figures, the Media Minister and government spokesperson, Anura Priyadarshana Yapa, said there were a total of 5,464 violations by the LTTE between February 22, 2002 and February 4, 2006.

According to government statistics, these included 562 killings, 620 abductions 2,199 conscriptions and 207 hostile acts against civilians, among other violations. Of those killed, 388 were civilians, 92 from the Sri Lanka Army, 38 from the Navy and 34 from the police. Those abducted include 572 civilians, 21 Army personnel and 14 policemen.

"We want to stop all these violations," Mr. Yapa said.

The Government also named three Ministers as the political component of its negotiating team for the Geneva talks, scheduled for February 22 and 23.

Health Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva will lead the delegation. Minister for Trade, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Jeyaraj Fernandopulle and Minister for Enterprise Development and Investment Promotion Rohita Bogollagama are the two other Ministers in the delegation.

The official component of the team would be announced later, Mr. Yapa said.

Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse also constituted a Steering Committee on Peace Building, chaired by Foreign Affairs Minister Mangala Samaraweera, the Government said. The committee would help the President formulate a long-term vision for the peace process and guide the negotiation process through the immediate and medium term phases. It would be supported by "several sub-committees that will focus on political, defence, legal, media, foreign relations and logistics issues."

Knowledge base

As part of the preparations for the negotiations, the former Chief Negotiator, G.L. Peiris, and the former Defence Secretary, Austin Fernando, addressed a workshop on a number of issues related to the peace process, in particular the ceasefire agreement. The workshop was aimed at "creating a knowledge base for the negotiations."

In a related development, the Norwegian and Swiss envoys to Sri Lanka met the LTTE's political wing leader, S.P. Tamilselvan, in rebel-held Kilinochchi to discuss modalities and logistical arrangements for the talks.

The two-day Geneva talks coincide with the fourth anniversary of the ceasefire agreement.

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