They have been saying the same thing for two years: Premachandran on land releases

The Democratic Tamil National Alliance spokesperson Suresh Premachandran has accused the Sri Lankan government of failing to take meaningful action to release land held by the military, despite repeatedly promising to address the issue over the past two years.

Speaking at a press conference in Jaffna, Premachandran also criticised the government for failing to hold provincial council elections within the timeframe it had promised. The National Peoples Power and the Sri Lankan president Anura Kumara Dissanayake had pledged that the polls would be held within a year, he said, yet two years had now passed without an election.

"There is now a question as to whether the election will be held even next year," he said.

A similar lack of progress had marked the release of land occupied by the military, Premachandran said. Tamil political parties had raised the issue in meetings with the president, including the release of land held by the armed forces in the North-East and the allocation of land to Hill Country Tamil communities.

He pointed to continuing demands from residents across the region. In Jaffna, residents of Palaly, Myliddy and Thaiyiddy have continued to protest for the release of their land, while residents of Keppapilavu in Mullaitivu have also been campaigning for the return of theirs. People in Mannar, Kilinochchi and several parts of the Eastern Province have likewise maintained protests demanding the return of land on which their livelihoods depend.

Tamil political representatives had raised these concerns in detail with the president, Premachandran said, after which the government asked the armed forces to provide a report identifying land that could be released, saying action would be taken once it was received. The repeated assurances had failed to produce meaningful results.

"The government has continued to say that there is no change in its intention to release peoples lands, but they have been saying the same thing for two years. This is not acceptable," he said.

There had been no noteworthy release of land in Jaffna, he added, apart from a limited number of roads.

Premachandran further criticised the government for failing to respond to the continuing protests of residents seeking the return of their land.

"A government that came to power claiming to have itself stood on the side of those who struggled should not now ignore peoples protests or refuse to heed their demands," he said.

While the government has repeatedly maintained that it is neither racist nor religiously discriminatory, Premachandran said its actions did not reflect those claims.