Why not give relief to Jaffna Tamils, asks Lanka court

Although the war ended in 2009, the petitioners have been prevented from returning to their land due to the military presence in the area.

In this July 25, 2011 photo, Sri Lankan ethnic Tamil children play in front of a war damaged building in Jaffna, Sri Lanka. The road blocks have been dismantled, the sandbags removed, and Sri Lanka is again a palm-fringed tourist paradise, the government says. But for ethnic Tamils living in the former war zone in the north, it is still a hell of haunted memories, military occupation and missing loved ones.(AP Photo/ Eranga Jayawardena)

A Sri Lankan Court has issued notice to the authorities asking why it should not grant relief to 2,000 Tamils in Jaffna over takeover of their land by the Army.

The Appeals Court issued notice to the respondents to show cause through filing of objections by July 10 as to why the court should not grant the relief asked for by the applicants.

The petitioners challenged the Section 2 notices issued under the Land Acquisition Act which specifies that 6,381 acres and 38.97 perches are to be acquired for the Defence Battalion Headquarters in Jaffna.

All of the petitioners own substantial tracts of land that fall within the above area and were displaced from their land due to war.

Sri Lanka’s army defeated separatist Tamil Tiger rebels after a brutal 26-year war in 2009.

The military says it needs land for security purposes and insists it is reducing its overall presence there.

Although the war ended in 2009, the petitioners have been prevented from returning to their land due to the military presence in the area.

Responding to international criticism on the issue, the Army in the recent weeks had announced plans to reduce the number of military camps in the northern Jaffna peninsula.