“No use of force against fishermen”

India and Sri Lanka on Monday agreed that there would be no use of force “under any circumstances” by security forces on fishermen, with External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna informing his Sri Lankan counterpart G.L. Peiris about the government's deep concern over the attacks on Indian fishermen.

Speaking to journalists after the meeting, Mr. Peiris advocated a stable mechanism for handling the issue instead of adopting an ad hoc approach each time such an incident occurred.

Denying the involvement of the Sri Lankan Navy in the two recent instances of violence against Indian fishermen, Mr. Peiris banked on satellite pictures at the time of the incidents to back his claim.

He felt the revival of the Joint Working Group on Fishing, which has not met since 2006, could be the key to a solution to the clashes involving fishermen on the high seas. This could be supplemented by dialogue between the local administrations of both countries, he added.

Official sources said Mr. Krishna and Mr. Peiris felt that an interaction between the fishermen of both countries could form the basis for future discussions on the issue.