§ Mrs. Ann WintertonTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information he has concerning the numbers of Tamils who have been killed or wounded during the civil war in Sri Lanka.
§ Mr. Lennox-BoydReliable information on the number of casualties is not available either for Tamils or for other ethnic groups.
§ Mrs. Ann WintertonTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Government of Sri Lanka about human rights violations and attacks against civilian populations in Tamil areas of that country by Government armed forces.
§ Mr. Lennox-BoydWe regularly raise with the Sri Lankan Government our concerns about their human rights performance and the conduct of its security forces in dealing with the terrorist challenge they face. I did so when I met the Sri Lankan high commissioner on 19 December. The British high commissioner is also in touch with the Sri Lankan Government's special task force, established to investigate reported human rights violations.
§ Mrs. Ann WintertonTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the civil war in Sri Lanka.
§ Mr. Lennox-BoydWe deeply regret the continuing violence in Sri Lanka, which stems from a decision by the 175W "Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam" to abandon long-running negotiations with the Sri Lankan Government in June 1990 and resume terrorism. We support the Sri Lankan Government in their efforts to overcome the terrorist challenge they face, but, at the same time, have made clear our concerns that human rights should be fully respected.