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Sri Lanka

Tiger rebels seek changes to Sri Lanka tsunami

COLOMBO, Mar 30, 2005 (Xinhua via COMTEX) - The Tamil Tiger rebels have sought further changes to a mechanism involving the government's delivering of tsunami relief materials in the Tamil regions, a press report said Wednesday.

Sudar Oli, a Tamil language daily said that the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam has suggested several changes to a draft proposal put forward by the Norwegian peace facilitators.

The Norwegian government which facilitates the direct peace negotiations has handed over the original draft proposal to both sides on March 22, the paper said.

The latest rebel proposal was handed over to the Norwegian special peace envoy Erik Solheim in Vienna on Monday, the paper added.

Sri Lanka's international donors have been urging the two sides to agree on a joint mechanism to co-ordinate the relief effort in Tamil regions in the north and east devastated by the Dec. 26 tsunamis.

This came after the rebels accused the government of neglecting the Tamil regions and the government's denial of any discrimination.

The government however seems reluctant to agree on any mechanism that would appear to grant recognition to an administration run by the Tigers, the paper said.

Rebel sources said that the hitch in agreeing to the Norwegian plan is delivering relief items by sea along rebel held coastal line in the north and east.

The dispute is yet to be resolved even after three months of the disaster which destroyed almost two thirds of this Indian Ocean island's coastal line.