UN wants probe into Sri Lanka camp shooting
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka - The U.N. called Wednesday on Sri Lanka to investigate an incident in which soldiers fired on war refugees held in a cramped displacement camp, wounding at least two people, including a child.
Human rights activists have repeatedly complained about conditions in the northern camps, where nearly 300,000 Tamil civilians forced from their homes by civil war have been detained for months. The incident appeared to highlight the growing frustration of the civilians in the camps.
The shooting erupted Saturday, when camp inmates attacked a group of soldiers in anger over being prevented from moving between zones of the heavily guarded Manik Farm camp, the U.N. refugee agency said in a statement.
"Security personnel then reportedly opened fire to disperse the mob. Several people are said to have been injured, including a child who was hit by a stray bullet and is now paralyzed," the statement said.
The agency called on the government to ensure the safety of the war refugees and undertake a "swift investigation."
Military spokesman Brig. Udaya Nanayakkara said earlier that the soldiers only fired in self defense to disperse the violent crowd.
The shooting was the worst reported incident of violence since the government opened the camps earlier this year to detain those fleeing the final stages of the fighting between the military and the Tamil Tiger rebels.
In June, troops fired in the air to disperse inmates demanding to be reunited with family members in other zones of the camp. Independent media are barred from the camps, and the government has told many of the international aid workers allowed inside not to speak to reporters.
"This latest episode reinforces repeated calls by the U.N. and the international community to the government of Sri Lanka to accelerate the return process and restore freedom of movement," the statement said.
Diplomats and rights groups have demanded Sri Lanka release the camp inmates. The government has said it needs to screen those inside for ties to the defeated rebels. It has promised to demine the former rebel areas of the north and return all of those in the camps to their homes by the beginning of next year.
The U.N. also warned that impending monsoon rains could flood the low-lying camps and cause health crises they are ill-equipped to cope with.
The government defeated the rebels in May after a 25 year war that killed between 80,000 and 100,000 people, according to U.N. estimates.
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