Sri Lanka has removed all military checkpoints in the northern province, allowing residents to travel freely, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism Vijitha Herath told parliament.
Minister said that the government was willing to seek international assistance for investigations into mass graves.
Herath said security barriers that had previously restricted traffic on several roads in the north, including the 'Palaly' route had been removed and public transport services had returned to normal.
A large number of military road barriers in the Northern and Eastern provinces had also been dismantled, he said.
The government was accelerating the release of land in the north and establishing special land tribunals to resolve ownership disputes involving owners living abroad, deceased owners and competing claims, Herath added.
Turning to investigations into mass graves, the minister said excavations across the country, including at Chemmani in the north, were being conducted under judicial supervision.
The government had expressed its willingness to obtain scientific expertise from the United Nations or other relevant international agencies to support the investigations, he said.
Once the ongoing excavations at Chemmani are completed the government would take steps to secure international assistance for DNA analysis and carbon dating tests to help establish the identities of the remains and determine their age, Herath said.
(Sachithra Perera)
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