COLOMBO: With the govt-Tamil Tiger rebels’ conflict deepening, President Mahinda Rajapakse has come under scathing criticism from international rights groups for settling civilians in still volatile eastern territories against their will.

Following reports that the Sri Lankan authorities have forcibly returned hundreds of internally displaced people (IDPs) who fled the fighting, the United Nations refugee agency said last week that it had received the government’s assurances that the agency would be fully engaged in any future returns to ensure they are voluntary and safe.The UNHCR have received reports of increased police presence around refugee camp sites in the Batticaloa district, where over 150,000 displaced persons reside, a spokesperson for the organisation said. The district has at present the highest number of refugees with civilians daily fleeing pockets of areas as clashes between the rebels and the military continue. Sources from the east say that civil rights groups have received complaints from civilians that women and children in some refugee camps were forced to board buses taking them to their war-struck places of origin despite them stating that they couldn’t leave while their children were at school.

Meanwhile, shortly after UNHCR voiced serious concern to the government over the security situation of the areas in which the civilians are being sent back to, a government official admitted to having forcibly moved some internally displaced people to a camp in the east. Resettlement and Relief Services Minister Rishad Badurdeen was quoted by local media as saying that around 10 per cent of the people were reportedly moved to a resettlement camp against their will. The minister insisted that this was an ‘isolated incident’ which occurred only one day.

However, sources from the eastern regions claim that forced resettlement of civilians to the former LTTE eastern strongholds of Vakerai and Muttur were taking place with the assistance of the military. Statistics reveal that over 9,000 people had been resettled in Vakerai and nearly 3,000 were sent to the predominantly Muslim town of Muttur.

Humanitarian sources in the east point out that shelter for the people fleeing artillery fire is limited and that many are forced to live under trees.

“Measures are being taken to provide tents to all, but there are major inadequacies. There are food shortages and high levels of malnutrition is feared especially among children,” a source who did not wish to be named said.

Last week the United Nations appealed for immediate funding, saying that there was hardly any money to help the thousands displaced due to Sri Lanka’s ongoing ‘undeclared war’. According to the United Nations’ Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the Sri Lanka – Common Humanitarian Action Plan for 2007, which called for $66.2 million, has so far received only $2.7 million, or 4 per cent of the funding required.