Britain urges Sri Lanka to find a political solution to defeat terrorism

After a two-day officials visit, State minister for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, Dr. Kim Howells, said the UK will not lift the ban "while the LTTE continues to use terrorism".

Dr. Kim Howells has handed over a special letter by British PM, Tony Blair, to President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

Human Rights violations

After his second visit to Sri Lanka in this year alone, the British minister has raised serious concerns of the island nation's human rights situation.

Reminding the critics that Human Rights are "not a purely domestic matter," the British minister has recalled that both countries have signed UN treaties on human rights.

Britain has expressed concern over the abduction and the killing of two Red Cross workers in Colombo

"If either of us (Sri Lanka and UK) is perceived to fall below those standards we can and should expect difficult questions," a statement issued by Dr. Howells stated.

Dr. Howells crticised Sri Lanka government's move to transport hundreds of Tamils to north and the east.

Evicting Tamils from Colombo

PM Ratnasiri Wickramanayake on sunday accepted responsibility for sending nearly 400 Tamils from Colombo lodges to Vavuniya.

	Britain says evicting "innocent Tamils" should not happen again

The British minister told the BBC that it should "never happen again".

"Most of the people who were thrown out and transported in the middle of the night to the dangerous areas were just innocent people who happened to in the wrong area at the wrong time," he told BBC's Roland Buerk.

The statement has urged Sri Lanka to learn lessons from Britain's Northern Ireland experience.

Political solution

"There are some that believe the only way to address the LTTE's violence is to fight fire with fire. They are wrong," Dr. Howells said.

"In fact a security led response to terrorism can end up strengthening the terrorist," the statement added.

In fact a security led response to terrorism can end up strengthening the terrorist Dr. Kim Howells

The British minister says Sri Lanka's need is the moment is a "sustainable political solution" to resolve the national question.

"The way to defeat terrorism is not through relentless military action, but by winning the battle of ideas and with it the support of moderate Tamils," the statement stated.