President is accused of lying to the relatives of those disappeared

Chairman of the Civil Monitoring Committee (CMC), Siritunga Jayasuriya said the President has learnt a new tactic to solve burning problems in the country.

"When an issue is raised, he call the affected and comfort them and send them back," Jayasuriya told a press gathering in Colombo.

Haiti and Somalia

"It is therefore, I think it is time for us to come to the streets".

The main opposition meanwhile accused the government of bringing the human rights situation similar to that of countries like Haiti and Somalia.

When an issue is raised, he (President) call the affected and comfort them and send them back Siritunga Jayasuriya

Opposition and United National Party (UNP) leader Ranil Wickramasinghe said people are entitled to seek help from foreign countries as human rights situation deteriorate.

"We can seek help from anybody to protect our sovereignty," he told journalists.

The CMC has convened a meeting of the relatives of those disappeared to the capital on Monday.

1000 relatives gathered

Over one thousand relatives who gathered to the capital accused President Rajapaksa's government of lying on what happened to their relatives.

President asked us not to sling mud on the government A relative of a disappeared

Subramanium Logendrarajah, from Borella, said his daughter, Komathie, disappeared on 22 August 2006.

When the relatives of the disappeared met President Rajapaksa, they were told that nearly 90 per cent of who were reported as missing have either come back home or gone abroad.

'Slinging mud' on government

"President asked us not to sling mud on the government," he said.

CMC convenor parliamentarian Mano Ganeshan questioned President Rajapaksa: "Whom are you lying this?"

DA Hariet Nona, form Maradankadawala, said that she heard no news of her son and his wife since they disappeared a year ago.

The CMC has already recorded 133 incidents of disappearances.