Minister Bathiuddin, himself a displaced, hopes the refugees would be resettled soon

Foreign dignitaries and Sri Lanka government ministers attended the ceremony to mark the anniversary in Puttalam on Monday.

V Ahumudheen, an internally displaced person in Puttlalam, expressed his desire to go back to his home in Jaffna.

"Our homes were destroyed due to war in Jaffna. Of course we will go back if our houses are rebuilt," he told BBC Sandeshaya.

'Going home'

Fathima Ismail, displaced from Mannar, said she would like to go and see the current situation of her village.

"I hope my village is still there," she said.

Our homes were destroyed due to war in Jaffna. Of course we will go back if our houses are rebuilt A displaced person from Jaffna

The minister for resettlement, Rizath Badiurdeen, said over 100,000 displaced from Jaffna and Manna are housed in 161 camps in several districts.

The minister, a displaced person himself, said it is unfortunate that those evicted from the north by the LTTE are yet to be resettled.

"We hope that we will be able to go back to our homes during our president's tenure," he said.

Officials from Indian, Malaysian, Canadian and Indonesian embassies attended the ceremony.

Leave 'within 48 hours'

Muslims were evicted In October 1990 by the Tamil Tigers. The LTTE decided to evict the Muslim population of Jaffna, and Mannar approximately 100,000 people, with two days notice.

	Muslims were only allowed to take 300 rupees by the LTTE

The Muslims were told to leave the North within 48 hours or face death. They were carefully searched by the LTTE prior to their departure and all their possessions and valuables were taken away from them.

They were permitted to carry with them 300 Rupees (about $3 US) for transportation out of Jaffna and a change of clothes.

Thousands of Muslims fled to the area of Puttalam in western Sri Lanka, where many of them still live in refugee camps.