27 September, 2006 - Published 15:00 GMT

TNA MPs protest in parliament

Tamil parliamentarians in Sri Lanka have staged a ‘Satyagraha’ in the parliament against the deteriorating humanitarian situation in the north and the east.

The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) MPs said they wanted to bring to the attention of the government the plight of the hundreds of thousands, mainly Tamil, due to the ongoing violence in the region.

“A-9 road, for example, is closed. People in the north do not get enough supplies as a result,” Jaffna district MP Nadarajah Raviraj told bbcsinhala.com.

Children in queues

He recalled that parties in the conflict agreed to open A-9 road in signing the Cease Fire Agreement (CFA) in 2002.

The parliamentarians also urged the authorities to lift the restrictions imposed on certain goods to Jaffna peninsular.

“It’s been two months since the A-9 is closed. All the schools in Jaffna are closed for nearly two months,” MP Raviraj said.

He said the school children have to stay in queues to buy bread and other essential goods, instead of going to schools.

The situation in the east is also not much better than the north, the legislator added.