JDS

Thursday, July 01, 2010

UN on alert over minister's threat

Posted by JDS

Daily Mirror Online
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The United Nations says its security officials are monitoring comments made by government Minister Wimal Weerawansa who had today urged the public to surround the UN office in Colombo and hold its staff hostage until moves by the UN to appoint a panel on Sri Lanka is dropped.

When asked by a journalist from Innercitypress at a press briefing at the UN in New York a short while ago to respond to the comments made by Weerawansa as appearing on Daily Mirror online today, UN spokesman Farhan Haq said the UN had contacted the Sri Lankan government over the article and the government has assured the UN that the comments made by Weerawansa was his “individual opinion”.

“Our security officials are aware of these remarks and they will check if this official was quoted correctly and what he meant by that. The government of Sri Lanka has assured us that this was an individual’s opinion and not their policy,” the UN spokesman said.

The UN spokesman also said that New York had contacted the UN office in Colombo to verify the report and added that at the moment there was no immediate threat as a result of the comments made by the government Minister.

He however noted that in general the UN does not condone or accept threats made on UN staff anywhere be it by officials or anyone else.

© Daily Mirror