SL forces to impose pre-truce security

Security measures that were in place before Feb '02 CFA will be reactivated, reports PK Balachandran.

The Sri Lankan security forces and the police would be immediately re-introducing and reactivating all the security measures which were in place before the Ceasefire Agreement (CFA) of February 2002.

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Announcing this on Monday, the Sri Lankan Army website said that the troops serving in the government-controlled areas across the island would be reintroducing road barriers and other check points and establishing new ones also.

"Transport of all consignments of consumer goods and other items into cleared (government-controlled) area will also be brought under 100 percent checking at these points," the official announcement said.

However, it is not clear if the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) would be activated.

Experience shows that cordon and search operations will now become routine in sensitive areas, particularly the capital city of Colombo, where troop deployment and barricading have already increased in the past few weeks.