Sri Lanka armed forces chiefs testify before Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation

Commanders of Sri Lanka's armed forces testified Wednesday before Sri Lanka's Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) probing the events during the seven-year period prior to the end of war against the separatist Tamil Tigers.

The Commission was appointed by President Mahinda Rajapaksa to look at the events between February 2002 and May 2009.

Army Commander Lieutenant General Jagath Jayasuriya, Navy Commander Vice Admiral Thisara Samarasinghe, and Air Force Commander Roshan Gunatilaka testified before the Commission today.

The local media reported Army Commander Lieutenant General Jayasuriya as stating before the Commission that the ICRC, which was present in the North during the final stages of the conflict, did not lodge any complaints against the military.

He had also said that although there is currently a large army presence in the North, the numbers will be gradually reduced and the police will be deployed to carry out civil administration.