The leader of the Tamil National Alliance, Rajavarothayam Sampanthan, expressed confidence that the Special Presidential Commission, headed by former president Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, can find a suitable solution to issues concerning Tamil by the end of this year, Ceylon Today reported.

"We have clarified to the former President all matters relating to the problems faced by the people of the North and East and urged that such issues be immediately addressed meaningfully. When Kumaratunga became the President in 1994, she was very keen about settling the grievances of the Tamil people and she also mooted a suitable political solution to those issues. We were however, unable to see anything come out of it" he said.

"President Sirisena won the elections. Everyone should benefit from the change that the Presidential election has ushered in. We believe that President Sirisena will respect the legitimate demands of the Tamil people. We should be clearly focused on winning those demands," he added.

The Sri Lankan military still holds Tamils in secret camps, where they are still being tortured, JDS reported on Tuesday.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe recently denied TNA spokesperson Suresh Premachandran’s assertion that the government still operated such camps.

"After we took over the government, there are no secret camps. I cannot speak for the time before that," Mr Wickremesinghe said in Jaffna on Friday.

However, relatives of four people who were abducted have said there are secret camps in the Vanni, including in Keppapilavu and Mullaitivu. The relatives have contacted the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and sought its help to get those abducted released.

Photos: Security Forces Headquarters - Mullaithivu

A new school building constructed at the Roman Catholic College in Puthukkudiyiruppu was opened by suspected war criminal Major General Jagath Dias earlier this month.

Mr Dias, who is the commander of the Mullaithivu headquarters of the Sri Lankan army, was leading an army division during the armed conflict and is thought to be responsible for mass atrocities committed during the final phase.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) last week signed an agreement with the Central Bank of Sri Lanka which will enable the latter to withdraw up to $400mn in US Dollars or Euros.

"The Central Bank of Sri Lanka can make drawals of US Dollar or Euro in multiple tranches up to a maximum of USD 400 million or its equivalent," RBI said in a statement.

The agreement will be valid for three years and is expected to further economic co-operation between the two countries, the statement said, adding that it will also further financial stability in the region.

The National Freedom Front (NFF) accused Sri Lankan president Maithripala Sirisena of working against the mandate of the United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) coalition and attempting to move the country towards federalism.

“We have always worked towards protecting the unity and sovereignty of the country,” said NFF spokesman Mohammed Muzammil in comments to the Sunday Leader. “President Maithripala Sirisena walked out of the UPFA and worked against it,” he added.

Sri Lanka’s Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe pledged to deliver a political solution for the Tamil people, during his three-day visit to Jaffna.

Meeting with TNA officials on Saturday, the prime minister is said to have assured them that solutions to problems faced by the people in the region will be found.

However, addressing the Sri Lankan military at the Palali army camp, in the midst of a vast militarised high security zone, he said Sri Lanka should enhance its military force.

Sri Lanka already possesses one of the largest army's in the world, in relation to its population size, and the militarisation of the North-East is one of the key grievances of the Tamil people.

The Sri Lankan government has warned there is a real danger of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam regrouping and orchestrating another conflict.

Speaking to media earlier today, Deputy Foreign Minister Ajith Perera said the LTTE had millions of dollars in foreign assets that could be used to fund another guerrilla war at home.

“Their front organisations operate businesses abroad, they run petrol stations, supermarkets and have shipping companies,” the minister told reporters in Colombo.

“Even though they have been defeated on the ground, there is a real danger of their trying to regroup.”