A Sri Lankan environmentalist has claimed that the Wilpattu forests were cleared by the State Timber Corporation and not by Muslims as alleged, the Minister of Industry and Commerce said.
“As environmentalists, we should not talk only about displacement of a certain ethnic group but everyone” said Kariyawasam, the Ministry said in a statement today.
“Whenever the Wilpattu issue is raised, there is no opportunity to highlight the other side of it. Facebook heroes who do not know where Wilpattu is located are promoting this issue..
The trees were removed not by Muslims but by State Timber Corporation, but Muslims were accused on this. As environmentalists, we should not talk only about displacement of a certain ethnic group but everyone. What we need to focus on is about resettling the displaced people and not about who removed the trees.”
Minister of Industry and Commerce and Vanni District MP Rishad Bathiudeen, addressing the event said: “No government has come forward to resettle the Northern IDPs. Even when they returned after three decades of displacement, they found their settlements were taken over by forests and there were no livelihoods for them as well.”
