Religious leaders meet Tamil Tigers
A delegation representing Catholics, Moslems and Buddhists met with representatives of Tamil Tigers (LTTE) on Monday, in an effort to find a peaceful solution to the 18 year conflict in the country. TamilNet online news reported that more than 60 people attended the meeting, which took place in Madhu, in the Tamil-held northern region of Sri Lanka. Organised by the north-east Bishops association, delegates included: two bishops, several Catholic and Muslim priests and 36 Buddhist monks. During the meeting, the religious delegation told the LTTE members that they were on an important peace mission and that they were very serious about finding a solution to the ethnic problem. The LTTE said that their organisation was also serious about finding a negotiated solution, but that the government was still on a war footing. The LTTE has been fighting the Sinhalese majority since 1983. They want to set up an independent Islamic State in northern Sri Lanka for the Tamil minority. More than 40,000 people have already died in the conflict.