President Mahinda Rajapakse has assured the bishops of the Catholic Church that the government proposals seeking a solution to the national question will be put forward within the course of two months.
The bishops of the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka as members of the task force of the Catholic Church met the president Mahinda Rajapakse on Friday to discuss current situation in the north and east, said Bishop of Jaffna, Fr.Thomas Saundranayagam.
Bishop Saundranayagam said the bishops have told the president that both the government and the LTTE should restart talks in order to establish peace in the country.
For this, the bishop Saundranayagam said, they, the bishops had pointed out to the president that the government should put forward its peace plan.
The President has said that he was committed to a negotiated settlement but if war is forced before him he would face it, bishop Saundranayagam said.
Proposals to put before LTTE
The president has said that the proposals which are the results of the committee represented by all southern major parties would be placed before the LTTE.
President Mahinda Rajapaske at a meeting of all party conference
The bishops expressed their co-operation and told the president that they would urge the LTTE to return to negotiation table to find a solution, bishop Saundranayagam said.
Bishops have also discussed about the A-9 road and told the president that road passage has to be given to people.
"It is the LTTE which closed the A-9 road and not by the government", the president has replied.
President Rajapakse told bishops that the government could not permit LTTE to carry out terrorist operations using the road.
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