Sri Lanka's government says it will not allow aid workers complete access to crowded displacement camps, until it separates rebels suspected of hiding among the civilians, VOA reported.
President Mahinda Rajapaksa said Sunday that as conditions improve, especially security, "there would be no objections to such assistance."
The president's statement came in response to U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's appeal for unrestricted access for aid agencies.
Mr. Ban visited the north's largest displacement camp Manik Farm Saturday, home to about two-thirds of the 300,000 civilians displaced by the country's recently ended civil war.
The U.N. chief vowed to "work hard" to ensure refugees are resettled by the end of the year, as promised by the government.
Mr. Ban also met with Sri Lankan President Rajapaksa and other top officials in Kandy.
He warned during a news conference with Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama that unless the government can reconcile with the country's Tamil minority, "history could repeat itself."
The secretary-general is the highest-level international visitor to tour the war-ravaged north since the president declared victory over Tamil Tiger rebels Monday after 26 years of war.
Aid agencies have complained that the government is restricting their access to the displacement camps.
U.N. officials estimate that more 7,000 civilians were killed and many more wounded during the final months of the war. The U.N. says the quarter-century conflict has resulted in up to 100,000 deaths.
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