EU calls for inquiry into Sri Lanka "abuses"

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union called on Monday for an independent investigation into alleged violations of human rights law in Sri Lanka's war and a "fully inclusive" political settlement following the defeat of the Tamil Tigers.

EU foreign ministers meeting in Brussels said the 27-nation bloc was appalled by the loss of innocent lives and the high numbers of casualties, including children, in fighting between government forces and the Tamil Tiger rebels.

"As the fighting draws to an end, the EU...calls on the President of Sri Lanka to outline a clear process leading to a fully inclusive political solution, based on consent, equality and rule of law," EU foreign ministers said in a statement.

At a meeting in Brussels the ministers stressed the need for respect of international humanitarian and human rights law.

"The EU calls for the alleged violations of these laws to be investigated through an independent inquiry. Those accountable must be brought to justice," their statement said.

The Sri Lankan military said Monday its troops had won the final battle in a 25-year separatist conflict. Special forces troops killed Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) leader Vellupillai Prabhakaran as he tried to flee the war zone in an ambulance early Monday, state television reported.

While calling the Tamil Tigers a terrorist movement using civilians as human shields, the EU said human rights had to be respected in the fight against terrorism.

British Foreign Secretary David Miliband told reporters the EU hoped Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse would lay out plans for an inclusive political settlement in a speech to parliament Tuesday.

"I think it's...vital that he looks to the future," he said. "It's the need for a political process that does indeed give equal rights to all of Sri Lanka's citizens that is at the heart of the future of that country and its engagement more widely."

The EU statement urged Colombo to cooperate fully with the United Nations to resolve the humanitarian crisis and take immediate steps to ease the evacuation of civilians.

The military said Saturday it had freed the last of 72,000 civilians trapped in the war zone.

"There are tens of thousands of people in desperate need of help," Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt told reporters.

The EU also called for an end to restrictions on aid agencies, full access to people displaced by the fighting, and for the International Committee of the Red Cross to be allowed to monitor screening of people leaving the conflict zone.

Miliband said a proper investigation of abuses was needed: "There have been very grave allegations on all sides." Britain is the former colonial power in Sri Lanka.

(Editing by Robert Woodward)