"three thousand have died in combat during 2008 and nine thousand wounded". -FORMER FM -BBC

War is a sacrifice for political gain-Mangala
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sinhala/news/story/2008/12/081231_mangala.shtml

Parliamentarian Mangala Samaraweera said that the government is engaged in sacrificing the lives of security forcers for political gain.

In a statement issued this week, Mangala Samaraweera claimed that, "three thousand soldiers have died in combat during 2008 and further nine thousand had been wounded".

When asked about the source of the figures, he told the BBC, "We get the information from within the military. Government is hiding the damage. even the Prime Minister had stopped giving casualty figures in parliament as part of the monthly emergency debate".

He also said that lives of soldiers are being sacrificed because the defence secretary and army commander do not have an understanding or strategy to conduct the war.
political settlement

He said that although the Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga administration was forced in to war but never pushed Tamil civilians towards the Tamil Tigers.

“Alongside fighting the war we seriously discussed a political settlement” Said Samaraweera.

Responding to a question Samaraweera said that while in the Kumaratunga cabinet he never opposed the ceasefire agreement between the LTTE and Ranil Wickramasinha administration but only questioned certain aspects of the agreement.

“President Kumaranatunga took over three ministries and there could be criticisms regarding that” Said Samaraweera"