A/HRC/13/21 Government”. In 2006, the Russian Federation agreed to a requested visit but was never in a position to indicate suitable dates. The Representative maintains his interest in carrying out the visit to Sudan (in particular the Darfur region) to which the Government agreed in 2007 and regrets that the Government, despite repeated discussions, has been unable to confirm dates for such a visit. Sri Lanka 26. The Representative carried out two working visits: from 2 to 6 April 2009, shortly before the end of hostilities, and again from 23 to 26 September 2009, at a time when the security situation had vastly improved, but over 250,000 internally displaced were still held in closed camps. Restoration of their freedom of movement had become a matter of urgency and it was imperative for the Government of Sri Lanka to comply with its commitments under international law. The Representative discussed a three-pronged strategy for decongesting the camps with the Government, based on returns of internally displaced persons to their homes, their release to host families and their temporary transfer to welfare centres in return areas until they were able to go back to their homes. The Representative urged the Government to pursue these options in parallel and with the highest priority. Since his visit, this process has started. At the time of writing, almost 149,000 internally displaced persons have been released to host families or have returned to Jaffna, Mannar, Trincomalee, and Batticaloa as well as to Vavuniya and Killionochi. 27. The increased freedom of movement for the 135,000 internally displaced persons who remain in camps is a welcome step towards fully restoring free movement and finding a durable solution for all the displaced in Sri Lanka. A letter received by the Representative dated 23 November 2009 from the Ministry of Disaster Management and Human Rights notes that the Government is endeavouring to complete the resettlement process by the end of January 2010, including for the old caseload of internally displaced, with due attention paid to their human rights. 28. The Representative emphasizes that return operations must be conducted in accordance with international standards to ensure the physical safety of returning internally displaced persons. He acknowledges the demining and reconstruction efforts being undertaken in return areas, but notes that concerns over mined areas, restrictions on freedom of movement and lack of access to basic services remain. Increased information for internally displaced persons provided by the Ministry of Resettlement and Disaster Relief Services and increased access of national non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to some of the return areas are positive developments. The Representative encourages the Government to extend access to other NGOs as well, including international NGOs. Follow-up visit to the 2005 mission to Serbia and Montenegro 29. From 28 June to 4 July 2009 the Representative carried out a visit (A/HRC/13/21/Add.1) following up on a mission he undertook in 2005 to then Serbia and Montenegro (E/CN.4/2006/71/Add.5). Many of the more than 200,000 persons internally displaced from and within Kosovo11 have not yet found a durable solution. Authorities in Pristina/e expressed their commitment to facilitate the return of displaced persons, regardless of their ethnicity. However, due to entrenched patterns of discrimination and also a lack of support, in particular at the municipal level, there have been very few sustainable returns. The Representative is especially concerned that internally displaced Roma in 11 8 Any reference to Kosovo, whether to the territory, institutions or population, is made in full respect of Security Council resolution 1244 and shall be understood in accordance with the United Nations policy of strict neutrality on the status of Kosovo GE.10-10161