Tamil civilians displaced by the ethnic war said they were happy to be returning home and out of the clutches of separatist rebels.
But many of them were fearful of what the Tamil Tigers might do next.
Unprompted by troops or government officials, the civilians said they were happy to have been liberated by the armed forces.
'We do not want the Tigers,' a retired government official said. 'The Government must ensure that we do not fall into their hands again.
'We hope the authorities can create conditions in which we can live peacefully.' Civilians interviewed by journalists said the liberation of certain parts of the Jaffna peninsula from the Tigers by government troops came as a big relief.
'The Army and the Government treat us kindly and well. We have absolute faith in them,' a woman science teacher said.