A similar lack of progress had marked the release of land occupied by the military, Premachandran said. Tamil political parties had raised the issue in meetings with the president, including the release of land held by the armed forces in the North-East and the allocation of land to Hill Country Tamil communities. "The government has continued to say that there is no change in its intention to release people's lands, but they have been saying the same thing for two years. There had been no noteworthy release of land in Jaffna, he added, apart from a limited number of roads. Premachandran further criticised the government for failing to respond to the continuing protests of residents seeking the return of their land.