Geneva - A Sri Lankan official said Tuesday that aid workers were being restricted access to displaced persons camps at the Asian island as they refused to use bicycles as their means of transport.

Rajiva Wijesinha, from the Ministry of Disaster Relief and Human Rights, said organisations like the International Committee of the Red Cross and United Nations agencies have insisted on using their "luxury vehicles", which generated dust inside the camps.

Aid workers said they could not deliver much needed food and medical aid without the cars.

The UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said access to the camps, housing close to 300,000 people, was restricted for aid agencies.

Wijesinha made his remarks just before the start of a special session at the Human Rights Council on Sri Lanka.

At the opening of the session, the president of the council, Martin Ihoeghian Uhomoibhi, said the purpose of the meeting was to "address the most urgent humanitarian and human rights challenges facing" the government and people of Sri Lanka.

The session was called for by a largely Western-bloc of nations, headed by Germany.

Sri Lanka and some of its allies in the developing world have opposed calls for investigations into allegations that the government and the Tamil Tiger (LTTE) rebels committed human rights violations.

UN estimates say between 80,000 and 100,000 people were killed in Sri Lanka over the last 25 years of civil strife.

Human rights groups and UN officials have estimated some 8,000 civilians were killed in the LTTE's last stronghold during their final stand against approaching government forces.

Last week, the government declared victory over the Tigers.

The LTTE has been accused of stopping civilians from fleeing the conflict zone, while the government has allegedly used heavy weaponry against dense civilian areas during the final months of the military campaign. (dpa)