TamilNet

Colombo's erasing of “Eezham” from Tamil philosophical poet’s statue evokes strong reactions

[Sat, 24 Jun 2017, 23:21 GMT]

SL Military Intelligence officers, who came from Colombo, were harassing the Divisional Secretary of Karaichchi division in Ki'linochchi, demanding the latter to erase the term "Eezham" from the base of the statue of Tamil Poet and Philosopher Thiruva'l'luvar. The statue was raised inside the premises of Karaichchi DS office on 17 June. The organisation, coordinating the raising of the statue in the district, the Tamil Sangam in Ki'linochchi, was asked by the DS to erase the term, leaving behind the other term “Ilangkai”. The Sinhlala military-instructed removal of the main Tamil term Eezham has evoked strong reactions from all the sections of Eezham Tamils in the island. The initiative-taker of the move, Mara'vanpulavu K. Satchithananthan, reminded the readers that even the Sinhala term ‘Hela’ was originating from the same root and called the removal of the word an act of cowardice.

Full story >>

SL State Intelligence targets families of Diaspora Tamil activists in North-East

[Fri, 23 Jun 2017, 23:27 GMT]

SL Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe's State Intelligence Service (SIS), which was formerly known as the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB), is now going after the families of Tamil diaspora activists, who are living in the island, particularly in the North and East. Instead of operating white-vans and issuing TID notices, the SIS interrogators send couple of Sinhala policemen prior to their arrival. After reaching a house, the interrogators, who are in civil, start to ask questions filling out the details to the questions they have with them. Often, they come up with direct threats creating conditions of mental torture. 72-year-old Kumarasamy Navaratnarajah, from Navaali West in Maanippaay, Jaffna, was assaulted on 04 June. Full story >>

Colombo wants Sinhalicised village to be annexed with Vavuniyaa Division

[Wed, 21 Jun 2017, 22:40 GMT]

Kokkachchaan-ku’lam, a traditional Tamil village in Vavuniyaa district, was Sinhalicised into Kala-bogas-wewa and Colonized heavily during the Rajapaksa regime in 2013 and 2014 with an active role by the then SL Governor to North and Namal Rajapaksa, the son of former SL President. This village is now being demographically integrated with Kallik-ku’lam GS division of Vavuniyaa Tamil division. In the meantime, another part of the former Tamil village of Kokkachchaan-ku'lam is being demographically annexed with Kebithigollewa of Anuradhapura district of North Central Province, the civil sources in Vavuniyaa further said. Full story >>

NGO activist in Jaffna urges Tamil diaspora to be vigilant on Colombo-centric manipulations

[Mon, 19 Jun 2017, 17:05 GMT]

NGO Secretariat functioning under SL Minister Mano Ganesan is a smoke screen operation of the Colombo-centric discourse seeking to suppress and manipulate the civil structures in the North and East. The so-called ‘National Secretariat for Non-Governmental Organizations’ (NSNGO), also known as NGO Secretariat, is trying to control the local civil and NGOs by creating ‘federations’ at district-level while SL Prime Minister's office seems to exercise full control over the outfit, says Vijayaratnam Kesavan, a civil rights activist in Jaffna. The NGO secretariat is being deployed during the last three months to eliminate the already compromised independency of NGOs and the civil groups in the North-East, he said, criticising the move to create NGO federations at district level while there are already well-functioning independent coordination mechanisms in existence for the last 25 years. Full story >>

Time is running out for ITAK to re-orientate itself to basic fundamentals of Tamil struggle

[Sat, 17 Jun 2017, 22:30 GMT]

The guarantees and promises given so far by R. Sampanthan on crucial matters such as de-militarisation, resettlement, tracing the enforced disappeared, international investigations and on achieving a federal solution have not been materialised. The Eezham Tamils in the North-East are losing faith on Opposition Leader. Instead, the Tamil people look upon Justice Wigneswaran as their leader, said Suresh Premachandran, the leader of the EPRLF, one of the constituent parties of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA). Three of the four parties comprising the TNA stand with Wigneswaran. Tamil people have delivered their message to the ITAK through the shutdown and agitations in Jaffna, Ki'linochchi, Mullaiththeevu and Vavuniyaa. There was also much support coming from Eastern province, the former TNA parliamentarian told TamilNet on Saturday after a joint meeting with Justice C.V. Wigneswaran. Full story >>

Justice Wigneswaran vows to stay the course despite attempts to oust him

[Thu, 15 Jun 2017, 23:37 GMT]

NPC Chief Minister Justice Wigneswaran on Thursday said that he was not being deterred from continuing his work and service to the people of Northern Province. His comments came after hundreds of Tamil students gathered outside his office expressing their solidarity with him. “I was a silent observer elsewhere [before being elected as the CM] unconcerned about what was taking place here. I hardly knew that the people had so much of love for me, and expectations from me. Despite my age, it is my duty to reciprocate what they have been showing. Today was an eye-opener with so many people coming over and showing their love. It is my duty to continue to serve the people wherever they are to the best of my ability,” Justice C.V. Wigneswaran said. Full story >>

SL military-run preschool children in Vanni forced to wear ‘CSD uniforms’ again

[Tue, 13 Jun 2017, 22:04 GMT]

The controversial practice of making the children attending certain pre-schools in the Sinhala military-occupied Vanni to wear uniforms of the so-called Civil Security Department, a military outfit of genocidal Sri Lanka, has surfaced again, Tamil rights activists in Ki’linochchi told TamilNet on Tuesday. The CSD, which is an official SL military-outfit, is still operating the farms and pre-schools, where it has deployed around 10,000 enslaved ex-members of the LTTE as a slave workforce. Following strong criticisms, there was a brief period where the SL military kept a low profile in the practice of enforcing the uniform on pre-school children for some time. Now, there is another attempt of promoting CSD branded uniforms in the preschools in Mullaiththeevu and Ki'linochchi districts. Full story >>

Tamil fishermen in Vanni warn of confronting intruding Sinhala fishermen

[Thu, 22 Jun 2017, 20:31 GMT]

Eezham Tamil fishermen’s societies in Mullaith-theevu and in Vadamaraadchi East complain that more than 400 trawlers from the South have been deployed along their coast from Chaalai to Naakar-koayil in Jaffna district, exploiting their livelihood and marine resources almost on daily basis in the recent weeks. The occupying Sinhala fishermen were telling the local fishermen in the beginning that they would not be disturbing the livelihood of the local fishermen and that there were only 40 trawlers engaging in the fishing from a distance of 4 nautical miles beyond the coastline. But, the intrusion has now exceeded completely out of proportion, causing destruction to the fishing nets of local fishermen. The Sinhala fishermen are deploying prohibited methods of fishing at the presence of SL Navy. Full story >>

Global ‘environment funds’ deployed by Colombo to seize lands in North-East

[Tue, 20 Jun 2017, 17:26 GMT]

Global Establishments seem to be extensively involved in channelling funds to Colombo through the so-called ‘environmental’ and ‘forest preservation’ projects that are conceived by the SL State and Colombo- and Sinhala-centric NGOs, which derive their funds from global programmes associated with the programmes being promoted by global Establishments, particularly the outfits of the West. In order to secure such funds, the agent-State in Colombo is relentlessly seizing the lands of Tamil-speaking peoples in the North and East. Retired Land Commissioner of Eastern Province, Mr Kathirkamathamby Kurunathan, in an interview to TamilNet this week was citing Gazetted seizure of lands from Musali in Mannaar to Ampaa'rai in the East and illustrated how these appropriations were circumventing even the safeguards of the SL Constitution and the principles of natural justice. Full story >>

Colombo regime, West-funded CEPA, ITAK minister behind causing disunity in NPC

[Sun, 18 Jun 2017, 21:04 GMT]

There has been a systematic move by Colombo regime, particularly its foreign ministry, health ministry and the NGO outfits such as the Center for Poverty Analysis (CEPA), causing a division within the NPC by making its Health Minister Dr P. Sathiyalingam to collaborate along a Colombo-centric line of engineering so-called ‘development’, said Vinthan Kanagaratnam, an NPC councillor in an interview to TamilNet on Sunday. The move also aimed to divert external assistance to other provinces, particularly the North Central Province. The same move also seeks to involve sections of the Tamil diaspora, he said. NPC Health Minister was operating secretly, circumventing the routines and the democratically constituted NPC mechanisms. ‘Advisors’ appointed by Mr Sathiyalingam to his ministry and sections of the ITAK, are also complicit in the engineering of divisions, Mr Kanagaratnam further said. Full story >>

2ND LEAD (Adds photos)

Jaffna at standstill, people rally at Nallloor in support of Wigneswaran

[Fri, 16 Jun 2017, 07:41 GMT]

People rally in Jaffna in support of C.V. Wigneswaran

More than 2,000 Eezham Tamils, most of them students, gathered in front of Nalloor temple and marched towards the nearby residence of NPC Chief Minister C.V. Wigneswaran, expressing their solidarity with him on Friday morning. The protesters condemned Ilangkai Thamizh Arasuk Kadchi (ITAK), the main constituent party of the TNA for conspiring with the Colombo’s ruling sections in a move to oust Justice C.V. Wigneswaran from the position of Chief Minister. The peaceful rally received active support from Jaffna University Teachers Association and student groups. In the meantime, all the government offices were brought to a complete standstill and the private businesses remain closed in Jaffna and elsewhere in the North, observing a successful shut-down. Full story >>

NPC plunges into crisis as external agenda-backed forces challenge Wigneswaran

[Wed, 14 Jun 2017, 23:35 GMT]

Ilangkai Thamizh Arasuk Kadchi (ITAK), which is the main constituent party of the TNA, engineered a move of no-confidence against NPC Chief Minister Justice C.V.Wigneswaran on Wednesday. A considerable number of councillors submitted the request, just a few hours after Justice Wigneswaran instructed two of his ministers, subjected to investigations to resign, and asked two other ministers to go on compulsory leave until the investigation on them is completed. Bringing the four ministries under Chief Minister's purview, the NPC CM said he was answerable to the people who had entrusted him with the task of leading the NPC. TNA parliamentarian M.A. Sumanthiran has been involved in creating, managing and finally deploying the move as an opportunity to force Wignewaran and his genre to retire from politics. However, Wigneswaran remains calm and restraint, news sources in Jaffna said. Full story >>

What connects two thousand years of genocide? Too much power in too few hands.

-Simon Wiesenthal
December 31, 1908 - September 20, 2005
Austrian-Jewish architectural engineer
Holocaust survivor
Became famous after World War II for his work as a Nazi hunter

[20.02.16]
The Tamil Genocide by Sri LankaThe second edition with over 150 new pages traces the ongoing engagement in the Sri Lankan conflict of Professor Francis A. Boyle, an eminent American expert in international law, from the conflict’s last years to the present pursuit of UN recognition of the Tamil genocide and call for reparations. It is the first book to develop an authoritative case for genocide against the Government of Sri Lanka under international law. The book is available from Clarity Press, Amazon in soft cover or in Kindle version.

[11.11.15]
South Africa to Singapore: global Tamils grasping geopolitics to act: The South African conference held in Durban has come out with many demands that are dear to the heart of Tamils, such as demilitarisation, stopping Sinhala colonisation, repeal of the 6th Amendment to facilitate free negotiation etc. But the slip was still showing when the conference avoided the term genocide. What was more ironical that betrayed the deception was the slogan of the conference organizers that called the country they want to salvage as ‘Sri Lanka’, boldly written in Tamil.
Related Story >>

[04.11.15]
Tamil leadership need not shy away or react to unfair challenge coming from Sumanthiran: Eezham Tamil polity seeking pardon from Tamil-speaking Muslims should be unassuming, but it should come in an enlightening way to the edification of the Colombo-centric agenda or the powers-guided agenda, pursued in the past as well as in the present. Otherwise, it may only amount to conferring impunity to the State in Colombo and its abettors.
Related Story >>

[06.05.15]
Retired land commissioner of Eastern Province on Structural Genocide against Eezham Tamils: The systematic seizure of traditional lands belonging to the Tamil speaking people of the North-East have been widespread under the guise of archaeological, forest and wild-life conservations and subsequently carried out through the acts of demarcating these lands under the purview of the state apparatuses such as the Archaeological Department, Forest Department and the Wild-life Conservation Department, says retired Land Commissioner of the Eastern Province Karthirgamathamby Kurunathan, in an in-depth video interview to TamilNet.
Related Story >>

[05.05.15]
TNPF rejects ‘domestic investigations’ upheld by USA: The fact that the United States and the US Secretary of State John Kerry would consider the post January 08th 2015 situation in Sri Lanka, with the new government favourable, is understandable. But, for him to suggest that there is a favourable condition for the Tamils, is stretching too far, said Tamil National Peoples Front (TNPF) Leader Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam, responding to a question from TamilNet.
Related Story >>

[02.05.15]
Sivaram, Wigneswaran saw futility in convincing Sinhala polity: senior editor: The failure of Sivaram and his transfer into a staunch Tamil nationalist is analogical to the political course and current stand of the NPC Chief Minister, Mr C.V. Wigneswaran, said veteran Tamil journalist and editor, Mr. V. Thevaraj, addressing the 10th assassination anniversary meet of Sivaram held in Batticaloa on Wednesday.
Related Story >>

[02.05.15]
New generation of organic intellectuals needed to continue Sivaram’s work: Informed by Tamil literature as much by Tamil history, Marxism as much as Poststructuralism, Thucydides as much as contemporary COIN theorists, Sivaram worked for the Eelam Tamil cause as a leading politico-military analyst and as a true “organic intellectual,” writes RM Karthick.
Related Story >>

[02.05.15]
Sivaram commemorated in Tamil Nadu on 10th anniversary of his assassination: Journalist Revati Laul, who served as special correspondent at Tehelka and NDTV, journalist Priyamvatha Panchapagesan, an associate editor with News X, journalist Radhika Sudhakar, writer Aazhi Senthil Nathan and activists Thirumurugan Gandhi, coordinator of May 17 movement and Dr. Ezhilan Naganathan, the founder of I'laignar Iyakkam were among the speakers at the memorial event held in Chennai on the 10 anniversary of Sivaram's assassination.
Related Story >>

[29.04.15]
Constitutionally recognise Tamil homeland to prove bona fides, exiled poet tells Colombo: “Would the Sinhala rulers of Sri Lanka ever be prepared to constitutionally recognise the joint North-East as the homeland of Tamils,” questioned exiled Eezham Tamil poet Kasi Anandan on Wednesday, speaking from Chennai, in an Internet-based video address on the occasion of a memorial event held in Batticaloa on the 10th anniversary of the assassinated TamilNet Senior Editor and popular columnist Sivaram Dharmeratnam (Taraki).
Related Story >>

[24.04.15]
Break vicious circle of political obfuscation: Sivaram in 2003: Educating the masses on the designs of Powers and politically mobilising the people for the struggle was the central theme of the piece late Senior Editor of TamilNet Sivaram Dharmeratnam wrote to Northeastern Herald on May 02, 2003, two years before he was assassinated by the Sri Lankan military intelligence.
Related Story >>

[24.04.15]
Task of real Tamil political leadership: Sivaram in 2003: Sivaram Dharmeratnam alias Taraki, the late senior editor of TamilNet, wrote an article in January 2003, explaining the deadlock of the Sri Lankan unitary constitution which cannot provide for a solution within its framework. The international backers were also aware that a federal solution to the ethnic conflict was practically, legally and politically impossible with the Sri Lankan Constitution, he wrote.
Related Story >>

[13.03.15]
New Delhi should stop looking at Eezham Tamils through Colombo: Whether China or the USA, or both – whatever may be the ultimate foreign policy concern of India, the times are such that New Delhi should learn to approach Eezham Tamils as a nation of its own right.
Related Story >>

[10.03.15]
Ki Pi Aravinthan's 2008 interview to TamilNet serialized: TamilNet serializes this week a 2008 interview with veteran former Tamil militant, poet and writer Ki Pi Aravinthan (Christopher Francis alias Sunthar), who passed away on Sunday in Paris at the age of 62.
Related Story >>

[14.02.15]
Palaka'ni: NPC resolution gives hopes on Tamil political unity The recent resolution presented and unanimously adopted in the Northern Provincial Council on historic and recent genocide against Tamils in the island, has rung alarm bells at necessary diplomatic quarters, say Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian Suresh Premachandran (EPRLF) and TNA Councillor M.K. Shivajilingam (TELO). In a Palaka'ni interview to TamilNet this week, Mr Shivajilingam said there were attempts afoot to influence certain Tamil diaspora activists to issue sophisticated statements urging the UN Rights Chief to postpone the OISL report.
Related Story >>

[13.02.15]
Opinion: Understanding accountability: international investigation on outlook crime: NPC Chief Minister Justice CV Wigneswaran observed that such an investigation would make Sinhala people to see the truth and would help getting justice. Equally important or more important is an international investigation on the adamant ‘outlook crime’ of certain powers that fundamentally contributed to the genocide, especially in the recent decades.
Related Story >>

[12.02.15]
Wigneswaran exposes US delay tactics at Geneva: “In my recent conversation with Ms Biswal, I understood that the USA wants to be in favour of the present Sri Lanka government, as this government is favourable to the USA,” Wigneswaran said. “When Ms Biswal asked what could be the appropriate time for the release of the Geneva report and when I replied that it should be in March, she didn’t accept it,” the NPC-CM said.
Related Story >>

[11.02.15]
Key to struggle is to change outlook of powers: Gajendrakumar: The outlook of Powers with regards Tamil national question in the island doesn’t come from lack of knowledge, Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam said in a Palaka'ni interview last week, naming US-dominated West, India and China as actors primarily involved. The change in their outlook to accommodate Tamil interests is certainly not going to be through education, it is something that has to come through a struggle, he said.
Related Story >>

[10.02.15]
Wigneswaran calls for international investigation on genocide: In a key development, the Chief Minister of Northern Provincial Council (NPC), Justice CV Wigneswaran, on Tuesday called for real international investigations on genocide against Tamils committed by the successive governments since Ceylon's independence from the British in 1948.
Related Story >>

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The statue was raised inside the premises of Karaichchi DS office on 17 June. The organisation, coordinating the raising of the statue in the district, the Tamil Sangam in Ki'linochchi, was asked by the DS to erase the term, leaving behind the other term “Ilangkai”. The Sinhlala military-instructed removal of the main Tamil term Eezham has evoked strong reactions from all the sections of Eezham Tamils in the island. The initiative-taker of the move, Mara'vanpulavu K. Satchithananthan, reminded the readers that even the Sinhala term ‘Hela’ was originating from the same root and called the removal of the word an act of cowardice. Full story >> Latest Reports: Jun 24 23:21 Colombo's erasing of “Eezham” from Tamil philosoph.. Jun 23 23:27 SL State Intelligence targets families of Diaspora.. Jun 22 20:31 Tamil fishermen in Vanni warn of confronting intru.. Jun 21 22:40 Colombo wants Sinhalicised village to be annexed w.. Jun 20 17:26 Global ‘environment funds’ deployed by Colombo to .. Jun 19 17:05 NGO activist in Jaffna urges Tamil diaspora to be .. Jun 18 21:04 Colombo regime, West-funded CEPA, ITAK minister be.. Jun 17 22:30 Time is running out for ITAK to re-orientate itsel.. Jun 16 07:41 Jaffna at standstill, people rally at Nallloor in .. Jun 15 23:37 Justice Wigneswaran vows to stay the course despit.. Jun 14 23:35 NPC plunges into crisis as external agenda-backed .. Jun 13 22:04 SL military-run preschool children in Vanni forced.. << Flashback More Reports >> SL State Intelligence targets families of Diaspora Tamil activists in North-East [Fri, 23 Jun 2017, 23:27 GMT] SL Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe's State Intelligence Service (SIS), which was formerly known as the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB), is now going after the families of Tamil diaspora activists, who are living in the island, particularly in the North and East. Instead of operating white-vans and issuing TID notices, the SIS interrogators send couple of Sinhala policemen prior to their arrival. After reaching a house, the interrogators, who are in civil, start to ask questions filling out the details to the questions they have with them. Often, they come up with direct threats creating conditions of mental torture. 72-year-old Kumarasamy Navaratnarajah, from Navaali West in Maanippaay, Jaffna, was assaulted on 04 June. Full story >> Colombo wants Sinhalicised village to be annexed with Vavuniyaa Division [Wed, 21 Jun 2017, 22:40 GMT] Kokkachchaan-ku’lam, a traditional Tamil village in Vavuniyaa district, was Sinhalicised into Kala-bogas-wewa and Colonized heavily during the Rajapaksa regime in 2013 and 2014 with an active role by the then SL Governor to North and Namal Rajapaksa, the son of former SL President. This village is now being demographically integrated with Kallik-ku’lam GS division of Vavuniyaa Tamil division. In the meantime, another part of the former Tamil village of Kokkachchaan-ku'lam is being demographically annexed with Kebithigollewa of Anuradhapura district of North Central Province, the civil sources in Vavuniyaa further said. Full story >> NGO activist in Jaffna urges Tamil diaspora to be vigilant on Colombo-centric manipulations [Mon, 19 Jun 2017, 17:05 GMT] NGO Secretariat functioning under SL Minister Mano Ganesan is a smoke screen operation of the Colombo-centric discourse seeking to suppress and manipulate the civil structures in the North and East. The so-called ‘National Secretariat for Non-Governmental Organizations’ (NSNGO), also known as NGO Secretariat, is trying to control the local civil and NGOs by creating ‘federations’ at district-level while SL Prime Minister's office seems to exercise full control over the outfit, says Vijayaratnam Kesavan, a civil rights activist in Jaffna. The NGO secretariat is being deployed during the last three months to eliminate the already compromised independency of NGOs and the civil groups in the North-East, he said, criticising the move to create NGO federations at district level while there are already well-functioning independent coordination mechanisms in existence for the last 25 years. Full story >> Time is running out for ITAK to re-orientate itself to basic fundamentals of Tamil struggle [Sat, 17 Jun 2017, 22:30 GMT] The guarantees and promises given so far by R. Sampanthan on crucial matters such as de-militarisation, resettlement, tracing the enforced disappeared, international investigations and on achieving a federal solution have not been materialised. The Eezham Tamils in the North-East are losing faith on Opposition Leader. Instead, the Tamil people look upon Justice Wigneswaran as their leader, said Suresh Premachandran, the leader of the EPRLF, one of the constituent parties of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA). Three of the four parties comprising the TNA stand with Wigneswaran. Tamil people have delivered their message to the ITAK through the shutdown and agitations in Jaffna, Ki'linochchi, Mullaiththeevu and Vavuniyaa. There was also much support coming from Eastern province, the former TNA parliamentarian told TamilNet on Saturday after a joint meeting with Justice C.V. Wigneswaran. Full story >> Justice Wigneswaran vows to stay the course despite attempts to oust him [Thu, 15 Jun 2017, 23:37 GMT] NPC Chief Minister Justice Wigneswaran on Thursday said that he was not being deterred from continuing his work and service to the people of Northern Province. His comments came after hundreds of Tamil students gathered outside his office expressing their solidarity with him. “I was a silent observer elsewhere [before being elected as the CM] unconcerned about what was taking place here. I hardly knew that the people had so much of love for me, and expectations from me. Despite my age, it is my duty to reciprocate what they have been showing. Today was an eye-opener with so many people coming over and showing their love. It is my duty to continue to serve the people wherever they are to the best of my ability,” Justice C.V. Wigneswaran said. Full story >> SL military-run preschool children in Vanni forced to wear ‘CSD uniforms’ again [Tue, 13 Jun 2017, 22:04 GMT] The controversial practice of making the children attending certain pre-schools in the Sinhala military-occupied Vanni to wear uniforms of the so-called Civil Security Department, a military outfit of genocidal Sri Lanka, has surfaced again, Tamil rights activists in Ki’linochchi told TamilNet on Tuesday. The CSD, which is an official SL military-outfit, is still operating the farms and pre-schools, where it has deployed around 10,000 enslaved ex-members of the LTTE as a slave workforce. Following strong criticisms, there was a brief period where the SL military kept a low profile in the practice of enforcing the uniform on pre-school children for some time. Now, there is another attempt of promoting CSD branded uniforms in the preschools in Mullaiththeevu and Ki'linochchi districts. Full story >> Tamil fishermen in Vanni warn of confronting intruding Sinhala fishermen [Thu, 22 Jun 2017, 20:31 GMT] Eezham Tamil fishermen’s societies in Mullaith-theevu and in Vadamaraadchi East complain that more than 400 trawlers from the South have been deployed along their coast from Chaalai to Naakar-koayil in Jaffna district, exploiting their livelihood and marine resources almost on daily basis in the recent weeks. The occupying Sinhala fishermen were telling the local fishermen in the beginning that they would not be disturbing the livelihood of the local fishermen and that there were only 40 trawlers engaging in the fishing from a distance of 4 nautical miles beyond the coastline. But, the intrusion has now exceeded completely out of proportion, causing destruction to the fishing nets of local fishermen. The Sinhala fishermen are deploying prohibited methods of fishing at the presence of SL Navy. Full story >> Global ‘environment funds’ deployed by Colombo to seize lands in North-East [Tue, 20 Jun 2017, 17:26 GMT] Global Establishments seem to be extensively involved in channelling funds to Colombo through the so-called ‘environmental’ and ‘forest preservation’ projects that are conceived by the SL State and Colombo- and Sinhala-centric NGOs, which derive their funds from global programmes associated with the programmes being promoted by global Establishments, particularly the outfits of the West. In order to secure such funds, the agent-State in Colombo is relentlessly seizing the lands of Tamil-speaking peoples in the North and East. Retired Land Commissioner of Eastern Province, Mr Kathirkamathamby Kurunathan, in an interview to TamilNet this week was citing Gazetted seizure of lands from Musali in Mannaar to Ampaa'rai in the East and illustrated how these appropriations were circumventing even the safeguards of the SL Constitution and the principles of natural justice. Full story >> Colombo regime, West-funded CEPA, ITAK minister behind causing disunity in NPC [Sun, 18 Jun 2017, 21:04 GMT] There has been a systematic move by Colombo regime, particularly its foreign ministry, health ministry and the NGO outfits such as the Center for Poverty Analysis (CEPA), causing a division within the NPC by making its Health Minister Dr P. Sathiyalingam to collaborate along a Colombo-centric line of engineering so-called ‘development’, said Vinthan Kanagaratnam, an NPC councillor in an interview to TamilNet on Sunday. The move also aimed to divert external assistance to other provinces, particularly the North Central Province. The same move also seeks to involve sections of the Tamil diaspora, he said. NPC Health Minister was operating secretly, circumventing the routines and the democratically constituted NPC mechanisms. ‘Advisors’ appointed by Mr Sathiyalingam to his ministry and sections of the ITAK, are also complicit in the engineering of divisions, Mr Kanagaratnam further said. Full story >> 2ND LEAD (Adds photos) Jaffna at standstill, people rally at Nallloor in support of Wigneswaran [Fri, 16 Jun 2017, 07:41 GMT] More than 2,000 Eezham Tamils, most of them students, gathered in front of Nalloor temple and marched towards the nearby residence of NPC Chief Minister C.V. Wigneswaran, expressing their solidarity with him on Friday morning. The protesters condemned Ilangkai Thamizh Arasuk Kadchi (ITAK), the main constituent party of the TNA for conspiring with the Colombo’s ruling sections in a move to oust Justice C.V. Wigneswaran from the position of Chief Minister. The peaceful rally received active support from Jaffna University Teachers Association and student groups. In the meantime, all the government offices were brought to a complete standstill and the private businesses remain closed in Jaffna and elsewhere in the North, observing a successful shut-down. Full story >> NPC plunges into crisis as external agenda-backed forces challenge Wigneswaran [Wed, 14 Jun 2017, 23:35 GMT] Ilangkai Thamizh Arasuk Kadchi (ITAK), which is the main constituent party of the TNA, engineered a move of no-confidence against NPC Chief Minister Justice C.V.Wigneswaran on Wednesday. A considerable number of councillors submitted the request, just a few hours after Justice Wigneswaran instructed two of his ministers, subjected to investigations to resign, and asked two other ministers to go on compulsory leave until the investigation on them is completed. Bringing the four ministries under Chief Minister's purview, the NPC CM said he was answerable to the people who had entrusted him with the task of leading the NPC. TNA parliamentarian M.A. Sumanthiran has been involved in creating, managing and finally deploying the move as an opportunity to force Wignewaran and his genre to retire from politics. However, Wigneswaran remains calm and restraint, news sources in Jaffna said. Full story >> Top Flashback: 2015: 2015 Jun 28 23:06 Sirisena answerable for secret incarceration by... 2014: 2014 Jun 28 23:32 Kurds make strategic gains in Iraq crisis 2013: 2013 Jun 28 22:34 Ban on water supply threatens agriculture of Ee... 2012: 2012 Jun 28 19:40 TNA MP warns legal action against genocidal lan... 2012 Jun 28 07:28 Colombo deploys paramilitary operative to intim... 2011: 2011 Jun 28 10:10 Death certificates to whitewash abductions, kil... 2011 Jun 28 09:58 Plans afoot to “Sinhalacise” Tamil border villa... 2010: 2010 Jun 28 21:31 KP-Diaspora programme operated by SL Military I... 2010 Jun 28 17:28 Public servants to receive only Rs.1000 salary ... 2010 Jun 28 17:21 JHU holds protest march against UN Experts Panel 2010 Jun 28 11:07 6 including 2 children die in road accident, 10... 2010 Jun 28 10:00 PM to present 2010 Budget in parliament as SL P... 2010 Jun 28 09:47 Indian national killed in Wellawatte; 2 includi... 2010 Jun 28 07:56 Sand dunes scooped at 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2007: 2007 Jun 28 21:48 Trinco youth reported missing from Kurunagala h... 2007 Jun 28 20:04 3 Tamil civilians arrested in Wellawatte 2007 Jun 28 19:53 TNA councilor assassinated in Ampaa'rai 2007 Jun 28 19:42 SLAF personnel assault Tamil journalist in Colombo 2007 Jun 28 16:23 Pavement vendor shot dead in Jaffna town 2007 Jun 28 16:16 Sri Lanka Air Force bombs Vanni 2007 Jun 28 14:17 Wickremasinghe- Samaraweera to forge new alliance 2007 Jun 28 12:15 SL Govt attempts to reintroduce “Criminal Defam... 2007 Jun 28 09:20 HRC Jaffna officials receive death threats 2007 Jun 28 06:38 2 SLA soldiers killed in Claymore ambush in Jaffna 2006: 2006 Jun 28 18:36 Claymore explosion kills three Mannar civilians 2006 Jun 28 17:00 SLA soldier shot, injured in Batticaloa 2006 Jun 28 16:00 SLA cordons off, searches large areas in Vadama... 2006 Jun 28 11:38 USAID project to revitalize harbors in Southern... 2006 Jun 28 11:20 Three businessmen missing in Vakarai 2006 Jun 28 09:30 160 disappear after 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Jun 28 11:41 SLA to return 36 Tigers' bodies 1999 Jun 28 07:50 Six MBTs damaged -VoT 1998: 1998 Jun 28 23:59 SLN acquires hovercraft 1998 Jun 28 23:59 Three civilians killed 1998 Jun 28 23:59 Cash liquidity crisis 1998 Jun 28 23:59 To be or not to be? What connects two thousand years of genocide? Too much power in too few hands. -Simon Wiesenthal December 31, 1908 - September 20, 2005 Austrian-Jewish architectural engineer Holocaust survivor Became famous after World War II for his work as a Nazi hunter	Know the Etymology: 182 Place Name of the Day: (182 of 500 revised) Mẹda-kẹṭiya, Boraḷu-kẹṭiya, Pupula-kẹṭiya, Mānan-kaṭṭiya, Tiṁbirigas-kaṭuva, Huṇu-kẹṭa-piṭiya The middle part or middle block The pebble/ gravel part or heap The collection of Pupula creepers or the part of Pupula creepers The big grassland part The part or collection of Timbiri trees The high ground plain of limestone lumps Read more >> [20.02.16] The Tamil Genocide by Sri LankaThe second edition with over 150 new pages traces the ongoing engagement in the Sri Lankan conflict of Professor Francis A. Boyle, an eminent American expert in international law, from the conflict’s last years to the present pursuit of UN recognition of the Tamil genocide and call for reparations. It is the first book to develop an authoritative case for genocide against the Government of Sri Lanka under international law. The book is available from Clarity Press, Amazon in soft cover or in Kindle version. [11.11.15] South Africa to Singapore: global Tamils grasping geopolitics to act: The South African conference held in Durban has come out with many demands that are dear to the heart of Tamils, such as demilitarisation, stopping Sinhala colonisation, repeal of the 6th Amendment to facilitate free negotiation etc. But the slip was still showing when the conference avoided the term genocide. What was more ironical that betrayed the deception was the slogan of the conference organizers that called the country they want to salvage as ‘Sri Lanka’, boldly written in Tamil. Related Story >> [04.11.15] Tamil leadership need not shy away or react to unfair challenge coming from Sumanthiran: Eezham Tamil polity seeking pardon from Tamil-speaking Muslims should be unassuming, but it should come in an enlightening way to the edification of the Colombo-centric agenda or the powers-guided agenda, pursued in the past as well as in the present. Otherwise, it may only amount to conferring impunity to the State in Colombo and its abettors. Related Story >> [06.05.15] Retired land commissioner of Eastern Province on Structural Genocide against Eezham Tamils: The systematic seizure of traditional lands belonging to the Tamil speaking people of the North-East have been widespread under the guise of archaeological, forest and wild-life conservations and subsequently carried out through the acts of demarcating these lands under the purview of the state apparatuses such as the Archaeological Department, Forest Department and the Wild-life Conservation Department, says retired Land Commissioner of the Eastern Province Karthirgamathamby Kurunathan, in an in-depth video interview to TamilNet. Related Story >> [05.05.15] TNPF rejects ‘domestic investigations’ upheld by USA: The fact that the United States and the US Secretary of State John Kerry would consider the post January 08th 2015 situation in Sri Lanka, with the new government favourable, is understandable. But, for him to suggest that there is a favourable condition for the Tamils, is stretching too far, said Tamil National Peoples Front (TNPF) Leader Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam, responding to a question from TamilNet. Related Story >> [02.05.15] Sivaram, Wigneswaran saw futility in convincing Sinhala polity: senior editor: The failure of Sivaram and his transfer into a staunch Tamil nationalist is analogical to the political course and current stand of the NPC Chief Minister, Mr C.V. Wigneswaran, said veteran Tamil journalist and editor, Mr. V. Thevaraj, addressing the 10th assassination anniversary meet of Sivaram held in Batticaloa on Wednesday. Related Story >> [02.05.15] New generation of organic intellectuals needed to continue Sivaram’s work: Informed by Tamil literature as much by Tamil history, Marxism as much as Poststructuralism, Thucydides as much as contemporary COIN theorists, Sivaram worked for the Eelam Tamil cause as a leading politico-military analyst and as a true “organic intellectual,” writes RM Karthick. Related Story >> [02.05.15] Sivaram commemorated in Tamil Nadu on 10th anniversary of his assassination: Journalist Revati Laul, who served as special correspondent at Tehelka and NDTV, journalist Priyamvatha Panchapagesan, an associate editor with News X, journalist Radhika Sudhakar, writer Aazhi Senthil Nathan and activists Thirumurugan Gandhi, coordinator of May 17 movement and Dr. Ezhilan Naganathan, the founder of I'laignar Iyakkam were among the speakers at the memorial event held in Chennai on the 10 anniversary of Sivaram's assassination. Related Story >> [29.04.15] Constitutionally recognise Tamil homeland to prove bona fides, exiled poet tells Colombo: “Would the Sinhala rulers of Sri Lanka ever be prepared to constitutionally recognise the joint North-East as the homeland of Tamils,” questioned exiled Eezham Tamil poet Kasi Anandan on Wednesday, speaking from Chennai, in an Internet-based video address on the occasion of a memorial event held in Batticaloa on the 10th anniversary of the assassinated TamilNet Senior Editor and popular columnist Sivaram Dharmeratnam (Taraki). Related Story >> [24.04.15] Break vicious circle of political obfuscation: Sivaram in 2003: Educating the masses on the designs of Powers and politically mobilising the people for the struggle was the central theme of the piece late Senior Editor of TamilNet Sivaram Dharmeratnam wrote to Northeastern Herald on May 02, 2003, two years before he was assassinated by the Sri Lankan military intelligence. Related Story >> [24.04.15] Task of real Tamil political leadership: Sivaram in 2003: Sivaram Dharmeratnam alias Taraki, the late senior editor of TamilNet, wrote an article in January 2003, explaining the deadlock of the Sri Lankan unitary constitution which cannot provide for a solution within its framework. The international backers were also aware that a federal solution to the ethnic conflict was practically, legally and politically impossible with the Sri Lankan Constitution, he wrote. Related Story >> [13.03.15] New Delhi should stop looking at Eezham Tamils through Colombo: Whether China or the USA, or both – whatever may be the ultimate foreign policy concern of India, the times are such that New Delhi should learn to approach Eezham Tamils as a nation of its own right. Related Story >> [10.03.15] Ki Pi Aravinthan's 2008 interview to TamilNet serialized: TamilNet serializes this week a 2008 interview with veteran former Tamil militant, poet and writer Ki Pi Aravinthan (Christopher Francis alias Sunthar), who passed away on Sunday in Paris at the age of 62. Related Story >> [14.02.15] Palaka'ni: NPC resolution gives hopes on Tamil political unity The recent resolution presented and unanimously adopted in the Northern Provincial Council on historic and recent genocide against Tamils in the island, has rung alarm bells at necessary diplomatic quarters, say Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian Suresh Premachandran (EPRLF) and TNA Councillor M.K. Shivajilingam (TELO). In a Palaka'ni interview to TamilNet this week, Mr Shivajilingam said there were attempts afoot to influence certain Tamil diaspora activists to issue sophisticated statements urging the UN Rights Chief to postpone the OISL report. Related Story >> [13.02.15] Opinion: Understanding accountability: international investigation on outlook crime: NPC Chief Minister Justice CV Wigneswaran observed that such an investigation would make Sinhala people to see the truth and would help getting justice. Equally important or more important is an international investigation on the adamant ‘outlook crime’ of certain powers that fundamentally contributed to the genocide, especially in the recent decades. Related Story >> [12.02.15] Wigneswaran exposes US delay tactics at Geneva: “In my recent conversation with Ms Biswal, I understood that the USA wants to be in favour of the present Sri Lanka government, as this government is favourable to the USA,” Wigneswaran said. “When Ms Biswal asked what could be the appropriate time for the release of the Geneva report and when I replied that it should be in March, she didn’t accept it,” the NPC-CM said. Related Story >> [11.02.15] Key to struggle is to change outlook of powers: Gajendrakumar: The outlook of Powers with regards Tamil national question in the island doesn’t come from lack of knowledge, Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam said in a Palaka'ni interview last week, naming US-dominated West, India and China as actors primarily involved. The change in their outlook to accommodate Tamil interests is certainly not going to be through education, it is something that has to come through a struggle, he said. Related Story >> [10.02.15] Wigneswaran calls for international investigation on genocide: In a key development, the Chief Minister of Northern Provincial Council (NPC), Justice CV Wigneswaran, on Tuesday called for real international investigations on genocide against Tamils committed by the successive governments since Ceylon's independence from the British in 1948. Related Story >>
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