http://www.tamilnet.com Latest 20 TamilNet reports from Sri Lanka en Copyright (c) 1997-2010 TamilNet Wed, 10 Mar 2010 13:31:10 GMT Wed, 10 Mar 2010 13:31:10 GMT tamilnet@tamilnet.com http://www.tamilnet.com/img/feedlogo2.gif http://www.tamilnet.com 88 31 TamilNet logo http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=79&artid=31329 After abetting a military defeat and subsequently blessing a political defeat, the coterie of countries propping up Sri Lankan state is now bent upon enacting a third Mu’l’livaaykkaal, by bringing in a ‘development defeat’ of Eezham Tamils through handing over development management to the Sinhalese, said a concerned group of diaspora Tamils who recently had an experience of negotiating development in a peace-facilitating European country. Funding agencies of this country, citing their present choice of a Sinhala NGO for implementation of programmes in the island, advise Diaspora Tamils seeking development funds for the North and East to work under the Sinhala NGO. Wed, 10 Mar 2010, 12:50 http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=31336 China has completed arrangements through its funding arm, Exim Bank, to provide $290m in concessionary development loans to Sri Lanka, Reuters reported. $190m of the loan is to develop a second airport in Matara and the other $100m is to improve the railways. China was the largest foreign funding source for Sri Lanka in 2009 with $1.2 billion followed by the Asian Development Bank with $424 million, according to the same report. The 2009 funds were allocated to build roads, coal power project in the Eastern province, and a port in Sri Lanka's President's electorate in Hambantota. Wed, 10 Mar 2010, 12:30 http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=31335 British Permanent Under Secretary for Foreign affairs, Sir Peter Ricketts, arrived in Colombo Wednesday early morning on a two day visit, Colombo media reported. He immediately called on Sri Lanka’s Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama. Wed, 10 Mar 2010, 12:19 http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=31334 Retired Major General Sarath will be tried over five charges under Army Act at a court martial within next few days, Military spokesman, Major General Prasad Amarasinghe told media Monday. He added that the summary of evidence over charges against General Fonseka made in compliance with provisions of the Army Act was completed and handed over to Army Commander over the weekend. Wed, 10 Mar 2010, 10:58 http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=31333 Trincomalee electoral candidates led by Ilangkai Thamizh Arasuk Kadchi (ITAK) leader Mr. R. Sampanthan, Tuesday visited the camps in Ki’liveddi and Paddiththidal in Moothoor DS division where hundreds of internally displaced Tamil families from Champoor, Kooniththeevu, Choodaikkudaa and Navaratnapuram in the High Security Zones declared by the Sri Lanka Army after the eviction of LTTE in April, 2006, are lodged. The visit by ITAK candidates was a part of their election campaign for the forthcoming general election, sources in Trincomalee said. Wed, 10 Mar 2010, 10:50 http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=31332 The Sinhala Marxist party Jantha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) former parliamentarian, Anura Kumara Dissanayake said that JVP will oppose if a new political constitution devolving powers to the Northern and Eastern provinces is to be created, in a press briefing held in Colombo Tuesday. “Minister G. L. Peiris recently said that the government intends implementing its newly drafted political constitution following the parliamentary elections and I call upon the government to make public this new political constitution,” Anura Kumar Dissanayake said adding that JVP will never permit the country to be divided. Wed, 10 Mar 2010, 09:28 http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=31331 While India is said to be seriously considering opening a branch of its High Commission for Sri Lanka in Jaffna, Chinese contractors are actively engaged in planning the broadening of five major roads in the peninsula in keeping with the agreement entered with Sri Lanka President, Mahintha Rajapakse, sources in Jaffna said. A conference presided by Jaffna Government Agent was held Tuesday at Jaffna Secretariat to discuss matters related to road development projects in Jaffna peninsula with Chinese funds. Top officials from the Northern Province Street Development Commission Board (NPSDCB) explained the proposed projects to the participants in the conference. Divisional Secretaries, representatives of Traders’ Union and other civil organizations were invited to the above conference, the sources added. Wed, 10 Mar 2010, 08:16 http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=31330 Sri Lanka Army (SLA) Commander Lt. Gen. Jegath Jeyasooriya officially opened the SLA Civil Administration Head Office Tuesday and inaugurated its Website in a public building on Jaffna Hospital road, taken over by SLA for this purpose, sources in Jaffna said. In the past SLA civil administration offices had been used by the government to control and subjugate the people of the peninsula militarily, the sources added. These offices were alleged to have been involved in the disappearances of the young men and women who had gone to these offices as well as the killings of them on the roads and elsewhere, the sources further said. Wed, 10 Mar 2010, 06:33 http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=31328 Executive directors of two NGOs, the Center for Policy Alternatives (CPA), a Colombo-based think tank, and Transparency International, Sri Lanka (TISL), have written a protest letter to Sri Lanka's President Mahinda Rajapakse complaining about a news report in a Colombo website which said that "[Sri Lanka] state intelligence agencies have been compiling a list or lists of individuals supportive of the opposition, and that CPA's Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu, and TISL's Weliamuna have been placed on that list. While noting that CPA "cannot independently ascertain the veracity of this report," the letter said, if the report is true then "there are reasonable grounds for fear about the physical liberty and safety of the individuals concerned." Tue, 09 Mar 2010, 12:02 http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=31327 Vanni Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) allowed to resettle in some areas in Ki’linochchi and Mannaar districts are being subjected to severe restrictions and harassment by occupying Sri Lanka Army (SLA), sources close Jaffna Bishop's House said. This information was gathered from the group of Catholic Bishops of six districts who visited the said areas in Ki’linochchi and Mannaar recently, the sources said. The Bishops, however, are reluctant to officially disclose this situation in Vanni due to fear, the sources added. Tue, 09 Mar 2010, 11:21 http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=31326 The State of Emergency was extended by another month by the Sri Lanka’s parliament Tuesday. Ninety three parliamentarians of the ruling United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) and its constituent parties voted for the extension and twenty parliamentarians from the main opposition United National Party (UNP), Tamil National Alliance (TNA) and the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) voted against. The dissolved parliament was summoned by Sri Lanka's President Mahinda Rajapakse to ratify his gazette notification issued last week to extend the emergency. According to the Constitution, the gazette notification should be ratified within ten days. Tue, 09 Mar 2010, 10:56 http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=31325 A protest demonstration demanding immediate resettlement of people displaced from Valikaamam North occupied by Sri Lanka Army (SLA) as High Security Zone (HSZ) organized by the Welfare Organizations for Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) on 1 March in front of Jaffna Secretariat had to be given up due to the strong opposition to it by Jaffna Government Agent (GA) K. Ganesh, the representatives of the welfare organizations said. The GA had refused to accept the memorandum of the protestors saying that the matter of resettlement should not be made a political issue in the context of the forthcoming parliamentary election, the organizations further alleged. Tue, 09 Mar 2010, 06:00 http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=31324 Expressing concerns on the lack of progress on "political reconciliation, the treatment of internally displaced persons (IDPs) and the setting up of an accountability process in Sri Lanka," United Nations Secretary General, confirmed that he intends to move forward on a group of experts which will advise him on setting the broad parameters and standards on the way ahead on establishing accountability concerning Sri Lanka, a UN News Center report said. "The accountability concerns possible breaches of international humanitarian law or abuses of human rights carried out during the conflict," the report said. Earlier, High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva, Navi Pillay, called on Sri Lanka to investigate the allegations itself, albeit with outside help. Tue, 09 Mar 2010, 04:09 http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=31323 Around 500 women including many feminists from South observing International Women’s Day went on an awareness march Monday around 9:30 a.m from Jaffna Secretariat, sources in Jaffna said. Jaffna Government Agent, K. Ganesh officially inaugurated this event which highlighted the plight of women gone missing and arrested women exposed to violence in the prisons including women militants, the sources added. Action Committee Against Gender-based Violence had organized this event. Mon, 08 Mar 2010, 18:08 http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=31322 Ilangkai Thamizh Arasuk Kadchi (ITAK) Monday began a three day campaign by holding election meeting in every Tamil village in the Moothoor East, Verukal DS division, Moothoor DS division in Trincomalee district. ITAK leader and the chief candidate for the Trincomalee district Mr.R.Sampanthan is leading the campaign with other six candidates in the list. Mon, 08 Mar 2010, 16:07 http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=31321 Indian Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao met Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa Sunday morning at the President's House. Both discussed several issues relating to the resettlement of the internally displaced people after the war. Sources in Colombo said the talks between the two also touched the subject on finding a political solution to the ethnic question. However no official communiqué was issued up to now on the talks. Mon, 08 Mar 2010, 09:20 http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=31320 Dismissing the response by Colombo that Ban Ki Moon had not appointed panel of experts on other countries where there are "continuing armed conflicts on a large scale, involving major humanitarian catastrophes and causing the deaths of large numbers of civilians due to military action," as "simply untrue nonsense," Francis A. Boyle, professor at the University of Illinois College of Law, said that during the past year alone UN Human Rights Council had authorized Goldstone Commission investigation into Israel war crimes against Palestinians in Gaza. Noting that the "United Nations is just beginning to do the right thing for the Tamils," Prof Boyle urged that "Tamils around the world could do the same thing for establishing an International Criminal Tribunal for Sri Lanka (ICTSL)." Sun, 07 Mar 2010, 22:03 http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=31319 A group of thirty-two journalists from the communities of Sinhalese, Tamil and Muslim from Trincomalee district visited Jaffna peninsula Sunday under a program arranged by National Peace Council (NPC) aimed at promoting understanding between communities, sources in Jaffna said. The group of journalists visited the offices of Uthayan, Yarl Thinakural and Valampuri Tamil dailies published in the peninsula. Sun, 07 Mar 2010, 18:05 http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=31318 Pilgrims who returned from Paalaitheevu after attending the lent period prayers in St. Antony’s church Sunday said that they had seen many Chinese Tents and food packets with Chinese writing on them during the annual festival held Saturday and Sunday. Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) occupies many of the pilgrims’ halls behind the church and no one was allowed to enter them, the devotees said. Chinese navy presence in Kachchatheevu has been confirmed by Tamil Nadu journalists who had participated in the St. Antony’s Church festival recently, according to a Tamil daily in Tamil Nadu. Sun, 07 Mar 2010, 15:11 http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=31317 In the context of Sri Lanka government failing in its duty to provide assistance to the resettled Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Jaffna peninsula as promised, Asian Development Bank (ADB) has stepped in to help the IDPs, paying each of the 16,831 IDP families with the second stage payment of 25,000 rupees, sources in Jaffna said. It is alleged that the government is yet to pay the first stage of payment of 5,000 rupees to some of the IDP families, the sources added. Sun, 07 Mar 2010, 12:43