Mystery surrounds the abduction of CEO

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 31 March 1999, 22:26 GMT]
Investigators in Colombo are still trying to ascertain the identity of the persons who abducted the former Chairman of Aitken Spence, one of the largest business houses of Sri Lanka.
Full story >>

News in Brief:

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 31 March 1999, 22:22 GMT]
Loyal EPDP party workers prioritised in choice of new Jaffna MP's; Student shot dead in Sri Lankan army retaliatory fire and Sri Lankan Police arrest family of five in Jaffna.
Full story >>

Chemmani case moves to Colombo

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 31 March 1999, 18:57 GMT]
Mr.Yasantha Kothagoda, a senior counsel in Sri Lanka's Attorney General's Department, said today that the Chemmani case will be taken up in the Colombo magistrate's court tomorrow.
Full story >>

PLOTE condemns NATO attack

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 31 March 1999, 09:43 GMT]
Hundreds of protestors marched under the PLOTE banner this afternoon in Vavuniya shouting slogans and bearing placards condemning the NATO attack on Yugaslavia.
Full story >>

EPDP dismisses Jaffna MPs

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 30 March 1999, 21:49 GMT]
The Supreme court ruled today that the dismissal of two Jaffna MPs, Mr.S. Rameswaran and Mr. S.Ramamoorthy, by Mr. Devananda, the leader of the EPDP, on January 31, was valid in law.
Full story >>

Bus stolen to transport UAV?

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 30 March 1999, 20:49 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers took a bus from the Sri Lankan Army controlled village of Kunchikulam late last night close to the area where the UAV fell yesterday said sources in Vavuniya today.
Full story >>

Quarterly meetings keep Jaffna council alive

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 30 March 1999, 20:35 GMT]
The Jaffna Municipal council was convened today by the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF). The meeting was held at the office of the EPRLF on Hospital street in the high security zone of Jaffna town following PLOTE's refusal to attend the event at the TULF's office for security reasons.
Full story >>

EPDP leader appeals to Presidential Committee

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 30 March 1999, 20:30 GMT]
EPDP leader Douglus Devananda sent a letter to the Presidents committee on Unlawful Arrests and Harassment regarding the arrest of Mr.S.Vinothalingam who is Secretary General of the Tamil Eelam Liberation Organisation (TELO).
Full story >>

Presidential helicopter wounds soldiers

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 30 March 1999, 20:27 GMT]
Two Sri Lankan Army (SLA) soldiers were wounded when the Sri Lankan President's helicopter tried to land at the PA's election campaign venue in the hill country town of Bandarawela today.
Full story >>

Police search PLOTE, TELO camps

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 30 March 1999, 16:50 GMT]
The offices and camps of the PLOTE and the TELO were searched by the Sri Lankan Police yesterday and this morning. Police sources in Vavuniya said that the search was conducted following complaints by international human rights organisations that the paramilitary groups had arrested, detained and tortured civilians.
Full story >>

Protest against SLA pull out

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 30 March 1999, 12:54 GMT]
Shops and businesses were closed today in the pilgrimage town of Kathirgamam (Kataragama in Sinhala) in southern Sri Lanka to protest against the removal of three SLA camps from the area.
Full story >>

Tiger ambush kills seven

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 30 March 1999, 10:37 GMT]
Seven Sri Lankan Army (SLA) soldiers were killed last night around 7.15 p.m. in an attack by the Liberation Tigers in Weli Oya. Army sources in Vavuniya said that the tractor in which they were travelling was hit by a claymore mine.
Full story >>

Election body refutes allegations

[TamilNet, Monday, 29 March 1999, 23:56 GMT]
The election monitoring body, the Centre For Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV), issued a statement at a press conference held in Colombo today in response to press reports regarding the Centre and its work. The CMEV said in its statement entitled " Refutation of Systematic Propaganda against CMEV" that it would not deal with the "malicious personal attacks" but rather concentrate on the "substantive issues raised."
Full story >>

JMO to investigate Jaffna skeletons

[TamilNet, Monday, 29 March 1999, 20:41 GMT]
Legal sources in Jaffna said that the Jaffna district Judicial Medical Officer (JMO), Ram Manohar, who is currently in Colombo will arrive on or before April 6 to investigate the site near the Duraiappa stadium where Jaffna Municipal workers found human skeletons on Friday March 26.
Full story >>

Technical problems caused UAV landing

[TamilNet, Monday, 29 March 1999, 16:21 GMT]
The Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) that was reported missing was forced to land due to a tehnical failure at Pampaimadhu around 3 p.m. today said Sri Lankan Army (SLA) spokesman Brig. Thennekoon in a statement issued this evening.
Full story >>

UAV missing over Vanni?

[TamilNet, Monday, 29 March 1999, 12:44 GMT]
An Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) on a reconnaissance mission over the LTTE held areas of the Vanni has been reported missing this afternoon according to unconfirmed reports from the north.
Full story >>

Grenade attack on SLA road patrol

[TamilNet, Monday, 29 March 1999, 09:18 GMT]
Two soldiers were killed when the Liberation Tigers lobbed a grenade on an SLA foot patrol at Karanthan on the Urumpirai-Neervely road in Jaffna yesterday around 3 p.m.
Full story >>

Land mine attack kills four

[TamilNet, Monday, 29 March 1999, 07:00 GMT]
Four Sri Lankan Air Force (SLAF) personnel were killed yesterday around 2.50 p.m. when the tractor in which they were travelling was hit by a claymore mine activated by the Liberation Tigers near the Moondumurippu junction, northwest of Vavuniya said SLA headquarters sources in Colombo today.
Full story >>

President's uncle loses BCC presidency bid

[TamilNet, Sunday, 28 March 1999, 18:37 GMT]
Mr. Clifford Ratwatte, the Sri Lankan President's uncle who is also the younger brother of the country's ailing Prime Minister, was defeated at the election held this morning for the Board of Control for Cricket in Sri Lanka (BCCSL).
Full story >>

Tamil parties to protest Trinco colonisation

[TamilNet, Sunday, 28 March 1999, 18:10 GMT]
The TULF, PLOTE, EPDP, TELO and the EPRLF resolved this evening in Colombo to ask the Sri Lankan government to stop colonisation of Sinhalese in Trincomalee and to evict the Sinhala settlers.
Full story >>

Police assault prompts estate strike

[TamilNet, Sunday, 28 March 1999, 15:55 GMT]
More than four thousand workers in four tea estates of the Issa Ella group in the Matale district went on strike last night in protest against Police assault on a Tamil night watchman in one of the plantations.
Full story >>

State of Tamil medium education discussed

[TamilNet, Saturday, 27 March 1999, 14:04 GMT]
Tamil politicians in parliament today do not seem to understand the intensity of the educational problem faced by the Tamil speaking people deplored Prof.K. Sivathamby and K.Thiyagarajah, former secretary to the Ministry of Education of the Northeastern Provincial Council while addressing a seminar organised by the Ceylon Tamil Teachers' Union in Colombo this morning.
Full story >>

Increased STF surveillance in Amparai

[TamilNet, Saturday, 27 March 1999, 12:52 GMT]
The Special Task Force (STF) stepped up surveillance in the Tamil areas of the Ampara district in south east Sri Lanka yesterday following information that several suicide bombers of the Liberation Tigers had moved in recently for attacks.
Full story >>

Four SLA killed in blast

[TamilNet, Saturday, 27 March 1999, 06:32 GMT]
More than four Sri Lankan Army (SLA) soldiers were killed in a blast at Maasaar in the Thenmaradchi division of Jaffna in the early hours of the morning today around 1.30 a.m.
Full story >>

Bishop concerned at troops proximity to church

[TamilNet, Friday, 26 March 1999, 22:22 GMT]
The Bishop of Mannar Rt.Rev.Rayappu Joseph has strongly objected to the presence of Sri Lankan Army (SLA) troops in the precincts of the Madhu church. Although the army had initially given an undertaking that it would only be encamped in the environs of the Madhu church for two weeks, arrangements being made now indicate that troops intend staying permanently in the precincts, said the Bishop.
Full story >>

Five Tigers killed in Paranthan -SLA

[TamilNet, Friday, 26 March 1999, 16:03 GMT]
The Sri Lankan Army (SLA) launched a limited operation, code named Tiger Hunt, from the Elephant Pass-Paranthan base complex in the early hours of the morning yesterday.
Full story >>

Judge's absence aborts Chemmani hearing

[TamilNet, Friday, 26 March 1999, 10:52 GMT]
The Chemmani case was not taken up in the Jaffna courts today as it was discovered that the additional judge N. Arulsaaharan who is hearing it had been left behind in Colombo. The CID officer who came this morning from Colombo to file the geologist's report on the soil sample that was taken from the general area where the alleged mass grave is said to be located was told that there was no judge to hear the case.
Full story >>

Skeletons found in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Friday, 26 March 1999, 08:54 GMT]
Jaffna municipal workers digging a cesspit near the Duraippa stadium came upon a number of human skeletons today. The Jaffna Municipal Council stopped the work today following the discovery. According to initial reports, there are several rows of human skeletons in the place where the cesspit was dug.
Full story >>

PLOTE detainees tortured - Amnesty

[TamilNet, Friday, 26 March 1999, 00:47 GMT]
Three people who had been detained by the People's Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE) had been subject to severe torture said Amnesty International in a statement. The three have now been released, but another detainee is missing, said Amnesty.
Full story >>

Lack of legal redress in Vadamaradchi East

[TamilNet, Thursday, 25 March 1999, 22:14 GMT]
Law and order problems, disputes and other minor civil and criminal cases in fourteen village divisions of Vadamaradchi east in Jaffna will be taken up by village Panchayats ('Kiramiya Nallinakka Saphai') soon said the Divisional Secretary (DS)of the Maruthankerni today.
Full story >>

Passenger ferry service resumes in May

[TamilNet, Thursday, 25 March 1999, 22:07 GMT]
A private passenger ship service under the supervision of Sri Lanka's Commissioner General of Essential Services (CGES) will commence between Jaffna and Trincomalee from May said government sources in Jaffna today.
Full story >>

No elections in North or East

[TamilNet, Thursday, 25 March 1999, 20:45 GMT]
The Sri Lankan President announced today that elections to local government bodies in the Eastern province and the Vavuniya district which are to be dissolved on April 3 will not be held until "conditions improve" in these areas.
Full story >>

Policeman killed in Mannar

[TamilNet, Thursday, 25 March 1999, 07:37 GMT]
Three Sri Lankan Policemen were shot this morning around 9.45 a.m. in the heart of Mannar town by two gunmen, suspected to be members of the Liberation Tigers. One of the wounded policemen identified as Bandara, 24, died on admission to the Mannar base hospital.
Full story >>

Bank employees on strike

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 24 March 1999, 22:50 GMT]
The Ceylon Bank Employees Union (CBEU) are to stage an island wide walkout from 11.30a.m. protesting against the non payment of an 8% percent between 1994 -1997.
Full story >>

Government officials visit Madhu

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 24 March 1999, 22:47 GMT]
The Deputy Land Commissioner, Mr. A.A. Edward, and the Deputy Director of Agricultural Service visited the Madhu area to get the first hand information about the situation there.
Full story >>

President halts Palaly expansion plan

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 24 March 1999, 18:53 GMT]
The Sri Lankan President has ordered a halt to the acquisition of land to expand the 'perimeters' of the Palaly Sri Lankan Army (SLA) base in the Jaffna Peninsula said the state run Sri Lanka Broadcasting Co-operation (SLBC) today.
Full story >>

Demonstration against Palali expansion

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 24 March 1999, 15:14 GMT]
Nearly 300 people demonstrated this afternoon in front of the market in Wellawatte, a suburb of the Sri Lankan capital Colombo, protesting against the government's plans to expand the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) base complex at Palaly in the northern Jaffna peninsula. The picket was organised by the New Left Front (NLF).
Full story >>

30,000 newly displaced in Mannar

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 24 March 1999, 12:38 GMT]
More than than thirty thousand people have been displaced in the western sector of mainland Mannar due to shelling and the recent army operation to take Madhu said sources in the area today.
Full story >>

Jaffna mine attack wounds two

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 24 March 1999, 12:35 GMT]
Two Sri Lankan Army (SLA) soldiers were seriously wounded in a claymore mine attack by the Liberation Tigers this afternoon near the Third Junction on the road from Punnailaikkadduwan to Puthur in the Jaffna peninsula.
Full story >>

News In Brief

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 24 March 1999, 01:30 GMT]
Two bodies found in Ampara paddy field and Army takes charge of distributing ration cards in Vadamaraddchi East.
Full story >>

Refugees arrive in hope of food

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 24 March 1999, 01:26 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Army (SLA) took journalists on a conducted tour of its newly captured areas in Madhu yesterday. Rev.Devasagayam of the Madhu church told journalists that civilians were moving into the SLA controlled area, drawn by reports of food handouts.
Full story >>

Civilians wounded in clash

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 23 March 1999, 22:07 GMT]
Two women, Kandasamy Thangaratnam, 65, and Thavakumar Baghavathy,29, were wounded in cross fire when fighting erupted between the Liberation Tigers and the Sri Lankan Army manning the Karambaikurichchi sentry point at Varani in Jaffna last night around 10.30.
Full story >>

Two policemen wounded

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 23 March 1999, 13:32 GMT]
Two Sri Lankan Policemen were shot and seriously wounded by gunmen suspected to be Liberation Tigers this afternoon around 1.30 p.m. near the Kerniyadi Vairavar temple on Aadiapaatham road in Thirunelvely near Jaffna town.
Full story >>

Operation Rana Gosa II takes Madhu

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 23 March 1999, 03:33 GMT]
The population in the general area of Madhu taken by Sri Lankan Army (SLA) yesterday remained in their villages and refugees camps during 'Rana Gosa II' said sources in Vavuniya today. The army is currently camped in the Madhu school.
Full story >>

"Avoid Madhu church", Bishop pleads

[TamilNet, Monday, 22 March 1999, 16:22 GMT]
The TamilNet's Mannar correspondent spoke to the Bishop of Mannar Rev. Rayappu Joseph about the current situation in Madhu this evening. The Bishop said that he had met the Mannar Brigade Commander Ranjith De Silva this morning and requested him to avoid the precincts of the Madhu Church while conducting military Operations in the area.
Full story >>

SLA says captures Madhu

[TamilNet, Monday, 22 March 1999, 12:59 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Army (SLA) said that it had captured Madhu this evening. Government troops also brought under their control Thadchanamaruthamadu, four kilometers north of Madhu, where thousands of refugees are camped under the supervision of international aid agencies.
Full story >>

SLA takes new ground

[TamilNet, Monday, 22 March 1999, 11:51 GMT]
The Sri Lankan Army (SLA) said that it has brought a section of Aandaankulam, six kilometers north of Uyilankulam junction under its control by 4 p.m. this afternoon. The Uyilankulam junction is on the Mannar-Vavuniya highway and is currently the entry point for civilians to the LTTE controlled parts of the Vanni.
Full story >>

Seven killed in Tiger ambush

[TamilNet, Monday, 22 March 1999, 11:18 GMT]
Seven Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers were killed and 15 wounded when the Liberation Tigers attacked an Army tractor with rocket propelled grenades (RPG) after activating a claymore mine at Madukulam on the 2nd mile post along Poovarasankulam-Iranai Iluppaikulam road around 5.30 p.m. yesterday, sources said.
Full story >>

Jaffna resettlement programs said delayed

[TamilNet, Monday, 22 March 1999, 08:40 GMT]
Resettlement programs for civilians who returned to the peninsula have not succeeded the Jaffna NGO consortium told a UN advisor who was on an official visit to the peninsula yesterday. The consortium told him that many families which returned to Jaffna following the government's offer to resettle them in their home areas have been left in the lurch.
Full story >>

Renewed SLA operation in Mannar

[TamilNet, Monday, 22 March 1999, 08:22 GMT]
Fighting is reported between the Sri Lankan Army (SLA) and the Liberation Tigers in Parappukkadanthan, 7 km. north of Uylankulam, in the island's northwestern district of Mannar.
Full story >>

Schoolgirl killed in air strike

[TamilNet, Sunday, 21 March 1999, 18:09 GMT]
A 14 year old school girl, Gukanathan Pirainitha, was killed and another woman was seriously wounded in an air strike by the Sri Lankan Air Force at Puthukudiyiruppu in the Mullaithivu district this morning around 11 a.m., said sources in the Vanni.
Full story >>

Displaced seek refuge in jungles

[TamilNet, Sunday, 21 March 1999, 16:50 GMT]
More than four thousand civilians who fled Vidaththaltheevu, Aandankulam etc., due to heavy Sri Lankan Army (SLA) shelling since last week have sought refuge in the jungles of Kalliady said Mannar Kachcheri sources today. They said that the local school was filled with refugees when the main body of the people who fled the SLA shelling arrived here this weekend.
Full story >>

TELO activist's brother shot dead

[TamilNet, Sunday, 21 March 1999, 12:16 GMT]
The brother of an area organiser for the paramilitary group TELO was shot dead last night in Vavuniya, said the Police. Saravanamuththu Rasanayakam, 33, (Rajadurai), was a timber trader living in Pattakaadu. His body, eyes tied with a black piece of cloth, was found near the Pattakaadu nursery school, close to the place where a female PLOTE activist was shot dead a few days ago.
Full story >>

Development project put on hold

[TamilNet, Saturday, 20 March 1999, 22:48 GMT]
The Batticaloa District Devolopment Committee (DDC) and the District Co-ordinating Committee (DCC) unanimously resolved again yesterday that the Norwegian funded DEBRA project would be put on hold for another month until it can be implemented in all parts of the region.
Full story >>

News in Brief:

[TamilNet, Saturday, 20 March 1999, 22:42 GMT]
Army molests Jaffna school girl; Woman killed in airforce strike on Mullativu; Army operation prevents school girl from receiving life saving treatment; Search operation in Amparai and protest against plans to expand Sri Lankan army base in Palaly onto civilian land.
Full story >>

Civilians flee artillery barrage

[TamilNet, Saturday, 20 March 1999, 17:21 GMT]
Heavy SLA artillery fire on Vidaththaltheevu from its positions in Thallaady has completely driven out the civilian population from the area since last Thursday said the Mannar TamilNet correspondent today.
Full story >>

TELO used schoolboy to test explosive device

[TamilNet, Friday, 19 March 1999, 17:19 GMT]
A cadre of the Tamil Eelam Liberation Organisation (TELO), a Tamil paramilitary group assisting the Sri Lankan Army (SLA) and the Special Task Force (STF), was ordered by the Batticaloa district court today to pay sixty thousand rupees as compensation to a student whose right hand was blown off by a parcel bomb on October 19, 1996.
Full story >>

Five civilians killed

[TamilNet, Friday, 19 March 1999, 11:39 GMT]
Five civilians, suspected to be traders, were shot dead by the Government troops at the forward defence lines near Uyrtharaasankulam in the Uylankulam sector in the early hours of the morning today said sources.
Full story >>

Five killed in clashes

[TamilNet, Friday, 19 March 1999, 10:21 GMT]
Three policemen were killed when the Liberation Tigers ambushed a police patrol this morning around 8 a.m. in Murunkan, about 15 km. from Thallady in the Mannar district. The Police said the patrol was on a route and bunker clearing operation, 400 metres off the main road, towards Nanaddan in the Murunkan.
Full story >>

SLA repairs damaged defences

[TamilNet, Thursday, 18 March 1999, 23:38 GMT]
Sri Lankan Army (SLA) headquarters sources in Colombo said that the food store of the Thallady base was also completely burnt out in the LTTE shelling yesterday.
Full story >>

News in Brief:

[TamilNet, Thursday, 18 March 1999, 17:06 GMT]
LTTE member reported killed in an ambush by Razeek group cadres in eastern Batticaloa this afternoon and students at the Hardy Institute for Technical Education near Ampara have been arrested for ragging a new student.
Full story >>

SLA starts operation towards Madhu

[TamilNet, Thursday, 18 March 1999, 06:51 GMT]
The SLA began an operation towards Madhu this morning, sources in Vavuniya said. The operation was launched from army positions at Madhu Road Junction on the Mannar Vavuniya road this morning they said.
Full story >>

Tiger bunkers destroyed -SLA

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 March 1999, 19:47 GMT]
The Sri Lankan Army (SLA) said in a press release issued today from the Northern Army Command in Palaly that it had conducted a limited operation code named "Bunker Buster" during the day time on March 16, ahead of forward defence lines in the east and west of Paranthan.
Full story >>

Residents express apprehension

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 March 1999, 19:28 GMT]
Residents of Iranai Iluppaikulam, which was captured by the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) recently, told journalists who visited the area yesterday that they are afraid that "disappearances" will occur as the SLA continues screening for Tiger suspects.
Full story >>

LTTE mortar attack sets army camp on fire

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 March 1999, 15:50 GMT]
A portion of the Sri Lankan Army camp at Thallady, in the Northwest of the island, was set on fire when the Liberation Tigers attacked it with artillery and mortar this evening around 5.30 said sources. The attack lasted for nearly 30 minutes.
Full story >>

News in Brief

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 March 1999, 11:20 GMT]
Sri Lankan Police say they found a bomb at Kelani bridge in Colombo today; Search Operation in Vadamaradchi east; PLOTE member attacked in Pt. Pedro.
Full story >>

Three wounded in Jaffna blast

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 March 1999, 08:30 GMT]
Three Sri Lankan Army (SLA) soldiers were wounded when a bomb exploded at a sentry post at Milavu Junction, about 300 metres from the main bus terminal in the heart of the Jaffna town, around 9.30 a.m. today.
Full story >>

Six killed in mine attack

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 March 1999, 04:53 GMT]
Five Home guards and a policeman were killed and two wounded in a claymore mine attack at Dickwela 8 km. east of Vavuniya in the SLA controlled area, around 6.45 a.m. today, the Police said.
Full story >>

Batticaloa police arrests bomb suspect

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 16 March 1999, 20:16 GMT]
The Sri Lankan Police in Batticaloa arrested one of its cooks this morning around 10 a.m. when he allegedly attempted to enter the district Police headquarters today with an explosive device hidden in a parcel.
Full story >>

Grenade attack wounds three

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 16 March 1999, 20:14 GMT]
Unidentified persons lobbed grenades at the house of Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) MP U.L.M (Thoppi) Mohideen in Sammanthurai, 46 kilometers southwest of Batticaloa, this evening around 8.30 p.m. Three civilians who were passing by were wounded.
Full story >>

Vanni students in protest march

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 16 March 1999, 20:11 GMT]
More than 4000 students in the Vanni participated in a procession organised by the Students Union of Vanni said sources. According to the organisers, the event had been organised to protest against the Sri Lankan government's cut in relief aid to displaced people in the region and disruption of students' education due to military operations.
Full story >>

Eight Tigers killed

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 16 March 1999, 20:08 GMT]
Eight Liberation Tigers have been killed since March 13, in three confrontations with the Sri Lankan Army and two accidental explosions, said the Voice of Tigers (VoT) in its night broadcast today.
Full story >>

Colombo bomb kills three

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 16 March 1999, 12:41 GMT]
Three persons were killed and 15 others were wounded when a bomb exploded between Police Station and Seylan bank, in Mt.Lavinia, a suburb in the capital Colombo around 6 p.m. today said police sources.
Full story >>

News in Brief:

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 16 March 1999, 00:04 GMT]
Thousands are displaced in Mannar military operation; Jaffna woman complains of harassment to Human Rights Commission; and a civil servant charged under PTA is released on bail.
Full story >>

PLOTE to oppose Palaly base expansion

[TamilNet, Monday, 15 March 1999, 14:17 GMT]
The PLOTE protested to the Sri Lankan President today that they would oppose the take over of more than twelve thousand acres of land in Valigamam north in Jaffna belonging to Tamil civilians and the temples of Maviddapuram and Naguleswaram "with all means available".
Full story >>

SLA operation in Mannar

[TamilNet, Monday, 15 March 1999, 00:00 GMT]
Two Sri Lankan Army soldiers were killed and 11 others were wounded when the troops conducted a limited operation in the Mannar district last night, said SLA sources.
Full story >>

Abducted journalist found unconscious

[TamilNet, Sunday, 14 March 1999, 19:57 GMT]
Srilal Priyantha, the Lakbima journalist who was abducted in the early hours of the morning today, was found unconscious and tied to a tree on Anderson Road in Kalubowila, in the southwestern outskirts of Colombo said Police sources. He was admitted to the Kalubowila general hospital for treatment.
Full story >>

New telephone exchange for Mannar

[TamilNet, Sunday, 14 March 1999, 19:41 GMT]
Mannar Telecom has received a new exchange today and this is a new development that will cater to the telecommunication needs of the people of Mannar and the Vanni, said S.Kanagasooriyar Sri Lanka Telecom Regional Head of the Region 3 (Northeast Province) today.
Full story >>

New educational measures for displaced

[TamilNet, Sunday, 14 March 1999, 19:36 GMT]
The Northeast Provincial Council has to design and introduce new regulations and systems in the field of education, to tackle the problems faced by schools in educating the displaced student population in the area, said Sunderam Diwagalaala, Secretary to the Provincial Ministry of Education, Cultural Affairs and Sports.
Full story >>

Journalist abducted

[TamilNet, Sunday, 14 March 1999, 07:40 GMT]
Srilal Priyantha, a well known journalist working for the Lakbima, an independent popular Sinhala weekend paper, was forcibly abducted from his home in Nugegoda, a large suburb of Colombo in the early hours of the morning today and has gone missing since then said his colleagues.
Full story >>

Death penalty re-introduced

[TamilNet, Saturday, 13 March 1999, 18:23 GMT]
The Sri Lankan government introduced capital punishment today for murder and drug trafficking after concern at the increase in the crime rate. The recommendations were made by a special Presidential Commission.
Full story >>

SLA holds Tamils as hostages -TULF MP

[TamilNet, Saturday, 13 March 1999, 18:12 GMT]
"Tamils remain under a majority run army as hostages under a state of siege" said Joseph Pararajasingham MP addressing a meeting for Norwegian Parliamentarians in Batticaloa this morning.
Full story >>

Norwegian delegation meets Batticaloa politicians

[TamilNet, Saturday, 13 March 1999, 15:26 GMT]
The Norwegian Parliamentary delegation that is currently on an official visit to Sri Lanka held discussions with government officials and politicians in Batticaloa today about the ethnic conflict and conditions in the district. The delegation was led by Kirsti Kolle Grøndahl, the President of the Norwegian Parliament.
Full story >>

STF commandos assault doctor

[TamilNet, Saturday, 13 March 1999, 15:16 GMT]
Muslims in the eastern town of Natpuddimunai closed shops and boycotted public offices today to protest against the Special Task Force (STF) for severely assaulting a doctor last night. Natpuddimunai is a Muslim majority township near Kalmunai, 40 kilometers south of Batticaloa.
Full story >>

Suspected LTTE member commits suicide

[TamilNet, Saturday, 13 March 1999, 14:37 GMT]
A youth suspected to be a member of the Liberation Tigers committed suicide by blowing up a grenade on himself in Ananthapuram in Irupaalai this afternoon around 1.30 p.m. when the SLA cordoned off the area and searched for him.
Full story >>

Rana Gosa refugees receive limited food

[TamilNet, Saturday, 13 March 1999, 10:17 GMT]
Officials of the government and non governmental organisations, who met at the monthly district rehabilitation meeting yesterday did not make any decision on the issue of relief food assistance to the displaced families, the sources added.
Full story >>

Jaffna Woman dies during curfew

[TamilNet, Saturday, 13 March 1999, 10:16 GMT]
The night time curfew and severe security restrictions in the Jaffna peninsula have caused the death of a young female teacher, sources there said.
Full story >>

President outlines election plans

[TamilNet, Saturday, 13 March 1999, 10:15 GMT]
President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumarathunge said that the present government has two more years in office and that an election would be held at the end of this term as scheduled.
Full story >>

Arrested youth escapes army custody

[TamilNet, Friday, 12 March 1999, 22:10 GMT]
Shanmuganathan Kumaran, 18, who is in hiding after escaping from Sri Lankan Army custody is now at the ICRC in Jaffna. An ICRC official in Jaffna said they were waiting for advice from their head office in Geneva before they could take any decision.
Full story >>

Military registers civilian movement

[TamilNet, Friday, 12 March 1999, 22:07 GMT]
The Sri Lankan Army (SLA) has told civilians who are coming from Iranai Iluppaikulam that they should register their names with the military officials on duty in the area through the Grama Sevaka Officer, residents of the area said.
Full story >>

Civilians assaulted in retaliation

[TamilNet, Friday, 12 March 1999, 12:10 GMT]
Twenty five civilians, all youth, including two girls, were admitted to the Valaichenai hospital today for treatment from injuries caused by a group of Sri Lankan Army (SLA) soldiers who roamed the villages of Kannankiramam, Kannakipuram, Puthukkudiyiruppu, Vinayakapuram this morning from about 8 a.m. to 10.30 a.m., intimidating and assaulting young people in the area.
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Operation Rana Gosa displaces 15000

[TamilNet, Friday, 12 March 1999, 10:53 GMT]
Nearly 15,000 people have been displaced during 'Operation Rana Gosa', launched by the Sri Lankan Army last week said sources in the Vanni. The displaced have sought refuge in school buildings and under trees along the roads in the Mulankaavil and Thunukkai areas, the sources added.
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SLA soldier killed in blast

[TamilNet, Friday, 12 March 1999, 00:01 GMT]
A Sri Lankan Army soldier was killed and another injured when an explosive device suspected to have been set off by the Liberation Tigers blew up near the Divisional Secretary's (D.S) office in Palai town in Jaffna around 2 p.m. this afternoon.
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Emergency extended

[TamilNet, Thursday, 11 March 1999, 22:46 GMT]
Deputy Minister of Defence, General Anurudha Ratwatte, while winding up the debate on the extension of emergency regulations, said that the military was in the final stages of opening a land route to Jaffna. He said he was optimistic that this could be achieved soon.
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Plans to settle Sinhalese in Jaffna -Devananda

[TamilNet, Thursday, 11 March 1999, 16:46 GMT]
The EPDP leader Douglas Devananda MP charged in Parliament today that the Sri Lankan Security forces are attempting to establish a Sinhala colony on 12 thousand acres of land belonging to Tamil civilians adjacent to the Palaly-Kankesanthurai base complex.
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Paramilitary groups seek role in captured areas

[TamilNet, Thursday, 11 March 1999, 12:37 GMT]
Two Tamil paramilitary groups, the Tamil Eelam Liberation Organisation (TELO) and the People's Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE) have sought permission from the Sri Lankan Army (SLA) to operate in Irani Iluppankulam, an area which was captured recently by the SLA.
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Police demand UNP MP's surrender

[TamilNet, Thursday, 11 March 1999, 11:39 GMT]
Sri Lankan Police headquarters said this afternoon that a UNP member of Parliament for the Kandy district and three of the party's candidates for the central provincial council elections are wanted in connection with the attack on the PA meeting yesterday.
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SLA soldier shot dead

[TamilNet, Thursday, 11 March 1999, 10:26 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers shot dead a Sri Lankan Army (SLA) soldier in the high security zone near the Pradheshiya Sabha office in Valaichenai, about 30 km. north of Batticaloa, this afternoon around 1.15 p.m. The army and Police in the area fired mortars and automatic weapons at random from their positions indiscriminately in retaliation soon after the attack.
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SLA screens for Tiger activists

[TamilNet, Thursday, 11 March 1999, 08:38 GMT]
There are 15 -25 Liberation Tiger operatives among the population in the Tamil villages captured by the Sri Lankan Army (SLA) during 'Operation Rana Gosa' said army spokesman Brig.Sunil Tennekoon today, while addressing the cabinet press briefing at the Parliament this morning. He said that population control measures are under way to detect these Tigers.
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New date set for PC polls

[TamilNet, Thursday, 11 March 1999, 07:48 GMT]
Sri Lanka's commissioner of Elections announced this morning that the date for polls to the five provincial councils, Western, Sabaragamuwa, Central, Northcentral and Uva provinces, has been postponed to April 6. The Supreme Court directed him on March 9 to postpone the elections, which were earlier fixed for April 1 and announce in two days a new date not later than April 27.
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191 new incidents of violence -CMEV

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 10 March 1999, 23:19 GMT]
Centre for Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV) said in statement this evening that One person was killed and 36 were wounded in the latest violence between the PA and UNP supporters this afternoon in Gampola.
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Man killed in pre election violence

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 10 March 1999, 15:57 GMT]
A Governing party supporter, Wimalasuriya, was killed and 20 others were wounded when a grenade was thrown at a People's Alliance (PA) meeting in Gampola district today. A PA candidate for the forthcoming Provincial Council (PC) election and the SLFP organiser in Navalapitty, Mahinda Aluthgama, was also injured in the incident. PA sources have blamed the UNP for the grenade attack.
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Fishermen forced to pay into development fund

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 10 March 1999, 13:03 GMT]
Fishermen in the coastal settlements of Supparmadam, Kottady, Thumbalai and Munai in Pt.Pedro in Jaffna refused today to comply with an order by the Sri Lankan Army's Pt.Pedro town commander, Col.Chandrawansa, and the Pt.Pedro Urban Council chairman, S.Wijeyaratnam, to pay part of their incomes to the Urban Council's development fund.
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Explosions shock Colombo residents

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 10 March 1999, 05:04 GMT]
Three explosions within two hours rocked the City of Colombo and the surrounding areas yesterday. A bomb exploded in a Colombo bound train at 9.25 p.m. injuring four and another bomb exploded in Pettah bus station at 11.05 p.m. killing one and injuring twelve passengers. A few minutes after this incident a transformer blew up in a nearby junction, said sources in Colombo.
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Two soldiers killed and eight injured

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 10 March 1999, 05:03 GMT]
One Lieutenant and a soldier were killed, and eight soldiers including an officer were injured last night when the 'Jana Gosha' troops came under attack from the LTTE, sources said.
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Bomb explodes in Colombo

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 09 March 1999, 19:30 GMT]
At least 22 persons were wounded when a bomb exploded at the Pettah bus terminal in the capital Colombo around 11.30 p.m. today.
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Two policemen wounded in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 09 March 1999, 13:58 GMT]
Two Sri Lankan policemen, in mufti, were wounded when unidentified gun men believed to be members of the Liberation Tigers opened fire at Temple road in Nallur, 3 km, east of Jaffna town, yesterday evening around 6.30 p.m. said sources.
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News in Brief:

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 09 March 1999, 11:54 GMT]
Vanni Citizen's Committee Sends memorandum to UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan; The Tamil National Movement urges Indian Central Government to lift ban on LTTE; Liberation Tigers report four casualties from the Vanni.
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Supreme Court approves polls delay

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 09 March 1999, 00:01 GMT]
The Sri Lankan Supreme Court today ruled that the elections to the provincial councils can be postponed. The attorney general filed a motion last week on behalf of the elections commissioner seeking the postponement of the elections which were scheduled to be held on April 1.
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Women's Day marked in Trincomalee

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 March 1999, 23:51 GMT]
Several hundred Tamil women from various places of the Northeast of the island participated in a cultural procession and a rally in Trincomalee today, organised to celebrate International Women's Day.
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News in Brief:

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 March 1999, 15:20 GMT]
Over hundred Tamils arrested in Kandy ; Two Sri Lankan Army soldiers were wounded in Jaffna today and One SLA soldier, two Tigers were killed in a clash at Oddusuddan on Saturday.
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ICRC trains SLA in humanitarian law

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 March 1999, 13:55 GMT]
Twenty three Sri Lankan Army officers from various regiments will participate in seminars on the Law of Armed Conflict and International Humanitarian Law until March 13, said an ICRC ( International Committee of the Red Cross) press release issued today.
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News in Brief:

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 March 1999, 11:54 GMT]
Twelve year old girl escapes rape attempt; Civilian killed in clash; Shot dead youth was a civilian say relatives; Religious leaders plan visit to the Vanni: Tigers say they have recovered the body of a SLA soldier killed in clashes on Satuday.
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Implementation aspects of New Education Reforms questioned

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 March 1999, 04:20 GMT]
The General Secretary of the Ceylon Tamil Teachers Union told central education ministry officials at the second session of the seminar in Trincomalee on the Sri Lankan government's New Education Reforms (NER) this morning that the program for teaching Sinhala to Tamils students and Tamil to Sinhala students recommended by the NER should be put on hold until a settlement to the ethnic conflict is found.
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Youth escapes from PLOTE camp

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 March 1999, 04:17 GMT]
PLOTE cadres conducted a search operation in the environs of their camp and Jaffna Hospital after a youth, Santhanantham Ravichandran, escaped from the groups camp at Hospital road in Jaffna Town yesterday afternoon.
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Oral argument concluded in LTTE vs State Dept.

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 March 1999, 00:35 GMT]
The oral argument in the case between the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (Petitioner) and the US Department of State (Respondent) filed in the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit took place on March 5, 1999.
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SLA moves into new territory

[TamilNet, Sunday, 07 March 1999, 14:04 GMT]
(CORRECTED) Sri Lanka's Deputy Minister for Defence, Gen.Anuruddha Ratwatte, visited Vavuniya today with the three service commanders and the Commissioner General of Essential Services to review the progress of Operation 'Rana Gossa'.
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News In Brief:

[TamilNet, Sunday, 07 March 1999, 13:59 GMT]
Christians protest against timing of prvincial council elections and Batticaloa youth shot dead by Army.
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Police arrests paramilitary leader

[TamilNet, Sunday, 07 March 1999, 13:55 GMT]
The Sri Lankan Police arrested a senior cadre of the Razeek group, Arulnayaham Jeyarajah alias Anton, 26, in Batticaloa this afternoon in connection with his alleged involvement in the murder of Kanakasingham Rasathurai, 63, a civilian who had complained to the Sri Lankan Army (SLA) about the illegal activities this special Tamil Sri Lankan army unit.
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"North-east students educational needs ignored"

[TamilNet, Saturday, 06 March 1999, 22:59 GMT]
"We are unable to send text books, stationery, uniforms, furniture and equipment to about 100,000 of our children who are in Vanni. How can we have science practicals for G.C.E. A/L or other grade students without science equipment? Can we think of implementing reforms satisfactorily and reducing disparities and bringing about equality of opportunity under these conditions" said Mr.Sundaram Divakalala secretary to the North-eastern provincial Ministry of Education.
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Fishermen's beach frolic earns 'punk' hair-cut

[TamilNet, Saturday, 06 March 1999, 22:03 GMT]
Fifteen fisherman were carousing on the Panichchangkerni beach last Wednesday night after a hard day's work, pulling in the seine nets and sorting the meagre catch. Panichchangkerni is a Tamil hamlet 53 kilometers north of Batticaloa, picturesquely located between the a lagoon and the sea coast.
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News in brief:

[TamilNet, Saturday, 06 March 1999, 18:49 GMT]
SLA artillery kills three civilians in Mullaithivu and four persons are arrested in Jaffna.
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Chemmani investigation "political stunt"-paper

[TamilNet, Saturday, 06 March 1999, 14:33 GMT]
The Uthayan, the only news paper published in Jaffna, criticised yesterday's visit to Chemmani by geologists, forensic experts Police officials, state counsel and journalists for gathering soil samples a political gimmick by the Sri Lankan government.
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SLA operation in Vanni

[TamilNet, Saturday, 06 March 1999, 11:45 GMT]
The Sri Lankan Army (SLA) began a limited operation into the areas held by the Liberation Tigers north of the Vavuniya-Mannar road in the early hours of the morning today. Army sources in Vavuniya said that the operation was launched from Poovarasankulam, 15 kilometers west of Vavuniya towards Iranai Iluppaikkulam in the interior.
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Northeast bureaucracy re-organised

[TamilNet, Friday, 05 March 1999, 22:50 GMT]
The Governor of the North-eastern Province said today that he will reactivate and chair the Provincial Planning Council (PPC) that was defunct following the dissolution of the elected North-eastern Provincial council NEPC) in 1990. The PPC was chaired by the chief minister in 1988-90.
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News in Brief:

[TamilNet, Friday, 05 March 1999, 22:47 GMT]
UNP parliamentarian holds eye clinics in Vanni refugee camps and US embassy official visits Batticaloa.
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Replacement judge clears Chemmani visit

[TamilNet, Friday, 05 March 1999, 10:58 GMT]
A newly appointed additional magistrate for Jaffna who was flown in this morning with the special team of CID officers, senior state counsel and government forensic experts granted permission in the Jaffna courts today for inspecting the alleged grave site at Chemmani and taking a soil sample from the general area for analysis.
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Eight Tigers killed - STF

[TamilNet, Friday, 05 March 1999, 10:45 GMT]
Special Task Force (STF) commandos of the Sri Lankan Police said eight Tigers were killed in a fire fight at Sinnawaththai, about 40 km. south west of Batticaloa, near the district border with Ampara, this morning.
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News in Brief:

[TamilNet, Thursday, 04 March 1999, 22:59 GMT]
Sri Lankan Army says three Tigers killed in a confrontation in the Elephant Pass area; School principle in Kalutara blames authorities for discriminating against Tamil medium schools; Three injured at UNP rally.
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News in Brief:

[TamilNet, Thursday, 04 March 1999, 14:28 GMT]
Security tightens around alleged Chemmani mass grave; Sri Lankan Army orders Tamil groups to not to drive vehicles with tinted glass; Night time curfew imposed in Mannar; Malaria on increase in the Vanni; Two policemen wounded in grenade attack.
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Army arrest figures released

[TamilNet, Thursday, 04 March 1999, 11:04 GMT]
The Sri Lankan Army (SLA) informed the Human Rights Commission (HRC) in Jaffna that 1408 persons were "legally arrested" by them in the peninsula during 1996 and 1997. According to the figures released by the SLA, 991 persons were arrested in 1996, while 417 were arrested in 1997.
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Protest over missing fishermen

[TamilNet, Thursday, 04 March 1999, 10:47 GMT]
Sinhala traders in Trincomalee observed a hartal from 12.00 till 1.30 p.m. today in protest at the North - East Governor's refusal to meet a delegation of the Sinhala Traders Association.
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US Caucus meets on human rights in Sri Lanka

[TamilNet, Thursday, 04 March 1999, 10:37 GMT]
The US Congressional Human Rights Caucus members briefing on "Human Rights Developments in Sri Lanka" took place on March 2 at Rayburn House. It was attended by officials from the US State department, UNHCR, Amnesty International and other non governmental organisations.
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Cement ban restricts development work

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 03 March 1999, 23:11 GMT]
All development work in the Eechilampattai division of the Muttur area has come to a standstill as the security forces stationed there have banned cement from being taken to the village, according to Mr.Najeeb Abdul Majeed, Member of Parliament for the Trincomalee district. Mr.Majeed is a member of the ruling People Alliance party.
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Netherlands Government funds resettlement programme

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 03 March 1999, 23:08 GMT]
The Netherlands Government has granted Rs 75 million for a resettlement scheme through which 3,000 houses will be constructed in the Trincomalee district. Of this amount, 15 million rupees has already been released to the National Housing Development Authority to commence the project, NHDA sources said.
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Fishing ban worsens fishermen's woes

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 03 March 1999, 22:08 GMT]
The Sri Lankan Army (SLA) at Kilaly told more than 300 fishing familes in the area yesterday to ply their trade in the deep seas off Naakar Kovil in Vadamaradchi east. The fishermen in Kilaly were banned from fishing in the Jaffna lagoon off the Thenmaradchi coast last month.
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Attorney General seeks to postpone polls

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 03 March 1999, 14:16 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Attorney General filed a motion on behalf of the Elections Commissioner in the supreme court this afternoon seeking its permission to postpone the polls to five provincial councils that are scheduled to be held on April 1.
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News in Brief:

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 03 March 1999, 09:46 GMT]
The VoT said that eight Liberation Tigers and one of its supporter died in Mankulam; Explosion damages railway wagon in Colombo; The Sri Lankan Army warns paramilitary group, the PLOTE against extorting money from businessmen.
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Police resign over new duties

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 02 March 1999, 22:18 GMT]
Twenty Sri Lankan policemen who were recently transferred from guard duty at Puliyankulam in the Vanni to new positions on the Vavuniya-Mannar road have submitted their resignations, said Police sources.
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Nine hurt in tractor accident

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 02 March 1999, 22:14 GMT]
(CORRECTION) Nine Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers were wounded when a tractor in which they were travelling overturned around 4 p.m. today near Vembady Girls School in Jaffna town said sources.
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Chemmani visit, regardless of Magistrate

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 02 March 1999, 17:54 GMT]
Officials at the Attorney General's department in Colombo said today that the preliminary survey and investigation of the alleged graves at Chemmani in Jaffna would be carried out on March 5, even if it is not possible to obtain the magistrate's order for the purpose.
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World Bank funds North-East development project

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 02 March 1999, 16:18 GMT]
Local government officials are awaiting security clearance from the Ministry of Defence to sign an agreement with the World Bank to implement a four year programme, known as the North East Irrigated Agricultural Project(NEIAP). This project will be funded by the World Bank.
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Dehiwala train blast trial postponed

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 02 March 1999, 16:15 GMT]
When the Dehiwala Train Bomb Blast Case came up for hearing before the Colombo High Court Judge Chandradasa Nanayakara today afternoon, the prosecution informed the court that the sixth accused, Kamalakumar Prathapan had left the country.
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Six arrested in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 02 March 1999, 11:04 GMT]
Six civilians have been arrested by the Sri Lankan Army during the past four days from Vadamaradchi east and Thenmaradchi in the Jaffna peninsula said human rights sources there.
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SLA seeks Tamil groups’ lists

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 02 March 1999, 01:19 GMT]
The Sri Lankan Army visited the offices of the various ex-militant Tamil groups in Jaffna yesterday, as none of them had responded to Army's request to provide manpower towards establishing an auxiliary force to protect the local councillors in the north said sources.
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Premachandran sees leadership challenged

[TamilNet, Monday, 01 March 1999, 22:14 GMT]
The EPRLF's general secretary Suresh Premachandran said today that ex-chief minister Annamalai Varatharajapperumal had no authority to reorganise the group. He stated that his former colleague was in Batticaloa in his private capacity to visit friends and party members and that there is no need for Mr.Perumal to reorganise the party because it is currently functioning without any problems.
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KKS cement factory to remain closed

[TamilNet, Monday, 01 March 1999, 18:26 GMT]
The Sri Lankan Army (SLA) stalled a proposal by the Governor of the Northeastern province that steps should be taken to reopen the cement factory in Kankesanthurai (KKS) in the Jaffna peninsula.
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Education ministry charged with discrimination

[TamilNet, Monday, 01 March 1999, 18:20 GMT]
The Ceylon Tamils Teacher's Union (CTTU) has brought to the notice of the President, Chandrika Bandaranayake, and the Minister of Education and Higher Education, Mr. Richard Pathirana, the discrimination shown by the authorities in distributing Tamil text books to Tamil medium schools in the country.
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