News In Brief

[TamilNet, Friday, 03 October 1997, 23:59 GMT]
The Sri Lankan military is restricting the amount of food allowed into the islands off the Jaffna peninsula. In Trincomalee district, the LTTE has released 12 detainees and the Sri Lankan navy has arrested 98 Tamil fishermen - for fishing.
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Former Jaffna GA granted bail

[TamilNet, Friday, 03 October 1997, 23:59 GMT]
Legal sources in Colombo said yesterday that Mr. Chellaiah Pathmanathan, the former Government Agent (GA) for Jaffna had been granted bail by the Sri Lankan government's attorney general. Following a bail application by Mr. Pathmanathan's lawyer, the Colombo Fort magistrate directed that he be produced in court today.
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EPDP attacks referendum plan

[TamilNet, Friday, 03 October 1997, 23:59 GMT]
Douglas Devananda, the leader of the Colombo based Tamil group, the EPDP, lashed out at the government's latest stand on devolution today. Devananda's relationship with the PA leadership has soured in recent times over the question of two renegade MPs who had been members of his organisation for a long time, but had left recently.
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Britain to fund Jaffna NGOs directly

[TamilNet, Thursday, 02 October 1997, 23:59 GMT]
The British government will donate funds for minor reconstruction work and small development projects directly to NGOs and other social service organisations in Jaffna, said the British High Commissioner in Colombo. Mr. David Tatham gave an exclusive interview to the Tamil daily 'Virakesari' on Thursday.
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Relatives of Jaffna's 'disappeared' protest

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 01 October 1997, 23:59 GMT]
Parents and relatives of Tamil civilians who have 'disappeared' in Sri Lankan army custody staged a protest on Sunday in the premises of Jaffna's St. James Church, and vowed to continue their struggle for justice. Several hundred Tamils have disappeared after being arrested by the Sri Lankan army, which captured the Jaffna peninsula in early 1996.
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Buddhist clergy stage protest rally

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 01 October 1997, 23:59 GMT]
The interim report of the Sinhala Commission continued to create powerful reverberations in the Sinhala polity as more than 1500 people, including five hundred Buddhist monks, gathered yesterday to muster public support for the 'Sinhala cause'.
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Tigers repulse SLA assault

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 01 October 1997, 23:59 GMT]
In heavy fighting on Tuesday, Tamil Tiger forces drove back a renewed Sri Lankan army assault in the Puliyankulam area. SLA units which had bypassed Puliyankulam were advancing on Kanakarayankulam when LTTE forces counter-attacked, inflicting heavy casualties and capturing a large quantity of weaponry.
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Sri Lanka plans referendum to split the east

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 30 September 1997, 12:01 GMT]
The Sri Lankan government's cabinet held a very crucial meeting yesterday (29 September) to map out a strategy for conducting a referendum in the island's eastern province. The proposed exercise came under fire from community leaders in the east who heard about the cabinet's discussions on the matter.


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Tamils suffer discrimination: Canadian court

[TamilNet, Monday, 29 September 1997, 12:03 GMT]
Whilst ruling on the case of Mr. Suresh Manickavasagam, the presiding Judge said that in his opinion the Tamil people suffered from discrimination. The Judge did not rule on the LTTE itself, saying he was not in a position to pass judgment on the conflict in Sri Lanka. During the case, the Judge had been presented with evidence of gross human rights violations by successive Sri Lankan governments against the Tamil people.
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Sri Lanka stretches the truth on Canadian ruling

[TamilNet, Monday, 29 September 1997, 12:01 GMT]
When a Canadian judge upheld a security certificate issued against Mr. Suresh Manickavasagam by the Canadian Immigration department on the basis that he was a member of the LTTE, the Sri Lankan government claimed that the Canadian court has said that the LTTE was a 'terrorist' organization. However, the judge had made it clear that he was not passing judgement on that issue, but was merely saying that the Immigration department had 'reasonable grounds' to believe that Suresh was inadmissible into Canada.
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Canadian Tamils protest outside Parliament

[TamilNet, Sunday, 28 September 1997, 12:02 GMT]
Over 850 Canadian Tamils staged a symbolic fast in Ottawa on Friday, protesting against the planned deportation of Tamil community activist Mr. Manickavasagam Suresh. The demonstrators stood outside the Canadian Parliament, holding placards denouncing the planned deportation. The protest was organized by the Federation of Associations of Canadian Tamils (FACT).
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Tamil people flock to new LTTE courts

[TamilNet, Thursday, 25 September 1997, 12:00 GMT]
Tamil people in the Amparai and Batticaloa districts have been flocking to make use of the LTTE's judicial system which is being extended in the east of the island. An LTTE courthouse which was recently established in Batticaloa district is proving so popular that many Tamil residents are even crossing over from Sri Lankan government controlled areas to file cases.
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Massacre in eastern Tamil village: 8 killed

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 24 September 1997, 12:05 GMT]
Muslim policemen and homeguards have run amok in a Tamil village, killing at least 8 civilians. The surviving residents of the "4th colony" village, Amparai district, have fled the area. The attack is believed to have been carried out in reprisal for the killing of two Muslim homeguards. The 4th Colony has been sealed off by members of the Special Task Force, a police commando unit, which controls the area where the massacre took place.
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Jaffna is afraid: former UN representative

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 24 September 1997, 12:04 GMT]
A former representative of Sri Lanka to the UN has recently completed a visit to Jaffna and the east of the island. Speaking anonymously to the Independent Broadcasting Corporation, a European Tamil language radio service, the official outlined some his observations and spoke of his concern for the Jaffna populace.
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Kadirgamar's divisive scheme stalls

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 24 September 1997, 12:03 GMT]
The Sri Lankan Foreign minister, Mr. Lakshman Kadirgamar was in London recently on another official visit. However, apart from his routine meetings with British officials, Mr. Kadirgamar had another objective to accomplish this time. According to a British periodical, the Tamil Guardian, Mr. Kadirgamar had been instructed to meet leaders of London's Tamil expatriate community and cultivate their support. However, things had apparently not gone according to plan.
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Buddhist clergy performs in Chandrika's theatre

[TamilNet, Monday, 22 September 1997, 12:00 GMT]
The Sri Lankan Buddhist clergy rejected the government's 'devolution proposals' last week. The Sinhalese people, who dominate Sri Lanka's government and armed forces, are mostly Buddhist, and the clergy wields considerable influence in Sri Lankan politics. The Buddhist clergy has consistently opposed any concessions to the Tamils on the island and their rejection of the proposals was widely expected. However, the Sri Lankan President has a place for the Buddhist clergy's stance within her strategy to win the war.
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Suicide bomber threat sustains support for war

[TamilNet, Monday, 22 September 1997, 12:00 GMT]
The Colombo public have an abhorrent fear of suicide bomb attacks. The threat seems ever present, even though there have been no suicide attacks in the capital for nearly two years. Surprisingly, the spectre of the suicide bomber is being revived time and again by the Sri Lankan government itself. The fear generated by the official warnings is sustaining public support for the government's war in the Tamil homelands.
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Body count: an illusive index of 'progress'

[TamilNet, Thursday, 18 September 1997, 12:00 GMT]
"In a war without battle lines, perhaps the best overall index of progress is that of casualties". This view was delivered as part of the orientation given to newcomers to the US military's Saigon HQ at the height of the conflict in Vietnam. Despite several Sri Lankan offensives against the Tamil Tigers, the LTTE continues to vigorously resist the Sinhalese army in the Tamil homelands. In a bid to show 'progress' in its war, the Sri Lankans have developed a preoccupation with body counts.
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Tamil people mourn LTTE commander

[TamilNet, Monday, 15 September 1997, 12:00 GMT]
The Tamil people mourned the death of a senior LTTE officer in areas not controlled by the Sri Lankan army. Lt. Col. Pavarasan was killed on September 10th at Puliyankulum, where heavy fighting has been raging for the past few weeks. Two Sri Lankan divisions deployed to capture a road between Vavuniya and the Jaffna peninsula have been stalled at Puliyankulum amid stiff Tiger resistance.
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LTTE allays shipping fears

[TamilNet, Friday, 12 September 1997, 00:00 GMT]
On Thursday, the LTTE allayed international concern over its recent attack on a cargo ship. The Tigers said their destruction of the ship, the 'MV Cordiality', which had been hired by the Sri Lankan government, was intended to prevent the stripping of the Tamil people's mineral resources. The Tigers said that the attack should not be considered 'prejudicial to international trade or shipping'.
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