‘No time frame for restarting talks’ – Helgesen

[TamilNet, Thursday, 18 September 2003, 08:46 GMT]
“We will not give any time frame for the possibility of restarting the talks. But as of mid October we expect to start planning resumption of talks”, said Mr. Vidar Helgesen, Norway’s Deputy Foreign Minister after discussions with the head of the Liberation Tigers’ political division, Mr. S.P Thamilchelvan, Thursday in Kilinochchi on the LTTE’s counter proposals for an Interim Administration for the northeast and the status of Sri Lanka’s eighteen month long ceasefire agreement.
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Norwegian peace team arrives in Colombo

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 September 2003, 15:34 GMT]
Norwegian deputy foreign minister Mr. Vidar Helgessen and special peace envoy Mr. Erik Solheim arrived in Colombo Wednesday around 9.30 a.m. The visiting Norwegian envoys are scheduled to meet the Sri Lankan Prime Minister, Mr.Ranil Wickremasinghe, Wednesday night and will proceed to Kilinochchi to meet the leaders of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam Thursday, media sources said.
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UNICEF's training on mine risk concludes

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 September 2003, 13:47 GMT]
The integrated Training of Trainers under the UNICEF sponsored Mine Risk Education (MRE) programme, which commenced in April this year, concluded Tuesday at the Hotel Club Oceanic in Trincomalee, with the awarding of certificates to participants who are field officers of non-government organizations, the White Pigeon, Sarvodaya and Tamil Refugees Rehabilitation Organization in the northeast province, UNICEF sources said.
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Akashi concludes Lanka visit, leaves to India

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 16 September 2003, 11:22 GMT]
Japanese special peace envoy Mr.Yasushi Akashi said that the donor countries are not prepared to spend the funds pledged at the Tokyo aid conference for the reconstruction and development of the northeast province until stalled peace talks resume, media sources said.


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Akashi holds talks with Thamilselvan

[TamilNet, Sunday, 14 September 2003, 12:05 GMT]
The Japanese special peace envoy Mr.Yasushi Akashi Sunday morning arrived at Killinochchi grounds by a special helicopter of the Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) accompanied by HE.Mr. Soiiehiro Otsuka, Japanese ambassador in Colombo, and met the Head of the Political Wing of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) S.P. Thamilselvan at the LTTE's Peace Secretariat building, Vanni sources said.
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'HSZ prevents resettlement of 80,408 Jaffna families'

[TamilNet, Sunday, 14 September 2003, 03:33 GMT]
In the Jaffna district, 80,408 families have been unable to resettle in their own lands for the last 13 years as the Sri Lanka Army has been occupying their lands in areas it has declared as High Security Zones, said the Consortium of Non-Governmental Organizations in Jaffna in a statement Saturday.
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'Funds to NE only after resumption of peace talks'-Akashi

[TamilNet, Friday, 12 September 2003, 18:05 GMT]
The Japanese special peace envoy, Mr.Yasushi Akashi, said Friday that the funds pledged at the Tokyo donor conference will be channeled for the reconstruction of the northeast only after the resumption of stalled peace talks. The international aid community and the World Bank are also of the same view, he said at the end of the discussion held at Colombo Hilton Hotel Friday to find ways and means to release the funds pledged to the national development of Sri Lanka, sources said.
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SL Police express regret for humiliating LTTE activist

[TamilNet, Thursday, 11 September 2003, 20:37 GMT]
Sri Lanka Police officers at Kodikamam and Chunnakam in Jaffna district Thursday openly expressed their regret at the inquiry held at the regional office of the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka for the arrest of a Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam political activist, Mr. Nadarajah Premachchandran alias Jegan, at the Muhamalai check point, due to a mix up in identifying the suspect in a crime alleged to have been committed elsewhere in the peninsula, human rights sources said.
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Danish Ambassador concludes tour of Vanni

[TamilNet, Thursday, 11 September 2003, 17:15 GMT]
The Danish Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Mr. Michael Sternberg, met with officials of the Tamils Rehabilitation Organization (TRO) in Kilinochchi Wednesday and the commander of the Naval wing of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, Col. Soosai, in Mullaitivu, Thursday, and concluded his tour of the Vanni, sources in the Vanni said.
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Akashi to commence Sri Lanka visit Thursday

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 10 September 2003, 19:09 GMT]
The Japanese special peace envoy to Sri Lanka, Mr.Yasushi Akashi, will arrive in Colombo on a six-day visit Thursday. He will stay in Sri Lanka until September 16 and hold discussions with several political leaders regarding the present stalled peace process between the Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, political sources said.
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Danish Ambassador meets Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 10 September 2003, 10:45 GMT]
Ambassador for Denmark in Colombo, Mr. Michael Sternberg, met with the Political Wing Leader of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), Mr. S.P. Tamilchelvan, at the Peace Secretariat Building of the LTTE in Kilinochchi Wednesday, sources in the Vanni said.
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Shortage of English language teachers in NE

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 September 2003, 19:52 GMT]
The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) has requested Sri Lanka’s Prime Minister, Mr. Ranil Wickremesinghe, to take steps to fill the vacancies that exist for English language teachers in Northeast schools by granting permanent appointments to part time English teachers who have been working in the region for several years, sources said.
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Staff struggles as students labor to learn

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 September 2003, 00:04 GMT]
The sight of frolicking school children in clean white, blue uniforms playing inside the fences of Kilinochchi Maha Vidyalayam along the A9 highway provides a sense of normality to a visitor travelling near Kilinochchi town. However, this blurred picture fails to reveal the background of many children who have lost years of schooling due to war, now struggling to fit-in, and more ominously, does not expose the deficient education the school provides due to lack of facilities and shortage of teachers.
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Pirapaharan opens Tamil Eelam Police HQ

[TamilNet, Sunday, 07 September 2003, 17:03 GMT]
Speaking during the opening ceremony of the Tamil Eelam Police Head quarters complex today, Sunday 7th September 2003, at 06.40 am in Kilinochchi, Leader of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) V. Pirpaharan congratulated the Chief of Police, the young men and women of the police service and the liberation fighters who contributed to the growth of the Tamil Eelam police force, Voice of Tigers (VoT) radio said this morning.
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HRC to hold inquiry into LTTE's complaint

[TamilNet, Thursday, 04 September 2003, 20:18 GMT]
The Jaffna regional co-ordinator of the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka, Mr. Ruwan Chandrasekara, Thursday decided to hold a full-scale inquiry next Wednesday after obtaining the advice of the Inspector General of Police of Sri Lanka into the complaint by a LTTE political activist, Mr.Nadaraja Premachandran alias Jegan, that he had been humiliated and mistreated by the Sri Lanka Army soldiers and the police Tuesday, HRC sources said.
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SLMM raises LTTE flag issue at Tamil women's event

[TamilNet, Thursday, 04 September 2003, 14:28 GMT]
When the Tamil Eelam National flag was about to be raised at an event organized by Tamil women’s organizations in the Northeast at the Vavuniya Town Hall Thursday, the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission objected to it, saying that such flag-raising in the Sri Lanka Army controlled area violated the ceasefire agreement. However, following an argument between the LTTE’s women wing political leaders at the event and the SLMM’s foreign monitors, the flag was raised and the event went on peacefully, sources in Vavuniya said.
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LTTE delegation returns home

[TamilNet, Thursday, 04 September 2003, 11:01 GMT]
The delegation of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam led by its political wing leader, Mr.S.P.Thamilchelvan, and comprising Batticaloa-Amparai district special commander Col Karuna and Director of the LTTE Peace Secretariat Mr.Puleedevan returned to Colombo Thursday early morning after about two weeks' stay abroad, where the delegation held extensive discussion with their constitutional and legal experts in the French capital, Paris, sources said.
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LTTE activist complains of harassment by SLA

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 03 September 2003, 14:37 GMT]
Mr.Nadaraja Premachandran alias Jegan, a political activist of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), Wednesday lodged a complaint at the Jaffna regional office of the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka that the Sri Lanka Army at Muhamalai checkpoint had humiliated him when he was on his way to Kilinochchi, human rights officials in Jaffna said.
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NECORD supported Irrigation project to begin in Amparai

[TamilNet, Monday, 01 September 2003, 03:36 GMT]
Rehabilitation efforts of the Kanchikudichaaru Irrigation development project under the North East Community Restoration Development (NECORD) plan are expected to start Monday, according to NECORD officials. The Asia Development Bank (ADB) has allocated Rs.30m and World Food Program (WFP) has given Rs.8m for this project.
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Solheim, Canadians join as LTTE's Paris meet concludes

[TamilNet, Thursday, 28 August 2003, 01:47 GMT]
Eric Solheim, Norwegian special peace envoy, Lisa Gold of the Royal Norwegian Government, Hon. Bob Rae, former premier Ontario Canada and Prof. David Cameron of Canadian Forum of Federations joined the final day yesterday morning session of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam discussions in Paris, sources close to the LTTE delegation said. The LTTE's Constitutional Affairs Committee is currently meeting in Paris to prepare LTTE's response to the Government of Sri Lanka's (GOSL's) proposal for an Interim Administration for the Northeast.


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