Kalutara Tamil prisoners put off fasting campaign

[TamilNet, Thursday, 27 May 2004, 22:04 GMT]
Mr. Sivanathan Kishore, the Tamil National Alliance Member of Parliament from the Vanni, who visited the Kalutara prison Thursday, said that the Tamil youths at the prison have put off their planned fasting campaign, following assurances that the TNA would take up their plight with Sri Lanka’s Attorney General and the Minister of Justice. Arrested under the draconian Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), many youths have been languishing in jails for several years without their cases being brought to court.
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Thambaiah's funeral held in Vavuniya

[TamilNet, Thursday, 27 May 2004, 10:42 GMT]
The body of Mr. Kumaravel Thambaiah, a senior lecturer in the Eastern University who was shot dead by unidentified gunmen at his home in Batticaloa town around 4.30 p.m. Monday was brought to his home village of Aasikulam in Vavuniya on Tuesday and was cremated on Wednesday, sources in Vavuniya said. Vavuniya North Education Commissioner, S.Pathmanathan, presided over the memorial meeting after the funeral ceremony.


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LTTE demands SLMM inquiry into academic's murder

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 25 May 2004, 04:26 GMT]
Mr. E. Kausalyan, the political head of the Liberation Tigers in Batticaloa, Tuesday condemned the murder of the Eastern University academic, Mr. Kumaravel Thambaiah, and demanded a full and independent inquiry by the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission, sources in the Eastern town said.
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SLMM urged to assist IDPs to resettle in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 25 May 2004, 03:25 GMT]
The Jaffna District Consortium of Humanitarian Agencies (JDCHA) Monday handed over a memorandum to the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) in Jaffna with copies of complaints made by two internally displaced families who have not been allowed by the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) to resettle in their houses. The JDCHA urged the SLMM to take urgent steps to assist the IDPs to resettle in their houses and lands which are located outside restricted areas, sources said.


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Eastern university don shot dead

[TamilNet, Monday, 24 May 2004, 12:18 GMT]
Mr. Kumaravel Thambaiah, a senior lecturer in the Eastern University was shot dead by unidentified gunmen at his home in Batticaloa town around 4.30 p.m. Monday. Mr.Thambaiah, 48, the head of the economics department of the Eastern University, is from the village of Aasikulam north of Vavuniya.
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Vavuniya Police commended for action against crimes

[TamilNet, Friday, 21 May 2004, 14:22 GMT]
Sri Lanka Police in Vavuniya has arrested fifteen suspects in connection with armed robberies, house-breaks, murders and abductions in Vavuniya town and surrounding areas, and recovered jewelry and cash worth 3 million rupees. The Police are also seeking the arrest of three hardcore criminals involved in the incidents who are currently working with the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) in Jaffna, police sources in Vavuniya said Friday.
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LTTE team completes assessment of development in East

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 19 May 2004, 15:20 GMT]
The team of political and administrative heads of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, led by the deputy head of the political division, Mr. S. Thangan, which visited the Batticaloa-Amparai district to assess development needs and activities, completed its assessment and returned to the Vanni Wednesday morning, sources said.
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"SLA establishes new checkpoints in Vavuniya, Mannar"- Selvam

[TamilNet, Monday, 17 May 2004, 11:22 GMT]
Vanni electoral district Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian Mr.Selvam Adaikalanathan Monday sent an urgent letter to Sri Lanka's President Ms Chandrika Kumaratunge that the establishment of new check points of the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) in the administrative districts of Mannar and Vavuniya is causing serious apprehension in the minds of the people that the security forces are preparing for renewed military action, TNA sources said.


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Operation-USA, TRO donate medical equipment to NE hospitals

[TamilNet, Sunday, 16 May 2004, 18:24 GMT]
"Operation USA" and the Tamil Rehabilitation Organization (TRO) donated Rs.10,000,000 rupees worth of medical equipment to the Government Agents of the eight districts in the northeast province to be distributed to state medical institutions in their health divisions, health officials said. Handing over event was held Thursday evening in the Vavuniya district secretariat presided by Vavuniya Government Agent Mr. R.Ganesh, TRO sources said.


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Ayurvedic Hospital staff draws MP's attention to lack of facilities

[TamilNet, Saturday, 15 May 2004, 11:24 GMT]
Director of Vavuniya Ayurvedic Hospital, Dr.Varnakulendran, urged Vanni Parliamentarian Selvam Adaikalanathan to take the necessary action to improve the inadequate medical and residential facilites that are currently adversely impacting the dispensation of effective medical services to general public, health officials in Vavuniya said.
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Youth shot dead in vavuniya

[TamilNet, Friday, 14 May 2004, 00:01 GMT]
Mr. Kalimuthu Santhakumar, 28, in Marambaikulam, Vavuniya, was shot dead on Thursday night at 9:30 p.m. by a group of unidentified men. The attackers escaped after stabbing another villager, Sabaratnam Jayanthan (24), who went out to check after hearing the gunshot, police said.
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SLA, LTTE agree to develop procedures to prevent killings in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 11 May 2004, 10:30 GMT]
The Sri Lanka army and the Liberation Tigers Tuesday agreed in Batticaloa to “develop mechanisms to ensure information sharing and quick reaction procedures to prevent serious crimes and to ensure proper procedures to apprehend individuals perpetrating serious crimes”. The meeting was arranged amidst killings that threatened to jeopardize the cease-fire agreement between LTTE and Colombo. Col. Thambirajah Ramesh, led the LTTE delegation to the meeting with the SLA at the Vavunathivu divisional secretariat, 5 kilometres, northwest of Batticaloa town.
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Gnanavel appointed Head of LTTE's Vavuniya Political Wing

[TamilNet, Monday, 10 May 2004, 10:38 GMT]
Liberation Tigers appointed Gnanavel as their new Head of Polltical section for Vavuniya district, sources in Vavuniya said. Outgoing Vavuniya head, Elilan, introduced Gnanavel to the security forces commanders and to the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) at the Vavuniya SLMM's office Monday.
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NE Village Officers Union to get headquarters in Vavuniya

[TamilNet, Thursday, 06 May 2004, 20:55 GMT]
The Vavuniya Government Agent, Mr. K. Ganesh, has agreed to allocate land for the headquarters of the North-East Village Officers’ (Grama Sevakas) Union (NEVOU), according to the Union’s General Secretary, Mr. K. Vamadevan.
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LTTE appoints new political heads for Trinco, Vavuniya

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 05 May 2004, 17:58 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam has made changes in its district administrative structure in the Trincomalee and Vavuniya districts. Mr.S.Thilak, currently the Trincomalee district political head, has been transferred to Kilinochchi, and Mr.S. Elilan, the current Vavuniya district political head, will be the new political head in Trincomalee, LTTE sources in Trincomalee said.
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LTTE ready to resume talks based on ISGA- Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Monday, 03 May 2004, 09:47 GMT]
Ambassador for Norway in Colombo, Mr. Hans Brattskar, Norway's special peace envoy, Mr. Eric Solheim, and Second Secretary of the Norwegian Embassy in Colombo, Ms. Kjersti Thomsdal, met with Mr. S. P. Thamilchelvan, Head of the LTTE Political Wing at the LTTE Peace Secretariat in Kilinochchi. The talks, started at 10.45 a.m. lasted for more than two hours and focused on the resumption of stalled peace talks and about preparing the agenda for the talks between the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL), sources in Vanni said.
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SLA restricts night traffic through entry points in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Friday, 30 April 2004, 02:38 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Army on Thursday introduced new rules to restrict traffic at night between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. through the eight entry points in the Batticaloa district through which the public can pass between the Liberation Tigers-controlled areas and the SLA-controlled areas in the district, Tamil media sources in the East said Thursday.


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UNHCR IG calls for renewed focus on Sri Lanka's IDPs

[TamilNet, Thursday, 29 April 2004, 08:17 GMT]
UNHCR Inspector General Dennis McNamara Thursday called for renewed attention to the plight of Sri Lanka's hundreds of thousands of displaced persons. "It also requires greater investment to ensure that conditions in return areas are conducive to a safe and dignified return – that families are able to earn a living, send their children to school, access health facilities and live in safety”, he said in Colombo Thursday.
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Workshop on HIV/AIDS for Trinco media persons

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 28 April 2004, 20:53 GMT]
North East Provincial Ministry of Health Tuesday held a one-day workshop for media personnel in the Trincomalee district, soliciting their co-operation to create awareness among the masses in the prevention and control of HIV AIDS in the northeast. Provincial health regional epidemiologist Dr.T.Thavakodirajah addressing the workshop said northeast province has gained second place with 43 positive AIDS cases in the island.
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SLA's complicity claimed in Batticaloa murders

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 27 April 2004, 10:50 GMT]
Head of the Political Wing of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), S.P.Thamilchelvan, in a letter to the Head of Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM), Major General (retd.) Trond Furuhovde, said that the murder of seven LTTE cadres including four disabled Sunday night was a violation of the Cease Fire Agreement (CFA) and that the LTTE had "credible evidence that the attackers came from the Vavunathivu SLA [Sri Lanka Army] camp direction," according to the LTTE's Peace Secretariat website.
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