IDPs, tsunami victims celebrate New Year in camps, tents

[TamilNet, Thursday, 14 April 2005, 10:59 GMT]
Hundreds of thousands of internally displaced Tamil families affected by tsnunami and two decade old war Thursday celebrated another New Year in camps, welfare centres and make-shift structures as their own houses and agricultural lands in the Jaffna district are occupied by soldiers of the Sri Lanka Army (SLA), civil society sources said.


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Politically motivated focus on child soldiers said detrimental to peace

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 12 April 2005, 19:41 GMT]
Addressing the 61st Session of UN Commission on Human Rights (CHR 61), Ms. Karen Parker, J.D., a human rights lawyer and chief delegate for International Educational Development - Humanitarian Law Project, an NGO accredited by the United Nations Economic and Social Council, warned Monday that politically motivated focus on child soldiers without genuine consideration for the children themselves is detrimental to peace. Ms. Parker urged the UN Commission to give full support to Sri Lankan peace process facilitated by the Norwegian Government.
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Koneswaram water-cutting festival held

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 12 April 2005, 00:11 GMT]
The water-cutting (Theertham) festival of historic Trincomalee Koneswaram Temple was held Monday morning in the Papanasachunai holy well located inside Fort Frederick and surrounded by barracks of the Gajaba Regiment of the Sri Lanka Army. The SLA Monday allowed the temple authorities to open the holy well to conduct the Theertham festival to conclude the annual festival of the Koneswaram Temple. The fire brigade of the Sri Lanka Navy sprayed water from the holy well on thousands of devotees gathered at the site, sources said.
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Koneswaram temple Chariot festival held

[TamilNet, Sunday, 10 April 2005, 23:15 GMT]
Chariot (THER) festival of the historic Trincomalee Koneswaram Temple was held Sunday morning with Lord Konesar and his consort Maathumai Ambal being taken in a chariot while deities Pillaiyar and Murugan with his two consorts Valli and Theivayanai taken ahead in two other chariots. Large number of devotees from several parts of the country participated in the festival, sources attending the event said.
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ICRC escorts injured LTTE cadre to Trinco hospital

[TamilNet, Sunday, 10 April 2005, 17:05 GMT]
Injured cadre of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in Friday's dawn attack on the LTTE sentry point in Poonagar by an unidentified group in army uniforms was admitted to the Trincomalee general hospital Sunday afternoon for further treatment as his condition is reported critical. He was taken to the hospital by road from Kaddaiparichchan army sentry by representatives of the International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) on a request by the LTTE Trincomalee district political head Mr.S.Elilan, sources said.
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SLA soldier captured in LTTE controlled Muttur village

[TamilNet, Saturday, 09 April 2005, 10:43 GMT]
A soldier of the Sri Lanka Army (SLA), armed with a rifle and a compass, was arrested Saturday morning around 11 AM by Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). The arrest took place in the village of Thanganagar in Muttur east, an LTTE controlled area south of the Trincomalee district.
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Ex-Razeek Group cadre shot dead in Kattankudy

[TamilNet, Friday, 08 April 2005, 05:21 GMT]
An ex member of the Razeek Group was gunned down by an unidentified gunman in Kattankudy, 5 kilometres south of Batticaloa, Friday morning around 7 a.m. The man was traveling in a bus from Batticaloa to Kalmunai when he was shot dead with a 9 mm pistol, Kattankudy Police said. Many cadres of the paramilitary Razeek Group were absorbed regular soldiers into the Sri Lanka army’s National Guard Battalion since 2000. Others work as informants with the Sri Lanka military intelligence.
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Jaffna protest demands withdrawal of state troops

[TamilNet, Thursday, 07 April 2005, 10:24 GMT]
Large number of Tamil civilians participated in a protest march held in Jaffna town Wednesday demanding the withdrawal of State armed forces enabling the resettlement of hundreds of thousands of internally displaced families in their own lands and houses now being occupied by Sri Lanka government soldiers and restore normalcy in the peninsula, sources said.
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Colombo waging shadow war, says LTTE's official organ

[TamilNet, Sunday, 03 April 2005, 07:48 GMT]
"The Sinhala government should come forward immediately to stop waging the shadow war against the Liberation Tigers. Otherwise nothing can prevent it from turning into a real war", said the LTTE’s official organ 'Viduthalai Pulihal' in its latest issue. "The sacrificial lambs of this shadow war are penned in Sri Lankan army camps. Weapons for murder are given to them by the Sri Lankan military. The Sinhala regime is not interested in the peace process and it has no faith in a political settlement (to the ethnic conflict). It has interest and faith only in war", the paper said in its lead story.
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Crowd sets fire to army motorbike in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Saturday, 02 April 2005, 13:45 GMT]
An angry crowd set fire to a Sri Lanka army motorbike Saturday afternoon around 4.30 after it knocked down a girl in Sangarathanai, near Chavakachcheri town in Jaffna. Police rushed to the scene and dispersed the crowd following a tense stand off at Puliyadi on the A 9 road. The injured girl was admitted to Chavakachcheri Hospital and was later transferred to Jaffna Teaching Hospital.
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Sri Lanka army makes another offer to deserters

[TamilNet, Friday, 01 April 2005, 11:11 GMT]
Sri Lanka army Friday made a fresh offer to de-list thousands of soldiers who deserted from service. SLA says that more than fifty five thousand deserters are still at large. This is the fifth offer by the Sri Lanka army to de-list deserters.
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Shut down call by Sinhala association fizzles in Trinco

[TamilNet, Thursday, 24 March 2005, 18:18 GMT]
The call made by the North East Sinhala Association (NESA) for a shut down of business establishments in Trincomalee town in support of a Buddhist priest and his five disciples who is performing a satyagraha campaign since March 12 Thursday fizzled out as majority of Sinhalese in the town did not respond favourably. Venerable Mahamaduluwewe Nandaretna, Viharathipathi of Mahadiulwewa Sri Pabatharama Vihare began his satyagraha with his disciples demanding that the government should expedite providing relief to tsunami victims, five hundred thousand cash for all people who lost their houses in the natural disaster, sources said.
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SLA assures protection to Jaffna journalists

[TamilNet, Sunday, 20 March 2005, 17:41 GMT]
Major General Sunil Tennekon, Jaffna area commander of the Sri Lanka Army Sunday assured the Jaffna media personnel that his command is prepared to provide security to them and their equipments when they discharge their duties on the ground. He held a wide-ranging discussion, which lasted for about an hour with a delegation of Jaffna District Media Association (JDMA) at the office of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) following allegations that soldiers had attacked journalists in Jaffna in recent times when they were performing their duties.
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Jaffna SLN misdemeanors laid bare

[TamilNet, Friday, 18 March 2005, 16:59 GMT]
Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) soldiers were caught by officials of the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) near Crow Island in Jaffna Thursday with fish forcibly seized from local fishermen, sources said.
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Woman identifies SLA soldier in attempted rape case

[TamilNet, Monday, 14 March 2005, 11:51 GMT]
A sixty three year old Tamil woman of Neerveli in Jaffna Monday identified the soldier of the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) who attempted to rape her last Thursday at an identification parade held in the Jaffna Magistrate's Court.
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Soldiers harass civilians at Muhamalai army checkpoint

[TamilNet, Friday, 11 March 2005, 20:22 GMT]
Jaffna district Head of LTTE Political Wing, C.Ilamparithi, has complained to the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) that harassment and intimidation by soldiers of the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) at Muhamalai check point on civilians is on the increase. He requested the SLMM to take immediate steps to stop this trend, sources said.


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Sri Lanka army camp pelted over rape attempt

[TamilNet, Thursday, 10 March 2005, 13:00 GMT]
Crowds blocked the Jaffna-Pt. Pedro main road Thursday afternoon and stoned the Sri Lanka army’s (SLA) Villu Mathavady camp at Neervely after four soldiers from the SLA unit allegedly attempted to molest a 63 year old woman in the area. Protesting residents alleged that the woman was alone when a solider from the Villu Mathavady camp in Neervely had entered her home, gagged her and attempted to molest her while three of his colleagues stood guard outside. Some civilians in the area were beaten up by troops from the camp as the unrest spread in the area.


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Seven soldiers to appear in Jaffna court

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 09 March 2005, 20:55 GMT]
Ms Srinithi Nanthasekaran, Jaffna Additional Magistrate, Wednesday ordered the Jaffna Police to produce on March 14 all seven soldiers of the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) who were on duty at Parameswara Junction on Friday where Mr Kathirgamu (65) was shot dead during a public protest against the death of school student Ms Nagendran Thulashika, legal sources said.


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Jaffna celebrates Women's Day, calls on SLA to quit

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 08 March 2005, 17:34 GMT]
The Jaffna Women Cultural Forum celebrated the International Women's Day in the Jaffna district Tuesday calling on "the Sri Lankan Army (SLA) occupying the Tamil motherland should quit." An effigy symbolizing the SLA occupation was cremated at Parameswara Junction in Thirunelveli, sources said.


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Bail refused in tsunami generators theft case

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 08 March 2005, 00:34 GMT]
Trincomalee Magistrate Mr.Manickavasagar Ganesharajah Monday refused bail application for the third suspect Mr.Nimal Dissanayake, Assistant Commissioner of Lands of the Trincomalee district secretariat, in connection with the alleged theft of 12 of the 37 generators donated by the Indian government to supply electricity to temporary shelters for tsunami victims. Mr.Nimal Dissanayake and two other suspects, Mr. Upali Ratnasiri, peon, and Mr.Upulkumara Kodipuli, watcher of the land office, were ordered remand till March 18, legal sources said.
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