SLA asked for EPDP weapons over journalist's murder

[TamilNet, Monday, 11 November 2002, 19:13 GMT]
The Jaffna Magistrate Monday directed the Commander of the Sri Lanka Army to hand over to court all firearms received from the paramilitary group EPDP under the provisions of the Ceasefire Agreement between the Liberation Tigers and Colombo to identify the weapon allegedly used for murdering journalist Mr. Mylvaganam Nimalarajan on 19th October 2000.
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Tigers, GOSL optimistic after first defence meet

[TamilNet, Sunday, 10 November 2002, 13:39 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers and the Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) said they were confident of making further progress in stabilising the island’s peace process on the ground as their high-level defence teams wound up four hours of talks in Omanthai, 18 kilometres north of Vavuniya, on the line of control, Sunday.
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Rehabilitation Ministry withdraws spoilt WFP rice from NE

[TamilNet, Sunday, 03 November 2002, 17:52 GMT]
The Rehabilitation, Resettlement and Refugees Ministry Sunday began withdrawing its stock of spoilt rice sent to the Trincomalee Multi Purpose Co-operative Society (MPCS) under the World Food Programme (WFP) for the distribution to the internally displaced in refugee camps and welfare centres in the east port town. The withdrawal was prompted by the Medical Officer of Health (MoH) declaration Friday that the rice was unfit for consumption. Rehabilitation Ministry sources said spoilt rice sent to Jaffna, Vavuniya and Mannar will also be withdrawn and be replaced with good quality stock.
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Colombo’s CFA obligations list remains long

[TamilNet, Saturday, 02 November 2002, 15:04 GMT]
The Sri Lankan military occupies 216 temples and churches and at least 45 schools in Jaffna. In scores of other schools and places of worship in the northern peninsula the Sri Lankan armed forces have vacated only buildings but are camped in or around the same locations. The Sri Lankan government agreed to pull out its armed forces from schools and places of worship in the island’s Northeastern province when it signed a ceasefire agreement (CFA) with the Liberation Tigers in February 2002.
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Protest against rape, murder of Tamil woman

[TamilNet, Saturday, 02 November 2002, 01:12 GMT]
Hundreds of people Friday held a protest march in Vavuniya town demanding immediate inquiry into the mysterious killing of Lucia Aurampillai, 42, after sexual assault by unidentified persons. The protest march commenced Friday morning from Sivan temple at Kovilkulam and arrived at the Vavuniya district secretariat. Women organizations, non-governmental institutions and the people of the area organized the protest campaign.
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WFP denies report as more spoilt rice arrives

[TamilNet, Monday, 28 October 2002, 14:55 GMT]
As the World Food Program (WFP) this week denied a TamilNet report of October 8 that rice the UN agency had supplied and the Trincomalee Multi-Purpose Cooperative Society (MPCS) says it is being forced to distribute is unfit for consumption, reports from the eastern port town said further supplies of spoilt rice, infected with insects and weevils, had arrived this week.
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SLA requested to vacate Hospital, Cultural Center

[TamilNet, Sunday, 27 October 2002, 15:31 GMT]
The Head of Vavuniya branch political section of Liberation Tigers (LTTE),C. Elilan, andthe District Secretary of Tamil National Alliance (TNA), Moorthy, have requested the Head of Security forces that the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) and Police vacate the Cultural Center in Vavuniya settlement and the Neriyakulam-Mankulum hospital for use of these facilities by the area residents.


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'Second round peace talks on firm foundation'- Peiris

[TamilNet, Friday, 25 October 2002, 14:33 GMT]
The Sri Lankan government Friday said a firm foundation has been laid for the second round of peace talks with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. A Sri Lanka Army Major General will be among the three advisors to the government delegation for the talks scheduled to commence on October 31 at Thailand.
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Heavy rain triggers Nochchikulam dam breach

[TamilNet, Sunday, 20 October 2002, 20:10 GMT]
Torrential rains in the catchment area of Nochchikulam in the Palamoddai Grama Sevaka district have caused failure of earth bunds 100 feet wide causing flooding of surrounding area, said sources. Seventy acres of fertile land close to the irrigation tank cannot be used for cultivation, according to these sources.
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All island karate contest-2002 concludes in Trincomalee

[TamilNet, Sunday, 20 October 2002, 19:27 GMT]
The all island martial arts -karate tournament-2002 was held Saturday and Sunday at St Joseph’s College auditorium in Trincomalee, organised by the district branch of the Sri Lanka Martial Arts-Do-Association and sponsored by the UNICEF.
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Tigers escorted SLA troops

[TamilNet, Saturday, 19 October 2002, 08:55 GMT]
(News Feature) In a reciprocal gesture to earlier actions by the Sri Lanka Army, cadres of the Liberation Tigers in Batticaloa last Sunday escorted SLA soldiers through areas in which angry Tamil demonstrators had set up road blocks protesting the earlier killings of several civilians by Special Task Force (STF) commandos.
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'Douglas Devananda not questioned over journalist’s murder' - RSF

[TamilNet, Friday, 18 October 2002, 03:50 GMT]
The international media watchdog, Reporters Sans Frontiers (RSF) Friday slammed Police investigators inquiring into the murder of Jaffna journalist Mayilvaganam Nimalarajan for never questioning persons who might have been behind the murder. Gunmen suspected to be members of the Eelam Peoples Democratic Party (EPDP) murdered Nimalarajan at his residence on October 19 2000.
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British MPs tour Jaffna, Vanni

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 16 October 2002, 04:52 GMT]
Progress in peace talks will largely determine if Britain will lift the ban on the LTTE or not, said Mr.Gareth Thomas, British Member of Parliament, Tuesday after visiting Jaffna and Vanni areas accompanied by Mr.Robert Evans, Member of European Parliament.
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Hartal in northeast

[TamilNet, Saturday, 12 October 2002, 09:03 GMT]
Shops remained closed and streets were deserted in all the towns in the northeast as a general shut down ('hartal') was observed in protest at the attacks on Tamil civilians in Trincomalee and Kanchirankuda. Black flags were hoisted on shops, houses and at public places. Burning tyres were seen on main roads, sources in several north-eastern towns said.
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'Armed strength vital for our protection' - Soosai

[TamilNet, Thursday, 10 October 2002, 20:08 GMT]
More than hundred thousand people from Vavuniya, Jaffna and many parts of the Vanni thronged the Killinochchi grounds and its surroundings to see the military parade of the LTTE's women fighting forces. The parade was followed by series of floats depicting the women fighting units of the LTTE.
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Jayawardene orders MPCS to distribute spoilt rice

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 08 October 2002, 19:51 GMT]
The management of the Trincomalee Multi-Purpose Co-operative Society is in a dilemma following instruction by the Rehabilitation, Resettlement and Refugees Minister Dr.Jayalath Jayawardene personally to distribute 950 bags of rice, which has been condemned as unfit for human consumption by the Government Agent and co-operative officials.
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NE protests in support of fasting PTA suspects

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 08 October 2002, 17:26 GMT]
Token hunger strikes, boycott of classes and rallies were held in Northeast province Tuesday in support of the fast unto death campaign by the Tamil political prisoners now under detention at Kalutara, Welikada and other prisons in the country.
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LTTE, GOSL exchange detainees of war

[TamilNet, Saturday, 28 September 2002, 15:46 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers said Saturday that President Chandrika Kumaratunga's government was responsible for delaying the release of the last batch of Sri Lankan army and Navy personnel in their custody by not acting on the matter with "prudent and humanitarian consideration." The LTTE and the Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe's government exchanged prisoners of war as part of the peace building process to end the island's ethnic conflict Saturday in Omanthai, on the southern border of the Vanni region.
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Polio immunisation targets northeast

[TamilNet, Saturday, 28 September 2002, 13:27 GMT]
More than three hundred thousand children under five years of age in Sri Lanka’s northeast province were immunized against Polio Saturday, health officials said.
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Lt.Col Thileepan death anniversary concludes in NE

[TamilNet, Thursday, 26 September 2002, 20:10 GMT]
"The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam have begun peace negotiations with the United National Front government sincerely and with confidence that we can achieve full autonomy based on Tamil nationality, Tamil homeland and the right of self determination" said the Head of the LTTE's Judiciary Mr. Pararajasingham addressing the concluding ceremony of the week long observance in honour of the Tiger martyr Lt.Colonel Thileepan in Poonthottam, Vavuniya Thursday morning.
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