TNA MP condemns SLN attacks on Muttur coastal villages

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 21 March 2006, 17:55 GMT]
Mr.K.Thurairatnasingham, Trincomalee district Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian in a statement issued on Tuesday condemned the continued attack by the Sri Lanka Navy on the coastal villages Soodaikuda, Koonitivu, Sampoor and Kadatkaraichchenai for the second day Tuesday from about 11 a.m. Two students of the Sampoor Maha Vidiyalayam are reported injured in the second day attack by the SLN, according to reports he received from Muttur east civilian sources, Mr.Thurairatnasingham said.
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Emergency Regulations extended

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 21 March 2006, 13:27 GMT]
Sri Lanka parliament extended the state of emergency Tuesday, parliamentary sources in Colombo said. First imposed after the assassination of its foreign minister six months ago, Emergency Regulations have been extended every month, but the Sri Lanka Government said violence has fallen sharply since talks with Liberation Tigers in February.
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MIOT helps Trincomalee rural children

[TamilNet, Monday, 20 March 2006, 01:43 GMT]
Mother and Child Care Centre, and a Hall to provide daily free meals to children constructed by the All Ceylon Hindu Development Society (ACHDS) at a cost of 1.3 million rupees in Deva Nagar, a suburb in Trincomalee was declared open by Srimath Swami Tandredeva Maharaj Sunday, sources said. Medical Institute Of Tamils (MIOT) in United Kingdom provided funding for the project, ACHDS officials said.


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Threats to Vavuniya traders must be stopped, MP tells Rajapakse

[TamilNet, Monday, 20 March 2006, 01:37 GMT]
Mr.Selvam Adaikalanathan, Wanni district Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian has appealed to Sri Lanka's President Mahinda Rajapakse to take immediate steps to disarm persons intimidating members of the business community in Vavuniya district with death threats and extortion, sources in Vavuniya said.
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TNA, LTTE discuss local elections at Kilinochchi meet

[TamilNet, Sunday, 19 March 2006, 12:19 GMT]
Selvam Adaikalanathan, Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian for Vanni district addressing media in Kilinochchi after a meeting between the Liberation Tigers and the TNA parliamentarians Sunday morning, accused Colombo for delaying making decision on holding local elections in the NorthEast
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Thiruketheeswaram war affected families receive houses

[TamilNet, Saturday, 18 March 2006, 12:38 GMT]
Seva Lanka, a non-governmental organization handed over twenty-four houses constructed in Thiruketheeswaram area in the Mannar district to beneficiaries on Wednesday. Mr.T.Lankaneson, Project Director of the NECORD ceremonially opened the housing scheme, sources said. Funding for the housing projecte was praovided by the North East Community Restoration Development (NECORD) project.
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Local council election contestants meet TNA in Vavuniya

[TamilNet, Friday, 17 March 2006, 13:12 GMT]
Candidates competing in the Vavuniya district local council elections under the Ilankai Tamil Arasu Katchchi (ITAK) ticket met with Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarians in Vavuniya Hindu Youths Hall Thursday, sources in Vavuniya said.
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Modern building for Sambaltivu Children Home commissioned

[TamilNet, Friday, 17 March 2006, 00:55 GMT]
Mr.K.Thurairatnasingham, Trincomalee district parliamentarian, Wednesday declared open the modern building constructed at a cost of 3.5 million rupees for the Sambaltivu Saratha Children Home with the funding of New Jersey Tamil Arts and Cultural Society in the United States of America. Mr.Thurairatnasingham cut the ribbon and unveiled the tablet of the new building, which could provide space for about fifty children, sources said.
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Jaffna DDC meets under heavy security

[TamilNet, Thursday, 16 March 2006, 10:53 GMT]
Mr. Douglas Devananda, Minister in the ruling United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) government, and North East Governor Mohan Wijewickrema, retired Rear Admiral of the Sri Lanka Navy, Thursday morning arrived at the Jaffna District Secretariat in a troop carrier of the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) for the Jaffna District Development Committee (DDC) meeting held Thursday morning, sources in Jaffna said. The entire surrounding of the secretariat building was fortified with large numbers of troops and armored vehicles, sources added.
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TRO donates permanent houses to tsunami victims

[TamilNet, Thursday, 16 March 2006, 10:43 GMT]
"We have plans to build 250 houses in the Mullaitivu district. Houses we have constructed in Kallappad are expensive, structurally strong and are better than many similar houses donated as part of tsunami relief across Sri Lanka," said K.P. Regi, Executive Director, Tamils Rehabilitation Organisation (TRO), speaking at the handing over ceremony held Tuesday morning in Kallappadu village in the Mulaitivu district.
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Thamilchelvan to meet Norway's Ambassador, TNA

[TamilNet, Thursday, 16 March 2006, 02:06 GMT]
Head of Liberation Tigers Political Wing, S.P.Thamilchelvan is to meet Norway's Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Mr Hans Brattskar, and a representative of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) at the LTTE Peace Secretariat Building Thursday, sources in Kilinochchi said. Thamilchelvan is also expected to meet the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarians also in Kilinochchi on the 20th March, sources added.
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Lectures resume at Jaffna University

[TamilNet, Thursday, 16 March 2006, 00:32 GMT]
Lectures at University of Jaffna suspended from December 2005 due to violence in Jaffna district and the presence of Sri Lanka Army (SLA) troops in the university environment, resumed for freshmen to Senior classes of students Wednesday, said an official of the Jaffna University Student Union (JUSU). Only a few out of district students attended the first day but JUSU official said most of the other outstation students will arrive soon.
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TNA to boycott Devananda meeting

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 15 March 2006, 22:54 GMT]
The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarians said Wednesday that they will boycott the District Integration Meeting schedueld for Thursday 16th at the Jaffna Secretariat to be chaired by Sri Lanka Cabinet Minister Douglas Devananda, the leader of the Eelam Peoples Democratic Party, with the newly appointed Governor for NorthEast, Rear Admiral (Retd) Mohan Wijeyawickrema, and Mavai Senathirajah, TNA parliamentarian as co-chairmen, TNA sources said. The EPDP is a paramilitary group working with Sri Lanka Government and a political party aligned with the ruling United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA).
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Canadian Tamils protest against HRW charges

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 15 March 2006, 11:00 GMT]
Expatriate Tamils in Canada reacted Wednesday against a report by Human Rights Watch alleging extortion by the Tamil Tigers, saying the report had characterized their entire community as one moribund by fear and questioned its integration into Canadian society. Pointing out there has not been a single prosecution for extortion in Canada amongst the Tamil community, they said anecdotal evidence and assumptions, not sound social science research, formed the basis for HRW’s allegations.
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Tamil language seminar begins in Trincomalee

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 15 March 2006, 09:06 GMT]
Two-day Tamil Language seminar for students taking 2006- GCE Advanced Level Examination began Tuesday in Trincomalee Vivekananda College. The seminar is being organized under the guidance of Trincomalee Zonal Education Office and sponsored by the Organization For Refugees Rehabilitation (OFERR) to raise the declining standard of Tamil language skill among students in the Trincomalee district, organizers said.
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Teacher shortage in Vanni schools spotlighted

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 14 March 2006, 09:41 GMT]
Tamil medium schools in the Vanni electorate are in urgent need of trained teachers to teach various subjects, but no action has been taken by the education authorities to post enough teachers to these schools, said Mr.Selvam Adaikalanathan, Wanni district Tamil National Alliance (TNA) in a letter to the Minister of Education.
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Local elections in NorthEast likely to be postponed

[TamilNet, Monday, 13 March 2006, 10:40 GMT]
A final decision to conduct elections to local government authorities in the North East is to be announced by the Commissioner of Elections this week after consultations with NorthEast district returning officers, political sources in Colombo said. Sri Lanka's President Mahinda Rajapakse last week agreed in policy to postpone the local elections in the NorthEast local authorities at meeting with a delegation of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) led by its parliamentary group leader Mr.R.Sampanthan, sources added.
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TNA rejects JVP's claimed right to nominate CC member

[TamilNet, Monday, 13 March 2006, 00:07 GMT]
As the dispute among the 'minority parties,' Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) and Tamil National Alliance (TNA) in selecting the sixth member of the Constitutional Council continue to stymie CC from functioning, the Speaker Mr.W.M.J.Lokkubandara has asked the Leader of the House, Mr Sripala de Silva, to speak to the leaders of the three parties to resolve the matter urgently, parliamentary sources said.


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Defunct committees cause hardships to fishermen, farmers

[TamilNet, Sunday, 12 March 2006, 11:51 GMT]
Mr.Selvam Adaikalanathan, Wanni district Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian, expressed serious concern over the lethargic attitude of the Mannar District Secretariat for not holding monthly meetings of the District Fisheries Committee (DFC) and the District Agricultural Committee (DAC) regularly to address problems faced by Mannar farmers and fishermen when they are undergoing severe difficulties due fishing ban and violence, sources in Mannar said.


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New prison to help Vavuniya residents, law enforcement officials

[TamilNet, Saturday, 11 March 2006, 16:14 GMT]
The Commissioner of Prisons has agreed to build a new prison complex in Vavuniya after repeated requests by Tamil parliamentarians, local police and officials of Vavunia judiciary, Sivanathan Kishokumar, Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian said Saturday. Until now crime suspects who are directed to be kept in remand by Vavuniya courts have to be taken to Anuradhapura prison causing logistical nightmare for law enforcement officials and severe hardships to relatives of suspects.
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