Batticaloa University appeals over possible UK ban

[TamilNet, Thursday, 01 February 2001, 12:00 GMT]
Hundreds of students, and members of the academic and non-academic staff of the Eastern University in Batticaloa picketed Thursday urging the British Government not proscribe the Liberation Tigers under the new Terrorism Act. The protest was also in support of the Tamil people's right to self determination, organisers said.
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Chavakachcheri not suitable for resettling -Mayor

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 31 January 2001, 17:15 GMT]
The conditions in Chavakachcheri are not suitable for resettling people although the government and some parties are attempting to do so, said Jaffna Mayor N.Raviraj, returning from a tour arranged by the Sri Lanka army Wednesday. The SLA's 51-2 brigade commander accompanied the mayor, Mr.V.Anandasangaree, Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) MP for Jaffna and Mr. S.Aravinthan, member of the Jaffna Municipal Council (TULF).
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Tigers "already implementing" Norway's MOU

[TamilNet, Monday, 29 January 2001, 20:30 GMT]
The Norwegian peace envoy Erik Solheim met the Liberation Tigers' chief negotiator, Anton Balasingham in London Monday prior to his visit to Sri Lanka, sources close to the LTTE said. Amongst other matters, Mr. Solheim had also discussed Norway's proposed memorandum of understanding to de-escalate the conflict, they said. The LTTE views the MOU positively, but would sign it only if Sri Lanka also accepted its part in it, Balasingham had told Solheim according to the sources.
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Court to hear Mailanthanai massacre case

[TamilNet, Sunday, 28 January 2001, 23:34 GMT]
(Newsfeature) The Mailanthanai massacre case in which 21 Sri Lanka army soldiers are accused of hacking to death 35 Tamils, including women, in a remote Batticaloa village on 9 August 1992 will be taken up for hearing in Colombo Monday lawyers appearing for the families of the victims said. "Justice delayed is justice denied. As with most cases in which SLA soldiers have been accused of massacring innocent Tamil civilians, a patently deliberate procrastinating strategy drawing on untenable pretexts is causing inordinate delays. This benefits the perpetrators of the murders," Mr.N. Kandasamy, a senior human rights activist in Colombo who has been monitoring the case for nine years told TamilNet Sunday.
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SLA demolishes homes in Jaffna suburbs

[TamilNet, Friday, 19 January 2001, 19:53 GMT]
The Sri Lanka army has demolished more than three hundred homes in the southwestern coastal suburbs of Jaffna town to construct large military facilities, said residents who visited the area this week. An official of a local NGO who went to inspect his home in Colombuthurai told TamilNet that coconut plantations in these suburbs were also destroyed.
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14 Tamils arrested in hill country

[TamilNet, Monday, 15 January 2001, 17:26 GMT]
Fourteen Tamil youths were arrested on suspicion by Sri Lankan police during a search operation in the hill town of Bandarawela on Monday. Five of the arrested are young women, sources said.
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Norway "committed" to peace process

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 January 2001, 11:55 GMT]
Norwegian officials Monday denied reports that Oslo would withdraw from efforts to bring about peace talks to end the Sri Lankan conflict. The officials were responding to reports in the Jaffna-based Tamil daily, Uthayan.
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Colombo categorically rejects Tiger cease-fire

[TamilNet, Friday, 05 January 2001, 15:29 GMT]
The Sri Lankan government will not in anyway respond to the cease-fire unilaterally declared by the Liberation Tigers last month said Sri Lanka's Minister for Media, Anura Priyadarshana Yapa, addressing a press conference in Colombo Friday to announce this week's cabinet decisions.
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"No cease-fire, Tigers will be eliminated" - Army

[TamilNet, Friday, 05 January 2001, 13:08 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army announced over loud-hailers in Batticaloa town on Friday that severe action would be taken against those who organise or take part in hunger-strikes, march, picketing or other forms of protest urging the Sri Lankan government to declare a cease-fire or to begin negotiations with the Liberation Tigers.
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Tamil parties urge US pressure

[TamilNet, Friday, 05 January 2001, 12:59 GMT]
The United States should exert pressure on the Sri Lankan Government to respond positively to the month-long unilateral cease-fire declared by the Liberation Tigers on 24 December, so as to create a climate conducive for negotiations, representatives of several Tamil parties appealed to the US Ambassador in Colombo during a meeting Friday.
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People, NGOs join Jaffna University demo

[TamilNet, Thursday, 04 January 2001, 21:00 GMT]
The demonstration by students and staff of the Jaffna University asserting that the political aspiration of the Tamil people is self determination and urging the government to start peace talks with the Liberation Tigers continued for the seventh day on the campus Thursday. Students visited towns and villages in the peninsula Thursday to muster support among the people for their campaign.
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University students assault 'Uthayan' journalist

[TamilNet, Thursday, 04 January 2001, 15:30 GMT]
A journalist working for a Tamil daily in Jaffna, the 'Uthayan', was assaulted by Jaffna University students Thursday morning when he went to the campus to gather information about the ragging of new students at the Science Faculty. The paper published a news report on Thursday about students boycotting lectures protesting against the one-year suspension of four senior students involved in ragging.
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Drug shortage threatens pregnant women

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 02 January 2001, 23:43 GMT]
Hundreds of pregnant women in the northern parts of the Batticaloa district are threatened by the unavailability of a drug (Ecometrine) that controls bleeding during childbirth at the Valaichenai hospital. Medical officers told Mr.M. Abdul Cader, deputy minister for Health who visited the hospital Tuesday that many other essential drugs are in short supply and that the maternity ward building is dilapidated and is functioning without basic facilities.
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Shots fired to mark New Year celebrations

[TamilNet, Sunday, 31 December 2000, 19:22 GMT]
Sri Lankan Army (SLA) troops fired several volleys of shells towards LTTE held western hinterland of Batticaloa and opened up firing from its camps and sentry posts in Batticaloa town to celebrate the dawn of the new year said sources in Batticaloa.
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SLA offensive in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Saturday, 30 December 2000, 13:52 GMT]
Sri Lankan Government troops launched a fresh offensive Saturday morning and have taken control of Navatkuly bridge, about 3 km. east of Jaffna town, army sources said. TamilNet sources in Jaffna said there were no signs of heavy fighting in the area, except sounds of shelling.
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Two civilians killed in SLN ambush

[TamilNet, Thursday, 14 December 2000, 17:19 GMT]
Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) personnel lying in ambush in Iqbal Nagar, north of Trincomalee shot and killed two Tamil civilians around 5 p.m. Wednesday. The victims, Shanmugaraja Swarnahasan and Mahalingam Thamiran, were returning to their village, Gopalapuram, on a motorbike from Trincomalee town when they shot at, sources said.
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Northern plight - Jaffna MP carts in protest

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 December 2000, 14:44 GMT]
United National Party MP for Jaffna Mr.A.Maheswaran led a protest Wednesday against the high price of goods in Jaffna and the government embargo on essentials to the Vanni by riding a bullock cart to the Sri Lankan Parliament. Six UNP Parliamentarians, including Dr.Jayalath Jayawardena and Mahinda Samarasekera joined him in the protest. Mr. Maheswaran told TamilNet that he was protesting over the exorbitant rates charged for taking goods to Jaffna by sea, adding that it is very much cheaper to ship things from Pakistan to Sri Lanka than from Colombo to Jaffna.
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Views of Batticaloa floods

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 22 November 2000, 07:57 GMT]
(Photographs) TamilNet's photo correspondent's views of floods in the eastern Batticaloa District which has rendered nearly one-hundred thousand people homeless. Officials said transport of relief to remote villages are hampered as several roads are submerged in flood water.
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Villagers appeal for bombing to stop

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 14 November 2000, 18:55 GMT]
An appeal has been made to the President of Sri Lanka to take immediate steps to stop the indiscriminate shelling and aerial bombing on Ralkulai and Navaladi villages in the Mutur division, south of eastern Trincomalee town. Hundreds of villagers have signed this memorandum, TamilNet sources in Mutur said.
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Police officer wounded

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 08 November 2000, 15:30 GMT]
A police intelligence officer was shot and wounded when unidentified gunmen opened fire at Kalmunaikudi, south of Batticaloa around 5.30 p.m. Wednesday, police sources said.
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