NECORD provides building to Salli students

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 14 December 2004, 04:00 GMT]
A three storied building, constructed under the Asian Development Bank (ADB) funded North East Community Restoration Development (NECORD) project at a cost of 5.986 million rupees, was declared open in Salli Ambal Maha Vidiyalayam on Sunday evening. Salli, a fishing hamlet, is located along the seacoast, about 12 km north of Trincomalee town, in the Trincomalee Divisional Secretariat division.
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Norwegian peace envoy arrives in Colombo

[TamilNet, Monday, 13 December 2004, 14:31 GMT]
Mr.Erik Solheim, special envoy to the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, arrived in Colombo Monday evening. Mr. Solheim will have meetings with President Chandrika Kumarathunghe, the opposition leader Mr. Ranil Wickramasinghe, representatives of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), according to the Norwegian Embassy sources in Colombo. Mr. Solheim is scheduled to meet with the LTTE Political Head, Mr. S. P. Thamilchelvan, on Wednesday.
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Funeral held for Tamil scholar Sokkan

[TamilNet, Monday, 13 December 2004, 13:48 GMT]
The cremation of late veteran Tamil scholar Mr.K.Sokkalingam, fondly called "Sokkan" took place amid torrential rain in Chemmani Hindu cemetery Monday evening. Large number of people of all walks of life bade farewell to the departed Tamil educationist who rendered invaluable service to the development of Tamil language and its literature for more than four decades.
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Ensuring Language Rights a must to resolve conflict- Collure

[TamilNet, Saturday, 11 December 2004, 14:46 GMT]
"Until the language rights of Tamil people enshrined in the Statute are implemented in true spirit, no satisfactory solution to the conflict between the two communities can be found," said Mr.Raja Collure, Chairman of the Official Languages Department inaugurating a special Tamil language-training course for police personnel in Colombo Friday.
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UPFA budget passed by 105-vote majority

[TamilNet, Friday, 10 December 2004, 18:57 GMT]
Sri Lanka parliament Friday evening adopted the maiden budget for 2005 of the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) government with a majority of 105 votes at the third reading following the conclusion of committee stage debate, parliamentary sources said.
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Veteran Tamil educationist "Sokkan" dies

[TamilNet, Friday, 10 December 2004, 16:41 GMT]
Mr. Kanthapachettiyar Sokkalingam fondly called as "Sokkan" passed away peacefully at the age of seventy-seven Friday afternoon in Jaffna. Jaffna University recently conferred Honorary Doctorate of Literature on him for his invaluable services he rendered to the development of Tamil literature and Tamil language for more than four decades.
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Colombo continues to violate Tamils’ rights- Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Friday, 10 December 2004, 13:09 GMT]
“We have established a system of government that upholds and protects the fundamental rights of our people in regions under our control in the northeast. Our judiciary and Police are committed a society based on the Rule of Law in which our people can enjoy their freedoms and pursue their interests with self respect. But in areas held by the Sri Lankan government its armed forces continue to violate the rights of the Tamil people," said Mr. S. P Thamilchelvan, head of the political wing of the Liberation Tigers addressing a meeting to mark International Human Rights Day in Kilinochchi Friday.
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Concrete-block manufacturing facility opened in Kilinochchi

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 08 December 2004, 11:49 GMT]
The opening ceremony of a factory that builds concrete blocks from cement was declared open in Kilinochchi Monday, sources from Vanni said. The effort was funded by The Economic Consultancy House (TECH) a Non-Governmental Non-Profit Sharing Organization registered with the Government of Sri Lanka.
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Jaffna High Court to hear HC applications

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 07 December 2004, 16:31 GMT]
Jaffna High Court Judge Mr.K.P.S.Varatharajah Tuesday gave a final date to Lance Corporal Somaretna Rajapakse to file his objections in the six Habeas Corpus applications in which he and two other army officers were cited as respondents by six petitioners that their sons disappeared after the arrest by the Sri Lanka Army in Ariyalai-Chemmani areas in the Jaffna town during 1997-1997 period, legal sources said.


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SLA humiliates women in Jaffna- Ms Sithamparanathan

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 07 December 2004, 12:13 GMT]
"Women in Jaffna suffer humiliation daily. Smartly dressed women are asked whether they belong to the Liberation Tigers and whether they received military training. Women, especially those with fair complexion, are sexually harassed, said Ms Padmini Sithamparanathan, Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian speaking during the voting at the Committee stage of Ministry of Social Welfare, parliamentary sources said.
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Muttur Tamil villages ignored in rural electrification

[TamilNet, Sunday, 05 December 2004, 15:16 GMT]
Mr.K.Thurairatnasingham, Tamil National Alliance Trincomalee district parliamentarian speaking during the committee stage debate in Parliament said that although several villages in Muttur have been selected as part of Rural Electrification project no Tamil villages are included in the scheme, parliamentary sources said.
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Two nations theory is not new to Sri Lanka-TNA MP

[TamilNet, Sunday, 05 December 2004, 14:08 GMT]
"Theory of two nations is not a new idea to Sri Lanka," said Mr.Joseph Pararajasingham, Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian Saturday participating in the committee stage debate on the votes for Labour Relations and Foreign Employment in Parliament. He reminded the prophetic speech made by a Sinhala leader Dr.Colvin R.De Silva of Lanka Sama Samaja Party (LSSP) forty-eight years ago during the debate on the Sinhala only bill that "Do you want one nation with two languages or two nations with one language?" parliamentary sources said.
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Counter proposals not conducive to peace- Vanni MP

[TamilNet, Saturday, 04 December 2004, 17:03 GMT]
"The Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) should desist from placing counter proposals before resuming negotiations. GoSL should be prepared to resume talks on the basis of Interim Self-Governing Authority proposals. Any further delay has the potential to lead Sri Lanka into another dark period of war and destruction. I urge the Sinhala parties speak with a unified, consistent voice, and enter peace talks," said Tamil national Alliance (TNA) Vanni District MP Mr Sathasivam Kanagaratnam when TamilNet talked to him Saturday.
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Sri Lanka names 11 new envoys

[TamilNet, Saturday, 04 December 2004, 16:53 GMT]
The Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) Saturday announced the names of eleven diplomats who are to be posted to various countries as Sri Lanka's envoys. Two Tamils and three Muslims are among those named, foreign ministry sources said.
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SC reserves order on Bindunuwewa massacre appeal

[TamilNet, Saturday, 04 December 2004, 09:55 GMT]
Sri Lanka's Supreme Court reserved its order on the appeals made by the four accused against death sentence imposed on them by the Trial-at-Bar of the High Court in the Bindunuwewa rehabilitation camp massacre case, for a later date. The appeals were heard by specially constituted five member bench of the SC comprised Justices T.B.Weerasuriya, Nihal Jayasinghe, N.K.Udalagama, N.E.Dissanayake and Raja Fernando, legal sources said.
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TNA parliamentarians vote against Foreign Ministry votes

[TamilNet, Friday, 03 December 2004, 16:00 GMT]
Nineteen parliamentarians 17 Tamil National Alliance (TNA) and 2 United National Party (UNP) voted against the votes of the Foreign Ministry when it was put to division Friday after a committee stage debate in parliament Friday. However the Foreign Ministry votes was passed with a majority of 93 votes, 112 voted for it, parliamentary sources said.
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Tamils won’t go against India’s strategic interests - MP

[TamilNet, Friday, 03 December 2004, 14:17 GMT]
‘The desire to draw limits on the Tamils’ right to self-determination makes the Sri Lankan State align itself with any power that is willing to play along, even to the extent of blatantly seeking the interference of super-powers that would compromise, and put in jeopardy, the strategic interests of India’, said Mr. Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam, Tamil National Alliance MP for Jaffna, speaking on the committee stage debate on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Parliament Friday. The Tamil people won't allow themselves to be used to upset the strategic balance of South Asia, the MP said.
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GoSL must start talks based on ISGA- Jaffna NGOs

[TamilNet, Friday, 03 December 2004, 04:22 GMT]
"If peace and goodwill are to prevail, the Government of Sri Lanka should come forward to discuss without delay the Interim Self-Governing Authority (ISGA) proposals put forward by the LTTE. The proposals represent the collective will of all NorthEast Tamils," said Rev. Father Jeyakumar on behalf of the consortium of NGOs at a meeting held Monday in Nallur, Jaffna. Academics from the South who were on a fact finding mission to Jaffna also participated in the meeting.
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Muzzling Parliamentary Speech will further estrangement- Premachandran

[TamilNet, Thursday, 02 December 2004, 12:18 GMT]
''Tamil National Alliance (TNA) MPs participate in the Parliamentary procedures only because of their desire to promote amity between the two polarized peoples in Sri Lanka. But if the ruling United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) and the opposition United National Party (UNP) members join forces to restrain free speech then it will be another step towards encouraging division of Sri Lanka,'' said Suresh Premachandran responding to attempts to curb privileges of TNA MPs in Sri Lanka's Parliament Wednesday, parliamentary sources in Colombo said.
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Mannar, Vavuniya to observe general shutdown

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 01 December 2004, 17:00 GMT]
NorthEast Civil Society Forums appealed to businesses and residents fo districts of Vavuniya and Mannar to observe general shutdown Thursday in protest against the killings of two innocent Tamil youths in Valvettithurai in Jaffna, and assaults on members of public including one Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian during the Heroes Day celebrations, civil sources said.
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