Dhanapala says happy about Mannar situation

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 24 November 2004, 11:56 GMT]
“I am happy that in Mannar we have a relatively low number of cease fire violations that reflects very well the situation in Mannar”, said Mr. Jayantha Dhanapala, Secretary General of the Sri Lankan government’s Peace Secretariat, speaking to journalists briefly during an official visit to Vavuniya Wednesday. However, he refused to take questions from the media. Accompanied by Maj. Gen. Parami Kulatunga, Sri Lankan armed forces commander for the Vanni, Mr. Dhanapala visited the main entry point on the line of control at Omanthai, 15 kilometres north Vavuniya.
Full story >>

Troubles erupt over flag in Mannar town

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 24 November 2004, 10:35 GMT]
Mannar town was tense Wednesday afternoon amidst a stand off between Sri Lankan security forces and hundreds of civilians over the removal of a Thamil Eelam national flag hoisted at a sports festival to mark 'Great Heroes' Week. Crowds burnt tires in the town and demanded that the flag be handed back to organisers of the sports festival on the Mannar general play ground. Trouble erupted after some Sri Lanka army soldiers removed and took away the flag, Mannar Police said. Sri Lanka army deployed more troops and armoured vehicles in Mannar town following the fracas.
Full story >>

Urgent need to support NorthEast microfinance sector - GTZ

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 23 November 2004, 11:57 GMT]
German Technical Cooperation (GTZ)said in a press release issued Tuesday that ''higher levels of funding are required at this time and that many micro-finance service providers are in need of significant strengthening and capacity building if they are to provide effective services to the entrepreneurial poor,'' in the NorthEast region.
Full story >>

New Media Institute to be built in Kilinochchi

[TamilNet, Saturday, 20 November 2004, 23:18 GMT]
Foundation stone for a new Media Technology Institute is to be laid in Ariviyal Nagar in Kilinochchi on Friday, 26 November, sources in Vanni said. Officials in charge of the Institute said that the Institute is intended to promote media education among the Tamil community and to train local journalists to keep current with the advances in journalism and media information technology.
Full story >>

Book on Yogaswamy released in Kilinochchi

[TamilNet, Saturday, 20 November 2004, 18:02 GMT]
A book titled "Yogaswamy and Kilinochchi: A Spiritual Journey" describing the spiritual association of the popular Columbuthurai, Jaffna, sage Yogaswamy with Kilinochchi district was released Friday at the Kilinochchi Cultural Center by Srimath Aathma Ganananthaji swamy from Colombo Ramakrishna Mission, sources in Vanni said.
Full story >>

Muddy SLA detour jams traffic

[TamilNet, Saturday, 20 November 2004, 17:44 GMT]
Heavy morning traffic on the A9 highway near Omanthai, the main entry point to the northern Vanni region held by the Liberation Tigers, was blocked for more than five hours Saturday after two vehicles got stuck in a muddy side road made by the Sri Lanka army through a private property. The SLA made the detour road to divert public traffic around its Nochchimoddai camp, which straddles the A9 highway near Omanthai.
Full story >>

Trinco resettled IDPs' plight spotlighted

[TamilNet, Saturday, 20 November 2004, 03:29 GMT]
"No one can talk about peace and reconciliation when thousands suffer for want of shelter, food and clothes. Peace and reconciliation are only of secondary concern for them," said Mr.T.Thavasilingam, Chairman of the Consortium of Non-Governmental Organizations in Trincomalee district presiding over the meeting of Eastern Forum of Consortium of Humanitarian Agencies (CHU).
Full story >>

TRO organizes Pre-School teacher training in NorthEast

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 16 November 2004, 09:00 GMT]
Tamils Rehabilitation Organization (TRO) is conducting training programmes to pre school teachers and pre school development coordinators jointly with Forut and SCiSL throughout NorthEast covering all the communities through a bottom up organization, Pre-School Education Development Centre, TRO sources said.


Full story >>

'Will come to power soon' proclaims JVP

[TamilNet, Saturday, 13 November 2004, 17:57 GMT]
Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) Sri Lanka's powerful Marxist Sinhala nationalist party and President Chandrika Kumaratunga main coalition partner, Saturday marked the 15th death anniversary of its founder Rohana Wijeweera with a massive public meeting at the Sugathadasa Indoor Stadium in Colombo.Addressing the meeting, Mr. Tilvin Silva, general secretary of the JVP, lambasted the United National Party, accusing its leader Mr. Ranil Wickremesinghe of conspiring with the Liberation Tigers to divide the island nation. JVP is stridently opposed to granting regional autonomy to Tamils.
Full story >>

"Tamils have right to make their own constitution" – Mavai

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 10 November 2004, 08:52 GMT]
“The objective before us is to make our own constitution on the basis of our sovereignty, which is inalienable. We have the right to do it. The signing of the ceasefire agreement between the leader of the Tamil nation and the Prime Minister of the Sinhala nation proved that there are two states on this island”, said Mr. Mavai Senathirajah, Tamil National Alliance MP for Jaffna, speaking at the opening of the new building of the Thamil Eelam Law College in Kilinochchi Wednesday. The Thamil Eelam Law College was declared open by Ms. Adele Balasingham.
Full story >>

Mannar Bishop slams Kumaratunga's stand on Indian poaching

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 November 2004, 18:46 GMT]
Mannar Fishermen Monday temporarily gave up their protest against Indian poaching after Maj. Gen. Parami Kulatunga, Sri Lankan security forces commander for Vanni, promised them that he would take measures within two weeks to stop Indian fishermen from entering the seas off the Mannar coast. A conference to discuss Indian poaching was held Monday at the Bishop House in Mannar. "I have raised this matter with the President on several occasions. And everytime I was told that Indians cannot be antagonised on this score", Mannar Bishop Rt. Rev. Rayappu Joseph said, addressing the conference.
Full story >>

TELO launches savings project for war-affected students

[TamilNet, Sunday, 07 November 2004, 17:04 GMT]
Tamil Eelam Liberation Organization (TELO), a constituent of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Sunday launched a project to assist Tamil medium students affected by the war in Trincomalee district by opening savings accounts in their names in the State run People's Bank, sources from Trincomalee said.
Full story >>

Indian poaching sparks road protests in Mannar

[TamilNet, Sunday, 07 November 2004, 07:46 GMT]
Traffic on the main artery of Mannar Island was blocked from early morning Sunday as hundreds of Tamil and Muslim fishermen piled their boats across the road to protest against large scale poaching by Indians in the waters off Pesalai and against the Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) for taking no action to stop it. Hundreds of Indian fishing boats entered and fished in the sea off the Pesalai coast of the Mannar Island on Saturday night.
Full story >>

Balasingham Vanni bound to attend Norwegian FM meet

[TamilNet, Saturday, 06 November 2004, 20:22 GMT]
Liberation Tigers’ Political Strategist and Chief Negotiator, Mr. Anton Balasingham, and his wife Adele are scheduled to arrive in Colombo Tuesday morning and will travel to Kilinochchi in Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) helicopter the same day afternoon, sources close to the LTTE told TamilNet.
Full story >>

Japan to provide $240m loan

[TamilNet, Friday, 05 November 2004, 01:30 GMT]
Govenrment of Japan has agreed to provide a loan of nearly $240m on concessionary terms to Sri Lanka for small scale infrastructure upgrades, small industries promotion and to implement environmentally friendly projects, a news release from the the Embassey of Japan issued Thursday said. The interest rate of the 40year loan is a low 0.75%.
Full story >>

Indian army commander visits line of control in Vavuniya

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 03 November 2004, 07:04 GMT]
Indian army commander General N. C Vij Wednesday visited the main entry point to the territories held by the Liberation Tigers in Sri Lanka's north. He saw the line of control and the forward defences of the Sri Lanka army at the Omanthai entry point on the A9 highway, 15 kilometres north of Vavuniya.
Full story >>

Vavuniya campaign to End Violence against Women

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 02 November 2004, 11:59 GMT]
Oxfam sponsored District Campaign to End All Violence Against Women was held in Vavuniya Town Hall Tuesday, sources said. An inaugural event was held at Trincomalee St.Joseph's College auditorium Tuesday 26 October.
Full story >>

Dissident SLMC MPs sworn in as ministers

[TamilNet, Saturday, 30 October 2004, 18:02 GMT]
Mr.Najeeb Majeed, Mr.Rishard Badiudin and Mr.Ameer Ali, dissident parliamentarians of the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) Saturday afternoon were sworn in as Ministers without cabinet rank by Sri Lanka's President Ms Chandrika Kumaratunge. With these appointments, total number of ministers, ministers without cabinet rank and deputy ministers has risen to 76, parliamentary sources said.
Full story >>

Easing residency rules will affect Mannar born students, UGC told

[TamilNet, Saturday, 30 October 2004, 17:34 GMT]
The Organization of Parents/Guardians of School Children (OPGSC) of Mannar District Friday requested the Chairman of the University Grants Commission (UGC) to implement the original residential requirement of five years to obtain university admission to safeguard the educational interests of students born and grew up in the district, which is declared backward for the purpose of higher education, education sources said.
Full story >>

UGC urged to safeguard Mannar students rights

[TamilNet, Friday, 29 October 2004, 14:03 GMT]
The Organization of Parents and Guardians of School Children (OPGSC) of Mannar District Friday urged the Chairman of the University Grants Commission (UGC) to implement the original residential requirement of five years to obtain university admission to safeguard the educational interests of students born and bred in the district, which is declared backward for the purpose of higher education.
Full story >>