Resettled Kanniya village gets co-operative model shop

[TamilNet, Sunday, 28 March 2004, 03:01 GMT]
Trincomalee Multi Purpose Co-operative Society (MPCS) Saturday opened its newly constructed eleventh retail and model shop at a cost of about 2 million rupees after about fourteen years in the resettled Tamil village Kanniya to cater to the urgent basic needs of the resettled families, civil society sources said. Kanniya is located about six km off north of east port town .
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6151 NorthEast children suffer without psychiatric help

[TamilNet, Friday, 26 March 2004, 11:25 GMT]
6151 children in NorthEast are psychologically affected due to war induced trauma and remain without adequate help, said planning commissioner for Tamils Rehabilitation Organization (TRO), Mr.Malaravan in a press briefing in Vavuniya Thursday morning. Lack of funds has denied us from taking forward the medical plans designed to help these children, Malaravan further said.
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LTTE explains renegade’s revolt to Eastern cadres

[TamilNet, Thursday, 25 March 2004, 17:33 GMT]
In a statement issued Thursday, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam has explained to its cadres and divisional heads in the Batticaloa-Amparai district about the ‘offenses’ of Mr. Vinayagomoorthy Muraleetharan, also known as Karuna, who was the LTTE’s commander for the district.
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Trincomalee farmers demand drought relief

[TamilNet, Thursday, 25 March 2004, 00:37 GMT]
More than one hundred and fifty farmers from Sambaltivu, Varothia Nagar, Sarathapuram, Kanniya, Aandankulam and Kappalthurai in the Trincomalee district Wednesday picketed in front of the office of the Trincomalee town and gravets Divisional Secretariat demanding that they should be paid drought relief similar to those given to farmers in the districts of Anuradhapura, Amparai, and Polonaruwa, civil society sources in Trincomalee said.
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US Tamils call for show of unity

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 24 March 2004, 02:46 GMT]
"It is the duty of every Tamil speaking person in Sri Lanka, regardless of his/her political alignment, religious affiliation, region of residence, or even personal biases, to set aside all such considerations and support this hard earned Tamil unity...[We] wish to humbly and earnestly request ALL Eelam Tamils to exercise their franchise on April 2nd, 2004, conscientiously," said United States-based expatriate Tamil organizations in an appeal issued Tuesday.
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Danish organization spends Rs.260m on Rehabilitation

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 24 March 2004, 00:12 GMT]
A four year rehabilitation plan at a cost of nearly Rs.260m is being successfully carried out by the Danish Refugee Council (DRC) in Vavuniya, Mannar, Trincomalee and Anuradhapura districts, said Ms.Birgitte Ebbesen, Sri Lanka country representative of DRC, in a press briefing Tuesday in Vavuniya.
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Kaluwanchikudy residents condemn Karuna group

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 23 March 2004, 14:24 GMT]
The people of Kaluthavalai-Kaluwanchikudy in the Batticaloa district have shredded the leaflets issued by the Karuna group, and the Tamil Alai newspaper controlled by the group in Kokkadicholai, condemning the group for warning the people of Batticaloa-Amparai against having any contacts with the Tamil national leadership based in the Vanni, sources in Battticaloa said.
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Brattskar, Harrold meet Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 23 March 2004, 11:10 GMT]
Mr. Peter Harrold, Country Director for World Bank in Sri Lanka and the Ambassador for Norway Mr. Hans Brattskar met with Mr. S. P. Tamilselvan, Head of the LTTE Political Wing in its Head Quarters in Kilinochchi Tuesday. The meeting focussed on issues related to NorthEast development, current political situation and forthcoming general elections, sources said.
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Women, key to nation building - Ms.Sithamparanathan

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 23 March 2004, 00:26 GMT]
"I feel our freedom is near our door-step. Tamil men and women have a duty to welcome this freedom and fully engage themselves in nation building activities. Particularly our women have a significant role to play in building our nation," said Pathmini Sithamparanathan, first woman candidate standing for elections in Tamil National Alliance (TNA) ticket in Jaffna, talking to the Canadian Tamil Radio, Monday.
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"Historic obligation to show force of Unity" - Raviraj

[TamilNet, Monday, 22 March 2004, 00:12 GMT]
"Several public civil society organizations have joined us in carrying out door-to-door campaigns. We are telling Jaffna voters that a historical burden is placed on the Tamil society to demonstrate a force of unity in the forthcoming elections," said Mr.Nadarajah Raviraj, former Jaffna district Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian, speaking to the Canadian Tamil Radio (CTR) Saturday.
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Vanni voters to stay overnight in Puliyankulam

[TamilNet, Sunday, 21 March 2004, 13:29 GMT]
"Voters from Liberation Tigers controlled area in Vanni will not undergo regular checking at Omanthai Sri Lanka Army checkpoint, and voters from remote areas will be given the option to stay overnight at Puliyankulam with free transportation, lodging facilities," said Vavuniya Government Agent (GA) and Returning Officer K.Ganesh after a meeting Sunday with Vanni district Deputy Inspector General of Police, sources in Vavuniya said.
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Polling stations in SLA-controlled areas for voters in LTTE-held region

[TamilNet, Saturday, 20 March 2004, 05:38 GMT]
According to decisions made at special meetings at the Secretariats in Jaffna, Vavuniya, Trincomalee and Batticaloa, the polling stations for the voters in the Liberation Tigers-controlled areas are to be constructed in the Sri Lanka Army-controlled areas in clusters, sources said.
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East campus to open amid security complaints

[TamilNet, Friday, 19 March 2004, 14:19 GMT]
Second semester examinations at the Eastern University campus are to be held on 15, April and the students should to return to their halls of residences on 6 April, informed A.D.Harris, University Registrar, sources in Batticaloa said. However, non-Batticaloa Tamil students who returned to their home districts after threatened with violence said that they have not been given any security guarantees and will not be able to return to the campus.
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Annai Poopathy anniversary celebrated in NorthEast

[TamilNet, Friday, 19 March 2004, 13:41 GMT]
Sixteenth year anniversary of Annai Poopathy memorial day was celebrated across the Northeast with special events being organized in Navalady, Batticaloa, sources said. Joseph Pararajasingham, Senior Vice President of the Tamil United Liberation Front, and other Tamil National Alliance candidates participated in the Batticaloa event, according to sources. Voice of Tigers (VoT) in its evening broadcast reported that major celebrations took place in Udayarkattu, Moonkilattu heroes cemetary for Batticaloa-Amparai war heroes.
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Move polling booths closer to checkpoint - Senathirajah

[TamilNet, Friday, 19 March 2004, 11:23 GMT]
General Secretary of the Ilankai Thamil Arasu Katchchi (ITAK) Mr. Mavai Senathirajah urged Vavuniya Government Agent K.Ganesh to make arrangements to locate the polling booths near the Sri Lanka Army checkpoint in Omanthai, sources said. Placing polling booths in Omanthai Maha Vidiyalayam would require voters to travel a few kilometers further from the checkpoint and will incur additional delays and logistic, transportation nightmare, Mr.Senathirajah told the GA.
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Will continue to espouse NorthEast unity - Pararajasingham

[TamilNet, Thursday, 18 March 2004, 04:21 GMT]
"I will carryout my campaign only on the basis of the LTTE's cardinal principles - find a political solution to the Tamil national problem based on the acceptance of the fundamental proposals regarding Tamil homeland consisting of North and East, Tamil Nation, Tamils’ right to self-government. If I am forced to deviate from these principles then I will not hesitate to withdraw my candidacy from the forthcoming elections," said Joseph Pararajasingham speaking to Canadian Tamil Radio (CTR).
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Polling stations in SLA side of checkpoints

[TamilNet, Thursday, 18 March 2004, 03:18 GMT]
During a meeting with Government Agents (GAs) from Vanni electoral district and Sri Lanka Army (SLA) commanders held in Vavuniya Wednesday evening it was agreed to locate polling stations in the SLA side of checkpoints at Omanthai, Madhu road and Uyilankulam, for residents of LTTE controlled areas in Vanni district to vote, sources said.


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Jaffna EPDP vehicle damaged in clash

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 March 2004, 18:03 GMT]
A vehicle belonging to the Eelam Peoples Democratic Party (EPDP) was badly damaged during a clash between a group of Jaffna university students and activists of the EPDP. The clash is alleged to have erupted when a group of EPDP activists assembled to create trouble in front of the residence of Ms Pathmini Sithamparanathan, a Tamil National Alliance candidate, Jaffna Police said Wednesday night.


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Rotarians hold medical clinic in Muttur villages

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 March 2004, 17:16 GMT]
The Trincomalee Rotary Club last weekend conducted a one-day medical clinic in the village Nallur which is located in the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam held Muttur east in the Trincomalee district. Rotarian Dr.G.Gnanagunalan organized this clinic with the assistance of Humanitarian Rehabilitation Services of NE (Lanka) Ltd, Colombo, that provided thirty thousand rupees worth of medicine to the clinic, sources said.


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Karuna’s revolt is 'temporary aberration' - Balasingham

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 March 2004, 08:43 GMT]
The rebellion by the LTTE’s former Batticaloa-Amparai commander is “not a major politico-military crisis in the LTTE,” the movement’s theoretician and chief negotiator, Mr. Anton Balasingham, said this week in his first public comment on the estrangement between Mr. V. Muraleetharan (Karuna) and the LTTE leadership. In a wide-ranging interview with the London based Tamil Guardian newspaper, Mr. Balasingham said “Karuna’s dissent would not seriously undermine the peace process or the Tamil national struggle.”
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