Jaffna shuts down as thousands honour martyr

[TamilNet, Friday, 26 September 2003, 08:19 GMT]
Jaffna came to a standstill Friday as thousands gathered at the Nallur Temple grounds to observe the sixteenth death anniversary of Lt. Col. Thileepan, the LTTE leader who fasted unto death in 1987 when the Indian army was in occupation of Jaffna and most parts of the northeast. Shops, offices and workplaces were closed to mark the final day of the weeklong remembrance.
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Madhu road opened for civilian use

[TamilNet, Thursday, 25 September 2003, 19:28 GMT]
The Madhu road in Mannar district was opened Thursday for the use of over 13,000 villagers living in 11 villages around the historic Madhu church by the Sri Lanka Army after several years, with restrictions on the type of vehicles that can travel on the road, civil sources said.
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'GOSL should listen to IDP’s demands' - Ezhilan

[TamilNet, Thursday, 25 September 2003, 15:11 GMT]
"Those who say that the Ceasefire has brought peace and all problems are solved should go to the refugee camps and see the refugees who cannot return to their homes because of the Sri Lanka Army’s occupation of their lands. Only then they will understand the plight of the internally displaced people (IDP) and the fairness of their demands," said Mr. S. Ezhilan, the political head of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in Vavuniya, speaking at the Pongu Thamil event in Vavuniya town Wednesday, sources said.
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Thileepan's commemoration to conclude Friday

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 24 September 2003, 16:08 GMT]
Elaborate arrangements are being made to observe the final day of the commeomration of the 16th anniversary of the death of Lt. Col.Thileepan throughout the Northeast province on Friday with a token fasting and cultural event depicting the freedom struggle of Tamils, sources said.
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UNICEF inaugurates survey on children in Kantalai

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 23 September 2003, 19:02 GMT]
The second phase of a house-to-house survey, conducted by the UNICEF to identify children who do not attend schools or who have dropped out, was inaugurated Sunday at Seruvila Vidiyalaya in the Kantalai education zone in the Trincomalee district, UNICEF sources said.
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LTTE Eastern commanders visit Vanni to discuss IA proposals

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 23 September 2003, 11:15 GMT]
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) military officers led by Senior Commander of the East, Col. Karuna departed by a special helicopter from Iluppaiyadichenai Sports Grounds to Vanni at 9am today to participate in discussions towards finalizing the LTTE's Interim Administration (IA) proposals to the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL).
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Jaffna students killed in SLAF bombing remembered

[TamilNet, Monday, 22 September 2003, 16:22 GMT]
Hundreds of parents, teachers, students and well-wishers gathered Monday afternoon at the Puloly Roman Catholic School in the Vadamaradchi division in Jaffna district to commemorate the 8th death anniversary of 40 people, including 26 students, who were killed on 22nd September 1995 in an aerial attack by the Sri Lanka Air Force bombers on the Nagarkovil Maha Vidiyalayam, education sources said.
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International Aid groups meet LTTE in Kilinochchi

[TamilNet, Monday, 22 September 2003, 16:09 GMT]
A team of representatives of the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the United Nations Development Plan met with Mr. S.P Thamilchelvan, head of the Political division of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, at the LTTE’s Peace Secretariat in Kilinochchi Monday, sources in the Vanni said.


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Jaffna fishermen wrestle with increased Navy harassment

[TamilNet, Sunday, 21 September 2003, 19:10 GMT]
Fisheries societies in Jaffna district Sunday complained to civil authorities that the Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) soldiers, alleging that they have been directed by Sri Lanka defense authorities to tighten security of the coastal areas in Jaffna town, have started harassing fishermen from Gurunagar, Pashaiyoor and Colombagam, sources said.


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Amity to acrimony

[TamilNet, Sunday, 21 September 2003, 14:34 GMT]
In the wake of an unsuccessful bid to forge an alliance to topple the ruling United National Front (UNF) government, Sri Lanka’s two largest opposition parties are now at each other’s throats, weekend press reports said. Relations between the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), the largest constituent of the main opposition People’s Alliance (PA) and the Janatha Vimukthi Perumana (JVP), the third force in Sinhala politics, have descended into acrimony barely days after alliance talks collapsed.
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Vavuniya MP says SLA disrupts Pongu Thamil

[TamilNet, Friday, 19 September 2003, 17:02 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Army in Vavuniya has beefed up its checkpoint outside the Pongu Thamil (Tamil Upsurge) office, and SLA personnel are checking and video taping those who visit the office. Such actions are intended to disrupt the Pongu Thamil event in Vavuniya, said Mr.N.Sivashakthi Anandan, the Vanni district Tamil National Alliance parliamentarian, Thursday.
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Karachi displaced given resettlement grants

[TamilNet, Friday, 19 September 2003, 15:08 GMT]
7130 of the displaced families from Karachi in Kilinochchi district who had applied for resettlement grants have been given financial assistance ranging from Rs. 25000 to Rs.3000, said Secretary of Karachi Pradeshiya Sabai, Pon.Nithyananthan.


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Thai army completes de-mining training in Kilinochchi

[TamilNet, Thursday, 18 September 2003, 14:07 GMT]
A ten member team of the Royal Thai Army Thursday completed a three week special training in de-mining equipment handling for forty five personnel of the Humanitarian De-mining Unit of the Tamil Rehabilitation Organisation (TRO) in Kilinochchi. The Royal Thai army team leader Lt. Col. Suchart presented certificates to the HDU personnel who took part in the special training program.
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‘No time frame for restarting talks’ – Helgesen

[TamilNet, Thursday, 18 September 2003, 08:46 GMT]
“We will not give any time frame for the possibility of restarting the talks. But as of mid October we expect to start planning resumption of talks”, said Mr. Vidar Helgesen, Norway’s Deputy Foreign Minister after discussions with the head of the Liberation Tigers’ political division, Mr. S.P Thamilchelvan, Thursday in Kilinochchi on the LTTE’s counter proposals for an Interim Administration for the northeast and the status of Sri Lanka’s eighteen month long ceasefire agreement.
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Police bans Thileepan commemoration in Jaffna school

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 September 2003, 19:20 GMT]
Sri Lanka Police in Point Pedro in the Jaffna district Wednesday ordered the principal of Puloly Methodist Tamil Mixed School that he could not organize any event that is connected with the activities of LTTE in school premises without the permission of the police, civil sources said.
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UNICEF's training on mine risk concludes

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 September 2003, 13:47 GMT]
The integrated Training of Trainers under the UNICEF sponsored Mine Risk Education (MRE) programme, which commenced in April this year, concluded Tuesday at the Hotel Club Oceanic in Trincomalee, with the awarding of certificates to participants who are field officers of non-government organizations, the White Pigeon, Sarvodaya and Tamil Refugees Rehabilitation Organization in the northeast province, UNICEF sources said.
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Sports competitions mark women’s upsurge day

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 September 2003, 08:26 GMT]
Sports competitions are being held in the Vanni among women’s brigades of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam to mark the remembrance of 2nd Lieutenant Malathy, the first woman LTTE fighter to die, and the women’s upsurge day, sources in the Vanni said.
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SLA, SLN firing exercises hamper fishing in North

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 September 2003, 00:05 GMT]
Jaffna district fisheries co-operative sources complained Tuesday that firing practices by the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) and Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) along the coast of northern sea have rendered several areas dangerous for fishermen, sources said.


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SLMC, NUA remember late leader Ashraff

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 16 September 2003, 14:26 GMT]
The third death anniversary of the founder leader of the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress and National Unity Alliance, Mr.M.H.M.Ashraff, was observed Tuesday in the country by the rank and file of his party and its breakaway groups, sources said.
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Thileepan’s 16th year commemoration begins in NE

[TamilNet, Monday, 15 September 2003, 17:10 GMT]
The Tamil people in the Northeast Monday began observing the sixteenth death anniversary of Lt. Col. Thileepan, a senior leader of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam who died after twelve days’ fasting unto death due to the failure of the Indian government in fulfilling five demands put forward by him to meet the aspirations of the Tamil people soon after the signing of the Indo-Sri Lankan agreement, sources said.
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