ER, militarizing relief jeopardize peace prospects- paper

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 18 January 2005, 15:00 GMT]
Questioning the timing of the introduction of Emergency Regulations (ER)in several districts and the motives for unilaterally enforcing ER without coming to an agreement with the Liberation Tigers, the popular daily Uthayan in Tuesday’s editorial said that the Government of Sri Lanka is further worsening the mistrust between the parties and jeopardizing the peace process by its actions.
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Dutch Ambassador, EU official meet Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 18 January 2005, 12:07 GMT]
Ms. Susan Blankhart, H.E. The Ambassador for The Netherlands and European Commission’s Charge d’Affaires Mr. Wouter Wilton expressed their condolences and their "solidarity to the people of the region in distress and bereavement" when they met with the Liberation Tigers' Head of the Political Division, Mr.S.P.Thamilchelvan at the Peace Secretariat Tuesday morning, sources from Vanni said.
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Canadian PM meets with TNA, TRO delegations

[TamilNet, Monday, 17 January 2005, 14:30 GMT]
Mr. Paul Martin, Prime Minister of Canada, met with delegations of Tamil National Alliance (TNA) and Tamils Rehabilitation Organisation (TRO) Monday at Colombo Hilton Hotel at 2.30 PM. The TNA delegation urged that all international aid, including Canadian aid, to be channeled through International Non-Governmental Organizations till a proper mechanism is set up to deal with the post Tsunami situation in the Northeast. The TNA told the Canadian Prime Minister that there was total centralization of all rehabilitation, resettlement, reconstruction and development activities in Colombo, and that this was totally inconsistent with the wishes expressed by the people of Northeast.
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Colonel Kittu remembered in Jaffna, Trincomalee

[TamilNet, Monday, 17 January 2005, 14:14 GMT]
Twelfth death anniversary of Colonel Kittu, senior commander of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and nine other cadres was observed in Jaffna and Trincomalee Sunday. They committed suicide when the Indian Navy seized the ship they travelled in January 1993.
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Fourth anniversary of Pongu Thamil Declaration held in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Monday, 17 January 2005, 11:26 GMT]
An event to mark the fourth anniversary of the first Tamil Resurgence Movement (Pongu Tamil) was held Monday morning in the Jaffna University premises amid large crowd. A public meeting was also held in the Kailasapathy Auditorium. Mr.C. Ilamparithi, Jaffna district political head of the LTTE delivered the keynote address, sources said.
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US Marines will not stay any longer than wanted, says US Defence Secretary

[TamilNet, Monday, 17 January 2005, 10:03 GMT]
Visiting Deputy Defence Secretary of the United States of America, Paul Wolfowitz said in Colombo on Monday morning that the US Marine troops would not stay in Sri Lanka any longer than they were wanted. "We don't want to stay any longer than we are needed, most certainly not longer than we are wanted," he told both foreign and local reporters at a press conference at Ceylon Continental Hotel on Monday, before completing his short review visit to Sri Lanka.
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Police disrupts Kittu death anniversary in Mannar, Pesalai

[TamilNet, Sunday, 16 January 2005, 16:11 GMT]
At least 15 civilians were injured in Mannar when the Police opened fire in air and assaulted several Tamil people when they attempted to hoist Thamileelam flag in the Pesalai town Sunday morning in preparation to hold a commemoration meeting to mark the 12th death anniversary of Colonel Kittu, senior commander of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and nine other LTTE cadres. Tension prevailed in Pesalai town and transport services came to halt, sources said.
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WFP Executive Director meets with Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Sunday, 16 January 2005, 09:48 GMT]
Executive Director of World Food Programme (WFP), Mr.James T. Morris, met with the LTTE's Political Head Mr. S.P.Thamilchelvan and expressed encouragement by the timely engagement of LTTE and the TRO in feeding displaced people, according to a news release issued by the LTTE Peace Secretariat.
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Centralization, control by armed forces, and equitable aid are incompatible, TNA tells ADB president

[TamilNet, Sunday, 16 January 2005, 06:58 GMT]
Tamil National Alliance (TNA) delegation met the president of Asia Development Bank (ADB), Mr. Tadao Chino, on Sunday and highlighted the context and the developments in the country that are detrimental to the equitable distribution of tsunami relief. The TNA, which has 22 of the 31 parliamentary seats from the northeast, told the president of ADB that the present activities of the government did not represent the democratic will of the people of the northeast and urged the ADB president to ensure that international aid was equitably distributed.
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Kofi Annan's Special Envoy visits Mullaithivu

[TamilNet, Saturday, 15 January 2005, 21:19 GMT]
Margareta Wahlstrom, UN Secretary General's Special Envoy on Relief Operations, met with the Head of the LTTE's Political Wing, Mr. S. P. Thamilchelvan Saturday and expressed condolences and solidarity to the Tamil people affected by the tsunami on behalf of the UN Secretary General, sources said. Urging the UN not to allow political considerations to deter its participation in the rebuilding efforts in the Tamil homeland, Mr. Thamilchelvan told UN Envoy that the Sri Lanka government has "acted in bad faith" by bringing the military into the humanitarian equation.
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Mullaithivu, a model for structuring relief efforts- Rotary DG

[TamilNet, Saturday, 15 January 2005, 06:18 GMT]
Mr. Lucky Peiris, Governor of Rotary District 3220 Sri Lanka, speaking to journalists in Trincomalee Friday evening, praised the commitment and devotion shown in the Mullaitivu district in providing relief to the Tsunami victims. LTTE cadres got into action and cleared debris to assist affected people within minutes after tsunami struck Mullaithivu district. This efficiency is urgently needed in other parts of the country, he added.
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Canadian parliamentarian meets Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Friday, 14 January 2005, 17:20 GMT]
“All Canadian aid for Tsunami relief would be channelled through our own organisations and equitable distribution is the bottom line of our humanitarian aid for relief, rehabilitation and reconstruction” said Hon. Jim Karygiannis, P.C., M.P., and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport in a meeting with the head of the Political Division Mr. S.P.Thamilchelvan, LTTE's peace secretariat reported.
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Avoid politicisation of relief efforts, cautions EU

[TamilNet, Friday, 14 January 2005, 15:31 GMT]
Calling upon President Chandrika Kumaratunga's United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) government, all political parties and the LTTE to actively promote a fair distribution of relief assistance to the tsunami victims, Colombo-based Heads of Missions of the European Union on Friday cautioned that there should be no politicisation of relief efforts. In an apparent reaction to the government's decision to deploy its military to handle the relief assistance, the member countries of the EU have also urged all parties to refrain from any actions during the distribution of humanitarian aid that might have a potentially negative impact on the peace process.
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LTTE denies UNICEF ‘child recruitment’ charge

[TamilNet, Friday, 14 January 2005, 10:46 GMT]
The grandmother of two children alleged by UNICEF to have been recruited and released by the Liberation Tigers rejected the accusation Friday, saying the youngsters were about to be taken into care by a orphanage as their mother was abroad and their father had abandoned the family and she (grandmother) was unable to look after them after being displaced by the Asian tsunami.
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Sri Lanka unique in deploying armed forces at welfare centers- SLMM

[TamilNet, Friday, 14 January 2005, 00:21 GMT]
"Sri Lanka is the only country to deploy armed forces to manage refugee welfare centres in the aftermath of Tsunami catestrophy," said Major General (retd) Trond Furuhovde, Head of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) when he met with the LTTE's Trincomalee district military commander Colonel Sornam and the district political head Mr.Elilan in Sampoor in the LTTE held Muttur east, down south of Trincomalee.
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Colombo in regular touch with LTTE, says Jayantha Dhanapala

[TamilNet, Thursday, 13 January 2005, 19:07 GMT]
The head of the Government's Secretariat for Coordinating Peace Process (SCOPP) Mr. Jayanda Dhanapala said Thursday that the arrangements are in place to be in regular touch with the LTTE for the purpose of coordinating disaster relief operation and to develop a 'positive partnership' in recovering from the common adversity. Stating that these arrangements were made by the Norwegian facilitators, he said that a hotline has also been established to maintain the regular contact with the LTTE. Mr. Dhanapala was addressing a press conference in Colombo at the Board of Investment (BOI) auditorium on the Government's Recovery program aftermath the tsunami.
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Colombo restricting aid flow to LTTE areas- Col. Sornam

[TamilNet, Thursday, 13 January 2005, 17:58 GMT]
Colonel Sornam, Trincomalee district military commander of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Thursday told the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) that the Government of Sri Lanka is restricting the flow of foreign aid under the tsunami relief operations to the LTTE controlled areas. Colonel Sornam Thursday morning held discussions with Major General (retd) Trond Furuhovde for the first time since he took over the LTTE military command of the Trincomalee district last year, sources said.


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SLMM head witnesses army harassing Elilan

[TamilNet, Thursday, 13 January 2005, 14:32 GMT]
Monitors of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) led by their head Major General (Retd) Trond Furuhovde personally came to the rescue of LTTE Trincomalee district political head Mr.S.Elilan when the latter was stopped by the Sri Lanka military police at Kaddaiparichchan army camp Thursday around noon for about thirty minutes for failing to get down from his vehicle and showed his identity and his baggage at the checkpoint. This incident took place after about one hour Mr.Elilan complained to SLMM head about the harassment by army during the talks SLMM head held with LTTE Trincomalee district military commander Colonel Sornam, sources said.
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World Bank, ADB officials meet Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Thursday, 13 January 2005, 11:11 GMT]
Worldbank Country Director, Peter Harold, in a meeting with Head of LTTE Political Wing, S.P.Thamilchelvan, in Kilinochchi Friday, expressed his condolences to people over the loss of their loved ones and added, "the institutions we represent, would continue extending solidarity in the reconstruction efforts,” said the LTTE's peace secretariat website.
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Macroeconomic approach should govern reconstruction - Don

[TamilNet, Thursday, 13 January 2005, 00:53 GMT]
Professor V. Nithyanantham of the Dept. of Economics, Jaffna University, talking to TamilNet on the socio-economic setting in NorthEast and problems facing the residents in the post Tsunami period, said that planners should adopt a macro-economic approach to reconstruction taking into account relevant humanitarian and social factors.
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