Tamil, Sinhala detainees clash in Vavuniyaa remand prison

[TamilNet, Thursday, 30 December 2010, 02:15 GMT]
Two were injured in a clash that erupted between detainees in the Vavuniyaa remand prison Tuesday around 5:30 p.m. when Tamil detainees assaulted a Mannaar-based Christian priest and a long-time humanitarian worker, who was recently held in remand over alleged charges that he had sexually abused Tamil girls displaced due to the Vanni war. Altercation ensued as a group of Sinhala detainees rushed in defense of the priest and started assaulting their Tamil detainees with pointed weapons and blades. The alleged sexual abuse of under-aged girls are said to have taken in a Home for Destitutes run by the priest at Murungkan in Mannaar district, legal sources in Mannaar said.
Full story >>

35,000 persons affected by rain in Batticaloa district

[TamilNet, Saturday, 25 December 2010, 13:27 GMT]
More than thirty five thousand members of 7,200 families in eight DS divisions in Batticaloa district have been affected and over 15,000 houses are under water due to continuous torrential rain for the last six days. In the meantime, people affected by floods already, two weeks ago, complain that they have yet to receive relief and assistance from the government.
Full story >>

Jewellers stage lightening strike against continued crippling of trade in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Saturday, 25 December 2010, 13:24 GMT]
Jewellers in Jaffna Friday closed their businesses against the arrest of three leading businessmen in their industry that took place the same day morning by a team of Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of the Sri Lanka Police from Vavuniyaa. In the melee due to the protest the Sinhala CID men chose to release two jewellers and took one trader into their custody. Jewellers in Jaffna said Vavuniyaa Police, deployed by Colombo government, was serving the hidden agenda of crippling the business activities of the Tamil traders in the peninsula to make way for the Sinhalese to capture it.
Full story >>

Ultimate subjugation by making Tamils lie to themselves

[TamilNet, Thursday, 23 December 2010, 22:51 GMT]
“Humanitarian operation will not stop until the painful memories of terrorism and all thoughts of separatism are removed from people's hearts. You pass out today to contribute to this noble humanitarian operation”, Mahinda Rajapaksa, who believes in “winning the hearts and minds” of Tamils by military terrorism of state, told the passing out cadets at Diyatalawa Military Academy Tuesday. The ultimate point of subjugation comes when Tamils are made to lie to themselves. After Rajapaksa demonstrating that through the captured doctors of the Vanni war, another example comes in Government Agent Imelda Sugumar ‘evidencing’ before LLRC. More than felt towards such victims or Rajapaksa, the Tamil anger is in fact felt towards the external elements that have brought out the situation and now either talk about ‘home grown’ solution or back Rajapaksa through their bankers.
Full story >>

Self-employed Tamil reported missing in Vavuniyaa

[TamilNet, Saturday, 18 December 2010, 14:26 GMT]
A 24-year-old self-employed Tamil in Vavuniyaa, Tharmaraj Tharmendra, who used to travel to the towns of Mannaar, Vavuniyaa, Trincomalee and Colombo, selling products, has been reported missing since September 06, 2010, according to his relatives who were seeking help from those who have been in touch with the victim in various towns.
Full story >>

WikiLeaks: Gotabaya sanctioned extra-judicial killings by Paramilitaries

[TamilNet, Friday, 17 December 2010, 01:08 GMT]
A WikiLeaks cable, dated 18th May 2007 from US embassy in Colombo, accuses Defense Secretary Gotabaya Rajapakse of giving orders to Sri Lanka Army (SLA) commanders in Jaffna not to interfere with Tamil paramilitaries who are "doing "work" that the military cannot do because of international scrutiny. The work referred to in the cable includes extra-judicial killings, extortion, abduction and prostitution by the Tamil paramilitary groups EPDP and Karuna Group. Both groups are led by Ministers in the present ruling Government in Sri Lanka.
Full story >>

Tamil woman reported missing in Vavuniyaa

[TamilNet, Thursday, 16 December 2010, 14:35 GMT]
Jeyaseelan Praveena, 27, of Kuruma'nkaadu in Vavuniyaa district has been reported missing since Tuesday morning. Praveena who was employed as a management assistant in the Vavuniyaa District Secretariat, left for work on Tuesday morning but her mother was informed by the Secretariat officials that her daughter had not reported for work till 9.30 am the same day, according to the complaint lodged with the Vavuniyaa Police by her mother, Mahendrarani Jeyaseelan.
Full story >>

Two suspects escape from prison custody in Vavuniyaa

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 15 December 2010, 14:27 GMT]
Mannaar Police have launched a search operation to arrest two suspects who had escaped from their custody while they were being taken along with four others to Vavuniyaa prison for further remand in connection with robbery and possession of dangerous weapons Mannaar Police arrested six persons on 27.06.2010 on charges with possession dangerous weapons and robbery.
Full story >>

Colombo directs closure of Northern UN, ICRC offices

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 15 December 2010, 11:45 GMT]
Following directives from Sri Lanka Government authorities to close the branch offices of the United Nation agencies and the International Committtee of Red Cross (ICRC) in the North, these agencies are reducing the number of staff, civil society sources in Jaffna said. UNICEF, UNHCR, UNDP, and WFP offices are said to be affected by the directive from Colombo. A number of offices of the said organizations in Vanni area have already ceased operations. Meanwhile, British Members of Parliament raised concerns on the closure of the ICRC offices in Jaffna.
Full story >>

Colombo plans to close UN offices in NorthEast

[TamilNet, Monday, 06 December 2010, 13:35 GMT]
Sri Lanka Government has directed the United Nations officials to close the UNICEF, UNHCR offices in Ki'linochchi district in the North, and Trincomalee in the East before the end of this year, and to move the administrative functions to offices located outside NorthEast, civil society sources in Jaffna said. The sources fear that Colombo's action is part of its longer term strategy to rid of all NGO offices in the NorthEast.
Full story >>

300,000 mines cleared in north, east-SLA claims

[TamilNet, Sunday, 28 November 2010, 22:34 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army Sunday claimed that more than three hundred thousand mines have been cleared and destroyed in a land area of 1863 square kilometers so far in the North and East. More than 1300 soldiers have been deployed for demining activities using mechanical and manual methods, Military Spokesman Major General Ubaya Medawala said
Full story >>

Indian FM harps on failed 13th Amendment in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Saturday, 27 November 2010, 09:16 GMT]
Indian External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna, who ceremoniously opened an Indian Mission near Kantharmadam junction in Jaffna, failed to deliver any positive message to Eezham Tamils on India's position in resolving the national question. Mr. S.M. Krishna harped on the failed 13th Amendment to the Sri Lankan constitution, a model Tamils have rejected as inadequate in guaranteeing their rights and he also failed to touch the territorial integrity of the North-Eastern Province which was de-merged by Rajapaksa government that disregarded the earlier arrangement that has been in practice for several years following the Indo Lanka Accord.
Full story >>

Ex-Liberation Tiger combatant student in Jaffna University attempts suicide

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 23 November 2010, 07:25 GMT]
A first year Arts Faculty student in Jaffna University, a released ex-Liberation Tiger combatant from Vanni, tried to commit suicide Monday by taking overdose of tablets, sources in Jaffna. Meanwhile, the parents of a former Liberation Tiger combatant who had been rehabilitated after arrest and later released to join his family complained 18 November to Jaffna Human Rights Commission (HRC) office that their son is continually threatened by Sri Lanka Army (SLA) Intelligence Unit officers and men when he appears to sign at the SLA Intelligence Unit camp as instructed. The 23-year-old student who attempted suicide is admitted to Jaffna Teaching Hospital where the Vice-chancellor of Jaffna University, Professor. N. Shanmuagalingan visited him.
Full story >>

Colombo orders Red Cross to leave North

[TamilNet, Sunday, 21 November 2010, 13:55 GMT]
Sri Lanka Government ordered the International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) to cease operations in the Northern Province at the earliest without giving a specific deadline, ICRC informational officials told the local media, Sunday Times reported. Colombo gave no reason for the order that was given early this week, according to ICRC official Ms. Wijeratne.
Full story >>

Thanthirimalai

[TamilNet, Saturday, 20 November 2010, 09:15 GMT]
The hill of Thanthiri (Tinospora cordifolia) creepers.
The hill of a priest or shaman priest.
Full story >>

I'lavaalai

[TamilNet, Thursday, 18 November 2010, 23:07 GMT]
The small hamlet
The new hamlet
Full story >>

Rural dispensaries in Batticaloa district closed

[TamilNet, Thursday, 18 November 2010, 08:34 GMT]
Rural dispensaries in Thiraaymadu, Paalameenmadu, Naavatkudaa, Vavu'natheevu, Koaddaimunai, Maiyilaveddavaanan and Unnichchai in the Batticaloa district have been closed due to acute shortage of physical resources. Some of them are located in the resettled villages, Unnichchai, Mailavedduwan and Vavu'natheevu, Vaakarai, Karadiyanaa'ru and Maavadichchenai rural hospitals in the district are also likely to be closed due to lack of physical resources, medical sources said.
Full story >>

STF arrests 5 Tamils in Mannaar

[TamilNet, Friday, 12 November 2010, 06:40 GMT]
Sri Lanka police Special Task Force (STF) arrested Thursday around 3:00 a.m five Tamils including a male teacher, two family men and two youths in Peasaalai in Mannaar district, sources in Mannaar said. STF commanders who arrived in a white van dressed in civil clothes took the arrestees to the Prevention of Terrorism office in Vavuniyaa after handing over receipts for the arrests to the family members. They were brought back to Mannaar between 4:30 p.m and 6:00 p.m and a search was conducted in their houses in which their documents and other properties were confiscated by the police, the family members of the arrestees said. They had seen assault injuries on the arrestees, they said.
Full story >>

Sarvodaya officials in North accused of swindle

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 09 November 2010, 08:47 GMT]
The farmers among the resettled families in Vanni accuse the officials of Sarvodaya for having sold them inferior quality seeds at a high price making huge profits for themselves, sources in Vanni said. The Sarvodaya officials buying black grams and other grains whole sale in Colombo market at low prices sell them in packets as quality seeds at high prices, the sources added. Meanwhile, the agricultural implements issued to the resettled people in Vanni are found to be of poor quality and unsuitable for use in Vanni, the sources said. The people of Vanni already rendered destitute by the war on Vanni are further cheated by unscrupulous men in organizations like Sarvodaya, the sources in Vanni said.
Full story >>

PTF insists NGOs in North to engage only in construction of houses

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 09 November 2010, 08:19 GMT]
The Secretary of the President’s Task Force (PTF) in Sri Lanka, S. P. Divaratne, in an urgent circular to the Government Agents in the North instructed them not to entertain any new proposals of projects submitted by the Non-government Organizations (NGOs) functioning in the North but to insist on them to concentrate on housing projects in the war affected Vanni instead, sources in Jaffna said. Amidst accusations that Sri Lanka government is reluctant to accept the Indian government’s offer to build 50,000 houses in Vanni the PTF insisting on NGOs to only engage in constructing houses in Vanni is seen as a ploy to deflect India’s presence in Vanni, NGO circles in Vanni said.
Full story >>