Tamil national unity forum launched in Colombo

[TamilNet, Thursday, 05 February 2004, 17:46 GMT]
“The greatest challenge before the Tamil people today is the coming together of Sinhala chauvinist forces bent on denying our rights. The alliance between JVP and President Kumaratunga’s Sri Lanka Freedom Party has gathered all the Sinhala chauvinist forces in strength under one umbrella. There is only one way for the Tamils to face this challenge – we should unite now regardless of our regional differences”, said Mr. Selvam Adaikalanthan, Tamil National Alliance for the Vanni, addressing the first forum to unite all Tamil political parties and groups in Sri Lanka Thursday.
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Troops assault, detain LTTE political workers

[TamilNet, Thursday, 05 February 2004, 09:24 GMT]
Two members of the LTTE's political division in Jaffna were severely assaulted and detained in a camp by Sri Lanka army troops in Tellipalai Thursday morning.
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Colombo paralyzed by confrontational politics - NPC

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 04 February 2004, 15:07 GMT]
While saying "...the new alliance provides an opportunity for a common approach to national problem solving if taken forward in a principled manner," National Peace Council (NPC)expressed its disappointment that the alliance has "failed to deal with the central issue of the political solution to the ethnic conflict in a coherent or principled manner...JVP holds to the unitary state and opposes an ethnicity-based solution, the SLFP has proposed the devolution of power to the regions," in a media release issued in Colombo today.
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LTTE medical corps' feats unparalleled - Balakumaran

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 03 February 2004, 12:42 GMT]
"Committment of cadres of LTTE's medical corps and the ingenious medical evacuation strategies used, paved the way for some of our biggest military successes against the Sri Lanka Army (SLA)," said V.Balakumaran, a senior member of the LTTE speaking at an event commemorating the sixth anniversary of the death of nine members of the LTTE medical division, sources from Vanni said.
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NEERP funds hospital construction in Muttur east

[TamilNet, Monday, 02 February 2004, 17:52 GMT]
Trincomalee district political head of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Mr.S.Thilak Monday noon laid the foundation stone for the proposed government hospital complex in Eachilapamathu village in the LTTE held Muttur east in the Trincomalee district. The hospital is to be built at a cost of 20 million rupees allocated by the World Bank funded North East Emergency Reconstruction Project (NEERP).


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EPDP to support JVP-SLFP alliance from outside

[TamilNet, Monday, 02 February 2004, 15:35 GMT]
Eelam Peoples Democratic Party (EPDP), paramilitary group that works with the Sri Lankan armed forces in Sri Lanka’s northeast, said in a Memorandum that it agrees with the policies of the newly formed United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) and that it would extend its support to the UPFA, political sources in Colombo said.
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Thampalakamam massacre victims remembered

[TamilNet, Sunday, 01 February 2004, 17:23 GMT]
The sixth death anniversary of the killing of eight Tamil civilians including two students by Sri Lankan police on 1st February, 1998, was observed Sunday at Potkerney and Puthukuddiruppu, suburbs of Thampalakamam village in Trincomalee district, sources said. Thampalakamam is located twenty four km off south west of Trincomalee town on Trincomalee-Colombo highway.


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"UNF ready to get fresh mandate for peace"- Wickremesinghe

[TamilNet, Sunday, 01 February 2004, 17:18 GMT]
"The ruling United National Front is prepared to face a snap general election to get a fresh mandate for peace," Sri Lanka's Prime Minister Mr.Ranil Wickremasinghe said Sunday addressing a rally at Hali-Ela in Badulla district. The meeting was held to inform the masses on the current political situation since Sri Lanka President's take over of three key ministries from the UNF government, media sources said.


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"No back-door link with LTTE"- Harim Peiris

[TamilNet, Sunday, 01 February 2004, 17:13 GMT]
"The President is not trying to establish a back-door link with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam," said Sri Lanka President's spokesperson Mr.Harim Peiris commenting on a report that Defense Ministry Secretary Mr. Cyril Herath has written a letter to LTTE Peace Secretariat head Mr.Pulithevan, media sources said.


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World Vision funds Ferry Service, Model Farm

[TamilNet, Sunday, 01 February 2004, 00:01 GMT]
Mr.Yu Hua Li, National Director of World Vision International, Friday, inaugurated two projects, a ferry costing Rs.3.5 million in Mandoor, and a new Model farm costing Rs.20m in Thampalavattai, civil sources in Batticaloa said. Both projects were funded by World Vision which is Christian Relief Organization.


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LTTE finance division forms Price Regulatory Authority

[TamilNet, Saturday, 31 January 2004, 19:43 GMT]
The Finance Division of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam has formed a Price Regulatory Authority to protect customers against sudden increases in price of consumer goods, tamil media reportes from Jaffna said Saturday.


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Ten youths from UNICEF list sent to Kilinochchi Transit Center

[TamilNet, Saturday, 31 January 2004, 18:04 GMT]
A Committee, appointed by the Liberation Tigers (LTTE), while reviewing the UNICEF underage list has so far found four boys and six girls to be under 18 years old, LTTE's media co-ordinator, Daya Master, told TamilNet. The youths are being sent to the Kilinochchi Children Transit Camp today. They were all found to have feigned their ages by submitting false papers when they joined the movement, Daya Master added.
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Talk only to LTTE -Anandasangaree tells Sri Lanka President

[TamilNet, Saturday, 31 January 2004, 14:57 GMT]
Mr. V. Anandasangaree, the President of the Tamil United Liberation Front met President Chandrika Kumaratunga Friday evening and impressed upon her that the Sri Lankan government should talk only to the Liberation Tigers and not simultaneously with any other Tamil group, according to a press note issued by the controversial Jaffna MP Saturday. “My view that ‘what is acceptable to the LTTE will be acceptable to the Tamils also’ seems to have impressed the President who had seen the reasonableness in my suggestions”, Mr. Anandasangaree said.
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Colombo political crisis discussed in Jaffna Seminar

[TamilNet, Saturday, 31 January 2004, 13:37 GMT]
A two-day seminar on "The current political crisis and the peace process" organized by the Centre for Women and Development (CWD) began Saturday morning in Jaffna Navalar Cultural Hall where topics related to political crisis in Colombo, LTTE's Interim Self Governing Authority (ISGA) proposals, problems in the current Sri Lanka constitution and other matters related to the Peace Process were discussed, civil sources said.
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JVP for elections -Amarasingha

[TamilNet, Thursday, 29 January 2004, 14:29 GMT]
Leader of the Marxist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), Mr. Somawansa Amarasingha, said Thursday his party is for holding general election in Sri Lanka soon, addressing a massive public meeting of the new alliance between the JVP and President Kumaratunga's Sri Lanka Freedom Party in Colombo.
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Thondaman raises questions on alliance call

[TamilNet, Thursday, 29 January 2004, 13:15 GMT]
Arumugam Thondaman, Leader of Ceylon Workers Congress (CWC), responding to Minister Chandrasekaran's call to form a national alliance with NorthEast Tamil parties, said that there are fundamental questions related to the need for such alliance, local media in Jaffna reported.


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Jaffna to launch pro-peace signature campaign on 4th February

[TamilNet, Thursday, 29 January 2004, 12:26 GMT]
A signature campaign to collect signatures for a memorandum to be sent to the international community with six demands related to the Tamil national question would be launched on February 4 in the Jaffna peninsula, according to a decision taken at the conference held Wednesday afternoon at the Jaffna Navalar Cultural Hall, sources said.


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Kokadichcholai massacre anniversary remembered

[TamilNet, Thursday, 29 January 2004, 02:21 GMT]
Seventeeth anniversary of the Kokkadichcholai massacre, where Sri Lanka's Special Task Force (STF) killed 86 Tamil workers in a shrimp farm on 28 January 1987 was commemorated near the memorial in Mahiladithivu Wednesday, sources said.
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UNICEF donates vehicles to education officials

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 28 January 2004, 16:43 GMT]
Sri Lanka's Country Representative of the UNICEF Mr. Ted Chaiban Wednesday handed over a consignment of vans, motorbikes and computers with printers valued at about Rs 17.7 million to the North East Provincial Ministry of Education, Cultural Affairs, Sports and Youth Affairs, as a step to support and strengthen the monitoring capacity of UNICEF's projects in education.


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Norwegian Ambassador meets Col.Karuna

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 27 January 2004, 19:59 GMT]
The Norwegian ambassador to Sri Lanka, Mr. Hans Brattskar, Tuesday morning met with the Senior Commander of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), Col.Karuna at the Thenaham Guest House in Karadiyanaaru, Batticaloa. The meeting lasted more than an hour. Discussions centered on the political situation prevailing in the South and the Muslim, Tamil relationship in the east, according to sources.
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