JHU demands GoSL to stick to 'Mahinda Chinthanaya'

[TamilNet, Friday, 06 October 2006, 08:25 GMT]
Ellavala Methanatha Thera, leader of Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU), the all monk Sinhala national party, speaking on the Emergency extension bill debate in the Sri Lanka Parliament Thursday, said the Sinhalese people made Mahinda Rajapakse the Sri Lanka's President only on the basis of 'Mahinda Chinthanaya' which categorically rejects a Tamil Homeland, a Tamil Nation and the Tamils' right to self-determination, and the peace talks should be held on this basis, parliamentary sources in Colombo said.
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Shortage of children milk food in Jaffna - NCJ

[TamilNet, Thursday, 05 October 2006, 22:21 GMT]
39,000 children under the age of five face malnutrition in Jaffna due to severe shortage of infant food including milk, said North Ceylon Association of Journalists (NCJ) in an appeal Thursday to the Jaffna residential representatives of International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC), civil society sources said. The NCJ sought the assistance of the ICRC to bring in milk food products to Jaffna peninsula.


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Wickremasinghe pledges support to TNA protest

[TamilNet, Thursday, 05 October 2006, 01:26 GMT]
Ranil Wickremasinghe, leader of the opposition, pledged support to the TNA protest when Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarians Mavai Senathirajah, and Suresh Premachandran led by R. Sampanthan met Mr Wickremasinge Wednesday evening in the Sri Lanka Parliament complex to discuss opposition party's stand on their sit-in-protest in Sri Lanka's parliament, TNA sources said.
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Jaffna fisher familes driven to abject poverty, starvation - NPFC

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 03 October 2006, 10:25 GMT]
The International community should immediately intervene to help prevent the fisher families in the Jaffna peninsula from being driven close to starvation due to the total ban on fishing enforced by government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) in the peninsula, said the President of Northern Province Fishermen Consortium (NPFC) Mr. C. Thavaratnam, in an urgent appeal made to the International Community Monday, in Jaffna.


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Sri Lanka expels MSF from Jaffna

[TamilNet, Monday, 02 October 2006, 15:56 GMT]
Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) expelled three medical specialists of Médecins Sans Frontiérs (MSF) (France) serving in Point Pedro Manthikai Government hospital in Vadamardchchi Sunday, medical sources said. The hospital fell inside newly extended High Security Zone (HSZ) declared by the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) after Aug 11 when clashes erupted in the Jaffna peninsula between the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and the SLA, said Manthikai hospital sources.
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Norwegian special envoy meets GoSL

[TamilNet, Monday, 02 October 2006, 09:53 GMT]
Norwegian special peace envoy Jon Hanssen Bauer who is in Colombo on a four-day visit Monday morning met with Minister Nimal Sripala de Silva who led the government delegation that attended the Geneva peace talks held in February in Geneva under the direction of President Mahinda Rajapakse. The discussion which lasted for half an hour between them centred on taking forward the peace process between the warring parties.
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Norwegian peace envoy arrives in Colombo

[TamilNet, Sunday, 01 October 2006, 17:43 GMT]
Norwegian special peace envoy Mr. Jon Hanssen Bauer arrived in Colombo accompanied by Norwegian foreign ministry officials Sunday afternoon by Sri Lankan Airlines flight, sources in Colombo said.
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Vaharai IDPs protest lack of shelter

[TamilNet, Friday, 29 September 2006, 14:15 GMT]
Hundreds of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) protested Friday in Vaharai demanding flow of humanitarian relief into Vaharai where 34,000 civilians have sought refuge in 6 welfare centres. Amid increased fear of health hazards during the expected monsoon rains in October, the protesting IDPs currently forced to live in open terrain, demanded temporary huts. "Only UNHCR, UNICEF and ICRC are allowed to enter our area. We are in urgent need of housing. But, Sri Lankan authorities are not allowing these organizations to bring in shelters," a protester said after submitting an appeal to Divisional Secretary Kiritharan.
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Colombo's refusal to open A9, serious Humanitarian violation - Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 27 September 2006, 12:23 GMT]
Liberation Tigers Political Head S.P. Thamilchelvan Wednesday held discussions with the Head of Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) Major General Lars Johan Sølvberg, urging the Head of Mission to clarify the stand of Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) after the refusal by Sri Lanka Army in allowing the truce monitors access the Muhamalai area. Mr. Thamilchelvan questioned the HoM on the cooperation extended by GoSL in restoring normalcy in re-opening the land route and relieve the humanitarian sufferings of 500,000 civilians entrapped in economic embargo and GoSL refusal to open the Jaffna Kandy A9 route. Also other access routes to LTTE controlled areas in the East remain blocked.
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Stranded Jaffna residents provided transport from Vavuniya

[TamilNet, Monday, 25 September 2006, 08:05 GMT]
Nearly half of the two thousand stranded Jaffna residents in Vavuniya were taken in buses to Trincomalee harbour and from there they will taken in a ship to Jaffna, said Ms. Charles, Additional Government Agent (GA) Vavuniya Sunday evening, briefing the press at the Vavuniya Government Secretariat. Transport arrangements to the remaining will also be made soon, she added.
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Protest march held in Killinochchi condemning SL government

[TamilNet, Thursday, 21 September 2006, 21:59 GMT]
Hindu and Christian religious dignitaries of the Vanni district organised a peaceful protest march Thursday around 3.30 p.m condemning the Sri Lanka Government's (GoSL) for the closure of the A-9 route to Jaffna peninsula pushing its people to the brink of starvation and calling for the release of Rev. Jim Brown, catholic priest and his assistant who were reported disappeared after last being seen at the Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) check point at Allaipiddy one month ago, said sources from Killinochchi.
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Elderly woman dies in the turmoil in military transport arrangement from Jaffna

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 20 September 2006, 15:18 GMT]
As all land routes from the Jaffna to the mainland being closed by the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL), an elderly woman among the huge crowd of Jaffna residents vying for seats in 'Shakthi', the Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) ship transporting civilians along with military personnel from Kankesanturai to Trincomalee died Tuesday due to rough handling by the SLA troopers at the Jaffna Sinhala Maha Vidyala where residents had to assemble for being selected for the sea journey by the SLA. Large numbers of Muslims too were among the many who are desperate to leave the peninsula where living has become dangerous because of the continuing extra-judicial killings, abductions and a severe shortage of food.
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SL Prime Minister lays conditions for peace talks

[TamilNet, Saturday, 16 September 2006, 00:18 GMT]
Ratnasiri Wickremanayake, Prime Minister and acting Minister of Defence, laid conditions for the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) to take part in future peace talks with the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL). "LTTE must first lay down their arms if they want to start peace negotiation with our government. There will not be any place for peace talks in our agenda if this condition is not met," said Mr. Wickremanayake addressing the 25th anniversary of the Land Reform and Development Organization held at Sethsiripaya in Colombo Thursday, political sources in Colombo said.
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Sri Lanka spells out conditions for talks to Norway- reports

[TamilNet, Friday, 15 September 2006, 01:30 GMT]
Sri Lanka’s government (GoSL) is demanding a written assurance from LTTE leader Velupillai Pirapaharan that the LTTE would end its violence before GoSL will agree to hold talks with the Tigers, newspapers reported Friday. The GoSL demand was spelled out to Norwegian facilitators by Sri Lankan officials who met Norwegian Ambassador Hans Brattskar on Thursday, they said. Meanwhile the government’s Defence Spokesman, Minister Keheliya Rambukwella, told the Daily Mirror that Norway was informed that “a single bullet fired by the LTTE after agreeing for talks would compel the government to withdraw from the Ceasefire.”


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SLA bars civilian travel through Uyilankulam checkpoint

[TamilNet, Thursday, 14 September 2006, 16:08 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Army (SLA) Thursday refused passage for stranded Tamil civilians in the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in Mannar territories and in areas controlled by the Sri Lanka government to cross over through Uyilankulam SLA check point, civil sources said.
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GoSL, LTTE should cease violence, resume talks - Co-chairs

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 12 September 2006, 23:46 GMT]
The Co-Chairs are particularly concerned that even major cases of human rights’ abuses are not successfully investigated or prosecuted. "As in any modern state, the culture of impunity must stop," the Co-chairs of the Tokyo Donor Conference on Sri Lanka said Tuesday. "There should be no change to the specific arrangements for the north and east which could endanger the achievement of peace," the statement alluded in response to the moves in the South aimed at de-merging the NorthEast.
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Food situation critical, NGO consortium in Jaffna warns

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 September 2006, 16:57 GMT]
The consortium of Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs) in Jaffna Tuesday urged the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) to re-open the A9 road without delay and allow the transportation of the essential items to Jaffna as officials of the Jaffna Secretariat had announced last week that the food brought in by the cargo ship Ruhunu was adequate only for one week and the bakery owners association has complained that the stock of flour is enough to meet their needs only for the next three days.
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No peace moves until Colombo respects CFA borders - LTTE

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 September 2006, 11:52 GMT]
The Sri Lankan government’s aggression on LTTE-controlled territory has blocked progress towards peace, the Liberation Tigers told Norwegian facilitators Wednesday. The LTTE’s Political Head, S. P. Thamilchelvan, told Norwegian Ambassador Hans Brattskar that Colombo’s invasion and occupation of LTTE-held territory has put an end to peaceful ways of stabilising the 2002 Ceasefire Agreement (CFA). Sri Lankan jets overflew Kilinochchi as Mr. Brattskar met Mr. Thamilchelvan.
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‘Coordinated, deliberate’ SLA campaign in LTTE areas - SLMM

[TamilNet, Friday, 01 September 2006, 14:05 GMT]
Amid the furore triggered by international truce monitors’ findings that Sri Lankan security forces carried out the massacre of 17 aid workers, other conclusions by the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) lost focus, including the charge the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) carried out “deliberate, planned and coordinated offensive military operations” against LTTE cadres and civilians in LTTE-controlled areas from April 1, weeks after Norwegian facilitated talks in Geneva to de-escalate rising violence.
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Jaffna Bishop appeals for regular food supply

[TamilNet, Friday, 01 September 2006, 09:56 GMT]
Jaffna Bishop Rt. Rev.Thomas Soundaranayagam Friday appealed to the Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) and the Liberation Tigers of Thamileelam (LTTE) to extend their assistance with the facilitation of the International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) for the transportation of food to Jaffna peninsula. The Jaffna Bishop has pointed out in his appeal that acute shortage for food is currently prevailing in the district and action should be taken immediately to avert famine in the peninsula.
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