Abducted TRO officials remembered

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 31 January 2007, 08:40 GMT]
The one-year remembrance of the abducted seven employees of the Tamil Rehabilitation Organization (TRO) was observed in front of the TRO head office in Kilinochchi Tuesday. The relatives of the abducted and the employees of TRO gathered around 9:00 a.m. and remembered the persons abducted by Sri Lanka Army (SLA) and Karuna Group at Welikanda one year ago while they were traveling to Vavuniya from Batticaloa. The President of TRO, V. Sivanadiyar, read a memorandum addressed to the Commissioner of Human Rights for United Nations to secure the release of the persons.
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Eastern university reopens with VC still held captive

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 30 January 2007, 21:05 GMT]
Even though Prof.S.Raveendranath, former Vice Chancellor(VC) of Batticaloa Eastern University abducted in Dec 15 has not been released, the university reopened on Monday 29 after being closed for more than a month, and lectures resumed in all faculties, campus officials said. University Senate recently made the decision to reopen the campus. M.Pathmananathan, acting Vice Chancellor appealed to all parties to extend their co-operation for the smooth functioning of the university activities.
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UNP Chairman tore MoU copy with SLFP into pieces

[TamilNet, Sunday, 28 January 2007, 18:21 GMT]
Rukman Senanayake, Chairman of the main opposition United National Party (UNP) at a news briefing held Sunday afternoon publicly tore a copy of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed by the UNP with the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), main constituent of the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) government. He said the MoU with the SLFP is no more in operation.
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Paramilitaries abduct three civilians in East

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 23 January 2007, 16:59 GMT]
Three civilians were abducted by Karuna group paramilitary personnel driving in white vans in two separate incidents in Kaluwanchikudy in Batticaloa district, and in Thirukovil area in Ampara district.
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Wickremasinghe to meet Indian leaders next week in New Delhi

[TamilNet, Sunday, 21 January 2007, 11:51 GMT]
The leader of the Sri Lanka's main opposition United National Party, Ranil Wickremasinghe, is scheduled to visit India by the end of this week and to hold talks with Indian government leaders regarding the current political and security situation in Sri Lanka. Wickremasinghe is likely to meet Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Indian Congress Party President Sonia Gandhi and Atal Bihari Vajpayee, leader of the main opposition Barathiya Janatha Party (BJP) during his stay in New Delhi, UNP sources said.
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SLA commander transfers paramilitary personnel in Arayampathy

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 16 January 2007, 15:57 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army 23-3 Brigade Commander Colonel Subasinghe, in an attempt to calm down the objections from the Muslims who oppose the armed passage of Karuna paramilitary personnel via Kathankudy Muslim town, after the recent violence in Arayampathy Kathankudy border, has transferred a key paramilitary operative and fellow personnel to the camps elsewhere. New paramilitary personnel have been posted the house attached to the STF camp in Arayampathy, according to Muslim representatives in Kaththankudy.
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Mosque leaders urge Muslim Tamil unity, blame paramilitary for violence

[TamilNet, Sunday, 14 January 2007, 08:34 GMT]
Representatives of the Federation of Mosques in Kathankudy, Saturday, in a bid to calm down tension between communities in the border settlements between Kathankudy Muslim and Arayampathy Tamil areas, urged the civilians not to fall prey to the forces seeking to damage Muslim Tamil harmony, after Karuna paramilitary personnel attached to the Sri Lankan counter-insurgency Special Task Force (STF) camp in Arayampathy had attacked Muslim travellers Friday, causing the victims to seek refuge in Kathankudy Mosque. Paramilitary violence and threats posed by armed "Jihad" men against Tamils have ceased and normalcy was reported in the area Sunday.
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Relatives appeal for release of Eastern University Vice Chancellor

[TamilNet, Friday, 12 January 2007, 13:59 GMT]
Dr.Malaravan, son-in-law of Professor Sivasubramaniam Raveendranath, the Vice Chancellor of the Eastern University of Sri Lanka (EUSL) who was abducted on Dec 15th in Colombo in High Security area in the Bauddhaloka Mawatte, issued a second urgent appeal to the abductors to release his uncle. Dr Malaravan said that the members of Raveendranath's family will ensure that the Professor will resign his post of Vice Chancellor at the Eastern University. From the time Dr.Raveendranath was abducted, all activities at the Eastern University have been at a complete stand still.
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Media watchdog condemns paramilitary ban on papers

[TamilNet, Friday, 12 January 2007, 11:52 GMT]
Free Media Movement, a Colombo based media watchdog, Friday said it noted with deep concern the alleged ban imposed by the Karuna paramilitary group on the sale of Colombo Tamil dailies Virakesari, Thinakkural and Sudar Oli in the East. The paramilitary group, operated by the Sri Lanka Army, had banned the sale of the Tamil papers, except the EPDP paramilitary owned Thinamurasu and the Sri Lanka Government owned Thinakaran in Sri Lanka Army controlled areas of Batticaloa district. The group has issued death threats to news agents in Trincomalee in an attempt to block the distribution of independent Tamil papers in the district.
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10 Tamils abducted in 5 days in Colombo, Puttalam

[TamilNet, Friday, 12 January 2007, 08:27 GMT]
Eight Tamils have been abuducted in Colombo and two in Puttalam within the last five days. The abductors had released one of the victims after keeping him blindfolded for a full day. Nine of the victims are still reported missing, Civil Monitoring Commission reported Friday. The fate of Professor S. Raveendranath, the Vice Chancellor of Eastern University, abucted in Colombo's High Security area, is not known for almost a month since December 15.
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Paramilitary office attacked in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 10 January 2007, 18:58 GMT]
Armed men launched an attack on the office of paramilitary Karuna Group, located at Kallady, inside the High Security area of Sri Lanka Army at 11:20 p.m. Wednesday. Reports said one paramilitary personnel was killed and eight others injured. The attack lasted for more than an hour damaging the office. Kallady is located 3 km south of Batticaloa town.
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Karuna group "bans" Tamil dailies in Trincomalee

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 10 January 2007, 14:55 GMT]
Karuna paramilitary group imposed a "ban" to sell Thinakural, Sudaroli and other newspapers in Trincomalee district, the proprietors of the news papers said. The News agents were summoned by the Karuna group in Trincomalee Tuesday and threatened they would be shot to death if they fail to comply, according to sources.
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2 Muslims shot injured in Kathankudy

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 10 January 2007, 09:49 GMT]
Karuna paramilitary members arriving on motorcycles shot and seriously injured two Muslim civilians standing along Kathankudy Dean Road around 8:05 p.m Tuesday, Kathankudy sources said. The paramilitary personnel have also severely attacked two more civilians and the attacks have caused the Tamils and Muslims living on Kathankudy boarder to move to safer places.


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One Karuna group member killed, another injured in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 10 January 2007, 08:41 GMT]
Unidentified gunmen opened fire on two Karuna group paramilitary personnel at Mahiloor in Kalavanchikudy in Batticaloa district, killing one and seriously injuring the other, around 11:00 a.m Tuesday. The assailants, following the two victims riding on a motorcycle, shot at them and escaped from the site, Batticaloa sources said.


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Mob led by SL Minister attack Journalists at UPM event

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 09 January 2007, 14:43 GMT]
An armed mob led by Sri Lankan Deputy Minister of Labour, Mervin Silva, arrived at the open air stage at Super Market Square in Nugegoda, the site of the first public event organised by the newly established United People's Movement (UPM), and attacked the journalists who were present at the site to cover the event which was about to commence at 3:00 p.m. Tuesday. The UPM is a political platform that seeks to establish consensus among especially the Southern polity on a Federal System of Governance, as against war and any other undemocratic, non-negotiable conclusion to the on going NorthEast conflict.
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TRO urges GoSL to guarantee security of humanitarian workers

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 January 2007, 16:22 GMT]
The Tamil Rehabilitation Organisation, which has been subjected to Sri Lankan Police raids and paramilitary attacks, has urged the Government of Sri Lanka to guarantee security of the humanitarian staff of the organistion. The Trincomalee office of the TRO was attacked Saturday and Sunday nights by armed men, believed to be paramilitary members operated by the Sri Lanka Army. The attack on Trinomcalee TRO office comes after Sri Lankan police raid on Friday.
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Remains of Padahuthurai victims laid to rest

[TamilNet, Friday, 05 January 2007, 01:02 GMT]
Hundreds of civilians, religious leaders and civil representatives bade farewell to 13 of the 16 civilian victims killed Tuesday in Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) bombardment at the Mother Velankanni Church at Nochchikuda, Wednesday, sources in Mannar said.
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4 civilians killed in Amparai

[TamilNet, Monday, 01 January 2007, 23:45 GMT]
Four bullet ridden bodies of abducted civilians, two in the nearby jungle area and two near the Post Office, were recovered by Police Monday evening in Damana in Amparai district, sources in Amparai said.
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Paramilitary attack repulsed in Batticaloa - LTTE

[TamilNet, Saturday, 30 December 2006, 07:13 GMT]
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) launched a counter-attack on a group of paramilitary cadres of Karuna Group, Friday night, when the group attempted to launch a penetration attack on a LTTE camp in Kudumbimalai, northwest of Batticaloa. A wounded paramilitary cadre was captured alive and the dead body of another was recovered by the Tigers, according to the Military Spokesman of the Tigers Irasiah Ilanthirayan. Four Tiger fighters were wounded in the confrontation. Kudumbimalai, a hat shaped hill, is located in the middle of the large Vadamunai-Tharavai region, northwest of Batticaloa.
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Two youths abducted in Valaichenai

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 27 December 2006, 11:06 GMT]
Unidentified armed men abducted two youths displaced from Vaharai area, from their relatives house at Union Colony, Valaichenai in Batticaloa district, Tuesday around 9:30 p.m police said. The two abducted youths were forcibly taken away by the armed men who said the youths have to be interrogated, police added.
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