Bomb rips through school in Mannar

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 02 March 2004, 11:02 GMT]
A powerful bomb exploded in a school in Mannar Tuesday afternoon, Police in the island town on Sri Lanka's northeastern coast said. The explosion caused severe damage to the school's roof. But no one was hurt as the school had closed for the day, Police said.
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TNA holds its first election rally in Trincomalee

[TamilNet, Monday, 01 March 2004, 17:34 GMT]
The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) held its first election rally in Trincomalee Sivan Kovil Veethi Monday evening. "The forthcoming general election has been thrusted on the country as chauvinist forces in the south could not digest the contents of the Interim Self Governing Authority proposal submitted by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam to the United National Front government,” said TNA leader and the lead candidate in the Trincomalee electoral district, Mr.R.Sampanthan, addressing the rally.
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TNA manifesto released in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Monday, 01 March 2004, 10:10 GMT]
A political solution to the ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka should be based on the recognition of the Tamil speaking people’s homeland, the Tamils’ identity as a distinct nation, and their right to self-determination, according to the manifesto of the Tamil National Alliance, which was released at a press conference in the TNA’s elections office in Jaffna Monday. "The Sinhala nation should come forward soon to resume peace talks with the Liberation Tigers for establishing the Interim Self Governing Authority," the manifesto states.
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Trinco education project launched for resettled students

[TamilNet, Sunday, 29 February 2004, 22:43 GMT]
The Trincomalee Children Welfare Fund (TCWF), with the financial assistance from a group of Trincomalee Tamils domiciled in Canada, has launched a special education development project for students of displaced Tamil families who have been resettled in Tamil villages in the district.
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TNA manifesto to be released shortly

[TamilNet, Sunday, 29 February 2004, 20:22 GMT]
The Tamil National Alliance is to release its election manifesto for the forthcoming general election during this week. It is under preparation, said the TNA leader and the party's lead candidate in the Trincomalee district, Mr.R.Sampanthan, Sunday.
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US Rights report criticises GoSL and LTTE

[TamilNet, Sunday, 29 February 2004, 11:23 GMT]
Annual country report on Human Rights Practices for 2003, released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor of the Government of United States of America, criticised both the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) for human rights abuses. "...the military and police [of GoSL] reportedly tortured, killed and raped detainees...," and the "LTTE was responsible for arbitrary arrest, torture, harassment, disappearances, extortion, and detention," the report said.
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Vavuniya refugee camp on fire

[TamilNet, Saturday, 28 February 2004, 08:31 GMT]
One of the main refugee camps in Vavuniya caught fire and is burning, Police in the northern border town said Saturday afternoon. The camp in the outer suburb of Poonthottam houses more than five hundred families that were displaced from villages north of Vavuniya due to Sri Lanka army operations.
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Vanni franchise issue awaits resolution

[TamilNet, Saturday, 28 February 2004, 02:20 GMT]
91,864 Tamil voters residing in Vavuniya, Mannar and Mullaitivu adminstrative divisions comprising the Vanni electoral district live in areas controlled by Liberation Tigers (LTTE) and face the prospect of being denied their franchise if the Election Commisioner fails to provide a suitable arrangement to locate the polling booths in accessible areas, political sources said.
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Sri Lanka army donates wheelchairs to Jaffna disabled

[TamilNet, Friday, 27 February 2004, 11:40 GMT]
The Sri Lanka army’s 52-4 Brigade in Pt. Pedro Friday donated eleven wheelchairs to disabled persons in Jaffna. The SLA held a special function at the Vallipuram Temple near Pt. Pedro on Friday morning to mark the occasion. Addressing the function after donating the wheelchairs, Commander of the SLA’s 52-4 Brigade, Col. K. S Ratnayaka, said it was a goodwill gesture by the Sri Lankan military to foster better relations with the Tamil people.


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International community should protect Tamils right to vote - TNA

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 25 February 2004, 15:36 GMT]
Tamil National Alliance (TNA) will appeal to the international community to exert pressure on the Sri Lankan government to ensure voters in the Liberation Tigers controlled areas in the northeast province to exercise their franchise in the forthcoming general election without any interruption, TNA's leader and former parliamentarian Mr. R.Sampanthan said in a meeting of TNA candidates in Trincomalee, sources said. Mr.Tilak, LTTE Trincomalee district political head also participated in the meeting.
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"Elections will strengthen LTTE's position" - Sampanthan

[TamilNet, Monday, 23 February 2004, 21:55 GMT]
"We openly state that the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) is contesting the forthcoming general election on behalf of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)," said Tamil National Alliance lead candidate in Trincomalee district, Mr.R.Sampanthan, Monday evening when he addressed the first election seminar held at Hindu Cultural hall in the east port town, sources in Trincomalee said.


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Ten groups compete in elections for Vanni district

[TamilNet, Monday, 23 February 2004, 10:26 GMT]
Vavuniya Government Agent (GA) and Vavuniya election officer, K.Ganesh, accepted nominations papers from three independent groups and seven different political parties for the Vanni electoral district comprising Vavuniya, Mannar and Mullaitivu districts, sources in Vavuniya said.
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Sri Lanka Elections: News Brief

[TamilNet, Sunday, 22 February 2004, 12:06 GMT]
Tamil National Alliance (TNA) plans to submit nomination papers in the districts of NorthEast at the same time Monday noon, Sri Lanka Muslim Congress is to compete in Jaffna alone, Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission is exploring ways to help people in LTTE controlled areas to exercise their right to vote, EPDP and EPRLF (Varather faction) to contest jointly in Jaffna, and in Nuwara Eliya district Hill country Tamils to fight the elections in four fronts, popular Jaffna dailies Uthayan and Veerakesari reported in their Sunday Edition.
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Maheswaran nominated UNP candidate in Colombo

[TamilNet, Saturday, 21 February 2004, 14:06 GMT]
Mr. Thiyagarajah Maheswaran, former minister for Hindu Affairs and ex MP for Jaffna, will contest in Colombo as a candidate of the United National Party, sources said. UNP officials said that the ex minister was expected to sign nomination papers for the electoral district of Colombo Saturday evening. Mr. Maheswaran announced last week that he was not contesting the April elections to Sri Lanka’s Parliament in Jaffna and was retiring from politics.
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Sampanthan warns of forces against TNA

[TamilNet, Friday, 20 February 2004, 14:01 GMT]
"Some powerful political forces are working hard to sabotage the attempt of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) to win more parliamentary seats in the northeast province. Tamils should be vigilant, identify these elements and foil their actions," said TNA ex-parliamentary group leader Mr.R.Sampanthan speaking at a meeting held Thursday night in Trincomalee, which was attended by Trincomalee district political head of the Liberation Tigers Mr.S.Thilak.


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Ultra nationalist Sinhala buddhist monks to contest in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Friday, 20 February 2004, 11:07 GMT]
Jathika Hela Urumaya(JHU), an ultra Sinhala nationalist party of Buddhist monks, Friday filed nominations in Jaffna to contest elections to Sri Lanka's Parliament in the northern peninsula. "We will talk to the Tigers only if they accept Sri Lanka as a unitary state and give up their arms", said Ven. Vitharandhenige Methananda, the chief candidate of the JHU for Jaffna, responding to question about the peace process after he had handed in his party's nominations.
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Tribalist irrationality permeates Sinhala political rhetoric - Uyangoda

[TamilNet, Friday, 20 February 2004, 03:31 GMT]
Unless extremely prudently handled, developments surrounding the forthcoming election may set in a new political process in which "Sri Lanka's future as a nation-state unit might be at a great risk" warns Professor Uyangoda, in a sobering analysis of the political campaign which he says is "likely to be full of rhetoric of the retrograde kind," in an opinion column that appears in the Friday edition of the Daily Mirror.


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Elections commissioner says no to polling stations in LTTE areas

[TamilNet, Thursday, 19 February 2004, 15:34 GMT]
Sri Lanka’s Commissioner of Elections said Thursday he won’t allow polling booths in areas held by the Liberation Tigers where more than two hundred thousand Tamil voters live. The polling stations would instead be clustered in places controlled by the Sri Lankan armed forces he said. Addressing a press conference at his office in Colombo Thursday at his office he said that he decided to do so for reasons of security, transport problems and land mines.
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Legal wrangle forces TNA to choose "HOUSE" as election symbol

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 18 February 2004, 15:30 GMT]
The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) has made alternate arrangements to hand over nomination papers on the Federal Party ticket with election symbol "HOUSE" if the court order against the Secretary General and Senior Vice President of the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) in a law suit filed by the party president Mr.V. Anandasangaree continued beyond Thursday, TNA sources said.


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Mano Ganeshan meets with Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 18 February 2004, 14:18 GMT]
Western Province People's Front (WPPF) leader, Mano Ganeshan, met with Head of LTTE's Political Wing, S.P.Thamilchelvan, in Kilinochchi Wednesday morning sources in Kilinochchi said. "The critical importance of the forthcoming elections lies in the fact the Tamil Nation will use this democratic medium to unequivocally express its aspirations," Mr.Ganeshan told the reporters after his meeting.
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