Chandrasekaran meets Thamilchelvan in Kilinochchi

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 18 February 2004, 12:53 GMT]
Upcountry People's Front (UPF) leader and Minister in the United National Front (UNF) government, Mr.P.Chandrasekaran, met with Head of LTTE's Political Wing, S.P.Thamilchelvan, in Kilinochchi Wednesday morning and had discussions on ways UPF can forge a common agenda with the NorthEast Tamil parties at the forthcoming elections, sources in Kilinochchi said.


Full story >>

Tamils should vote only for policy-Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 17 February 2004, 09:43 GMT]
"We unanimously decided today that the Tamil people should vote only for policies of the Tamil National Alliance. This is the wish of our leader and our leadership. Tamils should unite under one leadership and one policy for this election," said Mr. S. P Thamilchelvan speaking to the press at the conclusion of a three hour long meeting with leaders of the Tamil National Alliance at the headquarters of Liberation Tigers’ political division in Kilinochchi Tuesday. "The TNA will definitely field Muslim candidates," he stressed.
Full story >>

TNA leaders to meet LTTE leadership in Killinochchi

[TamilNet, Monday, 16 February 2004, 18:12 GMT]
Tamil National Alliance (TNA) leader Mr.R.Sampanthan said Monday that vital decisions would be taken in consultations with the leadership of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam on Tuesday in Killinochchi regarding the forthcoming parliamentary general elections.
Full story >>

Polling in LTTE areas to be discussed with truce monitors

[TamilNet, Saturday, 14 February 2004, 15:42 GMT]
Sri Lanka’s Commissioner of Elections Saturday told Government Agents and Assistant Elections Commissioners from the Northeast that he would discuss with the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission and the Sri Lankan Government’s Peace Secretariat about arrangements to enable more than two hundred thousand Tamils in regions that are not under Colombo’s control to vote in the general elections on 2 April. Sri Lankan armed forces prevented Tamils in these areas from voting in the Parliamentary elections of December 2001.
Full story >>

TNA readies to face poll with ‘house’ or 'lighthouse'

[TamilNet, Friday, 13 February 2004, 09:42 GMT]
General secretary of the Federal Party (FP), Mr. Mavai Senathirajah and general secretary of the TELO, Mr. Indrakumar Prasanna, informed Sri Lanka's Commissioner of Elections their party’s intent to contest following uncertainty over the TULF's legal wrangle, a spokesman for the Tamil National Alliance said Wednesday. If the stand off between the TULF's President and executive central committee is not resolved next week the TNA will have to contest either under the TELO's 'lighthouse' symbol or the FP's 'house' symbol, he said.


Full story >>

Chandrasekaran briefs TNA leaders on alliance

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 10 February 2004, 18:24 GMT]
Leaders of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) held extensive discussion Tuesday to map out their election strategy to contest the forthcoming general election. The discussion commenced at about 5 p.m. at the Colombo headquarters of the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF), and was concluded at 10 p.m with a decision to meet again on Wednesday evening to finalize electoral arrangements, TNA sources said.
Full story >>

Batticaloa organizations appeal for Tamil unity

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 10 February 2004, 15:16 GMT]
A consortium of civil organizations in Batticaloa, including Tamil renaissance association and Batticaloa People's Forum, made a public appeal yesterday calling upon the tamil people to demonstrate their unity and strength to the international community and others by voting to the 'Rising Sun' symbol in the general elections scheduled to be held on 2 February, civil society sources said.
Full story >>

TNA leaders to meet in Colombo over election strategy

[TamilNet, Monday, 09 February 2004, 18:30 GMT]
Leaders of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) are scheduled to meet Tuesday evening at the Colombo office of the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) to work out a common election agenda to field candidates at the forthcoming general election.
Full story >>

Votes only for policies and symbol - TNA

[TamilNet, Monday, 09 February 2004, 15:00 GMT]
Tamil National Alliance leaders in Trincomalee resolved unanimously on Monday to contest the general elections on 2 April 2004, only on the basis of their coalition and its policies instead of their candidates.
Full story >>

LTTE blames sinhala leaders for lack of political will and vision

[TamilNet, Sunday, 08 February 2004, 19:24 GMT]
“The dissolution of the Sri Lankan parliament and the call for a snap election constitutes a grave set-back to the peace process. The decision to seek another mandate from the people clearly demonstrates the fact that the Sinhala political leadership lacks the political will and vision to resolve the country’s burning issue - the Tamil national question,” said Mr Anton Balasingham, the LTTE’s political advisor and theoretician commenting on the current political developments in Colombo.
Full story >>

LTTE comments on Sri Lanka Parliament dissolution

[TamilNet, Sunday, 08 February 2004, 16:17 GMT]
''The Tamil people and the Liberation Tigers wish a change of government in Sri Lanka that would provide a permanent political solution to the problems of the Tamils'', said Mr S Elilan, the head of the LTTE's Political divison in Vavuniya Sunday. His comment is the LTTE's first official reaction to the dissolution of the Sri Lankan Parliament Saturday.
Full story >>

General elections would create more confusion - TNA

[TamilNet, Sunday, 08 February 2004, 04:27 GMT]
Commenting on the dissolution of parliament and the scheduled general elections in April, the parliamentary leader of the Tamil National Alliance, Mr. R. Sampanthan, said Sunday that the general elections would lead to more confusion in the country as the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) and the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), which clamored for the elections "to salvage the country from the current political uncertainty," have no clear-cut policies to solve the Tamil national question.
Full story >>

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.
Full story >>

Black flag protests across Amparai irk STF

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 04 February 2004, 18:14 GMT]
Tension escalated in Thirukovil and Akkaraipattu areas in Amparai when the Special Task Force (STF) soldiers tried to remove black flags from the roadsides, public buildings and businesses, security sources said.


Full story >>

Tires burn in Mannar, A9 blocked in Vavuniya

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 04 February 2004, 11:44 GMT]
Tires were burnt and black flags were flown in several parts of Mannar town Wednesday. Police said that some protestors had pulled down Sri Lanka’s lion flags that were hoisted by the army on the entrance to Mannar town Tuesday night to mark Independence Day. Meanwhile Vavuniya was deserted and buses from this northern border town to other parts of the island were cancelled. Protesters blocked the A9 highway to Jaffna north of Vavuniya town.
Full story >>

Protest, shut down in Jaffna on Sri Lanka's Independence Day

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 04 February 2004, 09:21 GMT]
Jaffna town was deserted Wednesday while Sri Lankan armed forces hoisted lion flags and observed Independence Day amid tight security in many parts of the peninsula. Several civil society groups and public organisations urged the people of Jaffna last week to observe Sri Lanka's Independence Day as a black day. Jaffna University students flew black flags and decorated the campus' main entrance with curry plantain trees. Jaffna Mothers' Front protested in front of the District Secretariat as Police in riot gear stood guard.
Full story >>

Batticaloa deserted on Sri Lanka's Independence Day

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 04 February 2004, 06:38 GMT]
Batticaloa town was deserted Wednesday in response to a call by local organisations to boycott Sri Lanka’s Independence Day and to observe it as a black day for Tamils. Shops, offices and public buildings were closed. Very few people and vehicles were on the roads in the eastern town.
Full story >>

SC confirms death sentence on Krishanthy murder accused

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 03 February 2004, 18:22 GMT]
The Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court Tuesday confirmed the death sentence on the five Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers who were convicted for the rape and murder of four Tamils including a high school student, Krishanthy Kumarasamy, in 1996 in Jaffna district, legal sources said.


Full story >>

Protesters to block A9 on Sri Lanka's Independence day

[TamilNet, Monday, 02 February 2004, 00:15 GMT]
Vavuniya North Consortium of Peoples' Organizations called upon all Tamils in Vavuniya to fly black flags and to observe 4 February, the Independence Day of Sri Lanka, as a day of mourning, civil sources said. Consortium also invited people to come forward to block the traffic along A9 to show people from the South that Tamil struggle will continue until fundamental rights of Tamil people are recognized and respected.
Full story >>

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.
Full story >>