STF shoots dead youth in Ea’raavoor refugee camp

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 09 January 2008, 13:22 GMT]
Sri Lanka Special Task Force (STF) troops lay in ambush and shot dead a youth coming out of the refugee camp in Tha’lavaai Wednesday around 12 noon, Chavukkadi in Ea’raavoor police division in Batticaloa district, sources in Batticaloa said. The STF claimed that the youth killed was Sankar, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Batticaloa district head, and that a micro pistol was found at the place he was killed.
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2007: The year in review

[TamilNet, Thursday, 03 January 2008, 07:34 GMT]
For the people of the NorthEast, 2007 was a grim year. Sri Lanka’s security forces and allied paramilitaries intensified their campaign of abductions (‘white van’ abductions), torture, and murder of Tamil civilians. Tamil civil society leaders bore the brunt of the counter-insurgency campaign. Jaffna remained an open prison with shortage of essential items, east falling under the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) control with thousands displaced as Colombo concocts colonization schemes to make east a Sinhala majority province.
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IDPs in flood-hit Trinco, Batticaloa struggle to cope- ICRC

[TamilNet, Friday, 21 December 2007, 15:33 GMT]
Displaced families sheltered in temporary structures in the districts of Trincomalee and Batticaloa are facing a grave situation without enough food, health and sanitation facilities due to flood following heavy monsoon rains inundating their dwellings, the International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) said in a field report for the period 20 November-December 20.
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Mannaar Bishop meets Nadesan in Ki’linochchi

[TamilNet, Friday, 21 December 2007, 03:40 GMT]
Rt. Rev. Rayappu Joseph, Bishop of Mannaar Diocese, discussed humanitarian problems faced by the Tamil people with B. Nadesan, the political head of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), in a meeting Thursday around 1:00 p.m in Ki’linochchi.
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SLA artillery injured Mannar IDP, dies

[TamilNet, Thursday, 20 December 2007, 17:19 GMT]
An Internally Displaced Person (IDP), who was injured in the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) artillery fire on 26.10.2007 on the IDP camp at Periyamadu in Mannaar, succumbed to the wounds Thursday early morning in Muzhangkaavil hospital, hospital sources said.
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Flooding worsens IDPs' woes in Trincomalee

[TamilNet, Monday, 17 December 2007, 16:22 GMT]
Temporary structures located at Killiveddy and Iruthayapuram in Moothoor division sheltering displaced Tamil families have been inundated with floodwater due to heavy rain with gale force winds in Trincomalee district since Sunday. Families are now living with great difficulties under leaking roofs without enough food and other essential needs, civil sources said.
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Heavy rain causes flooding in Eastern Province

[TamilNet, Friday, 14 December 2007, 01:37 GMT]
Torrential rain in the past twenty four hours in the Eastern province has created the fear of severe flooding in various parts of Batticaloa district and the heavy rain is still continuing Thursday. Low - lying lands in areas under the administration of the District Secretaries (DS) of Manmunai North, Aarayampathi, Kiraan, Chengkaladi, Vaazhaichcheanai, and Kaaththaankudi, are reported to be worst affected.
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Bishops' delegation visits Moothoor, meets IDPs

[TamilNet, Thursday, 13 December 2007, 02:03 GMT]
A delegation of Catholic Bishops Conference of Sri Lanka led by Rt.Rev.Dr.Harold Antony Perera, Bishop of Galle Diocese, Tuesday visited Moothoor, Eachchilampathu and other villages where displaced Tamil villagers from Batticaloa district are sheltered in temporary structures. They conversed with the IDPs waiting for resettlement in their own villages in Eachchilampathu and Moothoor division, and found out their needs and shortcomings, sources said.
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15,000 deprived of livelihood in Paduvaankarai

[TamilNet, Saturday, 08 December 2007, 21:27 GMT]
Half of the affected agriculture-dependent families in Batticaloa district are from Paduvaankarai region, where the major cultivable land of the district, is situated. Forced to flee their paddy fields, standing ripe and ready for harvest, the families who returned under the Government of Sri Lanka's (GoSL) resettlement, could only witness the remains of the properties and livestock that had been looted by the Sri Lankan forces. Although four months have elapsed since their resettlement, the GoSL has not provided any assistance to the farmers to resume paddy cultivation.
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TRO diligently complied with U.S. laws- President

[TamilNet, Thursday, 29 November 2007, 19:09 GMT]
Dr. N. A. Ranjithan, President of TRO-USA, in an opinion column appeared in Cumberland Times-News, says, "As a charity registered in the U.S.A., TRO has diligently and faithfully been complying with the laws and all regulations related to registered charities. TRO-USA reiterates that it is NOT a "front to facilitate fundraising for the Libertarian Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)...I am deeply concerned about the future of Tamils in Sri Lanka, persecuted by their own government and left without many friends in the world. Now that TRO accounts are frozen, I hope and pray that some other organization will step in to fill the void."
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TNA MPs condemn US action on TRO

[TamilNet, Saturday, 17 November 2007, 18:19 GMT]
"While the Government of Sri Lanka has imposed an effective economic embargo in Vanni, and the sustained bombardments of Sri Lanka Military have made situation difficult for International Non-Governmental Organizations (INGOs) to work amidst the affected local residents in border villages of Tamil areas, United States has made the situation worse for the Tamil people, internally displaced and reeling under economic hardship, by stopping the humanitarian aid from the branches world-wide of the Tamil Rehabilitation Organization (TRO)," said Kajendran, parliamentarian from the Tamil National Alliance.
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SLA arrests 22 Tamil youths in Chinnakku’lam IDP Centre

[TamilNet, Saturday, 17 November 2007, 08:23 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) arrested 22 Tamil youths in Chinnakku’lam Centre for Internally Displaced People (IDPs) in Trincomalee district during a search operation conducted Saturday early morning, according to complaints made by the IDPs to Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian K. Thurairatnasingam. The MP has registered complaints with Sea’runuva’ra police station and informed the matter to Vaakarai SLA Commander Berty Fonseka.
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3 civilians killed, 9 wounded in SLA shelling on IDP settlement

[TamilNet, Thursday, 25 October 2007, 10:07 GMT]
Three civilians, two of them belonging to a single family and an 8-months pregnant mother, were killed and nine wounded when Sri Lanka Army (SLA) fired artillery shells hit a shelter hut in the settlement of Internally Displaced People (IDPs) at Periyamadu in Liberation Tigers of Tamileelam (LTTE) controlled Mannaar Thursday around 11:00 a.m. The wounded mother was struggling to give sudden birth to her child killed in her womb and the IDPs who were helping the young mother, became victims of the second wave of artillery shelling. Nine IDPs, including the 3-year-old son of the pregnant mother, a couple, their 13-year-old daughter and two other children, were wounded in the artillery attack.
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Resettlement of Batticaloa IDPs begins

[TamilNet, Friday, 19 October 2007, 11:23 GMT]
The first stage of resettlement process of Internally Displaced People (IDPs) in areas close to Chengkaladi-Badulla main road A5 Highway, Batticaloa district was initiated Thursday morning 10:00a.m.
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TNA opposes police station in Silaavaththurai

[TamilNet, Sunday, 14 October 2007, 05:19 GMT]
No useful purpose would be served in establishing a police station in the deserted village Silaavaththurai in Mannar district without taking immediate steps to resettle them in their traditional habitats, said Mr. Selvam Adaikalanathan, Wanni district Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian. Silaavaththurai residents have all been displaced to other areas after the recent offensives by Sri Lanka military on 01 September.
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MP condemns SLA ban on construction of houses for Batticaloa IDPs

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 October 2007, 10:41 GMT]
Batticaloa District Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian, S. Jeyananthamoorthy, speaking to media this week, condemned the ban imposed by Sri Lanka Army (SLA ) for constructing permanent houses for Internally Displaced People (IDPs) at Naavaladi Junction within Vaaharai District Secretary's administrative area in Batticaloa District.
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IDPs to be resettled in Chengkaladi

[TamilNet, Friday, 05 October 2007, 01:27 GMT]
Nearly 9000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) belonging to 4349 families, displaced due to Sri Lanka Army (SLA) offensives, are to be resettled in 5 villages located along Chengkaladi-Badulla road, according to decision taken at an urgent meeting held at Batticaloa District Secretariat (DS) Wednesday, presided by Eastern Province Governor, Rear Admiral Mohan Wijewickrema, Batticaloa DS sources said.
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Gotabhaya bans transport of livestock from abandoned Tamil homes in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Thursday, 04 October 2007, 08:55 GMT]
Acting on a complaint made by Ameer Ali, Sri Lankan minister of disaster relief services, Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, the Sri Lankan defense secretary, has instructed teh Batticaloa district commanding officer of Sri Lanka Army (SLA), Superintendents of Police and officers of Special Task Force (STF) to ban the transport of livestock belonging to Tamils from the areas in Batticaloa district, recently brought under the control of the SLA. Tamils in these areas have repeatedly lodged complaint with Mr. Ameer Ali that cattle from their homes were being systematically stolen out of the district by paramilitaries and Sri Lankan soldiers and sold in Sinhala areas of the Polonnaruwa district.
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WFP welcomes food shipment to Jaffna

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 03 October 2007, 14:32 GMT]
The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has welcomed the shipment of 3,500 tons of food for Jaffna that will be distributed to the families among the most vulnerable populations in the isolated peninsula. "I am very pleased with these recent positive developments but I am concerned about our resourcing situations as we will be running out of food in November" said Jean-Yves Lequime, Acting Country Director of the World Food Programme in Colombo, adding "this is the moment to mobilize food for the vulnerable people."
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2 Tamil IDPs reported missing in Ki'liveddy

[TamilNet, Friday, 28 September 2007, 03:02 GMT]
Two Tamil civilians staying in the transit welfare centre located in Ki'liveddy for internally displaced families in Trincomalee district are reported missing since Wednesday evening, according to complaints lodged with Moothoor police by their relatives.
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