Resettlement to begin in Meeravodai

[TamilNet, Sunday, 13 July 2003, 12:07 GMT]
The Batticaloa branch of the Tamil Rehabilitation Organization (TRO) has begun to resettle internally displaced Tamils from the village of Meeravodai inValaichenai district, Batticaloa under the North East Community Restoration and Development Project (NECORD), sources in Batticaloa said.
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Muttur victims get Rs.32.5 million compensation

[TamilNet, Saturday, 12 July 2003, 18:44 GMT]
Minister of Port Development, Shipping and Eastern Regional Development Minister Mr.Rauff Hakim Saturday started payment of compensation to victims of April violence in Muttur area at an event held in Muttur Al Hilal Girls School. About 585 families affected by April violence were paid 32.5 million rupees as compensation Saturday as first installment, sources said.
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LTTE's commitment to resolve conflict by peaceful means stands- Thamilselvan

[TamilNet, Saturday, 12 July 2003, 17:15 GMT]
"We are ready to face a war if it is imposed on us with the change of a new government. But we are firm in finding a political solution to the conflict through peaceful means," said the political head of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Mr.S.P.Thamilselvan to a twelve-member delegation of the Sri Lanka Tamil Media Alliance (STMA)Saturday evening, sources said.
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First batch of women deminers completes training

[TamilNet, Friday, 11 July 2003, 13:46 GMT]
A function to mark the completion of three months of training for the first batch of thirty-three women deminers from the Humanitarian Demining Unit was held at the HDU’s training facility in Paranthan Thursday, sources said.
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Nambiar recommendation unacceptable – ANC expert

[TamilNet, Thursday, 10 July 2003, 00:39 GMT]
“The recommendation made by the Indian army expert General Nambiar that all the long range weapons of the Liberation Tigers should be placed under the supervision of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission cannot be accepted until permanent peace is achieved,” said retired South African army officer and a member of the African National Congress (ANC) Dr. Rocky Williams at a discussion held at Pandatherippu Meditation Center Wednesday.
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Sinhala Buddhist monks want monitors out

[TamilNet, Monday, 07 July 2003, 17:57 GMT]
Hundreds Buddhist monks protested in downtown Colombo Monday, demanding that Scandinavian peace monitors in Sri Lanka should leave the island immediately. The monks accused the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) of operating in cahoots with the Liberation Tigers against interests of the Sinhala people.
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Black Tigers’ Day celebrations in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Saturday, 05 July 2003, 16:14 GMT]
The Black Tigers’ day celebrations were held in Batticaloa on Saturday, with the main event at the Valaichenai-Pethalai play grounds, where the LTTE’s special commander for Batticaloa-Ampara, Mr. T. Ramesh and many other LTTE area leaders attended as the Chief Guest, sources said.
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Move to make SLA camp permanent sparks protest

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 02 July 2003, 11:25 GMT]
“The effort to establish the Sri Lanka army’s Kallady camp on a permanent basis goes against the grain of the Cease Fire Agreement”, Mr. Joseph Pararajasingham, Tamil National Alliance MP, told TamilNet, Wednesday, referring to recent moves by the military to acquire property and land in a suburb on the southern outskirts of the Batticaloa town.
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Bindunuwewa massacre accused receive death sentences

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 01 July 2003, 14:51 GMT]
Two Sri Lankan Police officers and three Sinhala civilians, accused of involvement in the gruesome massacre of 27 inmates of rehabilitation camp for young Tamil persons on October 2000, were sentenced to death Tuesday by a three member bench Trial at Bar, legal sources in Colombo said.
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Fear of re-introduction of Police registration unfounded - Amaratunge

[TamilNet, Monday, 30 June 2003, 10:17 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Government is not contemplating re-introducing legislation requiring Tamils residing in Colombo to register the details of households with the Police. Tamil people therefore need not worry about such procedures coming into force again, said John Amaratunge, Minister of Interior.


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Tamils in Colombo fear return of mass arrests

[TamilNet, Sunday, 29 June 2003, 18:36 GMT]
Three hundred and six persons were arrested in Colombo and its suburbs during the past twenty-four hours said Police in Sri Lanka’s capital Sunday. Reports in the Tamil press Sunday said that six hundred and fifty Tamils were arrested during a joint cordon and search operation by the army and Police in the city’s suburbs Saturday night. Meanwhile, a union for Police officers called on Sri Lanka’s Prime Minister and President to re-impose the draconian Emergency Regulations to facilitate their work in ensuring the capital’s security.
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'Armed challenge to imposed national territory inevitable'

[TamilNet, Sunday, 29 June 2003, 00:33 GMT]
"Sri Lanka's colonial rulers left military power solely in the hands of a single community within an artificially created national territory on this island, created without the consent of the Tamils who, nevertheless, were included in it. Therefore the majority community had to increasingly depend on its monopoly on military force to hold on to this artificial national territory it acquired from the British. Under the circumstance, a military challenge to this was inevitable among the Tamils," said Mr. V. T. Thamilmaran, senior lecturer in law in the University of Colombo, Saturday.
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SLMM releases report on SLN's sinking of LTTE vessel

[TamilNet, Saturday, 28 June 2003, 10:28 GMT]
Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) in its report on the sea incident where LTTE's vessel MT Shoshin was sunk by the Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) on 14 June, concluded, "Since neither Party informed the SLMM in due time about the incident...the possibility to prevent the escalation was missed," that SLMM "does not consider that SLN violated the CFA by intercepting the LTTE tanker," and that "LTTE violated the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10th Dec 1982 by not flying an appropriate flag and official, visible identification."
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Police-SLA arrest thirteen Tamils in Wellawatte

[TamilNet, Friday, 27 June 2003, 19:39 GMT]
Police and Sri Lanka Army (SLA) conducted cordon and search operation in Wellawatte, a predominantly Tamil suburb in Colombo Friday and arrested thirteen Tamil youths, security sources said. This joint operation took place as part of the new security measures now being carried out in the capital of the country since the gunning down of a police intelligence unit head in Dehiwala, police said.


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Pongu Thamil urges steps to permanent peace

[TamilNet, Friday, 27 June 2003, 13:42 GMT]
"The clouds of war have once again appeared on the horizon, for no fault of ours. We wish to change this situation" states the Pongu Thamil declaration read out by the President of the Jaffna University Students' Union Mr.Suppaiah Baheerathan. Tens of thousands gathered on the grounds held up their hands in support of the declaration.


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Record crowds throng Jaffna Pongu Thamil rally

[TamilNet, Friday, 27 June 2003, 12:33 GMT]
Around hundred and fifty thousand people crammed the Jaffna Medical College grounds and its environs for the Pongu Thamil rally Friday said the organisors of the event. Pongu Thamil calls for the immediate return of thousands of homes and lands occupied by the Sri Lankan armed forces in the northern peninsula. The Pongu Thamil flame was lit by the Vice Chancellor of the Jaffna University Prof. S. Mohanadas. Buddhist nuns, monks and two officials from the Sri Lankan Prime Minister’s office were among the special guests.
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Three-day education exhibition inaugurated in Trincomalee

[TamilNet, Friday, 27 June 2003, 09:41 GMT]
Three day education exhibition "Piravaham-2003" of the Trincomalee Sri Koneswara Hindu College containing hundreds of art exhibits produced by the college students was inaugurated Thursday by the North East Provincial Education Ministry Secretary Mr. Mr.Thiagalingam.
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Support to Pongu Thamil widespread - press

[TamilNet, Thursday, 26 June 2003, 10:58 GMT]
"Progress and Freedom of a community depend on the solidarity and co-operation among its people. Pongu Thamil celebrations should show Tamil peoples' thirst for freedom and express their solidarity to move forward in their struggle," said Rev. Thomas Saundaranayagam, Bishop of Jaffna, in his message. Civil organizations across Jaffna peninsula have expressed unqualified support to the Pongu Thamil celebrations scheduled to take place Friday, press reports from Jaffna said.
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JVP presses with campaign against peace talks

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 25 June 2003, 18:01 GMT]
The Janata Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) held another massive demonstration and rally Wednesday near downtown Colombo denouncing peace talks between Colombo and the Liberation Tigers. More than five thousand party activists and members marched through a busy part of the city shouting slogans against the LTTE and Sri Lanka’s Prime Minister Mr. Minister Ranil Wicremesinghe’s government.
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East High Court discharges two more PTA accused

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 25 June 2003, 17:08 GMT]
The East High Court in Trincomalee Wednesday discharged two Tamils indicted under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) and held in detention when the prosecution withdrew the charges on the advice of the Attorney General, legal sources said.
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