'Need advisors to promote peace, not war' - Wickremesinghe

[TamilNet, Saturday, 06 September 2003, 12:12 GMT]
Sri Lanka's Prime Minister Mr.Ranil Wickremasinghe appealed to his ministerial colleagues during last week's cabinet meeting that he needed persons who could advise him on how to achieve permanent peace and not to launch war again, according to Colombo media sources.
Full story >>

British political leaders visit Jaffna

[TamilNet, Friday, 05 September 2003, 19:46 GMT]
The deputy leader of the opposition in the British Parliament, Mr. Michael Ancram, and former treasurer of the Conservative Party, Lord Ashcroft, Friday arrived in Jaffna and held discussions with the Government Agent, Mr.S.Pathmanathan, representatives of the international and local non-governmental organizations, and heads of government departments at the Jaffna district secretariat, sources in Jaffna said.
Full story >>

Women’s gathering emphasizes Tamil women’s potential

[TamilNet, Friday, 05 September 2003, 17:35 GMT]
At the women’s gathering held Thursday at the Vavuniya Town Hall, the leaders and members of the women’s wing of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam from all districts emphasized the importance of solving Tamil women’s problems together and attaining women’s liberation along with National liberation, and discussed the contributions Tamil women have made to the struggle of the Tamil people for self-determination, sources said.
Full story >>

Elephant Pass: From battlefield to salt capital

[TamilNet, Friday, 05 September 2003, 01:19 GMT]
Before 1990, Elephant Pass and Kurunchativu located 10km apart had the largest salterns in the northeast with a combined area of 100 acres, and produced more than 85,000 metric tons of salt a year. This output met all the salt needs of SriLanka and left enough surplus for export. These salterns, destroyed during the war, are being reconstructed and rehabilitated, and are currently producing close to 15% of the total capacity.
Full story >>

HRC to hold inquiry into LTTE's complaint

[TamilNet, Thursday, 04 September 2003, 20:18 GMT]
The Jaffna regional co-ordinator of the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka, Mr. Ruwan Chandrasekara, Thursday decided to hold a full-scale inquiry next Wednesday after obtaining the advice of the Inspector General of Police of Sri Lanka into the complaint by a LTTE political activist, Mr.Nadaraja Premachandran alias Jegan, that he had been humiliated and mistreated by the Sri Lanka Army soldiers and the police Tuesday, HRC sources said.
Full story >>

LTTE delegation meets British Tory leaders

[TamilNet, Thursday, 04 September 2003, 17:22 GMT]
The political leader of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, Mr. S.P.Thamilchelvan, met with the Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the British Parliament and Shadow Foreign Secretary, Mr. Michael Ancram,M.P., and Lord Ashcroft, the former treasurer of the British Conservative party, in Colombo Thursday shortly after his return from abroad, LTTE peace secretariat sources said.
Full story >>

SLA constructs new road through Thenmaradchi lagoon

[TamilNet, Thursday, 04 September 2003, 15:12 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Army is now engaged in constructing a new 3 km long road from Kachchai harbor in Thenmaradchi division in the Jaffna district through the nearby lagoon to connect the Chalambamthivu and Aruhuveli areas in the south. A large number of army personnel have been deployed to construct a bridge with Palmyra logs and iron bars to connect the lagoon with the land, civil sources in the peninsula said.
Full story >>

SLMM raises LTTE flag issue at Tamil women's event

[TamilNet, Thursday, 04 September 2003, 14:28 GMT]
When the Tamil Eelam National flag was about to be raised at an event organized by Tamil women’s organizations in the Northeast at the Vavuniya Town Hall Thursday, the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission objected to it, saying that such flag-raising in the Sri Lanka Army controlled area violated the ceasefire agreement. However, following an argument between the LTTE’s women wing political leaders at the event and the SLMM’s foreign monitors, the flag was raised and the event went on peacefully, sources in Vavuniya said.
Full story >>

Japanese peace envoy Akashi to visit Colombo

[TamilNet, Thursday, 04 September 2003, 11:02 GMT]
Sri Lanka's Cabinet spokesman, Minister Mr. G.L.Peiris, said Thursday at the weekly press briefing that the Japanese special peace envoy, Mr.Yasushi Akashi will be visiting Sri Lanka on September 11 to preside over a conference on the proper utilization of funds pledged at the Tokyo donor conference held in June, media sources said.
Full story >>

LTTE delegation returns home

[TamilNet, Thursday, 04 September 2003, 11:01 GMT]
The delegation of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam led by its political wing leader, Mr.S.P.Thamilchelvan, and comprising Batticaloa-Amparai district special commander Col Karuna and Director of the LTTE Peace Secretariat Mr.Puleedevan returned to Colombo Thursday early morning after about two weeks' stay abroad, where the delegation held extensive discussion with their constitutional and legal experts in the French capital, Paris, sources said.
Full story >>

LTTE activist complains of harassment by SLA

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 03 September 2003, 14:37 GMT]
Mr.Nadaraja Premachandran alias Jegan, a political activist of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), Wednesday lodged a complaint at the Jaffna regional office of the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka that the Sri Lanka Army at Muhamalai checkpoint had humiliated him when he was on his way to Kilinochchi, human rights officials in Jaffna said.
Full story >>

Trinco fishermen to bring their boats from Tamilnadu after 13 years

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 02 September 2003, 19:41 GMT]
Sixty one fishing crafts of Tamil fishermen in Trincomalee that have been lying at Nagapatinam in Tamilnadu, India, under the custody of Indian custom authorities since 1990, will be brought back to Trincomalee next week with the assistance of Indian and Sri Lankan Navies, North East Rehabilitation, Reconstruction and Resettlement Ministry Secretary, Mr.S.Sivathasan, said Tuesday.
Full story >>

‘PA for, JVP against devolution’ - Chandrika

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 02 September 2003, 16:27 GMT]
Addressing the 52nd annual convention of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party Tuesday, Sri Lanka’s President, Ms. Chandrika Kumaratunge, said that the People’s Alliance was prepared for devolution of power but the Marxist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) was opposed to it, and therefore they could not come to a consensus on an alliance and talks were still continuing, sources said.


Full story >>

LTTE delegation meets Swiss officials

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 02 September 2003, 15:23 GMT]
A delegation of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, led by its political wing leader, Mr. S.P. Thamilchelvan and comprising Batticaloa-Ampara Special commander, Col. Karuna, and Director of the LTTE’s Peace Secretariat, Mr. Puleedevan, met with Swiss government officials in Bern, Switzerland, Monday, Tamil media sources said.
Full story >>

Eravur police investigates Batticaloa youth's death

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 02 September 2003, 10:53 GMT]
Tharmaratnam Vanarajah (25) who was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder in Chenkalady, Batticaloa in November 2002 and kept in Batticaloa prison, died at the Batticaloa Teaching Hospital when he was taken there after suddenly falling ill, prison authorities said.


Full story >>

Ranil says UNF is committed to ‘peace with security’

[TamilNet, Monday, 01 September 2003, 19:03 GMT]
Responding to a query from Sri Lanka’s President, Ms. Chandrika Kumaratunge, on the issue of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam’s camp at Kurankupanchan in the Trincomalee district, the country’s Prime Minister, Mr. Ranil Wickremasinghe, said Monday that his government was continuing its efforts to resolve the issue peacefully and that Ms. Kumaratunge should not approach the issue on the basis of political expediency, media sources in Colombo said.
Full story >>

SLMM, SLA escort LTTE women cadres from Batticaloa to Vanni

[TamilNet, Monday, 01 September 2003, 12:23 GMT]
One hundred fifty women cadres of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) led by the Special Commander of the LTTE Batticaloa-Amparai district Ms Nilavini left Batticaloa Monday morning to Vanni region in two buses escorted by members of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) and officials of the Sri Lanka Army (SLA), security sources in Batticaloa said.


Full story >>

NECORD supported Irrigation project to begin in Amparai

[TamilNet, Monday, 01 September 2003, 03:36 GMT]
Rehabilitation efforts of the Kanchikudichaaru Irrigation development project under the North East Community Restoration Development (NECORD) plan are expected to start Monday, according to NECORD officials. The Asia Development Bank (ADB) has allocated Rs.30m and World Food Program (WFP) has given Rs.8m for this project.
Full story >>

Paris meeting 'Positive and Innovative'

[TamilNet, Saturday, 30 August 2003, 19:54 GMT]
Delegates to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Constitutional Affairs Committee meeting in Paris to prepare a response to the Government of Sri Lanka's (GoSL's) proposal for an Interim Administration to the Northeast described the meeting as "positive and innovative," in a press release issued at the conclusion of the discussions that lasted from 23rd to 26th of August in Paris.


Full story >>

Hill country Tamil leader Thondaman remembered

[TamilNet, Saturday, 30 August 2003, 17:57 GMT]
Sri Lanka Saturday remembered the services rendered to the minorities and oppressed people by the hill country Tamil leader late Saumiyamoorthy Thondaman on his 90th birthday, which falls on August 30, 2003, sources from upcountry said.


Full story >>