LTTE delegation to Paris talks arrives in Colombo

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 19 August 2003, 14:16 GMT]
A Ten member delegation of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, led by its political head Mr.S.P.Thamilchelvan, arrived in Colombo Thursday afternoon by two special helicopters of the Sri Lanka Air Force from Kilinochchi. The delegation is on its way to participate in "internal talks" in Paris, France, aimed at preparing a response to the Sri Lankan government's interim administration proposals, political sources in Colombo said.
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LTTE denies involvement in Sammanthurai killings

[TamilNet, Monday, 18 August 2003, 12:07 GMT]
Denying any involvement in the killing of two Muslim civilians in Sammanthurai police division in the Ampara district Sunday night, the deputy political head of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam in Ampara, Mr.Kuyilan, said, "Elements bent on derailing the peace process could have committed this dastardly act," according to media sources.
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Hakeem to meet Sri Lankan PM on Muslims' security

[TamilNet, Monday, 18 August 2003, 01:03 GMT]
Mr.Rauff Hakeem, leader of the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress and Minister in Sri Lanka’s United National Front government, said Sunday that he would meet the Sri Lankan Prime Minister, Mr.Ranil Wickremasinghe, Monday, on the question of providing maximum security to Muslims in the eastern province especially in Muttur area.
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Thailand promises demining assistance to northeast

[TamilNet, Sunday, 17 August 2003, 18:41 GMT]
The Thailand ambassador in Sri Lanka, Mr.Jerm Tivyanond, Saturday told the officials of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) that his country is willing to assist in the de-mining programme in the northeast province, sources said.


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SL Lands Minister pays surprise visit to Jaffna

[TamilNet, Saturday, 16 August 2003, 19:12 GMT]
Sri Lanka's Minister of Lands, Dr. Rajitha Senaretna, Saturday paid a surprise visit to Jaffna and inspected the development work of the Jaffna Duraiappah Stadium where the National Peace Sports Festival is scheduled to be held, district secretariat sources said.
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New Sinhala families settled in Nelukkulam

[TamilNet, Saturday, 16 August 2003, 10:46 GMT]
Even as thousands of internally displaced Tamil people are languishing in refugee camps, prevented by the Sri Lanka Army from resettling in their own homes, Sri Lankan government officials with the support of the SLA are actively engaged in recruiting new Sinhala families from the South to settle in lands abandoned by earlier Sinhala occupants in the traditional Tamil village of Nelukkulam in the Manalaru region in the Mullaitivu district, sources said.
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EPDP protests Batticaloa killing of its member

[TamilNet, Saturday, 16 August 2003, 10:27 GMT]
The Eelam Peoples Democratic Party (EPDP)'s members Friday held a demonstration in Batticaloa town against the killing of their member Mr. Arasaretnam Ratheeskaran on Thursday afternoon. The protest campaign was called off Friday night around 9 p.m and the coffin with Ratheeskaran's body was removed from the premises of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission's (SLMM's) Batticaloa office, police said.


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Norwegian HR activist visits Jaffna

[TamilNet, Friday, 15 August 2003, 14:35 GMT]
The Jaffna District Humanitarian Agencies Consortium (JDHAC) Friday told a visiting Norwegian human rights activist, Mr.Bernt Gelbrandsen, at the JDHCA office in Jaffna town, that the Sri Lankan government has failed to implement the terms of the ceasefire agreement signed by it with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam seventeen months ago last year, civil sources said.
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‘Indian Minister’s visit to SL historic’ - Peiris

[TamilNet, Thursday, 14 August 2003, 18:56 GMT]
The Sri Lankan government’s cabinet spokesman, Mr. G.L.Peiris, said Thursday that the proposed visit of the Indian Foreign Minister, Mr.Yaswant Sinha, to Colombo next week would be 'historic.' Replying to a question at the weekly press briefing, Mr.Peiris, who is also the government’s Chief negotiator in the peace talks, said that there would not be any problem in obtaining Indian assistance to the present peace process, media sources said.
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TNA, LTTE meet on IA proposals

[TamilNet, Thursday, 14 August 2003, 17:05 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam is conducting individual meetings with constituents of the Tamil National Alliance to inform them about the LTTE’s planned discussions with constitutional experts--and to seek the TNA’s suggestions--on the Sri Lankan government’s proposals for an Interim Administration for the North-East, sources said.
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'Eastern Tamils losing confidence in SLMM'

[TamilNet, Thursday, 14 August 2003, 14:09 GMT]
Representatives of the Batticaloa District Non-Governmental Organizations' Consortium Thursday told the Norwegian special peace envoy, Mr. Erik Solheim, that Tamils were losing confidence in the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission as it had failed to take into account the mounting problems of the displaced Tamil people in the eastern province, NGO sources said.
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Gunmen kill EPDP cadre in east

[TamilNet, Thursday, 14 August 2003, 10:54 GMT]
A member of a Tamil paramilitary group was shot dead by unidentified persons in Batticaloa town Thursday. The gunmen who came on a bicycle got away, Police sources in the eastern town said.
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'Final decision on LTTE camp issue after meeting SLMM' - Solheim

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 13 August 2003, 14:57 GMT]
A final decision on the Kurankupanchan camp of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam will be taken after Mr. Erik Solheim, the Norwegian special peace envoy, meets with the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission, according to Mr. Solheim, who addressed media persons after about three hours of talks with the political head of the LTTE, Mr.S.P.Thamilchelvan, Wednesday at the LTTE’s political secretariat in Kilinochchi, Vanni sources said.
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JVP demonstrates against IA for northeast

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 12 August 2003, 18:27 GMT]
The Marxist cum Sinhala Nationalist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna Tuesday held a demonstration and rally in Colombo against handing over the northeast interim administration to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam and what the JVP said were attempts by the United National Front government to bring foreign forces into the country, sources said.
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Norwegian peace envoy Solheim arrives in Colombo

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 12 August 2003, 13:10 GMT]
Norwegian special peace envoy, Mr. Erik Solheim, arrived in Colombo Tuesday early morning on a three day visit to hold vital discussions with the leaders of the United National Front government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) intended to sort out differences between the two parties in taking forward the peace process stalled since April this year, political sources said.
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Puthuvai Ratnathurai’s poem collection released in Trinco

[TamilNet, Sunday, 10 August 2003, 20:03 GMT]
The introductory event for the book ‘Ulaikalam,’ a collection of poems written by Poet Puthuvai Ratnathurai, head of the Arts and Cultural Department of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, was held Sunday evening at the Trincomalee Town Hall.
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‘Colombo cannot disregard our proposal’ – Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Sunday, 10 August 2003, 17:50 GMT]
“We would be ready to resume negotiations if the Sinhala nation accepts our proposal for the interim administration and follows the path of peace. The Sri Lankan government cannot disregard our proposal. If it does, then (Colombo) should let the Tamils go their way to determine their own destiny. This is the reality," said Mr. S.P Thamilchelvan, the head of the Liberation Tigers’ political division, addressing more than 3000 delegates from Jaffna taking part in a conference for the National Awakening Movement in Pallai, a town in the peninsula’s southern sector, Sunday.
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De-miner injured in car accident

[TamilNet, Saturday, 09 August 2003, 21:12 GMT]
A member of the International Mine Action group involved in de-mining in the LTTE-controlled Vanni region was injured when his car met with an accident on the Paranthan-Mullaitivu road Thursday morning and admitted to the Vavuniya hospital, from where he was airlifted to Colombo, sources in Vavuniya said.
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‘Tamil question is not a minority issue' – Prof. Uyangoda

[TamilNet, Saturday, 09 August 2003, 19:09 GMT]
“The challenge for the future is to reform the Sri Lankan state without generating violence in Sinhala society. And that is a tremendous challenge for any ruling elite in Colombo,” said Prof. Jayadeva Uyangoda, the well regarded political commentator in the Sinhala and English media in Sri Lanka, in a wide ranging interview with TamilNet this week. He emphasised the need for developing means for greater dialogue and engagement between the Tamils and Singhalese to resolve the conflict.
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TRO opens sewing training centre at Thampalakamam

[TamilNet, Friday, 08 August 2003, 22:29 GMT]
The Tamils Rehabilitation Organization Friday afternoon opened a training centre to teach sewing to unemployed girls in Thampalakamam, a traditional Tamil village 24 km off Trincomalee town. At the start, about twenty women have been enrolled to obtain training in the centre, said the Trincomalee Dstrict Director of the TRO, Mr.K.Mathavarajah, speaking at the opening event held at the TRO office in Thampalakamam.
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