Discussion on making documentary on Vali North IDPs

[TamilNet, Saturday, 23 April 2005, 15:38 GMT]
A discussion was held at the Tellipalai Divisional Secretary’s office in Jaffna Saturday to prepare a documentary on the plight of the thousands of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Valigamam North division of the northern peninsula. The IDPs homes, villages and entire towns in the division were garrisoned by the Sri Lankan armed forces fifteen years ago. “The documentary will be aimed at drawing the world’s attention to the long suffering of IDPs who lost their homes to the Sri Lankan military”, Mr. T. Ganesh, President of Valigamam North public organizations told TamilNet.
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Human Rights Congress on IDPs begins

[TamilNet, Saturday, 23 April 2005, 12:43 GMT]
Three day Human Rights Animators Congress-2005 of the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) began in Trincomalee Ehambaram Play Ground Friday night. About one hundred seventy five HR activists from the districts of Jaffna, Mannar, Vavuniya, Puttalam, Batticaloa, Trincomalee and Anuradhapura are participating in the Congress which is being held under the auspices of the National Protection and Durable Solution for IDPs (Internally Displaced People) Project (NPDIP) of the HRCSL, sources said.
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Solheim arrives in Colombo, visits Puttalam

[TamilNet, Sunday, 17 April 2005, 14:37 GMT]
Mr.Erik Solheim, Norwegian special peace envoy arrived in Colombo Sunday on a five day visit to Sri Lanka amid expectation that he would seal an agreement between the Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) that would establish a joint mechanism to take forward the post-tsunami relief, reconstruction and rehabilitation programme in the northeast province, sources said.
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IDPs, tsunami victims celebrate New Year in camps, tents

[TamilNet, Thursday, 14 April 2005, 10:59 GMT]
Hundreds of thousands of internally displaced Tamil families affected by tsnunami and two decade old war Thursday celebrated another New Year in camps, welfare centres and make-shift structures as their own houses and agricultural lands in the Jaffna district are occupied by soldiers of the Sri Lanka Army (SLA), civil society sources said.


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SLA allows IDPs to settle in no-man's land near HSZ

[TamilNet, Sunday, 03 April 2005, 13:34 GMT]
Jaffna area command of the Sri Lanka Army has given permission to the Jaffna district secretariat to relocate a section of the internally displaced families (IDPs) in an area located close to northeast of Palaly High Security Zone (HSZ) following threats by the Valigamam north fisheries societies that they would launch an agitation campaign if their demand were not met, secretariat sources said.
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Big demo, march in Pt. Pedro

[TamilNet, Monday, 28 March 2005, 10:08 GMT]
More than two thousand Internally displaced persons (IDP) and fisherman of Jaffna's Vadamaradchi region marched and demonstrated in Pt. Pedro Monday demanding that the Sri Lanka army (SLA) leave schools, villages and farm lands it has garrisioned and that the SLA should lift restrictions on fishing. The march was organised by the Federation of Vadamaradchi Public Organisations.
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Jaffna IDPs reject alternate land proposal by Supreme Court

[TamilNet, Friday, 25 March 2005, 19:09 GMT]
The Consortium of Welfare Centres for Internally Displaced Persons in Jaffna District Friday said that it would not accept alternate lands for their own lands now occupied by the government forces and declared as high security zones in the district. The Consortium said this in response to a report that the Supreme Court has queried the Jaffna Government Agent whether he could find alternate lands for the IDPs as their lands and houses are located within the HSZ and occupied by the State armed forces in the district, sources said.
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Riot Police stop IDPs entering Jaffna HSZ

[TamilNet, Friday, 18 March 2005, 07:06 GMT]
Sri Lanka Police special riot squads Friday blocked more than a thousand Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) from forcibly entering the military high security zone (HSZ) in Thellipalai, Jaffna. The HSZ covers most of Jaffna’s northwestern sector. Protestors and Tamil National Alliance MPs argued with the Police riot squads. About thousand five hundred IDPs staged a protest march Friday from Mallakam Junction to the Thellipalai Divisional Secretary’s office demanding that they be allowed to resettle in their villages that have been garrisoned by the Sri Lanka army for more than fifteen years.
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IDPs demand resettlement in HSZ

[TamilNet, Sunday, 06 March 2005, 14:33 GMT]
Vadamaradchi East Fisheries Co-operative Societies Union (VEFCSU) has requested the Government of Sri Lanka to take immediate steps to allow all Internally Displaced Peoples (IDPs) to resettle in their own lands in Nagarkovil West, Nagarkovil East, Nagarkovil South and Amban East, which are located inside the high security zone (HSZ), sources said.
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HRCSL to monitor post-tsunami Rights violations

[TamilNet, Thursday, 27 January 2005, 18:15 GMT]
The Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) has established Disaster Relief Monitoring Unit (DRMU)) to ensure human rights protection during the post-tsunami reconstruction phase with Mr.Lionel Fernando as its chairman, civil rights sources said.


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Jaffna IDPs appeal to LTTE for their resettlement

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 22 December 2004, 14:25 GMT]
A group of representatives representing hundreds of thousands of internally displaced families (IDP) due to the occupation of their houses and agricultural lands in Jaffna district by the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) Wednesday met with Mr.S.P.Thamilchelvan, political head of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in Killinochchi and explained their plight for the last fifteen years, sources in Kilinochchi said.
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CTTU discusses Jaffna HSZ issue with SL President

[TamilNet, Saturday, 18 December 2004, 03:18 GMT]
Sri Lanka's President, Ms. Chandrika Kumaratunge, told a delegation of the Ceylon Tamil Teachers' Union (CTTU) Friday that the Sri Lankan security forces continue to believe that Liberation Tiger cadres would infiltrate into the high security zones if the internally displaced families were allowed to resettle, according to CTTU general secretary Mr.T.Mahasivam.
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Human rights of Tamils denied in "No war, No peace situation" - JDCHA

[TamilNet, Friday, 10 December 2004, 14:38 GMT]
The Jaffna District Consortium of Humanitarian Agencies (JDCHA) Friday accused the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) that it has failed to address the needs of aggrieved persons in the NorthEast. JDCHA reminded that the Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) is a signatory to the UN optional protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The need of the hour is a pragmatic approach by the HRCSL to arrest the deteriorating law and order, it noted.
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GoSL must start talks based on ISGA- Jaffna NGOs

[TamilNet, Friday, 03 December 2004, 04:22 GMT]
"If peace and goodwill are to prevail, the Government of Sri Lanka should come forward to discuss without delay the Interim Self-Governing Authority (ISGA) proposals put forward by the LTTE. The proposals represent the collective will of all NorthEast Tamils," said Rev. Father Jeyakumar on behalf of the consortium of NGOs at a meeting held Monday in Nallur, Jaffna. Academics from the South who were on a fact finding mission to Jaffna also participated in the meeting.
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Trinco resettled IDPs' plight spotlighted

[TamilNet, Saturday, 20 November 2004, 03:29 GMT]
"No one can talk about peace and reconciliation when thousands suffer for want of shelter, food and clothes. Peace and reconciliation are only of secondary concern for them," said Mr.T.Thavasilingam, Chairman of the Consortium of Non-Governmental Organizations in Trincomalee district presiding over the meeting of Eastern Forum of Consortium of Humanitarian Agencies (CHU).
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Jaffna IDPs oppose Palaly runway extension

[TamilNet, Thursday, 18 November 2004, 03:23 GMT]
Union of Welfare Organizations of Displaced (UWOD) in Jaffna District Thursday in a press release appealed to the Government of India not to lend any assistance to the Sri Lanka government's plan to extend the Palaly airbase runway which will make the hundreds of thousands of internally displaced people permanent in refugee camps and welfare centres, civil sources said.
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IDP shelters inundated by floodwater

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 November 2004, 02:57 GMT]
Torrential rain the past few days has left several low-lying areas in villages north of Trincomalee town inundated by floodwater. Internally displaced families sheltered in welfare camps in Nilaveli village and other areas are under going severe hardships, civil sources said.
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Jaffna islet families demand removal of pass system

[TamilNet, Saturday, 13 November 2004, 15:19 GMT]
Pungudutivu Division Civil Groups Consortium (PDCGC) Saturday wrote to Sri Lanka's President Ms Chandrika Kumaratunge to take immediate action to completely lift the residential pass system introduced for resettled families in Pungudutivu by the Sri Lanka Navy (SLN), civil sources in Jaffna said.
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Jaffna flood victims struggle without relief

[TamilNet, Saturday, 13 November 2004, 14:25 GMT]
Hundreds of families affected by flood in Jaffna district due to torrential rain are not provided with any relief by the central government and provincial council authorities, civil group activists complained Saturday.


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Chettikulam IDPs oppose forced resettlement

[TamilNet, Friday, 05 November 2004, 03:20 GMT]
Official are making efforts to move Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) living in welfare centers in Chettikulam and Adapankulam in Vavuniya district to Manikfarm area against their wishes, refugees say. The refugees allege that IDPs are being used as a protective shield to soldiers in three Sri Lanka Army (SLA) camps located near Manikfarm area.
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