6 Tamil youths abducted in Aalaiyadiveampu

[TamilNet, Friday, 09 May 2008, 11:26 GMT]
Unidentified armed men in a white van abducted six Tamil youths Thursday around 8:30 p.m at Aalayadiveampu in Akkaraipattu police division in Ampaa’rai district, residents in Aalayadiveampu said.
Full story >>

Opposition parties in Sri Lanka fear election malpractice

[TamilNet, Friday, 09 May 2008, 02:12 GMT]
All activities of the political parties and independent groups contesting the Eastern provincial council elections ended Wednesday midnight, the office of Elections Department (ED) announced Thursday. Meanwhile, expressing fear that Colombo was preparing itself for a large-scale election rigging, UNP parliamentarian Laxman Kiriyelle has accused the Sri Lankan Defence Ministry for its alleged involvement in distributing blank polling cards in the East. It is also alleged that nearly 170,000 polling cards remained stagnant in the post offices without being delivered and these were taken away by the paramilitary Pillayan group.
Full story >>

Burning Memories: Documentary on Jaffna Library

[TamilNet, Thursday, 08 May 2008, 15:51 GMT]
A 49-minute documentary, titled Burning Memories, featuring the story and the memories of the Jaffna Library, which was burnt down by the Sri Lankan Police in June 01, 1981, has been produced by an audio visual journalist, S. Someetharan. The tri-lingual documentary is scheduled to be released in May by the Nikari, the producers and distributors of the film.
Full story >>

Tamil youth reported missing in Potkea'ni

[TamilNet, Thursday, 08 May 2008, 10:53 GMT]
A nineteen year old Tamil, Arasaretnam Saranraj of Potkea'ni, a suburb in Thampalakaamam, a traditional village in Trincomalee district has been reported missing since Tuesday, according to complaints lodged with the Trincomalee regional office of the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) Thursday.
Full story >>

CAFFE says east situation deteriorating

[TamilNet, Thursday, 08 May 2008, 00:11 GMT]
Campaign for Free and Fair Election (CAFFE) said at press briefing held Tuesday that it has received complaints that Pillaiyan armed group has been threatening Tamils to vote only for their candidates, and CAFFE feels that the opportunity for a free and fair election in the east, especially in Batticaloa district is very dim, the Head of CAFFE executive committee, Attorney-at-Law Shiral Lakthilakie, was quoted as saying by media sources.
Full story >>

Sinhala thugs threaten, rob Piliyandala Tamil traders

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 07 May 2008, 17:40 GMT]
Tamil traders in Piliyandala are living in constant fear as Sinhala goons daily threaten them and rob their stocks of goods from their establishments. This has been going on since the Piliyandala bus bomb blast, media sources said.
Full story >>

Slain journalists remembered in Colombo

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 07 May 2008, 12:16 GMT]
Movement Against Media Suppression (MAMS), a common front organization consisting of five major media organizations, held a memorial event Tuesday around 6:30 p.m. in front of Fort Railway Station, Colombo, in remembrance of the 14 slain journalists. The MAMS, in a leaflet gave the statistics, describing the state of media freedom in Sri Lanka where 14 journalists were killed in recent years, 8 journalists were subjected to abductions, 4 were imprisoned, 5 electronic broadcasts were blocked, 1 website blocked, 3 records of suppressive laws against media and countless number of harassments against media and media personnel.
Full story >>

PLOTE member shot dead, 2 killed in Vavuniyaa claymore attack

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 07 May 2008, 06:50 GMT]
A leading member of Peoples’ Liberation Organization of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE) of Vavuniyaa district was shot and killed, and another person seriously injured in a shooting incident Tuesday around 5:30 p.m at Poonththoaddam area in Vavuniyaa, sources in Vavuniyaa said. Meanwhile, two civilians were killed in a Claymore attack Tuesday around 6:00 p.m targeting a Sri Lanka Army (SLA) truck, near Vavuniyaa Town Council playground, the sources added.
Full story >>

Rajapaksa prorogues SL Parliament

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 06 May 2008, 17:31 GMT]
Sri Lanka's President Mahinda Rajapaksa has moved on to prorogue the sittings of the Sri Lankan Parliament until June 05 according to an extra-ordinary gazette notification published Tuesday midnight. The move comes amid the increased media attention and the debate on SLA casualties in the Northern Front as four days were left for the Eastern provincial elections where oppositions parties including the SLMC, UNP and the JVP have protested against the armed paramilitary in the East. Meanwhile, in a specially arranged televised broadcast, Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksa, promised the remote villagers in the east that they would get everything that they have aspired for.
Full story >>

Batticaloa Teachers protest demanding release of arrested collegues

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 06 May 2008, 13:23 GMT]
Three hundred teacher trainees of Batticaloa Teacher training college boycotted the classes and staged a peaceful rally Tuesday morning demanding the release of five teacher trainees arrested by Waduwa police in Kalutura district on 27 April.
Full story >>

2 new parliamentarians sworn in

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 06 May 2008, 10:46 GMT]
Sarana Gunawardene and Dulip Wijesekara were sworn in as new parliamentarians from the Gampaha district Tuesday when the parliament met for the first time after the New Year recess. Speaker W.J.M.Lokkubandara administered oaths at the commencement of the session, parliamentary sources said.
Full story >>

Pillayan group's attack on JVP triggers protest in Ampaa'rai

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 06 May 2008, 08:34 GMT]
More than 15 armed personnel of Pillayan Group, the main paramilitary group in the east and a political party contesting on the ruling UPFA ticket in the forthcoming provincial council elections in the East, went amok against the members of the Sinhala extreme nationalist JVP, who were engaged on a house-to-house campaign in Thirukkoayil in Ampaa'rai district around 3:30 p.m., Monday. Nihal Galapaththi, Hambantota district JVP MP, headed a protest march in Ampaa'rai on Tuesday against the Pillayan Group.
Full story >>

Vaiko condemns military soft loan, assails India's opposition to UN resolution on Sri Lanka

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 06 May 2008, 07:00 GMT]
Expressing "terrible shock" over the press reports that New Delhi was finalising a soft loan package of USD100 million for Sri Lankan military, Vaiko, the general secretary of Marumalarchchi Dravida Munneatta Kazhakam (MDMK) sent an urgent letter Monday to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh urging him to reconsider the decision and recalled earlier assurance given to him in April by Dr. Manmohan Singh that India was not giving any arms to Sri Lanka. At the same time, Mr. Vaiko expressed serious concern over India's opposition to the move initiated by European Countries to bring a resolution in the United Nations against the gross violation of human rights by the Sri Lankan government.
Full story >>

Pillayan threatens UNP candidate

[TamilNet, Monday, 05 May 2008, 20:26 GMT]
A UNP candidate contesting Eastern provincial council election has received death threats from Pillayan group, and has lodged a complaint with Batticaloa police, sources said.
Full story >>

Court orders Colombo to expedite resettlement in Jaffna HSZ

[TamilNet, Monday, 05 May 2008, 17:54 GMT]
The Supreme Court Monday directed the Defense Secretary to expedite the resettlement of the first group of identified displaced farmers in their agricultural lands located in the high security zone (HSZ) in Jaffna district to start their cultivation in time. The SC issued the directive when the fundamental rights applications filed by Jaffna district Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian Maavai Senathiraja and two farmers. All three petitioners are among the displaced persons from the high security zone, legal sources said.
Full story >>

Batticaloa tops in poll related violence

[TamilNet, Monday, 05 May 2008, 17:53 GMT]
Twenty seven complaints of election related violence have been reported from the Batticaloa district till Monday evening as the election campaign is in full swing in towns and villages where Muslims and Sinhalese are living in majority. Campaign for Free and Fair Elections (CAFFE) said Tamils in the three districts are not showing any interest in the election, media sources said.
Full story >>

SLA, LTTE clash in Naakarkoayil FDL areas

[TamilNet, Monday, 05 May 2008, 15:19 GMT]
Heavy clashes between Sri Lanka Army (SLA) and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in Naakarkoayil Northern Front Defence Lines erupted Monday early morning and lasted till evening. Both sides launched artillery shells, Multi-barrel rocket launcher and mortar fire engaging in heavy duel. A Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) helicopter was seen flying between Naakarkoayil FDL area and Palaali SLA Military Base many times and roads from the battle front to Palaali remained blocked by SLA for a long time for public use while vehicles kept transporting injured and killed troops.
Full story >>

We will restore democracy to Eastern province – Wickremesinghe

[TamilNet, Monday, 05 May 2008, 13:58 GMT]
“United National Party (UNP), Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) alliance will restore democracy to the East by putting an end to the domination by paramilitary groups,” Ranil Wickremasinghe, the Leader of the Opposition and UNP head said Sunday addressing a SLMC party conference held in Kaaththaankudi attended by more than 10,000 Muslims from the north, east provinces, sources in Batticaloa said.
Full story >>

Police recovers 10 kg claymore mine in Kandy

[TamilNet, Monday, 05 May 2008, 11:17 GMT]
Sri Lanka Police and Sri Lanka Army in a joint operation recovered a claymore mine weighing 10 kg from a house in Digana, a village located in Teldeniya police division in Kandy district, Sunday evening, media sources said.
Full story >>