Anti-War Front to organize national conference in Colombo

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 14 December 2004, 14:12 GMT]
National Anti War Front (NAWF), an umbrella organization of thirteen trade unions is to hold a regional conference on January 22 at Anuradhapura in the north central province and a national conference in Colombo Sugathathasa Stadium on February 26 to exert pressure on the Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) to take forward the stalled peace process, said Mr.Bertie Ranaweerage, one of the convenors of the project.
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Solheim - SLMM Meet to discuss the Eastern Situation

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 14 December 2004, 13:53 GMT]
Norwegian Special Envoy to Sri Lanka Mr. Eric Solheim met with the head of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM-Lk) Maj. Gen. Trond Furuhovde Tuesday morning.
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‘No Karuna group, only SLA psy ops’ –Kausalyan

[TamilNet, Monday, 13 December 2004, 04:47 GMT]
“Sri Lanka military intelligence has from time to time unleashed brutal state terror in the East, using individuals and paramilitary groups such as PLOTE Mohan and Razeek group. There is no Karuna group operating in the East now. The recent violence in the East in the name of ‘Karuna group’ is a continuation of this state terror by the SLA,” said Mr. E. Kausalyan, the political wing leader of the Liberation Tigers in the East, speaking to journalists at the LTTE secretariat in Kokkadicholai Saturday.
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Veteran Tamil educationist "Sokkan" dies

[TamilNet, Friday, 10 December 2004, 16:41 GMT]
Mr. Kanthapachettiyar Sokkalingam fondly called as "Sokkan" passed away peacefully at the age of seventy-seven Friday afternoon in Jaffna. Jaffna University recently conferred Honorary Doctorate of Literature on him for his invaluable services he rendered to the development of Tamil literature and Tamil language for more than four decades.
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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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Women protest against new army sentry points in Trinco

[TamilNet, Friday, 10 December 2004, 04:42 GMT]
Hundreds of Tamil women in Trincomalee Thursday protested in front of the Trincomalee office of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) demanding the removal of new sentry points established by the Sri Lankan Army (SLA) following the violent incidents on 2 December in the east port town, sources said.
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Halt the drift and resume peace process, NPC tells GoSL, LTTE

[TamilNet, Thursday, 09 December 2004, 14:19 GMT]
''The danger in the present situation is the possibility of escalation that suddenly goes out of control of both sides and plunges the country into inadvertent war...We also call upon the two parties to make a concerted effort to ensure that the safeguards in the Ceasefire Agreement are functional,'' said the National Peace Council, in a press release issued in Colombo Thursday.
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Counter proposals not conducive to peace- Vanni MP

[TamilNet, Saturday, 04 December 2004, 17:03 GMT]
"The Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) should desist from placing counter proposals before resuming negotiations. GoSL should be prepared to resume talks on the basis of Interim Self-Governing Authority proposals. Any further delay has the potential to lead Sri Lanka into another dark period of war and destruction. I urge the Sinhala parties speak with a unified, consistent voice, and enter peace talks," said Tamil national Alliance (TNA) Vanni District MP Mr Sathasivam Kanagaratnam when TamilNet talked to him Saturday.
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Sri Lanka names 11 new envoys

[TamilNet, Saturday, 04 December 2004, 16:53 GMT]
The Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) Saturday announced the names of eleven diplomats who are to be posted to various countries as Sri Lanka's envoys. Two Tamils and three Muslims are among those named, foreign ministry sources said.
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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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Navy, Army chiefs meet Trincomalee civil, religious leaders

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 30 November 2004, 08:45 GMT]
Rear Admiral Daya Sandagiri, Chief of Defence Staff and the Commander of the Sri Lanka Navy Tuesday morning met a group of religious dignitaries of all faiths and civil leaders representing all communities in Trincomalee town. Chief of Defence Staff said he and the SLA Commander had come to Trincomalee to review the current security situation in the east port town, which witnessed several violent incidents on Monday and to make necessary steps to bring normalcy. Religious and civil leaders expressed their opinions on how to bring normalcy in the troubled town.
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TNA faults SLA for violence in Tamil districts

[TamilNet, Saturday, 27 November 2004, 15:53 GMT]
"Unwarranted interference by the armed forces in the lives of the Tamil civilian population in the North-East must be brought to an end," said Mr.R.Sampanthan, leader of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentary group in a statement of national public importance tabled in Parliament Saturday in regard to several violent incidents that had taken place in the districts of Jaffna, Mannar, Vavuniya and in Trincomalee during Heroes Day week.
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SLA, LTTE meet in Vavuniya

[TamilNet, Friday, 26 November 2004, 16:05 GMT]
Delegations of the Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Friday held discussions in the presence of the Head of Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM), Major General (retd) Trond Furuhovde, exploring ways to curb violence in Vavuniya. The Parties agreed to strengthen the dialogue prevent future incidents and to facilitate confidence-building between the parties, according to the joint statement released after the meeting.


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Heroes' parents honoured in Trinco

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 23 November 2004, 02:43 GMT]
"The Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) in past abrogated pacts with Tamils because they were merely written on piece of paper. The current MoU was signed with the backing of our military strength. Sri Lanka Government knows the consequences of violating this agreement," said Mr.S.Elilan, Trincomalee district political head of the LTTE addressing an event held Monday in Trincomalee to honour parents of LTTE martyrs of Trincomalee division as a part of Heroes Day celebrations.
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ISGA must be basis for talks- Gajendrakumar

[TamilNet, Monday, 22 November 2004, 00:31 GMT]
Speaking at a seminar on "Power Sharing for a lasting peace" held at the Social and Economic Development Center (SEDEC) in Colombo Saturday, Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam said, "Tamil people believe that an interim administration is an essential prerequisite to embarking on talks for a solution to the conflict...and they will not allow the LTTE to give up the right to secession before the parties reach agreements on the outstanding core issues."
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Tamil women's Confluence Event held in Trinco

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 November 2004, 03:32 GMT]
Tamil women associations in Varothiar Nagar- Puthukuddiyiurpu, a suburb three km off north of Trincomalee town held a "Women's Confluence (Sangamam)" Monday evening at Varothiar Nagar Barathi Tamil Vidiyalayam and handed over a birthday greeting card to Ms Kaaronja, Liberation Tigers' Trincomalee district women political wing to be forwarded to the LTTE leader Mr.V.Pirapaharan on his fiftieth birthday, sources attending the event said.
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SLN bans fishing in Chullipuram Sea

[TamilNet, Saturday, 13 November 2004, 13:52 GMT]
Jaffna District Fisheries Societies Federation (JDFSF) Saturday said hundreds of fishermen residing in coastal areas of Chullipuram would lose their profession following the construction of training centre along shore by the Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) violating the ceasefire agreement signed by the Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), sources said.


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TNA MPs meet Solheim

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 09 November 2004, 11:25 GMT]
Norwegian Special Peace Envoy, Mr Eric Solheim, who arrived in Sri Lanka Tuesday morning, met with a Tamil National Alliance (TNA) delegation led by Senior M.P Joseph Pararasingham at the Norwegian Embassy in Colombo, political sources in Colombo said. Jaffna district parliamentarians Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam, Ms Padmini Sithamparanathan, S. Gajenthiran, and Suress Premachchandran accompanied Mr Pararajasingham to the meeting.
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Secession demand, Tamils right until aspirations constitutionalized- NSSP

[TamilNet, Saturday, 06 November 2004, 11:33 GMT]
"Tamils have the right to demand a separate State until their aspirations are adequately met, constitutionally entrenched and implemented. If this were done the demand would cease to be valid. It is well known that the Provincial Council system failed, as did all previous attempts at a solution to the Tamil national question since the l950s," said Nava Sama Samaja Party (NSSP), a pro-peace marxist party, in a media release issued Friday in Colombo.
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NE Governor cancels visit to Jaffna after protest

[TamilNet, Monday, 01 November 2004, 13:20 GMT]
The North East Province Governor (retired) Major General Asoka Jayawardene Monday cancelled his official visit to Jaffna after civil groups in the peninsula warned that he would face public agitation as hundreds of thousands of internally displaced families are still languishing in refugee camps and welfare centres, district secretariat sources said Monday. The NE Governor was scheduled to visit Jaffna on Wednesday.
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