All island karate contest-2002 concludes in Trincomalee

[TamilNet, Sunday, 20 October 2002, 19:27 GMT]
The all island martial arts -karate tournament-2002 was held Saturday and Sunday at St Joseph’s College auditorium in Trincomalee, organised by the district branch of the Sri Lanka Martial Arts-Do-Association and sponsored by the UNICEF.
Full story >>

STF refuses to vacate homes

[TamilNet, Sunday, 20 October 2002, 18:06 GMT]
Five Tamil refugee families of Kittanki at Kalmunai in the southeastern Amparai district have appealed to the authorities to return their houses now being occupied by the Commandos of the Special Task Force. The STF earlier promised to leave these houses on 16 October. The STA now has gone back on its promise, said refugees in a complaint to the district parliamentarian.
Full story >>

Morogoda visits Akkaraipattu, confers with local leaders

[TamilNet, Saturday, 19 October 2002, 16:19 GMT]
Minister of Science, Technology and Economic Reforms Mr.Milinda Morogoda Saturday visited Akkaraipattu in the southeast and conferred with local community leaders the future course of action to be taken to maintain peace in the area. It was decided at a conference held at Akkaraipattu cultural hall Saturday to form a peace committee, which would facilitate reconciliation between communities whenever problems arise.
Full story >>

‘Unmask political forces behind staged abduction’- Nehru

[TamilNet, Friday, 18 October 2002, 16:22 GMT]
The Amparai district Tamil National Alliance parliamentarian Mr. A. Chandra Nehru asked the secretary to Sri Lanka’s Interior Ministry to take all possible steps unravel the mystery and identify the political forces behind the alleged ‘abduction’ of the Muslim youth who was found in his home Friday.


Full story >>

Abducted Akkaraipattu Muslim youth returns home, police interrogate

[TamilNet, Friday, 18 October 2002, 06:11 GMT]
Akkaraipattu police Friday morning arrested S.M.Abdul Wajeed (24), the Muslim youth who was reported abducted, at his home. He was immediately taken to the Akkaraipattu police station for interrogation.
Full story >>

Muslim leaders call to abandon 'hartal', curfew re-imposed

[TamilNet, Thursday, 17 October 2002, 21:38 GMT]
The Federation of Mosques in Akkaraipattu Thursday evening issued an appeal to Muslims of the area to abandon their 'hartal' (general shut down) from today. Meanwhile the Police re-imposed a fifteen-hour curfew in Akkaraipattu, a Muslim dominated town in the eastern province Thursday afternoon from three p.m. to diffuse tension between the Tamil and Muslim communities following the abduction of a Muslim youth.
Full story >>

Tigers say Akkaraipattu incidents instigated

[TamilNet, Thursday, 17 October 2002, 12:50 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers Thursday called on Muslims and Tamils identify divisive forces bent on creating chaos in Akkaraipattu. The Tigers issued a leaflet Thursday in the south-eastern town stating that the problem was instigated by evil elements for profit. “We will never disrupt the peace. This is certain. Some interested parties have hidden Abdul Wajid to achieve their selfish motives. Tamils and Muslims should resolve to live as brothers. We should always resolve our differences through negotiation”, the leaflet states.
Full story >>

Thirukkovil resentful, STF said concocting evidence

[TamilNet, Monday, 14 October 2002, 13:02 GMT]
“The Special Task Force will pose a dire threat to our lives as long it remains in this region. There is no security now for farmers who have to pass the Kanjirankudah STF camp to cultivate their fields. The sole access to more than twelve thousand acres of our people’s fields is controlled by the STF which has no qualms about killing us like animals,” said Mr. Ariyanayagam Chandra Nehru, the sole Tamil MP for the Amparai District, Monday.
Full story >>

STF atrocities intended to scuttle peace – Karuna

[TamilNet, Saturday, 12 October 2002, 11:16 GMT]
“The peace talks in Thailand have created confidence among our fighters and our people. In this context, the actions of the STF are aimed at scuttling the peace talks. Our people have faith in future negotiations. But the STF’s atrocities are sowing doubts and confusion in their minds. However, we are observing the ceasefire with vigilance according to the instructions of our national leader,” Col. Karuna, senior commander of the Liberation Tigers in charge of the Batticaloa Ampara districts, told Maj. Gen. (ret) Trond Furhovde, the head of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission.
Full story >>

Amparai hartal continues

[TamilNet, Friday, 11 October 2002, 09:20 GMT]
A general strike (hartal) is being observed in Ampara for the second day in protest against the killing of seven Tamil protestors by Special Task Force (STF) commandos on Wednesday at a violent demonstration at the STF camp in Kanjirankudah, sources said Friday.
Full story >>

TNA condemns Kanchirankuda killings, demands STF withdrawal

[TamilNet, Thursday, 10 October 2002, 14:02 GMT]
The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Thursday strongly condemned the attack by the Special Task Force (STF) on unarmed Tamil civilians at Kanchirankuda in Thirukovil area of the Amparai district . “We suspect that this was a deliberate attempt to disrupt the peace process,” said Mr.R.Sampanthan, leader of the Tamil National Alliance parliamentary group in a statement issued to the press Thursday.
Full story >>

Disabled Tigers return overland to Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Friday, 27 September 2002, 09:26 GMT]
Seven wounded and disabled Liberation Tigers recuperating at a rehabilitation centre in Mullaitivu Wednesday travelled through Sri Lanka Army controlled territory to meet relatives in Batticaloa, Tamil press reports said Friday.
Full story >>

TNA urges PM to put off NE local polls

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 11 September 2002, 16:00 GMT]
The Tamil National Alliance Wednesday urged Sri Lanka’s Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe to postpone elections to local government bodies in the northeast scheduled to be held on 25 September. The polls were postponed in March this year upon a request by the TNA that the situation was not conducive at the time. The Elections Commission said last week that the polls to the local authorities will have to be held as scheduled unless the law is amended.
Full story >>

Black September remembrance in Batticaloa university

[TamilNet, Thursday, 05 September 2002, 21:53 GMT]
Batticaloa marked the beginning of Black September Thursday with a largely attended function at the Eastern University in Vantharumoolai on the 12th anniversary of the massacre of 174 refugees who had sought asylum on the campus during Sri Lanka army operations in the area in 1990.
Full story >>

Ferial Ashraff demands revision of cease-fire agreement

[TamilNet, Friday, 12 July 2002, 15:36 GMT]
The National Unity Alliance (NUA) Friday demanded a complete revision of the cease-fire agreement that has been signed by the Prime Minister and the LTTE leader. The NUA is one of the constituents of the main opposition People's Alliance (PA). The Executive President Ms Chandrika Kumaratunge is the leader of the PA.
Full story >>

MoD says 'no case' amid public protests

[TamilNet, Thursday, 04 July 2002, 01:18 GMT]
(News Feature) A Sri Lankan Defence Ministry inquiry into the assault of two senior political cadres of the Liberation Tigers on June 20 ruled that "there was no evidence ... to establish a case against any individual or person," state media reported. The Defence Ministry statement was issued Wednesday, the day after a massive demonstration in Kilinochchi to protest the attack by Sri Lankan naval personnel and members of the paramilitary Eelam People's Democratic Party (EPDP) on the LTTE cadres.
Full story >>

Karikalan, 23 Div. GOC meet

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 02 July 2002, 17:34 GMT]
Mr. N. Karikalan, senior official of the LTTE’s political division in the east, had discussions with the General Officer Commanding of the Sri Lanka army’s23 Division, Maj. Gen. Sunil Tennekoon on opening theA5 highway and rebuilding peaceful relations between Tamils and Muslims in the east at the Bishop's House in Batticaloa town Tuesday.
Full story >>

LTTE, military discuss recent violence as conspiracy suspected

[TamilNet, Monday, 01 July 2002, 02:43 GMT]
(News Feature) The leaders of the Liberation Tigers' political section in the Amparai-Batticaloa region, Mr. Visu (Head) and Mr. Thurai (Deputy Head) met senior Sri Lankan security officials late Friday night and Saturday to discuss last week's violence in Valaichenai and to seek ways to avoid a repetition of such incidents in the future. Meanwhile LTTE officials in the east, the leader of Sri Lanka’s largest Muslim party, Mr. Rauf Hakeem, and the Interior Minister, John Amaratunga, said this weekend that elements opposed to the peace process had instigated the recent chain of violence in the eastern province.
Full story >>

Support in Batticalo and Amparai for Trincomalee hartal

[TamilNet, Thursday, 27 June 2002, 00:43 GMT]
(News Feature) The hartal in the Trincomalee district organised Tuesday by Tamil civil society organisations drew impromptu support from Tamils in Batticaloa and Amparai districts, press reports said. The hartals were in protest against the attacks on the political activists of the Liberation Tigers at Velanai in Jaffna district and the Muttur LTTE political office in Trincomalee district.
Full story >>

Ampara monitors say govt. apathy hampering work

[TamilNet, Monday, 24 June 2002, 21:10 GMT]
Sri Lankan security forces continue to occupy two hospitals, ten schools and five Hindu Temples in the Ampara district. Speaking at a discussion arranged by a local journalists' association, Mr. Svein Myklebust, acting head of the SLMM for the Ampara district, said seventy-four complaints of cease-fire violations in the region have been received so far, adding, "the number of complaints is not a reflection of the ground reality." Meanwhile, the two LTTE nominees of the Ampara SLMM told TamilNet Colombo's apathy regarding their status is seriously hindering them from carrying out their duties as cease-fire monitors.
Full story >>