STF shoots dead two LTTE political cadres in Amparai

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 31 October 2006, 16:39 GMT]
Special Task Force (STF) soldiers shot dead two from the political wing of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam(LTTE)when the SLA cordoned off and searched Vinayagapuram in Thirukovil in Amparai Tuesday around 8:30 a.m, S. Jeya, Amparai District Political Head said. Area residents were led to a public place for intensive search and interrogation.
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SLA Mandur offensive repulsed, one STF trooper killed, two injured- LTTE

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 31 October 2006, 16:17 GMT]
One trooper was killed and two others from the Mandur Kampikattu Bridge Special Task Force (STF) of the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) in Batticaloa were seriously injured by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) counter attack Tuesday around 3:30 p.m, said S.Seeralan, Batticaloa District LTTE Deputy Political Head.
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Kuchaveli villagers under paramilitary threat- TNA

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 31 October 2006, 12:38 GMT]
Many residents from villages in Kuchavel Pradeshya Sabha division, who have been returning to resettle after being displaced before 2002, are again fleeing the villages due to threat from paramilitary cadres, Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentary group leader, Mr Sampanthan complaiend in a letter sent to Sri Lanka's President, Mahinda Rajapakse, Tuesday.
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TNA condemns killing of PS member, attack on MP's House

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 31 October 2006, 12:19 GMT]
Tamil National Alliance (TNA) in a press release issued Tuesday, accused two Sinhala Homeguards for killing the elected TNA member Seruwila Pradesiya Sabha, and condemned the grenade attack on the private residence of TNA Vanni parliamentarian, Sivanathan Kishore.
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Norwegian MP criticizes closure of A9

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 31 October 2006, 10:33 GMT]
Jan Bøhler, Labour Party parliamentarian and leader of the Oslo Labour Party, expressed concern about the failure of the week-end talks between the Sri Lanka Government (GoSL) and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), and commended the efforts of the Norwegian Tamils supporting peace, Monday around 7:00 p.m in front of the Norway Parliament, source in Norway said. The GoSL blockade of the A9 landroute to Jaffna should be criticized by all who care about humanitarian issues, said Jan Bøhler in his address.
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Indian model ill-suited to address Tamil demands- Gajendrakumar

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 31 October 2006, 03:44 GMT]
While the Sri Lanka Government negotiators in Geneva II heralded the All Party Representative Committee (APRC) as key to formulating “a political and constitutional framework for the resolution of the national question,” an APRC delegation has been touring India to study India's “federal” setup. Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam, Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian and Member of the Parliamentary Consultative Committees for Constitutional affairs, said that the post-partition constitution of India was not required to address any sovereignty issues similar to those that lie at the core of Tamil struggle, and therefore, is ill-suited for Sri Lanka.


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Verugal Pradesiya Sabha member shot dead

[TamilNet, Monday, 30 October 2006, 11:14 GMT]
Gopalasundaram Pathmakalaparan, member of the Verugal Pradesiya Sabha in the Eachilampathu division in Trincomalee district, was shot dead Monday afternoon around 2:00 p.m. by unidentified armed men, Serunuwara Police said.
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Civilian shot injured at Kannankuda, Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Monday, 30 October 2006, 09:06 GMT]
Unidentified gunmen shot and seriously injured a civilian on his way to fish in a lake close to his house at Kannankuda in the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) held territory in Batticaloa district Sunday around 9:00 p.m, Batticaloa police said. The injured man was rushed to Batticaloa Teaching hospital.


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TNA MP Kishore survives attack on his house in Vavuniya

[TamilNet, Sunday, 29 October 2006, 17:44 GMT]
Unknown attackers, believed to be paramilitary operatives, lobbed six grenades on Vanni district Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian Sivanathan Kishore's house located in Rambaikulam, 1 km east of Sri Lanka Army controlled Vavuniya Sunday around 10:00 p.m. The parliamentarian who was at his house narrowly escaped from the attack.
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No agreement in Geneva on Humanitarian crisis, Tigers respond on pluralism and democracy

[TamilNet, Sunday, 29 October 2006, 16:57 GMT]
The talks in Geneva ended Sunday without any agreement between the Parties, the Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam on the Humanitarian crisis and the re-opening of closed gateways. Responding on Democracy the Tigers said they were "more committed to the democratic principles" than the GoSL and challenged the GoSL to repeal the sixth amendment to the SL constitution as a token of its commitment to democracy and pluralism. The LTTE also challenged the GoSL to remove its armed forces from the Tamil homeland and allow the holding of a referendum under international supervision to ascertain the aspirations of the people in the homeland.
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Stressed Sri Lankan negotiators throw journalists out

[TamilNet, Sunday, 29 October 2006, 14:26 GMT]
Sri Lankan government delegates in Geneva to negotiate peace with Tamil Tiger rebels were ‘under a lot of stress’ and wanted journalists removed from their hotel, diplomats told AFP on Sunday.
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No progress on Humanitarian issues, CFA- Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Saturday, 28 October 2006, 18:07 GMT]
First day of talks in Geneva between the Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers, focusing on the urgent humanitarian issues and the re-opening of A9 concluded without the parties agreeing to any measures to relieve the humanitarian crisis in the Tamil homeland, Liberation Tigers Political Head S.P Thamilchelvan told TamilNet.
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Peace process depends on ceasefire implementation - LTTE

[TamilNet, Saturday, 28 October 2006, 10:49 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers called Saturday for the full implementation of the February 2002 ceasefire agreement (CFA), saying "such actions will bring normalcy in the lives of our people, and help in taking forward the peace process towards a satisfactory conclusion." Addressing the opening session of the Norwegian facilitated negotiations in Geneva, LTTE's Political Head, Mr. S. P. Thamilchelvan, said: "the best we can hope for from the current talks is therefore, the strengthening of the CFA agreement that has the potential to lead to a permanent, just peace in this island."
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Geneva Talks II begins

[TamilNet, Saturday, 28 October 2006, 10:37 GMT]
"Developments in Sri Lanka in the past months have seriously endangered the peace process," said Switzerland Foreign Affairs Deputy Head Ambassador Heidi Tagliavini who gave the opening address wishing the facilitator and the Parties better understanding, in Geneva Saturday. Stressing the need for "confidence in the Norwegian Government as facilitator seeking ways to lead the delegations to a better mutual understanding, confidence in the other Party as a partner with whom one can engage," Ms. Heidi Tagliavini said the International Community the recent developments in Sri Lanka have caused considerable concern within the International Community.
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Is Colombo ready for a paradigm shift, asks TNA MP

[TamilNet, Saturday, 28 October 2006, 01:26 GMT]
A full scale war is unavoidable if the southern polity fails to timely demonstrate that it is ready for a paradigm shift in the approach to solving the Tamil national question, said Batticaloa District Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian S. Jeyanandamoorthy, speaking to TamilNet after meeting the LTTE delegation in Geneva Thursday.
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Batticaloa cultivators protest against SLA ban

[TamilNet, Friday, 27 October 2006, 21:36 GMT]
Batticaloa cultivators demonstrated from 9:00 a.m to 12:00 noon Friday in front of Vantharumoolai Agricultural Productivity Centre demanding the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) lift the 2 month ban to take agricultural vehicles, implements, and fertilizer to their paddy lands in the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) held areas from Batti-Vallaichenai main road, civil society sources said.
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Karuna ‘abducted hundreds of children’ – The Times

[TamilNet, Friday, 27 October 2006, 15:48 GMT]
The Karuna Group has abducted between 300 and 900 children — some as young as 12 — since March, The Times newspaper reported this week, quoting international and local aid workers in Sri Lanka. The paramilitary group’s “escalating activity has emerged as a key factor behind the upsurge in violence that has killed more than 2,000 people this year and left a 2002 ceasefire agreement in tatters,” the British newspaper said.
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Tamil Norwegians hold vigil in Bergen

[TamilNet, Friday, 27 October 2006, 15:03 GMT]
Tamils living in Bergen, Norway held a peace event Thursday evening, expressing their desire for just peace and condemned the human rights violation committed by the Sri Lankan Armed forces and the paramilitaries operating with them. Representatives of major political parties took part in the event, held in the town centre.
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Fresh Sri Lankan offensive towards Vaharai repulsed - Ilanthirayan

[TamilNet, Friday, 27 October 2006, 09:41 GMT]
An offensive launched by the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) towards Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) controlled Vaharai region in the East was repulsed by the Tigers Friday, according to LTTE Military Spokesman Irasiah Ilanthirayan, who was speaking to media from Geneva, Swtizerland.
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TNA appeals to UN: "GoSL uses Humanitarian crisis as tool of war"

[TamilNet, Friday, 27 October 2006, 06:36 GMT]
The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) consisting 22 out of the 23 Tamil members elected to Sri Lankan Parliament from the NorthEast, in an appeal to the United Nations High Commissioners for Human Rights and Refugees, said that the Government of Sri Lanka was using the humanitarian crisis as a tool of war. Detailing the humanitarian situation prevailing in all the districts of NorthEast, the TNA charged that the GoSL was engaged in a policy to drive the Tamil civilian population out of the Trincomalee District. The TNA's appeal to UN comes a day before the talks in Geneva.
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