Norway appoints Swedish Brigadier as Head of SLMM

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 21 February 2006, 13:54 GMT]
Norwegian Government Tuesday announced the appointment of Brigadier Ulf Henricsson, a Swede, as the Head of Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM). "It is very positive that another country in the SLMM has produced such an excellent candidate for this important post," said Mr. Erik Solheim, the Norwegian Minister for International Development, in a press release issued by Norway.
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Prayers for peace held in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 21 February 2006, 12:10 GMT]
"In the forthcoming Geneva talks the Sri Lanka Government should participate with a genuine desire to make compromises opening opportunities to arrive at a just and fair solution to the existential problems faced by the Tamil people," said Bishop of Jaffna Rev Fr Thomas Saundaranayagam speaking at one of the several events held in Jaffna today praying for peace, sources in Jaffna said.
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European Union welcomes Geneva talks

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 21 February 2006, 11:51 GMT]
European Commission Delegation in Sri Lanka in a press release issued Tuesday, welcomed the February 22- 23 discussions between the Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and described the talks as "an opportunity to restore confidence in the Ceasefire Agreement and move forward towards a peaceful future."
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Revised A/L results discriminate Tamil students- CTTU

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 21 February 2006, 11:09 GMT]
Changes in the Advanced Level examination results announced by Sri Lanka's Department of Examinations have decreased the ranks obtained by Tamil medium candidates from the previously announced computerized results at national and district level thus depriving their chances of Tamil students to enter Medicine and Engineering, Mr.T.Mahasivam, president of the Ceylon Tamil Teachers Union (CTTU) said in a press release Tuesday. "Tamil medium students who have applied for university admission based on previous computerized results are now unable to apply under the revised results," the release said.
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Balasingham arrives in Geneva

[TamilNet, Monday, 20 February 2006, 21:27 GMT]
Chief Negotiator and Political Strategist of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Mr. Anton Balasingham arrived in Geneva at 7:50 p.m. Monday from London. Mr. Balasingham who was accompanied by his wife Ms. Adele Balasingham, was received by Swiss officials at the airport. The LTTE delegation departed to talks venue in Bossey, 22 km northwest of Geneva from the Airport, sources in Geneva said.
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Mannar fisherman found dead

[TamilNet, Monday, 20 February 2006, 17:03 GMT]
The body Mr. James Julie Peiris, 34, a Tamil fisherman and a father of a child who failed to return from the sea on February 18th evening was found washed ashore in the Talaimannar Pier Monday morning. Fellow fishermen identified the body as of missing Mr. Peiris. His fiberglass boat was found anchored in the Pesalai Sea area, fisheries sources said.
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Rice mill worker shot in Vantharumoolai, seriously wounded

[TamilNet, Monday, 20 February 2006, 08:34 GMT]
A Tamil youth, Kailasapillai Raveendran, 21, was shot and seriously wounded by unidentified gunmen Monday around 6:30 a.m. at Vantharomoolai, 18 km north of Batticaloa town, Police said. Raveendran who is a rice mill worker, was rushed to Batticaloa hospital and later transferred to Colombo hospital, medical sources said. Meanwhile, colleagues of Raveendran alleged that the gunmen were associates of paramilitary operative Pillayan who operates a hunt-and-kill squad for the Sri Lankan Military intelligence from Batticaloa town. However, the reason behind the incident is yet to be established, the Police said.
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TRO staffers in third week of captivity

[TamilNet, Monday, 20 February 2006, 04:49 GMT]
Tamil Rehabilitation Organization, to mark the 20th day after the abduction of ten of TRO staffers, released documents detailing the activities of the TRO workers in the areas of Pre School development and Children Homes. Three of the staffers have been released while the seven still remain in captivity with no communication from the captors widely believed to be paramilitary cadres. TRO abduction matter is likely to figure prominantly at the 22-23rd talks between Liberation Tigers and the Government of Sri Lanka in Geneva, political sources from Colombo said.
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Kinniya Muslim, Tamil leaders meet Elilan

[TamilNet, Monday, 20 February 2006, 00:05 GMT]
Mr.Elilan, Trincomalee district political head of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Saturday held a discussion with representatives of Muslim and Tamil communities in the Kinniya secretariat division in the Trincomalee district. The discussion was aimed at promoting better understanding between the two communities and to resolve problems they are currently facing in the division, sources said.
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Book traces Tamil history of Trinco village

[TamilNet, Monday, 20 February 2006, 00:01 GMT]
A compilation of thirty research articles on the history of centuries old Tamil village Thambalagamam in Trincomalee district written by Mr.K.Velautham, a nonagenarian journalist was released Sunday morning at Kulakottan Tamil Vidiyalayam in Thambalakamam, in Trincomalee district. Sri Lankan government has recently changed the name to the Sinhala version "Thambalagamuwa" and is using the new name in its all-official transactions, residents said.
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Limited press access to talks at Geneva Ecumenical Institute

[TamilNet, Sunday, 19 February 2006, 00:41 GMT]
Talks on Cease Fire Agreement (CFA) between the Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam scheduled for 22-23rd February are to be held at Conference center of Ecumenical Institute, Chateau de Bossey located 22 km northwest of Geneva. Press access to the talks are limited to the opening statements on Wednesday and to the media briefing immediately after the adjournment of the talks on Thursday, a press release from the Swiss officials said.
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Swiss officials welcome LTTE delegation in Geneva

[TamilNet, Saturday, 18 February 2006, 15:47 GMT]
The 12-member Liberation Tigers delegation arrived at the Geneva airport at 4.30 a.m. Saturday morning to attend the peace talks with the Government of Sri Lanka on 22-23rd February, and was met at the air port by the Swiss Foreign Ministry officials headed by Ms. Sidonia Gabriel (Programme officer, Peace Policy, Federal Department of Foreign Affairs), sources in Geneva said. Liberation Tigers Chief Negotiator and Political Strategist Mr. Anton Balasingham is expected to join the delegation on Monday afternoon, according to LTTE sources.
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ITAK fields Muslim candidates for Jaffna elections

[TamilNet, Saturday, 18 February 2006, 14:04 GMT]
"To show that Muslims and the Tamils have been living in harmony in the NorthEast and to further reinforce the amity between the two peoples we are competing on the Ilankai Tamil Arasu Kadchi (ITAK) ticket for the forthcoming Jaffna Municipal Council elections," said Moulavi S. M. Shahil and S. M .Suhair in a press meet held in Jaffna Saturday afternoon.
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LTTE releases second Sri Lanka policeman

[TamilNet, Saturday, 18 February 2006, 11:56 GMT]
Following the Sri Lanka Government facilitated release of four LTTE sea tiger cadres in Trincomalee, Liberation Tigers released a policeman held in custody for more than five months as a goodwill gesture ahead of Geneva Talks, Daya Master from the media section of the LTTE said from Kilinochchi Saturday.
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UPFA to contest three Jaffna local councils

[TamilNet, Friday, 17 February 2006, 16:26 GMT]
Ruling United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) is contesting three local councils in Jaffna district, Chavakachcheri, Point Pedro and Valvettithurai urban councils, and has submitted nomination papers for these councils, election officials in Jaffna said. For the Jaffna Municipal Council only three political parties Ilankai Thamil Arasu Kadchi (ITAK), Eelam Peoples Democratic Party (EPDP) and PLOTE-EPRLF (Varathar wing) have submitted nominations.
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Mannar civilian detained in Colombo

[TamilNet, Friday, 17 February 2006, 16:23 GMT]
The Mannar Citizens Committee (MCC) has appealed to the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) to take steps to obtain the release of a Tamil civilian Mr.Jesuthasan Kamalathasan of Pesalai who is being detained at the Terrorist Investigative Division (TID) of the Sri Lanka Police, sources said. The Police following a grenade attack at the army post located near Mannar hospital premises on January 16 took him into custody. An SLA soldier was killed in this incident.
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NGOs in Kilinochchi demand release of TRO staffers

[TamilNet, Friday, 17 February 2006, 11:23 GMT]
The Kilinochchi Federation of NGOs staged a peace protest march Friday 17th in Kilinochchi at 10 am, demanding the release of the seven employees of the Tamils Rehabilitation Organisation (TRO), abducted at gun point and held captive for more than 20 days in the Wellikanda region by paramilitaries. The marchers condemned the abductors and demanded that the TRO staffers be released immediately.
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LTTE delegation leaves Kilinochchi for Geneva

[TamilNet, Friday, 17 February 2006, 11:21 GMT]
Liberation Tigers delegation left Kilinochchi Friday morning to participate in negotiations with Government of Sri Lanka(GOSL) facilitated by the Norwegian Government in Geneva, Switzerland scheduled to be held February 22-23. Head of LTTE Political Wing, Mr Thamilchelvan, told the media before leaving Kilinochchi that the talks will discuss ways to implement February 2002 Truce agreement between the parties who are meeting for direct talk after more than three years. The delegation departed Kilinochchi grounds in a Sri Lanka Air Force( SLAF) helicopter around 9:00 am Friday.
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The Importance of ‘Rearbase’: Taraki, 1989

[TamilNet, Friday, 17 February 2006, 02:05 GMT]
In the 29 October 1989 issue of Sri Lanka's English daily, Island International, late Dharmeratnam Sivaram, popular journalist and Senior editor at TamilNet, writes on the waning importance of a rear base in Tamil Nadu after the end of Eelam war I in 1987. "That a multipurpose comfortable rearbase would in the long term erode the conviction to fight and play into the hands of India was an opinion expressed in 1983. Finally the rearbase started becoming a factor that threatened to undermine the control various leaders had over their fighting cadres," Sivaram wrote.
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Health Center opened in Vakarai

[TamilNet, Thursday, 16 February 2006, 14:14 GMT]
The opening of a Day-Care Center with Nutritious Park constructed by the Tamil Rehabilitation Organization (TRO) at a cost of two million rupees and a Health Center with the funding of Tamil Cultural Society of Manitoba (Canada) and Hindu Society of Manitoba (Canada) and implemented by Trincomalee TRO took place Wednesday at Vakarai village in the Batticaloa district at two separate events.
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