Emergency extended, Tamil MPs stage mock funeral in parliament

[TamilNet, Thursday, 19 January 2006, 15:18 GMT]
Tamil parliamentarians Thursday continued their sit-in-protest for the third consecutive day in the parliament when it resumed sitting Thursday morning against the killings and harassment of Tamil people by State armed forces under the State of Emergency. However amid noisy protest "Stop killing Tamil people, Stop genocide of Tamil people," "Withdraw emergency regulations", Mr.M.J.M.Lokkubandara, Speaker announced from his Chair that the extension motion of the State of Emergency moved by the government was carried unanimously. There was no debate and voting on the extension motion, parliamentary sources said.
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Canadian parties commit to active role in Sri Lankan peace process - CTC

[TamilNet, Thursday, 19 January 2006, 01:17 GMT]
The four national parties contesting in the upcoming federal election in Canada, have vowed to play an active role in the Sri Lankan peace process in a public debate organized by the Canadian Tamil Congress (CTC) at the Delta Toronto East Hotel in Toronto on Tuesday. Referring to a media report Wednesday in the National Post that cited Peter MacKay, a leading member of the Conservative Party, as supporting a ban on the LTTE, the spokesman of the national body of the Canadian Tamils, Ashwin Balamohan, said that the issue has been raised with the Conservative Party and said all the four parties have reiterated their commitment to an "unbiased policy" on the Sri Lankan issue.
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Trinco students died due to gunshot injuries- Magistrate

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 18 January 2006, 16:13 GMT]
"The court determines that the five Tamil youths killed on January 2 night near the sea beach of the east port town had died due to gunshot injuries instantaneously. The court has come to a conclusion that an offence has been committed in this instance. Therefore the court orders the Police to conduct further inquiry into these deaths and to produce the suspects before the court," said Mr.V.Ramakamalan, Trincomalee Magistrate in his order delivered Wednesday at the conclusion of the magisterial inquest, legal sources said.
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JHU demands Colombo to stop Balasingham's visit

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 18 January 2006, 11:30 GMT]
The Sinhala nationalist party of Buddhist monks, Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU), Wednesday demanded the Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) to stop the visit of Chief negotiator and political strategist of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), Mr.Anton Balasingham , to Killinochchi. Venerable Athuraliya Rathana Thera, parliamentary group leader of the JHU addressing a press briefing Wednesday in the parliamentary complex said the present government is also trying to hand over the sovereignty of the country to the LTTE in the cover of peace process, parliamentary sources said.
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Tamil MPs protest, SL parliament suspended second day

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 18 January 2006, 06:43 GMT]
Parliamentarians of Tamil National Alliance (TNA), Ceylon Workers Congress (CWC), Upcountry People's Front (UPF) and Western Province People's Front (WPPF) Wednesday resumed their sit-in protest in the well of the House for the for the second consequtive when the parliament resumed its sitting, Wednesday morning. Speaker M.J.M.Lokkubandara suspended the sitting for the day because of noisy protest by the Tamil MPs demanding the Sri Lanka Government to stop the killings, arrests and harassment of Tamil speaking people by the State armed forces, using Emergency Regulations, parliamentary sources said.
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TRO(USA) to hold tsunami anniversary fund raiser

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 18 January 2006, 01:49 GMT]
Tamils Rehabilitation Organization (USA) is holding its annual fund raiser at the cultural hall of Murugan Temple in Lanham, located 20 km north east of US capitol, Saturday. Voluntary contributions from families are earmarked for the Senthalir Illam in Mullaitivu where more than seventy children perished during the tsunami, organizers of the event said. Cultural events from local children will dominate the evening as a mark of respect for the Senthalir children.
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Tamil shop employee injured in Trinco grenade attack

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 17 January 2006, 18:27 GMT]
Unidentified person lobbed a grenade inside a Tamil shop located in the Madathady junction in Trincomalee Tuesday morning. Mr.Thevatharsan, 25, an employee of the shop was critically injured in the attack. The shop was also damaged, Trincomalee Police said.


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State terrorism rising in NorthEast, say Tamil MPs

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 17 January 2006, 15:31 GMT]
"Violence and terror unleashed by the State armed forces is on the increase in the North East province. Fifty Tamil civilians have been abducted in the Jaffna district within few months. From December 1 to January 12 the State armed forces and para military groups in Jaffna have killed thirty-one Tamil civilians. Forty-two Tamils have been killed in other districts of the province," said leaders of Tamil political parties addressing a press briefing after their protest in parliament Tuesday morning.


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SLMM suspends operational activities in Trincomalee

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 17 January 2006, 14:48 GMT]
Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) closed its office in Trincomalee until further notice at 4 p.m. Tuesday. SLMM's day to day activities in Trincomalee district will remain suspended until the office reopens, officials said. Recent spate of killings and a number of attacks including exchange of fire with the danger of innocent travellers getting caught in fire, make it difficult for the truce monitors to move around in the district, the sources added. The monitors have urged the Sri Lankan troops to abide by their responsibility of ensuring security to the civilians. The Tigers have also been urged to use their influence on the Tamil population to calm down the sitatuion, the sources added.
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Deputy Solicitor General leads evidence in slain students' inquest

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 17 January 2006, 12:22 GMT]
Deputy Solicitor General Mr.D.Livera with two senior State Counsels on the direction by the Attorney General led the evidence of witnesses into the murder of five Tamil students allegedly by the government troops on January 2 night along the Trincomalee sea beach when the inquest proceedings resumed before Mr.V.Ramakamalan, Trincomalee Magistrate Monday morning, legal sources said.
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Muslim businessman beaten to death in Akkaraipattu

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 17 January 2006, 12:11 GMT]
Mr Ahamedlebby Abthul Bahir, 35, was beaten to death and his friend Nahurthamby Athambaba Lebby, 25, was seriously injured by unknown tamil group on Wednesday evening 3.30 p.m. at Periyakalai in Akkaripattu, police sources said.
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Balasingham to visit Vanni next week

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 17 January 2006, 11:33 GMT]
Mr. Anton Balasingham, the chief negotiator and political strategist of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), will visit the LTTE held region of Vanni, northern Sri Lanka, on 23rd January in a fresh effort to resume the peace process. Mr. Balasingham will assist the LTTE leader, Mr. V. Pirapaharan, during the forthcoming meeting next week between Mr. Erik Solheim, the Norwegian Minister of International Development, and the LTTE leadership.
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Mannar hospital staff protest against SLA presence

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 17 January 2006, 11:25 GMT]
Nearly 250 employees including few medical officers Tuesday morning staged a walkout in protest demanding the withdrawal of State armed forces from the premises of the Mannar district hospital and to stop soldiers visiting the wards of the hospital with arms and other weapons. The protest was held from about 10 a.m. till 11 a.m., sources in Mannar said.
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Ground conditions will dictate process forward - Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 17 January 2006, 10:09 GMT]
Unless there is a marked change in the ground conditions currently dominated by violent conduct by the Sri Lankan Armed forces and the paramilitaries, the patience of the Tamil population, facing killings on a daily basis in the SLA controlled Tamil homeland, will be put on a serious test, LTTE's Political Head S.P. Thamilchelvan, told media following the meeting in Kilinochchi with the Norwegian Ambassador to Sri Lanka Hans Brattskar and the Head of the Scandinavian truce monitors in Sri Lanka, Hagrup Haukland. LTTE Political Head further said that the LTTE leader V. Pirapaharan would convey LTTE's stand to the Norwegian Special Envoy Erik Solheim at the end of January.
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Tamil MPs protest in parliament against killings in NorthEast

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 17 January 2006, 07:56 GMT]
Pandemonium prevailed in the Sri Lankan parliament Tuesday when it met for the first time in the new year 2006 following the protest held by parliamentarians of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), Ceylon Workers Congress (CWC), Upcountry Peoples' Front (UPF) and Western Province Peoples' Front (WPPF) against the killing of parliamentarian Mr. Joseph Pararajasingham, rape and murder of a girl, Tharshini, in Pungudutivu, killing of five Tamil students in Trincomalee and several Tamil civilians by the Sri Lankan armed forces and the paramilitary groups and the arbitrary arrests of Tamil civilians in Colombo, parliamentary sources said.
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Navy convoy attacked in Trinco, 2 civilians killed in retaliation

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 17 January 2006, 06:19 GMT]
A cycle bomb placed along the Nilaveli-Trincomalee road near a bus depot hit a Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) bus convoy carrying soldiers towards east port town at the third mile post junction Tuesday around 10:05 a.m. Sri Lanka troops fired in retaliation killing two Tamil civilians and injuring several Tamil civilians, four of them have been brought to Trincomalee general hospital. Initial reports said about eleven soldiers were seriously injured and are admitted to navy hospital, which is located inside the SLN eastern region headquarters in the east port town.
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SLA trooper killed in Mannar grenade attack

[TamilNet, Monday, 16 January 2006, 17:36 GMT]
A soldier of the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) was killed Monday night around 8.50 p.m. when unidentified persons lobbed a grenade at a sentry located in the premises of Mannar General Hospital, sources in Mannar said. A combined camp of the SLA and Sri Lanka Navy is located close to the Balamurugan Temple in the hospital premises, police sources said.


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Muttur Magistrate directs SL Police to provide details of arrested

[TamilNet, Monday, 16 January 2006, 16:23 GMT]
Mr.Manickavasagar Ganesharajah, Muttur Magistrate at a conference held Monday directed the authorities concerned to submit all names, other details of persons arrested, and the reasons for their arrests in Tamil areas in the government controlled territory in Muttur division. The failure to furnish these details with valid legal reasons could lead to serious human right violations, Mr.Ganesharajah cautioned.
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TRO responds to media reports

[TamilNet, Monday, 16 January 2006, 12:37 GMT]
"The false allegations, complete fabrications, and twisting of facts reported in the articles are a weak attempt to malign the largest and most efficient NGO in the NorthEast. It appears that there is a coordinated malicious campaign by pro-government, anti-Tamil forces to malign TRO and the work that it performs. It is also disturbing that the increased levels of propaganda correspond to the diminished levels of peace discourse in Sri Lanka," said Tamils Rehabilitation Organization (TRO), an NGO registered with the Government of Sri Lanka, in a press release issued from Colombo Monday.
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Norwegian Ambassador, SLMM Head to meet LTTE Political Head

[TamilNet, Monday, 16 January 2006, 11:11 GMT]
Norwegian Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Hans Brattskar, and the Head of Mission of the Scandinavian truce monitors, Hagrup Haukland, will be visiting Kilinochchi to meet the Political Head of the Liberation Tigers, S P Thamilchelvan on Tuesday, according to the LTTE Peace Secretariat in Kilinochchi. The LTTE is likely to press for urgent de-escalation of violence in Sri Lanka Army (SLA) controlled areas of the NorthEast in the meeting viewed to be a preparatory meeting for the visit of Norwegian Development Minister Erik Solheim, expected to take place at the end of the January as announced by the Norwegian Foreign Ministry.
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