Discrimination in Bank recruitment, protests TNA

[TamilNet, Sunday, 25 September 2005, 11:06 GMT]
Mr.R.Sampanthan, leader of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentary group and the Trincomalee district parliamentarian Sunday faxed a written protest to President Ms Chandrika Kumaratunge calling for the cancellation of all appointments made by the State Banks, Bank of Ceylon (BoC) and Peoples Bank (PB) to their branches in the Tamil dominated NorthEast or that the new appointees be recalled "as this is a repetition of the regular discrimination that has been consistently practised against the Tamils in the matter of employment in the state sector including State Banks."
Full story >>

LTTE-SLMM hold talks in Pallai

[TamilNet, Saturday, 24 September 2005, 14:20 GMT]
Mr.Hagrup Haukland, Head of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) Friday met with Mr.C.Ilamparithi, Jaffna district political head of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) at the latter's district political office located in Pallai in the LTTE controlled Killinochchi district, sources in Jaffna said. Mr. Ari Pekka Nimella, Jaffna district head of the SLMM also met with Mr.Ilamprithi at the same venue on Saturday, sources said.
Full story >>

LTTE - Muslim leaders meet, resolve Batticaloa land ownership

[TamilNet, Saturday, 24 September 2005, 13:48 GMT]
More than sixty five percent of paddy lands owned by Muslims which were in possession of Tamil farmers in LTTE controlled areas of Paduwankarai in the Batticaloa were formally handed back to Muslims in a meeting at Mandavathady in Thalaiyadi Saturday. Mr. A. L. M. Saleem, Regional Manager of Amparai People's Bank who was part of the Muslim delegation attending the meetin said that the event marks significantly improving Tamil Muslim relationship in Batticaloa district.
Full story >>

Youths arrested for putting up posters against power project

[TamilNet, Saturday, 24 September 2005, 12:42 GMT]
Five upcountry Tamil youths were arrested by the Nuwera Eliya police on Friday night at 11.30 pm for putting up posters on the conference to be held against the Upper Kotmale Power Project by the Peoples' Campaign at Talawakele Kathiresan Temple Hall on Sunday. The youths were produced in court Saturday and Nuwara Eliya acting Magistrate Ramraj remanded the youths till September 27, legal sources in Nuwara Eliya said.
Full story >>

Democratic Freedom of Expression under threat in Jaffna - Gajendran MP

[TamilNet, Friday, 23 September 2005, 08:27 GMT]
The Tamil National Alliance Member of Parliament, Mr Selvarajah Gajendran has raised alarm at the detention of a university student and has protested to the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission at the "intimidating tactics" of the Sri Lankan armed forces in Jaffna. Arrest of a Jaffna University student, Friday morning, at the "Crossings” at Muhamalai, sparked off a protest by student community. Gajendran MP and hundreds of students from the University of Jaffna rushed to the spot, freed the student and protested to the SLMM officials supervising the activities at the check-point.
Full story >>

Expect a new war – newspaper

[TamilNet, Friday, 23 September 2005, 02:06 GMT]
Political events in Sri Lanka are overtaking the international efforts to create a lasting peace and it is only a matter of time before the island’s ascending Sinhala nationalist forces trigger a new war, the Tamil Guardian newspaper argued in its editorial this week. “If Sri Lanka is so preoccupied by dubious questions of [LTTE gaining] legitimacy that it is prepared to allow the disintegration of the ceasefire, what hope is there for negotiations on a political solution?” the English language Diaspora publication asked.


Full story >>

Colombo lacks will, ability to address Tamil National question- TNA

[TamilNet, Friday, 23 September 2005, 01:42 GMT]
Tamil people will be forced to urge the International community to "explicitely endorse the Tamil people's struggle for self-determination," if the Sri Lankan State continues to be intransigent in resolving the Tamil National question, warned Tamil National Alliance (TNA) in a press release issued in Colombo Thursday.
Full story >>

SLA blocks cement lorry enter Jaffna

[TamilNet, Thursday, 22 September 2005, 10:16 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers at the Muhamalai checkpoint refused to allow a lorry belonging to Tamil Rehabilitation Organization (TRO) taking cement for its rehabilitation work into Jaffna, Thursday morning, TRO officials said.
Full story >>

Operation USA funds Kallady fishermen livelihood project

[TamilNet, Thursday, 22 September 2005, 02:22 GMT]
Operation USA, an international non-governmental organization, supplied 70 fishing boats with seventy outboard engines and seventy set of fishing nets and related materials valued at about 21 million rupees to 140 beneficiaries in Kallady located in the Verugal-Eachchilampathu division south of Trincomalee district at an event held Tuesday. The implement partner of this project is Trincomalee District Tamil Rehabilitation Organization, sources said.
Full story >>

Tamil youth found dead at Colombo lodge

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 21 September 2005, 18:42 GMT]
Dead body of Mr. Vivekanandarajah Kandasamy, a 23-years-old Tamil youth from Akkaraipattu in Amparai district, was recovered by Pettah Police from a lodge in Colombo Wednesday evening.
Full story >>

"Emergency Laws: Death-knell to co-existence" – Sampanthan

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 21 September 2005, 17:23 GMT]
"The government must end the emergency rule, if it wishes peace to prevail in the country," insisted Mr. R. Sampanthan, leader of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentary group Wednesday, during the debate in parliament on extending the Emergency Regulations. Sri Lanka Parliament approved the extension of State emergency for another month. It won the approval of 118 members, while 24 voted against.
Full story >>

Emergency extended

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 21 September 2005, 12:55 GMT]
Sri Lanka's Parliament Wednesday passed a motion extending the State of Emergency for another month by a majority of 94 votes. 118 members voted for the Emergency, and 24 voted against. The twenty members of Tamil National Alliance, two members of the Up-Country People Front (UPF), Mr. Mano Ganesan of Western Province Peoples Front (WPPF) and Mr. T. Maheswaran of United National Party (UNP) voted aginst the Emergency.
Full story >>

Debate on extending State of Emergency begins in SL Parliament

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 21 September 2005, 08:08 GMT]
Sri Lanka's parliament began a one day debate Wednesday morning on extending the State of Emergency in the island for another month. The Sri Lankan Government declared State of Emergency on August 13 following the killing of its Foreign Minister Mr.Lakshman Kadirgamar allegedly by a sniper. The parliament convened later to approve the declaration with the support of the ruling party, JVP, JHU, UNP, CWC and NUA, parliamentary sources said.
Full story >>

General shut down paralyzes normal life in Trinco

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 21 September 2005, 05:09 GMT]
Tamil speaking people observed a general shut down in Trincomalee town and its suburbs, Wednesday, putting forward 8 demands, including the immediate removal of the unlawfully erected Buddha statue in the vicinity of the central bus terminal, about five months, and to lift the military occupation of the town since then. Tamil civil groups in the east port town issued the general shut down call.
Full story >>

Jaffna teachers begin work towards Resurgence event

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 20 September 2005, 11:15 GMT]
Several hundred pre-school teachers from Teachers Technical Colleges across Jaffna district assembled near the Thileepan Memorial near Nallur Kandaswamy temple Tuesday morning to inaugurate the action plan for village awakening activity for the forthcoming Tamil Resurgence Celebrations in Jaffna, sources in Jaffna said.
Full story >>

Co-Chairs reiterate commitment, demand action

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 20 September 2005, 05:39 GMT]
As Sinhala nationalist forces opposed to a negotiated federal solution, Norwegian facilitation and the western influence, were gaining momentum in the South and a shadow war was being waged in the NorthEast, the Co-Chairs of the Tokyo Donor Conference, who met in New York Monday reaffirmed their strong support to Norway as facilitator and a federal solution as a framework. The Co-Chairs called on the Liberation Tigers to end political assassinations, recruitment of under age youth and underlined the responsibility of the Sri Lankan government to "disarm or relocate" paramilitary groups from the NorthEast. They expressed fear that the Cease Fire is facing its "most serious challenge".
Full story >>

Trinco Civil society calls for general shut down Wednesday

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 20 September 2005, 05:03 GMT]
Tamil civil groups in Trincomalee have called for a general shut down ('Hartal') on Wednesday, 21 September, putting forward 8 demands, including the removal of Sri Lanka Army (SLA) sentries and mini-camps which are located in the vicinity of schools and places of worship in the eastern port town.
Full story >>

Malteser International rebuilds Trincomalee Children's Home

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 20 September 2005, 00:07 GMT]
Renovated at a cost of about 3.5 million rupees donated by the German based Malteser International (Order of Worldwide Relief), the building complex of the Trincomalee "Anbu Illam," a leading children's home sheltering children made destitute due to war was handed over to the administration of the institution Saturday. Mr.K.Thurairatnasingham, Trincomalee district parliamentarian unveiled the name-board of the renovated building complex, sources said.
Full story >>

SLA to intensify Pass system in Point Pedro

[TamilNet, Monday, 19 September 2005, 10:44 GMT]
Tension has built up again in the coastal area in Point Pedro district, over SLA’s new order to intensify the "Pass System," among Tamil fishermen. Sri Lanka Army (SLA) 524 Bridgade military officials in a meeting held Monday between 12 noon and 1 am at the brigade headquarters in Point Pedro presided by Col N. Ratnayake decided to reintroduce passes for Vadamaradchy fisherman through the fisheries Unions, SLA officials said.
Full story >>

'There is no place for moderates'

[TamilNet, Monday, 19 September 2005, 05:40 GMT]
Even as his party leader and incumbent President Chandrika Kumaratunga wrapped herself in the tenets of liberalism whilst addressing the United Nations last week, her party's candidate for her succession, Mahinda Rajapakse, continued to tread an unabashedly Sinhala ultra-nationalist platform at home.
Full story >>