Koneswaram temple Chariot festival held

[TamilNet, Sunday, 10 April 2005, 23:15 GMT]
Chariot (THER) festival of the historic Trincomalee Koneswaram Temple was held Sunday morning with Lord Konesar and his consort Maathumai Ambal being taken in a chariot while deities Pillaiyar and Murugan with his two consorts Valli and Theivayanai taken ahead in two other chariots. Large number of devotees from several parts of the country participated in the festival, sources attending the event said.
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ICRC escorts injured LTTE cadre to Trinco hospital

[TamilNet, Sunday, 10 April 2005, 17:05 GMT]
Injured cadre of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in Friday's dawn attack on the LTTE sentry point in Poonagar by an unidentified group in army uniforms was admitted to the Trincomalee general hospital Sunday afternoon for further treatment as his condition is reported critical. He was taken to the hospital by road from Kaddaiparichchan army sentry by representatives of the International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) on a request by the LTTE Trincomalee district political head Mr.S.Elilan, sources said.
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SLMM official: ‘Government must disarm Karuna Group’

[TamilNet, Sunday, 10 April 2005, 17:03 GMT]
The Sunday Times this week published transcripts from the Presidential Commission into the killings of LTTE officials and supporters in Sri Lanka’s restive east, in which the head of the international ceasefire monitors in Batticaloa, Mr. Steen Joergensen, confirmed the presence of anti-LTTE paramilitaries in government-held areas. However, the Sri Lanka Army's senior most officer in Batticaloa, Brigadier Laksiri Amaratunge, denied the charge.
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Work on ancient history of Batticaloa released

[TamilNet, Sunday, 10 April 2005, 13:26 GMT]
“We should write the people’s history of the northeast. It is important to discover and publish old palm leaf manuscripts such as ‘Mattakkalappu Poorva Sariththiram’ (Ancient History of Batticaloa) to bring out the history of the communities that live in this region. We have to search and preserve valuable primary sources of our history”, said Prof. S. Mounaguru, former dean of fine arts at the Eastern University, speaking Sunday at the release of a work that relates the settling and history of Batticaloa from pre-Christian times to the eighteenth century.


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JVP assists Sinhala fishermen migrate to Kalkuda

[TamilNet, Sunday, 10 April 2005, 12:44 GMT]
Mr.S. Jeyanandamoorthy, Batticaloa district Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian has brought to the notice of Sri Lanka's President Ms Chandrika Kumaratunge that cadres of Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), a key member of the coalition government, assisted by Sri Lanka security forces, have been helping Sinhala fishermen from other districts to move to Kalkuda, an area which is completely destroyed by the tsunami tidal wave, sources said.
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LTTE releases captured SLA soldier

[TamilNet, Sunday, 10 April 2005, 10:13 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldier, who was arrested by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eealm (LTTE) on Saturday, was handed over Sunday evening to the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) officials. The handing over event took place at the LTTE Trincomalee Political Secretariat which is located in Sampoor.
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Kumaratunga off to London for New Year holidays

[TamilNet, Sunday, 10 April 2005, 10:03 GMT]
Sri Lanka's President Chandrika Kumaratunga left for London on Saturday night to spend the forthcoming New Year holidays with her children, Yashoda and Vimukthi. According to reports, Ms Kumaratunge before undertaking her private trip to UK has appointed her close confidante, Ratnasiri Wickremenayake, as the Minister of Defence and Dinesh Gunawardene as the Minister of Education until she returns back to Sri Lanka.
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SLMM monitors meet Elilan

[TamilNet, Saturday, 09 April 2005, 11:53 GMT]
Members of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) in Trincomalee Saturday morning met with Mr.S.Elilan, Trincomalee district political head of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), and discussed ways to curb events detrimental to peace, such as those which had recently in the district, SLMM sources said.
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SLA soldier captured in LTTE controlled Muttur village

[TamilNet, Saturday, 09 April 2005, 10:43 GMT]
A soldier of the Sri Lanka Army (SLA), armed with a rifle and a compass, was arrested Saturday morning around 11 AM by Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). The arrest took place in the village of Thanganagar in Muttur east, an LTTE controlled area south of the Trincomalee district.
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Netherlands urged to send fact finding mission to NorthEast

[TamilNet, Friday, 08 April 2005, 13:36 GMT]
Expressing collective Tamil concern over Colombo's handling of the post-tsunami humanitarian crises in the war ravaged NorthEast, Mr. S.P.Thamilchelvan, LTTE's Political Head who is leading an LTTE delegation to Europe on a diplomatic mission, invited Thursday Netherland's Foreign Ministry to send a fact finding mission to the tsunami devastated NorthEast. The LTTE team met with Netherlands Foreign Ministry's Deputy Director-General for Political Affairs, Mr. Herman A Schaper on Thursday, sources close to the LTTE said.
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LTTE sentry in Muttur attacked, one killed

[TamilNet, Friday, 08 April 2005, 07:03 GMT]
A helper of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) was killed and another injured in an attack on a LTTE sentry by an unidentified group Friday early morning around four a.m within the LTTE controlled area, about five hundred meters from the Mahindapura sentry of the Sri Lanka Army (SLA), down south of Trincomalee district along Muttur-Batticaloa highway, sources said.
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Jaffna roads to be widened

[TamilNet, Thursday, 07 April 2005, 14:26 GMT]
Six major roads in Jaffna district are to be widened to accommodate two way traffic to reduce number of accidents, according to a decision taken at a conference held in the Jaffna district secretariat Thursday morning with the Government Agent Mr.K.Ganesh in the chair, sources said.
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Jaffna protest demands withdrawal of state troops

[TamilNet, Thursday, 07 April 2005, 10:24 GMT]
Large number of Tamil civilians participated in a protest march held in Jaffna town Wednesday demanding the withdrawal of State armed forces enabling the resettlement of hundreds of thousands of internally displaced families in their own lands and houses now being occupied by Sri Lanka government soldiers and restore normalcy in the peninsula, sources said.
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JVP slams NGOs, western countries for meddling

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 April 2005, 18:28 GMT]
“We should spit on NGOs and stop them from walking on our streets. Donor countries and their NGO agents are holding this country to ransom, telling the government to set up a joint Tsunami relief mechanism with the LTTE. It is something that can be done through the Sri Lankan state machinery. There is no need for a joint mechanism”, said Mr. Wimal Weerawansa, the powerful propaganda secretary of Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), speaking to a packed audience in Maharagama, an outer suburb of Colombo, at a meeting Wednesday to ‘expose the NGO Mafia that is against the land and the country’.
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Pirapaharan sends condolence message to Vatican

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 April 2005, 15:00 GMT]
In message of condolence on the death of Pope John Paul II sent to the Head of Cardinal Congregation in Vatican, Rome, Leader of Liberation Tigers, Mr. V. Pirapaharan, said: "The extra-ordinary life , work and preaching of the Holy Father will be cherished in the hearts of all human beings who believe in the noble values of freedom, liberty and equality."
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SLA yet to allow mechanized fishing in Ariyalai Sea

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 April 2005, 14:58 GMT]
Fisheries societies sources said that even after elapse of three years from the signing of a ceasefire agreement (CFA) between the Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) and the Liberation Tigers of tamil Eelam (LTTE), the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) stationed in the Jaffna district have yet to allow fishermen of Ariyalai area, a suburb of Jaffna town, to use fishing crafts fitted with outboard engines.
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Congressman concludes visit to Kilinochchi

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 April 2005, 04:14 GMT]
Democratic Congressman from Chicago, Illinois, Danny K Davis arrived at Washington Dulles International Airport Tuesday morning 11.45am after his visit to Tsunami affected areas in NorthEast of Sri Lanka. He was received at the airport by members of the Tamil community in Washington Area.
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NESHOR delegation meets UN officials in Geneva

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 05 April 2005, 19:05 GMT]
A delegation of the North East Secretariat on Human Rights (NESOHR) led by its Deputy Chairman Mr.K.Sivapalan met with Mr.Miloon Kothari, United Nations Commission on Human Rights and Special Rapporteur to Adequate Housing at the UN headquarters in Geneva Monday, sources in Geneva said.
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Ex EPDP cadre shot in Batticaloa cinema

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 05 April 2005, 10:37 GMT]
An ex EPDP cadre was shot and seriously wounded in a movie theatre in Batticaloa town Tuesday afternoon around 2.40, Police said. A gunman shot Mr. Arumugam Ambikaipahan, 22, at point blank range with a 9 m.m. pistol at Vijaya Theatre, Police said.
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Vadamaradchchi fishermen receive boats, fishing gear

[TamilNet, Monday, 04 April 2005, 15:39 GMT]
Tamil Rehabilitation Organization (TRO), a Sri Lanka Government registered NGO working exclusively in the NorthEast, under its integrated development programme with the funding of Norwegian TRO Monday morning handed over fishing crafts with outboard engines and fishing gear including nets and other accessories to 35 beneficiaries. Each fishing boat is estimated at about Rs.400,000, sources said.
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