Southern Lanka reaps what it has sown - Jaffna Daily

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 23 November 2004, 07:17 GMT]
Southern Sri Lanka is now facing "the unenviable and pathetic situation" of having to meet the consequence of its "blind pursuit of the policy of militarization and weapons acquisition" said the Jaffna-based newspaper Uthayan in its editorial Tuesday, referring to the re-introduction of the execution of the death sentence by the Sri Lankan government. Deserters from the Sri Lanka Army, numbering in the tens of thousands, are among the main sources of rising crime in the south.
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Heroes' parents honoured in Trinco

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 23 November 2004, 02:43 GMT]
"The Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) in past abrogated pacts with Tamils because they were merely written on piece of paper. The current MoU was signed with the backing of our military strength. Sri Lanka Government knows the consequences of violating this agreement," said Mr.S.Elilan, Trincomalee district political head of the LTTE addressing an event held Monday in Trincomalee to honour parents of LTTE martyrs of Trincomalee division as a part of Heroes Day celebrations.
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Police search slain journalist's home in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Monday, 22 November 2004, 16:53 GMT]
Sri Lanka Police backed by army troops Monday searched the home of slain journalist Mr. Aiyathurai Nadesan's home in Batticaloa town. Mr. Nadesan, a well regarded senior Tamil journalist, was murdered by gunmen suspected to be assassins from a paramilitary working with the Sri Lanka army on 31 May this year. His wife Ms. Gowry and children were at home when the Police searched the slain journalist's house. "The children and I are scared and worried. Why are they doing this to us?", lamented Ms. Gowri Nadesan.
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ISGA must be basis for talks- Gajendrakumar

[TamilNet, Monday, 22 November 2004, 00:31 GMT]
Speaking at a seminar on "Power Sharing for a lasting peace" held at the Social and Economic Development Center (SEDEC) in Colombo Saturday, Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam said, "Tamil people believe that an interim administration is an essential prerequisite to embarking on talks for a solution to the conflict...and they will not allow the LTTE to give up the right to secession before the parties reach agreements on the outstanding core issues."
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Maveerar Day celebrations begin in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Sunday, 21 November 2004, 15:32 GMT]
Maveerar day celebrations began Sunday morning in Jaffna district with hoisting of Thamileelam national flag and lighting the flame of sacrifice in several LTTE war cemeteries. Students, parents, relatives of martyrs and members of public participated in these events in large numbers, sources said.
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Trincomalee town, suburbs' security strengthened

[TamilNet, Sunday, 21 November 2004, 15:26 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) and Sri Lanka Police have deployed more soldiers in strategic points in the Trincomalee town and several parts of the district under their control following several violent incidents that had taken place during the weekend, security sources said.
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New Media Institute to be built in Kilinochchi

[TamilNet, Saturday, 20 November 2004, 23:18 GMT]
Foundation stone for a new Media Technology Institute is to be laid in Ariviyal Nagar in Kilinochchi on Friday, 26 November, sources in Vanni said. Officials in charge of the Institute said that the Institute is intended to promote media education among the Tamil community and to train local journalists to keep current with the advances in journalism and media information technology.
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Book on Yogaswamy released in Kilinochchi

[TamilNet, Saturday, 20 November 2004, 18:02 GMT]
A book titled "Yogaswamy and Kilinochchi: A Spiritual Journey" describing the spiritual association of the popular Columbuthurai, Jaffna, sage Yogaswamy with Kilinochchi district was released Friday at the Kilinochchi Cultural Center by Srimath Aathma Ganananthaji swamy from Colombo Ramakrishna Mission, sources in Vanni said.
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Muddy SLA detour jams traffic

[TamilNet, Saturday, 20 November 2004, 17:44 GMT]
Heavy morning traffic on the A9 highway near Omanthai, the main entry point to the northern Vanni region held by the Liberation Tigers, was blocked for more than five hours Saturday after two vehicles got stuck in a muddy side road made by the Sri Lanka army through a private property. The SLA made the detour road to divert public traffic around its Nochchimoddai camp, which straddles the A9 highway near Omanthai.
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Pandemonium in Parliament over Jaffna incidents

[TamilNet, Saturday, 20 November 2004, 10:19 GMT]
Pandemonium reigned in the Sri Lankan Parliament as government MPs attempted to shout down the leader of the Tamil National Alliance, Mr. R. Sampanthan who wanted to make statement on the killings and unrest in Jaffna. Sittings were suspended for several minutes when TNA MPs gathered in the well of the house and shouted slogans agains the Sri Lankan government. "Don't kill Tamils, We will establish Eelam (separate Tamil state), End military occupation of the Tamil homeland", the TNA Parliamentarians chanted standing in the midst of the well.
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"SLA responsible for VVT killings" - LTTE

[TamilNet, Saturday, 20 November 2004, 10:12 GMT]
Mr.C.Ilamparithi, LTTE Jaffna district political head in a statement issued Saturday said that the Sri Lanka Army should be held responsible for the brutal killing of two innocent Tamil youths in Valvettithurai on Friday evening as this dastardly crime had taken place in an area which is surrounded by several sentries and mini-camps of the Sri Lanka Army (SLA).
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Singhalese monopolise Sri Lanka's national wealth - TNA MP

[TamilNet, Saturday, 20 November 2004, 00:29 GMT]
“This budget has been made to look after the interests of the Sinhala people. The Tamil people have been totally denied the right to share the national wealth of this country. Under Article 148 of the Sri Lankan constitution public finance is in the full control of this Parliament. This is a Sinhala Buddhist dominated Parliament. It means that the Singhalese have monopoly over national wealth. Hence the Tamil people can never hope to benefit from Sri Lanka’s budget”, said Mr. S. Gajendran, Tamil National Alliance MP for Jaffna, speaking on the budget in Sri Lanka’s Parliament Friday.
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1000 Tamil medium teachers to be selected

[TamilNet, Friday, 19 November 2004, 18:21 GMT]
North East Provincial Ministry of Education is to hold interviews to select one thousand GCE Advanced Level qualified teachers from about 1,500 who were successful in a competitive examination held by the Commissioner of Examinations several months ago, provincial education ministry officials said.
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Jaffna undergrads urge India not to support Colombo

[TamilNet, Friday, 19 November 2004, 17:47 GMT]
Jaffna University Students Union (JUSU) Friday wrote to the Indian Prime Minister Mr.Manmohan Singh not to extend his Government's support to Sri Lanka government in its attempts to crush the freedom struggle of Eelam Tamils by providing financial assistance for the implementation of the Palaly airbase runway project in Jaffna district, sources in Jaffna said.


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Two killed as gunmen fire on football game in VVT

[TamilNet, Friday, 19 November 2004, 14:15 GMT]
Two youth were killed and one wounded when gunmen riding a motorbike fired at random into a group of men playing football in Valvettithurai Friday evening around 6.10, Police said. The gunmen had used a T-56 type assault rifle. "They could not be identified as they were wearing rain coats and helmets", a youth who escaped the firing told TamilNet.
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Give Talks priority over self-serving constitutional reforms, TNA tells SL President

[TamilNet, Friday, 19 November 2004, 11:35 GMT]
The Tamil National Alliance, in a statement issued to the media Friday, said that the Sri Lanka President, by her recent statement, is attempting to "deflect focus from contradictions and inconsistencies that prevail in her own government," and instead, she "should communicate to the LTTE at the earliest, that the Government is prepared to commence talks on the basis of the ISGA proposals." The 22 TNA parliamentarians signed the statement.
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SL Budget, home grown, people friendly- Amunugama

[TamilNet, Thursday, 18 November 2004, 11:39 GMT]
Dr.Sarath Amunugama, Finance Minister of the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) government which came to power in April 2nd general election this year began his maiden budget speech Thursday around 2.30 p.m. amid expectation in the trade union circles an impressive salary increase for public servants as promised during the hustings, parliamentary sources said.
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LTTE political worker shot dead in Valaichenai

[TamilNet, Thursday, 18 November 2004, 03:46 GMT]
A political worker of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) was shot dead Wednesday night around 9.45 by gunmen suspected to be paramilitary operatives working with the Sri Lanka military intelligence in Valaichenai, 32 kilometres north of Batticaloa. The LTTE political activist, Mr.Maheswaran Rusangan, was returning home when he was gunned down on Murugankovil Road in Valaichenai town, Police said.
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Jaffna IDPs oppose Palaly runway extension

[TamilNet, Thursday, 18 November 2004, 03:23 GMT]
Union of Welfare Organizations of Displaced (UWOD) in Jaffna District Thursday in a press release appealed to the Government of India not to lend any assistance to the Sri Lanka government's plan to extend the Palaly airbase runway which will make the hundreds of thousands of internally displaced people permanent in refugee camps and welfare centres, civil sources said.
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SLMM Head meets Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 November 2004, 11:13 GMT]
Head of Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM), Major Gen.(retd) Trond Furuhovde, met Head of LTTE's Political Wing, S.P Thamilchelvan, at the LTTE Peace Secretariat Building in Kilinochchi, Thursday LTTE sources said. The necessity to co-ordinate urgent matters through the Peace Secretariat, Cease Fire Agreement (CFA) and issues related to district level celebration planned by the LTTE for the Martyrs Day on 27 November were discussed at the meeting, sources said.
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