Black Sea Tiger Major Puhalini remembered

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 15 June 2004, 00:10 GMT]
Major Puhalini, member of the Black Sea Tiger wing of the Liberation Tigers, who died on 30 July, 2003 in a boat mishap in international waters, was remembered Sunday evening in Muttur east in Trincomalee district. Her mother Ms Vadivelu unveiled the memorial plaque constructed at Alankulam Heroes Cemetary, sources said.
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Inquiry into Bindunuwewa massacre appeal continues

[TamilNet, Monday, 14 June 2004, 14:27 GMT]
Specially constituted five-member bench of the Sri Lanka's Supreme Court comprising Justices Asoka de Silva, T.B.Weerasuriya, Nihal Jayasinghe, N.E.Dissanayake and Raja Fernando, which began to hear the appeals of the five accused in the Bindunuwewa massacre case last week has fixed the further inquiry for June 22, legal sources said.
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Mannar tense following SLA interrogation of LTTE activists

[TamilNet, Monday, 14 June 2004, 13:08 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army soldiers manning the checkpoint at the entrance to the Mannar town Monday afternoon at about 1.30 p.m. stopped two leading political activists of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Ms V.Nilavarasi, Mannar District Political Head of Women's wing and her deputy Ms Kavimani and subjected them to severe interrogation when they arrived from LTTE controlled Vattakandal area.
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Resettlers warned to avoid areas not cleared of mines

[TamilNet, Monday, 14 June 2004, 02:41 GMT]
Head of Tamils Rehabilitation Organization (TRO), Mr.Reggie, requested potential resettlers in the Vanni region to avoid building homes or attempting to use lands that have not been declared as mine free, local media reported. The urgent warning was issued following the death recently of three workers in Puthukudiyiruppu who were killed due to pressure mine explosion.
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JDMPGA seeks TNA MPs support to trace missing youths

[TamilNet, Sunday, 13 June 2004, 18:37 GMT]
The Jaffna District Missing Persons Guardians Association (JDMPGA) Sunday requested Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarians to protest in and outside parliament highlighting the issue of disappeared persons in Jaffna peninsula after being arrested by the security forces during the period of 1996-1997, civil sources said.
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Tigers lambast Kumaratunge's political duplicity

[TamilNet, Sunday, 13 June 2004, 02:56 GMT]
Blaming Sri Lanka's President Chandrika Kumaratunge for "linking ISGA with permanent poltical solution," as a "manipulative strategy to take forward the peace process for a while and then to abort it," the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam called upon the International community to recognize Ms.Kumaratunge's political duplicity and to "bring pressure on her government to be principled and honest in political negotiations," in a statement published in the Peace Secretariat website.
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‘Viduthalai’ released in Vavuniya

[TamilNet, Saturday, 12 June 2004, 22:24 GMT]
‘Viduthalai’ (Liberation), a collection of articles written by Mr. Anton Balasingham, the senior advisor to the Liberation Tigers, was released to the public in Vavuniya at a function on Saturday.


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Kumaratunga hints at "an effective compromise" with the LTTE

[TamilNet, Saturday, 12 June 2004, 15:00 GMT]
Sri Lanka’s President Chandrika Kumaratunga, in a prime-time TV address, has indicated that she is "seeking an effective compromise" to overcome the dragging differences with the LTTE that delay peace talks. The LTTE has been insisting on negotiating its interim administration proposals first, while the government wanted to have parallel talks on the final solution to the conflict. In her nation-wide telecast Saturday night Kumaratunga hinted at her readiness to "prioritise" the LTTE demand while not openly abandoning the government's position to have parallel talks on the final settlement.
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Pressure mine explosion kills three

[TamilNet, Saturday, 12 June 2004, 10:14 GMT]
Amarasinghe Dayaratne (47), Sellthurai Suresh (27) and Ambrose Alex (32) were killed instantly Friday when the vehicle they were travelling hit a pressure mine in First mile post along Puthukudiyiruppu road in Kilinochchi district, Jaffna daily Uthayan reported.
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SL President to give televised address

[TamilNet, Friday, 11 June 2004, 16:11 GMT]
Sri Lanka's President Ms Chandrika Kumaratunge is to address the people of Sri Lanka on Saturday 8.30 p.m. through state television and electronic media, ruling party sources said Friday evening.
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Sri Lanka President urged to establish ISGA immediately

[TamilNet, Thursday, 10 June 2004, 20:33 GMT]
The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Thursday told Sri Lanka President Ms Chandrika Kumaratunge that Tamils couldn't depend any more on the Sinhala political leadership to enjoy their rights. ''The Interim Self Governing Authority (ISGA) should be established in the northeast without delay so that Tamils could enjoy self rule in their homeland,'' Mr.R.Sampanthan, leader of the TNA parliamentary group, told the President during a discussion held Thursday night in the Presidential House at the latter's invitation, TNA sources said.
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Massacred Mandaitivu Tamil fishermen remembered

[TamilNet, Thursday, 10 June 2004, 16:11 GMT]
18th death anniversary of 31 Tamil fishermen who were killed by the Sri Lanka Navy by cutting with swords in midsea when they were engaged in fishing in Mandaitivu sea area in Jaffna peninsula on 10th June, 1986 was observed Thursday.
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Speaker urged to safeguard democracy in Parliament

[TamilNet, Thursday, 10 June 2004, 13:25 GMT]
The members of opposition political parties in the Sri Lanka's parliament numbering about 114 Thursday submitted a petition to the Speaker to take steps to safeguard democracy in the parliament. Leaders of the common opposition took this step in a major reaction to the battle in parliament Tuesday and to show that they are in a majority and to assert their authority, political sources said.
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TNA MPs to boycott NE Province Governor's meet

[TamilNet, Thursday, 10 June 2004, 02:20 GMT]
Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarians decided to abstain from a meeting called by the Governor of NorthEast Province to discuss development activities for the Province, media sources reported. The decision to boycott the meeting was taken in Colombo Wednesday, according to reports.
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General shut down paralyses Trincomalee

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 09 June 2004, 17:39 GMT]
The normal life of Trincomalee town was disrupted Wednesday due to a one-day hartal (general shut down) observed against the killing of a senior Tamil journalist Mr. Iyathurai Nadesan on May 31 in Batticaloa, TamilNet sources in the eastern port town said.
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Jaffna protest march postponed for next week

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 09 June 2004, 17:17 GMT]
Jaffna District Consortium of Civil Organizations (JDCCO) Wednesday announced that it has postponed its protest march scheduled to be held on Friday (June 11) for June 17 Thursday, civil sources said.
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Sri Lanka President invites TNA for discusssion

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 09 June 2004, 13:13 GMT]
Sri Lanka's President Ms Chandrika Kumaratunge Wednesday invited the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) for discussion. The TNA parliamentary group, which met Wednesday afternoon decided to accept the invitation. The discussion between the President and Tamil National Alliance have been fixed for Thursday night 8 p.m., TNA sources said.
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Protest demo held in Colombo condemning Nadesan killing

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 09 June 2004, 10:25 GMT]
The Free Media Movement (FMM) and the Sri Lanka Tamil Media Alliance (SLTMA) Wednesday held one hour demonstration in front of the Colombo Fort Railway Station commencing from 12.30 p.m. to 1.30 p.m. against the killing a senior Tamil journalist Mr. Aiyathurai Nadesan. Several senior journalists based in Colombo and outstations, Tamil parliamentarians of Tamil National Alliance (TNA), Upcountry Peoples Front and Western Province Peoples Front participated in the demonstration, sources said.
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Rehabilitated NE Provincial council, no substitute for ISGA- Paper

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 09 June 2004, 00:22 GMT]
”Sri Lanka Government appears to think that by strengthening the NorthEast provincial council and Center for Rehabilitation it could weaken LTTE’s claim for ISGA and convince the International Community to start disbursing the allocated aid money. This back door diplomacy will not work. The mandate of 90% of NorthEast Tamils should be recognized and the Government can ignore Tamils demand only at its own peril,” said Thinakkural, a popular Tamil daily in its editorial Tuesday.
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Jaffna civil organizations to hold protest march

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 08 June 2004, 21:55 GMT]
Jaffna District Consortium of Civil Organizations Tuesday decided to hold a protest march in Jaffna town Friday demanding the Government of Sri Lanka to restore normalcy in the lives of Tamil people and stop killing in the east and attacks on plantation Tamils, sources said.
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