UNP nominates national list parliamentarians

[TamilNet, Saturday, 10 April 2004, 10:24 GMT]
The main opposition in the thirteenth parliament United National Party Saturday submitted its national list of parliamentarians to the Commissioner of Elections. The list included three Tamils and four Muslims. The three former ministers of the then UNF government Mr.Tilak Marapone (Defense), Mr.Tyronne Fernando (Foreign Affairs) and Mr.A.H.M.Azwer (Parliamentary Affairs) have been excluded in the national list though their names were included in it at the time of submitting nominations for the general elections held last week, party sources said.
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Nitharsanam film "Amma Nalama" released in Trincomalee

[TamilNet, Saturday, 10 April 2004, 06:34 GMT]
Mr.Ratha, Head of the Thamileelam Film Distribution Unit released the first copy of the "Amma Nalama?" a film produced by the Nitharsanam Television Unit of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam last Thursday evening at the Trincomalee Town Hall. The Chief Priest of the Trincomalee Pathirakali Ambal Temple Bramasiri S.Ravichchandrakurukkal received the first copy. Mr.N.Kesavarajan directed the film, sources said.
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Mystery armed men attack TNA supporters in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Friday, 09 April 2004, 17:56 GMT]
Mystery gangs comprising armed men are allegedly assaulting and intimidating active supporters of the Tamil National Alliance in the Jaffna district, especially in the Vadamarachchi north division, following the victory of the TNA at the last general election, civil sources complained Friday.
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Northern Muslims for Norwegian facilitation

[TamilNet, Friday, 09 April 2004, 17:27 GMT]
The United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA), which was voted to power at the general elections on April 2, should continue the peace process with the facilitation of the Norwegian government, said the Forum for Northern Muslim Rights (FNMR) in a statement released Friday.
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Civilians flee fighting in Vakarai

[TamilNet, Friday, 09 April 2004, 17:05 GMT]
A large number of civilians are fleeing their homes as a result of the fighting between the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam and the renegade Karuna group in Vakarai, sources said.
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TNA nominates two national list MPs

[TamilNet, Friday, 09 April 2004, 16:38 GMT]
The Tamil National Alliance Thursday nominated Mr.Jospeh Pararajasingham of Batticaloa and Mr.M.K.Eelaventhan of Jaffna for the posts of two national list parliamentarians through the Ilankai Thamil Arasu Katchchi (ITAK), political sources said.
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A few families allowed to resettle in Thenmaradchi HSZ

[TamilNet, Friday, 09 April 2004, 14:39 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Army has allowed resettlement of a few internally displaced families in the high security zones in Thenmaradchchi south division in Jaffna district on a staggered basis. The first batch of IDPs would be allowed to resettle in areas close to Thoppu Pillaiyair Kovil in Maravanpulo village on the Tamil-Sinhala New Year Day, civil sources said.
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Key Karuna Group commander wounded

[TamilNet, Friday, 09 April 2004, 13:48 GMT]
A key commander of the Karuna Group was seriously wounded when troops of the Liberation Tigers advanced on Vakarai, 62 kilometres north of Batticaloa, in the early hours of Friday morning. ‘Barathithaasan’, commander of the Karuna Group’s Vinothan Unit, wounded in the abdomen, was admitted to the Batticaloa Teaching Hospital. “We will face problems if casualties rise in the coming days because most of our consultants and many medical officers and interns from the north have left”, said a doctor who works there. The Karuna Group forced Tamils of Jaffna to leave Batticaloa last month.
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JHU opposes SL President's proposed talks with LTTE

[TamilNet, Thursday, 08 April 2004, 15:58 GMT]
The Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU), which has emerged as the third force in Sri Lanka's southern politics by winning nine parliamentary seats in the last week's general election, Thursday said it would oppose any move to hold direct talks only with the LTTE to come to an agreement to find a political solution to the ethnic crisis.
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All 20 TNA Parliamentarians issue joint statement

[TamilNet, Thursday, 08 April 2004, 04:42 GMT]
"In view of the speculative reports in the media, all Members of Parliament elected from the North-Eastern region in the name of Ilankai Thamil Arasu Katchchi emphatically state that we are unequivocally and irrevocably committed to the political aspirations of the Tamil people for over the past fifty years for self rule in a unified north-eastern region, which has been the acknowledged as the area of historical habitation of the Tamil speaking people," said 20 Tamil National Alliance parliamentarians in a joint statement issued Wednesday night after two days of discussions held in Colombo.
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General election in Jaffna was clean and fair - GA

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 07 April 2004, 20:19 GMT]
The general election held on April 2 was conducted in the Jaffna district without any irregularities, said Mr. S. Pathmanathan, the Government Agent for Jaffna and Returning Officer for the elections, according to Wednesday’s edition of the Uthayan, a Tamil newspaper published in Jaffna.
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TNA MPs from Vanni pay homage to LTTE martyrs

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 06 April 2004, 21:01 GMT]
The newly elected Tamil National Alliance MPs from the Vanni district Monday visited the martyr’s cemetery of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam in Eachankulam in Vavuniya and paid their respects to the LTTE cadres who died fighting for the Tamil people, vowing "to work hard for the ideals for which the martyrs have sacrificed their lives," sources in Vavuniya said.
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‘TNA should speak up for upcountry Tamils’ – UPF

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 06 April 2004, 19:49 GMT]
The leader of the Upcountry People’s Front (UPF), Mr. Periyannan Chandrasekaran, speaking to the Press after he met with the political head of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, Mr. S. P. Thamilchelvan, on Tuesday, said that on behalf of the UPF, he would request the 22 Tamil National Alliance MPs to speak up about the problems of the Upcountry Tamil people, and that he would come to an understanding with the TNA in Sri Lanka's parliament without supporting any Southern parties, sources said.
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Western province Tamil leader meets Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 06 April 2004, 19:09 GMT]
The leader of the Western Province People’s Front (WPPF), Mr. Mano Ganesan, who has been elected MP in the general elections held on April 2, met with the political head of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam at the latter’s secretariat in Kilinochchi at 5:00 pm on Tuesday and held discussions on wide ranging issues, including the Southern political situation in the aftermath of the elections and on taking forward the peace process, sources said.
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All TNA MPs attend parliamentary group meeting

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 06 April 2004, 15:36 GMT]
Dismissing reports carried by the Sri Lankan State-controlled electronic and print media that they had decided to function as a separate group, the 5 Tamil National Alliance MPs from the Batticaloa and Amparai districts participated at the first TNA parliamentary group meeting held Tuesday evening in Colombo along with the 15 TNA MPs elected from other districts of the Northeast, and Mr.Rajavarothiam Sampanthan, the senior TNA leader, was unanimously elected as the leader of the TNA parliamentary group at this meeting, TNA sources said.
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Four arrested for attacking TNA activist in Thenmaradchchi

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 06 April 2004, 14:29 GMT]
The Chavakachcheri Magistrate, Mr.B.Balasubramaniam, Tuesday ordered remand for four persons on a report by the Police that they had attacked a Tamil National Alliance (TNA) activist with sword, causing grievous hurt to him, legal sources said.


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Chariot festival concludes at historic Trinco temple

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 06 April 2004, 00:01 GMT]
The annual festival of the centuries old historic Pathirakali Ambal Temple in Trincomalee concluded Sunday with the water-cutting ceremony held in the Back Bay Sea, which is known locally in Tamil as "Theertha Kadatkarai." The Chariot ("THER") festival was held Saturday. A large number of devotees thronged the temple grounds to witness the festivals on Saturday and Sunday.
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Pongu Thamil calls on UN to recognize Tamil aspirations

[TamilNet, Monday, 05 April 2004, 15:27 GMT]
At the Pongu Thamil event held Monday in front of the United Nations' Offices in Geneva, Switzerland, the participants from the Tamil Diaspora pointed out the Tamil aspirations endorsed by the Tamil people in the General Elections on April 2 by an overwhelming majority, and called on the U.N. and the international community to recognize the aspirations in finding a lastintg solution to the Tamil question in Sri Lanka.
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Massive Pongu Thamil Convergence of European Tamils

[TamilNet, Monday, 05 April 2004, 12:39 GMT]
The Pongu Thamil event started at 14:40 European time on Monday at the Central Railway station in Geneva, Switzerland, with a speech by Mr. V. Rudrakumaran, the legal advisor of the Liberation Tigers, and the number of participants exceeded the organizers' expectations, sources said.
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Geneva Pongu Thamil expects more than 10,000 participants

[TamilNet, Monday, 05 April 2004, 11:08 GMT]
In a press conference held at Hotel Warwich in Geneva at 11.15am today, the organizers of Pongu Thamil (Tamil uprising) said that they expect around 12000 participants in the rally set towards UN Buildings in Geneva from the Railway station of Geneva. Because of the tightened security due to the recent terror-attacks in Europe, the organizers expect delays for participants from various parts of Europe arriving at the venue, sources in Geneva said.
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