STF searches Kovil kulam area for weapon cache

[TamilNet, Sunday, 21 March 2004, 11:12 GMT]
In Kovil Kulam, Vavuniya district, Sunday around 12 noon, Sri Lanka's Special Task Force (STF) soldiers, dug several areas using heavy machinery near the tomb stone of Uma Maheswaran, leader of Peoples Liberation Organization of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE), in search of weapon cache alleged to have been buried there, security sources said.
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LTTE hands over underage youths to UNICEF

[TamilNet, Sunday, 21 March 2004, 09:10 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Sunday morning handed over thirty-five youths who are under 18 years of age to the UNICEF at an event held at its political secretariat in Sampur in the LTTE held Muttur east in the Trincomalee district, sources said.
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Jaffna voters urged to elect woman candidate

[TamilNet, Saturday, 20 March 2004, 13:19 GMT]
"About sixty percent of our cadres who crushed the military operation "Ginihera" of the Sri Lanka Army in Muhamalai area were women. The credit for the Muhamalai victory goes to our women cadres," said Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Jaffna district political head, Mr.C.Ilamparuthi, introducing Ms Pathmini Sithamparanathan at an election meeting held Saturday in Jaffna Veerasingham Hall, sources said.
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Top US official to visit Sri Lanka next week

[TamilNet, Saturday, 20 March 2004, 11:15 GMT]
Mr. Torkel L. Patterson, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South Asian Affairs in the United States Government will visit Sri Lanka as a part of his familiarization tour of the region, said US embassy sources.


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Tamil unity is vital for struggle to succeed - Sivajilingam

[TamilNet, Saturday, 20 March 2004, 00:11 GMT]
"Tamil people are convinced and firm in their belief that only Tamil unity will propel us to succeed in our struggle. We can see their anguish and despair whenever they sense appearance of divisive tendencies within the Tamil community. We can be certain that Tamil people will reject all elements that can endanger Tamil unity," said Mr.Sivajilingam, a Tamil National Alliance (TNA) candidate in Jaffna, during a radio interview with International Broadcasting Corporation (IBC), Thursday.
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Confessions in Mirusuvil massacre case valid - Supreme Court

[TamilNet, Friday, 19 March 2004, 16:50 GMT]
The inquiry into the Mirusuvil massacre case is to recommence in the High Court of Colombo shortly as the Supreme Court last Tuesday dismissed an appeal made by one of the five accused soldiers of the Sri Lanka Army against the order of the Trial-at-Bar judges on the admissibility of confessions by the accused made to the military police officers, legal sources said.


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Anandasangaree case postponed

[TamilNet, Friday, 19 March 2004, 16:19 GMT]
The Colombo District Judge Mr.D.Ganepola gave time till May 10 for the two respondents, Mr.R.Sampanthan and Mr.Joseph Pararajasingham, Secretary General and Senior Vice President of the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) respectively, to file their objections to the petition filed by the President of the TULF Mr. Veerasingham Anandasangaree, legal sources said.


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East campus to open amid security complaints

[TamilNet, Friday, 19 March 2004, 14:19 GMT]
Second semester examinations at the Eastern University campus are to be held on 15, April and the students should to return to their halls of residences on 6 April, informed A.D.Harris, University Registrar, sources in Batticaloa said. However, non-Batticaloa Tamil students who returned to their home districts after threatened with violence said that they have not been given any security guarantees and will not be able to return to the campus.
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Annai Poopathy anniversary celebrated in NorthEast

[TamilNet, Friday, 19 March 2004, 13:41 GMT]
Sixteenth year anniversary of Annai Poopathy memorial day was celebrated across the Northeast with special events being organized in Navalady, Batticaloa, sources said. Joseph Pararajasingham, Senior Vice President of the Tamil United Liberation Front, and other Tamil National Alliance candidates participated in the Batticaloa event, according to sources. Voice of Tigers (VoT) in its evening broadcast reported that major celebrations took place in Udayarkattu, Moonkilattu heroes cemetary for Batticaloa-Amparai war heroes.
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Pongu Thamil demonstration to UN

[TamilNet, Friday, 19 March 2004, 13:02 GMT]
The International Co-ordinating Committee of the Liberation Tigers is organizing a 'Pongu Thamil (Tamil Uprising)' march to the United Nations Head Office, Geneva on 5 April, and has called support of expatriate Tamils. "This is the time when the united strength of the Tamils is poised to become the decisive factor in Sri Lanka's history. Once again it has become a vital necessity for the Tamils of the world to show their united strength," the organizers said in a memorandum released to the press Friday.
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Vavuniya teachers, education officials urged to vote for TNA

[TamilNet, Friday, 19 March 2004, 11:46 GMT]
"Our people should vote to reinforce Tamil Nationalism. We are supporting the elections this time to ensure that the voice of the Tamil National Alliance which is calling for the Tamils right to self-determination and setting up of Interim Self Governing Authority (ISGA) in the NorthEast, is heard clearly," said S.Elilan, LTTE political head of Vavuniya, addressing a meeting attended by Vavuniya North education officials, teachers and principals, sources in Vavuniya said.
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Move polling booths closer to checkpoint - Senathirajah

[TamilNet, Friday, 19 March 2004, 11:23 GMT]
General Secretary of the Ilankai Thamil Arasu Katchchi (ITAK) Mr. Mavai Senathirajah urged Vavuniya Government Agent K.Ganesh to make arrangements to locate the polling booths near the Sri Lanka Army checkpoint in Omanthai, sources said. Placing polling booths in Omanthai Maha Vidiyalayam would require voters to travel a few kilometers further from the checkpoint and will incur additional delays and logistic, transportation nightmare, Mr.Senathirajah told the GA.
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Trinco TNA Muslim candidate appeals for unity

[TamilNet, Thursday, 18 March 2004, 15:32 GMT]
Mr.Abdul Hassan Sahul Hameed, sole Muslim candidate contesting in the Trincomalee district on the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) ticket Thursday appealed to Muslim voters to exercise their franchise to promote unity and harmony between the two communities in the district, political sources in Trincomalee said.


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Trincomalee UNP Tamil contestant withdraws candidacy

[TamilNet, Thursday, 18 March 2004, 14:06 GMT]
Mr. Nagarajah Sambasivamoorthy, one of the seven candidates put forward by the ruling United National Party to contest the forthcoming general election in the Trincomalee electoral district, said Thursday that he has withdrawn from the contest, political sources in Trincomalee said.


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Will continue to espouse NorthEast unity - Pararajasingham

[TamilNet, Thursday, 18 March 2004, 04:21 GMT]
"I will carryout my campaign only on the basis of the LTTE's cardinal principles - find a political solution to the Tamil national problem based on the acceptance of the fundamental proposals regarding Tamil homeland consisting of North and East, Tamil Nation, Tamils’ right to self-government. If I am forced to deviate from these principles then I will not hesitate to withdraw my candidacy from the forthcoming elections," said Joseph Pararajasingham speaking to Canadian Tamil Radio (CTR).
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Jaffna EPDP vehicle damaged in clash

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 March 2004, 18:03 GMT]
A vehicle belonging to the Eelam Peoples Democratic Party (EPDP) was badly damaged during a clash between a group of Jaffna university students and activists of the EPDP. The clash is alleged to have erupted when a group of EPDP activists assembled to create trouble in front of the residence of Ms Pathmini Sithamparanathan, a Tamil National Alliance candidate, Jaffna Police said Wednesday night.


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Rotarians hold medical clinic in Muttur villages

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 March 2004, 17:16 GMT]
The Trincomalee Rotary Club last weekend conducted a one-day medical clinic in the village Nallur which is located in the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam held Muttur east in the Trincomalee district. Rotarian Dr.G.Gnanagunalan organized this clinic with the assistance of Humanitarian Rehabilitation Services of NE (Lanka) Ltd, Colombo, that provided thirty thousand rupees worth of medicine to the clinic, sources said.


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Eastern poet decries regionalism

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 March 2004, 16:20 GMT]
In a statement to Tamil media on the recent raising of regionalism in the East by renegade commander Mr. Vinayagamoorthy Muraleetharan (Karuna), Mr. Kasi Anandan, a well-known poet from the East, said that the more than 17,700 fighters from Tamil Eelam who sacrificed their lives in the liberation struggle did not do so for Jaffna or Batticaloa, but for Tamil Eelam. “I will never accept the division of Tamil Eelam as Jaffna and Batticaloa. The people of Tamil Eelam will live until their last breath for Tamil Eelam,” he said.


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Police file plaint on Anandasangaree complaint

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 March 2004, 16:12 GMT]
The Jaffna Police Wednesday filed a plaint in the Chavakachcheri Magistrate’s Court on a complaint made by Mr. Veerasingham Anandasangaree that a group of persons had attacked his supporters when they were campaigning on March 11, legal sources said.


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TNA leaders address election rally in Trincomalee

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 March 2004, 14:36 GMT]
General Secretary of the Ilankai Thamil Arasu Katchchi (ITAK) Mr. Mavai Senathirajah addressing an election rally in Trincomalee Tuesday evening said, "Tamils have got a historic opportunity in their freedom struggle to show their unity. Tamils must support the joint effort of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and Tamil National Alliance (TNA) to find a lasting political solution to the Tamil national question based on the interim self governing authority (ISGA) proposals."
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