Don't exploit LTTE ban for narrow gains -Ranil

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 22 January 2002, 14:28 GMT]
"We have no right to play around with this last chance we have to achieve peace in Sri Lanka. We also have no right to indulge in narrow political aims making use of the ban on the LTTE. Like with the war the economy has deteriorated by serious proportions. For the first time in three decades the country's economy is set to show a zero or even a negative growth. It may even be as much as seven points below zero. The country is near bankruptcy," said Sri Lanka's Prime Minister, Mr. Ranil Wickremesinghe, Tuesday in his first policy statement to the Parliament since coming to power.
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LTTE for strengthening UNF peace initiative -Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 22 January 2002, 11:45 GMT]
"We respect the reasonable feelings of the Sinhala people. We only want our people to live in their land with honour and freedom and to enjoy all their rights sans military restrictions and intimidation. We want our people to have the freedoms and rights which the Sinhala people are able to enjoy now.
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Police translator found wanting

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 22 January 2002, 11:25 GMT]
The East High Court Monday held that the policeman who translated the confession purported to have been made by a woman arrested and detained under the Prevention of Terrorism Act in Tamil into Sinhala was not competent in both languages. The Police translator could not give the correct meanings of the Tamil and Sinhala words that were put to him by the Defence Attorney during the cross examination. In cases filed under the PTA, the confession of the accused is the sole production required for indictment.
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Court rejects torture-induced confessions

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 22 January 2002, 06:08 GMT]
The East High Court Monday held that the confession made by a Tamil youth of Trincomalee charged under the Prevention of Terrorism Act had been made under duress due to torture by the security forces who had arrested and detained him. "Hence I acquit the accused from one case following the Voire Dire inquiry and discharge him from the other twelve cases as the prosecution has withdrawn indictments against him," said Mr. S. N. Ramachandran, Judge of the East HC.
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Teacher appointments cancelled in North-East

[TamilNet, Monday, 21 January 2002, 23:16 GMT]
"The cancellation of three thousand Tamil medium teacher appointments has caused severe setback to northeast education," said Mr.R.Sampanthan, Trincomalee District Parliamentarian Monday in a letter of protest to the United National Front (UNF) government. His letter followed the withdrawal of the approval granted by the government for the recruitment of three thousand Tamil medium teachers to fill school vacancies in the Tamil dominated North East province.
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"Lift ban on LTTE, postpone local elections" -TULF

[TamilNet, Sunday, 20 January 2002, 21:30 GMT]
The Tamil United National Front (TULF), main component of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Sunday appealed to the Government to lift the ban imposed on the Liberation Tigers in Sri Lanka before the commencement of peace talks and not to hold elections to local authorities in the northeast province. " At the last general election the Tamil people have overwhelmingly endorsed the lifting of the ban on the LTTE in Sri Lanka prior to the commencement of peace talks. Furthermore the TULF urges the Government to postpone the holding of the local poll in northeast as the conduct of the election in the current situation could have the effect of retarding negotiations between the Government and the LTTE", said a press release issued by the TULF Secretary General of the TULF Mr. R.Sampanthan Sunday.
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Two Tamil journalists receive Governor's award

[TamilNet, Sunday, 20 January 2002, 19:47 GMT]
The three day Tamil Literary Festival of the North-East Provincial Ministry of Education and Cultural Affairs Sunday evening came to a close with the presentation of Governor's Award to forty seven recipients, including two Tamil journalists whose names were struck off earlier from the original list and later included by the Provincial Governor.
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UNF govt. urged to repeal PTA, release detainees

[TamilNet, Sunday, 20 January 2002, 19:44 GMT]
The All Ceylon Government General Employees Union (ACGGEU) Sunday appealed to the United National Front (UNF)Government to take immediate steps to repeal the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) and to release all Tamil detainees held under the PTA in several prisons in the island.. A resolution to this effect stated that "the State armed forces use this PTA act to commit various crimes including torture and human rights violation on Tamil people under the pretext of safeguarding the sovereignty of the country".
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LTTE extends unilateral ceasefire

[TamilNet, Sunday, 20 January 2002, 13:04 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in an official statement issued Sunday from its headquarters in Vanni, northern Sri Lanka, extended its unilaterally declared cessation of hostilities for another one month, from midnight 24 January to midnight 24 February 2002.
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"Northeast children's rights affected"- UNICEF representative

[TamilNet, Sunday, 20 January 2002, 00:59 GMT]
"It has been estimated that about 14 percent of children between age 5 and 14 do not attend school in Sri Lanka. This is a national average and we all know that non-attendance in many areas in the northeast province is much higher. In some areas as many as one out of five children do not attend schools," said Ms Elroy Gabrielle, UNICEF resident representative, Saturday evening addressing the second day North East Provincial Tamil Literary Festival at Trincomalee St.Joseph's College auditorium.
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Kumaratunga claims authority “on all actions regarding war and peace”

[TamilNet, Sunday, 20 January 2002, 00:30 GMT]
(News Feature) Sri Lanka’s President Chandrika Kumaratunga this weekend warned that key decisions related to efforts to end the island’s protracted ethnic conflict would ultimately rest in her hands and not with the Parliamentary government. In an interview published in the Daily Mirror newspaper Saturday, she also questioned the competence of the newly elected United National Front (UNF) government to handle the ethnic question, while at the same time paradoxically saying that her Peoples’ Alliance (PA) - which was crushed at the last elections by the UNF - would support its efforts to find a peaceful solution.
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Tamil Festival begins in Trincomalee

[TamilNet, Friday, 18 January 2002, 21:08 GMT]
"The administrative language of the North-East province is Tamil. Once the implementation of proposals devolving powers to the province is completed, people will see tremendous progress in economic, cultural and social spheres," said Mr.K.Shanmugalingam, Provincial Secretary to the Ministry of Education when inaugurating the morning session of the Tamil Literary Festival in Trincomalee St.Joseph's College hall, Friday.
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SC decides to hear Vanni,Batticaloa voters' grievances

[TamilNet, Friday, 18 January 2002, 17:40 GMT]
The Supreme Court Friday announced that the six fundamental rights (FR) applications filed by voters of Vanni and Batticaloa electoral districts would be taken up for inquiry on March 15. In these applications the petitioners residing in areas held by the Liberation Tigers have sought order of the SC nullifying the elections held in the Vanni and Batticaloa districts and to order new poll.
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Batticaloa NGOs want PTA repealed

[TamilNet, Friday, 18 January 2002, 14:53 GMT]
Members of the consortium of NGO’s of Batticaloa demonstrated in the eastern town Friday morning urging the government to repeal the Prevention of Terrorism Act (RTA), release Tamil political prisoners and remove restrictions on fishing and street blocks in the district set up by the Sri Lankan security forces. Addressing the demonstrators, the president of the consortium, Mr. A. Selvedran, said that the United National Front government should create conditions of normalcy in the district and that the army and Police should vacate the schools, temples and libraries which they occupy in Batticaloa.
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'Pongu Thamil nailed Chandrika's canard' - Students' Union leader

[TamilNet, Thursday, 17 January 2002, 18:16 GMT]
More than 1500 undergraduates, teachers, school students and members of the public took part in the ''Pongu Thamil'' rally at the Jaffna University Thursday morning. Addressing the rally on the campus grounds the Vice Chancellor of the university, Prof. Pon Balasundarampillai, said "Life should return to normal among the Tamils before the government begins talks with the Liberation Tigers."
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Tamil parties unite in Constitutional Council nomination

[TamilNet, Thursday, 17 January 2002, 16:19 GMT]
A retired High Court Judge Mr.T.Suntharalingam has been nominated to the eleven member constitutional council which is to be appointed under the 17th amendment to the constitution. Leaders of Tamil political parties represented in the parliament Thursday unanimously nominated Mr.Suntharalingam as the representative of the Sri Lanka Tamils in the Constitutional Council.
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Trinco fishing ban drives thousands to destitution

[TamilNet, Thursday, 17 January 2002, 11:16 GMT]
(News Feature) More than five thousand fishermen of Kinniya, China Bay and Mutur in the Trincomalee district have been deprived of their livelihood due to the ban imposed currently by the Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) on fishing in the Koddiyar Bay and in the waters off the eastern port town, fisheries officials said Thursday. Fishing is banned by the SLN in the waters off the coast from Mutur to Kinniya China Bay and the Trincomalee town. Inland fishing in the district is prohibited after dusk.
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Tamils' confessions in Sinhala: a travesty of justice - Judge

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 16 January 2002, 19:32 GMT]
The East High Court Judge Mr. J. Visvanathan Wednesday allowed an application made by the defense counsel in a case filed under the Prevention Terrorism Act that a Tamil translation of the confession purported to have been made by the accused should be provided to him (the accused) before the commencement of the proper trial.
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Mylanthanai massacre case before Sinhala Jury

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 16 January 2002, 18:40 GMT]
The Colombo High Court Wednesday ordered that the Mylanthanai massacre case should be heard before Sinhala speaking Jury. In this case twenty one army personnel have been indicted with the murder of 35 Tamil villagers of Mylanthanai in Batticaloa district on 9th August 1992.
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Judge rejects skewed reports on torture victims

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 15 January 2002, 20:03 GMT]
The Trincomalee Magistrate Tuesday ordered that two Tamil youths, allegedly tortured in detention by the Sri Lankan security forces, should be examined by the Colombo Judicial Medical Officer, when it transpired during the proceedings that the District Medical Officers who had examined the young men had stated in their reports that there were no fresh wounds on the two suspects who have been arrested and detained under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA)
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