Tigers resolve Gurunagar dispute

[TamilNet, Friday, 03 September 2004, 16:37 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers Thursday resolved a violent dispute between fishermen from Gurunagar, a coastal suburb of Jaffna town, and from villages on the western coast of Kilinochchi. A fisherman from Gurunagar was injured and several assaulted last week over a long simmering dispute over the fishing grounds in the seas off Pallikudah, Naachchikudah and Valaipaadu. Gurunagar fishermen who were angered by the incidents attacked an LTTE office in their suburb on Tuesday.
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LTTE's Batti-Amparai commander leaves for Kilinochchi

[TamilNet, Friday, 03 September 2004, 08:04 GMT]
Col. Ramesh, special commander of Liberation Tigers' forces in the Batticaloa-Amparai District, left for Kilinochchi Friday morning from Kokkaddicholai, 154 kilometres southwest of Batticaloa town. He was accompanied by Mr. E. Kousalyan, head of the LTTE's political division for the Batticaloa-Amparai District and LTTE commanders 'Ram' and 'Janarthan'. They boarded a Sri Lankan Air Force helicopter at the Kokkaddicholai general grounds, an LTTE spokesman in Batticaloa said. Col. Ramesh was earlier scheduled to meet Sri Lankan armed forces officers on Friday.
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French diplomats meet TNA foreign affairs committee

[TamilNet, Thursday, 02 September 2004, 09:36 GMT]
“We told France if indeed talks on the ISGA commence, there is a good chance that an agreement could be reached in this matter. We said that this is exactly what the Singhalese are afraid of, as it would mean that they would no longer have a monopoly on power, and their hegemony over the Tamil nation will cease for once and for all time. We also said that it is for this reason that we suspect that the Sri Lankan government t is trying to provoke the LTTE to another war by destabilizing the east and supporting Tamil armed groups," said Mr. Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam TNA MP Thursday.
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Youths are cornerstone of our struggle- Ilamparithy

[TamilNet, Thursday, 02 September 2004, 00:32 GMT]
"Younger generation is the cornerstone of our struggle. We are fully aware of the efforts by our adversaries to spread social ills among our people. We accept that some level of distraction among the teen-agers is unavoidable. But this helps us in building strong social resistance against negative influences in the long term," said Ilamparithy, LTTE's head of political wing in Jaffna district.
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Talks prospects bleak, until SL military backed violence ends- Balasingham

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 01 September 2004, 22:53 GMT]
"Unless the [Sri Lanka] government takes effective measures to end this series of violence perpetrated on the LTTE, it is hard to imagine how one can seriously talk about recommencing peace talks," Balasingham, theoretician and advisor to the Liberation Tigers, told Norwegian Special envoy Erik Solheim when they held discussions Tuesday in London, LTTE peace secretariat website said.
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Few Tamils to receive graduate training

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 01 September 2004, 16:56 GMT]
Of the first batch of 17,018 unemployed graduates who are to begin their three-month training programme Thursday at 215 centres in 23 districts excluding Killinochchi and Mullaitivu districts only 2,140 (11.4%) are Tamil medium graduates and the rest 14,883 are Sinhalese. These graduates will be given employment after the training programme, education sources said.
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TNA to promote ISGA awareness and advocacy

[TamilNet, Monday, 30 August 2004, 14:27 GMT]
"We have created three different action groups for the tasks of promoting awareness in the Parliament, awareness in the South and advocacy in the diplomatic circles," Mr. R. Sampanthan, Secretary General of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) told the press in Kilinochchi Monday. LTTE Political Head Mr. S. P. Thamilchelvan and Mr. Sampanthan met press briefly after TNA's meeting with the LTTE's Political Head at the Planning Secretariat of the Liberation Tigers in Kilinochchi.
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ISGA will prevent secession- Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Friday, 27 August 2004, 13:49 GMT]
In a meeting with Forum of Federations, Canada, the LTTE's Political Head Mr. S. P. Thamilchelvan Friday told that institutionalising ISGA will ''prevent secession and pave the way for unity and lasting peace,'' according to sources at the LTTE Peace secretariat.
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Time for stock taking of truce - SLMM

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 25 August 2004, 08:05 GMT]
It is time for a 'stock taking' of the cease fire between the Liberation Tigers and the Government, of how it has fared since it was signed in February 2002, Head of the Nordic mission monitoring the truce in Sri Lanka, said when he met the LTTE in Kilinochchi Wednesday. LTTE would not resume meeting with the Sri Lankan armed forces in the east until the killings of their cadres in the region are stopped, Mr. S. P Thamilchelvan, head of Tigers' political division, told Major General (ret) Trond Furhovde, chief of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission.
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Technology Education key to Tamils' prosperity- Thilak

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 24 August 2004, 00:04 GMT]
"Skills development in information technology across the districts of NorthEast at international levels is key to economic upliftment of our people," said S.Thilak, currently the Director of Economic Development for NorthEast and formerly political head of Trincomalee, when TamilNet talked to him Saturday about his new assignment in the economic division.
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"Tamil national patriot" Selliah Ratnam passes away

[TamilNet, Thursday, 19 August 2004, 07:40 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) conferred the title "Tamil national patriot" on Mr. Selliah Ratnam, retired Assistant Government Agent and the Jaffna district co-ordinator of SIHRN who passed away Sunday in Colombo Apollo Hospital after a brief illness. The remains draped by the Tiger flag were kept first at SIHRN office in Killinochchi district secretariat and later at Thooyavan Political Science College of the LTTE Tuesday for the public to pay homage.
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EU urges early recommencement of talks

[TamilNet, Monday, 16 August 2004, 18:03 GMT]
While noting that the meeting with the LTTE was constructive and the matters were discussed in a frank and open manner, the EU in a press statement issued on Monday called upon the LTTE for the earliest resumption of peace talks and stated that the peace process and the development process are inter-linked.
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Tigers reiterate stand, say Tamils losing peace hope

[TamilNet, Monday, 16 August 2004, 12:13 GMT]
''We explained to the European Union envoys the LTTE leadership's stand that we are ready to restart negotiations with the Government of Sri Lanka on the basis of the Interim Self Government Authority proposal which was endorsed by the Tamil people at the general elections", said Mr. S. P Thamilchelvan, head of LTTE 's political division, speaking to the press after meeting a top EU delegation from Colombo Monday in Kilinochchi.
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British, Dutch, EU envoys meet LTTE

[TamilNet, Monday, 16 August 2004, 07:47 GMT]
The British High Commissioner for Sri Lanka and the ambassadors of European Union and Netherlands met the head of the LTTE's political division, Mr. S. P Thamilchelvan, Monday in Kilinochchi for discussions about the island's long deadlocked peace talks. The visit of three envoys comes in the wake of the Liberation Tigers saying last week they will re-enter peace negotiations only if the Interim Self Governing Authority (ISGA) is institutionalised first.
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'Solution should be based on what Tamils want' - Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Saturday, 14 August 2004, 18:33 GMT]
"We created the conditions for Peace Talks by unilaterly declaring a cease-fire in December 2001. Solution to the Tamil problem should be on the basis of aspirations of the Tamils because they are the ones who have faced discrimination, oppression and war for many years. It cannot be based on what the Sinhala people want. It cannnot be based on what the Sinhala government wants. This is why the political pacts Tamils made in the past with Sinhala leaders came to naught." said Mr. S.P. Thamilchelvan in a press briefing in Kilinochchi Saturday.
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LTTE ready to resume talks based on ISGA- Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Saturday, 14 August 2004, 10:48 GMT]
Institutionalising the Interim Self Governing Authority (ISGA) proposals put forward by the Liberation Tigers must be viewed on a humanitarian perspective rather than making it a political bargain to satisfy extremist elements in the southern polity, Mr.S.P.Thamilchelvan, the head of the LTTE’s political wing told Norwegian Deputy Ambassador at a meeting held in Kilinochchi, Saturday. "We are waiting for a positive response from the government to recommence negotiations on the basis of ISGA proposals," Mr. Thamilchelvan told the Norwegian diplomat, LTTE’s peace secretariat website reported.
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Farmers complain NE districts ignored in drought relief

[TamilNet, Friday, 13 August 2004, 17:02 GMT]
Drought-stricken farmers in the Trincomalee district have been ignored by the Central Government in providing relief and other facilities which have been offered to their counterparts in the districts of Kurunagala, Anuradhapura, Puttalam, Badulla, Moneragala, Matale and Polonnaruwa in the south of the country, said the Kappalthurai Farmers' Federation (KFF) in the Trincomalee district in a statement issued Friday.
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Liberation Tigers release Sri Lanka army soldier

[TamilNet, Friday, 13 August 2004, 16:33 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers of Thamil Eelam Friday released from their custody a Sri Lanka army soldier who had crossed the line of control dividing areas held by them and by Colombo. The soldier, Shalitha Pradeep Kumara Hettiarachchi,28, of Warakapola, 68 kilometres east of Colombo, was handed over to the International Committee of the Red Cross in Kilinochchi.
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Civil Society Forum supports federal constitution in Sri Lanka

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 11 August 2004, 21:06 GMT]
"An Interim Administrative structure should be established in the NorthEast Province on the basis of the Interim Self Governing Authority (ISGA) proposals of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). Thereafter a new constitution based on the fully-fledged federal concept should be formulated. The country would be divided into two in failing to do so," said Civil Socieity Forum Chairman, Dr.Kumar Rupasinghe, addressing a press conference Wednesday at Hotel Nippon in Colombo.
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Jaffna IDPs woes worsen without relief

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 03 August 2004, 03:01 GMT]
Lack of employment opportunities, stalled economic growth, and infrastructure development at a virtual standstill continue to affect the lives of people of Jaffna especially the Internally Displaced People (IDPs). Many families, who have suffered loss of lives and loss of property during the two decades of war, face uphill battle to stay above the poverty line.
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