TamilNet

[28.01.12]
Book documents pre-colonial Tamil connections of New Zealand: “Tamil Imprints in New Zealand” by 87-year-old Eezham Tamil author A.T. Arumugam, now living in New Zealand, re-documents and discusses in detail a bronze bell inscribed in Tamil in c. 14-15 century writing that was in the possession of the native Maori people of New Zealand.
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[24.01.12]
Award winning filmmaker presents documentary on exiled Sinhala, Tamil journalists: ‘Silenced Voices – Tales of Sri Lankan Journalists in Exile’, a new documentary by Norwegian filmmaker Beate Arnestad, is to be pre-premiered in Oslo, Norway, on 09 February. The film features Mr. Bashana Abeywardene, his wife Sharmila Logeswaram, Sonali Wickrematunge and A. Lokeesan, TamilNet wartime correspondent, who was reporting from 2005 to April 2009 from Vanni.
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[24.01.12]
Kalam risks his image in salvaging New Delhi in Tamil Nadu: While India’s former president Abdul Kalam has real work to do in addressing his own Establishment in New Delhi what brought him to genocidal Colombo and its India-partnered colony in the North and East of the island, wonders genocide-affected Eezham Tamils.
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[22.01.12]
TNA should use its Tamil national mandate: Bishop of Mannaar: The aim of the Tamil civil groups’ memorandum dated 13 December 2011 and addressed to the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) was in fact to strengthen the Tamil national polity and its democratically mandated representatives. It was not meant to weaken the TNA. There is a mandate given by the people to the TNA about continuing talks with the SL government and that the TNA in its course of action should stick to its mandate is the thrust of the memorandum, clarified the Bishop of Mannaar, Most Reverend Rayappu Joseph, in a press release issued on last Monday on behalf of the civil society signatories of the memorandum.
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[21.01.12]
Krishna visit patterns Indo-Sri Lanka deceit on Eezham Tamils: There was no enthusiasm or expectation in Jaffna on the recent visit by India's Foreign Minister S.M. Krishna, media circles said. Civil groups in Jaffna also reflected the same opinion. Just as the visits of MK Narayanan and Shiv Shankar Menon patterned the course of the genocidal war, the visits of the Indian dignitaries in the subsequent phase show a pattern in consolidating the structural genocide of the nation of Eezham Tamils in order to facilitate overlapping interests of India's imperialism and the militarized Sinhala state in the island.
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[19.01.12]
Tamil sovereignty alone can check protracted genocide: Jose Maria Sison: “The Eezham people have a very direct obligation of fighting for their own sovereignty against a state that presumes to have a unitary power over them,” stressed veteran Filipino left ideologue, Prof. Jose Maria Sison. In an exclusive interview to TamilNet on Sunday, Prof. Sison spoke on the questions of sovereignty of the Eezham Tamil nation, the protracted nature of genocide that Sri Lanka imposes on Tamils in their homelands, the principled position of leftists on the national question, and on the imperative to look beyond both the human rights and reconciliation paradigm.
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[17.01.12]
Galle literary festival gives mask of normalcy to genocidal Sri Lanka: The Galle Literary Festival, which is scheduled to begin Wednesday is reported to involve diverse participants with the funding from a variety of corporate houses and Western embassies in Colombo. But the prevailing opinion in Eezham Tamil circles is that such occasions and the participation of high profile writers only serve the purpose of providing cultural and ideological legitimacy to the Sri Lankan state and the structural violence it imposes on the Tamil people.
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[03.01.12]
'Champions of Change': Even as the nation of the Scots enjoys limited autonomy in the United Kingdom, its desire for independence coupled with other political and economic developments compels the leader of the Scottish National Party to optimistically assert that Scotland and other similar small independent nation-states will be the champions of change in the near future.
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[31.12.11]
TamilNet releases LTTE documents of 2006 talks: A set of documents prepared by the LTTE’s Peace Secretariat during Geneva peace talks held in February 2006, in June 2006 in Oslo and in October 2006 in Geneva, some of which have not yet reached public domain, are being released by TamilNet to facilitate a deeper understanding of the peace process and its eventual collapse. While 2011 has been a "year of reports," the UN panel report, Norway’s ‘Pawns of Peace’, the genocide model LLRC report etc., the LTTE documents provide valuable insight into the Tigers' efforts undertaken to fulfill LTTE's commitment to the International Community.
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[05.12.11]
Maathakal protests Sri Lanka’s Naval base: A major coastal village Maathakal in Jaffna staged a protest on Monday against occupying Sri Lanka building an extensive naval base there by confiscating private lands of Eezham Tamils. Maathakal is the closest point of Jaffna to Point Calimere (Koadikkarai) in the Tamil Nadu coast across the Palk Strait. The base is a security threat not only to Eezham Tamils but also to Tamil Nadu as well as to India, but New Delhi and Colombo seem to think Tamils on either side of the Palk Strait as ‘common enemies’, commented a geopolitical analyst in Jaffna.
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[03.12.11]
Wider public participation marks Heroes Day in Tamil Nadu: It became clear on the eve of Heroes Day, Sunday, that ruling circles in India join hands with genocidal Colombo in denying Tamils the right to remember their fallen freedom fighters. Yet the day was observed with a marked positive difference in Tamil Nadu this time. Public and grassroot initiatives replaced political party organized mass gatherings, and there was wider and spontaneous participation of a social cross-section: from workers and farmers to communities in business, education and professions.
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[30.11.11]
Whether history is different to Tamils and Sinhalese, asks Jaffna academic: A single event that took place in the University of Jaffna on the Heroes Day, Sunday, has captivated the minds of Tamils all over the world, more than the diaspora functions marked by ever increasing participation of people but in some instances showing hijack aimed at dividing, capturing and ‘softening’ the struggle by the very forces against whom the spirit of the Day was meant for.
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[27.11.11]
Tamil activists assert sovereignty, declare for plebiscite: Leading Tamil activists of the younger generation in Tamil Nadu, Canada, USA and Switzerland, came out with a declaration on Sunday asserting sovereignty of Eezham Tamils on three counts: historical, earned and remedial. They also declared that international players should stop insisting on united Sri Lanka and drop pretensions of ‘domestic solutions’. Further declarations upheld symbols and expressions of the struggle, urged recognition of all those who laid down their lives for the liberation cause and called upon coordinated global action.
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[22.11.11]
Solheim hijacks thrust of Norway report: Norwegian minister Erik Solheim, while speaking in Oslo 11 November at the release of the report evaluating Norway’s failed peace process in Sri Lanka, tried to hijack the philosophical thrust of the findings of the report and this brought him into confrontation with the evaluation team leader, Gunnar M. Sørbø. Mr. Erik Solheim tried to defend the main criticism in the report and the stand of Sørbø that Norway should have quit the peace process to signal the world of the impending dangers.
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[16.11.11]
India emerges as main designer of ‘Asian Model’ in Norway report: The Norway report on the failed peace in Sri Lanka, concluding that Asian powers in pursuance of military solution were a reason for the failure, cautions that this model of ‘conflict resolution’ will challenge future Norwegian-style mediations. India’s role in the genocidal model of conflict resolution is not adequately discussed in the report, yet bits and pieces in the report along with what transpired in the panel discussion in Oslo on Friday, place India as decisively responsible for the ‘Asian model’ that ended the war in genocide.
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[14.11.11]
International unity on criticism of Sri Lanka’s conduct: Armitage: Expressing dismay at the “chauvinistic attitude” of the Sri Lankan state, former US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage said on Friday the international community was united in its criticism of Sri Lanka’s conduct in the north and east and that SL President Mahinda Rajapaksa would not be welcomed internationally unless conditions there improved. “I don’t think anyone disagrees that the Tamil people have been mistreated and are continuing to lack – across the board – fundamental freedoms, dignity, etc,” Mr. Armitage told the audience.
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[13.11.11]
LTTE losing, SL winning was Norway failing: Norway report team leader: While releasing the evaluation report on Norway’s failed peace process in Sri Lanka on Friday, the team leader of the evaluation panel, Gunnar M. Sørbø, outlining the main findings of the report said “The collapse of talks and the subsequent military victory were as much a story of the LTTE ‘losing’, as of the government ‘winning’, or the Norwegians ‘failing’.
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[12.11.11]
SLMM tilted balance in favour of Sri Lanka, against LTTE: Gajendrakumar Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM), the peace keeping arm of the Norway facilitated peace process in the island, tilted the balance in favour of the Sri Lankan state and against the LTTE, wrote Gajendrakumar Ponnampalam in 2007, in an unpublished research paper on the 2002 Ceasefire Agreement (CFA) he submitted to a foundation in the West. The IC could have used the CFA to pursue conflict resolution by maintaining the balance of power between the parties, but to the contrary it had used the CFA as a ‘counterinsurgency’ tool to reinforce the state and weaken the de facto state, so that the state could pursue yet another military solution to the conflict, he further wrote.
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News 2012 February January 2011 December November October September August July June May April March February January 2010 December November October September August July June May April March February January 2009 December November October September August July June May April March February January 2008 December November October September August July June May April March February January 2007 December November October September August July June May April March February January 2006 December November October September August July June May April March February January 2005 December November October September August July June May April March February January 2004 December November October September August July June May April March February January 2003 December November October September August July June May April March February January 2002 December November October September August July June May April March February January 2001 December November October September August July June May April March February January 2000 December November October September August July June May April March February January 1999 December November October September August July June May April March February January 1998 December November October September August July June May April March February January 1997 December November October September August July June Features Photo Features Opinion Development TN Transcription Web feeds Feedback About us Home	2ND LEAD (Adds Court opinion) US Court dismisses Shavendra case on grounds of immunity [Thu, 09 Feb 2012, 20:15 GMT] While acknowledging "the gravity of the allegations made by the plaintiffs," Judge J. Paul Oetken concluded that Silva's diplomatic immunity precluded the court from looking at the merits of the plaintiffs' claims, a press release issued by the attorneys of the Tamil plaintiffs who filed the case said. Despite serious allegations of war crimes, Silva has recently been "selected" as an advisor for U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's Senior Advisory Group, and Professor Francis Boyle, an expert in international law, has opined that "Ban Ki Moon to appoint a presumptive war criminal to his Staff would be ultra vires his powers under the terms of article 101(3) and thus a violation of the Charter itself." Full story >> Latest 15 Reports: Feb 10 23:47 US delegation visits Vanni on fact-finding mission Feb 10 12:23 Without truth, reconciliation not possible - paper Feb 09 20:15 US Court dismisses Shavendra case on grounds of im.. Feb 09 16:45 SL Minister Devananda threatens to attack journali.. Feb 09 06:59 Village liquidated in Mullaiththeevu Feb 08 23:54 Colombo media movement shows sensitivity for linki.. Feb 08 05:30 Boyle: Appointing alleged war-criminals to UN post.. Feb 07 23:48 Illegal sand mining continues in East with Colombo.. Feb 07 22:23 Eezham Tamils await dividends to come from Mahendr.. Feb 06 12:10 Tamil journalists blocked from attending Rajapaksa.. Feb 06 08:47 NCET expects Norway to approach Eezham Tamils with.. Feb 06 01:30 Indian-organised international delegation visits J.. Feb 05 08:54 Westminster exhibition on Tamil genocide brings MP.. Feb 05 01:27 China to build airport in Poonakari to balance Ind.. Feb 05 00:52 Fein: TVPA's plain language interpretation negates.. << Flashback More Reports >> SL Minister Devananda threatens to attack journalists of Jaffna daily [Thu, 09 Feb 2012, 16:45 GMT] “I told my [paramilitary] boys to beat up these journalists. But, the boys are not paying attention. It seems I have to go in person and do it to make these journalists behave,” was the newest controversial comment by SL Minister and EPDP paramilitary leader Douglas Devananda on Thursday evening at a meeting held at Jaffna District Secretariat, where he was talking to unemployed graduates who were demanding employment. The spontaneous comment by Mr. Devananda came when SL military governor's secretary informed him of a news item that appeared in the Jaffna edition of Thinakkural exposing the diversion of funds allocated to development of schools in Vanni to the highly showcased construction of swimming pool which was declared opened by SL President Mahinda Rajapaksa. Full story >> Eezham Tamils await dividends to come from Mahendran’s book [Tue, 07 Feb 2012, 22:23 GMT] “It is not a mere documentation sharing opinion, but it is on the demand for justice by the genocide-surviving Eezham Tamils, the plight of whom has not been experienced by any other society in the world,” writes Communist Party of India stalwart C. Mahendran, in the introduction to his book on the Vanni War. He encapsulates the global shame in a nutshell when he says “Mu’l’li-vaaykkaal is the heroes’ land in the 21st century world, where life was the weapon to claim one’s land.” The book in Tamil, “Veezhveanen’ru Ninaiththaayoa” (Have you thought that I would fall), brought out in December 2011 by veteran media publications Vikatan, Chennai, is on hot sales and has already found overwhelming appreciation among Tamil readers all over the world. Any good book is eventually judged by the impact it makes on society and Eezham Tamils await that dividend to come from the Tamil-speaking world. Full story >> Colombo media movement shows sensitivity for linking it with TNA [Wed, 08 Feb 2012, 23:54 GMT] Colombo-based Free Media Movement (FMM) on Tuesday strongly reacted to news appearing in SL government-run ‘Dinamina’ on 03 February which had alleged that the members of the FMM had been in collaboration with the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) in campaigning at Geneva against the Colombo government. Totally disowning any link with the TNA, the language and tone of the FMM press statement only show the anxiety and extra-sensitivity prevailing in Colombo's media associations over the South perceiving any image of their sympathy with the aspirations of Tamil politics in the island. Even in the times of the LTTE, the Colombo media associations were not sensitive like this, political observers in Colombo said. Full story >> 2ND LEAD Tamil journalists blocked from attending Rajapaksa's meetings in Jaffna [Mon, 06 Feb 2012, 12:10 GMT] The wards of the Chaavakachcheari hospital, renovated with help from Red Cross societies from Finland and Ireland at different stages and that were already declared open, were declared once again opened by SL president Mahinda Rajapaksa on Monday. The ‘hijack’ move projected as a part of ‘grand opening’ under Rajapaksa's Vadakkin Vasantham (the spring of the North), was exposed by the local journalists, who discovered that the initial inaugural plaques with the names of foreign donors were hastily removed Sunday night and new plaques were installed. As the local journalists in Jaffna began questioning the episode, the SL establishment blocked the journalists from covering the visit of Mr. Rajapaksa to Jaffna Secretariat where he was scheduled to discuss his ‘development’ of North. Full story >> Indian-organised international delegation visits Jaffna [Mon, 06 Feb 2012, 01:30 GMT] Around 60 diplomats belonging to African, Latin American, West Asian and European countries, based in New Delhi were brought to Jaffna on Sunday to showcase them on ‘development’ and ‘reconciliation’ taking place in the country of Eezham Tamils occupied by genocidal Sri Lanka. The exercise was organised and fully backed by the Establishment in New Delhi with an aim of bailing out Rajapaksa regime from international investigation on war crimes, news sources in Jaffna said. While the demand of Tamil Nadu State Assembly was for international justice to Eezham Tamils and while the Communist Party of India (CPI) is mooting fresh resolutions in this regard, the New Delhi Establishment is keen in blunting any international efforts, political observers said. Full story >> China to build airport in Poonakari to balance India’s Palaali [Sun, 05 Feb 2012, 01:27 GMT] Occupying Sri Lanka plans to invite China to build an airport of international standard at Poonakari in the north of the country of Eezham Tamils to balance India’s projects centring around KKS harbour and Palaali airport in the northern coast of Jaffna Peninsula, news sources from the island said. Colombo has started confiscating large tracts of lands for this purpose and China has presented models of the airport for approval, revealed TNA parliamentarian Mr. Sritharan. Poonakari is situated in a controlling location linking Vanni with Jaffna Peninsula, with Palk Bay and Jaffna Lagoon on either side. It is also located close to Raameasvaram and Tho’ndi of the Tamil Nadu coast. Full story >> Pirapaharan postal stamp released in Norway [Sat, 04 Feb 2012, 21:52 GMT] Eezham Tamil activists in Norway on Saturday released stamps featuring LTTE leader V. Pirapaharan, the map of Tamil Eelam and some of the LTTE declared national symbols of the de-facto state of Tamil Eelam, including the Tamil Eelam national flag. The stamps were released in front of the Norwegian Parliament by Jeyasri Balasubramaniam, a candidate elected to represent the Eezham Tamils in two elections held in that country. The event coincided with the so-called independence day of Sri Lanka. On 4th February 1948, the British conferred dominion status to the island then called Ceylon and transferred power to a Colombo-centric, ethnic majoritarian and unitary system of government. Full story >> ‘Development means 14-storey tourist hotel in Jaffna’ [Sat, 04 Feb 2012, 08:50 GMT] Keeping genocide-afflicted Eezham Tamils in sheds and shelters, occupying Sri Lanka plans to build massive ‘tourist’ hotels in Jaffna with Sinhala investment and management, eventually to create Sinhala business enclaves and colonies, news sources in Jaffna said. SL presidential sibling Basil Rajapaksa laid foundation for a 14-storey tourist hotel in the heart of Jaffna city on Friday. Mr. Milinda Moragoda, opposition leader, Colombo municipal council, is said to be closely associated with the investment carried out by a tourism corporate named Jetwing-Yarl. Mr. Moragoda was bracketed with Norwegian development minister Mr. Erik Solheim in luring the LTTE to the peace process in 2001. Meanwhile, Norway conducts a seminar to select participants this weekend, on Norway Tamils contributing to peace, reconciliation and development of Sri Lanka that will be addressed by Mr. Erik Solheim. Full story >> 2ND LEAD Indian university confers honorary doctorate on Erik Solheim [Fri, 03 Feb 2012, 02:05 GMT] TERI University of India (The Energy and Resources Institute), which is a deemed university located in New Delhi, has conferred honorary doctorate on Norwegian Minister of Development Mr. Erik Solheim in its fourth convocation this year held on Wednesday. The deemed university, specialized in sustainable development, got accreditation in India in 1999. The university has affiliated centers in Japan, Malaysia, United Arab Emirates, USA and UK, besides in some prominent Indian cities. Mr. Solheim is involved in international peace facilitation on behalf of Norway in several countries in the world. As Development minister, his office is part of the foreign ministry establishment of the Norwegian government, since Norway sees ‘development’ and ‘foreign relations’ intertwined in facilitating its interests. Full story >> 2ND LEAD CPI moots Tamil Nadu State Assembly participation in Geneva HRC [Wed, 01 Feb 2012, 17:56 GMT] Tamil Nadu State Assembly should press New Delhi to make arrangements for its participation in the UN Human Rights Council sessions in Geneva in March to present the case of war crimes against Eezham Tamils, said, Communist Party of India’s MLA for Sivagangai, Mr. S. Gunasekaran, during debate on Governor’s Address in the Tamil Nadu Assembly. He reminded the Assembly on its earlier resolution on this issue and said that a case should be filed in the International Court of Justice against SL President Mahinda Rajapaksa for the genocide committed on Eezham Tamils. Deprivation of political, homeland and language rights of Eezham Tamils continues in the island and they are treated like slaves without security. SL has not even spent the Indian monetary assistance meant for Eezham Tamils sufficiently, the MLA said. Full story >> Illegal sand mining continues in East with Colombo backing [Tue, 07 Feb 2012, 23:48 GMT] Sri Lankan presidential sibling and ‘development’ minister Basil Rajapaksa, through an officer working in the Geological Unit of the District Secretariat of Batticaloa, has given permit to a Sinhala businessman N.T.I.Tilakaretna, a Sinhalese. The move was also backed by the Sri Lankan Government Agent in Batticaloa, according to civil sources at the Batticaloa District Secretariat. Tilakaretna has been allowing tractors to remove sand from the river after obtaining 2,000 rupees per tractor. Ten percent of the money goes to Basil Rajapakse and 5 percent is being given to the Officer-in-Charge of the SLA army camp at Mu'rakkoddaagn-cheanai, the sources further said. Full story >> TID arrests two Tamil fishermen in Mannaar [Thu, 02 Feb 2012, 02:51 GMT] A group of persons, arriving in a white van and identifying themselves as from the Sri Lankan ‘Terrorism Investigation Division’ (TID), arrested two Tamil fishermen in Mannaar on January 19th, sources in Mannaar said. The TID officers had later had informed relatives of the fishermen after inquiry that TID police had detained the fishermen on reports that they had helped he LTTE. Full story >> Village liquidated in Mullaiththeevu [Thu, 09 Feb 2012, 06:59 GMT] Chooriya-puram village, created by the LTTE near Keappaa-pulavu in the Puthukkudiyiruppu division of Mullaiththeevu district, to accommodate landless peasants, has been liquidated by the occupying Sinhala military that is engaged in that locality in building a 1200-acre base, news sources in Vanni said. Around 500 families of the locality have lost their living space and are degenerating in their refugee life, either staying in camps or in the houses of relatives and friends. Around 100 families of the Chooriyapuram village, brought from the internment camps for resettlement, are stranded now. Full story >> Without truth, reconciliation not possible - paper [Fri, 10 Feb 2012, 12:23 GMT] Francis Harrison, former BBC foreign correspondent whose book of accounts of survivors from Sri Lanka’s civil war is to be published this summer, says in an article in the Dawn, that there are "signs that the international community is gearing up for action to hold Sri Lanka accountable for alleged war crimes committed by its forces at the end of the brutal civil war against the Tamil Tiger rebels in 2009," and adds that "Tamil survivors also want the truth acknowledged before they can move on with their shattered lives. Without the truth, reconciliation and forgiveness are simply not possible and the grievances that led to conflict in the first place remain dangerously unresolved." Full story >> 2ND LEAD (Adds link) Boyle: Appointing alleged war-criminals to UN posts, a violation of UN Charter [Wed, 08 Feb 2012, 05:30 GMT] While Ban Ki Moon's spokesman Martin Nesirky insisted that Ban is powerless to stop the proposed appointment of alleged war-criminal Shavendra Silva to an UN adviser position, Professor Boyle, an expert in international law, said, "U.N. Secretary-General has a Charter obligation to determine that the terms of article 101(3) have been satisfied before he appoints someone to the Staff irrespective of any alleged recommendation by the General Assembly," and therefore, "Ban to appoint a presumptive war criminal to his Staff would be ultra vires his powers under the terms of article 101(3) and thus a violation of the Charter itself." Full story >> 3RD LEAD NCET expects Norway to approach Eezham Tamils with fresh attitudes, personalities [Mon, 06 Feb 2012, 08:47 GMT] Peace comes from absence of fear, violence and social confrontations. Reconciliation comes from justice and parity between the parties. Development of a people comes from their right to conceive it and own it. How could Norway expect Eezham Tamils in Norway to contribute to peace, reconciliation and development within the Sri Lankan frame, amidst militarisation, colonisation, subordination, denial of justice and denial of ownership to development, asked Norwegian Council of Eezham Tamils (NCET) in a document it presented at a foreign-ministry-funded seminar in Oslo on Sunday. In its peace facilitation, Norway fielding fresh personalities with attitudinal change would immensely help to build its credibility, the document said. The seminar will be addressed by Norway’s development Minister, Mr. Erik Solhiem, when it continues for the third day on Monday. Full story >> Westminster exhibition on Tamil genocide brings MPs to voice for international investigations [Sun, 05 Feb 2012, 08:54 GMT] MPs, peers from the House of Lords and a cross-party group of politicians endorsed the call for an independent, international investigation into allegations of war crimes in Sri Lanka, at an exhibition organized by the BTF and APPGT held Tuesday at Portcullis House, a parliamentary building in Westminster. The exhibition highlighted the protracted nature of the genocide of the Eezham Tamils through a creative use of artwork, paintings, newspaper clippings, slides and documentaries. The event was widely welcomed by those who attended, including the shadow foreign secretary, Douglas Alexander, Labour MP for Wolverhampton South-East, Pat McFadden, Lord Quirk, Father Emmanuel of Global Tamil Forum (GTF), and Lord Kennedy. "We must stop the genocide of the Tamils. The world must stop the barbarism of the Sri Lankan regimen," Robert Halfon, Conservative MP from Harlow said at the venue. Full story >> Fein: TVPA's plain language interpretation negates Rajapakse immunity [Sun, 05 Feb 2012, 00:52 GMT] In a forceful rebuttal to the U.S. State Department's suggestion of immunity to Sri Lanka President Rajpakse in the war-crimes charges against him in the case filed in District Court in Washington by three Tamil plaintiffs, Bruce Fein, the attorney for the plaintiffs, said, 'the sitting head of state immunity issue pivots solely on an interpretation of the words “an individual” in the Torture Victim Protection Act (TVPA)," "the plain language of the statute makes no exceptions irrespective of the office an individual might occupy or the circumstances of the crimes universally abhorred," but "[t]he Executive Branch insolently maintains that this Court must obey its directive to dismiss this TVPA case that rests upon universally repugnant crimes in violation of the law of nations," and " [t]o bow to that command would be to permit usurpation of the judicial power by the Executive." Full story >> Tamils must remind Britain of its obligations on February 04: Brian Senewiratne [Sat, 04 Feb 2012, 12:05 GMT] February 4th, the day Sri Lanka (then Ceylon) got so-called “Independence” from Britain in 1948, is a day for action, not regret or mourning. “The betrayal of the Tamils by the British cannot be ignored. If it is, then Britain must be reminded of its moral, legal and ethical obligations, to ‘do the right thing’, by the Tamils even belatedly,” says Dr. Brian Senewiratne in an article he has authored on the so-called independence of Ceylon on 04 February 1948. “It is no exaggeration to say that on 4 February, 1948, ‘Independence’ was granted to the Sinhalese to do what they wanted to the Tamils. Britain could not care less, as long as the military bases were secure and the (British) tea estates remained under Sinhalese capitalist control, to supply tea at absurdly low prices to fill the British cup.” Full story >> Tamil woman's death in Norway bares plight of a Nation deprived of international justice [Fri, 03 Feb 2012, 19:18 GMT] 24-year-old Garolin Vinotha Nesarajah, who killed herself along with her 20-month-old baby boy on 16 January in a refugee centre in Førde in Western Norway, was not prepared for her deportation, as she feared she would be interrogated and tortured by the Sri Lanka Army back home, reporters in Jaffna said. Garolin immolated herself along with the baby, the Norwegian police think. Garolin’s death raises several questions at the international system that continues to keep the people of the nation of Eezham Tamils deprived of State, deprived of international justice and deprived of psychological security or hope in life, maddening them further and further by pushing them into the hands of genocidal Sri Lanka, social workers in Jaffna said. Full story >> SL government will not deliver justice: HRW [Thu, 02 Feb 2012, 23:59 GMT] The acting Geneva Advocacy Director at Human Rights Watch, Philippe Dam, has said in a statement issued by the HRW Thursday that justice and accountability will not come from the Sri Lankan government. “Only international action will address the suffering of victims,” Mr. Dam said urging the United Nations Human Rights Council to address the lack of accountability for wartime abuses during its March 2012 session. Sri Lanka has a long history of failed promises to prosecute serious human rights abuses, the statement by the HRC further said. Full story >> US delegation visits Vanni on fact-finding mission [Fri, 10 Feb 2012, 23:47 GMT] Ahead of a scheduled visit by Robert O’ Blake, the US assistant secretary of state for the South and Central Asian affairs to Colombo, a team led by Stephen J Rapp, the ambassador-at-Large for war crimes at the US State Department, was on an official visit to the occupied Tamil homeland on Thursday and on Friday. The delegation was collecting witness testimonials from the war-crimes affected civilians in Mullaiththeevu and Ki'linochchi districts. Despite the heavy deployment of SL military intelligence operatives, the people were narrating how cluster and chemical munitions were deployed by the Sri Lankan military against civilian targets. Full story >> Pro Rajapaksa gang abducts, threatens Kaaththaankudi civil activist [Thu, 02 Feb 2012, 23:34 GMT] A.C.M. Asam, a member of the Kaaththaankudi Good Governance People Movement was abducted last Friday by an armed men who came in motorbikes when he was returning home after seeing his ailing mother in the Batticaloa Teaching Hospital. Mr. Asam was later released after four hours, according to M.M.Abdur Rahuman, Soora council member of the movement at a media briefing held this week. Mr. Asam had exposed the fraud to the tune of 150,000 rupees that took place in the Kaaththaankudy UC. Asam had been threatened by the abductors not to work against Kaaththaankudi Urban Council chairman M.L.A.M.Hisbullah, who is a Deputy Minister in SL President Mahinda Rajapaksa's regime. Full story >> Top Flashback: 2011: 2011 Feb 11 13:29 Unidentified gang abducts teenage Tamil girl 2011 Feb 11 07:44 Norway arrests ex LTTE member 2010: 2010 Feb 11 13:32 Media Ministry comes under President Rajapakse 2010 Feb 11 03:43 Canadian Tamil film wins award in Norway festival 2010 Feb 11 03:38 'Madras Mail' passes away in Jaffna 2010 Feb 11 02:52 SLA occupation of churches in Vadamaraadchi sho... 2010 Feb 11 00:50 Two Britons jailed for selling armour piercing ... 2009: 2009 Feb 11 20:25 Tamil youth arrested in Anuradhapura 2009 Feb 11 20:24 9 Tamils arrested in Gampaha 2009 Feb 11 17:20 SLA launch large scale cordon, search in Vadama... 2009 Feb 11 17:03 Village officer reported missing in Batticaloa 2009 Feb 11 11:15 Sri Lanka engaged in deliberate, systematic act... 2009 Feb 11 06:57 Colombo orders all health workers to immediatel... 2009 Feb 11 06:08 ICRC: Vanni dependent on outside aid, shelling ... 2009 Feb 11 05:26 Police arrest Muslim youth in Batticaloa 2009 Feb 11 03:37 'Good old game of Sinhala chauvinism' 2009 Feb 11 02:32 World socialists condemn war as Co-chairs’ mach... 2009 Feb 11 01:35 IDPs in SLA detention camps lack sufficient foo... 2009 Feb 11 01:15 Tigers deny firing at civilians, accuse SLA, ur... 2008: 2008 Feb 11 20:47 Three pronged SLA push thwarted in Pa'ndivirich... 2008 Feb 11 14:42 Karunanidhi condemns Sri Lanka Navy for killing... 2008 Feb 11 13:35 SLA soldier injured in Chengkaladi grenade attack 2008 Feb 11 13:20 Boy shot dead, STF troop injured, in Akkaraipattu 2008 Feb 11 12:35 Fire destroys businesses in Akkaraippatu 2008 Feb 11 11:09 SL Police arrests 7 commuters in Colombo bound ... 2008 Feb 11 08:31 Indian Marxist party shuts door on JVP 2008 Feb 11 08:25 India imparts secret training to SLA 2007: 2007 Feb 11 22:17 Samaraweera returns from Singapore 2007 Feb 11 22:09 Buddhist monks to fast demanding abrogation of CFA 2007 Feb 11 12:55 Auto driver shot dead in Vavuniya 2007 Feb 11 12:45 Two civilians abducted in Jaffna Sunday 2007 Feb 11 12:33 Trader shot dead in Eravur 2007 Feb 11 12:26 Sri Lanka President leaves for Maldives 2007 Feb 11 12:19 Civilians arrested in Kandy, Chilaw police divi... 2007 Feb 11 06:14 Two bodies recovered in Nilaavarai bear signs o... 2007 Feb 11 01:10 Eight "white van" abductions in Jaffna in 3 days 2007 Feb 11 00:01 SLA extends curfew hours in Jaffna 2006: 2006 Feb 11 17:06 Kumarapuram massacre victims remembered 2006 Feb 11 13:58 Boat explosion reported off Mannar, four feared... 2006 Feb 11 13:54 Minister assures phased troop reduction near No... 2006 Feb 11 13:45 Muttur Magistrate visits prison, addresses pris... 2006 Feb 11 13:25 Batticaloa local elections to select 128 counci... 2006 Feb 11 13:14 Vidathaltivu war victims receive income generat... 2006 Feb 11 09:34 Kidnappers release businessman in Colombo 2006 Feb 11 00:52 Building for NE special educational projects op... 2005: 2005 Feb 11 17:55 Colombo should disarm all unauthorized armed gr... 2005 Feb 11 15:17 Police sexual assault on student sparks protest... 2005 Feb 11 15:10 Violence endangering CFA stability, TNA tells A... 2005 Feb 11 14:39 LTTE names Marshall political head for Batti-Am... 2005 Feb 11 11:27 NorthEast Governor visits Kokkilai 2005 Feb 11 10:51 IOM opens shelter for tsunami victims in Muttur 2005 Feb 11 09:55 Akashi to meet Thamilchelvan in Batticaloa 2005 Feb 11 07:46 Government's ability to prevent killings limite... 2005 Feb 11 06:07 Emergency is prelude to war - Vanni MP 2005 Feb 11 03:00 Sri Lanka in danger of losing Tsunami Aid- Prof... 2004: 2004 Feb 11 17:49 Pt. Pedro fishermen bring in poaching Indians 2004 Feb 11 16:43 Kumarapuram massacre victims remembered 2004 Feb 11 15:52 Moragoda resigns from the UNF cabinet 2004 Feb 11 14:55 CWC - UNP talks commence on forming alliance 2004 Feb 11 14:46 SL President dismisses 39 non-cabinet, deputy m... 2004 Feb 11 13:02 Sri Lanka President proposes truce committee 2004 Feb 11 11:46 Former colleague slams Sri Lanka's President 2004 Feb 11 08:51 Court extends enjoining order on TULF 2004 Feb 11 05:42 TEPS calls on people to identify anti-social el... 2003: 2003 Feb 11 19:54 'Mirusuvil massacre a crime against humanity' -... 2003 Feb 11 16:42 "France fully supports the Peace Process" - Fre... 2003 Feb 11 00:49 Court issues warrant on LTTE Nilaveli leader 2002: 2002 Feb 11 20:31 Jaffna travel restriction relaxed -MoD 2002 Feb 11 20:22 SC cancels police promotions by previous govt. 2002 Feb 11 06:09 Tigers say ready to open A9 highway as scheduled 2001: 2001 Feb 11 10:00 Kilinochchi schools face acute teacher shortage 2000: 2000 Feb 11 16:17 Norwegian Foreign Minister to visit Colombo 2000 Feb 11 14:47 NGOs to ADB: Don't invest until war is resolved 2000 Feb 11 04:55 CTTU urges withdrawal of Tamil text book 1999: 1999 Feb 11 20:21 MP criticises president's development policy 1999 Feb 11 18:02 Medical supplies to Vadamaradchi East blocked 1999 Feb 11 16:16 LTTE posters lampoon paramilitaries 1999 Feb 11 13:15 UNP MPs in walkout 1999 Feb 11 11:58 News in Brief: 1999 Feb 11 10:13 Chemmani graves to be exhumed 1999 Feb 11 08:10 TELO funerals amid apprehension 1998: 1998 Feb 11 23:59 Drug shortage spurs Jaffna black market 1998 Feb 11 23:59 Jaffna SLA comment on Kilinochchi battle 1998 Feb 11 23:59 Fishing ban said hampering resettlement 1998 Feb 11 23:59 Disease takes Jaffna toll 1998 Feb 11 23:59 EPDP-PLOTE clash in Jaffna 1998 Feb 11 23:59 Mine hits SLA bus . . . In order for the State in the person of school officials to justify prohibition of a particular expression of opinion, it must be able to show that its action was caused by something more than a mere desire to avoid the discomfort and unpleasantness that always accompany an unpopular viewpoint. Certainly where there is no finding and no showing that engaging in the forbidden conduct would "materially and substantially interfere with the requirements of appropriate discipline in the operation of the school," the prohibition cannot be sustained . . . -Abe Fortas, US Supreme Court Justice Majority Opinion Excerpts, Dec 16, 1965 On Mary Beth Tinker Vs Iowa School officials banning students wearing black arm bands to show opposition to war in Vietnam. Federal Court took the side of school officials, Court of Appeals was divided equally and Supreme Court reversed the decision 7-2.	Know the Etymology: 210 Place Name of the Day: Naalanda The high ground cum low jungle having Naa trees Read more >> [28.01.12] Book documents pre-colonial Tamil connections of New Zealand: “Tamil Imprints in New Zealand” by 87-year-old Eezham Tamil author A.T. Arumugam, now living in New Zealand, re-documents and discusses in detail a bronze bell inscribed in Tamil in c. 14-15 century writing that was in the possession of the native Maori people of New Zealand. Related Story >> [24.01.12] Award winning filmmaker presents documentary on exiled Sinhala, Tamil journalists: ‘Silenced Voices – Tales of Sri Lankan Journalists in Exile’, a new documentary by Norwegian filmmaker Beate Arnestad, is to be pre-premiered in Oslo, Norway, on 09 February. The film features Mr. Bashana Abeywardene, his wife Sharmila Logeswaram, Sonali Wickrematunge and A. Lokeesan, TamilNet wartime correspondent, who was reporting from 2005 to April 2009 from Vanni. Related Story >> [24.01.12] Kalam risks his image in salvaging New Delhi in Tamil Nadu: While India’s former president Abdul Kalam has real work to do in addressing his own Establishment in New Delhi what brought him to genocidal Colombo and its India-partnered colony in the North and East of the island, wonders genocide-affected Eezham Tamils. Related Story >> [22.01.12] TNA should use its Tamil national mandate: Bishop of Mannaar: The aim of the Tamil civil groups’ memorandum dated 13 December 2011 and addressed to the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) was in fact to strengthen the Tamil national polity and its democratically mandated representatives. It was not meant to weaken the TNA. There is a mandate given by the people to the TNA about continuing talks with the SL government and that the TNA in its course of action should stick to its mandate is the thrust of the memorandum, clarified the Bishop of Mannaar, Most Reverend Rayappu Joseph, in a press release issued on last Monday on behalf of the civil society signatories of the memorandum. Related Story >> [21.01.12] Krishna visit patterns Indo-Sri Lanka deceit on Eezham Tamils: There was no enthusiasm or expectation in Jaffna on the recent visit by India's Foreign Minister S.M. Krishna, media circles said. Civil groups in Jaffna also reflected the same opinion. Just as the visits of MK Narayanan and Shiv Shankar Menon patterned the course of the genocidal war, the visits of the Indian dignitaries in the subsequent phase show a pattern in consolidating the structural genocide of the nation of Eezham Tamils in order to facilitate overlapping interests of India's imperialism and the militarized Sinhala state in the island. Related Story >> [19.01.12] Tamil sovereignty alone can check protracted genocide: Jose Maria Sison: “The Eezham people have a very direct obligation of fighting for their own sovereignty against a state that presumes to have a unitary power over them,” stressed veteran Filipino left ideologue, Prof. Jose Maria Sison. In an exclusive interview to TamilNet on Sunday, Prof. Sison spoke on the questions of sovereignty of the Eezham Tamil nation, the protracted nature of genocide that Sri Lanka imposes on Tamils in their homelands, the principled position of leftists on the national question, and on the imperative to look beyond both the human rights and reconciliation paradigm. Related Story >> [17.01.12] Galle literary festival gives mask of normalcy to genocidal Sri Lanka: The Galle Literary Festival, which is scheduled to begin Wednesday is reported to involve diverse participants with the funding from a variety of corporate houses and Western embassies in Colombo. But the prevailing opinion in Eezham Tamil circles is that such occasions and the participation of high profile writers only serve the purpose of providing cultural and ideological legitimacy to the Sri Lankan state and the structural violence it imposes on the Tamil people. Related Story >> [03.01.12] 'Champions of Change': Even as the nation of the Scots enjoys limited autonomy in the United Kingdom, its desire for independence coupled with other political and economic developments compels the leader of the Scottish National Party to optimistically assert that Scotland and other similar small independent nation-states will be the champions of change in the near future. Related Story >> [31.12.11] TamilNet releases LTTE documents of 2006 talks: A set of documents prepared by the LTTE’s Peace Secretariat during Geneva peace talks held in February 2006, in June 2006 in Oslo and in October 2006 in Geneva, some of which have not yet reached public domain, are being released by TamilNet to facilitate a deeper understanding of the peace process and its eventual collapse. While 2011 has been a "year of reports," the UN panel report, Norway’s ‘Pawns of Peace’, the genocide model LLRC report etc., the LTTE documents provide valuable insight into the Tigers' efforts undertaken to fulfill LTTE's commitment to the International Community. Related Story >> [05.12.11] Maathakal protests Sri Lanka’s Naval base: A major coastal village Maathakal in Jaffna staged a protest on Monday against occupying Sri Lanka building an extensive naval base there by confiscating private lands of Eezham Tamils. Maathakal is the closest point of Jaffna to Point Calimere (Koadikkarai) in the Tamil Nadu coast across the Palk Strait. The base is a security threat not only to Eezham Tamils but also to Tamil Nadu as well as to India, but New Delhi and Colombo seem to think Tamils on either side of the Palk Strait as ‘common enemies’, commented a geopolitical analyst in Jaffna. Related Story >> [03.12.11] Wider public participation marks Heroes Day in Tamil Nadu: It became clear on the eve of Heroes Day, Sunday, that ruling circles in India join hands with genocidal Colombo in denying Tamils the right to remember their fallen freedom fighters. Yet the day was observed with a marked positive difference in Tamil Nadu this time. Public and grassroot initiatives replaced political party organized mass gatherings, and there was wider and spontaneous participation of a social cross-section: from workers and farmers to communities in business, education and professions. Related Story >> [30.11.11] Whether history is different to Tamils and Sinhalese, asks Jaffna academic: A single event that took place in the University of Jaffna on the Heroes Day, Sunday, has captivated the minds of Tamils all over the world, more than the diaspora functions marked by ever increasing participation of people but in some instances showing hijack aimed at dividing, capturing and ‘softening’ the struggle by the very forces against whom the spirit of the Day was meant for. Related Story >> [27.11.11] Tamil activists assert sovereignty, declare for plebiscite: Leading Tamil activists of the younger generation in Tamil Nadu, Canada, USA and Switzerland, came out with a declaration on Sunday asserting sovereignty of Eezham Tamils on three counts: historical, earned and remedial. They also declared that international players should stop insisting on united Sri Lanka and drop pretensions of ‘domestic solutions’. Further declarations upheld symbols and expressions of the struggle, urged recognition of all those who laid down their lives for the liberation cause and called upon coordinated global action. Related Story >> [22.11.11] Solheim hijacks thrust of Norway report: Norwegian minister Erik Solheim, while speaking in Oslo 11 November at the release of the report evaluating Norway’s failed peace process in Sri Lanka, tried to hijack the philosophical thrust of the findings of the report and this brought him into confrontation with the evaluation team leader, Gunnar M. Sørbø. Mr. Erik Solheim tried to defend the main criticism in the report and the stand of Sørbø that Norway should have quit the peace process to signal the world of the impending dangers. Related Story >> [16.11.11] India emerges as main designer of ‘Asian Model’ in Norway report: The Norway report on the failed peace in Sri Lanka, concluding that Asian powers in pursuance of military solution were a reason for the failure, cautions that this model of ‘conflict resolution’ will challenge future Norwegian-style mediations. India’s role in the genocidal model of conflict resolution is not adequately discussed in the report, yet bits and pieces in the report along with what transpired in the panel discussion in Oslo on Friday, place India as decisively responsible for the ‘Asian model’ that ended the war in genocide. Related Story >> [14.11.11] International unity on criticism of Sri Lanka’s conduct: Armitage: Expressing dismay at the “chauvinistic attitude” of the Sri Lankan state, former US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage said on Friday the international community was united in its criticism of Sri Lanka’s conduct in the north and east and that SL President Mahinda Rajapaksa would not be welcomed internationally unless conditions there improved. “I don’t think anyone disagrees that the Tamil people have been mistreated and are continuing to lack – across the board – fundamental freedoms, dignity, etc,” Mr. Armitage told the audience. Related Story >> [13.11.11] LTTE losing, SL winning was Norway failing: Norway report team leader: While releasing the evaluation report on Norway’s failed peace process in Sri Lanka on Friday, the team leader of the evaluation panel, Gunnar M. Sørbø, outlining the main findings of the report said “The collapse of talks and the subsequent military victory were as much a story of the LTTE ‘losing’, as of the government ‘winning’, or the Norwegians ‘failing’. Related Story >> [12.11.11] SLMM tilted balance in favour of Sri Lanka, against LTTE: Gajendrakumar Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM), the peace keeping arm of the Norway facilitated peace process in the island, tilted the balance in favour of the Sri Lankan state and against the LTTE, wrote Gajendrakumar Ponnampalam in 2007, in an unpublished research paper on the 2002 Ceasefire Agreement (CFA) he submitted to a foundation in the West. The IC could have used the CFA to pursue conflict resolution by maintaining the balance of power between the parties, but to the contrary it had used the CFA as a ‘counterinsurgency’ tool to reinforce the state and weaken the de facto state, so that the state could pursue yet another military solution to the conflict, he further wrote. Related Story >>
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