US treaty seen encouraging subjugation of Tamils

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 29 May 2002, 18:34 GMT]
Mr. Joseph Pararajasingham, senior Tamil National Alliance MP for Batticaloa told a US official Wednesday that a proposed defence treaty between Washington and Colombo would support the majority Sinhalese "continue the discrimination and subjugation of the Tamil people." The US and the Sri Lankan government are scheduled to sign the Acquisition and Cross Servicing Agreement in July. Sinhala nationalists have welcomed the treaty.
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Posters in Colombo denounce 'Norway-Ranil plot'

[TamilNet, Sunday, 19 May 2002, 22:21 GMT]
Sinhala nationalist groups in Sri Lanka this week stepped up their campaign against Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe's attempt to strike a peace deal with the Liberation Tigers. Thousands of posters put up all over the city by one group say, "Let's defeat the Norway-Ranil plan to hand over the country to the Tigers".
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SLA, SLN said promoting fishing by Sinhalese in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Friday, 17 May 2002, 17:39 GMT]
The Federation of fisheries co-operative societies of Vadamaradchi complained to the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission in Jaffna Friday that the Sri Lankan armed forces are backing Sinhala fishermen to engage in deep sea fishing off the coast of the northern peninsula while hindering local fishermen from plying their trade freely.
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Support urged for LTTE’s political efforts

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 15 May 2002, 00:18 GMT]
The leader of Sri Lanka’s largest Muslim party Monday slammed opponents of the Norwegian peace initiative and urged support for the Liberation Tigers’ political efforts, the Thinakkuaral reported Tuesday. Speaking in the parliament, Mr. Rauf Hakeem, leader of the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC), urged political parties to support efforts by the LTTE leader, Vellupillai Pirapaharan, to end the island’s ethnic conflict, the Tamil language daily said.
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Thamilchelvan says A9 should be open 24 hours, slams SLN

[TamilNet, Thursday, 09 May 2002, 06:57 GMT]
"The Liberation Tigers want the A9 road to be open 24 hours, on all days of the week, to ensure the free flow of goods between Jaffna and the other parts of the island," Mr. S. P Thamilchelvan, the head of the LTTE's political division, told TamilNet Thursday.
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LTTE slams "grave" truce breach by Navy

[TamilNet, Sunday, 05 May 2002, 10:19 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers Sunday accused the Sri Lankan Navy of a “grave and serious violation” of the indefinite ceasefire when gunboats destroyed several civilian fishing vessels and killed two Muslim fishermen in the seas near Vaharai, Batticaloa on Wednesday. The Sri Lankan Navy is “deliberately creating conflictual situations to disrupt the peace process,” the LTTE said. “We call upon the Sri Lanka government to prevail upon the naval authorities to abandon its hostile attitude and strictly follow the peace agreement,” the Tigers said in a statement.
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Tamil journalists still face danger - RSF

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 01 May 2002, 19:02 GMT]
The Reporters Sans Frontiers, the French media watchdog, said in its annual report on press freedom released Wednesday that working conditions for Tamil journalists remain very dangerous in Sri Lanka, especially when they report on human rights violations. "They are easily accused of supporting the Tamil Tigers guerrilla movement. The 1998 Emergency Law allows security forces to arrest anyone suspected of maintaining relations with this banned separatist organisation. But how can anyone work in the north and east of the country without having contacts with the Tamil Tigers, who are everywhere?" the RSF report said.
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Sinhala nationalists plan more protests

[TamilNet, Thursday, 25 April 2002, 14:21 GMT]
(News Feature) Efforts by Sinhala nationalists to mobilise public opposition to the Norwegian peace initiative are continuing with three opposition parties planning a joint protest campaign against Oslo's efforts and the division of the country, press reports said Thursday.
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Monks protest against peace deal

[TamilNet, Monday, 22 April 2002, 19:29 GMT]
Hundreds of Buddhist monks protested against peace talks between Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe's government and the Liberation Tigers in downtown Colombo Monday. "The interim administration is a ploy to hand over the northeast to the Tigers. The United National Front government is betraying the Sinhalese", said a spokes person for the protesting monks.
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Curfew clamped on Muslim town, two killed

[TamilNet, Friday, 05 April 2002, 18:29 GMT]
At least two Muslim youth were shot dead and several were wounded when Police opened fire Friday afternoon around 3 to quell clashes between Muslims and Sinhalese in the predominantly Muslim coastal town of Beruwela, about 55 km south of Colombo. The town has been placed under dusk to dawn curfew and the army has been called in, police sources said.
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Fifty thousand at Trinco 'Pongu Tamil'

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 19 March 2002, 16:57 GMT]
(News Feature) More than fifty thousand people thronged the eastern port town of Trincomalee to attend the 'Pongu Tamil' (Tamil upsurge) rally held Tuesday, urging the Sri Lankan government to lift the ban on the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), and to recognise the Tamil people's right to self-determination.
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"Hill country Tamils support NE peace efforts" -Thondaman

[TamilNet, Sunday, 17 March 2002, 21:46 GMT]
"The upcountry Tamils would extend their wholehearted support to the northeast Tamil to win their legitimate rights," declared Mr.Arumugam Thondaman, Minister of the Estate Infrastructure and Housing Development addressing the mammoth rally held Sunday at Nuwaraeliya. Earlier thousands of upcountry Tamils participated in a peace walk, which was organized to express support to the United National Front government's peace efforts and the cease-fire agreement signed by the Prime Minister, Mr.Ranil Wickremasinghe, and the LTTE leader, Mr.Velupillai Pirapaharan.
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"Tamil teacher vacancies being filled by Sinhalese" -CTTU

[TamilNet, Sunday, 17 March 2002, 15:52 GMT]
The Ceylon Tamil Teachers Union (CTTU) Sunday blamed the Education Ministry for filling vacancies exist in Tamil medium schools in provinces ,except Northeast, in the country with Sinhalese teachers who have been found excess in Sinhala schools. "Ministry officials in Colombo are adopting this ruse to show the World Bank (WB) that no excess Sinhala teachers are employed in Sinhala schools," said Mr.T.Mahasivam, General Secretary of the CTTU.
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"Ministry discriminates Tamil medium teachers" - CTTU

[TamilNet, Friday, 15 March 2002, 19:13 GMT]
The Ceylon Tamil Teachers' Union (CTTU) has informed the United National Front (UNF) government that it would launch trade union action if its fifteen demands are not met by March 25. The demands included that the Ministry of Human Resources Development, Education and Cultural Affairs should take immediate steps to stop all discriminatory acts of the Education Services Board (ESB) against the interests of Tamil medium teachers in the country. The Education Services Board comes under the purview of the Public Services Commission.
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HC rejects confession, acquits PTA accused

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 March 2002, 22:14 GMT]
"The court has come to a conclusion that the confession purported to have been made by the accused was obtained by the Police on the promise that he could be released once he signed the confession recorded in the Sinhala language. Hence the Court holds that the confession of the accused was not a voluntary one and rejects it," said the Eastern High Court Judge Mr.J.Visvanathan Wednesday when acquitting the accused in a case indicted under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA).
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Sihala Urumaya urges President to nullify MoU

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 26 February 2002, 20:18 GMT]
The Sihala Urumaya (SU), the hard-line Sinhala nationalist party, declared Tuesday that it would launch a campaign among the Sinhalese to urge President Chandrika Kumaratunga to use her executive powers to invalidate the cease-fire agreement between the United National Front government and the LTTE. Mr. Tilak Karunaratne, leader of the Sihala Urumaya (SU), addressing a press conference in Colombo Tuesday said that his party has decided to file a case on Thursday in the Court of Appeal seeking the nullification of the MoU and the cease-fire agreement as these, according to him have contravened the Constitution of Sri Lanka.
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Norway announces permanent ceasefire in Sri Lanka

[TamilNet, Friday, 22 February 2002, 10:16 GMT]
The Norwegian government Friday declared the commencement from Saturday of a permanent ceasefire between the Sri Lankan government and the Liberation Tigers. In a statement, Jan Petersen, Foreign Minister of Norway, said his government had been asked to make public the agreement signed by LTTE leader Vellupillai Pirapaharan and Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.
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TNA appeals to PA, JVP to abandon chauvinist stance

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 20 February 2002, 14:43 GMT]
The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Wednesday made a passionate plea to the Sri Lanka's main opposition party, the People's Alliance (PA) and the Marxist Janata Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) to conduct themselves with the a greater sense of responsibility and look upon peace as some thing very sacred which this country can no longer fail to achieve. "Both PA and JVP should act with a better understanding of the real ground situation in regard to the preservation of democracy and the democratic rights, particularly of Tamil people. Otherwise you would be driving the Tamil people to a position where they would think and come to a conclusion that the parliament in Sri Lanka is not at all concerned about their being afforded the opportunity of exercising their democratic rights," said Mr.R.Sampanthan, Tamil National Alliance parliamentary group leader speaking during the debate on the amended draft bill of Local Government Ordinance.
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JVP criticised for sabotaging peace efforts

[TamilNet, Sunday, 17 February 2002, 19:44 GMT]
The Colombo based Sinhalese weekly 'Hiru' has criticised the Marxist Janata Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) for its chauvinistic stance on the current peace initiatives by the United National Front government. "The JVP has violated all socialist norms by keeping silent on the political and economic rights of the Tamils in the Northeast province", the paper said in its political column Sunday.
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JVP steps up protests against autonomy for Tamils

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 29 January 2002, 17:27 GMT]
Hundreds of Janata Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) cadres and activists demonstrated Tuesday in Colombo suburbs against granting regional autonomy to Tamils in Sri Lanka. The JVP emerged as a powerful third force in Sinhala politics with sixteen MPs at the general elections on 5 December last year. The JVP, a self styled radical Marxist party that draws on Sinhala nationalist sentiments to augment its popularity, says that it will oppose tooth and nail any solution to the ethnic conflict in the island based on federalism.
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