Children's Home Director, aide arrested on child abuse charge

[TamilNet, Saturday, 17 July 2004, 14:46 GMT]
The administration of ''Anpu Illam,'' a leading institution providing shelter for children, majority of them victims of war in the Trincomalee district, has been handed over to the North East Provincial Department of Probation and Child Care on the orders of Trincomalee Magistrate and Additional Judge Mr.S.Thiagendran following complaints of child abuse and other irregularities, legal sources said. The Director and one of his aides have been arrested on charges of child abuse, according to the same legal sources.
Full story >>

New Sri Lanka Army Commander assumes duties

[TamilNet, Thursday, 01 July 2004, 14:06 GMT]
Lt. Gen. Shantha Kottegoda who took his duties as the 17th Army Commander today (Thursday) admitted at a press conference that the statement by the Media Minister Mangala Samaraweera that Army personnel were involved in Karuna’s issue, was “an embarrassment to the Army”.


Full story >>

UPFA renews attempt to woo CWC support

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 30 June 2004, 05:30 GMT]
Leaders of the minority United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) government Tuesday held talks with Mr.Arumugam Thondaman, leader of the Ceylon Workers Congress (CWC) in a fresh bid to secure majority in parliament when it is scheduled to meet on July 20, political sources said.
Full story >>

Monks urge Sinhala unity over Karuna

[TamilNet, Sunday, 27 June 2004, 11:19 GMT]
Sri Lanka’s hardline monks’ party, Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU), has called on the Sri Lankan government and opposition to work together in supporting the renegade LTTE commander, Karuna, “in the interests of national security.”
Full story >>

SLA role in renegade affair said scuttling peace effort

[TamilNet, Saturday, 26 June 2004, 18:24 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers will take up the question of the Sri Lanka army backing renegade commander ‘Karuna’ with the Norwegian facilitators when they meet them next, LTTE sources in Kilinochchi said Saturday. “The Sri Lankan government should come clean on this matter if it wants to preserve the bona fide on which the peace talks are based," they said.
Full story >>

SL Government admits SLA complicity in Karuna affair

[TamilNet, Thursday, 24 June 2004, 10:39 GMT]
Contradicting Defense Secretary Cyril Herath who denied Monday that Sri Lanka Army (SLA) gave shelter to renegade commander Muralitharan (alias Karuna), Information Minister of the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) government, Mangala Samaraweera, admitted to the press today that the SLA helped Karuna "escape and wage a covert war of attrition against the Tamil Tigers" according to a BBC report from Colombo today.
Full story >>

Anti-Conversion Bill to be tabled in Sri Lanka Parliament

[TamilNet, Friday, 18 June 2004, 00:36 GMT]
Based on a proposal submitted by Buddha Sasana Minister Mr.Ratnasiri Wickremanayake, the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) government Friday decided to table a draft bill in Sri Lanka Parliament prohibiting forcible conversion of religion, UPFA spokesman Mr. Mangala Samaraweera said at a press briefing.
Full story >>

No ISGA outside parliamentary procedure - UPFA govt.

[TamilNet, Thursday, 17 June 2004, 16:08 GMT]
Sri Lanka's Media Minister and United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) government's new cabinet spokesman Mr. Mangala Samaraweera, Friday rejected reports in a section of the media that the President was exploring the possibility of establishing Interim Self Governing Authority (ISGA) in the northeast province outside parliamentary procedure as baseless. '' There is absolutely no truth in such reports,'' Mr. Mangala Samaraweera said at the cabinet press briefing.
Full story >>

Sri Lanka President urged to establish ISGA immediately

[TamilNet, Thursday, 10 June 2004, 20:33 GMT]
The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Thursday told Sri Lanka President Ms Chandrika Kumaratunge that Tamils couldn't depend any more on the Sinhala political leadership to enjoy their rights. ''The Interim Self Governing Authority (ISGA) should be established in the northeast without delay so that Tamils could enjoy self rule in their homeland,'' Mr.R.Sampanthan, leader of the TNA parliamentary group, told the President during a discussion held Thursday night in the Presidential House at the latter's invitation, TNA sources said.
Full story >>

'Committee to sort out differences in UPFA'

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 01 June 2004, 18:31 GMT]
The leaders of Sri Lanka Freedom party (SLFP) and the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), the two major constituents of ruling United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA), Tuesday night agreed at a discussion to appoint a committee to sort out the differences that have arisen in implementing the Memorandum of Understanding signed by the two parties, sources said.
Full story >>

Parliament elects UPFA Deputy Speaker

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 18 May 2004, 07:27 GMT]
The Sri Lanka's Parliament Tuesday unanimously elected Mr.Geethanjana Gunawardene of the ruling United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) as Deputy Speaker and Mr. Murugan Sachchithanandan of the Ceylon Workers Congress (CWC) Deputy Chairman of Committees at its second sitting of the first session held Tuesday morning.
Full story >>

Elilan meets Sri Lanka Security Forces Commanders

[TamilNet, Sunday, 09 May 2004, 14:43 GMT]
Mr.C. Elilan, new Trincomalee district political head of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Sunday morning held discussion with the Trincomalee heads of Sri Lanka Army, Sri Lanka Navy and the Sri Lanka Police in the office of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) in Trincomalee, security sources said.


Full story >>

JVP politburo meets to decide on ministerial dispute

[TamilNet, Monday, 26 April 2004, 16:26 GMT]
The politburo of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) began its crucial discussion Monday evening on the alternative suggestions submitted by Sri Lanka's President, Ms. Chandrika Kumaratunge, in regard to the allocation of Mahaveli Development Ministry to JVP, political sources said.
Full story >>

SLFP-JVP close to resolving Mahaveli Ministry row

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 21 April 2004, 07:50 GMT]
Senior leaders of the United Peoples Freedom Alliance Wednesday expressed optimism that the three week old quarrel between the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) and Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) regarding the allocation of Mahaweli Development ministry to the JVP minister designate for Agriculture is likely to be resolved this evening, political sources said.
Full story >>

JVP boycotts UPFA cabinet swearing in ceremony

[TamilNet, Saturday, 10 April 2004, 13:41 GMT]
The first cabinet of the United Peoples’ Freedom Alliance (UPFA) government was sworn in Saturday evening in the President’s House with no live coverage by the State electronic media. The leaders and ministers designate of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), major constituent of the UPFA, boycotted the event due to differences of opinion over the allocation of subjects to ministries designated for them, informed political sources in Colombo said.


Full story >>

32 member UPFA Cabinet to be sworn in on Saturday

[TamilNet, Thursday, 08 April 2004, 17:41 GMT]
A thirty-two member cabinet of the United People's Freedom Alliance is likely to be sworn in Saturday, sources in Colombo said. A conference of leaders of constituent parties of the UPFA was held Thursday with President Ms Chandrika Kumaratunge in the chair and the allocation of ministries has been finalized, government sources said Thursday.
Full story >>

JVP for elections -Amarasingha

[TamilNet, Thursday, 29 January 2004, 14:29 GMT]
Leader of the Marxist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), Mr. Somawansa Amarasingha, said Thursday his party is for holding general election in Sri Lanka soon, addressing a massive public meeting of the new alliance between the JVP and President Kumaratunga's Sri Lanka Freedom Party in Colombo.
Full story >>

Anura Bandaranaike tipped to become SLFP-JVP alliance leader

[TamilNet, Sunday, 18 January 2004, 14:40 GMT]
The prospective leader of the new political alliance to be formed between the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) and the Sinhala nationalist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) party Mr.Anura Bandaranaike said Sunday that "the formation of the new political group would be the beginning of the country's long political journey towards solving Sri Lanka's problems and for ensuring peace and justice for all."


Full story >>

2003: The year in review

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 31 December 2003, 18:58 GMT]
The widespread optimism on peace that greeted the dawn of 2003 has evaporated and the power struggle between Sri Lanka's Prime Minister and President that threatens the peace process now occupies the center stage of politics in Colombo. High Security Zones (HSZ) in Jaffna continue to deny displaced Tamils their fundamental rights. Colombo's unwillingness and inability to disburse funds stalls development and rehabilitation in NorthEast, as international aid remains blocked, awaiting concrete signs of progress in peace.
Full story >>

Table Tennis tournaments begin in Trincomalee

[TamilNet, Thursday, 25 December 2003, 16:17 GMT]
Four-day North-East and All Island Table Tennis tournaments for the year 2003, based on the theme " Peace through Sports," began in Trincomalee Sunday at the Hindu Cultural hall under the aegis of the Asian German Sports Exchange Programme in collaboration with the Table Tennis Association of Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka Schools Table Tennis Association, Trincomalee District Table Tennis Association, Eastern Province Table Tennis Association and the Sri Lanka Police Department in Trincomalee.
Full story >>