"Separation inevitable if power continues to polarize with ethnic hegemony" - Mano Ganesan

[TamilNet, Thursday, 11 October 2007, 13:07 GMT]
Mano Ganesan MP, the leader of the Western Province People's Front (WPPF) and the convener of the Civil Monitoring Committee (CMC), engaged in monitoring abductions, addressing the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Louise Arbour, at the UN office in Colombo, on Thursday, said that the Tamils would be forced to seek separation as the only alternative if the Sri Lankan government failed to satisfy the "Sri Lankan dream," which he described as a dreamland with political power sharing between all the ethnic communities, where there are no places for war, abductions, extra judicial killings and where there is no room for polarization of political power with ethnic hegemony.
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FMM condemns expulsion of British media team

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 October 2007, 09:21 GMT]
"Jaffna is one of the most dangerous places in the world today for media and journalism," said Free Media Movement (FMM), a Colombo based media watchdog, stating it was appalled by the gross violation of journalists' rights by the military command in Jaffna in expelling three journalists last week. The journalists from the British Quicksilver Media were traveling in Sri Lanka to produce a documentary for Channel 4 television in UK.
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Kilinochchi protest rally condemns Fr.Pakiyaranjith's killing

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 02 October 2007, 11:05 GMT]
More than 2500 people joined in a protest rally held Monday afternoon 2:00 p.m. in Kilinochchi condemning the brutal killing of Rev.Fr.Nicholaspillai Pakiyaranjith, Mannar Coordinator for the International Humanitarian Organization, Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS), by an alleged Sri Lanka Army Deep Penetration Unit (DPU) on 26 th September, and the killing of number of other humanitarian workers in North and East recently.
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2 SLAF troops injured in Vavuniyaa

[TamilNet, Monday, 01 October 2007, 16:30 GMT]
Unidentified persons triggered a claymore device Monday morning at Chaa'lampaiku'lam area along Vavuniyaa-Mannar road seriously injuring two Sri Lanka Air Force troops in a Buffel Armoured Personnel Carrier, on their way to Vavuniyaa from SLAF Poovaransangku'lam base. A civilian riding bicycle along the road sustained injuries.
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British oil firms to explore Mannar amid UK ‘worry’ over rights

[TamilNet, Monday, 01 October 2007, 13:10 GMT]
British oil companies are to carry out oil explorations in Sri Lanka, press reports quoted the country’s Development and Investment minister, Sarath Amunagama, as saying. The agreement was reached following a series of high-level discussions he held with leading oil companies during a visit to London, the LankaTribune reported. Meanwhile, describing the human rights situation in Sri Lanka as “deeply worrying”, British Development Trade and Development minister, Gareth Thomas, said his government was pressing Sri Lanka to respect human rights.
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Explosives recovered in Mannaar

[TamilNet, Monday, 01 October 2007, 04:20 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Army (SLA) Saturday evening seized a consignment of explosives identified as gelignite sticks concealed in the rear portion of a car at Sirunaavatkulam army checkpoint in Mannar. Three suspects were taken in for questioning.
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Thousands mourn slain priest in Mannaar

[TamilNet, Thursday, 27 September 2007, 20:51 GMT]
Mannaar city stood at standstill and people flocked to the entrance of the city Thursday at 1:10 p.m. while the remains of Rev. Fr. Nicholaspillai Packiyaranjith, the Mannar district coordinator of Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS), killed allegedly by the Sri Lanka Army Deep Penetration Unit (DPU), reached the city. The reamins were escorted by Mannar Bishop Rt. Rev. Rayappu Joseph from Vavuniyaa to Bishop's House in Mannaar as thousands mourned along the way from Murungkan to Mannar. The priest was killed Wednesday when he was taking humanitarian supplies to displaced children in Liberation Tigers of Tamileelam (LTTE) controlled areas of Mannar district.
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LTTE condemns killing of Rev. Fr. Packiyaranjith

[TamilNet, Thursday, 27 September 2007, 10:27 GMT]
Displacing the people by deliberate shelling and then killing the humanitarian workers who rush to assist the displaced is a strategy of "genocide," charged the Political Wing of the Liberation Tigers of Tamileelam (LTTE) in a statement issued on Thursday, condemning the killing of Rev Fr Packiyaranjith on Wednesday by the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) Deep Penetration Unit (DPU). Expressing "deep shock and sadness" at the death of a humanitarian worker and a religious clergy, the LTTE urged the International Community to strongly condemn the killing and other brutalities against humanitarian workers.
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Monks attend Mannaar peace march

[TamilNet, Saturday, 22 September 2007, 05:58 GMT]
Anti-War National Front and Felix Organization organized a peace procession in Mannaar town Saturday morning starting in front of the Mannaar courthouse and ending at St.Sebastian Church premises via main road. More than one hundred delegates comprising of Buddhist priests and peace activists from Anuradhapura participated in the procession and public meeting with their counterparts in Mannaar town.
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Sign of the times in Tamil Nadu

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 18 September 2007, 00:40 GMT]
Veteran Tamil Nadu activist Pazha Nedumaran’s attempted crossing of the Palk Straits in a bid to deliver emergency relief to Sri Lanka’s Tamils was thwarted last week when he and hundreds of volunteers were arrested. Whilst the attempted crossing and its ‘failure’ has been dismissed, especially in Sri Lanka’s south, as a stunt by mavericks on the fringe of Tamil Nadu’s politics, the event has both highlighted and boosted resurgent support in the south Indian state for the Sri Lankan Tamils’ cause.
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SLN says Tamil Nadu fishermen violated Sri Lanka's maritime sovereignty

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 12 September 2007, 17:45 GMT]
Ten Tamil Nadu fishermen arrested Tuesday by the Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) troopers for allegedly violating Sri Lanka's maritime sovereignty by straying into Sri Lanka's waters were ordered to stay out of the sea until September 20 by Mannar District Judge Mr.T.J.Pirapaharan.
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SL Ministers visit PTA detainees in Boosa

[TamilNet, Saturday, 08 September 2007, 01:01 GMT]
A delegation of Sri Lankan Ministers and high-ranking police officials visited 118 Tamil detainees arrested under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), now held in the Boosa Detention Center situated in the Southern province, Friday morning.
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Ex-Policeman shot dead in Mannaar

[TamilNet, Saturday, 08 September 2007, 00:12 GMT]
An ex- policeman was shot dead by unidentified gunmen at Ezhuththoor in Mannar district around 6:15 p.m. Friday. Mohan, a Tamil, originally from Batticaloa and married in Mannaar, was at his home when gunmen called him by name, and when he responded shot him at point blank range and escaped.
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SL Ministers visit PTA detainees

[TamilNet, Friday, 07 September 2007, 01:01 GMT]
A team of Sri Lankan Ministers and high-ranking officials of the Sri Lanka Police visited Friday morning the Tamil detainees arrested under the draconian Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), and kept for months without any inquires in the Boossa Detention Center situated in the deep South. 118 Tamil detainees including five women arrested in the districts of Colombo, Monaragala, Trincomalee, Jaffna and Batticaloa are also part of the detainees kept at the Boosa camp.
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India, Sri Lanka form joint defence panel - report

[TamilNet, Thursday, 06 September 2007, 18:15 GMT]
India and Sri Lanka have formed a high-level, joint defence panel following a meeting in New Delhi between top officials of the two countries on September 3 and 4, the Hindustan Times reported Wednesday quoting a release from the Sri Lankan Presidential Secretariat.
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Amnesty calls for impartial, international investigations on escalating Human Rights violations in Sri Lanka

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 05 September 2007, 08:02 GMT]
"There are grounds to fear a return to a pattern of the security forces involvement in extrajudicial killing of journalists and others," the Amnesty International noted in a public statement issued on Tuesday charging that the national Human Rights monitoring mechanisms, including the Commission of Inquiry (CoI), lacked capacity to launch prompt, impartial and independent investigations. The Amnesty called on the members of the United Nations Human Rights Council, before the sixth session of the Council, scheduled to be held between 10 - 28 September, to exert pressure on Colombo to invite an international monitoring mechanism to independently investigate rights violations in the country.
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Civilian casualties in SLA Musali operation increase to 13

[TamilNet, Sunday, 02 September 2007, 20:12 GMT]
Highly decomposed bodies of two children, four women including a 19-year-old girl, and four men, were identified among the twleve civilian victims killed in Sri Lanka Army Deep Penetration Unit (DPU) attack on Saturday at Paasiththen'ral in Musali division in Mannaar district. Two bodies are yet to be identified.
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Hope amid tragedy

[TamilNet, Saturday, 01 September 2007, 19:40 GMT]
Antony, a six year old boy lost his leg, his 4-year old brother Reginathan was killed, his mother and 6-month old brother were injured, and his father Jegan lost his leg during 02 January attack by Kfir fast attack aircrafts of the Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) at the coastal hamlet of Padakuththu’rai in Iluppaikadavai, Mannar town. Jegan lost four of his siblings. Amidst this tragedy, Antony showed remarkable resilience and a unique enthusiasm for his school work when TamilNet visited the family for an interview this week.
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Veerapuram residents threatened by Sinhalese Mob

[TamilNet, Thursday, 30 August 2007, 00:47 GMT]
Tamil civilians in the neighbouring village of Veerapuram have received death threats from a group of Sinhalese after the shooting death of four home guards and a bus driver in U'lukku'lam in Vavuniyaa on 20 August by unidentified gunmen, sources said. The group has vowed to kill three times the number killed in U'lukku'lam in Vavuniyaa.
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LTTE helps Padakuththu'rai bombing victim

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 29 August 2007, 10:33 GMT]
S.Thangan, Deputy Head of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eeelam (LTTE) political wing, gave a Tamil Eelam Certificate of deposit for Rs.100,000 to the six year old boy who lost his right leg during 02 January attack by Kfir fast attack aircrafts of the Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) in Padakuththu'rai Tuesday morning. The event was held at the child's home in Kumizhamunai, Naachchikkudaa, Poonakari. The financial assistance for the child was provided from LTTE leader, Velupillai Pirapaharan’s Trust Fund.
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