Top US official to visit Sri Lanka next week

[TamilNet, Saturday, 20 March 2004, 11:15 GMT]
Mr. Torkel L. Patterson, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South Asian Affairs in the United States Government will visit Sri Lanka as a part of his familiarization tour of the region, said US embassy sources.


Full story >>

Empower TNA to decide next government, Sampanthan tells voters

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 16 March 2004, 11:36 GMT]
"Tamils are in the verge of achieving their legitimate rights after several years of freedom struggle through the military might of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. Hence it is the duty of Tamils to strengthen the hands of LTTE by sending at least twenty-one Tamil National Alliance parliamentarians thus making the TNA as a force to decide the future government," said Mr.R.Sampanthan, TNA leader and the TNA lead candidate for Trincomalee district when addressing a series of election meetings in the LTTE held area villages in Muttur east and Eachilampathu division Sunday evening.


Full story >>

Election was thrust on people by Kumaratunge - Wickremesinghe

[TamilNet, Saturday, 13 March 2004, 02:39 GMT]
Sri Lanka's Prime Minister Mr.Ranil Wickremasinghe addressing a election rally in Kurunagala Friday evening said that Ms.Kumaratunge thrust the general election on the people to cement her political future and to destroy Sri Lanka's welfare, sources said.


Full story >>

Kumaratunge outlines UPFA policy to business leaders

[TamilNet, Saturday, 13 March 2004, 02:21 GMT]
Sri Lanka's President Ms Chandrika Kumaratunge expressed confidence that the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) would enter into democratic political process under the future United Peoples' Freedom Alliance (UPFA) government when she met leaders of business communities including members of legal and medical profession at the Presidential House Friday evening, sources said.


Full story >>

Sri Lanka election violence on the increase

[TamilNet, Saturday, 13 March 2004, 00:49 GMT]
The Police Election Secretariat said Saturday that it receives daily at least ten complaints related to election violence from political parties. From February 17, the first day political parties started submitting their nomination list at the district election offices, until this Friday the Election Secretariat has received 373 complaints, Police sources said.


Full story >>

Election verdict should legitimize ISGA demand - Sampanthan

[TamilNet, Friday, 12 March 2004, 15:12 GMT]
The verdict of the Tamils in the forthcoming general election should legitimize the demand of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam for an Interim Self Governing Authority (ISGA) for the northeast province. All tamil speaking people must support the Tamil National Alliance to capture maximum number of parliamentary seats," said Tamil National Alliance (TNA) leader, Mr.R.Sampanthan, addressing an election meeting in Division No 10 in the Trincomalee town held Thursday evening.
Full story >>

Monks' Sinhala Buddhist call will derail Kumaratunge - NSSP Leader

[TamilNet, Friday, 05 March 2004, 04:23 GMT]
Dr. Vickremabahu Karunarathne, the leader of the leftist Nava Sama Samaja Party (NSSP), when asked if United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) has any chance of getting absolute majority in the 2 April elections said that "with Buddhist Monks contesting separately, openly proposing 'Sinhala Buddhist' dictatorship, it is very unlikely that United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) could become first in any of the districts."


Full story >>

Southern political forces fear TNA's strength - Sampanthan

[TamilNet, Sunday, 29 February 2004, 20:30 GMT]
The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) leader and the lead candidate of the party in the Trincomalee electoral district, Mr.R.Sampanthan, said that southern political forces are jittery that the TNA would be returned with about twenty seats to the new parliament in the April polls as a kingmaker, addressing TNA activists Sunday morning at the Hindu Cultural Hall in the eastern port town.
Full story >>

SLMM head to meet LTTE leadership Saturday

[TamilNet, Friday, 27 February 2004, 18:11 GMT]
The head of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission, Major General (retd.) Trond Furuhovde, is to visit Kilinochchi Saturday to meet the political head of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, Mr.S.P.Thamilchelvan. This will be his first visit to Kilinochchi after he assumed office for the second time on February 1, SLMM sources said.
Full story >>

"UPFA firmly committed to political dialogue with LTTE"

[TamilNet, Friday, 27 February 2004, 12:39 GMT]
“Within a short time of the formation of the Freedom Alliance government President Kumaratunge will call for the recommencement of the peace talks with the LTTE and also propose time frames for solving the problems concerned," said the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) in a press release issued Friday in Colombo.


Full story >>

UPFA prepared to talk to LTTE - Kumaratunge

[TamilNet, Thursday, 26 February 2004, 13:44 GMT]
Sri Lanka's President Ms Chandrika Kumaratunge Thursday afternoon launching the election campaign of the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) at Anuradhapura said she is prepared to commence peace talks with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), according to an evening news bulletin of the State run Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation (SLBC). She, however, added that such talks should be held in an open manner, the news bulletin said.


Full story >>

UPFA, UNP to launch election campaign Thursday

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 25 February 2004, 14:48 GMT]
Two major Sinhala political parties, United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) led by President Ms Chandrika Kumaratunge and United National Party (UNP) led by Prime Minister Mr.Ranil Wickremasinghe are to launch their election campaign with rallies scheduled to be held in Anuradhapura in the north central province and Kandy in central province on February 26 Thursday, political sources said.


Full story >>

Wickremesinghe appeals for renewed mandate for peace

[TamilNet, Sunday, 22 February 2004, 14:39 GMT]
Sri Lanka's Prime Minister Mr.Ranil Wickremesinghe Sunday addressing the special convention of the United National Party (UNP) held at Colombo New Town hall appealed to the voters to give his coalition a fresh mandate with absolute majority that will enable him to take the peace process forward and to build a new nation in the next six years, political sources in Colombo said.


Full story >>

SLMC rank and file in disarray following cross over

[TamilNet, Friday, 20 February 2004, 18:18 GMT]
The rank and file of the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) is in disarray following the formation of a new political party, Muslim National Front (MNF) and three former SLMC parliamentarians joining it, political sources said.


Full story >>

Tribalist irrationality permeates Sinhala political rhetoric - Uyangoda

[TamilNet, Friday, 20 February 2004, 03:31 GMT]
Unless extremely prudently handled, developments surrounding the forthcoming election may set in a new political process in which "Sri Lanka's future as a nation-state unit might be at a great risk" warns Professor Uyangoda, in a sobering analysis of the political campaign which he says is "likely to be full of rhetoric of the retrograde kind," in an opinion column that appears in the Friday edition of the Daily Mirror.


Full story >>

"Sinhala border villagers fear renewed war"- Provincial Minister

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 17 February 2004, 20:26 GMT]
"Sinhalese people in border villages of the northeastern province live in fear of a renewed war following Sri Lanka President Ms Chandrika Kumaratunge's recent action of taking over the three key ministries and the formation of a political alliance between the Sri Lanka Freedom Party and the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna," said a People's Alliance Provincial Minister Mr.K.B.Tennekon Tuesday at an event held at the United National Party (UNP) headquarters Sri Kotha to mark his joining the UNP, media sources said.


Full story >>

SLFP-JVP alliance office bearers announced

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 17 February 2004, 14:09 GMT]
Ms Chandrika Kumaratunge was appointed President of the United Peoples Freedom Front (UPFA) at the first executive committee meeting of the UPFA held Tuesday at the Presidential secretariat. Presidential advisor Mr Anura Bandaranaike and Opposition Leader Mr.Mahinda Rajapakse were appointed national organizers of the UPFA and Mr.Nandana Gunatilake of the JVP was appointed chairman, the State controlled Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation reported in its evening news bulletin Tuesday.


Full story >>

LSSP, CP agree to join SLFP-JVP alliance

[TamilNet, Sunday, 15 February 2004, 17:13 GMT]
Half a century old leftist political parties, Lanka Sama Samaja Party (LSSP) and Communist Party (CP) agreed to join the recently formed United Peoples' Freedom Alliance. Leaders of LSSP and CP are to sign the Memorandum of Understanding in this regard with the leaders UPFA on Tuesday, sources said.


Full story >>

"Tamil party support needed for stable govt"-UNF minister

[TamilNet, Sunday, 15 February 2004, 16:38 GMT]
Senior minister in the United National Front (UNF) government, Dr.Rajitha Senaratne, addressing a meeting in Ratnapura Sunday said that no stable government could be formed after the forthcoming general election without the northeast Tamil parliamentarians and that the United National Party (UNP) is prepared to collaborate with the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) after the forthcoming general election, political sources said.


Full story >>

SLMM new head to visit Jaffna

[TamilNet, Sunday, 15 February 2004, 12:48 GMT]
The Norwegian head of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) Major General (retd) Trond Furuhovde is scheduled to visit Jaffna district Monday. This would be his first visit to Jaffna following his assumption of duties as SLMM head on February 1st for the second time after replacing Major General Triggve Teleffsen, sources said
Full story >>