US Senators call for immediate ceasefire, international oversight of detention camps

[TamilNet, Friday, 13 March 2009, 02:15 GMT]
A bipartisan group of seven senior U.S. Senators in a letter to Foreign Secretary Hilary Clinton blamed the Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers for the "impending catastrophe," and said: "The situation in Sri Lanka is unacceptable and must be remedied as quickly as possible. We commend your recent statement with UK Foreign Minister David Milliband that called on the government and the LTTE to adhere to a ceasefire, allow access to humanitarian agencies, and resume political discussions to bring the long-standing ethnic conflict to an end. An enduring peace can be achieved only through a political solution that treats the Tamil minority as equal citizens under the law. Without such an agreement, the violence will only continue."
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EU Parliament passes significant resolution

[TamilNet, Thursday, 12 March 2009, 21:43 GMT]
The EU Parliament Thursday passed a resolution, with a large majority, calling for immediate ceasefire between the Sri Lanka Army and Liberation Tigers of Tamileelam in order to allow the civilian population to leave the combat zone. Condemning all acts of violence against civilians in the safe zone and expressing serious concern for the plight of the people in the refugee camps run by the Sri Lankan government, the EU Parliament demanded full and unhindered access to international and national humanitarian organisations, as well as journalists to the combat zone and to the refugee camps.
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SLTB bus burnt down in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Thursday, 12 March 2009, 14:28 GMT]
A gang of unidentified men in military uniform burnt down a Sri Lanka Transport Board bus after ordering out the 50 passengers, conductor and the driver Thursday around 2:00 a.m at Aalangku’lam junction in Vaazhzichcheanai police division in Batticaloa district, sources in Batticaloa said. This act of arson may have been carried out as an attempt to create rifts between the Tamil, Muslim communities by some political forces, following the bomb blast in Akuressa in the Southern Province Tuesday, residents of Batticaloa said.
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LTTE asks whether UN abets Colombo discrediting combatants

[TamilNet, Thursday, 12 March 2009, 11:04 GMT]
Liberation Tigers of Tamileelam (LTTE) Puthukkudiyiruppu political head C. Ilamparithi categorically denied Wednesday the misuse of a high energy food sent for children by UNICEF in June 2007 by diverting the therapeutic food to the use of LTTE cadres. Based on a report of Colombo alleging the 'discovery' of the said food samples in the belongings of a dead LTTE cadre, the Colombo UN office on Tuesday came out with a statement deploring the diversion of its assistance meant for severely malnourished children.
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Menon wants civilians issue and war ending in Colombo’s favour

[TamilNet, Thursday, 12 March 2009, 10:32 GMT]
The Indian Foreign Secretary Shiv Shankar Menon, has said in Washington that “civilians caught in the war should be safely moved to government-controlled areas”, PTI reported Thursday. Wrapping up his four days US visit and briefing that both India and the US have similar approaches to address the issue in Sri Lanka, he envisaged rehabilitation, reconstruction and building up normal economic life of people “once these areas are cleared or under the government control.” He also said on the need “to bring in the kind of the political steps including devolution”, according to the PTI report. Whatever Menon said in Washington doesn’t significantly differ from the verbal stance adopted by Mahinda Rajapaksa government, aiming for victory and subjugation of Tamils, said political observers in Colombo.
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Jaffna youth reported missing in Colombo

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 11 March 2009, 16:39 GMT]
The mother of a youth from Jaffna lodged a complaint with Human Rights Commission (HRC) Jaffna office that her son had gone missing in Colombo since Saturday from the lodge he was staying in. He had left to Colombo 20 days ago to travel to a European country and the manager of the lodge had informed that the youth had not rerturned after leaving the lodge Saturday around 5:00 p.m, the mother said in her complaint.
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Tamil lady teacher abducted in Colombo

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 11 March 2009, 11:39 GMT]
Unidentified armed men arriving in a white van at the house of a Tamil lady teacher serving at Rajagiriya Roman Catholic School in Colombo Tuesday evening at Wellawathe forcibly abducted her, according to complaint lodged with Deputy Minister P. Rathakrishnan by her relatives.
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Knowing folly

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 11 March 2009, 02:12 GMT]
The pleading tone of the US Ambassador in Colombo, Robert Blake, even in selling what is already existing or is in proposal, last Friday, show the mood of Sinhala chauvinism in the South, living in the euphoria of ‘victory’ and delusions of ‘post-LTTE’ politics, writes Opinion Columnist Chivanadi. “A striking note of the ambassador’s speech was the importance he gave to the electoral process in ending the conflict.” It is ‘knowing folly’ of Mr. Blake to paint a picture of hope on the end of conflict through electoral process in Sri Lanka, after weakening the Tamil fighting force, he says.
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Diaspora prepares to send relief to forsaken civilians in Vanni

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 10 March 2009, 23:47 GMT]
The Tamil diaspora in Britain is organising a direct 'mercy mission' taking food and medicine to the civilians of Vanni, forsaken by the conscience of the International Community, said Dr. V. Arudkumar from London, on Tuesday. Prominent humanitarian personalities are expected to participate in this mission. The expedition will be supported and participated by diaspora Tamil professionals in the medical field.
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Hillary, Menon discuss Sri Lanka

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 10 March 2009, 19:26 GMT]
US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton and visiting Indian Foreign Secretary Shiv Shankar Menon met for 45 minutes in Washington, Monday. “A discussion of one regional issue, in particular, was Sri Lanka -- the importance of trying to find a way to make sure that whatever happens in the armed conflict, that there is a political settlement in the future that both the US and India can help create, and participate in", reports Rediff News Tuesday, citing Administrative sources in Washington.
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18 Tamil youths arrested in outskirts of Colombo

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 10 March 2009, 12:30 GMT]
Sri Lanka police and home guards arrested eighteen Tamil youths in a joint search conducted Monday in Panadura, Pandura Nalloor, Kalutura and Minuwangoda areas in the outskirts of Colombo, according to complaints made to Deputy Minister P. Rathakrishnan by the relatives of the arrested youths. Five of the youths arrested are from Jaffna and the rest are from upcountry, Panadura police said.
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Sri Lankan cluster shelling kills 129 civilians within 7 hours

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 10 March 2009, 10:55 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) fired artillery shells fitted with cluster munitions and fire-bombs into civilian 'safety zone' killing at least 129 civilians between 2:30 a.m. and 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday. Around 200 civilians were wounded. 300 tarpaulin huts burned down to ashes in Multi-Barrel Rocket Launcher (MBRL) fired rockets. The medical store at Valaignarmadam has sustained damage and the son of a doctor was reported killed there, according to initial reports. A local NGO official, who was coordinating the rescue of the wounded described the carnage as "Colombo’s show of open mockery at international concern," reports TamilNet's Vanni correspondent. "The attack was criminally deliberate as it was timed for the aftermath of a mini cyclone and floods, at the stranded civilians," the NGO official said.
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Police station opened in SLA occupied village in Mannaar

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 10 March 2009, 07:09 GMT]
Sri Lanka Police key officials participated in the official opening of a police station Monday around 10:00 a.m. in Muzhangkaavil village, which was earlier under the control of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in Mannaar district. Four police stations were established last year later part in Chilaavaththu’rai, Madu Church, Vidaththaltheevu, Illuppaikkadavai and the one established this year are the five police stations opened in Mannaar district. Civilians are not allowed to enter these villages.
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Colombo's shelling carnage of flood-hit civilians, 25 children killed

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 10 March 2009, 02:56 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) intensified indiscriminate shelling on the 'safe zone' throughout Monday, continuing into Tuesday morning to the time of this reporting, killing 74 civilians and injuring more than 100, TamilNet correspondent reported from Vanni. 25 of the victims killed were children. "The inhuman shelling deliberately targeted all the areas of the 'safe zone' where civilians are already victims of flood and a mini-cyclone that hit them Monday." All lethal ammunitions such as artillery-fired cluster shells, fire-shells and Multi-Barrel Rocket Launcher (MBRL) shells were used in the SLA attack.
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SLA cut downs use of A9 route to Jaffna due to security risks

[TamilNet, Monday, 09 March 2009, 15:56 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) which had earlier announced the opening of A9 land route to Jaffna has now limited its turns of transporting soldiers to 3 days in a week due to clashes breaking along the road and security risks, SLA sources in Jaffna said. Information on the days of transport is not disclosed and the convoy of busses takes the soldiers on vacation from Palaali to Vavuniyaa and back on unannounced days, three times a week.
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LTTE breaks through SLA lines amidst casualties

[TamilNet, Monday, 09 March 2009, 14:53 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Army divisions surrounding Puthukkudiyiruppu face the threat of attack from behind their lines as LTTE fighters managed to break through their lines despite suffering casualties on Sunday, reports from Jaffna said quoting Sri Lankan military sources of anonymity. In the meantime, Sri Lankan defence sources in Colombo claimed recovery of more than 100 bodies of LTTE fighters. The Voice of Tigers, the official radio of the LTTE has claimed that more than 450 SLA soldiers were killed and around 1,000 injured in the first four days of the month in the clashes in Puthukkudiyiruppu alone and more than 100 SLA dead and 450 injured on Sunday.
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Liquor baron buys Gandhi memorabilia in US auction

[TamilNet, Monday, 09 March 2009, 12:10 GMT]
The spectacles, chapels, pocket watch and eating plate along with a bowl, used by Mahatma Gandhi were bought for 92 million Indian rupees by Bangalore based Indian liquor baron Vijay Mallya when the memorabilia were auctioned in Washington, USA, on Thursday. “It is unfortunate that the Indian government first of all allowed them to go out of the country, didn’t take any legal effort to regain them and didn’t even care at least to buy them in the auction. It is a sad irony to see liquor money bringing back the belongings of Mahatma Gandhi, who throughout his life fought for temperance in India”, writes Communist Party of India (CPI) leader, C. Mahendran, in Janasakthi, Monday.
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'Evacuation enforced is negation of territoriality'

[TamilNet, Monday, 09 March 2009, 10:49 GMT]
While concern is mounting up beyond limits on the plight of civilians facing sanctions and attack by Colombo, a new concern looming large about their future is the possible prodding or pressed evacuation coming from ‘strategic partners’, to see them ending up in the hands of the Sri Lankan state. The 'evacuation' move, and not protection of them in their own land, is seen as negation of the territoriality of Tamils and is understood as signalling Colombo to continue the war against Tamils, their national aspirations and against their fighting force, diaspora Tamil circles observed.
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'Belated and wanting musings from India'

[TamilNet, Monday, 09 March 2009, 08:29 GMT]
While the Establishment in New Delhi is frantic in its attempt to eliminate the liberation force of Eezham Tamils but at the same time by hook or crook insinuate itself into the Tamil masses in order to show a semblance of success before the elections, a section of Indian academics and writers come out with belated and wanting musings urging India to work for a federal solution, writes a political analyst from Colombo. "Some of them may have good intentions, but they fail to see the sharp divide and limited option – genocide or Tamileelam – created by the Indian abetted war. Whatever they now write could serve as a lead to the next government, if there will be changes, but time is over for the present Establishment to achieve anything meaningfully," the analyst says further.
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Mediaperson killed in SLA shell attack

[TamilNet, Saturday, 07 March 2009, 17:10 GMT]
TamilNet sadly shares the news of the killing of an independent media person Friday, in Sri Lanka Army (SLA) shell attack inside the 'safe zone' in Vanni. He was long helping TamilNet’s independent Vanni correspondent and even just before his killing, he had assisted our main correspondent in covering a story. He was killed hit by an SLA shell while in his cottage in the 'safe zone'.
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