‘PA for, JVP against devolution’ - Chandrika

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 02 September 2003, 16:27 GMT]
Addressing the 52nd annual convention of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party Tuesday, Sri Lanka’s President, Ms. Chandrika Kumaratunge, said that the People’s Alliance was prepared for devolution of power but the Marxist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) was opposed to it, and therefore they could not come to a consensus on an alliance and talks were still continuing, sources said.


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Ranil says UNF is committed to ‘peace with security’

[TamilNet, Monday, 01 September 2003, 19:03 GMT]
Responding to a query from Sri Lanka’s President, Ms. Chandrika Kumaratunge, on the issue of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam’s camp at Kurankupanchan in the Trincomalee district, the country’s Prime Minister, Mr. Ranil Wickremasinghe, said Monday that his government was continuing its efforts to resolve the issue peacefully and that Ms. Kumaratunge should not approach the issue on the basis of political expediency, media sources in Colombo said.
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Hill country Tamil leader Thondaman remembered

[TamilNet, Saturday, 30 August 2003, 17:57 GMT]
Sri Lanka Saturday remembered the services rendered to the minorities and oppressed people by the hill country Tamil leader late Saumiyamoorthy Thondaman on his 90th birthday, which falls on August 30, 2003, sources from upcountry said.


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Thousands join last leg of JVP foot march against IA

[TamilNet, Thursday, 28 August 2003, 18:14 GMT]
The four day 116 km long anti peace foot march which was organized by the Sinhala nationalist cum Marxist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) from Galle on Monday against the establishment of the Interim Administration for the northeast province and demanding the de-merger of the province reached Colombo Lipton circle Thursday around seven in the evening. Thousands of JVP cadres, men and women participated in the last leg of the march from Panadura Thursday morning, sources said.


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'De-merger of NE a calamity to Sri Lanka' - TNA

[TamilNet, Thursday, 28 August 2003, 09:01 GMT]
"The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) desires to place on record that the de-merger of the northeast province which has existed for the past fifteen years by the President would be a calamity to the whole Sri Lanka, and urges the President to desist from taking this perilous course," TNA said in a press statement issued Thursday in Colombo.
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PA meet to decide on PC elections

[TamilNet, Sunday, 24 August 2003, 18:01 GMT]
The Central Committee of the People's Alliance (PA) will hold a meeting on September 1st to decide whether to hold the elections to the provincial councils in the south simultaneously or at the expiry of their life term, PA general secretary Mr.D.M.Jayaratne said Sunday.


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JVP to launch protest campaign against ‘betrayal’ of country

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 20 August 2003, 20:39 GMT]
The Sinhala nationalist cum Marxist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) Wednesday said it would launch a protest "war" in the country from Monday onward against what it called a "betrayal of the nation in the name of peace process" by the United National Front government, media sources in Colombo said.
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SL President threatens to de-merge northeast province

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 20 August 2003, 15:11 GMT]
Sri Lanka’s President, Ms. Chandrika Kumaratunge, issued a warning through her media spokesman, Mr.Harim Peiris, Wednesday that she would not hesitate to de-merge the northeast province if the United National Front government failed to quell the violence and restore peace in the east, media sources said.
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SL President says ‘dangerous’ period ahead

[TamilNet, Friday, 08 August 2003, 18:41 GMT]
Sri Lanka’s President, Ms Chandrika Kumaratunge, addressing a workshop of members of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party women organizations Friday, said that the country was facing the most dangerous period in its history as the United National Front government was preparing to “hand over the power to rule a part of the country to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, in the name of taking forward the present peace process."
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Sri Lanka’s President cancels Trincomalee visit

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 29 July 2003, 19:10 GMT]
Sri Lanka’s President, Ms. Chandrika Kumaratunge, cancelled her scheduled Trincomalee visit on August 1 to hand over Millennium Scholarship grants to about four thousand poor students in the northeast province on the advice of the provincial governor, North East Provincial Education Ministry sources said.
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SL President appoints committee to report on IA proposals

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 23 July 2003, 05:04 GMT]
Sri Lanka’s President, Chandrika Kumaratunge, has appointed a four member committee to study and report on the interim administrative structure proposals which have been submitted to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam by the United National Front government of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremasinghe, political sources said.
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Sinhala nationalists launch de-merger campaign in Trinco

[TamilNet, Monday, 14 July 2003, 19:52 GMT]
The "Sinhala Sanvidhanaya," a Sinhala nationalist movement Monday launched a signature campaign in Trincomalee to urge the de-merging of the North and East. The first signatory of the memorandum was the president of the organization, Venerable Dehiowitte Piyatissa Thera, sources said.
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LTTE's commitment to resolve conflict by peaceful means stands- Thamilselvan

[TamilNet, Saturday, 12 July 2003, 17:15 GMT]
"We are ready to face a war if it is imposed on us with the change of a new government. But we are firm in finding a political solution to the conflict through peaceful means," said the political head of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Mr.S.P.Thamilselvan to a twelve-member delegation of the Sri Lanka Tamil Media Alliance (STMA)Saturday evening, sources said.
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PA demands parliament, cabinet review of IA proposal

[TamilNet, Friday, 11 July 2003, 17:57 GMT]
Sri Lanka's main opposition Peoples Alliance (PA) Friday demanded that the United National Front (UNF) government should present to the parliament and cabinet, UNF's proposals on the Interim Administrative (IA) structure for the northeast, before the proposal is submitted to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), political sources in Colombo said.


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Final phase talks on SLFP-JVP alliance begin

[TamilNet, Friday, 27 June 2003, 16:31 GMT]
Final phase talks between the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) and Sinhala nationalist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) began Friday evening around six at the Presidential Secretariat, political sources in Colombo said.


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SLFP-JVP alliance imminent - Weerawanse

[TamilNet, Thursday, 26 June 2003, 17:06 GMT]
The final phase of talks between the main opposition Sri Lanka Freedom party (SLFP) and Sinhala nationalist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) to forge an alliance in the name of Patriotic Peoples Front will be held Friday at the Presidential Secretariat, JVP propaganda secretary Mr.Vimal Weerawanse said Thursday.
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UNF govt. to submit IA proposals to LTTE

[TamilNet, Thursday, 26 June 2003, 14:23 GMT]
The United National Front is preparing "a set of proposals reflecting the main features of a provisional administrative structure" for the Northeast, and plans to submit the proposals to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam within two weeks, said the cabinet spokesman and Constitutional Affairs Minister in the UNF government, Mr. G.L.Peiris, addressing a press conference Thursday.
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‘Chandrika spreading war phobia’ -UNF

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 25 June 2003, 13:03 GMT]
As the spokesman for the President of Sri Lanka said Wednesday that the President, Chandrika Kumaratunge, is of the view that the LTTE is preparing for war, the United National Front government responded that a section of the main opposition People’s Alliance led by Ms.Kumaratunge is engaged in spreading war phobia in the country, political sources said
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SLFP holds fourteenth party convention

[TamilNet, Monday, 23 June 2003, 01:18 GMT]
"I ordered the Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) to destroy the LTTE ship that carried weapons last Saturday to safeguard the country and its people," declared President Ms Chandrika Kumaratunge addressing the fourteenth national convention of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), the main constituent of the opposition People's Alliance (PA) Saturday evening at Nittambuwa in western province, political sources in Colombo said.
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Tokyo donors' conference will not benefit Sri Lanka -PA

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 10 June 2003, 20:06 GMT]
Sri Lanka’s main opposition People’s Alliance (PA) led by President Ms Chandrika Kumaratunge Tuesday said ninety percent of aid pledged at the Tokyo donors' conference are loans and not grants. "Majority of the aid given at the donors' conference are on various interest rates with several conditions attached," said People’s Alliance media spokesman Mr.Sarath Amunugama at a press briefing held Tuesday at the office of the Leader of the Opposition.
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