Colombo holds key to restore normalcy, says LTTE

[TamilNet, Thursday, 02 June 2005, 14:51 GMT]
Government of Sri Lanka has a moral responsibility to demonstrate its serious commitment to the Cease Fire Agreement (CFA) and its will to maintain the integrity of the CFA by delivering on it in terms of its obligation to restore normalcy, Mr. Thamilchelvan, LTTE's Head of Political Division, told Swiss Ambassador Mr.Bernadino Reggazzoni on Thursday in a meeting in Kilinochchi. LTTE's Political Head expressed fear over the state of the CFA in the context of "fanatical elements" trying to cash in on a volatile situation in Trincomalee and Vavuniya, the LTTE Peace Secretariat website reported.


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Minibus carrying students escapes landmine blast

[TamilNet, Thursday, 02 June 2005, 12:18 GMT]
A minibus carrying more than 70 students travelling to participate in Tamileelam Students Uprising Day in Kaludavalai from LTTE controlled Pankudaveli in Batticaloa narrowly escaped a Claymore landmine attack at 8.30 AM on Thursday. The incident took place 100 meters from a Sri Lanka Army (SLA) checkpoint at Koduvamadu in Chenkallady-Badulla Road.
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Rights Group condemns Bindunuwewa acquittals

[TamilNet, Thursday, 02 June 2005, 10:55 GMT]
"These acquittals show a shocking failure of the police and judicial system in Sri Lanka to find justice for the dead and injured from this horrific incident," said Brad Adams, Asia Director of Human Rights Watch, a New York based international rights group. “As the victims were all Tamil, the government needs to move quickly to start fresh investigations and to prosecute the perpetrators, some of whom were police officers, or it will only further distance aggrieved Tamils,” Mr Adams added.
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LTTE invites donors to Kilinochchi - paper

[TamilNet, Thursday, 02 June 2005, 06:24 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers have invited the four major donor agencies - World Bank, ADB JBIC and IMF - to Kilinochchi to discuss the outcome of the international aid conference held in Kandy last month and how future tsunami reconstruction and rehabilitation work could be carried out, the Daily Mirror reported Thursday.
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SLA, Police agree to remove Buddha statue in Omanthai

[TamilNet, Thursday, 02 June 2005, 00:31 GMT]
After a visit to the Omanthai Pillaiyar Temple grounds Wednesday by Vanni district parliamentarians Mr.Selvam Adaikalanathan, Mr.Sivasakthi Ananthan and Mr.Sivanathan Kishore and LTTE Vavuniya district deputy political head Mr.Dharmendra accompanied by Vavuniya Police Officer in charge Mr. Abeyasinghe Bandara, TNA parliamentarian Adaikalanathan said that the Police and the Army have agreed to remove the Buddha statue from the Hindu temple grounds, sources in Vavuniya said.
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Grenade attack on Akkaraipattu LTTE office

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 01 June 2005, 02:42 GMT]
Unidentified persons lobbed two grenades at the administration office of the Liberation Tigers in Akkaraipattu-Amparai road. The incident took place Wednesday morning around 2.00 AM. No one were injured in the attack, LTTE sources said.
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AHRC fears "major breakdown of law and order"

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 31 May 2005, 21:59 GMT]
Saying it was shocked by the assassination Tuesday of a high ranking Sri Lankan military intelligence officer, Major Nisam Muthaliff, the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) said it was concerned at the escalation of violence, saying Sri Lanka is "heading towards a major breakdown of law and order."
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Economic embargo imposed in Batticaloa, Vaharai residents protest

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 31 May 2005, 17:14 GMT]
Large number of residents of Vaharai division in the Batticaloa district Tuesday morning staged a peaceful protest march demanding the withdrawal of economic embargo imposed recently by the Sri Lankan military, sources said. Last several days soldiers manning checkpoints in Batticaloa have been blocking civilians from transporting cement, building materials, fuel and other essential materials to the villages of Panichchankerni, Paalchenai, Kathiraveli, Kandalady, Uriyankattu and Mankerni which are located in LTTE controlled Vaharai division.
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US Senate calls for equitable distribution of tsunami aid

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 31 May 2005, 03:27 GMT]
The Committee of Appropriations of the United States Senate said, in a report that accompanied H.R 1268 emergency supplemental appropriations act, that the tsunami relief programs "adhere to basic principles of equity, transparency and accountability," and that the assistance be "distributed on equitable basis," referring to Sri Lanka and Tamils.
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World Bank team to assess housing reconstruction in east

[TamilNet, Monday, 30 May 2005, 17:30 GMT]
A World Bank (WB) team is scheduled to visit the districts of Trincomalee and Batticaloa on June 1st and 2nd to assess the progress made in the reconstruction of houses in war and tsunami affected areas under the North East Housing Reconstruction Programme (NEHRP), sources in Colombo said.
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Military blocks LTTE commanders’ return

[TamilNet, Monday, 30 May 2005, 14:17 GMT]
Amid the continuing cycle of violence in Sri Lanka’s eastern province, hopes of improving trust between the Sri Lankan military and the Liberation Tigers are being undermined by Colombo’s refusal to provide safe passage to senior LTTE commanders and other cadres across Army-controlled areas, officials said. In the wake of the massacre of an LTTE political leader and his team when travelling by road through Army-controlled roads, there are accusations the use of helicopters is being denied to expose LTTE officials to paramilitary attack.
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ADB vows to ensure aid reaches LTTE areas - paper

[TamilNet, Monday, 30 May 2005, 02:56 GMT]
As international donors continue to urge Sri Lanka to sign a joint mechanism with the Liberation Tigers, to ensure tsunami-related aid is distributed equitably to where it is needed, the Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) top official said his organisation would ensure humanitarian assistance would reach LTTE-controlled areas in any case.
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Coercive Airpower in the Eelam Conflict- Taraki

[TamilNet, Monday, 30 May 2005, 00:11 GMT]
The article on the use of airpower in Eelam conflict written by late Dharmeratnam Sivaram that appeared in the 19 May 1991 issue of the Island gains added significance in view of recent controversy over Liberation Tigers’ alleged possession of Czech made Zlin type Z-143 aircraft. Full text of the article is reproduced in this feature.


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UNICEF says underage recruitment "very low"

[TamilNet, Sunday, 29 May 2005, 13:43 GMT]
Saying UNICEF had seen a "very low level" of underage recruitment by the Liberation Tigers in recent months, the organisation’s outgoing top official in Sri Lanka, Ted Chaiban, Sunday welcomed the development and urged the continuation of "this positive trend." Mr. Chaiban met Sunday LTTE's Head of Political Division, Mr. S. P. Thamilchelvan, his deputy, Mr. S. Thangan and the Director General of the Peace Secretariat, Mr. S. Pulidevan at LTTE's Peace Secretariat in Kilinochchi and discussed the improvement of the lives of people, particularly children, in Sri Lanka's former warzones.
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Clinton urges Sri Lankan political parties to support Joint Mechanism

[TamilNet, Saturday, 28 May 2005, 18:34 GMT]
Meeting the local and foreign media personnel in Colombo at the end of his tightly-scheduled two-day visit, Clinton said that he fully backs the proposed Joint Mechanism‚ as it could also lead to peace and reconciliation. Former US President Bill Clinton, who is also the UN special envoy for co-ordinating tsunami rebuilding process, on Saturday urged the political parties in the South to extend their support for the establishment of such a mechanism "to build a common future for everyone". Appreciating the ceasefire which is continuing for the past three years, Clinton said that Norway was facilitating and all the Sri Lankans should support the peace process.
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Sri Lanka can arm but LTTE cannot – SLMM chief

[TamilNet, Friday, 27 May 2005, 14:56 GMT]
Asked how the reported acquisition of one or two aircraft by the Liberation Tigers could be deemed a violation of the ceasefire agreement, when the massive acquisition of weaponry by the Sri Lankan state was not counted as a violation, the head of the international truce monitors in Sri Lanka, Hagrup Haukland, said Thursday that the Sri Lankan government had a legitimate right to arm itself, while the LTTE did not.
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Village Development discussions held in Sinnadampan

[TamilNet, Friday, 27 May 2005, 11:11 GMT]
Village development discussion organized by Vavuniya North Pre-School Development Organization and Nedunkerni Development and Rehabilitation Organization was held Thursday at 2 pm at the Sinnadampan Common Hall, sources said. Pre School teachers, Director of Social Welfare and other officials visited several households in Sinnadampan to discuss issues specific to the households between 8.30 am and noon before the general meeting.
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JVP proposals ‘do not reflect ground realities’

[TamilNet, Friday, 27 May 2005, 10:46 GMT]
The ultra-nationalist Janatha Vimukthi Perumana (JVP)’s proposals for an alternative to a joint mechanism with the Liberation Tigers to distributed international tsunami-related aid were not acceptable to Sri Lanka’s President Chandrika Kumaratunga, as they did not reflect the ground realities in the Northeast, the Daily Mirror reported Friday.
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Arrested Home Guards produced in Kokkaddicholai Courts

[TamilNet, Friday, 27 May 2005, 10:18 GMT]
Thamil Eelam Police on Friday produced three suspected Sri Lankan homeguards in Thamil Eelam District Court in Kokkaddicholai. The Home Guards were arrested by the Liberation Tigers on Tuesday in LTTE held Poraithivu, 35 km southwest of Batticaloa, according to police reports. The judge, refusing bail, has ordered remand till 10th of June. Officials from Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) and parents were allowed to meet with the arrested persons, sources in Kokkadicholai said.
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Elilan appeals to Trinco residents to remain calm

[TamilNet, Thursday, 26 May 2005, 17:15 GMT]
Mr.S.Elilan, Trincomalee district political head of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Thursday appealed to all Tamil civil groups in the district and elsewhere in the northeast province to be calm and to maintain patience. He further urged them not to stage general shut down till June 2 as the government authorities have given positive assurance in regard to the controversial Buddha statue issue, sources said.


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