Statement by the Norwegian Facilitator

[TamilNet, Monday, 30 October 2006, 07:23 GMT]
At the conclusion of the 2-day meeting in Geneva between the Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers, the Norwegian Facilitator issued a statement urging “both parties to allow themselves some time to reflect on the situation and not to draw hasty conclusions or take actions that could increase the suffering of civilians in Sri Lanka.” “Norway will be in ongoing dialogue with the parties to discuss all possible ideas on how to move the peace process forward,” the statement further said.
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Tigers warn Sri Lanka on military provocation in Northern Front

[TamilNet, Sunday, 29 October 2006, 09:04 GMT]
LTTE's Military Spokesman Irasiah Ilanthirayan, Sunday morning condemned the Sri Lankan armed forces for escalating the military hostilities by engaging in provocative offensive preparations and rehearsals in Northern Front in Jaffna while the Parties were engaged in talks in Geneva. Talking to media before entering the Conference Centre at rue de Varembé in Geneva, the Tiger military spokesman warned that any "Sri Lankan aggression, following the provocation, causing implications on the talks at this critical juncture, would have serious consequences."
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No progress on Humanitarian issues, CFA- Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Saturday, 28 October 2006, 18:07 GMT]
First day of talks in Geneva between the Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers, focusing on the urgent humanitarian issues and the re-opening of A9 concluded without the parties agreeing to any measures to relieve the humanitarian crisis in the Tamil homeland, Liberation Tigers Political Head S.P Thamilchelvan told TamilNet.
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Peace process depends on ceasefire implementation - LTTE

[TamilNet, Saturday, 28 October 2006, 10:49 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers called Saturday for the full implementation of the February 2002 ceasefire agreement (CFA), saying "such actions will bring normalcy in the lives of our people, and help in taking forward the peace process towards a satisfactory conclusion." Addressing the opening session of the Norwegian facilitated negotiations in Geneva, LTTE's Political Head, Mr. S. P. Thamilchelvan, said: "the best we can hope for from the current talks is therefore, the strengthening of the CFA agreement that has the potential to lead to a permanent, just peace in this island."
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Geneva Talks II begins

[TamilNet, Saturday, 28 October 2006, 10:37 GMT]
"Developments in Sri Lanka in the past months have seriously endangered the peace process," said Switzerland Foreign Affairs Deputy Head Ambassador Heidi Tagliavini who gave the opening address wishing the facilitator and the Parties better understanding, in Geneva Saturday. Stressing the need for "confidence in the Norwegian Government as facilitator seeking ways to lead the delegations to a better mutual understanding, confidence in the other Party as a partner with whom one can engage," Ms. Heidi Tagliavini said the International Community the recent developments in Sri Lanka have caused considerable concern within the International Community.
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Karuna ‘abducted hundreds of children’ – The Times

[TamilNet, Friday, 27 October 2006, 15:48 GMT]
The Karuna Group has abducted between 300 and 900 children — some as young as 12 — since March, The Times newspaper reported this week, quoting international and local aid workers in Sri Lanka. The paramilitary group’s “escalating activity has emerged as a key factor behind the upsurge in violence that has killed more than 2,000 people this year and left a 2002 ceasefire agreement in tatters,” the British newspaper said.
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Two youths shot dead in Chelvanayagapuram

[TamilNet, Friday, 27 October 2006, 05:48 GMT]
Bodies of two youths were found at 3rd mile-post, near Chelvanayagapuram, a suburb about 4 k.m. north of Trincomalee, Friday morning. Unidentified armed persons shot the youths dead Thursday night, said residents of the area.
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TNA urges LTTE to prioritize opening of A9, warns humanitarian catastrophe in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Thursday, 26 October 2006, 18:34 GMT]
Tamil National Alliance (TNA) in an urgent letter to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Thursday, noting that the humanitarian situation in Jaffna has reached critical levels since the closure of the A9 highway, appealed the Tigers to take-up the opening of the A9 highway as a matter of top priority at the forthcoming talks in Geneva. Sri Lanka Army conrolled Jaffna, with 653,755 persons, requires 11,000 Metric tons of food supplies per month. For the last three months, only 14,000 Metric tons of food items had been sent by ship, the short fall is 19,000 Metric tons. The fuel that is currently available is grossly inadequate.
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LTTE to focus humanitarian issues, CFA implementation in Geneva

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 24 October 2006, 06:37 GMT]
S.P. Thamilchelvan, the Political Head of the Liberation Tigers, before leaving Kilinochchi Tuesday morning, with Norwegian Ambassador Hans Brattskar and the LTTE delegation, for talks in Geneva, told media that the Tigers were participating in the talks respecting the call by the International Community. "Agenda for the talks has not been worked out," Mr. Thamilchelvan said. "However, on our part, we have prepared to focus the urgent humanitarian crisis caused by the Sri Lankan state terrorism in the Tamil homeland," he told media adding that the Tigers were also prepared to focus the implementation of the Ceasefire Agreement.
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Sri Lanka in "interminable and intractable crisis"- UN

[TamilNet, Monday, 23 October 2006, 01:56 GMT]
Prof. Philip Alston, United Nation's Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, speaking to the United Nations General Assembly, Third Committee, 20 October 2006, said that the "dramatic attacks in recent days and spiraling number of extrajudicial executions" indicate that "Sri Lanka is not so much on the brink of a new crisis but, instead, only in the midst of an interminable and intractable crisis that has already exhausted its fair share of international attention," and called upon the United Nations Secretariat to "establish a full-fledged international human rights monitoring mission in Sri Lanka."
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US should support "confederal Sri Lanka"- Boston Globe

[TamilNet, Sunday, 22 October 2006, 12:16 GMT]
The Boston Globe, in an editorial appeared in the 22 October edition, said that Washington should prevail on Colombo to "withdraw its armed forces from the Tamil areas in the north of the island," and urge Colombo to open A9, to demonstrate Washington's seriousness towards advocating a "permanent peace that provides for Tamil self-government and human rights in a confederal Sri Lanka."
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Vehicle pass system re-introduced in Vavuniya, Mannar

[TamilNet, Friday, 20 October 2006, 16:39 GMT]
A "Pass" system for all vehicles leaving the districts of Mannar and Vavuniya to rest of Sri Lanka has come into effect from Friday. Vehicles have to obtain passes from police stations in Vavuniya, Chettikulam and Mannar before leaving to outstations, civil sources said. However vehicles moving between Mannar and Vavuniya are exempted from the pass procedures, sources said.
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International Community should ensure SLMM access to FDLs - Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 10 October 2006, 10:19 GMT]
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Political Head S. P. Thamilchelvan accused Colombo for being the "aggressor" despite the International Community's efforts and the LTTE leadership's assurances in ceasing violence to create conducive environment for talks. Colombo has denied access to truce monitors to the Northern Front where Sri Lanka Army (SLA) has been seen readying for a frontal assault, he told TamilNet after meeting the Norwegian Ambassador Hans Brattskar in Kilinochchi Tuesday.
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Co-Chairs' ambassadors meet Sri Lanka's President

[TamilNet, Monday, 09 October 2006, 09:31 GMT]
Co-Chairs' ambassadors in Colombo Monday morning met with Sri Lanka's President Mahinda Rajapakse and expressed their concern about the continuous hostilities between the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) troops and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) even after both parties agreed to resume peace talks during the later part of October. The meeting comes following an urgent LTTE warning to the truce monitors Saturday that Sri Lanka Army (SLA) was readying for an offensive in the Northern Front.
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TNA urges International Community to prevail upon Colombo to cease violence

[TamilNet, Sunday, 08 October 2006, 15:12 GMT]
The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) in an urgent press release Sunday appealed to the International Community to prevail upon the Government of Sri Lanka to cease all military operations immediately and actively work towards creating a conducive atmosphere for the resumption of peace talks. Mavai S. Senathirajah MP, on behalf of the TNA Parliamentary Group said: "There can be little doubt that any such further offensive military operations by the GoSL will almost certainly result in the break-out of full scale war and a complete negation of the Ceasefire Agreement."
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Colombo declines to receive bodies of dead soldiers, captured soldier talks to media

[TamilNet, Saturday, 07 October 2006, 08:07 GMT]
The fighting formation of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) forces, "boxed" an area of 10 square kilometers and defeated Sri Lankan offensive towards Vaharai Friday, LTTE Trincomalee Political Head S. Elilan said Saturday. Accusing Sri Lanka for violating the Ceasefire Agreement (CFA) and the Geneva Agreement of disarming the paramilitary cadres, Mr. Elian said 400 Sri Lankan troops, including 80 paramilitary cadres, were involved in the Sri Lankan offensive. K.M.S. Ratnayake, a soldier from Sri Lanka's 6th Battalion of Gemunu Watch, was captured alive by the Tigers. Colombo has refused to accept 9 bodies of SLA soldiers killed in the encounter, Mr. Elilan said.
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SLFP, UNP to sign MoU

[TamilNet, Thursday, 05 October 2006, 13:01 GMT]
Sri Lanka’s two main parties, the ruling Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) and the main opposition United National Party (UNP), have agreed to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) before 15th of October 2006, SLFP sources said Thursday. The UNP and the SLFP are expected to announce formally agreement in a joint statement later in the day.
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JVP protesters march in thousands against Co-Chairs, Norway

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 04 October 2006, 21:55 GMT]
Thousands of Sinahala nationalist protesters marched against Co-Chairs involvement and Norwegian facilitation in the Sri Lankan peace process Wednesday evening in Colombo. The Sinhala nationalist party, the JVP, launched the protest campaign under a coalition named "Joint Front for Protection of Nation" that comprised 12 pro JVP trade unions, University Students Association and National Bhikku Front.
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SLAF bombs Vanni as Special Envoy meets Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 03 October 2006, 11:07 GMT]
Three Kfir jet bombers of Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) flew over Vanni and attacked Pooneryn as Norwegian Special Envoy Jon Hanssen-Bauer met the Liberation Tigers Political Head S. P. Thamilchelvan in Kilinochchi to discuss the modalities for creating a conducive environment for talks, LTTE sources in Kilinochchi said. Mr. Thamilchelvan told media after the meeting that Colombo was continuously engaged in "offensive aggression," despite the assurances given to the Norwegian facilitators following the call by the Co-Chairs to cease all violence. Tigers were still extending support to unconditional talks as urged by the International Community, the LTTE political head told TamilNet.
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Talks between SLFP-JVP held

[TamilNet, Monday, 02 October 2006, 10:07 GMT]
Talks were held Monday morning between the delegations of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), main constituent of the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) government and the Sinhala nationalist party Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP). Talks centred on the twenty point demands put forward by the JVP to join the government. The JVP demands included the cancellation of the ceasefire agreement and the withdrawal of the Norwegian facilitation in the peace process.


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