TNA MPs visit Tamil political prisoners

[TamilNet, Friday, 09 March 2007, 00:12 GMT]
Seven Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarians accompanied by Minister for Justice and Legal Reformation, Dilan Perera, visited the Tamil Political prisoners at Magazine Prison in Colombo Thursday evening and discussed matters related to their release. The prisoners who had begun a fast-to-death campaign on 21 February had called off their action temporarily on February 26 following TNA parliamentarians' assurance to assist them.
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Thandikulam Pastor, 2 sons, 2 aides missing in Colombo

[TamilNet, Thursday, 08 March 2007, 01:08 GMT]
A Christian Pastor, Victor Paul Yogarajah, 51, attached to Thandikkulam Church, Vavuniya, his two sons and two of his aides who went to Colombo to attend a religious event, have gone missing after they arrived in Colombo, their relatives said in complaints lodged with the Red Cross and Human Rights Commission, Vavuniya. The group set out by train on 28 February and called their relatives the following day, 1 March, to say they had arrived in Colombo safely. There have been no other communication to Vavuniya after 1 March, relatives said.
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SL Parliament votes to extend Emergency Regulations

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 07 March 2007, 12:54 GMT]
Sri Lanka Parliament voted to extend the Emergency Regulations by one month during a sitting Wedesday morning after a debate presided by Speaker of the House, M. Locubanda, parliamentary sources in Colombo said. The motion to extend passed with a 105 majority, with 123 MPs voting for, and 18 MPs voting against.
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Sri Lanka parliament debates emergency extension motion

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 07 March 2007, 10:10 GMT]
Ratnasiri Wickremanayake, Sri Lanka's Prime Minister tabled a motion in parliament Wednesday morning seeking the approval to extend the State of Emergency for another month. The State of Emergency was declared on 13th August 2005, a day after the assassination of Lakshman Kadirgamar, former Foreign Minister in his residence in Colombo. Since then State of Emergency is being extended every month with the approval of parliament.
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JVP, JHU to appeal court order on CFA

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 07 March 2007, 10:09 GMT]
The Sinhala nationalist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) and all monks' party, Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU), Wednesday said they will appeal the order of the Court of Appeal dismissing their petitions seeking the cancellation of the Ceasefire Agreement (CFA) signed by the then Sri Lanka' Prime Minister Ranil Wickremasinghe with Velupillai Pirapaharan, leader of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), on 22 February 2002, legal sources in Colombo said. Justice S.Sriskandarajah Tuesday said the petitioners have no valid legal reasons to seek the cancellation of the CFA and the court has no jurisdiction to order such act.
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SL Police chief admits Sri Lanka forces involved in abductions

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 06 March 2007, 12:03 GMT]
Sri Lankan security forces are involved in abductions of civilians for ransom, the country’s Police Chief admitted Monday, saying a ‘large number’ of officers and troops had been arrested on charges of abduction and extortion. However the Inspector General of Police, Victor Perera also asserted that “organised groups” were conducting abductions and killings “to embarrass the government.”


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Decomposed body recovered from Kelani river, girl abducted in Negombo

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 06 March 2007, 10:40 GMT]
Wellampitiya police recovered the body of a youth in decomposed state from Kelani river at Kohilawatte in Wellampitiya police division Monday, police said. Meanwhile, unknown persons abducted the five year old daughter of a popular Tamil businessman Monday evening in Negombo and have demanded ransom to release her, according to complaints made to Negombo police.
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Appeal Court dismisses petitions challenging CFA

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 06 March 2007, 10:34 GMT]
Sri Lanka's Court of Appeal Tuesday rejected three petitions, one by the Sinhala nationalist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna and the other two by all monks' party Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU), challenging the legal validity of the Ceasefire agreement signed on 22 February 2002 by Ranil Wickremasinghe, then Prime Minister of the United National Party (UNP) government of Sri Lanka and Velupillai Pirapaharan, leader of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), legal sources in Colombo said.
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5 bodies found in Anuradhapura

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 06 March 2007, 08:23 GMT]
Villagers in Sembukulam Grama Sevaka (GS) division in Anuradhapura District in the North Central Province Tuesday morning found 5 bodies bundled together. The upper parts of the bodies have been burnt in the pyre of tyres, according to Thirappane Police who recovered the bodies around 6:30 a.m. following the information from the villagers. Earlier, on Friday and Saturday, 6 bodies were recovered by the Kandana police from Muthurajawela shrub area in South, and the identities of the deceased is yet to be established.
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Vavuniya lawyers end boycott

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 06 March 2007, 00:05 GMT]
The lawyers in Vavuniya ended their boycot of courts Monday after the Chief Justice, Sarath N Silva, gave assurances that action would be taken against the members of Karuna group who threatened the lawyers with death demanding ransom, legal sources in Vavuniya said.
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UNP to launch campaign against abduction, killings, HR violations

[TamilNet, Monday, 05 March 2007, 21:36 GMT]
The main opposition United National Party (UNP) is to launch a mass protest campaign across Sri Lanka against the increased number of abduction, killings and other human rights violations. The campaign will begin in April led by Ranil Wickremasinghe, opposition leader, said S.B.Dissanayake, national organizer of the UNP.
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SLA readies for Manalaru offensive, Tigers warn of bloodbath

[TamilNet, Monday, 05 March 2007, 12:07 GMT]
"We are aware that the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) has amassed military hardware close to Manalaru in preparation for a major offensive towards Mullaitivu area. Consequence of this offensive will be a catastrophic bloodbath across Sri Lanka," said Mr. Thamilchelvan, Head of LTTE Political Wing, speaking to TamilNet after meeting the Norwegian Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Hans Brattskar and Norwegian Embassy official Erik Nuremberg, in Kilinochchi Monday.


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Mail overflows Trinco storage, lies outside in open

[TamilNet, Monday, 05 March 2007, 11:54 GMT]
Trincomalee postal department official await the arrival of a cargo vessel "Mercs Yala" from Kankesanthurai to transport thousands of mailbags and parcels to Jaffna district, as the attempt to ship the mail before Sunday failed, sources in Trincomalee said. The backlog has been lying in Trincomalee general post office since January 13 without any vessel being assigned to take them to Jaffna, and bags overflowing the storage are now left in the open space outside the building, sources said.
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Two soldiers killed in vehicle accident in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Sunday, 04 March 2007, 23:04 GMT]
Two Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers were killed when the vehicle they were travelling in as part of a military convoy along Palaly road towards Palaly Military base allegedly collided with another vehicle near Kurumbasiddy, Punnalaikadduvan Saturday night. Ms. Sarojini Ilankovan, the Mallaham District Judge, visited the scene of the accident Sunday and conducted the death inquests. Convoys often travel at great speed due to the threat of claymore mines, according to sources in Jaffna. The accident happened during curfew hours.
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One family show must end- Sooriyarachchi

[TamilNet, Sunday, 04 March 2007, 17:41 GMT]
"There is a large number of Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) members, including 25 members of the parliament, who will likely support Mangala Samaraweera's and my stand, for our ideological struggle within the party and our advocacy for good governance. We also have a responsibility to bring the one family show of Rajapakses' to an end," said former Port Development Minister Sripathi Sooriyarachchi in an interview with Lankadeepa, a Sinhala weekend newspaper, Sunday.
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SLFP ponders expelling dissidents, as intra-party turmoil worsens

[TamilNet, Sunday, 04 March 2007, 12:55 GMT]
Speculation is rife in political circles in Colombo that two dissident Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) parliamentarians, Mangala Samaraweera and Sripathi Sooriyarachchi, the sacked ministers, are to be expelled from the party, after Sri Lanka's President Mahinda Rajapakse returns from his seven-day official visit to China on Sunday evening. The SLFP is the main constituent of the ruling United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) government, sources said.
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Police recover sixth body in Kandana marshy land

[TamilNet, Sunday, 04 March 2007, 11:37 GMT]
One more body in a highly decomposed state was found dumped in marshy land in Kandana police division, north of Colombo, Sunday, bringing total number of bodies found in the Mutturajawela swamp area to six, police said.
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Acrimony flares, US says diplomats not LTTE’s target

[TamilNet, Sunday, 04 March 2007, 00:13 GMT]
Amid growing acrimony within the Sri Lankan government over the LTTE mortar attack Tuesday on military helicopters carrying foreign ambassadors and UN officials to Batticaloa district, the American ambassador to Sri Lanka, Robert O. Blake, contradicted Colombo’s assertion that the Tigers had tried to assassinate the diplomats. Meanwhile Sri Lanka’s Defence Secretary says the diplomats should share the blame for the near-disaster for asking to visit Batticaloa. He slammed as “interference” attempts by foreign dignitaries and NGOs to visit the war torn Northeast.


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Jaffna mail still awaits shipment in Trincomalee

[TamilNet, Saturday, 03 March 2007, 11:33 GMT]
After failing to send the accumulating backlog of ordinary letters lying in Trincomalee Main Post Office to Jaffna on the 26th February as planned, due to undisclosed reasons, the Post Master General (PMG) said another attempt will be made Sunday to send about 7 thousand parcels and mailbags by ship, sources in Trincomalee said.
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Five bodies found dumped in Colombo

[TamilNet, Saturday, 03 March 2007, 08:33 GMT]
Bodies of five persons were recovered from Mutturajawela marshy land in Kandana police division north of Colombo, Friday and Saturday. Three bodies were recovered on Friday and two more on Saturday, police said.
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