Protest will continue despite arrests- Wickremasinghe

[TamilNet, Thursday, 08 May 2008, 08:33 GMT]
Ranil Wickremasinge, United National Party (UNP) head and the Leader of Opposition accompanied by UNP parliamentarians inspected the place where UNP protestors were arrested Wednesday morning in front of the Election Department in Rajakiriya, Colombo, for demanding removal of arms from paramilitary groups including Pillayan group before the Eastern Provincial Council election. Two garbage carriers of Jayawardnepura Kotte Municipal Council littered their contents at the site, prompting Wickremasinghe’s visit, sources in Colombo said.
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Rajapaksa prorogues SL Parliament

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 06 May 2008, 17:31 GMT]
Sri Lanka's President Mahinda Rajapaksa has moved on to prorogue the sittings of the Sri Lankan Parliament until June 05 according to an extra-ordinary gazette notification published Tuesday midnight. The move comes amid the increased media attention and the debate on SLA casualties in the Northern Front as four days were left for the Eastern provincial elections where oppositions parties including the SLMC, UNP and the JVP have protested against the armed paramilitary in the East. Meanwhile, in a specially arranged televised broadcast, Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksa, promised the remote villagers in the east that they would get everything that they have aspired for.
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Just, fair election impossible in East – UNP

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 06 May 2008, 16:09 GMT]
United National Party (UNP) parliamentarians and supporters led by its General Secretary, Tissa Athanayake, staged a protest demonstration Tuesday around 2:30 p.m in front of the election office in Colombo calling for the removal of arms from the paramilitary Pillayan group and to conduct the election for the Eastern Provincial Council (EPC) in a just and fair manner. Meanwhile, the UNP parliamentarian Laxman Kiriyelle has accused the Sri Lankan Defence Ministry for involvement in distributing blank polling cards and warned that the government is preparing itself for a large scale election rigging.
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Pillayan group's attack on JVP triggers protest in Ampaa'rai

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 06 May 2008, 08:34 GMT]
More than 15 armed personnel of Pillayan Group, the main paramilitary group in the east and a political party contesting on the ruling UPFA ticket in the forthcoming provincial council elections in the East, went amok against the members of the Sinhala extreme nationalist JVP, who were engaged on a house-to-house campaign in Thirukkoayil in Ampaa'rai district around 3:30 p.m., Monday. Nihal Galapaththi, Hambantota district JVP MP, headed a protest march in Ampaa'rai on Tuesday against the Pillayan Group.
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We will restore democracy to Eastern province – Wickremesinghe

[TamilNet, Monday, 05 May 2008, 13:58 GMT]
“United National Party (UNP), Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) alliance will restore democracy to the East by putting an end to the domination by paramilitary groups,” Ranil Wickremasinghe, the Leader of the Opposition and UNP head said Sunday addressing a SLMC party conference held in Kaaththaankudi attended by more than 10,000 Muslims from the north, east provinces, sources in Batticaloa said.
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Ethnic divide reflected in Sri Lanka media coverage

[TamilNet, Sunday, 04 May 2008, 17:56 GMT]
The polarization between Sri Lanka’s ethnic communities is also reflected in coverage of the island’s protracted conflict and has rendered ‘the truth’ an inevitable casualty of war, several speakers argued last week at the annual conference in London of the International Association of Tamil Journalists (IATAJ). The day-long event at the University of Westminster was attended by one hundred invited participants and was addressed by journalists, academics and media activists, including Mr. Nadesapillai Vithyatharan, editor of the Uthayan newspaper, Mr Chandana Bandara, senior producer with the BBC’s Sinhala service and Mr. Bhagwan Singh of the Deccan Chronicle.
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Remove arms from Paramilitary groups in Batticaloa – UNP

[TamilNet, Sunday, 04 May 2008, 15:01 GMT]
“The weapons of the paramilitary groups in the Eastern province should be removed from them before the Eastern Provincial Council (EPC) elections,” Tissa Athanayake, the Secretary of United National Party (UNP) and parliamentarian said Saturday evening addressing a meeting with Tamil UNP contestants and supporters in Batticaloa, sources in Batticaloa said.
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EPDP thanks Rajapaksa, India for Northern Province Interim Council

[TamilNet, Saturday, 03 May 2008, 12:40 GMT]
The paramilitary-cum-political party headed by Douglas Devananda, the EPDP, in a statement issued to media on Saturday thanked the Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa and the friendly neighbouring state, India, for having selected the EPDP to lead the Interim Council for Northern Province. The decision was passed in a cabinet meeting by Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksa, the EPDP said, and added that it was a 'practical step' advocated by the EPDP for a long time.
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Pillayan group warns voters in Ka'luvaagnchikkudi

[TamilNet, Saturday, 03 May 2008, 09:21 GMT]
Paramilitary personnel of Pillayan group have warned the residents in Ka'luvaagnchikkudi located in Manmunai South and Eruvilpattu division of the Batticaloa district of adverse consequences if they fail to attend and vote for ruling UPFA alliance in the forthcoming elections for the Eastern Provincial Council. The group has referred to the low percentage of votes polled in the local elections and said such low attendance would 'not be tolerated' by the top hierarchy of the outfit.
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SLA increases security measures in interior Jaffna peninsula

[TamilNet, Thursday, 01 May 2008, 18:52 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) in Jaffna has begun launching sporadic small-scale cordon and search operations with police assistance in interior areas of Jaffna peninsula as attacks on SLA have increased in the recent past, sources in Jaffna said. Since large number of troops being moved to the Northern Front Line Defence (FDL) areas, the SLA has been employing fewer men in the search operations with police assistance.
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Grenade attack on EPDP election campaigners at Chengkaladi

[TamilNet, Thursday, 01 May 2008, 18:09 GMT]
Unknown attackers lobbed a grenade targeting EPDP election campaigners who were putting their election posters at Chengkaladi juntion in Ea'raavoor police division in Batticaloa district Thursday around 9:45 p.m., police said. No one was wounded in the attack, according to initial details.
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UNP accuses ruling party of breach of East election rules

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 29 April 2008, 13:55 GMT]
Sri Lanka’s main opposition United National Party (UNP) parliamentarian, Laxman Kiriyella, charged that the paramilitary Pillayan group, Peoples Liberation Organization of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE), Eelam Peoples Democratic Party (EPDP) and Eelam Peoples Revolutionary Liberation Front (EPRLF) that are jointly contesting Eastern Province Provincial (EPC) elections with the ruling United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA), for carrying arms besides other violations during the campaign for the forthcoming Easter Provincial Council (EPC) election, UNP sources said.
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Grenade attack on EDF candidate’s house in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 29 April 2008, 10:05 GMT]
Unidentified persons lobbed a hand grenade Monday around 8:00 p.m on the house of the Eelavar Democratic Front (EDF) candidate contesting Eastern Province Council (EPC) election in Batticaloa, at Punnaichoalai in Batticaloa district, injuring the contestant’s wife, mother and brother besides causing severe damage to the walls and windows, sources in Batticaloa said. The contestant, however, escaped being injured.
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Paramilitary shot dead in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Sunday, 27 April 2008, 03:18 GMT]
Unidentified gunmen arriving at the Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Pulikal (TMVP) office in Vipulaananthapuram, Mayilampaavea’li in Ea’raavoor police division in Batticaloa district, shot and killed a paramilitary man who was in the office, Saturday around 5:45 p.m, Ea’raavoor police said.
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Mavai Senathirajah meets Jaffna Military Commander

[TamilNet, Saturday, 26 April 2008, 03:06 GMT]
Mavai Senathirajah, Jaffna district Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian, arrived in Jaffna Friday to participate in the 31st Memorial Day of S.J.V. Chelvanayakam Saturday. The first TNA member to return to Jaffna since the assassination of TNA Jaffna MP, Nadarajah Raviraj, in 2006, he met Maj. Gen. G. A. Chandrasiri, Sri Lanka Army (SLA) Jaffna Commander, at the latter’s request Friday in Palaali SLA military complex, the MP told media.
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New monitoring group warns east electioneering undemocratic

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 23 April 2008, 10:40 GMT]
The newly formed monitoring group Campaign for Free and Fair Elections (CAFFE) in its first press briefing held at the auditorium of the National Library Services Board in Colombo on Tuesday warned that the electioneering in eastern province is already turning out be an undemocratic one. CAFFE comprises several civil groups such as Women's Organization for Democracy and Peace (WODP) Organization for Democratic Rights and International Organization for Defense.
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12 election violence incidents reported in east

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 22 April 2008, 08:40 GMT]
Twelve election violence incidents have been reported in the eastern province till Monday, according to the Police. The latest incident was the clash between two Paramilitary groups, the TMVP and PLOTE groups, at Aaraiyampathi in Batticaloa district Monday evening in which five PLOTE personnel sustained injuries. Meanwhile the delivery of poll cards to voters through post offices in the east has begun from Monday.
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Paramilitary operatives clash in Aaraiyampathi, Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Monday, 21 April 2008, 18:18 GMT]
Five supporters of Tamil Democratic National Alliance (TDNA) were seriously injured by paramilitary operatives of Tamil Makkal Viduthali Puligal (TMVP) Monday afternoon in Thaa'langkudaa in Aaraiyampathi division of Batticaloa district.
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Threat to Jaffna journalists from SLA, paramilitaries

[TamilNet, Monday, 21 April 2008, 04:20 GMT]
Journalists in Jaffna face continued threats to their lives and harassment from Sri Lanka Army (SLA) troopers and SLA-backed paramilitaries, severely impacting news coverage, and the deteriorating media freedom may lead to a complete breakdown of newspaper publications in the North, sources close to Jaffna district Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarians told TamilNet Sunday.
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Paramilitary operative shot dead in Kalkudaa

[TamilNet, Sunday, 20 April 2008, 12:56 GMT]
Two unidentified persons shot and killed a member of the paramilitary-cum-political party, Pillayan group (Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Pulikal, TMVP), Saturday night around 8:10 p.m in front of his house in Peaththaa'lai, Vaazhaichcheanai in Batticaloa district, Kalkudaa police said.
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