JVP leader says totally opposed to SLFP’s power sharing policy

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 20 January 2004, 13:46 GMT]
Mr. Somawansa Amarasingha, the secretive leader of the JVP said that his party is totally against the SLFP policy of sharing power despite the alliance both parties have formed. In a wide-ranging interview with an online publication before his departure from an unnamed western country to Sri Lanka on Monday, Mr. Amarasingha castigated Sri Lanka’s Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe for behaving like an American puppet and for “speaking like a ruler of a land occupied by the US”. He asserted that the India - Sri Lanka Defence Pact should be made a cornerstone of the island’s foreign policy.
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SLFP-JVP MoU slams Sri Lanka’s peace process

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 20 January 2004, 10:27 GMT]
The memorandum of understanding signed by Sri Lanka President Chandrika Kumaratunga’s Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) and the Sinhala nationalist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) Tuesday slammed the peace process, asserting that it “threatens the sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of the country, degrading its dignity”. The MoU also lambasted Mr. Wickremesinghe’s government for promoting “crony capitalism, racketeering, corruption and subservience to international financial institutions”.
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SLFP-JVP alliance signed in Colombo

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 20 January 2004, 05:10 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Freedom Party and the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna signed an agreement to form a new political alliance called 'United People's Freedom Alliance' at 10.40 a.m Tuesday in Colombo. Speaking after the signing ceremony, JVP Gen. Sec. Mr. Tilvin Silva said that the JVP had formed the alliance to prevent the plan to divide the country. The JVP and the SLFP say that the peace process and the ceasefire agreement between the Liberation Tigers and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe’s are part of a western backed conspiracy to divide Sri Lanka.
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SLMC to plan future political strategy

[TamilNet, Monday, 19 January 2004, 16:28 GMT]
Politburo of the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC), a constituent of the United National Front government will meet on January 23 at its headquarters "Darussalam" in Colombo to plan out its future political strategy in anticipation political developments likely to follow the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) and Sinhala nationalist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), SLMC sources said.


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SLFP, JVP branches to celebrate MoU signing

[TamilNet, Monday, 19 January 2004, 13:57 GMT]
Elaborate arrangements are being made in several parts of the country by the branches of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party and Sinhala nationalist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna to celebrate the event of signing the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) by the two political parties with religious observances and public meetings, political sources said.


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Anura Bandaranaike tipped to become SLFP-JVP alliance leader

[TamilNet, Sunday, 18 January 2004, 14:40 GMT]
The prospective leader of the new political alliance to be formed between the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) and the Sinhala nationalist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) party Mr.Anura Bandaranaike said Sunday that "the formation of the new political group would be the beginning of the country's long political journey towards solving Sri Lanka's problems and for ensuring peace and justice for all."


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Tamils should be vigilant of JVP - Jaffna VC

[TamilNet, Saturday, 17 January 2004, 13:23 GMT]
"The Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna is a force that is opposed to the Tamil people's struggle for their rights. It is now striving to become part of national politics. We, the Tamil people, should be vigilant about this," said Prof. S. Mohanadas, Vice Chancellor of the Jaffna University, addressing a meeting Saturday to mark the third anniversary of the Pongu Thamil festival in the northern peninsula.
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Sri Lanka President, Sinhala nationalists strike deal

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 14 January 2004, 12:25 GMT]
The Sinhala nationalist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna and President Chandrika Kumaratunga's Sri Lanka Freedom Party will sign the long delayed agreement to form a political alliance on 20 January 2004, spokesmen for the parties announced Wednesday. The JVP has been campaigning for the cancellation of the cease fire agreement between Colombo and the Liberation Tigers.
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"JVP-SLFP alliance before January 31" - Weerawanse

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 13 January 2004, 16:14 GMT]
"The Memorandum of Understanding between the Sri Lanka Freedom Party and the JVP forming a political alliance would be signed before January 31," said the Sinhala nationalist, Marxist, Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) parliamentary group leader Mr.Wimal Weerawanse addressing a public meeting organized by the National Patriotic Movement (NPM) and held at Trincomalee private bus stand in the heart of the town Tuesday evening.


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"No decision on general election yet"- SL President

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 13 January 2004, 04:11 GMT]
Sri Lanka's President Ms Chandrika Kumaratunge Monday dismissed media speculation that the current parliament would be dissolved on January 26 in preparation to a fresh general election. "I have not taken any decision regarding holding a general election. However I have been studying several requests for a general election," said Ms.Kumaratunge at a conference held at the President's House Monday evening, according to Colombo sources.
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National Patriotic Movement calls for general election

[TamilNet, Sunday, 11 January 2004, 13:29 GMT]
The National Patriotic Movement (NPM) Sunday said that the only way to solve the current political impasse is to dissolve the parliament and call for fresh general election.
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JVP calls for Wickremesinghe' s resignation

[TamilNet, Thursday, 08 January 2004, 13:30 GMT]
The Sinhala Nationalist and Marxist party, Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), Thursday called for the resignation of Mr.Ranil Wickremasinghe from the post of Prime Minister and from the current parliament if the Prime Minister wanted to withdraw from the two year-old ceasefire agreement (CFA) he signed with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), media sources said.


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2003: The year in review

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 31 December 2003, 18:58 GMT]
The widespread optimism on peace that greeted the dawn of 2003 has evaporated and the power struggle between Sri Lanka's Prime Minister and President that threatens the peace process now occupies the center stage of politics in Colombo. High Security Zones (HSZ) in Jaffna continue to deny displaced Tamils their fundamental rights. Colombo's unwillingness and inability to disburse funds stalls development and rehabilitation in NorthEast, as international aid remains blocked, awaiting concrete signs of progress in peace.
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Sri Lanka's parliament adopts UNF budget

[TamilNet, Thursday, 18 December 2003, 16:23 GMT]
Sri Lanka's parliament Thursday evening passed the 2004 draft budget of the United National Front (UNF) government with a majority of thirty-two votes. 112 parliamentarians voted for and eighty voted against, parliamentary sources said.
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PA lays condition for returning defense ministry

[TamilNet, Friday, 12 December 2003, 15:20 GMT]
Sri Lanka’s main opposition Peoples Alliance Friday called on the ruling United National Front government (UNF) to bring a proposal for the abolition of the executive presidency if the UNF insists on taking control over the defense ministry for taking the peace process forward.


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SLFP-JVP undecided on political alliance

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 09 December 2003, 03:53 GMT]
Another round of talks held between the leaders of the Sri Lanka Freedom party (SLFP), chief constituent of the main opposition People's Alliance, and the Sinhala nationalist cum Marxist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), which is the third largest party in the current parliament, Monday night concluded without fixing a date for the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to forge a political alliance, political sources said.
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Displaced Kinniya Tamils want permanent solution

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 December 2003, 15:12 GMT]
Hundreds of displaced Tamil families from Kadaloor and Upparu in Kinniya division in Trincomalee district, who have been staying as refugees at the Eechantivu Vipulananda Tamil Vidiyalayam, Sunday complained to the Trincomalee district parliamentarians, Messrs R.Sampanthan and K.Thurairetnasingham, that they should find a permanent solution to their problems as they had been displaced due to threat and violence thrice since 1990.
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Balasingham: LTTE seeks ‘new, creative’ relationship with India

[TamilNet, Sunday, 07 December 2003, 10:09 GMT]
Asserting the importance of the role of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in bringing about peace and stability to Sri Lanka, the movement’s theoretician, Mr Anton Balasingham, Saturday urged the Indian government to rethink and re-orientate its approach towards the organisation. Speaking at the Remembrance Day event in London, Mr Balasingham said the LTTE welcomed the international community’s efforts towards promoting peace in Sri Lanka, but would not accept the terms of a political solution being dictated to the Tamil people.
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"Minorities have right to administer their areas" - Vasudeva

[TamilNet, Sunday, 30 November 2003, 00:03 GMT]
"Tamils and Muslims in the northeast have a right to set up their administration in their traditional areas under the devolution of power. No one can deny this right," said veteran trade unionist and the national organizer of the Democratic Left Front(DLF), Mr.Vasudeva Nanayakkara, at the second annual general meeting of the DLF held Saturday evening at the auditorium of the Colombo library, media sources said.


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SL Speaker to face no-confidence motion

[TamilNet, Thursday, 20 November 2003, 11:34 GMT]
The leaderships of Sri Lanka's main opposition Peoples Alliance (PA) and the Sinhala nationalist, Marxist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) Thursday decided to collect signatures of parliamentarians to move a no-confidence motion against the Sri Lanka Speaker Mr.Joseph Michael Perera stating he had no power to challenge the proclamation of the President Ms Chandrika Kumaratunge proroguing parliament, political sources said.


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