Commissioner yet to decide on holding NorthEast elections

[TamilNet, Saturday, 18 March 2006, 10:36 GMT]
Final decision on holding the local elections in the NorthEast will be taken in a few days, said Mr Dissanayake, Sri Lankan Commissioner of Elections, Saturday when District Secretaries of the NorthEast met him in Colombo to discuss the difficulties in holding the local elections on 30 March, Election Department officials said.
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Paramilitary issue raised in Congressional Hearing

[TamilNet, Friday, 17 March 2006, 02:19 GMT]
Congressman James A Leach, Chairman, Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific, and Donald Camp, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs, during a House Committee on International Relations, Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific Hearing on Recent Developments in Nepal held on 15 March 2006, mentioned the presence of armed paramilitary groups as one of the impediments to peace.
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Norwegians assist Kinniya tsunami affected families

[TamilNet, Friday, 17 March 2006, 00:52 GMT]
Twenty permanent houses constructed with the funds collected by Norwegians in their country under the sponsorship of Norwegian Solidarity Organization were handed over to the tsunami affected families in Naduottu, a village in Kinniya division in Trincomalee district Wednesday afternoon. Each 500 sq.ft house was constructed at a cost of five hundred thousand rupees, sources said.
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Aussie minister visits Mannar, assesses ground situation

[TamilNet, Thursday, 16 March 2006, 18:35 GMT]
Australian Minister of Emigration and Multi-Culture, Ms.Amanda Vanstone, accompanied by Dr. Greg French, Australian envoy in Colombo, Thursday visited Mannar and held discussions with top officials of civil authority and military regarding the ground situation. She arrived in Sri Lanka Navy base in Talaimannar by a special helicopter of the Sri Lanka Air Force Thursday morning around 9 a.m. where Mr.A.Neekilaspillai, Additional Government and Mr. Stanley de Mel, Mannar Divisional Secretary, received her, sources said.
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2005, a black year for Tamil media journalists in Sri Lanka- SLTMA

[TamilNet, Thursday, 16 March 2006, 18:33 GMT]


The Sri Lanka Tamil Media Alliance (SLTMA) in its annual report said 2005 was a black year for Tamil media journalists in the country. "We lost three Tamil media persons including Mr.D.Sivaram, a reputed journalist and military analyst," the annual report said. The annual general meeting of the SLTMA was held last Sunday evening at Hotel Ranmuthu in Colpetty in Colombo. Mr.S.Rajkumar was elected President, Mr.R.Barati General re-elected Secretary and Mr.S.Sri Gajan, re-elected Treasurer for the year 2006, sources said.
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Thamichelvan meets Brattskar in Kilinochchi

[TamilNet, Thursday, 16 March 2006, 11:31 GMT]
Head of LTTE's Political Wing, S.P.Thamilchelvan, met with Norway's Ambassador Mr Hans Brattskar at the LTTE Peace Secretariat building in Kilinochchi at 9.30 a.m. Thursday, LTTE sources in Kilinochchi said. Acting Head of Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM), Brigadier Hagrup Haukland, also accompanied Mr Brattskar on his Kilinochchi visit, sources added.
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Thamilchelvan to meet Norway's Ambassador, TNA

[TamilNet, Thursday, 16 March 2006, 02:06 GMT]
Head of Liberation Tigers Political Wing, S.P.Thamilchelvan is to meet Norway's Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Mr Hans Brattskar, and a representative of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) at the LTTE Peace Secretariat Building Thursday, sources in Kilinochchi said. Thamilchelvan is also expected to meet the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarians also in Kilinochchi on the 20th March, sources added.
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Donors to ensure equity in aid distribution- Norway diplomat

[TamilNet, Thursday, 16 March 2006, 00:15 GMT]
"The donor community is currently focusing its attention in ensuring equity in tsunami aid supply to North East," Mr. Erik F.Brede, Counselor of the Norwegian embassy in Colombo told presspersons when he paid a visit to Naduottu, a village in Kinniya division in Trincomalee district on Wednesday. Mr Brede was in Trincomalee to participate in the handing over event of twenty houses constructed with the funds provided by a group of Norwegian citizens to the tsunami affected families.
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EU provides housing aid for NorthEast war affected families

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 15 March 2006, 11:30 GMT]
European Commission agreed to finance E$ 22 Mn (European Dollars) for housing of conflict affected families in the Vavuniya and Mannar Districts through the World Bank, North East Housing Reconstruction Programme (NEHRP) officials said.
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"Accusations, not negotiations" in Geneva - Nadesan

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 14 March 2006, 22:22 GMT]
Sri Lanka’s delegation to the Geneva talks had no understanding of negotiation and set about hurling accusations at the Liberation Tigers rather than contributing to a constructive discussion that could lead to a resolution of the prevailing problems, Thamileelam Police Chief B. Nadesan said Tuesday in an extensive interview with TamilNet. He also discussed the multi-functionary expansion of the Thamileelam Police, including the use of DNA forensics. The Tamil Eelam Police Chief also said that the detention of three Sri Lankan police had been deliberately portrayed as arbitrary arrests by the LTTE but was based on specific intelligence on the individuals.
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Geneva peace talks in grave danger – Balasingham

[TamilNet, Monday, 13 March 2006, 11:16 GMT]
"The Geneva peace talks will face grave danger if the Sri Lanka government refuses to disarm Tamil paramilitary organisations and continues allowing them to launch offensive military operations against our military positions in Batticaloa district," warned Mr Anton Balasingham, the chief negotiator and political strategist of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. Commenting on the current situation Mr Balasingham told TamilNet that the LTTE leadership would be compelled to review its decision to participate in the next round of talks, to be held in Geneva on 19 April, if Colombo fails to fulfil the pledges agreed in the joint statement issued after the first session of talks in Geneva.
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Japan Funds Disaster Reduction Training in Galle District

[TamilNet, Monday, 13 March 2006, 11:09 GMT]
The Japanese Ambassador in Sri Lanka Mr. Akio Suda signed an agreement with Dr. Tetsushi Kurita The Asian Disaster Reduction Centre (ADRC) under the NGO grant aid scheme where the Japanese Government will provide US $92,468 to ADRC to carry out a series of community based disaster reduction through Hands-on Training in Galle District, a press release issued by the Embassy of Japan in Colombo Monday said. ADRC will collaborate with Galle District Secretariat in this effort, the release added.
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Local elections in NorthEast likely to be postponed

[TamilNet, Monday, 13 March 2006, 10:40 GMT]
A final decision to conduct elections to local government authorities in the North East is to be announced by the Commissioner of Elections this week after consultations with NorthEast district returning officers, political sources in Colombo said. Sri Lanka's President Mahinda Rajapakse last week agreed in policy to postpone the local elections in the NorthEast local authorities at meeting with a delegation of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) led by its parliamentary group leader Mr.R.Sampanthan, sources added.
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SLN relaxes fishing ban in Thondamannar-VVT seas

[TamilNet, Sunday, 12 March 2006, 12:07 GMT]
Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) announced relaxation of restrictions on fishing to the east of Kankesanthurai harbor from Thondamannar to Valvettiturai shores, during a meeting between Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) Jaffna representatives, SLN officers and Jaffna Fisheries Union representatives at Chithampara College, Valvettiturai, held around noon Sunday, sources from Jaffna said.
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Amnesty fears for safety of disappeared TRO staffers

[TamilNet, Saturday, 11 March 2006, 12:28 GMT]
Amnesty International in an Urgent Action release issued Friday expressed "grave concern" for the safety of the seven Tamils Rehabilitation Organization (TRO) staffers who were abducted on 29-30 January and are still missing. Amnesty urged all concerned to write to the Sri Lanka Ministry of Defence, Inspector General of Police and Sri Lanka's President Mr Mahinda Rajapakse to "undertake and complete as a matter of urgency thorough investigations into the fate and whereabouts of the seven," and to ensure safety of all TRO workers and the families of the missing.
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EU report calls for international body to administer future elections in NorthEast

[TamilNet, Friday, 10 March 2006, 06:44 GMT]
Chief Observer of EU Election Observation Mission (EU-EOM) to Sri Lanka, John Cushnahan, commenting on the report of the EU-EOM for the 2005 Sri Lankan Presidential elections, has called for an International Organisation to "administer" and "supervise", on the invitation of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) the parties to the peace process, if future elections in LTTE controlled and influenced areas are to be held in accordance with internationally recognised principles. The EU report also stated that the SL Supreme Court Interim order of 9th November introduced "de facto" discriminatory measures against voters in LTTE controlled areas.
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Samaraweera leaves for Europe

[TamilNet, Friday, 10 March 2006, 02:47 GMT]
Sri Lanka's Foreign Minister, Mr Mangala Samaraweera, left Colombo Thursday on an official visit to UK, France and Belgium accompanied by Dr Jayantha Dhanapala, Senior Advisor to Sri Lanka President, and senior officials of the Foreign Ministry, a press release issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Colombo said. Mr Samaraweera is scheduled to meet his counterparts, Jack Straw and Phillippe Douste-Blazy during his visit, the release further said.
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Positive contribution by International players, key to Peace in Sri Lanka - Senewiratne

[TamilNet, Thursday, 09 March 2006, 02:45 GMT]
"Marginalising and excluding the Liberation Tigers, a key player to the peace process in the island, will mean the end of the failed state Sri Lanka," a Sinhala expatriate physician supportive of Tamils right to self-determination told a gathering of EU officials at a symposium organised in the European Parliament in Brussels on Tuesday. "The EU has essentially opted out of making a meaningful contribution to rescue Sri Lanka," he noted. Tamil, Sinhala and European panelists presented their views in the symposium titled "The EU Contribution to the Peace Process in Sri Lanka."
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Indian High Commissioner visits eastern province

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 08 March 2006, 11:31 GMT]
Ms Nirupama Rao, Indian High Commissioner in Colombo Tuesday morning visited the South Eastern University, which is located in Oluvil in Amparai district and discussed with the Vice Chancellor and the academic staff regarding its needs and future development. Sri Lankan Minister of Irrigation, Mr.Anwer Ismail, accompanied her. Ms Nirupama Rao arrived in Batticaloa Monday morning on a two-day tour in the eastern province by a special helicopter of the Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF).
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Act upon Geneva commitment, NPC urges GoSL

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 07 March 2006, 17:25 GMT]
The National Peace Council (NPC), a Colombo based peace group, on Tuesday urged the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) to apprehend and deal with the armed groups that were responsible for continued attacks on Liberation Tigers. "The attack on an LTTE security point within the LTTE-controlled territory that has left two LTTE cadres dead is a serious cause for concern as it threatens the credibility of the commitment made by the Government of Sri Lanka, the NPC said in a press release. "If those responsible are not immediately apprehended and dealt with, it is likely this will set a precedent for further attacks that would completely undermine the Geneva agreement," NPC statement said.
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