Gen. Nambiar visits Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Friday, 07 February 2003, 17:54 GMT]
Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Satish Nambiar, the Indian defense expert invited by the government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) to report on high security zones (HSZs) in the North-East, visited Batticaloa on Friday morning and held discussions with Sri Lankan military and police officials and Tamil paramilitary groups, sources said.
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Sinhala opposition to Sri Lanka peace effort mounts

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 15 January 2003, 15:32 GMT]
Opposition to Sri Lanka’s peace process gathered further momentum as a new Sinhala nationalist organisation comprising powerful opposition politicians and Buddhist monks wowed Wednesday to agitate for separating the northeast into two provinces. Agitation by Sinhala nationalists to de-merge the northeast would be another spanner in the works for Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe’s effort to negotiate peace with the Liberation Tigers to end two decades of armed conflict that has ravaged the island.


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Forced to do Party work, Govt. employees complain

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 14 January 2003, 18:08 GMT]
Field officers of the para military Eelam Peoples Democratic Party (EPDP) controlled local bodies in the Jaffna district Tuesday complained to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) that they are being forced to distribute EPDP political pamphlets house to house in their areas, sources said.
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Jaffna local bodies to be administered by special commissioners

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 14 January 2003, 14:14 GMT]
The life term of all local authorities in the Jaffna district, which expires on February this year, will not be extended. Instead special commissioners will be appointed to administer these local bodies. A decision this effect was taken at the discussion between the Tamil National Alliance parliamentary delegation and the government group led by the Prime Minister held Tuesday, TNA sources said.
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Govt. inaction in Nedunthivu condemned

[TamilNet, Sunday, 12 January 2003, 19:46 GMT]
The Jaffna District People's Forum (JDPF) Sunday issued a statement expressing deep concern over the inaction of the Sri Lanka government, parliamentarians and welfare associations to provide peaceful life and relief to the people of Nedunthivu village as their picketing against the presence of para military Eelam People Democratic Party ( EPDP) entered fiftieth day Sunday, sources said.
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JJA, TELO condemn attack on Tamil journalist

[TamilNet, Saturday, 11 January 2003, 02:43 GMT]
Jaffna Journalists Association (JJA) strongly condemned the attack on Tamil Journalist, S. Jeyananandamoorthy, in a report published today adding that the carefully planned attack raises suspicion that the perpertrators intended to kill him. Tamil Eelam Liberation Organization (TELO) in its press release also condemned the attack.
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Nedunthivu residents clash with EPDP members

[TamilNet, Saturday, 04 January 2003, 18:51 GMT]
Several residents of Nedunthivu Saturday clashed with members of para military group Eelam peoples Democratic Party (EPDP) when they attempted to use drinking water from the tank nearby for bathing. The villagers depend on the said tank for their day to day needs for drinking and cooking, sources said.
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HRC hears police statements on Nelliady attack on picketers

[TamilNet, Thursday, 02 January 2003, 19:58 GMT]
The Jaffna office of the Human Rights Commission in Sri Lanka Thursday recorded the statements of two senior police officers regarding the violence that took place on December 10 at Nelliady in the Vadamarachchi division when several hundred people picketed the office of the paramilitary group Eelam People's Democratic Party (EPDP) demanding their withdrawal from Jaffna district, sources said.
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Security forces tighten control over Nedunthivu

[TamilNet, Monday, 30 December 2002, 16:50 GMT]
Sri Lanka police have taken steps to set up camps in government buildings in Nedunthivu, an islet in Jaffna district, while the Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) increased its control over the civilian movement to the village by sea, sources said.
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Nedunthivu residents reject TNA plea to suspend picketing

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 24 December 2002, 18:01 GMT]
Residents of Nedunthivu island in Jaffna district Tuesday rejected a plea made by Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarians to suspend their month long picketing against the presence of members of the para military group Eelam Peoples Democratic party (EPDP) in their village on the basis of the assurance given by the Prime Minister, TNA sources said.


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Vadamarachi Palm Co-ops demand return of Thikkam distillery

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 18 December 2002, 17:21 GMT]
Several hundred people Wednesday launched a picketing campaign in front of the Palmyra Development Board office in Jaffna demanding that the distillery at Thikkam in Point Pedro area should be returned to the administration of the Federation of Vadamaradchi Palm Co-operatives Societies, sources said. Presently the Thikkam Distillery is under the administration of the Palmyra Development Board (PDB).


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ICRC officials visit Nedunthivu

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 17 December 2002, 18:12 GMT]
Officials of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Tuesday visited Nedunthivu Island in Jaffna district and met the residents who were picketing outside the Pradeshya Sabha and divisional secretariat buildings against the presence of members of para military group Eelam Peoples Democratic Party (EPDP), sources said. EPDP members are staying in the office buildings of the Pradshya Sabha and divisional secretariat since they entered the island with the escort of Sri Lanka Navy and the police.
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Protests continue while EPDP reduces Nedunthivu strength

[TamilNet, Monday, 16 December 2002, 16:39 GMT]
The para military Eelam Peoples Democratic Party (EPDP) Monday decided to halve its strength in Nedunthivu Island in Jaffna district at the general council meeting of the EPDP held Monday following a month long agitation by the people of Nedunthivu demanding the immediate withdrawal of para military group members.
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'EPDP is being used to derail peace process'- Karuna

[TamilNet, Saturday, 14 December 2002, 16:51 GMT]
"Some elements are using the Eelam Peoples Democratic Party (EPDP) to derail the peace process. The return of EPDP members to Nedunthivu and recent incidents in Nelliady have clearly demonstrated the motives of such elements," Colonel Karuna, Special Commander of the Liberation Tigers (LTTE) in Batticaloa-Ampara district said Saturday.
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Police record statements from Nelliady victims

[TamilNet, Friday, 13 December 2002, 16:47 GMT]
The Jaffna Police Friday recorded statements from three traders in Nelliady area and an employee of the Janasakthi Insurance Corporation regarding the attack by the Police on last Tuesday on civilians when they were picketing the Eelam Peoples Democratic party (EPDP) office against its presence in Nedunthivu and elsewhere in the peninsula, sources said.
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Hartal paralyses Jaffna district

[TamilNet, Thursday, 12 December 2002, 15:08 GMT]
All activities in the Jaffna district came to a standstill and normal life was disrupted Thursday as Hartal (general shut down) was observed in protest to the attack by the Police on unarmed civilians picketing against the presence of para military Eelam Peoples Democratic party (EPDP) in Nedunthivu and other places in the peninsula Tuesday, sources said.
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Vadamaradchy observes hartal

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 11 December 2002, 13:18 GMT]
All business activities in Nelliady, Puloly, Udupiddy, Valvettiturai and Manthikai areas in Vadamarachchi division in Jaffna district Wednesday came to a standstill as hartal (general shut down) was observed in protest against the Police attack on civilians who picketed the office of the para military Eelam Peoples Democratic Party (EPDP) Tuesday afternoon, sources said. Picketing was held against the presence of EPDP cadres in Nedunthivu island others areas in the peninsula.
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Sri Lanka Opposition decries Government's fiscal policies

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 11 December 2002, 04:30 GMT]
The second budget of the United National Front (UNF) government passed in parliament Tuesday night with a majority of thirty-six votes with one hundred and twenty one parliamentarians voting for the 2003 budget and ninety one voting against, parliamentary sources said.
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Vadamaradchi traders to observe 'hartal' against police firing

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 10 December 2002, 18:36 GMT]
Nelliady and Puloly Traders Associations in the Vadamarachchi division in Jaffna district Tuesday decided to observe hartal (general shut down) in their respective areas Wednesday protesting against the police firing on traders this afternoon on hundreds of civilians picketed the office of the para military Eelam People's Democratic Party (EPDP), sources said.
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Police fired live bullets on Nelliady picketers

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 10 December 2002, 18:35 GMT]
Medical sources in the northern Jaffna town said Tuesday evening that Police had fired on the anti-EPDP picketers with live bullets and not with rubber bullets as earlier stated. On Tuesday night three of the eight seriously wounded traders were admitted to the Jaffna teaching hospital with gunshot wounds, the sources said.
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