Solheim meets Government Peace Secretariat Head

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 14 September 2004, 16:18 GMT]
Norwegian special peace envoy Mr. Eric Solheim Tuesday held wide range of discussion with Dr.Jayantha Dhanapala, Secretary General of the Peace Secretariat of the Government of Sri Lanka regarding the prospects of resuming peace talks between the GOSL and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).
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Monks demand SL Govt to declare Buddhism as 'state religion'

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 14 September 2004, 06:32 GMT]
Sri Lanka’s hardline monks took another step towards creating their ideal of a Buddhist state this week with their parliamentary party calling for a Constitutional change to make Buddhism the state religion.
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Norwegian peace envoy arrives in Colombo

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 14 September 2004, 04:45 GMT]
Norwegian special peace envoy Mr. Eric Solheim arrived in Colombo Monday evening on a five-day visit to hold talks with the leaders of Government of Sri Lanka and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) with the aim to a make a headway in the resumption of stalled peace talks, political sources said.
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Kumaratunga confidante promises better deal in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Monday, 13 September 2004, 17:09 GMT]
President Chandrika Kumaratunga's spokesman and advisor on rehabilitation and reconstruction, Mr. Harim Pieris told jounalists in Jaffna Monday that her government does not discriminate between areas held by the Liberation Tigers and Sri Lankan armed forces in providing aid unlike the previous regime in Colombo. He pointed out that President Chandrika's government had repaired bridges on the A9 road first in the LTTE held parts of the north.
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"Weakening LTTE, main aim of SL Govt"- Balakumaran

[TamilNet, Sunday, 12 September 2004, 13:57 GMT]
"Absolutely nothing fundamental has changed on the ground. There can be absence of war, there can be prospects of peace talks, or involvement of the International community, or there can be press releases issued by Chandrika Kumaratunge. But, precious little has changed in the feelings or nationalistic thinking of our people. War has not ended yet," said K.V.Balakumaran, a Senior Leader of the Liberation Tigers, in an interview with the Sydney Tamil Radio Thamil Muzhakkam's "Mannin Mainthargal" program during his recent visit to European countries.
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Solheim to visit Sri Lanka next week

[TamilNet, Friday, 10 September 2004, 09:37 GMT]
The Norwegian Special Envoy, Mr. Erik Solheim, will on Monday 13 September arrive in Sri Lanka on a routine visit and have meetings with President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, members of the Government of Sri Lanka, representatives for the opposition as well as with civil society. Mr. Solheim and the Norwegian ambassador Mr. Hans Brattskar will on Thursday 16 September have consultations in Kilinochchi with the LTTE Political Head Mr. S.P. Thamilchelvan, according to a press release from the Royal Norwegian Embassy Friday.
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UNP urges UPFA government to commence peace talks

[TamilNet, Thursday, 09 September 2004, 19:52 GMT]
The main opposition United National Party (UNP) Thursday appealed to the ruling United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) government to commence peace talks with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) as it has gained majority in the parliament.
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President meets with the Leader of Opposition

[TamilNet, Thursday, 09 September 2004, 13:24 GMT]
President Ms. Chandrika Kumaratunga briefed the Leader of Opposition Thursday on the Government's proposal for initiating a National Advisory Council for Peace Reconciliation with the objective of establishing a consultative process with all political parties as well as with religious dignitaries and civil society groups, informed the Presidential Secretariat in a news release. Full text of the news release from the Presidential Secretariat follows:br/br/bPresident discusses consultative process with Leader of the Opposition/bbr/br/President Kumaratunga today met with the Leader of the Opposition, Mr. Ranil Wickremasinghe for an informal discussion on matters of national interest.br/br/The President explained to Mr. Wickremasinghe, the Governments proposal for initiating a National Advisory Council for Peace Reconciliation with the objective of establishing a consultative process, with political parties as well as with religious dignitaries and civil society groups.br/br/The Leader of the Opposition indicated that he would discuss the proposal with his party and keep the President informed. 2 live edit 2 live edit 2 live edit 2 draft edit 2 draft edit
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25% of NE Provincial Council vacancies not filled

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 08 September 2004, 10:43 GMT]
More than one-fourth, about 18,666 vacancies are not filled in the the North East Provincial Council (NEPC), which administers eight districts of the province, Jaffna Killinochchi, Mullaitivu, Mannar, Vavuniya, Trincomalee, Batticaloa and Ampara. Out of 60,034 officially approved positions in 2000 only 41,368 have been filled, sources said.


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TNA urges President to commence talks with LTTE

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 07 September 2004, 08:00 GMT]
“The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) would strongly urge the Government to commence talks with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) without delay, on the basis of the Interim Self-Governing Authority proposals of the LTTE. and thereby implement the position enunciated by the President on 10 June, when she met the TNA delegation”, said Mr.R.Sampanthan, TNA parliamentary group leader in a statement made in the parliament Tuesday morning.
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Sri Lanka President says will discuss peace with all

[TamilNet, Saturday, 04 September 2004, 16:19 GMT]
Sri Lanka’s President Chandrika Kumaratunga said Saturday that she would invite all parties and organisations concerned in the peace process for discussions on how to take forward negotiations with the Liberation Tigers in two weeks. She was addressing a rally in Galle, a large provincial town on the island’s southern coast, to mark the 53rd anniversary of her Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), which was founded by her father, Mr. Solomon Ridgeway Dias Bandaranaike. Speaking in Singhalese, President Kumaratunga vowed to do her best to bring the Liberation Tigers back to the negotiating table.
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CWC will support Kumaratunga's government - Thondaman

[TamilNet, Friday, 03 September 2004, 08:39 GMT]
The Ceylon Workers' Congress (CWC) said Friday it would support President Chandrika Kumaratunga's United People's Freedom Front (UPFA), ending months of uncertainty over the future of her minority government. Mr. Arumugan Thondaman, leader of the CWC, said that his party's eight MPs will support the UPFA on issues from the ranks of the opposition. He said CWC will support the UPFA government without any conditions, to help it take forward the peace process. UPFA has 106 members in the 225 seat Sri Lankan Parliament, 7 short of the simple majority to run a stable government.
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Training for unemployed graduates begins in Vavuniya

[TamilNet, Thursday, 02 September 2004, 13:16 GMT]
A three month training program for hundred and sixty eight unemployed graduates in the Vavuniya district was inaugurated Thursday. The program is part of a controversial scheme by President Chandrika Kumaratunga's government to provide state jobs for more forty one thousand unemployed graduates. The scheme was introduced after mass protests and hunger strikes backed by the Marxist Sinhala nationalist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna, President Kumaratunga's mail coalition ally. Critics say it will cause a huge strain on the cash strapped Sri Lankan treasury.
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French diplomats meet TNA foreign affairs committee

[TamilNet, Thursday, 02 September 2004, 09:36 GMT]
“We told France if indeed talks on the ISGA commence, there is a good chance that an agreement could be reached in this matter. We said that this is exactly what the Singhalese are afraid of, as it would mean that they would no longer have a monopoly on power, and their hegemony over the Tamil nation will cease for once and for all time. We also said that it is for this reason that we suspect that the Sri Lankan government t is trying to provoke the LTTE to another war by destabilizing the east and supporting Tamil armed groups," said Mr. Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam TNA MP Thursday.
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Greater inclusivity can revive peace process- NPC

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 25 August 2004, 09:16 GMT]
The National Peace Council, in a press release issued in Colombo Tuesday said that killings during ceasefire are "totally unacceptable," and that a bipartisan approach is necessary to take the peace process forward to arrive at a "mutually agreed negotiated political solution."
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Agricultural exhibition to be held in Vattakachchi Model Farm

[TamilNet, Monday, 23 August 2004, 04:19 GMT]
Manufacturers and resellers of agricultural tools using latest technology, and agricultural, livestock producers will be showcasing their products in an exhibition at the Model Farm premises in Vattakachchi organized by the Tamil Eelam Economic Development Organization (TEEDOR) during the first week of September, organizers in Vanni said this week.
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Kumaratunga ‘more powerful’ than Aung San Suu Kyi

[TamilNet, Saturday, 21 August 2004, 14:14 GMT]
Sri Lanka’s President Chandrika Kumaratunga was ranked 44th in a list of the world’s hundred most powerful women. The list, produced by the business magazine Forbes, is headed by US National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice.
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Jaffna undergrads smash Sri Lanka President's photo

[TamilNet, Friday, 20 August 2004, 11:37 GMT]
A large group of undergraduates Friday forcibly removed a portrait of Sri Lanka's President Chandrika Kumaratunga from the general hall of the Jaffna University and smashed it in protest against the her government's policy on the Tamil question, staff said. Students of the university had earlier petitioned the Vice Chancellor urging him to remove her photo from the general hall.
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Tamil women's problems spotlighted in Vavuniya gathering

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 17 August 2004, 14:28 GMT]
A gathering of Tamil Eelam Women Associations, Sangamam, was held in Vavuniya Irambaikulam Girls Maha Vidiyalayam Monday on a grand scale. Noting that "women are subjected to more violence than during the war period", Vavuniya district Political Head of the LTTE's Women Wing, Ms Alai, said that the gathering was conducted to study about the violence and the forces behind the atrocities committed against women.
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Senior EPDP leader shot dead in Colombo

[TamilNet, Monday, 16 August 2004, 05:03 GMT]
Mr. Bala Nadarajah Iyer (Sinna Bala), a senior member of the EPDP, a close ally of Sri Lankan President Chandrika Kumaratunga, was shot dead in Colombo by unidentified gunmen Monday around 8.15 a.m. Mr. Iyer was the spokesman for the EPDP and was on the editorial board of its paper Thinamurasu.
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