Aussie MPs attend Pararajasingham memorial event

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 24 January 2006, 02:22 GMT]
Several Australian parliamentarians and representatives from humanitarian agencies attended a memorial meeting to pay tribute to the slain Tamil Parliamentarian Joseph Pararajasingham held on at the Homebush Boys High School auditorium, Sydney Australia organized by Tamil Australians on 22nd January.
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US Tamils question timing of Ambassador Lunstead's speech

[TamilNet, Monday, 23 January 2006, 00:41 GMT]
Questioning Ambassador Lunstead's "reckless exercise at a time of great risk to the peace process, and just a few days before Mr. Erik Solheim’s visit, which everyone was looking to as the only way of defusing an extremely dangerous situation," US Tamils, in a memorandum to Secretary of State, Dr Condoleezza Rice and to Mr Nicholas Burns, the U.S. under secretary of state for political affairs, said they hoped that Mr. Burns, who will be in Sri Lanka during Mr. Solheim’s visit, "will clarify to everyone what US policy is at this critical time, and help revive the peace track."
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Sri Lanka continues to violate state obligations towards Tamils, say Tamil parties

[TamilNet, Saturday, 21 January 2006, 00:20 GMT]
The Government of Sri Lanka not only failed to carry out proper investigations into the assasinations of reputed Tamil leaders, parliamentarians, journalists and activists, but it has also failed to take appropriate actions to prevent the recurrence of such crimes against the ordinary Tamil civilians, all four Tamil parties in the Lankan parliament charged in a joint memorandum sent to SL President Mahinda Rajapakse Friday. The joint statement was issued by the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), Ceylon Workers Congress (CWC), Upcountry Peoples' Front (UPF) and Western Province Peoples' Front (WPPF) that jointly staged a protest campaign within the chambers of the Sri Lankan Parliament.
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Tamil MPs protest, SL parliament suspended second day

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 18 January 2006, 06:43 GMT]
Parliamentarians of Tamil National Alliance (TNA), Ceylon Workers Congress (CWC), Upcountry People's Front (UPF) and Western Province People's Front (WPPF) Wednesday resumed their sit-in protest in the well of the House for the for the second consequtive when the parliament resumed its sitting, Wednesday morning. Speaker M.J.M.Lokkubandara suspended the sitting for the day because of noisy protest by the Tamil MPs demanding the Sri Lanka Government to stop the killings, arrests and harassment of Tamil speaking people by the State armed forces, using Emergency Regulations, parliamentary sources said.
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Tamil MPs protest in parliament against killings in NorthEast

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 17 January 2006, 07:56 GMT]
Pandemonium prevailed in the Sri Lankan parliament Tuesday when it met for the first time in the new year 2006 following the protest held by parliamentarians of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), Ceylon Workers Congress (CWC), Upcountry Peoples' Front (UPF) and Western Province Peoples' Front (WPPF) against the killing of parliamentarian Mr. Joseph Pararajasingham, rape and murder of a girl, Tharshini, in Pungudutivu, killing of five Tamil students in Trincomalee and several Tamil civilians by the Sri Lankan armed forces and the paramilitary groups and the arbitrary arrests of Tamil civilians in Colombo, parliamentary sources said.
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NZ Peace Group condemns Pararajasingham killing

[TamilNet, Thursday, 12 January 2006, 13:10 GMT]
Global Peace and Justice, an Auckland based civil society group, condemned the killling of Mr Pararajasingham and said: "This is yet another conflict where the people of New Zealand can have an international impact beyond its size. We look forward to swift government action to contribute to justice and peace in Sri Lanka," in a press release issued in New Zealand, Sunday.
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Peace Group calls for urgent talks on CFA

[TamilNet, Thursday, 12 January 2006, 12:24 GMT]
Peace Support Group (PSG), a group consisting of civil society peace activists, expressed "deep sorrow and concern" at the escalation of violence in the NorthEast, reiterated the necessity to "return to direct talks as a matter of the utmost priority," and called upon the Government of Sri Lanka and Liberation Tigers "to affirm their commitment to the maintenance of law and order in the areas under their control, and take all steps to prevent a return to armed hostilities," in a press release issued in Colombo Monday.
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Australia condemns CFA violations in Sri Lanka

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 11 January 2006, 11:23 GMT]
In a media release issued on the 8 December, Mr Alexander Downer , Australia's Minister of Foreign Affairs said, "Australia is deeply concerned about the recent escalation in violence in the North and East of Sri Lanka, and condemns in particular the two attacks in Jaffna on 4 and 6 December by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)," and called upon "both the Government of Sri Lanka and the LTTE to take appropriate steps to bring an end to the current violence and to work towards the implementation of the letter and spirit of the Ceasefire Agreement as a crucial step in seeking a just and sustainable peace settlement."
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TRO's Travelling photo exhibit to continue into 2006

[TamilNet, Saturday, 07 January 2006, 06:21 GMT]
Labelled "The healing continues..," the Tamils Rehabilitation Organization (TRO), an NGO registered with the Government of Sri Lanka working exclusively in the NorthEast, in conjunction with the international TRO offices, has held nineteen exhibitions in fourteen countries displaying photographs of emergency response to the Tsunami, its devastation and long term reconstruction, rehabilitation projects, TRO sources said. Exhibitions in additional cities will take place thorughout 2006, sources added.
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Tamil Americans urge Co-chairs to promote "equal partnership for peace”

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 04 January 2006, 00:35 GMT]
A group of US organizations representing Tamil Americans, in a letter sent to Co-chairs of the Tokyo Donor Conference Monday, welcomed the Co-chairs' call for an immediate meeting of the Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers, and urged the Co-chairs to make clear to both sides that attacks on civilians will not be tolerated, ask military to withdraw from civilians homes and public buildings and to threaten SL Government with sanctions if steps are not taken to disarm paramilitaries.
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TNA accuses Security forces of killing Tamil youth in Trinco

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 03 January 2006, 15:53 GMT]
The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Tuesday charged that the State armed forces have killed five Tamil youths in Trincomalee town and injured two others. "The five youths killed came by their death as a result of gunshot injuries. The terror of the State's armed forces has been unleashed against the Tamil people. It would be futile for the State to think that the Tamil people can be suppressed in this way," TNA said in its press release issued Tuesday.


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Canadians mourn loss of Pararajasingham

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 03 January 2006, 06:41 GMT]
Canada’s Minister of Defence and former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bill Graham, together with four parliamentarians from the Canadian Government, five representatives from the opposition and a number of Canadian Human Rights and Peace activists joined the expatriate Tamil community in Toronto, on Monday, to mourn and pay tribute to "Mamanithar" Joseph Pararajasingam, the senior Tamil National Alliance parliamentarian who was slain at Batticaloa St. Mary's Church on Christmas Day. "Joseph Pararajasingham was a man of peace, but he also a man of steely determination, of great courage, a man who was willing to risk his life for his people," the Canadian Defence Minister said in his tribute.
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Trincomalee in shock over killing of students

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 03 January 2006, 04:29 GMT]
Trincomalee residents are shocked and angered over the killing of five old students of Trincomalee Sri Koneswara Hindu College in a grenade attack by unidentified men Monday night at about 7.50 p.m. Two old students, one from Sri Koneswara Hindu College and another from St.Joseoh’s College in Trincomalee are warded in the intensive care unit (ICU) of the Trincomalee general hospital. All the dead and injured are identified as Tamils and below the age of 20 years. Two of the dead students have gained university admission for the current academic year, police sources said.
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Pararajasingham was at peace with his life's work- Balakumaran

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 03 January 2006, 00:01 GMT]
“The murder of rights advocates in churches and holy sanctuaries is a historical phenomenon. From El Salvador’s Archbishop Oscar Romero to our own Joseph Pararajasingam, their lives did not end with death. On the contrary, they become alive into the collective consciousness of their people for whom they have struggled," said V. Balakumaran, a senior leader of the Liberation Tigers (LTTE) talking during his weekly address to LTTE radio "Pulikalin Kural (Tigers Voice)" Saturday.
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JVP to move no-confidence motion on CWC MP

[TamilNet, Monday, 02 January 2006, 17:20 GMT]
The Parliamentary group of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) Monday decided to move a no-confidence motion on Mr. M.Sachchithanandan, Deputy Chairman of Parliamentary Committees, when the parliament resumes its sittings on January 17, parliamentary sources in Colombo said. JVP accused Mr.Sachchithanandan of violating Sri Lanka's constitution by going to LTTE held Killinochchi to pay homage to the slain parliamentarian Mr. Joseph Pararajasingham.
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TamilNadu CM cancels Rajapakse meeting

[TamilNet, Thursday, 29 December 2005, 19:16 GMT]
"Dinathanthi," a Tamil daily based in Tamil Nadu, India, in its print edition Thursday quoted India's Foreign Ministry Spokesman, Navtej Sarna, as saying that the meeting scheduled for Friday between the Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse and the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu state, Ms. Jayalalitha Jayaram, in Chennai was cancelled due to the SL President's "full schedule in Delhi," and the Chief Minister not being available that day. Disclosing that the Sri Lankan President was scheduled to visit the bordering state of Kerala to attend a pooja at the Thiruvayoor temple on Friday, the paper said that the cancellation is more due to the increasing concerns being expressed in Tamil Nadu on the Sri Lankan Tamils' situation.
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Peace Group calls for early resumption of talks

[TamilNet, Thursday, 29 December 2005, 18:22 GMT]
The National Anti-War Front (NAWF), in a statement issued in Colombo Thursday, called upon the Government of Sri Lanka to invite the Norwegian facilitators immediately to resume negotiations with the Liberation Tigers. NAWF also urged the militaries on both sides to meet with the assistance of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM), to explore ways to stop the violence.


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Pararajasingham slaying has endangered direct talks - TNA MPs

[TamilNet, Thursday, 29 December 2005, 16:33 GMT]
Addressing the mourners who had gathered to pay the last tribute to the slain Tamil National Alliance MP, Mr. Joseph Pararajasingham, TNA parliamentarians Mavai Senathirajah and M.K. Sivajilingam said that the Government of Sri Lanka and the Sri Lankan President, in his capacity as Defense Minister, are responsible for the continued engagement of paramilitary cadres and for the killing of the MP. "The whole affair of resuming the peace process has been placed at maximum risk by the brutal act," Mr. Sivajilngam told the gathering.
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Jaffna Catholic hierarchy mourns the death of Pararajasingham

[TamilNet, Thursday, 29 December 2005, 13:38 GMT]
The Bishop of Jaffna and the priests belonging to the diocese expressed profound sadness at the loss of Joseph Pararajasingham and said the act was unjustifiable and unacceptable to men of good-will. "Perpetrators of this inhuman act will, one day, stand trial in the presence of the creator," Bishop of Jaffna Thomas Soundaranaygam said in his message.
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Mannar observes hartal condemning Pararajasingham killing

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 28 December 2005, 18:44 GMT]
A general shutdown was observed in the Mannar district Wednesday, condemning the killing of the late Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian, Mr. Joseph Pararajasingham. Mannar District Tamil Resurgence Movement organized the hartal. Normal life in Mannar town and its suburbs was completely paralyzed, sources said.


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