Landmines fear hampers rescue work in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 28 December 2004, 09:31 GMT]
Five villages Devastated by Saturday's Tsunami are marooned as causeways and bridges have been damaged by the tidal waves. "The newly built government hospital, public buildings, schools, LTTE political offices, homes, churches and temples have been completely destroyed by the sea," Mr. S. Jeyanandamoorthy, Tamil National Alliance MP for Batticaloa, told TamilNet Tuesday. He said that relief and rescue work in the former popular tourist resorts of Pasikudah and Kalkudah has been hindered by thousands of landmines uprooted by the Tsunami from the defenses of the local SLA garrison.
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Dispute over power sharing must not impede the relief efforts - NPC

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 28 December 2004, 01:45 GMT]
Noting that there is an immense human tragedy with villages swept away without trace and thousands of deaths in LTTE-controlled areas, the National Peace Council (NPC), a Colombo based Sri Lankan peace group, in a media release issued in Colombo Tuesday said that it is important that the LTTE be brought in as a major actor if any major relief effort is meant to cover all affected areas in the north east. NPC appealed to the government and the LTTE to trust and respect each other's commitment to the best interests of the people they both seek to serve.
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Tamil MP slams Colombo for ignoring Northeast plight

[TamilNet, Monday, 27 December 2004, 19:37 GMT]
The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Monday slammed the Sri Lankan government and Sinhala parties in Parliament for "callously ignoring the plight of thousands in the northeast hit by Saturday's Tsunami. Mr. Joseph Pararajasingham, senior TNA MP who took part in a conference Monday on urgent disaster management convened by Sri Lanka's Prime Minister told that the nonchalant attitude of the government and Sinhala parties towards the suffering in the Northeast is "appalling".
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Tsunami death toll expected to increase

[TamilNet, Sunday, 26 December 2004, 17:10 GMT]
Around 3100 persons in Northeast and 1400 in South have died due to tsunami waves that hit NorthEast coast Sunday, according to government sources in Colombo. In the Northeast alone, nearly 12000 people have suffered injuries and around 200,000 people have been affected, administrative sources in Colombo said. Government sources added that death toll is expected to rise significantly. In the meantime, Tamil National Alliance (TNA)parliamentarian Mr. Joseph Pararajasingam has urged the Prime Minister Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksha, to attend to immediate needs of the affected public in the east.
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TRO appeals for urgent assistance

[TamilNet, Sunday, 26 December 2004, 12:50 GMT]
Tamil Rehabilitation Organization (TRO), an independent Non-Governmental Organization registered with Government of Sri Lanka, appealed to the Tamil expatriates Sunday to donate towards meeting the humanitarian crisis unfolding following the tsunami wave triggered flooding in residential areas along the eastern coast of Sri Lanka. Majority of families affected were from the NorthEast of Sri Lanka.
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At least 500 feared killed by Tsunami waves in Sri Lanka

[TamilNet, Sunday, 26 December 2004, 04:12 GMT]
At least five hundred people are feared killed as fierce waves from the sea hit Sri Lanka' eastern and southern coasts Sunday morning. Initial reports from the east said that many coastal villages of the Trincomalee, Batticaloa and Amparai districts were hit by powerful tidal waves causing extensive destruction as thousands of homes were covered by rising sea waters. Around 25 villages are reported to have been swept off by the tidal waves of the Tsunami.
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Student leader decries Colombo's military buildup

[TamilNet, Saturday, 25 December 2004, 21:00 GMT]
"The Government of Sri Lanka is strengthening its military in preparation for renewed hostilities. The Liberation Tigers are ready to confront war if it is thrust on us and are prepared to liberate the occupied lands and people," said Mr Subash, Vavuniya district president of Consortium of Tamileelam students, addressing the audience in a book release ceremony held at the Muthaiah Hall in Vavuniya Friday afternoon, sources from Vavuniya said.
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South gambles with Sri Lanka's destiny- NLF

[TamilNet, Saturday, 25 December 2004, 11:40 GMT]
"The most urgent need today is not to cave in to the antics of the [Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna] JVP," said Mr. Thirunavukarasu, polit bureau member of the New Left Front (NLF) Saturday, political sources in Colombo said. He noted that the deadlock reached in the peace process is not of recent origin, but represents the "cumulative effect of the manner in which the ruling classes have handled the Tamil National issue since the 1950s" and said that the time has come for the two main parties to "shed their predilection just for power and one-upmanship."
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NGOs condemn U.S. military analysts’ visit to Jaffna

[TamilNet, Friday, 24 December 2004, 04:25 GMT]
Several people’s organizations in the Jaffna district have strongly condemned what they said was a secret visit by a group of U.S. military analysts to Jaffna with Sri Lanka's Army to study the security situation of SLA's frontline positions in the district. The organizations have sent letters to register their protest to the U.S. Embassy in Colombo and other international organizations, according to media reports in Sri Lanka and in the North-East.
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NGOs propose election reforms in Sri Lanka

[TamilNet, Thursday, 23 December 2004, 22:51 GMT]
Three Colombo-based NGOs, The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA), the Centre for Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV), and the People Action for Free and Fair Elections(PAFFREL), proposed a set of Election reforms in Sri Lanka after long discusiions on Wednesday, sources in Colombo said.
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Japanese poltician to visit Sri Lanka

[TamilNet, Thursday, 23 December 2004, 05:39 GMT]
Mr.Keishiro Fukushima, Parliamentary Secretary for Foreign Affairs of Japan, will be in Sri Lanka on a four day visit from 25th to 28th December 2004. Mr. Fukushima is a member of the House of Councillors under the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), a press release by the Japanese Embassy in Colombo said Wednesday.


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Award to arrest culprits in Bollywood grenade attack

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 22 December 2004, 12:15 GMT]
Sri Lanka's Police Wednesday announced an award of 20 million Sri Lankan rupees for informants who give lead to the arrest of the main culprit in the Bollywood grenade attack that killed two persons and injured several while the concert of a Indian troupe led by actor Sharuk Khan was in progress in Colombo Race Course grounds on December 11th Saturday night, sources said.
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PNM wants CFA annulled

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 21 December 2004, 16:54 GMT]
The Patriotic National Movement (PNM), a sinhala nationalist organization, decided at its 19th annual convention of its branches, to annul the ceasefire agreement (CFA) and to remove Norway from its facilitation role in the peace talks, political sources in Colombo said. PNM further decided that peace talks should not resume on the basis of the Interim Self-Governing Authority (ISGA) proposals of the LTTE. The convention was held Tuesday evening at the Colombo Town hall.
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UNP's protest campaign draws 30 000 protestors in Colombo

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 21 December 2004, 16:48 GMT]
Around thirty thousand protestors joined in a big protest rally organized by the main opposition United National Party (UNP) in Colombo Tuesday, demanding the release of Mr.S.B.Dissanayake, a UNP parliamentarian who was sentenced to two years rigorous imprisonment by the Supreme Court recently, on being found guilty on contempt charge.
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LTTE leadership studies fresh government agenda for talks

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 21 December 2004, 15:41 GMT]
The leadership of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) is studying fresh Sri Lankan government agenda for future talks, Mr. Anton Balasingham, the movement’s chief negotiator and political strategist told TamilNet Tuesday.
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Falk Rovik didn't represent Amnesty - Amnesty Norway

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 21 December 2004, 11:51 GMT]
Head of Information at Amnesty International Norway, Mr. John P. Egenæs , earlier on Tuesday, denied that a controversial Norwegian called Falk Rovik had represented his organisation at a conference held at the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH) in Colombo on Saturday, 18 November 2004. The conference was organised by hard-line forces in southern Sri Lanka opposed to the Norwegian facilitation of the peace process. Mr. Egenæs told TamilNet that the controversial Norwegian neither is, nor has ever been a spokesperson of Amnesty International Norway.
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Judge criticizes Sri Lanka’s dismal record on fundamental rights

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 21 December 2004, 04:44 GMT]
“The Government of Sri Lanka went to the United Nations in 1980 and 1981, raised its hand to say it was a signatory to the UN’s social, cultural and economic rights conventions, and sought to raise the country’s profile internationally. But until now, not even a single section of the fundamental rights laws set forth in the 1978 constitution has been changed to reflect international conventions," said Vavuniya District Judge, Mr. Manickavasagar Ilancheliyan, Monday.
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The price of peace for the Sinhala rural poor

[TamilNet, Monday, 20 December 2004, 19:42 GMT]
Sri Lanka’s recent massive defence budget allocation, whilst preparing the military for a renewed war against the Liberation Tigers, has another vital role in domestic politics: the economy of the Sinhala rural poor is three times more dependent on military remittances than official poverty alleviation schemes. Earlier this month, Sri Lanka’s ruling party and the main opposition party, in a rare show of unity, joined together to vote in favor of the country's defense allocations for 2005. Only the main Tamil party, the Tamil National Alliance, opposed the defence budget.
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Efficient deployments benefit thousands in Batticaloa - TRO

[TamilNet, Sunday, 19 December 2004, 23:08 GMT]
Many villages have been marooned under flood water preventing people from returning to their homes though rain has stopped for the last two days in Batticaloa district. Vaharai divisional secretariat division was the worst affected area by the floods in the Batticaloa district. Hundreds of families had sought refuge at schools and other public buildings. Tamils Rehabilitation Organisation (TRO) was there providing urgently needed assistance to the flood victims, civil sources in Vakarai told TamilNet. 4505 Vakarai villagers have benefited by this timely help, according to a TRO official.
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Find Consensus Within Government Coalition Before Seeking Our Co-operation - UNP MP

[TamilNet, Sunday, 19 December 2004, 13:48 GMT]
"Whilst we are always ready to support the peace process, any effort by the government to advance the peace process without first dealing with the contradictions and conflict within their coalition ranks will be in vain" said Dr. Rajitha Senaratne, UNP MP for Kalutara District, at a press conference held in Colombo Sunday.
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