'Graduates' protest to destabilize govt' -UNF

[TamilNet, Thursday, 14 March 2002, 21:17 GMT]
About two thousand unemployed graduates and their parents demonstrated in front of Temple Trees, the Prime Minister's official residence, Wednesday night, demanding appointment within twenty hours. "If no action is taken to find employment for all thirty thousand unemployed graduates we would go on a hunger strike", organisers of the protest said. United National Front sources said that nationalist forces were behind the graduates' agitation with a view to destabilizing the government.
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Restriction on Colombo Tamils lifted

[TamilNet, Friday, 08 March 2002, 17:41 GMT]
The United National Front (UNF) government Friday decided to suspend immediately the practice of providing information about Tamil civilians residing in Colombo and its suburbs to the Police. Till Friday permanent residents and owners of boarding houses and lodges in Colombo had to furnish information about Tamil civilians who come from outstations, especially from the Northeast province and stay with them, to the police.
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Parliamentary debate on truce concludes

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 05 March 2002, 20:22 GMT]
The two-day Parliamentary debate on permanent ceasefire agreement between the Sri Lankan government and the Liberation Tigers concluded Tuesday evening with a winding up speech by the Constitutional Affairs Minister Professor G. L. Peiris. "The cease-fire agreement signed by the United National Front government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam is the best to end the war in the country," he insisted.
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Appeal Court to inquire JVP's petition

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 05 March 2002, 17:43 GMT]
The Court of Appeal Tuesday decided to take up the petition filed by the Marxist Janata Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) against the cease-fire agreement signed by the Prime Minister, Mr.Ranil Wickremasinghe and the Leader of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, Mr.Velupillai Pirapaharan for inquiry on Friday 14th March 2002.
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Parliament debates permanent truce

[TamilNet, Monday, 04 March 2002, 12:23 GMT]
The two-day debate on the permanent cease-fire agreement signed by the United National Front government (UNF) and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) on February 22 began Monday morning in Parliament. "The agreement signed last month by me and the LTTE leader Mr.V.Pirapaharan was a cease-fire agreement and not the final step in arriving at a political solution to the ethnic crisis. However, the agreement is a vehicle for moving forward and addressing the needs of the LTTE and the problems put forward by the Tamil people,", said the Prime Minister Mr.Ranil Wickremasinghe in a special speech made during the debate.
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President threatens to cancel ceasefire

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 26 February 2002, 11:56 GMT]
(News Feature) Sri Lanka’s President Chandrika Kumaratunga Monday threatened to derail the permanent ceasefire between the United National Front government and the Liberation Tigers with a single letter to the Army commander, a press report said Tuesday. President Kumaratunga also stepped up the war of words with the UNF government of Premier Ranil Wickremesinghe, dealing a heavy blow to the latter’s efforts to sustain governance by ‘cohabitation’ between Parliament and the office of the President, the Daily Mirror reported. Kumaratunga’s People’s Alliance (PA), along with the Janatha Vimukthi Pramuna (JVP) and the paramilitary Eelam Peoples Democratic Party (EPDP) intend to mount a legal challenge to the permanent ceasefire, press reports said Monday.
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MoU debate in parliament on March 5

[TamilNet, Sunday, 24 February 2002, 15:50 GMT]
The United National Front (UNF) government Sunday said that the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the government and the LTTE could be debated on March 5 when the parliament resumes its sittings. "We are ready to reconvene the parliament as early as possible to debate the MoU", said sources close to Prime Minister's office.
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JVP wants urgent Parliament debate on MoU

[TamilNet, Saturday, 23 February 2002, 17:08 GMT]
The Marxist Janata Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) Saturday said that a memorandum with the signatures of forty parliamentarians has been submitted to the Speaker to summon the parliament immediately to discuss the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)signed between the United National Front government and the Tamil Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) on Friday.
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Amended Local Govt. Ordinance bill passed

[TamilNet, Thursday, 21 February 2002, 17:40 GMT]
The amended Local Government Ordinance bill was passed by a majority of fifty-four votes in the parliament Thursday night after two days' debate. One hundred and twenty two parliamentarians voted for the bill. Sixty-eight parliamentarians belonged to the main opposition People's Alliance and the Marxist Janata Vimukthi Peramuna voted against the amendment.
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UNF govt to hold parliamentary debate on MoU

[TamilNet, Thursday, 21 February 2002, 12:02 GMT]
The United National Front government said Thursday that it is willing to conduct a full parliamentary debate on the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the government and the Liberation Tigers as soon as it is signed. "The MoU between the UNF government and the Liberation Tigers has not yet been finalised. The meeting of leaders of the political parties represented in the parliament would be summoned to fix the date for the debate, once the MoU came into force. The government is willing to hold a full debate on it if the opposition wanted," Mr.W.J.M.Loku Bandara, Leader of the House and Minister of Justice told parliament Thursday morning.
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TNA appeals to PA, JVP to abandon chauvinist stance

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 20 February 2002, 14:43 GMT]
The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Wednesday made a passionate plea to the Sri Lanka's main opposition party, the People's Alliance (PA) and the Marxist Janata Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) to conduct themselves with the a greater sense of responsibility and look upon peace as some thing very sacred which this country can no longer fail to achieve. "Both PA and JVP should act with a better understanding of the real ground situation in regard to the preservation of democracy and the democratic rights, particularly of Tamil people. Otherwise you would be driving the Tamil people to a position where they would think and come to a conclusion that the parliament in Sri Lanka is not at all concerned about their being afforded the opportunity of exercising their democratic rights," said Mr.R.Sampanthan, Tamil National Alliance parliamentary group leader speaking during the debate on the amended draft bill of Local Government Ordinance.
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"Amended Local Govt. Ordinance in order"- Supreme Court

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 19 February 2002, 19:31 GMT]
The Supreme Court has held that the amended draft Local Government Ordinance bill, which empowers the Commissioner of Elections to postpone elections to local authorities under extra ordinary circumstances in certain areas, is not contrary to the present Constitution.The Speaker Mr.Joseph Michael Perera Tuesday informed the determination of the SC when the Minister of Provincial Councils and Local Government Mr.Alick Aluwihare tabled the amended draft bill in parliament.
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"MoU contents will be divulged to nation" -UNF

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 19 February 2002, 19:22 GMT]
The United National Front Government said Tuesday that it would submit all details of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the government and the Liberation Tigers on a long-standing cease-fire to the nation and the parliament once the parties concerned reached an agreement. "We have not finalised the contents of the proposed MOU brokered by the Norwegian facilitation. It is premature to express opinion on the proposed MoU based on news reports appeared in media," said Professor G.L.Peiris, a senior minister in the UNF government Tuesday in parliament.
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JVP criticised for sabotaging peace efforts

[TamilNet, Sunday, 17 February 2002, 19:44 GMT]
The Colombo based Sinhalese weekly 'Hiru' has criticised the Marxist Janata Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) for its chauvinistic stance on the current peace initiatives by the United National Front government. "The JVP has violated all socialist norms by keeping silent on the political and economic rights of the Tamils in the Northeast province", the paper said in its political column Sunday.
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People's Alliance warned against chauvinistic approach

[TamilNet, Saturday, 16 February 2002, 18:24 GMT]
The Lanka Sama Samaja Party, a constituent in the People's Alliance (PA) led by President Chandrika Kumaratunge Saturday warned that it would withdraw its support to the PA if it indulged in inciting communal feeling during the forthcoming local government elections. The Leader of LSSP and the former Minister of Justice in the PA government Mr.Batty Weerakon said in a statement that "it would be a national crime if the main stream political parties deviated from the present supportive action to the peace initiatives mooted by the United National Front government
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Local Govt. Ordinance amendment bill before SC

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 12 February 2002, 15:11 GMT]
President Chandrika Kumaratunge Tuesday made a special request under Section 122 of the Constitution to the Chief Justice to report to her within twenty-four hours whether the proposed amendment to the Local Government Ordinance is consistent with the present Constitution. The President made this request on receipt of the proposed amendment bill from the United National Front (UNF) government.
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Kumaratunga ally denounces UNF-LTTE peace talks

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 February 2002, 16:04 GMT]
The radical Sinhala nationalist - socialist Janata Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), a key ally of President Chandrika Kumaratunga, vowed Wednesday to fight Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesighe's government if it "dared to lift the ban on the Liberation Tigers".
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JVP steps up protests against autonomy for Tamils

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 29 January 2002, 17:27 GMT]
Hundreds of Janata Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) cadres and activists demonstrated Tuesday in Colombo suburbs against granting regional autonomy to Tamils in Sri Lanka. The JVP emerged as a powerful third force in Sinhala politics with sixteen MPs at the general elections on 5 December last year. The JVP, a self styled radical Marxist party that draws on Sinhala nationalist sentiments to augment its popularity, says that it will oppose tooth and nail any solution to the ethnic conflict in the island based on federalism.
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Opposition mounts to lifting of LTTE ban

[TamilNet, Friday, 25 January 2002, 01:54 GMT]
(News Feature) Sri Lanka’s Marxist Janatha Vimukthi Perumana (JVP), the Eelam People’s Democratic Party (EPDP) and the Sinhala right wing MEP, a constituent of the main opposition People’s Alliance (PA) are to jointly campaign against the de-proscription of the Liberation Tigers, The Island newspaper said Friday. The day after Sri Lanka’s newly elected United National Front (UNF) government said “deep thought” should be given to de-proscription, the JVP - the third force in Sri Lankan politics - said that they have initiated talks with the PA to oppose such a move, the paper added.
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Tamil parties unite in Constitutional Council nomination

[TamilNet, Thursday, 17 January 2002, 16:19 GMT]
A retired High Court Judge Mr.T.Suntharalingam has been nominated to the eleven member constitutional council which is to be appointed under the 17th amendment to the constitution. Leaders of Tamil political parties represented in the parliament Thursday unanimously nominated Mr.Suntharalingam as the representative of the Sri Lanka Tamils in the Constitutional Council.
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