Probe commences on Gurunagar disappeared youths

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 13 October 2004, 16:25 GMT]
Jaffna Magistrate Mr.K.Viknarajah Wednesday held the preliminary inquiry into a Habeas Corpus (HC) application filed by relatives of three Tamil youths who disappeared after being arrested by the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers in 1996, legal sources said. The youths were residents of Gurunagar and Ariyalai areas.
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Grenade explodes inside Chinabay cement factory

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 13 October 2004, 11:59 GMT]
A grenade attack took place Wednesday evening around 3.30 p.m.allegedly targeting a leading private sector cement factory, which is located in Chinabay, about 9 km off Trincomalee town. Prima Milling Complex, Ceylon Petroleum Corporation refinery, airport and Fisheries Corporation office are also located in Chinabay, police said.
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SLA provides security to fuel, flour transport from Trinco

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 13 October 2004, 10:40 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Army (SLA) Wednesday commenced providing security to lorries transporting fuel from Ceylon Petroleum Corporation refinery and flour from Prima Flour Mill, both are located in Chinabay, about nine km off Trincomalee town to other provinces. This follows the threat by North East Sinhala Association (NESA) that it would set up road blockades from Wednesday, demanding the release to Sinhala home guards arrested by Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and remanded on the orders of Thamileelam court, sources said.
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Trinco in high alert following fuel blockade threat

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 13 October 2004, 00:31 GMT]
Trincomalee town has been put on security alert from Tuesday evening following the announcement by the North East Sinhala Association (NESA) to launch 24 hour-road blockades from Trincomalee to other parts of the country transporting fuel and flour until the two Sinhala home guards arrested and remanded by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) are released, security sources said. NESA is a front of the Sinhala nationalist Marxist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), a major constituent of the ruling United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA).
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Army "needs 98 more battle tanks"

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 12 October 2004, 09:52 GMT]
A top commander in the Sri Lanka Army (SLA), addressing a National Security Council meeting last week, had called for a purchase of 98 more battle tanks, the Daily Mirror said Tuesday. Major General Sisira Wijesuriya’s comments were highlighted in the paper’s report on his arrest Tuesday over financial irregularities.
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Indian fishermen arrested near KKS harbour area remanded

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 12 October 2004, 01:50 GMT]
Ten Indian fishermen arrested by the Sri Lanka Navy with explosives in their fishing trawler in the Sri Lankan territorial waters close to Kankesanthurai harbour area Sunday around midnight were remanded till October 22nd by the Mallakam Magistrate Ms Sarojinidevi Ilankovan, legal sources said.


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Drugs causing Mannar woes, Hakeem told

[TamilNet, Monday, 11 October 2004, 18:36 GMT]
President of the Mannar Mohideen Jummah Mosque, Mr. M. A Cader, Monday accused Police of having a hand in exacerbating friction between religious communities in the region. He was addressing a meeting at the Mannar District Secretariat between Mr. Rauf Hakeem, leader of Sri Lanka Muslim Congress and the Government Agent, officials, Mr. Selvam Adaikalanathan, Tamil National Alliance MP and local community leaders. Mr. Hakeem visited Mannar Monday to find out and discuss problems faced by Muslims in the district.
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Tamil scholars honoured in Jaffna Literary Festival

[TamilNet, Monday, 11 October 2004, 16:11 GMT]
Three day North East Tamil Literary Festival concluded Monday evening in Jaffna conferring Governor's Award on eight Tamil scholars and releasing videocassette on the life and literary works of veteran Tamil Professor K.Sivathamby.
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Pt. Pedro UC should turn in keys daily, orders SLA

[TamilNet, Sunday, 10 October 2004, 18:06 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Police (SLA) has ordered the Point Pedro Urban Council (UC) authorities to hand over their office keys to the Police Station which is located inside the high security zone daily in the evening and take back next morning. The headquarters of the 524 Brigade of the SLA is also located inside the HSZ, sources said.
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SLA stops building materials getting into LTTE held villages

[TamilNet, Sunday, 10 October 2004, 10:57 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Army (SLA) has completely stopped the transportation of building materials such as cement, steel and timber through Muhamalai check point to the villages of Pallai, Iyakkahchi, Maruthankerni, Thalaiyadi, Vembadi, Mamunai and Kaddaikadu, which are located in the LTTE, controlled areas. The SLA's unilateral action has seriously disrupted all development and construction work undertaken by non-governmental organizations in the war-torn villages, civil sources said.


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U.S Congressman speaks on Sri Lanka violence

[TamilNet, Sunday, 10 October 2004, 02:06 GMT]
Republican Iowa Congressman James A. Leach, chairman of the Subcommittee on East Asia and the Pacific of the House International Relations Committee, expressed concern about the rising level of political violence in Sri Lanka and called for a resumption of the peace talks between the government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, in a statement before the U.S House of Representatives issued October 7 and distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State.
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SLA abandons building new checkpoint after protests

[TamilNet, Saturday, 09 October 2004, 15:56 GMT]
Buisness owners, auto drivers and residents of Kaithady protested for more than an hour from 11.30am Saturday in Kaithady junction on Kaithady-Chavakachcheri portion of A9 highway against the Sri Lanka Army's (SLA's) attempt to build a new checkpoint at an existing Auto-stop near the junction, sources from Kaithady said.
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Trinco refugees protest demanding resettlement

[TamilNet, Friday, 08 October 2004, 10:40 GMT]
A group of Tamil refugees sheltered in UNHCR run Allesgarden camp located about three km north of Trincomalee town Friday morning around 7.30 a.m.held a sit in protest obstructing the traffic on the Trincomalee Nilaveli road stating that they are unable to return their villages of Kanniya and Kuchchaveli as their lands are still occupied by the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) and Sri Lanka Navy (SLN), civil sources in Trincomalee said.


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International Teachers Day celebration in Kalmunai draws thousands

[TamilNet, Thursday, 07 October 2004, 23:32 GMT]
International Teachers Day celebrations were held in Kalmunai, Wesley College grounds on Wednesday in a large scale involving Tamil, Muslim and Sinhala communities. About 2000 pre school teachers from Batticaloa and Ampara districts were taken in procession with pre school children's bands from Batticaloa district and Sinhala zones in Ampara district. The main banner leading the procession was carried by Muslim, Tamil and Sinhala Pre school teachers.
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Sri Lanka ID card symbol of Tamils’ humiliations – TNA MP

[TamilNet, Thursday, 07 October 2004, 12:57 GMT]
“The national identity card is a symbol of enslavement for the Tamils. It is a symbol of the humiliations to which they were subjected by the Sinhala state. What is the guarantee that the two main Sinhala parties won’t unite in the future to deny Tamils their voting right by making voter identity cards issued under this law invalid in the northeast? These parties get together only to disfranchise Tamils or to deny their legitimate rights”, said Mr. Selvarajah Gajendran, Tamil National Alliance MP for Jaffna, speaking on the election identity card bill in Sri Lanka’s Parliament Thursday.
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Jaffna SLA commander meets NGO representatives

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 October 2004, 13:36 GMT]
Major General Sunil Tennekoon, Jaffna Area Commander of Sri Lanka Army (SLA), said during discussions with representatives of the Consortium of Jaffna District Non-Governmental Organizations (CJDNGO) Wednesday that poor public relations skills of his soldiers serving in the peninsula are contributing to the difficulties in maintaining cordial relationship with members of public, civil sources said.


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SLA, LTTE meet again in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 October 2004, 04:59 GMT]
Sri Lankan armed forces met the Liberation Tigers Wednesday in Batticaloa to discuss the implementation of the cease fire agreement in the districts of Batticaloa and Amparai. The LTTE delegation was led by Mr. S. Marshall, head of the Tigers' headquarters branch for Batticaloa-Amparai. Sri Lankan armed forces delegation was led by Col. A. L Amaratunga, commander of 23-3 Brigade in Batticaloa. Continuing killings and the activities of paramilitaries in the eastern district were discussed at the meeting.
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Re-examine stand on Home guards, SLMM tells LTTE

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 October 2004, 00:03 GMT]
While saying that "there is no logic" to the demand of Liberation Tigers to release ten LTTE cadres arrested by Government of Sri Lanka nearly a year ago in exchange for the release of two homeguards is unreasonable the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission in a press release said that a Trincomalee organization engaged in "irresponsible behavior" and is trying to discredit the SLMM.
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SLA permits dredging mooring points in Vadamaradchi again

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 05 October 2004, 13:32 GMT]
Sri Lanka army Tuesday permitted fishermen to dig two mooring points in Valvettithurai. Work on one of the mooring points began Tuesday. Workmen who were on their way to Valvettithurai were, however, stopped by SLA at Polikandy but were allowed to proceed after commander of 54-2 Brigade in Pt. Pedro intervened.
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Rains threaten to worsen Thenmaradchi farmers' woes

[TamilNet, Sunday, 03 October 2004, 17:06 GMT]
Majority of paddy fields in Thenmaradchchi division in Jaffna district cannot be cultivated during the forthcoming season as several channels located inside the high security zones are blocked by the Sri Lanka Army (SLA), preventing water flow into the sea, farmers told government officials who attended a meeting at Usan Ramanathan Vidiyalayam School held Sunday.
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