Abducted JHU MP tenders resignation

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 18 May 2004, 17:22 GMT]
Venerable Kataluwe Ratnaseeha Thera, the abducted monk parliamentarian of the Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU), Tuesday personally handed over his resignation letter to the Secretary General of the parliament, parliamentary sources said.


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Akashi meets Thamilchelvan in Kilinochchi

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 18 May 2004, 11:29 GMT]
Japanese special envoy Mr.Yasushi Akashi had discussions with Mr.S.P.Thamilchelvan, head of the LTTE's political divison, on issues related to the planned resumption of the long stalled peace talks between the Tigers and Colombo Tuesday morning in Killinochchi. The hour-long discussion also centred on reconstruction and development in the northeast, LTTE officials said. The meeting took place at the LTTE's peace secretariat in Kilinochchi.
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Parliament elects UPFA Deputy Speaker

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 18 May 2004, 07:27 GMT]
The Sri Lanka's Parliament Tuesday unanimously elected Mr.Geethanjana Gunawardene of the ruling United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) as Deputy Speaker and Mr. Murugan Sachchithanandan of the Ceylon Workers Congress (CWC) Deputy Chairman of Committees at its second sitting of the first session held Tuesday morning.
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Parliament meets Tuesday, one SLMC MP crosses over to govt. bench

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 18 May 2004, 05:41 GMT]
The second sitting of the first session of the thirteenth parliament of Sri Lanka commenced Tuesday morning around 10 a.m. amid confusion and tension following the cross over of Mr. Hussain Baila, a National List parliamentarian of the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC), to the government and the alleged abduction of a monk parliamentarian of the Jathika Hela Urumaya Monday night by an unidentified group, parliamentary sources said.
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TNA MPs to decide on strategy in parliament

[TamilNet, Monday, 17 May 2004, 22:25 GMT]
The parliamentarians of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) met at the parliament building Monday to discuss the strategy to follow during the election of the Deputy Speaker on Tuesday, but decided to meet again Tuesday morning to take a firm decision, a TNA MP said.


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Four new parliamentarians to be sworn in Tuesday

[TamilNet, Monday, 17 May 2004, 17:05 GMT]
Four new parliamentarians are to be sworn in by the Speaker when Sri Lanka's parliament meets Tuesday morning. One of the four is the Tamil National Alliance parliamentarian, Mr.Pakkiaselvam Ariyanenthiran, of Batticaloa district. The other three are from the National List of the ruling United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA), sources said.
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Parliamentarians to debate Kandapola incident Wednesday

[TamilNet, Monday, 17 May 2004, 14:27 GMT]
A three-hour debate on the Kandapola incident in which two Tamil plantation workers were killed due to police firing will take place in the Sri Lanka's parliament Wednesday according to a decision taken at the first meeting of the leaders of political parties represented in the new parliament, which was held Monday in the Speaker's Chamber, parliamentary sources said.
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Akashi to meet LTTE leadership in Kilinochchi Tuesday

[TamilNet, Monday, 17 May 2004, 14:16 GMT]
The Japanese special peace envoy, Mr.Yasushi Akashi, is to meet the leadership of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Tuesday in Kilinochchi. The Japanese Ambassador in Sri Lanka, Mr.Akio Suda, will accompany Mr. Akashi and two other diplomats to Kilinochchi, sources at the Japanese Embassy in Colombo said.
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UPFA seeks to ensure majority in parliament

[TamilNet, Monday, 17 May 2004, 05:24 GMT]
The minority United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) government has been holding intensive discussions with a few selected leaders of small political parties represented in parliament to ensure majority to elect the Deputy Speaker and the Chairman of Committees when Sri Lanka's parliament is scheduled to meet May 18th morning, political sources said.
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Akashi arrives in Colombo to continue peace mission

[TamilNet, Saturday, 15 May 2004, 16:01 GMT]
Mr Yasushi Akashi, Special Representative of the Government of Japan, arrived in Colombo Saturday evening around 7.30 p.m. to continue his peace mission in Sri Lanka.T his is his 7th visit to Sri Lanka since he was appointed as the Special Representative in October 2002 to contribute to the peace process in Sri Lanka and his first visit after the election of the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) government at the recently concluded General Elections.


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Failure to Gazette delays establishment of East Medical Faculty

[TamilNet, Saturday, 15 May 2004, 10:58 GMT]
Although the United National Front Government (UNF) authorized establishment of a Medical Faculty for the Eastern Campus, the absence of Gazette notification has delayed even starting the construction of the buildings for the new faculty, said educational sources in Batticaloa.
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Speaker summons first party leaders’ meeting

[TamilNet, Friday, 14 May 2004, 12:03 GMT]
The new Speaker of the Sri Lanka Parliament Mr.W.J.M.Lokkubandara has officially summoned the first meeting of leaders of political parties represented in the parliament Monday 17th noon, political sources in Colombo said.
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CWC, SLMC to decide their future with UNF this weekend

[TamilNet, Thursday, 13 May 2004, 17:58 GMT]
The Ceylon Workers Congress (CWC) and the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC), major constituents in the United National Front (UNF), are likely to decide their future with the main opposition UNF before May 18th, political sources said
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UNP will not support UPFA sham peace effort -Peiris

[TamilNet, Thursday, 13 May 2004, 15:25 GMT]
The main opposition United National Party (UNP) Thursday announced that it would not support the sham peace efforts of the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) government ." UPFA leaders make contradicting statements on their peace efforts. It clearly shows that they are insincere in their peace moves. Hence the UNP will not support the sham peace efforts of the UPFA government," said UNP senior leader and a former minister in the then UNF government Professor G.L.Peiris at a press briefing held Thursday in Colombo.
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Japanese peace envoy Akashi to visit Sri Lanka

[TamilNet, Thursday, 13 May 2004, 07:58 GMT]
Mr.Yasushi Akashi, special envoy of the Government of Japan is to pay a five-day visit to Sri Lanka commencing from Saturday 15th May to follow up his continued peace mission, said the Japanese Embassy in a press release Thursday.
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JVP vows street revolution against UNF

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 12 May 2004, 15:48 GMT]
The Marxist and Sinhala nationalist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) Wednesday warned that it would launch a street revolution with the backing of masses if the main opposition United National Front (UNF) attempted to defeat the progressive policies of the United Peoples Freedom Alliance government in the parliament.
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SLMC to offer conditional support to minority UPFA government

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 12 May 2004, 10:09 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) politburo has decided to extend its support to the ruling minority United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) government on two conditions-one is to accommodate a Muslim delegation as a separate entity at the upcoming peace talks with the Liberation Tigers and the other is not to abolish the executive presidency as proposed, SLMC general sectary Mr.M.T.Hassan Ali said.


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Petersen to meet Pirapaharan in Kilinochchi

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 11 May 2004, 02:47 GMT]
The Norwegian Foreign Minister, Mr.Jan Petersen, and his deputy, Mr. Vidar Helgesen, are scheduled to leave Colombo for Kilinochchi Tuesday morning to meet the LTTE leadership for discussions on issues related to resuming the suspended peace talks, Presidential secretariat sources said.


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CWC MP tipped for Deputy Speaker post

[TamilNet, Monday, 10 May 2004, 17:15 GMT]
Ceylon Workers Congress (CWC) parliamentarian, Mr.Muthu Sivalingam, is tipped to be the common candidate for the post of Deputy Speaker of Sri Lanka's Parliament when it meets on May 18, political sources said.
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JVP opposed to UPFA’s decision to talk only with LTTE

[TamilNet, Monday, 10 May 2004, 16:58 GMT]
Sri Lanka’s United People’s Freedom Alliance, led by President Chandrika Kumaratunge, in a statement Sunday said that the UPFA government would hold peace talks only with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, thus conceding the LTTE’s demand to be recognized as the ‘sole representatives’ of the Tamil people, according to wire reports. The Marxist and ultra-nationalist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna, one of the main constituents of the UPFA, has however announced it is opposed to the decision, Tamil press reports said.
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