Jaffna posters urge boycott of SLA sponsored sports programs

[TamilNet, Saturday, 10 April 2004, 11:43 GMT]
Posters appeared in public places in the Jaffna district Saturday appealing to members of the public not to participate in any sports festivals and programmes conducted by the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) to mark the Tamil Sinhala new year celebrations. These anonymous posters are seen pasted in public places in important junctions in the peninsula, residents said.


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All 20 TNA Parliamentarians issue joint statement

[TamilNet, Thursday, 08 April 2004, 04:42 GMT]
"In view of the speculative reports in the media, all Members of Parliament elected from the North-Eastern region in the name of Ilankai Thamil Arasu Katchchi emphatically state that we are unequivocally and irrevocably committed to the political aspirations of the Tamil people for over the past fifty years for self rule in a unified north-eastern region, which has been the acknowledged as the area of historical habitation of the Tamil speaking people," said 20 Tamil National Alliance parliamentarians in a joint statement issued Wednesday night after two days of discussions held in Colombo.
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Pongu Thamil calls on UN to recognize Tamil aspirations

[TamilNet, Monday, 05 April 2004, 15:27 GMT]
At the Pongu Thamil event held Monday in front of the United Nations' Offices in Geneva, Switzerland, the participants from the Tamil Diaspora pointed out the Tamil aspirations endorsed by the Tamil people in the General Elections on April 2 by an overwhelming majority, and called on the U.N. and the international community to recognize the aspirations in finding a lastintg solution to the Tamil question in Sri Lanka.
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Voters in LTTE-held Vanni arrive in Puliyankulam

[TamilNet, Thursday, 01 April 2004, 17:33 GMT]
Twenty thousand voters in remote areas in the Mullaithivu district have been brought to the Liberation Tigers’ checkpoint in Puliyankulam until Thursday evening for voting in the general elections on Friday at the clustered polling stations in Omanthai, about 10 k.m. south of Puliyankulam, said Mr. S. Elilan, the political head of the LTTE in Vavuniya.
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UN agencies condemn forced displacement of Jaffna Tamils

[TamilNet, Thursday, 01 April 2004, 12:55 GMT]
The Resident Representatives of UNDP, UNHCR, UNICEF and WFP in Sri Lanka Thursday “expressed their joint concern over recent reports of the displacement of northern Tamils from Batticaloa District, either as a result of fear of persecution, or as a result of threats”. In a statement issued Thursday they strongly condemned the forced displacement and the violation of the basic rights of northern Tamils in Batticaloa. The UN agencies urged the authorities to ensure protection and to maintain law and order.
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"Election will be a turning point in Tamil struggle"- LTTE official

[TamilNet, Monday, 29 March 2004, 00:51 GMT]
Kumburupiddy area political head of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), Mr.M.Sivakumar, Sunday addressing an election seminar in support of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) in the Trincomalee district said that the forthcoming general election would be a turning point in the Tamil freedom struggle.


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Resettled Kanniya village gets co-operative model shop

[TamilNet, Sunday, 28 March 2004, 03:01 GMT]
Trincomalee Multi Purpose Co-operative Society (MPCS) Saturday opened its newly constructed eleventh retail and model shop at a cost of about 2 million rupees after about fourteen years in the resettled Tamil village Kanniya to cater to the urgent basic needs of the resettled families, civil society sources said. Kanniya is located about six km off north of east port town .
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Rejection of ISGA will lead to separation - Sampanthan

[TamilNet, Saturday, 27 March 2004, 16:53 GMT]
"The international community should come forward to recognize Tamils right to consider secession if the future Sinhala government refuses to negotiate on the basis of the Interim Self Governing Authority (ISGA) proposal of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam," said Mr.R.Sampanthan, Tamil National Alliance (TNA) leader and the lead candidate of the TNA contesting in the Trincomalee district addressing an election rally in Sambaltivu and Salli, Tamil villages in the north of Trincomalee Friday evening.
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Sampanthan concludes Jaffna election campaign

[TamilNet, Thursday, 25 March 2004, 00:46 GMT]
Tamil National Alliance (TNA) leader Mr.R.Sampanthan appealed to Jaffna district Tamil voters to return TNA candidates in all nine Jaffna parliamentary seats in the forthcoming general election while addressed several election meetings in the Jaffna district Tuesday. He left Jaffna by road Wednesday morning to Pulmoddai, a Muslim village in the Trincomalee district for election campaign, sources said


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TNA holds record election meetings in Muttur

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 23 March 2004, 10:35 GMT]
"The current ceasefire has been signed and peace talks commenced with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) when the successive governments in Colombo failed to destroy the LTTE militarily. This should be clearly borne in every one's mind," said Mr.R.Sampanthan, Tamil National Alliance (TNA) leader and the lead candidate of the Ilankai Thamil Arasu Katchchi (ITAK) contesting the forthcoming general election in the Trincomalee district when addressing a series of election meetings held in Muttur division from morning till late in the night of Sunday.
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Annai Poopathy anniversary celebrated in NorthEast

[TamilNet, Friday, 19 March 2004, 13:41 GMT]
Sixteenth year anniversary of Annai Poopathy memorial day was celebrated across the Northeast with special events being organized in Navalady, Batticaloa, sources said. Joseph Pararajasingham, Senior Vice President of the Tamil United Liberation Front, and other Tamil National Alliance candidates participated in the Batticaloa event, according to sources. Voice of Tigers (VoT) in its evening broadcast reported that major celebrations took place in Udayarkattu, Moonkilattu heroes cemetary for Batticaloa-Amparai war heroes.
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Karuna’s revolt is 'temporary aberration' - Balasingham

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 March 2004, 08:43 GMT]
The rebellion by the LTTE’s former Batticaloa-Amparai commander is “not a major politico-military crisis in the LTTE,” the movement’s theoretician and chief negotiator, Mr. Anton Balasingham, said this week in his first public comment on the estrangement between Mr. V. Muraleetharan (Karuna) and the LTTE leadership. In a wide-ranging interview with the London based Tamil Guardian newspaper, Mr. Balasingham said “Karuna’s dissent would not seriously undermine the peace process or the Tamil national struggle.”
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UPFA silent on peace process, CFA - Wickremesinghe

[TamilNet, Sunday, 14 March 2004, 11:38 GMT]
"Eventhough there is a voice in the south that is calling for the abrogation of the Ceasefire Agreement and to start war, we are determined to pursue the path of peace," said Sri Lanka's Prime Minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe speaking at an election meeting held in Vavuniya Urban Council grounds Saturday.


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Negotiations with LTTE, Presidency to be abolished - UPFA manifesto

[TamilNet, Friday, 12 March 2004, 15:19 GMT]
"The ceasefire will continue. We are committed to take all measures required to prevent the nation from going back to war," said the United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) in its forty four-page election manifesto released Thursday night at the Sri Lanka Foundation Institute, political sources in Colombo said.


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Solheim meets Thilak in Trincomalee

[TamilNet, Friday, 12 March 2004, 08:13 GMT]
Norwegian special envoy Mr. Erik Solheim told Mr.S.Thilak, Trincomalee district political head of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam at the discussion held Friday morning at the office of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) in Trincomalee that he met Colonel Pathuman, Trincomalee district commander of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam at Killinochchi Thursday.
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"Election is a referendum on ISGA" - Thilak

[TamilNet, Thursday, 11 March 2004, 10:58 GMT]
Mr.S.Thilak, Trincomalee district political head of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) said Wednesday that Tamils of the northeast province should consider the April 2 general election as a referendum on the Interim Self Governing Authority (ISGA) proposals and a democratic recognition for the liberation struggle, sources in Trincomalee said.


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German ambassador meets Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Thursday, 11 March 2004, 06:14 GMT]
German ambassador for Sri Lanka, Mr. Jueger Elias met Mr. S. P Thamilchelvan, the head of the Liberation Tigers' political divison Thursday in Kilinochchi for discussions on the April general elections, the status of the ceasefire agreement and the possibility of resuming the peace talks between Colombo and LTTE. German funded development programs in the northeast were also reviewed during the discussions, LTTE officials said.
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Solheim urged to help ensure fair polls in north

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 10 March 2004, 14:33 GMT]
Norway’s special peace envoy for Sri Lanka Mr. Erik Solheim met the Bishop of Jaffna, Government Agent, Consortium of NGOs and the head of the LTTE’s political division for Jaffna Wednesday in the northern town for discussions on the current situation and the status of the ceasefire agreement between the Liberation Tigers. The free and fair conduct of the forthcoming general elections in the north and the need to enable people in the LTTE controlled areas to vote without restrictions were the main issues that were discussed at the all the meetings, sources said.
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Civilian interests must be upheld - NPC

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 09 March 2004, 11:35 GMT]
"It is incumbent on the LTTE, government, political party leaders and civil society groups, and international ceasefire monitors to ensure that the ceasefire agreement is not violated by any party. In particular, we call on the government not to abdicate its responsibilities by the civilian population," said the National Peace Council (NPC), in a media release issued in Colombo today.
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Peace Talks, CFA will not be affected - Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Saturday, 06 March 2004, 11:19 GMT]
Talking to journalists during the press conference at the Peace Secretariat Saturday, LTTE Head of Political Wing, S.P.Thamilchelvan said that LTTE will maintain its firm committment to the peace talks and the Ceasefire Agreement and that LTTE leader Pirapaharan is always ready to provide amnesty to those who realize their mistakes.
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