"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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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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Supreme Court scrutinises amended Local Government Act

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 13 February 2002, 18:46 GMT]
The Supreme Court Wednesday after considering the proposed Local Government Ordinance amendment bill referred to by the Executive Presidency to determine its constitutionality, announced that it would convey its determination to the President and the Speaker of the Parliament in due course. The bill was taken up for scrutiny Wednesday before a three member bench comprising of Justices S.W.B.Wadugodapitiya, D.P.S.Gunasekara and Ameer Ismail.
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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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Covert moves to scuttle peace in east – Karikalan

[TamilNet, Sunday, 03 February 2002, 21:51 GMT]
“Corrupts elements in the Sri Lanka army and paramilitary groups operating with it are making covert attempts in the east to scuttle the peace negotiations between the Tigers and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesighe’s government”, said the deputy leader of the political wing of the Liberation Tigers, Mr. Karikalan, addressing a press conference Sunday in Kokkaddicholai, 14 kilometres southwest of Batticaloa.
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Presidential Security chief surrenders to court

[TamilNet, Sunday, 03 February 2002, 21:41 GMT]
The Director of the Presidential Security Division (PSD) Mr.Nihal Karunaretna Sunday afternoon surrendered to the Kandy Chief Magistrate. The Chief Magistrate Mr.C.V.Rajapakse last Tuesday issued arrest warrant on him on an application made by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) that he was wanted in connection with a complaint that he had threatened the Officer-in-Charge of the Hanguranketha Police with death.
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“Remove fishing ban , release PTA suspects" -TNA

[TamilNet, Sunday, 03 February 2002, 15:51 GMT]
The Tamil National Alliance ( TNA ) Sunday appealed to President Chandrika Kumaratunge to exercise her wide power to release all Tamil political prisoners who have been detained under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA ) under the general amnesty. The TNA further appealed to Prime Minister Ranil Wickremasinghe to take urgent steps to remove fishing ban in Jaffna district.
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EPDP MP further remanded for Kayts murder

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 29 January 2002, 18:05 GMT]
The non-summary proceedings in the Naranthanai election murder case commenced Tuesday before the Jaffna Magistrate Mr. R. T. Viknaraja. Three persons, including Mr. N. Mathanarajan, the Eelam People's Democratic Party MP for Jaffna, have been charged on 29 counts including murder, attempted murder, causing grievous hurt by assaulting candidates and supporters of the Tamil National Alliance with iron rods, weapons and clubs and unlawful assembly in Naranthanai in the island of Kayts off Jaffna on November 28.
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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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Amnesty slams zero prosecutions for rape in military custody

[TamilNet, Monday, 28 January 2002, 12:48 GMT]
Complaints of rape in custody by army, police and navy officials increased markedly in Sri Lanka last year, Amnesty International said in a new report published Monday. Amnesty said rapes in the context of armed conflict "are now recognized as a war crime and, when committed on a systematic basis or large scale, a crime against humanity."
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Buddhist leaders oppose lifting ban, urge colonisation

[TamilNet, Friday, 25 January 2002, 23:40 GMT]
Sri Lanka’s hardline Buddhist clergy Thursday urged the Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe not to de-proscribe the Liberation Tigers and to continue the colonisation of Tamil areas in the north and east, the state-owned Daily News reported Saturday. The PM had vowed that the newly elected United National Front (UNF) government will never take any action detrimental to the territorial integrity of Sri Lanka and rejected the Tamil homeland concept, the paper said. The Prime Minister agreed to look into the matter of colonisation.
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Kadirgamar's conduct in peace initiative suspect -Sampanthan

[TamilNet, Thursday, 24 January 2002, 17:17 GMT]
"When your own conduct in the matter of negotiations with the LTTE with the aid of Norwegian involvement is subject to grave suspicion, I would consider it quite imprudent that you cast aspersions on the other party (the LTTE) and think that you can get away with it", the Tamil National Alliance's parliamentary group leader Mr. R. Sampanthan told former Foreign Minister Mr. Lakshman Kadirgamar, while addressing the Parliament Thursday during the special debate on the Prime Minister's policy statement Thursday. The TNA leader said President Chandrika Kumaratunga "missed the wood for the trees" when she resorted to the military option against the Tamils.
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Don't exploit LTTE ban for narrow gains -Ranil

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 22 January 2002, 14:28 GMT]
"We have no right to play around with this last chance we have to achieve peace in Sri Lanka. We also have no right to indulge in narrow political aims making use of the ban on the LTTE. Like with the war the economy has deteriorated by serious proportions. For the first time in three decades the country's economy is set to show a zero or even a negative growth. It may even be as much as seven points below zero. The country is near bankruptcy," said Sri Lanka's Prime Minister, Mr. Ranil Wickremesinghe, Tuesday in his first policy statement to the Parliament since coming to power.
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Kumaratunga claims authority “on all actions regarding war and peace”

[TamilNet, Sunday, 20 January 2002, 00:30 GMT]
(News Feature) Sri Lanka’s President Chandrika Kumaratunga this weekend warned that key decisions related to efforts to end the island’s protracted ethnic conflict would ultimately rest in her hands and not with the Parliamentary government. In an interview published in the Daily Mirror newspaper Saturday, she also questioned the competence of the newly elected United National Front (UNF) government to handle the ethnic question, while at the same time paradoxically saying that her Peoples’ Alliance (PA) - which was crushed at the last elections by the UNF - would support its efforts to find a peaceful solution.
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'Pongu Thamil nailed Chandrika's canard' - Students' Union leader

[TamilNet, Thursday, 17 January 2002, 18:16 GMT]
More than 1500 undergraduates, teachers, school students and members of the public took part in the ''Pongu Thamil'' rally at the Jaffna University Thursday morning. Addressing the rally on the campus grounds the Vice Chancellor of the university, Prof. Pon Balasundarampillai, said "Life should return to normal among the Tamils before the government begins talks with the Liberation Tigers."
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Jaffna fishermen urge minister to lift restrictions

[TamilNet, Monday, 14 January 2002, 19:20 GMT]
"Remove the total ban on fishing from Thikkam to Thondamanar and let us fish freely at night. There is no point in granting us a short time concessions and relief", said Mr.S.Thavaratnam, the President of the Federation of Northern Fishermen's Societies, addressing a meeting Monday at Hartley College in Pt. Pedro between the Minister for Rehabilitation and Reconstruction, Dr. Jayalath Jayawardana and representatives of fishermen's organisations in Jaffna. The Sri Lankan government announced Friday that it would allow Tamil fishermen two extra hours to fish in the Jaffna lagoon and in the seas off a small part of the peninsula's eastern coastline.
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Norwegian delegation "cautiously optimistic"

[TamilNet, Friday, 11 January 2002, 19:32 GMT]
The Norwegian peace delegation Friday expressed cautious optimism over finding a peaceful solution to the ethnic conflict in the island. The delegation leader Mr.Vidar Helgeson, Norway's Deputy Foreign Minister, said there was increased level of confidence between the parties concerned.
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