Germans give boats, engines, bicycles

[TamilNet, Thursday, 03 February 2005, 17:41 GMT]
Humedica, a german NGO helping Tsunami victims in the north, Thursday gave fifteen boats, out board motors (OBMs) and bicycles to fishermen in three villages on Jaffna's Vadamaradchi coast. Officials of Humedica, Liberation Tigers, local fisheries societies took part in ceremonies to handover the boats.
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Civil organizations in northeast submit their pleas to Kofi Annan

[TamilNet, Saturday, 08 January 2005, 16:51 GMT]
Civil organization representatives in northeast accompanied by a large crowd met Ms Penny Brune, UNICEF representative for Vanni, in Killinochchi on Friday and handed her written appeals from civil organizations. The appeals urged the visiting UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan, to visit Vadamaradchi East and Mullaithivu areas that have been devastated by the tsunami attack. Ms Penny Brune after receiving the appeals said that she will ensure that all the appeals reach the UN Secretary General the same day.
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SLA accused of burning refuge

[TamilNet, Sunday, 02 January 2005, 13:41 GMT]
A hut at a refuge sheltering 67 families displaced by the tsunami to Kudathanai, Vadamaradchi, Jaffna, was burnt and all the males assaulted in an attack that has been blamed on soldiers of the Sri Lanka Army. Tamil National Alliance parliamentarian Mr. M. K. Sivajilingam had accused local Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers of being responsible for the attack, which left at least three people hospitalized and forced all 67 families to seek new shelter.
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‘Tamils in northeast are also human beings’- LTTE commander

[TamilNet, Friday, 31 December 2004, 01:25 GMT]
“The Sri Lankan government should not look at this as a Sinhala or Tamil issue. It should see it as a human tragedy and help. We should now ensure that the people rescued from the Tsunami devastation are protected from diseases rather than let the enormity of the tragedy make us inactive. The government of Sri Lanka should consider our people also as human beings," said Col. Soosai, Commander of the Sea Tigers who is directing rescue and relief operations on the southern coast of Jaffna and in Mullaithivu, said in an interview to a London Tamil Television, Deepam TV, Wednesday.
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External aid yet to reach Vanni, 3 000 still missing in Mullaitivu

[TamilNet, Monday, 27 December 2004, 15:49 GMT]
No external aid was received until Monday afternoon to assist thousands of people injured and rendered homeless by the Tsunami in the coastal parts of the Vanni region and Southern Jaffna, a spokesman for the Tamils’ Rehabilitation Organisation (TRO) said. The Political Division of the Liberation Tigers convened an urgent meeting on Monday with international NGOs, local aid agencies and senior officials to assess the magnitude of the humanitarian crisis and to organize and enhance urgent relief and rescue measures in the Tsunami hit areas.
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Mullaithivu, Jaffna South coast devastation said dire

[TamilNet, Monday, 27 December 2004, 15:08 GMT]
Mullaithivu, the main coastal town of the Vanni region has been completely destroyed by the Tsunami. Liberation Tigers and local rescue workers are continuing to search for bodies of people killed along this coast. Eight villages have been totally devastated by the tidal wave. Thousands are still unaccounted for, according to the TamilNet correspondent who visited the area Monday. Public building, homes and schools along the coasts of Mullaithivu and Jaffna South have been completely destroyed by the wave.


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More than 10000 killed in Sri Lanka

[TamilNet, Monday, 27 December 2004, 08:24 GMT]
Government sources said more than 10000 people are killed in Sri Lanka. Rescue workers believe that the death toll in the Northeast region alone could be more than 6000. The number of people swept away would be much higher than earlier anticipated in the region, rescue workers say. Massive relief efforts have been launched. Infrastructure constraints and damaged highways make the rescue work difficult.
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Tsunami official death toll hits 5000

[TamilNet, Sunday, 26 December 2004, 08:56 GMT]
Official death toll from the Tsunami waves that hit northeastern and southern coast of Sri Lanka Sunday morning was increased to 5000, Sri Lankan Defence Ministry sources told TamilNet. Government officials in the devastated eastern town Batticaloa said only about twenty five of more than thousand families in Navalady, a coastal suburb of Batticaloa, appear to have survived the massive waves.
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At least 500 feared killed by Tsunami waves in Sri Lanka

[TamilNet, Sunday, 26 December 2004, 04:12 GMT]
At least five hundred people are feared killed as fierce waves from the sea hit Sri Lanka' eastern and southern coasts Sunday morning. Initial reports from the east said that many coastal villages of the Trincomalee, Batticaloa and Amparai districts were hit by powerful tidal waves causing extensive destruction as thousands of homes were covered by rising sea waters. Around 25 villages are reported to have been swept off by the tidal waves of the Tsunami.
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Vallai Bridge collapses, causing traffic problems in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 26 October 2004, 12:36 GMT]
The Vallai Bridge, the main link between the Vadamaradchi and Valigamam divisions of Jaffna, collapsed Monday afternoon, causing severe traffic problems on the major artery between Pt. Pedro and Jaffna towns. The bridge, built during British times, was damaged in heavy shelling by Sri Lanka army in 1994 and remained dilapidated since then with makeshift repairs.
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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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Nagarkovil students massacre remembered

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 22 September 2004, 16:19 GMT]
The 9th death anniversary of 40 people, including 26 students, who were killed on 22nd September 1995 in an aerial attack by the Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) on the Nagarkovil Maha Vidiyalayam was observed Wednesday afternoon at the Puloly Roman Catholic School in the Vadamaradchi division in Jaffna district, education sources said.


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Three fishermen missing in Vadamaradchi Sea

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 07 July 2004, 11:08 GMT]
Three fishermen Mr.S.Ruban (21), Mr.S.Sriskandarajah (20) and Mr.T.Subramaniam (52) of Inbaruty and Viyaparimoolai who went for fishing in the Vadamarachchi Sea in the Jaffna district are reported missing since Sunday night. The missing persons were displaced from Myliddy village in the Valigamam north division and were temporarily residing in Vadamarachchi division, civil sources said.
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Public to pay last respects to Nadesan in Kilinochchi, Jaffna

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 01 June 2004, 18:40 GMT]
The remains of the assassinated Tamil journalist, Mr. Aiyathurai Nadesan, will be kept at the Kilinochchi Cultural Hall Wednesday morning from 10 a.m. and in Jaffna at the Veerasingham Hall on Thursday morning for the public to pay last respects before being cremated in Nelliyady in the Vadamaradchi division of Jaffna district Thursday evening, media sources in Jaffna said.
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Kilinochchi, Vadamaradchi east voters throng Muhamalai

[TamilNet, Friday, 02 April 2004, 13:56 GMT]
Elections officials in Jaffna said Friday that thousands of voters from Kilinochchi walked a kilometre in scorching sun across the line of control between the areas controlled by the LTTE and the Sri Lanka army in the southern part of peninsula to cast their ballot. Polling was higher than sixty percent in the clustered booths in Sri Lanka army’s clearing zone for commercial vehicles, according to them. People voted with unprecedented enthusiasm in the Sri Lanka military controlled parts of Jaffna.
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Fishermen complain of harassment by SL Navy

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 30 March 2004, 16:50 GMT]
Vadamaradchi fishermen have made complaints to the Jaffna regional officials of the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka that the Sri Lanka Navy has prevented them from fishing in the northern sea. " We are being chased away by the navy personnel when we venture out for fishing in the northern sea since Saturday,' fishermen said in their complaints to the HRCSL, fisheries sources said.
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EPDP said forcing teachers into election work

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 24 March 2004, 15:19 GMT]
Pre-school teachers working in the Vadamaradchi area in Jaffna district Wednesday complained to their Pre-School Co-ordinator that they have been pressurized by activists of the Eelam Peoples Democratic Party to campaign for their candidates in the forthcoming general election, sources said.
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Lagoon fishing ban irks Thondamanar fishermen

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 02 March 2004, 17:36 GMT]
The Sri Lanka army agreed Tuesday to permit a limited number of fishermen to wade for prawns in the Thondamanar lagoon in Jaffna after fishermen’s organisations in the region threatened to launch a mass struggle. SLA prohibited fishermen from entering the Thondamanar lagoon from 26 February. More than 200 families in the villages of Thondamanar and Kerudavil in Jaffna’s Vadamaradchi Division depend on this lagoon for their livelihood during prawn season from mid February to April.
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TNA starts house to house campaign in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Monday, 01 March 2004, 06:47 GMT]
The Tamil National Alliance began a house to house campaign in Valigamam North and in Vadamaradchi in Jaffna. “We wanted to start on a quiet note, going directly to the people to understand their problems and attitudes”, said Mr. Selvarajah Gajendran, a TNA candidate and a former President of the Jaffna University Students’ Union. On Sunday the TNA held an introductory public meeting in Chavakachcheri.
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Poachers to be handed over to Indian Navy

[TamilNet, Friday, 13 February 2004, 12:25 GMT]
Pt. Pedro judge Mr. K. Ariyanayagam ordered that 22 Indian fishermen who were produced in court Friday should be handed over to the Indian Navy through the Sri Lanka Navy in 24 hours. He remanded three Indian boatmen who were produced in court along with the fishermen until 27 February. Fishermen in coastal settlements near Pt. Pedro captured 27 Indians who were poaching in Jaffna’s maritime zone on Wednesday night.
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