Rights group questions appointments to Commissions

[TamilNet, Monday, 24 April 2006, 11:52 GMT]
Expressing dismay over the non-functioning Constitution Council for more than one year, the Civil Rights Movement (CRM) in a press release issued in Colombo Sunday said “Constitutional Council is a salutary step forward in the de-politicisation of crucial public institutions and the furthering of democracy,” and its functioning is “vital in a pluralist, complex and conflict-prone society.” The release also said that if press reports which say that “[SL President Mr Rajapakse] himself appointed members to the Public Service Commission and the National Police Commission,” are true, then these appointments are “unconstitutional and misguided.”
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JVP Kegalle office attacked, three injured

[TamilNet, Sunday, 02 April 2006, 12:24 GMT]
Janatha Vimukthi Peramunai (JVP), the marxist Sinhala national party's Kegalle office was attacked and three JVP members injured Saturday evening by a group alleged tobe belonging to United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA), said JVP sources.
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Rural Volunteers Brigade passing out parade held in Eachchilampathu

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 07 March 2006, 17:23 GMT]
"The Government of Sri Lanka led by President Mahinda Rajapakse is pushing us to the war front to win our rights," said Colonel Sornam, Special Commander of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) participating as the chief guest after taking salute at the passing out parade of a class of rural volunteers brigade held Tuesday afternoon in the grounds of Eachchilampathu Sri Sembaga Maha Vidiyalayam. The volunteers underwent three months of rigorous military training including handling heavy weapons, LTTE sources said.
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EU Election Observation Mission chief visits Sri Lanka

[TamilNet, Monday, 06 March 2006, 06:33 GMT]
John Cushnahan, the chief of the European Union Election Observation Mission (EOM) to Sri Lanka will arrive in Colombo on Monday to present the full and final report on the 2005 Presidential election. A press release issued by the EU organisation said "the report will make a number of major recommendations for strengthening the electoral process in Sri Lanka." Mr. Cushnahan will meet President Mahinda Rajapakse, the UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe, and the leaders of Sri Lanka’s other main political parties.
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LTTE protest to Sri Lanka Government over amendment issue

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 01 March 2006, 11:18 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTE) has registered its strong protest, expressing deep displeasure to Sri Lankan President Rajapakse administration over the stand taken by members of the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) negotiating team claiming that the Ceasefire Agreement has been amended. Mr. Anton Balasingham, LTTE’s chief negotiator and political ideologue, told the TamilNet that a message expressing serious concern and disapproval was conveyed to the Government of Sri Lanka through the Norwegian facilitators Wednesday.
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Appeal Court to hear petition against CFA

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 01 March 2006, 10:58 GMT]
The Sri Lankan Court of Appeal fixed the inquiry for 29 March into the petition filed by the Sinhala nationalist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) and all monks' party Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) seeking the court to nullify the Ceasefire Agreement (CFA) entered into between the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). The JVP and JHU argue that the CFA is against the Constitution of Sri Lanka and illegal. The GoSL and the LTTE renewed their commitment to respect and uphold the Ceasefire Agreement of February 2002 in Geneva last week.
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Ceasefire Agreement is foundation of peace and must be implemented - Balasingham

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 22 February 2006, 10:19 GMT]
Describing the February 2002 ceasefire agreement (CFA) as the “most constructive achievement” of the Norwegian peace process and “the foundation upon which the process has to be built,” the Liberation Tigers’ Chief Negotiator and Political Strategist, Anton Balasingham said Wednesday the CFA had been agreed upon by both the Sri Lankan government and the LTTE after “careful and meticulous scrutiny” and crafted with the skilled assistance of the Norwegian facilitators.
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Sri Lanka pardons prisoners on Independence Day

[TamilNet, Saturday, 04 February 2006, 10:59 GMT]
None of those arrested under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) and the Emergency Regulations (ER) were among the 2042 prisoners who were released on Presidential pardon on Sri Lanka's "Independence Day," Saturday. However, it was the first time some prisoners from the Northeast were released from the Sri Lankan prisons in Jaffna and Batticaloa. Meanwhile, the much-awaited release of Mr.S.B.Dissanayake, a political prisoner of the opposition UNP, did not take place.
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Karu Jayasuriya appointed chairman of UNP executive committee

[TamilNet, Monday, 16 January 2006, 17:40 GMT]
Mr.Karu Jayasuriya has been appointed Chairman of the Executive Committee of the United National Party (UNP) in addition to his Deputy Leadership post. This decision was unanimously taken at a meeting of the United National Party parliamentary group held in the Parliamentary complex Monday morning. The new post was created as a compromise to end the rift between two factions in the party over its defeat in the last presidential election held on November 17 last year, party sources said.
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Tamil Americans urge Co-chairs to promote "equal partnership for peace”

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 04 January 2006, 00:35 GMT]
A group of US organizations representing Tamil Americans, in a letter sent to Co-chairs of the Tokyo Donor Conference Monday, welcomed the Co-chairs' call for an immediate meeting of the Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers, and urged the Co-chairs to make clear to both sides that attacks on civilians will not be tolerated, ask military to withdraw from civilians homes and public buildings and to threaten SL Government with sanctions if steps are not taken to disarm paramilitaries.
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LTTE to intensify struggle for self-determination if reasonable political solution is not offered soon

[TamilNet, Sunday, 27 November 2005, 12:04 GMT]
The leader of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), in his annual Heroes’ Day statement made an urgent appeal to the new Sri Lanka Government of Mr Mahinda Rajapakse to offer a reasonable political solution to the ethnic conflict without further delay. The Tamil Tiger leader cautioned the government that his liberation organisation would intensify the struggle for self-determination and political independence if the new regime adopts a hard-line position and fails to resolve the problems of his people.
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Wickremasinghe expresses desire to lead UNP

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 22 November 2005, 17:41 GMT]
Mr.Ranil Wickremasinghe, Leader of the Opposition and the President of the United National Party (UNP) is reported to have told a group of UNP parliamentarians about his intention of continuing to remain as UNP's leader. He expressed his desire following appeals made by majority parliamentarians, political sources said.
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Wickremanayake appointed new Lankan PM

[TamilNet, Monday, 21 November 2005, 07:09 GMT]
Mr.Ratnasiri Wickremanayake was sworn in as the fourteenth Prime Minister of Sri Lanka before SL President Mahinda Rajapakse Monday. At a ceremony held at the Temple Trees, Mr. Rajapakse sworn in him as the Prime Minister of his would-be appointed cabinet this morning. Ratnasiri Wickremanayake held the post of Deputy Minister of Defense and Minister of Buddhist Affairs till the election of Mr. Mahinda Rajapakse as the 5th executive president of Sri Lanka.
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UNP to hold postmortem on presidential poll defeat

[TamilNet, Sunday, 20 November 2005, 17:20 GMT]
The working committee and parliamentary group of the main opposition United national Party (UNP) are to meet this week to decide its future course of action following the defeat at the presidential poll held on Thursday, Mr.Tissa Attanayake, UNP Assistant General Secretary said at a press briefing Sunday.
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Jaffna election irregularities on voting eve

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 16 November 2005, 12:55 GMT]
Reports from Jaffna reveal intimidating and underhand activities of the Eelam People Democratic Party (EPDP) cadres in organising vote-rigging in Sri Lanka Presidential election. Groups of armed EPDP cadres were seen visiting house to house forcibly collecting the 'ballot-tokens' from residents in islets off Jaffna peninsula, TamilNet learns. With armed protection from the State armed forces, Douglas Devananda's EPDP is holding unannounced short-meetings at market places and actively campaigning for Mahinda Rajapakse, the candidate of the ruling party.
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UNP accuses SL Government of plans to sabotage Jaffna poll

[TamilNet, Monday, 14 November 2005, 17:55 GMT]
The main opposition United National Party (UNP) Monday charged Sri Lanka government of trying to disrupt a just and fair presidential poll in Jaffna district by sending nearly three hundred Sri Lanka Army (SLA) deserters to the district. Brigadier Sarath Munasinghe, former spokesperson for the SLA, addressing a press briefing Monday, said that the government has obtained the support of a paramilitary Eelam Peoples Democratic Party (EPDP) activist to sabotage the poll.


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SL Presidential candidates' asset details to remain private

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 08 November 2005, 14:31 GMT]
Free Media Movement expressed its "grave concern" on the decision made by the Election Commissioner to refuse to make public the assets, liabilities declarations of Sri Lanka's presidential candidates, in a press release issued in Colombo Tuesday.
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Jaffna postal votes cast, said historic low

[TamilNet, Monday, 07 November 2005, 11:46 GMT]
Election officials at the Jaffna Secretariat said that less than 10% of those applied for postal voting cast their votes when the first day of postal voting completed on Monday. Although there is expected to be voting in some centers tomorrow, the election officials added that the numbers voted present a historic low for the district.
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Explain clandestine acts against Tamils, UPF asks UNP

[TamilNet, Monday, 07 November 2005, 11:04 GMT]
"If the United National Party (UNP) has plans to undermine the NorthEast struggle by using paramilitaries or by inviting foreign military forces, then Upcountry Peoples Front (UPF) will not only withdraw its support to the UNP but will work against its candidate in the forthcoming presidential elections," said Periyasamy Chandrasekaran, leader of UPF, in a media release issued in Colombo Monday.
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“Karuna Defection, Wickremasinghe's Ploy” - UNP Stalwart

[TamilNet, Monday, 07 November 2005, 10:04 GMT]
A United National Party (UNP) stalwart in Nuwara Eliya district, Mr. Naveen Dissanayake, has said that it would not be necessary for Sri Lanka’s Military to fight the Tigers. "American and Indian forces will fight the LTTE if Liberation Tigers' leader Pirapaharan opts to wage a war," Naveen Dissanayake told the audience at an Election propaganda meeting, Thursday, at Ginigathena in the upcountry district of Nuwara Eliya, a Tamil daily, Uthayan, quoted in its headline story, Monday. Mr. Dissanayake has also claimed that a situation was created to make the renegade LTTE commander Karuna to get dissatisfied with his leadership during the period covering his trips to Europe, the paper said.
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