srilanka1998
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Sri Lanka parliamentary sessions disrupted
[ Xinhua ] [ 10:56 GMT, Jan. 18, 2006 ]
Sri Lankan parliamentary sessions came to be disrupted for the second day running here Wednesday due to a protest staged by the main Tamil minority party. Parliamentary officials said that Wednesday's session lasted less than 20 minutes after the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) legislators stormed the Speaker's chair and tried to disrupt proceedings. The Tuesday sessions, the first in the new year, lasted only 15 minutes as the TNA legislators began shouting anti-government slogans calling for the alleged torture of Tamil civilians, abductions and killings of the Tamils by the security forces and paramilitary groups. They were also protesting against the Christmas day assassination of their colleague Joseph Pararajasingham.
'SLMM should exercise its CFA mandate' -Tamilselvan
[ LTTE Peace Secretariat ] [ 11:09 GMT, Jan. 18, 2006 ]
'Our leadership is deeply shocked and wishes to express its concern over the attack on the SLMM in Batticaloa and would urge SLMM to exercise more care and become vocal in its exposure of the elements responsible for this type of dastardly acts that are planned on a political agenda to do away with the presence of SLMM' said Mr.S.P.Tamilselvan in a meeting with the Head of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) today 17 January 2006 at the Peace Secretariat in Kilinochchi. At the outset Mr.Hagrup Haukland expressed deep concern over the accelerating pace of violence and killings and asked of Mr.Tamilselvan to suggest ways and means of curbing violence.
Nordic monitors pull out of district after Sri Lanka blasts
Wed Jan 18, 1:06 AM ET
COLOMBO (AFP) - Scandinavian truce monitors indefinitely suspended work in Sri Lanka's northeastern port district of Trincomalee after a series of mine attacks.
The Norwegian-led Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) said Tuesday their first-ever suspension of work in an entire district followed an escalation of violence culminating in a bomb attack against a navy bus that wounded 12 sailors.
"The SLMM has decided to suspend operational activities in Trincomalee until further notice," the mission said in a statement, adding they planned "to resume normal monitoring activities as soon as the situation calms down."
Suspected Tiger rebels set off two more mines and fought a gun battle with troops Tuesday as the United Nations urged talks and peace broker Norway made a fresh bid to save the ceasefire which was put into effect in February 2002.
The defence ministry said the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) had ambushed a navy bus by setting off a landmine in the Trincomalee district and later fought a gunbattle with sailors.
The guerrillas had opened fire on the bus and the sailors had retaliated, killing at least two attackers. Five civilians, including a woman, had been wounded in the crossfire.
"When the Claymore mine narrowly missed the bus, there was a hail of bullets from the side of the road," an official told AFP. "Out of the sailors injured, one is in a critical condition and has been sent to Colombo for treatment."
He said troops searched the area and found the bodies of two rebels. The pro-rebel Tamilnet website said the victims were civilians.
In another mine attack in the northern peninsula of Jaffna, a soldier was killed and nine were wounded on Tuesday afternoon, the military said.
Another soldier was killed in a grenade attack Monday night in the northwestern region of Mannar, the military said, adding that a suspect was arrested.
The violence came as the UN urged Colombo and the Tigers to resume stalled talks and said a return to war was not the answer.
The conflict between majority Sinhalese and minority Tamils has claimed over 60,000 lives since 1972.
UN Secretary General Kofi Annan expressed concern for the Norwegian-backed peace bid. At least 136 people, including 79 security personnel, have been killed in an upsurge in violence since December.
"The Secretary General stresses that a return to conflict will not resolve outstanding differences between the parties," his office said in a statement.
Norway sent its ambassador here, Hans Brattskar, to the rebel-held town of Kilinochchi on Tuesday for talks with the LTTE leadership on salvaging the ceasefire arranged by Oslo that has been in place since February 2002.
Brattskar was accompanied by members of the SLMM which later announced the suspension of their work in Trincomalee.
The LTTE in a statement said they discussed the need to disarm members of a breakaway rebel faction allegedly backed by Colombo, a reduction of violence and an end to what it called harassment by security forces.
They had also discussed with Brattskar the arrangements for a visit early next week by Norway's International Development Minister Erik Solheim, who will try to jump-start peace talks that have been on hold since April 2003.
The Tamilnet reported that the LTTE's London-based chief negotiator Anton Balasingham would return to the island next week to join talks with Solheim.
Sources close to the peace process and defence sources say they fear more attacks in the run-up to Solheim's visit as the Tigers try to collect bargaining chips by scoring more hits on the security forces.
Sri Lankan authorities mount increasing attacks on media freedom
[ WSWS ] [ 11:14 GMT, Jan. 18, 2006 ]
Police and military harassment, intimidation and physical attacks directed against Sri Lankan media personnel, mainly targeting Tamil journalists, have been mounting since Mahinda Rajapakse assumed the presidency last November. These incidents have emerged amid a sharp rise in violence involving the military and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and the growing danger of a return to open civil war. Under Rajapakse's unstable minority government, the Sri Lankan armed forces have taken increasingly provocative and repressive actions against the island's Tamil minority, including large-scale round-ups of innocent civilians.
Violence against civilians continues in Northeast
[ LTTE Peace Secretariat ] [ 11:14 GMT, Jan. 18, 2006 ]
Two civilians were shot and killed in Kaithady. Sithampari Kanesaratnam(46), a Saloon owner at Kaithady junction and his assistant Vishvar Krishnan(53) from Navatkuly east were shot and killed when they were returning home from their work on 16th January. This incident took place near Kaithady bridge. It is worth noting that there are SLA sentry points at Kaithady bridge and this killing could not have occurred without the knowledge of, and aiding and abetting by the SLA. K. Murugan(35), father of 3 children from Navatkuly was shot and killed by gunmen on motorbike while he was working at a Koththu Rotty shop in Urumpirai.
Sri Lanka deploy more troops in restive Trincomalee, one soldier wounded in grenade attack
[ AP ] [ 11:15 GMT, Jan. 18, 2006 ]
The Sri Lankan military deployed more troops in the strategic port city of Trincomalee on Wednesday, a day after European cease-fire monitors suspended operations there, local residents said. Trincomalee - 230 kilometers (140 miles) northeast of the capital, Colombo - serves as a major base of Sri Lankan navy and has been hit by a series of deadly attacks blamed on the Tamil Tiger rebels, who want to carve out a separate homeland for Sri Lanka's 3.2 million ethnic Tamil minority. A resident said troops with drawn guns have increased foot patrols in the city, with army soldiers on motorcycles and on board trucks also on patrol.
Sri Lanka sends troops as Nordic monitors pull out of Trincomalee
Wed Jan 18, 2:40 AM ET
COLOMBO (AFP) - Sri Lanka poured more troops into the restive northeastern port district of Trincomalee fearing more rebel attacks, as Scandinavian monitors pulled out of the volatile area, officials said.
The deployment follows the triggering of a mine by suspected Tamil Tiger rebels against a navy bus Tuesday which wounded 12 sailors and sparked the withdrawal of the monitors, a military official said.
"With no monitoring of the ceasefire anymore in Trincomalee, we think it leaves the door wide open for the Tigers to escalate attacks," a military official in the area said by telephone on Wednesday.
The Norwegian-led Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) said their first ever suspension of work in an entire district followed an escalation of violence that culminated in Tuesday's mine attack against the navy.
"The SLMM has decided to suspend operational activities in Trincomalee until further notice," it said in a statement. But it added that it planned "to resume normal monitoring activities as soon as the situation calms down".
The SLMM was earlier this month directly targeted in a bomb attack in the neighbouring district of Batticaloa, which has also been beset by deadly attacks and assassinations, but continued its operations.
The UN Tuesday urged Colombo and the Tigers to resume stalled talks and said a return to war was not the answer. The conflict between majority Sinhalese and minority Tamils has claimed over 60,000 lives since 1972.
Norway sent its ambassador here, Hans Brattskar, to the rebel-held town of Kilinochchi on Tuesday for talks with the LTTE leadership on salvaging the ceasefire arranged by Oslo that has been in place since February 2002.
Brattskar was accompanied by members of the SLMM who later announced the suspension of their work in Trincomalee.
The LTTE in a statement Tuesday said they had discussed with Brattskar the need to disarm members of a breakaway rebel faction allegedly backed by Colombo, a reduction of violence and an end to what it called harassment by security forces.
They had also discussed the arrangements for a visit early next week by Norway's International Development Minister Erik Solheim, who will try to jump-start peace talks that have been on hold since April 2003.
The pro-rebel Tamilnet reported that the LTTE's London-based chief negotiator Anton Balasingham would return to the island next week to join talks with Solheim.
"What is of critical importance at this crucial juncture, is to try and bring an end to the brutal violence perpetrated against innocent Tamil civilians and create a congenial environment conducive for positive engagement," Tamilnet quoted Balasingham as saying.
Diplomatic and defence sources say they fear more attacks in the run-up to Solheim's visit as the Tigers try to collect bargaining chips by scoring more hits on the security forces.
[ Xinhua ] [ 10:56 GMT, Jan. 18, 2006 ]
Sri Lankan parliamentary sessions came to be disrupted for the second day running here Wednesday due to a protest staged by the main Tamil minority party. Parliamentary officials said that Wednesday's session lasted less than 20 minutes after the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) legislators stormed the Speaker's chair and tried to disrupt proceedings. The Tuesday sessions, the first in the new year, lasted only 15 minutes as the TNA legislators began shouting anti-government slogans calling for the alleged torture of Tamil civilians, abductions and killings of the Tamils by the security forces and paramilitary groups. They were also protesting against the Christmas day assassination of their colleague Joseph Pararajasingham.
'SLMM should exercise its CFA mandate' -Tamilselvan
[ LTTE Peace Secretariat ] [ 11:09 GMT, Jan. 18, 2006 ]
'Our leadership is deeply shocked and wishes to express its concern over the attack on the SLMM in Batticaloa and would urge SLMM to exercise more care and become vocal in its exposure of the elements responsible for this type of dastardly acts that are planned on a political agenda to do away with the presence of SLMM' said Mr.S.P.Tamilselvan in a meeting with the Head of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) today 17 January 2006 at the Peace Secretariat in Kilinochchi. At the outset Mr.Hagrup Haukland expressed deep concern over the accelerating pace of violence and killings and asked of Mr.Tamilselvan to suggest ways and means of curbing violence.
Nordic monitors pull out of district after Sri Lanka blasts
Wed Jan 18, 1:06 AM ET
COLOMBO (AFP) - Scandinavian truce monitors indefinitely suspended work in Sri Lanka's northeastern port district of Trincomalee after a series of mine attacks.
The Norwegian-led Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) said Tuesday their first-ever suspension of work in an entire district followed an escalation of violence culminating in a bomb attack against a navy bus that wounded 12 sailors.
"The SLMM has decided to suspend operational activities in Trincomalee until further notice," the mission said in a statement, adding they planned "to resume normal monitoring activities as soon as the situation calms down."
Suspected Tiger rebels set off two more mines and fought a gun battle with troops Tuesday as the United Nations urged talks and peace broker Norway made a fresh bid to save the ceasefire which was put into effect in February 2002.
The defence ministry said the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) had ambushed a navy bus by setting off a landmine in the Trincomalee district and later fought a gunbattle with sailors.
The guerrillas had opened fire on the bus and the sailors had retaliated, killing at least two attackers. Five civilians, including a woman, had been wounded in the crossfire.
"When the Claymore mine narrowly missed the bus, there was a hail of bullets from the side of the road," an official told AFP. "Out of the sailors injured, one is in a critical condition and has been sent to Colombo for treatment."
He said troops searched the area and found the bodies of two rebels. The pro-rebel Tamilnet website said the victims were civilians.
In another mine attack in the northern peninsula of Jaffna, a soldier was killed and nine were wounded on Tuesday afternoon, the military said.
Another soldier was killed in a grenade attack Monday night in the northwestern region of Mannar, the military said, adding that a suspect was arrested.
The violence came as the UN urged Colombo and the Tigers to resume stalled talks and said a return to war was not the answer.
The conflict between majority Sinhalese and minority Tamils has claimed over 60,000 lives since 1972.
UN Secretary General Kofi Annan expressed concern for the Norwegian-backed peace bid. At least 136 people, including 79 security personnel, have been killed in an upsurge in violence since December.
"The Secretary General stresses that a return to conflict will not resolve outstanding differences between the parties," his office said in a statement.
Norway sent its ambassador here, Hans Brattskar, to the rebel-held town of Kilinochchi on Tuesday for talks with the LTTE leadership on salvaging the ceasefire arranged by Oslo that has been in place since February 2002.
Brattskar was accompanied by members of the SLMM which later announced the suspension of their work in Trincomalee.
The LTTE in a statement said they discussed the need to disarm members of a breakaway rebel faction allegedly backed by Colombo, a reduction of violence and an end to what it called harassment by security forces.
They had also discussed with Brattskar the arrangements for a visit early next week by Norway's International Development Minister Erik Solheim, who will try to jump-start peace talks that have been on hold since April 2003.
The Tamilnet reported that the LTTE's London-based chief negotiator Anton Balasingham would return to the island next week to join talks with Solheim.
Sources close to the peace process and defence sources say they fear more attacks in the run-up to Solheim's visit as the Tigers try to collect bargaining chips by scoring more hits on the security forces.
Sri Lankan authorities mount increasing attacks on media freedom
[ WSWS ] [ 11:14 GMT, Jan. 18, 2006 ]
Police and military harassment, intimidation and physical attacks directed against Sri Lankan media personnel, mainly targeting Tamil journalists, have been mounting since Mahinda Rajapakse assumed the presidency last November. These incidents have emerged amid a sharp rise in violence involving the military and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and the growing danger of a return to open civil war. Under Rajapakse's unstable minority government, the Sri Lankan armed forces have taken increasingly provocative and repressive actions against the island's Tamil minority, including large-scale round-ups of innocent civilians.
Violence against civilians continues in Northeast
[ LTTE Peace Secretariat ] [ 11:14 GMT, Jan. 18, 2006 ]
Two civilians were shot and killed in Kaithady. Sithampari Kanesaratnam(46), a Saloon owner at Kaithady junction and his assistant Vishvar Krishnan(53) from Navatkuly east were shot and killed when they were returning home from their work on 16th January. This incident took place near Kaithady bridge. It is worth noting that there are SLA sentry points at Kaithady bridge and this killing could not have occurred without the knowledge of, and aiding and abetting by the SLA. K. Murugan(35), father of 3 children from Navatkuly was shot and killed by gunmen on motorbike while he was working at a Koththu Rotty shop in Urumpirai.
Sri Lanka deploy more troops in restive Trincomalee, one soldier wounded in grenade attack
[ AP ] [ 11:15 GMT, Jan. 18, 2006 ]
The Sri Lankan military deployed more troops in the strategic port city of Trincomalee on Wednesday, a day after European cease-fire monitors suspended operations there, local residents said. Trincomalee - 230 kilometers (140 miles) northeast of the capital, Colombo - serves as a major base of Sri Lankan navy and has been hit by a series of deadly attacks blamed on the Tamil Tiger rebels, who want to carve out a separate homeland for Sri Lanka's 3.2 million ethnic Tamil minority. A resident said troops with drawn guns have increased foot patrols in the city, with army soldiers on motorcycles and on board trucks also on patrol.
Sri Lanka sends troops as Nordic monitors pull out of Trincomalee
Wed Jan 18, 2:40 AM ET
COLOMBO (AFP) - Sri Lanka poured more troops into the restive northeastern port district of Trincomalee fearing more rebel attacks, as Scandinavian monitors pulled out of the volatile area, officials said.
The deployment follows the triggering of a mine by suspected Tamil Tiger rebels against a navy bus Tuesday which wounded 12 sailors and sparked the withdrawal of the monitors, a military official said.
"With no monitoring of the ceasefire anymore in Trincomalee, we think it leaves the door wide open for the Tigers to escalate attacks," a military official in the area said by telephone on Wednesday.
The Norwegian-led Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) said their first ever suspension of work in an entire district followed an escalation of violence that culminated in Tuesday's mine attack against the navy.
"The SLMM has decided to suspend operational activities in Trincomalee until further notice," it said in a statement. But it added that it planned "to resume normal monitoring activities as soon as the situation calms down".
The SLMM was earlier this month directly targeted in a bomb attack in the neighbouring district of Batticaloa, which has also been beset by deadly attacks and assassinations, but continued its operations.
The UN Tuesday urged Colombo and the Tigers to resume stalled talks and said a return to war was not the answer. The conflict between majority Sinhalese and minority Tamils has claimed over 60,000 lives since 1972.
Norway sent its ambassador here, Hans Brattskar, to the rebel-held town of Kilinochchi on Tuesday for talks with the LTTE leadership on salvaging the ceasefire arranged by Oslo that has been in place since February 2002.
Brattskar was accompanied by members of the SLMM who later announced the suspension of their work in Trincomalee.
The LTTE in a statement Tuesday said they had discussed with Brattskar the need to disarm members of a breakaway rebel faction allegedly backed by Colombo, a reduction of violence and an end to what it called harassment by security forces.
They had also discussed the arrangements for a visit early next week by Norway's International Development Minister Erik Solheim, who will try to jump-start peace talks that have been on hold since April 2003.
The pro-rebel Tamilnet reported that the LTTE's London-based chief negotiator Anton Balasingham would return to the island next week to join talks with Solheim.
"What is of critical importance at this crucial juncture, is to try and bring an end to the brutal violence perpetrated against innocent Tamil civilians and create a congenial environment conducive for positive engagement," Tamilnet quoted Balasingham as saying.
Diplomatic and defence sources say they fear more attacks in the run-up to Solheim's visit as the Tigers try to collect bargaining chips by scoring more hits on the security forces.