srilanka1998
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- 26. Juli 2005
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Geneva and the hope of a new beginning
[ Daily Mirror ] [ 11:22 GMT, Feb. 21, 2006 ]
Over the next two days top negotiators from the government and LTTE will sit together with the Norwegian facilitators to engage in talks on upholding the ceasefire agreement. Their decision to talk to each other after the long interlude of three years has already yielded much that is positive. Just like the ceasefire agreement brought a seemingly unstoppable war to a quick halt, so has the government and LTTE's agreement to talk brought a seemingly unstoppable escalation of violence to a halt. It is remarkable how peaceful the north east of the country has become after the mutual decision to talk became known. On the other hand, the level of military preparedness on both sides continues to remain high and visibly so.
What made Vaiko to continue in DPA?
[ News Today ] [ 12:36 GMT, Feb. 21, 2006 ]
All eyes were on Vaiko with strong reports that he would pull-out from the DMK-led Democratic Progressive Alliance (DPA). And there were lots of speculation about the MDMK striking an alliance with AIADMK for the forthcoming Assembly elections. But, Vaiko, putting an end to all rumours, has come out with his decision to stay with DPA. So what prompted Vaiko to stay put in the DPA? Sources confirm that there were indeed talks between the MDMK and the AIADMK about seat sharing and that the AIADMK had come forward to offer 40 seats.
Lanka to make best use of Geneva talks: Official
[ Hindustan Times ] [ 12:38 GMT, Feb. 21, 2006 ]
The Sri Lankan government will endeavour to make full use of the Geneva talks with Tamil Tiger rebels, the head of the government peace delegation said on Monday. Health Minister Nimal Siripala De Silva, who will lead the government team at the Geneva talks, said prior to his departure: "We are hoping to make the best use of the opportunity in order to try and achieve lasting peace in the country." De Silva and his team comprising three more cabinet ministers departed for Geneva, where talks will be held February 22-23 with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels.
Sri Lankan government, Tamil leaders prepare for two-day peace talks near Geneva
[ AP ] [ 12:39 GMT, Feb. 21, 2006 ]
Sri Lankan government officials and leaders of the Tamil Tiger rebels have arrived at a secluded chateau outside Geneva and are preparing for their first direct talks in nearly three years, officials said Tuesday. The government and rebels will try to patch up their unraveling cease-fire and stop the ethnically troubled tropical island from slipping back to war when they begin their talks on Wednesday. Objectives are limited, with political solutions which have eluded the minority Tamils, concentrated in the country's north and east, and the Sinhalese majority in the south still too remote to discuss.
Sri Lankan government makes provocative preparations for Geneva talks
[ WSWS ] [ 12:44 GMT, Feb. 21, 2006 ]
Two days of negotiations are due to start in Geneva tomorrow between representatives of the Sri Lankan government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Tigers (LTTE). The talks, which were only agreed after intense international pressure and lengthy diplomatic wrangling, are the first to be held in nearly three years. The negotiations are limited to a discussion of the increasingly fragile ceasefire agreement signed in February 2002. Since the election of President Mahinda Rajapakse last November there has been a marked escalation of violence involving the deaths of more than 200 people on both sides—military personnel and associated militiamen, LTTE fighters and officials, and civilians.
Sri Lanka hotheads raise temperature at Swiss talks
[ AFP ] [ 13:46 GMT, Feb. 21, 2006 ]
Nationalists backing Sri Lanka's warring parties have arrived in Geneva to pressure peace delegates ahead of crucial talks on saving the island's faltering truce. The Nationalist Society for Peace, Unity and Rights (SUPR) said they were in Geneva to lobby Colombo government delegates to resist any arm-twisting by the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)."We want the government to put pressure on the Tigers to amend the ceasefire," SPUR spokesman H.L.D. Mahindapala said as he arrived here. "We are not that hopeful much will come out of the talks." The LTTE's chief negotiator Anton Balasingham, who arrived Monday from his base in London, made it clear that they will have only one item on the agenda for the two-day talks -- "implementation of the ceasefire".
A Letter from a Tamil Canadian to Mr. Asoka Weerasinghe
[ TamilCanadian ] [ 13:55 GMT, Feb. 21, 2006 ]
Tamils are ‘freedom fighters’. We take both of those terms seriously: we want freedom for our people, and not just in words, but also in deeds. We will fight for those rights. We refused to sit by idle any longer for someone to deliver this to us – we may have believed that once by organizing political dissent, but failed miserably, though we have recently shown the world that we will take that into consideration again under right set of conditions. As freedom fighters, we are freedom driven. The most common error you have made in many of your correspondence to media and politicians is that you often confuse ‘democratic fundamentals’ and ‘freedom merit’. A group of people in a country doing terrifically well, have clear destiny, a government that is embracive and response in kind, and enacts laws that creates the right conditions which in turn creates better future for those people to look forward to, is a country with great ‘democratic fundamentals, and therefore worth living in.
Interfaith prayers for peace talks begin in northern Sri Lanka, Buddhists to join later
[ AP ] [ 14:10 GMT, Feb. 21, 2006 ]
Hindus, Muslims and Christians in Sri Lanka's troubled northern Jaffna peninsula prayed together for peace Tuesday, the eve of negotiations between the Buddhist-dominated government and mostly Hindu separatist rebels. Monks from Jaffna's only Buddhist temple said they were unable to attend because of a previously arranged prayer service, but promised to pray for the peace talks later in the day, said monk the Rev. Warapitiye Kolitha. Hindu, Christian and Muslim leaders gathered at a public hall in Jaffna, 300 kilometers (185 miles) north of the capital, Colombo, and prayed that the talks - the first such meeting between the two parties in three years - lead to a permanent end to the country's two decades of bloodshed.
All set for Sri Lanka peace talks
[ BBC ] [ 14:11 GMT, Feb. 21, 2006 ]
Sri Lankan officials and Tamil Tiger rebels are in the Swiss city of Geneva for their first face-to-face talks in three years that start on Wednesday. The two days of talks are aimed at boosting a threadbare four-year truce. Mounting violence in recent months has raised fears of a return to civil war. The talks have been brokered by Norwegian peace envoy Erik Solheim. The ceasefire agreement in February 2002 preceded several rounds of peace talks, which stalled in April 2003. "We are going with an open mind," senior Sri Lankan government official Ajith Nivard Cabraal told the Reuters news agency.
Geneva Talks Will Determine Future Course of Sri Lanka Peace Process
[ VOA ] [ 14:20 GMT, Feb. 21, 2006 ]
The Sri Lankan government and Tamil Tiger rebels are meeting in Switzerland to hold their first direct discussions since the island's peace process ground to a halt nearly three years ago. The talks are seen as a last opportunity to prevent a return to a deadly ethnic conflict. The two-day talks starting Wednesday will not seek a long-term solution to Sri Lanka's war, and instead will focus on short-term issues that have led to a near breakdown of a cease-fire signed in 2002. A series of attacks that killed more than 120 rebels and soldiers in December and January triggered fears that the island country may plunge back into war. An international effort intervened to save the situation.
Sri Lanka's only hope for peace
[ BBC ] [ 14:57 GMT, Feb. 21, 2006 ]
The Sri Lankan government and Tamil Tiger rebels start their first direct talks for three years on Wednesday. The BBC assesses why they are so important. Whether the Sri Lankan government likes it or not - and they do not - the Tamil Tigers have established a de facto state in the north-east of the country. When you drive through the "border" post into their territory, you have to set your watch back half-an-hour to Tiger time. Here, the Tigers are running everything and they let you know it. During a recent visit, as I drove down a quiet country road, a Tamil Tiger policeman took out his gun, took deliberate aim at my vehicle and pulled the trigger. My driver tried to swerve but it was too late, we were hit - with a speeding fine.
[ Daily Mirror ] [ 11:22 GMT, Feb. 21, 2006 ]
Over the next two days top negotiators from the government and LTTE will sit together with the Norwegian facilitators to engage in talks on upholding the ceasefire agreement. Their decision to talk to each other after the long interlude of three years has already yielded much that is positive. Just like the ceasefire agreement brought a seemingly unstoppable war to a quick halt, so has the government and LTTE's agreement to talk brought a seemingly unstoppable escalation of violence to a halt. It is remarkable how peaceful the north east of the country has become after the mutual decision to talk became known. On the other hand, the level of military preparedness on both sides continues to remain high and visibly so.
What made Vaiko to continue in DPA?
[ News Today ] [ 12:36 GMT, Feb. 21, 2006 ]
All eyes were on Vaiko with strong reports that he would pull-out from the DMK-led Democratic Progressive Alliance (DPA). And there were lots of speculation about the MDMK striking an alliance with AIADMK for the forthcoming Assembly elections. But, Vaiko, putting an end to all rumours, has come out with his decision to stay with DPA. So what prompted Vaiko to stay put in the DPA? Sources confirm that there were indeed talks between the MDMK and the AIADMK about seat sharing and that the AIADMK had come forward to offer 40 seats.
Lanka to make best use of Geneva talks: Official
[ Hindustan Times ] [ 12:38 GMT, Feb. 21, 2006 ]
The Sri Lankan government will endeavour to make full use of the Geneva talks with Tamil Tiger rebels, the head of the government peace delegation said on Monday. Health Minister Nimal Siripala De Silva, who will lead the government team at the Geneva talks, said prior to his departure: "We are hoping to make the best use of the opportunity in order to try and achieve lasting peace in the country." De Silva and his team comprising three more cabinet ministers departed for Geneva, where talks will be held February 22-23 with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels.
Sri Lankan government, Tamil leaders prepare for two-day peace talks near Geneva
[ AP ] [ 12:39 GMT, Feb. 21, 2006 ]
Sri Lankan government officials and leaders of the Tamil Tiger rebels have arrived at a secluded chateau outside Geneva and are preparing for their first direct talks in nearly three years, officials said Tuesday. The government and rebels will try to patch up their unraveling cease-fire and stop the ethnically troubled tropical island from slipping back to war when they begin their talks on Wednesday. Objectives are limited, with political solutions which have eluded the minority Tamils, concentrated in the country's north and east, and the Sinhalese majority in the south still too remote to discuss.
Sri Lankan government makes provocative preparations for Geneva talks
[ WSWS ] [ 12:44 GMT, Feb. 21, 2006 ]
Two days of negotiations are due to start in Geneva tomorrow between representatives of the Sri Lankan government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Tigers (LTTE). The talks, which were only agreed after intense international pressure and lengthy diplomatic wrangling, are the first to be held in nearly three years. The negotiations are limited to a discussion of the increasingly fragile ceasefire agreement signed in February 2002. Since the election of President Mahinda Rajapakse last November there has been a marked escalation of violence involving the deaths of more than 200 people on both sides—military personnel and associated militiamen, LTTE fighters and officials, and civilians.
Sri Lanka hotheads raise temperature at Swiss talks
[ AFP ] [ 13:46 GMT, Feb. 21, 2006 ]
Nationalists backing Sri Lanka's warring parties have arrived in Geneva to pressure peace delegates ahead of crucial talks on saving the island's faltering truce. The Nationalist Society for Peace, Unity and Rights (SUPR) said they were in Geneva to lobby Colombo government delegates to resist any arm-twisting by the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)."We want the government to put pressure on the Tigers to amend the ceasefire," SPUR spokesman H.L.D. Mahindapala said as he arrived here. "We are not that hopeful much will come out of the talks." The LTTE's chief negotiator Anton Balasingham, who arrived Monday from his base in London, made it clear that they will have only one item on the agenda for the two-day talks -- "implementation of the ceasefire".
A Letter from a Tamil Canadian to Mr. Asoka Weerasinghe
[ TamilCanadian ] [ 13:55 GMT, Feb. 21, 2006 ]
Tamils are ‘freedom fighters’. We take both of those terms seriously: we want freedom for our people, and not just in words, but also in deeds. We will fight for those rights. We refused to sit by idle any longer for someone to deliver this to us – we may have believed that once by organizing political dissent, but failed miserably, though we have recently shown the world that we will take that into consideration again under right set of conditions. As freedom fighters, we are freedom driven. The most common error you have made in many of your correspondence to media and politicians is that you often confuse ‘democratic fundamentals’ and ‘freedom merit’. A group of people in a country doing terrifically well, have clear destiny, a government that is embracive and response in kind, and enacts laws that creates the right conditions which in turn creates better future for those people to look forward to, is a country with great ‘democratic fundamentals, and therefore worth living in.
Interfaith prayers for peace talks begin in northern Sri Lanka, Buddhists to join later
[ AP ] [ 14:10 GMT, Feb. 21, 2006 ]
Hindus, Muslims and Christians in Sri Lanka's troubled northern Jaffna peninsula prayed together for peace Tuesday, the eve of negotiations between the Buddhist-dominated government and mostly Hindu separatist rebels. Monks from Jaffna's only Buddhist temple said they were unable to attend because of a previously arranged prayer service, but promised to pray for the peace talks later in the day, said monk the Rev. Warapitiye Kolitha. Hindu, Christian and Muslim leaders gathered at a public hall in Jaffna, 300 kilometers (185 miles) north of the capital, Colombo, and prayed that the talks - the first such meeting between the two parties in three years - lead to a permanent end to the country's two decades of bloodshed.
All set for Sri Lanka peace talks
[ BBC ] [ 14:11 GMT, Feb. 21, 2006 ]
Sri Lankan officials and Tamil Tiger rebels are in the Swiss city of Geneva for their first face-to-face talks in three years that start on Wednesday. The two days of talks are aimed at boosting a threadbare four-year truce. Mounting violence in recent months has raised fears of a return to civil war. The talks have been brokered by Norwegian peace envoy Erik Solheim. The ceasefire agreement in February 2002 preceded several rounds of peace talks, which stalled in April 2003. "We are going with an open mind," senior Sri Lankan government official Ajith Nivard Cabraal told the Reuters news agency.
Geneva Talks Will Determine Future Course of Sri Lanka Peace Process
[ VOA ] [ 14:20 GMT, Feb. 21, 2006 ]
The Sri Lankan government and Tamil Tiger rebels are meeting in Switzerland to hold their first direct discussions since the island's peace process ground to a halt nearly three years ago. The talks are seen as a last opportunity to prevent a return to a deadly ethnic conflict. The two-day talks starting Wednesday will not seek a long-term solution to Sri Lanka's war, and instead will focus on short-term issues that have led to a near breakdown of a cease-fire signed in 2002. A series of attacks that killed more than 120 rebels and soldiers in December and January triggered fears that the island country may plunge back into war. An international effort intervened to save the situation.
Sri Lanka's only hope for peace
[ BBC ] [ 14:57 GMT, Feb. 21, 2006 ]
The Sri Lankan government and Tamil Tiger rebels start their first direct talks for three years on Wednesday. The BBC assesses why they are so important. Whether the Sri Lankan government likes it or not - and they do not - the Tamil Tigers have established a de facto state in the north-east of the country. When you drive through the "border" post into their territory, you have to set your watch back half-an-hour to Tiger time. Here, the Tigers are running everything and they let you know it. During a recent visit, as I drove down a quiet country road, a Tamil Tiger policeman took out his gun, took deliberate aim at my vehicle and pulled the trigger. My driver tried to swerve but it was too late, we were hit - with a speeding fine.