posted June 12, 2002 04:47 AM         

The chief editor of the newspaper T. Baskaran in a letter to the head of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) identified the LTTE cadre as Indrajothi Thileepan. The member had exhaustively visited all 26 sales outlets of the newspaper and "threatened the owners with harm" if they continued to sell the newspaper. He also pointed out that the LTTE act was one of "intimidation, which interferes with the freedom of the press and that of free speech". This is in violation of Article 21 of the Ceasefire Agreement.

Informed sources attributed the ban to an article carried in the newspaper making a critical assessment of LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran’s press conference. "This article was originally published in Tuklak a fortnightly magazine published by a member of the Indian Lok Sabha. The magazine did not reach the stalls that week, so we reproduced the article in our own newspaper. This is our right," the source said. The source surmised that the LTTE may have wished to ban the newspaper carrying the article but had banned the newspaper from the following week. "They are doing this at will," the source said.

The newspaper was effectively banned over two months ago, following threats to the paper’s main distributor, transport agent, and sales agents. However the matter was resolved with the mediation of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission, after the publishers of the newspaper made a complaint.

The SLMM wrote to the LTTE head in Batticaloa on May 2 "to refrain from acts of this nature". This was after a meeting with the two parties at the end of which the SLMM apologised to the management of the newspaper. However just five weeks later the LTTE has effectively banned the newspaper again.

Families vacate homesteads and flee fearing LTTE abductions
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Tue, June 11, 2002. Batticaloa. Five members of a family in PANICHCHANKERNI , about 20 km Northwest of VALACHCHENAI, who arrived at KADJUWATTA SL Army check point on June 10 around 6.30 a.m. had sought protection from security forces after they had abandoned their homestead in fear of LTTE abduction of their children.

Initially, the family including three boys, BALASUBRAMANIUM RAM (16), BALASUBRAMANIUM RAMESH (14) and BALASUBRAMANIUM RAJEEKARAN (10) and parents KANAPATHPILLAI, BALASUBRAMANIUM (42) and BALASUBRAMANIUM VAJI AMMA (38) who reported that the LTTE continues to round up the village regularly and abduct children for their organization, had requested the security forces to provide safety for their lives and alternative places to resettle.

Late in the same day, members of seven more families, who vacated the said village fearing abductions of their children by the LTTE had left the area in fear of LTTE reprisals, according to the information given by one of the civilians to the KADJUWATTA check point.
The SLMM in BATTICALOA had been informed.

Youth escapee seeks protection from Security Forces
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Tue, June 11, 2002. Batticaloa. A young fisherman, who was abducted and detained by the LTTE for their military training, had managed to slip out of LTTE custody and reached the KADJUWATTE Army check point, about 45 km Northwest of BATTICALOA town on June 10, 2002 around 6.30 a.m.

SELVARATNAM ARULNAYAGAM (20) of VALACHCHENAI Rd, SCHOOL St., KALKUDAH, who was abducted on June 9, 2002 by LTTE cadres was to be given LTTE military training at KATHIRAVELI LTTE training camp at the time of his escape from their custody.

On his way back to his village after escape, he had however met a family of five with three children from PANICHCHANKERENI area who were also making for the nearby security point after abandoning their homesteads due to continued LTTE abductions.