News
Relatives remember war dead in North at Maveerar Naal events
View(s):Commemoration ceremonies to remember those who died in the 30-year separatist war were held in the North on November 27, the day on which the defeated Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) marked its annual Maveerar Naal or Mahaviru Day, but police said the events passed without any major incidents.
An event in Kilinochchi: Pic by Lohathayalan
In the North, thousands of people took part in the ceremonies peacefully on Monday evening at decorated tombs where LTTE cadres had been buried.
Senior Deputy Inspector General Roshan Fernando, who is in charge of the North, told the Sunday Times that at least 40 events were held across the province and a probe had been launched into two events where the organisers had displayed the portraits of LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran whose birth anniversary fell a day before Maveerar Naal.
“The Terrorism Investigation Department is investigating the two incidents. We don’t want to harass ordinary people who took part in the events to remember their relatives,” the Senior DIG said, emphasising that the situation in the North was normal and that there was no single violent incident reported throughout the week.
Meanwhile, the Vavuniya regional campus of the University of Jaffna was closed until further notice by authorities from Monday, following a clash reported between two student groups over an event organised to commemorate LTTE cadres killed in the conflict.
The clash broke out when one group of students celebrated the birth anniversary of the LTTE leader by cutting cake and distributing sweets.
The university administration decided to close the campus temporarily to avoid further clashes. All 600 students, including hostellers, were asked to leave the premises immediately.
Vice Chancellor R. Vigneswaran told the Sunday Times that he was hoping to open to the campus for academic activities within two weeks as no further clashes had been reported between the two groups.
Issuing a statement after the commemoration events, Northern Province Chief Minister C.V. Wigneswaran thanked the government for allowing the people to remember the cadres killed in the conflict and noted people also remembered their relatives not just in burial sites but in their residences and kovils as well.