LTTE Headquarters,
                                                Tamil Eelam.
                                                07. April 1997


PRESS RELEASE
NEWS FROM TAMIL EELAM

HEAVY RESTRICTIONS ON TAMIL TRAVELLERS
	Sri Lanka made much of the linking of the Vavuniya-Mannar road
	claiming it has facilitated civilian travel. But the reality, as
	usual, is far different. The Sinhala armed forces are enforcing
	numerous impediments to free travel making life for ordinary
	Tamils extremely difficult. Travellers must first prove to the
	satisfaction of the Sri Lankan military that the reason for their
	journeys is worthwhile. And travel can begin only after an
	exhaustive investigation into the traveller's background. It is a
	painstaking procedure, cumbersome as well as humiliating. The
	government's propaganda regarding the 'clearing' of this road is
	again a far cry from the ground situation.

AIR AND GROUND ATTACK ON MULLAITIVU CIVILIANS
	Talks of peace in Colombo proved hollow in the northeast where
	Sri Lankan warplanes have been bombing Tamil civilians
	incessantly for the past 48 hours.  Sinhala troops at
	Mankindimalai army camp fired long range artillery at civilian
	centres in Mullaitivu causing extensive damage. Meanwhile a URV
	spy plane arrived at 8 AM yesterday morning locating residential
	targets followed shortly by two Kfirs which dropped a succession
	of bombs on villages. Mullaitivu district shook with the force of
	the explosions engendering panic in the local population.

EXPLORATION OF TAMIL WRITER'S WORK THIS WEDNESDAY
	A literary festival exploring the work of the Tamil literary
	genius Thiruvalluvar is to take place on Wednesday at the
	Jeyapuram Pooneryn Maha Vidyalayam under the auspices of the
	Kilinochchi Thamil Sangam. Thiruvalluvar is one of the foremost
	literary figures in Tamil history. His moral compendium - "Kural"
	- consisting of 1330 couplets is already translated into 40
	languages.

TEEDOR OFFERS ADVICE TO FARMERS
	TEEDOR has advised Tamil farmers in Vanni to grow crops which
	require less water, as water is scarce. Green grams, cowpea,
	sesamun and jute are recommended which grow well in the Vanni
	soil. Jute, after being used, can be ploughed back into the soil
	creating ready manure for the fields.
   

Political Committee,
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam

(English translation of the LTTE statement released by
LTTE International Secretariat, 211 Katherine Road, London E6 1BU,
United Kingdom. Tel:0181- 503 4294 / Fax: 0181-470 8593)