LTTE Headquarters,
                                                Tamil Eelam.
                                                25. February 1997


PRESS RELEASE
NEWS FROM TAMIL EELAM

14 FAMILIES FALL INTO ARMY HANDS
	Fourteen Tamil families who were unable to flee Sri Lanka's
	"Edibala" operation in time have been taken into army custody. As
	troops bulldozed westward from Vavuniya to Mannar most people
	fled, leaving their villages deserted, but the unfortunate few
	who could not make it have now been rounded up and taken to
	unknown locations. It is not known whether any of them are still
	alive. The fourteen families taken away were all from Kunchukulam
	(near Puvarasankulam).

TWO TAMILS GO 'MISSING'
	Two Tamil civilians who returned to Kilinochchi town to inspect
	their former homes have disappeared. Relatives who went looking
	for them say they found their shirts, identity cards and bicycles
	at their abandoned home but no sign of the men. The town is under
	the control of the Sri Lankan army. Soldiers are known to enforce
	an iron rule over the Tamil population here. The two Tamil men
	(Kanagalingam Thiruchelvam and Kanapathipillai Karunakaran, both
	37) have not been seen since last Thursday.

TEAK TREES ARE SRI LANKA'S LATEST TARGET
	Teak trees in Vavuniya are being chopped down in massive
	quantities to make military bunkers for Sri Lankan troops. The
	method has been used for some time with the valuable Palmyrah
	tree in the north but now, with a pronounced indifference to
	environmental consequences, teak plantations are being wiped out
	at a disturbing rate.

VANNI HOSPITALS CONTINUE TO DECLINE
	The condition of hospitals in the Vanni continues to worsen with
	no sign of the Sri Lankan government easing the situation.
	Kilinochchi and Mullaitivu hospitals no longer receive any
	medicines or hospital equipment, allowing what are preventable
	and curable illnesses to flourish. The government will not even
	allow Tamils to carry painkillers through to the Vanni region.
	Soldiers at military checkpoints have been instructed to
	confiscate all medical drugs, including Panadol, from travellers.
	The measures are part of a long-term strategy of crippling the
	Tamils who live beyond areas of Sri Lankan occupation.

RACISM PREVALENT IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT
	Many Sinhala officials working for local government in
	predominantly Tamil areas are refusing to discuss problems or
	consider official documents in the Tamil language. Recently, one
	head official responsible for assessing a government scholarship
	scheme refused to certify application written in Tamil. No action
	has been taken against him. The government continues to turn a
	blind eye to the racist policies of certain Sinhala officials who
	head local Tamil districts, despite problems of discrimination
	occurring - and being complained about - frequently. 

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)