LTTE Headquarters,
                                                Tamil Eelam.
                                                30. July 1997

PRESS RELEASE 
NEWS FROM TAMIL EELAM
                                           
ARMY WALLS ENCLOSE JAFFNA FARMERS INTO SECTORS
	Jaffna's farmers cannot cultivate their fields properly or take
	their produce to market because occupying Sri Lankan forces have
	erected huge walls preventing the movement of people across the
	three Tamil districts of Valigamam, Vadamaradchy and
	Thenmaradchy. Farmers in particular have been stopped from
	selling their produce elsewhere in the peninsula or outside the
	peninsula. The army-erected earth-walls -- which effectively
	imprisons people within their districts -- have also ruined
	choice cultivable lands. Farmers' fields have been lost and their
	houses dislocated due to the building of these walls. The
	measures have had a devastating impact on the local economy of
	Jaffna.

JAFFNA'S CADJAN-WEAVING INDUSTRY GRINDS TO A HALT
	Jaffna's economy continues to suffer, with the once-thriving
	cadjan-weaving industry grinding to a halt. Over 500 Tamil women
	employed in this industry - which involves weaving coconut leaves
	to make roofing materials - are now out of jobs. Jaffna being so
	unsafe for Tamils under Sri Lankan army occupation has meant
	buyers of cadjan are not venturing out. The industry has suffered
	losses of around 2 million rupees causing extreme poverty among
	former workers.
	
ARMY DOES BODY SEARCHES ON TAMIL WOMEN AND GIRLS
	Young Tamil mothers and school girls in Vaharai (Batticaloa) are
	increasingly singled out by Sinhala troops for humiliating
	body-searches. All of these searches are carried out by groups of
	male Sinhalese soldiers without the presence of any women
	officers. Sometimes Tamil mothers taking their children to school
	are subjected to this indignity in front of their children.
	Sexual abuse frequently accompanies these searches, which have
	added to Tamil residents' fear of going out of their houses.
	
MILITARY ROUND-UP TARGETS FEMALES
	A midnight house-to-house raid by the Sinhala army in
	Mannampitiya (Polonnaruwa district) has led to the abduction of a
	number of Tamil women. The army swooped on houses in the area in
	the middle of the night knocking down doors, waking up Tamil
	women and pushing them into the street in their night-clothes.
	Those arrested are being held in army custody with no further
	details given about their whereabouts.
	
GOVT. MEASURES KILL SIX TAMIL BABIES
	Six infants died in Mannar last week due to the appalling
	conditions in which displaced Tamils are being held there by
	government authorities. Health facilities in Mannar's refugee
	camps are non-existent and there is severe over-crowding and
	disease. Despite the misery faced by over half a million Tamils
	displaced by successive military offensives, the government
	continues its military operations in Vanni, ever-increasing the
	displaced population.
	
ARMY CREATES ROADBLOCKS ALL OVER THE EAST
	The Sinhala army occupying parts of Batticaloa and Trincomalee
	have imposed road-blocks in many key areas creating havoc for
	Tamil civilians. Several major trunk roads in the eastern port
	city have been closed. The Inner Harbour road, C.V. road, Vihare
	road, Wellington road and Christian Burial Grounds road are now
	ordered closed from 6am to 9pm. Anyone seen on the roads after
	9pm is arrested and risks being disappeared. Meanwhile in
	Batticaloa all roads connecting Valaichchenai to the main city
	have been closed down. Valaichchenai Tamil Market road, roads
	leading to the cremation grounds and the Vipulananda road are
	closed 24 hours a day. The measures reflect the increasing
	vulnerability felt by Sinhala troops occupying the east.
	
4 GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES IN JAFFNA UNDERGOING ARMY TORTURE
	Sri Lanka's occupying forces in Jaffna are carrying out torture
	on four government employees to extract confessions of
	LTTE-connections. Those undergoing the ordeal are three
	headmasters and a co-op department inspector.
	
TRO PROVIDES NOURISHING DRINK TO CHILDREN
	Kilinochchi's school children have been helped considerably by
	TRO's provision of nourishing rice-gruel laced with leaves.
	Kilinochchi, like all parts of Tamil Vanni, is facing a cruel
	food-blockade imposed by the Sri Lankan government. TRO has also
	donated finance to open a colony and housing estate for the
	displaced of Tharmapuram.
	
NEW LTTE RECRUITS DETERMINED TO EVICT SINHALA ARMY
	Several young Tamil's joined the LTTE during a massive cultural
	show held last week at Kiranchchi (Vanni). The general verdict
	among the new recruits was that this is the last chance for
	Tamils to rid themselves once and for all of the Sinhalese
	invading army.
	
GOVERNMENT NEGLECTS 10,000 TAMIL TRAVELLERS
	The government has made no alternative arrangements for 10,000
	Tamil travellers currently stranded at Trincomalee port. There is
	hardly any food left and water is scarce but the government is
	doing nothing to alleviate the people's suffering while
	restricting their movement out of the port city.
	
MUTILATED BODY OF TAMIL FOUND
	The mutilated body of a young Tamil man Nagamuthu Naguleswaran
	(19) has been discovered after he went to Sonthakaran Kulam
	(Vavuniya) to inspect his former home. The young man had gone to
	inspect his house which he had been forced to vacate when Sinhala
	troops commenced operation Jaya Sikuru. While on his return
	journey he was intercepted by Sinhala troops who mutilated and
	killed him.
	
SPORTS FESTIVAL HELD BY LTTE'S WOMEN'S SECTION
	The Women's Section of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam have
	held a sports festival for the youngsters of Vattapallai in
	liberated Mullaitivu. Teachers, parents and the general public of
	Tamil Eelam attended the event. Tamil Eelam's national flag was
	raised by Surkirtha of the LTTE's women's division. Another
	children's sports festival has been concluded at Kandawalai,
	which was organised by the Kandawalai Development Society and the
	Displaced Persons Development Society.
	
TRO OPENS HOSPITAL WARD
	The TRO has opened a new hospital ward for males in Tharmapuram.
	The new ward comes about as part of TRO's "accelerated
	development programme" in Vanni.
	
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)