SLFP accuses JVP of hijacking operations
By Harindra Vidanage
Senior members of the SLFP are accusing the JVP of trying to takeover its operations at grassroots level in its women's and youth organizations.

A senior SLFP member told the Sunday Times that the JVP under the cover of its alliance efforts with the SLFP is wooing SLFP members to join in its political activities or is using SLFP party members in JVP programs to boost the outlook of the party and to enlist them as potential future JVP members. One SLFP women's organization member last week raised a question at the annual conference held at the Sri Lanka Foundation Institute whether members should join JVP political programs as the JVP is approaching them wooing them on the basis of the proposed alliance.

The SLFP , LSSP and Communist Party trade union leadership have also complained that all trade union action they organize has been penetrated by the JVP through its members to take over the leadership. The most popular strategy of the JVP according to these leaders is the designing and distribution of posters and placards free of charge to be used in demonstration rallies and processions.

PA trade unions leaders told the Sunday Times that this was a total hijack, as for example, the fisheries demonstration held in Colombo, the railway strike and the university non-academic staffers strike, all of which were led by the JVP.

Most of the trade union action had been proposed and planned by the SLFP but the JVP has managed to penetrate them through its sheer organizational power. The Sunday Times learns the SLFP trade union leadership is divided due to various intra-group conflicts.

Meanwhile, according to some SLFP members the JVP while wooing PA members under cover of the alliance had criticised the PA in an unprecedented manner in a leaflet distributed during its ten-day operation.

The Sunday Times learns that the huge pada yatra organized by the JVP will see a PA participation as well which will include mostly parliamentarians and party members who are disillusioned with the party at the moment.

LTTE constitutional experts start talks in Paris
The LTTE yesterday started its legal and constitutional expert consultations in Paris to map out the next stage of the suspended peace talks with the government. S.P. Thamilselvan, head of the LTTE political wing before opening talks told journalists that they wanted to resume talks with the government and that was the reason they gathered in Paris.

He declined to spell out the short- comings in the government proposals. He had also declined to confirm the Paris talks would discuss the government proposals. A 10- member group of the LTTE are meeting in Paris.

SLMM head to meet EP Tigers
Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission Head Maj. Gen. Tryggve Tellefssen is to meet LTTE Eastern Province leaders on Monday in a bid to defuse the mounting tension in the Eastern Province.

The SLMM head is to meet with LTTE Trincomalee district leader Thilakar and other members in the province to discuss the situation.

SLMM Spokesperson Agnes Bragadottir told The Sunday Times that the SLMM is monitoring the situation and has begun assessing the ground situation.

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