In brief
Injured
Following an altercation with a shop owner on 1 June, some 100 Navy personnel attacked people in Mabola, seven miles north of Colombo. Reports say 26 civilians were injured. Over 500 people demonstrated the next day in the streets, demanding the arrest of the offenders.
Committee
On 2 June, Defence minister Tilak Marapane appointed a committee headed by retired judge Oliver Weerasena to enquire into attacks on journalists in Jaffna on 12 February. Meanwhile, Tamil Journalist P Manickavasagam complained to the Defence Secretary that he was threatened with death on 7 May by a Tamil militant group in Vavuniya.
Arrest
Suspected LTTE members Asirvatham Sathyapavan, Devarajah Sasiharan and Gunapalan Sujith were arrested in mid-May at Ranong, 300 miles south-west of Bangkok. Thailand police say they had guns and ammunition in their possession and had been involved in weapons smuggling for a long time. On 23 May, a Thai court denied bail to the suspects.
Order
According to reports, the LTTE has ordered barbers (hair dressers) in Jaffna to close their shops on Wednesdays instead of Sundays. The Tigers also announced a penalty of Rs 100 for barbers not obeying the order.
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