Sri Lanka to release 47 Tamil Nadu fishermen

B. Muralidhar Reddy

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka will release 47 of the 59 Tamil Nadu fishermen detained by its Navy after they strayed into its waters on Thursday. Official sources said two of the six boats seized too would be released and the other fishermen would be produced before a magistrate.

Fisherfolk of both countries straying into each other’s waters is a common occurrence and has been a constant source of friction.
“Tigers sneaking in”

Ever since the escalation of hostilities between the Sri Lanka military and the LTTE, the authorities have been warning Indian fisherfolk to stay away on the ground that the Tigers were exploiting the situation and sneaking in under the guise of fisherfolk.

Separately, in continuing clashes along the Forward Defence Lines in the north 12 LTTE cadres and a Sri Lankan soldier were killed.

Source: Hindu