by PRIYAN DE SILVA  National coordinator of the Center for Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV) Manjula Gajanayaka, addressing the media, yesterday, voiced his concern about the increase in hate speech within the past few days. He said incendiary words uttered by leaders of political parties or posed on social media could result in pre-election as well as post- election violence. Gajanayaka said the… Continue reading "Hate speech could lead to election violence"

The TNA may glibly say that everything is hunky-dory with India but this is not so. The reality is that of the Indian establishment being extremely disappointed with the TNA over the northern provincial council issue Nowadays, India is more interested in getting closer to the governments in power in Colombo. Therefore New Delhi would not let the “Tamil issue”… Continue reading "TNA Must Seek India’s Help To Protect 13th Amendment"

By Naalir Jamaldeen  Commissioner of the Jaffna Municipal Council, R.T. Jayaseelan on 23 July said that he has come to know that during the forthcoming Nallur Kandaswamy Kovil festival, permission has been granted to allow an additional number of devotees to enter the Kovil premises than had been previously decided on. The chariot festival of the Nallur Kandaswamy Kovil will… Continue reading "Nallur Kandaswamy Kovil festival: More devotees allowed than planned – Jayaseelan"

By Shiran Ranasinghe The Police Department has initiated a detailed probe into a case where around 50 Police records concerning noted underworld gangster Samsunge Sampath Chamara alias Army Sampath going missing from the Grandpass Police Station. The missing records document acts of crime and illegal drug peddling of the noted underworld gangster which had been kept at the Police Station… Continue reading "Rajapakshe Rules again- Underworld Gangster’s Police Records Go Missing"

The United Kingdom has lifted a travel advice imposed on Sri Lanka. The UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) said that from 24 July, Sri Lanka is exempt from the FCO advice against all non-essential international travel. The UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office said that the move was based on the current assessment of COVID-19 risks. The UK Foreign and… Continue reading "UK lifts travel restrictions on Sri Lanka"

Vinayagamurthi Muralitharan alias Karuna Amman has called on Tamils to have more than two children and multiply. Speaking at an election rally in Kalmunai in Ampara, Karuna Amman urged young Tamil couples not to stop with just two children. He urged the Tamils to have four children or more and strengthen the population in the country. The former LTTE commander said that… Continue reading "Karuna calls on Tamils to have more than two children"

By Meera Srinivasan Campaigning for Sri Lanka’s August 5 general elections, the country’s main Tamil party has foregrounded the promise Colombo made to New Delhi on power devolution, the need for greater connectivity to India from the northern Palaly airport, and the need to expedite the return of Sri Lankan refugees living in India. Releasing its poll manifesto in Jaffna… Continue reading "Tamil National Alliance Releases Election Manifesto Emphasising Mahinda Rajapaksas Repeated Assurances to the Indian Govt that it would “implement the 13th Amendment in full and build upon it so as to achieve meaningful devolution”."

By D.B.S.Jeyaraj The fourth week of July revives bad memories among most Tamils who lived in Sri Lanka during the month of July in 1983. It was in that week in July that large-scale violence was let loose upon Tamils living in various parts of Sri Lanka including Colombo and suburbs. “Black July 1983” The week long spree of anti-Tamil… Continue reading "July 1983: Two Northern Attacks and One Island-wide Anti-Tamil Pogrom"

The SLPP is demanding a two-thirds majority at the August Poll, to introduce new amendments to the Constitution. What are these new amendments that you propose to introduce? A: The Constitution that was formed in 1972 did not last that long. The 1976 Constitution that was changed by JR also became a radical one. That Constitution was created based on… Continue reading "13th Amendment was given to us by a foreign power by force and the entire Constitution has to be overhauled!"

nother person has tested positive for COVID-19 this evening (24), taking the confirmed positive cases tally to 2,764, the Ministry of Health said. According to the Department of Government Information, this latest coronavirus case is an arrival from the United Kingdom. As per the Epidemiology Unit’s statistics, a total of 659 patients infected with the virus are currently under medical… Continue reading "Arrival from UK tests positive for COVID-19"

By Rathindra Kuruwita Tensions among the Muslim, Sinhala and Tamil communities in the East were growing rapidly by late 2016 due to activities of extremist groups, the State Intelligence Service had warned, an SIS officer stationed in the East, on Wednesday, told the Presidential Commission of Inquiry (PCoI) investigating the Easter Sunday attacks. The witness, whose name will not be… Continue reading "Tensions among three ethnicities increased rapidly by late 2016 due to extremist groups’"

ECONOMYNEXT – A group of activists staged a demonstration against Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa today protesting remarks made by him allegedly insulting childless women, particularly Jalani Premadasa. The protest was held outside the PM’s office in Colombo. In a campaign speech Rajapaksa said “he (the Samagi Jana Balavegaya leader Sajith Premadasa) talks about pressing a button to summon the Midwife,… Continue reading "Women’s activists demand Mahinda apologise to Jalani over remark over childless women"

Foreign Relations Minister Hon. Dinesh Gunawardena and the Minister for International Trade of the UK Hon. Ranil Jayawardena discussed stepping up bilateral trade and investment and expanding the areas of cooperation during a teleconference yesterday, 23 July 2020. It was the first official interaction between the two Ministers.Both Ministers welcomed further consolidating the longstanding bilateral engagement through increased trade, security,… Continue reading "FOREIGN MINISTER GUNAWARDENA AND UK’S INTERNATIONAL TRADE MINISTER DISCUSS STEPPING UP BILATERAL TRADE AND INVESTMENT TIES WITH THE UK"

The heavy weights of Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna have given Jeevan, Thondaman’s son, the greenlight to contest from the Pohottuwa Party at the upcoming parliamentary elections. The national question is being looked upon from two angles. One if the solving of woes related to the estate workers; chief among which is granting them a daily wage of Rs 1000. But from a… Continue reading "Tamils and their representatives in Parliament"

By Jehan Perera – Jehan Perera The TNA’s political manifesto for the forthcoming general elections, which was released last week, calls for a fresh mandate from Tamil people for a federal-based solution in the form of a merged Northern and Eastern province where Tamil speaking people live in majority numbers. It stated this could ensure a lasting peace in an undivided country… Continue reading "After the military defeat of the LTTE the Tamil polity no longer has the bargaining strength it had during the war."

Ministers Gunawardena and Jayawardena have agreed on the need for close  cooperation to address the challenges facing bilateral trade and  investment as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic Foreign Relations Minister Dinesh Gunawardena and Britain’s International Trade Minister Ranil Jayawardena have discussed stepping up bilateral trade and investment and expanding the areas of cooperation, during a teleconference on Thursday.    The… Continue reading "Dinesh and Ranil discuss SL-UK investment ties"

Jeevan Thondaman (25) was nominated to be the Nuwara Eliya District candidate at the upcoming General Election after his father, Arumugan Thondaman, leader of the Ceylon Workers’ Congress (CWC), suddenly passed away at the age of 56.  Q Your educational and professional qualifications?   Bachelor of Laws – University of Northumbria, UK Q Why should people vote for you other than for being… Continue reading "Workers still live under colonial standards."

In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court of Canada has dismissed an appeal by the Quebec Crown for a new trial in the case of a Sri Lankan national who was deported after his murder charge was stayed due to excessive court delays. Sivaloganathan Thanabalasingham, a refugee from Sri Lanka and a permanent resident, was charged in 2012 with the second-degree murder of his 21-year-old… Continue reading "Supreme Court of Canada dismisses appeal over deported Sri Lankan accused of wife’s slaying"

By J.T. de Silva Election Commission Chairman, Mahinda Deshapriya, said a Buddhist Monk had submitted nominations from two political Parties to contest the 5 August General Election, and asserted that this was unlawful. He said that Ven. Kolonne Sirishantha Vijaya Thera had submitted nominations to contest the coming Poll both on the Ape Janabala Party and the Jana Setha Peramuna… Continue reading "Monk’s dual nominations unlawful – EC"

Overall human rights situation in Sri Lanka in 2019 deteriorated with increased inter-communal tensions, violence against minority groups and intimidation of human rights defenders, a human rights report said. This was mentioned in the ‘Human Rights and Democracy Report-2019’ which was published by the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) on July 16. The report said while Sri Lanka reaffirmed its commitment… Continue reading "Overall human rights situation in SL deteriorated in 2019: Report"

ECONOMYNEXT – The United Kingdom will launch and ‘Health and Care Visa’ for Sri Lanka health workers and their families to get fast-track visa’s to work in the National Health Service, the British embassy in Colombo said. “Eligible Sri Lankan nationals, and their immediate family members, will benefit from fast-track visa processing, reduced visa fees and will not have to… Continue reading "Sri Lanka health professionals to get quick visas to work in the UK"

By Brian Senewiratne – Dr. Brian Senewiratne The armed forces of Sri Lanka consist of the Army Navy and Air Force. According to the International Institute of Strategic Studies February 2019, “The Military Balance”, the Sri Lankan military has 255,000 active members. This is larger than the United Kingdom (146,390), Israel (168,550), France (203,910), and Saudi Arabia (227,000). PEARL (People for Equality… Continue reading "Militarisation Of Governance, Cultural Genocide & The Future Of Democracy In Sri Lanka"

By Dayan Jayatilleka – Dr. Dayan Jayatilleka What at issue in this upcoming general election is most transparent and has been rendered so by the ruling party. It is the quest for a two-thirds majority so as to design a new Constitution by a process which is not reliant on smaller parties deemed extremist, and can roll-back the 19th and 13th amendments.   Every single… Continue reading "A Two-Thirds Majority: The Formula For Instability"

The United Kingdom has noted that there was a deterioration in the overall human rights situation in Sri Lanka in 2019, with increased intercommunal tensions, violence against minority groups, and intimidation of human rights defenders. Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab tabled in the UK Parliament the 2019 Foreign and Commonwealth Office report on Human Rights and Democracy. The report noted that… Continue reading "UK tables report in Parliament which notes concerns on Sri Lanka"

By Meera Srinivasan With the campaign for Sri Lanka’s August general election heating up, India and its role in resolving the lingering national question have begun figuring prominently in the election discourse, especially in the Tamil-majority north and east. Addressing a recent public meeting, the Tamil National Alliance’s (TNA) former parliamentarian S. Shritharan said: “India is watching us closely, pointing… Continue reading "Tamil National Alliance Leader R.Sampanthan Tells Tamil media that the International Community and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi are “Standing Behind Us”"

An Agenda to Centralise Power Photo courtesy of asiatimes.com The ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) handsomely won November’s presidential election with 52% of the popular vote and is accordingly the clear favourite and front runner to…

By Dr.Dayan Jayatilleka An attitude of arrogant myopia; rejection of the outlook of scientific rationality; regarding intelligence-gathering as sufficient and downgrading scientific medical investigation/data collection/analysis (hence the Sri Jayewardenepura pullout); ignoring the Chief Epidemiologist-led, medical specialist-driven, globally acknowledged best practices constituting the managerial model of successful COVID-19 suppression; brusque contradiction of the warnings of the GMOA; a pandemic decisioning and… Continue reading "Tamils and Muslims who will have neither autonomy at the periphery nor equal, non-discriminatory citizenship in practice."

Modi is standing behind us, says TNA leader Sampanthan With the campaign for Sri Lanka’s August general election heating up, India and its role in resolving the lingering national question have begun figuring prominently in the election discourse, especially in the Tamil-majority north and east. Addressing a recent public meeting, the Tamil National Alliance’s (TNA) former parliamentarian S. Shritharan said: “India is… Continue reading "Modi is standing behind us, says TNA leader Sampanthan"

I am always happy to hear that I look like my brother. It paves the way to success as, ‘Murali’ is a brand and I am the product. As a product I have the support of the brand, ‘Murali’. However, with an election pending people do not look for brands, they seek quality. People will vote for me if the… Continue reading "‘Murali’ is the brand and I am the product – Muthiah Prabagaran"

Cricketing legend Muttiah Muralitharan is backing Minister Wimal Weerawansa’s campaign for the Parliamentary election. Weerawansa’s media unit said that Muralitharan had organised a meeting between Weerawansa and Tamil businessmen in Colombo over the weekend. The meeting took place at the Kingsbury Hotel in Colombo and was attended by a number of Tamil businessmen. Tamil businessmen representing traders in Pettah were… Continue reading "Murali throws his weight behind Racist."

By Rajan Philips –                                   Rajan Philips Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa has lately been blossoming into a political writer of sorts. An article under his name appears practically every week in the print and electronic media, including Colombo Telegraph which despite its name shares no love with the Colombo establishment.… Continue reading "The Cat’s Paw & The Dog Whistle: Mahinda – Sajith Spat Over “Communalistic Political Parties”"

ByD.B.S.Jeyaraj‘ With Parliamentary Elections being scheduled for 5 August, most political parties and independent groups contesting the polls have commenced their respective campaigns in a big way. The hopelessly-divided chief Opposition, seemingly bereft of valid issues to raise, has eagerly seized upon the ‘Karuna Amman admission of Elephant Pass killings’ to target the SLPP Government. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and ‘Karuna’… Continue reading "How Ex- LTTE Commander “Col”Karuna Was Deported To Sri Lanka in 2008 After Being Arrested, Detained and Convicted in Britain"