Month: October 2019

By C.V. Wigneswaran – C.V. Wigneswaran Someone asked: “I saw your thirteen demands. As a minority group how could you demand a division of the Country? It seems presumptuous on the part of the five Tamil Political Parties to demand so. Your comments?” My Response was: They were our sincere and essential requests not demands. These need to be considered by those who… Continue reading "Presidential Election: On Our Thirteen Requests"

Britain says it is always ready to assist Sri Lanka to establish democracy in the country. Head of the South Asia Department at the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London, Fergus Auld OBE said that the slow change in the Northern Province would strengthen confidence in Sri Lanka’s democracy. He expressed these views at a meeting with the Governor… Continue reading "Britain ready to assist Sri Lanka in establishing democracy"

Sri Lanka Muslim Congress leader Minister Rauff Hakeem  SLMC Leader and City Planning, Water Supply and Higher Education Minister Rauff Hakeem reproached the Opposition for condemning the Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) Report, in a meeting in Kurunegala, this week.  Minister Hakeem stated that the Opposition raises doubts about the Select Committee Report because they fear that if the Easter Sunday… Continue reading "Opposition condemns Easter Sunday PSC report out of fear: Hakeem"

The Ministry of National Policies, Economic Affairs, Resettlement and Rehabilitation, Northern Province Development and Youth Affairs yesterday announced that the Government has undertaken a series of major interventions in the Jaffna district.  Handing over of housing program at Kallundaai Village at Sandilipay DS Division As a priority intervention, the Ministry of National Policies, Economic Affairs, Resettlement, Rehabilitation and Northern Province… Continue reading "Govt. interventions in Jaffna district"

Five Tamil political parties who met today with regards to the Presidential election further postponed their stand on the issue and told Tamils to vote for any candidate they like during the postal voting tomorrow (Thursday). The parties met for talks today in an attempt to reach a final decision on who they must support at the election. However, as… Continue reading "Tamil parties further postpone final decision"

The issue blew up on the social media with several Tamils pouring anger against what they termed as ‘racist’ conduct by Peppermint Café.  The eatery might have, perhaps, ignored all that criticism from the minorities but then there was the Minister’s threat to have the Languages Commission, which comes under him, to launch action against it. Chennai: An interesting controversy… Continue reading "‘Racist’ conduct by Peppermint Café."

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 29 — A total of 10 Malaysians were today charged in separate courts nationwide with several counts of terror-related criminal offences connected to a now defunct Sri Lankan militant group. They were accused of either supporting the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in charges framed under Section 130J(1)(a) of the Penal Code, or possession of material… Continue reading "Two DAP assemblymen, eight others charged separately with supporting LTTE Tuesday, 29 Oct 2019 11:30 AM MYT"

Nobody is funding us. We don’t have money to even air an advertisement on TV. We barely managed to put up a newspaper advertisement after my manifesto was presented The PSC report has been submitted and you can check if my name has been mentioned anywhere. Before the incident I made several requests to the Inspector General of Police to… Continue reading "I’m a disciplined leader, not a dictator: -Gen. Senanayake-"

Gotabaya promises to rehabilitate remaining LTTE suspects but has no answer about the Thousands who surrendered and missing. SLPP Presidential candidate Gotabaya Rajapaksa, campaigning in Vavuniya, yesterday, urged the Tamils to repose their faith in him. They should be not be cheated by politicians unlike in the past, he said stressing that he was focusing on doing his utmost for… Continue reading "Gotabaya will not offer any political package for the minority."

Incidentally, the shed above the erected old borewell where Sujith was stuck is completely covered without even a peephole. By JAYAKUMAR MADALAExpress News Service In heartbreaking news coming in wee hours of Tuesday morning, 2-year-old Sujith, who was trapped inside a borewell, has been declared dead after 80 hours of non-stop rescue efforts. Tamil Nadu Revenue Principal Secretary J Radhakrishnan confirmed the… Continue reading "TN borewell horror: Baby Sujith succumbs as mammoth rescue efforts fail, decomposed body retrieved"

An application has been filed before the President of the Court of Appeal seeking an order to vacate the Interim Order issued by the Court of Appeal which stayed summons requiring Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) Presidential candidate Gotabaya Rajapaksa to appear before the Jaffna Magistrate’s Court over the disappearance of human rights activists, Lalith and Kugan. On September 24,… Continue reading "Petition against staying of Gotabaya summons before Jaffna court"

Rajan Philips “Hold Me in Contempt” is the title of former Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake’s memoir on the saga of her impeachment by parliament under the Rajapaksa regime. It is a reminder of the past that presidential candidate Gotabaya Rajapaksa cannot easily hide. He may not have been directly associated with the impeachment of the former Chief Justice, but he… Continue reading "“Hold Me in Contempt”: The past that haunts Candidate Rajapaksa"

Rajan Philips “Hold Me in Contempt” is the title of former Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake’s memoir on the saga of her impeachment by parliament under the Rajapaksa regime. It is a reminder of the past that presidential candidate Gotabaya Rajapaksa cannot easily hide. He may not have been directly associated with the impeachment of the former Chief Justice, but he… Continue reading "“Hold Me in Contempt”: The past that haunts Candidate Rajapaksa"

A senior State Department official told a Congress Sub Committee last Tuesday that Washington had made clear to President Maithripala Sirisena and other senior officials that Lt Gen. Shavendra Silva’s promotion to Commander “will significantly curtail bi-lateral co-operation with the Sri Lanka Army under the US law.” The reference was made by Alice G. Wells, Acting Assistant Secretary of the… Continue reading "Shavendra’s appointment: US fires warning to Sri Lanka"

Only a fraction of US$ 6.5mn–nearly Rs 1bn in today’s rates–paid by the previous regime in 2014 to an American fixer named Imaad Zuberi was spent on lobbying the US Government on behalf of the Sri Lankan Government and a massive 87 percent of the fee was spent by the agent on himself and his wife, according to court papers… Continue reading "US fixer pocketed a billion from Lanka"

Two high ranking suspects in the gruesome kidnapping for ransom racket run by the Sri Lanka are heavily involved in election activity in the Eastern Province and campaigning for the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna while being in active service, Colombo Telegraph learns. Both officials were given promotions Commander Sumith Ranasinghe and Commodore D.K.P Dassanayake, both officers who were based in… Continue reading "Suspects In Navy Abduction Ring Commodore Dassanayake And Commander Ranasinghe Campaigning For Gotha In The East"

Sri Lanka’s former defence secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa once more vowed to release Sri Lankan troops accused of rights abuses and pledged to ensure the end of “foreign… interference” as he launched his election manifesto for next month’s presidential polls on Friday. Rajapaksa claimed that his government had taken steps “to pardon, rehabilitate and release 13,784 Tiger members who surrendered with… Continue reading "Gotabaya vows to release Sri Lankan soldiers at manifesto launch"

A team of Sri Lankan army special forces were in the UK last week, where they took part in various military exercises with British troops, despite Sri Lankan troops still not being held accountable for human rights abuses committed against Tamils. The exercise came just a week before British parliamentarians from all major parties spoke on Tamil genocide recognition and… Continue reading "Sri Lankan special forces in UK for military training"

SLFP senior adviser, former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunge is due to return to the island today (26), political sources said. Following her return may pave the way for a lot of political toppling in the SLFP. The SLFP is divided into several groups. The group of MPs is directly supporting Gotabaya Rajapaksa and is preparing to form a SLFP-SLPP alliance… Continue reading "Beginning of a political upbringing amidst CBK’s return!"

Prime Minister and UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe and Minister Dr. Rajitha Senaratne will join members of the Civil Society and Trade Union Collective today (26) at 7 pm at the Independence Square to mark the triumph of democracy over President Maihripala Sirisena-JO leader Mahinda Rajapaksa attempt to grab power unlawfully. A spokesman for the grouping said that those who joined… Continue reading "PM at civil society vigil to mark their triumph over Oct constitutional coup"

Initiative to explore future tourism opportunities Adding a new chapter to the civil aviation history in Sri Lanka, the Jaffna International Airport was declared open on 17 October. The officials and stakeholders of the Tourism industry visited the Jaffna International Airport to explore future tourism opportunities with Tourism Development Minister John Amaratunga last week. As an island nation, Sri Lanka… Continue reading "Tourism Minister, industry officials visit Jaffna Intl. Airport"

By Saman IndrajithChairman of the Election Commission Mahinda Deshapriya says that six out of 35 presidential candidates in the fray have failed to submit their declarations of assets and liabilities so far. Out of the six candidates who have so far not handed over their asset declarations, one is a candidate of a prominent party and the other five are… Continue reading "Candidates who have not declared assets will face legal action – EC 2019 prez polls"

Dog-Whistle Racist Electioneering: Why Is The Nation Still Elusive To This Danger ? By Lakmal Harischandra – Lakmal Harischandra If we are surprised today that Gotabaya’s camp is racist, we haven’t been paying attention. Even before they started their campaign, they have been proving it repeatedly. In fact, bigotry has been a part of SLPP’s public persona since their formation. The open embrace of… Continue reading "Gotabaya’s camp is racist"

Former FCID Chief Senior DIG (retired) Ravi Waidyalankara has openly sided with the Rajapaksa campaign, days after the same police division he headed for 4 years found his wife and son embroiled in a massive financial fraud and money laundering scandal involving well known financial scammer and businessman Rienzie Edwards. Ravi Waidyalankara | File photo The details were revealed in the Colombo Chief… Continue reading "Former FCID Chief Caught Laundering Money, Joins GOTHA"

The Trump administration says it will push the new Sri Lankan Government on the human rights issue. The United States today said that progress on some commitments has been slow or stalled, including on constitutional reform, replacing the Prevention of Terrorism Act, establishing a truth and reconciliation commission, and creating a credible judicial mechanism to ensure accountability for past crimes.… Continue reading "Trump administration to push new Sri Lankan Government on human rights issue"

By Saman Indrajith The Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC), which probed the Easter Sunday carnage, has, in its report, held the State Intelligence Service (SIS) responsible for bungling, which enabled terrorists to kill 270 persons on 21 April 2019. Chairman of the Committee Deputy Speaker Ananada Kumarasiri said that if the SIS Chief Senior DIG Nilantha Jayawardena had conveyed the intelligence… Continue reading "Parliamentary Select Committee Report Notes that the Spread of Wahhabism and Arabization of Kattankudy Contributed to the Growth of Extremism in the Islamic community Against the Backdrop of Increasing Levels of Islamophobia"

The International Truth and Justice Project has called for a review of all naval cooperation with Sri Lanka after it found a large number of top Sri Lankan navy commanders were complicit in torture, disappearance and murder that occurred inside naval sites from at least 2008-14.  “The Sri Lankan Navy: Turning a Collective Blind Eye”, published by the ITJP, compared documents… Continue reading "Top Sri Lankan Navy Commanders Complicit In Serious Crimes: ITJP"

By Jehan Perera – Jehan Perera With the election campaigns for the presidential election in full swing, the candidates are making a wide range of promises to an electorate that has not become cynical enough not to hope again that these might be kept. The promises are mostly with regard to the economic benefits that people can reasonably expect from a government… Continue reading "Unilateral Withdrawal From Geneva Commitments Can Be Costly"

As sons of the Southern soil contest shoulder to shoulder as the main contenders of the upcoming presidential election, the voters of the Southern Province are in a dilemma as to which one would be a better leader. While they discounted efforts of other contestants as foolish endeavours to grab votes from the two “true competitors”, their racial and religious… Continue reading "Political battle of two Southern sons"

Progressives are united against having a Rajapaksa as President but divided over Premadasa’s abilities https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/an-election-dilemma-in-sri-lanka/article29779146.ece In less than a month, over 15 million voters in Sri Lanka will have a say in the country’s presidential election. A total of 35 candidates are in the fray, but the principal contest is between Gotabaya Rajapaksa of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) and Sajith… Continue reading "An election dilemma in Sri Lanka"

A fight between two groups of Sri Lankan migrant workers in South Korea left one dead and two injured on Tuesday night (22) in Sacheon-si, Gyeongsangnam-do, the Sri Lankan mission in South Korea confirmed. The brawl which led to the stabbing took place between two groups of Sri Lankan workers, believed to have been under the influence of alcohol at… Continue reading "Lankan stabbed to death in South Korea"

The United Left Front (ULF), yesterday, decided to back the New Democratic Front (NDF) candidate Sajith Premadasa contesting the Nov 16 presidential election under the Swan symbol. Political sources said that 30 members of ULF Central Committee backed the decision whereas 24 opposed it. Two CC members abstained. Their original decision was to back JVP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake backed… Continue reading "Left turns right, backs Sajith"