Mar 23 (Gulf) The Tamil minority ethnic issue is set to take centre stage in the run up to next month's parliamentary elections with both main parties making a concentrated effort to provide solutions in resolving the conflict and pledging to continue with the ongoing peace process with the Tamil guerrillas. more..

Mar 23 (AP) President Chandrika Kumaratunga's political alliance on Tuesday won support from a nationalist group ahead of April 2 parliamentary elections, a move that may boost her chances at the polls. more..

Mar 23 (Time) President Chandrika Kumaratunga, the daughter of two Prime Ministers, has been a member of Sri Lanka's First Family for half a century and President since 1994. She spoke to TIME's Alex Perry at President's House in Colombo. more..

Mar 23 (Time) Ranil Wickremesinghe was elected Prime Minister of in December 2001. Within weeks he agreed on a ceasefire with the Tamil Tigers and went on to hold six rounds of peace talks. These were suspended a year ago, but looked likely to restart last November when President Chandrika Kumaratunga suddenly seized government. more..

Mar 23 (Time) The truly great, President Chandrika Kumaratunga appears to believe, should be truly late. By the time her cortege nears Sri Lanka's ancient royal capital of Anuradhapura, the crowd of 15,000 she has summoned to kick off her party's general-election campaign has been waiting for three hours in the baking sun. more..

Mar 23 (KUNA) The Civil Aviation authorities in both Kuwait and Sri Lanka announced on Tuesday they have updated an agreement on organizing civil aviation activities between the two countries.ž The updated agreement allows for growth in air travel and air cargo shipping between the two nations, more..

Mar 24 (TN) The people of Kaluthavalai-Kaluwanchikudy in the Batticaloa district have shredded the leaflets issued by the Karuna group, and the Tamil Alai newspaper controlled by the group in Kokkadicholai, condemning the group for warning the people of Batticaloa-Amparai against having any contacts with the Tamil national leadership based in the Vanni, more..

Mar 24 (TN) Mr.Hiroshi Karube, Charge d' Affaires of the Japanese Embassy in Colombo, Tuesday handed over a consignment of six ambulances and three transport vehicles to the hospitals in the northeast and in the neighbouring districts under the Japanese Government funded Project more..

Mar 24 (CI) England has Lord's, Australia has the MCG, and Sri Lanka has the Sinhalese Sports Club, the SSC. The history is not as long, and the names that figure in the annals of the ground's history are fewer – but for Sri Lankans, the SSC is the home of cricket. more..

Mar 24 (PTI) A private poll monitoring group today expressed fears of a spurt in violence just before Sri Lanka's parliamentary elections next month, although the campaign so far had been relatively peaceful. more..

Mar 24 (IE) The stars were missing, but cheering and champagne welcomed the 121 passengers who landed in Colombo from Chennai today in the Air Sahara flight marking the first international operation of an Indian private carrier. more..

Mar 24 (LBO) A second pre-poll survey by the Center for Policy Alternatives found that 64 per cent of Sri Lankans prefer the clergy out of politics, with only 27 per cent approving Reverend MPs. more..

Mar 24 (SN) Ven Dr Omalpe Sobhitha thero charged today that the UPFA is in an attempt to destroy Buddhist schools in the country to eradicate Sinhala nationalism. He drew public attention to 6th & 8th articles of Section III in the UPFA Election manifesto. more..

Mar 24 (SN) Although there were speculations that the Election Commissioner would announce the appointment of Competent Authority for State Media at party secretaries’ meeting that did not happen so at the meeting held today in the evening. more..

Mar 24 (SN) Buddhist monks in Sri Lanka have made history fielding a team of exclusively Buddhist monks for the forthcoming parliamentary election. No such precedence in the entire world. They have commenced their campaign for a Righteous state attracting hundreds of thousands of people. more..

Mar 24 (SL) Educational reforms brought about by the UNF government will be halted immediately and an educational policy which would secure the right of all children to have an education would be established said Mr. Bimal Ratnayake, candidate of the UPFA for Kurunegala District. more..

Mar 24 (UL) The renegade eastern rebel leader Muralitharan alias Karuna has decided to support the TNA at the forthcoming parliamentary elections. Karuna has told a group of intellectuals who met him early this week that he intends supporting the UNF thorough TNA. more..

Mar 24 (TS) Malaysia will open their campaign with an easy match against minnows Sri Lanka in Group B of the Junior Asia Cup hockey tournament, which will be played in Karachi from April 20-29. more..

Mar 24 (TS) For the first time ever in Malaysia, cricket fans will get a rare treat of watching world-class fare from two Test playing nations – Pakistan and Sri Lanka. They will contest for the Malaysia Challenge Cup over three one-day internationals at the brand new Bayuemas Oval in Pandamaran, Klang, beginning on May 27. more..

Mar 24 (TN) A four year rehabilitation plan at a cost of nearly Rs.260m is being successfully carried out by the Danish Refugee Council (DRC) in Vavuniya, Mannar, Trincomalee and Anuradhapura districts, said Ms.Birgitte Ebbesen, Sri Lanka country representative of DRC, more..

Mar 24 (TN) The Elections Department of Sri Lanka has allocated two million rupees for providing transport facilities to the voters in areas of Batticaloa district not under Sri Lanka Army’s control, the Deputy Elections Commissioner, Mr. S. Krishnananthalingam, said Tuesday. more..

Mar 24 (LBO) The Mahapola Trust Fund and GTECH filed a counter case in courts Tuesday to fight a fundamental rights petition against the launch of its online lottery. The case is due to be taken up on March 25. more..

Mar 24 (TN) Assitant Dean of Agriculture at Eastern Campus, Professor T.Thiruchelvam, was shot and injured by two unidentified gunmen at his home in Kallady, Batticaloa Tuesday night at around 8.30 pm, security sources said. He has been admitted to the Batticaloa teaching hospital and receiving treatment, more..

Mar 24 (TN) Batticaloa district Assistant Election Commissioner, S.Krishnananthalingam, said that postal voting is in progress at 150 Government Centers today. The voting process is being observed by two members of the Election Observer delegation from the European Union, more..

Mar 24 (TN) The UNP has called the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) to investigate an allegation by President Chandrika Kumaratunga’s UPFA that the UNP was responsible for printing a second UPFA's manifesto which is currently in circulation, more..

Mar 24 (SLA) Two films about an LTTE suicide attack on a naval craft and also the major attack on the Bandaranaike International Airport, COLOMBO have been reportedly screened by the LTTE in the general area of JAFFNA on 23 March 2004 around 8.30 p.m. more..

Mar 24 (NW) The UFPA has bared another massive racket involving monetary assets of the Mahapola Trust Fund where Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Ravi Karunanayake has allegedly transferred these funds to a private company named, "National Wealth Corporation Ltd" which is said to be operated by a close associate of the UNP. more..

Mar 24 (NW) President Chandrika Kumaratunga yesterday told Samurdhi beneficiaries she would release their compulsory savings maintained under the Samurdhi movement to respective beneficiaries with interest, under a Freedom Alliance Government. more..

Mar 24 (NW) The abuse of state resources has spiraled over the last two weeks as political candidates have lost all sense of accountability and appear to be bent on misusing public resources for their election campaigns, demonstrating selfish greed and absolute disregard for public good. more..

Mar 24 (NW) The National Police Commission and the Inspector General yesterday announced that all police transfers had been suspended until further notice except on occasions when the commission considered it a dire necessity or as a disciplinary measure. more..

Mar 24 (NW) With only a few days left for the general elections campaign, Elections Commissioner Dayananda Dissanayaka yesterday gave a final warning to the state media that he would take what he called the "next step", if they did not comply with his guidelines for fair and balanced coverage. more..

Mar 24 (NW) President Chandrika Kumaratunga has directed IGP Indra de Silva to take immediate action regarding a complaint by Secretary, Agriculture and Livestock Ministry P. Weerahennadi alleging that Minister S.B. Dissanayake abused and threatened him when he came to assume duties in his new post. more..

Mar 24 (NW) IGP, Indra de Silva has ordered DIG - CID Lionel Gunathilake and Director - CID, Sisira Mendis to proceed with the investigations into the matter of criminal prosecution against K. N. Choksy PC MP and R. Paskaralingam in connection with a fraud perpetrated on the government and a cover-up more..

Mar 24 (PSL) The President’s Fund today launched its official website www.presidentsfund.gov.lk. The new dedicated website will enable the public to obtain in-depth information of all the services available to them. more..

Mar 24 (PSL) President Chandrika Kumaratunga yesterday said she was ready for a clear long term solution to the ethnic conflict. Kumaratunga said she would welcome such a solution whatever political party is able to deliver it. more..

Mar 24 (PRIU) Welcome address by Lakshman Kadirgamar, PC, Chairman/BCIS at the inauguration of the seminar on "The Role of the US in South Asia" on the March 19, 2004. This seminar is more than an event on the calendar of the BCIS. more..

Mar 24 (DN) Due to the alliance with JVP President Chandrika Kumaratunga has sacrificed SLFP and hence it will be defeated at the forthcoming general election, therefore Anichcha Watha Sankara has to be sung for its demise, said Gamini Lokuge, Minister of Tourism. more..

Mar 24 (DM) The Agriculture Ministry is to set up the first ever 'Agro Park' on a 40 acre block of land at Gannoruwa, transforming the Horticulture Crop Research and Development Institute (HCRDI) there. more..

Mar 24 (Gulf) The Japanese government has expressed hope that "a stable and responsible government" would emerge at the April 2 polls and cautioned against the demand of the Marxists JVP to renegotiate the peace agreement with the Tamil guerrillas. more..

Mar 24 (Gulf) The deposed regional Tamil guerrilla military wing leader, Karuna, who is refusing to bow down to his leadership, has warned civilians living in the eastern region not to maintain 'secret ties' with the northern part of the country in an apparent move to prevent information about him leaking to the leadership. more..

Mar 24 (HT) The growing conflict between the LTTE Supremo Velupillai Prabhakaran and the breakaway Eastern commander Col Karuna became violent on Tuesday, when a pro-Karuna professor in the Eastern University was shot at and wounded by suspected LTTE agents on Tuesday night. more..

Mar 24 (CI) Australia are on course to inflict Sri Lanka's first whitewash in a home Test series, after Darren Lehmann and Ricky Ponting combined to produce their best first-innings performance of the series so far. Australia weathered a sticky first hour and a post-lunch wobble to close on 314 for 6. more..

Mar 24 (OW) The vote of Sri Lanka's minority Indian Tamil community is likely to be sharply divided in the April 2 parliamentary polls because a young, pro-Tamil Tiger guerrilla political party has decided to contest alone this time, threatening the votebank of the community's main representative, the Ceylon Workers Congress (CWC). more..

Mar 24 (SMH) Sri Lankan cricket is in trouble. At present, the national side relies inordinately on a handful of senior players. Muttiah Muralitharan, Chaminda Vaas and Sanath Jayasuriya will be sorely missed when they hang up their floppy hats. more..

Mar 24 (LBO) Sri Lanka’s political stage is a muddle of fish, eagles, trishaws, trees, mammoties, electric bulbs, coconuts and many more, all convinced they could do a better job running the country than the government or the main opposition. more..

Mar 24 (LBO) Sri Lanka is drumming up support for an annual regional export sector exhibition, kicking off its campaign with a 4-day local event in Nov 2004. A regional event is expected to foster greater inter-Asian trade and push down trade barriers, while giving local exporters an opportunity to attract regional investment partners. more..

Mar 24 (Reuters) Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, facing a tough re-election fight, said on Wednesday he expects a huge undecided vote to shift his way, giving him a mandate to restart peace talks with Tamil rebels. more..

Mar 25 (TN) "Unfortunately, due to a conflict between the President, who holds executive power, and the Prime Minister, the President dismissed parliament in February of this year and Sri Lanka will face general elections on 2 April 2004. It is vital that these elections are free and fair. more..

Mar 25 (TN) "We are for peace. We are definitely against war. Some politicians have been agitating for a war to meet their own ends. President Ms Chandrika Kumaratunge has been committed to bring permanent peace to the country," said Mr. Maithripala Sirisena, General Secretary of the SLFP more..

Mar 25 (TN) The Muslim United People Front organised a demonstration in front of the Periya Pallivasal (Mosque) in Batticaloa town Wednesday, sources in the town said. Demonstrators chanted slogans demanding an end to violence, and called upon all parties to respect democratic values, free and fair elections. more..