June 20 (DM) A Tamil businessman yesterday filed a fundamental rights petition seeking an order preventing the police from taking action to evict Tamil people from Colombo. The petitioner Thambiraja Kandasamy of Galle Road, Colombo-6 cited Inspector General of Police, OIC Wellawatte, DIG Colombo South, Rohan Abeygunawardena, Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa and the Attorney General as respondents. more..

June 20 (DM) A number of supermarkets belonging to a popular supermarket chain have been fined amounts ranging from Rs. 25.000 to Rs. 150.000, for not displaying prices and selling goods after the expiry date had lapsed together with various other violations, a spokesman for the Ministry of Trade, Marketing Development and Consumer Services said. more..

June 20 (UNI) Deputy High Commissioner of Sri Lanka in South India PM Amza today said his country was an attractive business destination, despite the ethnic crisis prevailing in some parts of the country. Participating in a meeting organised by the Federation of Andhra Pradesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FAPCCI) here, he said "law and order problem was still existing in the North-East areas of Sri Lanaka. This crisis can not stop the economic growth of the country." more..

June 20 (MoD) The Ministry of Defence, Public Security, Law & Order categorically denies as utter falsehood the news appearing in a today's (19) English daily that the Ministry has made arrangements to recruit 50,000 new members to security forces according to a directive by His Excellency Mahinda Rajapaksa. The news item further says that an official of the Ministry of Defence has disclosed this information. more..

June 20 (KMS) A four member APHC AJK chapter delegation led by Syed Yousaf Naseem called on Sri Lankan High Commissioner Prof. W. B. Dorakumbure in Islamabad, today. Syed Yousaf Naseem told after the meeting that the Sri Lankan envoy said his country wanted to see Pakistan and India bringing about a solution to the Kashmir dispute in accordance with the wishes of Kashmiri people. more..

June 20 (AJ) Sri Lankan troops have killed around 30 Tamil Tigers in a clash in the east of the country, the military said, hours after the navy said it had killed about 40 Tigers in a sea battle. The military said on Wednesday that its soldiers had captured a bunker line during the battle in the jungle area of Thoppigala. Brigadier Prasad Samarasinghe, a Sri Lankan military spokesman, said: "We have destroyed three satellite camps and are clearing the area. There are a lot of minefields." more..

June 20 (Reuters) Sri Lankan troops killed around 30 Tamil Tigers in a clash overnight in jungle in the island's restive east, the military said on Wednesday, hours after the navy said it had killed around 40 insurgents in a sea battle. The military said soldiers captured a rebel bunker line during the fight in a swathe of landlocked eastern jungle called Thoppigala, where Tiger fighters are still entrenched after the fall of their eastern stronghold. more..

June 20 (AFP) Sri Lanka's government said it would like to hire hackers to dismantle a pro-Tamil Tiger website, as media groups said access to the site was already blocked. Tamilnet.com has been blocked for several days on the "advice" of the government, local rights group the Free Media Movement (FMM) said. A Sri Lanka Telecom official confirmed the site was being filtered. more..

June 20 (AFP) The Sri Lankan army said Wednesday that two months of fighting aimed at ousting Tamil Tiger rebels from jungles in the east of the island has left 197 dead, the vast majority of them guerrillas. The island's security forces have been trying to remove pockets of rebels from the Thoppigala jungles and areas near the eastern town of Batticaloa, with strategists hoping the Tigers would then be confined to the north. more..

June 21 (GDI) Indian Defence Minister A.K. Anthony has stated that the India is ready to provide Sri Lanka with arms and ammunition to help them to fight against terrorism. According to Indian media reports, Indian Defence Minister said this while addressing a two-day Conference for India’s top military brass. He said that terrorism and non-state armed players are the major challenges for security. more..

June 21 (GDI) President Mahinda Rajapaksa reached positive agreements with regard to the properties loans and vehicle loans of the public sector employees, during a discussion held between the President and the Leaders of the Public sector trade unions. This was revealed to media by the Minister of Mass Media, Lakshman Yapa Abeywardana today (20). more..

June 21 (GDI) Reports reaching Colombo from Batticaloa informs that by yesterday afternoon (19) Sri Lanka Army troops have almost reached the Thoppigala area, LTTE’s last stronghold in the Eastern part of the island. By yesterday, three LTTE camps located in Narakamulla area in the west of Thoppigala were completely destroyed by the troops where a large stock of weapons, ammunition and other military equipment were recovered, more..

June 21 (TN) Mangala Samaraweera, former Foreign Minister Wednesday speaking in parliament said the policy statement of his new party Sri Lanka Freedom Party (Peoples Wing) would be released next week. He declared that the country has become a police state with increased disappearances, abductions and human rights violations, parliamentary sources said. more..

June 21 (TO) Order the fish for lunch at a harbourside taverna in Crete and it's probable that your meal was swimming a few feet from your table earlier that morning. Your conscience is clear. But this is not always the case - the food you eat on holiday is often not sourced locally. Langoustines, beef and salmon from Scotland, oysters from Ireland or foie gras from France are often regarded as the height of culinary sophistication in many holiday destinations. more..

June 21 (PTI) Voicing concern over the recent upsurge in violence in Sri Lanka, India today opposed any support being given to LTTE and asked the government of the island nation to resolve the ethnic problem through dialogue. "We are opposed to violence, no support should be given to LTTE and we are opposed to helping any terrorist outfit anywhere," External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee said more..

June 21 (AFP) Sri Lanka's military now has the capacity to shoot down Tamil Tiger light airplanes which have bombed four targets on the island this year, the government said Wednesday. The enhanced capability means the island's only international airport will soon reopen for night flights after its closure earlier this year as a precaution over the attacks, a government spokesman said. more..

June 21 (AFP) Nordic monitors in Sri Lanka said they would stop issuing rulings on government or Tamil Tiger violations of a 2002 truce that is no longer being respected. The decision comes after more than a year of escalating fighting between Sri Lankan government troops and the rebel LTTE and the almost total collapse of the island's peace process. more..

June 21 (SL) Sanath Jayasuriya insists he is spurred on by the challenge of replacing Muttiah Muralitharan at Lancashire. With compatriot Mualitharan away for the month playing in Sri Lanka's Test series with Bangladesh, the 37-year-old has signed on a short-term deal at Old Trafford. He is set to take part in eight Twenty20 Cup matches, starting with Durham Dynamos at Old Trafford on Friday. more..

June 21 (LeN) Our leadership which gained executive power stating that "The ruler is not the possessor of your child�s future, but the temporary guardian," is not only exercising his powers to the maximum shamelessly, it has been passed down to his brother, the defence secretary, said former minister Mangala Samaraweera making a special speech in parliament today. more..

June 21 (AT) Ecotourism also called ecological tourism appeals to the ecological and socially conscious; it focuses on local culture, wilderness adventure and learning new ways to live in this planet—or even a search for peace that comes with that simmering desire to discover a past way of living amongst the biodiversity of this planet? more..

June 21 (CI) A tight bowling display from their bowlers helped Sri Lanka A keep the touring Bangladeshis to 183 for 5 at stumps on the first day of their three-day warm-up game at the Colts Cricket Club in Colombo. The Bangladeshis recovered from a shaky 73 for 3 thanks largely to an unbeaten 60 by Habibul Bashar, the former national captain. more..

June 21 (HT) Rebels in Sri Lanka's ruling party, the SLFP have asked former party leader and President, Chandrika Kumaratunga, to lead them in their struggle against Mahinda Rajapaksa who now heads the party and the government. Dissident leader, former minister Mangala Samaraweera, on Wednesday appealed to Kumaratunga to "guide" his struggle against the "dictatorial, extremist and fascist policies" of Rajapaksa. more..

June 21 (MN) World Muslim Congress Chief Dr. Omar Abdullah Bin Nasif yesterday described President Mahinda Rajapaksa as the Muslim people’s best friend in Asia. He met President Rajapaksa after the 80th meeting of the World Muslim Congress in Colombo. Dr. Abdullah lauded the development programmes initiated by the President and also his resolve to fight terrorism and usher in peace to Sri Lanka. more..

June 21 (hindu) Even as Sri Lankan refugees observed the World Refugee Day on Wednesday, the arrival of refugees continued suggesting that the people still had to wait for long to see a peaceful homeland. A group of six refugees reported at Mandapam seeking asylum on Wednesday. Incidentally, the number of refugees, who had reached Tamil Nadu since January 12 last year has crossed the 20,000-mark. more..

June 21 (LBO) Sri Lanka's capital markets regulator wants to help create "watchdog associations" of small investors to improve awareness among the investing public. Channa de Silva, Director General of the Securities Exchange Commission, said the regulator will give more support to associations of small investors to infuse more professionalism in such outfits. more..

June 21 (FI) The recently released SLFP model for devolution has ignited varying reactions, mostly negative, from some smaller political parties. Rauf Hakeem, Leader of the Muslim Congress by a question - “can there be meaningful devolution based on this sort of proposals” (reported in The Island, 2nd May 1007) admits that he does not have a full understanding of the proposal. more..

June 21 (LBO) One of Sri Lanka's largest used vehicle importers plans to import small cars from China and strike a deal with a big Chinese automaker to assemble vehicles locally, an official said. Sterling Automobiles, which claims to import half the reconditioned vehicles to the country from Japan, has just launched a brand new truck range from First Automotive Works (FAW) of China, after becoming its agent in Sri Lanka more..

June 21 (LBO) Sri Lanka's gilt rates shot up 30 basis points, a day after the government recieved permission from lawmakers to spend extra money on newly created ministries. Average yields at this week's treasury bills auction moved up 30 basis points to 17.34 percent with the 3-month rate, which has now become the signal interest rate in the market moving up 31 basis points to 17.40 percent, more..

June 21 (wsws) During a visit to the Middle East late last month, Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse defended his government’s war against the LTTE in an interview with Al Jazeera that was notable for its crudeness, arrogance and incoherence. None of Sri Lanka’s country’s media, not even the state-owned press, have reproduced the interview or commented on its contents. more..

June 21 (LBO) Relations between Sri Lanka and Britain remained strong with a shared history, cricket and economic ties binding the two nations, the British High Commission said on the birthday of Queen Elizabeth II. Queen Elizabeth celebrates her 81st birthday today. "Relations between Sri Lanka and Britain, founded in our shared history, remain strong today. With up to 500,000 people of Sri Lankan origin living in the UK, the people to people links are close," more..

June 21 (LBO) Sri Lanka's open source software community is promoting free programs that can be used on operating systems like Microsoft Windows, without breaking anyone's copyright. The Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) advocacy community says, individuals or small companies that cannot afford proprietary computer programs should switch to FOSS software which can do the same tasks legally, instead of resorting to piracy. more..

June 21 (LBO) Sri Lanka is to merge two state banks created as a result of election promises in the recent past, but keep a regional banking network with a good credit culture as an independent entity, officials said. The last budget said two newly created banks, SME Bank and Lankaputhra Development Bank would be merged with an existing network of six regional development banks. more..

June 21 (GDI) The Cabinet has granted its approval to a Memorandum submitted by Justice and Law Reforms Minister Hon. Amarasiri Dodangoda on the construction of High Courts in Dambulla and Nuwara-Eliya. High Courts in Sri Lanka had been established at the rate of one in each district. As a consequence, it is evident that the number of cases in the High Courts is on the increase and that the litigants are forced to travel long distances to attend proceedings of such courts on a number of days. more..

June 21 (CI) Marvan Atapattu, former Sri Lankan captain, will not face disciplinary action over his decision to pull out of the home series against Bangladesh. Atapattu, who is one of Sri Lanka's 18 contracted players, cited personal reasons for his withdrawal after being named in the Test side as a replacement for the rested Sanath Jayasuria. more..

June 21 (BBC) Sampur refugees now living in Batticaloa insist that they be allowed to live in their ancestral lands in Trincomalee. They say they do not want anything except to live peacefully in their traditional lands. The refugees, who fled to Batticaloa from Sampur and Muttur East in Trincomalee, held a peaceful rally on Wednesday and appealed to the international community to come to their help. more..

June 21 (TN) Minister of Information Anura Priyadarashana Yapa said Thursday during a Cabinet Press Briefing in Colombo that the Sri Lanka Government was not responsible for blocking TamilNet, and asked the journalists not to blame the Government for such incidents, when AFP Sri Lanka Bureau Chief, Amal Jayasinghe, raised a question regarding the blocking of the TamilNet website by Sri Lanka internet providers, more..

June 21 (Reuters) Sri Lankan shares ended weaker on Thursday, halting two days of gains, as investors sold select shares worried by uncertainty stemming from renewed civil war, while the rupee traded around life lows, traders said. The Colombo All Share index closed 0.33 percent weaker at 2,611.75 points, a fall of 8.68 points. more..

June 21 (RW) The sound of children singing and playing instruments was heard throughout the Batticaloa district earlier this month to commemorate the opening of 11 new schools in the region. For more than two years, many children in Sri Lanka have not had a proper place to learn. Now, with the help of AmeriCares, the children are opening the doors and walking through the halls of brand new schools. more..

June 21 (LNP) The Government yesterday said it was prepared to resume night operations at the Bandaranaike International Airport shortly as the Air Force was now fully confident of meeting any air threat from the LTTE. `The BIA is now equipped with detection and interception capability to counter any air threat and will resume its operations in the first week of next month,` Government Defence Spokesman and Minister Keheliya Rambukwella told the media. more..

June 21 (LNP) The government said in Parliament on Tuesday they would start work on the Colombo-Kandy expressway soon with financial assistance given by the Malaysian government. The House debated the issue yesterday as an adjournment motion proposed by UNP MP for the Kandy district Lakshman Kiriella, who urged the government to speed up the work on the project. Mr. Kiriella said the MoU for the project was signed between the governments of Sri Lanka and Malaysia under the UNP regime of 2003. ` more..

June 21 (LNP) The Sri Lanka Freedom Party is so prone to splits that one might wonder if the SLFP means the Sri Lanka Faction Party. It has set a world record as the party ruled by a single family for the longest period of time. The grip of the Bandaranaike family on the party ended about a year ago with the incumbent President Mahinda Rajapakse, son of a co-founder of the party, ousting former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga as the party President. more..

June 21 (GDI) Minister of Mass Media and Information Anura Priyadarshana Yapa said today (21) that it was evidently proven that the Government is running steady and is not worried about Members of Parliament Mangala Samaraweera and Sripathi Sooriyarachchi joining the opposition. Government was able to pass seven Supplementary estimates with a very comfortable 20-vote majority at the Parliament last Tuesday (19). more..

June 21 (GDI) Military Spokesman Brigadier Prasad Samarasinghe speaking to media today (21) said the Sri Lanka Army will be rescuing the people that are currently under the LTTE detention in the Thoppigala in Batticaloa. Yesterday military officials informed, a Tamil civilian escapee from LTTE captivity has disclosed that 73 persons – including two soldiers, several members of the Karuna faction and Muslim civilians - were under the detention of the Tigers. more..

June 21 (SAMN) The Government yesterday termed the approval of six supplementary estimates with a majority in Parliament on Tuesday as a “major political victory” and a successful defeat of a UNP devised plan to topple the Government with the help of JVP and the TNA. Minister Jeyaraj Fernandopulle briefing the media on the current political situation at the Information Department said the plan was masterminded by Opposition Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe “who fled to India at the crucial moment, hoping to rejoice.” more..

June 21 (SAMN) Environmentalists have criticised a leading construction company for building a large complex in an area belonging to the Mahaweli Authority. Dynasty Developers had commenced work on the proposed 15-storey building with 150 apartments, which is against the Mahaweli Authority Act (MAA). more..

June 21 (SAMN) The Chemtech 2007, a four day International Conference organized by the Institute of Chemistry, (ICC) Ceylon will begin Thrusday (20) at the BMICH. The conference that has its major theme “Chemistry, technology and innovation for greater safety and economic growth” will focus on chemistry and its contribution to the economy, environment and social well being. more..

June 21 (SAMN) The UNP Tuesday called for its 17 members now in the government, to vote against the supplementary estimates for six ministries in Parliament. Starting the debate on the supplementary estimates, Chief Opposition Whip Joseph Michael Perera requested these members to vote against the government because they still call themselves UNPers. “I am making this order on behalf of the UNP as the Chief Opposition Whip,” he said. more..

June 21 (DN) Audiences in Sri Lanka will have the opportunity to witness the exciting Miss Tourism International Pageant with the participation of 75 Beauty Queens from 75 different countries. The pageant will be hosted by Sebastian A.C. Perera, the Franchise Holder, who has successfully staged International Pageants in Sri Lanka in 1993, 1996, and 2002, and in India in 1997. more..

June 21 (DN) President Mahinda Rajapaksa yesterday directed the Public Administration and Home Affairs Ministry and the Police Department to implement the recommendations of the Presidential Investigations Commission’s first and second interim reports on abductions, disappearances and deaths of civilians by assault. The President has also called for a follow-up report pertaining to the action taken, within one week. more..

June 21 (DM) The JVP yesterday slammed Minister Jeyaraj Fernandopulle for calling its members LTTE supporters and warned him to be more cautious and responsible when making statements. “It seems that the Chief Government Whip is always running into trouble because of his mouth,” said JVP Parliamentarian Anura Kumara Dissanayake. more..