May 4 (AFP) Sri Lanka's veteran opening batsman Sanath Jayasuriya was non-committal about playing in the cricket World Cup's next edition in 2011, saying it was too early to mull the prospect. Upon his return to the island on Thursday after Sri Lanka's World Cup campaign in the Caribbean, the left-handed batsman said it was not the time now to think about playing in 2011. more..

May 4 (PTI) AIADMK supremo Jayalalithaa today said that Chief Minister M Karunanidhi 'has love and affection' towards the LTTE, despite his recent announcement in the assembly that his government would not support the activities of the banned outfit in the state. In a statement here, she pointed out that the policy note for police tabled recently in the assembly stated that Sri Lankan Tamils being behind the smuggling of arms from Tamil Nadu to Sri Lanka. But not a word was there on the LTTE's involvement, she said. more..

May 4 (EC) DARING air raids by the Tamil Tigers' fledgling air force on targets around Colombo, on March 26th and April 29th, caused little physical damage. However, their effect on morale in the Sri Lankan capital was considerable. The Sri Lankan defence forces have fighter jets, helicopter gunships and anti-aircraft batteries. But all their military might failed to stop the Tigers' puny, propeller-driven trainer aircraft from dropping their home-made bombs and escaping. more..

May 4 (GDI) “The proposals unveiled by the SLFP based on devolution of power are a set of proposals that would be officially submitted to the APRC for their consideration.” said SLFP's General Secretary Minister Maitripala Sirisena. SLFP's General Secretary reiterated the fact at a media briefing held today(03) in Colombo to illuminate the misunderstandings and unawareness that was created with the announcing of the above proposals on last 01 May. more..

May 4 (AFP) A lone three-wheeler taxi braves the muddy waters in the streets of Colombo. Two people were killed in heavy rains in Colombo Wednesday while flash floods caused traffic jams and disrupted ceremonies to welcome back the national cricket team. more..

May 4 (Hindu) Sri Lanka All Party Representative Committee (APRC) Chairman and Minister Tissa Vitharana is hopeful of building consensus on province as the unit of devolution though the ruling SLFP has favoured district as the point for power sharing as a solution to the ethnic issue. Prof. Vitharana's observations came even as the JVP joined several other parties in opposing the May 1 devolution package proposed by the SLFP. more..

May 4 (UCAN) Buddhist, Christian and Hindu clergy marched around the president's residence in a May Day parade before praying together for workers. The activities were held a day early, on April 30, because May 1 was the date this year for Vesak, the day this Buddhist-majority island state commemorates Buddha's birth, enlightenment and death. May Day is marked around the world as a day for workers. more..

May 4 (Reuters) A Burundian defender of prisoners' rights and two Sri Lankan activists who have investigated atrocities in their country's two-decade civil war are to share a prestigious human rights award, organisers said on Friday. The 2007 Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders goes to Pierre Claver Mbonimpa of Burundi and Rajan Hoole and Kopalasingham Sritharan, co-founders of the University Teachers for Human Rights in Jaffna, according to a statement by 11 leading human rights groups who make up the jury. more..

May 4 (wsws) An air attack by the LTTE on fuel facilities in the Sri Lankan capital of Colombo on Sunday produced a panicked response by the government and military. Flying under cover of darkness, two light aircraft dropped two small bombs on the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation’s oil refinery installation at Kolonnawa and another two on Shell’s LPG gas facility at Muthurajawela. more..

May 4 (TN) Colombo based National Peace Council, a peace group, Friday said it was "extremely concerned," about SL President Mahinda Rajapaksa's decision, a month ago, about delegating police powers to the military. "There is an urgent need for the government to demonstrate clear political will in regard to law and order processes if it is to retain the confidence of the civilian population that it is not taking the country on a journey to anarchy and to the breakdown of democratic governance," the NPC said. more..

May 4 (ISL) The LTTE air-wings ambitious plan to attack military targets in Colombo may not have dealt a significant blow in a definitive military sense, but it has once again succeeded in dealing a psychological blow to the Rajapaksa government, which continues to hides its head in the sand. Sundays attack, the second such attack on military targets near the capital Colombo, and more..

May 4 (ISL) President Rajapakse true to his colours has produced a dud which no self respecting Sri Lankan Tamil will accept. Apparently the ruling party in the midst of its quest for a military solution and a dictated peace thinks that it can get away with the District Development Councils. They could be proved wrong - for sustained peace, a federal solution is the minimum. more..

May 4 (ISL) In my paper of January 22, 2007 titled "LTTE AVOIDS BATTLE OF ATTRITION IN THE EAST", which is available at www.saag.org/papers22/paper2105.html, I had written as follows: " The recent operations of the LTTE and its political actions have once again called into question the qualities of leadership of Prabakaran. His leadership has been consistently marked since 1990 by an erratic and irrational streak. more..

May 4 (LBO) The Sri Lanka rupee closed at a record low against the dollar Friday while stocks edged lower with jittery investors remaining on the sidelines, dealers said. Spot dollar closed at 110.85 rupees, the lowest this year, showing a depreciation of 3.11 percent for the year with the rupee starting at 107.50, dealers said. more..

May 4 (LBO) Heavy rains lashed Sri Lanka's capital for the second day, putting large areas under water, while the authorities closed part of the main road from Colombo to the south when a section caved in. Weather officials say rain caused by a depression in the Bay of Bengal may continue for another two days at least. Torrential rains that started two days ago have so far claimed the lives of five people. more..

May 4 (AFP) Sri Lankan children are being encouraged to raid their piggy banks in a bid to end a serious shortage of loose change in a country where inflation is making coins worth more than their face value. State-owned banks are offering colour pencils, felt pens, drawing paper and books to children who part with their savings in exchange for bank notes, promising the gifts will be worth 20 percent more than the coins handed in. more..

May 4 (LT) JVP Questions as to why unitary status finds no mention and confederation has been specified in the set of proposals put forward by the government with the “SLFP” label. The propaganda secretary of the JVP Mr. Wimal Weerawanse explained at a press briefing held in Colombo yesterday that these proposals cannot be taken simply as they come from the governing SLFP under the leadership of the Head of state, President Mahinda Rajapaksha. more..

May 4 (GDI) The US Country Reports of Terrorism for year 2006 - the important annual assessment of terrorism worldwide submitted to the United States Congress points out that many LTTE innovations, such as explosive belts, vests, and bras, using female suicide bombers, and waterborne suicide attacks against ships, have been copied by other terrorist groups existing globally. more..

May 4 (GDI) Due to the prevailing heavy rains in Colombo suburbs, the Colombo- Galle Road at Wellawatta near the Rexi Cinema is currently out of order for transportation and traveling. According to Police Spokesman Senior DIG Jayantha Wickramaratne the road has been temporally closed for public access and the officials request the public to use alternative road ways. more..

May 4 (GDI) President Mahinda Rajapaksa yesterday issued specific instructions to the Colombo Municipal Council and the Road Development Authority officials for speedy measures to clear all obstacles and ensure that the public are not endangered in the wake of floods in the city and outlying areas as witnessed yesterday. more..

May 4 (GDI) The enactment of the new Companies Act No.7 of 2007 will facilitate the easy registration of new companies in just one day if the name has been approved earlier, Trade, Marketing Development, Cooperatives and Consumer Affairs Minister Bandula Gunawardana said yesterday. “It is a major step in the right direction to provide a much warranted corporate culture and environment to build the private sector,” Minister Gunawardana said. more..

May 4 (GDI) Sri Lankan cooperation with the FBI has resulted in arrests of persons charged with material support to terrorist groups and the Lankan Government also cooperates with US efforts to track terrorist financing, the US State Department stated in its annual compilation of Country Reports on Terrorism. The report said the LTTE has led the way for terrorism in other countries too. more..

May 4 (PISL) The LTTE is trying to achieve its objectives of crippling the country’s economy and creating political instability. Sri Lanka has faced the most violent terrorism in the world and is in the midst of several challenges, leader of the UNP Democratic Group and Minister of Public Administration and Home Affairs Karu Jayasuriya said. more..

May 4 (LNP) Torrential inter monsoonal rains wreaked havoc in the Western and Southern provinces yesterday killing five people and causing untold misery to thousands. Hundreds of houses were damaged when their roofs were blown off. Trees were felled by wind and four large Vesak pandals in Pettah, Borella and Grandpass collapsed. Road and rail transport was disrupted. more..

May 4 (LNP) The main Opposition UNP yesterday emphasized the importance of obtaining Tamil Nadu support in resolving the national crisis and spoke against moves to give police powers to the military. Party front-liner Lakshman Kiriella told a news conference the government should make an effort to win over Tamil Nadu politicians in Sri Lanka`s peace process even as the crisis was getting further complicated. more..

May 4 (LNP) A few weeks ago, The Island reported that Taraka Dissanayake, former minister S. B. Dissanayake`s second son had come second in a pilot`s licentiate test held by Swinburne University in Australia, and that on the strength of that result, obtained a fully paid scholarship to a top University in Florida, USA. Now, SB`s eldest son Narada Dissanayake has graduated at the top of his batch at Monash and has been awarded a Bachelor of Economics degree. more..

May 4 (SAMN) Leader of Opposition Ranil Wickremesinghe who met with the Member of the European Commission responsible for External Relations and European Neighbourhood Policies, Ms Benita Ferrero-Waldner called on EU and the international community to help Sri Lanka from the present crisis. He met the EU official on May 2 2007 in Brussels. more..

May 4 (SAMN) All Sri Lankan embassies are to be given a face lift to project a better image of the country. Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama said that a presentable embassy coupled with hard work can achieve the goals set for the country. "As a first step a new chancery building will be constructed in Riyadh, for which the Saudi Arabian government has already allocated land." more..

May 4 (SAMN) Despite delayed action on the crisis-stricken Colombo Municipal Council (CMC), Western Province Governor Alavi Moulana said the appointment of a steering committee would be the best option at the moment. According to Mr. Moulana the Government position was that dissolution of the Council at this point of time would lead to problems while a steering committee would be a better option. more..

May 4 (DN) Leading finance and leasing companies anticipate the current high interest rates to come down to a manageable level for the industry to come back to normalcy before the end of this year, industry sources said. During the last three months there was a dramatic change in the leasing sector due to the increase in interest rates and also inter banking rates. This enabled people to be more speculative than previous times with the high rates and inflationary pressure. more..

May 4 (DN) Finding employment for Arts graduates has posed a major problem in a country where the State is no more the single employer in the country and in the current scenario the main requirement is to construct and adjust policies that would guarantee employment and employability, Higher Education Minister Prof. Wisva Warnapala said. more..

May 4 (DM) The Ministry of Labour is to introduce major changes to EPF and ETF shortly for the benefit of its contributors. In this context, the EPF refunds will be paid to account holders on service termination within 2 to 3 days if their applications forms are in order. Meanwhile both EPF, ETF offices and the Central Bank unit of EPF would be brought under one roof. more..

May 4 (DM) The target of the Ministry of Health was to increase the number of midwives, so that the ratio of midwives to population increases from the present 1in 3000 to 1 in 1500; and midwives in the future would attend not only to the health care of the child and mother but also to the health care requirements of the entire family said the Minister of Health Care and Nutrition, Nimal Siripala De Silva, yesterday (03). more..

May 4 (IRIN) "The resumption of the conflict in the north and east has taken its toll on whatever recovery had taken place, especially in the Jaffna district," observes a report compiled by the government's leading tsunami recovery outfit, Reconstruction and Development Agency (RADA), and the International Labour Organization (ILO). Survivors of the 2004 tsunami in Sri Lanka's northern Jaffna peninsula are continuing to struggle to make a living. more..

May 4 (BBC) A document leaked to BBC London has revealed that a Hindu temple in south London may have possible links to a rebel organisation. The Armulmihu Hindu temple in Tooting has had its assets frozen pending an investigation into alleged links with the UK banned Tamil Tigers. The temple's founder has been suspended during the investigation. more..

May 4 (BBC) As you can imagine, my team-mates and I are feeling pretty down at the moment after our World Cup final defeat by Australia. Overall it was been a good tournament for us but it hurts that we just couldn't produce our best cricket when it mattered. You have to give credit to Australia - they were the dominant team on the day, and from the start of the competition, so you have to say they deserved their success. more..

May 4 (CO) Coming down heavily on "religious fundamentalists" opposing the Sethusamudram ship canal project under the pretext of saving Ramar's bridge, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi today appealed to them not to obstruct a scheme that would lead to prosperity. Replying to points raised by Left party members, Karunanidhi said even AIADMK chief Jayalalithaa, now threatening to move court over the issue, more..

May 4 (PTI) Asserting that information given by Tamil Nadu Police that LTTE had killed five fishermen was "credible," the state government on Friday said it was making all efforts to secure the release of 12 fishermen abducted by the banned militant group from Sri Lanka. Replying to an issue raised by AIADMK member D Jayakumar, who asked what action the state government had taken in the matter, Chief Minister M Karunanidhi said more..

May 4 (NIP) Director General of Police Mukerjee’s remarks over the abduction and murder of Tamil Nadu fishermen, allegedly by the LTTE, has drawn flak from Pattali Makkal Katchi leader S Ramadoss. Speaking to reporters in Thailapuram on Thursday, Ramadoss said, "The DGP’s remarks had all the ingredients crime thriller." "The LTTE’s official press release has denied the involvement Sea Tigers in the murder and kidnapping of fishermen. The DGP’s statements are not trustworthy," he said. more..

May 4 (BT) As the debate hotted-up worldwide on the rights and wrongs of the final stages of the Cricket World Cup final being played in total darkness, Sri Lankan cricketers warmed the hearts and minds of cricket lovers everywhere and helped lift the pall of gloom which settled on the premier cricket tournament, through their simplicity, honesty and down-to-earth conduct. more..

May 4 (AN) The government of Sri Lanka has agreed to consider the requests made by families of fishermen who have been missing since 1991when they disappeared in waters off the North East of the country. The decision came yesterday following a meeting between Premier Rathnasiri Wickramanayaka with the families. more..

May 4 (AP) Paintings of Buddha dating back at least to the 12th century have been discovered in a cave in Nepal's remote north-central region by a team of international researchers who were tipped by a local sheep herder. A mural with 55 panels depicting the story of Buddha's life was uncovered in March, with the team using ice axes to break through a snow path to reach the cave in Nepal's Mustang area, about 160 miles northwest of the capital, Katmandu. more..

May 4 (CM) CRICKET fans on the sub-continent have questioned Adam Gilchrist's match-winning innings in the World Cup final because he had a squash ball inside his batting glove. Gilchrist belted 149 off just 103 balls to rip the rain-shortened final away from Sri Lanka but cricket bloggers in Sri Lanka, Pakistan and India have now asked whether the Australian wicketkeeper's innings was "legal". more..

May 4 (AT) Two Sri Lankans, educationist Rajan Hoole and Kopalasingham Sritharan well known for their life-long passion for the defense of human rights, are the international recipients of the prestigious Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders (MEA). The Amnesty International announced here that the two Sri Lankans will share the award with Pierre Claver Mbonimpa of Burundi. more..

May 4 (AFP) Sri Lanka's national carrier announced Friday it was halting night flights in and out of the island's only international airport with immediate affect amid fears of more nocturnal Tamil Tiger raids. The decision came the day after officials said airlines had to stop night operations by May 10, when Bandaranaike International Airport near Colombo will limit its hours to between 4:30 am (2200 GMT) and 10:30 pm (1700 GMT). more..

May 4 (Reuters) Heavy rain triggered flooding and a small landslide along Sri Lanka's coastal belt, killing nine people and forcing more than 8,000 from their homes, as the island heads into the monsoon season, officials said on Friday. The dead included a woman who fell through a manhole cover in the capital Colombo and was swept into an underground canal, while two people were killed in a landslide near the southern port town of Galle. more..

May 4 (HT) The newly formed All Party British Parliamentary Group on Sri Lanka is planning to hold a summit of the principal stakeholders in the island's peace process at London in July. Holding a summit was among the three decisions announced by group leader and Labour MP, Keith Vaz, during a debate on the Sri Lankan situation in the House of Commons on May 2. more..

May 4 (AP) Sri Lanka plans to dispute Britain's decision to suspend aid payments due to a worsening civil war, saying Friday its escalating military actions are justified. "We will take it up on a government to government level," the government's defense spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella said. Britain, which had agreed to give US$5.9 million (€4.3 million) to help Sri Lanka pay down its debts to the World Bank, suspended the program Thursday after making only half the payments, more..

May 5 (AP) In this undated hand out photograph, one of the 55 panels depicting the story of Buddha's life is seen at an estimated late 13th century old cave in Mustang area, about 250 kilometers northwest of Katmandu, Nepal. Paintings of Buddha dating back at least to the 12th century have been discovered in a cave in Nepal's remote north-central region by a team of international researchers more..

May 5 (CI) Tom Moody, the former Australian allrounder who coached Sri Lanka to the World Cup final, will decide his future later this month, a Sri Lankan Cricket official said on Friday. "Tom departed for Britain on a holiday," K Mathivanan, secretary of the Sri Lanka Cricket board, told AFP. He said Moody was expected to return to Colombo on May 12 and will then discuss his future with the team and the governing body. more..