Sep 21 (DM) Allegations and counter allegations coupled with heated arguments were the order of the day as parliament yesterday debated the motion to appoint a Select Committee to probe the alleged secret deal between the government and the LTTE. Joining the debate new parliamentarian and powerful presidential advisor Basil Rajapaksa denied he held discussions with the LTTE to enforce a boycott of the presidential election in November 2005 by the people in the North and East. more..

Sep 21 (DM) The TNA informed Parliament yesterday that it had no “reliable information” on the alleged secret pact between the government and LTTE during the 2005 presidential election, and as a result could not comment on the issue. “The TNA does not have any reliable information on whether money was given to the LTTE by the government and so will not participate in this debate” Jaffna district MP Suresh Premachandran told the House more..

Sep 21 (IPS) Compared to the rest of South Asia, Sri Lanka has impressive sanitation statistics with 90 percent of the population having access to latrines. But what happens to human waste thereafter is another story. The stench emanating from the Beira Lake, a major Colombo landmark, betrays the fact faecal matter finding its way into this much loved water body, through storm water drains. more..

Sep 21 (UPI) At the United Nations Human Rights Council several European Union countries attempted to assist Sri Lanka out of its present serious crisis by suggesting human rights monitoring by the United Nations to buttress local law enforcement, which has suffered a serious collapse. While the Sri Lankan government, for reasons difficult to comprehend, resisted this move the country's law and order situation was manifestly degenerating. more..

Sep 21 (VS) Three separate police investigations continue across Canada into whether the terrorist Tamil Tigers have been illegally raising funds here to help their bloody independence campaign in Sri Lanka. If charges are laid in any of the three cases, there may finally be a Canadian prosecution related to terrorist financing. In the last two years, investigators in Vancouver, Montreal and Toronto have raided offices of the World Tamil Movement, a group the RCMP alleges is a financing the LTTE. more..

Sep 21 (Reuters) Beset by censure over a rash of civil war human rights abuses, Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa will set out his case at the UN General Assembly next week -- but critics doubt it will wash. Rights groups say hundreds of people have been killed or abducted since last year, when a civil war that has killed around 70,000 people since 1983 resumed after a near four-year lull. Some abuses have been blamed on state security forces. more..

Sep 21 (AP) Air force jets bombed a Tamil Tiger military complex in northern Sri Lanka on Friday, targeting a meeting of top rebel leaders, while a bomb blast blamed on rebels killed a civilian in the east, the military said. The airstrike at 12:15 p.m. local time (0645 GMT) badly damaged the complex west of Puthukkudiyiruppu, in the rebel-controlled area in northern Sri Lanka, said Group Cap. Ajantha Silva, an air force spokesman. more..

Sep 22 (LD) Convener of the Sri Lanka (Mahajana) Wing Mangala Samaraweera says the appointment of Basil Rohana Rajapaksa to fill the National List vacancy created following the death of Muslim National Congress’s deputy minister Anwar Ismail is a grave injustice done to the eastern Muslims. In a press release issued on September 20th, Mangala Samaraweera says the appointment of Basil Rajapaksa to Parliament is a shameful attempt to strengthen the SLFP Medamulana Faction. more..

Sep 22 (LBO) Sri Lanka's deputy finance minister Ranjith Siyambalapitiya rejected charges that the government had misused funds in starting a new budget airline and a bank. He also said the government has evidence of transfers of funds by previous governments from the Treasury to Tamil Tigers and that details would be revealed next week. more..

Sep 22 (BBC) Lack of equality among communities and religious groups is the main cause for the conflict in the island nation, peace campaigners said. Colombo district parliamentarian and the leader of the Western Peoples Front (WPF) told BBC Sandeshaya : "That is the main reason for the lack of peace in Sri Lanka". Campaigners launched a satyagraha in Colombo's Hyde Park on Friday to mark the interantionl day of peace. more..

Sep 22 (SMH) FLYING into Colombo's civil war on a tourist-less Sri Lankan Airlines flight, three plugs in the inflight magazine from the country's investment board extolling the island's corporate virtues were arresting, if not amusing: "generous fiscal incentives", "transparent legal system" and "one of the most liveable countries in Asia". The 70,000 who have died since 1983 in the former Ceylon's intractable conflict between Tamils and Sinhalese would disagree on the last. more..

Sep 22 (UCAN) A Marian statue that has been lost and found repeatedly has become part of Sri Lanka's religious heritage. About 250,000 Catholics, Buddhists and Hindus including the Sri Lankan president and prominent religious leaders crowded Our Lady of Matara Shrine during its centenary celebration Sept. 6-9. The revered Marian statue that is the shrine's main attraction is named for the coastal town of Matara, where the shrine is located, more..

Sep 22 (FI) First let me express my thanks and commendation to the Fullbright Association both for arranging this seminar on “Sri Lanka: the Way Forward” and for putting together such a glittering panel of speakers. Let me also thank Tissa for putting me first because whatever I have to say will pale in comparison to the more erudite and lucid comments to follow! Since time is short and we Americans are known for not mincing our words, let me get right to the point on the topic at hand. more..

Sep 22 (Hindu) The Sri Lanka Cabinet on Thursday approved amendments to relevant sections of the Grant of Citizenship to Stateless Persons Act No. 39 of 1988 and the Grant of Citizenship to Persons of Indian Origin Act No. 35 of 2003. The amendments, expected to be moved in Parliament in October first week, will benefit 28,500 ‘Sri Lankans of Indian Origin’ now living in Tamil Nadu refugee camps as stateless citizens. more..

Sep 22 (TN) Protesting that the Sri Lankan government had discarded negotiating a settlement to the island’s ethnic conflict, the Tamil National Alliance (TNA)urged the international community to take a principled stand on the Tamil people’s right to self determination. Outlining the humanitarian and human rights crisis that has emerged in the wake of Colombo’s military project, more..

Sep 22 (AT) LTTE, the separatist terrorist organization, continues to harass the Tamil civilians and this time by detonating a claymore mine targeting a private bus plying between Trincomalee and Irakkandi. The bus driver Suntharam of the private bus was killed and two passengers were injured. The injured passengers are admitted to Trincomalee hospital. more..

Sep 22 (AT) The issue of a secret pact between the Tamil Tigers and the Government of Sri Lanka has been cranked up by the UNP, the leading opposition party and the two-man breakaway band from the ruling party, the SLFP. On Thursady, Sripathi Sooriyarachchi of the SLFP (M) – one of the two in the breakaway band -- moved a motion to appoint a Select Committee of Parliament to look into this alleged secret pact. more..

Sep 22 (AT) When Parliament met on Thursday, 20 September there were desperate attempts to give priority to baseless allegations with language not pertinent to the dignity of the House. The House was deplete of TNA members as usual avoiding critical situations only to represent their own benefits. Like the slippery snake/s the TNA members as usual did not want to commit themselves. more..

Sep 22 (AT) Sri Lanka’s Deputy High Commissioner in Chennai, P.M.Amza pointed out that government has come forward to grant citizenship to Sri Lankans of Indian origin who have fled to India as refugees due to the 1983 July disturbances followed by other internal conflicts which arose thereafter. more..

Sep 22 (AT) Believe it or not - UNP leader and Leader of the Opposition Ranil Wickremamsinghe is in a huge rage threatening a prestigious international Bank, lashing out at the business community, jeering at the fourth estate and chastising and ridiculing the Maha Sangha [the Order of bhikkhus]. This is unprecedented for the leader of the conservative, generally cautious and decorous UNP which classifies itself as a foremost pillar of democracy. more..

Sep 22 (AT) Sri Lanka is a country long been ruled by political dynasties. We have the Bandaranaike’s, the Senanayake’s, The Rajapakse’s, and the Premadasa’s to name a few. Recently, President Mahinda Rajapakse moved to strengthen the Rajapakse family’s stake in Lankan Royalty by moving to appoint his brother Basil Rajapakse into a National list slot of parliament. more..

Sep 22 (LeN) President Mahinda Rajaakse will leave for US today (22) while the former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumarathunga is to leave for US tomorrow (23). The President will address the 62nd UN General Assembly on 25th. This is the second time the President is addressing the UN. The President is expected to point out the government proposals for a sustainable solution for the north- east problem in his speech. more..

Sep 22 (LeN) In a startling discovery, officials of the Kalutara Prison on Horana Road have found a tunnel nearly 200 metres long and eight feet below the prison ground leading to the Kalu Ganga complete with electricity and light bulbs, dug by LTTE suspects in custody over a period of one year. Prison officials on Thursday made this find during a special search operation within the prison premises. more..

Sep 22 (Hindu) A single candle was lit and passed around to light up several other candles held by children and adults with hopes and prayers for the dawn of peace in Sri Lanka. They had gathered at the Sri Lankan Deputy High Commission here to celebrate World Peace Day on Friday. Present on the occasion were the High Commission officials, Buddhist, Hindu, Islamic and Christian leaders, a group of 16 refugees from camps across Tamil Nadu, and 30 refugee workers from the Organisation for Eelam Refugees Rehabilitation (OFERR). more..

Sep 22 (LBO) Sri Lanka's attorney-general's department has rejected criticism of the island's human rights record made by an independent, international panel, saying that the government was doing it best to probe abuses in an impartial manner. A statement from the AG's Department said a report issued by the Independent Group of Eminent Persons (IIGEP) overseeing a government probe into human rights abuses appeared to have been timed to coincide with the ongoing 6th Session of the United Nations Human Rights Council, more..

Sep 22 (LBO) Sri Lanka needs sensible fiscal and monetary policies and less fiscal dominance of the economy, a new report by the International Monetary Fund has said. The discussion paper by IMF researchers called for a reduction in current government spending, trimming the budget deficit and channeling more money to investment. more..

Sep 22 (LBO) Sri Lanka's plantations industry is looking at a new employment model to overcome difficulties caused by the existing 100-year-old system that relies on huge resident labour forces, industry officials said. The new model, being tried by a few firms, allows workers to cultivate their own plots of tea and sell the green leaf to company-owned factories. more..

Sep 22 (GDI) A new project to establish a data base consisting information about genetically modified organisms or food items will be introduced by the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources. Six institutions dealing with genetically modified organisms and food items are Healthcare and Nutrition Ministry, Annual Production and Health Ministry, Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Ministry, Enterprise Development and Investment Promotion Ministry, Agriculture Ministry and the Wildlife Conservation Department. more..

Sep 22 (GDI) National Driving Licence Smart Cards (NDLSM) will be replacing the current 1.2 million driving licenses in Sri Lanka. According to the Commissioner General of Motor Traffic department, B. Wijeratna this NDLSM will conform the prevailing driving licenses to the international standards. Accordingly there several features not found in the old driving licence which are now being included in the new licence which will be in use by January 2008. more..

Sep 22 (BBC) Media watchdogs in Sri Lanka have condemned an alleged harassment of a regional journalist by a senior police officer. The Free Media Movement (FMM) said Pothuvil correspondent of Lankadeepa and Dailly Mirror, U Wijesinghe was threatened by a Deputy Inspector General (DIG) using abusive language and his camera and tape recorder was forcibly taken away. Condemning the threat as an 'uncivilised act', the FMM reminded the authorities that journalists have a right to cover public interest issues. more..

Sep 22 (SAMN) Compared to the rest of South Asia, Sri Lanka has impressive sanitation statistics with 90 percent of the population having access to latrines. But what happens to human waste thereafter is another story. The stench emanating from the Beira Lake, a major Colombo landmark, betrays the fact faecal matter finding its way into this much loved water body, through storm water drains. more..

Sep 22 (SAMN) The Jathika Hela Urumaya yesterday said that they will support the Government as long as it continues its humanitarian programme to liberate the country from terrorism while upholding the country's sovereignty. Propaganda Secretary of Jathika Hela Urumaya, Nishantha Warnasinghe said that they support the Government on the ground that has already proved its commitment towards defeating terrorism with unprecedented success by liberating the Eastern Province from the grip of the LTTE. more..

Sep 22 (SAMN) The Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) has charged that crimes by the Thamil Makkal Viduthalai Pullikal (TMVP) are continuing and claimed that the armed outfit was reportedly well protected by the authorities with the police reluctant to pursue them in certain areas. An SLMM weekly monitoring report said that the TMVP continued to extort money from local businessmen in Batticaloa and continued to move around freely with weapons more..

Sep 22 (SAMN) Opposition Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe said in Parliament Friday that a petition that had been filed by CMC Opposition Leader Vasudeva Nanayakkera on COPE would create a tussle between the Judiciary and the Parliament. Raising a privilege issue in the House the Opposition Leader said that a petition had been filed by CMC Opposition Leader Vasudeva Nanayakkera on COPE naming him as a respondent because of a statement he made in Parliament recently. more..

Sep 22 (IFJ) The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has expressed its immense disapproval at the way the Sri Lankan Criminal Investigations Department (CID) handled its investigation of a Sri Lankan reporter. Indika Sakalasooriya, reporter for Sri Lankan publication The Nation, was questioned for over two hours at his offices about an article published on the new Aston Martin luxury. more..

Sep 22 (DN) The stench emanating from the Beira Lake, a major Colombo landmark, betrays the fact faecal matter finding its way into this much loved water body, through storm water drains. Although a World Bank project is currently trying to intercept unauthorised wastewater outlets discharging into the lake and reducing sewerage overflows, public indifference and official inaction to a serious health hazard in the middle of the capital city is glaring. more..

Sep 22 (DN) The Western Province Housing Commissioner was nabbed red handed by the Bribery officials yesterday while accepting a bribe from a shop owner who had a dispute with his landlord. The Director Investigations, Commission to Investigate Bribery or Corruption SSP Neville Guruge said the Commissioner had solicited a Rs. 60,000 bribe, promising the businessman to settle the dispute and let him continue his shop at the same place. more..

Sep 22 (DM) After much speculation, Speaker W.J.M. Lokubandara yesterday ruled that four out of the five controversial Finance Bills taken up in the House on September 6, were not duly passed because they were not referred to the committee stage. The government moved to pass the Bills at a time the UNP and the JVP members were staging a vociferous demonstration in the Well of the House to protest these Finance Bills. more..

Sep 22 (DM) The Parliamentary Select Committee on NGOs has started inquiries and investigations into volunteer organizations which published some textbooks and teacher’s handbooks to be used at schools although these publications were against the national education interests of the country. The Committee which met last week instructed the National Institute of Education (NIE) to submit a list of textbooks published and distributed by certain volunteer organizations among schools throughout the country even with the help of top education officials. more..

Sep 22 (AM) After Iqbal Athas, the consultant editor and defense correspondent for The Sunday Times, uncovered irregularities in the Sri Lankan government's procurement of MiG-27 fighter jets from Ukraine in 2006, he has faced harassment and intimidation (SRI LANKA: Sunday Times defense writer fears for life) from pro-government supporters. In his articles, Athas wrote that rather than making payments to Kiev, the government allegedly paid a third party broker, Bellimissa Holdings Ltd, in London. more..

Sep 22 (Xinhua) Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse departed here Saturday, heading for New York to attend the UN general assembly sessions, Sri Lankan officials said. Rajapakse is billed to speak on Sept. 25, the opening day of the sessions, the officials added. Sri Lanka President is due to outline his government's commitment towards a political solution to end the island's separatist armed conflict with Tamil Tiger rebels, they said. more..

Sep 22 (AP) A roadside bomb blast and airstrikes killed two people and wounded seven others in Sri Lanka's volatile northeast Saturday, the military and Tamil Tiger rebels said. A bomb attack blamed on the Tigers killed one person and wounded two others on a passenger bus in the east, the military said, while the rebels said the air force launched airstrikes that killed one civilian and wounded five others in the north. more..

Sep 23 (TC) If anyone thought that military operations were intended to pressurise the LTTE into coming to the negotiating table, such illusions were effectively dispelled by the Defence Secretary’s frank disclosure. It is no longer a case of bringing the LTTE to the negotiating table through military means for a political settlement. It is now a case of destroying or diminishing the LTTE as a pre-requisite for a political solution. more..

Sep 23 (FI) The All Party Representative Committee (APRC) chaired by Prof. Tissa Vitarana is in the doldrums. The recent spurt of activity, aimed at finalising a set of Constitutional reform proposals, has subsided. The energetic zeal displayed by some sections to make the APRC deliver has dissipated. Once again the APRC seems destined for the backburner. The APRC has, during its existence, undergone different phases of pace caused mainly by external factors. more..

Sep 23 (TW) The Indo-Lanka Accord signed by Sri Lankan President J.R. Jayewardene and Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi on July 29, 1987 completed 20 years recently. Under the provisions of this accord we have a name-sake centre to periphery power devolution mechanism in the provincial councils to date, but these councils remain not independent, but mechanisms to implement orders from the centre and whatever powers envisaged to be devolved to the periphery continue to be retained by the centre. more..

Sep 23 (LG) Mr. Anandasangaree is repeating his plea for a fair and just political solution within a united Sri Lanka Colvin (1972 Constitution), JRJ (1987 agreement with Rajiv Gandhi plus his13th Amendment), R.Premadasa (secretly arming LTTE), Ransinghe Premadasa and Candhika Bandaranayake Kumarathunge (CBK) (offer of the Northern Province to Prabakaran for 10 years), Ranil Wickramasinghe (2002 CFA agreement) and CBK (P-Toms) each perhaps, thought s/he was presenting a fair and just solution. more..

Sep 23 (LG) We the TMVP having broken away from a terrorist outfit joined the open democratic politics with full confidence in democracy. We are fully committed to gain the reasonable rights and political aspirations of our people through democratic means and thereby improving our people in education and economic wise in an undivided country aimed at establishing an environment where all the communities could live with understanding and unity, said TMVP on their latest press statement on today evening. more..

Sep 23 (LBO) Sri Lanka's Central Bank governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal has urged the banking community to reach out to the rural poor saying the move would not only help impoverished farmers but enrich the banks themselves. The government and the banking community should aim to improve financial inclusion for vulnerable sections and give opportunities to people, he told the inaugural session of the 19th anniversary convention of the Association of Professional Bankers Friday. more..

Sep 23 (Hindu) Sri Lanka’s Attorney-General C.R. De Silva has again taken exception to the recent statement made by the International Independent Group of Eminent Persons (IIGEP) headed by Justice P.N. Bhagwati on the functioning of the Presidential Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights Violations and urged it to engage with the Commission rather than undermine public confidence with open statements. more..

Sep 23 (Hindu) The weakening of the LTTE in the eastern part of Sri Lanka should make the government find a solution to the ethnic question by coming out with a proposal based on the Indian model, according to V. Anandasangaree, president, TULF. Describing the LTTE reverses in the east as “good in one way,” he, however, said it would not be that easy to eliminate the outfit in the north, an area with a large number of landmines. more..