Aug 27 (CI) Trevor Bayliss, the Sri Lanka coach, has said that his team capitalised on New Zealand's negative bowling to finish on top on the first day at the SSC. On a slow-paced day, half-centuries by Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene and Thilan Samaraweera took Sri Lanka to a strong 262 for 3. Daniel Vettori and Iain O'Brien were the only wicket-takers on a day when the tourists toiled hard on a flat pitch after losing the toss. more..

Aug 27 (CI) Getting the little things right in order to maximise the opportunity for victory is something Daniel Vettori has stressed repeatedly over New Zealand's stay in Sri Lanka. Today, having lost the toss on a notorious batting track at a ground where, since 2000, Sri Lanka averaged a staggering 453 in the first innings, New Zealand began well but then let slip. In the build-up to this Test they had talked about goals for the SSC, but more..

Aug 27 (LBO) An Indian-owned container vessel arrested by port authorities for non-payment for fuel supplies has been released after the owners paid the supplier. The High Court of Colombo ordered the arrest of MV Gati Pride on August 14 after ship fuel supplier Lanka Maritime Services sought its detention saying it had not paid for bunker fuel.The company said it would not get paid if the vessel was allowed to leave port as its owners, have no assets in the island. more..

Aug 27 (LT) Severe punishment should be given to police officers who are expected to protect the law breaks it and the police should not be allowed to carry out jungle law said Mt. Lavinia Additional Magistrate Ruchira Weliwatta. The Magistrate said this when the case against the killing of two youths by police personnel at Angulana was heard today (26th). Nine police officers from Angulana Police including its former OIC Newton who are more..

Aug 27 (LBO) Political interference and overlapping functions of government agencies have seriously weakened Sri Lanka's efforts to help the poor and might even perpetuate poverty, a new Asian Development Bank report says. The public sector is too big, confused and lacks accountability, the report on 'Poverty and human development in Sri Lanka' said. "Endemic weaknesses in Sri Lanka’s public administration system are likely to more..

Aug 27 (LT) According to the agreement reached with the JVP that the executive presidency would be abolished and the ‘Mahinda Chinthanaya,’ the election manifesto presented to the masses at the presidential election, Mr. Mahinda Rajapakse should take measures to abolish the executive presidency before his present term ends said JVP MP Tilvin Silva. more..

Aug 27 (PTI) Defending champions India unleashed an impressive show of attacking football to beat Sri Lanka 3-1 in a thrilling round-robin match and place themselves in a strong position for booking a final berth in the Nehru Cup international tournament in New Delhi on Wednesday. Captain Bhaichung Bhutia (25th), Gouramangi Singh (69th) and Steven Dias (85th) scored for India while WDRD Warakagoda found the net in the 61st minute for Sri Lanka. more..

Aug 27 (CT) Non-cabinet minister Mahinda Ratnatilake, who stands accused of forcibly removing a supporter of his from Kaltota Police custody, surrendered to police today (Aug. 26). The minister was later produced before Balangoda magistrate Namal Balalle and was released on a Rs. 200,000 surety. Postponing further hearings until January 05, 2010, the magistrate warned the suspect against intimidating anyone connected to the case. more..

Aug 27 (CI) Sri Lanka A, with their backs to the wall, pulled off their second consecutive win to square the series at the P Sara Oval, leaving all to play for in the final game. A strong bowling performance by the home side restricted Pakistan A to 214 before the target was comfortably overhauled. Malinga Bandara responded to his omission from the Champions Trophy squad with a four-wicket haul to keep Pakistan to a score they couldn't defend. more..

Aug 27 (BBC) The Sri Lankan High Commissioner to Britain, Nihal Jayasinghe, has strongly denied allegations by Journalists for Democracy in Sri Lanka, who have released footage they claim shows the execution of Tamil Tiger prisoners by the Sri Lankan military. Speaking to BBC News, Mr Jayasinghe said that it was "common knowledge" that the LTTE "masqueraded" in Sri Lankan uniforms as a form of "disinformation". more..

Aug 27 (Hindu) The government is gearing to re-settle in the next two weeks 44,000 of the nearly 3 lakh war displaced, said senior officials here on Wednesday. These displaced persons, housed in relief camps on the outskirts of Vavuniya town, are to be sent back to their places of residence in Jaffna district before the onset of monsoon. Vavuniya GA P.S.M. Charles said that the arrangements were being made through the relevant GAs to resettle those who more..

Aug 27 (Goal) Sri Lanka now have only three points from as many games with only one match remaining, and that is against Kyrgyzstan on Friday. In order to qualify for the final, the Lankans would have to win their final match with a big margin and then hope that other results go their way. Therefore Walpola thinks that their task is now very difficult. He said, “It will be very difficult now because we have to beat Kyrgyzstan by three or four goals and more..

Aug 27 (HRW) A disturbing video recently provided to the media showing the apparent summary execution of prisoners by Sri Lankan soldiers underscores the need for an international commission of inquiry into possible war crimes committed by both sides during the armed conflict in Sri Lanka, Human Rights Watch said today. The video shows men in Sri Lankan army uniforms firing assault rifles point-blank at two naked, blindfolded, and bound men sitting on the ground. more..

Aug 27 (AT) It is all but natural to desire to visit areas of our own country that was once restricted to a dream. With the LTTE war machine now eliminated all that remains are the cowards who have been leading their own people astray from their foreign haunts. The netting and rendition of LTTE arms dealer too showed the world the prowess of Sri Lanka’s intelligence to net in LTTE kingpins. more..

Aug 27 (AT) Sri Lanka has expressed its interest in establishing close links with the British Ministry of Justice and the exchanging of criminal justice experiences and expertise in the various spheres of law reform, access to justice, and rehabilitation, given the shared values and historical connections between the legal systems of the two countries. Minister of Justice and Law Reforms Milinda Moragoda who was recently in the United Kingdom, more..

Aug 27 (TC) A highly disturbing video showing the mafia style execution of a naked man said to be a Tamil prisoner, with his hands tied behind his back, by a soldier was shown on Headlines Today TV today. Yesterday British audience saw it on Channel 4. The video footage claimed to have been shot with a mobile phone camera by a Sri Lankan soldier sometime in January 2009 was sent to the media by the Journalists for Democracy in Sri Lanka, more..

Aug 27 (BN) Sri Lanka said mine clearing operations will determine when more than 280,000 Tamil refugees will leave camps in the north where they have been held since the defeat of the rebel LTTE in May. Areas previously dominated by the LTTE have to be “rebuilt from point zero,” Basil Rajapaksa, senior presidential adviser, said during a visit to the region yesterday, according to the government’s Web site. more..

Aug 27 (GDI) The Government has taken steps to provide the best of facilities to pregnant mothers' inWelfare Villages in the north. Three prenatal wards and five post natal wards now function at the Settikulam hospital, sources from the Ministry of Healthcare and Nutrition disclosed. The pregnant women are admitted to the hospital a month before delivery and they remain in hospital till delivery to ensure safety and health of the mother and child. more..

Aug 27 (LT) President of National Trade Union Centre (NTUC) and Parliamentarian K.D. Lal Kanthe writing a letter to President Mahinda Rajapakse has demanded that the government should take measures to make available all allowances including salary increases to employees in the state, private and estate sectors. In his letter Mr. Lal Kanthe states the government should immediately mediate in making available just demands of the employees who patiently waited to get their demands until the war was over. more..

Aug 27 (LG) The Rt Rev Dr Daniel S Thiagarajah was unanimously elected the chairperson of the National Christian Council of Sri Lanka at the Annual General Meeting held Saturday August 8 at the NCCSL Board Room on the basis of the recommendations made by the Nomination Committee that held its meeting the previous day. Mrs Manel Nanayakara and the Rev Saman Perera were elected vice chairpersons and Mr Bertal Pinto-Jayawardena, the treasurer. more..

Aug 27 (LG) All weekend newspapers carried long articles on police abuses. Commentaries on recent cases - such as the alleged assault on Nipuna Ramanayake by former CCD director Vaas Gunawardene’s family, the killings of two boys at Angulana, a case of rape at a police station and many other incidents - blamed the government and the police authorities for the situation of virtual anarchy that is prevailing within the institution. more..

Aug 27 (LG) The news article written by Garvin Karunaratne, formerly of the Sri Lanka Administrative Service under the heading “The Wind Turbines of Spain , France and Portugal ” dated August 25, 2009 and published in an Internet Newspaper which highlights issues concerning Sri Lanka is of great value and concern. Gavin Karunaratne should be commended for his boldness to take to task the lethargic and more..

Aug 27 (LG) As President Mahinda Rajapaksa speaks of ushering Sri Lankans into a new era of peace, a slight, bespectacled man in his sixties watches him from across an ocean, with the weariness of a man who has tried and failed to call his bluff. MCM Iqbal was secretary to two of Sri Lanka’s ‘truth commissions’, presidential commissions of inquiry into the 30,000 or more forced disappearances that took place in the late eighties and early nineties in the south, more..

Aug 27 (UNP) UNP Western Provincial Council Opposition leader Rosie Senanayake, asked why should the people be made to pay for Govt.’s sins ? 23 Ministers are claiming monthly vehicle rentals to the tune of Rs.130 million for 270 vehicles apart from the other perks and allowances they are enjoying, she pinpointed. If the Govt. makes cut backs on its largest Cabinet of Ministers in the world and curtails its expenses, more..

Aug 27 (GDI) Within three months of ending a three decade old cruel terrorist war that increased defence expenditure many a fold annually, Sri Lanka has gained a remarkable growth rate and economic stability is endorsed by the confidence of both local and foreign investors, Financial Analysts claim. The business sector in the country has rapidly picked up with investor confidence gathering momentum and more..

Aug 27 (ST) On the morning of December 26, 2004, Wicky Wickremasekera was in a Land Rover a few metres inland from a lodge on the edge of the ocean when he saw the tsunami coming. That fateful morning still etches his nightmares. Seeing the massive swell rolling in at a frightening speed, he told the driver to step on the gas and drive inland. Behind them as they fled, the 40-foot high wall of water thundered ashore, obliterating the Yala Game Safari Lodge, more..

Aug 27 (LT) An advertisement offering T-56 rifles, grenades and claymore bombs as prizes has been published in today’s ‘Dinamina,’. According to the advertisement the consumers who obtain ‘M Tunes’ facility by contributing to ‘Smart’ package of the Mobitel Company attached to Sri Lanka Telecom would get cash prices and in the picture that appeared in the advertisement included two -56 rifles, a grenade and a claymore bomb suggesting they too would be included as prizes. more..

Aug 27 (wsws) The Unemployed Aesthetic Graduates Union (UAGU) shut down a 17-day protest by unemployed graduates from the University of Visual and Performing Arts (Aesthetic) last week. Around 1,000 graduates had held a march on August 3 from Maradana to Fort Railway Station in central Colombo where a vigil was established to demand jobs. The graduates displayed considerable determination in supporting the protest. more..

Aug 27 (DN) President Mahinda Rajapaksa has directed the IGP to investigate 170 complaints made against Police officers following the alleged Police assault in Malabe and murders at Angulana. Addressing a media briefing Minister Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena said the National Police Commission in its 2008 report had referred over 1,380 complaints against Police officers to the IGP for action. more..

Aug 27 (LP) Digital broadcasting technology will be introduced to Sri Lanka next year instead of the presently used Analogue broadcasting technology used. Minister Arnura Priyadharshana Yapa said that accordingly the DVB-T technology will be introduced next year. With the new technology the broadcasting process will become much efficient with less expenditure on broadcasting he said. more..

Aug 27 (GDI) The first phase of the construction of the Hambantota Port will be completed within the next one and half years. Nearly 40 percent of the work have been completed up to now. According to these sources, the depth of the port is 17 metres. After the completion the port will provide industrial and other services. The port will also be a major commercial hub in the south.It will also generate more employment opportunties.

Aug 27 (LP) The Department for International Development (DFID) of the United Kingdom has expressed their willingness to donate £75,000 to support UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) operating in Sri Lanka. DFID issuing a press release said that money would be utilized to maintain the UN Information Management Unit (IMU) in the country with the purpose of providing an information management service for the humanitarian community in Sri Lanka. more..

Aug 27 (LG) The British media has done it again! Channel 4, which is blatantly hostile to Sri Lanka and partial to the LTTE, has found 'evidence of war crimes' in Sri Lanka––a video footage of a naked civilian being shot dead by a person who looks like a Sri Lankan soldier. This footage said to be a handout from a collective of 'journalists' from Sri Lanka is being bandied about as solid evidence of war crimes, which Britain, the US and the EU failed to more..

Aug 27 (LNW) The British High Commission in Sri Lanka has called Attorney General Mohan Peiris for an interview following a visa application forwarded by him to the High Commission. People who have previously traveled to the UK and VIPs are generally not asked to attend an interview. The current attorney General has traveled to the UK on several occasions. However, the Attorney General had this time around attended an interview following a result made by more..

Aug 27 (MoD) The Director General of the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has approved a project entitled 'Enhancing Food Security and Nutrition among the most vulnerable farm families in Eastern Sri Lanka', for the value of Euro 5,127,252(US $ 7.3 million). The project is funded by a donation to the FAO from the European Commission. more..

Aug 27 (DN) Minister Champika Ranawaka yesterday said, there is a problem of several traditional farmlands, people's houses and common places being inadvertently located within the forest boundaries demarcated by the Forest Conservation Department. Ranawaka said, "This is not as MP Sajith Premadasa had recently put it, is affecting only those villagers who live in the Hambanthota district. more..

Aug 27 (LeN) Former SSP Mano Ranjan Bandara Angunawela was an honest and unswerving Senior Police Officer who served the Police Force for 36 years . He joined the Police service in 1968 as a Sub Inspector and rose to the rank of SSP before he retired. He was also a lecturer on Law at the Police training College and a Commanding Commodore of the Naval Division. Hereunder, is a text of an interview conducted by 'Lanka E News' with him. more..

Aug 27 (LP) Gampaha High Court Judge, Saman Wickremarachchi imposed a five years rigorous imprisonment yesterday on former SSP Douglas Peiris and four policemen who were found guilty of abducting two persons in 1989,during the period of Southern terror. The accused had to face this punishment on charges of abducting two brothers named Udayachandra Liyanage and Rathnachandra Liyanage with the intention of committing murder, keeping them in custody illegally and after that causing disappearance. more..

Aug 27 (DN) The UPFA has finalised its nomination list for the upcoming Southern Provincial Council election. The lists of candidates will be presented to the Returning officers in Galle, Matara and Hambantota today. Media Minister Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena said the UPFA fielded strong candidates who could win the confidence of the public in the Southern province. more..

Aug 27 (MoD) Swift measures have been taken to construct houses for the benefit of the resettled families at A-5 Badulla - Chenkallady road in the Batticaloa district. A program is also underway to improve their livelihood. The villages such as Karadiyanaru, Rugam, Kitthulwewa, Pullumalai and Koppaveli have been selected for development purpose. Under this program, 118 houses and 115 latrines are being constructed more..

Aug 27 (Island) The President of Parliamentarians For Human Rights, Mano Ganeshan yesterday said that the secret behind the Government not resettling the IDPs was to make use of their 175,000 or more votes to the Governments advantage at any forthcoming Presidential or Parliamentary elections. The Leader of the DPF made this assertion at a briefing of local and foreign media on more..

Aug 27 (Island) With Opposition efforts to form a common front against President Mahinda Rajapaksa at the forthcoming presidential election in disarray, SLFP (M) leader Mangala Samaraweera and the JVP are pushing the UNP to join their campaign to aboliish the executive presidency. Opposition sources said that the JVP and Samaraweera had told the UNP that the main opposition party, too, should immediately throw its weight behind the campaign. more..

Aug 27 (DN) In a relentless effort to pursue LTTE terrorist operatives and dismantle the LTTE overseas and international network, the Government is currently looking into the option of either prosecuting LTTE terrorist activists here in Sri Lanka, or having them prosecuted in their present countries of domicile, Government legal sources told the Daily News yesterday. more..

Aug 27 (Island) Dealers said the market was in excess by about Rs. 21 billion with the Central Bank continuing to purchase dollars, further building the country’s official reserves. "The Central Bank is continuing to buy up dollars I think they are probably aiming at building up the reserves up to US$ 3.5 billion. The exchange rate is stuck at around Rs. 114.75-85 against the dollar," more..

Aug 27 (Island) Colombo Chief Magistrate Nishantha Hapurachchi, recently released on Rs 2 million personal bail, a lawyer who was arrested by the Crime Investigation Unit of Peliyagoda police for preparing a bogus deed. Police arrested Liyanage Mohotti Damitha Cabraal, Attorney-at-law and Notary Public of Kiribathgoda, on a charge of misleading Court by preparing a deed of gift for a land worth Rs 140 million with the aid of bogus documents. more..

Aug 27 (HT) Fugitives and get-rich-quick promoters John and Marian Morgan -- in custody in Sri Lanka for allegedly passing a $1.6 million bad check -- have been accused by the U.S. Attorney of wire fraud. The fresh federal charge opens the door for extradition, a process now underway. "It looks like there is a good chance that they will be coming back to the U.S. to face justice," more..

Aug 27 (GDI) The government today rejected a claim by opposition parliamentarian Mano Ganeshan that the internally displaced were being housed in welfare camps indefinitely to grab votes. Media and Information Minister Anura Priyadharshana Yapa speaking to journalists said Ganeshan was totally incorrect in that statement and added that the internally displaced would be resettled early. more..

Aug 27 (DM) President Mahinda Rajapaksa, yesterday, criticised the conduct of Minister Mahinda Rathnatillake, who was alleged to have forcibly removed a suspect from the custody of the police in Balangoda recently. President had reportedly said that this minister should not have used force to remove a person from police custody in this manner. He had also criticised the chairmen of certain state institutions for undertaking foreign tours even without informing their ministers. more..