Oct 17 (TC) One of the longest wars ever in the entire world ended in May by the military defeat of the LTTE. But there are disturbing signs that the beast may rise again. The TNA, especially over the last decade had a unanimity of views with the LTTE and was its spokesman. The TNA's recent electoral victory in the Vanni should be a cause for worry. The reports that tens of thousands of LTTE supporters are missing from IDP camps more..

Oct 17 (GDI) The Army Tattoo, the final and most thrilling phase of the 60th Anniversary celebrations of the Army will begin today and continue until the 23rd of this month. All arrangements are in place for this event to be staged at the Kettarama Stadium in Colombo. It will take place, safeguarding the dignity of the Sri Lanka Army. The Mega spectacle that highlights army heroism, gallantry, acrobatics and an assortment of undisputed skills of the Army will be on display. more..

Oct 17 (GDI) The overwhelming victory recorded on Saturday (October 10) at the Southern Provincial Council (SPC) election by the UPFA is a clear manifestation that, by now, the people of this country have placed their faith in the leadership of President Mahinda Rajapaksa. Never in the annals of national and local politics, resounding victories of this nature have been ever recorded – one after the other. more..

Oct 17 (LG) Sri Lankan poet, eminent jurist, and veteran human rights activist, Basil Fernando lives in Hong Kong - in exile. His life always reminds me of the lives of the Chinese writers who have gone into exile after the Tiananmen Tragedy in 1989. And of the lives of Wole Soyinka, Dennis Brutus, Joseph Brodsky, Gao Xingjian, Bei Dao, Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish, Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasrin, leading Afro-Caribbean writers and more..

Oct 17 (LNW) The President has agreed to send one S.H.A. Sampath who was a member of the group of persons who set fire to UNP parliamentarian Palitha Range Bandara’s office and residence in Madamape, for medical treatment overseas for the severe burn injuries sustained by him when setting the house on fire. Sampath, who resides near the school in Helambawatana, Arachchikattuwa was admitted to ward number 27 of more..

Oct 17 (MoD) The National Youth Services Council in collaboration with Youth Affairs Ministry has organised five 'Deepavali festivals' in welfare camps at Vavuniya and Settikulam. The Deepavali festivals will be held in 'Arunachalam Ramanathan', 'Ananda Kumaraswamy', 'Kadirgamar' and Zone No. 4 relief camps to coincide with the Government's Uthuru Wasanthaya Thurunu Saviya program. more..

Oct 17 (MoD) The people of this country should act intelligently to take forward the victory achieved by the valiant Forces against the LTTE as some elements are trying to create a dangerous situation to de-stabilize the military victory and to create a political environment to achieve their separatist objectives which could not be achieved through the LTTE, more..

Oct 17 (LT) Former Commander of the SL Army Chief of Defense Staff Gen. Sarath Fonseka was a notable absentee at the ceremony held yesterday at BMICH to launch Minister Champike Ranawaka’s book ‘Charge of the Lion Brigade.’ Defense Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapakse, former Commander of SL Navy Admiral Wasanthe Karannagoda, Commander of the SL Air Force Air Chief Marshal Roshan Gunatileke, Comamnder of SL Army Lt. Gen. Jagath Jayasuriya, more..

Oct 17 (LT) There is an attempt by the police to arrest Medical Officer of Health (MOH) and Public Health Inspector (PHI) at Wariyapola for the death of a student due to ‘rubella poisoning’ and if the police goes ahead and arrests the two health officials an island wide strike in hospitals would be called states ACGMOU in a letter sent yesterday (16th) to Secretary to the Ministry of Health Dr. Athula Kahandaliyanage. more..

Oct 17 (LT) Deepawali is celebrated by Hindus all over the world in commemoration of defeating the ruthless ruler ‘Naragasuran’and bringing in light and peace to the world. Hindus engage in religious festivities today. This is the first Deepawali festival celebrated after defeating separatist terrorism in our country. Hence, this year Hindus in Sri Lanka celebrate ‘Deepawali’ at a time when tiger terrorism, that brought misery to them in the same way the ruthless ruler Naragasurandid, more..

Oct 17 (LT) The government’s issuing of US$500 million security bonds on very high interest indicates the magnitude of the breakdown of country’s economy states convener of Inter Company Employees Union (ICEU) Wasanthe Samarasinghe. Mr. Samarasinghe points out that the government has issued a large amount of security bonds with an interest rate of 7.25% targeting US investors. more..

Oct 17 (LT) Only President Mahinda Rajapaksa and Defense Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa deserve credit for the military victory over tiger terrorists and only their names would go down in history as true heroes says Labour Minister Mervin Silva. He said President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s foresight, bravery and patience helped the country to achieve the victory over the tigers and more..

Oct 17 (LT) Deepavali known as the Festival of Light symbolizes the victory of good over evil, light over darkness and knowledge over Ignorance. Celebrated by Hindus the world over, Deepavali marks the progress that humans have made in the constant struggle for a better life in keeping with the great spiritual values of Hinduism. It is in this sense a celebration of the spiritual prosperity of people, too. more..

Oct 17 (LNP) Sri Lanka s single most successful naval operation, which destroyed eight floating arsenals belonging to the LTTE, would not have been possible without the covert support of a foreign power, The Island learns. Acting on specific information received from overseas, the Sri Lanka Navy had zeroed-in on four LTTE ships about 2,800 km south east of Dondra on September 10 and 11, 2007. more..

Oct 17 (UNP) Deepavali signifies a special day of the year for the Hindus in their calendar. Conquering evil through purity is its objective. This Festival is meant to defeat all kinds of injustices and unfairness prevailing in the communities. True meaning to human values is hoped through this Festival. It is unfortunate that this festival has come by at a time when humane kindness is at a low ebb. more..

Oct 17 (LNP) The people of this country should act intelligently to take forward the victory achieved by the valiant Forces against the LTTE as some elements are trying to create a dangerous situation to de-stabilize the military victory and to create a political environment to achieve their separatist objectives which could not be achieved through the LTTE, said Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa. more..

Oct 17 (DN) The following are excerpts from the address made by President Mahinda Rajapaksa at the 75th anniversary of Joseph College, Wennappuwa on Tuesday October 13. From ancient times our nation has a history of humane traditions. All were respected irrespective of their race or creed. Today we have united the country and we must bring up the young generation in that human tradition so that they will respect all races and religions. more..

Oct 17 (DN) The Agriculture Development and Agrarian Services Ministry has launched a home garden program in the Colombo district. This will create a positive impact on the urban agricultural sector, said Minister Hemakumara Nanayakkara. The program will be launched with the assistance of the All Ceylon Buddhist Congress (ACBC) to set up 20,000 homestead gardens in the district targeting urban house dwellings. more..

Oct 17 (Island) Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa yesterday expressed concern that only Rs. 700 million had been collected through the Api Wenuwen Api scheme. Rajapaksa the chief guest at the book launch titled ‘Charge of the Lion Brigade’, said those who talked a lot and criticise the initiatives of the government had not even contributed 10 rupees. Being a member of the security forces he was well aware of the difficulties of the security officers, and more..

Oct 17 (DN) In the early fifties and mid sixties a haunting voice became quite popular over the only radio channel in our country. This was the golden voice of C. T. Fernando who had, by this time, had become popular with some of his gramophone songs likeSela Lihini Kovul and Ambaruk Hevanelle. C. T. was wanted for the radio channels for new songs which came through two sources: gramophone records and specially recorded radio musical programs like light songs and film songs. more..

Oct 17 (LNP) Another low-income economy outperforming other players in its region is Sri Lanka, The report said. This assertion was made in a World Bank report entitled Global Investment Promotion Benchmark 2009 together with two of its advisory services, Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) and International Finance Corporation (IFC). more..

Oct 17 (Island) Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa yesterday said that those who criticized the Government for appointing retired generals as ambassadorial and deputy ambassadors, failed to understand that due to such appointments, the Government was in a position to deal with terrorists at the international level as was evident in the arrest of KP. He said having been a member of the security forces he was keen to find top position for retired military officials. more..

Oct 17 (DN) The opening of the Kinniya bridge by President Mahinda Rajapaksa on Tuesday, October 20, 2009 is an important landmark in the annals of the people in the Eastern province. The 396 meter-long bridge, the longest overpass in the island was constructed with the financial aid of SR 440 million from the Saudi Government. The new facility will trigger the economic and cultural development envisaged by the government following its defeat of terror in the island. more..

Oct 17 (DM) Elections Commissioner Dayananda Dissanayake told an opposition delegation yesterday that he was now gathering information about the large number of displaced voters to make arrangements for them to exercise their franchise at future elections. UNP Deputy Leader Karu Jayasuriya, UNP MP Ravi Karunanayake, DPF leader Mano Ganeshan and SLMC General Secretary Hasan Ali met the Elections Commissioner yesterday. more..

Oct 17 (Island) Urban Development and Sacred Area Development Minister Dinesh Gunawardena yesterday said a list of the archeological and religious artifacts taken out of the country during colonial periods is being made to have them returned. Among these items, at the British and the Netherlands Museums, is that the statue of Tara Devi at the British Museum, said to be one of the world’s five best Tara statues and more..

Oct 17 (Island) UNP General Secretary Tissa Attanayke has petitioned the Supreme Court, against the Elections Special Provisions Bill of 2009, claiming that the Bill failed to specifically state that a blind or a disabled person should be accompanied by a member of the family, who would assist in marking and casting of his/her vote. This failure could facilitate a politician to mislead a disabled or a blind person at a polling booth, the petition said. more..

Oct 17 (DM) Earlier this week another student, this time from Wariyapola, Asanthi Wasana, a 13 year old student of the Minuwangatta Maha Vidyalaya also suffered complications after receiving the vaccine for Rubella. It is a fact that both Asanthi and Peshala received vaccines from the same batch of drugs. The fact that possible negligence or faulty testing methods caused this tragedy is an appalling miscarriage of justice. more..

Oct 17 (CNA) Sri Lanka and Singapore are exploring the possibility of a bilateral Free Trade Agreement (FTA). This was discussed by Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama and Singapore Foreign Minister George Yeo, who is in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The Sri Lankan Foreign Minister said that Sri Lanka wants to expand its relationship with Singapore in the service sector, the industrial sector, as well as the real estate sector. more..

Oct 17 (DM) Sequent to a rights violation petition, the 13-year-old Sopika Surendranathan, her 10-year-old younger sister Nesana and her parents were released from the IDP camps om Thursday (15). When the matter came up before the Bench comprising Chief Justice Asoka de Silva, Justices N.G. Amaratunga and Chandra Ekanayake, Senior State Counsel informed Court that the Competent Authority for the Northern Province IDP Camps had sent him a letter stating that these four persons had been released on Thursday more..

Oct 17 (AFP) Emirates Telecommunications Corp (Etisalat) said on Saturday it has bought Tigo Sri Lanka, a unit of Millicom International Cellular, for 207 million dollars amid growth opportunities in the southeast Asian country. Tigo Sri Lanka, the second-largest mobile phone operator in Sri Lanka, has a market share of 21 percent. By September 2009, it had 2.25 million subscribers, Etisalat said. more..

Oct 17 (Xinhua) The police has arrested a front line member of the sea wing of the former LTTE, said the police Saturday. The rebel had fled the government welfare camp in the northern town of Vavuniya and was arrested in the area by a special police team dispatched from the capital Colombo. Defense authorities said over 10,000 suspected rebels have been identified among the near 300,000 internally displaced living in government camps. more..

Oct 17 (DM) Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa yesterday said pseudo patriots were trying to hijack the limelight from the true war heroes and everyone should attempt to differentiate between these two groups. Delivering the key note address during the launch of the book “Charge of the Lion Brigade,” authored by Minister Patali Champika Ranawaka in Colombo, Mr. Rajapaksa thousands of young soldiers who more..

Oct 17 (Reuters) Billionaire hedge fund founder Raj Rajaratnam and executives from some of the most prestigious U.S. companies were charged on Friday with the largest hedge fund insider-trading scheme ever. Investigators said they used court-approved telephone wire taps for the first time in a Wall Street insider trading case, sending shivers through the hedge fund industry more..

Oct 18 (HA) According to the Legends that, Lord Vishnu defeated the demon King Narakasuran, and killed him on this day. Significiane of the festival is celebration of the victory of good over evil; the uplifting of spiritual darkness. The most significant spiritual meaning is “the awareness of the inner light”. Annually this day is celebrated in late October or early November on the new moon. The day is celebrated with sweets and savouries, fire crackers, greetings and lights. more..

Oct 18 (LG) The verbal tennis match between Batty Weerakoon and Dayan Jayatilleke began with references to the anti-UNP Hartal of 1953 and ended (perhaps, provisionally) with the fall of the SLFP-Trotskyite-Communist Coalition government in 1964. Like all Trotskyites who are wont to romanticize their failed past, Weerakoon, one of the last remaining fossils of that species, glorifies the late sixties, when more..

Oct 18 (LG) On my return to Sri Lanka from travels Down Under, my operational headquarters shifted from Happawana to the Lodge, also called the International House, at 5 Bagatalle Terrace, Colombo 3. I was hoping to “advice” the Journalism Unit of the Colombo University on its course structure and direction and deliver pertinent lectures on topics I had specialized in return for providing me rent-free accommodation. more..

Oct 18 (LG) The Tamils of Sri Lanka, robbed of all hope for the future, find themselves lost and staring into something much worse and threatening than emptiness. A chain of events has shown them that, throughout post-independence history, they have been disappointed, failed, betrayed. Unfortunately, the reaction to the present state of affairs has been emotional (rather than rational), and bereft of a long-term strategy. more..

Oct 18 (LG) When Richard Boucher got surprisingly stroppy with President Rajapakse in 2007 and criticized the Sri Lankan use of "paramilitaries", I could have stayed silent. Instead I interjected to point out the theory and extensive practice of the US military of using "local forces" and "rural self-defense militia" as allies, from Laos to Afghanistan—but that was a proportionate counterpoint, more..

Oct 18 (LG) As the father of a son who has been imprisoned, for charges believed by him to be unjust, Jayaprakash Tissainayagam’s father seems to be bearing the pain courageously, even though he is 90 years old. Any father would love to see offspring of his son and would like to see them by his side all the time. It is not easy to cope with life when a child is imprisoned, for an offence he has not committed as he believes. more..

Oct 18 (LB) Ministers and authorities of government celebrated world hand washing day on October 15 as they excelled in the art of ‘washing their hands off’ of problems that plague their relevant fields. The health unions and the opposition parties with all relevant documents and statistics, charge that the health minister and his authorities are far ahead of others in “hand washing’’ or washing their hands off. more..

Oct 18 (TC) In his article, “De-Nazification: how the West removed a virus” Susantha Goonatilake sets about comparing our post-war scenario with the aftermath to the defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945. The fear of a resurgent LTTE can only be quelled by military preparedness and a long process of counter-indoctrination of the Tamil people. In this he is in excellent company. more..

Oct 18 (TC) The 10-member delegation of Tamil Nadu parliamentarians returned to Chennai after a five-day visit to Sri Lanka to gain a first hand understanding of the post war problem of Tamils (if not the plight), particularly of over 250,000 people displaced from their homes during the war and now living in holding camps. The Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi had made clear the delegation was not an official one. more..

Oct 18 (TC) Sri Lankan-born billionaire businessman Raj Rajaratnam's arrest in the United States on Friday on an alleged US$ 20 million insider trading charges has hit Sri Lanka like a thunderbolt with not only the Colombo Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) here scrambling to check whether his million-dollar dealings bordered on any illegality, but also high-level politicians under a cloud for involvement with him. more..

Oct 18 (TC) The on-going local and international campaign against the detention of IDPs appears to be one of the most formidable problems the Government is facing after overcoming the LTTE. Mr. Anandasangaree has made an impassioned appeal to the President to put an end to the IDP stalemate in last Sunday’s Island. A similar appeal was made by the TNA when they first met the President after the ‘war’. more..

Oct 18 (LT) The Chief Editor of ‘Lanka Irida’ weekend Sinhalese newspaper Chandana Sirimalwatta, who was arrested yesterday (17th) evening by Homagama Police and taken to Criminal Investigation Department, was released after he was questioned for nearly 3 hours. CID officers had questioned Mr. Sirimalwatta regarding the sources from which the main headline of ‘Lanka Irida’ to be released was compiled from. more..

Oct 18 (AT) President Rajapakse will win his second term and leave at its end, doubtless as unwillingly and as ungraciously as his predecessor did. As the second term of the President advances, the SLFP will begin to assert itself more, emboldened by the knowledge of the transitory nature of Rajapakse rule. Elections will happen; corruption and waste will continue; there will be crimes and injustices. more..

Oct 18 (SL) The war is over; the crisis continues. The endless search for enemies, the sprawling internment camps, the perilous economic conditions and the mounting international opprobrium are rendering normalcy as elusive as a distant dream. The idea of a conspiracy, nebulous, multi-dimensional and omni-present, seems to be bedevilling the thoughts, words and deeds of the regime. more..

Oct 18 (SLW) General Sarath Fonseka the former Army Commander and Current Chief of Defense staff has announced his retirement with effect from December this year. The former Army commander has declared his plans for retirement to the President Secretariat bycinforming of his decision to refrain from applying for an extension of service. Refuting an on going rumors of a continual rift between the Former Army commander and more..

Oct 18 (LeN) Tamil Nadu Chief minister Karunanidhi has said in Chennai that Sri Lankan government has assured the ten Indian Loksabha parliamentarians who visited Sri Lanka that 58,000 IDPs will be taken back to their homes before end of this month. While welcoming this information, we wish to query the government if it has started talking to the people of Sri Lanka specially the Lankan Tamils through Indian parliamentarians, more..

Oct 18 (SL) Recently, an announcement was made that the general and presidential elections would be held before April next year. Senior Presidential Advisor Basil Rajapaksa told reporters he would resign on October 20, and would be an organiser for an upcoming presidential election. The decision to hold a presidential election is curious to say the least. Last week The Sunday Leader reported that unless President Rajapaksa was willing to more..