Jan 29 (LG) In response to the reference made to it by the Court of Appeal hearing Sarath Fonseka’s Writ Application, the Supreme Court has determined that a Court Martial is a competent Court in respect of the Article in our Constitution pertaining to convictions by ‘any court’. This issue created a lot of interest and controversy within legal circles and the Supreme Court determination has now the sanction of judicial opinion. Justice Saleem Marsoof delivered a more..

Jan 29 (NN) The Central Bank announced today that a new currency note series will be issued on February 4 with the theme of development, prosperity and Sri Lankan dancers. However the bank noted that the currency notes that have been issued by the Central Bank and are currently already in circulation will continue to be valid. The new currency note series will have a watermark depicting a different bird which is the same bird portrayed in the note. more..

Jan 29 (Island) This was hardly the news that New Delhi would have wanted on the eve of the 62nd anniversary of Indian Republic Day. Five hundred fishermen from the village of Pushpavanam near Vedaranyam in Nagapattinam district would soon sail out seeking refugee status in Sri Lanka said the President of the village Panchayat. Having been told so often that the SLN is attacking and killing Indian fishermen in Indian waters, they were ready to seek more..

Jan 29 (DM) My dear Mahinda aiya, Ayubowan, vanakkam, assalam allaikum and best wishes as you fly back as secretly as you flew suddenly to Texas last Wednesday amidst widespread speculation over why you went there and what happened. According to websites and other media, you visited your brother in Texas and an appointment had been made at a well known hospital there for tests or treatment of a serious ailment. more..

Jan 29 (N360) Sri Lanka’s once war ravaged Northern town of Jaffna is planning to hold a mega music festival during March this year to revive the regions “Folk Art Forms”. Organizers say the event which is named as the “Jaffna Music Festival” will see diverse traditional folk art forms of the country in display with artists from the North and South taking part. Apart from the authentic Sri Lankan Folk artists, the festival will also see colorful performances by more..

Jan 29 (Island) Nothing is so freely given as advice, it is said. UNP Deputy Leader Karu Jayasuriya has given Election Commissioner Dayananda Dissanayake some advice. He wants the March 17 LG polls conducted in a free and fair manner so that Dissanayake could retire with dignity. The Polls Chief must be urged to exercise his powers to ensure that elections are free and fair, all right. The government is sure to abuse its power and state resources to win the LG polls and more..

Jan 29 (DM) Universal health coverage is defined as a situation where the whole population of a country has regular access to good quality core health care services according to needs regardless of income levels or social status. The major problem facing developing countries including Sri Lanka is the lack of funds to finance public health services needed by the people. Health care services are shared by public and private sectors in Sri Lanka. more..

Jan 29 (FT) A top senior minister yesterday declared that Sri Lanka’s financial health was strong enough to move on without using the remainder of IMF support. “With an increasing foreign reserve base and a stable exchange rate, the country can now temporarily dismiss the next few disbursements of the standby loan of IMF. The government is now looking at trying to reschedule the loan facility,” more..

Jan 29 (DM) A fisherman from the Indian State of Tamil Nadu would get killed at the sea and the fishing community in the State would accuse the Sri Lankan Navy for the killing. Then the Tamil Nadu politicians would take over the matter and issue warnings against Sri Lanka. The pro-LTTE Tamil Nadu leaders such as Vaiko and Nedumaran would go further to demonstrate in front of the Sri Lankan Deputy High Commission in Chennai and sometimes some more..

Jan 29 (LB) Sudan Peoples’ Liberation Movement (SPLM) has invited Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam (TGTE) to visit Southern Sudan in the immediate aftermath of the vote for an independent state. TGTE is sending a delegation to participate in the celebrations and to discuss possibilities of assisting Southern Sudan in their development efforts through Tamil diaspora expertise in selected fields. TGTE delegation will be received by the SPLM officials more..

Jan 29 (Island) Sri Lanka will receive a US$ 120 million Asian Development Bank (ADB) loan to help expand and improve its power network to deal with rising customer demand and gaps in coverage which are hindering growth. ADB’s Board of Directors approved the loan, along with a technical assistance grant for the Sustainable Power Sector Support Project which will be used to build hundreds of kilometers of new transmission lines, more..

Jan 29 (SL) Golden Key are at it again: first it was a complete swallow up of depositors’ security deposits and now it is a convoluted repayment plan. This repayment plan, upon closer inspection, is a deceptive piece of writing, claim some depositors who have analyzed it, and who are of the opinion that it is “nothing but a delaying tactic.” Speaking to a few depositors, it is clear that they don’t want any more fairy tales or excuses: all they want is more..

Jan 29 (LG) I have had the benefit of perusing the draft judgement prepared by My Lord the Chief Justice, and agree with the conclusion reached by him. I set out my reasons in a separate judgement. The Court of Appeal has, in terms of Article 125 of the Constitution, referred for the determination of the Supreme Court, the question whether the words “any court” in Article 89(d) of the Constitution refer only to the Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, more..

Jan 29 (LG) Having regard to the parameters of the question referred and the plurality of arguments presented it is best that the question and all the arguments be considered as a whole and not piecemeal. The argument of the Petitioner in its broadest sense would be that the disqualification process that would be set in motion by a relevant conviction and sentence handed down by a competent court as contemplated in Article 89(d) of more..

Jan 29 (DM) The parents of grade 1 students seeking admission to the Lalith Athulathmudali College in Mt Lavinia were instructed to deposit Rupees 1500 to the credit of the School Development Society account maintained at People’s Bank Mt Lavinia. The school’s Principal, Mr K A D N Nanayakkara stated that some parents make additional contributions voluntarily. The Principal explained this in reply to a complaint made by parents that a certain lady teacher was more..

Jan 29 (SL) Following a statement made at a breakfast meeting with media heads by President Mahinda Rajapaksa, in regard to setting up a separate investigative unit to monitor websites publishing news items against the government and the security forces, The Sunday Leader contacted the Lanka News Web Editor, Chandima Withanaarachchi via e-mail for his response. In an e-mail interview, Withanaarachchi said the website is aware of the statement made by the President. more..

Jan 29 (SL) The government in post war Sri Lanka is fast militarising the administrative and diplomatic services. The appointment of military heads to key Sri Lankan missions overseas and state institutions has become a talking point among the general public. Since the appointment of military men in civil administration work as well as the diplomatic service, questions have been raised on their roles in such positions. more..

Jan 29 (Island) A team, led by Transport Minister Kumara Welgama, yesterday found that unauthorized structures in close proximity and on either side of the Kelani Valley track was the main reason for the slow journey between Colombo and Avissawella. The team which included Transport Ministry Secretary K. D. Dhammika Perera and General Manager A. G. Mahanama, undertook the inspection tour of the Kelani Valley railway line on a directive from President Mahinda Rajapaksa more..

Jan 29 (DM) The Police Department had set its routine Elections Desk headed by senior DIG Gamini Navaratne to monitor the situation and take action against any election violence. Labourers and policemen would be deployed to remove illegal propaganda material, while additional labourers would be recruited if there was a shortage, according to police. Each police station has a separate elections monitoring desk under a police officer and they would take necessary more..

Jan 29 (DN) Chief of Defence Staff and Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) Commander Air Chief Marshal Roshan Goonetileke yesterday said that the SLAF will contribute its maximum to fulfil the country’s development wish preserving the SLAF’s prestige of 60 years service. He also said that Air Force help was needed for the mega development drive that has commenced in the country. The Air Force Commander made this observation as Chief Guest at the commissioning and wings parade more..

Jan 29 (DN) The Sabaragamuwa University temporarily closed on January 1 will re-open on January 31 for senior students. Faculties of Social Sciences and Languages, Agricultural Sciences, Geomatics and Management Studies will be open for second, third and final year students. Earlier the academic activities for first year commenced on January 10. The university was closed by officials on January 1 following ragging complaints. more..

Jan 29 (Island) Steps have been taken to draft regulations against noise pollution caused by radios and cassette players in private buses, an official of The Western Province Passenger Transport Authority says. "A committee was formed comprising officials of the Ministry of Environment, Registrar of Motor Vehicles and Police to discuss environmental pollution caused by radios and cassette players in private buses," more..

Jan 29 (DN) The Inter Religious Alliance for National Unity (IRANU) including Buddhist, Christian, Hindu and Islam priests condemned the attack on the Mahabodhi temple at a media briefing yesterday. Coordinator to the President (Religious Affairs) Ven Galagama Dhammaransi said that they assumed that the Mahabodhi incident is a reaction to shooting of Indian fishermen in the Palk Straits. The Thera also said that Buddhist monks were injured and more..

Jan 29 (DN) Attention is given to pay salary arrears of the non academic staff of universities, said Higher Education Minister S B Dissanayake. He was participating in a meeting with the Sri Lanka Nidahas Sewaka Sangamaya and the Vishvavidyala Ekabadda Bala Mandalaya. He noted that he would bring this matter to the notice of the Cabinet in order to grant a speedy solution. The issue of paying salary arrears of the non academic staff has been continuing since 1997. more..

Jan 29 (DBS) The crackdown on the LTTE by the Swiss Federal Police on January 11th where ten top tiger activists were taken into custody is a development of enormous significance. Helvetia or Switzerland is home to 40-42,000 Tamils of Sri Lankan origin. While this number is less than that of the Tamil Diaspora in countries like Canada, Britain, USA, France or Australia, the immense contribution made by the Tamils of Switzerland to the war effort of the LTTE has more..

Jan 29 (Island) Mexican authorities have discovered 219 migrants squeezed into a trailer truck in the southern state of Chiapas. The statement Thursday said most of the migrants are from Central America but six are from Sri Lanka and four are Nepalese. Thirty-three are women and nine are minors. The Chiapas state government says in a statement that the driver and another person tried to bribe police who stopped the truck. more..

Jan 29 (MoD) An open warrant has been issued to apprehension six top LTTE suspects who had gone abroad. The Terrorists Control Bureau intimated to the Colombo Magistrate's Courts that they had received information that these six LTTE suspects who had been engaged in several terrorist activities had fled the country. The bureau further informed the Court that the necessary arrangements were being finalized via Interpol to arrest them. more..

Jan 29 (DN) The Elections Department rejected 450 out of 2,047 nominations submitted by recognized political parties and independent groups on Thursday due to a number of discrepancies in the nomination papers. This is the first time that the Elections Department rejected such a large number of nomination lists from recognized political parties including the ruling UPFA. Department sources told the Daily News that 16 nomination papers for the Jaffna Municipal Council and more..

Jan 29 (CI) The rescheduling of the one-day international series against the West Indies from December to late January has resulted in a loss of US$125,000 to Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC). The series had to be postponed due to persistent bad weather across the island, and the number of matches was also curtailed from five to three. Ajith Jayasekera, the SLC acting CEO, stated that the board had incurred a loss of approximately US$25,000 on each of the five matches that was more..

Jan 29 (TOI) No amount of analysis for the World Cup can disregard the fact that when you're playing in the subcontinent, the batsmen will dominate the game. Flat tracks, low bounce, turning pitches and short boundaries mean pacers have got their work cut out. The idea of a 50-over game in the subcontinent has hardly been in need of much imagination and it is unlikely that the event will be any different. more..

Jan 29 (AFP) Members of Sri Lanka's Tamil minority on Friday filed a lawsuit in the United States against the island's president, seeking $30 million in damages over alleged extrajudicial killings. Activists from the Tamil diaspora spearheaded legal action after President Mahinda Rajapakse quietly traveled to the United States, in a test of how much deference US authorities show to visiting heads of state. more..

Jan 29 (EB) Archaeologists of Jaffna University, led by Prof Pushparatnam, have discovered the ruins of a 15th century Hindu temple buried in the sand in the middle of a thick jungle in Pooneryn in North Sri Lanka, which could unravel a part of Sri Lankan history in which the Pooneryn area of the Wanni was on the high road linking Jaffna with South Lanka. “The temple, 130 ft by 30 ft, is located in Kaudaari Munai, on a narrow stretch of land almost fully surrounded by the sea. more..

Jan 29 (ANI) A Pakistani citizen has been arrested in Spain for allegedly forging passports for the LeT as well as the LTTE. "The National Police in Barcelona have arrested a citizen of Pakistani nationality for their alleged connection with the cell dismantled last December as part of "Operation Kampai" and who allegedly supplied documents for terrorist organizations linked to Al Qaeda, mostly " LeT and other terrorist groups such as the LTTE," more..

Jan 29 (DM) President Mahinda Rajapaksa met nomination board members of the UPFA and party seniors at Temple Trees last morning and expressed his displeasure and disappointment over the rejection of a large number of nomination lists submitted by the party, informed sources of the government said. He has instructed ministers and senior election organizers not to give up the fight for local government bodies where more..

Jan 29 (DM) The Ceylon Bank Employees Union (CBEU) protested for a third day yesterday in a move to secure pension schemes for State bank employees. “The government has to keep to their word and provide the pension schemes as promised if not we will be protesting for two more days before going for a strike on Feb 8,” President CBEU Amarapala Gamage said. “The CBEU will go for a one and half day strike in all the State banks commencing from 12.30 p.m. Feb 8” more..

Jan 29 (Island) The Education Ministry’s recent circular pertaining to the maintenance of schools would pave the way for privatisation of free education, the JVP controlled teachers’ union says. General Secretary of the Ceylon Teachers’ Service Union Mahinda Jayasinghe said that the Education Ministry had started a pilot project to involve parents in the maintenance of schools in 35 Education Zones in 2005, but now it is being expanded to include all schools, more..

Jan 29 (NN) SPORTSMAX, exclusive Caribbean broadcasters of all West Indies away tours, was advised yesterday that there will be no international television broadcast of the rescheduled West Indies ODI tour of Sri Lanka for January 31, February 4 and February 6, the company said in a press release. As a result, SportsMax will not have coverage, as advertised, of the three ODIs. Cricket fans the world over will not be able to watch the ODI series, more..

Jan 29 (NN) Norwegian Minister and former peace envoy to Sri Lanka Erik Solheim has drawn flak from pro-LTTE groups for his comments to News Now.lk where he had insisted he was not biased and also urged the Tamil Diaspora to forget a separate state and seek dialogue with the Sri Lankan government. The TamilNet website, considered the voice of the LTTE, quoted groups supportive of a separate state as saying more..

Jan 29 (NN) The UN has raised concerns over the high security zones in the Eastern province which is preventing the resettlement of some of the displaced people in their original lands. Officials from the UN refugee agency UNHCR raised these concerns during a meeting with the eastern province Governor Rear Admiral Mohan Wijeywickrama. The UNHCR officials who met the Governor in his Trincomalee office more..