By PK BALACHANDRAN He is the Tamil face of extreme Islam. Moulvi P Jainul Abideen, better known as PJ, the founder and star speaker of the fundamentalist Tamil Nadu Thowheed Jamath (TNTJ), who was denied a visa to speak at an Islamic convention in Sri Lanka last week believes what he preaches is “true Islam”. …
By Tilak Marapana P.C – Former Minister of Law and Order and Prison Reforms My association with Avant Garde Maritime Services Limited (AGMSL) began in January this year. They came to see me with another known lawyer. I learnt that the company was providing maritime security, a requirement necessitated by increasing incidence of piracy in …
By Kishali Pinto Jayawardene George Orwell once reminded us that ‘in a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act.’ That powerful injunction came immediately to mind even as the flames dimmed this Thursday over the funeral pyre of Sri Lanka’s inimitable ‘truth teller’, the Most Ven Maduluwawe Sobitha who led the …
Tilak Marapana, who resigned as Minister of Law, Order and Prison Reforms over a conflict of interest issue pertaining to the controversial business entity Avant Garde told his side of the story to Piyasena Dissanayake. The following are excerpts of the interview. Q: There’s considerable concern in the country about the operations of Avant Garde…. …
By Alex Lantier Horrific scenes of bloodshed filled the streets of Paris last night, as multiple simultaneous terrorist attacks starting around 10 p.m. claimed at least 140 lives and left at least 110 wounded, including dozens in critical condition. Shortly before midnight, French President François Hollande announced that France was closing its borders and imposing …
By Taylor Dibbert Samantha Power, U.S. permanent representative to the United Nations, recently spoke at the Open Government Partnership Global Summit in Mexico City. As she mentions at the outset, this is an initiative that deals with “the ideas of getting governments to work with civil society to create more open, accountable institutions and societies.” …
By Sophia Phan, Esther Han, Julie Power, Eryk Bagshaw Ivor was sitting in a Paris restaurant when Twitter informed him that shootings and a hostage situation were unfolding just metres away. At least 149 people were killed on Friday night in Paris, including at least 70 hostages at a theatre, in seven coordinated terrorist attacks …
By Dharisha Bastians In the end it took only five days for the unthinkable to happen. For the first time in recent memory, a minister of Cabinet rank was forced to tender his resignation following a massive public outcry over his attempted defence of a private company implicated in a major arms scandal. After five …
By Kishali Pinto-Jayawardena For much of post-independent Sri Lanka, State violence has shaped and defined the parameters of human existence. Particularly in recent decades, coercion was exercised on the media through the shadowy tentacles of a deep security State. A death chant for democracy The impact therein has been crippling. Five years ago, in a …
By Dharisha Bastians The Avant Garde controversy continued to cause major divisions in the ruling administration, after Justice Minister Wijedasa Rajapaksa denied reports that the President had ordered the cancellation of all Government contracts with the private security firm. Cabinet Spokesman Rajitha Senaratne, speaking to reporters at the cabinet briefing yesterday contradicted the Justice Minister’s …
By Shamindra Ferdinando Police headquarters yesterday said that the weapons they handed over to Rakna Araksha Lanka Ltd. (RALL) on the instructions of the Defence Ministry under the previous government had been found on Sri Lanka Shipping Company-owned Avant Garde (formerly MEROU) tug chartered by the Avant Garde Maritime Services (AGMS). Police headquarters stressed that …
by Zacki Jabbar Cabinet Spokesman and Health Minister Rajitha Senaratne said yesterday that Justice Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe had proved he was a ‘Goda Perakadoruwo’ by his conduct over the Avant Garde floating armoury issue. Addressing the weekly Cabinet Press Briefing in Colombo, Senaratne said that Wijeyadasa had called him names including ‘Goda Perakadoruwo’, but that …
By Mohan Samaranayake Now for some time, both before and after the January 8 change, whenever the question of Geneva human rights process targeting Sri Lanka came up for discussion, a major concern expressed was whether, at the end of such process, Sri Lanka’s political and military leadership during the war against LTTE can be …
by Zacki Jabbar Insisting that the Central Bank was the safest place to keep Employees Provident and Trust Funds, Governor of the Bank Arjuna Mahendran said yesterday he had no objections to the monies being moved elsewhere. He told The Island that according to the law both Funds came under the Labour Ministry and that …
by Zacki Jabbar President Maithripala Sirisena has directed that all agreements between Rakna Araksha Lanka Limited and Avant Garde Maritime Services be revoked and the offenders be prosecuted based on the original report of the Attorney General’s investigation into the company’s dealings. The order had been made at a special meeting the President chaired on …
By PK Balachandran The Sri Lankan government is considering a proposal to release the 217 Tamils currently in detention under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), after putting them through a program of rehabilitation, the Minister of National Dialogue, Mano Ganeshan, told Express here on Wednesday. Ganeshan recalled that the Mahinda Rajapaksa government had released …
BY Dilanka Gunatileke Minister of Justice and Buddha Sasana Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe said, he will not relinquish his ministerial portfolio because the charges against him are baseless. He added that he will also not allow former Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa to be arrested.The Minister told Ceylon Today that the charges against him regarding the Avant Garde …
By Taylor Dibbert What’s the deal with Sri Lanka’s Tamil political prisoners? Due to October hunger strikes in prisons across the country (with prisoners demanding amnesty), President Maithripala Sirisena had given assurances that he would take a decision on this matter by November 7. Some have suggested that this meant prisoners would be released, but …
By Mohamed Haniff Former Chairman of parliamentary watchdog committee on public enterprises D. E. W. Gunasekera yesterday told The Island that the move to amalgamate the EPF and ETF and move funds out of the Central Bank’s supervision wasn’t acceptable. Former Minister and Communist Party General Secretary was responding to a statement made by Deputy …
By Rasika Jayakody The special Cabinet meeting on the Avant Garde controversy, held on Monday, was supposed to be full of fireworks and high drama. A group of Cabinet ministers, over the weekend, held lengthy discussions to exert pressure on the government calling for Minister Thilak Marapana’s resignation over the Avant Garde controversy. They stressed …
By Upul Joseph Fernando Before Ven. Maduluwawe Sobhitha Thera fell ill he accused the government of not apprehending the culprits involved in corruption. He charged that the government was wasting time while the iron was hot to make use of it. The main charge made by the thera was that the Government was trying to …
By Prasad Gunewardene University Education and Highways Minister Lakshman Kiriella having collected all facts that led to the recent clash between the Police and the Higher National Diploma in Accountancy (HNDA) students and the subsequent untruths unfolded by the Police to the public is now ready to take on the Police to recommend tough action …
BJP MP Tarun Vijay has urged the Sri Lankan government to prescribe classic Tamil poetry collection Thirukkural for all students in Sri Lanka – Tamil as well as Sinhalese. Thirukkural, one of the most important works in the Tamil language, was written by Tamil poet and philosopher Thiruvalluvar. “I told them please don’t limit it …
By Dr.Dayan Jayatilleka The main aim of Government policy and of the “international community” in relation to Sri Lanka is said to be “political reconciliation” between the Tamils and Sinhalese through accountability and constitutional change. An accountability push runs counter to a reconciliatory national consensus. The Good Friday Accords which brought peace to Northern Ireland …
By Dharisha Bastians In a historic twist being hailed as a great tribute to good governance crusader late Maduluwawe SobithaThero who passed away on Sunday, Law and Order Minister Tilak J. Marapana submitted his resignation to President Maithripala Sirisena, shortly before his Cabinet colleagues looked set to demand his sacking at a special ministerial meeting …
By P.K.Balachandran The Sri Lankan Law and Order Minister, Tilak Marapana, resigned on Monday, after some influential fellow ministers vehemently opposed his decision not to pursue a high profile case against Avant Garde Maritime Services Ltd., (AGMSL), a controversial company which maintains a floating armory and supplies weapons and Sea Marshals to vessels plying in …
With the resignation from his ministerial portfolio to safe guard the unity in the government, Tilak Marapana has become the scapegoat to protect this government, said Pivithuru Hela Urumaya Secretary and Parliamentarian Udaya Gammanpila. He also said that some persons are dumbfounded as it has been revealed that there had been no “Mega Deals” in …
The floating armoury and Avant Garde issue was debated in Parliament last week. Ministers who drew the attention of the House, Minister of Law and Order and Prison Reforms, Thilak Marapana, Minister of Justice Dr. Wijeyadasa Rajapakse, Cabinet Co-Spokesperson, Dr. Rajitha Senaratne Deputy Minister Ranjan Ramanayake, Deputy Minister of Power, Ajith Perera spoke to the …
By Norman Palihawadne Law and Order Minister Tilak Marapana, being an honest politician, had told the truth about the Avant Garde issue in Parliament, ex-President Mahinda Rajapaksa said yesterday. Rajapaksa told The Island that many thought that Marapana had been forced to resign for speaking the truth.
BY SHAAHIDAH RIZA The Minister of Prisons Reforms and Law and Order Tilak Marapana stepped down from his portfolio yesterday (9) over the Avant Garde controversy which was brewing in Parliament last week. Addressing a press briefing yesterday, he said… “If any investigation arises with regard to Avant Garde, I don’t want it being hampered …
By Taylor Dibbert Sri Lanka’s new government, led by President Maithripala Sirisena, has now made a range of assurances via an extensive reform agenda and is now faced with the trickier task of implementation. Elections in January (when Sirisena defeated the increasingly authoritarian Mahinda Rajapaksa in his quest to win an unprecedented third term) and …
Minister of Law and Order Thilak Marapana holding a press conference at his residence in the morning of Monday November 9th 2015, announced that he was resigning from his ministerial portfolio. Marapana’s announcement came even as his cabinet colleagues were at a special meeting to discuss the conduct of their fellow minister over the avant …
By Ranga Jayasuriya Wimal Weerawansa, our rabble-rousing politico, fulminates that Sunny Leone, the Canadian- Indian adult film star turned Bollywood actress is tipped to visit Sri Lanka, allegedly at the behest of the government. This, he says, is a plot to promote the casino business and, like everything else, is part of a ‘conspiracy.’ In …
By Shamindra Ferdinando Australia has chosen to remain mum on the recently arrested Australian citizen Noel Mudalige though the government says he will be treated as a foreigner. Authoritative official told The Island that the leader of the Frontline Socialist Party (FSP) had given up his Sri Lankan citizenship to become an Australian citizen several …
By Saman Indrajith A group of artistes and activists gathered at the Centre for Society and Religion in Colombo yesterday to decide on a campaign to secure the release of leader of the JVP splinter group Frontline Socialist Party, Kumar Gunaratnam, who is currently in remand. Addressing a press conference after their meeting, Vidarshana Kannangara …
By Cyril Wimalasurendre Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) Leader Rauff Hakeem dropped a bombshell in public on Saturday when he revealed that there was a split in the government. Addressing the 26th convention of the SLMC at Polgolla Hakeem declared: “There is a conflict of opinion within the government. This crisis is evident from President …
Continue reading ‘Rauff Hakeem Reveals Conflict of Opinion Within Sirisena – Wickremesinghe Govt’ »
by Manjula Fernando Minister of Justice Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe, dismissing accusations levelled at the government and some of its ministers by JVP Leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake over the Avant Garde case in Parliament on Wednesday, said there was no case under the PTA, Explosives Act or the Firearm Ordinance and he did not want to be …
By P K Balachandran The Sri Lankan government is likely to deny entry to Moulvi P Jainul Abideen, better known as PJ, the founder and star speaker of the fundamentalist Tamil Nadu Thowheed Jamath (TNTJ). A powerful section of Lankan Muslims who fear that PJ’s presence in the island will disturb intra-Muslim and inter-religious harmony …
By P K Balachandran The Sri Lankan cabinet on Wednesday resolved to amend the existing law to regulate fishing in Lankan waters by foreign vessels in view of the considerable increase in poaching. A note presented to the cabinet by Fisheries Minister Mahinda Amaraweera said that while legal actions have been taken years against foreign …
Economic Development is a policy intervention endeavour for economic and social well-being of the people. Under the NPC there are 31,027 employees, out of which 968 are at senior level. Why can’t the NPC make use of these 968 senior level officials innovatively? What is needed is human endeavor. The NPC can achieve Economic Development …
The Most Venerable Maduluwawe Sobhitha Thera, the Chief Incumbent of the Kotte Naga Vihara, has passed away at a private hospital in Singapore early this morning, the Sri Lankan Mission in Singapore confirmed. The Thera was rushed to a Singapore hospital on Tuesday (03) night due to a sudden illness.
By Kishali Pinto Jayawardene At one time, we had women survivors of rape and abuse in Sri Lanka praying that the Goddess Kali may visit their attackers when they failed to get justice in courts. Probably they still do. But in that most singular of ironies, we now have Ministers joining those ranks of the …
by Shamindra Ferdinando With the Maithripala Sirisena-Wickremesinghe government in deepening crisis over the stinking Avant Garde affair, a last-ditch-effort is being made to reach a consensus on the issue, political sources said President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe will meet warring members of the cabinet on Monday morning (Nov 9) to discuss a …
By Udaya P. Gammanpila “We shoot to kill. Contrary to the common belief that we can only shoot at legs, we can also shoot at heads”. This is not a statement made by a thug such as Choppe from Maradana, Soththi Upali from Gothami Road or Thatta Some from Wanathamulla. This was the Police Spokesperson …
By Susantha Goonatilake A few days ago China’s President Xi Jinping visited the UK. And the British media reported that the British leaders had “groveled “, “kowtowed”; “the USA lost its best friend to its rival”; the 19th century “Chinese humiliation by the British was now reversed” and China was “out to restore the prestige …
By Dharisha Bastians Law and Order Minister Tilak Marapana’s staunch defence of the private security firm Avant Garde this week has precipitated a major crisis in the ruling Government, with ministers and MPs now demanding disciplinary action against the senior UNP lawyer and two other ministers. Cabinet Spokesman Rajitha Senaratne said he and Urban Development …
By Ashwin Hemmathagama The unsolicited proposals and the commissions that changed hands to construct the Kandy Expressway during the previous administration were brought to light in Parliament yesterday by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe. According to the Premier, the Kandy Expressway, whose construction is ongoing, should have started from Katunayake instead of connecting Kadawatha and Pothuhera …
by Zacki Jabbar Cabinet Spokesman and Health Minister Rajitha Senaratne said yesterday that those who had protected Avant Garde Maritime Services despite the existence of an Attorney General’s Department finding that the company had acted illegally and should be prosecuted, would be dealt with legally. Responding to questions at the weekly Cabinet Press Briefing in …
by Shamindra Ferdinando Justice Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakse, PC, yesterday alleged that the on-going onslaught on the Avant Garde Maritime Services was meant to pave the way for another local venture to take over the lucrative business. Minister Rajapakse alleged that the present government was under heavy pressure to move against Avant Garde Maritime Services to …
By Shamindra Ferdinando Democratic Party Leader and Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka yesterday emphasised that Minister of Law and Order and Prison Reforms Tilak Marapana and Justice Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe, PC, should be held responsible for undermining ongoing investigations into questionable operations undertaken by Avant Garde Maritime Services. Field Marshal Fonseka said as President Maithripala Sirisena …
by Rasika Jayakody A heated verbal battle arose at the Cabinet meeting last morning over the Avant Garde private security firm and Public Order Minister Thilak Marapana’s statement in Parliament over the conduct of the company. Ministers Patali Champika Ranawaka and Rajitha Senaratne strongly criticised Minister Marapana’s statement at the Cabinet meeting and even threatened …
By Dharisha Bastians Heated exchanges took place during the weekly cabinet briefing yesterday, with senior Government ministers taking umbrage at Law and Order Minister Thilak Marapana’s staunch defence of Avant Garde, the controversial maritime security firm embroiled in a Defence Ministry corruption case. Daily FT learns that Urban Development Minister Champika Ranawaka kick-started the fracas, …
By Saman Indrajith Frontline Socialist Party (FSP) senior member, Attorney-at-Law Udul Premaratne yesterday told the media that the UNP which had sought to enlist FSP leader Kumar Gunaratnam’s support to fight the Mahinda Rajapaksa government a few years back now considered him an enemy. “When Comrade Gunaratnam was abducted and later taken into police custody …
(Full Text of the Economic Policy Statement delivered by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe in Parliament on November 5th 2015) Hon. Speaker, on 8 January, the people of Sri Lanka elected Maithripala Sirisena as the President in pursuit of much-needed change. This was confirmed at the Parliamentary election held in August.du Our final goal is to …
Justice Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe told Parliament yesterday that he had intervened to prevent former Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa from being arrested in connection with the Avant Garde floating armoury case. “I took up the position that he should not be arrested in this connection,;I brought this to the notice of the President and the Prime …
National Freedom Front (NFF) leader Wimal Weerawansa yesterday alleged that moves were afoot to promote casinos in Colombo, though those who campaigned for the Yahapalana government protested vehemently against the industry during the previous administration. Addressing the media at the N.M. Perera Centre at Cotta Road, MP Weerawansa said that those who had lambasted the …
Arrest of Frontline Socialist Party leader Premakumar Gunaratnam was the latest example to prove that Yahapalana government was no different from the previous Rajapaksa regime, FSP Central Committee Member Duminda Nagamuwa said yesterday. Addressing a press conference at the Centre for Society and Religion in Colombo, Nagamuwa said: “Under Rajapaksa we saw abductions and now …
By Saman Indrajith Leader of the JVP-splinter group Frontline Socialist Party Premakumar Gunaratnam alias Kumar Mahattaya was arrested at his ancestral house in Kegalle by police yesterday. The arrest had been made around 1.45 pm at Gunaratnam’s house at No 211/26, Anguruwella, Kegalle by a team of policemen from the Kegalle police on charges of …
Despite his busy schedule and battling multiple thorny issues, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe along with his wife last night took time off to enjoy the private premiere of the latest James Bond movie ‘Spectre’ starring Daniel Craig at the Regal Cinema.
By Saman Indrajith Opposition MPs shouting slogans and holding placards inside the chamber against last week’s attack on a group of protesting students in Colombo threw Parliament into turmoil yesterday. All hell broke loose when MEP leader Dinesh Gunawardena got up, demanding to know why the government had prevented university students from visiting Parliament yesterday. …
By Col R Hariharan Dealing with war crimes and rights issues Sri Lanka Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe tabled in parliament the UN Human Rights Investigation report as well as the reports of the Udalagama and the Paranagama commissions. The two commissions were appointed by former president Mahinda Rajapaksa. The UN Human Rights Council resolution co-sponsored …
By Rasika Jayakody When the government decided to launch a full-scale investigation into journalist Prageeth Eknaligoda’s disappearance, it stirred up a hornet’s nest where the country’s defence circles are concerned. Many senior military officers were vehemently against such an investigation, saying it would jeopardize the intelligence wing of the Sri Lankan military. They said an …
By Upul Joseph Fernando The United National Party (UNP) rank and file looked stunned over the statements made by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and Leader of the House and University Education and Highways Minister Lakshman Kiriella when Wimal Weerawansa was questioned and arrested at the Bandaranaike International Airport, Katunayake, recently for attempting to travel on …
by Prasad Gunewardene (This comment is written being a Parliament Lobby Correspondent for national newspapers for over 25-years, having witnessed Traditions and Practices of Parliament) One cannot stop laughing reading a report in an English daily yesterday that the Ministry of Public Administration is planning to take legal action against former Members of Parliament, Deputy …
By Lakmal Sooriyagoda The Criminal Investigations Department (CID) yesterday filed charge sheets in Court against six accused including three Navy personnel and two ex-LTTE cadres affiliated to the Karuna faction for allegedly conspiring to commit the murder of former TNA Jaffna district MP Nadaraja Raviraj. Filing the charge sheets before Colombo Additional Magistrate Nirosha Fernando, …
By P.K.Balachandran M.A.Sumanthiran, MP and Spokesman of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), has suggested that the Northern Provincial Council (NPC) pass a resolution regretting the en masse expulsion of Muslims from the Northern Province by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in October-November 1990. Sumanthiran made this suggestion at a function here earlier this …
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has decided to extensively investigate the attack on the students of the Higher National Diploma in Accountancy (HNDA) program in Colombo on October 29. Accordingly, Wickramasinghe has appointed a special committee to probe into the assault by the police on the students who were staging a protest opposite the University Grants …
By Kamal Jayamanna Several opposition political parties have already held discussions with former President Mahinda Rajapaksa on forming a “united opposition” before the Local Government election, UPFA Parliamentarian Vasudewa Nanayakkara said. Nearly 25 Parliamentarians of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) too attended the discussion, Nanayakkaa told the Daily News yesterday. “All parties of the …
By Chamodi Gunawardana Pivithuru Hela Urumaya (PHU) Leader and MP Udaya Gammanpila yesterday claimed that the Government planned to arrest him over a false allegation regarding a stock transaction of an Australian company named Digital Nominees. He said the allegation was levelled over selling Rs 1.1 billion of shares of the above company which were …
(Press release issued by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mangala Samaraweera regarding the incident of assault launched by the Police on HNDA students – 30.10.2015) I condemn the violent attack launched by the Police on Higher National Diploma in Accountancy (H.N.D.A.) students who protested yesterday in front of the University Grants Commission. The students were …
By Sujeeva Nivunhella in London Former Norwegian Norwegian Development Minister and peace envoy to Sri Lanka, Erik Solheim claimed last week that the then President Mahinda Rajapaksa was willing to give self-rule to Tamils within the Sri Lankan state without calling for elections in that region. “Rajapaksa wanted to do a backroom deal to make …
by Manjula Ferando Former Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa dismissed former minister Mervyn Silva‘s accusations of being involved in the abductions and killings claiming he had not introduced any white van. In this wide ranging interview, while urging the former minister to study history, he also denied having any contacts with LTTE Leader Pulithevan and defended …
By Rasika Jayakody On the evening of December 22, 2012, nearly two weeks ahead of Sri Lanka’s seventh Presidential election, a students’ protest was held in front of the University Grants Commission (UGC) at Ward Place, near the Colombo Town Hall. A phalanx of Police personnel was deployed in and around Ward Place to ensure …
by Ranga Jayasuriya Like its predecessor, the new government excels at keeping the public enthralled. The Rajapaksa regime’s recipe was hard boiled patriotism, now its successor has adopted ‘anti-corruption’ to achieve the same end. If the statements recorded by the PRECIFAC, CID and other investigation agencies are to be counted, by now, we could have …
By Prasad Gunewardene The Local Government elections have been tentatively fixed for March 2016. When SLFP Leader President Maithripala Sirisena met his Cabinet Ministers, Deputy Ministers and State Ministers last week, he assured them that he would work towards a SLFP victory at next March elections. The ministers responded with a loud applause to the …
By Udaya Gammanpila The ships which transported goods from Eastern to Western States of the USA had to sail around Argentina spending a lot of time and money. Hence, the USA was badly in need of constructing a canal linking the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans. Although the USA had planned to construct the canal …
By N. Sathiya Moorthy For starters, the TNA cannot ask the majority Sinhala-Buddhist polity to unite in the Tamils’ cause for political equality and equity as the case may be, and not unite all Tamil polity and society from within. Reports that Karuna was to join the truncated TULF under Anandasangaree should not be a …
By C.A.Chandraprema Last week the Commission on Missing Persons (Maxwell Paranagama Commission) had issued a clarification regarding the recommendations made in its report. They had explained that they had not proposed foreign judges and that the misconception that they had done so was due to the commission ‘reviewing’ measures taken in other countries before proposing …
By Kishali Pinto Jayawardene Certain aspects of the functioning of the Wickremesinghe-Sirisena government raise valid concerns as to whether anti-democratic Rajapaksa policies of the previous era are being continued but in a far craftier and skilful manner. This is a concern that ranges across the spectrum, from the accountability question to basic issues of good …
By Shirley Candappa On 28 September 1988, quite out of the blues news trickled through of an attempted coup on the Maldive Islands. Sri Lankans were more shocked when it was learned that the coup leaders -Maldivians led by Abdullah Luthufi- were assisted by a Sri Lankan Tamil militant group -the People’s Liberation Organisation of …
By Peter Reynolds A MIGRANT whose family fled Sri Lankan riots for a better life has been elected Moreland’s first Greens mayor. South Ward councillor Samantha Ratnam won the mayoral vote 6-5 over Labor candidate Cr Lita Gillies, bringing an end to the ALP’s stranglehold on the mayorship. Cr Ratnam had been unsuccessful in the …
(Text of Speech made by Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera at the Commemoration of the 25th Anniversary of the Muslims Expulsion from the Northern Province by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) I would like to thank the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress for organizing this commemoration of the 25th Anniversary of the Expulsion of Muslims from …
BY DR. DAYAN JAYATILLEKA “And that’s why it’s so encouraging that, at the same time it’s confronting some of the darkest and most painful chapters in its country’s past, the Sirisena administration is also pursuing initiatives…” – US Ambassador Samantha Power (http://www.dailymirror.lk/93213/sl-govt-living-up-to-its-commitment-us#sthash.lexMp6gZ.dpuf) The Ambassador/Permanent Representative of the United States to the United Nations in New …
By P.K.Balachandran COLOMBO: The Ranil Wickremesinghe government is open to the idea of allowing Tamils held under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) to get bail, the Minister for National Dialogue on ethnic issues Mano Ganeshan told Express here on Wednesday. Ganeshan said that those under trial and those detained without any charges having been …
By Uditha Jayasinghe Tough-talking Central Bank Governor Arjuna Mahendran yesterday slammed Sri Lanka’s tax system as “pathetic” and “regressive,” insisting it needed to be boosted through fresh measures and called for reduced stress on State banks placed by loss making State Owned Enterprises (SOEs). Delivering the inaugural address as the Chief Guest at the Association …
By Dasun Edirisinghe Police yesterday used batons, tear gas and water cannon to disperse a group of protesting Higher National Diploma in Accountancy (HNDA) students when they attempted to force their way into the premises of the University Grants Commission (UGC) and the University Education Ministry at Ward Place, Colombo 07. Police spokesman ASP Ruwan …
The United National Party, UK Branch as well as British Sri Lanka Forum have strongly protested against the appointment of a UK based dual citizen Manoj Warnapala as the head of the Consular Division of the Sri Lankan HC in London. They alleged that Warnapala being a lawyer and UK qualified solicitor could benefit from …
By Kishali Pinto Jayawardene In the wake of the turbulence caused by the September report of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner on Human Rights (OHCHR) on Sri Lanka, it is uproariously funny to see Rajapaksa propagandists exerting all their strength to lambast the filing of individual petitions by Sri Lankans before the …
By Shamindra Ferdinando About a dozen army officers who had been sent on compulsory retirement or compelled to retire early over their alleged clandestine involvement with Gen. Sarath Fonseka during 2009 and 2010 period would be reinstated and retired with promotions and enhanced entitlements, authoritative sources told The Island yesterday. This would enable them to …
By Rasika Jayakody Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa is now caught up in a situation where he has to have the cake and eat the cake. He was scheduled to express his views in Parliament, representing the UPFA, when the UNHRC resolution on Sri Lanka was taken up for debate in the country’s legislature. Many were …
By Upul Joseph Fernando “I and my family members have no secret accounts in Dubai banks,”said the Rajapaksa ‘Crown Prince’ Namal when the media published reports about a secret account in a Dubai bank of a son of a VVIP. The media reports stated that the Sri Lankan Government had sought details of that account …
Continue reading ‘Secret Overseas Bank Accounts of South African and Sri Lankan Politicians’ »
By Dr.Dayan Jayatilleka “Now, all the duties of rulers are contained in this one sentence, the safety of the people is the supreme law.”- Thomas Hobbes (‘Man and Citizen’) Who should be “accountable” and primarily to whom, on what issues and why? Are the Sri Lankan state, its military and its leaders primarily accountable under …
By Prof. G. L. Peiris Surveying the events of the last ten days, it seems to me that the need of the hour is to penetrate the fog of misinformation and fantasy with regard to the consequences of the Geneva Resolution on Sri Lanka, and to make a realistic appraisal of the situation. The point …
Continue reading ‘Eight compelling reasons for resisting implementation of Geneva Resolution’ »
By Maheesha Mudugamuwa In an effort to combat an alarming increase in child sex abuse in Sri Lanka, State Minister for Town Planing and Water Supply Dr Sudarshini Fernandopulle yesterday proposed chemical castration for repeated sex offenders. She was responding to the recent recommendation by the Madras High Court which recommended castration as punishment to …
By Shamindra Ferdinando Law and Order and Prisons Reforms Minister Priyankara Jayaratne has been summoned by the Presidential Commission of Inquiry to Investigate and Inquire into Serious Acts of Fraud, Corruption and Abuse of Power, State Resources, and Privileges (PRECIFAC). The Commission plans to question Minister Jayaratne on Oct. 30 at the BMICH where the …
The government yesterday announced that it would not grant a common amnesty to LTTE suspects/ prisoners, who recently staged a hunger strike demanding their release. “There will be no common amnesty for over 200 prisoners, mostly Tamils, who staged a hunger strike in jails throughout the country,” Minister of National Dialogue Mano Ganesan said.
By Rohini Hensman Report to the UN Human Rights Council on Sri Lanka:An Evaluation One of the most striking features of the report by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights Investigation on Sri Lanka, 2015 is its consistent effort to be even-handed in its view of Government of Sri Lanka and Liberation …
By Prasad Gunewardene The Mace is the symbol of authority of Parliament. It signifies the authority and responsibilities entrusted upon the Speaker who is the Guardian of all Parliamentarians. The walk up to the Speaker’s podium by the Sergeant-at-Arms on days that Parliament sits with the Mace on his shoulder is a tradition and respect …
By CASSENDRA DOOLE Eight suspects including two former Army soldiers were apprehended and questioned by the Police yesterday (26) regarding the murder of the night club owner in Anuradhapura on Saturday (24) night. Speaking to Ceylon Today, the Police Media Spokesperson ASP Ruwan Gunasekara said, while eight suspects have been arrested and questioned by the …
ECONOMYNEXT – The controversial “white flag killings” were actually due to a botched surrender arranged by former president Mahinda Rajapaksa to save some of the senior Tiger leaders who had helped him to come to power in 2005, parliament was told Friday. Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe told the assembly that Rajapaksa had wanted to save …
By Gandhya Senanayake An investigation team of the Commission will be conducting an independent, impartial inquiry into the alleged extra-judicial executions of surrendering top level members of the LTTE during the last stages of the conflict, Presidential Commission Investigating Cases of Missing Persons chairman P. Paranagama said. Paranagama told the Daily News that the investigation …
Wasantha Soysa alias ‘Rajarata Iron man’, the holder of several Guinness world records was hacked to death by an unidentified group inside a night club owned by him in Anuradhapura on Saturday night. Soysa, a famous Karate champion and a highly respected martial arts instructor, is said to have been attacked by about 25 people, …
The recent arrest of three Customs officers who allegedly solicited and accepted a Rs. 125 million bribe from a spare parts importer in Colombo hit the headlines. It was described as the biggest-ever detection made in the history of the Bribery Commission. “Sunday Island”s sister paper “Sunday Divaina’ spoke to the importer, who tipped off …
Text of a speech delivered by former President Mahinda Rajapaksa in Colombo, October 25, 2015. Venerable members of the Maha Sangha, clergymen of all other religions, friends, I address you thus, at a time of great peril to our nation. Various views have been expressed about the resolution passed against Sri Lanka in the Human …
by Rajan Philips On Monday, October 19, Canadians elected a majority Liberal government led by a handsome, young politician with a famous last name. Justin Trudeau, Canada’s new Prime Minister, is the 43 year old son of Pierre Elliot Trudeau (1919-2000), one of Canada’s better known world figures and a former Prime Minister for 16 …
Continue reading ‘Pierre and Justin Trudeau: Charismatic Father and Son Prime Ministers of Canada’ »
By Ranga Jayasuriya Last week saw a curious event of pomp and funfair-and political realism-that highlighted how far the States would go to maximize their benefits, even at the expense of their allies. Britain rolled out the red carpet for Xi Jinping, the Chinese President who rode in a gilded royal carriage to the Buckingham …
By C.A.Chandraprema The Presidential Commission to Inquire into Complaints of Missing Persons was set up by President Mahinda Rajapaksa on 15 August 2013 under the chairmanship of retired High Court Judge Maxwell Paranagama. In the one and a half years that it functioned under the Rajapaksas, this was just another commission of inquiry like the …
By Rasika Jayakody A heated verbal battle broke out at the SLFP parliamentary group meeting with President Maithripala Sirisena last Monday evening over another gathering held earlier at MP Gamini Lokuge’s house in Colombo. The person who stirred up the hornets’ nest was Minister S.B. Dissanayake who lashed out at certain SLFP MPs for holding …
ECONOMYNEXT – The war crimes investigation set up by former president Mahinda Rajapaksa has made startling revelations that senior military commanders should be hauled up for criminal prosecutions. The Maxell Paranagama commission appointed in 2013 in what many at the time feared was an attempt to white wash the security forces has surprisingly produced a …
by Madura Ranwala and Saman Indrajith National Freedom Front Leader and Parliamentarian Wimal Weerawansa, MP, who was arrested at the Bandaranaike International Airport, Katunayake, yesterday morning, was enlarged on Rs.10,000 cash bail and two sureties of Rs. 1 million each yesterday evening by the Negombo Magistrate. The case would be taken up on Oct. 28. …
By Saman Indrajith Democratic Left Front leader Vasudeva Nanayakkara said, in Parliament, yesterday that the countries interests had been subjugated to America’s geo-political agenda by the incumbent government. Participating in the adjournment debate on Geneva UNHRC report and alleged human rights violations during the last phase of the war, MP Nanayakkara said: “Sri Lanka is …