By Don Manu Putting his family and associates first before all else, a people-deposed president Mahinda Rajapaksa has declared that he may come back to politics because he is angry that the Maithripala government has filed cases against his family members and associates. In an interview given to India’s Hindu newspaper published this Friday, he …
It was a heated session of the National Executive Council (NEC) last Monday when former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga picked up a mobile phone to speak to Defence Ministry Secretary K.M.U.D. Basnayake. She was angry. “Who the hell asked you to issue a letter to Nissanka Senadipathi, the Chairman of Avant Garde Maritime Security?” she …
By C.A.Chandraprema Niroshan Padukka is the UNP organiser for Kesbewa and a member of the Western Provincial Council. Early last week, he wrote a letter to the lankaenews website under the title “Is President Maithri under house arrest?” This letter just about sums up the present mood within the UNP and it is worth recounting …
by Tisaranee Gunasekara “The history or the future of Sri Lanka does not belong to any one community.” – Ranasinghe Premadasa (Speech on 11.12.1990) In 2013, as anti-Muslim hysteria was riding high, Jezima Ismail recalled an incident which was both a personal memory and a shared minority-experience: “Some years ago at a lecture session at …
By P.K.Balachandran On the second and final day of his visit to Sri Lanka, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi bonded with the Tamils of the Northern Province with aplomb. The speeches which he made were extempore and in Hindi, but the Tamil audiences were not complaining as his words, delivered with panache, had a ring …
By Dr.Dayan Jayatilleka From Prime Minister Modi through Secretary of State Kerry to Prime Minister Cameron—in that order of significance—the emphasis with regard to Sri Lanka is the need for ethnic reconciliation. The search for a solution must be preceded by the identification of the problem or problems. Currently the effort at ethnic reconciliation runs …
Continue reading ‘Can the Modi Visit to Sri Lanka Help to Modify Devolution as Solution?’ »
By Suhasini Haidar India stands for a “united Sri Lanka”, but wants an “early and full implementation of the 13th Amendment” that provides for devolution in the Tamil majority Northern and Eastern provinces, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in Colombo on Friday. Mr. Modi, who was speaking at the historic Presidential secretariat after talks with …
By Meera Srinivasan Prime Minister Narendra Modi has asked Sri Lanka’s Tamils to be patient with the new government in Colombo, The Hindu learns from sources. He met senior leaders of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) — the main party representing the island’s northern Tamils — in Colombo on Friday. Pointing to the “beginning of …
by Suhasini Haidar Prime Minister Narendra Modi began his much anticipated visit to Sri Lanka on Friday with a grand ceremonial welcome, though only a modest set of agreements were signed after his talks with Mr. Sirisena. Unlike his previous stops in the Seychelles and Mauritius, where Indian Ocean security cooperation and big-ticket development commitments …
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi yesterday called upon Sri Lanka to fully implement the 13th Amendment to the Constitution and go beyond it to build a future that accommodated the aspirations of all sections of society. Conveying India’s admiration for President Sirisena’s efforts ‘to build an inclusive future for Sri Lanka’, PM Modi said at …
President Maithripala Sirisena said the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Sri Lanka and his own recent visit to India have turned a new page in cooperation between our two countries. Addressing media after bilateral discussions with the Indian delegation headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Presidential Secretariat in Colombo yesterday (March …
By DR. DAYAN JAYATILLEKA Prime Minister Modi is much admired and rightly so as a charismatic, strong, visionary Asian leader. His visit to Sri Lanka and his speeches here could be said, at first blush, to be a triumph for India’s ‘soft power’ projection. The thing about ‘soft power’ however, is that it is uneven, …
By Suhasini Haidar Full transcript of interview with former Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa by Suhasini Haidar. Q;This was an election you were so confident about; you called them ahead of time. What do you think contributed to your defeat? A;I misjudged the North and the East vote. In the South I have won, but …
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday flew into the Sri Lankan capital in the early hours for a historic visit during which he is expected to hold talks with the country’s top leadership. Mr. Modi was received by Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe at the airport after he arrived in Colombo for a two-day …
By Suhasini Haidar Claiming that the Research and Analysis Wing conspired with “Western agencies” CIA and MI-6 to rally the opposition led by President Maithripala Sirisena against his presidency, Sri Lanka’s former President Mahinda Rajapaksa says he does not, however, believe Prime Minister Narendra Modi or the government was responsible. In an exclusive interview to …
The National Executive Council has unanimously decided to recommend the arrest of former Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa to question him over the Avant Garde floating armory incident, local media reports said. Cabinet Spokesman Dr. Rajitha Senaratne told a local newspaper that a decision will be taken once President Maithripala Sirisena returns from Britain.
By Dasun Edirisinghe The National Freedom Front (NFF) yesterday charged that the National Executive Council was doing what the Tamil Diaspora and Western powers had been campaigning for since defeating the LTTE militarily. NFF Spokesman and former MP Mohammed Muzammil, addressing a media conference at the party head office at Battaramulla, said the Tamil Diaspora …
Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa stated that politicians are now saying things which should be said by the IGP or Attorney General. Speaking to reporters at Mihintale Raja Maha Viharaya earlier in the day, he further said that politicians are the ones announcing who will be remanded, who will be arrested and within how many days. …
by Norman Palihawadana and Madura Ranwala Parliamentarian Sarana Gunawardena was arrested by the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) yesterday afternoon over an alleged financial fraud. Police Media Unit (PMU) said Gunawardena was yesterday summoned to the CID to give a statement over an alleged fraud of Rs. 9.6 million which he was said to have taken …
By Zacki Jabbar The first state visit by an Indian leader to Sri Lanka in 28 years is scheduled to take place today(13) with the arrival of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Colombo. The late Rajiv Gandhi, the then Indian leader came to Colombo in 1987 to sign the Indo- Lanka Accord amidst strong opposition …
By Niveda Anandan Dear Young Tamil Men, Remember this conversation? “So what do you think of her?” says one young Tamil man to another. “She’s banging. But yo, I don’t think she’s the type you’d want to marry,” his friend replies. “What do you mean? You heard something bad about her?” The young Tamil man …
Continue reading ‘An Open Letter to Young Tamil Men on Behalf of Young Tamil Women’ »
By Meera Srinivasan It is time the 13th Amendment was replaced with a more dynamic system of devolution of powers, according to Sri Lanka’s Northern Province Chief Minister C.V. Wigneswaran. Speaking to The Hindu days ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Sri Lanka, the former Supreme Court judge said: “[The] 13th Amendment can …
Full transcript of interview with C.V. Wigneswaran, Chief Minister, Northern Province by Meera Srinivasan Q;PM Modi’s visit will be the first bilateral visit of an Indian leader to Sri Lanka in 27 years, and the first ever to Jaffna. How do you perceive this visit?
By Radhika Coomaraswamy When I heard that the Northern Provincial Council had passed a resolution on Genocide, I put my “head in my hands” again- something I did often during the previous regime. I asked myself, have we gone back to the beginning after all this violence and heartbreak? Tamil politics led by lawyers ( …
by D.B.S.Jeyaraj The Ilankai Thamil Arasu Katchi (ITAK) was formed in 1949 by a dissident faction of the All Ceylon Tamil Congress (ACTC) led by well –known lawyer G.G. Ponnambalam. The new party was called the Federal party in English though its name in Tamil stood for “Ceylon Tamil State Party”. The break away group …
Continue reading ‘Imperative Need to Support Tamil Moderates in the Struggle Against Extremists’ »
By Suhasini Haidar India is “intent on strengthening ties” with Sri Lanka, Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar, as he announced a slew of projects to be inaugurated while Prime Minister Narendra Modi visits Sri Lanka on March 13th and 14th. https://twitter.com/narendramodi/status/574562075495677953 Mr. Modi, who is the first Indian Prime Minister to make a bilateral visit to …
By Bandula Jayasekara A visit to Sri Lanka by an Indian Prime Minister has been long overdue. The last visit to the island by Rajiv Gandhi almost ended in disaster. Requests by former Presidents Chandrika Kumaratunga and Mahinda Rajapaksa, and even Ranil Wickremasinghe who was then Premier, had fallen on deaf Indian ears. However, both …
From Shamindra Ferdinando in London Defeated President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s personal astrologer, Sumanadasa Abeygunawardena, has offered his services to President Maithripala Sirisena. President Maithripala Sirisena has received a letter from Abeygunawardena explaining the circumstances leading to former President’s defeat while expressing a desire to serve the new leader, a senior presidential aide accompanying the President on …
BY DR DAYAN JAYATILLEKA “…The Sri Lankan government must keep up the pace on reform. Building trust by demilitarizing the North…We owe it to victims and survivors across Sri Lanka to ensure that those responsible are held to account…That’s why we, and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, have made clear that the report …
By Dasun Edirisinghe The JVP yesterday demanded the resignation of Central Bank Governor Arjuna Mahendran in view of the investigation being conducted into the alleged shady deal relating to the ten-billion-rupee bond issue to a company owned by his son in law on Feb. 27, 2015. Addressing a media conference at the party head office, …
From Shamindra Ferdinando in London Placards carrying pro-LTTE activists protested near Westminster Abbey on Monday afternoon (March 9) demanding that a UNHRC war crimes report on Sri Lanka be released forthwith. There were about 300 protesters though the organisers expected a far larger number. Some of the protesters shouted anti-Sri Lanka slogans as President Maithripala …
Newly appointed Chinese Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Yi Xianliang, said he was shocked when ‘issues’ were created and misleading media reports appeared when Chinese submarines called on the Colombo Port twice last year. He also said he is intended to discuss the matter with his Indian counterpart to check if that was an issue for …
By Rasika Jayakody On the sidelines of the Central Committee meeting of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party last week, a senior Parliamentarian of the party quipped that former President Rajapaksa was voraciously reading the biography of Russian President Vladimir Putin these days! Putin, who plays a pivotal role in the political sphere of Russia, became …
By Dr.Vickramabahu Karunaratne The main concern of the recent democratic uprising in Lanka has been on how to halt the presidential authoritarianism or constitutional dictatorship. It was NSSP that was first to show the defective character of the presidential system, introduced in 1978, Feb. 4th. We appealed to all democratic forces to participate in a …
Continue reading ‘Present President has a Special Place in the Hearts and Minds of the Minorities’ »
by Ishara Mudugamuwa Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Parliamentarians do not stand for a separate state. Their purpose is to ensure fair and equal treatment for Tamils, said Housing and Samurdhi Minister Sajith Premadasa. Minister Premadasa said some politicians make allegations against the TNA claiming that they supported President Maithripala Sirisena during the Presidential election to …
By Malik Gunatilleke Former Army Commander General Sarath Fonseka last week revealed what he branded the “untold story” of the final Eelam War against the LTTE between 2006 and 2009. His account detailed the challenges the military faced both from the terrorists as well as the Government. In a presentation delivered at The Kingsbury last …
(Text of Press Release Issued by the Office of the Prime Minister on March 10, 2015) Urgent Attention of the Government has been drawn in to the different opinions expressed regarding the Treasury Bond issue which was declared on the 27th Feb – 2015. Prime Minister after having consulted the President over the Phone decided …
By Sujith Hewajulige Commenting on the foreign travel restriction imposed on him in connection with the floating armoury of Avant-Garde, former Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa yesterday said he had never done anything illegal and always stood by the law. He said he had already given all the details in connection with the incident to the …
By David Cameron (This Op-ed piece by British Prime Minister David Cameron was written exclusively for the Daily mirror About his scheduled meeting with visiting President Maithripala Sirisena in London) Ever since my visit to Sri Lanka in 2013 I have been determined to help address the issues of Sri Lanka’s past and put the …
BY DR DAYAN JAYATILLEKA We must get to the root of the larger matter. The larger matter is the political dynamics of this island: the dialectics of Sri Lankan politics as it were. These dialectics have, in the Socratic-Hegelian sense, a thesis, an antithesis and could yield a synthesis. What is the thesis, the pre-existing …
From Sandun A Jayasekera in London Forming a national government in Sri Lanka was not an easy task as we aspired because our political culture was such that political parties always attempted to undermine and weaken the other, President Maithripala Sirisena said in London today. He made these remarks when he met a delegation from …
Shamindra Ferdinando reporting from London A new campaign meant to pressure Sri Lanka over accountability issues will get underway today (March 10) with the launch of a new Sinhala version of feature documentary No Fire Zone: The Killing Fields of Sri Lanka, at the House of Commons. The launch will take place at 10.00 am. …
From Shamindra Ferdinando in London The Global Tamil Forum (GTF) has requested the British government to persuade the new Sri Lankan administration to lift the ban on Tamil groups imposed by the previous governmnet. The GTF is among those groups included in the list of proscribed organisations. GTF President Rev. Dr S. J. Emmanuel has …
By Madura Ranwala The Galle Magistrate yesterday impounded the passports of three persons including former Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa and former Navy Commander Admiral Somathilaka Dissanayake. Travel restrictions were imposed to facilitate the investigation being carried out by the Criminal Investigations Department on the controversial floating armoury of Avant Garde Maritime Services (Pvt.) Limited.
Shamindra Ferdinando reporting from London President Maithripala Sirisena has assured Sri Lanka’s non-aligned foreign policy during crucial talks with British Defence Minister Michael Fallon in London yesterday (March 9). President Maithripala Sirisena explained Sri Lanka’s long standing relationship with China and its current status. Bilateral talks took place at London Hilton on Park Lane on …
By Dr Reeza Hameed The Mathripala Sirisena manifesto promised to implement a programme to stabilise the country in two stages, and the first of those stages is the Hundred Day programme which would be devoted to solving urgent issues. Among those matters that were signposted for reform during the first stage is the abolition of …
BY DR DAYAN JAYATILLEKA The 19th amendment is quite seriously flawed in terms of (a) definition (b) process and (c) content. It is flawed, indeed false, in terms of its definition, because an amendment which repeals whole sections of an existing Constitution and moreover changes it from a presidential to a parliamentary system is not …
By Hafeel Farisz State Minister for Defence and Gampaha District UNP Parliamentarian Ruwan Wijewardene in an interview with the Daily Mirror asserted that his ‘wings have not been clipped’ as some media reports had suggested and said that his political future would be decided by the people. Excerpts: Q To start off with there has …
By Ranga Jayasuriya Wimal Weerawansa has warned that we are now ‘losing our hard-earned freedom’. In a public rally held in Kandy on Friday to campaign for the prime-ministerial candidacy of Mahinda Rajapaksa, the Rajapaksa confidante asked people to get behind the ex-president to win their freedom back. I have been wondering as to what …
Shamindra Ferdinando Reporting from London President Maithripala Sirisena and the government are seeking British support for the post-war national reconciliation process to woo influential Tamil groups based in the UK. President Maithripala Sirisena and Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera are in the UK for talks with British Prime Minister David Cameron to explore ways and means …
By Ananth Palakidnar The Illankai Tamil Arasu Katchchi (ITAK) leader and the General Secretary of the Tamil National Alliance Mavai S. Senathiraja while criticizing the burning of the effigies of TNA Parliamentarians Sumanthiran and Sampanthan has said that it was a highly irresponsible act at this political juncture by certain misguided elements. He also said …
By Malinda Seneviratne Financial irregularity was one of the many charges leveled at the Mahinda Rajapaksa regime. The ‘rot’ so to speak began at the top, according to critics. It was and still is argued that this state of affairs is a direct or indirect product of a system of governance marked by centralization of …
by Ira de Silva The British High Commission in Colombo claims that “the LTTE is a proscribed organization in the U.K. Showing support for the LTTE by fundraising, waving flags and other means is a criminal offence”. Sri Lankans would like to ask the British High Commission to explain why there have been no arrests …
By Udaya Gammanpila There is a significant contrast between a parliamentary election and a presidential election, considering the psychological impact made with reference to the choice. Let me explain this taking Colombo District as an example. You get a list of 21 candidates contesting for the parliamentary election after voting for a particular party. You …
by D.B.S. Jeyaraj Tamil National Alliance(TNA)Leader Rajavarothayam Sampanthan MP and TNA National list Parliamentarian MA Sumanthiran won many hearts and minds by participating in the official Independence day ceremony held in Battaramulla on February 4th. The diplomatic community in Colombo hailed it as a commendable symbolic gesture towards ethnic reconciliation in a land torn asunder …
Continue reading ‘Tamil “Extremists” Target Sampanthan and Sumanthiran of the TNA as “Traitors”’ »
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has described Northern Province Chief Minister, C.V. Wigneswaran as an irresponsible man and a liar whom he would not meet even if he (Wickremesinghe) went to Jaffna. In an interview with Thanthi TV published in the Times of India quoted Wickremesinghe as saying that Wigneswaran will have to explain himself to …
By Don Manu There are certainly a great number of people in the Sri Lanka Freedom Party, ministers and MPs included, who would give their right arm to have former President Mahinda Rajapaksa back in the saddle of power. Most of these men are those who made good while the Rajapaksa sun shone which darkened …
By Suhasini Haidar Sri Lanka will handle its relations with India and China “separately” from each other, Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe told a Tamil TV Channel. In an interview ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit, Mr. Wickramasinghe blamed the former President Mahinda Rajapaksa for “playing the China card against India and India …
By S Venkat Narayan NEW DELHI, March 7: Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has warned that Indian fishermen can be shot if they intrude into Sri Lankan waters. He said in an interview to Thanthi TV, an Indian news channel, that Indian fishermen are taking away the livelihood of Northern Lanka fishermen. “If someone …
The Government yesterday, amidst growing opposition calls for an independent probe, launched an investigation into allegations of “insider trading” and favouritism in a Treasury bond issue involving the recently appointed Governor of the Central Bank (CB) and his son-in-law – allegations that rocked Colombo’s banking sector this week. CB Governor Arjuna Mahendran, who said he …
BY DR DAYAN JAYATILLEKA IDENTITY & THE ISLAND’S POLITICAL ORDER The question of definition is a serious one. The question of nationhood is a deadly serious one. I am concerned with the political consequences of definitions, not with academic quibbling about them. There can be academic definitions brought in the service of everything and its …
By Rohini Hensman and Faizun Zackaria Change in Sri Lanka cannot end with the defeat of Mahinda Rajapaksa. An overhaul of the executive presidency and accountability for all war crimes going back to the 1970s need to be established and a new economic and social programme needs to be undertaken. A manifesto for the new …
By C.A.Chandraprema Kandy has long been known to be a bastion of the UNP. Maithripala Sirisena got 54.5% of the votes in that district and had a majority of 88,000. Even though MR did win some electorates even in this district, one may say that the political initiative in Kandy has now passed on to …
President Maithripala Sirisena, as Chair-in-Office of the Commonwealth, will attend the Commonwealth Day celebrations in London on March 9, 2015, the President’s Office has said in a media statement. Sri Lanka became the head of the Commonwealth following the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting hosted by Sri Lanka in November 2013. President Sirisena will take …
By Dasun Edirisinghe and Cyril Wimalasurendra Reporting from Kandy Former Minister and National Freedom Front Leader Wimal Weerawansa yesterday said that Indian intelligence service RAW and US were behind the victory of Maithripala Sirisena over UPFA candidate Mahinda Rajapaksa at the January 08 presidential election. Addressing a massive rally in Kandy organised by the MEP, …
By Dasun Edirisinghe and Cyril Wimalasurendra Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa said yesterday that he would listen to the people’s voice and do what they wanted him to do for the country. In his statement to the Kandy rally organised by UPFA allies demanding former President’s return to politics as the UPFA’s prime ministerial candidate, Rajapaksa …
(Full Text of Interview Given by Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe to India’s “Thanthi TV” that was published in “The Hindu”newspaper) THANTHI TV: Thank you very much Mr. Prime Minister for agreeing to talk to us. Let me start asking about the working of the New National Govt. There is an SLFP President, UNP …
(Media release Issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the Official visit of Indian Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi to Sri Lanka) Indian Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi will undertake an official visit to Sri Lanka from 13 to 14 March 2015 at the invitation of President Maithripala Sirisena. On 13th March, Prime Minister …
BY DR DAYAN JAYATILLEKA “…The Government has invited Mr. Pablo de Greiff, the Special Rapporteur on truth, justice, reparations and guarantees of non-recurrence to visit Sri Lanka for consultations. He has proposed to visit us at the end of this month. We also look forward to receiving the Working Group on Involuntary and Enforced Disappearances…”–Mangala …
By Hafeel Farisz General Daya Rathnayake, the former Commander of the Sri Lankan Army, is the most decorated military officer in the history of the security forces, speaks to the Dailymirror on a wide range of topics in a candid, no holds barred interview. Excerpts:
by Rajan Hoole, N. Sivapalan, Ahilan Kadirgamar and K. Sritharan The UN Human Rights Commission’s decision to investigate violations and the huge loss of life during the last months of the war concluded in 2009 was a significant victory for the victims. The dignity of the victims required that the truth must be told without …
by Shamindra Ferdinando The JVP has opposed special provision for a 45-member cabinet and 55 deputy ministers/state ministers following the next general election to facilitate the formation of a national government. JVP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake, MP, yesterday said that his party was agreeable to formation of a national government though it wouldn’t be party …
By Jayashika Padmasiri The tension between the main opposition Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) and the Government seems to be increasing rapidly as Opposition Leader Nimal Siripala de Silva and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe engage in a cold war while standing under the ‘National Government umbrella’. The debate rages between implementing constitutional amendments with electoral …
By Mahinda Rajapaksa (Text of a Press release Issued by Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa) Wide publicity has been given to images of what is purported to be a half built presidential residence in Kankesanthurei said to have been constructed for my exclusive use. I wish to inform the public that no presidential residence was being …
By Hemantha Randunu The Colombo Crime Division (CCD) yesterday grilled former President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s son Lt. Yoshitha on a light aircraft found some weeks back in a storeroom of a building belonging to the Economic Development Centre at Narahenpita. Yoshitha, in his statement to the CID, had said that the veteran film producer Chandran Ratnam …
By Saman Indrajith Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe yesterday told Parliament that he had ordered Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera to conduct a full investigation into payments amounting to millions of rupees made to US Congressmen by the External Affairs Ministry under the previous government to lobby on behalf of Sri Lanka. Prime Minister Wickremesinghe said that …
By Saman Indrajith President Maithripala Sirisena told Parliament yesterday that a powerful politician of the previous regime had taken a bribe of one billion rupees to shelve the national drug policy draft Bill. Addressing Parliament at the commencement of the second reading stage debate on National Medicines Regulatory Authority Bill, the President said that 400 …
By Hemantha Warnakulasuriya It was very interesting to hear from one of the Opposition big guns, Anura Kumara Dissanayake that Mahinda Rajapaksa could not live in this country as a defeated candidate as he had committed so many crimes including corruption in the awarding of contracts without following any tender procedures, to his cronies, local …
By Shamindra Ferdinando Ex-senior Sea Tiger cadre Jeyaganesh Murugesu Pakeerathy (41), who was taken into custody at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) on Monday (2) has been granted French permanent resident status. The Terrorist Investigation Department (TID) arrested her soon after her arrival at the airport to leave for France. Pakeerathy is a mother of …
By Watchdog Background Ms. JeyaGanesh Pakeerathy was a member of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Sea Tigers unit for around four years (exact years unknown). She was heavily injured and was discontinued in 2000. After receiving intensive treatment at home, she recovered. However, even today she is unable to do heavy work. In …
DR. DAYAN JAYATILLEKA “It is my humble view Sir, if we are to progress as one Country with two nations…” (‘Your Excellency Our President, We Need One Country With Two Nations’- CV Wigneswaran, Colombo Telegraph, March 3, 2015) It became known as the Two Nation theory. That was the basis on which Jinnah fought for …
By Upul Joseph Fernando Northern Chief Minister, C.V. Wigneswaran, is reported to have come in for severe criticism by the Indian High Commission in Colombo, over the resolution passed in the Northern Provincial Council (NPC) calling international assistance to probe genocide of Tamils. In addition to this critical stand taken by the Indian High Commission …
By Shamindra Ferdinando Accusations that Tamil youth were being held in secret detention camps were baseless, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe told a gathering of Buddhist clergy at Rukmale Sri Dharmaloka Vijayaloka Mahaviharaya on Sunday (1). Among the invitees at a felicitation ceremony for newly appointed Mahanayake Thera Ven. Iththapane Dharmalankara was Rt. Rev. Malcolm Cardinal …
By Malik Gunatilleke General Sarath Fonseka stated that the majority in the country needed to assume the responsibility of creating an environment of trust in order to combat ideas of separatism while slamming politicians for stirring racial tensions to gain political advantages. The General made these comments while conducting a forum yesterday at the Kingsbury …
by Shamindra Ferdinando Northern Province Chief Minister C. V. Wigneswaran has reiterated his controversial call for wider UN probe into what he called genocide of Tamils since 1948 while his party, the TNA, is seeking to improve its relations with the new government, The retired Supreme Court judge sought the backing of visiting UN head …
by Dasun Edirisinghe The SLFP had banned its MPs, Provincial Councillors or local government members from attending pro-Mahinda Rajapaksa rallies organised by other political parties in the United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) without prior approval, SLFP General Secretary MP Anura Priyadarshana Yapa said yesterday. He said that the SLFP Central Committee had prohibited elected SLFP representatives …
By Jayashika Padmasiri The United Nations (UN) said yesterday that it supported a credible domestic probe, which met international standards, into allegations of war crimes in Sri Lanka and asked the Government to make maximum use of the time between now and September before the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) report was presented. UN Under-Secretary-General …
President Maithripala Sirisena said yesterday that the Government was fully committed to resolving issues without differentiating between people from the South and the North. During remarks when he chaired the Northern Province Coordinating meeting in Jaffna District Secretariat, Sirisena said: “Everyone should work in a spirit of brotherhood irrespective of differences. The task of bringing …
By Lakmal Sooriyagoda Colombo district UPFA parliamentarian Duminda Silva and 12 others were today indicted in the Colombo High Court on 17 charges in the killing of former presidential advisor Bharatha Lakshman Premachandra and four others at Walpola, Mulleriyawa in 2011.
By Col R Hariharan [This is the text updated on March 2, 2015 of the presentation made at a national seminar on “Understanding China – Indian perspective” organised jointly by the Chennai Centre for China Studies, and Institute for China Studies and the Nelson Mandela chair for Afro-Asian Studies, Mahatma Gandhi University at Kottyam on …
By Maleeha Hamid Siddiqui IT is 8am on Saturday and I am outside Carlton House, the forest-green-coloured residence of Mahinda Rajapaksa, former president of Sri Lanka. It is a modest structure and on a low roof perches a medium-sized board carrying a picture of him beaming. He has been residing in his hometown Tangalle after …
BY DR DAYAN JAYATILLEKA A man or woman must have the courage of his or her convictions. If you do something, do so because you think it is right. If you oppose something, do so because you think it is wrong. If you’ve done something because you think it is right, say so, defend your …
By Rex Clementine reporting from Wellington In any city where cricket is played and Sri Lankans live, Kumar Sangakkara is a popular man. So is he in the New Zealand capital of Wellington where he has left an indelible mark. Sanga has thrilled the Wellingtonians with some classy knocks. Wellington has two cricket grounds. The …
By Harendra Fernando Last Friday the Daily FT carried a review of the UNPs performance at the halfway mark. All in all, it has been a total disappointment for those people who voted the Sirisena-UNP combined team to office. The UNP, having been in the Opposition for over 12 years, is now demonstrating it has …
(Text of Statement made by Sri Lankan Minister of Foreign Affairs Mangala Samaraweera at the High-level Segment of the 28th Session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on 2 March 2015) Mr. President High Commissioner for Human Rights/ Madam Deputy High Commissioner Excellencies Distinguished Delegates Ladies and Gentlemen It is an honour for …
(Text of Media Release Issued on February 27th 2015 about Distorted Accounts Published by the Northern Provincial Council ) Northern Provincial Council Financial Statement as at 31st December 2014 published in the NPC website is a distorted accounts. The Leader of Opposition pointed it out during the question time in the council on 24th February …
By Sulochana Ramiah Mohan The most outspoken Bishop in Sri Lanka, Dr Rayappu Joseph of Mannar says a purely domestic inquiry will not be perceived by Tamils as impartial, at least at this stage. Also, what should be done now as first step is to cooperate with the UN investigation and discuss next steps after …
By Malinda Seneviratne Ranil Wickramasinghe is the Prime Minister of this country. He is Prime Minister today because he helped Maithripala Sirisena become President of this country. If he enjoys any power today it is simply because the President has unofficially conferred to him much of the decision-making powers vested in his office by the …
(Text of Second Resolution passed by the Central Working Committee of the Ilankai Thamil Arasu Katchi (ITAK) on 1st March 2015 in Vavuniya) Resolution 2 The Central Working Committee of the ITAK continues to observe the unwarranted and unacceptable steps being taken against its Senior Leader R. Sampanthan and Deputy General Secretary for International Affairs …
Text of First Resolution passed by the Central Working Committee of the Ilankai Thamil Arasu Katchi (ITAK) on 1st March 2015 in Vavuniya. Resolution 1 On this 1st of March 2015, the Central Working Committee of the Ilankai Thamil Arasu Katchi considering the changed political environment prevailing after regime change in Sri Lanka, resolves to …
By The “Sunday Times”Political Editor The Government this week crossed the half way mark of its hundred-day programme to fulfil promises made to the people during the campaign for the January 8 presidential election. Ironically that milestone has arrived with some election assurances remaining unfulfilled and was to take a turn for the worse on …
By Nirmala Kannangara When thousands of peasants struggle to find a proper meal to their children due to the high cost of living, millions of rupees of public money had allegedly been ‘wasted’ monthly by the former regime on 38 Presidential Advisers. The Sunday Leader learns that out of the 38 Presidential Advisers, 20 were …
By Don Manu All women tend to lie about their age. But not all women get landed in the slammer for it. Sashi’s – or is it Shehasa’s or is it Shirja’s’s — alleged mistake was to have falsified her name and age on documents tendered to obtain a diplomatic passport, an offence which carries …