Officials from the US and Sri Lankan air forces held discussions on “regional security” and further training for Sri Lankan troops, at a second round of meeting at a second round of Airman to Airman talks earlier last month.

Free trade negotiations between China and Sri Lanka have come to a “standstill” reports a Colombo official, after Beijing refused to accept a clause that allows for the deal to be reviewed in 10 years.

In a Reuters exclusive, Sri Lanka’s chief trade negotiator K.J. Weerasinghe said even low level discussions between the two sides over a potential free trade deal have made little progress.

Sri Lanka’s Department of Survey released an updated map of the island earlier this week, to include the controversial Chinese projects in both Hambantota and Colombo.

The Hambantota port, built by the Chinese, was included in the map along with the Colombo Port City, expressways and other development projects started by the country in the last couple of years. Colombo has increased in size by 474.5 hectares since land reclamation for the project began, with work still ongoing.

Survey General of Sri Lanka P. M. P. Udayakantha said more changes will be required due to the changing landscape of the island.

Residents in Thikkam, Vadamarachchi held a remembrance event this week in memory of their loved ones who were killed by the Sri Lankan army during a military offensive in 1987. 

Residents were shot dead and killed by shell fire from May 29 to 31, 1987 as the Sri Lankan military conducted what it described as 'Operation Liberation' to 'liberate' the Vadamarachchi region from the LTTE. 

The Northern Provincial Council's education minister, K Sarveswaran was approached by two Terrorism Investigation Division (TID) officers this week, ordering him to attend for an inquiry at their Colombo 4th floor office on June 5. 

Mr Sarveswaran complained however after the summons the TID officers provided appeared to be similar to an anonymous letter rather than a formal document and spelt his name incorrectly as 'K Parameswaran'. 

"If the TID are coming with an anonymous letter to me as an NPC minister, just imagine how ordinary civilians are treated," Sareswaran told media afterwards. 

The Northern Provincial Council on Wednesday passed a resolution aimed at ending Sri Lankan military involvement in civilian affairs. 

NPC members condemned the military's ongoing activities in the province and its harassment of locals. 

Highlighting the issue of illegal fishing in Vadamarachchi by Sinhala fishermen NPC member, Shivajilingam said the it should be stopped and condemned the threatening of locals who protested against this last month by Sri Lankan navy personnel. 

The assassinated senior Tamil journalist, Aiyathurai Nadesan was remembered this week by journalists and media workers at commemorative events in the North-East.

Mr Nadesan, who worked for over 20 years with Virakesari was shot dead in Batticaloa on May 31, 2004. 

In the months leading up to his killing, Mr Nadesan had been threatened and harassed by military personnel. On June 7, 2001, he was summoned by the army for an inquiry where he was warned to cease reporting on human rights abuses. 

Journalists in Jaffna and Batticaloa protested on Wednesday against the increasing number of attacks on media workers, including one last week. 

Journalists criticised the complete lack of action and justice around murdered and attacked Tamil journalists and media workers.

Sri Lankan military forces should no longer carry out civilian tasks within Jaffna, the Jaffna Municipal Council has said.

A resolution, put forward by TNPF councillor V. Manivannan and passed on Wednesday by the council, said there was no need for military forces to carry out civilian tasks within the council’s administrative border.

"We are demanding that the military, which is occupying Tamil people's lands in the North, should leave from here,” the Council said.

“By using the military for events that take place here, it is like we are permitting their presence here."

The 37^th anniversary of the burning of the Jaffna Public Library was marked at a remembrance event this morning.