More than 1000 officers sent under the instruction of the Economic Development Minister, Basil Rajapaksa have been involved in the intimidation of Tamil and Muslim voters in three districts of the eastern province, Ampaarai, Batticaloa and Trincomalee, reports TamilNet. According to complaints made by the leaders of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) and Sri Lankan Muslim Congress, R.Sampanthan and Rauff Hakeem, voters were warned of serious consequences should they not vote for the ruling United peoples Freedom Party (UPFA) in the upcoming Eastern Provincial Council election. The gangs of...
The Sri Lankan government has declared September 3rd as a national day of mourning to commemorate the life of the Chief Prelate of the Sri Lanka Ramannya Nikaya, Weweldeniye Medhalankara Thero. Ramannya Nikaya, who passed away at the age of 103, was a long standing upholder of the Buddhist order and spent most of his life disseminating the Sri Lankan Theravadic monastic tradition. Nikaya was also an avid supporter of the discriminatory and power enhancing Buddhist temporalities act of 1931. The government has also declared that a funeral will take place with full state honours for the late...
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalitha has ordered the expulsion of two Sri Lankan football teams, who were taking part in training sessions in Chennai. The Chief Minister slammed the Indian Government for inviting the Sri Lankans, ordering the suspension of a stadium official who allegedly allowed “friendly” matches to take place. Jayalalitha commented that, “I have directed the Chief Secretary to place the officer under suspension and take departmental action against him. The Sri Lankan team will not be allowed to play any matches in the State and I have issued orders to send them back to...
President Rajapakse and Ayatollah Khamenei (Fars News Agency) President Mahinda Rajapakse met with the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Khamenei on Friday, on the sidelines of the 16th Non-Aligned Movement summit in Tehran. The Ayatollah praised Sri Lanka for standing up against ‘colonialists’. He said hegemonic powers try "to portray themselves as invincible, but Iran and Sri Lanka's experiences show that resistance against colonialists and hegemons [sic] is possible" . The Supreme Leader also praised Sri Lanka’s support for the Palestinian cause and its ‘respect’ for the...
China's Defence Minister Liang Guanglie, who is currently on an official visit to Sri Lanka spoke about China's national defence policy, and dismissed talk of the "China Threat Theory". Guanglie said , "On this point, the Chinese government issued a whitepaper China's Peaceful Development in 2011, solemnly declaring to the world that China will unswervingly follow the path of peaceful development. The core idea of this path is that China will develop itself through upholding world peace and contribute to world peace through its own development." "Up to now, China has dispatched around 21,000 person/times to 30 UN Peace-keeping missions, making it the largest personnel contributor among the 5 permanent members of the UN Security Council. We have sent rescue teams for 18 times to conduct humanitarian rescue operations. Since 2008, China has sent 12 batches of naval task forces to conduct escort missions in the Gulf of Aden and off the coast of Somalia. With the further modernisation of China's national defense, China will make greater contributions to world peace as a responsible member of the international community." See also: China's support for Sri Lanka's militarisation (28 Aug 2012)
Indonesian authorities are holding in custody 50 asylum seekers from the island of Sri Lanka for the past two days, just after they survived the sinking of their vessel en route to Australia, and over 24 hours in the water. Over one hundred others perished. The National Search and Rescue Agency spokesperson, Gagah Prakoso, said to AFP: "They were starving and dehydrated, but have since been given food, water and medical attention. They are now in the custody of police in the town of Sikakap." See: Asylum seeker boat sinks en route to Australia (30 Aug 2012)
An event, part of a cultural exchange programme of Kalai Kaviri College in Trichy, has been cancelled after protestors demanded that the Sri Lankan participants be sent back. 54 students and 10 teachers from Sri Lanka came to participate in a programme on Thursday, but were told by college administrators to return to Sri Lanka as the programme had been cancelled. Members of Naam Thamizhar Iyakkam protested outside the premises, shouting slogans against the Sri Lankan state and Mahinda Rajapakse. The Times of India reported that the Assistant Commissioner of Police Mr Gandhi “blasted” the...
The annual animal sacrifice for the feast of Sri Bhadra Kali Amman in Munneswaram has been cancelled on the request of President Mahinda Rajapakse. The ritual which involves the sacrifice of hundreds of goats and fowl has sparked rows between the areas Hindu Tamils and Buddhists. Apparently oblivious to the state's attitude towards religions other than Buddhism, the temple's Chief Priest had actually requested the President's protection for the feast to go ahead. But the president ignored the request and instead asked for the ceremony to be halted, as the sacred Buddhist Kapilavastu relics...
A spokesperson from the Sri Lankan Police has stated that 21,000 officers would be deployed during the upcoming elections, as the state looks to step up the presence of security forces. SSP Ajith Rohana stated that amongst those deployed would be 123 Superintendents and Assistant Superintendants, 1,407 Chief Inspectors, Inspectors and Sub Inspectors including 68 women, 5,340 Police Sergeants, 12,886 Police Constables and a further 1,427 women Police Constables. The announcement comes after the army also said earlier this month, that they would be intensifying their operations in the Eastern...
Sri Lanka’s Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa recently made a trip to Sudan and met his counterpart, the ICC wanted Abdel Rahim Mohammed Hussein, Sudan’s Minister of Defence. Abdel Rahim Mohammed Hussein had an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court earlier this year, for 21 counts of war crimes and 20 counts of crimes against humanity. Photograph: Sudan's Ministry of Defence Whilst Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Defence failed to publish photographs of the two meeting, Sudan meanwhile released the above photograph, praising a successful meeting. Rajapaksa also met with other...