Writing in The Guardian's Comment is Free section, the newspaper's readers' editor, Chris Elliott, expressed regret over the paper's decision last week to include a 24-page promotional Sri Lanka supplement in the same issue as the newspaper's reporting of on-going torture of deportees. Elliott wrote: "Although the disclaimer on the supplement says the Guardian is not responsible for the content, the act of distribution by the newspaper lends a perception of endorsement – probably more so than a normal advert would – and the opportunity this affords to governments is not one we should provide...
The Sri Lankan Sports Minister has announced that he is considering introducing a law that will ban sportsmen who refuse to represent the country in international sports. Sports Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage told reporters , "We are having issues mostly in cricket and rugby where national team players often refuse to represent the country when the national team has a scheduled tour and at times opt to play for some other event. So we are now looking at bringing in amendments to the sports law to allow sporting bodies to temporarily ban such players". His statement comes after several...
The US has granted seven further countries, including Sri Lanka, exemptions from sanctions for importing Iranian oil. South Africa, India, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Taiwan and Turkey were given a waiver from meeting a US deadline, which is looming at the end of this month, to reduce imports from Iran. Countries, which haven’t been granted an exemption and fail to reduce imports, will be cut off from the US financial system. Japan and 10 EU states were granted exemptions from the sanctions, imposed by Congress in December last year, in March. US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, said in a...
As international pressure continues to mount on the Sri Lankan government over allegations of war crimes, External Affairs Minister G.L. Peiris has praised the recent trip to London by Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa, stating many useful meetings were held. Speaking in an interview with the state-run Daily News, External Affairs Minister G. L. Peiris said , “Sri Lanka could be pleased with the way things are turning out with regard to the conduct of its international relations.” He went on to say that Rajapaksa held a series of “useful” meetings with key officials including British...
Students at the Eastern University boycotted lessons for the third day on Saturday, protesting against the appointment of a paramilitary backed appointment of Dr Jaffer to the university's governing council, reports TamilNet. Dr Jaffer, the director of the Kalmunai Base hospital is reported to be backed by the paramilitary leader come Sri Lankan deputy minister, Vinayagamoorthy Muralitharan (Karuna). TamilNet reports that the Vice Chancellor of the Eastern University, Professor K. Gobinarajah, said the university was 'helpless to political appointments made to its governing council by Colombo...
The Sri Lankan government cautioned the US ambassador designate, Michele Sison, over her recent statements on Sri Lanka's human rights record . The Sri Lankan secretary to the Ministry of External Affairs, Karunatilaka Amunugama, said that although they were not currently taking any action... “ If she is appointed as ambassador to Sri Lanka, and she continues to make such preconceived comments then the government will look at taking further action .” He added, “ I am confident that the ideas expressed by the ambassador designate and the US government are two different ideas .”
A senior official of India's Intelligence Bureau has accused Tamil Nadu police officers of turning a blind eye to Tamil refugees leaving refugee camps and moving to Kerala. The official is quoted as saying, "The Tamil Nadu police are turning a blind eye on Lankan Tamils moving from refugee camps to Kerala. It's not possible for refugees in such large numbers to avoid detection of the police. We strongly believe that the Tamil Nadu police are discreetly allowing refugees to come to Kerala," "We have communicated the matter to the Tamil Nadu police as we cannot believe that the refugees have...
The ultra Sinhala nationalist party, JHU, are to take legal action over TNA leader, Sampanthan, for statements 'regarding formation of a Tamil Eelam state', reports Colombo Page. The spokesperson for the JHU, Nishantha Sri Warnasinghe, asserted that Sampanthan's statements were in violation of the 157th article of the constitution of Sri Lanka. The party, led by Buddhist monks, has criticised the government and accused it of failing to take action over the Sampanthan's comments at the ITAK convention held in Batticaloa recently.
The Sri Lankan Army is to import 10,000 cows from Australia, as they aim to produce enough milk to support the entire country. Colonel A.V. Gunaratne, Director of Agriculture and Livestock at the army-run Kandakudah farm, was reported to have told journalists of the military project, as he took them on a tour of the area. The project was to be backed by a ‘foreign company’ reported The Island , with all produce being made available to the state-owned Milco company. The European company also allegedly wanted assurance from the government that they would purchase any produce not bought by the...
Tamil students in Jaffna marked the Queen’s diamond jubilee, where she dined with Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa by symbolically burning the island’s constitutions from 1833 until the present day. The students laid the 7 constitutions in the form of placards and wreath down in St John’s cemetery in Jaffna, before setting them all alight as a mark of protest and managed to evade the security forces in the heavily militarised North. Photograph: Courtesy of TamilNet See the report from TamilNet here .