Tamil National Alliance MP M A Sumanthiran has hit out at the government’s insincerity in addressing accountability issues.

In a speech to the Sri Lankan parliament on Friday, Mr Sumanthiran said that only an independent international investigation can break the cycle of impunity and prevent the return of violence.

The Sri Lankan military deployed to the North-East are to be trained in public health surveillance and disease prevention, the Ministry of Health announced on Friday.

According to the ministry spokesperson, the soldiers will be trained by the Epidemiology Unit of the Health Ministry and will by the end of their training have the same knowledge as a public health inspector in dengue fever prevention, and conduct all inspection activities in the North-East.

The Defence Minister, Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, was thanked by the Health Minister Maithripapa Sirisena, for the defence ministry's contribution to the public health initiative.

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Finance Secretary Dr P B Jayasundera has said tea imports into Sri Lanka should be banned in order to protect the integrity and image of Sri Lankan tea.

The Tea Exporters Association, which represents around 75% of Sri Lankan tea exporters, has recently made a proposal to allow the importing and blending of foreign tea with Sri Lankan blends for export.

Speaking at a Dilmah conference, Dr Jayasundera rejected the proposals.

The Right to Information Act proposed by the UNP has been blocked by the government, according to UNP MP Karu Jayasuriya.

Speaking to The Sunday Leader, Jayasuriya said that he was informed the bill could not be presented as it had already been defeated in 2010.

Canada has urged Sri Lanka to conduct a full investigation into the murder of Canadian Tamil businessman Anthonypillai Mahendrarajah.

Mr Mahendrarajah was murdered while he was visiting his native town of Kilinochchi to reclaim property occupied by Sri Lankan businesses, which brought him into conflict with the military.

A federal judge in USA called into question the "emblazoned banner of terrorism" during the sentencing of Karunakaran Kandasamy, accused of providing material support to the LTTE.

Emphasising the need to "look at the case specifically", Judge Raymond Dearie said he believed that Kandasamy was engaged in providing humanitarian, not military, aid for the Tamil people in Sri Lanka. Deeming the 20-year sentence sought by the prosecution "excessive", Judge Dearie sentenced Kandasamy to time served in jail of five years.