• New Year prayers in Jaffna for political prisoners and IDPs

    Jan 01


    Prayers were said in Jaffna for the released of political prisoners, the return of IDPs to their homes and for ongoing sufferings of the Tamil people to be alleviated on Friday as the new year dawned.

  • 10th anniversary of 'Trinco 5' killings, still no justice

    Photograph Tamilnet

    Today marks the 10 years since the murder of five Tamil students, committed by Sri Lanka's Special Task Force, whilst they spent an afternoon on the beach in Trincomalee.

    A memorial service was held in Trinco to remember the students that were killed by Sri Lanka's special forces.

    Speaking at the event, the Trinco-based rights activist Jathindra called on the people to be proactive in their struggle for justice. Such memorial events should not only be for remembrance but also to unify Tamils in their actions, he said.

  • Sri Lanka's Navy pledges to 'preserve hard-won peace' in New Year
    Sri Lanka’s Navy pledged to ‘preserve’ the ‘hard-won peace’ on the island, reports Colombo Page.

    In a New Year address to Navy personnel, the Commander of the Navy Ravindra Wijegunaratne, called on all Navy personnel to perform their duties and extend their assistance to the development of the country.
  • Sri Lanka Army Commander reiterates commitment to national security on New Year's day
    The commander of Sri Lanka’s Army Lieutenant General Crishante De Silva said the army’s primary commitment was to ensure national security in a New Years Message.

    Speaking to the army on New Year’s day Mr De Silva said,
  • 700 acres in Vali North returned after 25 year army occupation

    Some 700 acres of land in Valikamam North, which has been under army occupation for over 25 years, was released to owners on Tuesday.

  • Enormous task of solving 'national question' and 'reconciliation' says TNA leader
    The leader of the Tamil National Alliance, R Sampanthan stressed that there was an “enormous task of achieving a meaningful solution to the national question, beneficial development and lasting peace and reconciliation."

    Calling on the citizens of Sri Lanka to give their fullest support Mr Sampanthan added,

    “It is through solidarity that we can build a prosperous country while acknowledging ethnic, linguistic, cultural, religious and other unique features of each community.

    Full text reproduced below.
  • Sri Lanka's PM lauds 'triumph over adversity'
    Sri Lanka’s Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said that Sri Lanka had “triumphed over adversity” in his New Year message.

    Mr Wickremesinghe stressed that there was promise of developing an era "that understands and comprehends the true meaning of freedom from oppression."

    See full text below.
  • TNA urges remaining land and political prisoners to be released in New Year

    The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) called on the Sri Lankan government to release remaining lands held in the New Year.

    Welcoming the release of 701 acres of land occupied by the military in Valikamam North and East earlier this week, the TNA recalled a promise made by the president during a visit to Jaffna two months ago to release lands that could be immediately released by the end of 2015.

  • Fresh arrests of Indian fishermen by Sri Lankan navy
    A group of Indian fishermen have been arrested by the Sri Lankan navy for allegedly violating the Trincomalee, in the third such incident this month.

    The 29 fishermen and three boats were detained by the Sri Lankan navy at a military camp in Trincomalee.

    The arrest come as the issue of the continued arrest of Indian fishermen was brought up in the Lok Sabha, with another 45 fishermen remaining in Sri Lankan custody.
  • New constitution prepared by June 2016 with public referendum says govt

    The new constitution would be prepared during the first six months of 2016 and a public referendum held said the government's chief whip, minister Lakshman Kiriella.

  • Sri Lankan government ‘not interested’ in bridge to India states Minister
    Sri Lanka’s Highways Minister Lakshman Kiriella stated his government was not interested in India's proposed plans to build a bridge between Tamil Nadu and the Tamil homeland in the North-East of the island.

    Ruling out the possibility of the bridge project materialising, Mr Kiriella denied that the proposal was even discussed with the Sri Lankan government.

    The minister went on to emphasise that talks with Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe’s visit to Delhi did not include the bridge project. Earlier the minister had said “we are against it because people of Sri Lanka are opposed to it”.
  • Sri Lanka is ‘examining possibility’ of IMF loan says CB governor
    Sri Lanka’s Central Bank Governor Arjuna Mahendran said the government was in “informal consultations” with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) over the possibility of a further loan.

    “Yes we are examining the possibilities and the government are in informal consultation with the IMF,” confirmed Mr Mahendran.

    However the governor stated, “our reserves are comfortable at this point”. “We have over four and a half months of imports, admittedly some of that is borrowed but the country is in no dire need of emergency funding,” he added.

    His comments come as Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake stated Sri Lanka is “not dictated by IMF policy”.
  • Sri Lanka blacklists and fines company responsible for organising Enrique concert
    The municipal government of Sri Lanka’s capital Colombo has blacklisted the company responsible for organising the Enrique Iglesias concert that sparked outrage from Sri Lanka’s president Maithripala Sirsiena.

    The Company, Live Events which was responsible for hosting Enrique Iglesias on his ‘Sex and Love tour’ was charged with tax evasion, reprots Colombo Page.

    The main stakeholders of the organisation Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayewardene apologised for the concert shortly after President Maithripala Sirisena condemned women throwing bras at the pop icon during his performance.

    Sri Lankan president defiant after criticism over ‘whipping’ remarks (29 Dec 2015)
  • Buddhist monks and UPFA MP warns Sri Lankan government against arresting military over massacres
    A group of Buddhist monks and Member of Parliament for the National Freedom Front (NFF) Jayantha Samaraweera held a protest warning the government against arresting members of the military for human rights abuses.

    The monks performed a religious ceremony calling for the release of Sri Lankan military officers who were arrested over their involvement in the disappearance of journalist Prageeth Ekneligoda.

    Mr Samaraweera, a UPFA member, “warned the government of dire consequences unless it immediately stopped persecuting military officers on trumped-up charges,” reports The Island.

    He also called for the release of Sunil Rathnayaka, the Sinhala soldier sentenced to death over the massacre of 8 Tamil civilians in Jaffna in 2001.
  • Sri Lankan government is hiding ISIS threat claims BBS

    Bodu Bala Sena accused the Sri Lankan government of covering up the threat posed by the Islamic State, warning that it was spreading across the island.

    The General Secretary of the Bodu Bala Sena Galagodaaththe Gnanasara told a press conference that “as an organisation, we demand the government to release the details of the report to Parliament and to the people.”

    “We suspect the government is hiding this report to prevent communal conflicts in the country,” he added, stating that an ISIS attack could take place in Sri Lanka “within a year”.

    “We have alerted the government several times and warned the intelligence services,” said the monk, who is currently under investigation for the second time this year over Islamophobic statements he has made.

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