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News Archive for Aug 2010
A reply to that special correspondent of BBC Sinhala serviceAs has been always, the sole aim of the BBC is to discredit MR government. No wonder BBC chose to send a LTTE sympathizer with a Nelsonian eye as their special correspondent to report on the plight of IDPs returnees. It is sad that BBC correspondent emphasises the suffering of only a section of our community (Mannar Tamils or returning IDPs) for homelessness. I must say, regardless ones race or creed, I too pity for those that suffer for being homeless. Homelessness of some unfortunate people shouldn't be a political football. Take for instance, estate Tamils... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 31/08/10)
The Travels of a Journalist,-ABOUT BOWERS, BOATS AND BUDDIES:TIES BEYOND CULTURAL BARRIERS -(PART 2)
Minnesota (pop. 5.23 million) is known as the “Land of 10,00 Lakes.†Therefore, it is no wonder that Minnesotans like water sports such as boating, canoeing, fishing and water skiing. Weekend trips to family cabins on Minnesota's numerous lakes are a way of life for many Minnesotans. This also explains why Minnesotans would make an extra effort to introduce their foreign friends to these sports. Bowers used boating to break cultural barriers and become a lifelong friend of mine. He and I both had to... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 31/08/10)
Ramadan celebrations in Kuwait
The annual Ramadan celebrations jointly organized by the Sri Lankan .Embassy and the Sri Lankan Manpower Welfare Association ( SLMWA ) of Kuwait was held at the Embassy premises amid a gathering of over 1500 devotees belonging to all ethnic and religious denominations. The program of activities commenced on 27th evening continued till early hours of 28th morning which included special prayers, religious discourses, breaking - fast, Ifthar, Suhoor etc. The SLMWA members under the guidance of its President,    Mr. Nelson Christopher made excellent arrangements for the occasion while staff of the Embassy volunteered... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 31/08/10)
Animal sacrifices in Sri Lanka - Requirement for 'Animal Welfare Legislation'
On the 25th of August a group of Buddhist monks had protested against an animal slaughter ritual in the Munneswaram Kali Kovil in Chilaw.  It is alleged that around 400 goats and a countless number of fowls had been inhumanely slaughtered at this ritual.  Hinduism promotes non-violence and vegetarianism. There are many sects of Hinduism and this ritual is performed by a sect of Kali worshippers. Shivan Kovil which is also in Chilaw condemns animal sacrifice.  On the other hand, some Sinhala Buddhists partake in this ritual for 'religious favours' from God Kali. Those who are against animal sacrifices treat it as an... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 30/08/10)
Hurricane Katrina: a shameful breakdown in government that has left countless men, women and children abandoned and alone.
 August 30, 2010  The Editor (Letters) THE OTTAWA CITIZEN  Sir:  You reported that "More to be done, Obama says", and this is five years after the Gulf Coast was hit by Hurricane Katrina. People are still waiting to be sent to their homes and children are still attend classes in trailers,  "and there are too many New Orleanians...who haven't been able to come home", Obama said.  What, is this for real? I thought the Americans new it all when they wanted puny Sri... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 30/08/10)
A response to the possibility of Islamic violence in the region
Dear Editor, I thank Lankaweb and Mr Kumar Moses for the opinion piece titled - The Dangerous Possibility of Islamic Terror in Sri Lanka. It contained many new insights to a subject matter that is rarely taken up in the open though media around the world talk about it at lengths. As a Muslim hailing from Sri Lanka I think it is appropriate for me to add my two cents on the subject. As anybody would know Muslims have been a fairly peaceful community in Sri Lanka. A number of Muslims fought alongside Sinhala and Tamil... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 30/08/10)
Tourism in Sri Lanka - an addendum
Several positive feedbacks to my article, ‘We need to get the act right’ (published on August 2) prompted me to write an addendum to it in the hope that we all, as patriotic Sri Lankans, expect and wish that Sri Lanka’s aim in promoting tourism in an excellent scale meets with the anticipated targets by 2012. The Ceylon Tourist Board metamorphosed to become The Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) under Section two of the Tourism Act (No. 38 of 2005). Its commitment is to ‘transform Sri Lanka to be Asia’s most important tourism destination’. President... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 30/08/10)
Amnesty International Misleads Washington Post About Tamil Refugees
August 23, Monday 2010 To: Marcus Brauchli - Executive Editor, Donald Graham - Chairman and Chief Executive Officer and Ann McDaniel - Senior Vice President Washington Post Company 1150 15th Street, NW Washington, DC 20071Dear Mr. Brauchli, I am writing to expose glaring misrepresentations in your article 'Sri Lankan asylum-seekers deserve hearings' published on Monday, August 9, 2010. The information stated on that letter is 100% incorrect and aims to mislead the world, including your readers about what’s really happening on the ground. James McDonald of Amnesty International is plain wrong in even suggesting that smuggled Tamils on... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 29/08/10)
Sri Lankan Muslims
The Tamils of Sri Lanka, throughout history, have attempted to categorize the Sri Lankan Muslims as belonging to the Tamil race. This has been mainly for selfish reasons in a bid to eliminate the minority Muslim community from having its own unique identity. The Government of Sri Lanka, however, treats the Muslims as of Arab origin and as a distinct ethnic group from the Tamils. Fr. S.G. Perera in his book -History of Ceylon for Schools- Vol. 1. The Portuguese and Dutch Periods, (1505-1796), Colombo (1955), The Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Ltd., p 16, writes, -The first mention... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 29/08/10)
It is necessary that Mr. Mahinda Rajapakse continues to be the executive President of Sri Lanka for an extended period of time .
 The LSSP remnants Tissa Vitharana and Wasudeva Nanayakkara still hanging onto the Government as a sad reminder to a great political party that dominated the then political arena of Sri Lanka, had said that they oppose the Executive Presidency.  Marxism opposes parliamentary system of government ….†In explaining the class nature of bourgeois civilization, bourgeois democracy and the bourgeois parliamentary system, all Socialists have expressed the idea formulated with the greatest scientific precision by Marx and Engels (Engels Introduction to the The Civil War in France), namely, that the most democratic bourgeois republic is no more than... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 29/08/10)
SOFT TARGETS FOR ASYLUM SEEKERS
Ship Sun See was initially sailing towards Australia with 490 Sri Lankans allegedly seeking Asylum in some country with resources and a comfortable life. Anybody fleeing the birthplace in fear of persecution will be prepared to go to the closest safe haven, if they are genuine refugees defined in the refugee convention of 1951 and the protocol still in force though thoroughly outdated as the United Nations itself which is 61 years old and needs reforms as early as possible. These Asylum seekers need either Australia... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 29/08/10)
Anuradhapura the capital of Sri Lanka
 Mr. Sunil Vijayapala, writing on Aug. 24, correctly called Anuradhapura the capital. Then he apologized. Why did you apologize, Sir? Anuradhapura was the ruling capital when we were a dignified nation. When people become dignified, Anuradhapura becomes the capital. The capital is in our minds. For all self-respecting Lankans, the capital *is* Anuradhapura. When the numbers of self-respecting Lankans grow, but if it *really* does grow, because there are lot of cowards especially on the English speaking flank, the nation becomes self-respecting and the *official* capital would go to Anuradhapura. Anuradhapura is the spring of Sinhala civilization... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 29/08/10)
Sri Lankans Worried about the President Secretly Talking to a Traitor
It was recently reported that the President has secured the desired number of seats (150) for Constitutional change. Although there is a quantitative advantage it comes at a loss of quality. When national traitors are accomodated to get the two thirds, their anti-national demands also must be given. The calibre of these opportunists is such that they don't anything good for the country without extorting anti-national favours from the government. Rauf Hakeem has been a traitor of the nation state of Sri Lanka all along. His MoU with the LTTE leader hit headlines. (Link - http://www.spur.asn.au/Hakeem_Prabha.jpg) In... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 28/08/10)
SLMC DECIDED. Ranil tells Rauf not to support.
 Friday 27th., August 2010.The leader of Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) Rauff Hakeem said on August 27th., Friday evening that they have decided to support the UPFA government to make the necessary amendments to the existing constitution. When asked whether SLMC is ready to extend their unconditional support to the present government by becoming a partner of the UPFA Govt., he said that has to be discussed deeply within the party before making any comment. The party hierarchy was summoned to the... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 28/08/10)
Understanding Autism
The word autism was coined by the Swiss Psychiatrist Eugine Bleuler in 1910. In 1938, Hans Asperger of the Vienna University Hospital adopted Bleuler’s terminology and in 1981 the Clinical Community widely recognized Autism as a separate diagnosis. Autism is classified as a Pervasive Developmental Disorder affecting young children and adults in which impaired development in communication, social interaction and behaviour are more pronounced. The degree of autism can range from mild to severe. According to the DSM4 (The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) the essential features of Autistic Disorder are the... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 28/08/10)
INTIFADA-THE OUTCOME OF SUPPRESSION
 Suppression and oppression give birth to depression; the worst of all psychological diseases. Most of the time violence is a result of depression. When someone feels that he is being deprived of his basic human rights and finds himself unable to raise a voice against that deprivation and injustice, he turns to violence. Unfortunately this resultant violence is being given the name of terrorism, in case of the Muslims all over the world. Militancy, extremism and fundamentalism; all are different forms of reaction born out of injustice and suppression. The so-called terrorism is nothing but an out... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 28/08/10)
“ YES, MR PRESIDENTâ€ÂÂÂ. of course, ‘YES MR PRESIDENT! Can President Mahinda Rajapakse be compared with Rt.Hon. Jim Hacker of England? Facts and Fiction
A Legal Luminary has provided one of troublesome  political theoretical analysis in trying to compare our President with Rt. Hon. Jim Hacker who  was the Minister of fictional Department of Administrative Affairs (in the BBC series Yes Minister and Yes Prime Minister), and later the became the Satirical British Sitcome Prime Minister of Britain. The principal characters in the fictional series are: Minister/Prime Minister: Jim Hacker- JH (played by Paul Eddington), Permanent Secretary Sir Humphrey Appleby –HA(played by Nigel Hawthorne), and Private Secretary Bernard Wolley –BW (played by Derek Fowlds). The Prime Minister... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 27/08/10)
Shame on you RCMP
 August 27, 2010  The Editor (Letters) THE OTTAWA CITIZEN  Sir:  Canada's fight on terrorism has amazed me once again. You reported that RCMP Chief Serge Therriault, head of criminal operations for the capital region said that an RCMP-led national security investigation employing about 100 joint-forces officers for the past year was forced to move on the suspects this week to prevent "financial support" going to international terrorists for weapons to attack western coalition forces.  So it is OK for the Tamils in Canada... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 27/08/10)
No for International Universities- reform and reorganise existing Universities in Sri Lanka, with a separate University exclusively for Buddhist monks.
If “Foreign Unis will stop JVP hanky-pankyâ€ÂÂÂ(news head line in Lakbima),  is the reason why the Minister of Higher Education Mr. S.B.Dissanayake wants to set up International Universities in Sri Lanka, it has to be emphasised that it is not at all a wise decision . The boycotting of lectures, going on strikes, and factional fist fights  announce a sad depreciation of the system of university education in Sri Lanka. From an interview the Minister of Higher Education Mr.S.B.Dissanayake gave to the Lakbima, one gathers very little about his idea of foreign universities he intends to establish... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 27/08/10)
EDUCATION AND KNOWLEDGE IS POWER
KNOWLEDGE IS POWER -Knowledge is power which is derived from Education. Education is any act or experience that has a formative effect on the mind, character or physical ability on an individual. In Sri Lanka parents invest on children by educating them. As a result education has become so competitive that there are instances where children attend private tuition classes day and night by making major contributions to “Tuition Culture†created by overenthusiastic misguided parents duped by attractive advisements of errant tuition masters and... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 27/08/10)
Shriram to tap wind power in Lanka, Croatia
CHENNAI: Chennai-based Shriram Group has firmed up plans for tapping the wind energy potential in overseas markets. Orient Green Power (OGPL), an associate company of Shriram EPC (SEPC) is setting up wind power ventures in Sri Lanka and Eastern Europe. T Shivaraman, CEO & MD told ET OGPL has picked up 87% stake in Power Lanka (the rest held by a local partner), which will commission and operate a 10.5-mw wind power project. Work on the `80-crore venture at Puttakulam will commence shortly. Power purchase agreement has been signed with the Sri Lankan government for a price of `10 per... -Full Story- (Times of India - 27/08/10)
Pakistan Flood Sets Back Infrastructure by Years
SUKKUR, Pakistan  Men waded waist deep all week wedging stones with their bare hands into an embankment to hold back Pakistan’s surging floodwaters. It was a rudimentary and ultimately vain effort to save their town. On Thursday, the waters breached the levee, a demoralizing show of how fragile Pakistan’s infrastructure remains, and how overwhelming the task is to save it.... -Full Story- (nytimes.com - 27/08/10)
Rajapakse secures majority to change statute
Rajapakse’s ruling party gets more than the two-thirds majority required for a constitutional change Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse yesterday secured the two-thirds parliamentary majority he needed to change the constitution after an opposition party with eight legislators pledged its support. “We will not join the government, but we will support the proposed constitutional amendments,†Basheer Segu Dawood, the chairman of the ethnic minority party Sri Lanka Muslim Congress, told Reuters. The president’s United Peoples Freedom Alliance won a sweeping majority in an April parliamentary poll after Rajapakse’s re-election to the presidency three months earlier.... -Full Story- (Gulf Times - 27/08/10)
Ranil loses again: Sajith rejects Deputy Leadership
Ranil Wickremesinghe’s maneuvers to save his position as leader of the UNP by appointing Sajith Premadasa as his deputy and uniting the rival factions has backfired after the Reformist Group headed by Premadasa discovered that the leader was undercutting his deputy from day one of the agreement.  Premadasa met Wickremesinghe last week after the Working Committee decided that both parties should have a one-to-one meeting to resolve their differences. Premadasa earlier had refused to meet Wickremesinghe one-to-one because he argued that Wickremesinghe cannot be trusted as he leaks distorted versions of one-to-one meetings to the... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 26/08/10)
Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a neurobehavioral developmental disorder affecting about 3-5% of the world's population. ADHD was first described by Dr. Heinrich Hoffman in 1845. He eloquently wrote about the children with ADHD and their characteristics. Contemporary studies concur that the symptoms of ADHD are caused by a neurological dysfunction within the brain mostly due to a deficiency in a specific neurotransmitter in the lower area of the brain. The principle characteristics of ADHD are inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity  Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder is a condition that becomes apparent in some children in... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 26/08/10)
Yes, Mr President !
Yes, Prime Minister was once a popular British TV comedy. The ongoing reality show, “Yes, Mr Presidentâ€ÂÂÂ, is a live Sri Lankan tragedy. After defeating terrorism, a Failed State, tag will not stick but a Sorry State label would, because of servile sycophancy. The Ministers, Secretaries, Advisors, Consultants, Parliamentarians, Public Servants and Confidants all say singularly or collectively ‘Yes, Mr President’ or more deferentially ‘Yes, Your Excellency’ but preferentially to mean‘ Yes, Your Majestyâ€ÂÂÂ. Their excuse for public consumption of a lame duck performance is simple- you cannot survive in bad books! Survival is a comfortable... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 25/08/10)
A word of caution about Tamil translators
 25 August 2010  The Editor (Letters) THE OTTAWA CITIZEN  Sir:  Here is a true story that Martin Collacott and Peter Showler should make note of.  I would be concerned and be cautious of the Tamil translators who are helping the 492 illegal Tamil migrants who surfaced on the shores of British Columbia.  In the mid-80s when the Tamils were harass and charging the Sri Lanka High Commissioner Bull Weeratunga saying that he was "torturer" as he was a Commander of the Army in... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 25/08/10)
Identifying Tamils tough task for officials
 25 August 2010  The Editor (Letters) THE OTTAWA CITIZEN  Sir:  Identifying Tamils tough task for officials, you said. Really! This is just a case of trying to identify 492 illegal Tamil migrants who were brought in by human-traffickers on MV Sun Sea. It would be a cake-walk I thought for us smart-alec Canadians.  This is a hoot. Remember, it was not long ago when almost all of Canada was bludgeoning Sri Lanka with baseball bats and whipping her with horse-whips and cycle-chains for taking... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 25/08/10)
The (Recent) Travels of a Journalist-ABOUT BOWERS, BOATS AND BUDDIES:YACHTNG ON UPPER MISSISSIPPI -(PART 1)
 Shooting the breeze during a leisurely boat ride on the upper Mississippi, more than 40 years after we left graduate school on the Minneapolis campus of University of Minnesota, turned out to be an exhilarating experience for three of us old buddiesâ€â€ÂÂJim Bowers, Kurt Kent and meâ€â€ÂÂmid-August 2010. Minnesota Buddies The three of us have known each other since fall 1968, when I enrolled in the graduate program of the school of journalism and mass communication (SJMC). My diary attests that on 31 March 1969, the newly formed SJMC Graduate Students Club elected Kent... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 25/08/10)
Tamils Duped Sri Lanka Too!
At last Canada realized that Canadians have been duped by Tamils with their bad luck stories. How familiar? http://www.torontosun.com/comment/editorial/2010/08/21/15098871.html  Sri Lankans, however, are still grappling with Tamils’ duping them for close to a century with absurd allegations, sadistic nonsense, racist rubbish and usual bad luck stories. Yet Sri Lankan leaders don’t have the courage to openly denounce Tamil-only grievances, Tamil-only aspirations and Tamil-only homelands decisively. All these excuses were used to indulge in racist politics as in Tamil Nadu and rob others’ fair share of parliamentary representation, university opportunities, government jobs and what not.  At the... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 24/08/10)
We've been duped by the Tamils
The time is now - not next week, not next month - for the Harper government to find the lightning in its bottle to deal with the Tamil “refugee†charade. The facts are in. We’re being played for patsies. A secret government report, its contents outlined today by QMI Agency’s Brian Lilley, shows just how seriously we have been duped by Tamils already granted refugee status here - with a sample survey conducted by immigration bureaucrats showing some 71% of these claimants have already returned to Sri Lanka, despite their song-and-dance that they would be murdered and/or... -Full Story- (torontosun.com - 24/08/10)
SRI LANKAN BOAT PEOPLE
Sri Lankan people seeking refuge in affluent countries falsely alleging discrimination, persecution, rape, murder etc. to get sympathy of host countries, has become a common occurarnce. These assylum seekers and their supporters go on a Sri Lanka bashing spree causing inestimable damage to our country's reputation. As a result, our country runs the risk of being branded as a 'Pariah state' in many quarters. They have contributed to certain countries or groups of countries lifting trade priviledges which were were afforded to us. Thus they should be treated as traiters to our country and having them here is detrimental to our interests.   ... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 24/08/10)
Marvel of Yoda Ela
I was very fortunate to spend a few months in 2008 in our capital of Sri Lanka which is Anuradhapura. (sorry folks it HAS to be our capital) One of the marvels of our ancient Sinhala history is the Yoda Ela built by King Dhatusena in 5 century AD which connects Dhatusena’s Kalawewa in Polonnaruwa district and Tissawewa in Anu built by King Devanappiyatissa in 300 BC. The sea level at Kalawewa stands 6inchs higher than Tissa wewa, according to reliable reports and water flows from Kalawewa to Tissawewa a distance of 45km(this distance varies with one... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 24/08/10)
SRI LANKA MERCY MISSION IN PAKISTAN
As directed by His Excellency the President of Sri Lanka, Mr Mahinda Rajapaksa, a 16 Member Sri Lankan Medical Team arrived in Pakistan, with a cargo of medicines and surgical equipments, on a medical relief mission for the flood affected victims of Pakistan. The Medical Team has been treating the flood affected patients in the Charsadda District Hospital in North West Pakistan, close to the Afghan border. (Photos by M H M N Bandara)  According to the Director of the Charsadda District Hospital, out of the total population of 1.4 million... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 24/08/10)
Two Tales of Sri Lankans - August 21,2010
The Editor Ottawa Citizen Ottawa, Ontario  Dear Sir:  Reference this article, considering that it has been written by someone who works for the Member of Parliament who is the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, could it be that he is apologizing on behalf of the government who could have and should have stopped this shipload of illegals from entering Canada to enjoy life at the expense of Canadian tax payers ?  He is entitled to his opinions on his fellow countrymen whether Canadian Tamil or Sinhalese but certainly has no right... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 23/08/10)
Foreign Nations Must Be Made Aware Of Tamil Tiger Ploy To Use Human Smuggling To Regroup, Particularly Canada!
Aug.23rd 2010 The recent brilliant analysis by Dr Rohan Gunaratne the specialist terrorism analyst based in Singapore conveys an all important caution to the world that Foreign Tamil Tiger militants based outside Sri Lanka are turning to human-smuggling operations to raise money in a bid to revive the group, which was decimated by government forces last year,and a caution which needs to be heeded towards preventing the once most dangerous terror group in the world from ever raising its head!  Preying on the sympathies of Nations like Canada these conniving residual Tamil Tiger criminals who are not entirely... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 23/08/10)
Exam Phobia in School Children
A large number of school children undergo exam related fears. Sometimes these fears are overwhelming. It can cause low performance and failure in exams. As a matter of fact most of the children who are shattered by exam phobia have a good IQ and positive motivation. They show favorable performances in the classroom. But when they go to the exam these students become highly stressed, have fear and they are unable to face the exam with confidence.  Students with exam phobia feel extremely fearful and unsure. Following the increased fear they are unable to... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 23/08/10)
Expatriates and their role
"As we have been victorious in the battle to defeat terrorism, we should also take to the required successful end the struggle to build our land. It is necessary for us to take the required clear decisions for this. We must now be ready to direct our Motherland to that new era of national revival. Dear Doctors, Engineers, Scientists and other eminent professionals of Sri Lankan origin, your Motherland needs your experience, capabilities, professionalism and expertise in its national revival?" - President Contribution and the role played by Sri Lankan expatriates to save the good... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 23/08/10)
Plastic Surgery - 'Under the knife' for better prospects !
During the last few weeks cricket and cricketer's were in the news. This week famous Aussie cricketer Shane Warne was in the news, but not about cricket. Sydney Plastic Surgeon Dr. Robert Drielsma had said that Shane had undergone plastic surgery and has got a face-lift. Some time back Sri Lankan fast bowler Lasith Malinga was interviewed on TV channels about change in his 'ego'. He said that he enjoyed doing all that and was laughing when he added that his parents were not too happy about it ! So people try to change their appearance for various reasons.  Early this month, while visiting the... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 23/08/10)
Baseless attack on the LLRC by low-life at the Sunday Leader
As far as double-barrel names go, the name of Mandana Ismail-Abeywickrema (MIA), one of the self-described ‘investigative’ reporters at The Sunday Leader is a ‘corker’, as an Australian would say.  This MIA has probably been more fortunate with her naming than her other inheritance,  the mantle of that erstwhile ‘investigative reporter’ and current editor of the rag, Frederica Jansz; now that is a real ‘dog’.  Before we get to MIA’s work at the Sunday leader, it needs to be put on record that the first name Mandana is a name made famous in the UK in the... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 22/08/10)
The Dangerous Possibility of Islamic Terror in Sri Lanka
It is a topic no one likes to discuss. Even the government seems not to worry about it or at least pretend it is not a thing to worry about. People avoid talking about it fearing they might hurt the feelings of peaceful Muslims. It is a fact Muslims have been the most peaceful ethnic community in Sri Lanka despite many provocations. Things must remain so in future as well. However, it is foolhardy to think Islamic terror that is rampant in the region, would not enter Sri Lanka. Actually, it is already active in Sri... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 22/08/10)
STOP! Trying to Stop Tamil Boats & Tamil People!
What Paranoia! STOP! Trying to Stop Tamil Boats & Tamil People leaving Sri Lanka! Let the Tamil People flee in their Trains & Boats & Planes, to where ever they wish to head. Australia and Canada have adequate resources to prevent immigration or facilities and funds to adopt new immigrants. The US$50,000 Factor. It is now comfortably established that the near 500 Tamils on MV Sun Sea paid US$ 50,000 given a few thousand or two less, for the "ride". It is assumed that the funds came from Tamil expats, Diaspora or indeed from the coffers... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 22/08/10)
WIKILEAKS-A PROPAGANDA TOOL
 Life is a battle of survival and propaganda is the most effective tool in this battle. From Iraq to Afghanistan and from the Mumbai attacks to the Time Square Bombing Plan, we find a masterly use of this tool. If we exclude the element of propaganda from the present world scenario we would find nothing but a blank sheet. Propaganda has no doubt achieved the status of an industry. No country can make progress without giving extra-ordinary emphasis and importance to this industry. Almost all countries have their well-regimented and well organized propaganda teams working under the... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 22/08/10)
Doctors, Drug Companies, Politicians & Corruptions
They say there’s no money in healthy people. But, why is the pharmaceutical industry the most profitable industry in the world? It is because they have mastered the art of concocting the disorder, creating the drug for the disorder & then bombarding the public with advertisements to convince them they’re afflicted, leaving little choice but to get “prescribedâ€ÂÂÂ.  The growth in the pharmaceutical industry began to expand towards the 1970s. Pharmaceutical companies began to form mutual partnerships & began dominating the production of medicines. Advertising boomed making it possible for consumers to be enticed into believing there... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 22/08/10)
Interview with M.Selvaraja of Canadian Tamil Congress
Mr. Dan Matheson. CTV  Dear Sir:  I am writing regarding your interview with the spokesperson for the Canadian Tamil Congress. Are you aware that this organization prides itself as the front organization of the Tamil Tiger terrorist organization and is now the chief component of the Trans National Government of Tamil Eelam which was formed to further the goal of the Tamil Tigers after the defeat of the Tamil terrorists militarily? If you do not, I would suggest that you read their announcements regarding their role in these organizations and question... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 22/08/10)
Dan Mathson: Your interview with Manjula Selvarajah
 August 20, 2010  Dan Matheson CTV News:  Dear Dan Matheson:  Here's my response to the Canadian Tamil Congress spokesperson Manjula Selvaraja's defence of the Sea Sun illegal Tamil migrants during your interview.  You asked, why had these Tamils paid so much of money to get on that ship when they could have easily got on a plane to come over to Canada.  Her response was that these people were so desperate to get out of Sri Lanka and that is why and that they... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 22/08/10)
Tamils frustrated by detention: lawyer
21 August 2010  The Editor (Letters) THE OTTAWA CITIZEN  Sir:  Re: Tamil frustrated by detention: Lawyer, Tamil-Canadian lawyer Luxmi Vasan who arrived as a refugee at Toronto's airport in 1991 with her year-old son, says that she understands their frustrations.  But here is the problem. The Canadian government is being careful to go through the process of finding out who these Tamil people are and it takes time, whether they are indeed genuine 'convention refugees', Tiger terrorists or 'economic refugees'.  But here is the litmus... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 22/08/10)
Change the slogan from Stop Boats to Stop Tamils
Both leading Australian parties have agreed on one agenda and that is to stop boats with bogus asylum seekers or now they coin the phrase 'illegal emigrants' an accurate refreshing phrase. Australia, unlike Canada, is certainly not ready for SHIPS full of illegal immigrants as they will have no capacity to accommodate them. Who ever who comes to power must stop these Tamils jumping the queue on legal immigration to Australia and Canada which may affect Tamils themselves who aspire for a better life though legal means. These latest Tamils have spent around $22 million or approximately Rs.2200 million... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 22/08/10)
Tamil Tigers Smuggle Illegal Migrants aboard ‘Ocean Lady’ and ‘MV Sun Sea’
Canada has admitted 76 Tamil men who arrived aboard the ‘Ocean Lady’ in October 2009, and is presently dealing with a further batch of 492 Tamils who arrived on board the ‘MV Sun Sea’ which reached the BC shores on August 13, 2010. These two vessels have been identified as part of the Tamil Tiger’s merchant marine fleet previously used in transporting weapons, explosives and smuggling of narcotics, now refitted to smuggle human cargo. The Canadian Tamil Congress (CTC) has been in the forefront organizing teams of highly paid lawyers to assist... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 20/08/10)
SRI LANKA CRICKET BOARD ( ARAVINDA DE SILVA) BATTING FOR INDIA AND GLORY!
The recent incident (on 16 August  2010 at  the Dambulla Statidum) involving Suraj Randiv has been blown out of proportion by the Sri Lankan Cricket Board  (SLCB) headed by  Aravainda de Silva (AS).  It seems the SLCB is spearheading an agenda to appease Indian Cricket Board in an hasty manner without considering the facts.      If Suraj Randiv has apologized to Schewag on the “non-ball†incident, that should be the end of the matter. If the match referee A G Hurst (Australia) did not think that this incident was  a rule  violation, then why... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 20/08/10)
ABC National Radio-360 Documentary 'Whatever happened to OV78?'
To the attention of Mr. Brent Clough, Presenter 360 Documentaries  This is in response to your documentary that went on air on the 14th August 2010 in 360 Program under the heading 'Whatever happened to OV78?' It is obvious you have been canvassing on behalf of the asylum seekers to confirm that they are genuine “refugees†who deserve settlement in Australia.  Link for Audio http://www.abc.net.au/cgi-bin/common/player_launch.pl?s=rn/360_item&d=rn/360/audio/items&r=tsy_14082010_1405.ram&w=tsy_14082010_1405.asx&t=Whatever  Link for the Transcript:-  http://www.abc.net.au/rn/360/docs/OV78.pdf  What I noticed queer about your persistent follow up of the ultimate out come of the 68 so called refugees who came in Oceanic Viking that... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 20/08/10)
Appreciation - Gunadasa Mabarana
Gunadasa Mabarana’s  sudden death, while he attended his mother’s funeral in Sri Lanka came as a bolt from the blue and  shocked me with numbness because Mabarana seemed to be in the pink of health when I saw him last in London. As a Buddhist, one needs to reconcile to the inevitable death we all have to face one day, but I felt there was no urgency for him to answer the call from above so soon.  I first met Gunadasa Mabarana in London over a decade ago.  Hailing from a rural background in... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 20/08/10)
Learning difficulties in children
The term ‘learning difficulties’ is used to cover a wide range of problems. Children who have difficulty with handwriting or in learning to read and spell often manifest problems such as memory recall blocks, attention deficit, speech delay, clumsiness, poor co-ordination and other health problems. Each child’s difficulties are unique– a combination of auditory, visual, muscular, chemical, emotional and neurological imbalances.– a renowned Educational Psychologist, nearly 30% of Sri Lankan children show learning difficulties. Learning difficulties sometimes considered as a form of an infirmity which needs therapy. Many children with learning difficulties continue to... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 20/08/10)
Peter Showler: Getting Tough on Refugees
 August 20, 2010  The Editor (Letters) THE OTTAWA CITIZEN Sir: O me Gawd, here comes another joker making his two cents worth of insinuations of how bad the Sri Lankan government is towards the minority Tamils, thus supporting the cause of the 492 illegal Tamil migrants of the Sun Sea to be allowed in as refugees. I was disappointed to read Peter Showler's essay on "Getting Tough on Refugees".  I am prepared to dismiss his whole essay as biased piffle when he says, "Three hundred thousand Tamil civilians were displaced... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 20/08/10)
Pakistan floods and the minorities.
 Emergencies are a time when the best of man – and the very worst – comes out into the open. According to the media reports, in southern Punjab, Pakistan, where leaders of the Ahmadiyya Muslim community say relief goods or a place in camps was denied to flood victims from their faith, the worst has been on display. The treatment of Ahmadi Muslims as sub-human is a consequence of years of discrimination stemming from that fateful decision in the 1970s to declare them ‘non-Muslim’. The result of the... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 20/08/10)
SRI LANKAN EMBASSY AND TOURISM DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY LAUNCH “SIGNATURE TOURS†FROM THE UNITED STATES
Ambassador Jaliya Wickramasuriya and the Embassy of Sri Lanka in Washington, D.C., in collaboration with Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority, today launched the first in a series of “Signature Tours,†that will bring more American travelers to Sri Lanka to see and experience the magnificence of the island. The group of 25 tourists is visiting Sri Lanka from August 20–29, 2010 and is accompanied by Ambassador Wickramasuriya. Travelers on the inaugural trip include an award-winning travel writer, a Hollywood film professional and executives from a variety of companies. “It is our pleasure to... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 20/08/10)
Arjuna Ranatunga's Call On Randiva Incident Put Into Perspective.Bravo Arjuna!
Aug.21st 2010 The recent comments by former cricketing great Arjuna Ranatunga about Sri Lanka Cricket being the laughing stock of the world seems pretty close to the truth in almost every perspective he has touched on relative to the Suraj Randiva incident as it porrtays the Sri Lanka Cricket Board as a bunch of subservient and misguided nincompoops led by the big headed Aravinda de Silva who despite his track record as a wonderful player does not seem to have the wherewithal to make decisions in keeping with his status as the head of... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 20/08/10)
Sri Lanka Ambassador in U.S. refutes AmnestyInternational Claims
WASHINGTON, Aug. 19, 2010 -- On Aug. 9, 2010 the Washington Post published a letter from James McDonald of Amnesty International suggesting that a shipload of Sri Lankans arriving illegally in Canada should be given asylum because they faced persecution if they returned to Sri Lanka. I am compelled to respond to this letter because Mr. McDonald misstates so many facts and makes so many blind allegations that he must be corrected. First, Mr. McDonald states that during Sri Lanka’s “civil war, both the government and Tigers committed human rights abuses including... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 20/08/10)
Tighter immigration laws will sink ‘refugee’ ships
The ship carrying 492 Tamils from Sri Lanka sailed through a huge hole in our refugee system that must be plugged before a fleet follows it in. Canadians are compassionate, but they also expect their laws to be sensible and effective and, if necessary, they expect changes to those laws to prevent this sort of abuse. There’s no question that the voyage of the Sun Sea was yet another organized effort to subvert our immigration and refugee system. As was intended from the outset, the Sri Lankan citizens aboard this Thai-flagged ship... -Full Story- (theglobeandmail.com - 19/08/10)
Another 'pearl' in Beijing's string of ports
A newly constructed harbor at Hambantota, near Sri Lanka's southern tip, began filling with water recently in readiness for the first ships in November. The port  which will have a water depth of 17 meters, making it one of the deepest in South Asia  has been carved out of coastal land in a joint venture between the Chinese and Sri Lankan governments. China's involvement has inevitably raised speculation that Hambantota is the latest jewel in a so-called string of pearls that will pave the way for China's rapidly expanding navy to operate routinely in the... -Full Story- (search.japantimes.co.jp - 19/08/10)
Tamil illegal migrants test limits of legal aid system
 August 19, 2010  The Editor (Letters) THE OTTAWA CITIZEN  Sir:  "Tamil migrants test limits of legal aid system'" be mourns the Executive Director of B.C.'s Legal Services Society.  This is not the only sin that the 492 illegal Tamil migrants on MV Sun Sea have committed. The most criminal sin is allowing the global criminal human-trafficking network to take advantage of Canada's generosity.  If these 492 illegal Tamil migrants say that they are indeed not millionaires in Sri Lanka to pay $45,000 to get a ride on... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 19/08/10)
ලංකà·ÂÂÂà·€ බේර෠දà·â€ÂÂන්නේ විෂ්ණෆදෙවියන්ද?
   බර්නà·ÂÂÂඩ්ගà·â€ÂÂණà¶ÂÂÂිලක, à¶â€ÂÂස්ටින්ප්â€ÂÂÂරනà·ÂÂÂන්දෆයන අය මේ දිනවල ටයිගර්කොමිසම ඉදිරියේ දෙන à·ƒà·ÂÂÂක්කි වලින්එලිවන්නේ ලංකà·ÂÂÂà·€ විනà·ÂÂÂà·ÂÂÂයෙන්බේරී ඇà¶ÂÂÂà·Šà¶ÂÂÂà·š අනූනවයෙන්බව නොවේ ද? රනිල්වික්â€ÂÂÂරමසිංහ, à¶ÂÂÂිලක්මà·ÂÂÂරපොන, මිලින්ද මොරගොඩ හ෠ජී. එල්. පීරිස්යන අයවද කොමිසම ඉදිරියට කà·ÂÂÂඳවිය යà·â€ÂÂà¶ÂÂÂà·â€ÂÂමය. à¶ÂÂÂමන්ගේම කà·ÂÂÂමà·ÂÂÂà¶ÂÂÂà·Šà¶ÂÂÂෙන්සà·ÂÂÂක්â€ÂÂÂà·‚à·’ දීමට මේ අයට යà·â€ÂÂà¶ÂÂÂà·â€ÂÂකමක්ඇà¶ÂÂÂà¶ÂÂÂ්එවà·ÂÂÂනි මහà¶ÂÂÂ්ම෠ගà¶ÂÂÂිගà·â€ÂÂන මොවà·â€ÂÂන්ට ඇà¶ÂÂÂà·ÂÂÂයි මම නොසිà¶ÂÂÂමි. à¶ÂÂÂමන්ගේ පවà·â€ÂÂල්බලය රà·ÂÂÂක ගà·ÂÂÂනීමට මෙම අදක්â€ÂÂÂà·‚ පà·â€ÂÂද්ගලයින්ලංකà·ÂÂÂà·€ නà·ÂÂÂර්වේ à·ƒà·â€ÂÂද්දන්හරහ෠ප්â€ÂÂÂරභà·ÂÂÂකරන්ට බà·ÂÂÂර දීමට ක්â€ÂÂÂරිය෠කලේ ය. එසේ à¶ÂÂÂමන්ගේ අà¶ÂÂÂටම ලà·ÂÂÂබà·â€ÂÂණ රට à¶ÂÂÂà·„à·€à·â€ÂÂරෆකර ගà·ÂÂÂනීමට ප්â€ÂÂÂරභà·ÂÂÂකරන්ට නොහà·ÂÂÂකි වූයේ ලංකà·ÂÂÂවේ à·€à·ÂÂÂසනà·ÂÂÂà·€ හෙවà¶ÂÂÂ්ලංකà·ÂÂÂවේ හඳහන හොඳ වූ නිස෠නොවේ ද? බෞද්ධ à·ƒà·ÂÂÂà·„à·’à¶ÂÂÂà·Šâ€ÂÂÂයයේ කියවෙන්නේ... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 19/08/10)
Australians go to the polls: it is a choice between Tony, Julia or the wilderness?
 Short of the term an elected government could rule the nation, Australian political parties in power have the tendency to call an early election. And it is usually done to have an advantage over the opposition. Reading the electorate in these rapidly changing times can be tricky. An omission here and a bold move made months ahead in anticipation can have an impact on the increasingly jittery electorate, especially on uncommitted voter that swings from one party to the other. Hence this election appears difficult one to call even for the pundits. The Abbott’s show During... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 19/08/10)
Reinventing the Economy of the USA
Summary Current fiscal and monetary measures, as well as the US President’s Stimulus Package offering $ 862 billion to rejuvenate the ailing corporations, financial institutions etc.,` is unlikely to bring prosperity to the USA economy in the long term. The paradigm that had been hitherto followed- to leave the economy to be handled by the Private Sector-Monetarism, with the State having little or no control has been found to be a non-runner. Laissez-faire and de-regulation have proved to be non developmental. This malaise has had worldwide repercussions.   The following suggestions are... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 18/08/10)
Airports, Airports every where, but nor Airport for Kandy
It has been aired out in CDN of 18th August that the Ports and Aviation Ministry will renovate 13 inland airports to boost the inland air transportation system. The 13 airports listed were Polonnaruwa, Hingurakgoda, Palali, Rathmalana, Koggala, Katukurunda, Weeravila, Trincomalee, Sigiriya, Batticaloa, Ampara, KKS and Vavuniya. (In addition now we have airports in Hambantota and Iranamadu as well) It is also said that these domestic airports were constructed many years ago. Under the proposed renovation programme the runways of these air ports will be lengthened and widened to accommodate medium scale aircrafts. This... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 18/08/10)
CHINA SURPASSES JAPAN AS ECONOMIC POWER HOUSE OBTAINING NUMBER 2 SPOT IN THE WORLD BEHIND THE US
China has surpassed Japan to become the world’s No.2 economy , behind only the United States , the Los Angeles Times reported. In a lead story in its business section the newspaper said, “China’s economy has surpassed, as the world’s second largest. a highly anticipated milestone rich in symbolism for a developing country that began market reforms only three decades ago.†The news caught headlines when Japan’s government said Monday (August 16) its economic output in the second quarter slowed to $ 1.28 trillion, short of the $ 1.33 trillion China reported over... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 18/08/10)
Your Sunday Star Editorial: Sri Lanka's telling exodus
Editor The Toronto Star One, Young St Toronto,ON Re: Your Editorial: "Sri Lanka's telling exodus" - Sunday Star, Aug 15, 2010 Dear Editor,  It is with great interest I read your coverage of the newest arrival of the Tamil migrant ship, for the past few days. Your editorial above clearly shows that the Toronto Star has gone to great lengths to justify the flight of these boat people, while ignoring a very important matter that majority of us Canadians, are concerned about - the international human smuggling operation by the Tamil Tigers, and potential security threat to Canada,... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 18/08/10)
BE WORTHY TO YOUR MOTHERLAND.
Government cannot do everything alone to fulfil our dreams. We too must be part of it and get together and help the Government as well as ourselves to become a rich nation in the world. We dont have a big population or many ethnic groups like in India,Philippines and other so many countries around the world. This Government has proved beyond doubts that that they can do something worthwhile to our Motherland than previous Governments. We should be true to ourselves and admit it without taking sides. We all know how the previous Governments tackled the war... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 18/08/10)
The struggle for survival of a sovereign, unitary and independent nation
At one point of time the country now identified as Sri Lanka was known as Heladiva or Sivhela as there were four clans living in this country. They were the Devas, the Yakkas, the Rakshas and the Nagas. Prince Vijaya and his Sinha clan that migrated to this country from north India integrated with the above mentioned four indigenous Hela clans and were together identified henceforth as Sinhalese and their country was known as Sinhale. It was later subdivided to Ruhunu, Pehiti and Maya, which together were referred to as Thunsinhale. The integration... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 18/08/10)
Canada's Prime Minister talks tough on the Tamil illegal migrants
August 18, 2010  The Editor (Letters) THE OTTAWA CITIZEN  Sir:  Prime Minister Stephen Harper said at a Mississauga event on Tuesday,The federal government "will not hesitate to strengthen the laws" in order to tackle the "trend" of would be refugees arriving in Canada via  people-smuggling ships.  Sorry Mr. Prime Minister, now that we have lost the grip on the refugee determination system, what I had expected you to say was, "The federal government will strengthen the laws to tackle the trend of would be refugees arriving... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 18/08/10)
Here’s some material for light reading
Amidst going through the viccitudes of life here's something for light reading. In 2008 I had two meditation sprees in India and Sri Lanka near the Bodhi Trees. One day in Anu as I was sitting in contemplation few older villagers who came to worship the Bodhi were engaged in an idle chatter which distracted me. One guy was telling his friends ‘I went to this public toilet in Colombo one day and there was this man collecting money at the door for the service. He asked for Rs.10 and I gave him. When I was... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 18/08/10)
Canada's Response To Refugee Ship Being Portrayed Erroneously By Some To Confuse The World!
Aug. 19 th 2010 Indeed the world watches the almost theatrical  scenario unfolding albeit no laughing matter of the refugee ship from Sri Lanka that has now reaced Canada and the media hype on related issues perhaps on the insistence of would be Tamil Tiger supporters portraying a totally wrong picture of the real response from the Canadian Government.  Regardless of all the misleading rhetoric from some quarters it needs to be pellucidated for the benefit of those in doubt that the Canadian Government is not being lenient or accommodating to the people on board... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 18/08/10)
The politics of relief: Aliens in their own land
MUZAFFARABAD: The government and local clerics refused to shelter around 500 flood-affected families belonging to the Ahmadiya community in South Punjab’s relief camps. Not only that, the government also did not send relief goods to the flood-hit areas belonging to the Ahmadiya community, The Express Tribune has learnt during a visit to the devastated Punjab districts of Muzaffargarh, Dera Ghazi Khan and Rajanpur. For its part, the government claims that all relief goods are being distributed among survivors without discrimination. And that all survivors have been sheltered in relief camps without distinction. The flood-devastated families... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 18/08/10)
ANOTHER AHMADI MUSLIM IN PAKISTAN brutally MARTYRED in a religiously motivated attack.
According to the reports, it is with great sadness and regret that the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat hereby confirms that a well-known Ahmadi Muslim, Dr Najam al-Hasan (39) was martyred in a religiously motivated attack in Karachi, at approximately 12:15am local time on Tuesday 17th August 2010..  Dr Najam al-Hasan was leaving his clinic and had just entered his car when he was shot dead by a group of assailants, who as of yet, remain unaccounted for. Upon hearing the noise of gunfire, his brother, whose medical store is... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 18/08/10)
Confusion over casualties: Gotabhaya
Sri Lankan Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa on Tuesday said civilian casualties in the Eelam War IV, waged from August 2006 to May 2009, were being confused with the LTTE causalities. Testifying before Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission, the Defence Secretary said while 6,000 troops died and 30,000 injured, the damage suffered by the LTTE was at least same if not more.... -Full Story- (thehindu.com - 17/08/10)
Alcohol and substance abuse among the combatants
"Life, as we find it, is too hard for us; it brings us too many pains, disappointments and impossible tasks. In order to bear it we cannot dispense with palliative measures... There are perhaps three such measures: powerful deflections, which cause us to make light of our misery; substitutive satisfactions, which diminish it; and intoxicating substances, which make us insensible to it." - Sigmund Freud (Civilization and Its Discontents)   Alcohol and substance an abuse is sometimes an observable condition among the combatants especially those who suffer from combat stress. These negative stress coping methods... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 17/08/10)
My recent visit to Sri Lanka- Good-Bad and Ugly;
I am writing this essay to highlight few things I observed during recent visit to Sri Lanka. First of all let me address the “Reconciliation†process that so many external element, especially so called human right advocates are worried about. Most of the unsubstantiated comments on this subject coming from people who does not know where Sri Lanka is. Or people who has never seen Sri Lank in years, or basically, the information gathering from LTTE friendly organizations. In my opinion in Sri Lanka only reconciliation between  the Government and the Tamil community especially... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 17/08/10)
Tamil Economic Refugees: How Illegal Immigration is Ingrained in Tamil Culture
Thirai kadal odiyum thiraviam thedu – Tamil proverb. It means, “cross the seas and grab the fortunesâ€ÂÂÂ. Absolutely no disrespect for any community but this is the main driving force of Tamil economic refugees to greener pastures. Before pointing the finger at Sri Lanka and alleged human rights violations and other “push†factors, this must be understood clearly. It is this driving force that is responsible for human trafficking and complete lack of regard for territorial boundaries of nations; especially developed nations around the world. Today the human trafficking industry is a multi-million-dollar industry stretching from... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 17/08/10)
Lorne Gunter: Send the Tamils back, sadly
17 August 2010  The Editor (Letters) THE OTTAWA CITIZEN  It is sad when there is one more journalist who writes about Sri Lanka after Sun Sea brought in 490 'millionaire' illegal Tamil migrants, when they have little knowledge of what has happened and is happening in Sri Lanka.Unfortunately Lorne Gunter falls into that category. I called the Tamils 'millionaires" because to pay $45,000 to get a ride to Canada in terms of Sri Lanka's monetary value, if one has $45,000 one is a millionaire four times over when... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 17/08/10)
Keeping hope of democratic responsiveness alive - 'A response'
Jehan Perera (JP) in his article titled, 'Keeping hope of democratic responsiveness alive' in The Island of 11th August says, 'The Jaffna Civil Society members with whom I discussed these matters were not impressed by what I had witnessed... Eg., checking of vehicles along A9 road, large military presence, lack of normalcy, people living in temporary shacks, households inhabited by women ...' and so on. However, issues like these are not uncommon where there was war and there is gradual rebuilding of the North and the East that is taking place in the aftermath of the  war. In countries like Afghanistan and Iraq... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 16/08/10)
“SARATH FONSEKA’S MEDALS OF HONOUR †- “I don’t have those items†says ANOMA FONSEKA wife of Former General Sarath Fonseka (FGSF)
It has been reported that all medals, decorations,  etc received  by FGSF are no longer in the custody of his wife Mrs Anoma Fonseka.  According to her, she is unaware as to what happened for those valuable properties and therefore will not be able to return if anyone request the return of the items. As we know Army and Service Personnel protect their uniforms, medals in the same way they look after their wives and children. They are committed to serve the Nation and the credentials received are guarded with great precaution. They... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 16/08/10)
පà·ÂÂÂà·ƒà·ÂÂÂල්වල චීන භà·ÂÂÂà·‚à·ÂÂÂà·€ ඉගà·ÂÂÂන්වීම
ලංකà·ÂÂÂවේ පà·ÂÂÂà·ƒà·ÂÂÂල්වල චීන භà·ÂÂÂà·‚à·ÂÂÂà·€ ඉගà·ÂÂÂන්වීමට ගà¶ÂÂÂà·Šà¶ÂÂÂීරණය මට මà¶ÂÂÂක්කලේ ඇමෙරිකà·ÂÂÂවේ පà·ÂÂÂà·ƒà·ÂÂÂල්වල ප්â€ÂÂÂරංà·ÂÂÂ, ජර්මන්, ඉà¶ÂÂÂà·ÂÂÂලි à·€à·ÂÂÂනි භà·ÂÂÂෂ෠වෙනà·â€ÂÂවට රà·â€ÂÂසියන්, ජපන්හ෠චීන භà·ÂÂÂෂ෠ඉගà·ÂÂÂන්වීම ජනප්â€ÂÂÂරිය වීමය. එය රà·ÂÂÂජ්â€ÂÂÂය මට්ටමින්ගà¶ÂÂÂà·Šà¶ÂÂÂීරණයක්නොව ඉල්ලà·â€ÂÂම-à·ƒà·ÂÂÂපයà·â€ÂÂම යන ආර්ථික විද්â€ÂÂÂයà¶ÂÂÂ්මක රීà¶ÂÂÂිය අනà·â€ÂÂà·€ සිදà·â€ÂÂවූවකි.    අà¶ÂÂÂ්ලà·ÂÂÂන්à¶ÂÂÂික්à·ÂÂÂà¶ÂÂÂකය [Atlantic Century] වෙනà·â€ÂÂවට පà·ÂÂÂසිපික්à·ÂÂÂà¶ÂÂÂකය [Pacific Century] ලà·ÂÂÂකයට උදà·ÂÂÂවීම ඇමෙරිකà·ÂÂÂවේ සිට බලනවිට පෙන්නà·â€ÂÂම්කරන්නේ චිකà·ÂÂÂග෠වල සිට නිව්යà·ÂÂÂක්වà·ÂÂÂනි අà¶ÂÂÂ්ලà·ÂÂÂන්à¶ÂÂÂික්වරà·ÂÂÂය වලට බඩෆගෙන (à¶ÂÂÂිරිඟà·â€ÂÂ, මස්, දà·ÂÂÂà·€ ආදිය) යෑම වෙනà·â€ÂÂවට, ඒව෠පà·ÂÂÂසිපික්වෙරලේ වරà·ÂÂÂය වලට ගෙන්ගොස්ජපà·ÂÂÂනයට හ෠චීනයට යà·ÂÂÂවීමය. යà·â€ÂÂරà·ÂÂÂප෠රටවල්නොයෙක්ආකà·ÂÂÂරයෙන්වලිකන්නේ අà¶ÂÂÂ්ලà·ÂÂÂන්à¶ÂÂÂික්සà·ÂÂÂගරය මà·â€ÂÂල්කරගෙන යටà¶ÂÂÂ්විජිà¶ÂÂÂà·€à·ÂÂÂදයේ ඓà¶ÂÂÂà·’à·„à·ÂÂÂසික... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 16/08/10)
Sri Lanka's Telling Exodus - August 15,2010
The Editor Toronto Star One Yonge Street, Toronto, Ont.  Dear Sir:  Contrary to the bald opening statement that Canada does not have a "Tamil problem", it does. Is it not a Tamil problem when supporters of the Tamil Tiger terrorists or LTTE are living in large numbers in Toronto as demonstrated vividly when they took to the streets of Toronto and Ottawa in their thousands last year waiving their LTTE flags flouting the laws of Canada? It is a proven fact that they have been funding terrorism in Sri Lanka for decades collecting and sending millions of... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 16/08/10)
WHAT FILLS THIS PORT IS THE FUTURE PROSPERITY OF OUR NATION –PRESIDENT AT HAMBANTOTA PORT CEREMONY
It is not sea water that will fill this port, but the future prosperity of our nation. From this port will emerge our true economic independence. This a great symbol of our moving away from the days when we said we are unable to develop for lack of funds, to a time when we can show how the country can be developed through our own strength, said President Mahinda Rajapaksa addressing... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 16/08/10)
The Conservative Government & the Sun Sea Fiasco
16 August 2010  Hon. Vic Toews, P.C., M.P. Minister of Public Safety House of Commons, Ottawa  cc. Hon. Stephen Harper, Prime Minister of Canada Hon. Jason Kenney, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration   Dear Vic Toews:  Re: MV Sun Sea and 490 illegal Tamil Migrants - Canada has created a monster and it is slowly eating Canada up  Permit me to introduce myself. I am a card carrying Conservative (C11255047) and a Sustaining Donor of your party. Prior to that I was a card carrying Reformist and... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 16/08/10)
Latest Tamil Boat People
Hon. V. Toews Minister for Public Safety House of Commons Ottawa, Ontario  Dear Sir:  News reports indicate that it is your government's goal to "ensure that our refugee system is not hijacked by criminals or terrorists" and that changes may be required to Canada's refugee system. Unfortunately, these "opinions" have been expressed by your government in the past but nothing was done. When the last boatload of so-called Tamil refugees landed in Canada last October, there was much song and dance by your government about Canada's flawed refugee system. The Tamils were kept... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 16/08/10)
Persecution of Ahmadis in Pakistan wholly un-Islamic - Sherry Rehman
In a recent episode of the MTA International Islamic talk show ‘Rah-e-Huda’, the former Minister for Communications in Pakistan, Sherry Rehman, spoke about the ongoing persecution and cruelty inflicted upon Ahmadis in Pakistan. During the broadcast she said:  “If we look at the Ahadith (sayings) of the Holy Prophetpbuh, it is clear that whatever is happening to Ahmadis is completely un-Islamic†         Expressing her disappointment and concern, Sherry Rehman said that because of the long history of persecution borne by the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat in Pakistan there seemed little... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 16/08/10)
Business Returns to Sri Lanka's Former War Zone
They are everywhere and more are coming: huge billboards advertising everything from formula to mobile phones dominate most vantage points in Sri Lanka's former war zone. Where artillery and shells shrieked overhead a little over 15 months back, there are now gigantic, smiling women holding tubes of skin-whitening cream. In Kilinochchi, the former political and administrative nerve center of the Tamil Tigers, a toppled water tank once symbolized the wanton destruction caused by war. The tank is now obscured by a billboard for Highland milk; the ad is a vision of the future, the... -Full Story- (time.com - 16/08/10)
Tamil migrants paid up to $50,000 each for passage, minister says
VICTORIA  The human-smugglers behind the Sun Sea may have pocketed more than $20 million for ferrying a shipload of Sri Lankan migrants to the B.C. The passengers each paid $40,000 to $50,000 for the three-month journey from Thailand, Minister of Public Safety Vic Toews said in a weekend interview. He said his officials had advised him the Tamil Tigers rebel organization was behind the operation, which he said was driven by profit motives. While he said he did not know if children or families got discounts, he said that considering an old small... -Full Story- (canada.com - 16/08/10)
Beijing bites -“China has entered India’s sphere of influence.â€ÂÂÂ
The Hambantota port project, whose first phase Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa unveiled to the world on Sunday, has the potential to propel the island into a global transshipment hub.After all it was to India that Sri Lanka turned first with the plan. Lethargy and shortsightedness contributed to Delhi turning it down and China snapped up the opportunity. In the process, China has bitten into India’s sphere of influence yet again.... -Full Story- (Deccan Herald - 16/08/10)
Lessons to be learnt from the CFA
The report last week of former head of the Peace Secretariat, Bernard Gunatilleke’s evidence before the Lessons Learnt Commission on the processes relating to the signing of the so-called 2002 Cease Fire Agreement (CFA) was ‘enlightening’, unfortunately in a frighteningly negative way.  While Bernard Gunatilleke’s evidence brings to light the usual, deceptive tricks employed by neocolonialists (US, UK, Canada and Australia supported by sundry other ‘white’ nations, Norway in this case,) in their attempts at influencing the national political and economic affairs of developing countries, the apparent lack of sophistication in advising the government by advisors such... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 15/08/10)
Inaccurate Claims by Rev Desmond Tutu and Kofi Annan
Desmond Tutu and Kofi Annan have made several unverified claims about Sri Lanka. In addition, based on these inaccurate claims, they have made ridiculous recommendations. Little that these gentlemen realize, there are two sides to the same story. Often information reaching them could be polluted by Tamil racist elements that habitually monger racism, hatred, suicide bombings and child soldiers. From 1983 to 2009, the war killed 100,000 people. That is on average 3,850 persons dying every year or 10 to 11 dying everyday. However, the war is over and people are not dying from it anymore.... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 15/08/10)
Professor Sarachchandra the philosopher
The 14th death anniversary of Professor Ediriweera Sarachchandra that falls on August 16 is an opportune time to focus attention on some of the lesser appreciated aspects of the life and works of arguably the greatest ever Sri Lankan intellectual.  Apart from a publication entitled ‘Sarachchandra : Philosopher and the Artist’, (2004) by Dr R. D. Gunaratne, Professor Sarachchandra's public image among Sri Lankans is built almost entirely on the foundation of his creative output, Maname and Sinhabahu in particular, and a few other less celebrated stage plays and a few English and Sinhala novels... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 15/08/10)
UK Exporting terror- An Open Letter
Attention of Hon David Cameron, Prime Minister UK UK Exporting terror   I am glad that Hon  David Cameron, PM,  is taking terrorism seriously and credit should be given to him for recognizing that terrorism could be exported. As decent humans we should take all practical measures to eliminate terrorism from the world and concentrate on solving problems, to help all humankind. The present UK government is bravely tackling problems facing UK. In contrast, Mr Milliband of the previous labour government, actually made a shameful attempt to give a lifeline to the terrorists and have been exporting terror.... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 15/08/10)
ඓà¶ÂÂÂà·’à·„à·ÂÂÂසික කරදියවර මංගල්â€ÂÂÂයය.
මෙරට දේà·ÂÂÂප්â€ÂÂÂරේමී බලවේගයේ උà¶ÂÂÂà·â€ÂÂම්පà·ÂÂÂà¶ÂÂÂà·â€ÂÂමක්වූ, මේ භූමියට à·ƒà·ÂÂÂබෑ ලෙසම ආදරය කරන නà·ÂÂÂයකයෙකà·â€ÂÂට මෙරට රà·ÂÂÂජ්â€ÂÂÂය නà·ÂÂÂයකà¶ÂÂÂ්වය පවර෠අවà·â€ÂÂරà·â€ÂÂදෆහà¶ÂÂÂර හමà·ÂÂÂරක්à¶ÂÂÂà·â€ÂÂලදී: මෙරට à¶ÂÂÂà·â€ÂÂල à¶ÂÂÂිබූ අà¶ÂÂÂිභයà·ÂÂÂනක à¶ÂÂÂà·Šâ€ÂÂÂරස්à¶ÂÂÂà·€à·ÂÂÂදී මරබිය සිඳ දමà·ÂÂÂ, සංවර්ධන ව්â€ÂÂÂයà·ÂÂÂපෘà¶ÂÂÂීන්රà·ÂÂÂà·ÂÂÂියකටද පණ පොවන ලදී. රටේ ප්â€ÂÂÂරධà·ÂÂÂන අවà·ÂÂÂà·Šâ€ÂÂÂයà¶ÂÂÂà·ÂÂÂවයක්වූ බල à·ÂÂÂක්à¶ÂÂÂිය, අර්බූද ගනනà·ÂÂÂවක්හරහ෠ගමන්කල යà·â€ÂÂගයේ ඒ සදහ෠ගà¶ÂÂÂයà·â€ÂÂà¶ÂÂÂෆවූ නිසි පියවර à·€à·ÂÂÂයෙන්නොරොච්චà·ÂÂÂලේ විදà·â€ÂÂලි බලà·ÂÂÂගà·ÂÂÂරය හ෠කොà¶ÂÂÂ්මලේ විදà·â€ÂÂලි බලà·ÂÂÂගà·ÂÂÂරයන්හි ගොඩනà·ÂÂÂංවීමේ කà·ÂÂÂර්යයන්ආරම්භ කරන ලදී. ඊට සමගà·ÂÂÂමීව ආරම්භ කල හම්බන්à¶ÂÂÂොට වරà·ÂÂÂය ඉදිකිරීමේ කටයà·â€ÂÂà¶ÂÂÂෆනිමà·ÂÂÂà·€ දකිමින්සිටින වකවà·ÂÂÂනà·â€ÂÂවක, ගොඩබිම ඉදිකල මේ වරà·ÂÂÂයට කරදිය පිරවීමේ මංගල්â€ÂÂÂයය අද දින (15 අගà·ÂÂÂස්à¶ÂÂÂෆමස 2010)දී සිදà·â€ÂÂකරන ලදී. à·ƒà·ÂÂÂබෑ ලෙසම... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 15/08/10)
The Elephant World View
We elephants have our personal problems on our minds all the time.  The biggest worry for us is to never get too hot in the sun. Because our body mass is so large it is slow to cool down once we get hot. Getting hot is a miserable, upsetting experience. So we exercise at night and rest in the day.  But this problem of keeping cool is being made more difficult by the step-by-step, one-by-one felling of big trees - those same trees that give good shade and create a cool environment for us to... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 15/08/10)
Tamil Migrant Story- Some Facts for your Consideration
 Dear Hon.Vic Toews Minister of Public Safety' Canada  We like to thank you for sending a strong message to the world.  Canada is now known as a haven for terrorist activities particularly Toronto. Words alone will not convince anyone.  We think Toronto is fast becoming well-known to be a city that attracts terrorists.  As Sri Lankan born Canadians who belong to the Sinhalese community we feel any reference to Sri Lankan migrants is painting all Sri Lankans with the same brush. Sri Lankan- Sinhalese community is not... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 15/08/10)
COURT MARTIAL SARATH FONSEKA; DIS-HONOURABLY DISCHARGE FROM ARMY; SF AN ENEMY OF THE NATION, WORSE THAN PRABHAKARAN!
On 17 December 2009, the Lankaweb under the above caption, had proposed the Court Martial proceedings against former General Mr Sarath Fonseka. On 13 August, 2010 the first Court Martial has found General Fonseka guilty of the serious breaches of the Sri Lankan Army code of conduct and stripped him of all status he has gained as a first-class Non Commissioned Officer and a Commissioned Officer of the Army. This dis-honourable discharge was most appropriate and has been in line with the standards applied in similar cases internationally. As we recall, during the... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 15/08/10)
'Mr Sarath Fonseka' - Downfall of a General
 On the 13th of August, the First Court Martial against Gen. Sarath Fonseka found him guilty of dabbling in politics while in uniform. He has been stripped of all ranks, medals and honours won during his career. This includes all perks and privileges. He was Sri Lanka's first 4 Star General but due to his misguidance as to who his true friends are he got into hot waters and now discharged disgracefully.  During the court martial it had transpired that he had put pressure on the then Opposition MP Johnston Fernando and MP Lakshman Seneviratne to... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 15/08/10)
Take Ban ki Moon before an International Tribunal for trying to bring disrepute to Sri Lanka, while ignoring evident war crimes by member states of OTAN led by America.
 Ban Ki Moon’s determination to go ahead with a panel to investigate possible war crimes by the Armed Forces of Sri Lanka, at the final phase of its military operations against the terrorists, seems to be a personal vendetta, rather than a sincere desire to know whether there had been  violation of human rights.   Why does he make it a personal vendetta ? Perhaps because he was a party to the failed attempt of the member states of the West, led by UK, France and Norway to save the Sri Lanka terrorist leadership.  If Ban Ki... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 15/08/10)
AMBASSADOR MEETS WITH SRI LANKAN EXPATRIATES IN CALIFORNIA
SANTA MONICA, Calif. -- Jaliya Wickramasuriya, Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to the United States, met recently with Sri Lankan community members as part of Sri Lanka’s efforts to unify the Sri Lanka Diaspora in the U.S. Assisted by Mr. Jeff Goonewardena, who was recently appointed as Sri Lanka’s Consul General to California, the Ambassador met with members of the Tamil, Sinhalese and Muslim Sri Lankan community in California. The meeting between the Ambassador and community members focused on ways to strengthen relations within the Sri Lankan Tamil communities and extending their support... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 15/08/10)
Re: How we should deal with the Tamil boat people
 Editor The Toronto Star One, Young St Toronto, ON Dear Editor,  It is quite interesting how Mr. Lorne Waldman, a well-known immigration lawyer in Toronto, is trying his utmost to justify the arrival of another boat load of Tamil Tiger suspects, less than a year after the first boat that brought 76 of so-called "Tamil refugees."  None of us are surprised of Mr. Waldman's all out effort to justify the newest arrival, since he has a vested interest in this matter, as he is one of the immigration lawyers who will be defending many of these Tamil migrants.  He already... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 15/08/10)
RAGING WATERS IN PAKISTAN
Hard times not only boost up the morale of a nation but also bring the distressed people closer. Disasters and calamities test the valour and determination of a nation. Wars, earth quakes, floods and famines give birth to a new generation. Since the 9/11 incident, the Pakistani nation has been passing through an endless series of repeated trials and tribulations. For the people of Pakistan, life is no more a bed of roses but they are continuously struggling hard to change this pathetic scenario. In spite of countless hurdles and endless obstructions, it is next to impossible... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 15/08/10)
ආචà·ÂÂÂර්ය මර්වින්සිල්වà·ÂÂÂ
මේ දිනවල මà·â€ÂÂළෆරටපà·â€ÂÂරà·ÂÂÂම ජනà¶ÂÂÂà·ÂÂÂවට කථ෠කිරීමට ඇà¶ÂÂÂà·’ ප්â€ÂÂÂරධà·ÂÂÂන මà·ÂÂÂà¶ÂÂÂෘකà·ÂÂÂà·€ බවට පà¶ÂÂÂà·Šà·€ ඇà¶ÂÂÂà·Šà¶ÂÂÂà·š ආචà·ÂÂÂර්ය මර්වින්සිල්ව෠මහà¶ÂÂÂà·ÂÂÂà·€ සිය නියà·ÂÂÂජ්â€ÂÂÂය ආමà·ÂÂÂà¶ÂÂÂà·Šâ€ÂÂÂය ධූරයෙන්හ෠à·ÂÂÂà·Šâ€ÂÂÂරී ලංක෠නිදහස්පක්ෂ à·ƒà·ÂÂÂමà·ÂÂÂජිකà¶ÂÂÂ්වය අහà·ÂÂÂසි කිරීම සම්බන්ධවය. ආචà·ÂÂÂර්ය මරිවින්සිල්ව෠මහà¶ÂÂÂà· à¶ÂÂÂනි පà·â€ÂÂද්ගලයකෆවà·ÂÂÂයෙන්ගෙන, මේ පà·â€ÂÂද්ගලය෠වරදක්කර ඇචයන මà¶ÂÂÂයේ පිහිටà·ÂÂÂ, එම වරදට දඩà·â€ÂÂවමක්වà·ÂÂÂයෙන්à¶â€ÂÂà·„à·â€ÂÂගේ නියà·ÂÂÂජ්â€ÂÂÂය අමà·ÂÂÂà¶ÂÂÂà·Šâ€ÂÂÂය ධූරය à·„à· à·ÂÂÂà·Šâ€ÂÂÂරී ලංක෠නිදහස්පක්ෂ à·ƒà·ÂÂÂමà·ÂÂÂජිකà¶ÂÂÂ්වය අහිමි කර ඇà¶ÂÂÂà·’ බව අප වටහ෠ගචයà·â€ÂÂà¶ÂÂÂà·â€ÂÂය. ආචà·ÂÂÂර්ය මර්වින්සිල්ව෠මහà¶ÂÂÂ෠හ෠ඊට සමà·ÂÂÂනව දේà·ÂÂÂපà·ÂÂÂලයේ යෙදෙන්නන්සම්බන්ධව මන෠අවබà·ÂÂÂධයකින්සිටින ජන කොට්ඨà·ÂÂÂහයක්මේ දිවයින පà·â€ÂÂර෠විසිරී සිටී. à¶â€ÂÂà·€à·â€ÂÂන්ගෙන්අà¶ÂÂÂිමහà¶ÂÂÂ්ප්â€ÂÂÂරමà·ÂÂÂණයක්මේ රටපà·â€ÂÂර෠විසිරී සිටින... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 15/08/10)
Your editorial cartoon and editorial of 14 August
August 14, 2010  The Editor (Letters) THE OTTAWA CITIZEN  Sir:  Today's editorial cartoon "Fair Play and Daylight" was brilliant which summed up the MV SUNRISE fiasco, where one person says to another standing on the Warf where the illegal Tamil migrant ship MV SUN SEA SRI LANKA with 490 Tamils was docked, "They may be UNINVITED but they aren't UNINFORMED!"  'Take a deep breath', your editorial said. What is upsetting about that editorial is that if only the Conservative government had taken advantage of Sri Lanka's... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 15/08/10)
The (Recent) Travels of a Journalist-A FORAY INTO NORTH PORTUGAL TO UNCOVER PORTO AND BRAGA
 (PART 2: Braga and Bom Jesus) On arrival back at the Braga Railway Station Sunday (18 July) evening, Yoke-Sim and I bluffed our way by foot to Theatro Circo on Avenida da Liberdade, the venue of the official opening ceremony of the IAMCR conference. Because we did not have a detailed street map, we depended on amiable passers-by to give us directions. Our hunch was that the distance between the station and the theater was about 1.5 km. Exploration by default From the station, we hurried north on Largo da Estacao, where the bus driver... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 15/08/10)
Sajith attacks Ranil who passed reforms buck to a committee
Divisions with the UNP widened with Sajith Premadasa, the reformist leading a campaign to change the UNP constitution, firing  a broadside on Ranil Wickremesinghe, the failed leader of the UNP who had lost 16 elections in a row, at the last meeting of the Working Committee held at Sri Kotha on Wednesday.  The key issue that was to top the agenda of the Working Committee meeting, was the reforming of the party by granting the right of vote to the grass root representatives – namely, the palath sabha, nagara sabha, pradeshiya sabhas and the electoral... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 13/08/10)
Canada's Acceptance Of Refugee Ship Could Set Up A Dangerous Precedent Towards Global Security!
August 14th 2010  It must be the aspiration as well as expectation of all sensible discerning Canadians that this time around the refugee ship headed for Canada with over 300 people which is getting so much publicity on world Newsw will not be granted safe haven in their beautiful country by its administration on simplistic albeit passionate grounds of sympathy and various excuses pointing to humanitarian needs, as research and investigations by the Government of Sri Lanka as well as other reliable sources qualified to the task indicate that this is a shipload of terrorists... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 13/08/10)
Tamils: Most will be jailed
August 13, 2010  The Editor (Letters) THE OTTAWA CITIZEN  Sir:  'Tamils: Most will be jailed', you reported this morning, referring to the 490 illegal Tamil migrants on the ship Sun Sea according to reports also have Tamil Tiger terrorists among them, that arrived on the B.C. coast.  Dream on Canada, and I won't hold my breath to see that eventuality, as the Charter of Rights and Freedoms will not allow us that luxury as we are still been waiting for 20 years for some Tamils to be removed from... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 13/08/10)
PTSD in Sri Lankan Children
The facts of life are that a child who has seen war cannot be compared with a child who doesn't know what war is except from television.†Sophia Loren Children are susceptible to developing PTSD, which is a complex health condition that can develop in response to a traumatic experience - a life-threatening or extremely distressing situation that causes a child to feel intense fear, horror or a sense of helplessness. Children exposed to the traumatic events such as sexual assault/abuse, war, natural disasters, terrorist incidents, serious accidents, or violent personal assaults can develop PTSD.... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 12/08/10)
Canada-Bound Refugee Boat Carry Terrorists
Thanks for the eye-opening reports on the Canada-Bound ship full of Tamil Terrorists. It has been known for some time that this is not a ship full of refugees but a ship of escaping terrorists. Google 'Ship-bound Tamil refugees need help' to read about this bogus refugee ship that's full of terrorists. A small excerpt: 'Perhaps the media, especially the Toronto Star, probably would have paid much more attention to those genuine refugees if they had money to pay the smugglers to come to Canada, or owned laptops with access to Skype and the Internet, like the... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 12/08/10)
STATEMENT BY THE GOVERNMENT OF SRI LANKA ON AMBASSADOR RAPP'S REPORT TO CONGRESS
The Government of Sri Lanka has received the text of the report by Ambassador Rapp of the US State Department to Congress titled "Report to Congress on measures taken by the Government of Sri Lanka and international bodies to investigate incidents during the recent conflict in Sri Lanka, and evaluating the effectiveness of such efforts." The Government wishes in this regard to observe that in May 2009, Sri Lanka defeated the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), recognized globally as a brutal terrorist organization. The conflict situation had a devastating effect on the people of Sri Lanka and... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 12/08/10)
Refugee ship enters Canadian waters
August 12, 2010  The Editor (Letters) THE OTTAWA CITIZEN  Sir: You report that 'A ship believed to be carrying as many as 500 Tamil refugees is being escorted by the Canadian navy into British Columbia..."  With our Government's whimpish response to the earlier ship 'Ocean Lady's' 76 illegal Tamil migrants among which according to the Canadian Border Agency Report were 25 hardcore Tamil Tiger terrorists. None of the 76 Tamils on that ship have been deported so far nor a single member of the crew of the... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 12/08/10)
IT WAS FIRST THE WHITE CHRISTIANS AGAINST BUDDHIST SRI LANKA AND NOW “THE BLACK CHRISTIANSâ€ÂÂÂ
First the Anglo Saxons (mind you they are all from Christianity dominated countries) teamed up together to vilify Sri Lanka on her war against the LTTE terrorists who wanted to carve a separate monolithic state for Tamils. The Anglo Saxon trio ex-  UKFM David Miliband, French FM Bernard Kuchner, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton launched an international coup d’etat against Sri Lanka in support of the LTTE terrorists agenda but miserably failed. Government of Sri Lanka didn’t budge an inch on their war against the conclusive eradication of LTTE terrorism from our soil. When the trio failed... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 12/08/10)
SRI LANKA: An Appeal to the women's movement against inhuman treatment of a young woman on religious grounds
This is a narrative of the husband of the victim, a 17 year old woman with a two month old child, who was subjected to the horrible experience of being beaten about 100 times with the hard centre stem from a coconut frond in the presence of the committee members of the mosque situated in Gokarella in the district of Kurunagalle. This woman had given a birth to a child as a result of an extra marital relationship. She has since married and has been living peacefully. One day the husband... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 11/08/10)
The achievement of Kumar Sangakkara becoming the best batsman in Test Match Cricket.
Dear Sir, As a fellow Sri Lankan, it is both a privilege and an honour that Kumar Sangakkara is presently ranked the best batsman in Test Match cricket. I believe Sangakkara has all the strokes both on the front and on the back foot, including the vertical and horizontal bat strokes. He is an eye player who embodies his inner mind, temperament, application and concentration, including determination, which are essential necessities and requirements, with quality technique, and hard work to be the best batsman, especially in Test Match cricket, which is the litmus test... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 11/08/10)
Ship carrying Tamils headed for B.C.coast
August 11, 2010 The Editor (Letters)  THE OTTAWA CITIZEN  Sir: The ship ‘Sun Sea’ with a cargo of 500 Tamils and among them are suspect Tamil Tigers that is heading for the B.C. coast was predictable as night follows day, after we let in the 76 Tamils smuggled into Canada on ‘Ocean Lady’ last October, of which according to the Canadian Border Services Agency Report, 25 were hardcore Tamil Tiger terrorists.  What is also predictable is that there will be tough Rambo talk by the Minister of Public Safety and the Minister... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 11/08/10)
Please help the flood victims of Pakistan instead of harassing Sri Lanka
Attention of Mr Ban Ki Moon Secretary General, UN  Please help the flood victims of Pakistan instead of harassing Sri Lanka  It is generally thought that the proposed investigative panel on Sri Lanka is to harass Sri Lanka and its leaders for having close ties with China, Pakistan and Iran.  As Mahinda Gunasekera [6]  pointed out, the proposed panel is unlikely to find any thing significant. Why on earth would Mr Moon investigate Sri Lanka when there are more prominent human rights violators [3]. Wikileaks have given all the evidence of human rights violations of USA... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 11/08/10)
NAUGHTY BOY IN POLITICS
Everybody talking about the naughty boy in politics these days and Media makes him a villan as always. Mervin Silva is not a bad person as you all think.He is true Sinhala son of Motherlanka. He won all the elections with thumping majority in his electorate Kelaniya. If he is a bad guy people wouldnt have elected him to be their representative to the house of democracy. Every family have a naughty boy or a naughty girl in our society or any society. This person has done a great service to our motherland being a staunch buddhist... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 11/08/10)
Ramazan – the blessed month.
`The Holy Quran states: `O ye who believe, fasting is prescribed for you during a fixed number of days as it was prescribed for those before you, so that you may safeguard yourselves against every kind of ill and become righteous. But whoso from among you should be ailing, not being permanently incapacitated, or should be on a journey, shall complete the reckoning by fasting on a corresponding number of other days; and for those who find fasting a strain hard to bear is an expiation, the feeding... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 11/08/10)
Last day for the UNPers to save the party from Wickremesinghe
When the UNP Working Committee meets today it will battle with proposals that will either shape its future as a viable democratic party or drag it back to the past of the failed, one-man leadership of Ranil Wickremesinghe.. The main issue facing the UNP in the post-Prabhakaran period is to find ways of adjusting to the new realities dominating the political landscape. Unfortunately for him, Ranil Wickremesinghe is not offering anything new. He is dancing to the same old tune that has failed in the past. Bringing in old hacks like Mangala Samaraweera is not... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 10/08/10)
Speaking as Hamlet Ghost
Hamlet is generally considered the most highly developed of Shakespeare’s genre of the Revenge Play that includes Macbeth, Julius Caesar and Richard III. His use of a liberated form of blank verse without formal line limits  the unrhymed, iambic pentameter- from the kind that had been made fashionable by Thomas Kyd and Christopher Marlowe, and the use of the character of the ghost typical of his revenge plays in a more sophisticated manner render it so.  In the opinion of some critics, Shakespeare’s use of  ghosts in revenge plays was simply based on the need to... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 10/08/10)
Mervyn Silva phenomenon
The reported cases of dengue is said to be about 26000,  of which  about 175 were deaths.  Dengue fever which has taken an epidemic proportion in Sri Lanka is being swept under the carpet of Mervyn Silva phenomenon by the opposition political parties to  inform the people and the international community through their press conferences , the  inaction of the President and the Government to bring under control an eccentric Minister, as there is nothing more important than that happening in Sri Lanka.  The disaster that is being caused by dengue fever is no more the concern... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 10/08/10)
The International “Statesmen†Kofi Annan, Mandela, Tutu and Jimmy Carter, the latest hirelings of the LTTE Diaspora
Kofi Annan the former Secretary General of the United Nations, Nelson Mandela the Noble Prize Winner and former President of South Africa, Desmond Tutu, also a Nobel Prize Winner and the Archibishop of South Africa and former US President of the USA, Jimmy Carter have raised their voice in support of the United Nations’ investigation into the supposed atrocities committed by the Sri Lankan Government in annihilating the terrorist LTTE from Sri Lanka.  They have together accused the Sri Lankan Government of “marginalizing the ethnic minority Tamilsâ€ÂÂÂ. They do not know... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 10/08/10)
The (Recent) Travels of a Journalist-A FORAY INTO NORTH PORTUGAL TO UNCOVER PORTO AND BRAGA -(PART I)
Luis Miguel Goncalves Pereira, a graduate student from the Communication and Society Research Center (CSRC), Universidade do Minho, was at the Francisco de Sá Carneiro Airport in Pedras Rubras to greet usâ€â€ÂÂYoke-Sim and meâ€â€ÂÂwhen we landed in Portugal on Saturday (17 July 2010) to attend the annual conference of the International Association for Media and Communication Research (IAMCR) in Braga. Named after a Porto-born politician who died at the age of 46 in an airplane crash just 11 months after he became Portugal’s prime minister in 1980, the airport serves as the international gateway to... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 10/08/10)
“TOURISM IS BOOMING IN SRI LANKA†- ARE WE READY TO MEET THE FUTURE DEMAND?
 Currently we live on the sweat of the expatriate labour force mostly in the Middle East which is the main income of the nation in place of traditional exports such as tea rubber coconut and apparels. Middle East thrives on oil which the nature has gifted them. We are gifted with one of the most beautiful beaches rivers wild life climatic conditions and natural resources in addition to friendly educated and smiling nation coupled with great cultures and religions. Are we ready to embrace... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 10/08/10)
Ranil meets President Rajapaksa?
President Mahinda Rajapaksa and the Opposition leader Ranil Wickramasinghe have met once again at the President’s House this morning on 10 August. The President and the Opposition leader met each other previously and agreed to continue with the talks on proposed constitutional amendments and electoral reforms.  President Media Unit could not specify the details of the today’s meeting. However when contacted, a few UPFA government and UNP parliamentarians also said they are not aware of such an emergency meeting. Other media organisations were not informed to cover the event. Pictures are seen here two leaders... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 10/08/10)
Sri Lanka handover flood relief to Pakistan
The Government of Sri Lanka handed over a stock of 18 metric tons of dry rations and medicine as emergency relief goods to the Government of Pakistan at Chaklala Air Base, Islamabad on 8th August. A fully equipped medical team was also deployed to help the victims. On behalf of the Government of Sri Lanka, the High Commissioner of Sri Lanka in Pakistan, Air Chief Marshal Jayalath Weerakkody handed over the delivered consignment of food aid to Maimat-Ullah, additional Secretary and the Coordinator for the flood relief operations of the Pakistan Prime Minister’s Office. The... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 10/08/10)
Sri Lankan president sacks minister over dengue row
COLOMBO (AFP) – Sri Lanka's president Tuesday sacked a maverick minister who had tied a state official to a tree as punishment for failing to control the spread of dengue fever in the country, an official said. Highways minister Mervyn Silva was dismissed and his ruling party membership suspended pending a disciplinary inquiry, an official at the president's office said. "The president removed minister Silva from his post with immediate effect," the official said without elaborating.... -Full Story- (Yahoo - 10/08/10)
'Hardcore' Tamil Tiger leaders aboard B.C.-bound ship, Sri Lankan paper says
A ship carrying over 200 Sri Lankan migrants  including “hardcore†leaders of the Tamil Tigers  is on its way to the B.C. coast, according to Sri Lanka’s Sunday Observer. But David Poopalapillai of the Canadian-Tamil Congress cautioned Canadians against believing the state-owned paper’s claim that terrorists are aboard the MV Sun Sea, last spotted in the Gulf of Thailand two weeks ago. “We should not jump the gun,†said Poopalapilla. “The Sri Lankan government brands all Tamils as terrorists. If they come, they should be given due process.â€ÂÂÂ... -Full Story- (canada.com - 10/08/10)
B.C. prisons brace for Sri Lankan migrants
A Lower Mainland municipality is being advised its prisons could be used to house Sri Lankan migrants on a Thai cargo ship believed to be headed to B.C. On Monday, Public Safety Minister Vic Toews said Ottawa is monitoring the MV Sun Sea, but would not provide specifics. John Leeburn, spokesman for the District of Maple Ridge, said he has been told the people on board will stay at two Maple Ridge facilities  Fraser Regional Correctional Centre and the Alouette Correctional Centre for Women.... -Full Story- (cbc.ca - 10/08/10)
UPDATE 1-Sri Lanka shares rebound, jump as much as 5 pct
By Shihar Aneez COLOMBO Aug 10 (Reuters) - Sri Lanka's benchmark share index .CSE jumped more than 5 percent on Tuesday, clawing back early losses, as investors hunted for bargains after heavy selling in recent sessions sparked by regulatory curbs on how much share prices can move. The index .CSE ended 4.7 percent higher at 5,092.94 points, off the day's highs, after slumping more than 2 percent in early trade. Asia's top performing stock market this year had slumped nearly 7 percent since the Securities and Exchange Commission announced last Thursday that it would limit daily share price moves to... -Full Story- (in.reuters.com - 10/08/10)
Sri Lanka
Mr. Matthew Russell Lee Inner City Press New York, N.Y.  Dear Mr. Lee:  I was sent a copy of your recent ranting about Sri Lanka dated August 3,2010 and some of the other reports that had taken place before August 3, 2010. You seem to be impatient that the panel set up by Ban to advise him on Sri Lanka is dragging it's feet and not producing an immediate report. It seems you have no other subject to deal with other than Sri Lanka, so it is understandable that you are irritated... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 09/08/10)
Theory of Everything
What is ultimately possible in science? Is it possible to construct a theory of everything (final theory of Nature)? Complete unification implicitly assumes total knowledge of the universe. But can such knowledge be obtained by science and technology? How do we define ‘everything’? Is what we perceive as the universe today everything? What if what we perceive as the universe today changes in hundred years? If so what will happen to the validity of the theory of everything? Does this ‘everything’ have an independent existence (from us)?  Western scientists assume that there is an origin, a linear... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 09/08/10)
Three Member Advisory Panel On Sri Lanka
SRI LANKA UNITED NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF CANADA Box 55292, 300 Borough Drive, Toronto, Ontario M1P 4Z7 Canada Website: www.sluna.org E-mail: sluna
idirect.com  By E-mail August 9, 2010  His Excellency, Ban Ki–Moon Secretary General United Nations Organization New York, NY  Your Excellency,  Three Member Advisory Panel On Sri Lanka  Further to our media release of July 5, 2010 titled ‘UN Secretary General’s Panel on Sri Lanka is a Blunder of Serious Proportions’ wherein we discussed your having over-stepped your powers in appointing a Panel of Outside Nominees to investigate alleged human rights... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 09/08/10)
දෙරණ ලිටල්ස්ස්ටà·ÂÂÂරà·ÅÂÂ
අප à·ƒà·ÂÂÂබෑ රංගනයන්, නර්ථනයන්, à·€à·ÂÂÂදනයන්හ෠ගà·ÂÂÂයනයන්වඩà·ÂÂÂà¶ÂÂÂ්හොදින්රස වින්දේ අපගේ à·ƒà·ÂÂÂà·„à·’à¶ÂÂÂà·Šâ€ÂÂÂයය හ෠කලà·ÂÂÂà·€ අà¶ÂÂÂරේ à·ƒà·ÂÂÂරිසරන අà¶ÂÂÂරේදීය. ඒ ලà·ÂÂÂකය ගොඩනà·ÂÂÂංවීමට දà·ÂÂÂයකà¶ÂÂÂ්වය දà·â€ÂÂන්, අපගේ මà·â€ÂÂà¶ÂÂÂà·â€ÂÂන්මිà¶ÂÂÂà·Šà¶ÂÂÂන්ට පිංසිදà·â€ÂÂවන්නට අපට ඉà¶ÂÂÂ෠හොද කලà·ÂÂÂà¶ÂÂÂ්මක පà·ÂÂÂරිසරික à¶ÂÂÂà¶ÂÂÂ්වයක්ගොඩනංව෠à¶â€ÂÂපනංව෠à¶ÂÂÂිබේ. මෙම à·ƒà·â€ÂÂන්දර ලà·ÂÂÂකයට අප නිà¶ÂÂÂර නිà¶ÂÂÂර පිවිස එහි ඇà¶ÂÂÂà·’ à·ƒà·â€ÂÂන්දරà¶ÂÂÂ්වය රසවිදින්නෙමà·â€ÂÂ. අපට කà·ÂÂÂන්සියක්, මහන්සියක්දනà·â€ÂÂන වහà·ÂÂÂම ඒ ලà·ÂÂÂකයට පිවිසෙන්නේ, එහි ඇà¶ÂÂÂà·’ à·ƒà·â€ÂÂන්දරà¶ÂÂÂ්වය සියළෆදà·â€ÂÂක්දොම්නස්ක්ෂණයකින්නිම෠කර හරින බà·ÂÂÂවිණි. මෙම ලà·ÂÂÂකයේ à·ƒà·ÂÂÂරිසරනවිට අපට හමà·â€ÂÂවන à·ƒà·â€ÂÂන්දරà¶ÂÂÂ්වය ගà·â€ÂÂà¶ÂÂÂà·Šà¶ÂÂÂිලය හරහ෠යන ගමනේදී විස්à¶ÂÂÂර වන්නේ මෙසේය. රූ ර෠සේ අදින෠ලෙසේ අà¶ÂÂÂ්ලෙළ දදී විදà·â€ÂÂලිය             පබ෠රන්රසේ එක්වන ලෙසේ වෙණ නà·ÂÂÂදනූ පà·Â ... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 09/08/10)
Lankan stocks post biggest fall
COLOMBO: Sri Lanka’s stock index suffered its biggest ever daily fall on Monday, sinking 4 percent, as investors panicked that a new rule limiting stock price movements to 10 percent would hinder trading. Sri Lanka’s main share index fell 4.4 percent or 222.9 points to 4,842.34, its biggest intraday in point terms. It finished 4 percent weaker at 4,862.86, its lowest close since July 23. Asia’s top bourse performer so far this year, notching up a gain of 43.6 percent, has dropped 6.7 percent since the Securities and Exchange Commission imposed the trading limits on Thursday after it had halted... -Full Story- (gulftoday.ae - 09/08/10)
Canada concerned that migrant ship could be carrying Tamil Tigers
TORONTO (AP)  Canada's top security official says he's concerned a ship carrying asylum seekers from Sri Lanka could be carrying members of a terrorist organization. Public Safety Minister Vic Toews said Monday they have concerns the ship could be carrying members of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, a terrorist group outlawed in Canada since 2006. The Thai cargo ship  the MV Sun Sea  is expected to reach Canada as soon as this week. Toews is being briefed regularly but declined to provide further details. He says it is imperative that Canada prevent terrorist organizations from abusing the... -Full Story- (foxnews.com - 09/08/10)
Why is Moon blind to West exporting terrorism? Part II.
Part I published yesterday focused on US State Department’s latest report on terrorism which said categorically that Tamil Tiger terrorists continue to raise funds in North America, Europe and Australia either through coercion or bogus charity funds – all of which lead to violations of human rights in Sri Lanka destabilized by terrorism. This means that these terrorist activities are continued despite the domestic laws of these Western nations prohibiting terrorist activities on their soil. The report is quite emphatic in saying: “In spite of losing the war on the ground in Sri Lanka, the... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 08/08/10)
Refusal to endorse water as a human right exposes the US and UN conspiracy
Late last month, there were two pointers, both arising from the UN within the span of just two days, that exposed the ugliness of the US devised human rights conspiracy and the increasingly visible face of the UN as an organisation serving only the interests of the rich, domineering countries.  On 28 July, the champions of the global human rights movement, the US, the EU (except Germany and Spain), Canada, and Australia, abstained from voting for a resolution presented by Pablo Solon, the Bolivian ambassador to the UN, co-sponsored by 31 other countries, declaring that: “safe and... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 08/08/10)
US report on terrorism points a finger at the West -Part 1
In its latest Country Report on Terrorism, 2009, (August 5, 2010), the US State Department pin-points the international network of Tamil Tigers (LTTE)  operating as usual even after they were defeated on My 18, 2009. The report highlights four main aspects of the current Tamil Tiger activities: 1) in spite of losing the war and the serious blow to it by the capture of Selvarajah Pathmanathan (aka KP), the LTTE’s principal financier and arms supplier, “ the LTTE’s international network of financial support have survived largely intact†2) this network continues to collect contributions from the... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 08/08/10)
Elders voice on Sri Lanka
OPEN LETTER to Former Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town, Desmond Tutu The Leader of THE ELDERS COUNCIL info
tutufoundation-usa.org <info
tutufoundation-usa.org> Dear Desmond Tutu, Tutu gone ku ku Sri Lankans  have suffered massively and a lot of blood spilt  due to Tamil, racist terrorist violence that produced orphans, regular blowing to pieces of innocent civilians, smashing the heads of Sinhala babies, ripping the guts of Sinhala poor pregnant women and so on. Media reports indicate that LTTE treated captured Soldiers badly. They were savagely beaten and sometimes electrocuted. They crushed their genitals, also used to put chillie powder in to their... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 08/08/10)
Anton Chekhov called Sri Lanka Paradise on Earth
Anton Chekhov, whom many regard as the best short story writer in the world called Sri Lanka , “A Paradise on Earth.†Anton Chekhov is quoted so in a biography written of the famous author by his younger brother Mikhail Chekhov, the English translation of which has been just published in the United States. In the book, ‘Anton Chekhv- A Brother’s Memoir’ the famous writer is quoted having said, “The island of Ceylon (Sri Lanka) , however made up for all the difficulties, he said. It was Paradise on Earth-an exotic fairy tale... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 08/08/10)
G-15 HLTF members call on President Rajapaksa
Members of G-15 High Level Task Force (HLTF) paid a courtesy call on President Mahinda Rajapaksa at Temple trees on 6 August. HLTF members visited Sri Lanka for a fact finding mission after President Rajapaksa proposed to concentrate on an action to strengthen development cooperation in the area of infrastructure development, human resource development and trade and investment promotion within the members at the last G-15 Summit. A special meeting of G-15 High Level Task Force was held at the John Exeter International Conference Hall of the Central Bank on 5th August. Lalith Weeratunga, Secretary to... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 08/08/10)
Stop bickering and get together to develop this great country-Sri Lanka.
Lot of people have taken exception to the blame worthy  behaviour of Mr.Mervyn Silva.  Many question why despite his irritating behaviour the President continues to keep him in the cabinet. The President may have his own reasons, perhaps he thinks it is safe to keep him in the Cabinet rather than let him loose outside without ministerial responsibility.  There are those who think that he should be “kicked†out of the cabinet, to avoid Sri Lanka being the laughing stock of the West. This is a flimsy excuse, as it really does not matter now what the... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 08/08/10)
POWs of the Eelam war
so hard to express how that mental duress Played especially torturous role Like the termites that fed on the boards in my bed, It was gnawing away at my soul. . . . Against horrors so chilling, the spirit was willing But the flesh was too weak to withstand. Was it really a sin for a man to give in? Could I better resist each demand? - Edward Alan Brudno American POW captured by the North Vietnamese in 1965  Former POWs of the Eelam War undergo a range of mental health problems. The... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 08/08/10)
How legitimate are the recommendations of the “Eldersâ€ÂÂÂ
A former presidential spokesman has forwarded a list of recommendations given in a statement issued on 3rd August 2010 by “The Elders†calling upon the Governments of India, Japan, China & US to impress upon GOSL to implement 7 remedial steps that 14 members of the retired “elders†club have drawn up.  The Elders was founded in 2007 by Nelson Mandela. Its membership has 10 active leaders & 2 honorary members with Desmond Tutu functioning as its Chairman. Aung San Suu Kyi, Martti Ahtisaari, Kofi Annan, Ela Bhatt, Lakhdar Brahimi, Gro Harlem Brundtland, Fernando Henrique Cardoso, Jimmy... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 07/08/10)
How The Army of the USA is used for Development Work
The US Army is used for tasks of national development in a manner that is not done in any other country.  This task is assigned to the US Army Corps of Engineers which is utilized both in the USA and also on assignments abroad.  The Army of Sri Lanka was used in times of floods when bridges get washed away and the Army comes in and fixes a bailey bridge within a few days. In the Anuradhapura of the Sixties, my friend Dr Randy Guneratne a doctor of the Volunteer Force was enlisted when the... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 06/08/10)
Education – we never got it right
Perhaps what we Sri Lankans need now is a highly skilled technical force to meet the challenges of the 21st century rather than the present emphasis on producing academicians. This strategy needs to be revisited and in fact the need is a twist in Sri Lankan education system and not concentrate on establishing new private and state Universities but to create more and more technical colleges to produce qualified certified technicians and trades people to handle the ever increasing demand on trades such as masonry and brick laying, carpentry, machinists, multi media trades personnel, electronic technicians to... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 06/08/10)
නිලධà·ÂÂÂරින්ගස්වල බà·ÂÂÂඳීම
ඇමà¶ÂÂÂà·’ මර්වින්සිල්ව෠ට කà·â€ÂÂමන හ෠ලෙඩක්දà·ÂÂÂමීමට බල෠සිටින අයට සමෘධි නිලධà·ÂÂÂරිය෠ගහේ බà·ÂÂÂඳීම අනගි අවස්ථà·ÂÂÂවක්බවට පà¶ÂÂÂà·Šà·€ ඇà¶ÂÂÂ. ට්â€ÂÂÂරේඩ්යූනියන්වල අය අල්ල෠ගෙන පෙලපà·ÂÂÂලි යà·ÂÂÂමට ජේ.වී.පී කà·ÂÂÂරයින්ට ද මඟක්පෑදී ඇà¶ÂÂÂ. කෙසේ වෙà¶ÂÂÂà¶ÂÂÂ්මේ සිද්ධිය දෙස ම෠බලන්නේ වෙනà¶ÂÂÂ්ආකà·ÂÂÂරයකටය.    මේ සිද්ධිය දෙස "ආයà¶ÂÂÂන සංග්â€ÂÂÂරහය" අනà·â€ÂÂà·€ බà·ÂÂÂලීම පවà¶ÂÂÂින රà·ÂÂÂමà·â€ÂÂà·€ à¶ÂÂÂà·â€ÂÂල පවà¶ÂÂÂින ක්â€ÂÂÂරමය දිගටම ගෙන යෑමට හදන අයගේ ආà·ÂÂÂà·ÂÂÂවය. ලංකà·ÂÂÂවට ආයà¶ÂÂÂන සංග්â€ÂÂÂරහය අනà·â€ÂÂà·€ ගියොà¶ÂÂÂ්ගොඩ ඒමක්නà·ÂÂÂà¶ÂÂÂ. 1970 ගණන්වලදී ම෠දà·â€ÂÂටෆරජයේ සේවය බල්ලà·ÂÂÂට ගිය සේවයකි. 2010 දී එය බලෆබල්ලන්ට ගොස්ඇà¶ÂÂÂà·’ බව මගේ නිගමන යයි. අවංකව රජයේ සේවය කරණ අය කී... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 06/08/10)
US COUNTRY REPORT AND LTTE TERRORISM
*The latest US /_Country Report on Terrorism, 2009_/, issued on August 5, 2010, refers to the international Tamil Tiger (LTTE) activities in Sri Lanka even after they were defeated on My 18, 2009.* *The report states:* /_This (international Tiger) network continued to collect contributions from the Tamil diaspora in North America, Europe, and Australia, where there were reports that some of these contributions were coerced by locally-based LTTE sympathizers. The LTTE also used Tamil charitable organizations as fronts for fundraising._/ Fund raising abroad is the standard practice of the Tamil Tiger terrorists to wage their war... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 06/08/10)
If Andare tradition is to be revived in Sri Lanka, the recruit should not exceed jesting , clowning , or buffoonery, and least of all should not be a Minister.
 I t has been said that during the rein of Sinhala Kings, there was a court jester called Andare who was employed to amuse the King, and his Ministers. There is no historical record about employment of court jesters but folklore has many stories about Andare and the pranks he played on the King , his Ministers and even the Queen.   He was probably there to amuse the King to take away the tension from the day to day work of the King and his Minsters. One Andare story as far as I can remember is... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 06/08/10)
Tamil Tiger Cadres on board the ‘MV Sun Sea’ headed for Canada
SRI LANKA UNITED NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF CANADA Box 55292, 300 Borough Drive, Toronto, Ontario M1P 4Z7 Canada Website:  www.sluna.org E-mail:  sluna
idirect.com  By E-mail   August 6, 2010  Hon. Vic Toews, MP of Public Safety House of Commons Ottawa, K1A 0A6 Honourable Minister,  Tamil Tiger Cadres on board the ‘MV Sun Sea’ headed for Canada  We are writing to draw your attention to the recent media reports concerning a second vessel named the MV Sun Sea carrying Tamil Tiger terrorist cadres and others, earlier destined for Australia, which later changed course and is currently... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 06/08/10)
Desmond Tutu & "Elders" Rebuke Sri Lanka
TO: The Elders  Rev. Desmond Tutu Former Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town Leader of the "Elders Council.  Dear Sir:   To give credibility to this statement on Sri Lanka by these "Elders" it is necessary to review your statements, actions and attitudes towards Sri Lanka in the past. Collectively you have shown a deplorable lack of knowledge and balance and based your "judgements" on minimal, biased information without any attempt at verification or consideration of the possibility that what you have been told is only one side of the story. Let us review the "Elders".  Desmond Tutu looks at... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 06/08/10)
MORE SHIPS OF TAMILS HEADING FOR CANADA?
PLEASE FOLLOW THE LINK... -Full Story- (youtube.com - 06/08/10)
Is the Govt. 'trying to change' demography in the North and the East,
I reproduce below a news item that appeared in the BBC on 2nd August 2010 Govt. 'trying to change' demography-- Tamil National Alliance  “The major Tamil political party in Sri Lanka has accused the government of trying to change the demography in the north taken over by the military following the defeat of Tamil Tiger rebels over a year ago. The TNA also accused the government of breaching pledges made to India and the international community over resettling internally displaced people (IDP). Suresh Premachandran, MP, said nearly 75... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 05/08/10)
The Origin of Life in the Universe: Buddhist Perspective
'There is no reason to suppose that the world had a beginning at all. The idea that things must have a beginning is really due to the poverty of our thoughts.' Bertrand Russell  The origin of life has been a subject of speculation in all known cultures. In the modern era, this question has been considered in terms of a scientific framework. Lord Buddha's' explanation of the origin of the Universe, compatible with the modern scientific explanation. Buddha described the origin of the Universe and life in the Aganna Sutta 2500 years... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 05/08/10)
Kumaran Pathmanathan, alias Tharmalingam, alias Shanmugam Kumaran, alias KP- Arms smuggler, money launderer, the heir to the terrorism of Prabhakaran
 There is a recurring news item about Kumaran Pathmanathan . He was the man who was named by Prabhakaran the terrorist to take over the terrorist activities after him. A person to be considered reliable by the worlds most ruthless terrorist Velupillai Prabhakaran to carry on his terrorist activities after him , must be one who is as equal to him to carry on terrorism  from where he had stopped. Robert Blake is said to have had direct contact with the LTTE terrorist leadership through Kumaran Pathmanathan- a known arms smuggler and money launderer.  He was also... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 05/08/10)
SRI LANKA DAY-
Sri Lanka Foundation will host the 4th “Sri Lanka Day Expo†on Saturday, August 7th 2010 at 3rd Street Promenade in Santa Monica, CA. His Excellency Jaliya Wickramasuriya, Ambassador of Sri Lanka to U.S.A will be the Chief Guest at “Sri Lanka Day Expo 2010â€ÂÂÂ. Since its inception in 2006, “Sri Lanka Day Expo†has become the biggest event held in U.S.A dedicated to promoting Sri Lankan culture, Sri Lankan food, Sri Lankan businesses and Sri Lanka as a tourist destination.  10.00 AM... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 05/08/10)
FOREIGN POLICY IN SRI LANKA
Foreign Policy of a country is a set of rules that seems to outline the behaviour of a particular country and how it interacts with other countries and international organizations. This mainly depends on internal, external political and the “global, economic and political considerationsâ€ÂÂÂ.  Foreign Policy should be compatible with all forms of internal, political and economic considerations therefore special emphasis is given in the area of foreign policy in any form of Government. Sri Lanka needs this badly due to anti Sri Lanka propaganda within and outside. Good image is... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 05/08/10)
Two opposition MPs join the Government
Pix by: Chandana Perera Two opposition parliamentarians Prabha Ganesan and P. Digambaram have crossed over from the opposition and joined the Government this morning (5th August) at Temple Trees . Prabha Ganesan of Democratic People’s Front and P.Digambaram of the National Union of Workers Front contested the last General Election in April 2010 under the elephant symbol of the United National Front from Colombo and Nuwara Eliya districts respectively. According to the government information and President Media Unit, after a brief meeting with the President Rajapaksa today, both opposition MPs agreed to extend their support... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 05/08/10)
Desmond Tutu rebukes Sri Lanka
4 August 2010 OPEN LETTER to Former Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town, Desmond Tutu The Leader of THE ELDERS COUNCIL  Dear Desmond Tutu:    I just read a news item by-lined by Robert Mackey which said “Desmond Tutu Rebukes Sri Lankaâ€ÂÂÂ. “Oh, No, not you again Desmond!†I thought. A few lines down the news item, it said, “The Elders, a council of retired global leaders led by Desmond Tutu, issues statement on Tuesday rebuking the government of Sri Lanka….â€Â Ha! Well… I thought, Desmond. Trying to find who these... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 04/08/10)
Who are these Global statesmen who decry S. Lanka's peace without justice ?
They do not seem to understand either peace, or justice. The “Global Statesmenâ€Â  Nelson Mandela, Desmond Tutu, Kofi Annan, and Jimmy Carter, now demand international concern over the post-war conduct of Sri Lanka.   Archbishop Desmond Tutu  is known to be a highly excited man where terrorism in Sri Lanka is concerned.  He knows only the Sri Lanka terrorists point of view ,and knows nothing of the point of view of the people who suffered from terrorism or that of the  governments that tried to come to a political settlement with the terrorists and failed. The same... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 04/08/10)
The (Recent) Travels of a Journalist -MAIN ATTRACTION IN NORTH WALES IS SNOWDON MOUNTAIN RANGE
Our (25 July) 2010 trip to North Wales was unplanned and unexpected. After attending the annual conference of the International Association for Media and Communication Research (IAMCR) in Braga, Portugal, Yoke-Sim and I returned to London to visit with my youngest sister Nayana Axon’s family in Shepherds Bush. On the day after our arrival, we met with a couple from Westlake, Queenslandâ€â€ÂÂGeoffrey and Kathy Hagan---at Cutty Sark in Greenwich. The Hagans have been our mates since we originally settled down in Central Queensland in the mid-1970s. While eating our lunch at the Taste of... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 04/08/10)
The Berlin Wall
 On November 9, 1989 the East Germany's Communist rulers opened the Berlin Wall as the aftermath of Perestroika and Glasnost and also by the continuous pressure of the Easter German Public.  I still recall some events relating to the Berlin Wall that took place when I was a medical student. When the time I crossed the Berlin Wall in 1988 to enter the West Berlin I had a gut feeling that this wall would not last forever. Being a non White and not look like a German I had no problems with the East... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 04/08/10)
Quo vadis Maldives?
Rajapakse, regional politics, “Eurocentric Developmentalism†and the western hegemony (Part 13) From western point of view, loosing Sri Lanka is a colossal strategic setback. But no one can blame Sri Lanka for this tragic reality. From Sri Lankan point of view, Sri Lanka hasn’t done anything in detrimental to relations with USA. Therefore, the fate of the relations of two nations solely rests in the hands of policy planners of USA, but not in Sri Lanka. I wouldn’t put the blame of this deteriorating situation entirely on the State Department of the USA since the agency only... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 04/08/10)
දකà·â€ÂÂණෆඅප්â€ÂÂÂරිකà·ÂÂÂනෆවර්ගවà·ÂÂÂදී රජය, වර්à¶ÂÂÂමà·ÂÂÂන à·ÂÂÂà·Šâ€ÂÂÂරී ලංක෠රජය හ෠ඩෙස්මන්ටà·â€ÂÂටූ බිෂොප්à¶ÂÂÂà·â€ÂÂමà·ÂÂÂ.
ක්â€ÂÂÂරිස්à¶ÂÂÂියà·ÂÂÂනි පියනමක්වන නොබෙල්à¶ÂÂÂà·Šâ€ÂÂÂයà·ÂÂÂගලà·ÂÂÂභී ඩෙස්මන්ටà·â€ÂÂටූ නà·ÂÂÂවචවරක්à·ÂÂÂà·Šâ€ÂÂÂරී ලංකà·ÂÂÂවට එරෙහිව ප්â€ÂÂÂරකà·ÂÂÂà·ÂÂÂයක්නිකà·â€ÂÂà¶ÂÂÂ්කර à¶ÂÂÂිබේ. එය අපට පà·â€ÂÂදà·â€ÂÂමයක්වà¶ÂÂÂà·Š, අරà·â€ÂÂමයක්වà¶ÂÂÂ්නොවේ. පà·â€ÂÂදà·â€ÂÂම විය යà·â€ÂÂà¶ÂÂÂෆවන්නේ ක්â€ÂÂÂරිස්à¶ÂÂÂියà·ÂÂÂනි පිය නමක්à·ÂÂÂà·Šâ€ÂÂÂරී ලංකà·ÂÂÂවට පක්ෂව ප්â€ÂÂÂරකà·ÂÂÂà·ÂÂÂයක්නිකà·â€ÂÂà¶ÂÂÂ්කල෠නම්පමණි. මොහà·â€ÂÂගේ à·€à¶ÂÂÂà·â€ÂÂර ගල෠එන සේ ගලන චà¶ÂÂÂà·â€ÂÂර à·€à·ÂÂÂග්මà·ÂÂÂලà·ÂÂÂà·€ මà·â€ÂÂළෆදකà·â€ÂÂණෆඅප්â€ÂÂÂරිකà·ÂÂÂවම à·€à·ÂÂÂගේ ග්â€ÂÂÂරහණය කරගෙන ඇà¶ÂÂÂà·’ බà·ÂÂÂවින්, මොහà·â€ÂÂගේ මà·â€ÂÂවින්ගලන අසà¶ÂÂÂà·Šâ€ÂÂÂය දහරà·ÂÂÂවන්පරම à·ƒà¶ÂÂÂà·Šâ€ÂÂÂය ලෙස මà·â€ÂÂà·…à·â€ÂÂමහà¶ÂÂÂ්අප්â€ÂÂÂරිකà·ÂÂÂà·€ à¶ÂÂÂà·â€ÂÂලම ගල෠යන්නේ ක්ෂණයකිනි. මෙහà·â€ÂÂගේ මෙම ක්â€ÂÂÂරියà·ÂÂÂදà·ÂÂÂමය සම්බන්ධව à·ƒà·ÂÂÂකච්ඡ෠කිරීම සදහ෠à¶â€ÂÂà·„à·â€ÂÂගේම ප්â€ÂÂÂරබල ප්â€ÂÂÂරකà·ÂÂÂà·ÂÂÂයක්උපයà·ÂÂÂගී කර ගනිමි. ඒ සදහ෠මට අවසර දෙන්න. “ගරෆනà·ÂÂÂනà·ÂÂÂවරà·â€ÂÂණි මහà¶ÂÂÂ්වරà·â€ÂÂණි. මම මේ කියන්න යන්නේ අපූරෆකථà·ÂÂÂන්à¶ÂÂÂරයක්, ඒ කථà·ÂÂÂන්à¶ÂÂÂරය... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 04/08/10)
Stop the abuse of women in the Middle East
It has been reported in the media that our women in the Middle East are abused and ill treated. It is reported that many arrive back in Sri Lanka in body bags. These women could be our mothers, sisters and our daughters. No human should be abused or ill treated and it is time to take action.  We should stop sending women to work as domestics. I have the following alternative  programmes, that have many positive points.  There could be fast track  training/education programmes in different fields, to develop skills, depending on the persons wishes. One year,... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 04/08/10)
The Ahmadiyyas: Pakistan’s silent sufferers
The Ahmadis who were killed in a terrorist attack on two mosques in Lahore, Pakistan on May 28 were innocent people and by not raising their voice for the rights of Ahmadis, the right-minded people of the  International Community are collectively guilty of their murder. Thousands of worshippers had gathered for Friday prayers at two Ahmadi mosques, ‘Baitul Noor’ in Model Town and ‘Darul Zikr’ in Garhi Shahu, when they were attacked by the terrorists donning suicide vests, wielding Kalashnikovs and hand grenades. More than 90 people lost... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 04/08/10)
Et tu, Tutu?..........
Archbishop Desmond Tutu, according to an AFP report, is the latest international dignitary to wade in to the debate on the UN Panel. The Archbishop and Mr Kofi Annan, former UN Secretary-General, members of an “Elders’ Forumâ€ÂÂÂ, are reported to have urged the Sri Lankan Government to co-operate with the Panel. Of course, this is not the first time that the Archbishop has added his voice to the chorus of the LTTE propaganda and its protagonists. He has an uncanny habit of trotting out statements replete with bias and redolent with prejudice which are... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 03/08/10)
The Dengu Epidemic: Can it be contained?
The Dengu Epidemic is in full swing and many deaths are reported. When I spoke to a friend over the telephone recently, he mentioned that there is another killer fever prevailing today, which is not identified as Dengu.  Something appears to have gone wrong with our prevention methods and I am attempting to identify what went wrong.  In the meantime the situation has become so serious that strongman Dr Mervyn Silva has threatened to get hold of the councilors and local officers and tie them to trees to make them do their duty. It is... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 03/08/10)
Why Stop Tamil Boats?
Why the hysteria of Sri Lankan authorities about Tamils attempt to enter Australia, Canada and elsewhere? Sri Lanka is a democratic country where its citizens and visitors are free to Enter and Exit at their pleasure, subject to Immigration Laws of the Island. I have not read of any other country who are trying hard to prevent Legal or Illegal Exit from its own territory. With or without passports, any living soul wishing to leave the shores of Sri Lanka should be allowed to depart. The President of Sri Lanka has "bent-over-backwards", done his utmost to... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 03/08/10)
L.S.S.P should take a lesson from one of its exemplary members the late comrade Wesley Muthiah.
 On the 4 August,2007, our dear friend Wesley, parted from us leaving an empty space among his friends, all those who loved him, and had come to know him well.   Looking back at what a fiery political party LSSP was, and what it represented to Wesley, one feels sad that Tissa Vitarana and Vasudeva Nanayakkara are only the remaining embers of a dying fire.  If Wesley was there today he would still have refused to believe that,  he would have rather said that they are like  the glow of an ebbing sun that announces its rising ... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 03/08/10)
Ahmadiyya conference concludes
The three-day international Ahmadiyya Conference concluded on August 1, 2010, at Hadeeqatul Mahdi in Alton, Hampshire, U.K.  This international event attracted great interest with at least 30,000 delegates from over 80 countries. The event began with His Holiness leading the Friday prayers (Jumma) on 30th July. His Holiness took the opportunity to speak about the true Islam, which is so often misrepresented in the media. He said Islam was a religion of peace, tolerance and mutual love and was based upon a love of God Almighty. This love was the reason why so... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 03/08/10)
AFGHANISTAN-WAITING FOR ANOTHER TRIAL.
 “Who is going to take care of you when I am no more in this world?†said the helpless prisoner in the death cell to his beloved standing on the other side of the bars. “My love! I can’t bear even the thought of anyone else touching you.†He put her hands around her neck and with all his force of love began to press his fingers tightly against her throat. Just in a few moments, the girl’s pretty body fell down on the rough floor like a lifeless log of a tree. The man said staring... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 03/08/10)
Obama on Iraq
 Joe Klein wrote a nice piece for Time. I decided to drop my .02 on it. http://swampland.blogs.time.com/2010/08/02/obama-on-iraq/  Get the details here http://www.slnewsonline.net/JM_20090323_To_New_York_Times.asp http://www.lankaweb.com/news/items/2009/06/06/fraud-by-ltte-tamil-tiger-terrorists-obama-on-usa-today/ http://www.island.lk/2008/02/11/features1.html   Back then I wrote this: Unfortunately, some of these Tamils who get a free education from Sri Lanka that immigrated to the UK, US and Canada tend to hold radical and violent ideologies and have setup front organizations that fund terror in Sri Lanka. An example is the front organizations for the Tamil Terrorists in the United States that hired attorney Bruce Fein to 'legitimize' their criminal activities in... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 03/08/10)
Obama on Iraq
Well, at least he didn't announce the end of major combat operations in Iraq under a banner that said "Mission Accomplished." He did it in front of the Disabled American Veterans, the most grave and sober audience imaginable. And appropriately so, after a war that should never have been fought, a war that by some estimates will cost $3 trillion before it's done (including the health care services rendered to those represented by the DAV), a war whose casualties number in the 100s of thousands. The war in Iraq hasn't been much in the news... -Full Story- (swampland.blogs.time.com - 03/08/10)
Sessions court frames charges against Vaiko
CHENNAI: A sessions court here today framed charges against MDMK leader Vaiko for various offences, including sedition, for his alleged inflammatory speeches supporting the banned LTTE two years ago. Vaiko has been charged under Section 12(A) of the IPC (waging seditious war against the government) and under provisions of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act. A charge sheet was filed against Vaiko for allegedly making inflammatory speeches supporting the LTTE at a meeting here in October 2008. Subsequently Vaiko was arrested and was lodged in Puzhal Central Prison. Later he was released on bail.... -Full Story- (Times of India - 03/08/10)
Sri Lanka arrests over 1,500 Tiger suspects: PM
COLOMBO (AFP) – Sri Lankan troops arrested over 1,500 Tamil rebel suspects during July, more than a year after the separatist guerrilla group was crushed militarily, the prime minister said Tuesday. About half of the suspects were picked up at government-run shelters where they had taken refuge after the fighting ended in May last year, Premier D. M. Jayaratne told parliament during a debate to extend a state of emergency. "We need to maintain emergency laws to ensure the safety and security of the nation," the premier told parliament.... -Full Story- (Yahoo - 03/08/10)
Lankans lay base for huge total
An attritional day of cricket, made possible by a surface that facilitated a more equal contest between bat and ball, saw Sri Lanka finish with their noses again in front on Tuesday.... -Full Story- (Deccan Herald - 03/08/10)
Sri Lanka says China will not operate oil bunkering
Sri Lanka says China would have no operational role in a new oil bunkering facility being built in Hambantota in the island's southern coast. The Hambantota port is set to become Sri Lanka's biggest, giving it prime access to traffic on one of the world's biggest East-West shipping lines. China Exim Bank has loaned 77 million dollars to help finance the oil bunkering operations, while the Chinese government loaned another 400 million dollars for the port. India has expressed concern that China's involvement in the port is aimed at widening Beijing's political influence and boosting its energy security. Sri Lanka... -Full Story- (radioaustralianews.net.au - 03/08/10)
Desmond Tutu Rebukes Sri Lanka
The Elders, a council of retired global leaders led by Desmond Tutu, issued a statement on Tuesday rebuking the government of Sri Lanka for its “clampdown on domestic critics and its disdain for human rights.†In an e-mail sent to reporters, Mr. Tutu said, “The ongoing persecution and disappearances of human rights activists, journalists and government opponents is truly terrifying.†Mr. Tutu, the former head of South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission, also said that Sri Lanka had “done little to reveal the truth behind human rights abuses,†during the civil war that ended last year. He... -Full Story- (thelede.blogs.nytimes.com - 03/08/10)
Wanted in Rajiv case, KP now heading NGO
LTTE's self proclaimed leader in exile… Kumaran Patmanathan alias KP was the key arms smuggler who conspired to assassinate several VVIPs including the former Indian Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi.’’ That was Sri Lanka government’s portal news.lk’s description of KP on August 7, 2009, two days after his arrest in Kuala Lumpur. A year later, the smuggler and conspirator has become a VVIP himself. Seldom does a prisoner  he’s yet to be produced in court after a year  get to invite business delegates from abroad, fly to other parts of the country with them and even issue... -Full Story- (Hindustan Times - 03/08/10)
USA fears loss of Sri Lanka: Sri Lanka should become Switzerland of Indian Ocean
“Sri Lanka has been a friend and democratic partner of the United States since gaining independence in 1948 and has supported U.S. military operations overseas such as during the first Gulf War. Commercial contacts go back to 1787, when New England sailors first anchored in Sri Lanka’s harbors to engage in trade. Sri Lanka is strategically located at the nexus of maritime trading routes connecting Europe and the Middle East to China and the rest of Asia. It is directly in the middle of the ‘‘Old World,’’ where an estimated half of the world’s container ships transit... -Full Story- (onlinejournal.com - 02/08/10)
We need to get the act right
‘Sri Lanka’s tourism sector is gearing to invest US$10 billion to earn US$500 million in the near future. To this end the plan is to erect nearly 2,000 to 3,000 new hotel rooms by the end of 2010. Official approval to construct new hotels in Passekudah and Batticaloa to promote Eastern beaches as tourist destinations and new zones earmarked at Kuchchaveli north and five Islands in Kalpitiya are to be transformed similar to that of Maldives’. Plans to build a domestic airport at Uchchamunai, an underwater amusement park in Kandakkuliya, Golf Course in Dutch Bay,... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 02/08/10)
GO TO CANADA? MEET NIKULUS FROM MARKHAM, ONTARIO
Another ship load of Tamil so called refugees, heading towards Canadian coast; this time more than a year after the end of Sri Lanka’s conflict. After more than 250,000 IDPs resettled, more than million land mines were cleared, hundreds of child soldiers and LTTE carders were rehabilitated, eastern province elections and general election were held and when a time the country is rapidly going into normalcy, this ship load of Tamils coming to claim refuge in Canada.   According to pro LTTE media in Canada their representative in Toronto David Poopalapillai and members... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 02/08/10)
Scoops, ladles and journalism awards
That failed NGO worker masquerading as a newspaper editor courtesy of the National Democratic Institute (NDI), USAID, and various cults, Frederica Jansz, appeared to be throwing another tantrum on Sunday; she was ranting and raving about her ‘newspaper’ being overlooked for a Journalism Award ‘for Excellence’ by the Editor’s Guild of Sri Lanka and the Sri Lanka Press Institute (SLPI). There is little more this woman can throw at the Sri Lankan public as proof of her abysmal ignorance on everything from the craft of writing, the business she is purported to be engaged in, to local politics and... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 01/08/10)
Sri Lankan party reforms must be democratic: leadership aspirant
The reform process of Sri Lanka's main opposition United National Party (UNP) must be democratic and transparent, the leadership aspirant Sajith Premadasa told reporters here Saturday. "It is the expectation of everyone that this process will be highly democratic and transparent," Premadasa said. He said an arrangement where it turned out to be a mere sharing of a few high positions among individuals was not the answer. UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe has come under severe pressure to step down since the party's crushing defeat in the April parliamentary election.... -Full Story- (english.people.com.cn - 01/08/10)
Sri Lanka opens £955.9 million port to outside investors
Sri Lanka on Sunday said it would invite outside investors into its $1.5 billion (955.9 million pounds) Hambantota port project, the keystone of a $6 billion (3 billion pounds) post-war infrastructure revitalisation drive.The invitation for external investment will coincide with the November opening of the port on Sri Lanka's southern coast, along an ancient "Silk Road" trading route and one of the world's biggest East-West shipping lanes. The port and its accompanying services represent the single largest investment option for foreign investors in Sri Lanka, which is aiming to transform its economy after finally ending a quarter-century separatist... -Full Story- (uk.news.yahoo.com - 01/08/10)
The Paradox Involving Plea Bargaining With A Dangerous Criminal and A Second Chance For An Ambitious General Who Chose To Engage The Administration In Poor Vision And Bad Company
July 30th 2010There is a curious paradox in Sri Lanka today at administrative level which probably tugs at the heartstrings of every patriotic Sinhalese and perhaps even angers the more righteous and just minded. It rests upon why Retd. Army Commander  Sarath Fonseka is being truly put through the screws of incarceration based on the run off in the aftermath of the war which pointed to his ambition for political power over incumbent President Mahinda Rajapaksha and the futile attempts made through tough talk and anticipated national upheaval, attempts to incite the population to rebellion and a planned... -Full Story- (LankaWeb - 01/08/10)
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