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Sunday January 07th, 2007 |
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15 killed
in second bus bomb
Creating further panic among bus commuters the second bus bomb
this week exploded yesterday afternoon at Kahawa killing at
least 15 civilians and injuring 47 others inside a Matara bound
intercity bus going from Colombo.
There was confusion regarding the death toll last night with the
official figure being 11 although unofficial hospital figures
indicated 15 deaths.
The bomb exploded inside the intercity bus bearing no HZ 1709,
at Seenigama, near the Kahawa Junction, 16 miles North West of
Galle, at around 02.35 p.m. Three persons were arrested on
suspicion following the explosion - two Muslims and a Tamil,
police said.
According to the government analyst ...
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A
policeman points at the hole in the hood created by the
powerful bomb explosion inside an intercity bus at
Kahawa, Hikkaduwa yesterday. - (Pic by Ishara S.
Kodikara)
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16 UN resolutions against LTTE, one against state
Moves to block Security Council resolution against Sri Lanka
The Attorney General is to file indictments in absentia against
the run away mastermind behind the rupees 3.5 billion VAT (Value
Added Tax) scam, in the Colombo High Court.
The assistance of Interpol has been sought to apprehend the
prime suspect, shipping tycoon Kamil Kuthubdeen whom officials
believe to have siphoned off the money and have invested mainly
in Dubai in what is known as the largest scam in South Asia.
CID in its investigations earlier found
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NEWS |
16 UN resolutions against LTTE, one against state
Moves to block Security Council resolution against Sri Lanka
The UN Security Council will adopt 17 resolutions against the LTTE and on
child recruitment.
It is likely that these resolutions will be taken up on January 15. However
there is also one resolution calling over the government of Sri Lanka to set up
a commission of inquiry with UN expertise based on the Allan Rock report on
child recruitment by the Karuna faction.
The report had apparently put the responsibility of child recruitment by the
Karuna faction on the government as the resolution number seven is dealing with
the government of Sri Lanka. All these resolutions had been devised by the
office of the UN special rapoteur on Children and Conflict, Radhika Kumaraswami.
LTTE gun runner netted
Striking a major blow to the LTTE’s international gun running network, the anti-
terrorism unit of the Indonesian government took into custody the second in
command of the network Pradeepan Navarajah, military sources said yesterday.
He was arrested on Thursday around 4pm while traveling from Jakarta to Kuala
Lumpur. The arrest had taken place following investigations by the national
intelligence service of Indonesia (BIN) and the Sri Lankan embassy there. The
investigations had spanned over an year before pouncing on Navarajah.
The Sri Lankan ambassador in Jakarta Major General Janaka Perera told The Nation
that this arrest was one of the major victories in the fight against the
international gun running network of the LTTE.
The 32 year- old Navarajah had 12 passports in his possession at the time of
arrest and had traveled extensively to ...
LTTE says talks with government
‘impossible’
While the LTTE says all doors are shut for talks, the government
maintains all windows are open for negotiations.
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) media spokesman Daya
Master told The Nation that with the de-merger of the north and
east, direct talks with the government now has become ‘ highly
impossible’ and that the Tigers will ‘never’ consider holding
any dialogue with the government.
Daya Master said the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA)
government, ever since assuming office has gone against the will
of the Tamil community. He added the government cannot expect
100 percent co-operation from the LTTE in the future for a final
solution to the ethnic crisis.
Jumbo Cabinet with ‘Jumbos’
The government is contemplating on setting up an
entirely new cabinet by the end of this month, highly
placed government sources said.
The government is expecting a large number of UNPers to
join hands with them. However, the source said that it
would not be a crossover from the UNP to the SLFP but
they would hold a unique identity as a separate
political entity in Parliament.
He said in the past too there had been instances when
the SLFP had been fractured in such a manner as in the
early eighties when there was an SLFP- Sirima faction
and the SLFP- Maithri faction of Maithripala Senanayake.
The problem of crossovers had arisen mainly due to the
MoU between the government and the UNP that was
witnessed by a large number of clergy and other
personalities in a ceremony with glamour. Therefore, he
said that ... |
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POLITICS |
Govt. faces international pressure over HR
issues
The government is heading towards a major crisis as far as
the human rights situation in the country is concerned. The
offensive in the East to capture Vakarai and the Air Force
bombing in Mannar have come into focus, where it is alleged that
civilians are targeted and the security forces are accused of
violating human rights.
Thousands of civilians have fled the Vakarai area where security
forces are steadily progressing. There were several accusations
that civilians had suffered badly in the confrontations between
the security forces and the LTTE. In Mannar, Air Force aerial
bombardment of a Sea Tiger base had also caused damage to the
nearby fishing village of Padahathurai. These human rights
concerns drew strong reactions from the international community
and particularly from the United Nations, with UN Assistant
Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs, Margareta Wahlstrom
issuing a strong statement urging both parties to resume peace
negotiations. |
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NEWS FEATURES |
Commuters inconvenienced
The uniflow system of traffic, which was put into action from
January 1 this year, has proven to be a blessing for some, while
others can only describe it as an absolute nightmare. The
changes in bus routes on Galle Road and Duplication Road have
caused inconvenience to some while benefiting others.
“With the introduction of the new system, the traffic on Galle
Road has lessened. It takes me a shorter time to go to work in
the morning, but getting back home, on Duplication Road takes
much longer than it did before. There is more traffic on
Duplication Road than ever before,” said Kamani Jayakody, who
travels to and from Panadura every day.
Time ripe for Lanka to sue India?
With the Tamil Nadu government commencing the dredging of the
Sethusamudram canal at the Adam’s Bridge on December 11,
international legal experts opine that Sri Lanka has provisions
to seek legal redress in an international court of law against
the Indian government.
The project has military, ecological and archaeological
implications on both the governments of India and Sri Lanka. As
a result, Sri Lanka is now in a position to sue India, based on
the provisions of the United Nations Law of the Sea Covenants.
LMSL controversy heats up
Government members of the Committee on Public Enterprise
(COPE) will meet President Mahinda Rajapaksa tomorrow to discuss
the contents of a letter from former PERC Chairman and Business
and Management Consultant, Nihal Sri Amaresekere, regarding the
sale of Lanka Marine Services to John Keells Holdings.
Forget
the de-merger and resolve land disputes
The bifurcation of the northern and eastern provinces through a
Supreme Court order of October 16 has further compounded the
lives of the Tamils and Muslims.
Today, both the Tamils and the Muslims living in these provinces
are confused over the court order and wonder why this was
affected when loads of problems ... |
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SPORTS |
LIONS CLAW BACK
Sri Lanka inflict New
Zealand’s worst ever one-day loss
Auckland -
(AFP) New Zealand crashed to their worst ever one-day cricket
loss Saturday in a humiliating 189-run defeat conjured by some
magic from Sri Lankan veterans Sanath Jayasuriya and Chaminda
Vaas.
New Zealand could only muster 73 runs -- their second lowest
ever one-day total -- in what skipper Stephen Fleming conceded
was a “rubbish” performance in chasing the tourists’ solid
262-6.
A whirlwind 70 off 44 balls by 37-year-old opener Jayasuriya
provided the fireworks in the Sri Lankan innings.
Another important contribution came from the side’s most
consistent batsman Kumar Sangakkara, who held the Sri Lankan
innings together with 79 from 103 balls after it threatened to
go off the rails with the fall of three quick wickets.
In reply New Zealand had no answer to a great spell of in-swing
bowling from 32-year-old Vaas.Russia buoyed by Hopman Cup win
PERTH,
(AFP) - Russians Nadia Petrova and Dmitry Tursunov are
confident the form they showed in winning the mixed teams Hopman
Cup will carry them deep into the Australian Open.
Lanka football on a firm footing –
Manilal
The name of Manilal Fernando is synonymous with Sri Lanka
football for the past two and a half decades. What Sri Lanka
football is today is due largely to his magnanimous efforts.
One cannot judge football in this country purely by the results
achieved by the national soccer team. For our footballers to be
even among the top 10 in Asia a lot needs to be done. It is not
the case of getting down a foreign coach and expecting our
footballers to perform miracles overnight which is what sadly
the football public at large expects.
Fuelled by ambition
Champion racing driver Dilantha Malagamuwa says that he
dedicates winning the Malaysian Super Cars Championship to his
home town Kurunegala. The village where Malagamuwa was born is
renowned for motor racing and is also one of the best places to
purchase a motor bike or car. During a ceremony held in
Kurunegala to felicitate him on his recent feat, Malagamuwa
recalled a heart-breaking incident on the racing track which he
used to work for him rather than against him. “I was once
disqualified when officials unfairly accused me of contesting a
race with a modified bike. Contestants from Kurunegala are
looked down upon by the authorities who link us with the motor
garage industry. |
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INTERVIEWS |
Government
is committed to restart peace talks - Dinesh Gunewardena
Urban Development and Water Supply Minister Dinesh
Gunewardena says peace talks with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil
Eelam (LTTE) depends on the response from the Tigers to the
government’s call for direct negotiations and an immediate halt
to killings. He says the government has made it very clear that
the doors are open for direct talks provided the Tigers respond
positively. |
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Designed by
Mangala Madanayake |
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