|
|
Mangala to be fixed?
Local Agent gives statement to CID
Moves are underway to trap former Foreign Minister Mangala
Samaraweera over an alleged cement deal, a reliable source told
The Nation.
The cement company is Swedish owned and was set up during the
time the government launched the accelerated Mahaweli Scheme.
Later, a part of the shares were purchased by a Lankan
entrepreneur who became the sole agent for distributing this
brand of cement in the island. Civilians flee
fresh fighting in Mannar
Thousands of civilians fled fresh fighting between the troops
and the LTTE in Mannar and took refuge in the Madhu Church
premises as exchange of fire continued on a new front yesterday.
UNHCR Spokesperson Orla Clinton said that close to 10,000
civilians had taken refuge around the Madhu Church and expressed
concern regarding the plight of the internally displaced
persons.
|
Indian fans vent anger
 |
|
Indian
cricket fans shout anti-Indian cricket team slogans
during a protest in New Delhi, yesterday, following the
team’s loss against Sri Lanka in the World Cup. India
were virtually ousted of the World Cup after a 69-run
loss against Sri Lanka on Friday in Port of Spain,
Trinidad, drawing angry responses from fans back home. -
(AFP)
|
 |
British Police detain two LTTE women
activists
Two suspected members of the
LTTE women’s front, Ankayartkanny and Seevaratnam Ambihai were
detained by the British Police at Parliament last week for
taking photographs of the participants in a parliamentary
seminar titled ‘A way forward to peace and reconciliation in Sri
Lanka’ organised by the Campaign for Peace and Unity in Sri
Lanka (CPUSL). The parliamentary seminar was advertised in the
Newslanka community newspaper as participation was by
registration only.
However, at the commencement of the seminar a person named Rowdy
Ranjan who is alleged to have links with the LTTE had tried to
enter the seminar when he was asked to leave. A short while
later two LTTE women activists had also tried to enter the
seminar hall without invitation when they were asked to leave by
the organisers.
|
|
NEWS |
Lankan doc performs rare
miracle surgery
A Sri Lankan doctor in Britain was able to save a baby
boy by carrying out a rare surgery to sew him into his
mother’s womb after his twin sister underwent a
miscarriage.
The rare surgery performed by Consultant Obstetrician
Sumanaseela de Silva on the British air hostess Kelly
Bradburn and later her delivery of a normal baby was
flashed across the British press as a miracle. Writing
to the London’s Daily Mail the baby’s grandparents,
Jenny and Keith Stainer called the birth a miracle and
said, “We would like to send our thanks to Dr. de Silva
for looking after Kelly and bringing our grandson Archie
safely into the world, it was a long and traumatic
pregnancy for Kelly, and thanks to Dr. de Silva we have
Archie who is beautiful, he is a miracle for us all to
treasure.”Conflicting
reports on UNP proposal
Polls reform hits snag
over UNP delay
Election reforms have hit a snag with the main
Opposition UNP deliberately delaying its proposals on
the reforms, Chairman of the parliamentary select
committee on election reforms Minister Dinesh
Gunawardena said.
Minister Gunawardane has written to the UNP saying that
he was saddened by the delay in giving its final
proposals to the committee.
Maubima salary payments won’t
be blocked — CB chief
Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal yesterday
said that there would not be any objections in releasing
funds of the Maubima newspaper group as far as it is
over the payment of salaries to the employees.
APRC deliberations a futile
exercise — JHU
The All Party Representative Committee (APRC)
deliberations would prove futile since it comprises
parties adhering to contradictory political ideologies,
Jathika Hela Urumaya representative to the APRC Udaya
Gammanpila said recently.
“It is difficult to reach consensus at the APRC. We
represent different political ideologies. It is not
possible to agree to something that contradicts with
that. We don’t want to be traitors to our voter base,”
he pointed out.Laws alone not
suffice to curb corruption - President’s secy
Secretary to the President Lalith Weeratunga said
yesterday that laws alone would not curb corruption
within the government but it takes a personal effort to
achieve this goal.
“Corruption does happen. Bringing in new laws will not
put a stop to this. It takes an effort from the personal
level to curb corruption,” he said.
EU drawing competition
On the occasion of Women’s International Day in 2007
(March 8) and on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of
the Treaty of Rome establishing the European Community
(March 25, 2007), the European Union has launched a
drawing competition in order to call on the children to
express their vision of women/men equality. The drawing
competition is open to countries from Asia, Africa,
Latin America and the Mediterranean.
Lankan expats protest
‘Blake’s comments on
LTTE contradict US terrorism policy’
Consortium of Sri Lankan Expatriates an umbrella
organisation for Sri Lankan associations in the United
States has made a strong protest to the US State
Department regarding the US Ambassador in Sri Lanka,
Robert O. Blake. |
|
| |
 |
|
POLITICS |
 This
is my Nation
Wielding the big
stick on rebels
So far, President Rajapaksa has succeeded in his
policy of ruling by dividing the UNP. But he tried
to kill too many birds with the single stone of a
cabinet reshuffle and ended up with a mega cabinet
and a host of disgruntled MPs and the Samaraweera-Sooriyarachchi
mess. For the record, JR hardly changed his first
cabinet over his first six year term unless it was
absolutely necessary: It is a lesson that his
present day successor might still find useful.
Last week, President Mahinda Rajapaksa declared open
a portrait of former President Junius Richard
Jayewardene, in the Parliamentary Complex that was
built during the Jayewardene presidency.
Political turmoil in
government deepens with Sripathi arrest
olitics in Sri Lanka is such that everybody gets
carried away when a minister who turns hostile
towards the establishment makes allegations of
bribery and corruption against an outfit in which he
was very much a member not so long ago. |
|
NEWS FEATURES |
Issue
Mihin under fire
Adding to Mihin Lanka’s worries, the flight to Bodhgaya – the
A320’s first official flight after being rechristened with the
Mihin logo, proved a failure with the CAA now calling for a full
report from the airline on how omissions made on this maiden
flight will be rectified in the future. Far more troubling to
aviation authority officials was the fact that Mihin Lanka’s
Bodhgaya flight was in breach of several aviation regulations
laid down by the International Civil Aviation Organisation,
making it a liability for the officials themselves to grant the
dubious budget airline operating licenses.
Military Matters
Battling the Tigers and displaced
The Mavadivembu army camp, manned by one of two volunteer units
of the Sri Lanka Artillery (12 SLA), was quiet around midnight
on Tuesday (20).
The camp is fenced with barbed wire and beyond its presincts it
was pitch dark in this listless night. The Officer Commanding
Mavadivembu camp, Major Kumar Jagoda was chatting with his
second-in-command Major K.A. Somasiri. It was half past
midnight.
Seeking
divine intervention
It is no secret that astrologers and soothsayers determine the
course of Sri Lankan politics just as much as the politicians
themselves. It is not a coincidence that once in a while the
whole entourage of Sri Lanka’s politicians leave the country at
the same time to wade off “bad times”.
Sripathi
sympathy pervades House
Deposed Ports Development
Minister Sripathi Sooriyarachchi seemed to be the matyr during
almost the entire week from the word go when the House sat from
Tuesday. |
|
|
SPORTS |
|
SRI LANKA
QUALIFY
I predicted before the tournament that Sri
Lanka had a 90 percent chance of winning it. But having watched their
performances against Bangladesh and India in the group I am convinced that they
have a 99.9 percent chance of winning the World Cup.
One grey area which was a concern before the tournament started was the
middle-order batting. It seems to have sorted out with Chamara Silva batting so
well to give it the much required stability. All the youngsters have made runs
in the first round and by the time the tournament really gets going the other
senior players will also take on the pressure.
Kandy’s
dominance in Sevens rugby
Kandy Sports Club, under the inspirational leadership of Pradeep Liyanage
outclassed all the teams they met in the Sevens played at Radella and Longden
Place.
Winning a title for six consecutive years in any field of sports in Sri Lanka is
a rare achievement.
Battle of
the Maroons in the hills
The hill capital will be rocked by another big match encounter during the next
weekend as Dharmaraja will take on their arch-rivals Kingswood at Asgiriya
Stadium in the 101st ‘Battle of the Maroons’ cricketing encounter.
Both schools will go into this year’s big match with a positive frame of mind as
none of them have lost a match during the season. But it is the Rajans who will
have a slight edge over Kingswoodians as they have won three out of the 14
matches while Kingswood has a win to their name from the 11 matches they have
played.
Woolmer
nearly ended up coaching Sri Lanka
He was known as ‘computer coach’ not for anything but for his innovativeness and
to keep one step ahead of the others. If the International Cricket Council (ICC)
found his innovations somewhat out of the ordinary one cannot blame the man for
not trying. |
|
INTERVIEWS |
Govt. not
involved with Tigers
The charge against the President and the UPFA that a secret pact
has been entered into with the Tigers is virtually rocking the
very foundation of the government. Although some members of the
government are denying any involvement with the Tigers, the
government as an entity has still not responded in this regard
to date.“Reformists have joined a dictator”
UNP Treasurer and former MP Tilak Karunaratne says that the
party is happy with the reforms that were introduced at the
special UNP convention last week. He is also of the view that a
political party cannot function in a totally democratic fashion
and states that a certain amount of power should be vested with
the leader.
Mangala –
the rebel with a cause
The
sacking of senior cabinet minister Mangala Samaraweera in
February had more repercussions for the government than it
anticipated. Even as the controversy was slowly losing steam,
the decision to remand the other oustee, Sripathi Sooriyarachchi
only brought the drama back into the limelight. |
|
 |
Designed by Mangala Madanayake |
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
|
Rivira Media Corporation Ltd., 742, Maradana
Road, Colombo 10, Sri Lanka
Tele: +94 11 4708888 (General Lines),
Fax: +94 11 4708800, +94 11 4622481
Contact us:-
Editor - Rivira Sunday Edition |
Webmaster |
|
Designed by Mangala Madanayake |
Powered by
 |
|
