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TNA
extends olive branch to TULF, PLOTE, EPRLF
In a strange turn of events, the Tamil National Alliance (TNA),
which was earlier firmly behind the LTTE, has now made overtures
to the moderate Tamil parties like...
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INSIDE
TMVP meets to decide
whether to be SLFP tomorrow
A crucial meeting of the Tamil Makkal Vidudalai Puligal (TMVP)
is likely to take place tomorrow to decide whether or not the
party should accept SLFP membership.
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SC ruling brings two
private banks under state control
The country’s Treasury is tipped to become the major shareholder
of two listed private sector banks and a state of the art
hospital in Colombo- a spin off of the Sri Lanka Insurance Corp.
(SLIC) verdict
delivered Thursday.
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Yal
Devi chugs off to Thandikulam
Transport Minister Dallas Alahapperuma
greets passengers on the Yal Devi train which plied to
Thandikulam some 7.5 kilometres north of Vavuniya yesterday
morning after 20-year lapse due to terrorism. Authorities hope
to eventually restore the service to Jaffna after rebuilding
some 159 kilometres of rail track by 2010
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Chamila Karunaratne) |
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15 new DIGs appointed
The Cabinet has this week approved the
promotion of 15 Senior Superintendents of Police as Deputy
Inspectors General of Police. Police sources said a total of 33 SSPs appeared for
interviews at the Defence Ministry...
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Your horoscope and you
The Nation will, beginning this issue, carry a series of
articles on Astrology, titled ‘Read your own horoscope’ (Page
19) and a weekly forecast titled ‘What your stars foretell for
your Lagna for this week’...
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Lankans make device to
treat chronic wounds
A negative wound therapy device built by a team of Lankan
doctors and engineering students was officially handed over to
the Colombo General Hospital on Wednesday by the Dean of the
Faculty of Engineering,
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NEWS |
Severe shortage of essential
drugs
Cancer, Kidney and Heart Patients are facing a massive drug
shortage threatening their lives and it will only get worse if
the Ministry of Healthcare fails to purchase the necessary drugs
immediately, All Ceylon Health Service Union (ACHSU) said
yesterday. President of ACHSU, Gamini Kumarasinghe told The Nation that
the ministry has taken steps to limit the quantity and the
number of essential drugs due to the high cost involved. “When
we questioned the ministry officials on the matter, their only
reply was that Ministry of Healthcare is not having enough money
to purchase these drugs from the foreign companies,” he said.
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Aussies in for long haul as Sri
Lanka stands firm
Three
Australian nationals caught in Sri Lanka’s overcrowded refugee
camps could face more than a year in detention after the
Government in Colombo yesterday ruled out any special treatment
or early release.
The Australian High Commission in Sri Lanka said yesterday it
was trying to gain consular access to the three people, who are
believed to be dual Sri Lankan/Australian nationals.
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Clean up operation of
mosquito breeding places
With the
dreaded dengue fever having already killed 98 people and
afflicted nearly 7840, the Ministry of Healthcare will conduct a
cleaning programme today and tomorrow to destroy the breeding
places of dengue mosquitoes. However the public still feel that
the relevant state departments are not doing their duty as much
as they speak with regard to the preventive methods to be taken.Spokesman for the Health Ministry, W.M.D.Wanninayaka
said that, “Dengue fever has become a major health
crisis and it is spreading rapidly.
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Sri Lankan FM denies 20,000
Tamils killed in onslaught
Sri Lanka’s Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama has denied claims
that more than 20,000 Tamil civilians were killed during the
government’s final onslaught against rebels, a report said
Saturday. Bogollagama told The Times that the newspaper was wrong to
report last week that so many civilians had died in the Island’s
so-called no-fire zone, most of them from Sri Lankan army
shelling. “Within the no-fire zone we never returned fire
because we would never have taken that degree of chance for
inflicting harm on civilians,” the Minister told The Times on a
visit to London on Friday.
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Arrangements made for IDPs to
vote
Arrangements will be made for
IDPs to vote in the upcoming elections in the Jaffna Municipal
Council and the Vavuniya Pradeshiya Sabha, Assistant
Commissioner of Elections, Jaffna P. Kuganathan, said.
“IDPs who are registered in the relevant areas will be provided
with facilities to vote at their respective camps and even if
there is only one registered voter the booths will still be set
up,” informed Kuganathan.
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New Chief Justice Asoka?
Justice Asoka N. de Silva, most senior Judge of the Supreme
Court is now tipped to be made the next Chief Justice succeeding
Sarath Nanda Silva, who retired this week, according to well
placed sources
Justice de Silva began his legal career as a State Counsel in
the Attorney General’s Department and rose up to be Deputy
Solicitor General before he was appointed to the Supreme Court.
He also has experience in various legal and judicial systems in
several other countries.
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India takes Navi Pillay to task
over Sri Lanka issue
India’s
Permanent Representative to UN in Geneva A. Gopinathan, Thursday
took High Commissioner for Human Rights Ms. Navanetham Pillay to
task for presuming her powers exceed that of the UN Secretary
General in handling the Sri Lankan issue.
“We would like to remind all concerned that the independence of
the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Ms. Navanethem Pillay
cannot be presumed to exceed that of the UN Secretary-General,”
he declared.
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Wanni war heroes given military
honours
Ground commanders
and thousands of troops who sweated day and night for victory
over terrorism, mostly during the last leg of the Wanni battles
were hailed and their national contribution appreciated during a
mammoth saluting parade that got underway at Army Headquarters
Thursday (28) morning.
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POLITICS |
As they sow, so shall
they reap? Terrorism sponsored by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE),
the scourge that haunted Sri Lanka for the past 30 years, has,
overnight, become a threat to the West, and it is a development that
brings a new dimension to the Sri Lankan ethnic issue.
At the height of the war with the Tigers in mid-May, there was
unprecedented pressure on the government in Colombo, to let go of the
stranglehold they had on the LTTE. Special envoys from many influential
western nations were hopping the next flight to Katunayake, and queuing
up to meet President Mahinda Rajapaksa, to try and convince him to call
off the military offensive.
These visits were not without reason- and also, not entirely because
these countries were sincerely concerned of the plight of civilians
caught up in the final conflict in Mullativu.
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Poddala attack, scribes
woes and TNA’s change of stance
 Over
the past couple of weeks, a certain electronic media station, and
certain newspapers, were strongly hinting that several journalists in
the country had been having cosy relations with the LTTE. They even went
to the extent of charging that these journalists had been taking money
from the Tigers. The general public, who have been celebrating the
military victory against the LTTE, have now started eyeing the scribes
with suspicion. This charge is levelled against several journalists who
were at the forefront of organising and taking part in picketing
campaigns and protests rallies in the recent times.
The television channel made these allegations while
telecasting the footages taken of those pickets and
protests. The journalists...
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NEWS FEATURES |
EAST, NOT YET FULLY FREE
The fall of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) - once
considered ‘invincible’, has offered the East, a new lease of
life.
For the easterners, it is a new beginning with a new hope. For
the first time in the history they have found an opportunity to
pick their own leaders and not become victims to the dictates of
the northern politicians.
The fall of the LTTE has further widened the already existing
gap between the northerners and the easterners.
Already they had been segregated historically based on caste and
creed but the defeat of the LTTE has further antagonised the
northerners who feel that it is the easterners who had betrayed
the LTTE that has resulted in the downfall of the entire Tamil
community.
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Now
that LTTE is Crushed
I just returned from a lengthy visit to Sri Lanka, and I
witnessed firsthand, the Government’s splendid victory over the
LTTE terrorists. Everyday, I read with great interest, the many
comments and opinions that were written on the conflict, by both
Sri Lankan and international journalists. From my perspective, I
can assure you, that the Government acted with restraint and
compassion throughout the entire ordeal. I also saw that, the
so-called ‘Western Powers’ were totally misinformed on the
situation, which resulted in their passing a hasty judgment,
that condemned the Government’s conduct toward...
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The Way We Were………
 The year was 1965. At the conclusion of our traditional big
match versus S Thomas’, the Royal team was summoned by its
Principal and told that, reciprocal matches had been initiated
with schools in Jaffna, and as a first step, the school’s
cricket team was to proceed over the weekend, for an encounter
with S John’s College.
SEE INSIDE It’s not only pro-LTTE Diaspora that’s
in denial
 There is a certain degree of denial in certain sections of the
Tamil community, especially those living outside Sri Lanka. They
just can’t accept the fact that the LTTE is no more. They could
take a cue from Janani Jayanayagam, that wide-eyed,
hate-mongering, ill-educated politician who wants to be a member
of the European Parliament, for example, publicly claimed that
she is in mourning. What is there to mourn? Her mourning period
began only after the LTTE leadership...
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Bad weather forces Sri Lanka to
alter plans
Sri
Lanka’s preparation for a smooth workout ahead of Monday’s ICC
World Twenty20 Group C match against Australia at Trent Bridge
was disrupted by the typical English weather.
Practices were scheduled for Saturday at Lady Bay grounds a few
kilometers from Trent Bridge, but the team had to cancel it due
to the prevailing wet weather and settle for the indoor nets at
Loughborough University.
Sri Lanka manager Brendon Kuruppu was rather disappointed
with the prospect of having to practice indoors. “We were
planning a full workout session outdoors, but we had to change
our plans because of the
bad weather.
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A perfect start
The second edition of the ICC World Twenty20 could not have
got off to a better start than the one provided by host England
when they were shockingly beaten by the Dutch at the home of
cricket – Lord’s on Friday.
In Twenty20 cricket one can expect stunning results of this
nature to upset the form book and the predicted 31 million
pounds sterling commercial bonanza from the World Twenty20 has
already set the ball rolling for the ICC to bring its flagship
tournaments to England on a more
regular basis.
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Dhoni denies talk of India rift
India captain Mahendra Dhoni
denied talk of a rift with vice-captain Virender Sehwag ahead of
Saturday’s World Twenty20 match with Bangladesh.
The 2007 champions’ news conference on Friday saw Dhoni, flanked
by all his team-mates, including Sehwag, read a statement before
walking out en masse.
Dhoni blamed “false and irresponsible media” in India for
spreading rumours.
“The team spirit is as good as ever, with each individual
supporting each other on and off the field,” he said.
“Recent reports in the Indian media of a rift between myself and
Sehwag amount to nothing but false and irresponsible media.
“Our fans and supporters can take confidence from the wonderful
unity that continues to exist in this team.
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INTERVIEWS |
“President’s leadership, maturity main
reasons for victory”
 It
is with such pride and jubilation that the country celebrated
the defeat of the LTTE, over the past few weeks. The political
leadership was commended, and the valiant soldiers who were
instrumental in crushing the Tigers were honoured, with the
heartfelt gratitude of the people. Yet, the war against the
Tigers is not a recent phenomenon; many soldiers sacrificed
their life, limb and youth for this cause that dragged on for
nearly three decades. One such individual is Col. Prasanna
Wickramasuriya. Joining the military in the early 80s, he was
among the first batch of officers just out of the military
academy to face the outbreak of the Eelam War I. Being one of
the most decorated soldiers in the military, he played an active
role in the pivotal Vadamarachchi Operation, the outcome of
which would have changed the course of the war, had the
political leadership at the time been more visionary.
SEE
INSIDEMinister thrilled with success at UN
 Human Rights and Disaster Management Minister, Mahinda
Samarasinghe who returned to the island on Friday after
attending the special session on UN Human Rights Council, says
Sri Lanka must do everything possible to inform the 12 countries
that voted against it, the actual situation of that happens
here. Speaking to The Nation the minister said that the
government should now go in for an intensified strategy of
putting in place a better dialogue and a better information
sharing action plan with these countries so that they would be
in possession with our side of the story as well when they had
to take positions in forums such as the Human Rights Council and
in New York, either in the security council or the UN general
assembly and hence would be able to take a more balanced
position. He said the country has failed to do what the LTTE has
successfully managed to do in carrying out powerful lobby
abroad. “This is something that the foreign ministry must have
looked into before others pointed their fingers at us,” he added...
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