Sri Lanka's top general resigns amid speculation Nov 13, 2009
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka - Sri Lanka's top general, who led the battle to crush the Tamil Tiger rebels and ended the island's 30-year civil war, resigned from his post Thursday but declined to discuss his future plans. Gen. Sarath Fonseka's resignation comes amid growing media reports that he is planning to contest the next presidential election as an opposition candidate, challenging incumbent President Mahinda Rajapaksa. (MSNBC -- International)
Sri Lankan solution will not deter smugglers Nov 12, 2009
Sri Lankan solution will not deter people smugglers ... The extremely generous deal being offered to the Sri Lankans on board the Oceanic Viking highlights just what a farcical political pantomime the 3-week saga has become ... Sri Lanka just ended a war, the security is extremey tight, extremely, so would be the naval wateres. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Opinion)
Trouble at the top Nov 11, 2009
Speculation continues to grow in Sri Lanka that there is a rift at the top of the country's establishment ... But government ministers and deputies have been making pointed remarks of a different kind - for instance, that in Sri Lankan history it was kings, not soldiers, that won wars; or that military rule in Pakistan (a close friend of Sri Lanka) had left that country "in a total mess" ... There was a further twist last week when the Sri Lankan government alleged that the US government had... (BBC News -- South Asia)
Sri Lanka: To which victor the spoils? Nov 11, 2009
Politics and the war in Sri Lanka ... The mysterious ambitions of Sri Lankas victorious army commander ... NOT even six months has elapsed since the protracted war with Tamil Tiger rebels ended in a bloody climax, leading to the Sri Lankan governments triumph. (The Economist)
Diplomatic dynasty sent into the breach Nov 10, 2009
This week Mr Woolcott travelled to Sri Lanka with the Foreign Minister, Stephen Smith, and the newly appointed special envoy to thecountry, John McCarthy ... In Sri Lanka, Mr Smith and his delegation met the President, Mahinda Rajapaksa, and senior Government figures as they sought to stem the tide of Tamil boat people leaving the country. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Australia)
* Thaksin on mission to humiliate Nov 8, 2009
Recent snapshots show him golfing in Brunei and Dubai, inspecting diamond mines in South Africa, sipping coffee in a private jet and meeting prime ministers or presidents on trips to Sri Lanka, Papua New Guinea and the Maldives. His new relationship with Hun Sen is bound to revive speculation of private business deals between the two while he was prime minister. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- Sports)
Northern blues Nov 5, 2009
Page last updated at 18:07 GMT, Wednesday, 4 November 2009. Discontent among Abdullah voters. (BBC News -- South Asia)
Military ruler will simply thumb his nose at us Nov 5, 2009
But having gutted the courts, Bainimarama sought judges from Sri Lanka ... What have the Australian Government got to gain by telling the Sri Lankan Judges they can not travel to Australia. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Opinion)
Tory EU stance will 'castrate' UK Nov 5, 2009
In pictures: Sri Lanka art camp ... Art bring Sri Lanka war orphans together. (BBC News -- UK)
Why Does the U.S. Want to Talk to Sri Lanka's Tiger Tamer? Nov 3, 2009
Why Does the U.S. Want to Talk with Sri Lanka's Fonseka ... Why Does the U.S. Want to Talk to Sri Lanka's Tiger Tamer ... To many Sri Lankans, Lieutenant General Sarath Fonseka is a bit of a hero. (Time.com)
Australia to expand asylum centre Nov 1, 2009
The government said it was in response to a surge in arrivals, particularly from Sri Lanka ... In what has become an increasingly acrimonious political debate, the Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has claimed that the increase is explained by 'push factors' - namely the situation in Sri Lanka and the ongoing conflict in Afghanistan. (BBC News -- Asia-Pacific)
World hits home Nov 1, 2009
But courtesy of the boats carrying Sri Lankan asylum seekers in the direction of Australia in the past few months - in fact, 37 boats have been intercepted so far this year - the rest of the world has re-entered Australian politics ... They don't have to be considered vermin do they after escaping the hell of Sri Lanka. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Opinion)
Rising tide of asylum-seekers: Will Australia let them in? Oct 31, 2009
An Australian Customs official stands with Sri Lankan refugees on the customs vessel Oceanic Viking, eight miles off the coast of Indonesia's port of Kijang on Thursday ... Australian Prime Minister Rudd faces twin crises as he weighs how to handle Sri Lankan Tamil refugees picked up at sea by Australian and Indonesian ships and taken to Indonesian ports ... Now Howard's Labor successor, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd who must call an election within the next 12 months has his own Tampa: the... (Christian Science Monitor -- World)
Captain Rudd's preferred course - a little to the right Oct 31, 2009
And on the anomaly, the Oceanic Viking, the Australian Customs icebreaker that picked up the 78 Sri Lankans whose boat was disabled, the ''tough el 00004000 ement'' of Rudd's policy is that the ship will not bring the Sri Lankans ashore in Australia, no matter how much they plead or how long it takes ... He is working intently with Sri Lanka to find a way of reducing the outflow of Sri Lankan refugees at source ... The risk of failure is no deterrent for the many Sri Lankans who want to. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Opinion)
Lawyer: NY billionnaire hedge fund manager no threat to flee charges Oct 30, 2009
Rajaratnam, born in Sri Lanka, has lived in the United States for nearly 30 years. He said he lives in a $17. (USA Today -- Money)
Women Say More About an Economy Than Money Does Oct 30, 2009
Sri Lanka, the only other Asian country in the top 20, fell four ... Equity indexes are up more than 40 percent this year in China, Hong Kong, , Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam. (Bloomberg -- Columnists)
All Men are Liars: Oct 29, 2009
There is now a push to encourage more first- and second-generation players with backgrounds from countries such as Sri Lanka, Pakistan and India, all of which completely misses the point. it's too late. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Business)
Pslo Alto imposes 'last, best and final' terms Oct 28, 2009
Surely eighty percent or more of what City workers do can be out-sourced to Sri Lanka, Cambodia, or Haiti using modern telecommunications ... You folks who say "Outsource the city work to India or Sri Lanka" or "Have PG over" really have NO CLUE what you are talking about. (Palo Alto Online, CA)
US Senate candidate Michael Capuano visits West Roxbury Oct 27, 2009
Sival Logan, a 53-year-old American Tamil, remembered when he and his family arrived in Somerville to escape the political strife in his native Sri Lanka ... He and Senator Kennedy [have] been very helpful to highlight the Tamil problem in Sri Lanka, said Logan, an engineering consultant who now lives in Dedham ... We are seeking Congressman Capuano s help when he becomes senator to help the Tamil in Sri Lanka. (Allston Brighton TAB, MA)
Wielding the whip on asylum seekers Oct 27, 2009
In conclusion there is no war in sri lanka and afghans can register at UNHCR camps in Pakistan for verification ... THE 78 Sri Lankans spent most of their eighth day aboard the Australian. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Opinion)
Victims of Sri Lankan rebels sue billionaire in NJ Oct 23, 2009
NEW YORK A billionaire hedge fund manager charged in a $25 million insider trading case was sued by victims of violence in Sri Lanka who say he helped finance separatist rebels notorious for suicide bombings ... "Mr. Rajaratnam has the greatest sympathy for all victims of violence in Sri Lanka and has a long history of helping Sri Lankans of all ethnic groups through substantial charitable donations over many years." ... Even before his arrest, Rajaratnam was under scrutiny for his contributions... (Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- World)
Labor's policies are not encouraging boat people Oct 23, 2009
In particular, the worsening situations in places such as Afghanistan and Sri Lanka have forced many thousands of people to flee those countries and seek refuge elsewhere around the world ... In the case of Sri Lanka, violence in the long-running civil war escalated in 2008 and peaked earlier this year before the bloody conflict ended in May ... There are now some 250,000 Tamils from the north of Sri Lanka in camps for internally displaced people and there are significant numbers of people... (Sydney Morning Herald -- Opinion)
Rivals China, India in escalating war of words Oct 21, 2009
Most obviously such efforts include Beijing's intimate alliance with India's old enemy, Pakistan; New Delhi is also nervous about China's military aid to its other neighbors such as Bangladesh, Burma, Nepal, and Sri Lanka. (Read about strategic competition in the Indian Ocean. (Christian Science Monitor -- World)
Susilo inaugurated as Indonesian president Oct 20, 2009
Other special envoys were from New Zealand, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand and the United States. As part of the inauguration ceremony, Yudhoyono and Boediono took oaths as president and vice president. (Xinhuanet, China)
Maldives leaders sign climate plea under water Oct 19, 2009
Lands owned by Sri Lanka and India were possibilities because the countries have similar cultures, cuisine and climate as the Maldives. Australia is also being considered because of the vast unoccupied land it owns. (CNN -- World)
Asylum seekers Oct 19, 2009
It's a shame the accounts of survivors aren't listened to, unlike the similar case that is going on right now in Sri Lanka. Bronwyn G - October 19, 2009, 10:21AM. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Opinion)
Sri Lanka budgetchallenge for IMF Oct 17, 2009
Sri Lanka budget challenge for IMF By Feizal Samath. COLOMBO - The International Monetary Fund's new resident representative in Sri Lankan is likely to receive his baptism of fire once he settles into his new post this week ... The newly minted IMF country representative, Koshy Mathai, who arrived in the island's capital from Washington last weekend, will have to look into the Sri Lankan government's decision to postpone presenting the full national budget next month to parliament because it has... (Asia Times Online)
Billionaire exec nabbed Oct 17, 2009
He also ordered Rajaratnam, who has both U.S. and Sri Lankan citizenship, to stay within 110 miles (177 kilometers) of New York City ... The Associated Press has learned that even before his arrest, Rajaratnam was under scrutiny for helping bankroll Sri Lankan militants notorious for suicide bombings ... Rajaratnam born in Sri Lanka and a graduate of University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Business has been described as a savvy manager of billions of dollars in technology and... (MSNBC -- Business)
Why I love Al Jazeera Oct 16, 2009
Over just a few days in late May, when I actively monitored Al Jazeera (although I watched it almost every evening during a month in Sri Lanka), I was treated to penetrating portraits of in the Somali war, of against the Nigerian government in the oil-rich south of the country, of, of , of the danger that desertification poses to Bedouin life in northern Sudan, of the environmental devastation around the Aral Sea, of after an attack on a temple in Austria, of in the southern Philippines, of in... (Sydney Morning Herald -- Opinion)
Clinton Downplays Threat to Pakistan Nukes Oct 12, 2009
Clinton working for Tamil terror: Hillary Clinton makes baseless accusations against Sri Lanka Army http://www. lankaweb. (CBS News)
* Sri Lankans head to polls for crucial provincial election Oct 11, 2009
Sri Lankans head to polls for crucial provincial election ... 7 million voters were expected to cast ballots yesterday in a key provincial election in Sri Lanka, seen as a test of the ruling coalitions popularity after defeating the Tamil Tiger separatists ... That military victory boosted the popularity of Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksas coalition United Peoples Freedom Alliance among ethnic majority Sinhalese. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World)
Sri Lanka leader wins local poll Oct 11, 2009
Sri Lanka's ruling coalition has swept to victory in a provincial poll that some commentators say will pave the way for an early presidential election. The vote in the Southern Province, home of President Mahinda Rajapaksa, saw his coalition take 68% of the vote. (BBC News -- South Asia)
One man's terrorist ... Oct 3, 2009
course of the past few months alone: Velupillai Prabhakaran of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in Sri Lanka in May, Baitullah Mehsud of the Pakistani Taliban in August and Noordin Mohammad Top of the Jemaah Islamiah in September in Indonesia ... That situation changed with the bloody anti-Tamil riots in 1983 across Sri Lanka which killed around 3,000 people, destroyed tens of thousands of houses and displaced a million people ... Tamils left Sri Lanka in droves, becoming refugees in... (Asia Times Online)
Champions Trophy: Aussies into final Oct 3, 2009
For Ponting there was also the personal satisfaction of becoming only the third batsman after Sachin Tendulkar of India and Sanath Jayasuriya of Sri Lanka to pass the 12,000 ODI run mark. "We were pretty good and very good with the bat. I was confident that we could chase the England total and we stood up and got the job done," said Ponting. (iAfrica.com)
Many injured in Sri Lanka blast Oct 2, 2009
An explosion in a van in central Sri Lanka has wounded 13 people, including many school children who were about to get on the vehicle, the military says. A private dispute was suspected to be behind the blast, military spokesman Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara said. (BBC News -- South Asia)
UN Chief's 11th Hour Climate Jihad Sep 30, 2009
Highlighting the UN s more recent policy failures over Burma, the war in Sri Lanka, Sudan, Somalia, Pakistan, Zimbabwe and the Congo, the memo zeros in on Ban s lack of engagement and interest in studying well enough the problems. he is supposed to handle. (Human Events Online)
Q&A: Camp migrants' rights Sep 23, 2009
Top 10 nationalities applying for asylum in the UK Afghanistan: 3,505 Zimbabwe: 3,165 Iran: 2,270 Eritrea: 2,255 Iraq: 1,850 Sri Lanka: 1,475 China: 1,400 Somalia: 1,345 Pakistan: 1,230 Nigeria: 820 Source: 2008 immigration statistics, Home Office. Firstly, there is the historic links of language and culture with other parts of the world. (BBC News -- Europe)
Rajiv Gandhi assassin begins fast Sep 22, 2009
India has always blamed the attack on Sri Lanka's Tamil Tiger rebels ... Sriharan also went on hunger strike in 2006 because she wanted her daughter, who lives in Sri Lanka, to be given a visa to visit her in India. (BBC News -- South Asia)
Leak reveals India Maoist threat Sep 22, 2009
Warning its cadres against becoming complacent, the politburo says that India is getting assistance from America and that it should learn from the failure of the Tamil Tigers (LTTE) in Sri Lanka ... FROM OTHER NEWS SITES UN official expresses concern over Sri Lanka war refugees - 18 Sep 2009. (BBC News -- South Asia)
UN envoy touring Sri Lanka camps Sep 17, 2009
A top UN envoy is touring camps holding hundreds of thousands of displaced Tamils in northern Sri Lanka ... Mr Pascoe is in Sri Lanka for talks with the government on the post-conflict situation in the country ... Sri Lanka's civil war came to an end earlier this year after government forces defeated Tamil Tiger rebels. (BBC News -- South Asia)
Top Article: Why Dynasties Flourish Sep 16, 2009
And closer home we've seen political dynasties flourish in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. But if we discount our neighbours, where democracy has had a fitful existence, in no full-fledged democracy is dynasty so central as in India. (India Times, India)
Why the US is afraid of 'Afghanization' Sep 12, 2009
His assignments included the Soviet Union, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Germany, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Kuwait and Turkey. (Sep 10, '09). (Asia Times Online)
Defining moment Sep 6, 2009
Page last updated at 11:01 GMT, Saturday, 5 September 2009 12:01 UK. Election officials in Afghanistan are still counting votes, but say President Hamid Karzai is moving closer to the 50% threshold which would represent victory. (BBC News -- South Asia)
Timeline: India Sep 3, 2009
1987 - India deploys troops for peacekeeping operation in Sri Lanka's ethnic conflict ... 1990 - Indian troops withdrawn from Sri Lanka ... 1991 - Rajiv Gandhi assassinated by suicide bomber sympathetic to Sri Lanka's Tamil Tigers. (BBC News -- South Asia)
Sri Lanka's Jailing of Tamil Editor Shows Media Is Under Threat, U.S. Says Sep 1, 2009
Sri Lankan Editors Trial Shows Media Under Threat, U.S. Says - Bloomberg ... Sri Lankan Editors Trial Shows Media Under Threat, U.S. Says ... Sept. 1 (Bloomberg) -- Sri Lankas jailing of a Tamil journalist for 20 years shows the countrys media is under threat, the U.S. said. (Bloomberg -- UK)
Iranian protesters 'not agents' Aug 27, 2009
Page last updated at 05:42 GMT, Thursday, 27 August 2009 06:42 UK. Iranian protesters 'not agents. (BBC News)
Verifying votes Aug 27, 2009
Page last updated at 15:56 GMT, Wednesday, 26 August 2009 16:56 UK. The trials of election monitoring. (BBC News)
* World News Quick Take Aug 27, 2009
SRI LANKA Execution video fake: army ... This [video] was said to have been filmed at a time when the Tigers too were operating dressed in [Sri Lankan] military uniforms, Nanayakkara said ... In its report, Channel 4 stressed it could not verify the authenticity of the video which it received from a group called Journalists for Democracy in Sri Lanka. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- Business)
HC judge voluntarily declares assets Aug 24, 2009
The Judge said that nearer home Sri Lanka passed Declaration of Assets and Liability Law (Act 1 of 1975) requiring judges, among others to declare their assets at the time of their appointments. Many of the African countries have passed such legislation in the recent years to quell widespread allegations of corruption in high constitutional offices, he added. (India Times, India)
Centenarian looking forward to turning 108 Aug 15, 2009
Wickramasingha is employed as the director of culinary services at the region's SunnyBrook facilities, but he has made several videos, even winning awards for some, about his family and his homeland of Sri Lanka, and says he enjoys interviewing and videotaping older people as they look back upon their lives. A resident at SunnyBrook of Burlington, Murphy was born in 1901 and grew up on a farm near Bushnell, Ill. (Fort Madison Daily Democrat, IO)
Afghan race becomes Karzai's cliffhanger Aug 15, 2009
His assignments included the Soviet Union, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Germany, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Kuwait and Turkey. (Copyright 2009 Asia Times Online (Holdings) Ltd. All rights reserved. (Asia Times Online)
Tigers get a boost at the ballot box Aug 12, 2009
Three months after it suffered military defeat at the hands of the Sri Lankan armed forces, a party regarded as its mouthpiece in parliament and beyond has defeated President Mahinda Rajapakse's United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) in the first elections to be held in post-war Sri Lanka ... Last week, its new chief, Selvarasa Pathmanathan, was arrested in Southeast Asia and handed over to the Sri Lankan government ... Some have interpreted the ruling UPFA's strong showing in Jaffna as a sign... (Asia Times Online)
* Mixed results in local Sri Lanka polls Aug 10, 2009
Mixed results in local Sri Lanka polls ... Sri Lankas ruling coalition and an ethnic Tamil party seen as a front for the defeated Tamil Tiger rebels have won the first postwar elections, held near the islands former battlefields ... State television said Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksas ruling coalition captured Jaffna town council, securing 13 of the 23 seats, while the pro-rebel Tamil National Alliance (TNA) came second with eight seats in the poll held on Saturday. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- Sports)
In Sri Lankan polls, Tamils affirm desire for self-rule Aug 10, 2009
A Sri Lankan police officer stands guard as voters come out of a polling station after casting their vote in Vavuniya, Sri Lanka, Saturday ... New Delhi - A pro-rebel political party won a key council in Sri Lanka's elections this weekend an indication, should it be needed, that Tamils are still eager for self rule ... The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), who had fought for an independent homeland for the island's Tamil minority since 1983, ran most of northern Sri Lanka as a de... (Christian Science Monitor -- USA)
Tamil Tigers seek arrest inquiry Aug 10, 2009
Sri Lanka's Tamil Tiger rebels have called for an investigation into the overseas arrest and subsequent repatriation of their new leader ... They suspect, reports the BBC's Charles Haviland from Colombo, that this was carried out by Sri Lanka's military intelligence, supported by parts of the Malaysian establishment ... Sri Lanka's government has said only that Mr Pathmanathan was held earlier this week in Asia, returned to the country and is being interrogated. (BBC News -- South Asia)
* Voting begins in Sri Lanka without independent media Aug 9, 2009
Voting begins in Sri Lanka without independent media ... Voting for two local councils began yesterday near Sri Lankas former war zone, officials said, but denied independent media access to the area. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World)
Government and pro-rebel party win local elections Aug 9, 2009
Sri Lanka's ruling coalition and an ethnic Tamil party seen as a front for the defeated Tamil Tiger rebels have won the first postwar elections, held near the island's former battlefields ... Pathmanathan, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam's former chief weapons smuggler, was arrested in Southeast Asia and sent back to Sri Lanka, where he was being questioned, the government said Friday ... Sri Lankan defense spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella said the arrest showed "that we are capable of... (Mattoon Journal-Gazette, IL)
Miss Ireland upstages lady in red Aug 8, 2009
Sri Lanka has said it has captured and was interrogating the new head of the Tamil Tigers, their most-wanted target since crushing the separatist rebels and their 25-year insurrection in May. Friday, 7 August 2009. (Yahoo News -- Beauty Pageants)
Arrest a big blow to Tamil Tigers Aug 8, 2009
Sri Lankan officials question new rebel leader ... COLOMBO, Sri Lanka - The arrest of the Tamil Tigers s new leader has dealt a major blow to the rebels efforts to regroup and push on with their separatist struggle after being routed by Sri Lankan forces, the government said yesterday ... Sri Lankan authorities yesterday were questioning Selvarasa Pathmanathan, the former chief arms smuggler for the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam and its new chief, after he was arrested in Southeast Asia and... (Boston Globe)
Behind the smiles Aug 7, 2009
Sri Lanka s popular government should do more to heal ethnic divisions ... AFTER human excrement was dumped outside his house two years ago, M.A. Sumanthiran, a Sri Lankan human-rights lawyer, put up security cameras ... In January, after Lasantha Wickrematunge, a journalist investigating high-level corruption and other abuses, was gunned down in Sri Lanka s biggest city, Mr Sumanthiran hired bodyguards. (The Economist)
Obituary: Corazon Aquino Aug 7, 2009
It has happened in Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka. No one, however, has done it with such modesty, pluck and charm as Cory Aquino. (The Economist)
Rights Group Protests Media Ban Of Sri Lanka Poll Aug 6, 2009
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka, Aug. 6, 2009 ... Media Rights Group Outraged By Sri Lanka's Ban On Media Coverage Of Local Election ... (AP) An international media rights group has expressed outrage at the Sri Lanka's decision to ban journalists from covering the first local elections in the north since the military defeated the Tamil Tiger rebels. (CBS News -- World)
Journalist deaths rise in media 'bloodbath'... Jul 24, 2009
It said there were six in Pakistan, five each in Iraq, the Philippines, Russia and Somalia, four in Gaza and Honduras, three in Colombia, two each in Afghanistan, Guatemala, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Venezuela and one in India, Indonesia, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, and Madagascar ... PEC secretary general Blaise Lempen said the increase in deaths this year reflects the conflicts in Gaza, Somalia, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. (The Drudge Report)
The Man Who Tamed the Tamil Tigers Jul 14, 2009
Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa in Colombo on July 10, 2009 Namas Bhojani for TIME ... Sri Lanka's 26-year civil war between the government and the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) came to a dramatic end in May with a decisive military victory and the killing of Velupillai Prabhakaran, the Tigers' fearsome leader ... TIME: Prabhakaran had become practically a mythical figure in Sri Lanka. (Time.com)
Sri Lankan doctors recant reports of civilian deaths Jul 11, 2009
Speaking at a defense ministry facility, they said they were coerced by the rebel Tamil Tigers to exaggerate the impact of Sri Lankas final offensive ... Bangkok, Thailand - Over two months after the bloody finale of Sri Lanka's 26-year civil war, a lingering row over civilian casualties continues to roil a fractured society ... Sri Lankan authorities have insisted that their final military push against Tamil Tiger rebels didn't target hundreds of thousands of civilians trapped behind enemy... (Christian Science Monitor -- World)
