US-High School Girl Donates Two-Thousand Books to Establish School Libraries in Tsunami-Devastated Areas in Sri Lanka

Sarasi Jayaratne (17), a junior in Potomac Falls High School and a student of the Academy of Science in Virginia, USA, and a Senior Girl Scout Cadet in the Washington D.C. area, has donated more than 2,000 children’s books to schools in the tsunami-affected areas of Sri Lanka through her program Keep Reading. As the founder of Keep Reading, a nonprofit program that fosters educational development, Sarasi is promoting reading and the importance of English as a universal language among disadvantaged children in the tsunami affected areas of Sri Lanka.

A new digital identity card for Sri Lankans from next year

Sri Lanka Department of Registration of Persons is to call for tenders to produce a new digital identity card which is to be introduced to Sri Lanka public from September next year.

The new computerized identity card which is in accordance with the international standards will include details in Sinhala, Tamil and English languages.

The new identity card also includes the finger impression of the holder and many other secret details that cannot be forged, a spokesman of the Department of Registration of Persons said.

Sinhala IDPs in northeast Sri Lanka reluctant to return home

The internally displaced Sinhalese people from Welioya who were residing in the Alikimbulagala school premises in Padavi-Parakramapura have decided reluctantly to return to the Athawetunaweva village.

When the Tamil Tigers fired mortars to the Athawetunaweva village in the Welioya Defense Colony on 31st May, 1,118 individuals belonged to 310 families of the village fled the Sinhala border village in the North Eastern Sri Lanka. Over half of the IDPs had returned to the village now and the rest have decided to return although they were not satisfied over the security provided to them.

Some IDPs said that they were returning due to the lack of facilities in the school premises they were temporarily sheltered. They were removed from school buildings and provided temporary shelters in the school premises few weeks back when the school was reopened.

IF YOU ARE A TRUE PATRIOT OF MOTHER LANKA AT LEAST PLEASE MAKE AN ATTEMPT TO CIRCULATE THIS IN THE WHOLE WORLD AND HELP THIS AMERICAN TO ACHIVE HIS GO

A view of Sri Lanka by a non Sri Lankan - As Sri Lankans What do we have to say !

Pls forward this to all Sri Lankans who truly love Sri Lanka.
By Jerald Owens:

I am an American from the midwest and am a leading member of the US Republican party's mid west chapter.
Sri Lanka has always been a paradise for me and my wife. When we visit Sri Lanka we are always astonished at the simple uncomplicated way of life in Sri Lanka. A country trying to survive like a small ship in a storm. A country that has such a civilized and a poetic past, scenery and unsophisticated natural beauty that we silently weep when we hear of the brutal murders carried out by the nazi type but uneducated, uncivilized, selfish band of thugs in hiding in Wanni, that has brought terror and fear to every peace loving man, woman and child in this little paradise.After associating with Sri Lankans in US as well as in Sri Lanka I have gotten used to enjoying your spicy food.So whereever we travel we look for spicy food. Even though I live in the US I visit Canada quite regularly.

I travel quite often to Toronto and was very surprised to notice the Tamil terrorist operated restaurants, supermarkets, moviehouses and numerous strip mall type businesses openly advertising support for the LTTE or Tamil Ellam as they are called.

In fact on one my trip to Toronto, a Sri Lankan friend of mine and his wife (a Sinhalese couple who are now US citizens) took me to a very busy Tamil take-a-way. They first tried to talk to him in Tamil and when my friend did not answer (because he does't even speak Sinhala) they refused to serve him. Finally I had to make the order.

Spineless, gutless, Liberals (and gays and lesbians too) tend to tolerate these terrorists for their political gain. So the Liberals in Canada allowed them a free reign. In the USA President Bush's policies and his successive foreign secretaries have brought considerable pressure on Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand and Western Europe to ban LTTE bacause we in the US know who these criminals are.

In fact Norway is slowly but steadily bowing down to US pressure because we in the US have a president who does what he beleives and who believes in what he does. We also know that the LTTE does not represent the Tamil population in Sri Lanka. The banning of LTTE and its affiliated fund raisers are just the beginning and is the tip of the iceberg. It is the shape of things to come.

We are also aware of Mr. Jayantha Gnanakone and his group of terrorist henchman who while living in California have been organisng the tamils in the US. Very soon you in Sri Lanka will hear of Jayantha on the run. Our forum has gathered sufficient data about Jayantha's activities that will make him want to run back to Sri Lanka.

The LTTE and its members will be hunted down where ever they hide. We in the midwest have been greatly appreciative of your President. A true statesman at last in Sri Lanka.

At last, please help us to update our list of organisations supporting the LTTE. If you readers have any information regarding LTTE fundraisers, stores, supermarkets, movie houses, schools, airline travel agencies, video rental stores, banks or any other please write to me. I am compiling a master list of people and companies supporting this band organisation. send your info to Jerald Owens, P.O.Box 2018, Sioux City, IA 51101-2018.

I wish to finish my comments on a historical note. One of my Sri Lankan friends once told me that from ancient Sri Lanka times a group of people called Veddahs lived in Wanni the present hideout of the LTTE's leader (he has an unpronounceable name). The Veddahs apparently were uncivilized and never went anywhere in life.

Well the self proclaimed leader of the LTTE too is not going anywhere. You cannot cheat all the people all the time. He will be hunted down till someday soon he will be on his hands and knees begging for his life and for forgiveness from the tamils, the sinhalese and the muslims of Sri Lanka that he has terrorised for so long.

Thank you for your time

Back to peace talks, a possibility - Bogollagama

The Government is positive that the Co-Chairs, which will meet in Oslo on June 25-26, would encourage the LTTE to come to the peace process or to a negotiated settlement, the Foreign Affairs Minister Rohitha Bogollagama said.

In an interview with the 'Sunday Observer' Minister Bogollagama, while reiterating that the LTTE has close links with the Afghan terrorists, said that the government expects a very realistic approach towards bringing the LTTE back to peace talks.

"As a Government we have to look at the national security concerns, that of the security of our people and the need for us to combat terrorism. I am sure that the Co-Chairs had been very co-operative and supportive and they will extend special support at this Olso Summit", he said.

British crackdown will pressure LTTE to return to talks: Colombo

Welcoming the British crackdown on the LTTE which was unexpected here, the Sri Lankan government asserted that the long overdue action would increase pressure the LTTE to return to the negotiating table.

The LTTE quit the Norwegian-led peace process in April 2003 during Ranil Wickremesinghe's tenure as the Premier.

Friday's arrest of LTTE leader in the UK 51-year A.C. Shanthan and 29-year Goldan Lambert, in charge of the vast finances network came hot on the heels of British High Commissioner in Colombo Dominick Chilcott assertion that "outsiders can help shape the political and security environment in which efforts to make peace or war are attempted." Both LTTE cadres hold British passports. Police also searched LTTE offices in London and Surrey.

In his key note address at a panel discussion arranged by the Bandaranaike Centre for International Studies (BCIS), Chilcott articulated the British policy vis a vis Sri Lanka's national issue

Government sources expressed the belief that the British action was significant and in fact a major policy shift. "We expect the British to conduct a sustained campaign against the LTTE," an authoritative official said. "What is significant is the British action comes at the end of British Premier Tony Blair's term."

Sri Lanka Health Ministry to hunt unregistered medical centers

June 23, Colombo: The time given to all private medical institutes including hospitals, nursing homes, laboratories as well as full time and part time private medical practitioners of Sri Lanka to register in Private Medical Services Regulation Council ended yesterday.

However, the Ministry of Health sources said that the number of such firms registered accordingly was not satisfactory.

Sri Lanka implemented the Private Medical Institutes Registration Act on 22nd March and three months were given to all private medical institutes to register in the Private Medical Services Regulation Council.

The Ministry of Health Director in charge of private medical institutes, Amal Harsha de Silva said that legal action would be taken against the medical centers that have not obtained the necessary registration.

Health Ministry says that there are around 25,000 bogus doctors in the country practicing and prescribing western medicines without proper qualifications.

Sri Lankan Pianist meets Queen of England

Sri Lankan Pianist Rohan De Silva and violin virtuoso Itzhak Perlman were invited by President George W Bush and Laura Bush to perform for the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh at the State Dinner at the White House in May 2007

Rohan De SIlva and Perlman who were guests at the State Dinner performed in the East Room of the White House after dinner for the invited guests.

Rohan De Silva with Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh at the State Dinner hosted by President Bush and Laura Bush at the White House.

Aitken Spence Hotels promotes indigenous palette for tourists

Sri Lankan Indigenous meals will be promoted through local and international locations of Aitken Spence hotels.

Nutritious Sri Lankan indigenous cuisines are already available at our group and were not promoted. Our local
indigenous food are in high demand by tourists. We will be aggressive in future to promote them internationally, Director Sales and Marketing, Aitken Spence Hotels, Anil Udawatte said at the press briefing for third dimension indigenous cuisine.

"The demand for food and health factor stimulated us to promote Sri Lanka's nutritious indigenous cuisine to the local and international hospitality sector. We will be introducing an innovative window in our hotels. Our experienced chefs will look after these windows, Director Food and Beverages Aitken Spence Hotels Gemunu Goonawardena said.

Duty on palm oil affects DC industry

Desiccated coconut (DC) millers have requested the government to reduce the duty on imported palm oil to ensure a continuous supply of coconuts for their industry.

Millers say the industry had faced already a crisis mainly due to the high coconut prices.

They said that import duty on palm oil had increased the demand for coconuts causing the prices to skyrocket.

"The dramatic increase over the past 12 months in world palm oil prices has sharply increased the retail price of palm oil in Sri Lanka and the country’s duty structure for palm oil imports have not been revised for more than 12 months. This has caused palm oil price to reach a record level of Rs. 150 per Kilo during June, 2007 with further increase estimated to be Rs. 174 per kilo during July," said the industry sources.

The sources added that as a result of this, coconut prices had risen to record high levels, where it was no longer feasible to run desiccated coconut mills and requested the government to take drastic action to reduce the duty on palm oil.

However, in response to industry’s request Plantation Industries Minister D. M. Jayaratne said that the duty on imported palm oil would not be reduced but the government would take actions to provide coconut for a reasonable rate of around as Rs. 20 in order to remedy the situation.

According to the Minister, reducing the duty on palm oil would affect the country’s coconut cultivation and the coconut oil industry. He said that after a severe set back, local coconut oil industry has begun to boom at present and importation of more palm oil would impact on the coconut oil industry badly.

Meanwhile Coconut Development Authority Chairman D. J. Purasingha said that many coconut oil mill owners tend to produce unhealthy coconut oil mixing coconut oil with a greater amount of palm oil which is not hygienic at all. It was noted that if the amount of palm oil coming in to the country is minimised such adulteration would not take place.

President Rajapaksa is the best friend of Muslims in Asia - World Muslim Congress chief

The Chief of the World Muslim Congress Dr. Omar Abdullah Bin Nasif has commended the Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa as the best friend of the Muslim people in Asia.

Dr. Nasif, who met the President Rajapaksa shortly after the 80th World Muslim Congress held recently in Colombo, has stated this.

During the discussion the World Muslim Congress Chief has lauded the development programmes launched by the Government headed by President Rajapaksa.

He specially appreciated the President's resolve to fight terrorism and usher in peace to Sri Lanka.

Dr. Nasif has stated that many delegates harboured a wrong notion that Sri Lanka was not a safe place to visit following the various false allegations by various parties who were trying to succeed in their personal agendas.

However according to Mr. Nasif, such misconceptions had been effaced during the few days they spent here.

President Rajapaksa thanked Dr. Abdullah for conducting the Muslim Congress sessions in Colombo. He told the delegates that Sri Lanka would soon open a mission in Palestine.

He said certain elements who detested his close links with the Muslim world were spreading false propaganda around the world. This almost amounts to a betrayal of the motherland. However, he added that at any cost he would not abandon the quest for peace. He also appreciated the assistance extended by Middle East countries for development projects in Sri Lanka.

LTTE craft and weapons recovered

Latest defence reports claim that the SL Naval troops recovered an attack craft along with four bodies of slain LTTE cadres today(20). The boat was captured and towed to the Kankasanthurai Harbour, according to the Naval officials.

According to the Naval sources, the captured LTTE craft had submerged while it was being towed to the KKS harbour and was later recovered by SL Navy divers. The bodies of 04 LTTE cadres had been stuck inside the boat, said the Naval Spokesperson, Commander D.K.P Dassanayake. "The captured craft is around 50 feet in length was powered by four 250 horsepower 'Out Board' Motor Engines", he further added.

The sea battle which erupted in the island's Northern coastal waters off Point Pedro, yesterday(19) is believed to be the heaviest loss the LTTE sea units experienced since early January.

During the fierce sea battle, which lasted for five hours, the elite Naval 'Fast Attack Squadron' units inflicted heavy damages to the LTTE, killing 40 terrorists, destroying 05 vessels while capturing another attack craft along with four bodies.

The Naval sources confirm, 09 other LTTE attack craft were also damaged during the sea confrontation.

Meanwhile, military sources said that arrangements were made to hand over the bodies of the slain cadres to the LTTE through the ICRC.

The Navy recovered the following weapons from the captured craft:

Nine more LTTE cadres killed - Vavuniya and Batticaloa

Defence sources said that nine more LTTE cadres were killed in separate clashes erupted in Vavuniya and Batticaloa.

On the Wanni front LTTE terrorists launched an attack at the SL Army troops at Ampaddailuppaikulam on Wednesday (20) afternoon. Army troops initially retaliated to the attack using small arms fire and later destroyed the terror hideout completely using heavy weapons. Radio communication among the LTTE mobs revealed that six LTTE cadres were killed in the attack. Army suffered no casualties in the incident.

Elsewhere in Batticaloa, Army troops with the assistance of Police gunned down three LTTE cadres who had attempted to infiltrate into Kalkudah village on Tuesday (19) night. During the subsequent search, troops found two hand grenades and two claymore mines along with the three bodies of the LTTE cadres.

Meanwhile, a combined search conducted by Army troops and Home Guards on Tuesday (19) around 8:20 a.m. recovered two T - 56 weapons, two magazines and fifteen rounds of ammunition from Eeavur.

Popular Tamil website 'blocked'

Reports from Colombo say the TamilNet website, which is regularly checked by diplomats and journalists, can no longer be accessed.

It is not clear who has blocked it or why, but the website, and independent media campaigners, said the government was to blame.

Government Information Director Anusha Pelpita denied any knowledge of the site having been blocked.

TamilNet is a popular source of information for the substantial Tamil diaspora thousands of miles away in Europe and North America.

'Slippery slope'

Attempts to access the site in Sri Lanka have mostly thrown up error reports.

The media rights group Free Media Movement said all major internet service providers had blocked the site on government orders, the Associated Press reported.

"This is a significant turn in the erosion of media freedom in Sri Lanka and clearly demonstrates the extent to which media is censored and the free flow of information curtailed, without any accountability, transparency or judicial oversight," the group said in a statement.

"The ban on TamilNet is the first instance of what the Free Media Movement believes may soon be a slippery slope of web and internet censorship in Sri Lanka," it said.

World Refugee Day : Right to respect and dignity

REFUGEE: Today we are facing what may prove to be one of the greatest challenges of the century. Almost 40 million people worldwide have been uprooted and forced to flee violence and persecution.

The future is likely to see increasing numbers of people on the move. Many of them will be in search of economic opportunity and better lives or escaping environmental degradation and natural disasters.

Others will be forced to flee failing states wreaked by violence and persecution. But in most instances, people are fleeing a combination of these factors, compounding one another to provoke a perfect storm of loss and dislocation.

I have spent the past few days in Sudan, a country at the epicentre of one of the world’s great displacements. Here I have seen firsthand the stark reality of forced displacement as well as some of the solutions. Hopes that globalisation would naturally bring steady growth while also narrowing the gap between rich and poor have not been fulfilled.

While global trade and wealth have indeed increased, the gap between the world’s rich and poor is widening, driving more people to move and to fall prey to unscrupulous groups whose new business line in human smuggling and trafficking is worth billions of dollars a year.

Climate change and environmental damage lie behind increasingly frequent natural disasters with dramatic human consequences. Different models of the impact of climate change all present a worrying picture of human displacement. East Africa offers a stark example.

Gems and jewellery in dazzling 9.8 per cent growth

GEM INDUSTRY: Sri Lanka has recorded 9.8 percent growth in the gem and jewellery sector during the first five months of this year.

According to National Gem and Jewellery Authority (NGJA) the country has earned Rs. 19 billion from January to May this year through gem and jewellery exports. It was Rs. 17 billion last year and this is a 9.8 percent increment compared to the same period last year.

A senior official of NGJA told the Daily News that diamond re-exports have contributed Rs. 12914.8 million for the total earnings through gem and jewellery exports and this has shown 9.5 percent growth compared to the same period of last year.

Gem exports has contributed Rs 4754.3 million during the first five months of this year to the total earnings and this was a 4.6 percent growth compared to the same period of last year. Last year it was recorded as Rs 4485.5 million he said.

Coloured stones re-exports have recorded 35.6 percent growth while bringing Rs. 278.8 million to the country. Geuda exports brought Rs. 87.5 million to the country and last year this segment contributed Rs 77.7 million during the first five months. The official said that there is a significant growth in both diamond jewellery exports and gem-studded jewellery exports.

Last year gem studded jewellery recorded Rs 627.2 million during the first five months and this year it has increased to Rs 824.1 million, recording 31 percent growth.

Diamond jewellery exports contributed Rs. 332.7 million for the total earnings from gem and jewellery. This is a 18.1 present growth compared to the same period last year. Meanwhile the NGJA is also planning to expand their promotional activities to capture the Indian market participating in the JCK New Delhi show next year. The Authority expects to organise a national pavilion at this show.

The Indian gem and jewellery industry has developed rapidly during the past five years and it is important for us to operate in a market like India, he said.

NGJA has participated in “Focused Sri Lanka” which was held in Los Angeles and JCK show which was held in Las Vegas.

There was a huge demand for Sri Lankan blue, yellow sapphires at the show. Local small scale silver jewellery manufacturers too received a good response from the visitors at the show, he said.

Three LTTE child soldiers surrendered - Batticaloa

Three LTTE child soldiers who escaped the LTTE camp in the Thoppigala area surrendered themselves to the security forces this morning, Tuesday the 19th of June.

Defence sources said that two of them are girls of 12 and 14 years of age and the other is a 14 year old boy.

According to the surrenders, they had been forcibly recruited to the LTTE organisation and detained in an LTTE training camp in the Thoppigala area for six months. They further stated they escaped as they had to face severe hardships in the LTTE military training and could not bare the harassments of the LTTE terrorists.

Defence sources further said that the three LTTE child soldiers are suffering from starvation when the time they surrendered to the Polwatte Army camp in Batticaloa.

MCNS says, so far a total of 652 LTTE cadres have surrendered to the security forces from February 2002.

Swiss Tamils protests against hoisting of Tamil Eelam flagSri Lanka President Mahinda Rajapakse has instructed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to lodg

Sri Lanka President Mahinda Rajapakse has instructed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to lodge a strong protest to the Government of Switzerland for allowing the agents and supporters of Tamil Tigers to hoist the "Tamil Eelam" flag on Swiss soil.

This flag -- depicting a snarling Tiger putting his head out of ring of 33 bullets and two guns fixed with bayonets crossing overhead -- was hoisted on June 11 opposite the United Nations buildings located in Geneva.

This issue was brought to the notice of President Mahinda Rajapakse on 15June by the Tamils living in Switzerland who are members of the Eelam Peoples' Democratic Party.

At the meeting members of the EPDP pointed out to Sri Lanka President that the Tamil Tiger was raised in Switzerland to indicate that the Tamils have a separate state in Sri Lanka. The participants of the protest rally also shouted slogans calling for the recognition of separate state of Tamil Eelam.

Action of the Swiss government for allowing the Tamil Tigers to get away acts said that would not be allowed for Al-Qaida agents and supporters. They said that it amounts to Switzerland aiding, abetting and tolerating anti-Sri Lankan activities in their soil.

They added that not all the Tamils in Switzerland would support such anti-national actions.

After making inquiries President Mahinda Rajapakse told Dr. Palitha Kohona, Secretary to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to send a protest note to the Swiss Government.

Army hunts down more fleeing LTTE cadres- Thoppigala

SL army troops clearing ahead to Thoppigala in the East confronted with another group of LTTE cadres in the Trikonamadu area around 7.30 this morning.

Defence sources said that SL army troops have successfully crushed an LTTE attack launched by a small group of LTTE cadres believed to be withdrawing from Thoppigala.

In the subsequent search three bodies of LTTE cadres have been found along with three T-56 riffles, three hand grenades, and a pistol.

Sources further added that Army has already informed the LTTE cadres entrapped in Thoppigala jungle to surrender themselves with immediate effect.

The Permanent Mission of Sri Lanka to the United Nations Office at Geneva

The Governing Body of the International Labour Office (ILO) elected H.E. Mr. Dayan Jayatilleka, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the United Nations in Geneva, as Chairman for its 2007-08 Session. The 299th Session of the Governing Body also considered a range of other business, including a report of the ILO Committee on Freedom of Association.

Mr. Jayatilleka replaces Mr. Mdladlana, Minister of Labour of the Republic of South Africa, who served as Governing Body Chairman during the 2006-07 Session. Daniel Funes de Rioja, President of the Social Policy Department of the Argentine Industrial Union and Chairman of the Employers' Group of the Organization of American States from 1995 to 1998, was reelected as Employer Vice-chairperson.

Sir Leroy Trotman, General Secretary, Barbados Workers' Union and spokesperson of the Workers' Group in the Governing Body, was re-elected Workers' Vicechairperson. The three will serve as Officers of the Governing Body during its 2007-08 Session. The Governing Body is the executive council of the ILO and meets three times annually in Geneva.

Glucosamine liquid

Glucosamine gel is a unique massage gel that has been specially developed for bones, joints and muscles to help keep them flexible and healthy. It contains Glucosamine; a naturally occurring amino sugar formed from glucose and L-glutamine in the body and is renowned for safeguarding joint health. Glucosamines main function in the body is to help maintain healthy joints and muscles by supporting the constant regeneration of connective tissues in and around the joints and providing essential nutrients for overall joint health

25 SL Army Officers receive commission - Diyatalawa

Twenty five officers received their Commission at the Sri Lanka Military Academy (SLMA) at Diyatalawa on Saturday the 16th of June.

The ceremony was signified by the symbolic hand over of the ornamental sword to each newly Commissioned Officer who completed training at the SLMA.

The SL Army Commander Lt. Gen. Sarath Fonseka was the chief guest at the occasion.

These new officers who commenced their training at the SLMA on January 3, 2005 will be attached to different regiments.

Army kills one LTTE cadre in a clash - Trincomalee

Army troops on a route clearing patrol skirmished with a group of LTTE terrorists at Ralkuli in Trincomalee this morning (18). The incident occurred at 9:45 a.m when the LTTE cadres fired at the army troops conducting a route clearing operation in the Pahala - Thopoor area.

The troops retaliated to the attack effectively killing one LTTE terrorist. The soldiers have later found one T-56 machine gun, one hand grenade and number of ammunitions. Army suffered no casualties in the attack.

This week song

Hero's of Sri-Lanka!

Global warming and Lankan chaos

An interesting email doing the rounds these days refers to the water crisis in the year 2070. It shows a man who has just turned 50 but looks more like 85 years. He says he suffers from serious kidney problems because he doesn’t drink water.

The next slide says people (in 2070) use towels with mineral oil to clean their skin. Women shave their heads not because its fashionable but to keep it clean without the use of water. Moving on the email refers to rivers, lakes, dams and underground water being either dry or contaminated. Wars are fought over water. Assaults and robberies are mostly to rob water. Without enough water, the average life expectancy is 35 years. Water becomes more precious than gold or diamonds. “We were warned to look after the environment but nobody cared,” the old man says.

Prof Mohan Munasinghe, a renowned expert on global warming, in an interview with The Sunday Times recently brought home a stark message: “The government and the LTTE are fighting over land (coastal areas of north and east) that is unlikely to exist in the future.”

There were many more critical points in Munasinghe’s message about dry areas getting drier and wet areas getting wetter due to global warming.

Without water one cannot survive unlike wars and conflicts where not all get affected while a few also make big bucks. Global warming is a major issue facing this country but while politicians bicker, ministers dispute each other and traffic chaos plagues the city, the bigger issues confronting society – which needs the support of all – are rarely put on the table. Thankfully one chamber group has realized the importance of this issue and is organising a seminar on the challenges of global warming.

This commentary however is not about global warming but using it as an example to illustrate the state of chaos in the country today. Peace is becoming an elusive dream and though the ‘silence’ of the business community is evident, there are many corporate heads who are extremely worried about the situation. This was clear in this week’s email poll by this newspaper where many corporate heads, who wished to remain anonymous, were critical of the spate of abductions and the lack of police action.

The fact that business leaders have chosen to stay away over the Lankan crisis was brought home by US ambassador Robert Blake when - in a recent speech - he quoted Colin Powell as saying, “Capital is a coward. It flees from conflict and unpredictability.” But the fact that business has a role in peace was seen overwhelmingly in The Sunday Times FT poll.

The bottled-up frustrations of the public also came out clearly in the survey while the traffic chaos to allow the free flow of VVIP convoys is needling bus travellers, motorists and pedestrians. On Friday when traffic as usual was stopped at the Greenpath junction near the Colombo Mayor’s official resident for a VVIP convoy, some people had the guts to voice their frustration in public to on-duty, armed policemen, who smiled without comment!

Isn’t it cheaper in terms of the loss to the economy by way of fuel costs to the public, wastage of time and loss of productivity for the Defence Secretary to travel by helicopter between his Stanmore Crescent residence and the Defence Ministry using the Police grounds and the army grounds for landing purposes? Abductions are rising by the day. The law of the jungle has taken over. Young professionals are leaving our shores for more ‘peaceful’ jobs overseas. “Many of our young people are leaving because they prefer working in a safer environment. The UK has a highly skilled migrants’ programme which fits the profile of our young staff,” one CEO said. Elsewhere quite a few businessmen are applying for the ‘Make Malaysia your second home’ investment programme.

There was an outflow of professionals during crises’ in 1983, 1989 and 2001 while some returned in 2002-03 as the peace process took root. Migration is happening once more and the country is again losing its talent base.

Back to the email on water, the old man says “I cannot help feeling guilty, because I belong to a generation who contributed to the destruction of the environment or simply didn’t take into account all the warning signs.” There is no better way to describe the country today.

Population will decline after 2040

Sri Lanka’s population will decline after 2040, primarily due to a significantly low level of fertility, a think-tank has warned. Research by the Institute of Policy Studies has revealed that Sri Lanka’s population which is around 20 million now will reach 20.1 million by 2011 and could attain its peak of 21.1 million in 2031.

According to analysts, it is not only Sri Lanka’s fast aging population that authorities should be mindful of but the continuing decline in the Total Fertility Rate registered as 1.96 children per woman between 1995 and 2000. This is even below the replacement level of 2.1.

What is strange is that such low levels of TFR have been recorded almost always in advanced countries and Sri Lanka was earlier forecast to reach the replacement level in 2000, but according to the IPS study, it had been reached as far back as 1995.

A senior official of the Government’s Family Health Bureau said the bureau would not take the blame for the declining TFR. “We are only promoting family planning to improve the health of a family, where it no longer can afford to bring up an additional child.”

Asked whether the bureau continued to pay people to undergo free sterilization, the official said the Rs.500 was still being paid, but he dismissed it as just an allowance in view of the steep decline in the value of the rupee since this scheme was started in the 1980s.

The official said the low TFR could be more the result of uncontrolled illegal abortions which had reached alarmingly high levels with authorities doing little to check it. The official also claimed that births were still on the increase in the country going up from 360,000 in 2004 to 370,000 in 2005. But according to the IPS study, which the Bureau did not challenge, Sri Lanka’s population would decline after 2040.

What is most alarming about these projections is that the total dependency ratio which stood at 54.4 percent — child dependency 38.7 per cent and old age dependency15.7 percent in 2001 — would rise to 96 percent by 2081, with old age dependency taking the lion’s share of 67 percent, the analysts said.

Co-chairs to tighten screws on Lanka

The four Co-chairs meeting in Oslo next week are to consider the next step in the face of Sri Lanka’s refusal to bow to western pressure to halt the war, allow international monitors to oversee human rights obligations and to be cowed by cuts in western aid. Norway, which is calling the meeting, is expected to present a rather pessimistic report to its other three partners following Minister Erik Solheim’s meeting with President Mahinda Rajapaksa in Geneva and the president’s uncompromising speech to the ILO conference.
Western diplomatic sources said that since the two-day meeting from June 25 is a routine meeting of this group, it is unlikely that a statement would be issued at the conclusion.

But they said if after the Norwegian report and a comparing of notes it was felt that Sri Lanka needed to be chastised, the Co-chairs would not hesitate to pull all the stops. Although too soon to be certain, there is a feeling gaining ground that the Co-chairs might, at some stage down the line, use a referral process to take the Sri Lanka issue before the UN Security Council for action if the situation deteriorates.

That is if the current assessment is that the peace talks are unlikely to get off the ground soon and there is little evidence of the government taking sterner measures to curb human rights violations reported by international bodies and documented by the Co-chairs, the diplomatic sources said.

According to them, among the matters of immediate concern are:

• President Rajapaksa’s address to the ILO conference. After saying that terrorism has no place in the contemporary world, he reportedly said: “As a government we are not prepared, at any cost, to bow to terrorism.” This is interpreted in western diplomatic and some human rights circles as saying that there will not be any veering away from its present policy of meeting the LTTE head-on.

• Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa’s interview to the BBC and Reuters in which he accused the West of bullying small countries and said that Sri Lanka had SAARC and Asian support and did not need to depend on the West. He also accused British minister Kim Howells of not condemning the LTTE or terrorism during a recent visit to Colombo and the UN of being misled by LTTE misinformation.
“A key issue here is whether India, the biggest of the SAARC members agrees with this interpretation,” a western diplomat familiar with Co-chair thinking said.

• The reports of the international eminent persons panel led by former Indian chief justice P.N. Bhagwati. This report had been critical of the Commission of Inquiry and the role of the Attorney General’s Department at the inquiry and has called for changes.

• The government’s perceived tardiness in dealing with killings, abductions, disappearances and human rights violations in general.

• The absence of a package of proposals to kickstart the peace talks.

Dialog Sri Lanka’s largest Rights Issue oversubscribed

INVESTMENT: Dialog Telekom Ltd. (DTL), announced yesterday, that its Rights Issue, which would raise 15.54 billion for the company, was successfully subscribed for by over 100%, thereby making the issue the largest ever equity raising to be executed in the Sri Lankan capital market.

The success of the landmark issue symbolizes a strong vote of confidence placed on Sri Lanka and Dialog Telekom by the investing community, with Dialog’s parent Telekom Malaysia leading the pack by enhancing its direct investment in the country by Rs 13 Bn, through subscribing in full for its entitlement under the rights issue.

The Dialog Telekom Rights Issue attracted substantial interest from Dialog’s shareholders spanning foreign institutional, domestic institutional and domestic retail segments. The inward foreign currency remittances for the rights issue have exceeded USD 130 Mn representing one of the largest foreign investment flows to the country.

The 1 for 10 Rights issue will also give rise to a 10 per cent increase in the tradable shares of Dialog, enhancing the liquidity of the share in the market.

The performance of the DIAL share has been a key ingredient contributing to the growth and resilience of the CSE and key benchmark indices. The DIAL share rose by approximately 115% during the 23 months following the company’s listing in July 2005. Presently DIAL accounts for more than 22% of the market capitalisation of the CSE.

The proceeds of the Rights Issue will go towards partially financing Dialog Group’s planned capital expenditure, which focuses on accelerated expansion of network capacity and coverage and transformational investments in convergent technologies spanning the multiple businesses lines of the group.

President commended on human rights front

President Mahinda Rajapaksa who arrived in Geneva on Wednesday to attend the 96th ILO conference, held discussions with UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Louis Arbour.

President Rajapaksa came in for high praise by Arbour over steps taken by the Government to protect human rights amidst heightened acts of terrorism.

She also expressed her regret at the propaganda launched by various organisations to discredit the Lankan Government.

Following the meeting, the Lankan Head of State also held discussions with the President of the International Human Rights Council Luis Alfonso where the latter spoke of the need for continuing with the ongoing programmes between the Sri Lankan Government and the Council.

Alfonso appreciated steps taken by the Sri Lanka Government to not only appoint a Presidential Commission to probe human rights violations but also to permit an International panel of eminent persons to be present as observers.

Ministers Keheliya Rambukwella, Douglas Devananda, Mahinda Samarasinghe, Attorney General C.R. De Silva, Foreign Secretary Dr. Palitha Kohona and Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the UN Office in Geneva, Dr. Dayan Jayatilleke were also present.

LTTE should return to negotiating table - Foreign Minister

Clashes between Government troops and the LTTE are an almost daily occurrence, but negotiations really are the only solution, says Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama.

"The terrorists should return to the negotiating table. We are ready to talk tomorrow because we want peace in Sri Lanka and we want a political process, we don't want temporary resolutions, we want a dialogue towards accomplishing sustainable peace," said Minister Bogollagama during an interview with 'The Korea Herald'.

He added that his Government wants the LTTE, to come to talks without resorting to violence, "without targeting civilians and killing innocent people and thereby destroying the lives and property of the people in Sri Lanka."

To promote peace, the Government is engaging in fully eliminating terrorism, Bogollagama explained.

"We want the LTTE to be stakeholders in a democratic, pluralistic society which when we can have a dialogue in bringing about sustainable peace.

"From a political perspective they need to be interested in a sustainable constitutional process through which we can accommodate all traits of opinions and bring about the elimination of the divide in the political fabric," he said.

He emphasised that the Tamil community must be given the liberty and encouraged to have a leadership that respects the lives of others without resorting to 'terrorism'.

The LTTE must understand that there is no room for terrorism.

Sri Lanka President arrives in Geneva

June 14, Geneva: Sri Lanka President Mahinda Rajapaksa arrived at the Geneva International Airport yesterday to attend the 96th annual Conference of the International Labor Organization (ILO).

Gek-Boo Ng, Regional Director of ILO and S.E.M. Lorenyo, UN Permanent Representative in Switzerland welcomed the President at the Airport. Minister Athauda Seneviratne and President's Secretary Lalith Weeratunga were also present.

A child rookie of LTTE surrenders to security forces- Batticaloa

An underaged child recruit who claims to have been forcibly abducted by the LTTE, militarized and exposed to labour, hours of fatigue, surrendered to the security forces at a road block at Polwattha General area in Batticaloa, yesterday (13) at 10:40 a.m.

The surrendee, a fifteen year old revealed that the organisation no more send sufficient food to the cadres in the front, while many of the eastern cadres were used as scapegoats to sustain the advancing military thrust in Thoppigala.

According to the revelations made by the surrendered rookie, major disputes have occurred between the Wanni and the eastern leadership over the losses in the eastern battle fronts.

Al Jazeera bares Thoppigala child soldiers' horror story

An underaged girl told a reporter of Al Jazeera Television that she was kidnapped while going with her mother to visit her grandmother after cadres of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) attacked her mother.

"I was walking with my mother going to see my grandmother," one of the girls told Al Jazeera. "Then the LTTE attacked my mother and took me away," said one of six girls who said they were forced to fight for the terrorist group at Thoppigala, or Barrons Cap Rock area where the group has just lost four terrorist camps.

Tony Birtley of Al Jazeera Television reported from Sri Lanka's Eastern Province that, "In a police station in eastern Sri Lanka, six seemingly ordinary teenage girls wait to be processed.

Their short hairstyles mark them out as female fighters in the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.
Al Jazeera further reported: "Pushpu, another of the girls, says she was taken three months ago as she tended her parents' vegetable garden. Most of the girls are about 16-years-old. Pushpu is only 14.

Sri Lanka battles Tigers at sea

Al Jazeera has been given exclusive access to the Sri Lankan navy and as Tony Birtley, Al Jazeera's correspondent in Sri Lanka, reports, the conflict between the government and the Tamil Tigers has been particularly intense at sea.

Loaded with weaponry and capable of speeds of up to 70km an hour, the navy's fight against the Sea Tigers - the Tamil Tigers' naval arm - is spearheaded by its fast-attack craft.

Since last August, the Sri Lankan navy has claimed a number of successes, taking control of much of the area around Trincomalee, the site of its main naval base.

Sri Lanka battles Tigers at sea - Video

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President's efforts for peace will succeed - Swami Ravishankar

President Mahinda Rajapaksa has a commitment towards achieving peace and his efforts will bear fruit very soon, said His Holiness Swami Sri Ravishankar, a Hindu religious dignitary of the Kala Ashram in Chennai, India.

The Swami was addressing the final session of the International Women's Conference held at Bangalore, India.

Swami Ravishankar said that Sri Lanka and India had very close cultural ties, with similar values on ethics and human aspirations. For this reason the mutual respect for each other among Indians and Sri Lankans prevailed at a high level.

Stating there were no differences in the cultural bonds that existed between the women and Sri Lanka and India, Swami Ravishankar said the activities of the LTTE had caused considerable hardship to the people of Sri Lanka, particularly to women and children.

He said President Rajapaksa treated the people of the North and South with equal concern, and appreciated the vision of the President for peace and harmony in the country.

The conference was attended by nearly 4,000 delegates from 100 countries. First Lady Shiranthi Rajapaksa addressed the conference on the situation of women in the developing world

Army overpowers a terror ambush; Four LTTE cadres killed- Batticaloa

Army troops on foot patrol successfully over powered an ambush laid by the LTTE terrorists in the west of Polipanchical in Batticaloa this morning (12th). The soldiers have found four bodies of LTTE cadres, three hand grenades and two claymore mines in the subsequent search operation.

According to the defence sources, the terrorists have launched the attack around 11.30a.m. It is believed that the group of terrorists had come to the area to sabotage resettlement and development activities undertaken by the government.

Army suffered no casualties in the attack. The bodies of the LTTE cadres will be handed over to the ICRC this evening.

Disaster assistance director notes 'improvements in resettlement process'

In a recent visit here, a top official of U.S. Agency for International's (USAID) emergency assistance program noted improvements in the recent resettlement of IDPs and that the United States would be willing to provide support to newly resettled communities within the context of a safe and dignified return.

Ky Luu, director of the USAID Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA), spent two days inspecting several camps, exit points, and resettled communities with U.S. Ambassador Robert Blake and USAID Mission Director Rebecca Cohn to consult current OFDA partners and observe the resettlement process and to gauge the level of assistance OFDA could provide.

"OFDA supports a safe, secure, informed resettlement process in the East," Mr. Luu said. "I am encouraged that services for returnees have clearly improved in the past few months. We support the government's efforts to give timely access to NGOS and UN agencies assisting them in providing essential services and sharing necessary information to returnees."

Under such a scenario, OFDA will look for opportunities through its partners to assist in raising the level of assistance in partnership with the government to augment services already being provided, such as cleaning wells and stocking hospitals with essential medicines, he said.

"Colonel" Nagulan's silent burial; LTTE's sanctimony over offering final rights

Military is a profession that respects and hold rich customs and etiquette. It is these customs and etiquette and their resultant ethical behaviour that distinguish a professional military from a bunch of murderers or a terrorist outfit. Moreover for an outfit as such, military ethics may be viewed as something that can be manipulated to gain propaganda mileage. The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam or the LTTE is one such terror outfit that often deprave military ethics in the meanest manner to further its sinister motives.

Many pro LTTE websites reported one such shameful drama enacted by the LTTE terrorists at their sanctum sanctorum in Wanni. The reports said that the LTTE had cremated eleven bodies of "SL army soldiers" killed in recent clashes in Omanthai with "military honours". Further, the reports blamed SL army for not accepting the bodies once they had sent through ICRC and denying an honourable funeral to those who sacrificed their life in battle. The defence.lk learnt from senior defence officials that this was another abominable trick of the LTTE leadership to bring discredit to SL army as well as to dupe his own cadres. We were further edified on the issue as we learnt some of the highly classified information on the LTTE's behaviour towards its own cadre through intelligence sources.

Defence sources have recently revealed, how the LTTE leadership denied the final rights to one of his senior most cadres, Sinnathambi Kanapathipille Shivamoorthi alias "Colonel Nagulan". Self styled colonel Nagulan was killed along with six other LTTE cadres by the army at Eravur in Batticaloa on 23rd May 2007. Self styled Major Maniwannan Master, the LTTE's intelligence coordinator for Batticaloa; and LTTE female cadre Mala, a senior member of LTTE's Sothiya band were also killed in the same confrontation.

US based company is spreading terrorism and raising funds for LTTE - EROS

The Eelam Revolutionary Organization of Students (EROS) a Tamil group opposed to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) has accused the Al Queda linked terrorist group is using a US based web provider to vilify democratic Tamils and engage in terrorist promotional activities.

A LTTE leader is using "GO-Daddy hosting company based in Arizona, USA," said an EROS spokesman, to promote terrorism and spread unsubstantiated lies against people opposed to the Tamil terrorist group banned in the USA, European Union, Canada and India.

The Eros statement alleged two websites hosted by the US company , by the names of Neruppu.com and Nitharsanam.com are spreading canards against Tamils opposed to the LTTE living in Western countries and are being operated by a well know LTTE leader called Nadarajah Sethurupan , also known as Dirty Sethu from Norway, where the non-EU country allows the terrorist group to operate freely while getting engaged in passport scandals, credit card scandals and other alleged fund raising activities.

The statement signed by Nesan Sankar Raji for EROS said when a pro-LTTE man died of a fatal accident in England recently and after the police and coroner released the body to the family for cremation, the websites published unsubstantiated allegations of crime against well-known individuals linking their names to the death, just because they were individuals opposed to the LTTE publicly.

The statement said the alleged terrorist named Dirty Sethu of the LTTE, the man in question was present in London recently to appear in a case accused of damaging the anti-LTTE Tamil Broadcasting Corporation station in the British capital.

The EROS statement signed by Nesan Sankar Raji further said, "Nadarajah Sethurupan is able to continue with his spree using the internet loopholes by registering the websites with GO-Daddy hosting company based in Arizona, USA, by providing them with false names, addresses and telephone numbers to secure the registration. Any number of complaints about Dirty Sethu's terror media only reaches the deaf ears of Go-Daddy web provider."

Property group ditches float and blames choppy market

A £1.7bn flotation by specialist hotel group Vector was pulled last night after investors failed to support what would have been the biggest share sale in London this year.

The decision to postpone the deal was taken despite a move to cut the offer price and extend the offer period to last night. The share sale was due to raise £2.2bn but the group had been forced to scale back its ambitions in the face of concerns raised by City investors about the price of the deal and the way the company was structured.

Investors had tried to force the price down further from the revised range of 875p to 900p during a difficult day for share trading. Last night the company blamed the postponement on "market conditions" after the FTSE 100 index of blue chip shares closed 110.1 points lower at 6522.7, and the FTSE 250 of smaller shares dropped 283.8 points to 11,782.47.

The market was unnerved by a research note from analysts at investment bank Morgan Stanley which cited a number of sell signals for shares and general caution ahead of today's decision on interest rates. Although a small majority of analysts believe the Bank of England will leave the cost of borrowing unchanged, at least for this month, the decision by the European Central Bank to increase rates and an opening decline on Wall Street because of renewed inflation fears added to the generally gloomy atmosphere.

Aussie trio keen on Sri Lanka job

Three Australians are among the leading contenders to succeed Tom Moody as Sri Lanka's coach.

Trevor Bayliss, Terry Oliver and Jamie Siddons are the men in the frame following Moody's decision to return home to coach Western Australia.

New South Wales have confirmed that Bayliss will travel to Sri Lanka next week for an interview.

But Siddons, Australia's assistant coach, and Queensland coach Oliver also have strong credentials.

Moody stepped down following the recent World Cup in the Caribbean and Sri Lanka Cricket are in no hurry to find a replacement with Trevor Penney and Rumesh Ratnayeke in temporary charge for the forthcoming home series against Bangladesh.

New South Wales, however, say they will not stand in Bayliss's way if he is offered the post.

"We don't want to lose him, but we realise he is very ambitious and in the long term, he wants to coach Australia.

"Coaching another international side would be a big step towards that goal. Just look at the way it catapulted Tom Moody to the upper echelons of world cricket," NSW chief executive Dave Gilbert told the Sydney Morning Herald.

Tamil Tiger bomb derails train in eastern Sri Lanka

June 06, Colombo: Tamil Tigers have exploded an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) targeting the Colombo-bound train from Batticaloa at Punani in Eastern Sri Lanka this morning, the military said.

The explosion believed to be caused by an explosive device placed on the rail track derailed the train off the track and injured four passengers.

The Media Center for national Security (MCNS) said that, three of the injured have been taken to the Polonnaruwa hospital and the other has been taken to Valachchenai hospital.

The latest attack comes as the Japanese peace envoy, Yasushi Akashi is preparing to meet with the Sri Lankan President and other government officials in Colombo in an attempt to restore the fading peace process and halt the spiraling violence in the country.

LTTE's Australian subversion

With an estimated Tamil population of 30,000, Australia is one of the largest sources of funding for the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). In confirmation, the Sri Lankan Foreign Secretary Palitha Kohona disclosed on May 1, 2007, that the LTTE internationally raises approximately USD 10 million to USD 30 million a month, of which almost 20 to 30 per cent comes from Australia.

However, acknowledging the fact that funds were being raised in his country to finance LTTE operations on May 2, 2007, Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer stressed that the amounts raised were not huge: "Some of it comes from Australia, probably nothing like 30 per cent, but small amounts do come from Australia. I don't think there's any doubt about that. It's been very hard to collect evidence, though, about money in Australia and paid directly to the Tamil Tigers, which is, an offense.'' While many of the Tamils in Australia identify with the LTTE's cause, only some are known to be engaged in raising funds.

But Australia is emerging as a "central front of a distant war - a rich source of millions of dollars in funds and equipment for the Tamil Tiger terrorist group to help wage their separatist war in Sri Lanka," The Weekend Australian reported on May 5, 2007. Extracts of the report titled 'How tsunami cash bankrolled Tigers' stated: "Sources say LTTE had been raising modest amounts of money here since the 1980s but its operations were transformed by the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami which gave the group its first chance to milk large amounts of cash from Australians."

Australia, in pursuance of UN Security Council Resolution No. 1373 on suppressing the financing of terrorism, on December 21, 2001, proscribed 25 terrorist organizations, including the LTTE. The purpose was to bring the LTTE under an asset-freezing programme and stem the flow of funds to the group from Australia. Under this programme, it is an offence to provide or even possess any asset belonging to a listed terrorist group or individual, and this offence is punishable by up to five years imprisonment.

The LTTE, for which procuring adequate finances lies at the heart of its terrorist campaign, reportedly raises funds in Australia through a range of front organizations working among the Sri Lankan Tamil Diaspora. The rebel cover organisations have gradually secured a considerable degree of visibility in Australia, with networks of offices and cells to carry out propaganda, organise the procurement and movement of weapons and raise funds from the Diaspora.

There are at least 300 LTTE activists spread across Australia. Some of them use "intimidatory" or "emotional tactics" to attract funds from other Tamils and those "who refuse to give money are labeled traitors and subsequently isolated by the community." LTTE donors in Australia are "spread across the economic spectrum, ranging from grocery store owners to medical specialists, lawyers and media players."

LTTE urged to renounce terrorism and return to negotiating table - EP

The European Parliament while condemning terrorism by the LTTE as a cause of concern, and urged that the need for the LTTE to return to the negotiating table, in a communique‚ issued at a public hearing held at Brussels on Tuesday(05).

The Hearing was conducted in two parts, the first part dealing with the "Impact of Post-Tsunami Reconstruction in Sri Lanka and Indonesia" and the second part dealing with the "Human Rights Situation and Humanitarian Space in Sri Lanka".

The Sri Lanka Delegation was led by Ambassador Aruni Wijewardane, Sri Lanka Ambassador in Austria.

The full text of the media release is as follows.

Media Release

The Development Committee of the European Parliament conducted a Public Hearing in Brussels relating to Sri Lanka on 05th June, 2007.

The Hearing was conducted in two parts, the first part dealing with the "Impact of Post-Tsunami Reconstruction in Sri Lanka and Indonesia" and the second part dealing with the "Human Rights Situation and Humanitarian Space in Sri Lanka". A large number of NGOs, Media representatives and Members of the European Parliament (MEP) attended the Public Session.

The Sri Lanka Delegation was led by Ambassador Aruni Wijewardane, Sri Lanka Ambassador in Austria and assisted by Mr. Shavindra Fernando, Deputy Solicitor General, Dr. Jayantha Samarasinghe of Reconstruction and Development Agency (RADA), Mr. Gamini Hettiarachchi as well as the Sri Lanka Embassy in Brussels.

In the Session relating to Post-Tsunami reconstruction, Dr. Jayantha Samarasinghe outlined the progress made by the Government in the several stages of Post Tsunami relief, recovery and reconstruction. He also outlined the areas where further international assistance is required such as housing and livelihood restoration. Mr. Gamini Hettiarachchi, Deputy Director General of Reconstruction and Development Agency (RADA) gave a description of the Post -Tsunami Disaster Management framework in Sri Lanka, including the Disaster Management Act, the National Disaster Management Council and the setting up of the Disaster Management Centre.

In concluding this Session MEP Niranjan Deva Aditya expressed satisfaction over the progress Sri Lanka has made in reconstruction of affected sectors.

Investors pay €100m for top site in London

SAVVY Irish investors continue to snap up investment opportunities in the booming London property market.

The latest involves a €100m deal to buy a property on London's Victoria Street.

Oregan Financial, a syndicate of Irish-based property investors put together by broker Joe O'Regan, and advised by CB Richard Ellis, has agreed to buy Nos 10-18 Victoria Street, London.

The property is fully let to the UK Department of Trade and Industry for a further 19 years without breaks. The deal was agreed at £70m (€100m) purchase price and represents a net initial yield of 4.2pc.

The building has recently undergone substantial refurbishment by the tenant, and is located in a prime office location in Victoria in London's West End.

The nine-storey property is near Westminster and comprises an office building of 7,348 sq m (79,100 sq ft) with 13 car parking spaces.

Victoria is an important commercial centre within Central London property, accounting for about a quarter of the total office stock of the West End.

The area has excellent transport links and is close to Victoria Station.

The offices are let on a rent equating to £41 per sq ft. Prime Grade A top rents in the West End are currently over £100 per sq ft, with prime rents in Victoria at about £65 per sq ft.

Andrew Gunne of international property consultants CB Richard Ellis said Central London is the most landlord friendly and liquid property market in Europe, with vacancy rates of under 3pc.

"The low level of availability, together with a relatively small development pipeline coming through in the short-term, means rents are being driven significantly higher," he said.

Global support to combat LTTE terror

SINGAPORE: Countries attending the Asian Security Summit here have assured increased assistance to Sri Lanka for combating LTTE terrorism, including intelligence sharing.

The Forum attended by defence ministers and military commanders, appreciated the challenge faced by Sri Lanka in countering LTTE terrorism and agreed that they would further strengthen cooperation between their Governments and the Sri Lanka Government, the Foreign Ministry said.

In a meeting with US Defence Secretary Robert Gates, Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama briefed him on the current level of security threat posed by the LTTE and the manner in which the Sri Lankan Government proposed to meet this threat. Besides enhancing maritime counter measures, Sri Lanka was also seeking to more effectively counter the recent threat posed due to LTTE air capability, he elaborated.

Following meetings with Indian Defence Minister A. K. Anthony and British Minister for Armed Forces Adam Ingram on Saturday morning, Minister Rohitha Bogollagama and the Sri Lanka delegation held a series of bilateral meetings over the weekend on the sidelines of the Security Summit.

Associated with the Minister were Foreign Secretary Dr. Palitha Kohona, Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa and Chief of Staff Air Chief Marshall Donald Perera.

In separate meetings with the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence of Cambodia Gen. Tea Banh, Indonesian Defence Minister Prof. Gen. Juwono Sudarsano, Secretary of Defence of Thailand Gen. Winai Pattiyakul, Deputy Chief of General Staff of the Vietnam People's Army Lt. Gen. Nguyen Duc Soat, and Myanmar's Maung Myint, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, the illicit use of the territories of these countries by the LTTE, particularly for purposes of arms smuggling and money laundering, was discussed in detail.

These leaders assured the Foreign Minister that they would be more vigilant and not permit their territories to be used in any manner by the LTTE. In separate meetings with Deputy Chief of General Staff of the People's Liberation Army of China Lt. Gen. Zhen Quinsheng, and Chief of Staff of Pakistan Gen. Ul Haq, Bogollagama briefed them on current security developments in Sri Lanka.

They agreed to enhance cooperation and to share intelligence with a view to defeating terrorism.

In separate meetings with the Head of the Delegation of France, Secretary of the Ministry of Defence Francis Delon, and the Permanent Secretary, British Foreign and Commonwealth Office Sir Peter Ricketts, Foreign Secretary Dr. Kohona discussed Sri Lanka's concerns regarding LTTE fund raising, human smuggling and propaganda operations in those countries, as well as in the broader European context.

The Foreign Secretary appreciated the action taken in France and the UK in recent months to effectively counter LTTE fund raising that takes place through intimidation and extortion. He also explained the political proposals being developed to end the present conflict through the All Party Representative Committee (APRC) process.

Dr. Kohona also met Foreign Secretary of Singapore Peter Ho for a follow up discussion, pursuant to earlier meetings with Foreign Minister and Foreign Secretary had with the Singaporean Foreign Minister George Yeo and Defence Minister Teo Chee Hean.

They emphasised the need for particularly greater cooperation between the intelligence services of both countries.

Bogollagama and the delegation also held separate meetings with the former US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage and former Minister of State in the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office and presently Member of Parliament shadow defence secretary Liam Fox.

The Minister appreciated the initiatives taken by Armitage and Fox in seeking to help end the conflict in Sri Lanka.

The delegation briefed them both on current developments in combating LTTE terrorism and in seeking to evolve a lasting political settlement to the present conflict.

Air Force warplanes target LTTE leaders' gathering- Mankulam

SL air force fighter jets this morning (05th) bombed a gathering of LTTE leaders In Mankulam area, defence sources said. The air raid launched at 9.20a.m has targeted an LTTE military location in the Mankulam area. The attack has been carried out on extensive surveillance and real time ground information, the sources further added.

Fierce battle between the security forces and the LTTE terrorists erupted in Mullikulam, Kalmadu and Vilathikulam areas in Vavuniya as the LTTE terrorists had launched a major offensive at the security forces FDL in the West of Omanthai on Saturday (2nd) Night. The security forces, after crushing the terror offensive successfully, are now being engaged hunting down the disbanded terror groups in the area, military sources said.

Meanwhile, civilian sources from Kilinochchi have revealed that LTTE terrorists are forcibly collecting blood from the civilians for their casualties. Military sources said that at least 52 terrorists were killed and a large number of others suffered injuries in the attack. According to Media Centre for National Security (MCNS) 13 army soldiers were killed and 20 others were injured during the battle.

Air Force Fighter Jets destroy LTTE mortar positions - Vavuniya

Air force fighter jets pounded on LTTE mortar positions and gathering places in Vavuniya this morning, Monday the 04th of June.

According to the defence sources the air strike was launched at 9.15 a.m and two LTTE mortar positions located in Palampiddi were completely destroyed due to the bombardment.

LTTE mortar attack hits FDL - Welioya

The LTTE terrorists launched a mortar attack targeting the security forces personnel on duty at the Forward Defence line (FDL) at Kokkuthuduwai in Welioya last evening, Monday the 04th of June.

Defence sources said that LTTE terrorists attacked with 120mm mortar rounds at 6.45 p.m and security forces retaliated with mortar and artillery effectively causing damages to the LTTE terrorists.

It is further reported that no casualties reported for the security forces.

Sri Lanka President calls for a special Cabinet meeting on Monday

Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa has called a special Cabinet meeting to discuss several burning issues in the country tomorrow (04) at the Temple Trees, sources said.

Highly placed government sources confirmed that the meeting, which is scheduled to be held at 6 pm on Monday is to discuss, the current security situation in the country as well as the Cost of Living issues.

Meanwhile, a special meeting between government parliamentarians also would be held before the Cabinet meeting on Monday presided over by President Rajapaksa.

India to help Sri Lanka in strengthening regional security

India assured to help Sri Lanka, as a strategic measure with the growing concerns of LTTE air capability as a regional security threat. The alarm was set when the SL Foreign Minister, Rohitha Bogolagama emphasized on the terrorist issue specially the LTTE fund raising activities, illicit immigration and arms smuggling, addressing the 6th Annual Asian Security Summit - the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore.

The "rise of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) air power in Sri Lanka is of concern to India also" emphasised the, Indian Defence Minister A.K. Antony in Singapore on Sunday (03) that India "will give Sri Lanka reasonable support for that."

Commenting on his talks with Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama on Saturday(02), Mr. Antony said he had conveyed India's willingness to extend "whatever possible help." He said the message to Sri Lanka was that "we are with you" on the issues of sovereignty, territorial integrity, and unity of the island-state.

At the same time, India expressed its preference for a "political solution" in Sri Lanka.

Earlier, the Indian Defence Minister AK Anthony on 02nd June, assured Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama, that the Indian Government was agreeable to conduct coordinated patrols of the maritime boundary between India and Sri Lanka in the Palk Straits.

Foreign Minister urges for tighten regional security to curb terrorism

Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama on Sunday (3 June 2007) appealed to Defense Ministers and Military Commanders attending the Annual IISS Asian Security Summit - The Shangri-La Dialogue, to ensure that their governments remain focused on the complexities the Government of Sri Lanka faces in grappling with terrorism of the LTTE and not to permit the LTTE to use their territories or waters to continue to terrorize the people of Sri Lanka.

Minister Bogollagama made these observation when he addressed the 4th plenary session of the Shangri-La Dialogue, on the theme "Securing Regional Waters: How Much Progress?".

Leading the Sri Lanka delegation which was participating for the first time in this influential defense forum which is being held for the 6th time, the Minister underscored the threat posed to Sri Lanka, countries in the region and maritime users of the Indian Ocean by the attacks of the LTTE. Referring to the arms smuggling activities of the LTTE carried out using a number of LTTE ships flying under different flags, the Minister asked, ``How are they able to bring these to Sri Lanka ? They pass through several ports. There are loading ports, discharging ports and transiting ports. They sometimes come in containers." He said "This chain has to be arrested, and towards this end Sri Lanka needed international and bilateral cooperation from other countries which could destroy the worldwide activities of the LTTE''. The Minister said the LTTE's supply chain and funding must be severed to end the conflict in Sri Lanka.

'LTTE as an International Threat'

In the recent past, there have been many instances in which cadres of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) or their front organizations have been arrested or sentenced to prison for a variety of subversive activity across the world. Some of the major incidents involving the LTTE outside Sri Lanka include:

2007

May 17:

Maldives coast guard opened fire on and sank a small vessel carrying suspected LTTE cadres after a 12-hour standoff at sea in southern territorial waters of Maldives. According to reports, four of the nine-member crew were killed, four others were arrested and one surrendered. Reports said that the vessel, which started off as a deep sea fishing trawler, was hijacked by the LTTE to do some gun-running for it. The boat was carrying guns and mortar bombs.

In a Quebec Court testimony that concluded on May 17, Kathiravelupillai Sithamparanathan, President of the World Tamil Movement's Montreal office, an organization that is suspected of funding the LTTE, has testified that he considers the LTTE as freedom fighters and he supports their activities that would benefit the people. But he denied that his organization has sent money to the outfit. He, however, acknowledged attending a 2004 workshop in Sri Lanka organized by the outfit. Asked about his view of LTTE chief Prabhakaran, he called him a freedom fighter who is organizing a struggle to win the rights of the people in Sri Lanka. Asked whether the World Tamil Movement supports the LTTE, he replied: "Actions that would benefit people, the right actions, yes."

May 16: A London Court was told that Senthuraj Thavapalasingham alias "Psycho" of Romford is the enforcer leading a gang of LTTE extortionists called "East Side Boys". Newham Council and Metropolitan Police told Stratford Magistrates Court that this gang has been working in Newham for two years. Chief Inspector Derrick Griffiths said, "To my knowledge there are around five Tamil gangs operating in London. This is a gang of about 30 young men aged between 15 and 32 who are paid by an organization called the LTTE. They were paid to extort money from local businessmen and residents. Their victims were paying anywhere between Pounds 5,000 and 25,000 a year. In one case a businessman was paying 25,000 a year for four years."

May 10: Thirunavukarasu Varatharasa, a Sri Lankan citizen, pleaded guilty in a US court to conspiracy to provide material support to the LTTE and attempted export of arms and ammunition. According to the plea agreement, from April to September 29, 2006, Varatharasa conspired with Haji Subandi, Haniffa Osman and Erick Wotulo to export state-of-the-art firearms, machine guns and ammunition, surface to air missiles, night vision goggles and other military weapons to the LTTE.

'Australia to list LTTE as a terrorist organization'

Australia is preparing to list the LTTE as a terrorist organization. Such a move would put the country in line with other Western countries including the USA, Britain Canada and the European Union countries that have banned the group, The Australian reported, in a news portal published on 01st June, 2007.

According to 'The Australian' news portal, "the Tamil Tigers are soon to be listed as a terrorist organisation in Australia".

Although the federal Government says it has made no formal decision to proscribe the Sri Lankan separatist group, also known as the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, preparations for the move are believed to be under way in Canberra.

The move would rank it alongside 19 other proscribed groups, including al-Qa'ida, Jemmah Islamiah and Lashkar-e-Toiba. It would bring Australia into line with other Western countries that have banned the LTTE, including the US, Britain, Canada and the 27 countries of the European Union.

However, any decision to proscribe the LTTE in Australia will spark an angry backlash from many of the country's 30,000 Tamils.

Although not all Australian Tamils support the violent campaign waged by the LTTE in Sri Lanka, there is widespread support for its aims of an independent homeland for Tamils in Sri Lanka.

Australian overseas aid groups also fear that any move to proscribe it could cause them to pull out of Sri Lanka for fear of breaching the law in areas controlled by the Tigers.

"We would strongly urge the Government not to go down that path (of proscribing LTTE) because it would inevitably be used as a propaganda tool by the Sri Lankan Government," said Australian Council for International Development executive director Paul O'Callaghan.

Foreign Minister Alexander Downer has expressed alarm at the recent escalation of fighting between the Sri Lankan armed forces and the LTTE in a conflict which has killed more than 70,000 since the early 1980s.

The Australian Federal Police has recently stepped up its investigations into illicit fundraising by LTTE supporters in Australia.

Earlier this month, two Australians of Sri Lankan Tamil origin were charged in a Melbourne court with diverting tsunami relief funds to a terrorist organisation. There is widespread speculation in the Tamil community that other arrests will follow.

Sri Lanka has warned Australia that Tamil Tiger activists are using fraudulent credit-cards overseas to raise funds. In a written warning to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the Sri Lankan High Commission in Canberra said Australians could be ripped off by consumer scams perpetrated by the LTTE.

In a recent submission to a parliamentary inquiry into terror laws, the Australian-Tamil Rights Advocacy Council argued strongly against listing the LTTE as a terrorist group.

"The objective of advancing Tamils' right to self-determination is shared by a large number of Australians," the submission says.

"(If LTTE is listed) virtually any support in relation to these objectives leaves Australians open to prosecution. Thus the proscription of the LTTE will have a potentially devastating and disproportionately negative impact on Australians of Tamil origin."

Courtesy: - The Australian

'Tough position to be taken against terrorism and the LTTE'-U.S Ambassador

The Ambassador for the United States of America Robert O.Blake speaks to C.A.Chandraprema about the LTTE, the nature of the Sri Lankan conflict, the confidence shown by expatriate Tamils in Sri Lanka's long term prospects and the possibility of a political settlement in Sri Lanka.

The full text of the interview published in 'The Island' a popular Sri Lankan news portal is as follows.

Q. How would you read the situation in Sri Lanka at the present moment?

A. We are concerned about the situation, but we also think there is hope. We are concerned because the ceasefire has broken down and there has been a lot of fighting in the past year and there have been severe humanitarian consequences and human rights problems for the people of Sri Lanka. But we also think there is hope for the people of Sri Lanka because there is a process already under way in the All party Representatives Committee, that can lead to a political solution to the conflict.

Q. How would you characterize the Sri Lankan problem - is it case of a popularly elected government fighting terrorism?

A. Certainly that is a part of it, but part of the problem is that terrorism exists because of the failure of successive governments to address the grievances that have given rise to terrorism in the first place. That is why we advocate a political solution to the problem and not a military solution.

Over thousand displaced due to LTTE mortar attacks - Welioya

A total of 1,118 individuals belonging to 310 families of the Athawetunaweva village in the Welioya, are now settled in a school in the adjacent Parakramapura town, being displaced following the LTTE mortar attacks on 31st May,2007.

The civilians fled the border village which was populated by ethnic Sinhalese in fear for life as the terrorists continued firing mortars indiscriminately. A SL Army soldier was killed and five others including two civilian suffered injuries.

The President has ordered urgent relief to the villagers, with additional food provisions and medicine for the displaced. According to divisional authorities majority of the displaced are women and children.

Foreign Ministry clarifies arrests of Miss Parmeshwari and Mr. Basnayke

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in two press releases today (31) clarified the circumstances surrounding the arrest of two employees of Standard Newspapers Limited; Miss Munisamy Parameshwari and Mr Dushyantha Basnayake.

The Ministry said the clarifications have to be made as the two arrests were largely misinterpreted in both international and local forums as government's attempts to curtail media freedom.

Explaining the circumstances surrounding the arrest of Miss Parameshwari, who was a journalist attached to former local newspaper "Mavubima" the Ministry said that the arrest was made Based on intelligence received by the Special Task Force of the Sri Lanka Police.

"Miss Parameshwari was arrested on 23rd November 2006, in respect of her alleged involvement in abetting a LTTE female suicide cadre named Thambirasa Susanthi, by providing her with accommodation in Colombo. Her arrest and subsequent detention was in accordance with provisions of the Emergency Regulations", the press release said.

Commenting on Miss Parameshwari's acquittal, the press release elucidated:

"Following the completion of the investigation, the Attorney General reviewed the available material for the purpose of instituting criminal proceedings. Though there existed a volume of incriminatory material against Parameshwari, the availability of material admissible against the suspect in a court of law, was insufficient and hence the Attorney General advised the police to discharge the suspect. Accordingly, the suspect was discharged by the Magistrate on 22nd March 2007"

Two security forces personnel killed in LTTE attack - Vavuniya

Two security forces personnel, an army personal and a home guard, were attacked by the LTTE terrorists in the Vavuniya area this morning, Friday the 01st of June.

According to the defence sources the incident took place between Ataweragolla and Asikulam at 8:45 a.m. whilst they were on their way to an official matter on a motorbike.

The two victims who suffered severe injuries succumbed to their injuries while they were being rushed to the hospital, sources further said.

Oil prices recover slightly after slide

World oil prices rebounded slightly on Wednesday as supply concerns quickly resurfaced, dealers said, and after heavy falls on Tuesday, when light sweet crude lost more than two dollars in New York.

Brent North Sea crude for July delivery rose 28 cents to 68.41 dollars a barrel in electronic trading. It had shed 1.58 dollars on Tuesday.

New York's main oil futures contract, light sweet crude for delivery in July, climbed 54 cents to 63.69 dollars a barrel in electronic deals before the official open of the US market. On Tuesday the contract dived 2.05 dollars.

“Crude futures were higher (Wednesday) ... recovering from losses in the previous session and following another cut in crude supplies from Nigeria,”Sucden analyst Michael Davies said.

Energy giant Royal Dutch Shell reportedly announced on Wednesday that it had had to cut output by 150,000 barrels a day at its Bonny Light terminal in Nigeria after villagers sabotaged pipelines.

Crude oil prices had fallen Tuesday as supply concerns in Nigeria, the world's sixth biggest producer of crude, had temporarily eased following news that unions in the country had suspended a two-day strike.

“However, despite this bearish news the market remains well supported by the threat of further militant attacks on oil facilities in the region, which have already shut in around 25 percent of the country's oil output,” Davies added.

National Anti Corruption Plan by ACP in the offing

The ACP’s Consultative Council with the involvement of a broad range of professional associations, civil society groups, and government bodies has engaged itself in reviewing a number of areas and has also been instrumental in drafting a National Anti Corruption Plan that has had inputs from the participatory process.

This draft plan will be presented to a large Stakeholder Forum at the National Anti-Corruption Action Plan Conference in June 2007 marking the culmination of aforesaid participatory process.

The Action Plan focuses on measures to reduce corruption within various sectors such as government, civil society, media, private sector, donors and others, and includes setting up of measurement criteria to monitor and evaluate progress.

Following the National Conference, the National Action Plan will be finalized, translated and presented to all stakeholders including the Government in July. At the same time a National Anti-corruption Public Exposition will be held to create broad public awareness under the dual theme 'Stop Corruption' and 'Let's Break the Chain of Corruption'.

As part of education and awareness activities the ACP has commissioned a book by noted Sri Lankan children's book author and Illustrator Sybil Wettasinghe on the theme of anti-corruption for children between the ages of 11 and 15, as a long-term strategy aimed at inculcating good values among the next generation of Sri Lankans. A series of competitions in drama, essay, paintings and slogan for the school children have been also held and the winners will be announced and awarded at the Public Exposition scheduled for July.

SLFP to take Mangala, Sripathy to task

The SLFP Central Committee decided on Wednesday to go ahead with disciplinary inquiries against ousted Ministers Mangala Samaraweera and Sripathy Sooriyarachchi.

The Committee met in the presence of President Mahinda Rajapaksa and discussed disciplinary inquiries against the two Ministers regarding statements they had made before being removed from their posts.

Party General Secretary Maithripala Sirisena said they would charge sheet Mr. Samaraweera upon his return from the United Kingdom.

Mr. Sirisena however said Mr. Samaraweera would be given two weeks to consider rejoining the government.

Among other matters, the SLFP which is the largest party in the governing coalition, decided to hold its party convention this month.