Mar 24 (DM) The controversy surrounding the withdrawal of the Special Task Force (STF) from the East took a new turn yesterday, with the JVP, too, voicing its suspicions regarding the move and questioning whether it was aimed at rigging the upcoming Provincial Council elections. Issuing a statement, the JVP politburo said that they had grave suspicions about this decision to withdraw the STF, who were in charge of security, especially in the Ampara district. more..

Mar 24 (AN) The Kingdom has agreed to train Sri Lankans in the field of exploration and refining oil in the island. This was the outcome of yesterday�s talks between Ali Al-Naimi, minister of petroleum and mineral resources and Abdul Hameed Mohamed Fowzie, minister of petroleum and petroleum resources development at a meeting held at the ministry headquarters yesterday. more..

Mar 24 (AP) Government troops and Tamil rebels fought scattered battles across northern Sri Lanka in fresh fighting that killed 23 rebel fighters and three soldiers, the military said Monday. Fighting between the two sides has escalated since the government pulled out of a long-ignored cease-fire with the rebels in January. The government promised swift victory over the Tamil Tigers, but many observers say the rebels are putting up far more resistance than the government expected. more..

Mar 24 (IANS) Nationalists among Sri Lanka's majority Sinhalese community see India as a critical element in their country's affairs. But they are divided on the desirability of allowing India to influence the island's political and economic life. Among the leading Sinhalese nationalist organisations, the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) is the biggest, with 38 MPs. It is deeply suspicious of India's intentions vis-a-vis Sri Lanka and makes no bones about it. more..

Mar 25 (CI) Sri Lanka have asked Pakistan to schedule their bilateral one-day series, which was proposed to fill the gap caused by Australia's pull-out, so that the dates do not clash with those of the Indian Premier League (IPL). Arjuna Ranatunga, the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) chairman, had agreed in principle to a one-day series in Pakistan after Australia postponed their tour due to security concerns but the reported dates were between April 23 and May 5, which coincide with the IPL, more..

Mar 25 (FNA) Iran's ambassador to Colombo and Sri Lanka's minister of port and aviation discussed expansion of relations and mutual cooperation in a meeting in the Sri Lankan capital. During the meeting, the two sides reviewed activities of the Uma Oya developmental program, and the Iranian diplomat offered Tehran's assistance with Colombo in providing the Sri Lankan employees with higher educational opportunities. more..

Mar 25 (FI) Human rights is the last resort of the hopeless. Its liberal advocates don�t see it that way. They find it heroic, the foundation of a new international order that will, when established universally, guarantee secure lives for everyone, everywhere �rom Tibet to Timbuktu. But would the subaltern, the oppressed �the target of human rights� �necessarily agree? Take the following story. more..

Mar 25 (GV) There is much hype by the government spokesmen about how they held an election in the East for local authorities and restored democracy. Now the government is holding a Provincial Council election. They argue that however imperfect the democracy it is a step in the right direction. But how valid is this viewpoint. The basic premise of democracy is that the people decide who will be their rulers. But this choice must be freely exercised. more..

Mar 25 (LBO) Sri Lanka is planning to promote the commercial growth of corals and seaweed for export in a bid to make better use of marine resources, a senior government official said. Existing laws ban the harvesting and export of live coral and seaweed from the wild in the seas around the island to protect the marine environment. The government wants to promote coral and seaweed culture for export as it believes the products have a good export market. more..

Mar 25 (F2F) The Information and Communication Technology Agency of Sri Lanka [ICTA] in collaboration with the Sri Lanka Handicrafts Board, started the Laksala Automation Project to provide an ICT solution to the Laksala Head Office as well as to computerize three of their retail outlets; York Street, Thummulla and Kandy. iOM Lanka (Pvt) Ltd used their Retailigence software solution to enable Laksala�s supplier management more..

Mar 25 (Reuters) Relatives of 17 aid workers massacred in Sri Lanka said on Monday they did not expect justice as a heated human rights inquiry began into their execution-style murders more than a year ago. Ravi Shantha, the aunt of one of the Action Contre la Faim (ACF) aid workers killed in August 2006 in the northeastern town of Muttur, told a panel of judges appointed to investigate rights abuses in Sri Lanka that too much time had passed. more..

Mar 25 (BBC) The South African Government says it is encouraging warring parties in Sri Lanka to get back to negotiation table. Deputy Minister of Communications Radakrishna (Roy) Padayachie told BBC Sandeshaya that the South African government has consistently sought to encourage and lend support to the creation of a climate conducive to a finding a lasting solution to the Sri Lankan conflict. more..

Mar 25 (AT) Democratic inclusiveness is the foundation for Government�s efforts to bring the country back to normal. Inclusiveness, in that sense of the word, signifies the spirit of pragmatism and consensus building of President Rajapaksa�s style of governance. It was earlier thought a conflict that dragged on for over a quarter of a century could not be solved overnight. more..

Mar 25 (AT) Organic production has considerable potential in our agriculture sector in Sri Lanka. However, the term organic has been widely misused in Sri Lanka without having very clear understanding about it. Ecological farming systems, applying compost on crops, natural home garden practices, neglecting lands without applying natural and artificial inputs can not be defined or termed as organic. more..

Mar 25 (CP) HEAD OF THE International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC), the organization which is largely responsible for humanitarian and relief measures in war-torn Wanni, northern areas and elsewhere met Commander of the Army Lieutenant General Sarath Fonseka Monday (24) morning at the Army Headquarters. Mr. Toon Vandenhove, Head of the ICRC Delegation during his meeting with the Army Chief focused on several issues that are related to the ICRC operations in un-cleared areas in Wanni. more..

Mar 25 (SLW) Despite continuous rain, the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) and the LTTE have been engaged in firefights in the Mannar front for the last few days. Heaviest fighting was reported in the area between Parayakulam and Illanthevan where the troops gained control of around 1 square km area last Saturday (24th). Pro LTTE media put SLA casualty figures at 55 killed and 120 injured. Our sources flatly deny these claims. more..

Mar 25 (Hindu) Sri Lanka�s military on Monday claimed that at least 18 cadres of the LTTE killed and several others were injured in fighting in the north. According to statistics released by the Defence Ministry, over 2,500 LTTE cadres have been killed by the military since January 1. More than 7,200 Tigers have been killed since December 2005. President Mahinda Rajapaksa took office in November 2005. more..

Mar 25 (TP) The artistic work of seven Sri Lankan artists was put on display at Ejaz Art gallery on Monday that attracted a large number of art lovers, who were impressed by the ideas and techniques shown in the pieces of art. The seven artists hailed from Colombo, Sri-Lanka. They include Kingsley Gunatillake, Chaminda Gamage, T P G.Amarajeewa, K.D.Lakshman, Susil Gunasiri, Anuradha Henakaarachchi and Upal Chamila and only three could come to Pakistan but more..

Mar 25 (UNI) Former Sri Lanka captain Marvan Atapattu and retired Kiwi all-rounder Chris Harris today said sledging will remain an integral part of international cricket despite the best efforts of the ICC and the BCCI. "Even when we played India or Pakistan, this kind of chit-chat happened," Atapattu told newspersons here. "We would target an individual and say something to him to see if that affects him. But once we came out of the ground, everything stayed behind." more..

Mar 25 (CI) Sri Lanka's two leading bowlers weren't at their menacing best but backed up by a large total, they combined efficiently to leave West Indies 269 for 9 and needing eight runs to avoid the follow-on. Their backs against the wall, West Indies struggled on a batsman-friendly surface with an energetic 80 from Ramnaresh Sarwan the mainstay of their reply, surrounded by a series of decent starts that were wasted. more..

Mar 25 (VSL) The remittances of the unskilled Sri Lankan housemaids who form 70% of those who have gone overseas on term employment is the backbone of Sri Lanka�s economy. Those who currently advocate a ban are wrong in the way they are attempting to prevent the free movement of people, in short denying a person�s fundamental right to leave the country if he of she so wishes. They should in fact try to make more attractive for them to stay. more..

Mar 25 (VSL) There comes a time in a person�s life when one can be very clear about one�s opinions and how one can live according to those opinions formed from one�s life experiences. Many people don�t have time to form those opinions and therefore feel they have yet to find the true meaning of life, and never finding it even at their deathbed. Life is very simple but we have complicated it unnecessarily and therefore have to suffer the consequences of this complication. more..

Mar 25 (LT) Provincial Council Members of the JVP have filed a case in the Supreme Court requesting cancellation of several new posts that have been created in the Western Provincial Council. According to the 17th amendment only a limited number of posts could exist in a provincial Council. However, new posts of leader of the opposition, chief opposition whip, government whip, leader of the house have been created in the council. more..

Mar 25 (LBO) Greater use of information technology in Sri Lanka's largely subsistence agriculture sector will help both farmers and consumers alike by reducing costs, a researcher has said. Harsha De Silva, lead economist at LIRNEasia, a think tank, said a system using IT that addresses the information needs from the decision making phase through the growth and sale of agricultural products will help balance the welfare of both consumers and farmers. more..

Mar 25 (LBO) Sri Lanka is wrapping up plans to merge six state-run regional development banks and a draft bill to give legal effect to the merger would be ready by June this year, a finance ministry official said. Ruhunu, Rajarata, Sabaragamuwa, Kandurata, Uva and Wayamba development banks now run as autonomous banks with their own boards of directors, with operating on specified provinces. more..

Mar 25 (KT) A FREEDOM fighter, he was known as Tibet Jathika S Mahinda, though his original name was Tasilmgal. He came to Sri Lanka from the Sikkim-Tibet region in 1912 as a 14-year-old destitute. He preferred to identify with Tibet instead of Sikkim because Tibet was better known among Sri Lankans. Ordained as a Buddhist monk of the Theravada tradition after his arrival in Sri Lanka, he mastered the local language and woke the sleeping Sinhala masses up by more..

Mar 25 (LG) S C Chandrahasan is the son of Samuvel Selvnayagam, a Tamil leader who was known as the Mahatma Gandhi of Sri Lanka. After the island-nation's ethnic conflict began in 1983, Chandrahasan founded the Organisation For Eelam Refugees' Rehabilitation. Offer works in Sri Lanka and India, and has offices in all the 104 refugee camps in Tamil Nadu. It also works in the north and east of Sri Lanka, two regions badly affected in the conflict. more..

Mar 25 (LG) Negombo's intriguing connectionsIn an article on The Evolution of Place names by A. G. Abeysiriwardhane (The Island, 15th Mar.) the question was asked "to what amba do we attribute the name Negombo?" My immediate answer is Meeamba if one is looking for a derivation from mangoes. There are plenty of meeamba trees in and around Negombo. However, I have got three other sources as serious contenders for the derivation of the name Negombo. more..

Mar 25 (LG) The recent appointment of R.M. Imam as a MP to parliament by the TNA was hailed as a great honour to the Muslims of Jaffna when they had not cast a single vote to the TNA. This sentiment was shared not only by Imam himself but also by Prof. Balasundarampillai, the former Vice Chancellor of Jaffna University. To add to all this, the General Secretary of the SLMC also welcomed it as an �act of reconciliation by the LTTE, who evicted the Muslims from Jaffna in 1990�. more..

Mar 25 (LT) The govt�s need to hold the election for the Eastern Provincial Council is not to give democratic rights for the masses in the province but is a result of capitulating to foreign powers including India states the JVP. The decision to activate the 13th amendment and thereby establish provincial councils in the East and the North have been taken according to a proposal of the so-called APRC as a solution for the national question but more..

Mar 25 (LeN) Election Commissioner Dayananda Disananayaka has informed the Police Commission to cancel the transfers of the police officials of the Eastern Province. He has asked to cancel the transfers of three police officials who are to be stationed away from Trincomalee district. Transferring public officials while an election is pending is violating the 17th amendment to the constitution. more..

Mar 25 (LeN) Reliable sources says to Lanka-e-News that a special intelligence team is gathering information of the media persons who are reporting security affairs. The team is doing so in the guise of gathering information of the LTTE suspects. When the defense sectors were investigating the telephone contacts of one Ramesh, a LTTE cadre who revealed information of a coup to assassinate the President, they had found out that several defense reporters had been among his links. more..

Mar 25 (CP) Travelling by train usually brings a sense of nostalgia. Even the shortest of journeys used to have very pleasant memories. Sitting by a window and feeling the wind blowing through the hair used to be a ride looked forward to by even the children. But alas, no more. Besides being overcrowded, the trains of today are plagued with all sorts of beggars, circus performers and con artists. more..

Mar 25 (LD) The United National Party will launch a national campaign titled �Janabala Sena� on April 03rd to hand the party a landslide victory similar to the one the party had gained under the late J.R. Jayawardene in 1977, its leader Ranil Wickremesinghe said. The UNP officially launched the programme at a function at party headquarters �Sirikotha� in Pitakotte today (Mar. 25th). more..

Mar 25 (LD) The UPFA has decided against nominating anyone from the party as candidate for chief minister at the forthcoming elections for the Eastern Provincial Council. According to party sources, the UPFA will name the candidate who polls the highest number of preferential votes, to this post. Nimal Siripala de Silva, who is Chairman of the party�s Nomination Board, has intimated this decision to their politsical allies, more..

Mar 25 (LD) Three top police officers in Trincomalee have appealed to the National Police Commission against the transfers they have been given, which they claim is unconstitutional. Their appeal seeks a suspension of their new postings that have been carried out without the consent of the NPC, and amount to a breach of the 17th Amendment to the Constitution. The three officers are ASP (Elections) in Trincomalee N.A. Jayashantha, Trincomalee HQI M.M.C. Bandara and OIC of Kinniya Police Chaminda Lakmal. more..

Mar 25 (GDI) Four individuals alleged to be LTTE operatives were arrested while they were fleeing in two motor bikes along with an abducted civilian at Pomppaimadu area, Vavunia on Monday (24). On information received regarding a group fleeing with an abducted civilian the Vavuniya Police took immediate measures to net the group. One person has swallowed a cyanide capsule while being arrested and was admitted to the general hospital at Anuradhapura. more..

Mar 25 (GDI) The Election Commissioner's Department is all set for Provincial Council polls in the Eastern province and all steps have been taken to assure a fair and free election, Defence Spokesman, Minister Keheliya Rabbukwella said today (25). The Minister, addressing a media conference, said that nominations have been called for the election beginning Thursday 26th of March. The deadline for the handing over of nominations is 03rd April, he added. more..

Mar 25 (GDI) President Mahinda Rajapaksa addressing the launch of the National Solid Waste Management programme 'Pilisaru' said that development should not happen at the expense of nature. The Rs. 600 m project envisages making Sri Lanka a country free of solid waste by 2012. The President while calling on everyone to contribute towards achieving optimum levels in waste management, more..

Mar 25 (GDI) Ambassidor of Iran to Sri Lanka has pledged its continuous assistance to development activities in Sri Lanka whilst expanding the relations and mutual cooperation between the two nations at a discussion held with Minister of Ports and Avation, Chamal Rajapaksa in Colombo recently. Discussions between the two parties were focused on ongoing activities of the Uma Oya development programme and more..

Mar 25 (GDI) President Mahinda Rajapaksa opened the flyover at Thorana Junction, Peliyagoda today at 7.00 am. The iron flyover was completed in record time, all the work being done within 60 days. The record was earlier held by the Philippines. The Philippines Government completed assembling the prefabricated Malos flyover in Manila in 66 days. more..

Mar 25 (GDI) The funeral of the late Ms. Wickramasinge, mother of First Lady,Shiranthi Rajapaksa, will take place on Wednesday (26) at the General Cemetary, Borella.Ms. Violet Wickramasinghe passed away at the age of 78 at a private hospital on Monday (23). President Mahinda Rajapaksa paid his last respect to late Mrs. N.Violet Wickremesinghe at her Mt. Lavinia residence yesterday (24th). more..

Mar 25 (GDI) "Sri Lanka is in the forefront of controlling not only TB but also AIDS. Five out of 22 countries in the world where TB has heavily spread are in South East Asia and one of them is India," said the Minister of Health, Nimal Siripala de Silva. The Minister, delivering the keynote address at the 'National Festival to mark World TB Day 2008' added that the Ministry of Healthcare and Nutrition has been able to take the message of the danger of TB and more..

Mar 25 (AT) SLMC will do it alone and will not coalesce with any other party, the Government or the Opposition. It will contest the East Provincial Council Elections without having any truck with the ruling party. They announced that they will not contest the election under betel leaf symbol of the UPFA. The resulting division of the Muslim vote would mean a lost opportunity to have a Muslim as the Chief Minister of the East. more..

Mar 25 (AT) The Buddhist Vihara at Berlin could play a major role in attracting German Buddhists to Sri Lanka, according to Tourism Deputy Minister Faiz Mustapha. The Deputy Minister told this the Venerable Wilachchiye Dhammavijaya Thera during a visit to the temple this month. Mr. Mustapha who visited the temple with a ministerial team said that the Vihara could provide Germans with basic knowledge of Buddhist meditation and related topics before more..

Mar 25 (AT) "Do not give in to terrorism because it will only bring destruction to your country. Terrorism must be fought; one must not capitulate to it," said Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to visiting Sri Lankan Prime Pinister Ratnasiri Wickramanayaka. A statement issued by the Israeli Prime Minister�s office quoted Olmert as saying to the Sri Lankan leader during the first day of the Sri lankan leader�s four day visit to Israel that terrorism has to be fought against severely. more..

Mar 25 (LNP) Sri Lanka Telecom Chairperson Leisha Chandrasena dismissed speculation that the 35% of the Sri Lanka Telecom stake held by Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Co Ltd (NTT) of Japan had been sold to Maxis of Malaysia. We have not been informed yet of an imminent sale of these shares and even if so, that is a private transaction between those two parties which we are not involved and which we are not privy to, more..

Mar 25 (SAMN) A resolution calling upon all political parties represented in Parliament to impeach President Mahinda Rajapaksa for his failure to appoint the Constitutional Council (CC) as required by the Constitution is expected to be moved at a Special General Meeting (SGM) of the Organisation of Professional Associations (OPA) scheduled for April 8, OPA President and senior lawyer Elmore Perera said. more..

Mar 25 (SAMN) Five media associations have vehemently condemned Minister Mervyn Silva for threatening Sirasa journalists at Kelaniya recently and described his conduct as a threat posed to all media institutions. The Minister recently threatened the Sirasa journalists ordering them not to cover the events in Kelaniya where he was the current SLFP organiser. more..

Mar 25 (SAMN) The Supreme Court dismissed an appeal from a judgment of the Court of Appeal by the former Parliamentary General Secretary and Ombudsman Sam Wijesinghe. The Bench comprised Chief Justice Sarath N. Silva PC with Justice Nimal Gamini Amaratunga and Justice Jagath Balapatabendi. Petitioner Sam Wijesinghe appealed to the Supreme Court to set aside the judgment of the Court of Appeal that held against the petitioner. more..