News Archives
Possessing memories, designing cemeteries - Part I
The aftermaths of wars are coined by various, often divergent, forms of national politics of commemoration and historiography. In a pluralistic world, states and governments are globally committed to the production, remembrance and celebration of their distinct interpretation of history and the memory of those who have fallen for the concept of the nation-state. Amidst their varying tales, at times, a common denominator can be found in the acknowledgement of an emphasis granted to the memorization of suffering and sacrifices, especially in the process of reconciling with historic passages of severe national and/or societal violence and trauma. [ Full Report ]- Possessing memories, designing cemeteries - Part II - JDS Lanka
Serendipity, Bob Carr and Sri Lanka
In the face of a great deal of evidence to the contrary, Bob Carr has declared Sri Lanka an ideal democracy. He has declared their institutions sound, and scoffed at the idea of corruption within the ranks of the Rajapaksa Government. He has declared the police, army and navy to be clear of charges of detaining and torturing members of the Tamil minority. He believes that the Sinhalese majority are free of triumphalism and ethnic abuse of Tamils, amounting to state sponsored genocide, following a bloody civil war that occurred because of the very attitudes and practices being deployed against Tamils today. [ Full Report ]
Four years on, genocide continues off the battlefield
In May 2009 as the armed conflict between the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and the government of Sri Lanka came to a harrowing end, Sri Lanka’s genocidal offensive against the Tamil population of the North-East reached a peak. Four years on, as the Tamil nation – scattered worldwide through decades of oppression and armed conflict – remembers the massacre that took place, the prospect of a stable and secure future remains bleak. Sri Lanka has long proven itself both incapable and unwilling to deliver accountability and justice to the Tamil people, yet the international community too has failed to instigate a credible process towards it. But most of all, the systematic destruction of the Tamil identity continues, unchecked. [ Full Report ]
Push for hard line on Sri Lanka
A DELEGATION of Labor MPs has approached Foreign Minister Bob Carr and urged him to take a tougher line on alleged human rights abuses in Sri Lanka. The delegation of between 6-12 Labor MPs petitioned Senator Carr after last Tuesday's caucus meeting. A spokesman for Senator Carr confirmed the approach. The group urged a tougher line on Sri Lanka, amid concerns Canberra's diplomacy towards Colombo is being influenced by the need for Sri Lanka's cooperation in cracking down on the asylum trade. [ Full Report ]
Sri Lanka to apprise Canada of human rights progress
Sri Lanka on Monday said it will apprise Canada of the progress in the human rights situation on the island in view of the upcoming Commonwealth summit in Colombo which Ottawa has threatened to boycott. "We have been presented with the chance to go to Canada to inform them of the progress made," Prathiba Mahanamahewa, Chairman of Sri Lanka's Human Rights Council said today. He said that he would tell the Canadian government of the progress in the national human rights action plan. [ Full Report ]
NTPC set to ink pact for Sampur project in Sri Lanka
With differences over the operation and maintenance (O&M) charges and the gross heat rate issues in the power purchase agreement (PPA) sorted out, NTPC is all set to ink agreement for the execution of the proposed 2X250 MW Sampur power project in Trincomale, Sri Lanka, by early next month. A series of meetings between the officials Ministry of Power, Sri Lankan Government, senior officials of NTPC and with assistance of the High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka, Ashok Kantha, has finally led to resolution of the outstanding issues and the project is all set to take off with the formal signing of the PPA by next month. [ Full Report ]
Cleveland Bridge secures Sri Lanka bridge building deal
A Darlington firm has signed a £35m contract to build hundreds of road bridges in Sri Lanka. Cleveland Bridge will design and build the structures in jungle and rural areas of the country. The company will replace unreliable rope bridges with permanent steel and concrete crossings. [ Full Report ]Beware travelers to Sri Lanka of extortion scam by immigration officers
Posting clear signs at the visa on arrival center would make it more difficult for corrupt officials to extort money from tourists and their governments. Sri Lanka is a beautiful destination with many dedicated people doing a fantastic job with pride to showcase their country. It is my understanding that money generated from visa fees are to go to improve the infrastructure of the country, not to line the greedy pockets of a few traitors operating with a uniform. [ Full Report ]26 Karaikal fishermen to be released from Lanka
Protests by the fishermen community and political parties have yielded result with the Sri Lankan government ordering the release of the 26 Karaikal fishermen on Monday. The fishermen who are in the custody of the Sri Lankan government will be released after being produced before the Lankan court, said Union Minister of State V Narayanasamy. “Orders for the release have been issued after the intervention of Union Minister for External Affairs Salman Khurshid, Indian High Commissioner in Sri Lanka and Sri Lankan Ministers of Tamil origin,” Narayanasamy said. [ Full Report ]
Cleveland Bridge lands £35m order from Sri Lanka
A WORLD famous bridge building company has won a £35m contract that will help transform lives on a tropical island and secure the firm's future for years. Cleveland Bridge in Darlington has signed a deal with the government of Sri Lanka to make up to 210 bridges for jungle and rural areas across the country. Cleveland Bridge was involved in the building of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, in Australia, and Victoria Falls Bridge, which spans the River Zambesi in southern Africa, as well as bridges that cross the Tees and the Tyne. [ Full Report ]Sri Lanka: No Progress 4 Years On
“Four years after Sri Lanka’s horrific civil war ended, many Sri Lankans await justice for the victims of abuses, news of the ‘disappeared,’ and respect for their basic rights,” said Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “Instead, the Rajapaksa government has rejected investigations, clamped down harder on the media, and persisted in wartime abuses such as torture.” “The Rajapaksa government seems to be hoping that broad-based repression will dampen the exercise of fundamental freedoms,” Adams said. “But Sri Lankan activists and journalists who showed incredible resilience during wartime to bring forth the truth, will undoubtedly find a way to do so when the country is at peace.” [ Full Report ]
Army commander criticizes foreign intervention in military affairs
Army Commander Lieutenant General Jagath Jayasuriya has criticized the foreign representatives expressing different opinions about maintaining army camps in the North. The Army Commander has noted that there are only three Army camps in the Jaffna peninsula at present, although there were sixteen army camps at the end of the war in May 2009."Foreigners have no right to decide where the army camps of this country should be maintained," he said during an interview . [ Full Report ]Downing Street backs 2014 Glasgow invitation to Sri Lanka
Downing Street has refused to rule out inviting Sri Lanka to a First World War commemoration service despite an outcry from human-rights organisations. No 10 said normal protocol should be followed for the event with Commonwealth heads of state in Glasgow.Asked about Sri Lanka, which is due to take over the chairmanship of the Commonwealth later this year, No 10 said: "The usual approach on invitations to members of the Commonwealth should be followed". [ Full Report ]
Norway tells Lanka: Respect Vienna Convention
Norway has asked Sri Lanka to comply with “well established international rules on diplomatic immunity” after a Colombo Court ruled that the former Norwegian Ambassador and three officials did not have immunity in a huge transaction involving an NGO. Norway’s Ambassador Grete Lochen said yesterday that her government had held the position that the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations should be respected since Sri Lanka was a party to this convention. “Diplomats and state officials from Sri Lanka are enjoying the same privileges when serving their government,” she said in an email interview. [ Full Report ]
- Norwegian Ministers and Diplomats Sued in Sri Lanka - TNP
- Norwegian Ministers and Diplomats Sued in Sri Lanka - TNP
Russia to donate eight helicopters to SL
Russia announced that it has taken steps to provide eight large helicopters to Sri Lanka as a total donation; the Sri Lanka’s Prime Minister Office said quoting visiting Head of the Federal Agency for the Commonwealth of Independence States-Russia Konstantin Kosachev.Russia, which has submitted a bid for obtaining “Expo 2020” Exhibition to Russia also urged Sri Lanka’s support for the same. He told that they are not prepared to give up that opportunity at any cost as their country owns one of the stable economies in the world. To win this opportunity the vote of Sri Lanka is very important to them. Hundred and sixty two countries are competing for this exhibition. There are some Asian countries among them. [ Full Report ]
Chinese factor links MR and Mussaveni
There was a common factor that glued together the friendly ties between President Mahinda Rajapaksa and his Ugandan counterpart Yoveri Museveni. Both countries maintain close ties with China. Days ahead of President Rajapaksa’s visit to that country, China built and handed over a twin-block 11 storied building complex for use as the President’s office....However, those controversies did not mar the Sri Lankan President’s visit. The Uganda leader hosted President Rajapaksa at his official residence. Some Sri Lankan dishes were also included using fish from Lake Victoria. An Indian meal came for Rajapaksa when he visited Uganda’s largest sugar factory. The Indian family that owns it hosted him to a luncheon. [ Full Report ]Sailor dies during Sri Lanka victory parade
Sri Lanka's navy Sunday recovered the body of a sailor who drowned during a parade marking the fourth anniversary of the defeat of Tamil Tiger rebels, an official said. The body was found near a beach in Colombo where his small boat capsized while taking part in the victory celebrations presided over by President Mahinda Rajapakse on Saturday. "The boat was salvaged on Saturday and four crewmen were rescued, but one officer went missing and his body was recovered only this morning," a military official said on condition of anonymity, adding that the boat had got into trouble in choppy waters. [ Full Report ]Storm clouds still loom over CHOGM
The UPFA Government’s course correction over issues listed in the US resolution at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva continues to pose critical challenges to it. Both locally and internationally, storm clouds are building. It is over one of the key elements, the conduct of the Northern Provincial Council (NPC) elections slated for the first week of September this year. At least officially, there is still no activation of any mechanisms for such a poll. This is notwithstanding periodic pronouncements by UPFA leaders at political events that the polls will be held. [ Full Report ]Journeys In Jaffna, Sri Lanka, 4 Years After The Civil War’s Bloody Conclusion
The dusty army checkpoint along the infamous A9 highway was the first sign I’d entered the “other” Sri Lanka -- the one that required an additional copy of my passport, my purpose and an inspection of my things. The next clue was the colossal yellow water tower lying horizontal on the roadside at Kilinochchi. Its gaping interior could easily house the entire population of this former capital of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, or LTTE, an oft-misunderstood separatist group that the FBI once described as “amongst the most dangerous and deadly extremist outfits in the world.” [ Full Report ]Toxic chemicals in imported white sugar
Harmful substances have been found in white sugar imported to Sri Lanka, Agriculture Minister Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena has disclosed. Random tests on samples of Brazilian sugar had revealed a high level of toxic cadmium, the Minister told the Sunday Times. He said the sugar was also being tested for arsenic, another heavy metal, which could cause serious health issues when ingested in high quantities. Responding to a query from the Sunday Times whether tests were being carried out on other food products, the minister said that while tests on imported sugar revealed these chemical substances, random checks on locally-produced sugar were clear. Random checks on imported dhal, potatoes and onions also did not show any toxic substances, he said. [ Full Report ]
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