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US diplomats head to S. Lanka for civil war talks

AFP — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 08:15:39 +0000

The United States said Monday it would send two senior diplomats to Sri Lanka this month, for talks expected to address alleged killings of civilians by troops during a war with Tamil Tiger rebels.

Maria Otero, Under Secretary of State for Civilian Security, Democracy and Human Rights, and Robert Blake, Assistant Secretary of State for Central and South Asian Affairs, will be in Colombo from February 12-14.

The trip is part of a regional tour for the pair — Otero will [...]

US diplomats heading to S. Lanka for civil war talks

AFP — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 09:02:56 +0000

Three American diplomats will travel to Sri Lanka for talks about alleged killings of civilians by government troops in their campaign to defeat the Tamil Tigers, an official and report said Sunday.

The visit comes ahead of a United Nations human rights council meeting in Geneva, which starts later this month, where Washington hopes to move a resolution pressing Sri Lanka to probe alleged war crimes.

A government source in Colombo, who declined to be named, said US Assistant Secretary of [...]

Sri Lanka president urges ‘courage’ on National Day

AFP — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 12:46:47 +0000

President Mahinda Rajapakse marked Sri Lanka’s national day by appealing to the country to show "strength and courage" in the face of a worsening global economic crisis.

Rajapakse on Saturday said the problems confronting the world economy were also hitting the resort island nation of 20 million people who are emerging from nearly four decades of ethnic war after crushing Tamil separatists in 2009.

"It is important to be aware of the reality," Rajapakse said in his address to the nation on [...]

Sri Lanka frees 1,400 prisoners on freedom day

AFP — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 11:51:41 +0000

Sri Lanka freed 1,414 convicts on Saturday to mark the country’s 64th anniversary of independence from Britain, a prisons official said.

President Mahinda Rajapakse granted an amnesty to convicts serving light sentences, but Sri Lanka’s most high-profile prisoner, former army chief and defeated presidential candidate Sarath Fonseka, was not among those released.

There had been intense local media speculation that Rajapakse may use the Independence anniversary to pardon his rival.

Fonseka was arrested two weeks after he lost presidential polls to Rajapakse [...]

Sri Lanka raise rates, slows lending

AFP — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 08:53:40 +0000

Sri Lanka’s central bank on Friday raised its key interest rate for the first time in five years and asked commercial banks to reduce lending in the face of a worsening trade deficit.

The Central Bank of Sri Lanka hiked its benchmark lending rate by 50 basis points to 9.0 percent, the first rise since February 2007 when the rate was upped to 12.0 percent from 11.50 percent.

The bank also asked commercial banks to rein in lending, arguing that much [...]

Sri Lanka media press for probe into killings

AFP — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 08:31:30 +0000

Dozens of media rights activists took to the streets in Colombo on Wednesday demanding action against those responsible for killing journalists and attacking news organisations.

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joined Sri Lankan media organisations at the demonstration in Colombo’s Lipton Square.

Organisers said the rally was in response to a spate of attacks on the media and the failure of the government to bring those responsible to justice.

"The killers are out there," said a placard carried by one journalist, [...]

Sri Lanka orders 161 foreign Islamic clerics out

AFP — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 11:11:58 +0000

Sri Lanka has ordered a group of 161 foreign Islamic clerics to leave the country, for flouting visa regulations by preaching to pockets of Muslims around the country, an official said Sunday.

Controller of Immigration and Emigration Chulananda Perera said the clerics, who were mostly Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Indian, Maldivian and Arab, had travelled into the country on tourist visas.

"We have ordered them to leave the country by January 31. They have violated immigration laws. A tourist visa is to have [...]

Sri Lankan doctor who helped Tamil Tigers wants UK job back

AFP — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 08:33:18 +0000

A Sri Lankan doctor who admitted aiding the South Asian nation’s Tamil Tiger separatist group began his appeal on Tuesday to be allowed to resume work in Britain.

Murugesu Vinayagamoorthy spent almost five years in a US jail for providing material support to the rebels, who were defeated by Sri Lankan troops in 2009 after decades spent fighting for an independent homeland.

The 62-year-old doctor was released last year and has asked Britain’s General Medical Council (GMC) if he can see [...]

Sri Lankan anger over foreign ‘Tamil Tiger’ stamps

AFP — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 12:18:07 +0000

Sri Lanka has reacted furiously to a spate of "personalised" foreign postage stamps bearing the image of slain Tamil Tiger rebel supremo Velupillai Prabhakaran.

The stamps, from Britain, Canada and France, were reportedly put together by overseas Tamil Tiger support groups, using services sanctioned by state postal agencies that allow people to combine personal photos with official stamps.

"Sri Lanka has protested in the strongest possible terms and made it clear that any foreign mail with these stamps will not be [...]

Sri Lanka to allow killing of 3 million stray dogs

AFP — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 09:47:09 +0000

Sri Lanka has lifted a moratorium on killing stray dogs as it tries to reduce the more than 2,000 cases of hospitalisation due to dog bites every day.

Health minister Maithripala Sirisena told the Swarnavahini television network the government had decided to revert to destroying strays, a practice suspended five years ago, because of rabies concerns.

"Clearly our new policy has failed," Mr Sirisena told the privately run network.

"As a government, we have decided to go back to the previous [...]