All Blogs
‘s human trafficking woes
WASHINGTON, June 6, 2006 (AFP) – The shattered dream of an Indonesian domestic maid, who lost her fingers and toes, following torture by her employer in the Middle East is being used by the US State Department to illustrate the seriousness of the human trafficking problem. Nour Miyatis dream was simple: To provide a brighter […]
Bomb blasts rock Sri Lanka navy base amid peace moves
COLOMBO, June 6, 2006 (AFP) – Suspected Tamil rebels exploded bombs outside a naval base near Sri Lanka’s capital Tuesday, wounding two people while three others were killed in a similar attack elsewhere, the military said.More than 60,000 people have been killed in the island’s separatist conflict since 1972 and four previous peace bids have […]
Desperate Times
June 06 (LBO) – Lanka Indian Oil Corporation has asked the Treasury for a billion rupees of its unpaid subsidy bill to buy fuel, as petrol stocks threaten to run dry in two days. The government owes the company Rs. 7.44 billion in unpaid subsidies as at end March this year, with the firm saying […]
Oil Strikes
NEW DELHI, June 6, 2006 (AFP) – A sharp hike in Indian fuel prices sparked uproar against the government Tuesday as both its communist allies and the main opposition Hindu nationalist party vowed nationwide protests. Even senior members of the ruling Congress party demanded the rollback of the rise aimed at bringing fuel prices closer […]
Mouse Trail
PARIS, June 5, 2006 (AFP) – Nearly one out of two airline tickets issued to travellers is currently in electronic form and paper tickets are on track to disappear completely by 2007, International Air Transport Association (IATA) said Monday.The association, which represents 265 airlines accounting for 94 percent of international air traffic, indicated that it […]
Local tea industry draws up new standards on exports to Japan
June 05 (LBO) – After pressure from Japan, the Sri Lankan tea trade is drawing up a uniform declaration for exporters to clear their tea shipments as free from chemical residues. The herbicide is considered to be the only effective chemical against certain weeds on tea plantations, with the only alternative being costly mechanical weeding. “What […]
Battle Lines
June 05 (LBO) – Sri Lanka will fight new Indian restrictions on duty free vanaspati exports, ahead of another round of Indo-Lanka trade talks at the end of June. Duty free exports of Vanaspati a hydrogenated vegetable oil, has been a sore point in Indo-Sri Lanka trade relations, with Sri Lanka accused of flooding Indian […]
Extended Family
June 5, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka plans to expand its mobile phone market to five players, in a bid to bring down costs of telephony, the telecom regulator said Monday. Sri Lanka’s mobile market had grown 53.5 percent to 3.34 million customers as at end 2005, according to TRC figures. The island’s cellular penetration […]
Bangladesh city introduces polygamy tax
DHAKA, June 5, 2006 (AFP) – A Bangladesh city will impose taxes on polygamists to deter the “outdated” practice of marrying more than one wife, an official said Monday. The tax will come into force from July 1 in northern Rajshahi, Bangladesh’s fourth-largest city, mayor Mijanur Rahman Minu told AFP. As part of the city’s […]
Indian bookies raking in millions thanks to heavy monsoons
NEW DELHI, June 5, 2006 (AFP) – Bountiful early monsoon rains are raking in millions of dollars for Indian bookies taking bets on the amount of rain that will drench the country between June and September, a report said Monday.The weather office has predicted a below normal monsoon this year but bookies have stacked the […]