Author: lbostgadmin
Sri Lanka says no credible evidence for abuse charges
Aug 6, 2007 (AFP) – Sri Lanka said Monday there was no credible evidence for a rights group’s claim that government forces were responsible for intensifying abuses on the island, such as unlawful killings and abductions.“These allegations are not based on credible evidence,” Sri Lanka’s defence spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella said after the New York-based body […]
Sri Lanka entry to ASEAN was opposed by Singapore: report
August 06, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s entry to the ASEAN at the formation of the regional grouping was opposed in 1967 by Singapore, a retired Thai diplomat has revealed in an interview. Sompong Sucharitkul was an aide to Thai foreign minister Thanat Khoman, who was a founder signatory of the Bangkok declaration that formed […]
Atapattu asks for release from Sri Lanka contract
Aug 5, 2007 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s former captain Marvan Atapattu has asked to be released from his contract with the national team, cricket officials said Sunday.Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) chief executive officer Duleep Mendis said that Atapattu had sent a letter requesting to be discharged from the team. Mendis said the SLC, the governing […]
Mugabe at anti-poverty summit in Malaysia
LANGKAWI, Malaysia, Aug 6, 2007 (AFP) – Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, internationally condemned for his nation’s economic meltdown and human rights abuses, was given a warm welcome Monday at an anti-poverty summit in Malaysia, delegates said.While he has proved elusive to the packs of journalists and photographers staking out the venue, he was said to […]
Call Forward
August 06, 2007 (LBO) – A Sri Lankan mobile phone operator has called for the introduction of ‘number portability’, saying that consumers would benefit from being able to switch networks while using the same number. Suren Amarasekera, chief executive of Mobitel Private Ltd., the cellular subsidiary of the dominant fixed phone operator Sri Lanka Telecom, […]
Sri Lanka promotes community involvement in war-battered tourist industry
Aug 06, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s leisure sector should focus more on promoting people development and community involvement to make the tourism industry sustainable, officials say. India, Macau and Thailand’s Six Senses Spa won awards in other categories of marketing, heritage and environment. Top coastal resorts, mostly empty because of the ethnic war, have […]
Flood Havoc
NEW DELHI, Aug 5, 2007 (AFP) – The death toll from raging floods in India neared 1,100 Sunday as more people drowned in swollen rivers that have stranded millions in their homes, officials said.Every year the monsoon causes the river to flood in Assam, a remote state of 26 million people. Four people died overnight […]
Top UN official to visit Sri Lanka as conflict deepens
Aug 5, 2007 (AFP) – A top UN official is scheduled to arrive in Sri Lanka this week to discuss the island’s deepening Tamil separatist conflict and the plight of civilians caught in the crossfire, officials said Sunday.John Holmes, the under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs and emergency relief coordinator, will hold talks with Sri Lankan leaders […]
India cricket moguls move to crush competition
NEW DELHI, Aug 5, 2007 (AFP) – Indian cricket was rocked by an acrimonious slanging match on Sunday as the game’s powerful establishment moved to crush a breakaway multi-million dollar series. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is determined to ensure the failure of the rebel Indian Cricket League (ICL) which is […]
US soldier gets 110 years in rape, killing of Iraqi girl
WASHINGTON, Aug 4, 2007 (AFP) – A US soldier was sentenced Saturday to 110 years in jail for raping and killing a 14-year-old Iraqi girl and slaying her family, the army said.That investigation focused a critical light on the US military’s controversial rules of engagement in Iraq.“Private First Class Jesse Spielman was sentenced to 110 […]
Zimbabwe money printing, price control mess, boom for border town
MUSINA, South Africa, Aug 5, 2007 (AFP) – James Diop rings up another sale and then contemplates his good fortune to work in a supermarket in South Africa as the stores across the border in Zimbabwe grow emptier by the day.“We’ve had a 300 percent increase in sales since June which is unprecedented … and […]
Rural Japan puts thorn in side of farm reform
TOKYO, Aug 5, 2007 (AFP) – Fearing their government cares more about big business than small farmers, Japan’s rural dwellers are deserting the ruling conservative camp, leaving its plan to open up the agriculture market in doubt.With the opposition now in control of one house of parliament, experts say the government may find it harder […]