Category:
Sri Lankan agri-business offers support for farmers
July 25, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s National Agribusiness Council (NAC) has started a scheme to help farmers get better access to markets and other skills and resources. Representatives of farmer councils set up under the NAC’s aegis signed an agreement to form a federation at the Ag-Biz trade fair over the weekend. The aim […]
Trying Hard
RIYADH, July 24, 2007 (AFP) – A Sri Lankan minister said on Tuesday he was seeking Riyadh’s help in obtaining clemency for a teenage maid condemned to death but he did not expect an immediate outcome to efforts to save her life.“We got a very good and patient hearing” from Saudi foreign ministry officials during […]
The high price of bullion; money printing Zimbabwe hikes gold by 760%
HARARE, July 25, 2007 (AFP) – Zimbabwe’s central bank on Wednesday increased the price of gold by 757 percent in a bid to curb rampant smuggling of the precious metal and cover soaring production costs, an official said. Zimbabwe’s gold production is this year expected to drop to about 8,700 kilogrammes from 11,354 kilogrammes last […]
” trade deal
SOFIA, July 24, 2007 (AFP) – Six foreign medics sentenced to death then life imprisonment in Libya in a controversial AIDS case were free in the Bulgarian capital Tuesday after the EU struck a multi-million-dollar financial and trade deal with Tripoli.The five Bulgarian nurses and one Palestinian doctor who also has Bulgarian citizenship were released […]
Animal rescuers on red alert as it rains cats and dogs in Britain
OXFORD, England, July 25, 2007 (AFP) – It is not only humans who have been hit by Britain’s worst floods in 60 years — cats, dogs and donkeys are also suffering, prompting a rescue mission on an unprecedented scale. The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) has sent a third of […]
”
SYDNEY, July 25, 2007 (AFP) – A New Zealander was jailed for 24 years Wednesday after being convicted of the first murder in 150 years on the tiny South Pacific territory of Norfolk Island.He will be eligible for parole after a minimum of 18 years. Glenn McNeill, 29, murdered Australian Janelle Patton and dumped her […]
Sri Lanka blast deaths climb to 12
July 25, 2007 (AFP) – The death toll in a bomb attack against a military convoy in northern Sri Lanka rose to 12 as a wounded soldier died in hospital on Wednesday, police said.The Tigers have been fighting for a separate state for minority Tamils for 35 years, a conflict that has claimed more than […]
Sri Lanka badmouthed by terrorists, sympathizers, political promoters, ignoramuses: CB Governor
July 25, 2007 (LBO) – Negative views about Sri Lanka’s economy are promoted by terrorists, terror sympathizers, promoters of political agendas and people who are unaware of the real picture, the country’s Central Bank governor said. “We are not saying Sri Lanka is perfect. We have a lot of room to grow. We have a […]
Investment banks in detailed bids for Sri Lanka sovereign bond
July 25, 2007 (LBO) – Investment banks vying to lead-manage a sovereign bond issue have started to make detailed presentations to the Sri Lanka government as official data showed that the country’s foreign reserves were coming under pressure. The beauty parade is expected to be completed this week with banks making proposals for 400 and […]
Sea Guard
July 24, 2007 (LBO) – Tough security measures at Colombo harbour are causing delays both on the sea side as well as the land side, prompting port customers to take up the matter with the authorities. Shipping line executives and shippers say they do not mind the tough security measures put in place to thwart […]
Bittersweet Battle
July 24, 2007 (LBO) – A former minister who oversaw Sri Lanka’s privatization commission has gone to court seeking to block the sell down of a defunct sugar firm to a private firm. Sooriyaarachchi also alleged that the liabilities of Hingurana Sugar were not transferred to the new company. Sripathi Sooriyaarachchi, a rebel parliamentarian of […]
Chinese style capitalism rattle Indian socialist democracy
MUNDHA KHERA, India, July 24, 2007 (AFP) – It’s a hot, humid Sunday morning in northern India, but the oppressive heat does not deter a group of about 15 farmers from trudging door-to-door, offering advice and sometimes warnings. “Do not sell your precious land. Even if you are offered millions of dollars, do not sell. […]