Category: Politics
Sri Lanka rights probe urged by US lawmakers
WASHINGTON, December 18, 2010 (AFP) – Dozens of US lawmakers on Friday urged a global probe into alleged rights violations by Sri Lanka in the last stages of its civil war, saying Colombo’s own efforts do not ensure accountability. In letters to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, 17 senators and 30 members of the House […]
US cable points to Sri Lankan links with paramilitaries
NEW DELHI, December 17, 2010 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s government was complicit in the activities of paramilitary groups engaged in political killings, kidnappings, extortion and prostitution, a leaked US diplomatic cable suggested Friday. The 2007 cable, written by the then US ambassador to Sri Lanka, Robert Blake, cited evidence provided by “trusted embassy contacts” that […]
Sri Lanka denies move to ban national anthem in Tamil
December 13, 2010 (AFP) – Sri Lanka denied on Monday plans to outlaw the singing of the national anthem in Tamil after the main minority party raised strong objections to the mooted ban. The status quo will remain, said public administration minister John Seneviratne, who is in charge of managing the code of conduct for […]
Sri Lanka Tamils concerned over national anthem report
December 13, 2010 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s Tamils expressed concern on Monday over a media report suggesting that the government was set to ban singing the national anthem in their language. Language and discrimination were key issues used by the Tamil Tiger separatists to gain popular support for their campaign. The main Tamil party, the […]
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December 9, 2010 (AFP) – A six-year-old girl found at a house in Colombo is believed to have been sold by a hospital worker soon after the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, Sri Lankan child protection authorities said Thursday. Staff at the National Child Protection Authority went to the house after neighbours complained that the girl […]
Ukraine to attend Nobel ceremony after public pressure
KIEV, December 9, 2010 (AFP) – Ukraine will send a diplomat to the Nobel peace prize ceremony for jailed Chinese dissident Liu Xiabo, a foreign ministry official said Thursday, after Kiev initially joined a boycott led by China. Ukraine will send the first secretary of the Ukrainian embassy in Norway to the ceremony on Friday, […]
Sri Lanka slain customs officer given integrity award
Dec 10, 2010 (LBO) – A Sri Lankan customs officer who was gunned down after he exposed corruption in the customs service was posthumously awarded the National Integrity Award by the corruption watchdog Transparency International. “Corruption is deep rooted in human greed. The temptations and opportunities for corruption are greater today than ever before. Faced […]
Nineteen countries decline Nobel ceremony invite: organisers
OSLO, December 7, 2010 (AFP) – Nineteen countries will shun Friday’s Nobel Peace Prize ceremony in Oslo for jailed Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo, the Nobel Institute said, following Chinese pressure for a global boycott. “You only have to look at the figures. The vast majority of countries invited will be represented,” Nobel Institute director Geir […]
Sri Lankan migrants held in Thailand
BANGKOK, December 8, 2010 (AFP) – Thai authorities said Wednesday they had arrested 45 migrants from Sri Lanka in the latest of a series of crackdowns in recent months. Sri Lanka’s crackdown on the Tamil Tigers, which ended a lengthy civil war last year, has resulted in a flood of people seeking asylum in other […]
Sri Lanka got N Korea arms despite US protests: leaked cables
WASHINGTON, December 6, 2010 (AFP) – US diplomats play a major role in trying to prevent arms from reaching world hotspots, but cables released to The New York Times show an uphill battle against the likes of Iran, Syria and North Korea. In one cable given to the paper by WikiLeaks, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad […]
Spanish judge jails three Pakistanis in forgery probe
MADRID, December 3, 2010 (AFP) – A judge in Spain Friday remanded in custody three of seven people arrested in an operation against a gang suspected of forging passports for Al-Qaeda-linked groups, court sources said. These included the 2004 Madrid bombings, when blasts on packed commuter trains in a city suburb killed 191 people and […]
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December 2, 2010 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s government lambasted the prestigious Oxford Union Thursday for cancelling a talk by President Mahinda Rajapakse following protests from ethnic Tamil groups. Rajapakse was scheduled to make a speech to the union, Oxford University’s debating society, which has hosted speakers ranging from Michael Jackson to the Dalai Lama, but […]