Category: Politics

Aug 22, 2008 (LBO) – A Sri Lankan elections watchdog says it has been assured by the elections commissioner that polling stations where violence or irregularities take place at Saturday’s provincial council polls would be closed. Rodrigo quoted the elections commissioner as saying that there had been no violence in the last 36 hours after […]

Aug 20, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Free Media Movement (FMM) said government charges against a journalist who has been detained for months were weak and an attempt to cow down the media by using anti-terrorist laws.It said in a statement that it had learnt that journalist J S Tissainayagam, who has been held in […]

Aug 06, 2008 (LBO) – A Sri Lankan ruling party lawmaker who has earned notoriety for frequent attacks on the media appears to be above the law and police powerless to stop him, a media watch dog has said. The Free Media Movement (FMM) said in a statement that it was “outraged” to record the […]

Aug 05, 2008 (LBO) – The culture of impunity and the continued attacks against Sri Lanka’s media were condemned by the watchdog Free Media Movement, after a TV cameraman was assaulted by thugs while covering a state event.Controversial minister Mervyn Silva grabbed the camera of a Sirasa and MTV network cameraman, while goons surrounded him […]

Aug 04, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s major opposition political parties have backed calls for an end to government intimidation of the media and demanded it ensure the safety of journalists. Eleven political parties have signed a joint statement defending media freedom in Sri Lanka and requesting the authorities to safeguard media freedom and guarantee […]

Aug 1, 2008 (LBO) – Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh landed in Sri Lanka to attend the 15th Summit meeting of the South Asian Association of Regional Co-operation to be held in Colombo this weekend. The city has been under tight security pending the arrival of regional leaders. Prime minister Singh arrived in the island […]

July 29, 2008 (AFP) – The leaders of South Asian rivals India and Pakistan are to meet in Sri Lanka this week for their highest-level talks in 15 months and to see if they can hold together their embattled peace process. Relations between New Delhi and Islamabad, who have fought three wars since partition in […]

July 24, 2008 (AFP) – Sri Lanka will on Friday mark a quarter of a century since the country’s worst ethnic riots claimed scores of lives, but 25 years on there is little prospect of peace on the island.In July 1983, the country — where ongoing fighting in a civil war between Tamil rebels and […]

July 18, 2008 (AFP) – Journalists covering Sri Lanka’s war with Tamil Tiger rebels are being harassed despite a government pledge to take action to protect the press, a rights group said Friday. The Free Media Movement (FMM) reported eight incidents of threats and intimidation, just two weeks after a ministerial committee was formed to […]

July 8, 2008 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s main opposition Tuesday accused the country’s military chief of orchestrating violent attacks on journalists critical of its battle against Tamil separatists. Opposition MP Joseph Michael Perera told parliament that a recent wave of beatings and other violence against journalists was carried out by a “special team” under the […]

July 6, 2008 (AFP) – Media activists in Sri Lanka are organising a boycott of the upcoming South Asian summit in Colombo in protest at escalating attacks against journalists, a report said Sunday.The Lakbima News weekly said several media outlets had agreed in principle not to cover the August 1 summit of the South Asian […]

July 3, 2008 (AFP) – A former Sri Lankan Tamil guerrilla leader expelled from Britain returned Thursday after serving a brief jail term on immigration charges, officials said. Vinayagamoorthy Muralitharan, also known as Colonel Karuna and who was jailed in London in January, was escorted back to Sri Lanka, airport officials said. Karuna, who led […]