Category: Politics

RAWALPINDI, Pakistan, April 28, 2008 (AFP) – Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad arrived Monday in Pakistan for a brief visit to meet the country’s new government and his Pakistani counterpart Pervez Musharraf.Ahmadinejad’s plane touched down at Chaklala Airbase in Rawalpindi, a garrison city adjoining Islamabad, where an air force honour guard greeted him on the tarmac, […]

KAHAPOLA, Sri Lanka, April 27, 2008 (AFP) – With both hands clasped, Pat Amarasinghe prays before a Buddha statue seeking divine help for the impossible — to bring back her son, Ishara, who died in a bus blast in Sri Lanka. Ishara and his fiancee, Geethika, both 24, were among 26 people killed when suspected […]

April 22, 2008 (AFP) – A team of international legal experts Tuesday stepped up their criticism of Sri Lanka, noting that repeated calls to improve its record on the issue had fallen on deaf ears. The International Independent Group of Eminent Persons (IIGEP) said Colombo lacked the political will to investigate grave rights abuses. The […]

April 22, 2008 (LBO) – The United States has called on Sri Lanka to improve its human rights record and ensure forthcoming elections in the east are free and fair, the embassy said in a statement Tuesday. It quoted Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs Don Camp as characterizing his meetings […]

April 20, 2008 (AFP) – Sri Lankan forces Sunday killed a Roman Catholic priest inside rebel-held territory, Tiger guerrillas said as the defence ministry reported 16 more deaths in fresh violence.The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) said Father M.X. Karunaratnam, who was also a top human rights campaigner, was killed in a roadside bomb […]

April 18, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Free Media Movement (FMM), a media watchdog, said Friday its treasurer, journalist K. Rushangan, has received threats demanding the payment of a ransom before April 25. Despite complaints to the police, no action has been taken to probe the threats, the organisation said in a statement. Rushangan is […]

April 17, 2008 (AFP) – Hospitals in Sri Lanka’s Tamil rebel-held territory are running low on basic medicines and medical staff, the International Committee of the Red Cross said Thursday.Fighting between security forces and Tamil Tiger rebels has escalated since January, when the government withdrew from a 2002 truce arranged by peace broker Norway and […]

April 17, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s main opposition political party says the island is facing international isolation and economic sanctions, a charge rejected by the government. The opposition United National Party accused the government of being unable to effectively address international concerns over human rights abuses by the military. But a government spokesman dismissed […]

April 15, 2008 (AFP) – A team of top legal luminaries told Sri Lanka’s government on Tuesday to clean up its human rights record, saying an escalating war against Tamil Tiger rebels had brought with it grave abuses. Updated The International Independent Group of Eminent Persons (IIGEP), comprising experts from several countries, the European Union […]

April 12, 2008 (AFP) – Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse called for national unity Saturday in his traditional New Year message as 10 more deaths were reported in the conflict-racked nation.“It is my conviction that we would be strengthened by engaging in New Year traditions and customs as one nation,” Rajapakse said in a message […]

April 11, 2008 (LBO) – A lawmaker of Sri Lanka’s Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) party was arrested Friday for stealing tax-free vehicles bought by rebel members of the party in the latest twist in an unfolding political drama following a major split in the party. Parliamentarian Jayantha Weerasekera was remanded till April 17 after he […]

April 10, 2008 (LBO) – A host of media rights groups from around the world have written to Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapakse urging him to ‘stop the war on journalists’ and probe a spate of recent attacks on the island’s media. “The international press freedom and human rights community is extremely concerned that journalists […]