Category: Politics

December 17, 2009 (AFP) – Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse and his main rival in elections next month, former army general Sarath Fonseka, handed in their poll nomination papers on Thursday.Rajapakse and Fonseka, both dressed in white national dress, were among 22 candidates whose papers were accepted by the national Election Commission. Rajapakse has called […]

BRUSSELS, December 16, 2009 (AFP) – The European Commission on Wednesday granted more aid for tens of thousands of people who fled fighting between Sri Lankan forces and Tamil fighters, voicing concern for their lack of protection.The commission is “concerned by the lack of protection for the internally displaced, especially for female-headed households and single […]

Dec 15, 2009 (LBO) – Famous, if fictional detective John Rebus, finely illustrated graphic novels and sensational pulp fiction are billed to make Sri Lanka’s next literary festival a tourist draw card. South Asian writers including Mohamed Hanif, (A Case of Exploding Mangoes), Rana Dasgupta (Tokyo Cancelled), Amit Varma (My Friend Sancho) will attend the […]

December 15, 2009 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s recovery from its decades-long civil war has been marred by graft, violence and a culture of lawlessness, a global watchdog said Tuesday.Transparency International rapped the government — which crushed the Tamil Tiger separatist rebels in May — for a lack of democracy, accountability and transparency. “The latter half […]

December 8, 2009 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s former military chief who led troops to victory over Tamil separatists in May said he fears fugitive rebels will try to assassinate him during his presidential election campaign.Sarath Fonseka, who is trying to unseat President Mahinda Rajapakse in the January 26 elections, told AFP that about 1,000 Tamil […]

WASHINGTON, December 7, 2009 (AFP) – A US Senate report warned Monday that Washington risked “losing” Sri Lanka as it recovers from war and called for more active engagement to stop the island drifting from the West.The Senate Foreign Relations Committee, in a bipartisan study, said the United States should be firm on human rights […]

December 4, 2009 (AFP) – Sri Lanka has maintained its ban on journalists reporting the plight of war-displaced civilians who have been allowed out of their internment camps, officials said Friday.Foreign minister Rohitha Bogollagama declared in a BBC interview Tuesday that the media now had full access, prompting a flood of requests from reporters to […]

WASHINGTON, December 4, 2009 (AFP) – A senior US envoy will head to Sri Lanka next week to encourage post-war reconciliation, days after the island nation allowed Tamil civilians to leave detention camps, officials said Friday.Robert Blake, the assistant secretary of state for South Asia, will visit Sri Lanka on Monday and Tuesday in the […]

December 2, 2009 (AFP) – Amnesty International on Wednesday pushed Sri Lanka to grant full freedom to 130,000 Tamil civilians who have been allowed out of camps where they were detained following the island’s ethnic conflict.The government said the camp inmates, who were displaced in the war against the Tamil Tiger rebels, were now free […]

November 30, 2009 (AFP) – Sri Lanka will Tuesday allow thousands of civilians to leave state-run camps where they have been detained since the military’s victory over Tamil Tiger separatist rebels, a senior official said.About 128,000 men, women and children who were displaced during the final stages of the conflict remain in heavily guarded military […]

VAVUNIYA, December 1, 2009 (AFP) – Tens of thousands of Sri Lankan civilians held in state-run camps following the island’s ethnic conflict were allowed to walk free Tuesday, ending their internationally-condemned detention.Men, women and children were given their first opportunity to leave the northern Manik Farm complex since their incarceration over seven months ago. But […]

SYDNEY, November 30, 2009 (AFP) – Australia unveiled Perth on Monday as the venue for the next Commonwealth summit in 2011, as the international club’s latest gathering ended in Trinidad and Tobago.Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said it was a “tremendous opportunity” for the west-coast city, which is at the heart of the country’s commodities boom. […]