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Sri Lanka polls open for tense presidential election
January 26, 2010 (AFP) – Pre-dawn bomb blasts in Sri Lanka’s Tamil heartland escalated tensions as the country went to the polls Tuesday in the first presidential election since the end of its 37-year ethnic conflict. The bomb attacks in the northern peninsula of Jaffna were a violent start to an already bitter contest between […]
Bomb blasts shadow bitter Sri Lankan presidential poll
January 26, 2010 (AFP) – Pre-dawn bomb blasts in Sri Lanka’s Tamil heartland escalated tensions as the country went to the polls Tuesday in the first presidential election since the end of its 37-year civil war. The bomb attacks on the house of a ruling party activist in the northern peninsula of Jaffna underlined the […]
Sri Lanka northern polling low: monitors
Jan 26, 2010 (LBO) – Polling in Sri Lanka’s north was estimated to be about 15 to 20 percent and in the east about 50 percent while the rest of the country had higher turnouts by early afternoon, a poll monitoring group said. Reports said war refugees in the north had difficulties in getting transport […]
Sri Lankan Tamils pray for post-election peace
VAVUNIYA, January 26, 2010 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s minority Tamils, for decades in the crossfire between rebels and government forces, hope their potentially decisive role in Tuesday’s election will finally bring them peace. The two main candidates, President Mahinda Rajapakse and former general Sarath Fonseka, were the architects of a final assault on Tamil Tiger […]
Sri Lanka heads to polls for tense election
January 25, 2010 (AFP) – Sri Lanka goes to the polls Tuesday in its first post-war presidential election, contested by the men who ended the island nation’s 37-year conflict but whose bitter clash threatens more instability. “If there is a war, we will face it,” he added, threatening street protests and rallies. Rajapakse, like Fonseka […]
Sri Lankan stock close 0.64-pct up
Jan 25, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka stocks up closed 0.6 percent higher Monday ahead of presidential polls tomorrow despite heavy foreign selling and index-heavy John Keells Holdings reporter strong results for the December quarter, brokers said. The All Share Price Index closed at 3,554.45, up 0.64 percent (22.72 points), while the Milanka index of […]
Peace Banking
Jan 25, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lankan banks have opened 25 branches in former war torn areas in the north and the east of the island since the end of an internal conflict, while the Central Bank has given the nod for another 53 branches, an official said. A 30-year war with Tamil Tiger separatists […]
Sri Lanka Navy ship as floating venue
Jan 25, 2010 (LBO) – A refurbished troop transport is being hired out as a conference and wedding venue by the Sri Lanka Navy in a joint move with the island’s tourist promotion agency, officials said. The ship is being marketed as a venue for weddings, conference and corporate events. The ship can be booked […]
Sri Lanka president urges free and fair poll
January 25, 2010 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s president vowed Monday to ensure the island’s first post-war presidential election goes off peacefully after deadly violence and opposition claims the ruling party was plotting a coup. Fonseka’s side said Sunday there was evidence of a coup plot by Rajapakse’s ruling party to try to hold on to […]
‘s war allies turn enemies
January 24, 2010 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s election this week features two men who emerged victorious on the battlefield of a civil war, but have since become bitter political enemies. President Mahinda Rajapakse, a veteran streetfighter politician who entered parliament aged 24, is taking on his former army chief Sarath Fonseka, a political novice who […]
‘s ruling party figure defects
January 24, 2010 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s president suffered a major defection on Sunday when the matriarch of his party pledged support for the main opposition candidate ahead of Tuesday’s fiercely contested election. Kumaratunga’s family has strong support among SLFP activists and her endorsement is seen as a boost to Fonseka, who is backed by […]
Lawmaker bids to make Nepal gay tourism destination
KATHMANDU, January 24, 2010 (AFP) – Nepal will this year play host to a royal wedding with a difference when an openly gay Indian prince marries his partner at a Hindu temple in Kathmandu. The ceremony is the start of what Nepalese lawmaker Sunil Babu Pant hopes will become a lucrative business for his country, […]