Category:
Newly appointed monetary board member Nimal Welgama declines the job
July 16, 2006 (LBO) – Businessman Nimal Welgama has declined a seat on the country’s Monetary Board due to an ongoing inquiry by the Central Bank, according to newspaper reports. Welgama, who was appointed to the board by President Mahinda Rajapakse on July 3, is currently the Managing Director of the Upali Group. The Upali […]
Sri Lanka Tiger official leaves hospital after heart treatment
July 15, 2006 (AFP) – A Tamil rebel official was discharged from hospital here Saturday after treatment for a heart problem and was provided with security as he returned to a guerrilla-held area, officials said.Velayudam Dayanidi, better known as Daya Master, the media coordinator of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) was admitted to […]
Tigers return bodies of Sri Lankan soldiers
July 15, 2006 (AFP) – Tamil Tiger rebels Saturday returned the bodies of 12 Sri Lankan soldiers killed by them in the island’s restive east, officials said.The fighting around the rebel-dominated village of Vakaneri was described by Sri Lankan government officials as the worst single incident since a June 17 sea battle in which 15 […]
Ex-captain Ranatunga, three others set to run Sri Lanka’s cricket
July 14, 2006 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s only World Cup winning captain Arjuna Ranatunga is among four cricketers recommended by ex-players to run the sport in the island nation, sources told AFP on Friday.Elections to Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC), scheduled to be held on Saturday, were cancelled on the advice of the country’s President Mahinda […]
Tourist arrivals dip in June as industry battles off-season, politics
July 14, 2006 (LBO) – Tourist arrivals to Sri Lanka slipped slightly in June as arrivals from some key markets in Europe, including the United Kingdom, turned negative. Arrivals dropped 3.6 percent in June to just over 44,000 tourists, Sri Lanka’s Tourist Board said, with the industry still in off-season and also battling political upheaval. […]
Now Showing
July 14, 2006 (LBO) – The local cinema industry is trying to get a 15 percent Value Added Tax (VAT) on theatre tickets lifted from August, top officials said Friday. The government has agreed in principle to exempt theatre tickets from VAT, from August 1, and we have to now prepare a Cabinet memorandum to […]
Tsunami aid worth 7,100 dollars per person: study
GENEVA, July 14, 2006 (AFP) – The outpouring of international aid in the wake of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami translated into an average of 7,100 dollars per affected person, according to a new report Friday.The study by the Tsunami Evaluation Coalition (TEC), an international group of aid agencies, said that donors’ generosity contrasted starkly […]
In India, women fight harassment of “Eve teasing”
BANGALORE, India, July 14, 2006 (AFP) – On the streets of this booming Indian city, Laura Neuhaus says she is constantly on guard against men who brush against her body. “People run up and grab my butt, my breast and brush against me purposely,” Neuhaus says. “It happens so fast.” “I will be walking with […]
‘s cricket
July 14, 2006 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s only World Cup winning captain Arjuna Ranatunga is among four cricketers recommended by ex-players to run the sport in the island nation, sources told AFP on Friday.Elections to Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC), scheduled to be held on Saturday, were cancelled on the advice of the country’s President Mahinda […]
Sri Lanka hunts for sponsorships and volunteers for South Asian Games
July 14, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka will host the tenth South Asian games in August, but is scraping the barrel for sponsorships and volunteers to pull it off. Required sponsorships have gone up from an expected 200 million rupees to 300 million, following unplanned expenses to upgrade the Sugathadasa Stadium. We have raised about […]
Italian makeover for Indian cricketers
NEW DELHI, July 14, 2006 (AFP) – India’s cricketers could soon be touring in Italian designer suits if a deal goes ahead with Milan-based fashion house Canali, an official said Friday.Canali has bid a handsome amount for the rights to provide jackets, trousers, shirts, ties and shoes for the players, Indian cricket board secretary Niranjan […]
France asks Sri Lanka parties to resume peace talks
July 14, 2006 (AFP) – France Friday asked Sri Lanka’s warring parties to resume peace negotiations amid an escalation of fighting and said a peace deal was still possible in the embattled South Asian nation.The outgoing French ambassador Jean Bernard de Vaivre said the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) must stop using violence […]