Tag: lankabusinessonline
Energy Projects
April 29, 2008 (AFP) – Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Tuesday launched a 1.2-billion-dollar project largely funded by Tehran to upgrade Sri Lanka’s sole oil refinery, officials said. Ahmadinejad and Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse planted an ebony sapling to launch work at the Sapugaskande refinery, just outside the capital Colombo. The four-year upgrade will […]
Iranian president touch down in Pakistan before Sri Lanka vist
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, […]
Sri Lankans pray for miracles as civilians pay high price
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 […]
Sri Lanka human rights record criticised by foreign experts
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 […]
Sri Lanka must improve human rights, ensure free poll, says US official
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 […]
Tigers accuse Sri Lanka of killing priest
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 […]
Sri Lanka media watchdog says its treasurer threatened, ransom demanded
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 […]
Sri Lanka war zone hospitals short of medical staff, aid: ICRC
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 […]
Sri Lanka opposition, govt trade charges over sanctions threat
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 […]
Pricing Issue
April 16, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka would raise fuel prices before the end of the month after running losses of 7.2 billion rupees in 2008, petroleum minister A H M Fowzie said. Up to April 15, the state-run Ceylon Petroleum Corporation had lost 1,856 million rupees. In March the utility had lost 3,769 million […]
Persian Present
April 16, 2008 (LBO) – Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will flag off a billion dollar oil refinery in Sri Lanka, as part of his state visit to the island later this month, officials said. . Sri Lanka’s petroleum minister A H M Fowzie said President Ahmadinejad would lay the foundation stone for the refinery on […]
Sri Lanka told to clean up human rights record
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 […]