Tag: politics

COLOMBO, November 15, 2013 (AFP) – Mahinda Rajapakse may be a pariah for some of his Commonwealth peers, but for many of his fellow Sri Lankans he is a national hero who ended four decades of bloodshed.The combative Sri Lankan president has long battled allegations that his troops killed some 40,000 civilians in the closing […]

COLOMBO, November 13, 2013 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s military stopped scores of ethnic Tamils protesters from entering the capital Wednesday ahead of a Commonwealth summit as a British TV crew was barred from a former warzone.A UN panel in 2011 found as many as 40,000 civilians may have been killed in the final months of […]

PORT LOUIS, November 12, 2013 (AFP) – The prime minister of Mauritius announced Tuesday he will stay away from this week’s Commonwealth summit in Sri Lanka because of the host’s poor human rights record.Mauritius joins India and Canada in refusing to send a premier to Sri Lanka, which is accused of widespread human rights abuses […]

LONDON, November 11, 2013 (AFP) – Britain’s heir to the throne Prince Charles can draw his state pension from Thursday when he turns 65 — despite having yet to start the job he has eyed for a lifetime.But when most Britons his age will be settling into their retirement, Charles can be expected to take […]

NEW DELHI, November 10, 2013 (AFP) – Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will skip this week’s Commonwealth summit in Sri Lanka, the foreign ministry said Sunday, as pressure grows for a boycott of the event over alleged war crimes by Colombo.Singh sent a letter to Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse on Sunday telling him of […]

WELLINGTON, November 11, 2013 (AFP) – New Zealand Prime Minister John Key said Monday he will attend a Commonwealth summit in Sri Lanka despite his Indian counterpart pulling out amid pressure for a boycott over alleged war crimes by Colombo.Key said his presence at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) this week did not […]

COLOMBO, November 11, 2013 (AFP) – Pro-government activists demonstrated outside Sri Lanka’s main international airport Monday denouncing a visit by Britain’s Channel 4 which produced an award-winning documentary on alleged war crimes during the island’s ethnic war.Activists shouted slogans against a crew from the network as they arrived to cover a meeting of Commonwealth countries […]

NEW DELHI, November 4, 2013 (AFP) – A senior Indian minister Monday urged Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to boycott a Commonwealth summit in Sri Lanka over human rights abuses, joining opposition in government ranks to the trip.Environment Minister Jayanthi Natarajan said she wanted Singh to consider the “strong sentiments” of ethnic Tamils and stay away […]

October 25, 2013 (AFP) – Britain’s David Cameron is set to become the first foreign leader to visit Sri Lanka’s war-torn Tamil heartland during next month’s Commonwealth summit when he will press Colombo on human rights.British High Commissioner (ambassador) in Colombo, John Rankin, made it clear last week that London’s concern was not limited to […]

Oct 21, 2013 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Ceylon Chamber of Commerce says recent elections in the former war-torn Northern Province, and subsequent events are give rise to optimism about the future. “These actions of the country’s political leadership, at both the national & provincial levels, provide grounds for optimism about the future prospects of all […]

ULAN BATOR, October 10, 2013 (AFP) – A silver swastika hanging around his neck, Boldbaatar Gombodorj points out his targets on a map of Mongolia like a World War II commander: little flags representing foreign mining firms that he and fellow “eco-Nazis” accuse of destroying their country.Mongolia’s mining boom has brought the vast, sparsely populated […]

NUSA DUA, October 8, 2013 (AFP) – Canada’s Prime Minister Stephen Harper has threatened to withdraw funding for the Commonwealth in an escalating row over rights abuses by Sri Lanka ahead of a summit next month.Harper confirmed late Monday that he was boycotting the November 15-17 summit in Colombo, citing “the absence of accountability for […]