Tag: Sri Lanka
Human rights on decline in Sri Lanka: US
WASHINGTON, February 25, 2009 (AFP) – Human rights are on the decline in Sri Lanka with the government and Tamil Tiger rebels both committing violations as the three-decade war intensifies, the US State Department said Wednesday. In an annual global report, the State Department also said that media freedom was deteriorating on the island with […]
Sri Lankan Tamil editor arrested: police
February 26, 2009 (AFP) – A Tamil newspaper editor was arrested in Sri Lanka’s capital Thursday, police said, after colleagues and family members complained that he had been abducted while attending a funeral.Police spokesman Senior Superintendent Ranjith Gunasekara said N. Vidyatharan was taken in for questioning by the police crime division in connection with activities […]
‘s tax office back in business
Feb 25, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lankan tax payers are being asked by the Inland Revenue Department (IRD) to continue to pay their dues, as the island’s tax office is operating as usual after last week’s Tamil Tiger air attack on its headquarters building. A government minister said the IRD’s tax data base had not […]
Sri Lanka cuts reserve ratio again
Feb 24, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka has cut the statutory reserve ratio (SRR) or percentage of deposits commercial banks must keep with the central bank, by 75 basis points to 7.0 percent releasing 9 billion rupees of cash to the system.From September to December, Sri Lanka’s official reserves have halved from 3.4 to 1.7 […]
Sri Lanka, developing countries, face more challenges and poverty from downturn: economists
Feb 20, 2009 (LBO) – While developed countries are facing economic contraction, developing nations are facing increases of absolute poverty, with some countries like Sri Lanka having little fiscal room to maneuver, economists have said. A global economic crunch from a collapsing housing, financial and commodity bubble was slowing ‘economic growth’ worldwide, with world growth […]
Sri Lanka inflation to fall to 8.0-pct by end-Feb: CB Governor
Feb 20, 2009 (LBO) – Falling inflation is giving Sri Lanka more room to loosen monetary policy, Central Bank Governor Nivard Cabraal said Friday, though the island is grappling with a balance of payments problem. Sri Lanka’s 12-month inflation would fall to around 8.0 percent in February from 10.7 percent in January and year-end inflation […]
Top UN official to visit restive Sri Lanka
UNITED NATIONS, February 18, 2009 (AFP) – UN humanitarian chief John Holmes is to pay a three-day visit to strife-torn Sri Lanka later this week to review the humanitarian situation, the world body said Wednesday. During his previous visit to Sri Lanka in August 2007, Holmes described the island as one of the world’s most […]
Sri Lanka official reserves US$1.7 billion in December
Feb 19, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s foreign reserves fell to 1,753 million US dollars in December from 2,030 million US dollars in November which was enough to finance 1.5 months of imports, the Central Bank said. Gross official reserves with Asian Clearing Union (ACU) funds was 2,561 million US dollars which was enough to […]
Sri Lanka ex-warlord says Tamils want development, warns of continued guerrilla strife: interview
February 19, 2009 (AFP) – Sri Lankan troops face another 18 months of fighting even after they have all Tamil Tiger territory under their control, a former rebel has warned.The man known as “Colonel Karuna,” who led an unprecedented split in the movement in 2004, says the Tigers will revert to guerrilla warfare after they […]
UN envoy in Sri Lanka expresses fears for civilians
February 19, 2009 (AFP) – The United Nations humanitarian chief John Holmes held talks with leaders in Sri Lanka on Thursday and said he was gravely concerned for thousands of civilians trapped in the island’s war zone. Holmes met Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama after the Tamil Tiger rebels suffered a series of defeats that have […]
Sri Lanka must sacrifice growth for stability: economist
Feb 19, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s government should focus on restoring macro-economic fundamentals which have deteriorated in recent years to help it overcome the global economic crisis, even if means slower growth, an economist has said. Resources had to be set aside for both while the government had to do normal development activities. But […]
India ready to help evacuation of Sri Lankan Tamil civillians
NEW DELHI, February 18, 2009 (AFP) – India said Wednesday it was ready to help evacuate tens of thousands of Tamil civilians caught in the crossfire between Sri Lankan troops and Tiger rebels in the northeast of the island.Indian troops, sent in by ex-Congress premier Rajiv Gandhi to enforce a peace deal on the island, […]