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President at Arugam Bay

Published on 01/07/2008 in Blogs, From our own Correspondent, Money Matters, press coverage and Security & Safety. 0 Comments

“We are determined to continue the efforts until the goal is achieved,” President

“The endeavour and commitment of the government is to ensure the victory of the people regardless of any challenge,” said President Rajapaksa said today (01).

The President, speaking at the occasion of declaring opening the newly constructed bridge at Arugam Bay, said that the government has initiated massive development programmes while liberating people from the clutches of terrorists and that this development drive cannot be abandoned despite many conspiracies including attacks on journalists.

He was referring to an incident that occured yesterday when a journalist and his friend were attacked in Colombo. The President categorically stated that this was yet another attempt to tarnish the image of the country at a critical time in its history and roll back the victories in the battlefield.

Speaking further President said that despite the difficulties confronted along the way, the Government was determined to continue the efforts until the ultimate goal is achieved.

He said the Arugam Bay bridge was milestone of the Nagenahira Navodaya (Eastern Awakening) development programme and noted that this bridge will bring many benefits to the communities engaged in agriculture, fisheries and other industries.

While expressing gratitude to the US government President Rajapaksa pointed out that unity was essential in order to obtain the support of the international community and called upon everyone to set aside differences and join the common cause of ridding the country of terrorism and developing those areas that had already been liberated from the clutches of terrorists.

The state-of -the-art bridge constructed at a cost of US $ 10 million, will replace the old bridge over Arugam Bay which was severely damaged in the tsunami.

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The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) provided financial assistance for the construction of the bridge which has been designed and built using US technology.

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Courtesy: Government Information Department

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link:
http://www.defence.lk/new.asp?fname=20080701_06

Water for Arugam Bay

Published on 22/06/2008 in Blogs, Money Matters, press coverage and services. 0 Comments

Saturday, 21 June 2008

A water distribution project for the Ampara Districts of the Eastern Province is to get underway with the assistance of United States Agency for International Development Agency (USAID) and the international relief organization AmeriCares.

A Memorandum of Understanding with regard to the project was signed between the two organizations on June 17.

The completed project will serve an estimated 2,400 inhabitants in the Arugam Bay area by distributing clean and safe drinking water directly to the people.

Immediately following the 2004 tsunami the Government identified a number of sectors and specific projects in critical need of donor assistance and funding. One of the identified human health needs was the challenge of providing safe drinking water for several eastern region communities, including the Arugam Bay Cual es el generico de avapro area. The wells serving this community were mostly open, which had been overtopped and polluted by the large waves when they hit the eastern shore.

The financial grant of one million US dollar provided by AmeriCares will be added to USAID’s already committed 6 million US dollar investment in wells, transmission lines, treatment plant and a large elevated storage tank to assure new safe water sources for the beneficiary community.

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http://www.news.lk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=6216&Itemid=44

Arugam Bay Land Grab

Published on 13/06/2008 in Blogs, Money Matters, press coverage and the bay. 0 Comments

Outrage at Arugam Bay

The Government of Sri Lanka has imposed a rule in Sri Lanka that no – one can rebuild homes within in a certain distance of the sea, beach. Sometimes rumour was that the distance was 100 meters other times the distance was to be 200 meters.

This has meant that nearly six months on people are still living in refugee camps. They are getting desperate to move back home. Home for many is on/near the beach because they are fishing people. However, in Arugam Bay they have other plans!
Current situation specific to Arugam Bay

On May 17th there was a meeting for Arugam Bay representatives. Participating were the Tourist Board Chairman Mr Udaya Nanayakkara with collegues, Harshna Navarante Sewelanka Foundation Chairman and colleagues. Plus representatives from the Fisheries, Tourism,Surfing, Women. They were seeking further insight as to the plans of the tourist board for the region.

This is a summary of the response from the Chairman of the Tourist Board as described in the minutes of the meeting. Brackets are my comments otherwise the points below are copied from the minutes of the meeting.

  1. I do not have any record of your tourism businesses. Legally you cannot prove that you had a tourism business because you are not registered with the boardA?a??A?
    (Even The Stardust is not considered legal even tough Per bought the land, the Stardust will be pulled down)     Buy hoodia diet pills australia
  2. We are only providing support for the registered, licensed people under our scheme
  3. If you build any illegal structures the army and the police will come and remove them
  4. I will show you a plan of that was prepared by the tourism board. There is a red line to indicate the land that has been acquired by the tourism board
    (There has been no consultation with the local people on this)
  5. Tourism should not just benefit the Colombo-based big business ownersA?a??A?

    source:
    http://www.arugam-bay.org/01a_landgrab/landgrab.htm

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Going to A’bay, Again

Published on 12/06/2008 in Blogs, people and press coverage. 0 Comments

So in a rare moment of total synergy I’m going to Arugambay tomorrow. O.k. it isn’t completely confirmed yet, but I’m trying my hand at this optimism thing people are always raving about. Lisa has to get back (since she now lives in A’bay) and her health insurance is paying for the trip (so free trip there, yeah). Then Lindsay and Jim are coming back to Colombo, so I can share the cost of getting back with them. Thus, I’m off. Lisa is at this moment (yes, 10 p.m. at night) confirming that we can actually leave at 5 a.m. tomorrow. I’m being positive that we are leaving then — I’ve already set my alarm.

This doesn’t completely make up for missing the trip to A’bay over Wesak, since that would have been a completely free ride, but it is close.

The point of this post is to avoid the frantic e-mails people send when there is a bombing and they don’t hear from me. I’ll be off-line for at least four days (maybe five). Yea

source:
http://expatwithelephants.blogspot.com/2008/06/going-to-abay-again.html

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Has the LTTE returned to the East?

Published on 09/06/2008 in Blogs, people, press coverage and Security & Safety. 0 Comments

Voveran online calculator Two separate incidents involving the LTTE were reported from the recently liberated eastern Province over the weekend.In one incident ten persons who had been abducted in Pottuvil area by an unidentified gang were released on Saturday. They told police that they were abducted by the LTTE and detained in a camp.

Pottuvil police with the help of the security forces were conducting inquiries to trace the location of the camp.

In another incident a homeguard was abducted in Pulmoddai area allegedly by the LTTE when he was roaming in the jungle with five children to collect fruits.

The armed gang who detained the home guard ordered the children to bring 50 packets of rice to release him. However, the children who were frightened of going back to meet them, informed police.

Police said a search operation in the area to trace the whereabouts of the home guard and to track down the abductors was going on. A?A?A?A?SDS

source:
http://www.dailymirror.lk/DM_BLOG/Sections/frmNewsDetailView.aspx?ARTID=17163 Buy tegretol 200mg

NOTEBOOK OF A NOBODY

Published on 07/06/2008 in people, press coverage and Security & Safety. 0 Comments

Civilian deaths are not acceptable under any circumstances
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by Shanie

Rajiva Wijesinha, Secretary-General of the Secretariat for Co-ordinating the Peace Process, has been extremely prompt with his lengthy response to this column of last week. This columnist had originally stated that the Peace Secretariat was in a state of denial with regard to civilian deaths. Wijesinha says that it is not true and that he would never try to justify civilian deaths. We will accept his word for that but the point made by this column still remains valid. Military operations began not long after the Mahinda Rajapaksa took office. Since then, hundreds of civilians have died. I trust Wijesinha will agree that only some of these have been by the LTTE; some by the Karuna/Pillaiyan Group and some by the security forces. Many of these were not caused by ground or aerial operations in the course of a battle but by deliberate targeting of the civilians. In several cases when the Government and the security forces are accused of causing civilian deaths both by UN and other international bodies and also by local human rights organisations, Wijesinha has been quick to “explain how they happened” (to use his own words). This column does not expect Wijesinha to issue statements on every violation of human rights and on every civilian death. But when he only issues statements A?a??E?explainingA?a??a?? civilian deaths in the course of military operations, is he not being selective? To this columnistA?a??a??s and, I am sure, to most independent observersA?a??a?? minds, this is not just an explanation but a justification. Is that not being in a state of denial?

Wijesinha will no doubt acknowledge that the LTTE has been responsible for hundreds of civilian deaths, as this column and other human rights organisations have accused them of. Would he also acknowledge that the security forces and the Karuna/Pillaiyan Group have also been accused of similar civilian deaths. (Wijesinha does not seem to like this columnA?a??a??s reference to this Karuna/Pillaiyan Group by this name A?a??a?? he prefers to call them TMVP, the name by which they are registered as a political party and with which the UPFA has signed an MoU. More about this later.)

Let us consider just a few well-known cases of civilian deaths : the killing of five students at Trincomalee in 2006, the 17 ACF aid workers at Mutur, the several civilians shot and killed in the churches at Pesalai and Allaipiddy (including five fishermen at Pesalai), ten farm labourers killed in Pottuvil, five students shot and killed at the Farm School in Vavuniya and the civilians (including schoolchildren) killed in claymore mine attacks at Periyamadhu, and Murikandy in the Vanni. Besides scores of individuals, including parliamentarians, clergypersons and ordinary citizens, have been abducted or extra-judicially killed or disappeared without a trace. Given his liberal antecedents, this columnist is prepared to accept WijesinhaA?a??a??s regret over these killings as being genuine. We are also prepared to accept his statement that he is engaged in A?a??E?positive activities in pursuit of peaceA?a??a??. But when he only issues statements “explaining” (or justifying) attacks on civilians, he is treading on vulnerable ground.

Conscription of underage children, Human Rights and TMVP

Wijesinha is certainly on very thin ground when he asserts that a high proportion of children in the custody of the Karuna/Pillaiyan Group have been released. This is not the view of independent observers in the Batticaloa District. Hundreds of children were taken away not only from IDP camps but from homes and schools as well. Under 50 have been released. This is certainly a token number meant to fool naA?A?ve folk; and Wijesinha is being incredibly naA?A?ve if he really believes what he has stated.

Wijesinha implies that ever since the TMVP was formed, the Karuna/Pillaiyan Group have turned over a new leaf. We hope he realises that the acronym TMVP stands for Thamil Makkal Viduthalai Puligal, which translated means Liberation Tigers of the Tamil People. Does not that by itself ring an alarm bell in Wijesinha and others who now sing praises of Pillaiyan? The people of the East have yet to see any change in the “liberated” East except a change in the label attached to their tormentors. Abductions and extra-judicial killings go on as before. What does Wijesinha have to say about the new extra-parliamentary tactic of abducting families and relatives of parliamentarians before crucial votes in Parliament? Wijesinha, given the nature of his work and the contacts he has, cannot be unaware that the ground situation for the people of the Batticaloa District has not changed one bit. They still live in fear of terrorism unleashed by both strands of Liberation Tigers but now more dangerously because one strand enjoys the backing and protection of the Government and the security forces.

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This columnist has no doubt that Wijesinha is committed to peace, to observance of human rights and the rule of law and to a just political settlement on the National Question. We have also no reason to doubt that he is engaging himself in A?a??E?positive activities in pursuit of peaceA?a??a??. This columnist has no intention of advising him on how to do his job. But we re-iterate that it will serve his cause better if he refrains from trying to defend the indefensible.

War and Journalistic Freedom

The Defence Secretary recently summoned some working journalists from state-owned newspapers and warned them about the reports they filed. He is reported to have told them that if they criticised the armed forces, the Government would not defend them if they were physically “attacked”. In a parallel development, the website of the Defence Ministry has reportedly referred to such media persons as “traitors”. We now have a clue as to the attackers of Keith Noyahr, though Mervyn de Silva was more open when he took on the Rupavahini editors.

War reporting is a delicate task. While the reporter may be privy to operational details, a responsible journalist will exercise some self-censorship. In the case of the current “war” in Sri Lanka, our journalists have shown discretion. If at all, they could be faulted for excessive self-censorship. Corruption, mismanagement and deliberate and unnecessary violation of human rights, even by the defence establishment and the security forces, needs to be exposed. Such exposes only help to win the war, by rooting out the corrupt and the incompetent from decision-making.

William Burchett was an Australian journalist who was in China as a correspondent of the London Daily Express. In 1945, he was the first foreign reporter to enter Hiroshima after the atomic bombing and filed his A?a??E?scoop of the centuryA?a??a?? in his report as a A?a??E?warning to the worldA?a??a?? that radiation poisoning was a reality in Hiroshima. His story was denied and a campaign launched to refute his claim. He was denounced as having fallen victim to enemy propaganda. Later, Burchett covered the Korean War. A US organisation claimed that the North Koreans had massacred all American prisoners. Within ten days, Burchett had filed pictures of US prisoners-ofA?a??a??war playing baseball and basketball and of a General, reported dead, playing chess with his guards. The Australian authorities had also reported a soldier killed in action. Burchett was able to report to the manA?a??a??s mother and to the Melbourne Sun that he was alive and well. For all his trouble, the Australian Government denied him a replacement Passport.

Despite the harassment he underwent at the hands of defence authorities, Burchett was quite clear about what was required in war journalism. He said: “Being discreet is obviously important but pretty much depends on what sort of field you are operating in, what sort of journalistic domain. If someone knew the date of the landing to open a second front during World War Two and they disclosed it, then they ought to be shot, because that would be risking the lives of tens of thousands of people. A lot of the journalists accredited to the allied side at the time had that date but nobody dared jeopardise the whole operation. ItA?a??a??s an extreme example but shows that while the job of the journalist is to get facts back to the public, exclusively if possible, there are limits.”

source:
http://www.island.lk/2008/06/07/features4.html

Security concerns hold back foreign traveller to the East

Published on 23/05/2008 in Blogs, Money Matters, people, press coverage and Security & Safety. 0 Comments

How much is carafate without insurance By Dilrukshi Fernando

The tourism industry is expected to thrive on a targeted paltry figure of around 1000 domestic tourists in an effort to boost travel to the East within the next quarter, a top government official told the Daily Financial Times yesterday.

The expected number is relatively low due to security concerns which is a factor preventing domestic tourists from touring the area, the official added.

A?a??A?The Ministry of Tourism hopes to engage in large scale infrastructure development and transportation to ensure a growth,A?a??A? the official said. The reason for targeting domestic tourists is a stratagem adopted by the Ministry of Tourism and the Sri Lanka Tourist Board (SLTB) through which they hope to reach the international market, the official pointed out.

With emphasis on the Eastern Province, a decline in tourist arrivals has been recorded in the Southern District. However the figures show a growth of 8.6% when compared with 2007 according to Tourism Ministry Secretary George Michael. A?a??A?Last year the number of tourist arrivals for March stand at 35,031 while this year it is 38, 049,A?a??A? he pointed out adding that the existing travel advisories and the prevalent security situation in Colombo might be discouraging factors. A?a??A?The industry has made plans to have round table discussions regarding this matter and we hope to meet in Hambantota in June to hold discussion with officials from the hotel trade, representatives from the Chambers of Commerce and Small and Medium Enterprise officials,A?a??A? he added.

In the meantime the transportation sector is to be developed by enabling railway facilities for domestic tourists at Arugam Bay according to Deputy Minister for Tourism, Faizer Musthapha. His comments came at the monthly discussion on tourism held at the Ministry yesterday. A?a??A?The ministry plans to work closely with the Provincial Council which plans to fund certain projects of the Tourism Ministry and SLTB. Finances will also be directed from donor funds.

The tourist police will be deployed in the resorts to ensure the safety of the tourists. A comprehensive website including information of the Arugam bay tourism prospects can be located at www.arugambay.com Generic for maxalt .

Meanwhile, in a technologically advanced initiative a web cam project will be initiated to monitor the wave pattern of the Arugam Bay which is considered one of the top ten surfing destinations in the world. A?a??A?Through this project, surfing enthusiasts all over the world can access the facility on the internet and tour the island for the much loved sport,A?a??A? Musthapha added. Plans also are underway to bring back the international surfing competition currently held in the Maldives back to Sri Lanka.

Steps will also be taken to work closely with the fishing community in the area and ensure that they are provided with basic toilet facilities. A hotel school will also be set up in the areas of Uppuweli and Arugam Bay on government property. A?a??A?This is part of the long term programmes while short term plans include training and skills development of youth whose employment in the Middle East will be ensured,A?a??A? Roy Jayasinghe said. A programme to launch a tourist guide training programme and a A?a??E?Home StayA?a??a?? programme where housewives will be trained on how to entertain guests will also be part of the steps to be taken to boost the Eastern Tourism industry.

source:
http://www.dailymirror.lk/DM_BLOG/Sections/frmNewsDetailView.aspx?ARTID=15541

Stuffing boxes

Published on 12/05/2008 in Blogs, Money Matters, press coverage and Security & Safety. 0 Comments
by Zacki Jabbar
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The UNP yesterday rejected the result of the Eastern Provincial Council Election,which the UPFA won by one seat,saying it would legally expose the widespread vote rigging and intimidation of candidates and voters by government goon squads.

The partyA?a??a??s media spokesperson Lakshman Kirielle told a news conference in Colombo,that they will prove to the people that the government backed UPFA circumvented the peoples will by resorting to violence and blatant vote rigging.”We have already written to the Elections Commissioner Dayananda Dissanayake listing out the election violations by ministers and UPFA candidates.”

“Serious malpractices took place especially in the Ampara District.In Pottuvil Is there a generic version of avapro , Akkaraipattu and Muttur, government goon squads invaded 40 polling booths and stuffed the ballot boxes to their hearts content while the presiding officers and police simply looked on.” Order colospa retard

Kirialle,said that at the last Presidential Election the UNP won the Pottuvil seat by 20,000 votes but on Saturday it lost that seat.”Such a thing could not have happened at a free and fair election.All the election monitors are agreed that there were serious election violations.I challenge the government to produce at least one report to the contrary.”

General Secretary of the UNP,Tissa Attanayake said that the government despite resorting to violence and abusing all the resources at its disposal, was able to get only one seat more than the opposition.

“Stuffing of ballot boxes were reported from 99 polling stations and in 91 of them the UNP was prevented from having polling agents.”

Attanayake, called on the Speaker to summon parliament immediately to discuss the serious break down in the law and order situation and also urged the government to immediately disarm all para military groups .

source:
http://www.island.lk/2008/05/12/news3.html

Bank set up in Lahugala

Published on 11/05/2008 in Blogs, Money Matters and press coverage. 0 Comments

by Chamikara WEERASINGHE
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A Samurdhi Development Bank was opened on Wednesday at Lahugala in accordance with a pledge made by President Mahinda Rajapaksa to the people of the Eastern Province during his Janapathi Janahamuwa programme, telecast via satellite on Thursday.

Director General of Samurdhi, Bandula Thilakasiri and Road Passenger Transport Minister Lasantha Alagiyawanna had taken steps to establish the Bank on the directions of President Rajapaksa, Nation Building and Estate Infrastructure Ministry sources said.

The President listened to the people in the Eastern Province and the problems they presented about their areas and its development through Janapathi Janahamuwa (The President Meets People) programme.

The request for a Samurdhi Bank came from a woman who was a participant .

As there was no Samurdhi Bank in the Lahugala area, the people in Lahugala had to go to Paanama where there is a Samurdhi Bank, travelling a distance of 37 kilometres, she told the President in the programme pointing out the need in Lahugala for a Samurdhi Bank.

President Rajapaksa promised to fulfil this need of the public in Lahugala for a Samurdhi Bank within the next 24 hours, and instructed the officials concerned to ensure that they establish a Samurdhi Bank in Lahugala.

source:
Diltiazem hydrochloride cream cost http://www.dailynews.lk/2008/05/10/news12.asp

Election ‘fun’ in PottuVille

Published on 11/05/2008 in Blogs, Money Matters, press coverage and Security & Safety. 0 Comments
 
 
Saturday, May 10, 2008

Aswar too becomes a rowdy

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(Lanka-e-News) President’s Adviser A.H.M. ASwer arrived in Sammanthurai, Al-Arfat school polling center in a vehicle bearing the number HW9736, trespassed No: 39 polling center Hall No: 01 and chased away the voters who had come for voting.
UNP media Bureau said that a group of thugs who came in vehicles bearing numbers 64-9347 (Pajero Intercooler), WP HH-7288 and 58-4198 assaulted a group travelled with MP Sarathchandra Rajakaruna at Thampalagamuwa in Trincomalee district.
The Vice Chairman of Ampara Pradeshiya Sabha Udeni Chinthaka came last night around 10 PM in a vehicle numbered 64-1804 and wielding a T-56 rifle and threatened W.A. Subasinghe, a UNP candidate.
UNP media bureau said that a group came in several vehicles with Minister Rishad Badurdheen attacked the vehicle of UNP MP Gayantha Karunathilaka and a group of people who were with him at Thoppur.
Minister Lasantha Alagiyawanna came to Hulannuge polling center in Pottuvil in an Irrigation Department vehicle bearing the number 65-7293 and a led a mob to prevent people voting. UNP media bureau further said that armed cadres of Pillaiyan Group allied with UPFA chased away the voters from polling centers in Trincomalee, Thiriyaya, Kiliweddi and Seruwila.

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source:
Biaxin price list http://www.thecolombotimes.com/2008/05/aswar-too-becomes-rowdy.html

Tigers sink ship on polling day

Published on 10/05/2008 in press coverage and Security & Safety. 0 Comments

Tamil Tiger rebels have sunk a naval cargo ship in eastern Sri Lanka, hours before voting got under way in important local elections. Buy evecare himalya

The navy said a 65-metre (213-ft) ship was hit by an underwater blast caused by a suicide diver, though no other casualties were reported.

Rebels said the ship had been loaded with munitions destined for Sri Lankan troops operating in the north.

Saturday’s local polls are the first in the region in 20 years.

They follow a government offensive last summer.

Troops drove the Tamil Tigers from their bases in the region, which they had controlled for 13 years.

Thousands of extra troops and police have been deployed to ensure security for the elections in the east coast towns of Batticaloa, Trincomalee and Ampara.

On Friday, at least 11 people died in a bomb attack on a cafe in Ampara, which was blamed on the Tigers. There was no immediate comment from the rebels.

‘Sea Tiger’ attack

A Sri Lankan navy spokesman, Commander DKP Dassanayake, said the cargo vessel Invisible “sank due to an underwater explosion” at around 0215 local time (2045 GMT Friday).

“We suspect the blast was carried out by a suicide diver,” he said.

He gave no details of the ship’s cargo.

A rebel statement quoted by AFP news agency said “Sea Tiger underwater naval commandos” had attacked the ship just before dawn.

The army blamed the Tigers for the attack on the cafe in Ampara, in which 36 people were also wounded.

Fighting is continuing in the north where the rebels have their main stronghold.

About 70,000 people have been killed since the civil war began in 1983. The rebels want an independent state for minority Tamils in the north and east.

The BBC’s Roland Buerk in Colombo says Saturday’s vote will lay the foundation for limited devolution that the government says is the answer to Tamil complaints of domination by Sinhalese-led central governments.

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Several dead in Sri Lankan bombing

Published on 10/05/2008 in press coverage and Security & Safety. 0 Comments
Several dead in Sri Lankan bombing

The government has accused the LTTE of trying to sabotage regional elections with the attack [AFP]
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The government has blamed the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) for Friday’s explosion, saying that it was an attempt to sabotage the elections and general development activities in the area.
 

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Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara, a military spokesman, said: “There has been an explosion in Ampara town a little while ago. Eleven civilians were killed and 29 injured. It is definitely by the LTTE.”
The LTTE did not immediately comment on the incident.
Unknown target
Police said the target of blast in the crowded New City Cafe was unclear, despite a government minister’s convoy passing through the area minutes beforehand.
Related


Timeline: The Sri Lankan conflict

The injured were taken to the local Ampara hospital. Police said nine women and two men died in the attack.

Fighting has intensified between the Tamil fighters and government forces along the northern frontier between the two groups in recent months.
Security along the eastern coast has been stepped up for the elections in Batticaloa, Trincomalee and Ampara on Saturday to elect officials to run the eastern provincial council.
The military had expelled Tamil fighters from large areas of the east, formerly a LTTE stronghold, in July 2007.
‘Hearts and minds’
The elections are part of Mahinda Rajapakse’s, Sri Lanka’s president, government’s policy to devolve power to minority Tamil areas, which they hope will occur in parallel with a military victory over the LTTE.
Rajapakse has expressed his desire to win the “hearts and minds” of “liberated” Tamils affected by the war by devolving power.
It is a policy the government also wants to take to northern areas held by the LTTE.
Tens of thousands of people have died in the war in which the LTTE are attempting to gain a separate homeland for minority Tamils in the island’s north and east.

Bombing on eve of Sri Lanka polls

Published on 10/05/2008 in press coverage and Security & Safety. 0 Comments

Cheap rizact At least 11 people have been killed in a bombing on the eve of elections in eastern Sri Lanka, the military says.

City Hotel Ampara

More than 20 others were wounded in the blast in a cafe in the town of Ampara, 220km (130 miles) from Colombo. Tamil Tiger rebels have been blamed.

Security is tight in the east of the island, a day before the region’s first provincial elections in 20 years.

Fighting between troops and Tamil Tigers has worsened this year after the government pulled out of a truce.

Limited devolution Buy cheap albendazole without prescription The director of Ampara national hospital, Dr Lankathilake Jayasinghe, told the BBC’s Sinhala Service that 11 people had been killed and 36 injured in the blast.

Military spokesman Brig Udaya Nanayakkara said the 11 people killed were all civilians.

The explosion hit a small restaurant called the City Cafe and Bake House.

Brig Nanayakkara said the blast was clearly the work of the rebels, or the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) as they are known.

“Yes definitely, it’s the LTTE,” he said. “They have done similar explosions in Colombo and its suburbs. This was also done by them.”

Voters in the east coast towns of Batticaloa, Trincomalee and Amapara go to the polls on Saturday to elect the eastern provincial council.

The elections come after government troops drove the Tamil Tigers from their bases in the east last summer.

The BBC’s Roland Buerk in Colombo says Saturday’s vote will lay the foundation for limited devolution that the government says is the answer to Tamil complaints of domination by Sinhalese-led central governments.

‘Town taken’

Meanwhile, fighting is going on in the north where the rebels have their main stronghold.

The military said a small town and an area of territory were captured on Friday and 31 Tiger fighters were killed as well as three soldiers. The account cannot be independently verified.

About 70,000 people have been killed since the civil war began in 1983. The rebels want an independent state for minority Tamils in the north and east.

source:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7392571.stm

Co2 neutral

Published on 09/05/2008 in Blogs, Ideas, press coverage, presse-deutsch and wild life. 0 Comments

10 Millionen BA?A?ume in 5 Jahren A?a??a??
Sri Lanka will Co2 neutral werden

Frankfurt/Colombo Mai 2008: Zehn Millionen BA?A?ume will der Rotary Club von Sri Lanka in den kommenden fA?A?nf Jahren als Beitrag zum Klimaschutz pflanzen. Die ehrgeizige Aktion ist Teil einer Tourismusinitiative, die Sri Lanka anlA?A?sslich der Umweltkonferenz der Vereinten Nationen im vergangenen Oktober in Davos angekA?A?ndigt hat. Das groA?A?angelegte A?a??A?Earth Lung ProjektA?a??A? zielt darauf, schA?A?dliche Emissionen, wie zum Beispiel durch den Flugverkehr verursacht, nachhaltig zu reduzieren und die Insel zu einem kohlendioxidfreien Ferienziel zu machen.

A?a??A?Auch Touristen denken beim Reisen zunehmend an die Folgen fA?A?r die UmweltA?a??A?, meint Channa Jayasinghe, Direktor des Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau in Frankfurt. A?a??A?Wir sehen der Tatsache ins Auge, dass viele unserer GA?A?ste eine lange Anreise haben und wollen alles tun, um den SchadstoffausstoA?A? zu minimieren.A?a??A?

Sri Lanka soll Co2 neutral werden lautet die strikte Zielsetzung mit deren Umsetzung bereits begonnen wurde: In der reizvollen Bergregion von Hunas Falls fiel kA?A?rzlich mit einer ersten groA?A?en Pflanzaktion der Startschuss fA?A?r das langfristig angelegte, gewaltige Aufforstungsprojekt.

Bereits heute bedecken die tropischen WA?A?lder rund 24% der GesamtflA?A?che der Insel. Die WA?A?lder nehmen Kohlenstoff auf und kompensieren so den AusstoA?A? durch die Verbrennung von fossilen EnergietrA?A?gern, wie Kerosin und A?a??l. Eine nachhaltige Forstwirtschaft soll die tropischen WA?A?lder der Insel als wichtige CO2 Speicher pflegen und flA?A?chenmA?A?A?A?ig ausdehnen.

Ganz im Zeichen der Umweltinitiative steht auch das kommende A?a??A?Vogue Lifestyles WeekendA?a??A? vom 30. Mai bis 1. Juni 2008 im Colombo. Amtierende SchA?A?nheitskA?A?niginnen aus aller Welt werden anlA?A?sslich der bedeutenden Fashion-Show A?a??A?grA?A?neA?a??A? Mode von asiatischen Top-Designern auf dem Catwalk prA?A?sentieren: farbenprA?A?chtige Roben aus naturbelassenen Materialien und phantasievollen Dekors, die die Natur reflektieren. Der ErlA?A?s kommt dem nationalen Aufforstungsprojekt zugute.

Glucophage price in philippines Auch Sri Lankas Textilindustrie schlieA?A?t sich der Initiative an: Zwei der grA?A?A?A?ten Textilhersteller haben bereits mehrere Millionen Euro zur VerfA?A?gung gestellt, um ihre Produktion umzurA?A?sten und so die Freisetzung von Co2 zu minimieren und nachhaltig Energie und Wasser einzusparen. Weitere Industriebetriebe wollen im Laufe des Jahres folgen. Order arcoxia prospect

Channa Jayasinghe: A?a??A?Das gewaltige Vorhaben gewinnt in Sri Lanka immer mehr an Fahrt und wir wA?A?rden uns freuen wenn sich weitere LA?A?nder anschlieA?A?en.A?a??A?

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Presseinformation | Kontakt:

mk Advertising . Travel . Public Relations | Monika Blachian
Goethestr. 66 | 80336 MA?A?nchen | Tel. +49-89-590 439 04
Fax +49-89-516 568 94 | blachian@mkadvertising.de | www.mkadvertising.de

Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau| Direktor Channa Jayasinghe
Allerheiligentor 2-4 I 60311 Frankfurt/M. | Tel. +49-69-28 77 34
Fax +49-69-28 83 71 | info.germany@srilanka.travel | www.srilanka.travel

All set for Eastern Poll

Published on 08/05/2008 in Blogs, press coverage and Security & Safety. 0 Comments

Irangika Range
COLOMBO: The percentage of polling cards distribution has reached 98.5 per cent yesterday in the Eastern Province, Media Minister Lakshman Yapa Abeywardana said yesterday.

The biggest and strongest security contingent has been deployed by the Government to ensure a free and fair Provincial Council Election on May 10, the Minister said.

Addressing a media-briefing yesterday in Colombo, the Minister said that the Government has taken all measures to provide maximum security with special emphasis on the polling day.

Security personnel will be at polling duties allowing the public to cast their votes in a democratic manner and there will be no possibility of elections violations in the province.

“No complaint has been received regarding the unlawful acquisition of polling cards by armed factions within the Province,” he said. Maximum facilities specially common transport services have been strengthened for the benefit of voters.

They must produce their identity cards at the polling booths. All officers have been advised to carry out duties without fear and favour and stern action will be taken against those involved in election related violations.

“Only 72 complaints related to election violations have been reported so far with 21 incidents being minor,” he said.

Several ethnic groups irrespectively 44.3 per cent of Tamils, 32.6 Muslims and 22.6 of Sinhalese are living in the East. The Government has established an election-friendly environment in the East.

“As a result many political parties are involved in election campaigns addressing rallies and distributing leaflets even at the midnight.”

A peaceful environment has been established in Vakarai and over 1,400 residents of Vakarai, Kinniya and Lahugala gathered on Tuesday night to present their problems to the President via satellite.

It shows that there is no more fear psychosis among the people in these areas even at night and they live freely and peacefully.

None of villagers raised a problem regarding their security and all problems were related to electricity, education and fishing. According to them, armed groups has caused no trouble.

“The UNP’s propaganda on several armed groups in the Eastern Province is false. No one complained to the President in this regard.

People are enjoying their freedom now after the liberation of the East from the LTTE. Democracy will be further reinforced by the Government with the setting up of the Provincial Council in the East.”

Pilleyan has come to the democratic path and it is a big victory of all of us, the Minister added. The UNP’s rhetoric on armed groups is an excuse for their imminent defeat at the election.

“Today the Eastern Province is blessed with massive development. There were only two roads to access to the Eastern Province before the liberation. The A5 road has been fully rehabilitated and opened to enter the East.”

The Government has allocated Rs. 607.7 million for electricity projects in Ampara while 12 projects have been successfully completed so far. Electricity projects valued at Rs.300.7 million have been completed in Batticaloa.

The President has advised authorities to set up Samurdhi Banks in the Eastern Province with immediate effect for the benefit of villagers. It has also stepped up measures to set up 25 Coop-cities in the East as a relief measure to consumers.

Irrigation projects have given priority in the development and Rs.15 million has been allocated for irrigation development in Trincomalee and Ampara Districts. In order to upgrade infrastructure developments in the Agriculture sector, the Government has allocated Rs.123.6 million.

Agriculture development in the East has been given priority and considerable allocations have been granted by the Government until year 2010.

It has allocated Rs. 418.5 million in 2008 while It would be Rs.227.5 million in 2009. The allocation would be a Rs.123.6 million in 2010.

People in East and North face many social problems. Parents arrange child marriages at age 13 due to boys’ deployment for terrorism by the LTTE. “We have taken a number of measures to change this situation,” he said.

Representative will be appointed to the Provincial Council in East according to the wishes of voters.

They will be selected representing all ethnic groups. The Government expects to launch a massive development programme after the election for the betterment of the people, he remarked.

source:
http://www.dailynews.lk/2008/05/08/pol01.asp Xeloda sales Canadian pharmacy lexapro price

A?a??A? And The Muslim Bogey

Published on 04/05/2008 in press coverage and Security & Safety. 0 Comments
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“A?a??A?.that appalling fray”.
Shelley (The Revolt of Islam)

Muhamalai, an avoidable mistake with horrendous consequences, represents the quintessence of Rajapakse rule. Muhamalai is a logical outcome for an administration with a penchant for forgetting the past and for living in an imagined reality. Muhamalai is symbolic of the place Sri Lanka is headed to, if the regime persists in refusing to learn from its past errors.

The first Muhamalai debacle (Operation Agni Keela) happened on 24th April, 2001. The latest Muhamalai debacle took place seven years (but one day) later, on 23rd April, 2008. In between, there was another, identical, debacle, in October 2006. On all three occasions the LTTE lured the SLA into its territory (with a beguiling lack of resistance) and moved for the kill. On all three occasions hundreds of soldiers were killed or injured. On all three occasions alarm bells failed to ring, at the LTTEA?a??a??s amazing absence of resistance on a front line of such strategic importance.

How could such wanton carelessness be possible? Why did memory fail, in the planning stage and on the battlefield? The second and third Muhamalai debacles happened under the same President, the same administration, the same Defence Secretary and the same Army Commander. The Army Commander visited the Security Forces Headquarters in Jaffna on April 21st “to observe the ground situation in the Jaffna FDLs” (Daily News A?a??a?? 25.4.2008). Did he not feel a sense of dA?A?jA?A? vu? The President cannot be expected to remember the details of every major battle in the Fourth Eelam War but the Defence Secretary has no such excuse. Failures of memory of this magnitude, on the part of those who are tasked with and paid for remembering, amounts to criminal negligence. The ones who forgot are partly responsible for every death and for every injury.

Sun Tzu exhorts those engaged in warfare to understand the enemy. Are the repeated debacles at Muhamalai due to a fatal inability to understand the Tiger? DBS Jeyaraj (writing in Transcurrents.com) opines that the SLA was deceived by bogus Tiger radio messages bewailing their inability to defend the Muhamalai FDL. Is this why troops were sent to the Isthmus of death for the third time? Is this why air cover was not obtained in time? Is this why official websites carried jubilant notices of victory (subsequently removed) even as the troops were marching into the Tiger death-trap?

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The Cowardly TigerA?a??A?

What was Muhamalai A?a??a?? defeat or victory in deep disguise? The Army Commander says that Muhamalai was a non-debacle: “According to the Commander, a veteran infantryman whose capabilities are well known to the terrorists than many others, the number of army casualties is nowhere near what could be termed a military debacle. He explained that not all battles are cakewalks and there will be times like this where the LTTE will be pushed to expend its best fighting cadre and resources but with no significant gain. Few more such attempts will bring the LTTE to its breaking point from which it could soon meet its fate, he explained” (Muhamalai Attack: LTTEA?a??a??s Defeated Aim A?a??a?? The end is nigh for terrorists A?a??a?? Army Chief A?a??a?? Ministry of Defence Website A?a??a?? emphasis mine).

Does the Army Commander seriously believe that three, four, more non-debacles a la Muhamalai will ensure the final defeat of the Tigers? Perhaps he is basing himself on the fantastic statistics given in the same article A?a??a?? 145 dead Tigers, 340 injured Tigers (170 in government hospitals; 170 in LTTEA?a??a??s medical bases). Creating Tiger deaths on paper will not kill living Tigers; similarly denying Lankan deaths on paper will not give life to the dead soldiers. The state owned Daily News in its Defence Column gives an account of the Muhamalai battle which is remarkable for its pathos. The SLA began moving towards Tiger positions by 2 am and for almost 10 hours it was a cakewalk: “Troops have reached the Tiger FDL by 11 am and it was between 12 noon to 1 pm the fierce battle erupted with rains of artillery and mortar fell onto the Tiger FDL dominated by the troops. Though the casualties were relatively low till 11 a.m. the number of casualties suddenly increased between 12 noon to 1 p.m. as the LTTE was firing directly onto Tiger trenches which were dominated by the troops. Since the number of casualties increased on the part of the Security Forces at 12.30 pm the field commanders decided to withdraw the troops from the second line of the Tiger FDL into the first line. The Field Commanders were of the view that it was a futile attempt to hold that ground with a large number of casualties on the part of the Security Forces. It was at this stage some soldiers went missing when the troops were withdrawing from the Tiger second defence line to the first line. Troops could not recover the bodies of the soldiers due to heavy mortar and artillery fire” (Daily News A?a??a?? 25.4.2008). The men fought and died bravely but their courage provides no justification for the negligence of those who planned and sanctioned this operation.

The Tigers are terrorists who do not baulk at any act of barbarism, as the atrocious bus-bombing in Piliyandala demonstrates yet again. But A?a??E?terroristA?a??a?? is not the same as coward. It is when the enemy is underestimated, when his capacities are glossed over, avoidable mistakes are made. The latest Air Tiger attack is a case in point. Last week two Tiger planes got through our air defences, dropped a couple of bombs on the Welioya FDL and departed unscathed. What is significant is not the damage they inflicted (which was miniscule) but that they came undetected, dropped their bombs and escaped unharmed. When we underestimate the enemy we present him with the priceless gift of surprise, a decisive fact in the outcome of many a battle.

Ranil Wickremesinghe underestimated the TigerA?a??a??s ferocity and fanatical commitment. He opted for appeasement because he believed the LTTE could be won over through excessive concessions. The Rajapakses correctly see the Tigers as terrorists but believe that terrorists are faint-hearts; they underestimate the courage and the tenacity of hardcore Tigers. When the Tigers retreat without a battle, suspicions are not kindled, because such conduct is seen as natural for the A?a??E?cowardly TigerA?a??a??. Euphoria (in peacemaking and in war) blunts intelligence and clouds judgement. Just as Mr. WickremesingheA?a??a??s incorrect assessment of the LTTE defeated the peace process, the RajapaksesA?a??a?? incorrect assessment of the LTTE will undermine the war effort.

In the war for the East we possessed two major advantages A?a??a?? the ethno religious plurality of the East and the Karuna factor. In fact even with the pluralist nature of the East and the hostility of the Muslim community towards the Tigers, the East may not have been won without the Karuna rebellion. Unfortunately the Eastern victory was attributed to the political will and the ideological clarity of the Rajapakse regime than to the Karuna schism and the Muslim factor. In the resultant jubilation (which often took a Sinhala supremacist form) the very real differences between the North and the East became submerged. Any attempt to point out this difference was decried as treachery. The regime, immersed in hubris believed that the war was as good as won. The Army Commander, who is due to retire this year, declared that he will not leave the task of defeating terrorism to his successor.

It is easy to make extravagant pledges about fast victories and to put up posters in Colombo demanding a non-stop march to Vanni and Killinochchi. But if the Northern war is attempted without the sort of political corollary which can win us the backing of Tamils and the world and can create doubts in the minds of Tiger cadres about the necessity of Eelam, carnages, a la Muhamalai, will result. Oppressed by economic difficulties the Southern public is nearing the end of its tether. Only the (vanishing) prospect of a Northern victory is keeping the South quiescent. More Muhamalais will devastate Southern hopes and break its will. If so, the war will end not in victory but in a ruinous stalemate leading to another appeasement process.

A?a??A? And The Muslim Bogey

In Muhamalai history repeated itself. A similar error (of far greater magnitude) may be in progress in the East. In 1981, elections were held for the newly constituted District Development Councils. The Jayewardene administration was intent on winning this election, including in Jaffna. The TULF defied the militant boycott and contested the election. It was a situation pregnant with possibilities. But positive potential was destroyed, caught between hammer of militantA?a??a??s determination to sabotage the election and the anvil of Mr. JayewardeneA?a??a??s determination to somehow win it. President Jayewardene “despatched Sinhalese policemen from Colombo and two ministers including the rabidly anti-Tamil Cyril Mathew and Gamini Dissanayake, to Jafffna to ensure at least a partial victory for the UNP. (When two policemen were killed by a gunman attacking a TULF rally) policemen in Jaffna went on a rampageA?a??A?(and) security forces set fire to the splendid Jaffna public library” (Tigers of Lanka: From Boys to Guerrillas A?a??a?? M.R. Narayan Swamy). Despite blatant rigging by the UNP the election was won by the TULF. But by then the damage was done A?a??a?? to Tamil-Sinhala relations, to the chances of a peaceful resolution of the ethnic problem, to Sri Lanka.

A similar mistake must not be made vis-A?A?-vis Eastern Muslims. The regime is intent on winning the Eastern election, come what may. In this context the JHU is introducing an overtly ethno-religious tone to the campaign to win over the Sinhala voters. “Mr. Hakeem has let loose an A?a??E?OtuA?a??a?? (Arabic) terrorism in areas such as Pottuvil, Panama, Akkarapattu, Samanthurai, Kinniya, Mutur and Kalmunai, JHU spokesman Nishantha Sri Warnasinghe chargedA?a??A?. The party led by Mr. Hakeem is promoting sentiments against the state and the Sinhalese for a A?a??E?Muslim DeshaiA?a??a?? (Muslim state) in these areasA?a??A?. He compared this to the idea propped up among Tamil youths by the TULF in the 1960-70 period for a separate state for their community. This will end up in another armed struggle, this time by Muslim youths, for a separate stateA?a??A?.. Mr. Hakeem has also spoken about the advantage of a A?a??E?NasaristanA?a??a?? in a merged North-east. The SLMC leader is spreading Muslim extremism by destroying Buddhist places of worship in the East and taking over the land belonging to themA?a??A?. The East will come under the grip of Al Qaida terrorism if this situation continues, he warned” (Lanka Dissent .com).

Forget the factual errors (the TULF did not exist in 1960-70). Forget the illogic (can a Nasasristan be formed in a merged Northeast, with its Tamil majority and armed Tigers?). What is truly worrying is the insidious creation of a Muslim bogey to win Sinhala votes for the government. Just as the TULF and Mr. Amirthalingam were falsely accused of manipulating the LTTE, the SLMC and its weak but democratic leader Rauf Hakeem are being accused of creating Muslim terrorists and promoting a Muslim state, of allying with Al Qaida, and of destroying Buddhist places of worship. There isnA?a??a??t an iota of proof but mobs A?a??a?? especially fundamentalist mobs A?a??a?? are no sticklers for evidence.

This attempt to create a Muslim phobia amongst the Sinhala voter assumes extreme seriousness because the JHU is a part of the governing coalition and is campaigning for it. Is the President aware of these divisive and incendiary utterances and the damage they do to Sinhala-Muslims relations, to Sri Lanka and to the war effort (the East cannot be secured without Muslim support). Or is he, like President Jayewardene, willing to permit any atrocity so long as he can win the election? If so, irrespective of who wins this election, Sri Lanka and all her peoples will be the ultimate losers. Because the JHU, with its rabidly anti-Muslim rhetoric, is sowing the dragon seeds of a violent Sinhala-Muslim divide.
source:
http://www.island.lk/2008/05/04/features16.html