Batticaloa Court orders removal of ineligible occupants in Muslim colony

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 19 October 2010, 16:55 GMT]
Batticaloa District Court ordered the Secretary of Ma’nmunaipattu to immediately remove all who are not eligible reside in the Muslim Colony for tsunami victims established in 2004 in the lands of Tamils by M. L. A. M. Hisbulla when he was the Minister of Post and Telecommunication during former Sri Lanka President Chandrika Kumaranatunge with funds from Kuwait government. The owners of the land encroached for the Muslim colony had filed petition against the Muslim colonization scheme and M. L. A. M. Hisbulla who is a Deputy Minister in the ruling United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) now. Directed by the court, the Secretary of Ma’nmunaippattu, Ms. Pathmarajah had written to the ineligible occupants to vacate before 11 November.
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Sri Lankan police fail to protect harassed female ex-combatant

[TamilNet, Friday, 15 October 2010, 09:52 GMT]
Sri Lanka police in Veala’nai in the islets of Jaffna have ignored the complaints made by a former underage female member of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) on attempts made by a gang of ten men on 09 October to abduct and sexually abuse her in her relative’s house in Veala’nai. IOM and UNICEF officials who had facilitated her release from the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) detention camp and placed her in the custody of her relatives too have not taken steps to protect her from being intimidated by her tormentors even in Jaffna Teaching Hospital where she is admitted for treatment, the girl said. The family members who had given her refuge had been attacked by the gang and injured when they tried to protect the girl.
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Parliamentarian Radhakrishnan to lead UPF political wing

[TamilNet, Friday, 08 October 2010, 17:18 GMT]
V.Radhakrishnan, a senior parliamentarian of the Ceylon Workers Congress, one of the constituent parties of the ruling United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) is to lead the political wing of the Upcountry Peoples Front (UPF) which was founded and led by late Mr. Periyasamy Chandrasekaran.
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Swaminathan, Aswer nominated to PAC

[TamilNet, Friday, 01 October 2010, 08:54 GMT]
Two national list parliamentarians, a Muslim and a Tamil, have been nominated respectively by Sri Lanka Prime Minister and the opposition leader to the five-member Parliamentary Advisory Council (PAC) that is to be established under the 18th amendment to the constitution. The Prime Minister D. M. Jayaretna nominated A. H. M. Aswer from the national list of the ruling United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) and Ranil Wickremasinghe, leader of the opposition nominated D. M. Swaminathan from the national list of the main opposition United National Party (UNP).
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UNP withdraws Freedom of Information Bill

[TamilNet, Friday, 24 September 2010, 03:54 GMT]
Sri Lanka's main opposition United National Party (UNP) Thursday withdrew its private member’s Bill on the Freedom of Information due to the pressure brought by the ruling United Freedom Alliance (UPFA) that the government is in the process of drafting a similar legislation.
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UNP crisis reaches climax, Wickremasighe to make statement

[TamilNet, Sunday, 12 September 2010, 14:37 GMT]
Ranil Wickremasinghe, the leader of the main opposition United National Party (UNP) is expected to make a statement as his leadership is under challenge from his loyalists in the party even after defection. Political circles speculate he may relinquish his leadership in the party to give way for another leader amid reports carried in electronic and print media quoting his main rival Sajith Premadasa that he is ready to take over the leadership of the party from Wickremasinghe.
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CWC member Radhakrishnan goes independent

[TamilNet, Saturday, 11 September 2010, 17:35 GMT]
V.S.Radhakrishnan, Nuwara Eliya district parliamentarian of the Ceylon Workers’ Congress (CWC) told Saturday that he leaves his party and will sit as an independent member in parliament and support the government led by Sri Lanka’s President Mahinda Rajapakse. Earlier there was speculation in political circles that he would join the Upcountry Peoples Front (UPF) to fill the post of leader of the UPF with the demise of its founder leader Periyasamay Chandrasekaran.
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SL Police arrest 6 traders in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Saturday, 11 September 2010, 06:32 GMT]
Jaffna Traders Association (JTA) members raised strong protests against Jaffna police for taking law and order into their hands and arresting six traders in Jaffna city. In a meeting held Friday in JTA office, the association accused that the arrest was an act of revenge instigated by Jaffna Municipal Council (JMC) administration. Heated arguments ensued in the meeting. Jaffna Mayor Ms. Yogeswary Patkunam of the ruling United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) who was also present at the meeting assured the Association that acts of this nature will not take place in the future, JTA representatives said.
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'Colombo teaches lessons of political culture for South Asia'

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 08 September 2010, 14:22 GMT]
The 18th Constitutional Amendment was passed in Sri Lankan parliament Wednesday with a majority of 144 votes. The Amendment, which has been passed in a rush by the government without pubic debate enables Mahinda Rajapaksa to contest presidential election for any number of terms besides bestowing additional powers in the appointments of key government posts. What is happening to state and democracy in the island of Sri Lanka is a warning to people who are deceived in the ‘democratic’ practices of dynasties and families in the rest of South Asia, political observers said. Sometimes back, a key diplomat of a leading power, looking after South Asia, tolerantly sounded that family rule in the island is typical of contemporary political culture in the region.
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Pro-government left parties to vote for 18th amendment

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 07 September 2010, 04:37 GMT]
The Communist Party of Sri Lanka (CPSL), Lanka Sama Samaja Party (LSSP) and Nava Sama Samaja Party (NSSP), constituents of the ruling United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA), Monday decided to support the 18th amendment in parliament. CPSL is led by Minister D. E. W. Gunasekara, LSSP by Minister Tissa Vitharana and NSSP by Vasudeva Nanayakara.
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Pro-government left parties to decide on constitutional amendment

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 01 September 2010, 11:16 GMT]
The Combined Left Front (CLF) that comprises the Lanka Sama Samaja Party (LSSP), Sri Lanka Communist Party of Sri Lanka (CPSL)) and New Left Front (NLF) is to meet this week to take a final decision on the proposed constitutional amendments. “Final decision would be taken after meeting Sri Lanka’s President Mahinda Rajapakse to apprise him of their position and get his opinion on this issue,” veteran left leader Vasudeva Nanayakara who is currently a national list parliamentarian from the ruling party United Peoples Freedom Alliance, said.
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Rajapaksa instructs UPFA MPs not to leave island for 2 weeks

[TamilNet, Saturday, 28 August 2010, 13:19 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), main constituent of the ruling United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) led by Sri Lanka’s President Mahinda Rajapakse has instructed its parliamentarians not to go abroad till September 15. The leaders of the constituent parties also have been instructed by SL president Mahinda Rajapaksa to ensure the presence of their parliamentarians in Colombo during the period.
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Rajapakse visits former UNP strongman's residence

[TamilNet, Thursday, 26 August 2010, 04:31 GMT]
Sri Lanka's President Mahinda Rajapaksa and Prime Minister D. M. Jayaratne made a surpise visit Tuesday to Parliamentarian Abdul Cader’s residence in Gampola where close door discussions were held, the Lankadeepa newspaper said. Cader, a former UNP strongman, has been seen leaning towards supporting the ruling government in recent months. He has also been suspended by the UNP’s working committee after he supported the ruling UPFA at several instances in parliament.
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Batticaloa Municipal Council member reported missing

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 25 August 2010, 16:24 GMT]
Pragasam Sagayamany, a member of Batticaloa Municipal Council, who had met and spoken to Batticaloa Mayor Ms. Sivakeetha Pirapakaran and a fellow member Monday evening had gone missing, according to his wife's complaint to Batticaloa police. Meanwhile, the Eelam People's Democratic Party (EPDP) Municipal Council members K. Arumailingam and S. Sasikumar have allegedly attacked T. Yogarasa, a technical officer of Batticaloa Municipal Council on 7 August. The employees of the Municipal Council have been frequently attacked and insulted by the EPDP group, sources in Batticaloa said.
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Rajapaksa appoints new SLFP organizer to North

[TamilNet, Sunday, 22 August 2010, 08:23 GMT]
Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa, the leader of Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), a constituent of ruling United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA), appointed Saturday Angkayan Ramanathan, a leading businessman from Valveddiththu'rai as the new SLFP organizer of North Sri Lanka, sources in Jaffna said. Angkayan Ramanathan is appointed in place of Thangarasa, who was charged in Jaffna Magistrate Court of swindling more than seven millions rupees promising Jaffna peninsula youths employment and imprisoned. Meanwhile, this appointment is seen as one of the measures taken by Rajapaksa family to sideline Sri Lanka minister and leader of Eelam People's Democratic Party (EPDP), Douglas Devananda who acts as the sole representative of Sri Lanka government in the North, political observers in the peninsula said.
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UNP to assist JVP led alliance against UPFA government

[TamilNet, Monday, 16 August 2010, 17:35 GMT]
Sri Lanka's main opposition United National Party (UNP) Monday declared that it is ready to extend its wholehearted support to an alliance as proposed by the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna to oppose the undemocratic actions of the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) government led by Sri Lanka’s President Mahinda Rajapakse. Gayantha Karunaratne, UNP parliamentarian and its spokesman told media Monday that the leadership of the alliance is not important to his party as long as it opposed to the dictatorial actions of the UPFA government.
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Rajapakse suspends Mervin Silva from SLFP

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 11 August 2010, 10:05 GMT]
Sri Lanka’s President Mahinda Rajapaksa finally Wednesday took a stern disciplinary action to control displeasure brewing in the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), main constituent of the ruling United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) over the failure of taking tough stand against Mervin Silva for tying a Samurdhi official to a tree last week. Mervin Silva Tuesday evening was removed from the post of Deputy Minister and also suspended from the membership of the SLFP for taking law into his own hands, Presidential sources said.
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3 more UNP parliamentarians likely to join UPFA

[TamilNet, Sunday, 08 August 2010, 15:33 GMT]
The main opposition United National Party (UNP) issued an ultimatum Sunday to Sri Lanka government to release the proposals on constitutional reforms and the 17th amendment and to reconsider its decision to abandon further talks with Sri Lanka’s President Mahinda Rajapakse, amid Colombo media reports that three more UNP parliamentarians are likely to join the ruling United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) soon. They are discussing with ruling party hierarchy to join the government, media reports added.
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SL Prime Minister admitted to hospital

[TamilNet, Friday, 06 August 2010, 16:50 GMT]
Prime Minister D.M. Jayaratne (79) has been admitted to a private hospital in Colombo Friday afternoon suffering from high blood pressure and sugar, the relatives of the Prime Minister told media.
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Talks between Rajapakse and Wickremesinghe to be abandoned

[TamilNet, Friday, 06 August 2010, 12:55 GMT]
The future of talks between the ruling United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) led by Sri Lanka’s President Mahinda Rajapakse and the main opposition United National Party (UNP) led by Leader of the Opposition Ranil Wickremesinghe is bleak, according to Jayawickrema Perera, a senior UNP parliamentarian and the Chairman of UNP. Commenting on the cross over of opposition parliamentarians Praba Ganeasan and Digambaram he said that further talks between the two leaders are to be abandoned.
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