Ashraff on pilgrimage, resignation stands

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 23 August 2000, 17:51 GMT]
Sri Lanka Muslim Congress leader and Sri Lanka's Ports minister M.H.M.Ashraff left for Mecca in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday on a three-day pilgrimage to perform religious rites called UMRA.
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Ashraff drops election gauntlet

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 22 August 2000, 16:40 GMT]
Sri Lanka Muslim Congress leader and Sri Lanka's Ports minister M.H.M.Ashraff has withdrawn his resignation letter which had been issued in protest over a cabinet colleague's comments criticising the SLMC's vacillation over contesting the forthcoming elections as part of the ruling People's Alliance.
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Media Reformation bill tabled by opposition

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 15 August 2000, 18:39 GMT]
A motion on Media Reformation tabled by the Leader of the main opposition United National Party (UNP) and eight others was taken for discussion Tuesday afternoon in the parliament.
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Sunday Leader ban illegal

[TamilNet, Friday, 30 June 2000, 07:52 GMT]
The Supreme Court ruled Friday that the ban imposed on the English language Weekly, Sunday Leader, and its sister Sinhala language Irida Peramuna, was illegal and ordered the state to pay one hundred thousand rupees as costs to the Petitioner, within eight weeks.
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Editor's Guild challenges censorship

[TamilNet, Friday, 02 June 2000, 12:19 GMT]
The Editor's guild has filed a fundamental Rights application in the Supreme Court challenging the legality of the Regulation making powers of the President under Section 5 of the Public Security Ordinance. This is the section under which the government has imposed the wide ranging censorship of the news, and banned the publication of three newspapers.
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Censorship on foreign media

[TamilNet, Thursday, 04 May 2000, 17:27 GMT]
The Sri Lankan Government Thursday followed up the tough security measures it announced Wednesday night with renewed press censorship on the foreign media. Sri Lanka's local media have been subject to censorship since last year. However, Colombo-based foreign media had been exempted.
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Sri Lanka on war-footing

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 03 May 2000, 16:15 GMT]
The Sri Lankan minister of Post, Telecommunication and Media Mr.Mangala Samaraweera announcing cabinet decision Wednesday said that the country has been put on a war footing. Meanwhile sources said the Indian Central Government has declined to respond positively to the Sri Lankan Government's request for assistance to handle the military crisis in the north of the island.
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Government information release ban

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 01 February 2000, 15:05 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Cabinet re-imposed a ban on public officers releasing information to the media. The ban is effective from today.
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State media's biased role

[TamilNet, Sunday, 19 December 1999, 06:04 GMT]
Several Presidential candidates complained to the Commissioner of Elections last week that the People's Alliance (PA) has been misusing the government controlled media during the Presidential elections.
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Jets hit correct targets - military

[TamilNet, Thursday, 16 September 1999, 12:49 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) spokesman, Brigadier Sunil Tennekoon, said at the weekly cabinet press briefing in Colombo this morning that Air Force jets had correctly hit their targets in Puthukkudiyiruppu on Wednesday. He was responding to questions from journalists about the bombing of a busy market place in northern Sri Lanka yesterday.
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Trincomalee declared 'city of peace'

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 14 September 1999, 13:15 GMT]
The eastern port town of Trincomalee has been declared a city for peace in Sri Lanka at a ceremony held this morning at Trincomalee St. Mary's College auditorium. The UNESCO had proposed the idea in collaboration with the United Nations' International Day of Peace.
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Journalists demonstrate over assaults

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 21 July 1999, 12:33 GMT]
A large number of journalists demonstrated in Colombo today, protesting against several of their colleges being assaulted last week, allegedly by personnel from the Presidential Security Division (PSD).
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News in Brief:

[TamilNet, Monday, 19 April 1999, 22:50 GMT]
Jaffna Judicial Medical Officer (JMO) gives evidence on stadium grave and Provincial Councils to begin functioning on Friday.
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News in Brief:

[TamilNet, Thursday, 11 February 1999, 11:58 GMT]
Sri Lankan Government plans radical change in the present electoral system; Night time travelling in Jaffna lagoon will be banned from February 15; Cabinet approves establishment of new zoo at Pinnawela.
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PA ministers deny violence charge

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 27 January 1999, 11:39 GMT]
(CORRECTED) Senior Ministers of the Sri Lankan Government, said today that the People's Alliance (PA) was not responsible for the violence during the North-western Provincial Council elections on January 25. This announcement was made at a press conference held at the Auditorium of the Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation at Colpetty (Kollpity) this morning.
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Minister inaugurates welfare unit for disabled soldiers

[TamilNet, Monday, 18 January 1999, 20:11 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Minister of Post Telecommunication and Media, Mangala Samaraweera, today inaugurated a welfare unit for the disabled soldiers at Kurunegala.
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New amnesty for deserters - SLA

[TamilNet, Thursday, 17 December 1998, 15:12 GMT]
Twenty six soldiers were wounded in limited operations conducted by the Sri Lankan Army in Kudarappu and Kaithady in Jaffna and in the Paranthan during the last 48 hours said military spokesman Brig.Sunil Tennekoon, addressing journalists at the cabinet press briefing today. He said that 21 Tigers were killed in Paranthan and 6 Tigers in Jaffna in these operations.
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Government eases graduate unemployment

[TamilNet, Thursday, 17 December 1998, 14:14 GMT]
The Sri Lankan cabinet has decided to provide jobs for 4000 graduates before the end of December, said Mangala Samaraweera, Minister of Posts, Telecommunication and Media. The announcement came at the weekly press meeting at which cabinet decisions are announced.
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Reporters harrassed at checkpoint

[TamilNet, Friday, 27 November 1998, 07:39 GMT]
Newspaper reporters on their way to cover Parliamentary news and news about Ministerial decisions, were forced to undergo extremely stringent checks at the Jayanthipura junction on November 26th, and were not allowed to proceed in autos.
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Post office to be privatised

[TamilNet, Thursday, 29 October 1998, 20:38 GMT]
Sri Lankan government's Postal Department will be made a public corporation by early next year, Mr. Mangala Samaraweera, Minister for Posts, Telecommunications and Media announced today.
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