Wickremasinghe challenges Rajapakse on CFA

[TamilNet, Thursday, 27 October 2005, 00:16 GMT]
Mr.Ranil Wickremasinghe, United National Party presidential candidate challenged his rival Mr.Mahinda Rajapakse to cancel the Cease Fire Agreement (CFA) by giving fifteen days' notice to the Norwegian government instead of accusing him (Ranil) for signing the CFA. Mr Wickremasinghe issued the challenge when he addressed an election rally in Elpitiya, south of Colombo Tuesday evening, sources said.
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Mahinda Rajapakse addresses rallies in Trinco, Kantalai, Kinniya

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 26 October 2005, 17:18 GMT]
Prime Minister Mr. Mahinda Rajapakse, presidential candidate of the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) Wednesday addressed election rallies in the towns of Trincomalee, Kinniya and Kantalai in the district. Mr.Wimal Weeravanse, parliamentary group leader of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna accompanied him, sources said.


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Weerawanse eyes Prime Minister post, says Anura Bandaranaike

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 25 October 2005, 19:57 GMT]
The Sri Lankan Foreign Minister and the prime ministerial candidate of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), Mr. Anura Bandaranaike, has sought help from his sister and the incumbant President of Sri Lanka, Ms. Chandrika Kumaratunga, to thwart an alleged attempt by a section of SLFP to appoint Mr. Wimal Weerawanse as the candidate for the Prime Minister portfolio if Rajapakse is elected as President of Sri Lanka, SLFP sources said. Weerawanse is the propaganda secretary of the Sinhala nationalist extremist Janatha Vimukthi Permuna (JVP).
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Jaffna daily assails "Mahinda Doctrine"

[TamilNet, Friday, 21 October 2005, 11:39 GMT]
Mr Mahinda Rajapakse has brought the Sinhala approach to resolving the Tamil National question a full circle by rejecting the concepts of Tamil home land, right to self determination, federal solution, and the P-TOMS, and re-affirming Tamils belief that the Sinhala south is incapable of shedding the chauvinist mindset, said the editorial of the popular Jaffna Tamil daily 'Uthayan' in its Thursday edition.
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Rajapakse manifesto released

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 18 October 2005, 10:52 GMT]
Mr.Mahinda Rajapakse, presidential candidate of the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) released his manifesto at an event held in the BMICH at an event held Tuesday morning in the Bandaranaike International Memorial Conference Hall (BMICH). The manifesto said that an ultimate solution to the ethnic crisis could only be reached through negotiations and not through war and that a settlement based on a unitary state is the basis to the ethnic crisis.


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Wickremasinghe addresses rallies in Trinco, Kinniya

[TamilNet, Sunday, 16 October 2005, 15:57 GMT]
Mr.Ranil Wickremasinghe, presidential candidate of the United National Party (UNP) Sunday addressed two election rallies, one in Trincomalee town and other in Kinniya in support of his candidature. Mr.Rauff Hakim, Leader of the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) also addressed these meeting along with Mr. Wickremasinghe. Trincomalee meeting was held Sunday morning and Kinniya in the evening.
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Appeal Court issues notice on AG in case against JVP leader

[TamilNet, Monday, 10 October 2005, 18:19 GMT]
Sri Lanka's Court of Appeal Monday issued notice on the Attorney General to appear in court on 25 October and state his position on the Writ Application filed by Dr. Kumar Rupesinghe of the Foundation for Co-Existence (FCE), seeking an order directing the Inspector General of Police to arrest and charge Mr.Wimal Weerasinghe, parliamentary group leader of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) for alleged offences of criminal intimidation, insult and annoyance, legal sources said.
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JVP's economic policy criticized by Sri Lanka's FM

[TamilNet, Monday, 10 October 2005, 15:19 GMT]
Sri Lanka's Foreign Minister and the brother of SL President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunge, Mr. Anura Bandaranaike, slammed at the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna's (JVP) economic policy and their stance with regard to the scuttled P-TOMS at a press briefing held at his official residence Visumpaya Monday morning.
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Southern journalists on goodwill mission to Trincomalee

[TamilNet, Monday, 10 October 2005, 02:15 GMT]
About fifty sinhalese journalists and three Buddhist monks from Hambantota, Galle and Matara from south of Sri Lanka arrived in Trincomalee Saturday evening on a four-day good-will mission to obtain first hand information about problems faced mainly by Tamil people and others in the Trincomalee district and in areas held by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). The National Peace Council (NPC) of Sri Lanka organized this visit, sources said.


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CWC, SLMC, UPF leaders to address UNP election rally

[TamilNet, Saturday, 08 October 2005, 06:43 GMT]
The United National Party (UNP) will hold a presidential election rally, the first to be held after handing in nominations, in the hill town of Kandy, Saturday evening. UNP presidential candidate Mr.Ranil Wickremasinghe with the leaders of the Ceylon Workers Congress (CWC), Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) and the Upcountry People's Front (UPF) will address the meeting, political sources in Kandy said.


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Retired Commanders denounce JVP Leader's call to disband Security Forces

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 27 September 2005, 00:52 GMT]
Retired commanders of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces, General S.C.Ranatunge, Air Vice Marshal Harry Gunatilake, Lt.General Dennis Perera and General Hamilton Wanasinghe, Monday in a signed press release condemned the statement made by Mr.Somawanse Amerasinghe, leader of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) directing the Prime Minister Mr.Mahinda Rajapakse to disband the government security forces no sooner he is elected Executive President of Sri Lanka if the security forces are unable to safeguard the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Sri Lanka.
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DLF split on support to Rajapakse

[TamilNet, Saturday, 24 September 2005, 02:57 GMT]
Senior member of Democratic Left Front (DLF), Professor Kumar David, Friday dissociated himself from a press release issued by Secretary of DLF, Vasudeva Nanayakkara, and party's National Organizer, Quintus Liyanage, that expressed support to Sri Lanka's Presidential candidate Rajapakse in the forthcoming presidential elections.
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Colombo lacks will, ability to address Tamil National question- TNA

[TamilNet, Friday, 23 September 2005, 01:42 GMT]
Tamil people will be forced to urge the International community to "explicitely endorse the Tamil people's struggle for self-determination," if the Sri Lankan State continues to be intransigent in resolving the Tamil National question, warned Tamil National Alliance (TNA) in a press release issued in Colombo Thursday.
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Debate on extending State of Emergency begins in SL Parliament

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 21 September 2005, 08:08 GMT]
Sri Lanka's parliament began a one day debate Wednesday morning on extending the State of Emergency in the island for another month. The Sri Lankan Government declared State of Emergency on August 13 following the killing of its Foreign Minister Mr.Lakshman Kadirgamar allegedly by a sniper. The parliament convened later to approve the declaration with the support of the ruling party, JVP, JHU, UNP, CWC and NUA, parliamentary sources said.
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Rajapakse, JVP kick off joint election campaign

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 20 September 2005, 19:26 GMT]
Sri Lanka's premier Mr. Mahinda Rajapakse nominated as the SLFP presidential candidate vowed Tuesday to thwart all attempts by opposing parties with "vested interest" to defeat him in the forthcoming SL presidential polls on November 17. Mr. Rajapakse was addressing his first presidential election rally in Colombo Town Hall ground attended by representatives of political parties extending support to Mr. Rajapakse, including the Sinhala extremist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP). However, Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) key figures including Mr. Ratnasiri Wickremanayake were absent.
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'There is no place for moderates'

[TamilNet, Monday, 19 September 2005, 05:40 GMT]
Even as his party leader and incumbent President Chandrika Kumaratunga wrapped herself in the tenets of liberalism whilst addressing the United Nations last week, her party's candidate for her succession, Mahinda Rajapakse, continued to tread an unabashedly Sinhala ultra-nationalist platform at home.
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SLMC to reveal stand after nomination day- Hakim

[TamilNet, Saturday, 17 September 2005, 12:42 GMT]
The support of Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) in the coming presidential poll would be for a political party that would not act in to weaken the strength of the Muslim political leadership, which has been endorsed by majority Muslim people in Sri Lanka, said Mr.Rauff Hakim, Leader of SLMC participating as the chief guest in the fifth death anniversary religious event of SLMC founder leader late Mr.A.H.M.Ashraff held in Trincomalee Zahira College Friday evening.
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Peace approach should transcend party politics- paper

[TamilNet, Thursday, 15 September 2005, 16:59 GMT]
"The peace process requires an approach that transcends narrow and warped ambitions of party politics. The two Presidential candiates, Premier Mahinda Rajapaksa and Opposition leader Ranil Wickramesinghe, must refrain from making the peace process an issue at the forthcoming Presidential elections," said an editorial of Thinakkural, a popular Tamil daily in its Thursday edition.


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Rajapakse, JHU exchange agreement

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 13 September 2005, 10:51 GMT]
Prime Minister Rajapakse of Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) and Ellawela Methantha Thera of Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) exchanged agreement for the forthcoming Presidential election at Dalada Maligawa, Kandy Tuesday morning at 1130am. The parties agreed in principle to terminate talks on the Post Tsunami Operational Management Structure (P-TOMS) and to find a solution to the ethnic crisis on the basis of a unitary state.


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Court extends interim injunction on P-TOMS

[TamilNet, Monday, 12 September 2005, 16:48 GMT]
Sri Lanka's Supreme Court Monday extended its interim injunction on the implementation of certain clauses of the Pre-Tsunami Operational Management Structure (P-TOMS) till November 22 and fixed the inquiry into the petition filed by the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) seeking the cancellation of the P-TOMS on the same date, legal sources said.
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