US says Sri Lanka Commission does not meet [International] standards

[TamilNet, Sunday, 20 June 2010, 16:51 GMT]
Stephen Rapp, Ambassador-at-Large for War Crimes Issues appointed by President Obama, said, "what's been announced to date has not met the standard. They're [Sri Lanka is] telling use it does have that capacity, to investigate these cases, to follow up and call witnesses. We're hearing it, but we're not seeing it." Rapp's statement came as a response to a question from Inner City Press which asked Rapp if "Lessons Learned" [Commission] was adequate to carry out investigations, ICP reported.
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Northern Tamil building contractors forced to pay commission

[TamilNet, Sunday, 20 June 2010, 06:26 GMT]
Northern Tamil Contractors Union (NTCU) in Jaffna complains that a man introducing himself as ‘School Engineer’ is engaged in obtaining five to ten percent commission from building contractors in Jaffna to be passed on to Northern Province Governor, Major General G. A. Chandrasiri. Meanwhile, it is alleged that the Governor has instructed the officials of the Northern Province Council to allocate contracts for building construction in the North only to Sinhalese contractors from South. While Basil Rajapaksa, the brother and senior advisor of President Mahinda Rjapaksa, is known as ‘Mr. Ten Percent’ in the matters of contracts, the Governor too is being seen as a person engaged in the same pursuit, NTCU circles said.
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‘Biggest betrayal and greatest tamasha’

[TamilNet, Friday, 18 June 2010, 11:53 GMT]
Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa who presided over 'Victory Day' celebrations in Colombo on Friday, marking one-year of the victory by the Sri Lankan forces in their war against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, described the attempts to bring disrepute to the armed forces by saying that they shot at ‘terrorist leaders who came carrying white flags,’ as biggest betrayal. Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksa, who is also the Commander-in-Chief of the Sri Lankan armed forces, came with the greatest tamasha of his career so far by saying that his troops went to battle carrying a gun in one hand and the Declaration of Human Rights in the other. The Sri Lankan President also came with a warning aiming at diaspora Tamils: “What those from abroad who seek to strengthen separatism are really doing is, to once again corral the people of the north into camps.”
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Vinayagamoorthy Muralitharan visits Jaffna

[TamilNet, Thursday, 17 June 2010, 19:27 GMT]
Vinayagmoorthy Muralitharan, alias Karuna, a former Tiger commander who turned leader of a paramilitary group operated by the Sri Lanka Army in the East and later became a deputy minister in Mahinda Rajapaksa's cabinet visited Jaffna Thursday for the first time after having joined United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) government. Muralitharan, accompanied by the Minister of Resettlement Milroy Fernando, was primarily engaged in activities in promoting the resettlement of Muslims in Jaffna peninsula meeting Muslim Welfare Organizations (MFO) and government officials. Meanwhile, civil society circles in Jaffna pointed out that Mr. Muralitharan had been in Jaffna as a key Commander of the Liberation Tigers when the Muslims of the North were forcibly evacuated by the Tigers in 1990.
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Sri Lanka to sign CEPA with India

[TamilNet, Thursday, 17 June 2010, 17:26 GMT]
The Government of Sri Lanka Thursday announced that it would sign the controversial Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with India with some amendments. Sri Lankan Media Minister Keheliya Rambukwella, on Thursday announced the move at a media briefing in his capacity as cabinet spokesman.
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Ban Ki-moon to appoint Expert Panel next week - UN Political Under Secretary

[TamilNet, Thursday, 17 June 2010, 17:21 GMT]
United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon is expected to appoint a panel of experts to advise him on accountability issues related to Sri Lanka next week, said UN Under Secretary General for Political Affairs, Lyn Pascoe said at a media briefing held Thursday evening in Colombo. He added that a report on Sri Lanka will be handed over to UN Secretary General next week. The expert panel will be appointed only to brief UN Secretary General and it would also be available as a resource that the Sri Lankans can turn to if they wish.
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'Victory Day' declared public holiday in Sri Lanka

[TamilNet, Thursday, 17 June 2010, 17:17 GMT]
The Government of Sri Lanka has declared Friday as a public holiday to celebrate the Victory Day event to mark the defeat of LTTE last year, according to a press release by the Government Information Department Thursday. Government offices and schools are to be closed down on Friday enabling public servants and teachers and students to attend the event.
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Senior White House officials visit Jaffna

[TamilNet, Thursday, 17 June 2010, 03:54 GMT]
Two senior foreign policy advisors to President Obama, Samantha Power, Special Assistant to the President on Multilateral Affairs and Human Rights and David Pressman, National Security Council Director for War Crimes and Atrocities, visited Jaffna Wednesday, sources in Jaffna said. The US envoys, along with US Ambassador to Sri Lanka Patricia A Butenis, first held talks with Jaffna Bishop Rt. Rev. Thomas Saundranayagam at Bishop House and later discussed the current state of affairs with Sri Lanka Army (SLA) Jaffna Commander Major Gen. Mahinda Kathurusinghe, the sources added.
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JVP leader fails to present a specific political solution for ethnic issue, in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 16 June 2010, 16:23 GMT]
Somawanse Amarasinghe, leader of Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) and parliamentarian, was unable to deliver an unambiguous answer to questions raised by media persons who wanted to know the position of his party in finding a political solution for the ethnic issue, in a press meet held in Jaffna town Wednesday evening. Meanwhile, Somawanse Amarasinghe who had come to Jaffna Tuesday evening after a three-day visit to Vanni said that his group was subjected to harassment by Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers who did not permit them to visit the resettled Vanni residents in some parts of Vanni.
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UN Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs visits Vanni

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 16 June 2010, 12:12 GMT]
The United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs B. Lynn Pascoe, who arrived Wednesday morning Colombo on a two day visit, left to Mullaiththeevu on an inspection tour, sources in Colombo said citing Sri Lankan External Affairs ministry officials. Prior to leaving to Mullaiththeevu Mr. Pascoe met G.L. Peiris, the Sri Lankan foreign minister. The visit by Lynn Pascoe takes place after Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa visited India and the arrival of top officials and envoys from the USA and Japan.
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Obama's Genocide Expert meets Mahinda Rajapaksa

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 15 June 2010, 13:58 GMT]
Samantha Power, Director of Multilateral Affairs and Human Rights of the National Security Council in the Obama administration, David Pressman, Director for war crimes atrocities and civilian protection of the US National Security Council, and Ms. Patricia A Butenis Ambassador of the US Embassy in Sri Lanka met with Sri Lanka’s President Mahinda Rajapakse Tuesday, reports from Colombo said. “The meeting was cordial and friendly and both sides discussed matters of mutual interest,” Daily mirror said quoting statement from Sri Lanka President’s office.
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‘Jim Brown Memorial School’ for children opened in the islets of Jaffna

[TamilNet, Monday, 14 June 2010, 17:54 GMT]
The parents of Rev. Fr. Jim Brown who had disappeared without trace in August 2006 after being taken away by Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) and Eelam People’s Democratic Party (EPDP) paramilitary men in Allaippiddi in the islets of Jaffna, recently opened the ‘Jim Brown Memorial School’ built in the premises of St. Peter’s Church in Ma’ndaitheevu, sources in Jaffna said. The school was built by the HUDEC – Caritas Jaffna in remembrance of Rev. Fr. Jim Brown, the parish priest of Ma’ndaitheevu St. Peters Church, who had strived to save the remaining residents of Allaippiddi massacred by Sri Lanka Armed forces in August 2006.
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Paramilitary groups of politicians involved in robberies in Kalmunai

[TamilNet, Monday, 14 June 2010, 16:17 GMT]
Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) parliamentarian M. H. Haris said that politicians continue to use their paramilitary men in robberies and extortion in Kalmunai in the Eastern Province and that despite complaints to police with the names of the armed men no action has been taken against them. Meanwhile, the Officer-in-Charge of Kalmunai police station, Siran Perera said that the suspects in the robberies in his police jurisdiction manage to get away with the help of influential politicians.
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Japanese envoy Akashi to visit Sri Lanka

[TamilNet, Monday, 14 June 2010, 13:54 GMT]
Yasushi Akashi, the special envoy appointed by Japan during the Norwegian facilitated negotiations between the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), is to commence a five day visit to the island of Sri Lanka on Tuesday June 15. Japan was the largest donor besides Europe and the United States, before Rajapaksa government turned towards China, India and Iran in its war against Tamils. Japan, together with the USA, the EU and Norway constituted the Tokyo Co-Chairs, which formally represented the role of the 'International Community' in the disastrous peace process that altered the balance of power in favour of Colombo, enabling the Sri Lankan state to wage a genocidal war on Tamils.
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Sri Lanka one country, unitary state: Namal Rajapaksa, in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Sunday, 13 June 2010, 16:38 GMT]
“Sri Lanka is one country and a unitary state,” Namal Rajapakse, MP and son of President Mahinda Rajapaksa said speaking at the event where Minister Douglas Devananda officially inaugurated a boat service Sunday around 11:00 a.m at Ma’n’niththalai jetty in Poonakarai, sources in Jaffna said. “Douglas is a model person to the Tamils of the country as he sets an example by cooperating with the government in the development of the whole country,” he added. Meanwhile, civil society circles in Jaffna said that Namal Rajapaksa had praised Douglas Devananda in an effort to pacify him as Namal Rajapaksa had brought five of his own boats to be engaged in the boat service between Kurunakar and Poonakari in the project which was initiated by minister Douglas Devananda.
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Namal Rajapaksa’s men monopolize Jaffna-Poonakari boat service

[TamilNet, Sunday, 13 June 2010, 05:40 GMT]
The new boat service between Kurunakar and Poonakari in the North which is to be inaugurated Sunday by Namal Rajapaksa, son of Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa, is to be entirely serviced by boats owned by him, sources in Jaffna said. Colombo government and the powerful men from South are exploiting all possible sources of income in Jaffna peninsula, Tamil circles in Jaffna commented.
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Sri Lanka, China sign six agreements to enhance co-operation

[TamilNet, Saturday, 12 June 2010, 19:32 GMT]
The governments of Sri Lanka and China Friday signed six agreements to enhance the co-operation in the spheres of technology, industry, information technology and construction, according to the officials of Mahinda Rajapaksa government in Colombo. Acting Ports and Aviation Minister Rohitha Abeygunawardena and Chinese Transport Minister Lin Shenjin signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the development of maritime ports. The second phase of the Hambantota Port will commence under this agreement and the Chinese Government will provide a loan of US $600m which is payable within 20 years, the sources further said.
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Rajapaksa meets Chinese vice premier on his return from India

[TamilNet, Saturday, 12 June 2010, 14:11 GMT]
Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Dejiang Saturday morning called on Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa at the President's House. China and Sri Lanka Friday signed six agreements at the office of the Prime Minister D.M.Jayaratne at latter’s presence.
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Mahinda Rajapaksa returns after India visit

[TamilNet, Saturday, 12 June 2010, 04:48 GMT]
Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa returned Friday evening after a four day official visit to India. He arrived in Katunayake International Airport in a Sri Lankan airline flight. He was received at the airport by several ministers and deputy ministers.
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Douglas Devananda says charges against him in Madras High Court will be dropped Monday

[TamilNet, Friday, 11 June 2010, 16:55 GMT]
Sri Lankan Minister Douglas Devananda, just returned after his visit to India with President Mahinda Rajapaksa, told media Friday that the charges against him filed in Tamil Nadu Courts will be dropped when they will be taken up for hearing in the Mandras High Court Monday. He said this in a press meet held through phone at Srithar theatre in Jaffna. According to The Times of India, Tamil Nadu lawyer P. Pugalenthi, the secretary of Tamil Nadu Peoples Rights Forum, a pro-Eezham Tamil body, had filed a petition that action should be taken against Mr. Devananda since the VIth Additional Sessions Judge in June 1994 had issued a proclamation warrant treating him as an 'absconding accused' in the case relating to the killing of a city resident in 1986.
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