Dec 5 (SLA) A canter lorry proceeding towards MANNAR from a filling station in VAVUNIYA was taken in for questioning on suspicion by MURUNKAN Police at a snap road block in the general area of MANNAR on 04 December 2003 around 8.45 a.m. more..

Dec 5 (PSL) President Kumaratunga wished Sri Lankan music maestro W.D. Amaradeva a happy 76th birthday today in a message that wished him good health and many more musical creations. more..

Dec 5 (PSL) It gives me immense pleasure to forward this message on the commemoration of the occasion of the SAARC Charter Day, which falls on 8th December 2003. Eighteen years ago, the Heads of State of seven South Asian countries pledged on this Day to established the SAARC, more..

Dec 5 (Rediff) The country's largest refiner Indian Oil Corporation will pay $75 million for acquiring 100 petrol stations and storage facilities in Sri Lanka. "We have completed the valuation of 100 petrol stations we took over from Sri Lankan state-run Ceylon Petroleum Corporation last year, more..

Dec 5 (wsws) Attempts to patch up a compromise between President Kumaratunga and Prime Minister Wickremesinghe have run into trouble after Kumaratunga released her own proposals for working relations with the government last Friday, directly cutting across negotiations with Wickremesinghe. more..

Dec 5 (DJ) Disagreement with Sri Lanka's Ceylon Electricity Board over power purchase rates has put a 20 billion rupee ($1=LKR96.37) investment by India's Venkatesh Coke & Power Ltd. on hold, more..

Dec 5 (DJ) The Sri Lankan government has awarded a consultancy contract to U.S-based Powertec Ltd. for a project to build a 300-megawatt coal- fired power plant, an official said Friday. more..

Dec 5 (EDM) That this House recognises that the people of Sri Lanka have a long-standing reputation for tolerance and respect; notes however that the plight of one of the religious minorities in Sri Lanka, Christians, is getting worse; more..

Dec 5 (PTI) India-A, who are 1-0 up after their innings and 92-run win against Sri Lanka-A in the second Test at Pune recently, are all set to wrap up the three-match series when they take on their neighbours in the four-day third and final Test at the Brabourne Stadium here tomorrow. more..

Dec 5 (DM) Colombo's Chief Magistrate said yesterday the police without any hindrance could arrest any suspect under the Immigration and Emigration Act if they could give substantial evidence that such a person had committed a cognisable offence under the act. more..

Dec 5 (AFP) A former Sri Lankan foreign minister has caused ripples with his last-minute bid to succeed incumbent Commonwealth secretary-general Don McKinnon. more..

Dec 5 (Reuters) A bid by Sri Lanka’s former foreign minister to become head of the Commonwealth highlights a split within the group over Zimbabwe and is also worrisome for the island’s Tamil rebels, officials said on Friday. more..

Dec 5 (HT) Former Sri Lankan foreign minister and current foreign affairs advisor to President Chandrika Kumaratunga, Lakshman Kadirgamar, has been nominated as Sri Lanka’s candidate for the post of Commonwealth Secretary-General. more..

Dec 5 (AFP) Mahela Jayawardene returned to form with a timely unbeaten 86 as Sri Lanka set a challenging 323-run target for England to win the opening cricket Test here. more..

Dec 5 (Gulf) President Chandrika Kumaratunga and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe are going ahead with a decisive meeting today despite serious differences on reaching a common understanding. more..

Dec 5 (OW) Sir Arthur C Clarke is acknowledged as the greatest living science fiction writer and an outstanding visionary of our times. His writing over the past six decades – more than 100 books, 1,000 articles and short stories – have not only helped humanity find its way in times of bewilderingly rapid change, more..

Dec 5 (AFP) Sri Lanka's president and the prime minister failed again to make a breakthrough in new talks to end their month-old power struggle that has stalled a peace bid with Tamil rebels, officials said. more..

Dec 5 (TN) The Sri Lanka army gave permission on Friday to deepen fisheries landing points on the coast of three villages close to Pt. Pedro town in Jaffna. Soldiers from the SLA’s 52-4 Brigade worked with local fishermen Friday to clear the coral rock clogged micro breakwaters. more..

Dec 6 (FL) IT was not the first visit by a European political heavyweight to extend support to Sri Lanka's peace process. It is unlikely to be the last either. But the visit of Chris Patten, in late November was the one that stoked up emotions to the highest level since the commencement of the latest peace process. more..

Dec 6 (FL) Expressing caution that it was "potentially dangerous" to have the peace process in a "stagnant situation", Prof. Peiris said that the "the main issue is not prestige or ego" but the impact of the President's moves "on the coherence and the consistency of the peace process." more..

Dec 6 (FL) A DAY after he turned 49, the leader of the LTTS, V. Prabakaran, denied charges that his group's recent counter-proposals were a stepping stone to separation. However, sticking to the organisation's decades-long position, Prabakaran maintained that the LTTE "would have no alternative other than to secede" if "Sinhala ruling elites" continued to "oppose reconciliation". more..

Dec 6 (FL) Chandrika Kumaratunga's proposal for a joint Peace Council eases the strain in the President's relationship with Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe. But her efforts for an alliance with the hardline JVP will have far-reaching implications for the island-nation's polity. more..

Dec 6 (TN) The Sri Lanka Army and police Friday strengthened the security of the Muttur town following the death of a Muslim person, Mr. Raheem alias Bala, in a bomb blast that had taken place in Muttur town close to a mosque Thursday night around 7.30 p.m., police said. more..

Dec 6 (CI) Mahela Jayawardene guided Sri Lanka into a dominant position on the rain-affected fourth day at Galle with a patient 86 not out, including a last-wicket stand of 46 with Muttiah Muralitharan. more..

Dec 6 (TN) The Trincomalee White Pigeon Technical Institute of Prosthesis Friday morning distributed wheel chairs, tricycles and clutches to disabled persons in the area to mark the International Day for Disabled. The event was held at the White Pigeon Trincomalee office. more..

Dec 6 (IL) The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund during a recent meeting with Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe warned that if the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) does not accelerate its restructuring process the agencies would not release any funds, sources said. more..

Dec 6 (IL) A workshop was conducted by the National Workers' Congress on the "Social Issues of Child Labour" for senior management representatives of plantation companies and managers and superintendents of several estates including members of the Plantation Human Development Trust on December 1 at the Sri Lanka Foundation Institute. more..

Dec 6 (IL) The first ever Autism Awareness Campaign UK South Asia Travel Awards went to Sri Lanka. The awards presentation took place at the World Travel Market at London. 2003 is the European Year for People with disabilities. more..

Dec 6 (IL) The United States Population Institute has awarded its prestigious international population award to the Sri Lanka Family Health Bureau. The award was announced at a media conference organized to coincide with the 24th media awards ceremony of the U.S. Population Institute yesterday. more..

Dec 6 (Reuters) Former New Zealand foreign minister Don McKinnon won re-election as secretary-general of the Commonwealth on Friday - although some nations angry at his handling of Zimbabwe backed a rival candidate. McKinnon won a closed-door vote among heads of state by 40 to 11, Belize Prime Minister Said Musa said. more..

Dec 6 (DN) The crisis at the Sri Jayawardenapura University came to an end yesterday following President Chandrika Kumaratunga's decision to remove Vice Chancellor Dr. D. S. Epitawatte last evening. more..

Dec 6 (Hindu) Despite warnings and awareness campaigns by Coast Guard and the Navy, fishermen crossing the unmarked maritime boundary with Sri Lanka continues unabated. "The season has begun. The catch is better on the other side. So there are more violations (on the part of the Indian fishermen)," says a Coast Guard official. more..

Dec 6 (Reuters) England coach Duncan Fletcher praised Ashley Giles after the left-arm spinner produced his best ever bowling figures in the first test against Sri Lanka on Friday. Giles claimed four second-innings wickets as Sri Lanka were dismissed for 226, completing a match analysis of eight for 132. more..

Dec 6 (LBO) The Open University is to be revamped and expanded on district basis with private sector help, increasing access to higher education and bypassing a chaotic university system. Despite an over 90 percent literacy rate, Sri Lanka ironically enough, still ranks among the lowest in the world in terms of access to higher education. more..

Dec 6 (LBO) Public interest groups are suggesting that pending laws on water sector reforms be drowned before they turn into poor-man’s eating sharks. Speaking at a conference on Friday, Kalyananda Thiranagama of Lawyers for Human Rights said proposed legislation on water sector reforms were unhealthily biased in favour of investors. more..

Dec 6 (LBO) Laugfs Gas plans to raise Rs. 100 mn in debt, to part fund a new 4,000 MT import storage terminal for Liquid Petroleum Gas, at the Galle Harbour. A three-year unsecured debenture is to be issued early next year and will be sold largely through Laugf’s dealer network, more..

Dec 6 (TP) SIXTEEN Sri Lankan prisoners serving life sentences in Maldivian prisons will be released soon, the Foreign Ministry said here. The release comes on a special order by President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom who recently held talks with Sri Lankan leaders. more..

Dec 6 (DM) The Operational Headquarters on Thursday said that LTTE hierarchy had instructed local leaders in Trincomalee to take action to prevent recurrence of violent acts in their respective areas and bring those responsible for such act in the recent past to book. more..

Dec 6 (TN) The EPDP cadre who sought asylum from the Liberation Tigers in Kilinochchi, Mr. Iyampillai Yogarajah, 33, told mediapersons in Kilinochchi Saturday that the paramilitary group recruited him from a refugee camp in India eight months ago. more..

Dec 6 (SLA) Ninety one (91) lorry loads of food and other essential items had been dispatched to un-cleared areas in the northern province during the period between 24 November 2003 and 30 November 2003. more..

Dec 6 (DS) For 27 years Cyprus Airways has been flying to the Gulf and linking the region to many European destinations. Recently it has spread its wings, launching a direct flight from Dubai to Colombo, Sri Lanka. more..

Dec 6 (PTI) US Lawyers are challenging, on the behalf LTTE, some of the provisions of the 'Patriot Act' which ban providing "expert advice and assistance" to organisations declared to be terrorist by the government. more..

Dec 6 (Gulf) Last month's political developments in Sri Lanka demonstrated clearly that the fortunes of the island's stock exchange are linked to political stability. more..

Dec 6 (Gulf) The ruling UNF marked its second anniversary in office yesterday with uncertainty whether it would have to face fresh polls or continue its uneasy co-habitation with President Chandrika Kumara-tunga. more..

Dec 6 (AFP) The defeat of Sri Lanka's candidate for the top Commonwealth post is seen by diplomats here as an embarrassment to President Chandrika Kumaratunga who already faces international criticism over her power struggle with the prime minister. more..

Dec 6 (Reuters) England's tailenders defied Sri Lanka's spinners during a tense final session to save the first test against Sri Lanka on Saturday. The visitors, set an improbable 323 to win, looked on the brink of defeat at tea on 171 for seven but then lost just two wickets in 31 overs after tea to finish on 210 for nine when bad light stopped play. more..

Dec 6 (Reuters) The Sri Lankan government is hoping that a power struggle between the country's president and prime minister can be resolved by December 15, cabinet spokesman G.L. Peiris said on Saturday. more..

Dec 6 (Island) The work-to-rule campaign, launched last Wednesday by the Customs, Inland Revenue and Excise Trade Union Joint Federation (CIRETUJF), has resulted in the Customs Imports division alone losing revenue to the tune of over Rs.240 million in three days, custom sources said. more..

Dec 7 (UNI) Sri Lanka 'A' left-arm spinner Rangana Herath today scripted a dramatic collapse as India 'A' were dismissed for 172 after being 148 for three at one time in the third and final Test at the Brabourne stadium here. more..

Dec 7 (TN) "Venpura" (White Pigeon) Technical Institute of Prosthesis in Trincomalee has launched a Mine Risk Education (MRE) programme in twenty villages in the district with the funding of the UNICEF, said its Co-ordinator Mr. M.J.Wilfred. more..