Oct 23 (IL) The JVP yesterday alleged that the LTTE was not an organisation fighting for the rights of the Tamils but a group that drinks the blood of the Tamil people and other communities. "This is evident with the recent killings of TNA member Kingsley Rasanayagam and two Muslim civilians from Welikanda," more..

Oct 23 (IL) Several senior JVP members including Parliamentarians have criticized the UPFA government over its handling the issue relating to the abduction of two home guards. "Though the government did not openly mediate in getting the ten LTTE cadres released, the unofficial swap of the ten cadres for the two home guards is a typical UNP style of approach," a JVP leader has said. more..

Oct 23 (CI) Dilhara Fernando capitalised on a ruthless double-century from his team-mate, Sanath Jayasuriya, by grabbing four quick wickets in the second innings, to send Pakistan spiralling towards a heavy defeat in the first Test at Faisalabad. more..

Oct 23 (Gulf) Opposition United National Party (UNP) has called on the government to hold presidential elections as scheduled later next year amid efforts to postpone the poll on the grounds that the president was sworn in only a year after the last presidential poll was held. more..

Oct 23 (IANS) Despite spiralling global oil prices and financial hardships, President Chandrika Kumaratunga has said her government would raise wages in the country. The SLBC reported Saturday that the president expressed the commitment while addressing a public gathering at Anuradhapura. more..

Oct 23 (FL) The launch of a new political party by `Col' Karuna, signs of fissures in the LTTE leadership and the delay in the resumption of peace negotiations between the Tigers and the Sri Lankan government signal crises for the island nation. more..

Oct 23 (BBC) There are limitations to what a government could do to bring down the cost of living says Jeyaraj Fernando Pulle, Sri lankas minister of trade commerce and consumer affairs Fernando Pulle is on is way to the United States to meet his counterpart, Robert Solac. more..

Oct 24 (TN) Inauguration of the all ceylon women's netball championship in Vavuniya was delayed by more than an hour Saturday morning after some local groups objected to hoisting Sri Lanka's national flag and singing its national anthem at the two day sports event, Police said. more..

Oct 24 (TN) Mr.Suresh Premachchandran, Jaffna district TNA parliamentarian Saturday met with Major General Sunil Tennekoon, Jaffna area commander of the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) and discussed issues confronting the people of the district since the ceasefire came into operation. more..

Oct 24 (TN) The Tamil Rehabilitation Organization (TRO) headquartered in Killinochchi in Vanni region Saturday took over the administration of "Anbu Illam," a leading children home located along Central Road in the east port town on the orders of Trincomalee Magistrate Mr.M.Ganesharajah, Trinco sources said. more..

Oct 24 (TN) Parliamentarians and representatives of civil groups Saturday at a discussion held at the YMCA Hall in Jaffna, on the proposed electoral reforms, requested that polling stations be located in the LTTE held areas in the northeast province in any future parliamentary and other elections, more..

Oct 24 (TN) Hindus held the Kumbam festival in Trincomalee Saturday evening on the completion of "Navarathiri" (Nine Nights) celebrations. Kumbam festival, unique to Trincomalee, was first introduced in Trincomalee by Indian (Punjabi) troops brought by the British to construct the naval dockyard after they captured Sri Lanka (then Ceylon), sources said. more..

Oct 24 (Rupavahini) The Jathika Hela Urumaya parliamentarian, the Ven. Uduwe Dhammaloka Thera claims that certain media institutions which have links with the U.N.P. Are carrying out an organized campaign to ridicule him. more..

Oct 24 (Rupavahini) Three security officers of former minister of internal affairs John Amaratunge who were taken into custody along with fire arms when they tried to sell a stock of archaeological treasures worth two million rupees to a businessmen in Nugegoda have been remanded till the 5th of next month. more..

Oct 24 (Rupavahini) He added that the Freedom Alliance government headed by the president will take measures to strengthen the existing education system preventing this situation. more..

Oct 24 (TN) S. P. Thamilchelvan met with State Secretary, German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, Mr. Erich Stather, and Minister of State, Federal Foreign Office Ms. Kerstin Muller in meetings Thursday and Friday in Berlin, more..

Oct 24 (LBO) Sri Lanka is due to exchange letters with American institutes to facilitate technology transfers in the area of textiles. Under a memorandum of understanding between Sri Lanka’s Textile Training & Services Centre and Clothing Industry Training Institute will have access to scholars, faculty, research and extension programmes more..

Oct 24 (UTPD) President Chandrika Kumaratunga has asked Agriculture Minister Anura Kumara Dissanayake to submit all information relating to the allegations against Mahaweli Minister Maitripala Sirisena. more..

Oct 24 (AT) An international conference later this week will consider and deliberate on the need for India’s resumption of role in the Sri Lankan Peace Process to find an amicable solution to the ethnic Tamil problem. more..

Oct 24 (AT) Let’s hope the UPFA government isn’t adventurist enough to do any one of four things: have a snap election (the speculation settles on April ’05), sell out to the Tigers, attempt to extend the president’s term of office through a ‘constituent assembly’ and constitutional coup, and lose the inspiring combat leadership of Gen. Sarath Fonseka to bureaucratic procedure. more..

Oct 24 (AT) Vellupillai Pirapaharan is making history; he will therefore shape that history. Mr. Pirapaharan’s ‘New Man’ is the ultimate killing machine, a human bomb, a creature without a mind or a will of his own, without normal human emotions, one who lives because he obeys, and kills. more..

Oct 24 (SO) Ceasefire monitors in their latest report submitted to the Government this week have ruled out the reports of an existence of LTTE military build up around Trincomalee harbour. more..

Oct 24 (TN) Twenty two pre-school teachers from eleven schools in the Gomarankadawela division of the Trincomalee district Sunday arrived at the office of Tamil Rehabilitation Organization (TRO) to join the scheme of the Pre School Educational Development Council (PSEDC), more..

Oct 24 (LBO) Sri Lanka's top civil servant in charge of the economy apologized to the media after they were thrown out of a donor meeting earlier in the week at the behest of a top lending agency. more..

Oct 24 (LBO) The government will present a new poverty reduction strategy based on accelerating rural growth and export oriented market strategies to donors by the end of the year. The Finance Ministry and a USAID sponsored expert are working on the document, more..

Oct 24 (LBO) Tourist arrivals are up 11 percent so far this year while the average spending by visitors has also risen to US$ 70 a day from US$ 64. The industry is targeting a million arrivals by next year and expects this years figure to be around eight hundred thousand arrivals. more..

Oct 24 (LBO) Private sector doesn't pay enough attention to their customers according to findings of a study by two local NGO's. The study says private sector gets customer feedback but is slow to act on it and improve the quality of products and services. more..

Oct 24 (GDN) After 25 years selling fruit and vegetables at a market in downtown Colombo, Sri Lankan trader M W Ranjith made an investment that to his amazement transformed his life and his business - he bought a mobile phone. more..

Oct 24 (LT) The newly formed TamilEela Ikkiya Viduthalai Munnani - TIVM led by renegade Eastern Tiger leader Karuna, says although its has separated from the Wanni faction, unless the government forwards a credible alternative to solve the problems faced by Tamil-speaking people its goal will be a separate Tamil land. more..

Oct 24 (Geo) Sri Lanka, for the first time has imported 2,000 tonnes of Basmati rice from Pakistan. Vice Chairman Rice Export Association of Pakistan Muhammad Anwar Mian Noor told this while talking to Geo TV here on Saturday. more..

Oct 24 (AP) Grumbling about high gas prices, Sri Lankan businessmen ditch their cars for the bus. Strikes over fuel costs shut down cities around Nigeria. Would-be vacationers in France put off their getaway plans. more..

Oct 24 (Gulf) The ruling United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) government and the main opposition have sparked off a fresh controversy exchanging allegations of overpaying advisors who served their respective governments. more..

Oct 24 (PIS) The LTTE has directed the Tamil National Alliance to launch an all-out campaign to prevent the breakaway Karuna group from gaining political recognition and public support in the Batticaloa and Ampara districts. more..

Oct 24 (AFP) Sri Lanka is accusing international lenders and donor nations of dictating policy as the island's hard currency reserves drop sharply amid a slowdown of foreign aid. Finance Secretary P. B. Jayasundera criticised the World Bank, the IMF and bilateral aid donors for forcing policies unsuitable for the country. more..

Oct 24 (AFP) Sri Lanka's peacebroker Norway and the country's main financial backer Japan are due to step up diplomatic efforts to salvage a faltering peace process, officials and diplomats said. more..

Oct 24 (CI) A teasing spell of left-arm spin from Rangana Herath broke Pakistan's attempts at resistance as Sri Lanka recorded a thumping 201-run win and went one-up in the series at Faisalabad. This was Sri Lanka's 11th Test win overseas, and staggeringly their sixth in Pakistan, more..

Oct 24 (TN) The Trincomalee District Educational Development Organization (EDO) Sunday launched the Dengue Awareness Campaign with the support of the local offices of UN agencies UNICEF, UNHCR, and UNDP, Sri Lanka Red Cross, Department of Health and about fifteen schools to control the spread of the disease in Trincomalee town and its suburbs. more..

Oct 24 (TN) The Ceylon Tamil Teachers' Union (CTTU) Sunday wrote to the Minister of Education and Minister of Power and Energy to make immediate arrangement to sell kerosene at subsidized price to teachers who are serving in schools in villages without electricity, CTTU sources said. more..

Oct 24 (UTPD) Wimal weerawansa Propaganda secretary of JVP replied the UNP announcement which is also replied to a withes JVP statement. In the press release issued by JVP parliamentarian said. “The UNP media unit has issued a nonsense statement under the name of its media spokesmen Mr. Gayanyha Karunathilaka. more..

Oct 24 (PTI) Hundreds of striking fishermen today made preparations for their proposed sail to Sri Lanka on October 28 to seek refuge in the island nation as part of their plan to protest against detention of fishermen by Sri Lankan Navy among other things. more..

Oct 25 (TN) Sri Lanka Red Cross (SLRC) Sunday held HIV/AIDS awareness campaign for the inmates of Trincomalee prison as statistical data pointing to prison as potential environment for spreading of AIDs. A play prepared by the SLRC to educate prisoners was staged in the Trincomalee jail, more..

Oct 25 (TN) "Sri Lanka has a strong human development record compared to other developing nations. However, since 1990, poverty level has decreased only marginally, and in several areas of Sri Lanka the situation has worsened," said Ms Gabriela Elroy, more..

Oct 25 (AT) In appeal to the Government of Germany, V.Anandasangaree, President of the TULF has indicated that he was deeply concerned over the proposal of the German authorities to review the applications of some Sri Lankan Tamils and he appealed to the German Government to desist from deporting those Sri Lankan Tamils back to Sri Lanka. more..

Oct 25 (AP) Sri Lankan skipper Marvan Atapattu on Sunday described his team’s 201-run success against Pakistan in the first Test as a major achievement, but said it was important for Islanders to win outside the subcontinent. more..

Oct 25 (LT) Ven. Uduwe dammaloka thero accused UNP influence media that they spread malicious propaganda against him. The thero who is also a member of parliament representing JHU responding to a news that the UPFA has agreed to replace the speaker W.J.M. Lokubandara with Ven. Dammaloka thero. more..

Oct 25 (BT) AT LEAST three Malaysian companies have expressed interest to invest in Sri Lanka, thanks to the country’s exclusive free trade agreement (FTA) with India. The FTA gives market access to 80 per cent of goods which can enter the Indian market duty-free, excluding garments and agricultural products. more..

Oct 25 (BBC) Tamil Tiger rebels denied reports of a split in the organization and said their ailing Sea Tiger leader would return to the country in the next few days. “There is no truth in the reports that our sea wing commander Col. Soosai has split up from the movement. more..

Oct 25 (SLBC) Rs. 1.4 billion of Sri Lanka's foreign exchange reserves had been siphoned out of the country via the Pyramid scheme, latest Customs investigations reveal. more..

Oct 25 (SLBC) The graduates who underwent training under the first stage of the Government's Programme of giving employment to unemployed graduates received their letters of appointment at the respective districts including the North and East. more..

Oct 25 (SLBC) A team of voluntary doctors from the Interplast at the invitation of the Rajapakse Foundation is performing plastic surgeries at the Hambantota base hospital. Hambantota district is with the most cases of acid throwing in Sri Lanka and many will benefit from this exercise.