May 14 (SLA) A foreign team of veterinary surgeons led by Dr. Tania from Australia and Indonesia at the invitation of 11 Division Commander Major General D.V.S.Y Kulathunga recently conducted a two-day long Immunization/ sterilization Programme for dogs inside the Panagoda Army Cantonment after many dogs were found affected by different infections. more..

May 14 (PIS) Senior Advisor to the President and Chairman of the TAFREN, Mano Tittawella has said it is the Sri Lanka Government's expectation, that "the successful completion of the Post-Tsunami Action Plan would not only restore infrastructure and livelihoods to the affected people, but would also serve as a catalyst in moving the peace process forward". more..

May 14 (PIS) The coming week is poised to begin with all eyes in the political and economic scene focused on the Sri Lanka Development Forum meeting to be held at the Mahaweli Reach Hotel in Kandy on Monday and Tuesday. more..

May 14 (PIS) The Indian High Commission last night dismissed reports attributed to a discussion between its foreign Secretary Shyam Saran and Norwegian Special Envoy Erik Solheim in Delhi where it was stated that India was opposed to any dictatorship by the Tamil Tigers in the proposed northeast joint mechanism. more..

May 14 (ANN) Four policemen were seriously injured when the LTTE (W) targeted a group of EPDP members in Valachchenai on Thursday. A close associate of EPDP Leader and Minister Douglas Devananda managed to escape. This is a flagrant ceasefire violation. The monitors will, it is hoped, not attribute the incident to a ‘third party’ or sweep it under the carpet. more..

May 14 (wsws) President Chandrika Kumaratunga is facing sharp opposition, both from within government ranks and from outside, over her moves to set up a joint body with the LTTE to handle tsunami relief work. The campaign to stop the signing of an agreement, scheduled for next week, is being lead by her key government ally, the JVP. more..

May 14 (PVT) Former President Clinton, on a visit to Sri Lanka after the disastrous tsunami of Dec. 26, 2004, remarked the best thing we could do for the country was to pay a visit. European tourists have been coming to this popular tropical getaway for years, some return every winter. more..

May 14 (RW) The following is the statement delivered today by the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief of the Commission on Human Rights, Asma Jahangir, at a news briefing in Colombo following her 2 to 12 May visit to Sri Lanka: more..

May 14 (RW) The Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, Asma Jahangir, who was on a ten-day mission to Sri Lanka from 2 May concluded her visit here today. more..

May 14 (LM) The lack of digital-video cameras and sophisticated electronic devices to capture LTTE mob violence is a handicap for the army to counter false LTTE propaganda, according to army sources. more..

May 14 (LM) The hearing of applications pertaining to their expulsion from the SLMC by four members Ameer Ali Shihabdeen, Najeeb A, Majeed, Rishard, Badiuddin and Husseing Bhaila, before the Supreme Court, have been listed for hearing, together, on May 30 and 31st respectively, by a fuller bench of the Court. more..

May 14 (SN) Jathika Sangha Sammelanya (JSS) has decided to hold a Mass Sangha Campaign on the 15 th of May in New Town Hall, Colombo to prevent our Treacherous Leaders surrendering our country to LTTE, the most "Ruthless Terrorist Group" in the world. more..

May 14 (SN) The Society Peace Unity and Human Rights of Sri Lanka (SPUR), a 10-year-old human rights organisation operating from Australia today released a model for distributing aid to assist victims recover from the tsunami trauma. more..

May 14 (SN) The Joint Committee for the Protection of the Eppawala Phosphate Deposit will re-launch their campaign on Saturday against government plans for privatization of the deposit. The Joint Committee will perform an offering at Galkanda Purana Viharaya which will be followed by a perahera. more..

May 14 (SN) The Jathika Sangha Sammelanaya yesterday sought the intervention of Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapakse to prevent the setting up of the proposed joint mechanism for tsunami rehabilitation work in the north and east. more..

May 14 (SAMN) The Lanka Private Bus Owners Association said yesterday it would increase fares by 12.5% to 15% from July 1 - but did not specify whether the increase had been approved by the National Transport Commission. Association President Gemunu Wijeratne said fares were revised every year on July 1 in consultation with the NTC. more..

May 14 (SAMN) A new cabinet paper on restructuring the Ceylon Electricity Board and the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation will be presented before June 10, Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapakse told the Daily Mirror yesterday. more..

May 14 (SAMN) Industries, Tourism and Investment Promotion Minister Anura Bandaranaike, who played a major role in forming the United People's Freedom Alliance yesterday assured that the UPFA Government would not collapse. more..

May 14 (LNP) Police have failed to take action against a senior judicial officer who had personally intervened to get a person known to him released from the Minuwangoda police custody who had been arrested for driving a vehicle without a license. more..

May 14 (LNP) The Ministers` Secretaries Union yesterday (13) accused members of the administrative division of certain ministries of making illegal commissions from for the renting and repair of ministry vehicles by selecting persons who are prepared to give them kickbacks. more..

May 14 (LNP) The National Bhikku Front says that the proposed joint mechanism between the Government and the LTTE is a `luxury vehicle` for the LTTE to achieve legitimacy for its target of separate country. `The proposed Joint Mechanism leads the way towards Eelam of the LTTE. more..

May 14 (DN) THE Public Service Commission (PSC) draws attention to the criticism levelled against the Commission and recent decisions it has made. The PSC has clarified these issues as the situation has given rise to erroneous reports and statements, the PSC said in a release yesterday. more..

May 14 (AP) Tamil Tiger rebels shot dead a former fighter in eastern Sri Lanka Saturday after he deserted and refused to rejoin the group, the military said. Ponniah Thamilvanan, 27, was gunned down in Batticaloa district, military spokesman Brig. Daya Ratnayake said. more..

May 14 (AP) Going by official statistics, there is no dearth of foreign funding for post-tsunami reconstruction in Sri Lanka, but analysts warn that domestic political divisions are threatening to delay or frustrate rebuilding. more..

May 15 (TN) The Colombo High Court Trial-at-Bar (TAB) inquiry into the Mirusuvil massacre case has been fixed before a newly constituted three member-bench comprising Judges Mr.Upali Abeyaratne, Mr.D Wijesunthara and Mr.Sunil Rajapakse for July 25. more..

May 15 (TN) Lance Corporal Somaretna Rajapakse of the Sri Lanka Army who is serving death sentence in Krishanthy Cumaraswamy rape and murder case and a key witness in the several habeas Corpus applications currently under inquiry last week complained to the Jaffna Additional Magistrate that his life is in danger in the Bogambara prison, more..

May 15 (TN) Expressing Japan's frustration in the delay in forging permanent peace in Sri Lanka, Japanese peace envoy Yakushi Akashi, turning his attention the aid deal for post-tsunami development said, "The breakdown of negotiations on the Joint Mechanism will be a major blow to all concerned more..

May 15 (Reuters) Japan's peace envoy to Sri Lanka said on Saturday the absence of a tsunami aid sharing deal between the government and Tamil Tiger rebels would be an obstacle for donors sending assistance to coastal communities. more..

May 15 (BBC) Three more killings have been reported from the east. Poniyaya Thamilwanan, a youth was shot dead Saturday morning around 9.30 pm in the eastern town of Chenkaladi. The mother of the deceased, Pakiya Leelawathi accused The LTTE of the killing. more..

May 15 (BBC) The failure of the government and LTTE to arrive at an agreement how tsunami relief and reconstruction is to be carried out would be a big blow to all concerned warns the Japanese special envoy Yakushi Akashi. more..

May 15 (AT) My dear Sinhalese Brothers and Sisters, I am addressing this letter to you my Sinhala brothers and sisters directly, because your leaders of the past did not and the present do not, have the capacity or intention to resolve the Sinhala-Tamil and the majority-minority problems in Sri Lanka. You are their excuse! more..

May 15 (AT) A Sri Lankan Tamil has one – and only one – way of being a really existing human being - he must be a member or a fellow traveller of the LTTE. Such Tamils are seen, heard, recognised, talked about, honoured…. more..

May 15 (AT) In a bizarre twist of affairs, the powerful secretariat of the Sri Lankan executive President Chandrika Kumaratunga may file a case against the government’s supreme and prestigious institution, the Public Service Commission (PSC). more..

May 15 (AT) Sri Lanka plans to check hap hazardous import and use of harmful chemicals. According to statistics revealed at a recent seminar, Sri Lanka ranks one of the highest among suicide cases in the world and nearly 98 percent of the suicides due to consumption of poison substances. more..

May 15 (AT) Ex-JVP member and present Chief Minister of Western Provincial Council, Reginald Cooray, who is facing a no-confidence motion brought by the UNP and the JVP, is fighting back with accusations of his own against the JVP. more..

May 15 (AT) A senior TNA Parliamentarian Joseph Pararajasingham has said that the Indian Foreign Secretary’s statement that all Tamil groups should be allowed to function in the North East is an attempt to derail the peace process between the Sri Lankan Government and the Tamil Tigers. more..

May 15 (AT) The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has formulated survey identifying eight broad areas of development goals in Sri Lanka on the eve of the two-day Sri Lanka Development Forum meeting. Over hundred delegates representing the donor nations are expected to attend the meeting. more..

May 15 (AT) The free Tamil Media journalists of Toronto, Canada held a public meeting on Friday to uphold the independent nature of the journalists, something that was regretfully missing, deprived to them, though they live in one of the world renowned democratic country. more..

May 15 (LT) Yesterday 40, JVP commenced the special exhibition, the 40th anniversary of the leftist. This exhibition named as "Didulambara" (shining sky) was ceremoniously opened by Somawansa Amarasinghe, the party leader. Other leaders of JVP and some foreign representatives were also present at the exhibition. more..

May 15 (LM) A technique of political practice , when it suits one's lust for retaining power - or when it promotes an opposition's desire to regain power, is the sponsoring of an atavistic religio-nationalist revival. And should this sponsorship be not actively pursued as an extension of one's own brand of political science, more..

May 15 (TN) An Educational Resource Center built under Operation Day's Work (ODW) project supported by Develpment funds from the Norwegian Government, was opened in Aandankulam Roman Catholic School in Mannar Friday, sources in Mannar said. more..

May 15 (JT) The government is considering providing official development assistance to Sri Lanka starting in the next fiscal year to help build coastal forests to prevent tsunami damage, officials said Saturday. more..

May 15 (SLBC) Standard certification on the quality of bottled water is to be made compulsory. Director General of the Sri Lanka Standards Institute, B.S.P.Mendis said that the requirement will come into effect within the next three months and they measure would be implemented with the assistance of the Director General o f Health Services. more..

May 15 (SLA) The final column of the second contingent for UN Peace Keeping bids farewell. Promoting professional standards of the Sri Lanka Army as well as its image further and also expending long from future prospects at international level, more..

May 15 (IANS) With an improvised machine called Arjun, a former Indian brigadier is leading a massive campaign in Sri Lanka to clear thousands of mines buried by troops and Tamil Tiger guerrillas. more..

May 15 (SM) Architectural sites of old, scenic routes and religious relics are some of the fascinating aspects that make this island a delightful tourist destination, writes Eddie Chua. Four months after the tsunami struck Sri Lanka, tourists were trickling back to the island. more..

May 15 (PIS) Two men who were detained in an LTTE camp in the Sampur area have managed to escape and surrender to security forces personnel in the Trincomalee district. One of them identified as Selvarajah Selvakumar, 19, from a village near Trincomalee escaped on Thursday and surrendered to Navy personnel more..

May 15 (PIS) Barely 24 hours ahead of a major aid donor meeting, Tiger guerrillas have accused the government of not adhering to the ceasefire agreement, exerting military pressure, carrying out murders and warned the situation could "turn worse". more..

May 15 (SAMN) President Kumaratunga will inaugurate the Sri Lanka Development Forum at the Earl's Regency Hotel Kandy tomorrow Monday 16. This is the first time this important international donor forum is meeting in Sri Lanka, thus providing an opportunity for the international donor representatives to acquaint themselves with Sri Lanka's economic performance at close range. more..

May 15 (SAMN) A UN agency is opposing security checks on its vehicles and personnel at entry/exit points in the east. Army headquarters said that all vehicles including those belonging to UN agencies and both local and international NGOs passing through entry/exit points are subjected to checks. "UN vehicles would not be allowed to pass through unchecked," a spokesman said. more..