Jan 3 (Island) Minister of Community Development and Social Inequality Eradication Periyasamy Chandrasekaran (53) died of alcoholic cirrhosis, an inquest was told on Friday. Doctors in the United Kingdom had recommended a liver transplant, it was revealed. Giving evidence at the inquest held by City Coroner Edward Ahangama, the wife of the deceased, Shanthini Devi Chandrasekaran (51) said that more..

Jan 3 (Island) At a remote fishing village in Sri Lanka’s northern Jaffna peninsular a fisherman tells a group of officials from a state-run commercial bank and the country’s central bank the difficulties faced in a getting loan. "We would like to thank the bank for introducing a new loan scheme, but the requirement for two government officials to counter-sign it had made it inaccessible to most of us," the middle-aged fisherman says. more..

Jan 3 (Island) Even the ranks of Tuscany must admit that President Mahinda Rajapaksa stood up to the immense international pressure mounted on him to halt the final phase of the war that finished off Prabhakaran and his Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. It is often said that had Ranil Wickremesinghe been in power, this would not have been the case and even some UNPers freely admit this. That, of course, is speculation. more..

Jan 3 (ST) With just 23 days to go for the Presidential Election, the campaigns of the two main contenders - President Mahinda Rajapaksa and retired General Sarath Fonseka - are hotting up. Rajapaksa raised the number of rallies he will address from 32 to 40. This is on top of a string of smaller group meetings he addressed over buffet meals at 'Temple Trees'. This week, such small group meetings were extended to Anuradhapura. more..

Jan 3 (ST) With the dawn of a New Year and the beginning of a new decade as well, it is time to reflect on the past and look to what the future may offer. Fortunately for this country, the 'war', as far as most Sri Lankans are concerned, is over; unfortunately the heroes of our time are now at each other's throats in a different theatre of conflict - the Presidential election. There seems to be general consensus that, notwithstanding the end to terrorism, the Executive Presidency is the root of all evil in this country. more..

Jan 3 (LT) Steps would be taken to tame the private media if Mr. Mahinda Rajapakse is re-elected as the president says Mr. Somaratne Dissanayake participating at the ‘Satana’ political programme telecast over ‘Sirasa’ TV channel yesterday (2nd). Mr. Somaratne Dissanayake making a point at the programme said the private media in the country should be somewhat tamed. more..

Jan 3 (TN) "I am not prepared to allow partitioning the country, be it proposed by the minority or majority community," Sarath Fonseka, the common opposition presidential candidate, said in a press meet held Saturday in Jaffna town. In response to a question Sarath Fonseka took pains to explain the difference between the role he had to play as a military officer in the past and his present role as a politician. more..

Jan 3 (ST) Shanthi Vihar, among the oldest South Indian restaurants in Colombo serving spicy thosai’s, wadas and other delicacies, closed its shutters on New Year’s eve, discontinuing the services of 35 workers without notice, a union representing the workers said. “They were asked to quit last night,” Leon Joseph, a spokesman for the Progressive Union said. The restaurant is among the oldest of a new generation of South India eateries more..

Jan 3 (ST) The Opposition will compile a report with names of public officials who have violated the directive by the Elections Commissioner to refrain from making statements that favour any of the presidential candidates and hand it over to the Commissioner. Some of those to be named are Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, head of the Civil Defence Force Admiral Sarath Weerasekera and military spokesman Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara. more..

Jan 3 (AD) A clash which erupted among supporters of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), the United National Party (UNP) and the United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) supporters at Kiribathgoda has disrupted traffic along the Colombo-Kandy road. The incident began a short while ago and the Police are attempting to bring the clashing factions under control, reports the Adaderana correspondent in the area. more..

Jan 3 (TN) The funeral of the leader of the Upcountry People's Front and the Minister of Community Development and Social Inequity Eradication, Periyasamy Chandrasekaran, who passed away after a brief illness Friday morning in Colombo, will take place Monday evening with full State honors in Talawakelle Urban Council grounds in the Nuwara Eliya district, party sources in Nuwara Eliya said. more..

Jan 3 (GDI) National Freedom Front Parliamentarian, Wimal Weerawansa today made a stunning disclosure that General Sarath Fonseka in his retirement has attained age and was now in puberty. “Sarath Fonseka, now you are a ‘Loku Lamaya’ ”, cracked Weerawansa in a lighter vain. Journalists burst in to laughter when Weerawansa made this comment of Sarath Fonseka becoming a "Big Child" in retirement at 59. more..

Jan 3 (PTI) Sri Lanka will hold provincial elections this year in the war-ravaged north as it braces to devolve power to the region’s predominantly Tamil population. “The 13th Amendment to the Constitution provides us with a framework to devolve power. We have set up the Provincial Council in the Eastern Province and it is functioning. By the middle of this year (2010) we will hold elections to the Northern Provincial Council,” more..

Jan 3 (PTI) Four non-governmental organisations will monitor the January 26 presidential election in Sri Lanka to ensure the polls are conducted in a free and fair manner. The Sri Lankan Elections Department has permitted four NGOs to monitor the upcoming elections and representatives of two of the four bodies will be allowed to station themselves inside the polling stations. The People’s Action for Free and Fair Elections and more..

Jan 3 (GDI) The JVP had forgotten how the UNP captured their founder leader Rohana Wijeweera and cremated him alive, said S. B. Dissanayake. He said the JVP had also forgotten the UNP torture chambers where young JVP members were hanged and tortured. “Sarath Fonseka’s Presidential campaign is conducted by the JVP members who prepare the propaganda posters and other logistics. more..

Jan 3 (BBC) The Sri Lankan government has accused its main rival at the presidential elections of widespread corruption during the war against Tamil Tigers. Senior government ministers and coalition partners say Gen Sarath Fonseka's family has earned money through commissions for weapons procurements. Minister Rajitha Senaratne said the government is in possession of all the documents to prove that Gen Fonseka's son-in-law has profited from the procurements. more..

Jan 3 (TN) Police open fire and exploded tear gas canisters Sunday morning to avert a major clash between supporters of common opposition parties and the ruling UPFA campaign of the minister Mervin Silva at Kribathgoda. A group of JVP and the UNP while engaged in distributing handbills supporting the common opposition candidate General Sarath Fonseka came under attack at Galla junction by another group of persons of Mervin Silva armed with clubs and bottles, more..

Jan 3 (Reuters) Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapaksa seeks re-election in a January poll, with the main challenger former army chief Sarath Fonseka, who led the military to victory in a 25-year war against separatist rebels. Here are some of the variables in the Jan. 26 election, which increasingly looks like a challenging contest for the incumbent. more..

Jan 4 (PTI) Sri Lanka has marked the first anniversary of capture of "strategic" town of Kilinochchi, LTTE's administrative headquarters, which later paved the way for military victory over the Tiger rebels. Recalling the capture of the town on January 2, 2009, an official government website said, the fall of Kilinochchi during the same period last year set the tone for the annihilation of the Tiger rebels and more..

Jan 4 (LG) Professor Laksiri Fernando was quoted in the BBC Sinhala service as saying that, there is nothing wrong in the executive presidential system. He simplistically argued, that the war against the LTTE was won under the executive system and therefore, it cannot be argued that it is a bad system. Professor forgets, that the problem about LTTE arose after the executive presidential system was established and more..

Jan 4 (CI) This tri-nation tournament is not worth any hype: It's being contested by a weakened Sri Lankan side, a Bangladesh outfit that has only played against weak teams in the recent past and an Indian team which, though filled with attractive batsmen, is suffering from poor bowling form and abysmal fielding. And it's being played at the Sher-e-Bangla Stadium in Mirpur, a venue where dew is such an important factor more..

Jan 4 (CI) Three subcontinent teams usher in the new year with a tri-series at the Shere Bangla stadium in Mirpur. Lengthy rest periods are rare in the international calendar these days. Barely a week after leaving India's shores - a tour that stretched them physically as well as mentally - Sri Lanka are back at the departure terminal. They've made sweeping changes to their team, leaving out Sanath Jayasuriya and Muttiah Muralitharan, more..

Jan 4 (CI) Trevor Bayliss, the Sri Lanka coach, has said Sanath Jayasuriya is unlikely to be picked as a specialist opener and will have to force his way in as a spinning allrounder if he is to play the 2011 World Cup. "As Jayasuriya has himself said on record, he is a spinning allrounder now," Bayliss said. "If he keeps performing and putting pressure on others, he can always get in. more..

Jan 4 (LP) President Mahinda Rajapaksa's maximum reaction to the long-standing Tamil demand for autonomy is to be the 13th amendment to the constitution minus the merger of the Northern and Eastern Provinces that came under the Indo-Lanka accord that preceded the constitutional amendment. The jubilant President who successfully suppressed the three decade old armed struggle of the Tamils last year is struggling to win the support of the Tamils ahead of more..

Jan 4 (IG) Six months after teaching English to schoolchildren in Sri Lanka, Ilkley boys Lawrence Walsh and Josh Ellis-Jones are still receiving enthusiastic emails. For Lawrence and Josh, who are both 17, it was a life-changing experience. They realised just how much they took for granted in every-day life from youngsters who had a genuine passion for learning. The boys are both pupils at Ermysted’s Grammar School in Skipton. more..

Jan 4 (TC) How is the year 2010 going to be for Sri Lanka? What are the likely trends? The year 2009 had been a remarkable year of achievement for Sri Lanka. By May 2009 President Mahinda Rajapaksa managed to lead the country to eliminate the LTTE founder leader Prabhakaran its entire leadership. But significantly, he failed to carry the nation as a united entity to handle post war problems of more..

Jan 4 (AT) The meeting of the Parliamentary Group of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) fixed for today at the Parliamentary complex located at Jayewardenepura seems to be crucial due to number of reasons. The main reason is that there is likely to be a show of strength in the part of the TNA rebels amongst whom are now included most of the independents not aligned to any of the constituent parties of the TNA. more..

Jan 4 (LBO) Britain said it is no longer advising its citizens against travel to Sri Lanka's East, but the north continued to be out of bounds though a 30-year war in the area ended last May. Britain's foreign and commonwealth office (FCO) said it had removed an 'all but essential travel' tag to the key eastern districts of Batticaloa, Trincomalee and Ampara. But Britons were still advised against travelling to Kilinochchi, Mannar, Mullativu and Vavuniya. more..

Jan 4 (LG) Long years of war have had a terrible impact on all areas of Sri Lankan life and one of the major areas to suffer from the war was the media. This was only natural. The war on the military front is also fought on the propaganda front by all the parties involved in the conflict. Therefore it was naturally a period in which the audience, the people, mostly got exaggerated and more..

Jan 4 (Reuters) Sri Lanka's young team are good enough to be competitive in the one-day Tri-Series in Bangladesh this month, their coach Trevor Bayliss said on Sunday. Sri Lanka, who face hosts Bangladesh on Monday in the opening match of the tournament which also involves India, made sweeping changes following their defeat by India last month. Batsmen Sanath Jayasuriya and Chamara Kapugedera, fast bowler Lasith Malinga and more..

Jan 4 (BBC) A leftwing presidential candidate in Sri Lanka's forthcoming elections says that refugees in Jaffna still lack basic facilities and struggling to find a way of living. Dr. Vickramabahu Karunaratne, the leader of the Left Front, currently visiting the northern Sri Lankan town as part of his election campaign said that over 300 families in the Manalkadu camp needs to be sent to Vanni where they come from. more..

Jan 4 (Hindu) Editor of English weekly, Sunday Leader, who carried the controversial December 13 interview with the commander turned politician Sarath Fonseka, added a new dimension today with her insistence that she had quoted the retired General `perfectly accurately’. In a detailed report under the title `Her Story’, the Editor of the paper Frederica Jansz said, “The article which, perfectly accurately, quoted the General as saying more..

Jan 4 (TE) At the end of the month, Sri Lanka will be holding Presidential elections between current incumbet Mahinda Rajapaksa and former military chief Sarath Fonseka and so far Fonseka is winning over voters. On Saturday, Presidential opponent to incumbent President Mahinda Rajapaksa in January’s election, General Sarath Fonseka, toured the northern city of Jaffna for his election campaign, more..

Jan 4 (National) The Sri Lanka batsman smashed 96 from 57 balls against West Indies last year to take the accolade for ICC Best Twenty20 Batsman of the Year and has, through the years, made a habit of turning his team’s fortunes around when all seemed lost. And in India he sees a squad of players who have the ability to become the world’s best in all three formats of the game due to the fact they have not one, but more..

Jan 4 (CaFFE) A lawyer attached to the ‘Rajarata Professionals’ Organisation’ had lodged a complaint with the Elections Commissioner claiming that the Chairman of the SLBC Hudson Samarasinghe had illegally appointed a new Director to the ‘Rajarata Sevaya’ ignoring the election laws in force. The Elections Commissioner had recently ordered that there should be no appointments made in government institutions after the Presidential Election was announced. more..

Jan 4 (Hindu) With less than four weeks to go for the presidential poll, charges and counter-charges are being traded and both sides are claiming growing support. While the ruling combine led by President Mahinda Rajapaksa, who is seeking a second term, secured the backing of a senior former MP of the JVP who crossed over to its side, the Opposition threw a challenge at the President to take his main opponent and more..

Jan 4 (TC) Since the gazette notification for the Presidential Election issued on 23rd November 2009 up to 01st January 2010, CMEV has recorded a confirmed cumulative total of 103 incidents of election related violence. According to CMEV reports, 44 incidents have been categorized as Major out of which 16 incidents are of Assault, 13 are of Threat and Intimidation, 8 of Grievous Hurt, 5 incidents of Hurt and 2 cases of the Misuse of State Resources. more..

Jan 4 (TC) "Once normal civil administration is established, committees will be set up in each district. These committees will comprise representatives, including a nominee of the President, Divisional Secretaries, other officials, MPs and/or their representatives, representatives of local authorities, judicial officers, commanders of security forces, and police and civic representatives. more..

Jan 4 (TC) The Govt of President Mahinda Rajapakse has been assailed on many fronts for its abysmal track record in corruption and nepotism. Opposition presidential candidate Sarath Fonseka is focusing a great deal on this extremely vulnerable side of the Rajapakse regime. On the other hand Government propagandists have mocked Sarath Fonseka's extravagant populist promises like the instant salary increase of 10,000 rupees etc and more..

Jan 4 (CaFFE) Poll monitors People’s Action for Free and Fair elections (PAFFREL) and Campaign for Free and Fair Elections (CaFFE) yesterday gave their assessments on IDPs. PAFFREL Executive Director Rohana Hettiarachchi told Daily Mirror that the IDPs were not showing a keen interest in applying for distant voting in the coming presidential elections while CaFFE spokesman Keerhthi Tennakoon said that there have been 4000 duplicate applications. more..

Jan 4 (LG) The usual sincere and hypocritical New Year good wishes of peace on earth and happiness to all mankind have been made and with the waning of the full phase of the moon, bottles were pulled from under tables, from inside the boots of cars and from other hidden places — as required by the Poya Day law — and merriment commenced much to the anger of crusaders and dharmavijaya warriors of the anti booze brigades. more..

Jan 4 (LG) After reading my column last week one of my supporters, Mr. Mannan T Thamothirampillai circulated a document which I found very interesting. Of course I cannot agree with all what he says. In particular I cannot agree that we could trust comrade Practi to carry out a democratic programme after what he did as the Constitutional Minister in the coalition government. While proposing a republican constitution he ignored the rights of minority communities. more..

Jan 4 (LG) Corruption, one might say, is as old as politics itself in Sri Lanka. So indeed is disregard for the Constitution by those in power. We are all familiar with the breathtakingly ingenious ways in which each constitutional document of the day was sought to be twisted, subverted and manipulated by astute legal minds at various periods to suit political or even personal agendas. Yet, even with this undeniably complex history behind us and more..

Jan 4 (MoD) In addition to the political leadership given by President Mahinda Rajapaksa it was the brave decision to double the manpower of the Security Forces that became the main factor in wining the war against the LTTE, Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa said. The Defence Secretary addressing the first felicitation ceremony of Civil Security Department (CSD) officials in more..

Jan 4 (GV) A special Advisory Council for Astrologers is to be established in the lead up to presidential elections to ensure “consistency” in astrological forecasts, claims a source from the Ministry of Indigenous Sciences speaking exclusively to Banyan News Reporters. The Ministry is expected to put forward a cabinet paper proposing the Advisory Council, which will play a supervisory role over all astrologers registered with the Ministry. more..

Jan 4 (LG) Don’t believe a word of what the state media says about Sarath Fonseka, the Common Candidate of the Opposition. They are biased. Believe only what the Sunday Leader says about Sarath Fonseka. It can never be wrong about Fonseka because it is the only paper that has openly declared its commitment to back Fonseka. The last statement by the Editor of The Sunday Leader, Fredrica Jansz on Fonseka is a case in point. more..

Jan 4 (TN) Government withdrew Sunday the customary security arrangements to Sarath Fonseka, the common opposition presidential candidate and the opposition political leaders who are presently in Jaffna to campaign for Sarath Fonseka, sources in Jaffna said. Jaffna Sri Lanka Army Commander who was expected to receive Sarath Fonseka who had been the Chief of Sri Lanka Armed Forces did not turn up at Palaali airport while more..

Jan 4 (LG) The shameless abuse of the Election law by the Subrataya Programme of the SLBC was a direct propaganda programme on behalf of Mahinda Rajapakse, the government’s presidential candidate. The programme was political speech by the government’s minister, Champika Ranavake. The programme was directed by Indika Jayaratne and presented by Janaka Sumith Bandara. This speaker spent a long time answering the opposition’s allegations of Pavul vadaya – nepotism. more..

Jan 4 (DN) The Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL) now entrusted with the task of regulating the country’s electricity production and supply has embarked on an islandwide program in educating the public and power sector employees regarding the new Sri Lanka Electricity Act. PUCSL Deputy Director General Damitha Kumarasinghe said under this scheme an awareness program for the CEB employees in North Central Province will be held today, more..