End of war does not necessarily bring peace- CBK

By Nadia Fazlulhaq-Sunday, April 26, 2015

S.J.V. Chelvanayakam Memorial Lecture

The present Government has prioritised resolving land issues, developing infrastructure, enhancing livelihoods, especially in women-headedhouseholds, ensuring accountability through investigations into alleged war crimes committed by both parties during the end of the war, and finding a durable solution for the Tamil equation by arriving at a political solution acceptable to all, said former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunge yesterday.

Delivering the S.J.V. Chelvanayakam Q.C. memorial lecture organised by the Ilankai Tamil Arasu Katchchi’s Colombo branch, the former President said she was deeply honoured by this invitation, despite her origins from a family that has a checkered history with the ethnic problem.
“We have, today, won the war, but we have not won peace yet. The end of a conflict or war does not necessarily bring peace. The mere absence of war is not peace. Peace entails much more than victory. The victor of many wars may not possess the vision or the ability to build peace,” she said.
“We cannot dwell in history on who did what wrong and change attitudes and deep fears, as a holistic approach is needed to resolve the conflict.
“We know Mr Chelvanayakam left no stone unturned in his efforts to arrive at a political settlement for the minorities’ question, a peaceful political solution. The Bandaranaike-Chelvanayakam (B-C) Pact, the Dudley-Chelvanayakam Pact, were thwarted and prevented from being implemented,” she said.

Ms Kumaratunge said the Sinhala-only Bill was followed with the reasonable use of the Tamil Bill and the B-C Pact. The B-C Pact and the reasonable use of Tamil Bill were arrived at to guarantee the rights of the minorities, following the promulgation of the Sinhala Only Act. Although some saw the Sinhala Only Act as an affirmation of Sinhala supremacy, I maintain that then Prime Minister S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike, who is my father, did not see it that way.”

“Granting Sinhala language its due place after nearly five centuries of colonial suppression of the collective Sri Lankan identity and of our different cultures, to bring back Sinhala, the language of the majority, was seen as the driving force for the re-gaining of the Lankan identity,” she said.

She pointed out that the mistake made was that the languages of the two major communities were not given their due place, and at the same time, a third language was not introduced as a link language, like in India.

To win the peace

Written by Nirupama Subramanian | Published on:April 25, 2015 12:37 am

President Maithripala Sirisena’s self-imposed 100-day deadline to prove that his government is indeed the promised clean break from the Rajapaksa regime ended on April 23. A day earlier, the Sri Lankan police
made the high-profile arrest of Basil Rajapaksa, former economic development minister and brother of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, on corruption charges.

To Win the Peace by Thavam Ratna

University Of Jaffna – A New Beginning

By S. Ratnajeevan H. Hoole -April 26, 2015 

Prof S. Ratnajeevan H. Hoole

Every tidbit of news from University Jaffna seemed troubling if not horrible over the past years – a don caught having sex in his office with a student and still being appointed VC, the present VC forcing senior academics to endorse best wishes for President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s re-election, a Dean altering receipts and still continuing in office, violation of tender procedures and the person responsible being appointed VC, pre-Council meetings where Council members were told exactly how to vote, a book discussion banned by the present VC and the VC telling the BBC that the Teachers’ Union and students had asked for the ban even as the University Teachers’ Association President Amirthalingam Rasakumaran denied that he had written to the VC asking for the ban of the book discussion, appointments in violation of the ordinances of the UGC and the Universities Act, etc.

Problems at other universities seemed to have been decisively cleared afer the new government was returned but not at Jaffna. It was said that the old council members appointed by Douglas Devananda and dutifully rubber stamped by the UGC had refused to resign upon being asked to do so. Ironically the UGC chairperson had resigned but the council members at Jaffna were hanging on under the leadership of Council Member and former VC Prof. P. Balasundarampillai. Even within the TNA which had worked for the election of this government, cracks were emerging as some TNA stalwarts grumbled that the reforms of January 8 did not seem to reach Jaffna. However, Mr. R. Sampanthan, the staid TNA leader, remained complacent and confident. And he was right.

For suddenly the skies seemed to clear. Global Tamil News just reported that a new set of external council members have been appointed. In effect, the old incorrigible Devananda Council had been fired. The TNA had made input to the process. Mr. R. Sampanthan had devolved the responsibility of liaising with the government to MPs Mavai Senathirajah, M.A. Sumanthiran and E. Saravanapavan and they have done an excellent job working with Minister for Higher Education Sarath Amunugama. Jaffna University Science Teachers’ Union too had worked with the TNA in successfully getting sound people on board.Read More

19A: Numbers game begins!

• Sirisena Govt. needs magic number 150 MPs to support key amendment 
• UPFA Rajapaksa faction to command up to 66 votes?
• Dinesh & Co will not support draft amendment
• JHU announces decision to back 19A
• TNA, JVP to support amendment

By Dharisha Bastians- April 27, 2015
The highest levels of Government spent the weekend whipping up votes for legislation that will drastically alter Sri Lanka’s Constitution and restore independence to key arms of the State, with the 19th Amendment to the Constitution coming up for debate in Parliament today.
Getting the crucial amendment through the House will be a litmus test of the Maithripala Sirisena administration, after constitutional reform formed the bedrock of his election platform for change in the January presidential poll.
The bill was due to be debated and voted on last week, until the pro-Rajapaksa faction of the UPFA scuttled the business of the House with an all-night sit-in in the Well of the main chamber to protest President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s summons to the Bribery Commission. It is unclear if similar steps will be taken to scuttle a debate and vote on the amendment when Parliament meets today.
The Sri Lanka Freedom Party, which joined President Sirisena’s National Government a few months ago, has decided to support the amendment, after the party’s Central Committee agreed to extend support. However, the party is also insisting on several amendments to the draft amendment, which high-ranking Government sources say could dilute the reforms.
SLFP strongman and State Minister of Housing Dilan Perera said the SLFP would support the 19th Amendment. The party had decided to extend its support following an assurance that the 20th Amendment to the Constitution, comprising major electoral reform, would be also be enacted by the House as soon as possible.

UPFA MP and Mahajana Eksath Peramuna Leader Dinesh Gunewardane, who also functions as the de facto head of the Rajapaksa faction within Parliament, said they had no intention of supporting the 19th Amendment. “Since the SLFP was given an assurance that the 19th Amendment and the 20th Amendment would be presented together, I don’t think the SLFP will support the bill either,” he said.
The Government needs 150 votes, a two-thirds majority in the national Legislature to enact the constitutional amendment. The number should prove possible to muster, provided there were no rogue elements within the SLFP that would go against the party decision and vote with the Gunewardane faction, authoritative Government sources told the Daily FT.
To defeat the amendment, the pro-Rajapaksa faction needs to muster 75 votes. Up to last night, this group had the potential to muster up to 66 votes. However, it is unclear if President Maithripala Sirisena’s call to arms on Thursday could have shifted positions somewhat, reducing that figure, Parliament watchers said.
Given the present composition of Parliament, 103 members of the UPFA remain technically outside the net of the Sirisena-Wickremesinghe National Government.
Of this number, 90 MPs belong to the SLFP, which has decided in principle to back the amendment. If 45 among them vote with the Government on 19A, the amendment should be adopted, barring unforeseen issues, some analysts said.
The remaining 13 are comprised of small constituent parties within the UPFA, including the EPDP, CWC, Communist Party, LSSP and NFF.
Opposition parties, Tamil National Alliance with 14 seats and the JVP with seven seats, are largely expected to support the 19th Amendment.
The JHU, whose support was uncertain earlier this month, has decided to back the 19th Amendment. JHU strongman and Energy Minister Champika Ranawaka told a press conference yesterday that many of their amendments to the original version of the draft amendment had been incorporated into the final draft.
The 19th Amendment to the Constitution will slash some of the powers of the Executive Presidency, making the office more accountable to Parliament and repeal in its entirety the authoritarian 18th Amendment which removed a two term limit for sitting presidents, allowing an incumbent to contest for life.
The Constitutional reform package also includes restoration of the independent commission system and a Constitutional Council to de-politicise key institutions of the State, including the Police, Judiciary and elections.
If the amendment is scuttled in the House or the UPFA prevents its passage, President Sirisena is likely to opt for dissolution of Parliament and hold general elections seeking a fresh mandate for constitutional reform, sources said.

TNA faction requests leadership to reverse decision to support 19A
Three Tamil National Alliance Parliamentarians have requested Party Leader R. Sampanthan to reconsider the party’s decision to support the 19th Amendment.
All three MPs represent the Wanni District.
TNA Parliamentarians Selvam Adaikalanadan, Shivashakthi Anandan and Vino Noha Radhalingam have made this request.
The MPs requested Sampanthan to change the party decision since the Government had failed to address the problems facing the Tamil people.

Vital week for Sirisena: Will he make or break the SLFP?

By Our Political Editor-Sunday, April 26, 2015

19A to be debated tomorrow, but suspicions remain whether SLFP dissidents would delay or derail it -- SLMC and JVP strongly criticise SLFP's electoral reforms proposals; Rajitha erred in saying Cabinet approved it -- Concern over moves to present 20A as an urgent Bill sans public debate; 255-member House proposed

Weeks of political uncertainty that thrust Sri Lanka on the road to instability are to end for good or for the worse next week. The good is if the 19A is passed in Parliament after a two-day debate due to begin tomorrow. It is to be followed by electoral reforms through a 20A within weeks. The bad, firstly, is if measures to prune down powers of the Executive Presidency, a main pledge that thrust Maithripala Sirisena to the Presidency, are defeated. Secondly, a double blow will come if efforts to introduce a new electoral system through a 20A are similarly voted out.

The fears of such a possibility keep mounting. Parliamentarians supporting former President Mahinda Rajapaksa are stepping up the ante. They want to deny a two-thirds vote though the Central Committee of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) decided unanimously to support both amendments. It is these MPs who are now calling the shots. Their latest position is that they want to move amendments to 19A. One such instance is to make provision that the proposed Constitutional Council to be set up should comprise only parliamentarians. The move to include this amendment is being spearheaded by the pro-Mahinda Rajapaksa faction.

Vital Week for Sirisena Will He Make or Break the SLFP by Thavam Ratna

Pseudo socialists defend: Crime, Corruption and Lawlessness?

by Latheef Farook, Couretsey: Sunday Oberver

At the January 8 presidential elections, people voted for the common candidate Maithripala Sirisena who promised good governance, restoration of law and order, end to crime and corruption and create a good society. Though ambitious, it is an uphill task in view of the mess created by the Rajapaksa regime, which virtually ruined every government institution, society and the country. However, riding against the popular wave some pseudo socialists

Pseudo Socialists Defend Crime, Corruption and Lawlessness by Thavam Ratna

​Frittered and frazzled

The new government has wasted its first 100 days

Mahinda Rajapaksa, still in the game

Apr 25th 2015

THE date should have been one to celebrate: April 23rd was the hundredth day since Maithripala Sirisena formed a government after winning a fraught presidential election, in January, as the head of a broad coalition of parties. The surprising victory was rightly feted as a democratic triumph. It ended nearly ten years of authoritarian, nepotistic rule by Mahinda Rajapaksa, the man who in 2009 inflicted a military defeat on Tamil Tiger rebels. Mr Sirisena had promised, however, to build a “new country” in his first hundred days. He has a long way to go.

The change of government offered a chance to face up to Sri Lanka’s bloody past, including atrocities during the war with the rebels. Optimists said that public institutions could again become accountable and that waste and corruption could be cut. But to achieve this, Mr Sirisena would have to wield real authority. He has not. Mr Rajapaksa’s previous ruling coalition boasted a two-thirds majority in the 225-seat Parliament. The new administration has only managed to cobble together diverse and disloyal groups.

Divisions within the coalition have prevented the government fulfilling its grand promises for its early months. Mr Sirisena has fallen short on pledges to pass a right-to-information bill, to amend the constitution to trim the powers of (on paper, in Mr Sirisena’s case) an overweening presidency, and to form independent commissions to run elections, appoint judges and oversee the police. A constitutional amendment was drafted, but the Supreme Court said changing the president’s powers required a two-thirds parliamentary majority, plus public support in the form of a referendum. Rather than attempt the impossible, the government diluted the bill. Even so, it has got nowhere.

Mr Rajapaksa, meanwhile, has not faded away. His morale is high, lifted by queues of fawning fans who visit his village home. Many are provided with transport to his increasingly frequent public events. The media give him plenty of attention. His extended family still wields clout, despite the arrest by financial police on April 22nd of Basil Rajapaksa, one of his brothers, who used to be in charge of the economy. On April 21st legislators handed a petition to Parliament’s Speaker. Signed by 113 of them, it demanded the resignation of an official from an anti-bribery commission who had dared to summon the former president to give evidence. The petition carried a symbolic message: it would take only as many MPs to bring an impeachment motion against Mr Sirisena, should they wish to. The Speaker would probably not object if they did so: he is another brother of Mr Rajapaksa. “Even though we are in government, it’s as if we are in the opposition,” a deputy minister says.

Aides say Mr Sirisena’s main concern has been to try to gain the trust of his own Sri Lanka Freedom Party, which was led until January by Mr Rajapaksa. Speculation is mounting that he may call fresh elections to try to strengthen his parliamentary support. He had promised to go to the polls once the first 100 days were up. That is one pledge on which he can deliver.

Assassination bid on president in Rajapakse fortress : Namal’s security personnel with firearm threateningly moves towards Maithri

(Lanka-e-News- 26.April.2015, 9.00PM) A most rudely shocking report pertaining to an assassination attempt on  the incumbent president Maithripala Sirisena by the Rajapkses has surfaced.

This bid  was made when the president attended the SLFP district representatives’ conference yesterday(25) at Angunakole , Hambantota the fortress of Rajapakses.

An individual had moved within close quarters of the president most ominously, and when the president’s security personnel searched him on suspicion ,it was discovered  he was carrying a weapon , and is  a member of Namal Rajapakse’s security contingent.

This incident is most portentous and dangerous because , such an incident cannot take place unless it is a premeditated  one.

When the president attends an event , even the personal security of the prime minister (P.M.) cannot be there with weapons. Then , how did  Namal ‘s security personnel creep in with firearms at the venue where even the prime minister’s security personnel are disallowed with arms?.

Surely  Namal cannot plead ignorance of the laws in defense , for  his own father was a president of the country. For this reason alone Namal should be more aware of the laws governing such situations.

When the president attends an event , it is his security personnel who are in charge ,that is  the President’s security division (PSD).The prime minister (P.M.) , ministers , M.P.s are provided security by the ministerial security division (MSD). Once  the PSD takes over the security , the weapons in the possession of  others are divested. This is  because the security provided to the president  covers the security of the ministers and MPs. 

Before the president attends an event , several days ahead itself , the PSD reports on the security situation at the venue , and based on that report the security is beefed up from the day previous to the event, and that security plan is in place until the president attends  the event and leaves.

Since this morning , at Angunakole , everything had happened according to Chamal Rajapakse’s  supervision . Hence , the security personnel of Namal getting  very close to  the president with a firearm is reckoned as a most grave threat to the president’s life given the bitter hostility the president is facing from the Rajapakses.

In the circumstances , suspicions have arisen relating to the senior DIG Wickremesinghe who is in charge of the incumbent president’s security. This is because while  he is   primarily responsible for the serious security lapse today, the suspect  who is Namal ‘s security personnel was released by the PSD simply when the suspect had just claimed he belongs to  Namal’s security , instead of apprehending the suspect and questioning him.

The senior DIG Wickremesinghe was a body guard for Mahinda Rajapakse for the last 18 years , and extremely close to the latter. He was Rajapakse’s security personnel from the time Mahinda was the  minister and most notorious as his pet  stooge and shameless lapdog. Hence , having this Rajapakse stooge in the security detail of Maithripala who has become the vicious and venomous target of Mahinda is to risk his life by his own actions. Several warnings were received  in regard to this security threat to Maithripala  and  , yesterday’s  incident is the outcome of the failure to heed  those warnings.

The high rung police officers  revealed that Wickremesinghe while being In the security contingent of Maithripala was passing every information to Mahinda Rajapakse. Even if Maithri  suffers from flatulence it is conveyed to the Medamulanas.  Surprisingly , senior DIG Wickremesinghe has been attending every event of the president , and that was something which  never happened before during the time of the other presidents, they further pointed out.

It is high time Maithripala  thinks not twice but many times about  the present pernicious  trend  that is alienating him from the faithful forces that steered him to victory at the presidential election s, and  his reprehensible descent in the direction of this enemies and falling into their traps. It is well for him to remember Sri Lanka  is a country where not one but two leaders were assassinated. (Late  S W R D Bandaranaike and Late R. Premadasa) . One of them was a State leader of the SLFP who was killed by extremists of the SLFP itself.

Note
It will not be out of place here  if we recall Lanka e news reported earlier on  with photographs  that Udyanga Weeratunge a SL  ex ambassador to Russia  and  a cousin of ex president Mahinda Rajapakse , brought six boxes of arms in the plane he arrived from Russia , and among those weapons were sniper firearms . Gotabaya Rajapakse who was the ex defense secretary at that time , had himself gone  and  taken them from the airport . Now , neither Udayanga can be traced nor the weapons so collected. No one seems to know anything about it either. This was SL the model in the making under the Medamulanas .

---------------------------
by     (2015-04-26 16:04:27)

Mahinda Rajapaksa's denial

Fragments.

by Uditha Devapriya-Sunday, April 26, 2015

In an interview with AFP last Wednesday, Mahinda Rajapaksa has denied any involvement with the Bodu Bala Sena. He has called the organisation a Western conspiracy that alienated Muslims. We can assume it wasn't just the Muslims it alienated, but let's leave that for later. For now, we can take this statement in either of two ways. We can think Rajapaksa is suffering from selective myopia, given that he didn't make any statement like this while in power.

 

We can also think he's gaining humility. Now in politics humility rarely counts. This we know. It's only natural that this statement will be greeted with disbelief, not just by his detractors but by his supporters as well. That's what makes it all the more tragic.

 

When the former president secured an unprecedented majority in Parliament in 2010, he had the best chance to democratise the country he delivered from terrorism. He didn't do that. Instead he passed through a constitutional amendment that he thought would ensure unlimited rule but which proved his undoing in the end. He alienated anyone and everyone who wasn't part of his family. He listened to those he shouldn't have listened to. And, perhaps most tragically, he let abuse off the hook, even with abusers who are now with the government and are lambasting him as though they’ve become lily-white angels.

 

I have always believed that if there's something wrong with the Sinhala Buddhists, it's that they fall prey to political agenda rather quickly. When the Aluthgama riots were in full swing, both the BBS and Jathika Hela Urumaya (the former more than the latter) didn't help. What they did was to inflame a situation that could have been corrected. Easily. They let emotion prevail and excluded reason. That didn't help, clearly.

 

Rajapaksa should have known better, on the other hand. But he listened to wrong advice. That too proved his undoing. And it's not hard to see how. When the Aluthgama riots boiled over, there was an opportunity open to him. He could have made a statement. He could have eased tension. He could have stopped the riots and rioters. But he didn't. Why?

 

In his interview with AFP, he points out a name. Patali Champika Ranawaka. He accuses the Minister for having defended the BBS. True. Ranawaka did himself no favours during the Aluthgama riots. It was Rajitha Senaratne, the Old Left, Dilan Perera, and Wimal Weerawansa (in that order) who named names and accused the organisation. The JHU didn't incite violence, but it didn't help sort out the mess either.

 

The former president says that it was Ranawaka's act that alienated minorities. That is only partly true. Ranawaka was not Rajapaksa’s right-hand man. If he was the statesman we wanted him to become he should have disregarded Ranawaka and resolved Aluthgama. He didn't. Playing the blame-game doesn't help, therefore.

 

It also doesn't help that his family were perceived to be colluding with the BBS. That's what makes his involvement-denial all the more self-contradictory. Still, his assertion that the organisation worked against his interests is spot on. Better late than never, after all. Yes, he should have acted against the BBS when he had time and they were against his interests. But then again, there were other things he should have done. He left them all undone. We now know where that lead him.

 

And if recent events are anything to go by, there appears to be very little substance in what he's saying now. When Gotabaya Rajapaksa was summoned to the Bribery Commission there were supporters waving a perverted National Flag. This points more at overzealous protesters than at those they were supporting, but the move clearly backfired. If the Bodu Bala Sena was involved with this that makes the AFP interview even more self-contradictory.

 

Mahinda Rajapaksa must substantiate assertion. If he wants to deny collusion with the BBS he must do so to the public. He must clarify and reveal what really happened during Aluthgama. He must name names. He has the support of the Sinhala Buddhist community but he must have the foresight to embrace all and alienate none. That is why the BBS needs to be out. It may be a short-term plus-factor but in the long run it won't help. This he must realise. At once.

 

Uditha Devapriya is a freelance writer who can be reached at udakdev1@gmail.com

Is Mahinda Rajapaksa Suffering From The Complex Of “Excessive Self-Love “?

By Prasad Mohotti -April 26, 2015 

Dr. Prasad Mohotti MD

George Orwell said in his famous novel, Animal Farm “that all animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others’’, this is relevant not only during the Stalin’s period in Russia, but to any person who tries to control others by political or any other means.

In the human kingdom, some have leadership qualities in their personality. Others feel comfortable, to be guided by a leader.

Politicians as a group, usually have strong desire for leadership. Politicians always try to convince fellow human beings that they can do a better job than others.

This raises the question: Are politicians a special breed of Homo sapiens? Are they behaviorally different from ordinary people you meet in the street or work place? The answer to this question is,” yes”

Sociologists and psychologists believe that certain personality types are more common among leaders, especially among political leaders.

It is a common belief among sociologists and psychologists, that most politicians have some degree of “excessive self-love” which is called Narcissism. The term ‘narcissism,’ stems from Greek mythology, where Narcissus, the hunter who fell in love with his own reflection in the water. Narcissus was unable to leave the beauty of his own reflection, ultimately Narcissus drowned due to excessive self-love. The core features of Narcissistic personality is that, they have excessive preoccupation with their own success, power and brilliance coupled with a singular lack of empathy for others.

Dr. Pepper Schwartz, a sociologist at the University of Washington in Seattle, shed more light on this. He questioned: “How many of us would have the desire, much less the ability, to promote ourselves ceaselessly? You have to do that as a politician. It’s an amazing level of self-love … and a need for affirmation. Politicians always have to make others believe that they could do a better job than others.

PM jealous of Rattaran Rohitha’s Rs. 2.5 m ring!

 

Sunday, 26 April 2015

Port development minister of the former Rajapaksa regime, Rohitha Abeygunawardena alias Rattaran, spent his ministerial salary in the past 10 years sparingly, saved some Rs. 2.5 million, and on the advice of Sumanadasa Abeygunawardena, bought and wore a ring to drive away evil, but that ring has left prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe in a fit of jealousy, reports say.

That is because of a remark the PM made in Badulla yesterday (25).

Referring to Rattaran Rohitha’s ring, he said it is now clear as to who the thieves are. Only Mahinda Rajapkasa knows that Rattaran Rohitha has bought this ring with the money he had hard earned through his own sweat, because the former president too, is a person who had earned similarly. That is why he is left with a cold sweat when asked to appear before various commissions to give statements with regard to such hard earned money. The people of Kalutara, well knowing how Rattaran Rohitha jumped out of moving trains, ran along paddy fields and rubber estates to earn money, elected him as their representative to parliament in order to travel in trains without any fear for their gold jewllery. In parliament too, what Rattaran Rohitha did was his old job. Anyhow, the Rajapaksas gave a livelihood for those who are skilled at it.

Within 10 years in parliament, Rattaran Rohitha was able to wear a ring worth Rs. 2.5 m, but Ranil Wickremesinghe who has been in parliament for nearly 40 years, does not even have a wrist watch of his own. Wearing rubber slippers like Rattaran Rohitha did, Basil Rohana Rajapaksa came to Sri Lanka from the US in 2005, but a few days ago he went to the financial crime investigation division wearing a Rolex wrist watch worth 60,000 US dollars. Wearing a similar Rolex wrist watch, ex-president Mahinda Rajapaksa boarded a helicopter with Upali Dharmadasa to view a cricket match at Suriyawewa international stadium, but he alighted wearing wrist watches in both hands. Boarding the helicopter wearing a 30,000 US dollar wrist watch, Dharmadasa alighted at Suriyawewa empty handed. Mahinda did not frighten him, but only said, “Sh.. Upali, what a wrist watch!” When he alighted, that wrist watch was in Mahinda’s right hand.

PM Wickremesinghe should take examples from such persons and such incidents. For the first time in world history, after an overnight stay in a parliament, having a bite and a shot and getting legs crossed, a Rs. 2.5 m ring was found by the sergeant-at-arms entangled on a saree on the following morning. Rather than speaking with jealousy about such things, Ranil should learn from Rattaran Rohitha and follow his footsteps.

Alleged Rs. 4,000 m fraud by CSN: Yoshitha, Sajin Vaas summoned

By Damith Wickremasekara-Sunday, April 26, 2015View(s): 727

Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s son Yoshitha Rajapaksa and MP Sajin Vass Gunawardena have been directed to appear before the Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID) next week for questioning on allegations of money laundering and failure to pay dues amounting to a staggering Rs. 4,000 million to the Government.

A senior police officer said they were to be questioned in connections with an investigation on the activities of the controversial sports channel Carlton Sports Network (CSN) of which Yoshitha Rajapaksa was a founder and Mr. Vaas Gunawardena an investor.

A former Presidential Secretariat official, state television officials and some businessmen are among others who also have been told to appear before the FCID for the same investigation.

The decision to summon them comes on allegations that they had arbitrarily taken over the broadcasting rights of international cricket matches and misused state-owned transmission towers thereby causing huge losses to the State and other television channels, the officer said.

He said there were allegations that the CSN had no paid broadcasting fees to the state but the money had been spent on developing the CSN and on other business activities.

As part of the investigations the bank accounts of Yoshitha Rajapaksa and Mr. Vaas Gunawardena also had been checked.

Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayaka told the Sunday Times the estimated revenue loss to the state due to the dealings of the CSN had been estimated at Rs. 4,000 million.

He said the CSN had so far not paid the Rs one billion tax imposed by the January 29 budget.

The minister said investigations had revealed that the CSN had been earning about Rs. 200 million monthly by broadcasting to China over the past three years.

BASL probes whether Wijedasa or Rajitha pressurized to accord special privileges to Basil and his two accomplices who are remanded

(Lanka-e-News- 26.April.2015, 11.00PM) Whether it is Basil Rajapakse or any other criminal , when the court remands him / her , every prisoner should be treated in the same way . Yet , the prison authorities are  according  Basil and his other two accomplices  special  privileges , which is tantamount  to corruption , the Bar association (BASL) alleged at its meeting held yesterday , and against this, action must be taken , the BASL further decided. 

Jeffrey Aalagaratnam was appointed as the new president of the BASL yesterday , and at his inaugural session this decision was taken. The lawyers present questioned how  when Basil gets a heart attack ,  his two accomplices too are suffering from  cardiac arrest? When Basil took ill in the prison , he was transferred to the national hospital even before submitting  another medical report to court ,and obtaining  the permission from the judge .

There is information that justice minister Wijedasa Rajapakse and health minister Rajitha Senarathne have exerted pressures on behalf of Basil , and if that is true it constitutes corruption , and action must be taken ,the BASL executive committee declared. When law is being enforced against criminals , whether it is ex president or the present  Prime minister (P.M.) , everyone is equal before the law , and they must respect the rule of law . Double standards cannot be practiced to  change the laws to suit the Rajapakses , the BASL emphasized.

Lanka e news inquired from Wijedasa Rajapakse and Rajitha Senarathne in regard to the comments made by the BASL: 

Wijedasa Rajapakse  said , he became aware of the hospitalization of Basil only through the media while adding that there are hundreds of prisoners sent to prison every day by courts , and Basil is just one of them. He also noted that if the prisons commissioner or the prisons hospital chief  has acted in transgression of the laws , he would take  necessary action against them . Nevertheless , providing medical treatment to a patient cannot be precluded even by the judge , he pinpointed.

Dr. Rajitha Senarathne answering queries raised by Lanka e news , said , the transfer of Basil and his two accomplices from the prison to outside hospital itself is unlawful. Though the prisoner can be taken to the OPD of the prison hospital , sending him to a specialist  directly named by him , is wrong. Hence the prison hospital chief and the Colombo general  hospital Director have not acted duly , Rajitha pointed out. It is most strange that when Basil  falls sick his two other accomplices also have become sick . ‘ If these are individuals who came to take treatment  only,  from the hospital , that is alright. But what they are doing is while being  there , they are engaging in politics contriving  methods to sabotage the 19 th amendment . Now the Colombo general hospital will have to be named a s the prisoners’ hospital , he lamented. 

When Lanka e news inquired , whether because Rajitha and Basil were classmates and friends , he favored Basil, Rajitha replied , ‘ classmate’ story is true , but he had not acted partially towards anyone. Besides as these are wrongful  procedures  offending against  the laws , an investigation  shall be conducted into this , he pointed out 

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by     (2015-04-26 17:52:36)

HE SL ambassador in Nepal leaves political refugees in streets!

Sunday, 26 April 2015

Sri Lanka’s ambassador W.M. Seneviratne, who identifies himself as His Excellency the Ambassador, thinking that he is above president Maithripala Sirisena, who has insisted that he be not referred to as the HE, has dropped the Sri Lankan journalists, who had a very narrow shave in Nepal, from frying pan into the fire, say sources in Kathmandu.

Acting on a message received from foreign affairs minister Mangala Samaraweera around 7.00 this morning, the journalists walked more than six kms through the debris and dead bodies, and reached the Sri Lankan embassy only to find it closed, with the gates padlocked. Then they went to the ambassador’s official residence and met him, who had told them to be at the airport at 9.30 am with their passports.

Trusting the ambassador, the journalists had returned to the place they had been staying, kept their computers and two clothes each, and distributed the kitchen equipment, their pillows and mattresses among the Nepalese people, with whom they had shared their lives, but now affected and rendered helpless by the earthquake. After that, they had gone to Kathmandu international airport with the hope of coming to Sri Lanka on board the Sri Lanka Air Force special plane that had arrived with relief goods. 

They had asked protocol officer Niranjala, who had been in charge of the plane, to include them in the Sri Lanka bound passengers list. She has asked them to come closer to the plane, but they noted that they could not do so due to security arrangements and kindly asked her to come to them and escort them to the plane. She first told them that she would have to get the ambassador’s permission for that, but later insisted that she could take them in only if they arrived near the plane by themselves. Becoming more helpless, the journalists tried to telephone the ambassador, but could not reach him. Later, both Niranjala and the ambassador kept their mobile phones switched off.

In the meantime, the AF plane left for home with 35 passengers. The helpless Sri Lankan journalists were more saddened when they saw that diplomatic officers of India, China and the EU, displaying flags of their respective countries, helping their countrymen prepare for evacuation.

The end result is that the deployment of ‘diplomuts’ like W.M. Seneviratne, who cannot put two letters together to write a coherent letter, but has only bodily prowess, leaves persons who become vulnerable due to such disasters, on the streets.

Nepal's hospitals swamped as quake toll passes 2,400, thousands injured

KATHMANDU | BY GOPAL SHARMA AND SANJEEV MIGLANI-Sun Apr 26, 2015

(Reuters) - Overwhelmed doctors moved hundreds of patients onto the streets of Nepal's capital on Sunday when aftershocks rattled hospitals and buildings already damaged by an earthquake that killed more than 2,400 people and devastated Kathmandu valley.

Sick and wounded people lay on a dusty road outside Kathmandu Medical College while hospital workers carried more patients out of the building on stretchers and sacks.

Doctors set up an operating theatre inside a tent and rushed in the most critical, following a particularly big tremor that sent people running terrified into the streets.

The aftershock, itself a strong 6.7 magnitude quake, triggered more avalanches in the Himalayas after Saturday's 7.9 quake - which unleashed Everest's worst disaster and was the strongest since 1934 when 8,500 people were killed.

Outside the National Trauma Centre in Kathmandu, patients in wheelchairs who had been under treatment before the earthquake hit joined hundreds of injured with fractured and bloody limbs, who lay inside tents made from hospital sheets.

"We only have one operation theatre here. To be able to provide immediate treatment we require 15 theatres. I am just not able to cope," said Dipendra Pandey, an orthopaedic surgeon, adding he had done 36 critical operations since Saturday.

Relief agencies and officials said most hospitals were overflowing and short on medical supplies.

"Both private and government hospitals have run out of space and are treating patients outside, in the open," said Nepal's envoy to India, Deep Kumar Upadhyay.

Neighbouring countries sent in military transport planes laden with medical supplies, food and water. But little sign of organised relief efforts was visible as aid agencies struggled to fly helicopters in cloudy weather, aftershocks forced the intermittent closure of Kathmandu airport and roads were blocked by landslides.

The extent of the damage around the epicentre, near Gorkha in the western highlands, had still not been fully assessed.

Patchy mobile telephone and email communication added to the slow progress of relief as Asia's poorest country reeled from its worst earthquake in eight decades.

As rescuers dug with their hands through the rubble of brick buildings in crowded Kathmandu, thousands of survivors prepared to spend a second rainy night outside because they were afraid of going back to damaged homes.

Meanwhile a plane carrying the first 15 climbers injured on Everest arrived in Kathmandu around noon local time. One, Gelu Sherpa, said: "There is a lot of confusion on the mountain. The toll will rise."

The bodies of 17 climbers were recovered from the mountain, where the big aftershock sent boulders and ice crashing around camps in the high mountains.

It hit as Indian climber Arjun Vajpai spoke to Reuters over the phone from Makalu base camp near Everest.

"Another one, we have an aftershock right now. Oh shit!" he shouted. "Avalanche!"

Screams and the roar of crashing snow could be heard over the line as he spoke.

OTHER COUNTRIES HELP

With Nepal's government overwhelmed by the scale of the disaster, India flew in medical supplies and members of its National Disaster Response Force, while China sent in a 60-strong emergency team. Pakistan's army said was sending four C-130 aircraft with a 30-bed hospital, search and rescue teams and relief supplies.

Nepali army officer Santosh Nepal and a group of rescuers worked all night to open a passage into a collapsed building in Kathmandu. They had to use pick axes because bulldozers could not get through the ancient city's narrow streets.

"We believe there are still people trapped inside," he told Reuters, pointing at concrete debris and twisted reinforcement rods where a three-storey residential building once stood.

Among the capital's landmarks destroyed in the earthquake was the 60-metre (200-foot) Dharahara Tower, built in 1832 for the queen of Nepal.

A jagged stump was all that was left of the lighthouse-like structure. As bodies were pulled from the ruins on Saturday, a policeman said up to 200 people had been trapped inside.

At one hospital in Kathmandu, police officer Sudan Shreshtha said his team had brought 166 corpses overnight.

"I am tired and exhausted, but I have to work and have the strength," Shreshtha told Reuters as an ambulance brought three more victims to the Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital.

Bodies, including that of a boy aged about seven, were heaped in a dark room. The stench of death was overpowering.

Outside, a 30-year-old woman who had been widowed wailed: "Oh Lord, why did you take him alone? Take me along with him."

DEATH TOLL

Some buildings in Kathmandu toppled like houses of cards, others leaned at precarious angles, and partial collapses exposed living rooms and furniture in place and belongings stacked on shelves.

People wandered the streets clutching bed rolls and blankets, while others sat in the street cradling their children, surrounded by a few plastic bags of belongings.

Rescuers, some wearing face masks to keep out the dust, scrambled over mounds of splintered timber and broken bricks in the hope of finding survivors.

The quake struck at midday on Saturday at a busy time of year for the tourism-reliant country's trekking and climbing season, with an estimated 300,000 foreign tourists in the country, home to many World Heritage sites.

There were nearly 1,000 climbers and sherpas on Everest when the first avalanche struck and claimed the highest toll of any disaster on the world's highest mountain.

Tents at Everest base camp were flattened by rocks and snow, climber photographs on social media showed. Another 100 climbers higher up Everest at camps 1 and 2 were safe, but their way back down the mountain was blocked by damage to the treacherous Khumbu icefalls, scene of an avalanche that killed 16 climbers last year.

Helicopters were able to fly in on Sunday morning as clouds lifted, to evacuate the injured to a lower altitude, from where they were being flown to Kathmandu.

Authorities put the death toll in Nepal at 2,460, and police said 6,492 were hurt. At least 1,100 were killed in the capital, a city of about 1 million people where many homes are old, poorly built and packed close together.

Some 66 people were reported killed in neighbouring India. The aftershock rocked buildings in the Indian capital New Delhi and halted the city metro.

In Tibet, the death toll climbed to 18, according to a tweet from China's state news agency, Xinhua. Four people were killed in Bangladesh.

(Additional reporting by Ross Adkin and Rupam Jain Nair in Kathmandu; Frank Jack Daniel, Mayank Bhardwaj, Krista Mahr, Amit Ganguly and Nidhi Verma in New Delhi; Clara Ferreira Marques, Robert Birsel in Islamabad, Neha Dasgupta in Mumbai and Norihiko Shirouzo in Beijing; Writing by Douglas Busvine and Frank Jack Daniel; Editing by Sophie Walker)