The Peoples’ Tribunal on Sri Lanka - Session II 7th - 10th December 2013 Bremen, Germany

Tuesday, 03 December 2013 

PPT's panel of judges to hear accusations of Genocide against the Sri Lankan State and charges of complicity with this crime against several other countries The Permanent Peoples’ Tribunal will be conducting the Second Session of the Peoples’

Tribunal on Sri Lanka from the 7th to the 10th of December 2013 in Bremen, Germany. In the First Session, which was held in January 2010 in Dublin, Ireland, the panel of judges had determined, that 'War Crimes' and 'Crimes against Humanity' had taken place on the Tamil population during the final months of the war in Sri Lanka. It also held that pressure from the UK/USA governments contributed to the breakdown of 2002 peace process between the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam and the Government of Sri Lanka, precipitating the war. Though the charges put forward to the Panel at that time did not contain the accusation of genocide, due to the character of the evidence put before them, the PPT panel of judges determined that further investigation may be necessary regarding the question of genocide.

Since then, the Permanent Peoples’ Tribunal has approved the submission of the International Human Rights Association Bremen (IMRV) and the Irish Forum for Peace in Sri Lanka (IFPSL), that substantial new evidence necessitate a second round of investigations to determine whether Genocide has been and is being committed against the Tamil people in Sri Lanka. Like in the first session, a respected panel of judges consisting of experts in Genocide studies, former UN-officials, experts in international law and renowned peace and human rights activists will hear the evidence that is presented and make a determination.

Follows the list of judges in alphabetic order:

Gabriele Della Morte is a researcher and Professor of International Law at the Università Cattolica di Milano. He was also associate professor in International system, institutions and rules, Chargé de cours at the Académie de droit international humanitaire et des droits de l'homme of Geneva (2007-2008), counsel for the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) (2003-2004), Law Clerk for the Prosecutor Office of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (2000) and member of a government delegation for the establishment of the International Criminal Court (1998).

José Elías Esteve Molto, international lawyer and legal expert on Tibet. He is the main lawyer who researched and drafted both lawsuits for international crimes committed in Tibet and a recent one for crimes in Burma. He is a Professor in International Law at the University of Valencia.

Daniel Feierstein - Director of the Centre for Genocide Studies at the Universidad Nacional de Tres de Febrero, Professor in the Faculty of Genocide at the University of Buenos Aires and a member of CONICET (Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas

Tecnicas - The Argentine National Centre for Scholars). He has been elected as the president of the 'International Association of Genocide Scholars'.

Sévane Garibian - An expert on Genocide and International Law. She is an Assistant Professor at the University of Geneva and Lecturer at the University of Neuchâtel, where she teaches Legal Philosophy and International Criminal Law. Her work focuses on issues related to law facing State crimes.

Haluk Gerger - A respected academic and a Middle East analyst who was imprisoned in Turkey for his political activism. He is known for his support for Kurdish people's right to self-determination.

Javier Giraldo Moreno - Colombian Theologian and human rights activist based in Bogota. Known for his depth of analysis in contextualising genocide affected communities. He is Vice-President of the Permanent Peoples’ Tribunal.

Denis Halliday - Former Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations. He resigned from his 34 year old career in the UN in protest of the economic sanctions imposed on Iraq by the Security Council. Laureate of the Gandhi International Peace Award.

Manfred O. Hinz - Professor for Public Law, Political Sociology and Sociology of Law at the University of Bremen. He has a long history of engagement in solidarity with liberation struggles in Africa, specially Namibia and the West Sahara. He, for several years, held the UNESCO chair for human rights and democracy of the University of Namibia whilst he was a professor there.

Helen Jarvis - She served as Chief of the Public Affairs Section from the inception of the the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC), the special Cambodian court which receives international assistance through the United Nations Assistance to the Khmer Rouge Trials (UNAKRT). The court is commonly referred to by the more informal name the Khmer Rouge Tribunal or the Cambodia ribunal.

ØysteinTveter - A Norwegian scholar of International Law and a member of the Permanent Peoples’ Tribunal on extra-judicial killings and violations of human rights in the Philippines.

Maung Zarni - He is a Burmese democracy activist who founded the Free Burma Coalition in 1995. He is one of the few Burmese intellectuals who have come forward to unconditionally oppose the increased discrimination and violence against the Rohingya Muslims and publicly criticised Aung San Suu Kyi on this issue.

See invitation here

The Unfair Impeachment— In ‘Six Hours’

By Lawyers for Justice -December 3, 2013

Can anyone believe that the ‘entire inquiry  proper’ was concluded within ‘six hours’,-about five hours of one continuous sitting, for examining and recording the evidence of 16 witnesses and  marking over1000 pages of documents and 20 minutes for considering and approving the final Report.    [more details later] 

The Chief Justice of the country was ‘summarily dismissed’ without a ‘fair trial’, in secrecy ,in her absence , on the findings of a ’partial panel’ , without the four  opposition members, and after’ denying her right to a legitimate defence.?’ contrary to all ‘Principles of Natural Justice.”   The final determining ‘panel of seven’ was all, one sided, only by the government ministers.

How was it possible to finish the ‘hearing’ of 16 witnesses and  to examine  over 1000 pages of documents, in just five hours   and        How can the deliberations, findings, the preparation, consideration and approval of the entire Report take place in just 20 minutes?

There is a great ‘mystery’ as to how it happened. Was there an outside hand involved? in manipulating the process and especially in preparing the “Final Report”. When and where, was it prepared?

Everything seems a predetermined and a foregone conclusion.

The Supreme Court considered the Standing Orders as ‘inadequate’ and the Court of Appeal has ‘Quashed the findings of the PSC, yet the ‘Rulings and Orders’ were contemptuously disregarded. The Judiciary hasnow come under the spell of the political authorities.Read More

SL Justice System incapable of investigating Moothoor massacre: ACF

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 03 December 2013, 15:30 GMT]
“Facing growing pressure by the international community for an effective investigation, Sri Lankan authorities are attempting to deflect public attention by claiming that another investigation into the Muttur massacre has been opened. However, deliberate subversion of the investigative process over the past 7 years and continuous harassment of witnesses and journalists who have raised the case have demonstrated that no effective legal action can be taken in today’s Sri Lanka in relation to the Muttur massacre,” said France-based NGO Action Contre la Faim (ACF), whose 17 humanitarian workers were shot and killed at point blank range by Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers in Moothoor, Trincomalee, in August 2006. 

The 17 humanitarian aid workers were likely assassinated by members of Sri Lankan military and that the criminals must have been covered up by Sri Lankan top authorities. Stating that the Moothoor massacre is one of the most atrocious war crimes ever committed against humanitarian personnel, the ACF report said. 

“The ACF believes that only an independent international investigation can effectively lead to prosecution of the killers.”

• ACF Report: The truth about the assassination of 17 aid workers in Sri Lanka

The ACF has closely followed the domestic investigation “only to become convinced that the Sri Lankan justice system is incapable of investigating the case. Several domestic mechanisms dealing with the Muttur massacre arrived at no conclusion: the Magistrate Court (from 2006 to 2008), the National Commission of Human Rights (from 2006 to 2008), the Presidential Commission of Inquiry (CoI) (from 2007 to 2010) and the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (from 2010 to 2012).”

Meanwhile, a lot of information has leaked into the public domain, the ACF said. Such information consists of the names of the alleged murderers. 

“This report brings together publicly available information on the Muttur case, combines this with information obtained by ACF directly (from witnesses, diplomatic contacts and other sources close to the matter) and offers several arguments in support of this allegation.”

The report begins with the results of independent investigations and individual testimonies which implicate Army, Navy and Police personnel in the killings and continues with a description of how the security forces attempted to destroy the evidence in the days immediately after the massacre. 

The report then explores the multiple irregularities of the official investigation which have helped the killers avoid justice and the role that the top Sri Lankan authorities have played in providing impunity.

“With no prospects of an effective domestic investigation today, ACF has decided to publicly say what it knows about the Muttur massacre,” the report said in its executive summary.

‘People Living In Stone Houses Should Not Throw Glasses’

By Charitha Ratwatte -December 3, 2013

Charitha Ratwatte

Loka saama nayikawa, apey mara doothikawa (Leader of world peace/our devilish messenger)

The sub title appeared on the wall of the Colombo University in 1976 shortly after the Non-Aligned Summit was held in Colombo, at which Sri Lanka’s Prime Minster was elected Head of the Non Aligned Movement.

In the 1977 election, the government was routed and the Prime Minister deprived of civic rights. The current Chairman of Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, allegedly in responding to British Prime Minister Cameron’s call for an international inquiry into war crimes, if Sri Lanka does not hold a credible inquiry before March 2104, commented: “People who live in glass houses should not throw stones.”

Apparently, a reference to the Lord Chilcot inquiry in Britain, set up with a mild remit by Prime Minister Gordon Brown, on lessons to be drawn from the Iraq war and the fact that there are allegations that the US State Department and London’s Whitehall are conniving to keep certain vital documents relating to discussions between President Bush and Prime Minister Blair, on the decision to wage war, away from the inquiry.

CHOGM show

It is interesting that, as a wag pointed out, a certain boutique tourist guest house in the hills, is said to have a notice to stop guests throwing glasses at the stone walls; the wag wondered aloud whether this would have been applicable to recent dinner receptions in Colombo, with the corollary that ‘even if the glass contained Pimms Number One, Johnny Walker Blue Label or even Chivas Regal!’

Probably a reference to the ‘blue-blooded royalty’ that were trotted out by the ex-colonials to get the show going.

It is said that the Colombo CHOGM was attended by only 27 Heads of Government, out of a possible 53, the lowest such attendance in a long time. The stay-aways had many reasons, ranging from a plain and simple boycott, to national political compulsions, to the need to wriggle out of a commitment to host the next CHOGM, it is reported.

Bad publicity                                                                   Read More

KP with Government

Wednesday, 04 Dec 2013
Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Leader, R. Sampathan, alleged that Kumaran Pathmanathan alias KP, was now with the government and not with the TNA. "Where is KP now? Isn't he with you? He is not with us. We have no connections with the LTTE. He is the one who helped you to win the war since 2005," Sampanthan said in Parliament yesterday.


"Where is KP now? Isn't he with you? He is not with us. We have no connections with the LTTE. He is the one who helped you to win the war since 2005," Sampanthan said in Parliament yesterday.


He also said that the presence of the Army in the areas where civilians reside in the North could raise problems for the people. The Army is engaged in agriculture and fisheries in the North, but the government should ensure that women and girls should not be subject to sexual abuse.


Sampanthan said the election monitors had also proposed that the role of the Elections Commissioner should have been fortified, and that the independent Elections Commission should also have been set up by now.

TNA to discuss Tamil issues with India

Tuesday, 03 December 2013 

Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Leader, R. Sampanthan has said that the party is to seek a meeting with the Indian government to discuss Tamil issues.

Sampanthan has told the Jaffna based Uthayan newspaper that the TNA had noted comments made by the Indian government on Sri Lanka recently.

Some of the comments included India’s stand on the 13th Amendment to the constitution and investigations into human rights abuses committed during the final stages of the war.

India’s Union finance minister P. Chidambaram on Saturday said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will visit Jaffna and hold talks with Northern Province Chief Minister C. V. Wigneswaran.

Sampanthan has pointed out that Chidambaram has clearly spoken of India’s position on Sri Lanka so the TNA will seek a meeting with the Indian government to discuss its position on Sri Lanka.

Speech made by Mangala Samaraweera M.P. opening the Committee Stage debate in Parliament on the Ministry of Defence and Urban Development
(Lanka-e-News-03.Dec.2013, 5.30PM) 

Mr. Speaker,

Although Parliamentary convention compelled the chief whip to move a cut of Rs.10 at the commencement of this debate, We should, in fact move a cut of at least several billion rupees for the Ministry of Defence and Urban Development as the treasury allocations for this 'super' Ministry continues to increase annually by leaps and bounds despite the end of the war four years ago.

Speech Made by Mangala Samaraweera M.P. Opening the Committee Stage Debate in Parliament on the Ministry of... by nelvely

Police Killing Hand Cuffed Suspects: Explanation Smells Extrajudicial Killings – Bar Committee

December 3, 2013

“The explanation given by the police regarding the death of three suspects who were under police custody arrested in connection with the killing of a police officer and his wife at Kamburupitiya, is unacceptable and the whole incident smells of another case of extra judicial killing” says the Standing Committee of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka on Rule of Law.

“Any person accused of committing criminal acts has a right to be tried according to law.  The police cannot be allowed to try and punish persons accused of crimes however serious they may be.  This will amount to usurpation of judicial power by the police and the persons responsible has to be dealt with under the law of the country.” issuing a statement the Bar Committee said today.

We publish below the statement in full;

Inspector General of Police

The explanation given by the police regarding the death of three suspects who were under police custody arrested in connection with the killing of a police officer and his wife at Kamburupitiya, is unacceptable and the whole incident smells of another case of extra judicial killing.

The explanation that the 1^st suspect arrested was killed by police firing when the suspect (was hand cuffed) tried to pick up a weapon to shoot at the police officer, when the suspect was taken to recover the weapons used in the crime and the explanation given regarding the deaths of the two suspects attested few days later that the suspects have fled from police custody (hand cuffed), and jumped into the Denagama tank is hilarious.  The circumstances surrounding the death of these suspects need investigation by a special commission.

Any person accused of committing criminal acts has a right to be tried according to law.  The police cannot be allowed to try and punish persons accused of crimes however serious they may be.  This will amount to usurpation of judicial power by the police and the persons responsible has to be dealt with under the law of the country.

This is not an isolated incident.  It is seen that during the last few years large number of such incidents of death of persons in police custody has been reported and the explanation by the police in all such cases has been identical.

The killing of a person in state custody is a heinous crime as the state is said to be the guardian of its citizens and it is considered that state custody is the safest custody.

Blatant violations of fundamental rights guaranteed under the constitution has to be condemned and the government owes a duty, if it respects rule of law, protection of human rights and democratic values to take immediate steps to appoint a judicial commission and clear the doubts that the people have for very valid reasons.  If not it will have a serious infact on the image of the country in respect for rule of law and human rights.

The developing trend is dangerous no one can lay down limits to such actions and it may be not long before even opponents of the establishment will be dealt with summorarily in this manner.

These incidents have created a doubt on the efficacy of the law enforcement establishment to deal with crimes of this nature and the will of the government to protect human rights of its citizens.

Lal Wijenayake                                                                 Priyantha Gamage

Chairman                                                                            Converor

IMF Executive Board Concludes Sri Lanka Assessment

By Eurasia Review-December 3, 2013

On November 27, 2013, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) concluded the Ex-Post Evaluation of Exceptional Access under the 2009 Stand-By Arrangement (SBA), and the first Post-Program discussion with Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka’s need for IMF support under the 2009 SBA was triggered by the onset of the global financial crisis, and set against a backdrop of rising fiscal and external vulnerabilities. These circumstances also coincided with the end of its decades-long conflict, necessitating international support in order to avert a potential balance of payments crisis. In July 2009, a 20-month SBA was initiated with the IMF. The envisaged access was 400 percent of quota (SDR 1.65 billion). The program was aimed at restoring viability to the balance of payments position, correcting fiscal imbalances that were interlinked to external imbalances, and strengthening the financial sector. Following two extensions, the Stand-By Arrangement was completed in July 2012.

Sri Lanka’s economy continues to move forward, and has navigated recent market turbulence well. Overall GDP growth has been solid, but recent indicators underline some areas of concern: trade activity has been slow to pick up, tax revenues and public spending (including capital expenditures) are relatively low, and private sector credit growth has been declining. Staff project real GDP growth of 6.5 percent for 2013 as a whole, somewhat below the authorities’ forecast of 7 to 7.5 percent. Headline inflation fell to 6.2 percent in September 2013, from 9.2 percent at end-2012. Base effects have been an important factor, but pressures appear to be easing, consistent with more moderate economic growth and lower food prices. Staff projects end-2013 inflation at 7 percent. Risks to the inflation outlook stem mainly from potential upward shocks to world commodity prices and lagged effects of the monetary easing. The external position has improved during 2013. Both imports and exports slowed in the first half of 2013, reducing the trade deficit. Exports have since started to pick up, while tourism receipts and inward remittances remain strong. This is expected to contribute to a projected 1½ percent of GDP reduction in the current account deficit in 2013, and broadly stable gross reserves.

Fiscal consolidation is facing headwinds. Despite some important tax reforms introduced in 2012, and the 2013 extension of the VAT to the retail and wholesale sectors, revenue performance has been weak thus far in 2013. To some extent, low revenues reflect the weaker imports, but the numerous tax exemptions and tax administration weaknesses remain the important causes of lower-than-expected revenues. In response to the revenue shortfall, the authorities have kept spending under tight control and are committed not to exceed the 5.8 percent of GDP 2013 deficit target. In the budget for 2014, they are targeting a further deficit reduction, to 5.2 percent, based on continued restraint of current spending and measures to broaden the tax base.

During 2013, monetary policy has been progressively eased. In October 2013, citing benign inflation outlook and the desire to stimulate the economy to reach higher growth in 2014, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) cut the policy rates by 50 basis points. This followed the 50 points cut in May 2013 and a reduction of reserve requirements by 2 percentage points at end-June. The easing of monetary policy throughout the year has been slow to feed through to bank lending, and private credit growth has continued to slow. In addition, as of June 1, 2013, the CBSL increased the reserve maintenance period of commercial banks from one week to two weeks, in order to allow greater flexibility in liquidity management, and announced further relaxation of foreign exchange regulations with effect from June 12, 2013.

The condition of the banking system has improved, and the Financial Sector Assessment Program update last year found that significant progress has been made in strengthening banking supervision. Having said this, vulnerabilities still exist—expressed in the recent rise in nonperforming loans. In addition, the recent shift from concessional/bilateral loans to external borrowing by banks and private entities raises the risks to external sustainability.

Executive Board Assessment

Executive Directors welcomed the opportunity to review macroeconomic and policy developments as part of post-program monitoring and the ex-post evaluation of exceptional access under the 2009 Stand-By Arrangement.

Directors were encouraged by Sri Lanka’s strong growth and moderating inflation, and by the economy’s resilience in the face of recent market turbulence. They noted, however, that vulnerabilities remain, stemming from high debt and declining government revenues relative to GDP.

Directors commended the authorities’ commitment to fiscal consolidation. They welcomed ongoing expenditure restraint, but cautioned against further cuts in capital expenditure to meet fiscal targets. Instead they underlined the importance of putting tax revenues on an upward trajectory. They emphasized, in particular, the need for further improvements in both tax policy and administration, including elimination or rationalization of exemptions and holidays.

Directors noted that the flexible exchange rate regime has acted as a buffer to external shocks, and welcomed the central bank’s move to a less active intervention strategy. In view of the risks of further market turbulence ahead, they emphasized the need to allow time for the effects of monetary policy to feed through to private credit and money growth before considering a further easing.

Directors noted progress in financial sector development, and efforts to strengthen supervision and regulation. However, they saw remaining vulnerabilities, including the recent rise in nonperforming loans, and risks from the increase in external borrowing by banks and private entities on commercial terms. Given Sri Lanka’s high level of debt and potential vulnerability to external shocks, they emphasized that close monitoring is warranted.

Directors welcomed the opportunity to review Sri Lanka’s experience with the 2009 exceptional access Stand-By Arrangement, and agreed with the thrust of its conclusions.

They concurred that the key program objectives of supporting macroeconomic stabilization and averting a balance of payments crisis were achieved. They noted, however, that the wider objectives of the program were only partially achieved as fiscal and external vulnerabilities persist, while durable progress needs to be made in reducing the losses of state-owned enterprises. Directors also highlighted the importance of aligning program design with a careful consideration of structural and implementation capacity.

It’s Z-score, stupid!

Editorial-December 2, 2013

We thought the Z-score affected only GCE A/L students some of whom have even taken their lives, unable to secure higher rankings. But, Education Minister Bandula Gunawardena tells us that the death of a famous university don has occurred due to an issue related to that scaling method!

Minister Gunawardena has recently told Parliament that Prof. K. R. M. T. Karunaratne, who headed an expert panel which prepared the 2011 GCE A/L Z-score formula, died due to a broken heart resulting from a Supreme Court judgment that rejected their method. He has said he will consult the Attorney General to find out whether the so-called Z-score ruling could be challenged.

If the Education Minister’s claim is true the government cannot absolve itself of the blame for having created the unholy mess which Prof. Karunaratne et al were tasked with clearing. When the GCE A/L new syllabus was introduced a few years ago, the government should have expected problems to crop up as regards the ranking of two student populations (under the new syllabus and the old syllabus) and taken steps to prepare a Z-score formula acceptable to one and all.

The ruling party pundits, true to form, appointed a panel, handpicked some experts, had a formula prepared, and tried to ram it down the throats of all stakeholders. That proved to be a colossal blunder. Had it been wise enough to include those who had been instrumental in introducing the Z-score here and were expressing dissenting views, in that panel, doubts and suspicions could easily have been allayed and a legal wrangle avoided.

Naturally, students who felt that they had been denied university admission because of the aggregation of marks of different subjects for the purpose of ranking went to the Supreme Court seeking relief. The government was left with egg on its face in the end and the rest is history. It has no one but itself to blame.

It is puzzling why the government has chosen to flog the Z-score issue again. No attempts should be made to use the Supreme Court judgment at issue as a bludgeon to beat the ‘impeached’ Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake with or to obtain a court ruling government politicians desire. For, such a course of action will plunge the higher education sector into a crisis again and lead to further erosion of public confidence in the judiciary. The government ought to act responsibly.

As for the Education Minister’s claim that the Z-score judgment was politically motivated, one may ask how the government would describe the Supreme Court determination––also during Dr. Bandaranayake’s tenure as CJ––on the controversial 18th Amendment which has stood it in good stead. Was it devoid of politics?

It behoves the government to stop worrying about the Z-score formula prescribed by the apex court and take steps to develop the national university system so that all students who qualify for university admission will be able to pursue higher education. At present, out of more than 150,000 students who qualify for university admission only 23,000 are selected. In other words, about 127,000 students are deprived of their right to university education. Little surprise that there have been two youth uprisings in this country! More funds will have to be invested in the education sector, among other things, if another one is to be averted.

It is being argued in some quarters that branches of foreign universities should be set up here to cater to the students who fail to gain admission to the state universities. But, most of them are too poor to pay for private university education and will not benefit from the proposed free education zones. Hence, the pressing need for expanding the national universities! The government should get its priorities right.

Pusswedilla Banned By The Censor Board

The performance of Chaminda Pusswedilla Part 4.1 ” The Comon Welthings Sumit” was banned by the Censor Board.

December 3, 2013

Pusswedilla’s Sectary

Puss CricketSmall

Harsh satire on Sri Lanka politics proves hit – Al Jazeera English

Sri Lanka shuts down war-time propaganda centre

A farmer prepares a paddy field for sowing in Dambulla on the outskirts of Colombo. (AFP)

 Monday 2 December 2013

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka said it was shutting down its propaganda centre which distributed information to the media during the separatist war, four years after the end of the conflict.
"The ministry of defence has decided to disband the centre," spokesman for the president, Mohan Samaranayake, said, without giving a reason or any details.
The Media Centre for National Security was set up in 2006 and released information about the military’s final campaign which crushed rebels fighting for a separate homeland for ethnic minority Tamils in 2009.
More recently, the center has functioned as the publicity wing of the ministry of defence.
The move comes after Sri Lanka began last month compiling a death toll from the war, after allegations of mass killings of civilians, saying it had “nothing to hide.”
The start of the “census” comes after the dispute over the scale of the killings in the final phases of the conflict dominated a Commonwealth summit hosted by Sri Lanka in November.
UN bodies have said as many as 40,000 civilians may have died in the final push — a claim repeatedly rejected by President Mahinda Rajapaksa and his regime.
More than 100,000 people are believed to have been killed during the course of the decades-long war, according to UN figures.
The war ended when Tamil Tiger rebel leader Velupillai Prabhakaran was killed in a stronghold in the island’s northeast.

KESBEWA URBAN COUNCIL DEFEATS 2014 BUDGET

December 4, 2013 

The 2014 budget for the Kesbewa Urban Council was defeated yesterday (December 3) after it was presented to the UPFA-majority council by Urban Council Chairman Lakshman Perera.

Following the presentation of the budget, voting ensued during which the budget received 6 votes in favour while 8 votes were cast against the budget.

The Kesbewa Urban Council has 18 seats of which 9 are occupied by UPFA members and the rest by opposition members.

Three of the UPFA members abstained from voting.

The Blue Water unveils 40 new luxury suites

 December 4, 2013 

The Blue Water, a property owned and managed by Union Resorts Ltd., opened its new wing consisting of 40 Luxury Suites, under the patronage of Minister of Economic Development Basil Rajapaksa and at the invitation of Union Resorts Chairman/Managing Director Ajith Wijeyesekera on 30 November 2013.
The new wing consists of a Presidential Suite and 39 suites designed by Architect Channa Daswatte and Project Architect Sumudu Athukorala. All 40 suites over look the spectacular Indian Ocean.
The new wing which consists of a restaurant, state of the art gym and an executive lounge add value to this elegantly furnished suites and the property is one of its kind that consists of 44 suites and 96 Deluxe and Superior Deluxe Rooms.
A Balinese spa for relaxation and rejuvenation, the Blue Wave discotheque and the Porthole bar for sundown entertainment and 15 acres of lush gardens coupled with squash, flood lit tennis, beach volleyball, cricket and football and has an advantage of being the closest beach resort to Colombo with only 45 minutes drive from the business city, 90 minutes from the Colombo Airport.

The Grand Ballroom another creation of Architect Daswatte which can accommodate up to 1,500 persons cocktail-style, that no other resort can match in Sri Lanka. All these add up to Blue Water, Wadduwa, being an ideal venue for any event and a place for business and pleasure.

Packer’s Crown resort-casino in Sri Lanka faces further delay

Australian gambling tycoon James Packer looks on during day two of the Commonwealth Business Forum in Colombo November 13, 2013.

BY RANGA SIRILAL-COLOMBO Tue Dec 3, 2013 

(Reuters) - A $400 million Sri Lankan resort and casino complex planned by Australia’s Crown Ltd(CWN.AX) faces additional delays and is unlikely to be approved before the end of the year, a top government official said on Tuesday.

The new delay comes after opposition politicians alleged Crown’s chief, gambling tycoon James Packer, was getting concessions not given to local entrepreneurs.

Buddhist leaders also said the casino could be detrimental to the culture of Sri Lanka, a predominant Buddhist country where gambling is not accepted morally, despite the on-again, off-again presence of casinos dating back to the 1990s.

The government said in October that Packer’s plans would be resubmitted to parliament by November 21 with altered terms to address the various objections, but the country’s investment and promotion minister, Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena, said on Tuesday the deal “might not” be approved by the end of the year.

"I haven’t prepared the cabinet paper yet," Abeywardena told reporters in Colombo. "These days you can’t do it because we are busy with the budget. There is no hurry. These are long-term projects and we are aiming to start by 2015-2016. You have time."

Crown has confirmed that it was in detailed discussions with the Sri Lankan government and potential joint venture partners regarding the development of a 5-star integrated resort.

The resort-casino complex is planned for a two-acre plot in the heart of the Colombo commercial hub. It has already been delayed once after the government asked Lake Leisure Holdings, the joint venture between Crown Ltd and its local partner, Rank Entertainment Holdings Pvt Ltd, to change its construction plans.

Officials with the local partner downplayed the latest delay.

"Possibly it will go through once the parliament starts in the first week of January, so one month does not make any difference," Ravi Wijeratne, the owner of Rank Holdings, told Reuters. Officials with Crown were unavailable for immediate comment.

Packer’s earlier deal had already been approved by the government’s cabinet, but Abeywardena said the deal must be approved again by the cabinet after certain tax changes were made before being approved by parliament.

Packer, one of Australia’s richest men, has been in talks since February with the government over the integrated resort investment options as he expands his global gambling business that includes casinos in Australia, Macau, Britain and the United States. (Writing by Shihar Aneez; Editing by Matt Driskill)

Conspiracy behind BMICH fire - Director General vanishes; fire equipment fails mysteriously
(Lanka-e-News-02.Dec.2013, 11.55PM) Just a while before the ‘Sahasak nimewum’ Exhibition was to be inaugurated yesterday , a fire broke out in the precincts of the BMICH . This fire has been confirmed as a consequence of a calculated conspiracy because the Director General of the BMICH , Bandula Ekanayake a stooge out and out of MaRa had slowly and stealthily disappeared from the premises at the time of the fire when he should have been there compulsorily.

When Minister Champika Ranawake who had arrived to open the Exhibition was there , the entire Exhibition Hall and the exhibits therein were charred by the fire. The employees at the BMICH claim that this fire could not have broken out without somebody causing it , and there was more than enough time to douse it if there was genuine interest to do so with the abundant fire fighting facilities available at the BMICH. 

The officials say the fire broke out because of a hybrid stove that was on display catching fire. However , when this fire commenced there had been no sound of explosion. The gas tank that supplied the stove had also not exploded. The BMICH employees also pointed out that without a gas explosion a sudden conflagration of this nature is impossible.

Moreover , so far nobody had said, a stove that is prone to catching fire was exhibited. The individual who produced this exhibit won’t create a stove that could catch fire suddenly. If he has truly produced such a risky stove , then surely it is not suitable for a home use , rather it should be used as a bomb that must be protected under strict security.

The employees at the BMICH also pointed out , the Chinese who built the BMICH had introduced the best fire fighting outfit at the BMICH since the time of its completion , and the Hall is fitted with fire fighting hoses every 20 feet distance and a water pumping station is also in place , which therefore does not necessitate the summoning of a fire brigade from outside. Moreover when the equipment is switched on , automatically every part of it begins to work , and the Hall is so constructed that even the main electricity supply is not needed for the fire fighting operation, and during a fire the main electricity power goes off .

In a huge fire the fire fighting hoses fixed at every 20 feet distance can swing into full operation within two mins. Since the BMICH was refurbished recently , there could not be any defects in the fire fighting equipment. In the circumstances , a fire cannot break out and cause this amount of devastation. Therefore how did this fire break out ? Most certainly there is a conspiracy behind this , the employees assert.

To further confirm their opinion they pointed out at the conduct of the Director General Bandula Ekanayake . Usually when such a large exhibition is being held at the BMICH , Ekanayake is always there , but yesterday he was nowhere to be seen. Even after the fire he could not be found. Ekanayake is a most self centered opportunist who was a pro Chandrika stooge but later somersaulted to the Rajapakse camp. He was aware of this impending fire and did the vanishing trick , the workers charge.

It is natural for the fire fighting personnel to be extra vigilant even when a cinema Hall is being inaugurated .Therefore at the inauguration of a massive exhibition at an international Hall like the BMICH , not only the fire fighting personnel but even the Director General should have made sure they are present and extremely vigilant. Then how come this fire broke out , and the Director general too found cause to run away at that important opening ceremony ? the employees ask. 

It is significant to note that it is under this Rajapakse regime which has set the whole country on fire metaphorically by creating racial , religious and economic unrest ,the Colombo Kachcheri , Ports Authority, Sathosa , Sports Ministry and other important Institutions caught fire well and truly , yet no suspect had been arrested nor proper investigations conducted into them..