SL Military Attempts To Curb Nam-Theasam Tamil Monthly in North

26/10/2014 

[Protest against media suppression in Jaffna: FMM photo]
The occupying military in Jaffna and Vanni has been harassing the distributors of Ithu-Nam-Theasam monthly in recent days. Last week, a distributor of the paper was attacked at Uruththirapuram in Ki’linochchi district. The assault has come right after the distributor was interrogated at the military camp in Uruththirapuram, media sources in Jaffna said. A squad that followed him from assaulted him and dumped the papers into a reservoir. A systematic harassment of the distributors of the paper, which stands for the rights of Eezham Tamils, is reported also at several other locations in North.

Newspaper agents at Kungchar-kadai in Point Pedro said they have come under repeated harassments for distributing the monthly. Similar complaints have come also from Irupaalai and Achchezhu in Jaffna, according to media sources in Jaffna.

The printing press-owners have also been harassed by the occupying military in Jaffna according to instructions coming from Palaly military base.

SL military officers visiting the printing presses in Jaffna have instructed the printer owners to immediately alert them before printing the paper, the sources further said.

A systematic programme of harassment and threats against Tamil journalists, writers and publications is being coordinated on the direct instructions from the commanders of the occupying SL military in Jaffna and Vanni.

The monthly, registered, as a newspaper in Sri Lanka, stands firm on the principles of right to self-determination of Eezham Tamils and is edited by independent writer and popular columnist A. Jothilingam.

The Hidden Genocide Of Tamils In Sri Lanka

By Thambu Kanagasabai - October 27, 2014

Thambu Kanagasabai

There is much debate going on in various circles, Human Rights Organization, Politicians, and Lawyers including International community on the question of genocide.

It has therefore become an important question and issue to analyze and make an opinion as to its applicability and consequent culpability for Sri Lankan Governments.

GENOCIDE IS DEFINED IN THE UN GENOCIDE CONVENTION AS FOLLOWS;

Any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy in whole or part of a national, ethnical, racial or religious group as such

1)      Killing members of the group or

2)      Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group or

3)      Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part or

4)     Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group or

5)      Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group

If one could study and analyze the acts of Sri Lankan government since 1956, one could clearly discern and discover the subtle, overt and covert measures, acts and  laws aiming and targeting the liquidations of Tamils in Eelam: who are the original inhabitants of Eelam as confirmed by foreign, local, Sinhalese and Tamil historians.

The “Mahavamsa” – a puranic fiction with stories woven around the Sinhalese kings commencing from Vijaya  a grandson of  a wild lion which lived with his grandmother in a cave of 16 years, an unimaginable story, serves as the base for the rulers and ruled alike to consider Sri  Lanka as belonging to Sinhalese. The chilling fact, assuming Vijayan’s story as true is Vijayan was neither a Sinhalese nor a Buddhist. He was a Naga Tamil who married the Tamil princess daughter of a Tamil Pandya king from South India.

Read More

World Is Watching As Sri Lanka 

Silences Scribes

| by Pearl Thevanayagam

(October 27, 2014, Bradford UK, Sri Lanka Guardian) Nimalarajan was BBC stringer in the troubled North and he was murdered on October 19, 2000 for his exposure on a Tamil politician who was in cahoots with the government. BBC has dedicated a whole room with a plaque in memory of this great Tamil journalist in its new building in Marble Arch where it relocated from Bush House.

He was murdered by the above-mentioned Tamil politician who is riding roughshod with the government to mask his nefarious activities such as white-van abductions and awarding sand-mining contracts to his acolytes not to mention interfering in varsity appointments through the back door much to the chagrin of qualified academics such as Prof. Ratnajeevan Hoole.

Priyath Liyanage and Chandrakeerthi Bandara of the BBC donated funds for his extended family to migrate abroad with the help of Frances Harrison, a former BBC correspondent in Colombo.

K.Sivaram alias Taraki and Aiyathurai Nadesan were also murdered for reporting from the frontline. Their exposures of government security and LTTE atrocities reached the four corners of the world but their families are still struggling to come to terms with their untimely deaths. The BBC staff in Tamil Service collected funds to Nadesan’s family which lost a breadwinner.

Many a journalist have been murdered for their courage in exposing government incompetence and corporate mis-governance including Lasantha Wickrematunge, the editor of Sunday Leader, who dared to challenge powers.

Iqbal Athas was hounded and his family came under serious threat for his unrelenting exposure of corrupt governance but he was also a target by social media who could not stomach his recognition in international media and the green-eyed monster reared its ugly head in castigating him for living in a comfortable house. Iqbal got no favours from the government or corporate bodies and it is his relentless pursuit in investigative journalism which made him what he is today; an intrepid journalist with conscience.

With well over 37 journalists murdered by successive governments since 1990 when Richard De Soysa was dragged out of his home by uniformed men under direct orders of the late President Premadasa, killed and his body dumped in the sea since he sent videotapes of JVP youth massacred in 1989/1990 to a foreign news agency, Sri Lanka has seen many journalists seeking exile abroad.

Journalism in Sri Lanka is sliding on a slippery slope with maverick journos turned pseudo international terrorism experts like Rohan Gunaratne who sold out their journalistic ethics and dis-information counsellors who became pawns under successive governments for diplomatic perks.

There is absolutely no clue as to what happened to Prageeth Ekneliyagoda who disappeared in 2010 and his wife Sandhya is still persevering with her search without success. The current AG Mohan Peiris declared Prageeth was hiding in France on flimsy evidence given by a dubious character with a vivid imagination and he could not prove his theory.

Are there any compensation from the government to Pragaeeth’s family? Does the government care? Can it care for Sandhya and her children enough to make some monetary contribution in the absence of their bread winner?

Conspiracy theories abound in this land of make-believe where journalists, human rights activists, lawyers and champions of justice are perceived as opposing regimes which want to exert their hegemony at the expense of hoodwinking the populace on whose back they rode.

The 2015 budget passed without a muster begs belief in that where the hell is the President going to get the funds to fulfil his promises of paying bonanza to public servants and private employees. Sri Lanka is being sold to China and India which are providing massive loans only the country can pay for decades to come.

Can CB governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal wave his magic wand and pretend SL economy is all hunky dory when it is beholden to the World Bank and IMF which will seek its pound of flesh for the loans and not grants and it will be the people and not the politicians in power who would pay the price through rising cost of living.

Were it not for some journalists with ethics and conscience, the governments would have got away with their empty promises such as the recent budget of Mahinda’s proclamation that all citizens of Sri Lanka would enjoy his munificence of a people-friendly budget whereas the reality is the funds should be pulled out chanting abracadabra since the government coffers are empty to say the least and the debt burden passed on to its citizens for decades.

This situation makes it vulnerable to foreign forces such as China and India to take advantage of and plant themselves on our shores with their investments and businesses at an exceeding pace. The beneficiaries would be politicians and their supporting local businessmen and not the average Sri Lankan.

The government will pay for its antagonism towards just journalists both living and murdered and UNHRC is only the beginning.

(The writer has been a journalist for 25 years and worked in national newspapers as sub-editor, news reporter and news editor. She was Colombo Correspondent for Times of India and has contributed to Wall Street Journal where she was on work experience from The Graduate School of Journalism, UC Berkeley, California. Currently residing in UK she is also co-founder of EJN (Exiled Journalists Network) UK in 2005 the membership of which is 200 from 40 countries. She can be reached at pearltheva@hotmail.com)

Impeding justice



The Sri Lankan government’s announcement of restrictions on foreign passport holders travelling to the North is a brazen and calculated attempt to obstruct evidence collection for the UN inquiry into mass atrocities, ahead of its deadline this week. Within a climate of open intimidation of Tamil victims, the restriction seeks to close off the North-East to visiting international officials, who were one of the few channels available to effectively smuggle evidence out, as well as to serve as a punishment to the Tamil people for their demand for accountability and justice for the mass killing of tens of thousands of Tamils at the end of the armed conflict in 2009. Sri Lanka’s actions demonstrate, yet again, that even in the face of growing international pressure, it will not hesitate in repressing the Tamil people if it believes its ethnocratic rule is under threat. Indeed, not even a UN mandated inquiry is exempt. The international community must respond with decisive and tangible reprimand to Sri Lanka's attempt to impede the inquiry, if the victims are to truly see justice delivered.

Since the UN Human Rights Council mandated the international inquiry in March, Sri Lanka has consistently reiterated its rejection of any such mechanism and its refusal to cooperate. It has instead intensified its stranglehold on the North-East. Threats of prosecution were issued against those who dared to submit evidence to the inquiry, Tamil politicians have reported military intimidation is stopping potential witnesses from testifying and just yesterday reports emerged of one Tamil man being arrested whilst he distributed evidence submission forms in Kilinochchi. This targetting of Tamil witnesses has been accompanied by a systematic clamp down of all channels of international access. The state has repeatedly refused to grant visas to UN investigators, meetings between diplomats and Tamil victims have been disrupted by government aligned Sinhala mobs, and international officials have been followed by military intelligence personnel when speaking to Tamils. That the Tamil people, in the face of this pervasive intimidation, have only increased their demands for justice is truly remarkable.

The re-introduction of travel restrictions is not a rash move born out of the state’s increasingly frenzied militarisation, but a deliberate measure taken precisely at a time when Tamils are most in need of direct access to the international community. Five years ago the government sought to ban international actors from the battlefied as it systematically herded and slaughtered Tamils in their tens of thousands. Five years on, the state is reconstructing a blackout over the North-East, just as victims come forward to testify on those very crimes. To view the travel restriction as yet another extravagance of Rajapaksa’s militarised authoritarian rule, ignores the exclusive targeting of the Tamil people. This is war by other means. Travel restrictions of this kind, have not, and arguably, would not occur anywhere else on the island. The restriction is not only aimed at Tamils on the island, but also the diaspora. It is the latest in a series of laws seeking to undermine the Tamil diaspora's connection with their loved ones on the island, and that to their homeland: the proscription of diaspora organisations, the banning of land sales to foreign citizens and the introduction of Ministry of Defence interviews for dual citizenship. Put simply, five years after proclaiming the ‘liberation’ of the North-East, the Sri Lankan military has brought Tamil life – economic, social, cultural and political – under its complete control, as Sri Lanka continues its overarching project of systematically dismantling the Tamil nation and consolidating its hegemony over the North-East.

The curtailment on travel into the North, just as President Rajapaksa trumpeted the unveiling of a rail line into Jaffna as a means of connecting the North to the rest of the world, underscores the duplicity with which the state acts. Whilst making claims of development and reconciliation to international community, Sri Lanka has instead sought to build and consolidate Sinhala Buddhist rule across the island, despite this placing it in increasingly explicit contradiction and confrontation with the international community. Ultimately however, justice for the massacres that culminated in May 2009 cannot be evaded. Indeed, while Sri Lanka demonstrates its objection to the inquiry, the Tamil people's demand for justice - for what most believe is a genocide - only grows louder. Sri Lanka's impeding of the inquiry is in open defiance of not only a UN body, but internationally accepted norms of justice. A decisive international response is needed to ensure the safety of Tamil witnesses on the island, including targetted sanctions, such as travel bans and asset freezes. If the island is to see stability, the state's reign of impunity must first come to an end and justice be served.

Who is the Tiger Diaspora representative Mahinda Rajapakse met secretly in U.S.? reveal Mahinda -Tiger pact- Ranil challenges

(Lanka-e-News- 27.Oct.2014, 9.25PM) UNP and opposition leader Ranil Wickremesinghe challenged the government to reveal details of the Tiger Diaspora representative who Mahinda Rajapakse met with during his recent tour of America. It is President Mahinda Rajapakse who is working on behalf of the tiger Diaspora while falsely fastening the label of ‘Tiger’ on the UNP , and making a hue and cry about it , Ranil accused with supporting evidence.

Wickremesinghe while refuting the baseless charges leveled against the UNP , said , despite the people of the country making protests demanding the abolition of the executive Presidency , the President who says he cannot yield to the people’s demands , has announced that he would abolish the executive Presidency if the Tamil Diaspora makes a request clearly confirming this allegation against him is true. Ranil made these comments exposing the conspiracy hatched by the President in collusion with the Tigers , when he met with the Colombo district women’s representatives at Colombo Mayor’s official residence.

Our Tamil people of the country and the TNA are accepting the 13 th amendment to the constitution , and they are not opposed to the country’s unitary state . Then why is Mahinda Rajapakse so concerned about the Diaspora more than the people of the country and their opinion ? This is crystal clear index that it is Mahinda Rajapakse the very President of the country who is working on behalf of the Tiger Diaspora though the government is screaming against the UNP .

The President’s categorical assurance and announcement that he would abolish the executive Presidency only if the Tamil Diaspora requests , and that he would not yield to the demands of the people is absolute testimony bearing out this truth . ‘Of course , this concern of the President for the Tamil Diaspora does not spring a surprise to us. This is because in 2005 , Mahinda Rajapakse was propelled to the Presidential post by this same Tamil Diaspora .’

‘I read what journalist BBS Jeyaraj had written on how Mahinda Rajapakse , Velupillai Prabhakaran and LTTE got together in 2005 to defeat me at the Presidential elections. It was Mahinda Rajapakse who gave leadership to the Tamil Diaspora and gave money to the LTTE organization. It was not I who did that. At that time late Sripathy Sooriyarachchi proved it with evidence ,’ Ranil asserted.

Sooriyarachchi M.P. who knew all details with proof suddenly met with an accident mysteriously , how was that ?

Mahinda Rajapakse who went to America to attend the UN conference , stayed back for several days in America after the conference . During that stay he met with a representative of the Tamil Diaspora. It is the duty of the President to disclose to the country immediately who is this representative he met .

I had made it abundantly clear that I did not meet anybody of the Tamil Diaspora in England . The Silumina newspaper itself had reported that the allegations are false. In the circumstances , it is the absolute duty of the President to immediately tell the country who are those of the Diaspora he met in America.

WHO WILL RECONSIDER STANCE ON PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS—JEHAN PERERA

27 October 2014

It looks more and more likely that presidential elections will be called early next year regardless of other consequences. The government spokesman Minister Keheliya Rambukwella has announced that Presidential Elections will be held in January. He has also said that he knows the date but will not reveal it. What is happening of the ground also strongly suggests that elections are around the corner. The Elections Commissioner has completed the voter registration process early this year in October and not in December as is usual. The national budget has been presented to Parliament in October earlier than the usual month of November.
Who Will Reconsider Stance on Presidential Elections—Jehan Perera by Thavam Ratna

UNP candidate under pressure to contest independently!

 Monday, 27 October 2014 

A group of government politicians has informed the UNP leader that they are prepared to support a candidate from the party, if that candidate contests the presidential election as an independent candidate.

They have said that it would be difficult for the SLFP or the UPFA to back a UNP activist who will contest under the ‘elephant’ symbol.

They have expressed agreement to extend unconditional support to a UNP candidate who will contest under a different symbol.

Furthermore, if such an opposition candidate wins, the UNP will not face a constitutional crisis with regard to its leadership. That is because, the party constitution says the winner should automatically be appointed the party leader as well. However, other than winning the election, the governing of the country should be led by Ranil Wickremesinghe. Therefore, a UNP candidate contesting under a different symbol as an independent will help avert such a situation, a UNP activist who held talks on this matter with various quarters, told ‘Lanka News Web.’

A Comment On A Comment On The Campaign To Abolish The Presidential System

Laksiri Fernando 

( October 27, 2014, Sydney, Sri Lanka Guardian) In a recent article titled “A Comment on the Campaign to Abolish the Presidential System” (Sri Lanka Guardian, 24 October 2014), Professor G. H. Peiris has sought to challenge the arguments of the campaigners to abolish the presidential system and argues that the proponents of the campaign “often tend to overlook the circumstances that culminated in the promulgation of a new constitution in 1978.” As he has stated “the main innovative element of which was the introduction of a system of government headed by an executive president elected directly on the basis of an all-island poll.”
A Comment on a Comment on the Campaign to Abolish the Presidential System by Thavam Ratna

Talks with Ranil fall through

 Monday, 27 October 2014 

Discussions held last night (Oct. 26) between the UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe and several civil organisations over fielding a common candidate at the forthcoming Presidential election, had collapsed midway, 'Lanka News Web' learns through a spokesperson of the National Movement for a Just Society.

The discussions had commenced around 9.00pm at the Kotte Naga Viharaya and was joined by representatives of the National Movement for a Just Society led by Ven. Maduluwawe Sobhitha Thera and 'Pivithuru Hetak' organisation led by Ven. Athuraliye Rathana Thera.

Nirmal Ranjith Dewasiri, Elmore Perera, Jayampathi Wickremaratne, Sunil Jayasekera, Saman Rathnapriya, former minister of JVP - Chandrasiri Wijesinghe had represented the National Movement for a Just Society while Bandula Chandrasekara and Lalithasiri Gunaruwan had represented 'Pivithuru Hetak'.

Also, political party leaders Mano Ganesan and Asath Salley had also joined the discussion.

As the discussion commenced, the UNP leader's support has been requested to field a common candidate instead of contesting the election himself

It has been explained to the UNP leader that the support of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna and the Jathika Hela Urumaya could be secured by doing so.

Strongly declining this request, Ranil Wickremesinghe has elaborated on the need to field a candidate from the main opposition party - the UNP.

Wickremesinghe has added that he would contest the forthcoming Presidential election as he had decided to do so.

Therefore, the discussions have come to a close without reaching any agreement.

Accordingly, the organisations at the discussion have unanimously decided to not to come to an agreement with regard to the proposals of Ranil Wickremesinghe until a definite decision is taken with regard to the common candidate.

Meanwhile, reports say that just before the start of the discussion, JVP propaganda secretary Vijitha Herath left the Naga Viharaya after meeting Ven. Maduluwawe Sobhitha Thera.

We vote against budget which is only a bag of promises made by maneuvering statistics – JVP

MONDAY, 27 OCTOBER 2014 

The JVP would vote against the budget proposals presented by the President as it has been made a budget of the family says the Information Secretary of the JVP Parliamentarian Vijitha Herath.

He said this speaking at a media meeting held at the head office of the JVP at Pelawatta yesterday (26th). The Member of the JVP Central Committee and Western Provincial Councilor Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa was also present.

Speaking further Mr. Herath said, “Budget proposals point out the direction the country is moving economically in a particular year. However, the budget presented by the government does not have any vision. As usual, it proves that President Mahinda Rajapaksa has no programme to salvage the economy of the country.

The expectation of the people was an increased income by increasing production. However, Rajapaksa regime, as usual, has buried the country in a heap of debt. The income estimate is Rs. 1689 billion while the total expenditure is Rs.2210 billion.

The government following instructions of IMF has made a jugglery of figures. At present the IMF pressurizes the government to minimize the budget deficit. Earlier, the strategy of the IMF was to get state institutions privatized. Now, the government is pressurized to slash public welfare to decrease the budget deficit.

Accordingly, statistics have been manipulated to show that the budget deficit would be reduced to 4.6% of the GNP. However, the real deficit is not this. The loan installment that has to be paid for next year has not been included in this budget. It is calculated that the loan installment that has to be paid next year is Rs. 84000 million. When this is added the budget deficit for next year would be about 14%.  This appears in technical notes Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksa as the Minister of Finance does not present in his budget speech. As such, the country is confronted with a serious situation. While paying a loan of Rs. 840000 million it has estimated to get another Rs. 178000 million as a loan next year. This is burdening the people with more and more debt.

It has been revealed that the net debt per capita is Rs.321,000. It has been confirmed that it would rise to Rs.400,000 at the end of this year.

The government has started a new game. The normal system is to record foreign loans that are obtained in the foreign resources department of the Ministry of Finance. Now, each ministry has been allowed to get loans for various projects. Ceylon Electricity Board is an example. Institutions have been made to find funds for their projects. As such the total foreign debt is not recorded in the foreign resources department of the Ministry of Finance. Another example is getting bank loans to carpet roads. The Chairman of NSB opposed this scheme of getting foreign loans. He explained that getting foreign loans by banks would jeopardize their existence. The result was Mr. Sunil S. Sirisena was pressurized to resign.

When considering the real situation the real debt of the country exceeds 120% of the GNP. This is how getting loans has been made a gamble. The budget proposals presented by the Minister of Finance Mahinda Rajapaksa for the 9th time has proved yet again that he has no plan to increase production in the country. It is also very clear that the economy of the country has been dragged towards a precipice.

There is another side regarding the budget. The biggest portion of the budget presented has been reserved for the two brothers. It is a massive portion of 46.17% of the budget. The Ministry of Finance has been allocated Rs.180925 million which is 9.98% of the total spending. The Ministry of Defense gets Rs. 285022 million and it is 15.73% of the expenditure. The Ministry of Economic Development has been allocated Rs. 113000 million which is 6.24% of the budget. The Ministry of Highways gets Rs.200335 million which is 11.05% of the expenditure. The Ministry of Law and Order has been allocated Rs.57500 million which is 3.17% of the expenditure. As such the ministries of Basil Rajapaksa and Mahinda Rajapaksa have been allocated 46.17% while all the other ministries of 65 ministers have been allocated only Rs.9705510 million.

The Ministry of Fisheries has been allocated only 0.3% of the expenditure. There are such small allocations for a number of ministries. The funds of Ministry of Agriculture have been reduced by Rs. 2360 million. It was allocated Rs. 44470 million this year but only Rs.42110 million has been allocated for 2015.

However, the expenditure of the President that was estimated as Rs.8560 million for this year has been raised by Rs.1030 million to Rs.9590 million for 2015. A days expenditure for the President this year is Rs. 23,400,000. When such a colossal amount of money is allocated for a single person Rs.2360 million has been slashed from the allocations for the Ministry of Agriculture. As such, this is not a budget for the country but a budget for a family. It has become a legacy of the family.

Another special characteristic of this budget is while making the same promises made in earlier budgets there is a new promise to dazzle the masses. This the general characteristics of all the 9 budgets Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksa has presented.  In the budget he presented in 2005 a promise was made that 200,000 three wheelers would be given loans without VAT. Also fishermen were promised fishing gear without VAT. In 2006 budget he promised a monthly allowance of Rs.2000 for Daham School teachers. Also, pregnant mothers were promised a monthly allowance of Rs.200. In presenting the budget in 2007 he promised to open 30 to 40 factories that had been closed down by then. However, not a single factory was opened. In the budget for 2009 he promised ‘Mathata Thitha’ (stop intoxicants). However, containers of heroin and ethanol are smuggled into the country dragging the country towards calamity. The Prime Minister’s name too had been mentioned regarding these rackets. In the budget for 2012 a monthly allowance of Rs.3000 was promised for families with disabled persons. In presenting the budget for 2014 he promised controlled prices for potatoes, onions and chilies. However, no programmes have been created to fulfill these promises.

Now the budget for 2015 promises that Rs.40 would be paid for a kilo of paddy. Also, Rs. 300 is promised for a kilo of rubber. However, there are no practical plans to fulfill any of these promises. These are not promises given for an election but promises given through responsible budget proposals. However, Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksa doesn’t hesitate to break promises given in a responsible budget document.

Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksa made false promises not only to the people in Sri Lanka but he has made false promises to the state leaders of SAARC countries as well. When the summit of SAARC leaders was held in this country Mr. Rajapaksa said the largest rice storing complex would be built here. He said he would buy paddy at a fixed price of Rs.32 a kilo. However, no mechanism was established for such a project.

When considering the working masses there is nothing mentioned regarding fisherman. Also, the estate sector employees have been completely forgotten. Empty words have been used regarding employees of other sectors. The budget proposals have been used to deceive the people of the whole country.

At the moment the allowances given to state sector employees is Rs. 10,146. They asked from the budget to add all allowances to their salaries. No such thing has been carried out. The minimum salary of state employee has been brought to Rs.15,000. This was done by adding special allowances to the basic salary. However, all allowances have not been added to the basic salary. The demand of the trade unions was to add all allowances to the basic salary and increase the salary by Rs.10,000.

The COL allowance of Rs.2200 has been promised effective from next January. Also, state employees have been promised Rs.3000 and pensioners Rs.2500 as an interim allowance from November. It was said that this interim allowance would be paid in July, 2015 with arrears. These are all fabrications for the election. People are to be deceived like small children being deceived by giving toffees, chocolates and lollies.

At the election for Uva PC Rs.2500 for each family was distributed for people in Monaragala district. This money was spent by the Ministry of Economic Development. In the budget it hints that money would be distributed to people in the whole country. This is not a budget but a bribe given for the election. The JVP would vote against the budget as it is only a bag of promises made with maneuvering statistics.”

தேர்தல் ஆணையாளர் வீட்டுக்காவலில் வைக்கப்படலாம்? - ஐக்கிய தேசியக்கட்சியின் ஆறு உறுப்பினர்களுக்கு பிணை (செய்தித்துளிகள்)

[ திங்கட்கிழமை, 27 ஒக்ரோபர் 2014, 02:21.27 PM GMT ]

ஜனாதிபதி மகிந்த ராஜபக்ஷவுக்கு அரசியலமைப்புச் சட்டத்தின்படி மூன்றாவது முறையாக ஜனாதிபதித் தேர்தலில் போட்டியிட முடியாது என தேர்தல் ஆணையாளர் அறிவித்தால், அவரை வீட்டுக்காவலில் வைக்கப்படலாம் என நம்பிக்கையான வட்டாரங்கள் தெரிவிப்பதாக சிங்கள இணையத்தளம் ஒன்று செய்தி வெளியிட்டுள்ளது.

தேர்தல் ஆணையாளர் மகிந்த தேசப்பிரிய வீட்டுக்காவலில் வைக்கப்பட்டு, பிரதி தேர்தல் ஆணையாளர் எம்.எம். மொஹமட் அவரது இடத்திற்கு கொண்டு வரப்படலாம் எனவும் அந்த வட்டாரங்கள் கூறியுள்ளன.

தேர்தல் ஆணையாளர் மகிந்த தேசப்பிரிய அச்சுறுத்தல் காரணமாக வெளிநாட்டில் தஞ்சமடைந்துள்ள ஊடகவியலாளர் ஒருவரின் சகோதரராவர் என்பதால் அவர் மீது சந்தேகம் ஏற்பட காரணமாக அமைந்துள்ளது.

தேர்தல் ஆணையாளர் தனது சகோதரரான ஊடகவியலாளருடன் கடந்த காலங்களில் கொண்டிருந்த தொடர்புகள் குறித்து பாதுகாப்பு பிரிவினர் தேடி வருவதாக கூறப்படுகிறது.

எதிர்வரும் ஜனாதிபதித் தேர்தலில் மகிந்த ராஜபக்ஷவுக்கு ஆதரவு வழங்கும் சிறிய கட்சிகள் தேர்தல் ஆணையாளரை சந்திக்க செய்து அவருக்கு அழுத்தங்கள் கொடுக்கப்பட உள்ளதாக பேசப்படுகிறது.

இது தொடர்பாக கருத்து வெளியிட்டுள்ள தேர்தல் ஆணையாளர்,

யார் தேர்தலுக்கு தயாரானாலும் நாங்கள் தயாரில்லை. அத்துடன் இதுவரை எமக்கு உத்தியோகபூர்வமாக அறிவிக்கவில்லை.

அத்துடன் தயாரில்லை என்று தீயணைப்பு படையினர் போல் தயாராகாமல் இருக்கவும் முடியாது. மேலும் யார் ஜனாதிபதித் தேர்தலில் போட்டியிட போகின்றனர் என்பதும் எனக்கு தெரியாது.

அதேபோல் இப்படியான விடயங்கள் குறித்து பதிலளிப்பதற்கு காலம் இருக்கின்றது. அறிவிப்பு வந்ததும் நான் சட்டத்திற்கு அமைய கடமையை செய்வேன் என தேர்தல் ஆணையாளர் குறிப்பிட்டுள்ளார்.

பாப்பரசரின் விஜயம் தொடர்பில் ஏற்பாடுகள் இடம்பெறுகின்றன: அரசாங்கம்

பாப்பரசர் முதலாம் பிரான்ஸிஸின் விஜயம் தொடர்பில் அனைத்து ஏற்பாடுகளும் இடம்பெறுவதாக அமைச்சர் சுசில் பிரேம்ஜயந்த தெரிவித்துள்ளார்.

பாப்பரசர் இலங்கைக்கு வரமாட்டார் என்று வெளியாகியுள்ள தகவல்களில் உண்மையில்லை என அவர் குறிப்பிட்டுள்ளார்.

கார்டினல் மல்கம் ரஞ்சித், ஜனாதிபதி மஹிந்த ராஜபக்சவுக்கு அனுப்பியுள்ள கடிதம் ஒன்றில், பாப்பரசரின் விஜயம் குறித்து கேள்வி எழுப்பியிருந்தார்.

இதற்கு பதிலளிக்கும் வகையிலேயே அமைச்சரின் கருத்து வெளியாகியுள்ளது.

ஐக்கிய தேசியக்கட்சியின் ஆறு உறுப்பினர்களுக்கு பிணை

இலங்கை துறைமுக அதிகாரசபையின் அலுவலகத்தி;ல் அத்துமீறி பிரவேசித்தனர் என்று குற்றம் சுமத்தப்பட்ட ஐக்கிய தேசியக்கட்சியின் நாடாளுமன்ற உறுப்பினர்கள் 6பேரும் நீதிமன்றத்தினால் சொந்த பிணையில் செல்ல அனுமதிக்கப்பட்டனர்.

இந்த 6 பேரும் இன்று கோட்டை நீதிவான் நீதிமன்றத்தில் ஆஜர் செய்யப்பட்ட போதே அவர்களை சொந்தப்பிணையில் செல்ல நீதவான் அனுமதித்தார்.

நாடாளுமன்ற உறுப்பினர்களான ரவி கருணாநாயக்க, ஆர்.யோகராஜன், அஜித் பி பெரேரா, நளின் பண்டார, எரான் விக்ரமரட்ன உள்ளிட்டோர் பிணையில் செல்ல அனுமதிக்கப்பட்டனர்.

இவர்கள் ஆறு பேரும் கடந்த 21ஆம் திகதியன்று கொம்பனிவீதியில் உள்ள ஜாதிக சேவக சங்கமய என்ற தொழிற்சங்கத்துக்குள் அத்துமீறி நுழைந்ததாக குற்றம் சுமத்தப்பட்டிருந்தது.

எனினும் துறைமுக அதிகாரசபைக்கு சொந்தமான இந்த இடத்தில் ஜனாதிபதி மஹிந்த ராஜபக்சவின் தேர்தல் பிரசாரத்துக்கு பயன்படுத்தப்பட்டமையை தாம் கண்டுபிடித்ததாக நாடாளுமன்ற உறுப்பினர்கள் 6 பேரும் தெரிவித்திருந்தனர்.

அட்டனில் பாரிய மண்சரிவு - போக்குவரத்து தடை

மலையகத்தில் தொடர்ந்தும் சீரற்ற காலநிலையே நிலவுகின்றதனால் அட்டன் பொகவந்தலாவ பிரதான வீதியில் டிக்கோயா வனராஜ பகுதியில் இன்றிரவு 7.30 மணியளவில் பாரிய மண்சரிவு ஏற்பட்டுள்ளது.

இந்த மண்சரிவு ஏற்பட்டதன் காரணமாக சில மணி நேரம் அட்டன் பொகவந்தலவா மற்றும் அட்டன் மஸ்கெலியா ஆகிய வீதிக்கான போக்குவரத்து தடைப்பட்டிருந்தது. தற்போது மண்சரிவு அகற்றப்பட்டு ஒரு வழி போக்குவரத்தாக மேற்கொள்ளப்பட்டு வருகின்றது.

முழுமையாக மண்சரிவை அகற்ற நடவடிக்கை எடுத்திருப்பதாக அட்டன் பொலிஸார் தெரிவித்தனர்.

மலையகத்தில் நிலவிவரும் சீரற்ற காலநிலை காரணமாக வீதிகள் வழுக்கல் தன்மையுடன் காணப்படுகின்றமையால் அடிக்கடி விபத்துக்கள் இடம்பெறுகின்றமையும் குறிப்பிடதக்கது.

இதனால் வாகனங்களை அவதானமாக செலுத்துமாறு வாகனசாரதிகளிடம் பொலிஸார் கேட்டுக் கொண்டுள்ளனர்.

Gota to the fore if president cannot contest!

 Monday, 27 October 2014 

The Rajapaksas have unanimously decided to field defence secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa as the UPFA candidate, in the event president Mahinda Rajapaksa faces a legal hurdle against contesting the upcoming presidential election, say very reliable sources.

Former chief justice Sarath N. Silva is saying that Mahinda Rajapaksa cannot contest the election for a third term, and if he contests, it will be a blatant violation of the constitution. The Sri Lanka Bar Association is also of the same stance.

The JVP has already declared that it would go to courts if Mahinda Rajapaksa announces his decision to contest. In such a scenario, the Rajapaksas are of the unanimous view that Gotabhaya, the next most popular Rajapaksa, should be fielded as their candidate.

Various Sinhala Buddhist organizations across the country have given their blessings for Gotabhaya Rajapaksa to contest. Even though he not that interested, Gotabhaya is mostly likely to agree to the family request.

Crony capitalism

October 28, 2014 

Redefining conflict of interest

The Arab Spring has turned out to be a great disappointment. It is fast turning out to be a winter of great discontent and suffering for the poor
people who threw out a bunch of dictators with great aspirations of establishing an accountable and responsible liberal democratic government.
However, the dark clouds have a silver lining. Two classic examples of crony capitalism were exposed. After the dictator Ben Ali was thrown out in Tunisia in 2011, a total of 214 businesses and assets worth $ 13 billion, including 550 properties and 48 boats and yachts, were confiscated from the deposed President his associates and relatives. Meanwhile in Egypt, where President for life Hosni Mubarak, was ousted soon after Ben Ali, 469 businesses linked to his family and cronies were seized.

Crony Capitalism by Thavam Ratna

United Nations’ resolution (29 November 1947 ) partitioning Palestine to establish a Jewish state.

POSTED ON OCTOBER 26, 2014 UPDATED ON OCTOBER 26, 2014

UN collapsed, justice died, evil triumphed and opened the gates of hell in the region.

by Latheef Farook

Zionist Jewish state of Israel, established by means of conspiracies, manipulations and blackmail in the Palestinian lands in violation of all established legal and moral principles, has today become the sole source of wars, bloodshed, instability and unrest in the Middle East and beyond.

United Nations’ Resolution (29 November 1947 ) Partitioning Palestine to Establish a Jewish State. by Thavam Ratna