Law and order Ministry secretary bids farewell to election laws: summons Police higher ups to give illegal orders

(Lanka-e-News- 27.Nov.2014, 7.10PM) Mahinda Balasuriya , the secretary to the Ministry of law and order disdainfully ignored the IGP who is the highest in the hierarchy of the police force to summon all the police officers above the rank of ASPs to Colombo officially and give a tall list of unlawful orders to be followed by them. Even officers who are in the remotest corners were invited to this meeting which was held at the Ministry of law and order at about 2.00 p.m. yesterday.

These officers were informed to bring with them a map of the locations where the polling centers are in their administrative divisions ;and a report on what is the strength of police powers in those places, the manner in which the patrolling vehicles are used and the areas covered , and so forth.

Mind you all these orders were given by Balasuriya and not by the IGP , though it is the IGP who is legitimately empowered to perform these tasks.

The first unlawful instruction given by Balasuriya was :

For any reason , the cutouts of President which display him individually , or with others cannot be removed. In support of this instruction he referred to the circular No. 02/2014 sent by him as the secretary to ministry of law and order , according to which , the powers and tasks of the President as the commanding chief of the forces have not changed just because he is a Presidential candidate .

At this stage , the impotent effeminate IGP had two questions to ask : Won’t the circulars issued by the IGP to the police officers during the elections period and those now issued be contradictory ? Balasuriya ‘s high and mighty answer was ,the IGP need not carry out those actions, and those would be looked after by Balasuriya.

IGP’s second question was : if the cutouts of the President are to be protected , what action should be taken if other candidates too follow suit and commit the same offence ?

They cannot be permitted , was Balasuriya’s curt and short answer .

Balasuriya next addressing Highway authority Director SSP Mahen Gunasekera gave a most bizarre instruction: a massive cutout lit with illumination displaying Mahinda Rajapakse and the Chinese Prime minister will be erected near the southern expressway , and the police shall provide security to it day and night.

Sidelining the senior DIG in charge of the elections , Balasuriya issued instructions that all complaints received at the police stations shall be first referred to the ASPs of the relevant divisions and their permission obtained before they are recorded, and under no circumstance complaints should be recorded without such permission.

At the conclusion of the meeting , the secretary to the ministry of law and order after giving the police officers who participated a belly full of unlawful instructions did not allow them to leave with their pot bellies empty – they were treated to a most sumptuous meal received from the President’s palace , with Balasuriya making an earnest request to the officers to enjoy a most luxurious meal thoroughly before leaving.

Mangala breathes fire, promises “constitutional revolution”

November 28, 2014

• Says Mahinda will have to conduct exemplary poll as C’wealth Chair
• Accuses Law and Order Secy. of ordering 24-hour security for massive cut-outs of incumbent
• Claims private mobile company plotting to block SMS for one week prior to election citing tech-fault
• Election is a battle between democracy and dictatorship, charges Mangala
• Once deserted UNP HQ teems with activity, as common candidate, party leaders flock there for strategy sessions

President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s first campaign manager in 2005 was breathing fire against nine years of his rule yesterday, promising major constitutional reform and insisting that the January 2015 election will really be a contest between democracy and dictatorship.
UNP Communications Director and Parliamentarian Mangala Samaraweera issued a strong critique of the ruling Rajapaksa administration during a press briefing yesterday, saying the Government was abusing power to thwart the electoral process. (DB)
“Orders have gone out from the Law and Order Ministry Secretary that massive cut outs of President Rajapaksa, due to be unveiled shortly and produced at the cost of millions of rupees, are to be given 24-hour security,” Samaraweera charged at Sirikotha yesterday.
The MP said the main opposition party had made a sacrificial decision to back a common candidate to create what he called a “constitutional revolution” 100 days after the new President takes office.
In an attempt to clear the confusion created about the transfer of power and modalities of constitutional reform, Samaraweera explained that if victorious, the new administration would first have to be set up under the terms of the current Constitution.
“As a stakeholder in the victory of Maithripala Sirisena he will of course be appointed the Prime Minister in a national Government,” Samaraweera said. He stressed that would be under the present system, in which the executive president picks his Cabinet of Ministers, including the Prime Minister.
However, once the Constitution is changed by amendment in Parliament, parties will have to contest separately or in alliance to win a majority of seats.
“Whichever leader is victorious in that parliamentary election after the Constitution is changed will become the Prime Minister. We believe that once Maithripala Sirisena is elected, that it is the UNP that will win a majority and therefore Ranil Wickremesinghe will become Prime Minister. But in a democratic system, of course that is not a certainty, it could be another party also, in which case we will have to accept that,” the UNP MP explained at length.
There is no such thing as an ‘executive prime minister’ in a parliamentary system.
“In the Westminster system, the Prime Minister is merely the first among equals. He is not an executive Prime Minister,” he said.
Samaraweera said the UNP leader believed that the country should continue with a unity Government even after the parliamentary elections are held under the new constitution, in order to bring the ‘constitutional revolution’ to fruition.
“Enough of this petty bickering. To lift the country out of the depths it is in, we will have to work together,” Samaraweera said, striking an idealistic note.
A bristling Samaraweera charged that the private mobile network that allegedly blocked a political talk show featuring Sirisena last week was also planning to block text messaging for one week ahead of the poll, citing a technical glitch at the behest of the ruling regime.
The network has apologised for the disruption and promised to investigate the matter.
“Mahinda Rajapaksa goes into this election as the Chair of the Commonwealth of Nations. Fifty-three countries look to him to conduct an exemplary election. The world will be watching this poll,” he warned.
The once deserted UNP headquarters at Sirikotha in Pitakotte was teeming with life yesterday, as top Opposition figures attended discussions and brainstormed about strategy and policy. Common Opposition candidate Maithripala Sirisena was seen walking out of the Sirikotha officers last morning. JHU MP Athuraliye Rathana Thero was also at the premises, in discussions with UNP officials.

A reality check on the common candidate’s pledges

By Neville Ladduwahetty-November 27, 2014

Maithripala Sirisena

The coalition that Mr. Sirisena represents has diverse interests. The formulation of the new Constitution has to be undertaken by this diverse group. Therefore, it would be reasonable to expect the process of formulating a new Constitution to take more time than the 100 day time frame he has pledged if he is to repeal the Executive Presidency. This was the case too with others who ran for this office and who had pledged to repeal the Executive Presidency.

A Reality Check on the Common Candidate’s Pledges by Thavam

This presidential race is a battle between democracy and autocracy - UNP

 Thursday, 27 November 2014 

‘This presidential race is a battle between democracy and autocracy. Between corruption and good governance. Between the rule of law and impunity. It will decide whether Sri Lankans will enjoy peace with dignity and equality or peace of the conquered and oppressed’ said by United National Party.

UNP further said ‘It was long foretold, not in the stars but in the minds of all righteous and just citizens of this country that the 2015 presidential election would be a historic and decisive contest’ in their press statement issued today.

The full text of press statement of UNP as follows.

It was long foretold, not in the stars but in the minds of all righteous and just citizens of this country that the 2015 presidential election would be a historic and decisive contest.

Presidential contests have traditionally been battles between the two main parties, each of which fields its own candidate in the race. After nine years of Mahinda Rajapaksa's rule, it was incumbent that the battle lines were redefined in order to effectively challenge the current morass of political leadership in Sri Lanka. The election before us therefore is not merely about choosing the next president. There is a much greater choice that faces the voter in January 2015. This presidential race is a battle between democracy and autocracy. Between corruption and good governance. Between the rule of law and impunity. It will decide whether Sri Lankans will enjoy peace with dignity and equality or peace of the conquered and oppressed.

The regime of President Mahinda Rajapaksa has decreed that this electoral battle will be fought between the forces that stand for democracy and freedom and those that seek to push Sri Lanka into the black hole of dictatorship and oppression. So vile, so destructive has been his nine year tenure in office.

Sri Lanka's political opposition, led by the United National Party is seeking systemic change at this election. Nine years of the Rajapaksa family and its nepotism and corruption has taught us all deep lessons about the way this nation is governed. It has taught us that systems can ruin individuals and individuals can bring an entire country to the brink of ruination. The Opposition in this election will therefore, include all of the forces that stand against Rajapaksa rule.

We count among our number the worker unions and academics, civil society and journalists, political parties on the left, right and centre of the ideological divide. It also includes members of President Rajapaksa's ruling party, members of his cabinet that have watched his administration up close and realised that a third term of Rajapaksa governance will spell doom for the motherland. The common opposition led by the UNP and now joined by SLFP stalwarts realises that before we can operate once more as free and vibrant proponents of our political causes, we must ensure the existence of a democratic space. In nine years of Rajapaksa rule, this space has shrunk.

The recent blackmail threat by no less than this country's head of state Mahinda Rajapaksa, indicates the darkness of his rule, his dismissive attitude towards corruption and his twisted notions of loyalty. Angered by news of his ministers' defection, the President claimed he had "files" on all those who quit his Government, but insisted he would not use them. The claim raises big questions. Why are these files being hidden from the public and law enforcement? How many more files does the President have on his own party members? Why do these files surface only when these members oppose his dictatorial rule? President Mahinda Rajapaksa's claim about the 'files' prove that in his administration bribery and corruption is not only tolerated but it is also actively encouraged.

This regime has stolen elections, not by stuffing ballot boxes but by thwarting and abusing the electoral process. It has rendered the judiciary a powerless puppet, existing to serve only the ruling family and its whims. Dissent has been brutally crushed. Political parties have been decimated by the Government's twin tactics of intimidation and coercion. Democracy first, with all its imperfections. And all else shall follow.
This is why the UNP has made the momentous and historic decision to endorse the legitimate Secretary General of the SLFP as the common opposition candidate. It was an unprecedented move of solidarity with our historic political rival. It is also an indication of the dire situation our country is facing and the realisation, across the party that this is no time for partisan, expedient politics. Victory in this election will bring a divided, fractured and wounded country together again. The victory of the common opposition candidate and the abolition of the executive presidency will herald a return to vibrant and diverse political expression. The reaction of the public to the news of the common candidacy has proven beyond all doubt that the people have grown greatly weary of Rajapaksa rule.

We urge all those who still keep faith with this corrupt, nepotistic regime. Hear the voices of the Sinhala, Tamil, Muslim people who want to live in this country without violence. Hear the call of the Buddhists, Christians and Hindus who wish not to be mired in religious tension and hatred. Listen to the corporate sector, public servants and those who are self employed who only wish for a small share of the economic prosperity enjoyed by the ruling cabal.

We call on all of you to hear the voices of our people. Do not let them down at this hour. History shall judge us on where we stand at this juncture.

Is The Joint Opposition Front A Holy Alliance?

By Ayathuray Rajasingam -November 27, 2014

Ayathuray Rajasingam

No sooner Mahinda Rajapaksa declared his candidacy to stand in the Presidential election, there were several important figures from the SLFP opted to resign and an incident of shooting an opposition member took place. It is interesting to watch those who were with Mahinda Rajapaksa as bystanders for the deterioration of democracy, has now joined the opposition. When SLFP main stalwart, Maithiripala Sirisena announced his candidacy for Presidential election representing the Joint Opposition Front and declaring the formation of a National Government, number of issues would crop up. The trend of the peoples’ mind has to be analyzed from various angles.

Rival group of Mahinda RajapaksaRead More

Enemies Of The President’s Promise: Bash-Ful

By Rajiva Wijesinha - November 27, 2014 

Prof. Rajiva Wijesinha MP

Undoubtedly the most bizarre of the characters who influenced the President in the period after the election of 2010 was Sajin Vas Gunawardena. He was not a relation, and he did not have the professional or academic credentials of the other characters discussed here. Indeed he had hardly any qualifications but, ever since Mahinda Rajapaksa became President, he occupied positions of trust and responsibility.

Mahinda and Vass

It was claimed that the reason for the confidence the President reposed in him was because, while a clerk in the Middle East, he had helped the President with the technology during a presentation that might otherwise have been a disaster. But it is also likely that, after they thus became acquainted, he was able to serve the President in a variety of ways that commanded his affection and his confidence.
Read More

Taliban kill 5 in Kabul in attacks on British embassy car, foreign compound

BY JESSICA DONATI AND HAMID SHALIZI-KABUL Thu Nov 27, 2014

(Reuters) - The Taliban bombed a British embassy vehicle in the Afghan capital Kabul on Thursday morning, killing five people, and attacked a foreign compound in the city center in the evening, officials and witnesses said.

The suicide attack on the British embassy car in the east of the Afghan capital killed two embassy workers including one Briton and wounded more than 30 others in the vicinity of the explosion, officials said.

The second blast, targeting a compound run by a contractor for the U.S. aid agency in Afghanistan, shook buildings in the diplomatic quarter and was followed by an hour-long gun battle between insurgents and Afghan security forces.

One foreign national was injured and two suicide bombers were killed in the second attack, which started when a car loaded with explosives detonated outside the guesthouse just after 7 p.m, according to security officials.

"There are no casualties among the Afghan security forces and the foreigners are in a safe room," said the commander of 111 Military Corps Kabul, Qadam Shah Shaheem.

A Western security official said the explosion failed to breach the compound walls, which were well fortified.

Thursday's incidents were the latest in a wave of bombings to hit the city as the majority of foreign combat troops prepare to withdraw from the country by the end of the year.

Taliban insurgents, who were ousted from power by a U.S.-led coalition in 2001, claimed responsibility for both attacks, saying the embassy car bomb "targeted foreign invading forces", while the compound was an "important center of the enemy".

Attacks aimed at foreign diplomats and civilians are less common than the daily strikes against Afghan and international military forces on the country's roads.

More than 4,600 Afghan police and army personnel have been killed in the war against the Taliban since the start of the year, a figure recently described by a top U.S. general in Afghanistan as unsustainably high.

BRITISH CITIZEN KILLED

Britain said that two embassy personnel, including one British national who worked in security, were among the five killed.

"I am deeply saddened to confirm that a British national civilian security team member and an Afghan national working for the embassy were killed in the incident," Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said in a statement, adding that another Briton had been injured.

A Reuters witness saw at least one survivor being led away from the charred shell of the vehicle on foot by a member of the British security force.

G4S, the world's biggest security firm, later confirmed one of its staff had been killed in the blast and another injured.

"Next of kin have been informed and we will continue to provide them with support," a company spokesperson said.

"Our thoughts and most heartfelt condolences are with the families, friends and colleagues of those involved in this tragic incident."

The interior ministry initially reported that the blast was caused by a suicide bomber on a motorcycle, but later said the attacker was traveling by car.

Since Monday, when two American soldiers were killed in a powerful blast close to the airport, there have been at least five high profile attacks in Kabul.

While not common, attacks against diplomatic missions and personnel show a determination to target anyone associated with the U.S.-led military coalition in Afghanistan.

Last year a 25-year-old American diplomat was killed in an attack on a convoy in the east of the country, while the U.S. consulate in western Herat province was attacked with a truck bomb. In May, the Indian consulate in the same province was also targeted by insurgents with rocket-propelled grenades and suicide vests.

(Additional reporting by Mirwais Harooni in Kabul and Kate Holton in London; Writing by Kay Johnson and Jessica Donati; Editing by Nick Macfie, Mike Collett-White and Hugh Lawson)

Courts kept busy as Jordan works to crush support for Isis

From King Abdullah down, officials are blunt about strategy to target supporters of movement wreaking havoc in Iraq and Syria

 Members of Islamist Salafi in Jordan protest late last year in front of the state security court in Amman to demand the release of their members held in Jordanian prisons. Photograph: Majed Jaber/Reuters

Thursday 27 November 2014

 “We are with the Islamic State and you are with Obama and the infidels,” Ahmed Abu Ghalous a big, angry-looking man in blue prison overalls, shouts after being sentenced to five years in jail for “promoting the views of a terrorist group” on the internet. The outburst earns him a further 50 dinar (£45) fine for contempt of court.
Courts Kept Busy as Jordan Works to Crush Support for Isis by Thavam

FactCheck: do black Americans commit more crime?

FactCheck: do black Americans commit more crime?

November 27, 2014

The claim

“It’s important to note that black men commit nearly half of all murders in this country, which is astounding when you take into consideration the fact that they only make up 12-13 per cent of the population.”“James”, 26 November 2014

The analysis

FactCheck Do Black Americans Commit More Crime by Thavam

Iran Supreme Leader says not opposed to extension of nuclear talks

Iraqi women walk past a poster depicting images of Shi'ite Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei at al-Firdous Square in Baghdad February 12, 2014.

DUBAI Thu Nov 27, 2014

(Reuters) - Iran's supreme leader made clear on Thursday he backed extended nuclear talks with world powers, shoring up Tehran's negotiating team against attacks by his hardline acolytes for failing to secure a deal that could have meant major relief from sanctions.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei also said that if the talks, extended on Monday for seven months beyond the Nov. 24 deadline, ultimately failed, "the sky won't fall to the ground" and that the United States would be the biggest loser if that transpired.

With the two sides having missed a deadline to overcome their differences for the second time this year, Iranians face the prospect of at least several more months of international sanctions that have hammered their standard of living.

But Khamenei, the ultimate authority on all Iranian matters of state, said on his website: "For the same reasons I wasn't against negotiations, I'm also not against the extension."

He added that Tehran's negotiators were "hard-working and serious ... (They) justly and honestly stood against words of force and bullying of the other side, and unlike the other side, they did not change their words every day."

Conservative hardliners remain wary of striking any compromise with the West under moderate President Hassan Rouhani's push for a nuclear deal but also demand explanations about why a year of talks yielded no substantive result.

In another comment issued on his Twitter account, Khamenei

said: "We accept fair and reasonable agreements. Where there's bullying and excessive demands, all of Iran, people and officials, will not accept."

The two sides remain far apart on central issues including permissible enrichment capacity in Iran, the length of any final settlement and the pace at which financial sanctions imposed over Tehran's suspected atom bomb ambitions would be dismantled.

Iran denies any aim to develop nuclear weapons capability, saying it is refining uranium only for peaceful energy.

Khamenei also said the security of Israel, Tehran's arch-foe, would decline over time. "Know that whether or not we reach a nuclear agreement, Israel becomes more insecure day by day," he said, without elaborating.

Israel, the only Middle East state with a presumed nuclear arsenal, regards Iran's nuclear agenda as a potential mortal threat and is dismissive of the talks, suggesting Tehran is only trying to buy time to become a threshold nuclear power.

The Jewish state has hinted at pre-emptive strikes on Iran's nuclear installations if it deems diplomacy ultimately futile.

(Reporting by Michelle Moghtader; Writing by Yara Bayoumy and William Maclean; Editing by Mark Heinrich)

Dirty chicken scandal: campylobacter found in eight out of 10 UK birds

Food watchdog warns that Asda has worst rate of contamination but all other supermarket chains failing to meet national targets

Food poisoning scandal: how chicken spreads campylobacter

Raw chickens in a British supermarket. Photograph: Mood Board/Rex

Peter Walker and Felicity Lawrence-Thursday 27 November 2014 

Eight out of 10 fresh chickens bought from UK supermarkets this summer were contaminated with the potentially lethal food-poisoning bug campylobacter, the food watchdog has said, warning that not one individual chain is meeting national targets over the issue.

Dirty Chicken Scandal Campylobacter Found in Eight Out of 10 UK Birds by Thavam

China lake: ‘If you jumped into this water, you’d shed a layer of skin’

A fisherman fetches water affected by blue-green algae in Lake Tai, in China’s Jiangsu province. Pic: AP.

By Graham Land Nov 27, 2014 

So says Wu Lihong, the unofficial guardian of China’s Lake Tai, a polluted body of water in Jiansu province. Long stigmatized due its algae-induced green hue, Lake Tai (or Taihu), is a testament to the government not delivering on promises of environmental clean-up. Seven years ago a toxic algal bloom forced residents to find alternatives to their tap water for drinking and prompted the government to undertake an expensive cleaning of the lake. However, the sources of pollution, such as chemical plants and textile factories, have seemingly continued virtually unabated, shining a stark light on local government’s inefficacy at tackling such problems at their source.

Normally, Taihu’s algae-choked waters clear up after the summer heat subsides, but plastic waste now chokes the lake, with dead fish and algal blooms creating a foul smell that plagues China’s third-largest body of ‘fresh’ water.

While the national government of China has come down hard on pollution and has written relatively strict regulations for industry, local government often circumvents or blocks the environmental efforts of the ruling Communist Party. The National People’s Congress named Wu Lihong an “environmental warrior” back in 2005, but Wu’s confrontations with local polluters have earned him some powerful local enemies. Local officials have routinely harassed and followed Wu, even going so far as to detain and torture the clean water activist.

A dead fish is seen next to the blue-green algae bloom affecting Lake Tai. Pic: AP.

Wu’s experience exemplifies the problem of China’s national government, which is often depicted as having deep pockets and acting efficiently autocratic, but in reality struggles to enforce rule of law, especially on a local level.

If with all their wealth, the Communist Party can’t clean up this lake, it tells you the problem is much bigger. I’ve come to realize the root of the problem is the system itself.

—Wu Lihong (via the New York Times)

A 2011 piece from Yale Environment 360 confirms the commitment of China’s national government to cleaning up Taihu, a symbol of the ecological consequences of the country’s rapid economic and industrial growth. The report states that in order to save the lake, many polluting factories were forced to close.

Restoring Taihu to a truly healthy state, however, will be a steeper challenge. Money is not an issue:

The central government, through its Ministry of Environmental Protection, plans to allot $155 million over the next 5 years to clean up Taihu. The ministry is now drafting a work plan. But the challenge, says Qin, will be to pinpoint sources of nitrogen and phosphorous to better stem their flow into the lake.

—Yale Environment 360

The kinds of algal blooms that plague Lake Tai are by no means limited to the People’s Republic of China. Lakes on all continents have experienced similar crises, from Japan’s major lakes to Africa’s famed Lake Victoria. According to University of North Carolina marine biologist Hans Paerl, cyanobacteria cause $2bn in water pollution-related damages per year in the United States alone.

Other efforts to clean up Taihu have included the reintroduction of marcophytes such as water chesnuts and lotus plants, which inhibit algal growth, but do not grow well in polluted water. Furthermore, back in 2010, 10 million green and silver algae-eating green and silver carp were also released into the water, although some forms of algae, such as Mycrocystis, are not hindered by silver carp.

Fortunately, there are dedicated activists like Wu Lihong to continue the fight for clean water in China, which millions depend upon for their health and livelihoods.