Despite denials, Brig. sent to repair toilets!

 Wednesday, 24 December 2014 

Responding to the article titled ‘Air Force new recruit’s confession to police’ posted on out website on December 22, defence secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa said at a function in Kataragama on the same day that soldiers were not being used to ‘dig drains, wash plates etc.’ A senior military officer sent us details of an instance of clear evidence that the defence secretary was uttering lies. After getting confirmation from independent sources, we are publishing that evidence.

A blocked sewerage at a flat at Mattakkuliya in Colombo has rendered the entire sewerage line inactive. The UDA has ordered a brigadier, by the name Dissanayake, to immediately take a team of soldiers and to clear the blocked sewerage. Under duress, the Brig. had gone there on the order from the defence secretary through the UDA and repaired the blocked pipeline.

A television crew that arrived on the occasion on the orders of the UDA obtained a voice cut from the Brig. about the repairs done to the sewerage pipeline. He has given it unwillingly. After the telecast of the voice cut, the Brig. started getting phone calls from his friends and relatives, all of them asking the same question – as to whether the army was repairing toilets after the end of the war. Ashamed by these phone calls, the Brig. has left the country until such time his friends and relatives forget the incident.

State Media’s Rajpal Now Calls Bathuideen Worse Than A Pig – Apologizes To Pigs

Following his recent rant of calling Minister Rishard Bathuideen a ‘pig’ for pledging support to the common opposition candidate, Maithreepala Sirisena, State Media’ Rajpal Abeynayake has now apologized to pigs for the comment.

Rajpal

In his latest tweet Abeynayake says “Come to think of it I shouldn’t hav called Badiudeen a pig fr crossing over with da MP given his post da other day.My apologies to all pigs.”

Abeynayake is a trusted confidant of President Mahinda Rajapaksa and has been handpicked to by him to be the editor of the State Media’s flagship newspaper the Daily News. It is widely believed that Abeynayake expresses the sentiments of the President, especially in his anti-minority and anti-Indian editorials. Immediately after the Aluthgama attacks against Muslims which left at least three civilians dead, Abeynayake justified the attack by extremists Sinhala mobs, who he claimed were provoked by the minority community.

Rajpal Abeynayake @Abeynayake

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Come to think of it I shouldn't hav called Badiudeen a pig fr crossing over with da MP given his post da other day.My apologies to all pigs.

10:13 PM - 23 Dec 2014

Weerawansa’s thugs attacked, employees deceived

WEDNESDAY, 24 DECEMBER 2014 

Minister Wimal Weerawansa deploying thugs and several employees of institutions under his ministry had attempted to damage buildings of ‘Sirikotha’, the head office of the UNP at Pita Kotte, on the pretext of having an agitation opposite the building. The UNP activists present at the head office had attacked the attackers.

The employees of the institutions under Weerawansa’s ministry, who had reported for duty at their workplaces before they were brought to the attack, have then protested against the minister for deploying them for the attack.

Minister Wimal Weerawansa, through one of his organizations, had manipulated the attack claiming there was an agreement between Maithripala Sirisena and Ranil Wickremesinghe.

Bottles, stones and other missiles were exchanged between the two parties and the police present at the place had not been able to control the situation.

It has been revealed that employees from Engineering Corporation have been transported for the attack using the vehicle with registered number GI8272.

Tense situation in front of Sirikotha

December 24, 2014 
A pandemonium broke out when a group of pro-Government protesters clashed with some UNP supporters in front of the United National Party (UNP) headquarters in Sirikotha, this morning.

The Police Media unit told Ada Derana that the clash transpired when the UNP supporters counter attacked in respond to pro-Government protesters’ alleged move to attack the Sirikotha building with stones.

A party source said that a meeting accompanied by Common Candidate Maithripala Sirisena and Opposition Leader Ranil Wickramasinghe was being held with the participation of some 1,500 members of several trade unions, at the time of the incident.

In the meantime, the pro-Government protesters were holding a demonstration in front of the UNP headquarters against an alleged secret agreement which was signed by Maithripala and Wickramasinghe, on 1 November.

At least 11 people who sustained injuries following the clash have been admitted to the Colombo Southern hospital, the police said.

At a recent press conference, Health Minister Tissa Attanayake alleged, in addition to the agreements reached with various political parties and organizations in public, Maithripala Sirisena has also signed the secret agreement with the Opposition Leader, which contains several terms that could be harmful to the country.

However, the UNP charged that the alleged agreement was a ‘fake’ one. Opposition Leader has also urged the IGP to initiate an investigation, on this regard.

No Protection for Main Opposition HQ – Police Inaction Leads to Bloodshed `

CaFFE special press release on the clash opposite Sirikotha – UNP HQ

24/12/2014

Campaign for Free and fair Elections (CaFFE) condemned the organized and calculated attack on United National Party (UNP) HQ, Sirikotha in Pitakotte.

After the announcement of the common candidate, the main opposition and its activities were disturbed with violence, intimidation, disruptions and sabotage and CaFFE considers the attack on Sirikotha is the climax of these activities.

The incident occurred around 10.20 am today (24) when the UNP was holding a conference of Eksath Adhayapana Sewaka Sangamaya (United Education Services Workers Union) and a meeting of grassroots UNP activists.

The attack was carried out by the ‘Federation of National Organizers (FNO)’ an umbrella organization of Minister Wimal Weerawana, a main spokesman of the government. The FNO had organized this to protest the ‘Ranil-Maithri Secret Pact’. Around 125 persons gathered opposite Sirikotha and chanted slogans demanding the UNP to reveal the secret MoU. The FNO called the UNP a traitorous group. Hearing the shouting UNP activists who were inside the HQ arrived and a heated argument ensued.

Then the FNO supporters began attacking the UNP HQ and around 2000 UNP supports inside Sirikotha retaliated. The UNP supporters were also able grab hold of two of the assailants who were later assaulted by the UNPers.

The FNO protest was announced by media. The UNP conventions were also a much publicized event. So police was aware that the two sides might clash but they did not take any action to prevent the lives and property of the UNP.

Although police did not take any action against the FNO supporters when they commenced the attack, they were quick to protect them when it became obvious that UNP supporters were overpowering the FNO supporters. The police were well equipped with riot gear but they did not use this to disperse the FNO supporters who initiated the attack. The FNO supporters who retreated to a by lane opposite the UNP HQ were allowed to escape through a back road. They were seen heading towards Nugegoda in several vehicles belonging to several institutions of the Ministry of Housing and Construction.

Several assailants were injured; these include several senior Ministry of Construction officials.

CaFFE notes that this is not the first time that police inaction has led to violence. Police took no action to stop attacks on opposition activists in many parts of Sri Lanka including Eppawala, Hambantota and Haputale. However they were quick to respond when opposition activists retaliate.

The election monitor noticed with dismay of what transpired in Wanduraba where OIC of the area had to resign because local politicians did not allow him to carry out his duties and maintain his dignity. When CaFFE made the allegation that Deputy Minister Hon. Nishantha Mutuhettigama secured the release of three of his supporters who were suspected of burning common opposition candidate Maithripala Sirisena by obstructing the police, Police Spokesman denied the claim stating that the suspects were properly presented to court. In addition after the OIC resigned the Spokesman called him ‘Coward’ who failed to carry out his duties, ignoring the ground realities. Police were not allowed to carry out their duties in Wanduraba and it is only due to social pressure that some action was taken against the perpetrators.

CaFFE urges law enforcement authorities to take necessary action to minimize election violence and the political authorities to allow policemen to carry out their duties.

Media Unit – CaFFE

Gota despatches nine military units to Polonnaruwa ahead of poll

December 22, 2014

Sri Lanka’s Defence Ministry has allegedly despatched nine special military units to the North-Central Polonnaruwa district to be engaged in election malpractices and to ensure a resounding victory of President Mahinda Rajapaksa, who is seeking an unprecedented third term in office at the January 8 presidential poll.

According to sources, a top lawyer and member of the main Opposition United National Party (UNP) Wijedasa Rajapaksa has made a written complaint in this regard to the country’s Election Commissioner on Monday.

In his complaint, MP Wijedasa Rajapaksa has alleged that the move by Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa to despatch nine special military units to Polonnaruwa, which is the hometown of Common Opposition candidate Maithripala Sirisena, was aimed at threatening the voters and cause mayhem on the polling day in order to ensure a lower voter turnout.

Polonnaruwa being centrally located, other sources said, the plan was to despatch troops from there to various other places such as the Eastern Trincomalee, Ampara and Batticaloa districts for the same purpose.

Meanwhile, Army Spokesman army Brigadier Ruwan Wanigasooriya has said that the troops are  “only carrying out its official duties and nothing else” based on national security concerns and requirements.

“Matters of national security will not be compromised for any reason. All security forces personnel, from the Commanders down to the last soldier discharge their duties with commitment giving priority to national security requirements,” Brigadier Wanigasooriya has said.

FIGHTING ‘ISLAMIC STATE’ IS NOT THE ISRAELI PRIORITY – OPED

By Nicola Nasser-DECEMBER 24, 2014

Defying a consensus that it is a priority by the world community comprising international rivals like the United States, Europe, Russia and China and regional rivals like Iran, Syria and Saudi Arabia, Israel, like Turkey, does not eye the U.S. – led war on the IS as its regional priority. Nor fighting Israel is an IS priority.
Fighting ‘Islamic State’ is Not the Israeli Priority – Oped by Thavam Ratna

Rebel attacks in Assam kill 51, spark violent protests

BY BISWAJYOTI DAS-Wed Dec 24, 2014

(Reuters) - Police in Assam fired on Wednesday on demonstrators protesting against the killings of dozens of people by tribal guerrillas, killing five of them.

Militants fighting for a separate homeland for indigenous Bodo tribesmen went on a killing spree in Assam on Tuesday, killing 51 people in four attacks in the space of an hour, the deadliest violence in months.

The victims of the guerrilla attacks were mostly tea-plantation workers from other parts of India. Assam has a history of sectarian bloodshed and armed groups fighting for autonomy or secession.

Hundreds of plantation workers armed with spears and bows and arrows defied a curfew imposed in response to the rebel attacks and surrounded police stations in Sonitpur district, the area worst hit by the militant violence, saying authorities had failed to protect them.

Some protesters set fire to shops and others blocked a railway line and roads. Police said they had to disperse the crowds.

"They were trying to storm police stations, we had to open fire as a result," a police officer from the area said by telephone.

Assam is one of seven states in India's northeast, a region bounded by China, Myanmar, Bhutan and Bangladesh. For long, residents have accused the central government of plundering its resources and ignoring its development.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has vowed to accelerate the development of roads and railways but one of his ministers said the violence had to stop first.

"There can no development until there is peace," Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju told reporters, vowing to crush the militants.

The Tuesday attacks on plantation workers were blamed on a faction of the National Democratic Front of Bodoland in retaliation for an offensive against them launched by security forces a month ago.

Villagers told police the rebels came on foot, armed with assault rifles and wearing military uniforms.

"The militants first came and asked for water. Suddenly they opened fire with their AK-47 rifles,” a witness, who fled into jungle, later told reporters.

Among the victims were 10 women and 13 children.

(Additional reporting by Rupam Jain Nair; Writing by Sanjeev Miglani; Editing by Robert Birsel)

Isis fighters capture Jordanian pilot after plane came down over Syria

Jordanian authorities confirm capture of pilot after first coalition warplane lost since air strikes began in Syria three months ago

An image released by the Raqqa Media Center group purporting to show a captured Jordanian pilot. Photograph: AFP/Getty Images

Ian Black, Middle East editor- Wednesday 24 December 2014

Fighters of the Islamic State (Isis) in Syria have scored a major propaganda coup by capturing a Jordanian air force pilot whose plane came down on Wednesday during an air raid by the international coalition near the northern city of Raqqa, the de facto jihadi capital.

Images posted on social media showed jubilant Isis gunmen, some of them masked, with a clearly frightened man, naked from the waist down and being dragged out of a lake. He was identified as the downed pilot and named on Twitter, which displayed his military ID card, as First Lieutenant Muadh al-Kasasbeh, 26. The Jordanian military immediately described him as a “hostage”.

The F-16 was the first warplane lost since the US-led coalition began air strikes against Isis in Syria three months ago. The group said it had shot down the fighter jet with a heat-seeking missile. It was not immediately clear whether it had indeed been shot down or suffered a technical failure. Another image on social media showing the plane’s intact cockpit canopy suggested that the pilot might have ejected.

Hundreds of coalition air attacks have helped stem Isis advances – though more successfully in Iraq than in Syria, where they have been criticised for weakening more moderate rebel groups fighting President Bashar al-Assad.

The Jordanian military issued a statement confirming the capture by Isis and saying it “holds the group and its supporters responsible for the safety of the pilot and his life”. It did not name him. “During a mission on Wednesday morning conducted by several Jordanian air force planes against hideouts of the IS terrorist organisation in the Raqqa region, one of the planes went down and the pilot was taken hostage,”, the Petra news agency quoted a source from the military’s general staff as saying. The Jordanian government went into emergency session to discuss its response.

The pilot’s father, Yousef al-Kasasbeh, appealed to Isis in an interview with a Jordanian website, Saraya, saying: “May Allah plant mercy in your hearts and may you release my son.” He also urged King Abdullah to bring him home.

Jordan is one of four Arab countries – the others are Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates – which have been taking part in coalition attacks. Qatar is providing logistical support. But Jordan is in an especially vulnerable position: it is the only one of what the US calls the Arab “partner nations” which borders on both Syria and Iraq. It has taken in hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees and there is sympathy and even support among Jordanian extremists for what is seen as an Isis fightback against Assad, Iran and Shia sectarianism.

An estimated 2,000-2,500 Jordanians are known to be fighting with Isis – the third largest foreign Arab contingent after Saudi Arabia and Tunisia.

King Abdullah has been an enthusiastic participant in the coalition, describing an elemental struggle between Muslim moderation and jihadi extremism. Jordan’s much-vaunted intelligence service is thought to be playing an important clandestine role in the anti-Isis campaign. But the Jordanian government has not advertised its military involvement, perhaps fearing revenge attacks by Isis or a domestic backlash. The capture of the pilot and his obvious propaganda value to the jihadis may well now highlight the risks involved.

Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, the Netherlands and UK have joined the US in conducting air strikes on Isis in Iraq. The US and its four Arab allies, flying sorties in Syria, will all be concerned about any new Isis capability to bring down their planes

Sony decides to show comedy film The Interview after all

TUESDAY 23 DECEMBER 2014
Sony Pictures u-turns on its decision to pull parody film The Interview following a cyber attack blamed on North Korea - and now wants it released in cinemas on Christmas day.

Less than a week after withdrawing The Interview from cinemas, Sony Pictures has lined up a "limited theatrical release" in the US.

The comedy centres on a fictional plot to assassinate North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un.

Its release was cancelled after Sony suffered a cyber attack, and theatres were threatened with further cyber hacks if they showed the film.

The Sony hack led to the release of embarrassing internal emails and leaks about some if its biggest planned films, including the next James Bond instalment Spectre.

US President Barack Obama said on Friday that Sony's decision to pull the film was a mistake, suggesting it could set a bad precedent in which "some dictator some place can start imposing censorship here in the United States".

North Korea blamed

Upon pulling the film from cinemas, Sony said it was "deeply saddened at this brazen effort to suppress the distribution of a movie".

The FBI blamed North Korea for the Sony hack, but Pyongyang denied it, and demanded to be part of the investigation into the attack.

The US said it was considering putting North Korea back on its list of terror-supporting countries, with North Korea issuing bizarre threats to strike the US mainland.

North Korea said its "toughest counteraction will be boldly taken against the White House, the Pentagon and the whole US mainland" in a statement released via the state news agency KCNA, which ran to 1,600 words.

But Washington does not appear to be taking seriously North Korea's threats to launch cyber attacks against cinemas that may show The Interview.

North Korea experienced problems with its internet at the weekend and then a full outage before services were mostly brought back online on Tuesday. US officials said Washington had not been involved.

Matthew Prince, chief executive of a US-based firm CloudFlare which protects websites from web-based attacks, said the fact that North Korea's internet had started working again "is pretty good evidence that the outage wasn't caused by a state-sponsored attack, otherwise it'd likely still be down for the count".

U.S. prepares to ramp up transfers from Guantanamo

This April 8, 2014 file photo made during an escorted visit and reviewed by the U.S. military shows the razor wire-topped fence and the watch tower of "Camp 6" detention facility at the US Naval Station in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. (Mladen Antonov/AFP/Getty Images)

By Missy Ryan and Adam Goldman December 24 at 10:48 AM

The Obama administration is accelerating its efforts to shut down the Guantanamo Bay detention center, preparing to move dozens of inmates out of the prison in coming months in a step forward for President Obama’s redoubled attempt to achieve a core national security objective before he leaves office.
U.S. Prepares to Ramp Up Transfers From Guantanamo by Thavam Ratna

It’s a Black Christmas for the Christians of the Middle East

As 2014 draws to a close, ancient communities of faith confront the destruction of their world.

• BY CHRISTIAN CARYL-DECEMBER 23, 2014

Afew weeks ago I found myself at the gates of Saint Elias Church, one of many in the traditional Christian quarter of Erbil, the capital of Iraq’s Kurdish region. But there was nothing at all traditional about the scene that greeted me there.
It’s a Black Christmas for the Christians of the Middle East by Thavam Ratna

The nutrition crisis

December 23, 2014

Malnutrition, micronutrient deficiency and obesity

The first Global Nutrition Report published recently by the International Food Policy Research Institute has brought out some startling facts on nutrition worldwide. A growing world economy has resulted in poverty being reduced worldwide. But the prevalence of undernourishment – a person eating too few calories to sustain an active life – has in fact fallen only by half the speed of poverty reduction.

The Nutrition Crisis by Thavam Ratna

Chinese Authorities Crack Down On Environmental Crime

Posted: 12/23/2014
BEIJING (AP) — China's environmental regulators nearly doubled the number of cases they referred to police involving suspected polluters over the first three-quarters of this year compared to all of last year, amid a larger push by the government to crack down on the country's severe environmental problems, state media reported.

The official Xinhua News Agency said Tuesday that environmental agencies also penalized about 190,000 enterprises for violating environmental laws over the past two years.

In total, Xinhua said, Chinese authorities have investigated and handed down punishments in 103,707 cases over the past two years. They issued about $633 million in fines during that period.

Xinhua said environment regulators transferred 1,232 cases involving suspected environmental crimes to police over the first three-quarters of this year, compared to 706 all of last year.

Chinese authorities are under intense pressure to clean up the country's environment, with toxic air, water and soil pollution a main source of public discontent. President Xi Jinping has also pledged to stop the growth of the country's carbon emissions by 2030.

Environmental Criminal Law in China a Comparative Analysis by Thavam Ratna

Sri Lanka president pledges fresh war crimes probe

23 December 2014
Sri Lanka’s president, under pressure from his main opponent in upcoming elections, on Tuesday promised a judicial inquiry into allegations that his troops killed thousands of Tamil civilians at the end of the civil war.
But President Mahinda Rajapakse reiterated that he would not cooperate with a UN-mandated investigation into the government’s 2009 crushing of the Tamil Tiger rebellion.
"If any rights have been violated (during the war), justice will be ensured through a transparent domestic judicial mechanism," Rajapakse said in his election manifesto.

Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse (C) speaks to journalists in Colombo on December 8, 2014 after handing in his nomination papers for the January polls ©Ishara Kodikara (AFP)

It did not say how this would differ from an inquiry he ordered in July, following intense foreign pressure to account for the 2009 killing of Tamil civilians.
A 2011 United Nations report cited estimates from “credible sources” that up to 40,000 civilians may have been killed in the final months of the war.
Rajapakse is credited with crushing the Tamil Tiger rebels who at the height of their power between 1990 and 1995 controlled a third of Sri Lanka’s territory.
But he is also accused of rights abuses and is perceived by some as an increasingly authoritarian ruler.
Maithripala Sirisena, his main opponent in the January 8 presidential election, has already promised a similar investigation.
Rajapakse was seen as the favourite when he called the snap election in November, two years ahead of schedule.
But Sirisena has emerged as a formidable opponent after securing the support of all the main opposition groups, including the tacit support of minority Tamils.
- ‘Need apologies and forgiving’ -
The New York-based political risk analysis firm Eurasia Group said the opposition’s Sirisena was likely to “narrowly win,” but that a desperate Rajapakse could still use security forces to discourage opposition supporters from voting.
"Fresh defections from President Rajapakse’s ruling coalition suggest that opposition candidate Maithripala Sirisena will narrowly win the presidency when votes are counted on 8 January," Eurasia’s Sasha Riser-Kositsky said in a report released Monday night.
He was referring to Industry and Commerce Minister Rishad Bathiudeen who quit the coalition government on Monday and withdrew the support of his All Ceylon Makkal (People’s) Congress.
The Brussels-based International Crisis Group warned two weeks ago that Rajapakse could try to remain in power by using security forces, a suggestion discounted by both the military and the opposition.
Opposition leader Ranil Wickremesinghe told business leaders in Colombo Tuesday that a majority in the armed forces were sympathetic to the opposition and he expected a peaceful transition.
Wickremesinghe said they will hold no grudges, but ensure rule of law which he said had been undermined by Rajapakse who is also accused of suppressing dissent despite the end of the separatist war.
The United Nations has estimated that at least 100,000 people were killed in Sri Lanka’s separatist war between 1972 and 2009, when security forces declared victory over the rebels who fought for independence for minority Tamils.
Tamils account for about 15 percent of the population and usually vote together. They will be kingmakers if, as seems likely, the majority Sinhalese community is split down the middle between Rajapakse and Sirisena.
Wickremesinghe said they would ensure a South African-style truth commission if Sirisena was elected in January.
"We need some sort of a truth-seeking mechanism where there will be apologies and forgiving," Wickremesinghe said.
Rajapakse had also toyed with the idea of a truth commission, whereby perpetrators confess to their crimes but are not prosecuted.
However, he did not pursue it. Instead, in July he asked a Commission of Inquiry already investigating the disappearance of nearly 20,000 people during the war to include other alleged abuses in its investigation.