Chinese Intrusions into India’s Borders Ever End?

by D. S. Rajan

( April 14, 2015, Chennai, Sri Lanka Guardian) There has been a faceoff between the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) troops and Indian soldiers in Burtse and Depsang in northern Ladakh, as late as March 20 and 28, 2015, according to press reports.

Chinese Intrusions Into India’s Borders Ever End by Thavam Ratna

India favours full rupee convertibility to become top economy

An employee counts Indian rupee currency notes inside a private money exchange office in New Delhi July 5, 2013.

BY MANOJ KUMAR-Wed Apr 15, 2015 

(Reuters) - India needs to move towards full capital account convertibility to become a leading global economy, junior finance minister Jayant Sinha said on Wednesday.

Sinha’s comments came a day after the International Monetary Fund predicted Asia’s third-largest economy would become the fastest growing major economy in the world, outpacing China.

The rupee has been convertible on the current account since 1994, meaning it can be changed freely into foreign currency for purposes like trade-related expenses. But it cannot be converted freely for activities such as acquiring overseas assets.

Fuller convertibility is expected to facilitate rapid growth through higher investment and improve efficiency in the financial sector through greater competition.

“If we have to be among the top three-four economies in the world, we have to make it possible for our capital markets to be broader and deeper, and for that to happen capital account convertibility also becomes important,” Sinha said, without specifying any time frame.

Last week, Reserve Bank of India chief Raghuram Rajan expressed hope that the rupee would become fully convertible in a “short number of years”.

Analysts say India’s inflation, interest rates, and trade and financial system would have to be globally competitive before it allows free movement of capital in and out of the local currency.

In mid-2013, the central bank was forced to resort to capital controls to stabilise a fast sliding rupee after foreign funds started pulling out of the country in the wake of speculation over when the U.S. Federal Reserve would taper its massive bond buying programme.

(Additional reporting by Neha Dasgupta in MUMBAI; Writing by Rajesh Kumar Singh; Editing by Jacqueline Wong)

Alzheimer's study finds possible cause of disease

Findings of US research contradict current thinking on Alzheimer’s and offer hope of finding new treatments

 In mice with Alzheimer’s disease, immune cells called microglia (shown in the black stain) become active in areas of the brain involved in memory and consume an important amino acid, arginine. Photograph: Duke University/PA

Wednesday 15 April 2015

A study using mice has uncovered a possible cause of Alzheimer’s disease, and suggests that a drug currently being investigated in human clinical trials to treat cancer could prevent the illness.

The research has been heralded as offering hope of finding new treatments for dementia.

The findings, by Duke University in America and published in the Journal of Neuroscience, are surprising, according to one of the authors, as they contradict current thinking on the disease.

The research suggests that in mice with Alzheimer’s disease certain immune cells that normally protect the brain begin abnormally to consume an important nutrient called arginine.

By blocking this process using the drug difluoromethylornithine (DFMO), memory loss and a buildup of sticky proteins known as brain plaques were prevented.

The study used a type of mouse in which a number of important genes had been swapped to make the animal’s immune system more similar to a human’s.

Senior author Carol Colton, professor of neurology at the Duke University School of Medicine, and a member of the Duke Institute for Brain Sciences, said: “If indeed arginine consumption is so important to the disease process, maybe we could block it and reverse the disease.”

It was previously thought the brain releases molecules that ramp up the immune system, apparently damaging the brain, but the study found a heightened expression of genes associated with the suppression of the immune system.

Author Matthew Kan said: “It’s surprising because [suppression of the immune system is] not what the field has been thinking is happening in AD [Alzheimer’s disease].”

Mice that had been given the drug DFMO to block arginase, an enzyme that breaks down arginine, were found to perform better in memory tests.

“All of this suggests to us that if you can block this local process of amino acid deprivation, then you can protect the mouse, at least, from Alzheimer’s disease,” Kan said.

Colton added: “We see this study opening the doors to thinking about Alzheimer’s in a completely different way, to break the stalemate of ideas in AD.”

It is thought that this year one person every three minutes will develop dementia. The disease costs the UK economy more than £26bn each year.

The research has been welcomed by the Alzheimer’s Society. Its head of research, Dr James Pickett, said: “This study in animals joins some of the dots in our incomplete understanding of the processes that cause Alzheimer’s disease, in particular around the role played by the immune system.

“Using a new animal model of Alzheimer’s, the researchers have found that depletion of a nutrient called arginine occurs in the damaged brain areas. Blocking the use of arginine reduced some of the disease hallmarks and improved memory performance, offering hope that these findings could lead to new treatments for dementia.

“Importantly, these new findings reflect earlier observations that arginine is reduced in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s disease. The next step would be to show that targeting arginine metabolism in the brain can reduce the death of brain cells, as this was not shown in the current study.”

Home»Alternative Health» You Have About 20 Pounds Of Poison In Your Colon. Here is What You Can 

Home»Alternative Health» You Have About 20 Pounds Of Poison In Your Colon. Here is What You Can Do

You Have About 20 Pounds Of Poison In Your Colon. Here is What You Can Do

 by Admin on April 14, 2015

The colon or large intestine is essential part of the digestive system and is extending from the cecum to the rectum.  It’s a place where the water is stored as well as the remaining waste material as feces before being removed by defecation.  A colon that is not working properly will hold this waste material for a longer period which has negative effect over your health. The thing is that the colon wall absorbs the toxic waste and throughout it, the toxins get to the bloodstream.

Healthy colon needs 24 hours to transit the food through our body, but the unhealthy lifestyle and the junk food slows down this process to 70 hours.  This inevitably leads to toxic colon and up to 30 pounds of accumulated waste.

Constipation is the first sign of toxic colon. In case of constipation the waste materials move too slowly through the large bowl which is often followed with painful elimination.

The following are the symptoms of toxic colon:

• Digestive symptoms which includes bloating, diarrhea, constipation, gas, indigestion, stomach pain
• General health : Joint pain and muscle pain
• Behavioral symptoms: fatigue, anxiety, brain fog, sudden changes in mood, lack of concentration
• Immune system: low immune function, recurrent vaginal or bladder infections, skin rashes

Bernard Jensen DC, ND, PhD published a book Tissue Cleansing Through Bowel Management, in which he talks about the importance of colon cleansing and he explains this need as following: “the heavy mucus coating in the colon thickens and becomes a host of putrefication. The blood capillaries to the colon begin to pick up the toxins, poisons and noxious debris as it seeps through the bowel wall. All tissues and organs of the body are now taking on toxic substances. Here is the beginning of true autointoxication on a physiological level. This accumulation can have the consistency of truck tire rubber. It’s that hard and black.”

Homemade Colon Cleanser

Stanley Burroughs a health practitioner back in 1940 developed a program known as Master Cleanse program with which you can cleanse the colon from 10 to 16 days. 36 years later he decided to present this program to the world, by publishing a book titled The Master Cleanser.

Ingredients (for single serving):

• 10 ounces of filtered water
• 1/10 teaspoon Cayenne pepper powder
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice or the juice squeezed from half a lemon ( it will be better if the lemon is organic)
• 2 tablespoon of organic grade B maple syrup ( not the once that use for pancakes)

Instructions and usage:

Put all the ingredients in a bowl and mix them together.
Consume the mixture at least 5 times a day, in a period of 10 days.

You can also add some essential oils to the mixture to increase the process of detoxification of the body, while increasing the uptake of other nutrients and minerals to help your body re-balance. The power of the essential oils is that they contain nutrients that are readily assimilated on cellular level.

The following is one more recipe for preparation of colon cleanser:

Ingredients:

• Juice from 1 organic lemon
• 10 drops each of Lemon and Peppermint essential oils,
• 2 drops On Guard Blend

Instructions:Combine the ingredients with 8 ounces of purified water and drink it in a period of 2 weeks.

Sri Lanka Police in Jaffna Criticised for Arrest and Intimidation of Journalists

14/04/2015

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and the Free Media Movement (FMM) condemn the heavy-handed action of Sri Lankan police in charging a freelance journalist on Wednesday, April 8 in Jaffna. The IFJ said this attack on press freedom appeared to be aimed at intimidatintg the media.

According Jaffna based newspaper Uthayan, the journalist N Logathayalan who writes for the newspaper was arrested and charged following a report he authored about the assault of a schoolgirl by Sri Lankan police officers in Jaffna in Sri Lanka’s north. Logathayalan was taken into custody and produced before the Point Pedro Court where the Sri Lankan police requested to extend custody until April 17. This was granted, but the journalist was subsequently released on April 9 on personal bail. He is due to appear in court on May 29.

It was not immediately clear what the charges were against Logathayalan though it is understood to be a defamation-related charge. The local Sunday Times reported that Logathayalan was charged with “providing false information for the publication of a news item”.

In a separate event, three Jaffna-based journalists were intimidated by two police officers on Tuesday, April 7. T Vinojith of Thinakural daily, T Pirgatheepan a Colombo-based journalist and freelance-journalist Majorapiriyan were stopped by two drunken officers in police jerseys and were asked to show their press cards. When the journalists questioned the officers, they produced knives and chased the journalists until they reached the Jaffna police station.

The FMM said: “The FMM considered both these acts unacceptable. The FMM urges the government to investigate these incidents at the same time to implement structural and policy changes to avoid such incidents in the future.”

The IFJ said: “This is clearly an attempt by police to intimidate journalists in Jaffna and shows the dismal status of press freedom in Sri Lanka even after the promise by the new government to improve safety situation”

“President Sirisena has made commitments to the media and the IFJ to restore press freedom in Sri Lanka. That message is clearly slow in filtrating to the police in the country’s north and we strongly condemn these ongoing acts of intimidation and the recent arrest of N Logathayalan for alleged defamation-related charges. We call on all facts of this case to be made available to the media and reinforce that an arrest over alleged defamation is an inappropriate response by police.”

The IFJ urges the government of Sri Lanka to immediately investigate the incidents as per its commitment for press freedom.”

For further information contact IFJ Asia-Pacific on +61 2 9333 0950

US diplomat discusses human rights and accountability with Sri Lanka

A 

April 14, 2015

senior American diplomat has held discussion with Sri Lankan government officials on human rights and strengthening democracy, transparency, and accountability during his recent visit to the island nation.

Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor Tom Malinowski traveled to Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Afghanistan from April 2 – 10.

“In Sri Lanka, he met with senior government representatives to discuss human rights and strengthening democracy, transparency, and accountability.”

“He also met with representatives from human rights, religious, and civil society organizations,” the US State Department said.

வறுத்தலை விளானில் 100 குடும்பங்கள் மீளக்குடியமர முடியாமல் ஏமாற்றம்

12 ஏப்ரல் 2015, ஞாயிறு விடுவிக்கப்பட்ட காணிகளில் 20 சதவீதத்திற்கு குறைவான நிலப் பரப்பே மக்கள் குடியிருப்புக்கள். மேலும் விடு விக்கப்பட்ட வறுத்தலை விளானில் 46 ஏக்கரில் இராணுவத் தினர் முகாம் அமைத்துள்ளனர்.    இதன் காரணமாக உரும்பிராயிலுள்ள நலன்புரி நிலையங்களில் தங்கியுள்ள 100 குடும்பங்கள் மீளக் குடியமருவதற்கான அனுமதி மறுக்கப்பட்டுள்ளது. இவ்வாறு வலி.வடக்கு பிரதேசசபைத் தவிசாளர் சோ.சுகிர்தன் குற்றம் சுமத்தினார்.    வலி.வடக்குப் பிரதேச செயலாளர் பிரிவில் மாத்திரம் 423 ஏக்கர் காணி விடுவிக்கப்பட்டுள்ளது. இவ்வாறு விடுவிக்கப்பட்டுள்ள காணிகளில், மக்கள் குடியிருப்புக்கள் மிகக் குறைவானது.    அண்ணளவாக 20 சதவீதத்துக்கும் குறைவானவே காணிகளே மக்கள் குடியிருப்புக்கு உரியவை. எஞ்சியவற்றில் சிறு பகுதி தோட்டக் காணிகளாகவும் அமைந்துள்ளன.    வறுதலைவிளான் கிராம சேவையாளர் பிரிவில் 46 ஏக்கரில் இராணுவத்தினர் முகாம் அமைத்துள்ளனர். இந்த நிலப்பரப்பினுள் 100 குடும்பங்களுக்குச் சொந்தமான காணிகள் உள்ளடங்குகின்றன.   உரும்பிராயில் அமைந்துள்ள நலன்புரி நிலையங்களில் தங்கியுள்ள மக்களின் காணிகளே இவை. அந்த மக்களின் மீள்குடியமர்வு இதனால் மறுக்கப்பட்டுள்ளது.    மக்கள் அடர்த்தியாகக் குடியமர்ந்த கட்டுவன், தையிட்டி தெற்கு ஆகிய பிரதேசங்களில் சிறு துண்டுக் காணிகள் விடுவிக்கப்பட்டமையால், பெரும்பாலான மக்கள் ஏமாற்றமடைந்துள்ளதாக அவர் சுட்டிக்காட்டினார்.

IC should act on de-militarisation of Valikaamam, Champoor: Shageevan

[TamilNet, Monday, 13 April 2015, 23:29 GMT]
Without de-militarisation, it is not possible to achieve proper resettlement, even at the minimum standard in the military-occupied former High Security Zone in the North and in the Champoor region in the East. “The international community knows this very well. But, it intentionally avoids putting forward this as a demand,” says S. Shageevan, the deputy chairperson of the Divisional Council of Valikaamam North and the president of the welfare association of uprooted people from Valikaamam North. The International Community has been allowing the previous and current regimes in Colombo to buy necessary “time and space” in Geneva and in New York after 2009. It was during this time Colombo transformed the former High Security Zone into a permanent military zone, he further said, urging the Tamils to focus on making the IC to act on the demand of de-militarisation. 

“Did the British Prime Minister visit Jaffna in 2013 just to deceive Tamils with false promises,” Mr Shajeevan asked on Monday. 

“Even after learning bitter lessons of a failed peace process, Norway's former Special Envoy Erik Solheim was jumping on the trampoline again and was almost authoring propaganda pieces on the so-called changes taking place in the South describing them as the wonders of the global politics. What was the message he was conveying to the IC,” Mr Shajeevan asked. 

When academics were criticising the way the Norwegian role was played in the peace process in November 2011, Mr Solheim and former US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage were trying to paint a star-crossed picture. 

“Those who removed the ‘de-militarisation’ from their drafts of the resolutions placed in Geneva should take responsibility of removing the occupying military from Valikaamam North,” the representative of the uprooted people from Valikaamam North said. 

“We learn that the UN Establishment in New York is under pressure from the diplomats of the powerful countries in advocating a domestic process for investigations.” 

It is at this context, the Tamils should look at the genocide resolution passed recently by the Northern Provincial Council, he said. 

The current SL prime minister came to our protest in 2013 at Thellippazhai and promised that he would resettle all the people if he came to power. The SL president Maithiripala Sirisena, who came to power with the votes of Tamil-speaking people who intended to unseat Mahinda Rajapaksa, came with a 100-days programme. “All these promises have now been proved a farce at Valikaamam.” 

“Tamil people have experienced a long history of deceptions by the politicians of the genocidal State in the South. The Sinhala leaders have torn apart all the agreements in the past. They have used the Sri Lankan judiciary against the aspirations of Tamil people. We have been telling the international community for a long time that the Sri Lankan State is genocidal in nature and that it cannot transform itself.”

“But, I feel that the IC has been trying to tell us the opposite. This is the real problem Tamils are facing at the moment,” Mr Shageevan told TamilNet. 

“The new regime in Colombo has been waging a propaganda stating that the uprooted people in the former High Security Zone in Valikaamam would be resettled in 1,000 acres of 6,381 acres of private lands occupied by its military for 25 years.”

“But, only selected pockets of lands, surrounded by military installations are being released here and there. This is not resettlement. This is enslavement of Tamil people,” he said adding that Colombo was keeping the fertile lands for continued military use in Valikaamam North while selectively releasing unproductive pockets of lands within 9 GS divisions encapsulating the Tamil villagers with a genocidal military. 

“Nobody talks about the long stretch of coastal line that remains under SL military occupation with fishing beds found nowhere in the island.”

“The outlook of the IC, which gives legitimacy to the Sri Lankan military presence in the NorthEast should change. That change should come now. The international community should take the Genocide Resolution, unanimously adopted by the Northern Provincial Council, seriously and act on it,” Mr Shajeevan said.

Risks of a failed peace appearing only now – Ranil

Winning a war or revolution, only to lose the subsequent peace, is one of the grim political truths of our time, says Prime Minister Ranil Wickremasinghe.

April 8, 2015

“In Iraq, a quick military victory over Saddam Hussein’s regime soon gave way to insurgency, civil war, and the rise of the murderous Islamic State. In Libya, Syria, Yemen, and elsewhere, the hopes unleashed by the Arab Spring have similarly turned into an often-violent despair,” he said.

Risks of a Failed Peace Appearing Only Now – Ranil by Thavam Ratna

Election Promises – How Credible Are They?

Morailty and philosophy aside, the legal analogy on this issue might be worth addressing.  According to basic tenets of the law, any person who is in charge of the lives of persons under his care, such as a doctor, surgeon, pilot or even bus driver, gives the implicit assurance and promise to his charges that their lives will not be jeopardized under his care.  On the contrary their lives would be safe.  This is based on the fact that they profess special skills to perform their functions in the best interest of their charges.

by Dr. Ruwantissa Abeyratne

A prudent leader cannot keep his word, nor should he, where such fidelity would damage him, and when the reasons that made him promise  are no longer relevant…. Machiavelli

( April 14, 2015, Montreal, Sri Lanka Guardian) An article by N.S. Venkataraman in yesterday’s issue of this journal on the Prime Minister of India – Narendra Modi – caught my eye, particularly when the writer says: “People who believed his poll promises during the election campaign and genuinely thought that he would deliver his promises as per the schedule indicated, now think that Mr. Narendra Modi is tall on promises and short on performance”.  The writer went on to say: “All said and done, the biggest expectation of people from Mr. Modi is that he would root out corruption. Many people believe that most problems faced by India today are due to the high level of political corruption and corruption and nepotism in administration. The ground reality is that Mr. Modi has not been able to create fear in the mind of the corrupt elements in the country”.

One cannot be blamed if one believes that this statement resonates a certain gravitas in a certain country.  Of course, there is no gainsaying that corruption is everywhere.  The issue is how the voter rationalizes election promises post election. The average voter, whether as a result of his naiveté or blind trust, thinks along the assumption that there is a general propensity of a candidate before an election to honor his promises. The voter may not take into account that the candidate thinks his strategy through carefully and prepares his future obligations to be presented to the electorate.  At this point he may or may not envision that keeping those promises might curtail his own freedom once elected. Another factor is that the resources a candidate has for decision making and policy analysis could be expensive and rare and the limited resources available are put to use in solving urgent issues and problems after the election.  A simple cost-benefit analysis proves to the candidate after election that fulfilling promises made earlier would be impossible for various reasons, two of which could be the gravitas of favoritism and nepotism which is an inevitable baggage that emerges to haunt an election winner; and changed circumstances that would make it impossible to keep pre-election promises.  Government, which is a bureaucracy, invariably functions on operating procedures and routines which make it even harder for a ruler to keep promises made prior to the election.   Added to this is the change of economic and political circumstances which obfuscates the meaning and purpose on which the voter based his choice, all of which mercifully acts to the benefit of the promisor.

Election promises must be teleological, in that the promise must have a purpose.  In this instance, the purpose is the theory of social contract and social justice according to which a government functions. The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy says the social contract theory, nearly as old as philosophy itself, reflects the view that persons’ moral and/or political obligations are dependent upon a contract or agreement among them to form the society in which they live.  Social justice is based on truth. Without truth, justice cannot prevail, and without respect and compassion, morality cannot prevail. At the end of the day, social justice is about respect for human rights and dignity. A government’s authority comes from the will of the people.  Therefore, it behooves the promisor to keep his promises.  But how does he do that?

Firstly, the elected ruler must invest extra resources that could advise him on how his promises can be met.  Secondly, the ruler must be transparent in the requirements of his regime and how he performs.  Such would, even if promises cannot be kept for unavoidable reasons, create reassurance among the voter, and encourage key players to make every effort to assist their leader in achieving the objectives of an election manifesto.

Thirdly, the ruler must ensure technical assistance, otherwise called “capacity building”, in pursuing his promises.  Through sustained planning, the capacity required to keep election promises can be built to an extent that the voter would be convinced that a genuine effort is being made and that the trust between him and the elected ruler is not endangered by possible breach.

Michael Sandel, Professor at Harvard University says: “According to many modern liberals, moral obligations arise in only two ways. First, there are universal duties that we owe to every human being, such as the duty to avoid harming people unnecessarily. Second, there are voluntary obligations that we acquire by consent, as when we agree to help someone or promise to be faithful to our partners and friends”.  Immanuel Kant calls keeping promises a categorical imperative with the label “I must”.  Some commentators claim that the weakness in the categorical imperative of a promise lies in the fact that there is a time lapse between the time of the promise and the due date for performance. The fundamental postulate of their argument is that the falsity of the promise would depend on the promisor’s genuine belief as to his ability to keep the promise, which may not necessarily be rational.  According to this argument the entire contract between the voter and the promisor – who is subsequently elected on the promises he makes –  do not hinge on the breach of the promises but rather on  the relationship between the promisor’s beliefs and claims about the future.

Morailty and philosophy aside, the legal analogy on this issue might be worth addressing.  According to basic tenets of the law, any person who is in charge of the lives of persons under his care, such as a doctor, surgeon, pilot or even bus driver, gives the implicit assurance and promise to his charges that their lives will not be jeopardized under his care.  On the contrary their lives would be safe.  This is based on the fact that they profess special skills to perform their functions in the best interest of their charges. A politician falls into the same category and should undertake to abide by his foreseability of performance. .  Any breach of such assurance is gross negligence which has serious consequences for the person who gives that assurance.

Perhaps it is time to forget the philosophers and their moral theories; the political theorists and their ideals and go back to the lawyers who can litigate this matter before an adjudicating tribunal?

Suspects in racing car racket - threat to President’s security free: AG’s department and CCD struck by rigor mortis

(Lanka-e-News- 14.April.2015, 11.00PM) May we  recall that we reported earlier on about the racing car of the youngest demon seed of Medamulana  which was found in the house at Nivanthidya , Kesbewa on 14 th January  of a contractor supplying steel . It is our hope  that our viewers have not forgotten that story. Now , it has come to light this racing car was used for the fun and frolic of this Medamulana demon seed , and it is linked to the accident that occurred some months ago at the Kanatte roundabout. 

We are now compelled to reveal this report through our columns to point out a very dangerous and deadly side pertaining to this racing car. The registration number  in the two number plates of the car is  indicated as KE  1391 which is a fake number. This is a number of the Benz car used by the incumbent president Maithripala Sirisena. The Presidential secretariat had confirmed that this number is belonging to a vehicle used by the present president. 

This racing car of the  Nissan GTR class is valued at US dollars 165,000.00 sans customs duty , and the  price it can fetch in Sri Lanka together with duty is over Rs. 60 million ! These statistics apart , this such high value  racing car used by the youngest demon seed for his gaiety and jollity while many in the country are struggling to eke out a living and for a square meal a day , is now in the compound of Kesbewa court exposed to the elements day in and day out , and visible to any passer by. 

Though the court has requested the Attorney general’s (AG) department for advice in this regard , despite the gravity of this case ,for the last 4 months there has been no response from the   AG’s department in keeping with its characteristic lethargy .

At last an owner had come forward for this racing car which had the fake registration number of the  vehicle of the present  president of the country , the highest in the country’s hierarchy . This individual who has come forward is a popular motor spares importer . At the same time , it is Access Co. that supplied number plates to the RMV (Registration of motor vehicles department).Hence it is impossible for a fake number plate to exist without their aid , because this metal plate is not an ordinary one , and according to the number ,these plates are 100 %  similar to  those produced  by the Access Co. Moreover , it is to the RMV these number plates are provided.

The most crucial and pertinent question therefore is : how did the registration number of a vehicle of a president of the country become the number of the racing car of the Medamulana’s tiniest seed ? Is this not a very serious threat to the security of the incumbent president ? Even if the Medamulanas  gift a vehicle to their youngest seedling , isn’t gifting a registration number  plate illegal ?  Even though the love for the demon seed may be oozing at every pore of the parents , neither parent  can gift a registration number (plate) of the vehicle .

Intriguingly , so far nobody has questioned the RMV officers or from the Access Co. that is supplying registration number plates to the RMV. Not even those motor spare importers who have now come forward claiming ownership of the vehicle have been questioned.

Still worse , the AG department too has not given instructions even at this belated stage to the police or the court . Based on these facts , the reasonable and clear inference that can be drawn is , not only the AG’s department but even the Colombo crime division are still hand in glove with the Rajapakses and are functioning as  a private company controlled by them. 

---------------------------
by     (2015-04-14 18:38:20)

Electoral Reforms Ready by Apr 22

14/04/2015 

The Cabinet on the proposed electoral reforms will be taken up for discussion by the Ministers at the meeting scheduled for April 22, the first after the April New Year vacation, informed sources said.

The electoral reforms will be evolved for implementation along with the 19th Amendment to the Constitution as an initiative by the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP).

Already the SLFP has appointed a committee to work out electoral reforms in consultation with the Elections Department. It is learnt that the Government will opt for a simple delimitation process to be completed within a month. The geographical expanse and the size of voter population of electorates will be considered in delimitating their boundaries under the proposed system.

Accordingly, the boundaries of electorates with more than 100,000 voters each, or less than 50,000 will be delimitated.

Colombo-Central, Kaduwela and Homagama are three of the electorates identified with more than 100,000 voters each.

The electorates with less than 50,000 voters are slated to be amalgamated under the proposed system. Five such electorates have been identified in the Jaffna district alone.

In Colombo, there will be an addition of a few more electorates. Besides, the electorates with a geographical expanse of over 1000 Square Kilometres will be reviewed for delimitation. The Ampara electorate of the Digamadulla distract, the Tissamaharama electorate of the Hambantota district and the Anuradhapura –East electorate are the geographically largest constituencies.

Altogether, there are 160 electorates in the country. It is not intended to alter this number by a big margin under the proposed delimitation process. Besides, a few multi-member constituencies will be set up.

“We will not go for major changes. Also, we will ensure representations for minor and minority parties,” a minister said. (Kelum Bandara)

Four cheers for judicial independence

Editorial-April 11, 2015, 1:35 pm 

The big news last week was the Supreme Court decision that two sections of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution affects the franchise of the people and requires for adoption, in addition to a two thirds majority in Parliament, the people’s consent at a Referendum. This determination deserves unreserved applause of all our people regardless of political affiliations. We have for too long had Chief Justices and Judges in our highest court who had cozy relationships with the political powers that be. These connections influenced their decisions in many instances and justice was neither done nor seen to be done. We have at last broken away from that sorry scheme of things, hopefully for good. One of the best things that the present administration did was to get rid of a Chief Justice who by no stretch of imagination could have been judged as independent, restore for a day his predecessor who was dumped in the worst possible manner and thereafter appoint the most senior Judge of the Supreme Court as the new Chief Justice. A three-judge bench presided over by him has given a decision that is seen by the whole country as sturdily independent, strengthening the separation of powers of the executive, legislature and judiciary essential in any functioning democracy.

The UNP had gone public before the court ruling stating that it did not plan to go for a Referendum. That is the last thing the people want in the current state of confusion. With a parliamentary election facing us in the short term, having an expensive Referendum before that is obviously out of the question. If the court ruled that the 19th Amendment, as presented, required the people’s consent for adoption, it would suitably amend 19A to avoid that measure was the government’s stated position. Why that was not done in the first instance is a mystery. Surely the legal advisors to the government would have indicated that without a Referendum, the Bill as presented to Parliament would not pass muster? Did the government gamble on a favourable SC decision? Or did it want to tell the people that part of its plan to trim the executive powers of the presidency was to transfer those powers to the prime minister? Now that the court has ruled that this needs a Referendum, the prime minister has said that these clauses are being dropped.

It is still unclear what the amended constitution is going to be. While most of those who voted for Maithripala Sirisena on January 8 wanted to see the back of Mahinda Rajapaksa, abolishing the executive presidency was very much a part of the agenda that was presented to the people and many wanted an end to what they considered an "abomination." However, even as the `Oust Mahinda’ campaign was gathering steam and support from a coalition of political parties and other forces that had little in common with each other except the desire to deny Rajapaksa a third term, some of the parties supporting the Sirisena candidature began waffling about abolishing the executive presidency altogether. The JHU particularly was at great pains to say that what was needed was not total abolition with the presidency reduced to a largely symbolic role (as during President Gopallawa’s time), but the pruning of the excessive powers vested in that office. There was an effort to do this through 19A but that has been confronted by the Referendum obstacle. Exactly what shape and form the constitution will take with the new 19A remains to be seen.

The President is clear that Parliament will be dissolved once 19A is adopted. Does that imply that if 19A, in its newest avatar is defeated, this Parliament will continue until its term is up? That will confound the confusion that is already evident. In the interest of yahapalanaya, should we not consider the desirability of getting the new Parliament to double as a Constituent Assembly and draft a new Constitution as was done in 1972? We urged in this space last week that given the sorry spectacle of defections the incumbent Parliament has seen, legitimacy is the least of its qualifications. All kinds of sorry deals are being struck even today under cover of a need for a National Government. Is this the Parliament that is being given the grave responsibility of amending the country’s basic law in accordance with the will of the people?

A previous Supreme Court permitted defections of MPs elected on one party ticket to a government headed by another, always for consideration of political office. President Mahinda Rajapaksa got the numbers needed for his 18th Amendment by engineering defections from the UNP. The electorate did not give him the two thirds majority he asked for to enable constitutional amendments. Dangling ministerial carrots in front of greedy takers after the election did the trick and Rajapaksa dug his own grave by abolishing the two term limit on the presidency. He called a premature election to crown himself for the third time and suffered a stunning defeat. No less that the then Chief Justice ruled that 18A required no Referendum as it "enhanced" the people’s franchise. Any layman reading the constitution will see that the operative word in the basic law is "affecting" the people’s franchise. There is no mention of enhancing or diminishing. Now that the incumbent SC has broken from a sorry past which saw the courts consorting with power centers, let us all hope that this sturdy independence will continue into the future.

Sri Lanka President Wishes for Ethnic Unity on Sri Lankan New Year

April 14, 2015

COLOMBO:  Sri Lanka's President Maithripala Sirisena today wished for unity between the country's Sinhala majority and its Tamil minority on the occasion of Sinhalese New Year, which is celebrated by both communities.

"What is special in this New Year celebration is the spread of festivity amidst the commitment to good governance that transcends differences of ethnicity, caste and community with important strides being taken to realise the need for unity among all our people," Mr Sirisena said.

He has received overwhelming support as the opposition unity candidate from both Tamil and Muslim minorities in the January elections against former President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

Mr Rajapaksa had said the minority support for Mr Sirisena was the main reason for his defeat in the elections.

US Secretary of State John Kerry in a message to mark the Sinhala and Tamil New Year last week noted, " the extraordinary positive change that has occurred in Sri Lanka over the past several months."

In his message, Mr Kerry has stressed the renewed opportunity for the people of Sri Lanka to join together "in the spirit of reconciliation, tolerance and peace".

The Sinhalese and Tamil New Year is celebrated on April 14.