U.S. Judge Lets Suit Proceed Against Alleged Fundraisers for Tamil Tigers

A lawsuit accusing a Wall Street hedge fund manager and his father of using a charitable foundation to funnel millions of dollars to the Tamil Tigers, a Sri Lankan terrorist group, can go forward, a federal judge in New Jersey says.The suit, Krishanthi v. Rajaratnam, 09-cv-5395, was filed by more than two dozen Sri Lankan citizens who claim they lost family members or were themselves injured in five bombings carried out by the Tigers in Sri Lanka in later 2007 and early 2008.

A self-confessed people smuggler who helped asylum seekers get on boats to Australia has told a court of bribes paid in Indonesia. Sri Lankan-born Tamil Pathmendra Pulendren, 36, from Pendle Hill in Sydney’s west, pleaded guilty on Thursday to a charge of facilitating the arrival of unlawful people to Australia.

Secretary Nirupama Rao who is on a three day visit to Sri Lanka met President Mahinda Rajapaksa at the Temple Trees in Colombo and assured the President that India would expedite the projects undertaken by her country, including the housing project for IDPs and reconstruction of the railway line in the North.

Military Spokesman Major General UAB Medawela said that more than 300,000 landmines laid by the LTTE terrorists in the North and East have been cleared by the de- mining groups.

While the West today is removing preferential trade treatment from Sri Lanka, citing its failure to cooperate with human rights investigations, Beijing is happily expanding its presence. Last year China became the country's biggest financial investor, and the level of cooperation is increasing by the day. China is allowing Sri Lanka to develop its economy, while Sri Lanka is providing China with a key strategic position in the Indian Ocean -- one that could evolve into a political and even a quasi-military alliance.

The US marks the transition to the final phase of the Iraq war on Wednesday, shifting the focus of the remaining 50,000 American troops from combat operations to preparing Iraqi security forces to protect the country on their own.

Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair says he's desperately sorry for the deaths in the Iraq war but insists it was right to remove Dictator Saddam Hussein. In extracts from his memoirs titled ‘A Journey’ Blair says he's wept over the loss of life adding that he didn't anticipate the role of Al-Qaeda or Iran in post-invasion planning.

Apropos the front page news item today (Sept. 01), in The Island, the Saudi Ambassador in Sri Lanka appears to be evading responsibility for bringing the sadistic culprits to book for torturing a Sri Lankan housemaid.

The Indonesian branch of the Buddha Bar, an international chain of upmarket bars, has been ordered to close because its name caused distress to Buddhists, local media reported on Wednesday.

Mr. Mahindapala, the veteran journalist, analyses the future of the UNP and Ranil Wickramasinghe, following the defection of the SLMC who has pledged support to President Rajapakse and the UNF government

The foreign reserves of the country have recorded a 15 percent growth compared to the end of 2009, which was US $ 5.2 billion.

The Government would not pressurize any INGOs or NGOs functioning in Sri Lanka but only monitor them, National Secretariat for Non Governmental Organization Director General and Media Center for National Security Director General Lakshman Hulugalla said yesterday.

Sri Lanka is an important member of NAM and Sri Lanka can immensely contribute to its future while benefiting from its protection against undue interference from certain Western countries.

For decades, Tamil Diaspora is said to have contributed three hundred million dollars per year for LTTE coffers. Most of it may have been collected by extortion. But BBC seldom reported about the thugs or rather terrorists that were involved in such acts. Even when such extorted money was known to have used to train human bombs such as the one that killed Rajive Gandhi BBC continue to categorise LTTE cadres as freedom fighters. I say; BBC is nothing but a hypocrite.

Twenty one Australian soldiers have died in Afghanistan fighting terrorism. That is 21 too many to have died in a war not of their making. Australian families are now feeling the pain that thousands of Sri Lankan families were forced to feel for over thirty years because of terrorism. The world at least acknowledges that the soldiers in Afghanistan are fighting terrorists. Sri Lanka fought terrorists who were supported by the entire western world and were allowed to use their soil to launch the terror in Sri Lanka. Ironically, the terrorists that are killing Australian soldiers in Afghanistan were trained and mentored by the terrorists that Sri Lanka defeated in May 2009..

Five years after Hurricane Katrina, people from New Orleans still live in makeshift camps and children attend schools in trailers. The US was insistent that the IDPs rescued from the LTTE should be sent to their homes immediately - notwithstanding the fact that there was no infrastucture and there was a danger from buried mines. The biblical metaphor of the mote and the beam comes to mind.

Responding to an article regarding Islamic violence raising its head thw writer says action should be taken now to prevent Sri Lanka from going the way of Pakistan and other countries facing Islamic activism.

A letter sent to the Washington Post exposing the lies that are churned out by NGOs such as Amnesty International and Human Rigjts Watch promoting the LTTE agenda and denigrating the Sri Lankan government. Let us hope the Washington Post editors had the courage to face the truth.

Amendments to the Constitution have been approved at a special cabinet meeting and have been submitted to the Supreme Court for its ruling.

The likelihood of terrorists with naval capabilities, resorting to piracy becomes a distinct possibility, stated Sri Lanka's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Dr. Palitha Kohona, speaking at the Security Council Debate on "The Situation in Somalia - Piracy" on 25th August

The Norwegian-led peace process had the backing of the US, Japan and EU and the UN. Contrary to the UNP’s claims, none of them raised their voices against LTTE atrocities. The UN and its agencies too had failed to take punitive action against the LTTE. The bottom line is that Sri Lanka and those international players believed in giving in a free hand to the LTTE, on the basis of a flawed agreement.

An Editorial in the Canadian "National Post" states that "a ‘secret government report’ suggesting that nearly three-quarters of Sri Lankan Tamils previously granted refugee status in Canada have returned to their homeland for visits or vacations" The report is from a case study of 50 refugee applicants selected at random of which 31 had been granted asylum. Of those, 22 had made trips back to Sri Lanka

Incoming independent MP Andrew Wilkie has described the justification for the war in Afghanistan as "one of the great lies of the election campaign"

The Race Discrimination Commissioner says the next federal government must amend the constitution to make it impossible to suspend the Racial Discrimination Act.

Malinda Senevitratne explains why Sunanda Deshapriya cannot be a "hero".

On December 13, the whistleblowing site Wikileaks did investigative- and citizen- journalists a great service by release the US Army Special Operations Forces FM 3-05.130, titled Unconventional Warfare.Published in September 2008, the 248-page document though unclassified, is restricted "to U.S. Government agencies and their contractors only to protect technical or operational information from automatic dissemination under the International Exchange Program or by other means." The Department of the Army urges recipients to "destroy by any method that will prevent disclosure of contents or reconstruction of the document."

This CIA "Red Cell" report from February 2, 2010, looks at what will happen if it is internationally understood that the United States is an exporter of terrorism. The report looks at a number cases of US exported terrorism, including attacks by US based or ?nanced Jewish, Muslim and Irish-nationalism terrorists. It concludes that foreign perceptions of the US as an "Exporter of Terrorism" together with US double standards in international law, may lead to noncooperation in renditions (including the arrest of CIA officers) and the decision to not share terrorism related intelligence with the United States.

Sectarian violence in Kashmir has left over 60 people dead in the last two months prompting Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to declare that police should use non-violent methods to control rioting crowds.

Professor Rajiva Wijesinha makes submissions to the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission about the allegations of huan rights violations made by the varioius NGOs.

Terrorists shouldn’t be allowed to exploit international covenents says ex-UN diplomat, who believes the government has no option but to face international scrutiny over alleged human rights violations in the aftermath of war against LTTE terror.

Responding to a query by The Island, sources said that the Sri Lankan government had not been consulted before preparing the CFA text, though it was given an opportunity to propose amendments. But, Sri Lanka’s amendments, including one relating to child/human rights had not been accepted, the sources said.

The lesson therefore is to ensure that democratic processes and arrangements are strengthened so that they function more effectively at the center than was done in the past. Most importantly, there has to be greater transparency.

Prof Wijesinha stressed the need to be vigilant about the actions and motives of those who engaged in insidious and inaccurate criticism of the country’s forces.

I firmly believe that elders must be respected and cared for: even adored as in the case of parents, grandparents and devoted teachers. Yet, elders on their part must always bear in mind that advanced age cannot be automatically equated to wisdom. It is unfortunate but true that senility can pass off as moral excellence or spiritual depth. In an age when the teachings of great religious leaders are being deconstructed to fit into theoretical issues on which NGOs feast, there is a dire need to focus one’s mind on specific problems. Just as much as we need to destroy the dengue mosquito, we need to eliminate social parasites that prey on the polity. This we have to do in strict compliance with the Rule of Law.

DARWIN: Two 43-metre Chinese-made navy patrol boats mounted with 30-millimetre cannon, initially to be crewed by Chinese sailors, will be launched in East Timor this week in what observers say is a slap in the face for Australian diplomacy.

Pakiasothy Saravanamuttu does not want the CFA looked into by the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC). What is he afraid of? Why should the CFA not be examined.

An open letter by Asoka Weerasinghe to the Ottawa Citizen "The ship ‘Sun Sea’ with a cargo of 500 Tamils and among them are suspect Tamil Tigers that is heading for the B.C. coast was predictable as night follows day, after we let in the 76 Tamils smuggled into Canada on ‘Ocean Lady’ last October, of which according to the Canadian Border Services Agency Report, 25 were hardcore Tamil Tiger terrorists."

An open letter issued by SLUNA of Canada about the LTTE cadres coming into Canada in the guise of refugees. "We are writing to draw your attention to the recent media reports concerning a second vessel named the MV Sun Sea carrying Tamil Tiger terrorist cadres and others, earlier destined for Australia, which later changed course and is currently headed towards the west coast of Canada"

We are talking about a country where there are political prisoners facing 30-40 year jail terms because they’ve objected to social injustice or held political convictions that the White House frowned upon.

The European Union appears to have handed itself a red card in its dealings with Sri Lanka by withdrawing the GSP+ concession at this stage. The EU's self inflicted exclusion has left the space in the playing field open for others, whose interests, at best, are in competition with the West.

Ahtisaari’s elevation to ‘peace-maker’ and Nobel Laureate, then, appears as minutely scripted as the monumental crimes against humanity that NATO perpetrated in Yugoslavia. Today, this butchery-advocating and butchery-facilitating thug is an ‘Elder’. It is good to know that peace making is a business and is scripted to deliver particular outcomes.

It is the international dimensions of Tamil Tiger terrorism that is a concern to Sri Lanka and the international community. The State Department has quite correctly rung the alarm bells to signal the current threats from the agents of Tamil Tiger terrorists operating in Western bases, This places a heavy responsibility on Ban Ki-Moon to raise the issue of the terrorist bases of the banned Tamil Tigers with the big powers in the West who are sheltering selected terrorists groups like the Tamil Tigers while the agents of Al Qua’ida are hunted ruthlessly day and night.

Chennai, 11 August, (Asiantribune.com): A Hard core LTTE militant who is regrouping Liberation Tigers of Tamil Elam (LTTE) Sundara Raja Sivakumar alias Siva was arrested by Kerala state police in Chennai on Monday. Arrested operative Siva seems to be only a minor link in a larger chain spread across the world. Without the support of any political party, it is impossible to carry out such massive human trafficking, officer in the Kerala police team told Asian Tribune.

VANCOUVER — At least 25 of the 76 men who arrived in British Columbia aboard the Ocean Lady migrant ship last October were members of the Tamil Tigers, a terrorist group outlawed in Canada, according to an internal government report. The Canada Border Services Agency report, marked “secret,” raises the possibility the ship’s entire journey to Canada might have been financed and organized by the terrorist group to help settle surviving militants abroad following its crushing military defeat by the Sri Lankan government last year.

The World Alliance for Peace in Sri Lanka (WAPS) has issued a media release in which they request the UN Secretary General to withdraw the panel he appointed as their activities could lead to unrest and instability in Sri Lanka. In light of the comments made by the outgoing UnderSecretary General Inga-Britt Ahlenius confidence in the UN has fallen to a low ebb under Ban Ki-Moon. Please sign the petition which can be accessed by copying and pasting the following link to your browser: http://www.PetitionOnline.com/07wapss/.

What right have these "Elders" to pass judgement on Sri Lanka? Why do they not address the problems in their respective countries where it is presumed they have "influence" if they claim to be statesmen? If they read the news reports in their own countries they would have ample evidence of persecution, intimidation, ongoing detention without charge or access to legal representation(Guantanamo being the classic example), and lack of action by the government to address political marginalization.

The message in a poem by Bertolt Brecht: ‘When evil-doing comes like falling rain’ is starkly reflected in the deafening silence of the International Community on the human rights abuses and crimes against humanity occurring daily in Afghanistan at the hands of the US Army.

A security assessment carried out by the British High Commission in Sri Lanka has concluded that the country is now safe for travelers, and completely lifted the travel restriction advice for the time in about 30 years.

On October 16, 2009, a group of 76 persons arrived in BC aboard The Ocean Lady, a name spray painted on a ship registered as the ‘Easwary’and were released from detention despite a determination by the Canadian Border Services. This ship belonging to the LTTE’s merchant marine unit was used to smuggle narcotics and weapons and today is being used to smuggle the surviving members of the Tamil Tiger fighting apparatus to a refugee receiving country such as Canada where the terror network has already established several fronts over the last 25 years to fund their war machine. The arrival of shiploads of Tamil Tiger trained cadres to Canada would result in the continuation of the extortion game where Canadian Tamils will be forced to contribute for the maintenance of these ex-combatants.

The latest US /_Country Report on Terrorism, 2009, issued on August 5, 2010 states: "This (international Tiger) network continued to collect contributions from the Tamil diaspora in North America, Europe, and Australia, where there were reports that some of these contributions were coerced by locally-based LTTE sympathizers. The LTTE also used Tamil charitable organizations as fronts for fundraising"

The Elders (founded by Nelson Mandela), which has a distinguished membership including Rev. Desmond Tutu, former President Jimmy Carter and a number of retired United Nations officials has called on international governments to end their 'deafening silence' on Sri Lanka. We have nothing but respect for some of the legendary figures in The Elders. But, unfortunately, we are afraid that they are parroting what the INGOs and some western governments sympathetic to the LTTE lobby are saying about Sri Lanka. Without lending their voice to the anti-Sri Lankan lobby, they should ascertain facts about the situation here through independent sources or take the trouble of visiting this country and see for themselves the ground reality which is different from what it is made out to be.

The Bar Association of Sri Lanka on Wednesday, adopted a resolution that unreservedly denounces and condemns the appointment of an Advisory Panel on Sri Lanka, by the Secretary General of the United Nations and calls for its forthwith withdrawal,BASL President Shibly Aziz said.

James Clad, former deputy assistant secretary of defense for South and Southeast Asia, said he thought that the boat was part of an attempt by the Tamil Tigers to "create a network again and play the transnational terrorist game.I'm not an advocate for sending people back to their deaths, but that is just not happening in Sri Lanka," he said. "I've helped a lot of migrants before, but I know a scam when I see one."

"Christian groups are continuing a long tradition of attempting to exert pressure on both major parties".How much influence will they exert in the coming Federal Elections?

The root of Sri Lanka’s ethnic problem lies in India gradually using both South Indian and Sri Lankan Tamil sentiment to ‘tame’ Sri Lanka not long after the end of British rule. If any power betrayed the real Tamil independence struggle it is none but Delhi. It all goes back to the days of the British Raj in India, when Indian Tamils were clamouring for an independent state in their true homeland, South India..

SRINAGAR, India (AP) - Government forces in Indian Kashmir fired at hundreds of people protesting New Delhi’s rule over the Himalayan region, killing one person and wounding at least five others Tuesday as weeks of civil unrest continued unabated.

In a world where so many innocents have been killed, maimed, wrongly imprisoned, tortured, displaced or forced into starvation with the perpetrators seemingly immune from prosecution, it is clear that the court’s mandate should be broadened and its powers increased. For international justice to be meaningful it must be one-size fits all. Anything less is a mockery of the principles on which the ICC was founded. Either the ICC should be empowered to try all those suspected of committing crimes within its remit or it should close its doors.

Paul Fitzgerald and Elizabeth Gould, a husband and wife team, began their experience in Afghanistan when they were the first American journalists to acquire permission to enter behind Soviet lines in 1981 for CBS News and produced a documentary, Afghanistan Between Three Worlds, for PBS. In 1983 they returned to Kabul with Harvard Negotiation project director Roger Fisher for ABC Nightline and contributed to the MacNeil/Lehrer News Hour. They are the authors of Invisible History: Afghanistan's Untold Story published by City Lights.

The United Nations, the successor to the League of Nations that was conceived in grandeur and has faltered in execution seems to be tailing off in humiliating failure under its current secretary-general.If Ban Ki-moon plays the monkey to Washington’s organ grinder and ignores the clear evidence of the killings of tens of thousands of Afghan civilians, then he will justify the sobriquet "Mon-key moon."

The country may have come out of one of the most difficult conflicts in its history last year, but according to evidence that is surfacing, it could be plunged into a conflict with even more radical Islamic fundamentalists soon, if early action to check them is not taken, warns some leading members of the Muslim community who fear a bloodbath in the offing.

The LTTE Dispora are actually trying to resurrect Prabakaran’s goal of a separate state as a stepping stone to conquering Sri Lanka for the LTTE.Today, the Thirteenth Amendment is hailed as what could bring about communal harmony. The LTTE Diaspora as well as learned luminaries among the Sinhala community and the international community are full of praise urging Sri Lanka to implement the Thirteenth Amendment in full including devolving land and police powers to the Provinces. Little do they know what will happen to Sri Lanka.

New York (CNN) -- The recently leaked memo from departing chief United Nations corruption investigator, Inga-Britt Ahlenius, to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will make it impossible for the White House to support the UN chief's candidacy for a second four-year term next year. For the UN's own sake, let's hope the leaders of the world's democracies can do better than that when it comes to electing a new leader for the United Nations in 2011.

Iqbal Athas was given an Excellence in Journalism Award for defence articles writtren in 2009 by Athas, but ironically he had not written a single article in 2009.

BELGRADE, July 28 (Xinhua) -- Serbia on Wednesday submitted to the General Assembly of the United Nations a draft resolution which clearly points out that unilateral secession is not an acceptable way of resolving territorial issues and calls for finding a solution through dialogue

The Rwandan government has taken steps to contain the activities of NGOs to make them more accountable. There are NGOs that exist only on paper and have no accountability or produce falsified reports to support their supposed activities.

The sun sets on every empire however strong they may once have been.Niall Ferguson analyses the fate of various empires once mighty that have now lost all their former glory and predicts the US will also face the same fate

Criminal Elements are using precedents created by immigration lawyers in the Canadian Law to enable them to stay deportation orders and remain in Canada. Some of these criminals deported to Sri Lanka have now arrived in Australia with assumed names. The LTTE diaspora, actively campaigning for refugees are encouraging, aiding and abetting these criminal elements to remain in Western countries to be used to further their purposes in giving the LTTE a second lease of life..

(Lanka-e-News 25.July.2010 -1.10PM) The BBC Sinhala service including ‘Sandesaya’ and other miniature services and groups world wide are to be closed down in September 2010, it has been decided, according to reports reaching Lanka e news.

Western nations have been caught with their knickers at their ankles, when they took it upon themselves to preach what they failed to practice in Iraq and Afghanistan( WikiLeaks of over 92,000 pages of documents on the war in Afghanistan indicates, there is a boatload of hypocrisy in their attitude towards what happened in Sri Lanka). Let’s leave that to Ban Ki Moon to investigate with the same passion and ardour for later.

(CNN) -- The Afghan government said Monday it was "shocked" as it sifted through tens of thousands of leaked U.S. military and diplomatic reports on the war in Afghanistan that a whistleblower website posted a day earlier.

A bunch of yellowing diaries found in a former Tamil Tiger hideout in northern Sri Lanka could provide vital clues to Lankan intelligence agencies about the rebels' existing international and fund raising networks. Sri Lankan army search teams stumbled upon not only the diaries but scores of abandoned passports and other documents during a search operation in Viswamadu, which is not very far from the final theatre of battle in north-eastern Sri Lanka

The Afghan War Diary an extraordinary secret compendium of over 91,000 reports covering the war in Afghanistan from 2004 to 2010. The reports describe the majority of lethal military actions involving the United States military. They include the number of persons internally stated to be killed, wounded, or detained during each action, together with the precise geographical location of each event, and the military units involved and major weapon systems used.

Tens of thousands of classified documents related to the Afghan war released without authorization by the group Wikileaks.org reveal in often excruciating detail the struggles U.S. troops have faced in battling an increasingly potent Taliban force and in working with Pakistani allies who also appear to be helping the Afghan insurgency.

Liberal Democrats (Britain), Leader Nick Clegg, stood up at the dispatch box of the House of Commons and pronounced that the invasion of Iraq was illegal. This is at odds with the position taken by coalition partner and now Prime Minister David Cameron at the time of the invasion and thereafter. Clegg, the Deputy Prime Minister (and not some anarchist blogger, let us remember) now says that he was speaking in a personal capacity.

The World Alliance for Peace in Sri Lanka (WAPS) has issued a media release in which they request the UN Secretary General to withdraw the panel he appointed as their activities could lead to unrest and instability in Sri Lanka. In light of the comments made by the outgoing UnderSecretary General Inga-Britt Ahlenius confidence in the UN has fallen to a low ebb under Ban Ki-Moon. Please sign the petition which can be accessed by copying and pasting the following link to your browser: http://www.PetitionOnline.com/07wapss/.

he, more than anyone else, can play a significant role at this juncture to tell the world that the picture drawn by the enemies of Sri Lanka on the so-called ethnic issue is absolutely flawed. A Tamil born in Sri Lanka who had his schooling with Sinhalese children, Murali did not get marginalized as would anyone in a society that was made of ethnic hierarchies. We should not forget how and why some Westerners humiliated this great son of Sri Lanka. These so-called human rights champions had no tears to shed for Muttiah Muralitharan when he was mercilessly attacked by hypocrites in the trade but were continuously crying for the “rights” of unknown millions of Tamils in Sri Lanka.”.

Malinda Seneviratne analyses the legacy of Ban Ki-Moon's tenure as UN Secretary General in the light of the revealations in the report issued by Inga-Britt Ahlenius, until recently the UN undersecretary general of the Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS).

Neil Buhne, the UN Resident Coordinator has conveyed a message from the UN Secretary General. In this article Mallinda Seneviratne says: "I feel however that Buhne’s wordage calls for comment, not to defend the indefensible, but to make it clear to Buhne and Ban that we are not quite in the dark about UN doings."

Touchscreen computing device costing just £23 to be rolled out first to 110 million schoolchildren. India has developed the world's cheapest laptop – a touchscreen device which resembles Apple's wildly popular iPad but will cost just £23

Considering Ban Ki-Moon's bungling and his inability to learn even from his past mistakes do we need him as the Secretary General for a second term? A more pertinent question is to ask whether it is in the interest of global peace and stability for him to remain in that seat any longer.

All Hail the Highest Wicket Taker Murali !!!! a fitting Farewell to The Greatest wicket taker, in Test Cricket History.

Where life might take Muttiah Muralitharan after he leaves test cricket, I cannot predict. I can just say this: “Thank you Murali for the 3,282,023 or so reasons you’ve given us to be proud of you, ourselves and our nation, Sri Lanka.”

Valiant War Heroes who fought till the last during the famous 'Mullaittivu debacle' in the year 1996 when Tiger terrorists overran their camp were immortalized on the very date of the tragedy by erecting a special war memorial, adjacent to the 591 Brigade Headquarters in Mullaittivu.

The civil war in Rwanda and the ethnic massacres were an integral part of US foreign policy, carefully staged in accordance with precise strategic and economic objectives.

Now that the liberation struggle is no more and the de facto state of Eelam is effectively dead the pro LTTE Sri Lankan Tamil Diaspora leadership is creating a new make- believe in place of their dream that came down shattering on the banks of Nandikadal lagoon in Eastern Sri Lanka.

Selvarasa Pathmanathan, better known as KP proclaimed himself LTTE leader after Tiger supremo Prabakaran’s demise. KP chose Visuvanathan Rudrakumaran, a US based lawyer who was one time legal adviser to the LTTE negotiating team with the Government and later its unofficial ideologue after Anton Balasingham’s death, to explore the ways and means of forming a Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam.

The Criminal Investigation Department yesterday arrested a leading businessman who had constructed an up-market condominium complex in Wellawatte allegedly with the money received from the LTTE.

Sixty years ago, the United Nations was founded to maintain international peace and security, promote basic human rights, and protect fundamental freedoms. Sixty years on, its acronym UN projects negatives and a dismal track record of UNhelpful, UNethical, Unproductive, Unfair UN policies by its bureaucracy….should world Governments continue to assume this world body is realistically suited to secure world peace?

The Canada Revenue Agency revoked the Charity status and shut down the Tamil (Sri Lanka) Refugee-Aid Society of Ottawa for its connection with LTTE arms dealers and for funnelling its funds to the LTTE.

NEW YORK Shortly before the Taliban in Afghanistan issued orders to blow up the giant, 1,500-year-old Buddhas of Bamian, which they destroyed in March 2001, a squad of Islamic fundamentalists systematically ransacked a storeroom of artwork from the National Museum in Kabul. They went through boxes of ancient Buddhist and Gandharan statuary, smashing anything with a human or animal image that they deemed idolatrous.

In a confidential memo to Ban obtained by The Associated Press, outgoing Undersecretary-General Inga-Britt Ahlenius accused Ban of systematically undermining her authority and weakening the U.N.'s oversight functions so much that it is becoming irrelevant.

The Archaeological Department has decided to remove all unauthorized constructions in the historic Kuragala Archaeological Reserve off Balangoda with immediate effect. The Department was in consultation with the Department of Attorney General for the removal of houses, hotels and holiday inns built in the reserve forest.

Over 300 ex-LTTE cadres would sit for the GCE (Advanced Level) Examination in August, Commissioner General of Rehabilitation, Brigadier Sudantha Ranasinghe said yesterday.

A public symposium held on July 17 on the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) promoting the so-called Ramayana Trail exposed a shocking attempt to distort Sri Lanka’s recorded history merely to attract Indian tourists, ignoring its serious political implications.

...a party with a ‘united’ tag to its name has to be slipping if it has to set up internal structures to facilitate voices specific to various communities. Perhaps different times warrant different strategies. The party is in crisis, this everyone knows. The crisis lies in the name. The United National Party is not united. There is nothing ‘national’ in it. Recent events indicate, also, that it can hardly be called a ‘party’.

Hard core Tamil Tigers are now sailing the seven seas looking for safe havens. Australia has made it difficult for them come in as refugees so now they are off to Canada to fool the tender hearted Canadians to get into their country. Poopalapillai is speaking on their behalf because he still supports the LTTE.

They lived the high life at the expense of the tax payer. The British government should get more of these people in as refugees so that more British tax payers can get ripped off by people like these who make a lot of unsubstantiated and false claims and get away with it!

The Tamil (Sri Lanka) Refugee-Aid Society of Ottawa has had its charitable status revoked by the Canada Revenue Agency for funding the LTTE, stating the society "was operating as part of the support network for the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam," which Canada and the United Nations have declared a terrorist organization." Following this "abuse of the registration system for charities" the society will no longer be exempt from income tax and may have to pay tax equal to the full value of its remaining assets. Perhaps the CRA should also demand they pay back the value of the exemptions they received from the initial date of registration?

Political will and military muscle may have ensured there are no more tears from terrorists in the tiny tear-drop shaped country, south of India. Critics, however, accuse the government of human rights violations and for the plight of thousands of refugees displaced by war. ‘‘There is no room for violence in the new Sri Lanka, the focus is on growth and civil harmony,’’ said Tamil-Muslim Member of Parliament Abdul Cader of the opposition United National Party, a political veteran of over two decades.

Documents of the US State Department declassified under Feredom of Information reveal that over USD 40M has been disbursed to US aid agencies to buy up journalists and private media in Venezuela in a bid to oust Hugo Chavez. One such agency is USAID, which also operates in Sri Lanka. Wonder how much was given to those so called journalists who created the fake video about the Sri Lankan armed forces.?

The odds-on favourite to win the leadership contest, former Foreign Secretary David Miliband, is finding it very hard indeed to disentangle himself from the most sordid and shameful aspect of New Labour rule - British involvement in the torture of numerous terror suspects overseas.

We can and must pause a while every now and then and bow our heads low for these fellow-citizens who will not arrive in the tomorrow they helped define, for better or worse, with their lives and their deaths. And not just on days calendared for celebration/remembrance.

Emeritus Professor of Law, University of Windsor, Ontario, Canda, Dr. Lakshman Marasinghe states that under the Charter the UN Secretary General does not have the power to appoint an International Panel to advise him, as this advise cannot be provided without investigating into the internal matters of a member state. As a member state Sri Lanka has the right to "seek an advisory opinion from the I.C.J regarding the exercise of powers that arise out of the Charter." says Professor Marasinghe.

The conduct of Ban Ki Moon, Louise Arbour, Lyn Pascoe and Bernard Savage and many others including Mr. Robert Blake, former US Ambassador to Sri Lanka and David Miliband leaves room for us to query their motivations in condemning Sri Lanka’s military defeat of the LTTE. Their current attitude must be examined in conjunction with their earlier position that the LTTE was invincible.

The Declaration issued in Brussels by the High Representative Catherine Ashton on behalf of the European Union in support of the Appointment of a UN Panel of Experts on Accountability Issues in Sri Lanka, is a clear indication of its determination to extend its tentacles to act in collusion with the UN, Norway, the US and other non-governmental organizations.

Six months after Hatians experienced the devastating earthquake they are still living in tents and they may live in these tented camps for months or even years say the UN aid agencies working here. And this same UN was in an indecent hurry to make Sri Lanka resettle the displaced persons after the defeat of the LTTE.

LONDON: Eight Indian states, including Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, together account for more poor people than the 26 poorest African nations combined , a new ‘‘ multidimensional’ ’ measure of global poverty has said.

A true Human Being!

Sometimes Gods walk among men showing us how to be true human beings. Nihal de Mel was such a man. Modest and unassuming, with a sense of humour that did not desert him even when he was gravely ill, he embodied selflessness. Nihal de Mel who served SPUR as member of the executive committee with distinction and dedication passed away and his funeral will be held on 15th July 2010.Nihal initiated a number of projects to help Sri Lanka , the members of the armed forces and the poorest of the poor. With his meticulous organization skills SPUR supplied AUD 40,000 - worth of artificial limbs to the injured soldiers which was his first project. Subsequently, a number of shipments of wheel chairs, beds, equipment, walkers were sent to Army Hospitals in Anuradhapura and Colombo. He spared no pains to collect,store and making arrangements to freight used hospital beds from Australia to hospitals in Anuradhapura. Ampara and Maha oya. Incidentally, two new wards in Maha Oya with the used beds supplied under Nihal's guidance were opened on 5th July. He was a live wire in many other SPUR projects such as supplying sniffer dogs to SL Army, books, educational material and computers to the needy in Sri Lanka including propaganda and fund raising ventures of SPUR. He left an indelible mark with all his associates and will be remembered with extreme gratitude by Sri Lankans and all his colleagues. May he REST IN PEACE

Neville Ladduwahetty analyses the actions of the UN Secretary General in relation to the UN Charter and the Joint UN-Sri Lanka Statement issued after the defeat of the LTTE in May 2009. The UNSG has not only violated the provisions in the Joint Statement he has also violated provisions of the UN Charter.

AS many as half of Sri Lankans seeking asylum in Australia are suspected of being former fighters, operatives or supporters of the Tamil Tigers. Defence analyst Sergei DeSilva- Ranasinghe said that during a recent visit to Sri Lanka, two government ministers and several other officials, including Catholic Church staff with deep ties in the Tamil community, told him 25 per cent was at the lower end of their estimates.

When Ban Ki-Moon met President Mahinda Rajapakse soon after the War ended in May 2009 it was agreed in a Joint Statement (issued on May 23, 2009) that the Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) will set up a mechanism to look into what went wrong and how to remedy any past mistakes. Based on his own admission there was neither authority nor necessity for Ban to poke his unwanted fingers in the domestic affairs of Sri Lanka and appoint another panel of his own when GOSL has fulfilled the agreement with him.

Chennai, 13 July, (Asiantribune.com): Film Director and Naam Thamizhar Party Founder Seeman was today arrested by the city police for allegedly making inflammatory speech ''aimed at inciting violence among religious groups.'' Police sources said Seeman was arrested at the Chennai Press Club where he came to address the media to explain his stand in the wake of cases registered against him.

This is a study of how the legal process can be twisted to serve criminal objectives and dubious political agendas in the name of helping the oppressed. It also shows how so-called freedom fighters evolve into criminals terrorizing society

‘In 1948 and again in 1976, the United Nations proclaimed long lists of human rights, but the immense majority of humanity enjoys only the rights to see, hear and remain silent. Suppose we start by exercising the never-proclaimed right to dream?

The Royal Asiatic Society is inviting the public to participate in a symposium at the Mahaweli Centre, Colombo 07 on July 17 on the negative impact on Sri Lanka by promoting the Ramayana legend for tourism purposes.

Whether Mr. Weerawansa was right or wrong in the action he took to protest about Ban Ki-Moon's appointing an investigative panel on Sri Lanka, the ordinary people approved and came to show their respect for the stand he took.

These so-called investigations seem to be a repetition of oppression by anti-Sri Lankan groups all over the world. There is no goodwill in this act but a continuation of harassments against a democratic country. If the system deprives people of their freedom of expression, the present government in Sri Lanka would not have been elected by vast majority including Tamils in the North and East at the General Elections in April 2010. This clearly indicates that only foreign elements are irritated by the activities of the government but not the subjects of that country.

“We also remember how these peace vendors attempted to justify the brutal killings of innocent civilians by suicide bombers saying “Regardless of who is responsible, the suicide bombing indicates the growing absence of confidence in the integrity of the government institutions”. We witnessed how these unarmed enemies were repeating the above statements like ‘mantras’ almost daily during the last two decades,causing more harm and destruction than the armed enemies, in order to provide the necessary moral support to their local and foreign agents.”

Sri Lanka has the ability to deal with her internal problems and has capable candidates who understand the history, culture and inter-community relations far better than any foreign panellist. The international community should therefore allow Sri Lanka to resolve her internal issues and extend any assistance that may be asked of them in their efforts to rebuild and reconcile after three decades of violent upheaval.

A few weeks ago the British Parliament is reported to have debated the issue of alleged war crimes in Sri Lanka. Any comment on the various statements made and the charges leveled against Sri Lanka need to be prefaced by things that came without saying and therefore go without saying but should not be allowed to go away without saying.

The pro-LTTE sections of the Sri Lankan diaspora, unable to stomach the defeat of the world’s most ruthless terrorist outfit at the hands of the security forces, wanted revenge. Not in a position to carry out assassinations, they opted for the next best thing. They wanted Sri Lanka punished. Somehow. By anyone.

The panel is illegal, outside the ambit of the office of the Secretary General, and as such, compromises the integrity and dignity of the United Nations.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Prof. G. L. Peiris who met the European Union Ambassador Bernard Savage and representatives of the EU Member States reiterated that the Government was not in a position to proceed on the basis of the unacceptable conditions and ultimatum put forward by the EU with regard to the benefits of GSP Plus.

If throughout thirty years the UN Secretary General is clueless of what has been happening in a member country called Sri Lanka, it may be best that he first ask his expert panel to investigate & apprise him of all LTTE atrocities first.

A joint Statement issued by the Global Sri Lankan Forum denouncing the action taken by UNSG Ban Ki-Moon in appointing a panel to investigate Sri Lanka.

UN Secretary-General Ban ki-moon has reiterated that the three member panel appointed by him on Sri Lanka has been set up to advise him with regard to taking forward the objectives of the Joint Statement of 23 May 2009 between Sri Lanka and the UN and is not an investigative body.

If Ban Ki Moon’s action would be successful it will create a new method for powerful nations to interfere into local matters of small nations, under the cover of United Nations name board. If such thing happened, its actions will only be accountable to the Secretary General who presently acting as a puppet of western countries and eventually will jeopardise the function of United Nations as place, where equality for every nation is the motto.

Ki-moon has to take responsibility for setting things in motion along this highly volatile, unproductive and utterly ridiculous road by pandering to LTTE-sympathizers and a bunch of jokers who can’t get over the fact that the sun set on their looting enterprise some decades ago and that what remained of the power-lustre has now come off and attached itself to a new set of power-players. Ki-moon was trying to rub balm on some bruised egos and got his bumped around as well.

Sri Lankan Tamils were largely behind credit card skimming crimes that had cost about 6000 West Australians more than $6.5 million from EFTPOS machines, Assistant Commissioner Nick Anticich said yesterday. And there are concerns that funds raised in such operations could be diverted to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, commonly known as the Tamil Tigers and listed by a number of countries as a terrorist organisation..

The writer suggests that Sri Lanka should apply to the WTO's Dispute Settlement Mechanism to arbitrate in the case of terminating GSP+ to Sri Lanka.

The case of Sita Tamang shows the media needs to exercise caution when it comes to covering conflict-sensitive issues

UNSG issued a statement regarding the closing of the UNDP office in Colombo implying that it was a result of the protest launched by the NFF.In acatual fact the decision to close the UNDP office in Colombo was made before the launch of the protest.

Ban Ki-Moon, after appointing a panel to investigate the events during the end of the war in Sri Lanka, has now decided to launch his own investigation into the events that occurred when Israel attacked a ship carrying protestors. While the US is silent about the "abuse of power" by the UNSG when it comes to Sri Lanka, John Bolton suggests that the US senate should withhold funds to UN "This is a case where the secretary-general and other U.N. members need to understand that the United States is prepared to take punitive financial action to protect its interests. That way, and that way alone, we might actually get their attention in New York".

Replacing colonialism today is neo-colonialism & its offspring economic liberalism. Facilitating modern forms of “interventions” upon sovereign nations is the United Nations whose laws, protocols, conventions etc have been designed to legalize & necessitate these actions. To execute these pogroms are terminologies like “responsibility to protect” ‘human rights”, “press freedom” & even “terrorism” which all eventually leads to approval for foreign presence & eventually enable these states to have their country “looted” of its natural resources. Further strangulating these nations are internationally “approved” institutes like the World Bank, IMF with their “structural adjustment programs” wherein countries are made to compromise & open up their markets wherein western nations suck out countries of its riches.

Minister Wimal Weerawansa started a fast unto death in front of the UN office in Colombo a short while ago demanding the abolition of the war crime panel appointed by UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon. Let us see if at least this will Ban to his senses and realise he is being manipulated by the LTTE diaspora.

It is ironic that those who committed war crimes and crimes against humanity in many and diverse ways for thirty years are now egging on the UN Secretary General to prosecute a nation that was defending itself from the terror unleashed by the very people who are behind the UNSG. It is even more ironic that the UNSG is using his high office to intimidate a long standing, Model member of the UN for alleged crimes on the say so of the very people who funded and directed a terror campaign against a whole country.

ABC Australia continues to carry on a campaign villifying Sri Lanka by allowing callow journalists like Sally Sara to conduct panel discussions on Sri Lanka, who doesn't seem to have an iota of knowledge about Sri Lanka or Sri Lankans. The panelists she selected were all anti-Sri Lankan, anti Sinhala and had for a quarter century or more been carrying a campaign promoting the LTTE, which goes to show how impartial this panel discussion truly was.

First hand experience during the 33-year-old war has convinced the Sri Lankans that the foreign agents have only exploited their plight to meddle in their domestic affairs – all in the name of peace, human rights and reconciliation that never materialized with their fake formulas. Whether it is Indira Gandhi who mothered the Tiger terrorists in military training camps in India, whether it is David Milliband rushing to garner the Tamil votes in Labour electorates in UK, or whether it is Ban Ki-Moon hoping to get an extension with the backing of the West for a second term, the general trend indicates that foreigners had their own personal and political agendas. It was the Sri Lankans who had to pay for it.

It is essential in peace-building to delve deeper into the history of the conflict and its causes as well as efforts by all successive governments to explore all options for peace in the face of constant LTTE hypocrisy, prevarication and eventual calculated resort to violence. The Joint Statement issued on May 23 last year by the Sri Lanka Government and the UN Secretary General at the end of his visit to the island is significant, particularly its concluding paragraph. The paragraph reads as follows: "Sri Lanka reiterated its strongest commitment to the promotion and protection of human rights standards and Sri Lanka’s international obligations. The SG underlined importance of an accountability process for addressing violations of international humanitarian and human rights law."

The UN Refugee Agency releasing its latest report on 5 July, titled ‘Eligibility Guidelines for Assessing the International Protection Needs of Asylum-Seekers from Sri Lanka’, further says that human rights and security situation in Sri Lanka has improved. ‘In light of the improved human rights and security situation in Sri Lanka, there is no longer a need for group-based protection mechanisms or for a presumption of eligibility for Sri Lankans of Tamils originating from the North’, UNHCR report states.

After a career spanning eighteen years and breaking more records than any other player in the cricket world, the worlds leading wicket taker and the Wisden Cricketer of the Year of 1999, Muttiah Muralitharan has decided to retire from test cricket after the test match with India that begins on 18th July.

COLOMBO, March 12 (AP) - (Kyodo)—Sri Lanka has won a major diplomatic victory at the United Nations with the 118-member Non-Aligned Movement reprimanding Secretary General Bank Ki Moon over his proposal to set up an advisory expert panel on "accountability issues" in Sri Lanka following the defeat of Tamil rebels last May after a 26-year war.

The UN Secretary General’s influenced decision to appoint a fancy committee of International “experts” to investigate how and why Sri Lanka finally got rid of terrorism and dawned peace on this land of serendipity will undermine the reconciliation and integration process already in progress in that country.

What the ‘international community’ must do now, if they are sincere in helping us rebuild our nation, is to give up supporting attempts at rekindling the divisive demands of the terrorists and their supporters. You must understand it is the expectation of every rational Sri Lankan to rebuild our country, as a place where all its races; Sinhalese, Tamil, Muslim, Burgher, Malay and Adivasi, can live in harmony enjoying equal opportunities to make better lives for themselves. If you truly care, you must probe your own hearts and minds and ask the question “Do not the people of Sri Lanka, after so many long years of suffering, now deserve the opportunity to live in unity and harmony”. If the answer is a resounding yes, then we call on you not to bother us but to help us get there.

Soldiers who sustained permanent disabilities during the long drawn out war in Sri Lanka were looked after at Ranaviru Sevana, but although well looked after by the medical staff, Ranaviru Sevana is not an ideal place for those suffering permanent disability. A new facility is being constructed as a permanet residence for the many who have become disabled while fighting to safe guard our motherland.

Dr. Palitha Kohona is interviewed on the Expert Panel on Sri Lanka appointed unilaterally by the UN Secretary General.

Both Britain and the US have applauded the Sri Lanka government's appointment of a Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission.

Asoka Weerasinghe points out to Patrick Brown the errors in his statement that “The Tamil community in Canada has demonstrated that they are law-abiding, hard working and contributors to our democratic civic society,” He points to the numerous occasions on which the LTTE diaspora disturbed the peace and threatened to bomb buildings in Canada.

Ruvini Dunuwila presents her maiden CD album in concert on 10th July 2010 from 5:50 P.M at Rowville Secondary College (Mel Ref: 82 F1). Singing duets with Ranil Mallavarachchi, Athula Lewke Bandara, Adrian Dunuwila and Rohana Karunaratne with music by Cameron Colombage and Tharanga. Tickets $15.00 available at all Sri Lankan shops.

The distance between Tamil and Sinhala is far less than that between the political elite and the average citizen, between the rich and the poor. I am not saying that minority grievances are not real and they should not be addressed; I am saying that one cannot resolve for aspiration based on myth and that grievance resolution can only get postponed if one continues to engage in the politics of distraction....we won’t get anywhere if we continue to be mischievous with word. We misnamed a problem and lost a lot of lives. That’s a well-worn path.

We don’t have to belt-tighten. We just need to be a bit smart. If every government institution removes one hoarding (and each institution has many) it will save a minimum of Rs 300,000 a year. Take out the brag-signs of each and every project and we will have so much money that we won’t need to ask China to build us this or that or ask Iran for oil-love. We are a people for whom thrift was second nature. Ask Dr P A Kiriwandeniya, the charismatic leader of the SANASA Movement and he will explain. We already have the model, we don’t need any ‘Grameening’ of Sri Lanka. President Mahinda Rajapaksa has to take the lead here. He has to start things rolling at the top, make the statement and do the needful.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang made the remarks at a regular press conference in response to questions relating to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's recent appointment of members to a panel considering the recent conflict in Sri Lanka.

The panel of experts on Sri Lanka to advice UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon was an attempt to intimidate the weak and meek nations but was not called for by the member states of the UN body, Sri Lanka’s Permanent Representative to the UN Dr. Palitha Kohona told Daily News yesterday.

We were on a burning deck but did not walk into fire or jump the sea; now in safer port, after dousing in flames and blindfolded walk the plank to plunge into the ocean. Are we skewing foreign policy to be stewed? We never learn lessons of past mistakes of cooing to the Norwegians, without looking towards our true friends who stood with us at the UN. It is high time we stop waltzing with Hillary to sounds of a US band.

A Goldman Sachs director tipped off a hedge fund billionaire about a $5bn (€3.7bn) investment in Goldman by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway before a public announcement of the deal at the height of the 2008 financial crisis, a person close to the situation says.

When a Pakistani-U.S. national pleaded guilty last week to a failed attempt to detonate explosives packed in a vehicle in the heart of New York City, he admitted that one of the reasons he targeted the busy Times Square neighbourhood was to 'injure and kill' as many people as possible.

In my eyes and my clinical opinion, you are guilty of the over 100,000 deaths in Sri Lanka. And that is my verdict on you, you salmon eating helmet-horned son-of-a Bozoman Viking. Not even tons of Taura Mariakloster Christmas Soap will get rid of the film of Sinhala-blood that you painted your palms with trying to act an International Peace Maker having my people killed by the Tamil Tigers that you helped to try to claim their mythical Eelam. Pox on you Erik Solheim, pox on you!

SRINAGAR, India (AP) - Authorities brought new areas under curfew in the Indian portion of Kashmir on Wednesday to control the worst street violence in a year, triggered by the killing of 11 people allegedly by government forces over the past two weeks.

Sri Lanka yesterday signed four agreements with Ukraine enhancing cooperation in tourism, maritime, shipping and defence sectors. The signing of these four agreements took place before President Mahinda Rajapaksa and his Ukrainian counterpart Victor Yanukovich at the latter’s office yesterday.

Given your actions of support for LTTE terrorism it appears from your statement that you are now on the path to harass Sri Lanka on the instructions of the supporters of the LTTE in Norway and elsewhere in the west with your references to the possibility of saving thousands of lives, that the LTTE leaders were told that the only way they could surrender was to show white flags and your support of the illegal action of Ban ki Moon regarding the panel of “experts”. Sri Lankans have suffered because of your close association with LTTE terrorists. Your statements and actions are suspect. They believe Sri Lanka would have peace when people such as you just mind your own business and stop supporting LTTE terrorists.

By advocating an accountability process the UNSG has fallen victim to the agendas of the LTTE diaspora and their supporters. The agenda of the LTTE diaspora is to obstruct reconciliation because maintaining an irreconcilable relationship is their raison d’etre in order to justify Tamil Eelam. For their supporters, punishing those responsible for ending the conflict is sweet justice, judging from the limits they were prepared to go to in order to save the LTTE leadership. Under the circumstances, the UNSG’s action regarding establishing accountability is tantamount to providing material support to the LTTE, a banned terrorist organization.

International conspiracy launched in 2009 by some Western countries to molly coddle the LTTE terrorist outfit against Sri Lanka has now created a two headed dragon to strangle and swallow this small island of Sri Lanka. One head belongs to the UN Secretary General (UNSG) and the other head belongs to the EU.

According to the writer Ban Ki-Moon is not computer savvy, so when he does an internet search on Sri Lanka atrocities, he comes up with LTTE atrocities. This is why he appointed a panel of experts to advise him and why he did not rely on UN staff based in Colombo to provide him the information and advise he seeks.

Ban Ki-Moon seems to have become a puppet on a string, a tool of the LTTE Diaspora that is baying for the blood of the Sri Lankan leaders. One year after the ruthless LTTE was destroyed, Ki-Moon has appointed a panel to "advise" him on Sri Lanka. SPUR can give the best advice to Ban Ki-Moon: Keep the respect of your position as Secretary General of the UN in the tradition of the Great SGs like Dag Hammarskjold and U Thant. Go and investigate the real atrocities being committed daily in Afghanistan, Iraq and many other places in the world by your masters the Western powers and stop dancing to the tune of the LTTE Diaspora!

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shri Shivaraj Singh Chowan told the media on Sunday he was confident that the strengthening of religious and cultural ties between the Hindus and Buddhists would go a long way in bringing the people of Sri Lanka and India together.

We really need a Nobel Prize for Clowning. If Obama could get a Nobel Prize for Peace for doing jack-all, then he might as well get one for being a joker, except that we have someone who is far more worthy of award, recognition and many pats on the back and slaps on the thighs. Toner, do the honours. Offer us the (comic) relief of having our friend and benefactor, Ban Ki-moon being given the Nobel Prize for Clowning. He deserves it.

External Affairs Minister G. L. Peiris says that the conditions imposed by the EU, under the guise of what is essentially a trade agreement, amounted to an intervention, the range and depth of which inevitably erodes in every significant respect, Sri Lanka’s authority to decide upon, and to deal with, a variety of sensitive domestic issues which have a vital bearing on the well being of our nation.

The European Commission (EC) has written to the Minister of External Affairs, Prof. G.L. Peiris. The EC has virtually drafted for the minister a letter for him to ink if he (and the Government) wants Sri Lanka to benefit from the GSP Plus facility for a further six months. The EC has put forward 15 conditions that Sri Lanka has to fulfill. If Prof. Peiris solemnly undertakes on behalf of the Government to fulfill these conditions, Sri Lanka will get a ‘break’ worth some US$ 150 million. After six months, the EC reserves the right to say ‘BUZZ OFF SRI LANKA’.

He’s rubbed half the world the wrong way, jumped the gun, gone against protocol, acquired powers that none of his predecessors enjoyed, thumbed his nose at the General Assembly and the Security Council and acted as though he’s CEO of Global Government and not the chief administrative officer of the UN. Ban Ki-moon is cutting a sorry figure these days.

In a move reeking of the foul odour of cynicism and double standards, the UN Secretary-General, Mr Ban Ki-Moon has, on June 22, as per a notification posted on the UN Web site, announced the appointment of a so- called advisory panel of three so-called experts “to advise him on accountability issues relating to alleged violations of international human rights and humanitarian law during the final stages of the conflict in Sri Lanka that ended last year” The very basis of the notification is totally unacceptable and untenable. First, Sri Lanka is a sovereign, independent country, having the indisputable right under the UN Charter itself, to act in its best judgment on issues relating to its internal affairs, especially where maintenance of peace and security is concerned.

Ki-moon would have loved nothing better than a fully fledged team of trigger-happy men and women in the pay of the LTTE to investigate Sri Lanka (read, ‘copy-pasting reports authored by LTTE-friendly outfits such as the Centre for Policy Alternatives and rabidly anti-Government individuals currently in the political wilderness such as Mangala Samaraweera), declare ‘guilty-as-charged’ and slap sanction. He would have loved, I am compelled to think, to have as end-point of exercise regime-change plus division of the country.

Colombo, 26 June, (Asiantribune.com): The Russian government has slammed the appointment of a UN Panel of Experts on Sri Lanka and had stated that investigating the events that occurred in the past in Sri Lanka lies with its Government.The Russian government has questioned as to why the opinion of the Security Council or the General Assembly was not sought in the matter?

It is said that the LTTE was agreeable to USA’s direct involvement, but they were not agreeable to locking the weapons. The USA had also started preparing for the Mullivaikal operation. Accordingly, PACOM’s Naval unit, Marine Expediency Brigade, will land at the Mullaithivu shores; and the Navy and the Air Force of PACOM will also join in this operation.

Moon has been caught with his pants down so many times, he really needs to prove his ‘manhood’ by somehow getting someone else to drop his/her pants and get whipped. Poor guy. It’s an ego thing, ladies and gentlemen.

In a case that weighed free speech against national security, the court voted 6 to 3 to uphold a federal law banning "material support" to foreign terrorist organizations. That ban holds, the court said, even when the offerings are not money or weapons but things such as "expert advice or assistance" or "training" intended to instruct in international law or appeals to the United Nations

Most thought that with the formation of the UN world peace would prevail & international laws that were supposed to apply equally to all nations would ensure a country whether big or small, powerful or not would be given the same justice, the same voice & the same hearing. We all are aware that the expectations do not match the actualities & in this context we examine the situation facing Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka regards the appointment of the Sri Lanka – Panel of Experts as an unwarranted and unnecessary interference with a sovereign nation. The Government of Sri Lanka notes that the joint statement of the President of Sri Lanka and the Secretary – General issued at the conclusion of the Secretary – General’s visit to the country on 23rd May 2009 makes no reference to “allegations of violations of international humanitarian law committed during military operations between the Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation of Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)”.

It appears that the colonial mentality of western governments knows no bounds. In order to extend the GSP+ for another six months, Sri Lanka has to give up her sovereignty and allow the EU to dictate terms to the Government of Sri Lanka

SARGODHA, Pakistan (AP) - Five American men were convicted Thursday on terror charges by a Pakistani court and sentenced to 10 years in prison in a case that has heightened concerns about Westerners traveling to Pakistan to contact al-Qaida and other Islamist extremist groups.

The government is planning to establish branches of foreign universities here. In such an eventuality, local universities are likely to lose their academics to the new universities because they will have no alternative but to vote with their fee out of sheer frustration.Therefore, in our opinion, university teachers must be paid the salary hike they have been promised. But, the government must ensure that they work harder. No country can aspire to development without having a good university system.

The government yesterday rejected the 15 conditions set out by the European Union,for the extension of the GSP Plus references to Sri Lanka,beyond August 15. Among the EU’s conditions are the implementation of the 17th amendment to the Sri Lankan constitution,repeal of the Emergency Regulations and the Prevention of Terrorism Act.These,he claimed had no relevance to the GSP Plus for Sri Lanka’s exports to the EU.

Peter Leitner and Rajika Jayatilake write: "All too often, the greatest obstacle to military success is the starry-eyed interference by third parties insisting that only diplomacy and negotiation can bring a true end to terror-based conflicts. History has demonstrated repeatedly, and Sri Lanka has just underscored, that negotiation is doomed in the face of an implacable enemy with an absolutist agenda seeking to create change by ruthless use of force". - Peter Leitner is president of the Higgins Counterterrorism Research Center and previously served for 31 years in various national security positions. Rajika Jayatilake is a communications specialist with expertise in international media and public relations.

It is true that Mr. Mahinda Rajapakse had been elected with a massive mandate and that he is an astute politician. Our concern however is whether he will be allowed to implement the mandate given to him, owing to the pressures brought to bear on him with veiled threats that India could make things difficult for him if he did not comply. For instance, the desire to have two consular offices in Jaffna and Hambantota for no apparent reason. After all, this is our country. The people of this country need an explanation.

At least 25 of the 76 men who arrived in British Columbia aboard the Ocean Lady migrant ship last October were members of the Tamil Tigers, a terrorist group outlawed in Canada, according to an internal government report. The Canada Border Services Agency report, marked 'secret' raises the possibility that the ship's entire journey to Canada might have been financed and organized by the terrorist group to help settle surviving militants abroad following its crushing military defeat by the Sri Lankan government last year.

All Sri Lankans who took part in the long walk to free the nation from the blight of terrorist violence stood in attention to pay a glowing tribute to the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces President Mahinda Rajapaksa, Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, heroic Armed Forces and the Police last Friday as the Nation marked the first anniversary of the Victory over Terrorism

The Sri Lankan government has assured Japan that it will devolve power to the North and East in terms of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution. However, it has said the police powers need to be discussed in depth among all stakeholders.

The importance of external dimension in Sri Lanka’s economic consolidation and development cannot be underestimated. Correct development policy plus well thought-out foreign policy would be the key to Sri Lanka’s future.

The end of Sri Lanka’s bloody conflict not only brought peace to the country but has almost wiped out the ‘Hawala’ or illegal banking channel that Tamil rebels used extensively as a means of raising money for their cause, a top banker said this week.

THE first signs of panic and an absence of leadership in the Queensland Police Service came on November 27, 2004, the day after Palm Islanders had rioted and burnt the police station and courthouse. A man dies in custody of horrific injuries resulting from the arresting officer falling on the prisoner, and the officer walks away scot free, while the is demonised as just another death of a drunk.

A group of nine Tamil intellectuals including former prominent militant sympathisers who had been operating internationally for the militant outfit along with Pathmanathan (Kumaran), the former head of the LTTE’s activities abroad said they would assist in the post conflict rehabilitation and reconstruction activities in the country. A word of caution though "Please remember how the Greeks won the Trojan war"

The United Nations Panel of Inquiry on war crimes against Sri Lanka should work in consultation with the government and not interfere in its reconciliation process, Japan said yesterday.

Will the Canadian government hide behind the myth of Canada the righteous global citizen, or will it take on the actuality of the global abuses of the Canadian mining industry? Sixty percent of the world's mining companies are registered in Canada, yet there is not a single Canadian law regulating their activities abroad. And this is a country that is trying to take Sri Lanka to the International Court of Justice for human rights abuses? O tempora O mores!

We need to get out of this ‘Big-Brother India is Watching’ frame of mind. It is one thing to be a realist and quite another to inhabit Indian’s version of our reality. It does not matter who is on our side and who is not if at the end of the day we have decided not to be on our side, or worse, have no clue what ‘our side’ is all about.

June 16, 2010 Kuala Lumpur: (PTI) Foreign militants, including remnants of the Tamil Tigers, are using Malaysia as their operational base and for recruiting new activists, a top Malaysian minister said today State-run news agency Bernama quoted Musa Hassan, the inspector-general of police, as saying that Malaysian police had detected the presence of several senior leaders of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) who were reportedly using Malaysia for shelter and logistic base.

Reference Col. Hariharan’s response to ‘Who is running Sri Lanka’, his explanation is that his original publication of June 8 was written primarily for Indian readers. Was he reinforcing the perception of ordinary Indians that they have the right to interfere in the internal matters of Sri Lanka, India’s other neighbours, as well as countries where Indians are resident? Statements from various leaders of the Indian government through the years clearly indicate that this is India’s mindset, however illogical and illegal it is. Indian "viceroy" mentality is alive and well into 60 years after the end of the "British Raj".

The government said yesterday that the on-going visit of senior United States officials to Sri Lanka,was not linked to the UN’s alleged war crimes probe against the Sri Lankan security forces.

President Mahinda Rajapaksa yesterday said that some countries which were being battered by terrorism had gathered strength from Sri Lanka’s victories over the menace and it was time that they looked back to see what had gone wrong with their strategies while Sri Lanka had succeeded.

The postponed commemoration ceremony to honour our security forces who demolished the LTTE on the shores of Nandikadal on the 18th/19th of May 2009 is scheduled to take place tomorrow. It is right that we do have some ceremony to remind ourselves of the demise of the terrible terrorist. All those spoilsports who decry this commemoration ceremony are not only unpatriotic but seem to me to be born-again terrorist supporters.

India has passed a law from prohibiting any political party espousing separation to contest any elections in India. The cry for a separate state for Tamils was first raised in Tamil Nadu, but with Nehru's government passing a law prohibiting any political party espousing separation from contesting at elections, the Tamils moved their quest for a separate state to Sri Lanka. While continuing to ban the LTTE as a terrorist organisation, most Western governments are allowing pro LTTE groups to set up a transnational Government of Tamil Eelam. This raises the question as to what the Agenda of the West really is. With a resurgent India the West is waiting in the wings for the correct moment to implement their strategiec plans to dominate Asia.

SINGAPORE, June 14 (Reuters) - Afghanistan could be holding $1 trillion of untapped mineral deposits including critical industrial metals such as lithium, the New York Times reported, quoting U.S. government officials. Now we know why the Western countries are fighting in Afghanistan!

The United States of America too had been through the experience of combating terrorism and considered the terrorism of the LTTE as abhorrent said two high ranking officers of the Obama Administration, attached to the US National Security Council (NSC), who called on President Mahinda Rajapaksa yesterday. If this is so, we wonder why the US doesn't expel Rudrakumaran from USA?

The V – Day is not merely an occasion to celebrate the country’s unique achievement in defeating the LTTE but a national event which would mark Sri Lanka’s liberation from the clutches of terrorism, Defence Spokesman cum Media Minister Keheliya Rambukwella said yesterday.

The two rounds of talks between the European Union (EU) and the Sri Lanka delegation led by the Attorney General held in Brussels in March and May had served as a useful confidence building measure, in a relationship which had been affected largely on account of the differing perceptions over the years regards the ramifications of Sri Lanka’s continued struggle with the LTTE, Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to Belgium, Luxembourg and the EU Ravinatha Aryasinha said.

The NGO Secretariat which was previously operated under the Social Services Ministry and thereafter the Internal Affairs Ministry now comes under the purview of the Defence Ministry, following the new Parliament taking office.

BBC, or the British Broadcasting Corporation is renowned for their deliberate and biased misrepresentation of facts and events during its history of news reporting.... apparently the reporters and editors of BBC seem to have a knack for deliberately misinforming the events without due diligence. During the last decade, the reports and news items carried by the BBC in the mass media including its official news web, are ample proof of the unethical, unprofessional and conscious misrepresentation of facts and events across the world. A closer view shows that the news items are always more or less biased towards the attitudes of the reporter or the editor.

New Delhi: A Sri Lankan Tamil minister who accompanied President Mahinda Rajapaksa to India says the Tamil diaspora's refusal to give up the Tamil Eelam dream is only hurting his community.

Chennai,. Suspected pro-Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) elements blasted railway tracks at Perani railway station in Villupuram district in the wee hours of yesterday.

Should Sri Lanka surrender to the political machinations of partisan international agencies posing as defenders of human rights or should Sri Lanka ignore them totally and go ahead with its own Lessons to Learn and Reconciliation Commission?

There is one important thing that the 30-year war taught us. When we rely on our ingenuity, our strengths, our determination, ourselves, we can triumph. If not, we get into the inguru-deela-miris-ganna trap (exchanging ginger for chillie). We have to be the best Sri Lanka that we can be. We can get there. We have done it. We can do it again.

Sri Lanka and China signed six agreements to enhance co-operation in the fields of technology, industry, information technology and construction at the Prime Minister’s Office yesterday.

A regional workshop on Counter Terrorism was concluded in Colombo Thursday. Participants at the workshop included police and prosecutors from all eight member States of the South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation (SAARC) - Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

Chinese state-owned telecommunication service provider ZTE Corporation says it would set up a US$ 500,000 training facility in Sri Lanka.

The BBC "Hard Talk" programme is exposed for what it is: a device to insult politicians and officials from third world countries to make the interview look important and knowledgeable. The writer states the brand of journalism practiced by the Hard Talk interviewer as a "Cousin to the Jerry Springer Show"

Asoka Weerasinghe writing on the music of M.I.A. whose songs glorify the Tamil Tigers, says "What is depressing about MIA is that she is mouthing off in her lyrics about her supposed to be suffering Tamil people in the North of Sri Lanka’s while snacking on olive bread, eating truffle-flavoured French fries and sipping glasses of wine with millions of dollars stashed away in her bank account, and not sending a single penny to improve the quality of life of the people whom she pretends to care about. That is hypocrisy in my eyes.."

With its reputation and share price already in tatters, there is now speculation that BP's debt status on global markets could be in for a downgrade.

Sri Lanka must not depend solely on borrowings to build the country. It must also encourage foreign countries to set up their businesses here in the nature of collaborations, former Malaysian Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad said.

The time is more than ripe for the Third World to act. The balance of economic power is shifting strongly to the East and the Non-aligned and progressive-minded are in a strong position to realign the balance of forces within the principal organs of the UN, such as the Security Council. What is urgently needed is a strong, united stand among the world’s weak. They need to seize the moment

India is pushing Sri Lanka around demanding trade and political advantages. "What is required is not for us to quarrel over unseen ghosts, but unite with the powerful China, and all other Asian countries, the rising giant, against the neo–colonialist West who is the common enemy for the last 500 years" says former DIG Gamini Gunawardane

The people of this country were indeed proud to have a President who was able to withstand pressure brought by western nations for a negotiated settlement with the LTTE during the last stages of the war. They would now like their President to tell India that Sri Lanka is an independent and sovereign nation that will formulate its constitutional and political reforms based on the will of the people and not based on dictates from India or any other country.

BEIJING — If anyone ever doubted it, a testy exchange at a Singapore conference last weekend made it clear: Relations between the American and Chinese militaries are in a very deep freeze.

A three day workshop for police officers and prosecutors in South Asia on effectively countering terrorism, with the support of UN Counter Terrorism, began on Tuesday at the Cinnamon Grand Hotel, Colombo. The following article deals with the background of this workshop and issues being discussed.

COLOMBO -- With the completion of the Presidential and Parliamentary electoral processes, Sri Lanka's attention now focuses on stabilizing its peace process; ensuring ethnic reconciliation, national integration and required constitutional changes; rehabilitation; and consolidation of conditions for enhanced all-island infrastructure and economic development. The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) which had caused much death, destruction, disorder and despair has been neutralized.

I urge all Sri Lankans who left the country years ago, to come and explore and employ Sri Lankans and offer transfer of technology and this is the only way you can help your fellow citizens.

Yet also last week, the United Nations issued a scathing report demanding that the CIA stop using drones and declaring that agency officials involved in targeted killings of terrorists such as Yazid may be in legal jeopardy. The U.N. special rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions questioned whether the United States was engaged in an "armed conflict" outside of the war zones of Iraq and Afghanistan, and declared that, outside the "exceptional circumstance" of such an armed conflict, "killings by the CIA would constitute extrajudicial executions assuming that they do not comply with human rights law. If so, they must be investigated and prosecuted by the U.S. and the State in which the wrongful killing occurred."

Disturbing new questions have been raised about the role of doctors and other medical professionals in helping the Central Intelligence Agency subject terrorism suspects to harsh treatment, abuse and torture. When it concerns the US these violations of human rights go unnoticed and are swept under the carpet.

the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) formulated in 1998 without taking Sri Lanka’s needs into consideration under former President Chandrika Kumaratunga, resulted in the agreement becoming a one-sided document. Among the fears is the possibility of Indians grabbing jobs that should really go Sri Lankans in many areas of the business development sector since it is understood that Delhi wants Indian companies to be given contracts in Indian-funded development projects in Sri Lanka

Trust me, and together we can find a solution to the problems faced by all our people, President Mahinda Rajapaksa told representatives of the Tamil political parties when they met him at his office in the Presidential Secretariat last evening (June 07). The President had meetings with members of the EPDP led by Minister Douglas Devananda and the TNA led by R. Sampanthan, MP.

Separatist groups in the Indian portion of Kashmir called a general strike Monday as the Indian prime minister began a two-day visit to review development work and the security situation in the embattled region.

Robert Blake outlines his views on South Asian relations and how the US views this in an interview with Narayan Lakshman of the Hindu

It looks as if the LTTE is now a menace in the UK. The British High Commissioner in Sri Lanka in a meeting with the Prime Minister D.M. Jayaratne reported that Britain is continuously prosecuting those who were raising funds on behalf of the LTTE and would continue to ban the LTTE as a terrorist outfit.

Six months after the hurricane devastated Haiti, the UN has still been unable to set up proper transitional shelters for the millions who were made homeless in disaster, creating a humanitarian crisis that the UN is unable to overcome. Yet, no one is ready to acknowledge the efficiency displayed by Sri Lanka in providing food, shelter, medicines and other necessities, even when more than the estimated number of displaced persons were saved from the LTTE.

Israel will reject a proposed international commission to investigate its deadly raid on a Gaza aid flotilla, its ambassador to the US has said.

Speaking at the House of Lords debate on the Queen’s Speech last week, he said the UK government should not punish Sri Lanka by suspending GSP plus as it will hit over one million civilians, mainly women. He asked the government to be vigilant of Tamil Diaspora activities in the UK specially the activities of Global Tamil Forum as no one wants a situation in Sri Lanka like Northern Ireland or Cyprus, at one time.

Two pro-LTTE activists were arrested in Paris on Friday following the death of Ramesh Sivarupan who is believed to be a member of the Ruthrakumar faction of the LTTE, according to informed sources.

OPEN LETTER to Jamie Metzl, Exec Vice-President of Asia Society & Sharmila Silva( pseudonym is a leading Sri Lanka public figure) on their article Sri Lanka’s false dawn of June 3, 2010.

Malinda Seneviratne points out that for all India's vaunted "Development" and "Progress" and "Wealth" the highest malnutrition, infant deaths and illiteracy rates are in India, even beating sub Saharan Africa in some respects. When President Mahinda Rajapakse visits India, he should take them blueprints in managing these areas.

We are honest Canadians so let us reflect that honesty by not making politically popular statements about Sri Lanka that do not reflect her contemporary developments when discussing with our international partners.

Israel is not the face of Jews who are known as a peace-loving community all over the world. Israel may have corrupted the society but it has not replaced its value system. Let us not allow Israel blacken or brutalize the face of Jews. They have proud traditions.

President Mahinda Rajapaksa yesterday invited Indian investors to explore the abundant opportunities for investment in Sri Lanka addressing the joint India Sri Lanka Business Forum to coincide with the IIFa Awards Weekend, in Colombo. The event was organised by the Indian and Sri Lankan Chambers of Commerce.

But Pillay and Arbour are aghast like Radhika Coomaraswamy that the West had failed to impose its will on Sri Lanka.. The West moved a resolution at the Human Rights Commission in Geneva to censure Sri Lanka for violations of human rights in the last stages of the Vadukoddai War and Dr. Dayan Jayatilleka not only defeated it but tabled a counter-resolution congratulating Sri Lanka which was passed by an over-whelming majority. This was a slap in the face of the anti-Sri Lankan lobby led by Arbour, Pillay and Coomaraswamy.

SEOUL, South Korea — When Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama of Japan abruptly stepped down Wednesday, largely for his failure to move an American air base off Okinawa, he was essentially admitting he had not won popular support for a prominent campaign pledge: ending Japan’s postwar dependence on the United States for its security.

WASHINGTON — A senior United Nations official said on Wednesday that the growing use of armed drones by the United States to kill terrorism suspects was undermining global constraints on the use of military force. He warned that the American example would lead to a chaotic world as the new weapons technology inevitably spread.

The United States says that India would be a "central part" in any consideration of reform at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and that Washington is deeply committed to the rise of India as a global power.

Clearly, the ground situation demands a more realistic approach to evaluate the unexpected and the massive human rights situation faced by the Sri Lankan government in the last days of the war. Prof. Peiris publicly appealed for space and time to handle the crisis with domestic solutions. Hillary Clinton warmly accepted this principle. It was a triumph for Prof. Peiris’ diplomatic skills. It is a clear signal to Ban Ki-Moon not rush into places where angels fear to tread.

When Israel attacks an unarmed aid ship, the ICG, the AI, Navy Pillai and Ban Ki Moon are in deep slumber, says Malinda Seneviratne

The U.S. is not dragging almost every nation in Africa into its military network because of altruism or concerns for the security of the continent's people. AFRICOM's function is that of every predatory military power. The threat and use of armed violence to gain economic and geopolitical advantages

In the name of tens of thousands of Sinhala,Tamil,Muslim and other civilians including the members of the armed forces who sacrificed their lives, Sri Lanka should move urgently to ban the separatists movements and confiscate their funds etc. A stich in time,it is said, saves nine!

WASHINGTON, Jun 1, 2010 (IPS) - Israel's lethal confrontation with pro-Palestinian activists in the Mediterranean is complicating U.S. strategy toward Iran and undermining the likelihood of a solid sanctions victory at the United Nations.

WASHINGTON — A senior United Nations official is expected to call on the United States next week to stop Central Intelligence Agency drone strikes against people suspected of belonging to Al Qaeda, complicating the Obama administration’s growing reliance on that tactic in Pakistan.

These one time child soldiers who have now received a fresh lease of life should be afforded the proper guidance to make the optimum use of their new lease of life and be productive citizens who will be assets to the nation.

The pressure to erode further the concept of national sovereignty and assume a universal jurisdiction continues apace. The danger to the global South has deepened because many Western donors now operate through NGOs. Such funding is not freely given, saying do what you will with it. They must have agendas and conditions attached to them such. He who pays the piper must surely call the tune. Neo-colonialism comes in many forms, sometimes covered with the fig leaf of humanitarian concern.

Attorney General Mohan Peiris responding to the statement made by High Commissioner of Human Rights Navanetham Pillay at the 14th session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on May 31 said that Sri Lankan Government was of the view that the High Commissioner regretfully seeks to prejudge the outcome of the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission even before the mechanism has begun its work.

The detractors of Sri Lanka’s victory over terror were bowled over in Washington DC last week as Prof G L Peiris nailed for good the disparaging canard about war crimes built on flawed thinking that mistook brutality of terror with the just war to end it. The maligning groups were held at bay as External Affairs Minister took them to task. Fending off the conniving groups was no easy task.

Asoka Weerasinghe writes to Navy Pillai about her persistent attempts to have Sri Lanka investigated for Human Rights violations, while she totally ignores the culpability of Pro LTTE NGOs who helped the LTTE in the carnage they created in Sri Lanka

Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa says despite annihilation of the LTTE’s conventional military capacity, the Navy will have to be further strengthened to meet any eventuality. The Navy alongside the intelligence services, he says should be the first line of defence to thwart a fresh LTTE threat.

Sri Lanka's past history speaks of the greatness this country achieved in many areas: religious, agricultural, military, cultural and even in health and medicine. Florence Nightingale step back, Sri Lanka pioneered the nursing profession with nurses even travelling overseas to tend to those wounded in battle.

Tension prevails at Pariyaram-Koranpeedika near Ezhom here following violent clashes between CPM and Muslim League workers on Saturday.

Politicians and Civil society representatives yesterday voiced their anger over the UN Human Rights Commissioner Navy Pillay ‘s request to set up an accountability mechanism to investigate into the Human Rights situation in Sri Lanka.

We cannot dictate terms to any nation similarly no foreign nation should dictate terms to Sri Lanka. To build our nation, we now need to focus on core areas needed to create sustainable development. We now expect better and wiser governance from a Government that has been given a clear mandate that now spells the need for action that matches the type of action taken to eliminate the LTTE for which the people showered gratitude at the resoluteness of the Government – that same resoluteness must prevail in future as well. India needs to be firmly told that there is a limit to its interference in Sri Lanka.

The Japanese Government has expressed its satisfaction on Sri Lanka's development process. The Japanese Ambassador to Sri Lanka Konio Takahashi expressed these views at an official meeting with Prime Minister D.M. Jayaratne held at the Prime Minister's Office last evening.

May 28, 2010 (LPAC)—In testimony provided both in Congress and in separate hearings conducted in Louisianna by the Minerals Management Service (MMS) and U.S. Coast Guard, the criminal negligence of British Petroleum has been fully documented.

Ahmedabad After brutal murder of Vijay Datania by group of Muslims in Shahpur area, communal riot today spread to nearby areas of wall city in Ahmedabad

"...it is India that is now and will forever be, in debt to Sri Lanka for the damage caused to our People and our property by terrorists nurtured, trained and armed by the Government of India, with at least the full and complete knowledge that those terrorists would use the skills imparted and weaponry gifted to them by India to murder our citizens and destroy our property on our soil." S.L. Gunesekera

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will Thursday make a major speech at the Brookings Institution, laying out diplomatic and military aspects of the strategy and national security advisor James Jones was due to weigh in later.

It is important to understand, ... that resolution of grievances (through devolution or in some other manner, as made ‘appropriate’ by grievance-dimension) must go hand-in-hand with ‘constitutionalism, the rule of law, the establishment of independent institutions and a firm resolve to promote and protect human rights and equality’, not just to placate minority anxiety but in creating the conditions conducive to a wholesome citizenry.

I/NGOs screamed for a ‘truth and reconciliation commission’. They forget that when they ask for truth, the relevant seeking-body could theoretically turn flash-light on them.... The how and why of the CFA (which contributed, it has been cogently argued, to accentuating the horrors of the war and multiplying the related destruction) will expose the role of these I/NGOs. There are ‘truths’ there that these ladies and gentlemen really can’t afford to become public..

Athul Sethi' of the Times of India interviews President Mahinda Rajapakse and asks him about the War with the LTTE, relations with India and China and the President's favourite Hindi movie. My Name is Khan, which reveals the duplicity of the west who accuse Sri Lanka of Human rights violations while engaging in it in their own countries.

Economists are concerned Europe may send itself into a prolonged recession that could dampen growth across the globe, despite its trillion-dollar pledge to bankroll ailing European states.

At the height of the Vadukoddai War when Velupillai Prabhakaran was projected as the invincible Tamil by the NGO and anti-national pundits they collectively prophesied that the war cannot be won. After the war was won this same weird mob is now prophesying that the peace cannot be won.

The LTTE, whose demand for a separate was based on myth, were adept at propaganda and they spread many other myths to inflate their aura. One of these was the invincibility of Prabakaran and inability of the Sri Lankan armed forces to ever defeat the LTTE. One year after the so-called impossible to win war was won, the US has lifted travel restrictions for its citizens to Sri Lanka.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Sri Lankan External Affairs Minister G.L. Peiris met Friday to discuss Sri Lanka's progress a year after it successfully concluded its conflict against the LTTE terrorist group. The two diplomats met afterward with reporters.

This article reveals that the 30 year war in Sri Lanka was a part of the plan to eventually form a separate country for all Tamils. Originally the aim was to create this "new Tamil Eelam" in Tamil Nadu, but quick action by Nehru who used the war with China to enact the necessart legislation outlawing any such move. Although thwarted by Nehru's move, the dream of a separate country is still very much alive in Tamil Nadu politics, which is why they supported the Tamil Tiger Terrorists in Sri Lanka.

The Western World welcomed Tamil refugees from Sri Lanka with open arms. Often those who entered countries like the UK, Canada, France, Germany and other countries, claiming asylum were not genuine refugees but agents of the Tamil Tigers. They repayed the "kindness" of their host countries by setting up scams to make money to fill the coffers of the LTTE.

"We don't want Amnesty International telling us what to do. We will take it from the Security Council, (but) we will certainly not take it from Amnesty International. What is the moral authority of Amnesty International? We will read the International Crisis Group and Amnesty International's reports, we will listen to them. But we do not think that they have any coercive moral authority to tell us what to do."says Sri Lankan Foreign Minister G.L. Peiris

Phillip Alston was willing to compromise himself in order to "prove" that the video shown on Channel 4 was authentic and that the Sri Lankan armed forces were guilty of cold blooded murder. Rajiva Wijesinha exposes Alston's use of tampered evidence in his efforts blacken the Sri Lankans and his absolute bias against anybody who is Sri Lankan.

There are very real reasons for Pakistanis to be skeptical of the United States. It encouraged — and financed — jihadis waging a religious war against the Soviets in the 1980s, while supporting the military autocrat Mohammed Zia ul-Haq, who seeded Pakistan’s education system with Islamists.

Ira de Silva exposes the hypocrisy of the western governments and the media with regard to Sri Lanka in her response to an article on Sri Lanka publised in the Economist recently.

Sri Lanka’s External Affairs Minister Prof. G.L Peiris who is currently visiting the United States is expected to raise the issue of the LTTE backed Provisional Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam (PTGTE) when he meets officials from United Nations and the US government.

United Nations, May 24 (PTI) Sri Lanka today asked UN Chief Ban Ki-moon not to interfere in its internal affairs and not to go ahead with the probe into alleged war crimes by its army against the defeated LTTE, amidst an international clamour by rights groups for an independent inquiry.

The Global Financial Crisis is still plaguing Europe and the western world. Countries like Spain, Portugal, Greece and Iceland are in deep financial trouble. Germany has proposed a 1 Trillion Euro fund be set up to bail out these countries in a bid to prevent the crisis from spreading to other vulnerable states in the EU.

At a time when the US and Britain had discontinued weapons trading with South Africa — and when the UN General Assembly had requested its members to sever their political, educational, cultural, sporting and transportation links with what had come to be seen as a pariah state — Israel was keen to supply this evil white supremacist regime with nuclear weapons

Asoka Weerasinghe in an open letter dares Louise Arbour and the ICG to prosecute countries like India, Norway, Canada, the UK, US, France, Germany and Australia for being accomplices of the LTTE and aiding and abetting them in their war crimes and crimes against humanity carried out on the people of Sri Lanka.

An expose of those who are accusing the Sri Lanka government of War crimes and their intimate connection to terror groups like the LTTE and Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge. The US funding of Pol Pot's group with names of those who promoted and carried out the scheme makes one wonder how deeply was the US involved with the LTTE?

Ever since the war ended, haranguing of the government by external intruders such as the US, EU and the so-called INGOs, as well as the Colombo ‘kultur’ set on implementing the All Party Representative Conference (APRC) recommendations has not stopped. The push for devolution in Sri Lanka has its origins amongst the broader international forces with vested interests, and our neighbour India. The notion of devolution, raises the question as to whether a decentralised form of government is bound to hold secessionist forces in check or whether it will merely be a prelude to the break up of the state.Sri Lanka needs to rethink the sole dependence on devolution as the future and look for original solutions based on the specific issues involved on the ground.

It is well known that western firms will stoop to any level in order to win contracts from third world countries. It has been revealed in the media that "A Reserve Bank currency firm was willing to supply prostitutes and pay bribes to win contracts, according to a federal police witness. A federal police taskforce is investigating Securency for allegedly bribing government officials in countries including Nigeria, Malaysia and Vietnam.

Asia report titled ‘War Crimes in Sri Lanka’ carries the ICG seal of approval with a huge claim to be working through field-based analysis and high-level advocacy (listen to this!) to prevent and resolve deadly conflict. With all the impressive VVIP titles on its list of advisors (including Kofi Annan) the first question that comes to mind is: why is the ICG focusing with almost a demonic fervour on Sri Lanka, which has resolved its deadly conflict without the help of the ICG specialists on conflict resolution, when their field-based analyses have failed to resolve so many deadly conflicts (Iraq, Afghanistan, Somalia, Palestine, Sudan etc.) plaguing world peace and stability?

The anniversary of the defeat of the LTTE came earlier this week, and true to form the International Crisis Group (ICG) came out with its report on Sri Lanka and Channel 4 had another “exposure” of what is alleged to be war crimes and violations of International Humanitarian Law in the military operations to defeat the LTTE. Dr Palitha Kohona, Sri Lanka’s Permanent Representative at the UN, New York not only exposed the farce that was being presented as new evidence, but trained his guns on the attempt to discredit the new Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission.

I have often been disturbed by the expansionist posturing of some people in the USA. It’s all there in the language and it is so ‘goes without saying’ that I am convinced it ‘came without saying’ too. Their baseball final match up is called ‘The World Series’. They have a thing called ‘American League’ and the ‘National League’, implying that these are not just two categories but are not coterminous. In other words, ‘America’ does not mean ‘Nation’ or vice versa, as far as those who conjured up these terms and categories and those who use them uncritically are concerned.

Malinda Seneviratne argues "Minority grievances that can be substantiated and aspirations that are both reasonable and ‘doable’ do not require the kind of devolution provided for by the 13th Amendment. Demographically speaking, 53 per cent of Tamils live outside the North and East and therefore this doesn’t sort out any ‘minority issue’.

An initial response to the Liberal International on the ICG Report on Sri Lanka’s alleged offences committed during the last stages of the war against terror.

This week we commemorate and reminisce soberly a national event of heroic proportions. For starters, it is no partisan triumphalism but an inescapable need to expunge the last vestiges of the ghastly terror tactics and cold-blooded child recruitment practices of a terror era. We are affirming the need for vigilance that ensures the co-existence of communities striving to live together as one nation

Neville Ladduwahetty's book "Sri Lanka's National Question - A Collection of Articles" is currently out on the shelves at Vijitha Yapa and other bookstores.It is also available for purchase on the Web at Amazon. It addresses various issues such as Homeland and Self - Determination, Tamil Nationalism, Federalism and Devolution, Territorial Integrity, and Central Power Sharing, etc., that have arisen regarding Sri Lanka's national question. The articles are collated from analyses made at the time each aspect arose, and which were published mainly in 'The Island' newspaper. It is hoped that having them together in a single volume will serve well as a useful reference. Since all author proceeds from the sales of the book will go to the Rana Viru Seva Authority (see Dedication below), we encourage you to buy it!

"An audacious gun, grenade and suicide attack on the largest NATO base in Afghanistan sparked hours of battles Wednesday, killing an American contract worker and 11 militants." reports The Age

While preparing to close the notorious U.S. prison at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, President Barack Obama appears to be supporting the expansion of another secretive prison in Afghanistan, according to reports.

It is a year since the war ended. There are things we should remember. Things we should never forget. The sacrifice. The dedication. The overwhelming resolve of all the players in this national endeavour, big and small, those with known names and those who will remain known only by the near and dear, the soldier, the sailor, the airman, the police officer, the personnel in the civil defence unit, the tireless government servant, the scribe, the diplomat, the politician, the doctor, engineer, the man who changed the tyre, the alert citizen and the indignant scholar who raved against the anti-intellectualism that was buttressing the separatist ideology. Everyone, everyone....the victims of terror, their loved ones, the victims caught in crossfire, the victims slaughtered in anger and anguish by irresponsible troops.

It was the Vadukoddai resolution that caused the wholesale destruction of the Tamils of Sri Lanka. The word Tamil became synonymous with terrorism, so much so, that the Duke of Edinborough once asked a Sri Lankan Tamil Hindu Priest in the Kovil in London, whether he was a Tamil Tiger Terrorist. One year after the Sri Lankan armed forces defeated the LTTE terrorists, the adherents of the myth spawned at Vaddukodai are still trying to divide Sri Lanka. This SPUR media release calls upon " the true friends of Sri Lanka in the international community will no doubt come forward to play an effective role in supporting the momentous changes taking place in this strategically located island nation in South Asia".

Sovereignty entails a responsibility to protect its citizens from atrocities inflicted by terrorism; it is a prime responsibility of a State and its objectivity has been achieved but sadly ICG fails to note that the people are reaping the benefits. ICG is attempting to aggravate rather than heal the wounds of a war and is trying to create fresh divisions that are quietly receding to the background and endeavoring to bleed the country to death again, for which they suffer not, unlike the people. Understandably, ICG has to justify its existence and satisfy its masters and donors.

It appears that the media has been used by mischievous INGO officials bent on promoting the separatist cause. Rajiva Wijesinha writes about anti-Sri Lanka statements issued by ICRC officials to the media which were then covered up as being misquoted.

To hound the government of that puny island who had every right to defend its sovereignty against the most ruthless terrorists in the world, the Tamil Tigers, who had haemorrhaged that island nation for 30 years with the support of foreign countries in the west, and wanting to give back the right-to-life to its subjects is not right. says Asoka Weerasinghe in an open letter to ICG

President Mahinda Rajapaksa yesterday proposed that the G-15 worked very closely with the G-8 to promote constructive dialogue on all major aspects of development. He said a clear methodology needs to be worked out for this dialogue to be realistic and fruitful.

Investigations conducted by police in Kerala on Sri Lankan Tamils found living in suspicious circumstances have revealed that two other similar groups numbering 50 have already reached Australia.

Analyses show that allegations of war crimes against the armed forces and government of Sri Lanka were propagated by HRW and spread by TamilNet. A report issued by the US State Department refutes many of the allegations of deliberate targetting of hospitals and civilians by the armed forces.

The pundits are quick to blame Greece and the other weaker European economies (Portugal, Italy, Ireland, Spain) for their problems. Although they did - like most of the world - have excesses such as asset bubbles during the boom years, they didn’t cause the world recession that sent their deficits skyrocketing. Most importantly, the real problem now is that the EU/IMF is still offering them the medieval medicine of bleeding the patient. Until that changes, expect a lot more trouble ahead.

Rajiva Wijesinha says "Europeans ... have never themselves suffered any sanction for the crimes they committed against Jews or Palestinians or anyone else.

The desperate appeal made by the extremist Tamils experimenting on genesis of a 'Transnational Government': proxy spring board for a mono-ethnic state - Eelam, was ridiculed with lack of support from an overwhelming expatriate Tamil population of 940,000 worldwide. According to finalized reports released by LTTE propaganda cells overseas, a mere 90,866 Tamils have pledged support for separatism, while an astonishing Tamil diaspora base of over 90.34% defied voting in favor.

The following is the full text of the paper to be presented by Dr. Edward Perera at the podium discussion organized by the Amnesty International, Germany to belittle the productive activities of the GOSL in the post war period. The above discussion is to be held today at Technical University, Berlin.

H.L.D. Mahindapala writes about Radhika Coomaraswamy's assistance to separate Sri Lanka in multiple ways from defending the activities of the terrorist LTTE to attempting to foist R2P.

“We are open for business, we have investments from all parts of the globe and we welcome them.” -- Gov. Cabraal. Ajith Nivard Cabraal, Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, met with representatives of Coca Cola, Marriott Hotels and U.S. Chamber of Commerce members here Wednesday to expand foreign investment in Sri Lanka.

Gothabaya Rajapakse says of the victory "This is not a celebration of the President, the Armed Forces, the govt., a political party or of one particular community; this is a celebration for every Sri Lankan"

Asoka Weerasinghe writes to members of the Canadian Parliament "the write-up on ‘Canadian Tamil Congress holds May Remembrance inside Canadian Parliament on May 11th 2010’, with photographs of you all as attendees, the only ones that I recognized, at this event. It was mentioned that, “In total, more than 30 Members of Parliament and Senators attended this memorial”. “The Dignitaries joined in the Red Ribbon Campaign by wearing red ribbons to remember the bloodshed.” I only hope that you made it certain that those ribbons weren’t soaked in Sinhalese and Muslim blood that the Tamil Tigers were able to shed in buckets full during the 27 year war. According to the UN the Tamil Tigers were recognized as the most ruthless terrorists in the world."

The Indian Government on Friday extended the ban on LTTE by another two years following intelligence reports that remnants of the Sri Lankan Tamil terror outfit were trying to re-group in Tamil Nadu.

H.L.D. Mahindapala writes about Radhika Coomaraswamy, Reggie Siriwardhane and English Literature.

Rajiva Wijesinha describes the peculiar protectiveness Radhika Coomaraswamy displayed with regard to Rama Mani and the lengths she went to to ensure Ms Mani was succeeded her as the Executive Director of ICES

TThe resounding majority of the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) at the 2010 Parliamentary election exceeded the expectations of many. For a party to win a second term with a majority significantly more than it did in the previous one means the electorate was endorsing its past performance and was strengthening its hand for better performance during the ensuing term.

Asoka Weerasinghe writes to the defeated conservative parliamentary candidate Rachel Joyce whose election campaign consisted of vilifying Sri Lanka.

THE name Gandamak means little in the West today. Yet this small Afghan village was once famous for the catastrophe that took place there during the First Anglo-Afghan War in January 1842, arguably the greatest humiliation ever suffered by a Western army in the East

Shootings of Afghan civilians by American and NATO convoys and at military checkpoints have spiked sharply this year, becoming the leading cause of combined civilian deaths and injuries at the hands of Western forces, American officials say.

An international rights group yesterday called Sri Lanka’s planned review of its final battle against Tamil Tiger rebels a smokescreen to avoid accountability for alleged war crimes.

Fourteen countries including Libya will run unopposed for seats on the United Nations Human Rights Council this week, a prospect that was denounced by rights groups on Monday for some of the candidates' dubious human rights records.

Thirty governments around the world will soon be approached by Transparency International (TI) and members of the Freedom of Information Advocates Network as well as the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) to give information on what they have done to combat bribery.

There is a striking asymmetry between the new political and economic world order that has been emerging from the South over the last five years and the relative immobility of the international system of information, which only partially reflects the major transformations of our age, writes Mario Lubetkin, director-general of the Inter Press Service (IPS) news agency.

Now that the 30-year war is over and the country returns to normal, it is time to take stock of what went wrong and apply the necessary remedies so that never again would the country go through such a traumatic experience.

The Obama administration’s decision to seek a new way forward in United States-Burma relations recognises that decades of trying to isolate Burma (Myanmar) in order to change the behaviour of its government have achieved little.

A Commission to be appointed by President Mahinda Rajapaksa will probe violations if any, of internationally accepted norms of conduct during the final stages of the conflict in Sri Lanka and the circumstances that may have led to such actions, and identify any persons or groups responsible for such acts.

An article in the Sri Lankan English media on April 26 by Radhika Coomaraswamy refers to the idea of Responsibility to Protect (R2P) being promoted by the United States (US) at the United Nations (UN) forums as ‘a natural humanitarian impulse’. The purpose of this article is to argue that the R2P is just another pretext to justify neocolonialist attempts to intervene in the domestic affairs of developing countries, and to draw attention to what Coomaraswamy refers to as an ‘international conversation’ the International Centre for Ethnic Studies (ICES) wanted to be part of.

The idea of Responsibility to Protect (R2P) promoted by the US and UN forums is just another pretext to justify neocolonialist attempts to intervene in the domestic affairs of developing countries. Outside the UN, INGOs and NGOs sustained the issue through their own campaigns with generous financial help from Western Governments.

A Sri Lankan LTTE financier in Canada is expected to plead guilty next week in a Canadian court and will then be sentenced, the Canadian media reported. The Sri Lankan man, who is the first man charged under Canada's anti-terrorism financing law, is expeted to plead guilty next Tuesday, the Vancouver Sun reported.

Defence Secretary Rajapaksa says the LTTE rump is exploring every avenue to avenge Prabhakaran’s killing on the banks of the Nanthikadal lagoon last May.

The first person charged under Canada's anti-terrorism financing law is expected to plead guilty next week.

The writer discusses the whys, wherefores and methods used by human smugglers to move their illicit cargo of human from one place to another, the funding arrangements and how governments should equip themselves to combat this.

Rajiva Wijesinha exposes Radhika Coomaraswamy's attempts to whitewash her actions in attmp;ting to get international interference into Sri Lanka under the guise of the R2P concept

The world is going through a period where crossborder terrorism has become the number one concern of world leaders and UN, being all encompassing World Body is expected to play a vital part in helping the world to overcome that menace. Yet the UN Secretary General Ban Ki=Moon is ready to act against Sri Lanka on an "allegation based on accounts of Tamilnet, the propaganda arm of the LTTE and apart from this there are no independent reports that blame for such excess on Security Forces"

A letter written by Dr. Mohamed Saleem to Minister Champika Ranawaka "...reflects is a philosophy of reaching out beyond the confines of ethnicity. It is an act of faith and confidence in the hidden goodness of our people.

Pakiasothy Saravanamuttu and Jehan Perera are distraught that Professor Tissa Vitharana has not been given a Ministry. Malinda Seneviratne wonders at the Professor's sudden popularity among the pro LTTE lobby

The establishment of the transnational government is a farce because even though they are trying to distance themselves from the LTTE by supposedly taking the democratic path, the are still using the money that the LTTE collected from the Tamils by force instead of using that money more productively to help rebuild the lives of the Tamils living in Sri Lanka shattered by the LTTE. The writer< Henri-Marie Stendahl says:"Until this transnational Government cuts all its strings to the terrorist LTTE, until all their assets are laid open, until there is a really new set of believable figures standing in for the rights of Tamils in Sri Lanka, this vote and this utopian government in the eyes of the world will be known as the foul flavored farce it is. Rudrakumaran with his new utopia of a "transnational Government" is about proving that he and his kin are very far away from the reality of the Tamils living a life without war in Sri Lanka. What these people after 30 years of hardship most certainly do not need now is being duped again by their own people who lead a live in vast luxury far, far away."

Now it is upto the Tamil people to really decide if they want a separate homeland or not. If they do, perhaps it is a better option to start off in Tamil Nadu. it is rather quaint to accept a separate homeland theme when over 50% of Tamils actually live amongst the Sinhalese out of their own choice too. Which is why the people must say a firm NO to all political parties that have an “ethnic” tag to their name and ensure that these parties do not have any clout or public support whatsoever. Having a few political parties it is far easier for the people to ensure that their will prevails.The future of Sri Lanka is and will always be in the hands of the public and now that good times can be looked forward to, it is upto the people to think and act wisely.

The people have given a mandate to the President and the government to develop the country. If a country is to develop the government should invest in the human capital or in other words, in the population of the country by providing education and training that is geared towards developing a population that is capable of engaging in sustainable development.

Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa said yesterday the Government has initiated a massive intelligence operation to eliminate the international LTTE network.

The Sri Lanka government is considering reviving the upper house or Senate, abolished in 1971 prior to Sri Lanka becoming a Republic.

SAARC leaders emphasised the need to undertake studies to develop regional energy projects, promote regional power trade, efficiency, conservation and development of labeling and standardization of appliances, and sharing of knowledge and technologies, according to the declaration.

Mr. Mahindapala exposes Radhika Coomaraswamy's covert actions to save the LTTE from defeat by invoking the R2P concept.

The Canadian Tamils for Peace and Democracy (CaTpad) calls on the Sri Lankan Diasporas to unite worldwide to fight against the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam (TGTE) created by the Terrorist Tamil Tigers

I am downright livid that SAARC doesn’t see fit to include the presence of non-regional armies within the region a concern serious enough to be included in the agenda. We are talking about a situation where fraternal citizens are being killed in their hundreds by a bunch of incompetent thugs whose pay-masters lie through their teeth at every turn. We are talking about non-combatants being killed regularly. We are talking about half a million people being turned into IDPs. We are talking about regional instability. We are talking about resource extraction. We are talking about Uncle Sam’s thirst for oil. We are talking about terrorism, US-style.

The story of Sivaram in the context of the Sri Lankan war is an interesting, but only marginally significant sideline. What is important to record historically is that Sivaram was not the man some in the media believed he was!

In the speech made by His Excellency, President Mahinda Rajapakse of Sri Lanka at the SAARC conference in Bhutan, he advocated that the member countries should develop mechanisms and structures to enable SAARC to achieve its full potential by being your own benefactor.,

Intervention in sovereign states on grounds of Responsibility to Protect (R2P) citizens against grave risk underscores action after the event and not before. Since the objective is to prevent HR violations, the IC should consider prevention of HR violations as an obligation because of their responsibility for the root causes of current conflicts. An Obligation to Prevent (O2P) concept would enable the sovereignty of states as well as the safety of citizens to be better protected. This is best achieved by fellow Democracies banding themselves together to strengthen legitimate democratic governments in dealing with the capabilities of entities such as the LTTE, to commit HR violations.

Malinda Seneviratne comments on Jehan Pereira's article whining about Tissa Vitarana not being given a ministerial post

The level of approval of the United Nations by the man in the street is at the lowest level ever, only comparable to the level of approval of the United States.

The United Nations has sought permission from the Sri Lankan government to facilitate a visit by UN Under Secretary General for Political Affairs Lynn Pascoe mid next month to discuss the developments in Sri Lanka.

Rajiva Wijesinha discusses the shennanigans practised by those in the ICES and various UN bodies in cahoots with the British government to bring Sri Lanka into the dock to answer human rights violations charges.

The death of Sivaram in April 2005 elicited an inordinately high level of mourning from amongst the English speaking urbanites of Sri Lanka, foreign meddlers with vested interests led by a group of American Anthropologists, and the LTTE. The foreigners and the LTTE, especially the semiliterate Prabhakaran appeared to show a suspicious level of intimacy with Sivaram’s ‘work’.The purpose of this article is to report the result of a detailed investigation in to what Sivaram represented, by undertaking a ‘forensic analysis’ of the journalistic contributions on which he seems to have been granted accolades as an expert in a number of academic, political, military and allied fields; the objective of the exercise is to critically evaluate the man’s role in the context of Sri Lanka’s thirty year war. His life and personal background will come in to purview of this examination to the extent it is needed for the task.

The collapse of the fiat money system is underway and each day picks up momentum. The only question is how long it can survive? In the interim we are faced with inflation and perhaps hyperinflation as the privately owned Federal Reserve and other central banks add stimulus and money and credit into their financial systems.

Aliens may exist but mankind should avoid contact with them as the consequences could be devastating, British scientist Stephen Hawking warned on Sunday.

The involvement of Bollywood legend Amitabh Bachchan in the International Indian Film Academy’s (IIFA) film festival in Sri Lanka in June this year has evoked strong protests from the Tamil film industry and that of some political parties and pro-Sri Lankan Tamil groups in the southern Tamilnadu state

A high-level delegation led by President Mahinda Rajapaksa will attend the summit, where he is scheduled to meet Iranian President Ahamadinejad on the sidelines of the meeting for bilateral talks aimed at strengthening ties between the two countries.

Using statistics of population figures, the writer proves that the voter turn out at the general and presidential elections have been unprecedently high.

The IMF says Asia would lead the global economic recovery, growing at pace much faster than advanced economies, however, low income countries would grow at a much slower rate compared to the economic giants in the region, China and India.

"A lie if repreated often enough, is perpetuated as the truth" is a saying we have often heard. The lies the western media applies to reports on Sri Lanka, especially the one about the "discrimination" against the Tamils is one such, says the writer.