Day: 30 May 2014

If Rajapaksa Regime Continues with Broken Promises and Intransigience the “Honeymoon”with New Modi Govt Will Not Last Long

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By Dharisha Bastians President Mahinda Rajapaksa may have metaphorically leapt into new Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s arms this week, but in the beginning there was Sonia Gandhi and Manmohan Singh. The Congress Party won Parliamentary elections in 2004, returning the Gandhi family dynasty to the helm of Indian politics after a hiatus of eight years and heralding a new dawn for Sri Lanka’s battle against terrorism. The change had come only three years after America had faced its own demons in the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Centre and…

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Going beyond 13 A: GTF

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Going beyond 13 A: GTF ponders what Modi’s message to Mahinda really meant By Shamindra Ferdinando The Global Tamil Forum (GTF) yesterday said that India should explain what 13th Amendment plus envisaged for Tamil speaking people in post-war Sri Lanka.   UK based GTF spokesperson, Suren Surendiran told The Island that the Diaspora grouping wanted to know what newly elected Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi really meant by going beyond the 13th Amendment to achieve national reconciliation fully and quickly. Surendiran was commenting on Premier Modi’s brief meeting with Sri…

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UK wants a political solution in Lanka

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Britain says it will continue to encourage the Sri Lankan government to respect human rights, promote meaningful reconciliation and agree to a political settlement with the Tamil and other opposition parties. The head of the political team at the British High Commission in Colombo, Daniel Painter, said in a blog posting that the British Government’s primary objective in Sri Lanka is to support the development of a stable and prosperous country, not simply because the Sri Lankan people deserve this, but also because it is in Britain’s national interest to…

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Sushma’s appointment a bonus for Sri Lanka

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She may not have made headlines in Sri Lanka yet but Sushma Swaraj, the first woman to be appointed as India’s Minister of External Affairs will be a key player in forging that country’s foreign policy towards Sri Lanka over the next few years.Swaraj was sworn in for the vital portfolio by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday and her appointment should be considered a bonus for Sri Lanka which must be relieved at the prospect of a strong government in New Delhi that does not have to bow to…

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Despite regime change – India’s policy on SL hasn’t changed

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India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, soon after being sworn in, had a meeting with President Mahinda Rajapaksa and spelt out his government’s policy on Sri Lanka.  The media quoted India’s Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh, as having said that Mr. Modi asked President Rajapaksa to expedite the reconciliation process in Sri Lanka.   Quoting the Prime Minister, she said the full implementation of the 13th Amendment or going beyond that would contribute to this process.While highlighting the need to strengthen the bilateral relations, the two leaders focused on the entire gamut of…

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We will NOT Implement the 13th Amendment

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Close on the heels of a meeting between newly elected Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Mahinda Rajapaksa in New Delhi, where the former called for early and full implementation of the 13th Amendment and to go beyond, the government yesterday said that it was only the Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) that could decide on the matter. The Tamil National Alliance has said that it has no faith in the proposed Parliamentary Select Committee and has not yet decided whether it will participate. “We have no confidence in the proposed Parliamentary…

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