Day: 19 January 2015

Sri Lanka’s New Regime Have To Modernise Its Style

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By C P Thiagarajah – The man in the limelight today is Maitripala Sirisena (MS) a son of a World War II army veteran and a settler in Polonaruwa in a five acre plot given under the colonisation scheme inaugurated by the first prime minister of Ceylon Mr D S Senanayake. He is a giant killer, a modern David who slayed the giant Goliath Rajapaksa. His role as the new President will be watched by the world. Already politicians, diplomats, kings and queens shower their well wishes. Also flowing in…

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Gota’s hidden house and truths exposed !

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(Lanka-e-News- 17.Jan.2015, 11.50PM) On the 15 th evening at a secret house belonging to Sri Lanka’s ex criminal defense secretary located at the end of 4 th lane , Pengiriwatte road , Embuldeniya murky and suspicious activities including transport of goods have taken place. Gotabaya has to hand over the official residence he is now in ,hence it is learnt that Gotabaya is supposedly transporting the household goods to this house which is in the name of his mother in law (wife’s mother) where he will be living in the…

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India to keep close eye on PM’s ‘serious’ statement

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Indian Union Minister Venkaiah Naidu replying to a question on Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe’s remarks on offering more autonomy to Tamils in the island nation, he said it was a ‘serious’ statement and the NDA Government had taken note of it, the News X agency reprorted. “It is a very serious statement and we have taken note of it. We have age old relationship with Sri Lanka and we want to continue our relationship”, he said. After the victory of Maithripala Sirisena in the recent Presidential polls, Wickramasinghe…

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Government to offer more autonomy to the North

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The government is to present a constitutional amendment titled ‘13th Amendment Plus’ to grant more provincial autonomy to the North to address the grievances of the Tamils after the end of the war against terror, a Minister and former militant leader, said last week. Minister of Social Services and Social Welfare Douglas Devananda, also leader of the Eelam People’s Democratic Party (EPDP), said that an All Party Representative Committee is finalizing proposals, including necessary constitutional amendments, to address grievances of the Tamils. “We refer to this as ‘13th Amendment Plus’,…

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Sri Lankan winners to receive young leadership award from the Queen

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Kavindya Thennakoon and Thejitha Saubhagya Edirisinghe from Sri Lanka are among 60 young people from across the Commonwealth who are being recognised as exceptional leaders in their community. These 60 young people are the first ever to receive a prestigious Queen’s Young Leaders Award.  The Award, which will be presented in London by Her Majesty The Queen in June, and is part of The Queen’s Young Leaders Programme, celebrates the achievements of young people who are taking the lead to transform the lives of others and make a lasting difference…

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For China, its ties with Sri Lanka give it a foothold near crucial sea lanes in the Indian Ocean

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BY Harsh V. Pant teaches in the Defense Studies Department at King’s College London. In a stunning blow to President Mahinda Rajapaksa, Sri Lankan voters opted for his former colleague Maithripala Sirisena to end a decade-long regime that has been increasingly marked by allegations of nepotism, corruption and authoritarianism. Rajapaksa, after defeating the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Elam (LTTE), had won an overwhelming mandate for himself and his party in the 2010 elections. The LTTE had been fighting since 1983 for an independent homeland for minority ethnic Tamils after decades…

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Basil in LA; bustle over missing baggage

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A purported photograph of former Economic Development Minister Basil Rajapaksa arriving at the Los Angeles International Airport together with his wife Pushpa went viral on websites. Its veracity has not been confirmed. However, what many did not know is what went on after the couple came out of an Emirates flight and went to collect their luggage. Four suitcases which had been checked in at the Bandaranaike International Airport did not arrive. They had to leave the LA International airport with only their hand luggage. So, the first thing Mr.…

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Rajapaksa’s surprise

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There were two striking developments after voters in Sri Lanka went to the polls on Jan. 8 to select their president. First, the incumbent, Mahinda Rajapaksa, lost. To the surprise of virtually every poll watcher, he was ousted by former Health Minister Maithripala Sirisena. Second, and perhaps even more surprising, Rajapaksa handed over power when the results become clear, rather than clinging to office, democracy be damned. The fights are not over, however. Rajapaksa still holds considerable power in Parliament and he is likely to use that as a base…

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Lessons from the previous regime

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Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s defeat at the presidential election was not a surprise as the contest was always too close to call since the advent of President Maithripala Sirisena as the opposing candidate. Yet, it has left many asking the question ‘what went wrong?’ A simplistic explanation has been offered: Rajapaksa lost the election due to the vote against him in the North and East. The former President himself emerged from his Tangalle residence and told crowds that President Sirisena won because of “Eelam votes”. That though is not quite…

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Insight: Indian spy’s role alleged in Sri Lankan president’s election defeat

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(Reuters) – Sri Lanka expelled the Colombo station chief of India’s spy agency in the run-up to this month’s presidential election, political and intelligence sources said, accusing him of helping the opposition oust President Mahinda Rajapaksa. An Indian foreign ministry spokesman denied any expulsion and said that transfers were routine decisions. Rajapaksa, voted out of office in the Jan 8 election, told Reuters he did not know all the facts while the new government in Colombo has said it is aware of the reports but cannot confirm them. But several…

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Possible Suspect Of Military Coup Probe Mahinda Balasuriya Sneaks Out Of Country

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Former Secretary of the Ministry of Law and Order and Former IGP Former IGP and Law and Order Ministry Secretary Mahinda Balasuriya has left for Abu Dhabi this morning, airport sources confirmed. Balasuriya is likely to be a possible suspect in the investigations with regard to the attempted coup on the election night. It has come to the limelight that Balasuriya had attended a suspicious meeting on January 07 with several senior Army officials and two senior-most Police officers in the Department. Balasuriya, reportedly, was the person who invited the…

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19th Amendment expected to sail smooth

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President Sirisena’s 100-Day program With Parliament set to meet on Tuesday (January 20) for the first time since the conclusion of the presidential election, the process of abolishing the ‘authoritarian’ executive presidential system, one of the main campaign pledges of President Maithripala Sirisena, is set to commence this week. “All the commissions which existed under the former government acted according to the whims and fancies of the former President. He exploited the powers given to him under the executive Presidency. Therefore the commissions were never able to deliver the expected…

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India, Sri Lanka pledge to build better ties

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New Delhi, Jan 18 (IANS) Nine days after President Maithripala Sirisena took office, Sri Lanka and India Sunday pledged to deepen their relations, with New Delhi agreeing to work “closely and extensively” with Colombo. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj conveyed India’s views to her new Sri Lankan counterpart Mangala Samaraweera, who arrived here overnight on his first foreign trip after Sirisena came to power Jan 9. In three hours of extensive discussions, Sushma Swaraj and Samaraweera covered all issues including enhancing bilateral cooperation and political reconciliation efforts in Sri Lanka.…

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India, Sri Lanka fishermen’s association meeting proposed for long term goals: MEA

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New Delhi, Jan. 18 (ANI): The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Sunday stated that a meeting of the fisherman associations of India and Sri Lanka has been proposed in order to work out a long term solution with regards to this issue, adding that the matter needs to be dealt with in a humane manner. “It is proposed to have a meeting of the fishermen’s associations of the two countries at an early date to discuss how to address longer term goal in this regard. Both India and Sri…

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US lauds steps taken by new Lankan government

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Lauding the steps taken by the new Sri Lankan government, the US has said it looks  forward to to work with the administration of newly elected President Maithripala Sirisena. “Our expectations from the new government are the expectations of the Sri Lankan people. We simply want to support the new government in fulfilling its campaign pledges to the Sri Lankan people,” Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Nisha Desai Biswal said. “We are extremely heartened by the steps that they have taken in these early days. We…

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