Troops enter strategic Thunukkai town

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SLRC

Army troops attached to the 57 Division yesterday entered the strategically important Thunukkai town, an alternative hideout of LTTE Leader Velupillai Prabhakaran in the Western flank of the Mullaitivu district, west of the Jaffna-Kandy A-9 road and are continuing search operation to flush out Tiger cadres, military sources told the Daily News last night.

"The fall of Thunukkai is imminent by Friday afternoon as troops are flushing out Tiger cadres," Army Commander Lt. Gen. Sarath Fonseka said. Meanwhile, military sources said that intermittent clashes erupted yesterday too with the LTTE, as troops entered this strategically important town to gain full control of it.

Sources said troops were poised for more clashes as LTTE was offering stiff resistance towards the advancing troops as they are on the verge of losing one of their strongholds in the Wanni.

Thunukkai is on the Mankulam-Vellankulam Road which connects the Jaffna-Kandy A-9 Road to the North Western coast. The capture of Thunukkai will mark a huge milestone in the Security Forces' efforts to liberate the entire North from LTTE clutches as it would be a giant leap towards reaching the Tiger heartland Kilinochchi.

Extracted from,
http://www.dailynews.lk/2008/08/22/news02.asp

Security Forces breach outer LTTE defences of Nachchikuda

Latest reports arriving from the Nachchikuda battlefront indicates that that troops of Task Force 01, fighting their way into the enemy territory on the Mannar- Poonaryn road (A-32) on the Kilinochchi southern front have reached the outer defences of Nachchikudha amid heavy resistance from the LTTE terrorists.

Troops have succeeded in taking control of a 1 km stretch of the earth hump made by the LTTE, located in the Vannerikkulam area, east of Nachchikudha, Ministry of Defence said on its website a while ago.

Fierce fighting throughout the day had resulted in 12 terrorists being killed and 15 wounded, according to intercepted LTTE radio transmissions.

Four soldiers were reported injured in the battle.

Extracted from,
http://www.news.lk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=6784&Itemid=44

You forgot something, Mr. Blake!

There is hardly any difference between an aid-dependent country and a house of ill fame. Both have to leave their doors ajar so that the rich and powerful could enter at will. They have to shut up and entertain the unspeakable moneybags so that they will be paid for the services rendered, whether they like it or not. Else, they run the risk of losing the easy dosh of shame and being branded sinners and stoned in public.

When States are reduced to the level of women of easy virtue, the first thing they lose is their sovereignty and dignity. They end up being, as a local saying goes, bananas without the skin pecked by every crow––ambassadorial or otherwise. They have no alternative but to grin and bear it.

It is reported that US Ambassador Robert Blake met the Elections Commissioner Dayananda Dissanayake on Wednesday. What they discussed has not been made public but it is said that the former stressed the importance of conducting free and fair elections in the North Central and Sabaragamuwa provinces. The Foreign Ministry tells us that their meeting has led to no breach of protocol. So be it! After all, this is not the first time such an unusual meeting has taken place.

In 2005, we had President Mahinda Rajapaksa visiting the then Indian High Commissioner Nirupama Rao at her residence for a meeting! Earlier, an Indian High Commissioner had kept the late President J. R. Jayewardene under his diplomatic thumb. J. N. Dixit was his name. A vice president of the World Bank once treated President Chandrika Kumaratunga to a long lecture on good governance at an aid meeting which the latter attended by throwing protocol to the wind.

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http://www.island.lk/2008/08/22/editorial.html

Special security measures adopted in Sri Lanka elections

The Sri Lankan Army would be deployed in all four administrative districts in the North Central and Sabaragamuva (south eastern) provincial council elections to be held on Saturday, according to election watchdog here Thursday.

The deputy chief of People's Action for Free and Fair Elections (PAFFREL) Rohana Hettiarachchi said that the Commissioner of Elections had assured them special security measures.

"The Commissioner said every possible step would be taken to ensure a free and fair poll. This would mean the deployment of the Army to ensure security and action to annul polling in any of polling station marred by violence or malpractice", Hettiarachchi said.

The election watchdog groups have blamed all major contesting parties for the breakdown of law and order in the areas.

The opposition groups have blamed the police for inaction which had led to the high level of violence.

The two snap elections are held to elect provincial councils for the two provinces for a five year period.

Analysts say the elections are meant to test the public approval of the Sri Lankan government's current military thrust against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels.

Extracted from,
http://calibre.mworld.com/m/m.w?lp=GetStory&id=318553381

Student shot dead at university in eastern Sri Lanka

A student belonging to the majority Sinhala community was shot dead at an university in predominantly Tamil minority eastern Sri Lanka by unidentified persons on Thursday night, military spokesman Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara said.

The student was identified as a 27-year-old first year business management student attached to the Vandaramullai University in Batticaloa, 240 kilometres east of the capital Colombo.

The spokesman said it was not clear as to who was responsible for the shooting or the motive for the killing.

The shooting came as students belonging to the majority Sinhala community who have been selected to attend the university staged a protest in the capital, refusing to register at the university because they claim it is not safe.

The students selected to go to the university are asking the government to allow them to register in other universities in the south which are located in predominantly Sinhala areas.

Extracted from,
http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/227302,student-shot-dead-at-university-in-eastern-sri-lanka.html

2-Sri Lanka-flagged ship sinks in Bay

A ship carrying more than 3,000 tonnes of rice from India sank near the outer anchorage of Bangladesh's Chittagong port on Wednesday, port officials said.

They said the Sri Lanka-flagged vessel Badulu Valley was in collision with an empty, anchored Chinese oil tanker called Heng Zhou, and sank in the Bay of Bengal during the afternoon.

Port officials had earlier said the vessel was carrying a Singapore flag.

Port officials had also earlier given the name of the vessel as M.V. Batulu but the agent for the ship later corrected this.

"The ship sank in the bay with its 17 crew on board," a port official said.

Tugboats from the port authority and the Bangladesh Navy rescued 16 crew members, he said, but the fate of the remaining member was unknown.

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SRI LANKA'S UNION ASSURANCE NET PROFIT UP 63 PCT

Sri Lanka's Union Assurance group June quarter net profit went up by 63 per cent, interim results released to the Colombo Stock Exchange showed.

Its after-tax profit rose to 49 million rupees (US$454,774) in the quarter from 30 million in the same period one year ago.

The firm's six month profits shot up 78 per cent to 90.3 million rupees.

Group revenue was up by 21 per cent to 1,368 million rupees during the three months ended June.

The gross written premium went up 14 per cent to 1,301 million while net written increased 11 per cent to 1,018 million rupees.

Union Assurance net claims and benefits for the 3-month period grew by 16 per cent to 821 million rupees.

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http://au.biz.yahoo.com/080821/17/1wq02.html

Sri Lanka eyes more travellers from the Middle East

A high level travel delegation from Sri Lanka, led by His Excellency Faizer Musthapha, Sri Lanka�s Deputy Minister of Tourism will target prominent countries in the Gulf including UAE and Qatar in a bid to attract increased leisure traffic. During the four-day visit between 24th and 27th August, HE Musthapha will meet large scale hospitality industry operators including tour operators and travel agencies.

�The Middle East is one of our major travel origin markets and in 2008 we have seen significant growth from this market. We are increasing our marketing and promotion drive by carrying out a year round campaign to increase our share of leisure visitors and further increase awareness about our country�s tourism attractions,� said HE Musthapha.

HE Mustapha�s visit denotes the importance Sri Lanka attaches to this market and its growth potential. Destination Sri Lanka recently reported a surge in tourist industry arrivals. The highest performer during the period was the Middle East, which registered an increase of 80.6% in comparison with 2007. HE Mustapha�s visit is expected to impact positively on the number of tourist arrivals from the Middle East.

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http://www.tmcnet.com/usubmit/2008/08/21/3612192.htm