Were Noyahr’s abductors trying to get a lead on his `sources’?

As Thursday’s abduction and torture of Keith Noyahr, Associate Editor of The Nation, drew widespread condemnation, Sunday Island inquiries revealed his tormentors had been taken him to Dompe and then brought him back to his Dehiwela residence after Rivira Media Corporation triggered a frantic search for him.

Well informed sources said the gang would have been after the identity of Noyahr’s ‘sources.’

The timely intervention of Lalith Alahakoon, Editor of The Nation and Krishantha Prasad Cooray,

CEO of the Rivira Media Corporation, had forced the government to search for the missing journalist. But his release, the sources said asserted would have been after the gang had established the identities of the target’s ‘sources.’

Now, they would be after his ‘sources,’ the sources said. Had not for their intervention, Noyahr would have been killed and dumped somewhere, the sources said.

A UK based businessman early this year bought a 49 per cent stake of Rivira Media Corporation which publishes ‘Rivira’, ‘The Nation’ and ‘Bottom Line’ newspapers. He is reported to have paid Rs. 100 million.

Read more,
http://www.island.lk/2008/05/25/news2.html

Another time bomb defused

A time bomb weighing 03 kg was detected in a COLOMBO - MORATUWA bus and defused by the Army bomb disposal unit today(24) around 8.45 p.m.

A woman passenger had noticed the suspicious parcel. The Army bomb disposal unit was informed and the parcel identified as a time bomb and defused.

The vigilance of the woman passenger had foiled the terrorists attempt and prevented a carnage.

News extracted from,
http://www.nationalsecurity.lk/fullnews.php?id=12692

Is it all that important to be seated on the UN Human Rights Council? USA & Israel doesn’t think so – why should Sri Lanka?

Desmond Tutu must be happy, so too must be Adolfo Perez Esquivel & former President Carter & perhaps many more of the human rights activists & NGOs that set in motion an international propaganda to project Sri Lanka as a nation in the grips of anarchy & urged member nations to reject Sri Lanka’s attempt to secure a re-election to the 47 member UN Human Rights Council.

But is this seat all that important? Why is the US & Israel not a member of it since they voted against the establishment of the UN Human Rights Council on 15th March 2006 & why did Venezuela abstain from voting citing that certain paragraphs paved the way for intervention in the internal affairs of States.

There are likely to be many interpretations of the denial of Sri Lanka to the UN Human Rights Council, of course in the world of diplomacy it may be considered a slap to the Sri Lankan Government & possibly a jolt to its ego internationally but then considering the countries that have secured election purely by the structure of the Council, it becomes questionable whether Sri Lanka should feel disheartened at all.

Sri Lanka presently being accused of atrocious human rights abuses must feel quite content for being omitted from a seat in view of the members having to uphold highest standards in the promotion & protection of “human rights” not to mention being subject to periodic review.

Read more,
http://www.sinhalaya.com/news/english/wmview.php?ArtID=15330

Terror bomb attack at civilians averted- Ganemulla

Sri Lanka Police Special Task Force (STF) bomb disposal team defused a time bomb weighing 1.25 kg this evening found in a public transport bus at Kossinna in Ganemulla (May 24) . According to the defence sources, the conductor of the bus who initially detected the ownerless parcel has thrown it out of the bus at a remote location. Then he has alerted the STF on the suspected parcel, the sources said.

The bomb was found in the bus that was due to leave Colombo from Parakandeniya. According to the sources, there were no passengers in the bus when the conductor detected the suspected parcel found under one of the passenger seats.

Extracted from,
http://www.defence.lk/new.asp?fname=20080524_03

No human rights organizations would be allowed in! – Govt. informs UNHRC

Sri Lanka has informed UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva that no human rights organizations would be allowed to investigate human rights situations in Sri Lanka here after.

The government has accused UNHRC for being a victim of incorrect information supplied by various voluntary organizations while the government was rigorously involved in safeguarding human rights in the country adding that the government would never give in to the demands of voluntary organizations that receive foreign funds to dismantle the work of the government.

Meanwhile, the government has decided to investigate the colossal sum of money received by voluntary organizations and how they are spent in this country. It has been revealed that a certain human rights organization has received a sum of $40 million.

Extracted from,
http://www.lankatruth.com/index.php?

Sri Lanka starts to build China-funded arts theater

Work on the construction of a performing arts theater funded by China commenced Friday in Sri Lankan capital Colombo with the participation of Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa and Chinese Ambassador to Sri Lanka Ye Dabo.

The project, which will be built on 2.18 acres of land, was finalized during Rajapaksa's official visit to China in 2007.

Sri Lankan officials said the theater will be equipped with ultra modern facilities such as an auditorium with 1,288 seats, parking facilities for 500 vehicles, library and training facilities for performing arts, and facilities to conduct educational and research activities.

The project is expected to be completed in 26 months.

Extracted from,
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-05/24/content_8239917.htm
Photo,
http://www.silumina.lk/2008/05/25/mainpic_1.jpg

PRO-LTTE REPORTS ON ATTACKS AGAINST CIVILIANS REFUTED

THE SRI LANKA ARMY flatly refutes and despises attempts of the pro-LTTE media to blame the Army over alleged explosions of claymore mines in un-cleared areas of Kilinochchi, targeting both an ambulance and a van during the course of the day (Friday,23rd, 2008). The areas alleged in those reports lie about 100 km away from the northern most Omanthai Entry/Exit point and defence lines under the government control in Vavuniya.

Those reports shamelessly claimed that an ambulance carrying an Assistant Director of the Fisheries Corporation, Mannar and a civilian was the target of the first claymore mine in Muzhangkaavil, Kilinochchi. Adding another dimension a few hours later, the same pro-LTTE mouthpiece alleged that one more van carrying sixteen civilians, including six children, four girls and two boys was attacked with a claymore mine at about 2.15 p.m. on Friday (23) in the same un-cleared Muzhangkaavil area while they all were allegedly returning from a hospital.

It is crystal clear that those LTTE reports have been attributed to the Army with a sinister move and the sheer intention of tarnishing the image of the Army unreservedly and also provoking the international community in order to win back the world sympathy for their lost cause. Many such reports carried in their media in the past provide ample evidence and examples to this effect. The Army categorically refuses such reports and appeals sensible readers to judge the motive behind such pro-LTTE allegations.

extracted from,
http://www.army.lk/morenews.php?id=13466

Dethroned for violations or...?

Sri Lanka has lost its seat in the United Nations Human Rights Committee (UNHRC) due mainly to a disrespecting of the world system, arrogance, complete lack of counter propaganda against LTTE and bungling and rantings by a group of theoreticians and technocrats.

International norms dealing with torture, disappearances, and political killings have emerged due mainly to the atrocities committed elsewhere. Human Rights groups, pioneered by the work of Amnesty International have used fact finding, consensus building, principled norm construction, norm application etc paving the way for HR standards and measures broadly described as 'principled norm emergence'.

In times of war, the principle Jus in Bello (Justice in War) is said to apply to regulate the conduct of military forces. The rules of warfare aim to safeguard human life and some other fundamental Human Rights, and to ensure that war is limited in its scope and level of violence. It is the premise that combatants have voluntarily forfeited some of their rights whilst civilians have not and carry at all times the full rights under the UN Charter.

Although international law suggests that the inhabitants of non-occupied territory, who take up arms on the approach of the enemy and resist the invading troops, even if they have not had time to organize themselves, count as armed forces, a guerrilla or insurgent force fighting mostly without uniforms are miles apart and cannot be easily distinguished from unarmed civilians.

Read more,
http://defencewire.blogspot.com/2008/05/dethroned-for-violations-or.html

President orders full investigation into attack on Keith Noyahr

President Mahinda Rajapaksa has directed IGP Victor Perera to launch a full investigation into the abduction and attack on senior journalist, Keith Noyahr who is the Deputy Editor of The Nation newspaper.

Noyahr went missing last night and his wife had lodged a complaint at the Dehiwala Police Station when his vehicle was found empty outside his house around 11.00 pm.
Noyahr had been released by his abductors early this morning (May 23) around 5.30 and had come home carrying severe injuries. He was hospitalized thereafter.

Police Spokesman N.K. Ilangakoon said that three police teams have been deployed to carrry out the investigation.

Extracted from,
http://www.news.lk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=5927&Itemid=44
Photos,
www.dailymirror.lk

Sri Lankan police impose curfew on Muslim town after 5 killed

Police imposed a curfew on a predominantly Muslim town in eastern Sri Lanka on Thursday after five people died in retaliatory killings.

Police spokesman N.K. Ilangakoon said the violence started when two men from a pro-government ethnic Tamil militia were shot to death in eastern Kattankudy town.

Later, men believed to be from the militia stormed the town and killed two Muslims and wounded four others, Ilangakoon said.

Police declared a curfew to prevent more violence, he said.

However, Dr. K. Murugananthan of the government hospital in nearby Batticaloa town said there were five bodies — three of them Muslims — in the morgue.

Read more,
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/05/22/asia/AS-GEN-Sri-Lanka-Violence.php

Political crisis in Lanka's Eastern Province ends

The political crisis in the newly-established Eastern Provincial Council ended on Thursday, when the dissident Muslim leader, MLA M Hisbullah, joined the government as Minister of Health, Youth and Women’s Affairs.

Hisbullah had threatened to walk out of the ruling United Peoples’ Freedom Alliance (UPFA) with two other councilors and reduce the government to a minority, if he was not made Chief Minister after the UPFA won the provincial elections on May 10.

But the head of the UPFA, President Mahinda Rajapaksa, stood firm on his decision to appoint TMVP leader Sivanesathurai Chandrakanthan, alias Pillayan, as the CM in order to help solve the long-standing Tamil problem.

Hisbullah was willing to reconsider his threat if he was offered important portfolios like Health, Education and Land, but Rajapaksa offered only Health and stuck to his stand. It is believed that Muslim religious leaders urged Hisbullah to accept the President’s offer and not precipitate a Muslim-Tamil communal problem.

Read more,
http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?

LTTE accused of continuing to recruit child soldiers

The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) continued to recruit and use children, despite repeated commitments not to do so, a global report on child soldiers released on Tuesday (May 20) said.

Child Soldiers Global Report 2008 published by the Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers, a non governmental organization based in London, UK said that the LTTE, which had recruited under-age fighters for many years, pledged on June 18 2007 to rid its ranks of all under-18s by the end of 2007.

Despite the pledges LTTE had not committed to the full release of children under 18, it said.

“The LTTE consistently denied that it knowingly recruited children and it claimed that children sought to join by disguising their age. However, there is overwhelming evidence of recruitment, often forced, throughout areas under LTTE control as well as from government-controlled areas in the north and east.

The recruitment of children typically followed a pattern of increased recruitment during the season of temple festivals and a fall during periods of international condemnation,” the report noted.

Read more,
http://www.colombopage.com/archive_08/May2242537JV.html

SLT upgrades bandwidth, announces IPVPN system for schools

Sri Lanka Telecom (SLT) has upgraded its international internet backbone network, which now has 2.2Gbps of international IP broadband capacity, and plans to upgrade to 3.5Gbps or more within a year, the company said in a statement. SLT claims that its ISP unit SLTnet has a 60% share of the country’s residential and business internet user market.

In another announcement, SLT says that its IPVPN solutions will connect schools island-wide to a new IP network, named SchoolNet, providing voice, video, broadband internet access, other network services and web hosting. A total of 1,100 schools are to be connected under the first phase of the project, with 5,000 schools to be on the network by 2010.

SchoolNet has been designed as a secure and fully managed system. SLT’s IPVPN technology will allow all establishments to access a centralised IT network at any given time, which will enable them to communicate with a Network Operations Centre (NOC), located at the University of Moratuwa.

Extracted from,
http://www.telegeography.com/cu/article.php?article_id=23237

Desmond Tutu criticised by Church of England cleric for his comments on Sri Lanka

A well-respected Church of England priest and a British citizen told Archbishop Desmond Tutu in a hard hitting letter that it was matter for utmost regret that the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) described as the “the most evil terrorist organization in the world” was possible to secure the Archbishop’s apparent support to denigrate Sri Lanka.

Rev. Tony de Alwis of the Church of England Diocese of Southwell and Nottingham replying about Tutu’s alleged campaign against the re-election of Sri Lanka to the UN Human Rights Council of the UN told the Archbishop that his action has become “a matter of the utmost regret that such an organization has found it possible to secure Your Grace’s apparent support in its unrelenting propaganda campaign to denigrate Sri Lanka on the international stage.”

Rev. De Alwis, an avowed campaigner against terrorism all over the world said that it had been a significant coup for the terrorists to be enabled to proclaim support for their demented cause from someone of the Archbishop’s undoubted stature and moral authority in the world.

So, he wondered in his letter whether Archbishop Tutu received information from independent sources or his sole source is the “very active cabal of supporters of this criminal organization, the LTTE, in South Africa. He said the unbalanced and unfair nature of his purported comments point to the latter. “If that is the case,” Rev. Alwis said, “then I wonder whether Your Grace would be open to learning the truth about Sri Lanka’s terrorist problem from less biased sources.”

Read more,
http://www.sinhalaya.com/news/english/wmview.php?ArtID=15311