'LTTE trying to engineer govt's fall'

In a bid to bring down the Sri Lankan government, Tamil Tigers have asked a pro-rebel political alliance to be present in full strength on Monday in Parliament to defeat the budget proposals for 2008 as a key aide to President Mahinda Rajapakse said the option to ban the LTTE was still open.

"We have got information that the LTTE representatives have called on the TNA (Tamil National Alliance) to return from wherever they are and be present in Parliament tomorrow to defeat the budget with the aim of bringing down the government," a top government official said seeking anonymity.

When contacted, senior TNA member Suresh Premachandran said it was not true and in fact the group, which has 22 MPs, had taken a decision to vote against the budget one month ago.

Premachandran made it clear that the TNA will vote against the Sri Lankan budget proposals for 2008 that will come up for clearance tomorrow.

"No sensible Tamil person will support the budget which has increased the defence allocation to 166.4 billion Sri Lankan Rupees, up almost 20 per cent as against last year," he said, adding "this was only to fight the LTTE."

Meanwhile, some senior political leaders said the TNA may after all not get all its MPs for a showdown and may restrict its members to vote against the budgetary proposals in Parliament.

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http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/001200711181541.htm

Rajapaksa to face toughest political test on Monday

The Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa rode to power in December 2005 on a surging wave of Sinhala majoritarian nationalism. He went on to prove his credentials as a tough cookie when he took the Tamil Tigers head-on and drove them out of the Eastern province in 2006-7.

But by year end, on the eve of the voting on the annual budget, he finds himself on a shaky political wicket in his own turf, the Sinhala-dominiated South Sri Lanka.

The budget for the year 2008 is to come up for voting on Monday, and Rajapaksa is not at all certain if it will get even the simple majority which is required.

This is because of internal dissensions, opposition from those who had been supporting the government from outside, and lack of a firm
commitment from alliance partners themselves.

As per the Sri Lankan constitution, defeat of the budget need not necessarily mean the exit of the government or the dissolution of parliament, because the budget can be presented again by the same government or any other government which the President may cobble together.

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http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/StoryPage.aspx?id=

Congress takes on Karunanidhi over ode to LTTE leader

The Congress Saturday implicitly criticised Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi over his ode to a slain Sri Lankan Tamil Tiger leader, saying it was bound to hurt the sentiments of party members.

In a clear reference to a poem Karunanidhi wrote in memory of S.P. Thamilchelvan, the Congress said that the 'sentiments of all Congress men and women are bound to get hurt if the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) is eulogised in any manner'.

Thamilchelvan, the LTTE political wing leader, was killed in a bombing raid by the Sri Lanka Air Force in the island's north Nov 2.

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http://www.indiaenews.com/politics/20071117/81112.htm

Mission in Eritrea to isolate LTTE

Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama on Wednesday moved the Cabinet to approve a Sri Lanka mission in Eritrea, as a precaution against the LTTE claiming Unilateral Declaration of Independence (UDI).
Political circles are agog with the news that the LTTE might declare UDI by end November and Minister Bogollagama is of the view that Eritrea would recognise them as a separate entity, since they have maintained close links with the LTTE.

It is said that Eritrea has been on the list of main arms suppliers for the LTTE. Eritrea declared independence from Ethiopia in mid 90s.

The Cabinet, looking at the urgency, had approved the proposal on a priority basis.
The government had already delayed the setting up of two other missions in Afghanistan and Madagascar.

Extracted from,
http://www.nation.lk/2007/11/18/news3.htm

President sent us a letter, but we need only action - JVP

President Mahinda Rajapaksa had sent us a letter inviting us to discuss four conditions laid down by our party to support the budget. But we do not want negotiations. We need only action.

The President still has time to change his mind and agree for our conditions, JVP leader Somawansa Amarasinghe said addressing a packed media conference in Colombo.

Extracted from,
http://www.dailymirror.lk/2007/11/17/news/13.asp

LTTE suicide squads targeting President in Colombo: MP

A 20-member suicide squad of the Tamil Tigers has intruded into the capital and are planning to kill President Mahinda Rajapaksa and ten union ministers, an MP warned on Thursday.

"A 20 member LTTE suicide cadre is in Colombo targeting President Mahinda Rajapakse, his three brothers (holding important posts in the government) and ten ministers and steps needed to be taken to enhance security in the capital," United National Party MP Mahinda Ratnatillake who defected to the ruling United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) said.

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http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/001200711152123.htm

LTTE collects $ 30 million a month, says Lanka

The Sri Lankan government said on Friday that the LTTE had been collecting up to $30 million a month from Sri Lankan Tamil expatriates across the globe.

Praising the US Treasury for freezing the assets of the LTTE front – Tamil Rehabilitation Organisation (TRO), the Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama told parliament that Sri Lanka could now expect a "significant decline" in the collections of the LTTE world wide which ranged from $ 20 million to $30 million per month.

The US government had become the "first foreign government to take tangible action against an LTTE front organization," Bogollagama said.

Could assume new guises

But the minister warned that eternal vigilance was necessary because the LTTE had become an expert in circumventing curbs and bans.

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http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/StoryPage.aspx?id=

Nokia’s fight against fakes: a first in Sri Lanka

SMS verifications used to protect IPR

Softlogic, Sri Lanka’s sole agent for mobile phone manufacturer Nokia has created history in the country by being the first to introduce a system to protect Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) via SMS technology whereby constomers can differentiate genuine phones from fakes.

Explaining this revolutionary system to the Daily Financial Times, Softlogic’s Assistant Marketing Manager Nirasha Croos Moraes said, “It’s a very simple solution.

We have got a sticker with a coded number pasted on our products. The customer has to just scratch it and SMS the number to 4656 to verify if their phone is a fake or a genuine one. A reply will be then sent confirming the genuineness of the server.”

She however noted that they were disappointed with the response received so far, as this facility is currently available to only Dialog customers.

“We have not got the expected results so far. The response has been slow with only 0.2% of the people verifying the genuineness.

Read more,
http://www.dailymirror.lk/2007/11/16/ft/14.asp

Army ambushes LTTE vehicle; LTTE's artillery expert killed -Wanni

Sri Lanka army elite units yesterday (November 13) killed LTTE's In Charge for heavy weapons in a surprise attack conducted in the North of Palampiddi area, said the defence sources.

The sources further said that the senior terrorist leader Pullawar Annan alias Thuiyyawan Master and four others were killed when the soldiers ambushed their vehicle movement around 4 last evening.

A senior defence official speaking to defence.lk said that the soldiers had acquired the target with precise intelligence obtained through very reliable sources . He further said that the loss of Tuiyywan Master would have severe impact on the terrorist outfit since he was known to be the most experienced person in heavy weapons such as heavy mortars and artillery guns.

Extract from,
http://defence.lk/new.asp?fname=20071114_05

More Crossovers in Sri Lankan Politic; Wijedasa Rajapaksa Goes to Opposition

National list MP of government, MP Wijedasa Rajapaksa crossed over to the opposition today (14) morning at the parliament.

He crossed over amid cheers of opposition MPs. after making a special statement.

Rajapaksa was the Chairman of the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE), had earlier accused seniors of the government of blocking investigations into COPE findings.

Wijedasa Rajapaksa was also a senior member and a legal adviser of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP).

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http://news.nidahasa.com/news.php?go=fullnews&newsid=386

LTTE chief’s days are numbered: air force chief

Sri Lankan Air Force chief, Air Marshal Roshan Goonatilleke has said the days of LTTE chief Velupillai Prabakaran are “numbered” and his force would “go all out to get rid” of him soon.

In an interview to the state run English weekly Sunday Observer, he said it was not a difficult task for the Air Force to get at Prabakaran as he was confined to a very limited area in Wanni.

“I do not think it is that difficult for us to get at him now. We will find him somehow soon. We need a great deal of patience,” he said. Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickremanayake told journalists days after the November 2 raid on Kilinochchi in which the LTTE political wing chief Thamilchelvam was killed, that the Air Force would hunt down senior leaders of the LTTE.

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http://www.hindu.com/2007/11/12/stories/2007111254151400.htm

Suspected LTTE men attack fishermen

Suspected LTTE rebels attacked Indian fishermen inside the country's territorial waters off Rameswaram coast and forcefully took away diesel from their boats early this morning, police officials said.

According to officials, the suspected militants carrying country-made weapons, approached around 20 fishermen fishing near Irana Thivu and Natchikuda in five boats, and demanded diesel.

Some of the fishermen who gave diesel stocked in their boats without showing any resistance, were paid by the armed men.

However, militants forcefully took away the diesel from fishermen who refused to give. In this attempt, they also injured one fisherman, Arokiam, by hitting him with a beer bottle.

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http://www.chennaionline.com/colnews/newsitem.asp?NEWSID

Marvan Atapattu gets his captain and coach's backing

Mahela Jayawardene joined Trevor Bayliss, Sri Lanka's coach, in support of Marvan Atapattu as the veteran opener faced an uncertain cricket future following an outburst in which he branded national selectors as 'a set up muppets headed by a joker'.

Atapattu's fate, whether he remains a member of the current Sri Lankan team in Australia, hinges on what action Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) takes over the remarks. The outburst came at the end of the third day's play of the first Test at Brisbane and has become the key topic of discussion in cricket circles ever since.

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http://content-usa.cricinfo.com/australia/content/story/319475.html

'Selectors are muppets headed by a joker' - Atapattu

Marvan Atapattu launched an astonishing attack on the Sri Lanka selectors, calling them a set of muppets headed by a joker and blaming them for the lack of bench strength in the side. His statements came at the end of the third day of the first Test against Australia at the Gabba, with Sri Lanka fighting to stave off a heavy defeat.

"Sri Lanka cricket at this moment of time is not going in the direction it should be going, especially with a set of muppets headed by a joker," Atapattu said at the end-of-day press conference. "I don't give credit to the way they have handled selections.

Read more,
http://content-usa.cricinfo.com/australia/content/current/story/319220.html