Protests at jailing of Sri Lankan leader

AAP | Yahoo News
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Thousands of protesters marched through the streets of Sri Lanka's capital on Monday, demanding the release of ex-army chief and opposition leader Sarath Fonseka who is serving a 30-month jail term.

Activists led by Fonseka's Democratic National Alliance (DNA) and his wife Anoma marched to the maximum security Welikada prison in Colombo, witnesses said. They were dressed in black as a sign of protest.

"End this cruel vendetta," said a placard carried by those leading the march.

It was the biggest protest since Fonseka began his prison sentence on September 30 after a military court martial found him guilty of irregular procurements when he was the head of the army.

"This is an effort to bring justice to our wronged war hero," DNP legislator Tiran Alles said.

Fonseka has accused the government of seeking revenge for his decision to stand against the president at January polls.

Fonseka, 59, was initially hailed as a national hero the military victory over Tamil Tiger rebels that ended nearly 40 years of ethnic war in the Indian ocean island republic.

However, he fell out with his commander-in-chief President Mahinda Rajapakse soon after defeating the guerrillas. He was arrested shortly after losing the presidential polls, but won a seat at April parliamentary elections.

A fresh legal battle has erupted over whether Fonseka can remain an MP following his jailing by a military court.

The former top commander was being held in virtual solitary confinement and had to sleep on the floor in a mosquito-infested cell, but he was not prepared to seek clemency, Anoma Fonseka has said.

The government has maintained that it would consider a presidential pardon if Fonseka or an immediate family member made an appeal on his behalf.

The Tigers' defeat ended nearly 40 years of separatist conflict in Sri Lanka but rights groups, led by Amnesty International, say thousands of civilians were also killed in the final onslaught.

Fonseka was stripped of his rank and pension following another court martial that found him guilty in August of dabbling in politics while in uniform.

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Sri Lanka Tamil Tiger spokesman 'missing after arrest'

BBC News
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Two prominent Tamil Tiger leaders in Sri Lanka are missing after arrest by the army last year, their wives have told a presidential commission.

LTTE spokesman Rasiah Ilantherian and head of the Tiger intelligence wing in Batticaloa, Prabha have not been seen since being detained, they said.

The two wives were among hundreds of Tamil and Muslims testifying to the panel in Batticaloa, eastern Sri Lanka.

Many Tamil civilians complained about missing relatives.

The government has made no comment about these cases, but has previously rejected accusations of abductions by human rights groups.

The Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission has been conducting hearings over the weekend.

Punitharuban Vanitha, the wife of the Tamil Tiger spokesman Ilantherian said her husband was taken away by the army on 17 May 2009, just before the Tigers suffered their final defeat.

She was told, she said, that he would be returned after treatment for minor injuries. Ms Vanitha says that she has not seen her husband since then.

Bobitha Prabhaharan, the wife of Prabha, also said her husband was detained in May last year, and has heard nothing from him since.
Muslims' lands 'occupied'

Representatives of the Muslim community, meanwhile, told the panel that Muslims are yet to resettle in their ancestral lands as Tamils are still occupying it.

They warned of renewed conflicts if steps were not taken to give back land captured by the Tamils during the conflict.

The panel was appointed by President Mahinda Rajapaksa to investigate events from 2002 to end of the conflict in May last year, and recommend measures for reconciliation.

Critics, however, have questioned the credibility of the investigation and whether its report would ever be published.

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Sri Lanka: US trade delegation to visit Jaffna

Photo courtesy: Rose Tuttle | Foreign Policy

By Franklin R. Satyapalan | The Island
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The 50-member US delegation participating in the US – Sri Lanka Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) talks are expected to visit Jaffna on Tuesday (12, government sources said yesterday.

Governor of the Northern Province Maj. Gen. (Retd) G. A. Chandrasiri said the visiting US business delegation will be ceremonially welcomed by Minister Douglas Devananda, District Secretary Mrs Emelda Sukumar and the Mayoress of Jaffna in the Jaffna peninsula.

The delegation would visit many areas in the North and hold talks with the Jaffna Chamber of Commerce as well as many others to discuss emerging investment opportunities in the Northern province, he said.

Governor Chandrasiri said the US delegates will explore investment opportunities in the spheres of agriculture and livestock, eco- tourism, hotel industry, trade and other allied industries

Meanwhile, the Indian Minister for External Affairs Shri S. M. Krishna is scheduled to visit the Northern province on Friday, October 29 to ceremonially inaugurate the relaying of the railway lines by the Government of India from Omanthai to Palai and Madhu to Talaimannar under the first phase of this project .

At the request of President Mahinda Rajapaksa, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) had come forward to provide a loan for the Iranamadu Tank water supply project to supply water to the residents of the Jaffna district as well to the Pooneryn area.

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Indian Naval ships in Sri Lanka

By B. Muralidhar Reddy | The Hindu
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Four Indian naval ships — INS “Tir”, INS “Shardul”, INS Tarangini and ICGS “Varuna” — arrived in Sri Lanka on Saturday for training and exercises with the Sri Lankan Navy.

While INS “Tir”, INS “Shardul” and ICGS “Varuna” arrived at the port of Trincomalee, INS Tarangini arrived at the port of Colombo.

The ships were ceremonially welcomed in accordance with naval traditions and are scheduled to stay till October 15.

A special programme has been arranged for the group of 160 Indian Naval officer cadets while 150 officer under trainees from Naval & Maritime Academy—Trincomalee are scheduled to board the ships for a session of training.

A statement by the Sri Lankan Navy said the crew of the Indian ships is expected to participate in a series of special training programmes organised to enhance the relationship between the two neighbouring navies.

Loan scheme

Separately, it has been announced that a special loan scheme is introduced for the rehabilitated ex-combatants of the LTTE.

According to the Commissioner of Rehabilitation Sudantha Ranasinghe, the Ministry of Rehabilitation has set up a centre for the purpose at Vavuniya Government Agent Office.

Loans will be provided up to a maximum of Rs. 250,000 for any livelihood project proposals submitted by them. “This is not only for the ex combatant, even the IDPs who have been resettled can apply for this” Said Brigadier Ranasinghe.

Of the 11,696 detenus held at the conclusion of the war in May last year, over 4,000 LTTE cadres had been released in batches following rehabilitation.

Several ex-combatants including child soldiers were released to their parents by the government. These ex-combatants, mostly the adolescent children, were provided with vocational training while some other school going children were helped to complete their secondary education. Some 500 rehabilitated ex-child soldiers sat for the GCE A/L examination in August 2010.

According to the Commissioner, once a business proposal is submitted the loan facility will be granted at an interest rate of 4 per cent through state banks.

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Three children raped daily in Sri Lanka

The Sunday Times
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At least three children are raped in Sri Lanka each day, indicating that the incidence of sexual assault of minors is escalating.

Statistics available at Police Headquarters reveal that 480 cases of child rape were reported between January and June this year, while 925 such cases were reported last year. An officer at Police HQ said Ratnapura district had the country’s highest number of child rape cases – 79 in 2009, and 47 in the first six months of this year.

Most of the victims lived on tea estates, in line rooms, where sexual molestation of underage children is not uncommon. Families on tea estates often marry off daughters who are underage. Last year, at least 55 and 53 child rape cases were reported from Kegalle and Anuradhapura respectively, and 46 cases were reported from Tangalle in the first six months of this year.

During the chena cultivation season, farmer parents in Anuradhapura district go out to work in the fields, leaving their children alone at home and exposed to danger.

“A lack of parental care, attention and supervision is one major reason children get sexually abused, and in most cases the wrongdoer is a close relative of the victim,” the Police officer said. “Going by the number of cases reported to the Police, it would seem that girls in the 14-to-16 age group are becoming regular targets for rape.”

The officer added that the number of rape cases that go unreported may be much greater than the number that gets reported.

Meanwhile, according to the Police officer, sex is becoming common practice among schoolchildren in Colombo, who said that easy access to pornography on the Internet was a contributing factor.

© The Sunday Times

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