Xinhua-ANI | Newstrack India
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The main minority Tamil political party in Sri Lanka said on Tuesday that moves aimed at reaching a political solution to the ethnic issue in the country remained deadlocked.
Tamil National Alliance (TNA) legislator M.A. Sumanthiran told Xinhua that his party leader R. Sampanthan and the leader of the main opposition United National Party (UNP) Ranil Wickremesinghe had met over the weekend in an attempt to look for a way forward.
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By Melani Manel Perera | Asia News
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They live in the jungle, on the ground without a roof or a tent over their heads, surrounded by elephants, snakes and other wildlife. There are 145 families, 285 Tamil Catholics from the village of Mullikulam in Mannar District (Northern Province, Sri Lanka).
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Presented by Sen Lam | Radio Australia
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Three years after the end of Sri Lanka's civil war, child advocates say the ongoing heavy military presence in the former conflict zones, especially the north, continues to traumatise children.
Sri Lanka's military defeated the Tamil Tiger rebels three years ago, and the UN children's agency UNICEF has described as 'remarkable' the progress made in child health and education.
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By Dr. G. K. Nathan | South Asia Analysis Group
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Looking at our immediate neighbor India and other countries like Canada, Belgium and Switzerland with multilingual, multiethnic and multireligious groups show that there are ways forward to find a constitutional structure to achieve equality and peace by recognizing the differences. All these countries have resolved the differences between communities internally, led by leaders who considered that the integrity of the country is paramount; the majority respected the minority wishes and granted equal rights to all citizens and settled the differences amicably.
Examples of good governance are demonstrated in India and Canada, where they have had as head of the government or as a head of the country people of different ethnic backgrounds which strengthened the integrity of the country. Another evolving and working example is in the United Kingdom, where three ethnic groups Irish, Scottish and Welsh people have their separate governments, soon Scotland will hold a referendum among their people whether they should be an Independent country or not, which demonstrates maturity of the country which is the birth place of modern parliamentary democracy.
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Photo courtesy: jaffnachallengers
By Dr. P. Saravanamuttu | Groundviews
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Two contrasting insights into reconciliation were on display in the last ten days – one in the field of sports and the other in the field of politics. The former relates to the Carlton Super Seven Rugby Tournament and the latter to the ITAK or Federal Party convention in Batticaloa. The significance of the latter is of course beyond dispute given that it was the party convention of the major party in the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) and the speech made by its leader R.Sampanthan has been the subject of columns, editorials and dire conclusions on what it portends for the fate of the nation-state of Sri Lanka. The former may seem trivial by contrast – a sporting event, even tamasha, that attracted the attention of few.
Sporting events though have their role to play in reconciliation and are replete with political significance and purpose. The Carlton Super Seven Rugby Tournament was no exception. Joint winners of the tournament was a team called the Jaffna Challengers captained by a young naval officer who also happens to be a son of the President of the republic.
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Tamil Net
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The Sri Lankan Police in Jaffna on Monday blocked a protest that gained momentum receiving wider participation against the occupying SL military's land grab in the peninsula. As hundreds of activists gathered in front of the Jaffna Bus Stand, the SL Police appealed to the Judge of the District Court stating that the Police had information that 'destructive elements' were about to use the protest to disturb normalcy in the city and blocked the protest at last minute.
The protest, initiated by the Tamil National Peoples Front (TNPF) and attended by the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), Mano Ganesan's Democratic Peoples Front (DPF) and the leftist parties from the South as well the support it received from the Jaffna University Students Union (JUSU) and the trade unions including the teachers trade union, marked the protest as first of its kind in the post-war scenario in the peninsula.
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By Rathindra Kuruwita | Lakbima News
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It would be seem redundant to reiterate that the exploitation of mineral resources in any country would impact on its economy. There are many examples from around the world – from the Island of Nauru to the African Continent where unplanned and unregulated mining activity has spelt doom for the countries concerned.
Those who have successfully managed the long term exploitation of mineral resources, i.e. Germany and the USA have done so through careful regulation and planning which have served to prolong the sustainability of their resources as well as minimize ecological degradation.
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By Damith Wickremasekara | The Sunday Times
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The Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) charged yesterday that Friday’s attack on a party meeting in the Hambantota village of Hediwatte was a direct attempt by the Government to scare the party from engaging in political activity in the district.
Ten men on motorcycles, some carrying automatic rifles, attacked the JVP meeting, killing two and injuring four, all active members of the party JVP frontliner Vijitha Herath said that after opening fire into the air, the gunmen fired into a group who were being addressed by Western Provincial Council member Nalinda Jayatissa.
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AFP | Haveeru
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Sri Lanka is seeking fresh help from the International Monetary Fund after drawing down a previous $2.6-billion bailout, a top IMF official said Friday.
John Nelmes, head of an IMF mission to the Indian Ocean country, said Colombo wanted more assistance as it emerges from a decades-long civil war, but declined to say how much was being sought.
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Meenakshi Ganguly | Hindustan Times
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'After 30 years we now see the dawn that will take us to a golden age of the future,' declared Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa as he presided over the third Victory Day celebration on May 20. Over 12,000 personnel participated in the parade of military and police equipment used to defeat the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in 2009 after a three-decade long war.
A golden future will need more than triumphalist statements of victory. The cost of the war to Sri Lankan society was huge. More than 100,000 civilians died in the long conflict and nearly 40,000 in the final months. According to the government, over 24,000 Sri Lankan soldiers lost their lives and many more were wounded or maimed. Over half a million Sri Lankans were forced to flee their homes, either because of the fighting or ethnic cleansing. Many more moved to other countries, including India.
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