The executive director of the Campaign for Free and Fair Elections has reiterated their call on the government to repeal the controversial Prvention of Terrorism Act, saying Sri Lanka can’t become a nation with a rule of law until it is abolished.

In a statement released on Monday, Rajith Keerthi Tennakoon said the Minister of Justice Wijedasa Rajapakshe stated that repealing the PTA is not a priority for the government, whenthe issue was raised by CaFFE.

Pointing out that the repeal of the act is likely to have support in parliament, the organisation said it believes “removal of the PTA should be in the agenda of the Parliament in the coming two months”.

“[Without] the removal of the PTA we can’t prevent a repeat of the tragedy because PTA leads to attacks on personal freedoms, including freedom of expression and association, which in turn leads to rebellion,” the statement further said.

UPFA MP Udaya Gammanpila says the TNA cannot be allowed to hold the opposition leader post, despite having more seats than the UPFA opposition, as it had worked against Sri Lanka.

“The TNA has a separatist agenda and they have been calling for an international war crimes probe which all parties are against. And they are a regional party, only representing the north and east of the country. So despite having more seats, it cannot be the main opposition,” Mr Gammanpila said.

“Tamils have been demanding an independent international investigation into the genocide of Tamils by the Sri Lankan armed forces. We have demanded that the forces deployed in the North and East of the island be withdrawn.”

The Sri Lankan navy thanked the Australian government for “capacity and capability enhancement” in a speech at the second day of the Defence Seminar, currently underway in Colombo.

Rear Admiral D.M.B Wettewa “underlined the importance of maritime security for the sake of national security concerns”, according to an official military website.

Addressing the audience, he went on to state:

“Thankfully, with the corporation and assistance by the Australian government on capacity and capability enhancement, we have been able to almost stop the Human Trafficking operations to Australia”.

Last month the Australian Federal Police (AFP) was accused of providing equipment and other assistance to the Sri Lankan Criminal Investigation Department (CID) to torture Tamil civilians.

The Northern Provincial Council passed a resolution calling for the formation of an international tribunal to try those alleged to have carried out mass atrocities on the island.

In a resolution that was unanimously passed earlier today, the NPC noted Sri Lanka’s “long and blighted history of human rights violations” which they had characterised as amounting to genocide.

“In this context, we the members of the Northern Provincial Council believe that the trial of the alleged perpetrators should not take place through any mechanism instituted by the Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) as a State also incurs responsibility for the acts of its agents,” the resolution said.

Further stating that no domestic law prescribes these international crimes and whether Sri Lanka’s constitution would allow foreign judges to be appointed to exercise jurisdiction, the NPC said,

“Under these circumstances, the trial of the perpetrators of international crimes by a domestic mechanism, would be a travesty of justice as it would amount to the potentially guilty Government trying its own agents, thereby violating the prohibition in the maxim nemo iudex in sua causa.”

The Sri Lankan navy has arrested 16 fishermen from Tamil Nadu and seized 3 boats, for allegedly breaching the maritime boundary and engaging in illegal poaching.

The fishermen, from Rameswaram, were reportedly apprehended by Delft Island and towed to the Jaffna coast.

The charges were however rejected by the Fishermen's Association President S Emiret, who said the fishermen were fishing in Indian waters off the Kodiakarai coast.

Meanwhile, in a separate incident, another group of Indian fisherman were injured after the Sri Lankan navy reportedly attacked them. About 20 fishing nets were damaged in the attack.

The National Freedom Front (NFF) slammed Sri Lanka’s co-operation with the United States and warned that those who fought against the LTTE would be brought before an international war crimes tribunal.

Colombo District MP and NFF spokesperson Wimal Weerawansa told The Island that Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe should not “adopt a course of action that could be inimical to national security interests”.

He went on to state that allegations of war crimes should be dealt with “without any external input”.

Sri Lanka’s defence secretary stated that despite the end of the island’s armed conflict over 6 years ago, the government “must remain vigilant about emerging threats”.

Defence Secretary B M U D Basnayake made his comments at the‘Defence Seminar – 2015’, on ‘National Security in the context of Emerging Global Threats’ at the Colombo Galadari Hotel, which started earlier on Tuesday.

“Although the defeat of the terrorists in May 2009 paved the way for peace and for rapid post conflict development, our security forces and law enforcement agencies must remain vigilant about emerging threats including drug smuggling, human trafficking, and organized crime,” said Mr Basnayake.

"This sum is in addition to the United States’ pledge of $1 million for resettlement assistance in Sampur, where U.S. Embassy identified ‎two schools for future development to support Sri Lanka's efforts towards reconciliation."