• UN official stopped from entering North by Defence Ministry travel restrictions

    Oct 18
    A United Nations official was stopped from entering the North on Wednesday, due to the Ministry of Defence's newly re-introduced travel restrictions, requiring all foreign citizens to seek prior permission from the Ministry to enter the Tamil region in the North of the island.
  • UK, Canada, Australia warn citizens of Sri Lanka's restrictions on travel to North
    The UK, Canada and Australia warned their citizens of the Sri Lanka's new travel restrictions on visiting the North of the island, in updated travel advisories this week.

    The new restrictions, require all foreign nationals to obtain permission from the Ministry of Defence prior to entering the North. The clearance request is expected to take 2-3 days to process.

    The UK's Foreign Office's travel advice now states:
    "The security forces have imposed restrictions preventing all foreign passport holders (including British nationals) travelling to the Northern Province. All foreign passport holders planning to travel to the north must get prior approval from the Ministry of Defence.

    You should send a written request to the following address/fax: Secretary Ministry of Defence & Urban Development (Attn: Military Liaison Officer) 15/5 Baladaksha Mawatha Colombo 3 Fax: +94 11 2328109

    Military activities are ongoing."
  • Fears travel restrictions to North will affect tourism
    Highlighting that at least 8.6% of tourists in Sri Lanka go to the north-east, Sri Lanka’s tourism board said it was caught unaware of the new travel restrictions placed on foreigners travelling to the North, reports the SundayTimes.lk.
  • EU will have to rethink 'flawed' proscription of LTTE says ECJ lawyer
    The European Union decision to ban the LTTE in 2006 needs to be rethought after the recent European Court Justice (ECJ) ruling exposed “big mistakes” in the proscription outlined a lawyer representing LTTE at the ECJ.

    Speaking to TamilNet, Victor Koppe, highlighting that the ECJ ruling had exposed that  proscription of the LTTE by EU was “flawed in various aspects,” said,

    “I think it is up to the European Union to really ask itself the question, should we want to continue with this ban. The world situation is changed so much. I think this would be a very appropriate moment to rethink and reconsider this decision to put the LTTE on EU terrorist list.”

    Stressing the need for the European Union to re-justify its LTTE ban, Koppe added,
     
    “There should be a fundamental reconsideration in the position of the European Union. They made some – very strong – big mistakes. It is time to reconsider things with this decision in hand.”

  • Government appointed officials in NPC do not serve people says TNA MP
    Government appointed officials in the Northern Provincial Council do not serve the people said a Tamil National Alliance MP on Sunday.
  • Tamil Nadu parties call for LTTE ban to be lifted after ECJ ruling
    Political parties in Tamil Nadu called for the ban on the LTTE to be lifted, after the European Court of Justice (ECJ) annulled measures taken against LTTE over procedural grounds in a ruling delivered on Thursday.

    "The ECJ’s decision will boost the efforts of Sri Lankan Tamils to form a nation of their own," said the founder of the Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK), S. Ramadoss, was quoted by The Hindu as saying.

    He called on India to "take its cue" from the ECJ annulment, the paper added.

    The leader of the Viduthalai Chiruthaikal Katchi (VCK), Thol Thirumavalavan said the ruling "exposed the canards spread by the Indian and Sri Lankan governments against the LTTE".

  • We are not prepared to accept OISL report says SL ambassador in US
    Sri Lanka's ambassador to the United States, Prasad Kariyawasam, dismissed the impact of the UN inquiry into mass atrocities in the country, stating that Sri Lanka is not prepared to accept the OHCHR Investigation into Sri Lanka (OISL) report, which is due in March 2015.

    Asked by NewsFirst during an interview whether March would be a decisive time for Sri Lanka, Ambassador Kariyawasam said,

    "I don’t understand why it is decisive. Next march they will be presenting a report on Sri Lanka to the Human Rights Council. We don’t accept this report and we are not prepared to accept it as well. This is because we have identified their process as one which is wrong and unsuccessful."

    "We don’t think this report is decisive for the future of the country however we are ready to face any repercussions that could occur due to this report. We are currently engaging in discussions with members of Congress and I believe that, through their intervention, we could minimise the repercussions that could occur as a result of this report," he added.

    Asked about the international criticism Sri Lanka has increasingly received over the past few years, Kariyawasam blamed "Tamil extremist groups" in the diaspora.

  • Sajin Vaas, BBS warn EU annulment of LTTE proscription measures aids Tamil diaspora
    Sri Lanka's External Affairs Ministry Monitoring MP Sajin Vaas Gunawardene condemned the General Court of European Union's ruling on Thursday to annul the measures taken against the LTTE, warning that it would aid the Tamil diaspora.

    "The EU decision to lift the ban on the LTTE was a shot in the arm for the LTTE and the diaspora," Gunawardene told journalists at a press conference in the SLFP headquarters, the Daily Mirror reports.

    "With this decision all EU members would regard the LTTE as a legitimate organisation," he added.

    The ruling was also condemned by the Buddhist monk group, Bodu Bala Sena (BBS). The BBS called on the Sri Lankan government to "take steps to curb separatist elements that were still active in [Sri Lanka]", the Daily Mirror reported.

  • NPC member faces military interrogation
    A Northern Provincial Council member was interrogated by Sri Lankan military personnel at his family residence on Saturday.
  • Sri Lanka requires more FDI to sustain growth - minister

    Sri Lanka's economy requires a substantial amount of foreign direct investment in order to sustain the current economic growth, said Minister for Investment Promotion Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena, according to Ceylon Today.

    Speaking at the World Investor Forum in Geneva, Abeywardena said Sri Lanka needed $5bn in FDI, in order to achieve anticipated economic gains by 2016, but that current projections show, only $4bn will be raised.

    "Sri Lanka requires a substantial amount of investment to sustain the current growth momentum and embark upon its sustainable development goals successfully."

    "The private sector plays a major role in financing investment projects, so long as they generate profits. The challenge before Sri Lanka is to motivate them to finance the investment that could fill the resource gap, as the private sector is mainly driven by profits; the national priorities of a particular country may not necessarily be the priorities for the private sector," he said.

  • Dead bodies found in Eastern Province

    In separate incidents, two dead bodies have been found in Kokkaddicholai and Oorani, in the Eastern Province this week, reports Batti News.

    In Kokkaddicholai, 32 year old Arunasalam Kirubakaran was found hanging on Thursday, said the Eastern Province based website.

  • Tamil prisoner dies in Batticaloa
    A Tamil prisoner in Batticaloa died on Thursday, after allegedly slipping and falling whilst cutting branches off a tree within court premises.

    Forty-five year old Paramanananthamoorthy Shanmuganathan was taken to Batticaloa Teaching Hospital for treatment, however died shortly afterwards, reports BattiNews.


  • Gotabaya to meet with India's NSA next week
    The Sri Lanka Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa is to meet with India's National Security Advisor (NSA), Ajit Doval, in New Delhi next week for "high-level" talks, reports The Hindu.

    Sources in New Delhi, confirmed the meeting however did not "get into the details", the paper added.
  • UNP denies TNA deal, says will not agree to conditions of any party
    The opposition party UNP denied that a deal had been reached between the TNA and the UNP, stressing that the party would not agree "to any conditions of any political party", the Colombo Gazette reports.
  • Sri Lankan navy accused of damaging Indian fishing nets
    The Sri Lankan navy has reportedly damaged the fishing nets of some 20 Indian boats, who were fishing near Katchatheevu, reports PTI.

    Fishermen Association president S Emerit stated that 535 boats had left Rameswaram to go fishing, when Sri Lankan navy personnel in 5 navy vessels approached them near Katchatheevu. The Sri Lankan troops then proceeded to snap the nets of 5 boats and threatened the fishermen at gunpoint, said Emerit.

    The latest incident comes as the Sri Lankan navy handed over 94 Tamil Nadu fishermen to the Indian Coast Guard, releasing them from custody.

    Earlier this week, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister O Paneerselvam wrote to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi regarding the Sri Lankan navy's treatment of Tamil Nadu fishermen.

    See our earlier post: Tamil Nadu CM seeks Modi intervention for release of fishing boats held by Sri Lanka (16 October 2014)

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