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Lankan Govt still to take steps towards peace: Solheim
The Hindustan Times,
march 24.
THOUGH THE LTTE has been observing a ceasefire for the past three months, Sri Lanka has not taken any steps towards peace, Norwegian peace envoy Eric Solheim has said. "However, I believe that the Chandrika Government will participate in the peace process," Mr Solheim said in an interview to the London-based Tamil radio station, Independent Broadcasting Corporation (IBC) on Thursday, a full transcript of which appeared in the Colombo Tamil daily "Virakesari" today.
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Published: Sat Mar 24 23:41:48 EST 2001
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Lankan troops destroy LTTE boat
Times of India,
25 March 2001 .
Sri Lankan troops destroyed a
boat belonging to the LTTE off the Arialai
Lagoon in the northern Jaffna peninsula,
while three rebels and a soldier were killed
in separate incidents in the last two days, a
delayed report said on Saturday.
Government forces, spotting two rebel
boats in the Lagoon, attacked them with 81
mm mortars, destroying one of them on
Thursday, the military's situation report
said.
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Published: Sat Mar 24 23:44:03 EST 2001
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Sri Lanka loses international airlines
northernlight,
march 24.
International airlines have apparently begun
withdrawing services to Sri Lanka. Russia's Aeroflot reportedly pulled out of the market on 22 March and is expected to be followed by Martinair at the end of
March. AOM French Airlines has already ceased services to Colombo, according to Xinhua News Agency. Kuwait Airlines apparently has plans to reduce the number of flights to Sri Lanka from four to three, and the president of
the Travel Agents Association has said that it is now almost impossible to get a seat to Colombo. The travel group has
claimed that Sri Lankan Airlines, the national carrier, is responsible for the withdrawal of foreign airlines.
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Published: Sat Mar 24 13:27:35 EST 2001
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Lankan fishermen held in Indian jails illegally: NGO
Times of India,
25 March 2001 .
A Non-Government
Organisation (NGO) representing Sri
Lankan fishermen has accused India of
holding about 50 of them in custody in
contravention of its own laws and
international law. The National Fisheries Solidarity (NFS) said
Sri Lankan fishermen were being kept in
Indian jails for more than 15 months in
violation of the Maritime Zones Act and
Art.73 of the United Convention on the Law
of the Sea, to which India is a signatory.
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Published: Sat Mar 24 23:45:07 EST 2001
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Weapon stockpile unearthed in Lanka
Hindu,
march 24.
Sri Lankan police have unearthed a large stockpile of weapons worth Rs 15 million from an arsenal of the LTTE in the northern Jaffna city, a senior police officer has said.
The weapons seized included powerful anti-aircraft weapons, explosives, automatic firearms of various types and live ammunition, The Daily Mirror quoting the officer said.
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Published: Sat Mar 24 13:03:51 EST 2001
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Sri Lanka exports fall sharply, trade gap widens
123India,
march 24.
Sri Lanka's exports fell sharply in January by 47.4 percent compared to the previous month and by 12.3 percent against the corresponding period last year, the central bank said.
Export earnings in January fell to 334.2 million dollars, down from 636.3 million dollars in December and 381.0 million dollars in January 2000, central bank's latest figures showed
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Published: Sat Mar 24 13:05:43 EST 2001
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SAARC Writers Urged to Fight Religious Fanaticism
northernlight,
march 24.
The third SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation)
Writers Conference opened here Friday with a call for fighting religious fanaticism, ethnic violence, repression on women
and terrorism in the region. About 100 poets and writers from India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and host Bangladesh are attending the
conference.
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Published: Sat Mar 24 13:29:57 EST 2001
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Terror suspect goes job hunting
National Post,
march 23.
A suspected terrorist fundraiser who is fighting his deportation in the Supreme Court of Canada has
completed a computer engineering course and is now on the job market, court documents show.Manickavasagan Suresh, who is allegedly linked to the Tamil Tigers terrorist group, scored an average of
90% in Microsoft's certified system engineer program, which qualifies him for work as he prepares for his
hearing, according to submissions filed in the Federal Court of Canada.To that end, he asked the court to loosen release conditions requiring him to report once a week to an
immigration office.
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Published: Fri Mar 23 18:26:27 EST 2001
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Lankan court summons top official on bribery charge
Times of India (Breaking News),
Friday .
23 March 2001
A court asked a top government
official on Friday to appear before it after the
Bribery and Corruption Commission said he
was avoiding questioning over a bribery
allegation.The independent commission began
investigating Thilan Wijesinghe, chairman of
the Board of Investment, after a foreign
investor alleged that he demanded money for
approving a project.The commission told Colombo Magistrate A.
Heiyanthuduwa that Wijesinghe "deliberately
ignored their repeated requests" to appear
before them.Wijesinghe reports directly to President
Chandrika Kumaratunga. He enjoys sweeping
powers to overrule city laws, customs rulings
and tax department decisions to help foreign
investors.
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Published: Fri Mar 23 15:30:00 EST 2001
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Thilan Wijesinghe files fundamental rights application
CDN,
march 24.
The Supreme Court yesterday gave time till April 4, 2001 to the Bribery Commission and directed it to
ascertain and intimate to court whether it would duly release specimen handwritings of the petitioner
to the Examiner of Questioned Documents (EQD) for re-evaluation and clarify the position with
regard to the possibility of an arrest of the petitioner till the conclusion of the inquiry when a rights
application by Thilan Wijesinghe was taken up before court.
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Published: Fri Mar 23 18:37:47 EST 2001
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Tigers threaten to attack Colombo if truce not reciprocated
India Abroad,
March 23, 2001 11:30 Hrs (IST) .
Sri
Lanka's Tamil Tiger rebels have hinted strongly that they could resume attacks on the
island's capital and outside of the Jaffna peninsula if the government keeps up military
action against them.The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) announced an extension of the unilateral ceasefire
by another month while issuing a stern reminder that Colombo was "relatively peaceful" because
of the rebels' restraint. It is because of our strict observance of the ceasefire there is
relative peace and stability in the capital and in the Sinhala
south," the LTTE said in a statement.
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Published: Fri Mar 23 08:59:33 EST 2001
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Lanka spinner Muralitharan suspended for dissent
Times of India (Breaking News),
march 24.
Sri Lankan spin wizard
Muttiah Muralitharan, man-of-the-match
in Friday's opening limited overs game
against England, was fined 65 percent of
his match fee and given a suspended
sentence for showing dissent at an
umpiring decision, a newspaper said
Saturday.
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Published: Sat Mar 24 12:57:30 EST 2001
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Sri Lanka trooper, Tiger killed in battle for gun
123India.com,
Mar 23 2001 15:30 IST.
A suspected Tamil Tiger rebel grabbed the gun of an army soldier and shot him dead only to be gunned down by another trooper in eastern Sri Lanka Friday, officials said. Two soldiers had arrested the man and were taking him to the Kiran army camp when he grabbed the gun and shot dead one soldier, military spokesman brigadier Sanath Karunaratne said.
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Published: Fri Mar 23 09:01:17 EST 2001
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Tigers take farmers hostage a day after truce extension in Sri Lanka
123India.com,
Mar 23 2001 13:31 IST.
Suspected Tamil Tiger rebels abducted at least 10 farmers in eastern Sri Lanka Friday, a day after extending their unilateral truce by a further month, police said. Gunmen of the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) ambushed the farmers who were travelling on a tractor trailer in the Potuvil area, police said adding that an investigation was underway.
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Published: Fri Mar 23 09:01:57 EST 2001
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Cong. to campaign for PMK
The Hindu,
Saturday, March 24, 2001.
CHENNAI, MARCH 23. Dumping its ``concerns and reservations'' over the pro-LTTE Paattali Makkal Katchi (PMK), the Tamil Nadu unit of the Congress today declared that it would ``whole-heartedly'' work for the victory of PMK candidates in the coming Assembly elections in the State. The Tamil Nadu Congress president, Mr. E.V.K.S. Elangovan, who till recently was demanding a ban on the PMK for its ``brazen support'' to the LTTE, told presspersons here, ``We will share a platform with PMK leaders and whole-heartedly work for the victory of their candidates.''
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Published: Fri Mar 23 15:55:36 EST 2001
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Mass recruitment in Sri Lanka for Singapore jobs
123India.com,
Mar 23 2001 15:40 IST.
Singapore job agents carried out a mass recruitment drive in Sri Lanka for housemaids and have entered into a deal with local counterparts to increase co-operation, officials here said Friday. More than 100 women were recruited on Thursday as housemaids to work in Singaporean homes, a spokesman for Sri Lanka's Foreign Employment Bureau, L. K. Rahunage, said.
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Published: Fri Mar 23 09:02:35 EST 2001
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Prove Presidential Palace costs Rs. 46,487 per sq. foot, I’ll quit, says Mangala
Island,
march 24.
Mangala Samaraweera Minister of Urban Development Construction and Public Utilities yesterday told Parliament he would resign from his post if the opposition, which has launched a virulent campaign against the construction of the proposed. President’s official residential complex in Kotte proved that the complex costs the government Rs. 46,487 per square foot.
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Published: Fri Mar 23 20:06:40 EST 2001
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Asian Bank programme for Sri Lanka
BBC South Asia,
Friday, 23 March, 2001, 14:45 GMT .
The Asian Development Bank says aid donors will have a major role to play when Sri Lanka's civil war finally ends, as massive assistance will be required. Bank officials said that planning for a post-war Europe had begun two years before the Second World War ended, so now was the time to begin work on Sri Lanka, even though there seemed to be no end in sight yet.
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Published: Fri Mar 23 10:39:26 EST 2001
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Sri Lanka cruise to win
BBC South Asia,
Friday, 23 March, 2001, 11:51 GMT .
A partnership of 70 between Marvan Atapattu and Russel Arnold took Sri Lanka to a five-wicket victory in the opening one-dayer at
Dambulla on Friday.
More...
Published: Fri Mar 23 08:59:20 EST 2001
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