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Tsunami relief bad, says poll, 40,000 dead says Ranvirajah
Charles Pathirana in Colombo,
March 8, 2005 11.20 pm SLT.
Just 29 per cent of the people polled were satisfied with the way the
government is carrying out the tsunami rehabilitation and relief program,
while a full 89 per cent were dissatisfied, according to a television
program carried out by a national television station.
The phone poll results overwhelmingly showed that there is mass
dissatisfaction with the way in which the state is handling tsunami
rehabilitation and relief. However, Mr Tilak Ranavirajah who appeared on the
same television channel said that he, as the Commissioner General of
Essential Services, was totally satisfied with the way in which the first
tier of tsunami relief was done – even though the second tier of
reconstruction and relocation is still underway. “Nobody died for the want
of food or medicine in the first stage of releif’’ Ranavirjah said, and he
added that ex-Us Presidents and the UN Secretary General had borne testimony
to this.
Also curiously, Mr Ranvirajah said that 40,000 people had died, even though
the government officially does not give such a high figure of tsunami
deaths. The state figure is still in the 30 plus thousand region, with
additional missing figures. This is the first time that a government
official has acknowledged that around a 40,000 people died in Sri Lanka in
the tsunami.
Published: Tue Mar 8 12:36:43 EST 2005
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Election’s soon?
Munza Mushtaq in Colombo,
March 8, 2005, 8.44 p.m..
As Sri Lanka’s crisis prone Government neared its first anniversary, informed political sources claimed that it was very likely that Sri Lankans would be at the polling stations again soon. Sources pointed out that, “As President Chandrika Kumaratunga battled hard to keep her coalition partners together, there is an extreme likelihood of another General Election soon after April this year,” the sources claimed. The United Peoples Freedom Alliance Government will complete one year on April 2, 2005.
Meanwhile, Sri Lanka Muslim Congress Leader Rauff Hakeem has also expressed similar sentiments. He is reported to have said that signs have been obvious that the fragile coalition wouldn’t survive too long. "Recent indications also show that President Chandrika Kumaratunga would very likely go in for another election soon. If she does, it would be the fourth within five years," he had added.
Published: Tue Mar 8 09:48:45 EST 2005
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I bet my job, 80 per cent for Federal solution – President
Charles Pathirana in Colombo,
March 8 2005, 8.30 pm SLT.
President Chandrika Kumaratunge said yesterday that she will bet her
Presidency that 80 per cent of Sri Lankaans will, if a Referendum is held on
the issue, vote to arrive at a negotiated federal solution to the North East
conflict.
Significantly, she said this at World Women’s Day celebration organized by
the Sri Lanka Freedom Party, where the party women’s association presented
her a five point action plan, asking for “peace through negotiations’’ and
“10 per cent female representation in future parliaments,’’ among other
things.
President Kuamratunge said that ‘’some measure of peace has been achieved
through the ceasefire’’, and added that she the SLFP and the UPFA coalition
are both willing to have talks (with the LTTE) – and then she added
piquantly “some say they are not willing.’’
The junior coalition partner the JVP has not been in favour of a power
sharing arrangement with the Tigers - - and have certainly frowned on
Federalism as a solution. President Kuamratunge also said however in her
Women’s Day speech, that there can be no development in the country if there
is no solution to the problems in the Northern and Eastern part of the
country without talks , and added “neither we nor they could win the war.’’
It is by now very clear that there can be no solution to this problem by
killing people and by further combat, she said.
Meanwhile , the Sri Lanka Air Force had confirmed that the ariel photographs
of aircraft in Tiger territory are all of real aircraft and not dummies.
They have said that they are most probably light aircraft of the two seater
variety. The Sunday Times situation report has recently been extensively
concentrating on the issue of the presence of light aircraft in Tiger
territory.
Published: Tue Mar 8 09:35:44 EST 2005
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No direct funds to LTTE says World Bank
