The Lanka Academic
 
JANUARY 20, 2008 EST, USA
 
QUAERE VERUM
 
VOL. 8, NO. 289
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F R E E      C L A S S I F I E D S
T  O  P      H  E  A  D  L  I  N  E
Devolution panel’s mandate curtailed
IANS, jan 21. COLOMBO: An all-party panel in Sri Lanka is set to reject the Tamil minority’s demand for a federal constitution while suggesting improvements in the present unitary system to make it more democratic. This follows pressure from President Mahinda Rajapakse on the All-Party Representative Committee (APRC) not to go beyond the devolution granted by the 13th amendment to the Sri Lankan constitution that followed the 1987 India-Sri Lanka peace accord, an informed source told IANS. The APRC, headed by Science Minister Tissa Vitharana, is to give its recommendations January 23. The president’s public posture, however, is that he has issued no such diktat. He said on Saturday that he was under growing pressure from the international community to show progress in politically resolving the ethnic conflict. “I asked them to give me something on January 23,” Rajapakse said. But political circles and APRC insiders maintain that the president wants a report strictly within the confines of the present unitary constitution, which is anathema to the Tamils. More... Discuss this story
Published: Sun Jan 20 23:24:40 EST 2008
Sri Lanka says fighting kills 41 rebels, soldier
reuters.com, 20 jan. COLOMBO, Jan 20 (Reuters) - Sri Lanka's forces have attacked five Tamil Tiger boats in the north, while separately troops have killed 41 rebels and one soldier died in fresh fighting, the military said on Sunday.

A six-year truce between the state and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) formally ended on Wednesday, opening the way for a military push for the Tigers' northern stronghold and a bloody escalation in a 25-year civil war.

The fighting in the northern Jaffna Peninsula, northern districts of Vavuniya, Pollonnaruwa and northwestern district of Mannar came days after 27 people were killed in a bus ambush in the central town of Buttala, which the military blamed on the Tigers. More... Discuss this story
Published: Sun Jan 20 06:36:58 EST 2008 Back to the top

Related News Stories
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 37 killed in Sri Lanka as Army steps up offensive  - com
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 Sri Lankan military says it launched assault on rebel boats, as ground battles kill 30  - Associated Press
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 Sri Lankan military: Artillery assault destroys 5 rebel boats off northern coast  - Associated Press
Sri Lanka says independence celebrations on despite rebel threat
afp, jan 20. COLOMBO (AFP) - Sri Lanka will hold large-scale civilian and military independence day celebrations in the capital next month despite fears of Tamil rebel attacks, officials said.Security will be increased further ahead of the 60th Freedom Day on February 4, with 4,100 extra security personnel bolstering thousands of police and soldiers deployed in and around Colombo, public administration minister Karu Jayasuriya said. More... Discuss this story
Published: Sun Jan 20 01:31:20 EST 2008 Back to the top
Rebel leader killed in northern Sri Lanka
 xinhuanet.com, 2008-01-21 00:46:32. COLOMBO, Jan. 20 (Xinhua) -- The Sri Lankan Army said a regional leader of Tamil Tiger rebels was killed in a battle in the northern Jaffna peninsula Sunday afternoon. Army troops exchanged fire with a group of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels in Kaithady area of Jaffna around 4:30 p... Back to the top
Two more held in Tamil Nadu for 'assisting' LTTE
 TOI, jan 21. CHENNAI: Continuing its crack down on LTTE's emerging supply network in Tamil Nadu, police on Sunday arrested two more persons, including a Sri Lankan Tamil, who allegedly helped the recently arrested intelligence wing member of the outlawed group in procuring materials for making explosives... Back to the top
Tiger alert in TN as cops search for LTTE cadre
 khaleej Times, jan 20. HENNAI — The Tamil Nadu police has begun searching for cadres of Sri Lankan dissident outfit the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) across the state following reports that many have fled to India in view of stepped up action against the group in the neighbouring country... Back to the top
Sri Lanka to unveil devolution package for Tamils by Jan 23
 pti, jan 19. Colombo, Jan 18 A much-awaited power devolution package to resolve the over two-decade-old Tamil ethnic conflict will be ready by January 23, the Sri Lankan government has said while rejecting allegations that its scrapping of ceasefire was responsible for the escalated fighting... Back to the top
UK issues stern warning to Colombo
 indiatimes.com, 19 Jan 2008. LONDON: The British government has issued a stern warning to Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapakse that "the world is watching and waiting" for the island nation to make a "bold" leap towards peace... Back to the top
Sri Lanka military: Fighting kills 35 Tamil rebels, 1 soldier in embattled north
 Associated Press, Sat January 19, 2008 05:21 EST . BHARATHA MALLAWARACHI - Associated Press Writer - COLOMBO, Sri Lanka - (AP) Battles between government troops and Tamil Tiger fighters killed 35 rebels and one soldier along the front lines in northern Sri Lanka - , the military said Saturday, as violence continued to escalate following the government's withdrawal from a cease-fire... Back to the top
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