By Charles Haviland, BBC News, Colombo Sri Lankan Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa has denied reports that the government is forming an "alliance" with the "rump" of the Tamil Tigers. The rebels, known as the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE),...

The Sri Lankan Government has shown deep concern over what are called ‘Buddha Bars’ in international restaurants, states the BBC’s Thamil Osai. ....

Sri Lanka played host to its first surfing championship at Arugam Bay, just over a year after the end of the long war against the LTTE. As dawn breaks over Arugam Bay, a fisherman casts his net into the lagoon near the long, low bridge that links the remote village to the rest of the ...

By S.V.Kirubaharan, France The recent BBC series of hard talk programmes on Sri Lanka presented by Stephen Sackur was well-received globally. This telecasting has shown the good, bad and ugly sides of Sri Lanka...

By Dr. Dayan Jayatilleka I hope everyone saw Ridley Scott’s Robin Hood, with Russell Crowe in the title role. The BBC History channel backed it up with a two hour programme, piecing together the legend from historical fact and circumstance....

Inquiries are to be held over allegations that pregnancy test are being held prior to employing workers in tea plantations of Sri Lanka, BBC’s Tamil service Thamil Osai has reported quoting Plantations Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe. ....

from the BBC: The Sri Lankan foreign minister has said that a UN panel on human rights will not be allowed into the country. GL Peiris said that there was "no need" for the panel to come to the country...

The recent BBC series of hard talk programmes on Sri Lanka presented by Stephen Sackur was well-received globally. This telecasting has shown the good, bad and ugly sides of Sri Lanka. The true stories about the return of the internally displaced people – IDPs, the present feelings of the Tamils

BBC HARDtalk 4: Presented by Stephen Sackur: "HARDtalk has come to Sri Lanka, a year after government forces finally defeated the Tamil Tigers, to end Asia's longest running war. But now the talk is of reconciliation and rebuilding; but how...

By Matthew Russell Lee Sri Lanka's Rajapaksa administration insists that its panel on "Lessons Learned" is a sufficient response to reports of tens of thousands of civilians killed in the final stage of the conflict last year. On June 18,...

BBC HARDtalk III In the third of a special HARDtalk series in Sri Lanka, Stephen Sackur reports on what is happening to the thousands of child soldiers who took part in the war. HARDtalk is the hard-hitting flagship news programme...

June 16, 2010: 11.00 am Siobhain McDonagh: (Mitcham and Morden) (Lab): I am grateful for the chance to highlight again the appalling treatment of Tamil civilians by the Sri Lankan Government....

BBC HARDTalk, June 2010 In the second of Hardtalk's exclusive series of programmes in Sri Lanka, Stephen Sackur talks to journalists who live with the threat of intimidation and murder. He talks to the opposition presidential candidate, former General Sarath...

With its foreboding lighting effects that appear to have been plucked straight out of Dante's dark epic Inferno-and cleverly devised one suspects to reduce its willing, and oftentimes unsuspecting, "victims" to submission-the BBC's HARDtalk program has attained a universal reputation...

HARDtalk - Sri Lanka Part 1 - The Tamils and the North: Hardtalk on the road in Sri Lanka: In May 2009, after almost 30 years of civil war, Sri Lanka's government announced its defeat of the separatist Liberation Tigers...

With its foreboding lighting effects that appear to have been plucked straight out of Dante's dark epic Inferno-and cleverly devised one suspects to reduce its willing, and oftentimes unsuspecting, "victims" to submission-the BBC's HARDtalk program has attained a universal reputation (or should that be notoriety?) for tough and bruising interviews that border on intimidation.

Referring to the recent globally televised BBC talk show HARDtalk with Sri Lanka’s Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, The Manila Times states today that “this particular edition of HARDtalk was undoubtedly game, set and match to him (Sackur). And TV viewers worldwide could attest to that!” ....

"Freedom when?" was what many at the "wedding ceremony" asked according to BBC Sandeshaya and tweets remarked the military marriage of militants "hugely oversteps ethical boundaries". The ceremony attracted widespread media coverage. Reports say the mass wedding was held under...

Fonseka responds to Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s BBC interview By Mandana Ismail Abeywickrema Responding to  statements made against him by Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa to the BBC’s HardTalk programme on Sri Lanka last week, former Army Commander and DNA Parliamentarian Retired General Sarath

The headline and two articles of four in the front page of The Sunday Leader of last week was on money. The lead article screamed “UNP Leader Got Rs. 48 mn From One ‘Donor’” . The other two titles were: “One Billion Rupees For IIFA”; “Sumal Wants Rs. 19 bn For Waters Edge”. With pulse racing ...

By C. A. Chandraprema It was the other day that the BBC aired the full version of the Hard Talk interview with Gotabhaya Rajapakse, and there are certain issues that need to be raised, not about what Gota said in...

by Dr.Daya Somasundaram University of Jaffna Abstract The phenomena of suicide bombers in Sri Lanka share some similarities with but also have some marked differences with what is seen in other parts of world today. Increasing discrimination, state humiliation and...

Imprisoned former Sri Lankan armed forces chief General (retired) Sarath Fonseka has denied being a liar or having committed treason. The BBC said that he was responding to government allegations of him committing war crimes during fighting against the Tamil Tiger rebels.   Fonseka spoke

Former Army Commander Sarath Fonseka has told the BBC that all countries should impose maximum power to influence Sri Lanka. He made this reference joining in BBC’s hard talk programme. It is Anoma Fonseka who had supported Sarath Fonseka to join in this programme. This was confirmed

When Adaderana contacted the Defence Secretary over the much discussed news item on BBC’s Hardtalk, where Sri Lanka’s Secretary of Defence Gotabhaya Rajapaksa had reportedly stated that Sri Lanka could execute General Sarath Fonseka, he said what he had meant was ‘if Fonseka was found guilty

The Sri Lankan Military had not violated human rights at any time. This has been emphasized by Defence Secretary Gothabaya Rajapaksa joining in “Hard Talk” telecast by the BBC. He said Sri Lanka’s Military was highly disciplined. There was not a single case of soldiers marching into a village

By Stephen Sackur Presenter, BBC HARDtalk The Sri Lankan government has threatened to execute Sarath Fonseka, the army commander who delivered victory over the Tamil Tigers, if he continues to suggest top officials may have ordered war crimes during the...

To say that the new Sport Minister’s thoughts, Monday, on the Sri Lanka Cricket Board was a breath of fresh air would be an understatement. Rather, Minister C. B. Ratnayake’s remark that cricket is “the third most corrupt institution behind education and the police” was more a tornado, which, while devastating surely the game’s administrators, ...

by M.C.M. Iqbal Louise Arbour of the International Crisis Group is reported to have said during an interview in the BBC that the government violated the laws of war by blurring the line between combatants and civilians, and that its...

In an official visit to the USA, Minister of External Affairs Prof. G. L. Peiris has called on the Tamil community all over the world to get involved in the rehabilitation process in Sri Lanka. Peiris, who is scheduled to meet Secretary of State Hilary Clinton on Friday made this comment to the BBC at [...]