By Lasanda Kurukulasuriya The External Affairs ministry has just issued a statement (Fri. Nov 5) indicating that President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s visit to London, in response to an invitation to address the Oxford Union, has been postponed “to a more suitable...

Labor Minister Gamini Lokuge has denied allegations leveled against Sri Lanka by the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC). He has said the government has honored all it’s commitments on labor conventions ratified by the government of Sri Lanka. Responding to allegations made by the ITUC, Minister Lokuge has been quoted in the media that when ...

By Lee Yu Kyung It seems no one bothers about “them” in Sri Lanka. No lawyer or rights groups in the country dare to talk of “their” basic rights. Do they deserve to be abandoned or “disappeared”? Alleged former members...

by Charles Haviland BBC News Nails are being hammered and beams secured in Silavatturai. SJM Shajahan, a good-natured man in his 40s, watches and helps the men at work. Fishing is big business nearby and Mr Shajahan, a boat mechanic,...

Sri Lanka pays a top PR firm about £3m ($4.7m) a year to try to enhance the country's image, the BBC understands.

The Sri Lankan government is paying a top British PR firm about £3m ($4.7m) a year to try to enhance the country's post-war image, the BBC understands.

The UN panel of experts appointed by the Secretary General on Sri Lanka has called for written submissions. The panel was set up to inquire into the alleged violations of international human rights and humanitarian law during the final stages of the war in Sri Lanka. The BBC has reported

By Saroj Pathirana Activists have criticised India's decision to invite Sri Lanka's president to attend the Commonwealth Games closing ceremony in Delhi. Sri Lanka's government said President Mahinda Rajapaksa would be the guest of honour at Thursday's event. The move...

(Lanka-e-News, Oct.11, 2010, 7.50PM) The BBC news service has reported that the wives of LTTE former media spokesman Rasiah Ilantheriyan and Batticaloa LTTE intelligence unit leader...

Two prominent LTTE leaders in Sri Lanka are missing after arrest by the army last year, their wives have told a presidential commission, BBC reports. .

By Charles Haviland BBC News, Colombo In Sri Lanka this year it has well and truly been a case of the mighty falling, as the man that led the military to victory against the Tamil Tigers found himself placed in...

from BBC News Sri Lanka's former military commander has lost his parliamentary seat after a military court sentenced him to jail for 30 months, authorities say....

(Lanka-e-News, 06.Oct.2010, 4.20PM) The British Foreign Ministry Secretary William Hague had confirmed that the BBC World service is facing cut backs on...

In a rare interview, a former member of Sri Lanka's defeated Tamil Tiger rebels has been speaking to the BBC about his feelings on being released

“Dictators free themselves but they enslave the people…” — Charlie Chaplin The Dictator By Tisaranee Gunasekara President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s speech to the UN General Assembly consisted of the usual banalities and platitudes, with one outstanding exception. That exception was a perniciously riveting idea symbolic and symbiotic of the Rajapaksa ethos, a transformative concept which, if ...

(Lanka-e-News, Oct. 04, 2010, 3.50PM) It is reported that despite the fact that the British Foreign Minister William Hogg had confirmed that...

by M.Y.M. Ayub The BBC’s Sinhala service, Sandesaya quoted United National Party (UNP) General Secretary Tissa Attanayake on September 26 as saying that there was no need for a federal political solution in Sri Lanka. This might have disappointed many Tamils especially politically conscious ones who have been demanding more devolution than what had already implemented, for the p...

“Power is in inflicting pain and humiliation. Power is in tearing human minds to pieces and putting them together in new shapes of your own choosing.” -George Orwell (Nineteen Eighty -Four) The end was never in doubt; President Rajapaksa would confirm Gen. Fonseka’s jail sentence and the bête noire of the Ruling Family would be duly incarcerated. Only the blindly optimistic would have...

by Tisaranee Gunasekara “Dictators free themselves but they enslave the people…” — Charlie Chaplin ~ The Dictator President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s speech to the UN General Assembly consisted of the usual banalities and platitudes, with one outstanding exception. That exception was...

By Karu Jayasuriya As a Sri Lankan ex-Army Officer and a person who believes strongly that those who have contributed towards the welfare of this nation should be shown unending gratitude, Thursday was one of the saddest days of my...

from BBC News online Sri Lanka's president has endorsed the 30-month jail term of former army chief Sarath Fonseka, an official in the president's office has told the BBC. Mr Fonseka was found guilty of breaching arms procurement guidelines on...

Sri Lanka's president endorses the 30-month jail term of former army chief Sarath Fonseka, the president's office tells the BBC.

Sri Lanka's president endorses the 30-month jail term of former army chief Sarath Fonseka, the president's office tells the BBC.

There is no need for a federal political solution in Sri Lanka, BBC Sandeshaya quoted UNP General Se..

By Saroj Pathirana BBC Sinhala in Colombo Nilmini Jayasinghe says she is determined to take part at the London Olympics despite her failure at the most recent world championships. Nilmini Jayasinghe - pic: SundayObserver.lk...

Government of Sri Lanka says that suspected Tamil Tiger detainees cannot be treated under the same law as everyone else. Minister Lakshman Yapa Abeywardhana told the BBC

By Swaminathan Natarajan BBC Tamil The temple has number of statues and stone carvings depicting the life of Buddha. Official celebrations are taking place in southern India for the 1,000th birthday of one of the grandest temples ever built on...

by UNROW Human Rights Impact Litigation Clinic American University Washington College of Law INTRODUCTION Justice and accountability are of utmost importance following mass atrocities such as those committed in Sri Lanka during its 25-year civil war. An estimated 80,000–100,000 people...

By BBC Sandeshaya Prsidient Mahinda Rajapaksha has engaged in constructive bilateral talks with a number of heads of state now in New York, says Presidential media co-ordinator Vijayananda herath. President Rajapaksa is in New York to attend the United Nations...

By Charles Haviland BBC News, Colombo People in northern Sri Lanka have told a war inquiry that family members who served with the Tamil Tigers disappeared after surrendering. They said their loved ones went missing at the end of the...