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COLOMBO - A regional rights group raised serious questions Friday over the handling of Sri Lanka’s presidential elections, fuelling a possible legal challenge of the result by the defeated candidate. Read more…

A Tamil civilian Subramanian Siva Kumar was arrested by the Terrorism
Investigations Department (TID) in Colombo, according to the Director
of the TID. He told media persons in Colombo Thursday evening that the
suspect has been identified as a hardcore cadre of the LTTE.

A regional rights group raised serious questions Friday over the handling of Sri Lanka’s presidential elections, fuelling a possible legal challenge of the result by the defeated candidate.

SLFP General Secretary Maithripala Sirisena, MP, yesterday said that the abolition of the Executive ..

*Attempt to use retired Army officers and deserters
*Lists sent to arrest several people

..

Sri Lanka’s defeated presidential candidate Sarath Fonseka has not sought asylum from Australia, Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said as he urged the government ensure the retired general’s safety.

China hopes Sri Lanka will maintain social stability, said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu, commenting Sri Lanka’s presidential election. Ma made the remarks at a regular press conference Thursday. “China and Sri Lanka have friendly ties. We believe the government and people of Sri Lanka can handle their domestic affairs and realize long-lasting peace [...]

IT WAS noteworthy Sri Lanka’s presidential election this week went off as calmly as it did.

An acrimonious election campaign and a disputed result provides an ominous start for what was meant to be a new era for Sri Lanka, after more than a quarter century of civil war. A country of rich potential had – indeed it still has – the opportunity to make a new beginning, following the conclusive [...]

Jan 29, Colombo: The United States has reached out to the presidential candidate General Sarath Fonseka and will remain in contact with him to clarify what his future intentions are and to be helpful if that is appropriate, a U.S. official revealed today.

(Lanka-e-News 2010.Jan.28 10.30PM) The CMEV wishes to voice its grave concern regarding the level of post electionviolence recorded within the last 36 hours. While CMEV has…

Jan 28, Colombo: Sri Lanka’s rate of inflation, on a year on year basis, rose for the 4th consecutive month to 6.5 percent in January this year from 4.8 percent in December 2009 as consumer spending in the country increased.

Jan 28, Colombo: Sri Lanka’s Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama has called the poll to elect the 6th executive president is ‘momentous’.

Jan 28, Colombo: Sri Lankan defence authorities say an LTTE leader living abroad has been arrested and brought to Colombo.

The head of a Commonwealth observer mission to Sri Lanka said that the government had damaged its international reputation by deploying troops around the main opposition candidate’s hotel headquarters during vote-counting for a presidential election.

Sri Lanka may take action against defeated opposition presidential candidate Sarath Fonseka, the defence secretary says.

Sri Lankan defence secretary, Gotabaya Rajapaksa says that the government is considering taking action against former army chief General Sarath Fonseka

Jan 28, Colombo: The Sri Lankan government is government is prepared for a constitutional amendment, if the opposition extends assistance, Media Minister Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena said.

Jan 28, Colombo: The international election monitoring groups, the Commonwealth Expert Team said the just concluded presidential elections in Sri Lanka is generally well-administered on election day but there were shortcomings in the pre-election period due to incidences of inter-party violence.

Defeated presidential candidate Sarath Fonseka says that he is planning to leave Sri Lanka due to alleged death threats.

Jan 28, Colombo: A group of army deserters have been arrested over an alleged plot to assassinate President Mahinda Rajapaksa, Director General of Media Centre for National Security (MCNS) Lakshman Hulugalla revealed today.

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa pledged Thursday to seek reconciliation wi..

Jan 28, Colombo: The defence authorities in Sri Lanka have arrested three people for spreading malicious rumors against the government and the President through the mobile Short Message Service (SMS), Director General of the Media Center for National Security, Lakshman Hulugalla announced.

Jan 28, Colombo: The United States congratulated Sri Lanka for the first nationwide election in decades and President Rajapaksa on his victory.

Jan 28, Colombo: The Sri Lankan people have approved the policies of the President Mahinda Rajapaksa and want the development to continue, a government Minister said.

Sri Lanka’s defeated presidential candidate said on Thursday he will ask the Supreme Court to annul this week’s election result because of huge fraud and said he feared arrest.

Jan 28, Colombo: The Asian international monitors who were in Sri Lanka to oversee the just concluded presidential elections on Tuesday say the election was conducted in a free and fair manner.

Jan 28, Colombo: The Sri Lankan government has already started to make preparations for the general parliamentary election to be held sometime before April of this year.

The United States Thursday congratulated Sri Lanka’s president on his re-election but urged authorities to probe allegations of vote fraud and ensure the safety of defeated candidates.

(Lanka-eNews, Jan.28, 2010, 6.30PM) JVP Leader Smawansa Amerasinghe said, on this 28th morning, Defense Secretary Gotabaya telephoned and threatened to kill him. The JVP leader revealed this…

Source: IRIN Poor funding support for recovery efforts after Cyclone Nargis has left hundreds of thousands in Myanmar vulnerable, many
without durable shelters to withstand further disasters, the UN says.

COLOMBO: Mahinda Rajapaksa was all smiles when he strode into a meeting room just hours after being declared an easy winner in Sri Lanka’s first national election since the end of its long ethnic civil war.

The security measures provided to Sri Lanka’s defeated presidential candidate General Sarath Fonseka have been withdrawn with immediate effect, a military spokesman said.

American Tamils join the world humanitarian community in remembering and paying tribute to the victims of the Holocaust at the hands of Nazi Germany, honoring survivors and supporting the recognition of this day internationally, said United States Tamil Political Action Council (USTPAC) in a press release issued Monday. Noting that the International Holocaust Remembrance Day [...]

Source: Reuters Jan 28 (Reuters) - Somali gunmen hijacked a Cambodian cargo ship, the MV Layla-S, off Berbera after it unloaded at the port in the breakaway northern enclave of Somaliland, a regional maritime …

Source: Reuters * MV Layla-S seized off Berbera port

* Crew from several countries on board

(Adds details, background)

NAIROBI, Jan 28 (Reuters) - Somali gunmen hijacked a Cambodian cargo ship, the MV Layla-S …

Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa has said that his overwhelming victory in presidential elections on Wednesday was an answer to his critics

Jan. 28 (Bloomberg) — Sri Lanka’s inflation rate rose for a fourth straight month in January, adding pressure on the central bank to raise interest rates.

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka - Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa pledged Thursday to seek reconciliation with minority Tamils after his sweeping re-election, but did not indicate how he plans to deal with their demands for greater rights.

An unconventional artwork of diaspora heritage, Imag(in)ing ‘Home’ presented by Thamotharampillai Shanaathanan, Lecturer in Art History of the Fine Arts Department of the University of Jaffna, with the participation of Eezham Tamil community in Vancouver, Canada, is now in display in an Art Exhibition of the Museum of Anthropology, University of British Columbia, Canada. What [...]

Sri Lanka’s president said Thursday his re-election was a riposte to critics of his handling of the war against Tamil rebels, even as his beaten rival denounced the result and went to ground.

Source: Reuters , (For more Sri Lanka election coverage see [ID:nSRILANKA]) By Ranga Sirilal COLOMBO, Jan 28 (Reuters) — Re-elected President Mahinda Rajapaksa will dissolve parliament shortly …

Source: Reuters , (For more Sri Lanka election coverage see [ID:nSRILANKA])

By Ranga Sirilal

COLOMBO, Jan 28 (Reuters) — Re-elected President Mahinda Rajapaksa will dissolve parliament shortly …

(Lanka-e-News, Jan.27, 2010, 9.10AM) The Hotel ‘Cinnamon Lake’ where Presidential candidate Gen. Sarath Fonseka, Opposition leader Ranil Wickremesinghe and other party leaders are staying has been surrounded by about 300 soldiers…

(Lanka-e-News, Jan.27, 2010, 9.10AM) The State Rupavahini main administration control room and at the main gates have been brought under the control of the Sri Lanka Army Engineering Force at the moment…

As officials declare President Rajapaksa the winner by a large margin, his opponent, a former general, says he won’t accept the results. After a tough campaign, there’s fear of violence. Any hope that the rancor and animosity marking Sri Lanka’s seven-week election campaign might end with the final vote count was short-lived Wednesday amid charges, [...]

Asian election monitors head says no mentionable irregularities in election; opposition polling agents were able to accompany ballot boxes-JNW

Jan 28, Colombo: The unparallel victory for President Mahinda Rajapaksa at the historic post-war presidential election endorses Sri Lankan people’s commitment to peace in a united country, the Presidential Secretariat said.

Jan 28, Colombo: The United States Assistant Secretary of State, Philip Crowley Wednesday said that Sri Lanka has done remarkably well recently.

Jan 28, Colombo: The Secretary-General of the United Nations Ban Ki-moon expressed relief yesterday on the relatively peaceful conclusion to Sri Lanka’s first post-war national election.

President Mahinda Rajapaksa (UPFA) was elected as the Sixth Executive President of Sri Lanka by a ma..

UN chief Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday voiced relief that Sri Lanka s presidential polls went off relativ..

Sarath Fonseka leaves Cinnamon Lakeside hotel last night and is escorted by army to his residence-Mil Official-JNW

Sri Lanka’s defeated presidential candidate who failed in a bid to unseat incumbent Mahinda Rajapakse was in hiding Thursday in Colombo after warning of possible attempts on his life.

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa swept to a second term in office, but his chief rival vowed to challenge the results and for hours insisted he was being held a virtual prisoner in a tony hotel surrounded by hundreds of soldiers.

Sri Lanka has held its first presidential election since government forces put down a 26-year insurgency by Tamil Tiger rebels.

Jan 28, Colombo: The unparallel victory for President Mahinda Rajapaksa at the historic post-war presidential election endorses Sri Lankan people’s commitment to peace in a united country, the Presidential Secretariat said.

Mahinda Rajapaksa gains a victory of big margin in the presidential elections of Sri Lanka and this has not surprised Tamil nationalist circles. The voters of Sinhala Nation have very clearly endorsed a regime accused of genocide and war crimes against Tamils. Democracy insisting the need to recognise two Nation States in the island is [...]

Mahinda Rajapaksa gains a victory of big margin in the presidential elections of Sri Lanka and this has not surprised Tamil nationalist circles. The voters of Sinhala Nation have very clearly endorsed a regime accused of genocide and war crimes against Tamils. Democracy insisting the need to recognise two Nation States in the island is [...]

Mahinda Rajapaksa gains a victory of big margin in the presidential elections of Sri Lanka and this has not surprised Tamil nationalist circles. The voters of Sinhala Nation have very clearly endorsed a regime accused of genocide and war crimes against Tamils. Democracy insisting the need to recognise two Nation States in the island is [...]