News vom 24.09.2005

[srilanka1998]

Development won't end Sri Lanka's war
[ Tamil Guardian ] [ 00:57 GMT, Sep. 24, 2005 ]

The strategy being advocated by President Chandrika Kumaratunga today is a derivative of her 'war for peace.' President Chandrika Kumaratunga's address to the Asia Society last week provided analysts of Sri Lanka's conflict with insight into her government's policy on the ethnic question and its immediate international objectives. The Sri Lankan head of state's address, couched in the liberal language befitting its audience, sought to redefine interpretations of the decades long ethnic problem in the island and its underpinning causes. As such, Kumaratunga's address was a de-facto policy statement.


Sri Lanka criticised over tsunami relief
[ BBC ] [ 02:34 GMT, Sep. 24, 2005 ]

The former president of the United States, Bill Clinton, has said internal political divisions in Sri Lanka are hampering the relief effort following December's devastating tsunami. Mr Clinton, who is the United Nations envoy for tsunami relief, told the BBC that aid was not getting to the people who needed it because of a delay introducing a government deal to share aid with the Tamil Tiger rebels and the Muslim community. He said the Supreme Court's decision ( in July) to suspend the deal was a cause for concern. Mr Clinton said although much had been done, it was important for every country to have a commitment to reconstruction. ( The Red Cross says it's begun importing thousands of family-sized tents and pre-fabricated housing units into Aceh province to improve conditions for those made homeless by the disaster.)


Sri Lanka's reluctant election chief says he won't vote
[ AFP ] [ 09:26 GMT, Sep. 24, 2005 ]

Sri Lankan election chief Dayananda Dissanayake will be running November presidential elections but won't be voting -- he doesn't trust politicians. Dissanayake, 64, is Sri Lanka's most reluctant election commissar. He wants to retire, but a constitutional quirk is forcing him, against his will, to lead a team of 100,00 officials in staging the November 17 vote. "I have never voted at an election since 1963," Dissanayake said on Friday. "I voted at a village council election because I did not know much about politicians at the time. But, since I got to know politicians, I decided never to vote again."


Ranil seeks mandate for UNP-SLFP talks on peace process
[ Hindustan Times ] [ 15:16 GMT, Sep. 24, 2005 ]

Ranil Wickremesinghe, who is standing for the Sri Lankan Presidency as a candidate of the United National Party (UNP), has said that he is seeking a mandate for holding talks with the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) to arrive at a joint policy on the thorny issue of the peace process and negotiations with the LTTE. Kumaratunga is expected to make a pitch for federalism, the abandoned Joint Mechanism with the LTTE for post-tsunami reconstruction, continuance of Norway as the peace broker, and cooperation with the international community. If she does this, and Rajapaksa accepts the formulation, then his pact with the JHU and JVP will go haywire. If he opposes it, he could breakaway, and claiming to be the "real" SLFP, continue his alliance with the JVP and JHU. In the latter case, Kumaratunga could either put up a candidate, or ask her followers to support the peace plank of Ranil Wickremesinghe.


DLF split on support to Rajapakse
[ TamilNet ] [ 15:28 GMT, Sep. 24, 2005 ]

Senior member of Democratic Left Front (DLF), Professor Kumar David, Friday dissociated himself from a press release issued by Secretary of DLF, Vasudeva Nanayakkara, and party's National Organizer, Quintus Liyanage, that expressed support to Sri Lanka's Presidential candidate Rajapakse in the forthcoming presidential elections. Professor David rebuked the official DLF position saying the press release "has not one word of criticism of Rajapakse's dangerous and unprincipled liaisons. "A Rajapakse victory, in reality therefore, would signal that the Sinhala Buddhist people have decided to turn their backs on whatever progress had been made since 1994 in resolving ethnic issues and had decided to revert to a chauvinist stance. This is the principal reason why the JHU-JVP-Mahinda coalition should be defeated," Prof David said.


SLA soldiers assault Vadamaradchchi fishermen
[ TamilNet ] [ 15:31 GMT, Sep. 24, 2005 ]

Soldiers of the Sri Lanka Army manning coastal checkpoints assaulted a group of fishermen Saturday early morning for returning to the shore after fishing before the stipulated time given by the Sri Lankan armed forces. Fishermen of Vadamaradchchi North have been ordered by the SLA not to return to the shore with their catch before 6.30 a.m., Vadamaradchchi North Fisheries Co-operative Societies Federation Secretary Mr.K.Suriyakumaran said.

 

[srilanka1998]

Tsunami dead to get voter cards

Sri Lanka is to send out voting cards for those people believed to have died in December's tsunami because it cannot be sure who survived.
The country is holding its presidential election on 17 November.

The election commission fears electoral fraud by people impersonating the dead, so the cards will be specially marked to show the voter is believed dead.

Those that have survived will have to prove their identity. More than 30,000 died in the tsunami in Sri Lanka.

Another 500,000 were made homeless.

Special booths

The electoral register was finished before the tsunami struck on 26 December.

Local authorities have been trying to identify those who died but the large numbers have made it a difficult task.

The Election Commission fears it might disenfranchise voters by failing to send them cards.

Elections Commissioner Dayananda Dissanayake said: "Even if any other voter gets a polling card indicating that the person is deceased, that person can go to the polling station, establish his or her identity and vote.

"If we have any doubts, we will hand over the person to the police for further investigations."

Special voting booths will be established to cater for those displaced by the disaster.


Noth & East

Commissioner Dayananda Dissanayake said that there will be no polling stations in the north and east for the upcoming presidential elections.

However, he said, that maximum facilities will be provided to voters to come and vote in polling stations that will be set up in the govt.controlled areas.

Commissioner Dissanayake said he is not in position to provide security at polling stations in rebel held areas as movement of armed forces are not allowed in those areas under the ceasefire agreement.

Special Provisions

"Voters in areas held by LTTE would also be allowed to freely cross front lines and enter government-held areas to cast their ballots", Dissanayake said.

"Special provisions including transport facilities will be provided to voters to come to govt.held areas and cast their ballot",Election Commissioner said.

Foreign and local monitors will be permitted to monitor the presidential elections, Commissioner Dissanayake added.

About 13.3m people are eligible to vote on 17 November.

Quelle: http://www.bbc.co.uk/sinhala/news/story/2005/09/050923_commielec.shtml

 

[srilanka1998]

Magistrate tranfer - lawyers protest

Magistrate tranfer - lawyers protest
[ BBC ] [ 21:52 GMT, Sep. 24, 2005 ]

'Helping Hambantota' investigations have influenced the tranfer of Colombo Fort Magistrate, says the Colombo Fort Magistrate Courts Lawyers Association. Association's secretary, Ziras Noordeen says the sudden transfer of magistrate Sarath C.Karunaratne has been politically motivated and unfair. They have written to the chief justice Sarath Silva and requested to stop this transfer, says Association's secretary, Ziras Noordeen who is also a United National Party (UNP) member of the Colombo Municipal Council. "Magistrate Karunaratne has been involved in several important cases and 'Helping Hambantota' was under his purview at the time of the transfer. He said evidence with regard to the 'Helping Hambantota' case have come up leading to the arrest of a special person.