News Archive of Sri Lanka

Woman accused of tube murder was undergoing sex change

A woman accused of pushing a transgender human rights lawyer under a train was herself undergoing sex change treatment, it emerged today.

Nina Kanagasingham, 34, was charged with the murder of Sonia Burgess, 63, known professionally by her legal name, David. Burgess was struck by a train at King`s Cross tube station during the evening rush hour last Monday.

Kanagasingham sat in the dock at the Old Bailey wearing a prison tracksuit, her face covered in stubble.

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Prabhakaran s mother yearns for visit by family
Monday, 8 November 2010 - 12:43 PM SL Time

Parvathy Ammal, the ailing octogenarian mothers_day.jsp' class=black>mother of the slain Tamil Tiger leader Velupillai Prabhakaran, is being looked after well at the Valvettithurai Government Divisional Hospital in Jaffna. But according to her caretakers, she is forever doleful because no member of her immediate family has bothered to visit her.

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Pope creates 24 new cardinals
Sunday, 21 November 2010 - 2:31 PM SL Time

Vatican City (AsiaNews) - Benedict XVI bestowed the cardinal`s hat on 24 new cardinals at a solemn ceremony in St. Peter`s this morning. Among them, a cardinal from Asia, the Archbishop of Colombo (Sri Lanka), Mgr. Malcolm Ranjith. The basilica was packed with crowds, in addition to the full diplomatic corps, they had come from all over the world, friends and relatives of the Cardinals (see below for a full list of the new cardinals). Tomorrow, during a solemn celebration, the Pope will give them a ring. The greetings and thanks on behalf of all was delivered by the Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, Angelo Amato, who recalled the Church`s commitment to proclaim the Gospel in the modern world, despite the `challenges, difficulties and persecutions` , which may extend to martyrdom. `You can not escape - he said - the risk of not being understood, of being rejected and having to be prepared also for the ultimate witness.`

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Tigers could be extinct in 12 years
Monday, 22 November 2010 - 10:43 AM SL Time

WILD tigers could become extinct in 12 years if countries where they still roam fail to take quick action to protect their habitats and step up the fight against poaching, global wildlife experts told a `tiger summit`.
The World Wildlife Fund and other experts say only about 3200 tigers remain in the wild, a dramatic plunge from an estimated 100,000 a century ago.

James Leape, director general of the World Wildlife Fund, told the meeting in St Petersburg that if the proper protective measures aren`t taken, tigers may disappear by 2022, the next Chinese calendar year of the tiger.

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Going Hungry in the Richest Nation on Earth
Friday, 26 November 2010 - 11:52 AM SL Time

By Matthew O. Berger

WASHINGTON, Nov 24, 2010 (IPS) - While many U.S. residents prepare for their annual Thanksgiving feast Thursday, one in six are at risk of hunger including a quarter of all children in the country.

Globally, 925 million people, or a little less than 15 percent of the world population, is undernourished. Ironically, Washington`s efforts to alleviate hunger abroad may be more successful than at home, analysts say.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture`s estimate last week that 49 million U.S. residents, including 17 million children, lacked adequate food at some point during 2009 came about a week before the annual post-harvest celebration of Thanksgiving, during which many U.S. kitchens are filled with the bounties expected by residents of such a wealthy country. But not everyone can expect those bounties, it turns out.

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Orders from Clinton :US Diplomats Told to Spy on Other Countries at United Nations
Monday, 29 November 2010 - 5:35 PM SL Time

The US State Department gave its diplomats instructions to spy on other countries` representatives at the United Nations, according to a directive signed by Hillary Clinton. Diplomats were told to collect information about e-mail accounts, credit cards and passwords, among other things.

US diplomats are alleged to have been asked by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to spy on the diplomats of other countries at the United Nations. That was the purpose of the `National Humint Collection Directive,` which has been seen by SPIEGEL. The document was signed by Clinton and came into force on July 31, 2009.

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WikiLeaks : COMMMONWEALTH ON FIJI, SRI LANKA, NIGERIA, QUEEN S SUCCESSION, AND THE VALUE TO USG OF COMMONWEALTH ENGAGEMENT
Tuesday, 30 November 2010 - 9:11 AM SL Time

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 LONDON 001385

SIPDIS

EO 12958 DECL: 06/11/2019
TAGS PREL, EAID, PHUM, PINR, NI, CE, FJ, NZ, CA, MY, UK
SUBJECT: COMMMONWEALTH ON FIJI, SRI LANKA, NIGERIA, QUEEN`S
SUCCESSION, AND THE VALUE TO USG OF COMMONWEALTH ENGAGEMENT
REF: LONDON 580

Classified By: Political Counselor Richard Mills, reasons 1.4 (b/d)

1. (C) Summary. During a June 11 discussion with Poloff, Commonwealth Political Director Amitav Banerji offered electoral commission capacity-building as an area where the USG and Commonwealth could be strategic partners said a Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) would soon discuss and likely recommend full suspension of Fiji noted concern about the human rights situation in Sri Lanka and indicated the Commonwealth is keeping a watchful eye on Nigeria because of the constitutional crisis that could ensue if President Yar`Adua dies. While noting that it was not actively being dicussed, Banerji acknowledged that succession of the Head of the Commonwealth would have to be dealt with when Queen Elizabeth passes, as there is no rule stipulating that the British monarch is the head and no procedure for selecting a new head. End Summary.

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