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   http://www.lankanewspapers.com/elephanthouse - Archive of Aug 2010




Sri Lanka opens $1.5 bln port to outside investors
Monday, 2 August 2010 - 3:14 AM SL Time

Sun Aug 1, 2010 9:41pm IST

* Aims to attract at least 2,500 ships/year initially * Sri Lanka mulls $800 mln Chinese loan for phase 2 * Oil bunkering operation not open for investment

By Shihar Aneez HAMBANTOTA, Sri Lanka, Aug 1 (Reuters) - Sri Lanka on Sunday
said it would invite outside investors into its $1.5 billion
Hambantota port project, the keystone of a $6 billion post-war
infrastructure revitalisation drive. The invitation for external investment will coincide with

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FACTBOX-Key political risks to watch in Sri Lanka
Tuesday, 3 August 2010 - 1:48 AM SL Time

Mon Aug 2, 2010 9:34am EDT

By C. Bryson Hull

COLOMBO Aug 2 (Reuters) - Sri Lanka has flooded its newest harbour, the first stage of the $3 billion Hambantota port that gives the Indian- Ocean island nation an economic foothold along one of the world`s busiest shipping lanes.

It is the first step in President Mahinda Rajapaksa`s plan to transform his nation`s economy since the end of a quarter-century war in May 2009. Many execution risks remain before he reaches his ambitious goals.

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Tilting balance of power
Tuesday, 3 August 2010 - 4:21 PM SL Time

By Yang Baoyun (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-08-03 08:02Inviting the US and Russia to participate in the East Asia Summit is aimed at counterbalancing China`s clout

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has agreed to deepen engagement with Washington and Moscow by expanding the 16-nation East Asia Summit (EAS) to a `10 plus 8` dialogue, according to a joint declaration during the ASEAN foreign ministers` meeting in Vietnam on July 20.

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The Climate War
Wednesday, 4 August 2010 - 3:08 AM SL Time

By ERIC POOLEY
Chapter One:
`We Haven`t Done a Damned Thing`

It was the rainy season in Bali but the rains had not come. December is summertime on the island, one of the 17,000 volcanic pearls that make up the vast Indonesian archipelago, and normally that means very hot and wet. But like so many places in the world, Bali was living through some weird weather in 2007. The heat had arrived on schedule but the twelve inches of rainfall that soak the island in an average December were not to be found, so the humidity gathered and grew, a pregnant, vaporous shroud that cloaked the long line of people waiting to get through the metal detectors and into Nusantara Hall, in the luxury beach resort of Nusa Dua, on the evening of December 13.

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U.S. Embassy Statement on Visit of U.S. Trade Delegation to Sri Lanka
Wednesday, 4 August 2010 - 12:39 PM SL Time

Wed, 2010-08-04 03:56 editor
Colombo, 04 August, (Asiantribune.com): Speaking at the conclusion of a two day visit by a team of US government officials, Assistant United States Trade Representative Michael Delaney commented there have been some media reports which have mischaracterized the United States GSP review process. I would like to clarify that the United States GSP program is wholly independent of any other countries` review. Our GSP review is solely focused on labor rights. In addition, the GSP trade benefits continue during the ongoing review process.

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Volvo sold to Geely
Wednesday, 4 August 2010 - 10:02 PM SL Time

By John O`Brien

Little more than a year ago, the name Geely would happily slip under the radar of most. Today, the Chinese company completed its purchase of Volvo from Ford. Geely stumped up a $1.3 billion in cash for the Swedish brand and issued a $200m note.

The figure is slightly less than the $1.8bn fee agreed between the two parties in March 2010, but finally brings an end to a long drawn-out sale since Ford`s decision was first announced on 1 December 2008. It also shows how badly Ford`s fingers are burned: it paid $6.45bn for Volvo back in 1999.

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A post war challenge for Sri Lanka: Dismantling the LTTE overseas and rebuilding a Sri Lankan identity
Thursday, 5 August 2010 - 10:36 AM SL Time

Thu, 2010-08-05 04:07 admin

Sri Lanka defeated the world`s first insurgency of the 21st century.1 On May 19, 2009, the country achieved a great strategic and moral triumph by militarily defeating the LTTE, said Professor Rohan Gunaratna.

In a keynote address delivered at the Auditorium of the Sri Lanka Foundation Institute on the invitation of the Nandadasa Kodagoda Memorial Trust Professor Gunaratna further said, The theory that a political solution is a prelude to defeating an insurgency articulated by Western theorists and scholars was shattered. After three decades of fighting a cruel and costly insurgency, peace finally returned to Sri Lanka.

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Dog`s life is not as bad as it used to be
Thursday, 5 August 2010 - 10:06 PM SL Time

Ted Thornhill - 5th August, 2010 Share| .Restaurant for dogs opens in Australia
A restaurant for dogs has opened in Australia, which serves up tasty fare for hungry hounds.


It may sound like a barking mad scheme to some, but Chew Chew, in Sydney, is proving a massive hit with its mouth-watering range of meals for mutts.

The menu features dishes such as beef steak with mushrooms and chicken wings, fish soup and chicken wings and lamb bones.

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SRI LANKA: Taboo reinforces ignorance about HIV
Friday, 6 August 2010 - 6:59 AM SL Time

COLOMBO, 5 August 2010 (PlusNews) - Sri Lanka has remained relatively unscathed by the global AIDS pandemic, but for the tiny minority of people living with HIV, life is extremely hard.

`If you have AIDS, you become an immoral person overnight,` said Chamara Sumanapala, a social commentator at the University of Colombo in the capital, Colombo. `People are simply not comfortable living with people who have HIV.`

UNAIDS noted that HIV prevalence in Sri Lanka had gradually increased over the last 20 years and was likely to peak by 2012 and then stabilize. Current prevalence is estimated at 0.02 percent - 3,500 people were thought to be living with the virus in 2009 - and even among population groups considered high risk, HIV infection has consistently stayed below 1 percent.

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More Tamil vessels may be headed for Canada
Friday, 6 August 2010 - 12:47 PM SL Time

As the MV Sun Sea approaches the B.C. coast, two more ships of potential asylum seekers are preparing to set sail, terrorism expert says

Marten Youssef

Vancouver From Thursday`s Globe and Mail

Two shiploads of potential asylum seekers are waiting to see how Canada deals with a vessel expected to arrive in B.C. next week with 200 Tamils on board before deciding if they, too, will head for Canada`s shores, a top terrorism expert says.


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Colombo police arrest alleged fraudster
Friday, 6 August 2010 - 11:43 PM SL Time

6 August 2010 Last updated at 15:23 GMT

Police in Sri Lanka say they have arrested a man alleged to be one of the most wanted fraudsters in the country.

Police spokesman Prishantha Jayakody told the BBC`s Sinhala service that Sakvithi Weerakumara Ranasinghe and his wife were detained near Colombo.

Police said the arrests were made following a tip-off.

The authorities had earlier sought the help of Interpol to arrest the suspect, who is accused of a multi-million dollar investment scam.

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Hiroshima marks A-bomb / U.S. ambassador, U.N. chief appear at ceremony for 1st time
Saturday, 7 August 2010 - 1:50 AM SL Time

The Yomiuri Shimbun

HIROSHIMA--The city of Hiroshima marked the 65th anniversary of the world`s first atomic bombing Friday, with the U.S. ambassador and the head of the United Nations appearing at the annual ceremony in Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park for the first time.

U.S. Ambassador to Japan John Roos and U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki Moon were among about 55,000 attendants at the Peace Memorial Ceremony. Also present were representatives from nuclear weapon states Britain and France.

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Bonn climate talks slipping backward, U.S. envoy claims
Saturday, 7 August 2010 - 6:29 AM SL Time

BONN, Germany Global climate talks appeared to have slipped backward after five days of negotiations in Bonn, with rich and poor countries exchanging charges of reneging on agreements they made last year to contain greenhouse gases.

Delegates complained that reversals in the talks put negotiations back by a year, even before minimal gains were scored at the Copenhagen summit last December.

`It`s a little bit like a broken record,` said European Union negotiator Artur Runge-Metzger. `It`s like a flashback,` agreed Raman Mehta, of the Action Aid environment group. `The discourse is the same level` as before Copenhagen.

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Airline grounds staff for being too heavy
Saturday, 7 August 2010 - 4:22 PM SL Time

By Staff
Published Saturday, August 07, 2010

Turkish Airlines has grounded 28 flight attendants for being overweight and given them six months to slim down or face reassignment, a newspaper said on Saturday.

The employees, 13 of whom are women, are on unpaid leave until they lose weight, Haber Turk daily said, citing a statement from state-run Turkish Airlines. All of them previously had been warned to shape up, it added.

`Weight and height are important factors at all airlines. These criteria are important both in terms of appearance and the ability to move about,` the statement said.

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Flamenco de Espana - iEvolve Latino
Saturday, 7 August 2010 - 11:19 PM SL Time

Here some flamenco music to enjoy your weekend.
Buenos dias.
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Paradise lost on Maldives` rubbish island
Sunday, 8 August 2010 - 8:52 AM SL Time

Randeep Ramesh, South Asia correspondent

It may be known as a tropical paradise, an archipelago of 1,200 coral islands in the Indian Ocean. But the traditional image of the Maldives hides a dirty secret: the world`s biggest rubbish island.

A few miles and a short boat ride from the Maldivian capital, Mal , Thilafushi began life as a reclamation project in 1992. The artificial island was built to solve Mal `s refuse problem. But today, with more than 10,000 tourists a week in the Maldives adding their waste, the rubbish island now covers 50 hectares (124 acres).

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Wikileaks and Sri Lanka
Sunday, 8 August 2010 - 2:21 PM SL Time

Sun, 2010-08-08 04:46 editor

By Tisaranee Gunasekara
Human rights violations, gratuitous brutality and senseless cruelty are the norm and not the exception in war, in just wars as in unjust ones. Only a policy of constant vigilance over one`s own actions can minimise deeds which violate civilisational norms or national and international laws.

The voice of intellect is a soft one, but it does not rest until it has gained a hearing. Ultimately, after endlessly repeated rebuffs, it succeeds. This is one of the few points in which one may be optimistic about the future of the mankind . Freud (The Future of an Illusion)

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REAL FIREWORKS
Sunday, 8 August 2010 - 10:11 PM SL Time

Hi guys,

Have you ever seen some good fireworks, I mean a real one? It`s supposed to be one of the top 3 in the world, so enjoy the best of it while you can! Open the full screen version, it`s worthwhile! The organizers expected something like a half a million spectators (not bad for a city of 190 000 inhabitants)

Last night it was again the highlight of this year`s Geneva Summer Festival with full of concerts and various events to keep the city in full swing. This is particularly appreciated by the tourists from the Golf States and all the hotels are fully booked well in advance.

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First Public Sitting of Sri Lanka`s Lessons Learnt Commission
Monday, 9 August 2010 - 7:53 AM SL Time

Sun, 2010-08-08 02:50 editor

The Commission on Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation will hold its first public sitting on Wednesday 11th August 2010 at 9.30am at the Lakshman Kadirgamar Institute for International Relations and Strategic Studies.

According to President`s Secretariat, Six Public Sittings will be held in Colombo while two Sittings will be held in Vavuniya this month.

The Commission was appointed by President Mahinda Rajapaksa under Section 2 of the Commission of Inquiry Act, functions independently in keeping with the wide mandate issued to it.

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Ballmer says Microsoft intends to become industry leader in cloud computing
Monday, 9 August 2010 - 1:10 PM SL Time

By Cecilia Kang
Washington Post Staff Writer

Microsoft got nothing but grief when it killed its Kin smartphone this month, a decision that looked like a misstep for the software giant as it struggles to stay on the cutting edge.

The move could not have come at a more delicate time, with Microsoft`s longtime business of selling software in a box rapidly being replaced by the sale of applications over the Web. The company is facing competition from rivals, such as Google, offering word processing and spreadsheets online free of charge, and it recently lost its place as the most valuable tech stock to Apple.

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US environment chief mum on BP s negligence
Monday, 9 August 2010 - 9:39 PM SL Time

Monday, August 09, 2010
WASHINGTON: President Barack Obama`s top energy advisor insisted Sunday that BP will pay a `large financial penalty` for the Gulf of Mexico oil disaster but refused to say whether the United States would pursue criminal negligence charges against the firm.

With the ruptured Macondo well all but dead on the ocean floor as engineers complete their cement seals that shut the well for good, BP is shifting towards recovery operations including cleaning hundreds of miles of shoreline and restoring the economic health of the region.

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Almost nil oil spill from stricken ship off Mumbai
Tuesday, 10 August 2010 - 3:53 AM SL Time

Publish Date: Tuesday,10 August, 2010, at 12:18 PM Doha Time


Agencies /Mumbai






Containers fall from the deck of damaged cargo ship MSC Chitra into the Arabian Sea off the Mumbai coast yesterday

Coastguards yesterday said that leaking oil from a stricken container ship that collided with another vessel off Mumbai had reduced to a trickle, but fears about its impact on the coastline remained.

Ships and aircraft involved in the clean-up operation reported almost nil oil spill from the MSC Chitra yesterday evening, officials said in a statement, two days after the collision.

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Supporting a Sustainable Economy in Northern Sri Lanka USAID`s - Public/Private Alliance (PPA) Program
Tuesday, 10 August 2010 - 12:30 PM SL Time

Source: United States Agency for International Development (USAID)

Date: 09 Aug 2010

August 9, 2010
Press Office: 202-712-4320
Public Information: 202-712-4810
www.usaid.gov

More than two decades of conflict have wreaked havoc on Sri Lankan society, particularly in the country`s north, where fighting ended in May 2009. One of the goals of USAID`s work in Sri Lanka is to help members of all ethnic groups rebuild their local communities and participate peacefully and productively in their country`s development.

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Huge ice sheet breaks from Greenland glacier
Tuesday, 10 August 2010 - 6:33 PM SL Time

A giant sheet of ice measuring 260 sq km (100 sq miles) has broken off a glacier in Greenland, according to researchers at a US university.

The block of ice separated from the Petermann Glacier, on the north-west coast of Greenland.

It is the largest Arctic iceberg to calve since 1962, said Prof Andreas Muenchow of the University of Delaware.

The ice could become frozen in place over winter or escape into the waters between Greenland and Canada.

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Mixed views persist about Sri Lanka and Vietnam
Tuesday, 10 August 2010 - 11:28 PM SL Time

By Charlotte Banks 10 Aug 2010

Fund managers favour Sri Lanka as an investment opportunity rather than Vietnam which is seen as risky.
Vietnam and Sri Lanka may well have been tipped as countries to watch by some fund managers, but a growing number are opposing the idea.

Barings` Soo-Hai Lim, manager of the Baring ASEAN Frontiers fund believes Vietnam and Sri Lanka look attractive and as a result he has increased exposure to Vietnam to three per cent and increased Sri Lanka from zero per cent to three per cent.

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AAI plans to build airport in Sri Lanka
Wednesday, 11 August 2010 - 1:30 PM SL Time

BS Reporter / New Delhi August 11, 2010, 1:20 IST


The Airports Authority of India (AAI) plans to build an airport in Sri Lanka, which could be its first foray into the international market in about 30 years.

The state-owned operator had earlier built airports in Libya and Yemen.

We are looking at bidding for an airport at Palaly in Sri Lanka. We have recently done the feasibility study for the airport, said AAI Chairman V P Agarwal.

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Sri Lanka pins hopes on China-funded port
Thursday, 12 August 2010 - 12:45 PM SL Time

by Mel Gunasekera Mel Gunasekera
Wed Aug 11, 9:57 pm ET

.HAMBANTOTA, Sri Lanka (AFP) Sri Lanka is preparing to open the first phase of a China-funded, 1.5-billion-dollar port project that has fuelled Indian concerns over strategic Chinese investment in South Asia.

Sitting along the ancient `Silk Road` trading route and on one of the world`s busiest shipping lanes, the Hambantota port is intended to be the engine that will drive Sri Lanka`s economic recovery after decades of ethnic conflict.

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Canadians board Sri Lanka refugee boat: TV
Friday, 13 August 2010 - 5:19 AM SL Time

43 mins ago

.VANCOUVER (AFP) The Canadian navy on Thursday boarded a cargo ship filled with Sri Lankan refugees and found 490 people seeking asylum, television said.

CBC public television said that the HMCS Winnipeg frigate decided to intercept the ship, whose trip has been monitored for days, after it appeared to veer away from its expected destination of the Vancouver area.

The network did not specify its sources but said an official statement was expected soon.

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Court martial convicts Sri Lanka`s ex-army chief
Friday, 13 August 2010 - 5:25 PM SL Time

20 mins ago
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AFP) A court martial convicted Sri Lanka`s former army chief Sarath Fonseka on Friday of dabbling in politics and stripped him of his rank and medals, a senior military source said Friday.

`The guilty verdict was read out to General Fonseka at the court martial a short while ago,` the military source told AFP. `The president as commander-in-chief must now ratify the decision.`

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A nice song for the weekend
Saturday, 14 August 2010 - 1:45 AM SL Time

Katie Melua - 9 Million Bicycles (live AVO Session)

Here a well known song of Katie Melua with her crystal clear voice to kick-off the weekend.

This is from a live AVO Session in Basel / Switzerland (the city of Roger Federer) and recorded by the Swiss TV.


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Coming Home: Sri Lankan refugees return
Saturday, 14 August 2010 - 4:31 AM SL Time

The number of refugees returning home to Sri Lanka from India with UNHCR`s help in the first half of 2010 has surpassed the total number for all 2009. This trend is expected to continue.

`The numbers of returns are not currently high, but it is significant to see that they have already exceeded that of all 2009. We can expect more refugees will start to consider returning home, reconnecting with their families and rebuilding their lives in this post-conflict phase,` said UNHCR`s Representative in Sri Lanka Michael Zwack.

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INTERNATIONAL FOOTBALL
Saturday, 14 August 2010 - 12:59 PM SL Time

One month gone already since the end of the FIFA World Cup.

As promised, I will brief you from time to time on the latest developments on the football scene.Whereas some of the national championships started just the following week (Switzerland for example), some others like in Germany are still waiting for their 1st kick-off day of the season.

In view of the UEFA CUP 2012 qualifications taking place as of early next month, some friendly matches of various national teams have been organised on Wednesday and here is a brief summary of those who have participated in the recent World Cup:

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China is too big to fail
Sunday, 15 August 2010 - 8:54 AM SL Time

Kevin Gallagher - guardian.co.uk,

The Chinese model is not sustainable in the long run and the global community must do all it can to help China rise again

There is no question that China`s growth has been anything short of exceptional. However, that success may have run its course. China will have to rise again in order to rebalance growth while reducing inequality and environmental degradation. The plight of 1.6 billion people depends on it, and the entire world economy. The global community should do all it can to help China succeed.

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Smugglers may have made more than 20 million dollars from Tamil ship
Sunday, 15 August 2010 - 6:46 PM SL Time


VICTORIA The human smugglers behind the MV Sun Sea may have pocketed more than $20-million for ferrying a shipload of Sri Lankan migrants to the British Columbia coast last week.

The passengers each paid $40,000 to $50,000 for the three-month journey from Thailand, Public Safety Minister Vic Toews told the National Post in an interview this weekend.

He said his officials had advised him the Tamil Tigers rebel organization was behind the operation, which he said was driven by profit motives.

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Development Comes Slowly to Sri Lanka`s Former War Zone
Monday, 16 August 2010 - 12:09 PM SL Time

By Amantha Perera / Jaffna

They are everywhere and more are coming: huge billboards advertising everything from formula to mobile phones dominate most vantage points in Sri Lanka`s former war zone. Where artillery and shells shrieked overhead a little over 15 months back, there are now gigantic, smiling women holding tubes of skin-whitening cream. In Kilinochchi, the former political and administrative nerve center of the Tamil Tigers, a toppled water tank once symbolized the wanton destruction caused by war. The tank is now obscured by a billboard for Highland milk the ad is a vision of the future, the tank a vision of the past.

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RCMP eyes Canadian financial ties to Tamil migrant ship
Monday, 16 August 2010 - 5:07 PM SL Time

Daniel Leblanc and Marten Youssef

Ottawa and Vancouver From Monday`s Globe and Mail
Last updated on Monday, Aug. 16, 2010 5:21AM EDT


Ottawa wants to choke off financial links between this country`s Tamil diaspora and the human traffickers who sell passage on ships to Canada.

Public Safety Minister Vic Toews said he has been told the organizers of the voyage of the MV Sun Sea, which reached Canadian waters on Friday with more than 450 men, women and children on board, charged up to $50,000 a passenger for a potential total haul of more than $20-million.

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Sri Lanka is on its way to a full-blown autocracy
Tuesday, 17 August 2010 - 4:17 AM SL Time

By PV Vivekanand August 17, 2010

SRI LANKA, then known as Cylon, made Asia proud in 1960 when it elected the world`s first woman prime minister, Sirimavo Bhandaranayake, in an emphatic exercise of democracy.

A lot of water has flown under the bridge since then. Today autocracy seems to be gaining strength in the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka after decades of a violent conflict between the majority Sinhalese and minority Tamil separatists.

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More than 450,000 pilgrims visit Madhu shrine for 15 August
Tuesday, 17 August 2010 - 10:56 AM SL Time

Melani Manel Perera
This year, the family as a small church where Christian values are taught is the main theme of the celebrations surrounding Mary`s Assumption. The feast day also marks the end of National Family Week, launched by the Church`s Laity Commission.

Colombo (AsiaNews) More than 450,000 pilgrims yesterday celebrated the Feast Day of the Assumption of Mary, Mother of God, at the Marian shrine of Madhu, in what is the second celebration since the civil war ended in the defeat of Tamil Tigers in May 2009. In previous years, the war did not spare the shrine and its surrounding area, making celebrations difficult.

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Sri Lanka`s Human-Elephant War Escalates
Tuesday, 17 August 2010 - 6:30 PM SL Time

Tuesday, 17 August 2010 09:08

Four elephants are being killed every week and 50 humans a year in an escalating conflict between man and beast in Sri Lanka.

Animals are going `berserk` as more and more of their land is taken over by humans and cattle eat their food.

Two elderly people were killed by elephants at the weekend.

One 67-year-old man was attacked as he swept his front garden, leaving the elephant to destroy his house and two motorbikes outside a shop.

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PM will not hesitate to change refugee laws in wake of Tamil ship`s arrival
Wednesday, 18 August 2010 - 12:22 PM SL Time


Stephen Harper: People-smuggling `trend` a threat to Canada`s borders asylum-seekers` continue to be detained
By Kathryn Blaze Carlson and Darah Hansen, Postmedia News/Vancouver Sun

VANCOUVER - Ottawa will not hesitate to strengthen the laws in order to tackle the trend of would-be refugees arriving in Canada via people-smuggling ships, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said Tuesday.

Let me be clear. We are a land of refuge, but at the same time, I think Canadians are pretty concerned when a whole boat of people comes not through any normal application process, not through any normal arrival channel and just simply lands, Harper said at an event in Mississauga, Ont.

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Obama: economy coming back slowly but surely
Thursday, 19 August 2010 - 1:53 AM SL Time

01:28 PM CDT on Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Associated Press
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- President Barack Obama used the homey backdrop of a middle-class Ohio family`s backyard Wednesday to try to show voters he shares their concerns about the economy, health care and Social Security.

Jacket off and sleeves rolled up, Obama took questions from the Weithman family and a small group of their neighbors arrayed around picnic tables and lawn chairs. His message was familiar: The economy needs more work, but it`s getting better.

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Sri Lanka says no to IMF assistance-for now
Thursday, 19 August 2010 - 10:20 AM SL Time

Thu, 2010-08-19 05:04 editor
By Joseph Thavaraja
Colombo, 19 August, (Asiantribune.com): As Sri Lanka brims with $5.8 billion of historic foreign reserves, it can even reject IMF assistance for once!

We don`t want to draw down at this stage and accumulate unnecessary debt, even at concessionary terms, said Deputy Finance Minister Sarath Amunugama speaking to Bloomberg adding Sri Lanka has sufficient forex now.

In late July, Sri Lanka claimed a whopping 21 tonnes of foreign gold reserve buildup. N.Dharma Deerasinghe, Deputy Governor of the Central Bank, said that Sri Lanka has managed to build this quantum up during the period of previous ten months. Sri Lanka expects the reserve buildup to continue as international portfolio investments increase and in July, exports recovered.

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Hepburn: Are Tamil migrants an issue or distraction?
Thursday, 19 August 2010 - 8:39 PM SL Time

Dark lessons from America on what can happen when right-wing voters decide they are fed up with illegal immigrants

August 19, 2010

Bob Hepburn


The MV Sun Sea, a suspected migrant smuggling vessel, made its way to Canada.

Geir Vinnes/shipspotting.com

Frustrated with the lack of action by Washington to deal with illegal immigrants, voters in a small Nebraskan city are making international headlines this summer for taking matters into their own hands.

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Vuvuzela enters the Oxford Dictionary of English
Friday, 20 August 2010 - 1:56 AM SL Time

While football fans hoped they`d heard the last of it at the World Cup, the vuvuzela has made it onto the latest Oxford Dictionary of English.

The South African horn - which makes a droning monotone note - is one of 2,000 new words and phrases in the book.

Other words to the the seal of approval include Tweetup (a meeting arranged over Twitter) and Staycation (a holiday spent in one`s home country).

Cheesebal (something lacking taste) Toxic Debt (high risk assets) and Paywall(restricting a website to subscribers) also made the grade and earned a place in the book.

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Crocodile tips Australian PM to win elections
Friday, 20 August 2010 - 12:16 PM SL Time

Aug 20, 12:57 AM EDT

DARWIN, Australia (AP) -- A crocodile that picked the winner of the soccer World Cup has predicted Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard will be re-elected.

The saltwater croc named Dirty Harry made his choice Thursday in his enclosure in the northern city of Darwin when he snatched a chicken carcass dangling beneath a caricature of Gillard. Opposition leader Tony Abbott`s chicken was left hanging.

Analysts say Australia`s elections Saturday could be the closest contest since 1961 when a single seat decided who governed.

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Sri Lanka Embarking on Troubling Political Trajectory
Friday, 20 August 2010 - 8:51 PM SL Time

Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu | August 20, 2010

A year after the military defeat of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, Sri Lanka is faced with the challenge of moving from a post-war state to a post-conflict nation. This requires the taming of the sources that drove the conflict for over three decades. The priorities should be: peace via a political settlement reconciliation through aiding the plight of internally displaced persons the reversal of the culture of impunity over human rights violations and promoting unity by resisting majority domination.

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10 Ways to Support English Language Learning With The New York Times
Saturday, 21 August 2010 - 7:38 AM SL Time

I`m always amazed by the almost unlimited resources of the New York Times and this here is just another proof. Found this in
The Learning Network section and I`m sure it could be useful to some of you:

10 Ways to Support English Language Learning With The New York Times
By HOLLY EPSTEIN OJALVO
Nathan K. Martin/Associated Press Go to related article

Many people don`t realize that The New York Times can be quite accessible for English Language Learners. Due to its focus on current events and news, using The Times to learn vocabulary and practice reading can be much more inviting and rewarding than a textbook. And NYTimes.com has some extra tools and features that are particularly useful for language learning.

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Public rage against Tamil refugees has a nasty, xenophobic odour
Saturday, 21 August 2010 - 9:45 PM SL Time

Why this mean-spirited furore over a few Tamils? Perhaps it`s because they aren`t white
By Stephen Hume, Vancouver SunAugust 21, 2010

Another refugee ship arrives on Canada`s shores -- carrying Tamil refugees fleeing a country scarred by decades of grisly atrocities, on both sides of a protracted civil war -- and once again there erupts a mean-spirited fury worthy of Ebenezer Scrooge.

There are demands that the refugees be arbitrarily refused the right to land that they be given food and sent back to whatever fate awaits them that their ship should have been intercepted on the high seas that they be diverted to other countries in South Asia, as if Pakistan with 14 million internal refugees from floods or Afghanistan, the world`s leading source of asylum-seekers at the moment, were in any position to help.

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Sri Lanka`s post-war recovery
Sunday, 22 August 2010 - 3:11 AM SL Time

Rebuilding, but at a cost
Sri Lanka is developing again. But not all can celebrate
Aug 19th 2010 | Trincomalee

WEARING a crisp blue shirt, Kumaraswamy Nageswaran gestures dejectedly to a towering fence that keeps him from his village and his three acres of farmland on the Trincomalee coast. Five years ago, as Tamil Tiger rebels fought desperately with the Sri Lankan army, thousands of families fled Sampur and adjoining villages. They returned in the six months to January this year, only to find themselves victims of post-war development plans.

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Miss Sri Lanka at Las Vegas show
Sunday, 22 August 2010 - 1:42 PM SL Time

Miss Sri Lanka Ishanka Madurasinghe poses for the judges in an evening gown of her choice during the 2010 Miss Universe Presentation Show at Mandalay Bay Event Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Miss Universe 2010 competition will be aired live on Monday



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UN says Sri Lanka situation improving
Sunday, 22 August 2010 - 3:48 PM SL Time

By Brian Lilley, Parliamentary Bureau
Last Updated: August 22, 2010 4:23am

OTTAWA - As Canadians are being asked to accept 492 Tamils as refugees, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees is in the process of returning thousands of refugees to Sri Lanka and winding down some operations in that country.

Citing improving conditions since the end of the civil war in May 2009, the UNHCR announced last week that it had helped 852 Tamil refugees return to Sri Lanka from India in the first six months of 2010. That six month tally surpasses the 823 people the UN agency assisted in returning home in all of 2009. The agency also reported more than 1,000 refugees returned to Sri Lanka from India on their own.

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No kissing please, we`re Indians
Sunday, 22 August 2010 - 9:34 PM SL Time

The list of tips compiled by the Organisers of the Commonwealth Games for visitors offer a valuable insight into social moores
By StaffPublished Sunday, August 22, 2010

The traditional Indian Namaste, with folded palms, is advocated as a good way to win friends in Delhi. (SUPPLIED)

`Don`t greet an Indian woman with a peck on the cheek` `cover your knees and shoulders at holy places` Well, the advisory is no Taliban diktat but a `set of etiquettes` issued to the visitors of the Delhi Commonwealth Games.

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Sri Lanka aims to revive historic silk route
Monday, 23 August 2010 - 10:28 AM SL Time

New port is expected to relieve pressure on colombo

By Binsal Abdul Kader, Staff Reporter
Published: 00:00 August 23, 2010

Abu Dhabi: Sri Lanka is reviving the historic silk route, which was used by Arabs to explore Asia with the opening of a new seaport in southern Hambantota last week, according to the Sri Lankan Ambassador to the UAE.

Reviving the silk route means it will greatly benefit the Middle East, Sarath Wije Singhe said at a discussion meeting at the Sri Lankan Embassy in Abu Dhabi recently.

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Explosive peace: Sri Lanka can`t heal war wounds
Tuesday, 24 August 2010 - 1:51 AM SL Time

Explosive peace: Sri Lanka can`t heal war wounds
Power struggles leave Sri Lanka in uncertainty as politics replaces war as divisive force.

By Leslie Ogden (Tufts Univ.) Student Correspondent Corps
Published: August 23, 2010 09:09 ET in Study Abroad
A large Buddha poised in a temple in the capital, Colombo (Leslie Ogden photo) COLOMBO, Sri Lanka Searching for an identity between its pristine beaches and its reputation for suicide bombings, Sri Lanka is struggling.

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Canary`s Eco-Island - El Hierro, a blueprint for a sustainable future
Tuesday, 24 August 2010 - 3:26 PM SL Time

All environment lovers are focusing on this island that could well show us the way to a sustainable future. An example to follow for Sri Lanka as well.

El Hierro is the smallest of the Canary Islands (a chain of Spanish islands off the coast of Africa), and it is incredibly beautiful. Previously its mainly been known as a chic and exotic European tourist mainstay. Now, it`s becoming famous for something a bit more virtuous as part of the eco crazy revolution----it is the world`s first island to run on 100% renewable energy. This small island is basically a blueprint for a sustainable future on planet earth. We will travel to the island and get a look at el Hierro`s design, something that may just end up saving the world.

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Indian tribe in `stunning` victory over mining giant
Wednesday, 25 August 2010 - 12:02 AM SL Time

Those calling the Indian government a mafia group would be well advised to read this. It`s a good example of how a responsible government should be defending its citizens:

By staff writers
24 Aug 2010

A tribe in India has won a stunning victory over one of the world`s biggest mining companies. In an extraordinary move, India`s Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh has blocked Vedanta Resources` controversial plan to mine bauxite on the sacred hills of the Dongria Kondh tribe.

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In Sri Lanka, Former Battle Zone in Search of a Business Boom
Thursday, 26 August 2010 - 1:16 PM SL Time

PARANTHAN, Sri Lanka It is an odd location to open a new restaurant, right in front of a row of buildings whose roofs have been blown off by artillery fire and whose walls are pockmarked by gunfire.

But the new Rusi Restaurant in Paranthan town in Kilinochchi district here in the north of Sri Lanka, is all set to make big business in what was not so long ago a war zone.

The restaurant lies on the side of the A9 highway, where heavy battles were fought less than 20 months back. That was when Sri Lankan government forces fought pitched duels with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), whose stronghold had been in the north, where most minority Tamils in this majority-Sinhalese nation, live.

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U.N. asks $165 mln for Sri Lanka post-war resettlement
Friday, 27 August 2010 - 12:00 AM SL Time

The United Nations on Thursday urged donors to provide $165 million to Sri Lanka this year to help resettle around 100,000 people displaced by decades of fighting.

While 200,000 people have been resettled since the war ended last May, the others remain in transit camps near their home areas and less than 35,000 in emergency sites.

`The job is not yet done,` Neil Buhne UN, the UN resident coordinator for Sri Lanka said in statement. `It is still a critical period and we ask for your continued support to meet the remaining crucial needs.`

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India to normalise defence ties with Sri Lanka
Friday, 27 August 2010 - 12:34 PM SL Time

Sandeep Dikshit
Share Comment print T+ With the end of ethnic conflict, India and Sri Lanka will revert to a more normal defence relationship. Defence Secretary Pradeep Kumar will visit Colombo soon to get an idea of the issues to be taken up at the first annual defence dialogue between the two countries.

The institutional mechanism of a yearly defence dialogue was decided by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa during their summit meeting here in June. It is time to look at greater comprehensive cooperation. In this context, we broadly discussed the areas which would be important to focus on in the annual defence dialogue. An earlier visit by the Defence Secretary would help to understand the issues. In the aftermath of the conflict, there is a need for a different defence relationship, sources said after the high-level India-Sri Lanka talks on Thursday.

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Addicted to internet? Live in the loo
Friday, 27 August 2010 - 11:29 PM SL Time

American comedian shifts to the loo to kick tech addiction
27 August 2010

Addicted to internet? Get into the bathroom. Lock the door. And just forget about the web world.

Well, this may sound a strange solution to the cyber-age addiction yearning for a solution. But Mark Malkoff, a 34-year-old Astoria comedian will do just that from Monday to flush his digital dependency, reports AM New York.

According to a story on its website, Malkoff gets into the five-day de-addiction trip to the loo and hopes to emerge clean with no urges to hit the web.

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The greatest example of courage
Saturday, 28 August 2010 - 1:39 PM SL Time

A great example of courage and what a nice music. We all need a bit of Liu Wei`s courage in the difficult periods of our life!

Heartening tales of overcoming adversity are typical fodder on `Got Talent` and other reality shows, but the shocking saga of `China`s Got Talent` contestant Liu Wei makes this season`s batch of `America`s Got Talent` sob stories look like the pampered brats on VH1`s `You`re Cut Off.` And this is a true sob story--seriously, if you watch the video below and don`t get at least a little bit misty-eyed, you clearly have no soul..

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Intel lowers sales forecast amid gloomy economy
Saturday, 28 August 2010 - 11:04 PM SL Time

Published: ao t 28, 2010 16:29 IST | Updated: ao t 28, 2010 16:41 IST San Francisco, ao t 28, 2010

Amid growing fears over the health of the US and world economies, Intel Corp. on Friday lowered its sales forecast for the third quarter citing lower than expected demand for personal computers.

The world`s largest maker of computer chips said it expected revenue of between 10.8 billion dollars and 11.2 billion dollars - significantly lower than the rosy forecast it issued just last month of between 11.2 billion dollars and 12 billion dollars.

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Football: UEFA Champions League Group Stages, as announced in Monaco on Friday
Sunday, 29 August 2010 - 3:12 AM SL Time

The famous Champions League is almost ready to kick-off again and should bring all the participants a welcome couple of million Euros to beef-up their budgets. Here the different groups:

Group A: Inter, Werder Bremen, Tottenham Hotspur, FC Twente

Group B: Lyon, Benfica, Schalke, Hapoel Tel Aviv

Group C: Manchester United, Valencia, Rangers, Bursaspor

Group D: Barcelona, Panathinaikos, Copenhagen, FC Rubin Kazan

Group E: Bayern Munich, Roma, FC Basel, CFR Cluj

Group F: Chelsea, Marseille, Spartak Moscow, MSK Zilina

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Atletico too good for Inter in Super Cup
Sunday, 29 August 2010 - 3:25 PM SL Time

By Mike Collett

MONACO | Sat Aug 28, 2010 3:53am IST

MONACO (Reuters) - Atletico Madrid gave new Inter Milan coach Rafa Benitez plenty to think about when they deservedly beat the Champions League winners 2-0 in the European Super Cup at the Stade Louis II on Friday.

Goals from Jose Antonio Reyes after 62 minutes and Sergio Aguero after 83 gave the Europa League winners an easier than expected win over the Italians who won the treble last season when they added the Champions League to their domestic double.

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Collecting mushrooms can be more dangerous than you think
Sunday, 29 August 2010 - 10:33 PM SL Time

Mushroom hunter `massacre` claims 18 lives
Posted 1 hour 30 minutes ago

At least 18 mushroom lovers have been killed in accidents while hunting for their favourite fungi in the mountains and forests of northern Italy.

Mountain rescuers say eager mushroom seekers are abandoning safety procedures as they don camouflage and hunt in darkness to protect coveted troves, la Repubblica newspaper reported.

`There is too much carelessness. Too many people don`t give a darn about the right rules and unfortunately this is the result,` Gino Comelli, head of the Alpine rescue service in Valle di Fassa, said.

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Taiwan bargain hunters turn to `murder houses`
Monday, 30 August 2010 - 1:25 PM SL Time

Agence France-Presse | 08/30/2010 6:45 AM

TAIPEI `Seeking a murder house for residence.` This is not a prank but an Internet ad posted by office assistant David Hsieh, who hopes to strike a bargain in Taipei`s booming property market.

Taiwanese buyers normally shun so-called `murder houses` where people have been killed, fearing their spirits could linger to torment the dwellers and bring them bad luck.

`For me the structure of a house and a convenient location matter the most. I don`t mind if a house is labelled `murder house` because I don`t believe in such things,` said 30-year-old Hsieh.

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Tired of Water? Read This
Monday, 30 August 2010 - 3:49 PM SL Time

You already know that drinking water is key to your health. Downing at least six cups of water daily can minimize bloating, prevent headaches, help prevent you from getting sick and smooth the appearance of wrinkles. It may even temporarily rev your metabolism, if you drink it on the cool side (72 degrees). That`s a lot of benefit from a beverage you don`t even have to pay for! But H20 isn`t the only sip that can safeguard your health. Coffee, which some people accuse me of being addicted to, is basically liquid gold. It may lower your risk for Alzheimer`s and Parkinson`s, breast cancer, skin cancer, diabetes, gallstones, even oral cancer. P.S., java drinkers make half as many errors in daily life compared with decaf fans, according to a study from Cardiff University in Wales, because caffeine helps you process information quickly. It`s also linked to a reduced risk for depression. Those pit stops at Starbucks aren`t just perking me up they`re protecting every part of me! Not a java junkie? Read on to learn the hidden health bennies of your favorite bevy:

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Sri Lanka Muslim Congress will support government, but it will not join it
Tuesday, 31 August 2010 - 5:03 AM SL Time

Tue, 2010-08-31 05:22 editor
News
By Santhush Fernando
Colombo, 30 August, (Asiantribune.com): Country`s largest Muslim political party- the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) has become the decisive factor in the ruling United Peoples` Freedom Alliance`s (UPFA) bid to introduce constitutional reforms. The fate of the draft amendment for the extension of the executive president`s tenure hangs in the balance, while only the SLMC with its eight members seem to have the capability to swing its course.

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Sri Lanka: Mine clearing operations a success in North & East
Tuesday, 31 August 2010 - 12:30 PM SL Time

- Over 1,541,880,972sqm cleared-off....

- 2,468,119,028sqm surveyed to be cleared in North and east - SLNMAC

In a recent report released the Sri Lanka National Mine Action Center (SLNMAC) concluded that as at June, 2010 a total area of 1,541,880,972sqm in North and East as cleared-off, while an area of 2,468,119,028sqm remaining to be swept by the Army engineering corps.

According to the report released, the estimated time required to clear-off the remaining area will be at-least 15 years. The `annual clearance average` since 2002 is 171sqkm, the SLNMAC further noted.

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Sri Lanka: Dengue`s Human Cost
Wednesday, 1 September 2010 - 10:29 AM SL Time

Wednesday, 1 September 2010, 10:45 am
Press Release: Asian Human Rights Commission

SRI LANKA: Dengue`s Human Cost--What Is The State`s Responsibility
The comparison between Hong Kong and Sri Lanka

Rasika Sanjeewa Weerawickrama LLB (SL), LLM (HK)

It was reported that around 192 people have died from dengue fever in the first seven and a half months of this year. The total number of infected people came to more than 26,824 and there can be no doubt that the entire population of Sri Lanka is in critical danger. But there still does not appear to be any visible, practical or successful plan to deal with the spread of this killer disease. The government of Sri Lanka have not implemented or adopted any effective measures to face this challenge. Dengue has spread to almost all districts in the country. In particular the disease is threatening the entire population of Jaffna North to Matara South and Batticaloa East to Colombo West and Kandy Central. The afflicted victims are those from the rich and the poor as the disease shows no distinction.

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