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40 dead as monsoon lashes Sri Lanka

Agence France-PresseJune 10, 2013 14:36
Naval boats and helicopters scoured seas off Sri Lanka on Monday for dozens of missing fishermen, as the death toll from heavy monsoon rains and strong winds rose to 40, an official said. The bodies of 39 fishermen along with one victim killed on land have been recovered while another 30 fishermen caught in rough seas are missing, said a spokesman for the Disaster Management Centre (DMC). The rain and winds which pummelled the island early on Saturday have also destroyed more than 100 houses and damaged another 2,185 buildings, said the spokesman, Sarath Lal Kumara.

Gusty monsoon kills 23 in Sri Lanka

Agence France-PresseJune 9, 2013 11:34
Monsoon rain and strong winds in Sri Lanka have killed at least 23 people with many more missing, mostly fishermen caught in rough seas, an official said Sunday. The navy and air force are searching for 26 fishermen who have been missing at sea since the monsoon hit early Saturday, said a spokesman for the Colombo-based Disaster Management centre, Sarath Lal Kumara. The bodies of 22 fishermen have so far been found, while the body of another person was discovered on land, Kumara told AFP.

Sri Lanka opposition says government threatened to sack strikers

May 21, 2013 22:15
By Shihar Aneez and Ranga Sirilal COLOMBO (Reuters) - Sri Lanka's opposition parties and trade unions accused the government on Tuesday of threatening state employees with the sack if they took part in planned street protests against a sharp rise in electricity prices. Only a few hundred people joined the demonstrations, coordinated by the political opposition and trade unions, despite expectations of much larger crowds on the streets of Colombo.

Queen's summit no-show is 'message': Sri Lanka party

Agence France-PresseMay 10, 2013 16:37
The decision by Britain's Queen Elizabeth II not to attend a Commonwealth summit later this year in Sri Lanka is related to the island nation's poor human rights record, the main opposition said Wednesday. The November meeting has been mired in controversy, with Canada threatening to stay away unless Colombo investigates suspected war crimes committed by its troops in 2009. United National Party (UNP) spokesman Ravi Karunanayake said the queen might have attended the summit "if we didn't have these governance and human rights issues".

Queen to miss Commonwealth meet in November

Agence France-PresseMay 7, 2013 11:41
Queen Elizabeth II will miss the Commonwealth heads of government meeting in Sri Lanka in November, sending her heir Prince Charles in her place, the palace announced on Tuesday. It will be the first time the 87-year-old monarch has missed such a meeting since it was first held in 1971, and comes as she hands over some of her duties to younger members of the royal family. The queen was forced to cancel several public engagements earlier this year after being admitted to hospital suffering from gastroenteritis, her first hospital admission in 10 years.

Aso vows support for Sri Lanka's efforts to improve coast guard

Kyodo News InternationalMay 2, 2013 07:00
Japan's Deputy Prime Minister Taro Aso pledged Thursday that Tokyo will support Sri Lanka's efforts to improve its coast guard as the South Asian country sits in a geopolitically important area, Japanese officials said. During a meeting with Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa in Colombo, Aso, who doubles as finance minister, also called for promoting national reconciliation in the country, where a civil war had lasted for an extended period until 2009, the officials said.

Sri Lanka torch flame protest at power price hike

Agence France-PresseApril 22, 2013 12:00
Sri Lanka's main Marxist party took to the streets Monday carrying flaming torches in a novel protest against a 65 percent increase in electricity tariffs. Hundreds of activists from the JVP, or People's Liberation Front, staged the demonstration at the Colombo suburb of Maharagama to press the authorities to reconsider the second electricity increase in two years. "The increase is not because of higher generating costs, but because of huge corruption," JVP lawmaker Sunil Handunnetti told AFP. "We will keep up our night-time protests in other towns too."

US 'extremely concerned' on Sri Lanka press freedom

April 15, 2013 16:17
The United States said Monday it was "extremely concerned" about media freedom in Sri Lanka after gunmen attacked and torched the office of an opposition newspaper of the Tamil minority. State Department spokesman Patrick Ventrell, pointing out that the attack was the latest against the island's media, said: "We remain extremely concerned about threats to freedom of expression in Sri Lanka." "We urge the Sri Lankan authorities to protect freedom of expression, to conduct a credible investigation and to hold perpetrators accountable," Ventrell told reporters.

Sri Lanka keen to import medicine from Bangladesh

April 11, 2013 15:17
Sri Lanka has expressed its interest to import medicine from Bangladesh under government to government arrangement. The interest was shown by visiting Health Minister of Sri Lanka Maithripala Sirisena when he called on Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at her office on Wednesday.After the meeting, Press Secretary to the Prime Minister Abul Kalam Azad briefed the newsmen.

Lanka keen to import medicine from Bangladesh

April 11, 2013 13:36
Sri Lanka has expressed its interest to import medicine from Bangladesh under government to government arrangement, reports UNB.The interest was shown by visiting Health Minister of Sri Lanka Maithripala Sirisena when he called on Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at her office on Wednesday.
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