Sri Lanka Vows to Hold Polls in Former War Zone
Sri Lanka’s President Mahinda Rajapakse pledged on Sunday to proceed with the first-ever provincial polls in the island’s former war zone but his government said the powers of the elected council will be clipped. The ruling coalition had promised to share limited power with Tamils, pointing to elections…
Sri Lanka Official Sorry For Name of Cyclone Mahasen
Sri Lanka’s top meteorologist has publicly apologised for the naming of a recent deadly cyclone after a revered third century ruler, King Mahasen. The cyclone, which hit two weeks ago, killed 18 people across Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Burma. Majority Sinhalese nationalists said the king’s name should not…
Martin Collacott: How Canada Became the Odd Man Out in Sri Lanka
Canadian Foreign Minister John Baird has announced that he will not attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Sri Lanka this November because of that country’s sub-par human rights record. No other members of the Commonwealth, including Britain, Australia and New Zealand, have followed Canada’s example. There…
