“Under Secretary Sherman’s main point was that we have high expectations for the Lessons Learned and Reconciliation Commission report which is due later in the month – not only that the report will be of highest quality, but that the Sri Lankan Government will take steps to implement it.

So that was the main message that we were giving, and we look forward to seeing that report.”

Six Tamil Nadu fishermen were injured when Sri Lankan navy personnel pelted the fishing boats with stones. Upto ten boats were damaged, and fishing nets cut by the navy during the attack.

The Tamil Nadu Fisheries department has said one of the fishermen suffered multiple injuries from a broken window glass pane, caused by the stoning.

The fishermen came under attack near the Katchatheevu islet on Sunday.

The attack come less than just over a week before Sri Lanka is due to host a maritime conference - Galle Dialogue.The delegates will be welcomed by Vice Admiral DWAS Dissanayake - Commander of the Sri Lanka Navy.

Presentations include a paper by a member of the Indian Navy on "Indian Navy’s Perspective on Regional Maritime Cooperation; The Way – Ahead", and a paper by Rear Admiral JSK Colombage, the Commander Eastern Naval Area, Sri Lanka Navy on
"Cross Border Fishing; Impacts and Challenges".

Tamil fishermen, both from the North-East, and from Tamil Nadu have long suffered attacks by the Sri Lankan Navy.

See our previous posts:

Attacks by SL navy on Indian fisherman must stop: LK Advani (Oct 2011)

Whose waters and whose fish? (Oct 2011)

Jayalalithaa on SL navy attacks … (Oct 2011)

Fishy relations (Mar 2011)

Killings after Katchatheevu (Feb 2011)

"This is a typical economic hitman story. When we can't do things, China is asking for flesh.

I think either the government doesn't see this or some people are benefiting from these kind of deals."

Supporters of President Rajapakse’s government have stormed a private sugar company owned by an opposition MP.

Sevanagala Sugar Industries was one of the 36 private companies ear-marked for nationalisation by the government for under-performing, a move made possible by the controversial expropriation bill.

Meanwhile the Bar Association of Sri Lanka has demanded the withdrawal of the bill.

"We appeal to the president, the government and all promoters of the bill to take steps to ensure that the bill is withdrawn and not passed without opportunity of further careful scrutiny...," it said in a statement.

See our previous articles:

Sri Lankan Government to 'takeover 36 private companies' (01.11.11)

Asset expropriation bill expected to be passed soon (28.10.11)

The Sri Lankan government has appointed six “Competent Authorities” that will handle the 37 enterprises that are due to be taken over by the recently passed Assets Acquisition Bill.

The District Secretary of Hambantota and the District Secretary of Monaragala are set to oversee the running of two sugar companies, while the District Secretary of Badulla has been appointed as the Competent Authority for Colombo Commercial Company Limited.

Working alongside these new committees will be a team of five ministers to “assist” them in the management and administration. There is a further team of six “officials”, who will also monitor all operations.

Despite the Central banks statements that "The ... act does not, in any way, constitute the nationalization or the expropriation of private assets", last week the Economist Intelligence Unit said that the takeovers would “raise significant concerns amongst foreign investors”.

See our earlier posts: Indian investors caught out by expropriation act (Nov 2011)

The Sri Lankan sports ministry has announced that the three biggest cricket stadiums on the island will be maintained by the military from this month.

According to the Sri Lankan cricket board, this move is due to debts incurred by the board while co-hosting the world cup earlier this year, costing them $69 million. Two new stadiums were built and one was completely refurbished, at an estimated cost of $46 million.

The huge debts have resulted in players' wages being unpaid for many months.

"We are doing this because we are not in a position to afford the maintenance costs," Sri Lanka Cricket’s media manager Brian Thomas said. "The military is responsible for the grounds from this month."

The Mahinda Rajapakse Stadium, in the president’s hometown of Hambantota will be taken over by the Army, while the R. Premadasa stadium in Colombo and Pallekelle stadium in Kandy will be taken over by the Air Force and the Navy respectively.

However opposition MP Harin Fernando slammed the move by the government. He said the country’s armed forces were ‘taking over everything’, also referring to the selling of vegetables and the building of civilian infrastructure by the military.

Sri Lanka is to provide flood relief goods such as tea, biscuits, sleeping bags, bed sheets, exercise books and medicines to those affected by the floods in Sindh province of Pakistan.

According to the Sri Lankan government's official news portal, Mahinda Rajapaksa personally instructed G.L. Peiris, the Minister of External Affairs, to arrange for the donation.

Last week, officials from Pakistan's army, toured Sri Lanka and pledged to provide military and demining training.

See Sri Lanka seeks Indian and Pakistani army advice on demining (Oct 2011)

See While the North starves (Oct 2011)

A recent World Food Programme survey revealed that around half the 1.1 million people living in the Northern Province were in debt, owing on average six months' income, much of it incurred in buying food.

The latest WFP assessment of the Northern Province also found that half the households there live on less than $1 a day.

The report stated,

“Over 60 percent of households in the Northern Province are food-insecure, and lack the income generation and food-production capacity to secure basic needs."
 

"Dear 'Shooty',

I've just watched our Prime Minister talking about shared Commonwealth values in Perth. My mind turned at once to you and your solitary, late-night death in Villawood detention centre last week.”

“At CHOGM, the high table of Commonwealth values, Sri Lanka went un-punished for atrocities against Tamils. But even when the Tamil human-shield civilians were being blasted at the end of the Sri Lankan war between the government and the Tigers, we all knew some people like you would inevitably come to Australia.

Good old John Dowd, who is head of our local chapter of the International Commission of Jurists, had already called for the trial of the Sri Lankan High Commissioner to Australia for war crimes against your people. This just cry, like most just cries these days, has penetrated the stratosphere and vanished into space.”

“Amnesty International has reported death and torture of those asylum seekers returned to Sri Lanka. Of course, none of those accusations made it to the high table of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Mateship.”

“If we could summon up your soul from that place, we would offer you our useless apologies. If we could summon up your soul, we would ask it to remain among us - the man who was on the brink of Australian-ness, led to water, not allowed to drink. But for now, mandatory detention rolls on, a wheel that crushes many and avails Australia nothing.”

- Tom Keneally, Officer of the Order of Australia, is the Booker prize-winning author of Schindler's Ark. The book, based on events during the Holocaust, was adapted to the Academy Award winning film Schindler’s List.

See his piece ‘Vaunted values too slow to save neglected son from fatal despair’ in the Sydney Morning Herald here.

Also see our earlier post: ‘Australian detention centre suicide sparks outrage’ (Oct 2011)

"The second major issue for the meeting concerned the civil war in Sri Lanka and whether both the government and the Tamils had committed war crimes in the conflict's final years. The question, however, was virtually ignored."

"Indeed, there is now sufficient evidence to justify a full international inquiry into the actions of both sides, potentially leading to indictments before the International Criminal Court."

"This failure to debate what happened in Sri Lanka may have consequences for the Commonwealth down the line. Indeed, several weeks ago, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper spoke strongly against the lack of action in Sri Lanka, and indicated that if the next Commonwealth meeting is held there, as currently planned, he will not attend. He may not be the only leader to take such a stand when the time comes."

"But most of all (the Commonwealth) needs national leaders who are prepared to act on the basis of conviction and steadfastness of purpose, rather than evading and shirking their responsibilities when divisive issues arise."

 - Malcolm Fraser, three times Prime Minister of Australia

See his full piece at Project Syndicate here.

Reporters Without Borders have expressed concern after Frederica Jansz, the editor of The Sunday Leader received death threats from the “Sinha Regiment”.

The handwritten letter in Sinhalese, was sent to the editor warning her over her involvement in the “White Flag” case, in which she is a key witness. In the case, Gen Fonseka is being tried over alleged “false statements” he gave in an interview to the Sunday Leader, where he claimed Defence Secretary Gothbaya Rajapakse gave the order to murder surrendering members of the LTTE.

Sent to her home, the letter warns of extreme violence and sexual abuse if she were to give evidence in the case, threatening that she would “not be spared”. A verdict is expected on November the 18th.

Jansz received similar threats in 2009, after publishing a story relating to the infamous Channel 4 execution video, reporting that the video was authentic.

See our earlier post: US ‘deeply concerned’ over Lanka’s media freedom (Nov 2011)

Indian army officials visited the Sri Lankan army's Security Forces Headquarters in the Vanni region on Wedesday, during a six day tour of the country.

The delegation, leg by Air Commodore P R Navalkar of the Indian Air Force, also called on Lt. Gen. Jagath Jayasuriya, Sri Lankan Army Commander. Bilateral discussions included military training.

India's visit, comes the week after officials from the Pakistan Army visited the country. The Pakistani delegation, consisting of veteran de-mining experts and led by Colonel Zaafir Nisar, reportedly shared their demining expertise with the Sri Lankan army.

The Pakistani delegation visited in Mannar, Kilinochchi and Mullaittivu, and met Sri Lankan de-miners, as well as their Sri Lankan counterparts, Corps of Engineers.

In August 2009, more than 82 Indian soliders were deployed to assist with the demining effort in the North-East. Then head of the Indian demining effort, Reitred Major General Prem K. Puri of the Indian Army, claimed that it would take three years to clear mines.

Chinese Army officials visited last month, pledging similar training.

Over two years since Sri Lanka proclaimed the end of the war, Tamil civilians have been prohibited to return to their homes by the Sri Lankan government citing the risks of land mines. Meanwhile military and state tourist construction flourishes.

“Last week Attorney-General Robert McClelland halted the possibility of the arrest and charging of Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa and in my view undermined similar ''citizens arrests'' of individuals against whom it could be said there is a prima facie case of crimes against humanity.”

"McClelland took less than 24 hours to refuse to allow charges to be filed against Rajapaksa despite the fact that the person laying the charges was Jegan Waran, a 63-year-old man who claimed to have direct evidence of war crimes being committed against the Tamil people during the country's recent civil war."

"McClelland says that Rajapaksa has diplomatic immunity. We don't know whether there were other reasons but Australia does have an important relationship with Sri Lanka, on whom it depends for co-operation to stop asylum seekers leaving that country. That relationship may have had some impact on the decision."

"The prosecution of crimes against humanity, however, should never be subjected to a political interest test."