Yearly Archives: 2011

CHAINS ARE NOT FOR ELEPHANTS

By | Published on October 9, 2011 at 3:52 am

The Constitution and an alienated people

In Sri Lanka the Constitution may be supreme but its articles are increasingly only observed in the breach. In a nation where human life has been so devalued and the rights of its people have become disposable commodities to its political leaders, this article is a foreigner’s perspective of Sri Lanka.
I cannot boast of having […]

By Brian Turner | Published on October 7, 2011 at 9:27 pm

Will the US continue to play leading role in global march to freedom?

Recent developments in the Middle East remind us that freedom remains a question of
critical concern for the billions of people living under nondemocratic regimes. At the same time, events in the region show us just how difficult the attainment of democracy really is, there and elsewhere.
How to develop a press that is free
Ridding the world […]

By David J. Kramer | Published on October 7, 2011 at 10:06 am

Sonali gets IVOH Award in New York for her website Lankastandard

Journalist and Editor Sonali Samarasinghe was honoured by The Images and Voices of Hope (IVOH) at its 2011 summit in New York last month.
She was presented with the prestigious Award of Appreciation for her “courageous, award winning journalism giving voice to issues of justice, justice freedom and social accountability at a ceremony on September 17.
IVOH […]

By Janet Paine | Published on October 7, 2011 at 7:47 am

Wikileaks: “A very effective diplomatic approach” by Sri Lanka

The threat of a resolution against Sri Lanka in March in Geneva, the speech by Canada’s Foreign Minister at the UNGA, the lobbying within
the Commonwealth, the statement by the UK Labour Party’s Shadow Foreign Secretary, the remarks of the Swiss Federal Attorney General on Gen. Dias, the legal moves in the US and Europe against […]

By Dr. Dayan Jayatilleka | Published on October 5, 2011 at 6:06 am

Murdered with Impunity

In “Murdered With Impunity,” Sri Lankan journalist Sonali Samarasinghe describes the unsolved murder of her husband, the editor Lasantha Wickramatunga. Although Wickramatunga was beaten to death on a busy street in broad daylight, the government has failed to apprehend his attackers.
Read our accompanying special report, “Getting Way With Murder” a thttp://cpj.org.

See video here : Murdered with […]

By Staff Correspondent | Published on October 5, 2011 at 2:48 am

Lasantha’s Last Words

Journalist Lasantha Wickrematunge visits the Maharajah Television Station in Sri Lanka in the dawn hours of January 6, 2009 as the station
is attacked in a commando style operation. Two days later on January 8, 2009 Wickrematunge is also killed by assassins on motorcycles who surround his car as he travels to work. Watch Lasantha speak […]

By Sonali Samarasinghe Wickrematunge | Published on October 5, 2011 at 1:16 am

Sri Lanka to track and monitor foreigners electronically

In January 2010 the New York Times designated Sri Lanka the number one tourist destination in the world – a position to which Sri Lanka laid claim after it crushed the Tamil Tiger Terrorists in May 2009 and declared its 27 year old civil war finally over. Tourism is key to the Island’s economy and […]

By Sonali Samarasinghe Wickrematunge | Published on October 4, 2011 at 11:25 pm

Misplaced Loyalties: ‘Pink Left’ Countries and Sri Lanka

“How long yet will the madness of despots be called justice, and the justice of the people barbarity or rebellion? How tenderly oppressors and how severely the oppressed are treated!” – Maximillien Robespierre
The informal discussion held in Geneva on the 21st of September regarding Canada’s proposal to debate the outcome of Sri Lanka’s ‘Lessons Learnt and […]

By Karthick RM | Published on October 4, 2011 at 2:28 am

Human Rights Groups want George Bush prosecuted for Torture

The New York-based Centre for Constitutional Rights (CCR) and the Canadian Centre for International Justice (CCIJ) lodged a detailed and lengthy indictment setting forth the case against former U.S. president George W. Bush with the Attorney General of Canada, urging him to
open a criminal investigation against Bush for his role in authorizing and overseeing his […]

By | Published on October 3, 2011 at 11:46 am