Bilingual Information Centres (BIC) would be established in government institutions which cater to a large section of the public. Spokesman for the Ministry of National Languages and Social Integration (NLSI), Mahendra Harischandra said yesterday that discussions would be held with the relevant ministers of those institutions and institution heads before setting up BICs.

Harishchandra said that the NLSI had received a large number of complaints from people who had been made to waste their time visiting those institutions

The Commonwealth is sleepwalking towards a human rights disaster, if it goes ahead with November's Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Colombo, where it will be presided over by Sri Lanka's President Mahinda Rajapaksa. Perhaps emboldened by getting away with murder - the army slaughter of some 40,000 Tamil civilians in 2009 - his government has now moved to destroy the independence of the judiciary. It has sacked the Chief Justice for a decision that it finds inconvenient.

Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake, f

Stepping up pressure on Congress-led UPA Government, its key southern ally DMK on Tuesday demanded that India support the US-sponsored resolution at the UNHRC against Sri Lanka as over 4, Colombo's alleged war crimes.

The resolution at UNHRC "will certainly succeed. Our strong demand is that India should also cooperate," DMK chief M. Karunanidhi told reporters.

Mr. Karunanidhi's son and DMK Treasurer M.K. Stalin led the protest under the banner of party-backed TES

Sri Lanka has undermined the rule of law, violated human rights, democracy, freedom of speech and expression resulting in disastrous consequences to the country. A panel of experts appointed by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to advise him on the issue of accountability with regard to any alleged violations of international human rights and humanitarian law during the final stages of the civil war found “credible allegations” which, if proven, indicated that war crimes and crimes against humanity were committed by the

Mawbima Lanka Padanama writes to Foreign envoys

Mawbima Lanka Padanama has issued a letter to all the foreign missions in Sri Lanka requesting them to oppose the proposed motion against Sri Lanka at the 22nd session of the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC).

Mawbima Lanka Foundation, a non government, non profit organisation, said it considers it is their prime responsibility to raise a strong voice against what it sees as an extremely biased approach by the UNHRC headed by Navanethem Pillay.

While commending the Sri Lankan Government for the ‘physical’ reconciliation work in the North and resettlement of IDPs, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillai said today that she remained concerned about the lack of ‘meaningful progress on accountability and reconciliation.’

 

Pillai added that, ‘although I support the National Plan of Action for the implementation of the LLRC recommendations I do this that this is being done selectively.’ She welcomed the enga

The government is to brief diplomats in Geneva to counter the allegations raised in the Channel 4 video, an external Affairs Ministry spokesman said.

External Affairs Ministry spokesman Rodney Perera said that officials from the Sri Lankan Embassy in Geneva and External Affairs Ministry will attempt to give the true picture of the ground situation in Sri Lanka.

Perera said that the video, which was screened at the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC)  premises in Geneva last week, was misleading and g

The Tamil National Alliance is standing in the way of the full implementation of the recommendations made by the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission, the government charged last night.

Despite the TNA screaming that the government was not implementing the LLRC proposals, implementation of some of the proposals needed their participation, but they were not co-operating, Government spokesman and Media Minister Keheliya Rambukwella told The Island last night.

Presidential Human Rights envoy and Plantations Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe has caused quite a diplomatic stir in Geneva by skipping a meeting called by United Nations Human Rights Commissioner (UNHRC) Navi Pillay, following a swipe he had at her in Geneva last week.

The reason for his decision to keep away was not immediately known. Asked whether he had obtained the government’s nod for skipping Pillay’s meeting, sources answered in the negative.

Dr. Dayan Jayathilake says that the government has been isolated internationally, following the defeat of terrorism three years ago.

Dr. Jayathilake made this comment in an interview with BBC Sandeshaya.

According to BBC Sandeshaya, Dr. Dayan Jayathilake had said that the Sri Lankan government had acted in an irresponsible manner, being well aware about the imminent US-sponsored resolution against Sri Lanka to be tabled at the 22nd session of the United Nations Human Rights Council.