According to the police the 14 year old child had died after falling into the river while at a school scout camping trip.

The principal and two teachers had accompanied 15 children on the camp to Vakaneri.

During the camp the children had taken part in several scout related activities when the accident took place.

The Buddhist monk set himself on fire outside the Dalada Maligawa Temple demanding an end to cattle slaughter.

The monk is a member of the Sihala Ravaya. Identified as the venerable Bohowatte Indararatna thero, the monk was also a one-time member of the JHU.

He had earlier staged a walk from Kattaragama to Colombo to protest against cattle slaughter.

He set himself on fire outside the Kandy temple to protest against cattle slaughter in Sri Lanka. People in the area used water to douse the flames and he was then admitted to hospital in serious condition.

Leading Buddhist monks condemned his actions saying it set a bad example.

A private television station which ran a mini documentary on him soon after he set himself on fire and seemed to have known in advance of his attempt also came under harsh criticism

The venerable Malawwe Kalyana Dhamma thero said that members of the Bodu Bala Sena verbally abused and then assaulted him when he attempted to stage a peaceful protest outside the Bodu Bala Sena headquarters at Thunmulla last Wednesday.

He said that the protest was over a request he had made to the BBS for a house to keep several orphans under his care.

The monk said that he had had to return a house at Kalapaluwawa he had on rent and as a result the children there were stranded.

He had then made a request from the Bodu Bala Sena for a place and the Bodu Bala Sena had initially given a positive response.

The venerable Malawwe Kalyana Dhamma thero however said that the Bodu Bala Sena had then reneged on its commitment.

Disappointed over the move the monk attempted to stage a protest outside the Bodu Bala Sena headquarters but was prevented from doing so by the BBS general secretary, ven. Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara thero.

The venerable Malawwe Kalyana Dhamma thero claimed that he was verbally abused by the venerable Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara thero and also later assaulted.

The thero claimed that eyewitnesses had said that he was unconscious for approximately 10 minutes following the assault.

He was then taken away by the police and he later lodged a complaint with the police over the assault.

The venerable Malawwe Kalyana Dhamma thero said that he had every right to stage a peaceful demonstration and that right was violated.

We are reminded of the performances of great players of the past: S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike, J. R. Jayewardene, Colvin R. De Silva, S. J. V. Chelvanayakam and many others. There is one factor common to all these politicians: they all vacillated in their position not particularly for political advantage but for their own political survival.

SWRD commenced his career promoting federalism in the 1920s and went on to enact the Sinhala Only bill which resulted in the political and social fabric being torn apart. Colvin R. De Silva, Lanka’s Marxist prophet, soon after the Sinhala Only bill declared: ‘One language – two nations; two languages – one nation’. Twenty years later he drafted and guided a constitution which not only retained the Sinhala Only Act but also gave Buddhism the ’foremost place’ among all religions.

Chelvanayakam was one of the founders of the first Tamil political party, the All Ceylon Tamil Congress (ACTC) and refused the join the UNP under the leadership of D. S. Senanayake. He then formed the Federal Party, a much more hard line Tamil party than the ACTC but in 1965 he allied his party with the UNP led by Dudley Senanayake. The Federal Party under his leadership broke away from the UNP when the agreement between him and Senanayake fell through and then went on to form the Tamil United Liberation Front which was committed to create a separate independent Tamil state.

Leaders from both sides of Elephant Pass have kept on shifting their positions on this vital national issue and even today many are hemming and hawing on the question of retaining or abolishing the 13th Amendment. Many vital national issues could be affected on the future this amendment.

No doubt this amendment is a ‘made in New Delhi’ product forced upon the then President J. R. Jayewardene after Indian troops were landed in Sri Lanka. It was punishment to Jayewardene who had the impertinence to call the self proclaimed ‘Empress of India’ names and pal up with her arch rival Moraji Desai. New Delhi’s pretence was that it was to help the Tamils in the North and East to gain a degree of autonomy from the Central Sri Lankan government but the paradox of it was that the LTTE leader Prabakaran did not want this kind of autonomy or devolution but a separate state and took on the Indian forces. This gross Indian interference in our internal affairs caused outrage among the Sinhalese and although it was included in the Constitution 26 years ago, successive governments have been unable to implement it.

The 13th Amendment has assumed geopolitical dimensions with India’s alignment with its new found ally, America, which for reasons of its own have recognized India to be the ‘regional power’ of South Asia and at New Delhi’s behest is hounding Sri Lanka together with its Western allies on alleged violation of human rights. There could be no other reason for this only superpower in the world nit picking on this small far away country, which just two decades ago they said: ‘did not appear on their radar screen’.

Abolition of the 13th Amendment would be a slap in the face of the ‘regional power’ by its small neighbour and could lead to serious consequences.

The present regime contributed to this American and Indian antipathy. Flushed with the ‘historic’ victory over terrorism, it back-pedalled on it pledge to implement the 13th Amendment and did more damage by getting China involved in the construction of a strategic sea port and airport just a mile or two away from the main sea route between the Middle East and the Far East in addition to giving China a free run in development projects. India considers Sri Lanka as its ‘backyard’ meant for its exclusive use.
Quite apart from these external pressures, there is a basic obligation on the part of all governments to look after the interests of their own citizens.

However much government supporters and its media may claim that a great amount has been done for rehabilitation of Tamils after the terrorist conflict, even apolitical Tamils still feel they are second class citizens. Language rights, inability to communicate with the government in their own language, the presence of large military detachments in their areas, military being involved in civilian issues, seizure by the military of privately owned lands are some of the allegations made against the government.

If any attempt is made to implement the 13th Amendment with success it has to be done with the consensus of both Sinhalese and Tamils. If not greater harm would befall the entire country. Repetition of time worn theses, legal and academic punditry will not convince the ordinary people – those who really matter – about the abolition or retention of the amendment.

Removal of the amendment which has been in the statute book for 26 years albeit not implemented is bound to worsen inter communal relations as well as relations between Tamils and the government. Whatever political party that will control a new Northern Provincial Council should realize that any unilateral attempt to implement the laws relating to deployment of a police force and land use is bound to erupt in chaos.

Let the amendment remain in the Constitution and the attempt to implement it be made only when consensus has been reached.

“There must be a power-sharing arrangement agreed upon that enables the Tamil People of this country to live as equal citizens with dignity and self-respect, handling their own affairs in their own areas,” he said.

However, Sumanthiran observes that this government’s track record on finding a lasting solution to the ethnic issue will not infuse any degree of confidence.

He added that India has a moral responsibility to ensure that the 13th Amendment is fully implemented and also ensure that Sri Lanka goes beyond that.

The JHU has participated in the provincial council system and have a minister too in the Western Provincial Council. The JVP too has participated in this system when Minister Wimal Weerawansa was a member of the JVP. It is therefore hypocritical for both to now object to the provincial council system only to deny the Tamil People of the North the opportunity to participate in it.he said.

He initiated the campaign with a speech extolling the virtues of the recent UN Human Rights Commission resolution against Sri Lanka and calling upon the government to implement it.

After the Resolution was passed in the UNHRC last March, the Americans were very keen to legitimise their resolution by conveying the impression that the member states of the UNHRC had voted against Sri Lanka of their own free will and not due to American arm twisting.

Sampanthan echoed the same views in his speech even giving figures relating to the quantum of American aid received by the countries that voted against Sri Lanka in contrast to that received by those who supported SL. External Affairs minister Prof. G. L. Peiris, knowing fully well that Sampanthan’s speech was not aimed at a local audience, made use of the opportunity get his own thinking across.

GLP pointed out that that this resolution in the UNHRC that Sampanthan spoke of had been originally brought by Canada in September, 2011 but it had ended in dismal failure. The Foreign Minister of Canada John Baird, met GLP in New York and said that Canada was not proceeding with their resolution because they did not have support within the UNHRC. Then the United States took over the burden.

GLP stated that he had visited many African countries in 2012 and had heard at first hand from the leaders of those nations the pressure that was exerted by the USA on those governments. He said that US influence could not be gauged only through direct aid as Sampanthan was trying to imply and that influence took a variety of forms.

So, many countries did have difficulty in saying ‘No’ to the United States and that they had said so specifically to SL. GLP said that the Human Rights Council today was the most politicized among all the organs of the United Nations system and that has consequences for all developing nations.

Speaking of the role of the United Nations Commissioner for Human Rights, GLP said that while Sampanthan might sing her praises, Sri Lanka was not happy with her role and that her report to the Human Rights Council seeks to incorporate into the formal documentation of the Human Rights Council, the Darusman Report and the Petrie Report.

GLP pointed out that while the Darusman Report itself says that they did not have the power to investigate and that it was not a fact finding body and that they did not carry out any investigation, yet, they come to conclusions which have significant repercussions on the rights of a sovereign state.

The Darusman report describes in the most horrendous terms, events which are supposed to have occurred and then, they say that what is stated in their report should not be accepted as facts.

The Petrie Report was not intended to be a critique of the Sri Lankan Government policy at all and was supposed to be merely an examination of the manner in which the United Nations system had operated in this country. But the Petrie report has also been prepared in a very unacceptable manner.

They have blacked out portions of documents they used which did not support the conclusions that they wished to arrive at.

What they say with regard to certain matters, for example, the quantities of food that were sent to the Northern Province are flatly contradicted by the evidence of the United Nations officials who were present in the country at the relevant time, like Neil Buhne, who was heading the operations here and also Western Ambassadors who were members of the CCHA ‐ the Consultative Committee on Humanitarian Assistance. The then US Ambassador in Sri Lanka, Robert Blake, was also a Member of that body. The CCHA was well aware of the quantities of food that were sent to the North.

GLP pointed out that the numbers of civilian casualties that are referred to in the Petrie Report ‐ 40,000 – had been plucked out of the thin air.

Sir John Holmes when asked about it, at that time said, “No. This is not based on any factual information”. Speaking further on the Darusman report, GLP pointed out that Yasmin Sooka, a member of the Darusman Panel had taken it upon herself to market the Report, holding seminars and trying to persuade people to accept it.

That was not her function at all. Another Member of the Panel was Steven Ratner, an American professor, who in published work, had come to conclusions on the matters that he was called upon to decide before he was appointed to the Panel. How could he possibly bring an open mind to bear on the matters which he is required to report on?

GLP pointed out that Hanny Megally, an officer of the OHCHR, who came to SL at the invitation of the government, had gone back to Geneva and made a bee line to the residence of the United States Permanent Representative to deliver a briefing and therefore her objectivity as a UN official was in doubt. Explaining why John Baird, Foreign Minister of Canada had gone overboard and recently described SL as ‘evil’, GLP pointed out that when Peter Kent a Cabinet minister in the Stephen Harper government criticised a television programme hosted by one Paranchothy which honoured Tamil Tigers, as ‘heroes’ and ‘freedom fighters’, the Prime Minister forced him to eat his own words publicly.

Not stopping at that, at the meeting of Foreign Ministers in October 2011 Canada objected to CHOGM 2013 being held in Sri Lanka. But 15 countries took the floor one by one to declare their emphatic support for SL.

Not discouraged even by such a rebuff, Canada did not give up. They made two more futile attempts on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in September, and again, at the meeting of Commonwealth Foreign Ministers.

The final attempt was made at the meeting of the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group on the 26th of April which again was rejected and now SL is making preparations to host CHOGM. “This is not simply a matter of a physical event that will take place within the shores of the Island.” Said GL, “It has far greater significance because this country will lead the Commonwealth for two years commencing from November, 2013 and President Mahinda Rajapaksa will be heading that organization during that period. So, this is what some people cannot stomach ….”

Lakshman Kiriella had posed the question why the UNHRC resolution was being rejected by the government when the LLRC recommendations that it refers to were accepted by the government.

To this GLP had replied that the recommendations that will benefit the country will be implemented not because of external duress but because they are beneficial to the country. GLP pointed out that the UNHRC passed a resolution in March 2012, and another one in March 2013, and that six months later in September there would be an oral update and by March 2014 a full report would have to be submitted and no self respecting country will submit to such duress. “So, I categorically say that we reject the UNHRC resolution,” said GLP. Reacting to Kiriella’s warning ‘not to think that this pressure coming from overseas will cease’, he responded: “We are not worried about that. The protection from that is the will of the people of this country.” In concluding his speech GLP said:
“Let us shake ourselves free of this notion that the international community is going to frighten us, intimidate us and impose a solution on us. I tell the Hon. R. Sampanthan on the floor of this House that that will never happen.

The international community is neither disposed nor able to impose a substantive solution on the Government and the people of Sri Lanka. That is a futile illusion. Let us resolve these problems within our shores. There is no other way…

He observed that the party’s decision to make such a move was based on many reasons that range from the illegal manner in which the Constitution was amended to establish the Provincial Council system to its failure to address the issues in the North and East.

“After considering all these reasons, the JHU will introduce to parliament next week a motion to repeal the Provincial Council system,” Ven. Ratana Thero said, adding that the party would speak to parties like the UNP, TNA and the JVP to support the draft motion.

Chubramaniam Vignarajah of Aurelia Road, was one of 18 people arrested in a series of international raids by immigration and police ,which included addresses in London, Luton and Essex on Wednesday.

Mr Vignaraha has been charged with conspiring to facilitate illegal immigration along with two other men from Hayes and Northold. Two other suspects were charged with the same offence yesterday.

Six other people arrested during the raids have been bailed until July, pending further enquiries.

A spokesperson for the Home Office said the arrests were a culmination of a joint investigation into an alleged criminal network that is believed to assist Sri Lankan illegal immigrants trying to enter the UK.

The operation involved Home Office Immigration Enforcement investigators, Kent Police and the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) as well as Europol and French and German law enforcement agencies.

As police raided address in the UK, raids were also carried out in France and Germany. Seven people were also arrested in France.

One asylum seeker, who cannot be named, emailed refugee lawyer David Manne from Christmas Island on Wednesday seeking his help to apply for refugee protection.

The email came after 31 Tamil asylum seekers were flown from Christmas Island to Sri Lanka after they were found not to be genuine refugees. Daniel Webb, from the Human Rights Law Centre, said such people were typically interviewed without legal advice.

Lawyers applied to the Federal Circuit Court for access to the two people and 12 others who, they believed, also wanted legal assistance. After negotiating with Mr O’Connor’s lawyers , they agreed on Thursday that the manager of Christmas Island’s detention centre would ”make available facilities at certain times and circumstances” for the two asylum seekers. They also agreed to provide two business days’ notice before removing them from Australia.

Talks are continuing about the other 12 asylum seekers.

”It’s been necessary to go to court … so that they know where they stand and are able to make any claims for protection as refugees in Australia without being expelled to Sri Lanka,” Mr Manne said.

But there were still concerns for others in detention without access to legal representation.

”If people don’t know their rights and aren’t able to present their claims and there’s a miscarriage of justice … we could be sending people back to the real risk of torture or death.”

By law, the government must give people in immigration detention ”all reasonable facilities … for obtaining legal advice or taking legal proceedings in relation to his or her immigration detention” at their request.

The Immigration Minister’s spokesman, Nick Wood, said the government was required to organise free legal assistance for asylum seekers only when they asked a Commonwealth official.

Justice Grant Riethmuller questioned whether asylum seekers would understand that legal assistance would be free.
The case was adjourned until 3 June.

According to officials, seven men, six women and eight children were nabbed from the New Cochin Residency, a hotel situated near the Ernakulam North Railway station, in the early hours of Thursday. The Sri Lankans came from Chennai by train and according to a statement issued by them, an agent named Subash took `1 lakh from each of them on Tuesday evening. “These people are from four refugee camps located near Chennai. They were planning to sail to Australia in a fishing vessel. The agent escaped during the raid. We are on the look out for him and information has been send to the police in Tamil Nadu regarding this,” an official of the Q branch said.

The Q branch officials, comprising a circle inspector and two sub inspectors, reached Kochi on Wednesday evening. The team, with the assistance of 10 officials from the Ernakulam North Police, conducted the raid. The officials have approached the Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate for a transit warrant. The arrested would be taken to Chennai and produced before a local court there on Friday.