Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa has praised Gota’s War, a book by Divaina columnist C.A. Chandraprema, which was launched last evening (May 14).

“I think he [Chandraprema] has done a lot of research, and gone through a lot of documents… also he has interviewed many officers who were involved… it is a very well written book,” Rajapaksa told The Sunday Leader shortly after the launch.

The author meanwhile has said that this book encompasses “the entire conflict” and has been named after Gotabaya Rajapaksa because “it is he who really finished it.”

In introducing the book at the launching ceremony, presidential secretary, Lalith Weeratunga, acknowledged the efforts of the Defence Secretary, in ending the conflict, while also drawing attention to the President’s role in it. In his closing remarks Weeratunga said that “Reading the book I had no doubt that it was Gota’s war, led by Mahinda.”

The book was published by the General Ranjan Wijeratne Foundation, and was launched at Water’s Edge, Battaramulla. President Mahinda Rajapaksa attended as chief guest, while Gotabaya Rajapaksa was guest of honour. The launch was also attended by members of the armed forces and cabinet ministers, among others.

Mannar Bishop Rev. Rayappu Joseph has been questioned by the police on his statement to the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) regarding disappearances.
The Bishop was among several people, including government officials, who had given statements to the LLRC during its public sittings. Bishop Joseph said that police officers had visited his office in Mannar last Tuesday after seeking a prior appointment.
They had sought clarification on to how he had arrived at the figure of disappeared people, which he had placed at around 146,000 in a submission to the LLRC.
When asked the reasons for their visit, the officers had said it was possible their superiors were concerned as to whether the Bishop had been provided these figures through external organizations such as INGOs.
However, Bishop Joseph said he had arrived at the number by examining reports by various Government Agents, particularly those of Mullaitivu and Kilinochchi.
He had also drawn information from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA).
The Bishop of Anuradhapura Norbert Andradi had also been present when the meeting took place, he added.  The LLRC meanwhile said that there was no witness protection for people who came forward to give statements during the Commission hearings.
A Commission member who wished to remain anonymous said that anyone who came forward to give a statement could have asked for their names to be omitted from the documents. “On a rare occasion the witness could have requested protection from the Commission which in turn would have consulted with the Attorney General and decided on appropriate action,” the Commission member said.
When The Sunday Leader contacted Inspector General of Police, N. K. Illangkoon, he stated that he was unaware that the Bishop of Mannar had been questioned by the police and asked the newspaper to contact the police spokesman regarding this.
The police spokesman SP Ajith Rohana confirmed that officers from the Criminal Investigations Department had indeed visited the Bishop and questioned him.

The bill for potatoes used at an almsgiving for Buddhist clergy at Temple Trees during Vesak was paid for by Samurdhi Banks in the Nuwara Eliya district.
Nuwara Eliya District Secretary D. P. G. Kumarasiri confirmed to The Sunday Leader that Samurdhi Banks had made the payments but he added that trade associations in the district had also contributed.
When asked whether it was true that he had instructed all Divisional Secretaries in the district to inform the Samurdhi Banks in their respective divisions to release money to buy potatoes, the District Secretary said that each branch donated a sack of potatoes worth Rs. 4,700. “All these Samurdhi banks come under the purview of the respective Divisional Secretaries. Since all these Divisional Secretaries come under my purview, I requested them in writing to inform all the 35 branches in the district to release money for this worthy cause to celebrate the 2600 Sambuddathwa Jayanthiya where several foreign Buddhist monks had also joined the almsgiving,” Kumarasiri said.
According to Kumarasiri, potatoes and other vegetables to the value of half a million rupees had been sent for the almsgiving from Nuwara Eliya.

The headquarters of the Postal Department located at D. R. Wijeywardena Mawatha is to be shifted to make way for the Lotus Tower.
Postal trade unions said that a part of the building has already been demolished and the rest is also to be removed.
When The Sunday Leader contacted the Secretary to the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunication Hemasiri Fernando, he said that the Urban Development Authority (UDA) had written to the Postal Department saying it should be prepared to move.
He said that the Postal Department has been given two years to move to a new location and the reason cited was to develop the city.
The part of the building of the Postal Department which has already been demolished is where the postal distribution for Colombo was carried out.
Parcel distribution and transport arrangements were also sorted at that building.

The Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) has blamed the government for the increase in the number of treasure hunting incidents.
JHU spokesman Nishantha Sri Warnasinghe said that most of the incidents reported could not take place without political backing. He also said that there was a suspicion that some local groups involved in treasure hunting in Sri Lanka were working with international support.
There has been a rise in the number of treasure hunting incidents reported in several parts of the country over the past several weeks. Warnasinghe says that some of the incidents reported may have had the support of the security forces.
He called on the government to make a public statement regarding the treasure hunting incidents and the progress on the investigations.
The JHU spokesman also alleged that the government had shipped equipment to Colombo which can be used in treasure hunting. He said that while the media has been reporting on the incidents the government has strangely remained very silent.
The JHU also criticized the government for failing to apprehend the suspects involved in the National Museum theft.
Warnasinghe said that while the government has been quick to address several other issues it has been slow on resolving the Museum robbery.

By Mandana Ismail Abeywickrema

The Atomic Energy Authority (AEA) of Sri Lanka is currently preparing a document requesting funds from the Power and Energy Ministry for its nuclear disaster mitigation programme.
Chairman of the AEA, Dr. Ranjith Wijewardena said the Authority was currently engaged in putting in place an emergency response programme in preparation for a possible nuclear disaster.
Dr. Wijewardena told The Sunday Leader that the Authority would need over Rs. 100 million to carry out the programme.
“Nuclear equipment is very expensive and you need to buy good quality equipment,” he said.
The AEA’s programme however has been affected by budget cuts by the government.
“The AEA is preparing a document that will be sent to the Power and Energy Ministry outlining the requirements to complete the nuclear emergency response programme,” Dr. Wijewardena said.
The AEA commenced an emergency response programme in the event of a nuclear disaster with the Disaster Management Ministry after the Fukushima disaster and India’s decision to increase the capacity of the Kudankulam nuclear plant in South India.
The AEA is also carrying out a baseline survey to draw a benchmark in the North and North Western coastal areas in Sri Lanka that are identified as the high risk areas in the event of a nuclear disaster in South India.
Sri Lankan authorities have already sent a proposal through the External Affairs Ministry to the Indian government to initiate a dialogue with the aim of reaching an agreement on nuclear disaster management.
Dr. Wijewardena said the Indian government has responded by inviting a Sri Lankan delegation to visit the country.
However, the AEA has asked the Indian authorities to send their comments on Sri Lanka’s proposals in order to form the basis for  discussion.
Meanwhile, Power and Energy Minister Champika Ranawaka said that Sri Lanka has a lot of capacity building to be done locally in order to be preared for a nuclear disaster.

Canada has sought an investigation over the murder of a Sri Lankan born Canadian citizen in Jaffna, an official at the Canadian High Commission said.
A Sri Lankan born Canadian citizen was murdered in Jaffna on May 3, police spokesman S. P. Ajith Rohana said.
Rohana explained that the murder had taken place on May 3 at 9 p.m. in Paranthan. He was unable to confirm the cause of death as the coroner had not been able to carry out an autopsy due to the family having not yet arrived to claim the body.
The deceased was identified as 53 year old Antonipillay Andrew Mahendranraja. He is a Sri Lankan born Canadian citizen.
Indrani Jayawardena, Political Officer for the High Commission of Canada in Colombo, told The Sunday Leader that the Canadian citizen had been murdered in Paranthan in Jaffna.
She explained that officials from the High Commission had travelled to the North to ascertain the details of the incident.
She added that the High Commission had requested the police to keep the Mission informed on what “they expect to be a thorough investigation.”
The High Commission did not confirm whether or not the family had been notified of his death.

Sri Lanka Rupavahini Corporation (SLRC) is to take MTV to Court over the broadcasting rights of the London Olympic Games.
This is after MTV publicly announced last week that the private channel will be telecasting the 2012 Games which begins in July. SLRC Chairman Mohan Samaranayake insisted that only the state television network has the rights to broadcast the games live on television.
He said that the deal was reached with the Asian Broadcasting Union (ABU) and the SLRC has the documents to prove it.

Samaranayake told The Sunday Leader that the SLRC was now gathering details on the MTV claim that it had obtained rights to broadcast the games. He also said that the SLRC had initiated discussions with the ABU on the issue and sought clarification.
The Sri Lanka Rupavahini Corporation has paid for the exclusive broadcasting rights of the 2012 London Olympics, Samaranayake added.
When The Sunday Leader contacted MTV Channel head Chevaan Daniel he confirmed that MTV will be broadcasting the event and details regarding this will be revealed at a press briefing this week.
Earlier the Carlton Sports Network (CSN) had also attempted to obtain exclusive broadcasting rights of the Olympics.
CSN had sought to obtain the rights from SLRC but the state broadcaster said it had decided not to transfer the telecast rights.
Samaranayake had earlier said that the ABU had informed SLRC that the exclusive telecast rights for the upcoming Olympic Games in London cannot be transferred.

The UNP’s proposed Right to Information Act, which had been presented to the Speaker of Parliament by Chief Opposition Whip, John Amaratunga, has been blocked according to UNP MP Karu Jayasuriya.
Jayasuriya, speaking to The Sunday Leader, said that he had been notified that the UNP could not present the Bill as it had been defeated in 2010.
“After the Bill was defeated in June 2010, I worked alongside members of the civil service to amend it and bring it more in line with modern versions seen in countries such as India,” he said.
Jayasuriya added that he felt the right to information was a necessity for a country that claims to be a democracy.
“There are 90 countries worldwide which have passed similar legislation. Out of the SAARC countries only Bhutan and Sri Lanka do not have a Right to Information Act,” he said.
When asked what the next step for the Bill was, Jayasuriya responded that, “it is important that this Bill is passed as the people have the right to be given all the information about their own country.” Asked if he would consider supporting another party proposing the Bill, Jayasuriya responded that “in 2009 the UNP withdrew the Right to Information Bill as we were promised the government would present their own, this never happened”.
He further added that it did not matter who presented such a Bill as long as it gave the power to the media to report the truth of what is happening in the country. Jayasuriya explained that despite the UNP being barred from presenting such a Bill it did not stop other parties from presenting it.
Meanwhile JVP Parliamentarian, Vijitha Herath, expressed his party’s support towards the UNP’s proposed Right to Information Act. “We have always supported the right to information. Back in 2010 when the Bill was defeated we supported it then also,” he said.
Herath was of the view that the government would attempt to block such a Bill but the JVP would fight to have it presented and passed.
Asked if the JVP would be willing to present the Bill in Parliament on behalf of the UNP, Herath responded “that is something the party would consider, however, we would have to discuss it with the party before any decision is taken”.