The Sunday Times Columns - Sunday April 08, 2007

	Political Column
	New alignments for New Year
	By Our Political Editor
	It was in the wee hours of Thursday morning when President Mahinda Rajapaksa returned from attending the SAARC summit to Colombo in Mihin Lanka Airway's Airbus A 330. Somewhat tired, he retired to bed. The early riser who is so conscious about his morning walk, slept it out till late.
	5th Column
	Cross, double cross and cross wired: That's what they are
	By Rypvanwinkle
	"Thaaththa," Bindu Udagedera asked, "what is all this cross talk about cross-overs?" "Why, Bindu," Bindu's father Percy said, "now there are not only cross-overs but double crosses also..." "Why is that, thaaththa?" Bindu wanted to know.
	Situation Report
	LTTE air wing: How it began and what it means
	By Iqbal Athas
	An incident in the skies over Wanni in October 2005, just months after it came to be known that the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) had built an airstrip and acquired light aircraft, seems the first occasion when the guerrillas demonstrated their air capability.
	The Economic Analysis
	Developing infrastructure for economic growth: Costs benefits and implementation
	By the Economist
	There is a common consensus that the state of infrastructure in the country is a serious constraint to development. Current economic thinking, the government’s economic policies and the last budget have articulated this position and the government has made provisions for infrastructure development. The Treasury Secretary not so long ago said the first priority was infrastructure, the second priority was infrastructure and the third priority was infrastructure.
	Thoughts from London
	Amnesty International plays its new ball game
	By Neville de Silva
	Well what do you know! Just when one thought that Amnesty International, that once respected human rights watchdog that has been slowly going to the dogs, it springs a surprise. Now the witless watch dog has taken to playing with balls and made a right royal ball(s) of the job. AI has done a lot of spinning in its day. But under the current dispensation of Irene Khan and Purna Sen (secretary-general and director Asia-Pacific respectively) it has undertaken a senseless pursuit- trying to outdo even Muttiah Muralitharan in the spin department.
	Issue of the week
	Not published with this week issue.
	By Ameen Izzadeen

	Focus on Rights
	Reflecting on 'imperfect' democracies and the constitutional process
	By Kishali Pinto Jayawardena
	To be sure, the very language of democracy means the language of imperfection. By its very definition, a democracy cannot be perfect, with perfect laws and a perfectly operating system. On the contrary, the give and take of different opinions in the classic 'marketplace" of ideas and the tug and pull of ideologies, indisputably and even cacophonously different but yet living in some measure of amicable co-existence, is the very essential connotation of a democracy.
	Lobby
	LTTE attack drowned in Govt.-Opposition crossfire
	By Chandani Kirinde, Our Lobby Correspondent
	Parliament met to debate the extension of the emergency last Thursday, the first sitting since the LTTE displayed its air power .Hence, this became the central topic of many of the speakers. Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickremanayake, who has the unenviable task of reading out the monthly statistics of the dead and injured in the violence in the country, managed a one-liner on the incident saying the LTTE had failed to get their target when they launched an air attack on the Air Base at Katunayaka.
	Inside the glass house
	On April Fool’s day, who was trying to fool whom from Baghdad?
	By Thalif Deen at the united nations
	NEW YORK - In New York city, there has been a long political tradition where politicians aspiring for high office have to make their mandatory visits to the "three I's" — Ireland, Italy and Israel. As part of their campaign, these politicians play up to the Irish-Americans, Italian-Americans and Jews for their votes.