• Go-ahead for Stassens case
• Right of reply
• Tiger, tiger: alarms for Ranil
• People awake to temple rubble
• I only defended the temple
• Rape or not: CID seeks new medical report
• Hameed the trouble-shooter remembered
• Snippets
• CPJ seeks Presidential focus on Nimalarajan probe
• Foreign airlines' wings clipped
• Lanka to host next Indian Ocean rim meeting
• Richard's JVP link: A new plot to whitewash UNP crime
• Richard factor in FMM
• Crouching Tiger : Hidden Norwegian Dragon 
• Children flee as ugly words and sandals reign
• China may return spy plane 

Go-ahead for Stassens case

Justice Upali de Z Gunewardene granted a variation on the original stay order of July 17, 1998. In terms of the variation the prosecution will be entitled to lead the evidence of Assistant Superintendent of Customs R.M.R.D. Ratnayake, Assistant Director of Customs J.H. Kodikara and Assistant Preventive Officer S.P. Perera. 

However it was ordered that the prosecution will not be entitled to lead fresh evidence obtained after the date of commencement of the inquiry, being held before the inquiring officer and Director of Customs P.D.K. Fernando.

The Customs Department is inquiring into an alleged under invoicing of foodstuffs including cooking chocolate, sausages and cheese, imported by the Stassen group of companies. 

Customs officials seized more than 40 files allegedly containing incriminating evidence when in September 1997 it raided Stassen House, a conglomerate headed by Harry Stassen Jayawardene. 

In July 1998 Stassen filed a writ application and obtained a stay order bringing the Customs probe to a halt. The stay order was varied from time to time enabling the Customs to lead the evidence of three witnesses involved in the raid. The case initiated by Harry Jayawardene, V.P. Vittachi, C.R. Jansz, K. Ramanathan, J.V.M. Dabrera and Raja Mendis has been fixed for argument on July 16, until which date the varied stay order has been extended. 

Right of reply

"Feasibility studies are an integral part of any major project. Feasibility studies are conducted to minimise project cost and identify strengths and weaknesses of the project. All projects require a feasibility study to obtain approval for implementation and to obtain funds for implementation.

"In the case of the Upper Kotmale Hydropower Project, the CEB was duly granted approval by the Ministry of Irrigation and Power - the then Project Approving Agency in 1993. However, the Central Environmental Authority (CEA) did not concur with this decision on the grounds that the alternatives were not studied sufficiently. 

In 1995, the CEA made an appeal to the Secretary to the Ministry of Transport, Environment and Women's Affairs, which advised the CEB to conduct more studies on the alternatives to the UKHP project.

"As a result the CEB conducted further studies of the alternatives including the proposed Oxford Option and amended the 1993 study to include the new data in 1996. 

However, the CEA purported to consider the new study and thereafter made an order adverse to the CEB.

"The CEB made an appeal to the Secretary to the Ministry of Forestry and Environment, which granted approval to the project after considering the new study.

"At present, the project has obtained all relevant approval and is awaiting implementation. The UKHP project will add 150 MW of electricity to the national grid once completed. It is one of the last major projects undertaken to develop the country's indigenous power sources."

Reporter's Note.

The news item was based on the Auditor General's observation. Therefore, the question arises as to why this explanation was not given to the Auditor General when the CEB 1997 accounts were being audited. Mr. Fernando's reply indicates that there has been a delay in the project getting off the ground.

The CEB in its reply has responded only to one particular issue and completely ignored a series of other observations made by the Auditor General. 

Tiger, tiger: alarms for Ranil

Mr. Wickremesinghe was to visit Anuradhapura over the weekend for public rallies and meetings with farmers but this was cancelled following the media reports and a vague reference made by Minister Anuruddha Ratwatte in parliament. 

The reports said the head of the Terrorism Investigation Division had told the National Security Council about the threat to Mr. Wickremesinghe's life. But TID chief Sirisena Herath told The Sunday Times he had made no such statement to the NSC.

Minister Ratwatte, responding to questions on the media reports, said a woman LTTE cadre arrested in Trincomalee had spoken of a plot to kill 'Ranil'. 

According to highly-placed security sources, the 'Ranil' has been positively identified as the leader of the opposition (please see Situation Report on Page 9). 

UNP sources said the party was now checking on where the report came from and why it was publicised.

People awake to temple rubble

By Nilika de Silva

"First the temple bell was dismantled, to prevent the people being alerted to the destr-uction," Padmini Wije-ratne a resident of the area said.

"Some people wept when they saw the destruction," another resident said. The foundation stone to the Bodhirajaramaya in Punchi Borella had been laid in 1922 when the Prince of Wales came to Sri Lanka. 

The Bo sapling had been planted prior to this by Ven. Migett-uwatte Gunananda as a symbol of protest against the British rule.

Many people including Buddhist monks flocked to the scene from dawn onwards.

Ven. Maduluwawe Sobitha Thera who charged that the Prime Minister appeared to be more concerned with buying the rubble of what was once the Bhamiyan statues said,"Me thiyenne keli," pointing out to the debris of what was once the shrine room.

The Mahanayake of the Amarapura Nikaya, Ven. Madihe Pannas-eeha was also present to calm the people. The Buddha statue, the temple bell, the karanduwa and the dolosmahe pahana had been taken to the Urban Development Authority. "This move was taken as a precaution, otherwise the enraged people might have damaged it and put the blame on us," Mrs. W.D.S. Indrasiri Director Development Regulations of the Urban Development Authority said. 

Meanwhile, politicians of all hues including Opposition Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe, UNP MP Ravi Karun-anayake, JVP MP Wimal Weerawansa, Ministers Dinesh Gunawardene and Mahinda Rajapakse were also present.

Posters that had come up in the vicinity read," "Maliga Thanai, Pansal Kadai" (They build palaces and destroy temples).

Meanwhile the MP for the area Bharatha Lakshman Premach-andra who said he regretted that none had informed him of the planned demolition said reconstruction work would be completed within a month.

I only defended the temple

Rape or not: CID seeks new medical report

Naval personnel arrested the two women who were staying at a lodge in Mannar on March 19. One woman was allegedly raped by a group of Navy personnel inside a van, before being handed over to the Police while the other woman had been allegedly raped by a group of policemen inside the Police Special Investigative Unit in Mannar.

However, Navy spokesman A. R. Amarasinghe denied the allegation that Navy personnel were involved in the alleged crime. 

The issue came to light after family members of the women had complained to Human Rights Commission (HRC)through the Red Cross and Mannar's Bishop Rayappu Joseph. The HRC's Mannar branch sent a report to Colombo on the initial investigations.

HRC Chairman Faiz Musthapha told The Sunday Times that President Chandrika Kumaratunga had ordered them to carry out a full investigation.

Hameed the trouble-shooter remembered

Mr. Hameed, who entered national politics in March 1960, held the longest unbroken parliamentary record of any member in Sri Lankan politics, representing the Akurana/Harispattuwa for 40 years winning the seat in eight consecutive elections.

He was made Sri Lanka's first Foreign Minister in 1977, a post he held for 12 years. Later he held the portfolios Justice and Higher Education in 1989 and again Foreign Affairs in 1993.

Having played an active role in the formation of the South Asian Association of Regional Co-operation (SAARC), he also served on the United Nations Advisory Board on Disarmament studies for ten years. 

At home, he was engaged in negotiations with the LTTE for 14 months and is the only Sri Lankan politician who had the opportunity of meeting LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran twice. 

A key player in peace negotiations, Mr. Hameed's published works include The Pursuit of Peace, Disarmament; A Multilateral Approach, Foreign Policy Perspectives of Sri Lanka; The Owl and The Lotus and The Spring of Love and Mercy. 

Snippets

From snail pace to e-mail

Happy b'day P.M.

Boo, hoo, is this the Parliament?

Coal for Poland; why not here?

Oh, la, la, the House goes French

What about Punchi Borella rubble?

CPJ seeks Presidential focus on Nimalarajan probe

Ann Cooper, Executive Director of CPJ, said in the letter that the committee had information that the attack might have come in reprisal for his reporting on vote-rigging and intimidation in Jaffna during the recent parliamentary elections. 'As a nonpartisan organization of journalists dedicated to the defense of press freedom around the world, CPJ is deeply disturbed by the apparent lack of progress in the investigation into the assassination of an esteemed colleague," the letter said.

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