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 25th October 1998 |
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G.L's trial: Nov. 25The trial for the alleged plagiarism case filed against Justice and Constitutional Affairs Minister Professor G.L. Peiris has been scheduled for November 25 and 26 by the Colombo Commercial High Court judge P. Wijeyeratne. A Sri Lankan resident in the United States Parakrama Wijesinghe has accused Dr. Peiris of infringing on the copyright of his book, 'Eight States of Sri Lanka', published in 1983, by using its material in his writings, speeches, seminars and meetings both in Sri Lanka and abroad, on the subject of devolution of power. He has accused Dr. Peiris of not obtaining prior written permission from him and is claiming Rs. 5 million as damages. In an answer to the plaint Dr Peiris has denied the charges. He states that Mr. Wijesinghe is not legally entitled to any copyright in terms of the Code of Intellectual Property Act. Dr. Peiris denied the averments contained in paragraph 8 of the Plaint and further states that Section 11 and/or 11 (2) of the Code of Intellectual Property Act No. 52 of 1979 apply only to 'authors of protected work' and therfore do not apply to the Plaintiff in respect of his purported publication titled 'Eight States in Sri Lanka' He also submitted that Mr. Wijesinghe had instituted the action against him mala fide, with the primary intent of seeking to bring him into disrepute. Mr. Wijesinghe has published several other books directly related to the concept of Eight States.
UNP to consider Parliament select committee against AGBy Ayesha R. RafiqThe UNP is to consider calling for a Parliamentary Select Committee to probe the conduct of the Attorney General, Sarath Silva, following a story in the Ravaya newspaper over his alleged interference in a court case involving a domestic dispute. The Ravaya alleged that the AG, when he was the President of the Court of Appeal interfered with a civil action filed in court. The newspaper also charged that the AG suppressed the allegation made against him in a court of law, by using his position. UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe told The Sunday Times the party's Parliamentary group would consider whether it would be appropriate to call for a Select Committee to probe the conduct of the AG. He said there were pressures from both inside his party as well as outside to probe the conduct of the AG. The AG who is chairing SAARCLAW conference in Colombo declined to comment yesterday on the allegations made against him in the Ravaya newspaper saying that he would be issuing a statement on it shortly. "Meanwhile If you publish anything about it I will take you to task," he warned. The AG is in the centre of another controversy where a High Court judge has filed a Fundamental Rights case for his allegedly illegal arrest and said the AG was personally responsible.
Onion price too brings tearsBy Shelani de SilvaBig onions have become scarce and more than double in price because India has suspended exports due to a shortage there, a CWE spokesman said. CWE Director Anton Ratnayake said local traders were buying from Sri Lankan producers but the stock was well short of the demand. Thus the prices had gone up to Rs. 60 to 80 a kilo, compared to Rs. 30 a kilo two months ago. Mr. Ratnayake said Pakistan was another source of big onion exports but the quality was not as good as Indian onions and did not last more than two weeks.
Monumental birthday cake for AshraffThe Sri Lanka Muslim Congress reached a landmark when it moved into a plush multi-storeyed multi-million rupee headquarters at Vauxhall Street in Colombo on Friday. Party leader and Minister M. H. M. Ashraff, celebrating his fiftieth birthday, was a proud man as he declared open the headquarters in the presence of leaders of all political parties and distinguished guests. According to information given in a souvenir issued to mark the occasion, the party had received donations from 17 Japanese members of the Japan-Sri Lanka Friendship Society, businessmen and others for the headquarters building. Tracing the relatively short but significant history of the party which began in 1981 and was officially recognised as a political party in 1988, Mr. Ashraff said the party had played a major role in upholding the interest of the Muslim community but he rejected any claims that the SLMC was a communal party. Among the gathering at the opening were more than 100 eastern province UNPers who had crossed over to the SLMC a few days ago, because of the UNP's failure to appoint even a single MP to represent the Muslims of the east. Mr. Ashraff said that more than 700 UNPers had crossed over "We welcome all those people and the day is not far away for the rest of the Muslim community to flock to the SLMC," he said
Police officer alleges ex-IGP sent him to be shotBy S. S. SelvanayagamA police officer who alleges that a former IGP had unfairly punished him in a manner that endangered his life and violated his fundamental rights, has been given leave to appeal to the Supreme court. Reserve Police Inspector C. V. Weerasena in a fundamental rights petition alleges that former police chief Frank Silva had denied him a promotion because of problems Mr. Silva had with the petitioner's father who also had been a police officer. Sub Inspector Weerasena said he had joined in 1991 and in 1993, the then IGP, Ernest Perera had recommended his promotion. He was among 21 officers so recommended. But the next IGP Frank Silva had debarred his promotion, though granting it to all 20 others. The petitioner alleged that as a further victimisation, he had been sent to a dangerous area, Eravur, and told to work in civvies with a machine gun which he had not been trained to handle. He said he could have been mistaken for an armed terrorist and been shot by the police or the armed forces. A three member bench of the Supreme Court granted him leave to appeal and the case will be taken up on February 12 next year.
False alarm in FortA bomb scare at Air Lanka's office in Fort yesterday prompted a major search operation by the police and the bomb squad. Fort police said it was a false alarm. The office was searched for more than half hour following an anonymous call that a bomb had been planted in the building.
Women's protests continue despite differencesAs women's organisations took to the roads last week to protest against the rape of Rita John and the increase of violence against women, different positions were taken up by the Ministry of Women's Affairs and the NGO Forum on Wednesday. While the ministry informed the press that a mass protest was organised opposite the Fort Railway Station during the lunch hour, the NGO Forum had its protest at Lipton's Circus at the same time. The press having covered a part of the NGO Forum protest hurried to Fort to cover the ministry protest only to find the place packed with people not holding placards but those passing by. There was no sign of any protest. A large group of foreign and local pressmen waited patiently hoping that like most events it will commence even after the lunch hour, when a ministry official arrived and informed them that it will not be held and that the minister is at Lipton's Circus. It was reported that several Forum officials were not pleased having the minister at the protest because they strongly felt that it should be devoid of politics. Meanwhile Coordinating Secretary to the Minister Gamini Munesinghe while admitting that it was a fault on the part of the organiser said that they suspected a hidden hand in the matter. ' Everything was planned within two days. We first wanted the NGO Forum too to get involved with us. We were informed that their protest will be at Lipton's Circus. We informed them that having the protest there will only create traffic blocks and people will not get the message since the place is famous for protests. We informed them of our venue but we did tell them to confirm with us. But by Tuesday evening they did not get in touch with us and since we need to inform the media we had to do it by evening' he said. Meanwhile an official from the NGO Forum told 'The Sunday Times' that there are events which require state participation and non-state participation . Last Wednesday's protest was a non-state event. However she denied allegations that they had not informed the ministry of the venue. Meanwhile the NGO Forum which organised a mass protest on Wednesday has scheduled a similar protest on November 26th. Meanwhile Ministry of Women's Affairs has organised a joint protest next week, where it is expected to get the participation of several political parties.
Chandana new UL country managerChandana de Silva, Sales Manager of Emirates Airlines, who was also partly instrumental in the recent Emirates - AirLanka tie up, is to become AirLanka's Country Manager for Sri Lanka, airline sources said. Mr. de Silva known to be a personal friend of President Kumaratunga takes over from Prassanna Subasinghe who is due to be transferred. A spokesperson for AirLanka said that they could not comment about future changes while Mr. de Silva was not available for comment .
Undergraduates protest takeoverUndergraduates of Rajarata University are deeply concerned over the Government's move to give over the premises of two faculties of the university to the Wayamba University, said a student leader. The Rajarata University is made up of five faculties, three of which are located in Mihintale and the others in Makandura and Kuliyapitiya. The latter two faculties are those which are being considered by the Government for transfer, explained student leader Chaminda Priyankara Perera "There is no objection to starting the Wayamba University. But faculties that belong to us should not be given over," he said. These final year students of the Rajarata University said if this was allowed "the faculty which was there when we entered University will no longer exist when we graduate." On Tuesday morning a picketing campaign by the undergraduates is scheduled to take place in front of the Wayamba campus, to focus the attention of the authorities on this problem.
Gamini lets go of 'Koti Valigaya'By Shelani de SilvaAn angry Gamini Fonseka who resigned as North-East governor after a showdown with President Kumaratunga says he is sick and disgusted with politics and he is going back to the film industry, which had taken him to stardom. Mr. Fonseka told The Sunday Times he had sent his resignation to the president but till Friday he had not received a response from her. "I am not surprised over the delay in accepting or acknowledging my letter of resignation since the President on many occasions have not replied to official letters. But I have decide to go. I am quitting politics. "I have already handed over my official vehicle and house," Governor Fonseka said in the climax of a headline-hitting row. Ten years after he entered mainstream politics, Mr. Fonseka said he now realised it was a bad mistake and that he had been misled by political leaders whom he trusted. "I did not ask for the appointment as North-East governor. It was thrust upon me. The President first told me my selection was a popular choice but I turned it down. After much persuasion, I accepted the post because it was a national cause," Mr. Fonseka said. "But I did not get the co-operation and the promised funds for the development of the provinces. There was no governor's fund and we did not get the money promised to us. Thus we were heavily in debt to contractors who undertook projects," Mr. Fonseka said explaining the bureaucratic bottlenecks and frustrations that led to friction and an open clash with President. The dispute erupted a few months ago when the president intervened, apparently at the request of some politicians to reinstate an officer who had been transferred by the governor. Mr. Fonseka said he could always go back to the cinema where in a 40-year career he had carved a niche for himself both as a character actor and a director. Ironically, the themes of two of his greatest films — Sagarayak Meda and Koti Valigaya — came true in his political life where he found himself in the middle of a stormy ocean, holding a political tiger by the tail.
Tamil parties to propose NE Gov.Tamil parties are to meet soon to propose a common nominee as governor of the North-East, a party spokesman said. EPRLF General Secretary Suresh Premachandra said several parties would be meeting soon to decide on a common nominee and they would then meet the President to request her that their nominee be appointed. He said the parties were likely to decide on a Tamil for the post as they felt some one who understood the language and lifestyles would be able to relate to people and function in a better way. Outgoing governor Gamini Fonseka also agreed that a Tamil would be able to do a better job.
Rural women's body seeks release of prisonersSri Lankan women who are remanded or imprisoned abroad should be brought back to the country immediately through intervention of the government, a rural women's group has appealed. The Rural Women's Front has also urged the government to ensure that the bodies of any Sri Lankan women who die in questionable circumstances while working abroad be brought back immediately because body parts are removed for autopsies there. The group says the removal of body parts before the bodies were sent here hindered investigations besides being an insult to the bereaved families.
Colombo talks on medicine for 3rd millenniumIn one of the biggest world medical congresses to be held in Sri Lanka, some 1400 delegates from about 100 countries will gather in Colombo this week for three days of dialogue on the new unified medicine for the third millennium. Among the distinguished speakers will be a famous surgeon who has created a medical revolution by pioneering a surgical method of changing a man into a woman. The conference will be chaired by Prof. Anton Jayasuriya, Consultant Rheumatologist and Acupuncturist at the Kalubowila Hospital. This meeting of Medicina Alternativa will be held from October 29 to November 1 at the BMICH. Medicina Alternativa affiliated to The Open International University for Complementary Medicines, will be celebrating its 36th anniversary by hosting the World Congress of the New Unified Medicine for the Third Millennium. The Chief Guest at the Congress is Professor Emeritus S.S. Ratnam, Dean, Postgraduate Faculty of Medicine, National University, Singapore, a product of the Colombo Medical Faculty. His skills in surgery are legendary; he created the unique surgery procedure for gender metamorphosis to convert a man into a woman.
Right of replyReferring to a report in the political column about fund raising for the PA, PERC Chief Mano Tittawella and BOI Chief Thilan Wijesinghe have denied any involvement. Mr. Tittawella states: "I refer to an article in the Editorial Section of The Sunday Times of 11th October, 1998 where a statement has been made to the effect that I am engaging in political fund raising activities for the Government. This statement is completely false since I have never engaged in any such political fund raising activity. I would appreciate very much if you could make this correction to prevent the public from forming a completely false opinion." Mr. Wijesinghe states: "I refer to an article written by the political correspondent of your newspaper which appeared in the Editorial Section of The Sunday Times on 11th October, 1998 where reference is made to the undersigned as having been assigned to engage in political fund raising activities of the Government. This statement has no basis whatsoever and is absolutely untrue. I have been appointed to my respective post as a professional and my duty is restricted to the authority I derive from such an appointment and I do not propose to transgress that authority in any way. Accordingly, I will be glad if an early correction is made in your newspaper for information of the general public." Our Political Correspondent says: Our story was based on a document circulated among the Cabinet ministers on the various committees appointed for the next Presidential Election.
Parippu in a soupDhal sales have plummetted by more than 60 per cent after the exposure of the scandal where a trader had tried to sell horse feed as dhal, trade officials said. CWE Director Anton Ratnayake said the principal state trading organisation was selling the highest quality dhal from India but people were apparently scared and sales had dropped from 1,500 tons a month to 600. He said the CWE was launching a campaign to convince customers that its dhal was safe. Other retail traders also said dhal was not moving. In one of the worst ever food scandals of recent years, the Customs last month seized hundreds of tons of the horse feed known as vetch which a private trader had imported from Australia as red lentils.
More News/Comment * Army launches campaign to thwart LTTE conscription * One minister puts up, the other pulls down * Absence of peace due to terrorism, NMAT tells business leaders * It's eerie in the tower * 1m. each for MP families * Top green award for Tharuka * Upright worthy citizens for national leadership with Sudassanaya Return to News/Comment Contents
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