Rajapaksa seeks more time to address Tamil issue

INTERNATIONAL » SOUTH ASIA
JERUSALEM, January 9, 2014 Updated: January 9, 2014 18:23 IST
Rajapaksa seeks more time to address Tamil issue

Under international spotlight over alleged rights violations during the last phase of war with the LTTE, Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa on Thursday sought more time to deal with the Tamil issue.

Defending his government’s efforts in rehabilitating the Tamil-dominated northern region, Mr. Rajapaksa said, “We always support peace... and we will keep supporting peace for all people.”

“In Sri Lanka we also fought thirty years of war against terrorists. So the whole development process, the economy went down. We suffered for thirty years but now we have peace for the last four years. In 2009 we managed to eradicate terrorism,” he said.

“Though we have eradicated terrorism, now we have to face the international community, which is pressurising us,” the Sri Lankan leader told his Israeli counterpart Shimon Peres.

Ruing the continuous condemnation of his country’s human rights record at international forums, Mr. Rajapaksa said that his country would need some time to deal with their demands.

“Now our issue is that some of the countries are criticising though there are no bombs blasting in our country.

Every March or every six months in Geneva we are facing a confrontation with these countries. Some of the Western countries are bringing resolutions in the Human Rights Commission,” he said in reference to resolutions brought in the UNHCR.

“What we say is that we want time because in three to four years these issues cannot be sorted out,” Mr. Rajapaksa argued.

The UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in March had adopted a US-sponsored resolution against Sri Lanka over its rights record, with 25 countries including India voting in favour of the document.

The resolution had urged Sri Lanka to reconcile with the Tamils and address outstanding issues of rights accountability.

Elaborating on steps taken by his government to develop the northern peninsula region and to integrate Tamils into the mainstream, the Sri Lankan President said that his government has spent almost USD 400 million in developing the region.

“Within these four years, we have developed the north economically and we have released 14,000 prisoners, rehabilitated them, sent them back to the society. We believe that the society can rehabilitate people more than the government,” Mr. Rajapaksa stressed.“We took that risk and released all the combatants.

There were child soldiers. We released them within three months. There were nearly 3,00,000 displaced people. We have settled them now. There were mines so we had to de-mine the places,” he pointed out as confidence building measures undertaken by his government.

“You were really successful in bringing reconciliation to your people...it is not a small achievement...we followed your example with great admiration. It was an extraordinary lesson in history,”  Mr.Shimon Peres 

“We have built railway lines, roads, gave them electricity, water, drinking water, new hospitals, schools, so I think 400 million US dollars have been spent to develop north,” the Sri Lankan President emphasised.

In order to integrate the minority Tamil population into the political mainstream, Mr. Rajapaksa said that there were local government elections in the region and that the Tamils also participated in the Presidential elections.

He even hinted at reshuffling his Cabinet to accommodate the minority population.

“So we have done lots of development in those areas for people and we have recruited from the youth to the Sri Lankan army and in the police. We believe in one country and peace for all the people in Sri Lanka”, Mr. Rajapaksa asserted.

 Mr. Peres, speaking before Mr. Rajapaksa at the meeting, lauded Sri Lanka’s efforts in overcoming internal challenges.

“Your country faced so many difficulties but you were able to overcome them,” the Israeli President said.

“You were really successful in bringing reconciliation to your people...it is not a small achievement...we followed your example with great admiration. It was an extraordinary lesson in history,” he added.
====================

Sri Lanka : President Rajapaksa Meets Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
Thu, 2014-01-09 08:09 — editor
 Jerusalem, 09 January, (Asiantribune.com):

During the bilateral talks between President Mahinda Rajapaksa and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu this afternoon (Jan. 08) at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem, Sri Lanka and Israel agreed.
President Mahinda Rajapaksa and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held bi-lateral discussions at the Prime Minister’s Office in Jerusalem Wednesday (Jan. 08). President Rajapaksa arrived in Jerusalem today as the final stop on his Middle East visit.

President Rajapaksa arrived in Jerusalem from Bethlehem Wednesday morning together with First Lady Shiranthi Wickremasinghe Rajapaksa for the final stop in their visit to three Middle Eastern countries. President Rajapaksa is the first Sri Lankan head of State to visit Israel since its inception.

In the area of agriculture, Israel agreed to provide technological assistance, including support to expand the scope of utilizing the drip irrigation system in Sri Lanka. Israel is known for the drip irrigation technology that it invented for the agricultural sector to cope with the water crisis in the region. Another water-related

technology that was discussed was desalination, a process through which potable water is produced from sea water.

Information technology and employment were other areas identified for strengthening cooperation between the two countries. Currently, there are approximately 7,000 Sri Lankans working in Israel as caregivers. The two leaders agreed to work towards increasing employment in this sector as well as seasonal

employment in agriculture. Israel pointed out that Israeli farmers are quite satisfied with quality of Sri Lankan employees working in the country.

Before the conclusion of the meeting, President Rajapaksa also thanked Israel for the tsunami assistance it provided.

"Thank you for the humanitarian assistance provided to Sri Lanka in the aftermath of the 2004 tsunami,” President Rajapaksa said.

Israel made financial donations and provided relief goods, food and clothing, field kitchens and a mobile medicine clinic for the Sri Lankan tsunami survivors.

Israeli National Security Advisor Mr. Yossi Cohen, Chief of National Information Directorate Mr. Liran Dan, Israel’s Non-Resident Ambassador to Sri Lanka in New Delhi Mr. Alon Ushpiz and Ambassador of Israel to the United States Mr. Ron Dermer were present at the discussion.

The Sri Lankan delegation comprised of Minister of External Affairs Prof. G. L. Peiris, Monitoring MP of the Ministry of External Affairs Mr. Sajin de Vass Gunawardena, Parliamentarian Mr. Roshan Ranasinghe, Secretary to the President Mr. Lalith Weeratunga and Sri Lanka’s Ambassador in Israel Mr. Sarath Wijesinghe.

- Asian Tribune –

அபாஸ் ஈழத்துக்கு மட்டுமல்ல பாலஸ்தீனத்துக்கும் துரோகியே!

MR conferred with “Star of Palestine” award
MONDAY, 06 JANUARY 2014

The Government of Palestine today conferred President Mahinda Rajapaksa with the “Star of Palestine” – the highest award of the State of Palestine.

“The relations between Sri Lanka and the State of Palestine are exceptional and we remain committed to extending our fullest support to the State of Palestine and the friendly people of Palestine,” President Rajapaksa said during the conferment ceremony.

President Rajapaksa, on behalf of the people of Sri Lanka, conferred the “Sri Lanka Mitra Vibhushana” awards on former Palestinian President Yasser Arafat and current President Mahmoud Abbas.

The President, First Lady Shiranthi Wickremasinghe Rajapaksa and a Sri Lankan delegation are currently visiting the Middle East engaging in state visits to Jordan, Palestine and Israel.

External Affairs Minister Prof. G.L. Peiris, Monitoring MP of the Ministry of External Affairs Sajin de Vass Gunawardena, Parliamentarians Kamala Ranatunga and Roshan Ranasinghe, Secretary to the President Lalith Weeratunga and Sri Lanka’s Ambassador in  Jordan Gamini Rajapakse were among the Sri Lankan delegation.

கோத்தாவின் கிழக்கு மாகாண வாகரை யுத்த மாதிரிக்கு அமெரிக்கா புகழாரம்!

Wiki Leaks: US Commended Gota For Conducting A Successful Battle With Low Civilian Causalities

¶2.  (C) Ambassador, DATT and PolMilOff met Government of Sri Lanka (GSL) Defense Secretary (and brother to the President) 

Gothabaya Rajapaksa on February 5.  Rajapaksa offered his interpretation of the government security forces' January victory in Vakarai and explained the GSL's current military 

strategy.   Ambassador commended the Secretary for conducting a successful battle with such low civilian causalities, after the initial shelling incident.  Gotabaya claimed that no civilians had been killed and only 40 soldiers had been killed in action in the two and a half month fight for Vakarai.  He emphasized that the military had been able to minimize civilian and troop causalities by surrounding Vakarai with small Special Forces teams rather than large battalions and moving without a "logistical tail" open to Tiger (LTTE) ambush. 

 US Ambassador to Colombo Robert O. Blake on February 05, 2007.

Wiki Leaks: US Commended Gota For Conducting A Successful Battle With Low Civilian Causalities

January 7, 2014 | Colombo Telegraph

“Defense Secretary Gothabaya Rajapaksa offered his interpretation of the government security forces’ January victory in Vakarai to Ambassador and DATT on February 5 and explained the government’s current military strategy. Gothabaya noted that the security forces encountered predominantly younger, less
committed Tiger cadres in Vakarai. The GSL’s redevelopment efforts in the east, he theorized, would head off any re-infiltration by the Tigers and allow the security forces to “devote their full forces” elsewhere. In particular, the military would seek to neutralize the LTTE’s navy, the “Sea Tigers.” Gothabaya was silent on
whether the Army would attempt a major offensive in the North.” the US Embassy Colombo informed Washington.

The Colombo Telegraph found the related leaked cable from the WikiLeaks database. The classified diplomatic cable details a meeting the US ambassador had with Gotabaya Rajapaksa. The “Confidential” is cable signed by the US Ambassador to Colombo Robert O. Blake on February 05, 2007.

The ambassador wrote; “Ambassador, DATT and PolMilOff met Government of Sri Lanka (GSL) Defense Secretary (and brother to the President) Gothabaya Rajapaksa on February 5. Rajapaksa offered his interpretation of the government security forces’ January victory in Vakarai and explained the GSL’s current
military strategy. Ambassador commended the Secretary for conducting a successful battle with such low civilian causalities, after the initial shelling incident. Gotabaya claimed that no civilians had been killed and only 40 soldiers had been killed in action in the two and a half month fight for Vakarai. He emphasized that
the military had been able to minimize civilian and troop causalities by surrounding Vakarai with small Special Forces teams rather than large battalions and moving without a “logistical tail” open to Tiger (LTTE) ambush.”

              Robert Blake 

“According to the Defense Secretary, the security forces encountered predominantly younger Tiger cadres in Vakarai, at least 40 percent under the age of 18, and noticeably less well-trained. These cadres also appeared to be less committed to fighting for the LTTE, he said, indicating why they were willing to flee in the end. Many more of these cadres underwent forced recruitment than in previous years, claimed Gothabaya: “We can see that the lower-ranked cadres have not come out willingly. They have little motivation to fight. They aren’t committed, and in fact try to escape. We have intelligence that elsewhere in Batticaloa district LTTE cadres are waiting for a battle in which they can surrender.” The security forces captured a number of Tiger cadres in Vakarai. On the other hand, very few made use of the cyanide capsule all wear around their necks for that eventuality, according to the Secretary.” he further wrote.

Placing a comment Blake wrote; “Gothabaya assured us that the President remains committed to the peace process “without delay, and without respect to the military.” We understand that the security forces will try to consolidate the GSL’s hold on the east, and that the military will also pursue Sea Tiger and artillery targets in the east and in the Tiger’s northern Vanni stronghold. Gothabaya was silent on whether the Army would attempt a full-scale invasion of the north, as earlier GSL statements had suggested. The Defense Secretary appears to have realized, however, that winning Tamil hearts and minds will be crucial to the  GSL’s consolidation of its new hold on the east.”

Read the cable below for further details;

VZCZCXRO7914
OO RUEHBI RUEHLMC
DE RUEHLM #0214/01 0361312
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 051312Z FEB 07
FM AMEMBASSY COLOMBO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 5314
INFO RUEHRL/AMEMBASSY BERLIN PRIORITY 0174
RUEHKA/AMEMBASSY DHAKA PRIORITY 9859
RUEHIL/AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD PRIORITY 6803
RUEHKT/AMEMBASSY KATHMANDU PRIORITY 4871
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON PRIORITY 3501
RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI PRIORITY 0579
RUEHNY/AMEMBASSY OSLO PRIORITY 3593
RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO PRIORITY 2670
RUEHCG/AMCONSUL CHENNAI PRIORITY 7372
RUEHBI/AMCONSUL MUMBAI PRIORITY 5103
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA PRIORITY 1770
RHHMUNA/HQ USPACOM HONOLULU HI PRIORITY
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RHEHAAA/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS PRIORITY
RUEHLMC/MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE CORPORATION PRIORITY
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 COLOMBO 000214

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR SCA/INS, MCC FOR S GROFF, D NASSIRY, E BURKE
AND F REID

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/05/2017
TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER PHUM MOPS CE
SUBJECT: SRI LANKA: DEFENSE SECRETARY RECKONS TIGER GROUND
FORCES WEAKENED, BUT SEA TIGERS STILL FIERCE

REF: A. COLOMBO 189
     ¶B. COLOMBO 158

Classified By: Ambassador Robert O. Blake, Jr., for reasons 1.4 (b,d). 

¶1.  (C) Summary:  Defense Secretary Gothabaya Rajapaksa 

offered his interpretation of the government security forces' 

January victory in Vakarai to Ambassador and DATT on February 

5 and explained the government's current military strategy. 

Gothabaya noted that the security forces encountered 

predominantly younger, less committed Tiger cadres in 

Vakarai.  The GSL's redevelopment efforts in the east, he 

theorized, would head off any re-infiltration by the Tigers 

and allow the security forces to "devote their full forces" 

elsewhere.  In particular, the military would seek to 

neutralize the LTTE's navy, the "Sea Tigers."  Gothabaya was 

silent on whether the Army would attempt a major offensive in 

the North.  End summary. 

Cadres Forego Cyanide 

-------------------- 

¶2.  (C) Ambassador, DATT and PolMilOff met Government of Sri 

Lanka (GSL) Defense Secretary (and brother to the President) 

Gothabaya Rajapaksa on February 5.  Rajapaksa offered his 

interpretation of the government security forces' January 

victory in Vakarai and explained the GSL's current military 

strategy.   Ambassador commended the Secretary for conducting 

a successful battle with such low civilian causalities, after 

the initial shelling incident.  Gotabaya claimed that no 

civilians had been killed and only 40 soldiers had been 

killed in action in the two and a half month fight for 

Vakarai.  He emphasized that the military had been able to 

minimize civilian and troop causalities by surrounding 

Vakarai with small Special Forces teams rather than large 

battalions and moving without a "logistical tail" open to 

Tiger (LTTE) ambush. 

¶3.  (C) According to the Defense Secretary, the security 

forces encountered predominantly younger Tiger cadres in 

Vakarai, at least 40 percent under the age of 18, and 

noticeably less well-trained.  These cadres also appeared to 

be less committed to fighting for the LTTE, he said, 

indicating why they were willing to flee in the end.  Many 

more of these cadres underwent forced recruitment than in 

previous years, claimed Gothabaya: "We can see that the 

lower-ranked cadres have not come out willingly.   They have 

little motivation to fight.  They aren't committed, and in 

fact try to escape.  We have intelligence that elsewhere in 

Batticaloa district LTTE cadres are waiting for a battle in 

which they can surrender."  The security forces captured a 

number of Tiger cadres in Vakarai.  On the other hand, very 

few made use of the cyanide capsule all wear around their 

necks for that eventuality, according to the Secretary. 

Resettlement and Development 

---------------------------- 

¶4.  (C) As the conflict has dragged on, noted the Defense 

Secretary, "families have not been willing to contribute 

SIPDIS 

their children.  Their motivating factor was an independent 

state.  They thought they didn't get enough from Sinhalese 

governments.  Now we are making an effort to provide basic 

requirements -- electricity, education, roads, houses -- and 

the people see the difference."  Ambassador revised reports 

that the GSL planned to resettle retired Sinhalese military 

officers in Tamil areas.  Gothabaya denied this and other 

speculation by the pro-LTTE Tamil National Alliance (TNA) and 

others that the GSL is pursuing a "Sinhalization" program in 

the east, adding that the Sinhalese population in Trincomalee 

district has decreased from 31 percent to 21 percent since 

¶1981.  Presidential Advisor (and brother) Basil Rajapaska was 

COLOMBO 00000214  002 OF 002 

overseeing the Resettlement Ministry's early work to resettle 

Tamil civilians in Vakarai, Gothabaya said, where the GSL 

hoped to provide electricity within ten days. 

¶5.  (C) Gothabaya said the GSL would use "minimum police 

force" to maintain GSL control of Vakarai and other 

"liberated" areas in the east, such as Sampur, "so we can 

concentrate our full forces on other things."  He affirmed 

that the GSL would implement development projects soon to 

minimize the threat of re-infiltration by the LTTE.  "There 

must be a reaction from normal civilians to reject the LTTE," 

he said, adding that the International Labor Organization 

(ILO) is considering a livelihoods project in Vakarai, while 

the French government may be willing to rebuild the A15 

highway. 

Sea Tigers Strong 

----------------- 

¶6.  (C) While the LTTE's ground forces are clearly weaker 

following the security forces' victories in the east, 

Gothabaya said, the LTTE's navy, the "Sea Tigers," remain 

strong.  The Sea Tiger attack on a GSL food convoy at Point 

Pedro, Jaffna in January emboldened the LTTE by their sinking 

of two dvora "fast boats" and made the Sri Lankan Navy timid, 

he thought.  "The Navy is no longer as aggressive.  It wants 

to protect its assets, so the Sea Tigers have more leeway. 

We must neutralize the Sea Tigers.  We must give the Navy 

some help by finding and destroying more Sea Tiger bases and 

assets."   In the Defense Secretary's view, the January 27 

Sea Tiger attack attempt on Colombo's port targeted a naval 

ship donated by India, rather than commercial vessels. 

Nevertheless, the LTTE would continue to seek soft targets in 

Colombo and the south as "part of their demoralization plan." 

Overall Strategy 

---------------- 

¶7.  (C) Comment:  Gothabaya assured us that the President 

remains committed to the peace process "without delay, and 

without respect to the military."  We understand that the 

security forces will try to consolidate the GSL's hold on the 

east, and that the military will also pursue Sea Tiger and 

artillery targets in the east and in the Tiger's northern 

Vanni stronghold.  Gothabaya was silent on whether the Army 

would attempt a full-scale invasion of the north, as earlier 

GSL statements had suggested.  The Defense Secretary appears 

to have realized, however, that winning Tamil hearts and 

minds will be crucial to the GSL's consolidation of its new 

hold on the east. 

BLAKE

``தேசபக்த`` காங்கிரசின் பொருளாதாரத் திட்டம்

பள்ளித் தாக்குதல்கள்!

பள்ளிவாயல்கள் சம்மேளனத்திற்குரிய காணியின் வேலி இனம்தெரியாதோரால் சேதமாக்கல்
Submitted by ceditor on Wed, 01/01/2014 - 16:46(பழுலுல்லாஹ் பர்ஹான்)

மட்டக்களப்பு மாவட்டத்தில் காத்தான்குடி பொலிஸ் பிரிவின் ஆரையம்பதி பிரதேசத்திலுள்ள சிகரம் கிராமத்தில் பள்ளிவாயல்கள் சம்மேளனத்திற்கு சொந்தமான காணியின் சுற்று வேலி மற்றும் தற்காலிக வீடு என்பன இன்று புதன்கிழமை அதிகாலை இனம்தெரியாத நபர்களினால் சேதமாக்கப்பட்டுள்ளது.


மேற்படி கிராமத்தில் காத்தான்குடி பள்ளிவாயல்கள் முஸ்லிம் நிறுவனங்கள் சம்மேளனத்திற்கு சொந்தமான காணிக்குள் இன்று அதிகாலை நுழைந்த சிலர் அங்கு நிர்மாணிக்கப்பட்டிருந்த தற்காலிக வீடு மற்றும் அக் காணியின் சுற்று வேலி என்பவற்றை உடைத்து சேதப்படுத்தியுள்ளனர்.

இதன்போது அங்கு தங்கியிருந்தவர்கள் பொலிசாருக்கு அறிவித்ததையடுத்து பொலிசார் அங்கு விரைந்து நிலைமைகளை பார்வையிட்டதுடன் சந்தேகத்தின் பேரில் ஒருவரை கைது செய்துள்ளதாகவும் காத்தான்குடி பொலிசார் தெரிவித்தனர்.

இந்தச் சம்பவம் தொடர்பாக காத்தான்குடி பொலிஸ் நிலையத்தில் காத்தான்குடி பள்ளிவாயல்கள் முஸ்லிம் நிறுவனங்கள் சம்மேளனத்தினால் முறைப்பாடு செய்யப்பட்டுள்ளதுடன் இந்த சம்பவம் தொடர்பாக காத்தான்குடி பொலிசார் விசாரணைகளை மேற்கொண்டுவருவதாகவும் காத்தான்குடி பொலிசார் மேலும் தெரிவித்தனர்.

இந்த சம்பவத்தையடுத்து அங்கு சென்ற கிழக்கு மாகாண சபை உறுப்பினர் சிப்லி பாறூக் சேதப்படுத்தப்பட்ட பகுதியினை  பார்வையிட்டதுடன் சிகரம் கிராம மக்களுடனும் கலந்துரையாடினார்.

இது தொடர்பாக சட்ட நடவடிக்கையினை எடுக்குமாறு பொலிசாருடன் பேசியுள்ளதாகவும் கிழக்கு மாகாண சபை உறுப்பினர் சிப்லி பாறூக் தெரிவித்தார்.
==================
அக்குறணை பள்ளிவாசல் மீது செவ்வாய் இரவு தாக்குதல்
2014-01-01 15:16:48 | General
கலஹா நிருபர்

அக்குறணை வெலேகட மஸ்ஜிதுல் பலாஸ் பள்ளிவாசல் மீது நேற்று இரவு இனந்தெரியாத குழுவினர் தாக்குதல் நடத்தியுள்ளனர்.

இந்தத் தாக்குதலில் பள்ளிவாசல் கண்ணாடிகள் பலத்த சேதமடைந்துள்ளன. முச்சக்கரவண்டிகள் மற்றும் வான்களில் வந்திறங்கிய சுமார் 20 இற்கும் மேற்பட்ட நபர்களே  பள்ளிவாசல் மீது தாக்குதல் நடத்தி விட்டு தப்பிச் சென்றுள்ளனர்.

தாக்குதல் நடத்தியவர்கள் அங்கிருந்து தப்பிச் சென்றதால் அவர்களை கைது செய்ய முடியாமல்  போய்விட்டதாக பொலிஸார்   தெரிவித்தனர்.

பிரதியமைச்சர் அப்துல்  காதர்,  ஹாரிஸ்பத்துவ பிரதேச செயலாளர் மற்றும் பௌத்த  பிக்குகள் சம்பவ இடத்திற்கு  நேற்று  வருகைதந்து பார்வையிட்டனர்.

இத் தாக்குதல் சம்பவத்துடன் தொடர்புடையவர்களை கைது செய்வதற்கான நடவடிக்கைகளை கட்டுகஸ்தோட்டை  பொலிஸார்  மேற்கொண்டு வருகின்றனர்.

- See more at: http://www.thinakkural.lk/article.php?local/euvwqyumkz9220e4d09d3f57210560gikxc2c971c8b2bf8efb416a0awbnaq#sthash.rGIWAbKD.dpuf
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பேரினவாதக் கும்பலால் புத்தாண்டில் பள்ளிவாசல் மீது தாக்குதல்கள்!

இலங்கையின் கண்டி மாவட்டத்தின் பூஜாப்பிட்டிய என்ற ஊரிலுள்ள மஸ்ஜிதுல் பலாஹ் என்ற பள்ளிவாசலை, 2014ம் ஆண்டு புதுவருடம் பிறப்பதற்கு ஓரிரு மணித்தியாலங்கள் முன்பு பேரினவாதக் கும்பல் ஒன்று தாக்கியுள்ளது. கடந்த 31ம் திகதி இரவு 10 மணியளவில் குறிப்பிட்ட பள்ளிவாசலின் ஜன்னல்களுக்குக் கல்லெறிந்து அவற்றைச் சேதப்படுத்தியதோடு, கதவை உடைத்து, பள்ளிவாசலினுட் புகுந்து இந்த இனத் துவேஷ காடையர் கூட்டம் வெறியாட்டம் ஆடியிருக்கிறது.

அண்மைக் காலங்களில் பௌத்தமல்லாத மதஸ்தலங்களின்  மீதான தாக்குதல்கள் இலங்கையில் மிகவும் திட்டமிட்ட வகையில் அரங்கேற்றப்பட்டுக் கொண்டிருப்பது கவலை தருகிறது. மேலும், உள்ளூர் மற்றும் சர்வதேசத்தின் கண்டனங்களைக் கிஞ்சித்தேனும் பொருட்படுத்தாது நிகழ்த்தப்படும் இத்தகைய மிலேச்சத்தனமான தாக்குதல்களைத் தடுத்து நிறுத்துவதற்கான எந்தவொரு ஆக்கபூர்வ நடவடிக்கைகளும் அரசாங்கத்தினால் எடுக்கப்படாமல் இருப்பதானது மக்கள் மத்தியில் பலத்த சந்தேகங்களையும் அச்சத்தையும் உருவாக்கியுள்ளது.

சமீப காலத்தில் தாக்குதலுக்குள்ளாக்கப்பட்ட 27 வது பள்ளிவாசல் இதுவாகும். தலைநகரம் தொடக்கம் கிராமங்கள் வரையிலான இத்தனை பள்ளிவாசல்கள் தாக்கப்பட்டும், அதற்குக் காரணமானவர்களென இதுவரை எவருமே கைது செய்யப்படவில்லை என்பது, இவ்வாறான சம்பவங்களின் பின்னால் அரசாங்கத்தின் உயர்மட்டத்திலுள்ள சிலருக்கு இருப்பதாகக் கூறப்படும் தொடர்பு பற்றிய சந்தேகங்களையும் ஊகங்களையும் மேலும் வலுவாக்குகிறது.

இனங்களுக்கிடையிலான உறவுகளில் விரிசல்களை ஏற்படுத்துவதன் மூலம் தமது அரசியல் வியாபாரத்தை இலாபகரமாக நீண்ட காலங்களுக்கு நடத்த முடியுமென்ற கேவலமான எண்ணங்களில் மூழ்கிக் கிடப்போர், தமது எண்ணங்களை மறு பரிசீலனைக்குட்படுத்துவது அவசியமென இன உறவையும் சகோதர சக வாழ்வையும் விரும்பி நிற்கும் மக்கள் எதிர்பார்க்கின்றனர்.

Talks to ease Northern Ireland tensions break down

Talks to ease Northern Ireland tensions break down
BY IAN GRAHAM
BELFAST Tue Dec 31, 2013 11:21am GMT

No date was set for the resumption of the talks, which were a response to some of the highest levels of street violence and attacks by militant groups since a peace and power-sharing deal in 1998.

That put an end three decades of sustained sectarian violence in the province between pro-British Protestants and Catholics who generally favour unification with Ireland.

"It would have been nice to come out here tonight and say we have all five parties completely signed on to the text. We are not there," said Richard Haass, the president of the U.S. Council on Foreign Relations think-tank and a former adviser to the President George W. Bush on Northern Ireland.

He said he hoped that further talks would lead to some parties signing up to the draft agreement and others would "endorse significant parts of it."

The text proposes the creation of new institutions to deal with contentious parades and the investigations of crimes committed during three decades of sectarian conflict that began in the late 1960s in which more than 3,600 people died.

Haass said the parties had failed to make any significant progress on controversy over the flying of flags in Northern Ireland.

Dozens of police were injured during weeks of rioting early this year after a decision to cut the number of days the British flag flies over Belfast city hall, with officers firing plastic bullets and water cannons.

Several bombs have been planted in central Belfast in recent months by Irish militants opposed to the 1998 peace deal, but none has caused serious injury.

Sinn Fein, the largest Irish nationalist party in Northern Ireland, said it believed the text proposed by Haass provided the basis for an agreement.

The pro-British Democratic Unionist Party, Northern Ireland's largest party, said it would also consider it, but that it "profoundly disagreed" with some of the language in Haass' text.

Haass said he would return to Washington, but held out the possibility of "a limited role" in the future.

(Editing by Conor Humphries; Editing by John Stonestreet)
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Northern Ireland talks collapse as main unionist parties reject Haass proposals
David Ford, the Alliance leader, accuses main loyalist parties of pandering to extreme elements of their constituencies
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Henry McDonald, Ireland correspondent
theguardian.com, Tuesday 31 December 2013 07.54 GMT
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Richard Haass, the chairman of cross-party talks in Northern Ireland, at a press conference after overnight talks ended in deadlock
Richard Haass, the chairman of cross-party talks in Northern Ireland, at a press conference after overnight talks ended in deadlock. Photograph: Peter Morrison/AP
Marathon all-night negotiations in Belfast to resolve outstanding peace process issues in Northern Ireland have broken up without reaching an agreement.

Northern Ireland Secretary Theresa Villiers said it was disappointing, but the failure to reach a comprehensive agreement should not be seen as the end of the road in seeking to find a way forward on difficult and divisive issues.

Talks broke up in the early hours of Tuesday morning after discussions that had reached a climax under the chairmanship of the former US diplomat Dr Richard Haass.

The talks covered a range of issues from Northern Ireland's history including unsolved murders from the Troubles, the route of loyalist parades and the flying of national flags – all matters that have repeatedly brought violence back to the surface of life in Northern Ireland despite the Good Friday Agreement that allowed the devolution of power to the assembly at Stormont.

Haass had presented the parties with the seventh draft of a document intended to resolve outstanding controversies of the Irish peace process. Among the proposals was the establishment of a new "Implementation Reconciliation Group" that would take six months to discuss an action plan on three major issues still dogging the power sharing settlement between the two communities in Northern Ireland.

Haass had described the agreement as a "remarkable opportunity to make bold choices to address the issues that hold us back". Sources at the talks had held out hope of an agreement by the early hours of Tuesday.

After Haass announced that the negotiations had broken up, Villiers said: "I would encourage [the five parties] to maintain the momentum that their efforts, working with the Haass team, has created. For our part, the UK Government will look at how we can best facilitate this."

Northern Ireland's justice minister accused the two main unionist parties of putting their electoral fortunes above any deal that could have resolved key post-peace process issues like controversial parades and flags.

David Ford claimed the unionists had failed "to face down the extremes over flags – but parties who ducked it clearly rely on those extremes to sustain their vote. It is time that parties stopped hiding behind process and committed to product.”

The Alliance leader and justice minister singled out the unionist parties' failure to support a legally binding code of conduct on loyalist marches as one of the main reasons for failure in the early hours of Tuesday morning.

The Democratic Unionists, Ulster Unionist party, Sinn Féin, the SDLP and Alliance had been locked in negotiations up until 5am at the Stormont Hotel in east Belfast.

The prime minister, David Cameron, said the failure to achieve a breakthrough was disappointing, but urged the parties to “keep going”.

“Although it is disappointing the parties have not been able to reach full agreement at this stage, these talks have achieved much common ground, providing a basis for continuing discussions,” he said.

“There is a shared commitment to making progress on these very difficult issues that continue to be a focus for tension and division across the community.

“I urge the parties to keep going. I also want to thank Dr Richard Haass and his team for their dedicated work.

“The government and the Northern Ireland parties will continue to work together to strengthen further the foundations for peace, stability and prosperity in Northern Ireland.”

Theresa Villiers, the Northern Ireland secretary, said it was “disappointing” but the break down of the talks was not the end of the road.

“The reality is if you look at issues of identity, some people would argue that it’s been a problem for the last 800 years. In many ways, it’s not surprising that it can’t be fixed in three months,” she told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme. “If there were easy solutions, then it would have been part of the Belfast Agreement agreed in 1998.”

Asked whether the UK government should be more involved, she said she has been active behind the scenes but it was important for Northern Ireland politicians to take the lead.
Villiers said there were also wider problems around segregation in Northern Ireland that need to be discussed.

“I’d urge the work to continue on these divisive issues, the importance of this broader project to see an end to sectarian division,” she said. “Flags, parades and the past are an important part of that, but we also need to see progress on more kids sharing their education, more neighbourhoods being less segregated than they are at the moment. It’s also important for the Northern Ireland executive to be working with the government on our shared objective of boosting the economy.”

In a hard-hitting assessment of the unionists' attitude to the parades and flag issues, Ford said: “On parades new structures have been proposed. But the real issue with parades was never about structures – the problem was behaviour. The desperate attempts by the unionist parties to resist an effective code of conduct for marchers and protesters showed that very clearly. So while we have a new approach to structures, it remains to be seen whether there will be any change in behaviour.

“If the attitude to flags is anything to go by, we don’t hold out much hope, because the biggest disappointment of this process has been the refusal to face up to the issue of flags."

Talks chairman Haass and his co-chair Meagan O'Sullivan were unable to persuade the parties to accept the seventh draft of a 38-page agreement on flags, marches and the past.

Commenting on the breakup of the talks, Haass said all five parties had "given it their best" and were "prepared to continue" with the process.

"It would have been nice to have come out here tonight and say we have got all five parties completely signed on to the text," he said.

The Sinn Féin president, Gerry Adams, said his negotiating team believed there was a "basis for a deal in the proposals put forward".

He said the team would recommend it to the party's executive, though he said the proposed deal was "not perfect".

"I'm sure there will be a lot of disappointment out there as people come to terms with the fact that there doesn't appear at this point to be an agreement," he said.

There appeared to be more agreement about issues to deal with past Troubles crimes and their legacy among the parties with the establishment of a new investigative body.

One of the most controversial issues is the legacy of the past conflict in which 3,500 people died. Around 3,000 of those killings remain unsolved and the Haass talks discussed the creation of a new police-investigative body to re-examine these cases. Thousands more suffered injuries and psychological trauma in three and a half decades of violence.

U.S. Foreign Policy in the Asia-Pacific Region

U.S. Foreign Policy in the Asia-Pacific Region
Kurt M. Campbell
Assistant Secretary, Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs

Daniel Russel, Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Asian Affairs
New York, NY
September 21, 2011 1:30 P.M., EDT

NEW YORK FOREIGN PRESS CENTER, 799 UNITED NATIONS PLAZA, 10TH FLOOR

MR. RUSSEL: Good afternoon. The one update on my status is that with the retirement of Ambassador Bader in April, I became the special assistant to the President and Senior Director for Asia as a whole. I’m honored to have more important countries added to the portfolio that I work on at the White House and that I work very closely with Assistant Secretary Campbell on.

When the President came to office, as you know very well, he came with the conviction that America needed to do more to invest in our relationships in Asia. He felt that we were under-invested in the Asia Pacific region. And he set as a goal remedying that through a variety of diplomatic, economic, and security initiatives. We have made best efforts to strengthen America’s relationship with our allies, we have worked intensely with emerging regional powers and leaders such as China, Indonesia, India, of course. But we’ve also worked to forge healthy and cooperative relations with countries throughout the Asia Pacific region as well as working closely with the institutions and the arrangements and developing trilateral forms of cooperation that have been very productive and innovative. That’s reflected in our trade strategy and that mindset is reflected also in our security posture planning.

This is President Obama’s third visit to the UN General Assembly. And my own sense, based on the meetings that he is having and the many meetings that Secretary Clinton and Assistant Secretary Campbell are having, is that we have made very good progress. I think that America’s relationships with our allies in the region are in excellent shape, arguably never better. I think we have built positive, comprehensive, constructive relationships with major emerging powers, and I think that the decision by the President to sign the Treaty of Amity TAC, and to participate in person this in the East Asia Summit is illustrative of the commitment and the progress that we’ve made with regard to both Southeast Asia, and more broadly, institutions in the region.

This has been, and will continue to be, an active and a dramatic year in the U.S.-Asia Pacific saga. The Secretary of State participated in the ASEAN regional forum in Bali in July and held a range of very important meetings, including positive work on a number of outstanding security issues. She met with the foreign ministers of the East Asia countries and set the stage for the balance of the fall. Subsequent to that, the Vice President made a trip to Asia, and I hasten to add he did not make a trip to China, he made a trip to Asia. He visited, of course, China, Mongolia, and Japan. Assistant Secretary Campbell accompanied him on that trip, as did I. I think that that was also an important manifestation of our investment in the region.

Looking ahead, the U.S., of course, in addition to the meetings that the President is having in New York, and the Secretary of State continues to have in New York at the UN General Assembly, we’ll also have, of course, bilaterals on the margins of the G-20 meeting in Europe, and most importantly for us, President Obama will be hosting APEC leaders meeting in Honolulu in November. Subsequent to that, as it has been announced, he will travel to another important U.S. treaty ally, Australia, and then he will visit Indonesia for bilateral meetings, for a U.S. ASEAN leaders meeting, and of course for the East Asia summit.

So, the investment of the United States in Asia and in the region is ongoing, is deepening, and I would argue has proven very successful. But let me turn it over to Assistant Secretary Campbell.

ASSISTANT SECRETARY CAMPBELL: Thank you Danny, and good afternoon to everyone. We’ll look forward to taking your questions as well. Let me just say it’s a pleasure and an honor to be able to do this work with my colleague and good friend, Danny Russel, who has assumed these new responsibilities at the White House.

Let me just say that as Senior Director Russel has indicated, the United States is in the midst of a very substantial, critical pivot. We are beginning a process of responsibly standing down some of our commitments in Iraq and Afghanistan, and simultaneously stepping up our substantial, already existing commitments in the Asian Pacific region. And what we have done over the course of the last few years, and what we’ll need to continue going into the future is a comprehensive approach to every aspect of that engagement.

Danny’s already talked about the strong investment, and he will spend a few minutes going through the very good meeting that just took place between the Japanese prime minister and President Obama, but our alliances remain at the core of what we are seeking to do in terms of preserving peace and stability and promoting economic interest in the Asian Pacific region.

We are also seeking to establish stronger partnerships with new players in the region. Clearly, China, is of critical importance here, but it doesn’t end there. We have substantial investments in developing stronger ties with key players like Indonesia. One of the most important aspects of our Asian Pacific strategy is also to work more closely with India and to help put meat on the bones of India’s desire to play a prominent role in the Asian Pacific region going forward. As Danny has indicated, we’ve also made substantial commitments to institutions in Asia. This is a critical time of institution building. We’ve joined the East Asia Summit; we are playing a more active role in the ASEAN Regional Forum. Just last few weeks we had the largest-ever delegation at the Pacific Island Forum to underscore our commitment to the part – when we say, Asia Pacific, sometimes the Pacific gets short shrift. And it is also important to underscore our strong, strategic, and moral and humanitarian commitments there as well.

We are also involved in a very intense process in terms of our force posture. The United States – one of our most important contributions to Asia is our forward deployed forces. We are seeking to strengthen them but also to diversify them and to work more to provide a continuing security role in the Asian Pacific region, and obviously we are taking steps over the last few days to advance our trade agenda, our economic agenda. We remain committed and optimistic about the Korea Free Trade Agreement. We’re making intense efforts on TPP and looking ahead at APEC in terms of revitalizing overall agenda. So what you are seeing is really a comprehensive approach that reflects the fact that much, if not most, of the history of the 21st century will be written in Asia, and the United States wants to be a full part of that history going forward.

Let me ask Danny to talk a little bit about the very good meeting that the President just had with the prime minister, Prime Minister Noda, and then I can give you a little bit more background on some of the issues that are transpiring in Secretary Clinton’s meeting. I think, as you now, Special Representative Mitchell just returned from Burma, and I can give you a little readout on his deliberations and also what we are hoping to do over the balance of the remainder of the week. Thanks.

Danny.

MR. RUSSEL: Thank you, Kurt. Well, I’d start by saying that President Obama had a bilateral meeting today with Prime Minister Noda. But prior to that yesterday, in the context of the Open Government Partnership, he had an opportunity to spend a little time with another important treaty ally, President Aquino of the Philippines, on the margins of that event, as well as with the president of Mongolia, President Elbegdorj, who was there for the Open Partnership Initiative as well. And these are major relationships of great value to the President and to the United States.

I had the honor of being present when South Korea President Lee Myung-bak last night was honored at the Waldorf by the Appeal of Conscience Foundation as the Statesman of the Year 2011. And my colleague from the White House presented a letter from President Obama and, in fact, I think as we speak, the two presidents are seated along with the Secretary General at a luncheon. That’s an important relationship that will be celebrated next month when President Lee visits Washington for a state visit.

Today, building on the substantive conversation that Secretary Clinton had with the Japanese foreign minister just the other day, the President spent some time talking to Prime Minister Noda, someone who is well-known to us from his important work, first as vice finance minister and then as minister of finance, who worked very closely with Secretary Geithner. I would describe the meeting as very substantive and very efficient. They covered a wide range of the pending issues in the relationship and some of the challenges that both of us face, but in a way that was not vague.

This was not an exchange of platitudes, and these are not leaders who are starting from scratch. The conversation built on the important work that has been underway in the alliance, and, I think, in terms of coordination on the range of economic issues. They talked in depth about the global economy, about our respective roles in cooperation. They talked about regional economic issues, including, as Assistant Secretary Campbell mentioned, APEC, G-20, and the issue of TPP and high quality trade agreements in the region. And they also discussed bilateral economic issues.

On the security side, they discussed the security environment globally, as well as some of the challenges that the alliance itself is continuing to work on. They agreed to continue to work together closely. I was, again, struck by the overwhelming convergence of interests between the U.S. and Japan, between the two leaders, and the continuity of the work that is underway.

But let me invite Assistant Secretary Campbell to give you more granularity on that.

ASSISTANT SECRETARY CAMPBELL: Can I just say – like Dan had been in a lot of these meetings – I was struck at how quickly the two leaders got down to work. And so the open, very warm statement the President highlighted, that this was an extraordinary partnership. The prime minister thanked the United States for its strong, continuing support in the aftermath of the tragic earthquake and nuclear crisis. The President committed that the United States would continue, as we go into a second and third phase of recovery, that we would stand by the people of Japan, very substantial discussion on regional security, agreement that we need to continue close coordination on all issues of common interest, including the Korean Peninsula, maritime security.

We also talked a lot about the global cooperation that the United States and Japan has enjoyed. The President thanked the prime minister for Japan’s continuing commitment, the $5 billion, roughly, to important and critical programs of health and civil security in Afghanistan. We talked about the need to work closely on a range of other issues. We all acknowledged the challenges associated with Futenma replacement. But I think both sides understand that we’re approaching a period where we need to see results, and that was made very clear by the President.

We also discussed the challenges. The President made clear we’d like to see progress after many years on beef, and the prime minister indicated he’d make best efforts. The President also very strongly affirmed the Japanese decision to enter into The Hague Convention – asked that this – on Child Abduction – asked that these steps be taken clearly and that the necessary implementing legislation would be addressed.

He also indicated that while that was an important milestone for Japan, that – he also asked the Japanese prime minister and the government to focus on the preexisting cases, the cases that have come before. The prime minister indicated that very clearly, he knew about the number of cases. He mentioned 123. He said that he would take special care to focus on these particular issues as we – as Japan also works to implement the joining of The Hague Convention, which the United States appreciates greatly.

I think with that, we’ll be happy to take any questions on any issues. Just identify yourself, if you would. We’ll take three here, one in back, and come back for three.

Yes, please.

QUESTION: Hi, Chen Weihua from China Daily. Yeah, I wanted to ask, is the current arrangement of arms sales to Taiwan and (inaudible) goodwill on the U.S. side, or restrained because relations have been good because – instead of selling the new plane, you sell – agree to upgrade the plane?

And the other is you divided the East Asian country as allies, partners. So does that mean – how can you remain impartial in mediating the problem if you just classify them as different layers, say? Obviously, you’d tend to be biased in favor of the allies.

ASSISTANT SECRETARY CAMPBELL: Let me try to – first of all, for those of you who may not have seen the news, let me just go through quickly a statement with respect to Taiwan arms sales and our specific notification to Congress this morning, and Senior Director Russel may have something to say as well.

The Obama Administration, under the Foreign Military Sales program, this morning notified Congress of the sale of arms totaling $5.85 billion. This package includes the retrofit for 145 of Taiwan’s F-16 A/B fighter jets, including radars, weapons, structural upgrades, totaling about $5.3 billion; a five-year extension of F-16 pilot training at Luke Air Force Base here in the United States, totaling about $500 million; and aircraft spare parts for sustaining Taiwan’s F-16s, its existing fleet of F-5s, and C-130 cargo planes, the total amount about $52 million.

It is our strong view that these sales will make a significant contribution to Taiwan’s air defense capabilities because it is upgrading the backbone capability of Taiwan’s air force. This retrofit program will provide a substantial increase in the survivability, the reliability, and the overall combat capabilities of Taiwan’s 145 F-16 A and B fighter aircraft. This will help ensure that Taiwan maintains the capability to protect its airspace in both peacetime and during any crisis. This sale is a clear demonstration of the commitment of this Administration to sustain and improve Taiwan’s defense capabilities.

With this sale, in less than two years, the Obama Administration has sold over $12 billion in arms to Taiwan. And just to give you a sense, this amount is comparable or greater than at any other period in U.S. relations – unofficial relations with Taiwan. We are taking these steps consistent with the Taiwan Relations Act, in close consultation with Congress. We firmly believe that our arms sales to Taiwan contribute to the maintenance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.

I would also just underscore that we believe that we have seen substantial progress in dialogue and diplomacy across the Taiwan Straits between China and Taiwan over the course of the last several years. We support that process, we encourage it, and we want it to go forward. And we think that these particular steps allow Taiwan to engage in both diplomacy, in security, and in the knowledge of the strong relationship with the United States.

Danny, do you want to jump in on it?

MR. RUSSEL: Thank you. Well, two things: One, I’d just like to reinforce the principles that Assistant Secretary Campbell just annunciated, namely that the preservation of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait is fundamentally and profoundly in the strategic interests of the U.S. and our allies and partners. The progress in cross-strait ties over the past few years via dialogue and diplomacy, as Kurt said, has been a major contributor to that stability, and the U.S. strongly supports the efforts on both sides of the strait, and that we firmly believe that U.S. support for Taiwan’s defense needs is conducive to that stability. I think that’s the critical strategic principle at work here.

With regard to your question about allies, partnerships, and so on, I don’t think that there is a single index by which one can assess the importance of the bilateral relationships between the United States and a foreign country. We deal with countries as they are, and we work on the issues as we confront them. That said, there is a qualitative difference between an alliance, and one of the great attributes of U.S. national power is the alliances built on shared interests, shared goals, and common values. These alliances are precious to the people of the United States and are tended carefully by this government. That is without prejudice to our important relationships and important partnerships. And since our role in Asia is not as a mediator, but as a partner and a stabilizing power, I don’t think there is any contradiction or any problem in that regard.

ASSISTANT SECRETARY CAMPBELL: Let me just add one other point to that if I could, please. I think one could make an argument that the last 40 years, in many respects, have been the best 40 years in China’s history. And I think the primary contributing factor in that has been the strength and the ingenuity of the Chinese people. And that’s just undeniable. And that’s something that, frankly, all of Asia celebrates. But we have to be clear that there are other contributing factors. The peace and stability of which the United States has largely underwritten in the Asia Pacific region has provided the context for this remarkable stability and growth. The U.S. market has been open for Asian goods and services for decades, serving as a major boost for increase in productivity and earnings. Obviously, now we’re moving into a period where we’re going to see a need to rebalance overall. But the role that the United States has played has been and continues to be essential.

And then lastly, we have done everything we can to integrate new partners into the global system. We champion the G-20 as a tradition – transition from being an institution primarily about Europe, G-7, G-8. Now, fully half of its members are Asian. We strongly supported India’s role in Asia and particularly China’s role in global institutions and the like. So I think we’ve taken steps, as Danny has indicated, to welcome and to work closely with a range of partners with a deep understanding that most of the challenges in Asia are challenges that we confront together, not as a alliances or as separate nations.

Next question, yeah. We’re going to take two questions, and I’m sorry to go on so long on the Taiwan answer (inaudible).

QUESTION: Nice to see you again. (Inaudible) from (inaudible). On the meeting between President and Prime Minister Noda, can you give us a little bit more details about the discussion of Futenma and TPP? Did the President make any specific requests to Prime Minister Noda?

And also very quickly on North Korea, the meeting – the talks between North Korea and South Korea took place in Beijing, and North Korean envoys called for the resumption of the Six-Party Talks without any preconditions. What’s your response to that, and are you prepared to have another round of direct talks with North Korea?

ASSISTANT SECRETARY CAMPBELL: Yeah. I’ll take the TPP issue, and I think Danny will take the Futenma and North Korea. But let’s take one more question, and then we’ll come back to this.

Gentleman, you’re right behind. Yes.

QUESTION: Thank you very much. Matthew Pennington from AP. A follow-up on the Taiwan question. Does this decision leave open the possibility that the U.S. would sell C/Ds in the future? And are you worried about the legislation that’s being put forward in Congress that’s demanding the Administration sell these planes?

ASSISTANT SECRETARY CAMPBELL: Okay. Thank you. I’ll answer that question, then the first one, and then turn it over to Danny. And this will be all we’ll have to say on the Taiwan issue at this time.

No decisions have been made on selling new F-16 C/D aircraft. It is still under consideration, and we are aware of Taiwan’s requests to the United States Government. The United States and Taiwan will continue to examine the F-16 C/D issue in the context of our discussions about Taiwan’s overall defense needs.

Let me just say that this was a brief meeting. It was a good meeting, a substantive meeting as Danny indicated. I think the President laid out clearly the progress that we are making on TPP. We are working with our partnerships, the hope of reaching a framework agreement. I think we made clear that we would welcome Japan’s engagement, at least a discussion about TPP. He noted the statements that members of his administration and the prime minister had made as well. He asked for an update on the status of that, and I think basically our overall message was one of encouragement, and we believe that such a step is not just an economic issue; it’s a strategic issue. And I think personally I can imagine few things more important than the United States and Japan being engaged in a strategic set of discussions about economic issues in the Asian Pacific region going forward.

Danny?

MR. RUSSEL: On the issue of Futenma, Prime Minister Noda brought the President up to date on the Noda government position and strategy for moving forward on Futenma’s replacement facility, and both leaders shared the view that this is a priority and that there’s a great deal of important work that needs to be done. So the emphasis is on common ground and on a common effort to achieve our common goals.

On North Korea, the fact that the North Koreans and the South Koreans met in Beijing is in and of itself a good thing. We continue to hold to the view that progress in inter-Korean relations is a critical element of making progress on the broader Korean Peninsula issues, including and especially the important issue of implementing North Korea’s denuclearization commitments. The – it’s for the South Koreans and the North Koreans, of course, to read out the meeting and provide their own assessment.

One could say it’s a little rich for the North Koreans, who walked out of the Six-Party Talks to do a turnabout and declare that the time has come for everybody to let bygones be bygones and to resume. That said, the United States holds to the view that negotiations – real negotiations are necessary to implement both the UN Security Council resolutions and North Korea’s obligations – international obligations under that and the 2005 joint statement and North Korea’s commitments under that.

Our position and the position shared by the Republic of Korea as well as Japan is that we look for some indication, some seriousness of purpose on North Korea’s part that what it is willing to join in is a bona fide negotiating process that will generate results, that those results will be commitments that North Korea will indeed honor. And the way to do that is to begin the process of implementing and living up to the commitments that it’s already made. So we welcome the fact of the meeting, and we welcome any real indication from North Korea that, in fact, they’re prepared to take the steps that will lead back to real negotiations and the path – the constructive path towards denuclearization President Obama has repeatedly invited them to take.

MODERATOR: Take a question from Washington, and then we’ll do one back here. Thank you.

QUESTION: Thanks for doing this. About ten days ago, you had dialogue with Indian officials on East Asia and Pacific. Can you give us more details what were the issues specifically discussed and did the issue of South China Sea came up through the talks? And secondly, when you meet Burmese foreign minister at New York this week or – what are the issue that you’ll be discussing with him, and will the U.S. be supporting the Burma’s bid for heading ASEAN?

ASSISTANT SECRETARY CAMPBELL: Thank you. Let’s take a couple more questions, and then we’ll answer them. Anyone else? Any other questions? Yeah.

QUESTION: (Inaudible) with Shimbun Japanese Newspaper. Hi. Nice to see you, sir. Well, again, related to Taiwan. Initial reports from Taiwan regarding the retrofitting of A/Bs is that they – although they welcome, it is not enough to counter the threats of the strengthening Chinese air power. So how do you address these Taiwanese concern for – under the next arms sale?

QUESTION: Also, sorry. (Inaudible) but related to Taiwan. Paul Eckert of Reuters. There was a tiny kerfuffle involving the visit by the DPP leader Tsai Ing-wen and comments made seemingly exclusively to the Financial Times. Can you clarify the U.S. Government’s stance on the DPP or at least on the elections and the U.S. role and their reviews thereof?

ASSISTANT SECRETARY CAMPBELL: Okay. We’ll divide these questions a little bit. Let me take the Burma and the India question first if I could, please, and then – I’m not going to get into too great a detail further beyond what we’ve said already about the arms sales.

But let me just indicate that part of the robust set of relationships that are developing between the United States and India is a very good dialogue between officials in India from all their agencies and the United States about the Asian Pacific region. And these discussions range from issues associated with trade, common developments with regard to maritime security, energy flows, interests in strong relationships with China and Japan, other key nations in the region, a desire on the part of India to be briefed on our strategy with relation to our force posture and our economic issues.

It’s among the best meetings that I am involved in, and I really enjoyed the trust and confidence that have developed between our Indian and American interlocutors, and it’s a process very similar, like the process that we have with Vice Foreign Minister Cui Tian-kai and also with Japanese colleagues. They are becoming part of the architecture of the region in every respect.

Later this week, we’ll be having a series of meetings on Burma and will be meeting with the foreign minister. Special Representative Derek Mitchell just returned from Burma, and he had good meetings in Naypyidaw and very good meetings with Aung San Suu Kyi and other people associated with civil society and various ethnic minority groups inside the country while he was in Burma.

I think it would be fair to say that there – the winds of change are clearly blowing through Burma. The extent of it is still unclear, but everyone who’s gone there recognizes that there are changes. There are still extraordinarily worrisome developments there in terms of treatment of minorities, there are a very large number of political prisoners, and there continue to be repressions on a daily basis. But at the same time, we’ve seen a few things in the last few months that were unthinkable: very high-level meetings between the new president and Aung San Suu Kyi, regular discussions about civil society, about new economic policies. These are all tentative steps that can be reversed, and it’s important to be careful about them. But at the same time, it’s also important not to just dismiss them out of hand. And so the United States, working with other countries, we’ve been in close consultation with every Southeast Asian friend, with China, with India, with Australia, with New Zealand, Japan. Our determined desire is to encourage the government to continue to take steps on the release of political prisoners, to abide by commitments on proliferation, to cease actions deemed illegal by the UN Security Council with respect to North Korea, and to follow through on some of the important initial interactions that the government has had with Aung San Suu Kyi and others.

So again, it’s a very – it’s a delicate period, and the United States intends to engage actively to seek clear answers about what’s happening and to push for further progress and more steps on the ground. I would simply say – just on the Taiwan points, I would, first of all, underscore that the United States over decades has maintained an unwavering commitment to the peace and stability of the cross-strait, and we will continue that, and that commitment is strong and resolute.

You will see, today, I think, statements from Taiwan welcoming this decision, recognizing the important role it plays in sustaining Taiwan’s defenses. And obviously, as we’ve indicated, we’ve made no further decisions going forward. But I would underscore, again, if you look at this period of time, very substantial commitments compared with any other previous administration, very substantial commitments. And our unofficial relationship is strong. We are working on people-to-people engagements, a variety of other initiatives strongly sought after by the Taiwan Government. And we believe that the approach that we have taken is prudent and careful, and we will continue along those lines.

Let me ask Danny to take a few.

MR. RUSSEL: Thanks. Just to pick up on those two points, first, that the U.S. and Taiwan have a longstanding and robust defense dialogue, and that’s the forum through which we discuss and make decisions on all areas of defense cooperation and that we base our decisions on a common understanding of Taiwan’s defense needs.

I also am aware of the quote in the Financial Times of an anonymous source, of him saying some skepticism about the – some elements of the DPP’s position on cross-straits strategy. The State Department, at the time, issued a very good statement on behalf of the entire government. And to put it in a nutshell, there is no interference in Taiwan’s election. The U.S. strongly supports Taiwan’s democracy. We respect the will of the voters and the people of Taiwan to choose their own leaders in the upcoming election, and we work within the context of our official relationship with whoever the people of Taiwan elect.

In fact, many of us had substantive discussions with Madam Tsai, the chairwoman of the Democratic People’s Party, when she visited Washington. And although we don’t talk publicly about the content of those meetings, she was accorded a very respectful and set of senior meetings while she was in Washington that enabled both sides to fully exchange views and understand the other.

ASSISTANT SECRETARY CAMPBELL: If I could just make one other point, what’s really changed – the context that’s changed since the enactment of the Taiwan Relations Act in 1979 is actually the coming of democracy to Taiwan, and it’s one of the most flourishing, frankly exciting, democracies not only in Asia, but across the globe. And it would not be in U.S. interests to do anything that would undermine that democracy. In fact, it’s one of the most important things that bids us and links us in important, not just strategic ways.

And so I just want to underscore very clearly what Danny said. We – when we met with Madam Tsai, she had – we had very good meetings in the sense that they were substantive. We asked clear questions about her platform. We were able to exchange views in a very respectful manner, and I think our general approach will be to welcome and support the strong democracy that will exhibit itself again in January of 2012 in Taiwan.

We can take one last question, please, maybe two, if we’ve got time. Anyone else? Anyone else? Okay. One last, quickly.

QUESTION: (Inaudible) from India Today Group. Yeah. Can you hear me? This is Tejinder Singh from India Today Group. You have been mentioning about very good relations with India. But Indian media feels that the honeymoon that was started with Obama’s visit to India is over. Can you just list at least three recent solid cooperations that we can see on paper instead of just some talks? And president – during President Bush time, whenever Prime Minister Singh visited the U.S., they always met. Why this cold shouldering this time around?

ASSISTANT SECRETARY CAMPBELL: I hate bureaucratic answers to questions like this, but I will underscore that the U.S. State Department is divided in such a way that the India bureau lies outside of my responsibilities. And so my discussions with Indian counterparts are about the Asian Pacific region, so I can speak authoritatively about those deliberations, sir.

And I do believe that there has been enormous progress in the U.S.-Indian relationship over the last 10 years, and I believe that progress has continued in all fields – in people-to-people, in defense. And my own personal experience of these talks, frankly, have been, I think, emblematic. When they began almost two years ago, even though I had spent an enormous amount of time in the private sector in my academic and other capacities having interactions with Indian friends, our initial meetings were formulaic and fairly prescribed. What we now have is a very wide-ranging, very deep set of discussions about common interests, areas where we can cooperate and work together, and basically an exploration of strategic objectives.

Now, it may be that I’m at the State Department and I tend to highlight these things, but the fact is these sorts of meetings, these sorts of interactions, are extraordinarily important in gaining a sense of how a country thinks about its future and the direction that it wants to take. So I would not dismiss them out of hand, and I believe that they are a major contribution to what I believe will be a defining partnership of the 21st century, and that is the relationship between the United States and India. We are destined to be much closer friends in the time ahead.

Thank you. Thank you all very much.

MODERATOR: Thank you.

US 'pivot' policy destabilizing Asia-Pacific region

English>>Foreign Affairs
US 'pivot' policy destabilizing Asia-Pacific region
By Li Xiaokun (China Daily)
09:12, April 17, 2013  

The US "pivot" to the Asia-Pacific, including the country's expanding military presence and consolidation of military alliances, has destabilized the region, according to a Ministry of National Defense report issued on Tuesday.

Military experts said Beijing has no problem with Washington seeking involvement in the region's prosperity, but it is concerned that the US initiative might be aimed at China and disturb the "Chinese dream" of national rejuvenation.

"Some countries are strengthening their Asia-Pacific military alliances, expanding military presence in the region, and frequently making the situation there tenser," the 40-page report on the "Diversified Employment of China's Armed Forces" said, without naming any particular state.

In the pivot, the US will deploy 60 percent of its naval fleet in the Pacific by 2020. Singapore will be home to four new US littoral warships, intended for combat close to shore. Indonesia is seeking to buy a broad array of American hardware and wants to take part in joint maneuvers. The Philippines is trying to host more US troops on a rotating basis, and Australia has agreed to allow up to 2,500 US marines to be based in its north-central city of Darwin.

And those are just some of the military moves under the pivot policy.

When asked at a news conference on the report's release whether Washington's military expansion was raising tensions, Defense Ministry spokesman Colonel Yang Yujun said, "Certain efforts made to highlight the military agenda, enhance military deployment and also strengthen alliances are not in line with the calling of the times."

Such moves "are not conducive to supporting peace and stability in the region", he said.

"We hope that the parties involved will do more to enhance the mutual trust between countries in the region and contribute to peace and stability," Yang said.

Peng Guangqian, a senior military expert in Beijing, said Yang's comments and the military paper on US military expansion are "polite".

"US military alliances in the Asia-Pacific are the result of the Cold War, and Washington did not end them after the Cold War, but reinforced them. It is an obvious fact, and obviously aimed at China," Peng said.

The pivot has added to instability in the region, and some states have taken the opportunity to "disturb the calm water" in the East and South China seas, he added.

China's territorial rows with Japan and some Southeast Asian nations have flared up since 2012, while some countries involved have sought support from the US.

"The US can hardly absolve itself of blame, and that is not in line with its long-term interests," Peng said.

The remarks came one day after US Secretary of State John Kerry sought to dispel skepticism about the pivot, saying the US will build on its "enduring presence".

Asked about Kerry's remarks, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said on Tuesday that Beijing welcomes the constructive involvement of the US in Asian-Pacific affairs.

Yao Yunzhu, director of the Center on China-American Defense Relations at the Academy of Military Science, said China has no problem seeking long-term prosperity in the region with the US.

"China absolutely does not want to see the US Pacific dream destroy the Chinese dream. Surely we can achieve common prosperity."

திருக்கேதீஸ்வரம் மனித புதைகுழி: சிறுவர்களின் பற்களும் மீட்பு

திருக்கேதீஸ்வரம் மனித புதைகுழி: சிறுவர்களின் பற்களும் மீட்பு
சனிக்கிழமை, 04 ஜனவரி 2014 17:56 0 COMMENTS

-எஸ்.றொசேரியன் லெம்பேட்

மன்னார்,திருக்கேதீஸ்வரம் மாந்தை சந்தியிலிருந்து சுமார் 70 மீற்றர் தொலைவில் உள்ள மனித புதை குழியில் இருந்து இன்று சனிக்கிழமையும் மேலும் 3 மனித எலும்புக் கூடுகள் மீட்கப்பட்டுள்ளன.அத்துடன் சிறுவர்களின் பற்களும் மீட்கப்பட்டுள்ளதாக பொலிஸார் தெரிவித்தனர்.

குறித்த பகுதியிலிருந்து  கடந்த 20 ஆம் திகதியில் இருந்து இன்று சனிக்கிழமை வரைக்கும் மனித எலும்பு கூடுகள் 18 உம், மனித எச்சங்களும் மீட்கப்பட்டுள்ளன.

மன்னார் நீதவான் ஆனந்தி கனகரட்ணத்தின் உத்தரவிற்கமைய அநுராதபுரம் சட்ட வைத்திய நிபுணர்  டி.எல்.வைத்திய ரெட்ன முன்னிலையில் இன்றும் காலை 8 மணிமுதல் மாலை 2.15 மணிவரைக்கும்  மனித புதைகுழி தோண்டப்பட்ட போது 3மனித எழும்புக்கூடுகள் மீட்கப்பட்டன.
இதே வேளை குறித்த புதை குழியினுள் இருந்து மனித பற்கள் சில மீட்கப்பட்டுள்ளதோடு குறித்த பற்கள் சுமார் 6 வயதுடைய சிறுவர்களுடையதாக இருக்கலாம் என அதிகாரிகள் ஊகிக்கின்றனர்.

குறித்த மனித புதைகுழி தோண்டும் பணி மீண்டும் எதிர்வரும் 6 ஆம் திகதி திங்ழகட்கிமை இடம் பெறவுள்ளமை குறிப்பிடத்தக்கதாகும்.