Former refugees call for facilities

--BBC--

Resettled villagers say they even lack basic facilities such as water and toilet facilities

War affected Sinhalese resettled in Vavuniya have called on the authorities to provide them with adequate facilities or allow them back into camps.

The government has initiated a program to resettle internally displaced people (IDPs) in 48 villages.

Journalist Dinasena Rathugamage who visited Kudakachchakodiya village where some former IDPs are resettled says that many lack even basic facilities.

Mudalihamige Chandrasekara, 80, says his family was only given 16 corrugated iron sheets to build a temporary house in the village.

LTTE attack

"It is not enough to build a house. We hope the government will help us to rebuild our houses," he said...................

Visit : http://www.bbc.co.uk/sinhala/news/story/2009/11/091129_vavuniya_resettlement.shtml

India nuclear plant leak

--BBC--

Indian officials are investigating the leak of a radioactive substance into drinking water at an atomic power plant in the south of the country. Fifty-five workers at the Kaiga plant needed medical treatment for excessive exposure to radiation after tritium contaminated a water cooler. Officials said the leak might have been deliberate. "Mischief is not ruled out. Investigations are on," plant director J P Gupta told Reuters news agency. The 55 workers had returned to their duties at the plant, Mr Gupta added. "This incident has in no way affected the public, safety, health and environment." The highly protected Kaiga plant is on the west coast of India, 450km (280 miles) from Bangalore. Tritium, also known as Hydrogen-3, is used in research, fusion reactors and neutron generators.

Al-Qaeda head Osama Bin Laden was 'within grasp' of US

--BBC--

Osama Bin Laden is believed to be hiding in Pakistan's tribal areas US forces had Osama Bin Laden "within their grasp" in Afghanistan in late 2001, a US Senate report says. It says calls for US reinforcements were rejected, allowing the al-Qaeda leader to "walk unmolested" into Pakistan's unregulated tribal areas. The report was prepared by the Foreign Relations Committee Democratic staff. It says the failure to kill or capture Bin Laden had far-reaching consequences and laid the foundation for the protracted Afghan insurgency. The report comes as President Barack Obama prepares to announce a long-awaited decision on sending troop reinforcements to Afghanistan. It is highly critical of officials in former President George W Bush's administration and military commanders at the time.

Visit : http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8384897.stm

Sri Lankan General to contest election

--BBC--

Former Army Commander General, Sarath Fonseka, has said he will run for the country's presidency in elections set for January.

General Fonseka addressing National Lawyers Association in Colombo said that he will contest the upcoming Presidential election as a common opposition candidate and will work towards abolishing the Executive Presidency.

"I would definitely defeat the incumbent President Rajapaske", responding to a question he said.

His announcement sets the scene for a stand-off with President Mahinda Rajapaksa, who's called the election two years ahead of schedule.

General Fonseka is reported to be at odds with the government over who should take credit for Sri Lanka's final victory over a decades-long Tamil Tiger insurgency.

Two main opposition parties have said they will support the former military chief.

visit : http://www.bbc.co.uk/sinhala/news/story/2009/11/091128_contest.shtml

Sri Lanka general to mount poll bid

Legislator Dissanayake said the former army chief was a consensus opposition candidate [AFP] Sri Lanka's former military chief will challenge his former boss Mahinda Rajapakse, the incumbent president, in the country's presidential election, an opposition party has said. The Peoples' Liberation Front, or JVP, said on Tuesday it had come to an agreement with General Sarath Fonseka, the former head of the military, and would back him in election to be held likely in January. "We came to an agreement last night [Monday] that he will be the common opposition candidate," Anurakumara Dissanayake, a JVP legislator, said. "He has accepted to be the 'apolitical' common candidate who will work towards the abolition of the executive presidency within six months of coming to power," he said. The JVP previously backed Rajapakse, but it, as well as the main opposition United National Party, have since said they will support any move to oust the president. for more..... Visit :- http://english.aljazeera.net/news/asia/2009/11/2009112492418479179.html

US and India commit to nuclear deal

Singh invited Obama to visit India in 2010, an invitation Obama said he had accepted [AFP] The US president and Indian prime minister have pledged to fully implement a nuclear accord after talks in Washington, in addition to reaching agreements on issues as diverse as international security, job creation and climate change. In a White House news conference on Tuesday, Barack Obama said that he and Manmohan Singh had reaffirmed both their administrations' desire to push ahead with the civilian nuclear deal. The deal allows Washington to authorise selling advanced nuclear related technology to India, reversing more than 30 years of US policy banning the export of nuclear material. "My administration is committed to fully implementing the US-India civil nuclear agreement which increases American exports and creates jobs in both countries," Obama said. Singh said he was also confident Obama would "operationalise the nuclear deal as early as possible". "There are a few 'i's and 't's that have to be crossed, but I am confident and I have the assurance that that process can be completed without much further loss of time." Later on Tuesday Obama hosted what the White House said was his first state banquet, in honour of the Indian prime minister. The black-tie party on the South Lawn was attended by 300 guests, featuring a mostly vegetarian meal of curry prawns, aged basmati rice, eggplant salad, lentil soup, potato dumplings and other delicacies. Asian security Earlier the two men also addressed regional security. Obama would not reveal whether he intended to increase US troop levels in Afghanistan, saying his intention was to "finish the job", but that the Afghan people would "ultimately have to provide for their own security". "The changes that have come over in India are simply phenomenal ... in economic and military terms, it is a formidable power" Robert Wirsing, Professor of International Studies at Georgetown University He said that he would announce his strategy for Afghanistan after the Thanksgiving holiday has ended at the weekend. Referring to the Mumbai attacks in India last year, the president said: "It is in our strategic interests, in our national security interest, to make sure that al-Qaeda and its extremist allies cannot operate effectively. "We are going to dismantle and degrade their capabilities and ultimately dismantle and destroy their networks." His comments came just hours after Singh urged Washington to stop "premature talks of exit from Afghanistan" that would "only embolden the terrorist elements who are out to destabilise ... the civilised world". But while Obama said the US would continue to pressure Pakistan to "use all its influence to curb the power of the terrorist groups" within the country, he acknowledged Washington needed to provide support to civilians and civil society, and not just the Pakistani military. New Delhi has blamed a Pakistan-based group for last year's attack on Mumbai, which left more than 160 people dead.

for more....
Visit http://english.aljazeera.net/news/americas/2009/11/2009112418526631610.html

S Lanka army head leaves abruptly

--BBC--

Profile: Gen Sarath Fonseka

Sri Lankan military chief Gen Sarath Fonseka has abruptly left his office two weeks earlier than he wished after the government ordered him to do so.

He said last week he wanted to retire at the end of the month because he felt the government had lost trust in him.

Sri Lankans are now waiting to see whether the general will make a presidential challenge to the incumbent, Mahinda Rajapaksa.

President Rajapaksa has appointed the air force chief in his place.

'Traitor'

Two military aides to Gen Fonseka told the BBC he had left his office after a farewell ceremony on Monday morning.

President Rajapaksa has moved swiftly to appoint the air force chief as chief of staff in his place.

In a terse letter to Gen Fonseka on Sunday, the president's secretary told him he would lose his post and leave the army with immediate effect.

This came after the general sent a scathing letter to the president last week, complaining that his powers had been removed weeks after the government's military victory against the Tamil Tigers.

The general also said that the president appeared to mistrust him.

There is, therefore, now a major rift within the political and military machine that won the war, and the possibility that the disgruntled general may stand for president himself.

This would undermine the stance of Mr Rajapaksa's supporters that only he can make electoral capital from the war.

At the president's party convention on Sunday, Mr Rajapaksa failed to announce an imminent presidential election as he had been expected to do.

"Yesterday's patriot may become tomorrow's traitor," he told delegates, saying that attempts to divide the country would have pleased the now dead Tamil Tiger leader, Prabhakaran.