The UNP yesterday called for the immediate removal of the Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa stating that his conduct was unbecoming of civilized society.

Coordinator of the UNP Media Committee Mangala Samaraweera said that it was only about a month ago that they warned the public that the country cannot afford to allow "an inefficient and non-administrative service person, such as Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, to handle a serious and important ministry as its Secretary and allow the country to go chaotic and into anarchy. People of this country, whatever their political affiliations cannot live with such unsolved crime, dictated by politically backed armed thugs under a Secretary, who is not even willing to accept that he is a total failure as a State officer.

"Gotabhaya Rajapaksa has again proved us more than right. He has not only proved he is inefficient, he has also proved he is wholly uncultured and uncivilized too, to hold even the most menial of public posts. His verbal purging thrown on journalist cum editor of the Sunday Leader, Fredrica Jansz, should have immediately grounded the entire print and electronic media into a loud halt in any other country. Most unfortunately it is not that here. Even those men and women who talk about internet obscenity and want websites banned for polluting a great �Sinhala culture�, are yet to speak their first words on how vulgar and threatening, the language of the Defence Ministry Secretary is.

With such a person who continues to break all the rules of the establishment code with his arrogant, uncouth and psychotic behaviour giving leadership to the Ministry of Defence, it is not suprising that the law and order situation in the country has totally collapsed. The law of the jungle is prevailing today and it is not surprising to hear the Police media spokesperson say that during the first six months of this year, the police have recorded 975 cases of rape against women and 700 of them were against teenage and little girls. This society knows it is Rajapaksa's ruling political party thugs. brought in as local government nominees and voted in as members, who have gone maniac in raping and sexually abusing young girls A new and insane political culture at grass roots is now being nurtured with rape against women and young girls growing and drugs pedalled into villages with political patronage. This most certainly would be the local election machine of this Rajapaksa regime when elections are fixed in the future. The police are therefore kept inactive and at times complicit in crimes committed by these political thugs, with pressure brought on the police.

"We, therefore say once again quite clearly and with responsibility,it's the culture of impunity under this Ministry Secretary,who does not know his language is foul and vulgar, knows not his ways of reacting to queries and criticism is much less than sane,that had allowed this society to go beastly and wild.

Unbridled power, he thinks he could wield with vulgar threats, is definitely intolerably anti-social. If still the President does not remove Gotabhaya Rajapaksa from the post of Secretary to the Ministry of Defence and Urban Development, we won't hesitate to say, its the right of the people to demand his removal from his office, immediately.

We, therefore call upon all democratic organisations, trade unions and independent professional organisations to join us in bringing this maniacal administrator to leave his post for a saner, competent person to have law and order re-established, in a decent and disciplined way."

-(Island)-

Any organisation or individual will not be allowed to venerate a terrorist organisation. Anyone participating in a commemoration ceremony for LTTE cadres will be arrested, Vanni Commander Major General Boniface Perera said. 'There is only one military in a country. Any citizen has the right to commemorate their loved ones but no one can commemorate terrorists who were disloyal to the government. If persons are planning to remember LTTE members it is treason. We will arrest whoever is involved in this,' Major General Perera said. He was responding to a query about reports in some newspapers including the Udayan published in the North, that relatives of those who died during the last phase of the war in Vellamullivaikkal and Pudumathalan were planning to organise a commemoration day in Vavuniya today when the government was celebrating Victory Day.

The Tamil Eelam freedom charter will be promulgated on the 18th May 2013 at an International Conference under the auspices of TGTE in Lancaster Pennyslavania - U.S.A. TGTE under the dynamic leadership of Mr.V.Rudrakumaran Prime Minister, was born out of dire necessity and not by compulsion. The justification for an independent state of Tamil Eelam in the traditional homelands of Tamils in the north and east is accepted and endorsed by Tamil Diaspora supported by numerous International scholars and eminent persons.

The British Tamil Forum's (BTF) call for a mass rally in London on Saturday, remembering the 2009 Mu'l'li-vaaykkaal genocidal massacre, focuses on urging Britain and the Commonwealth to boycott the Sri Lanka CHOGM meet in November. Earlier this month, the British Prime Minister David Cameron has announced his decision to attend the meet. 'It is ridiculous as well as painful to find that Cameron has decided to attend CHOGM in Sri Lanka,' said a BTF statement on Thursday, adding that the meet, leading to Sri Lanka chairing the Commonwealth for the next two years, 'will not only be disgraceful to the Commonwealth and Britain, but will also create a permanent blot in their history.'

43rd Chief justice in Sri Lanka Dr. Shirani Bandaranayake reappeared before the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption today as notified. The Commission had recently notified Dr. Bandaranayake to submit verbal answers with regards to allegations of having maintained irregular assets. Appearing with her attorneys Dr. Bandaranayake had made her verbal submission before the Commission. Subsequently the Commission had notified Dr. Bandaranayake to reappear before it on the 20th of this month.

Sri Lanka's main opposition United National Party (UNP) will seek the opinions and views of the public on the draft constitution being prepared by the party. UNP parliamentarian Wijedasa Rajapakse said the draft constitution would be made public on the 29th of this month. He said the UNP would also have a discussion with party leaders in the parliament regarding the draft. He explained that the UNP's draft constitution would limit the powers of the executive presidency and the president will also be liable and responsible when making decisions. The draft constitution also proposes that a person would have to end his\her political career and be independent once elected as the president and would not be able to hold any Cabinet portfolios.

Saudia Arabia has long been a beacon of hope for many Sri Lankans who flock there to pursue a higher salary and a better life than they would otherwise get at home. About 1.8 million Sri Lankans live and work abroad, and about 90 percent of them do so in the Middle East - accounting for foreign exchange income of US$5.2 billion last year. For many economic migrants, though, the promise of a brighter future does not materialize. Mary Margaret, 32, spent six years in the Middle East as a housemaid, dreaming of earning enough money to build a home for her three children. 'I chose to go abroad as a housemaid because we had no other way of earning money. I laid a foundation for a new house six years before but could do nothing thereafter,' she said.

Minister Wasudewa Nanayakkara has stated that if the government intends to hold an independent and fair election all military personnel in North must be limited to their respective camps. In an interview to ' Ravaya' newspaper he has stated that if the security forces are deployed all over the Northern Province the government will not be able to declare an independent and fair election to the international. Responding to the Minister's statement Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa has told ' Ravaya' that the military personal will not be evicted if it affects the security of the Northern Province. The security forces will only be involved in development process, he said.

Concerned over reports of Sri Lankan government considering removal of land and police powers from the provinces prior to the elections in the Northern Province, India today asked it not to take any step against their own commitments relating to the 13th Amendment. India's External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid telephoned his Sri Lankan counterpart G L Peiris and also raised the issue of 26 Indian fishermen who are in detention in his country while seeking their early release. According to official sources, the conversation also focused on the elections that are to be held in the Northern Province with Khurshid expressing his concerns regarding media reports referring to some consideration being given to removal of land and police powers from the provinces prior to the polls.

The main opposition UNP yesterday said it had rejected a request made by Velayutham Dayanithi alias Daya Master and his supporters to contest the Northern Provincial Council on the UNP ticket. UNP Colombo District MP Ravi Karunanayake told a news conference that the group met the UNP leaders during their recent visit to the North. The UNP MP made this point referring to a statement by Daya Master that former LTTE cadres should be allowed to contest elections. He said the party informed them that the UNP had decided to keep away from LTTE associates as various allegations had been levelled against the party linking it with Tamil Terrorists.

A woman attempted to commit suicide by jumping into a well with her 3 children in Vavuniya this morning. Neighbors had managed to rescue the mother, however the three children had already perished by then, police said. The woman's three daughters -aged 1, 3 and 4, had drowned inside the well. The mother of three, a resident of Thandikulam in Vavuniya, has been arrested while Vavuniya Police is conducting further investigations.

A stock of explosives was recovered inside an abandoned house at Palaminmadu, Batticaloa. The explosives included 29 Agasthi hand grenades,16 type 82/2 hand grenades and 11 Anti personal mines. Batticaloa Police is conducting further investigation into the incident.

The controversial Buddhist organization in Sri Lanka, the Bodu Bala Sena (BBS) has called for a non-commercial Vesak celebration in the country. The organization has called on the government to ensure that Vesak celebrations are not commercialized. General Secretary of the BBS, Ven. Galagodaththe Gnanasara Thero has cited an example of the commercialization of Vesak by saying that it has become the norm for the conducting of "dansal" as a mean of extorting money from the public for personal use by the organizers of such events. The Thero promised that the BBS would make drastic changes in the way the country celebrates Vesak from next year.

This week we join our friends in Canada's Tamil-Canadian community in observing the fourth anniversary of the end of the decades-long civil war in Sri Lanka. The Week of Remembrance is a time to remember the innocent who were killed or injured during the decade long civil war and to look towards a brighter future for the people of Sri Lanka.

"Annual Tamil Memorial Week ensures we never forget the innocent civilians who were killed during the war, including the tens of thousands of people who died during the last weeks leading up to May 18, 2009. It also gives us the opportunity to once again demand accountability for those who died, the families still living in the country, and their loved ones abroad."

The Criminal Investigations Department is currently recording a statement from former Army Commander General Sarath Fonseka, regarding the suicide attempt on his life within the army headquarters. An LTTE female cadre made an attempt on Gen. Fonseka's life on April 25, 2006. The CID is currently at the former Army Commanders office in Matiambalama, Kotte. 27 persons were injured and 11 were killed as a result of the suicide attack

The Criminal Investigation Department recorded statements on the affidavits submitted by the relatives of missing persons whose remains were believed have been unearthed from the mass grave discovered in Matale Hospital premises. Thirteen affidavits were submitted at Matale Magistrates Court by 11 relatives of missing persons believed to have disappeared or murdered during 88/89/90. CID took down the evidence on May 14th upon the order of Matale Magistrate Chathurika de Silva. Under the advice of Attorney at Law Sarath Wijeratne the relatives who submitted affidavits provided statements. The former Provincial Council member of Central Province Gamagedara Dissanayake was also present at the occasion.

A group of 41 persons preparing to illegally travel to Australia by boat have been arrested by police while they were staying at a hotel in Munneswaram, Chilaw. Police said that four women and 9 children were mong the suspects arrested by Chilaw Police and that they are all residents of Gurunagar, Jaffna.

The Friedrich Naumann Foundation, a Germany-based International Non-Government Organization (INGO), has held a two-day special workshop for United National Party (UNP) Members of Parliament, Local Government bodies and Provincial Councils, at the official residence of the Mayor in Colombo on 'how to defeat the present government and bring the UNP back into power.'The workshop was conducted on 14 and 15 May. The chief speakers at the workshop included Manfred Risher, former Mayor of Germany and a senior Liberal Party committee member.

Military presence in the Jaffna peninsula as well as the Vanni was meant to guarantee the security of people living in the northern region, Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa said yesterday. He told The Island that security forces' presence was nothing but a necessity, though various interested parties and a section of the media were playing politics with purely a national security issue. The country had paid a very heavy price due to the failure of previous governments to adopt proper security measures. "I have no intention of repeating the same mistake," he said. The war veteran was responding to the allegation that an intimidating post-war military presence in the northern region, particularly in the Jaffna electoral district was inimical to the restoration of civilian rule. He alleged that critics had conveniently ignored the gradual decrease in military presence since the conclusion of the conflict on May 19, 2009.

Sri Lanka's main opposition United National party (UNP) is facing a severe financial crisis and the party headquarters cannot be maintained any longer, local media report said. According to a report in today's Ceylon Today, the party leader Ranil Wickremasinghe has confirmed a media report that revealed the party is facing a severe financial crisis. Wickremasinghe has disclosed that there is an overdraft of Rs 2.6 million, and a bank loan of Rs 1.6 million taken through the Sirikotha Fund.