RUN FOR COVER: Sri Lankan policemen running for shelter from rain next to new motorcycles at a ceremony in Colombo yesterday marking the official distribution of 279 high-powered units to traffic constables across the country. The 600cc Yamaha bikes were deployed to bolster traffic police in a country where over 2,500 people are killed annually in road accidents, making Sri Lankan roads among the world’s deadliest.

IANS

Colombo

Sri Lanka President Mahinda Rajapakse visited areas hit by communal violence and assured people that perpetrators will be brought to justice, the President’s Office said
yesterday.

Buddhist-Muslim violence erupted June 15 in the southern tourist hotspots of Aluthgama and Beruwala, Xinhua reported.

The violence was sparked by Bodu Bala Sena (BBS) or Buddhist Task Force holding a rally in the area.

Following the rally where inflammatory speeches were made, mobs went berserk and torched dozens of houses and shops in the area.

Curfew had to be imposed for nearly three days before the situation could be brought under control.

President Rajapakse has repeatedly pledged to take legal action against perpetrators of ethnic clashes and in several public speeches called on
citizens to excise restraint.

“We will bring the people who caused this harm to justice,” he assured residents, requesting them to support repair efforts carried out by the army.

On Thursday the government allocated Rs200mn ($1.5mn) to repair and reconstruct shops and houses of both Muslims and Buddhists damaged in the clashes.

Recognition for victory: A Sri Lanka minister on Monday said that the defeat of terrorism in the country after 30 years of fighting should receive recognition as it has brought about significant benefits not only to the people of Sri Lanka but to the whole South Asian region.

External Affairs Minister G L Peiris said that Sri Lanka’s success in eradicating terrorism from its shores has had a crucial impact on weakening the forces of destabilisation in the entire region and, in particular, on reducing the opportunities for collaboration among terrorist groups active in the area.

Peiris was delivering the keynote address at a symposium on establishing a Centre of Excellence on Ocean Sciences and Environment for the Indian Ocean Rim countries.

Sri Lanka defeated the Tamil Tiger rebels in May 2009 but continues to face allegations of committing war crimes during the final stages of the war, an allegation the government denies.

Peiris, meanwhile, also referred to Sri Lanka’s role of increasing significance in recent times, in ensuring the security of sea lanes by helping to control people smuggling and a wide range of connected illegal activity involving drugs and narcotics, money laundering and
proliferation of small arms.

The Indian Ocean Rim region is home to nearly one-third of the world’s population and is of high economic significance due to its strategic location.

Half of the world’s trade travels through this region. The region possesses a variety of natural resources which are vital for the wellbeing of its inhabitants, trade and environmental
stability.

The region faces numerous negative impacts of globalisation, coupled with global environmental threats such as climate change.