Yearly Archive: 2015

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Articles

SPUR NSW: Appreciation: Passing away of HON Don Randall. MP. Australian Parliament

The Passing Away of Don Randall, MP for Canning

The untimely death of West Australian Federal Liberal MP Don Randall is a great shock to us all and has sadness to all.  Don was a decent and a genial person who always gave a listening ear to others, and was much loved by Australians of Sri Lankan origin. 

 

Don was the Chair of the Sri Lanka Australia Parliamentary Friendship Group from its inception and swapped the position with Labor Senator Steve Hutchins to become the Deputy for short periods. Both statesmen became truly great friends of Sri Lanka in her time of greatest need.  Don always stood up in Parliament to put the record straight whenever an issue related to Sri Lanka arose.  

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Articles

Appreciation: Passing away of HON Don Randall. MP. Australian Parliament 

We are saddened by the sudden death of Don, who was a dynamic personality. He stood for the people of Canning electorate looking after their interests and establishing a clear margin of nearly 11% in favor of Liberal party whereas it was a very marginal seat fora long time. His frequent visits to the community at large in the electorate won him the goodwill of his constituencies.  We , the Australians of Sri Lankan origin have lost a genuine friend in Don as he was the Chairman of Sri Lankan group in the Parliament for a long time after the establishment of this forum during the tenure of High Commissioner, late Gen Janaka Perera.
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Articles

India cancels licences of nearly 9,000 NGOs over foreign funds

NEW DELHI (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – India has cancelled the registration of nearly 9,000 charities for failing to declare details of donations from abroad, as New Delhi tightens surveillance on foreign-funded non-governmental organisations in the country.
 
The crackdown comes days after the government suspended the licence of Greenpeace India and put U.S.-based Ford Foundation on a security watch list, ordering government approval of any of its activities in the country.
 
 
A “cancellation order” issued by the home ministry and uploaded to its website late on Monday said the government had cancelled the registration of 8,975 associations because they did not declare details of their foreign funding for three years starting from 2009/10.
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Articles

The unfinished task of securing territorial integrity

The forthcoming election is between supporters of former President Rajapaksa and those who are upset with the very prospect of his return to politics.

 

The motivations of the two camps are driven by contrasting values.

 

The values of the first group are such that they are prepared to overlook whatever commissions and omissions that were committed during the Rajapaksa administration for the single most significant contribution made by him – the political will to restore the territorial integrity of Sri Lanka. For them the wholeness of the State and personal security are inseparable. For this, their gratitude is timeless and boundless.

 

On the other hand, the values of the second group are such that they do not see the conclusion of the conflict in terms of restoring the territorial integrity of the State, but in narrow personal terms of eliminating terrorism and making them safe. The safety provided was taken for granted and utilized to discredit and remove from office the very Government that had made them safe. The forthcoming election would essentially determine which value system would prevail.