David Miliband called for Sri Lanka aid 'to win votes'

The former Foreign Secretary David Miliband's campaign to champion international aid and human rights during last year's humanitarian rights crisis in Sri Lanka was driven largely by the need to win the votes of the UK's large Sri Lankan Tamil population, according to the latest Wikileaks releases. Richard Mills, a political officer at the US e...- 02/12/2010, Asia

India's biggest budget movie hits screens

Three years after his last blockbuster, bus conductor turned Indian film megastar Rajinikanth returned to the silver screen Friday with a movie expected to break all box-office records.- 02/10/2010, Films

Rajnikanth's 'Robot' set to take over the world

India's biggest film production ever, Robot, starring Rajnikanth and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, will roll out in around 30 countries this weekend (October 1), at the same time as its highly anticipated Indian release.- 30/09/2010, Films

Sri Lanka holds withdrawal of on-arrival visa

Sri Lanka on Saturday suspended plans to scrap on-arrival visas for most nationals, including visitors from the US, Europe, Australia and Japan.- 28/08/2010, News & Advice

Tamils seek asylum after months at sea

A small cargo ship crammed with hundreds of Tamil asylum-seekers from Sri Lanka docked at a Canadian navy base yesterday after a gruelling three-month journey.- 14/08/2010, Americas

Sri Lanka's civil war inquiry is 'eyewash', say Tamils

Sri Lanka's investigation into the war against the Tamil Tigers – a conflict that left thousands of civilians dead – has begun amid a barrage of allegations that justice will not be done.- 12/08/2010, Asia

Hunger striker wins damages over burgers claim

A Tamil refugee hunger striker today accepted substantial undisclosed damages over claims that he had secretly eaten takeaway burgers throughout his protest. The articles in the Daily Mail and The Sun struck at the heart of Parameswaran Subramanyam's integrity and undermined the single achievement for which he became known and respected, the Hi...- 29/07/2010, Press

UN recalls Sri Lanka envoy over protests

Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said yesterday that he was recalling the senior United Nations official in Sri Lanka and closing an office in Colombo because of anti-UN protests there led by a government minister.- 09/07/2010, World Politics

'3 Idiots' sweeps protest-hit Bollywood awards in Sri Lanka

Indian megastar Aamir Khan's hit movie "3 Idiots" swept the "Bollywood Oscars" at the weekend but the glitzy ceremony in Sri Lanka was marred by boycott calls and the absence of many top names.- 06/06/2010, Films

Stars may skip Bollywood awards in Sri Lanka: government

Bollywood's leading stars may skip their annual awards festival, which is being held in Sri Lanka this week, following protests from pro-Tamil rebel lobbies in India, officials said Monday.- 01/06/2010, Films

Sri Lanka welcomes end to US travel warning

Sri Lanka on Thursday welcomed the lifting of a US warning against travel to the Indian Ocean island, anticipating a boost to tourism and investment a year after a bloody civil war ended.- 27/05/2010, New Articles

How Beijing won Sri Lanka's civil war

A year ago, one of the world's most brutal and pitiless terrorist groups, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), was hunted down and exterminated on a strip of beach in the far north-east of Sri Lanka.- 23/05/2010, Asia

Sri Lanka accused of war crimes in final onslaught

An investigation into the last months of Sri Lanka's bloody civil war released yesterday claims that government forces were responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands more civilians than previously estimated, and targeted hospitals and humanitarian operations as part of their final onslaught on the rebel Tamil Tigers. - 18/05/2010, Asia

Roma Tearne: 'Sri Lanka's writers must remember and speak out'

On the island of Sri Lanka, an important anniversary will soon be celebrated. 18 May is the day last year on which the war ended in a government "victory" over the Tamil forces of the LTTE. In a token gesture, to coincide with World Press Freedom Day, President Mahinda Rajapaksa has pardoned Tissainayagam, the journalist sentenced unlawfully to 20 years i Th...- 07/05/2010, Features

Sri Lankan leader frees 'terror' journalist

Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa has pardoned a Tamil journalist who received a 20-year jail term on charges of "supporting" terrorism.- 04/05/2010, Asia