Initial Legal Fees Paid for Filing Sri Lankan Maid Appeal

As the July 16 deadline to file an appeal in the case of Rizana Nafeek, the 19- year-old Sri Lankan maid accused of strangling a four-month-old Saudi boy, draws near, the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has come forward and deposited an initial sum of SR50,000 to begin the appeals process.

The AHRC is a nongovernmental human rights organization that has been working on behalf of the young woman. The deposit was made yesterday to the firm of Kateb Fahad Al-Shammari, Attorneys at Law, in Riyadh.

“We hope that this can be the beginning of the process that allows the law firm to now proceed in filing papers before the deadline,” said Basil Fernandez, executive director of the AHRC. He added that the AHRC was doing this on behalf of various groups and individuals that have taken an active interest in the case.

Fernandez also told Arab News that this was only the first of three SR50,000 payments to be made.

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http://www.arabnews.com/?page=1&section=0&article
=98425&d=13&m=7&y=2007&pix=kingdom.jpg&category=Kingdom

Ranil's Thoppigala statement sweet music to Prabhakaran - UNP (D-Group)

UNP Democratic Group member R. A. D. Sirisena said Ranil Wickremesinghe's statement yesterday on the capture of the LTTE stronghold Thoppigala by the Security Forces was a statement that should have ideally emanated from Velupillai Prabhakaran.

He apologised on behalf of the UNP Democratic group for the statement of the UNP Leader underestimating the achievement by the Security Forces at a press briefing held at Seth Sevana, Kirulapone yesterday.

He said that some frustrated politicians are trying to make a living by making vociferous noises about abductions but after the Government intervened to probe the matter their shouting has stopped following the disclosure that these were fabricated stories. Similarly, the story about selling 60,000 acres of land to foreigners from Wellassa is also a fabrication, he said.

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http://www.dailynews.lk/2007/07/13/pol02.asp

Govt. to develop entire East

The government yesterday said its main focus after capturing Thoppigala was to develop the entire eastern region while stressing there was no immediate move to resume peace talks.Addressing the media in Colombo Cabinet Spokesman Anura Priyadharashana Yapa said the government was in a strong position now with the LTTE losing Thoppigala – considered to be its backbone.

He said the government would pump in a large amount of money to implement major development projects that had already started in the East.

“We want to develop the East in a big way. That is why we liberated the people from Tiger clutches,” the Minister said.

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http://www.dailymirror.lk/2007/07/13/front/07.asp