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| Sri Lanka |
| Bomb scare shuts Sri Lanka Parliament |
| 2006-02-02 |
| Sri Lanka has recovered from the tsunami with all its political problems still intact. A security scare shut down Sri Lanka's Parliament on Thursday, just before the government named two members of a five-man team that will represent the government in peace talks with Tamil rebels in Geneva later this month. After a half-hour delay, W.J.M. Lokubandara, the speaker of the house, opened the day's session and announced that police conducting daily security checks had not given clearance for the session to continue. "Due to serious security concerns arising in Parliament, the house will be suspended until Feb. 14," Lokubandara told the chamber as antiterrorism police ushered lawmakers out of the building. Police officials began a heavy search of the chamber after sniffer dogs started behaving unusually during a routine check, although no bombs were uncovered. Shortly after the chamber was cleared, the trade and commerce minister, Jeyaraj Fernandopulle, said he had been named as part of the team to attend the Geneva talks, which are seen as crucial in heading off the prospect of a slide back into a civil war that has killed more than 64,000 people since 1983. The team will be led by Nimal Siripala de Silva, a veteran politician and a lawyer, Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera later announced at a news conference. Samaraweera declined to give any other details. |
| Posted by:ryuge |