Sri Lanka to officially turn down India’s proposal to share their territorial waters by fishermen; Volume of bilateral trade between Sri Lanka and India increases in the first 11 months of 2011; Sri Lanka is to establish a Resident Diplomatic Mission in t
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    • According to reports, Sri Lanka will officially turn down India’s proposal to share their territorial waters by fishermen so as to avoid clashes in the fishing industry, Fisheries Minister Rajitha Senaratne said on January 10, 2012. 1

    In another development, according to reports, the volume of bilateral trade between Sri Lanka and India during the first eleven months of 2011 had reached US$4.46 billion, an increase of 71.94 per cent when compared with the corresponding period of the previous year, an official said quoting Sri Lanka customs data. 2

    Sri Lanka is to establish a Resident Diplomatic Mission in the Ukraine. The government of Ukraine, on a reciprocal basis, will establish a Resident Mission in Colombo. 3

    Reports noted that the total number of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Menik Farm relief village has declined to 6,553 as of Jan. 10, 2012. 4 Meanwhile, the number of Sri Lankan refugees returning home has dropped in 2011 when compared with the previous year due to suspension of the Colombo-Tuticorin ferry service, latest UNHCR statistics show. A total of 1,728 Sri Lankan refugees returned under UNHCR’s facilitated voluntary repatriation programme last year while higher numbers were recorded in 2010 during which the agency helped some 2,054 Sri Lankan refugees come home. In 2009, UNHCR facilitated the voluntary return of some 818 individuals. 5

    According to reports, the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) said on January 13, 2012 that during its recent interaction with African National Congress (ANC) leaders it had sought insights from the findings and recommendations of the Truth Commission of South Africa. 6

    In other developments, reports noted that Sri Lanka's postal authorities have decided to defy rules and regulations stipulated by the Universal Postal Union (UPU) when dealing with letters and parcels with stamps bearing the emblem of the LTTE and the image of its late leader. 7

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