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www.southgatearc.org
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Sri Lanka to register satellite phone users and regulate satellite TVSri Lanka has announced plans to register users of satellite telephones and regulate satellite television broadcasts amid the worsening unrest on the island. Telecommunications Regulator Kanchana Ratwatte said President Mahinda Rajapakse has ordered the formulation of laws to regulate all satellite-based television broadcasters and phone service providers, including widely available Thuraya phones. ”We have also been asked to maintain lists of all those who provide satellite-based services and equipment,” Ratwatte told reporters. The government is yet to announce how it would regulate satellite broadcasts, but the authorities have shut down two companies providing re-broadcasts of foreign programmes, as well as those of the Tamil Tigers. The rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) also use satellite-based telephones. Satellite phones were available over the counter following a truce between the government and Tigers in February 2002. However, with the truce under severe pressure since December, the authorities have imposed new restrictions on transporting satellite-based equipment to rebel-held areas. More than 800 people have been killed in Sri Lanka’s embattled northern and eastern regions since December despite the truce.
Source: Media Network, AFP
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