TWO TEENAGERS ARE AMONG FEARED DEAD SRI LANKAN ASYLUM-SEEKERS

Two teenage boys aged 13 and 14 are among the Sri Lankans missing feared dead after a boat carrying suspected asylum-seekers capsized.

Home Affairs Minister Brendan Nelson confirmed tonight that “Initial indications are that 39 males were believed to have been onboard, including two youths aged 13 and 14 who remain missing” after the boat sunk on Sunday night.

One body has been recovered and a further two have been sighted in the water. There are 11 people still missing.

“There are grave concerns for those persons still unaccounted for,” Mr O’Connor said.

“The 27 survivors will be taken to Christmas Island, where appropriate medical treatment and mental health support, including grief counselling, will be available. Their health and wellbeing is our first priority. Other checks, including identity and reasons for travel, will commence in due course.”

Two Royal Australian Air Force AP3 Orions, a Customs and Border Protection Dash 8 aircraft and an AMSA Dornier are participating in the search for survivors.

The Australian

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Ukrainians injured as police dismantle Kiev 'tent city'

At least 10 demonstrators have been injured in clashes with Ukrainian police and another 100 detained in the capital Kiev after authorities began dismantling a makeshift "tent city" protesting against corruption. The tent city was set up in October by supporters of Mikheil Saakashvili, a former president of Georgia who has become an opposition politician in Ukraine. Saakashvili, a critic of corruption in Ukraine, was deported to Poland in February. He said he was "kidnapped" by Ukrainian authorities and removed from the country against his will. Andriy Kryshchneko, police chief of police, said at the camp on Saturday that "two court decisions" allowed authorities to search and dismantle the camp. Police said that explosives and other weapons were found at the scene

ASSIGNING OF PREFERENTIAL NUMBERS FOR LG POLLS COMPLETED

The Election Secretariat announced that assigning preferential numbers for candidates of the Local Government election to be held for 67 bodies has been completed. Preparations are currently underway to hold the polls under the 2010 electoral register, Additional Elections Commissioner W.P. Sumanasiri said. The electoral register of the year 2010 is scheduled to be certified on June 31.

In abrupt turnaround, Olympus admits it hid losses

Japan's Olympus admitted on Tuesday it hid losses on securities investments dating back two decades, bowing to weeks of pressure to explain a series of baffling transactions that have put the future of the firm in doubt. The revelations by the 92-year-old company appear to vindicate ex-CEO Michael Woodford, who has staged a campaign since being sacked on October 14 to force the firm to come clean on nearly $1.5 billion in questionable payments. Olympus President Shuichi Takayama blamed Tsuyoshi Kikukawa, who quit as president and chairman on October 26, Vice-President Hisashi Mori and internal auditor Hideo Yamada for the cover-up, saying he would consider criminal complaints against them. The admission after weeks of denials shocked investors, sending shares in the endoscope and camera maker skidding almost 30 percent and prompting the biggest non-Japanese shareholder to demand the replacement of the entire board. "Ignorance is no defense," said Jo...

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