Apr 18 (CT) Although Jayewardene’s style was described as patrician, his success was mainly as a juggler. Increasing disorder was the hallmark of his governance. He manipulated his ministers and balanced disorder cropping up in one place by creating disorder elsewhere. Periodic explosions were inevitable. He had no direct contact with the shock troops, but earlier he had them organised through Cyril Mathew and the JSS. Premadasa with his own shock troops was given the leeway to more..

Apr 18 (ST) The Nuwara Eliya season has kicked off but notably Sri Lankans holidaying in the hotels have dropped by about 40% since the past two years. However, credit card offers and new hotels have been the real crowd puller during this season across the cuntry. It was pointed out that most Sri Lankans would be now widespread across the regions during the New Year holiday season without simply heading to the cooler climes more..

Apr 18 (Island) Man who has so far been a threat only to this world is trying to ruin other planets as well. A company called Mars One has recently unveiled an ambitious plan for an unmanned mission to Mars in 2018, complete with a robotic lander and a communication satellite, to pave the way for a human settlement on the Red Planet hopefully in a decade or so. Following this announcement, more than 200,000 earthlings are said to have come forward to become astronauts and make a more..

Apr 18 (CT) Sri Lanka's national rugby team is slated to contest the HSBC Asian Five 5 Nations (A5N) rugby championship commencing April 26, but what is conspicuous by its absence here is the domestic hype that is usually attached to such a high-profile regional tournament. Forget about the hype, the sport's local controlling body - Sri Lanka Rugby Football Union (SLRFU) has deemed it par for the course to keep mum on the build up to this seventh edition of the annual 15-a-side more..

Apr 18 (CT) Sri Lanka's cricketers have not signed their contracts yet and so far they have not given any reason for it nor issued any official explanations for not doing so. Nuski Mohamed the Treasurer of Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) said that he personally took the contracts to Dhaka during the Asia Cup cricket tournament and handed over the contracts to the cricketers. "Various people say different things about the contract but more..

Apr 18 (Island) Former captain and ex-ICC Director Arjuna Ranatunga has expressed his disappointment that no objections were raised against the presence of sidelined President of BCCI N. Srinivasan at a recent ICC meeting. India’s Supreme Court has suspended Srinivasan from functioning as the President of BCCI, so that a fair probe is conducted on the spot fixing allegations during the last IPL. Srinivasan’s Indian Cements owns IPL franchise Chennai Super Kings, more..

Apr 18 (Island) Sri Lanka can be proud of the development of Engineering and Technological education dating as far back as to 1893 at the Maradana Technical College. BSc (Eng) external degree of the University of London was the forerunner to the BSc Eng degree (Ceylon) which commenced at the University of Colombo, thereafter shifted to University of Peradeniya. Universities of Moratuwa and Ruhuna commenced their degree programmes in Engineering later and more..

Apr 18 (LMD) It has been nearly five years since the end of the war, and access to services has improved in the Northern Province due to a number of reasons such as infrastructure development, reduced security restrictions, increased mobility and the recovery of livelihoods. Access to basic services is a sine qua non to live a safe, dignified and productive life, especially in the war and post-war contexts. more..

Apr 18 (FT) Brother Industrial Sewing Machines (ISM), a Division of Tajima Colombo Ltd., recently organised a technical workshop on the latest Brother ‘Direct Drive Technology’. Over 50 participants from Sri Lanka’s leading garment factories participated at the technical workshop conducted by a technical instructor from Brother Machinery (Asia) Ltd., Singapore. A valuable certificate from Brother was presented to the participants on successful completion of the technical workshop. more..

Apr 18 (Island) Two inmates warded at the Welikada prison hospital escaped after scaling the wall of the medical facility yesterday. One of the escapees was a convicted heroin dealer, prison sources said. The other was an accused in a High Court case. The drug dealer had escaped from custody on an earlier occasion. Later he was caught and was being detained at the Welikada prison. The two inmates had been transferred recently to the Prison hospital and were being treated at Wards No 5 and 6. more..

Apr 18 (FT) The depositors of the Golden Key Credit Card Company (GKCCCL) are beginning to see a ray of hope as repayments start coming in, according to a statement issued by CEO Dinesh Perera. A new Board of Directors was appointed by the Central Bank on 4 April 2013. Chairman of the new Board of Directors is a former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank (P.D.J. Fernando) who has been instrumental in more..

Apr 18 (Island) Sri Lankans, whether they pursue their higher studies in Sri Lanka or overseas, have equal opportunities of gaining academic qualifications, skills and aptitudes to become globally recognized citizens for professional careers, but could face difficulties in getting jobs due to slow growth in the jobs market, both here and abroad. A Sri Lankan professional who graduated from a well known British university in Bio-Medical Engineering, and is working at a British more..

Apr 18 (AD) Six armed men have broken into a jewelry store near the clock tower in the Negombo town today and robbed jewelry and cash estimated to be worth around Rs 10 million before escaping on motorcycles. Robbery had taken place at around 7.30pm today just as the shop was being closed for the day and cash was being placed inside safes. The robbers, wearing helmets to conceal their identity, had arrived in 3 motorcycles and threatened the shop’s staff with firearms before escaping more..

Apr 18 (CT) At its recent annual meeting in Los Angeles, the Global Shippers’ Forum (GSF) agreed to organize a new global campaign to confront the imposition of unsubstantiated shipping surcharges, terminal charges and more than 20 other non-negotiable local charges on shippers worldwide, after new rules effected by the Sri Lankan govt helped the country’s shippers boost their earnings and competitiveness. more..

Apr 18 (FT) Bank of Ceylon performed Avurudu Ganu-Denu with President Mahinda Rajapaksa on 15 April at Tangalle branch. BOC Director Chandrasiri de Silva, BOC Director Nalini Abeywardene, BOC General Manager D. M. Gunasekara, BOC AGM Southern Province D.K.N. Piyasoma and BOC Tangalle Branch Manager G.A. Gnanawickrama participated along with the BOC Tangalle branch employees and customers. For 74 years, Bank of Ceylon has been in the more..

Apr 18 (DN) Sri Lanka cager team had to be satisfied with the silver medal as the hosts Bangladesh prospered on home advantage to win the inaugural South Asia 3×3 basketball Championship worked off from April 14 to 16 in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The South Asian Basketball Association in collaboration with Bangladesh Basketball Federation (BBF) conducted the inaugural tournament, where teams from five South Asian nations including Bhutan, Maldives, more..

Apr 18 (DC) The alleged international kidney racket, which came under the police radar following the death of a city youngster in Sri Lanka, has been using Facebook and other social networking sites to identify victims. Kishanbagh resident, Dinesh Maroo, who died in Colombo allegedly after a kidney transplant, had at least six Facebook friends with whom he had discussed kidney donation in the past. more..

Apr 18 (ST) Sri Lanka’s Lantern boutique hotel is to go international creating a unique identity by bringing together the elements of the country’s rich heritage, local culture, traditions, food, sights and community life, CEO and Director of Lantern boutique hotels Navesh Perumal revealed. He said that his aim is to promote Lantern boutique hotel concept overseas while expanding the chain of tourist villas countrywide. Lantern is a boutique hotel situated at Kamburugamuwa in Galle more..

Apr 18 (IDN) Rejecting the resolution passed at the UNHRC to mount an ‘independent’ international investigation into alleged human rights violations in Sri Lanka, President Rajapkase said that Sri Lanka would continue with its own reconciliation process that was started after the LTTE was defeated in May 2009. Resolution, which was adopted by 24 votes to 12 with 12 abstentions, has been described by the govt as a lop-sided vote where most of those voting for it were Europeans. more..

Apr 18 (DN) There is no breakdown whatsoever in religious amity and accord in Sri Lanka as alleged by a handful of people who tried to gain political advantage by making such false accusations, said the Most Ven. Tibbotuwawe Sri Siddhartha Sumangala Mahanayake Thera of the Malwatte Chapter, delivering an anusasana on April 16, when Justice Minister Rauf Hakeem called on him at more..

Apr 18 (DN) Plans are underway to hold the State Vesak Festival 2014 at the Polonnaruwa Sacred Site, Culture and the Arts Affairs Minister T.B. Ekanayake said. The Vesak Festival which highlights the Buddha's Birth, Enlightenment and Passing Away will be held on a grand scale this year, he said. Authorities expect to complete the renovation of the Demala Maha Seya before Vesak. Project to supply electricity and water to the ancient Polonnaruwa site is almost complete, more..

Apr 18 (Island) LTTE leader Gopi and two other members who were killed by the army in a gun battle at Nedunkerny last week had been in touch with rehabilitated LTTE members over the phone in a bid to revive the LTTE during the past several years, but in vain. Gopi and his confederates had held talks in Colombo, TN and several other countries to revive the LTTE. In response to Gopi’s request many Sri Lankan Tamils living abroad and some foreigners had promised assistance to revive the LTTE. more..

Apr 18 (DN) Tamil Diaspora in the UK incensed by the proscription of several Tamil organisations and individuals by the SL govt had stolen information pertaining to nearly 1,000 Sri Lankan military officers from their websites and published this data through their cross website as an act of revenge, said Brig. Ruwan Wanigasooriya. He said there are more than 100 websites belonging to the three Sri Lankan Security Forces. more..

Apr 18 (CG) Two Sri Lankan fishermen who were found stranded in the Indian territorial waters South East of Kodiakkarai by the Navy, were brought to Kodiakkarai along with their fibre boat yesterday. The fishermen Chandramohan (37) from Point Pedro and Ravindran (57) from Valvettithurai had set off for fishing in a fibre boat in the early hours of Tuesday morning. According to official source, their boat had run out of fuel while still fishing on Wednesday afternoon. more..

Apr 18 (CT) Terrorism Research and Analysis Consortium (TRAC) USA responded to allegations by the BBS belittling its classification as a terrorist group yesterday. TRAC Editorial Director, Veryan Khan said the organization had assessed the BBS statements and the extreme levels of religious intolerance evident in several videos. She said TRAC had analyzed BBS members' actions of involving in acts of violence against churches, mosques and shops selling Halal food. more..

Apr 18 (DM) While denying he was carrying a pistol in his hand during the incident in Hambantota, Hambantota Mayor Eraj Fernando rejected claims that he was behind the attack in Magampura. Mr. Fernando said that he was sent by MP Namal Rajapaksa to look into the situation. “Mr. Rajapaksa had got to know of the earlier incident at the Mattala Airport and told me to go to Magampura Port to try and avoid any commotion more..

Apr 18 (FT) Condé Nast Traveler, the world’s premier travel magazine, on its online home has featured Sri Lanka’s traditional string hopper mould as a souvenir. “The strange-looking Sri Lankan souvenir all foodies will love” is how The Daily Traveler section has featured the simple wooden mould that every Sri Lankan household has as a must-have item. “So it looks a little odd – but this wooden contraption will allow culinary-inclined travellers to bring a true taste of Sri Lanka more..

Apr 18 (Island) Undergraduates in all universities are planning a protest after the New Year vacation against the pruning of the Allied Health Sciences (AHS) degree duration and the suspension of students in the Rajarata and Sri J'pura universities allegedly without valid reasons. Convener of IUSF Najith Indika said there had been four continuous sathyagrahas even during the Sinhala and Tamil New Year in Colombo Fort, the Galaha junction, the Galle town and Mihintale against more..

Apr 18 (Island) Confirming the arrest of a Canadian passport holder of Sri Lankan origin in connection with the ongoing high profile investigation into an abortive bid to smuggle in 36 kilos of heroin to SL during the first week of March 2014, the Canadian govt said that it was seeking additional information. A spokesperson said: "Canadian officials are providing consular services to a Canadian citizen who has been detained in Colombo. more..

Apr 18 (ICP) Arguing for a referral to the International Criminal Court of North Korea on April 17 was Marzuki Darusman, who previously chaired a three member panel at the UN about war crimes in Sri Lanka. On that report, which the UN released only in redacted form, little was done in the first instance. After inaction by the Rajapaksa govt, a vote was held on March 27 at the UNHRC calling for another investigation - one that the Rajapaksa govt says it will not cooperate with, more..

Apr 18 (HS) Newsreader George Alagiah has been diagnosed with bowel cancer and is to be off air for the near future while he receives treatment, the BBC said yesterday. The 58-year-old, who has been a familiar figure on TV news bulletins for many years, is said to be ­optimistic about a positive outcome. The Sri Lanka-born ­journalist has been the face of BBC1's News At Six since 2007. In a statement the BBC said: "He is grateful for all the good wishes he has received thus far and more..

Apr 18 (DM) Chief national selector Sanath Jayasuriya said yesterday that he had asked all Sri Lanka players to inform him of their availability for the Ireland and England tours by last night in order to pick the final squads for the tour which begins with two One Day Internationals against Ireland on May 6 and 8. “As the players have no contract with SLC at the moment, we cannot select players who don’t confirm their availability. more..

Apr 18 (CT) Good Friday, which falls today, is a day of great significance to Christians, for it commemorates the death of Jesus Christ on the cross, symbolizing the love and concern that he had for humanity. Good Friday is the climax of the season of Lent, which started with Ash Wednesday followed by 40 days of prayer, sacrifice and penance. The message that Good Friday portrays is, the compassion and love Christ had for humanity, so much so, he gave himself upon the cross as more..

Apr 18 (DM) The Foreign Secretary of India in a recent interview with CNN, made India’s independent stand and pragmatic approach towards much talked about International Inquiry on war crimes to be carried out in Sri Lanka, crystal clear to the world, particularly TNA, Tamil Diaspora representing rump LTTE, UNHRC, complicitous global bullies like USA, UK, EU and its cohorts and head of UNHRC Navi Pillay, whose partisan approach, selective treatment, more..

Apr 18 (SL) They say in a democracy there needs to be a good opposition. However in SL talk of the town is that the opposition, particularly UNP is weak, more because of its own internal problems and inability to pose a real challenge the govt. Several UNP members feel that the cracks within the party have widened with the recent PC elections. Issue at hand, as has been for some time now, is the UNP leadership. more..

Apr 18 (ST) Govt is to introduce 100 new road signs next month, in a fresh bid to reduce road accidents and keep up with international traffic regulations, official said. The gazette notifications regarding these regulations are to be published within the next two weeks. A sign prohibiting areas for pedestrians, a sign for closure of roads, a sign prohibiting three-wheelers and motorcycles, a sign for vehicles transporting inflammable items more..

Apr 18 (IP) The Supreme Court will hear the cases of three Tamil migrants who were denied entry into Canada because they were believed to be involved with human smuggling, just six months after it refused to hear the case of another man who arrived on the same vessel. The court announced Thursday it will hear the case of a married couple and another man who arrived on MV Sun Sea with 489 other Sri Lankans more..

Apr 18 (Island) The Wildlife Department yesterday that no one had built houses within the Wilpattu National Park (WNP), but some Northern Muslims driven out of their homes in 1990 by the LTTE and subsequently displaced by the Navy, had put up temporary shelters within the sanctuary bordering the WNP. Responding to questions at a press conference called by Industry and Commerce Minister Rishad Bathiudeen more..

Apr 18 (Island) Eleven lay eyewitnesses complained to the Slave Island Police on Wednesday that General Secretary of the BBS Ven. Galagodatte Gnanasara Thera stormed a media conference given by the Jathika Bala Sena (JBS) headed by Ven. Watareka Wijitha Thera, a UPFA Mahiyangana Pradeshiya Sabha member, together with some other Buddhist monks and Laymen at Hotel Nippon on Wednesday (9). more..

Apr 18 (DN) President Rajapaksa is to ceremonially open the Manmunai bridge in Batticaloa tomorrow. Bridge which is the first east-west land connection across the Batticaloa lagoon, has been constructed through a Rs. 2 billion grant from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). The 210m long bridge enables land access to markets and services on the east side of the lagoon where Batticaloa township is located, more..