Sep 10 (CT) Fast forwarding to the 18th of May 2016, we observe noisy scenes in the SL Parliament. A few members insist that the PM should intervene and stop separation from happening. They are a noisy minority. The majority, however, agree with PM Wikramaathiththan’s stubborn stance: “The right to separation has already been subject to maximum devolution. The central govt will not interfere.” Gosh! Who is PM Wikramaathiththan, and how can he devolve more..

Sep 10 (CG) Ambassador of the US Atul Keshap assured the Govt of the support of the US Embassy in Colombo and the US Govt as Sri Lanka works towards reconciliation. He said that he had discussions with the Chief Prelates in Kandy and learned more about Buddhism as well as Sri Lankan culture. “I look forward to, during my tenure, of continuing close dialogue with the representatives of the Buddhist religion in Sri Lanka,” more..

Sep 10 (Island) A two-and-a-half year-old child at a state-run Children’s Home in the Kuruwita police area died due to negligence of the institutions warden on Tuesday. The warden was arrested by the Kuruwita polic. The Ratnapura Magistrate remanded the suspect till September 17. Police Spokesman Ruwan Gunasekara that the victim had drowned in a plastic basin in the bathroom of the Children’s Home, Isuru Uyana located at Paradise Estate in Kuruwita, around 12.35 p.m. more..

Sep 10 (NS) Finance Ministry denied media reports that the special commodity levy has been increased on nine food items. Further clarifying the situation the ministry said that this special commodity levy is imposed in lieu of the import taxes such as duty, VAT, PAL NBT etc. in order to maintain a stable price with the aim of protecting producers as well as the consumers. The special commodity levy on several food items is being imposed via special gazette extending it periodically. more..

Sep 10 (SLA) The Sri Lankan contingent, serving the United Nations’ Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) came in for praise from the UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander Major General Luciano Portolano when he made his first formal visit to the Sri Based Camp - UNIFIL in Naqoura, Lebanon on Monday. A contingent of 150 SL military officers, including 10 officers under the Sri Lanka’s Force Protection Unit (SLFPU) more..

Sep 10 (EN) Tea prices rose at this week’s Colombo auctions following the sharp depreciation of the rupee against the US dollar and lower volumes on offer, brokers said. “There was fair demand and generally a better undertone particularly towards the close of the sale,” Forbes & Walker Tea Brokers said in a report. “This trend could be attributed to the depreciation of the rupee vis-ŕ-vis the US dollar and the improved buying interest from shippers to the Commonwealth of Independent States.” more..

Sep 10 (DM) Former President Chandrika Kumaratunga, in a status posted on her facebook account, said some might have been perplexed over the appointment of some cabinet, deputy and state ministers, but there was no other alternative as no party obtained a clear majority to form a single party govt. Yet, she said she would continue to serve the people. “Just as I have sacrificed my life for the country and people I will do my best to uphold the aspirations of my beloved citizenry,” she said. more..

Sep 10 (DN) National Mosquito Control Week will commence today and continue until Sept 16. The week is held to control mosquitoe breeding and the spread of dengue fever, National Dengue Control Unit Director Dr. Hasitha Thisera said. Houses, schools and educational institutions, state and private institutions, construction sites, factories and religious institutions in selected high risk MOH areas will be inspected today, tomorrow and more..

Sep 10 (Island) The Court of Appeal, gave the Attorney General, time till Oct 8, to file the environmental feasibility report in respect of the Colombo Port City Project undertaken by the China Communications Construction Company Limited. The petitioner the Environmental Justice Private Limited had complained to the Court that, the project was being implemented without a complete environmental impact study. The natural ecosystem and coral reef were being disturbed. more..

Sep 10 (CT) National Movement for Social Justice (NMSJ) Leader the Ven. Maduluwawe Sobitha Thera today reiterated his call to reduce the number of ministers in the new govt calling it a massive burden on the tax paying public. Appointing a large number of ministers is a payoff and a farce, a visibly agitated Sobitha Thera who was in the forefront in galvanizing the civil society movement to bring down the former regime and usher social and economic reforms said. more..

Sep 10 (AD) At least four PSD personnel including a WPC were killed and several others injured due to a multi-vehicle traffic collision involving two buses and a Land Rover Defender in Yagodamulla, Minuwangoda. The four victims have been identified as officers attached to the Presidential Security Division (PSD), who were on their way to a funeral. Meanwhile 5 persons have been admitted to the Gampaha Hospital more..

Sep 10 (LBO) Stocks closed down 0.32% on Thursday following losses in regional markets with telecom and beverage sector stocks showing losses. All Share Price Index closed down 23.31 points at 7,159.94 lower 0.32%. S&P SL20 closed 12.83 points lower at 3,924.25 down 0.33%. Turnover was 588 million rupees, down 647 million rupees, Wednesday with 44 stocks closing positive against 96 negative. “Asian market closed lower today and this may have impacted the index,” more..

Sep 10 (NS) SriLankan Airlines has clarified that contrary to various media reports, the safety of its passengers and crew on-board Flight UL 125 bound for Colombo from Chennai was never in any danger. SriLankan Airlines stated that its Chennai bound flight from Colombo UL 125, with 102 passengers and 12 crew on-board, landed safely at Chennai International Airport yesterday. “Flight UL 125 during its decent in Chennai experienced overheating of a hydraulic system and subsequent to landing, more..

Sep 10 (LBO) Sri Lanka can overcome its youth unemployment issue by developing technical education, the newly appointed minister for technology says. “Although unemployment as a whole is 6%, in the age group between 18 – 30 it is over 20%,” Susil Premajayantha, the new minister of technology, technical education and employment said. “It is a challenge that we need to overcome." more..

Sep 10 (AD) The severely decomposed bodies of a man and woman have been discovered inside a residence in the Galpotta area in Udugampola, Gampaha. The discovery was made following information received by police this afternoon. The deceased, a married couple, are believed to have passed away several days back while the actual cause of death is yet to be ascertained. Preliminary inquiries have uncovered that a 4-year-old girl had also been living at the residence, more..

Sep 10 (CG) PM Ranil Wickremesinghe says Parliament proceedings will be broadcast live on television from next year. He said that the relevant authorities are looking into broadcasting Parliament proceedings live and this will somehow be done from next year. PM said that the public will then be able to know who is attending Parliament and who is not. He said that Parliamentarians must not give priority for other work and put attending Parliament as least important. more..

Sep 10 (CG) Dr A T Ariyaratne, Shibly Aziz and Dr Radhika Kumaraswamy were today nominated as the civil society representatives to the Constitutional Council (CC). Dr. Ariyaratne is the founder and president of Sarvodaya Movement. Shibly Aziz is a well-known and eminent President’s Counsel who has contributed extensively to the development of legal system in the country from on or about 1968. more..

Sep 10 (CT) The CID informed the Colombo Chief Magistrate's Court that lengthy investigations are being carried out into a fraud of more than US$ 230,000 in the purchase of computer printing paper from an Indian company through Conmorn Printing where former MP Sajin de Vaas Gunawardena serves as an Adviser. Magistrate ordered the manager of a private bank to hand over to the CID details of bank accounts being maintained by Conmorn Printing regarding this fraud. more..

Sep 10 (LBO) Legal discrimination, which can affect female labor force participation, is prevalent in Sri Lanka, a new World Bank report says. “Women are prohibited from working in the mining sector and restricted from certain tasks/functions in factories,” the World Banks group’s Women, Business and the Law 2016 report, released Wednesday said. “Moreover, there are no laws against gender-based discrimination in hiring or access to credit.” “Women in South Asia continue to trail their peers more..

Sep 10 (PSL) President Maithripala Sirisena instructed relevant officials to present a work plan including proposals to minimize the use of polythene and plastics. He also advised them to present recommendations on low-cost alternatives for asbestos. President gave these instructions at a discussion on the progress of the programs carried out under the Ministry of Mahaweili Development and Environment, held today. more..

Sep 10 (AM) Kandy District MP Anuradha Jayaratne and Kegalle District MP Dushmantha Mithrapala were sworn-in as Deputy Ministers by President Maithripala Sirisena today. Jayaratne was appointed as Deputy Minister of Mahaweli Development and Environment while Mithrapala was appointed Deputy Minister of Justice and Buddhasasana. Anuradha Jayaratne is the son of former PM D.M. Jayaratne. Dushmantha Mithrapala is the son of former Deputy Minister H.R. Mithrapala. more..

Sep 10 (LBO) Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake said that no budget proposals have been made by the visiting mission from the International Monetary Fund who met him on Sept 9 ahead of the budget in November. “IMF comes on a normal routine but we have very clearly told them that we will decide as to how the government will run,” Karunanayake said, answering a question raised by a reporter. “We are a professional govt and we were only exchanging ideas,” he said. more..

Sep 10 (NS) Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa has dismissed allegations made by former President Chandrika Kumaratunga in her recent interview with The Hindu newspaper that his government had been a police state. Issuing a strongly worded statement, Rajapaksa called on Kumaratunga not to allow her personal hatred of him to blind her and added that she owed it to members of her own SLFP not to go around the world more..

Sep 10 (CT) President of the All Ceylon Wildlife Officers' Association M.I.W. Peiris said that they have decided to award Rs 25,000 to anyone able to provide information on the death of a leopard on 28 Aug in zone 1 of the Yala wildlife park. Peiris requested people to inform him on 0716868303, the Secretary on 0718114492 or the Treasurer on 0714227223 if they have any information. He pointed out that since the Yala national wildlife park is one of the main parks under more..

Sep 10 (AD) The Attorney General today informed the Colombo Fort Magistrate regarding the alleged intimidation of witnesses in the murder case of former Rugby player Wasim Thajudeen. Senior State Counsel Dilan Ratnayake appearing for the Attorney General informed the court that the CID has launched a special investigation regarding the matter. He also sought permission to send the mobile phone belonging to Mr Thajudeen, which was found recently, to the Colombo University’s more..

Sep 10 (DM) Ex –JMO Prof. Ananda Samarasekera in his final autopsy report filed in court asserts that the death of Waseem Thajudeen was due to unconsciousness, disability of limbs and inhalation of carbon monoxide gas emitted from the fire. The detailed report stated that at the time of the onset of the fire he was alive but unconscious and totally disabled for he was breathing till his death. more..

Sep 11 (NS) Few things are so cliché as an oil spill by a large multinational corporation in a third-world country. It would hardly make news nowadays. Oil spills in poor places are boring stuff, not dazzling enough for the media circus. Except, perhaps, when that country is yours. When that oil is in the very water that you drink. When, one morning, you open the tap and smell diesel. But if you’re Sri Lankan, perhaps not even then. There are conflicting reports of what happened on the morning of Aug 17. more..

Sep 11 (CT) Sri Lanka’s rupee … is hovering near a record low after being floated by the central bank last week, (Reuters). Today that is on September 10th Ravi Karunanayake the Minister of Finance has admitted indirectly that rupee has depreciated to an unacceptable level. That is why he told Reuters that, “We will ensure that before too long it will be brought back to an acceptable level.” What should be the acceptable value for rupee? He did not comment for this question. more..

Sep 11 (SO) With less than two weeks to go for the Geneva sessions of the UNHRC and the relase of its report on war crimes purportedly committed by former govt forces and the LTTE during the final phase of the war, the govt has intensified lobbying for a domestic inquiry as a follow-up action of the report. However, many Tamil political parties and political groups, including three constituents of the TNA, have strongly more..

Sep 11 (CT) The new consensual alliance of national unity is now in place. Will its leaders search for consensus or mold a consensus? Conceived initially as an experiment that would last for two years, President Maithripala Sirisena has now given it a fresh lease of five years. Its composition has transformed the land like no other from Mahinda’s soft autocracy to Maithri’s cartel democracy. The who’s who of Cabinet Ministers, Minsters of State and Deputy Minsters betray the perils more..

Sep 11 (NS) I have written no less than three times requesting that the road named after the butcher of Uva-Wellassa, Brownrigg, be changed and it was appropriately changed subsequently to Keppetipola Mawatha. The West, at the behest of non-resident Tamils now living in countries there, has been promoting attacks on our country by claiming gross HR violations. Our HR record certainly is not what it should have been but who (or what) is Britain in particular to point a finger at us more..

Sep 11 (NS) Objection to R Sampanthan being made Opposition Leader has ranged from rank communalism, justifiable fears given his and his party’s unabashed endorsement of a terrorist outfit, through a questioning of representational power to the machinations that are claimed to have disenfranchised over 4 million voters by the simply and pernicious presidential act of looting the coalition that came second in more..

Sep 11 (GV) 2015 witnessed two national elections in Sri Lanka- Presidential and Parliamentary, with a mandate given to President Maithripala Sirisena’s govt to usher in much needed reforms. This reform project is likely to include a broad and diverse set of issues including those related to the past and reconciliation, ideally focusing on the four pillars of transitional justice- truth, justice, reparations and guarantees of non-recurrence. There is also talk of establishing what is being tagged as more..

Sep 11 (GV) Led by the input of Asanga Welikala and in collaboration with Channa Daswatta, Corridors of Power will through architectural drawings and models, interrogate Sri Lanka’s constitutional evolution since 1972. The exhibition will depict Sri Lanka’s tryst with constitutional reform and essentially the tension between centre and periphery. The output on display will include large format drawings, 3D flyovers, sketches, and models reflecting the power dynamics enshrined more..

Sep 11 (CT) The opening session of the 8th Parliament became controversial when Colombo District UPFA MP Udaya Gammanpila was warned by the Speaker Karu Jayasuriya for speaking about an armed struggle. Leader of the Pivithuru Hela Urumaya (PHU), Udaya Gammanpila, however, said the current PM Ranil Wickremesinghe was trying to dictate terms to all in Parliament and subvert democracy within Parliament. more..

Sep 11 (Island) The bizarre political collusion between the two major coalitions the UNFGG and the UPFA has caused the UPFA to become a constituent of the UNFGG-led Govt. The unintended consequence has been for the TNA to claim leadership of the Opposition on the grounds that it has the third largest majority in Parliament. This, despite its stated claim in the TNA Manifesto that the Tamils are a distinct people in a contiguous predominantly Tamil speaking Northern and more..

Sep 11 (Island) The National Mobile Service Provider Mobitel opened its state-of-the-art Customer Care Centre on Central Road in Batticaloa. The high-tech centre is fully equipped with fully fledged customer care along with the latest 4G LTE technology. The centre also provides customers in the Eastern region the opportunity to experience and enjoy the most up-to-date devices including smartphones, tabs and data devices to deliver the best ICT experience. more..

Sep 11 (Island) Muruththetuwe Ananda Thera the chief incumbent of the Abayaramaya in Narahenpita counts several decades as an activist monk. He has fearlessly stood up against repressive govts of the past. It would be no exaggeration to say that democracy has survived in this country despite the upheavals that we have gone through, because of the activism of individuals like Ananda Thera. more..

Sep 11 (DN) 15th Edition of the Lanka Sportsreizen Colombo Marathon which will take Sri Lanka's name to globally recognized marathon calendar, flags off in close proximity to the Ministry of Sports on Oct 4 at 6.00am. Over 7500 athletes including around 175 foreigners from 30 countries are expected to run in this year's Colombo Marathon and among them will be last year's winners in both men/ Women - Open Marathon. Last year's marathon saw Sri Lanka's Geethani Rajasekara renewing more..

Sep 11 (CT) Mental illnesses, generally being physically invisible as deformities can persuade the patient to hide in a corner and restrict his/ her world to the home surrounding. Lack of awareness among the public about the symptoms, the availability of remedies and the process of care giving to the patients has worsened the causable loss from ill health to the world. Lanka Alzheimer's Foundation (LAF) has initiated Dementia Friendly Programme to enhance knowledge about mental health more..