June 10 (Island) Professor Sarath Wijesuriya took over the mantle of Ven. Maduluwawe Sobitha Thera as the head of NMSJ after the latter’s demise. He speaks about their campaign to have the corruption allegations against members of the previous govt investigated. Q: You had asked for the expediting of corruption probes against members of previous govt. Why do you think the probes are not being carried out expeditiously? more..

June 10 (CI) 3: Number of centuries for Jonny Bairstow in Tests this year, is the joint second-most by a wicketkeeper in a calendar year. Only AB de Villiers has scored more - four centuries in 2013. All the centuries for Bairstow have come batting at No. 6 and No. 7, which is also the joint second-most by a batsman at No. 6 or lower in a calendar year. 534: Aggregate runs for Bairstow, at the end of first day's play, in Tests this year - most by any batsman. He is the first batsman to go past 500 more..

June 10 (G&M) We decided that the best way to visit Sri Lanka would be a three-stage process. The first stage would consist of settling into the culture and time zone. That came to be on our first night at a nice hotel in Colombo. The second was to be our adventurous stage, where we would explore the island nation on the cheap and constantly on the move before we began phase three at a relaxing beach resort. But at one point, I was sure we’d never make it to the resort. more..

June 10 (CI) From a pitch expected to be lifeless, SL's working-class attack squeezed three first-session wickets out. On a first day some suspected might be fruitless, six batsmen were wangled back to the pavilion, and SL were occasionally strutting about. But then, at some point in the day, their outlook changed. An easy catch was spilt. Chances were missed. Balls scooted into fielders' hands, then accelerated out, more..

June 10 (EN) Sri Lanka is planning a 1.2 billion sale of Japanese yen denominated securities also known as Samurai bonds, PM Ranil Wickremesinghe told parliament. Samurai bonds are sold in the Japanese domestic market by foreign entities. MP told parliament Thursday that Sri Lanka also planned to sell 3.0 billion dollars in sovereign bonds. Sri Lanka has also said it wanted to sell Panda bonds or Renminbi denominated bonds in the Chnese domestic market this year. more..

June 10 (LBO) In yet another of its numerous efforts to promote Sri Lanka as a global tourism destination of choice, SriLankan Airlines welcomed participants to the Cinnamon Travel Bloggers Conference Asia & Awards 2016 by giving more than 40 bloggers a thrilling experience on the flight deck of an Airbus A330 Full Flight Simulator at BIA. The bloggers and their families experienced simulated landings at airports of their choice around the world such as Shanghai and Katmandu, more..

June 10 (CI) Jonny Bairstow, looking more imposing and battle-hardened by the month, completed his third Test hundred in eight innings to rouse England from a problematic opening day in the Lord's Test. For Bairstow, it could not be a more perfect treble: Cape Town, a maiden hundred where his father Bluey spent his winters; Headingley, his home ground, an outpouring of Yorkshire pride; and now Lord's, where more..

June 10 (Island) Even if voters in Britain decide to leave the European Union at the upcoming Brexit referendum vote, it will have neither any effect, nor any influence on Sri Lanka. My British colleagues have a great understanding of the work we have undertaken here, and I don't think they will change their mind on the work we have done thus far or the work we have envisaged for the future, Ms. Libuse Soukupova, Head of Cooperation of the Delegation of the European Union to more..

June 10 (GDI) SL Embassies in Lebanon, Thailand, Saudi Arabia and Jordan have informed the Consular Affairs Division, Ministry of Foreign Affairs that the following employed persons have died abroad. Mrs. Kaluwage Asilin (Passport No: N3662097) or Dingiriyalage Asilin- Lebanon; Mrs. Hewa Thondillege Padmalatha (Passport No: N4577679) or Indra Kodikara- Lebanon; Mr.Andra Baduge Nimal Ananada (ID No:611321090 V )- Thailand; Mrs. Peirisge Chandrika Priyanthi more..

June 10 (FT) Making himself out to be a martyr, Chairman of the state owned Lankaputhra Development Bank Lasantha Goonewardena vowed to bow to the ruling of the Monetary Board after the Bank Supervision Department of the Central Bank determined that the top official had failed his fit and proper assessment. “I have appealed the Bank Supervision Department ruling on 4 April 2016. This appeal must go to more..

June 10 (DN) During the recently concluded April Racing festival in Nuwara Eliya, the Royal Turf Club with the assistance of the SL Anti Doping Agency conducted race horse drug testing for the first time in Sri Lanka. The chestnut mare Supreme trained by S P A Raju goes down in history as the first horse to be drug tested in SL, when she won The Mayors Class 3 Stakes over 1400M on 20th March. There were 14 random samples taken from the 35 races run during the April racing season more..

June 10 (CT) With the appointment of the new administration to the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) and in keeping with its future operational changes a new position has been created for a Chief Operating Officer (COO). Jerome Jayaratne former Chief of the SLC Coaching Unit has been appointed as the COO, which position is second to only the position of CEO. The responsibilities coming under the new position will be the administration at the SLC, Human Resources, Marketing, IT & Media. more..

June 10 (Island) Minister S B Dissanayake told Parliament that the President and PM should not give a service extension to Central Bank Governor Arjuna Mahendran. Participating in the debate on the no-confidence motion against Finance Minister Ravi Karunanyake, Minister Dissanayake said that President Sirisena had stated in public that Governor of CB should be removed. more..

June 10 (Island) MEP Leader Dinesh Gunawardena demanded more time for the Joint Opposition to speak in the debate on the no-confidence motion against Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake stating that time had been allocated for the government and the Opposition in an unfair manner. MP Gunawardena, moving the no confidence motion against Minister Ravi Karunanayake, accused the Speaker of meting out unfair and unjust treatment meted out to the joint Opposition MPs. more..

June 10 (WSJ) UNHRC begins its 32nd session on Monday, and Sri Lanka is on its agenda. It’s another chance to shine a spotlight on this war-torn island nation as it struggles to recover from a brutal civil war. Sri Lanka has experienced big political changes since January 2015. Presidential and parliamentary elections signaled the peoples’ desire for improved governance and democratic reform. Two-term strongman Mahinda Rajapaksa was voted out of office, and Maithripala Sirisena was tapped to more..

June 10 (DN) A man and two women were killed and a child injured following a hand grenade explosion in the Thalangama area in Koswatta. The incident occurred yesterday morning near the Thalangama police station. According to police, one victim has been identified as the person who detonated the hand grenade over a love affair. The remains of the victims, including the mother and grand mother of the child were removed to more..

June 10 (GDI) Foreign affairs ministries of Sri Lanka and Turkey will sign a MoU on diplomatic training, exchange of information and documentation later this month. SL govt received cabinet approval to sign the MoU with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkey during the visit of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey Mevlut Cavusoglu to Colombo later this month. MoU aims to strengthen and consolidate the close and friendly relations between the two countries by developing mutually beneficial more..

June 10 (Island) When the case filed against Live events (Pvt) Ltd for a serious breach of contract by Attorney at law Nishan Premathiratne and his wife in respect of damages, came up in the Distract Court on the 8th of June 2016, the Counsel appearing for Live events (Pvt) Ltd Manjuka Fernandopulle appearing on the instructions of Sinnadurai Sundaralingam & Balendra associates moved court for further time to file objections in respect of the interim orders sought against Live events more..

June 10 (DM) Colombo HC Judge Manilal Waidyathilaka further extended till June 22 the order given by him preventing the handover of the custody of 15 elephants that were being held at the Udawalawe Elephant Transit Home and the Pinnawela Elephant Orphanage, to their owners on bonds. At the outset the inquiry, Attorneys for Good Governance marked their appearance into the case on behalf of the public and said the issues more..

June 10 (DM) In response to a question regarding the damage caused to an antique Buddha statue, Minister S.B. Navinna said investigations revealed that a slight jolt had loosened the head of the statue at an event held at Temple Trees. Minister said nobody could be taken to task as it was not a deliberate act and asserted that the statue was restored, he said it had been handed over to the Museum. There were reports that the statue dating back to the Anuradhapura era was damaged more..

June 10 (Island) Undergraduates in several universities protested demanding the release of eight of their colleagues who are currently in remand custody for allegedly ragging freshers at the Kelaniya University. Convener of IUSF said that they had held protests at Kelaniya, Peradeniya, Sri J'pura, Rajarata and Ruhuna universities yesterday. He said they conducted protests at other universities the previous week as 30 days had lapsed since their colleagues were remanded. more..

June 10 (FT) Minister Ravi Karunanayake successfully dodged a second attempt to oust him from office when the Govt defeated a motion of No Confidence moved by the pro-Rajapaksa Joint Opposition, by a whopping 94 member majority in a vote that ultimately served as a show of strength for the 10-month old UNF administration. Ending the day long debate, 145 lawmakers – only five short of 2/3 majority – more..

June 10 (FT) The Supreme Court fixed to be mentioned on 11 August the fundamental rights petitions filed by former Transport Minister Kumara Welgama and former SLTB Chairman his nephew Shashi Welgama. When the matter came up before the Bench comprising Chief Justice K.Sripavan and Justices B.P. Aluvihara and Sisira J. De Abrew, the Counsel for the Petitioners presented to Court that he had held discussions with the Attorney General Department and perused some documents more..

June 10 (FT) Govt is looking at introducing a new national policy and a better system to face disaster situations effectively and successfully. The proposed policy will help to train people with necessary knowledge to reduce the effect of the disaster, conduct emergency missions, search operations, rescue operations, providing relief, reconstruction and rehabilitation. PM Ranil Wickremesinghe in response to a question raised by UNP MP S.M. Marikkar during Ask Prime Minister session more..

June 10 (Island) Former Director, Administration of Parliament Lacille de Silva said the allocation of Rs. 1,175 million for the acquisition of super luxury vehicles for politicians against the backdrop of multiple calamities couldn’t be justified under any circumstances. Having held the post of Director, Administration for a decade until 2013, he functioned as Secretary to the PRECIFAC before being unceremoniously removed recently. more..

June 10 (DM) Tens of thousands of people from all over the world will gather at Louisville in Kentucky today not just to bid farewell but to celebrate the life of the Boxing superstar Muhammad Ali, widely respected as one of the greatest sports personalities of modern times. According to agency reports, Actor Will Smith and former heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis will be among the pallbearers for today’s funeral of the Boxing legend who, as Shakespeare would have said, more..

June 10 (DM) The world moves on, but often with short memories; horrors caused by the previous regime, are forgotten and become ancient history. It is no surprise that the prophets of doom and those who pose as paragons of virtue today, were the rulers of yesterday. We have one advising the new IGP not to give into political pressure, when everyone with an IQ over zero is more than well aware of how political interference at the highest level was the order of the day, more..

June 10 (ST) 37 rural hospitals that were closed because of a lack of doctors, are soon to reopen as part of a compromise reached this week between Health Ministry and GMOA. The matter was resolved after extensive discussions were held regarding the dispute over post-internship appointments that saw the GMOA resorting to a token strike. 42 provincial hospitals and primary care units in 15 districts are currently closed more..

June 10 (SL) SL Army’s failure to provide the movement register and other details relating to certain army personnel identified as suspects in The Sunday Leader Editor Lasantha Wickrematunge’s murder despite multiple court orders, has raised suspicion as to why the Army is trying to conceal vital information. CID is expecting to question certain high-ranking officials in the present and former regimes in regard to more..

June 10 (DN) SL Freedom Bhikku Organisation (SLFBO) has urged former President Rajapaksa to form a separate political party and contest future elections in order to save the SLFP. “We cannot trust the present SLFP leadership to protect the party due to his acts and words expressed by him, SLFBO Secretary Ven. Watinapaha Somananda Thera said. Jan 8 mandate is no longer valid as people have realised the truth now. more..

June 10 (FT) The construction work on the proposed Rajagiriya overhead bridge which is considered to be the longest in the country was inaugurated in front of the Welikada Police Station, Rajagiriya this week under the patronage of distinguished guests including organiser of Sri J'pura, Kotte and the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Dr. Harsha de Silva and Minister of Higher Education and Highways Lakshman Kiriella. more..

June 10 (DN) A No Confidence Motion should be brought against former President Rajapaksa to suspend him for one week from Parliament for breach of parliamentary privileges by taking loans and spending them unaccounted, PM Wickremesinghe said. He said revealing the loans taken by the Rajapaksa regime, that had gone unaccounted, by FM is legal and taking such loans is a breach of parliamentary privileges. more..

June 9 (EN) Sri Lanka can relax exchange controls before the end of the year due to a large pipeline of foreign borrowings totalling $12 billion that had been lined up, PM Ranil Wickremesinghe said. "We now have a situation where we can remove exchange controls," he told parliament. "We will bring the necessary law before the next budget. We are strong enough to go on that because we have that confidence." more..

June 10 (Island) WPCDH said that over 50% of dengue patients were reported from the Western Province each year. In 2014 Colombo had reported over 14,700 cases, while Gampaha and Kalutara Districts had reported 8,811 and 2,631 respectively. In 2015 the three districts had reported a total of over 15,580. In 2016 the three Districts have reported 5914, 1983 and 1219 from January till Tuesday respectively. more..

June 10 (CT) PM Ranil Wickremesinghe informed Parliament the establishment of a Special Board of Management is under consideration to take over the affairs of the National Museum and Art Gallery. The PM's statement came in response to a question raised by JVP Leader MP Anura Kumara Dissanayake under Standing Order 23/2 concerning the Buddha statue that was removed from the National Museum more..

June 10 (CG) A US Congress committee on foreign relations has expressed disappointment at President Sirisena and PM Wickremesinghe’s decision to reject foreign judges in the domestic accountability process on the war. The views were expressed when the Congress Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific met to discuss Sri Lanka. Committee chairman Matt Salmon noted negative impact more..

June 10 (DM) PM gave instructions to the treasury not to grant even a cent for the importation of vehicles for ministers and MPs until funds were allocated to build houses to replace those destroyed by the floods and the blast at Kosgama, and to renovate the partly destroyed houses. He gave this order in accordance with the govt’s primary policy (in Yahapalanaya), which is to provide relief to the people. more..

June 10 (CT) Sri Lanka is in the process of framing a new constitution. A resolution submitted by PM Ranil Wickremesinghe seeking parliamentary approval for the appointment of a constitutional assembly was adopted unanimously on March 10, 2016. The original resolution underwent significant amendments proposed by the SLFP, the Joint Opposition and the JVP. This is the third attempt at constitution making since independence in 1948. The last Constitution which gave birth to more..

June 10 (CT) Last few weeks have not been the best of the days for Minister Rajitha Senaratne. He was accused of intervening in preparing the post-intern appointment list for doctors and GMOA went to the extent of launching trade union action and demanding the resignation of the minister. Soon after resolving the crisis, the Prof. Senaka Bibile Foundation (PSBF) claimed that they are ready to take legal action against Minister Rajitha Senaratne for sabotaging the work of more..