Nov 15 (DM) A few months ago, it could have been treated as a cynical joke, but now Donald Trump is the President of the world’s most powerful democracy. His hate-filled and polarizing campaign has left deep scares in America, it would be a long time before they would be healed. Elsewhere, world leaders, still recuperating from the daylight shock of his upset victory are gradually resigning to the disturbing prospect that America would be a less dependable ally in the future.    more..

Nov 15 (ST) The govt’s effort to promote information technology and offer free computer tablets to 175,000 A/L students and 28,000 teachers failed to allay concerns among youth about the levy on internet services also proposed in the Budget announced this week. There is support for the proposal to open savings accounts for students and a medical insurance scheme for them in addition to a host of other benefits to more..

Nov 15 (DM) In an interview with the Daily Mirror, Former Economic Development Minister Basil Rajapaksa, who was actively involved in handling foreign affairs on certain matters during the previous regime, shared his thoughts on the US intervention during the final stage of war, the role of India as well as current politics. Q:  How do you view the outcome of the US presidential election?  more..

Nov 15 (Island) The govt was robbing the people by imposing unconscionable taxes, former President Rajapaksa said. He said the water tariff had been increased by around 168%. People were being exploited, he added. "Look at the way the govt is planning to reduce prices of essential food items in the budget. A two-rupee reduction in the price of a kilo of sprats and a five-rupee decrease in the price of a kilo of mung. more..

Nov 15 (DM) Minister Mangala Samaraweera, in an interview, says the govt wishes to further strengthen relations with the US under President elect Donald Trump. He speaks of the way forward on the implementation of the UNHRC resolution. Q: How do you, as the Foreign Affairs Minister, view the outcome of the US election? A: The people of the United States have spoken. We have to respect the views of the electorate. more..

Nov 15 (SL) Reliance on captive sources to meet govt debts probably has not been debated in the public domain as it is a subject that the public would not pay attention to and since it is understood as a complicated financial or economic activity. In a country where financial literacy is not seen at all as social strata, except only among a less percentage of the population, this matter has not emerged as a topic for more..

Nov 15 (LT) The 27th Commemoration of November Heroes was celebrated at Viharamahadevi Park yesterday (13) with the participation of a large crowd. The annually held event by the JVP to commemorate the comrades who sacrificed their lives for the country during the 88/89 period that include the founder of the JVP Rohana Wijeweera, then General Secretry Upatissa Gamanayaka, many members of its Political Bureau, more..

Nov 15 (EN) Sri Lanka will count workers of 28,000 state agencies and state enterprises on Nov 17, comprehensive census that seeks to get up-to-date information that cannot be found from payroll data. Sri Lanka has an estimated 1.3 to 1.5 million state workers. Director General of statistics office A J Satharasinghe all permanent and casual workers will be covered. However contract workers from man power agencies, will not be covered. more..

Nov 15 (DM) Certain controversial proposals in the budget 2017 are likely to have massive implications on the country’s financial system and the independence of the Monetary Board (MB) of the Central Bank, according to a leading economist in the country. The 2017 budget, which was presented to parliament last week, proposed to set up a National Payment Platform (NPP) implemented by the state-run more..

Nov 15 (PSL) President Sirisena says he would implement a program to set up a Poet’s Archives to preserve the creations, photos and handwriting of the poets who awakened the country and the nation with their poems. President was speaking at the poet ceremony, organized by the G.M. Ajith Poet Foundation and Sinhala Young Poets Association. He also visited the exhibition which showcased the creations and photos more..

Nov 15 (LBO) Reconciliation is a priority for govt and transitional justice is an important aspect of this, Deputy Minister Harsha de Silva said. “Reconciliation is not a box that can be ticked or a journey that can end as per a timeline. There are no magic portions to achieve what we set out to achieve,” he said. “It requires hard work & constant striving, and a commitment towards which our nation should be bound across generations.” more..

Nov 15 (Reuters) Shares on Tuesday hit a two-week closing low in thin trade as investor sentiment was dented by last week's budget proposals that were announced to revise corporate and withholding taxes and boost revenue. The govt aims to boost its 2017 tax revenue by 27 percent to 1.82 trillion rupees year on year, to meet a commitment given to the IMF in return for a $1.5 billion loan in May. Colombo Stock Exchange ended down 0.15% at 6,406.16, hitting its lowest close since Nov. 1. more..

Nov 15 (CT) Budget 2017, is a significant improvement from his first budget for 2016. In fact, there was no budget for 2016 since most of the budget proposals had to be withdrawn even before the budget was approved by Parliament. The worst outcome was that instead of aligning itself with the goals of the economic policy statement delivered by PM in Parliament just two weeks’ before the budget, it went against it with completely counterproductive policies. more..

Nov 15 (EN) Sri Lanka is likely to exempt taxes on future interest of bonds issued before the budget in November, but is likely to tax bonds issued after, officials said. Sri Lanka had exempted taxes on interest income on listed debentures in recent years, which will be redeemed 5 years or more in the future. Deputy Treasury Secretary S R Attyalle said there was a view that future interest of the existing debentures issued before the budget should be exempt. more..

Nov 15 (Island) Police recently nabbed a heroin peddler who retailed the banned substance using his small peanut business as a cover near the historic Navagamuwa Pattini Devale on Saturday. The suspect is a 45-year-old resident of Navagamuwa. Suspect has divulged that he had run the business of selling heroin in sachets to his customers for a long time, police said. He had brought the narcotic from Dehiwala and sold them in retail sachets to addicts coming to his peanut vending hut, more..

Nov 15 (CT) Ruling UNP member, member of the Sectoral Oversight Committee on Legal Affairs (anti-corruption) and committee member on Public Finance and current Galle District MP Wijepala Hettiarachchi has got caught red handed advertising his brand new Toyota Land Cruiser to be sold in the open market, where he used his tax concessionary terms extended to members of parliament to import duty free vehicles. more..

Nov 15 (CT) The arbitrary increase of water tariff by the National Water Supply and Drainage Board (NWSDB), is a violation of the fundamental rights of citizens, former Minister and Leader of the Joint Opposition Dinesh Gunawardena said. The Parliamentarian said that it is known that approval has not been granted by the Treasury to increase water charges by 30% and discussions are underway to file a petition in the Supreme Court against that increase. more..

Nov 15 (CT) It seems as if the Sri Lanka Govt is finally paying some overdue attention to the illegal drug trade in the country, alongside the cigarette problem that has been a burning problem since God knows when. It's not as if we have other dire problems we could be solving, spending more money on (i.e. allocating funds to provide children free laptops and tablets when their education quality can be improved and developed by training more teachers and developing our exam system), more..

Nov 15 (DM) The Cabinet has decided to suspend the proposed 30% water tariff increase, Minister Chandima Weerakody said today. He that a proposal made by President Sirisena to suspend the 30% water tariff increase was unanimously approved by the Cabinet. A 3 member committee comprising Ministers Rauff Hakeem, Ravi Karunanayake and Sarath Amunugama had been appointed to review water tariff increase. more..

Nov 15 (NR) Minister Champika Ranawaka says Sri Lanka has been taken towards a new path of development following changes in the thinking patterns of the people. He said it is the responsibility of all citizens to maintain the change witnessed in the island. Minister said CEB was transformed into a profit making institution after the good governance govt was elected into power. He said a 45 million rupee loss at the CEB has been transformed into a 5 million rupee profit within one year more..

Nov 15 (DM) SLFP yesterday dis-associated itself from govt’s decision to increase water bills by 30%. Party’s Research and Technology Minister Susil Premajayantha said this proposal had been introduced outside the budget. “We have to discuss this matter. We were in the dark about it,” he said. When asked about the SLFP proposals incorporated in the budget, the minister said some of them had been incorporated with modifications. “We are agreeable to that,” he said and more..

Nov 15 (CT) Polpithigama Police and Nikaweratiya Division Anti-Corruption Unit on Sunday arrested 11 individuals and a Police Official, who were engaged in digging for a treasure, believed to be from the King Dutugemunu era, at Moragollagama in the Polpithigama Police area. Police Official said that the arrested Police officer had been identified as a current security officer to UPFA MP Johnston Fernando. more..

Nov 15 (CI) Tammy Beaumont anchored England's run-chase with 78 from 79 balls to secure a 3-0 series lead against Sri Lanka in Colombo, with the fourth and final ODI to come at the same venue on Thursday. Despite losing the toss and being asked to field first, England seized control of the contest from the outset, pinning Sri Lanka down to a run-rate of three an over with a disciplined bowling performance in which their three spinners, Laura Marsh, Alex Hartley and Danielle Hazell, more..

Nov 15 (Island) Barring of labour representatives from appearing for poor litigants at labour Tribunals under the present government is a gross violation of human rights of workers, says the All Island Labour Tribunal Representatives Association. As the workers’ representatives are not allowed to be at labour tribunals, petitioners who were mostly labourers were compelled to refrain from seeking redress mainly because they could not afford to retain lawyers, said Secretary of more..

Nov 15 (PTI) Sri Lankan govt on Tuesday said it has launched a probe into the alleged involvement of army with a terror gang that has unleashed violence in Tamil-dominated Jaffna, the epicentre of the civil war which ended in 2009. Deputy Defence Minister Ruwan Wijewardene told Parliament that a former army man was among those arrested in connection with the latest wave of violence to hit Jaffna. more..

Nov 15 (CT) The production of a unit of drinking water costs the National Water Supply and Drainage Board (NWSDB) Rs. 46, but even with the current amendment to the tariff, the huge difference between the production cost and the marketing price cannot be bridged 100%, NWSDB Chairman K. A. Ansar said. He also pointed out that the water tariff had not been increased for several years. Although the first five units are sold at Rs. 5 per unit to Samurdhi beneficiary families, more..

Nov 15 (NR) General Secretary of Lanka Sama Samaja Party (LSSP) Tissa Vitharana says several leftist parties are ready to form an alliance with Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP). A majority of MPs attached to SLFP will join SLPP in the future. Vitharana said LSSP forwards it’s compliments to the new party chaired by GL Peiris, the SLPP. He said what is expected from the party is that all will unite and the party will run according to the precepts of SLFP under leadership of MP Mahinda more..

Nov 15 (DM) Joint opposition said today it would file action in the Supreme Court with regard to the budget proposal to set up an Independent Debt Office at the General Treasury. MP Bandula Gunawardane said it was the Central Bank and not the Treasury which has the authority to monitor the country’s debt control. “The proposed debt office will be directly responsible for managing the country’s domestic and foreign debt and more..

Nov 15 (CT) Minister Mano Ganesan called the Sinhala civil society to have a look at the Batticaloa Buddhist monk Ampitiye Sumanarathana of Mangalarama Temple who abused the Grama Sevaka Niladhari few days ago. Minister in an open letter to Sadharana Samajayak (National Movement for Social Justice), Professor Sarath Wijesooriya, Sisira Jayamaha, Palitha Lihiniyakumara, R.S. Jayarathna, J.C. Waliamuna Rev.Father Ried Shelton Fernando, Lal Wijenayake, more..

Nov 15 (AD) An archaeological site in Batticaloa dating back to King Saddha Tissa of Anuradhapura has been bulldozed to use the land as a paddy field, a monk alleges.  Ven. Ampitiye Sumanarathana Thera said he found ruins including stone pillars and archaeologically valuable objects that were piled up at a side of the land in Karadiyan Aru on Chenkaladi to Mahaoya road in Batticaloa. Thera pointed out many archaeological sites in this area are also in vulnerable situations due to more..

Nov 15 (CG) The Govt is firm in its commitment of a zero tolerance policy on torture, Attorney General Jayantha Jayasuriya told a UN Committee today. He told the Committee Against Torture that in June this year, President Maithripala Sirisena, joined by Minister of Law and Order, joined an initiative of the National Human Rights Commission to march against Torture, sending a message at the highest level of Govt more..

Nov 15 (CI) Visiting teams to Zimbabwe often use their time here as a looking glass into the future: which new combinations might be worth exploring? Who are the up-and-coming players? Who's staking a claim for the next major tour? While West Indies' circumstances might be a little more tempestuous, both they and Sri Lanka have picked forward-thinking squads for this series, and there is plenty to prove on both sides. This is particularly true of the batsmen. Darren Bravo has been culled more..

Nov 15 (DN) Relatives of 11 youths arrested by Police on suspicion that they are members of the ‘Aava’ group, complained to the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) office in Jaffna, saying the arrests were illegal. The relatives have noted that arresting the youths under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) and taking them to the headquarters in Colombo for questioning was illegal as the defence authorities had identified the ‘Aava’ group as a robbery gang. more..

Nov 15 (DM) Govt has clearly indicated its desire to convert the health and the education sectors into marketable commodities though the 2017 Budget, FSP said. Politburo Member Pubudu Jayagoda said that the construction of paying wards in State hospital would be a first step towards converting the health sector into a commodity. “People will have to pay for their treatment from govt hospitals when such wards are built at more..

Nov 15 (CG) US must take Sri Lanka as an example and accept the outcome of the Presidential election, MP Udaya Gammanpila said. He said that no one protested when Maithripala Sirisena won the last Presidential election and former President Rajapaksa ensured there was a smooth transition of power. However, he says in the US, supporters of defeated Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton have been protesting and have refused to accept Donald Trump as the new President. more..

Nov 15 (CG) A UN committee has been told that white van abductions continued in Sri Lanka even after the new Govt took office last year. Felice Gaer, Vice-Chairperson of the Committee Against Torture said that NGOs had reported to the committee that alleged white van abductions had taken place last year. She also noted that information communicated to the committee states that between 2012 to 2016 Oct, there have been over 100 complaints filed against the police on alleged torture more..

Nov 15 (NR) The JVP says the govt does not have a clear programme set in place to attract foreign investors. JVP MP Bimal Ratnayake said the govt is further distressing the public by incurring taxes on the people. MP said the present govt launched free trade zones however, it currently has no investors. He said since there are no private sectors investors in the free trade zones, govt has now decided to private the management of more..

Nov 16 (CT) It seems someone in Sri Lanka wasted coconuts engaging in irrational behavior to pray for Hillary’s victory. Logically that action is flawed. The problem is, if such deities exist, and they listen to prayers, they are not American Citizens nor do they have Greencards to influence the US election. It is likely they cannot influence American deities to help a certain candidate to win. So basically precious food was smashed, and wasted to try to seek divine intervention to what really are more..

Nov 16 (GV) Donald Trump’s surprising electoral victory last week gives us Americans a lot to think about.  One takeaway is particularly relevant for Sri Lanka.  Over the last eight years, President Obama did not prosecute Bush Administration officials implicated in post-9/11 violations of international law.  His failure to adequately address Bush-era torture means that now, under President-elect Trump, the U.S. could soon revisit its darkest chapter in recent history.   more..