Sep 19 (Island) Minister Dilan Perera has flayed CaFFE executive Director Rajith Keerthi Tennakoon over the latter’s criticism of govt moves to amend the Provincial Council Elections Act. Addressing a public gathering, National List MP Perera lashed out at Tennakoon and at the Chairman of the National Election Commission (NEC) Mahinda Deshapriya. SLFPer alleged that both Tennakoon and Deshapriya were opposed to abolition of current preferential vote system. more..

Sep 19 (DM) The govt has decided not to take up the debate on the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearances on Sept 21, Minister Gayantha Karunathilake said. He also said this decision was taken during the UNP Parliamentary group meeting which met Monday evening with PM Ranil Wickremesinghe in the chair. It has also been decided not to take up the debate on more..

Sep 19 (DN) Pugoda Magistrate Courts issued an open warrant against MP Prasanna Ranatunge, former Dompe PS Chairman Milan Jayatilake and four others for their failure to appear in Courts over their alleged involvement in damaging and obstructing vehicles transporting garbage from Colombo to the recycling plant in Dompe, Kirindiwela. The courts also issued notice to the sureties of the accused to appear in courts. Ranatunge and others have been charged more..

Sep 19 (Island) About 60 inmates, either sentenced to death or serving life imprisonment at the Bogambara-Dumbara prison had been continuing their hunger strike launched last Thursday. The hunger strike had been launched by the prisoners, demanding that their sentences be reduced. Another group of 150 inmates serving similar sentences at the Welikada prison had also launched a hunger strike on Saturday but given it up by Sunday after realising the futility of their action. more..

Sep 19 (FT) After weeks of cross-examination, Perpetual Treasuries Ltd. (PTL) CEO Kasun Palisena was re-examined by PTL’s counsel yesterday at the Presidential Commission of Inquiry.  The legal team, headed by President’s Counsel Nihal Fernando, questioned their client on, among other things, an allegation levelled by the Attorney General’s Department earlier that certain transactions by PTL had been fictitious. more..

Sep 19 (CT) The coming Friday will be extremely crucial for Sri Lanka with UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Al Hussein expected to have a one-on-one meeting with President Sirisena here in New York. The meeting is going to be a closed door affair between the President and the HC. Diplomats are of the view that the outcome of this meeting is going to be crucial for Sri Lanka with HC Hussein recently expressing his frustration at the delayed reconciliation process in Sri Lanka. more..

Sep 19 (DM) Minister Field Marshal Saratha Fonseka said that despite his name was included in the delegation travelling to United States with President Maithripala Sirisena to participate at the UN Sessions in New York, he was not granted visa for the tour. Speaking to the media, Fonseka said he requested to protect the good name of the Army by punishing the wrongdoers and he was also a victim of  war allegations as some have engaged in misdeeds under the guise of war. more..

Sep 19 (DM) CEB Workers’ Union said they would continue with their strike action as the latest discussions with the authorities ended unsuccessfully. Workers’ Union said the first discussion was held at 2.30 p.m to 4 p.m today (18) with Ministers W.D.J. Seneviratna, Ranjith Siyambalapitiya and the CEB administration. “After we outlined our demands, minister told us to be at the Labour Ministry at 6 p.m to discuss more..

Sep 19 (DM) A few days ago the eastern Indian media took PM Narendra Modi to task for claiming that Sri Lanka’s national anthem was composed by Bengali Poet Rabindranath Tagore.   “On my international visits, I feel proud to say that Tagore composed national anthems of Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and India,” PM Modi was quoted as saying in a speech made in Delhi.   His speech was delivered at a ceremony to mark the 125th anniversary of Swami Vivekananda’s more..

Sep 19 (DM) Narratives of horror in Myanmar’s restive Rakhine State and the squalid refugee camps in Bangladesh where nearly 400,000 Rohingya refugees live in subhuman condition after being chased out by the Burmese Army’s scorched earth campaign are distressing. Ethnic violence in Rakhine first erupted soon after Myanmar’s military junta relaxed its grip on political power in 2012. A social media post by rubble-rousing monk Ashin Wirathu about an alleged rape of a Buddhist more..

Sep 19 (DM) Sri Lanka has produced many intellectuals who have conquered the world in various fields. Hence we are equipped with enough resources and in turn can move forward with novel innovations. This is what Professor Rangika Halwatura believes in. Employed as a senior lecturer at the Faculty of Engineering, Uni of Moratuwa, Prof. Halwatura was recently recognised as the Best Scientist in the Developing World more..

Sep 19 (SL) Following our expose on how the Chairman and Board of Directors of National Livestock Development Board (NLDB) unlawfully settled Rural Economic Development Minister P. Harrison’s fuel bill to the tune of Rs. 1.059 million, it had now come to the fore how the latter’s office had paid back Rs.1.342 million to the former few days after the fraud was highlighted in the newspaper. It is astonishing how Minister Harrison who more..

Sep 19 (DM) Media reports state that, at the suggestion of President Maithripala Sirisena, the parliamentary debate on the Bill to ratify the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearances (CPAPED) will not held as scheduled on Sept 21.   The media also quoted PM Ranil Wickremesinghe as saying that the Disappearances Bill pertains only to future cases and not those of the past more..

Sep 19 (ST) The controversial tender for the 300 MegaWatt (MW) Combined Cycle Power Plant at Kerawalapitiya, is set to take another turn tomorrow (18), when the financial Bids submitted by five previously unsuccessful Bidders will be opened. Eight Bids had earlier been submitted for the Plant. Consequent to the technical evaluation process, six had been recommended by the CEB Technical Evaluation Committee more..

Sep 19 (EN) Meter readers at CEB, have provided an object lesson on how to cut down work using union power to earn more overtime while working half a day, after getting permanent employment, inside sources at the power utility say. Current administration had absorbed over 3,000 outsourced workers who came from manpower agencies to the CEB sharply raising their salaries. Most of the new workers have joined a strike more..

Sep 19 (CT) Two days after issuing the verdict against Kalutara PCC and Panadura CC players for not playing according to the spirit of the game, Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) revealed that none of the accused parties presented themselves at the hearing held at Royal College Auditorium and had not even made a written submission. Strangely the Inquiry Committee Head Asoka Rekawa explained the inquiry had not revealed any involvement more..

Sep 19 (PMD) The world’s political leaders come together today to discuss and debate what matters to their countries. President Maithripala Sirisena will attend the UN General Assembly in a few hours today in New York. While this year’s attention was on UNGA’s new faces including President Trump of the Unites States and newly elected French President Emmanuel Macron, SL President’s speech is expected to engage more..

Sep 19 (NR) Speaker of House Karu Jayasuriya today announced the much-anticipated Supreme Court determination on the proposed 20th Amendment. Speaker informed the House that the SC has determined that several clauses of the proposed 20th Constitutional Amendment are inconsistent with the Constitution. SC has informed Parliament that Amendment can only be passed through a 2/3 majority in parliament and more..

Sep 19 (DM) While rejecting the GMOA claims, Deputy Minister Harsha De Silva who was also the Chairman of Prez committee on SAITM said there were no contradicts in the report recommendations and the GMOA can discuss the matter with the minister at any time. He said that the GMOA claimed the committee has no intension of repeating the decision to stop student enrollment as it already there was not mentioned more..

Sep 19 (AD) A considerable amount of data has been missing from the two mobile phones handed over by former CB Governor Arjuna Mahendran to the Presidential Commission of Inquiry. This was revealed by the CID during the proceedings today as Mahendran appeared before the commission to submit evidence for the ongoing inquiry, as per the summons issued to him. It was revealed that 11 months of data was missing more..

Sep 19 (CT) Last week saw the launch of 12.11.10 Welikada, an investigative work compiled by journalist Kasun Pussella on the alleged Welikada prison massacre of 2012. And it seems that the case itself might be making a comeback in the legal and political arena, after several years of neglect. The case of the Welikada Prison massacre, even after the lapse of five years, is still shrouded in mystery. Two govts have established inquisitorial committees into the incident more..

Sep 19 (FT) I plagiarised this title from myself, bear with me for the repetition. It fits so well that I did not bother to create a new heading to tell a repetitive story. I wrote the original after the elections in 2010 when UPFA had an astounding victory. That was when I published the original Bowling without umpires. The gist of the story was that the ordinary Sri Lankans were getting hammered left right and centre by politicians in power who wrote the rules at their own whims and fancies. more..

Sep 19 (LBO) Tourism Minister John Amaratunga said his appointment as a Vice Presidential representative of Asia for the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) was a recognition of Sri Lanka as an able tourist destination. Minister Amaratunga made these remarks at a ceremony to felicitate him on his recent UNWTO appointment, which was held at the Sri Lanka Institute of Tourism and Hotel Management (SLITHM), amidst a large gathering, yesterday. more..

Sep 19 (DM) IGP Pujith Jayasundara had ordered stern action against the OIC of the Pitigala Police Station and other officers following the death of a suspect in a remand cell at the Police station today, Police Spokesman SP Ruwan Gunasekara said. 44-year-old Magodapathirage Hemavipul was found dead inside the Police cell this afternoon. The Police arrested the suspect in connection with a family dispute at Marakgoda. “Police believe that the suspect had committed suicide in the cell,” more..

Sep 19 (CT) Malaka Silva who was notorious for terrorizing guests at popular night clubs he patronized during the former Rajapaksa regime is once again back in business. Last Friday Malaka Silva accompanied by his friend Romesh Kulatunga and an alleged drug dealer named Maama had badgered a reveler at the famous up market night spot the Park Street Mews. This incident incidentally was blacked out by more..

Sep 19 (NR) Heshan Withanage says he has decided to resign from his UNP Parliamentary seat to contest as the party’s Chief Ministerial candidate if the Sabaragamuwa Provincial Council Election is held expeditiously. Heshan Withanage said he has received requests from the Working Committee and the Heads of the Party in this regard. Withanage said the time limit to hold the Sabaragamuwa, North Central and Eastern Provincial Council Elections will arrive soon adding that more..

Sep 19 (AD) The 20th Amendment to the Constitution, to hold elections for all Provincial Councils in the same day, has been passed in the Central Provincial Council with amendments. The draft bill has been passed with a majority of 31 votes with 40 provincial councilors voting in favour and just 9 voted against.  The 20th amendment to hold PC polls on the same day have so far been passed in the Sabaragamuwa, North Central, Eastern and Western provincial councils.  more..

Sep 19 (EN) The prolonged drought that has gripped Sri Lanka has worsened food insecurity with more people going hungry and indebtedness rising for lack of farm work, the UN office in Colombo said. Despite the Southwest monsoon in late May, which triggered flooding and landslides in the country’s southwest provinces, country-wide drought conditions are ongoing, it said in its latest drought update. more..

Sep 19 (DM) The Railway Operation Supervisory Officers Unions would launch a 48-hour token strike from Wednesday midnight demanding solutions to salary anomalies, the Railway Guards Union said. Union President Janaka Fernando said they had sent proposals to the National Salary and Cadre Commission two weeks ago requesting to resolve salary anomalies. “We met with the officials of the Commission this morning as well but there was no positive outcome. more..

Sep 19 (AD) Ministry of Rehabilitation and Prison Reforms stated that a program will be introduced to grant supervised home visits to prison inmates in the near future. It has been reported that this particular exemption will be made for prisoners serving a term that exceeds 3 years. It was further mentioned that prisoners who are serving time for severe crimes will not be eligible for the program. Accordingly prison inmates serving a sentence less than 20 years who are granted pardon for good behavior more..

Sep 19 (GN) Sri Lankan Consulate in Dubai has appealed to community members and other philanthropists to support two sisters who survived a family suicide pact in Sharjah. The sisters, identified as R.I., 17, and Y.I., 27, were found lying in a pool of blood while their parents and brother were found dead at a hotel apartment on August 29. The younger sister told Gulf News that the financially broken family with no valid visas had decided more..

Sep 19 (DM) Asia would not have become a powerful region today and would not emerge as a stronger one in the future if President J R Jayewardene did not open up Sri Lanka’s economy and set the course for the region to become what it is today, PM Ranil Wickremesinghe said yesterday. Mr. Wickremesinghe said this during a ceremony held last evening to commemorate the late President Jayewardene’s 111th birth anniversary which fell on Sunday, September 17. more..

Sep 19 (NR) The case filed against Former Minister of Trade and Cooperatives Johnston Fernando on charges of incurring losses amounting to 40 million rupees will be taken up for hearing once again today. The case will be heard at the Colombo Magistrate’s Court. Charges have been filed against Johnston Fernando for incurring losses to the govt by using 153 employees of the Sathosa network for political activities during the previous tenure of the UPFA led govt. more..

Sep 19 (EN) The sacked junior minister Arundika Fernando joined former president Rajapaksa's faction Tuesday, a week after he was told by the govt that he will not be reinstated. Fernando, who was called a rock star by his parliamentary colleagues after he rocked the SLFP faction of President Sirisena, made a special statement before crossing the floor of the House. "From today, I will work to ensure the collapse of this govt," more..

Sep 19 (NR) The National Authority on Tobacco and Alcohol today urged the Ministry of Finance to introduce a price formula to revise prices of tobacco related products. Chairman of the Authority Dr. Palitha Abeykoon said the introduction of a price formula will help the govt to increase the price of tobacco related products by several folds. Executive Director Dr. Nishan De Mel said, the govt should sanctioned the Finance Ministry to introduce the formula. more..

Sep 19 (Island) Higher Education and Highways Minister Lakshman Kiriella vowed yesterday to continue with the Central Expressway project and to complete it by the end of 2019. Responding to recent allegations of corruption, Minister Kirielle said people who were criticising the CHP were doing so out of jealousy. Even though the SLFP led governments had been in power almost for over 20 years, they had not been able to build the Central Expressway, he said. more..

Sep 19 (CI) Despite having stepped down from his role as selector just weeks ago, cricket manager Asanka Gurusinha has been reappointed to the position, along with three new selectors. Graeme Labrooy, the former SL seamer, had already been confirmed as the head of the committee on Friday. The remaining members are former national team manager Jeryl Woutersz, former wicketkeeper Gamini Wickremasinghe & Sajith Fernando, more..

Sep 19 (CT) Cracks have appeared in the TNA over the proposed 20th Amendment with EPRLF leader Suresh Premachandran declaring that the party is opposed to the Amendment. However, TNA Leader R. Sampanthan and MP M.A. Sumanthiran had earlier stated that they will support the Amendment. "TNA leadership does not discuss matters within the coalition. Decisions are taken by leader Sampanthan and Sumanthiran. They never discuss these matters with other constituent party leaders," he said. more..

Sep 19 (EN) Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva overshadowed his own motor traffic amendment bill when he turned up in parliament in stunning jet black hair raising jibes from his fellow MPs. De Silva, 73, made no reference to his make-over nor was he available for comment immediately, but cabinet colleagues said he had shaved his hair as part of a ritual at a Hindu temple in India. Colleagues asked him if he flew business class to carry an extra 20 kilos of Godrej hair dye, more..