May 10 (DM) The term limits to the executive presidency remain a major barrier for SL’s economy to take off, as the country requires a determinant leader for about 15 years to drive economic development, a prominent academic said referring to Singapore’s development experience. Delivering a lecture titled Singapore’s Development Experience: Lessons for Sri Lanka, Gamani Corea Foundation Director Research and more..

May 10 (Island) Attorney-at-law Nagananda Kodituwakku, yesterday alleged, that legitimate recipients of duty free vehicle permits could cash in on an arbitrary taxation scheme recently imposed by the govt. Kodituwakku said that the value of duty free permits available tothe sitting members of parliament and various professionals had gone up sharply due to the imposition of the new system. The former top Customs officer took up the issue more..

May 10 (AD) Cabinet of Ministers has approved the proposal to temporarily lift the ban on Glyphosate for tea and rubber sectors for a period of 36 months. Lat week the Minister Navin Dissanayake said that the ban which was imposed on the herbicide Glyphosate has been lifted for tea and rubber sectors. “As some of the tea producers have used the weedicide MCPA instead of Glyphosate, Japan has detected levels more..

May 10 (DM) The key technical evidence presented by the CID to the Mount Lavinia Magistrate Court in connection with the investigations into the 2008 abduction and assault on Senior Journalist, former Deputy Editor The Nation newspaper Keith Noyahr and the 2009 murder of Lasantha Wickrematunge was originally gathered prior to the 2015 change in Govt, according to former Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa. more..

May 10 (DM) Sri Lankan free trade agreement (FTA) negotiators want India to implement interim remedies for the non-tariff barriers that exist in the current Indo-Lanka Free Trade Agreement (ISFTA) prior to the signing of the Economic and Technology Co-operation Agreement (ETCA), in order to build up the confidence on the ETCA among SL stakeholders. Speaking at a recent press conference at the International Trade and more..

May 10 (AD) SL is raising petrol (92 Octane) to 137 rupees a litre and auto diesel to 119 a litre, Minister Rajitha Senaratne said. Petrol was earlier at 117 rupees a litre. He said in 2015 when the administration came to office petrol was 150 rupees a litre and it was cut as oil prices fell. A barrel of oil which fell to 45 dollars a barrel had not gone up to over 74 dollars he said. Prices would be raised from midnight tonight, more..

May 10 (CT) Change does not happen overnight nor does it happen even when a large number of people need it to happen. Such is the predicament of the National Unity Govt Agreement. Crisis, much anticipated and much awaited, gripped Sri Lanka’s first National Unity Govt, with President Sirisena and PM Wickremesinghe failing to reach consensus on the future of their Coalition Govt, following the huge defeat their parties suffered in the recent LG elections. more..

May 10 (FT) In manufacturing and in processing, we appear to have been complacent when we can import something and if dollars come in as a result. Some still appreciate when more rupees can be realised from a dollar received! It is enjoying a weakness as a strength and not really caring about the big picture but being quite content with one’s own situation. If we do not link our small actions with the big picture, the big picture may never change in the way we aspire. more..

May 10 (CT) Gotabaya Rajapaksa the former Ministry of Defence Secretary under his elder brother Minister of Defence, Mahinda Rajapaksa has finally come out of the closet. In a public interview widely circulated, Gotabaya ventures into a realm quite out of the ordinary. Economics of a Nation, and his plans to take Sri Lanka into the first world. The interview was well managed by his script writer and cameraman. The interview was an obvious ploy to shunt Gotabaya as a pragmatic economist, more..

May 10 (Island) Speaker Karu Jayasuriya, yesterday, told Parliament that he would inform the House of the situation regarding the post of Deputy Speaker after consulting the President and the PM. He made this announcement, when UNP MP Nalin Jayamaha demanded to know the govt’s position on the vacant Deputy Speaker’s post following Thilanga Sumapthipala’s resignation. Speaker Jayasuriya: Prez has not informed me of the Deputy Speaker’s resignation. more..

May 10 (Roar) SL’s ancient Cascaded Tank-Village water management system, known locally by the name Ellanga Gammana, has been accepted as a Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the UN. In a ceremony in Rome on April 19, the FAO also recognised 12 other agricultural heritage sites from China, Egypt, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Portugal and Spain, more..

May 10 (DM) BBC journalist Azzam Ameen, who had been asked to report to the Cyber Crimes Unit of the CID this morning over a tweet, said the Police asked him not to visit the CID. “I was informed by the Police via phone and through a letter this morning that it was not necessary for me to visit the CID. They regretted any inconvenience caused,” Mr. Ameen tweeted yesterday morning adding that “I am grateful to those who expressed their support to me in many ways on this issue.” more..

May 10 (NR) The Owner of Perpetual Treasuries Arjun Aloysius and Chief Executive Officer Kasun Palisena arrested and remanded in connection to the controversial Treasury Bond Transaction have been further remanded till the 24th of May. The order was issued by Colombo Fort Magistrate Lanka Jayaratne. Meanwhile and international red notice was also issued against former Governor of the CB Arjun Mahendran who is named as a suspect in Controversial Treasury Bond Case. more..

May 10 (CT) Ceylon Motorcyclists’ Association (CMA) claimed that the Police are attempting to vilify the Govt by implementing the law against the modification of motor vehicles when the provisions in the existing law were inadequate. CMA Chairman, Chirantha Amarasinghe, in a letter to the President, said that the Police are imposing large fines on motorcyclists for modifying their vehicles when provisions had not been made more..

May 10 (SL) Sri Lanka’s Johann Peries has reached the halfway mark through his expedition to climb Mount Everest. He commenced his journey by flying from Kathmandu to Lukla, from where he hiked for ten days to reach Everest Base Camp (EBC). The base camp will be his adopted home for approximate five weeks. Keeping him warm amidst the freezing weather in the Himalayas, is the wonderful response to the Climb Everest with Johann campaign, which invites Sri Lankans more..

May 10 (EN) Sri Lanka will re-price fuel every two months with a formula using Platts Singapore benchmark prices, but the prices are among the lowest in South Asia, Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera said. Sri Lanka raised 92 Octane petrol to 137 rupees from 117 rupees a litre and auto diesel to 119 rupees a litre from 109 rupees. Samaraweera says the price of 92-Octane Petrol in Nepal is the equivalent of 149 rupees a litre, Bangladesh 159 and India 169 rupees. more..

May 10 (CT) Referring to a statement by PM Ranil Wickremesinghe at the UNP May Day rally, to the effect that Rs 6,750 million had gone missing from the Samurdhi Fund, SLFP MP S.B. Dissanayake requested the Premier to inform the House about the truth of his statement by conducting an investigation. Premier, addressing the UNP May Day rally on 6 May, said that Rs 6,750 million had gone missing from the Samurdhi Fund. He also said that the Minister of Finance had been instructed to more..

May 10 (DM) Wildlife Minister Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka said yesterday he would resolve the issues affecting wildlife in the same manner he ended the 30-year-long civil war. He said this while participating at the ceremony in which Wildlife Deputy Minister Palitha Thewarapperuma assumed duties. “The Wildlife Ministry has always had its own, unresolved problems. And following the recent Cabinet reshuffle, the ministry stole the limelight. Nevertheless, I am now vested with more..

May 10 (AD) The appointment of Anuruddha Polgampola as the new Chairman of State Timber Corporation (STC) has been suspended with immediate effect, according to sources. He had received his letter of appointment from President Maithripala Sirisena at the President’s Official Residence on May 04. That was a day after the President ordered the immediate suspension then Chairman of the STC more..

May 10 (Island) Prez Sirisena’s Chief of Staff I.K. Mahanama, who was arrested recently while allegedly taking Rs. 20 million bribe from an Indian investor, is alleged to have abused the late Minister M.K.A.D.S. Gunawardana’s name to solicit bribes, Mahanama was the Secretary to the Ministry of Lands when M.K.A.D.S. Gunawardana was the minister of lands. The late minister’s son Nalin Gunawardena said: "I have learned that Mahanama told the Indian investing in Kantale Sugar factory, in 2016, more..

May 10 (DM) Minister Sarath Fonseka today said he did not apologise to President Sirisena but only met him to discuss about recent political issues. A statement issued by the Ministry said Field Marshall Fonseka met both the President and the PM to discuss about the recent political issues based on a proposal made by the Premier. “At the meeting, the President has said the prevailing issues could be discussed between him and the Minister in order to arrive at solutions instead of more..

May 10 (CI) Sri Lanka Cricket has enlisted the services of Australian spin and fast-bowling consultants, Peter Sleep and Timothy McCaskill, ahead of their upcoming tour of the West Indies. The pair, who have been hired on a short-term basis, will join the squad at the two-week training camp which started on Wednesday in Pallekele, Kandy. "Peter Sleep, the former Australian legspinner will work with the spinners, while Victoria's High Performance Manager more..

May 10 (AD) Three-wheeler fare for the first kilometre will be increased by Rs. 10 from midnight today, three-wheeler drivers’ unions said. Accordingly the new minimum fare will be increased from Rs. 50 to Rs. 60, they said. The fare hike is in line with the fuel price increase, which will also take effect from midnight today. The price of Octane 92 Petrol will be increased to Rs 137 while Octane 95 will be prices at Rs 148 per litre. Auto Diesel price has been increased to more..

May 10 (NR) The Office on Missing Persons says it hopes to launch a series of regional-level consultations commencing in Mannar on Saturday. Issuing a statement the Office said consultations are a vital step in the process to operationalize its functions in its search for missing and disappeared persons. Consultations will be held with families of missing and disappeared persons, activists, professionals and organisations working on the issue. In the coming weeks, more..

May 10 (NR) The Joint Opposition says the decision by the govt to increase fuel prices will continue to inconvenience the public. Speaking during the debate in Parliament today UPFA Parliamentarian Shehan Semasinghe said the public will rally against the govt in future. Parliamentarian stressed when the present govt was elected the price of oil in the international market dropped drastically adding however the public did not enjoy the benefit. more..

May 10 (AD) The hearing date of the case filed against GMOA President Dr. Anuruddha Padeniya has been fixed on 5th of June by the Court of Appeal. The petition was taken up before a panel of judges comprising of the President of the Court of Appeal Preethi Padman Surasena and Justice Arjuna Obeysekera. The case was filed by civil society activists Prof. Sarath Wijesuriya and Gamini Viyangoda accusing the Dr. Padeniya of contempt of court for criticizing the verdict of the Court of Appeal more..

May 10 (NR) Police have arrested a suspect in Kiribathgoda, wanted over a number of robberies at banks across the island. The suspect was arrested while he was attempting to break into a bank in Wattala today. Police Media Spokesman SP Ruwan Gunasekara said an extensive investigation has been launched pertaining to the robberies committed by the suspect. He said the suspect is a 42 year old resident of Kiribathgoda. The Police Spokesman noted the suspect is charged with more..

May 10 (TN) Mo Jo Hammoud’s plan for his SL business venture was based on a simple truth. Everyone loves hummus, the 43-year-old entrepreneur says on a sweltering afternoon in the island nation. A Lebanese native brought up in different parts of the world, Hammoud knows first-hand the power of the popular Arabic dish, so much so that when he opened his dream guesthouse and hostel in Weligama – a laid-back surf town on the country’s south-west coast more..

May 11 (CT) Book Review: K. M de Silva, The Island Story: A Short History of Sri Lanka, International Centre for Ethnic Studies, Kandy, Sri Lanka, 2017. EPIGRAPH: Sri Lanka in the first few centuries after the early settlement was a multi-racial, multi-ethnic society: a conception which emphasises harmony and a spirit of live and let live (K.M. de Silva, op. cit., page 13). It’s said that fools rush in where the wise fear even to walk. I tiptoe hesitantly, conscious that I am no historian (my discipline was Literature) more..

May 11 (DN) World Bank Country Director for SL and Maldives, Dr. Idah Pswarayi–Ridihough said recently that a staggering loss amounting to Rs. 460 billion was suffered by the 400 State-owned enterprises (SOEs) in 2016. She added that the govt is contributing more to its public-sector enterprise than receiving from it. These losses continue to have high negative impact on our fiscal costs. Over the years, most of these establishments have reported significant persistent operating losses. more..

May 11 (SO) The much-maligned Indo-Lanka Peace Accord of 1987 is back in public focus, courtesy T. Ramakrishnan’s book Or Inapprachinaiyum Or Oppandhamum (An Ethnic Conflict and An Accord), introduced at an event at the Colombo Tamil Sangam, recently. Ramakrishnan, a senior Indian journalist and an associate editor of the The Hindu, had engagements in Kandy and Jaffna promoting his book more..

May 11 (DN) Every 40 seconds, a human life is taken by suicide, according to World Health Organization data. The projected global suicide rate for the year 2020 is one in every 20 seconds. Suicide has now become a silent epidemic that ruins lives and devastates families and communities. It is now among the three leading causes of death among those aged 15 to 44 years. More male suicide deaths are reported while more females attempt. Suicide, or ending one’s own life, more..

May 11 (Island) Let me preface what follows with a brief statement explaining why the subject is of broader interest and concern to the Sri Lankan Public than just to the Leadership of the United National Party. The overarching fears and concerns that lie from a public perspective is that the UNP leadership by commission or omission is pushing the voter and the country back to a near despotic regime that was rejected by a majority of the people only three years ago. more..

May 11 (DN) Eight years ago, Fathima Faika (45) lived out the story of a Hollywood blockbuster when she found her way to Malaysia to bring back her two sons, taken away from her by her ex-husband. Armed with no money, influence or power but simple raw determination packed in her tired little body, she brought them home. Her story captured the headlines and inspired all women out there. But her biggest battle thus far more..

May 11 (CT) Some Polpotian Marxists repeat ‘This is a new, a new situation, and a new and higher level of struggle left behind by neo liberalism and new priorities corresponded to it. Globally the bourgeois-democratic stage had passed, and with it the formal legal demand for national self-determination – characteristic of this stage – lost its former significance. Hence the slogan overthrow the rule of the bourgeoisie on a world scale and set up the int'l dictatorship of the proletariat more..

May 11 (CT) It is sad that 40 years after it was signed to end the ethnic strife in Sri Lanka and a decade after the conclusion of the ethnic war, someone still should have to talk about the Rajiv Gandhi -Jayewardene Accord of 1987, whose aim was to end the strife and de-escalate the war for good. What instead the nation and the neighbourhood witnessed was an unstoppable, no-holds-barred LTTE war. “Our journey continues, we need the Accord, we need to ensure that more..

May 11 (DN) Armed with the GSP Plus concession, the Sri Lankan apparel sector will be able for the first time pass the US$ 5 billion export revenue target this year, said Minister Rishad Bathiudeen, addressing the launch of 8th AISEX and FASE apparel industry sourcing expo at BMICH, Colombo Yesterday. He said 2018 will be a breakthrough year in its history of exports compared to the US$ 4.8 billion in 2017 and so far in first quarter 2018 total apparel exports had surged by 4% to more..