Aug 21 (CT) The Galle Face green was filled, not just with heads yesterday. It was filled with heads that were not empty. Ironically Anura Kumara Dissanayake was facing the Port City from the podium. The people were facing the stage full of the allies of the National People’s Power (NPP) movement. JVP held yesterday, it’s most attended and successful meeting in recent history. Earlier it was commonly believed that only the Rajapaksas or the mighty UNP had the easy and more..

Aug 21 (ST) One fine evening, there was a surprise phone call from a friend whom I hadn’t met for a long time. It was Nalaka Mendis, a former Professor at the Medical Faculty of the Colombo Uni. I shouted over the phone: “What a surprise, after such a long time!” He replied: “Yes, yes; it has been a long time. I thought of giving you a call, after I read your interesting story on “Digging holes and filling them up” – very informative”. “Oh… thank you. So how are you? And where are you this evening?” more..

Aug 21 (CT) "You will not be harshly ragged if you do what the seniors request you to do in the very first instance," and that is how Shanilka dealt with the seniors when she was a fresher at the Kelaniya uni. At the same time Vihanga, who entered Uni in 2017, said the seniors say, "Do not think these activities are a rag but think it is a sub culture of the University." He said seniors always warned them that they were the only ones to more..

Aug 21 (CT) In modern Sri Lanka, the common view is that the Hindu Kovil and the Buddhist Devale are two different ethno-religious spaces. The Kovil houses Hindu deities and is served by a Hindu priest and attracts Tamil Hindu worshipers, but the Devale houses local Sinhalese deities as well as Hindu gods, and is served by a lay Sinhalese priest and attracts Sinhalese Buddhist worshipers. However, empirically, the Kovil-Devale dichotomy is not so clear cut, whether one looks at it more..

Aug 21 (CT) I have argued in the last few weeks that the new President, elected in a few months, will have a unique opportunity to at least begin to set this country to rights. I have no idea if either of the leading candidates wants to do this, as opposed to keeping his supporters happy, and indeed I sometimes feel, such is the appalling luck of this country, that the leading contenders will be gazumped by others, local or foreign, and we will be left with the sad sort of leadership more..

Aug 21 (TM) The topic of drug shortages has been in the mainstream news for many years, during successive administrations and trade union actions, but the problem still remains without far-reaching solutions. The drug shortage issue in Sri Lanka is slowly becoming the new normal in the healthcare sector as once in every two or three months, the topic makes headlines in the media. more..

Aug 21 (CT) Anbarasan Ethirajan is a seasoned Correspondent of the BBC who covers Sri Lankan politics from time to time. His latest report is titled SL’s Muslim demonized after Easter bombings. The overall thrust of his latest report is to present the Muslims as victims of the Sinhala-Buddhists. He weaves his story to cast the Sinhala-Buddhists as the majority persecuting the minority Muslims. This theme of majority persecuting the minority is the usual excuse that hits the headlines, more..

Aug 21 (SO) Just when the country appears to be getting excited over the prospect of a presidential election in the next few months and campaigning has already begun with one candidate being announced, Prez Maithripala Sirisena appears to have thought otherwise. Last week, it was announced that the President has sought a determination from the SC seeking its opinion as to whether elections to Provincial Councils can be held in the present circumstances. more..

Aug 21 (Island) Wartime Defence Secretary, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, in early 2016, emerged as the Rajapaksa Camp’s leading prez election aspirant, thanks to yahapalana grandees causing unprecedented political chaos. Trouble erupted, within the UNP-SLFP coalition, within weeks after the Jan 8, 2015 prez election, consequent to the unprecedented treasury bond scam. Yahapalana leadership, comprising UNP-SLFP chiefs, paved the way for the tough-talking retired Lt Colonel more..

Aug 21 (Island) The US has let out a howl of protest against the appointment of Lt. Gen. Shavendra Silva as the Army Commander. An officer with serious allegations against him should not have been appointed to that post, it has argued. The US has come under heavy flak for saying that. It seems to think that a very senior military officer who has helped defeat terrorism should be deprived of his due promotion on the basis of some allegations! One should, however, be happy that the US more..

Aug 21 (TM) SL’s exporters will soon be able to have their food exports to India tested and approved locally prior to shipping, saving both costs and expenses incurred by delays and rejections at Indian ports. A MoU is scheduled to be signed between Indian and SL authorities for this purpose next month, according to the Export Development Board (EDB). Under this MoU, SL’s food laboratories will be accredited by India more..

Aug 21 (ST) Ceylinco General Insurance, announcing yet another unique benefit for all Sri Lankans, is offering a cover of up to Rs. 500,000 per annum that will reimburse medical costs incurred in the treatment of diagnosed serious illnesses. These include heart disease, cancer, kidney failure, stroke and several others, providing a cover for heart attack and open heart surgery, major organ transplants, chronic lung and liver diseases, deafness, blindness, multiple sclerosis, paralysis, etc. more..

Aug 21 (RN) “If Gamini, Lalith and Premadasa had worked together our party would have never faced defeat at that time and our country would have been a Singapore by now,” says Navin Dissanayake. At an event in Temple trees yesterday (19) the minister said that looking at the history, the UNP fell apart in many instances because there were conflicts within the party. He also added “if we go forward while protecting the unity of the party then there would be a clear victory.” more..

Aug 21 (CI) Sri Lanka have won another Test, their third in a row chasing a tough score. Their captain dug in for a tenacious fourth-innings hundred. The victory has yielded 60 Test Championship points - an excellent start to their campaign in that competition. Away from Tests, they have comfortably won their most-recent ODI series, against Bangladesh, and performed better than expected at the World Cup, finishing sixth. more..

Aug 21 (Island) Mobitel recently signed a landmark MoU with University of Sri J'pura, to co-create and co-innovate in the area of telecommunication, 5G, Internet of Things (IoT), Artificial Intelligence (AI) and more - with both parties sharing their respective areas of expertise and knowledge towards the common goal for collaborative research and development. Mobitel will be jointly working with the Faculty of Engineering (Dept of Electrical and Electronic Engineering) more..

Aug 21 (DN) Colombo Chief Magistrate Lanka Jayarathne yesterday issued an order directing the Central Bank to submit all written documents pertaining to the money belonging to Perpetual Treasuries Limited (PTL) that had been maintained in the Central Bank’s RTGS account, which have been currently blocked by the Central bank before Oct 28. The Magistrate made this order when the magisterial inquiry into the CB bond issue was taken up before Colombo Chief Magistrate’s Court. more..

Aug 21 (ST) Ministry of Sports has launched a scathing attack on the National Olympic Committee of Sri Lanka (NOCSL) over lack of transparency and accountability in dealing with Govt funds allocated to them. This comes in the wake of an NOCSL attempt to avoid Govt audits by saying the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) mandates complete independence and autonomy in sports administration. more..

Aug 21 (FT) The Holidays (Amendment) Bill, the Private Member Bill moved in order to amend the Holidays Act No.29 of 1971, is not consistent with the Constitution, Supreme Court informed Parliament in its determination. Citing the two Petitions filed in par with the provisions of Article 121 (1) of the Constitution, the SC has recommended changes to bring in more clarity to the amendments, Deputy Speaker and Chair of Committees Ananda Kumarasiri informed Parliament. more..

Aug 21 (DN) Senior State Counsel Lakmini Girihagama appearing on behalf of the CID informed the Mount Lavinia Magistrate’s Court that the Attorney General has already taken a decision to file indictments before the High Court Trial-at-bar against the suspects involved in the abduction of former Nation Deputy Editor Keith Noyahr. Magistrate C.H.G. Liyanage decided not to hold the identification parade in respect of former Army Intelligence Unit Corporal Lalith Rajapaksa. more..

Aug 21 (FT) State Minister Eran Wickramaratne charged the previous Govt for allowing investors to lose confidence and exit the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE), pulling out their investments, but the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has worked to restore investor confidence. Responding to a question in Parliament, Minister held the report of a much-awaited forensic audit, which will be moved soon, more..

Aug 21 (Island) Off-spinner Akila Dananjaya faces a lengthy suspension from international cricket after his bowling action was reported as suspect for a second time following the opening Test match against New Zealand at the Galle Int'l Stadium on Sunday. The Sri Lankan team management was provided with footage of about six deliveries which caused suspicion and one delivery in particular is sure to get him into trouble, a source privy to the exchanges between the ICC and SLC said. more..

Aug 21 (EN) European Union has said it is opposed to Sri Lanka reviving executions of convicts and called on the govt to maintain its moratorium on implementing the death penalty. The EU’s position was conveyed during a meeting with a group of MPs of the UNP, the major partner in the coalition govt. “During the meeting, the Heads of Missions restated the strong and unequivocal opposition of the EU and its Member States to capital punishment in all circumstances & in all cases,” statement said. more..

Aug 21 (FT) Sri Lanka expects a major tourism boost from the first-ever carbon-neutral Ashara Mubaraka, a 10-day spiritual convention drawing 21,000 religious visitors from 40 countries from next week, with an expected revenue of $ 31 million. This is the first major international convention the island nation is hosting after the 21 April Easter Sunday attacks, and was initiated by the Tourism Development Ministry as well as more..

Aug 21 (CT) Off Spinner Dilruwan Perera is back in the squad for the second Test against NZ, to be played at the P. Sara Oval from tomorrow to the 26th. Perera was recovering from an injury and the SL team management left him out of the 15-man squad, for the first Test, due to advice of the physiotherapist. Dilruwan, who last played during the SL tour of Australia, was dropped from the tour of South Africa. But, on home conditions he has been in the forefront of many SL home wins in more..

Aug 21 (DM) SLPP raised a legal point on the move to appoint Shantha Bandara as an MP to fill the vacancy that had arisen in the UPFA Kurunegala district list with the death of MP Salinda Dissanayake. Party Chairman G.L. Peiris said Mr. Bandara was serving as an MP nominated on the national list at the time Mr. Dissanayake passed away on Aug 6. He had been nominated to Parliament earlier in place of M.L.A.M. Hisbullah who resigned from his seat to take up more..

Aug 21 (EN) Govt withdrew a proposal to give freehold to 2.5 million citizens who were given restricted land grants from the state after a section of the elected ruling class went to court to block the move. "We are withdrawing State Lands Special Provisions bill," leader of the house Lakshman Kiriella told parliament. "Our intention was to give freehold deeds to 2.5 million persons. But the opposition went to court & blocked it. more..

Aug 21 (DM) The US has no right to criticize the appointment of Lt General Shavendra Silva as Army Commander based on the OISL report at the UNHRC, from which it withdrew describing it as a cesspit, MP Wimal Weerawansa said. US Ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley had described UNHRC as a Cesspool of Political Bias during the time when the US decided to withdraw from the UNHRC. Referring to the press release issued by the US Embassy, criticising more..

Aug 21 0 (UNI) Coast Guards of India and Sri Lanka on Tuesday agreed to strengthen the cooperation in addressing a spectrum of maritime issues concerning safety and security. "The apprehension of two fishing boats by Sri Lanka involved in drug trafficking based on the information exchange undertaken by Indian Coast Guard invoking the MoU was recognised as an important enabler for pursuing further collaborative response to emerging situations at sea," defence ministry said in a statement. more..

Aug 21 (Island) Former Minister of Highways Lakshman Kiriella recruited a large number of UNP members as public liaison officers and consultants without holding interviews, checking their qualifications and without assigning any duties, PCoI was informed. Ranjith Edirisinghe, former deputy director of administration at the RDA, who handled the recruitment, told the PCoI that appointing a large number of such persons more..

Aug 21 (AD) A Wennappuwa Pradeshiya Sabha member has been arrested over a case of obstructing police officers. UNP PS Member Dulakshi Fernando has been arrested in this manner. The arrest has been made on an arrest warrant issued by the Marawila Magistrate’s Court. Two policemen who had been on duty had stopped a motorbike near the Seenor Junction in Wennappuwa at around 5.15 pm last evening (19). However, the female biker had not had her more..

Aug 21 (DN) The Terrorism Investigation Division (TID) yesterday arrested two Muslim priests who allegedly had terrorist training with Easter bomber leader Mohamed Zahran Hashim at Hashim’s Nuwara Eliya training camp. The arrested Muslim priests or maulavis; Mohamed Hanifa Mohamed Rizmi, aged 28, and Mohamed Nazaar Nimzad, aged 28; had been Islamic priests of the Hettipola Jumma Mosque and the Nikaweratiya Jumma Mosque, police said. more..

Aug 21 (Reuters) A senior U.S. State Department official warned on Tuesday that Sri Lanka’s appointment of a war veteran accused of serious human rights violations as head of its army could affect U.S. military cooperation and investment in the island nation. On Monday, Sri Lanka named Shavendra Silva, 55, as the country’s new army chief despite United Nations accusations that he was involved in human rights abuses more..

Aug 21 (AD) European Union (EU), too, has raised its concerns over the promotion of Lt-General Shavendra Silva as Commander of the SL Army, stating that it sends a worrying message to victims and survivors of the war. A joint statement on the appointment had been issued in agreement with the Embassies of Germany, Italy, Netherlands, UK High Commission, Embassies of Norway and Switzerland. It states that they share the same concerns as the UN High Commissioner for more..

Aug 21 (DM) At yesterday's Cabinet meeting, President Maithripala Sirisena is reported to have sought time till January next year to approve the agreement with the US Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) but PM Ranil Wickremesinghe had insisted it should be signed as soon as possible. Meanwhile, US Ambassador Alaina B. Teplitz told journalists that it was a development assistance grant and that her country was hoping for the final approval to go ahead & sign this agreement. more..

Aug 21 (AD) The members of the tri-member Committee appointed by the Prez to probe the Easter attacks revealed that the explosives used for the Easter attacks had been made using Urea Nitrate, the same substance used in the explosives for the 9/11 attacks in the US. The members revealed this testifying before the special Parliamentary Select Committee appointed to inquire into the Easter Sunday terror attacks, more..

Aug 21 (DM) Every person who had attained the age of 18 is qualified to be an elector (voter) if he/she is a citizen of SL. The exceptions are the situations where a citizen is under any law in force in SL found or declared to be of unsound mind or is serving or has during the period of seven years immediately preceding completed serving of a sentence of imprisonment for a term not less than six months imposed … for a term not less than two years, according to the Constitution. more..

Aug 21 (DM) With Gotabhaya Rajapaksa being declared the SLPP candidate for the Presidential Election and Anura Kumara Dissanayake, from an alliance led by the JVP also nominated, the Presidential race has started to warm up. With the tug of war taking place within the UNP-led configuration to decide whether it is Ranil, Karu or Sajith who would be their candidate, the suspense that is related to the Presidential Election has reached fever pitch. more..

Aug 21 (DM) Is bond scam the only one of its kind our country encounters today? Let’s take a pre-election walk; do you hear the promises made, the ones they never intend to keep? Oh yes, they even condescend to shake your hand, but that’s not all, they also come to your homes no matter how poor you are, because you’ve got what they want – that all-important vote! Once that is obtained and election is won, YOU WON’T BE ALLOWED TO PUT more..

Aug 21 (ST) A historic agreement merging the Amarapura and Ramanna Chapters was signed on Friday. Two chapters will hereafter be known as a single entity: Sri Lanka Amarapura Ramanna Saamagri Maha Sangha Sabha. The agreement was signed by the Amarapura Chapter Mahanayake, the Ven. Kotugoda Dhammavasa Thera, and the Ramanna Chapter Mahanayaka, Ven. Napana Pemasiri Thera. more..