Oct 22 (AFP) A Sri Lankan motorist risks jail for complaining on Facebook that he had been given a traffic ticket because he is Buddhist. Amid a fierce debate on religious freedoms in the Indian Ocean nation, the motorist now faces court action for the traffic offence and the Facebook post in which he said he had been persecuted for placing a Buddha statue on his dashboard. The post has been widely shared on social media, more..

Oct 22 (NR) Frontline Socialist Party accuses all major political parties of attempting to suppress the voice of the working class in the disguise of ensuring a disciplined country. Speaking during a media briefing, Propaganda Secretary of the Party Pubudu Jagoda said the Prez candidate of his faction Duminda Nagamuwa has solutions to a number of social issues faced by the working class. Jagoda noted that voters must reject all major political party representatives at the Prez Election. more..

Oct 22 (EN) SL’s Right to Information Commission (RTI Commission) said it has seen an encouraging increase in appeals by people seeking information under the new law with a culture of secrecy turning to a culture of transparency. But there was much more room for improvement and commitment by public authorities to disclose information, it said in a statement. “On the part of the Commission it will strive to ensure that the spirit and intention of the legislature is upheld in a manner more..

Oct 22 (DM) Transparency International Sri Lanka (TISL) today expressed its concerns with regard to the perks approved by the Cabinet last week to be granted to President Maithripala Sirisena and urged the Cabinet to revoke its decision while citing it as a clear case of conflict of interest. TISL Executive Director Asoka Obeyesekere said the timing of the decision when the President was still in office and more..

Oct 23 (CT) Someone asked “There are sudden arrests taking place in Malaysia and Sri Lanka of those sympathetic to the Tiger cause. How do you see them?” My response was: A dangerous question to answer. Anything said sympathetic towards those arrested or suspected could be used against me too since I am a politician now. So let me tell something that happened in my judicial life. When I was the High Court Judge of Colombo a person was brought before me as a dangerous suspect. more..

Oct 23 (CT) By declaring that a govt under his Presidency would not honour the incumbent's commitments to the UNHRC and co-sponsored resolutions on war crimes probe, that too in his much-watched maiden Media meet as Prez candidate, war-time Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa may have sent out a clearer message to his campaign managers than his very nomination may have entailed already. The instruction for them seems that they should forget the SLT votes more..

Oct 23 (Roar) The congregation at the Zion Evangelical Church in Batticaloa on Easter Sunday morning had only one thing in mind: worshiping their resurrected Lord and Savior. But in a fleeting moment, an explosion ripped through the concrete and steel, killing thirty-one. Fifteen were children. The simultaneous attack on churches across the country left the Christian and Catholic community shaken: Why were they targeted? more..

Oct 23 (CT) Any lawyer who has made it to the peak of his profession carries with him the authoritative air of having achieved the highest intellectual capacity to build up a case on hard evidence and presenting it cogently, logically, rationally to persuade his audience, court, forum, etc., of the unshakeable truth on which the case is based. But there are, of course, exceptions to this rule. C.V. Wigneswaran,(CVW) former Supreme Court Judge and later Chief Minister of Jaffna, is one of them. more..

Oct 23 (Island) A report in The Island of Oct 18, 2019 titled SL would be subjected to Universal jurisdiction unless allegations were probed, cites Minister Mangala Samaraweera as having "warned of dire consequences unless accountability allegations leveled against Lankan military were properly investigated". The issue is what is meant by the statement: properly investigating accountability allegations. If Minister Samaraweera means that a proper investigation of the accountability more..

Oct 23 (CT) The sudden decision to ban motorcycles from entering the Dehiwala flyover has not only left people wondering why this move was taken, but also has them questioning whether this rule will be enforced for other flyovers, including those at Nugegoda, Dematagoda and Kelaniya. The Police instilled the ban a week ago, citing the increase in motorcycle-related accidents on the Dehiwala flyover, and explained that more..

Oct 23 (DN) Sri Lanka, has a total land area of 65,610 km2. The maritime zone of Sri Lanka is inhabited by 30 species of marine mammals in monsoon scrub jungle in the northwest and southeast, monsoon forest and grassland, inter monsoon forest, rain forests and grasslands. Dry forests, savanna and grasslands are the three major natural terrestrial vegetation types found in the dry land. Four percent of the country’s land area is covered by water. more..

Oct 23 (DN) Today a few people can cause immense sadness, create confusion and disorder in many people’s lives. Some trade union leaders not only of the transport sectors but also among school principals, teachers, doctors and medical specialists have turned out to be of a very low social consciousness. Medical Officers for example are surfacing problems of political strategies in view of elections. They are propagandizing consciousness of their over-blown problems as if they had more..

Oct 23 (CT) A petition has been filed in Supreme Court, seeking issuance of a directive to the Govt, to take measures to withdraw from the UNHRC Resolution it co-sponsored in Sept 2015, titled Promoting Reconciliation, Accountability and Human Rights in SL. The petitioner claimed that his fundamental rights were violated due to the Govt co-sponsoring the Resolution. Respondents included former Foreign Minister, Mangala Samaraweera and Foreign Secretary, Ravinatha Aryasinha. more..

Oct 23 (Island) Many govt employees seem to be on strike (7 Oct), principally asking for higher wages, euphemistically called correcting salary anomalies. Whom are trade unions and their political masters trying to fool? It is legendary that many employees of govt are grossly inefficient, incorrigibly corrupt and habitually lethargic. (My apologies to the many that are none of these.) For a population of a little over 22 million, we employ somewhat more than 1.4 million in the public service, more..

Oct 23 (ST) Cricket is known as the Gentlemen’s game, as it’s played, predominantly, by men, but, the women’s game has also grown in importance over the last few years. Cricketers such as Charlotte Edwards of England and Suzie Bates of NZ are 2 prominent personalities who were role models that took the Women’s game forward. Similarly, Sri Lanka’s Chamari Atapattu is one of the finest cricketers in SL women’s cricket history more..

Oct 23 (Island) In every house, in every village, in every town, at every gathering, meeting (public or otherwise) one topic dominates the conversation. Who will win the Presidential race! It has got so bad that one hostess recently greeted her guests with, No talk on politics till AFTER dinner. I think it is fairly true to say that people have already made up their minds as to their choice. The floating vote is not doing much floating these days as far as I can see. What I find really upsetting more..

Oct 23 (Island) PM Ranil Wickremesinghe has said the people are free to question politicians, without fearing reprisal, unlike in the past. True, there have been instances where people even booed and hissed some ruling party politicians at public rallies, without being harmed. If such incidents had occurred in the past, hecklers would have been taken away in white vans and each one of them made to regret the day he was born. A wag says that under the previous regime, too, the people, more..

Oct 23 (Island) Geological Survey & Mines Bureau (GSMB) had committed a serious offence by granting permission to Winkler International Pvt. Ltd. to export 294 MT of gold mixed soil, valued at USD 88,200 in July 2019, Director Mineral Titling of the GSMB, Hema Liyanarachchi admitted before the PCoI. It was revealed that in Aug 2017, Managing Director of Winkler Int'l had written to the head of GSMB, more..

Oct 23 (Island) Dharmaraja College Cricket Foundation held a felicitation ceremony during Rajans Cricket at the Grand Kandyan hotel recently, where three cricketing personalities were recognised for their great contribution for the school and beyond. From the three recipients, two were honoured with awards of appreciation for their yeomen services as cricket officials of Dharmaraja College while the other was presented with an award of achievement for excelling in more..

Oct 23 (DN) Sri Lanka Netball team emerged champions at the inaugural South Asian under 16 Netball Championship concluded yesterday at the Army Sports Complex in Kathmandu, Nepal. In the final SL team led by Nethmi Wijenayake defeated India 42/28 to take the South Asian crown. In the final SL team played with more confidence from the first quarter. In the first quarter both teams scored 8 points each but second and third quarters SL team dominated with a clear lead of 16/4 and 11/8. more..

Oct 23 (CT) Poultry farmers warn that they will take to the streets if the Govt imports eggs. Sources from the All Ceylon Egg Producers Association (ACEPA) said the Ministry of Agriculture should have discussed the issues faced by those engaged in the industry before taking such a decision. Secretary of the ACEPA, Ratnasiri Alahakoon said the cost of chicken feed and the required medication such as vitamins for more..

Oct 23 (FT) The Govt’s reforms to make Sri Lanka’s economy more trade-oriented are responsible for the country being placed among the top 20 Rising Stars in Global Trade, according to Minister Malik Samarawickrama. Sri Lanka was recently ranked 14th among 20 countries that demonstrate the Most rapidly improving potential for trade growth in a report titled Trade 20: Rising Stars in Global Trade by international banking giant Standard Chartered. SL has been recognised for excelling in more..

Oct 23 (TM) After Thilanga Sumathipala was banned by the Sports Ministry last week from any involvement with the cricket administration, former Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) President Jayantha Dharmadasa is to be appointed to the SLC Executive Committee, replacing Sumathipala, SLC sources said. The Sports Ministry banned Sumathipala following the ICC’s latest restrictions on persons with connection to the bookmaking industry. Sumathipala was part of the SLC Ex-Co more..

Oct 23 (SLN) The Galle Dialogue International Maritime Conference 2019, organized by the Sri Lanka Navy under the auspices of the Ministry of Defence, brought down the curtains on its 10th edition at the Galle Face Hotel in Colombo today (22). This year’s conference held under the theme Refining Mindset to Address Transnational Maritime Threats; A Review of the Decade was attended by representatives of 55 countries, more..

Oct 23 (FT) Norwegian Ambassador Trine Jøranli Eskedal visited Kandy on 17-18 of Oct. Ambassador Eskedal was the Chief Guest at the 7th convocation of SL Int'l Buddhist Academy (SIBA), which was established with Norwegian funding ten years ago. She also visited the Sacred Temple of the Tooth and paid respects to Chief Prelate of Asgiriya chapter Ven. Warakagoda Gnanarathana Thero, Chief Prelate of Malwatta chapter Ven. Thibbotuwawe Sri Sumangala Maha Nayaka Thero, and more..

Oct 23 (AD) A cordial meeting between President Maithripala Sirisena and former Japanese PM Yasuo Fukuda has taken place this morning (22). The Prez, who is in Japan for a 3-day official visit, was visited by the former Japanese Premier while he is in Tokyo. He left for Japan yesterday (21) to participate in the coronation ceremony of Emperor Naruhito at the invitation of the Japanese Govt. Former Japanese Ambassador to SL Kenichi Suganuma also visited Prez Sirisena alongside more..

Oct 23 (CI) Kumar Sangakkara could return to Pakistan for the first time since the Lahore attacks 10 years ago, this time as MCC president. Sangakkara was part of the Sri Lanka touring team that was attacked by terrorists on the way to Gaddafi stadium for the third day's play in March 2009, an attack that effectively spelt the end of int'l cricket being played in the country. He has not made a public return since but in his new role as more..

Oct 23 (DM) Victory for the SLPP at next month’s presidential election would result to the dissolution of the SLFP founded by late PM S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike, SLFP Kalutara District MP Kumara Welgama said. He said it was the utmost duty of the SLFP members to protect the party without it being destroyed, adding that he would neither support Gotabaya Rajapaksa nor Sajith Premadasa. “The decision to support the SLPP itself is a betrayal of the SLFP,” MP Welgama said. more..

Oct 23 (DN) Sri Lanka and Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela will sign an agreement for exemption of visa requirements between the two countries to facilitate travel and to promote people to people contact and tourism. This is subsequent to a visit made by State Minister of Foreign Affairs Vasantha Senanayake to Venezuela on an invitation of the Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Venezuela Ruben Dario Molina with a view to renew and promote closer cooperation between SL & Venezuela. more..

Oct 23 (USE) Maker Fair 2019 drew more than 7,000 people to Colombo’s Trace Expert City and showcased aspiring inventors, innovators, and entrepreneurs from across Sri Lanka. The event, hosted by the U.S. Embassy and the American Center, featured more than 60 exhibitors and presenters, 50 corporate and 11 university partners, and more than 150 youth volunteers. It also featured over 130 robotics teams who competed in more..

Oct 23 (DM) Access Engineering PLC plans to set up an 8-storey car park in the land plot adjoining Access Tower 1 and 2, after discovering the legal barriers to move ahead with the proposed Rs.8 billion Access Tower 3 office building. Cabinet in Sept, last year, approved the proposal to award the bid to lease a 114.56 perch land owned by the UDA to Access Realties Ltd, a fully-owned subsidiary of Access Engineering, for little over Rs.1.1 billion, under a 99-yr lease, for development project. more..

Oct 23 (NR) DMC says the spill gates of several reservoirs will continue to remain open due to incessant rain experienced in several areas. Landslide warnings issued in several districts remains in place. Residents of Eheliyagoda, Kuruwita, Ratnapura, Balangoda, Imbulpe and Opanayake of Ratnapura District, residents of Bulathsinhala, Agalawatte, Walallawita, Palindanuwara, Dodangoda, Ingiriya, Matugama, Horana, Beruwala, Kalutara and Panadura of more..

Oct 23 (FT) Backing SLPP prez candidate Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s economic policies, SLFP said his proposed tax reductions, which include reducing VAT to just 8% from the current 15%, can be achieved by reducing public expenditure. Gotabaya Rajapaksa, outlining his plans for developing the economy, had stated several times during campaign rallies that he will reduce VAT to 8% to increase the purchasing power of citizens. more..

Oct 23 (FT) Council for Business with Britain (CBB) of the Chamber of Commerce has announced that it will be hosting a fundraising event at the Shangri-La Hotel tomorrow. The event hopes to raise money for its English Language Training (ELT) program, which is run in conjunction with the British Council, and will be graced by the presence of the newly-appointed British HC Sarah Hulton. Tickets are now available for purchase, and donors will have the coveted opportunity of meeting cricket legend more..

Oct 23 (CT) Out of the country's total population, around three million are known to consume alcohol. Alcohol & Drug Information Centre (ADIC) said the total consumption of arrack and beer last year had exceeded a staggering 6.4 million litres. ADIC sources said of the men aged over 18, 35% are known to consume hard liquor and that a single person who is into drinking alcohol is known to consume 19 litres of liquor annually. They said this figure compared to rest of the world is high. more..

Oct 23 (Island) Dimitra Ioannou, Deputy Chief Observer, EU Election Observation Mission, said that the EU mission couldn’t intervene in case an attempt was made to discourage the voters in the Northern and Eastern provinces from exercising their franchise. Ioannou said so in response to the query what action the EU could take to ensure the people received an opportunity to exercise their franchise in support of more..

Oct 23 (AD) Secretary to the President Udaya Seneviratne has issued a statement urging the general public not to be alarmed by the false and distorted statements that claim there is an imminent threat of terrorism in the country. He has further stated that the security forces have taken measures to ensure the security of governmental institutions, other places of national importance and the general public. The statement of Mr. Seneviratne stated that in the aftermath of Easter Sunday attacks, more..

Oct 23 (Island) Prez candidate of NDF Dr. Rohan Pallewatte, addressing a rally in Matara, said the country urgently needed at least 10 billion USD to address the present precarious economic situation facing it. Pallewatte said that he had already negotiated with foreign investors to invest at least 4 billion USD in the country. "Corruption which was rampant during the past two regimes has led to loss of investor confidence that contributed to the present economic woes," more..

Oct 23 (Reuters) SL’s appointment of a war veteran accused of serious human rights violations as head of its army will significantly curtail U.S. security cooperation with the country, U.S. officials said on Tuesday. SL’s prez appointed Shavendra Silva as its army chief in August, drawing sharp criticism from the United States and the United Nations. A U.N. panel has accused the division Silva commanded of extrajudicial executions of more..