May 12 (SLN) 118 inmates consists of 98 in Sampoor and 20 in Oluvil Naval quarantine centers who were undergoing quarantine period, left the centers after completion of their quarantine process, on 08th May 2020. The 98 inmates who left the quarantine center established at HQ premises of Naval Marine Force in Sampoor, are residents of Gunasinghepura, Dam Street, Grand Pass and Nagalagam Street in Colombo. Twenty (20) inmates who left Oluvil Naval quarantine center, more..

May 12 (AD) The people’s contribution in the process of restoring normalcy to civilian life is not satisfactory, says DIG Ajith Rohana. He said that public behavior, no matter how well they had been informed, was not up to satisfaction. In some instances people were observed behaving without respect to any form of quarantine regulation, he added. He said that public has not paid adequate attention to maintaining the social distance. more..

May 12 (EN) Sri Lanka has sold 35 billion rupees in 2023 and 2028 bonds after offering 50 billion rupees at the auction, data from the state debt office showed. The debt office sold 30 billion rupees in 2-year, 8-month bonds maturing on January 15, 2023 after offering 30 billion. The debt office also sold 5.605 billion rupees of 8-year 2 month bonds maturing 01 July 2028 at 8.85 percent after offering 20 billion rupees. Though bonds were under sold, there were no maturities. more..

May 12 (Island) President of Joint Council for Professionals of Supplementary Medicine, Ravi Kumudesh, said that govt labs had the capacity to conduct 2000 PCR tests a day and that there was no reason to outsource PCR tests to other institutions. He said that those institutions had issued around 1000 erroneous test reports and that govt labs had to redo the tests. "State has about 11 labs and they can do 2000 PCR tests a day, but they are not receiving adequate samples. more..

May 12 (DM) European Commission has de-listed Sri Lanka from its list of High Risk Third Countries with Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism Strategic Deficiencies published on May 7, the Central Bank said today. Sri Lanka was listed as a high risk third country by the EU in February 2018, subsequent to SL being identified by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) as a jurisdiction with more..

May 12 (Island) Muslims, in SL, should stay away from shopping and mass gatherings the way fellow countrymen, following other faiths, acted during their festivities, and should act as responsible citizens, Mosque trustees said yesterday. All mosques will be kept closed, even after the curfew is lifted, until the Wakf board of Sri Lanka gives Mosque authorities the permission to open. Therefore, all Mosques, countrywide, would be kept closed, including the burial grounds, except for funerals, more..

May 12 (AD) 23 more patients who had been receiving treatment for coronavirus infection are reported to have completely recovered from the illness. Accordingly, they have been discharged from their respective hospitals. The number of COVID-19 recoveries recorded in the country stands at 366 cases. A total of 869 COVID-19 cases have been reported in the country so far. The number of active cases currently under medical care at hospitals across the island is at 494. more..

May 12 (PMD) President Gotabaya Rajapaksa tells officials to focus on rapid development of several main cities in the country including Colombo. A discussion centered on infrastructure and urban development was held at the Presidential Secretariat yesterday with the participation of Ministry Secretaries, officials of the entities affiliated to the UDA, RDA, BoI and SLPA. President said that more..

May 12 (AD) Police says that 52,126 individuals have been arrested so far for violating the curfew imposed to prevent the spread of Covid-19. Police Spokesman stated that the Police has submitted information to courts regarding 9,783 of them. Cases have been filed against 5,212 curfew violators so far. Meanwhile a total of 13,594 vehicles were taken into police custody over curfew violations. 10,366 of those vehicles have been handed over back to the owners of vehicles pending legal action. more..

May 12 (FT) A group of Sri Lankans in Bangladesh have written to Prez, seeking Govt assistance for them to return to the country. The group, consisting of SL expatriates in Bangladesh, includes families and few short-term visitors, who were in the country mostly for business purposes. “When the flights into SL were stopped from 19-25 March, most of us had purchased our air tickets; and those who were on short visits with return tickets adjusted the tickets to return soon after the resumption of flights on more..

May 12 (TM) Ministry of Defence (MOD) issuing a media statement vehemently denied media reports claiming the Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) is refraining from providing information about its Covid-18 infected sailors to health authorities. “Since the identification of SLN’s first coronavirus-infected naval person on Apr 22, Navy has been expanded PCR tests for naval personnel who are performing duties at Welisara Naval Complex” more..

May 12 (MFA) Minister Dinesh Gunawardena conveyed his deep appreciation to the Cuban Govt for the support extended through the dispatch of a Cuban medical team to the Republic of Haiti to attend to the medical needs of Sri Lankans employed in Haiti. He conveyed these sentiments during a meeting with the Cuban Ambassador in SL Juana Elena Ramos Rodriguez on Tuesday 12 May at the Foreign Ministry. The five-member medical team was dispatched by Cuban authorities more..

May 12 (FT) Uber yesterday in partnership with the Govt launched its new service, UberMedic, to offer free rides worth Rs. 8.5 million to transport frontline healthcare workers to and from their homes and health care facilities. The service will be live in two leading Colombo public hospitals, Infectious Diseases Hospital (IDH) and the National Hospital of Sri Lanka (NHSL), where Uber will expedite the provision of 26 cars free of cost to support medical authorities. more..

May 12 (AD) Ministry of Transport has decided to permit buses and trains to transport passengers according to the number of seats, in the districts where the curfew has been lifted. Subject Minister Mahinda Amaraweera, today, discussed regularizing transport services to private and state sector employees with relevant authorities. Provincial transport authorities, ministry officials, and representatives of public transport unions more..

May 12 (CT) Officials from the Railways Department said that though they had operated 10 trains for officer workers to head to Colombo yesterday (11), only a handful of commuters had travelled in those trains. On a train that had been operated from Beliatta, only a solitary commuter had travelled in it. On a train that had been operated from Chilaw, eight commuters had travelled, while 35 passengers had boarded a train that had passed through Meerigama. Out of the 10 office trains more..

May 12 (AD) Dr. Anil Jasinghe confirmed that seven new cases of Covid-19 have been identified bringing the total number of cases reported in the country to 879. He stated that 10 patients had tested positive for the virus so far today (12). Nine of them are navy personnel while the other was reported from the Kandakadu quarantine center. This brings the total number of cases reported in Sri Lanka as of today to 879. A total of 504 of these patients are currently under medical care more..

May 12 (DM) Taking into consideration the reopening of economic activity in the world followed by easing of some travel restrictions between countries, SriLankan Airlines is now offering services to passengers who are eligible to travel under the respective country travel advisories to London, Tokyo (Narita) Melbourne and Hong Kong and beyond. Accordingly, passengers who wish to travel to these destinations or more..

May 12 (DM) President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has highlighted the importance of conducting random sample PCR tests in areas where people frequent regularly, the PMD said. Speaking at the meeting of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 Prevention, the President said random PCR tests should be carried out in buses and at markets and construction sites. He also said people visiting such places needed to be enlightened on COVID-19 preventive measures. more..

May 12 (EN) A CID investigation has begun into a fake press release written on a Presidential Secretariat letterhead offering allowances and handouts to Sri Lankans overseas who are facing financial difficulties due to the COVID 19 pandemic. Director-General of Media in the Prez Secretariat Mohan Samaranayake said that the letter was a fake, and no person of the name who is purported to have signed the release works in the Secretariat. “We have lodged a complaint with the CID more..

May 12 (EN) Opposition JVP is committed to seeing a controversial cabinet memorandum repealed. Former JVP MP Sunil Handunnetti filed a formal complaint at the Election Commission (NEC) on Sunday (10) against an alleged decision to allow state ministers to use their official vehicles for campaign activities in the upcoming parliamentary election – for a fee. He said EC must intervene in this total violation of its recommendations. more..

May 13 (CT) The cockup of transport arrangements and of curfew relaxation on Monday (11) could have cost Gotabaya Rajapaksa the expected election walkover. Exasperation has not come to the point where those who voted for him last time will all switch to Sajith or Ranil – a waste of time – but what I hearing in the last three days from people at the grassroots is, api chende dena yanne naha; mahataya balanna, godak kattya me sare chande denne natha. (We won’t go to vote; more..

May 13 (DM) Last Saturday’s Daily Mirror on-line picture spoke a lot; Galle Face devoid of visitors—how it has taken a lush green colour as it was before 1970s. Will it, as the paper speculates, ‘Once the people are allowed to resume work from Monday even amidst curfew in Colombo, it is likely that the Galle Face Green will change its colour back to brown as it would be filled with visitors’? The curfew imposed in Colombo for seven weeks, it stood as firm as ever; it was an eyesore for decades, more..

May 13 (Roar) During most crises, the effects felt are uneven. The repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic have been twofold; a direct result of the crisis as well as the state's response to it. While the lockdown has been a measure implemented to mitigate the threat of COVID-19, it has produced unintended consequences and circumstances that are yet to be addressed. In Sri Lanka, efforts to control more..

May 13 (DM) 17 European nations have pledged to make climate change a part of their economic and social recovery agenda of the coronavirus pandemic. With six European nations making it to the top seven Coronavirus hit countries, Europe certainly is in dire straits. Despite the health crisis, these nations made it a point to insist that the most important theme of the survival of the human civilization – climate change - is included in their recovery plans. more..

May 13 (CT) I had to pinch myself to believe the Daily Mirror online news item just out (12 May) announcing European Commission de-lists SL from High Risk Third countries with Anti-Money Laundering (EU de-lists Sri Lanka) This is the last thing one expected from the EU in the present post-Covid-19 context where SL has thrown caution to the wind in the pursuit of foreign remittances at any cost. The EU did not deem it appropriate to even remove SL from the BLACKLIST it issued more..

May 13 (DM) Daily Mirror spoke to the Consultant Physician Dr. Eranga Narangoda of the National Institute of Infectious Diseases (NIID) Angoda, the premier Infectious Diseases Hospital in the country, to discuss COVID-19 pandemic. Q: Do you think SL has passed the peak situation of COVID-19 pandemic by now? A: I don’t think so. There was a small peak situation last week with the detection of many cases within more..

May 13 (CT) Sri Lanka was placed at the bottom half in six indicators pertaining to ADB ratings vis-a-vis contract awards, uncontracted projects, disbursements, on track, undisbursed amounts and implementation risks, respectively, data on an ADB publication in respect of the progress of ADB-funded projects, with reference to South Asia, last year, and released last Wednesday (6), showed. With regard to contract awards, Sri Lanka was placed 5th with a score of 28%. more..

May 13 (CT) At the all-party ex-MPs' meeting summoned by Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, the TNA delegation reportedly sought a meeting with the former. Well, so went some media reports, picked up in turn by a section of the social media. If true, it is the most welcome development from a national perspective in the midst of the unprecedented COVID-19 crisis on the one hand and the equally unanticipated poll-postponement & claims to an impending constitutional crisis. more..

May 13 (Island) The govt-driven effort to manage the spread of COVID-19 in SL has highlighted the terrible reality of a large proportion of people in this country who are unable to withstand socio-economic shocks created by the pandemic. With restrictions on movement, a necessary measure given the need of the hour, daily wage workers are without an income. Restriction on market activity is posing difficulties to farmers, fisherfolk and self-employed individuals who struggle to sell their produce more..

May 13 (Island) Politicians make trips to the CIABOC when they are badly in need of political mileage. Following the 2015 regime change, newly elected UNF MPs went, in processions with television crews in tow, almost daily, to make complaints against their rivals; their pilgrimages came to an abrupt end when the lid was blown off the Treasury bond scams. A group of former UPFA MPs, who are currently in the SLPP, went to the CIABOC office, on Monday, to inquire about more..

May 13 (TM) Work is to resume tomorrow (11) islandwide and although many will still continue to work from home, a section of the workforce will report to work and follow the health guidelines issued by the Ministry of Health. While the general public is beginning to ease into the new normal of life amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, some sections of the political sphere of the country are more eager to prepare for the parliamentary more..

May 13 (ST) Even as petitions are collected and hands are rightfully wrung for redress regarding the arrest and detention of attorney Hejaaz Hisbullah, it is timely to recall (despite a tad unkindly) that if the attempt to push through SL’s draft Counter-Terror Act had succeeded at the height of the yahapalanaya years, abuse of civil liberties in these covid-fearful times would have been a hundred fold worse. What is unfolding before us is a grotesque caricature of constitutional safeguards. more..

May 13 (ST) Tomorrow morn over six million people in Colombo and three other districts will officially enjoy the freedom of the streets even though they are officially padlocked at home under a 24/7 curfew that seems to never end. In the manner Buddhist hold on to a soul, no soul concept to explain exactly what is reborn when present existence comes to an end, the Lankans perforce must cling to a ‘curfew, no curfew’ policy depending on the governmental mood to decide whether or not to more..

May 13 (ST) SL cricketers could resume their training as early as next Friday (15), a few days after lockdown restrictions are eased, but are unlikely to feature in any international cricket until September this year. Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC), together with its coaching staff and doctors from the Institute of Sports Medicine, has drawn up an exit strategy with a residential training camp proposed to bring cricketers back to action in preparation more..

May 13 (ST) Leading referees in Sri Lanka are admitting the fact that the lack of quality Referee Coaches or Educators is the main reason for the drop in standards which void Bandara Wekadapola of the London Society Rugby Football Union Referees (LSRFUR) is trying to fill albeit as an uninvited guest. “Coaches are those who have experience as a referee. There are no individual coaches here. I get different coaches every week,” said a top referee. more..

May 13 (DN) Colombo High Court will deliver its judgement today regarding the revision application filed by the Attorney General challenging the Colombo Chief Magistrate’s order to grant bail on Minister Rajitha Senaratne in connection with the controversial White Van Press Conference. When the matter was yesterday taken up before High Court Judge Manjula Thillekaratne, announced that the judgement will be delivered today. On Jan 21, Colombo HC decided to formally issue more..

May 13 (TM) Private sector businesses will immediately start paying their employees on a prorated basis following an agreement reached with the Govt last week, according to The Employers’ Federation of Ceylon (EFC). Under this new system, employers will not have to pay the full salary to an employee who hasn’t been required to report to the workplace or work from home. more..

May 13 (TM) Shares of the leading listed banks and premier blue chip John Keells Holdings (JKH) closed trading below the Rs. 100 mark at the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) yesterday for the first time since the end of the war in 2009. This rare sight was mainly possible due to JKH falling 12.14% from the Rs. 107.10 close on Monday to close at Rs. 94.10 yesterday. It was supported by Sampath Bank, which was the highest valued banking stock on Monday at Rs.100, closing at Rs.99.90 more..

May 13 (DN) The ICC has announced the postponement of two further qualifying events due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier and the ICC U19 Cricket World Cup Qualifier Europe Division 2. As part of the ICC’s comprehensive contingency planning process and after consultation with Members and with the relevant government and public health authorities, the decision has been taken to postpone the qualifier to ICC Women’s Cricket WC 2021 more..