Oct 12 (DM) One male residing at the On320 apartment complex at Union place tested positive for COVID-19 late on Sunday night and was immediately transferred to the IDH hospital. As a result, movement has been limited into the apartment complex and health officials said that PCR tests will be conducted on all residents in the coming days. The families and individuals residing in this apartment complex include more..

Oct 12 (AN) SL’s Ambassador-Designate to Saudi Arabia Hilmy Careem said that he intends to promote two-way trade, tourism, and export of skilled workforce to the Kingdom once he assumes office in Riyadh. “There is a strong need to strengthen bilateral relations through the exchange of high-level visits between the two countries. This will be my priority,” Careem said. The 70-year-old former mayor of Matale was named as SL’s new ambassador to Saudi Arabia by President more..

Oct 12 (Splash) Earlier this year Nalaka Jayakody was appointed vice chancellor and CEO at Northshore International Campus, a prestigious higher education institute based in Colombo. As the first and only Sri Lankan master mariner to obtain a doctorate and become a professor, Jayakody is determined to get more of his fellow country men and women working at sea. Sri Lanka, as an island nation has a rich maritime heritage, yet its global seafaring footprint is small. more..

Oct 12 (EN) Sri Lanka’s Department of Health Services is saying the strain of the Covid virus that is spreading in the country right now is highly virulent and the General Public must take extra care to safeguard themselves. Dept’s spokesman Dr Jayaruwan Bandara said that Medical Researchers have concluded that the strain is easily spread and urged the public to strictly adhere to the Health guidelines. more..

Oct 13 (ST) The recent controversies raised by the two international rating agencies, Fitch and Moody’s, have once again focused attention on our debt sustainability. Is SL’s foreign debt sustainable? Are we in a foreign debt trap? SL’s foreign debt is estimated at US$ 56 billion, which is about 86% of GDP. Next year’s debt repayment obligations are about US$ 4.5 billion and about this amount is due in the following years. The country’s foreign reserves were US$ seven billion at the end of August. more..

Oct 13 (ST) Fascinated by the inventive genius of the Consumer Affairs Authority, Sri Lankans are now armed with the additional burden of a measuring tape. This is in the event that a delectable looking coconut or two carried home might pacify the beguiling boss in the kitchen. They now wonder what round thing will next fall prey to the thinkers at CAA. It appears that some are still trying to trace who was responsible for this great idea. It was only the other day, as it were, that our amateur sleuths, more..

Oct 13 (CT) Sri Lanka saw a sudden surge in COVID-19 cases from September and with that, the plight of the garment workers came into the limelight, once again, with some alarming exposure on how they were treated during these COVID-19 times. Govt and the management of the concerned garment factory, where the COVID-19 emerged, should take the responsibility and curtail the frightening situation before SL turns out more..

Oct 13 (CT) The mothers, fathers, relatives of the missing are on the streets for more than 1340 days on sit-in protest demanding to know the whereabouts of their loved ones. They are holding EU, US & UN Flags and the pictures of their loved ones missing. The successive Govts have failed to take any action and the most expected Office of the Missing Persons [OMP] is now defunct after the new regime of Rajapaksas, although the OMP is toothless with no powers to prosecute charge more..

Oct 13 (CT) Recently, Sri Lanka woke up to official publication of a draft constitutional amendment that will give the Executive President, the power to dissolve parliament and also offer him full immunity against prosecution. Under the proposed new amendment, there will be no separation of powers, and appointment of members from the Judicial Service Commission to the Police Service Commission will be done by the Chief Executive, which is not a sign of a healthy democracy. more..

Oct 13 (TM) Although Sri Lanka passed its Protection of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act in 1996, 24 years later we still don’t see any progress in making public spaces and institutions accessible to persons with disabilities (PwDs). Increasing disability access is important in increasing employability of PwDs in an effective manner, thereby garnering their contribution to the national economy. more..

Oct 13 (DM) Recently the govt has taken three important decisions on matters that seriously affect the ordinary people’s lives. First, Prez Rajapaksa announced that the building plans must be approved within a week, if the applicant has fulfilled requirements. And then he said that the medical test for driving licence should be confined only to eye tests. Explaining the third decision minister Keheliya Rambukwella recently said that Cabinet has discussed relieving the parents from more..

Oct 13 (DM) The largest cluster of corona patients in the country might not have been detected, had not Pradeepika Ratnayaka, who fell sick in the Brandix apparel plant in Minuwangoda, insisted to be taken to hospital. Mother-of-four had suffered repeated complications and was treated by an in-house doctor in the facility. In her words, her employer was keener in meeting the deadline of an export order than caring for a drove of female workers who fell sick during weeks leading to her illness. more..

Oct 13 (Island) The US and its allies are weeping buckets for Sri Lanka, which, they say, is losing its sovereignty owing to its heavy dependence on Chinese loans. They want Sri Lanka to break free from what they call the Chinese debt trap. They are proffering loads of advice, but will not loosen their purse strings to help the victim. What Sri Lanka needs most at this juncture is financial assistance, and certainly not advice. Will Washington grant Colombo a soft loan without asking for land, more..

Oct 13 (CT) Alea iacta est (The die is cast), was Emperor Julius Caesar’s famous words when he crossed the Rubicon in 40 BC to take on the onerous responsibility of being in charge of the Roman Empire, which borders extended up to the fringes of Scotland to the North, to Portugal to the West, to Egypt to the South and to Iraq to the East, respectively. Alea iacta est may also be applicable to Prez Rajapaksa, after the Supreme Court recently ruled that the 20th Amendment (20A) more..

Oct 13 (TM) The new cluster of coronavirus infections, which has been spreading across SL, and its ramifications may prove fatal to some companies in the local events industry, according to industry leaders. According to Event Management Association (EMA) Vice President Kamesh Malwana, event management companies are back in the deep-end due to the cancellations that took place following the most recent outbreak. more..

Oct 13 (TM) The coronavirus crisis will lead to long-lasting revenue losses for emerging market (EM) economies, with those already struggling to increase their tax intake before the pandemic, such as Ethiopia (B2 Negative), Sri Lanka (Caa1 Stable), and Pakistan (B3 Stable), facing additional hurdles, Moody’s Investors Service said in a report yesterday (12). “In Sri Lanka, despite the implementation of the Inland Revenue Act in 2018 and other reforms to improve overall tax administration, more..

Oct 13 (CT) SL Institute of Marketing (SLIM) conducted its first teacher training programme for the Provincial and Zonal Directors of Education recently, at its Business School. The training programme witnessed the participation of 103 directors. The website was launched to link 1,800 schools to the School Entrepreneurship Society. To enhance the education sector, SLIM collaborated with the Education Ministry to provide training programmes to the authorities, to extend more..

Oct 13 (ST) Two years ago, they were different individuals fighting their own battles as girls and women from traditional families in the fishing village of Arugam Bay, more popular among foreigners as the best surfing point in SL. With Arugam Bay winning world recognition as one of the surfing destinations since the end of the three-decade long civil war in 2010, these females would either play a supporting role in a different more..

Oct 13 (DN) Chamari Atapattu and Shashikala Siriwardene will represent the Supernovas Team at the third edition of the Women’s T20 Challenge Cricket Tournament, which begins on Nov 4 in the UAE. Atapattu and Siriwardena will have a great opportunity to prove their potential while competing against some of the top players representing England, SA, WI, Bangladesh and NZ. In addition, Natthakan Chantham, who hasbeen named in the Trailblazers Squad, becomes the first more..

Oct 13 (CT) Dimo Southern Warriors and Super Fashion North Warriors entered the final of the inaugural Army Commander’s T20 League tournament conducted by SL Army Cricket Committee at the Army grounds Dombagoda yesterday. Both teams topped the points table with three wins each. The last match of the first round was between Melbn Western Warriors and Prima Stella Eastern Warriors. Game got off to a late start and was restricted to 16 overs per side. more..

Oct 13 (CT) Samagi Vanitha Balavegaya (SVB), an organisation deeply committed for the protection and promotion of women’s rights, expressed its concern over the Govt’s recent instructions on “reducing the number of days of maternity leave, which has been a basic right affirmed by several Acts of Law and existed for nearly 80 years.” SVB issuing a press communiqué said: We condemn all attempts to reverse more..

Oct 13 (FT) SriLankan Airlines has been voted among Best International Airlines in the popular and influential CondeNast Traveller 2020 Readers’ Choice Awards. Sri Lanka’s national carrier was placed sixth in the survey in which Singapore Airlines came on top followed by Emirates and Qatar Airways. The CondeNast said SriLankan has built a strong following among fliers who appreciate its comfy business class seats, attentive cabin crew and flavourful in-flight meals. more..

Oct 13 (FT) American Chamber of Commerce in SL is pleased to announce in collaboration with USAID, the launch of Tradeshifts 2020: Opportunities for sL from global supply chain shifts. This initiative of the AmCham SL, supported by USAID will engage with the larger business community, other industry chambers, consulting groups and the Government of SL in creating and implementing a strategy to attract US-led businesses that are seeking to re-locate or diversify across Asia given the current trends more..

Oct 13 (NIA) In the determination on the 20th Constitution Amendment Bill leaked to the Sunday Times, Supreme Court has let the basic structure of the proposed 20A bill remain unaffected while making a referendum necessary in the case of four relatively minor provisions. Court’s determination suits the govt because its basic requirements have been met. And the govt has already expressed its readiness to entertain more..

Oct 13 (NIA) SL govt will not bend to the US on the issue of the Millennium Challenges Corporation Compact (MCC) or the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) when the US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visits for talks with Lankan leaders, a top govt source said. “The Gunaruwan committee appointed by President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa had gone into the MCC compact and has suggested that it be renegotiated to make it compatible with the Sri Lankan constitution and law. more..

Oct 13 (Island) SL Athletics is in two minds with regard to conducting the Junior National Athletics Championship as the number of Covid 19 positive cases has increased dramatically during the last few days. If it is held, the major junior event which was scheduled for November will be the only track and field event to be conducted for junior athletes this year. If it is not, hundreds of junior athletes who have endured unprecedented challenges in continuing the sport this year are likely to be without a single more..

Oct 13 (FT) The employees of export processing zones (EPZs) from curfew areas started to report to work yesterday after curfew passes were arranged for them by authorities. Although the five Police Divisions of Minuwangoda, Divulapitiya, Mirigama, Veyangoda and Gampaha will continue to be kept under lockdown, Board of Investment (BOI) will allow curfew passes to employees from all other police divisions so that they can start work, more..

Oct 13 (TM) In the 13 years from 2007 to 2020, govts spent around Rs.1.6 trillion on the highways sector. This has been revealed in the latest performance report of the Ministry of Highways. The report further revealed that the highest amount of money was spent in 2017. As learnt by The Morning, the money was spent on highways, national highways and flyovers, and bridges on national highways, according to the Ministry of Roads and Highways’ 2019 Performance Report more..

Oct 13 (Island) If the 20th Amendment was to be acceptable, it should be passed like 19A with the entire House voting for it barring one, the National Peace Council (NPC) said, urging the govt to reconsider the clauses in the draft 20th Amendment. NPC said that some of the most respected civic organisations in the country, including clergy, trade unions, the State Auditors Association and the Bar Association have expressed their serious objections to the proposed constitutional amendment. more..

Oct 13 (TM) Free Trade Zones and General Services Employees’ Union (FTZ & GSEU) has urged the Govt to hold an independent inquiry into the present outbreak of Covid-19 at the Brandix factory in Minuwangoda. In a letter dated 11 Oct, written to Presidential Task Force on Covid-19 Chairman Lt. Gen. Shavendra Silva, FTZ & GSEU Joint Secretary Anton Marcus requested the appointment of a special investigation committee more..

Oct 13 (Island) Sri Lanka Cricket is confident that international cricket will resume in the country by January next year with SLC set to host England for two Test matches. The two Tests, part of the World Test Championship, were set to be played in March this year but the tour had to be postponed after the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic. England had been in Sri Lanka for around ten days when they were forced to return home ahead of the opening Test match in Galle. more..

Oct 13 (DM) Attorney General informed Colombo Chief Magistrate Mohamed Mihail that the Captain of the MT New Diamond ship was indicted in the Colombo High Court for polluting the seas belonging to SL. Magistrate Mihail made on considering the submissions of DSG Deleepa Pieris terminated the proceeding in Colombo Magistrate Court. Earlier the Magistrate had restrained the captain of the ship from leaving the country. However, it was not lifted and he was ordered to appear before more..

Oct 13 (FT) SJB MP and former State Minister for Finance Eran Wickramaratne, warned that steep declines in Govt revenue, high debt and contracting foreign reserves were setting the stage for a deepening economic crisis in SL, and called on the Govt to refrain from limiting the country’s funding options. He emphasised that the Govt should not alienate any sources, especially by moving closer to China, as it was imperative more..

Oct 13 (CT) The influence that MP Rishad Bathiudeen tried to exert on officers, who were conducting investigations into his brother Riyaj Bathiudeen, who was arrested by the CID in relation to the Easter Sunday attacks, have now been revealed through information contained in a voice tape. This tape includes all information about how MP Bathiudeen spoke daily to officers conducting investigations on his brother Riyaj Bathiudeen and in addition how he met heads of the CID and more..

Oct 13 (FT) Workers’ remittances in August have jumped by 28% from a year earlier to $ 664 million apart from increasing for the third consecutive month. Central Bank described the August growth as notable. It said this increase helped limit the cumulative decline in workers’ remittances to 1.5% to $ 4.34 billion during the period from January to August, in comparison to the corresponding period of 2019. In July remittances hit a record high of $ 702 million, up 12% from a year earlier. more..

Oct 13 (CT) Former PM Ranil Wickremesinghe had instructed the Ministers of the UNF led Govt not to act on the instructions given by me as Prez, said former Prez Maithripala Sirisena, testifying before the PCoI. An Additional Solicitor General (ASG) questioned the witness as to whether a discussion was held once a month with senior Police officers after the Ministry of Law and Order was taken over by the President in Dec 2018. more..

Oct 13 (DM) SJB said it decided to stop all public agitations against the proposed 20th Amendment due to the latest outbreak of COVID-19, MP Eran Wickramaratne said. He said the party would carry out its campaign against this piece of legislation via social media and the mainstream media. “We have cancelled the programmes planned earlier against the 20th Amendment and decided to confine our agitation campaign only to the platforms of social and mainstream media,” more..

Oct 13 (Island) Colombo High Court judge Adithya Patabendige, yesterday, issued summons on former Minister of Finance Ravi Karunanayake, and Perpetual Treasuries Limited (PTL) Beneficiary owner Arjun Aloysius to appear before the court on Nov 18. The summons was issued over a case filed by the CIABOC against them. On Sept 21, the CIABOC filed a case against Karunanayake and Aloysius on charges of leasing Monarch Residencies luxury penthouse at Kollupitiya. more..

Oct 13 (Island) SLPP Chairman and Minister Prof. G.L. Peiris said that, in addition to amendments proposed to the 20th Amendment during the Supreme Court hearing of the petitions filed against the new piece of legislation, govt was ready to introduce additional amendments in line with the SC ruling. Altogether 39 petitions were filed against the proposed Amendment submitted by Justice Minister Ali Sabry, PC. more..