Jul 26 (ST) To a protesting (Sinhalese) Stalin, (or for that matter, a Marx or Lenin), who is released along with comrades following public outrage and street anger after unjustifiable detention by the police using SL’s covid-19 health protocols, there are a hundred others who languish in squalid detention under the country’s savagely inhumane anti-terrorism laws. We know of two cases perhaps, one a lawyer, Hejaaz Hizbullah and the other, Ahnaf Jazeem a poet, both of Muslim ethnicity, both accused of hate more..

Jul 26 (CT) It has been reported recently that the govt is intending to bring the proposed Kotelawala National Defense Uni (KNDU) under the UGC. This will be an impossible task because the proposed KNDU bill is completely incompatible and inconsistent with the Universities Act of 1978. Therefore, bringing KNDU under the UGC is literally just like trying to fix round pin plug into a square socket! There are many unanswered questions regarding this proposed bill. more..

Jul 26 (Island) The JVP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake (AKD) used rude language in Parliament to criticize the No Confidence Motion moved by the SJB. He called it stupid, moronic. Curiously he and UNP leader Wickremesinghe seemed to share a similarly negative view of the No Confidence Motion. Ranil thought that the NCM qualifies the Opposition to belong in the Guinness book of records. AKD’s remarks and their timing weren’t exactly a model of political wisdom more..

Jul 26 (CI) As has been the case right through the tour, Sri Lanka were decent with the ball, containing India to 164 for 5, but their batting let them down once more. Between the end of the 5th and 16th over, SL scored only 69 runs, and lost five wickets. Essentially, with the likes of debutant Varun Chakravarthy impressing, and Yuzvendra Chahal delivering another outstanding spell, SL lacked the firepower to mount a serious challenge. more..

Jul 26 (ST) Coach Mickey Arthur heaped praise on young all-rounder Chamika Karunaratne for his work ethics following his impressive performances against India in the ODI series. The former Royal College allrounder, who hails from a family of sportspersons, the youngest of Karunaratnes earned the reputation for his on-field electric and energetic antics, during the three-match ODI series against India, which the visitors won 2-1. “I made a special note in the dressing room last night in our wrap up. more..

Jul 26 (ST) The country’s oldest big match, The Royal-Thomian, is in the final stage of needing the nod from the Education and the Health Ministries for the elite encounter to be played at Sooriyawewa, Hambantota, on September 9, 10 and 11, behind closed gates. A highly placed source from the Thomian camp revealed the joint organising committee (JOC) has already written to both the ministries mid this week and are due to get the official good-to-go by the end of the month. more..

Jul 26 (TM) Trade unions (TUs) attached to the CEB have warned of stern trade union action if the Govt fails to immediately withdraw from the ongoing negotiations with New Fortress Energy Inc. to handover the Treasury’s 40% stake in the 300 MW Yugadanavi Power Plant in Kerawalapitiya to supply natural gas to SL. According to the trade unions, if the Cabinet gives the green light for the cabinet paper submitted by the Treasury, more..

Jul 26 (FT) Making progressive decisions and sticking with those, empowerment of SMEs, policy consistency and refocusing on vibrant sectors to transform challenges into opportunities amidst the pandemic were some of the key wisdoms shared by four top women leaders last week at the Daily FT TV’s inaugural Leaders League discussion. The country’s third largest private bank, Sampath Bank PLC Senior Deputy General Manager Shashi Kandambi Jassim, conglomerate Hemas more..

Jul 26 (Island) The tragic death of Ishalini, 16, who was slaving away at a politician’s house, and the resultant public outrage have galvanised the govt, a section of the Opposition, the National Child Protection Authority (NCPA), the police, etc. The NCPA has reportedly undertaken a mission to search for the poor children employed as domestic workers and take action against their employers. Sadly, a hapless child had to die a painful death for these institutions to swing into action. more..

Jul 26 (Island) Sri Lanka’s wildcards and the gymnast failed to make an impression and made early exits as China, Japan and the US shared the top three positions of the points table at the end of the day three of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics on Sunday. According to official results of artistic gymnastics published in the Tokyo Olympic website Gehani was ranked 78th out of 80 gymnasts who competed in all four disciplines – more..

Jul 26 (DM) Police brutality sometimes euphemistically referred to as excesses committed by individual or rogue bands of law enforcement officials, is the excessive and unwarranted use of force by the guardians of law and order. The term is used to describe various human rights violations by police. They include beatings, racial abuse, unlawful killings, torture, or indiscriminate use of riot-control agents at protests. From the backstreets of US, to shacks or beachside shanties in SL’s capital, more..

Jul 26 (FT) Over 400,000 persons were vaccinated in SL on Saturday, with the COVID-19 immunisation program administering the first or second dose of a COVID-19 vaccine to 412,211 persons. Persons vaccinated on Saturday include 306,622 persons who received the first dose of Sinopharm and 35,720 persons who received the second dose of Sinopharm. In total, 5,270,508 persons have received the first dose of the vaccine and 1,393,084 persons have received the second dose more..

Jul 26 (FT) The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Viraj Dayaratne PC last week backed the new Bill as critical for the future and assured it will not stifle the smooth function of the market. “The market as we see it today is a dynamic one that is in need of a robust regulatory regime to cater to its current demands,” he told the seminar on the new SEC Bill organised by Asian Pathfinder and Corporate Legal Consultants more..

Jul 26 (FT) World famous investment banking, securities and investment management firm Goldman Sachs has reviewed three options for SL’s current and medium-term debt crisis. In an analysis released last week of Sri Lanka debt sustainability challenge, Goldman Sachs said SL has one of the highest dollar bond spreads among EM sovereigns and political uncertainty and the significant impact of COVID-19 led to a worsening of the country’s external vulnerabilities and more..

Jul 26 (FT) Pioneering business leader, media baron and philanthropist Rajendram Rajamahendran (79) passed away yesterday due to COVID-19 at a private hospital. He was the Co-Founder of the Capital Maharaja Group (formerly The Maharaja Organisation Ltd.) in 1967, whilst the Group’s origin can be traced back to 1930s. The Group, with its famous motto Courage to be different, has extensive interests in industrial products, tea, and services and media. Group brands such as Eva, S-lon, more..

Jul 26 (FT) Former Minister and Parliamentarian Mangala Samara-weera yesterday spearheaded the launch of an apolitical movement called ‘Radical Centre’ by a group of multifaceted multi-ethnic youth calling themselves as true patriots. The middle path or ‘Radical Centre’ is based on the principles of democracy, freedom, equality and justice as the four pillared-foundation for a just, caring and prosperous society. more..

Jul 26 (CI) The three-match ODI series between Afghanistan and Pakistan will be played at the Mahinda Rajapaksa Stadium in Hambantota, SL instead of in the UAE, as originally planned. The series, which is the first bilateral contest between the two sides, will be played between September 1 and 5, and ESPNcricinfo has learnt that the venues in the UAE were unavailable because of the second leg of IPL 2021, which has been tentatively scheduled to begin on Sept 20. more..

Jul 26 (FT) SJB MP Champika Ranawaka last week presented a private members bill to Parliament aimed at codifying a contempt of court law for the country. The Contempt of Court Bill seeks to define and limit the powers of certain courts in punishing contempt of courts and to regulate their procedure in dealing with contempt cases. The Bill defines contempt of court as civil contempt or criminal contempt with civil contempt meaning wilful disobedience to any judgment, decree, more..

Jul 26 (FT) Health officials yesterday stated that 68 persons with the Delta variant have been detected in the island to date, but stressed that Sri Lanka is not facing the fourth COVID-19 wave. “We do not see an end to the third wave. There was a drop in detections in the last few weeks but there has been a slight increase in the detections in the past few days,” Director General of Health Services Dr. Asela Gunawardena said, more..

Jul 26 (CT) Govt of SL (GoSL) will give a fillip to rate pressure on Wednesday when it plans to raise Rs 47,500 million by selling Treasury (T) Bills to the primary market at its weekly T Bill auction, which is 43.57% (Rs 14,415 million) more than the value of the maturities due to be settled which is Rs 33,085 million to be settled on Friday. Nonetheless, to GoSL’s advantage there is sluggish market demand due to uncertainty, while on the reverse lenders are also hesitant to lend to the market due to more..

Jul 26 (BN) Sri Lanka plans to repay a $1 billion bond by the Tuesday deadline, keeping intact its reputation for honoring debt as concern mounts about the nation’s overseas financing. Authorities will transfer the required funds on Monday, Ajith Nivard Cabraal, the state minister for money and capital markets, said by phone Sunday. He didn’t share details. Moody’s Investors Service placed SL’s ratings under review for a downgrade last week, citing its assessment of the country’s more..

Jul 26 (FT) Top corporate lawyer and former regulator Arittha R. Wikramanayake last week raised serious concerns over the new SEC Bill exposing several draconian provisions. Though noting that the Bill has a lot of good features, Wikramanayake warned that there was far too much discretion vested with the regulator. “There is too much power in the hands of the regulator, and if in the wrong hands it will kill the market,” he opined. more..

Jul 26 (DM) In the wake of an increase in COVID-19 cases in the country in recent days, Director General Health Services Dr Asela Gunawardena said the majority of people being hospitalized with COVID and dying from the disease haven't been fully vaccinated. He told the media that this was noticed in an analysis carried out on the number of infections and deaths. "It is of absolute importance that every individual above 60 gets vaccinated irrespective of the preferred vaccine. more..

Jul 26 (DM) SriLankan Airlines experienced a revenue reduction of 70% during the financial year 2020/21 when compared to the year before, SriLankan Airlines Chairman Ashok Pathirage said. He said in a statment that globally the airline industry has experienced a decrease in capacity of approximately 60% to 80% due to the Covid-19 pandemic with containment measures in place. He said despite ongoing border restrictions and airport closures, SriLankan have continued to fulfill more..

Jul 26 (Island) Police have so far recorded statements from 35 people with regard to the death of 16-year-old Jude Kumar Ishalini at the residence of former Minister Rishad Bathiudeen. More arrests were likely, according to police. Police headquarters sources said that the wife and father-in-law of Bathiudeen, as well as a broker who brought the teenager to the Bathiudeens, had been arrested over the incident. more..

Jul 26 (AD) The highest number of vaccines administered in SL against the COVID-19 virus was reported on Saturday (25). Accordingly, a total of 412,111 vaccine administrations have been reported yesterday. State Minister Prof. Channa Jayasumana stated that the first dose administrations of the China-manufactured Sinopharm crossed the 300,000 mark. SL has received over 12,150,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines so far. 72% of those vaccines have been purchased by the govt. more..

Jul 26 (TM) About one million doses of the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine are expected to arrive in Sri Lanka, most likely on 29 July, according to the State Ministry of Production, Supply, and Regulation of Pharmaceuticals. The State Ministry of Production, Supply, and Regulation of Pharmaceuticals Secretary Dr. S.K. Ratnayake earlier told The Morning that about one million doses of AstraZeneca vaccine were being manufactured in Japan and are expected to arrive in SL this week. more..

Jul 26 (TM) Marking the highest number of Covid-19 vaccines administered in a single day in SL, a total of 412,111 Covid-19 vaccines, which includes 342,342 Sinopharm doses, was administered on Saturday. In addition to the 342,342 doses of Sinopharm vaccine, 39 doses of Sputnik V and 69,830 doses of Moderna vaccine had also been administered to reach this total. As of 8:30 p.m. on 24 July, a total of 8,907,559 vaccine doses more..

Jul 26 (AD) The G.C.E O/L Exam for the year 2021 has been postponed by a month, the Ministry of Education announced. Accordingly, the examination will be held in February 2022, Minister of Education Prof. G. L. Peiris said. The examination will commence on February 21, 2022, and continue until March 03, 2022. Previously, the exam was scheduled to be held in January 2022. Prof. Peiris stated that the examination was postponed considering COVID-19 pandemic situation more..

Jul 26 (FT) There was speculation published in the press as to whether Lanka is entering a fourth wave or still in the latter throes of its third wave. Some of this has to do with whether numbers of those infected, have or haven’t declined despite all the curfews and travel restrictions and their heirs and assigns. It’s frankly silly conjecture, as we’ve previously flagged, there is no national Ct (Cycle Threshold) amplification policy that is audited and enforced for PCR testing. more..

Jul 26 (DM) SL should accept the good aspects of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and reject the bad ones and maintain a balanced foreign policy, Former PM Ranil Wickremesinghe said yesterday. Making his remarks during a webinar, wickremesinghe said SL should maintain a good rapport with all countries. “we need to maintain a good relationship with India, China and Europe,” he said. He said what is needed is not a common opposition alliance but a long term policy more..

Jul 26 (FT) Numismatics is an art, science, hobby, and profession. Only those who collect, study, and research coins, tokens, symbols, and notes – called numismatists – would know the complexity and difficulty in practising this costly hobby. To help them, two researchers from the Currency Department of the Central Bank, Shellomi H. Gunawardena and W.M.K. Weerakoon, have laboriously documented the currency notes and coins issued by the Bank in the last 70-year period. more..

Jul 26 (Island) JVP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake says the country is paying a huge price for the failure of successive govts to streamline tax collection process. The JVPer insists the tax collection process has been somewhat debilitated by rampant corruption and irregularities. Dissanayake was responding to a query regarding massive losses in tax revenue highlighted by the current Committee on Public Accounts more..

Jul 26 (Island) Public Security Minister Rear Admiral (Retd.) Sarath Weerasekera said yesterday that the police had been ordered to conduct raids to arrest those who employ underage children as domestic workers. “Police have been instructed to investigate complaints and act on tip-offs about underage children being employed at houses. We hereby call on any person who has hitherto employed any such children to report to the nearby police station without waiting for the police to arrest them. more..

Jul 26 (AD) A special discussion was held today between President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and the SLFP. The meeting took place at the Presidential Secretariat this morning. The meeting was based on a written request made to the President by the party. Prior to the meeting, the representatives of SLFP joined a meeting held with the party chairman former Prez Maithripala Sirisena at his official residence in Mahagamasekera Mawatha. Following the meeting with Prez Rajapaksa, more..

Jul 26 (EN) Despite concerns over looming sovereign debt default, Sri Lanka will not seek any IMF loans but only technical support, President’s Secretary P B Jayasundera said. Jayasundera, former finance secretary who still has influence over the island nation’s economic policies said the debt stress can be managed. “We have a strong relationship with the IMF, that is on technical side, foreign exchange management, customs more..

Jul 26 (AD) Colombo Magistrate’s Court today ordered to remand the wife of former minister Rishad Bathiudeen and three others until August 09 in connection with the suspicious death of a teenage domestic worker who had been employed at their home. The four defendants, including Bathiudeen’s father-in-law, brother-in-law and the broker who had brought the girl for employment from Dayagama, were produced before the court when the case was taken up today. more..

Jul 26 (TM) MP R. Sampanthan today wrote to the PM Rajapaksa bringing to attention that the govt has appointed a non Tamil speaking individual as the District Secretary of the Jaffna district. “As you are aware more than 95 % of the population in Jaffna is Tamil Speaking. All 10 MPs are Tamil Speaking and is the same with other institutions,” he stated to the PM. He stated that in the circumstances posting a Non Tamil speaking public Official as District Secretary and Govt Agent to Jaffna District more..