Jul 6 (FT) Mao Zedong widely referred to as Chairman Mao was the revolutionary communist who played a pivotal role in establishing the People’s Republic of China in 1949. Mao whose name was spelled as Mao Tse Tung in those days exercised dictatorial control over China in his capacity as Communist Party chairman from 1949 until his death in 1976. A Marxist–Leninist in terms of ideology, Mao’s theories, military strategies, and political policies were/are collectively more..

Jul 6 (FT) If there is one area that needs serious reparation in the current context of economic catastrophe, it is that of Lanka-Arab relations. Arab connection with SL is millennial old. From the time when Arab traders set foot on this island, sometime in the 8th century if not earlier, mutual interests between the Muslim Caliphate and Sri Lanka’s Buddhist monarchy evolved into a relationship that was unique in the annals of Asian history. While spices, precious stones and forest products more..

Jul 6 (DM) Advance payment would be made today to freight petrol between 13,14 and 15, earlier than the scheduled shipment by July 22, Minister Kanchana Wijesekara said today. He told Parliament that proposals were called from suppliers to bring down a petrol shipment between July 10 and 15, however, only one supplier has offered bids but it was at a higher price. "Malaysian Oil Company Petronas said they will supply petrol between July 10 & 15. But, they could not confirm the date. more..

Jul 6 (DM) In a fresh bid for the formation of an all party govt, the parties in the opposition, bar the JVP-led National Peoples’ Power, and some factions of the ruling side met in the parliamentary complex yesterday to discuss the way forward, but the event was marred by differences of opinion, Daily Mirror learns. In addition to the main opposition SJB, the parties such as the SLFP, the Independent Group of ruling SLPP, TNA, SLMC, TPA and CWC attended the meeting. more..

Jul 6 (DM) Investment Promotion Minister Dhammika Perera said PM Ranil Wickremesinghe should resign as the Finance Minister and from the post of PM immediately and the political game which he is playing needs to be stopped. His call for the PM's resignation comes two days after Wickremesinghe, as the Finance Minister, submitted a proposal to cabinet to recover tax dues owed by casino operators and to bring in legislative more..

Jul 6 (SLN) A special operation conducted by the Navy in Norochcholai, Puttalam this morning, led to the seizure of about 212 kg of Kerala cannabis being transferred by a van. Navy also nabbed a suspect in connection to this racket. SLNS Thambapanni in the Northwestern Naval Command with the assistance of Norochcholai Police searched a suspicious van at the roadblock of Karamba, Norochcholai this morning. During the search, the raiding party managed to seize about 212kg of Kerala more..

Jul 6 (Island) Civil society activist Gamini Viyangoda has proposed that a referendum on the executive presidential system could be held along with the next parliamentary election. Pointing out that in terms of the 20th Amendment to the Constitution, the President could dissolve Parliament two and a half years after the last parliamentary election, Viyangoda has urged those who backed the abolition of the executive presidency to seek a consensus with the govt on the matter. more..

Jul 6 (EN) Prez Rajapaksa called Russian leader Vladimir Putin and requested for fuel credit after a recent diplomatic spat between the two nations. “Had a very productive telecon with the Russia Prez, Vladimir Putin. While thanking him for all the support extended by his govt to overcome the challenges of the past, I requested an offer of credit support to import fuel to SL in defeating the current economic challenges,” more..

Jul 6 (AD) Police have arrested 13 people in total for their unruly conduct at a filling station in Wellawaya town. The suspects had hurled stones and bottles at the filling station after it was announced that the pumps have run dry. A tense situation had ensued as the people who queued up outside the filling station to obtain fuel began to display violent behaviour. Reportedly, one police officer who was on duty sustained injuries in the incident, while the signboard of the filling station was damaged. more..

Jul 6 (NR) The COPE has recommended to cancel the tender offered to the Siamgas Pvt. Ltd. and also to conduct an investigation over the purchase of LP Gas at higher rates. Meanwhile, COPE Chairman Charitha Herath has instructed to immediately look into the inability to purchase LP gas with the USD 160 million allocated for the purchase of gas under the Indian credit facility. The recommendation was given when the Litro Gas Company, Litro Gas Terminal Lanka Ltd and the SL Insurance more..

Jul 6 (DM) An All-Party govt will not succeed as seniors in political parties will become cabinet ministers in such an eventuality thus creating divisions, SJB MP Sarath Fonseka told Parliament. “It is better if a group who could work in unity takes over the govt. If people reject a govt, an alternative group in the opposition should form a government. Therefore such a group should be bold enough to take over,” Fonseka said. “Talks are held from morning till evening. more..

Jul 6 (NR) NPP MP Vijitha Herath questioned the govt as to why crude oil has not been imported. MP Herath speaking in Parliament said the Sapugaskanda Oil Refinery is currently shut down adding that the country can cover a significant portion of its fuel requirement if crude oil is imported and refined. He said if the refinery is operated for 15 days with a daily capacity of 5,200MT, one fuel shipment would suffice monthly. MP Herath said through refinery 714,000 litres of 92 Octane more..

Jul 6 (EN) PM Ranil Wickremesinghe tabled a proposed framework for sectoral oversight committees in parliament with the objective of increased bipartisan parliamentary involvement in governance and policy-making. Wickremesinghe told parliament today that under such a system, the entire parliament irrespective of party difference will participate in governance. “In a committee system, the govt is compelled to more..

Jul 6 (EN) Former opposition MP Hirunika Premachandra and former Weligama UC Chairman Rehan Jayawickreme have been arrested along with seven others outside the president’s official residence in Fort Colombo. Police spokesman said four women including Premachandra and five men were taken into custody on Wednesday July 06 around noon, though he could not confirm the arrest of Jayawickreme. Premachandra and Jayawickreme, both members of SJB, more..

Jul 6 (NR) MP Indika Anuruddha says although policies of the SLPP do not align with the policies of the incumbent PM Ranil Wickremesinghe, the SLPP has understood he is the viable alternative to address the financial crisis. Speaking in Parliament, MP Anuruddha said former PM Mahinda Rajapaksa has been voting and supporting every single bill presented by the current Premier. PM said they sacrificed their PM Rajapaksa in order to resolve the issues of the country. more..

Jul 6 (CT) The depreciation of the rupee has reduced the value of the money in the Employees’ Provident Fund and the Employees’ Trust Fund by 50% and the real value of pensions has also decreased by 50%, PM said in Parliament yesterday (5). Wickremesinghe, in a special statement, presented the road map of the Govt to revive the collapsed economy and the progress of the discussions with the IMF. “We are now participating in the negotiations as a bankrupt country. more..

Jul 6 (UCAN) Four leading Buddhist monks in SL have called on the govt to stop playing political tricks and appoint an all-party govt to help the country get international aid and ease the worst economic crisis in its history. “Stop the political misbehavior and be honest and appoint an all-party got by bringing together all the political parties for a period of six months," the religious leaders said in a July 2 statement. The monks — Venerable Thibbatuwawe Sumangala Thera, more..

Jul 6 (DM) Several Fundamental Rights petitions filed seeking an order to take legal action against those responsible for financial irregularities and mismanagement of the economy are to be heard on July 27 before a Supreme Court's fuller bench. Three university academics, SL swimmer and coach Julian Bolling, former Chairman of the CCC Chandra Jayaratne, Transparency International and Jehan Canaga Retna filed these petitions more..

Jul 6 (AD) SL Railways says multiple train journeys scheduled for today were cancelled as the employees have not reported for duty. Only 22 office trains out of 48 are in operation today. Limited train services are offered today as the railway employees are carrying on their trade union action which was initiated yesterday, Superintendent of Railways Gamini Seneviratne said. Only 7 trains are up and running on the Coastal Line, 3 from Kandy on the Main Line and 4 on the Puttalam Line. more..

Jul 6 (ANI) Amid the economic crisis and potential civil disorder in SL, NZ has asked its citizens to avoid non-essential travel to the country. A travel advisory was issued by NZ on Wednesday which said that the economic situation of SL has deteriorated significantly over the past few months and there has been a shortage of fuel and basic necessities which has caused long queues in a range of shops, including supermarkets, petrol stations, and pharmacies, more..

Jul 6 (AD) The price of kerosene will also have to be increased in the near future, says PM. Accordingly, fishermen will be subsidized in cash as per the kerosene price increment, said the PM. Meanwhile attention has been directed towards providing diesel, LP gas, grocery items and ice cubes required for the multi-day trawlers, he pointed out further answering a question put forward by MP Dilip Wedaarachchi in Parliament today, on the issues facing the fisheries industry. more..

Jul 6 (CT) Fisheries Minister Douglas Devananda urged the Govt to reopen the Kankesanthurai Harbour for commercial operations to expedite humanitarian aid including fuel provided by the Indian govt to SL. Minister said, “At a time when the country is confronted with a severe economic crisis, the Indian govt is helping us in various ways including providing essential commodities as well as fuel and kerosene oil. There is a need to bring them to the country immediately”. more..

Jul 6 (AD) Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva has temporarily resigned from his ministerial portfolios until an investigation carried out on the President’s directive regarding the accusation made by the Opposition Leader. Prez Rajapaksa has ordered an immediate formal investigation into the allegations raised by the Opposition Leader in Parliament yesterday regarding a transaction made between the Ministry of Aviation Services more..

Jul 6 (CT) The Colombo High Court Trial-at-Bar, on Monday (4), ordered the documents that had been filed as evidence, in the case pertaining to the misappropriation of a sum of Rs 33.9 million over the construction of the D. A. Rajapaksa Memorial Museum at Medamulana, Hambantota, to be released, under the proviso of taking it back, on account of the defendants, including current President and former Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa, being freed from the Trial. more..

Jul 6 (EN) Stocks slipped over 1.5% on Wednesday and hit its lowest in more than two months after falling for a for a third straight session, as fuel shortage, rise in the return of fixed assets and a looming political crisis weighed on the sentiment, brokers said, a day ahead of the central bank’s policy rate announcement. The ASPI closed 1.67% or 121.24 points lower at 7,117.35, the lowest since April 26. “The market is down on speculation that the central bank will hike the rates again,” more..

Jul 7 (DM) In the aftermath of all the available stocks of fuel being used up and as usual, different dates being mentioned by govt spokesmen as to when the next fuel shipment is due; SL is currently on an unprecedented shutdown or paralysed mode. The absence of fuel has severely affected the transport sector, the plantation and industrial sectors, the health and employment sectors, the education, the power and energy sectors and the agriculture and fisheries sectors among several others more..

Jul 7 (CT) The philosopher of science, Thomas Khun’s thesis about the nature and significance of paradigmatic change in his The Structure of Scientific Revolutions (published in 1997 and gone into several editions, 2016 being the latest) can be applied on a limited scale to understand the situation in SL. It is to the credit of the young men and women who started the aragalaya that the term systemic change has come into this country’s political parlour, and has been bandied about by journalists, more..

Jul 7 (FT) World War I began with fanfare. Leaders of all combatant nations predicted that their victorious troops will be home for Christmas. People believed and cheered. Only a few understood that the war would ruin losers and winners. “The lamps are going out all over Europe. We shall not see them lit again in our lifetime,” British Foreign Secretary Sir Edward Grey lamented. In SL, most of the lamps are already cold, snuffed out by economic idiocy more..

Jul 7 (DM) July 2022 is significant in the world Hindu diary of events, with the consecration ceremony at the world renowned Thiruketheeswaram temple! Let us get to know some details about this temple. In very ancient Sri Lanka, there were five temples built on all sides of the Island and dedicated to the Supreme Lord Shiva – who is also known as Eswaran. Hence the names of these five temples ended with the suffix – eswaram. They are: Nagul-eswaram in the North, Kon-eswaram in East, more..

Jul 7 (DM) Ram Manikkalingam, Visiting Professor of Political Science at the University of Amsterdam has sketched An Agenda for Change (Sunday Times, July 3). Now change is an easy and cheap term. For some, it is about regime change. For some, it is about ousting the Rajapaksa family. Some talk of system change which of course implies at some level constitutional reform. Ram belongs to the last category. We must note that systems are not only about politics but about political economy. more..

Jul 7 (TM) Gender inequality has challenged Sri Lanka for decades, and the existence of gender discriminatory social norms is one of the primary reasons for gender inequality. Observing and assessing these social norms is complex, given that they are deeply embedded in society and in the subconscious minds of the community, including women. However, in order to ensure gender equality, it is essential to transform gender more..

Jul 7 (TM) It was reported this week that two high-ranking CEB officials, one Deputy General Manager and one Chief Engineer, have been suspended by the CEB Chairman in connection with the power outages that occurred during the strike launched by the CEB engineers’ trade union on 9 June. According to Minister Kanchana Wijesekera, this decision was taken as per a preliminary investigation conducted by the CEB with regard to the said incident. This is not the first time that more..

Jul 7 (CT) Coming Saturday’s mass protest maybe the harbinger leading to the overthrow of the present regime co-led by SLPP Party member and Prez Rajapaksa and UNP Leader & PM Wickremesinghe. That is the expectations of at least a cross-section of the suffering masses. SL is presently suffering from a US dollar shortage, the worst after Independence, obtained 74 years ago in 1948, reflected by shortages of almost all essentials under the sun, made worse by record inflation more..

Jul 7 (DM) Sri Lanka’s fuel crisis has claimed the lives of 16 while people were waiting in queues to get their share of fuel. The queues continue to stretch despite fuel being issued at IOC filling stations. Even though the Minister made many promises when he assumed office, many promises weren’t delivered. For instance, even though the Minister assured of a token system, a day later the govt announced that fuel wold only be issued to vehicles attached to essential services. more..