Apr 6 (FT) The first 3 decades of post-independence SL known earlier as Ceylon witnessed a prolonged struggle by the Tamils to have their lost rights restored and achieve political equality through acceptable power sharing arrangements. This struggle was within the ambit of democratic dissent. Its singular hallmark was the adoption of non-violence as the mode of protest. In this, SL Tamils were greatly influenced by the Ahimsa methods practised by Mahatma Gandhi more..

Apr 6 (AD) The decision on whether State Minister Diana Gamage will be arrested or not over her alleged violation of the Immigration and Emigration Act, is due to be announced on 24 April. The relevant decision was taken by the Colombo Chief Magistrate today, when a petition requesting Gamage’s arrest under Section 32 of the Code of Criminal Procedure Act was taken up in court. The State Minister is currently at the risk of losing her Parliamentary seat on account of allegations more..

Apr 6 (EN) Stocks edged on close on Thursday, as holidays and long weekend brought the index down, which dampened investor sentiment, an analyst said. ASPI was up 0.9% or 82.93 points to 9,256.90. “The market is muted mainly due to the upcoming long weekend and fears of potential debt restructuring coming back,” an analyst said. SL will not restructure Treasury bills outside of central bank holdings and will engage with major T-bond holders for voluntary optimization, more..

Apr 6 (FT) When the IMF deal came through, some presidential supporters turned silly and lit crackers. The IMF facility is no panacea. Nor is it the poisoned chalice of the Opposition’s fervid imagination. Irrationality is at the core of these antipodal reactions, more a reflection of our extreme political dysfunction than of any of the IMF conditions. Sri Lanka’s fast-track from relative solvency to bankruptcy was paved with more..

Apr 6 (AD) CEB has successfully acquired the 163 MW Combined Cycle Power Plant which was operated by Sojitz Kelanitissa (Pvt) Limited. CEB acquired the power plant on 28 March 2023, after the process was initiated in the latter part of 2022, in accordance with the terms and condition of the Power Purchase Agreement (PPA). The acquisition process was facilitated with the aim of increasing the capacity of electricity generated, in light of the future power requirements of the country. more..

Apr 6 (TM) The employees of the National Water Supply and Drainage Board (NWSDB) have been on a continuous strike since April 4. The strike has been launched demanding the payments related to the days they engaged in official activities without taking medical leave to be completed. Convenor of the Water Supply Trade Union Alliance (WSTUA) Upali Ratnayake stated that no official activities or consumer services would be carried out due to this trade union action. more..

Apr 6 (DM) Several SJB MPs are willing to support Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe and will do so as a group if the party fails to take a decision, SJB MP Rajitha Senaratne said today. “MPs like Harsha de Silva are willing to support President Wickremesinghe no matter what anyone says. We will support the President as a group if the party fails to make a decision,” the MP said responding to a question raised by journalists more..

Apr 6 (FT) MP Prof. Charitha Herath has called on the Govt to halt its attempts to enact destructive legislation such as the recently proposed Anti-Terrorism Bill for short-term gain. “They bring in laws that they believe will be favourable to them, assuming they will be in power forever. However, the Prez can change in a matter of months but the laws enacted will remain. These harmful laws have far-reaching consequences on people after politicians who introduced them are long gone” more..

Apr 6 (FT) Senior political scientist and constitutional expert Prof. Jayadeva Uyangoda says the newly proposed Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) is being introduced by the Govt in preparation to face the imminent and inevitable social unrest which will arise in the country. According to Uyangoda, with the entire burden of economic revival being placed on the country’s poor and the middle class, the country’s leaders are already aware of an impending social crisis and are taking necessary steps more..

Apr 6 (CT) Minister Manusha Nanayakkara said steps are being taken to obtain assets and liabilities statements from trade union leaders who are yet to submit their declarations. He said that trade union leaders of govt and semi-govt institutions are required to submit their assets and liabilities statements according to the Declaration of Assets and Liabilities Act. He pointed out that, however, no union leader has provided such a statement thus far to Labour Secry annually as required by law. more..

Apr 6 (TM) SL apparel exporters seek to join the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) urgently in mitigating losses caused due to the global recession, which is still under discussion by the Govt of SL. Joint Apparel Association Forum (JAAF) Secretary General Yohan Lawrence stated: “There is some discussion about SL joining the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) which is a regional covering some fifteen countries. Australia, Japan, South Korea more..

Apr 6 (EN) Minister Kanchana Wijesekera has suspended 40 fuel stations for breaching the govt’s QR code rule while the latest technology will be implemented to ensure the fuel stocks. SL is recovering from one of its worst fuel crises in history. Motorists were forced to wait days in congested queues for pump fuel in mid last year soon after the island nation declared sovereign debt default, which deprived it of its external borrowing. more..

Apr 6 (AD) Colombo Magistrate’s Court has rejected a private complaint against former Governor of the CB Ajith Nivard Cabraal over the alleged misappropriation of govt funds. Colombo Additional Magistrate Harshana Kekunawala issued this order while accepting the preliminary objections raised by the attorneys appearing on behalf of the former CBSL chief, when the case was taken up today. Delivering the decision, the additional magistrate stated that the complainant more..

Apr 6 (DM) JVP General Secretary Tilvin Silva said yesterday that Sri Lanka was only enjoying an interval in the crisis which he termed an interval in hell at the moment. Speaking at the Il Maha Viru Samaruma held in Kalutara to commemorate their fallen members, he said people should not believe that Sri Lanka was heading towards an economic revival by looking at the present situation and said the country would have to face an even more serious economic downturn shortly. more..

Apr 6 (DM) Dulanjalee Premadasa, sister of Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa has responded to the article titled Sajith loses grip on a dying SJB? which was published in the Daily Mirror on April 4, 2023. Below is a letter she sent to the Daily Mirror in response to the article. "It is with profound disappointment that I refer to an article published in the Daily Mirror Online Issue dated 4th April 2023, wherein I have been named more..

Apr 6 (DM) The govt is now trying to define what terrorism is and it has named trade union activists as terrorists, Ceylon Teachers' Union (CTU) Secretary Joseph Stalin said. While addressing the media, he said the govt had already named terrorism against the Tamil people, terrorism against the youth in the South, terrorism against the Muslim community, and now named trade union activists also as terrorists. Therefore, the CTU asks the govt how it had received such power to define terrorism. more..

Apr 6 (EN) Sri Lanka has potential to expand jackfruit exports as President Ranil Wickremesinghe is kicking off a campaign to plant three million jack trees around the island, an official said. In the first stage 75,000 jackfruit will be planted in state land. The Command Agro Unit of the Air Force is producing budded jackfruit plants. The jackfruit saplings will be given to 27 air force camps to distribute the saplings to nearby schools and govt agencies with land. more..

Apr 6 (DM) The recent bus fare revision have been implemented on 90 percent of the buses and measures have been taken to implement the revision on 100% of the buses in the new year season, National Transport Commission (NTC) Director General Nilan Miranda said. He said several incidents of the fare revisions not being implemented were reported. "The NTC had revised the bus fares soon after the reduction of fuel prices. All the bus owners were advised to display more..

Apr 6 (FT) JICA together with Ministry of Health and Ministry of Women, Child Affairs and Social Empowerment has implemented a technical cooperation project for Capacity Enhancement of Elderly Service Management in the Community. On 1 April, an exercise program was organised by Kaduwela Medical Officer of Health (MOH) office, in cooperation with the elderly committee, high schools and other relevant organisations under the Project for Capacity Enhancement of Elderly Service more..

Apr 6 (Kyodo) Security camera footage showing a SL woman before her death in a central Japan detention facility was publicly released Thursday for the first time by lawyers representing her family. Approximately 7 minutes of roughly five total hours of govt-provided security camera footage showing Wishma Sandamali, who died at the age of 33 while being held at the Nagoya Regional Immigration Services Bureau in March 2021, more..

Apr 6 (CT) Although the Education Ministry does not have control over international schools at the moment, the Ministry is going to introduce a regulator for international schools; Education Minister Susil Premajayantha said. Addressing the media, on SL Skills Expo 2023 which is to take place at the BMICH on 12, 13 and 14 May, Premajayantha said new reforms to the education system should be introduced soon, as Sri Lanka has to face the challenges in the 21st century. more..

Apr 6 (TM) Supreme Court has fixed dates for the hearing of the petition filed seeking to ensure the safety of famed drug trafficker Salindu Gunaratne, alias Kudu Salindu today. Petition is due to be heard on 21 June as per a court order issued this morning. The order was issued by a 3-judge bench of the SC headed by Justice Jayantha Jayasuriya. Kudu Salindu's mother had filed a fundamental rights petition through a lawyer, claiming that her son’s life was in grave danger. more..

Apr 6 (AD) CID has informed the court that the private jet used by the notorious underworld figures Harak Kata and Kudu Salindu was financed by an individual with direct links to the LTTE. Submitting an additional report on Salindu Malshika, alias Kudu Salindu, to the Panadura Magistrate’s Court, the CID stated that the duo had obtained the jet in which they travelled to Madagascar from Nirmana Bandara, more..

Apr 6 (MS) Sri Lankan waters are home to at least 105 different species of sharks and rays (known collectively as elasmobranchs). These animals provide a vital income for fishers, an important protein source for local communities, and potential opportunities for tourism, as well as supporting a healthy ocean ecosystem. Recent trends have shown fewer elasmobranchs are being landed at markets in Sri Lanka, which is a possible indicator of reduced numbers in the ocean. more..

Apr 6 (DM) Defence Secretary Kamal Gunarathne said he would take legal action against three persons including journalist Chamuditha Samarawickrama, demanding compensation of Rs. 500 million each for defamation through social media. The Defence Secretary said that he has taken action to file cases against three persons demanding Rs. 500 million compensation each for damaging his reputation and image by making defamatory statements targeting him recently. more..

Apr 7 (DM) French President Macron is presently on a visit to China. IMF Chief von der Leyen too will be in that country. Speaking in Brussels last week Ms vonder Leyen publicly criticised China’s no limits ties with Moscow in the face of an atrocious and illegal invasion of Ukraine. While we do not condone invasion, whether, by Russia or any other country, it may be better if Ms von der Leyen starts by ordering the US and NATO countries, who still hold on, and cling onto colonies they invaded more..

Apr 7 (CT) On 9 July 2022, angry citizens protesting economic mismanagement stormed the Sri Lanka President’s palace in Colombo. Four days later, SL President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, amid a deepening crisis and widespread protests there, escaped to the neighboring island nation of the Maldives and flew into Singapore from there the following evening. The primary objective of this paper is to provide some initial thoughts on the factors that led to the Aragalaya (struggle). more..

Apr 7 (TM) In sending employees of one country to another, if there is no agreement between the source country and the labour receiving country, the employees are likely to find them in a rather peculiar situation as they would have to manage their affairs alone in a foreign country where there is a great risk of being discriminated and being treated differently and less favourably than the employees of the host country who are more..

Apr 7 (Island) Under the ATB, committing a terrorist act resulting in murder is punishable with death penalty; under the CTB it was punishable with life imprisonment; Under both Bills in the case of any other offence of terrorism, with imprisonment for a term not exceeding 20 years and fine not exceeding Rs. one million. In addition, the Court may order forfeiture of all movable and immovable property of the offender – S.4 Penalty for attempt, abetment or conspiracy to commit any such offence more..

Apr 7 (GV) The crisis facing SL society today is the result of contradictions arising from two processes in the specific SL context: efforts to sustain the post-war state and continuing with the new period of capitalist transition that started in 1977 that emphasised markets, private sector and greater degree of openness to global capitalism. When the Tamils demanded a separate state in 1977, armed struggle of Tamil militants challenged the territorial integrity of centralised Sinhala nationalist more..

Apr 7 (CT) Seven companies have submitted Expressions of Interest (EoI) to build an oil refinery in Hambnatota. This has sparked numerous controversies in SL, with some pointing out that the Energy Ministry has chosen seven from the EoI, five of which are alleged to be shell companies not worth discussing. But the biggest controversy is that Sinopac is one of them, and all roads lead to Sinopac because China runs more..

Apr 7 (TM) SL’s workforce, services and goods delivered by businesses and institutions, and job markets are among the most discussed topics within the larger discourse on economic resuscitation. While those are integral parts of economic recovery and stability, there is also an undeniable human resource and human rights aspect to the matter. These concerns have received more attention, although often in a negative manner, with certain recent developments including trade union more..

Apr 7 (TM) The misuse of powers and the poor management of affairs by officials in the Ministries and other govt institutions have been highlighted in the newspapers over and over again. Nevertheless, this write-up serves as a reminder to the stakeholders of the existing issues once again, at a time when recruitments for the Public Administrative Services are currently underway. It is hoped that the Govt under Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe will take a pragmatic approach to these issues and more..

Apr 7 (FT) Keonn Investments Ltd., has recently entered into an agreement with Board of Investment of SL for its new business venture 121 Residencies with an investment of $ 4.9 million for a high-quality designed apartment complex in, Colombo. This Apartment complex will be constructed at No. 121, Jawatte Road, Colombo 05. The 121 Residencies will consist of 36 exclusive 3 Bedroom Apartments with a basement, ground, a mezzanine, and 9 floors that will provide multiple conveniences and more..

Apr 7 (Island) Hameedia, SL’s leading menswear brand that is synonymous with style and quality, marked Int'l Women’s Day with a special knowledge-sharing event for all of its female employees at the Head Office in Ratmalana on 8th March. The event was the highlight of a series of sessions Hameedia is conducting throughout the months of February and March focused on educating its female workforce and covering a wide selection of related topics including hygiene and grooming, more..