Jun 5 (FT) Opposition parties yesterday slammed Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe’s claims of people’s disinterest in elections and politics. Though under flak for not holding local polls as scheduled, Prez on Saturday claimed about a loss of faith in elections and politics among the majority of the population, including the youth. Speaking at the inauguration of the BASL-organised National Law Conference at Grand Hotel in Nuwara Eliya, more..

Jun 5 (EN) Prices of all medicines registered with SL’s National Medicine Regulatory Authority will be reduced by 16% from June 15 onwards, passing the benefit of the rupee appreciation to the general public, Minister of Health Keheliya Rambukwella said. “From June 15,203, given the encouraging appreciation of the rupee against the US dollar, there’ll be a 16% reduction in NMRA registered drugs which are regulated by a price control,” Minister in a twitter.com message said. more..

Jun 5 (FT) The Broadcasting Regulatory Commission (BRC) bill has just been opened for consultation. This is good, because it is difficult to find anything good about it other than the openness to consultation. What is wrong with it is not that it contains provisions for license cancellation, as some in opposition have claimed; it is that BRC will be an instrument of the party controlling the govt. What is wrong is that the bill is the opposite of good media regulation. more..

Jun 5 (DM) Sri Lanka's won its first gold at the 20th Asian Junior Athletics Championships in Yecheon South Korea, with Tharushi Dissanayaka winning gold in the girls' 800m in 2 minutes and 05.634 seconds. She finished just under five seconds ahead of Akbayan Nurmamet of Kazakhstan (2:10.216) and Yingying Qin of China (2:11.132). Dinara Dela Bandara meanwhile, had a disappointing run in the girls' 100m final where she finished last with a time of 12.049 seconds. more..

Jun 5 (AD) The Colombo High Court Judge Adithya Patabendige today (June 05) ordered a case filed before the Colombo High Court against Thilini Priyamali, the businesswoman who is accused of massive financial fraud, to be taken up for hearing on August 11. The order was issued when the case against Priyamali over the misappropriation of Rs. 8 million, which was obtained from a person in the Matara area promising to provide a vehicle, was taken up for hearing. more..

Jun 5 (DM) Sri Lanka claimed a second gold on the second day of the 20th Asian Junior Athletics Championships in South Korea, winning the 4x400m Mixed Relay event. Tharushi Dissanayaka, who finished first in the Girls' 800m event earlier in the day, doubled up for a second gold, competing in the 4x400m Mixed Relay alongside Oshada Vinod Ariyawansa, Jayeshi Uththara Hewage and Hasantha Dilranga. more..

Jun 5 (DM) While revealing that President Ranil Wickremesinghe had called SJB to join the govt collectively, SJB National Organizer Tissa Attanayake said his party had told the Prez to hold a general election first. “We have told the Prez that a general election should be held first to find out the opinion of the people. We have told him that we will consider supporting him depending on the fresh mandate of the people,” Attanayake told a media briefing. more..

Jun 5 (Island) Election Commission (ECSL) has opposed a move by the govt to appoint representatives of the Chairpersons of the Regional Development Committee to monitor local govt institutions. ECSL Chairman Nimal G. Punchihewa said that the govt had informed the ECSL of its plan to appoint representatives of the Chairpersons of the Regional Development Committee to monitor the local govt bodies and the ECSL had decided to write to Ministry of Local Govt opposing the move, more..

Jun 5 (TM) Parliamentary Opposition led by the SJB has decided to oppose the proposed Broadcasting Authority Bill, says Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa. Issuing a special statement today Parliamentary Opposition led by the SJB has decided to oppose the proposed Broadcasting Authority Bill, says Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa. Issuing a special statement today, he said that the executive council of more..

Jun 5 (Island) The JVP would file a fresh application before the Supreme Court against the govt for not holding the local council polls, JVP MP Vijitha Herath said yesterday. Addressing the media, Herath said that his party had ascertained fresh information by invoking the Right to Information Act about the funds needed for the holding of the elections and his party would file another fundamental rights case against those responsible for conducting elections. “The LG polls were to be held on 09 March. more..

Jun 5 (FT) Last week in a simple ceremony, SL Bastiat Society was relaunched. The Bastiat Society SL Chapter was set up in 2015 but it had a natural death after a few public events. Now SL Night Watchman Society, a meetup group that discusses broad-based classical ideas, has merged with the SL Bastiat Chapter making it the official SL Bastiat Society. Frédéric Bastiat, French economist and statesman of the early 19th century, was noted for expressing his independent views on more..

Jun 5 (CT) Airport and Aviation Services (AASL) launched its very own Ground Handling Services Training Wing at Mattala Rajapaksa Int'l Airport (MRIA). The launch was attended by AASL Chairman, G.A. Chandrasiri, along with senior officers from AASL and other key institutions. This initiative aims to enhance the provision of ground handling services for int'l flight operations. “Ground handling plays a crucial role as the interface between the airport and airlines, more..

Jun 5 (CT) Jamiah Naleemiah, in Beruwala, is a well-known Islamic educational institution. It was founded in 1973 by the late Al-haj Naleem, who performed numerous vital activities and a role model for SL Muslims. It has subsequently established itself as a centre of excellence, providing comprehensive educational programmes for Muslim males and inspiring generations of students to pursue Islamic studies. The institution’s mission is to produce intellectually sound, more..

Jun 5 (AD) Supreme Court has decided to support on July 28, Fundamental Rights petition filed by Pastor Jerome Fernando requesting the court to issue an order preventing his arrest by the CID. Meanwhile, the court has also granted permission for the request filed by Ven. Elle Gunawansa Thero and several others to intervene in the petition and present facts. The self-styled prophet, in the FR petition filed through more..

Jun 5 (FT) Prof Gishan Dissanaike has been elected as Interim Dean of Cambridge Judge Business School, starting on 1 July. Gishan has been a faculty member at Cambridge Judge for over twenty years and has taught generations of students on the MBA, MFin and MPhil in Finance programs. Gishan is a financial economist and holds the Adam Smith Professorship of Corporate Governance at the University. He gained his BA from the Uni of Peradeniya, before coming up to Trinity more..

Jun 5 (FT) Ministry of Labour and Foreign Employment says allegations of gender-based discrimination within the National Labour Advisory Council (NLAC) selection process are unfounded. It issued a lengthy clarification setting the record straight over allegations made by trade unions and activists recently about women being excluded in the tripartite NLAC. The Ministry said certain parties have disseminated misinformation regarding the alleged removal of a women representative more..

Jun 5 (EN) Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe who is reportedly looking for an early popular mandate will need to seek a constitutional amendment repealing a provision that prevents a president elected by parliament from calling an early prez election. Human rights lawyer Gehan Gunatilleke said that the amendment, as any other constitutional amendment, will require a two-thirds majority in parliament. more..

Jun 5 (Island) SJB mayoral candidate for Colombo Municipal Council Mujibur Rahuman alleges that Prez Ranil Wickremeisnghe has violated election laws by appointing UNP’s mayoral candidate Rosy Senanayake as the Presidential Advisor on Local Govt. Rahuman said that Senanayake was a candidate for the delayed LG polls. “She has submitted nominations for the Colombo Municipal Council from the UNP list. It is illegal to appoint a candidate to such a post pending an election. more..

Jun 5 (Island) All laws introduced by the incumbent govt were aimed at weakening democracy, Education Secretary of the FSP, Pubudu Jayagoda said, citing as examples the Bureau of Rehabilitation Bill, Central Bank Bill, and the Anti-Terrorism Bill. They contained provisions inconsistent with the Constitution, he said. Rehabilitation Bill had 92 sections which ran counter to the Constitution, he said. “The Central Bank Bill has 43 sections inconsistent with the Constitution, more..

Jun 5 (AD) A French national has been arrested at the BIA today, while attempting to smuggle a stock of gold worth over Rs. 80 million into the country. The officers of Narcotics Control Unit and Gems and Jewellery Valuation Division of SL Customs had apprehended the suspect along with the stock of gold weighing 4.611 kilograms in total. The 35-year-old had arrived in Sri Lanka on several previous occasions, however, the officers had inspected his luggage taking into consideration more..

Jun 5 (EN) Shares closed higher for the fourth session on Monday, as the policy rate cuts have boosted investor sentiments which have channeled buying interests to enter the market, an analyst said. ASPI was up 0.15% or 12.80 points to 8,766.60, this is the highest the market has been since May 18, while the most liquid index S&P SL20 was up 0.28% or 6.97 points to 2,949.26. The turnover generated a 710 million rupees, while the daily market average was 1 billion rupees, more..

Jun 5 (TM) Ministry of Health yesterday noted that 36 specialists out of 400 doctors who had migrated for higher medical training had not returned. Ministry plans to take disciplinary action against the 36 who have not returned for duty. Minister Keheliya Rambukwella said that out of 400 doctors who have migrated for further medical training in 2020, 36 specialist doctors have not returned to the island. more..

Jun 5 (AN) Rather than heed warnings from its allies and neighbours, Sri Lanka is pushing ahead with embracing China to tackle its economic woes. Ignoring warnings from the US, according to which SL's problems are rooted in its dependence on China and its mega infrastructure projects (which represent a security issue for India), SL leaders are pressing on. SL’s goal is to get new financing and assistance from the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), as evinced by the latest deal signed in May more..

Jun 5 (TM) National Dengue Control Unit (NDCU) stated that the number of confirmed cases of dengue has increased to nearly 40,500 during the last 6 months. As of yesterday, number of confirmed cases in June (2023) increased to nearly 1,000 in the last 4 days. According to data, 40,359 dengue cases have been reported island wide from January (2023), with approximately 955 cases in June, thus far. The highest number of cases, 20,059 (49.7%), has been reported in the Western Province. more..

Jun 5 (AD) World Environment Day, observed annually on June 5, is marked today with the aim of encouraging awareness and action for the protection of the environment. This year, UNEP has declared the theme for World Environment Day under the campaign #BeatPlasticPollution, Ecosystem Restoration. World Environment Day 2023 is a reminder that people’s actions on plastic pollution matters, more..

Jun 5 (DM) The govt is likely to review the decision granting public sector employees to work abroad for a five-year period, with the best performing employees in the public service leaving the country under the scheme potentially weakening the public service, according to a senior state official. “In the public service, the best officers are leaving. If they are performing better, there’s more likelihood of them leaving. So, we are going to reconsider this,” Sectary to the Ministry of more..

Jun 5 (AP) Hundreds of members of SL’s LGBTQ+ community paraded through the streets of Colombo on Sunday to mark the Pride month and demand an end to discrimination. The marchers carried rainbow flags and placards calling for a ban of so-called conversion therapies, an end of police harassment of the LGBTQ+ community and equal treatment. SL is a predominantly Buddhist nation holding conservative values and it is rare for people with different sexual orientation to voice their more..

Jun 6 (DM) Chairman of the Election Commission Nimal Punchihewa views the govt’s latest decision to appoint special representatives of the Chairmen of Regional Coordinating Committees to oversee the affairs of the local govt bodies as inappropriate and against the democratic norms. Media reports quoted the Election Commission (EC) chief as saying that he was of the opinion that this move by the govt would lead to politicization of the functions of the local govt bodies more..

Jun 6 (DM) The Central Bank last week cut the interest rates by 250 basis points, announcing the first rate cut in three years, in what appears to be a shifting of gears from taming inflation to stimulating economic growth. Last year, the CB raised the interest rates by 950 basis points and this year by another 100 points - further cuts may be in the pipeline as the inflation is cooling faster than expected, in the same way, it spiralled by nearly 70% within April and May last year. more..

Jun 6 (TM) On the cricketing field, Roshan Mahanama is a legend. A member of the 1996 World Cup winning cricket team, he is also an ICC match referee and one of the finest fielders and match referees in int'l cricket. His titular honour of Deshabandu is well-fitting. But, Roshan’s passion is not just cricket. Growing up in a home where giving was a way of life, he began focusing on improving the lives of underprivileged children more..

Jun 6 (GY) Policymakers cursed with a lack of original thinking, especially with the possibility of elections in the offing, resort to knee jerk reactions to long standing problems rather than seek informed advice and have the patience to wait for success. This, of course, is unrealistic in this day and age of politics where ideology has long been suppressed to the individual ambitions of the elected representatives of the people. That vote, that ever necessary tick on a ballot sheet, more..

Jun 6 (CT) Politicians are crooks. This may be a cynical middle-class complaint, but it is also an empirical fact that more MPs with criminal records are being elected to Parliament than ever before. Interestingly, candidates implicated in wrongdoing do quite well at the polls. Candidates with criminal records are disproportionately wealthy, so they have both the means to contest elections, as well as the incentives. While securing elected office does not grant them formal immunity, more..

Jun 6 (CT) State Minister Dilum Amunugama is presently addressing issues related to foreign investment for SL, which is key in the whole exercise of recovering from the acute economic crisis. Q: What are the priorities for local investment projects that have been abandoned and require a boost and rebuild? For example, the sugarcane factory, paper factory, and cement factory have the potential to generate revenue and enhance more..

Jun 6 (Island) Most people are labouring under the misconception that every prospect pleases in this country and only politicians are vile. Hence the unprecedented rise of anti-politics during the past several years and the demand that all 225 MPs go home. It is popularly thought that all we need to do is to cleanse politics, and, hey presto, the country will be a better place. The focus of last year’s Aragalaya, which sprang as a people’s response to unbearable economic hardships, corruption, etc., more..

Jun 6 (TM) MP Ali Sabri Raheem, allegedly attempting to smuggle gold and mobile phones into SL, misusing his very important personal status, is not just a matter of Raheem’s conduct or the illegal entering of goods into the country. While legal actions were taken against the MP, although many felt that they were inadequate especially considering the value of the goods that he allegedly tried to smuggle into SL, this incident has pointed out some deep-rooted issues in existing system more..