by Sudharshan Seneviratne (Emeritus Professor. University of Peradeniya. Sri Lanka’s former High Commissioner to India) Introduction Foreign Policy (FP) represents the long arm of the State protecting and imaging its national interest and projecting overseas all aspects of an independent sovereign State. As such, Foreign Policy is essentially based on a fundamental principle – that …
Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, told the UN Resident Coordinator Hanaa Singer here on Friday, that whether he gets the support of the Tamil political parties or not, he will develop the war-shattered economy of the Tamil-majority Northern Province, the Presidential Media Division said. On the issue of the missing, he said that, whether they …
By Maria Abi-Habib and Dharisha Bastians Dashing the hopes of thousands of families desperate for word about loved ones who went missing during Sri Lanka’s long, grisly civil war, the country’s new president has offered an unsparing rebuff to their quest for closure. The missing are in fact dead, said the president, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, and …
By Kanchana Kumara Ariyadasa Traders in the Dambulla Dedicated Economic Center said a sharp drop in the prices of vegetables was being experienced at present and that it was mainly due to large stocks of vegetables arriving from the North.
By Saman Indrajith Former Deputy Minister Ranjan Ramanayake, yesterday (21) apologised to all those who had got into trouble due to the leak of recordings of his telephone conversations with him. Speaking during the Parliamentary debate, MP Ramanayake said it had not been his intention to make the recordings of his conversations public. “The recordings …
By Ashwin Hemmathagama Speaker Karu Jayasuriya yesterday approved the tabling of forensic audit reports on bond transactions of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL), arguing that the release of the documents would not impact investigations or legal proceedings. Justifying his decision to release the forensic audit report yesterday in Parliament, the Speaker held that …
By Saman Indrajith UNP MP Hirunika Premachandra said that some of the recordings of telephone conversations between her and MP Ranjan Ramanayake had been tampered with. Premachandra said that there was a sinister campaign to tarnish her image. She had filed complaints against four television channels for defamation, the MP said.
By Yohan Perera and Ajith Siriwadana MP Ranjan Ramanayake today tabled in Parliament several CDs containing audio clips of phone conversations he has had with many people including a few heads of State. He did so while stating in Parliament that he was tabling the CDs containing telephone conversations he has had with politicians of …
By K. Ratnayake US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Alice G. Wells delivered a letter from President Donald Trump to President Gotabhaya Rajapakse during a one-day trip to Sri Lanka last Wednesday. The letter, according to the media, emphasised the White House’s “commitment and interest in furthering and deepening …
By Rathindra Kuruwita The government must immediately expose the high profits made by the plantation companies and inform the public that they could easily give their workers a daily basic salary of Rs. 1,000, the 1000 Movement, a collective of unions and civil society activists, said yesterday. Chinthaka Rajapakshe, Moderator of the Movement for Land …
By Victor Ivan The collection of recorded telephone conversations of Ranjan Ramanayaka can be said to have become a kind of collection of short films that reveal the degeneration of the entire institutional system of the country while conveying the message of it to the people in a simple and straightforward way. The reading habits …
The Government yesterday remained firm on the proposed daily wage hike for estate workers from March and asked the plantation firms to come up with a new formula to offer relief whilst minimising damage to financial viability. The outcome follows the Ceylon Planters Association and the Employers Federation of Ceylon meeting Plantation Industries Minister Dr. …
By Meera Srinivasan Thousands of persons reported missing since the time of Sri Lanka’s civil war are “actually dead”, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has said. The President made the remark in a recent meeting with the UN Resident Coordinator, according to a statement from his office. Outlining his plans to address the issue of missing persons, …
The Sri Lankan Wildlife Department has been able to retrace the Sri Lankan Black Panther that was once considered to be long extinct. Out of the eight species of panthers living in the world, the sub-species, Sri Lankan Panther is extraordinary due to its very limited population. The Sri Lankan black panther is believed to …
By Mani Velupillai Almost all our public figures have disapproved of the leak of Ranjan Ramanayake’s phone recordings. They include Ramanayake’s celluloid colleagues, fellow politicians, some members of the clergy, officials and even journalists. It is a moot point, however, whether Ramanayake’s critics represent themselves or the public or both. Apparently they impute their own …
By P.K.Balachandran India’s National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval, who was on short visit here on Saturday, has told the Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa that it is important that India, Sri Lanka and the Maldives review the Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA) regime, enhance it, and include other regional countries as observers. The MDA regimen …
Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, yesterday, expressed surprise at the UNP’s sudden aversion to the MCC pact. Issuing a press release, Rajapaksa said that Opposition Leader, Sajith Premadasa, who was the Deputy Leader of the UNP and key member of the UNP Cabinet, before the Presidential election, had been silent on the MCC pact promoted by …
Veteran Sunday Island columnist, C.A.Chandraprema, has been appointed as Sri Lanka’s Permanent Representative at the United Nations in Geneva, within which is located the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC). At the UNHRC, Chandraprema will be expected to take up the cudgels on behalf of the government of Sri Lanka against Sri Lanka baiters from Western …
By Meera Srinivasan Back in his school days, Firi Rahman, 29, used to feel embarrassed to bring his friends home. Having heard people refer to his neighbourhood as a “slum” or “a den of drug dealers”, he wasn’t sure how his friends would react. “Those of us who belonged to this area felt stigmatised,” recalls …
By Meera Srinivasan National Security Adviser Ajit Doval on Saturday met Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in Colombo and discussed key bilateral issues including economic development and strategic cooperation. “A very cordial discussion was held with National Security Advisor of #India, Ajit Doval today. Strengthening of bilateral cooperation on national security, intelligence sharing, maritime security …
By Lucien Rajakarunayake We are suddenly given an exposure to the crafty and deceitful politics. R-R with his ‘One Shot’ reputation is giving much more than just one shot. It is a chain of telephone call recordings, that we are told is illegal because no recording caution had been given. Recording caution is the stuff …
By Ajith Siriwardana UNP MP Hirunika Premachandra today claimed that the leaked second phone recording clip said to be of her and MP Ranjan Ramanayake was maliciously edited and vowed to take legal action against those who published the clips. Posting a video on her facebook account, she said the content and voice in the …
By Kishali Pinto Jayawardene Leaked phone conversations between a politician and judicial officers with more details due to emerge has led to the interdiction of a Magistrate and inquiries into other judges even as the Sri Lankan public remain tantalised by these unfolding scandals. Weighty matters of governance are left discarded, the soaring cost of …
BY JAMILA HUSAIN Following the surprising revelation by UNP MP Harin Fernando that there were numerous recordings of conversations with current government members in MP Ranjan Ramanayake’s possession as well, the Daily Mirror learns that some ruling MPs had held informal discussions over the matter yesterday.
By P.K.Balachandran Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, who is to visit New Delhi in early February at the invitation of the Indian Premier Narendra Modi, will be discussing economic cooperation more than anything else, according to informed sources. The reason cited for this is that Prime Minister Mahinda is also Minister for Finance, Economy …
The government has deployed intelligence officers to find out if the Grama Niladaris are doing a proper job in recommending people for a programme to provide 100,000 jobs to eligible persons from low income groups. They will also monitor the performance of Grama Niladaris in a programme to provide food for the poor.
Respect for fundamental human rights in Sri Lanka is in serious jeopardy following Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s election as president in November 2019, Human Rights Watch said today in its World Report 2020. Rajapaksa, along with his brother Mahinda Rajapaksa, who was named prime minister, were implicated in numerous human rights violations during their previous years in …
By Deepal Samarasiri However authentic or not the reports are about Ranjan Ramanayake one thing is certain. When the new government came into power there were high hopes that at least now the people in the country would be able to survive without having to pay exorbitantly for their daily bread. The farmers are very …
By Yohan Perera The fifty two MPs who claimed they have elected Leader of Opposition Sajith Premadasa as the new leader of the UNP yesterday said they will seek the party’s working committee approval for the new appointment. UNP MP Ranjith Madduma Bandara told journalists yesterday that they will seek party’s working committee approval for …
By Charumini de Silva President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has created a fresh storm with his directive to hike estate worker wages by 17% to Rs. 1,000 from March whilst a Collective Agreement is in place and with the plantations companies, already in crisis, saying they have no capacity to pay. The plantation companies and the Employers’ …
By Yohan Perera UNP Parliamentary Group meeting which was held today at its Headquarters Sirikotha ended up abruptly without a decision as to who would become the next leader of the party. Informed sources said some members wanted a vote to decide on the leadership but several including Party Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe, Vajira Abeywardene, General …
By K. Thirukumaran Tamils have celebrated Thai Pongal in one form or the other over millennia. Celebrating Thai Pongal nowadays in its traditional, purposeful piety and outdoor gala continues to evolve as vast numbers of diaspora Tamil communities exist in far corners away from their homelands. They also live far from ancestral agrarian and village …
Continue reading ‘Many Facets of Thai Pongal: Pongal the Traditional Tamil Thanksgiving Festival’ »
By Prof. S.Ratnajeevan H.Hoole As a Tamil I take the position that I am better off without the police because I get more harassment than protection from them. The video of an IGP assaulting an employee in a lift bears testimony to how committed the police are to law and order. I have dealt in …
By P. Krishnaswamy After the Christmas and New Year festivities, the focus is now on the Pongal harvest festival, popularly known as Thai Pongal, celebrated in the first four days of the month of Thai in the Tamil-Hindu calendar. Traditionally, it is the festival of farmers who depend on Mother Earth, the sun, rain, other …
Continue reading ‘‘Thai Pongal’ the Harvest Festival of Tamils’ »
UNP MP Ranjan Ramanayake, who was arrested yesterday over his leaked phone recordings faces, losing his civic rights for seven years as well as a year-long imprisonment if found guilty after the Attorney General (AG) directed that he be charged for offences under Article 111 C (2) of the Constitution. Ramanayake, who is embroiled in …
By Meera Srinivasan Visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has pledged not to allow “any outside influences” to interfere with Sri Lanka’s internal matters, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s office said on Tuesday. “As Sri Lanka’s strategic partner China will continue to standby Sri Lanka’s interests. China stands for the country’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence. We …
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has decided the minimum daily wage of estate workers to be Rs. 1,000 with effect from 1 March this year. It was also decided to take swift measures to develop all areas of the plantation sector, including infrastructure facilities.
UNP yesterday suspended the party membership of Gampaha district Parliamentarian Ranjan Ramanayake. United National Party (UNP) Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe took the decision after a number of complaints alleging derogatory comments by and behaviour of the MP were received by the party, said UNP General Secretary MP Akila Viraj Kariyawasam at a press conference held at …
Ranil Wickremesinghe is ready to renounce his party leadership but will only do so leaving behind a united and strong party, said UNP General Secretary Akila Viraj Kariyawasam ata press conference held yesterday. Kariyawasam made the comment in response to a question posed regarding the party leadership issue which will be taken up at the …
By Anurangi Singh and Maneshka Borham Just hours after the arrest of United National Party (UNP) parliamentarian Ranjan Ramanayake last week by the Colombo South Crimes Division of the Police, social media platforms were flooded with recordings of private conversations which had allegedly taken place between the MP and a number of prominent and popular …
By Miguel R Ramos, postdoctoral research associate at the University of Oxford; Douglas Massey, professor of sociology at Princeton University; Matthew Bennett, senior lecturer in social policy at University of Birmingham; and Miles Hewstone, emeritus professor of social psychology and public policy at the University of Oxford. The ethnic and religious composition of many modern …
(Text of “Thaippongal”message issued by Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa) I wish the Tamil community in Sri Lanka and the world over, a delightful Thai Pongal Festival. Sri Lanka is a nation of diverse nationalities coexisting peacefully. Each of those nationalities have their own, unique cultural celebrations that add color and vibrancy to the Sri Lankan …
By Shivanthi Ranasinghe The upcoming week promises to be an unusually interesting one for Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. On January 14, he will be separately meeting two Foreign Ministers, Sergey Lavrov of Russia and Wang Yi China, and the US Assistant Secretary of State, Alice Wells. With the UNHRC March session around the corner, …
by Zacki Jabbar UNP MP Ranjan Ramanayake, who is under fire, following a leak of his telephone conversations during the Sirisena-Wickremesinghe administration, says the investigative methods adopted by him may be questionable, but the ultimate objective was to ensure truth and justice. Ramanayake said last week that his actions were aimed at unravelling serious crimes …
By Kishali Pinto Jayawardena Handwringing by Government politicians over leaked tape recordings of phone conversations between prosecutors, judicial officers and a United National Party politician known more for his brawn than his brain, (this worthy’s cerebral power appears to be even less than commonly perceived), is hypocritical in the extreme. Historic undermining of the judicial …
By Meera Srinivasan More than three decades after Sri Lanka recognised Tamil as an official language like Sinhala, you would expect a debate on singing the national anthem in Tamil to be redundant. However, a controversy erupted recently after local media reported the Public Administration Ministry’s decision to drop the Tamil version of the country’s …
By Sandun Jayawardana Bombshell revelations contained in phone recordings allegedly involving United National Party (UNP) MP Ranjan Ramanayake largely overshadowed this week’s House debate on the policy statement of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. As one alleged phone conversation after another leaked onto social media and some even making their way to mainstream media, the matter was …
By Chris Kamalendran Around 3000 Sri Lankan refugees living in India are willing to return to their motherland on their own accord, International Relations Minister Dinesh Gunawardena told the Sunday Times. In his first official visit to India as minister in charge of foreign affairs early this week, Mr Gunawardena met India’s External Affairs Minister …
Opposition Leader and UNP Deputy Leader Sajith Premadasa, who held the Cultural Affairs portfolio under the previous government, is likely to face a police investigation into disbursement of large amount of funds. The matter came up for discussion at a top-level meeting where Central Cultural Fund disbursements were discussed. Earlier, it was the subject of …
By Nisthar Cassim Prime Minster President Mahinda Rajapaksa yesterday confirmed that the Government would seek a two-thirds majority at the upcoming General Elections to change the Constitution. “There are issues with the 19th Amendment as well as the present electoral system. Currently, we are a minority Government and at the next Parliamentary Election we will …
By P.K.Balachandran The ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP), whose Presidential candidate Gotabaya Rajapaksa won the November 16 election without the support of the minority Tamils and Muslims, and is still to reach out to them in any overt way, is likely to build bridges with them after the April 2020 parliamentary elections, sources close …
By Lucien Rajakarunanayake A cartoon in The Island earlier this week showed the citizen seeking shelter from the rain of the Ranjan Ramanayake phone call exposures. We now seem to be moving more to a reign, than just rain, with the One Shot call soon reigning over the coming general election campaign. It is interesting …
by Shamindra Ferdinando Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, yesterday, said that it would be the responsibility of Chief Justice Jayantha Jayasuriya to take action in respect of the recent disclosure of UNP MP Ranjan Ramanayake’s audio clips. Government Spokesman State Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage, on Wednesday (08), said that there were a staggering 121,000 audio clips collected …
TNA leader R. Sampanthan on Wednesday, January 08 told parliament that his party was ready to work with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. Commenting on President Rajapaksa’s policy statement, MP Sampanthan said that Gotabaya Rajapaksa had polled seven million votes. “Eighty five per cent of the Tamil people, on our call, voted against him; he could not …
By Nimanthi Ranasinghe MP Ranjan Ramanayake yesterday filed a motion against the disclosure of telephone recordings – seized by the police during his arrest – to media platforms. When the motion was filed before Nugegoda Magistrate U.K. Pelpola, the Colombo Crime Division (CCD) was ordered to produce facts to court on January 17 on how …
By Indika Ramanayaka On the instructions of the Acting IGP, an investigation has been launched against Colombo South Crime Division OIC IP Jayantha Silva for failing to resist from being embraced by MP Ranjan Ramanayake when the latter was being taken into custody last Saturday, sources from the police headquarters said.
Accusing the government of a campaign of political revenge, newly-appointed Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa yesterday sought clarification on thousands of alleged dismissals in the state sector on political grounds. Over 6,000 government workers are facing unemployment as a result of politically motivated dismissals or cancellations of appointments made by the previous government, Premadasa said. “Instead …
By Meera Srinivasan Sri Lanka’s Minister of Foreign Relations Dinesh Gunawardena will hold bilateral discussions in New Delhi on Thursday, including with his Indian counterpart Minister of External Affairs S. Jaishankar. He was scheduled to arrive in Delhi late on Wednesday. Mr. Gunawardena’s visit comes over a month after President Gotabaya Rajapaksa was in New …
By S. S. Selvanayagam The Colombo District Court on Tuesday ordered Bank of Ceylon to pay a Canadian expatriate citizen $ 875,000, together with interest and legal costs, after the bank was found to have made unauthorised transfers of funds held in special investment deposit accounts. The litigation, initiated by the plaintiff Manohar Randolph Alexander …
By Saman Indrajith The Chair force-stopped Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa, during his speech due to a digression, in Parliament yesterday. Opposition Leader Premadasa availing himself of the provisions under the Standing Orders 27/2 was making a special statement when Minister Wimal Weerawansa raised a point of order to bring the attention of the House that …
Former Army Commander and UNF MP Sarath Fonseka today criticized President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s decision to appoint Brigadier Suresh Sallay as head of the country’s State Intelligence Service (SIS). Speaking at the parliamentary session today(7), Fonseka said that Sallay’s ethnicity would affect his work as head of SIS. “Brigadier Suresh Sallay is a Muslim. How can …
By Nisali De Silva The stage is being set for incarcerated businessman-turned politician Duminda Silva to be set free, United National Party (UNP) MP Hirunika Premachandra said. Speaking to reporters at the Opposition Leader’s Office this afternoon, Premachandra said Silva along with others accused in the Baratha Lakshman Premchandra murder case were given the death …
The Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP)-led National People’s Power (NPP) called into question yesterday the appointment of a Senior State Counsel attached to the Attorney General’s Department as an Additional Legal Secretary to the President’s Office on a part-time basis. This appointment, which has been made in addition to the State Counsel’s current position as Coordinating …
By Chandani Kirinde Opposition MPs yesterday urged Speaker Karu Jayasuriya to overrule the Attorney General (AG) and release the forensic audit reports prepared as part of the investigation into the Central Bank bond scam. The UNP and JVP MPs made the request after Jayasuriya informed the House when Parliament met last afternoon that he had …
Former Parliamentarian Sarana Gunawardena yesterday received bail from the Colombo High Court, hours after being found guilty of misusing public funds and being sentenced to three years in prison. He was given bail by the Colombo High Court after considering the appeal filed by President’s Counsel Anil Silva, who represented the former MP. The Colombo …
Newly-appointed Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa made his maiden speech in Parliament yesterday by extending support to the Government to take forward any people-friendly policies, including shelving the $ 480 million Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Compact. “Over 6.9 million people voted for the President. As the Opposition Leader I would like to say that we, as …
Former Director of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) SSP Shani Abeysekara has been interdicted with immediate effect, the National Police Commission said. Abeysekara has reportedly been interdicted for causing disrepute to the police over a statement made in a leaked tele-conversation. Several audio clips purportedly between former State Minister Ranjan Ramanayake and state officials including …
By P.K.Balachandran The new President of Sri Lanka, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, is aiming at getting two-thirds majority in the April 2020 parliamentary elections to be able to bring about sweeping changes in the constitution to strengthen the Executive which was badly crippled by the 19 th.Amendment (19A) brought about by the previous regime. Gotabaya is keen …
By Meera Srinivasan Sri Lanka’s main Tamil party on Tuesday urged President Gotabaya Rajapaksa not to “regress into naked majoritarianism”, that in the past gave rise to a conflict, resulting in armed hostilities spanning over three decades. Addressing Parliament, Jaffna district legislator and the Tamil National Alliance’s (TNA) spokesman M.A. Sumanthiran said the equal status …
(Text of Press Release Issued by the Tamil National Alliance Media Office Incorporating the Transcript of Speech made by Mr. M. A. Sumanthiran MP in Parliament on 07.01.2020) Mr. Speaker, The Statement on Government Policy as laid out by His Excellency Gotabaya Rajapaksa on the 3rd of January 2020 is one that needs to be …
By W.A. Wijewardena The sick economy President Gotabaya Rajapaksa – now fondly called Gota by everyone – inherited an underperforming economy. It was just like the economy which the previous administration had inherited from his brother some five years ago. As I had presented in this column repeatedly, the economy was turning from bad to …
Leader of the Opposition Sajith Premadasa says the United National Party will move forward with a new vision and a new outlook. Participating in an event in Galle over the weekend, the Opposition Leader said the Office of the Leader of the Opposition will be transformed into a helpful and people-friendly institution, which will listen …
Police last night arrested United National Party Parliamentarian Ranjan Ramanayake for possession of an unlicensed pistol, after they conducted an extensive search of his official residence at the Madiwela Housing Complex. Issuing a statement last night, Police Headquarters said that officers had also found 127 rounds of 9mm ammunition used for the pistol as well …
By Dhammike Amarasinghe I presume that many people consider the mere idea of singing a National Anthem in more than one language strange and an anomaly. In this context it would be best to examine what the international practice is. I invite readers to refer to the articles titled ‘ List of National Anthems’ and …
By Kishali Pinto Jayawardene Duplicitous politicians who engage in constitutional games to hoodwink the public must be clearly exposed for the truly shameful creatures that they are. Chopping and changing the primary text Constitution-making in Sri Lanka has generally been instrumental. Amendments to the nation’s primary text are driven by obvious political agendas. There are …
By D.B.S.Jeyaraj Jeyaraj’s Jottings (Jeyaraj’s Jottings was a series of short articles written some time ago by me to be posted on my Blog. However due to pressure of work I discontinued the jottings for quite a while. With the advent of the year 2020 I have resumed posting “Jeyaraj’s Jottings”again on my Blog. This …
Continue reading ‘A Beautiful Island Where The National Anthem Is Sung In Two Languages -1’ »
By Lucien Rajakarunanayake We are bang into the New Year. The new session of Parliament has been opened by the President. Parliamentary politics could move to a new swing, with a government not having a formal majority in the House. There is also another political tune at play – that of the National Anthem. President …
(The policy statement made by His Excellency Gotabaya Rajapaksa, President of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka at the inauguration of the Fourth Session of the 8th Parliament of Sri Lanka.) Honourable Speaker, Honourable Prime Minister, Honourable Leader of the Opposition, Honourable Ministers, Honourable State Ministers, Honourable Members of Parliament, I have this opportunity …
Delivering his first-ever address to Parliament since taking oaths, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa sent out a strong message today to all parties representing the legislature on, among other things, his vision for the country, his values as a Rajapaksa family member, the role of minority parties and the importance of constitutional reform. Dressed in a Western …
By Chandani Kirinde and Ashwin Hemmathagama The Tri-Forces Guard of Honour including the 21-gun salute which was to be part of the ceremonial sitting of the new Parliamentary session which begins today was halted on the request of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, official sources said. As part of the usual procedure followed when a new session …
By Chandani Kirinde A Private Member’s Bill to enable the President to hold the Ministry of Defence and any other ministries will be introduced to Parliament by MP Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe shortly. The 22nd Amendment to the Constitution has been published in the Gazette ahead of its presentation to the House, Rajapakshe told Daily FT. The …
Wisden magazine, which is considered as the Bible of cricket, has published its T20I Team of the Decade. Wisden magazine has named Sri Lanka’s fast bowler Lasith Malinga as the king of T20 fast bowling.
Switzerland yesterday said it hopes for a swift return to an environment conducive to resuming the positive co-operation between the two countries after relations were marred over an alleged incident involving a local embassy employee. In a Diplomatic Note communicated to the Ministry of Foreign Relations (MFR) by the Embassy of Switzerland in Sri Lanka …
The Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDAD) of Switzerland yesterday welcomed with relief the release on bail of the employee of its embassy in Colombo. The Swiss authorities welcomed the release of the employee with a message via its official Twitter account @SwissMFA.
Colombo Chief Magistrate Lanka Jayaratne yesterday released on bail Garnier Bannister Francis, the local employee of the Swiss Embassy in Colombo allegedly involved in a fake abduction case. Francis was granted bail on two personal sureties of Rs 500,000 each. The Court temporarily banned foreign travel of the defendant and asked her passport to be …
Former Health Minister Dr. Rajitha Senaratne was granted bail by the Colombo Magistrate’s Court yesterday. This was when an anticipatory bail application filed by Dr. Senaratne was taken up for consideration. The court ordered that Dr. Senaratne be granted bail on two personal bail bonds of Rs 500,000 each. Banning foreign travel for Senaratne, the …
Senior Sri Lanka Administrative Service officer with vast experience P.S.M. Charles was appointed as the Northern Province Governor by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa yesterday. Charles previously served as the District Secretariat of Vavuniya and Batticaloa. She also served as Director General of Customs and Secretary to the Health Ministry.
By Uditha Devapriya In a country dominated by Cartesian thinking, it’s probably not surprising that a man vilified for the better part of a decade as a Sinhala Buddhist chauvinist, traditionalist, warmonger and opportunist should be celebrated as a martyr today. I remember coming across a particularly unsavoury (and no doubt defamatory) article on the …
By P.K.Balachandran Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who won the Sri Lankan Presidential election on November 16 emphatically, and formed a government with his brother and former President Mahinda Rajapaksa as Prime Minister, appears to have two objectives at this point of time. One is to put together a top-level team which will carry out his political and …
By Meera Srinivasan How do you translate the word ‘juxtaposition’ to Tamil and Sinhala? When a team of art curators set up Sri Lanka’s recently-launched Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (MMCA), they had many decisions to make, including on questions like this, pertaining to language. The museum does not limit itself to a particular …
By Sandun Jayawardana The national anthem’s Tamil version – sung at Independence Day celebration since 2016 – will be dropped again from February 4 next year. The national anthem’s Tamil version was sung at Independence Day celebrations since 2016 The Public Administration Ministry, the event organiser, has resolved that the national anthem must only be …
By M Manikandan Tamil Nadu’s major opposition party Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and BJP’s ally Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) on Friday attacked the newly-elected Sri Lankan government under President Gottabaya Rajapaksa for suspending the playing of National Anthem of the island nation in Tamil on its Independence day in February. DMK president MK Stalin hit …
By Lucien Rajakarunanayake We are moving on to another election year, and what does that mean? It means a helluva lot. Two Hundred and Twenty-Five to be removed, brought back, or a new pack brought in. It is the problem people face with choosing the unwanted. Let’s just look back at the last two national …
The National Peace Council has urged the government not to stop the yahapalana practice of singing the national anthem in Tamil at the Feb 04 Independence Day celebrations. The following is the text of NPC statement issued by its head Dr. Jehan Perera: The celebration of Christmas took place without incident and in the manner …
UNP MP and former Health Minister, Dr. Rajitha Senaratne, was arrested by the CID at Lanka Hospital in Narahenpita yesterday. Colombo Additional Magistrate Shalani Perera remanded Dr. Senaratne until Dec 30. The officers of the CID, who took Senaratne into custody around 2.10 pm, informed the Colombo Additional Magistrate of the arrest. When the case …
By Sandun A. Jayasekera The 72nd Independence Day celebrations will be held on February 4 at Independence Square in Colombo on a grand scale, the Public Administration Ministry said, adding that the national anthem would be sung only in Sinhala. These decisions were taken at a meeting held yesterday at the Disaster Management, Local Government …
by Bishop Duleep de Chickera The run up to the birth of Jesus was punctuated with pauses. Mary’s pause After the Angel visited her, Mary could not say what she would have liked to have said. Stories that went against established norms and trends were unacceptable. Those around would misunderstand and grow suspicious, even hostile. …
By Chandani Kirinde Speaker Karu Jayasuriya yesterday said he would summon the IGP and other senior Police officials who were involved in the arrest of MP Patali Champika Ranawaka, and inform them on the need to adhere to parliamentary conventions when arresting a lawmaker. The Speaker also said he would request the National Police Commission …
By Sandun Jayawardana and Manopriya Gunasekara It was nightfall on Wednesday (18) when some 50 armed policemen swooped down on a house at Jayanthipura, Battaramulla in what seemed a major operation. Whilst the constables surrounded the house, others blocked the road. An officer urged the watcher to open the gate. He did and the group …
By Kishali Pinto Jayawardene The ridiculous claim being parroted by bespectacled and grinning supporters (apparently also lawyers) of the ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Party (SLPP or the “Pohuttuwa’), that the action of the Attorney General is somehow ‘superior’ to the writ of a Magistrate in the making of arrests of persons in this land, is …
By Meera Srinivasan In the widespread resistance to the recently-passed Citizenship (Amendment) Act, many have repeatedly highlighted the omission of Sri Lankans among persecuted communities in the neighbourhood who now qualify for Indian citizenship, for the first time based on their religion. Nearly 1,00,000 Sri Lankan Tamils live in India, mostly in refugee camps across …
Dr. Indrajit Coomaraswamy on Friday departed the Central Bank as previously announced but with much respect and love, according to insiders and industry representatives. Dr. Coomaraswamy assumed duties in July 2016 and many weeks before the 16 November Presidential Election had informed authorities of his intention to step down on 20 December. Previously, Dr. Coomaraswamy …
By M.K.Bhadrakumar Since the setback in Nepal three years ago when the Indian diktat on the contents of a new constitution for that country was brusquely dismissed by that country’s communist leadership, Modi government faces a similar rebuff from Sri Lanka. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa chose a press conference Thursday with the Colombo-based foreign correspondents to …
By Sanjana Hattotuwa I can’t see Basil Rajapaksa. Social media doesn’t record his actions, feature accounts by or content on him. He isn’t the subject of memes. He doesn’t appear in any of the ego-centric, selfie laden photo albums or posts of the larger more social media savvy family. On Facebook, he was featured just …
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa yesterday said that he did not wish for the alleged abduction incident of a Swiss Embassy employee to sour relations between the two countries. Commenting on the incident, Rajapaksa told a group of foreign correspondents that the matter was a fabrication to discredit his Government and Presidency.
The United National Party (UNP) Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe on behalf of the United National Front (UNF) yesterday strongly condemned the arrest of Parliamentarian Patali Champika Ranawaka. Issuing a statement Wickremesinghe said the law enforcement authorities did not follow accepted democratic and legal procedures to arrest Ranawaka.
Deputy Speaker Ananda Kumarasiri yesterday wrote to the National Police Commission (NPC) informing them that due process was not followed during the arrest of MP Champika Ranawaka. In a letter addressed to the Chairman of the NPC, Kumarasiri stressed that he did not believe due process was carried out during the arrest and requested action …
Former CID Director SSP Shani Abeysekera yesterday filed a fundamental rights petition in the Supreme Court saying it was a violation of his human rights to demote him as the personal assistant to the Southern Province DIG.
Former Health Minister and UNP MP Rajitha Senaratne yesterday filed a second anticipatory bail application before the Colombo Magistrate a day after his first. His first application, made on Thursday, was rejected yesterday by Colombo Chief Magistrate Lanka Jayarathna.
Switzerland has sent Jörg Frieden, an experienced diplomat who once served as ambassador to Sri Lanka, to explore possibilities for clarifying the security incident at the Swiss embassy in Colombo, the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDAD) in Bern said yesterday. Frieden’s visit followed a telephone conversation between Minister of Foreign Relations Dinesh Gunawardena and …
By Gayan Kumara Weerasinghe The CID has begun probing former Minister Rajitha Senaratne and the State Pharmaceutical Corporation’s former Chairman Dr. Rumi Mohamed over allegations of having deployed two known criminal suspects to concoct a ‘white van’ abduction allegation with the aim of tarnishing the image of Presidential candidate Gotabaya Rajapaksa during the election period, …