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With the National Unity Government claiming that the independence of the judiciary has been restored, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe is seen in a friendly conversation with the new Chief Justice Priyasath Dep at a ceremony to mark National Law Week. Government leaders have repeatedly assured there would be no political interference in the work of [...]
Hambantota project: Stinging protest by Ports Minister
Ranatunga alleges draft deal gives unilateral powers to Chinese company The draft privatisation agreement for Hambantota Port lets a private entity unilaterally decide port fees, disregards the value of the land to be transferred under the deal and grants sole discretion to the company or its nominees to carry out development within a 50km radius [...]
No space for anchoring; Govt to release 42 Indian vessels
The Government is considering the release of some Indian fishing trawlers because of the burden of finding anchoring space for about 130 vessels now in custody. The Sunday Times learns the Government is considering the release of some 42 Indian trawlers seized in 2015. The number of seized vessels has risen to 129 due to [...]
Cabinet to review decision on pension payment
By Damith Wickremasekara A Cabinet decision to calculate pensions of retiring public sector employees, based on pending salary increases leading upto 2020, has been put on hold, officials said. The decision to hold back the implementation of the Cabinet paper approved in January this year came after it was revealed that the move would [...]
Travel agents fear their wings may be clipped
Sri Lanka’s travel trade industry has called an emergency meeting on March 17 to discuss a proposal by cash-strapped SriLankan Airlines to end traditional commissions on tickets, a move which could throw many agents out of business. In a circular to outbound travel agents, SriLankan Airlines has said the zero commission plan will take effect [...]
Ruwanpura Expressway may go to China, but major questions persist
By Namini Wijedasa The Highways Ministry has sought Cabinet approval to hire consultants for Ruwanpura expressway’s Section 1 which is expected to be awarded on a single proposal — without competitive bidding — to a Chinese firm. The company identified for the 26.3 km stretch from Kahathuduwa to Ingiriya is China National Technical Import [...]
Dengue deaths rise to alarming levels
Dengue deaths have risen to 24 in the first two months of this year, with more than 17,600 cases being reported, a top official said yesterday. The Dengue Control Unit’s Consultant Community Physician, Dr. Prechila Samaraweera, said that during the whole of last year 77 dengue deaths were reported while the number of cases reported [...]
Shop in Maharagama town damaged by fire
A saree shop in Maharagama town was damaged extensively due to a fire last evening, police said. The fire that broke out in the first floor of the five-storied building spread to the other floors. Pic by Nilan Maligaspe
PM talks about regaining good governance; CJ says people must know the law
The Government will go ahead with the setting up of a Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) to deal with postwar issues, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said on Friday.He was speaking at the main event of the “National Law Week 2017” at the auditorium of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL). The premier also ruled [...]
March ‘itching’ buried in Tamil Nadu political turmoil
Dateline Chennai By Kumar Chellappan Tamil Nadu used to get a kind of “itching” in March every year. Over the years, it earned the sobriquet of “March itching” and it coincided with the annual session of the United Nations Human Rights Council which meets in Geneva. In the past, there were demonstrations and all kinds [...]
Drill display by the marines
One hundred and sixty four (164) Marines including 6 officers and 158 sailors, belonging to the first-ever SLN Marine Battalion, passed out at the Naval Base SLNS Barana in Mollikulam on Monday on the successful completion of their training. The inauguration ceremony of the Marine Battalion together with insignia pinning was graced by President Maithripala [...]
At a glance: Sri Lanka’s 45th CJ Priyasath Dep
Justice Priyasath Dep, was sworn in as the 45th Chief Justice (CJ) of Sri Lanka on Thursday (March 2). He was the senior-most Judge of the Supreme Court following the retirement of CJ K. Sripavan who was born on February 29 ( a leap year), turned 65. Justice Dep served the Attorney General’s (AG) [...]
RTI Commission seeks Rs. 76 m to carry out its work efficiently
Sri Lanka’s Right to Information (RTI) Commission says it has urged the Finance Ministry’s Budget Director to ensure that Rs. 76 million allocated for it in the current year is released smoothly and promptly to carry out its work efficiently. This was in response to public concern expressed in several quarters recently in regard to [...]
Patients suffer but GMOA says people with us
The trade union action carried out by the Government Medical Officers’ Association (GMOA) from February 20, in each of the nine provinces, culminated on Friday in the Western Province, with the union claiming success despite the hardships caused to patients. The GMOA resorted to these one day token strikes, protest marches and rallies in the [...]
Lankan duo in Canada nabbed for multimillion dollar fraud, money laundering operation
Two Sri Lankans have been arrested as part of an investigation by Canadian police into a multimillion dollar fraud and money laundering operation. Sukanya Panchalingam and Balasubramaniam Shajeefkaran, a husband-and-wife pair between the ages 28 and 36, were taken from a home in Ajax, Ontario, where Toronto police found more than CAD (Canadian dollars) eight [...]
Pakistani nabbed at the BIA with 5.5 kilos of heroin
A Pakistani was arrested on arrival at the Bandaranaike International Airport yesterday, after the Police Narcotics Bureau (PNB) found more than five kilos of heroin in his possession, police said. PNB Officer In-charge T. Ludowyke said the man was arrested when he was seen behaving in a suspicious manner in the lobby area of [...]
Parliament to debate SAITM and drought-related-issues
A day-long debate will be held in Parliament on Thursday on the “Issues pertaining to the South Asian Institute of Technology and Medicine (SAITM) in Malabe”. The adjournment debate will be moved by the JVP and is scheduled to begin at 11.30 a.m.and end at 6.30 p.m. On Friday another adjournment debate will be held [...]
RIGHT OF REPLY from Sri Lanka’s Consul General in Mumbai
This refers to the news item entitled ‘Floodgates opened at the Foreign Ministry for Political Appointees to Overseas Embassies’ and the column ‘Talk at the CafeSpectator’ titled ‘Career diplomats kicked around like footballs’ appearing in the Sunday Times of January 15 and February 19, 2017 respectively.’. The references to me in the first article that [...]
Kalutara assassins pounced when cops allegedly held back prison bus protection
Law enforcement officers hunting for the perpetrators of last Monday’s deadly ambush of two prison buses in Ethanamadala, Kalutara concede it is one of the most meticulously planned and executed underworld operation. Police yesterday said they had identified five suspects directly involved in the attack, which left seven people, including alleged underworld kingpin Aruna Damith [...]
CB official says Mahendran’s presence at auction was unprecedented
Two senior Central Bank officials have been summoned to give evidence before the Commission of Inquiry (COI) probing Treasury Bond issues, including the controversial bond issue of February 2015. TC.M.D.N.K. Seneviratne, the CBSL’s former Public Debt Department (PDD) superintendent — now Director of the Information Technology Department of the CBSL — and PDD’s present superintendent [...]
Leprosy on the rise in Sri Lanka
The Government is planning an anti Leprosy campaign to eradicate the illness by the year 2020. Anti Leprosy Programme Director Dr Priyantha Karunaratne explained the campaign was organised as it has been found the numbers of leprosy patients has been increasing by around 2000 new patients a year. Dr Karunaratne said that despite the World [...]
Suspects in police custody have right to life, stress rights activists
The death of a 42- year-old man, last week, while in the custody of the Peliyagoda police emphasises the need to tackle the issue of torture of suspects in the police cell. Charitha Chamara (42) was found dead within five hours of his arrest. The father of two was arrested around 4 a.m. on February [...]
Anti-social criminals wreak havoc on public spaces
Anti-social behaviour in the form of criminal damage, or vandalism in other words, continues unabated in Sri Lanka. A sociologist says such criminal acts directed against public property are largely the result of a lack of respect for the law in the island and a culture of dishonesty. Destruction of public property, whether it be [...]
National campaign should target perverts on buses and trains, says official
A national campaign is needed to tackle the pervasive culture of sexual harassment of women on public transport, an official says. Such a campaign must include a national dialogue, efforts to raise awareness, and educating people on the consequences of sexual harassment. Swarna Sumanasekera, who chairs the National Committee on Women under the Ministry of [...]
Motorcyclists head for protest over new helmet rules
The controversy over the full-faced helmets is once again raising its confused head with the Transport Ministry gazetting new regulations on safety standards.The Ceylon Motorcyclists’ Association (CMA) is organising a protest at Galle Face today to express its opposition to the regulations gazetted by Transport Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva. CMA Secretary Chirantha Amarasinghe said [...]
Despite nationwide drought disaster, no emergency
In twenty three out of the 25 districts of Sri Lanka, people are crying out for water, farmlands are parched and indebted farmers are facing long-term financial ruin. The country’s economy will weaken by a percentage point, an international rating agency has warned, while also noting that the debt-laden island’s fiscal deficit target will not [...]
70,000 tonnes of rice in storage for two years, while imports continue
Thousands of tonnes paddy are languishing in stores of a state-owned organisation, while rice is being imported and the inadequacy of rice in the market is being claimed as an “artificial shortage’’. State-owned Paddy Marketing Board, which buys paddy from farmers for a guaranteed price, is yet to clear a stock of 70,000 metric tonnes [...]
Rules flouted at Yala National Park
Many Safari Jeep drivers operating inside the Yala National Park are openly flouting regulations put in place by authorities to ensure the safety of animals and tourists. Drivers, eager to please tourists, increasingly engage in rec klesss behaviour that not only harass the animals, but also putting the lives of tourists at risk. We observed [...]
Deadly garbage dumps pose elephantine problems
An elephant which had been regularly eating garbage at Manampitiya died last Saturday after suffering from a sickness for a month. This well grown male, about 20 years of age, was part of a herd that fed on garbage from a dump at Manampitiya. It had fallen ill in the third week of January. A [...]