Sep 14 (CI) Disagreements over Covid-19 protocols continue to dog Bangladesh's World Test Championship series in Sri Lanka, which is scheduled to begin in late October. Last week, Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) had informed the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) that the Bangladesh players would need to be in quarantine for one week upon landing in the island, before being able to train. more..

Sep 14 (UNDP) COVID-19 has led to an unprecedented health and economic crisis, deepening the existing poverty and climate crises. As Sri Lanka works to build forward better coming out of the pandemic, driving change in the people-environment nexus to protect the health of people and natural resources is key to a future that does not repeat the crisis we are in today. In this context, clean sustainable energy can provide affordable solutions that are in line with climate targets more..

Sep 14 (DM) Dr. Samadhi Rajapaksa took office as the third Chairman of National Authority on Tobacco and Alcohol (NATA) in January this year. The onset of COVID-19 posed significant challenges to regulatory bodies across, but for the tobacco and alcohol control body this event has proved to be a silver lining. “As I assumed duties, we faced the COVID-19 crisis and the entire world spoke of the dangers of Coronavirus and risks posed by smoking and alcohol. more..

Sep 14 (PMD) Prez Gotabaya Rajapaksa requested the intellectuals of the Viyathmaga to participate in the govt’s journey to make a better and prosperous SL. The Viyathmaga organization comprised professionals, academics and entrepreneurs representing a number of fields. The Viyathmaga was launched in the April of 2017 and its activities made a deep impact in the political social perspective of the citizenry. more..

Sep 15 (CT) Few days ago it was a time for many to rejoice when PM Mahinda Rajapaksa expressed his desire to legislate on a total ban on cattle slaughter. Even though further progress on the proposal got postponed for a month, it seemed to have endorsed an ecclesiastical appeasement on a certain bloc of society, who eternally opposed the practice of slaughter. Despite the presence of fake bona fides of Rajapaksas, if implemented the outcomes of the proposed legislation may drastically affect more..

Sep 15 (CT) If all power and decision-making are vested in one person, even if that person has originally been elected, then that political order is defined in classical (Aristotelian) terms as the rule of one man, a tyranny. In modern times this is defined as a dictatorship, especially if the ubiquity of the military is an aspect of that person’s rule, as in SL today. Other terms, also deriving from political thought and philosophy can be used: absolutism, autocracy, despotism. more..

Sep 15 (TM) Given that the present Cabinet does not have a ministerial portfolio dedicated to Women and Child Affairs, and the State Ministry for Women and Child Development, Pre-School and Primary Education, School Infrastructure and School Services too is aligned under the Cabinet Ministry for Education, various groups have continuously asked whether Piyal Nishantha de Silva – MP who was assigned the portfolio – more..

Sep 15 (ST) 19th Amendment has been criticised and demonised on the basis that it created two centres of power that prevented the smooth functioning of Parliament. As discussed in this column last week this is not substantiated by any evidence. The fact that there were conflicting opinions between the Prez and the PM during the Yahapalana Govt that impacted on the performance of that Govt is highlighted by the proponents of the 20th Amendment as a justification for more..

Sep 15 (ST) Less than a month into its five-year term, the Ninth Parliament of SL achieved world-wide notoriety this week when a murder convict on death row was sworn in as a member of the august assembly, amid jeers and a walkout from Opposition SJB MPs. The swearing-in of SLPP MP-elect Premalal Jayasekara was the first item on the agenda when sittings began on Tuesday (8). He was sentenced to death by the Ratnapura HC on July 31 for the 2015 murder of an opposition activist, more..

Sep 15 (DM) Former Govt placed much focus on a political solution for the Tamils, fighting corruption and assuring justice for high profile murders and other incidents. Minister Keheliya Rambukwella asserted that the priorities of the new Govt are different. Q: Let me start off by asking you about the composition of this Govt. We have a group of ministers & state ministers; some with questionable pasts and some with questionable portfolios. more..

Sep 15 (TM) If one were to define the meaning of the word democracy, the words of a revered American Prez spring to mind. It was Abraham Lincoln who in his epic speech known as the Gettysburg Address famously described the concept of democracy as govt of the people, by the people, for the people. Lincoln’s profound words hold true and remain relevant to the democratic world a good 157 years after they were first uttered. We were reminded of these words following the ha-ho more..

Sep 15 (CT) This newspaper in an article published on 28 August under the heading 26,000 plus expats repatriated quoting Army Commander and Head of National Operation Centre for the Prevention of COVID-19 Outbreak, Lt Gen Shavendra Silva said that currently, 26,000 plus expatriates have been repatriated and 55,000 more are to be repatriated on a staggered basis. The greater part of these Sri Lankans awaiting repatriation may be presumed to be the country’s workers in Middle-East more..

Sep 15 (DM) The abiding feature of the indigenous constitution-making in SL is personalism. Since the first Republican Constitution of1972, successive constitutions and endless amendments have been adopted to remodel the supreme law of the country to fit into the personal and political ambitions of the political leadership of the time. United Front Govt which was elected with a two-third majority in 1970 converted the House of Representatives to a Constituent Assembly and churned out more..

Sep 15 (DM) The govt is going to change the present Constitution in two steps, in line with Prez Rajapaksa’s policy statement at the inaugural session of the Parliament on Aug 20. Accordingly, the govt has already gazetted on Sept 3, a Constitutional Amendment Bill - 20th Amendment to the Constitution. On the other hand, the Cabinet, on Sept 3 has appointed a nine-member committee of experts on the recommendation of Justice Minister Ali Sabri who had been tasked the job by more..

Sep 15 (CT) Association of SL Graduates from Socialist Countries (ASLGSC) seemed to have stirred a hornets’ nest following their vehement condemnation of the Sri Lanka Medical Council’s (SLMC) decision to delist four Russian medical degrees presented by four Universities to students who sought foreign medical degrees after their GCE A/L exams. It has fired up the Russian Centre which has issued a warning that more..

Sep 15 (Island) Nobody has accepted responsibility for drafting the 20th Amendment (20A) to the Constitution. This fatherless Bill has become a huge embarrassment to the SLPP govt, which may have thought that securing its passage would be a walk in the park. Prez Rajapaksa has been left holding the baby. The govt has decided to review 20A, we are told. It is putting the cart before the horse. PM Rajapaksa has appointed a committee to study 20A and submit a report thereon to him fast. more..

Sep 15 (Island) May I begin by expressing my appreciation to the Kandy Professionals Association for embarking on this very timely initiative of meeting every month, on a Sunday, to discuss in depth the issues involving constitutional reform, and the way forward in our country. I consider this an exercise of immediate relevance and value. The decision by the Govt to present to the Cabinet of Ministers the text of the 20th Amendment to modify significantly the contents of the 19th Amendment and, more..

Sep 15 (TM) The proposed 20th Amendment seems to have received much opposition given that the incumbent Govt has made changes in a way that fortified the powers vested in the Executive President. Below are excerpts of interviews with Opposition party representatives – SJB National Organiser Tissa Attanayake, JVP Leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake, and ITAK Leader Mavai Senathirajah – more..

Sep 15 (DN) Sports Minister Namal Rajapaksa has decided to give ten foreign scholarships to the athletes who perform well at the forthcoming National Sports Festival (NSF). This scholarship duration will be three years and ten athletes will be selected according to their performance. The 46th National Sports Festival is scheduled to be held next December at the Sugathadasa Stadium and the Minister already has given instructions to cut down expenses in conducting this NSF and more..

Sep 15 (Island) As the opening weekend of the National Chess Championships comes to an end, the second seed Ranindu Liyanage (Ananda College) came on top by holding the top seeded Susal de Silva to draw in a double rook ending using a French defense. Liyanage then went on to win against Maheesha Dabarera (Maliyadeva College) who was leading the championship at the start of round five through a game where Maheesha opted for Sicilian Kan variation, but Ranindu used more..

Sep 15 (Island) Reputed sprint coach and Olympian Sunil Gunawardena alleged that a segment of track and field coaches guiding the destinies of SL’s top level athletes were ruining their careers by promoting controversial supplements. He said that country’s fastest sprinter in both the boys’ and girls’ categories are now being coached by an individual who imports and promotes supplements. Gunawardena who did not name more..

Sep 15 (Island) Sri Lanka could end up not playing any international cricket at all this year after Ministry of Health put up strict health guidelines for visiting teams to resume cricket. SLC was expected to host Bangladesh for three Test matches later next month and had identified Pallekele and SSC as the two venues as well for the games. However, the tourists have opposed the two week quarantine requirement demanded by the Health Ministry. While Bangladesh Cricket Board had indicated more..

Sep 15 (DN) Table Tennis Association of SL (TTASL) will finally get a permanent place for the players’ practices at Torrington Sports Ministry premises new building. This is a much-needed requirement for the paddlers and several times this issue was pointed out by the officials of TTASL. The present President of TTASL State Minister Kanaka Herath finally submitted this proposal to the new Sports Minister Namal Rajapaksa. Last week after a successful discussion between Minister Namal more..

Sep 15 (FT) The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has finalised its new Act for submission to Finance Minister PM Mahinda Rajapaksa, to be tabled before the Cabinet for approval. The new SEC Act has been in the works for several years, with multiple drafts and many rounds of stakeholder consultation. “We have refined the final draft, bringing greater clarity and removing ambiguity. more..

Sep 15 (ST) The new administration of Sri Lanka Rugby (SLR) unveiled its action plan with four important competitions to be staged from October onwards, but its implementation will depend on the feedback from the higher authorities. President Rizly Illyas positively revealed SLR’s immediate action plan while introducing the new heads of the committees at their inaugural press conference held on Friday, in which he also stated on an important meeting with stakeholders to be followed on more..

Sep 15 (CT) Import ban on tiles and sanitary ware is a major advantage for the local tiles and sanitaryware industry, Colombo based equity research arm of the SC Securities stated in its latest research note relating to Royal Ceramics Lanka (RCL). However, RCL expects supply side challenges as bathware; packaging and aluminum sectors are reliant on imported raw materials. “We expect strong recovery in volume in the second quarter of 2021, and increase in market share more..

Sep 15 (AD) President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa has instructed officials to implement a short-term and long-term plan in collaboration with the public, private sectors and small-scale farmers to meet the local demand for liquid milk. Prez stressed the need to improve grass cultivation, dairy cow breeding and research institute services in order to achieve the set targets expeditiously. President made these remarks during more..

Sep 15 (Island) The embassy of SL in the Republic of Korea in close coordination with the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce (CCC), Korea Importers Association (KOIMA), Korea Business Council and the embassy of Korea in Colombo conducted a webinar, last week, with particular focus on business opportunities and vistas, strategies to enhance bilateral trade particularly exports of goods and services of SL to South Korea, investment and commercial opportunities and tourism, more..

Sep 15 (TM) Credit pressures are likely to increase for some govts with large dollar-denominated debt repayments, with SL (B2 review for downgrade), along with Turkey (B2 negative) and Ukraine (B3 stable), being at greatest risk. “SL has $ 1.0 billion in international bonds to repay in October. Govt has secured $ 1.2 billion in external financing from China Development Bank (A1 stable), along with a $ 400 million swap line from Reserve Bank of India, both of which bolster foreign exchange reserves. more..

Sep 15 (AD) United Nations human rights chief said on Monday that she is troubled that the new Govt of Sri Lanka is swiftly reneging on its commitments to the UNHRC since it withdrew its support for resolution 30/1. U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet also warned that the proposed 20th amendment to the Constitution may negatively impact on the independence of key institutions, including more..

Sep 15 (SM) Delegation of the European Union (EU) to SL & Maldives in collaboration with the Uni of Peradeniya announced EU-funded Capacity Building for Higher Education (CBHE) projects for 2020. The announcement took place at the Univ of Peradeniya together with 15 other participant institutions. EU in SL is funding nine capacity-building projects in 2020 through the Erasmus+ programme, which aims to promote the sustainable development of its partners in the field of higher education. more..

Sep 15 (FT) CNBC, a leading international channel for consumer and business news, has extended its support to Sri Lanka Tourism by providing complimentary advertising worth $ 100,000 for a period of three months. The complimentary tourism promotional campaign opportunity was offered to promote and uplift the tourism industry, severely impacted by the pandemic. Sri Lanka Tourism advertisements will be aired from mid-September on CNBC in Asia, Middle East and Europe. more..

Sep 15 (CT) PCoI probing Easter Sunday terror attacks in 2019 ordered the Police unit attached to the Commission yesterday (14) to confiscate a mobile phone used by former Director of State Intelligence Service (SIS) SDIG Nilantha Jayawardena. The mobile phone had been used to record several conversations that took place between him and some senior security officials after the terror attack. more..

Sep 15 (DN) UNDP partnered with Brandix Apparel Limited to promote renewable energy in Sri Lanka through the facilitation of Model Fuelwood plantations for a Sustainable Energy Supply in SL. Deputy Resident Representative of UNDP in Sri Lanka, Faiza Effendi stated, “As nations prepare for the COVID-19 aftermath, there is a tremendous opportunity for a reset. Ambitious green recovery plans will help countries restore their economies while deepening their energy transition. more..

Sep 15 (DM) Ranil Wickremesinghe will continue as the leader of the UNP at least till early January despite his earlier announcement that he is ready to resign and appoint a new leader, senior party sources told Daily Mirror yesterday just after a secret ballot elected former Gampaha District MP Ruwan Wijewardene as the UNP's new Deputy Leader. Ruwan Wijewardene contested for the post with Ravi Karunanayake, and he won through the secret ballet with 28-10 votes. more..

Sep 15 (Island) SJB had commenced a campaign to safeguard the democratic values of the 20th Amendment and named it 19Plus, SJB MP Tissa Attanayake said. The campaign would be launched officially at 4 pm today at the New Town Hall. He said that the proposed 20th Amendment by the govt had become a fatherless baby. “The Justice Minister says that though he submitted the draft to the Cabinet he does not know who prepared it. more..

Sep 15 (NR) 28 coronavirus cases were recorded in the country yesterday increasing infections to 3,262. 11 returnees from the UAE, five Indian sea marshals, four arrivals from Bahrain, four returnees from Bangladesh, and one arrival each from Vietnam, Qatar and Kuwait were among those who tested positive yesterday. The individual who passed away yesterday owing to the coronavirus, was confirmed to have contracted the virus yesterday. The 60-year-old male, passed away while more..

Sep 15 (DM) The results of blood tests and X-rays submitted by applicants when seeking driving licences will no longer be required from today, Transport State Minister Dilum Amunugama said. Though the blood test report is not required for the issuance of licence, the applicant will have to however submit a report. State Minister said many people face difficulties due to their blood test results when obtaining driving licenses. “People may have high blood pressure and diabetes or both. more..

Sep 15 (FT) The committee appointed to study the proposed 20th Amendment will present their conclusions and recommendations to PM Mahinda Rajapaksa today, as well as at the Cabinet meeting tomorrow. According to SLPP Chairman and committee head Prof. G.L. Peiris, the committee met yesterday evening to analyse all articles of the proposed 20th Amendment, and final decisions on the procedure to be followed more..