Oct 10 (Island) A group of religious dignitaries of Buddhist, Hindu, Muslim and Christian faiths, has complained to the Supreme Court by way of a joint fundamental rights violation petition against a decision by the District Secretary Colombo, cited as the first respondent, to expand the toddy tavern ranges in the Colombo District for the year 2016, by Gazette No. 1933, dated Sept 18, 2015. The prelates consider it a violation of their right to more..

Oct 10 (Island) Dismissing much touted accusations regarding the massacre of over 40,000 civilians on the Vanni east front during 2009, Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe accused the Geneva-based UNHRC of relentlessly pursuing a political agenda. He called the Geneva body a political outfit. The Minister accused the 47-member body of being selective in its approach towards the accountability issues. more..

Oct 10 (DM) The Wild Life Department (WLD) said it would strictly enforce the rules and regulations on the behavior of foreign and local visitors, drivers and guides within the Yala National Park. It said a more efficient monitoring system would be in place with the deployment of more traffic police and other police officers. The new rules and regulations would also help to minimize the potential hazards to more..

Oct 10 (CT) The deadly dengue fever has once again embraced the nation with the Western Province being targeted by the dengue mosquito. The Health Ministry statistics indicated that there were over 20,000 dengue affected patients countrywide with fifty deaths reported so far. Western Province; especially Colombo and Gampaha Districts have been badly affected with over 50% of the total number of patients being reported from the two districts. more..

Oct 10 (CT) National Food Production Programme, which was inaugurated by President Maithripala Sirisena in Kilinochchi on Monday was significant in many ways and reminded of the Vapmagul an event which was initiated by late President J.R. Jayewardene in Polonnaruwa to enhance the paddy cultivation in the country in 1978. The bare bodied late President Jayewardene along with his successor late R. Premadasa dressed up like typical Lankan farmers ploughed a muddy paddy more..

Oct 10 (CT) Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) has requested Sri Lanka to reveal the progress of investigations into the deaths of four MPs, at the upcoming 133rd IPU Assembly to be held from 15 to 21 October in Geneva. Deputy Speaker, Thilanga Sumathipala, said that the Lankan delegation would be submitting a report to the IPU on information gathered by the CID concerning the assassinations of Parliamentarians Nadaraja Raviraj, Joseph Pararajasingham, T. Maheshwaran and more..

Oct 10 (CT) Three persons were arrested on Thursday in Panadura, Welikada and Moratuwa police divisions for possessing heroin, police said. ASP Ruwan Gunasekara said that a suspect was apprehended by the Welikada Police on a tip-off. He had 20 g and 800 mg of heroin in his possession. The 29-year-old suspect who is a resident of Dematagoda was produced before the Hulftsdorp Courts yesterday and Welikada Police are conducting further investigations. more..

Oct 10 (Island) European Union�s Mission in Sri Lanka yesterday praised Justice Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe�s announcement that Sri Lanka would vote in favour of the UN General Assembly resolution on a moratorium on the Death Penalty. Minister Rajapakshe early this week clarified Sri Lanka�s stand in parliament in the wake of both President Sirisena and PM Wickremesinghe declaring that parliament more..

Oct 10 (CT) Through seven supplementary estimates in May and June, President Maithripala Sirisena�s office has sought Rs.380 million as expenditure for several projects. This is in addition to the annual allocation of monies for spending of the President. These supplementary estimates were sought for the below mentioned projects. An allocation of 10.1 million rupees to complete renovations of the senior minister�s office. Rs.70.6 million to buy a BMW motor car and more..

Oct 10 (Hindu) Eight Sri Lankan Tamils who have been on fast in a special camp here since the beginning of this month, were arrested on Thursday. Cases have been booked against them for attempting to commit suicide. They went on fast on October 1, demanding their release from the camp that houses 13 Sri Lankan Tamils. They were produced before a Judicial Magistrate and were subsequently admitted to the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Govt Hospital in view of their more..

Oct 10 (CT) The theme for World Mental Health Day which falls on 10 October is Dignity. This year's theme will stress on preserving and restoring the dignity of the patient. Speaking at the announcement of the new theme for World Mental Health Day, Director of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) Dr. H.M.K. Wickramanayake said that it is the ill informed attitude among people about mental health that is most damaging. more..

Oct 10 (Island) Most Venerable Galagama Sri Attadassi Mahanayake Thera of Asgiriya has urged the Central Provincial Council to take measures to ban private tuition classes on Sunday mornings. The need for dhamma education for children is felt more than ever, the prelate has said. Private tuition classes prevented children from attending dhamma schools on Sundays, he has said in his communication to the Provincial Council. Prelate has said that it has become important for more..

Oct 10 (AD) EPDP leader Douglas Devananda today urged President Sirisena and his govt to take necessary measure to release the remaining land held by army forces to their rightful owners. He stated that acres of land in Mullaitivu, Valikamam and Kilinochchi areas is still under the control of the military and therefore requested the President for their release. He expressed his appreciation of the 615 acres of land in the North release so far through the intervention of the President. more..

Oct 10 (NS) Govt is yet to make public key reports detailing incidents of alleged human rights violations, despite earlier pledges to do so by the end of September. The reports are mainly the ones compiled by Presidential Commission to Investigate into Complaints Regarding Missing Persons (PCICRMP), headed by retired High Court Judge Maxwell Paranagama and the one compiled by Presidential Commission more..

Oct 10 (CT) The govt yesterday complied with the Opposition's request to allocate two full sitting days for a debate on the UNHRC report on Sri Lanka. PM Ranil Wickremesinghe said that the govt had received the English versions of the reports of the Maxwell Paranagama Commission and the Udalagama Commission on alleged human rights violations in Sri Lanka, but had not yet received the Sinhala and Tamil versions. "If we are to wait for the Sinhala and Tamil versions we will not be more..

Oct 10 (Hindu) There is a huge scope for collaboration between India and Sri Lanka in the area of real estate, town planning and infrastructure development. Island nation already has Indian companies like Ansal Housing, SMS property developer who have invested in housing and civil construction projects. �There is demand for construction services, especially town planning. Sri Lanka will be building housing units (65,000) in five districts and India can capitalise on this,� more..

Oct 10 (NS) Making available free Wi-Fi facility for the citizens which was a presidential election pledge under the 100-day program does not have a 100 percent success, claims Telecommunications and Digital Infrastructure Minister Harin Fernando. Speaking to The Nation, the minister said that there are several technical issues relating to the service providers to whom the work is entrusted to. �I admit that the service is not that successful. more..

Oct 10 (Island) Speaker Karu Jayasuriya announced in Parliament the names of MPs for the Committee on High Posts and the Standing Committee. Accordingly the Committee on High Posts would comprise Speaker Jayasuriya (Chairman), John Amaratunga, Nimal Siripala de Silva, Rauff Hakeem, Lakshman Kiriella, Wijayadasa Rakjapakshe, Mano Ganeshan, Dr Sarath Amunugama, Vijitha Herath, Bimal Ratnayake, Dinesh Gunawardena, Mavai Senadhiraja and Dharmalingam Siddharthan. more..

Oct 10 (CG) The Law and Society Trust acknowledges and appreciates that Sri Lanka has redefined its position with regards to the reintroduction of the death penalty. Minister Wijeydasa Rajapakshe stated in Parliament on 6 Oct 2015, that Sri Lanka will not implement the death penalty temporarily as the country has decided to vote in favour of UN General Assembly Resolution on Moratorium on the Use of Death Penalty in 2015. Although in 2012 Sri Lanka abstained , more..

Oct 10 (LT) No justice could be obtained from the present government regarding frauds, corruption and waste that was carried out during Rajapaksa regime says the President of National Trade Union Center (NTUC) K. D. Lal Kantha. Speaking at the 8th National Convention of the All Ceylon Excise Employees Union Mr. Lal Kantha said, �Mr. Ranil Wickremesinghe manipulated a national govt more..

Oct 10 (CT) Minister S.B. Dissanayake said that, the possibility of a negative impact emanating from the UNHRC Report on Sri Lanka was turned positive; by the delegation of the National Govt which represented the country at the recent Geneva and New York Forums. He said "The tensed situation which resulted following the release of the UNHRC Report on Sri Lanka could have turned unpleasant if not for the perseverance of President Sirisena, PM Wickremesinghe & FM Mangala more..

Oct 10 (NS) In the latest controversial environment related issue various local environmental organizations have been leveling serious accusations against Jiffy Products Sri Lanka (Pvt) Ltd for releasing large amounts of waste water in to the Deduru Oya adjacent to their coir fiber factory located in Kobeigane. These organizations claim that this waste water, containing a high concentrate of nitrate, thereby is endangering the environment as well as causing a serious health hazard more..

Oct 10 (Island) Leader of DLF Vasudeva Nanayakkara said in Parliament that the issue of Indian fishers poaching in Lankan waters would never be sorted without shifting it from the bilateral to international context. Participating in a debate on the problem of Indian fishermen exploiting fish in SL waters, he said the issue had now evolved into a situation where a solution was not possible at bilateral level. more..

Oct 10 (TOI) Sri Lankan naval agencies apprehended 19 Indian fishermen and two boats from Nagapattinam on Friday night on charges of poaching in their territorial waters. The vessels held are multi-day fishing boats, according to sources in the fishing community. Sri Lankan navy has said it assisted the coast guard in apprehending the two fishing boats, each eight to nine nautical miles east of Point Pedro and Vettalakerni coast on October 9. The detained fishermen were handed over to more..

Oct 10 (WT) Notre Dame�s 40th anniversary of its pilgrimage for developing nations has motivated two alumni to inspire others to give back. Josie Faccini and Menaka Swampillai-Evans graduated from the Welland high school in 1991. They never forgot the teachings they learned at Notre Dame about giving back to others. The two former students have started an online GoFundMe account to raise money to build a home for displaced people in Jaffna, Sri Lanka. more..

Oct 10 (CI) Sri Lanka's interim head coach, Jerome Jayaratne, has said the team has accepted they have fallen behind in Test cricket, and are working hard to correct that in the upcoming home series against West Indies. "I spoke to all of them individually before they went to the nets. We got a good feedback. They were well disciplined and they accepted they had fallen behind in performance and had two bad series," Jayaratne, more..

Oct 10 (NS) There is no law in Sri Lanka to regulate cosmetic products and thus authorities are unable to take action against salons and beauty parlors that use unregistered products. �There are a lot of unregistered cosmetic products like whitening creams and henna in the market and this means that these unregistered products are also being used in salons,� said DR Wickramasekara Bandara, Secretary of Food and Drugs Inspectors� Association. According to Bandara, more..

Oct 10 (CT) Leader of the UNP, PM Ranil Wickremesinghe has instructed the Jathika Sewaka Sangamaya and the other trade unions affiliated to the UNP, not to clash with UPFA ministers, as the UNP and the UPFA are working in unity as a National Govt. PM has said this in response to complaints of several trade unions regarding problems that have arisen in ministries headed by UPFA members. PM Wickremesinghe has pointed out that the UNP and the SLFP should more..

Oct 10 (CI) Rangana Herath, who has spearheaded the SL bowling attack for the past six years since the retirement of Muralitharan, says he won't make any decision on how long to carry on playing until after the end of the 2016 World Twenty20 in India. However, Herath, who will turn 38 during the World Twenty20 next March, says it could come very soon and admits he is struggling to stay fit with recurring knee problems more..

Oct 11 (SO) While rabble-rousers harp on sovereignty and hybridity, real-life in Sri Lanka now moves on to bread-and-butter issues such as economic strategy, fiscal policy for financial stability and the looming Budget. Even as the UNHRC wound up in Geneva, the President and the PM were winging their way on missions to cement global engagements all round. While the President successfully presented Sri Lanka's case for post-war recovery at the UN General Assembly, more..

Oct 11 (SL) Ugly scenes once again broke out on Thursday in the chamber of parliament where the highest standards of political decorum are expected to be maintained. Frequent outbreaks of misconduct are occurring in this new parliament, which resemble some regrettable scenes that took place in the previous parliament as well. This does not augur well for Sri Lankan democracy, the new govt or even for some members of the opposition who are veteran legislators. more..

Oct 11 (SO) Justice Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe says the rejection of the proposed domestic mechanism by members of the Mahinda Rajapaksa group, a call which is echoed by the LTTE Diaspora can only imply one thing - the two factions are working hand in glove. Q: Dissidents of the UPFA in the joint opposition claims that the domestic mechanism mandated by the A/HRC/30/L.29 US resolution is a sugar-coated pill on Sri Lanka. Your comments? more..

Oct 11 (NS) Regimes acquire tags, leaders too. When they resonate with general public perception they become part of everyday usage. It was Victor Ivan who called President Chandrika Kumaratunga Chaura Regina (The Thieving Queen). It stuck. No one knows who first used Sahodara Samaagama (The Company of Brothers or perhaps Brothers Incorporated) to describe President Mahinda Rajapaksa and his brothers Basil and Gotabhaya, but it stuck. more..

Oct 11 (NS) Sri Lanka�s de facto colony status is complete with the hybrid courts that are to be established under terms of the UNHRC resolution of which Sri Lanka was a co-sponsor. Local prosecutors and judges are being deemed to be incompetent, and local legal systems deemed inadequate. But the deeper implications are in the handing over of the country on a platter to foreign interests. This is from a political dispensation that alleged this country had been colonized by the Chinese. more..

Oct 11 (NS) UPFA MP and MEP Leader Dinesh Gunawardena says as a responsible Opposition they will fight the long arm of the West trying to punish Sri Lanka�s war heroes with an �internationalised� domestic probe. Q: The UPFA dissidents have objected to the domestic mechanism mandated under the UNHRC Resolution. You are on record saying there will be serious repercussions if the Government goes ahead with it. On what grounds do you oppose this mechanism ? more..

Oct 11 (ST) �Capital punishment is a subject on which men (and women) tend to feel strongly, to be swayed by emotional prejudices and to argue dogmatically. It is also a subject of greater complexity than is generally supposed.� These are the words contained in the concluding chapter of the Report of the Commission on Capital Punishment published in 1959 as a sessional paper in the country, after an exhaustive look into the death penalty by a three-member Committee. more..

Oct 11 (ST) The Prime Minister�s visit to Japan this week hot on the heels of the President�s to the United Nations very clearly marked a significant shift in Sri Lanka�s foreign policy, away from what was seemingly an over-reliance on the Chinese sphere of influence. Not insignificantly, the Sri Lankan President was accommodated at the high table with other world leaders at the US President�s lunch reception. Many still ask whether moving away from China is a good move. more..

Oct 11 (SL) Sri Lankan govt states that the resolution on Sri Lanka adopted at the UNHRC is a victory for the country. However, the JVP claims that some content of the resolution poses threats to the country � especially because the resolution still calls for an international intervention in Sri Lanka�s judiciary and domestic affairs. JVP General Secretary Tilvin Silva said that the JVP holds the Rajapaksa regime mainly responsible for more..

Oct 11 (ST) My dear Janaka Bandara, I thought I should write to you when I heard that you had suddenly been remanded for an offence that you had allegedly committed more than fifteen years ago. Honestly, I was both shocked and surprised to hear about this because although you had been in the news recently, it was for different reasons. We knew you initially as the son of TB, of �kavi kola� fame. It was SWRD�s �revolution� in 1956 that brought your father in to politics. more..