Sep 19 (CT) Covid-19 has already done the damages for the entire globe. We do discuss technological advancements. We are really proud of and talking about Industry 4.0 and digital transformation of manufacturing/production and related businesses and value creation processes. In Science, humans consider as smartest animals on Earth. Even though it is difficult to measure the intelligence of animals there can be some indicators such as self-awareness, skill to use tools, more..

Sep 19 (SO) Countries that have had battles take a long time to heal. This can be seen from countries from the UK to the US. SL, where a conflict raged for almost 30 years, is no exception. The processes of accountability, reparations and reconciliation could take years, if not decades. Although the conflict ended only 12 years ago, SL has come a long way in terms of addressing these concerns unlike many other nations. There is a notion that SL has to engage in these processes for the sake of more..

Sep 19 (SO) The exercise at the UNHRC labelled Promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri Lanka, is a political project by the hegemonic countries. It has nothing to do with promoting human rights or reconciliation in Sri Lanka, senior international affairs critic Mohan Samaranayake. In an interview with the Sunday Observer last week, Samaranayake spoke about the ongoing Geneva process and more..

Sep 19 (ST) My dear Lohan, I would be shirking my responsibilities if I didn�t write to you this week. A week ago, most people would have said Lohan who? if asked about you. Now everyone is talking about you, what you allegedly did in night time visits to prisons and what should be done next. You are a celebrity! I am really not sure what to think about all this, Lohan. The accusations against you are that, while being intoxicated in the dead of the night, you have been visiting the prisons at Welikada more..

Sep 19 (Island) Energy Minister Udaya Gammanpila has told the Consultative Committee on Energy that Sri Lanka was sitting on USD 267 billion worth of oil and gas hidden in the Mannar Basin. Is the Minister abandoning the renewable energy targets of the President, and unwittingly planning to destroy the Palk Strait�s ecosystem (Rodriguez et al. 2007), and return to a future based on fossil fuels? Are we to breach the Paris accord, and spew pollution that the ADB costs at 7% lost GDP! more..

Sep 19 (SO) Minister Ali Sabry said that most of the countries stand together when it comes to the national interest and national security. But in SL, we are divided on political, racial and ethnic basis which is very unfortunate. He said we need to work together to protect the country because when the country does well that is how even the Opposition will get a good country to govern if they come to power. more..

Sep 19 (ST) It is the bi-annual season for the public condemnation of SL by yesteryear�s colonial powers and wannabe powers with lessons on how best to administer a country along the straight and narrow path of good governance and human rights. Now it is the turn of an ex-Chilean President (who has never set foot in this country) leading the charge against SL on behalf of the Western powers spearheaded by a fellow Commonwealth member-state. UNHRC is where this game is being more..

Sep 19 (GV) Gender equality is a fundamental human right, and as a result, it is crucial to ensure that every person has equal access to social, economic, political and cultural rights without any discrimination. In terms of economic rights, the gender wage gap is a well-established form of gender discrimination that cannot be economically and morally justified. As the result of continuous discrimination, on Sept 18, we commemorate International Equal Pay Day in support of more..

Sep 19 (CT) 48th Session of UNHRC commenced this Monday. As usual, SL is to figure in the proceedings. Issuing a critique of the Govt, Human Rights Watch has urged the UNHRC to maintain its scrutiny of the country�s human rights situation, with HRW�s South Asia Director Meenakshi Ganguly lamenting how Gotabaya Rajapaksa has reversed what little progress had been made in addressing past atrocities and ending abuses. In particular, Ganguly criticises the redeployment of PTA more..

Sep 19 (SO) Sports Minister Namal Rajapaksa claimed that unlike in the past, the Ministry does not interfere in selection matters when it comes to picking the SL cricket team. His comments come days after SL won the ODI series 2-1 and lost the T20 series 0-3 against South Africa. �We have to look at our future and make plans for success in this sport. It is our responsibility to create that platform and the decisions are made by the selection committee and the cricket committee of SLC more..

Sep 19 (ST) If one was to go out this week to buy essentials, he or she may wonder whether any sort of lockdown � be it conditional as Health Minister Keheliya Rambukwella suggested this week, or a quarantine curfew as someone else described it � is effective in the country. Needless to say, the ongoing lockdown by whatever name was further extended until Oct 1. It was business as usual in many instances except in regions more..

Sep 19 (TM) To put it mildly, the metamorphosis from the sublime to the ridiculous in the all-important matter of governance in the past couple of years has been nothing short of spectacular. It has now come to a point where even the ridiculous is becoming more ridiculous by the day. The events that keep unravelling on a daily basis appear to serve the dual purpose of keeping the nation enthralled and thereby effectively diverted from the real issues that include the daunting task of putting food on more..

Sep 19 (CT) In his 2019 Election Manifesto, then Presidential aspirant Gotabaya Rajapaksa pledged to create a disciplined, law-abiding and a moral society. As a former military officer, known to be a stickler for discipline, even his opponents expected him to instil order in governance and put an end to rampant corruption, which has become a bane for this country. Nearly two years after securing victory at the Presidential Election with an impressive margin, and backed by a Legislature with more..

Sep 19 (CT) Continuing the trail of resignations, an ambassador, a chairman of a statutory board and a State minister tendered resignations from their respective positions and the latter happened to be the most dramatic one. SL Ambassador to Myanmar, Prof. Nalin de Silva, has resigned on personal grounds and arrived in Sri Lanka on 15 Sept. MFA said Prof. de Silva had informed Prez Rajapaksa of his decision, more..

Sep 19 (ST) With Kusal Janith Perera having sustained a hamstring injury during the recent South African tour, selectors have decided to include an additional wicketkeeper in the side in place of Lahiru Madushanka, who has been ruled out with a broken collarbone. Accordingly, Minod Bhanuka and Pathum Nissanka�two wicket-keeper batsmen�have been drafted into the touring party but only one of them will make it to the 15-man squad to fill the vacancy created by injured Madushanka. more..

Sep 19 (TM) The traditional and indigenous national sports take the limelight only during the April Sinhala and Tamil New Year festival season. It should not as sports are sports, how un-modern or unsophisticated they could be. Here we take brief look at the ancient Sri Lanka sport Olinda Keliya, roughly put into English as � sport. It is a board game played on a wooden board, known as Olinda Kolombuwa or �Olinda Poruwa�. It has several holes in it. The rules of Olinda Keliya more..

Sep 19 (ST) After losing their Davis Cup Asia Pacific Oceanic Group III ties against Syria and Jordan, SL have been demoted to play Division IV in 2022 calendar. SL, after losing their first tie to Syria, played cohesively to earn some respect before going down to hosts, Jordan 2/1 in their second game of the Asia Pacific Oceanic Group III contest at the Tennis Federation Courts in Amman, Jordan. Yasith de Silva, who was in sparkling form, beat Jordan�s Seif Adas 6/4 and 7/6 to set more..

Sep 19 (ST) Franchise cricket�s most successful coach Mahela Jayawardene could be back in the SL team dugout as a mentor for the World Cup. Jayawardene, who oversaw Mumbai Indians� successful rein in IPL�helping them win three titles in four years as its head coach�was also head coach of the inaugural champions Southern Brave of the Hundred. Appointing a mentor to the national team was under discussion for a while and the Cricket Committee headed by more..

Sep 19 (SO) There would be no negative impact by the EU delegation�s visit this month on Sri Lanka�s GSP+ status, Joint Apparel Association Forum (JAAF) Secretary General Tuli Cooray told the Sunday Observer Business on Friday. It was only a regular visit on how Sri Lanka has responded to the trade facility and the conditions to benefit from the concessions, Cooray said, adding that Sri Lanka will continue to more..

Sep 19 (DM) Due to a belief in a super vaccine, intimidation of people and by various parties spreading malicious myths about the effects of vaccination, people between the ages of 20 and 30 do not go for it, whereas it is not due lack of interest in getting the vaccine, GMOA Secretary Dr. Shenal Fernando said. He said owing to above reasons, the country would lose the benefits of vaccination to control the epidemic and we would not be able to reach expected 70% threshold of vaccination. more..

Sep 19 (ST) Veteran journalist and former Lankadeepa staffer W.G. Gunaratne passed away on Friday after a battle with COVID-19. He was 84 years at the time of his death. A senior journalist for more than 50 years, Mr Gunaratne began his journalism career in 1962 as the Kamburupitiya Correspondent of Lake House. Being proficient in both Sinhala and English, he worked at the Dinamina, Silumina and Janatha newspapers as well as the Sunday Observer more..

Sep 19 (ST) Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) could allow the three banned cricketers�Kusal Mendis, Niroshan Dickwella and Danushka Gunathilaka�to play domestic cricket when the season starts with the Major Club limited-over tournament in October. The three cricketers admitted to breaching the bio-secure bubble during the Sri Lanka tour of England in June and were banned for six months from domestic cricket, one year from int'l cricket more..

Sep 19 (ST) Import restrictions will continue for next year with the aim of improving local production with priority for private sector projects being among the highlights in the proposed 2022 budget, senior Finance Ministry officials said. With production economy as the theme of the November budget now being prepared, the main focus is on agricultural, road development, irrigation and renewable energy sectors with large allocations for the respective ministries, the officials said. more..

Sep 19 (TM) The Paddy Marketing Board (PMB) will proceed with the decision to purchase nadu paddy at a rate of Rs. 55 per kg, despite complaints and protests by some farmers, The Sunday Morning learnt. The decision came as PMB Chairman Dr. Jatal Mannaperuma resigned last Wednesday (15). The Ministry of Agriculture said it requested approval to increase the purchase price of other paddy, samba, and keeri samba further, given the current economic situation. more..

Sep 19 (ST) The Monetary Board of Sri Lanka (MBSL) has approved a pension scheme for Governors of the Central Bank (CB) despite not having the authority to do so under the Monetary Law Act (MLA), legal sources pointed out this week. The general powers of the MBSL are contained in Section 10 of the MLA which provides authority to approve salaries for the staff. Section 10(b) provides for pension schemes. more..

Sep 19 (ST) Yet another long overdue multimillion-dollar mixed development project, John Keells� Waterfront Properties (Pvt) Ltd, has been given an extension to start commercial operations. It is the second postponement granted to the venture, with the first one having been in August 2018. The fresh extension of 14-months-and-20-days will start from October 12 this year. Therefore, the initiative for �the development, construction, equipping, commissioning, owning, managing, more..

Sep 19 (AD) The Chairman of the UGC says plans are afoot to fully vaccinate all the members of the academic and non-academic staff of the Sri Lanka University system against COVID-19, in a bid to reopen the universities soon. Senior Professor Sampath Amaratunga made this remark in a statement directed to the Govt Information Dept. According to the UGC Chairman, a rapid vaccination program has been implemented in collaboration with the health authorities. more..

Sep 19 (TM) A lender from the US is expected to lend $ 1 billion to Sri Lanka�s debt-ridden, state-owned oil company, the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC), to help repay the colossal sums of debt the corporation owes to state banks. The loan is said to be received by the end this year at an interest rate of 3% per annum. The decision to seek for an international lender who would lend money at a lower interest rate to partially rescue CPC more..

Sep 19 (EN) Sri Lanka has split its oil offshore exploration blocks from an original 20 to 873 to make them smaller and make it cheaper for oil companies to prospect, Energy Minister Udaya Gammanpila said. �When the block is large, it is very expensive for a single company to explore and it takes a long time,� Minister Gammanpila said. �As result it discourages some investors. Therefore we have amalgamated the block and split then into 873 and made new exploration maps.� more..

Sep 19 (ST) Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA) Executive Director Thushan Gunawardena is planning to resign from his post soon citing unavoidable circumstances and personal reasons. He would be joining, in recent months, several senior govt officials and heads of institutions who have stepped down for various reasons, including the inability to carry out doubtful decisions by upper management, including politicians. Mr. Gunawardena had tried to take more..

Sep 19 (TM) The Cabinet last week approved the controversial share transfer of the 300 MW Yugadanavi Power Station in Kerawalapitiya to New Fortress Energy Inc., a US-based energy company. The Cabinet had approved the cabinet paper presented by Minister of Finance Basil Rajapaksa despite objections raised by three Cabinet Ministers, namely Vasudeva Nanayakkara, Wimal Weerawansa & Udaya Gammanpila. more..

Sep 19 (TM) Minister Rohitha Abeygunawardena yesterday dismissed trade union (TU) allegations that a property belonging to the SLPA will be leased for Rs. 800,000 per month to a Chinese company. Abeygunawardena rejected the allegation and stated that the Colombo Port, with its five existing terminals and three proposed terminals, would become Asia�s most powerful harbour in the future. �This will be achieved through a public-private partnership (PPP) project spanning 35 years, more..

Sep 19 (AD) SJB MP Manusha Nanayakkara says he has been notified to appear before the CID on September 20, with regard to a probe carried out by its Computer Forensic Division. �But I have not been informed as to what complaint I will be summoned for or what kind of investigation they are going to conduct,� the lawmaker said in a post on his official Facebook page. MP added that he would cooperate with the investigating officers in giving evidence pertaining to any legitimate inquiry. more..

Sep 19 (ST) Foreign Minister, Prof. G.L. Peiris had to draw deep from the arsenal left behind by the previous yahapalana govt on the post-war domestic process to fight the oral report of UN High Human Rights Commissioner Michelle Bachelet on Monday. She made a string of damning indictments on the SL Govt at the 48th sessions of the UNHRC sessions in Geneva. Other than that, Prof. Peiris rejected more..

Sep 20 (CT) 48th Session of the UNHRC in Geneva that began on Aug 13, is already remarkable for two new developments. The first is the enabling of the UN High Commissioner to update in real time the charge sheet against the SL govt. This is not due to any arrogation of powers on the part of the High Commissioner, but is entirely the result of the govt forever piling on its past follies with new ones. The indictments in Geneva are becoming serial only because the govt�s misdoings in law and order are already serial. more..

Sep 20 (CT) Suicide bombers blasted three churches packed with devotees and three luxury hotels killing a total of 270 people on Easter Sunday, 21st April 2019. It has been since established that the suicide bombers belonged to the National Thowheed Jamaath terrorist group. Did they have connections with the ISIS? Former IGP Pujith Jayasundara, in his testimony, mentions a high-ranking SL Security official who paid a large sum of money to the attackers on the eve of the attack. Why was this not investigated? more..

Sep 20 (CT) The country has been placed under a lockdown, a state of emergency has been declared, and basic goods are running low in govt-run supermarkets. Where milk powder is nearly nonexistent in grocery stores, the daily ritual of a tea with milk and sugar is no longer the thrill it always was. Despite the strict lockdown measures in place to stop the spread of COVID-19, long lines have formed in front of grocery stores to obtain essential supplies. Even if the Govt maintains there are no shortages and more..

Sep 20 (DM) On Sept 5, six Palestinian prisoners held captive in an Israeli maximum prison �the Gilboa prison - broke out in speculator fashion. The men had dug a hole in the floor of their cell, then crawled through a cavity and tunneled their way beneath the outer wall. The men are believed to have made their way out of the cell they shared by digging a hole in the floor of their bathroom. Jerusalem Post reported that they had used a spoon which they hid behind a poster, as the tool to dig their way out. more..