Apr 12 (CT) PM Rajapaksa just addressed the nation. It will go down as the worst speech he ever made and marks the nadir of his political career and more tragically, the manner he will be seen by history. Most seriously of all, his speech�the one he agreed to read out�may signal a round of repression that sends the country plunging into the abyss. For a man who had a romantic political history as a dissident and rebel, Mahinda�s speech failed utterly to empathize with or more..

Apr 12 (CT) Lord Michael Naseby who was in Colombo speaks of the war crimes allegations and how Sri Lanka should deal with the issue. He says that a Truth and Reconciliation Commission will allow to probe and investigate all the questions Sri Lankans have. Q: In SL, there is a political or national solution to the ethnic problem. Do you believe in such a thing? A: I believe significant steps have been taken to bring country together. more..

Apr 12 (CT) GMOA Secretary Dr. Senal Fernando said he would urge the new CB Governor, Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe to use the Rs 2.02 billion Itukama Health and Social Welfare Security Fund to rebuild the collapsing health services. The collapsing health services is identified by a shortage of essential medicines due to a lack of US dollars in the country. This figure of Rs 2.02 billion in the Itukama account is culled from the Itukama website. The Itukama or commitment fund more..

Apr 12 (DM) It backfired. There were small scale protests even during the curfew. Monday evening, they had become island-wide. They were peaceful, and the police stayed away. Someone must have had the wits to understand that trying to curb this wave would be akin to throwing a lighted match to a powder keg. What�s striking is that this was primarily a youth protest. No politics here, no party slogans and banners. Instead, teenagers and twenty-somethings held placards, SL flags or black more..

Apr 12 (Island) Thisarindu Induwara of Royal College and Hansadie Aradhya Akuratiya of Ferguson High School, Ratnapura were leading the Under 12 Open and Under 10 girls� categories respectively after six rounds of the SL National Youth Chess Championships conducted by the Chess Federation of SL. Royalist scored full six points by virtue of his victories against S.M.D.M. Herath, Melone Berthelot, G.H.S. Sanulya, Senal Francis, Ramiru Gunawardena and Pamok more..

Apr 12 (Island) Former President Maithripala Sirisena, of all people, has undertaken to bring order out of chaos; he is proffering advice to the govt on how to resolve the present crises. He has presented a set of proposals to Prez Rajapaksa, spelling out how his party, the SLFP, and the rebel SLPP MPs think the govt should set about the task. Protesters out there in the streets say nasty things about Prez Rajapaksa, but nothing must be more humiliating to him than to be told by a failed predecessor more..

Apr 12 (TM) With much of the country shutting down for the Sinhala and Tamil New Year, marking the time for Avurudu celebrations to take place, the traditionally heard cries of the Common Cuckoo, or Koha, have been replaced by the singsong chants of the citizens� protests against the Govt. Last Saturday, people flocked from all over the country to converge on Galle Face Green, resulting in a protest that, more..

Apr 12 (Island) I use the hashtag #GoHomeGota to mark this watershed moment in SL�s postcolonial history. It is in honour of the people who have stormed the streets to demolish the Bastille of a dynastic and nepotistic political regime that has left SL in an economic meltdown. People of every class and creed have united against a common enemy; the Rajapaksas. Various kinds of rhetoric seep through the struggle to fight the Rajapaksas, and they require close scrutiny and unpacking more..

Apr 12 (GV) Will the regime fall? Will the Rajapaksas cave in? Will Gota actually give up? Or will there be a military coup to protect the regime? These and similar queries and speculations and rumours flooded cyberspace during the past week as the countdown quickened for the social media engineered public street protest campaign called anonymously for last Sunday (3). The flood of queries thickened in online messaging once the public protests went ahead last Sunday and more..

Apr 12 (Island) Hurdlers Dhanuka Darshana and Amesha Hettiarachchi and runner Tharushi Karunaratne were the top performers among school athletes who took part in the centenary National Athletics Championships. A number of events of the historic championship had to be postponed to April 23rd due to inclement weather which prevailed over the weekend. In the completed events, trio from the Central Province stood out. more..

Apr 12 (ST) Current administration needs to step down from office and allow a competent set of people to assume office in line with the Constitution, Uni of Moratuwa Teachers Association (UMTA) said. In a letter to Prez Rajapaksa, UMTA said the current administration has demonstrated that it is incompetent in handling the current economic crisis and resulting ill-effects. �All ministries need to appoint permanent secretaries from the ministries themselves based on expertise and more..

Apr 12 (DM) Former PM and UNP MP Ranil Wickremesinghe warned that SL could run out of fuel in the second week of May or later in the month, after the current Indian credit line is exhausted, plunging the country further into darkness and economic abyss. Wickremesinghe painted a gloomier outlook for the country and its economy in the period ahead, speaking over the phone to CNBC TV last morning, to comment about the worsening economic and political crisis in SL. more..

Apr 12 (FT) Colombo Young Men�s Buddhist Association (YMBA) called on leaders of all political parties to establish a consultative mechanism whereby all parties can effectively formulate and contribute meaningfully to pragmatic and acceptable strategies to find solutions to the ongoing crises. �However, we do not see such a process occurring in parliament, which is a serious shortcoming, and this has resulted in further deepening public frustration while aggravating the situation,� more..

Apr 12 (FT) CEB Engineers Union (CEBEU) says it is withdrawing its membership from any activity pertaining unsolicited proposals hereon, adding it recognises the need to change the administrative system and install better governance. �This includes the disgraceful New Fortress LNG procurement deal,� the release adds. The CEBEU also called on authorities to reinstall proper administrative and good governance practices, and stand against the conduct of a handful of individuals, more..

Apr 12 (FT) PM Mahinda Rajapaksa said yesterday the Govt has taken on the challenge of finding a way out of the economic crisis the country is facing and called on the people to be strong and patient in these trying times. In a televised address to the nation, first since mass scale countrywide anti-govt protests began, the PM also told protestors that every moment they stay on the streets, they are disrupting the flow of dollars into the country. more..

Apr 12 (FT) SL�s COVID-19 case count rose to 662,657 following the detection of 65 COVID-19 patients yesterday. Daily COVID-19 detections have been dropping gradually, with 33 patients detected the previous day. 1,911 PCR tests and 1,229 rapid antigen tests were conducted on Sunday. 75,020 COVID-19 patients have been detected since 1 Jan. A total of 483,090 patients from the New Year cluster, 82,785 patients from the Peliyagoda cluster, 9,154 patients from the Prisons cluster, more..

Apr 12 (FT) Police will launch a special operation from today to identify individuals illegally storing and selling fuel. As per the Police, it is illegal to privately hold and sell fuel, without a filling station registered under the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC). �At present we have arrested two groups that have been involved in storing fuel illegally. From Tuesday (today) the raids on fuel stockpiling will be intensified,� Police Media Spokesman SSP Nihal Thalduwa told journalists. more..

Apr 12 (CT) The new PM of the country should be a person who is accepted by everyone, PHU Leader Udaya Gammanpila said. He made this remark in response to a question at a media briefing. Although, the whole country has united as one on this crucial occasion where the 225 MPs in Parliament were unable to provide solutions, Gammanpila said. He said, there won�t be a country for us to live if the current situation continues. more..

Apr 12 (Island) An innovative video call identity verification feature has been introduced by Commercial Bank of Ceylon to its ground-breaking digital bank account Flash, making it possible for an account to be opened, activated and operated without ever visiting a bank branch. The unique Digital KYC (Know Your Customer) process allows the Bank to remotely complete the customer verification requirements and provide the Flash account holder full access to all the functions more..

Apr 12 (PTI) Enforcement Directorate Monday said it has attached assets worth Rs 3.59 crore of four Indians allegedly involved in drugs and arms smuggling as part of a plan to �revive� the banned SL terror group LTTE that was militarily defeated by the island nation in 2009. The accused are being probed by the federal agency in a case linked to the seizure of 300 kgs of heroin, arms and ammunition from a Sri Lankan boat that was intercepted by the Coast Guard in Indian waters on March 18 last year. more..

Apr 12 (Island) �My intention is to maintain the Central Bank as a highly independent institution that could take decisions without any political interference and to also get the support of multi-lateral agencies in Sri Lanka�s efforts to overcome its economic difficulties. I came to serve the people and not any politician, newly appointed CB Governor Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe said at his first media briefing held at the Central Bank Head Office in Colombo after assuming duties last Friday. more..

Apr 12 (CT) Sri Lanka�s unprecedented interest-rate hike has helped restore the central bank�s credibility, although it�s not enough to remove the risk of a debt default as a political crisis delays an IMF bailout, according to Citigroup Global Markets. The Central Bank of SL raised the key rate by 700 basis-points on Friday, narrowing the negative gap in real interest rates � nominal rates adjusted for inflation � to 420 basis points from 1,120 basis points previously. �While this steep rate hike more..

Apr 12 (Island) One-time Deputy Governor of CB Dr. W.A. Wijewardena urged the beleaguered SLPP govt to restore political stability before talks with the IMF in Washington or face the consequences. He said so when The Island sought his views on the forthcoming talks between SL and IMF scheduled to begin on April 18. Dr. Wijewardena, who resigned in 2009 after having served as Deputy Governor for a period of more..

Apr 12 (Island) UNP Chairman and former minister Vajira Abeywardena said that those protesting against the govt should not get their priorities mixed up if they wanted to achieve something meaningful. He said that there were two major slogans shouted by the protesters. �One slogan is calling the President to resign. The second main slogan is about the economic crisis. If the protesters and political parties, supporting them, fail to read the situation and decide what they really need more..

Apr 12 (EN) Ceylon Petroleum Corporation is losing between 800 to 1000 billion rupees a day Chairman Sumith Wijesinghe said as oil prices rose and the rupee fell. CPC is losing 110 rupees per litre of diesel sold and 52 rupees for a litre of petrol, he said. �The daily loss is between 800 to 1000 million rupees,� Wijesinghe told reporters. CPC is selling Petrol at 254 rupees and a litre and auto diesel at 176 rupees a litre. There were no plans to raise prices at the moment, Wijesinghe said. more..

Apr 12 (TM) State Ministry of Production, Supply, and Regulation of Pharmaceuticals had sent a letter to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Friday (8), requesting assistance from foreign missions to ensure that SL receives stocks of medical supplies that are not manufactured in SL. �There is a considerable amount of vital medical supplies such as orthopaedic implants, anti-cancer drugs, reagents and consumables used at more..

Apr 12 (DM) The GMOA requests the govt to implement a transparent mechanism to import medicine and medical equipment as the donors have no trust in the government or with the Health Ministry. GMOA Secretary Dr. Senal Fernando said there is a shortage of 237 essential medicines in hospitals, mainly given to patients suffering from coronary artery disease (CAD), cancer, diabetics and even patients with mild infectious diseases like fever, cough and cold. more..

Apr 12 (TM) Protestors, who have occupied Galle Face and its surroundings since Saturday, in a massive protest against the Prez and the current Govt, have set up a camp in the Agitation Site close to the Presidential Secretariat dubbed Gota-Go-Gama, with dozens of tents. Gota-Go-Gama offers free food, water, toilets, and a makeshift medical camp for health emergencies, through the support of protestors. Meanwhile, Sri Lankans living and working in US and other Western countries more..

Apr12 (FT) Today we are at a crossroads that was unimaginable just a couple of weeks ago. We are on the verge of a 2nd Independence, one that is probably more important than our independence from British rule 74 years ago. I say 2nd Independence because, in the last 74 years, we have never come together as a nation like this before, and while our first independence was from colonial rule, the second will be freedom from corrupt, shortsighted, selfish and more..

Apr12 (FT) Born within the first decade of SL�s Independence from the British, I believe I had the good fortune of seeing a more disciplined Sri Lanka during my formative years. A Sri Lanka in which a majority of legislators were selfless and national minded, an executive wherein from the highest public office to the lower ranks, were proud of what they did and discharged their duties in the best interest of the populace; signing off as yours obedient servant and a set of judges who more..

Apr 12 (AD) SLFP has removed MP Shantha Bandara from all positions he had been holding in the party. The move came after MP Bandara accepted a state ministerial portfolio despite the SLFP�s parliamentary group�s departure from the ruling party and decision to sit independently in the parliament. Bandara was sworn in yesterday as the State Minister for Promoting the Production & Regulating Supply of Organic Fertilizer. He was appointed to fill in the vacancy created by more..

Apr 12 (NW) SL hip/hop Rapper Shiraz aka Rude Bwoy has passed away while participating in the Go Home Gota public protest held at the Gall Face Green in Colombo agains Prez and his Govt. Shiraz had performed Bob Marley�s Get up, stand up to entertain the protesters yesterday and had collapsed nearly two minutes after ending the song. Rapper was pronounced dead while being transported in an ambulance to a nearby hospital. It is reported that Shiraz aka Rude Bwoy had passed away more..

Apr 12 (AD) SL will temporarily suspend foreign debt payments to avoid a hard default, the central bank governor said on Tuesday, with its limited foreign reserves required for imports of essential items such as fuel. �It has come to a point that making debt payments are challenging and impossible. The best action that can be taken is to restructure debt and avoid a hard default,� Governor Nandalal Weerasinghe said. SL is due to start talks more..

Apr 12 (EN) SL�s commercial banks were selling US dollar around 335 on Tuesday, official bank sites showed. The central bank�s indicative spot was 313.67 against the US dollar on Tuesday, up from 311.67 on Monday. Central bank�s Telegraphic Transfer rate at 319.2/330 on Tuesday, up from 316.8/327.5 on Monday. Commercial banks sold dollar in TT rates around 330-335 while bought between 310-320. In the secondary markets, Treasury Bill yields jumped to multi-year high more..

Apr 12 (Island) About 300 people demonstrated on Sunday outside the Sri Lanka High Commission in London in support of the mass protests that have rocked the country in recent weeks. Skyrocketing prices, putting necessities beyond the reach of millions of Sri Lankans, have compounded years of economic crisis and the impact of the COVID pandemic, driving millions onto the streets to demand the ouster of President Gotabaya (Gota) Rajapaksa, foreign media reports said. more..