May27 (FT) Leading blue chip John Keells Holdings (JKH) has expressed optimism on SL�s recovery if the country successfully pursues its first ever fundamental framework of economic policies. JKH Chairperson Krishan Balendra in his review in the company�s FY23 Annual Report commended the efforts of the Govt and policy-makers for successfully navigating the economic stabilisation measures over the last few quarters and in reaching some key milestones including securing more..

May27 (DM) BoI of SL has received the approval from an expert committee to embark on a pilot project to cultivate cannabis within a BOI zone. This was revealed by State Minister Dilum Amunugama. The pilot project is to kick-off soon in the Katunayake zone and discussions are underway with investors and experts to finalise the pilot project. "We have been authorised as the experts committee report is out. It's a 'Yes'. more..

May 27 (Island) The govt�s decision to make the economy contract has adversely impacted the small and medium enterprises (SME), Chairperson of SL United National Businesses Alliance (SLUNBA), Tania Abeysundara said on Thursday evening, following a meeting with MPs in Parliament. She said that all countries had achieved development by promoting SMEs, and that the Asian Tigers, and even China, had promoted SMEs to ensure that their economies could provide jobs to people. more..

May 27 (FT) Health Services Committee of the Public Service Commission yesterday closed its inquiry into Dr. Shafi Shihabdeen and directed the Secretary to the Ministry of Health Janaka Sri Chandraguptha to reassign him to the Kurunegala Teaching Hospital. Shihabdeen was serving as a gynecologist at the hospital when he was falsely accused and arrested for carrying out forced sterilisations on women on 24 May 2019. In a letter addressed to the Secretary, more..

May 27 (CT) There have been 3,102 reported child abuse related incidents in the first four months of this year, NCPA revealed. These statistics were presented during a workshop, at the NCPA on 24 May, with the aim of raising awareness among the media about child protection issues. Sajeewani Abeykoon, Director of Law Enforcement at the NCPA, revealed that on average they receive over 600 complaints per month. more..

May 28 (TM) In a country where nothing shocks or surprises its citizens anymore and where a fine line divides the sublime from the ridiculous, the lead story of our daily edition on Friday (26) managed to drive home the point that notwithstanding what the people think or have come to realise in the past 12 months, politicians in general and those of the ruling SLPP in particular are not about to give up their favourite pastime of taking the citizenry for a ride. In this particular instance, more..

May 26 (FT) Finally, on 18 May, commenting on Title 42, US Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch spoke out against lockdowns and mandates navigating the political murkiness of the Court�s composition. He spoke with uncompromising clarity while other agencies still continue to flounder, flailing in outright denial still. He clearly took us to task for the greatest intrusion on civil liberties in the peacetime history of this country. Executive officials had issued emergency decrees on a breathtaking scale. more..

May 26 (SO) Former SJB Vice President and Agriculture Minister P. Harrison said that Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe during the past couple of months has restored the country which was in a crisis. Prez through his actions has clearly shown that he is capable of formulating a program to get the country out of bankruptcy and strengthen its economy. He said as a veteran politician with his vast experience, the Prez has taken the country forward more..

May 26 (CT) One has a civilization of more than two thousand five hundred years; the other, as Oscar Wilde said, has no civilization. In the year 1293, Marco Polo sailed homeward bound from China, pausing at Ceylon along the way; he wrote thus: �On leaving the island of Andaman and steering for 1,000 miles a little South of West, the traveler reaches the island of Ceylon. This, for its actual size, is better circumstanced than any other island in the world.� Nevertheless, the dissimilarities more..

May 28 (SO) Japan has always been one of the closest friends of SL but these bonds were strengthened by former Prez J.R. Jayewardene�s call to the wider world to assist Japan to rise up after it was virtually decimated following World War II. Prez Jayewardene, Finance Minister of then Ceylon, echoed the timeless words of the Buddha - hatred does not cease by hatred, but by love alone at the San Francisco Peace Conference in 1951. Ever since, there is a special place for SL more..

May 26 (TM) �We need to reset the way SL is structured. If not, then we are still at risk of going back to the same old economic policies which bankrupted the country in the first place,� asserted Economist Rehana Thowfeek pointing out that the IMF programme can only do so much to correct these ills. Commenting on the current impact of the ongoing economic challenges on the lives of average SL citizens in terms of food security more..

May 28 (ST) Two incidents this week, both coincidentally happening at the BIA, and both involving MPs once again brought to light the decadence of the prevailing political culture that has been highlighted in many ways since it exploded last year with the Aragalaya. One was where an MP who also holds the office of a state minister facilitated the release of a Chinese passenger who tried to enter the country with a forged travel document saying he was a potential investor. more..

May 28 (ST) My dear Ali Sabri Raheem, I thought of writing to you, although I must confess that I didn�t know who you were till just the other day. I suppose, being a politician, being known nationally and having your photo shown on every television channel and newspaper is something you wouldn�t mind, even if it is for the wrong reasons. I must also admit that, when I first saw the headline Ali Sabri nabbed with gold at the airport my thoughts were not of you. Even so, and as much as I disagree more..

May 28 (ST) PUCSL Chairman Janaka Ratnayake, seen as a thorn in the side of the Ranil Wickremesinghe Govt, was removed by a comfortable majority of 46 votes on Wednesday after a fractious day-long debate. The 123-to-77 vote saw pro-Govt SLPP MPs voting in favour of the resolution. The main Opposition SJB, NPP, SLFP group led by former Prez Maithripala Sirisena, FPC led by Dullas Alahapperuma, and ULS led by Wimal Weerawansa voted against the resolution. more..

May28 (SO) The Sri Lankan travel sector is facing a major issue as all the hotels are operating with less than 50% of the required number of staff, said Chairman of SL Institute of Tourism and Hotel Management, (SLIHM) Shirantha Peiris at the 31st AGM of the Institute of Hospitality SL at Movenpick Colombo. He said that during the C-19 pandemic some of the employees in the industry found other means of employment while some others went overseas creating a huge vacuum. more..

May 28 (ST) Did the Thai donors with connections to the Thai govt take the authorities for a ride when gifting Buddha statues to the Sri Dalada Maligawa? The hue and cry in 2018 at the loss of gold Buddha statues has become a whimper according to a report from the National Gem and Jewellery Authority. 25 gold statues were gifted to the Sri Dalada Maligawa authorities in 2017/2018. They were placed in new wing of the temple. more..

May 28 (TM) The Lanka Premier League (LPL) will be back for its 4th edition this year, with excitement already brewing among the passionate Sri Lankan cricketing fraternity. With the brand-new Player Auction announced last week, The Sunday Morning Sports sat down with Tournament Director Samantha Dodanwela to speak about the new developments. Following are excerpts of the discussion: How is the preparation for LPL 2024? Good. The most significant change is the Player Auction. more..

May 28 (Island) Whether they will admit it or not, politicians in the country are well aware that they are not top of the pops where public opinion is concerned. Few people rate politicians positively although there are many exceptions. Last week�s gold and smartphone smuggling detection at the BIA served to aggravate this assessment. Puttalam District MP Ali Sabri Raheem arriving from Dubai was detected, on a tip off, by customs and found carrying contraband worth Rs. 75 million. more..

May 28 (ST) Promising SL sprinter Yupun Abeykoon�s participation at this week�s Wanda Diamond League 2023 hangs in the balance after injuring his hamstring during the International Meeting Citta� Di Savona earlier this week. SLA Secretary Saman Kumara said though he is out of danger, Abeykoon will decide his participation in the June 2 race after a second MRI scan on Monday. �He is now able to walk without any pain, but has not yet commenced training,� stated Kumara. more..

May28 (SO) As the clock ticks towards yet another inter-school League rugby championship kick off, independent experts are making no prediction towards a possible winner with as many as four teams having their chances of laying their hands on the Dialog trophy. Isipathana College move out as the defending champions having probably the best chance to retain the prize but teams like Royal College and St. Peter�s College cannot be counted out when the tournament begins on June 14. more..

May 28 (ST) With the World Cup qualifiers just around the corner, SL has questions to answer in terms of team combination. And they are hoping it can solve those perennial issues while playing against Afghanistan, before heading to Zimbabwe on June 9 for the qualifiers. The selectors have made several changes to team combination, hoping to reverse the losing trajectory in a format SL did exceptionally well in before more..

May 28 (Island) Singer had been a loyal sponsor of SL cricket but a little heard company called Dilmah outbid Singer when the sponsorship was up for grabs in 2002. Singer boss Hemaka Amarasuriya wasn�t whinging and went on record saying that he welcomed local companies coming forward to back the sport. Within a few years, Dilmah, an entity that was hardly known by most Sri Lankans became a global brand. That exactly is the strategy that Moose have adopted in their bid to become a global more..

May 28 (Island) After more than two years of stubborn resistance, the selectors have been forced to bite the bullet and admit that their strategies have been faulty and the top order of the ODI outfit needs stability. Hence the return of Test captain Dimuth Karunaratne for white ball cricket for the upcoming three match series against Afghanistan and he should retain his place for the World Cup qualifiers later next month in Zimbabwe too. One of the troubles with the 50 over side is that more..

May 28 (TM) The delay in awarding the contract for setting up a Floating Storage Regasification Unit (FSRU) and Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) pipeline will cause a billion-rupee loss to the country annually as the State-run CEB will have to depend on diesel to ensure an uninterrupted power supply to the country. It is reliably learnt that Sri Lanka is currently spending over Rs. 1 billion per day to run thermal oil (diesel) power plants. more..

May 28 (EN) Education ministry plans to introduce artificial intelligence (AI) to the school curriculum in 2024 with an emphasis on robotics, machine learning, data mining, computer vision and related technologies, an official said. National Institute of Education Director General Sunil Nawarathna said that such subjects should be taught to students from grades 6 to 13 depending on their level. Plans are also underway to encourage students to use tools like ChatGPT and Google Bard more..

May 28 (AD) Stand-up comedian Nathasha Edirisooriya, who found herself in hot water over her remarks on religions which stirred much controversy in the country, has been arrested by the CID. She was taken into custody at the BIA while trying to fly out of the country. The CID on Saturday received a complaint pertaining to a woman who had allegedly insulted religions including Buddhism, and Christianity during a stand-up comedy show recently held at a leading school in Colombo. more..

May28 (EN) Tour operators in Sri Lanka are looking at new markets like Myanmar, Iran and other Southeast Asian and Middle Eastern countries as the island nation anticipates a boost in tourism in 2023. Deputy General Manager of Aitken Spence Niranjan Wickramasinghe said that the country is currently seeing large numbers of Russian and Ukrainian tourists in the island with over 5,000 Russians arriving in May. Russia is one of the top ten source markets for tourism in SL more..

May28 (AD) Foreign Employment Bureau (SLBFE) has arrested a South Korean national residing in Kottawa area for defrauding LKR 25 million through a foreign employment scam. After receiving a complaint about the fraudulent activities of the suspect, the SLBFE�s investigation officers, along with Ada Derana�s investigative program Ukussa jointly launched a raid to apprehend him. The undercover SLBFE officers and the Ukussa team had visited suspect�s residence in Kottawa. more..

May28 (ST) Chinese Embassy has requested local authorities to deport a Chinese businessman, who on Thursday, attempted to enter Sri Lanka on a forged passport, Immigration officials said. However, the businessman Li Pan, is refusing to go to China and has now petitioned the Court of Appeal against his deportation. The case is being heard tomorrow, Immigration and Emigration Controller General I.S.H.J. Ilukpitiya said. more..

May28 (ST) Veteran SL diplomat Jayantha Dhanapala passed away yesterday at the age of 85 while receiving treatment at the Kandy National Hospital. Mr Dhanapala was the former UN Under-Secretary General for Disarmament Affairs. He joined the SL Foreign Service in 1965 and held diplomatic appointments in London, Beijing, Washington, D.C., and New Delhi. Issuing a message of condolence last night, the Foreign Affairs Ministry conveyed its profound more..

May28 (AD) The Officer in Charge (OIC) of the Welikada Police has received a transfer in connection with the death of a woman in custody. According to the police media division, the OIC was thus transferred to the Police Field Force Headquarters. A 41-year-old woman named R. Rajakumari from Badulla, who was arrested on May 11, had died while in the custody of Welikada Police. She was employed as a domestic worker at a well-known local producer�s residence. more..

May 28 (AD) The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has categorically rejected the allegation levelled in a television news report against the Consular Affairs Division of the Foreign Ministry. The ministry clarified that none of its staff members were involved in the alleged practice of exploiting the existing appointment system of the Consular Affairs Division by third parties to authenticate documents. �It is unacceptable that the appointment system, which has been introduced to ensure more..

May 28 (AD) The CID has been ordered to obtain the DNA samples of the mother of late businessman Dinesh Schaffter, who was found tied up in his vehicle at the Borella cemetery in December last year. CID was ordered to obtain the blood samples of Schaffter�s mother by Colombo Additional Magistrate Rajindra Jayasuriya in order to confirm the samples obtained from the deceased during the second postmortem examination. The remains of the Janashakthi Director were exhumed on more..

May28 (TM) The agreement signed recently between the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) and China Merchants Port Holdings to build a commercial and logistics hub in the Colombo Port has come under scrutiny as ports trade unions claim that the Govt has secretly handed over the land to China without following the State-approved tender procedure. JVP-affiliated All-Ceylon General Ports Employees� Union (ACGPEU) more..

May 28 (AD) British High Commissioner Sarah Hulton has requested the Minister of Pulic Security Tiran Alles to cooperate in the efforts taken to prevent SL nationals from entering the UN as illegal immigrants. Hulton visited Alles earlier this week, with the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Director, Ben Mellor, during his visit to Sri Lanka. They further discussed the PTA at length, during which Minister Alles commended the recently introduced laws in Britain, more..

May 28 (AD) Pastor Jerome Fernando, the self-styled prophet, has once again issued an apology over his recent remarks about Lord Buddha and other religious figures which stirred much controversy in the country. He was accused of making derogatory statements about Lord Buddha and other religious figures during one of his sermons which went viral on social media. On May 15, Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe ordered the CID to launch an immediate investigation into the matter, more..