Dec 28 (CI) Another calamitous Sri Lanka collapse gave way to a spectacular 30-ball 93 by Martin Guptill, as New Zealand crushed Sri Lanka by 10 wickets, running down the required 118 in 8.2 overs. Sri Lanka's humiliation was over before scheduled lunch, and the entire game lasted only 36 overs. With a paltry target to chase, Guptill was brutal from the outset. He collected four first ball after his hook shot more..

Dec 28 (DN) The mass tsunami grave at Kurunduwatta, Akmeemana has been turned into a garbage dumping site of the Akmeemana Pradeshiya Sabha. Though the Judicial Medical Officers of the Judicial Medical Unit of the Ruhunu Medical Faculty voiced against the move, the Pradeshiya Sabha continues to dump garbage at the burial site. A special tsunami commemoration ceremony was also held at the commemorative monument erected at more..

Dec 28 (DN) Postponing LG election shows that the President fears the Common Opposition, UPFA MP Vasudeva Nanayakkara said. He said that there is no need to postpone the local govt election by six months. "It is true that it needs some time to hold the election. But only one month is enough for that," he said. Nanayakkara also said that people's confidence on President has been weakened. Statement made by a minister claiming that a team of opposition MPs would join the govt is false. more..

Dec 28 (DN) Pro-Mahinda Rajapaksa political coffers categorically denied of ever having formed a political party to contest the forthcoming local govt polls. UPFA MP Vasudeva Nanayakkara said they are in the standby for contesting the LG election separately. However, he said: "We did not form a political party called Our Sri Lanka Freedom Front yet. We have to decide the manner in which we will contest the LG poll." more..

Dec 28 (DN) A number of remembrance events were held to mark the 11th tsunami commemoration in Galle at separate locations on Saturday. People of Galle joined the entire nation by observing a two minute silence in memory of thousands of people who lost their lives and those reported missing in the 2004 tsunami followed by religious observances. Galle's main tsunami commemoration was held near the Galle Headquarters Police organised by Galle District Secretariat and Police. more..

Dec 28 (KT) Ceylon/serendib is a teardrop-shaped island in the Indian Ocean that has enthralled me ever since I visited the hill resorts of Nuwara Eliya and the exquisite ruins of Anuradhapura as a boy. The tragic, terrible civil war against the Tamil Tigers (1983-2009), Asian tsunami (2004) and the 10-year autocratic family business rule of ex-President Rajapaksa were a nightmare for Sri Lanka. Yet SL's political transformation has not been rewarded by the financial markets. more..

Dec 28 (FT) Following threats to nationalise plantations the private sector has challenged the Govt to take over debt-ridden and loss making plantation companies but has warned the State could end up biting off more than it can chew. Regional Plantation Companies (RPCs) have responded following remarks made by Minister Lakshman Kiriella to hand over their estates if wages of workers were not increased, noting more..

Dec 28 (DM) From age to age in our undefiled heritage, one of the principles relating to Human Rights has been found in the hallowed Middle Path. With enlightened eyes, we see there an inseparable connection between rights and responsibilities. Only to the extent we fulfil our responsibilities are we entitled to our rights � wherever it be in the family or community, in the country or in the world. That means to the extent we fail in our responsibilities, to that extent we forfeit our rights. more..

Dec 28 (DM) I was happy to read the news item captioned, Peace, a subject in school soon, appearing in the Daily Mirror. It read: �The Office for National Unity and Reconciliation (ONUR), headed by former-President Chandrika Kumaratunga, had proposed to introduce a new subject called Peace Education and Conflict Resolution to the school curricular.� The purpose of the move was said to be �to bring about better understanding among different ethnic and religious groups of Sri Lanka�. more..

Dec 28 (DM) Boxing Day tsunami that hit SL and many other countries bordering the Sumatra island, was one of the deadliest disasters that went down in history. Thousands of lives were washed away irrespective of colour, race, gender, age or religion. Mass burial sites, records of disappeared people and shattered shelters added to the trauma of the survivors who were more than just helpless. Eleven years have passed and more..

Dec 28 (SL) Moves to repeal draconian anti-terrorism laws are gathering pace as Sri Lanka prepares to provide an update to the UNHRC on the implementation of the resolution on Sri Lanka adopted by the Council this year. Justice Minister Wijeydasa Rajapaksha said that a committee is in the process of closely studying the PTA and what law can be introduced to replace it. He said that the committee consists of more..

Dec 28 (CI) Martin Guptill had no idea he was closing in on the world record for fastest fifty until umpire Richard Illingworth alerted him to the possibility. Guptill had been on course to break AB de Villiers' record - fifty in 16 balls - when he moved to 46 off 12 deliveries. However, a slower ball from Dushmantha Chameera, two good yorkers from Nuwan Kulasekara, and a mistimed cut off Sachithra Senanayake meant more..

Dec 28 (NS) Sri Lanka is reported to be the only country in the South Asian region where the beggar population is rich possessing bank accounts. A recent survey conducted by an independent organization on the directives of a state-owned entity on the beggar population has revealed that at least sixty percent possess savings accounts in state and private banks. According to the survey, beggars are categorized into more..

Dec 28 (DN) Sri Lanka Medical Council (SLMC) officials have initiated an inquiry on the former Judicial Medical officer of Colombo, Ananda Samarasekera who performed the first autopsy on the remains of ruggerite Wasim Thajudeen, after they received a court order, SLMC chairman Professor Carlo Fonseka said. Colombo Additional Magistrate Nishantha Peris directed the SLMC to inquire into the previous report more..

Dec 28 (DM) Former Minister Jagath Pushpakumara and MP Padma Gunasekera today gave statements to the PRECIFAC in connection with two separate financial irregularities alleged to have taken place at the Coconut Research Institute and the National Housing Development Authority (NHDA). PRECIFAC Secretary Lacille de Silva said they had recorded statement from the former minister over an ongoing investigation more..

Dec 28 (CT) The PRECIFAC has commenced investigations into the massive fraud in the sale of rice, Bombay onions and sprats worth over Rs 10,000 billion by Sathosa. The fraud is reported to exceed the infamous VAT fraud. Secretary of the Commission Lacille De Silva informed that under the pretence of providing Bombay onion farmers with relief, certain retailers & sellers of Bombay onions, based in Pettah, more..

Dec 28 (ST) The Meteorology (Met) Department�s 200 million rupee Doppler radar installed in 2011 has not been used and parts of it are now being sent back to the US manufacturer for repairs. Matter has been raised by AG�s Dept which points out that, even though Met Department is constantly criticised over the inaccuracy of its weather forecasts, Doppler radar system established at Deniyaya has not been used more..

Dec 28 (ENS) The Chief Minister of Sri Lanka�s Tamil-majority Northern Province, C V Wigneswaran, has clarified that the Tamil Makkal Peravai (TMP), which he has floated, is not a rival to the TNA, but is a non-partisan, civil society watchdog meant to see that the basic interests of the Lankan Tamils are upheld by their leaders and not compromised for petty gains. Speaking at the second formal meeting of TMP in Jaffna more..

Dec 28 (CT) In as much as State owned CEB is enjoying free electricity due to Accelerated Mahaweli Development Project in the late 1970s despite protests by environmentalists, a similar such project which has irked the ire of at least some environmentalists is the proposed US$ 1.4 billion Colombo Port City Project which will be funded by Chinese. One of its vehement opponents is environmentalist Ranil Senanayake more..

Dec 28 (CT) The nation's medical fraternity has thrown caution and integrity to the winds. It has thrown every semblance and shred of self-respect into the garbage mounds of Machiavellian political expediency. By filing a plaint in Court to settle a squabble over a car at the risk of causing untold fear, suffering and even deaths of patients for a vehicle, the medical fraternity has, by threatening to walk out on strike over the issue, has shown its uglier side by this act of vile self-interest more..

Dec 28 (Island) President Maithripala Sirisena has secured PM Ranil Wickremesinghe�s backing for extending the terms the local government bodies by six months. Their terms expire on Dec 31. President made the announcement at the President�s College in Rajagiriya on Saturday. The SLFP leader said that the decision had been taken in consultation with the PM. President said that as the govt had received about 2,000 petitions as regards the work undertaken by the delimitation committee, more..

Dec 28 (EN) Sri Lanka would be better off with a currency board instead of a central bank which was politicised under the ousted Rajapaksa regime and needs to operate more independently, says Razeen Sally, a top international economist. �Clearly, the independence of the central bank was compromised under the last govt. The last central bank governor was very political,� he told a forum. Sally, a former London School of Economics Professor who is chairman of Institute of Policy Studies (IPS), more..

Dec 28 (CT) The issues related to the deportation of Kumar continued to attract attention with the revelation that the Sri Lankan state intelligence forces had been ordered to arrest him as early as February 2012. However, the basis for this order lacked clarity. The FSP was said to be intending to campaign on the rights of the missing civilians and political detainees in the north and east of the island, at a time when the state was in the process of suppressing dissent. more..

Dec 28 (CT) A senior officer of the CID said that a group of high ranking officials of Police Dept as well as a group of politicians are trying to scuttle the investigations into the killing of popular ruggerite Wasim Thajudeen. He said that the reason for the obstructions is that the senior officials who held senior positions by 2012 are still holding those positions. He pointed out that those officials were misleading investigations more..

Dec 28 (CG) The CIABOC has filed two cases against former MP Duminda Silva. Director Investigations Priyantha Chandrasiri said that the cases were related to the failure by Silva to declare his assets. He said that the two cases were filed at the Colombo Magistrate�s Court today in relation to the failure by Silva to declare his assets in March 2013 and March 2014. Silva was not given nominations to contest the Parliamentary election this year by the UPFA. more..

Dec 28 (Island) Chief Trustee of one of the oldest Mosques in Colombo lashed-out at Sri Lanka Thawheed Jamaath (SLTJ), which he said, was funded by foreign countries not only to antagonise coreligionists but also to create rifts within the Muslim community. "The govt must step in fast and act to nip it in the bud," Trustee said. Reacting to a SLTJ video condemning the Dewatagaha Mosque at Town Hall and its activities, Chief Trustee Reyyaz Salley said that extremist organization more..

Dec 28 (PMD) President Maithripala Sirisena stated that one philosophy of a religion should not suppress another religious philosophy. Speaking at the opening ceremony of the 16th Benedict higher education centre in Negambo, yesterday, he said that govt is committed to protect all the religions of the country. Benedict Higher Education Centre was built with the funds of Italian Bishops Conference. more..

Dec 28 (EN) Sri Lanka's foreign reserves rose to US$ 7,295 million in November 2015 from 6,480 million dollar a month earlier, following a sovereign bond sale, official data showed. The US$ 1.5 billion bond sale increased reserves by only US$ 814 million. The central bank sterilized a large part of the rupee proceeds of the bond sale on November 04 to build up forex reserves but money was later printed by rejecting bids at Treasury bills auction, to boost credit and demand. more..

Dec 28 (Island) General Secretary of the Educational Non-Academic Employees Union Ajith Tilakaratne threatened to hold a protest opposite the Fort Railway station, followed by a march to the Presidential Secretariat unless the govt met its demands. The union had been compelled to contemplate such action as the govt had failed to respond to redress the grievances of more than 30,000 non academic workers in the public sector, Tilakaratne told a media briefing. more..

Dec 28 (CI) Sri Lanka interim coach Jerome Jayaratne has called Sri Lanka's abject defeat in the second ODI humiliating in an analysis that was sharply critical of the team's batsmen. Sri Lanka were all out for 117 on Monday. The top order had also collapsed to 65 for 6 in the first ODI. "Today was a really humiliating day actually," Jayaratne said. "It was a bit disappointing. We didn't expect a performance of this sort. more..

Dec 28 (CI) 250: Balls left in the New Zealand innings when they completed the run-chase. The margin is the seventh-largest in ODI history. 3: Times New Zealand have won an ODI with 250 or more balls remaining. Sri Lanka have done it twice, and England and Australia once each. New Zealand are the only team, though, to also win these games by ten wickets. 14.16: New Zealand's run rate in this chase, the second highest in any ODI innings. They had chased 94 in six overs against more..

Dec 28 (CT) Sri Lanka Army (SLA) had commenced investigations regarding the hacking into their official website. Last weekend, an unidentified group had logged into SLA official website without any permission and had proceeded to distort the information on the website. Apparently, the website was hacked by a group operating from abroad and SLA was able to restore it after the cyber attack. When contacted, Army Spokesman said, Army is closely monitoring more possible attacks more..

Dec 28 (DM) TNA MP M.A. Sumanthiran said the TNA friendly people were being led astray by Chief Minister of Northern Province C.V. Vigneswaran. Commenting on the Tamil People�s Council established recently under the Chief Minister, the parliamentarian told the media during the Tsunami commemoration in Jaffna that the Tamil community would not desert the TNA or its leadership. more..

Dec 28 (Island) A bull which was confiscated and kept in the custody of a govt farm on a court order after it was saved from slaughter house succumbed to its injuries after being attacked by a wild elephant last Friday in Kantale. The farm is run by the Civil Defence Force Office at Peramaduwa in Kantale. An officer attached to the farm said it was the 20th bull to be killed by elephants. The villagers complained that the marauding wild elephants wreaked havoc in the area. more..

Dec 28 (DM) Local Govt and Provincial Councils Ministry expects to enact amendments to LG electoral system before the expiry of office of remaining 23 LG bodies by April 2016, enabling the govt to call local govt polls in June. Secretary of Local Govt and PCs, Kamal Pathmasiri while expressing his deep satisfaction over govt�s decision to postpone LG polls by another six months said that Ministry expects to consider all important and acceptable submitted by the public, more..

Dec 28 (DM) Govt doctors called for the resignation of Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayaka in the wake of even President Sirisena reportedly saying that the budget proposals had placed the govt in a difficult position. GMOA Dr. Naveen De Soyza said that when they met President he had said 2016 Budget had created unnecessary problems for govt. �Citing one instance of arbitrary budget decisions by Mr. Karunanayaka, more..

Dec 28 (Reuters) Shares closed at a near two-week low on Monday, led by financials amid thin trading as many market participants were on holiday after a long weekend. The main stock index ended 0.44% weaker at 6,828.51, its lowest close since Dec 15. "There was no reason for market to move up with many investors on holiday. The market is also concerned over the budget as the govt had given up most of its revenue," a stockbroker said on condition of anonymity. more..

Dec 28 (CT) Anti-hate speech laws should include at the very minimum, the real and present danger test where there should be a real possibility of danger or violence and such danger or violence should be imminent, Attorney-at-Law Gehan Gunatilleke said. In his study titled Chronic and Acute: Post-War Religious Violence in Sri Lanka, Gunatilleke cites Director of the Internet Democracy Project in New Delhi, India, Dr. Anja Kovacs, on the enforcement of laws on hate speech in the context of more..

Dec 28 (AD) Pivithuru Hela Urumaya General Secretary and Parliamentarian Udaya Gammanpila today requested the public to hoist black flags in houses, shops and vehicles in January first week as a mark of protest against the activities of the government. The observation was made at a press conference held in Colombo today. He said that the era of both toiyan and baiyan will also come to an end as of January 8 next year. more..