June 14 (CG) Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) has warned that it is ready to go to court to challenge the electoral system if the proposals are gazetted in its current form. SLMC leader and Minister Rauff Hakeem said that the SLMC and other minority and minor parties want more amendments to the proposals. Cabinet had on Friday approved proposals to increase the number of seats to 237 from the current 225 more..

June 14 (SL) UPFA MP Dullas Alahapperuma said that it is important to nominate a Prime Ministerial candidate at the next parliamentary election and the only candidate that fix to the post is the former President Rajapaksa. Alahapperuma said that unlike earlier where the Executive President had the power to dissolve the parliament after one year, with the implementation of the 19th Amendment the present President will not be able to dissolve the parliament for four and a half years. more..

June 14 (ST) A 21-year-old employee of the Colombo National Hospital who allegedly stabbed a hospital overseer on his retirement party, was remanded until next Wednesday. Suspect Roshan Bandara from Polonnaruwa had hidden in the toilet on the day of the party and was communicating with a friend on the movements of the overseer, and allegedly stabbed him in the stomach in three places, as he came out of the party. The overseer was rushed to ICU and survived the attack. more..

June 14 (AD) Former President Rajapaksa dismissed allegations that former first lady Shiranthi Rajapaksa had got Siriliya Saviya funds transferred to her personal account and that she had bought a house with the money. Rajapaksa said, �Former president Chandria Kumaratunga alleged that Mrs Shiranthi Rajapaksa had got Siriliya Saviya funds transferred to her personal account and that she had bought a house with the money. more..

June 14 (DM) Inter-Company Employees Union (ICEU) urged President to take immediate action to gazette the Bill increasing private sector workers� wages by Rs. 2500 as promised in the Interim Budget. ICEU President Wasantha Samarasinghe alleged that several UNP Ministers were trying to disregard by procrastinating the move till the Parliament is dissolved. He said it was a shame for UNP-based govt that had said the salary of the private sector workers would only be more..

June 14 (ST) A mass-scale racket to steal components, spare parts and accessories from Japanese vehicles imported to Sri Lanka through the Hambantota harbour is being investigated by ports officials and importers. According the Vehicle Importers� Association of SL Secretary, for every 1000 vehicles arriving at the Hambantota Port, they have found around 300 to 400 have various parts missing. �The problem has been going on for a while but it is much worse now.� more..

June 14 (WP) When Parameswari saw her house last month for the first time in 25 years, she stood in the rubble and wept. All her belongings, the doors, even the tiled roof had been stripped away. She had last seen the house in Nov 1990, when her family fled from SL gunships bearing down on her neighborhood, firing from the sky and littering the grass with leaflets telling Tamil families to leave the area. more..

June 14 (PTI) The next edition of the Asia Cup one-day tournament is likely to be held next year in the United Arab Emirates in the first week of March. Although no final decision on the host country was taken during the final meeting of the Asian Cricket Council Executive Board in Malaysia recently but UAE is the strongest candidate to host the biannual event. "None of the Asian Test playing nations expressed interest in hosting the Asia Cup, including India and Sri Lanka. more..

June 14 (CT) There are more than 107,000 child labourers in Sri Lanka according to a survey conducted in 2008, Chairperson of the National Child Protection Authority (NCPA) Natasha Balendra said. June 12 marks World Day Against Child Labour, and the NCPA has adopted this year's slogan No to Child Labour: Yes to Quality Education as its theme for operations this year. Labour Department together with the Police and the NCPA will be conducting investigations to unearth more..

June 14 (IE) When Dheepan was announced as the winner of the coveted Palm D�Or at this year�s Cannes Film festival, it was its unlikely lead actor Jesuthasan Antonythasan, 47, who stole the limelight. Known in literary circles by his pen name Shobasakthi, he has written several short stories, political essays, and two novels in Tamil, the most recent being a collection of translated short stories, MGR Murder Trial. more..

June 15 (CT) Rohana Wijeweera has explained on several occasions that, the same incident in history does not repeat itself and if that happens it is most definitely, either a tragedy or an antic. It does justice to the JVP as well as other political currents in the country. We recall how, the July strike in 1980 which was held during the rule of President J.R. Jayawardena of the UNP, 35 years ago, was a fatal blow in common to the political campaign of the left and the working class campaign alike. more..

June 15 (CT) Giving approval to the names of three ex-officio members nominated to the Constitutional Council (CC) was postponed sine die last week until written agreement to those names is received from the leaders of political parties in Parliament. It was the second time the matter had been postponed. Seeking the approval of the House for the names of Dr A.T. Ariyaratne, retired judge Abdul Wahid Abdul Salam and Dr Radhika Coomaraswamy was included in the yesterday's order paper as more..

June 15 (SO) Sexual exploitation of sports women has gone largely underreported though it remains a significant reason for women to feel discouraged from being actively engaged in sports. Dhaneshi Yatawara delves into the recent sex scandal that rocked the island�s women cricket. The sex scandal involving Sri Lanka�s women�s cricket team brings to light how unsatisfactory � and unsporty � game�s administration had been. more..

June 15 (CT) Watchful and concerned citizens are witnessing as to how the President Sirisena�s proposed 20th amendment to the Constitution is being effectively hijacked by the Rajapaksa clan, demanding more MPs under the Proportional Representation System to the Parliament. When the British left this country, a time-tested democratic system of governance, was established in this country, based on the British Westminster style that prevails untouched even today in the UK. more..

June 15 (CT) An exuberant media, print and electronic, has acclaimed a fleeting and fragile observation by Master Card , that Colombo is the fastest growing tourist city in the world as a monumental achievement. One isolated line in a 46 page document- Tracking Global Growth: 2009 -2015 became a retrospective endorsement of Gota�s second war on the urban poor of Colombo. It is a clear reminder that media in this country despite their avowed assertion of independence more..

June 15 (CT) Professor Carlo Fonseka says Deputy Minister Ranjan Ramanayake is in the Cabinet sub-committee which directs the Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID). "My dear nephew is a na�ve person. He is in this committee either because of his ignorance or due to his loyalty to the UNP." Excerpts: Q: Should the FCID be dissolved? A: We appealed to the Supreme Court to do so. more..

June 15 (Island) CM Wigneswaran hell bent on getting rid of the Armed Services from the North has arrived at the perverted conclusion that the post-war deployment of the military in the North has contributed to the rapid spread of narcotics. He has further stated that narcotics had never been a problem during the war when the LTTE was around. Wigneswaran has made this statement without any conclusive proof. He has not cared to discuss the possibility of the existence of such a problem more..

June 15 (SL) Debates surrounding formulating a new Sri Lankan Constitution have been held for a number of decades. There have been three Constitutions in Sri Lanka in recent history: the 1947 Soulbury Constitution of 1947, the First Republican Constitution 1972, and the Second Republican Constitution 1978; the surprising commonality of all three is that none of them were drafted with any feedback from the citizenry. Therefore, if a new Constitution is to be prepared the importance more..

June 15 (ST) Minister Champika Ranawaka threw a challenge at a recent ministerial meeting � expedite investigations into the cases he mentioned within a week or he would go public and name those behind the delays. Meeting was chaired by President Sirisena. Cases he identified, where investigations are now underway, are the floating armory case involving Avant Garde Maritime Security Limited, the onetime RADA more..

June 15 (ST) Govt�s reported proposal this week that the Constitutional Council under the 19th Amendment to the Constitution should proceed to sit in the absence of the three non-political appointees to the body speaks to the farcical if not the frivolous intent underlying recent constitutional reforms. Pray, how different would this body then be from the Parliamentary Council which, under the maligned 18th Amendment, was mandated to examine nominations to key public sector positions more..

June 15 (SL) The appointment of two former Prime Ministers, Ratnasiri Wickremanayake and D M Jayaratne as Senior Advisors to President Maithiripala Sirisena on �Political Matters� fits into a pattern that he was elected to disband. Coupled with the constant addition of ministers to his team headed by rival UNP�s Ranil Wickremesinghe, against their collective pre-poll promise to keep the numbers low, gets justified not because of their common intent just now. more..

June 15 (CT) The construction of the Colombo Lotus Tower (CLT) at D.R. Wijewardene Mawatha, Colombo 10 at a cost of US$ 104.3 million continues to the present day amid various claims from several parties. The tower which is yet to reach its final form will stand 350 metres tall when it is completed. The tower will facilitate the transmission signals of 50 television channels and over 35 radio station frequencies. more..

June 15 (Island) JVP has let out a howl of protest against the appointment of four new deputy ministers. Its consternation is understandable. The incumbent dispensation, it says, acts out of expediency and not principle just like its predecessor. Having thrown in its lot with the ruling coalition which promised to downsize the Cabinet and abandoned the practice of using ministerial portfolios as bribes, inter alia, it is left with egg on its face with weeks to go for a general election. more..

June 15 (Island) I left for Toronto on March 13, 2008 and assumed duties on two days later. I was received at the airport by Segi Ismail, Attache at the Consulate Generals office. Later, I found Segi to be a good and humble officer who served his country well. They took me to the huge eight-room residence of the Consulate General in one of the expensive areas in Toronto, Oxbow Road. The house was owned by one time Speech writer for George Bush David Frums family. more..

June 15 (FT) Sri Lanka�s transitional govt is in a dilemma in allocating 672 more vehicles for new ministries and state institutions which has delayed clearance of these vehicles and lying in the backyards of four main motor traders for the past five months. Motor traders said that failure to clear these vehicles out of an order book for the state for 1665 vehicles has pushed the traders into financial constraints and maintenance problems. more..

June 15 (ST) If you need to get a pretty good idea of how donkeys behave in the wild breathing freedom�s intoxicating air, look no further than to the unbridled antics of a privileged few who make regular visits to Delft Island, where, deaf and blind to the pressing needs of those whose interests they claim to represent, they selfishly indulge in asinine romps that cause near irreparable damage to the fragile ecosystem and threaten the well being of its inhabitants. more..

June 15 (CT) Double Olympian Marathoner Anuradha Indrajith Cooray will leave to Kenya on 25th to start his training targeting the next IAAF World Championship which will be held in two months time in Beijing. Cooray who lives in London and works in a bakery to take care of his family, made continuous requests to all relevant authorities asking for grants for his training in Kenya, which has fallen on deaf ears. Cooray has lost hope and said he will somehow find the finances as more..

June 15 (FT) First round of a public hearing conducted by the Special Presidential Commission, which will investigate alleged large-scale corruption and financial fraud at govt institutions, will be delayed further due to a dearth of police investigators available to probe the allegations. Secretary of the Commission, Lacille de Silva, said the body needed a team of 30 police investigators to probe over 600 complaints but more..

June 15 (Island) Head of Sri Lanka's Chamber of Construction Industry says building cost in the Island is higher than in some of the other Countries in the region and lacks a skilled work force. "There are concerns among the investors and developers, that the construction cost in Sri Lanka is higher than in some of the other Asian Countries," Surath Wickramasinghe, President of Sri Lanka's Chamber of Construction Industry said while addressing the Build SL 2015, recently. more..

June 15 (CT) For over a decade, SLIIT, the premier degree awarding institute, has provided students with a broad range of academic and industry opportunities. For the 5th consecutive year, SLIIT organized the annual HR forum together with its industry partners; IFS, Univel, ZILLIONe, Volume, Vocanic, Virtusa, SimCentric Technologies, Tetran, B Connected, MIT, Zone 24x7, Ever Jobs, 99x Technology, Proavos, SLT, MAS, Metatechno Lanka, Logiwiz, Jagath Robotics, Mobitel, more..

June 15 (CI) Kumar Sangakkara is expected to call time on his international career after three further matches - the last of which will be the first Test against India. The timing of his retirement will be finalised on Tuesday in a meeting with the national selectors, but Sangakkara has already informed the board that he will only play the first two Tests against Pakistan and one against India, as he juggles the tail-end of his more..

June 15 (ST) With a growing number of professionals working outside the main office at least some of the time, use of remote working tools has also radically increased across the globe. A staggering 86 per cent of workers have used at least one tool enabling remote working in the previous month. This was one of the many key findings of a research conducted by the world�s largest provider of flexible workspace Regus. The local arm of Regus � Regus Sri Lanka � revealed further more..

June 15 (FT) Colombo Rubber Traders Association (CRTA) called on the Govt to re-evaluate industry policies in the wake of reduced production and weak international demand. CRTA Chairman M.S. Rahim said the export cess of Rs. 15 per kilogram levied by the Govt had largely contributed to making export prices to niche world markets unattractive, leading to a decline in exports of thick pale crepe, scrap crepe, sole crepe and TSR. Pointing out that SL was the only producer of these grades, more..

June 15 (FT) The UNP yesterday launched a scathing attack on former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, warning him not to create hatred and suspicion among ethnic groups and mislead masses with his wild and baseless allegations for cheap political gains. The UNP said Rajapaksa, despite being voted out of office by the people at the 8 January presidential election, was still spreading rumors to create hatred and more..

June 15 (FT) In a move to streamline and update international trade, Sri Lanka has decided to ratify the United Nations Convention on the Use of Electronic Communications in International Contracts (UNCITRAL) regarding international agreements so they have the same validity as paper documents. UNCITRAL has been in global circulation since 2005 as an attempt to rationalize and restructure trade deals swapped by international partners. more..

June 15 (GDI) Mahanayake of the Malwatte Chapter the Most Ven. Thibbotuwawe Sri Sumangala Thera has said that the time has come to set up a strong Government dissolving Parliament after the adoption of the 20th Amendment to the Constitution. It was his view that some who are working according to the ancient strategies were raising obstructions to effecting changes needed by the country. Chief Prelate said that Parliament should be dissolved after approving the 20th Amendment. more..

June 15 (ST) The Finance Ministry has promulgated regulations banning the import of glyphosate, allowing the Customs Department to destroy or re-export any new consignments that arrive in the country. The gazette notification, signed by Minister Ravi Karunanayake and dated June 11, 2015, is issued under the Import and Export (Control) Act. �We can confiscate consignments of glyphosate and re-export or destroy them,� more..

June 15 (CT) Sri Lanka Tourism is to drive the lucrative South Korean Market which is worth 14 million of Travellers with a per capita income of $ 25,000 met up with the top hierarchy of Korea Air in Seoul- South Korea, on the side lines of the Korean World Travel Fair-KOTFA. They agreed, the strategy to partner joint promotions between Sri Lanka Tourism and Korea Airlines which can be beneficial to both parties said a communique from Sri Lanka Tourism Promotions Bureau. more..

June 15 (Island) Three GCE A/L students of Tissa Central College, Kalutara North drowned in the Kalu Ganga at the Gale Ferry crossing, Duwegoda on Saturday. The school authorities said the victims had played truant on that day. They had told their parents that they were attending a private tuition class bath gone for a bath in the river. The victims were Sathira de Silva (18) and Anjula Soysa (17) of Ikilikandawatte, Wilegoda and Buddhika Eranga (17) of Kalutara North. more..

June 15 (Island) The Cabinet on Friday approved the proposed 20th Amendment to the Constitution with the number of parliamentary seats increased to 237 from the current 225, but the UNP now insists that it is strongly opposed to a bigger Parliament. In a statement issued on Saturday, the UNP said: "Since 2002, the UNP has been of the view that number of parliamentary seats shouldn't be increased under any circumstances. more..