July 20 (Island) The govt keeps telling us it is for an independent public service. But, it like its predecessor, obviously, does not want public officials to be so independent as to stand up to it on crucial issues that threaten its political survival. It spares no effort either in taming intrepid bureaucrats who have the courage to resist political pressure and act according to their conscience or in denying them their due promotions or in smoking them out. Govt has already made a mockery of yahapalana more..

July 19 (CT) I write this fully aware of my privilege. I�m aware of the advantages, and the ease of life that is granted to me simply for being born to a Sinhalese Buddhist family. The moment I step outside of my motherland I am a woman of colour, a minority and I�ve seen the the clear contrast of the life of a majority and a minority; an unpleasant truth people are often scared to discuss, easily shoved under the carpet. I�m aware that you live amidst all kinds of everyday microaggressions more..

July 20 (Island) Let me preface my observations with the following remark I made in the Colombo Telegraph on May 27, 2014. "For himself, MR has managed to keep his head above water, except by the self-seeking move to extend his term of office and to politicize the Independent Commissions, not to mention the impeachment of the CJ. The loss of faith caused by these misadventures has begun to rock the boat and eat into the stock of goodwill for the govt. more..

July 20 (SO) The next time you reach out for those shiny green apples, ever fresh grapes and enticing yellow oranges, think twice. Chances are, these imported fruits that grow naturally in their own cool climates, come packed with chemicals and preservatives which help them make their long journey to our tropical island , still looking as good as they were when freshly plucked. Health experts believe that 99% of these more..

July 20 (FT) Blue Diamonds Jewellery Worldwide has announced that Sudath Jayasundara has been appointed the new Chairman/Executive Independent Director of the company. The company also announced the appointment of Manjaree Gamage as its Joint Managing Director/Executive Non-Independent Director. Former Chairman Xia Liqiang will function as the Deputy Chairman and Joint Managing Director. Additionally, Tishya Wickremesinghe has been appointed as more..

July 20 (DN) The spate of injuries suffered by the national cricket team which has today left our bowling stocks depleted is clearly a case of mismanagement of the players. Sri Lanka Cricket so far has not identified who are our Test, One-Day International and Twenty20 International cricketers are and this has led to some of them having to play across all formats and thus exposing themselves to injury as recovery time between matches has been insufficient. more..

July 20 (Island) "Sri Lanka will experience climate change issues in temperature, rainfall, evaporation and sea level rises in the future. The ban on agro -chemicals puts the entire country into a difficult scenario, immediate past president National Agribusiness Council Aruna Weerakoon said. "This will affect a range of sectors, such as agricultural production, including export crops, in the future. Ban of agro- chemicals without a proper plan more..

July 20 (DM) Charoen Pokphand Group (C.P Group), a diversified conglomerate specialized in agriculture and food products with a strong global presence last week gained foothold in Sri Lanka through the purchase of 80 percent stake in Norfolk Foods Private Limited in a deal worth US $ 4.0 million or Rs.600 million. The Thailand headquartered conglomerate bought a 50 percent stake of Norfolk from Sri Lanka�s Expolanka Holdings PLC for US $ 2.5 million. more..

July 20 (DN) Shooters of the eight-member strong SL National Shooting team, comprising five Army personnel became world champions in Small Bore Light Rifle and Small Bore Silhouette Rifle categories in the International Metallic Silhouette Shooting Union (IMSSU) World Championship 2016, concluded on Saturday in South Africa. Captain P.K.J.S. Gayanga of the Army secured 3 Gold Medals and became the world�s no, 1 under three specific categories: Small Bore Light (Gold), more..

July 20 (CI) Australia were given a long-but-light workout against spin on the second day, as all their batsmen hit at least 25, though only Steven Smith and Steve O'Keefe passed fifty. Second-day pitch at the Oval had begun to take some turn, but Australia can expect significantly drier conditions and substantially higher-quality slow bowling, in the Tests. Nevertheless, a team total of 431/9 represented a strong outing for visitors. more..

July 20 (FT) With President Sirisena and Minister Rajitha Senarathna campaigning to further tax cigarettes, industry analysts have warned that tobacco taxation in Sri Lanka is already among the highest in the world. According to the WHO Report on the Global Tobacco Epidemic (2015), Sri Lanka falls among countries with the highest tax incidence in the world. The report also indicates that developed countries such as America, Japan, Singapore and Australia have far lower tax more..

July 20 (FT) China and SL held talks yesterday on future investments and projects in the country. Deputy Minister Dr. Harsha de Silva said that he met Chinese Ambassador Yi Xianliang and had a long and fruitful discussion on economic diplomacy between the two countries. �We discussed the multiple projects and investments that will soon be launched and about others in the pipeline. It was a frank exchange of views on how best we should align our interests to realise our dreams for more..

July 20 (DM) Karapitiya Teaching Hospital's Psychiatrist Dr. Ramani Ratnaweera said the worldwide medical specialists in psychiatry had urged that addiction to the internet be classified as a mental disorder. She highlighted the fact that modern technology was an integral part of education in the world, but addiction to the internet could affect one�s mental health. Children were often subjected to stress when preparing for an exam more..

July 20 (EN) SL has lost free trade which made the country a strategic trading hub from ancient times, but Singapore gave trade freedoms making it an example to follow, PM Ranil Wickremesinghe has said in Singapore. Though Singapore had admired SL (then Ceylon) under PM D S Senanayake (first PM) PM Wickemesinghe had said the country then took away trade freedoms from citizens. President J R Jayawardene had to follow Singapore's example (SL economy was closed until 1977), more..

July 20 (DN) For the first time Blue Ocean Group, will be building apartments and housing units in London and Canada. Blue Ocean Group Chairman, S. Thumilan said that they see better opportunities in doing business in London with the country exiting the European Union. �We are targeting the Sri Lankan and expatriate population who are in London and suburbs with Sri Lanka architecture.� He said they have decided on three properties in London and suburbs and hope to refurbish them more..

July 20 (Island) Declaring that the Joint Opposition (JO) wouldn't vote for the VAT (Amendment) Bill under any circumstances, top JO spokesperson former External Affairs Minister Prof. G.L. Peiris yesterday alleged that the govt move was aimed at doing away with the relief obtained through the Supreme Court intervention. Prof. Peiris said that NFF leader Wimal Weerawansa had successfully moved the SC on behalf of JO, more..

July 20 (DN) The Green Valley Apartment which will be constructed according to a Township concept was formally launched recently at the construction site in Homagama. This project was initiated under the Accelerated Program for the construction of 500,000 middle- income houses. The project is a Private-Public-Partnership with Home Lands Skyline, Ministry of Housing & Construction and National Housing & Development Authority to design, develop & construct luxury apartment more..

July 20 (FT) Seven new MPs of Joint Opposition are likely to be arrested before the Jana Satana Paada Yathrawa kicks off, MP Udaya Gammanpila alleged. He claimed the arrests would be made before 27 July to discourage the JO as well as to sabotage the Jana Satana March scheduled to commence on 28 July from Kandy. �We have learnt that there is an ongoing conspiracy hatched by the Govt to disrupt the Paada Yathrawa. The arrest of former Minister Basil Rajapaksa was a part of it,� more..

July 20 (FT) Due to a shortage in fish supplies, SL is unable to satisfy growing demand among European countries, which mostly order tuna, following the removal of the ban imposed by the EU on the country�s fish exports. Minister Mahinda Amaraweera said that there was demand for 1,000 metric tonnes of fish from EU countries but the country had failed to meet this demand due to a sharp decline in local fish stocks. more..

July 20 (DN) Creating awareness about the importance of healthy living is a priority at AIA Sri Lanka and bringing this to life in a meaningful way, the insurer signed a MoU with the Government Medical Officers� Association (GMOA) recently. The partnership opens the door for AIA to add greater value to its Healthy Living endeavours while enhancing awareness among the doctors of the importance of retirement planning and ensuring protection for their families. more..

July 20 (CT) Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) Secretary Mohan de Silva expressed his views on Muttiah Muralitharan's role with the Australian Cricket Team ahead of the Test Series. He said that Muralitharan should have thought twice before taking up the role as Consultant of the Australian Cricket Team when they are playing Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka. In fact the Test Series between Sri Lanka and Australia is played for the Warne-Muralitharan Trophy since 2007/08. more..

July 20 (DM) Auditor General Gamini Wijesinghe has been summoned to Parliament today to testify on the alleged coal purchasing deal which is alleged to have caused the govt to incur a loss of Rs.1.8 billion. MP Nalin Bandara Jayamaha a member of Parliament Sectoral Oversight Committee (SOC) on Power and Energy said that the Committee had summoned Mr. Wijesinghe today to testify on the matter. more..

July 20 (PTI) Fishermen of Rameswaram on Tuesday decided to hold a series of agitations from July 22, pressing for a charter of demands including the release of their 77 colleagues held by Sri Lanka. A resolution to this effect was passed at the meeting of fishermen associations of Rameswaram here, Secretary of TN and Puducherry Confederation of Fishermen�s Associations, NJ Bose said. The fishermen said they would hold a series of agitations on July 22, 26 and 28 in all fishing hamlets more..

July 20 (Hindu) Three Central Ministers on Tuesday rushed to take stock of the situation at Jaffna University, where two groups of students clashed last week. Cabinet Ministers Anura Priyadarshana Yapa of the SLFP) and D.M. Swaminathan of the UNP, and Deputy Minister of Mass Media Karunarathna Paranawithana interacted with students from Sinhalese and Tamil communities, academics, officials of the University, social and religious leaders, and leaders of the TNA. more..

July 20 (FT) Minister Anura Priyadarshana Yapa said that necessary disciplinary action concerning the student involved in the recent clash would be taken by the administration of the University of Jaffna and that the Got would not get involved in the matter. He said that they had had a very constructive meeting with the VC and the rest of the university staff. He was joined by Minister D.M. Swaminathan and more..

July 20 (DM) Minister Ravi Karunanayake vowed to proceed with the proposed Customs Bill despite objections from some quarters. Only a white paper had been presented for discussion on the proposed legislation. The Customs Ordinance was introduced in 1864 and that such antiquated laws should be amended to cope up with the present situation. He said however there were crooks who opposed any changes to this archaic law and regretted moves by some of those in authority. more..

July 20 (DM) Govt is to obtain US$1 billion from the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) for various projects, Finance Minister Ravi Karunayake said. AIIB was founded as a counter to the World Bank. During the previous regime, Sri Lanka also became a founding member of this new bank which is expected to lend US$ 10 billion to US$15 billion a year for the first five or six years. New govt enacted legislation in Parliament ratifying Sri Lanka�s membership in the bank, more..

July 20 (DM) Former CB Governor Arjuna Mahendran is to play a major role in finalizing trade agreements with foreign countries including the proposed Indo-Lanka ECTA. He is also expected to play a role in the govt�s programme of providing one million jobs which was one of the pledges made by the Govt during the recent elections. Mr. Mahendran is expected to be assisted by several top personalities from the private sector more..

July 20 (DM) Two points cited by the students union of the Jaffna University on the clash between two factions of students of the uni on Saturday were so important that they invite attention. The union called on the media to report such incidents with responsibility and objectively while claiming that outside forces had infiltrated into the students to rouse the clash. The involvement of outsiders in the clash pointed out by the student union had been confirmed by two other statements by more..

July 20 (DM) Some popular films portray the use of alcohol and cigarettes in a very noticeable way. One tends to wonder if this is just a part of the story line or deliberate manipulation of the script. We may be able to find an answer by reading some letters exchanged between a now defunct company in the USA called Associated Film Promotions (AFP) and famous actor Sylvester Stallone. Sylvester Stallone, sometimes called Sly, is recognised worldwide as an actor, writer and director more..

July 20 (DM) Minister Mano Ganesan spoke on the process of reconciliation, issues surrounding the implementation of the official languages policy and many more. Q: You�ve been given a very pivotal ministry, but you are a representative of Colombo, while the militancy emanated from an entirely different territory. How do you reconcile these two? How does Mano Ganesan from Colombo reconcile these two facets? more..

July 20 (Island) President�s Counsel Manohara De Silva spoke about the provisions of the innocuous sounding Office of Missing Persons Bill which is now before Parliament. Many people in Sri Lanka are not likely to stand up and take notice when something is described as an Office of Missing Persons. Sri Lanka has had such mechanisms in the past and another such body would not be anything new. more..

July 20 (SL) The Ceylon Electricity Board Engineers Union (CEBEU) has urged Power and Renewable Energy Minister Ranjith Siyambalapitiya to probe massive frauds said to have taken place in coal procurement. When contacted, CEBEU President Athula Wanniarachchi said the union believes it is a good move to appoint a committee to probe whether there were any underhand deals in the procurement of coal. more..

July 20 (ST) As the controversial Malabe private medical college issue reached flashpoint with cross-country protests, heads of the eight state Medical Faculties held an emergency meeting yesterday in the backdrop of fears of a 1987-89-like situation breaking out. They are due to meet Higher Education Minister Lakshman Kiriella on Thursday, after which they will issue a joint statement, the Sunday Times understands. more..

July 20 (DN) Deputy Minister Dr. Harsha de Silva who met the Chinese Ambassador to Sri Lanka recently to discuss ongoing Chinese investments in Sri Lanka, said they focused on issues of economic diplomacy. �We also discussed issues of investment and politics,� de Silva said. Stating that the Foreign Affairs Ministry is the focal point for economic diplomacy, de Silva said it was important to be open to any country more..

July 20 (CT) Several Faculties of the Jaffna University which were closed down temporarily due to a clash among students will open tomorrow (21). Deputy Minister Karunaratne Paranavithana said that this, as well as the fact that all studies at the University will commence on Monday, was made possible by discussions held at the Jaffna University between several ministers, administrators, teachers and students yesterday at Jaffna University. more..

July 20 (CT) Minister W.D.J. Seneviratne says that when he was the Minister of Power and Energy in the previous govt he did not intervene in any way or apply any influence in connection with the purchase of coal. Referring to an article in this paper's 18 July issue under the caption Coal import racket � four Ministers involved, Minister said in a letter: I served as the Minister of Power and Energy in the previous govt from 2006 to 2010 April. more..

July 20 (DM) Former President Rajapaksa today charged that the Office of Missing Persons (OMP) Bill has many provisions designed to persecute armed forces personnel. Issuing a statement, he said if the draft legislation becomes a law, every MP who votes for it will be held responsible by the people for betraying the country and the armed forces. �In the midst of all the political and economic chaos in the country, more..

July 20 (LBO) European Union has drawn the attention of SL officials to the importance of continued positive progress in fulfilling SL�s commitments in parallel to obtaining GSP+. At the 20th EU-SL Joint Commission meeting which took place in Brussels on 19 July, the representatives of EU welcomed Sri Lanka�s GSP+ application as a sign of renewed commitment to meeting its wider international obligations. more..