Aug 5 (FT) Our politicians have always had big economic dreams, manifested in grand slogans that have made crispy sound bites. The best way to judge if these dreams have become a reality is to measure the socio-economic prosperity of the base population � in comparison to economies with similar structures and circumstances. The vision to make SL among the strongest Asian economies is a commendable intent. How will we get there? What will be our value proposition? more..

Aug 5 (SMH) Sri Lankans lined up before polling stations opened on Wednesday, wearing masks and social distancing, to vote in an election that is set to hand further power to the Sinhalese Buddhist nationalist Rajapaksa family. Prez Rajapaksa will see his grip on the country tighten if, as expected, his brother Mahinda is elected as prime minister and he obtains a two-thirds majority in the 225-member parliament. The tourism-dependent island nation of 21 million people has been struggling since more..

Aug 5 (AD) Notorious criminal gang member Eron Ranasinghe alias SF Lokka has been shot dead by unidentified gunmen, the Police said. He had been travelling in a car with another person when they came under a gunfire attack near the railway crossing at Dahaiyagama in Anuradhapura. A woman who was also traveling in the same car has sustained injuries in the shooting and has been hospitalized. more..

Aug 5 (DM) Facilities will be available for the virtual registration of the newly-elected MPs, Parliament Secretary General Dammika Dasanayake said. MPs could submit their personal details to the parliamentary authorities without any paper work involved. �We normally obtain details such as name, age, religious and ethnic backgrounds for the registration. This time they could do it online,� he said. He said arrangements were in place for the inaugural session of the new Parliament more..

Aug 5 (EN) The Sri Lankan embassy in Lebanon has confirmed that two Sri Lankans have been injured in the massive explosion that occurred in the Lebanese capital Beirut yesterday, Sri Lanka�s envoy to Lebanon said. In a press release, Sri Lanka�s Ambassador in Beirut Shani Karunaratne said that as a result of the explosion, minor damage has been caused to the embassy premises and the residents of the officials. She added that no embassy staff have been harmed by the explosion. more..

Aug 5 (Island) It is estimated that by 2030, one in five people in Sri Lanka will be above the age of 60, with women making up the majority as they on average outlive their male counterparts, the UNFPA in SL said. It said that in Sri Lanka, sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services are often inaccessible to persons living with disabilities due to barriers such as physical, financial, social, and psychological in nature. more..

Aug 5 (Island) The Consulate General of Sri Lanka in Frankfurt am Main organised a Business Forum on July 31 on the occasion of the visit of Ambassador-designate of SL to Germany Manori Unambuwe, a press release said. It said: The Business Forum was attended by more than 35 guests including eminent entrepreneurs, potential investors and officials from the Chambers of Commerce and Economic Ministries from key southern Federal States in Germany. more..

Aug 5 (DM) SLPP Leader and PM Mahinda Rajapaksa today said that they will make arrangements to get a two thirds majority created in parliament if the party did not receive it at the General Election. Speaking to journalists at the Medamulana D.A. Rajapaksa Maha Vidyalaya in Weeraketiya where he cast his vote, the Prime Minister however said he was positive of the party winning two thirds majority. �There is a need for a parliament with a two thirds majority. more..

Aug 5 (FT) The two-day industrial action by the employees of Colombo Port has sunk Rs. 10 billion of revenue, apart from tarnishing the Port�s hub status, credibility, and reliability, a top official warned yesterday. The trade unions of the Colombo Port stopped work in protest against the privatisation of its East Container Terminal (ECT), demanding a written pledge from Prez Rajapaksa that it would not be privatised more..

Aug 5 (CT) Director General of Archaeology (DGA), Professor Senarath Dissanayaka said, he had submitted a proposal to both the President and the PM, urging them to hand over areas coming under the Department of Archaeology where no archaeological findings were made, to the Buddhist clergy. He said, surveys and excavations carried out by the officers attached to his Department had found that no archaeological items had been detected in 75% of the areas coming under the Dept. more..

Aug 5 (Island) Former Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera plans to launch a combined political-civil society campaign tomorrow against the authoritarian rule. In a statement issued yesterday (5), Samaraweera, who quit the electoral contest after obtaining nominations from the SJB a few weeks before the polls, emphasized the need for re-commitment to democracy as the country hurled towards an autocracy with the rapid convergence of the executive, the military and the clergy; more..

Aug 5 (CT) Dubai based sports broadcasting company, Innovative Production Group (IPG), has been awarded total rights for SL�s upcoming franchise based T20 tournament, Lanka Premier League (LPL). IPG will own ground, production, franchises and TV rights of the tournament. They will pay USD 2 million annually for 5 years to SLC for the said rights, while SLC will only handle venues and umpires. more..

Aug 5 (DM) UNP Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe expressed hopes that today�s general elections would be the last held under the Proportional Representation (PR) system in Sri Lanka. �Hopefully this would be the last general elections held in this country under the PR system. We proposed a mixed system without preferential votes when we were in the govt. I hope we could work out an agreement and bring about a change in the electoral system,� Mr. Wickremesinghe told journalists after more..

Aug 5 (EN) Sri Lanka has failed to sell 30% of Treasury bills offered at the weekly auction with average yields hitting a higher rate ceiling after the debt office failed to sell 60% of the offered volumes last week. The debt office, which is a unit of the central bank offered 35.5 billion rupees of bills at the auction and sold only 24.71 billion rupees as average yields hit a new rate ceiling. The debt office offered 6.0 billion rupees of bills 3-month bills and sold 9.15 billion rupees more..

Aug 5 (AD) President, PM and leaders of political parties were observed casting their votes at respective voting centers today. President Rajapaksa cast his vote for the Parliamentary Election 2020 at Sri Vivekaramaya Temple in Pangiriwatta, Nugegoda this morning. PM Rajapaksa exercised his franchise at the D.A. Rajapaksa Vidyalaya in Medamulana. Meanwhile the leader of UNP Ranil Wickremesinghe more..

Aug 5 (AD) Four more new cases of COVID-19 infection have been detected in the country today. Among them, one had been a recent arrival from Chennai, India while 2 more had arrived from United Arab Emirates. The other patient has been identified as an inmate of the Senapura Rehabilitation Center. Accordingly, the total number of COVID-19 cases reported in Sri Lanka has now moved to 2,838. 290 of them are active cases and are currently receiving medical care at selected hospitals. more..

Aug 5 (CT) Ministry of Education released a compact disc (CD) containing instructions on how to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the school premises and among students. The CD containing instructions is in line with the circular and guidelines already issued by the health authorities to educate the school community on the prevention of the spread of the Virus. The CD was officially handed over to the Secretary to Education Ministry N.H.M. Chithrananda at the Ministry yesterday. more..

Aug 5 (AD) Chairman of the Election Commission Mahinda Deshapriya says that the overall voter turnout island-wide for the 2020 General Election is 71%. Speaking during a press conference after the closing polls, the chairman expressed special gratitude to all voters who arrived at polling stations to exercise their franchise. He stated that a considerable number of voters had cast their votes at this parliamentary election more..

Aug 6 (DN) Fire is symbolic of purification, sacrifice and transformation in all religions and cultures. Burning flames are also associated with perseverance and hope. In the history of Christendom, many followers who boldly stood for their faith in Christ were violently killed. The reigning Romans derived immense gratification by letting the early Christians be attacked and devoured by lions, tigers and frenzied bears. Many believers were crucified and others tortured. more..

Aug 6 (DN) Colombo city is being transformed and her skyline keeps changing. A few buildings stand to remind us of the vintage era of Ceylon. Thirty years ago, many of us would recall the appearance of sasthara women walking about with the bold proclamation of being able to tell your future by reading your palm. Their prophetic lips were laced red by chewing betel leaves. They walked down our neighbourhood in pairs or sat at the local market in small groups of three. more..

Aug 6 (CT) A sub-inspector formerly attached to the CID has reportedly told the Gampaha Magistrate that Colombo Crimes Division (CCD) had pressured him to give a false statement to falsely implicate former CID director SSP Shani Abeysekera, blowing the cover on the witch-hunt against the former CID Director who was arrested a few days ago. The explosive revelations came after Sub Inspector R.S.M. Mendis was arrested more..

Aug 6 (TM) The Indus Valley International Film Festival (IVIFF) 2020, said to be South Asia�s First Borderless Digital Film Festival will be held from 1-9 August. Thanha Rathi Ranga from Sri Lanka will be screened at the event. The event is to be hosted online, free of charge � registrations are open for all film enthusiasts on the IVIFF website. The South Asia Forum for Art and Creative Heritage (SAFACH) is behind the IVIFF initiative and it was first thought up to create South Asia�s more..

Aug 6 (TM) When Parvathi and Devasundari Arasanayagam responded eagerly to my email asking about working on a piece celebrating their mother Jean Arasanayagam on her first death anniversary (30 July), I saw in them a desire to keep a remarkable woman�s legacy alive. I have been fortunate enough to have connected with Jean when she was alive, albeit via physical letters and eventually emails, and I wasn�t surprised by their reaction. Jean was remarkable � more..

Aug 6 (TM) Sri Lanka as an adventure travel destination is not a topic often talked about, as the focus of our tourism industry is mainly focused on leisure and, as of late, wellness. However, Sri Lanka, with its diverse landscapes and tropical weather, does have a lot to offer in terms of adventure travel. Our jungles provide lush, biodiverse backdrops for hiking and camping, with some mountains thrown in as well for more..

Aug 6 (CT) General Election for the ninth Parliament concluded in an appreciative manner with the enthusiastic but cautious participation of the voters at the 12,984 polling centres throughout the Island yesterday. From the time COVID-19 posed a threat to the island and to the world at large early this year, Sri Lanka adopted constructive measures to overcome the pandemic threat with the closely -coordinated efforts taken by the health sector as well as the defence sector in the country. more..

Aug 6 (DM) Unlike at previous national and provincial elections since 1948, the counting of votes cast at the Aug 5 general election will only begin today at 7 a.m. with the final results at party level being declared towards dusk. The results of the preferential votes cast in favour of various candidates will be known a day later. As in the past, with the declaration of the results, the voters would once again be consigned to the role of being bystanders having little or no part to play more..

Aug 6 (Island) Reconciliation is a strange word with multiple meanings when applied in different situations and understandings, but mostly gravitating towards a willingness, a compromise to get together again. As such, it is a process that cannot be forced; it will always and should be a natural process. Four hundred years of colonialism introduced a need to move vertically and not on a horizontal plane only to satisfy false definitions of democracy, based on the divide-and-rule policy of the coloniser. more..

Aug 6 (Island) In the setting of a major contagion COVID-19, caused by an entirely new organism which is causing absolute havoc all over the planet, there are many things that gradually come to light as the world staggers its way through the pandemic. It is true to say that the scenario is in a state of flux with many still unanswered questions. As things develop our knowledge base too gets extended, sometimes in considerable amounts and occasionally in leaps and bounds as well. more..

Aug 6 (FT) The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for the fourth plant of the Norochcholai coal power complex had not yet been conducted, a project official said. He said that EIA was to be conducted by the Central Environmental Authority (CEA) following a request from the CEB. China Machinery Engineering Corporation (CMEC), which is to construct the fourth plant, however, would not be involved in the EIA process, more..

Aug 6 (DM) When the media reported that the SL Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation has issued a newspaper advertisement in Sinhala urging people to share documents, books, and research material on Ravana, the legendary king of Lanka, it was not a surprise for students of SL nationalism. Far from being a villain (as portrayed in Valmiki�s Ramayana), Ravana has been celebrated by the majority Sinhalese in SL as a cultured and creative icon and a defender of island against a foreign invader. more..

Aug 6 (Devex) A proposed $480 million MCC compact in SL has become a key political issue in the country � and a referendum on development cooperation with the U.S. in a strategically important part of the world. After years of preparation, MCC�s board of directors approved the compact in April 2019. It proposes to upgrade transportation infrastructure in the Colombo metro region and to improve land management through mapping, valuation, & improvements to land registry. more..

Aug 6 (Island) Former Minister Mangala Samaraweera, who quit the 2020 parliamentary election in the second week of June, will launch a programme today to protect, what a close associate of his called democratic gains made during the yahapalana administration. Samaraweera will launch social media-based campaigns, in stages, beginning 10 am. The former minister�s aide said that the carefully arranged project aimed to sustain more..

Aug 6 (Island) Recognised as SL�s leading-edge vehicle emission testing network, Drivegreen has won high praise from customers for its knowledgeable, disciplined and polite workforce, according to a recent customer service survey conducted by the company. A common thread that echoed across the survey was the customer-oriented, friendly and attentive service extended by the team as the main reasons Drivegreen was repeatedly selected by customers for more..

Aug 6 (EN) The SJB made a very serious and strong complaint against the conduct of Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa during the polling, but will not seek an annulment of any poll, a spokesman for the alliance said. Permanent Representative of the SJB to the National Elections Commission Rajitha Keerthi Tennekoon said that the PM who was a SLPP Candidate for the Kurunegala district had entered two polling stations in Nikaweratiya and had also come to a poll at Kobeigane. more..

Aug 6 (Island) Ape Jana Bala Pakshaya (AJBP) conducted a unique campaign at yesterday�s general election to win a National List slot for one of its co-leaders, Ven. Galagodaatte Gnanasara. The party urged the electorate to help Ven. Gnanasara enter parliament to save the nation from what it called extremist invasion, a reference to those behind the Easter Sunday carnage. AJBP contested general election under flag symbol. more..

Aug 6 (CT) SL�s second largest foreign exchange earner, apparel exports, during the first six months of this year declined 30% to nearly US$ 1.8 billion from US$ 2.6 billion a year ago as exports in June crashed 20.5%. Apparel exports in June this year reached US$ 382 million, down 20.5% from US$ 481 million worth of exports recorded during the corresponding month of last year. It seems Apparel Exports might be able to hang on to its position as the second largest foreign exchange earner more..

Aug 6 (DN) SL women�s cricket team skipper Chamari Atapattu has a good chance to play the third edition of the Women�s Indian Premier League (IPL), known as Women�s T20 Challenge, which is scheduled to be played from November 1 to 10 in the UAE. After the Governing Council meeting last Sunday, it was decided that the tournament will feature three teams who will play four matches, including the final. Sourav Ganguly, the President of Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), more..

Aug 6 (FT) The PAFFREL yesterday stated that they were satisfied with the adherence to COVID-19 health guidelines at polling centres and that the overall election was largely peaceful. Addressing the press yesterday, PAFFREL Executive Director Rohana Hettiarachchi stated that there was 99% adherence to health guidelines and showed appreciation to the efforts of the Election Commission as well as the health authorities more..

Aug 6 (Island) A retired Appeals Court judge had been campaigning for SLPP near a polling centre at Al Mubarak national school, Malwana yesterday morning, Campaign for Free and Fair Elections (CaFFE) alleged. CaFFE executive director Manas Makeen said that the retired judge had been within 100 metres of the polling centre, a clear violation of election laws. �This is a clear violation of election law. People in the judicial service should know the law,� Makeen said. more..