Feb 25 (FT) World-famous news broadcaster CNN this week put SL under the spotlight, highlighting how the country has resumed international tourism, whilst following safety protocols amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. The positive exposure was during the channel�s popular First Move program hosted by famous anchor Julia Chatterley. She joined SL Tourism Chairperson Kimarli Fernando, who was live from Colombo, to explain what Chatterley described as an innovative way of revitalising tourism. more..

Feb 25 (Island) Attorney General Dappula de Livera, PC is not bound by recommendations made by the PCoI into the 2019 Easter Sunday carnage, or presidential directives in that regard, according to authoritative sources. They said that the AG couldn�t under any circumstances initiate legal proceedings until he had received the full PCoI report. President Mahinda Rajapaksa received the PCoI report on Feb 1. more..

Feb 25 (FT) Strong asset and other income growth combined with an emphasis on prudent provisioning in one of the most challenging years on record, have enabled the Commercial Bank of Ceylon Group (ComBank) to end 2020 on a stable platform for growth, with better liquidity than most peers and adequate provision cover. The Group, comprising of SL�s benchmark private bank, its subsidiaries and an associate, has reported gross income of Rs. 151.966 b for the year ending 31 Dec 2020, more..

Feb 25 (FT) Addressing the UNHRC for the first time since its exit in 2018, US yesterday urged member states of the Council to back a resolution on SL to address the lack of accountability for past atrocities in the island. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told the 46th Session of the UNHRC currently underway that the US was �placing democracy and human rights at the centre� of its foreign policy. �We encourage the Council to support resolutions at this session addressing issues of more..

Feb 25 (CT) Considering the growing plea among the public to allow burial of COVID-19 deceased and requests made by a number of party leaders, PM Mahinda Rajapaksa held a lengthy discussion with Govt Party Leaders at Parliament premises on 9 Feb, who endorsed this fact. The PM had pointed out at the discussion that a decision on burial could not be taken without seeking the opinion of the health authorities more..

Feb 25 (EN) Prez Gotabaya Rajapaksa had appointed a Presidential Commission of Inquiry to �evaluate the state of current affairs of the Sri Lanka Customs Department and make recommendations to enhance its effectiveness,� his office said. �The Commission is assigned to simultaneously come up with recommendations to make services by SL Customs more efficient and effective while dealing with various allegations and alleged irregularities against it,� the statement said. more..

Feb 25 (AD) The Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) has elected President�s Counsel Saliya Pieris as its new President. Pieris has been elected President with a total of 5,162 votes at the election, according to Attorney-at-Law Rajeev Amarasuriya, Secretary of BASL. Pieris has won over President�s Counsel Kuvera de Zoysa who obtained just 2,807 votes. President�s Counsel Saliya Pieris takes over the position from the outgoing President of BASL President�s Counsel Kalinga Indatissa. more..

Feb 25 (TM) The BBS would not mind being banned as recommended by the PCoI into the Easter Sunday attacks, so long as it ensures the other recommendations of the PCoI are similarly implemented. �We would be more than happy to be banned, as long as the rest of the recommendations in the report are implemented properly,� BBS General Secretary Ven. Galagodaaththe Gnanasara Thero said. more..

Feb 25 (Island) Dr. Nihal Abeysinghe, President of College of Community Physicians strongly criticised the sudden and unilateral govt decision to do away with what he called the scientifically recommended Covid-19 vaccine priority list. He alleged that the priority list had been done away with on Feb 16 without consultations. Responding to a spate of probing questions, Dr. Abeysinghe explained how the powers that be acted recklessly contrary to the specific decisions taken by more..

Feb 25 (Island) Attorney-at-Law Hejaaz Hizbullah and his wife Maran Califa yesterday withdrew the writ application they had filed in the Court of Appeal against the third extension of his detention order. Hizbullah was produced before the Fort Magistrate on Feb 18, 2021, and remanded. He was arrested by the CID in connection with the Easter Sunday suicide blasts of April 21, 2019. Hizbullah and his wife told the Court of Appeal, that since Hizbullah had been produced before a Court of law, more..

Feb 25 (TM) Different views have emerged amongst members of the Tamil community, with civil society organisations calling for a more stringent resolution to be adopted at the 46th UNHRC Session, whilst political parties are taking a more pragmatic approach towards the matter. At a press conference held in Colombo yesterday, the North-East Civil Forum claimed that the Zero Draft Resolution on SL presented at the UNHRC more..

Feb 25 (DM) Primary Health Care, Epidemics and COVID-19 Disease Control Minister Sudarshani Fernandopulle today slammed Health Ministry officials over certain arbitrary decisions taken by them regarding the vaccination drive. She said it was difficult to carry out the vaccination drive when such decisions were taken without prior notice. �Some decisions were changed and communicated over the phone at midnight. Certain crucial decisions were not properly conveyed. more..

Feb 25 (CT) Former Prez Maithripala Sirisena is currently holding discussions with his lawyers in line with the recommendations made by the final report of the PCoI into the Easter Sunday attacks in 2019,Minister Mahinda Amaraweera said. He noted that the recommendations have been made by the commission and Sirisena will take precautions accordingly. However, Amaraweera said he is dissatisfied with the outcome of the PCoI, adding that apart from recommending more..

Feb 25 (FT) Sri Lanka and Pakistan have agreed to jointly work on negotiating debt relief, Pakistan PM Imran Khan said yesterday, calling on international organisations to support poor countries to tackle economic challenges worsened by the pandemic. Khan, who arrived in SL last afternoon for a two-day visit, was welcomed by his SL counterpart Mahinda Rajapaksa. The two PMs held bilateral discussions at Temple Trees more..

Feb 25 (CT) Although leader of the SLMC, Rauff Hakeem participated at a banquet hosted for Pakistani PM Imran Khan, some Muslim MPs from several political parties including the SLMC were notable absentees. Party Leaders, Cabinet Ministers and Muslim MPs of the ruling party were invited to the banquet organised by PM for Pakistani Premier at Temple Trees on 23 Feb. Speaker together with a group of businessmen engaging in trade with Pakistan had also been invited. more..

Feb 25 (FT) Pakistan PM Imran Khan yesterday met with Muslim MPs and expressed confidence SL leaders will work to improve inter-communal harmony. SLMC Leader Rauff Hakeem following the meeting tweeted that the discussion was pleasant and fruitful. �Had a pleasant and fruitful discussion with Pakistan PM along with my colleagues from several parties. He expressed confidence in the capacity of our leaders to improve harmony among all Sri Lankans and address their citizens� more..

Feb 25 (FT) UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet has vowed to support judicial proceedings in other countries against perpetrators of grave human rights violations in SL, after the Govt had effectively closed the door to achieving justice locally for alleged war time abuses. In her statement to the 46th Session of the UNHRC yesterday, Bachelet said her office would support judicial measures in outside jurisdictions more..

Feb 25 (FT) SL�s expected fallout with the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Geneva is serious. The Govt is looking for a scapegoat to blame the fallout on someone, and this year it is likely to be blamed on the Muslims because of the cremation controversy. Govt could sail through the next two years with this rhetoric, making the man on the street forget the other issues that weigh him down. It is expected that the Organisation of Islamic Countries will vote against more..

Feb 25 (DN) Integrated Treasury Management Information System (ITMIS) is to be fully implemented bythe budget for 2022. Secretary to the Treasury S.R. Attygalle noted that utilisation of ITMIS was already quite high and as with government policy there would be more utilisation of digital channels. Attygalle said, �Budget 2021 was worked through ITMIS.� 80% of 2021 budget data is done through ITMIS. This includes over 2000 spending units within the govt. more..

Feb 25 (FT) Facing an exponentially developing situation is an interesting experience but not always and most definitely not during these COVID-times. COVID-19 is showing exactly the power of the exponential � how the contagion spreads! The infections as the final scenario is a result of the transmission being an exponential function. The exponent dictates whether the spread is happening or is curtailed. These days we see but without saying much that the exponent is greater than more..

Feb 25 (DM) Following several complaints from citizens that the ongoing vaccination program was being conducted in an ad-hoc manner, the Daily Mirror learns that a decision may be taken to revert the vaccination program back according to the priority groups - in this instance those above the age of 60 years, in the coming days. During a meeting held by health officials this week, several concerns were raised with some officials querying as to why there was no system in place for people to more..

Feb 25 (AD) A consignment of 500,000 doses of Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccines purchased from India have arrived in Sri Lanka this afternoon. State Pharmaceutical Corporation recently signed an order with Serum Institute of India (SII) for 10 million doses of the vaccine for USD 52.5 million. This agreement was approved by the Attorney General last week. The vaccines are purchased as a direct more..

Feb 25 (AD) The nomination submitted by Ven. Battaramulle Seelarathana Thero to contest for the position of Vice President of Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has been rejected. The Thero�s nomination has reportedly been rejected due to failure to complete the required qualifications. Thero had this week submitted his nomination to contest for the Vice President�s post at the upcoming SLC elections. Thero, who had previously also contested in Prez elections, said that his intention in contesting more..

Feb 25 (Island) Environment Ministry has decided to take action against those responsible for destroying 1,000 mangrove saplings at the Anawilundawa recently. A senior Ministry official expressed disgust at the destruction of the saplings planted in a wetland site designated to be of international importance as per the Ramsar Convention under the National Wetlands Programme. The govt had decided to take over and develop the Muthurajawela Wet Sanctuary under more..

Feb 25 (EN) SL tax changes announced in 2019 Dec and a budget for 2021 including a special goods and services tax and a 1% tax to bring undeclared money to the open would be legislated by Apr 21, Treasury Secretary S R Attygalle said. SL cut the value added tax, lifted the threshold, announced a special goods and services tax for 5 items and also a series of income tax cut to promote exports & support small/medium enterprises. more..

Feb 25 (FT) LedgerEdge, the next-generation ecosystem for corporate bond trading, announces it has selected Yaala Labs, a provider of cloud-native capital markets infrastructure, to support its technology delivery. The partnership will enable LedgerEdge to launch a global corporate bond trading venue built on distributed ledger technology, expected in the second half of 2021. LedgerEdge was founded in 2020 to create a new ecosystem where participants can trade with conviction more..

Feb 25 (AD) The Central Bank, with deep sorrow, wishes to announce the demise of Mr. C J P Siriwardana, former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL). He passed away at the age of 62, on the 24th of February 2021. Mr. Siriwardana functioned as Deputy Governor of the CBSL from 2017 to 2018. With over 31 years of service at the CBSL, he was especially experienced in the areas of Economic and Price Stability, Financial System Stability, Agency Functions. more..

Feb 25 (AD) Prez�s Counsel Ali Sabri stated that he does not intend to repeal or amend the Viharagam and Dewalagam Ordinance during his tenure as the Minister of Justice. He expressed these views speaking at a media briefing today. He said, �As long as I am the Minister of Justice, we have no hope of touching the Buddhist Viharagam and Dewalagam Ordinance. I haven�t even dreamt of it. We all acknowledge that this is a country more..

Feb 25 (EN) SL exporters and providers of services to the European Union (EU) market are being encouraged to develop sustainable supply chains to become part of the restart of the island�s economy to overcome the Covid-19 pandemic as fast as possible. At a conference on Sustainable Supply Chains as drivers of global competitiveness held on 24th of February in Colombo, suppliers to the EU market were offered training and help to obtain broader market access to permit German more..

Feb 25 (DN) A mechanism is in place to ensure the job security of private sector employees, Labour Minister Nimal Siripala De Silva said yesterday in Parliament. Accordingly, Minister De Silva pointed out that employers have agreed to a system that allows private sector employees who are not called to work or are unable to come to work due to the COVID-19 pandemic to choose from either receiving half of the basic monthly salary or receiving Rs.14,500, whichever is more beneficial more..

Feb 25 (AD) The final report of the Prez Commission of Inquiry (PCoI) which investigated the Easter Sunday terror attacks has been tabled in the Parliament this morning. Leader of the House, Foreign Affairs Minister Dinesh Gunawardena presented the Sinhala and English versions of the report to the House following the commencement of the parliamentary session. Accordingly, he requested the Speaker more..

Feb 25 (Island) It did not matter whether the MPs were wearing pressed clothes or had travelled long distances when their questions were answered, Chief Govt Whip Johnston Fernando told Parliament yesterday. The Minister said so in response to a complaint by Batticaloa District TNA MP Shanikyan Rasamanikkam, who expressed his dismay for govt taking time to answer a question raised by him. MP Rasamanikkam has raised a question whether Minister of Health is aware that more..

Feb 25 (EN) SL and Pakistan had discussed the possibility of cross-investing foreign reserves in each others� sovereign bonds during a visit of PM Imran Khan to the island, State Minister Nivard Cabraal said. �We have been investing foreign reserves in Western govt bonds at low rates about 1.5%� Cabraal said. �They are also investing in various instruments in the Western world. They are also generating 1.5%, just like us. Sometimes it makes sense to invest in theirs (bonds) more..

Feb 25 (AD) Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage has been acquitted from the case over misappropriation of funds from the SL Freedom Labour Congress. The lengthy trial of 4 years came to a conclusion before the Colombo HC Justice Adithya Patabendige, today. Delivering the verdict, High Court Judge stated that the plaintiff had failed to prove the allegations made against the defendant beyond reasonable doubt. Accordingly, the accused will be acquitted and released under more..

Feb 25 (TM) The recent report of the UN Human Rights High Commissioner Michelle Bachelet highlighted the need for UNHRC to ensure accountability for crimes committed in SL, Canadian Foreign Minister Marc Garneau yesterday said. Speaking at the 46th session of the UNHRC, he said Canada is deeply concerned about the deteriorating human rights situation in SL. �Threats to human rights defenders and civil society organizations, suppression of memorialization, more..

Feb 25 (CT) The Committee on Public Accounts (COPA) has directed the Secretary to the Ministry of Wildlife and Forest Conservation to prepare a formal plan to expedite the implementation of the recommendations made to resolve the human-elephant conflict in Sri Lanka and present a report to Parliament within two months. COPA also called for a review of the National Policy on the Resolution of the Human-Elephant more..

Feb 25 (CT) Terrorism Investigation Division (TID) arrested a 25-year-old suspect for posting and promoting videos containing images of V. Prabhakaran. The suspect is said to have posted and circulated such videos on the social media platform named TikTok. The suspect was arrested in the Wattala. The suspect hails from Mullaitivu and has also resided in Hatton. On searching the suspect�s mobile phone, multiple contents created by him promoting terrorist activity had been more..

Feb 25 (DM) Pakistani Premier Imran Khan during his two-day state visit of SL addressing a gathering of dignitaries commended former SL cricket captain Arjuna Ranatunga for his efforts to instil a winning mindset for his former cricket team members. �Sports teaches you something which you do not learn in university or school. Because the idea of competing in sports is to prepare you for struggles in life. The problem is that sportsmen when they finish their sporting career, more..