Feb 8 (DM) No one can deny the economic crisis in SL. Govt that wasted valuable time as the crisis deepened with its insipid vision of Vistas of Prosperity and Splendour, is finally acknowledging the depth of the crisis and is now desperate to find a way out. The urgent problems confronting the Govt are repaying the external debt and importing essential goods in a time of foreign exchange shortages. Economic establishment, and more recently Finance Minister, see only one way more..

Feb 8 (TM) According to the findings of the sentinel surveillance survey of 2019, men who have sex with men (MSMs) is the key population group, amongst MSMs, female sex workers (FSWs), clients of sex workers, transgender women (TGWs) and people who inject drugs (PWIDs), with the highest human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) prevalence (1.46%) and active syphilis prevalence (0.53%) and with high overall syphilis prevalence (3.21%). more..

Feb 8 (GV) Over decades, regardless of the government in power the abuses enabled by the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) never ceased. They only decreased or increased depending on the regime in power. Even during Yahapalana arbitrary arrests and torture of persons detained under the PTA did take place, albeit at a reduced level. The entrenched nature of the abuse of persons arrested under the PTA is illustrated by the near identical pattern of abuse over decades. more..

Feb 8 (Island) Sri Lanka�s health service is as sick as a dog, and shows no signs of recovery in the foreseeable future. Hardly a day passes without a strike therein, causing untold suffering to the poor, who cannot pay for healthcare. It looks as if doctors, nurses, paramedics and others took turns to cripple the state-run health institutions from time to time. Eighteen health sector trade unions yesterday launched a strike, which, they say, will go on until their demands are met. more..

Feb 8 (DM) Sri Lanka celebrates its 74th Independence Day today not as a successful nation or a stable state, but as almost a fragile state. Not only individual families, but also the govt is having a hand to mouth existence which is clearly manifested by the country�s energy and power sectors. Nobody, even the most knowledgeable economist can predict how the govt is going to feed the people in two months� time as the country is facing a huge foreign exchange crisis, while everything including more..

Feb 8 (DM) It is ironic that a section of the people in the country are accusing the govt for giving in to external pressure to refrain from taking action against those who plunder country�s resources while the country is commemorating its Independence from foreign domination. The fishermen in the Northern Province have been agitating against their South Indian counterparts for bottom trawling in the Sri Lankan seas while accusing that the SL navy was protecting the Indians. more..

Feb 8 (CT) Images of flooding across Australia, Brazil, SL, Pakistan, and South Africa in the past months indicate that climate uncertainty is likely to increase in the decade ahead. SL's efforts to launch a mega renewable energy campaign as part of current govt�s policy to reach a target of 70% renewable energy is on the verge of being launched but it has not kick started as expected. UK trade investment notes that the urgency is greatest more..

Feb 8 (FT) COVID-19 vaccines were administered to 43,284 persons on Sunday and 78.07% of the population had received at least one vaccine dose as of Saturday. Our World in Data states that 65.17% of the population has received the second dose as well. 16,788,517 persons have received the first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and 14,015,145 persons have received the second vaccine dose. The booster dose has been administered to 5,777,838 persons. more..

Feb 8 (FT) SL�s COVID-19 case count exceeded 620,000 with the detection of 1,298 COVID-19 patients yesterday and the addition of 914 delayed cases to the total. 914 COVID-19 cases confirmed between 21 January and 31 January were added to the total yesterday after verification. Health officials add that all patients detected yesterday were from the New Year cluster. The previous day, 1,327 persons from the New Year cluster and four SL overseas arrivals tested positive for Covid. more..

Feb 8 (FT) Despite exports crossing $ 1 billion mark last year, rubber sector is being rattled by regression owing to multiple issues prompting an industry leader to urge Govt�s immediate intervention to ensure survival. Unavailability of raw materials locally, high freight charges both ways in import and exports, clearing shipments, foreign exchange and energy crises, ad-hoc labour rules and search for alternative more..

Feb 8 (DN) �We wanted to look after young cricketers and also have a plan to make emerging squad to groom them, said SL consultant coach Mahela Jayawardena said. Jayawardena who is doing his work as a consultant coach to the National teams is very busy with the cricket development activities and his idea is to make good system to produce talented cricketers. Cricket Technical Advisory Committee headed by Aravinda de Silva and it�s members Muttiah Muralitharan more..

Feb 8 (FT) The Colombo stock market began a fresh week on a negative note with both indices down 1% as investor sentiment remained bearish amidst low activity barring debutant Hela Apparel Holdings. All Share Price Index dipped by 131 points or 1% and the S&P SL20 was down by 1.2% or 53 points. Turnover was Rs. 6 billion with only 193 million shares traded. Asia Securities said following a brief respite in the previous session, the indices returned to negative territory with the ASPI slipping more..

Feb 8 (CT) Centuries from Sithara Gimhan and Nuwanidu Fernando steered Colombo to a convincing 107 run win over Dambulla in the 13th Match of the National Super League Limited over Tournament at the Pallekele International Stadium, yesterday. Batting first, Colombo posted 317 runs on the back of Sithara Gimhan and Nuwanidu Fernando�s centuries, whereas Dambulla were bowled out for 210, handing Colombo an easy win. Smarting from their defeat to Galle in their more..

Feb 8 (FT) Diversified Softlogic Holdings announced what it described as spectacular growth amidst turbulent times for the quarter ended 31 Dec 2021 and first nine months of FY22. Due to increased revenues and cost discipline, cumulative Group EBITDA almost doubled to Rs. 14. 3 bil (up 91%) while the quarter witnessed a 76% growth in EBITDA to Rs. 6.6 bil. Operating profit for the cumulative period recorded a 139% growth to Rs. 11.4 bil while the quarterly operating profit more..

Feb 8 (TM) The proposed Bill to amend the present Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), which the Govt of SL intends to introduce in Parliament, and upon it being passed into law, would be a salutary piece of legislation that would amend the present PTA after almost 43 years since it was enacted, and would be the most progressive step that would give persons subject to the said law tangible protection towards securing, advancing, and protecting more..

Feb 8 (FT) COVID19 is not a great equaliser. In SL as in a number of shaky third world democracies, COVID19 led to a human rights crisis that was unnoticed by most, silently accepted and easily forgotten. This could be particularly so because of the overall cultural stigma attached locally to Human Rights as an alien concept. Is the Cure Worse than the Disease, Reflections on COVID Governance in SL is the latest release by Social Indicator, polling arm of Centre for Policy Alternatives. more..

Feb 8 (FT) Aitken Spence has been recognised in the global ranking of Top 100 Companies in Sustainability 2022, in an independent assessment carried out by the Sustainability magazine which is an established international publication. Aitken Spence is the only SL company to have been included in this ranking of global industry leaders such as Nissan, Lenovo, Novo Nordisk, Accenture, McKinsey & Company, Microsoft, PWC, Ernst & Young and KPMG to name a few more..

Feb 8 (AD) President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa has instructed officials to take immediate steps to release containers containing essential items held up at Customs. Prez made this decision with the aim of preventing any shortages in the market. The President also appointed a committee headed by Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa to ensure that there is no shortage of essential commodities including food. more..

Feb 8 (Island) Ceylon Fisheries Corporation (CFC) and Uber EATS today announced a partnership to facilitate the delivery of CFC products on the popular online food delivery platform. This makes Uber EATS the first and only online marketplace to sell CFC products. The launch event hosted at CFC�s Bambalapitiya outlet was attended by State Minister Kanchana Wijesekara, Jayantha Chandrasoma, State Secretary; Stefan Abeysinghe, Chairman, CFC; Chaturanga Udawatte, more..

Feb 8 (ST) Overcoming challenges with a positive mindset was the dominating theme as the country celebrated its 74th Independence Day on Friday. The main celebration was held under the patronage of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa at the Independence Square in Colombo. This year�s celebration was held with the participation of 6500 personnel belonging to the Tri-Forces, Police, Civil Defence Force and National Cadet Corps. Personnel who took part in the celebrations more..

Feb 8 (ST) While Sri Lanka is on the brink of introducing the unique digital ID for all citizens in the country which is set to roll out this year, the need for high speed Internet connection arises to perform the task. The solution for this is the implementation of the 5G technology, says Jayantha De Silva, Chairman of the Telecom Regulatory Commission of SL (TRCSL). He made these remarks while attending the launch of the Airtel 5G trials in Sri Lanka last Tuesday at the Kingsbury Hotel more..

Feb 8 (FT) Sri Lanka and the European Union (EU) recently revived the investor dialogue between the two with Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa and EU Ambassador Denis Chaib as co-chairs. Minister Namal Rajapaksa, State Ministers D.V. Chanaka, Tharaka Balasuriya also participated in this discussion. The EU was represented by German Ambassador Holger Seubert, French Ambassador Eric Lavertue, the Netherlands Ambassador Tania Gonggrijp, Italy�s Deputy Head of Mission more..

Feb 8 (CT) Strike initiated by non-medical health sector professionals including nurses, Professions Supplementary to Medicine (PSM), perfusiologists, paramedical services, and food and drug inspectors, caused severe inconvenience to patients. Patients at Colombo National Hospital and National Dental Institute were left helpless by the strike while some patients arrived early in the morning for their prescriptions & lab tests. more..

Feb 8 (FT) With plans to intensify activities in SL, Germany's Import Promotion Desk (IPD) recently inaugurated its regional office in Colombo. The opening of this new representation, the German initiative for trade promotion strengthens its ties and cooperation with their strategic partner � Export Development Board (EDB). IPD is funded by the Federal German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and supports its partners in SL with the aim to enhance their portfolio of more..

Feb 8 (TM) Despite several MPs, including Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena, having tested positive for Covid-19, Parliament is scheduled to convene today. A senior official of the Parliament said that no decision has been taken so far to postpone the parliamentary sittings. The session would be held today as scheduled, since the notices have already been given to the MPs. However, parliament official said that a meeting of party leaders was scheduled to be held last afternoon more..

Feb 8 (DM) Senior Leader of SL Communist Party D. E.W. Gunasekara said the main large scale rice mill owners were sympathisers of the ruling SLPP who purchase and stock 46% of the country�s paddy production and after about a year they release the stock of rice at the prices of their choice and that the price of rice is under their control. Addressing the 12th Matara District Conference of the party he said more..

Feb 8 (Island) Public Security Minister Rear Admiral (Retd) Sarath Weerasekera has said he finds it extremely difficult to accommodate requests from his ministerial colleagues and other MPs as regards the appointment of Officers-in-Charge of police stations. Minister Weerasekera said so in response to Minister Vasudeva Nanayakkara�s complaint to Prez Rajapaksa that Weerasekera had turned down his request that a certain officer be appointed the OIC of Kiriella police station. more..

Feb 8 (Island) Frontline Socialist Party (FSP) has ruled out any possibility of teaming up with their erstwhile colleagues of the JVP to form a new political alliance, accusing incumbent leaders of the latter being in league with leading businessmen of the capitalist class. Party�s leader Premkumar Gunaratnam said: Those who meet us are asking almost the same question. They ask us why we cannot sink our differences and join hands with JVP to stand up against govt as a united force. more..

Feb 8 (CT) There has been no pressure whatsoever from India regarding solving issues faced by Tamils in Sri Lanka�s Northern Province, Prof. G.L. Peiris, has said to StratNews Global Editor-in-Chief Nitin A. Gokhale, shortly after landing in India on Sunday. Prof. Peiris explained the problem was more due to inherent institutional shortcomings that need to be addressed. �There is no hostility at the grassroots level. more..

Feb 8 (FT) There is a category of anti-reality fetishists in the COVID saga who I term Sweden deniers. Do not mention the name! Sneer at the stats. Wait for inevitable impending doom to befall them. Mild restrictions, no outright lockdowns, no mask mandates, schools open, and the only riposte is to say the neighbours did even better. Small problem, if you add 2019 when the neighbours had bad influenza years and Sweden did not, then the three-year mortality stats, even with more..

Feb 8 (FT) How could you justify the fact that a person who is sitting on a gold mine, is begging for money from his neighbours? Does it sound like a familiar story? I am talking about us! Let me prove the following to you: Biodiversity of SL has a vast potential to be transformed into a great source of income. Commercialisation of genetic resources is a booming business. From drugs, cosmetics, to teas and genetically modified crops to plant and animal materials, these products are ubiquitous more..

Feb 8 (SLN) In an operation conducted off the Delft Island in the dark hours of 07th February 2022, SL Navy took hold of 03 Indian trawlers and 11 Indian fishermen for poaching in Sri Lankan waters. Taking into account the impact of foreign fishermen poaching in Sri Lankan waters on the local fishing community and the sustainability of fishery resources of Sri Lanka, the Navy is conducting regular patrols and operations to curb illegal fishing activities in Sri Lankan waters. more..

Feb 8 (DM) Heated arguments erupted in Parliament today between the govt and the SJB with Chief Government Whip Johnston Fernando stating that the Leader of Opposition Sajith Premadasa has launched a battle with MP Patali Champika Ranawaka to secure his post in the House. Mr. Fernando said this when Mr. Premadasa was insisting that the government should come up with an answer to the question he raised on the decline of usable foreign reserves to US $ 700 m. more..

Feb 8 (EN) Health authorities are confident that they will find solutions to practical difficulties that will crop up when keeping unvaccinated or partially vaccinated citizens out of public places and public transport. Short of imposing a COVID-19 vaccine mandate, SL announced last week that, starting April 30, public places and public transport will be out of bounds for citizens who have not been fully vaccinated or triple vaccinated if over 20 more..

Feb 8 (DM) CIABOC has launched an investigation into a complaint against PM Rajapaksa over his personal trip to the Tirupati Temple in India using a private jet last year. A complaint had been filed with the Bribery Commission by journalist Tharindu Uduwagedara on Dec 31st, 2021, requesting the launch of an investigation. Accordingly, the CIABOC Secretary Apsara Caldera, in a letter dated Feb 2, has notified the journalist Uduwagedara that the Commission has decided to launch more..

Feb 8 (DM) A SL man has been arrested for allegedly raping a 32-year-old German woman at a hotel in Marine Drive in Kollupitiya. Police said the woman had lodged a complaint with the Kollupitiya Police on Sunday that she was drugged and raped by a man who claimed to be her boyfriend. The suspect and the victim had reportedly consumed alcohol at a restaurant in Kollupitiya before they checked in at a hotel in Marine Drive. It was reported that the victim's father is a SL national. more..