Jul 23 (CT) Sri Lanka will look to put up an improved performance, especially with the ball, when they take on Pakistan in the second Test today (24) at Galle Int'l cricket stadium. Hosts are coming into the match after a 4-wicket loss in the first Test and have made few changes to the squad, with opening batter Pathum Nissanka and right arm off spinner Lakshitha Manasinghe included in the squad. SL�s bowling attack will look considerably different, although that may have been the case more..

Jul 23 (PTI) Singapore has granted a 14-day short-term visit pass to former SL Prez Rajapaksa as he entered the country on a private visit on July 14, according to immigration authorities here. Rajapaksa, 73, on July 13 fled SL to the Maldives and then Singapore and resigned after a popular uprising against his govt for mismanaging the economy. In a statement released in response to media queries about Rajapaksa�s visit to more..

Jul 23 (Island) EPDP leader Douglas Devananda said that Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe has the ability to guide SL through this tumultuous time. �Sri Lanka is facing the worst economic and political crisis since independence and Wickremesinghe can guide the country through this. This is our sincere belief, and we will support him fully,� he said. Devananda said that all parties must unite and help the govt to lift Sri Lanka out of the crisis. �Tamil people must think carefully about the choices before them. more..

Jul 23 (DM) MP Harin Fernando should hand over the national list slot through which he came into Parliament back to SJB so that former MP Ranjan Ramanayake could be nominated to Parliament once he is out of prison, an SJB MP suggested. SJB MP Nalin Bandara said that Mr. Fernandio should resign from the House and give the seat back to where it belongs. �Mr. Fernando can come through the UNP national list as it has fallen vacant after its leader Ranil Wickremesinghe was elected more..

Jul 23 (AD) A Gazette Extraordinary has been issued appointing Vajira Abeywardena to UNP�s National List parliamentary seat left vacant after Ranil Wickremesinghe was elected to the office of Prez. The gazette notification was published by the Election Commission pursuant to the powers conferred by Section 64(5) of the Parliamentary Elections Act, No. 01 of 1981 and the provisions of the Constitution. Earlier this week, Secretary-Gen of Parliament Dhammika Dasanayake more..

Jul 23 (DM) Cabinet which met for the first time under Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe discussed that the country should be normalized within one week by regularizing functions of the govt institutions such as the PM�s Office, Presidential Secretariat and schools. After the appointment of the new Cabinet Ministers, the President called for the meeting. Cabinet was informed that fuel sufficient for one month had been secured and therefore distribution under a quota system should be expedited. more..

Jul 23 (Island) A number of professional associations, religious leaders, politicians and commissions condemned Friday�s attack on unarmed protesters opposite the Presidential Secretariat. SLPP MP Dullas Alahapperuma condemned the attacks stating that it was the manifestation of a military mindset and will be hugely detrimental to SL. SJB, JVP, CP, FSP and other parties too condemned the attacks. more..

Jul 23 (FT) PM on six occasions, dead as a Dodo after the last general election, losing his own seat, and the party he led, the once mighty UNP not securing even a single seat in Parliament and polling less than 250,000 nationally, Ranil Wickremesinghe has outlasted and outwitted all by rising on the Pohottuwa bed of strange bedfellows to be voted in as the next Prez of the country. He has now taken his oaths. By whatever stretch of imagination, and political manoeuvring, this rise is remarkable. more..

Jul 23 (GV) Earlier this month, a news report revealed that a 22 year old woman had filed a complaint with the Human Rights Commission against the Welisara-Mahabage police. She alleged that her parents had subjected her to severe abuse after learning that she was a lesbian and in a consensual, same-sex relationship. She was locked up in her house for several weeks and taken to several Catholic priests in an attempt to convert her into heterosexuality. more..

Jul 23 (AD) The SJB has requested PM Dinesh Gunawardena to convene the parliament on Monday (25) to take up a debate on the attack on peaceful protesters and the current situation in the country. In a letter directed to the Premier, MP Lakshman Kiriella said the attack on the GotaGoGama protest site at Galle Face Green by the troops in the early hours of Friday is a blow to democracy. The incident has been vehemently condemned by the int'l community and it can damage the country�s image further, the SJB pointed out. more..

Jul 23 (FT) National Development Bank PLC cemented its market leader position by being awarded the Best Bank in SL 2022 title by the prestigious Euromoney Magazine. This marks the first instance in which NDB secured this much coveted title by Euromoney, which is a leading global publication in the banking and financial services sector, whilst their awards and ranking programs garner much respect as one of the most rigorous and independent evaluation processes covering the sector. more..

Jul 23 (AD) Ambassador of the US to SL Julie Chung says she called on Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe to express her grave concern over the unnecessary and deeply troubling escalation of violence against protesters overnight. Taking to her official Twitter handle, the US envoy noted that the Prez and the Cabinet of Ministers have an opportunity as well as an obligation to respond to the calls of Sri Lankans for a better future. �This is not the time to crack down on citizens,� more..

Jul 23 (DM) A 3-member committee has been appointed by Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe to conduct an Investigation immediately into the bribery allegation against former minister Nimal Siripala de Silva and to submit a report. The committee was appointed paying attention to the request made by former Minister Silva to conduct an impartial inquiry into the matter raised by the Leader of the Opposition in Parliament based on the news published in the social, print and electronic media more..

Jul 23 (EN) Sri Lanka will impose power cuts of up to 3 hours on July 23, Public Utilities Commission (PUCSL) Chairman Janaka Ratnayake said. All areas (ABCDEFGHIJKLPQRSTUVW) will have power cuts of 1 hours and 40 minutes between 10.20 am and 06.00 pm and 1 hour 20 minutes power cuts from 06.00pm to 10.00 pm. The state-run CEB said the supply interruption time and restoration time will be varied within 30 minutes as indicated above. For the details of power cut, click here. more..

Jul 23 (OHCHR) We are alarmed by the unnecessary use of force reportedly employed by SL�s security forces to break up a protest camp near presidential offices in Colombo � only hours before the protesters indicated that it was due to be dismantled. We condemn the reports of beatings of protesters, journalists and lawyers. In the early hours of Friday, when most of the protesters were sleeping, an estimated 2,000 security personnel, including police and military, more..

Jul 23 (DM) SL welcomed 28,733 tourists for the first 19 days of July, bringing the total number of international visitors entering the country for the year starting Jan 1 to 440,110. Data show a reduced but steady flow of tourists into the country, which indicates that despite the ongoing political and economic turmoil in the country, interest in destination SL still remains. The country-wise breakdown of the key contributors to the country�s tourist traffic for July shows that the UK ranks more..

Jul 23 (SLN) The commissioning of Midshipmen of the 35th (Technical) and 36th intakes of General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University (KDU) was held triumphantly at the Naval and Maritime Academy (NMA), Trincomalee on 22nd July. The eventful ceremony marked the culmination of the basic training period of 36 Midshipmen who were groomed as prospective naval officers at KDU and NMA. At the invitation of Commander of the Navy, Vice Admiral Nishantha Ulugetenne, the Secretary to the Ministry of Defence, more..

Jul 23 (CI) SL would have felt they were on track for victory at the end of day three of the first Test, until Abdullah Shafique and Co swept the win from under them in the last two days. But even SL reflected that theirs was a far-from-complete performance. If you bat first in Galle, you have to score 350 to 400 runs to control the game, Dhananjaya de Silva had said after the match. They had made 222. Then, in the second innings, only Prabath Jayasuriya seemed a wicket-taking threat for more..

Jul 23 (ANI) Abdur Rahim Sidiqqui, Director of World Food Programme spoke about the economic crisis of SL on July 23. �Colombo, SL is facing its worst economic crisis in recent history. As of June, food inflation is over 80% and trend likely to rise in coming months. One-fourth of the population is adopting food-based coping mechanisms,� he said. "They're reducing size of meals, skipping them, or giving preference to younger members of the family. We are planning to support 3.4 million people in SL. more..

Jul 23 (EN) The European Union has stressed the need of upholding freedom of opinion and expression and individual rights of SL citizens after the military brutally attacked peaceful protesters, a day after Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe took oath as the leader of the island nation. The military attacked protesters who were above to hand over the presidential secretariat which they occupied on July 9 just before former leader Gotabaya Rajapaksa fled the country fearing for his file. more..

Jul 23 (DM) SL Navy denied some social media reports that two naval officers had stepped down after the attack on protesters near the Presidential Secretariat at Galle Face Green early yesterday. The social media reported that two navy officers, Janith Rajakaruna and Malshan Prathapasinghe had decided to step down from the SL Navy after seeing the GotaGoGama brutal attack. However, Navy denied such reports and said no sailor or officer of the SL Navy stepped down as reported by social media. more..

Jul 23 (NR) The SL Station Masters Association will launch a 48-hour trade union action as of 6pm today (23). The Station Masters will refrain from issuing railway tickets in opposition to the revised railway fares. Secretary of the Association Kasun Chamara said although it was decided to revise train fares; there were certain discrepancies and concerns with the Gazette Notification and the decision taken. Chamara said while the Department of Railways was informed of the concerns, they were ignored. more..

Jul 23 (Island) Most MPs had voted for Ranil Wickremesinghe for personal gain and to maintain their grip on power, SJB General Secretary, Ranjith Madduma Bandara, said. �Most of these people want the govt to build them better houses from the taxpayer�s money. They also want bigger vehicles. And, most of all, they want to remain in Parliament and enjoy the perks as long as possible,� he said. MP added that Wednesday�s vote to elect a President did not reflect the will of the people. more..

Jul 23 (ANI) Newly-appointed Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe has a tough task ahead of him negotiating a financial lifeline from the IMF to help his country combat its worst-ever economic crisis but what makes the process difficult for him is opaque creditor China. Notably, China poses a difficult challenge for the negotiation as there is a lack of clarity on how much Colombo really owes to Beijing. Official data shows China accounting for only about 10% of the country's USD 35.1 b in external debt more..

Jul 23 (AI) The new SL President must immediately stop the shameful, brutal assault on peaceful protestors, Amnesty International said today after the military carried out a pre-dawn attack on the peaceful protest site outside the Presidential Secretariat, GotaGoGama, hours before the protestors were due to vacate the area in Colombo. In the early hours on Friday, a massive joint operation by the military, police and special forces forcefully removed protestors sleeping in tents more..

Jul 24 (SO) SL politics entered a bold new era with the election by MPs of Ranil Wickremesinghe as the eighth Executive Prez, succeeding former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa who tendered his resignation on July 14. This is the first time ever that such a process took place in Parliament, proving once again that democratic traditions are alive and well in Sri Lanka even in the face of a massive socio-political upheaval that began on May 9 and culminated in the former Prez�s resignation. more..

Jul 24 (TM) As much as Sri Lankans are used to lamenting 74 years of wasted opportunities in setting the course for a strong and independent nation, it must be kept in mind that many have been the opportunities that have been afforded to different leaders at different junctures to put things right, but every one of those opportunities has been squandered at the altar of political expediency, and the people, instead of taking issue with their leaders for their actions, have almost always meekly more..

Jul 24 (TM) The recent developments and election of Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe by Parliament are worrying for two reasons, says Political Economist and Senior Lecturer at the Uni of Jaffna Dr. Ahilan Kadirgamar. �One, Ranil Wickremesinghe had no credibility and no mandate to come into Parliament; he was appointed in what was widely seen as a deal between the Rajapaksas and Wickremesinghe. more..

Jul 24 (CT) But to watch cricket, there has to be a country left for us to watch it in, no? A fan at the Galle Test Match that ended with an innings victory for SL. July 11, 2022. Spirits were high on July 11 when the SL cricket team beat the visiting Aussies by an innings even though the country was in its worst economic crisis ever, due to a lack of Dollars to buy fuel caused by an international Sovereign Bond (ISB), debt trap and Staged Default. The cricket victory followed a magical weekend more..

Jul 24 (CT) On 20th July 2022 most Sri Lankans watched the events in SL�s parliament with keen interest to see which candidate for the Prez was to be elected by MPs to serve the balance of former Prez Rajapaksa�s remaining term? In one sense it was a momentous day because people who are tired of old politics and protesting have been demanding a system change to get over their short-term difficulties resulting from the shortages of food, fuel, medicine etc on one hand and more..

Jul 24 (SO) Foreign Affairs Minister Ali Sabry, PC said that at present the majority of MPs have affirmed Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe is the right person. Therefore, we must proceed and give him some reasonable period of time to resurrect the economy and address the burning issues faced by the people. He said that he thinks the SLPP party hierarchy and the Prez will discuss and try to form an All-Party Govt so that more..

Jul 24 (Island) Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe, hours after assuming the presidency on Thursday demonstrated to the protesters outside the presidential secretariat that he means business. New Prez who met with defence chiefs soon after he had been sworn into office at the Diyawanna Parliament had made clear that the protesters may continue to remain at the GotaGoGama site at Galle Face, but that they were not going to be permitted to block entry to the prez secretariat as more..

Jul 24 (ST) My dear Uncle Ranil, I am writing to you to congratulate you on your almost unbelievable return to power � and that too to the most powerful position in the country. You have your critics, enemies, and those who really dislike you, but I think even they will concede that you get full marks for sheer determination and resilience. Previously, I addressed you as the Green Man. I can�t do so any more. That is because you won the top job with mostly maroon votes. more..

Jul 24 (ST) Whoever said politics makes strange bedfellows must be right. Wednesday�s vote in Parliament to elect a President for the balance period of Prez Rajapaksa�s tenure exposed how blurred party loyalties are nowadays. Eventually, the modern Grandmaster of political chess checkmated his main rival and his backers and then called for all sides of the divided House to get together for the sake of the country. With mounting sociopolitical and economic issues, only three brave souls more..

Jul 24 (ST) World�s second-oldest and uninterrupted cricket series between � S. Thomas and Royal � colleges unsurprisingly ended on another dull draw, but the dying moments of the game saw batting brilliance from the Thomian captain Ryan Fernando concluding the contest with a superb 74 yesterday at the SSC grounds. The encounter, played behind closed doors, came to a close ultimately when the 2019 champions Thomians, with a lead of 165, retained the D. S. Senanayake Shield. more..