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Committee to probe Lankan smuggling to US, NATO bases
Foreign employment authorities are to set up a committee at the very earliest, to probe a multi-million rupee racket involving the smuggling of Sri Lankan workers to US and NATO bases in Iraq and Afghanistan, a top official said yesterday. Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLFEB) Chairman Amal Senadhilankara told the Sunday Times that [...]
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Ex-BASL secretary Upul Jayasuriya to contest for BASL presidency
Former Bar Association Secretary Upul Jayasuriya has announced his candidature for the presidency of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) which falls vacant at the end of the first term of incumbent Wijeyadasa Rajapaksha, MP. Traditionally, the BASL president is elected for a two-year term, and rarely contested at the end of the first [...]
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Explain or withdraw order to ‘corrupted’ antibiotic supplier
The Health Ministry has decided to remove the entire consignment of ‘cloxacillin’ antibiotic, if the Indian pharmaceutical firm fails to give a credible explanation on the glass particle found inside an antibiotic vaccination vial at the Colombo South Teaching� Hospital (Kalubowila), last week. Cosmetic Devices and Drug Regulatory Authority (CDDA) head Dr. [...]
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Now Canada-Lanka powwow on illegal entry
By Leon Berenger A delegation led by Canadian Immigration and Citizenship Minister Jason Kenney arrived in the country yesterday for talks with top defence officials and others to discuss ways of cracking down on human smuggling operations. Mr. Kenney’s visit comes barely two weeks after Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr visited the country for talks [...]
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Monkey tricks results in anxious hours at US Consulate
It took five wildlife officials an entire day to trap the intruder which entered through the ventilator By Leon Berenger There were several anxious hours for those inside the US Consulate in Colombo shortly before Christmas after a stray monkey apparently breached the security alarm system and entered the building through the ventilator, Embassy and [...]
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Motorcycle gunmen kill Kelaniya PS member
Gunmen who came on a motorcycle shot dead a Kelaniya Pradeshiya Sabha UPFA member just outside his house at Waragoda in Kelaniya last evening, heightening the tension in the area that has seen a hostile political battle between two ruling party factions. The victim, Hasitha Madawala, was a close associate of PS Chairman Prassana Ranaweera [...]
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More Chinese funds sought for Mattala airport
Over Rs. 26 b already spent; Rs. 9 b more needed to complete project Sri Lanka will ask China’s Exim Bank for US$ 72 million or Rs. 9.1 billion more to complete the new showpiece Mattala International Airport in Hambantota.Now under construction, the airport has already cost the Government US$$ 209 million or Rs. 26.6 [...]
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WAR: Women Against Rape
Sri Lankan women queue up to sign a petition to express their anger at the rape� of a 23-year-old medical student in a moving bus in New Delhi. The petition was launched by the Lak Vanitha Foundation in solidarity with a global campaign to end violence against women. Pic by Athula Devapriya. See story on [...]
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Ministries in fuel row: Rs. 8 b worth stocks may go to waste
The Petroleum Industries Ministry and the Power and Energy Ministry are at loggerheads over a multi-billion rupee fuel purchase — with the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) turning down the latest imports. Two shipments of furnace oil and low-sulphur diesel ordered by the Petroleum Ministry are on the way to the country. They [...]
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Left parties wavering on impeachment vote
Two left parties in Parliament—the Lanka Sama Samaja Party (LSSP) and the Communist Party (CP)—are undecided on how they would vote or whether they would be present in the House when the motion against Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake is taken up on Friday. But one left party, the Democratic Left Front (DLF) [...]
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Divineguma Bill on Tuesday: Govt. to use 2/3rd majority
The Divineguma Bill will be debated in Parliament on Tuesday with the Government set to use its two thirds majority to gain approval for two clauses which the Supreme Court has determined as inconsistent with the Constitution. The Court ruled that Clauses 11 and 18 – which deal with the powers of [...]
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Pay Rs. 150 more for gas
The price of a cylinder of 12.5 kg domestic gas — both Litro and Laugfs — has been increased by Rs. 150 with effect from midnight yesterday, a Petroleum Industries Ministry official said. Accordingly the new price will be Rs. 2,396. The Consumer Affairs Ministry said the price increase was necessary in view of the [...]
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Countdown partying from luxury hotels to the Galle Face Green
As the Mayan b’ak’tun cycle concluded, with the 12th year of the 21st-century passing without apocalyptic tsunamis or zombie plagues, Sri Lankans were preparing to party. The country’s widening income gap dictated on which side of the Galle Face highway you would make merry. The young and well-heeled headed to the deluxe [...]
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Check before you wear: It may be somebody else’s used clothes
Sri Lanka has become a dump yard for used clothes from Western countries, although the country is well known for its own garment export industry. The Sunday Times witnessed clothes varying from denims, t-shirts, frocks skirts and even under garments being sold at prices ranging from Rs. 25 to Rs. 300 in [...]
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Dual citizenship applicants to be interviewed by Gota
The Government is set to resume the dual citizenship system this month, but applicants will face a tough screening procedure including a face-to-face interview with a panel headed by Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa. The other members in the panel will be Foreign Ministry Secretary Karunatillake Amunugama and Public Administration Secretary P.B. Abeykoon. [...]
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Meet the masked traffic cop in shades
Traffic police personnel on road duty will be provided with a mask and eye shades that must be worn while on active duty. Deputy Inspector General of Traffic Amarasiri Senaratne told the Sunday Times that the decision was taken after research by the University of Moratuwa revealed that there was a high lead content in [...]
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Start lectures or face closure: SB tells Jaffna Uni.
Higher Education Minister S.B. Dissanayake warned that the Jaffna University would be closed if academic activities did not recommence tomorrow. “I have told the university authorities that, willingly or unwillingly, we will have to close the university, even for one year, if campus activities are not normalised,” Mr Dissanayake told the Sunday [...]
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Avoid the sea today
Tourists, Navy personnel and fishing communities are advised not to go out to sea today as strong winds accompanied by showers and thundershowers are expected today in the seas off the coast of Sri Lanka. A low-pressure area in the Bay of Bengal southeast of Sri Lanka has produced the bad weather conditions, said a [...]
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Kandy MC parking fee collection to private company
In a bid to enhance its revenue, the Kandy Municipal Council (KMC) has handed over control of some of its public area for parking, to a private party, on a tender, officials said. The streets, according to a KMC spokesman, are Sri Bennet Soyza Mawatha, Pansala Para Deva Veediya and the parking [...]
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Customs Officer accused of accepting 1m bribe was framed: Counsel
By Chris Kamalendran The arrest of a senior Customs officer over allegations of bribe-taking has triggered a controversy.Chief Preventive Officer Ranjan Kanagasabey has been remanded till January 17 on allegations of accepting a bribe of Rs 1 million from Harsha Prabath de Silva, a vehicle body parts importer. However, Mr C.R. de Silva, P.C. appearing [...]
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In search of justice: The story of the people of Kepapilavu
The life and times of the people of Kepapilavu should make for a study in endless suffering. After witnessing the war at its cruellest, experiencing multiple displacements and spending the longest interval of time confined in Menik Farm, one would expect that life can hardly get any worse. Yet, their present situation is [...]
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The neo-vigilantes of Sri Lanka
This title refers to those 117 government MP’s who submitted a petition to the Speaker demanding the impeachment of the Chief Justice. The word ‘valiant ‘is used deliberately; this is the first occasion when government MP’s have dared move even an inch, leave aside take such a drastic step as they’ve done, without as much [...]
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The judiciary under siege
The High drama enacted in the famed halls of Parliament, and the dignified precincts of the Superior Courts the last several weeks , had reached its crescendo and subsided but, the unresolved issues arising from the apparent clash between the Legislature and Judiciary have spilled over to the new year. Add [...]
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Impeachment: SC judgment modest and cautious
A response to Chandra Jayarathne v Anura Priyadharshana Yapa MP and Others (SC Ref 3/2012, CA Writ App 358/2012) By Dinesha Samararatne The Supreme Court has determined that removal of appellate court judges in Sri Lanka can only be by procedure established by law and law alone (p 24). In this short response I will [...]
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Fundamental rights and fundamental values
Those who were instrumental in drafting the Sri Lanka constitution currently in force were keen to limit parliament’s powers. Mr. J R Jayewardene, who as Prime Minister chaired the Parliamentary Select Committee on the draft 1978 constitution, remarked at one of its hearings: “We are practically a dictatorship today. There is nothing [...]
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CJ’s petition to Appeal Court fixed for tomorrow
Chief Justice impeachment procedure By Wasantha Ramanayake The Court of Appeal on Thursday fixed for tomorrow the case filed by Chief Justice Dr. Shirani Bandaranayake, challenging the findings of the Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC), considering the urgency of the case. The Bench comprising Justices S. Sriskandarajah, Anil Gooneratne PC., and A.W.A. Salam also issued notice [...]
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Rainwater runoffs from deforested slopes breach bunds
During two days in December, it rained so hard over Galenbindunuwewa that the water in the massive Kivulekada tank surged six feet overnight. Even the spill gates could not tackle such a swell, so irrigation officials cut away a section of the bund to let the torrents of water through. “The water rose by the [...]
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Wet veggies rot as deluges hike prices
Unseasonal intense downpours inundate cultivated land destroying produce and its production in the foreseeable future. Namini Wijedasa reports from Dambulla, Kurunegala and Anuradhapura Mounds of pumpkin lay on the floor of the Dedicated Economic Centre (DEC) in Dambulla. Gunny sacks full of imported onions and potatoes were piled up high. But with downpours continuing in [...]
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Battered by winds, then by the law of the land
Residents of a village in Habaraduwa whose houses and property were damaged in a mini tornado are deemed not poor enough to receive financial compensation. Charundi Panagoda reports from Lanumodara, Habaraduwa A small-scale tornado ripped through a small southern village shocking and confounding residents, who in its aftermath are struggling to rebuild as the [...]
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Rotten state of affairs at Sathosa stores
Beware:Onions, potatoes, sugar adulterated with sand sold to the public. Aanya�Wipulasena reports Tons of rotten onions, potatoes and dried fish were taken out of state- and private-owned warehouses and destroyed after being declared unfit for human consumption. The decomposing items was discovered in raids carried out by the investigations unit of the Consumer Affairs Authority [...]
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Taxi drivers absorb petrol price increase
The majority of owners of three-wheelers and taxis say they will not pass on to their customers the extra Rs. 10 they are now paying for a litre of petrol. While most drivers continue to charge the standard Rs. 32 per kilometer, some are charging Rs.35, Rs. 38 and Rs.40. On December [...]
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Lankans fascinated by sex when using Google
While people are agitating and clamouring for stringent action to curb rape around the world in the aftermath of the tragedy that befell the Indian rape victim, Google Trends, a public web facility, showed the likelihood that any given Sri Lankan using Google, searches for websites using the term “sex.” While Pakistan [...]
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Rape gallops on unchecked
People not galvanised by horrendous events. Kumudini Hettiarachchi and Aanya Wipulasena report Four-year-old girl raped and strangled in Mandaitivu………just one more of the five rape cases, the police say, which are reported in Sri Lanka every day. As the country steps into the brand new year of 2013, the legacy of violence against women and [...]
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Don’t hold your breath, Ministerial resolutions for 2013
Await five-year plan says Minister By Damith �Wickremasekara An industrial zone to produce pharmaceuticals, a Board to maintain standards of medicines and fully implementing the gazette regulation on making it compulsory to display prices of drugs are some of the priorities of the Health Ministry for 2013. Health Minister Maithripala Sirisena told the Sunday Times [...]
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Habitat destruction drives Cobras, Pythons to the cities
Ecosystems of national parks could be adversely affected by officials releasing surplus snakes at zoos, into the wild. Habitat destruction has driven cobras and pythons into the suburbs, with more and more incidents being reported of serpent sightings and snakebites inside homes, outside homes and even on buses. These snakes, most of [...]
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Island sanctuary for critically endangered Hog Deer
Last year was not a good year for wildlife and the environment, so it was good to start the New Year on a positive note with a happy environment story. As part of a conservation programme, two female Hog Deer were released on an island in Lunu Ganga last weekend. The animals [...]
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Road to Sigiriya a muddy mess
Foreign visitors at the famed Sigiriya Rock have to wade through a muddy mess. Layers of mud and water extend from the road side shops, eating houses, trekking grounds, vehicle car parks and even the elephant safari route and together it paints a sad picture for both local and foreign visitors who come in their [...]
