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Home » ColumnsMangala’s cigar delays case
A distraught mother, carrying her infant in hand, approached UNP General Secretary Tissa Attanayake and parliamentarian Ravi Karunanayake, when they were at the Matara courts last Monday. They were present to see party supporters, arrested for their involvement in clashes between two rival groups of the party in Matara. “Aney balanna Sir! Api kawadawakwath deshapalana [...]
So now we know the truth about eu gsp plus
This week, the Government of Sri Lanka admitted for the first time, the financial losses that the country has been subjected to as a result of losing the European Union (EU) GSP Plus facility in 2010. At the time that we bartered away this facility, what was told to us was quite a different story. [...]
Casino dispute turns tables on Govt; splits within UPFA
A vast majority of Sri Lankans are usually unaware of the power games in the higher echelons of the UPFA Government. Sometimes they glean such issues by reading official statements and media accounts. Other times they are in the dark. There are also many instances where inherent contradictions or misleading assertions prevent them from forming [...]
Man up Manmohan!
My Dear Manmohan, I thought I must write to you when I heard that you were still to decide whether or not you would be attending the Commonwealth Summit in our country next month. Frankly, I am a bit amused by all this fuss-I didn’t know you were such an important person. Let’s be honest, [...]
On an unsustainable economic growth path
Despite the high economic growth achieved in the last few years, it is becoming increasingly evident that the growth strategy adopted is unsustainable. Economic growth is declining and fundamental macroeconomic problems are emerging. The declining trend in growth from 8.4 per cent in 2010 to 6.4 per cent last year raises serious doubts about the sustainability [...]
India, as usual
On Wednesday Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh witnessed the signing of a landmark agreement in Beijing with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, aimed at easing tensions in a long-disputed border area. The Border Defence Cooperation Agreement addressed tensions that developed in April as a result of a three-week standoff during which Chinese troops allegedly made incursions [...]
Speaker aborts live House telecast after Mangala spat
When Speaker Chamal Rajapaksa spoke at the inaugural trial run of the country’s first live telecast of Parliamentary debates, he was hopeful that uncensored public access to see their elected representatives at work, would make Parliamentary debates more somber. But the very next day, sittings literally began with a bang, with UNP Matara District MP Mangala [...]
Tamil Nad war drums for Singh’s song
Spare a thought this Sunday morn for the Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as he fidgets in his office like a blushing debutant invited for her first dance, twiddling his fingers and asking himself a million times over, ‘should I go or should I not, should I go or should I not to the Commonwealth [...]