Editorial
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Prince Edward, the Earl of Wessex, will be in attendance today to see the Lion flag of Lanka being raised, 70 years after his grand-uncle, the Duke of Gloucester witnessed the same flag unfurl as the Union Jack was brought down after nearly 450 years of foreign rule. Having already spent a few days on [...]
70th Independence: From imperialism to debt-servitude?
Seventy years ago, when Sri Lanka regained its political Independence after centuries of foreign domination, the next goal was to obtain its economic freedom. Today, on the eve of the country’s 70th anniversary of Independence, the Government is preparing to enact a new Active Liability Management Law as Sri Lanka’s debt level tops Rs. 9.3 [...]
The plight of the battered Northern farmers
Carrying on from last week where we referred to the annual Thai Pongal harvest festival without the harvest, the plight of the country’s farmers, especially those in the Northern Province, is worthy of further mention. Those living in the rest of the country must appreciate their plight, if for nothing else than the fact that [...]
One step back, two steps forward
It is now official; the President has no intention of abolishing the Executive Presidency till 2021, if he can help it. In our last editorial for 2017, we said: “Already, we hear there is a debate on not just whether there will be another Presidential election – should the Executive Presidency continue, but if there [...]
A New Year; more of the same politics
The year 2018 has begun with some fireworks alright. President Maithripala Sirisena all guns blazing, read out the findings and recommendations of the Commission of Inquiry (COI) that he had appointed to go into the Central Bank Bond scams of 2015 and 2016. It was a scam of monumental proportions which shook the political firmament [...]
2018 focus on politics and btw – the economy
The end of one year in the Gregorian calendar, and the beginning of a new year is always the time to reflect – and look ahead. This is a time too for New Year resolutions, usually thought of to right some wrongs, only to be inevitably broken sooner than later. Still, it remains a good [...]
Crisis with Russia: A James Bond thriller
Britain’s war-time Prime Minister had some memorable words to describe Russia – “a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma” he called it. “However, there is a key. The key is Russia’s national interest,” he added. The latest tea vs. asbestos fiasco between Sri Lanka and Russia epitomises this Churchillian quote.The Cabinet of Ministers [...]
Ignoring all the domestic counsel and going for foreign advisors
The inability of successive Governments to implement a plethora of reports on financial matters has now resulted in the advent of a permanent foreign anti-corruption adviser to the Cabinet of Ministers, on offer by a foreign Government that has put Sri Lanka in the basket of most corrupt countries in the world. Despite nearly 70 [...]
A matter of ‘commissions’ and omissions
The Budget vote for independent commissions in Parliament earlier this month has led to Sri Lanka’s new Right to Information (RTI) Commission finally getting its own fund to the relief of the anxious people who have been ceaselessly bombarding the Commission with information requests. The RTI Act required the Fund to be in place at [...]
Parliament’s honour at stake
The Commission of Inquiry on the Central Bank Bond scam concluded its public hearings earlier this week and as they say in legal circles, it unearthed some exhilarating evidence ‘beyond a shadow of doubt’. It will now be the onerous duty of the Commission to distil that evidence and pronounce its recommendations. A powerful Cabinet [...]