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Protesters who stormed the President’s House yesterday afternoon made use of the occasion to have a dip in the Presidential pool. Pic by Shantha Ratnayake
President to step down on Wednesday; PM will also resign
Angry groups storm President’s House, Secretariat and Temple Trees; Party leaders meet to find solution to growing crisis President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has decided to step down from office next Wednesday (July 13), Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena announced last night “The President was agreeable with the decision. However, due to the need to ensure a peaceful transfer [...]
Mob sets PM’s house ablaze, prevents firemen from dousing fire
A mob stormed the private residence of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe last night around 8 p.m. and set it ablaze. A crowd of around 200 persons had been gathering outside the residence, located at 5th Lane, Colombo 3 since last evening demanding Mr Wickremesinghe step down as PM. Police had fired tear gas and water [...]
Protesters continue to occupy President’s House, Secretariat and Temple Trees
Thousands of protesters continued to occupy the President’s House, the Presidential Secretariat and Temple Trees last night after breaking into them earlier in the day as they demanded the immediate resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe. Protesters also converged on Parliament and Premier Wickremesinghe’s private residence located at 5th Lane off [...]
Protesters hold parties and dance under chandeliers in President’s House
By Tharushi Weerasinghe and Yoshitha Perera The game plan had always been to storm the President’s official residence. To do so, protesters marshalled by the Inter-University Students’ Federation (IUSF) needed to breach several layers of security, risking a maximum force response from heavily armed police and military guards. But they advanced, undeterred by several rounds [...]
55 people injured in demo; three suffer gunshot injuries
At least 55 people, including Samagi Jana Balawegaya Parliamentarian Suresh Vadivale, were injured in incidents around the Fort area where Police used tear gas to disperse protesters yesterday morning, hospital sources said. The National Hospital’s Accident Service Coordinator, Pushpa R. Zoysa, said that among the injured were three civilians who had suffered gun shot injuries [...]
Cabinet approves paper on much delayed casino regulations despite Dhammika’s concerns
By Namini Wijedasa Investment Promotion Minister Dhammika Perera this week urged Cabinet to defer a memorandum that sought approval to issue regulations—which are already 10 years overdue—requiring casino operators to be licensed and supervised. Mr Perera, popularly deemed Sri Lanka’s biggest casino operator (although he has claimed the businesses were run by his brothers), wanted [...]
Plans to buy Russian oil hits several snags
Sri Lanka’s plans to buy oil from Russia continue to be stymied by international sanctions, as foreign banks refuse to open letters of credit (LoC) for purchases from the Federation. While talks have been held between Sri Lankan leaders and various Russian representatives – including direct discussions between President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and President Vladimir Putin [...]
The people step out
Tens of thousands of Sri Lankans came out to protest yesterday demanding the resignation of the President and the Prime Minister. Our photographers captured the following images.
22A: BASL seeks changes in process of appointment, composition of Constitutional Council
The 22nd Amendment to the Constitution Bill will not meet the aspirations of the people unless the process of appointment to and the composition of the Constitutional Council are changed, the Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) said this week. If the country wants to bring about political and economic changes, the relevant authorities have [...]
Exporters, importers shift Rs 13.2 trillion overseas via dodgy invoicing
By Kapila Bandara Sri Lanka’s businesses involved in the exports and imports trade have plundered US$ 36.833 billion (Rs 13.246 trillion) over nine years through intentional, dodgy invoicing, and stashing the foreign exchange earnings offshore. Importers and exporters intentionally falsify the declared value of goods on invoices filed with Sri Lanka Customs, to make an [...]
Hard times trigger surge in people-smuggling; 700 arrested in past 20 days
By Sandun Jayawardana The prevailing economic crisis continues to fuel a surge in illegal migration attempts despite local and international efforts to thwart them. More than 700 persons have been arrested by the Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) alone while attempting to illegally flee the country from May 18 up to July 8. They included infants [...]
‘If you have fever, body aches do not take NSAIDs’
It could be dengue, and the consequences would be disastrous, warns expert By Kumudini Hettiarachchi “Do not dose those who are down with fever and body aches with common pain-relieving medications and don’t pop them if you are having these symptoms.” If there is fever and body aches, the first suspect should be dengue and [...]
Fuel: Precious cargo changing hands for prices quoted at will
By S Rubatheesan It was last Sunday at a vehicle service centre in the Jaffna city area where only two motorbikes were being serviced. On a busy day before the fuel crisis hit, one had to make a reservation before taking a vehicle to the centre. Those days are gone. Now, the place has become [...]
Insurmountable challenges
Daily wage-earners and those who had provided supplies and services are struggling to support their families while others are forced to look for alternatives. N. Nagadevan, 63, used to supply dairy milk from his hometown in Alaveddy to shops and restaurants within the Jaffna city in his motorbike for over three decades. Now, he is [...]
Vavuniya app keeps underground trade in check
Amid the thriving underground fuel trade, a team led by a newly-appointed development officer of the Vavuniya Divisional Secretariat designed a web-based application to ensure the limited fuel supply is fairly distributed among people and staff of essential services. The team led by Thusitharan Panchalingam, a graduate of applied mathematics and computing at the University [...]
Fatal wait for 16 Sri Lankans in fuel lines
With two more death reported in separate fuel queues in Payagala and Bambalapitiya, the total number of persons who have died in such circumstances has increased to sixteen. According to the police, a 60-year-old three-wheeler driver had collapsed and died on Thursday, while waiting in line at a fuel station in Payagala for over three [...]
Sri Lanka alerted to 2.5 metre swells near shore
Swells of up to 2.5 metres are likely to occur off the coast of Puttalam to Galle via Colombo as a result of monsoonal westerly winds, Sri Lanka’s weather watchers said. Squally weather with wind speeds of 60-70 kilometres per hour is likely over the country, the Department of Meteorology said, while advising fishermen to [...]
Litro says gas supplies will begin tomorrow, but customers say won’t believe it until we see it
By Chrishanthi Christopher After a lapse of more than a month, Litro’s cooking gas distributions will begin tomorrow, the company said. It said the distribution would start in the Western Province, with 70,000 cylinders being sent to the dealers tomorrow. Litro ceased distribution in the first week of June announcing to its customers that gas [...]
Fatigue sets in with online lessons disrupted by lack of access
By Renishka Fernando “Miss, I’m sorry I’m on top of my well trying to get a stable internet connection,” was the response teacher Sujeewa Fernando got from a student who has continued to struggle to re-enter her online class because the internet connection was unstable. The student had been referring to a household well used [...]
Civil society demands action against child malnutrition
A group of educators, religious leaders, lawyers, doctors, activists and civil servants has begun a petition that highlights dangers of child malnutrition and poverty. The economic collapse caused by years of heavy foreign borrowing since 2007 and then the debt default in April this year have now put the lives of millions of Sri Lankan [...]
Indian raiders muddy the waters in northern seas
By Sohan Vipulanda The fishing community in the North is once again alarmed that more Indian vessels are raiding Sri Lanka’s fish stocks, well aware of the fuel shortage that stops locals from going fishing. The Jaffna district Fishermen Cooperative Association secretary Pakiyanathan Regan said it is likely that more Indian fishermen are crossing Sri [...]
Dying elephant’s tusks cut off; culprits sought
Wildlife officers’ negligence reason for tusker’s death: Villagers By Kasun Warakapitiya The Police have begun the search for the culprits who cut a tusk off a dying tusker, while it was fighting to survive. The Police have also used the help of Police intelligence to find the culprits, a senior official of the Kebithigollewa Police [...]
Going home empty-handed
Story and pix by Akila Jayawardena Small-scale retailers, pavement traders, lottery sellers, street food sellers, craft workers, and daily wage workers, who are considered self-employed, are staring at the bottom of the barrel now that the economy has collapsed, fuel supply has dried up, electricity is being cut, and the economy (especially agriculture, including paddy [...]