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The Jaffna High Court on Friday dismissed a defamatory case filed by Fisheries Minister Douglas Devananda against the local Tamil daily Uthayan for republishing a WikiLeaks article on its platform.

Minister Devananda filed the case in 2011 seeking Rs 1 billion as damages for republishing the WikiLeaks entry, which claimed that his party Eelam Peoples’ Democratic Party (EPDP) worked hand in hand with the Security Forces.

In the judgement, the court observed that over the past three decades, several articles about Mr. Devananda and his political party, EPDP, have been published in various Sri Lankan and foreign media, as pointed out by the defence team, and he had not initiated legal action against them.

The court noted during the cross-examination that the Minister also conceded that news with identical headlines and content had been published by many media outlets over the years.

The particular news item was originally published in the WikiLeaks dated May 18, 2007 on the basis of a classified report given by then United States Ambassador Robert Blake.

The Court also noted that the government-appointed Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) report also included the contents of the WikiLeaks article.  Mr. Devananda also agreed and accepted it.

“It is respectfully submitted that the aforementioned republication of the article is done in the public interest of presenting the truth and justice and that the articles exposed several of them,” the Court said while noting the EPDP’s involvement with the Government of Sri Lanka during the time of the armed conflict and the assistance rendered by way of being a paramilitary group.

Jaffna District Judge K. Satheeswaran dismissed the case while holding that there was no animus injuriandi on the part of the defendant and the news was merely a republication of an already published article. Therefore, the judge said the newspaper did not make any comments to disrepute Mr. Devananda, as it was made in the public interest.

M.A. Sumanthiran PC, K.V.S. Ganesharajan, and M. Shabishanth appeared on behalf of the Managing Director and Editor of the newspaper.

Supporters were hired for one rally but ended up in a rival candidate’s rally

Long gone are the days when electoral organisers mobilised their supporters for election rallies. Enter manpower agencies who ‘supply’ supporters for election rallies for packages varying from the number of heads or whole ‘package’ that include all arrangements, including stage setup, sound systems, and similar items.

According to the current rate on the market these days, suppliers are paid varying sums from Rs 1,500 to 2,000 for a person attending a rally along with ‘strong spirited’ booze.

One such arrangement turned out to be a bit of a disaster earlier this week in the North, as one party was organising a group of people to attend the rally of a candidate, but they were mistakenly taken to the meeting of another rival candidate as they were waiting for the bus to transport them.

It turned out later, with great dismay to the organiser, that supporters were told to wait at a particular bus stand in Chavakachcheri to take them to the rally venue, but a bus organised by another rival party was travelling on the route and thought the group was waiting for them.

Only after they reached the venue that they realised they had come to the wrong rally. Though it was too late, the organiser was furious with his colleagues bashing them on how much money he had spent to mobilise those people to attend the rally.

MP in polling booth claims he came to see the building

An Eastern Province Parliamentarian was
seen loitering inside a polling station in the Digamadulla electoral district for half an hour during yesterday’s poll.

Police did not take action saying he was not causing a disturbance.

A politician’s presence inside a polling station can intimidate and influence voters. However, there was nothing to worry about as far as the MP was concerned. He told an election monitor who inquired about his presence that he was “just there to look at the building.”

Civic message behind picture showing inked finger

The trend of voters sharing photographs of their inked fingers to show they have voted made a widespread appearance again on social media during yesterday’s election.

This is not the first election where voters shared such photographs on social media. While some have made fun of the trend, it is seen by others as a positive move as it encourages people to exercise their civic duty.

After all, there are millions of
citizens the world over who can only dream of the opportunity of ever being able to elect their head of state or any representative for that matter. In that sense, Sri Lanka’s long and rich tradition of the universal franchise should be celebrated. As the Election Commission has repeatedly stressed, “Your vote is your right!”

The committee members meeting to identify parliament's valuable items to be preserved: Right: Parliament Secretary General Kushani Anusha Rohanadeera chairing the meeting

Parliament Complex’s valuable items to be preserved for posterity

The Committee appointed to ensure the preservation of valuable items in the Parliament complex met this week and listed items that need to be preserved for posterity.

In addition to the preservation of the Parliament Building, the other items include the Mace, the Silver Door, the Copper Door, the Lion Gate, the Bar of the House, the 18 brass flags, the cluster lamp, the ceiling of the Chamber Hall, the ceiling in front of the Copper Door, the 18 ceremonial flags, line art, the wooden mural at the entrance for MPs, and the staff entrance murals.

The conservation of paintings in the lobby, paintings in the private dining room of MPs, the portrait gallery on the second floor, the photo gallery on the ground floor, and other important photographs and paintings, as well as the artefacts in
the exhibition hall, too, were listed as among those that need to be preserved.

The committee chaired by Parliament Secretary General Kushani Anusha Rohanadeera includes representatives from the Ministry of Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs, the Department of Cultural Affairs, the Department of National Archives, the Department of National Museums, the Central Cultural Fund, the Department of Archaeology, the National Council of Arts, the Department of Government Information, the Ena de Silva Trust Fund, the Geoffrey Bawa Trust Fund, the National Crafts Council, and the Sri Lanka Handicrafts Board.

Post offices still play crucial role on election day

Post offices remained open yesterday with staff working as a normal day to facilitate the conduct of the 2024 presidential election.

All post offices remained open till 4.15 pm, with voters who had not yet obtained their polling cards being allowed to
collect them from their respective post offices before the 4 pm deadline. Specially designated post offices for election work remained open longer.

The keeping of post offices open goes back to the elections of yesteryear. Back in the day, post offices, with their telephones and telegraph lines, were vital centres of communication for transmitting election results and other vital election-related messages. Even now, though
communication has advanced immensely, post offices continue to remain open during elections as a backup communication hub in the event normal communications are disrupted.

SLPP cracks down on MPs who backed Ranil

On the eve of the presidential election, the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) suspended the party memberships of three of its most prominent parliamentarians who backed the candidacy of President Ranil Wickremesinghe.

Accordingly, letters of suspension signed by party general secretary Sagara Kariyawasam were delivered to Kalutara District Parliamentarian Rohitha Abeygunawardena, Ratnapura District Parliamentarian Pavithra Wanniarachchi and Anuradhapura District Parliamentarian S.M. Chandrasena.

Aside from the party membership, Mr. Abeygunawardena was also removed from his position as the party’s national organiser and all other positions he has held within the party. Ms. Wanniarachchi has also been removed as party treasurer and all other positions. Mr. Chandrasena has been removed from all positions he has held in the party.

The letters of suspension state that the MPs had gone against the decision taken at the party’s politburo meeting on July 29, 2024, and supported a candidate other than the one chosen by the party. Accordingly, a report drafted in this regard has been submitted to SLPP leader Mahinda Rajapaksa, and a decision has been taken to suspend the MPs from their party positions and membership with immediate effect, the letter states.

Ratnayake new envoy to Kuwait

The Parliament High Posts Committee approved the appointment of L.P. Ratnayake as the new ambassador of Sri Lanka to Kuwait. Committee members MPs Vidura Wickramanayaka, Sudarshini Fernandopulle, and Udaya Gammanpila were present at this
meeting chaired by Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardana.