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Posts tagged as “Lanka”

China seeks permission for another vessel to visit Lanka

report in Sunday Times, Nov 19, 2023The Foreign Ministry has received a request from the Chinese embassy for permission for another Chinese research vessel to enter Sri Lankan waters early next year. The fresh request came less than a month after the arrival of the Chinese research vessel Shi Yan 6, which received permission to enter Sri Lankan waters despite security concerns raised by India. A Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesperson confirmed receiving the request from…

China-backed ‘white elephant’ projects in Sri Lanka dent investor confidence amid calls for policy revamp

by Dimuthu Attanayake in SCMP, Nov 20, 2023For years, several China-linked projects in Sri Lanka have come under fire for being “white elephants” that have failed to contribute significantly to its economy, but a free-trade agreement between both countries, policy revamp and more involvement by joint ventures could turn the tide, analysts say. Among the underperforming projects are the Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (MRIA), built with US$191 million financing from the Exim Bank of China;…

SJB opposes Govt. decision to extend IOC’s petroleum licence

report in Daily FT, Oct 30, 2023The main opposition party Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) yesterday expressed its strong opposition to the Government’s decision to extend Lanka IOC’s petroleum licence for an additional 20 years. Speaking at a press conference held at the opposition leader’s office in Colombo, SJB Deputy General Secretary Mujibur Rahman raised questions regarding the basis on which the licence renewal was granted by the Government. Rahman pointed out that the agreement with…

Lawyers urge Govt. to withdraw new anti-terror and online safety laws

report in Daily FT,, 23 September 2023The Lawyers’ Collective, a civil society group consisting of legal practitioners in Sri Lanka issued a statement yesterday condemning the recently proposed Anti-Terrorism and Online Safety Bills which were published through gazette announcements this year. The collective said the Government has failed to respond to the serious and fundamental concerns raised about the Anti- Terrorist Bill and adopt any transparent and accountable process through which the bills were explained,…

Lanka and India in ‘meeting of minds’ over security

report in The Island, July 30, 2023Leaders of India and Sri Lanka were on the same page over regional security following President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s latest visit to New Delhi, an official source said amid fears of China’s growing influence in the Indian Ocean region, Wickremesinghe addressed India’s security concerns over China’s increasing footprint in Sri Lanka and vowed to fast track connectivity between the two Indian Ocean neighbours, the source said. “The president reiterated his…

India urged to prevent racketeers from misusing its credit line to import substandard drugs to Lanka

By Shamindra Ferdinando in The Island, July 14, 2023The Government Medical Officers’ Forum (GMOF) yesterday (13) pointed out that India couldn’t absolve itself of the responsibility for the alleged supply of low quality Indian medicines to Sri Lanka under the USD 1 bn credit line opened over a year ago. GMOF President Dr. Rukshan Bellana said so, referring to the third death due to low quality drugs reported on Wednesday (12) from the Peradeniya Teaching…

Fresh call to uncover Lanka mass grave secrets

Report in ECONOMYNEXT, June 25, 2023Five civil society groups are calling for government action to investigate mass graves which they say contain the remains of so-called “disappeared” in various civil conflicts on the island. In a press release issued on June 22, the groups insisted that “if the Sri Lankan government is serious about dealing with the past it must commit to have international observers at all exhumations of mass graves.” The festering issue of…

Top UN official flags ‘accountability deficit’ in Lanka

By MEERA SRINIVASAN in The Island, June 25, 2023Accountability remains the “fundamental gap” in Sri Lanka’s attempts to deal with the past, a senior U.N. official has said while warning that “as long as impunity prevails, Sri Lanka will achieve neither genuine reconciliation nor sustainable peace.” Referring to the Sri Lankan government’s plans to set up a Truth Commission, to probe allegations of war crimes and grave human rights violations during the country’s civil war,…

SJB tells govt: Elections not prerogative of President

By Shamindra Ferdinando in The Island, June 19, 2023Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) lawmaker Harshana Rajakaruna yesterday (18) said that calling of regular elections couldn’t be under any circumstances the prerogative of any President.Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP), still the party with the largest group in Parliament, should be ashamed of its response to President Ranil Wickremesinghe putting off the Local Government polls indefinitely, the SJB MP said in response to The Island query regarding Chief…

Lanka’s poor surge by 4 Mn to 31-pct of population: Survey

report in The Island, June 11, 2023Sri Lanka’s poor has surged by 4 million to 7 million since 2019 to 31 percent of the population in 2023, a survey has found as the country was hit by the worst currency crisis in the history of its central bank. A 10,000 person survey by LirneAsia, a regional policy research organization, found that 33 percent of the respondents had skipped a meal and 47 percent reduced their…

Lanka’s poor surge by 4 Mn to 31-pct of population: Survey

report in The Island, June 11, 2023Sri Lanka’s poor has surged by 4 million to 7 million since 2019 to 31 percent of the population in 2023, a survey has found as the country was hit by the worst currency crisis in the history of its central bank. A 10,000 person survey by LirneAsia, a regional policy research organization, found that 33 percent of the respondents had skipped a meal and 47 percent reduced their…