Colombo (LNW): The Colombo Magistrate Court today (06) rejected a private plaint filed against former Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) Ajith Nivard Cabraal, ruling that the complainant failed to provide adequate evidence against the accused.
The complaint was filed by former Governor of the Southern and Central Provinces, Rajith Keerthi Thennakoon accusing Cabraal of misappropriating public funds during his tenure as the CBSL Chief from 2006 to 2015.
Colombo Magistrate Harshana Kekunawala denied the hearing of the plaint taking the preliminary objections raised by the accused party’s lawyer into account.
Colombo (LNW): GPS tracking systems will be installed to fuel tankers owned by the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CEYPETCO) and all private tankers will follow in the same manner, Power and Energy Minister Kanchana Wijesekara said.
These GPS tracking systems will be installed by April 15, 2023, and the Minister said all fuel stations will be required to maintain a minimum 50 per cent of stock tank capacity.
Following a progress review meeting with the CEYPETCO and the Ceylon Petroleum Stock Terminal Limited (CPSTL) management and officers this (06) morning, the Minister emphasised that the fuel cargo plan for the next eight weeks, refinery operations and fuel distribution during the festive season have been reviewed.
Decisions were taken to suspend forty fuel stations that have failed to adhere to the QR quotas, he added.
A progress review meeting was held with CPC & CPSTL management & officers this morning. Reviewed the fuel cargo plan for the next 8 weeks, refinery operations & fuel distribution during the festive season. Decisions were taken to suspend 40 fuel stations that has continuously not… pic.twitter.com/eW4EA2qD7j
Colombo (LNW): The Federation of University Teachers’ Associations (FUTA) expresses its deep concern about the latest attempt by the Sri Lankan government to introduce a new Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) instead of repealing the controversial Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) introduced in 1979. The government frames ATA as a result of their response to the internal and international pressure against the PTA for over 40 years, justifying the Act as a set of proposals that meet the standards introduced by some other developed countries.
FUTA finds this justification a grossly misleading exaggeration, especially in light of the grave governance issues the country is undergoing, i.e., the relentless undermining of democratic values and the marked deterioration of social welfare. We are especially concerned that the ATA is being introduced in the context of the government misusing the police and the military as well as exploiting the coercive power of the law as a means of curbing citizens’ rights to protest and assemble. FUTA is of the view that the danger of the ATA is that it will not impact only one community but to the larger Sri Lankan society, paving the path for a severely abused state structure.
FUTA strongly opposes the new Act based on the following concerns:
1. ATA’s definition of terrorism does not meet UN standards and instead lowers the bar for acts that are to be considered terrorist acts (i.e., property damage, unlawful assembly, robbery, theft, damage to religious or cultural property). Thus, the ATA challenges the rights entrenched by the Sri Lankan constitution.
2. ATA dangerously empowers the president to declare any organization as a proscribed organization if the president has reasonable grounds to believe that said organization has engaged in a terrorist offence. As per section 82(3), a proscription order may include one or more of the following prohibitions: prohibition of any person being a member of a proscribed organization, prohibition of the organization recruiting members; prohibition of any person acting in furtherance of the objectives of the organization; prohibition of meetings, activities, and programmes; prohibition of the use of bank accounts; prohibition of the organization entering into contracts; prohibition of raising of funds and receiving of grants and bequests; prohibition of the transferring of funds and assets of the organization; prohibition of lobbying on behalf of such organization; and prohibition of any person publishing any material in furtherance of the objects of such organization. FUTA holds the view that this law could be used to persecute organizations as well as associated members who hold opposing views to the government, posing a serious threat to the right to express dissent.
3. FUTA is also concerned how ATA grants permission to the president to declare any place of the country as a “prohibited place.” Placing such an unlimited and an unchallenging power to the executive can discourage the citizens’ right to protest.
4. ATA suggests granting the power to issue detention orders to the Deputy Inspector Generals (DIG), a power that has previously been granted to the president under PTA. Apart from that, the proposed law overrides the magistrate’s power, as now the magistrate can only decide whether the person can be discharged on the grounds put forward by the police. The magistrate is not empowered to discharge the person, but only to release them on bail, in situations where the police request the continued detention of a person even if there are no reasons to believe the person has committed an offence under the Act. FUTA is heavily concerned about the check and balance of the Act in its execution.
5. ATA also proposes to legalize military intervention in civil matters in a very problematic way. Traditionally the military could intervene in civil matters only at times where an emergency situation is declared by the President. But the ATA grants power to any member of the armed forces to search any person, vehicle, vessel or train or any premises or land without any prior authorization, warrant or oversight. This becomes further problematic looking at how the military has behaved in the past few months, e.g., the brutality that broke out at the Gota Go Gama, challenging the role of the military in a democracy.
Due to all these grave concerns, FUTA expresses strong opposition to the ATA. We consider this Act as a serious move towards de-democratization, making the people subservient to a highly authoritarian and corrupt political system. We urge the government to reverse the proposed ATA which we consider as an anti-democratic and an anti-people piece of legislation.
Colombo (LNW): The Dutch companies are eager to explore investment opportunities in renewable energy, eco-labelling and sustainable agriculture, if Sri Lanka can showcase a corruption-free business environment, Ambassador to the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Sri Lanka Bonnie Horbach stated at a meeting with the leadership of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, during her visit to the Chamber recently.
Dutch impact investor FMO, an entrepreneurial development bank, is set to invest US$10 million in one of Sri Lanka’s main sea food exporters Taprobane Sea foods which mainly employs underprivileged women mainly widows, official sources said.
With its steady business environment and favorable tax climate, the Dutch economy boasts a number of strong sectors, including water, chemical industry, life sciences, agriculture, electronics and logistics.
Sri Lankan trade exports to The Netherlands are mainly based on manufactured goods, food and livestock. In the past years, The Netherlands has been an increasingly popular destination for Sri Lankan products
Ambassador Horbach highlighted the importance of engaging with the EU Green Deal and upcoming mandatory Responsible Business requirements most of the EU countries are now looking at.
The Ambassador assured that the Dutch Government continues to implement existing projects in the areas of training and technology transfer especially in the agricultural sector including the poultry industry in Sri Lanka.
Responding to Ambassador Horbach’s interest in facilitating high level bilateral business engagements including organising of a business promotion mission to the Netherlands by the Dutch Embassy in 2023, Ceylon Chamber of Commerce Chairman Vish Govindasamy requested the Ambassador’s support to enhance exports and tourism.
The Chamber Chairman appreciated the support received by the dairy industry in Sri Lanka through various projects implemented by the Embassy of the Netherlands and requested similar assistance to identify opportunities for the agri sector including bilateral business engagements such as B2Bs and joint ventures in the Netherlands.
Colombo (LNW): The Sri Lanka Rupee remains steady against the US Dollar, according to the exchange rates of several commercial banks today (06).
Accordingly, the buy rate and the sell rate of the US Dollar remain at Rs. 311.76 and Rs. 330 respectively at Commercial Bank.
The buy rate and sell rate of the US Dollar remain at Rs. 313 and Rs. 328 respectively at Sampath Bank.
Meanwhile, the Sri Lankan Rupee indicates a slight appreciation at Peoples’ Bank, with the buy rate dropping to Rs. 311.59 from Rs. 313.52, and the sell rate, to Rs. 334.02 from Rs. 336.02.
Colombo (LNW): The Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) has decided to extend its trading hours with effect from Monday (10), following a directive issued by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka (SEC).
Colombo (LNW): The Sectoral Oversight Committee on International Relations held recently (22) under the Chairmanship of MP Namal Rajapaksa took into discussion the possibility of setting up a Sri Lanka Embassy in Romania.
Accordingly, the Committee questioned the representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs regarding the challenges pertaining to the establishment of a mission in Romania.
The Committee was of the view that given the considerable percent of Sri Lankan population present in the said country, many inconveniences are caused as there is no Sri Lankan Embassy to look into their grievances.
The officials present stated that the Cabinet approval has been obtained to establish a Mission in Romania and the cadre has already been approved and the establishment of an Embassy is on course. The Committee instructed the officials present to take action on the matter without further delay.
The Committee further took into discussion the foreign policy of Sri Lanka. The Secretary to the Foreign Ministry elaborated on the 20 key point foreign policy directives of the Ministry. Secretary to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that the foreign policy of Sri Lanka is based on friendly relations with all sovereign countries upholding a policy of neutrality and non-alignment.
Furthermore, the Secretary stated that it also aims to strengthen close cooperation between Sri Lanka and South Asian countries.
MPs Niroshan Perera, Mayantha Dissanayake, Akila Ellawala, Yadamini Gunawardene, and Dr. Harini Amarasuriya were present at the occasion.
Colombo (LNW): Sri Lanka is set to increase duty-free allowances for migrant workers at the airport starting May in order to encourage remittance, Minister of Labor and Foreign Employment Manusha Nanayakkara said.
The increase will be based on the amount of money remitted by the workers, Nanayakkara said during a media briefing.Under the new scheme, there will be five categories of concessions.
For people having remitted 2,400-4,799, 4,800-7,199, 7,200-11,999, 12,000-23,999 and 24,000 U.S. dollars or more, they will be eligible for an additional duty-free allowance of 600, 960, 1,440, 2,400, and 4,800 U.S. dollars, respectively, when shopping at the airport, according to the minister.
The concessions will be available to anyone who has sent the mentioned amount of money through official channels to the country within a year, the minister said.
He added that no tax will be charged on foreign worker remittances and money held in banks in the form of foreign exchange.
Migrant workers’ remittance is one of the main sources of foreign exchange for the South Asian country.
Sri Lankan migrant workers’ foreign remittances amounted to a total of US$ 844.9 million in the first two months of 2023, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) says.
According to a latest report published by the central bank, this is an increase of 82% in comparison to the total sum of $464.1 million foreign remittances recorded in both January and February last year.
The central bank’s figures have shown that the foreign remittances earned by Sri Lankan migrant workers’ were at $437.5 million and $ 407.4 million in January and February 2023, respectively.
Meanwhile, foreign remittances received in December 2022 alone amounted to $475.6 million, recording the highest figure reported in a single month since June 2021.
Worker remittances during the six years from 2015 to 2020 had averaged more than $ 7 billion each year, substantially improving the foreign exchange liquidity in the country and in the banking system.
But in 2021 worker remittances dropped to $ 5.5 billion and in 2022 dropped further sharply to $ 3.8 billion. The country lost thereby $ 1.6 billion in 2021 compared to $ 7.1 billion earned in 2020 in 2022 it has e lost $ 3.3 billion compared to 2020 as well as compared with the previous six year annual average earnings.
However, despite the increase in migration, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) statistics fail to show a similar growth in remittances. During the period from January to October 2022, the remittance inflow has been recorded as $ 2.9 billion compared to $ 4.8 billion in the same period in 2021.
However, total departures for foreign employment during January to October 2022 were recorded at 251,151, which exceeded the annual departures in the pre-pandemic period.
Colombo (LNW): There is no truth the claims made on certain Social Media platforms that telephone conversations and social media interactions are being monitored and recorded, the Defence Ministry said.
The Defence Ministry made this response following the swarming in of such claims on a number of Social Media platforms including Facebook, WhatsApp and Twitter.
The Ministry dismisses these claims stating that they are completely false.
Colombo (LNW): The Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) annual flagship economic publication – the Asian Development Outlook (ADO) April 2023, released yesterday forecasts Sri Lanka’s economy to contract further in 2023 before it begins a gradual recovery in 2024, as the country navigates an unprecedented economic crisis.
Noting that the economy contracted by 7.8% in 2022, the ADO forecast Sri Lanka to contract by 3% in 2023 but grow by 1.3% in 2024 as it continues to grapple with the challenge of debt restructuring and balance of payments difficulties.
Sri Lanka will be the only major country in South Asia to suffer negative growth this year. ADO forecasts South Asia as a region to grow by 5.5% this year on top of 6.4% in 2022. According to ADO the growth in developing Asia is forecast at 4.8% this year and in 2024, up from 4.2% last year.
With regard to Sri Lanka, ADO said reform measures, such as the reversal of the tax cuts of 2019, and the recent approval of the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) Extended Fund Facility arrangement will support the country’s efforts to stabilise its economy.
Sri Lanka’s recovery from the crisis hinges on timely progress on debt relief and steadfast implementation of reforms.
Sri Lanka entered the crisis on a weak footing as pre-pandemic macroeconomic vulnerabilities, policy missteps, and shocks left the country with thin buffers on the eve of the pandemic. In 2022, foreign currency scarcity led to shortages of essentials and triggered an acute energy crisis with prolonged power cuts and transport bottlenecks due to lack of fuel, which Sri Lanka needs to import.
Inflation soared and eroded living standards, pushing many into poverty. The economic crisis has impacted the poor and vulnerable disproportionally.
“Sri Lanka has a long road to recovery, and it will be critical to ensure the poor and vulnerable are protected,” said ADB Deputy Country Director for Sri Lanka Utsav Kumar.
“It is imperative that the country address the root causes of internal and external imbalances, for which an unwavering commitment to reforms is essential,” he added.
The needed reforms include enhancing domestic resource mobilisation, improving the performance of state-owned enterprises to reduce their fiscal burden, strengthening public financial management, and encouraging private sector activities through harmonising trade and investment policies.
Improving governance and accountability mechanisms, such as strengthening anti corruption legislation, building strong institutions, and increasing transparency, will also be essential to address Sri Lanka’s economic vulnerability. ADB is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty. Established in 1966, it is owned by 68 members—49 from the region.
