- Transport Minister Dr Bandula Gunawardene says Sri Lanka is the “safest tourist destination” at present: asserts that a “mistake” was made when arresting the Aeroflot aircraft, and that it will not happen again.
- Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa says the UNP has been “sold out” to the “Rajapaksa clan”.
- Global Tamil Forum says Tamil people who have suffered enormously during the war, have been consistently provided much needed hope by the UNHCR: calls for a strong resolution against Sri Lanka at the UNHRC in Geneva.
- Cement usage plunges 19% in 6 months to June 2022 YOY: reflects massive contraction in construction activities which accounts for about 10% of GDP.
- UN Resident Coordinator Hanaa Singer appeals to Sri Lanka’s friends to show solidarity: urges donations to provide food security and medical supplies: says gains in health care, education and poverty alleviation are threatened by the current crisis.
- Teachers’ Union Leader Mahinda Jayasinghe demands a special monthly allowance for government employees: says normal monthly expenditure of a person has increased from Rs.63,000 to Rs.110,000 this year.
- World Bank says Sri Lanka is among the top 10 countries with the highest food inflation.
- Government revenue in the 1H22 reaches Rs.918 bn, up from Rs.714 bn last year: expenditure and net lending in 1H22 also rises to Rs.1,820 bn, compared to Rs.1,500 bn, an year ago: bulk of the increase in expenditure due to very high interest cost consequent to the massive increase in Central Bank’s policy rates on 8th April 2022.
- Small hydro power developers warn of increased duration of power cuts and a further 100% increase in electricity tariffs, if the country loses the contribution of its non-conventional renewable energy sector.
- Group of Buddhist priests urge Buddhist temples to turn off lights and leave temples in darkness on the upcoming Vap Full Moon Poya Day, in protest against the increase in electricity tariffs.
Sri Lanka Original Narrative Summary: 20/09
Mobile signature campaign against PTA! (PHOTOS)
A mobile signature campaign against the controversial Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) reached Anuradhapura yesterday (19) morning and reached Puttalam in the afternoon.
The campaign is endorsed by the Clergy, MPs including Shanakiya Rasamanickam and M.A. Sumanthiran, political activists and other civil movements.
The campaign was launched in Kankesanthurai, Jaffna and is scheduled to travel across the country before it ends in Hambantota on October 05.
Hindi Diwas celebrations in Sri Lanka
Hindi Diwas was celebrated on 14 September 2022 with great zeal and fervour at the Swami Vivekananda Cultural Centre (SVCC), cultural arm of High Commission of India, Colombo. High Commissioner Gopal Baglay was the Chief Guest at the event, which saw participation of around 75 Hindi enthusiasts, scholars, teachers and students from all over Sri Lanka. Guests at the event were welcomed with a traditional Kandyan dance. Several musical performances on Bollywood and Sinhalese songs, highlighting the close cultural ties between India and Sri Lanka, were also showcased.
2. Speaking on the occasion, the High Commissioner highlighted the role of Hindi language and literature in strengthening millennia-old cultural, linguistic, literary, and religious ties between India and Sri Lanka. He also elaborated at length on the importance of lighting the traditional lamp and Saraswati vandana, both of which are testimonies of civilization linkages between “cultural twins” – India and Sri Lanka.
3. On this occasion, a group of 18 Sri Lankan students who have been offered Government of India scholarships to study Hindi in India were also felicitated. As a part of the scholarship, the visit of the students, academic fees and local hospitality at Kendriya Hindi Sansthan (KHS) or Central Institute of Hindi, Agra for one year will be fully sponsored. High Commissioner interacted with the selected students, who departed to India on 15 September 2022 and conveyed his best wishes for their stay in India.
4. Hindi students of the Centre who have successfully completed their KHS courses were also honoured during the Hindi Diwas celebrations.
5. In commemoration of the Hindi Diwas, SVCC launched several island-wide competitions, such as Hindi essay writing competition, Hindi storytelling competition, Hindi poem recitation competition, and Hindi Solo singing competition. These competitions focus on promoting Hindi by providing a platform to Hindi enthusiasts in Sri Lanka to express their literary and linguistic talents. The competitions are being organized throughout the month of September 2022.
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Colombo
19 September 2022
US Ambassador fascinated by ‘dangerous peacocks’ in Sri Lanka
US Ambassador to Sri Lanka Julie Chung left a social media remark expressing her surprise on the existence of peacocks in Sri Lanka, during a her visit to the Southern Province in the country today (19).
Ms. Chung visited several areas in the province, and her tour included the visiting of a group of young people in Matara and the University of Ruhuna.
During her visit, she saw a name board with the words, “Danger, Peacocks Ahead,” which made Chung wanting to see ‘dangerous’ peacocks living in the country.
“I’d never imagined a dangerous peacock, but now I can’t stop looking for them!” Chung wrote on her Twitter handle.
Her comments were replied with many twitter handlers across the country saying that she misunderstood the meaning of the name board, because it is a sign to protect the wildlife in the area from the vehicles travelling on the road, while some found it amusing referring the ‘dangerous peacocks’ she is mentioning to Sri Lankan politicians.
MIAP
Three investors bid on Galle Port
Three companies have expressed their interest on investing for the Port of Galle and a most suitable investor, therefore, will be selected to be given the opportunity to develop the southern port in the country, said Ports, Naval and Aviation Affairs Minister Nimal Siripala De Silva.
The decision comes in in the government’s objective of developing the Galle Port as a tourist port under which a breakwater will be created and new city plans, entertainment zones, sailing and passenger ship facilities and sports zones are to be established for tourist attraction.
Making the project a reality, more local and foreign investors will have the opportunity to invest and the basic plans for this initiative, therefore, have already been prepared, Silva said.
Joining an observation tour at the Galle Port, Minister Silva reminded that former Minister Richard Pathirana dreamed of developing the southern port and that his tireless efforts to make that dream a reality could not be accomplished. Accordingly, the Minister promised that he will be committed to making it a reality.
The project will not limit itself to the Galle District, nor the Southern Province, for it is a necessity to establish development nationwide, he added.
MIAP
WB reveals Sri Lanka ranks 4th in food inflation!
Sri Lanka has ranked forth place in the world in terms of food inflation at a rate of 91 per cent, a report on food security during in 53 countries the period from September 2021 to August 2022 issued by the World Bank revealed.
Zimbabwe is the country to suffer from the highest food inflation, at a staggering rate of 353 per cent. Only Lebanon and Venezuela ranks above Sri Lanka.
Among the top 10 countries are also Turkey, Iran, Argentina, Moldova, Ethiopia and Rwanda.
MIAP
Fast against imprisonment on political grounds temporarily halted
The fast initiated by a group of Tamil prisoners against the imprisonment of people on political grounds has been temporarily halted, based on a promise made by Jeewan Thyagarajah, Governor of the Northern Province, days after the recurred allegations of human rights abuses levelled against Sri Lanka at the 51st Session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva, Switzerland found its way on to spotlight, LNW learned.
Thirteen inmates of the Colombo Magazine Prison commenced this fast on September 06, and on its sixth day, six inmates were admitted to the Prison Hospital due to their critical health condition as a result of contribution.
Endorsing the struggle against political imprisonment, their relatives of the North on September 16 initiated another fast in front of the Office of the Governor of the Northern Province, demanding his immediate intervention on the matter.
Following the pressure exerted by the relatives, Governor Thyagarajah met and held talks with the prisoners, who initiated the original fast at the Magazine Prison, on September 17, and promised that he will make an intervention for their release as soon as possible. Accordingly, the fasts initiated by the prisoners and their relatives have been temporarily halted.
President Wickremesinghe made a promise to politicians in the North that he will release 46 Tamil political prisoners who have been arrested and detained for a very long time under the controversial Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), but the political parties and other civil movements of the North are of the view that it is still a deception, whilst the international community led by world powers continues to exert pressure on Sri Lanka demanding justice.
MIAP
LIOC to further expand operations with 96 more filling stations islandwide
Lanka Indian Oil Company (LIOC) said it will further expand local petroleum operations in Sri Lanka, with an aim of establishing 96 more filling stations.
The construction of these new filling stations is already underway.
The LIOC commenced its local operation in Sri Lanka 20 years ago, currently owning 214 filling stations islandwide.
MIAP
Parliament’s Public Gallery to be reopened from tomorrow
The Parliament Public Gallery, which had been closed for about two years due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic and for security reasons, will be reopened from tomorrow, making it possible for the public to view parliament sittings live, revealed Serjeant-at-Arms Narendra Fernando.
The Parliament Serjeant-at-Arms informed the Committee on Parliamentary Affairs of the need to relax the restrictions imposed on visiting the chambers, and accordingly, agreements made thereafter led to the reopening of the gallery for the public to view the sittings live from tomorrow.
The general public will be allowed to watch the Parliament complex from 09.30 am to 03.00 pm on days in which sittings are not taken place.
School authorities can apply for the purpose online through the official website of the Parliament of Sri Lanka www.parliament.lk and send a fax to 011 2 777 473 or 335, said the Department of Communications of Parliament.
The same facility can be provided to university student groups, state-approved higher education institutes and foreign tourists, added the Parliament Serjeant-at-Arms.
MIAP
S L infrastructure sectors get capacity building aid from UNDP /ADB
Sri Lanka will receive assistance from international donor agencies to build capacity in selected infrastructure sectors, so that appropriate disaster-resilient measures are defined and applied to pre-disaster preparation for recovery and post-disaster recovery efforts.
The effort will be rolled out by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) through its regional hub in Bangkok, with the financial support of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), under the freshly launched project ‘Resilient Infrastructure Through Enhanced Knowledge’.
The project embarked upon by the UN has recognised the necessity for greater investment in the planning process for disaster-resilient infrastructure across Asia and the Pacific.
Alongside Sri Lanka, receiving assistance under the project will also be Armenia, Cambodia and Fiji.
Considering the importance of water and food security, Sri Lanka has selected the irrigation sector to develop a comprehensive country-specific disaster recovery framework under this project, the UNDP said.
“The irrigation sector is one of the most important sectors in the country. Irrigation resilience is not only for water management but also provides inputs for agricultural expansion, facilitates technological change and helps increase sectoral productivity and the GDP of the country.
Introducing a disaster recovery framework will benefit the sector, as it ensures recovery to build back faster and better,” said Disaster Management Centre (DMC) Mitigation Research and Development Director Anoja Seneviratne.
The activities will concentrate on supporting Post-Disaster Needs Assessment (PDNA) training to government officials, utilising contingency and recovery tools and plans, improve financial preparedness planning, which will help to meet the resources required for disaster recovery and cover the additional costs of building forward better.
The project is implemented in collaboration with the DMC, National Planning Department, National Budget Department and all stakeholder agencies in the irrigation sector, including the Irrigation Department, Agrarian Development Department, nine Provincial Departments of Irrigation and Mahaweli Authority of Sri Lanka.
The first training on PDNA and disaster recovery planning took place in Colombo recently, with over 63 participants from across the above stakeholders, including engineers, planners and accountants.