- SLPP General Secretary Sagara Kariyawasam says the SLPP and UNP are ready to form an alliance.
- President Ranil Wickremesinghe convenes an All Party Leaders’ Conference today to discuss the “national question and other related minority issues” with Tamil parties: Muslim leaders also expected to be present.
- Senior Finance Ministry official says a top 8-member Committee is negotiating “debt restructuring” with China and India: also says the outcome so far is positive: Committee said to comprise Foreign Minister Ali Sabry, State Finance Minister Shehan Semasinghe, President’s Security Advisor Sagala Ratnayake, President’s Secretary Saman Ekanayake, President’s Economic Adviser R Samaratunga, Treasury Secretary Mahinda Siriwardena, CB Governor Nandalal Weerasinghe and former CB Governor Indrajit Coomaraswamy.
- Minister of Tourism Harin Fernando says the year 2023 would be one of the best recovery years for Sri Lanka: asserts promoting Indian tourism will serve that purpose: also says Sri Lanka tourism will be promoted in all big cities in India including Kochi, Chennai and Bengaluru next year.
- Peradeniya University Acting Vice Chancellor Terrance Madujith says 10 students suspected to be involved in Sunday’s mob attack on a former Vice Chancellor and his son at their residence have been suspended: suspects identified with CCTV footage and statements by security personnel.
- MPs Dayasiri Jayasekara, Lakshman Kiriella, Anura Yapa, M A Sumanthiran, Ranjith Madduma Bandara and G L Pieris file 2 Petitions in the Supreme Court seeking an interim order compelling the Elections Commission to take steps to hold the Local Government election in March 2023.
- Alliance Air of India to recommence weekly flights between Palaly, Sri Lanka and Chennai, India: the airline initially began international flights between the 2 cities on 11th November 2019, but suspended operations due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
- Archbishop of Colombo Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith urges religious leaders to rally together to prevent the proposed “night life” activities and thereby safeguard Sri Lanka’s culture: adds the culture nurtured by Buddhism should not be destroyed by night life activities.
- Police agree to pay special attention towards transgender community: Sri Lanka’s LGBTQIA+ community and high-ranking Police Officers discuss how any inconveniences can be avoided during interactions between the two parties.
- Senior DIG Sanjeeva Dharmaratne instructs Police to inspect all Spas in the Kandy District and enforce the law against health centres engaged in illegal activities: order follows a media exposé that 2 large-scale brothels are operated by a senior Police officer in Kandy under the guise of a Spa.
Sri Lanka Original Narrative Summary: 13/12
The embassy of Sri Lanka participates in International Food Festival 2022
The Embassy of Sri Lanka in Ha Noi, Viet Nam participated in the Annual International Food Festival organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) of Viet Nam, which was held on 11 December 2022 in Ha Noi. The 10th assembly of this annual event was attended by diplomatic missions and international organizations, INGOs based in Ha Noi, provincial offices of the MoFA, provincial governments, and Vietnamese food and beverage industry leaders.
Sri Lanka’s stall was one of the main attractions of the event, with authentic Sri Lankan food such as Kottu Rotti and Aappa (Hoppers)which were made with live demonstrations. Dilmah – Ceylon Tea – Viet Nam also participated in the event and served Ceylon Tea with Sri Lankan short eats. Both Vietnamese and expatriates enjoyed these delicious treats and the warm hospitality.
The food festival was attended by approximately 5000 people and comprised 131 stalls. The Sri Lankan community in Ha Noi, and other main cities and provinces of Viet Nam, actively participated in the event and generously assisted the Embassy in conducting a very successful promotional programme.
Embassy of Sri Lanka
Ha Noi
12 December 2022
Making Sri Lanka Bankrupt; was not a proud moment
The debate whether the so called soft default was right or wrong is still being argued. Court cases have been filed. The argument put forward by those who took the decision even without the approval of parliament is very elementary.
There was no money for essentials and medicine. So we had no choice. The question is other nations like Zambia planned for their default months ahead unlike Sri Lanka. On the other hand the Finance Ministry and the Central Bank of Sri Lanka was napping. They waited until it was imminent and made a public announcement, virtually drying up all the funding lines.
That too they called it a soft default.
They are certainly right when they say the country had no money. The Foreign Minister Sabry is a good lawyer, he fought for GotabayaR on his citizenship case very successfully, that does not mean he knows how the economy must be run. It was obvious he had been advised to do so.
Nandalal Weerasinghe is key among that coterie of people. Was the IMF consulted? He had tweeted saying that defaulting was the best decision at that time and there was no other options. Only those in power would know what the options were? Did he consult the private sector before this historic decision to bankrupt the country was taken? Was parliament consulted? Did cabinet approve it? In other economies there would have been serious consultations with the captains of industry and creditors to restructure the debt. Not simply defaulting with out a plan? It is alleged that a friendly country was on the verge of concluding a funding line. Only he would know? Not the public? Even a SME knows the consequences of an unplanned default. It is no different to a sovereign default.
Implications
Consequence of a debt default is humongous. A country’s lack of access to the credit market is an unavoidable consequence of a default. The country will be charged a high interest rate on its loans, it will not be granted a loan at all. The defaulted country’s credit rating will suffer, preventing foreign investment in to the country. Then comes the bailouts. Those come with conditions. Lenders imposed harsh austerity terms, requiring deep budget cuts and steep tax increases. They also require an overhaul its economy by streamlining the government. We have already seen the impact on the poor. What ever is said by those who took the decision to make Sri Lanka bankrupt has limited currency. Because it was an ill conceived decision.
There should have been a plan put in place months before the default. The bankruptcy was certainly a national tragedy and will reverberate for several decades to come. This debate will certainly not go away, accountability will come to haunt those who took the decision in the future. An expert committee should be appointed to investigate this decision to prevent such decisions been taken in the future.
Adolf
IUSF Convener Mudalige vows he will never bend before knavish regime (VIDEO)
Convener of the Inter-University Students Federation (IUSF) Wasantha Mudalige, who was arrested under the controversial Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), told media that he will never bend before a knavish regime, as the student activist was being taken away by the Police for further remand custody as ordered by the Court.
Mudalige was produced before the Colombo Magistrate Court today (12) and Colombo Additional Magistrate Tharanga Mahawatta ordered that the IUSF Convener be remanded till tomorrow (13) pending instructions by the Attorney General.
Members of the IUSF and civil and political activists outside the court premises declared their support to Mudalige as the IUSF Convener was being taken out by the prison bus.
MIAP
SL proposes to set up a group of Eminent Persons to galvanize greater political will to combat terrorist financing
Sri Lanka proposed to set up a group of Eminent Persons with a view to helping galvanize greater political will and to create further international awareness among states on the importance of combating terrorist financing, at the recently concluded 3rd No Money For Terror (NMFT) Ministerial Conference in New Delhi.
Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner to India Milinda Moragoda, who led the delegation of Sri Lanka to the Ministerial Conference made this proposal in his statement to the Conference on Saturday (19). The 3rd No Money For Terror Ministerial Conference on Counter-Terrorism Financing was held from 18-19 November 2022 in New Delhi, hosted by the Government of India.
The Conference, which was inaugurated by the Prime Minister of India Shri Narendra Modi on Friday (18) saw the participation of delegations from ninety-three countries and multilateral organizations.
The Conference extensively discussed global trends in terrorism and terrorist financing, use of formal and informal channels of funds for terrorism, emerging technologies and terrorist financing and requisite international co-operation to address challenges in combating terrorist financing.
Delivering the country statement of Sri Lanka, High Commissioner Moragoda further stated that political will on the part of member states is the most significant component in international cooperation to address the multi-faceted challenges faced when combating terrorist financing. He said that though the objective of the Conference on “No Money for Terror,” which is to sensitize the international community to the dangers of ignoring this issue, is commendable, there should be a mechanism to provide continuity to the work of the Conference.
In this context, High Commissioner Moragoda proposed that India, as the Chair of the present Conference, take the lead in creating a group of Eminent Persons selected from among the member states with a view to helping galvanize greater political will and to create further international awareness among states on the importance of combating terrorist financing.
The 1st and 2nd No Money For Terror Ministerial Conferences were held in Paris in 2018 and in Melbourne in 2019 respectively. The 3rd NMFT Conference was built on the progressive agenda of an integrated approach with collective involvement initiated in the first two Conferences.
High Commission of Sri Lanka
New Delhi
21 November 2022
Cyclone Mandous affects 16 districts in island
Three people were killed and over 21,000 have been affected by the adverse weather conditions spawned by cyclone Mandous, said the Disaster Management Centre of Sri Lanka.
According to the Centre, 19 people were injured and those affected are of 6,113 families in 16 districts. 5,639 houses in various parts of the island have been severely damaged, it added.
The damage is being assessed and those affected will be compensated, said the Deputy Director of the Disaster Management Centre Pradeep Kodippili.
The cyclone at the moment has reduced significantly but the citizens will be urged to take precautions, the Centre added.
Sri Lanka Original Narrative Summary: 12/12
- Finance Ministry says Sri Lanka is seeking funds from India, Japan, Singapore or some other donor agency totalling USD 850 mn as “bridging finance” until the IMF facility is approved in the New Year: on 12th April, the pipeline of external inflows of USD 10,700 mn was lost upon making the default announcement.
- State Finance Minister Shehan Semasinghe says the World Bank and ADB have informed their inability to further lend to Sri Lanka until debt is made “sustainable” and the macro-fiscal stability is restored: also says the two agencies are considering alternate ways to assist.
- President Ranil Wickremasinghe says Sri Lanka will launch its mitigation of climate change initiatives next year: also says a Climate Change Office has been set up.
- Govt to consider investing Local Govt and public funds to invest in new companies which are expected to be placed under the Ceylon Electricity Board under the new restructuring process to be adopted by the CEB.
- MP Sajith Premadasa unanimously re-elected as the leader of the Samagi Jana Balawegaya at the Party’s annual conference.
- State Minister of Education Aravind Kumar says all Govt & Govt approved schools which were closed due to bad weather on Friday, will reopen today.
- Consignment of 91,000 MT of Murban crude oil which arrived in November begins to unload in keeping with the new procurement modality, which the Govt introduced last month to circumvent the forex shortage and the incurrence of demurrage when tankers remain offshore.
- President Ranil Wickremesinghe to formulate a road-map for the Party leaders’ talks on ethnic reconciliation.
- Rotary International’s President Jennifer Jones arrives in Sri Lanka on a 4-day visit.
- President of the Bar Association Saliya Pieris calls on people to stop waiting
for a saviour and work hard to strengthen institutions that could ensure the protection of their rights: asks people to fight bravely for their rights.
India and Sri Lanka review the status of bilateral economic cooperation
High Commissioner of Sri Lanka to India Milinda Moragoda met with Indian Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman at the latter’s office in North Block, New Delhi to review the status of bilateral economic cooperation.
This was the latest of a series of meetings High Commissioner Moragoda has had with Minister Sitharaman since November last year on Indian economic cooperation and assistance to Sri Lanka in the context of the present crisis.
At the outset, High Commissioner Moragoda briefed Minister Sitharaman on Sri Lanka’s ongoing discussions with the International Monetary Fund and the present status of the country’s debt restructuring process.
He also briefed her on the drastic impact the present economic contraction is having on the poor and vulnerable segments of the population of Sri Lanka.
The High Commissioner once again thanked Minister Sitharaman for the unprecedented emergency assistance that India has extended to Sri Lanka and her personal interventions with bilateral and multilateral partners throughout this challenging and difficult period.
High Commissioner Moragoda and Minister Sitharaman also reviewed the status of bilateral economic cooperation and the High Commissioner emphasized that India could play a critical role in Sri Lanka’s economic revival through multi-faceted economic integration between the two countries by enhancing investments, tourism and trade.
Since the onset of Sri Lanka’s ongoing crisis, India has acted with alacrity to provide succor to the island nation.
With Colombo facing an acute shortages of funds, India extended $4 billion to keep the country’s accounts afloat. India has also vocally supported Colombo’s demands for an International Monetary Fund bailout package and restructuring of its debt.
In one instance, the Indian naval ship Gharial was deployed to deliver supplies of medicines, highlighting the expeditious manner in which India sought to extend humanitarian help to Sri Lanka.
The unprecedented humanitarian and financial aid provided by India on such short notice showcases the country’s unique position in terms of its proximity to Sri Lanka and its capacity as well as capability to extend aid at a strategic level.
Such assistance provided by India may well garner goodwill in Sri Lanka, but India’s long-term interests will be better served by weaving the geostrategic characteristics of the region into its Sri Lanka policy.
The maritime geography of the island nation provides immense potential in solidifying maritime linkages through capacity and capability building in the arena of maritime connectivity and security.
IUSF Convener Mudalige further remanded
Convenor of the Inter-University Students Federation (IUSF) Wasantha Mudalige has been remanded till tomorrow (13) pending instructions by the Attorney General.
Mudalige who was arrested under the controversial Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) was produced before the Colombo Magistrate Court today (12) and his remand sentence was extended as per the order of Colombo Additional Magistrate Tharanga Mahawatta.
MIAP
BBC to close broadcast TV channels and move to ‘internet-only’ mode: Director-General
The BBC will close linear channels in the near future as it “consolidates activity under one simple, single brand,” he told the Royal Television Society.
BBC One, BBC Two, BBC Three and BBC Four could be united under a single brand, which he described as “the BBC.”
The Corporation is planning to switch off its broadcast services, such as the Freeview digital terrestrial platform.
“The BBC will focus its effort on the digital world and over time this will mean fewer linear broadcast services and a more tailored joined up online offer,” Davie said.
“For the BBC, internet-only distribution is an opportunity to connect more deeply with our audiences and to provide them with better services and choice than broadcast allows.”
“It provides a significant editorial opportunities. A switch off of broadcast will and should happen over time, and we should be active in planning for it.”
Davie promised that “we must work together to ensure that everyone is connected, and can get their TV and radio via the internet. This isn’t something to resist. A fully connected UK has very significant benefits for society and our economy. It would unleash huge opportunities for innovation.”
He added: “Of course, there’s a bad way it could happen. Where access to content is no longer universal. Or is unaffordable for too many. Where the gateway to content is owned by well capitalised overseas companies.”
BBC sources said they expect linear TV, which was still widely valued, to continue into the 2030s but it was wise for the BBC to begin preparations for a future digital transition.
BBC