The Nimitz Carrier Strike Group is scheduled to arrive in Colombo, Sri Lanka for a planned port visit on October 28. The Carrier Strike Group includes the USS Nimitz, the cruiser USS Princeton, and destroyers USS Howard, USS Shoup, USS Pinckney, and USS Kidd. The ships are scheduled to depart Colombo on October 31, 2017.
Reflecting the growing relationship between the U.S. and Sri Lankan navies, this is the first
When the then President J.R. Jayewardene held a referendum instead of general elections in 1982, most legal and political analysts said that while it may have been legal, it was illegitimate. Mr. Jayewardene’s Government obtained a 50.1% majority at the referendum. But it was immorally blown up into a 5/6th majority in Parliament. This illegitimate move had at least two other major repercussions. It provoked the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) to pull out
The government said yesterday that the Tamil people had issues which needed to be resolved and it would be addressed within a united country.
Sports Minister Dayasiri Jayasekara, addressing the weekly Cabinet Press Briefing, at the Information Department, said that finding solutions to the problems faced by the Tamils did not mean dismembering the country into pieces or combining the Northern and Eastern Provincial Councils into one, as demanded by some Tamil parties.
The Attorney General has filed indictments in the Batticaloa High Court against six accused including former Eastern Province Chief Minister Sivanesathurai Chandrakanthan alias ‘Pillayan’ and six others over the killing of former TNA parliamentarian Joseph Pararajasingham, the Supreme Court was informed today.
Senior State Counsel Sudarshana de Silva appearing on behalf of the Attorney General made this remark when the Fundamental Rights petition filed by former Eastern Province Chief
Sri Lanka's outgoing navy chief Travis Sinniah, the first minority Tamil to reach the highest position in the force in nearly half a century, has set a new record for being the shortest serving commander.
The previous Tamil commander, Rear Admiral R. Kadiragamar, and Admiral Sinniah now firmly hold records for heading the navy for the longest and shortest periods respectively in the 67 year history of the Sri Lanka Navy.
The joint opposition yesterday said that the process of making a new Constitution has now been turned in to an abhorrence and absurd discussion against the media and the Maha Sangha.
Joint opposition member MP Dullas Alahapperuma told a news conference that recently it was reported how Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe had lashed out at the media institutions with regard to the Constitution.
India and Sri Lanka signed two Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) today for construction of 1200 houses through 50 model villages, using Indian grant assistance of SLR 600 million.
The MoUs were signed by Mr. Taranjit Singh Sandhu, High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka, and Mrs. W.K.K. Athukorala, Secretary to the Ministry of Housing and Construction, in the presence of Hon. Sajith Premadasa, Minister of Housing and Construction. The signing took place during a special ceremony held in Hambantota for vesting to the beneficiaries the
United Nations Special Rapporteur on Promotion of Truth, Justice Reparation and Guarantees of Non-Recurrence, Pablo de Greiff, in discussion with Opposition Leader R. Sampanthan.
Opposition Leader and Tamil National Alliance leader R. Sampanthan yesterday urged the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Promotion of Truth, Justice Reparation and Guarantees of Non-Recurrence, Pablo de Greiff, to ensure the full implementation of voluntary commitments made by the Sri Lankan Government to the public and the international community.
Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Spokesman and Parliamentarian M.A. Sumanthiran disclosed that the case of three former LTTE cadres scheduled to be taken up for hearing in the Vavuniya High Court has been transferred to Anuradhapura High Court upon their request.
Speaking at a media briefing in Jaffna Monday, MP Sumanthiran said the case has been shifted to Anuradhapura High Court in accordance with the requirement of the witnesses.
The arrest of former Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa is imminent, well informed sources told The Sunday Leader. Sources said that a discussion had been held last week between government officials from the legal and security establishments on taking Rajapaksa into custody to face charges against him.
Rajapaksa returned from the United States last week following a private visit and according to sources he was to be arrested at the airport.
Former Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa has said further devolution of power won’t solve the problems faced by the Tamil community.
Addressing a gathering organised by Viyathmaga (Gampaha organization) at Wet Water Resort on Ja-ela-Gampaha road, on Saturday, Rajapaksa said he wasn’t aware of any country where problems had been solved with the help of devolution of power.
Wartime Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa yesterday said that the very basis of the controversial Geneva Resolution 30/1 had been strongly disputed by Michael Morris, Baron Naseby, PC, during a debate on Sri Lanka in the British parliament Thursday last week.
Sri Lanka co-sponsored Resolution 30/1 in Oct 2015, in spite of the Foreign Ministry rejecting the same the month before.
The United Nations (UN) today warned that the case filed in Brazil against former Army Commander Jagath Jayasuriya could be the “tip of the iceberg”.
Pablo de Greiff, the Special Rapporteur on the promotion of truth, justice, reparation and guarantees of non-recurrence told reporters in Colombo that Sri Lanka must address allegations similar to that faced by Jayasuriya or it may prove costly.
Yolanda Foster shares the experiences of women change-makers and the challenges they face as they continue to seek truth, justice and reparations for themselves and for their families in Sri Lanka.
This week Pablo de Greiff, the Special Rapporteur on Truth, Justice, Reparations and Guarantees of Non-recurrence, is visiting Sri Lanka to assess the implementation of Human Rights Council Resolution 30/1. Co-sponsored by the Sri Lankan government, the Resolution outlines a comprehensive set of steps required for transitional justice to become a reality. For many women’s groups the visit is critical as promised post-war reforms stall. In recent
After the Unity Government was formed in 2015, the President and Prime Minister on realizing that the Tamil issue needs to be resolved first for the country is to go forward, had turned the parliament into a Constitutional Assembly. Together the legislators have produced an interim report to rewrite the constitution, in spite of the divisive mindset of the representatives of all communities painfully slowing down the progress with many issues such as the unitary state, giving prominence to Buddhism, demand for
Descending from the family that produced Sir Ponnambalam Ramanathan, C. V. Wigneswaran is also a celebrated Sri Lankan.
Lawyer, Supreme Court Judge and now Chief Minister of the Northern Province, he is also a man unafraid to voice his opinion.
In a new video clip, al-Hindi explains how ISIS healthcare service has grown because of funds and volunteers from across the world.
Indian security agencies are vigorously looking for information about a doctor, believed to be from the southern state of Kerala, who recently featured into a propaganda video of Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).
More than Rs 261 million was sent overseas fraudulently in the guise of paying for the import of an elephant from Myanmar in 2007, whereas the market value of the animal was around Rs. 10 to 15 million, a probe committee has revealed.
The one-man committee, which probed corruption in the registration and issuing of licences of elephants, found that the elephant had been imported for the Dalada Maligawa and the person who was involved in the transaction had claimed the value was Rs 261,592,500, made
President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe had appealed jointly not to give room to scuttle the efforts taken to strengthen peace and reconciliation by devolving powers to the Northern and Eastern Provinces when they were addressing the people in the once war-torn Vavuniya in the North on Saturday.
The President and the Prime Minister were attending a Government Mobile Service known as 'Nila Mehewara' in Vavuniya where they addressed the gathering on the significance of
One individual was shot dead and another seven suspects arrested during a shootout with a team of the Special Task Force this afternoon at Henegedara in Divulapitiya, Police Spokesman SP Ruwan Gunasekera said.
“The STF received information that an armed gang was roaming in the area. An STF team was
Former president Mahinda Rajapaksa invited me to join hands with him or to give up politics and join his business but I refused, Primary Industries Minister Daya Gamage said.
Addressing a group of fresh water prawn farmers in Chilaw, the Minister said the former president offered him a Cabinet post but he refused as he had no intention to rob public money.
By Shamindra Ferdinando
General Secretary of the Patriotic National Movement (PNM) Dr. Wasantha Bandara has warned of dire consequences unless those who campaigned against moves to introduce constitutional reforms inimical to the country’s interests defeat the government strategy.
The civil society activist alleged that controversial constitutional proposals to deprive Buddhism of state patronage and do away with the unitary status of the country could be a
Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa questions as to how to build a reconciliation process through the forcible elaboration of an amendment to the country.
The Former President made this statement after attending the funeral of Dr. Nagoda Amarawansa today (23).
UNP National List MP Kodagoda Hitige Jayampathi Rohanakumara Wickramarathna alias Dr. Jayampathy Wickramaratne PC who was a vociferous campaigner against the corruption of the Mahinda Rajapaksa led former regime has been accused of selling his duty free car permit.
Jayanpathy is also a politbureau member of Lanka Samasamaja Party (majority group) and the Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.
The deployment of a staggering number of 798 armed STF personnel to conduct a search of two wards of the Welikada Prisons in November 2012, in violation of all laid down procedure to be followed when Prison premises are searched, led to the riot there which resulted in the death of 27 inmates and caused injuries to many more, the report of a fact-finding committee states.
The 3-member committee, to look into facts pertaining to the incident that occurred at the
