News

Oshala Herath, the former Coordinating Secretary to president Maithripala Sirisena has filed a fundamental rights petition in the Supreme Court stating that the removal of ousted prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and the subsequent appointment of Mahinda Rajapaksa to the premiership is against the Constitution.

The petitioner has named the Speaker of Parliament, the Attorney General and all parliamentarians as respondents of the petition.

The petitioner further states that Wickremesinghe's removal and Rajapaksa's appointment is contrary to the provisions of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution.

Hearth said that president Sirisena's actions are a violation of the Constitution and as such, would expect the Supreme Court to issue an interim order suspending the current cabinet of ministers including prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, until the petition is concluded.

President Maithripala Sirisena said that he had opposed Kapila Chandrasena and Nalaka Godahewa being appointed as Chairmen to SriLankan Airlines and Sri Lanka Insurance respectively.

Sirisena made these remarks during a meeting he had with the Foreign Correspondents Association (FCA) on Friday.

Kapila Chandrasena was at the centre of several high-profile cases of corruption that took place during his tenure as Chairman of SriLankan airlines in the Rajapaksa regime. Some allegations of corruption were substantiated under Sirisena’s own Presidential Commission of Inquiry.

Nalaka Godahewa was also accused for his alleged involvement in conspiring to misappropriate LKR 5 million of funds belonging to Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of which he was the then chairman. He was notoriously associated with the Krishh transaction where allegations were levelled that large amounts of monies were purportedly requested by members of the ruling Rajapaksa regime. Godahewa is also out on bail related to another matter.

President Sirisena further said that the judicial inquiries against the alleged financial frauds that took place during Rakapaksa regime will continue.

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Sri Lanka embarked on a new joint project today to improve women’s nutrition and promote gender equality and women’s empowerment in Sri Lanka by providing critical information and services on sexual and reproductive health, nutrition and food security over the next year.

The project, which will assist communities in six districts - Monaragala, Matale, Mullaithivu, Mannar, Batticaloa, and Nuwara Eliya - focuses on the development of women entrepreneurs through initiatives aimed at enhancing their skills and boosting their income. In addition, the project will aim to improve access to sexual and reproductive health services which would enable the prevention of human rights violations such as gender-based violence.

Today this project is being launched as the two agencies commence celebrations linked to the annual global 16 days of Activism Against Gender-based Violence Campaign (November 25th to December 10th). Gender-based violence affects primarily women and girls in their reproductive years (15-49); thereby negatively affecting their sexual and reproductive health and rights, and reinforcing the cycle of poverty.

“Fostering social and economic empowerment among Sri Lanka’s women will help break the vicious intergenerational cycle of malnutrition,” said Brenda Barton, WFP Representative. “Poor nutrition early in life reduces learning potential, increases reproductive and maternal health risks, and lowers productivity”.

“UNFPA is delighted to start this new collaborative project with WFP, which looks at health and well-being of women and girls in a holistic way. Through this project, we aim to expand choices for women and girls in Sri Lanka, part of the efforts to leave no one behind,” said Ritsu Nacken, UNFPA Representative.

Despite Sri Lanka’s significant achievements in terms of overall health indicators, nutrition indicators continue to lag far behind. The country is facing a double burden of malnutrition with stagnant rates of undernutrition combined with growing numbers of overweight people and a rise in obesity rates. One in six children under the age of five are too thin for their height (wasting) indicating a critical public health situation, while almost one in six newborns have low birth weight. This indicates a vicious cycle of malnutrition and the need for improved maternal nutrition, including in urban settings where almost one in two women in reproductive age are either overweight or obese.

Substantial evidence demonstrates that better nourished girls are more likely to stay in school. If young people are also provided with comprehensive knowledge and access to services on sexual and reproductive health, they will be informed and empowered to protect themselves from human rights violations such as gender-based violence. Then it would unleash the potential of young people to make important contributions to the social and economic development of their communities and the country overall.

The joint project is thanks to a contribution to WFP by the Government of Denmark (USD 458,000; LKR 81.9 million). The initiative will be executed in close cooperation with the Ministry of Health, Nutrition and Indigenous Medicine.

The struggling Rupee fell to an all-time low at 181.54 against the dollar today (26), compared with Friday’s close at 179.80.

The Rupee has fallen 4.1 percent since the unconstitutional coup on the 26th of October.

Moody’s had downgraded Sri Lanka last week for the first time since it started rating the country in 2010, blaming the political crisis for aggravating already problematic finances.

Lt. Commander Laksiri Geethal Galagamage, a main witness of the Navy abduction for ransom case who was assaulted by a group led by Chief of Defence Staff Admiral Ravindra Wijegunaratne at the Navy Headquarters in Colombo yesterday has gone into hiding. According to sources due to the most recent intimidation, Galagamage has also decided to leave the Naval service as the threats to his life has increased with the sudden political change. 

Galagamage’s statement to the CID directly implicated CDS Wijegunaratne for aiding and abetting the main witness of the case Lt. Commander Chandana Prasad Hettiarachchi to abscond and eventually flee the country. 

Galagamage’s is not the only witness to the case that has come under threat recently. Also providing evidence in the case was Naval Intelligence Officer Lt. Commander Krishan Welagedara. His evidence enabled the CID to link several naval officers to the abduction ring including Commander Sumith Ranasinghe who is now a main suspect in the case. 

Last week ISIS news was able to reveal that the life of Lt. Commander Welagedara is in imminent danger following an immediate transfer and appointment granted to Commander Ranasinghe to the Navy HQ as the Navy’s Director Navy of Land Operations (DNLO). According to this latest appointment, the security detail provided to Welagedara due to threats from within the Navy will directly report to Ranasinghe. 

Welagedara provided evidence to the CID regarding Ranasinghe’s involvement in the case. However, he has come under severe persecution within the Navy who has been denying his request for early retirement with a pension while also denying his promotions based on flimsy excuses. In the meantime the Navy has handed over promotions to both Commodore D.K.P. Dassanayake and Commander Sumith Ranasinghe, both suspects in the abduction racket case, currently out on bail, in 2016 with Dassanayake receiving a service extension in July 2018.

Click on below link for information on the incident: https://isis.lk/news/2831-cds-attacks-navy-abduction-case-main-witness-abduction-attempt-says-navy-sources

Sri Lanka's Supreme Court has constituted a seven judge bench to decide upon President’s proclamation to dissolve the parliament. 

The bench will comprise Chief Justice Nalin Perera, Buwaneka Aluwihare, Sisira J de Abrew, Priyantha Jayawardena, Prasanna S. Jayawardena, Murdu Fernando and Vijith Kumara Malalgoda.

A three-judge bench of Supreme Court had earlier issued a stay order after several parties including the UNF, TNA, and the JVP filed petitions against the dissolution of parliament. 

A Court of Appeal decided to take up on Friday (30) a Writ of Quo Warranto signed by 122 MPs challenging 'purported' Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa's unlawful continuation in office. Rajapksa has already lost two no confidence motions that were passed by a majority of the Members of the House.

The Chairman of the United National Party (UNP), parliamentarian Kabir Hashim, in a statement today, said that the UNP welcomes the decision taken by president Sirisena to look into allegations of corruption that allegedly transpired between January 2015 and October 2018.

"President Maithripala Sirisena, at a meeting with the Foreign Correspondents Association in Colombo has yet again tried to justify the illegal removal of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe on the 26th of October 2018 by saying, it was due to corruption and that a Presidential Commission of inquiry will be established to look into cases of corruption between Jan 2015 and Oct 2018", the the former minister said.

Hashim pointed out that it wasn't a 'Ranil Wickremesinghe' government that operated during the period. He reiterated that president Sirisena was not only the Head of State but also the Head of the Cabinet in which all decisions were made.

"The government that operated during this period was in no way “A Ranil Wickremesinghe Government”. President Maithripala Sirisena who headed the National Unity Government was not only the Head of State but also the Head of Government. All decisions were made by a Cabinet chaired by the President. If there was corruption in the past 3 ½ years as the President says, the President has equally to share the blame", Hashim said.

The UNP chairman also noted that as Sirisena was the Cabinet, he should also held be liable for the decisions made by the Cabinet.

"We welcome the appointment of a Presidential Commission to look into this period and we also insist that President Sirisena is not made immune to the investigation himself", he said.

"Furthermore, the President is reported to have said that he will not appoint Hon. Ranil Wickremesinghe as the Prime Minister in his life time even if legally proven that he commands the confidence of the majority in the house. This is yet another blatant violation of the fundamentals of Parliamentary Democracy. The President has no choice but to act within the framework of Constitutional Provisions and the Constitution does not make provisions for personal vendettas", Hashim said.

"Finally, the United National Party would also like to remind President Sirisena that he has not been elected for a life time and that his term as President comes to an end in less than 12 months", he added.

The United National Party (UNP) has requested mass media to respect parliament decisions and to report on the current political situation with factual accuracy.

Citing Hansards on the 15th and 16th of November, UNP Chairman Kabir Hashim in statement today (26) said that "it is inaccurate to refer to any Member of Parliament as a Minister or Prime Minister" as those positions no longer exist.

The statement by the UNP is as follows;

The Sri Lanka Army said that nearly 1300 acres of private land in the North and the East are still in the custody of the armed forces. 

However, the Army noted that over 19,000 acres of private land owned by the military has been given back to original owners since January 2015.

Dr. Palitha Abeykoon has been appointed as the President of the Sri Lanka Medical Council (SLMC) with effect from 26th November 2018 by 'purported' Minister of Health Chamal Rajapaksa.

The Ministry of Health said that Dr. Abeykoon has been appointed to serve in the post for the next 5 years. 

Dr. Abeykoon was the 120th President of the Sri Lanka Medical Association.

Chief of Defence Staff Admiral Ravindra Wijegunaratne, the country’s most senior military officer has been accused of attacking Lt.

Commander Laksiri Geethal Galagamage within the premises of the Naval Headquarters yesterday. Galagamage is a key witness in the Navy abduction for ransom case where a group of naval officers are accused of abducting 11 men for extortion purposes. His statement to the CID also implicated Wijegunaratne who is now accused of providing protection to one of the main accused in the case Lt. Commander Chandana Prasad Hettiarachchi alias Navy Sampath while also aiding and abetting him to flee the country and even supporting him financially during his tenure as Navy Commander. 

Wijegunaratne had confronted Galagamage today as the latter was walking out of the officer's mess, the Colombo Telegraph reports.

According to the media report, Wijegunaratne had arrived with a group of aides after being informed of Galagamage’s presence in the officer’s mess around 2 pm on Sunday. Wijegunaratne in a manner known as common for him had abused Galagamage in obscene language while ordering his aides to haul the officer before him. Perhaps in fear of his life, Galagamage in during the ruckus had attempted to make a run for it with the PSO of Wijegunaratne hot on his heels and a pistol aimed at the key witness. Fearing he would be shot Galagamage had knocked the pistol off the PSO’s hand and fled the Naval HQ going on to lodge a complaint at the Fort Police Station. In the melee, Galagamage’s mobile phone had fallen out of his pocket and was retrieved by Wijegunaratne’s aides. 

Undue Threats to Police

According to the Colombo Telegraph Wijegunaratne had also attempted to coerce OIC of the Fort Police Station to not record Galagamage’s complaint regarding the assault and the theft of his mobile. However, the OIC is said to have visited Naval HQ today for the inquiry only to be blocked by senior Navy officers. However, he has made a lengthy log entry regarding the incident the Colombo Telegraph report said. Sources within the Navy say it appears to have been an attempt to abduct Galagamage. 

Failing to succeed in transferring the investigating officer of the case IP Nishantha Silva through President Maithripala Sirisena last week by falsely accusing Silva of having LTTE links in a desperate bid to prevent his own arrest, pressure appears to be mounting on Admiral Ravindra Wijegunaratne who is scheduled to present himself at the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) tomorrow in order to provide a statement in connection to the case. The Colombo Fort Magistrates Court has ordered the arrest of Wijegunaratne several times. However reporting to courts in one instance on the failure to arrest him, IP Silva of the CID said there are various obstacles in taking the CDS into custody. It is well known that he is being protected by President Sirisena who even allowed him to travel to Mexico in order to attend Mexico’s National Day celebrations representing Sri Lanka when Wijegunaratne was required to present himself at the CID to provide a statement on a previous occasion. 

However, Magistrate Ranga Dissanayake has provided the CID time till November 28 to present Wijegunaratne before the courts to face allegations of aiding and abetting a wanted suspect to avoid law enforcement and flee the country. It is prior to the court date that the CID has served the summons on the CDS who has now gone on to assault the key witness against him. 

Strong evidence against Wijegunaratne 

According to the CID, it had sent two messages to the administrative branch of Navy HQ for the attention of Wijegunaratne who was at the time Commander, on March 1 and March 28, 2017. The messages had requested the Navy to produce Lt. Commander Hettiarachchi alias Navy Sampath to the CID on March 2 and 31, respectively. However, responding to the CID the Navy had claimed it was not aware of Hettiarachchi’s whereabouts. But evidence and witness statements later revealed that Hettiarachchi was being harboured by the Navy with the knowledge of the Commander at the Naval Headquarters in Colombo during the time.

Making a statement to the CID, Hettiarachchi’s wife had claimed she visited her husband thrice at the Navy HQ between March 3 - 31, 2017 while the Navy continued to claim it had no knowledge of Hettiarachchi’s location. 

Galagamage’s statement further supported this. In his statement to law enforcement he claimed, Hettiarachchi was housed in the adjacent room to his, in the officers’ mess at the time. He also recalled that at one time encountering both Wijegunaratne and Hettiarachchi in the lift he was able to listen in on a damning conversation between the two. 

“Seeing Hettiarachchi, Navy Commander Wijegunaratne inquired as to where he was heading off to, Hettiarachchi said he was visiting the Light House to meet his wife. Wijegunaratne then said he will not be held responsible if the Police nab Hettiarachchi if he jaunts about” Galagamage had told the CID proving Wijegunaratne was fully aware that Hettiarachchi was being harboured within the HQ. CID was able to further establish this by obtaining receipts for food and drink dispensed by the officer's mess to Hettiarachchi at the time. 

As a result, the CID has accused the CDS of allegedly shielding Navy Sampath from investigators while also misleading them by claiming that the Navy did not know his whereabouts.
 
Financial help for the main suspect
 
But the CID has also accused Wijegunaratne of providing Hettiarachchi with financial help. According to Laksiri’s statement sometime after the incident in the lift, Hettiarachchi was seen packing a bag. Showing him a small bag full of money Hettiarachchi had claimed it came from the Commander for expenses. He had vanished from the Navy HQ the next day. The CID during a previous court sitting had reported that the Sri Lanka Navy had transferred half a million rupees to Hettiarachchi from a special account maintained at the Bank of Ceylon.
 
As the CID closes in on him with the court standing steadfast yesterday's incident has merely landed Wijegunaratne in further hot water and has revealed his sheer desperation to avoid assured jail time.