News

The Attorney General’s Department is in the process of studying the possibility of instituting legal action against former Ministers Basil Rajapaksa, Wimal Weerawansa, Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena, former Chief Minister S.M. Ranjith and several other persons.

They are alleged to have been involved in misappropriation of public funds and serious acts of fraud.

The study is conducted under the directive of Attorney General Jayantha Jayasooriya. AG Jayasooriya said President’s Secretary Austin Fernando, under the instruction of President Maithripala Sirisena, has submitted eight Presidential Commission reports to the AG’s Department seeking further legal action.

Jayasooriya also said that the above mentioned names and several other names of former chairman and directors appear in the said eight reports.The AG’s Department is studying the avenues of possible legal action against them as well.

The report includes investigations on the Economic Development Authority, National Housing Development Authority, the Hector Kobbekaduwa Agrarian and Training Research Institute, the Kandy MOH Office, National Transport Commission, the Rupavahini Corporation and the National Youth Services Council.

Legal action is also sought on former Rupavahini Corporation Chairman Wimal Rubasinghe, Director General Chandrapala Liyanage, National Transport Commission Chairman Renuka Dushmantha Perera and former National Youth Services Council Chairman Lalith Piyum Perera as well.

Making a shocking revelation, Minister of Law and Order and Southern Development Sagala Ratnayaka admitted on popular social media platform Twitter that fundamentals on quelling tensions and operating guidelines may have been compromised during the Kataragama shooting.

The Minister was referring to an incident where a motorcyclist was shot dead by a police constable on Wedihiti Kanda Road in Kataragama town for allegedly failing to stop the vehicle for inspection. The incident sparked protests resulting in the arrests of several individuals. The shooting prompted a probe directed by Inspector General of Police (IGP) Pujith Jayasundara who ordered a special team from the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) to investigate the fatal shooting.

“Police themselves are subject to law. When quelling a tense situation or an unruly demonstration, justifiable force should be used, in strict adherence to operating guidelines. It appears to be that these fundamentals have not been followed in relation to Kataragama incident,” the Minister said yesterday.

Inferring reforms of Sri Lanka Police, the Minister went on to add that the “Kataragama incident is not an isolated one. This stems from lack of training and professionalism. Failure to address core issues diligently will throw us into similar situations time and time again. So, drastic reforms will soon be introduced to Police with help of foreign experts.”

The Minister also added that he has communicated to the Secretary of the Ministry and IGP at a special meeting for action to be initiated against those responsible for the Kataragama incident.

 Source : Daily News

The Emir of the State of Qatar Sheikh Tamin bin Hamad Al Thani and his family will be on a private visit in Sri Lanka from 25-28 January, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today in a statement.

Last year in October, at the invitation of the Emir Sheikh Tamin bin Hamad Al Thani, President Maithripala Sirisena undertook a State Visit to Qatar which was the first by a Head of State of Sri Lanka.

The close relations between Qatar and Sri Lanka were further strengthened during the State Visit by President Sirisena with both countries committing to work towards greater cooperation for mutual benefit.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo arrived in Sri Lanka for a two-day state visit today (24), the Sri Lankan Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.

President Widodo, who is on a State visit at the invitation of President Maithripala Sirisena, will be accorded a ceremonial welcome with guard of honour and twenty one gun salute at the Presidential Secretariat this evening.

The Foreign Ministry said that the two leaders will conduct official bilateral discussions on a wide range of issues of mutual interest. Several Memoranda of Understanding are to be inked between the two countries during the visit, the Ministry stated.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe is scheduled to have discussions on economic, trade and investment cooperation with President Widodo at a breakfast meeting on 25th January.

Minister of Finance and Media Mangala Samaraweera had a successful meeting with a high-level delegation of investors from Japan, the Finance Ministry said today.

The Japanese investors are here on an invitation by the Japan – Sri Lanka Joint Comprehensive Partnership Secretariat of the Prime Minister’s Office in the Embassy of Sri Lanka in Tokyo.

The Sri Lanka Human Rights Commission (HRC) has notified seven individuals to appear before the Commission to record a statement, today.

The statements will be recorded in relation to investigations carried out on the misconduct of the Uva Chief Minister who allegedly forced a female school Principal to kneel before him.

Accordingly, Uva Education Secretary Sandya Ambanwela, Provincial Education Director Ratnayaka, Zonal Education Director Ranasinghe, the Badulla Police OIC and three other Provincial Council workers were notified

At the invitation of President Maithripala Sirisena, the Indonesian President Joko Widodo, conducted a State Visit to Sri Lanka from 24 – 25 January 2018.

During the visit, President Widodo met with President Sirisena and had bilateral discussions. Recalling the establishment of formal diplomatic relations over 65 years ago, the two Leaders expressed satisfaction on the vibrant, strong bonds of friendship that exist between the two countries, and agreed to further consolidate and expand the relations.

The two Presidents also witnessed the signing of three MoUs in the fields of Search and Rescue (SAR); Higher Education, Research and Technology; and, Cooperation against Trafficking in Narcotic Drugs, Psychotropic Substances and their Chemical Precursors.

Recognising the vibrant maritime connectivity between Sri Lanka and Indonesia, the two Leaders discussed a wide range of issues of mutual interest pertaining to trade and investment, and reaffirmed their commitment to deepen and broaden economic collaboration. They acknowledged the need to harness the untapped potential, which exists in the bilateral economic sphere and emphasised the need for the early establishment of the Joint Working Group on Trade and Investment.

The two Leaders agreed that a joint feasibility study be undertaken for a possible comprehensive bilateral free trade agreement.

President Joko Widodo also met with Prime Minister Hon. Ranil Wickremesinghe and had extensive discussions on a range of issues including investment, trade, economic cooperation and science and technology.

The two leaders acknowledged the positive outcomes of the Business Forum co-organised by the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce and the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KADIN), which was well attended by leading investors and businesspersons from both countries and welcomed the signing of the MoU between the two Chambers.

The Indonesian business delegation comprising members of KADIN which accompanied President Widodo called on Prime Minister Wickremesinghe and discussed enhancing bilateral trade and investment.

Physical work of the proposed light railway project from Kaduwela to Colombo Fort would commence this year said Minister of Megalopolis Development Champika Ranwaka.

Speaking at the launch of Construction EXPO 2018 he said that in addition the Arukkal project in Puttalum, the solution to Colombo’s garbage disposal too would begin this year. The Minister also said that the government is keen in promoting green buildings and all future government building would be built accordingly ensuring energy efficiently. The Colombo Port City too would be built under the Green concept.

Meanwhile Chairman Ceylon Institute of Builders, Dr. Rohan Karunaratne said that today the cost of local construction is very high and the main reasons for this were high cost of material, waste of labour and taxes.

He also said that local construction companies was facing stiff competition from multinational companies and requested Minister Ranawaka to make regulation ensuring 25% contracts be awarded to locals. He also said that today ‘Green Certification’ is well accepted and requested the Minister to only award building contracts to ‘Green Certified’ building contractors.

The 7th building, construction, engineering and architecture industry, Construction Expo will be held from June 29 July 1 at the BMICH, with the there “Towards a Green Sri Lanka”.

The event is organized and managed by Lanka Exhibition and Conference Services (Pvt) Ltd in collaboration with the Ceylon Institute of Builders (CIOB) and more than 20,000 to 25,000 visitors are expected at the exhibition.

“This year, Construction Expo 2018 will feature numerous concurrent and new events to supplement the main exhibition. Apart from the exhibition, seminars, discussions and meetings with foreign and local construction experts will be held, which would enable local contractors to know and understand the trends and new technology available in the sector,” said Lanka Exhibition and Conference Service (LECS) CEO Aasim Mukthar.

A 50 members high profile delegation led by the Business Department of Liaoning Province and Shenyang Zhongquao International Exhibition Co Ltd will arrive in Colombo to attend the Construction Expo 2018. The objective of the visit is to actively promote economic and trade cooperation between Sri Lanka and the Liaoning region of China.

Source : Daily News

The PET Scanner to be installed at the Maharagama Apeksha Hospital has arrived in Sri Lanka.

The Pet Scanner has been purchased from Siemens Germany at a cost of Rs. 202 million, a Health Ministry spokesman said.

The PET Scanner will be installed in the Cancer Hospital and will begin services before April this year.

The public donated Rs. 200 million to the Government to buy the PET Scanner for the National Institute of Cancer in Maharagama.

The fundraising campaign was implemented by the Kadijah Foundation, TV Derana and several other organisations. The fundraising campaign was completed in June 2016. Positron Emission Tomography (PET) is a nuclear medicine functional imaging technique that is used to observe metabolic processes in the body. Three-dimensional images of tracer concentration within the body are then constructed by computer analysis. PET scans assist oncologists to determine the latest status of cancers in patient’s bodies.

Facebook warned on Monday that it could offer no assurance that social media was on balance good for democracy, but the company said it was trying what it could to stop alleged meddling in elections by Russia or anyone else.

The sharing of false or misleading headlines on social media has become a global issue, after accusations that Russia tried to influence votes in the United States, Britain and France. Moscow denies the allegations.

Facebook, the largest social network with more than 2 billion users, addressed social media’s role in democracy in blog posts from a Harvard University professor, Cass Sunstein, and from an employee working on the subject.

“I wish I could guarantee that the positives are destined to outweigh the negatives, but I can‘t,” Samidh Chakrabarti, a Facebook product manager, wrote in his post.

Chakrabarti says that Facebook has a moral duty to understand how these technologies are being used and what can be done to make communities like Facebook as representative, civil and trustworthy as possible.

Contrite Facebook executives were already fanning out across Europe this week to address the company’s slow response to abuses on its platform, such as hate speech and foreign influence campaigns.

U.S. lawmakers have held hearings on the role of social media in elections, and this month Facebook widened an investigation into the run-up to Britain’s 2016 referendum on EU membership.

Chakrabarti expressed Facebook’s regrets about the 2016 U.S. elections, when according to the company Russian agents created 80,000 posts that reached around 126 million people over two years.

The company should have done better, he wrote, and he said Facebook was making up for lost time by disabling suspect accounts, making election ads visible beyond the targeted audience and requiring those running election ads to confirm their identities.

Twitter and Alphabet Inc’s Google and YouTube have announced similar attempts at self-regulation.

Chakrabarti said Facebook had helped democracy in ways, such as getting more Americans to register to vote.

Sunstein, a law professor and Facebook consultant who also worked in the administration of former U.S. President Barack Obama, said in a blog post that social media was a work in progress and that companies would need to experiment with changes to improve.

Another test of social media’s role in elections lies ahead in March, when Italy votes in a national election already marked by claims of fake news spreading on Facebook.

Shortly after the government signed a new Free Trade Agreement with Singapore, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said Sri Lanka must make even more deals to its economy to grow.

“For every foreign investment, there are Sri Lankan rupees earned,” he said. “There is a lot of hope in this agreement,” the Prime Minister said

The Prime Minister was speaking at the 59th Annual General Meeting of the National Chamber of Commerce of Sri Lanka at the Kingsbury Hotel last evening.

Prime Minister Wickremesinghe said that the government was already negotiating a new Free Trade Agreement with India.

“The main point is the removal of non-tariff barriers,” he said.

“Another trade deal with China is in the works,” the Prime Minister added.

“(There) is a market of over 3.5 billion people at our doorstep,” he said.

Prime Minister Wickremesinghe said that in order for businesses to succeed there must be a paradigm shift “to make our economy more outward-looking.” He added that politics should not get in the way of development.

“This government finally wants Sri Lanka to be successful,” he said.

Prime Minister Wickremesinghe said that the Anti-Dumping Bill, which would ensure that best practices are implemented in following free trade agreements, would appear in Parliament this week, and that he expected it to pass.

“The government had originally wanted the bill passed before signing the deal with Singapore,” the Premier said.

Speaking of last year’s deal to lease part of the Hambantota port to China, the Prime Minister said the Port had been a “white elephant.”

“Now we’ve come to a joint venture agreement,the Hambantota harbour will be taken over,” he said. “Of the $1.3 billion repaid, we have already been paid $200 million … and additional $600 million has been requested.”

“If the deal sparks new developments like an oil refinery, in the end, “you yourself will be compensated,” he said.

Source : Daily News

Sri Lanka and Singapore signed a free trade agreement today (23), which will deepen economic ties and facilitates greater trade flows between the two countries.

The Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (SLSFTA) was signed by Singapore’s Minister for Trade and Industry, S Iswaran and Sri Lanka’s Minister for Development Strategies and International Trade, Malik Samarawickrama.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena witnessed the signing in Colombo.

With the deal inked, Singapore and Sri Lanka companies will gain greater access to each other’s markets across many sectors, said Singapore’s Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) in a news release.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and President Maithripala Sirisena witness the signing of the free trade agreement. (Photo: Lianne Chia)

 KEY BENEFITS INCLUDE TARIFF ELIMINATION ON MOST SINGAPORE EXPORTS, ACCESS TO GOVERNMENT PROCUREMENT

Outlining the key benefits of the agreement, MTI said Sri Lanka will over 15 years, eliminate tariffs on 80 per cent of Singapore’s exports.

This means a potential tariff savings of about S$10 million each year, it added.

The ministry said the agreement also contains one of the most liberal rules of origin, which will allow more exports from Singapore to qualify for the lower tariffs negotiated.

It includes Sri Lanka’s first treaty commitment on government procurement. This will allow Singapore companies to bid for projects by several of Sri Lanka’s large central entities and state-owned enterprises.

Singapore and Sri Lanka are also committed to granting better access to each other’s services markets, said MTI, adding that the agreement includes sectors of interest to Singapore companies in the professional and trade-related services as well as environment, construction and tourism.

The SLSFTA also covers cross-border transfers of information by electronic means and data flows. MTI said this will benefit Singapore and Sri Lanka companies given the increase in demand for e-commerce and digital services.

There are also safeguards against discriminatory treatment based on nationality and protection against expropriation.

Under the agreement, the Singapore International Arbitration Centre is listed as an institution where Investor-State disputes can be heard. MTI said this is aligned with the objective of promoting Singapore as an arbitration hub.

 SRI LANKA’S FIRST MODERN AND COMPREHENSIVE FREE TRADE AGREEMENT

The deal is Sri Lanka’s first “modern and comprehensive” free trade agreement and will, said MTI, “position Singapore as an early and supportive partner of Sri Lanka’s economic liberalisation plans and development.”

To date, Singapore companies have established a presence in Sri Lanka in sectors such as construction, infrastructure, manufacturing, food and services. There are currently about 90 Singapore companies in Sri Lanka.

MTI said Sri Lanka was Singapore’s 36th largest trading partner in 2017, and bilateral trade amounted to S$2.7 billion. Singapore’s exports to Sri Lanka totaled S$2.5 billion, while Singapore’s imports from Sri Lanka totaled S$178 million.

Singapore’s top exports to Sri Lanka include petroleum and diesel, non-monetary gold and jewellery, while top imports from Sri Lanka include motor spirit, fuel oils, perfumes, clothing accessories and wheat flour.

Speaking to Channel NewsAsia about the agreement, Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner in Singapore Nimal Weeraratne noted that both governments had found that they could come up with a “modern, comprehensive and higher value free trade agreement” between both countries.

“It will liberalise trade and service, it will improve investments into Sri Lanka, and it will give a shot in the arm to manufacturing and service,” he said.

He added that the SLSFTA would “certainly be helpful” to small and medium enterprises and other prospective investors interested in Sri Lanka.

“As a result of the provisions, the investors will be given national treatment, and national treatment would make them feel that they are part of the Sri Lankan business community,” he said. “In addition, we also have the Avoidance of Double Taxation (DTA) treaty which was ratified in January.”

“The FTA and DTA will immensely facilitate business activities for would-be Singaporean investors.”

(CNA)