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The Sri Lanka government is on an unprecedented move to acquit criminals and fraudsters through a resolution in Parliament, former State Minister of Finance and SJB lawmaker Eran Wickramaratne said.

Sri Lanka on Wednesday (14) banned 11 organisations, including the Islamic State group and Al-Qaeda, a week ahead of the second anniversary of the Easter Sunday suicide bombings which killed 279 people. Anyone linked to the groups - the other nine of which are local religious and social organisations - faces up to 20 years in jail, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa said in a gazette notification.

Ahead of the anniversary, the country's Roman Catholics had threatened to take to the streets over what they say is the government's failure to act against those responsible for the attacks.

Some of the groups banned Wednesday had previously been linked to the lead bomber.

The move, made under the Prevention of Terrorism Act, was "in furtherance of the efforts of the government of Sri Lanka made in good faith for the purpose of ensuring the continuance of peace within the country", Rajapaksa said.

The seven Sri Lankans who attacked three churches and three hotels in April 2019 had pledged allegiance to the IS leader at the time, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

However, investigators said they had found no evidence of direct links to IS.

Two local groups said to be directly linked to the attacks were banned in 2019, but a presidential investigation into the bombings wanted similar Islamic groups outlawed too.

All seven bombers died and no other suspects have been charged.

Colombo's Archbishop Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, has demanded swift action not just against those responsible, but against the politicians and officials who failed to stop them.

The investigation found that then president Maithripala Sirisena and his intelligence leaders were warned by India about the attacks 17 days before they were staged.

The United States has filed action against three Sri Lankans over the bombings. Five US nationals were among 45 foreigners killed in the blasts.

The inquiry, whose report was released earlier this year, also recommended that Buddhist organisations accused of instigating intercommunal unrest before and after the bombings be banned, but none were named in Wednesday's decree.

The government is compelled to dispel the Sri Lankan public's and neighboring India’s concerns over Chinese dominance mainly in administration, military maritime and aviation issues which will crop during the implementation of the legally challenged Port City Economic Commission Bill, foreign affairs analysts said.

The Sri Lankan public is really worried about the powers vested in the commission over the Western Provincial Council and the Colombo Municipality in the governance of the newly added area spanning 269 hectares of reclaimed land from the sea.

The major issue in foreign affairs of Sri Lanka is the Indian authority's concern on China’s increasing presence in the Indian ocean and aviation advantages along with military matters, several experts and analysts of foreign and current affairs said.

The New Port City Commission Bill has renewed concern in India that the project will give China a naval base just 150 miles off India’s southeast coast.

Sri Lanka’s strategic positioning between the Strait of Malacca and China’s new base at Djibouti make Port City more than a construction project and it has become a barometer of Chinese influence in South Asia.

Conversely, the tangled history of this project shows the limits of India’s ability to project power in its immediate region, foreign affairs analysts said.

One of the serious issues which will arise in the implementation of the bill is the air space over the Chinese-held area which would be controlled exclusively by China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC), a Chinese government-owned construction company.

According to Article 01 and 02 of the Chicago Convention on Civil Aviation, 1944 – to which Sri Lanka is a signatory – China would have exclusive rights over the air space above the reclaimed land that would constitute Colombo Port City, aviation experts pointed out.  

The land had been given to China on a 99-year lease basis, they said, adding that Sri Lanka’s Civil Aviation Act No. 14 of 2010 and Air Navigation Act No. 15 of 1950 were enacted in line with the Chicago Convention of Civil Aviation, making Sri Lanka bound to the terms of the international convention, to which 191 countries are signatories.

Meanwhile, Chinese diplomatic sources noted that the reclaimed land of Port City is part of Sri Lanka's territory and therefore, Sri Lanka has complete and exclusive sovereignty over the reclaimed land and the air space above it.

Any individual or company's ownership right or right of use of land does not affect sovereignty, official sources claimed.

State Minister of Finance Ajith Nivard Cabraal on Friday (16) hailed the proposed legislation for the Port City Commission as a “turning point” for the overall economy and insisted sufficient safeguards have been built into the Bill to protect Sri Lankan interests and ensure compliance under local laws.

He pointed out that oversight of any tax concessions, licences, investment approvals or regulatory decisions, which would be done by the commission with the concurrence of regulators, such as the Central Bank or the Auditor General.

He also emphasised that such decisions would be gazetted, with the documents presented to Parliament within a period of three months, or they would become defunct.

The Leader of the United National Party (UNP), former Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe is slated to assume the UNP's vacant national list seat in the month of June, party chairman Vajira Abeywardena said.

Speaking at a media briefing in Galle, Abeywardena said that the UNP was unanimous in their decision to select Wickremesinghe to represent the party in parliament.

Several opposition Tamil and Muslim party leaders as well as Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) parliamentarians had recently called on the former Prime Minister and urged him to take up the UNp national list seat.

A senior official of the Prime Minister's Media Division rejected news reports which claimed that Ministers Vasudeva Nanayakkara, Wimal Weerawansa and Udaya Gammanpila had walked out of the party leaders meeting held under the patronage of Premier Mahinda Rajapaksa today (19).

The Convener of the Movement for the Protection of Public Rights Asela Sampath has been arrested by the Police a short while ago. A video on his Facebook page showed him being taken into police custody at his residence.

Police Media Division confirmed that Asela Sampath has been arrested but didn’t provide any further details on what charges he was arrested.

Asela Sampath and Trade Minister Bandula Gunawardena had been arguing in the media recently over the relief package worth Rs. 1000 comprising essential food items provided by the Trade Minister through Sathosa outlets.

Minister Gunawardane went so far as to lodge a complaint with the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) against Asela Sampath for allegedly making false accusations with regard to the relief package provided by him through Sathosa outlets.

The Lawyers for Democracy Movement has expressed concerns regarding the Colombo Port City bill during a media briefing on Sunday (18).

With the aim of further elevating China –Sri Lanka strategic economic and defence cooperation, a high level Chinese official will be visiting the island this month amidst current American and Indian prominence in the region.  

China’s Defence Minister General Wei Fenghe will arrive in Sri Lanka later this month to hold bilateral discussions with Government leaders and officials, making it one of the highest level visits undertaken by a Chinese government official since the Rajapaksa government was sworn into power.

According to informed sources at the Foreign Ministry, the final dates of General Wei’s arrival are yet to be received but the visit is confirmed to take place after the Sinhala and Tamil New Year.

During his visit, Wei will hold discussions with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa and other leading government officials. This is the second highest visit to be undertaken by a Chinese official to Sri Lanka following senior Chinese diplomat, Yang Jiechi’s visit in October.

Meanwhile, dates are being finalised for President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s visit to Beijing following a fresh invitation extended by President Xi Jinping during recent discussion held between the two leaders earlier this month, sources said.

President Rajapaksa had assured his Chinese counterpart he would undertake a formal visit as soon as the travel restrictions ease due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the visit is likely to take place some time next month.

Sri Lanka and India have taken a progressive step to integrate expertise in the area of science and technology with scientists from both the nations gearing up to undertake joint research.

Celebrating 75 years of India’s independence in Sri Lanka, Sri Lankan children from care homes converged in Colombo from all across Sri Lanka over 10-11 April 2021 for the final round of the nationwide painting competition organized by Colombo Expatriates Cultural Association (CECA) - a voluntary organization of expatriates consisting of mainly Indians - with support of the High Commission of India, Ministry of Education of Government of Sri Lanka and several other partners.

Education Minister Prof. G.L Peiris and Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka Gopal Baglay graced the occasion as the Chief Guest and the Guest of Honour respectively at the final round.

Several other dignitaries including State Minister Piyal Nishantha were also present.  The dignitaries lauded the effort as a shining example of strong people-to-people ties between India and Sri Lanka and stressed the enormous significance of the enriching experience for the children.

 The competition was held in three categories – Sub Junior, Junior and Senior. The first round of the competition had seen enthusiastic participation of 4,375 students from child care homes across Sri Lanka. Contestants from all provinces who had produced sixty best paintings were invited along with one care-giver for the final round held in Colombo on 10 April at Hotel Taj Samudra.

While the top three winners in all the three categories were awarded SLR 100,000, SLR 75,000 and SLR 50,000 respectively in addition to various other gifts, certificates and medals, all the 60 finalists received cash awards, desktop computers, and other gifts contributed by various sponsors.

The event also formed part of ‘India @ 75’ celebrations in Sri Lanka which comprised events and activities in the run up to completion of 75 years of India’s Independence in August 2022.  

Prime Minister of India Shri Narendra Modi had launched these celebrations in India on 12 March 2021, 75 weeks before the 75th Anniversary of Independence.

In Sri Lanka, formal launch of these celebrations took place on 9 April 2021 with the inauguration of ‘India Corner’ at the Nagananda Institute for Buddhist Studies.

The proposed Colombo Port City Economic Commission Bill will turn the Colombo Port City - a dream project of Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa - into a Chinese colony, Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) alleged. JVP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake said on Monday (12) that the bill would allow the Port City to function beyond the existing laws of the country.

He further added that the proposed bill which was included in the Order Paper of Parliament would empower the president to appoint a Colombo Port City Economic Commission which includes five or seven members named by him.

Under the bill, the commission would be empowered with special financial power and judicial immunity, he claimed.

Local businesses, he said, would not be allowed to establish laws in the post-city areas. Another controversial clause is the payment of salary to the staff working in the port city zone. The rules will empower the commission to pay salaries to employees even in foreign currencies.

There was a threat of the Port City becoming a separate territory with independent powers devoid of common laws of the country, he said. He stressed the need to defeat it being enacted in Parliament.

Accordingly, the JVP has decided to file a petition with the Supreme Court today (15) challenging the Colombo Port City Economic Commission Bill.

Meanwhile, The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA) and the Association of Information Technology Professionals (AITP) have also filed petitions before the Supreme Court today challenging the Colombo Port City Economic Commission Bill.  

The petitions were filed by CPA Executive Director P. Saravanamuttu and AITP Chairman Engineer Kapila Renuka Perera on behalf of their respective organisations.