News

United States (US) Acting Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs Alice Wells is to visit Sri Lanka next week as part of her official tour to the Indian subcontinent.

Wells is on tour of Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and India during her 11-day official.

The US diplomat is visiting India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka from 6th-16th August and is currently in Pakistan as the first leg of her tour.

She is expected in Sri Lanka early next week.

“Acting Assistant Secretary Wells will hold bilateral consultations on issues of mutual interest with senior government officials in Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and India, in addition to meetings with business leaders and civil society,” the US State Department has stated.

Sri Lanka’s trade with Asia’s fastest growing economy is set to surge when both countries meet for Ministerial trade talks later this year -after almost three years, the Ministry of Industry and Commerce said.

The Bangladesh Joint Committee for Economic & Technical Co-operation (SL-BJCETC) at Ministerial Level was last held in Colombo on 9th November 2016.

During the 2016 SL-BJCETC session, ideas were exchanged between the two countries on the proposed Bangladesh-Sri Lanka Bilateral Free Trade Agreement.

Also, the draft Bilateral Investment Promotion & Protection Agreement (BIPPA), cooperation between the Investment Authorities in Bangladesh (BIDA) and Sri Lanka (BOI), and the draft MoU on standards between BSTI and SLSI were discussed –they later became a reality when MoUs were signed in 2017.

The proposed bilateral FTA aims at boosting total trade to higher levels beyond current $150 Mn levels. According to the Department of Commerce, bilateral trade between both countries in 2018 (Jan-Nov) totalled $156.15 Mn in comparison to $166 Mn for all twelve months of 2017.

The balance of trade has been in favour of Sri Lanka over the years. Exports to Bangladesh were at $124 Mn (2018 Jan-Nov) growing by 34% in the five years since 2014. Sri Lanka’s main exports to Bangladesh in 2018 were plastics, cotton, knitted fabrics, soaps and fuel oil.

Even total trade has increased by 34% in the last five years–from $ 116 Mn in 2014 to $156.15 Mn in 2018 (Jan-Nov).
In July 2017, after a bilateral meeting between HE President Maithripala Sirisena and Hon Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in Dhaka, both countries signed 14 instruments some of them the result of 2016 Colombo session.

Sri Lanka and Bangladesh are members of regional trade and co-operation agreements, including the South Asian Free-Trade Area (SAFTA), the Asia Pacific Trade Agreement and the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Co-operation.

Proceedings of the Parliamentary Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) and other Sectoral Oversight Committees are to be open to the media from tomorrow (09).

Speaker Karu Jayasuriya made the announcement in parliament today (08).

He further noted that the COPE is scheduled to meet at 2.30 p.m. tomorrow and that tomorrow's COPE proceedings will be open to the media.

Permission has also been granted to release the inquiries and findings of the COPE committee to the media in the future.

The Attorney General’s Department has served indictment before the Colombo High Court on former Colombo Chief Judicial Medical Officer (JMO) Dr. Ananda Samarasekara over the murder case of former Sri Lanka national rugby player, Wasim Thajudeen.

The Dr. Samarasekara has been indicted for allegedly concealing evidence in Thajudeen’s murder case.

Dr. Samarasekara was the former Chief JMO in Colombo and performed the first post-mortem examination on Thajudeen’s charred body found in 2012.

However, when the second autopsy was carried out in 2015 after exhuming Thajudeen’s body, the chest plate, trachea (windpipe) and two long bones which had symmetrical fractures were reportedly missing.

In 2017 The CID had informed court that evidence suggested that the former JMO had acted to destroy and conceal vital evidence in Thajudeen’s murder case.

The Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) probing the Easter Sunday attacks is considering seeking more time for the Committee if it is unable to finalise the report by the three month deadline of the PSC.

Chairman of the PSC, Deputy Speaker of Parliament Ananda Kumarasiri has said that the members of the PSC will discuss with Speaker Karu Jayasuriya on extending the term of the Committee by another month if it is unable to prepare the report on the Easter Sunday attacks by the end of the PSC’s term.

The PSC was mandated to produce its final report either within three months from its inaugural meeting or before the completion of three months from the date of formation.

Speaker Jayasuriya announced on May 23rd, the members of the PSC chaired by Deputy Speaker Kumarasinghe and including Minister Rauff Hakeem, MP Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka, Minister Ravi Karunanayake, MP Ashu Marasinghe, MP Jayampathy Wickramaratne, MP M.A. Sumanthiran, MP Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa.

The PSC has so far recorded statements from the Prime Minister, State Defence Minister, former Law and Order Ministers, senior government officials, intelligence chiefs, investigators in to the attacks, religious leaders and Muslim political leaders.

Former Navy Commander, Admiral Wasantha Karannagoda and former Air Force Chief, Air Chief Marshal Roshan Goonetileke are now on par with Field Marshal, MP Sarath Fonseka following the awarding of the highest honorary ranks in the armed forces by President Maithripala Sirisena.

President Sirisena has awarded the rank of Admiral of the Fleet to Admiral Wasantha Karannagoda former Commander of the Sri Lanka Navy (2005 –2009) and the honorary rank of Marshal of the Air Force to Air Chief Marshal Roshan Goonetileke former Commander of the Sri Lanka Air Force (2006 – 2011).

The announcement was made through the extraordinary gazette notification issued yesterday (6).

The honorary ranks were awarded in appreciation of the outstanding gallantry, meritorious performance and distinguished service to the nation during the humanitarian operation and the defeat of terrorism in Sri Lanka.

Chairman of the Elections Commission Mahinda Deshapriya says that a final decision on the holding of the delayed Provincial Council (PC) elections will have to be made within the next 10 days if Provincial elections are to be held before the presidential election this year.

"There's belief that the Provincial Council's elections could be held before the presidential election. But we know that the presidential election will be held between November 15th and December 7th. However, if a final decision on the holding of provincial election is not reached within the the next 10 days, we will not be able to hold the provincial polls before the presidential election," Deshapriya said at an event in Anuradhapura.

Meanwhile, President Maithripala Sirisena has decided to seek the opinion of the Supreme Court on the holding of provincial council elections and whether he has the power to call for elections.

The draft bill that was submitted to amend the Sri Lanka Electricity Act has been withdrawn.

Leader of the House, Minister Lakshman Kiriella informed Parliament that the Attorney General has informed that the Electricity Amendment draft bill is contrary to the constitution.

Proposed amendments to the Electricity Act 2009 are being pushed back by the stakeholders with the Sectoral Oversight Committee on Energy objecting to the changes.

The amendments to the Act affect the deposits charged by the licensee to connect to the grid, approvals given by the Public Utilities Commission, and feed-in tariff rates paid to non-conventional renewable energy resources.

Member of the Committee Prof. Ashu Marasinghe said they have objected to some of the clauses.

The amendments come following the approval given by Cabinet to change the Electricity Act to facilitate rooftop solar, which was being held back as the existing legislation requires competitive bidding for every case.

However, the proposed amendments will also affect other aspects of the Electricity Act, including powers vested with the Public Utilities Commission (PUCSL) which have been opposed by the Sectoral Oversight Committee as well as other stakeholders.

During Sectoral Oversight Committee meetings held this week, members had opposed the amendments, with Non-Cabinet Minister Harsha De Silva making strong objections to removing powers of PUCSL to approve power purchase agreements signed for emergency purchases and government-to-government contracts.

Former Sri Lanka Cricket captain Kumar Sangakkara has joined to support an initiative of the Commonwealth, “Peace at the Crease,” to help promote peace.

In a Twitter message, Commonwealth Secretary-General Patricia Scotland has stated about her meeting with the former Sri Lanka captain.

“My thanks to @KumarSanga2 for a fantastic meeting and his commitment to working with #Commonwealth to deliver Peace at the Crease,” Patricia Scotland has stated.

Meanwhile, Sangakkara has thanked the Commonwealth Secretary-General for the opportunity to be part of the initiative.
“It was indeed a pleasure and thank you for allowing me to be involved. It’s a wonderful initiative that is timely and relevant. I’m sure there will be many like minded people and institutions joining hands with #Commonwealth to deliver peace at the crease,” Sangakkara has stated.

The State Intelligence Service (SIS) during the period of November 2015 and February 2018 had given 13 intelligence reports on the Islamic State (IS) organization to then Law and Order Minister Sagala Ratnayake including reports on the National Thowheed Jamaath (NTJ).

This fact was revealed when Ratnayake testified before the Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) probing the Easter Sunday attacks yesterday (6).

Ratnayake has told the Committee that he had received 13 intelligence reports on the IS organization including one on the NTJ, which was responsible for the Easter Sunday attacks.

He has further stated that the then Defence Secretary had also provided him with a report based on a question raised by him regarding the organisation.

However, Ratnayake has refused to submit the SIS’s information received by him to the PSC saying it could impede their activities. The Minister has instead read out some excerpts and the titles of the content.

He has explained that one of the reports was regarding Indian nationals suspected to be linked to IS staying in Sri Lanka while some information was not related to Sri Lanka.

According to Ratnayake, one of the reports was titled “National Thowheed Jama'ath making declarations accepting ISIS ideology” and was received by him on 11-02-2016. The report had contained information about the NTJ posting on websites that the ideology of ISIS is correct.

“This is the first report I received that contained the name of Zahran,” Ratnayake has said. The NTJ leader is suspected of masterminding the April 21 attacks.

Ratnayake has further stated that he had also received a “concept paper on countering potential threats of ISIS” on August 16, 2016 signed by the then Defence Secretary Karusena Hettiarachchi.

He has further stated that he held a meeting with the Defence Secretary and other heads of security as well as intelligence chiefs on the matter.

“I said the ISIS terrorist threat is everywhere in the world now and that we have to have some preparation regarding that,” he has stated.

Ratnayake has added that in February 2017 a special unit within the Terrorism Investigations Division (TID) was formed to deal with religious extremism in the country and this unit was instructed to look into Zahran.
Ratnayake has also noted that intelligence sharing is very as this process was supposed to initiate intelligence sharing within the country.

“I think intelligence sharing with the international intelligence agencies has gone very well. Because you see the results of that. But I am not sure what happened locally. That I don’t know,” he has said, adding that he had left office in February 2018.
“Because they didn’t report to me I can’t verify how much intelligence sharing took place, but certainly that was the idea,” he has added.

Ratnayake has said the idea was on paper, but he cannot say whether it actually happened on ground.

Referring to the intelligence organization, SIS, Ratnayake has said it had a good reporting structure, adding that although the SIS was a branch of the police it reported to the Defence Ministry.

Ministers and parliamentarians of the United National Party (UNP) have decided to stop all personal meetings with former Defence Secretary, Gotabhaya Rajapaksa.

Gotabhaya is all set to be named as the presidential candidate of the Rajapaksa led Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP).

The decision to stop all personal meetings with Gotabhaya was compelled by the fact that he is to become a presidential candidate of the opposition and the growing concerns over reports of meetings that have taken place between senior UNP ministers and Gotabhaya, a senior UNP member told The Leader.

The issue of UNP ministers meeting with Gotabhaya came to light when UNP Chairman, Minister Kabir Hashim who visited Gotabhaya at his residence in Nugegoda to inquire after his health since had returned to the country after surgery, walked in on Minister Sagala Ratnayake having a secret meeting with the "Pohottuwa" presidential hopeful.

It is learnt that several UNP MPs had raised concerns over Ratnayake, whom they claim has had several secret meetings with Rajapaksa.

Ratnayake however, has said that he had visited Gotabhaya to inquire into his well being.

State Minister of Defence Ruwan Wijewardena says there’s a certain amount of instability since five defence secretaries were appointed from 2015 to date and that the State Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Defence generally function as two separate entities.

Testifying before the Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) probing Easter Sunday attacks yesterday (6), Wijewardena has stated that he felt the intelligence service had their own autonomy, rather than working together.

The State Minister has noted that the Security Council meetings in 2017 had discussed the clashes between two mosques in Kattankudy as a result of extremist activities in the area, but possible terror attacks were not subjected to discussion.

He has further noted that he had noted received forewarnings prior to the Easter Sunday attacks and that he had gotten to know of the forewarnings received by the intelligence units only after the attacks.

He has further explained that he was called to the Security Council meetings before the 51-day Constitutional crisis took place last year and following the crisis, the President and the Prime Minister were not on good terms.

“I believe that is why we were not summoned to the meetings afterwards,” Wijewardena has noted.

The State Minister has admitted that the intelligence coordination meetings and Security Council meetings had discussed the clashes between two factions in Kattankudy and those who left for Syria and returned to the country but not the terrorist attacks or the formation of terrorist groups.