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The decision to divest Hilton and Hyatt hotels, which are non-strategic holdings of the Government, was decided by the Cabinet of Ministers and proposed in several budget speeches, the Ministry of Finance and Media said in a statement today (22) .

Hyatt Hotel, which is partially completed has so far cost the Employees Provident Fund, Sri Lanka Insurance and Litro gas, all state-owned organizations and accountable to the people, over Rs 15 billion. Furthermore, these same state organizations would have to put more money and give guarantees to banks for a much higher amount to complete the hotel. Public money, especially that of the EPF, should not be spent on building hotels, where the returns on investment can take many years. Therefore, the Hyatt hotel has to be divested to a reputable investor with the financial strength to complete the hotel without this being a burden to the State.
 
The Hilton Hotel, which has been profitable, to reach its full potential and compete with newer hotels needs to upgrade the hotel rooms, which have not been done for 30 years. The cost of refurbishment is expected to over Rs 4 billion. Also, this hotel has a foundation built for an additional hotel tower and 2 acres of land on which new investment in commercial property or serviced apartments can take place. As a Government owned enterprise, the hotel does not have the financial strength to undertake these new investments and if it does, the Government will have to fund this or expensive loans have to be taken. Therefore, it is justified to divest this hotel to a financially strong investor who can proceed with these new investments and generate more employment opportunities.
 
Importantly, the Treasury, EPF, Insurance Corporation and Litro Gas can put the money received from the divestiture to better use for the benefit of the public. In addition, the Government is committed to give a number of shares in the Hilton hotel to its employees on a scheme to be finalised and advised in due course. Therefore it is in the best interest of all stakeholders and the country’s economy to attract new foreign and local private investments into these assets.
 
On the divestiture process, the government is following a transparent mechanism. First, since this is an investment, it is required that investors are provided with a detailed information memorandum that would enable them to carry out a due diligence and investment appraisal. Therefore, the Government decided to appoint an independent financial adviser with offices globally who has experience in divesting hotel assets. Via a cabinet appointed consultancy procurement committee, after issuing a RFP, Lazard Asia of Singapore and MTI Consulting of Sri Lanka were selected as financial advisers with the approval of the Cabinet. They were selected out of 16 international local and foreign financial advisory firms who responded.
 
Then a Cabinet Appointed Negotiating Committee will be appointed to overlook the divestiture process with the assistance of the Financial Advisers and National Agency for Public Private Partnership. The first step in the process is to call for expressions of interest. This is only for the purpose of identifying who the bidding party is. Via the EOI advertisement placed, interested parties have to indicate their business, financial strength and which hotel asset they have an interest in purchasing. When they contact the financial advisers, the investors will be sent a simple one page format to fill out basic information about themselves and information on the hotels that is non-confidential will be given to them. If investors need more time to respond to the one page format, they can request for this. Therefore, the expression of interest does NOT require a priced bid.
 
Meanwhile, Lazard and MTI through their global offices have already begun to reach out to international real estate investors covering many countries.
 
Why this is being done this way is that both hotels are governed by management agreements with Hilton and Hyatt International hotel management companies and these agreements have confidentiality clauses, which restricts the hotel owning companies from releasing sensitive commercial information.
 
It is for this reason that parties who express interest will be first shortlisted and then bound to sign a Non-Disclosure and Confidentiality Agreement. Only after this is signed will the interested investors (not brokers) be given more than 100 pages of detailed financial and other information and given access to a security controlled data room. It is after this that the transparent bidding process will start under supervision of the relevant Cabinet appointed committee, where prospective investors will have ample time over several months to prepare financial bids and bid conditions.

The government is taking measures to release the private lands taken into custody of the Tri‑Forces during the period of conflict in the Northern and Eastern Provinces to the original owners of those lands.
 
Plans are in progress to release a 23-acre block of land in Mullikulam, Mannar, a block of 53 acres of land in Mullivaikal, Mullaitivu held in the custody of the Sri Lanka Navy and a 3-acre block of land in Thoppur, Trincomalee where the 224 Brigade Headquarters of the Sri Lanka Army has been established, to the original owners of the lands, a statement on cabinet decisions said.
 
Also, in order to enable the people to be resettled in those areas to maintain sustainable livelihood activities, three small tanks so identified will be renovated while developing the infrastructure facilities in such areas and handing them over to the original owners.
 
Accordingly, a proposal made by Minister of Resettlement, Rehabilitation, Northern Development & Hindu Religious Affairs D.M. Swaminathan to re‑establish such facilities enabling to release the lands being occupied by the Tri‑Forces and to secure the funds required for the development of infrastructure facilities in the areas, was approved by the Cabinet. (ColomboPage)

Two elephants were killed and another critically injured on Sunday while crossing railway tracks in Sri Lanka, officials said, in yet another tragic collision involving the protected animals and speeding trains.

A Jaffna-bound night train rammed into two elephants at Ambanpola, 150 kilometres north of Colombo, killing one and injuring the other.
In a separate accident, a passenger train derailed after hitting and killing an elephant near Palugaswewa, 160 kilometres north-east of Colombo.

No passengers were injured in either accident.

"Train services have been disrupted, but we are working to remove the carcass and repair the track on the eastern line," an official said by telephone.

Speed restrictions are imposed on trains passing through elephant habitats but these are difficult to enforce.

Only 10 per cent of Sri Lanka's trains are believed to be equipped with speedometers, local media reported Sunday.

Two weeks ago, a passenger train struck and killed three elephants. A fortnight before that, a mother elephant and her two calves were hit and killed in the east of the country.

Sri Lanka considers elephants a national treasure and they are protected by law.

But conflicts between humans and elephants near wildlife sanctuaries remains a problem.

Official figures show 1,200 elephants have been killed by humans in the past five years, with 375 people trampled to death by the beasts.

The government announced in August it would erect 2,651 kilometres of electric fencing to keep elephants out of villages bordering wildlife reserves.

It is estimated there are 7,500 wild elephants in Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka’s government is committed to further opening up the economy and import controls imposed recently are temporary moves to protect the economy, Minister of Finance and Media Mangala Samaraweera said. 

Speaking at a Retailer's Forum, Samaraweera noted that the recent, rapid depreciation of the rupee is largely due to external factors. 

"The recent depreciation of the rupee was largely due to external factors as the US interest rate hike, trade wars, and rising oil prices, have resulted in global investors taking capital out of emerging and frontier markets," he said.

Samaraweera said that however, from a policy perspective, the government has taken all necessary measures to address the factors that are within the government's control. 

The recent hike in import duty on small cars and the introduction of market-determined fuel prices are key policies to address the two sectors that caused a sharp increase in imports in 2018, he said.

“It was a tsunami of vehicles – we had to take measures to stop this flow,” Samaraweera said. 

 "I must stress that these are temporary measures ", Samaraweera added while noting that the cash margins on vehicle imports and restrictions placed on non-essential imports will be reviewed regularly.

India's External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj called on visiting Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe on Saturday and reviewed progress on development projects being implemented on the island nation with India’s aid.

“Continuing commitment to deepen our partnership with a close friend,” External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted following the meeting.

Swaraj and Wickremesinghe also discussed ways to boost ties between the two countries. 

Home Minister Rajnath Singh also called on Wickremesinghe on Saturday to discuss issues related to security and anti-terror cooperation between India and Sri Lanka. 

Wickremesinghe arrived here on Thursday on a three-day visit to boost ties in a range of areas, including trade, investment and maritime security. This is the Lankan Premier's  fifth visit to India since assuming office in 2015.

The famed Northern lands where Sri Lanka’s chemical giant Paranthan Chemicals Company (PCC) was situated have now been earmarked for a large industrial zone which will also house Sri Lanka’s first Heavy Chemical Industry Zone. 

“Northern factories of the PCC that were discontinued in 1985 are to be revived. The site will also expand to include a Heavy Chemical Industry Zone” said the Minister of Industry and Commerce Rishad Bathiudeen, today (19), in Paranthan. 

Bathiudeen was speaking to the media after his inspection tour of the defunct Paranthan Chemical factory site.

The Paranthan factory site spreads across 227 acres and all factories were destroyed during the war. In many ways, the Northern PCC factories spurred the development of the Sri Lankan manufacturing by producing and supplying domestically made, low cost chemicals that were promptly absorbed by many local industries.  

Bathiudeen said that he plans to develop the entire Paranthan site to become an industrial zone involving general and chemical industries. 117 acres in Paranthan are allocated for chemical industries, 67 acres for revived Paranthan chemical factories and another 50 acres for a Heavy Chemical Industry Zone. 

The 50 acre chemical zone will border a 110-acre general industry zone.  The first stage targets low polluting chemical production and related industries as well as industries based on mineral resources with export market potential and processed industries that work on raw material from the area.

At present, through the PCC, Sri Lanka imports its entire annual requirement of liquid chlorine. 98% of this liquid chlorine is absorbed by the Water Supply and Drainage Board. With the recommencement of PCC factories, domestic production of Sri Lanka’s total chlorine requirement would recommence saving an estimated USD 860,000 (around LKR 147 million) annually.

In letter addressed to Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, Human Rights Watch (HRW) noted that they are concerned by media reports that Parliament may consider amendments that reduce rather than enhance the draft Counter Terrorism Act’s human rights protections in a process that excludes meaningful public scrutiny.

However, HRW also noted that the draft Counter Terrorism Act of 2018 (CTA), represents a significant improvement over previous proposals to replace the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA).

"The bill narrows definitions of terrorism acts, strengthens protections against custodial torture and coerced confessions, reduces pre-charge and pre-trial detention periods, and increases access by suspects to legal counsel and family members," HRW said.

HRW said that the bill’s list of terrorism acts should be narrowed further. 

"Detention Orders – directives that place suspects in police custody – cannot be challenged for at least 14 days and may be extended to eight weeks total, an inordinate period absent exceptional circumstances. Suspects may be jailed for up to one year without charge in contravention of international human rights law prohibitions on detention without charge", HRW added.

Revenue collected from excise duties on the sale of alcohol has dropped by LKR 7 billion during the first nine months, officials from the Excise department said. 

Senior officials pointed out at a recent meeting that there was no point in blaming the officers or the department for the loss in revenue as it is caused due to economic difficulties. 

Meanwhile, a top official of the Finance Ministry has severely reprimanded excise officers publicly at a meeting blaming them for their inefficiency in tax collection, a senior excise officer said. 

Excise Department officials have informed the Finance Ministry that the low-income level population tend to consume illicit liquor such as moonshine as liquor prices have been rising steadily over the last decade. 

They also noted that the dearth of knowledgeable officers on the subject at the Excise Department was one of the main reasons for poor tax collection.     

The Ministry of Finance expects to gain an additional revenue of around LKR 20-25 billion as a result of the increase in excise duty imposed on liquor. 

The Parliament recently passed the Excise (Amendment) Bill with new amendments including a decision to introduce a sticker for every bottle of arrack that was produced legally. 

According to ministry sources, this initiative would lead to a reduction in illicit liquor from hitting the market while increasing government revenue through excise duties. 

Keeping up with international standards, an alcohol volume based excise duty was introduced through the 2018 budget discarding the ad hoc duty structure that was in place before.

Power supply to the head office of the severely cash-strapped Ceylon Fisheries Corporation has been disconnected, as it has failed to pay Rs. four million in payment arrears, according to Sinhalese weekend paper ‘Aruna’.

While the move has affected the running of the deep freezers in the CFC creating a serious crisis, sources within the Corporation says despite the financial issues the CFC has recruited 25 labourers on casual basis which are believed to be politically motivated. 

Recently the office of chairman Hemal Gunasekara is said to have also been refurbished at a cost of Rs. one million.

Meanwhile however the CFC has also failed to pay around Rs. 40 million for the fish it has obtained from the Peliyagoda fish market. When inquired Chairman Gunasekara claimed that the outstanding electricity bill has been paid and disconnection prevented. He also said his office room refurbishment was sponsored by an acquaintance.

Australian Police are dropping terrorism charges against a NSW University student who was accused of plotting to assassinate Australian politicians, with the lawyer for the Sri Lankan national threatening legal action against the police.
 
Mohamed Kamer Nizamdeen, 25, was arrested in August and accused of writing in a notebook about plans to kill former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull and his former deputy Julie Bishop.

He was released on bail last month after prosecutors conceded a handwriting expert could not prove he had written the notes in the notebook.
 
The ABC understands police are dropping the charge of collecting or making documents likely to facilitate terrorist acts.
 
Speaking outside court on Friday, Nizamdeen’s lawyer Moustafa Kheir said the process had taken a toll on the student, who spent a month in a maximum-security prison after being charged. “He’s gone through super max jail — unforgivable circumstances.”
 
Police had alleged Nizamdeen possessed a blueprint to target several “symbolic” Sydney locations, after officers from NSW’s Joint Counter-Terrorism Team (JCTT) arrested him at Kensington, in Sydney’s south-east in August. His arrest and time in jail sparked protests in his Sri Lankan hometown, with hundreds of people gathering. Kheir said Nizamdeen would be suing the police for compensation.

“We are seeking justice through every avenue we can,” he said. “We are seeking justice in the NSW Supreme Court.”
 
Last month during his bail hearing, prosecutor Christina Choi told the Central Local Court in Sydney evidence for the charge had been “significantly weakened” after a conclusive expert opinion suggesting the defendant was the relevant author could not be found.

Nizamdeen’s lawyer said police had conducted eight hours of interviews with the student which also did not uncover anything against the suspect. “Let’s be clear, Nizamdeen today was granted bail because the case against him is extremely weak, almost non-existent,” his lawyer Moustafa Kheir said during the hearing last month.
 
The court also heard other material belonging to Nizamdeen — such as his computer, mobile phone and other documents — did not show any extremist ideology.
 
Source: ABC News

Sri Lanka has got a fresh complaint from India – this time over delaying its development projects, only days after the giant neighbour sought clarification from President Maithripala Sirisena over serious allegations reportedly made against New Delhi that Colombo has staunchly denied.
 
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has expressed bitter disappointment and regret about the Sri Lankan Government constantly delaying Indian development projects in the island, and urged Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe to pick up the pace, during talks between the two leaders in New Delhi yesterday.
 
The concerns were raised while the Government was still reeling from doing diplomatic damage control with India over remarks at the Cabinet meeting last Tuesday (16). In an unprecedentedly candid media release about the bilateral talks held at Hyderabad House in New Delhi last afternoon, the Prime Minister’s Office said the Indian Prime Minister had expressed serious disappointment on Sri Lanka’s delays in implementing the Memorandum of Understanding signed on Economic Cooperation in April 2017.
 
Premier Modi said, he had spent the most of his time allocated to diplomatic matters, on Sri Lanka, and expressed his discontent over the response of the Sri Lankan government towards the assistance given by India, the release from Wickremesinghe’s office noted. The Indian Prime Minister requested the Sri Lankan Prime Minister to discuss, without hesitation, if there were any concerns or doubts about him or the Indian government.
 
The official release said Prime Minister Wickremesinghe had stressed that neither he nor Sri Lankans have any doubt or issue about Premier Modi or the Indian Government. He further expressed his apology if any omission had created that kind of misunderstanding.
 
When he spoke with President Maithripala Sirisena about strengthening bilateral ties in Katmandu recently, the pair exchanged ideas about conducting all matters in line with the 2017 MOU, Prime Minister Modi had noted during the discussion.
 
The MoU on Economic Cooperation identifies certain areas of cooperation in infrastructure, agriculture and livestock, but specifically mentions the re-gasified LNG fired 500MW plant, an LNG Terminal with a floating re-gasification unit in Kerawalapitiya, a 15 MW solar power plant in Sampur and the Upper Tank Farm in Trincomalee – all to be jointly developed by India and Sri Lanka. Prime Minister Wickremesinghe’s three day visit to India was specifically aimed at talks about these projects and the development of the Palaly airport, the Mattala airport and the East Container Terminal through India-led investments.
 
The critical comments from the Indian Prime Minister come in the backdrop of heated arguments reported at the meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers last week, specifically referring to the proposal to lease the Colombo East Container Terminal to an Indian joint venture company in line with these agreements for economic cooperation.
 
Extending his gratitude for the support extended by India, Prime Minister Wickremesinghe assured the Indian PM that he would take necessary steps swiftly to ensure that development projects were back on their original trajectory.
The two met at Hyderabad House as Premier Wickremesinghe concluded his three-day visit to India.
 
During the meeting, Indian Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted, “Special place in our hearts for Sri Lanka. Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomes the Sri Lankan PM Ranil Wickremesinghe. At the delegation level talks, the leaders took stock of the entire range of our bilateral relations, especially the development projects in Sri Lanka.” There was no corresponding read out of the meeting from the Indian Prime Minister’s Office at the time of going to press, but highly placed sources said any official statement was unlikely to be quite as candid. Delighted to meet PM Ranil Wickremesinghe in Delhi today. We had fruitful discussions, reviewing our various aspects of India-Sri Lanka cooperation,” Prime Minister Modi tweeted from his official Twitter account.
 
Prior to that meeting, Prime Minister Wickremesinghe met Indian Home Minister Rajnath Singh and External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. During the meeting with the former, the Prime Minister discussed security and anti-terror cooperation between India and Sri Lanka.
 
On Friday (19), Prime Minister Wickremesinghe met with Indian National Security Advisor, Ajit Doval, another high level meeting during his visit. The Prime Minister of Sri Lanka also met former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Congress president Rahul Gandhi and United Progressive Alliance Chairperson Sonia Gandhi on Friday, where they discussed ‘Freedom of Navigation in the Indian Ocean’. (Sunday Observer)

The fuel pricing formula was revealed by Minister of Finance and Media Mangala Samaraweera, today (18), during a press conference held at the Treasury. 

Accordingly, the much hyped fuel pricing formula is as follows:

MRP = V1 + V2 + V3 + V4

Samaraweera said that the Maximum Retail Price (MRP) was based on four factors. They are landed cost, processing cost, administrative cost and taxation.