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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

Intelligence services have now uncovered a new plan to topple the yahapalana consensus government while causing serious damage to President Maithripala Sirisena’s image.

According to Intelligence services, the individuals behind the scheme have now put into action a new plan for the purpose after attempting the same through distorting statements made by the President regarding the bond commission report.

The plan is said to have been put in place with the aim to create a deep rift between the UNP and the President which cannot be resolved sources say.

Attempts to arrest Ravi!

One of the main incidents of this plan is the spreading of a rumour blaming former Minister of Finance for the bond issue and claiming that he is to be arrested shortly.

However, reports show that the bond commission report does not mention any connection between Ravi K and the bond issue.

Government and AG unaware!

However while the government nor the Attorney General’s department has made such a decision, sources say the false reports are being widely spread to cause a further rift within the consensus government intelligence services said.

Bond commission recommendations distorted further

While the commission report does not refer to Ravi K as a guilty party however as this information reaching the public is unfavourable to the conspirators they are now distorting the recommendations of the bond commission by spread false rumours among the people.

The conspirators are attempting to now claim that the former Minister is expected to be arrested for giving false statements to the government while the offence false under the category of crimes where the suspect cannot be granted bail for at least three months.

Non-existent commission

The main distortion here is the question as to under which criteria was the Presidential commission labelled as equipped with ‘full power’. While there can be two types of Presidential Commissions, namely Special Presidential Commission and a normal Presidential Commission, special commissions can even abolish the civil rights of an individual based on evidence such as was done to former PM Sirimavo Bandaranaike and Felix Dias Bandaranaike. However, that too was only possible after calling for a vote in the parliament and receiving ⅔ votes in favour of it.

However, a normal Presidential commission has no power to do so and can only make certain recommendations based on the evidence gathered. The legal process or relevant action is thereafter decided by the Attorney General.

However, it must be noted that the extraordinary gazette announcing the formation of the bond commission on January 27, 2017, makes no mention of the commission being the special Presidential commission. (The Gazette can be read at the end of this article)

Do the commission's recommendations put Ravi in the wrong?

According to legal experts claiming that the recommendations name Ravi K as a guilty party and saying he is to be arrested for giving false statements is nothing but an insult to the Commission itself by the conspirators.

However, the correct relevant sections of the recommendations are as follows :

 24] As stated earlier in chapter 24 we recommend that the commission to investigate allegations of bribery or corruption should consider whether Hon. Ravi Karunanayake, MP while he was Minister of Finance derived a substantial benefit from the lease payments made by Walt and Row Associates (Pvt) Ltd (Which is an associate company of Perpetual Treasuries Ltd. and which is owned and controlled by the same persons who own and control Perpetual Treasuries Ltd.) for the lease of apartment occupied by Hon. Ravi Karunanayake MP and his family, and if so determine whether appropriate action should be taken against Hon. Ravi Karunanayake, MP under the Bribery Act.

25] As stated earlier in Chapter 24 we also recommend that the Hon. Attorney General and other appropriate authorities consider whether some of the evidence given by Hon. Ravi Karunanayake MP, before us is shown to have been incorrect and if that is the case whether Mr Karunanayake should be prosecuted under Section 179 and/or Section 188 of the Penal Code or other relevant provisions of the law read with Section 9 of the Commissions of Inquiry Act. No. 17 of 1948.

Unstoppable conspiracy

Accordingly, there is no mention of Ravi K as being guilty with regards to the bond commission. The conspirators are merely trying to save face following the recommendations made by the commission.

It also has to be noted that if an arrest is to take place according to the recommendations for providing false information then it can only be done so after following due legal proceedings. An arrest cannot take place unless this process is followed. However, the commission report does not say that Ravi K provided false information to the commission.

Letter of the Secretary to the President

The letter sent by former Secretary to the President informing of the Presidential Committee is also noteworthy. According to this letter, the evidence gathering for the investigation of the commission was done under ‘S. 14’ of the Commissions of Inquiry Act.

What does S.14 say?

According to S. 14, the evidence gathered by the commission can only be used for the related investigation and cannot be used for a civil or criminal case before the courts.

However, as the functions of the commissions are similar to court proceedings giving false statements to it is a punishable offence. If the commission so believed it could have taken action to bring forward any individual found to have given false statements to the commission during investigations before the Court of Appeal.

However the commission report does not make any definite mention of it and instead says :

25] As stated earlier in Chapter 24 we also recommend that the Hon. Attorney General and other appropriate authorities consider whether some of the evidence given by Hon. Ravi Karunanayake MP, before us is shown to have been incorrect and if that is the case whether Mr Karunanayake should be prosecuted under Section 179 and/or Section 188 of the Penal Code or other relevant provisions of the law read with Section 9 of the Commissions of Inquiry Act. No. 17 of 1948.

 Therefore it is clear the conspirators are attempting to bring down Ravi Karunanayake as an initial step to create a rift and topple the government. This is further evidenced by the fact that the conspirators published yet another story about Premier Ranil Wickramasinghe being found to be in the wrong according to the recommendations just 24 hours after spreading the false rumour regarding Ravi K’s imminent arrest.

Bond report on the internet

However, any party can now ascertain the truth about these false news stories with the bond commission report being freely available for reading online.

But according to intelligence reports use of statements made by President Sirisena and distorting it and carrying them along with the distorted news being spread by the conspirators to create a rift in the government are now harming the image of the President.

President’s popularity fading

While the intelligence services have done a research based on social media and several chosen fields with active public participation shows that the President’s popularity among the people and trust placed in him is now fading.

They also say this may negatively affect the votes of the SLFP in the upcoming LG polls while new votes obtained in 2015 are also said to be at a risk of slipping away.

Where are the President’s advisors?

Sources say the advisors to the President are not doing their duty with many campaigns launched to improve the popularity of the President have instead backfired on them.

Sources have also revealed that under the current situation chances to attract new votes are slipping away with the party supported by the President set to be affected negatively as a result.

President’s media team is said to also be using old Rajapaksa tactics for popularity but is instead now damaging the popularity of the president sources said.

These report also claim that President Sirisena is now facing a similar situation Rajapaksa had to face after 2009 where his popularity waned mong the general public.

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.

The US government officially shutdown on Friday for the first time in five years after the Senate rejected a short-term spending bill to keep the federal government running. T

he shutdown began at 12:01 am (local time) after a few Republicans joined Democrats in blocking the crucial measure would have provided short-term funding for the Pentagon and other federal agencies, the foreign media reported.

Responding to the situation in the US, the US Embassy in Colombo said in a tweet message, “At this time, scheduled passport and visa services at the U.S. Embassy will continue during the lapse in appropriations as the situation permits. The American Center is closed until further notice.”

However scheduled passport visa services are continuing as usual the Embassy said.

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

The Japanese government plans to expand the assistance it provides for strengthening naval security capacities to nations in the Indian Ocean, sources said.

The goal is to gain support for the joint Japan-U.S. “free and open Indo-Pacific Strategy,” which was launched out of concern over China’s hegemonic naval expansion. Aid will first be given to Sri Lanka and Djibouti, which are located in important sea lanes, the sources said. Specifically, members of Japan Coast Guard’s new “mobile cooperation teams” would be dispatched to both nations sometime this year.
The teams, which were formed last year, will conduct such programs as holding drills on cracking down on illegal fishing boats using small, high-speed vessels and giving lectures on the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea and other relevant laws, the sources said.

Japan is already helping Southeast Asian countries strengthen their naval security capacities. Some aid has gone to Vietnam and the Philippines, which are involved in territorial disputes with China over the South China Sea.

The rush to provide aid to Sri Lanka and Djibouti was prompted by both nations’ requests for cooperation on fighting piracy and other issues, as well as by progress China has made in building ports and other “important footholds” in these nations.

Sri Lanka leased the Hambantota Port, which was built in its southern region with Chinese help, to a Chinese company for 99 years. Djibouti is home to China’s first overseas naval base, which began operations in August.

By providing aid to Sri Lanka and Djibouti, the Japanese government hopes it can deepen its ties with these nations and prevent Chinese influence from growing.

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

Police officers were charged by elephants while staking out a suspected cannabis farm, dropping an automatic rifle amid the chaos.

The policemen had been camping outside a plantation in Sri Lanka in the hope of catching the alleged marijuana growers.

But the officers were forced to run for their lives as the animals hurtled towards them.

Police are now searching for the T56 automatic assault rifle in the Lunugamvehera nature reserve, 140 miles south of the country's capital Colombo.

In a statement, police said: "The constables dropped their weapons and fled to save their lives when the elephants charged."

The incident comes as figures show about 50 people are killed in wild elephant attacks each year in Sri Lanka.

However, about 200 elephants are killed each year by farmers who claim the wild animals stray onto their land and destroy crops.

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.

The Special Task Force (STF) Police and the anti-riot squad have been deployed to provide security for Kataragama police and maintain law and order after tensions erupted following the shooting death of a motorcyclist in the city.

Kataragama Police say a large number of people, who hurled stones and attacked the police station after the incident, were arrested.

 Twenty police officers suffered minor injuries as a result of stone attack, and several properties were damaged, Kataragama Police said.

 According to the police 44 men and 13 women were asserted and they were to be produced before the magistrate today.

 Law and Order Minister Sagala Ratnayake said a CID team has been sent to Kataragama to probe the death of a motorcyclist following a Police shooting and one police officer has already been arrested.

 He urged the public to remain calm and maintain peace. Police have been instructed to work with the villagers to quell the situation, he said.

The tense situation arose after a police officer on night patrol opened fire at the motorcyclist after he disregarded an order to stop at a security point on Saturday night.

 A large mob protesting the police shooting blocked the Tissa-Kataragama road burning tires. Police fired tear gas to disperse the protesters attacking the police station.

The deceased has been identified as Pathiranage Niroshan, a 25-year-old resident of Nagahahuwa, Kataragama. He was a tractor driver of the Kataragama Pradeshiya Sabha.

 The police constable involved in the shooting was arrested and produced before the Tissamaharama Magistrate. He was remanded until January 30.

Police Special Task Force (STF) officers and the anti-riot squad have been deployed for the protection of Kataragama Police Station and investigations have been launched to apprehend a former local politician and a few others who have been involved in the incident, Tangalle Division Superintendent of Police Laksiri Githal told BBC Sinhala Service.

 Source : Colombo Page

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)

Veteran journalist Jatila Wellabada (56), a former Chief Editor of Lakbima and Irudina newspapers passed away yesterday.

He was working as a Consultant (News) to the Independent Television Network (ITN) at the time of his death. His journalism career began as a reporter for the Divaina newspaper in 1984. He soon gained a reputation as a political analyst, columnist and editorialist.

He was appointed as the Chief Editor of the Lakbima Daily in 2002, a post which he held for 10 years. He then became Chief Editor of the Irudina Sunday newspaper. He also headed the Front Page and Savana websites.

An old boy of Ananda College, Colombo, Wellabada received journalism training from several prestigious foreign institutions. He functioned as a member of the Panel of Judges of the Journalism Awards of Excellence for several years and as the Secretary of the Editors Guild of Sri Lanka. He was also a lecturer at Sri Jayawardhanapura and Kelaniya Universities.

He is survived by his wife Priyadharshani and two children. His remains are at his residence near the Raja Maha Viharaya, Kelaniya. The funeral will take place at 5 p.m. on January 24 (Wednesday) at the Pilapitya Cemetery, Kelaniya.