Dilrook Kannangara

In an unprecedented development, US Democratic Congresswoman Deborah Ross (NC) and US Republican Congressman Bill Johnson (OH) introduced a bipartisan Resolution last week calling for a referendum for Eelam Tamils to be democratically and equitably represented” as well as a lasting peaceful political solution”.

This has been played down by local news media for obvious reasons. However, it is a serious matter. The resolution may or may not pass the US Congress but it is only a start of what will be a series of US attempts to push for a referendum for Tamil Eelam – a separate nation for Tamils in the island of Sri Lanka. What is more worrying is the initial resolution has bipartisan support from both the Democratic Party and the Republican Party though the exact number of congresspersons backing it is yet to be seen. As mentioned above, this will not be the last of its kind if it fails this time. USA will continue to push for a referendum for Tamil Eelams over and over again.

Interestingly this came at a time when the US president was meeting the Indian PM at the G7 Summit held in Hiroshima, Japan. This is the happy convergence of US and Indian interests. Both nations and QUOD alliance benefit from the creation of Tamil Eelam.

Sri Lanka must have a Plan A and a Plan B (more important than Plan A) to minimize the damage, ensure equal rights and equity. Insane utopian solutions (unfortunately the most popular kind of solutions among loud patriots) will only lead to the creation of multiple Tamil Eelams within the island while their hunt imaginary geese (peace).

Plan A – Resist All Attempts to Hold a Referendum to Divide the Island Nation Without Compromises

Most Sri Lankans today would not support the division of the island nation into multiple nations. It will cause inconvenience and possibly violence too going by similar events in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, East Timor, Sudan, etc. For this reason, Sri Lanka must resist holding a referendum to appease separatists.

However, the demand to hold a referendum may be a red herring to cover up a more sinister plan – using it to terrorize the government and the people to extort undue favours for the Tamil community at the expense of others. This is far worse than the division of the island nation.

Firstly, because it creates inequity, unequal rights, injustice to ethnic Sinhalas and Muslims. Secondly, such inequity leads to civil unrest and clashes. Thirdly, such targeted appeasements for the Tamil community will economically deprive 84% of the population resulting in a severe economic downturn. Fourthly, even if these compromises are given to appease separatists to remain within one nation, they will extort whatever they can and again demand Tamil Eelam a year later. This has been the separatist extortion cycle since 1985 Thimpu Talks. These compromises have ruined Sri Lanka economically, politically and militarily.

Plan B –Tamil Eelam to Essentially Accompany Sinhala-Only Eelam

If for some reason it comes to the creation of Tamil Eelam, equity and fair play must ensure. The US resolution calls for it to be democratically and equitably represented”. Total Tamil population percentage is 15.5% and equity dictates Tamil Eelam can only be 15.5% of the island. Anything more is a trespass on others’ rights. This 15.5% of Tamils include Tamils in Colombo, Kandy, Nuwara-Eliya and other districts outside the north and east too. If they are to remain in these districts, the territory of Tamil Eelam must be equitably reduced to reflect this fact. As 55% of all Tamils live outside the north and east, only 7% of the island nation should be carved out for Tamil Eelam (15.5% times 45%). Otherwise, all Tamils living outside the north and east must be relocated to the north and east to make up 15.5% of the island to be carved out for Tamil Eelam.

The north and east make up 28% of the island nation by landmass. As per the 1987 Indo-Lanka Peace Accord to which Sri Lanka is a signatory accepted the north and east to be the traditional place of abode of Tamil speaking peoples which includes Muslims (10%) of the population. Therefore, Muslims should also be relocated to the north and east to make up the entire northern and eastern provinces into Tamil Eelam (minus 1.5% of the landmass as their total will be 26.5%). That is equitable and fair under the circumstances.

Solution from Hell – Inequity and Greed

However, ultra greedy and racist elements would not agree to equity and fairness. They will want to live on both sides. This will ruin the entirety of what remains. A second round and a third round of Tamil Eelam will emerge within a few years and the rest of the island will be again salami sliced to smaller and smaller pieces.

Not following Plan B in the event of Tamil Eelam will automatically result in this (the solution from hell). Going by the misfortunes that befell Sri Lanka in the past due to too much kindness, compassion and lunacy, it is very likely that this will be the final solution for Sri Lanka. It must be avoided at any and all cost. All other nations used every means at human disposal to avoid inequitable division and Sri Lankans must do same.

All economic resources in the north are enjoyed by one community and almost all economic resources of the east are enjoyed by two communities. This is the case even today! With Tamil Eelam, things will get worse. 73.5% of the population must have exclusive access to 73.5% of the island in the case of division as 26.5% of the population will have exclusive rights to 26.5% of the island post-Tamil Eelam.

US Strategic Requirements

USA is desperately searching for another expendable population like Ukraine in the Indo-Pacific. Attempts to woo Japan, Australia, India, ASEAN nations, East African nations, South Korea and Taiwan failed. None wanted to end up like Ukraine. The search has expanded and Sri Lanka is a definite candidate. However, two Sri Lankan ethnic groups are difficult to manipulate due to severe sufferings from NATO-QUAD military moves against them in the past. One ethnic group has been favoured by NATO-QUAD nations for the past 200 years and they are the best bet. Even during the war, all funds received by the LTTE, EROS, PLOT, etc. came from NATO-QUOD nations. The entire Tamil Diaspora lives in NATO-QUOD nations. These are powerful levers to control the Tamil community in the island. In addition, Tamil terrorist groups had the world best naval wing of all terrorist groups in the world. This is an enormous advantage for the US maritime strategy against China’s commercial shipping fleet. After Blackwater, USA is yet to have a serious non-state actor to advance its military moves against civilian targets.

In the long term, Diego Garcia and other US island bases will be increasingly affected by rising sea levels. The north and east of Sri Lanka is much larger than all US island bases in the world combined. It can safely sustain a very large military and cannon fodder presence.

Creation of Tamil Eelam also benefits India as it will be administered by India as part of Tamil Nadu state. Tamil Eelam will be a huge military and economic power projection platform for India. It will also resolve the simmering fisheries dispute between Tamil Nadu and northern Sri Lanka.

NATO-QUOD plan also includes creating multiple Tamil Eelams in the island in future if the seven provinces as a new nation fails to assert their own right of self determination and equity by relocating people equitably and based on ethnicity into Tamil Eelam and Sinhala nation. This makes the case for unceasing war in the island.

Sri Lanka’s poverty, economic calamity, bankruptcy and continuing negative economic growth rate will push Sri Lanka to accept the least confrontational path when USA pushes for Tamil Eelam. It did not happen by chance. This is the result of a craftly devised plan since 2009. Over 81% of Sri Lanka’s foreign debt is held by NATO-QUAD nations. It must not come as a surprise to anyone. As Sri Lanka is unable to repay this huge amount of money (approximately $40 billion) due to NATO-QUOD nations, the inability will be used as a bargaining tool to get Sri Lanka to agree to their terms.   

Conclusion

Sri Lanka is facing economic coercion, political pressure and gunboat diplomacy from NATO-QUOD nations to give up part of its territory to create an expendable nation like Ukraine in the Indo-Pacific. However, this is not the end of the plan. This is just part 1. Part 2 is to further divide the rest of Sri Lanka (the seven provinces outside the north and east) for Tamil Eelam Part 2, Part 3 and so on. While it is imperative that Sri Lanka resists all attempts to create Tamil Eelam in the first place, putting all eggs in one basket is a sure recipe for disaster. A Plan B is essential. Otherwise, most islanders are going to lose absolutely everything, not just the north and east. It must be avoided at all cost.

Sufian Siddique Independent researcher and freelance columnist, Dhaka

Wars and conflicts are increasing worldwide. People from any part of the world are not good. But we are better than other countries – it must be admitted. In terms of infrastructure, Bangabandhu’s golden Bangladesh has progressed quite a bit overall. Especially, the country has been at ease for the past decade and a half under the hands of the current Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Living in a competitive world, we have achieved a lot in various fields.

In today’s highly competitive world of ‘complex equations’ spreading ‘light’ in various fields is undoubtedly a matter of great pride and ecstasy. The recent scene of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina gifting the World Bank with a painting (picture) of the Bengali dream of ‘Padma bridge’ proves that the ‘Bangla Township Light’ has spread to every corner of the world. “Golden harvest” has come to our house in various cases! The world saw a ‘new surprise’ as soon as the news of this incident came to an end! Recently, for the first time in the United Nations, a resolution on community-based health care was unanimously adopted. The historic resolution titled ‘Community-Based Primary Health Care: A Participatory and Inclusive Approach to Achieving Universal Health Services’ brought international recognition to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s outstanding innovative leadership in establishing a community clinic-based model of primary health care in Bangladesh through public-private partnership. This achievement is very ‘unique’ for Bangladesh. In the said resolution, the UN member states referred to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s successful innovative initiative in establishing community clinics as ‘The Sheikh Hasina Initiative’. Needless to say, this recognition successfully reflects Bangladesh’s strong commitment in improving public health care and establishing equity in global health care.

Notably, the adoption of this resolution is an unforgettable milestone in the global effort to achieve universal health care by 2030. Successful implementation of the resolution will play an important role in improving the health care of billions of people around the world by introducing community clinic-based health systems. This recognition of universal health services and the United Nations Development Goals will also have far-reaching implications for international cooperation.

It should be remembered that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina launched this ‘unique community clinic-based health system’ in Bangladesh in 1998 with the aim of bringing all the people of Bangladesh under primary health care. This project has brought a ‘revolution’ by bringing the benefits of government primary healthcare to the doorsteps of people at the grass root level across the country. The Prime Minister’s response to this initiative from the very beginning was widely appreciated by all sections of the people. World recognition was waiting. In the end, the United Nations itself received praise. How proud this achievement is for the country – only a patriotic Bengali can understand. It has to be said, this recognition in the indomitable development progress of Bangladesh under the leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will brighten our image in the international arena in the coming days.

It should be noted that currently community clinics have made a silent revolution in the health care of the country, especially in the treatment of marginalized groups. It has changed the overall picture of rural healthcare. There has been a positive improvement in the health care of the country in the past. A recent evaluation report by the World Bank also says the same. Child mortality in Bangladesh has decreased by 29 percent. The birth rate has come down to 2.3. Breastfeeding rate has increased to 55 percent. The number of children receiving care from skilled health workers in the womb is now 64 percent; The rate of low-birth-weight babies has dropped to 33 percent. The rate of taking care of trained health workers during delivery is 42 percent, the prevalence of contraceptive use is 62 percent and the prevalence of measles vaccination is 86 percent. Uptake of all basic vaccines by 23 months is now 84 percent. As the average life expectancy of people in the country has increased with these advances, there has been a massive improvement in the quality of life at the same time.

After independence, there were several obstacles in the health sector of the country. The healthcare sector in today’s Bangladesh has come a long way. Bangladesh has surpassed India, Pakistan, Nepal and many other countries in health care. In this regard, community clinics are playing a major role in improving overall health care in the country—this claim has to be acknowledged.

‘Community Clinic’ is undoubtedly a big achievement for Bangladesh. We believe that this service will spread to every corner of the world under the supervision of the United Nations. And indeed, that would be a greater achievement for us. We believe that this ‘innovative model’ of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will spread light globally and take the global health system further.

BY PAUL WISEMAN Courtesy The San Diego Union-Tribune 

WASHINGTON —  

If the debt crisis roiling Washington were eventually to send the United States crashing into recession, America’s economy would hardly sink alone.

The repercussions of a first-ever default on the federal debt would quickly reverberate around the world. Orders for Chinese factories that sell electronics to the United States could dry up. Swiss investors who own U.S. Treasurys would suffer losses. Sri Lankan companies could no longer deploy dollars as an alternative to their own dodgy currency.

No corner of the global economy will be spared’’ if the U.S. government defaulted and the crisis weren’t resolved quickly, said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics.

Zandi and two colleagues at Moody’s have concluded that even if the debt limit were breached for no more than week, the U.S. economy would weaken so much, so fast, as to wipe out roughly1.5 million jobs.

And if a government default were to last much longer — well into the summer — the consequences would be far more dire, Zandi and his colleagues found in their analysis: U.S. economic growth would sink, 7.8 million American jobs would vanish, borrowing rates would jump, the unemployment rate would soar from the current 3.4% to 8% and a stock-market plunge would erase $10 trillion in household wealth.

Of course, it might not come to that. The White House and House Republicans, seeking a breakthrough, concluded a round of debt-limit negotiations Sunday, with plans to resume talks Monday. The Republicans have threatened to let the government default on its debts by refusing to raise the statutory limit on what it can borrow unless President Joe Biden and the Democrats accept sharp spending cuts and other concessions.

US DEBT, LONG VIEWED AS ULTRA-SAFE

Feeding the anxiety is the fact that so much financial activity hinges on confidence that America will always pay its financial obligations. Its debt, long viewed as an ultra-safe asset, is a foundation of global commerce, built on decades of trust in the United States. A default could shatter the $24 trillion market for Treasury debt, cause financial markets to freeze up and ignite an international crisis.

A debt default would be a cataclysmic event, with an unpredictable but probably dramatic fallout on U.S. and global financial markets,’’ said Eswar Prasad, professor of trade policy at Cornell University and senior fellow at the Brookings Institution.

The threat has emerged just as the world economy is contending with a panoply of threats — from surging inflation and interest rates to the ongoing repercussions of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to the tightening grip of authoritarian regimes. On top of all that, many countries have grown skeptical of America’s outsize role in global finance.

In the past, American political leaders generally managed to step away from the brink and raise the debt limit before it was too late. Congress has raised, revised or extended the borrowing cap 78 times since 1960, most recently in 2021.

Yet the problem has worsened. Partisan divisions in Congress have widened while the debt has grown after years of rising spending and deep tax cuts. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has warned that the government could default as soon as June 1 if lawmakers don’t raise or suspend the ceiling.

‘SHOCKWAVES THROUGH THE SYSTEM’

If the trustworthiness of (Treasurys) would become impaired for any reason, it would send shockwaves through the system … and have immense consequences for global growth,’’ said Maurice Obstfeld, senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics and former chief economist at the International Monetary Fund.

Treasurys are widely used as collateral for loans, as a buffer against bank losses, as a haven in times of high uncertainty and as a place for central banks to park foreign exchange reserves.

Given their perceived safety, the U.S. government’s debts — Treasury bills, bonds and notes — carry a risk weighting of zero in international bank regulations. Foreign governments and private investors hold nearly $7.6 trillion of the debt — roughly 31% of the Treasurys in financial markets.

Because the dollar’s dominance has made it the de facto global currency since World War II, it’s relatively easy for the United States to borrow and finance an ever-growing pile of government debt.

But high demand for dollars also tends to make them more valuable than other currencies, and that imposes a cost: A strong dollar makes American goods pricier relative to their foreign rivals, leaving U.S. exporters at a competitive disadvantage. That’s one reason why the United States has run trade deficits every year since 1975.

CENTRAL BANKS’ STOCKPILES OF DOLLARS

Of all the foreign exchange reserves held by the world’s central banks, U.S. dollars account for 58%. No. 2 is the euro: 20%. China’s yuan makes up under 3%, according to the IMF.

Researchers at the Federal Reserve have calculated that from 1999 to 2019, 96% of trade in the Americas was invoiced in U.S. dollars. So was 74% of trade in Asia. Elsewhere outside of Europe, where the euro dominates, dollars accounted for 79% of trade.

So reliable is America’s currency that merchants in some unstable economies demand payment in dollars, instead of their own country’s currency. Consider Sri Lanka, battered by inflation and a dizzying drop in the local currency. Earlier this year, shippers refused to release 1,000 containers of urgently needed food unless they were paid in dollars. The shipments piled up at the docks in Colombo because the importers weren’t able to obtain dollars to pay the suppliers.

Without (dollars), we can’t do any transaction,” said Nihal Seneviratne, a spokesman for Essential Food Importers and Traders Association. When we import, we have to use hard currency — mostly the U.S. dollars.’’

Likewise, many shops and restaurants in Lebanon, where inflation has raged and the currency has plunged, are demanding payment in dollars. In 2000, Ecuador responded to an economic crisis by replacing its own currency, the sucre, with dollars — a process called dollarization’’ — and has stuck with it.

THE GO-TO HAVEN FOR INVESTORS

Even when a crisis originates in the United States, the dollar is invariably the go-to haven for investors. That’s what happened in late 2008, when the collapse of the U.S. real estate market toppled hundreds of banks and financial firms, including once-mighty Lehman Brothers: The dollar’s value shot up.

Even though we were the problem — we, the United States — there was still a flight to quality,’’ said Clay Lowery, who oversees research at the Institute of International Finance, a banking trade group. The dollar is king.’’

If the United States were to pierce the debt limit without resolving the dispute and the Treasury defaulted on its payments, Zandi suggests that the dollar would once again rise, at least initially, because of the uncertainty and the fear. Global investors just wouldn’t know where to go except to where they always go when there’s a crisis and that’s to the United States.’’

But the Treasury market would likely be paralyzed. Investors might shift money instead into U.S. money market funds or the bonds of top-flight U.S. corporations. Eventually, Zandi says, growing doubts would shrink the dollar’s value and keep it down.

GOVERNMENT’S STRATEGY IF DEBT CAP IS BREACHED

In a debt-ceiling crisis, Lowery, who was an assistant Treasury secretary during the 2008 crisis, imagines that the United States would continue to make interest payments to bondholders. And it would try to pay its other obligations — to contractors and retirees, for example — in the order that those bills became due and as money became available.

For bills that were due on June 3, for example, the government might pay on June 5. A bit of relief would come around June 15. That’s when government revenue would pour in in as many taxpayers make estimated tax payments for the second quarter.

The government would likely be sued by those who weren’t getting paid — anybody who lives off veterans’ benefits or Social Security,’’ Lowery said. And ratings agencies would likely downgrade U.S. debt, even if the Treasury continued to pay interest to bondholders.

The dollar, though it remains dominant globally, has lost some ground in recent years as more banks, businesses and investors have turned to the euro and, to a lesser extent, China’s yuan. Other countries tend to resent how swings in the dollar’s value can hurt their own currencies and economies.

A rising dollar can trigger crises abroad by drawing investment out of other countries and raising their cost of repaying dollar-denominated loans. The United States’ eagerness to use the dollar’s clout to impose financial sanctions against rivals and adversaries is also viewed uneasily by some other countries.

So far, though, no clear alternatives have emerged. The euro lags far behind the dollar. Even more so does China’s yuan; it’s hamstrung by Beijing’s refusal to let its currency trade freely in global markets.

But the debt ceiling drama is sure to heighten questions about the enormous financial power of the United States and the dollar.

The global economy is in a pretty fragile place right now,’’ Obstfeld said. So throwing into that mix a crisis over the creditworthiness of U.S. obligations is incredibly irresponsible.’’

Courtesy The Daily Mirror

A day after Pastor Jerome Fernando had expressed an apology via a live video stream over his controversial remarks, Public Security Minister Tiran Alles said an apology will not prevent the police from taking action against him.

Pastor Fernando who is under investigation over his controversial remarks made against Buddhism, Islam and Hinduism, left the country last week.

https://youtu.be/yxTPp9c00HE

If someone had committed an offence and said sorry, we cannot withdraw the investigations. It has not happened in the past and will not happen in the future. It is the procedure not only for this particular matter but for any case,” Minister Alles said at a media briefing held at the Public Security Ministry today.

He said the investigations against Pastor Fernando are being conducted by the CID. 

The CID has received several complaints against him and they are investigating all the complaints currently. The court had issued a travel ban against him. So when that happens, the normal procedure is that when the person returned to the country, he is handed over to the CID at the airport,” the minister said.

He said the CID will question and record statements upon his arrival. 

Then only the CID can decide whether he will be produced before the court or sent home,” the minister said.

Pastor Fernando claimed that his lawyers are currently preparing the way for him to return to Sri Lanka.

However, he earlier claimed that he would return to the country on Sunday (21). (Darshana Sanjeewa Balasuriya)

Courtesy The Daily Mirror

A mobile brothel operated by an Aragalaya activist has been raided by the Walana Anti-Corruption Unit and seven individuals including four women taken into custody, Police said.

The arrests were made following information that a 29-year-old Aragalaya activist in Moratuwa was operating a brothel.

The suspect was arrested by a police decoy who pretended to be a client.

The arrested women were aged between 22 and 39 and residents of Kurunegala, Ampara, Bandarawela and Badulla. (Bimal Shyaman Jayasinghe)

https://youtu.be/eWSjq97o4Eo

Courtesy The Daily Mirror

MP Wimal Weerawansa said following the Aragalaya, ‘Plan B’ is now in operation.

“US Envoy to Sri Lanka Julie Chung doesn’t send naughty Twitter messages anymore. She has become very good. She makes it a point to tweet even if someone sneezes,” Weerawansa said. 

https://youtu.be/ZepApNyi_YA

Courtesy The Daily Mirror

While establishing 50 new centres for the process of obtaining passports without delay by end June, it has been decided to issue e-passports by the end of this year, Public Security Minister Tiran Alles said.

He told the media that 50 new centres at fifty District Secretariats will be established to collect photos and fingerprints.

Another five branches attached to the issuing of National Identity Cards (NICs) will also be established.

However, the new process of issuing passports will be introduced within three days, the Minister added. (Chaturanga Pradeep Samarawickrama)

https://youtu.be/ZJ9pmQPsGL8

Courtesy The Daily Mirror

The Suhurupaya building will be converted to a one-stop-shop to obtain passports, NICs and all other documents related to births, marriages and deaths, Public Security Minister Tiran Alles said. He told a news briefing that the one-stop-shop will be open for the public within two months.

Apart from that, the Registrar General’s Department will so be brought to the Suhurupaya building.

After opening of this one-stop-shop, the people will be able to obtain all the above documents from the same building, the Minister said. (Chaturanga Pradeep Samarawickrama)

Courtesy The Daily Mirror

Numerous investment proposals initiated by the Sri Lankan embassy in Beijing with leading Chinese companies have not taken off the ground due to what a top source called ‘lack of any serious enthusiasm at the Colombo end and the absence of committed, knowledgeable and goal -oriented bureaucrats for a long period to undertake follow up action.

The source , on condition of anonymity, said it is suspected whether some bureaucrats delayed action expecting commissions.

According to the source , the embassy had detailed discussions with a range of leading companies which had expressed interest in economic engagement in Sri Lanka .

Among them were, China Harbour which committed itself to investing US $500 million in the financial centre in the Colombo Port City.

Hunan Infrastructure had expressed interest in investing $200 million. China Rail and its collaborators have been in talks to build the LRT (Light Rail Transit ) in Colombo and residential apartment blocks as a multi billion dollar project.

Fiber Home had been in talks about a smart class rooms and a high tech university project. and have resumed contact recently. China Great Wall in conjunction with the Wuhan University had also expressed interest in constructing a world class high tech university. Sinopharm was in discussion about building a plant to cater to the regional market and has now moved to the United Arab Emirates ( UAE).

Many companies have expressed interest in renewable energy and transmission line development. Interest has been expressed in aviation collaboration, electric vehicle assembly and manufacture, tourist resorts, steel manufacture in Hambantota, extraction and refinement of mineral sands, etc. A project to send fee paying Chinese students to Sri Lanka has been initiated,” the source said .

The source said some discussions which were progressing were stalled due to the travel restrictions accompanying the pandemic and political instability of 2022 was a serious dampener.

Now some discussions have been resumed tentatively. Sri Lanka will need to follow up seriously ,” the source said.

Asked for a comment in this regard , an official of the Board of Investment (BoI) said 19 Chinese projects are now in different stages of project life cycle. (Kelum Bandara)

Courtesy Adaderana

In a significant move to address Sri Lanka’s fuel supply challenges, a contract agreement was signed with Sinopec, a leading international petroleum company. The agreement, signed today (22), marks a crucial step in ensuring a steady and uninterrupted fuel supply for the nation, the President’s Media Division (PMD) said.

The signing ceremony took place at the Presidential Secretariat, with representatives from both Sri Lanka and Sinopec in attendance.

Secretary of the Ministry of Power and Energy M.P.D.U.K. Mapa Pathirana and Chen Chengmin, Managing Director of Fuel Production and Marketing Department of Sinopec Company, signed the agreement in front of the President, it added.

On the Sri Lanka side, the Secretary of the Ministry of Power and Energy, the Chairman & Managing Director of the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation, and the Chairman of the Ceylon Petroleum Storage Terminals Limited participated. From Sinopec, representatives from Sinopec Fuel Oil Lanka (Private) Limited, Sinopec Fuel Oil Sales Co. Ltd (People’s Republic of China), and Sinopec Fuel Oil (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. were present to formalize the agreement.

In response to the on-going foreign exchange crisis in Sri Lanka, the Ministry of Power and Energy has taken this decisive action to ensure an uninterrupted fuel supply to consumers. With the inability to provide sufficient foreign exchange for fuel shipments, the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) and Lanka Indian Oil Company (LIOC) faced significant challenges, according to the PMD.

To tackle this issue, the Ministry explored various strategies and one of them involved inviting Expression of Interests (EOIs) from reputable petroleum companies established in producing countries. The goal was to import, store, distribute, and sell Petroleum Products in predetermined Distribution Dealer operated Networks in Sri Lanka. The Cabinet of Ministers approved this initiative.

One of the key requirements for new retail suppliers entering the market was their ability to secure forex requirements without depending on the domestic banking sector. It was mandated that these companies source their own funds for fuel procurement through foreign sources, at least during the initial one-year period of operation.

After receiving EOIs, the companies that were shortlisted were invited to submit detailed proposals in response to a Request for Proposal (RFP) document. The Cabinet Appointed Special Committee (CASC) and the Technical Evaluation Committee (TEC) thoroughly scrutinized the proposals and recommended awarding contracts to the following companies, subject to negotiations:

• M/s Sinopec Fuel Oil Lanka (Private) Limited, F5, Hambantota Maritime Center, Mirijjawila, Hambantota, Sri Lanka

• M/s United Petroleum Pty Ltd, 600 Glenferrie Rd, Hawthorn, Victoria 3122, Australia

• M/s RM Parks, 1061 N. Main St, Porterville, CA 93257, USA, in collaboration with Shell PLC

The Cabinet of Ministers, considering the recommendations made by the CASC and the Committee Appointed by the Cabinet, granted approval to award the contracts to the selected suppliers.

Sinopec, along with its affiliated companies, is set to commence operations in Sri Lanka within 45 days following the issuance of the license. This development brings hope for a more stable and reliable fuel supply, boosting the country’s energy sector and providing assurance to consumers.

Minister of Power and Energy Kanchana Wijesekera, State Ministers D.V. Chanaka, Indika Anuruddha, Shehan Semasingha, President’s Senior Advisor on National Security and Chief of Staff Sagala Ratnayake, President’s Secretary Saman Ekanayake, Central Bank Governor Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe, Chinese Ambassador Qi Zhenhong and representatives of Sinopec Oil Lanka Pvt. Ltd, Sinopec China Pvt Ltd and Sinopec Singapore Pvt Ltd were present on this occasion, according to the PMD.

The deal with Sinopec– a state-owned Chinese company –was reached months after the two sides commenced their negotiations and Sri Lanka approved a proposal in March to liberalise the fuel retail marketing in the country with more players from China, Australia and the US.

Sri Lanka’s fuel retail market was a state monopoly under the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) until 2003 when the Indian Oil Company (IOC) was allowed to operate.

Negotiations have been completed with Sinopec Fuel Oil Lanka Ltd and its parent company in China and Singapore for a long-term contract on important storage, distribution and sale of petroleum products in the island nation,” the statement issued by the president’s office said.

In March, the Cabinet of Ministers had granted approval to award licenses to China’s Sinopec, Australia’s United Petroleum and RM Parks of the USA, in collaboration with multinational oil and gas company – Shell plc, to enter the fuel retail market in Sri Lanka.

Thereby, they are be granted a license to operate for 20 years to import, store, distribute and sell petroleum products in Sri Lanka.

In June 2022, the Cabinet of Ministers had green-lighted the proposal to open up Sri Lanka’s fuel import and retail sales market to companies from oil-producing nations.

In October the same year, the Petroleum Products (Special Provisions) Bill, paving the way for new suppliers to enter as importers, distributors and retail operators for petroleum products, was approved by the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Power and Energy. 

Later on April 26, a team of officials from Sinopec visited Sri Lanka in order to finalise the agreements and commencement of operations for retail fuel sales, and accordingly, the timeline, conditions of the relevant agreement and other concerns were discussed between the team of officials and technical experts from the Chines energy giant and the Minister of Power and Energy, Kanchana Wijesekera.

It had been decided that the agreements would be signed in mid-May, and that operation would commence 45 days thereon.

Also, the US-based oil company RM Parks Inc. and the British multinational oil and gas company Shell PLC had held discussions with Minister Wijesekera on commencing retail fuel sales in Sri Lanka in the first week of June this year.

Wijesekera, joining the political talk show 360°” on TV Derana earlier in April, revealed that each company will handle 150 CPC dealer-operated filling stations in the local market.

At present, a total of 1,142 filling stations are under the purview of the CPC, however, the corporation fully owns only 234 of them, the minister explained, adding that 450 out of the remaining 908 filling stations owned by private distributors would be allocated to the three foreign oil companies.

Courtesy Adaderana

Sri Lanka is mulling measures to lure back Chinese tourists in a bid to alleviate an unprecedented debt crisis, its tourism minister said, as the South Asian nation tries to stabilize the economy.

The country is targeting half a million Chinese tourists in 2024, nearly double its pre-Covid visitor levels, Tourism Minister Harin Fernando said at a press briefing in Beijing on Monday. 

If each Chinese tourist spent $5,000 that could raise a figure comparable to the recent International Monetary Fund bailout, he said. If you really look at it, tourism can get Sri Lanka out of this mess,” the minister added.

Sri Lanka clinched a $3 billion bailout loan from the IMF in March after six months of negotiations. It is still trying to reach a debt restructuring agreement that would help the release of the next round of funds. China has been an observer to those talks.

Paris Club members account for $4.8 billion, or more than 10% of Sri Lanka’s external debt, according to IMF data. That’s slightly higher than China, which stands at $4.5 billion, while India is owed $1.8 billion. Palitha Kohona, Sri Lanka’s ambassador to China, who was also at the event in Beijing, said bilateral debt talks were ongoing. 

Fernando said he’d presented a plan to Sri Lanka’s government that included free tourist visas for Chinese travelers until November. They can just walk into Sri Lanka with a Chinese passport,” he said. 

The minister also said he was holding talks with Chinese carriers, including China Southern Airlines and Air China, asking them to increase the number of flights to Sri Lanka. This month, carriers are operating 92 flights between the two countries, down from 174 in the same month in 2019, according to flight data provider Cirium.

Sri Lanka has battled its worst economic problems since independence in recent years, after protests over soaring inflation, food shortages and lengthy power cuts toppled the government. A series of deadly terror blasts in 2019 also hit tourism arrivals, along with the subsequent Covid pandemic. 

Before all that, Sri Lanka saw some 266,000 Chinese arrivals in 2018, according to the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority. That fell sharply to 167,863 the following year, according to the authority.  

The return of Chinese tourists is considered essential to the rebound of global tourism, but outbound travel is still lagging pre-pandemic levels. More than half of Chinese travelers said they hadn’t set plans to go abroad this year in a survey published last month. 

Source – Bloomberg
-Agencies

Courtesy Adaderana

Sri Lanka’s National Consumer Price Index (NCPI) inflation eased to 33.6% year-on-year in April, after a 49.2% rise in March, the statistics department said on Monday.

The NCPI captures broader retail price inflation and is released with a lag of 21 days every month.

Food prices eased sharply to 27.1% in April from 42.3% in March, while non-food inflation was at 39%, the Department of Census and Statistics said in a statement.

The data comes as an International Monetary Fund team is in Colombo to evaluate Sri Lanka’s economy for the first time since the global lender approved a nearly $3 billion bailout in March for Sri Lanka, grappling with its worst financial crisis in seven decades because of economic mismanagement and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Colombo Consumer Price Index, released at the end of each month, dropped to 35.3% in April from 50.3% in March, data from the statistics department showed.

Source: Reuters

–Agencies

Courtesy Adaderana

Minister of Power and Energy Kanchana Wijesekara says that according to the agreement signed between Sinopec and the Ministry of Power and Energy, the state-owned Chinese company will be granted a 20-year license to operate 150 fuel stations currently operated by the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC).

In a tweet, the minister said that the agreement also allows Sinopec to invest in 50 new fuel stations and to invest in Sri Lanka’s energy sector.

The contract agreement was signed between Sinopec Fuel Oil Lanka (Pvt) Ltd and its parent company in China and Singapore and the Ministry of Power and Energy this morning (22) at the Presidential Secretariat in Colombo, for Sinopec to enter the domestic retail petroleum market.

Courtesy Adaderana

State-backed Chinese mouthpiece Global Times called the G7 an anti-China workshop” on Monday, a day after Beijing summoned Japan’s envoy and berated Britain in a fiery response to statements issued at the group’s summit in Hiroshima.

Group of Seven (G7) declarations issued on Saturday singled out China on issues including Taiwan, nuclear arms, economic coercion and human rights abuses, underscoring the wide-ranging tensions between Beijing and the group of rich countries which includes the United States.

The U.S. is pushing hard to weave an anti-China net in the Western world,” Global Times said in an editorial on Monday titled G7 has descended into an anti-China workshop”.

This is not just a matter of brutal interference in China’s internal affairs and smearing China, but also an undisguised urge for confrontation between the camps.”

Beijing’s foreign ministry said it firmly opposed the statement by the G7 – which also includes Japan, Britain, Canada, France, Germany and Italy – and late Sunday said it had summoned Japan’s ambassador to China in a pointed protest to the summit host.

Russia, a close ally of China that was also called out in the G7 statement over its war in Ukraine, said the summit was an incubator” for anti-Russian and anti-Chinese hysteria.

Separately, China’s embassy in Britain urged London to stop slandering China, after British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said Beijing represents the world’s greatest challenge to security and prosperity.

The main G7 leaders’ communique mentioned China 20 times, the most in recent years, and up from 14 mentions in 2022.

China’s reaction this time is quite intense,” said Wang Jiangyu, a professor at City University of Hong Kong.

The G7 mentioned many concerns (over China) in an unprecedented way. China view these issues as its core interests that are entirely its internal affairs which are not for the G7 to wag their tongues about,” he said.

As well as taking issue with G7 comments on Taiwan, the democratic island China claims as its own, Beijing also accused the U.S. and its allies of double standards over comments about a nuclear build-up and the use of economic leverage.

Despite Beijing’s reaction, U.S. President Joe Biden said he expected a thaw in frosty relations with China very shortly”.

Some analysts, however, see no sign of any immediate easing of tensions, especially given Beijing’s rapid and sharp rebuttal.

Beijing’s reaction (especially the early timing of its release) underlines that tensions in the region are already quite high and likely to increase further,” said Moritz Rudolf, research scholar and fellow at Yale University’s Paul Tsai China Center.

JAPAN BACKLASH
China’s decision to summon Japan’s ambassador underlined the intensity of its anger, some analysts said.

Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Sun Weidong summoned the ambassador to register protests over hype around China-related issues”, the ministry said in a statement.

Sun said Japan collaborated with the other countries at the G7 summit to smear and attack China, grossly interfering in China’s internal affairs, violating the basic principles of international law and the spirit of the four political documents between China and Japan,” referring to the China-Japan Joint Statement of 1972.

Japan’s ambassador to China, Hideo Tarumi, said it was natural” for the G7 to refer to issues of common concern as it has done in the past and will continue to do so in the future as long as China does not change its behaviour, according to a readout.

Wang Yiwei, an international relations professor at the Renmin University in Beijing, described China’s overall reaction to the G7 communique as restrained” but singled out Japan as particularly provocative.

He referred to Japan’s pick for the summit venue Hiroshima, the city flattened by an atomic bomb at the end of World War II, and its push for a joint statement on nuclear disarmament that raised concern about China’s nuclear arsenal.

The main thing that’s happening here is Japan, using its position as the rotating chair, to create an anti-China movement,” said Wang Yiwei.

Among the G7, Tokyo has also voiced some of the strongest concerns about China’s muscular rhetoric around Taiwan, which sits just off its southern island chain. China has never renounced the use of force to bring Taiwan under its control.

Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said on Monday that the country’s policy toward China has been consistent, that it will insist on matters that are needed and urge responsible behaviour, while take steps to address concerns and cooperate on common issues.

Source: Reuters

–Agencies

 Insight By Sunil Kumar

 Surprisingly Canadian Prime Minister Mr.Justin Trudeau seems to have taken a  path  which his World Respected father Mr. Pierre Elliot Trudeau who was once  closely associated with Sri Lanka would never have taken by virtue of  how well informed of world affairs he was and never once dipping into  the till of misinformation to give him due credit and the younger Mr.Trudeau’s comments perhaps simply to secure his Tamil voting base and constituents  of which there were none during his father’s tenure but nonetheless  something beneath the decorum he always possessed as a political  leader, referring to the senior Mr. Trudeau who was a class act.

 It has been a trend one might add for Canadian politicians whether  Liberal, NDP or Conservative in the past also to make statements in  support of Tamil Tiger sympathizers who made up their voter base  perhaps while being coerced about a misconceived genocide which never took place, all the while never admitting that what transpired in Sri Lanka for nearly 4 decades was an internal armed insurrection led by Insurgent Tamil Terrorists and  minority Tamils in their quest to disrupt Sri Lanka towards their own objectives of secession which was put down  by the Armed Forces as an uprising against  Sovereign Sri Lanka and her Territorial Integrity where it would be totally wrong to even think of it as Genocide.

It was a well organized Military operation that other Nations wish to emulate where the Armed forces even protected the  Tamil minority whose insurgent oppressors eventually turned on them in a final  act of aggression when they were being overrun.

Thus  Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau  has made a statement recently  in recognition of what is called ‘Tamil Genocide Remembrance Day, the  day  the ‘war’ ended in Sri Lanka 14 years ago where Mr Trudeau has somewhat misguidedly made his comments which has caused an uproar within the Sri Lanka Administration within reason.

 Consequently Sri Lanka through its Foreign Ministry has denounced the  statement which it  has cited unhelpful to the reconciliation process  locally as well as  majority world opinion which has always deemed the  conflict as an internal armed insurrection against a Sovereign Nation  by a terror group so much so that its perpetrators have been outlawed  globally including Canada so what is Mr.Trudeau talking about?.

The Canadian leader in his statement said, Today, we reflect on the  tragic loss of life during the armed conflict in Sri Lanka, which ended 14 years ago. Tens of thousands of Tamils lost their lives, including  the massacre in Mullivaikal, with many more missing, injured, or displaced. Our thoughts are with the victims, survivors, and their loved ones, who continue to live with the pain caused by  this senseless violence.”

Curiously, nothing has been mentioned about the vast number of lives  within the Sinhalese and other minority communities including innocent  women, children and elders who were massacred  by the terrorists  beyond their right to exist where the wanton destruction of life, limb  and property was no ordinary turn of events but constituted a genocide  by rights initiated by the Tamil Tigers backed by the Tamil minority and needs to be clearly outlined for the world to fully comprehend and probably needing investigation by the International Court of Justice.

The world needs to understand that what the Canadian Prime Minister is alluding to appears to be a definition of convenience which is the furthest from reality and there  is another side to this so called “Genocide” regardless of what  anniversary they are celebrating.

 A footnote to all of this is that the Tamil Tigers  and their  supporters are banned in Canada and have taken their covert  activities and database underground.Their entire operation was outlawed and  disbanded by the( RCMP) Royal Canadian Mounted Police and have not  surfaced since! If Mr.Trudeau in all sincerity wishes to comment about Sri Lanka he  should do so in an impartial manner citing every perspective which  very nearly destroyed Sovereign Sri Lanka for which it was the Tamil  Insurgents backed by the minority Tamils who initiated the horrors  that the Sri Lanka Government with the Armed Forces valiantly fought off.

 The( UNHCR) United Nations High Commission For Human Rights  which makes such a huge issue about Sri Lanka Tamils needs to also take up the case of the Sinhalese and other minority communities who suffered unimaginable attrocities and ruthless acts of terror at the hands of the unrelenting Tamil Tigers backed by a greater proportion of the Tamil Community now lamenting with the help of voices like Mr Justin Trudeau’s which only portrays one side of what really transpired in Sri Lanka which will  neither help the reconciliation process nor the reunification of  ethnic harmony.

Senaka Weeraratna

 Shashi Tharoor has said 

DRS is such a major innovation. I never want to see international cricket without DRS ever again. It is so indispensable and eliminates so many bad decisions, and it creates an additional form of excitement for the viewer. It adds an extra element of tension to the plot and it is a very welcome addition as far as I’m concerned,”. 

For more, see 

https://www.hindustantimes.com/cricket/i-was-extremely-upset-with-dhoni-and-tendulkar-for-refusing-drs/story-v86ji6jgAN450PRjLcDQBN.html

Any other cricket playing country would have glorified the invention and the inventor had any one of their own people claimed credit for the invention. In India the Bharat Ratna ( highest civilian award) or Padma Vibhushan ( second highest civilian award) may have been awarded had an Indian inventor claimed it. An Indian inventor of, say, the DRS,  would have become a world celebrity appearing on TV shows, Radio Talk shows and further more Indian Cricket Commentators would have gone to town repeatedly taking pride in the fellow Indian’s brain child i.e., DRS.

In contrast, in Sri Lanka, unfortunately, there is a dead silence, despite a Sri Lankan lawyer ( Senaka Weeraratna) being the only claimant in the whole world for inventing DRS. ICC is unable to identify anyone from its stables. Their answer is that a man they cannot name discovered DRS. If say, a property is stolen it becomes awkward for the Principal to name the miscreant. ICC now finds itself in such dubious position in full glare of the cricket world. The ICC’s position is Untenable. Unconvincing.

 Furthermore, the failure of the local cricket establishment to back a Sri Lankan’s claims at ICC level leads to the growing suspicion that the cricket controllers in Sri Lanka have let down or betrayed their country, are envious  ( eerishiyawa) or spineless to back their own man for fear of losing the patronage of the ICC,  perks and a very comfortable ride in the rich gravy train.

What ever the morally indefensible track record of the past, it is never too late for the SLC to intervene vis a vis ICC and take pride in a Sri Lankan’s gigantic contribution to the development of modern cricket through a ground breaking concept called ‘ Player Referral’ that uses video playback technology in combination with the procedural functions of an Appellate court of law, to correct a ground umpire’s decisions.

This is the Decision Review System that has changed the face of the game of Cricket. 

Senaka W

ලෙසන්ත චතුරංග (කුලරූ ආදි ශිෂ්‍ය)

පාසැල් පරිශ්‍රයක් තුල ඉදිවූ දිවයිනේ විශාලතම හිටිපිළිම වහන්සේ වන අවුකන ප්‍රතිමා අනුරූ පිළිම මහන්සේගේ නේත්‍රා ප්‍රතිෂ්ඨාපන මංගල්ලය හා මහජන ප්‍රදර්ශනයට නිරාවරණය කිරීම.

අටමහා කුසල් වලින් එක් කුසලයක් සම්පූර්ණ කරමින් අම්බලන්ගොඩ කුලරත්න විද්‍යාලයේ විදුහල්පති ජගත් සේනාරත්න මහතා ප්‍රධාන ගුරුභවතුන්, ආදි හා වර්තමාන ශිෂ්‍ය ප්‍රජාවගේ මැදිහත්වීමෙන් පාසැල් පරිශ්‍රය තුල ගොඩනැංවූ අවුකන පිළිම වහන්සේගේ අනූරූ පිළිම මහන්සේගේ නේත්‍රා ප්‍රතිෂ්ඨාපන මංගල්ලය හා එම පිළිමය මහජන ප්‍රදර්ශනයට නිරාවරණය කිරීම මෙම මස 24 වැනි දිනෙන් ආරම්භවන පිංකම් මාලාව තුලදී සිදු කිරීමට නියමිතය.

මැයි මස 24 වැනි දිනෙන් ආරම්භ වන උත්සව මාලාව මැයි මස 28 වැනි දින දක්වා පුරා දින පහක් තුල පැවැත්වෙන අතර පාසැලේ සියළුම ආදි/ වර්තමාන ශිෂ්‍ය ප්‍රජාවට අමතරව අවට පාසැල් වල ආදි/ වර්තමාන ශිෂ්‍ය ප්‍රජාවට, ප්‍රදේශ වාසීන්ට, පිං කැමති ඔබ සියළු දෙනාටම මෙම අවස්ථාව සඳහා සම්බන්ධවීමටත්, නන් අයුරින් මෙම පිංකම් මාලාව හා සම්බන්ධ වී කුසල් රැස් කර ගැනීමටත් අවස්ථාව සලසා ඇත.

මේ යටතේ,
1. ප්‍රථම වතාවට පැවැත්වෙන තිස්තුන් පැය පිරිත් දේශණයක්
2. බුදුන් ප්‍රමුඛ මහා සංඝයා වෙනුවෙන් පැවැත්වෙන සංඝගත දක්ෂිණාවක්
3. දිවයිනේ සුප්‍රසිද්ධ ධර්ම දේශක හිමිවරුන් විසින් සිදුකරන ධර්ම දේශණා මාලාවක්
4. දන්සැල් මාලාවක්
5. විදුලි ආලෝක පූජාවක් ඇතුළු බෞද්ධාගමික වත් පිළිවෙත් රාශියක් සිදු කිරීමට නියමිතය. පිං කැමති ඔබ සියළු දෙනා⁣ මෙම අවස්ථාවට සහභාගී වී සංවේගය උපදවාගන්නා ලෙස ඉල්ලා සිටින අතරම මේ සඳහා පුළුල් මාධ්‍ය ආවරණයක් ලබා දීමට අවශ්‍ය ඔබගේ සහයෝගය ලබා දෙන ලෙසද ඉතා කාරුණිකව ඉල්ලා සිටිමු.

ස්තුතියි
මාධ්‍ය සම්බන්ධීකාරක
ලෙසන්ත චතුරංග (කුලරූ ආදි ශිෂ්‍ය)

Courtesy The Island

It is not possible to separate public morality from private morality. Public morality is largely the collective expression of the morality the individuals practice privately. Public morality merely reflects back to us ourselves.”

Speaking in Sinhala, so said Neville Jayaweera while addressing the Annual General Meeting of Avadhi Lanka at the Center for Culture and Religion recently. Professor C.S. Hettige, Professor of Sociology of the Colombo University, presided.

Mr. Jayaweera congratulated Avadhi Lanka on the initiative they had taken to subject public morality and civic accountability constantly to public scrutiny. He reminded them of Mao’s admonition that a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. He hoped that Avadhi Lanka will grow into a major moral force in this country.

He defined public morality as the moral environment that grows of the moral choices human beings make. It is comprised of those values and norms around which a society organizes itself. But its content is ultimately determined by the values whereby its individuals live out their lives in private. The separation of private morality from public morality is fatal to the latter.

Mr. Jayaweera identified four principal influences in the shaping of public morality. Firstly it is shaped by the values which the principal actors of the State manifest in their private and public lives. That is to say, the values shown forth by political leaders who direct the affairs of government have an enormous impact on public morality, not the values they recommend to others but the values they actually live by bad practices themselves. Similarly, the values manifested by public officials holding leadership positions and the values revealed in the conduct and work of judges shape public morality in a significant way.

Secondly, the values, principles and ideologies followed or not followed by political parties either inspire people to great endeavour or breed contempt and cynicism. In Sri Lanka, the sharp decline in public morality may be attributed largely to the people’s disenchantment with political parties and politicians.

He recalled how in the immediate aftermath of Independence, the Marxist parties instilled into peoples’ hearts an intense awareness of their rights but failed to instil into them an awareness of their duties as well. Consequently, two whole generations grew up in the belief that the State and society owed them everything from free rice to free education, free health, free this, and free that while they in turn, owed the state and society nothing. So now, 50 years after Independence, we have a Me Only” moral environment. Likewise, capitalism has also bred a selfish, self-centred moral ethos, within which private gain at whatever cost, disregarding the other person, is the driving energy.

In addition, opportunism, the lack of scruples and the abandonment of principles by individual politicians in their pursuit of power have bred a pervasive cynicism throughout our social system.If one were to identify the single most potent factor in the deterioration of public standards, it is the example set by politicians.

Thirdly the role of the media in shaping public morality is crucial. Television propagates values and stimulates expectations which drastically overhaul the values of a society. Newspapers create new idols and project new images which people tend to emulate. Advertising generates new tastes and new status symbols, which serve as magnets that turn people away from traditional habits and values.

Likewise, magazines, the cinema, videos and, to a lesser degree, drama and songs impact on public values and tastes, for good as well as for evil.When these media are driven solely by the profit motive, traditional values and morality tend to be swept away to be replaced by the values of the bazaar.

Fourthly and very importantly, Civil Society can play a vital role in shaping public morality, but in Sri Lanka, it has failed to play its role to its optimum potential. Civil Society is meant religious institutions, religious leaders, intellectuals and academics, NGOs, grassroot awareness groups, environment and human and animal rights groups, consumer resistance groups, etc. Avadhi Lanka is typical of an institution that can strengthen Civil Society.

However, an important requirement of their effectiveness is that they must be clear of political partisanship and must be unafraid in their witness.If civil society is bold and courageous, it can play a crucial role as a countervailing power against state power and the corrosive influence of politicians.

Reversing the deteriorating standards of public morality requires action at two important levels. At one level, every defection from public morality must be challenged, exposed and publicly critiqued, relentlessly and systematically, but at all times observing the highest standards of integrity and with due regard for facts. Furthermore, judgmentalism and condemnation at a personal level must be avoided at all times. Also, there must never be a departure from the truth.

However, the most effective remedy for a decline in public morality is for individuals who comprise society to observe themselves the values and standards they recommend to others. Ultimately the environment merely reflects back to us who we really are. In the final analysis, public morality is merely the outworking of our own individual consciousness.

The Late Mr Stanley Jayaweera authored the above article, published on February 15, 1998, in the Sunday Times. His son Sanjeewa Jayaweera, a regular contributor to our newspaper, has requested us to republish it. He has commented, ” My father expanded on what his brother, Neville Jayaweera, had articulated in a speech to Avadhi Lanka, a civil society group. Both were distinguished public servants and foresaw the decline in public morality primarily as a result of the corrosive influence of politicians. But, sadly, nearly all that was said and written by them 25 years ago about what ails our nation remains so with no apparent effort to make a course correction by the politicians nor the public.”

KAMALIKA PIERIS

 J.R .Jayewardene decided to step down after his second term and Premadasa was nominated as the party candidate for the presidential election set for December 1988. Premadasa insisted that his nomination for   President had to be unanimous.

Premadasa became Executive President from 1988 -1993. But the election of 1988 was not a walk over for the UNP. It was a hard fought election where many died, said Bradman Weerakoon. Premadasa had squeaked in with a much reduced poll, commented Sarath Amunugama. Election results indicated that Premadasa got     50.43% and Sirimavo got 44.95% but SLFP had won 49.5% of the postal vote, said analysts.

Premadasa had two opponents in this election, Sirimavo and JVP. Premadasa arranged to keep voter turnout low in pro-Sirima electorates and keep it high where he had the advantage, said Victor Ivan.  The voter turnout was 12% in Wellawaya, 19% in Mulkirigala, 49% in Galle.  

JVP tried to sabotage the election. Premadasa’s chief of staff Sirisena Cooray employed Soththi Upali, a gangster and municipal contractor to rival the JVP in launching their poster campaign in one night, thereby challenging the notion that JVP could enforce its will countrywide, said Sarath Amunugama. Kandy, which was UNP anyway, welcomed Premadasa with a mammoth    rally. It ignored death threats from the JVP.  

Premadasa outwitted the JVP in other ways too. JVP had forbidden the public to attend Premadasa’s election meetings. At Dodanduwa meeting Premadasa spoke through loudspeakers and the people listened from behind closed doors. He did so at other meetings as well. He spoke for hours to empty seats, knowing that they were listening to him behind closed doors, said Evans Cooray.

The greatest contribution made by Premadasa as President, was the 200 Garment factories programme. The 200 garment factories programme could be considered one of the main achievements and contributions made by President Premadasa to uplift the rural economy of Sri Lanka and promote exports with the help and support of big companies in the private sector, said Lakshman Watawala.

It started when Kumar Dewapura, Chairman of the Tri Star Group was given land in the Kurunegala district by Jayawickrema Perera, then chief Minister, to set up a garment factory and President Premadasa was invited for the opening. It was there that the idea of the 200 factories programme was developed. Dewapura was instrumental in setting up the first few factories and helped to interest other investors in the project.

The target was to set up 200 factories  all over the country, in neglected areas. Owners were given low interest loans and a share in the textile quotas for USA and Europe.Each garment factory was to have a minimum of 500 employees each. Preference was given to Janasaviya certificate holders in the granting of jobs. All factories had to give free breakfast to the workers.

The factories would be run by private firms who were already in the industry. These firms would be responsible for the technology, the investment, the recruitment of workers, and ensuring that the product had a market.

The climate for this was good.  Garment manufacturers had exhausted their preferential quotas elsewhere and were    willing to transfer some of their production to Sri Lanka.We also had investors from UK, Hong Kong, Singapore and Germany investing in factories in rural areas. Increases in garment export quotas were also obtained to sustain the expansion, said Watawala.

The private sector was drawn into the programme with tax incentives, infrastructure such as land, electricity, telephones, water, roadways and other benefits and assured quotas depending on factory location, said Watawala.

What the government did was to use carrots and sticks to achieve the relocation, said Rohan Samarajiwa. The companies had some incentives to go to the rural areas. More willing and trainable workers were available there for lower salaries, he agreed. They had disincentives too such as power supplies, transport to and from the port were unreliable and costlier than in the cities.  If the infrastructure then had been as good as it is today, the task would have been easier.

I remember the frequent meetings we had at Sucharitha where President Premadasa invited investors who were due to open factories and solved any problems they brought up, said Watawala. The Chairmen of the CEB, Road Development Authority and the Water Board were always present as these meetings as investor complaints were mainly about non availability of electricity, roadways and water.

Premadasa was present at all the official openings of factories. He gave dates to all investors so they had to work round the clock to have their factories ready by the deadline. The opening of each factory was marked by the construction of a clock tower, paid for by the investor, in all the areas they were set up. The clock towers were opened by the President before he opened the factory.

For the first time we saw factories shifting out of the Katunayake and Biyagama in the Colombo and Gampaha Districts to other provinces. Workers who had to leave their villages and come to Colombo and Katunayake and live in expensive boarding houses were now able to travel to work from their homes and have a substantial take home pay.Factories were opened  in districts like Batticaloa, Puttalam, Ampara and Vavuniya as wel.  By 1993, 160 locations had been allocated to construct factories and 117 factories, were running. Six were ready for opening and 37 under construction, said Watawala.

The 200 garment factories project transformed a vast network of rural villages, said Sarath de Silva. An example of this transformation is Dehiattakandiya. However, when garment factories came to  rural Sri Lanka, women workers found themselves having to battle the notion of “Juki girls with loose morals, observed feminists.

Premadasa‘s 200-garment factories project was the butt end of jokes and was roundly ridiculed as the ‘jungi industry’. Today, just 10 years later, the garment industry is a USD 2 billion enterprise, runs 890 factories, employs a million people and is the mainstay of the country’s export economy, said Evans Cooray.

The 200 Garment Factory Programme was continued by all successive governments although while in the opposition they criticized it. The garment industry became the largest industrial exporter from Sri Lanka. In 1991 the Apparel and Garment exports were approx. US $ 764 M. with the 200 garment factory programme the exports increased and in 2022 reached US $ 5.4 billion.

 Many who criticized the garments industry as a sunset industry” could now see its sustainability for themselves as well as benefits reaped by the country. These included becoming the highest export earner and biggest employer of females. Tough environmental and working conditions were met to achieve global standards. Today we have many ‘green’ garment factories and investors striking out overseas to set up factories, observed Watawala.

The 200 garment factory project enabled Sri Lanka to be one of the top exporters in garments and this continued even after abolition of the quota system to produce quality products at competitive prices.

 Majority of the original operators were operating under the Multi-fiber Agreement on the European quota system.  When this ended in 2005, many of the factories went out of business.  The larger Sri Lankan exporters took over and expanded these rural factories. They adapted to the new market environment, added greater value to their products, created higher volumes and generated more jobs.  (continued)

KAMALIKA PIERIS

Premadasa carried out two highly publicized programmes Gam Udawa and Jana Saviya. The Janasaviya Poverty Alleviation Programme was inaugurated in October 1989 and soon became a lead program of Premadasa’s government.  

In 1990, a $100 million Janasaviya trust fund (JTF) was launched with World Bank assistance, to support a five-year Janasaviya programme. The International Development Association, (IDA) an affiliate of the World Bank agreed to give a long-term concessionary loan of 3.2 billion rupees ($95.5 million) to the JTF. Sri Lanka would contribute 800 million rupees over the next five years.  

The aim of Janasaviya was to transform impoverished households into well off ones, through a controlled set of handouts which included credit entitlements as well as cash and subsistence gratns.   There was a Janasaviya Commissioner and a special Ministerial Steering Committee, with seven working committees under it, for Janasaviya.

The Janasaviya recipients were selected from those who were receiving food stamps. 189,088 families   were selected from the 225,000 who were on the food stamps.Each   family was paid 2,500 rupees per month, for 24 months, but each family had to do 24 days of labor per month or engage in some other   approved activity. Some families had dropped out at this point.

Rs. 1042 went to a compulsory savings account and the 25,000 rupees accumulating at the end of the 24 month period from this had to be used for an income generating activity. The balance 1,458 rupees were issued as a coupon with two separate payments, for rupees 1,000 and Rupees 458. The rupees 1,000 was to be used to buy goods from the Janasaviya basket of goods available at the local co-operative stores. 

The Janasaviya Programme was administered by 5 tiered committees, each committee reporting to the one above. The committees were the Hamlet Level Task Force, Divisional Coordinating Sub-committee, District Coordinating Sub-committee, Provincial Coordinating Sub-committee and National Coordinating Committee.

The first of these was the Hamlet level Task force.  The Island was divided into 30,000 hamlets of around 150 families each. Each hamlet had a five-member task force led by the Grama Sevaka. The other four members were selected by the community. One had to be a woman.

This task force was expected to guide the Janasaviya families towards productive work. It would provide counseling, training, supervision, equipment necessary for the income generating activity. This task force was also expected to find suitable markets for the Hamlet goods. This grass level task force reported to the committee above it.

The Grama Sevaka also had a Sahayaka Kandayama which included village elders, local business men and government officers such as Agricultural Project Officers, teachers and Public Health Midwives.

The other four committees   were composed of government officials and others, led by GA and AGA. . These committees decided what income generating projects were to be followed in each hamlet. They also organized village fairs, set up sales centers, and at the highest level, coordinated with Export Development Board and export-oriented private sector organizations to obtain markets for the goods produced in the hamlets.

 The government also provided training for the Hamlet Task Force, which totaled 150,000 persons. They were trained at distirct level by 75 handpicked master trainers. They in turn trained 1,350 divisional-level trainers. These 1,350 in turn trained the 150,000 support team. The AGAs were also trained. The training programme included three modules.  The first was on propagating the underlying goals and aspirations of the Janasaviya Programme.

Critics observed that there were too many committees, as well as an expanding bureaucracy in Janasaviya. This would lead to duplication of effort and delays making the Programme expensive to run.

There is no information as to the success of the Janasaviya movement. Biographers are silent about Janasaviya. However Norwegian researcher K. Stokke, writing in 1995, said that the Janasaviya Poverty Alleviation Programme enjoyed widespread support within and outside Sri Lanka , but it has been rapidly dismantled.

 Lakshman Watawala has described another activity connected to Janasaviya. Under Janasaviya the two state banks, Bank of Ceylon and Peoples Bank gave loans to the rural sector for sums between Rs. 5,000 and 25,000, without security .They gave a variety of loans, self-employment loans to youth, agricultural loans, start up loans, tiny sector loans, athamaru loans, Janasaviya loans, and also assisted the cooperatives and the cooperative rural banks.

A category known as Praja Naya Niyamakas (PNN)   were created as   intermediaries for these bank loans.  Peoples Bank and Bank of Ceylon gave them loans between Rs. 50,000 to 100,000 at normal interest rates on provision of security. PNNs were to use this to provide the hamlet   with small loans ranging from Rs 500 to Rs 10,000 for micro projects. They were to lend at rates of 3 to 4% per month which was very much lower than the rates charged by money lenders.  By going to the PNNs, villagers were able to avoid going to banks and fill lengthy forms. They could instead go to these agency banks to obtain loans. (Continued)

e-Con e-News

Who owes whom? Believe the English and their relentless media chatter, and it’s we who still owe them! Despite all talk (& so much art and literature!) about chattel & indentured & wage slavery, despite all talk of over 500 years of colonialism & imperialism – Is we bankrupt! Is we owe them!  Such is their mathematics! Their numeracy. ‘Tis a calculatedly expensive farce of course. A Private-Public Partnership (PPP)! Talk about LARPing – Live Action Role Playing! A defanged ‘state’ is blamed. Workers (mostly informalized) are lazy. Politicians (mostly eternal) are corrupt. White envoys (no matter their pallor) are non-stick teflon – tho toxic when their thin skin of white supremacism is scratched.         

     This week ee focuses on the first US colony in Asia, the Philippines. The US economic policies there were based on labeling the ‘natives’ as corrupt & uncivilized and therefore unable to administer a colonial economy. Welcome therefore to the latest not officially announced US colony, of Sri Lanka… One may notice the similarity of the charges.

     ee Readers may recall, the ‘founder governor’ of the Central Bank of Ceylon in 1950 – John Exter – was a member of the privately owned US Federal Reserve System’s Board of Governors. In 1948 he was made an adviser to the Secretary of Finance of the Philippines, and set up their Central Bank. Exter was then made Central Bank of Ceylon Governor, 1950-53, after writing the report to set it up. He promoted a culture of exorbitant consumption of imported goods, wasting profits from rubber sales during the genocidal US war on Korea. He bribed various political constituencies to ensure colonial rule, and prevented investment in a modern industrial economy (see Random Notes).

• A court in New York censored this week all matters relating to Sri Lanka’s ‘international sovereign bond debt’. The court also demanded – and was provided – a series of deadlines to chart a resolution of the lawsuit against Sri Lanka, involving a shady US Hamilton Reserve Bank (HRB) based in a Caribbean tax hideout, demanding full payment of what is owed them for their investment (in what?).

     Last week ee discussed a lawsuit in Scotland ‘on behalf of’ Kenyan tea pluckers. Those expecting justice from a New York court should not hold their breath.

     BlackRock, Sri Lanka’s biggest ISB debt holder, is linked to Unilever, the largest English multinational in Sri Lanka. ‘Private creditors such as Blackrock and Ashmore hold 47% of Sri Lanka’s debt via bonds that were issued post Sri Lanka’s civil war’. The HRB suit is a ploy by such large ‘asset managers’ as BlackRock. BlackRock leads the bondholder group that is negotiating a restructuring with the Sri Lankan government. BlackRock is the leading known holder of external private debt ‘in the global South’.

     New York State’s legislature recently passed a bill to ensure that private creditors can’t use courts to get better settlements than bilateral government creditors. China is demanding that all of Sri Lanka’s loan sharks, including multilaterals like the IMF & World Bank, as well as private bondholders, take equal responsibility, take their share for creating the ‘crisis’ in Sri Lanka.

     Our numerous experts on ‘China’s debt trap’, have no idea about the role played by the IMF & World Bank and other ‘conglomerates of conglomerates’ in Sri Lanka, let alone of the role of asset fund managers, family funds, etc. They actually don’t care. They have similar interests as those who brought us these ‘weapons of mass destruction and distraction’.

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• Every news story mentions the previous government’s inauspicious organic policy, primarily opposed by England’s ICI-CIC, as being one of the roots of last year’s Aragalaya! Well, here now is Baurs, also part of the League of Multinational Corporations (LMNC) in Sri Lanka, now deciding what organic is: Baurs laboratory services to certify ‘organic fertilizers’ – Swiss multinational A Baur & Co was recently awarded Switzerland’s international standard accreditation for organic fertilizers – ISO/IEC 17025. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) are also based in Switzerland. ‘Baurs laboratory was firstly accredited for inorganic fertilizers in 2015!’ (see ee Agriculture, Baurs)

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• Canadian media recently accused a ‘Native Indian man’ of ferrying Indian (Chowdhari) and Romanian (Iordache) families across the icy St Lawrence River, from Canada to the USA. The families had (been?) drowned, and the ‘native man’ pronounced as ‘missing’. The media is notoriously negligent when it comes down to staging cogent reality. The ‘native man’, Casey Oakes is from the besieged lands of the Akwesasne Mohawk Territory, straddling the border with the USA – a historical product of settler wars, yet an ancient trade route no doubt.

     This ee shares a report on a recent truck drivers’ strike in Europe, which sheds light on who is really behind so-called human trafficking to the West, based on their need for unprotected workers.

For Full Report

Wall Street Court Censors All Talk of Sri Lanka’s Real Debts

Sugath Kulatunga

Hon Minister,

This note is to bring to your notice an illegal circular issued by a former Secretary Defense restricting the issue of gun licenses to persons over 60 years of age. This is one of the reasons of the increase of crop loss due to animal damage which is estimated as 40 percent of the crop.

The present problem of inordinate increase in animal pests and serious damage to agricultural crops and danger of animal attack did not exist before the shotguns were withdrawn from farmers and property owners on an irrational action taken to restrict the issue of gun licenses on a circular issued to the Police by the Secretary of Defense. It is clear from the circular that the intention was to prevent guns being owned by terrorists. There is no terrorism today. Another reason may be to prevent the use of shot guns by criminals in serious crimes. It is well known that today the weapons used in crime are not shotguns but

T56 guns and 9mm pistols.

One does not understand why persons over 60 years were deprived from getting gun licence. Most of the older generation farmers would be over 60 years but quite capable of handling a shotgun. If a person can handle a mammootty he should be able to handle a shotgun. Use of a gun is not like driving a vehicle where physical fitness counts.

Shot guns were issued for protecting farms and property and for self-defense which is very important now. Penal code Sections 89 and

90 provide for the right of defense of body and property. One cannot expect an elderly person to exercise that right without the ownership of a weapon which is more a deterrent.

The present problem of animal damage accelerated after the introduction of that infamous circular which does not seem to be issued under any law. If it is a legal document, it should have been gazetted. According to the Ordinance licensing authority is the Government Agent. Also under this Ordinance (section 25.5 No rule made by the Minister under this section shall have effect until it is approved by Parliament, and notification of such approval is published in the Gazette.

In terms of Section 36.1. The Minister, whenever it appears necessary for the security of the public peace in any district that licences to possess and use guns should be cancelled or suspended, may, by Order published in the Gazette, cancel or suspend for a period. The circular issued to the Police on approving gun licenses by the Secretary Defense is legally invalid and can be questioned in a court of law.

In this context the gun control circular should be withdrawn, and we go back to the status quo ante and let the farmers tackle the problem as they did in the past. These monkeys are very intelligent animals and the very sight of a gun in the hands of a farmer will keep them away. This will also obviate the controversial issue of exporting monkeys.

It is suggested that the gun licenses issued for personal security are charged at least Rs 1000 which will bring an additional revenue to the government. It would be useful to examine the current process in a farmer renewing the annual license. It is estimated that a farmer has to spend at least a minimum of 6 days to go through the police station, the office of the ASP, and the Kachcheri, to obtain the license which cost him only Rs 250 but at a loss of 6 days of work of which the opportunity cost may be a minimum of Rs 6000.

In this context, I on behalf of over 60 years old gun owners of shotguns appeal to you to revoke that circular and direct the Police to release the guns surrendered to the police by them.

Yours truly,

Sugath Kulatunga

Courtesy Ceylon Today

Port City Colombo is set to reach its highest level of activity as the region’s first multi-currency, service export Special Economic Zone. The five-year roll-out plan envisages USD 5.6 billion in FDI which will fast-track Sri Lanka’s economic recovery, positioning both Port City and Sri Lanka as a leading player in the service export industry.

Port City Colombo will help drive Sri Lanka’s new phase of growth, and will be a significant contributor to the country’s GDP and BOP. Our focus will be to drive the future economy by attracting more green-field FDIs in key sectors while strengthening the country’s competitiveness within the region,” said Thulci Aluwihare – Dep. MD, CHEC Port City.

Poised to be Sri Lanka’s largest development project since the Mahaweli Development, Port City Colombo is expected to create over 140,000 direct job opportunities and contribute USD 13.8 billion to the GDP of Sri Lanka, annually.

Spanning 269 Ha of ocean reclamation, Port City Colombo is Sri Lanka’s first special economic zone dedicated to exports of services. Established under the Colombo Port City Economic Commission Act No 11 of 2021, the Special Economic Zone was created to attract businesses engaged in global and regional trade, maritime services, banking and financial services, information technology, professional/ knowledge services, corporate headquarter operations, tourism and other ancillary services.

Since the commencement of the project, a contribution of USD 3 billion was made to the country’s GDP, creating 12,000 direct jobs and training for 4,000 Sri Lankan workers across over 20 Sri Lankan sub-contractors. Land reclamation alone resulted in Sri Lankan companies providing over 5 million tonnes of stone, 12 million litres of fuel, 80,000 tonnes of cement and 1,200 tonnes of steel. With Sri Lanka’s economic crisis prompting a mass exodus of skilled workers to relocate, Port City Colombo as a Service Export hub will open doors for global brands to set up within the zone with over 70% of employment created in modern services (PwC Economic Impact, November 2021).

The GoSL will see a significant increase in economic activity spurred by Businesses of Strategic Importance inducing multiple sources of fiscal revenue. An estimated fiscal revenue of USD $ 1.7 billion is expected at the construction stage while a recurring revenue of approximately USD $ 700 million per annum is expected at the operational stage of the project.

Port City Colombo’s strategy will see it become a global centre for business and innovation, with a significant positive impact on Sri Lanka’s economy.

The Project is now seeing heightened interest from investors and businesses looking to establish a presence within Port City Colombo to access opportunities, particularly in South Asia as one of the world’s fastest-growing regions.

Courtesy Adaderana

Sri Lanka Foreign Minister Ali Sabry has condemned and rejected outright the genocide claims made by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau pertaining to Sri Lanka’s three-decade-long civil war.

Sabry conveyed this when he summoned Canadian High Commissioner Eric Walsh to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Friday (May 19).

Minister Sabry stated that this ‘politically motivated’ statement was divisive and was issued for domestic political consumption in Canada.

Sri Lanka vehemently rejects this unsubstantiated allegation of ‘genocide’ relating to the country’s almost 3 decades of terrorist conflict perpetuated by the LTTE, Sabry to the Canadian envoy.

He observed that the ‘inaccurate and provocative’ allegations in the statement will lead to polarizing Sri Lankans at this particular juncture when the Government is working towards economic stability, peace and reconciliation for all.

He emphasized that the arbitrary and erroneous use of ‘genocide’ on Sri Lanka is driven by a small section of the politically motivated anti-Sri Lanka elements in the Diaspora with a separatist agenda.

The Sri Lankan government, as a long-standing bilateral partner, has urged the co-operation of the Canadian Government and encourage a mutually supportive relationship between the two countries, whilst constructively engaging the community of Sri Lankan heritage in Canada to work towards realizing our common objectives of inclusive development and sustainable peace.

Courtesy Adaderana

Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa has promised to establish a separate unit under his government, dedicated to the betterment of businessmen of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) of the government sector.

Premadasa vowed to do so while addressing a discussion with businessmen of SMEs today (20 May).

The Party Leader of the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) further emphasised that his party has always advocated for SMEs, both within and outside of the Parliament.

Courtesy Adaderana

President Ranil Wickremesinghe stated that he intends to seek the Japanese Government’s assistance during his upcoming visit to Japan, to establish a Maha Vihara University, an international standard university to study Theravada Buddhism.

The President expressed that the hope is to get the contribution of Buddhist countries like Thailand and Bhutan for this purpose.

The President made these comments while visiting the Chief Prelates of the Malwathu & Asgiri Chapters, this morning (20 May).

President Ranil Wickremesinghe also submitted a bill to amend the Buddhist Temporalities Ordinance & establish a Theravada monk discourse to seek the guidance of the Chief Prelates of the Malwathu & Asgiri Chapters.

The Chief prelates pointed out the importance of formalizing the Tripitaka Conservation Bill and the Buddhist Publications Regulation Act, and the President instructed the Secretary of the Ministry of Buddha Sasana to prepare amendments to the Tripitaka Conservation Bill & the Buddhist Publications/Texts Regulatory Act to be submitted to the Cabinet.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe, who first arrived at the Malwathu Maha Vihara this morning, visited and received the blessings of the Chief Prelate of the Malwathu Chapter, Most Venerable Thibbatuwawe Sri Sumangala Mahanayaka Thera, and engaged in a brief discussion.

Mr. Sagala Ratnayake, Senior Adviser to the President on National Security and Chief of the Presidential Staff, was also present on this occasion and the Maha Sangha led by Chief Incumbent of the Malwathu Chapter chanted Pirith, and offered his blessings to the President and the delegation.

According to the request made by the Chief Prelates of the Malwathu and Asgiri Chapters, at the Presidential Palace in Kandy on February 19, the bill was completed in three months and presented again for the admonition of the Chief Prelates.

Emphasizing the need to develop Kandy as a state-of-the-art city by developing the infrastructure, the President said that the development activities related to the Kandy Metropolitan Plan will be started this year, and that all major city development plans in the country are planned to be implemented and completed promptly.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe mentioned that Pathahewahata and Kundasale local councils are expected to be converted into municipal councils and it will be implemented under the Kandy city development plan.

The President also stated that plans to develop Kandy’s old prison and post office as a tourist attraction will be implemented in the future while preserving historical values.

Also, the possibility of extending the expressway from Kurunegala and Galagedara to Katugastota, and the benefits of it, was also focused on.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe further stated:
My intention is to develop Kandy City immediately under the municipal plan. I believe that the country’s economy will be able to be brought to a certain stable level by next September after the debt restructuring program is successful. There after a lot of investment is needed to strengthen the country’s economy. Also, more tourists should be brought to this country. The Trincomalee New Town Plan is now in effect. We are working to commence the Kandy Metropolitan Development Plan this year. After that, Jaffna will be developed.

It is also expected to establish the Maha Vihara University to study Theravada Buddhism under Japanese aid. In particular, a program should be developed to teach Artificial Intelligence (AI) and developing the mind.

Also, we have focused on modernizing agriculture. It has the potential to harvest 8 metric tons per hectare in the future. The ability to get 10 litres of milk from one dairy cow can be done through this agricultural modernization program.

Arrangements should also be made to retain visitors in Kandy for a day or two. It is also critical for tourist guides to be registered. It is necessary to improve their knowledge about the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic ‘Dalada Maligawa’, the Buddhist history and the history of the Upcountry.

Following that, President Ranil Wickremesinghe visited the Asgiri Maha Vihara and met with the Chief Prelate of the Asgiri Chapter, Venerable Sri Gnanarathana Thero, and engaged in a brief conversation.

The President inquired regarding the development operations of the Asgiri Maha Viharaya and Maha Sangha led by the Chief Incumbent of the Asgiri Chapter chanted Pirith, and offered his blessings to the President and the delegation.

The leading Executive Sangha Committee led by Chief Incumbent of the Asgiri Chapter expressed their gratitude to the President for establishing the appropriate social framework to host the last Vesak festival in a grand manner.

Central Province Governor Attorney-at-Law Lalith U. Gamage, and Secretary of the Ministry of Buddhasashana, Religious and Cultural Affairs Somaratne Vidanapathirana were also present on this occasion.

BY EDWARD THEOPHILUS

People of Sri Lanka could express views on the credit programs provided to the country if anyone investigates the condition of credit facilities, it is possible to understand the condition of credit facilities.  Although the International Monetary Fund provides credit facilities to member countries, it is not a social service organisation, as many Sri Lankan believe. The IMF has policies and provides credits to its member countries for the balance of payment settlement.

I think policymakers in Sri Lanka could adjust policy work without blaming to the IMF, which has good motives helping member countries to get out of significant economic problems and in the past China and India gained large facilities from the IMF and adjusted the economic problems. My feeling is many guys talk and claim the IMF has no clear understanding of the way operating the international financial system. 

If there are no IMF conditions, the country might go out of the way and the proposed condition would support the country turning to the right pathway. The requirement is to go along with the IMF conditions rather than blaming the IMF programs and looking at their way programs are implementing and if there are any corrupt practices like in the past, reporting them to scrutinize programs.

Nobody gives credit facilities without condition, and local commercial banks insist many covenants and supervise the programs. The government of Sri Lanka needs educating its people about the IMF and its programs, if it happens, people would not blame to the IMF. I understood about the IMF when I was studying International Monetary Economics at the university and I gained a broader knowledge about the IMF role.

Shenali D Waduge

LTTE is demanding a separate Tamil Eelam – so is TNA & even LTTE fronts. Anyone in doubt need only to take their statements, press releases, election manifestos, webpages, interviews to relieve their doubt. What no one can forget is that TNA was created as the political wing of the LTTE no sooner US declared its War on Terror in 2001. Majority of the TNA members were part of the TULF that openly advocated a separate Tamil Eelam in 1976 via Vaddukoddai Resolution. It was in that same year that Prabakaran rechristened his Tamil New Tiger movement as LTTE. However, the US-India regime change in 2015 propped TNA/ITAK as leader of the Opposition. That same year Sri Lanka went on to co-sponsor the UNHRC resolution politically accepting war crimes by Sri Lanka’s armed forces & lifting bans on LTTE fronts. While Tamil politicians, LTTE & LTTE fronts seek a separate state, why would West, India & UN apparatus support this contrary to what they preach diplomatically?

If the statements by LTTE & Tamil political parties as well as echoed even inside the Jaffna university which is run with public funds, are virtually on par with each other, it means they share a common ideology.

However, with the defeat of LTTE in May 2009, the military arm of that ideology was quelled. What the political players failed to understand was that the ideological arm of separatism continued & began to thrive thereafter in fusion with geopolitical agendas.

To a certain extent the LTTE quelled the rise of the political ideology through Prabakaran’s military might, yet no sooner he was eliminated the separatist worms came out of the political closet both in Sri Lanka & overseas. They saw the weaknesses of Sri Lanka’s political parties & players & used their funds to accentuate their separatist quest to another level, that would have been impossible had Prabakaran been alive. Confounding matters was the manner that geopolitical players & their agents gave oxygen to this quest.

This is why all of the players that were on the side of LTTE have become the post-LTTE champions of reconciliation” peace doves” and accountability” crusaders. This surely exposes their hypocrisy. They ganged up to bring terror on Sri Lanka & now they are ganging up to bring a different form of terror. These come in the form of organizing street protests to remove military & camps in the North & East and not allowing Sinhalese & Muslims chased out from the North to return to their original habitats.

Will the countries that demand Sri Lanka close its camps in North & East, first leave the illegally occupied countries they are keeping their troops for over 20 years.

The quest to separate though initially launched in South India was encouraged in Sri Lanka via Tamil politicians. The 50-50 demand, to the formation of ITAK (Tamil State Party) in 1949 & thereafter the Vaddukoddai Resolution in 1976. The Church played a key role throughout & perhaps considered the architects of the slogans that were used. Fast forward to present day politicians – the younger politicians screaming for homelands” are all linked to some form of Church.

The TULF contested the 1977 general elections using the 1976 Vaddukoddai Resolution.

12 years later in 2001, LTTE took reigns & formed the TNA alliance which comprised TULF, All Ceylon Tamil Congress, India created TELO & EPRLF.

8 years later the Global Tamil Forum was created in 2009 & had as its policy advisor Joan Ryan, Labor MP. Following the demise of Prabakaran, a plethora of LTTE fronts began emerging to claim stake to the LTTE kitty as well as take the Eelam” demand to another level. These outsourced eelamists” must be the only foreign-passport holders claiming a ‘separate homeland’ that they will never live in but are able to generate funds & churn stories of history that even historians should feel embarrassed about.

 With LTTE military defeated & LTTE leader eliminated, the baton to ‘separate Sri Lanka’ was passed to ITAK which was echoed at the ITAK 2014 Convention – ITAK is now the legitimate representative of the Tamil people”.

It was at this same ITAK convention that R. Sambanthan its leader declared that India will never welcome a political solution in Sri lanka that does not accord with the interests of India”.

In short it meant that whatever solutions” were being laid on the table had to be advantageous to India not the Sri Lankan Tamils. While the Sri Lankan politicians both Tamil & Sinhalese are well aware of this fact, majority of Tamils are ignorant.

Thimpu Talks got nowhere because it was not ‘advantageous to India’,

The Federal  Constitution got nowhere because it was not ‘advantageous to India’.

Indo-Lanka Accord stands in limbo until India can secure its hold of key assets/resources in North & East & thereafter it will push for full implementation & autonomous rule. Another area that Sri Lanka’s politicians & policy advisors have failed to comprehend the scope of threat.

There is a steady pattern to the demands that were initiated by Tamil political parties & not the LTTE. All of Sri Lanka’s governments have failed to see these patterns & devise strategies to address them. Government police makers have failed to read the constitutions of TULF, ITAK, TNA, LTTE fronts & put the puzzle of their ultimate goals & aims. All of Sri Lanka’s Governments have fallen for the reconciliation bogey and followed a cuckoo land scenario thinking everything to be honky dory by spreading love while the enemy is busy preparing the grounds to declare self-determination.

There is no reason for any elected government to be negotiating with any party if their aspiration is to separate Sri Lanka under whatever nomenclature in an armed or political effort. This political bargaining, that is not based on the interest of the citizens, must stop.

Shenali D Waduge

• sangam.org – Vadukoddai Resolution 1976
• sangam.org– TULF General Election manifesto 1977
• tamilnet.com– TNA manifesto 2001
• tamilnet.com– TNA manifesto 2004
• com  – TNA manifesto 2010
• colombotelegraph.com– TNA manifesto for 2013 NPC elections
• colombotelegraph.com– TNA manifesto 2015
• colombotelegraph.com– Sambanthan speech at 14th ITAK Convention 2012
• tamilcanadian.com
• colombotelegraph.com– ITAK Convention 2014
• Global Tamil Forum – globaltamilforum.org
• tgte-us.org– Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam
• sinhalanet.net

අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය මාධ්‍ය අංශය

 ශ්‍රි ලංකාවේ සංචාරක ක්ෂේත්‍රයේ පාර්ශවකරුවන් සක්‍රීයව සම්බන්ධවන මෙරට දැවැන්තම සංචාරක ප්‍රදර්ශනය වන සංචාරක උදාව ප්‍රදර්ශනය  2023.05.19 දින  කොළඹ, බණ්ඩාරනායක සම්මන්ත්‍රණ ශාලාවේදි අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය දිනේෂ් ගුණවර්ධන මහතාගේ ප්‍රධානත්වයෙන් විවෘත කරන ලදී.

ශ්‍රී ලංකා අභ්‍යන්තර සංචාරක ක්‍රියාකරුවන්ගේ සංගමය (SLAITO) විසින් සංවිධානය කරන ලද සංචාරක උදාව ප්‍රදර්ශනය ශ්‍රි ලංකාවේ සංචාරක ක්ෂේත්‍රයට සම්බන්ධ කුඩා හා මධ්‍ය පරිමාණ ව්‍යාපාර කරුවන්ට මෙන්ම මෙම ක්ෂේත්‍රයට පිවිසීමට බලාපොරොත්තු වන ඕනෑම අයෙකුට තම භාණ්ඩ හා සේවා සදහා වෙළඳපොළ අවස්ථාවන් සොයා ගැනීම සඳහා ඉවහල්වේ.

වෙළඳ කුටි 250කින්  සමන්විත මෙම ප්‍රදර්ශනය අද (19)සහ හෙට(20) දිනයේදී පෙ. ව 10 සිට ප. ව 8:00 දක්වා මහජනතාව සඳහා විවෘතව තැබේන අතර  හෝටල් ,සංචාරක නියෝජිතයන්, ගුවන් සේවා සමාගම් , සංචාරක සේවා සපයන්නන්, අධ්‍යාපන ආයතන මේ සඳහා සහභාගි  වේ.  

මෙම අවස්ථාවට SLAITO හි සභාපති නිශාද් විජේතුංග, සංචාරක උදාව ප්‍රදර්ශනයේ  කමිටු සභාපති චරිත් ද අල්විස් යන මහත්වරු ඇතුළු සංචාරක ක්ෂේත්‍රයේ ප්‍රමුඛ පෙළේ පිරිසක් එක්ව සිටියහ.

අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය මාධ්‍ය අංශය

Shenali D Waduge

https://www.shenaliwaduge.com/new-parliamentary-budget-office-bill-attempting-to-outsource-parliamentary-functions-to-a-corporate-body-mcc-private-company/

When Sri Lanka in view of its geopolitical position is vulnerable to a plethora of external destabilizing attacks (regime change, economic subjugation, cultural genocide, foreign-funded ethno-religious terrorism / diluting of heritage values, infiltration into Public Sector apparatus riding on accountability” trojan horse) Sri Lankans need to look at every proposal with caution. Anyone reading the draft Bill to set up a Parliamentary Budget Office should realize that the attempt is to outsource parliamentary functions to a corporate body. Anyone who followed the Millennium Challenge Corporation documents would see sharp resemblances.

The MCC presented as a gift” immediately after Easter Sunday in April 2019 was a meagre $480m over 5 years to be given NOT to the GOSL but to a Private Company set up by the GoSL.

• GOSL signs MCC & passes in Parliament (sign first passing second – making MCC a domestic law though MCC agreement is valid only for 5 years). With that shelved, is the PBO an alternative?
• GOSL establishes an accountable entity”- a Private Company – MCA Sri Lanka Private Limited (Primary Agent of GoSL to legislate on behalf of Sri Lanka ‘ AGENT of the Sri Lankan Government ‘)
• Only after above, the disbursement of money will take place to a private bank & not to the Sri Lankan Treasury (just like the current Bill)

Refer: MCC Agreement / Program Implementation Agreement / Annex 1-34 of MCC Annex IV under Independence & Autonomy

• Does Sri Lanka’s Constitution permit a Govt elected only for a term to hand over land & interests of people to a company who is agent of the $480m
• This Company – MCA Sri Lanka is outsourced Govts role & able to enter undisclosed agreements (just like the current Bill)
• Given that there was objection to MCC Private Company – is the Govt attempting to take a different path to achieve same objective via the PBO Bill claiming it is for accounting purposes but given the objectives under the MCC Private Company?
• Sri Lanka’s legal luminaries must question if both are a violation of Article 76 of Sri Lanka’s Constitution

Parliament shall not abdicate or in any manner alienate its legislative power and shall not set up any authority with any legislative power” (golden words – is this why there are attempts to change the Constitution)

• The present Bill omits the international law” that was applicable to US & US citizens who were given immunity, however instead the Bill gives the Parliamentary Budgetary Office immunity.
• The present Bill also commits an entire nation to ‘unknown agreements’ which can be used as well
• MCC Company Board comprised GOSL Secretaries / PBO is basically providing scope for same
• GoSL undertook responsibility & accountancyity for MCA-SL private company (Section 3.2) – the PBO which also sets up a virtual separate entity under a CEO is about to do the same
• MCA-Sri Lanka could enter into contracts, sue & be sued, hold MCC funding in a private bank – just like the present Bill
• MCA-Sri Lanka private company was to get access to all Sri Lanka’s state records (just like the present Bill)
• Why would the GoSL wish to pass on the work that the Auditor General & Elections Commissioner can do within their current capacity to a private body? This is the golden question.

Are the above aspired objectives not covered or cannot be covered under existing Article 148 of the Constitution?

• Why would a Parliamentary Budget Office become a body corporate” exactly what is a body corporate” & what is aspired by perpetual succession”.
• Why would a Parliamentary Budget Office wish to be sued”.
• If the PBO is accountable to Parliament” how can it be independent” from Parliament?
• What is implied by independence of PBO”
• Who is implied as no person” influencing or interfering
• What is the undue influence or interference” being implied?

• Doesn’t Article 148 provide provision related to public finance?
• What is this independent, non-partisan analysis related to the budget’ being referred?

• The PBO seeks to provide services to 4 segments – a Committee in Parliament / a MP / a recognized political party or independent group or to Parliament
• However, it is only fair to question why these aspects cannot be fulfilled within the existing apparatus?

• Why should the Constitutional Council recommend to the President to appoint a Parliamentary Budget officer to be a CEO?
• What is the purpose to be appointing a private role to a public service?

• Does it mean that a person with at least 15 years of experience in government budgeting has to APPLY to the Constitutional Council who then recommends to the President to be appointed
• Who is he reporting to?
• Who can fire him?
• This question emerged when the IGP could not be sacked as there was no provision in the independent commission to sack him

• Is this appointment to be immediately after the election of a government?

• Is it the Constitutional Council who decides to extend the term of the PBO?

• Why is there a need for a Deputy Parliamentary Officer, who is recommended by the Constitutional Council, appointed by the President & eligible to become the PBO?
• How can he be sacked?

• Is this to encourage non-public servants or public servants now working in international or private roles to apply?

• What a merry-go-round this is going to be – if the Constitutional Council does not accept the 1^st list sent by the Secretary General of Parliament, a 2^nd list is sent or fresh applications are called

• The Secretary General of Parliament selects the PBO & Deputy PBO with assistance from 2 new roles (Chair of the Committee on Public Finance & Chair of the Committee of Ways & Means) & Deputy Speaker of Parliament
• Ways & Means Committee” originated in the UK though abolished in 1967 yet the Chairman’s role remains with Deputy Function as Chairman (Chairman & 2 Deputies are voted by ballot in Parliament)

• If the PBO or Deputy PBO cannot be a MP, or even from PC or Local Authority or from a political party or trade union – does this indirectly imply that the 2 positions are only for non-state sector persons?

• Who can send complaints is not addressed
• So the Secretary General of Parliament forwards complaint to the Committee on Public Finance (CPF) with copies to the CC. the CPF conducts an inquiry.
• Why should the Executive President of Sri Lanka function to the dictates of the CC?
• 
• Can this role not be undertaken within the present existing system?
• Who can replace the Deputy PBO in the event he is unable to perform duties.
• 
• If PBO is accountable to Parliament & remuneration is determined by Parliament, why should it be called a body corporate”.

• Is this recruitment from within State service & as staff of state service?
• What is implied as obtain services from any person” does this include foreign consultants?
• What is implied by enter into agreements with any person” what type of agreements & who are the persons & is this without informing Parliament?
• Why the emphasis on ‘digital transfer in mailable formats” … information possessed by any State Institution – is this to be sent abroad?

• Again, why can’t these services be done within the existing set up?

• What is the reason for this clause?
• When a person is appointed for a specific task, why should that task need to be delegated to others. If so, it may as well be included in their job profile!

• What is implied as undue influence”
• How can there be transparency if 26 (2) (b) requires not to ‘disclose to the public any agreement entered into with any public institution” – what kind of secrecy is the PBO office expected to carry out under the guise of ‘independent’ entity?
• Let it not be forgotten that if the Parliament is accountable to the people, and the PBO is accountable to Parliament, then the PBO has to also be accountable to the People.

• There is little magic being done under this role & begs to question why it cannot be done in the existing set up?

• Who is going to be funding these independent” inquiries some involving foreign as well, while keeping details secret from the Public?
• Exactly what is the purpose of these inquiries?

• What is going to be the outcome of all this analysis & who is going to be funding it?
• When political parties are not legally registered, how can their manifestos be questioned?
• Doesn’t the Election Commission have powers to check the funding to parties?
• What is the role of the Auditor General as against this new entity?
• Is there not likely to be not only conflict of interest but overlapping of work & roles too

• What are the appropriate safeguards” the PBO can put in place?
• Why would PBO wish to be privy to ‘national security information’?
• Why are state sector employees being bound to provide all info to this new Office?
• What is the danger of giving information when this ‘body corporate’ is also given scope for ‘perpetual succession’ and can even be ‘sued’ as well as able to ‘dispose any property movable or immovable’ belonging to the state of Sri Lanka?

• What is the sudden hurry to analyze party manifestos which can easily be monitored by the Election Commission

• This leaves just 14 days to scrutinize what the PBO has presented

• It is now clear that the PBO is to run independently” with provision for perpetual succession” being funded by donations, gifts & grants” and we can guess where these will come from & how far such will undermine the sovereignty of Sri Lanka as PBO is accessing information of all State institutes & having their data in a format that can be emailed too!

• Does any bank” imply that PBO can hold account in private banks or even international banks?
• This is one key aspect of the MCC corporate body

• What is the role of the Auditor General against this new Office with a vague set of ‘independence’ measures?

• If this newly formed office is only collating statistics and compiling reports, why should they be granted immunity?
• Also all Public Servants even under Scheduled Institution are prone to action against corruption.

• If they are public servants why should they be immune?

• Is this not cause for concern given that donations, grants & gifts from unknown sources are allowed to the PBO?

• The PBO may make rules, which has to be gazette & PBO can take upto 3 months after publication to place before Parliament for approval? – what kind of arrangement & wastage of time is this?

• Again why cannot the Auditor General’s department not take on this role?

cWhy can’t the Election Commission carry out what PBO is attempting to do via party manifestos?

• With this new office being privy to State information, why are they given immunity?

The Parliament cannot outsource its delegated tasks to a company run by a CEO and with ‘perpetual succession’ – this is violating the constitution and the spirit with which the citizens delegate their powers to elected representatives to function as custodians of the State.

Shenali D Waduge