Government controlled Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation has stopped live broadcast of Parliamentary proceedings as illegally appointed PM Rajapaksa has been defeated on number of occasions and now boycotting the parliamentary sessions. Speaker Karu Jayasuriya has promised to look into the matter. Speaker was notified that Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation has stopped live broadcast of Parliamentary […]
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Sri Lanka: Ven Dambara Amila Thero impugns acts of President
Image: Ven Dambara Amila. ©s.deshapriya. S.S. Selvanayagam. Nayake Thero Ven Dambara Amila attached to the Nalanda University College has filed a Fundamental Rights petition in the Supreme Court in relation to the acts of the President on the purported removal of Ranil Wickremesinghe from the office of the prime minister and the purported appointment of […]
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TNA to Sirisena: The ITAK, will support the restoration of a Govt. headed by the U.N.F
Image: TNA leader Sampanthan with Prez Sirisena. ( the Economic Times). 29th November 2018. His Excellency Maithiripala Sirisena President of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka Presidential Secretariat Colombo -01 Your Excellency, Appointment of a Prime Minister who commands the Confidence of Parliamentග We write to you in regard to the above in the […]
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Sri Lanka: Admiral docked!
Image: Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) Ravindra Wijeguneratne being escorted by a police officer yesterday – Pic by Gayan Amarasekara. After months of evading arrest, burly CDS surrenders to court; refused bail Remanded till 5 December; special protective custody ordered CDS reprimanded for arriving in court in military regalia; changes for next session Fort Magistrate […]
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Sri Lanka’s top military officer Ravindra Wijegunaratne detained
Image: In custody: Admiral Ravindra Wijegunaratne at the Magistrates Court in Colombo on Wednesday. | Photo Credit: AFP Meera Srinivasan COLOMBO,NOVEMBER 28, 2018. He is accused of harbouring the suspect in a case concerning the disappearance 11 youngsters in the final stages of war A magistrate court on Wednesday remanded Sri Lanka’s top-most military officer […]
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Sri Lanka: FMM condemns assault of journalists at court premises.
A journalist ( Indika Handuwala of Morning newspaper) was assaulted as he attempted to take a photograph at the Fort Magistrate court premises by the security personals of Chief of Defense Staff RavindraWijegunaratne who was appearing in the courts to make a statement regarding the abduction of the 11 youth. We at Free Media Movement […]
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Sri Lanka: Journalists covering CDS case attacked
28.Nov 2018. Several photo journalists and cameramen who were at the Fort Magistrate’s Court premises to cover the case in which Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) Ravindra Wijegunaratne allegedly involved in, had been attacked by several men who arrived on motorcycles a short while ago. CDS Wijegunaratne appeared before Colombo Fort Magistrate this morning, over […]
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Sri Lanka’s Tilt Towards Authoritarianism: Understanding Mahinda Rajapaksa and the Military
This reading list examines Mahinda Rajapaksa’s tenure as Sri Lankan President from 2005 to 2015. On 26 October 2018, Mahinda Rajapaksa was sworn in as Prime Minister, triggering a political crisis. Sri Lankan member of Parliament, Anura Kumara Dissanayaka, termed his appointment “unconstitutional.” Rajapaksa is currently unable to muster a majority in Parliament, and the removal of […]
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Looming prospect of targeted sanctions: How appropriate are they ? – Ranga Jayasuriya
Not long ago, the stooges of Mahinda Rajapaksa, and MR himself, spewed some fanciful justifications for the contested ( and obviously unethical) sacking of Ranil Wickremesinghe, and MR’s appointment as prime minister in one Friday night quirk by President Maithripala Sirisena. One argument was that MR was appointed to salvage the crumbling economy. That Ranil […]
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SriLankan Airlines probe running out of time; no response from President
ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s Presidential Secretariat has not responded to repeated requests from a Commission of Inquiry probing irregularities at state-run SriLankan Airlines and Mihin Lanka for more time to complete its work, its chairman said. Commission Chairman Anil Gunaratne, a retired Supreme Court judge, said that the Presidential Secretariat has not responded to multiple […]
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Sri Lanka: Key witness in Navy abduction case threatened by CDS
Lieutenant Commander G. Laksiri, a key witness in a case regarding the abduction and disappearance of 11 youths in an alleged Navy abduction racket, has been threatened by six navy officers, including the Chief of Defence Staff Admiral Ravindra Wijegunaratne, Police Spokesperson SSP Ruwan Gunasekara confirmed. The victim is one of the main witnesses in […]
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Sri Lanka’s first ‘government’ that will not participate in Parliament? – Kishali Pinto Jayawardene
Beyond the distasteful power squabbles that presently make up the sum total of Sri Lankan politics or ‘politricks’ as cynics are wont to say, the three men at the core of the crisis undermining the nation’s constitutional text, (viz; Maithripala Sirisena, Mahinda Rajapaksa and Ranil Wickremesinghe) need to realise a basic fact. Their currency of […]
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Will the Sri Lanka Left rise up to the occasion or will it too get wiped out before public anger? – Jayatilleke de Silva
Since independence, our country has been ruled by Right and Center-Right parties. The latter was, however, mistaken as Center – Left on account of its association with some Left parties. In all such instances the major partner in the alliance used the Left to strengthen their power, at the expense of the Left. Their easy […]
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Attorney General withdraws appeal against acquittal Of Gnanasara Thera over causing damage to christian Church In Malabe
In a shocking development, the Attorney General today withdrew an appeal filed against the acquittal of Bodu Bala Sena General Secretary Galagodaaththe Gnanasara Thera over causing damage to Christian church in Malabe, in 2007. When the case was taken up earlier this week, the Deputy Solicitor General informed the Court of Appeal that the Attorney General has […]
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After the ‘coup’: Justice on a knife’s edge in Sri Lanka ?
Image: People continue to protest the constitutional coup by Sirisena. ( Kandy 24 Nov 2018 Photo Freddy Gamage) The illegal transfer of power on 26 October is starting to take a toll on high profile investigations and justice processes, lawyers warn, after a week that saw the attempted transfer of a top CID sleuth and the reinstatement […]
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Sri Lanka mass graves: 230 skeletons found at country’s largest site
Sri Lankan experts say a mass grave found earlier this year in the north-western town of Mannar has turned out to be the country’s biggest such site. More than 230 skeletons have now been found at the grave in the former war zone, up from about 90 in August. Human rights groups say at least […]
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‘JVP and TNA must fight together’ – Anura Kumara, JVP
Anura Kumara Dissanayake. File photo. | Photo Credit: Meera Srinivasan . Sri Lanka’s Leftist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) or the People’s Liberation Front has been a crucial dissenting voice in the wake of the political crisis persisting for a month now. Its six MPs in Parliament, including party leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake, have been both emphatic […]
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British Labour Party shadow FM urges Sirisena to appoint PM through legal channels
Image: Liz McInnes MP, ( Manchester Evening News) Liz McInnes MP, Labour’s Shadow Foreign Minister, responding to recent events in Sri Lanka, urged President Maithripala Sirisena to appoint a Prime Minister through legal channels. She said, “I am deeply concerned by the recent decision of Sri Lanka President Maithripala Sirisena to dissolve Parliament, dismiss Prime […]
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Lasantha’s daughter delivers damning indictment of President on OIC Nishantha Silva’s removal
Image: The Sunday Leader Founding Editor Lasantha Wickrematunge’s daughter Ahimsa Wickrematunge weeping over her father’s body in January 2009. Ahimsa was the only one of Lasantha’s three children residing in Sri Lanka with her father at the time of his murder. Following is a letter by slain The Sunday Leader Founding Editor Lasantha Wickrematunge’s daughter Ahimsa […]
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Sri Lanka is on the brink of economic anarchy and chaos: Mangala Samaraweera
Image: Civilian protests are ongoing against the Illegal moves by Sirisena. Nov 20, 2018 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s former Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera says that Sri Lanka is on the brink of economic anarchy and chaos as never experienced before. Releasing a statement, Samaraweera says the cavalier and irresponsible actions starting on October 26th places at […]
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An open letter to Mark Zuckerberg: The world’s freedom of expression is in your hands
13 Nov 2018/ BY INDEX ON CENSORSHIP Dear Mark Zuckerberg: What do the Philadelphia Museum of Art, a Danish member of parliament, and a news anchor from the Philippines have in common? They have all been subject to a misapplication of Facebook’s Community Standards. But unlike the average user, each of these individuals and entities received media attention, were […]
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Press freedom and journalist safety under threat in Sri Lanka – IFJ
Image: © s.deshapriya. 20 Nov, 2018. Sri Lanka’s government has transferred police inspector Nishantha Silva, who was investigating several major investigations into attacks on journalists during former president Mahinda Rajapaksha’s tenure out of the Criminal Investigation Department with immediate effect raising concerns about the future of his investigations. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins […]
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Cabinet of Ministers shall stand dissolved, when Parliament passes a vote of no-confidence – Rajeev Amarasuriya
Rajeev Amarasuriya is an Attorney-at-Law in practice in the area of public law before the Superior Courts. He is a Fellow Member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA – UK), and an Alumnus of both the Faculty of Law of the University of Colombo and the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, Executive Education. […]
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Sri Lanka: Don’t impede ongoing investigations
Image: From a protest poster of press freedom organisations, Sri Lanka during the Rajapaksa era. 19 November 2018./AI. Responding to the transfer of Nishantha Silva, Officer-in-Charge at the Criminal Investigations Department and key investigator in high-profile human rights cases, Amnesty International’s South Asia Researcher, Thyagi Ruwanpathirana, said: “We are concerned about the seeming interference by […]
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Sri Lanka: CID sleuth leading high-profile probes on scribe attacks transferred
Image: Journalists orgnisations hold a vigil for journalists killed in Sri Lanka ( File Photo) Criminal Investigations Department OIC – Gang Robberies Nishantha Silva has been transferred out of the Department with immediate effect, raising serious concerns about the high profile abduction cases the official was handling. Silva was the chief investigator on several major […]
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The palpable horror in the house by the Diyawanna – Kishali Pinto Jayawardena
Image: pro Rajapaksa MP Weerawansa threatening police officers protecting speaker Jayasuriya. As pro-Rajapaksa parliamentarians threw water lethally spiced with red chillie into the eyes of unarmed police officers valiantly guarding Speaker Karu Jayasuriya, the seventy-eight year old Speaker may take heart that his grace under fire will stand out as the most remarkable example of […]
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Mahinda Rajapaksa loses trust vote again
Image: Police men protecting the speaker were attacked with chili power by Rajapaksa loyalists. Meera Srinivasan Pro-Rajapaksa MPs again try to assault Jayasuriya; JVP leader accuses them of behaving ‘like beasts’. Amidst furore and violence caused by his MPs in Parliament, Mahinda Rajapaksa on Friday lost a trust vote for the third time this week. The […]
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Sri Lanka PM Wickremesinghe mourns fate of democracy
Image: Sri Lanka police shielding speaker Karu Jayasuriya from the attack of Rajapaksa loyalists MPs, 16th Noc 2018. ( Photo AP) Warns public confidence in parliamentarians at an all-time low;Insists world is watching, damage to Sri Lanka’s democratic reputation on the line . A deeply moved MP Ranil Wickremesinghe yesterday lamented over what he termed […]
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Sri Lanka: Rajapaksa’s MPs turned to violence in the face of 3rd defeat in a week!
Image: JVP MP Vijitha Herath being treated after he was assaulted with a constitution book! ( Tweeter photo) Several policemen and Parliamentarians were injured during the chaos in Parliament today. Chili powder was thrown at some policemen as well as Parliamentarians Gamini Jayawickreme Perera and Vijitha Herath. Former Minister Malik Samarawickreme also sustained injuries in […]
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Call for a Presidential Election The best way to solve the Constitutional Crisis in Sri Lanka
( November 16, 2018, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) We are passing the dark days of our nation by risking longstanding democratic values that are being disturbed by the Executive Power. President Maithripala Sirisena must apologize before the people and nation for creating this putrid mess to gain personal political advantages. He is hammering and burying all principles […]