Wickremesinghe made these remarks during a meeting with the officials of the National Trade Negotiations Committee at the Presidential Secretariat..reports Asian Lite News
Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe emphasised the need to gradually liberalise the country’s service sector to attract foreign direct investment (FDI).
The president also said steps should be taken to gain membership in the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, the world’s largest free trade agreement to date, the President’s Media Division (PMD) said in a statement on Sunday.
Wickremesinghe made these remarks during a meeting with the officials of the National Trade Negotiations Committee at the Presidential Secretariat, Xinhua news agency reported.
The president talked to them about free trade negotiations, the future outlook of international trade, and the importance of aligning policy priorities.
He further said that in parallel with the expansion of international trade activities, the government will implement a trade adjustment programme to support local industries to adjust to the competition.
Access to regional and global supply chains and re-engagement with the global economy to enhance export and export-oriented foreign direct investment is an element of the government’s economic reform programme to revitalise the domestic economy, he said.
More than 42,000 international tourists entered Sri Lanka in October, bringing the total tally of tourist arrivals so far this year in the South Asian country to over 568,000…reports Asian Lite News
Sri Lanka’s tourism earnings in the first 10 months of this year surpassed $1 billion, according to the latest data from the central bank.
The data showed that the monthly tourism earnings stood at $75.6 million in October, reports Xinhua news agency.
Official reserves of Sri Lanka were $1.7 billion by the end of October, a slight decrease from the figure in September, according to the central bank.
More than 42,000 international tourists entered Sri Lanka in October, bringing the total tally of tourist arrivals so far this year in the South Asian country to over 568,000, statistics from tourism authority showed
“I must say I was following your activities. So all I can say is that in a moment of darkness in Sri Lanka, you are one of the lamps that have been lit,” said the President…reports Ashoke Raj
Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe lauded the Indians living in Colombo and other parts of Sri Lanka known as Colombo Expats Cultural Association (CECA) and their efforts towards the crisis-hit country during the COVID pandemic and economic fallout.
President Ranil Wickremesinghe during his speech highlighted how CECA has helped Sri Lanka in its darkest moment by illuminating the lives of underprivileged children during the crisis situation. He appreciated CECA’s continued involvement and commitment to Sri Lanka.
“I must say I was following your activities. So all I can say is that in a moment of darkness in Sri Lanka, you are one of the lamps that have been lit,” President Ranil Wickremesinghe said.
Moreover, Wickremesinghe also emphasised how Sri Lanka and India share a similar culture in the region.
“India and Sri Lanka are two sides of the coin and while both countries have their differences in culture and religion, there are commonalities,” President Ranil said.
Recently CECA organised a cultural event and fashion show on the occasion of Diwali. During the event, the President of Sri Lanka and the High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka, Gopal Baglay participated in making the event more memorable.
During the Sri Lanka Crisis, Standing in solidarity with the people in Sri Lanka, Colombo Expats Cultural Association (CECA) donated dry rations worth SLR 80 million to the Department of Probations and Child Care Services. CECA completed this massive donation end to end and ensured all the dry ration was delivered to the orphanages with a personal touch.
“CECA undertook a massive food donation drive when it received a request from the Ministry of Children Probation to support the orphanages struggling due to the economic crisis. CECA strategized this drive to support 10,600 children across 300 orphanages with 100 days of dry ration, including rice, pulses, potato and onions,” CECA said in a statement.
People in Sri Lanka once again protested high taxes, inflation and perceived state-led repression in Colombo. Sri Lanka currently faces its worst economic crisis in seventy years, leading to shortages of food, medicine and fuel. The island nation’s worst economic crisis in seven decades led to a shortage of foreign exchange that stalled imports of essential items such as fuel, medicine, and fertilizer. (ANI)
It was noticed that Sri Lankan vessels were loading fuel from Hambantota port and refuelling Chinese warships on the high seas despite Indian and US concerns on the issue, the report points out…reports Asian Lite News
India has expressed serious concerns to Sri Lanka as the island nation’s tankers have been secretly refuelling Chinese Navy vessels on the high seas.
“New Delhi has asked Sri Lanka to come up with transparent standard operation procedures (SOPs) for refuelling and docking of ships and not allow Chinese military vessels to either dock or refuel at Hambantota or Colombo ports,” according to a report in the Hindustan Times based on information provided by diplomats in Colombo.
It was noticed that Sri Lankan vessels were loading fuel from Hambantota port and refuelling Chinese warships on the high seas despite Indian and US concerns on the issue, the report points out.
India has been rising to the occasion to provide fuel, food and medicines to Sri Lanka during the worst days of its economic crisis. However, Colombo does not appear to be living up to its promise when it comes to New Delhi’s sensitivities on the China issue.
Chinese warships have been using the anti-piracy pretext to deploy its warships off the coast of East Africa and the Gulf of Aden even though there is little or no pirate activity in the region. Refuelling of these ships by Sri Lanka helps them to continue with these operations which are emerging as a threat to peace in the Indian Ocean region.
The Sri Lanka government earlier bowed to Beijing’s arm-twisting in letting Chinese spy ship Yuan Wang 5 to dock at Hambantota despite India’s objections. Both India and the US had made it clear to Colombo that it should desist from extending any logistical support to Chinese Navy vessels.
While China’s so-called research vessels such as Yuan Wang 5 are said to be carrying out hydrological surveys and metal prospecting, they are actually monitoring satellite activity and missile test firing in the region with a focus on India, US and Australia. This is an issue of serious concern.
Wickremesinghe stressed that the issues faced by the Indian origin Tamils would be gradually solved as the government resolves the ethnic issue in the country…reports Asian Lite News
Sri Lanka President Ranil Wickremesinghe has assured to ensure Indian origin Tamil community in the hill country same facilities as other communities in the country.
Wickremesinghe also promised to appoint a committee to seek how best to integrate the Indian origin Tamils of hill country further into the Sri Lankan society.
The President on Sunday said this while attending an event in Colombo to accept a consignment of medicine donated by the Union Territory of Puducherry and people of India on the request of Ceylon Worker’s Congress (CWC), a leading political party representing the Indian origin Tamils in central hills.
Wickremesinghe stressed that the issues faced by the Indian origin Tamils would be gradually solved as the government resolves the ethnic issue in the country.
The consignment of medicine from India received by CWC in memory of its founder, the late Saumyamoorthi Thondaman, who passed away 23 years ago on October 30.
Thondaman’s great grandson, Jeewan Thondaman, CWC Secretary General and MP, handed over the stock of medicine to the President.
The President appreciated the service rendered by late Thondaman and said through non-violence he achieved citizenship for all the people of Indian origin, who stayed back after the Sirima-Shastri Pact.
“He got citizenship for some people who should have gone under Sirima-Shastri Pact but decided to stay back in Sri Lanka.”
British colonial leaders, brought people from Tamil Nadu to work in tea, coffee and coconut plantation and by 1948 the population was about 12,000, a nearly 15 per cent of the total population in the then Ceylon. The majority Sinhalese, who resented the increase in Indian origin Tamils in the island, demanded the successive government to send them back.
The government granted citizenship to nearly 5,000 under Ceylon Citizenship Bill but nearly 700,000 or about 11 per cent of the population remained stateless.
On October 30, 1964, then Prime Ministers of India and Ceylon, Lal Bahadur Shastri and Sirimavo Bandaranaike, inked the Sirima-Shastri Pact or the Indo-Ceylon Agreement to grant citizenship to nearly 300,000 Indians and to repatriate around 525,000 to India and to negotiate on the citizenship of the rest of 150,000.
The issue of stateless for the community remained a major problem until it was resolved in 2003 granting citizenship to all Indians who had been living in Sri Lanka since the time of the Sirima-Shastri Pact was signed.
However, the community had been facing various issues, including land, proper wages, medicine and education and they had been denied of some of the benefits enjoyed by other communities.
President Wickremesinghe, who assured same facilities to those in the community, said that education and health issues would be attended by developing schools and taking hospitals which are under plantation sector under the government.
He also promised to provide land to build houses of their own, like other communities in the island nation.
Aarulan, who was indicted as one of the accused in 2006 bomb attack to assassinate Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who was then the powerful Defence Secretary in the Rajapaksa government…SUSITHA FERNANDO
Former Tamil rebel, who was imprisoned for the attempted assassination of former Sri Lanka’s Defence Secretary-turned-President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, won the Best Tamil Novelist award at the State Literary Awards.
The prisoner Sivalingam Aarulan’s novel was adjudged the Best original Tamil novel at the State Literary Awards held under the patronage of current President Ranil Wickremesinghe.
Aarulan, who was indicted as one of the accused in 2006 bomb attack to assassinate Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who was then the powerful Defence Secretary in the government run by his elder brother and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa.
Aarulan, who had obtained a Bachelor’s degree in engineering had been arrested while he was studying for his postgraduate degree in a state university.
He has written seven Tamil books and one in English and all his books have been nominated for awards and he had won the Best Novelist award in 2016 as well.
Aarulan was escorted to the literary award ceremony by prison guards.
Thousands of minority Tamils from the Northern Sri Lanka, who joined the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) fought against the state security from 1983, demanding a separate land from North and East of the island nation.
The rebel group was also responsible for the assassination of India’s former Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi. Gandhi was killed by a suicide bomb attack carried out on May 21, 1991, while he was in an election campaign in Tamil Nadu.
In May 2009, the rebel group was militarily crushed by Sri Lanka security forces ending a 26-year long war.
Following their arrest, the fishermen were taken to the Kankesanthurai harbour in Sri Lanka…reports Asian Lite News
The Sri Lankan Navy arrested seven fishermen from Tamil Nadu for allegedly crossing the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL), a state government official said.
The fishermen from Rameswaram in Ramanathapuram district were arrested late Wednesday night from the Nadatheevu area and their mechanised boat was also seized, according to the official.
Following their arrest, the fishermen were taken to the Kankesanthurai harbour in Sri Lanka.
The fishermen association of Rameswaram has protested against the development and demanded an immediate intervention by Chief Minister M.K. Stalin to secure their release.
It was last month, nine Indian fishermen were recused from Srilankan waters by the India Coast Guard after their vessel had an engine breakdown and drifted toward the waters of the island nation.
The operation was conducted in cooperation with the Sri Lankan Navy. The fishermen were later safely brought back to Karaikal.
“Nine Indian fishermen rescued by @IndiaCoastGuard in coordination with Srilankan Navy. Vessel reportedly had engine breakdown and drifted to Srilankan waters. It was safely brought back to Karaikal by ICGS Annie Besant from INDIA-Srilankan IMBL,” Defence PRO Chennai tweeted.
Earlier in September, eight Indian fishermen were apprehended by Sri Lankan Navy for allegedly engaging in “illegal fishing” in Sri Lankan waters. In a statement, the police said the fishermen were apprehended about 22 nautical miles from Jagadapattinam.
Earlier in March, India and Sri Lanka held the Joint Working Group on Fisheries, through virtual mode. Both sides also discussed cooperation between the Navy and Coast Guard of both countries in patrolling.
The two sides also discussed the existing hotlines between the Coast Guards and related operational matters including cooperation in tracking poaching, and prevention of environmental damage due to bottom trawling.
The Indian side highlighted the initiatives taken by the Central and State Governments to diversify livelihood options and reduce fishing pressure in the Palk Bay.
It also informed that infrastructure has been created to facilitate deep-sea fishing and promotion of alternative livelihood through seaweed cultivation, mariculture and several aquaculture activities.
The Sri Lankan side proposed a faster transition to sustainable fishing in the Palk Bay fisheries and also suggested that India can help them develop the aquaculture sector and the associated infrastructure in Northern Sri Lanka. (IANS/ANI)
Disciplined bowling by the Aussies kept Sri Lanka quiet for the major part of their innings…reports Asian Lite News
Australia produced a clinical performance to thrash Sri Lanka by seven wickets in a Super 12 match of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 at Perth Stadium, here on Tuesday.
After losing their opening match to neighbours New Zealand by a big margin, Australia had to win against Sri Lanka to keep alive their hopes of making it to the knockout rounds. The hosts did just that on Tuesday with a comprehensive win.
Disciplined bowling by the Aussies kept Sri Lanka quiet for the major part of their innings but Charith Asalanka and Chamika Karunaratne, with their late cameos, added 37 runs from the last 15 deliveries to help Sri Lanka to a respectable total of 157/6 in 20 overs after being invited to bat first.
Asalanka remained unbeaten on 38 from 25 deliveries while Karunaratne scored a useful 14 from seven deliveries after walking in to bat at number eight. Pathum Nissanka (40) and Dhananjaya de Silva (26) also got off to good starts but they couldn’t accelerate, ending their innings at underwhelming strike rates of 88.89 and 113.04 respectively.
In reply, Marcus Stoinis hit a quickfire half-century (59 not out off 18) to power Australia to a comfortable victory. Apart from Stoinis, skipper Aaron Finch (31 not out), and Glenn Maxwell (23) were the other main contributors for the defending champions, who chased down the target in 16.3 overs.
Dhananjaya de Silva (1/18) was the least expensive bowler for Sri Lanka.
Brief scores: Sri Lanka 157/6 in 20 overs (Pathum Nissanka 40, Charith Asalanka 38 not out; Glenn Maxwell 1/5) lost to Australia 158/3 in 16.3 Overs (Marcus Stoinis 59 not out, Aaron Finch 31 not out; Dhananjaya de Silva 1/18) by 7 wickets.
Despite the pitch having a reputation for helping the pacers, Theekshana said Sri Lanka’s spinners will play a key role in the match…reports Asian Lite News
Australia’s stunning defeat to neighbours New Zealand in their opening match of the Men’s T20 World Cup has raised Sri Lanka’s hopes ahead of their Group 1 clash here on Tuesday.
Hosts and defending champions Australia slumped to a massive 89-run defeat to New Zealand as they started their campaign on a disappointing note. In contrast, Sri Lanka handed qualifiers Ireland a nine-wicket thrashing with Maheesh Theekshana claiming 2/19 in his quota of four overs that helped the Islanders restrict Ireland to 128/8 in 20 overs.
Theekshana said their performance against Ireland and Australia’s defeat to New Zealand have raised team’s confidence and they are ready to push the Aussies, quite vulnerable after the defeat, out of the semifinal contention.
“Following the Australia-New Zealand (match), we got a win (against Ireland, we had) the confidence (in that game). We (now) have the confidence better than the Australian team, and hopefully (we can bring that into the) game tomorrow,” Theekshana said in a pre-match press conference here on Monday.
He said Sri Lanka are eyeing one of the spots in the last four stage and thus a win against Australia will pave the way for that.
“Yeah, it’s always nice to win a game. Our hope is always to be one of the last four teams, so we want to (qualify) as one of the last four teams, we have to beat them,” he said.
He said Sri Lanka are ready for the Aussies coming hard at them as the hosts have a very strong side.
“Actually they have very good fast bowlers and spinners so I think they will bounce back because they are the last World Cup champions, so they have to bounce back if they want to be in the tournament.
“I know they have a very good fast bowling attack. They will be like (on) the line and length in our game, but we have a very good batting lineup, as well. I think hopefully we will get more than 160, 170 runs,” he added.
After beating Ireland in Hobart on Sunday night, Sri Lanka had to take a long flight to reach Perth on Monday. But Theekshana said that would not have an impact on his team.
“Actually it’s tough to stay in a flight (for) more than four hours. So it’s not like we are not mentally ready for the game because it’s the situation in Australia; it’s a big country so a lot of travel, and we have a lot of travelling after this game, also, I think,” he said.
“It’s all part of the game, the traveling, so you have to be good mentally ready and we can win tomorrow’s game, also,” Theekshana added.
Despite the pitch having a reputation for helping the pacers, Theekshana said Sri Lanka’s spinners will play a key role in the match.
“Yeah, I think if we bowl the right length, it doesn’t matter with the wicket. Always if you’ve got a spinning wicket or you’ve got bouncy or not, I think the right length is the key in Australia,” Theekshana said.
Former President Kumaratunga had consented to release the three prisoners who were serving long years of sentences after they were convicted for her attempted assassination during an election rally in 1999…writes Susitha Fernando
Eight former Tamil rebels, including three sentenced for the attempted assassination of former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, were released on Presidential pardon for Diwali celebrations.
President Ranil Wickremesinghe granted amnesty to eight Tamil prisoners under the powers vested in him to grant amnesty to a person convicted by country’s court and allowed to celebrate Diwali with their family members in northern Sri Lanka.
Former President Kumaratunga had consented to release the three prisoners who were serving long years of sentences after they were convicted for her attempted assassination during an election rally in 1999. The attempted assassination was carried out by exploding a powerful bomb during the final election rally of Kumaratunga in December 1999 in Colombo.
Though saved, Kumaratunga lost one eye in the blast that killed 26 and wounded 80.
The release of former members of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) has come in the wake several discussions between Tamil MPs and the President on several occasions. Before the release, investigations had been carried out on the prisoners and criminal records with the participation of Justice Ministry and the Attorney General, who had originally indicted them, the President’s Office said in a statement.
Following the end of war in May 2009, Tamil political parties had been urging all the elected governments to grant public amnesty to nearly 100 prisoners who had been detained without prosecution and imprisoned for long years.