Editorial A6

Protecting inmate rights for

Friday
16 June 2023
a just society Latest Edition
Price : Rs 70.00
Finance Today B7 Vol: 12/150

CBSL’s ‘Pause’
strengthens rupee To curb alarming dengue spread
Escape Today C9 Govt mulls
Bawa’s vision for
sustainable tourism introducing
Sports Today A12 suitable clothing
Royal, Peter’s will be for schoolchildren
blockbuster of the week The attention of the Government has been drawn to
introduce suitable clothing for schoolchildren that cover
their limbs to curb the alarming spread of dengue fever
among schoolchildren.
X-Press Pearl disaster AG informs Court This recommendation was brought at the Western Province

Pastor Jerome
sub-committee, responsible for curbing the dengue outbreak

HRCSL report due chaired by State Minister Dr. Seetha Arambepola, who is the
Chairperson of the Dengue Control Expert Committee.

first week of July Continued on Page 2

being probed President questions

necessity of O/L,
under Money Scholarship exams
President Ranil Wickremesinghe,

Laundering Act
By Faadhila Thassim
The Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka
(HRCSL) is due to release the report on the
preliminary investigation into the MV X-Press Pearl
ship fire in the first week of July.
Continued on Page 2
Guinness Record for largest
kidney stone removal
emphasising the importance of
retaining children in school
education system for 13 years,
called for a decision regarding the
necessity of holding the G.C.E.
Ordinary Level Examination and the
Grade Five Scholarship Examination.
By Faadhila Thassim During the first discussion of the
expert committee appointed to
The Attorney General informed Court of Appeal support the Ministerial Committee
yesterday (15) that the CID has commenced a probe against for the national education policy
Pastor Jerome Fernando under the Prevention of Money framework on Wednesday (14), President Wickremesinghe
Laundering Act. also said there is a need for fixed examination periods and
This was when the Writ filed by Pastor Fernando seeking an announced his intention to legally establish a specific month

Army doctors lauded

by Commander
The Guinness World
Record that created
history for the Sri Lanka
Army Medical Corps
(SLAMC) for the removal
order preventing his arrest was taken up before Court of Appeal for the G.C.E. Advanced Level Examination.
Judges Sobitha Rajakaruna and M.A.R. Marikkar. Any changes to the fixed schedule would require
State Counsel Shaminda Wickrama, appearing on behalf of submission to Parliament for approval, except in cases of
the Attorney General, raised preliminary objections to
dismiss the application without taking it up for consideration
extreme emergencies such as pandemics or Tsunamis, he
said and highlighted the preparation of corresponding laws.
while noting that the Petitioner has misled the Court by
concealing facts. Continued on Page 2
He informed Court that the CID is thereby conducting
investigations under the ICCPR Act, Penal Code and the
Prevention of Money Laundering Act. Further hearing of the Perks offered to former President Gotabaya

SJB MP Rahuman
of the world’s largest Petition was postponed to 19 June.
and heaviest kidney
stone (calculus) at the

files RTI request

Colombo Army Hospital
several days ago was
further recognised and
held in high esteem by SJB MP Mujibur Rahuman has
Army Commander, submitted a Right to Information
Lieutenant General Request (RTI) to the Information
Vikum Liyanage. Officer of the President’s Office
seeking information pertaining to
Continued on Page 2 perks offered to former President
Gotabaya Rajapaksa after he

Ragama Police arrest

stepped down from the presidency.
Rahuman inquired as to whether
Rajapaksa was given an official
54-year-old fugitive residence after he stepped down
as President together with
Ragama Police arrested an individual who had information pertaining to the amount incurred for the
managed to escape during the chaotic events of the monthly maintenance of such residence and the total
devastating 2004 tsunami. amount incurred by the State for its maintenance.

Continued on Page 2
President lauds Minister Alles Continued on Page 2

for online passport system

President’s Secy informs
Health Entomology officers warn
Ven. Medhananda Thera

No decision to By Methmalie Dissanayake

Vows never to obstruct free speech SL’s malaria-free
distribute President Ranil
Wickremesinghe yesterday status under threat
(15) said he will never

Kurundumalai obstruct the freedom of

expression in the country.
By Dilanthi Jayamanne

Temple land
By Methmalie Dissanayake
Secretary to the President Saman Ekanayake
informed Ven. Dr. Ellawala Medhananda Thera that
the land where the historical Kurundumalai Temple
is situated, in Mullaitivu belongs to the State and no
decision has been taken to hand it over to anyone, the
President’s Media Division (PMD) said.
Speaking at the event to
launch the online passport
system via 51 Divisional
Secretariats islandwide, the
President said he is the one who
abolished the Criminal
Defamation Law in the country,
which has not been done by any
other country in the region.
The President, who
addressed the concerns with
regard to the proposed
Broadcasting Regulatory
Commission Bill, said he only
plans to formulate a
mechanism for those who are
victimised by the Media so
that they could get the justice
they deserve.
There are some serious concerns as to whether Sri Lanka
would be able to continue maintaining its status as a
country that eliminated malaria in the future owing to the
visible collapse in the programme, the Association of Health
Entomology Officers (AHEO) said.
AHEO National Convener, Disnaka Dissanayake, fielding
questions yesterday (15), said there were questions as to
the reason for the visible downturn in the efforts being
made by the Anti-Malaria Campaign (AMC) to maintain the
status earned from the World Health Organization (WHO) as
a country which eliminated malaria.

Continued on Page 2 Continued on Page 2 Continued on Page 2

A2
Another ‘Yangalmodara accident’ averted
The bus driver involved in a reckless
incident reminiscent of a tragic
‘Yangalmodara accident’ in 2005 was
arrested by the Polgahawela Police.
On 13 June 2023, the driver of a
private passenger bus crossed the
Continued from page 1
Govt mulls...
This recommendation, focused
on minimising the risk of
mosquito bites, should not be a
burden for the parents, it was
noted and the Ministry of
Education would actively engage
with schools to disseminate this
recommendation.
Dr. Arambepola spoke on the
importance of safeguarding fever
patients from mosquitoes. The
Minister highlighted that dengue,
a disease transmitted through
mosquitoes, can be passed from
one infected person to another.
She emphasised the need to
raise awareness among the public
regarding the protection of both
dengue-infected patients and
individuals with fever until a
confirmed diagnosis is obtained.
In response to the escalating
dengue crisis, President Ranil
Wickremesinghe recently
appointed a ministerial committee
and an expert committee
dedicated to dengue control. The
expert committee promptly
appointed nine provincial sub-
committees, one of which is
chaired by State Minister Dr.
Arambepola.
The primary focus of the
Western Province sub-
committee’s meeting revolved
around taking immediate
measures to effectively control
the dengue outbreak within a few
days. State Minister Arambepola
led discussions on the urgency of
implementing necessary steps to
combat the disease and minimise
its transmission.
Further, the State Minister
emphasised that the present
situation presents an opportunity
to promptly address the carriers
and levels of the virus through
immediate measures.
Instructing the National Dengue
Control Unit, guidelines were
issued to control dengue in the
vicinity of hospitals. The Unit was
directed to create designated
areas exclusively for fever
patients (Fever Corners) as well
as for patients diagnosed with
dengue, with the aim of preventing
the spread of the disease within
hospitals. Additionally, steps were
advised to disseminate
information regarding the risk of
dengue transmission, through
SJB MP Rahuman...
The MP further inquired if
Rajapaksa was not handed an
official residence after he
stepped down from the
presidency, and if there is any
intent to give him the same in the
future.
Additionally, Rahuman
requested information as to the
number of staff employed in his
office after he stepped down
from the presidency together
with the monthly financial
allocations made for the
SL’s malaria-free...
He said, the WHO itself had
noted that the island’s journey to
eliminating the mosquito-borne
disease had been tough, and had
“demanded strict, responsive
policies after malaria cases rose
in the 1970s and 80s, in the
1990s.” Everyone from medical
practitioners to minor employees
worked alike toward that goal.
However, the situation has seen
a downward trend even before ten
years had lapsed after receiving
the certificate from the WHO.
Dissanayake lamented that
there was a breakdown in
surveillance so much so that
there had even been a malaria
death with occurred in April this
year. A malaria death that
occurred 10 years after the last
case of endemic malaria was
reported in the country.
Another incident was also
reported two weeks before when a
fever patient who had later been
closed Yangalmodara railway gate
while warning signals were on, narrowly
averting a devastating accident that
could have resulted in multiple
fatalities.
The bus, which was en route from
text messages.
The State Minister has
announced a comprehensive plan
to allocate five days a week for
inspecting schools, places of
worship, State and private
institutions, commercial
premises, and abandoned plots,
which are notorious breeding
grounds for dengue mosquitoes.
To facilitate this effort, the State
Minister has enlisted the support
of the Police and Armed Forces
for spot checks. She has advised
the relevant departments to
coordinate these inspections
effectively.
Further, raising awareness
about the use of mosquito
repellents has been proposed as
an effective measure.
Dr. Arambepola acknowledged
the valuable contribution of the
“dengue groups” in the fight
against Covid-19. She expressed
her commitment to addressing
any challenges faced by these
groups and emphasised the need
to strengthen their efforts to
combat dengue. Their support will
be crucial in the ongoing dengue
control measures.
Recognising the significance of
the situation, the State Minister
advised local government
commissioners to address the
issues faced by Medical Officers
of Health (MOH) and provide them
with the necessary facilities.
Additionally, it was suggested that
regional health directors actively
participate in the weekly meetings
of the sub-committee, allowing
them to remain updated through
discussions with MOHs and
Public Health Inspectors (PHI).
The discussion was attended
by Western Province Chief
Secretary Pradeep Yasaratne,
Western Province Provincial
Health Services Director Dr.
Dhammika Jayalath, Provincial
Health Ministry Secretary Gamini
Dharmasena, Local Government
Secretary A.D.S. Sadika,
President’s Senior Assistant
Secretary Buddhika S. Gamage,
Presidential Media Director
Shanuka Karunaratne, members
of the Western Province Dengue
Control Sub-Committee, and
officials from the National Dengue
Control Unit.
payment of salaries of such staff.
Rahuman also inquired how
many security personnel have
been deployed for Rajapaksa
together with the number of
vehicles provided to him and his
staff and their specifications.
In addition to the aforesaid
information, Rahuman inquired
as to the other perks that have
been provided to Rajapaksa after
he stepped down from the
presidency and the total fund
allocation for the same.
diagnosed with malaria had been
to the AMC office to undergo a
malaria test. Unfortunately, the
lifts had not been operational as it
had been the weekend while the
said patient had to climb up the
stairs to the sixth floor of the
building in which the AMC office
was situated only to collapse
once he reached the particular
floor. Here too only one person
had been present even to take a
blood sample for testing from that
patient.
Speaking further, Dissanayake
said there should also be a regular
parasite survey to mainly ensure
vector control. Unfortunately,
neither the Health Ministry nor the
Director of the AMC seemed
interested in continuing to
maintain a country free of malaria
let alone maintaining the
recognition Sri Lanka earned from
the WHO, the AHEO’s National
Convenor alleged.
Friday 16 JUNE 2023
Galnewa to Colombo, disregarded the
closure of the railway gate at
driver, during their return journey from
Colombo to Galnewa.
27 April 2005, when a reckless bus
driver crossed the Yangalmodara
Yangalmodara. The Polgahawela Police Following interrogations, the bus railway gate, while the warning signals
became aware of this incident through driver was to be produced before the were on. Both the driver and the
social media and promptly Polgahawela Magistrate. conductor were sentenced to death
apprehended the bus, along with its Thirty five lives were tragically lost on following the tragedy.
President lauds... President questions...
He said he has instructed to introduce the guidelines for Drawing inspiration from the
electronic media in the UK as it is to Sri Lanka as well. Through progress achieved by developed
this proposed Bill anyone who is victimised by the Media can go to nations, the President stressed
Court, the President said. the importance of establishing
“No one needs to be scared about this. Electronic media set my a robust education system and
home on fire. About 3,000 valuable books were destroyed. Do they cultivating a skilled workforce
want licences to set people’s houses on fire like they did to me?” to accomplish the objectives of
he queried. becoming a developed country
Speaking about the newly introduced online system to apply for by 2048.
passports, the President said the Government is taking the He acknowledged the
digitalisation programme further. significance of aligning the
“Our hope is to initiate digitalisation in all the sectors in the country’s human resources,
country. If we want to be a developed nation digitalisation is an enhancing the education
absolute necessity. Some departments are looking forward to system, and transforming the
this; however, some others are hesitant about this. Therefore, I nation into a regional education
would like to thank Minister Tiran Alles and his ministry for taking hub. To facilitate this, the
the first step to fulfil this responsibility,” he said. ‘Education Ministerial
Addressing the event, Minister Alles said a mechanism would be Committee’ was formed,
established for the public to get all the documents such as birth chaired by President Ranil
certificates, and death certificates under one roof in Suhurupaya. Wickremesinghe comprising ten
“When appointing me as the Minister of Public Security, the members. Additionally, a sub-
President gave me four institutions including the Department of committee was appointed to
Immigration and Emigration. He instructed me to ease the support the reforms in five key
process of delivering the service to the public. We were able to areas, including early childhood
address the long queues at the Department of Immigration and education, primary and
Emigration through digitalisation. Those who obtain passports secondary education, higher
within three days can get them for Rs 15,000 and those who want education, vocational training,
to obtain passports within 14 days will be charged Rs 5,000,” and information technology.
Minister Alles said. Amidst the discussions,
urgent amendments to the
education system were
extensively deliberated upon,
No decision ...
with a focus on equipping the
future generation to overcome
upcoming challenges and build
a skilled workforce.
It is also learnt that the President has decided to appoint an In addition, the President
expert committee to investigate the matter thoroughly and obtain emphasised the imperative of
a report. advancing education and
Ven. Medhananda Thera recently addressed a letter to the technology while maintaining
President expressing his apprehensions regarding the distribution the standard of the school
of land surrounding the Kurundumalai Temple. He raised concerns system. Special attention was
about the potential consequences if these lands, which do not given to the measures required
belong to the temple, are allocated to the public. to enhance the English skills of
In the letter, Medhananda Thera said there is a risk of grave schoolchildren.
repercussions in the area if the lands surrounding the temple site Recognising the significance
end up in the hands of individuals who support divisive and racist of the quality of education, the
ideologies. Referring to the Media reports that non-temple lands President stressed the need for
have already been distributed among the public, the Thera said established standards in both
distribution of lands could be inappropriate due to the presence of government and private
ruins from various Buddhist monasteries scattered around the schools. To achieve this, the
site. operation of inspectorates was
Meanwhile, President Ranil Wickremesinghe categorically deemed necessary.
denied claims suggesting his intention to settle a group of Tamil Further, President
people on the land owned by the temple. Wickremesinghe highlighted the
The President addressed this matter during the launch urgency for immediate changes
ceremony of the new online passport application system held at in the vocational training sector.
the Homagama Divisional Secretariat yesterday (15). Acknowledging that a trained
President Wickremesinghe said he informed MedhanandaThera workforce is essential for a
that neither Sinhalese, Tamils, nor Muslims would be resettled on country’s development, he
the land associated with the historic temple. underscored the importance of
rapid transformations in Sri
Lanka’s vocational training
sector to meet the demands of
the upcoming labour market.
Army doctors...
Head of the Medical Team, Consultant Urologist, Lieutenant
Colonel Dr. K. Sutharshan, who is also the Head of Genito Urinary
Unit at the Colombo Army Hospital, was invited to Army
HRCSL report...
Headquarters on Wednesday (14) afternoon. HRCSL commenced
The kidney stone removed on Thursday (1 June), at the Colombo investigations and recorded
Army Hospital by Dr. Sutharshan and his medical team after a statements from relevant
major surgery is 13.372 cm long and weighs 801 g. authorities based on a complaint
The Army Commander, after pinning the Commander’s filed by the Centre for
Commendation Badge on Dr. Sutharshan, praised him for his Environmental Justice (CEJ) and
meticulous efforts in the removal of a record kidney stone of this four others seeking to direct
magnitude causing no harm to the patient. authorities to conduct an
Dr. Sutharshan took the lead in the surgery, together with independent and impartial
Captain Dr. W.P.S.C. Pathirathna and Dr. Thamasha Premathilaka investigation into the MV
with a few others. Colonel Dr. U.A.L.D. Perera and Colonel Dr. C.S. X-Press Pearl ship fire to
Abeysinghe also contributed to the surgery as Consultant ascertain the cause of the fire
Anaesthetists. and parties responsible and to
Director General Army Health Services, Major General P.A.C. submit a report to the
Fernando USP and Lieutenant Colonel Dr. Sutharshan showed the Commission.
kidney stone to the Army Commander hours after its removal. They requested HRCSL to
As per the existing Guinness World Records, the largest kidney direct any one or more or all of
stone found in the world (India in 2004) was 13 cm in length and the respondents to credit all
the heaviest kidney stone found (Pakistan in 2008) weighted 620 damages and compensation
g. awarded to a dedicated account
The Chief of Staff, Principal Staff Officers, Advisers and a few and to report back to the
Directors were also in attendance. Commission with regard to the
manner in which the
compensation awarded is
utilised or intended to be utilised.
They further sought for the
Ragama Police arrest... HRCSL to direct the respondents
to assess the damage caused to
the environment with the
The 54-year-old fugitive, previously identified as an inmate of assistance of the relevant
the Negombo Prison, was arrested in Ragama on Wednesday (14) authorities by appointing an
evening. expert committee comprising
He was scheduled to appear before the Welisara Magistrate national and/or international
yesterday (15). experts in all relevant fields and
According to Police, the suspect and his brother were initially to submit a preliminary and a
arrested in 2001 in connection with a murder in Ragama. final report to the Commission
Following their arrest, both siblings were remanded in custody. and to assess the damage
However, during the unfortunate transfer of inmates from the caused to the fisheries industry
Negombo Prison to another facility amidst the turmoil caused by and the fishing communities,
the tsunami in 2004, the suspect managed to escape from Police and the tourism industry with the
custody. assistance of the relevant
Years later, in May 2012, the Court proceedings against the two authorities and experts and
brothers commenced with the missing suspect being tried in submit a preliminary and a final
absentia. During the trial, the brother was granted bail, while the report to the Commission.
missing suspect faced a severe penalty, with a death sentence They also sought directions to
being ordered against him. be issued to pay compensation
NEWS
President Wickremesinghe
further said a comprehensive
long-term economic philosophy
should precede discussions on
education. Emphasising the
interdependence of education
and economic growth, he
outlined the aim to overcome
short-term debt and achieve a
sustained economic growth
rate of 8 per cent to 9 per cent
within three years, maintained
for at least a decade. Such
progress is pivotal for propelling
the country forward.
The President highlighted
several factors influencing the
rate of economic growth,
emphasising the importance of
scaling up products and
drawing inspiration from
successful examples such as
Malaysia, China, and Singapore.
However, he also emphasised
the need for a phased approach,
recognising that immediate
transformation on par with
Singapore’s development is not
feasible.
However, the President said
Sri Lanka needs to look at
automation to meet the labour
shortage within the next ten
years, so that Sri Lanka would
have a highly automated labour
force and become the
automated manufacturing hub
in this region.
Highlighting human
resources as the primary
resource for this journey, the
President referred to the
examples of South Korea,
Singapore, Japan, and India,
which have achieved
development through the
effective utilisation of human
capital. The path to such goals
needs to be carefully planned
and determined.
Therefore, the convergence of
education, economic
framework, and climate change
was identified as crucial. Only
through competitiveness can
the country progress towards a
highly competitive economy,
which remains the ultimate
objective.
The discussion was attended
by President’s Secretary Saman
Ekanayake, Prime Minister’s
Secretary Anura Dissanayake,
and members of the Education
Expert Committee.
for the environmental damage
and pollution caused to the
marine and coastal ecology of
Sri Lanka and the atmosphere
under the ‘polluter pays’
principle and the failure to act
according to the expected
standards of the precautionary
principle. They also sought
directions to respondents to
provide the necessary facilities
to the Expert Committees, if any,
which have been appointed and
which are to be appointed to
investigate the different aspects
of the X-Press Pearl disaster, in
the process finalising the reports
relating to the claiming of
damage and to assess the health
impacts caused and imminent to
the public with the assistance of
the relevant authorities by
appointing an expert committee
and to submit a preliminary and
a final report to the Commission.
They called on the
Commission to take immediate
action to address the
fundamental rights violations
resulting from the marine
disaster and urged the
Commission to investigate the
incident thoroughly, hold those
responsible for the disaster
accountable, and direct the State
respondents to take necessary
measures to recover the due
compensation.
The Marine Environment
Protection Authority (MEPA), Sri
Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA),
SLPA Chairman and Director
General, Merchant Shipping and
14 others were named as
respondents.
 NEWS FRIDAY 16 JUNE 2023
At meeting with Major General Hettiarachchi
JAFFNA GA HIGHLIGHTS ARMY’S
ROLE IN CRIME PREVENTION
By Sulochana
Ramiah Mohan
Jaffna District Government Agent
A. Sivapalasundaram, at a meeting
with newly appointed Jaffna District
Military Commander, Major General
Sujeeva Hettiarachchi, emphasised
the cooperation of the Army in
preventing various illegal activities
and conflicts in the Jaffna District.
Body of woman
teacher found
in Urubokka
Police on Wednesday (14) found the body
of a female teacher, indicating a potential
homicide.
The victim, a 29-year-old woman, was
found in the Urubokka, Matara, with severe
lacerations that proved fatal.
Police have raised suspicions that the
teacher’s boyfriend may be responsible for
her untimely demise. The suspect was
arrested as well.
Investigations surrounding her tragic
death are underway.
By Sanjana Marzook
Meegaswewa
A 25-year-old died in a traffic collision
in Meegaswewa on 14 June.
The victim was struck by a car and
sustained critical injuries. He was rushed
to National Hospital Colombo, but was
pronounced dead on admission.
The body was transferred to the morgue
pending a post-mortem.
The suspect driver was arrested
following preliminary investigations.
Meegaswewa Police are conducting
investigations.
Peliyagoda
A 52-year-old motorcyclist was killed in
a collision with a vehicle at Bulugaha
Junction on 14 June.
The collision took place when the
vehicle attempted to overtake the
motorbike.
The victim was rushed to National
Hospital Colombo, but succumbed to his
injuries on admission.
The driver of the vehicle was arrested
for reckless driving.
The victim’s body was sent to the
hospital morgue pending a post-mortem.
Wajira instructs Urban
Development Authority
Remove
unauthorised
constructions
in Galle Fort
By Siri Gadariyage
Chairman of the Galle Kadawath Sathara
Regional Coordinating Committee, MP Wajira
Abeywardena, instructed the Urban
Development Authority (UDA) and the
Assistant Directress of Archaeology in Galle
and Matara to immediately institute legal
action to remove all unauthorised
constructions in front of the Galle Fort’s wall.
Abeywardena pointed out that the people
of Galle are at risk of losing the Galle Stadium
due to unauthorised constructions. He
highlighted that UNESCO had decided to
remove the Galle Fort wall from the World
Heritage List, but it was halted based on the
promise of taking decisive action to address
the issue.
He emphasised that the unauthorised
constructions have been halted and
expressed concern that it is unfair to target
small-scale individuals for their unauthorised
structures.
However, the minister acknowledged that
the Urban Development Plan for Galle is
outdated and instructed the UDA to promptly
update and resubmit the plan. He also
directed them to gather input from the
grassroots level and prepare a revised plan
for submission. During a presentation by the
Director of Urban Development, Abeywardena
intervened and prevented her from presenting
the plan, stating that he had already reviewed
it multiple times and found it to be ineffective.
A3
A.P. Mathan
appointed EP
Tourism Board Chair
A.P. Mathan, a
veteran journalist
and well-known
writer, has been
appointed as the
The meeting took place on 14 Chairman of the
mentioned that numerous plots of issue, he urged the Army to
June and the GA told the Media land, belonging to the public, lack collaborate with the authorities and Tourism Bureau of
after the meeting that he proper survey records, leading to relevant departments. the Eastern
highlighted the necessity of security complications. The GA emphasised Acknowledging the Army’s Province by
cooperation to effectively control the need to survey and return these significant contribution in Governor Senthil
illegal activities in the region. lands to the public and State constructing over 700 houses for Thondaman. He
The GA expressed concerns over authorities. resettled individuals, the GA assumed duties on
reported incidents of looting at the The GA said many previously requested the military’s continued Wednesday (14).
Cement Corporation factory occupied lands, which were support in meeting the future (Pic by M.A.P.
premises after the military had released from military control, have housing and other essential needs Deen – Ampara)
vacated the area. He also yet to be surveyed. To resolve this of the resettled families.
Archaeology Dept DG scapegoated
By Sulochana Ramiah Mohan
– Rasamanickam
ITAK Batticaloa MP Shanakiyan Rasamanickam
alleged Director General of Archaeology, Prof.
shows the Minister leading land operations in the
North and East, while officials from the
Anura Manatunga, who resigned recently, has Archaeological Department have lodged
been unfairly made the scapegoat in a recent complaints regarding land issues with the
development. Minister. “Despite personal discussions with the
According to the MP, Minister of Buddhasasana, Minister, no action was taken to address the
Religious and Cultural Affairs Vidura matter. The Minister even invited the MP to his
Wickremanayake, should take responsibility and Ministry, but later claimed ignorance and
resign, as he is believed to be the main figure promised to halt land surveying, although there is
responsible for the land issues in the North and evidence of the Minister’s active involvement,” he
East. During a Media briefing held on Wednesday said.
(14), the MP emphasised that it is Minister Further, the MP alleged that the Minister
Wickremanayake who is the Cabinet Minister neglects to attend any meetings related to
overseeing cultural affairs, which includes the archaeological sites, thereby undermining the
Department of Archaeology. The MP highlighted effectiveness of recent actions taken by the
that most of the land issues in the North and East President, which resulted in the Director General’s
can be traced back to the involvement of the resignation. The MP emphasised that as long as a
Minister, contrary to the President’s statement Minister like Wickremanayake remains in power,
urging the Director General to adhere to Cabinet the country’s national policy against land
policies. grabbing cannot be effectively implemented.
The MP argued that instead of using the Prof. Manatunga, on 12 June, was accused of
Director General as a scapegoat, it is Minister disregarding Cabinet policy. In a recent meeting,
Wickremanayake who should be asked to resign the President warned Manatunga that adherence
to truly resolve the land matter. to policy decisions made by Cabinet is essential,
Rasamanickam further mentioned instances in as failure to comply may lead to non-compliance
the past where photographic evidence clearly with national policy as well.
Domestic debt restructuring of the present regime. But now
the parties responsible for it
Don’t touch
are trying to bring the above
laws.
People are wondering why
depositors’ money this group that destroyed the
country is manipulating
matters once more,” he said.
In the backdrop of local debt
restructuring, Samagi Jana – Eran He also advised the
Government that when going
Balawegaya (SJB) MP Eran country,” Wickramaratne to discuss amendments with
Wickramaratne on Wednesday warned. regard to the IMF agreement in
(14) stressed that in the The MP emphasised that the September, the tax-free limit
background of economic people are waiting for the best imposed on the working
contraction, it is the laws to eliminate corruption people should be raised to Rs
responsibility of the and fraud because they are 200,000 from the present tax-
Government to be on a firm tired of corruption, theft and free threshold of Rs 100,000
decision not to include a fraud in this country. due to the economic hardships
haircut on depositors’ money “Sri Lanka went bankrupt for faced by the masses.
which otherwise creates a risk the first time under the leaders (PA)
of bankrupting the banking
system in Sri Lanka.
Addressing the Media from
the Opposition Leader’s Office
in Colombo, the SJB MP said
when Gotabaya Rajapaksa
became the President in 2019;
he went on reversing previous
Gazettes, resulting in State
revenue being reduced by one-
third.
But in a tragicomic situation,
his successor reverses other
laws and legislations,
threatening the very fabric of
democracy.
“While the Government is
introducing various anti-
democratic and anti-people
Bills, it is also creating
problems regarding race and
religion, threatening ethnic
and religious harmony in the
Unlawfully selling
shares of Australian
Further
hearing of
Gammanpila’s
case deferred
By Hansi Nanayakkara
Colombo High Court Judge Amal
Ranaraja, yesterday (15), deferred
further hearing of the case filed
against MP Udaya Gammanpila, to
29 August.
The Pivithuru Hela Urumaya
(PHU) Leader has been accused by
the Attorney General of compilation
of a fake Power of Attorney and
over the criminal misappropriation
of a sum of Rs 20 million, by
unlawfully selling shares of firm
‘Digital Nominees’ owned by
Australian national Brian Shaddick,
during the previous Good
Governance Government.
A4 friday 16 june 2023 news

CFA Society Sri Lanka

and HNB Assurance
Join Forces
To Provide Exclusive Group Insurance Policies to Members
SL promotes business
opportunities in Japan’s
CFA Society Sri Lanka is pleased
to announce a groundbreaking
partnership with HNB Assurance, a
Niigata Prefecture leading insurance provider in the
country, to offer an exceptional
group insurance policy exclusively
The Embassy of tailored for its valued members.
Sri Lanka in Tokyo, This collaboration aims to provide
in collaboration comprehensive coverage and
with Samurai Lanka valuable benefits to CFA Society Sri
Co., Ltd., a Sri Lanka members, ensuring their
Lankan-owned financial security and peace of
enterprise in mind.
Niigata, and the The group insurance policy,
Niigata Chamber of provided as a complimentary
Commerce and benefit, offers a range of extensive
Industry (NCCI), coverage options, including a
organised a Sri Natural death benefit and a Total (From left) – Sanesh Fernando and Lasitha Wimalaratne from HNB Assurance. Aruna Perera, Rashmi Peiris Paranavitane,
Lanka Business accidental death benefit, subject to Richardson Morais, Rasanja Perera, and Aruna Alwis from CFA Society Sri Lanka
Promotion Seminar at Niigata City Tenjuen Hall on 8 June, to other applicable conditions set by
enlighten Japanese enterprises in Niigata prefecture about HNB Assurance. This initiative esteemed members. At CFA satisfaction. Lasitha Wimalaratne, CFA Society Sri Lanka members
present business opportunities and invite them to consider Sri showcases the commitment of Society Sri Lanka, our mission is to CEO, HNB Assurance PLC, and provide them with peace of
Lanka as a business destination. CFA Society Sri Lanka and HNB empower our members and ensure emphasised the significance of mind.”
Delivering the keynote address, Ambassador E. Rodney M. Assurance to supporting their their long-term financial security. this collaboration, stating, “We are CFA Society Sri Lanka members
Perera made a comprehensive presentation to the audience on members and enhancing their This collaboration with HNB delighted to partner with CFA are encouraged to take advantage
the present economic situation and the measures taken by the overall well-being. Assurance exemplifies our Society Sri Lanka to offer this of this exclusive offering by
Government to stabilise the Sri Lankan economy. He also Aruna Perera, CFA, President of dedication to delivering special group insurance policy to renewing their membership with
elaborated on how Sri Lanka is making strong progress toward CFA Society Sri Lanka, expressed exceptional value and benefits to its members. HNB Assurance is CFA Institute and CFA Society Sri
improving the country’s economy beyond its previous state and his enthusiasm about the our members.” dedicated to providing innovative Lanka for 2024 before 30 June
mentioned that international support demonstrates that the partnership, stating, “We are HNB Assurance, a renowned and customer-centric insurance 2023. On activation of the group
country is on the right path. Further, Ambassador Perera deeply thrilled to join hands with HNB name in the insurance industry, solutions. We believe that this insurance policy, members will
appreciated the support Japan continues to extend to Sri Lanka Assurance to provide this exclusive brings extensive expertise and a collaboration will significantly gain access to valuable coverage
at all international forums and also utilising the many tools at the group insurance policy to our strong commitment to customer enhance the financial well-being of and benefits.
disposal of Japanese agencies to support Sri Lanka’s economy
bilaterally. He informed the audience that Sri Lanka is exploring
collaborations with Japanese companies to increase production,
provide goods and services, and modernise industrial and
agricultural industries while developing closer bilateral
cooperation to use its ports as shipping hubs for Japanese
products and services in the South Asian region.
Joining the seminar online, Naoshi Yamada, Managing Director
of Metatechno Lanka Pvt. Ltd., having invested in Sri Lanka in a
successful venture, shared his positive experience in doing
business in Sri Lanka in the IT sector, while Arunya de Silva from
the Investment Promotion Division of the Board of Investment
(BOI) explained in detail why Sri Lanka is an attractive investment
destination.
Katsuyuki Fukuda, Chairman of the Niigata Chamber of
Commerce and Industry, delivered the seminar’s opening
remarks, drawing the attention of the gathering to the recent visit
of President Ranil Wickremesinghe to Japan and the economic
opportunities available in Sri Lanka to local businesses. The
seminar was attended by over 50 Japanese businesspersons
Colombo Expats Cultural Association celebrates
from leading manufacturing, retail, and wholesale companies,
logistics, IT and software, and food production companies in the
Niigata area.
UN’s International Day for Cultural Diversity
Colombo Expats Cultural 2005. Second, highly acclaimed Anirban Banerjee, the Association
Association (CECA), Sri Lanka, beauty Pageant winner Sumudu mentors Ranjan Chakaravarthy
which is a multi-national and Abeysekara, who is the former and Executive Committee
multi-cultural community Miss Sri Lanka for Miss World members to facilitate the mega
comprising of members from India, 2012 and Mrs. Sri Lanka for Mrs. event.
Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal, World in 2018. Sumudu has not To bring out the importance of
organized and celebrated UN’s only proven her beauty and grace cultural representations,
International Day for Cultural on the global stage, but has also celebrating the International Day
Diversity, in Colombo, Sri Lanka on earned recognition for her for Cultural Diversity, a colourful
14 May, 2023.This function was modelling talents, having been display of international multi
Presided by Association Mentor, ranked in the top 20 for top model ethnical and multicultural attires
Sanjay Baid. strategic planning and at Miss World 2012. Thirdly, were showcased on the Fashion
Baid is also the CEO of his family development of gem and jewellery Nalaka Daluwaththa, a renowned Runway 2023.About 40
business and one of the largest sector in Sri Lanka. Cinema Actor and Model with participants took to the ramp walk
diamond exporters in Sri Lanka. The event was also presided over 15 years industry stage and walked with pride
Niru / Diamond Cutters supplies and judged by three esteemed experience, locally and representing the cultural and their
diamonds and colour stones to guests. Among them were well internationally. He has also been ethnicity values. The mega event
Swiss watch industry. Baid is also renowned beauty personality, a very famous Music Video actor concluded with the grand crowning
appointed as the adviser to Gem Rozanne Diasz Leanage who was in last decade in Sri Lanka. of the winners as the CECA King
and Jewellery Board of Sri Lanka adjudged as Best Model in 1997 Other dignitaries present were and Queen 2023 and were followed
by the President of Sri Lanka for and Miss Sri Lanka Universe in the President of CECA, Captain by the Runners-up.

From humble beginnings at

Raymond Road, Nugegoda to
becoming the largest network of
schools in the island, Lyceum has
spread its branches of wisdom across
the nation creating thousands of
young leaders. Lyceum celebrated 30
years of excellence in education on 14
June at a grand event attended by
Founders Dr. Mohan Lal Grero and Dr.
Kumari Grero with the young Director
Nikitha Grero, along with other
dignitaries.
Lyceum International School,
starting with a small collective of
dedicated individuals, has become
a renowned institution in Sri Lanka,
providing accessible, high-quality
English Medium education. Over 30
years and with multiple branches, it
has nurtured numerous young
leaders. Through resilience and
visionary excellence, the Lyceum
family exemplifies the power of
determination to create positive
change.
On the 30th anniversary, Lyceum
International School awarded the
prestigious title of ‘Emeritus
Teacher’ to teachers who have
served the school for 10+ years, and
shown true loyalty, commitment and
skill in their craft.
The Launch of ‘The Emeritus
Teacher’ title is a significant leap in
academic recognition spearheaded by
Nikitha Grero, Managing Director,
Lyceum International School. The title
of ‘Emeritus Teacher’ is a prestigious
Lyceum International School celebrates 30 years
honour bestowed upon exceptional
teachers and educators who have
devoted themselves with faithful
service to the development of young
minds, the advancement of the school,
and the betterment of society. These
teachers have gone above and beyond
their duty, guiding students during
their tenure at Lyceum and shaping
their lives, and preparing them to
become responsible global citizens.
The following former members of
the academic staff of Lyceum received
the ‘Emeritus Teacher’ awards: Sarath
Gunatilake, Esther Felicia Perera,
Ganeshwary Yogeswaran, Nihal
Jayasinghe, Meegaha Gedara
Sardhawathie, Titus Silva, Hishana
Martinesz, Sam Chandrasena,
Samarabandu Wickramasinghe, Lilani
Fernando, Christina Gunasekera,
Malini Weerasinghe, J. Krishnakumar,
Malathi Fernando, Sushila Witharana,
Yoheswaran, Yvete Cooke, the late
Bandula Ediriweera Galappaththi
(posthumous award) and the late Tilan
Perera (posthumous award).
All these signified the ‘real world
approach’ of transforming lives to
transforming communities that are
grounded in the value Lyceum school
places in these dedicated and devoted
individuals who serve not only in
enabling young minds to be
academically qualified but beyond
that, to be strong global citizens who
respect and devote his/her self to the
preservation of core Sri Lankan values.
The celebrations began with the
opening of ‘The Wall of Gratitude’ by
Dr. Mohan Lal Grero, Dr. Kumari Grero,
and Nikitha Grero. The Founder,
Coordinating Principal, and young
Director proceeded to the Aeolian Hall
along with the Emeritus Teacher
awardees. The celebrations continued
with the hoisting of the flags while the
school choir sang the National and
School Anthems, preceded by the
lighting of the oil lamp ceremony.
Thereafter, the guests were
welcomed with a captivating dance
performed by the School’s Kandyan
dancing troupe, after which the Head
Boy proceeded with his welcome
speech to all present. The ‘A Walk
Through Humble Beginnings’ video
with messages from the Founder,
Coordinating Principal and Director
was played. They reflect on the long
yet fulfilling journey of Lyceum
International School and the Lyceum
family.
Dr. Mohan Lal Grero, looking back
on the past 30 years, had this to say:
“The vision of Lyceum International
School has remained unwavering
since its inception. On 14 June 1993,
with a dedicated team of 4 teachers, a
Principal and a Registrar, Lyceum
International School, Nugegoda,
became the very first school of our
Lyceum network, with the primary
focus of providing wide-ranging,
international educational experiences.
In our three-decade-long journey in
education, we have sought to enrich
our students with not only high-quality
education on an international level but
to help them develop desirable
attributes as compassionate human
beings, whilst developing their innate
talents. Over the years, Lyceum has
established itself as a premier
institution, offering students a rich and
well-rounded education. We are truly
proud of our students, past and
present, who continue to work hard to
achieve their goals, and of those who
have gone to not only thrive but make
a real difference. Today, we mark yet
another milestone in our journey of
shaping the future generations of our
country, celebrating 30 years of
academic excellence and
achievements. I also extend my
sincere gratitude to the staff and
school management for their diligence
and commitment, towards the
sustained progress of Lyceum
International School, Nugegoda and
its students.”
Dr. Mohan Lal Grero, Dr. Kumari
Grero, and Nikitha Grero were invited
onto the stage for the cake-cutting
ceremony along with the Head
Prefects. The cake was cut to much
applause while the choir sang
‘Happy Birthday’.
This anniversary was a special one
for the School as it marks a milestone
in proving survival, strength, and an
unwavering spirit despite the situation.
The Lyceum name is synonymous
with good values and priorities
instilling a value system of
acceptance, kindness, honesty, and
strength in their students. If anything,
the 30th anniversary reflects the
success of Lyceum International
School and its future of innovative
teaching and learning, and life-long
education.
 focus Friday 16 june 2023
ECONOMIC SECURITY IN THE FACE
OF HIGH TAX BURDEN IN SRI LANKA
By Kalpani Gunathilaka
The current tax system is the topic of
everyone’s discussion in the country and it
is at a critical juncture. A country’s taxation
system is identified as a key determinant
of macroeconomic development and
sustainable economic growth. Taxes are
the main source of revenue for the
Government in Sri Lanka. According to the
financial report of the Central Bank of Sri
Lanka (CBSL), the total revenue of the
Government is Rs 1,457,071 billion in 2021.
Of that, Rs 1,298,019 billion has been
earned from tax, and the rest (Rs 159,052
billion) from other non-tax sources.
Accordingly, taxes account for 89.1 per
cent of total government revenue. This
reveals how important tax revenue is to Sri
Lanka.
However, deep direct and indirect tax
cuts arbitrarily enacted in early 2020 by the
then Government, were a massive
challenge to the Sri Lankan economy. They
are: economic service charges, debit tax on
banking and financial institutions, capital
gain tax on the share market, Value Added
Tax (VAT) on the sovereign property, Pay
As You Earn (PAYE) tax, Withholding tax on
interest income, and credit service tax
were eliminated while Value Added Tax
(VAT), Nation Building Tax (NBT) and tax
on telecommunication Tariffs were
reduced by the Government. Consequently,
approximately one million taxpayers lost to
the economy between 2020 and 2022.
Compared with BIMSTEC nations, Sri
Lanka had lower tax revenue to Gross
Domestic Product (GDP) ratio in the Asian
region. Nepal, Bhutan, Thailand, and India
showed higher tax revenue and
Bangladesh and Myanmar showed lower
tax revenue as a percentage of GDP among
BIMSTEC countries compared with Sri
Lanka. However, these arbitrary tax-
cutting policies in 2020 created significant
and negative consequences directly and
indirectly to the economy such as an
increase in the budget deficit, an
escalation of the total debt-to-GDP ratio of
the Government, an increase in inflation,
and exchange rate depreciation. The
Government took steps to hike the tax rate
for attracting revenue when the recession
caused by the Covid-19 pandemic was
unbearable. In view of that, VAT and
Corporate income tax were escalated while
payment of withholding tax on
employment was made compulsory and
exemptions on individual tax payments
were reduced at the end of May 2022.
Recently, President Ranil
Wickremesinghe issued an Extraordinary
Gazette Notification on 31 May as Finance
Minister by announcing specific groups of
people as compulsory to open tax files
since 1 June 2023. It is comprised with all
the practitioners registered with the Sri
Lanka Medical Council (SLMC), members
of the Institute of Chartered Accountants
of Sri Lanka, members of the Institute of
Certified Management Accountants (CMA)
of Sri Lanka, members of the Institution of
Engineers Sri Lanka, members of the
The most common
taxes in society are
Income Taxes and
VAT. Income Taxes
lessen the
disposable income
of individuals and it
affects mostly
professionals and
people with higher
incomes. All the
people in society
need to pay VAT
directly or
indirectly when
they are purchasing
goods and
services. With the
increase of VAT in
2022 from 8 to 12
per cent, prices of
all goods and
services escalated
to higher rates
A5
During this hard
time, the
Government
should target only
the ‘rich and
affluent’ for
collecting taxes
without
burdening the
poor. There are
various other
ways to find
revenue such as
Association of Professional Bankers, whose way forward was stalled, especially robust to increase revenues in the medium encouraging
members of the Sri Lanka Institute of
Architects, members of the Institute of
in the middle and lower classes in Sri
Lanka. Their ability on access to education,
to longer term. Economic security is a
less-talked-about topic in Sri Lanka as it is
Exports, Foreign
Quantity Surveyors Sri Lanka, Attorneys- health, dwelling and social protection was threatened due to various environmental, remittances etc.
at-Law of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka, almost at a standstill. social, political and financial reasons.
individuals who have registered their Measures to be taken Heavy tax burden creates a significant Subsidising on
businesses in Divisional Secretariats,
individuals who are in possession of During this hard time, the Government
negative impact on economic security
especially for the poor and middle classes.
one side and
vehicles registered (other than three- should target only the ‘rich and affluent’ for Hence, further studies need to be taxing on the
wheelers, motorcycles and hand tractors) collecting taxes without burdening the conducted to identify the impact of the tax
with the Motor Traffic Department, poor. There are various other ways to find burden on peoples’ economic security and other is not very
individuals who have purchased or revenue such as encouraging Exports, thereby implement remedial measures to
acquired, by virtue of Deeds Transfer, of Foreign remittances etc. Subsidising on ensure economic security. appropriate for
any immovable property in Sri Lanka on or
after 1 April 2018, employees whose
one side and taxing on the other is not very
appropriate for the Sri Lankan poor.
* Kalpani Gunathilaka is a Research
Assistant at the Institute of National
the Sri Lankan
monthly contribution from both employee Therefore, it is vital to expand the Security Studies (INSS), the premier think- poor
and employer to any Provident Fund which immediate social protection measures for tank on National Security established
is more than Rs 20,000, any individual who the poor and/or vulnerable sections of under the Ministry of Defence. The opinion
obtains approval for a building plan from a society who are most impacted by the expressed is her own and not necessarily
Local Authority, any other individual who pandemic, while the Government must reflective of the institute or the Ministry of
receives payment of Rs 100,000 per month make the tax collection systems more Defence
or Rs. 1,200,000 for a 12-month period for
providing any services in Sri Lanka.
Individuals who are 18 years or more as of
31 December 2023, or who attain the age
of 18 years on or after 1 January 2024, are
also mandatory to open tax files by
registering themselves with the Inland
Revenue Department.
How it burdens people and
affects their economic
security
According to the International Labour
Organization (ILO), economic security
refers to the “people’s access to basic
needs infrastructure related to education,
health, social protection, dwelling,
information and work-related security”.
This concept is vital for individuals and
nations as it is one of the determinants in
assessing national security. As well as it
directly connects with the economic well-
being of people. The International
Committee of the Red Cross has presented
five key livelihood outcomes to measure
economic security, food consumption,
food production, living conditions, income
and the capacity of civil society
organisations and the Government to meet
people’s needs. However, higher tax
implementations by the Government
create negative effects on the above
dimensions in different ways.
Due to the implementation of higher tax
rates, the disposable income of every
individual reduces. Especially, the increase
in VAT is the most common tax that can
create a huge influence on people in the
upper, middle and lower classes. The most
common taxes in society are Income Taxes
and VAT. Income Taxes lessen the
disposable income of individuals and it
affects mostly professionals and people
with higher incomes. All the people in
society need to pay VAT directly or
indirectly when they are purchasing goods
and services. With the increase of VAT in
2022 from 8 to 12 per cent, prices of all
goods and services escalated to higher
rates. People, especially in the lower and
middle classes, were severely affected by
this tax policy as they were financially
exhausted due to the Covid-19 pandemic
and the subsequent economic crisis.
According to the Department of Census
and Statistics (DCS), approximately one
out of every six people in Sri Lanka is
multidimensionally poor. Therefore, since
the poverty level in Sri Lanka is relatively
high when a tax like VAT is suddenly
increased by a significant percentage and
imposed on everyone it affects them very
severely. With the impact of the Covid-19
pandemic and economic crisis, most
people lost their jobs; their salaries and
wages were drastically reduced. Although
the Government imposed a tax on people
with the aim of economic upturn, it was a
huge burden on them during that worsened
period. It brought people to a situation
where even their basic needs could not be
fulfilled. Further, it caused many people to
leave the country. In addition, due to the
unfair tax policies, many people had to give
up and delay their ‘dreams and hopes’ like
purchasing and/or repairing vehicles,
houses, starting a new business etc.
Consequently, there was a higher level of
‘economic insecurity’ among people
A6 FRIDAY 16 JUNE 2023 EDITORIAL

Ceylon Newspapers (Pvt) Ltd.

No: 101, Rosmead Place, Colombo 07.
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E-mail : editor@ceylontoday.lk

Protecting inmate
rights for a just society
The issue of overcrowding in Sri Lankan prisons has been a
longstanding concern. Over the years, the prison population has
increased significantly, leading to overcrowded conditions in many
facilities across the country. This overcrowding poses several
challenges and risks to the well-being and rehabilitation of inmates.
The reasons behind prison overcrowding in Sri Lanka are
multifaceted. Factors such as high crime rates, lengthy pre-trial
detention periods, delays in the judicial process, and limited
alternatives to incarceration contribute to the problem. Additionally,
inadequate infrastructure and insufficient resources to expand prison
capacity have exacerbated the situation.
Against this backdrop, the Department of Prisons recently revealed
that overcrowding in prisons has increased to nearly 260 per cent at
present and in some prisons the figure has increased by 300 per cent
– 400 per cent.
Commissioner General of Prisons Thushara Upuldeniya, during a
meeting of Parliament watchdog, the Committee on Public Accounts
(COPA), said the number of prison inmates has increased and this
figure is generally 259 per cent.
Accordingly, although there is room for only 11,762 inmates in the

PERMISSIVENESS:
prisons, 26,791 inmates are presently in prisons, Secretary to the
Justice Ministry, Wasantha Perera revealed. in which self-styled sects and
Out of this number, 17,502 are remand prisoners and 10,470 of their pastors and preachers
them are drug-related offenders. Further, the Commissioner General thrive.
of Prisons said 9,289 persons have been convicted by the Court and It is for this reason that the

A PASS-WORD
3,569 of them are drug-related offenders. It was also revealed that Church has to measure its words
1,309 of them are in prison for not being able to pay fines. and sermons, to de-politicise
Additional Commissioner General of Prisons Chandana Ekanayake them before it became too late.
said it is a huge problem that people who cannot pay fines are If it meant that the Catholic
released under special amnesty on occasions like Vesak and Poson Church would have to withdraw
Festivals. into its old cocoon, so be it, as

FOR RELIGIONS
It was also revealed that the number of drug-related offenders has long as it ensures that the good
increased rapidly. According to this, rehabilitation work will be done in name of the religion does not get
nine new centres, said the Commissioner General of Prisons. besmirched in avoidable scams
The consequences of prison overcrowding are numerous. and controversies that are not
Overcrowded prisons struggle to provide adequate living conditions, theirs, but goes by the name and
access to healthcare, and other essential services to inmates. It can style of the very same religion
also lead to increased violence, tensions among prisoners, and and God.
difficulties in maintaining order and security within the facilities. By N. Sathiya Moorthy sympathise with them then or Sensitivity, historicity
Moreover, overcrowding hampers effective rehabilitation and have not done so since.
reintegration efforts, as limited resources and overcrowded The more religious leaders talk ‘No say’, in the matter The reason is not far to It is not as if the Catholic
conditions make it challenging to provide educational, vocational, and politics, the more politicised Church or the larger Christian
counselling programmes. religion gets into. It happened to Because Cardinal Ranjith has
seek but is seldom Church with its differing sects
Ensuring the protection of the rights of prison inmates is of utmost mainstay Buddhism early on, no say in the matter, he cannot understood, and varying cults, alone was in
importance as it reflects the values of a just and compassionate ‘kovils’ and churches in Tamil control those individuals that acknowledged and acted the news and for the wrong
society. Every individual, regardless of their circumstances, deserves areas became politicised with practise and preach Christianity reasons. Mainline Buddhism
to be treated with dignity and have their basic rights safeguarded. the ethnic issue, and are slowly, and in the name of Jesus that
upon. Even within the made waves these past weeks,
However, in Sri Lankan society, there is often a lack of sensitivity and but surely beginning to fight the the Catholic Church and other cosmopolitan Colombo again for the wrong reasons.
awareness regarding the rights of prison inmates, which can be other religion between the two. major denominations, too revere urban community, there Unfounded social media posts
attributed to several factors. Now, it is the turn of the Catholic without question. These new on 5-G mobile signals affected
Firstly, there is a prevailing societal perception that inmates are Church in the country, nay, in the and self-styled denominational
is lil or no understanding what is among Buddhism’s
solely responsible for their actions and that their rights should be Sinhala areas, to talk politics as churches, sects and groups are of the rites and rituals of holiest of holy symbols, the
secondary to the punishment they receive. This mindset often leads never before. In turn, it seems to the problem, and they are now one religion in the rest. Maha Bodhi tree at
to a dehumanisation of prisoners, making it easier for society to have encouraged, if not facing problems, after all. But Anuradhapura, making a
overlook or downplay their rights. empowered, fringe elements, through all their speeches and
All that the nation as a mockery of layman’s beliefs.
Additionally, there is a lack of understanding about the potential for sects and cults within the actions, these peripheral whole knows and Buddhists in the country and
rehabilitation and reintegration of inmates into society. Many religion to assert themselves in churches and their self-styled understands is that every elsewhere believe that the
individuals fail to recognise that prisons should not just be punitive socio-political terms – and this pastors and preachers besmirch parent Tree in Anuradhapura had
institutions, but also spaces for reform and second chances. By could only weaken the religion the good name of the Catholic or
full moon day, or Poya for grown from a sapling of the one
neglecting the rights of inmates, society inadvertently perpetuates a even more, if not here and now. larger Christian faith. Buddhists, is a national under which Lord Buddha had
cycle of crime and recidivism instead of actively working toward their The recent call by Colombo The reason is not far to seek holiday attained Nirvana, or Salvation,
rehabilitation and successful reintegration. Archbishop Malcolm Cardinal but is seldom understood, 2,300 years ago. Religiosity
Another factor that contributes to the lack of sensitivity towards Ranjith for the Government to acknowledged and acted upon. apart, the fact that the tree has
inmate rights is a lack of public awareness and education on the ‘hold Local Government Even within the cosmopolitan It is typical of religionists in lived for centuries together and
issue. Limited understanding of the challenges faced by inmates and elections to secure the Colombo urban community, other people’s pay, who need to has been witness to history
the importance of their rights leads to apathy and indifference within democratic rights of the people’ there is lil or no understanding be heard also across the seas unfolding before it by itself
society. Consequently, the rights of prisoners are often overlooked or falls into such a category. of the rites and rituals of one and oceans, by their pay- needs to be protected from
marginalised, further perpetuating the cycle of neglect. Maybe, it is not at all his religion in the rest. All that the masters especially. disasters, especially man-made
Sri Lankan society needs to recognise that protecting the rights of intention, but there is a spurt in nation as a whole knows and As the Supreme Court was ones.
prison inmates is not only a legal and ethical obligation but also an criminal cases against understands is that every full told recently, Fernando has Given the sensitivity,
investment in building a safer and more inclusive society. When individuals not taking orders moon day, or Poya for Buddhists, spent LKR 3.3 billion for building religiosity and historicity
inmates are treated with dignity and have their rights upheld, it from him or reporting to him or is a national holiday. It’s a his ‘Miracle Dome’ prayer hall. attached to the Bo tree,
increases the likelihood of successful rehabilitation and reduces the his Church, for taking law – and shame that some even crib The Court was also told that President Ranil Wickremesinghe
chances of reoffending. religion – into their hands, and about the non-availability of British-Zimbabwean preacher had reportedly despatched a
By fostering a culture of empathy, understanding, and education, saying and doing things that are liquor and the closure of cinema Uebert Angel, the spiritual team of telecom and botanical
Sri Lankan society can shift its perspective towards recognising and un-catholic and irreligious, in halls on every Poya Day, every mentor of Fernando, has been experts to check on the rumours
valuing the rights of prison inmates. This requires concerted efforts form and content. month. accused of money laundering and report back. It was good in a
from various stakeholders, including the Government, civil society Of course, the good Cardinal It is thus that you have the and gold smuggling in way as the experts found that
organisations, and the public, to raise awareness, advocate for has been airing his political case of Pastor Jerome Zimbabwe. there was no truth in the
inmate rights, and support initiatives that promote humane and views publicly ever since the Fernando, for instance. The CID Then, there is the arrest of rumours. This should ‘shut up’
rehabilitative approaches within the criminal justice system. Easter blasts in 2019, and so has is investigating him, initially for another self-styled 'Assembly of the mouth of rumour-mongers
the Church under his care. While making sacrilegious comments Life Word' denomination in at least for a few more years to
the laity does not seem to share on every other religion in the Achuveli, whose preacher and 30 come.
or harbour such views, the land, namely, the majority others, for breaking into the Yet, it is not known why the
Catholic Church in Colombo – it Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam. office of the Tamil newspaper, government has not ordered a
is at variance with the Tamil ‘Uthayan’, and attacking a police investigation to identify
churches in the North and the female bank officer and her and arrest the rumour-mongers
This Newspaper supports the East – andThis Newspaper supports the
Cardinal mother, in separate incidents. and get to know their
Press Complaints Commission of Sri Lanka PressRanjith has been sharpening
Complaints Commission of Sri Lanka The former had reported on the background and motive. There
its political intake and output Church with its differing activities of the pastor and his may be more to it than what
Rights of Readers with each passing Rights of Readers sects and varying cults,
day, each sect, which they found to be meets the eye in ordinary
passing incident or episode. offensive. The women had circumstances, as such
The Editor and the journalists of this newspaper respect the The Editor
They and theatjournalists
are all variance and alone
of this newspaper was in
respect thethe news and complained to the Police that unfounded rumours have the
“Rights of Readers” and endeavour to follow the Code of “Rights of Readers” and endeavour
are distanced in time and space to for the wrong reasons.
follow the Code of the sound coming from the potential to prepare the nation to
Professional Practice of The Editors’ Guild of Sri Lanka, which Professional
from thePractice of Theinto
Easter blasts, Editors’ Guild of Sri Lanka, which sect’s church next door was shoulder the worst of them and
Mainline Buddhism made
is implemented by the Press Complaints Commission of is which
implemented by the Press
alone Cardinal Complaints
Ranjith had Commission of becoming unbearable after their ease the job of perpetrators, if
Sri Lanka. demanded impartial probe Sri Lanka. waves these past weeks, direct pleadings did not help. any. And it is no more confined
If you have a grievance against us, you are welcome to contact If youalmost
have asince
grievance again for
against us,– you are welcome
the beginning the wrong
to contact Truth be acknowledged, the to one religion, one sect, or one
us directly and we will strive to provide redress to you. us
anddirectly
more and we will
so after Hisstrive to provide redress
Eminence to you.
reasons. Unfounded social Church and Cardinal have person.
If you are not satisfied, you could complain to: came to believe
If you are not–satisfied,
and possibly
you could complain to: nothing whatsoever to do with (The writer is a policy analyst
The Press Complaints Commission of Sri Lanka (PCCSL) Thefor goodComplaints
Press reasons – that justice of Sri media
Commission posts on 5-G mobile
Lanka (PCCSL) these events, nor many others in and political commentator,
had not been meted out to the signals affected what is which pastors, like other based in Chennai, India. Email:
For further information contact blast victims. It’s
For the kind
further of
information contact
among Buddhism’s holiest preachers of other religions, are sathiyam54@nsathiyamoorthy.
96, Bernard Soysa Mawatha (Kirula Road), Colombo 5 96, Bernardthat
accusation SoysatheMawatha
Tamil (Kirula Road), Colombo 5 being hauled up before Police com)
Tel: 5353635 Fax: 5335500 Tel: 5353635
community, including TamilFax: 5335500 of holy symbols, the Maha and Courts. But their talking The views and opinions
E-mail: srockwood@pccsl.lk Catholics, have E-mail:
beensrockwood@pccsl.lk
levelling Bodhi tree at politics on religion, and expressed in this article are the
Web page: www.pccsl.lk Web page: www.pccsl.lk
against the Sri Lankan State and Anuradhapura, making a expanding the scope as if it writer’s own and do not
its security apparatus for would help expand the reach of necessarily reflect the official
decades now. But the Cardinal mockery of layman’s the religion, too, may have policy or position of
and the Colombo Church did not beliefs created an air of permissiveness Ceylon Today
 EXCHANGE RATES 15.06.2023 FRIDAY 16 JUNE 2023 B7
Currency Buying Rate Selling Rate
Australian Dollar 210.8472 224.9709
Canadian Dollar 231.7384 247.9512
Chinese Yuan (Renminbi) 42.7553 46.3823
Euro 335.9432 356.9234
Japanese Yen 2.2049 2.3396
Singapore Dollar 230.7205 245.9947
Sterling Pound 392.7211 417.0095
Swiss Franc 342.0369 366.4402
US Dollar 311.6057 328.9272
Country Currency Indicative Rate
Bahrain Bahrain Dinar 818.2785
Kuwait Kuwait Dinar 1,004.1758
Oman Oman Rial 801.2852

CBSL’S ‘PAUSE’
Qatar Qatar Riyal 84.6120
Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabian Riyal 82.2500
UAE UAE Dirham 83.9912
Source: CBSL

Reserves bleed STRENGTHENS

by USD 91.75M
RUPEE
By Paneetha Ameresekere administered Fitch Ratings
‘spot’
A ‘pause’ in Central Bank of Sri
Lanka’s (CBSL’s) US dollar buying ‘spree’
sharply for
the fifth
reaffirms People’s
from the market yesterday helped the
benchmark ‘spot’ to strengthen steeply
consecutive
market day to Bank’s National Rating
of ‘A(lka)’/RWN
by five rupees (1.59 and 1.56 per cent in yesterday, this
two way quotes) to be trading at Rs time by 1.74 per cent
310/315 to the dollar, market sources told (Rs 5.27) to Rs 308.48 to
Finance Today. the dollar. A year ago CBSL weakened the Global credit rating agency, swiftly addressed pressing
By Paneetha Ameresekere However, previously, due to CBSL’s administered ‘spot’ for the second Fitch Ratings has announced issues within a short span of
dollar buying ‘spree,’ the ‘spot,’ in the five consecutive market day, this time by 0.01 its decision to maintain time, exemplifying its proactive
Sri Lanka’s foreign reserves haemorrhaged for the consecutive market days to Wednesday, per cent (two cents) to Rs 359.85 to the People’s Bank’s National Rating management approach.
second consecutive market day to Wednesday, this time sharply fell by between 24 and 28 rupees dollar. Consequently, YoY to yesterday, the of ‘A(lka)’ on Rating Watch During the first quarter of
by USD 33.24 million (Rs 9,848 million), thereby (8.25-9.59 per cent) to Rs 315/320 to the administered ‘spot’ has sharply Negative (RWN) this week. 2023, People’s Bank reported
increasing such net outflows in the two market days to dollar in two way quotes, thereby causing strengthened by 14.28 per cent (Rs 51.37) In its comprehensive rating an impressive consolidated
Wednesday to USD 91.75 million (Rs 27,004 million). cost-push inflationary pressure as Sri to the dollar. report, Fitch Ratings Profit After Tax of Rs. 4.8 billion,
This bleeding of the country’s foreign reserves in the Lanka is an import dependent economy. ‘Spot’ trades are settled after two emphasised the heightened supported by a consolidated
two market days to Wednesday was due to the Nonetheless, year on year (YoY) to market days from the date of trading. risks associated with the operating income of Rs. 24
settlement of foreign debt servicing commitments to yesterday the ‘spot’ has steeply gained by CBSL the steward of GoSL debt and of its current operating environment billion. The bank’s consolidated
multilateral donor agencies. Conversions are based on Rs 50 (13.89 and 13.70 per cent) in two foreign reserves deals in the official despite which People’s Bank, as net interest income reached Rs.
Friday’s (9) and Monday’s (12) administered ‘spot’ values way quotes. A year ago the ‘spot’ was ‘spot.’ The official ‘spot’ is usually a State-Owned Institution, has 15.3 billion during the period,
which were Rs 293.21 and Rs 296.24 to the US dollar trading unchanged for the twenty first artificially propped up to minimize the successfully drawn strength driven by prevailing high
respectively. consecutive market day to 15 June 2022 cost of GoSL’s foreign debt in rupee from its rich 62-year legacy. interest rates. Moreover, the
Buying pressure of Treasury (T)-Bonds and T-Bills in at Rs 360/365 to the dollar in two way terms and also to minimize GoSL’s The bank has solidified its consolidated net fees &
secondary money and debt market trading led by banks quotes, statistics also showed. foreign debt servicing costs in rupee position as the leading commission income amounted
continued for the third consecutive market day to Meanwhile, CBSL weakened the terms. commercial bank in the country, to Rs. 4.5 billion, reflecting over
Wednesday, resulting in Government of Sri Lanka’s demonstrating exceptional 40 per cent growth when
(GoSL’s) direct money printing borrowing costs (MPBCs) resilience and unwavering excluding one-off items from
sharply decreasing for the third consecutive market day, stability. 1Q22.
this time by 2.94 per cent (Rs 1,605.82 million) to Rs At the forefront of digital With a steadfast commitment
52,985.69 million. However, sustained investor appetite innovation in Sri Lanka’s to customer-centric banking,
for T-Bills and T-Bonds is at the expense of denying banking sector, People’s Bank People’s Bank has witnessed a
lending to the private sector, the engine of growth. has proved its commitment to 2.6 per cent increase in total
Meanwhile, due to the above reserves haemorrhage, the nation by extending its consolidated customer
market’s net shortfall sharply increased for the third utmost cooperation to the deposits, reaching Rs. 2,513.1
consecutive market day to Wednesday, this time by 1.46 Government during the darkest billion. Meanwhile,
per cent (Rs 3,749 million) to Rs 260,146 million, while hours. When the country was consolidated net loans
GoSL’s non-demand pull inflationary face value (FV) MP grappling with essential contracted by 4.2 per cent,
debt increased for the second consecutive market day to supplies and medicine standing at Rs. 1,835.1 billion.
Wednesday, this time by Rs 6,099 million; thereby shortages, the bank stepped As a premier licensed
increasing GoSL’s total FVMP debt as a whole by 0.22 forward unhesitatingly, commercial bank, People’s
per cent to Rs 2,798,525.98 million (Rs 2.7985 trillion), considering it a national duty to Bank boasts the largest
due to a sustained lack of revenue. ensure the smooth functioning banking footprint in the country
MP, coupled with being the steward of the country’s of supply lines. As the economy with 745 branches/service
foreign reserves and of its debt is the exclusive gradually recovers and centers and the expertise of its
prerogative of the CBSL. GoSL’s FVMP debt is equivalent domestic foreign exchange 7,300-strong workforce to

Anantaya Resorts & Spas Chilaw

to the totality of CBSL’s T-Bill and T-Bond holdings. Swap constraints ease, the People’s serve over 14.7 million
settlements between the GoSL and Central Bank of Sri Bank continues to make customers and nurture more
Lanka (CBSL) are foreign reserves neutral. CBSL’s daily remarkable progress on than 19.0 million account
open market operations (OMO) statistics from where the
above figures are extrapolated; lacks transparency. and Passikudah recognized by multiple fronts. The bank has relationships.

GoSL’s MPBCs are prorated to the outcome in

secondary market trading of T-Bills and T-Bonds on the TripAdvisor for Traveller’s
Choice Award 2023
reference day. ‘Spot’ trades are settled after two market
days from the date of transaction. CBSL, the steward of
GoSL debt and its foreign reserves deals in ‘spot.’ The
Anantaya Resorts & Spas
‘spot’ is administered to minimise GoSL’s foreign debt
repayments and foreign debt as a whole in rupee terms. Chilaw and Passikudah
Issuing of T-Bills and T- Bonds is a popular way GoSL proudly announce their
raises money domestically to meet its local recent recognition by
commitments. TripAdvisor as recipients of
the prestigious Traveller’s
Choice Award for 2023
marking the 4th year of
receiving this award. This
sophistication. From cozy
water villas to premium
bedrooms with plush beds
Anantaya has everything
that a discerning traveler
could ask for. The hotel’s
restaurant serves an
eclectic mix of local and
international cuisine,
casual fare. Whether you’re
in the mood for classic
local cuisine or
international fare, Anantaya
Resorts has something to
satisfy everyone’s tastes.
AnantayaChilaw and
Passikudah possess
spacious conference
Bullish run
extends for 6th day
By Mario Andree
The bullish run at the Colombo
Stock Exchange continued for
the sixth consecutive session on
More than 97 million shares
changed hands during 14,777
trades that took place.
Shares of 242 companies were
traded during the day, 89 were

Hemas acquires esteemed accolade reflects

the exceptional hospitality,
prepared by some of the
most renowned chefs in the
rooms with luxurious
facilities and the latest
Thursday (15) as the benchmark
index rose to a near two-month
losers ahead of 81 winners.
Foreigners were net sellers

remaining stake
outstanding service, and region. When it comes to audiovisual equipment that high on a relatively modest during the day. The net foreign
unforgettable experiences activities and experiences, can accommodate large turnover despite continued outflow on Thursday (15) stood
offered by these Anantaya Chilaw has no gatherings. Air-conditioned foreign exits from the Colombo at Rs 132 million as foreigners

in Atlas remarkable resorts.

TripAdvisor recognises
the best tourism
Hemas recently announced the acquisition of a 24.9% establishments every year
stake of Atlas Axillia Company (Private) Ltd, for a total to be presented as
consideration of Rs.3.4Bn. With this strategic move, the TripAdvisor Traveller’s
Group now owns 100% of Atlas Axillia Company (Private) Choice. As the name
Limited, expanding its market presence and reinforcing suggests, awards are given
its position as a key player in the Consumer Brands to the traveller’s favorite
Sector. resorts that consistently
“Atlas is a market leader in the learning segment, this deliver exemplary service,
acquisition aligns with our long-term growth strategy extraordinary experiences,
and demonstrates our confidence in the company. We and garner outstanding
believe further integrating Atlas into our portfolio allows reviews from travellers
us to unlock greater synergies and value to all our around the globe.
stakeholders,” said Kasturi Chellaraja Wilson, Group CEO Nestled in a serene and
of Hemas Holdings PLC. picturesque location,
Speaking on this acquisition, Asitha Samaraweera, Anantaya Chilaw is a
Managing Director of Atlas Axillia added, “Joining forces luxurious haven that
with Hemas has been a remarkable journey so far. With promises a world of
this acquisition, we look forward to further leveraging the ultimate comfort and
expertise and resources of the Group to drive innovation relaxation to their guests.
and expand our product portfolio and offering to our Situated right next to a
consumers.” pristine beach, Anantaya
Hemas initially acquired 75.1% of the stake in the offers stunning views of
family-owned Atlas in 2018 with the commitment to the ocean and is
support the growth and expansion of the company. This surrounded by lush
acquisition of the remaining stake demonstrates the greenery that adds to its
Group commitment to delivering on its promise to its natural beauty. The hotel’s
shareholders, leveraging on the opportunities presented architecture is a seamless
by the learning segment and the company’s ability to blend of contemporary and
execute its growth strategy and capitalise on emerging traditional elements that
market opportunities, while preserving company values. exude elegance and
shortage of options such
as cycling, water polo,
beach cricket, boat rides
and many more.
Anantaya Passikudah, is
an elite choice for travellers
who are looking to relax
and unwind in a luxurious
setting. Located in the
heart of the glowing East
Coast of Sri Lanka,
Anantaya boasts stunning
ocean views, a pristine
sand beach, and lush
tropical gardens that
surrounds the property.
From the moment you
arrive, you are greeted by
world-class service and
sophistication. The staff is
welcoming and attentive,
ensuring that you feel right
at home. Anantaya
Passikudah also offers
spacious and elegantly
appointed guest rooms,
equipped with all the
modern conveniences and
luxurious bedding that
ensures a restful night’s
sleep. Anantaya provides a
wide range of dining
options, from fine dining to
conference halls can host
parties, private meetings as
well as MICE events. Grand
Bourse.
The benchmark All Share Price
Index (ASPI), which started the
sold shares worth Rs 172 million
as against purchases worth Rs
40 million.
panoramic banquet halls day at 9,216.49 points, gained Top ten gainers during the day
with opulent and awe- 62.79 points (0.69 per cent) to were: SMB Leasing (non-voting),
inspiring decor is a unique close the day at 9,279.28 points, SMB Leasing, Radiant Gems,
and memorable place to tie its highest since 20 April this DIMO, Ceylinco Insurance,
the knot to make your year. Renuka Holdings, Keells Hotels,
dream wedding come true. The S&P SL20 index, which Seylan Developments, Sierra
Anantaya Resorts & Spa represents the top 20 companies Cables and Singhe Hospitals.
not only provides indoor listed, started the day at 2,634.81 Top losers were: Blue
event venues but also points, gained 7.61 points (0.29 Diamonds, Tangerine Beach
options for outdoor setups. per cent) to close at 2,642.42 Hotels, Tess Agro, LCB Finance,
Anantaya has excellent points. Amana Life Insurance, People’s
choices of selecting the The day’s turnover reached Rs Merchant Finance, Renuka
backdrop for your event 2,853 million, much higher than Foods (non-voting), LOLC
with the golden sandy Rs 2,709 million recorded on the Finance, Associated Motor
beach or the greenery previous market day. Finance and Galadari Hotels.
ambiance. Additionally,
both resorts are committed
to sustainable practices
and environmental
stewardship. From
implementing energy-
efficient initiatives to
supporting local
communities, Anantaya
Resorts & Spas Chilaw and
Passikudah strive to
minimise their ecological
footprint while preserving
the natural beauty that
surrounds them.
B8
Union Assurance Premier Club
Awards recognizes exceptional
performers in Q1 2023
Union Assurance hosted the Union
Assurance Premier Club Awards on 27 May
2023 at its head office, celebrating the top
performers in the Agency Distribution
channel during the first quarter of 2023.
The event was attended by the senior
management of the Company, including the
Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Senath
Jayatilake.
The Union Assurance Premier Club
programme, held quarterly, has a rich
history of acknowledging and rewarding
the outstanding achievements of the sales
force. Over the years, the Union Assurance
Premier Club has become synonymous
with excellence and has served as a
testament to the commitment of the
organization to provide exceptional
services.
At this highly-anticipated event, Union
friday 16 june 2023
Assurance recognised and awarded over
35 winners for their performance during the
first quarter of 2023, with a range of lifestyle
rewards, including luxury motor cars, cash
rewards, business development rewards,
and recognition rewards. These talented
individuals have consistently demonstrated
exceptional sales skills, in-depth subject
knowledge, and a passion for delivering
superlative customer experiences.
corporate/markets
DPMC launches Sri
Lanka’s first electric
taxi service - E-drive
Turning a new page in passenger
transport, David Pieris Motor Company
(Pvt) Limited launched E-drive, a model
electric three-wheeler (tuk-tuk) taxi
service for public transportation for the
first time in Sri Lanka.
Electric vehicles are the future. It is
environmentally friendly with zero
emissions and helps reduce
dependency on fossil fuels. As a
President of the David Pieris Group David
country, it will reduce our carbon Pieris along with Group Chairman and
footprint while saving foreign exchange Managing Director Rohana Dissanayake
by reducing the fuel bill. Lower running/ prepares to go the first hire in E-drive at the
maintenance costs of these vehicles launch
lead to cheaper transport costs, as a
direct benefit to the passenger. have also received refresher training in
E drive which the Company is road rules and road etiquette. In
introducing as a model project not only addition, all vehicles are monitored
provides a cheaper means of transport centrally by the Company. The drivers
for the public but also ensures safety will be wearing an E-Drive uniform, and
and a better experience for passengers their details will be displayed in the
– with a reduction of noise, and a vehicle for the customer’s information
smoother ride due to reduced along with a telephone number to call
vibrations. for any issues or driver feedback.
With the objective to produce a well These three-wheelers will initially
-disciplined, professional taxi driver operate in Colombo and its immediate
force in the country, the drivers of the suburbs. The vehicles can easily be
E-drive taxi service have been trained identified due to their unique white and
not only on how to drive this vehicle but green branding.

To provide better services for Honda vehicle owners

LOLC General Insurance and Stafford

Motors sign MoU
LOLC General Insurance (LOLC GI) has
announced a strategic tie-up with Stafford
Motor Company, the sole agent for Honda
vehicles in Sri Lanka. The two companies
signed a Memorandum of Understanding
(MoU) recently, to formalise their
collaboration. Under the agreement, LOLCGI
customers who have a full insurance cover for
their Honda vehicles will be able to have
collision repairs done at Stafford Motors
without having to pay for brand-new body
parts. LOLCGI will pay the full amount without
any deductions, according to the agent’s
recommendation. This ensures customers get
access to high quality and genuine body parts
at no additional cost.
The collaboration between LOLCGI and
Stafford Motors will also enable customers
to access quality repairs and services
without any hassleand delays to get their
vehicles back. Additionally, LOLC GI
customers are entitled to a 10% discount on
vehicle grooming services and a 10% on
labour, and a 12% on parts discount for
general repairs and services.
Furthermore, Stafford Motors customers
will be offered LOLC GI’s new Motor lifestyle
loyalty programme, ‘Honours’. The program
offers valuable discounts and benefits to LOLC
GI Motor Policyholders through the loyalty
partner network - Channel 17 (CH17).
Members can accumulate ‘Honours’ loyalty
points while transacting with any of the
merchants within the network and can donate
the accumulated points to LOLC’s
humanitarian programmes.
From Left– Deepthi Wasana - Business Promotion Associate, LOLCGI,Dinusha Thilanka
– Head of Motor Underwriting, LOLCGI, Ajantha Ruman – Chief Motor Engineer,
LOLCGI,Ajantha Amarasinghe – Head of Broker Servicing, LOLCGI, Kithsiri Gunawardana
–Director/Chief Executive Officer, LOLCGI, Tharindra Kaluperuma – Executive Director,
Stafford Motors, Sanjeeve Goonarathne – General Manager Automobiles , Stafford
Motors,Upul Perera –Deputy General Manager Automobile After sales, Stafford Motors,
Lakshan Jayasuriya – Head of Body and Paint Division, Stafford Motors, Keshan
Abeyewardena – Assistant General Manager, LOLCGI.

15.06.2023
DAILY SHARE PRICES
VOLUME V.W.A. CHANGE VOLUME V.W.A. CHANGE VOLUME V.W.A. CHANGE
SECURITY PREVIOUS TODAY’S (RS) SECURITY PREVIOUS TODAY’S (RS) SECURITY PREVIOUS TODAY’S (RS)
CLOSE V.W.A OPEN HIGH LOW CLOSE CLOSE V.W.A OPEN HIGH LOW CLOSE CLOSE V.W.A OPEN HIGH LOW CLOSE
MAIN BOARD LANKA ALUMINIUM 21,991 15.10 15.00 15.30 14.90 15.00 (0.10) EMPOWER BOARD
A.SPEN.HOT.HOLD. 54,632 57.50 57.50 57.60 56.50 57.50 - LANKA HOSPITALS 8,279 113.25 112.00 112.00 107.25 107.50 (5.75) CHRISSWORLD 100,707 8.70 8.70 9.20 8.70 9.00 0.30
ABANS 544 138.00 137.00 139.75 137.00 138.50 0.50 LANKA IOC 409,855 129.25 129.50 135.00 129.50 130.75 1.50 EML CONSULTANTS 107,185 3.80 3.80 3.90 3.70 3.80 -
ACCESS ENG SL 948,475 15.70 15.70 15.90 15.50 15.80 0.10 LANKA REALTY 84,772 11.40 11.70 12.10 11.70 11.70 0.30 DIRI SAVI BOARD
ACL 116,860 75.10 75.00 76.20 74.00 75.00 (0.10) LANKA TILES 35,209 43.30 43.50 44.00 43.00 43.80 0.50 AGSTAR PLC 760,365 11.20 11.20 11.30 10.60 10.70 (0.50)
ACL PLASTICS 89 361.25 361.50 366.00 360.00 361.25 - LANKA VENTURES 5,214 34.00 34.70 35.00 34.00 35.00 1.00 ALUMEX PLC 668,470 8.50 8.50 9.10 8.50 8.60 0.10
ACME 305 5.90 5.90 5.90 5.90 5.90 - LANKA WALLTILE 23,469 46.50 45.50 47.30 45.10 46.00 (0.50) AMANA LIFE 329 33.10 30.00 31.50 30.00 30.30 (2.80)
AGALAWATTE 33,071 29.00 29.00 29.50 29.00 29.20 0.20 LANKEM DEV. 101,306 23.50 23.50 24.50 23.50 23.60 0.10 AMANA TAKAFUL 4,010 11.50 11.00 11.00 11.00 11.00 (0.50)
AHOT PROPERTIES 14,000 39.30 39.30 39.30 37.60 39.20 (0.10) LAUGFS GAS 52,476 22.50 24.00 24.00 22.50 22.50 - AMBEON HOLDINGS 27,257 36.30 36.60 37.90 34.70 36.90 0.60
AITKEN SPENCE 1,900 118.50 121.00 121.00 118.00 120.00 1.50 LAUGFS GAS 2,411 17.30 17.40 17.50 17.00 17.50 0.20 AMF CO LTD 26,403 7.90 8.00 8.00 7.00 7.40 (0.50)
ALLIANCE 8,201 65.00 65.50 67.00 65.00 66.00 1.00 LAXAPANA 4,890 13.40 13.50 13.60 13.30 13.30 (0.10) ASIA SIYAKA 65,107 4.10 4.00 4.10 4.00 4.00 (0.10)
AMANA BANK 793,905 2.50 2.60 2.60 2.50 2.50 - LB FINANCE 37,527 56.00 56.40 57.50 56.40 57.00 1.00 BANSEI RESORTS 1,001 10.90 11.00 11.00 10.80 10.80 (0.10)
ASIA ASSET 9,140 8.20 8.20 8.20 7.90 7.90 (0.30) LEE HEDGES 3 75.00 75.70 75.70 75.70 75.00 - BERUWALA RESORTS 124,064 1.30 1.30 1.30 1.30 1.30 -
ASIA CAPITAL 5,592 4.00 4.00 4.00 3.90 3.90 (0.10) LION BREWERY 23,151 700.00 700.00 715.00 700.00 700.00 - BOGALA GRAPHITE 9,803 55.90 58.30 58.30 54.10 54.80 (1.10)
ASIRI 4,828 22.10 22.40 22.60 22.40 22.50 0.40 LMF 34,066 138.75 139.00 141.00 139.00 141.00 2.25 BPPL HOLDINGS 20,648 20.00 20.10 20.80 20.00 20.10 0.10
AUTODROME 76 109.00 109.00 109.75 109.00 109.00 - LVL ENERGY 13,100 6.00 6.00 6.00 5.90 5.90 (0.10) BROWNS 9,226 110.50 113.00 113.00 108.25 108.25 (2.25)
BAIRAHA FARMS 4,020 130.50 130.00 133.00 128.50 130.00 (0.50) MALWATTE 110 38.10 39.00 39.10 37.10 37.30 (0.80) BROWNS INVSTMNTS 6,785,061 5.80 5.90 5.90 5.50 5.60 (0.20)
BALANGODA 16,935 65.10 65.10 65.10 65.00 65.00 (0.10) MELSTACORP 358,393 56.20 55.30 57.50 55.00 56.30 0.10 C T LAND 5 22.90 23.00 23.00 23.00 22.90 -
BLUE DIAMONDS 1,716,398 0.50 0.40 0.50 0.40 0.40 (0.10) MERC. SHIPPING 41 178.75 200.00 200.00 199.75 178.75 - C.W.MACKIE 24,024 91.20 93.00 94.00 92.10 92.30 1.10
BLUE DIAMONDS 573,691 0.30 0.40 0.40 0.30 0.30 - MULLERS 5,200 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 - CALT 1,037,090 35.40 35.50 35.70 33.80 34.40 (1.00)
BUKIT DARAH 1 394.50 389.75 389.75 389.75 394.50 - NAMUNUKULA 103 360.00 367.00 367.00 360.00 360.00 - CEYLON BEVERAGE 2 1,150.00 1,299.00 1,299.00 1,290.00 1,150.00 -
C M HOLDINGS 199 68.40 68.40 70.00 68.40 68.40 - NAT. DEV. BANK 302,321 49.10 49.40 51.00 49.00 49.20 0.10 CEYLON TEA BRKRS 73,374 4.50 4.50 4.60 4.40 4.40 (0.10)
C T HOLDINGS 10 180.00 180.00 180.00 180.00 180.00 - NATION LANKA 1,016,523 0.50 0.50 0.60 0.50 0.50 - CITRUS HIKKADUWA 17,241 5.10 5.10 5.20 5.00 5.00 (0.10)
CARGILLS 7,205 250.25 258.00 260.00 255.00 255.25 5.00 NATIONS TRUST 63,547 67.60 68.50 69.00 68.50 69.00 1.40 CITRUS WASKADUWA 1,547 2.70 2.60 2.80 2.60 2.60 (0.10)
CARGO BOAT 12 48.50 54.00 54.00 52.90 48.50 - OVERSEAS REALTY 3,489 14.40 14.50 14.50 14.50 14.50 0.10 COM.CREDIT 7,707 25.30 25.40 26.00 24.80 25.50 0.20
CDB 28,637 204.25 200.00 205.00 200.00 204.25 - PAN ASIA 152,183 12.60 12.50 12.90 12.50 12.60 - COMMERCIAL DEV. 147 109.50 110.00 111.00 110.00 110.25 0.75
CDB 2,670 70.30 68.00 70.30 68.00 70.00 (0.30) PANASIAN POWER 11,867 3.20 3.20 3.20 3.10 3.10 (0.10) DILMAH CEYLON 22 1,000.00 1,059.00 1,059.00 1,049.75 1,000.00 -
CENTRAL FINANCE 82,291 72.20 72.90 74.40 72.90 73.00 0.80 PEOPLE'S INS 16,067 21.60 21.50 21.60 20.60 20.80 (0.80) E - CHANNELLING 23,756 15.70 15.80 15.80 15.00 15.50 (0.20)
CENTRAL IND. 12,212 87.60 88.00 89.00 87.60 87.80 0.20 PEOPLES LEASING 172,647 8.10 8.20 8.20 8.00 8.10 - ELPITIYA 25,969 74.30 74.60 75.50 74.00 74.20 (0.10)
CEYLINCO INS. 291 2,146.00 2,299.75 2,300.00 2,299.75 2,300.00 154.00 PGP GLASS 121,708 21.30 20.00 21.30 20.00 21.00 (0.30) EQUITY TWO PLC 45 40.00 38.10 38.10 38.10 40.00 -
CEYLON GUARDIAN 1 67.40 69.80 69.80 69.80 67.40 - PRINTCARE PLC 2,806 45.20 46.30 46.50 45.50 45.70 0.50 EXTERMINATORS 261 8.80 8.80 8.80 8.70 8.80 -
CEYLON INV. 4,040 33.50 34.40 34.80 33.00 33.10 (0.40) R I L PROPERTY 232,007 5.30 5.30 5.40 5.20 5.20 (0.10) FC TREASURIES 2,981,337 26.80 27.40 27.50 26.00 26.10 (0.70)
CEYLON TOBACCO 4,417 838.25 839.00 847.75 838.25 838.25 - REGNIS 1 43.00 44.00 44.00 44.00 43.00 - FIRST CAPITAL 431,996 35.00 35.40 35.60 34.10 34.30 (0.70)
CHEMANEX 13 70.10 70.20 74.00 70.10 70.10 - RENUKA AGRI 147,154 5.00 5.00 5.00 4.90 4.90 (0.10) FORTRESS RESORTS 568 20.40 20.90 20.90 19.60 20.40 -
CHEVRON 42,346 90.00 92.00 92.00 89.00 89.30 (0.70) RENUKA CITY HOT. 1,046 330.00 347.75 347.75 326.00 327.00 (3.00) GALADARI 125,861 12.90 13.00 13.00 12.00 12.20 (0.70)
CIC 226,895 63.90 64.40 64.40 62.50 62.70 (1.20) RENUKA FOODS 1,118 20.00 20.60 20.70 20.00 20.70 0.70 HAPUGASTENNE 45 37.50 38.80 39.00 38.70 37.50 -
CIC 205,280 51.50 51.90 52.00 49.00 51.00 (0.50) RENUKA FOODS 111 16.40 15.20 16.30 15.20 15.30 (1.10) HATTON 2,105 20.60 21.50 21.50 21.40 21.40 0.80
CITRUS LEISURE 11,532 5.90 5.70 6.10 5.70 6.00 0.10 RENUKA HOLDINGS 15,041 12.50 13.00 13.20 12.70 13.20 0.70 HNB FINANCE 384,666 4.80 4.90 5.40 4.90 5.00 0.20
COLD STORES 522,794 42.60 42.60 44.00 42.00 43.90 1.30 RESUS ENERGY 74,976 12.00 12.10 12.10 11.90 12.00 - HNB FINANCE 2,061 5.00 4.90 5.00 4.90 4.90 (0.10)
COLOMBO CITY 1,628 41.90 42.00 42.00 41.50 41.90 - RICHARD PIERIS 283,161 19.00 19.50 20.30 19.30 19.50 0.50 HVA FOODS 3,018 3.50 3.70 3.70 3.60 3.60 0.10
COLOMBO LAND 7,375 17.50 18.50 18.50 17.50 17.50 - ROYAL CERAMIC 629,505 28.10 28.50 28.90 28.00 28.20 0.10 JANASHAKTHI INS. 15,100 26.50 26.50 26.90 26.50 26.50 -
COMMERCIAL BANK 1,178,947 65.00 67.00 67.00 64.00 66.30 1.30 S M B LEASING 18,820 0.60 0.60 0.70 0.60 0.70 0.10 JETWING SYMPHONY 74,755 6.70 6.80 6.80 6.50 6.50 (0.20)
COMMERCIAL BANK 46,598 53.30 53.90 54.00 52.10 53.00 (0.30) S M B LEASING 139,298 0.20 0.30 0.30 0.20 0.30 0.10 JOHN KEELLS 53 67.80 67.70 67.70 67.70 67.80 -
DANKOTUWA PORCEL 141,769 24.70 24.90 25.40 24.70 24.90 0.20 SAMPATH 29,455,061 53.00 53.10 56.00 53.10 54.90 1.90 KAHAWATTE 2,690 16.20 16.20 16.20 16.10 16.20 -
DFCC BANK PLC 55,228 45.40 45.40 45.80 44.30 44.90 (0.50) SAMSON INTERNAT. 190 210.00 210.00 210.00 210.00 210.00 - KEELLS FOOD 100 160.00 160.00 160.00 160.00 160.00 -
DIALOG 1,478,804 10.30 10.30 10.30 10.10 10.20 (0.10) SANASA DEV. BANK 40,566 25.50 25.50 26.90 25.50 25.50 - KEELLS HOTELS 2,502,653 17.10 17.10 18.00 17.10 18.00 0.90
DIMO 26,278 460.00 470.00 548.00 470.00 500.00 40.00 SARVODAYA DEVFIN 9,449 11.00 11.30 11.30 11.00 11.00 - LAUGFS POWER 3,054 8.10 8.00 8.20 7.60 7.70 (0.40)
DIPPED PRODUCTS 275,861 26.70 26.70 27.50 26.70 27.10 0.40 SEYLAN BANK 48,380 32.50 32.90 33.70 32.60 33.40 0.90 LCB FINANCE PLC 68,822 2.30 2.30 2.30 2.10 2.10 (0.20)
DOCKYARD 42,725 55.00 55.00 56.20 54.60 55.00 - SEYLAN BANK 161,813 23.90 23.80 24.10 23.50 24.00 0.10 LIGHTHOUSE HOTEL 100 27.40 27.80 27.80 27.80 27.80 0.40
DOLPHIN HOTELS 4,040 29.10 29.00 29.90 28.10 28.50 (0.60) SEYLAN DEVTS 1,682 12.10 12.40 12.80 12.40 12.70 0.60 LOLC GENERAL INS 117,544 6.20 6.30 6.30 6.00 6.10 (0.10)
DURDANS 982 125.00 124.75 125.00 124.75 124.75 (0.25) SHAW WALLACE 155,913 6.10 6.10 6.30 6.10 6.20 0.10 LOTUS HYDRO 3,265 7.00 7.20 7.20 7.20 7.20 0.20
DURDANS 101 104.00 105.00 105.00 100.00 100.00 (4.00) SIERRA CABL 198,955 10.70 10.60 11.30 10.50 11.20 0.50 LUMINEX 1,696 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 -
E B CREASY 6,798 19.30 18.90 19.40 18.70 18.80 (0.50) SINGER FINANCE 15,530 12.00 12.30 12.50 12.00 12.00 - MACKWOODS ENERGY 570 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 -
EAST WEST 16,846 8.70 8.80 9.20 8.50 8.80 0.10 STANDARD CAPITAL 4 36.90 39.70 39.70 36.80 36.90 - MAHAWELI REACH 3,027 12.60 13.00 13.30 13.00 13.00 0.40
EASTERN MERCHANT 29,364 8.40 8.50 8.50 8.00 8.10 (0.30) SUNSHINE HOLDING 85,053 42.50 42.30 43.30 42.10 42.90 0.40 MARAWILA RESORTS 1,151,510 2.10 2.10 2.10 2.00 2.00 (0.10)
EX-PACK 634,073 13.60 13.60 13.80 13.50 13.60 - SWISSTEK 23,310 14.90 14.90 15.10 14.50 14.50 (0.40) MASKELIYA 1,983 33.30 33.70 34.90 33.70 34.00 0.70
EXPOLANKA 103,430 138.00 139.00 139.00 136.50 136.75 (1.25) TALAWAKELLE 1,500 94.10 94.30 94.60 93.20 94.60 0.50 MERCHANT BANK 37,488 3.30 3.30 3.50 3.30 3.40 0.10
FORT LAND 279,981 25.60 25.60 25.80 24.50 24.50 (1.10) TANGERINE 866 54.30 50.80 50.80 42.70 47.20 (7.10) MILLENNIUM HOUSE 10,694 3.00 3.00 3.00 2.80 3.00 -
GALLE FACE CAP 68 18.10 18.40 18.60 18.40 18.10 - TEA SMALLHOLDER 2,242 38.70 39.60 39.70 39.00 39.00 0.30 MYLAND 1,370 9.40 9.30 9.50 9.00 9.40 -
GESTETNER 18,225 79.90 80.00 80.00 79.00 79.00 (0.90) TEEJAY LANKA 168,936 29.30 29.50 30.00 29.30 29.90 0.60 NUWARA ELIYA 1 1,490.00 1,499.00 1,499.00 1,499.00 1,490.00 -
GRAIN ELEVATORS 62,326 91.90 91.50 93.10 91.00 93.00 1.10 THREE ACRE FARMS 3,079 136.75 137.00 140.00 137.00 137.75 1.00 PALM GARDEN HOTL 3,847 46.00 46.00 46.00 44.10 44.40 (1.60)
HAYCARB 70,161 58.10 58.10 58.60 58.00 58.00 (0.10) TOKYO CEMENT 13,719 45.10 45.50 45.90 44.10 45.00 (0.10) PEGASUS HOTELS 6,670 25.00 25.10 25.10 25.00 25.00 -
HAYLEYS 750,868 72.00 72.10 73.20 72.00 73.00 1.00 TOKYO CEMENT 32,041 41.50 41.00 41.60 41.00 41.20 (0.30) PEOPLE'S MERCH 70,245 4.90 4.90 4.90 4.40 4.50 (0.40)
HAYLEYS FABRIC 37,786 23.80 23.50 24.00 23.50 23.90 0.10 UNION BANK 323,001 9.50 9.20 9.70 9.20 9.70 0.20 PRIMERESIDENCIES 213,696 7.50 7.60 7.60 7.30 7.40 (0.10)
HAYLEYS FIBRE 11,288 56.50 56.70 57.60 55.10 55.50 (1.00) UNION CHEMICALS 1 665.00 669.25 669.25 669.25 665.00 - RAIGAM SALTERNS 50,858 7.30 7.20 7.50 7.20 7.20 (0.10)
HAYLEYS LEISURE 4,895 20.50 20.90 21.00 20.50 21.00 0.50 UNITED MOTORS 13,836 54.90 55.00 56.50 53.00 53.40 (1.50) RAMBODA FALLS 1 28.10 27.90 27.90 27.90 28.10 -
HDFC 323 27.00 27.00 27.00 26.00 26.50 (0.50) VALLIBEL 88,204 6.80 6.90 6.90 6.70 6.70 (0.10) RENUKA HOTELS 380 74.00 71.00 71.00 71.00 71.00 (3.00)
HELA 454,949 6.40 6.40 6.50 6.10 6.20 (0.20) VALLIBEL FINANCE 32,886 33.00 33.00 34.00 32.70 32.90 (0.10) RICH PIERIS EXP 711 539.50 535.00 545.00 512.50 524.75 (14.75)
HEMAS HOLDINGS 88,669 68.00 68.00 68.60 68.00 68.10 0.10 WATAWALA 28,456 71.60 72.40 74.00 72.00 72.50 0.90 ROYAL PALMS 1 22.10 23.00 23.00 23.00 22.10 -
HNB 754,650 135.25 136.00 137.25 136.00 137.00 1.75 WINDFORCE 76,670 16.70 16.70 16.80 16.50 16.60 (0.10) SERENDIB HOTELS 114,297 6.70 7.00 7.00 6.50 6.50 (0.20)
HNB ASSURANCE 10,778 46.90 45.10 47.40 45.10 46.80 (0.10) YORK ARCADE 53 130.25 134.75 135.00 128.00 130.25 - SINGER IND. 3 36.00 36.90 36.90 32.10 36.00 -
HNB 47,609 105.00 105.00 106.25 104.00 105.75 0.75 hSENID BIZ 84,790 12.50 12.50 12.50 12.20 12.50 - SINGHE HOSPITALS 54,465 2.40 2.50 2.60 2.50 2.50 0.10
HORANA 50 48.00 48.50 48.50 46.00 48.00 - SECOND BOARD SOFTLOGIC CAP 1,116,486 9.10 9.00 9.40 9.00 9.20 0.10
HOTEL SIGIRIYA 5,825 32.70 33.00 33.50 32.50 33.50 0.80 AMBEON CAPITAL 118,880 10.20 10.60 10.60 10.10 10.20 - Softlogic Life 116,677 75.80 75.60 76.90 73.00 74.50 (1.30)
HOTELS CORP. 25,665 18.30 18.10 18.50 18.00 18.00 (0.30) BROWNS BEACH 10 11.20 11.80 11.80 11.70 11.20 - TAL LANKA 7,216 16.00 15.30 16.10 15.30 15.50 (0.50)
INDUSTRIAL ASPH. 732,326 0.30 0.30 0.40 0.30 0.30 - DIALOG FINANCE 2 62.00 60.20 67.30 60.20 62.00 - TESS AGRO 8,233,150 1.10 1.10 1.10 0.90 1.00 (0.10)
JKH 444,842 141.75 141.75 141.75 140.50 140.50 (1.25) DISTILLERIES 6,059,184 22.10 22.50 23.20 22.10 22.20 0.10 TESS AGRO 1,860 0.80 0.70 0.80 0.70 0.80 -
KANDY HOTELS 520 7.20 7.10 7.30 7.10 7.10 (0.10) EDEN HOTEL LANKA 249,922 11.80 12.00 12.00 10.90 11.20 (0.60) UDAPUSSELLAWA 1,584 67.50 67.90 67.90 62.30 65.10 (2.40)
KAPRUKA 1,701 8.10 8.00 8.00 7.80 7.80 (0.30) HUNAS HOLDINGS 300 29.50 29.50 29.60 29.00 29.00 (0.50) UNION ASSURANCE 1,933 31.90 31.10 31.80 31.10 31.70 (0.20)
KEGALLE 3,256 112.00 113.00 113.00 113.00 113.00 1.00 JAT HOLDINGS 296,568 15.20 15.30 15.50 15.00 15.10 (0.10) VALLIBEL ONE 882,091 37.80 38.00 41.00 38.00 39.30 1.50
KELANI CABLES 2,244 271.00 265.25 274.00 265.00 270.00 (1.00) LOLC FINANCE 10,415,606 6.20 6.20 6.30 5.70 5.80 (0.40) VIDULLANKA 25,003 5.80 5.70 5.80 5.60 5.60 (0.20)
KELANI TYRES 9,688 58.40 57.50 59.50 57.50 58.70 0.30 MADULSIMA 3,650 10.40 10.40 10.40 10.10 10.20 (0.20) VIDULLANKA 7,751 4.60 4.50 4.50 4.50 4.50 (0.10)
KELANI VALLEY 2,958 70.00 70.90 71.00 69.70 70.40 0.40 ON'ALLY 526 25.00 25.00 25.60 25.00 25.40 0.40 WATCH LIST
KINGSBURY 313 9.50 9.00 9.60 9.00 9.50 - ORIENT FINANCE 8,930 6.90 7.00 7.10 6.80 7.10 0.20 NAWALOKA 1,662,810 4.00 4.10 4.20 3.70 4.00 -
KOTAGALA 230,516 6.10 6.20 6.20 6.10 6.10 - SINGER SRI LANKA 126,570 14.40 14.70 15.00 14.10 14.40 - ODEL PLC 12 15.80 16.00 16.00 15.80 15.80 -
L O L C HOLDINGS 27,457 369.75 370.75 374.00 355.00 359.75 (10.00) SLT 175,074 88.50 89.00 89.00 87.00 88.00 (0.50) RADIANT GEMS 4,980 37.50 38.80 44.80 38.80 42.30 4.80
LAKE HOUSE PRIN. 50 167.00 167.00 167.00 167.00 167.00 - SOFTLOGIC FIN 5,150 7.40 7.40 7.50 7.30 7.50 0.10 UNISYST 119 5.30 5.40 5.40 5.40 5.40 0.10

Heritance Kandalama
BAWA’S VISION FOR
SUSTAINABLE TOURISM
Heritance Kandalama is an eco-resort
nestled in the heart of Sri Lanka’s central
province owned and managed by the
premier hospitality company Aitken
Spence Hotels. The resort is a
masterpiece of environmentally-friendly
architecture and has won numerous
awards for its sustainable design.
Designed by renowned Sri Lankan
architect, Deshamanya Geoffrey Bawa,
Kandalama is a testament to the concept
of eco-friendly construction and the
importance of preserving our natural
heritage. Recently celebrated at the
National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA)
Delhi, where it was a key feature of the
‘Geoffrey Bawa: It is essential to be there’
architectural and photographic
installation.
The Heritance Kandalama is built into a
rocky outcrop amid a lush-green forest,
overlooking the Kandalama Lake. The
design is inspired by the ancient rock
temples of Sri Lanka and incorporates
natural materials such as timber, stone,
and terracotta to create a harmonious
blend of modern architecture and
traditional design. The resort is self
-sufficient in terms of water and energy,
utilising rainwater harvesting and solar
panels to meet its needs. It also has a
sewage treatment plant that recycles
wastewater, ensuring that no harmful
pollutants are released into the
environment.
The hotel has been designed to blend
seamlessly into the surrounding
landscape, with the use of earthy tones
and natural materials. The guest room
windows frame a stunning view of the
lake and the surrounding forest and the
Sigiriya Rock. The open-plan design of
the rooms allows for natural ventilation,
reducing the need for air conditioning.
One of the most-impressive features of
the resort
Difference between downhill
and mountain bikes
Downhill mountain biking is a fast
-paced segment of mountain biking that
takes place on steep courses or off
-season ski slopes. Downhill bikes are
sturdy and have full suspension with
extra travel, making them especially
adept at conquering rough terrain at high
speeds. Most traditional mountain bikes
have little use for the extreme absorption
and slacker geometry of a downhill bike,
since downhill bikes are usually much
heavier than a traditional mountain bike.
Downhill bikes: built for
punishment
Downhill bikes are built to withstand
extreme punishment. Since, downhill
races take place at high speeds, avoiding
obstacles is difficult, and both bike and
rider are prone to take a beating. Thus,
the frames are extremely sturdy and are
made from high-strength materials,
usually steel, titanium, and carbon fibre.
Weight isn’t of utmost importance for a
downhill bike, since most courses have
very little climbing. The frames also
feature a slacker geometry, which places
the rider much farther back. The frames
are always full-suspension, with travel for
the back wheel to reduce impact and
shock. The fork on a downhill bike often
features a double crown, which places a
second brace at the top of the fork for
added rigidity and strength.
Keep spinning
Downhill bikes usually feature 26-inch
instead of 29-inch wheels, since these
wheels have smaller rims that provide
more structural rigidity. The spoke counts
are usually 32 or higher, since more
spokes prevent having to true the wheel
is its integration into the surrounding
ecosystem. The hotel has planted over
3,000 trees on the site and continues to
do so, it has created several wetlands and
water bodies that provide habitats for
numerous species of birds and other
wildlife. The hotel also employs several
local villagers who have been trained in
sustainable farming practices, providing
them with a livelihood while also
promoting sustainable agriculture.
Preserving the environmentally-friendly
architecture of Heritance Kandalama is
essential to its continued success. The
hotel has implemented several measures
to ensure that the buildings and
infrastructure are maintained in an
environmentally responsible manner. The
use of eco-friendly cleaning products,
recycling of waste, and careful
management of water and energy
resources are just a few of the initiatives
that have been put in place to minimise
the environmental impact of the resort.
Speaking about the property, Aitken
Spence PLC Director, Head of Tourism
and Leisure, and Chairperson of Aitken
Spence Hotel Management Stasshani
Jayawardena -, said, “Heritance
Kandalama has
as often. Downhill bikers usually run their
tires at lower pressure to maintain
traction on loose surfaces and absorb
some impact, and these tires often use a
puncture-resistant casing. Like the rest
of a downhill bike, the wheels are
primarily designed to take punishment
without failing.
Mountain-bike breakdown
Traditional mountain bikes don’t need
the bomber construction and extended
travel of a downhill bike because they’re
rarely contending with courses that are
quite as steep and treacherous. Instead,
mountain bikes feature lighter frames
and can forgo full suspension for a
hardtail or rigid fork, depending on the
preference of the rider. These bikes are
less capable of absorbing impact, but
climb much faster and are easier to
manoeuvre. A traditional mountain bike
become a beacon of hope for sustainable
tourism and environmentally friendly
architecture. We are very proud to play
our role in ensuring Bawa’s vision for the
hotel continues 29 years after it was built.
We are so happy to be an example of how
hospitality and sustainability can coexist,
and how tourism can be a force for
positive change in the world. As we
continue to face the challenges of climate
change and environmental degradation,
the lessons learned from Heritance
Kandalama’s eco-friendly design and
operations can serve as a model for
future development.”
Heritance Kandalama is home to
several cultural and historical sites. One
of the most famous of these is Sigiriya
Rock Fortress, a UNESCO World Heritage
Site that dates back to the 5th century CE.
The fortress is located atop a massive
rock formation and features a series of
intricate frescoes and carvings that
depict the history and culture of Sri
Lanka.
Heritance Kandalama is an excellent
destination for eco-tourism enthusiasts
who want to experience the natural
beauty and cultural heritage of Sri Lanka
in an environmentally responsible way.
can also use 29-inch wheels, which roll
over obstacles easier (but the trade-off is
a slight loss of durability).
Choosing your ride
When you’re in the market for a new
mountain bike, you’ll generally only want
to buy a downhill bike if you’re
specifically and primarily into downhill
riding, the frame geometry is designed for
a downhill slope, making it less than ideal
for climbing and casual riding. Traditional
mountain bikes keep the rider level, and
have enough travel in their suspension to
handle most obstacles on a mountain
biking trail. They’re versatile and ideal for
getting into the sport, or for starting in
some traditional races. A full suspension
mountain bike with traditional geometry
is usually versatile enough for almost all
conditions.
(livestrong)
Anyone for coffee
with olive oil,
salt or butter?
Just when you thought you had
coffee all figured out, a new
drink comes along to rewrite the
rulebook. This time it’s Starbucks
shaking things up by launching a
range of drinks infused with extra
virgin olive oil.
The idea for the line, known as
Oleato, which made its debut in Milan
in February and will launch in
the Middle East, the US, the UK and
Japan later this year, came to
Starbucks’ Chief Executive, Howard
Schulz while travelling in Sicily.
Having embraced the Mediterranean
ritual of drinking a spoonful of extra
virgin olive oil with his morning coffee,
Shultz reportedly decided to sample
the two together, resulting in what he
described as an unexpected velvety,
buttery flavour that enhanced the
coffee and lingers beautifully on the
palate.
While contemplating whether a
coffee finished with a dressing of
grassy, golden olive oil might (or not)
be your cup of joe, it seems fitting to
consider what else should we be
adding to our coffee, and why?
Spice up your cup
This is a simple enough way to ramp
up the taste of coffee. Adding
complementary spices — think
cardamom, cinnamon, allspice, ginger,
nutmeg or star anise (either on their
own or as a custom blend) — imbues
coffee with extra flavour and an
appealing fragrant aroma. It’s entirely
up to you whether you fold powdered
spices through pre-ground beans, or
make that extra bit of effort and grind
both beans and spices from scratch.
Either way, once beans and spices are
combined, your next step should be to
add a small pinch of salt to really
round out the flavours (more on this
below).
Butter in coffee
What do you get if you blend butter
into your brew? Bulletproof coffee,
which attracted controversy and
converts in droves in 2018. This is the
high-calorie, high-fat drink purported
to boost energy and focus levels while
also suppressing appetites. If that
appeals, a few caveats to be aware of:
the butter must be grass-fed, the oil
should be the Medium-Chain
Triglyceride (MCT) variety and the
coffee beans high-quality. Taste-wise,
expect a drink with creamy, frothy,
latte-style vibes.
Salty stirs
As keen cooks will attest, salt
amplifies the flavour of most other
ingredients, reducing bitterness while
simultaneously enhancing sweet, sour
and umami tastes. The principle
applies to coffee, too; salt can be used
to balance the acidity of the beans,
drawing out the sweeter, more
aromatic flavours.
While adding salt to coffee might
sound unconventional, the practice is
a long-established one. During the
Second World War, sailors are said to
have used table salt to make poor-
quality coffee more palatable, while
Turkish pre-wedding tradition sees
the bride-to-be liberally sousing her
Friday 16 JUNE 2023 C9
future husband’s coffee with salt. If
the groom consumes the drink without
visible complaint, it’s seen as a sign of
his good temperament (and a nod to
the fact that marriage isn’t always
sweet). In Taiwan, meanwhile, Sea Salt
Coffee — lightly sweetened iced coffee
finished with a layer of sea salt cream
— is something of a viral drink made
famous by the international bakery
and cafe 85C.
Coffees and cream
Adding a splash of half-and-half
(half whole milk, half cream) to coffee
is common practice in the US and for
good reason — it gives the drink a
thicker, more luscious texture than
milk alone, while not being quite as
indulgent as swirling in pure cream.
If you fancy giving it a try, look for
dairy products with between 18 per
cent and 30 per cent milk fat (often
labelled light cream), steering clear of
fat-free versions sweetened with
corn-syrup. Alternatively, make your
own by mixing milk and cream and
shaking the two together until well
combined.
Taking the idea of adding cream to
your coffee (or rather coffee to your
cream), in a more decadent but
delicious direction, is affogato.
Meaning “drowned” in Italian, the
classic, single-serve dessert takes
minutes to prepare and only calls for
two ingredients: freshly brewed
espresso and gelato.
Nitrogen cup of joes
Coffee lovers will likely already know
about this one. Charging cold brew
coffee with nitrogen is said to enhance
both the flavour and texture of the
drink, with the tiny bubbles creating a
smooth, velvety texture likened to that
of nitro draft hops. The gas also gifts
the coffee a creamy, slightly
sweetened taste that many say
negates the need for milk or sugar.
Keen for a taste of the velvety
action? You’ll find nitrogen cold brew
tap systems in place at a number of
coffee shops and cafes across the
Emirates, plus cans of ready-to-drink
nitro brews in supermarkets.
Recreating the experience at home
is a little more complicated than the
other options on this list, but is
possible with the right bits of kit. That
means either purchasing a specially
designed (and quite pricey) Nitro Cold
Brew Coffee Maker or going the DIY
route and using a small, whipped
cream dispenser charged with
nitrogen gas cartridges.
A real lemon
While serious coffee enthusiasts
and expert baristas might take
umbrage to requests for flavoured
syrups, it’s probably one to put down
to a matter of taste. Less palatable
has to be the TikTok trend for drinking
instant coffee with a squeeze of lemon
juice first thing in the morning. Billed
as a weightless hack (without the
medical evidence to back it up), the
#LemonandCoffee challenge might be
racking up plenty of views, but that
still doesn’t mean it will taste good.
Sip at your own risk.
(thenational)
A10
Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh:
The man at the centre of India’s wrestling row
By Geeta Pandey
Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh is an
influential but controversial MP from
India’s governing Bharatiya Janata Party
(BJP). For several months, he’s been at
the centre of India’s biggest sporting row.
The allegations against him are grave.
Some of India’s top wrestlers, including
Olympic medallists and world
champions, accuse him of sexually
harassing female athletes and have held
months of protests demanding his
arrest.
Singh, who until recently had been the
chief of the Wrestling Federation of India
(WFI) for the past 12 years, has denied
the allegations. He accuses the wrestlers
of being “politically motivated” and
recently said he would “hang himself
even if a single allegation is proved”
against him.
After months of headline-making
protests by wrestlers - and a nudge from
the Supreme Court - Police in the capital
Delhi registered two cases against him in
April. Seven female wrestlers told the
Police that he had molested and groped
them at training camps and
tournaments.
As one of them is a minor, Police
invoked the stringent Protection of
Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso)
Act. In the past few days, reports say the
minor has withdrawn her allegations.
Wrestler Sakshi Malik told the BBC she
believed “the player was pressurised into
withdrawing the charges”. Singh refused
to comment on the allegation, saying “let
law take its course”.
Lawyer Akshat Bajpai says most
people charged under Pocso are
immediately arrested - but six weeks
later, police are yet to act against Singh.
Although the government denies
shielding him, the protesters and
Opposition politicians allege that the
government of Prime Minister Narendra
Modi is giving him a long rope because of
political expediency.
Born on 8 January 1957 in Gonda
district in the northern state of Uttar
Pradesh, the six-term MP claims
substantial support in a number of
parliamentary constituencies and
analysts say with general elections due
next year, he is expected to play a pivotal
role.
But Sharat Pradhan, senior journalist in
the State capital Lucknow, says Singh is
never far from controversy and the
66-year-old is often in the news for the
wrong reasons.
A 2021 video that has resurfaced on
social media in recent months shows
him hitting a young under-15 wrestler on
stage for “misbehaving”. And last year,
Taiwan sees MeToo wave of allegations after Netflix show
By Frances Mao and Benny Lu
Taiwan is being rocked by a wave of
sexual harassment and assault
allegations - sparked by a Netflix show
which many say has ignited a local
MeToo movement.
More than 90 people have spoken out
in the past fortnight, accusing people
across the island.
The allegations at first centred on
politics and the ruling Democratic
Progressive Party (DPP) - where several
senior officials have resigned.
But they have spread across Taiwanese
society, with allegations being made
against doctors, professors, sporting
umpires and YouTubers.
On Saturday, a Polish diplomat was
accused of sexual assault by a think tank
researcher.
For many women, the moment is long
overdue in a Taiwanese society otherwise
praised globally for its progressive
politics and commitment to gender
equality.
President Tsai Ing-wen, the island’s
first female leader, has apologised and
vowed reform.
“Previously we had single cases around
sexual harassment, but never in such
magnitude,” social commentator Dr Liu
Wen from Taiwan’s Sinica Academia told
the BBC.
“It’s the first time a lot of the underlying
issues in different industries are being
revealed all at the same time.”
One woman in her 30s told the BBC she
had felt the momentum to seek justice
again after she was sexually harassed by
her boss, a celebrated environmental
activist.
When Ms Tseng, as she wishes to be
known, first sought redress last year, she
said she was stone-walled and rebuffed.
But when she spoke out online last
week, she received an apology from the
workplace and the activist. He also
resigned, saying he was sorry for some of
his conduct. Meanwhile her inbox filled
up with messages from other women
relaying their own complaints about him.
Screen inspiration
A local TV drama has been credited
with sparking the first wave of
allegations. In late April, Wave Makers, a
show about Taiwanese political staffers
working on an election, debuted on
India’s top wrestlers have been protesting against Singh since January
Several wrestlers have accused Brij Bhushan
Sharan Singh of sexual misconduct - a charge
he denies
he bragged on camera that he had
murdered a man who had killed his friend
Ravinder Singh. “Whatever people say, let
me tell you that I have committed one
murder,” he told the reporter. “I put a rifle
to [his] back and shot him. He died.”
Singh was neither censured for his
violent outburst against the young
athlete nor was he arrested or charged
for murder despite his confession.
Also, these were not the only times
Singh fell foul of the law - although he
has never been convicted, he was named
in more than three dozen cases amid
accusations of theft, rioting, attempt to
murder and kidnapping.
Singh, who studied law in college and
participated in wrestling competitions in
his youth, became politically active while
a student and joined the BJP in 1988. He
was elected to parliament in 1991.
He first came into prominence for
aggressively participating in the BJP’s
movement for the construction of a
Netflix.
In a now iconic scene, a young female
aide finds herself alone with her mentor -
a party spokeswoman and the show’s
main character.
Does she dare confide the harassment
she had endured from a male colleague,
knowing that a public report would harm
the party’s standing and likely her own
career?
She decides to tell her. The older
woman listens, and chooses to help.
“Let’s not just let this go, ok,” she says,
brushing away her staffer’s concerns.
“We can’t let things go this easily.
Otherwise we’ll wither away and die.”
This scene has been credited as the
clarion call for the MeToo moment now
sweeping Taiwan.
On 31 May, an ex-DPP staffer wrote an
essay on Facebook, echoing the show.
“Let’s not just let this go,” Chen
Chiemn-jou wrote before describing her
experience of being sexually harassed at
a work event.
When she reported her complaint, she
said her female supervisor - in charge of
the party’s women’s affairs - had asked
her “Why didn’t you say anything?”,
before advising her to bury the claim.
A wave of allegations
Chen’s post has since electrified
Taiwan, and been shared thousands of
Medal-winners were dragged through the streets last month when they tried to march upon the
Parliament
temple in the town of Ayodhya. Along
with several party leaders and workers,
he was named as an accused in the
December 1992 demolition of the
16th-Century Babri Mosque. Years later,
they were all absolved.
But a few months before the 1996
elections, Singh was arrested on charges
of sheltering some associates of Dawood
Ibrahim, India’s “most wanted man” who
was charged with masterminding the
1993 deadly Mumbai bombings.
According to court documents, Singh
had accommodated the criminals in his
official Delhi home and had even lent
them his phone to speak to the
underworld don. He spent nearly three
months in jail under TADA, the stringent
Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Act,
although he was finally cleared for a lack
of evidence.
In the 2004 parliamentary elections,
when the BJP candidate from Gonda,
Ghanshyam Shukla, died in a road crash
on the day of voting, many called it a
times. It appears to have motivated
others in politics and beyond to report
their experiences of harassment and how
authorities responded.
After Chen’s report, another ex-DPP
female staffer said her male supervisor
had verbally abused her and stymied her
complaint about another male
colleague’s harassment.
Several senior DPP officials have
resigned including Hsu Chia-tien, the
supervisor in Chen’s case, who was
suspended by the party, and Yen Chih-fa,
an adviser to the president who has
denied accusations of sexual harassment
by a campaigner. Neither Yen nor Hsu
have responded to the BBC’s requests for
comment on the accusations.
The Opposition KMT party has also
been hit with allegations. Last week a
journalist said KMT lawmaker Fu Kun-chi
had forcibly kissed her at a press event in
2014, allegations denied by Fu. He
reiterated his public denial to the BBC,
saying he had never engaged in any
sexual harassment towards women or
subordinates.
A KMT councillor has also alleged
harassment by a famous media
personality, who then apologised for his
behaviour, saying he’d been drunk and
had no recollection of events on the night
in question.
More than 90 cases have now been
Friday 16 June 2023
Protests have been held across India, calling for Singh’s arrest
murder and blamed it on Singh. A decade
later, in an interview with news website
Scroll, Singh confirmed that even Atal
Bihari Vajpayee - BJP leader and then
Prime Minister - had accused him of
murder, but added that the rumour was
started by his opponents.
In 2008 when the BJP expelled him for
not following the party whip in a key vote
in Parliament, he cosied up to the
regional Samajwadi Party leader
Mulayam Singh Yadav, and won a seat
for the party in the 2009 elections. But
before the next elections in 2014, he was
back with the BJP - badmouthing Yadav.
He won, and was re-elected in 2019.
Despite the controversy surrounding
him at present, Singh insists that he will
contest next year’s elections.
Last Sunday, he addressed a rally - his
first since the allegations - in his home
town where he arrived in a huge convoy,
leading a 25km-roadshow that was seen
as a show of strength by analysts.
As local party leaders fawned over him,
documented in a crowd-sourced online
database. Some of the most high-profile
men accused include:
• Tiananmen protest leader Wang Dan:
An exiled political activist and a former
student leader of China’s 1989
Tiananmen Square protests. He has
denied sexual assault allegations from
two younger men. One of those men,
Lee Yuan-chun launched a lawsuit on
7 June alleging an alleged rape
attempt from Wang in a hotel room in
2014. Wang has resigned from his
faculty position, and said he will return
to Taiwan from the US to fight the
case.
• Exiled poet Bei Ling: On 2 June, Chien
Li-ying, one of the writers of the Wave
Makers show, accused the eminent
poet of sexual assault. She alleged he
had groped and kissed her at his
home. He called her account a
“fabrication” and said he had a
different recollection of their meeting,
saying it came after a month-long
courtship.
• Polish diplomat Bartosz Ryś: On 10
June, Taiwanese thinktank researcher
Lai Yu-fen alleged she was sexually
assaulted by him last year, but
prosecutors investigated the incident
and decided not to charge him. Ryś
responded on Twitter denying the
allegations. He said prosecutors had
determined the charges were not
substantiated and rejected the case.
The BBC was unable to directly
contact Ryś who left Taiwan in
November 2022. Poland’s Taipei office
said it had also co-operated with
Taiwanese authorities in the case last
year, and that “ Ryś left Taiwan once
the matter was clarified”. It said it was
“against any form of harassment”.
What has been the response?
Gender equality had been considered a
source of pride in Taiwan - especially
compared with neighbouring China where
Beijing has promoted traditional gender
roles and pressured women to have more
children.
There are no women in senior political
leadership in China, while Taiwan has
been led by a woman for nearly a decade.
Female representation in Taiwan’s
parliament is at 43%, far higher than the
global average of 29% cited by the Inter-
Parliamentary Union.
world
a female party colleague called him “the
pride of the region” and an “inspiration
for the youth”.
In Gonda and some of the adjoining
districts, where Singh and his family own
and run more than 50 schools and
colleges, he enjoys tremendous
popularity.
When BBC Hindi’s Anant Zhanane
recently visited one of the colleges to ask
the students about allegations against
Singh, they started shouting slogans
hailing him.
“He’s our guardian, a messiah for the
poor. We will be with him for life,” said
Sonu Tiwari. Another student Vishwajeet
Kumar Singh said the MP “lives in my
heart, he’s my god”.
Pradhan says, “Singh is cast in the
same mould as mafia don-turned-
politicians Atiq Ahmad [who was recently
killed on live TV] or Mukhtar Ansari. He
wields influence among those he helps
and tries intimidation to control others.”
But, he believes, that his influence may
be over-rated.
“The talk of him being able to deliver
four-five seats for the BJP in the next
elections is exaggerated. He’s formidable
at present because he has the BJP’s
backing. The moment the BJP cuts him
off, his power would begin to wane.”
And that, he says, would very likely
happen soon. The wrestlers’ protests
have made global headlines and after a
number of medal-winners were dragged
through the streets last month when they
tried to march on Parliament, even the
International Olympic Committee
weighed in, calling on India to ensure the
safety of athletes and carry out a fair
investigation.
“Dropping Singh may not help the BJP
in undoing the damage already done to
India’s reputation,” Pradhan says, “but it
may contain it from getting worse.”
(BBC)
President Tsai has responded swiftly to
the allegations, apologising twice for her
party’s failures.
She stated last week that those who
had spoken out about sexual harassment
were victims, not trouble-makers and she
thanked them for revealing their
experiences. “Our society as a whole
must educate ourselves again,” she said.
The MeToo moment has come at a
critical period in Taiwanese politics. Like
on the TV show, the island is gearing up
for a presidential election next January.
A day after the first staffer’s Facebook
post, the DPP’s chairman and candidate
for January’s elections William Lai
apologised and ordered an overhaul of
how the party handles sexual assault
allegations.
“We won’t just let it go like this,” he
said, echoing the Wave Makers TV show’s
phrase. He has proposed an official
inquiry into the allegations and reforms
to strengthen sexual harassment laws.
The show’s screenwriters have said
they never expected a public reaction like
this. They told the BBC they hoped that
“through idealised depictions of
addressing workplace harassment in
drama, people can find a shared language
to express their expectations of how such
issues should be handled”.
There is no doubt a reckoning is in
motion, observers say, adding that it is a
significant time in Taiwan for addressing
gender and sexual abuse.
But it is also a raw period for many
survivors, plunged headlong into a
traumatic public conversation. Many are
sceptical of promises for lasting change.
For Ms Tseng, the woman who received
an apology last week, she’s grateful the
TV show opened up the conversation.
But that pivotal scene of support and
validation - and not suppression - still
seems like a fantasy, she says.
“While watching the show, I felt a
strong connection but I don’t have a
supportive supervisor like the ones
portrayed on television who fight for
justice,” she said.
“In the dramas, the female party leader
eventually apologises and tells the
victims to wait for her to catch up with
their pursuit of justice. However, I’m
uncertain if society is prepared to fully
embrace the MeToo movement in
Taiwan.”
(BBC)
 FRIDAY 16 JUNE 2023 A11

Meet the schools

ST. ANTHONY’S LOOK

FOR A BRIGHT SEASON
Sahan Keerthisiri (Captain) Saduka Athukorala (V. Captain)

By Asanka Gammanpila Fly Half: Sahan Keerthisiri (C)

St. Anthony’s College, Kandy kicked off
their Inter Schools League Rugby Season
in style beating St. Joseph’s College
(22-12) and are determined to finish the
season on a high.
Last year the Eagles managed to win
only one out of five matches, but have
given a perfect start to this season. They
look forward to continuing their
momentum after their remarkable victory
in their opening game on Wednesday.
Their next game is against
DS Senanayake on 24 June in Pallekelle.
The Eagles have seven seniors in their
ranks this season. Skipper and fly-half
Sahan Keerthisiri is a key player in the
team controlling the back line.
The skipper is confident about their
preparations leading up to the season
will pay dividends, and said players are
physically and mentally geared up to
tackle their opponents. “We have been
training since December, and our focus is
match by match,” said the captain.
Srinath Sooriyabandara (Head Coach)
Captaining the side is not new to
Sahan. He has the necessary experience
as he had captained the junior-level
team. “It is an honour to lead the 1st XV
team, which is equally balanced with a
blend of raw and experienced backs and
forwards,” said Sahan.
Appointing an experienced national
and Kandy SC player Srinath
Sooriyabandara as head coach is another
Asitha Rathnayake (Forward Coach)
plus point for the team, especially for the
three-quarter line. Sooriyabandara took
over the coaching this year and is
confident his charges will perform well
this season.
Rugby Pool 2023:
Props: Saduka Athukorala (VC), Sahan
Kothalawala, Sasindu Nethsara, Dasintha
Amarakoon and F. Faraz, Gavin Herath
Hooker: Thisara Gallanga
Wingers: Omitha Dissanayake and
Roshen Kumara and Sudhish Rodrigo
Centres: Ravindu Welagedara and
Mariyadas Tiron, Randeer Perera and
Thajith Aludeniya
Full Back: Mohamed Amjath, Deshan
Liyanage and Chamika Adikari
Head Coach: Srinath Sooriyabandara
Forward Coach: Asitha Ekanayake
Asst Forward Coach: T.K. Jehan
Trainer: Indunil Wickramasinghe
Manager: Arunda Ranasinghe
Kishor Jahan (Forward Coach) MIC: Wasantha Gunasekara
Coaching Coordinator: Kapila silva
Data Analyst: Saman Kothalawala
Lock: Yasiru Gamage and Rakesh Consultant: Lasantha Wijesuriya
Pillai, Minal Kumara and Chamalka Upcoming Fixtures
Kulathunge June
Flanker: Abdul Rashith and Shenuka 24: Vs D.S Senanayake in Pallekelle
Kotuwila, Akesh Jayawansa, Ajitha July
Munasinghe and Chirantha Fernando 08: Vs Wesley in Colombo
Number eight: Jude Realano and 15: Vs Isipathana at CR & FC
Ravindu Gregory 22: Vs Kingswood in Pallekelle
Scrum Halves: Oshan Gunarathna, 28: Vs S. Thomas’ in Bogambara
Shevin Fonseka and Mohamed Shimak (Pix courtesy thepapare.com)

Jude Realano Roshen Kumar Agitha Munasighe Sahan Kothalawala Yasiru Gamage

Azarenka stunned by unseeded American

Former world number one Victoria
Azarenka suffered a shock defeat by
American teenager Ashlyn Krueger at
the Libema Open in the Netherlands.
Two-time Grand Slam champion
Azarenka was stunned 6-3 6-2 by the
19-year-old.
Victory at the grass-court tournament
in s’Hertogenbosch marks unseeded
Krueger’s first win over a top-20 player
and a maiden WTA quarter-final.
In the men’s draw, Italian second
seed Jannik Sinner beat Kazakh
Alexander Bublik to reach the last
eight.
World number nine Sinner, who is
looking to bounce back on grass in the
run-up to next month’s Wimbledon
after a disappointing second-round
exit at the French Open, beat Bublik
6-4 6-2 in the opening round.
Sinner, a quarter-finalist at the All
England Club last year, will face
Man City start
Finland’s Emil Ruusuvuori, ranked 42
in the world, in the next round after he
edged out Frenchman Ugo Humbert
Premier League
6-2 6-7 (6-8) 6-4.
Elsewhere in the women’s draw,
Russian top seed Veronika
defence at Burley
Kudermetova progressed to the Manchester United start four successive titles.
quarter-finals with a comfortable 6-1 the season against Wolves Pep Guardiola’s side have
6-3 victory over Canadian qualifier at Old Trafford on Monday, won the Premier League in
Carol Zhao. 14 August. five of the past six seasons.
Manchester City, who are Burley Manager
celebrating a Treble after Kompany spent 11 years at
winning the Premier City, winning four league
League, Champions League titles.
and FA Cup in 2022-23, are The 2023-24 Premier
now looking to become the League season concludes
first English team to win on Sunday, 19 May 2024.

Brandix Lanka Ltd handing over the sponsorship National Development Bank PLC (NDB Bank) handing over the sponsorship

NDB and Brandix tie up with Royal College Rugby 2023

Royal College, Colombo will kick
off their Inter-Schools Rugby
season on 17 June. In the first
round, 4 of their games will be at
home, including the 2nd leg of the
77th Bradby Shield against
Trinity.
The other traditional trophy
games against schools such as
S.Thomas’ and Isipathana will be
played once the first round of
games are concluded.
Randul Senanayake and Thivain
Perera have been appointed
Captain and Vice-Captain this
season and Dushanth Lewke
re-appointed as Head Coach.
Following a successful stint as
the Under-18 Head Coach, Lewke
was appointed as the Assistant
Coach of Royal’s first XV team in
2013. In 2018 he was the Head
Coach, and since his appointment,
Royal has been crowned league
champions in 2018 and 2019.
Coming on board as the main
sponsors of Royal Rugby 2023
this season are National
Development Bank PLC (NDB
Bank) as the Main Event Sponsor
and Brandix Lanka Ltd as the
Main Team Sponsor.
A12 FRIDAY 16 JUNE 2023
Schools Rugby Diary - Week 1

ROYAL, PETER’S WILL

First bilateral women’s series in SL
Gaze and Mair return
to New Zealand team  
Isabella Gaze and Rosemary
Mair return to the New Zealand
women’s team as they embark on their
first bilateral series in Sri Lanka. The
tour begins on 27 June with the first of
three ODIs in Galle, and then moves to
Colombo for three T20Is.
Gaze, the 19-year-old wicketkeeper,
and Mair, the 24-year-old fast bowler,
were not part of New Zealand’s most
recent assignment, the Women’s T20
World Cup in South Africa four months
ago. They won two out of four matches
in that tournament but missed out on a
place in the semi-final due to net run
rate.
The selectors have kept faith with
the same squad and have high hopes
for a young spin group comprising
Amelia Kerr, who is coming off 15
conditions with the recent trips to
Antigua [where they beat West
Indies 2-1 in ODIs and 4-1 in T20Is]
and South Africa. We adapted to
similar heat and conditions in the West
Indies, so that experience should bode
well in Sri Lanka. We also have a
handful of players who have played in
similar subcontinent conditions in
India, so that experience will be
valuable for us to adapt.”
Lauren Down (family reasons) and
Hayley Jensen (recovery from knee
surgery), who were with New Zealand at
the T20 World Cup, are unavailable.
Kate Anderson, who has been involved
in winter training plans, is sidelined
with a finger injury.
New Zealand haven’t played an ODI
since December last year when they
BE BLOCKBUSTER
OF THE WEEK
The Sri Lanka Schools Rugby Football
Association kicked off the 2023 season
on 14 June in Bogambara. St Anthony's
Kandy beat the fancied Joe's, and we
move to the next game in Group 1A
between S. Thomas’ and Wesley on 17
June at Mount. This will be the league
opener for both schools, and they will
also be playing for the Sir Oliver
Goonetilleke Shield. Wesley is the holder
of the Shield, last played in 2019, having
won it thrice in a row. After 2019 Covid
disrupted the matches, while in 2022, in
the shortened league, the two schools did
not meet.
This year the Thomians will be
Captained by Viyaan de Silva, and Shanal
Fernando will be the Vice-Captain.
Kaveesh Jayman will Captain Wesley and
Chamod Nimsara will be his deputy.
Also on the 17th, St Peters will host
Royal, who finished third in the final
points table after the Super Round. This
encounter is also played for the BC Angie
Trophy since 2013. Randul Senanayake
will captain Royal with Thiven Perera as
deputy. They have several new players
who have been in and out of the squad.
St. Peter's did not fare well last year,
managing only a solitary win from
their five matches and were placed
fourth in their group. The Peterites
will be an improved side this year
and showed a glimpse of their
capability to clinch the Under-19
Schools Title at the CR and FC
Centenary Rugby Sevens
Tournament held early this year.
The Peterites, captained by Ashen
Madugaspe, have the services of several
rivals Dharmaraja in Bogambara. The
meetings between these two teams have
players from last season. always been exciting and eventful, with
The next match in Group 1A will be on no quarter given or asked. The encounter
the 18th in Bogambara. Defending will be interesting and will definitely be a
champions Isipathana will start their crowd puller. Dharmaraja has yet to
campaign for the league title when they register a win against Trinity and will go
clash with Kingswood at the Bogambara all out to make it happen this year.
Stadium in Kandy.
The game will be
a no-love lost
affair and a
challenge to
Pathana, who
travel to
Kandy to
start the
defense of
their title.
Trinity will
get out of the
den to be hosted
by Hill Capital
Viyaan de Silva Kaveesh Jayman
(S. Thomas’ College Skipper) (Wesley College Skipper)

Madushanka, Asalanka, Dhananjaya,

wickets in the inaugural WPL where beat Bangladesh at home 1-0 after two
she helped Mumbai Indians win the of the three matches were washed out.
title, and also Fran Jonas and Eden NZ ODI and T20I squad to SL

Chandimal among expensive 
Carson, even though all of them will be Sophie Devine (capt), Suzie Bates,
playing in Sri Lanka for the very first Bernadine Bezuidenhout, Eden Carson,
time. In fact, only the captain Sophie Izzy Gaze (wk), Maddy Green, Brooke

picks at LPL Auction

Devine and senior batter Suzie Bates
have ever played any cricket there.
“This is the first time almost all of
the squad will have experienced
playing in Sri Lanka, so it’s a good
opportunity for our players to develop
their game in testing sub-continent
conditions,” head coach Ben Sawyer
said in an NZC press release. “Sri
Lanka will pose challenges with the
unfamiliar conditions out in the middle,
but also with the heat and humidity, so
we will need to be able to adapt quickly
both on and off the field.
“The group has been really fortunate
to have experienced some unique
Halliday, Fran Jonas, Melie Kerr, Jess
Kerr, Rosemary Mair, Molly Penfold,
Georgia Plimmer, Hannah Rowe, Lea
Tahuhu
Tour schedule
27 June - 1st ODI, Galle International
Stadium
30 June - 2nd ODI, Galle International
Stadium
03 July - 3rd ODI, Galle International
Stadium
06 July - Warm-up T20 v Sri Lanka
President’s XI, Colombo
08 July - 1st T20I, Colombo
10 July - 2nd T20I, Colombo
12 July - 3rd T20I, Colombo
The first-ever edition of the Lanka
Premier League (LPL) auction for the
upcoming 2023 season took place in
Colombo on Wednesday, 14 June. The event
saw some of the biggest acquisitions in the
history of the competition.
Dilshan Madushanka grabbed the
spotlight after becoming the most
expensive player at the 2023 auction. The
Sri Lankan left-arm pacer was sold for a
record sum of USD 92,000 to defending
champions Jaffna Kings.
The likes of Charith Asalanka, Dhananjaya
de Silva, and Dinesh Chandimal also
attracted huge bids during the auction.
The auction was a one-day affair that
saw all five franchises try to bolster their
squads. The first leg of the auction saw the
high-profile names being offered before the
event was adjourned.
The second half of the event saw an
accelerated process after the franchises
were asked to submit a list of prospective
players to speed up the process. The
players who were unsold in the initial round
were reintroduced in the final round of the
auction.
On that note, here is the list of all the
players that were sold at the recently
concluded LPL auction 2023.

Jaffna Kings Dambulla Aura B-Love Kandy Colombo Strikers Galle Titans

Malinga returns as
Local players Local players Local players Local players Local players
Thisara Perera Kusal Mendis Wanindu Hasaranga Matheesha Pathirana Dasun Shanaka
Maheesh Theekshana Pramod Madushan Angelo Mathews Chamika Karunaratne Bhanuka Rajapaksa

bowling coach for

Charith Asalanka Avishka Fernando Isuru Udana Pathum Nissanka Seekkuge Prasanna
Dunith Wellalage Lakshan Edirisinghe Dinesh Chandimal Niroshan Dickwella Lahiru Kumara
Vijayakanth Viyaskanth Wanuja Sahan Dushmantha Chameera Lakshan Sandakan Lasith Croospulle

MI New York
Theesan Vithushan Dhananjaya de Silva Sahan Arachchige Nipun Dhananjaya Ashan Priyanjan
Pathum Kumara Kusal Perera Ashen Bandara Movin Subasinghe Sohan de Livera
Nuwan Thushara Jehan Daniel Navod Paranavithana Lahiru Udara Minod Bhanuka
Asanka Manoj Ravindu Fernando Kamindu Mendis Jeffrey Vandersay Anuk Fernando
Lasith Malinga, the legendary bowler Nishan Madushka Binura Fernando Nuwan Pradeep Eshan Malinga Pasindu Sooriyabandara
from Sri Lanka, is set to make a Asitha Fernando Kavindu Pathirathne Chathuranga de Silva Shashika Dulshan Shevon Daniel
triumphant return to the Mumbai Dilshan Madushanka Sachitha Jayathilaka Lahiru Madushanka Nuwanidu Fernando Mohamed Shiraz
Indians franchise, but this time in a Ashan Randika Praveen Jayawickrama Malsha Tharupathi Angelo Perera Lahiru Samarakoon
coaching role. Asela Gunaratne Janith Liyanage Lasith Abeyratne Dhananjaya Lakshan Kasun Rajitha
The franchise’s newest team, MI New Rathnaraja Thanuradan Manelker De Silva Thanuka Dabare Kavishka Anjula Akila Dananjaya
York, competing in the highly Dushan Hemantha Avishka Tharindu Ramesh Mendis Vishwa Fernando
anticipated Major League, has Traveen Mathew Yashodha Lanka Sonal Dinusha
appointed Malinga as their esteemed Ahan Wickramasinghe Avishka Perera
bowling coach. The announcement
Foreign players Foreign players Foreign players Foreign players Foreign players
comes alongside the unveiling of MI
New York’s star-studded squad and the David Miller (SA) Matthew Wade (AUS) Mujeeb Ur Rahman (AFG) Babar Azam (PAK) Shakib Al Hasan (BAN)

Pakistan, Sri Lanka given go-ahead

entire coaching staff for the upcoming Rahmanullah Gurbaz (AFG) Lungi Ngidi (SA) Fakhar Zaman (PAK) Naseem Shah (PAK) Tabraiz Shamsi (SA)
tournament, with the dynamic Kieron Shoaib Malik (PAK) Hayden Kerr (AUS) Mohammad Hasnain (PAK) Wahab Riaz (PAK) Mohammad Mithun (BAN)
Pollard leading the charge as captain.  Hardus Viljoen (SA) Noor Ahmad (AFG) Asif Ali (Pak) Lorcan Tucker (IRE) Ben Cutting (AUS)

as venues for 2023 Asia Cup

The excitement surrounding MI New
York reached new heights as they
proudly revealed the signing of nine
international stars, finalizing their roster
of 18 talented players. In addition to the
formidable leadership of Kieron Pollard,
the team boasts the likes of
Afghanistan’s T20 captain Rashid
Khan, former West Indies captain
Nicholas Pooran, New Zealand’s swift
bowler Trent Boult, and South Africa’s
fiery pacer Kagiso Rabada.  batting coach Arun Kumar and fielding
The squad also features current
Mumbai Indians players, including the
explosive Tim David, the pace
sensation Jason Behrendorff, and the
promising South African youngster
Dewald Brevis.  With Malinga’s invaluable expertise,
The ambitions of MI New York don’t
stop at assembling an exceptional
playing squad. They have also
announced a stellar coaching lineup for
their inaugural season. Lasith Malinga,
renowned for his 170 IPL wickets
during his illustrious playing career
with MI, will now share his vast
knowledge and experience as the
Zaman Khan (PAK) Shahnawaz Dahani (PAK)
Chris Lynn (AUS) Alex Ross (AU)
The Asian Cricket Council (ACC) has
team’s bowling coach. Joining him is accepted the hybrid model for the 2023
former South African cricketer and MI Asia Cup, meaning the continental
Cape Town General Manager Robin championship will be held in two
Peterson, who will serve as the countries - Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Four
esteemed head coach.  matches will be held in Pakistan and the
Completing the coaching staff are remaining nine matches in Sri Lanka.
The go-ahead for the model,
coach James Pamment, both of whom proposed by designated host Pakistan
have previously been part of the Cricket Board (PCB), was accepted at a
coaching team at Mumbai Indians as meeting of the ACC chaired by Jay
assistant batting coach and fielding Shah. The tournament will run from 31
coach respectively.   August to 17 September.
The six teams in the championship
Pollard’s exceptional leadership, and a have been divided into two groups. Two
squad brimming with talent, MI New teams from each group will proceed to
York is gearing up to make a resounding the Super Four stage. The top two
impact in the Major League. The stage teams will then clash in the final.
is set for a thrilling season as the India and Pakistan are expected to be in the
franchise aims to conquer new horizons same group to ensure potentially three
under their illustrious coaching staff highly-anticipated India-Pakistan clashes in
and star-studded lineup. the 13-match championship. Lahore will be
(Agencies) the venue for the Pakistan leg of the
Mohammad Haris (PAK) Mohammad Nawaz (PAK)
Aamer Jamal (PAK) Iftikhar Ahmed (PAK)
championship. However, the venues in Sri
Lanka have not yet been announced. Initially
the matches were to be held in Colombo but
having realised that the city could be
witnessing unfriendly weather during early
September, the ACC and Sri Lanka Cricket
(SLC) are believed to be planning to move the
Tim Seifert (NZ)
Chad Bowes(NZ)
matches to Hambantota and Pallekele.
Apart from India and Pakistan, Sri
Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and
Nepal will compete in the
championship which is seen as a
precursor to the World Cup in India in
October and November.
The tournament had run into trouble
because of BCCI’s refusal to send the
Indian team to Pakistan. But eventually
the PCB, who initially insisted on the
UAE hosting the matches which aren’t
feasible in Pakistan, eventually
succumbed to pressure from the Asian
nations.
BCCI sources say the decision,
largely on expected lines, was taken
after a discussion with PCB Chairman Najam
Sethi. However, it’s understood that the
approval of PCB’s hybrid model and
Pakistan’s participation in the upcoming
World Cup are being looked at as two
mutually exclusive events. (Agencies)

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