Category: Local News

Thai Pongal celebrated at Temple Trees

By Janaka Alahapperuma – Pix by: Sudath Silva The National Thai Pongal Festival was held on a very grand scale under the patronage of President Mahinda Rajapaksa and First Lady Shiranthi Rajapaksa at the Temple Trees yesterday on 16 January. The celebration area was decorated with flowers and other colourful traditional decorative items and Kolam […]



HINDU SAYS RAJAPAKSA HAS PLACED HIS INTEREST OVER THAT OF THE COUNTRY

By Walter Jayawardhana India’s influential newspaper the Hindu said in a hard hitting editorial that the Sri Lanka President Mahinda Rajapaksa has placed his and and his regime’s interest over that of the country and its institutions when the Sri Lankan Chief Justice Dr. Shirani Bandaranayaka was impeached and replaced. […]



Fonseka ready to join hands with Dr. Bandaranayake

“I was forced to take to politics due to wrong decisions of the government. Former CJ Shirani Banadaranayake has also faced the same fate. I am ready to join hands with her to fight to protect democracy for the sake of the people and the country,” Democratic National Alliance leader Sarath Fonseka said, speaking to […]



FOLLOWING CJ IMPEACHMENT CANADA IS ONE STEP CLOSER TO BOYCOTT LANKA’S SUMMIT SAYS GLOBE AND MAIL

By Walter Jayawardhana Canada’s Globe and Mail newspaper said that Canada appeared to be one step closer to boycotting this year’s Commonwealth leaders’ summit Monday as Prime Minister Stephen Harper bluntly called on the Sri Lankan government to reinstate the country’s fired Chief Justice, Shirani Bandaranayaka. […]



UNITED STATE WARNS THE IMPEACHMENT OF CJ UNDERMINES LANKA’S ABILITY TO GET INVESTMENTS

By Walter Jayawardhana Expressing that there are serious questions about the health and future of Sri Lanka’s democracy over the impeachment of Chief Justice Dr. Shirani Bandaranayaka the United States warned that any action that undermines an independent judiciary would impact on Sri Lanka’s ability to attract foreign investment. […]




CJ impeachment: UPFA too seriously wounded, won’t survive – JVP

JVP heavyweight Lal Kantha yesterday asserted that President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s government had suffered serious injuries, though it emerged victorious in its battle against Chief Justice, Dr. Shirani Bandaranayake. Therefore, he, too, would not survive the crisis caused by the impeachment of Dr. Bandaranayake, Lal Kantha said. […]




Rizana – Another Sri Lankan Foreign Ministry Failure

By Shenali Waduge Rizana Nafeek a Sri Lankan national from Muttur was beheaded according to Saudi Arabian law on 9 January 2013 having been found guilty of killing a 4 month baby while serving as a domestic in Saudi Arabia in 2005. The appeals for her release were many – from both local and international. […]



New CJ Mohan Peiris takes oaths

By Janaka Alahapperuma – Pix by: Sudath Silva Former Attorney General and legal advisor to the president, Mohan Peiris was sworn in as the 44th Chief Justice of Sri Lanka a short while ago, the President Media Unit confirmed. He took oaths before President Mahinda Rajapaksa at 12.35 pm today on January 15 at Temple Trees. […]




Mohan Peiris new CJ

Former Attorney General Mohan Peiris is tipped to be appointed as the next Chief Justice today, after approval by the Parliamentary Council (PC) in conformity with the 18th Amendment to the Constitution, informed sources said yesterday. […]




Indian scholarships to Sri Lankan students for higher education

By Janaka Alahapperuma from London Indian government has offered a large number of scholarships for Sri Lankan students to follow undergraduate, postgraduate and PhD degrees in some of the leading universities in India, a Press Release issued by the Indian High Commission in Colombo stated. All government funded ICCR scholarships cover full tuition fees for […]



Sri Lanka removed from UN “child and armed conflict” list – LTTE must stand trial for forced conscription

By Shenali Waduge Unless it’s a mistake or purposely done the UN removal of Sri Lanka from its List of Shame for child conscription does not clearly distinguish the fact that it was the LTTE that conscripted children to its terror outfit and not Sri Lanka’s army. Therefore, Sri Lankan authorities need to ask UN […]