July 20, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka has revived cargo transport into Colombo port by rail after a lapse of four decades with a shipment of export containers by SG Logistics, part of the newly listed Expolanka Holdings group. Continue Reading

Former Sri Lankan cricket captain Mahela Jayawardene carrying a charity till lends a hand to a young boy climbing down a staircase to greet him during a charity walk in the central town of Thambuttegama today. Continue Reading

The conviction of Sri Lanka-born Raj Rajaratnam for securities fraud and conspiracy in the biggest Wall Street insider trading case in three decades has given this country a lot of global publicity though obviously for the wrong reasons. Now a US citizen, Rajaratnam was educated in Britain and later at Ivy League colleges in the US, his father having served as a senior executive of the multinational, Singer, first in Sri Lanka and thereafter at corporate headquarters in New York. Continue Reading

The United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) in Sri Lanka has suspended the distribution of shelter cash grants to displaced returnees due to shortfalls in funding. The humanitarian agency said that the funding was suspended from the 8th of this month.

Humanitarian actors continue to engage with donors to secure funds for Menik Farm operations, where 88,198 IDPs remained as of 11 March.

Continue Reading

Taken for a Ride: The Navy’s Canal Boat Service – NWZ367d

A Sri Lanka national who is a resident of Bahrain, has been held under detention orders pending further investigations over suspicions she was allegedly involved in anti state activities, police spokesman SP Preshantha Jayakody told Daily Mirror online. 

The police spokesman however did not have further details on the case. When contacted the Mirihana police confirmed that the lady was being held at their police station.

Continue Reading

The Mount Lavinia Court has revalidated the warrant that had been issued for the arrest of Cecilia Kothelawala over her involvement in the misappropriation of Rs.26 billion of depositors’ money of the Golden Key Credit Card Company.

The Criminal Investigation Department informed the Mount Lavinia court today that despite a court order to sell the assets the Kalutara and Negombo branches of the Golden Key Credit Card Company had not sold its assets and some of the motorcycles of the branches are still being used by its employee.

Continue Reading

A top Japanese official has rejected an invitation by the UN to be part of an expert panel to advice UN Secretary General Ban ki-moon on issues related to the human rights situation in Sri Lanka, Diplomatic sources told Daily Mirror online.

The diplomatic source refused to name the Japanese official but said it was a “famous Japanese” official raising speculation it could be former Japanese peace envoy and one tine UN diplomat Yasushi Akashi.
Continue Reading

Four hundred Tamil, Sinhalese, Muslim and mixed-race students are milling around. On a cue, each person is urged to go onto the stage and hug someone from a different ethnicity.

They leap at the chance to go onto the stage.

“If my people did anything wrong, I am sorry, I am your brother for the rest of my life,” is one of the whispers heard as the young people embrace.

It sounds unlikely but this was what happened at the culmination of a five-day conference on hope and reconciliation held in central Sri Lanka a few months ago.

Continue Reading