Sri Lanka commemorates Children’s Day on 1st October every year with the objective of further strengthening social attention towards protecting the rights of children, education, health, and well-being.

It has been observed that the challenges encountered by present-day children, such as risk, psychological and social stress, negligence, and various social and economic vulnerability conditions related to the internet and digital technology, have broadened rather than traditional child protection issues.

Furthermore, it has been recognized that there is a need to develop awareness regarding the rights of children and the
protection of not only children but also all parties involved, including parents, teachers, public officials, service providers, and the general public who are consistently associated with children.

Consequently, it has been proposed to establish “A National Children’s Week” in line with the national commemoration
of Children’s Day with the objective of raising public awareness of the rights of children, fostering social sensitivity towards children, and encouraging community involvement in the protection of children.

Accordingly, the Cabinet of Ministers has approved the resolution furnished by the Minister of Women and Children Affairs to implement special programs declaring “A National Children’s Week – 2026” from 25-09-2026 to 01-10-2026.

The US Supreme Court has rejected President Donald Trump’s bid to allow the US Postal Service to enforce a rule targeting mail-in ballots.

On Monday, the conservative-majority court refused to lift an order by US District Judge Indira Talwani that blocked the measure, dealing a blow to Trump’s efforts to restrict voting by mail before the November midterm elections.

The postal agency adopted the rule after Trump signed an executive order in March seeking to tighten rules around mail-in voting. Under this measure, states were required to send the Postal Service a list of recipients and use ballot mail envelopes previously approved by the agency.

The Postal Service was allowed to deny ballots if they failed to comply with the new standards or were not associated with registered voters on the lists.

Talwani imposed an injunction blocking the rule, saying that it likely violated the US Constitution and would be impossible to apply given the nearing midterms.

Shortly after, the Trump administration issued an emergency request to the Supreme Court urging it to allow an “important federal policy to protect the mails from being used to commit voter fraud”.

In late August, the Supreme Court had temporarily allowed Trump to move ahead with his executive order on procedural grounds, but did not rule on the legality of the plan.

In the latest decision, the court said in an unsigned order that the administration was “unlikely to succeed on the merits” of its challenge. Justice Samuel Alito and Justice Clarence Thomas dissented, with Alito writing that some plaintiffs lacked standing while the rest were pursuing a claim the court had recently called a “Hail Mary pass”.

[Aljaeera]

The “Mehewara Pasasum” programme to recognise Divisional Secretariats in the Eastern Province that demonstrated the highest level of performance in 2025 was held recently at the Swami Vipulananda Institute of Aesthetic Studies of the Eastern University, under the patronage of Prime Minister Dr Harini Amarasuriya. The programme was held as part of the initiative to decentralise President’s Fund services to the Divisional Secretariat level, with the aim of providing the public with a more efficient and prompt service.

Of the Divisional Secretariats in the three districts of Ampara, Batticaloa and Trincomalee, nine Divisional Secretariats, three from each district, were selected for recognition based on their efficiency in receiving President’s Fund applications and responding to them promptly.

Accordingly, the Sammanthurai Divisional Secretariat secured first place in the Ampara District, while the Addalachchenai Divisional Secretariat secured second place and the Kalmunai Divisional Secretariat third place.

In the Batticaloa District, first place was secured by the Kattankudy Divisional Secretariat, second place by the Manmunai North Divisional Secretariat and third place by the Koralaipattu Central Divisional Secretariat.

In the Trincomalee District, first place was secured by the Trincomalee Town and Gravets Divisional Secretariat, second place by the Kinniya Divisional Secretariat and third place by the Muttur Divisional Secretariat.

The first “Mehewara Pasasum” programme was held in Colombo, the second in Batticaloa, and this was the third programme.

Speaker Dr Jagath Wickramaratne, Minister of Industry and Entrepreneurship Development Sunil Handunnetti, Senior Additional Secretary to the President and Secretary to the President’s Fund Roshan Gamage, and a number of government officials and others were present at the occasion.

(PMD)