News

Lanka appreciates Thai support at UNHRC

Published

5 years ago

2021/09/27

Foreign Minister G.L. Peiris has thanked his Thai counterpart Don Pramudwinai for unstinted support at the Geneva-based UNHRC for the principal position that imposing foreign solutions on individual countries without their consent was unwarranted.

Prof. Peiris said so when he met the Thai Minister in New York.

The following is the FM media statement issued yesterday: “Prof. Peiris in his discussion with Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Thailand Don Pramudwinai indicated strong and historical bilateral ties as two countries practising Theravada Buddhism.

Minister appreciated the assistance provided by Thailand to sustain the Buddhist monks at a time Sri Lanka did not have a sufficient number of senior Buddhist monks. The Minister highlighted that the relations between the two countries are not limited to the governments but also between the people. Both the countries have worked closely together in many international and regional groupings such as BIMSTEC, IORA and Asian Cooperation Dialogue.

Minister Peiris indicated that there is abundant scope for enhancing cooperation between the two countries in agriculture, inland fisheries, and gem and jewellery. Sri Lanka is keen on value addition to our products and expertise can be obtained from Thailand in this regard.

The Lankan Foreign Minister furthermore thanked the Government of Thailand for their unstinted support in UNHRC for the principled position that imposing foreign solutions on individual countries without the consent of that country is against the principles of the UN.

Thailand Foreign Minister mentioned memories of participating in royal “Katina” in Sri Lanka and indicated that prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Sri Lanka was part of the Buddhist holy trail and the Minister hopes that it would revive once the COVID-19 pandemic is brought under control.

The Foreign Minister of Thailand stated that they are ready to take over from Sri Lanka the chairmanship of BIMSTEC and to carry forward the initiatives underway. The Minister stressed the importance of preventing climate change and the need for all to be on board whether it is the corporate sector, community and youth. We need to address the issues and collaboratively work together to create a more peaceful world.”

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News

Animal Welfare Draft Bill to be Gazetted

Published

1 hour ago

2026/06/24

Priyan

A specialists committee has been appointed by the Secretary to the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Lands and Irrigation adhering to the decision of the Cabinet of Ministers dated 29.12.2025 for submitting appropriate recommendations analyzing the provisions of the draft bill formulation in regard to Animal Welfare.

Based on the recommendations of the said Committee, the Legal Draftsman has been instructed at the meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers held on 18.05.2026 to prepare the final bill on the animal welfare.

Wherefore, the Legal Draftsman has formulated the draft bill and the clearance of the Attorney General has been received in the connection.

Accordingly, the Cabinet of Ministers granted approval to the resolution furnished by the Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Lands and Irrigation to publish the said draft bill in the
Government Gazette Notification and subsequently forward the same to the Parliament for its concurrence.

News

Legal provisions on marking voters using indelible ink during elections removed

Published

1 hour ago

2026/06/24

Priyan

Under the legal provisions for elections in this country since 2004, it is mandatory for voters who come to mark their votes to verify their identity through a valid identity card, and it is also mandatory for all such voters to be marked with an appropriate mark using indelible ink. The dual purpose of these two functions is to prevent a voter from voting more than once in a single election.

It has been observed that having to follow two different
methods at the same time to achieve the same objective hinders the efficiency of the duties performed at the polling stations and also incurs additional costs to the government.

Therefore, it has been deemed appropriate to remove the legal provisions regarding the use of indelible ink and marking the voter with the appropriate mark from all election acts.

Accordingly, the development activities of the province, as well as national security, will benefit. Therefore, the Cabinet of Ministers has approved the resolution furnished by the
President to take necessary steps to remove the legal provisions

• Section 36 of the presidential Election Act, No 15 of 1981
• Section 38 of the Parliamentary Election Act, No 01 of 1981
• Section 36 of the Provincial Council Election Act, No 02 of 1988
• Section 53 A of the Local Government Elections Ordinance (262 Authority)
• Section 21 of the Referendum Act No 7 of 1981

News

Showers will occur in the Western, Sabaragamuwa and North-western provinces and in Galle, Matara, Kandy and Nuwara-Eliya districts

Published

2 hours ago

2026/06/24

Priyan

WEATHER FORECAST FOR 24 JUNE 2026
Issued at 05.30 a.m. on 24 June 2026 by the Department of Meteorology

Several spells of showers will occur in the Western, Sabaragamuwa and North-western provinces and in Galle, Matara, Kandy and Nuwara-Eliya districts. Showers or thundershowers may occur at a few places in the Uva province and in Ampara and Batticaloa districts after 2.00 p.m.

Fairly strong winds about (30-40) kmph can be expectedat times over the Western slopes of the central hills, the Northern, North-central, North-western and Southern provinces and in Trincomalee district.

The general public is kindly requested to take adequate precautions to minimize damage caused by temporary localized strong winds and lightning during thundershowers.