News

‘Direction Sri Lanka’ reiterates call for Prez’s resignation

Published

4 years ago

2022/06/15

Civil society grouping, Direction Sri Lanka, largely consisting of professionals, says President Gotabaya Rajapaksa should step down now. Having publicly acknowledged his culpability for the ongoing crisis, the President couldn’t turn a blind eye to continuing demand for his resignation.

Full text of its statement:

“To date there has not been any significant progress on resolving the political, social and economic situation in the country, and the day-to-day deterioration of the situation poses a considerable threat to the very being and survival of this nation and its people.

• Direction Sri Lanka is of the considered view that partial/interim measures, such as is being presently adopte, would not resolve the burning issues.

We strongly condemn the manner in which the President, Government, Opposition and the Parliament, as a whole, have been addressing this issue. It would appear that the will and aspirations of the people have been forgotten in the endeavour by all parties to achieve political, pecuniary and personal gain.

• In terms of Article 27 of the Constitution, it is the responsibility of the State, led by the President, to ensure that there is a democratic socialist society in Sri Lanka, with the objectives, including promotion of the welfare of the people, the realization by all citizens of an adequate standard of living for themselves and their families, including adequate food, clothing and housing, the continuous improvement of living conditions and the full enjoyment of leisure and social and cultural opportunities, the rapid development of the whole country, etc. The actions of those responsible so far have completely ignored the principles enshrined in Article 27 of the Constitution which have now brought heinous consequences to an otherwise blessed land.

• In fact, this failure has been occasioned by several critical mistakes made by the President and the Government, which have now been conceded.

• The considered view of Direction Sri Lanka in these circumstances is that there can be no alternative / experimental solution continuing the present status quo than that which Direction Sri Lanka, through its Statement and Proposals of 19th April 2022, made public, i.e. :-

1. a) The President to resign forthwith in response to the demands of the People. This is the primary demand of the people. The President has publicly admitted his failure and culpability in bringing about this crisis and must resign forthwith.

1. b) A Successor President be elected.

c) The Prime Minister to resign forthwith after the election of the Successor President.

1. d) A Caretaker / Interim National Government to be immediately formed comprising a new Prime Minister and a Cabinet limited to 18 essential portfolios along with an equal number of Deputy Ministers, representing all political parties. The Caretaker / Interim National Government shall function for a maximum period of one year.

Although the Former Prime Minister, Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksa was forced to resign after the events of 9th May 2022, the subsequent appointment of Mr. Ranil Wickremesinghe was not the expected tangible change in the status quo (through an all-party government) which was called for by the people.

In this respect, the main Opposition Party, the Samagi Jana Balawegaya is remiss in not having accepted the invitation made by the President to take the leadership in forming an All-Party Government, which can also be attributed as a cause for the continuously deteriorating country situation.

The persons holding portfolios in the Caretaker / Interim Cabinet should have adequate and appropriate educational qualifications and specialized skills required to hold the respective portfolios and should be persons of the highest integrity.

It would appear that these principles have been thrown out of the window in the rush to appoint the present Cabinet. Many do not have the basic appropriate educational qualifications and specialized skills required to hold the respective portfolios and others cannot be identified as being persons of the highest integrity and to this extent the steps taken thus far in building consensus have not been successful.

Members of Parliament on the National List should be encouraged to resign as necessary, to pave way for professionals / experts of the highest integrity to be represented in the Caretaker / Interim National Government. Only one member of Parliament, Mr. Basil Rajapaksa has so far resigned with his replacement being Mr. Dhammika Perera, which does not satisfy this requirement.

· e) As a priority during the period of the Caretaker / Interim National Government, action should be taken to rescind the 20th Amendment to the Constitution and to reintroduce the provisions of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution with necessary amendments addressing the democratic way of governance.

However, to-date there is uncertainty on whether the 21st Amendment will receive the necessary approval in Parliament, with various political groupings appearing to be adamant on scuttling this process.

· f) Immediately upon the reintroduction of the 19th Amendment, steps to be taken to appoint persons with the highest integrity and ability to the Independent Commissions.

• Direction Sri Lanka stresses the need to ensure that all of the above 6 action points in its fullest complement is reached and achieved as soon as possible, to support and guide Sri Lanka in its difficult journey out of this situation.

• Direction Sri Lanka has set out its concerns on the draft of the 21st Amendment to the Constitution by the letter of 22nd May 2022 addressed to the Minister of Justice Dr. Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe, PC.

• It is imperative that the 21st Amendment to the Constitution must be passed forthwith incorporating the above positive changes.

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News

Navy renders assistance to bring injured fisherman ashore

Published

10 hours ago

2026/05/29

Priyan

The Sri Lanka Navy demonstrated its commitment to maritime safety by assisting to bring ashore an injured fisherman and rushing him for urgent medical attention on Thursday (28 May 2026)

The fisherman was aboard a local multiday fishing trawler off the south coast and the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) Colombo coordinated the retrieval of the fisherman.

Reportedly, the multi-day fishing trawler had departed from the Kudawella Fisheries Harbour on 05th May with 06 fishermen. While engaged in fishing activities approximately 730 nautical miles off the south coast, one of the crew members suffered an injury.

Following a formal request for assistance, through MRCC Colombo, the Merchant Vessel ‘Dong Fang Wei Ye’ sailing in the nearby sea area had been informed to retrieve the patient. In a rapid response, the Navy dispatched a craft attached to the Southern Naval Command to the designated sea area where the Merchant Vessel was stationed to transfer the fisherman.

Upon transferring the injured fisherman from the Merchant Vessel, naval personnel provided essential first aid to the injured person before swiftly bringing him to the Galle Harbour And safely transferred him to the National Hospital, Galle.

News

Applications called to recruit 400 public officers as Digital Champions for the Public Impact Champions Network

Published

11 hours ago

2026/05/29

Priyan

As a key component of the Government’s Digital Economy Plan aimed at enhancing the quality and efficiency of the public sector system, an awareness programme for coordinating executive officers of public institutions was held on Wednesday (27) at the Information and Communication Technology Agency of Sri Lanka (ICTA). The programme marked the first step towards establishing the “Public Impact Champions Network” (PIC-NET), an institutional pilot network intended to drive the optimisation of public services through the digitalisation of public institutions.

During the programme, heads of institutions were informed to submit applications from officers currently serving in public institutions who possess the capability and capacity to represent the “Champions Corps” in spearheading digital transformation, in accordance with Circular PS/ADA/Circular/3/2026.

Chairman of the Information and Communication Technology Agency of Sri Lanka and Senior Adviser to the President on the Digital Economy, Dr. Hans Wijayasuriya, stated that the Government aims to increase Sri Lanka’s digitally empowered economy from its current level of 3% to 12% by 2030.

He further explained that the development of the digital economy is a process aimed at improving efficiency, quality and revenue generation through the use of communication technology in economic activities.

Pointing out how the digital economy has expanded in every developed state, Dr Hans Wijayasuriya noted that the slow growth of the digital economy remains a serious challenge faced by Third World countries. However, he stated that India is currently achieving remarkable progress in digital economic development and that elevating Sri Lanka’s digital economy to a prominent level alongside such developments is one of the Government’s principal objectives.

Dr Hans Wijayasuriya also pointed out that this digital economic growth must take place simultaneously across nearly all public institutions. Accordingly, within the next three years, the coordination and management of transactions among public institutions are expected to function in a fully networked manner similar to banking operations.

He further emphasised that the support of both public institutions and the country’s citizens as a whole would be crucial for the successful implementation of this extensive technological transformation across all public institutions over the next few years.

Ranil Peiris of the Department of Information Technology at the University of Sri Jayewardenepura briefed those present on the foundation of the PIC-NET programme and its future plans.

He explained that, in the future, citizens would be able to access services such as applying for passports and renewing licences entirely online from their homes. He further pointed out that this system would eliminate the need for citizens to repeatedly provide the same information.

Representatives of KPMG also presented the future action plan relating to the selection and training of officers.

Representing the Presidential Secretariat, Sameera Wickremasinghe further briefed participants on the mechanism for calling applications.

The necessary guidance and coordination support for this public sector digitalisation programme are being provided with the support of the Presidential Secretariat, the Ministry of Digital Economy, GovTech Sri Lanka and the Asian Development Bank.

(PMD)

Foreign News

Mother-in-law of Indian bride whose death set off media frenzy arrested

Published

12 hours ago

2026/05/29

Priyan

Twisha Sharma was found dead in her marital home on 12 May [BBC]

India’s top anti-crime agency has arrested the mother-in-law of an Indian woman whose death has sparked conflicting claims of murder and suicide.

Twisha Sharma’s parents and siblings have alleged that she was tortured by her lawyer husband, Samarth Singh, and his mother – retired judge Giribala Singh – over dowry demands and that she was murdered, allegations they have denied.

The 33-year-old model and actor had been married for just five months when she was found dead in her matrimonial home in Madhya Pradesh state’s Bhopal city on 12 May.

On Thursday, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) arrested Giribala Singh after questioning her for several hours.

The Madhya Pradesh High Court had earlier cancelled her anticipatory bail, finding that a trial court had ignored key evidence and witness testimony.

Following Twisha’s death, the police had registered a case of dowry death against the Singhs. Earlier this week, the investigation was taken over by the CBI.

Twisha’s death has made national headlines and has once against brought the issue of dowry deaths into the spotlight. Every year, thousands of women are murdered for bringing in insufficient dowries, even though the practice was banned in 1961.

The case has drawn significant attention because of the family’s prominence. Twisha was a former beauty pageant winner and actor, while her husband and mother-in-law were lawyers.

Twisha’s parents allege that dowry-related harassment began soon after her marriage to Singh. They also claim that when she became pregnant, Singh and his mother accused her of infidelity and forced her to terminate the pregnancy.

The Singhs deny the allegations, saying Twisha had mental health issues and took her own life. They also contend that the decision to terminate the pregnancy was hers.

Singh is currently in police custody. He had reportedly absconded after Twisha’s death and was arrested by police in Jabalpur on 22 May.

Twisha was cremated on Sunday after a second autopsy. Her family had alleged that the first post-mortem was flawed and accused the police of a cover-up, a charge the police denied.

[BBC]