News
Editors resolve 169 complaints under the ‘Right of Reply’ option
National newspaper Editors resolved 169 complaints made directly to them by aggrieved readers in 2021, while the Press Complaints Commission of Sri Lanka (PCCSL) handled 57 complaints from the public, of which 16 were outside its scope.The complaints resolved by the Editors come under Clause 04. ‘Opportunity to Reply’ (‘Right of Reply’) procedure laid down by The Editors’ Guild of Sri Lanka in their Code of Professional Practice (Editors’ Code).
The Editors’ Code, which is implemented by the PCCSL, provides for conditional third party complaints. Third party complaints are entertained from six categories viz; environmental groups, animal welfare groups, adults on behalf of minors, an immediate family member of an accident victim, an immediate family member of a person in custody and anyone complaining on behalf of another, provided the prior written permission of the person personally affected is obtained and the Complaint Form signed.
The annual report of the PCCSL for 2021 presented by its Chief Executive Officer Mr. Sukumar Rockwood was released via a zoom meeting on September 07, 2022, stated that the PCCSL conducted 31 meetings with 200 publishers, editors and journalists. Sixteen awareness meetings were held with 485 members of civil society.
The PCCSL, which is an independent, voluntary, self-regulatory body will celebrate its 19th anniversary on October 15, 2022. The PCCSL is supported by the Newspaper Society of Sri Lanka (NSSL), The Editors’ Guild of Sri Lanka (TEGOSL), the Free Media Movement (FMM) and the Sri Lanka Working Journalists Association (SLWJA) and is affiliated with the Federation of Media Employees Trade Union, the Sri Lanka Muslim Media Forum, the Sri Lanka Tamil Media Alliance and the South Asian Free Media Association – Sri Lanka Chapter.
The PCCSL works on the principles of Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration through its Secretariat and the Dispute Resolution Council (DRC). The DRC is made up of six non-journalist, including the chairman and five journalists. It is headed by former Secretary General of Parliament, Attorney Nihal Seneviratne. The other non-journalist members are; Mr. Javid Yusuf, Mr. Dion Schoorman, Mr. Lucille Wijewardene, Mrs. Gnana Moonesinghe and Dr. A. C. Visvalingam. The journalist members are: Mr. Siri Ranasinghe, Mr. P. Balasingham, Mr. Pramod de Silva, Mr. D. M. L. Andree and Mr. Nilantha Madurawala.
The nine-member Board of Directors comprise; Mr. Kumar Nadesan (Chairman, nominee of SLPI), Mr. Sinha Ratnatunga (Deputy Chairman, nominee of The Editors’ Guild of Sri Lanka), Mr. Nimal Welgama (nominee of the Newspaper Society of Sri Lanka), Mr. Thaha Muzammil (nominee of the Free Media Movement), Mr. Manik de Silva (nominee of the SLPI) and Mr. Frank de Zoysa (nominee of the Sri Lanka Working Journalists Association) were re-elected via the zoom meeting. Mr. Dharman Wickramaratne, Mr. N. M. Ameen and Mr. Mohanlal Piyadasa were re-elected by the general membership via the zoom meeting of the PCCSL.Messrs Ernst and Young were re-elected Auditors of the Company and Messrs. Corporate Services (Pvt) Limited were re-elected secretaries of the Company via the zoom meeting.
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.
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
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.
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Animal Welfare Draft Bill to be Gazetted
Legal provisions on marking voters using indelible ink during elections removed
Showers will occur in the Western, Sabaragamuwa and North-western provinces and in Galle, Matara, Kandy and Nuwara-Eliya districts
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