News

Women-run hotel breaks down barriers

Published

1 year ago

2025/04/20

This photograph taken on March 31, 2025 shows a housekeeping staff setting a dining table at the Hotel Amba Yaalu in Kandalama. Photo by AFP.

(AFP) Time for the daily staff meeting at Sri Lanka’s Hotel Amba Yaalu where woman manager Jeewanthi Adhikari jokes: “This won’t look very serious, there are only girls around the table.”

The hotel, on the shores of Lake Kandalama in the green hills of central Sri Lanka, opened in January with a unique selling point — its staff are exclusively women.

It is a first in the country, designed to promote women in a tourism sector where men hold up to 90 percent of hotel jobs.

“The chairman wanted to start a new hotel with a new concept,” said Adhikari.

She explained how the idea sprouted from twin blows that hammered the island’s tourism industry — first Covid-19, then the 2022 financial crisis and subsequent political unrest that toppled the president.

“It has been really a bad time,” the 42-year-old said, noting that when there were employment vacancies, only men got the job. “We wanted to give opportunity and attract more women.”

Owner Chandra Wickramasinghe, president of the Thema Collection group which runs 14 hotels, said he wanted to showcase what women can do if given the chance.

“Unfortunately, in Sri Lanka in the hotels, there is no gender equality,” he said.

The blame rests on a mix of factors — lack of training, a culture where women are seen first and foremost as mothers, and very low wages which lead to the perception that women may as well stay at home.

“In our men’s society, when it comes to women working in hotels, it’s one nice girl in the reception and housekeepers to clean,” he said.

“I wanted to go a little bit further.”

For the 33 rooms of the Amba Yaalu — meaning “best friend” in the island’s Sinhala language — a team of 75 women handle every task, including those traditionally seen as for men.

They are enthusiastic, like maintenance worker Hansika Rajapaksa.

“People think it’s difficult for women to be involved in maintenance,” the 28-year-old said.

“But after coming here and undergoing training, we also can carry out the work that is expected of us without any difficulty”.

Meanwhile, Dilhani, who gave only her first name, feels confident in her role as a security officer after 15 years in the army.

“I have experienced war… I have manned roadblocks,” she said. “With that experience, it is very easy to do our work here.”

Others want to set an example.

“This a good opportunity for women to demonstrate their talents, to showcase our skills and courage to the new generations”, said 23-year-old chef Upeka Ekanayake.

Old habits were initially hard to break, manager Adhikari said.

“Our experienced staff were used to working around male colleagues,” she said. “Automatically, they waited for someone else to do things, because that is how they had been trained.”

But the owner said he shrugged off the doubts of colleagues.

“Some people didn’t believe in it,” said owner Wickramasinghe, who dismissed the misogynists who scoffed that an all-women team would just “start gossiping”.

The hotel has been welcomed as an “excellent initiative” by Nalin Jayasundera, president of the association of tour operators.

“We want to encourage even more women to join the tourism industry,” he said, adding it made a “very good impression on our customers”.

Clients have taken notice.

“I felt like I could speak up and answer questions ahead of my partner without them looking to him for confirmation,” one Canadian tourist wrote in a review on a booking website.

Women’s rights activist Nimalka Fernando said the initiative was “really path-breaking for Sri Lankan society”.

While she noted Sri Lanka was the first nation to elect a woman as prime minister — Sirimavo Bandaranaike in 1960 — tradition, culture and the labour market continue to block women’s rights.

She points out that women dominate the sectors that provide the country with its main sources of income: textiles, tea and foreign remittances.

“Women are treated as an exploitable commodity,” she said. “The important thing now is to give dignity to female labour.”

The Amba Yaalu is only the first step, acknowledges its manager, but it is making a change.

“We have single mothers and mothers with two or three kids,” Adhikari said. “Here, they don’t have to suppress what they want to do in their life.”

Wickramasinghe sees it as a way to highlight the lesson he learned as a boy.

“I’m inspired by my mother… she became a single parent with eight children,” he said.

“She was working in a hospital at the same time and she managed very well. So, I realised the power of a woman… that they can do wonders.”

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News

Fast Attack Craft P 4447 recovered in successful salvage operation

Published

1 hour ago

2026/09/14

Priyan

The Sri Lanka Navy successfully recovered its Fast Attack Craft P 4447 following a successful salvage operation, bringing a multi-stage emergency response to a close.

The craft, which ran into distress during a routine patrol on 15th August 2026 off Angulana, was brought to the surface on 11th September, from a depth of approximately 80 feet. It was
subsequently towed to the Colombo Dockyard premises.
The initial phase of the operation immediately following the incident focused on search and rescue. A joint effort involving the Navy, Air Force, Police, and local fishermen from Angulana
resulted in the rescue of 11 crew members. The search and rescue phase drew to a close with the recovery of the remains of the Second in Command of the craft, on 4th September.

Following the search and rescue phase, specialized Navy diving and salvage teams launched a dedicated recovery phase against rough sea conditions and underwater challenges, adhering to
strict safety protocols. The Navy’s marine, hull, electrical, and electronic engineering teams utilized specialized technical know-how and equipment to raise the vessel in stages.

Thus, the salvage operation marked an outstanding achievement attained through the professionalism, technical expertise of Navy divers, and coordinated contribution of all
engineering and technical branches of the Sri Lanka Navy. Technical support and specialized expertise were also extended by the Sri Lanka Ports Authority and Colombo Dockyard PLC.

News

CIABOC member’s appointment: Controversy over Speaker under probe heading selection process

Published

4 hours ago

2026/09/14

Thilina Walpola

By Shamindra Ferdinando

The Opposition should intensity its focus on the forthcoming selection of a member of the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) and remain vigilant as Speaker Dr. Jagath Wickremaratne, MP, the head of the Constitutional Council (CC) tasked with making the relevant recommendation, is under investigation by the CIABOC, sources familiar with the ongoing inquiry told The Island.

Chethiya Goonasekara, PC, is expected to complete his three-year term on Dec 31, 2026. Sources pointed out that CIABOC Commissioners are appointed by the President on the recommendation made by the 10-member Constitutional Council.

The CIABOC initiated the investigation following a complaint lodged by suspended Chief of Staff and Deputy Secretary General of Parliament Chaminda Kularatne in early February this year. Sources said that as Goonasekera is scheduled to complete his term toward the end of 2026, the CC would have to call applications soon to choose the successor.

Goonasekara received his appointment from President Ranil Wickremesinghe in January 2024. A Justice W. M. N. P. Iddawala was appointed Chairman of the CIABOC. The other commissioner is K. Bernard Rajapakse.

Asked whether Iddawala and Rajapakse, too, would complete their terms soon, sources said that in terms of the Anti-Corruption Act No 09 of 2023, the Chairman of CIABOC would hold office for a period of five years, second commissioner (K. Bernard Rajapakse) for four years and the third commissioner (Chethiya Goonasekara) for a period of three years.

Sources said that the Opposition as well as civil society representatives in the CC should take up the issue of Speaker facing an investigation by the CIABOC taking part in the forthcoming selection process. Responding to queries, sources emphasized that the issue was whether in terms of Section 107 of the Anti-Corruption Act the participation of the Speaker in the selection process amounted to a violation of the Act itself.

The current members of the CC are Dr Jagath Wickramaratne, Speaker and Chairman of the Constitutional Council, Dr. Harini Amarasuriya, Prime Minister, Sajith Premadasa, Leader of the Opposition, Bimal Rathnayake, MP, Aboobucker Athambawa, MP, Ajith P. Perera, MP, Sivagnanam Shritharan, MP, Austin Fernando, Civil society representative, Prof. Wasantha Seneviratne, Civil society representative and Ranjith Ariyaratne, Civil society representative.

Sources pointed out that in spite of the sensitivity of the case, the CIABOC recorded Kularatne’s statement in the second week of August, six months after he lodged the complaint.

The CIABOC on 3, 8 and 10 Sept recorded the statements from the Transport Officer, Deputy Director, Administration and Assistant Director, Finance regarding the use of facilities by the Speaker, those assigned to his staff and other relevant matters.

The NPP named Dr. Wickramaratne as the Speaker after Asoka Ranwala resigned over controversy regarding his higher education qualifications.

SJB lawmaker Dayasiri Jayaskera has repeatedly raised the issues concerning the Speaker with the focus also on the Speaker using two government-managed residences, relevant staff in addition to expenditure on food, transport and fuel provided to the Speaker’s private secretary.

Political sources said that trouble erupted after the Parliamentary Staff Advisory Council in late January sacked Kularatne accusing him of providing false information to secure his appointment. Before being appointed as the Deputy Secretary-General of Parliament in 2023, Kularatne held several high-ranking positions, including Secretary to the Chief Government Whip, Additional Secretary to the President, Additional Secretary to the Prime Minister, and Additional Secretary to the Leader of the Opposition.

The SJB declared in Parliament that Ranwala should be brought back as the Speaker as they have no faith in Wickramaratne. MP Mujibur Rahuman jokingly told parliament that the Opposition wouldn’t raise Ranwala’s educational qualifications.

News

GMOA: Countrywide cadre revision not done since 2015

Published

4 hours ago

2026/09/14

Thilina Walpola

Dhammika

The Government Medical Officers’ Association (GMOA) has stressed the need to conduct a comprehensive countrywide cadre revision urgently.

GMOA spokesman Dr. Lasitha Dhammika told The Island that the failure on the part of successive governments to conduct cadre revision caused the deterioration of the public sector health services. Due to the absence of required statistics, they hadn’t been able to fully comprehend the situation on the ground and to ascertain the requirements of the public.

Dr. Dhammika pointed out the expansion of the services without supporting statistics and the need to initiate an immediate cadre revision. According to him, the GMOA had raised this issue with successive governments without success. The GMOA spokesman said that they also sought relevant information from the Health Ministry in terms of the Right to Information (RTI) Act two weeks ago but was yet to receive response.

(SF)