News

Debt restructuring: Sajith alleges Prez failed to secure optimal deal

Published

2 years ago

2024/07/3

Sahan Weerasooriya

Sajith

By Saman Indrajith

Opposition and SJB leader Sajith Premadasa told Parliament yesterday (02) that the government had failed to secure the optimal deal in the debt restructuring process.

Soon after the President made a special statement to the House, Premadasa said that the government haD failed to secure the best possible deal in the debt restructuring process. The globe-trotting President could have made use of his visits to secure the best possible deal to Sri Lanka. “The President says that the government has assured the best interests of this country but there are serious issues with regard to financial discipline and deliverance and promises it makes,” Premadasa said.

The government had not yet been able to provide thE House with bi-lateral agreements it had entered in relation to the debt-restructuring process, Premadasa said..

The President’s statement that Sri Lanka had been able to enter into agreements to restructure debt earlier than other countries that had been in similar economic crises was not true. Countries such as Ghana, Argentina, Ecuador, Barbados, Belize, Mongolia and Chad succeeded in entering into debt-restructuring agreements before Sri Lanka, said the Opposition Leader.

“We expected the President to furnish all necessary information pertaining to the debt-restructuring agreement. However, there was no such presentation. We are waiting to see whether Sri Lanka has been able to restructure the debts in a manner favourable to this country. We are yet to find whether the incumbent government could fare better than Argentina, Ghana and Ecuador in the debt restructuring agreement,” Premadasa said.

“The President, in his statement to the nation, said that we’ll start repaying the loans in 2028. There was a Debt Sustainability Analysis by the IMF in March 2023 stating that Sri Lanka would be able to start the process of repaying its debts from 2033. We demand to know how and why the government could not keep it to 2033 and reasons for starting this in 2028. We think that this is owing to failures that took place during the negotiations.

“The President speaks of a success in the debt-restructuring process without revealing true figures. For example, he stated that the debts we owed to the China Exim Bank was at US $ 3.9 billion and that the bank had agreed to restructuring. But he did not mention anything about the US $ 13.8 million debt we owed to the Chinese Government or US $ 538 million debt to the China Development Bank.

Premadasa said that the government’s debt restructuring process had double standard policy with regard to International Sovereign Bond (ISB) holders and the poor people in the country. It seems that the government has succumbed to the threats and pressure of the ISB holders. In 2022, it was clearly stated that the government would not restructure the local debts. However, in the face of the ISB holders’ threats, the government went for that. It did not even touch the super-rich primary bond dealers but pick-pocketed the monies in the pension funds and EPF. In October 2023, the government announced that it would not implement Value Recovery Instruments. However, after ISB holders exerted pressure, the government implemented Macro-link Bonds. It promised transparency and comparability for domestic bond holders and spoke of equal burden sharing. But there was no burden sharing by ISB holders; instead the government pick-pocketed the poor people’s money in pension funds and EPF.

“The President, in his statement, questioned the achievements this government has been able to make, good or bad. I am asking whether increase of malnutrition is good or bad, whether the brain drain is good or bad, whether the increase of unemployment good or bad, whether the increase of poverty is good or bad, whether the closure of MSMEs in their hundreds of thousands is good or bad, whether the entrepreneurs leaving their professions is good or bad, whether the collapse of construction industry is good or bad, whether the children faint in schools because they have no food is good or bad,” Premadasa demanded to know.

All News Advertisement

Latest News

Sun directly overhead Beruwala, Gurulubadda, Rakwana, Godakawela, Udawalawe and Thanamalwila at about 12:13 noon today (06)

Published

11 hours ago

2026/04/6

Priyan

On the apparent northward relative motion of the sun, it is going to be directly over the latitudes of Sri Lanka during 05th to 15th of April in this year.

The nearest areas of Sri Lanka over which the sun is overhead today (06th) are Beruwala, Gurulubadda, Rakwana, Godakawela, Udawalawe and Thanamalwila at about 12:13 noon.

Latest News

Heat Index at Caution Level in the Western, Sabaragamuwa, Southern, Eastern, North-western, Northern and North-central provinces and in Monaragala district

Published

11 hours ago

2026/04/6

Priyan

Warm Weather Advisory
Issued by the Natural Hazards Early Warning Centre
Issued at 3.30 p.m. on 05 April 2026, valid for 06 April 2026.

The Heat index, the temperature felt on human body is likely to increase up to ‘Caution level’ at some places in the Western, Sabaragamuwa, Southern, Eastern, North-western, Northern and North-central provinces and in Monaragala district.

The Heat Index Forecast is calculated by using relative humidity and maximum temperature and this is the condition that is felt on your body. This is not the forecast of maximum temperature. It is generated by the Department of Meteorology for the next day period and prepared by using global numerical weather prediction model data.

Effect of the heat index on human body is mentioned in the above table and it is prepared on the advice of the Ministry of Health and Indigenous Medical Services.

ACTION REQUIRED
Job sites: Stay hydrated and takes breaks in the shade as often as possible.
Indoors: Check up on the elderly and the sick.
Vehicles: Never leave children unattended.
Outdoors: Limit strenuous outdoor activities, find shade and stay hydrated.
Dress: Wear lightweight and white or light-colored clothing.

Note:
In addition, please refer to advisories issued by the Disaster Preparedness & Response Division, Ministry of Health in this regard as well. For further clarifications please contact 011-7446491.

News

West Asian conflict benefits China-managed H’tota Port

Published

12 hours ago

2026/04/6

Thilina Walpola

Extended yard facility, HIP (pic courtesy HIP)

The ongoing West Asia war, triggered by joint Israel-US attack on Iran on 28 Februar, has benefited the China-run Hambantota International Port (HIP).With Iran imposing restrictions on the Strait of Hormuz shipping, in retaliation for unprovoked attack, thereby choking vital shipping routes, particularly for crude oil and refined oil products, HIP situated, along the East-West shipping corridor, has received the anticipated attention.

Soon after the sinking of an unarmed Iranian frigate, just outside Sri Lanka’s territorial waters, in India’s backyard, Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar categorised HIP as a foreign military base, along with Diego Garcia, Bahrain and Djibouti, where both the US and China maintained major bases.

HIP, in a press release issued on Sunday (05), declared that the Port has significantly expanded its operational capacity, in response to a sharp surge in global shipping volumes, resulting from the West Asia conflict.

The company asserted that the developing situation reinforced its position as a key alternative hub along the East–West shipping corridor.

The port has doubled its Roll-on/Roll-off (RoRo) yard capacity and increased its container yard capacity by 30%, as shipping lines divert operations away from disrupted routes in search of stable and efficient alternatives.

HIP is situated just 10 nautical miles from the main East–West shipping route, allowing vessels to divert with minimal deviation while maintaining schedule integrity.

The Chinese government-owned China Merchant Port Holdings (CMPort) under controversial circumstances acquired controlling interests of the Hambantota port in 2017 during the Yahapalanaya administration. Although the Sri Lankan government repeatedly said that Sri Lanka was paid USD 1.12 bn according to the HIP website CMPort invested $974 mn in the HIP and held 85 percent of the shares.

The 2017 agreement granted CMPort a 99-year lease to develop, manage and operate the Port area. The Supreme Court dismissed a fundamental rights petition filed by lawmaker Vasudeva Nanayakkara pointing out that the original agreements pertaining to the Hambantota port had been signed in 2012 and 2013 during Mahinda Rajapaksa’s tenure as the president when he was a member of the Rajapaksa Cabinet.

The HIP press release quoted CEO of HIP Wilson Qu as having said: “What we are witnessing today is a structural shift in global shipping patterns. At HIP, we have focused on building the capacity and operational agility to respond to such changes. Our ability to scale quickly, combined with our location, allows us to support global shipping lines when reliability becomes critical. Looking ahead, we will continue to invest in infrastructure and capabilities to strengthen Hambantota’s role as a key logistics and transshipment hub in the region.”

The rise in both vehicle transshipment and container volumes has driven yard utilization levels to the highest in HIP’s history, highlighting the scale of ongoing supply chain disruptions and the port’s growing strategic importance in global trade.

To accommodate increased throughput, HIP has rapidly expanded yard space across both cargo segments, enabling it to handle higher volumes while maintaining operational efficiency and minimizing congestion. Expanding capacity within a short time frame in a live port environment presents considerable operational and technical challenges and requires significant investment. However, through close coordination across management, engineering and operational teams, HIP was able to deliver these enhancements in step with rising demand.

The HIP statement added: “The expansion reflects Hambantota International Port’s continued development as a resilient logistics platform in the Indian Ocean, as geopolitical developments reshape established maritime routes and increase demand for alternative hubs. As infrastructure scales in tandem with demand, HIP is increasingly positioned to capture a larger share of regional transshipment volumes while supporting the continuity of global supply chains.”

Amidst the continuing uncertainty caused by war and growing threat to international shipping the Hambantota International Port Group (HIPG) the owning group of HIP recently finalised an agreement to invest USD 108 mn to procure new container handling equipment- six quay cranes, 16 rubber-tyred gantry cranes (RTGs) and 40 trailers, under the initial phase of the port’s Phase II container terminal development.

By Shamindra Ferdinando