News

Govt. urged to act fast against moves by India to stake claim to Lankan cobalt deposit

Published

2 years ago

2024/07/29

By Rathindra Kuruwita

The government must immediately convene the National Oceanic Affairs Committee (NCAC) and seek its advice on India’s bid to carryout research at the Afanasy Nikitin Seamount, an area that is claimed by Sri Lanka to be a part of its continental shelf, Dr. Ravindranath Dabare, Attorney-at-Law and Chairman, Environmental Committee of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) has said.

Dabare has said that regional powers are using our economic woes to stake claim to Sri Lanka’s resources and as a sovereign nation Sri Lanka must protect its interests. The Sri Lankan public needs to be aware whether politicians and bureaucrats are doing the bidding of other nations, he said.

The Afanasy Nikitin Seamount is a 400-km long and 150-km wide undersea mountain range located in the equatorial Indian Ocean. It features a main plateau that rises 1,200 meters above the surrounding ocean floor, which is at a depth of 4,800 meters. Additionally, there are secondary elevated sea-mount highs, with two notable peaks situated at water depths of 1,600 meters and 2,050 meters.

“We are the closest to Afanasy Nikitin Seamount which is 1,050 kilometers from Sri Lanka. The Seamount is 1,100 kilometers from Maldives and 1,350 kilometers from India. There is speculation that there is USD 80 billion worth of cobalt deposited there. Our total debt is about 100 billion dollars,” Dabare said, adding that on 08 May 2009, Sri Lanka had presented a submission to the United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (UNCLCS), seeking the extension of the country’s continental shelf beyond the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). Usually, a country’s EEZ only extends to 200 nautical miles from its shores.

“We submitted our claims in 2009. The UNCLES started studying our submission in 2016 and in March 2024, India applied to the International Seabed Authority (ISBA), Jamaica, for rights to explore Afanasy Nikitin Seamount. This isn’t a part of India’s jurisdiction. The problem is what have we done after making the submission in 2009, it has been 15 years. We have waited while other regional powers are making moves into what is ours,” Dabare said.

Dabare said that under normal circumstances the EEZ was an area 200 nautical miles from a country’s shore. However, Sri Lanka’s geological features granted it special characteristics. Article 76 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) describes how a state can define its continental shelf, he said.

According to UNCLOS a country has “special characteristics” if the; a) the average distance at which the 200 metre isobath occurs is not less than 20 nautical miles; (b) the greater proportion of the sedimentary rock of the continental margin lies beneath the rise; (c) the mathematical average of the thickness of sedimentary rock along a line established at the maximum distance permissible in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 4(a)(i) and (ii) of Article 76 as representing the entire outer edge of the continental margin would not be less than 3.5 km; and (d) that more than half of the margin would be excluded by the application of such a line.

“Sri Lanka fulfils these, and we can seek the extension of the country’s continental shelf beyond the EEZ. The reason countries like us are given this chance is that when the seabed becomes suddenly deep a country will find it difficult to access the resources available. Apart from article 76, we can also use annex 2 of UNCLOS, i.e., Commission on The Limits of The Continental Shelf to stake a claim,” he said.

Thus, Sri Lanka is authorised to: ‘‘Establish the outer edge of its continental margin by straight lines not exceeding 60 nautical miles in length connecting fixed points, defined by latitude and longitude, at each of which the thickness of sedimentary rock is not less than one kilometer.”

“As mentioned above we made a submission to UNCLCS in 2009 based on these provisions. India, Bangladesh and Thailand objected to Sri Lanka’s claim back then. We should remember that 08 May 2009 was the day before the deadline set by UNCLES for countries to make these submissions. This is how we do things,” he said.

Dabare said that in March 2024, India placed a 500,000-dollar deposit at the ISBA and requested the ISBA to grant it the right to explore Afanasy Nikitin Seamount for 15 years.

“Now we are facing a great risk. Sri Lanka has access to great resources, but it is also bankrupt. Because of our situation, those who have no right to claim our resources have started to make their moves. In the end, we might have to share these resources with everyone who is now objecting. We don’t know how many people in Sri Lanka are experts on laws of the sea, we also don’t know how many of them are working with the state. We don’t know if our politicians and bureaucrats are aware of what’s going on. How many of them are under the control of other nations? We may be small, but we don’t need to be lackeys of so-called regional powers,” he said.

Dabare said that Sri Lanka must officially object to what India is doing and take the necessary procedural steps.

“We must lobby our officials to protect our resources. Should we bow down to other countries because they have given us some dry rations? I know regional powers want to influence us, but we too are a sovereign nation. The officials need to stand for people’s rights,” he said.

Dabare said Sri Lanka needs to come up with a clear foreign policy and a national policy on agreements with other countries.

“When there are no policies, rulers and bureaucrats take decisions that benefit them, not the country,” he said.

Sri Lanka has a National Oceanic Affairs Committee, but this has not met in years. The government needs to convene this committee and seek advice.

“This is an independent committee, but we urge the committee to tell the nation what the recommendation is. We shouldn’t be opaque and secretive when we take decisions that affects millions of people,” he said.

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News

INS Airavat makes port call in Colombo

Published

15 hours ago

2026/06/4

Priyan

The Indian Naval Ship (INS) Airavat arrived at the Port of Colombo for Operational Turnaround on 01 Jun 26. The visiting ship was welcomed by the Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) in compliance with time-noured naval traditions.

INS Airavat is a Landing Ship Tank, commanded by Commander IP Patil.

During their stay in the island, the ship’s crew is scheduled to take part in a series of professionally enriching events and camaraderie-building programmes organised by the Sri Lanka Navy.

The Indian naval personnel will also tour several historic and prominent tourist attractions across the country before the ship concludes her deployment.

News

BASL asks govt. to abandon plan to raise retirement ages of CA and SC judges

Published

19 hours ago

2026/06/4

Sahan Weerasooriya

… tells Prez such arbitrary change neither necessary nor desirable

The Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) has urged President Anura Kumara Dissanayake to abandon the controversial plan to increase the retirement age of the judiciary, including the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court.

In a statement issued by the BASL President Rajeev Amarasuriya and its Secretary Nalin de Silva, the BASL pointed out that the proposed increase of the retirement age of the judiciary would undermine the independence, integrity, dignity, and public confidence in the Judiciary, which is essential for the maintenance of the Rule of Law and democratic governance in Sri Lanka.

The text of the BASL statement: “The Bar Association of Sri Lanka (hereinafter referred to as “BASL”) notes with grave concern reports in the public domain that the Government is considering the introduction of an amendment to the Constitution to increase the age of retirement of Judges of the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court.

It is the considered view of the BASL that the age of retirement of the judges of the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court which has stood at 63 years and 65 years respectively from the promulgation of the 1978 Constitution, should not be changed arbitrarily and that such a change is neither necessary nor desirable.

To do so will result in the loss of public confidence in the integrity of the legal system and of the Government’s commitment to preserve and protect the rule of law and the independence of the judiciary. Members of the public are likely to question the motives of the Government in bringing in a Constitutional amendment solely for this purpose.

Your Excellency is no doubt aware that the cadre of the Judges of the Court of Appeal was increased from 12 to 20 Judges (including the President of the Court of Appeal) and that of the Supreme Court from 11 to 17 Judges (including the Chief Justice) by the 20th Amendment to the constitution certified on 29th of October 2020. With such enhancement, workwise, there cannot be a real requirement to extend the retirement ages of these judges.

Your Excellency is aware that altering the retirement age of judges of the apex courts would have to be done through a Constitutional amendment. For many years Sri Lanka’s Constitution has been subject to ad hoc amendments, sometimes in order to cater to the political needs of the government in power and often contrary to the interests of the rule of law, the independence of the judiciary and the judiciary.

Extending the retirement age of the sitting Judges of these Courts at this point of time is likely to be viewed by the public as a blatant attempt to interfere with the judiciary. We believe that to go ahead with such an ad hoc move will also be an affront to the Honourable Judges of those courts.

If the Government goes ahead with such a move it will set a dangerous precedent for future Governments too to introduce ad hoc amendments to the Constitution in respect of the functions of the Judiciary.

The independence of the Judiciary and the public confidence reposed in it, are indispensable pillars of the Rule of Law and the democratic framework of our Republic. In that regard, it is of paramount importance that the Judiciary must not only remain independent in fact, but must also be seen by the public to be wholly independent, impartial, and free from even the slightest perception of influence, favour, accommodation, or impropriety.

The Bar Association of Sri Lanka is therefore constrained, in the discharge of its duty to uphold and safeguard the Rule of Law and the independence of the Judiciary, to respectfully express its serious concern regarding any such proposed amendment, which is neither in the interests of the Judiciary and nor of the people.

In the circumstances, the BASL respectfully urges Your Excellency not to proceed with any proposed constitutional amendment seeking to increase the retirement age of the members of the Judiciary including Judges of the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court.

We remain confident that Your Excellency will give due consideration to the importance of preserving and protecting the independence, integrity, dignity, and public confidence in the Judiciary, which is essential to the maintenance of the Rule of Law and democratic governance in Sri Lanka.”

Govt. declines to respond

A member of the Cabinet yesterday declined to comment on the BASL’s letter to President Anura Kumara Dissanayake. The Minister said that he wouldn’t comment for the time being.

News

New US tariffs proposed on 60 countries, including Sri Lanka

Published

19 hours ago

2026/06/4

Sahan Weerasooriya

12.5% additional duties on goods imported from Colombo

The US has proposed additional duties of 10% or 12.5% on imports from 60 economies, including Sri Lanka, over their alleged failure to curb trade in ‌goods made with forced labour.

The proposal made by US Trade Representative’s (USTR) office in terms of Section 301 unfair trade practices investigation to be released, news agencies reported, pointing out that the Trump administration was seeking to rebuild its emergency tariffs, which were struck down by a US Supreme Court decision in February.

The USTR said it determined that it would impose 10% duties related to ⁠the forced labour investigation on imports from Canada, Ecuador, the European Union, Indonesia, Mexico, Pakistan, Argentina, Bangladesh, Cambodia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan and Britain.

The trade agency said it would impose additional duties of 12.5% on the remaining 45 countries that were investigated.

“The failure of our most important trading partners to address the importation of goods made with forced labour is unacceptable,” US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in a statement. “This creates a dynamic where American workers are forced to compete globally on an unlevel playing field.”

According to the trade agency, the USTR found that Sri Lanka has failed to impose and effectively enforce a forced labour import prohibition.

The USTR noted that the results of its investigation indicate that the acts, policies and practices of Sri Lanka related to the failure to impose and effectively enforce a forced labour import prohibition are unreasonable and burden or restrict US commerce.

Accordingly, it has proposed to impose 12.5% additional duties on goods imported from Sri Lanka.

The USTR said it also was proposing a textile mechanism that would allow for a certain volume of apparel and textile imports ‌to ⁠enter the US at a reduced tariff rate, though the duties and volumes were not disclosed.

The announcement comes ahead of the July 24 expiration of a 10% temporary tariff imposed by the Trump administration on February 20, the day the Supreme Court struck down US President Donald Trump’s tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.

On Monday, the USTR proposed ⁠a 25% duty on many Brazilian goods as a result of a Section 301 investigation into the country’s digital trade practices and preferential tariffs. The trade agency is also expected to soon unveil the findings of another major Section 301 probe into ⁠the buildup of excess industrial capacity in 16 trading partners, including China.

In the forced labour findings, the USTR said it would exempt from the tariffs a number of products, including energy, rare earths and certain ⁠other metals, beef, coffee, certain fruits and vegetables, pharmaceuticals, organic chemicals and aircraft parts.

The USTR said it would accept public comments on the proposed tariffs and other remedies through July 6, with a public hearing scheduled for July 7.