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Facebook warned on Monday that it could offer no assurance that social media was on balance good for democracy, but the company said it was trying what it could to stop alleged meddling in elections by Russia or anyone else.

The sharing of false or misleading headlines on social media has become a global issue, after accusations that Russia tried to influence votes in the United States, Britain and France. Moscow denies the allegations.

Facebook, the largest social network with more than 2 billion users, addressed social media’s role in democracy in blog posts from a Harvard University professor, Cass Sunstein, and from an employee working on the subject.

“I wish I could guarantee that the positives are destined to outweigh the negatives, but I can‘t,” Samidh Chakrabarti, a Facebook product manager, wrote in his post.

Chakrabarti says that Facebook has a moral duty to understand how these technologies are being used and what can be done to make communities like Facebook as representative, civil and trustworthy as possible.

Contrite Facebook executives were already fanning out across Europe this week to address the company’s slow response to abuses on its platform, such as hate speech and foreign influence campaigns.

U.S. lawmakers have held hearings on the role of social media in elections, and this month Facebook widened an investigation into the run-up to Britain’s 2016 referendum on EU membership.

Chakrabarti expressed Facebook’s regrets about the 2016 U.S. elections, when according to the company Russian agents created 80,000 posts that reached around 126 million people over two years.

The company should have done better, he wrote, and he said Facebook was making up for lost time by disabling suspect accounts, making election ads visible beyond the targeted audience and requiring those running election ads to confirm their identities.

Twitter and Alphabet Inc’s Google and YouTube have announced similar attempts at self-regulation.

Chakrabarti said Facebook had helped democracy in ways, such as getting more Americans to register to vote.

Sunstein, a law professor and Facebook consultant who also worked in the administration of former U.S. President Barack Obama, said in a blog post that social media was a work in progress and that companies would need to experiment with changes to improve.

Another test of social media’s role in elections lies ahead in March, when Italy votes in a national election already marked by claims of fake news spreading on Facebook.

The Special Task Force (STF) Police and the anti-riot squad have been deployed to provide security for Kataragama police and maintain law and order after tensions erupted following the shooting death of a motorcyclist in the city.

Kataragama Police say a large number of people, who hurled stones and attacked the police station after the incident, were arrested.

 Twenty police officers suffered minor injuries as a result of stone attack, and several properties were damaged, Kataragama Police said.

 According to the police 44 men and 13 women were asserted and they were to be produced before the magistrate today.

 Law and Order Minister Sagala Ratnayake said a CID team has been sent to Kataragama to probe the death of a motorcyclist following a Police shooting and one police officer has already been arrested.

 He urged the public to remain calm and maintain peace. Police have been instructed to work with the villagers to quell the situation, he said.

The tense situation arose after a police officer on night patrol opened fire at the motorcyclist after he disregarded an order to stop at a security point on Saturday night.

 A large mob protesting the police shooting blocked the Tissa-Kataragama road burning tires. Police fired tear gas to disperse the protesters attacking the police station.

The deceased has been identified as Pathiranage Niroshan, a 25-year-old resident of Nagahahuwa, Kataragama. He was a tractor driver of the Kataragama Pradeshiya Sabha.

 The police constable involved in the shooting was arrested and produced before the Tissamaharama Magistrate. He was remanded until January 30.

Police Special Task Force (STF) officers and the anti-riot squad have been deployed for the protection of Kataragama Police Station and investigations have been launched to apprehend a former local politician and a few others who have been involved in the incident, Tangalle Division Superintendent of Police Laksiri Githal told BBC Sinhala Service.

 Source : Colombo Page

Sri Lanka and Singapore signed a free trade agreement today (23), which will deepen economic ties and facilitates greater trade flows between the two countries.

The Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (SLSFTA) was signed by Singapore’s Minister for Trade and Industry, S Iswaran and Sri Lanka’s Minister for Development Strategies and International Trade, Malik Samarawickrama.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena witnessed the signing in Colombo.

With the deal inked, Singapore and Sri Lanka companies will gain greater access to each other’s markets across many sectors, said Singapore’s Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) in a news release.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and President Maithripala Sirisena witness the signing of the free trade agreement. (Photo: Lianne Chia)

 KEY BENEFITS INCLUDE TARIFF ELIMINATION ON MOST SINGAPORE EXPORTS, ACCESS TO GOVERNMENT PROCUREMENT

Outlining the key benefits of the agreement, MTI said Sri Lanka will over 15 years, eliminate tariffs on 80 per cent of Singapore’s exports.

This means a potential tariff savings of about S$10 million each year, it added.

The ministry said the agreement also contains one of the most liberal rules of origin, which will allow more exports from Singapore to qualify for the lower tariffs negotiated.

It includes Sri Lanka’s first treaty commitment on government procurement. This will allow Singapore companies to bid for projects by several of Sri Lanka’s large central entities and state-owned enterprises.

Singapore and Sri Lanka are also committed to granting better access to each other’s services markets, said MTI, adding that the agreement includes sectors of interest to Singapore companies in the professional and trade-related services as well as environment, construction and tourism.

The SLSFTA also covers cross-border transfers of information by electronic means and data flows. MTI said this will benefit Singapore and Sri Lanka companies given the increase in demand for e-commerce and digital services.

There are also safeguards against discriminatory treatment based on nationality and protection against expropriation.

Under the agreement, the Singapore International Arbitration Centre is listed as an institution where Investor-State disputes can be heard. MTI said this is aligned with the objective of promoting Singapore as an arbitration hub.

 SRI LANKA’S FIRST MODERN AND COMPREHENSIVE FREE TRADE AGREEMENT

The deal is Sri Lanka’s first “modern and comprehensive” free trade agreement and will, said MTI, “position Singapore as an early and supportive partner of Sri Lanka’s economic liberalisation plans and development.”

To date, Singapore companies have established a presence in Sri Lanka in sectors such as construction, infrastructure, manufacturing, food and services. There are currently about 90 Singapore companies in Sri Lanka.

MTI said Sri Lanka was Singapore’s 36th largest trading partner in 2017, and bilateral trade amounted to S$2.7 billion. Singapore’s exports to Sri Lanka totaled S$2.5 billion, while Singapore’s imports from Sri Lanka totaled S$178 million.

Singapore’s top exports to Sri Lanka include petroleum and diesel, non-monetary gold and jewellery, while top imports from Sri Lanka include motor spirit, fuel oils, perfumes, clothing accessories and wheat flour.

Speaking to Channel NewsAsia about the agreement, Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner in Singapore Nimal Weeraratne noted that both governments had found that they could come up with a “modern, comprehensive and higher value free trade agreement” between both countries.

“It will liberalise trade and service, it will improve investments into Sri Lanka, and it will give a shot in the arm to manufacturing and service,” he said.

He added that the SLSFTA would “certainly be helpful” to small and medium enterprises and other prospective investors interested in Sri Lanka.

“As a result of the provisions, the investors will be given national treatment, and national treatment would make them feel that they are part of the Sri Lankan business community,” he said. “In addition, we also have the Avoidance of Double Taxation (DTA) treaty which was ratified in January.”

“The FTA and DTA will immensely facilitate business activities for would-be Singaporean investors.”

(CNA)

Veteran journalist Jatila Wellabada (56), a former Chief Editor of Lakbima and Irudina newspapers passed away yesterday.

He was working as a Consultant (News) to the Independent Television Network (ITN) at the time of his death. His journalism career began as a reporter for the Divaina newspaper in 1984. He soon gained a reputation as a political analyst, columnist and editorialist.

He was appointed as the Chief Editor of the Lakbima Daily in 2002, a post which he held for 10 years. He then became Chief Editor of the Irudina Sunday newspaper. He also headed the Front Page and Savana websites.

An old boy of Ananda College, Colombo, Wellabada received journalism training from several prestigious foreign institutions. He functioned as a member of the Panel of Judges of the Journalism Awards of Excellence for several years and as the Secretary of the Editors Guild of Sri Lanka. He was also a lecturer at Sri Jayawardhanapura and Kelaniya Universities.

He is survived by his wife Priyadharshani and two children. His remains are at his residence near the Raja Maha Viharaya, Kelaniya. The funeral will take place at 5 p.m. on January 24 (Wednesday) at the Pilapitya Cemetery, Kelaniya.

Intelligence services have now uncovered a new plan to topple the yahapalana consensus government while causing serious damage to President Maithripala Sirisena’s image.

According to Intelligence services, the individuals behind the scheme have now put into action a new plan for the purpose after attempting the same through distorting statements made by the President regarding the bond commission report.

The plan is said to have been put in place with the aim to create a deep rift between the UNP and the President which cannot be resolved sources say.

Attempts to arrest Ravi!

One of the main incidents of this plan is the spreading of a rumour blaming former Minister of Finance for the bond issue and claiming that he is to be arrested shortly.

However, reports show that the bond commission report does not mention any connection between Ravi K and the bond issue.

Government and AG unaware!

However while the government nor the Attorney General’s department has made such a decision, sources say the false reports are being widely spread to cause a further rift within the consensus government intelligence services said.

Bond commission recommendations distorted further

While the commission report does not refer to Ravi K as a guilty party however as this information reaching the public is unfavourable to the conspirators they are now distorting the recommendations of the bond commission by spread false rumours among the people.

The conspirators are attempting to now claim that the former Minister is expected to be arrested for giving false statements to the government while the offence false under the category of crimes where the suspect cannot be granted bail for at least three months.

Non-existent commission

The main distortion here is the question as to under which criteria was the Presidential commission labelled as equipped with ‘full power’. While there can be two types of Presidential Commissions, namely Special Presidential Commission and a normal Presidential Commission, special commissions can even abolish the civil rights of an individual based on evidence such as was done to former PM Sirimavo Bandaranaike and Felix Dias Bandaranaike. However, that too was only possible after calling for a vote in the parliament and receiving ⅔ votes in favour of it.

However, a normal Presidential commission has no power to do so and can only make certain recommendations based on the evidence gathered. The legal process or relevant action is thereafter decided by the Attorney General.

However, it must be noted that the extraordinary gazette announcing the formation of the bond commission on January 27, 2017, makes no mention of the commission being the special Presidential commission. (The Gazette can be read at the end of this article)

Do the commission's recommendations put Ravi in the wrong?

According to legal experts claiming that the recommendations name Ravi K as a guilty party and saying he is to be arrested for giving false statements is nothing but an insult to the Commission itself by the conspirators.

However, the correct relevant sections of the recommendations are as follows :

 24] As stated earlier in chapter 24 we recommend that the commission to investigate allegations of bribery or corruption should consider whether Hon. Ravi Karunanayake, MP while he was Minister of Finance derived a substantial benefit from the lease payments made by Walt and Row Associates (Pvt) Ltd (Which is an associate company of Perpetual Treasuries Ltd. and which is owned and controlled by the same persons who own and control Perpetual Treasuries Ltd.) for the lease of apartment occupied by Hon. Ravi Karunanayake MP and his family, and if so determine whether appropriate action should be taken against Hon. Ravi Karunanayake, MP under the Bribery Act.

25] As stated earlier in Chapter 24 we also recommend that the Hon. Attorney General and other appropriate authorities consider whether some of the evidence given by Hon. Ravi Karunanayake MP, before us is shown to have been incorrect and if that is the case whether Mr Karunanayake should be prosecuted under Section 179 and/or Section 188 of the Penal Code or other relevant provisions of the law read with Section 9 of the Commissions of Inquiry Act. No. 17 of 1948.

Unstoppable conspiracy

Accordingly, there is no mention of Ravi K as being guilty with regards to the bond commission. The conspirators are merely trying to save face following the recommendations made by the commission.

It also has to be noted that if an arrest is to take place according to the recommendations for providing false information then it can only be done so after following due legal proceedings. An arrest cannot take place unless this process is followed. However, the commission report does not say that Ravi K provided false information to the commission.

Letter of the Secretary to the President

The letter sent by former Secretary to the President informing of the Presidential Committee is also noteworthy. According to this letter, the evidence gathering for the investigation of the commission was done under ‘S. 14’ of the Commissions of Inquiry Act.

What does S.14 say?

According to S. 14, the evidence gathered by the commission can only be used for the related investigation and cannot be used for a civil or criminal case before the courts.

However, as the functions of the commissions are similar to court proceedings giving false statements to it is a punishable offence. If the commission so believed it could have taken action to bring forward any individual found to have given false statements to the commission during investigations before the Court of Appeal.

However the commission report does not make any definite mention of it and instead says :

25] As stated earlier in Chapter 24 we also recommend that the Hon. Attorney General and other appropriate authorities consider whether some of the evidence given by Hon. Ravi Karunanayake MP, before us is shown to have been incorrect and if that is the case whether Mr Karunanayake should be prosecuted under Section 179 and/or Section 188 of the Penal Code or other relevant provisions of the law read with Section 9 of the Commissions of Inquiry Act. No. 17 of 1948.

 Therefore it is clear the conspirators are attempting to bring down Ravi Karunanayake as an initial step to create a rift and topple the government. This is further evidenced by the fact that the conspirators published yet another story about Premier Ranil Wickramasinghe being found to be in the wrong according to the recommendations just 24 hours after spreading the false rumour regarding Ravi K’s imminent arrest.

Bond report on the internet

However, any party can now ascertain the truth about these false news stories with the bond commission report being freely available for reading online.

But according to intelligence reports use of statements made by President Sirisena and distorting it and carrying them along with the distorted news being spread by the conspirators to create a rift in the government are now harming the image of the President.

President’s popularity fading

While the intelligence services have done a research based on social media and several chosen fields with active public participation shows that the President’s popularity among the people and trust placed in him is now fading.

They also say this may negatively affect the votes of the SLFP in the upcoming LG polls while new votes obtained in 2015 are also said to be at a risk of slipping away.

Where are the President’s advisors?

Sources say the advisors to the President are not doing their duty with many campaigns launched to improve the popularity of the President have instead backfired on them.

Sources have also revealed that under the current situation chances to attract new votes are slipping away with the party supported by the President set to be affected negatively as a result.

President’s media team is said to also be using old Rajapaksa tactics for popularity but is instead now damaging the popularity of the president sources said.

These report also claim that President Sirisena is now facing a similar situation Rajapaksa had to face after 2009 where his popularity waned mong the general public.

Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Hsien Loong will arrive in Sri Lanka today on a three day official visit at the invitation of President Maithripala Sirisena.

The Singaporean Premier will be received at the Presidential Secretariat on the morning of January 23 with an official Guard of Honour and gun salute that will be followed by official bilateral discussions with President Maithripala Sirisena.

A Free Trade Agreement between Sri Lanka and Singapore will be signed following bilateral talks, the Foriegn Affairs Ministry said in a statement.

During the visit, Prime Minister Lee will also meet Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and discuss economic, trade and investment cooperation between the two countries.

The visiting Prime Minister is scheduled to attend a Business Forum in which leading businesspersons and investors from both Singapore and Sri Lanka will be present.

Sri Lanka and Singapore established diplomatic relations in 1979 and enjoy a strong and robust bilateral relationship that has been built on mutual understanding, respect and people-to-people contacts. An official visit of a Singaporean Prime Minister to Sri Lanka takes place after 13 years.

Meanwhile Traffic on several roads around Colombo will be restricted today in view of Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s visit to Sri Lanka. According to the Police, the Prime Minister will travel from the Bandaranaike International Airport to the Shangri La Hotel in Colombo at 4.20 p.m. during which time the following roads will be restricted to traffic:

Roads extending from the Kelani Bridge, Baseline road, Bandaranaike junction, Orugodawatta, Ingram junction, Borella junction, D.S. Senanayake junction, and Horton Place will be closed at the time the Prime Minister’s motorcade passes through.

Ananda Coomaraswamy Mawatha, Flower Road and Galle Road up to the Shangri La Hotel will also face road closures during these times.

The US government officially shutdown on Friday for the first time in five years after the Senate rejected a short-term spending bill to keep the federal government running. T

he shutdown began at 12:01 am (local time) after a few Republicans joined Democrats in blocking the crucial measure would have provided short-term funding for the Pentagon and other federal agencies, the foreign media reported.

Responding to the situation in the US, the US Embassy in Colombo said in a tweet message, “At this time, scheduled passport and visa services at the U.S. Embassy will continue during the lapse in appropriations as the situation permits. The American Center is closed until further notice.”

However scheduled passport visa services are continuing as usual the Embassy said.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe yesterday said that regardless of the challenges, the unity government will continue until 2020.

While noting that persons involved in corruption and malpractices in the past were trying to change the Good Governance government, the Premier said that they will never be able to realise their goal.

“The Wanni Hathpaththuwa Development plan will also be launched this year,” the Prime Minister said.

The Prime Minister was speaking at a UNP election rally at Nikaweratiya town yesterday.

The Premier said the Sinharaja Range Development project too would come into operation soon. He said the Wanni Hathpaththuwa development plan would be implemented through the Wayamba Development Ministry.

“If the large area reserved in Galagamuwa for an elephant habitat proved insufficient to tackle the wild elephant menace causing undue pressure on the people of Wayamba, more elephant zones will have to be demarcated to find a solution to it. Tourist Zones could be developed around such elephant zones,”the Prime Minister added.

The Prime Minister who promised to provide necessary funding for dredging neglected tanks and reservoirs in the Wayamba, said that drip irrigation systems too should be developed in the region.

Source : Daily News

The Japanese government plans to expand the assistance it provides for strengthening naval security capacities to nations in the Indian Ocean, sources said.

The goal is to gain support for the joint Japan-U.S. “free and open Indo-Pacific Strategy,” which was launched out of concern over China’s hegemonic naval expansion. Aid will first be given to Sri Lanka and Djibouti, which are located in important sea lanes, the sources said. Specifically, members of Japan Coast Guard’s new “mobile cooperation teams” would be dispatched to both nations sometime this year.
The teams, which were formed last year, will conduct such programs as holding drills on cracking down on illegal fishing boats using small, high-speed vessels and giving lectures on the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea and other relevant laws, the sources said.

Japan is already helping Southeast Asian countries strengthen their naval security capacities. Some aid has gone to Vietnam and the Philippines, which are involved in territorial disputes with China over the South China Sea.

The rush to provide aid to Sri Lanka and Djibouti was prompted by both nations’ requests for cooperation on fighting piracy and other issues, as well as by progress China has made in building ports and other “important footholds” in these nations.

Sri Lanka leased the Hambantota Port, which was built in its southern region with Chinese help, to a Chinese company for 99 years. Djibouti is home to China’s first overseas naval base, which began operations in August.

By providing aid to Sri Lanka and Djibouti, the Japanese government hopes it can deepen its ties with these nations and prevent Chinese influence from growing.

The European Union is said to have questioned the Sri Lankan government regarding not complying with conditions agreed when receiving GSP+ such as the scrapping of the Prevention of Terrorism Act among many others.

According to sources the EU had addressed the issue during the EU - Sri Lanka joint committee's 21st meeting in Colombo this week.

Two months earlier in a similar manner the discussion was brought up by a visiting EU delegation to South Asia who expressed their displeasure that the Prevention of Terrorism Act had not been repealed while no internationally accepted alternative legislation was introduced either as promised by PM Ranil Wickramasinghe.

The European Union has urged the Government of Sri Lanka to "speed up" the necessary mechanisms, as promised at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHRC) to ensure justice for violations of human rights, including war crimes

Source : Radio Gagana

Police officers were charged by elephants while staking out a suspected cannabis farm, dropping an automatic rifle amid the chaos.

The policemen had been camping outside a plantation in Sri Lanka in the hope of catching the alleged marijuana growers.

But the officers were forced to run for their lives as the animals hurtled towards them.

Police are now searching for the T56 automatic assault rifle in the Lunugamvehera nature reserve, 140 miles south of the country's capital Colombo.

In a statement, police said: "The constables dropped their weapons and fled to save their lives when the elephants charged."

The incident comes as figures show about 50 people are killed in wild elephant attacks each year in Sri Lanka.

However, about 200 elephants are killed each year by farmers who claim the wild animals stray onto their land and destroy crops.

Uva Province Chief Minister Chamara Sampath Dassanayake said he would step down from the Post of Provincial Education Minister with immediate effect.

The Chief Minister said he decided to step down from the post until the investigation into the allegations levelled against him was completed.

The Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) launched an investigation into the incident where the Chief Minister allegedly forced a school principal to kneel before him.

The female principal of a Tamil girls’ school in Badulla was allegedly summoned to the Chief Minister’s house where she was forced to kneel because she had refused to enroll a student recommended by the Chief Minister.

Minister Susil Premajayantha earlier said that the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) would also launch an investigation into the incident.

Source : Daily Mirror