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Following a discussion with milk powder importers, Trade Minister Nalin Fernando announced that the price of milk powder will be reduced by Rs. 200 per kilo from 15 May.

The minister said that the decision was made in order to provide relief to the people of Sri Lanka.

Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena announced to the House today (10) that he has endorsed the Inland Revenue (Amendment) Bill by signing it in accordance with Article 79 of the Constitution on 8 May 2023.

The said Bill was passed in Parliament on 28 April.

Accordingly, given the certification by the Speaker, the “Inland Revenue (Amendment)” Bill will come into effect as the “Inland Revenue (Amendment)” Act No. 04 of 2023.

The number of mosquito larvae has increased says the Health Entomologists Association.

Its Chairman Najith Sumanasena says that these facts were discovered during the surveys conducted by his officers.

Najith Sumanasena emphasized that although mosquito control programs to control the population of dengue mosquitoes have been implemented in many areas including the Western Province they have not reached the expected goals.

So far this year over 3000 dengue cases have been reported. 50% of the cases were reported from the Western Province.

The health sector points out that the general public has a responsibility to destroy all mosquito breeding areas and to prevent the spread of Dengue mosquitoes.

Australian authorities today deported 41 Sri Lankans who had illegally entered the country, Sri Lanka’s Immigration and Emigration authorities reported.

According to Mawbima, the group had been arrested by Australia’s Security Force after having illegally entered the country via sea.

They were placed at Christman Island following their detention and were deported to Sri Lanka today on a special flight.

The group which was deported via Australian flight ASY – 013 arrived at the Katunayake Airport at 09.40 am today.

The deported group consists of a majority of residents from Jaffna and Valachchenai, while it is reported that they had travelled to Australia in a multiday fishing trawler.

Three officials from the Australian High Commission in Sri Lanka were present at the airport to receive the deported group who had been accompanied by a group of Australian Security Forces personnel.

The group was handed over to Sri Lankan Immigration and Emigration officials by the accompanying Australian Security Forces personnel.

They were questioned by the State Intelligence Service after which they were handed over to officials from the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) at the airport.

After being questioned by the CID, the group is expected to be produced before the Negombo Magistrate’s Court.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe has emphasized that Sri Lanka will not support any work that hinders the unity of Asia, the President’s Media Division (PMD) reported.

The President revealed this while participating in the ceremony held yesterday (10) to mark the 50th Anniversary of the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH) in Colombo, which is the first international conference hall, built in Asia.

The President pointed out that there are many differences between Asian geopolitics and the politics of the Pacific region and that we should recognize those differences and work to preserve peace and stability. ASEAN plays an important role and must ensure that ASEAN is further strengthened in the coming decades. The ASEAN outlook is one which also emphasizes the fact that while the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean are two different, distinct oceans, they are interconnected now, which is of value because the geopolitics of the Indian Ocean is quite different from the Asia Pacific. As far as we are concerned, we have been free of the great power rivalry so far. We should not allow that to come into the Indian Ocean, the President said.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe emphasized that in order to advance Sri Lanka as a country with a strong economy in the next decades, Sri Lanka can be taken forward by utilizing the non-aligned policy, the ‘Panchaseela’ and the Asian policy. Those general facts are still valid today and said that this Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall is a good example that can be pointed out regarding the unity of Asia.

A Coffee Table Book written on the history of the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall was also presented to the President while a commemorative stamp worth Rs.25 was also issued to mark the occasion of the 50th Anniversary of the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe further mentioned, “We received this as a gift. I would also like to say that we should continue to maintain unity in Asia. It should be remembered here that only the countries of the Indian Ocean have not experienced disharmony in the world power struggle.

With the ambition of becoming world powers, some groups have undermined the unity between the countries of the Pacific Ocean and dragged them into a state of war. We must work together to prevent this from happening to the Indian Ocean. I also emphasize that Sri Lanka will not support in any way, to break the unity of Asia.

Already we have a number of military bases around the Horn of Africa. They came in when piracy was at its height. And as far as Sri Lanka is concerned, we are of the view that they should work with the African Union, which is responsible for the regional security of the African continent,” he added.

Commemorative gifts were also given to the organizations that have generated more income for the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall from event and exhibition sectors during the past 50 years. The Book Publishers Association for the exhibition sector and the British Council for the event sector received commemorative gifts from the President.

Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena, Former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, Ministers Bandula Gunawardena, Vidura Wickramanayake, Minister of State Shantha Bandara, Chinese Ambassador to Sri Lanka H.E. Ambassador Qi Zhenhong, Secretary of the Ministry of Mass Media Anusha Palpita, Secretary of the Ministry of Defence General Kamal Gunaratne (Retired), Chief of Defence Staff General Shavendra Silva, Army Commander Lt. Gen. Vikum Liyanage, Air Force Commander Air Vice Marshal Sudarshana Pathirana, Director and the CEO of the BMICH Sunil Dissanayake and other officials were present on this occasion.

State Minister of Women and Child Affairs Geetha Kumarasinghe says that a special programme has been planned in order to raise the nutritional level of small children.

Mrs. Kumarasinghe points out that it has been planned to provide a type of nutrition-rich biscuits for preschool children under the proposed programme.

Further, the State Minister mentioned that the relevant programme will be launched next month, adding that measures will also be taken to provide the children with the things they require for a nutritious meal such as eggs at a low cost.

“We are going to launch a new programme to provide a type of high-nutritious biscuit for preschool children. We are currently making arrangements for that purpose and the biscuits will be distributed to children starting next month.”

“In addition, steps will be taken to provide food items required to have a nutritious meal for children like eggs at a low cost”, she claimed.

Pakistan’s top court on Thursday ordered the anti-graft agency to release former Prime Minister Imran Khan from its custody, broadcaster Geo TV reported.

Khan’s arrest on Tuesday in a land fraud case sparked deadly and widespread protests across the South Asian country, prompting the government to call in the army to help restore order.

• Reuters

National organizer of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) Basil Rajapaksa left for Dubai in the early hours of this morning (07), confirmed the duty officer at the Katunayake airport.

Rajapaksa, accompanied by his wife, departed on board an Emirates Airlines flight at 3.15 am, according to Neth News.

Before leaving, he informed the secretary to the president about the SLPP’s stand with regard to the appointment of new provincial governors.

Earlier, dailymirror.lk reported that a tussle has erupted in the SLPP camp after Basil was given a notable welcome at the May Day rally and his picture was shown on the main SLPP banner on stage alongside party leader Mahinda Rajapaksa.

Senior SLPP MPS raised objections why Basil was given so much prominence on the May Day stage and expressed disappointment over the move.

In recent weeks a campaign has been initiated by a few SLPP MPS to promote him as the next SLPP leader in the hope that he can return to active politics after the dual citizenship clause is amended again.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe has instructed relevant officials to amend the existing ordinances regarding lands to suit the current development needs.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe had issued these instructions during a discussion held at the Presidential Secretariat yesterday (10), on amending the provisions of the ordinances of land management institutions and introducing new regulations.

President informed the officials to appoint a suitable committee to speed up the work.

He also pointed out that land policies brought during the colonial period are still being implemented in the country, adding that the ordinances brought at different times related to land use are not in line with the development needs of the time.

The Presidents media division said lengthy discussions were held about the preparation of a new National Land Policy by removing the existing obstacles in providing land for development activities.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe instructed the officials to resolve the issues of the lands under the Provincial Councils through a Land Commission.

President Wickremesinghe instructed officers to identify the details of the land owners in the Grama Niladhari Divisions and the amount of land that is currently utilized and the amount of land that has not been utilized and prepare a report at Divisional Secretariat levels.

The President informed the officers to take steps to redistribute among the public the lands acquired for Government purposes but not yet utilized, and in the future to acquire lands for Government purposes by paying the market value of the respective lands.

Niloofar Hamedi, Elaheh Mohammadi and Narges Mohammadi have been named as the laureates of the 2023 UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize, following the recommendation of an International Jury of media professionals.

The three laureates

Niloofar Hamedi writes for the leading reformist daily newspaper Shargh. She broke the news of the death of Masha Amini following her detention in police custody on 16 September 2022. She has been detained in solitary confinement in Iran’s Evin Prison since September 2022.

Elaheh Mohammadi writes for the reformist newspaper, Ham-Mihan, covering social issues and gender equality. She reported on Masha Amini’s funeral, and has also been detained in Evin Prison since September 2022. She had previously been barred from reporting for a year in 2020 due to her work.

Niloofar Hamedi and Elaheh Mohammadi are joint winners of both the 2023 International Press Freedom Award by Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE), and Harvard's 2023 Louis M. Lyons Award for Conscience and Integrity in Journalism. They were named as two of Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People of 2023.

Narges Mohammadi has worked for many years as a journalist for a range of newspapers and is also an author and Vice-Director of the Tehran-based civil society organization Defenders of Human Rights Center (DHRC). She is currently serving a 16-year prison sentence in Evin Prison. She has continued to report in print from prison, and has also interviewed other women prisoners. These interviews were included in her book “White Torture”. In 2022, she won the Reporters Without Borders’ (RSF) Courage Prize.

Women journalists under threat

Globally, women journalists and media workers face increasing offline and online attacks and are subject to disproportionate and specific threats. The gender-based violence they are exposed to includes stigmatization, sexist hate speech, trolling, physical assault, rape and even murder.

UNESCO advocates for the safety of women journalists and collaborates with partners to identify and implement good practices and share recommendations with all parties involved in countering attacks against women journalists, as recognized by numerous UN resolutions.

In 2021, UNESCO published The Chilling, a study on global trends in online violence against women journalists, which demonstrated the extent of attacks against women journalists and the impact on their well-being, their work and press freedom at large.

UNESCO works with partners to develop practical tools for journalists, media managers and newsrooms to respond to online and offline abuse. UNESCO also partners with specialized organizations to train women media workers on the ground and through online training courses, and works with security forces to sensitize them on freedom of expression with a gender focus.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says a team of its staff will be visiting Sri Lanka from May 11-23.

This visit comes as part of the regular consultations between the global lender and the island nation, ahead of the first review mission later this year.

IMF’s Director of Asia and Pacific Department, Krishna Srinivasan will be joining this visit.

A meeting of the heads of state of the Commonwealth of Nations was convened in London yesterday (05), with the presence of King Charles III and President Ranil Wickremesinghe.

During the event, President Wickremesinghe extended his congratulations to King Charles III and engaged in a cordial conversation. Prof. Maithrie Wickramasinghe was also in attendance.

During the gathering, President Wickremesinghe emphasized the importance of the Commonwealth playing a more significant role in supporting education reforms that encourage youth involvement. He also called on the Commonwealth to bolster connectivity through digitization.

In addition to this, President Wickremesinghe held a bilateral meeting with H.E. Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, President of the Republic of Ghana, to discuss ways of strengthening relations between their countries.

Meanwhile, Prof. Wickramasinghe participated in the Fireside Chat program, which was organized as a parallel event to the Leaders Meeting. The Fireside Chat program provided a platform for discussions on various topics and issues related to the Commonwealth and its members.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe also met with Rwandan President Paul Kagame in London to discuss potential areas of cooperation between their countries. The meeting was held yesterday (05), and both presidents expressed their interest in exploring opportunities for collaboration, particularly in the agriculture and healthcare sectors.

President Wickremesinghe proposed an exchange of visits by relevant ministers, which would enable officials from both countries to explore potential avenues for cooperation. The two leaders also discussed the possibility of further military cooperation, with President Wickremesinghe offering to provide training by Sri Lanka's defense forces for rapid responses to natural disasters.

The meeting was attended by Sri Lanka's High Commissioner to London, Ms. Saroja Sirisena, and the President's Director of International Affairs, Mr. Dinouk Colombage.