Author: TELO Admin

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) today approved a $350 million special policy-based loan to provide budget support to Sri Lanka for economic stabilization. The program is part of a broader package of financial assistance anchored by the International Monetary Fund’s Extended Fund Facility for the country, which aims to stabilize the economy and lay the foundation for economic recovery and sustained growth.

Sri Lanka is facing a severe and unprecedented economic crisis. High inflation has eroded purchasing power, livelihoods have been affected, and past development gains have been reversed.

“ADB is concerned about the deep crisis in the country and its impact on the people of Sri Lanka, especially the poor and the vulnerable, particularly women,” said ADB President Masatsugu Asakawa. “ADB is committed to standing with Sri Lanka as it addresses its present challenges and strides toward economic stabilization, sustainable recovery, and inclusive growth.”

Sri Lanka has embarked on bold reforms to address the causes of both internal and external imbalances and return to a sustainable debt trajectory. The country faces a long road to recovery and must remain steadfast in the implementation of necessary reforms, which include enhancing tax revenue collection, strengthening public financial management, improving performance of state-owned enterprises, ensuring autonomy and independence of the central bank, safeguarding financial sector stability, and bolstering governance frameworks. As these measures are implemented, it is essential to ensure that adequate social protection is provided. Implementing governance reforms and anticorruption measures will be critical.

Transparency and open communication will be crucial in building agreement around the reforms. ADB will proactively engage with the government, other stakeholders, and development partners to help address structural impediments and plan future support.

ADB has supported Sri Lanka’s response throughout the crisis. In 2022, in close coordination with development partners, ADB provided emergency assistance to support basic services and sustain livelihoods. ADB repurposed $334 million of existing loans as emergency response to support the import of essential items such as fertilizer, medicines, chemicals for water treatment, working capital for small and medium-sized enterprises, and cash transfers to the most poor and vulnerable. Trade finance lines through ADB Trade and Supply Chain Finance Program supported the import of essential items during the crisis.

ADB is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty. Established in 1966, it is owned by 68 members—49 from the region.

The Criminal Investigations Department (CID) is conducting investigations to identify and record statements from those who were present at Nathasha Edirisooriya’s stand-up comedy show held in Colombo, where certain disrespectful remarks were made on Buddhism.

Police spokesman SSP Nihal Thalduwa said the Cyber Crimes Investigation Unit of the CID is conducting further investigations into the incident.

He said the police will record statements from some of the attendees as well.

On Saturday, the CID launched an inquiry following several complaints that Nathasha Edirisooriya, a stand-up comedian, had allegedly made disrespectful remarks on Buddhist philosophy and culture as well as Christianity during a stand-up comedy show at a leading girl’s school in Colombo in April this year.

The video of the show went viral on social media last week, sparking a protest against her remarks. Later the suspect on an online video publicly apologized for the controversial statements she had made. The particular video was also removed from the social media platform.

The CID on Sunday arrested Nathasha Edirisooriya at the Katunayake airport while she was trying to leave for Singapore. She was later remanded till June 07 by Fort Magistrate Thilina Gamage

The Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH), which celebrated its 50th anniversary on May 10, has a symbolic value in modern Sri Lankan history. It symbolised independent Sri Lanka’s desire to be more than a beautiful island in the Indian Ocean and play an influential role in international affairs on par with other newly independent countries of Asia and Africa.

The vision of the then Prime Minister, Sirimavo Bandaranaike, was not to become part of any power bloc but to play an independent role to bridge the gap between the Western and Soviet blocs and promote peace and amity in the world.

Mrs.Bandaranaike, who had already attained global stature as the world’s first woman Prime Minister (1960), desired a platform to project the new role she had envisioned for Sri Lanka. In view of the Western world’s hostility to Sri Lanka owing to the controversy over rubber prices and the move to take over Britain’s military bases, the Prime Minister turned to China. Though aligned with the Soviets, the Chinese had rescued Sri Lanka from a severe rice and foreign exchange crisis in the early 1950s by entering into a Rice-Rubber barter deal in 1952.

Even though Sri Lanka desperately needed to import rice and there was a foreign exchange shortage (just like Sri Lanka experienced last year), the US was not willing to give a US$ 50 million loan to buy rice. Nor was it offering a fair price for Lankan rubber. At the same time, Communist China was facing a bad shortage of rubber as the US had banned the sale of rubber, a strategic material, to Communist China then fighting a war against the US in the Korean peninsula.

On its part, China needed to assert its independence against a hostile US which, in China’s opinion, had denied it its rightful place in the UN and the UN Security Council.

International Role

To play its new-found international role, Sri Lanka needed a large and modern international conference hall. China’s help was sought, and it was given free. The result was the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall named after Mrs. Bandaranaike’s husband and former Prime Minister SWRD Bandaranaike, who had initiated the post-independence movement against Western domination.

“SWRD” had become Prime Minister in 1956. In 1957, Chinese Prime Minister Zhou Enlai and Vice Premier He Long, visited Sri Lanka. During the visit, SWRD and Zhou Enlai jointly adopted the Five Principles of Co-existence and the Bandung Principles for the achievement of World Peace.

On February 4, 1957, SWRD invited Zhou Enlai to be chief guest at the ninth Sri Lankan Independence Day celebrations. According to a bilingual book on the BMICH entitled “A Symbol of China-Sri Lankan Friendship”, Zhou Enlai spoke in pouring rain “which moved the audience”. SWRD was assassinated just two years later.

In February 1964, when SWRD’s widow, Sirimavo Bandaranaike was Prime Minister, Chinese Communist Party Vice Chairman Song Qingling and Premier Zhou Enlai visited Lanka. It was during this visit that “Mrs. B” requested China to help build a modern and capacious conference hall. The request was granted promptly and China decided to gift the building. It was an outright grant, not a loan.

The work was assigned to the Beijing Industrial Building Design Institute of the Ministry of Works with the design principles enunciated by Zhou Enlai himself. His principles were as follows: The building scale shall be appropriate for Sri Lanka’s conditions and requirements. It shall adapt to the tropical climate and reflect the local style. The internal facilities and equipment shall be modern.

The Building Design Institute sent a delegation to Sri Lanka headed by its Vice President Yuan Jingshe and included Chief Architect Dai Nianci. The delegation members were in Sri Lanka for four months, touring the entire country to see for themselves local building styles, culture, customs and beliefs so that the BMICH accords with the local culture and style.

Highest Gift

The delegation collected a large amount of basic data on the materials available, physical conditions, and climate changes and finally produced an exact model. After inspecting the model, Mrs. B said excitedly: “I thank Prime Minister Zhou Enlai for sending us the highest gift. I thank China for the outstanding contributions Chinese experts have made for the project. The BMICH is a symbol of China-Sri Lanka friendship”.

Architect Dai Nianci, who had a deep understanding of Sri Lanka’s natural and human environment, proposed the classical practice of having a symmetrical, octagonal layout with a colonnade. He suggested that the building be painted white which is favored in tropical architecture and is also favoured by traditional Sri Lankans. Due to the tropical climate, ventilation was very important and that was achieved by maximizing natural ventilation, although the main hall and function/banquet halls would be air-conditioned.

However, it was only on November 24, 1970, that the Sri Lankan Government commenced work on the BMICH. Prime Minister Bandaranaike broke the ground in the traditional way with a “mammoty” to signify the start of construction. China had sent 400 technicians, 40 engineers and managers and 60 carpenters to do the construction work.

Since ceramic tile technology was not well developed in the 1970s, each tile was chosen carefully to make the flooring smooth. Steps were taken to keep termites away.

Both Zhou Enlai and Mrs. Bandaranaike were constantly monitoring the project with the latter visiting the site often. The Sri Lankan Chief Engineer of the project, Damodaralingam, got along well with his Chinese counterparts and ensured perfect coordination.

Initially, language was a barrier and communication was through sign language. But before long, the locals picked up some Chinese and the Chinese picked up some Sinhala.

Once, a number of Chinese suffered from food poisoning. The Government hospitalised all 200 workers as an abundant precaution. Given the shortage of hospital beds at that time, local patients gave up their beds for the sake of the suffering Chinese.

Challenges

It was not easy for workers from the colder parts of China to put up with the intense heat of Colombo. The BMICH construction site at Bullers Road (now Bauddhaloka Mawatha) also had monkeys, snakes and mosquitoes as it was virtually a jungle back then. Though no one was bitten by a snake, the Chinese embassy had on stand-by a doctor with knowledge of local anti-snake drugs. Still, snakes would interfere with the work or choose to surprise workers while they were at lunch.

Workers would also be woken up by ant bites. When local workers told the Chinese that ants were averse to the smell of newspaper ink, the Chinese embassy started sending newspapers to the workers.

On completion of the work, there was a fitting ceremony in which a stage play called “Path to Brightness” written and directed by Chandrika Bandaranaike, daughter of the Prime Minister and future President, was staged. The play was made into a film and was sent to Premier Zhou Enlai along with a model of the BMICH set with rubies. The model is now in the Asia Gift Pavilion at the National Museum in China.

Set in 13 hectares and with a floor of area of 32,540 sq meters (in 2013), the BMICH is a grand, spacious and airy structure. Its vast open and verdant space makes it an ideal place for large and small conferences, university convocations, public gatherings, shows and exhibitions. It has parking space for around 500 cars and now houses the first-ever bus deployed by the Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB) in 1957, a Mercedes which is still roadworthy. The annual book exhibition (indoor/outdoor) is the biggest event held at the BMICH. Several SAARC Summits and other international conferences have been held at the BMICH.

The hall came in handy in 1976, when the fifth Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) Summit was held in Colombo with nearly 120 Heads of State and Government attending. The delegates told Premier Bandaranaike that the assembly hall was much better than the halls in which previous summits were held and on par with even those in the developed world. Premier Bandaranaike told the Chinese envoy that the summit would not have been such a huge success if it was not for the magnificent BMICH.

It was completely renovated by Chinese personnel around 10 years back with China bearing the expenses. Today, in a fitting symbol of the Sino-Lanka friendship, the Chinese Embassy is right opposite the BMICH.

Source: A symbol of China-Sri Lankan Friendship: The Documentary and Engineering Technology of the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall, Beijing, 2013

Leader of the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress Rauff Hakeem says several Members of Parliament of the Samagi Jana Balawegaya are of the view of that the SJB and the United National Party should work together.

Speaking during an event in Kundasale, MP Hakeem said they can work with the President if he is willing to implement their policies for the sake of the country.

He said however, the President is being controlled by the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna, at present.

MP Rauff Hakeem said they are willing to discuss policy matters with the President, since, everyone has a responsibility to help revive the country’s economy.

MP Hakeem added that any agreement or discussion should be based on policy and not with the intension of luring MPs towards the government.

India has done more for Sri Lanka than the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Union Minister for External Affairs Dr S Jaishankar said.

The Modi Government, he underlined, is working on developing an “extended neighbourhood” that involves islands in the Indian Ocean, Gulf countries and nations in South-East Asia.

“What we are also trying to do today is for a bigger, influential and ambitious India. We are trying to expand what should be our neighbourhood. We look at what this extended neighbourhood should be. It could be islands in the Indian Ocean, nations in South-East Asia and Central Asia, or Gulf countries. The relationship with the UAE and Saudi Arabia has undergone an enormous transformation. From what was a traditionally much more constricted view of our neighbourhood, we have undertaken something much more ambitious,” said Jaishankar during a talk on “Modi’s India: A Rising Power” at Anant National University in the city.

Pointing out how the world has become more uncertain, volatile and turbulent, Jaishankar underlined it was time to use the “complex global landscape” for the betterment and growth of India. The pandemic and the Ukraine-Russia conflict has helped to build “resilient and reliable supply chains”, “domestic capacities” and “trusted relationships,” he highlighted.

A Rajya Sabha MP from Gujarat, Jaishankar also spoke about the “linkages” and “perception” India has developed in the last nine years under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

“If you are the biggest in your neighbourhood, then it is in our interest that our other neighbours have a share in our prosperity, happiness and are linked to us. That will happen if we are generous and have a non-reciprocal way of engagement. Many of our neighbours like Bangladesh or Nepal and Bhutan are today linked with us through roads, railways, and waterways. We have electricity grid connections; there are fuel supplies. In many ways, they benefit from the scale and economy of India,” Jaishankar said while addressing an audience largely composed of students and faculty members from the private university.

“The linkages and perception today of India in the neighbourhood has changed. Nothing illustrated that more dramatically than what happened to Sri Lanka. Last year, when they went through a very deep economic crisis, we stepped forward in a way we ourselves have never done before. What we have done for Sri Lanka is bigger than what the IMF has done for Sri Lanka. If any of you have visited Sri Lanka recently, then you will note the popular perception that has accrued from this action,” he added.

Speaking about India’s relationship with China, the Union minister said, “The challenge from China is complicated. But in the last three years, it has been particularly visible in the border areas. There are clearly responses that are required and those responses have been undertaken by the government and a lot of it is to ensure that no attempt is made to unilaterally change the status quo in the border areas. We will ensure peace and tranquillity. It is the basis of our relationship. If peace is disturbed, it cannot be that the relationship remains unaffected.”

Both India and China, he said, will have to find some “kind of equilibrium” where there is mutual respect, sensitivity and recognition. “Today, if we see that respect, sensitivity and recognition, we can have a better relationship with China. But if we do not, then we have to stand up for our rights. We need to be firm in asserting our positions. That is unfortunately the current situation,” he added.

“Modi’s India is different from its predecessors. It is different in its outlook,” he said while speaking about the decisive mandate and vision the Prime Minister has secured. “Modi’s India is a return to a political dispensation that has a majority in Parliament,” Jaishankar emphasised, pointing out that such a majority did not exist from 1989 to 2014.

Source:The Indian Express

British High Commissioner Sarah Hulton has requested the Minister of Pulic Security Tiran Alles to cooperate in the efforts taken to prevent Sri Lankan nationals from entering the United Kingdom as illegal immigrants.

Hulton visited Alles earlier this week, with the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Director, Ben Mellor, during his visit to Sri Lanka.

They further discussed the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) at length, during which Minister Alles commended the recently introduced laws in Britain, adding that they were ‘essential’ in order to maintain law and order within a country.

Matters pertaining to four persons currently being detained under the PTA were also raised during the discussion, to which Alles explained that all four persons were being detained on suspicion of their involvement in the Easter Sunday terror attacks of 2019.

High Commissioner Hulton also noted that a training workshop would be organised, via Zoom, to educate Sri Lankan police officers on the proper use of the country’s rules and laws.

Mellor, along with Sarah Hulton, also met with a wide range of stakeholders in Colombo, Jaffna and Galle.

Commenting on the matter, Hulton said, “It was great to accompany our UK Director across three provinces this week, meeting important stakeholders across civil society, businesses and government. We had productive discussions about local concerns and priorities, and economic and development opportunities.”

During their visits to Galle and Jaffna, the visiting diplomat met with the governors of the Northern and Southern Provinces, toured a Red Cross Project site to hear about how UK funding has impacted vulnerable communities, and visited Jaffna University and the historic Jaffna Library.

Meanwhile, in Colombo, they met with the Minister for Public Security Tiran Alles, State Minister for Finance Shehan Semasinghe, and Foreign Secretary Aruni Wijewardane.