It is taken as a fact that Lakshman Kadirgamar — Foreign Minister from 1994 to 2005 with a three-year break in-between — was Sri Lanka’s best diplomat who played a major role in getting the LTTE banned as a terrorist group in the United States and the European Union. His outstanding diplomatic skills helped Sri Lanka to go through some of the worst years of the war and win international support from the United States and Western Europe, India, Russia and China till he was assassinated on August 12, 2005.…
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Hakeem promises potable water to CKD affected areas
By Ifham Nizam Then Water Supply, Drainage and Urban Development Ministry has taken steps to supply clean drinking water to areas prone to kidney diseases. Addressing a briefing in Colombo on Monday in connection with the forthcoming World Water Day (March 22), Minister Rauff Hakeem said that the government was exploring the possibility of desalinating sea water in northern and eastern provinces. He said his ministry was also working on the century old sewerage network of the country. It would be rehabilitated, he added A ministry official said that work was now…
Read MoreSix-point criteria for dual citizenship
By Niranjala Ariyawansha Acting Secretary of the Ministry of Public Peace, Disaster Management and Christian Religious Affairs, Chulananda Perera, said the government has decided to declare the six-point criteria required to qualify for dual citizenship. Expressing his views to Ceylon Today, Perera said the qualifications required to obtain dual citizenship have been prepared according to a new administrative system and that Cabinet approval was granted last week. Accordingly, among the requirements to qualify in order to obtain dual citizenship, a person should possess professional or educational qualifications and own immovable property worth…
Read MoreSri Lankan politicians and Swiss Account saga!
A cache of leaked Swiss bank files analysed by a network of investigative reporters contained information linked to 92 Sri Lankan clients holding 129 accounts with a total value to the tune of approximately US $ 58.3 million (approx. Rs.7.7 billion). According to International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), the maximum amount of money associated with a client linked to Sri Lanka was US $ 10.7 million (approx. Rs.1.4 billion) and the country is placed at 112th among the countries with the largest dollar amounts in the leaked Swiss files.…
Read More$58.3M held in Swiss accounts by 92 Sri Lankans – Leaked Data
Ninety-two Sri Lankan citizens hold a total of $58.3 million in 129 Swiss bank accounts, according to data released by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) and leaked by an HSBC whistleblower. The maximum amount of money associated with a client connected to Sri Lanka was $10.7 million while the island nation is ranked #112 among the countries with the largest dollar amounts in the leaked Swiss files. According to Swiss Leaks, 88 client accounts were opened between 1974 and 2006 and linked to 129 bank accounts. Of the…
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