Sri Lanka took minimal steps to identify and punish officials who may have committed human rights abuses, the 2023 report issued by the US State Department's Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labour on Sri Lanka's Human Rights Practices has alleged.

The report said that significant human rights issues such as arbitrary or unlawful killings, including extrajudicial killings, torture or cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment by the government, harsh and life-threatening prison conditions and arbitrary arrest or detention were reported.

"There were several reports that the government or its agents committed arbitrary or unlawful killings, including extrajudicial killings, during the year. There were multiple deaths in police custody, with many incidents following a similar pattern. Many deaths occurred when police took suspects to the alleged crime scene as part of an investigation or claimed that suspects attacked them during interrogation or tried to escape," the report added.

The report said the government released on bail dozens of suspects held under the Prevention of Terrorism Act while police also issued new guidelines to respect the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or intersex persons and stop arrest and harassment of transgender persons.

The report mentioned that in March the government indefinitely postponed local government elections, citing a lack of funds. "The authorities continued to cite the PTA, ICCPR Act, and penal code to arrest and punish critics of the government and deter criticism of government policies or officials.

The report alleged that the law provided criminal penalties for corruption by officials, but the government did not implement the law effectively.

The report alleged that the law provided criminal penalties for corruption by officials, but the government did not implement the law effectively. "There were numerous reports of government corruption during the year," the report said.

"Corruption remained a significant and continuing problem, including at the highest levels of government. International companies frequently reported requests for bribes on matters ranging from customs clearances to government procurement," the report said.

Referring to the Easter Sunday attacks, the report said there was little progress during the year in the cases of 25 individuals charged with perpetrating the 2019 Easter Sunday attacks.

The Government of India has decided to bear the cost towards applicable taxes and other charges to the tune of over LKR 25 million per month for a period of one year for the passenger ferry service between Nagapattinam in India and Kankesanthurai (KKS).

The Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) is set to make a final decision on its presidential candidate in June, according to Party sources. The SLPP will decide whether to nominate a candidate from within the Party or to support President Ranil Wickremesinghe for re-election. The Party has scheduled a series of electoral summits starting next week to seek public opinion on the presidential candidate.

apanese Foreign Minister Yōko Kamikawa called on President Ranil Wickremesinghe yesterday. The Japanese Government’s intention to resume the Yen-denominated loans and the stalled Japanese investment initiatives, including the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) expansion project and the Light Rail Transit (LRT) project, were among the topics taken up for discussion. Discussions were also held on the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) pertaining to debt restructuring in Sri Lanka.

Nearly 10,000 soldiers who deserted the Sri Lanka Army have received legal discharge as of May 4 during an amnesty period declared by Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Defence.

The Examinations Department issued the rescrutiny results of the 2022 (2023) General Certificate of Education Ordinary Level (O/L) Examination yesterday. They said a total of 49,312 applicants had applied for rescrutiny and 250,311 answers were rescrutinised.

Tourism Industry veterans cautioned that heightened confusion over the new visa system, along with the abrupt increase in visa fees, could derail 2.3 million tourist arrival target set for the year. This could potentially reduce arrivals below 2 million, while service providers stand to gain $50 million in fees.

The Supreme Court granted leave to proceed with the Fundamental Rights petition filed by former CID Director SSP Shani Abeysekara challenging the National Police Commission’s decision to interdict him from police service following the Presidential Election 2019.

China assured its fullest support and cooperation to conclude the debt restructuring process in Sri Lanka, State Minister of Finance Shehan Semasinghe said.

Former President Maithripala Sirisena has appeared before the Criminal Investigations Department in order to record a statement yesterday (3). Accordingly, Sirisena recorded a statement for two hours at the CID, regarding the Easter Sunday terror attacks.

Public Security Minister Tiran Alles, in response to allegations about the tender process, said there is no such requirement to call for tenders because these are the only companies involved in e-visa processing in different countries.