Sri Lanka to get new president next week amid worst crisis since independence The island nation is embroiled in an economic and political meltdown with its parliament expected to vote for a new president on 20 July. Source:  sbs.com.au   Sri Lanka’s parliament will elect a new president on 20 July, its speaker said on Monday, after protesters stormed the residences of the current president and prime minister, who have both offered to quit amid an economic meltdown. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who had overseen a ruthless crushing of the Tamil Tigers insurgents as defence secretary, is set to resign on Wednesday. His brothers and nephew earlier quit as ministers as Sri Lanka began running out of fuel, food and other essentials in the worst crisis since independence from Britain in 1948. Parliament will reconvene on Friday and will vote to elect a new president five days later, Speaker Mahinda Yapa ...

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News In Sri Lanka – by Dr harold Gunatillake   Website: doctorharold.com Transcript: Bringing the most important latest news to your doorstep “If the ongoing protests diminish through fatigue and fail to monitor Wickremasinghe, Lanka’s fall into the abyss will not only be inevitable but extremely painful as well”. Sasanka Perera-Professor of Sociology and Dean of Social Sciences at South Asian University, New Delhi. In his first interview since taking office, Mr Wickremesinghe told the BBC he would ensure families get three meals a day. Appealing to the world for more financial help, he said, “there won’t be a hunger crisis; we will find food”. The new PM described the Sri Lankan economy as “broken”, but he said his message to Sri Lankans was to “be patient; I will bring things back”. Sri Lanka’s political and socio-economic disaster turned into deadly combat between the progovernment thugs with the backing of Mahinda ...

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Sri Lanka -current news – by Dr Harold Gunatillake Website:www.doctorharold.com New PM starts talks on Foreign Consortium for Financial Assistance • PM holds preliminary talks with foreign envoys representing India, Japan, United States of America and China • The Indian and Japanese envoys discussed the measures being taken to gather support from other foreign nations to help Sri Lanka’s economy Sri Lanka’s new Prime Minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe, has secured the support of key countries in the world such as India, the US, Japan and China. He is expected to get majority support in parliament also, though he is the lone representative of his party, the United National Party, in parliament. Wickremesinghe might not head a truly “national” government composed of all parties inparliament. But he might get the support of enough MPs to have a majority, that is, at least 113 in the House of 225. World’s Interest in Stability ...

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Sri Lanka will be bankrupt by January: Harsha -BY Shenal Fernando Source: Themorning Says $ 1.4 b outflows expected in Dec., Jan. Negative $ 437 million currency reserves by end Jan. $ 4.8 billion due in Feb.-Oct. 2022 Negative $ 4.7 billion currency reserves by Oct. Sri Lanka will be bankrupt by January 2022 as the country’s foreign currency reserves are insufficient to fund the foreign currency-denominated debt service repayments over the next two months, Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) MP Dr. Harsha de Silva claimed.  “During the months of December and January we have to repay $ 114 million in short-term funds. In addition, we have to repay $ 1,137 million in other loans as well as $ 194.7 million in interest payments. Therefore by end January we will have only $ 140 million left from the existing total foreign reserves and when considering in terms of liquid foreign currency, ...

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Political ignorance and electoral seesaw Source:Dailymirror The Opposition parties in Sri Lanka seem to be banking on the failures of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) government to come to power at the next Presidential as well as Parliamentary elections. It is natural, and it has to be so, but it would be the people who are going to lose again, as happened after each election since the Independence, if any of the current Opposition parties comes to power without viable solutions to the problems faced by the country as well as the people. It is clear that the current government is at a loss almost in every aspect of governance, whatever and whoever the reason may be. It has failed in containing the cost of living which is skyrocketing and seems to have gone out of hand. The farmers’ protests against the prevailing fertilizer shortage in the country is ...

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IMF stance on $ 1.5 b China swap surprising: Cabraal Source:FT IMF confirms Govt. sought emergency pandemic support in 2020 But State Minister says Govt. managed fine without IMF assistance  Reiterates SL can maintain sound macroeconomic framework sans multilateral lender Consensus on funding failed given ‘daunting economic challenges and high debt’, says IMF  Cabraal finds IMF closely monitoring SL situation ‘surprising’ Harsha calls out Govt. for seeking assistance without acknowledging it publicly  State Minister of Money, Capital Markets and State Enterprise Reforms Ajith Nivard Cabraal yesterday said he found the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) reaction to Sri Lanka getting a $ 1.5 billion swap from China “surprising”, and reiterated the Government could maintain a sound macroeconomic framework without support from the multilateral lender.  State Minister Cabraal took to twitter to respond to comments made by IMF Communications Department Director Gerry Rice during a press briefing on Thursday where he said ...

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