DIFFERENT PRIORITIES IN THE SINHALA AND TAMIL PRESS |
Tamil Headlines
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Virakesari: Provincial council elections must be held promptly; SJB demands; People express dissatisfaction with the government for failing to fulfill promises Thinakaran: Buried mobile phone of Ishara recovered; masterminds in panic | Proposals to regulate the prices of medicinal drugs to be presented in Parliament tomorrow | “May our aspirations shine brightly in the light of Diwali” – President |
Thinakkural: Valvettithurai massacre committed by the IPKF; compensation of Rs. 4.3 billion must be provided! The Indian government should apologise to the people of the North and East, emphasises Anantharaja, Secretary of the Valvettithurai Citizens’ Committee Thamilan: “Don’t blame the Election Commission for the provincial council election delay” — says Election Commissioner General Saman Sri Ratnayake |
Sinhala Headlines
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Lankadeepa: “Officials who cause financial losses to the government must repay them with interest” – decision by Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption | Sewwandi Reveals: She Visited a Health Care Assistant After Removing Her Lawyer’s Robe Divaina: ‘Gampaha Baba’ and ‘Nugegoda Babee’ reveal secrets: ‘Gampaha Baba’ admits being given bullets to kill ‘Gampaha Osman’; handbombs, casings discovered at ‘Nugegoda Babee’ home Mawbima: Investigations turn to Devinuwara after boat seized with 54 kg of drugs; authorities probe links to emerging drug network | “Because of my close friendship with Padme, I got involved in Sanjeewa’s murder” – Sewwandi reveals her role and whereabouts
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Dinamina: Government agencies unite under the national campaign ‘Country Together’ to eliminate the drug menace, launching comprehensive efforts focused on prevention, enforcement, and rehabilitation Aruna: Treasury Secretary issues circular halting new board appointments, salary hikes, and allowance increases Anidda: This paper is published on Fridays only |
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TAMIL PRESS PRIORITIES |
Photo credits: ThePrint
“Valvettithurai massacre committed by the IPKF; compensation of Rs. 4.3 billion must be provided! The Indian government should apologise to the people of the North and East” – Anantharaja
Thinakkural
The Indian government must apologise to the people of the North and East for the Valvettithurai (Valvai) massacres committed by the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF), according to N. Anantharaja, a social activist and Secretary of the Valvettithurai Citizens’ Committee.
He asserted that a total compensation of Rs. 4.3 billion (USD 14.6 million) must be provided for the losses suffered.
This statement was made at a book launch for a compensation recommendation report at the Jaffna Vadamarachchi Media House yesterday (19th), which detailed the massacres that occurred in Valvettithurai in 1989.
The report is based on hundreds of direct eyewitness statements recorded in 1989, as revealed by the International Truth and Justice Project (ITJP) in its recent report, ‘Confessions of a Massacre’.
The atrocities, which took place over three days, involved the killing of at least 66 civilians and the destruction of 120 houses and 43 shops, with over 250 houses damaged.
The Valvettithurai Citizens’ Committee has submitted a claim for USD 15 million (approximately Rs. 4.3 billion) to the Office for Reparations in Sri Lanka for the long-delayed justice for the survivors who have not received any acknowledgement or remedy for the past 35 years.
“Legal issues must be resolved immediately; holding provincial council elections in the next first quarter is the way forward” – R.M.A.L. Rathnayake
Virakesari Chairperson of the Election Commission (EC) R.M.A.L. Rathnayake stated that if the provincial council election is to be held in the first quarter of next year, the legal complication in the electoral system must be resolved this year. Rathnayake noted that the postponement of the provincial council election was not due to the fault of the EC but a legal issue that arose from the new electoral system enacted by the Parliament. The Supreme Court has repeatedly advised that the issue of which electoral system to use must be resolved through Parliament. He emphasised that provincial councils being managed by governors (who are the direct representatives of the president) without an election is contrary to democratic principles. Rathnayake added that the EC cannot undertake any election-related work without resolving the legal issue, and only after a resolution can it determine a date for the election in the first quarter of next year. |
“Provincial council elections must be held promptly”; SJB demands; People express dissatisfaction with the government for failing to fulfill promises
Virakesari
SJB Secretary Ranjith Madduma Bandara claimed that the government is currently afraid to hold the provincial council (PC) elections because it lost 23 lakh votes in the local government election. He urged the government to hold the PC election quickly, as it had previously promised to complete both the local government and PC elections within its first year. Bandara affirmed that the SJB would achieve a massive victory if the government held the PC election, as the people are frustrated with the government for failing to fulfill its promises. In this context, the SJB Secretary mentioned that while the government had promised Rs. 2,000 as a basic salary for plantation workers, they are currently only receiving Rs. 1,300. He also stated that he is waiting to see what action the judiciary will take against the ruling party MP’s statement that a court order does not need to be implemented. |
Massive protest held in Trincomalee’s China Bay during the President’s visit
Thinakkural When President Anura Kumara Dissanayake arrived at the China Bay Airport in Trincomalee on Saturday (18th) to participate in an event, Muthur farmers, who were engaged in a continuous protest for the 32nd day in front of the Trincomalee District Secretariat, came down to the road to meet the President and demand a solution for their farmlands. The People’s Struggle Movement and the All Ceylon Farmers’ Federation specifically organised this awareness protest in connection with the President’s visit. |
“Don’t blame the Election Commission for the provincial council election delay” — says Election Commissioner General Saman Sri RatnayakeThamilan
Election Commission (EC) Commissioner General Saman Sri Ratnayake stated that the EC should not be blamed for the failure to hold the provincial council election and that the EC cannot accept any responsibility for it. Ratnayake argued that those who are currently very concerned about the provincial council election should point fingers at themselves, suggesting that if they had been equally concerned at the time, the election would have been held, and another election would have occurred in some provincial councils by now. He also stated that there is currently no law in the country to conduct the provincial election, whether under a mixed electoral system, proportional representation system, or any other method, and this situation specifically affects only the provincial council election. He explained that the problem began when the 2017 Provincial Councils Elections Act introduced a mixed electoral system, which led to a delimitation issue that the Parliament rejected after a months-long delay. |
SINHALA PRESS PRIORITIES |
Photo credits: The Island
“We now understand the depth of the current crisis involving narcotics, associated crimes, and their political connections” – President
Mawbima, Divaina
President Anura Kumara Dissanayake warned that the narcotics crisis in Sri Lanka has deep political connections and is no longer limited to criminal gangs, with parts of the state apparatus implicated and the problem now spreading to villages.
Speaking on 18 October at the Air Force Academy Camp in China Bay during the Presidential Colours Award and commissioning of SLAF cadet officers, he highlighted the importance of maritime surveillance, urging officers to carry out their duties diligently to safeguard the nation and its people.
“No arbitrary board appointments or pay hikes” – A circular from the Treasury Secretary
Aruna Secretary to the Treasury Dr. Harshana Suriyapperuma has issued a circular directing all state-owned enterprises—including public corporations, statutory boards, authorities, and wholly state-owned companies—to comply with the Public Finance Management Act, No. 44 of 2024, for employee recruitment, salary adjustments, and allowances. Previously, institutions such as the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation and Ceylon Electricity Board operated independently under the Shop and Office Act, allowing them to make personnel and pay decisions at their discretion. The circular clarifies that, as government-controlled entities, these enterprises must now follow regulations, orders, and circulars issued under the Finance Act and the Public Finance Management Act, aligning their operations with standard government financial rules. |
“Sajith and Ranil must meet in person” – Thigambaram
Mawbima SJB MP Palani Thigambaram urged Sajith Premadasa and Ranil Wickremesinghe to meet in person to discuss a UNP-SJB merger, warning that failure to do so could lead minor parties to form a separate alliance and put the future of both parties at risk. |
“This government is stuck in a mess even we don’t understand” – Jayaweera
Aruna
Sarvajana Balaya Leader MP Dilith Jayaweera warned that “over 25% of the population now lives in extreme poverty, marking the country’s fall to the bottom of the poverty scale.”
Speaking at an event in Akmeemana, he criticised current and former parliamentary representatives for “ignoring public suffering”, condemning the government as a “puppet government” and a “weak state run by the least capable leaders, despite nationwide support.”
COMMON PRIORITIES: SINHALA & TAMIL PRESS |
Photo credits: Ada Derana
“Diwali lights will illuminate our path to a ‘prosperous country and a beautiful life’ ” – President
Dinamina, Divaina, Thinakkural, Virakesari, Thinakaran, Thamilan
President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, in his Diwali message, said the festival’s lights symbolise the triumph of goodness over evil and will guide the nation’s journey toward fulfilling the people’s aspiration of ‘A Prosperous Country – A Beautiful Life’.
He highlighted the government’s efforts to tackle pressing challenges, including the drug menace and organised crime, emphasising that safeguarding every citizen’s right to live safely remains central to ensuring a good and healthy life.
Ishara Sewwandi and four others to be detained for 90 days for questioning
Mawbima, Lankadeepa, Divaina, Dinamina, Thinakkural, Virakesari, Thinakaran
Ishara Sewwandi, in the custody of the Colombo Crimes Division over the murder of underworld figure Sanjeewa Kumara Samararatne, alias ‘Ganemulla Sanjeewa’, along with five others, was extradited from Nepal on 15 October and taken to Kilinochchi for investigation.
With the Ministry of Defence granting a 90-day detention for interrogation, Sewwandi was shown locations where she allegedly hid after the murder.
Police have recovered a mobile phone she reportedly used during the crime, which she had buried before attempting to flee, and are tracing contacts linked to it to apprehend others involved.
Authorities indicate further arrests and revelations related to other crimes may follow as the investigation progresses.
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Common priorities: Additional stories
1. Landslide warnings issued for six districts; rain to intensify, dengue cases rising; one dead, hundreds affected – Dinamina, Mawbima, Aruna, Lankadeepa, Divaina, Virakesari, Thinakaran
2. The committee report on UNP, SJB merger to be submitted to the managing committee on Wednesday – Mawbima, Virakesari, Thamilan
3. “Petitions are flooding in against excise officers” – Commissioner General of Excise – Aruna, Virakesari
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