Author: lbostgadmin
New Proposals
July 21 (LBO) – The government is planning to amend a controversial levy on imported television programs and commercials, with concessions for English programming, a senior official said. There will be concessionary amendments to the new levy. The proposed amendments have to be approved by President Mahinda Rajapakse, R T L Weerasinghe, Senior Tax Advisor […]
Drifting Away
July 21, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s main export industry is reeling due to the ongoing strike at the Colombo port, amid moves by feeder vessel operators to hike rates to recover losses, officials said Friday. The island’s 2.5 billion dollar clothing industry is unable to meet buyers’ deadlines and is contemplating taking legal action […]
Ranatunga quits Sri Lanka ministry for cricket administration
July 20, 2006 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s World Cup-winning captain Arjuna Ranatunga resigned as junior minister for tourism on Thursday to devote time to the island nation’s cricket administration.Officials said Ranatunga, 42, sent his letter of resignation to President Mahinda Rajapakse giving up his political office to enter Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC), the main body […]
Stolen Loot
July 20 (LBO) – The British High Commission Thursday warned Sri Lankans of being duped by lottery scams, especially if asked for money or personal bank details to claim winnings. The British High Commission says it gets letters from many Sri Lankans who have received authentic looking letters claiming they have won prizes in UK […]
Completely Clueless
July 20, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s media minister Thursday indicated that his ministry has not been consulted before a controversial tax on television stations airing foreign content, was implemented. “It is a decision under the Finance Act. We are just the implementing authority,” minister Anura Priyadharshana Yapa told reporters. From July 16, all television […]
Desperate Measures
July 20, 2006 (LBO) – Top multinationals like Unilever have pulled out imported advertising on local television stations, after all foreign commercials were slapped with a one million rupee tax. With effect from July, all broadcasts of foreign television commercials are taxed at one million rupees a year, per ad, per language of broadcast and […]
Countdown
July 20, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka™s treasury secretary is to give a ruling on Friday over the controversial tax slapped on television stations airing English content, following a meeting with broadcasters late Thursday. The tax, which also applies to Hindi language content, largely affects English language viewers who account for around 5-percent of total […]
Tea exporters in cash and logistics crunch due to port strike
July 20, 2006 (LBO) – A backlog of tea shipments and falling prices due to trade union strikes at the Colombo port has vessels bypassing Sri Lanka and tea exporters worried over tight cash flows. Trade union action and go-slows at the port over a wage hike entered its tenth day on Thursday, with no solution […]
Mental Block
July 20, 2006 (LBO) – Trade union action at Sri Lanka’s main harbour entered its 10th day Thursday, despite a court ruling to restrain striking workers. The government urged striking union workers belonging to Sri Lanka Ports Authority to resume work despite union allegations that the Colombo District court order issued Wednesday is yet to […]
Suspected suicide bomber held in Sri Lanka
July 19, 2006 (AFP) – Sri Lankan police have arrested a suspected Tamil suicide bomber and three would-be accomplices in President Mahinda Rajapakse’s home constituency, the defence ministry said Wednesday.The woman, whose identity was not disclosed, had undergone training with the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), defence ministry spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella said. “We […]
Two killed, 15 wounded in Sri Lanka blast
July 19, 2006 (AFP) – Suspected Tamil Tiger rebels set off a powerful mine in northern Sri Lanka on Wednesday, killing two security personnel and wounding 15 people, a military official said.The blast hit a bus transporting troops and police in the Jaffna peninsula, military spokesman Prasad Samarasinghe said. “An officer and a soldier were […]
Sweden bids to save Sri Lanka ceasefire amid surge of violence
July 19, 2006 (AFP) – Sweden Wednesday launched a fresh effort to salvage Sri Lanka’s troubled truce as ceasefire monitors reported at least 900 people killed in a surge of ethnic violence since December.Swedish envoy Andres Oljelund met Sri Lankan officials here and was set to hold discussions with Tamil Tiger rebels ahead of a […]
