Business

The controversial tenure of US Ambassador Julie Chung, widely seen as the "unseen hand" behind the rise of the Jathika Jana Balawegaya (NPP) in Sri Lanka, has been abruptly ended, with the Donald Trump administration ordering her immediate return to Washington. This sudden exit of Ambassador Chung—who advocated for "system change," championed the protest movement, and even visited the JVP headquarters to pave the way for Anura Kumara Dissanayake's success—has reportedly thrown the JJB-led government into a state of severe disquiet and difficulty.

Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya is facing intense pressure from within the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) to immediately resign over her "criminal responsibility" for including links to obscene websites in the Grade 6 English textbook module. The scandal, which critics say has "destroyed the morality of the nation's children," has caused outrage among party supporters and led to daily protests at the JVP's Pelawatta headquarters, plunging the government into a severe crisis shortly after taking power.

In a move unprecedented in history, the Basnayake Nilame (Chief Custodian) of the Ruhunu Maha Kataragama Devalaya (Temple) has decided to auction off 70% of the gold ornaments piously offered to the Kataragama God by devotees. The proceeds from this grand auction, which is being conducted under the label of the "Fund for the Reconstruction of Sri Lanka," are reportedly slated for donation to the government. Critics point out that the JVP-led government's inability to manage the nation's economy post-election, resorting finally to using divine property to cover state expenses, is a serious precursor to a major religious and social crisis.

In a decisive move to halt the arbitrary advance of the National People's Power (NPP/JVP-led 'Malimawa'), which is currently burdening the public with excessive taxes and attempting to curtail civil liberties through repressive "PSTA"-like black laws, Sri Lanka's two main democratic forces, the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) and the United National Party (UNP), joined hands yesterday (30) in Colombo. Political commentators hail the cordial discussion—held between Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa and UNP Deputy Leader Ruwan Wijewardene, Deputy Chairman Akila Viraj Kariyawasam, and Vice President Naveen Dissanayake—as the inaugural bell for saving a country currently sliding towards anarchy.

A serious "moral crime" involving the distribution of obscene website links to Grade 6 students through a National Institute of Education (NIE) module has exposed deep-seated political cronyism connected to the Jathika Jana Balawegaya (NPP) leadership.

A lawyer from Kandy has filed a Fundamental Rights petition in the Supreme Court, claiming that the failure of the National People's Power (NPP/JVP) government to prevent or minimise the severe destruction caused by Cyclone "Ditwah" has violated his basic human rights.