Sri Lanka’s president Gotabaya Rajapaksa lashed out at the country’s Central Bank as he met with senior officials in Colombo today, demanding action within 24 hours as the economic crisis on the island continues to worsen.

Officers from Sri Lanka’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID) raided the Colombo residence of journalist Dharisha Bastians and seized her laptop earlier this month, raising concerns over the safety of her sources.

Bastians, who is also a correspondent for the New York Times and former chief editor of the Sunday Observer, said the raid happened earlier this month “after two separate attempts to obtain the device without a court order”.

M A Sumanthiran, a spokesperson for the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) said the party is ready to support a government led by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, providing Sri Lanka is willing to "fulfil the political aspirations of Tamils," in a statement ahead of this year's parliamentary elections.

During a media briefing held on the 11th of June, at his Jaffna home, Sumanthiran announced:

A Sri Lankan Major General Sallay who stands accused of a number of abuses including the reported forced confession and denial of medical treatment of a Tamil doctor has sent a Letter of Demand to Executive director of the International Truth and Justice Project, Yasmin Sooka, claiming that the organisation had made "defamatory remarks".

Tamil fishermen and members of the Tamil National People's Front protested against illegal state sponsored Sinhala settlements in Kudaaruppu, Vadamarachi East today. 

Ignoring a court order, the Sinhala fishermen set up huts along the Kudaaruppu coast in order to harvest sea cucumbers.

Graphic by Sri Lanka Campaign for Peace and Justice 

The militarisation of the education sector in the North-East “raises important questions about the risks posed to child welfare” and wider implications for economic development says the Sri Lanka Campaign for Peace and Justice.

Sri Lankan Prime Minister, Mahinda Rajapaksa, has held talks with representatives of Sri Lanka’s tourism and hotel sectors, as he promises to reopen tourism in August.

Sri Lanka’s economy has significantly shrunk as a result of the coronavirus and has declined by 1.5% in 2020. Since 18 March, Sri Lanka has not seen any new tourists.

Mahinda Rajapaksa was quoted saying:

Tamils joined thousands of protesters in solidarity at Black Lives Matter protests across Switzerland. 

Sri Lankan police have commended a special operation to remove posters, banners and advertisements relating to the upcoming general election as part of an island-wide project to curb “illegal election propaganda”.

SP Jaliya Senaratne, a spokesman for Sri Lanka’s police, has stated that active measures will be taken to stop all illegal propaganda activities and those engaging in such activities will face legal action.

Sajith Premadasa, the leader of Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) and former Presidential candidate, has pledged that he will work with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to bring about a “disciplined society” if Rajapaksa wins the upcoming parliamentary elections.

SJB member and former Minister Harin Fernando has reported this and further warned that “certain elements” in Rajapaksa’s current administration are posing a barrier to his agenda. Fernando further called for Rajapaksa to “put his foot down” and to carry out his agenda.