A US court sentenced Sri Lanka’s former ambassador to Washington to a US$5,000 fine and two years probation last week, in a case that may have reverberations in Colombo and capitals around the world.

Jaliya Chitran Wickramasuriya, Colombo’s former ambassador to the United States, has pled guilty to diverting and attempting to embezzle US$332,027 from the government of Sri Lanka, as it purchased a new embassy building in Washington in 2013.

China Premier, Xi Jinping, and Russian President, Vladimir Putin, were amongst the first world leaders to congratulate Ranil Wickremesinghe for his appointment as Sri Lanka’s President.

The statements follow tense exchanges with western diplomats critical of his brutal suppression of protesters, which saw the military attack demonstrators, injuring at least 50.

The Valikamam East Pradeshiya Sabha marked the 39th anniversary of Black July in which over 3,000 Tamils were slaughtered. 

The International Truth and Justice Project (ITJP) have filed a criminal complaint to Singapore's Attorney General, seeking the "immediate arrest" of Sri Lanka's former president Gotabaya Rajapaksa for committing war crimes during the armed conflict. 

Responding to growing criticism of the violent crackdown on protesters, Jaffna newspaper Kalaikkathir reports that, Sri Lanka’s President Ranil Wickremesinghe assembled a meeting of senior diplomats where he berated officials over their criticisms of his office.

“Would your governments allow such protesters to illegally occupy the office of the President in your country and refuse to leave?" the irate President asked the diplomats present.

Meenakshi Ganguly, South Asian Director for Human Rights Watch (HRW) has reiterated calls for the accused war criminal to be investigated and prosecuted under the principle of universal jurisdiction. 

Writing in the Washington Post, Ganguly noted that after Gotabaya Rajapaksa had fled the island and resigned his position, he no longer has sovereign immunity from prosecution. 

Following a brutal crackdown on protesters, Colombo Magistrate’s Court has issued a travel ban on five leading activists engaged in anti-government demonstrators.

Today, Colombo Magistrate‘s Court issued a travel ban on 5 activists, who were at the forefront of recent protests.
1. Joseph Stalin (Ceylon Teachers Union)
2. Fr. Jeewantha Peiris
3. Lahiru Weerasekara (Youth for Change)
4. Wasantha Mudalige (IUSF)
5. Eranga Gunasekara (SYU) pic.twitter.com/IcIYZB3kUv

Members of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) held a commemoration event in Jaffna on Saturday, to mark 39 years since Black July.

Lawmakers including M A Sumanthiran were present at the event, held at the Vadamarachchi office of the Tamil political party.

During the anti-Tamil pogrom of 1983, thousands of Tamils were killed by Sinhala mobs backed by the then-UNP government and state forces.

Around the world, the event has been commemorated as an act of genocide.

Sri Lanka will not see a bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) until it emerges from its current political chaos according to a Professor of Political Economy at Johns Hopkins University.

Professor Deborah Brautigam told CNBC that “the IMF cannot… interact with the government when things are in a continuing crisis mode.” She continues “until the government stabilizes, until they have a Minister of Finance, there’s no one for the IMF to talk with.”

In a recent statement, Human Rights Watch (HRW) condemned the use of force against peaceful protesters by the Sri Lankan security forces. The organization emphasized that “respect for human rights is critical for economic recovery.”

The statement comes in response to the forceful dispersing of peaceful protesters on 22 July that left more than 50 individuals injured, and resulted in the arrest of 9 others.