Sri Lanka’s president vowed that he would provide the military with “every possible comfort and privilege”, as he addressed Sri Lankan Special Forces at a ceremony on Monday.

Maithripala Sirisena was overseeing a passing out ceremony, where seven Officers and 189 other rank personnel were inducted into the military, when he made the pledge. His statement is the latest in a series of remarks made over the years reiterating his support for the military. He has previously vowed to protect them from an international war crimes tribunal for mass atrocities committed during the armed conflict.

Moody’s Investors Service has found that Sri Lanka’s debt sums to 80% of its national GDP, a ratio larger than instability ridden countries including Pakistan, Pakistan, Rwanda, Kenya and Ethiopia.

The investors service said that a sustainable rebound in real GDP growth will be essential to support future gains in Sri Lanka, reports lankabuisnessonline.com.

Sri Lanka aims to reduce its government deficit from 80% to 3.5% of its GDP by 2020.  

The Sri Lankan navy on Sunday released just 1.5 acres in Vadduvakal currently occupied by the Gotabhaya Navy Camp, which continues to span across 617 acres. 

The 1.5 acres belong to three individuals, who criticised the navy's decision to release such a small proportion of the occupied land. 

The past three years have seen a number of protests across the North-East calling on the state's armed forces to release land back to residents. 

The Civil Security Department has ordered teachers working at its pre-school in the Vanni region to attend 20 days of 'leadership training' at the Theravil military camp. 

Teachers were given military uniform with instruction to arrive at the camp tomorrow dressed in this attire. 

"When we joined the pre-schools to work, they assured us that no military training would take place, but now they are ordering us to attend military training under the name of 'leadership training'," a pre-school teacher who has been ordered to attend the training told Tamil Guardian, speaking on condition of anonymity. 

The Tamil National Alliance will not field current Chief Minister of the Northern Province C V Wigneswaran as a candidate for the upcoming Northern Provincial Council elections, reports The Island.

TNA parliamentarian MA Sumanthiran is reported to have announced the decision in Jaffna this weekend.

Justice Wigneswaran has been sharply critical of the TNA’s decision to ally with the paramilitary EPDP to gain control of Local Governing bodies, stating that it was forsaking party policy for personal gain.

In the face of repeated calls for the military to withdraw itself from civilian activities, the Sri Lankan army decided to hold an event to mark the upcoming Tamil and Sinhala New Year in Poonakari last week.

US military officials from the  US Pacific Command (PACOM) met with the head of Sri Lanka’s army last week, where they discussed “career development prospects in the Indo-Asia-Pacific Region” and “further expansion of security cooperation”.

The Sri Lankan navy has been accused of chasing off up to 2,000 Indian fishermen on Saturday night, as years of tension the two sides continue.

Rameswaram Fishermen Association President P Sesuraja from Tamil Nadu said that the fishermen were fishing near Katchatheevu, when the Sri Lankan navy arrived and snapped the fishing nets of 20 boats before chasing the rest of the group away.

The incident marks the latest in a long history of attacks by the Sri Lankan navy on Tamil Nadu fishermen.

Tamil National Alliance Parliamentarian MA Sumanthiran denied that his party reached an agreement with Sri Lanka’s prime minister, in order to back him against a no confidence motion in parliament last week.

Speaking to the Sunday Observer Mr Sumanthiran said that though the TNA had discussion with Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe regarding issues of concern to Tamils of the North-East, “our support for the Prime Minister was not conditional on them agreeing to any of this”.

Sri Lanka’s Minister for Resettlement has said 500 acres of Tamil people’s land will be released in Valikamam North when earlier in the week the ministry’s secretary had pledged that 650 acres would be released.

According to the Uthayan, the resettlement minister D. M. Swaminathan told journalists in Colombo that 500 acres of land in Valikamam North would be released on April 16, contradicting an announcement by secretary Ponniah Suresh who had said on Thursday that 650 acres would be released.