The Sri Lankan Cabinet has granted approval to abolish an economic management committee headed by the Prime Minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe.

The decision was made in a cabinet meeting chaired by Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena, who has previously submitted two cabinet papers requesting the Cabinet Committee on Economic Management be disbanded.

The President said that the CCEM has done nothing fruitful to the country in its existence.

The Central Bank and the Securities and Exchange Commission were also removed from Wickremesinghe’s National Policies and Economic Affairs Ministry today, as tensions between the coalition parties continue.

Protesters in Trincomalee on Tuesday called on the government to release Tamil political prisoners, many who have been detained for years without charge under Sri Lanka's notorious anti-terror legislation. 

The United States president, Donald Trump reauthorised special trade tariffs for a number of countries, including Sri Lanka. 

Signing the US Omnibus Spending Bill on March 23, Mr Trump ensured GSP was authorised until December 2020. The previous programme ended December 31, 2017.  

Sri Lanka's minister of industry and commerce, Rishad Bathiudeen sought to downplay the importance of the trade tarrif however. 

A Sri Lankan police inspecter was arrested today over the killing of 27 inmates at Welikada prison in 2012. 

The inspector, Neomal Rangajeeva was arrested by the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) and is expected to be produced before Colombo chief magistrate tomorrow, Colombo Page reports. 

As tensions between Sri Lanka's coalition government continue and a no-confidence motion against the Sri Lankan prime minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe is set to be debated in parliament next week, the president, Maithripala Sirisena today took away two key institutions from within Mr Wickremesinghe's remit. 

In an Extraordinary Gazette the Central Bank and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) were moved from the National Policies and Economic Affairs Ministry, led by Mr Wickremesinghe, to the Ministry of Finance. 

European Union ambassadors this week visited Kandy, the site of anti-Muslim attacks by Sinhala mobs earlier this month, and reiterated the importance of making sure Sri Lanka addresses religious and ethnic hatred. 

Meeting with senior Buddhist monks of the Asigiriya chapter and the Malwatte chapter, the ambassadors "emphasised the importance of starting a systematic dialogue with other religious leaders to avoid the recurrence of recent violence."

The International Federation of Journalists joined organisations in condemning the detention and threatening of a Tamil journalist by Sri Lanka’s military.

Shanmugam Thavaseelan, of ABC media network was detained for more than two hours by the military and was only released after the newsroom contacted the military spokesperson in the capital Colombo, said the IFJ in a press statement.

India’s influence in Sri Lanka’s elections cannot be ignored said Namal Rajapska.

In an exclusive interview with the News Minute, Mr Rajapaksa said, 

"India's influence in Sri Lankan elections cannot be ignored. India is important in regional politics and several sectors see mutual involvement of both India and Sri Lanka. We cannot ignore India's influence. We cannot ignore India.”
He added, 

Sri Lanka's Prime Minister has defended the country's deals with China, while courting investment from India and Japan.

In an interview in Colombo, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe defended a deal last year that gave a joint venture led by state-owned China Merchants Port Holdings Co Ltd. a 99-year lease to the southern port of Hambantota, Bloomberg reports.

The Tamil National Alliance will vote against a no-confidence motion being brought against the Sri Lankan Prime Minister in parliament next week.

The TNA has informed Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and the Sri Lankan President of the decision, the Daily Mirror reports.

The TNA has sixteen MPs in Parliament.

TNA MP Selvam Adaikalanathan has reportedly been told to cut his tour of China short to return to Sri Lanka by April 1st.

The motion will be debated on April 4th.