The Sri Lankan government has borrowed $2.6 billion from China’s state-owned Exim Bank, between 2009 and 2013, reports Ceylon Today.

Deputy Minister of Finance and Planning, Dr. Sarath Amunugama said in parliament yesterday that the money was used for various development projects on the island, including Hambantota Port, Katunayake Expressway, Norochcholai Coal Power Plant, Railway projects, Northern Province electricity and road development projects, Southern Expressway and electricity projects in the Uva and Eastern Provinces.

Sri Lanka’s permanent representative to the UN in Geneva Ravinath Ariyasinha has highlighted the Tamil diaspora as a potent danger to the country and accused western countries of turning a blind eye to their activities.

“While we have defeated the LTTE in Sri Lanka, the organization, its ideology and its operations are very much alive in a number of western countries. Immediately, this remains a challenge to speeding up the pace of reconciliation in Sri Lanka, and eventually, a potent danger to Sri Lanka as a rising nation,” Aryasinha said while speaking at the Sri Lankan Army’s Defence Seminar 2014.

“Even as most countries have acted with understanding and have respectfully shared concerns and been able to contribute to the processes of reconciliation in a tangible manner, unfortunately particularly a few Western countries fuelled by political motivations and electoral compulsions have continued to relentlessly pursue Sri Lanka," he added.

"Fellow student Yoganathan Nirojan, from Vavuniya was arrested for visiting the injured student, and he has been released on bail by Colombo Magistrate court. Is meeting a fellow student a crime? Do the police not see it as a humanitarian norm? Why was he arrested? All activities of police have political influences."

The UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon asked Sri Lanka to cooperate with the inquiry, led by the High Commissioner for Human Rights.

Speaking at the UN’s daily press briefing, his spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said the Secretary General “fully supports” High Commissioner Navi Pillay and commended the leadership she demonstrated “to assist Sri Lanka in advancing accountability and reconciliation”.

"The PMO has called a meeting tomorrow to deliberate on India-Sri Lanka fishermen issues like illegal poaching and welfare of Indian fishermen among others."