Former commander of Sri Lanka’s army, General Daya Ratnayake, will contest the parliamentary elections in August for President Sirisena’s UPFA, after turning down a high-level diplomatic posting, according to reports.

“General Ratnayake has rejected the new government’s offer to be appointed as Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner for Pakistan, because he wants to get into parliament on the UPFA ticket,” a ‘highly-placed sources’ told the Colombo Mirror.

Gen Ratnayake, who is suspected of having aided former president Mahinda Rajapaksa in planning a coup after his election loss, will stand in Kurunegala, the same constituency as Mr Rajapaksa.

Acknowledging the need for the UN to be resolute in protecting civilians at a UN Security Council meeting commemorating the Twentie

The Federation of National Organisations (FNO) in Sri Lanka warned that the country would be divided under a United National Party (UNP) government.

In a press statement released on Tuesday, CPJ’s Asia program coordinator, Bob Dietz, questioning the new government’s agenda of reform said,

“The decision comes from a government that lifted Sri Lankans’ hopes that their country was ready to make a genuine effort to move away from the hostile environment that has surrounded the media for years. The move calls into question the government’s commitment to the reform agenda that carried it to victory in January’s elections.”

The Sri Lankan Press Council was initially dissolved by Maithripala Sirisena, who pledged to protect the independence of the media as part of his reform process.

Sirisena's reinstatement of Sri Lanka's regulatory Press Council condemned (06 Jul 2015)

Journalists removed from Jaffna public consultation on resettlement  (29 Jun 2015)

US State Dept official to study media in Sri Lanka  (11 Jun 2015)

'Where else should I die but here?'  (29 Apr 2015)

Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena announced that all Sri Lankan soldiers who took part in the armed conflict are to receive government allowances for life, reports Daily News.

Sri Lankan Deputy Foreign Minister Ajith P Perera claimed that it was the government’s improvement in human rights that led the United States to restore the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) benefits programme.

Mr Perera told reporters in Colombo that the programme has been signed by US President Barack Obama and “would bring in billions of dollars to the country annually".

He went on to claim that it was due to the government’s human rights record and “stability in the North and East” that the concessions were renewed.

Mr Perera also said that discussions were underway with the European Union to restore the GSP+ programme, which was withdrawn due to the government’s human rights record in 2010.

A silent protest, condemning sexual harassment and violence against women and children was held in Jaffna on Tuesday.

The protest, part of an island-wide campaign to end violence against women and children called Journey Towards Justice, was held at Vembadi Junction.

Chief Minister CV Wigneswaran warned that Tamils in the North-East remain disempowered and urged the US to play a supporting and guiding role in bringing true peace and stability to the island.

Writing in The Hill, a Washington-based newspaper, Mr Wigneswaran said the political will shown by the US to support justice and reconciliation in Sri Lanka, make the next few months “crucial” to pursue “true reform”.

See the full post here.

The chief minister highlighted the grievances of the Tamil people in the North-East, criticising the Sirisena-led government for its lack of progress.

He said despite the armed conflict ending over 6 years ago, “the Sri Lankan military continues to dominate the landscape in the North and East.”

Recently released emails from Hillary Clinton's time during her first year as US Secretary of State contain several messages on Sri Lanka which were sent during the last months of the armed conflict.

An email sent on May 4, 2009 seemed to suggest that the International Monetary Fund was unhappy with Ms Clinton "ordering/telling" the IMF to suspend the funding of the government of Sri Lanka.

Burns Strider, a political consultant and former senior advisor to the then-secretary of state, said he felt "people on the ground", from both the World Bank and the IMF, believed that the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam needed to be "completely defeated" and that "collateral damage inflicted on private people" by the actions of the Sri Lankan government were "ok", in their eyes.

The IMF is said to have asked for and held a meeting with Timothy Geithner, who was US Secretary of the Treasury at the time, where they told him Ms Clinton was "intruding into his domain".

Youth and activists in Tamil Nadu marked Karumpuli Naal – Black Tigers day – on Monday, holding a seminar and remembrance ceremony in Chennai.

Over 200 people participated in the event, which was addressed by Eelam Tamil poet Kasi Anandan, Madras University Professor Ramu Manivannan and numerous other youth activists including Ilayaraja from the Tamil Nadu Student Movement, Panneer from the Balachandran Student Movement.