A new report by the United Nations names Sri Lanka as a state that continues to intimidate and harass activists who co-operate with the global body on human rights issues.

Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena is set to meet with the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein this week, according to a report in the Ceylon Today.

The Sri Lankan president is set to meet with the human rights chief in New York, where he is currently attending the UN General Assembly.

Though the armed conflict in Sri Lanka has ended, many on the island “still face discrimination and hate” said the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Sri Lanka Una McCauley, calling for more to be done for reconciliation.

In an address to mark the International Day of Peace 2017 on Thursday, Ms Cauley said “addressing the root causes of conflict and preventing violence requires our commitment and our unity”.

The Sri Lankan Civil Security Department’s (CSD) activities in the Vanni have embedded and normalised militarisation in the region as well as creating an “economic dependence on the military,” stated a report by the Adayaalam Centre for Policy Research (ACPR) today.

Pakistan's new prime minister, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi assured the Sri Lankan president, Maithripala Sirisena of his country's continued support on Tuesday at the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York. 

Stating the government has made tremendous progress towards reconciliation, the Sri Lankan president Maithripala Sirisena told the UN General Assembly on Tuesday to support the country in making progress towards reconciliation. 

Nine Indian fishermen were arrested by the Sri Lankan navy on Wednesday morning for allegedly crossing the International Maritime Boundary Line, Colombo Page reported. 

The men along with their trawlers and fishing equipment were taken to the navy base in Karainagar. 

They will be handed over to the Assistant Fisheries Director of Jaffna, the paper reported. 

The Sri Lankan prime minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe told parliament today that Local Government polls could only be held after January 2018, the Daily Mirror reported.  

Mr Wickremesinghe reportedly said this was "because of GCE Ordinary Level Examination, which would be held in mid-December and because of the budget". 

The announcement that Sri Lanka will be accepted on the ‘Circle of Leadership on the prevention of and response to sexual exploitation and abuse in United Nations operations’ has been slammed by the International Truth and Justice Project (ITJP) today.

Responding to the move ITJP’s head Yasmin Sooka said she was “astonished” and “equally surprised that they will be allowed to do so”.

Sri Lanka's Speaker informed parliament on Tuesday the proposed 20th Amendment to the constitution would need a two third majority in parliament before being put before the public via a referendum in order to be implemented following a Supreme Court ruling. 

Mr Karu Jayasuriya told parliament that the Court had made the ruling as certain clauses within the draft proposal were reportedly deemed "unconstitutional". 

The secretary for Sri Lanka's internal affairs ministry assured that there were no Rohingya Muslims from Myanmar in Sri Lanka, after a petition was launched to bar them from entering the island.

2422 Tamils are registered at the Kilinochchi District Secretariat as still waiting to resettle in their own homes after the end of the war.

Of the four divisional secretariats in the district, Poonakary has the highest official number of families waiting to return to their homes, with 357 households having registered their details.

Tamil National Alliance MP M A Sumanthiran warned that the Sri Lankan government’s decision to postpone the Enforced Disappearances bill demonstrate that Tamils are “fourth class citizens” on the island.

“We condemn the reported move to postpone the debate on the Disappearances Bill and the Prime Minister’s interpretation of the Bill’s applicability,” said Mr Sumanithran in the Daily Mirror today.

Sarath Fonseka, Sri Lanka’s former army chief, has said he was denied a visa to attend the UN general assembly because of unresolved war crimes allegations against the military.

The war-time commander and now minister of regional development claimed he was due to travel to New York with President Sirisena this week, but was the only member of the Sri Lankan delegation to be denied a visa.