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You would think that after a few decades of marriage, raising kids and going through the ups and downs of life together, retirement would be a cakewalk for couples. But you'd be wrong. Spouses who have managed to negotiate a lifetime of decisions together are finding that their well-oiled partnership machine may break down when they face those post-career issues. For example: He wants to move to the country; she's loving the neighborhood they've known forever. She wants to follow their kids to a new city, and he wants to stay put. He's ready to hang up his spurs and do something different; she wants to work for another five years. She wants to stay in the big house with all the bedrooms ready for grandkids' visits, and he's ready for the no-chores condo. You get the picture. Those differences are not always easily settled. Husbands and wives who have spent a lifetime compromising may feel like they just don't want to give in one more time. It's no wonde

The government has no intention of increasing domestic fuel prices at present, Petroleum Industries Minister, Susil Premajayantha stated. This statement came in reply to allegations made by UNP Chief Organizer and Gampaha District MP John Amaratunga that the government was preparing another fuel hike. The Minister charged that the UNP were attempting to help certain businessmen hide fuel stocks, to cause a fuel shortage and to scare the public about price hikes.

There is no truth to the fact that the Ananda College Primary will be moved to another location and we request all parents not to believe rumour mongers, Director General of the President ‘ s Media, Bandula Jayasekara stated.

The government has decided to open all five blocks of the Yala National Park to tourists. The Yala National Park with the extent of 126,000 hectares of land consists of 5 zones. It is the most visited and second largest national park in Sri Lanka. The  Minister of Agrarian Services and Wild Life S.M. Chandrasena who toured the Yala National park on June 27 said that initial work has been launched to develop this zone and under this programme Pilinnawa, Udapottatama, Pallepottama and Walas-kema areas will be developed.  Construction of a new bridge across the Kumbukkanoya to facilitate the tourists to walk to Ampara from Panama and Kumana is also being planed out, the minister further added. With the increase in local and foreign tourists visiting the Wild Life parks in Sri Lanka, the infrastructure facilities required by the tourists will also be developed. The Sri Lankan ambassador to Maldives Dickson Dela also participated in the inspection tour. The Minister toured the Yala Na

Sri Lanka is likely to release the 23 Tamil Nadu fishermen, who were apprehended for fishing in Sri Lankan waters, on Tuesday, a senior official said. Sri Lankan Foreign Minister G.L. Peiris and Indian High Commissioner Ashok K. Kantha discussed the issue and officials on both sides were hopeful that a solution to the problem would be found by Tuesday. Asked if Sri Lanka linking the release of its fishermen held in India to Tamil Nadu fishermen being held here would lead to delays in the release of the 23 fishermen, a senior Sri Lankan official said that this was not the case. “We can have a release tomorrow [Tuesday],” he added. “There are many Sri Lankan fishermen in Indian jails too. We have to work out a method to release them too,” said the official, when asked about the incarceration of the Tamil Nadu fishermen in a jail here. More than 70 Sri Lankan fishermen are in Indian jails. While those who get caught by the Tamil Nadu police are let off relatively early, many who get c

Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (TRC) has decided to reduce from Rs 2 to Rs 1.50 the minimum floor rate for an outgoing call per minute from one network to another in line with the budget proposal. The new minimum rate will be effective from the first week of July, the TRC said today (June 27).

Road from Kotikawatta to Wellampitiya on Low Level Road will be closed for one week from 5am tomorrow (June 28). This is due to the renovation of the Buthgamuwa Bridge, Police informed.

A body of a 30-year-old male was found hanging from the goal post at the end of a football field in Puttur, Jaffna today (June 26). The residents of the area are in shock after witnessing the body at the Warathawatte ground surrounded by residential areas, Police stated. Even though the body has been displayed in a manner that it looks like suicide, an officer of the Achchuveli Police expressed that due to the positioning of the body it is suspected that it could be murder. He stated that due to several reasons such as the feet of the deceased individual being steadily planted on the ground he, Balachandran, could have been murdered. Police are yet to determine the cause of death while the Achchuveli Police conduct further investigations. 

Burdening the public even more by increasing bus fares is not what the government should do in the prevailing public transport issue, the JVP General Secretary Tilvin Silva says. “The government has to accept that the SLTB service as well as private bus operators are facing an immense dilemma.”   The Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB) is bankrupt due to the government seeking cheap political gains, he said during a press conference today (June 26) and added that, private bus owners have also had to face problems due to increasing fuel prices and spare parts prices. What the government should do is provide fuel and other concessions to private bus operators and thereby resolving the issue, the JVPer pointed out. He further added that a transport service high in quality can be established through proper planning and by eradicating wastage and corruption in the government. 

Building a future generation of university students who are capable of winning the Nobel Prize is the objective of the leadership training programmes organized for new university students, Minister of Higher Education, S.B. Dissanayake stated. The Minister made these comments while inspecting a leadership training programme held in Ambilipitiya. He added that his ambition was to create a generation of students who would be great innovators.

Sri Lanka Department of Posts today advised all its customers not to post any mail articles to Canada until further notice owing to the Canadian postal strike. The Department stated that they have been informed by Canada Post that they are unable to accept any incoming foreign mail due to continuous trade union action

Olympic rowing twins Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss have decided not to appeal to the Supreme Court a ruling upholding their $65 million settlement with Facebook Inc and its founder Mark Zuckerberg, signaling the possible end of the long-running dispute. The 2008 accord was intended to resolve a feud over whether Zuckerberg stole the idea for what became the world's most popular social networking website from the Winklevosses, who like him had attended Harvard University. Their battle was dramatized in the 2010 film "The Social Network." After agreeing to the cash-and-stock accord, the Winklevosses sought to undo it, saying it was fraudulent because Facebook hid information from them, and that they deserved more money. The 6-foot 5-inch (1.96-meter) twins, who competed in the 2008 BeijingOlympics, had been planning to appeal an April 11 ruling by a federal appeals court in San Francisco upholding the settlement, which that court called "quite favorable."

Prime Minister D.M. Jayarathne today presented a supplementary budget for Rs. 20 billion for the construction of the Defence Headquaters in Akuregoda, Battaramulla. Accordingly the Ministry of Defence, Office of the Chief of Defence Staff, Army Headquarters along with Headquarters of Air force and Navy will be relocated. The land where the Ministry of Defence is situated at Galle Face is to be alienated on an earlier cabinet decision for two foreign projects that will bring FDI of USD 1000 million.

Atomic Energy Authority Act, No. 19 of 1969 is to be repealed and replaced with provision to establish an Atomic Energy Regulatory Council, the Cabinet decided today. Accordingly the cabinet has approved to prepare a bill to  establish an Atomic Energy Regulatory Council.   Excerpt of Cabinet decision; The current Atomic Energy Authority Act enacted in 1969 needs to be amended to introduce Nuclear Power Generation Technology in Sri Lanka and to address the security concerns of radioactive sources and to deal with Radiation Emergencies. Since Sri Lanka is in close proximity to the Nuclear Power Stations in South India, it has been found necessary to establish an independent regulatory arm in keeping with the advice given by the International Atomic Energy Agency. Accordingly, the proposal made by Minister of Power and Energy Patali Champika Ranawaka, to instruct the Legal Draftsman to prepare a Bill to establish an Atomic Energy Regulatory Council, was approved by the Cabinet.

Filmmaker Leena Manimekalai has found her shaken faith in democracy restored. At the end of a long battle, her film, ‘Sengadal, the Dead Sea,’ was cleared by the Central Board of Film Certification(CBFC) with an ‘A’ certificate without any cut for theatrical release. This docu-fiction, which portrays the plight of the families of fishermen, who were allegedly killed by the Lankan Navy at sea, was earlier shot down by the regional censor board on the grounds that it contained “political reference in a denigrating way on the functioning of Indian and Sri Lankan governments”. The filmmaker decided to challenge the ban with the Film Certification Appellate Tribunal (FCAT) authorities, New Delhi. Further, the tribunal ordered the censor board to look at the film afresh, setting aside the earlier reasons stated for refusal. A new examining committee was constituted and the film has now been cleared for public release in theatres. “After a tough struggle, Sengadal is now cleared for publ

Private buses operating on the Kandy-Kegalle and Kandy-Mawanella routes have begun a strike in protest of the arrest of a fellow bus operator by the Mawanella police. The man was arrested after an argument had broken out between him and the police over boarding short distance passengers on a long distance bus from Avissawella to Kandy.

The channel-four footage was an attempt by certain international powers to undermine the country’s economic strength following their failed war agenda, External Affairs Minister Prof. G.L. Peiris stated. Speaking at a press conference at the Foreign Ministry today (June 21) he said that the Defence Ministry will investigate the controversial footage. Meanwhile, Minister Peiris added that with President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s visit to Russia and the strengthening of ties between the two nations, the government will implement a special programme to encourage more tourists from Russia.

The Department of Excise announced that 71 individuals had been arrested for manufacturing illicit liquor and selling liquor within the Poson week following raids carried out in Polonnaruwa and Anuradhapura Districts. Special raid operations were executed within the two districts for a one week time period in view of the Poson festival, the North Central Province Excise Superintendent Gamini Adhikari stated. He added that legal action has already been taken against the apprehended individuals.

The Sri Lankan Navy has taken into custody 23 Indian fishermen hailing from Mandapam and Rameswaram areas when they were fishing in mid sea, Indian media reported today. Assistant Director of Fisheries Markandeyan said that the reason for the detainment, which took place around 11 p.m. last night, was not known. The Sri Lankan Navy has allegedly taken their five boats into custody also. Authorities came to know about the incident from a fisherman who managed to escape with his boat from the Sri Lankan Navy personnel, he said. Nandhini Dhinani, Collector of Mannar district in Sri Lanka, said that the five boats have been detained at the Mannar Navy camp. Four Tamil Nadu fishermen, who were detained for intruding into Sri Lankan waters, were released on June 16, reports PTI.

The Ministry of Power and Energy stated that in raids conducted over 3 days in the Amparai and Kalmunai areas they were able to generate over Rs. 80 Lakhs in revenue. While 138 incidents of power pirating was reported during the raids from the 10th to the 12th of this month, 97 incidents were of meter alteration, while the balance 41 were identified as power being obtained illegally using hooks. In these raids Rs. 1,380,000.00 were from court fines, and 6,535,889.28 as losses to the CEB due to power piracy bringing the total to 7,915,889.28. The Minister of Power and Energy Patali Champika Ranawaka stated that in order to maintain the current progress of the CEB, from the state of utter financial ruin over the past several years, this form of power piracy should be curtailed. Therefore since the illegal tampering of electricity meters and using of hooks to obtain power illegally causes huge losses to the CEB, The Minister instructed the relevant teams to tighten the laws to enable

Japanese video game developer Sega Corp said on Sunday that information belonging to 1.3 million customers has been stolen from its database, the latest in a rash of global cyber attacks against video game companies. Names, birth dates, e-mail addresses and encrypted passwords of users of Sega Pass online network members had been compromised, Sega said in a statement, though payment data such as credit card numbers was safe. Sega Pass had been shut down. "We are deeply sorry for causing trouble to our customers. We want to work on strengthening security," said Yoko Nagasawa, a Sega spokeswoman, adding it is unclear when the firm would restart Sega Pass. The attack against Sega, a division of Sega Sammy Holdings that makes game software such as Sonic the Hedgehog as well as slot machines, follows other recent significant breaches including Citigroup, which said over 360,000 accounts were hit in May, and the International Monetary Fund.

CHENNAI: Naam Thamizhar Iyakkam (NTI) leader Seeman on Saturday asked the Centre to reveal its stand on the resolution adopted in the State Assembly demanding economic sanctions be imposed against Sri Lanka for indulging in genocide. Addressing a public meeting in Saidapet to thank the government for adopting the resolution, he said Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa’s move had won appreciation of Tamils across the world. “The Chief Minister also took up the issue with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during her meeting in New Delhi,” he stated. Coming down heavily on the passenger ferry service between Thoothukudi and Colombo, he said no Tamil would travel by it. “Did any Tamil ask for such a service when the Sri Lankan Tamils are facing the worst crisis in their history?” he said. “We should not sell or purchase goods from the island nation,” he added, reiterating a demand to shut down the Lankan embassy in Chennai. Taking a dig at DMK chief M Karunanidhi for not supporting the Tami

Police reports that seven (07) individuals have been injured, four critically, following a traffic accident along the Mahiyangana-Teldeniya main road at noon today. The incident had occurred when a lorry had collided with a bus at Gonawala, Oruthota. The injured were admitted to the Teldeniya Hospital for treatment while the four persons, whose condition had been critical, were transferred to the Kandy General Hospital, the Teldeniya Police which is conducting further investigation into the incident stated.

The National Child Protection Authority has taken steps to implement a foster parent scheme for children who have become victims of abuse and neglect and are currently housed in shelters. Speaking to Media, Chairperson of the NCPA Mrs. Anoma Dissanayake stated that once these children have been provided with psychosocial therapy steps will be taken to reintegrate them into society by handing them over to their families or foster families. Dissanayake further added that strict guidelines will be adhered to when choosing foster parents and only families that are capable of providing a child friendly environment will be chosen. Furthermore the upbringing of these children will be closely monitored by the Authority. The NCPA also hopes to provide a sum of rupees 5000 to foster parents from low income families. Further information on the foster parent scheme can be obtained through the NCPA 24 hour hotline 1929.

Channel 4 has been funded by international LTTE bodies in order to air the documentary containing footage that has previously been proven as fake, Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa told. The Defence Secretary stated that Channel 4 had failed to highlights the US Military killing the world’s most dangerous terrorist Osama Bin Laden and his family but had gone after Sri Lanka because of the international funding they were receiving from LTTE sources. Several scientific tests conducted on the footage had proven that the videos had been heavily edited and were manipulated before being aired, he added.

If your face is among the hundreds of millions of images on Facebook — by your own doing or not — you’ve got a stake in a worldwide debate over a technical change that hasprivacy advocates in a lather. The colossal social network has been adding facial recognition software to its arsenal to automate the practice known as tagging, or adding people’s names to photos. Facebook already possesses a massive database of images connected to names that would continue to grow from the photos you add and the names you associate unless you specifically reject the practice. Facebook has already acknowledged it is cooperating with regulators in the European Union, who have raised questions. And now the company is facing a call for an investigation by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission. The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) and other privacy groups have joined together to file a complaint with the FTC after Facebook said it was using biometrics and had been rolling out the technology for m

One person was killed and another four (4) injured after a SLTB bus collided with a three wheeler near 64th mile post in Kadugannawa along the Colombo- Kandy main road. The deceased is reported to be the 35-year-old three wheel driver. The driver of the Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB) bus has been taken into custody and is to produced before the Magistrate’s Court today (June 15), Police stated.

The Sri Lankan Government has categorically denied allegations that it has deliberately targeted its own civilians, as the Channel 4 alleges in its film “Sri Lanka’s Killing Fields”. The Channel 4 film has the potential to incite hatred amongst different communities in Sri Lanka, including future generations, and thereby, adversely affect the ongoing national reconciliation process, the High Commission of Sri Lanka in London stated in a release. Following is excerpts from the release issued by the High Commission today (June 15): “If the allegations levelled by Channel 4 or any other party are found to be genuine, the LLRC will take due note of all such cases and remedial measures will be taken by way of legal sanctions. This process will also take into consideration all matters that are important to the Sri Lankans living in Sri Lanka, and therefore, it should be allowed to continue without any hindrance or prejudice. It is recalled that reports of some well known Commissions in

Colombo , June 10, 2011:   Digital technology leader, Samsung Electronics today announced the launch of its new Smart televisions that seek to provide a smarter, more connected viewing experience.  Available in  the  LED D series ,  Samsung Smart TVs allow viewers to easily search for movies, TV shows, browse the web, explore Samsung apps, chat with friends and find many other types of new interactive TV content. Samsung Smart televisions now feature the convenience of Samsung’s Smart Hub—offering an easily accessible gateway to favorite music, games, movies, TV shows, pictures, and virtually any content online or on a network connected storage device. Key features of Smart Hub include:  Your Video  — which delivers recommendations based on a user’s viewing history;  Search All  —  which makes it easier to search for desired content on your TV and other DLNA-certified connected media storage devices, networked PC and mobile devices, and Internet and video-on-demand services;  Web Bro

Colombo  - A team of Dutch officials has arrived in Sri Lanka to probe links between the Tamil rebels during the civil war and their leaders in exile in the Netherlands, an official said Tuesday. Spokesman Jaco Beerends said the team hoped to meet with Sri Lankan officials and former rebels. They are investigating funding activities and weapons procurement by Tamil leaders based in the Netherlands during the conflict, which lasted from 1983 to 2009. The investigators hoped to speak to Kumarn Pathmanathan, alias KP, currently in custody, and suspected of being one of the chief arms procurers of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) group, Beerends said. The visit was part of a Dutch probe which aims to investigate the links between the Dutch-based rebel leaders and supporters in several other countries, including the United States and Norway.

The Colombo Magistrate’s Court today ordered the remand of two police constables, charged with kidnapping and attempting to sexually molest two underage girls, till June 24 where they will be produced for an identification parade. The two suspects, constables of the Pettah Police, had been apprehended following investigations carried out by the Colombo Crime Division. The constables had allegedly tricked the two girls, who had been at Galle Face Green, by claiming to want to search them. The suspects had then taken two students against their will and had attempted to molest them, the Colombo Crime Division presenting a report to the court stated. The Colombo Crime Division, which is conducting further investigations into the incident, has also identified the police jeep used to abduct the victims.

G20 member Indonesia threw its backing behind France's Christine Lagarde for the head of the IMF on Sunday, marking her first public endorsement from a major emerging market and padding her lead in a three-way race. Indonesia has previously been non-committal on the race for the International Monetary Fund's top job, as Southeast Asian and other emerging market nations discussed the possibility of putting forward a candidate themselves for a post traditionally held by a European. But with the deadline for the job ending on Friday, only Bank of Israel Governor and former IMF deputy chief Stanley Fischer has emerged as a candidate to challenge frontrunner Lagarde and Mexico's central bank chief Agustin Carstens. "Personally I support France," said Indonesian Finance Minister Agus Martowardojo on the sidelines of a World Economic Forum event in Jakarta. "She is a very professional person. She is smart in interacting between institutions, and has high integrity

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A member of the Negombo Municipal Council has been arrested under suspicion of the murder of a 41-year-old businessman, who was stabbed to death at a restaurant Friday (June 10). Investigation are currently underway to apprehend nine (9) other suspects involved in the murder, which police suspect was the result of a personnel spat.

Sri Lanka has been listed in the 2011 ‘‘Impunity Index’’ prepared by an international media watchdog on the basis of unsolved murders of scribes. Only 13 countries -- with five or more unsolved cases of murder of journalists from January 1, 2001 to December 31, 2010 -- have been included on the index. Sri Lanka is ranked 4th with nine (9) such instances, or 0.443 unsolved journalist murders per one million inhabitants, according to the report by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). “All nine journalist murders in the past decade have gone unsolved, leaving persistent questions as to whether authorities have been complicit in some of the crimes.” the profile on Sri Lanka reads. The island nation was also ranked 4th in last year’s list with a rating of 0.496. Murders make up more than 70 per cent of work-related deaths among journalists across the world, according to CPJ. The index calculated the number of unsolved journalist murders as a percentage of each country’s p

Seeking a “quick” solution to Sri Lanka’s drawn out ethnic conflict, India has pressed the Mahinda Rajapaksa government to come to a “political arrangement” with the minority Tamils. “The quicker the Sri Lankan government can come to a political arrangement (with Tamils) the better,” national security adviser Shivshankar Menon said on Saturday after his talks with President Rajapaksa along with foreign secretary Nirupama Rao and defence secretary Pradeep Kumar. Sri Lanka had already pledged to improve on the 13th amendment, the 1987 constitutional provision which seeks to grant regional autonomy, as a political solution, Menon said, addressing Colombo-based Indian reporters. The controversial 1987 amendment was a result of the Indo-Lanka peace accord which sought, but failed to end Tamil separatism in the island. Menon maintained that Sri Lanka has already pledged to improve on the constitutional amendment and hoped they would implement it.

Chennai, Jun 10, (PTI):  The much awaited passenger ferry service between India and Sri Lanka will be flagged off by Union Shipping Minister G K Vasan on June 13 at Tuticorin. The ship -- “Scotia Prince” would be operated twice a week to Colombo from Tuticorin by Flemingo Liners, a company statement said here today. Flemingo Liners is a ferry passenger and cargo service company promoted by Flemingo Duty Free Shop. Tradex Shipping are their technical partners. A consortium of Flemingo Duty Free Shop and Tradex Shipping Company has obtained the licence to operate the ferry service between the two countries for seven years, it said. Tuticorin port is closest to Colombo and strategically located along the East-West International sea route. Travel time between Tuticorin and Colombo would take 14 hours. The nine deck Scotia Prince can accomodate 1,044 passengers and can take around 300 tonnes of cargo. Sea passenger transportation between India and Sri Lanka is being established cons