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Port City to be ‘Colombo Financial Zone’: President

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President Ranil Wickremesinghe said that a new legislation has been drafted to transform the Port City as the Colombo Financial Zone.

President Wickremesinghe said this in his address at the 2023 Commercial Mediation Symposium at Colombo’s Hilton Hotel, the President’s Media Division said.

The event was organized by International Alternative Dispute Resolution Centre (IADRC).

The President underscored the significance of international trade agreements and the need for Sri Lanka to become a center for alternate dispute resolution.

He urged legal professionals to look beyond Sri Lanka’s borders and specialize in emerging fields like AI, Blockchain and green energy to secure the nation’s competitive future.

“Now we want Sri Lanka to be a center. One is the new legislation which will replace the port city to make it a Colombo financial zone with jurisdiction for offshore activity. The new law has been drafted. And we will see the light of day before the end of the year.”

“Secondly, the BOI will be replaced with the Economic Commission. Which is also looking at the resolution of disputes. We will be entering a number of free trade agreements. We have got one with Singapore. We are about to finalize one with Thailand. We are discussing with India to upgrade the agreement. Talking with Bangladesh. And more than that, we are moving to join the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). That’s the largest trading community in the world. So this means that alternate dispute resolutions are going to be important.”

In a final call to action, he offered government funding to support learning and expertise development in these new areas, inviting all stakeholders to join in the journey towards a more efficient and forward-looking legal landscape in Sri Lanka.

President Wickremesinghe emphasized that Sri Lanka must position itself as the central player in the region. When examining Singapore as a benchmark, Sri Lanka should strive to match or surpass Singapore in various aspects, except for cost, where it should maintain a competitive advantage.

This approach is crucial because there exists a noticeable void in this region, which Sri Lanka can effectively fill if it acts swiftly.

“This is the key lesson to be derived. Furthermore, it is essential for all lawyers and individuals involved in legal services to broaden their perspectives and explore opportunities beyond their current scope,” the President added.

Meanwhile, he acknowledged the long-standing reliance on trial courts and stressed the importance of embracing alternate dispute resolution methods.

Highlighting the government’s commitment, he mentioned the establishment of the Alternate Dispute Resolution Center in 2018 and expressed support for its continued growth.

President Wickremesinghe urged the Ministry of Justice and Ministry of Investments to collaborate on supporting these initiatives.

“Alternate dispute resolution, arbitration, both have a long way to travel in Sri Lanka and that’s our problem. We have to first find ways of how we can adjust to this process. You need a change of culture. Change of culture where disputes can be resolved in the shortest possible time. Which means we are in a way wedded to the old concept of the trial court? Whether we have a domestic inquiry, we all want to follow the same procedure. I don’t know why. But nevertheless, this is one of the challenges that we have to face.”

He emphasized that success in dispute resolution was crucial for Sri Lanka’s aspirations to be an outward-looking economy.

The event was attended by Justice Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe, State Minister Anuradha Jayarathne, Judges of the Supreme Court, Attorney General, Former Attorney Generals, Retired Judges of the Supreme Court, Resident Representative of UNDP Azusa Kubota, Secretary to the Ministry of Justice, IADRC Chairman Dr. K. Kanag-Isvaran, Director & Secretary General of IADRC Dhara Wijayatilake, legal professionals and the representatives of reputed companies in Sri Lanka.

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Norochcholai generator to shut down for 25 days

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The Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) announced that the generator No. 01 at the Norochcholai Power Plant will be deactivated from midnight today (June 13) for scheduled maintenance lasting 25 days.

This will result in a temporary reduction of 300 megawatts from the national grid.

However, the Kelanitissa Combined Cycle Power Plant, which had been deactivated for around one and a half months for maintenance, will also be reactivated from midnight, contributing 165 megawatts back to the system.

CEB Media Spokesman – Dhammika Wimalaratne noted that the timing of the maintenance aligns with increased hydroelectric generation capacity due to current rainfall.

(Source: Aruna)

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Global oil prices soar after Israel attacks Iran

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Global oil prices jumped after Israel said it had struck Iran, in a dramatic escalation of tensions in the Middle East.

Benchmark oil contracts Brent Crude and Nymex light sweet were up by more than 10% after the news emerged.

Traders are concerned that a conflict between Iran and Israel could disrupt supplies coming from the energy-rich region.

The cost of crude oil affects everything from the price of food at the supermarket to how much it costs to fill up your car.

Analysts have told the BBC that energy traders will now be watching to see whether Iran retaliates in the coming days.

“It’s an explosive situation, albeit one that could be defused quickly as we saw in April and October last year, when Israel and Iran struck each other directly,” Vandana Hari of Vandana Insights told the BBC.

“It could also spiral out into a bigger war that disrupts Mideast oil supply,” she added.

In an extreme scenario, Iran could disrupt supplies of millions of barrels of oil a day if it targets infrastructure or shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.

The strait is one of the world’s most important shipping routes, with about a fifth of the world’s oil passing through it.

At any one time, there are several dozen tankers on their way to the Strait of Hormuz, or leaving it, as major oil and gas producers in the Middle East and their customers transport energy from the region.

Bounded to the north by Iran and to the south by Oman and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Strait of Hormuz connects the Gulf with the Arabian Sea.

“What we see now is very initial risk-on reaction. But over the next day or two, the market will need to factor in where this could escalate to,” Saul Kavonic, head of energy research at MST Financial said.

(BBC News)

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CID teams conduct prison inspections islandwide

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The Ministry of Public Security says that 28 Criminal Investigation Department (CID) teams have begun inspections at all prisons across the country yesterday (June 12), with the operation continuing today (June 13) due to its scale.

These inspections focus particularly on reviewing prison documents, as part of the ongoing investigation into the alleged misuse of presidential pardons to unlawfully release inmates.

Commissioner General of Prisons – Thushara Upuldeniya, who was arrested over the unauthorized release of an Anuradhapura Prison inmate on Vesak Poya Day, remains in custody at a Colombo prison under special protection.

Meanwhile, Anuradhapura Prison Superintendent – Mohan Karunaratne, who has also been remanded, is to be produced before court again today.

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