April 2026

Indian Vice President to Visit Sri Lanka as Bilateral Ties Deepen

Indian Vice President to Visit Sri Lanka as Bilateral Ties Deepen

COLOMBO — India’s Vice President, C. P. Radhakrishnan, will undertake a two-day official visit to Sri Lanka from April 19 to 20, in a trip expected to highlight expanding cooperation between the two countries across energy, infrastructure and regional development. The visit, made at the invitation of the Sri Lankan government, is being coordinated through the Presidential Secretariat and the High Commission of India in Colombo, officials said. Mr. Radhakrishnan is scheduled to hold formal talk
April 2026 Monitor Memo
Our Reporter

Our Reporter
Accountability for Others, Immunity for One’s Own

Accountability for Others, Immunity for One’s Own

On March 27, Kumara Jayakody walked into the Colombo High Court, was formally indicted on corruption charges, posted bail, and had his fingerprints taken. Then he returned to his ministerial office. On April 10, 153 Members of Parliament from the National People's Power voted to keep him there. He remains Sri Lanka's Energy Minister today — attending Cabinet, drawing a public salary, governing a portfolio that just lost seven billion rupees of public money. If this had happened under Mahinda Ra
April 2026 Editorial
Kaniyan Pungundran

Kaniyan Pungundran
After Assurances, Thaiyiddy Landowners Agree to Survey in Temple Dispute

After Assurances, Thaiyiddy Landowners Agree to Survey in Temple Dispute

THAIYIDDY, Sri Lanka — For more than three decades, Sarujan Sukumari and many others were unable to set foot on their family lands. Seized by the military and designated a High Security Zone, the area remained inaccessible even after the war ended in 2009. Years later, as the country settled into an uneasy peace, a Buddhist temple rose on what had once been their ancestral property. Recently, she and other landowners sat in a government conference room in Jaffna as a cabinet minister and senio
April 2026 JM Exclusive
Our Reporter

Our Reporter
After Delays, Sri Lankan Government Releases Funds for Chemmani Mass Grave Investigation

After Delays, Sri Lankan Government Releases Funds for Chemmani Mass Grave Investigation

JAFFNA, Sri Lanka — The Sri Lankan government has allocated 21 million rupees for the third phase of excavations at the Chemmani mass grave site, officials said. The release of funds follows repeated postponements caused by a lack of financial approval and adverse weather conditions that left the site waterlogged. The case is scheduled to be taken up again at the Jaffna Magistrate’s Court on April 21, when authorities are expected to indicate when excavation work will resume. Chemmani, a villa
April 2026 Monitor Memo
Our Reporter

Our Reporter
The War That Reopened What Was Already Open

The War That Reopened What Was Already Open

By Abbi Kanthasamy The real winners of this war were not the Iranian people, not the Lebanese, not the Gulf Arabs, not the Americans, and certainly not the poor fools told to clap every time a missile takes off on television. The winners were the people who always win. The weapons manufacturers. The oil traders. The consultants in expensive suits using phrases like maritime de-risking and regional deterrence posture. The lobbyists. The think-tank parasites. The men who can turn blood into bil
April 2026 Guest Column
Abbi Kanthasamy

Abbi Kanthasamy
A Tale of Two Energy Landscapes: Trincomalee Oil Tanks and Jurong Island

A Tale of Two Energy Landscapes: Trincomalee Oil Tanks and Jurong Island

By: Dr. Gamini Goonetilleke The contrasting stories of the oil tank farm in Trincomalee and the development of Jurong Island, located to the southwest of mainland Singapore, provide a powerful example of how vision, planning, and governance can shape the destiny of strategic assets. Both locations possess significant geographical advantages and lie along major maritime routes. Yet, while Jurong Island has grown into a global energy and petrochemical hub, the Trincomalee oil tanks have r
April 2026 Guest Column
Dr. Gamini Goonetilleke

Dr. Gamini Goonetilleke
The Batalanda Report Was Tabled. A Year Later, Justice Was Not

The Batalanda Report Was Tabled. A Year Later, Justice Was Not

COLOMBO — One year after Sri Lanka’s Attorney General received the Batalanda Commission report — detailing torture chambers, extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances during the government’s suppression of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) insurrection — no one has been charged, no prosecutorial update has been issued, and the parliamentary debate that was promised has yet to be scheduled. The silence that has followed, political analysts say, reflects not only legal complexity but a
April 2026 JM Exclusive
Our Special Correspondent

Our Special Correspondent
China Assures Sri Lanka of Stable Fuel Supply Amid Middle East Tensions

China Assures Sri Lanka of Stable Fuel Supply Amid Middle East Tensions

KANDY, Sri Lanka — China’s ambassador to Sri Lanka, Qi Zhenhong, said on Saturday that Sri Lanka would not face a fuel shortage despite mounting global uncertainty linked to the conflict in the Middle East, offering strong assurances of continued Chinese support. Speaking to reporters after attending a program to distribute dry rations to 350 low-income families at Sri Chandananda Buddhist College in Kandy, the ambassador said that while several countries were experiencing disruptions to fuel s
April 2026 Monitor Memo
Our Reporter

Our Reporter