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Sri Lanka

The latest news, analysis and opinion on Sri Lanka. In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.

Capital

Colombo

Head of State

President Ranil Wickremesinghe

Head of Government

President Ranil Wickremesinghe

Security officials help devotees avoid chaos during a gathering for a public exposition of the sacred Tooth relic of the Buddha at the Temple of the Tooth in Kandy on Friday. Photo: AFP

Crime

Buddha tooth relic photo sparks Sri Lankan police investigation

Photography is prohibited during the viewing of the highly venerated relic, which went on display this month for the first time since 2009.

20 Apr 2025 - 6:41PM

Asia travel

6 of Asia’s most scenic golf clubs for non-members

18 Apr 2025 - 7:00AM

Japan

Japan faces demand for full footage over death of Sri Lankan woman from family

4 Apr 2025 - 1:52PMvideocam

Diplomacy

India and Sri Lanka set to sign defence pact amid China’s rising regional clout

Both sides are also expected to sign agreements on the development of solar power plants and trade cooperation in several sectors.

3 Apr 2025 - 8:22AMvideocam

Sri Lanka’s President Anura Kumara Dissanayake (right) and India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi pose for photos ahead of their meeting in New Delhi in December. Photo: Reuters

Mergers & Acquisitions

Hutchison says it is evaluating spin-off of global telecoms business

‘From time to time, the [group] receives proposals and explores and evaluates opportunities that may be available,’ Hutchison said in a statement.

31 Mar 2025 - 10:40PM

Profile

This museum director built her life on art, music and islands

Suhanya Raffel, museum director of M+ in Hong Kong, has a passion for building world-class institutions, and despite identifying as ‘many things’, is a Hongkonger at heart.

19 Mar 2025 - 3:10PM

Trending in China

Chinese tourist critical as she leans from train for photos, strikes tunnel wall

Daredevil holidaymakers who dice with death while travelling on railways overseas are hit with travel safety warning by Chinese authorities.

13 Mar 2025 - 6:00PM

A Chinese tourist has been critically injured in Sri Lanka after she leaned out of a train to have her photograph taken. Photo: SCMP composite/Shutterstock/RedNote/Douyin

Women and gender

Sri Lanka resort seeks to break gender barriers, empower women

Amba Yaalu is Sri Lanka’s first resort operated and managed only by women, and an attempt to address the tourism sector’s gender disparities.

20 Apr 2025 - 8:27AMvideocam

International Monetary Fund (IMF)

From crisis to comeback? Sri Lanka’s new budget bets big on trade and investment

Analysts say the budget’s approach is surprising for the leftist ruling party, but an encouraging sign of its pragmatic stance.

7 Mar 2025 - 9:05PMvideocam

Asia elections

In a world of declining freedom, 1 South Asian nation stands out: report

Only one nation in South Asia was classified as ‘free’ in US democracy watchdog Freedom House’s latest report.

3 Mar 2025 - 10:02AM

A Bhutanese voter shows an indelible ink mark on her finger after casting her vote at a polling station in Thimphu during general elections in January 2024. Photo: AFP

Food and Drinks

Tea hand-picked for drinking and eating in Sri Lanka’s Golden Valley

A lot goes into a tea bag, from growing and picking the leaves to fermenting and blending them. Nowadays tea also turns up on diners’ plates.

22 Feb 2025 - 1:15PMvideocam

A tea picker at Bogawantalawa Tea Estate. Photo: Llewellyn Cheung

Energy

Blackout exposes Sri Lanka’s precarious path to greater reliance on renewables

Experts warn of further grid instability as Sri Lanka pushes for 70 per cent renewable energy by 2030.

21 Feb 2025 - 8:02PMvideocam

Animals

6 elephants killed after Sri Lanka passenger train collides with herd

The train was travelling near a wildlife reserve at Habarana when it hit a family of elephants crossing the line.

20 Feb 2025 - 4:06PM

Architecture and design

How an 18th century Dutch house was restored by an ex-Hong Kong resident

Peter Harris fell in love with the building on his first stay there 20 years ago, when he was on holiday with his family.

18 Feb 2025 - 1:12PM

Peter Harris at Doornberg, Galle, Sri Lanka. Photo: Sebastian Posingis

Trade

Sri Lanka scraps pandemic-era ban on vehicle imports to reap tax rewards

Vehicle imports were banned in 2020 to save foreign exchange reserves, but the move deprived authorities of a lucrative revenue stream.

18 Feb 2025 - 11:06AM

A Sri Lankan official looks at imported cars in the port facility at Hambantota in 2015. Photo: AFP

Diplomacy

Sri Lanka’s first elephant orphanage celebrates 50 years

The orphanage opened in 1975, but Sri Lanka is also now facing a human-elephant conflict in areas bordering traditional wildlife sanctuaries.

16 Feb 2025 - 10:02PM

Tourism

Sri Lanka investigates tourist deaths from suspected pesticide poisoning

A Briton and a German died after their hostel rooms in Colombo were fumigated for bedbugs and other pests.

8 Feb 2025 - 1:43PM

Asean

Opinion | From Trump to tech titans, geopolitical traps await Southeast Asia

The US-China tech war and politicisation of tech firms are narrowing options for wary regional players.

31 Jan 2025 - 5:30AMvideocam

President Donald Trump speaks as SoftBank Group CEO Masayoshi Son, Oracle Corporation chairman CEO Larry Ellison and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman listen, in the Roosevelt Room at the White House on January 21. Photo: AP

Diplomacy

Adani denies Sri Lanka cancelled wind power purchase deal

Sri Lanka cancelled the agreement after allegations of corruption in a US probe last year, AFP reported citing unnamed government officials.

25 Jan 2025 - 11:30PM

India

India’s bet on AI-enabled warships needs boost to counter China, experts say

While India’s first AI-enabled warship enhances its capabilities in the Indian Ocean, experts warn that more vessels are needed to counter China’s growing presence.

23 Jan 2025 - 10:54PM

Diplomacy

Sri Lanka’s ex-leaders told to vacate luxury government homes

The luxury bungalows are being converted into hotels or museums, with the Rajapaksas receiving a modest rent allowance instead.

22 Jan 2025 - 8:24AM

Gotabaya Rajapaksa (right) and his brother, Mahinda Rajapaksa, will be forced to leave their luxury lodgings under a new government order. Photo: AFP

India

Should India be worried about Sri Lanka and China’s growing cooperation?

The new deals ‘signal a deepening of China’s influence in Sri Lanka’ and revive concerns of a debt trap, analysts say.

20 Jan 2025 - 7:30PMvideocam

The Hambantota International Port in Sri Lanka. Photo: Hambantota International Port/Handout via Xinhua

Climate change

Sri Lanka’s children suffer amid climate change-fuelled floods and disease

Turbocharged monsoon floods are intensifying the spread of waterborne diseases in the Indian Ocean island nation.

13 Jan 2025 - 3:06PM

India

With eyes on China and India, Sri Lanka lifts ban on foreign research vessels

The decision reflects Colombo’s efforts to stay non-aligned as it juggles India’s security concerns with China’s growing influence.

8 Jan 2025 - 3:12PM

Asia travel

8 Asian surfing spots to ride the waves, from Phuket to Sri Lanka

Surfing is banned in Hong Kong, but the rest of Asia offers great alternatives for everyone – from Phuket’s beginner waves to Indonesia’s challenging barrels.

3 Jan 2025 - 6:15AM

Surf’s up: seasoned surfers flock to the famous Cloud 9 surf spot on Siargao Island in the Philippines. Photo: Getty Images

International Monetary Fund (IMF)

My Take | South Asia needs to get its political house in order to turn around its economy

Political violence and social unrest have dented support for South Asian countries from investors and multilateral institutions.

27 Dec 2024 - 10:30AM

A protest in Multan on Monday against US sanctions on some Pakistani companies allegedly involved in long-range missile technology. Photo: EPA-EFE

Myanmar

Sri Lanka rescues 102 refugees adrift on fishing boat

Fishermen spotted the group, believed to be Rohingya refugees from Myanmar and including 25 children, off Sri Lanka’s northern coast.

20 Dec 2024 - 5:19PMvideocam

Hong Kong property

Hong Kong outshines Singapore as demand for flexible office space grows: report

Bengaluru and Makati are the hottest spots as demand surged by 107 and 47 per cent, respectively, according to a study.

19 Dec 2024 - 9:22AM

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