Huawei Y series raises the bar with unmatched features
Designed to make premium features accessible to all, Huawei Y6p, Huawei Y5p and Huawei Y7a are three of the highly embraced smartphones in the Y series. The feature packed Huawei Y6p is available in phantom purple, emerald green and midnight black colors. Yet another powerful device in Y series is the Huawei Y5p, which is more affordable than the Y6p. Huawei Y7a is the most feature packed smartphone in the Y series and one of the highly embraced devices during the recent past. Huawei Y7a is equipped with a Kirin 710A processor, which is reputed for its fast processing power and lag free performance.
Source:The Nation
June 30, 2021 22:52 UTC
Philippines President thanks Sri Lanka for assisting overseas Filipino workers amid pandemic
President of the Philippines Rodrigo Duterte thanked the government of Sri Lanka for its assistance to overseas Filipino workers - particularly in their repatriation - amid the COVID-19 pandemic. In a statement on Wednesday, the Office of the President (OP) said Duterte and his Sri Lankan counterpart, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, had a phone conversation on June 28, where the two leaders renewed their commitment to further boost bilateral ties. “The President thanked the Sri Lankan government for its assistance in the repatriation of Filipinos amid this pandemic and for the safe return of Filipino seafarers in the MT New Diamond that caught fire off the eastern coast of Sri Lanka in September 2020,” the OP said. The two leaders also discussed other areas of cooperation - including security and defense, trade and investment, labor, migration, and tourism. Duterte also conveyed the Philippines’ interest to strengthen its engagement with Sri Lanka in the United Nations on issues of common concern.
Source:The Nation
June 30, 2021 18:00 UTC
Civil society writes to IGP condemning custodial violations
Slams free speech restrictions and discrimination tooBy Pamodi WaravitaThe Sri Lanka Collective Against Torture (SLCAT) wrote to the Inspector General of Police (IGP) condemning several incidents of custodial violations such as arbitrary arrests and detentions, deaths and shootouts during the conduct of inspections, and the new restrictions placed upon the freedom of speech under the guise of tackling fake news. “Particularly during a pandemic, when the rights of citizens are restricted due to health reasons, such incidents can cause public anxiety and unrest. While the Police should take action against those that violate the law, this should neither be arbitrary nor dependent on the identity or social status of the person, but should be fair and equitable,” the letter stressed. Furthermore, the letter pointed to the participation of the Police in the birthday party of the Kurunegala Mayor and the funeral of the mother of a monk (Ven. Iththekande Sadhdhatissa Thero) as instances of the arbitrary application of the law.
Source:The Nation
June 30, 2021 17:37 UTC
Fmr US Ambassador to Sri Lanka Atul Keshap appointed next Chargé D affaires in India
The White House is yet to send to the U.S. Senate the nomination of Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, whose name has been doing the rounds for the Ambassador role in New Delhi. The U.S. State Department announced the appointment of Atul Keshap, a senior foreign service officer with years of experience in South Asia, as Chargé d’Affaires (CDA) ad interim, in New Delhi, to replace Daniel Smith, who is retiring. Ambassador to Sri Lanka and the Maldives and played a key role in developing the U.S.-Maldives defence relationship. The two countries signed on to a framework for their security relationship last September. He also served as Deputy Assistance Secretary for South Asia and was posted previously to the American Embassy in New Delhi.
Source:The Nation
June 30, 2021 17:26 UTC
Record-high fuel prices put India’s economy on slippery track
Experts have warned that rising fuel rates could severely derail India’s economy, which is already under pressure due to the impact of the second Covid-19 wave. Rising fuel prices have resulted in a sharp rise in retail inflation, making a host of essential commodities and services costlier for citizens. Inflation is another reason why economists are worried about rising fuel prices. The cost that consumers bear for such services – directly or indirectly – have been rising gradually over the past two months as a result of rising fuel prices. Cutting taxes necessaryExperts believe that economic recovery will become tricky if the Government continues to ignore rising fuel prices.
Source:The Nation
June 30, 2021 17:26 UTC
Moment woman passes out in pain after receiving 100 lashes
By Chris Jewers For MailonlinePublished: 12:14 EDT, 30 June 2021 | Updated: 12:49 EDT, 30 June 2021This is the horrific moment a woman passes out in pain after receiving 100 lashes for having pre-marital sex under a Sharia law punishment handed out in Indonesia. Footage shows the Indonesian woman collapsing after being flogged in public for having sex before marriage. The woman, whose name was not disclosed, and her male lover each received 100 lashes in the city of Lhokseumawe on Monday. A woman passed out in pain after receiving 100 lashes for having pre-marital sex under a Sharia law punishment handed out in IndonesiaThe city is in Indonesia's westernmost province of Aceh, the country's only region with the autonomy to enforce Sharia law. Wilayatul Hisbah chief Zulkifli said: '[She] had to be carried away from the location because she fainted after receiving 100 lashes.'
Source:The Nation
June 30, 2021 17:02 UTC
Human dignity and livelihoods
In other words, the problem of livelihoods and the problem of human dignity cannot be divorced. In that sense, human dignity is an inherent quality of a human being. This is symbolic of the problem we are discussing here about the link between human dignity and the availability of the most basic needs for people to live, and even to be buried, with dignity. Thus, the whole issue of governance needs to be understood differently when looked at from the point of view of human dignity. The result is quite an absurd situation, where a lot of documentation is produced asserting the problems of human dignity and human rights, while for quite a sizable section of society most of the time, and even for the entire society on some special occasions, the possibilities do not exist to get treatment that respects their human dignity.
Source:The Nation
June 30, 2021 16:52 UTC
Realme X7 Max 5G / GT Neo review
Spicing things up further and in an ultimate quest to bring the utmost choice to the customer, Realme also created the Realme GT Neo. Beyond this chipset swap, the X7 Max / GT Neo is pretty much identical to the vanilla Realme GT. For instance, the Realme X7 Max 5G is capped at 50W of fast charging on its 4,500 mAh battery, instead of the 65W the vanilla Realme GT gets. Finally, to the best of our knowledge, there is no 6GB RAM version of the Realme X7 Max 5G available, while the Realme GT Neo does offer that in its base tier. The Realme X7 Max 5G kicks it off with 8GB of RAM and goes up to 12GB.
Source:The Nation
June 30, 2021 16:30 UTC
Daily coronavirus case tally moves to 1,786
June 30, 2021 09:08 pmThe Epidemiology Unit of the Health Ministry reports that another 606 persons have tested positive for COVID-19 in Sri Lanka, moving the daily total of new cases to 1,786. This brings the total number of confirmed cases of coronavirus reported in the country to 259,011. As many as 225,952 recoveries and 3,077 deaths have been confirmed in Sri Lanka since the outbreak of the pandemic. The Epidemiology Unit’s data showed that 29,606 active cases are currently under medical care.
Source:The Nation
June 30, 2021 15:33 UTC
Kanya D’Almeida from Sri Lanka wins Commonwealth Short Story Prize
COLOMBO (News 1st); Sri Lankan author Kanya D’Almeida has won the 2021 Commonwealth Short Story Prize. D’Almeida, from Colombo, Sri Lanka, was named the winner by British-Jamaican actress Dona Croll who presented the online ceremony. D’Almeida is the first Sri Lankan to win the overall prize and the second to win for the Asia region. Kanya D’Almeida is a Sri Lankan writer. The 2021 regional winners are:Africa winner Rémy Ngamije (Namibia), Asia winner Kanya D’Almeida (Sri Lanka), Canada and Europe winner Carol Farrelly (United Kingdom), Caribbean winner Roland Watson-Grant (Jamaica), and Pacific winner Katerina Gibson (Australia).
Source:The Nation
June 30, 2021 15:08 UTC
How LGBTQ+ Creators Are Changing TikTok In Sri Lanka
In a TikTok that has been viewed more than 143,000 times, Tharusha Mudalige (@tharusha_mudalige) lip-syncs along to a modified version of a popular audio clip. In this regard, Mudalige and a small handful of other LGBTQ+ creators stand out by having accumulated a generally mainstream audience base, something that hasn’t been easy for LGBTQ+ creators on other social media platforms. With roughly 12,700 followers on the app, much of her content emulates global TikTok trends with a Sri Lankan twist. Like, why do you care?”Meanwhile, Mudalige is aware that the largely positive reception to his content online may not necessarily translate in his day-to-day life. ‘It opens people up in an unbiased way’“The nature of TikTok is that it’s built to be a hyper-exposure-driven app.
Source:The Nation
June 30, 2021 13:52 UTC
CA Sri Lanka empowers aspiring Chartered Accountants with laptop loans
Staying true to its calling as the National Body of Accountants, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka (CA Sri Lanka) unveiled a unique loan scheme which paves way for its massive student base to purchase laptops on an easy payment scheme facilitated by two leading banks. Students who obtain the loan, can settle it within 12, 24, 36 or 48 months. In December 2020, CA Sri Lanka introduced the virtual exam with over 1900 Corporate and Strategic Level students sitting for it. Subsequently, in March this year, at the Corporate and Strategic Level physical exam, over 4500 candidates sat for the exam. This loan scheme is one such initiative,” Mr. Jayesinghe added.
Source:The Nation
June 30, 2021 13:30 UTC
Slowing down grape ripening can improve wine quality
Slowing down the grape ripening process can improve the quality of the berry and result in increased levels of chemicals linked to more pleasing notes, a study has shown. They grew Cabernet Sauvignon wine grapes at a commercial vineyard in the San Joaquin Valley in California then tweaked their growing conditions over time. Wine grapes are particularly finicky when it comes to their environment, according to corresponding author Professor Christopher Ford. In experiments at a commercial winery in San Joaquin Valley in California, ripening of Cabernet Sauvignon wine grapes was speeded up or delayed. Higher frequencies of heat and drought have had remarkable repercussions for grape and wine quality traits.
Source:The Nation
June 30, 2021 13:30 UTC
COVID caseload moves up as 1,180 more test positive
The Ministry of Health says 1,180 more persons were tested positive for the novel coronavirus today (June 30). All new cases have been associated with the New Year COVID-19 cluster. This brings the total number of COVID-19 cases confirmed in the country thus far 258,405. As per statistics, more than 29,000 virus-infected people are currently being treated at designated hospitals and treatment centres across the island. Meanwhile, the recoveries count climbed to 225,952 today as 2,481 patients who were under medical care for novel coronavirus had returned to health.
Source:The Nation
June 30, 2021 13:18 UTC
Sri Lankan clinches Commonwealth Short Story Prize
Kanya D’Almeida has been declared the overall winner of the Commonwealth Short Story Prize, for a “captivating” tale set in a Sri Lankan “sanctuary for the forsaken”, thebookseller.com reported today (30)D’Almeida, from Sri Lanka, was named the winner by actress Dona Croll in an online ceremony on 30th June. D’Almeida, who won for her story “I Cleaned The—”, is the first Sri Lankan to win the overall prize and the second to win for the Asia region. “I Cleaned The—”, is a story about “dirty work”—domestic labour, abandonment, romantic encounters behind bathroom doors and human waste. Commenting on her win, she said: “Winning the Commonwealth Short Story prize during this moment of global upheaval feels like a tremendous honour and an equally tremendous responsibility. I’ve long felt that fiction is the last ‘free’ place on earth in which to fully envision (and execute!)
Source:The Nation
June 30, 2021 12:45 UTC