Srilanka

Secretary to the President Udaya R. Seneviratne has issued a statement urging the general public not to be alarmed by the false and distorted statements that claim there is an imminent threat of terrorism in the country.He has further stated that the security forces have taken measures to ensure the security of governmental institutions, other places of national importance and the general public.

A cordial meeting between President Maithripala Sirisena and former Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda has taken place lastmorning (22). The President, who is in Japan for a three-day official visit, was visited by the former Japanese Premier while he is in Tokyo.He left for Japan Monday (21) to participate in the coronation ceremony of Emperor Naruhito at the invitation of the Japanese Government.

Money allocated for medical research must be increased to Rs. five billion from the present Rs.two billion, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said. Addressing the inauguration ceremony of the National Health Research Symposium held at WaterEdge Hotel, Battaramulla yesterday he said that to get the maximum use of the increased funding, the structural changes need to be done in the research field. &You have to change the base and have more research institutions. Sri Lanka had one of the worldfirst hospitals in Mihintale. There were kings in the Sri Lankan history who wrote texts about Ayurveda,&the PM said.

The European Union Election Observation Mission that has now arrived told news media that they were disinterested in who wins the upcoming Presidential Elections and that the mission would neither validate nor interfere in the electoral process. Deputy Chief Observer, Dimitra Ioannou speaking at a media briefing said that the Election Observer mission would remain independent of the European Union Delegation in the country. &We will remain independent and impartial. We do not intend to interfere in the electoral process nor will we impose our recommendations,& she told reporters at a media briefing at the Colombo Hilton. &We are not here to legitimise the results or the process.&

Ioannou is part of a 30 member team of which the core team of nine additional individuals including head of the mission and Chief Observer Marisa Matias will be based in Colombo.The 30 long term observers were dispatched to the nine provinces yesterday.This team will be further strengthened by additional observers, including data analysts, social media analysts, legal and statistics in the weeks preceding the elections, bringing the total strength to 80. &This is the biggest mission to Sri Lanka,& the Deputy Observer remarked.

She said the mission is mandated to observe the legal framework, the work of the election commission, election campaign, role of civil society and conduct of the media during this period, including social media. She added that the observers would also be present at the polling booth on the day of the election. Their findings and assessments would be reflected in the preliminary report published shortly after the election. The EU Election observer mission also monitored the 2015 elections after which 26 recommendations were made.

To-date only three of those recommendations have been implemented in full, which includes training of Election officers, voter education and ensuring 25 percent of womenquota.