NA: Timeline (Terrorist Activities) -2020

Date	Incidents	Expand All.. Collapse All...
January - 2	Government on January 2, received the Cabinet approval to withdraw the Counter Terrorism Bill, which was drafted by the previous Government to replace the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), reports Colombo Page. The controversial Bill is being consid Read more... Government on January 2, received the Cabinet approval to withdraw the Counter Terrorism Bill, which was drafted by the previous Government to replace the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), reports Colombo Page. The controversial Bill is being considered by the Sectoral Oversight Committee on International Relations in Parliament. However, considering the views expressed by various parties regarding certain provisions contained in the Bill, Minister of Foreign Relations Dinesh Gunawardena has proposed the withdrawal of the Bill. Read less...
January - 3	President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa opening the Fourth Session of the Eighth Parliament on January 3, said constitution should be changed to protect the country, reports Colombo Page. Presenting the policy manifesto, the President said the country's indepe Read more... President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa opening the Fourth Session of the Eighth Parliament on January 3, said constitution should be changed to protect the country, reports Colombo Page. Presenting the policy manifesto, the President said the country's independence would not be compromised and in order to safeguard the security, sovereignty, stability and integrity of the country, it is essential that changes be made to the existing Constitution. Read less...
January - 3	Speaker Karu Jayasuriya at the opening of the Fourth Session of the Eighth Parliament on January 3, announced the appointment of United National Party, (UNP) Deputy Leader Sajith Premadasa as the Leader of the Opposition, reports Colombo Page. In add Read more... Speaker Karu Jayasuriya at the opening of the Fourth Session of the Eighth Parliament on January 3, announced the appointment of United National Party, (UNP) Deputy Leader Sajith Premadasa as the Leader of the Opposition, reports Colombo Page. In addition, the Speaker announced the appointments of Minister of External Affairs Dinesh Gunawardena as the Leader of the House and Minister Johnston Fernando as Chief Government Whip. Gayantha Karunatilaka was appointed as the Chief Whip of the Opposition. Ranjith Aluvihare has been appointed as the Deputy Chief Whip of the Opposition. Read less...
January - 6	An official said the Government has decided to review the Office of Missing Persons (OMP) Act enacted by Parliament during the former regime, reports Daily Mirror on January 7. The Act was brought in as part of the previous government’s commitment to Read more... An official said the Government has decided to review the Office of Missing Persons (OMP) Act enacted by Parliament during the former regime, reports Daily Mirror on January 7. The Act was brought in as part of the previous government’s commitment to the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in terms of resolution 30/1. It provided for the establishment of the Office of Missing Persons as part of that government’s reconciliation process. Resolution 30/1 envisaged the setting up of such a mechanism to trace the fate of persons who went missing, particularly during war time, to maintain a database of them. The rulers of the incumbent Government - who were in the opposition at that time - were then opposed to the Act saying it would be a step in the direction of pressing war crime charges against the military. Read less...
January - 6	President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on January 6 said some provisions in the 13th Amendment to the Constitution were impractical and that alternative solutions should be sought instead, reports Daily Mirror. The President expressed these views when a group Read more... President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on January 6 said some provisions in the 13th Amendment to the Constitution were impractical and that alternative solutions should be sought instead, reports Daily Mirror. The President expressed these views when a group of European Union (EU) Ambassadors called on him at the Presidential Secretariat. Referring to the 13th Amendment to the Constitution, President Rajapaksa said “Instead, politicians should seek alternative solutions. For an example, if the provincial councils were given police powers, the police will become politicised. What is more practical is appointing people from the districts belonging to the Provincial Councils to the police ranks up to the level of OIC. It will help solve issues caused by language and cultural differences.” Read less...
January - 8	President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and visiting Law and Home Affairs Minister of Singapore Kasiviswanathan Shanmugam on January 8 discussed regional concerns especially to combat terrorism, cyber security, curbing extremism and improving intelligence servi Read more... President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and visiting Law and Home Affairs Minister of Singapore Kasiviswanathan Shanmugam on January 8 discussed regional concerns especially to combat terrorism, cyber security, curbing extremism and improving intelligence services, reports Daily Mirror. They also discussed the new legislation introduced by Singapore to address hate speech, online disinformation and the Maintenance of Religious Harmony Act. The talks also focused on Social Media Intelligence models that businesses are increasingly relying on data management, which is crucial for business development, functioning and promotion. The new technologies which Singapore is currently exploring in terms of Irrefutable Identification that combines both fields of digital and biometric also came up at the discussions. Read less...
January - 9	Two suspects were arrested along with an explosive mix of TNT and C-4 in their possession, during a joint search operation conducted by the Navy and the Kinniya Police in the Nagautthu region of Trincomalee District on January 9, reports Colombo Page Read more... Two suspects were arrested along with an explosive mix of TNT and C-4 in their possession, during a joint search operation conducted by the Navy and the Kinniya Police in the Nagautthu region of Trincomalee District on January 9, reports Colombo Page. The suspects have been identified as residents of Trincomalee, aged 44 and 56, (names yet to be established), were handed over to the Kinniya Police along with explosives for further investigation. Read less...
January - 10	The New York-based global rights organization, Human Rights Watch (HRW) on January 10 called on the Sri Lankan Government to repeal the draconian Counterterrorism Law, reports Colombo Page. The Sri Lankan Government should abide by its commitments to Read more... The New York-based global rights organization, Human Rights Watch (HRW) on January 10 called on the Sri Lankan Government to repeal the draconian Counterterrorism Law, reports Colombo Page. The Sri Lankan Government should abide by its commitments to replace the abusive Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) with legislation that respects its international human rights obligations, the HRW said. The cabinet of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa announced on January 4 that it would withdraw a proposed replacement law, reneging on pledges to the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) and the European Union. Read less...
January - 13	Defence Secretary Major General (Retd) Kamal Gunaratne while addressing the officers and other ranks during his maiden visit to the Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) Headquarters on January 13 said Tamil diaspora is trying their best to revive the Liberatio Read more... Defence Secretary Major General (Retd) Kamal Gunaratne while addressing the officers and other ranks during his maiden visit to the Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) Headquarters on January 13 said Tamil diaspora is trying their best to revive the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) by lobbying against the Government with the support of the international community, reports Daily Mirror. He said “The Tamil diaspora is trying to achieve what the LTTE couldn't through the arms struggle. But all those attempts were proved to have been futile.” Read less...
January - 13	The European Union (EU) on January 13 renewed its terrorist list and continued to list Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) as a terrorist organization, reports Colombo Page. Although, LTTE was eliminated in Sri Lanka in May 2009 following a three Read more... The European Union (EU) on January 13 renewed its terrorist list and continued to list Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) as a terrorist organization, reports Colombo Page. Although, LTTE was eliminated in Sri Lanka in May 2009 following a three-decade long armed conflict, the terrorist organization is active in European countries as well as in Malaysia and India. Efforts to revive the organization had been reported in some of these countries and in Sri Lanka. Persons, groups and entities on the list are subject to the freezing of their funds and other financial assets in the EU. It is also prohibited for EU operators to make funds and economic resources available to them. Read less...
January - 14	Human Rights Watch (HRW) in its World Report 2020 released on January 14 said respect for fundamental human rights in Sri Lanka is in serious jeopardy following Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s election as President in November 2019, reports Colombo Page. “There Read more... Human Rights Watch (HRW) in its World Report 2020 released on January 14 said respect for fundamental human rights in Sri Lanka is in serious jeopardy following Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s election as President in November 2019, reports Colombo Page. “There is every reason to fear that any progress Sri Lanka has made in recent years in restoring basic rights and rebuilding democratic institutions will be overturned with a vengeance. The new president seems intent not only to wipe away the Rajapaksas’ past abuses but clear the path for future ones. Concerned governments should make it clear that international crimes cannot simply be brushed under the carpet,” said Meenakshi Ganguly, South Asia director at HRW. Read less...
January - 17	For the first time, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa during a meeting with United Nations (UN) Resident Coordinator Hanaa Singer at the Presidential Secretariat in Colombo on January 17 admitted that thousands of people missing since the end of the bruta Read more... For the first time, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa during a meeting with United Nations (UN) Resident Coordinator Hanaa Singer at the Presidential Secretariat in Colombo on January 17 admitted that thousands of people missing since the end of the brutal civil war between the Government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels over a decade ago are "dead", reports Times of India. He told that after the necessary investigations are completed steps would be taken to issue death certificates to these missing persons. According to the Government figures, over 20,000 people are missing due to various conflicts including the three-decade separatist war with LTTE in the north and east which claimed at least 100,000 lives. Read less...
January - 23	President Gotabaya Rajapaksa said necessary investigations would be conducted before a death certificate would be issued for thousands of people missing from the country’s three-decade long war, reports Colombo Page on January 24. Issuing a statement Read more... President Gotabaya Rajapaksa said necessary investigations would be conducted before a death certificate would be issued for thousands of people missing from the country’s three-decade long war, reports Colombo Page on January 24. Issuing a statement to clarify the certain International media reports which had said that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa had stated that 20,000 listed as missing are dead, the President’s Media Division said in all these reports however, the crucial detail that necessary investigations would be conducted before a death certificate would be issued had been wittingly or unwittingly omitted. “Most unfortunately, these news items are carrying a misquotation to the effect that President Rajapaksa as having “acknowledged” that over 20,000 disappeared are dead. For the record, he did not make any such acknowledgement and nor did he make a reference to a number as missing or dead,” the statement further emphasized. Read less...
January - 23	United National Party (UNP) Member of Parliament (MP) Palitha Range Bandara while addressing a news briefing held at Sirikotha on January 23 said that UNP will not support the proposed abolition of the 19th Amendment, reports Daily News. He said “Thi Read more... United National Party (UNP) Member of Parliament (MP) Palitha Range Bandara while addressing a news briefing held at Sirikotha on January 23 said that UNP will not support the proposed abolition of the 19th Amendment, reports Daily News. He said “This is a prelude to making autocratic leaders. The UNP will not assist any measures taken by the Government to terminate the 19th Amendment. The people wanted to abolish the Executive Presidency when we came to power in 2015. The 19th Amendment to the Constitution reduced the powers of the Executive Presidency by 90%. It also restored the independence of the Elections Commission, Public Service and the Police. Therefore, we do not find any need to repeal it.” Read less...
January - 24	The European Union Election Observation Mission (EU EOM) on January 24 publishing the final report on Sri Lanka’s November 16, 2019, Presidential Election said the biased election coverage by private and state media tainted the otherwise well managed Read more... The European Union Election Observation Mission (EU EOM) on January 24 publishing the final report on Sri Lanka’s November 16, 2019, Presidential Election said the biased election coverage by private and state media tainted the otherwise well managed election process by the Election Commission (EC), reports Colombo Page. Chief Observer of the EU EOM to Sri Lanka, Ms. Marisa Matias presenting the report, said “An electoral process well managed by the Election Commission and a peaceful campaign on the ground contrasted with divisive rhetoric, hate speech and disinformation in traditional and social media. The absence of a law on campaign finance and the biased election coverage by private and state media contributed to an uneven playing field and limited the opportunity for most candidates to convey their message.” Read less...
January - 29	Colombo District Court on January 29 remanded 15 ex-Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) cadres in connection with a plot to assassinate Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Member of Parliament (MP) MA Sumanthiran and other political leaders who oppose Read more... Colombo District Court on January 29 remanded 15 ex-Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) cadres in connection with a plot to assassinate Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Member of Parliament (MP) MA Sumanthiran and other political leaders who oppose the LTTE, reports Colombo Page. Colombo Chief Magistrate Lanka Jayaratne ordered the remand of the 15 suspects, who were arrested by the State Intelligence Service and investigated under detention orders, until December 31. Read less...
January - 31	Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) on January 31 agreed to provide technical assistance to Sri Lanka in drafting legislation during discussions with Sri Lanka’s Minister of Justice, reports Colombo Page. An OHCHR delegation comp Read more... Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) on January 31 agreed to provide technical assistance to Sri Lanka in drafting legislation during discussions with Sri Lanka’s Minister of Justice, reports Colombo Page. An OHCHR delegation comprising Mona Rishmawi, Chief of the Rule of Law, Equality and Non-Discrimination Branch in the United Nations Human Rights (UNHRC), Rory Mungoven, Francesca Marotta and Raghu Menon met with the Minister of Justice, Human Rights and Law Reform Nimal Siripala de Silva at the Ministry. During the meeting, the delegation discussed the manner in which the supremacy of law is practiced in the Sri Lankan Judicial System. Read less...

*Data till , January 22, 2021

Source:Compiled from news reports and are provisional.

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