Sri Lanka marked 75 years since independence with a sombre military parade on Saturday, as its president urged reflection on “errors and failures” at a time of national crisis.
Since the end of British rule in 1948, the island nation has spent much of its history at war with itself, including a decades-long Tamil separatist rebellion that claimed up to 100,000 lives and two deadly communist insurgencies.
Its 22 million people are still suffering the hardships of an unprecedented economic collapse last year that brought months of food and fuel shortages.
President Ranil Wickremesinghe, who took office last July at the height of the resulting political unrest, said Saturday's anniversary came at “an extremely critical and challenging time”.
“It presents an opportunity for us not only to review our strengths and gains as a nation but also to rectify our errors and failures,” he said.
Mr Wickremesinghe, flanked by senior military officers, watched the hour-long procession of soldiers and army vehicles along a promenade in the capital, Colombo. The parade was boycotted by opposition parties.
For several months last year, the boulevard was home to a protest camp set up by Sri Lankans who were outraged over the island's economic calamity and mismanagement by its leaders.
The protest movement peaked in July when a crowd stormed the home of Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Mr Wickremesinghe's predecessor, and chased him into temporary exile. There, he issued his resignation.
Mr Wickremesinghe ordered security forces to dismantle the camp hours after he was sworn into office and has since set about repairing Sri Lanka's finances.
His government has increased taxes and is negotiating with international creditors including India and China to clear the way for an International Monetary Fund bailout.
“I am confident that even at this juncture we will pool our energies … to rise up from the current economic abyss and build back stronger,” Mr Wickremesinghe said.
But the impact of the crisis is still being acutely felt, with Mr Wickremesinghe saying last week that the economy had contracted by up to 11 per cent in 2022.
On Friday, the UN children's agency reported that nearly one in three Sri Lankans were in need of humanitarian assistance as a result of the downturn.
“Sri Lanka is a bankrupt nation, so we have to start from zero now,” said political analyst Ranga Kalansooriya.
The economic collapse is the latest of several calamities that have befallen Sri Lanka since independence.
Nearly 31,000 people were killed by the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami.
A series of co-ordinated Islamist attacks on hotels and churches during Easter Sunday services in 2019 killed 279 people.
Human rights groups said that up to 40,000 civilians were killed in the final weeks of the decades-long civil war in 2009, during an army assault that crushed the remnants of the Tamil Tigers leadership.
Sri Lanka has resisted international calls for an investigation into war crimes allegations and later governments have been accused of abetting continued discrimination against the island's Tamil minority.
Mr Kalansooriya said Sri Lanka had yet to heal the wounds from the long conflict and its political leaders had failed to bring about reconciliation.
“We needed a Mandela in Sri Lanka,” he said, “but what happened in the aftermath was entirely different.”
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Scoreline
Liverpool 3
Mane (7'), Salah (69'), Firmino (90')
Bournemouth 0
Profile
Company: Libra Project
Based: Masdar City, ADGM, London and Delaware
Launch year: 2017
Size: A team of 12 with six employed full-time
Sector: Renewable energy
Funding: $500,000 in Series A funding from family and friends in 2018. A Series B round looking to raise $1.5m is now live.
RESULTS
2pm: Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 (Dirt) 1,200m
Winner: Najem Al Rwasi, Fabrice Veron (jockey), Ahmed Al Shemaili (trainer)
2.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 (D) 2,000m
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if you go
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Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
Director: Goran Hugo Olsson
Rating: 5/5
MATCH INFO
Europa League final
Who: Marseille v Atletico Madrid
Where: Parc OL, Lyon, France
When: Wednesday, 10.45pm kick off (UAE)
TV: BeIN Sports
How has net migration to UK changed?
The figure was broadly flat immediately before the Covid-19 pandemic, standing at 216,000 in the year to June 2018 and 224,000 in the year to June 2019.
It then dropped to an estimated 111,000 in the year to June 2020 when restrictions introduced during the pandemic limited travel and movement.
The total rose to 254,000 in the year to June 2021, followed by steep jumps to 634,000 in the year to June 2022 and 906,000 in the year to June 2023.
The latest available figure of 728,000 for the 12 months to June 2024 suggests levels are starting to decrease.
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League final:
Who: Real Madrid v Liverpool
Where: NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium, Kiev, Ukraine
When: Saturday, May 26, 10.45pm (UAE)
TV: Match on BeIN Sports
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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United States
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China
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UAE
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Japan
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Norway
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Canada
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Singapore
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Australia
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South Korea
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
Price, base / as tested: Dh182,178
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Founders: Ines Mena, Claudia Ribas, Simona Agolini, Nourhan Hassan and Therese Hundt
Date started: January 2017, app launched November 2017
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Private/Retail/Leisure
Number of Employees: 18 employees, including full-time and flexible workers
Funding stage and size: Seed round completed Q4 2019 - $1m raised
Funders: Oman Technology Fund, 500 Startups, Vision Ventures, Seedstars, Mindshift Capital, Delta Partners Ventures, with support from the OQAL Angel Investor Network and UAE Business Angels
Profile
Name: Carzaty
Founders: Marwan Chaar and Hassan Jaffar
Launched: 2017
Employees: 22
Based: Dubai and Muscat
Sector: Automobile retail
Funding to date: $5.5 million
THE SPECS
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Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
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- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
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- Duration: Can linger for days
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- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
The view from The National
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Sting & Shaggy
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About RuPay
A homegrown card payment scheme launched by the National Payments Corporation of India and backed by the Reserve Bank of India, the country’s central bank
RuPay process payments between banks and merchants for purchases made with credit or debit cards
It has grown rapidly in India and competes with global payment network firms like MasterCard and Visa.
In India, it can be used at ATMs, for online payments and variations of the card can be used to pay for bus, metro charges, road toll payments
The name blends two words rupee and payment
Some advantages of the network include lower processing fees and transaction costs
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