Daily Mirror Brief: Daily News Recap, Top Headlines & Must-Read Stories - 13th August

Daily Mirror Brief is your daily news digest—bringing you the top headlines, key updates, and essential stories you may have missed across politics, tech, culture, and global affairs. Quick, clear, and curated—your trusted news recap, whenever you’re ready.

13th August, Tuesday: 7.45pm

​Major gem and jewellery exhibition planned in Ratnapura – Deputy Minister

Sri Lanka is staging the Gem City International Gem and Jewellery Exhibition 2025 in Ratnapura from August 15–17. Spearheaded by the National Gem and Jewellery Authority along with key industry bodies, the event will feature over 100 stalls showcasing gem trading, design, and innovation. It aims to reinvigorate the struggling gem and jewellery sector and help Sri Lanka approach its $1 billion export revenue target, while enhancing Ratnapura’s standing as a global gem hub. 

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Probe into incorrect data provided to PM on ‘Chichi’s Rocket’

An investigation has been launched after Minister Wasantha Samarasinghe confirmed that inaccurate figures were provided to Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya regarding revenue from the Supreme SAT project, also known as ‘Chichi’s rocket’. The PM had presented the incorrect data in Parliament—data which came from officials and wasn’t independently verified. 

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Government targets $36 bn in export earnings by 2030

At the Export Development Council of Ministers meeting on August 12, presided over by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, the government unveiled a plan to boost Sri Lanka’s exports to US $36 billion by 2030. The strategy includes enhancing gem and jewellery exports, speeding customs via scanning systems, and promoting sectors like pharmaceuticals, tea, spices, poultry, electronics, and infrastructure such as Trincomalee Port, alongside implementing export hubs and improving trade agreements. 

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US Rights report flags extrajudicial killings, media harassment in Sri Lanka

The U.S. 2024 Country Report on Human Rights Practices expresses grave concern over Sri Lanka’s human rights conditions, citing extrajudicial killings, custodial deaths—including seven reported to the Human Rights Commission between January and August—torture allegations, misuse of the PTA, suppression of press freedom, harassment of Tamil journalists, self-censorship, coerced sterilizations, poor labor protections, and stalled wartime disappearance investigations. The report also cautions that the Online Safety Act may be used to restrict dissent. 

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Sri Lanka approves first legal cannabis cultivation by foreign investors

For the first time, Sri Lanka has authorized seven foreign investors—out of 37 applicants—to legally cultivate cannabis under a Board of Investment (BoI) initiative. Each investor received a six-month temporary license and must deposit a US $2 million bond, with a minimum investment of US $5 million per project. Cultivation is restricted to a designated 64-acre zone in Mirigama; all cannabis must be exported exclusively for pharmaceutical or testing uses, under strict containment regulations. 

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Over 50% of university graduates migrate and never come back

A study from the University of Peradeniya reveals that more than half of state university graduates—especially top-performing students in science and related fields—emigrate permanently, raising concerns over government investment in higher education. The study notes that public spending ranges from Rs. 400,000 to 1.4 million per student annually. Researchers propose requiring returnees to repay US $10,000–15,000, given the substantial outflow of skilled individuals. 

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Sri Lanka makes bold pitch to global investors

At the Invest Sri Lanka Capital Market Investor Forum 2025 held in Singapore, Sri Lankan officials showcased the country’s economic revival and robust stock market performance. The All Share Price Index rose 49.7% in 2024—one of Asia’s strongest—and has climbed another 25% so far this year, supported by US $66.5 million in net foreign inflows. Last year’s capital raising surged to US $568.6 million. The regulators emphasized ongoing reforms: building a corporate debt market, transforming digital infrastructure, and launching a multi-asset derivatives exchange. 

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Minister Wasantha Samarasinghe should be removed from Cabinet: Navin

Navin Dissanayake, a senior UNPer, urged the removal of Minister Wasantha Samarasinghe from the Cabinet, accusing him of breaching cabinet solidarity by publicly challenging Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya on the SupremeSAT matter. Navin criticized that, unlike past ministers who voiced dissent internally, Samarasinghe aired his disagreements publicly—marking a rare infraction in Sri Lankan political history. 

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