By Vishnuguptha “The marathon can humble you.” ~Bill Rodgers, winner of four Boston and four NYC marathons: When the Al Qaida planes stormed themselves into the soaring twin-towers of the World Trade Center in New York, a sea-change occurred in the American psyche. A hitherto complacent American was confronted, more with the enormous potential of …
By Swe Win YANGON, Myanmar — Five years ago, when Myanmar was still under military rule, some Western and Chinese friends asked me how there could be such oppression in a country where Buddhism, which preaches nonviolence, is the predominant religion. I was in self-imposed exile at the time, studying journalism at the University of …
Continue reading ‘969 Movement Run by Buddhist Monks in Burma Gives Hate Speeches Against Muslims’ »
By Tariq Ali Four years after the killing of between eight and ten thousand Tamils by the Sri Lankan army, which brought to an end a civil war that had lasted for 26 years, there is trouble on the island again. This time the army isn’t directly responsible: instead it’s the Buddhist monks from Bodu …
By “Jack Point” “If you buy from Muslim shops, your money doesn’t just stop there,” “It will eventually go towards destroying your race and religion.” Muslim merchants receive cash injections from Middle East oil state brethren and use these funds to undercut Buddhist rivals. This Muslim alliance could outbreed Buddhists, steal away Buddhist women, overwhelm …
By Kalana Senaratne ‘Long War, Cold Peace’ by Dayan Jayatilleka: A Review After what seemed to be a brief but palpable and conspicuous absence from serious public engagement (in late 2012), Dr. Dayan Jayatilleka has returned from Paris; a return marked by his characteristic interventions in the press and the release of a book, titled …
An Interview by Chamitha Kuruppu (We are not engaged in any activities that are harmful to society, nor are we causing religious disharmony,” claims Bodu Bala Sena strongman Dilantha Withanage.“We do not want to get into politics,” says Withanage, Chief Executive Officer of the Bodu Bala Sena Headquarters, adding that the movement does not want …
by Thrishantha Nanayakkara After nearly 7 years of postgraduate education and independent research experience abroad, I returned to Sri Lanka in mid 2003, to work in my mother country Sri Lanka that gave me free education all the way upto university level. When I left Johns Hopkins University in USA, some of my friends cautioned …
By D.B.S.Jeyaraj A mob consisting of around 30 Sinhala youths launched an attack on a Tamil housing colony of Plantation workers at Alupola estate of Ratnapura district in Sri Lanka’s Sabaragamuwa Province. At least six persons were reportedly injured in the incident when threatened Tamils resisted the aggressors by engaging in counter violence. Consequent to …
By SCT (A Personal Response to the quashing of the first anti BBS protest on Havelock Road) This evening (Friday, April 12th 2013) around 7.15pm on Havelock Road in front of the Sambuddhatva Jayanthi Building adjoining Laurie’s Road, I was reminded anew that there is no freedom in our land. I am nearly 45 years …
by Prof. V. Suryanarayan There is a huge divide between Chennai and New Delhi on how both see Sri Lanka. What remains the primary problem in India’s approach towards Sri Lanka, and why is there a divide within?
By Dharisha Bastians Issuing a clarion call against what it called the Government’s ‘economic thuggery’ and ‘power shocks’ for the New Year, the Joint Opposition yesterday urged political parties, media personnel and ordinary people to unite in a fight to defeat a ruling party it said had no business being in power. In a blazing …
by Yovahn Y.R. Hoole In 2010, when my family returned to Sri Lanka, my father bragged how Jaffna was the pinnacle of education anywhere and surpassed US standards. But I soon came to understand that the war had turned his pinnacle into rubble. After experiencing the different school systems, I came across the problems which …
Continue reading ‘Jaffna and Michigan: A Student Perspective of Two Schooling Systems’ »
by M. Z. Abdeen-Kandy Though it is now settled policy that the Official Languages are Sinhala and Tamil with English as the link language, its implementation, as judged by government communiqués, lacks any commitment. Government letters and notices written in Sinhala only mostly, or in Sinhala and Tamil occasionally and hardly ever with an English …
By Dr Upul Wijayawardhana I can hardly believe that it is thirty years since the untimely death of Karunaratna Abeysekara, known to our generation as Karuayya, who ‘ruled’ the airwaves for decades before his death. One of the great regrets of my life is that I was not there when Karuayya had the fatal heart …
A respected senior economist said yesterday that easing monetary policy and bringing down interest rates would not help the country sustain high economic growth unless measures were taken to address long-standing structural deficiencies in the economy. “The euphoria of the war victory and commencement of the US$ 2.6 billion IMF standby facility arrangement prompted a …
By D.B.S.Jeyaraj View Larger Map Reports from Sri Lanka state that a Muslim Owned Textile store in the Central Province town of Gampola has been attacked in broad daylight on Tuesday April 16th 2013. A gang of hoodlums numbering about a dozen launched an attack against the “Lucky Emporium”textile store situated on Ambagamuwa road in …
By Latheef Farook Political bankruptcy of Muslim parliamentarians was exposed by the Tamil National Alliance leader R Sampanthan and the TNA parliamentarian M.A. Sumanthiran when they raised the issue of growing disastrous hate Muslim campaign in the parliament. As it is well known that there has been a wave of well planned attacks on the …
BANGALORE: Jyoti Sinha, a former research and analysis wing official, played an important role in increasing India’s influence in neighbouring countries like Myanmar, Bhutan, Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka during the NDA regime (1999-2004). He is also considered the architect of Indian influence in Sri Lanka from 2001-2004. The former IPS official spoke to TOI …
By Mangala Samaraweera M.P. In present day Sri Lanka it has become customary for whispers and speculation of impending elections to be followed up by brutal onslaughts on what remains of the country’s free press. It is a thinly veiled attempt to intimidate the media into silence ahead of crucial polls about the crimes and …
By Amy Davidson A twenty-year-old man who had been watching the Boston Marathon had his body torn into by the force of a bomb. He wasn’t alone; a hundred and seventy-six people were injured and three were killed. But he was the only one who, while in the hospital being treated for his wounds, had …
(Text of Communique Issued by Law Society of England and Wales Press Office) The Law Society of England and Wales today added its voice to those calling for the suspension of Sri Lanka from the Councils of the Commonwealth, following reports of serious breaches of the rule of law and judicial independence. It announced its …
By Muheed Jeeran Recent domestic developments are not looking good for Sri Lanka’s ethnic minority Muslim community after they have been targeted by a revitalized and rather extremist Sinhalese grouping called ‘Bodu Bala Sena (BBS).’ This faction is led by a number of vociferous Buddhist Monks aimed at safeguarding the core principles of Buddhism. Let …
Continue reading ‘Why Can’t Muslim Political Leaders Stand up For Their Own Muslim Community?’ »
By Tisaranee Gunasekara “Neither a man nor a crowd nor a nation can be trusted to act humanely or to think sanely under the influence of a great fear”. Bertrand Russell (Unpopular Essays) The malignant police response to the peaceful vigil organised by the Facebook group, ‘Buddhists Questioning Bodu Bala Sena’ proved one fact beyond …
By Vishnuguptha “All courses of action are risky, so prudence is not in avoiding danger (it’s possible), but calculating risk and acting decisively. Make mistakes of ambition and not mistakes of sloth. Develop the strength to do bold things, not the strength to suffer.” ~ Niccolo Machiavelli Bodhu Bala Sena might think that it enjoys …
By Kamaya Jayatissa “If you’re in a coalition and you’re comfortable, you know it’s not a broad enough coalition.” -Bernice Johnson Reagon When fighting in the international arena, one should know that the only way to survive is to constantly build new coalitions while strengthening and maintaining the existing ones. Due to its belonging to …
By Dharisha Bastians The prospect of elections for the Northern Provincial Council by September 2013, now a Sri Lankan Government promise cemented in a UN Human Rights Council Resolution on the country became just a little more remote last week after members of the main Tamil party and civil society activists in the North called …
By Vijayani Edirisinghe The Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery and Corruption impounded the passport of former Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake to prevent her from escaping to a foreign country until the probe into the allegations of bribery and corruption against her is concluded. The Commission has taken this decision in keeping with the legal …
Continue reading ‘De-Jure Chief Justice Dr.Shirani Bandaranayke’s Passport Impounded’ »
By Sunalie Ratnayake Tissa Abeysekera Born: May 7, 1939 Died: April 18, 2009 (aged 69) Other names: Ananda Tissa de Fonseka Education: Dharmapala Vidyalaya Occupation: Film director/writer Political Party: Lanka Sama Samaja Party Awards: Gratiaen Prize, Deshabandu ________________________________________ Today (April 18, 2013) is the fourth death anniversary of a legendary man of unparalleled faculty, whose …
Continue reading ‘Remembering Tissa Abeysekera:Versatile Legend of Unparalleled Faculty’ »
By Gomin Dayasri Naive live in bliss: after acting silly at Geneva 2013. Mileage gained by LLRC report abbreviated into an Action Plan, was placed on a mock timetable and fawningly delivered to Hillary Clinton, needlessly. Now Americans complain of a failure to deliver. Without prattling gibberish nonsense: attend to the priorities; provide potent results, …
Continue reading ‘We need to court America with the Action Plan – a nutshell of the LLRC report.’ »
By Sathya Liyanasuriya One of Sri Lanka’s most sought-after jobs was handed over to Jayantha Dharmadasa on Tuesday when he was appointed as President of Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) after weeks of wild speculation and intense backroom lobbying in cricketing and political circles. The appointment was somewhat of an anti-climax. What was expected was a …
Continue reading ‘Can New President Jayantha Dharmadasa Cleanse Sri Lanka Cricket of Corruption?’ »
By Ifham Nizam With the Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL), the regulatory body giving the green to the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) yesterday, to go for an electricity tariff hike with effect from April 12, the domestic users will have to pay some 68 per cent more on their monthly electricity bills, while …
By Ravi Ladduwahetty The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) yesterday said it had not asked for an Interim Self-Governing Authority (ISGA) for the Northern Province till the provincial polls were held. This follows news reports that the TNA, with Mannar Bishop Rayappu Joseph and civil society members, had asked a visiting delegation of Indian Members of …
By Jack Healey Faith can be a comfort and faith can be a cudgel. Faith has been and remains for many to be a wellspring of inspiration that can be used to check one’s moral compass and to recharge one’s internal resources the struggle for all people’s human rights. It is also important to recognize …
Geneva : “Responsibility to Protect” Vs sovereignty of the people! By Tamara Kunanayakam “Only the working class in its mass remained loyal to the profaned homeland!” Francois Mauriac, 1943 Reactions to the latest US resolution adopted by the Human Rights Council have varied from lamenting about unjust criticism when significant progress in resettlement, reconstruction and …
By Upul Joseph Fernando India entertains misgivings about Mahinda Rajapaksa’s promised election to the Northern Provincial Council in September this year. At the same time, it is also pinning its hopes on a possible Tamil National Alliance (TNA) victory, if the elections are held, hopeful that such a victory would garner the crucial Tamil Nadu …
By Lashane Cooray Police launched an immediate investigation yesterday, following a complaint lodged by the Maharaja Television and Maharaja Broadcasting Corporation (MTV/MBC), regarding an imminent attack on their journalists.
By Dr.Vickramabahu Karunaratne “Let us join hands for an ANTI RACIST NATIONAL UNITY MAY DAY RALLY in the National capital Colombo! Let us save our Motherland from Racism and Religious Fundamentalism! JOIN as Political parties, minority organisations, trade unions, civil groups and Individuals!” This was the spontaneous demand that started the discussion for a May …
By Prof.Rajiva Wijesinha M.P. When I was in Delhi last week, I was privileged to meet the Indian Minister of External Affairs who turned out, though he looks old and distinguished, to have been at Oxford while I was there – and to have succeeded Ravi Tennekoon as a Lecturer at Trinity College, before heading …
by Dr.Sudarshini Fernandopulle M.P. Terrorism irrespective of where it happens and who is affected is brutal and has to be condemned by all. Sri Lanka suffered due to terrorism for more than three decades. As a victim of LTTE terrorism, I strongly condemn the brutal act of terrorists at Boston, states Member of Parliament Dr …
UNP MP and economist Dr. Harsha de Silva yesterday said the US fund cut had sent an ominous message to Sri Lanka. “It is not the amount of dollars that we should be placing our emphasis on, but the message that is being delivered. To me it seems that this latest action is building on …
By R. A. Ratwatte BBS seem to be the most important letters of the alphabet today, in Sri Lanka. Before I express my opinion on what is going on let me establish my credentials. I am a very proud Sinhala Buddhist of up- country origin. I have served a full five year term as a …
By Kath Noble The government is getting really good at denying responsibility for attacks on the media. Within hours of the incident at the Uthayan office in Jaffna on Saturday, its spokesman had issued a several hundred word statement claiming that it was an ‘inside job’. How’s that for efficiency? If only it put a …
By Shamindra Ferdinando Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa has told a visiting Indian parliamentary delegation that a separate system of governance for the Northern and Eastern Provinces would never be a reality. The Defence Secretary was responding to a Tamil National Alliance (TNA) suggestion, made through the six-member Indian delegation, during a meeting at the Defence …
By Samuel Ratnajeevan H. Hoole Sri Lankan Regional Autonomy The provincial council system was set up in response to Tamil demands for separation in the face of brazen discrimination by the Sri Lankan state from the very time of independence. It was a compromise mediated by India in 1987 under the Indo-Lanka Accord to give …
Continue reading ‘Northern Provincial Council Elections in Sri Lanka’ »
By Charitha Ratwatte In 2011, Sri Lanka had an estimated eighteen million, three thousand, four hundred and forty seven (18,003,447) mobile phone subscribers. By the end of December 2012 the number was 20.3 million. This is for 20.8 million people! Usage and penetration of mobile phone connectivity has a humongous effect on economic activity. The …
By N Sathiya Moorthy Independent of the media-hype on all ‘controversial things’ that the Tamil Nadu Government and Chief Minister Jayalalithaa may be saying on the ‘fishing issue’, they have also quietly initiated steps over the past couple of years which could lead to reduction of tensions with Sri Lanka on the Palk Bay front. …
by Ruki Fernando On 12th April, around 7pm, I was amongst a group of people gathered on the pavement, outside the Sri Sambuddha Jayanthi building, situated at 32, Havelock Road, Colombo 5. This is the address of the Bodu Bala Sena, which has been accused of inciting and unleashing violence against minority religious communities, particularly …
By Subha Wijesiriwardena The growing anti-Muslim sentiment in Sri Lanka is pushing us to respond in numerous ways: we are talking, flustered, hopeless and helpless, shouting in outrage (when no one will listen), holding our knees to chests, trying to pull ourselves inside, into some sense of comfort and safety, whispers of more war, more …
By Dr.Dayan Jayatilleka It was doubtless in the spirit of the Sinhala-Tamil New Year that the Tamil (ultra?) nationalists presented the Sinhala hawks the gift of especially moronic remarks to the visiting Indian parliamentary delegation. Here we are, with the 13th Amendment and provincial level devolution hanging by a thread, the most important state official …
by S.L.Gunasekara That democracy is being slowly and surely strangled in Sri Lanka and that many a critic of the Government, particularly in the media has met with a tragic fate is indisputable. Both Sampanthan and Surendiran wax eloquent about the atrocities purported to have been committed by the Government on Tamils in the North. …
TNA MP and owner of Uthayan newspaper, E. Saravanapavan today rejected accusation claiming the torching of the newspaper’s main office in Jaffna was an ‘inside job’ staged to ‘tarnish the image of the government’.
By M.A.Sumanthiran M.P. The discovery of the skeletal remains of what is reported to be more than a hundred people has dominated the press for some time. It is now clear that the mass graves were of victims of summary executions during the second Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) insurrection. It is also clear that the …
OTTAWA — Justin Trudeau has been elected to lead the federal Liberal party in a resounding first-ballot win. Trudeau, eldest son of former prime minister Pierre Trudeau and the Liberals’ undisputed star, swept 80% of the vote in a final field of six candidates. The outcome was widely seen as a foregone conclusion since Trudeau …
The Military vehemently rejected allegations that it was responsible for the attack on the Udayan press saying this was yet another attempt at discrediting the government and the military and a ploy by the TNA and pro-LTTE forces to use the adverse publicity “to support their claims that international interference was essential for local reconciliation”.
By W.A Wijewardena Many have sought to draw parallels between Margaret Thatcher, one-time British Prime Minister who passed away last week, with her contemporary in politics, Sri Lanka’s first Executive President J.R. Jayewardene, better known as JR. While there are a few parallels, there are stark contrasts between the two.
By Committee to Protect Journalists New York, April 15, 2013–Sri Lankan authorities must immediately investigate an attack on the offices of a Tamil-language newspaper and bring the perpetrators to justice, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. The offices of Uthayan have been attacked twice in two weeks.
by Narayan Lakshman Death and destruction struck in the last quarter-mile. The nearly 27000 runners making their way towards the final stretch of the 26.2-mile Boston Marathon could have felt nothing but exhilaration and exhaustion as they approached the finish line. Yet at 2:45pm on Monday afternoon the unsuspecting runners were knocked over by the …
Continue reading ‘3 Dead,132 Injured in Bomb Explosions at Iconic Boston Marathon Event’ »
By Prof.Rajiva Wijesinha M.P. Much energy has been expended in recent months in speculation as to whether we will soon have a new Prime Minister, and if so, who it will be. I was confidently told by an opposition Member of Parliament that seven Ministers had applied in writing for the post, and opposition papers …
WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State John Kerry has proposed a 20 per cent cut in the American aid to Colombo, a move reflecting the unease in their ties over issues related tohuman rights, reconstruction and political integration in Sri Lanka after the end of the civil war. It is believed to be the highest drop …
Continue reading ‘US Secretary of State John Kerry proposes 20% cut in US aid to Sri Lanka’ »
By Raashid Riza There is that scene from Schindler’s List which had a profound impact on me. I had forgotten about it, I never knew it existed, except that it has lain somewhere in the fibre of my brain, dormant, latent, waiting for the opportune moment for it to be of use. The state of …
By The Puppeteer And now the Jaffna office has been burnt down. The Government has been quick state this was a malicious act conducted by Uthayan to frame the government. Sure, Uthayan Newspapers which has been around since 1985– and which has continued to publish their paper even though they’ve been attacked, and journalists and …
by Kapil Komireddi Mahinda Rajapaksa, the president of Sri Lanka, is easily incensed by campaigns for political autonomy on the basis of ethnic self-determination. Rejecting “different administrations based on ethnicity,” he recently asserted: “The solution is to live together in this country with equal rights for all communities.” It’s an admirable sentiment, contradicted only by …
By Tariq A.Al Maeena The undercurrent of racial tensions sweeping through Sri Lanka is gaining momentum. Unchecked and unrestrained by a government appearing to give in to their divisive demands, the terrorist Buddhist group, the Bodu Bala Sena (Buddhist Power Force), is threatening to turn the island into a bloody battlefield. The Muslims targeted by …
~ Greetings and Best Wishes for the “Vijaya” New Year From D.B.S.Jeyaraj
Text and Pix Dushiyanthini Kanagasabapathipillai Sri Lankans are preparing to celebrate the Sinhala and Tamil New Year. Aluth Avurudu (in Sinhala) or Puththaandu or Puthu Varusham (in Tamil) literally translates to ‘New Year’– the harbinger of spring. Beautifully decorated traditional “Kumbam”
(Text of Statement issued by the Management Cmmittee of the Sri Ratna Viharaya of Anaheim California USA) Sri Ratana Blog ~ pic: nuwan.drupalgardens.com The Management Committee of the Anaheim temple would like to issue the following statement regarding the visit of the Bodu Bala Sena: We are deeply disturbed and disappointed by the actions taken …
By Raisa Wickrematunge Representatives of the Bodu Bala Sena are visiting the US for an almost month-long tour, in part to counter wrong impressions given about the group, The Sunday Leader learnt. The team, which includes General Secretary of the group, Ven. Galagodaththe Gnanasara Thero and National Organiser Viththarandeniye Nanda Thero are currently visiting a …
By Buddhists Questioning Bodu Bala Sena (Text of Statement appearing in facebook of Buddhists Questioning Bodu Bala Sena) Dear Friends, It was humbling to see so many people present last evening, given the fact that this idea was first announced on Tuesday (9 April) and solely promoted on Facebook and held on a day (12 …
By The Puppeteer To my right a man is hauled off by the police. He tries to resist but it’s futile as four policemen load him into a police jeep and drive off. I’m snapping away as the jeep speeds off into the distance, when a voice behind me asks, ‘what just happened?’ I explain …
By South Asia Free Media Association A gang of unknown persons has again violently attacked a newspaper institution in the North early this morning (Saturday, 13th April) setting fire to and severely damaging its printing press. While condemning this attack, the Sri Lanka Chapter of the South Asian Free Media Association (SAFMA-SL) points out that, …
By Meera Srinivasan The obsession with the 13th amendment to the Sri Lankan Constitution will hardly help the Tamils, politicians and activists in northern Sri Lanka told the Indian parliamentary delegation, which wound up its visit to Sri Lanka on Thursday. While members of the Indian delegation were rather reluctant to speak to the media …
By Easwaran Rutnnam The Bodu Bala Sena, with the assistance of the police, prevented a peaceful candle lit vigil from taking place outside the Bodu Bala Sena headquarters in Thunmulla late this evening. A small crowd under the banner ‘Buddhists Questioning Bodu Bala Sena’ stood outside the Bodu Bala Sena headquarters and attempted to stage …
By C.A.Chandraprema In the short term, the most important issue before the government is the holding of the Northern Provincial Council election. This should be held within the next four to five months according to announcements made by the government. The reason why the NPC election has not been held up to now, is clearly …
By Rajan Philips The April New Year is when most Sri Lankans take a break from the dreary routines of life. Colombo looks dead on New Year’s day in April as people in large numbers retreat to their rural roots from the hurly-burly of the city. Quite different from Colombo’s hangover demeanor on January 1 …
Continue reading ‘New Year prospects for political house cleaning and economic harvesting’ »
The Central Bank of Sri Lanka has engaged the services of a Washington based PR agency for a consideration of Rs. 100 million (approx. US$ 800,000) in order to deepen defence, investment, trade and cultural links with the US ahead of the UNHRC sessions in 2013. The Central Bank would pay Rs. 100 million for …
LMD Interviews Dr.Dayan Jayatilleka Former Ambassador and Academic Dr.Dayan Jayatilleka queries whether an an “Administrative apartheid”is in force in the North of Sri Lanka in an interview to Lanka Monthly Digest
By Shivprasad Swaminathan Designating the letter written by the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu to the Prime Minister as communicating a “decision” to “ban” Sri Lankan players, officials and support staff from participating in any Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket game in Chennai would be imprecise. Rather, it is a putative ban; a statement of …
by Dr. U. Pethiyagoda Had Lakshman Kadirgamar been allowed to live, he would today (12 April) have reached the age of 81 years. His brutal and cowardly murder by the LTTE on 12 August 2005 snuffed out his life and undid in seconds what 73 years had taken to achieve. In our travails at Geneva, …
Continue reading ‘Remembering Lakshman Kadirgamar Through Anecdotal Accolades’ »
By Tisaranee Gunasekara “With or without anticipation, Israeli policies helped shaped the kinds of enemies that pledge to sacrifice their lives to fight the Jewish state…” – Saul Landau (IPS – 29.2.2009) The Rajapaksas are masters at the art of political marketing. They have developed an ‘all you need to know’ crash course in building …
Continue reading ‘Rajapaksa Power-plays: Cheating Tamils and Demonising Muslims’ »
By Dharisha Bastians The misty mountain village of Kuragala, just off Balangoda came alive on Monday when a Sri Lanka Air Force helicopter landed in the area carrying Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa and a full retinue of military, police and intelligence officers onboard. Accompanied by dozens of Buddhist monks including Jathika Hela Urumaya Leader Ellawela …
By M.A.Sumanthiran M.P. ‘Towards a peaceful environment to live with confidence, without fear of crime and violence.’ This is the current Vision of the Sri Lanka Police, unambiguously declared on its official website. How many of us live today with confidence and without fear? The government’s portrayal of the Police in Sri Lanka quite deliberately …
By Sathya Liyanasuriya The indefatigable solider, former Army Commander Sarath Fonseka is in the news once again. His newly formed Democratic Party (DP) was formally recognised by the Commissioner of Elections last week and assigned the symbol of a burning torch. The entry of the DP into the political arena does alter the parameters of …
By Meera Srinivasan In 1978, one of the finest actors of India and a much-acclaimed star from Sri Lanka played the lead roles in a film that was shot in both countries. Over three decades later, actor-turned-Parliamentarian Malani Fonseka — who played the female lead in Sivaji Ganesan’s ‘Pilot Premnath’ — is reaching out to …
Continue reading ‘Sri Lankan Film Fraternity Against Demand Urging Ban on Tamil Nadu Films’ »
by Upul Joseph Fernando Just after the US resolution at the UNHRC in Geneva was successfully carried through with India’s backing, President Mahinda Rajapaksa made a telling remark, pregnant with futuristic meaning. In essence, what he revealed was a conspiracy by the US and Western interests using the Tamil Diaspora as a cat’s paw to …
By Gunadasa Amarasekara “The ongoing crisis in the Southern Indian State of Tamil Nadu, over accountability issues here, should discourage those pushing for devolution of power under the 13th Amendment to the Constitution. A hostile Provincial Council Administration in the Northern or the Eastern province in Sri Lanka could be inimical to the post war …
Continue reading ‘“The Day Will Come When People will No Longer Back President Rajapaksa”’ »
By Vishnuguptha “Commitment: a pledge or promise; obligation. If you’re gonna carry out its meaning 1st you have to know what it means.” ~ Unknown quote To paraphrase Leonard Wolf in the Village in the Jungle: “all power is evil, but there is no power more evil than that is invested in the current Executive …
By N.Sathiya Moorthy No discourse nearer home or afar on India’s geo-strategic imperatives for the 21st century has been complete without a strong and at times repeated reference to the ‘String of Pearls’ theory involving China. A theory floated by western strategic thinkers, it had takers in India immediately afterward – to try and ward …
By Karu Jayasuriya M.P. (Brief Notes in point form of the Media Conference held by Hon. Karu Jayasuriya, UNP MP for Gampaha District on 10th April 2013 in Colombo) • The Government has already announced that the Provincial Council Elections for Central and North Western Province will be held in the coming months and elections …
By Rajavarothayam Sampanthan M.P. (Text of Statement made on 10th April 2013 under Standing Order 23(2) – provisoby Tamil National alliance leader and Trincomalee district MP Rajavarothayam Sampanthan in Parliament) On Saturday, 30th March 2013, a mob of around 50 persons who came in a procession along the A9 highway carrying the national flag attacked …
by Kath Noble The monks of the Bodu Bala Sena have inadvertently done Sri Lanka a favour. Their speeches are so crass and their actions so crude that they have provoked a backlash – the media is full of criticism of their anti-Muslim campaign, much of it coming from Sinhala Buddhists themselves. People have recognised …
Continue reading ‘Monks of the Bodu Bala Sena Have Inadvertently Done Sri Lanka a Favour’ »
By M.S.S.Pandian and Kalaiyarasan A. And why not? It is better than never. The spark has grown into a flame and we add fuel believing that it burns till the light of equal rights reaches the long deprived and oppressed people – Lalith Raja, senior system engineer, Infosys, Chennai, in NDTV Blog. The spark which …
By D.B.S.JEYARAJ Moviemaker Maestro Lester James Peries celebrated his Birthday yesterday. Sri Lanka’s pioneering director of authentic Sinhala cinema was born in Dehiwela on April 5th 1919. The nonagenarian auteur in a cinematic career spanning more than five decades has stamped his indelible imprint on Sinhala films and in the process elevated Sri Lankan cinema …
Continue reading ‘Nidhanaya: Retrieving The Lost Cinematic ‘Treasure’ of Lester James Peries’ »
Text and Pix Dushiyanthini Kanagasabapathipillai Passionate traditional musical siblings of the peninsula “Mangala Isai” is a traditional music group that performs at Hindu temples during festivals, Hindu weddings, and at puberty ceremonies. This particular group has two women who play “Naathaswaram” and “Thavil” generally played only by male musicians.
By Sam Rajappa The 21 March UN Human Rights Council vote was a victory for Sri Lanka since the US sponsored, India supported resolution did not call the human rights violation as State sponsored. Last year’s resolution as well as this year’s resolution calls for implementation of the recommendations of the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation …
Continue reading ‘UN Human Rights Council Resolution is Victory not defeat for Sri Lanka’ »
(Text of Statement by the Ministry of External Affairs Sri Lanka) Contact and interaction between Sri Lanka and India has continued since time immemorial. Civilisational ties and cultural links between all parts of India and Sri Lanka have been substantial. Since Independence, both nations have followed an unbroken tradition of democracy. The Governments of India …
By Shamindra Ferdinando Had the then Indian government acted with responsibility, Sri Lanka wouldn’t have experienced a 30-year war, Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa said yesterday. People of all communities would have been still suffering horrors of war, if not for the eradication of terrorism in May 2009, following a three-year combined security forces campaign, the …
By N Sathiya Moorthy Ruling Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi may not have said it all in his 75-minute CII talk in New Delhi. Yet, he may have left no one in doubt that the party has to – and will, in his time – revisit the policies of the past decades and take it back …
By Michele J.Sison (US Ambassador to Sri Lanka Michele J.Sison’s Remarks:“US Policy Towards and Continuing Engagement with Sri Lanka” to the Foreign Correspondents Association in Colombo on April 8, 2013) Thank you for inviting me to speak tonight. It is a pleasure being here, and also a pleasure to have the opportunity to show my …
by Kamaya Jayatissa “I hear that melting-pot stuff a lot, and all I can say is that we haven’t melted.” – Jesse Jackson For a country which finally came out of a protracted civil war we surely have not learned much of a lesson when it comes to tolerance and peaceful co-existence between communities. Lack …
Continue reading ‘Is Post-War Sri Lanka truly Multicultural?’ »
By Col R Hariharan [This article includes comments made by Col Hariharan in a TV discussion on April 7, 2013 on North Korean threat to unleash nuclear strike on U.S. bases and South Korea.] Why the North Korean stand off? There are both contemporary and historical reasons behind the North Korean threat to launch an …
By Rajavarothayam Sampanthan M.P. (Statement Made in Parliament by Tamil National Alliance Leader and MP from Trincomalee District , Rajavarothayam Sampanthan, on April 9th 2013 under Standing Order 23(2) – proviso relating to matter of urgent public importance ) I wish to make a statement on a most grave issue of national concern, relating to …
by Dr. Sarath Buddhadasa We entered Peradeniya university way back in the late 1970s with the hope of creating a future for our families and also to enjoy life while contributing to the progress of society, since it was the people of this country who sustained us in the universities by way of direct and …
By Keerthi Rupasinghe “The skeletons in the mass graves in Matale are those of the 60,000 JVP members killed during the UNP regime in 1988-89. We urge the government to immediately conduct a probe into the findings,” says the JVP. While the media began reporting the issue, the JVP held media briefings and issued communiqués …
ONLY a handful of peace-time politicians can claim to have changed the world. Margaret Thatcher, who died this morning, was one. She transformed not just her own Conservative Party, but the whole of British politics. Her enthusiasm for privatisation launched a global revolution and her willingness to stand up to tyranny helped to bring an …
By Joseph R.Gregory Margaret Thatcher, the “Iron Lady” of British politics, who pulled her country back from 35 years of socialism, led it to victory in the Falklands war and helped guide the United States and the Soviet Union through the Cold War’s difficult last years, died Monday. She was 87. “It is with great …
By P.V. Srividya “I do not want my child to be born and raised as a refugee,” says Padma, resting her palm on her five-month pregnant stomach. She arrived in India as a little girl in 1990. The only transition since then is that she had moved out of a refugee camp to live outside …
By Maneckshaw The Jaffna Peninsula is unique as far as regional media activities are concerned. Away from Colombo, this is the only region in the country where the ‘fourth estate’ thrives. Remarkably, not only four regional newspapers are published here, the country’s first regional television station, Dish Asia Network (DAN), which caters to the region …
Continue reading ‘Despite Hostile Environment Jaffna Remains Powerful Media Hub in the Country’ »
By Hardeep S. Puri Contemporary developments in India’s foreign policy are often based on perceptions and not facts, views divorced from reality and political advocacy based on make-believe. India’s approach to the Sri Lankan issue and the vote in the Human Rights Council (HRC) is a case in point. Variously described as a “new low” …
By Gibson Bateman Another US sponsored resolution on Sri Lanka – the second in 12 months – was passed recently at the United Nations Human Rights Council (HRC) in Geneva. Twenty-five countries voted in favor of the resolution and 13 voted against it. There were 8 abstentions. Importantly, the resolution also had 41 cosponsors. This …
by Dr. Vinoth Ramachandra In the few days following the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) meetings in Geneva, we have witnessed several acts of blatant criminality by mobs on people and property – in Colombo, Killinochchi and elsewhere. A common factor has been the passivity of the police. They have looked the other way …
By R. SUJATHA Theepachelvan, christened Balenndram Pratheepan, is the author of 11 books, including five collections of poems, three of articles, one compendium of short stories of people from the war-scarred land, and one anthology of poems by Eelam poets. His most recent book, Pray for My Land, is a collection of poems translated into …
Continue reading ‘“I Want to Live in my Land and Write About my People”-Theepachelvan’ »