(Text of a statement issued by the Sri Lanka Journalists Trade Union)

Journalists from several media institutions were subjected to a brutal assault while covering a protest by villagers seeking clean drinking water in the Weliweriya area in Gampaha.

The protest by villagers in Rathupaswela demanding clean drinking water was attacked by military personnel supported by the police last evening. A person was killed while many others including media personnel were injured in the attack.

Journalists and camera crew who were covering the protest were prevented from covering the clash between the villagers and the security forces by masked military personnel.

Continue reading ‘Military Personnel who Attacked Media Persons at Weliweriya Referred to Journalists as “Dogs” -SLJTU’ »

By
M.A.Sumanthiran M.P.

M.A.Sumanthiran M.P

On 30th July 2013, President Mahinda Rjapakshe, at a breakfast meeting with the editors is reported to have categorically declared that he will not devolve land and police powers to the provinces. It was further reported that he stated that the delegation of these powers has not been implemented since the introduction of the Provincial Council system and it is not necessary to give it any consideration now.

When the President refers to land and police powers, what is he referring to? He is referring to provisions in the Constitution of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, the supreme law of our land, which by the specific provisions of the 13th Amendment categorize land and police power as subjects under the purview of the Provincial Councils. He is in effect stating that these provisions of the Constitution have not been given effect since 1987 and that he has no intention to give any effect to it now.

Continue reading ‘President Rajapaksa Displays Dangerous Mindset in Saying he has no Intention of Implementing Constitutional Provisions on Police and Land.’ »

BY

DR DAYAN JAYATILLEKA

GOVERNANCE, LEGITIMACY & THE ETHICS OF VIOLENCE

pic by: Dharisha Bastians

The ancient Chinese, most notably Confucius, used to call it The Mandate of Heaven. Rulers may rule successfully only so long as they respect and enjoy the Mandate of Heaven.

The last war started when the terrorist Tigers deprived Sinhala farmers of water by shutting off the supply at Maavilaru. The war came home to the South when the same army that was deployed to liberate Maavilaaru was brutally and stupidly deployed against unarmed Sinhala protestors demanding potable water for their daily consumption.

In doing so, the regime has irreparably gashed the social contract. Credibility and legitimacy are leaking through that gash.

Continue reading ‘“Water Wars” From Maavilaru against Armed Tigers to Weliweriya-Balummahara Against Unarmed Civilians’ »

By

SANJAYA

Brutal military force was unleashed in the Weliweriya area of Gampaha on people engaged in a protest demonstration against pollution of water by acidic contamination caused by a glove manufacturing plant.

Military personnel are currently scouring the area going from house to house in search of the leaders who organized the protest demonstration.According to beleaguered residents the military has virtually besieged the area.

Continue reading ‘“War Against LTTE” in Wanni Duplicated in Weliweriya: 1 Student Killed, 46 Civilians, 8 Policemen, 4 Soldiers Injured’ »

By

Dharisha Bastians

* Gota says villagers were provoked by political elements

* Opposition Leader tours area, expresses concern

Residents and authorities yesterday traded blame for the breakout of a mini war in the Gampaha District late Thursday night after a protest by residents in the area demanding clean water took a deadly turn.

At least one person was killed and dozens injured in the clashes that erupted between demonstrators and troops deployed to clear the New Kandy Road in Weliweriya town on Thursday night. Twelve security forces personnel, including the Officer in Charge of the Weliweriya Police Station were also injured in the clashes.
Continue reading ‘Mini-war in Weliweriya a “Needless Confrontation” Caused by “Elements with Vested Interests” Alleges Gotabhaya Rajapaksa’ »

Representatives of all political parties in the Gampaha District have joined to give a permanent solution to the acute water problem facing the people of Rathupaswala, Minister for Economic Development Basil Rajapaksa said.

He said short and long term solutions were found today (2) with immediate effect to end the crisis which affected 12 villages near Weliweriya, Gampaha.
Continue reading ‘Basil Rajapaksa Convenes All Party Meet to Find Short and Long Term Solutions to Weliweriya Water Crisis’ »

While castigating those responsible for the unfortunate incident which took place on Thursday in Weliweriya, leading to the loss of a life, top government Ministers yesterday said a certain group seeking political mileage triggered the tensed situation.

Addressing an SLFP press conference at the party Headquarters, SLFP Treasurer and Youth Affairs and Skills Development Minister Dullas Alahapperuma stated a certain group driven by political motives created an unnecessarily chaotic drama resulting in a tragedy.

Continue reading ‘Were JVP Trade Unionists Sacked by Factory Management some Months ago Responsible Weliweriya Protest Turning Violent?’ »

by

Chaminda Perera

New Army Commander Lt. Gen. Daya Ratnayake yesterday appointed a Board of Inquiry headed by Ajudant-General Major General Jagath Dias to probe the Weliveriya incident. According to Army Spokesman Brigadier Ruwan Wanigasuriya, this Board of Inquiry consists of 5 senior officers of the Sri Lanka Army.

Continue reading ‘New Army Chief Appoints Board of Inquiry under Adjutant-general Jagath Dias to Probe Conduct of Military in Weliweriya’ »

People asked for water, Govt. gave them bullets: Karu

The Government responded with brute force to a simple human request by innocent villagers in Gampaha for clean drinking water, UNP Gampaha District MP Karu Jayasuriya said yesterday.

Continue reading ‘“People Asked Clean Drinking Water but Govt Gave Them Bullets” says Gampaha Dist MP Karu Jayasuriya’ »

(reproduced from srilankamirror.lk)

Two people have died from the brutal attack made by the security forces to the people who were protesting in Waliweriya demanding solutions for the drinking water problem.

Nearly 30 people are receiving treatments at Gampaha and Wathupitiwala hospitals.

Army states another body of an unidentified person is lying on a place near Waliweriya town.

Continue reading ‘Brig.Deshapriya Gunawardhana and Col.Shyamal de Silva were in charge of Military Operation against Civilians at Weliweriya’ »

BY

WELIWERIYA, GAMPAHA: BLACK THURSDAY 2013

pic courtesy of: twitter.com/azzamameen

Who deployed troops, clad in flak jackets (body armour) and armed with T-56 assault rifles to confront and disperse a crowd of protestors blocking a highway? Who was the ultimate decision-maker? The protestors were not armed, certainly not with lethal weapons. Therefore, no real harm could have come to soldiers in body armour. A ‘clash’ between lethally armed soldiers and protestors with stones and slippers is not a clash that warrants in any way, the use of lethal force.

The crucial question must then be posed: who gave the order for a military unit armed with deadly force to be deployed against an unarmed civic protest, in a situation where the normal law prevails and a state of Emergency has not been declared because it was manifestly not warranted? What was the chain of command responsibility? Why was the task not left to the riot police? The question of who gave the order to shoot and for what reasons is a secondary one.
Continue reading ‘Who Deployed Military Units with Deadly Arms Against Unarmed Civilians Protesting on a Highway?’ »

by

Tisaranee Gunasekara

“Imagine a garden with a hundred kinds of trees, a thousand kinds of flowers, a hundred kinds of fruit and vegetables. Suppose, then, that the gardener….knew no other distinction than between edible and inedible, nine tenth of this garden would be useless to him. He would pull up the most enchanting flowers and hew down the noblest trees and even regard them with a loathing and envious eye”. – Hermann Hesse (Steppenwolf)

The discovery of the Higgs boson was a watershed event in the journey of science . In the pantheon of scientists who paved the way for that momentous moment Abdus Salam occupies a pre-eminent position. Prof. Salam was Pakistan’s only Nobel Laureate. India rejoiced in his towering achievements (he was born in pre-Partition Punjab) but Pakistan did not. The local police inspector was the highest state official present at his funeral.

Prof. Salam was an Ahmadi-Muslim. In 1974, Pakistan introduced a constitutional amendment decreeing the Ahmadis to be non-Muslims. Prof. Salam was a theoretical physicist of global renown, but for Pakistan he was nothing more than a pariah, a heretic.

The persecutory-marginalisation of Prof. Salam is symbolic of how religious fundamentalism warps the national mind and debilitates the national will.

Continue reading ‘Is the Buddha a Sinhala Fanatic who Hates 13 A,Despises Christians,Hindus ,Muslims,Mahayana Buddhists and Loves the Rajapaksas?’ »

by

Vishnuguptha

“Republics are created by the virtue, public spirit and intelligence of the citizens. They fall, when the wise are banished from the public councils, because they dare to be honest, and the profligate are rewarded, because they flatter the people, in order to betray them.”

– Joseph Story

In the immediate aftermath of the defection of the Kurunegala District Parliamentarian, Dayasiri Jayasekara, from the ranks of the United National Party (UNP), the chaos that ensued caused many heartburns and uncertainties among the lamenting diehard UNP supporters. Those whose loyalties were unshakeable have been shaken; some might have felt thoroughly let down or betrayed and some may have decided to bid goodbye to political activism altogether, especially those who claim birth and dwelling in the Kurunegala District.

Continue reading ‘Name Recognition Facilitated by “Cash Power” Becomes Dominant in Electioneering Under Proportionate Representation System’ »

Jaffna District Tamil National Alliance (TNA) female candidate, Ananthi Sasitharan, said she decided to contest the polls at the upcoming elections in the Northern Province, to find redress for the thousands of women and children who had been affected by the nearly three decades long war.

Ananthi Sasitharan, wife of the former Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Trincomalee District political wing leader, Elilan, articulated her decision, addressing the media, soon after she filed her nomination papers to contest for the Northern Provincial Council, along with the other Jaffna District candidates. Ananthi is one of the three women candidates representing the TNA in the district.

Continue reading ‘Ex-LTTE Trinco Political Leader Sasitharan alias Elilan’s wife Anandhi Sasitharan Contests on TNA List in North to Seek Redress for Women Affected by War’ »

(Text of open statement released by group of eminent Chennai residents protesting the cancellation by the University of Madras of a scheduled lecture by US Islamic Scholar Amina Wadud)

As residents of Chennai, we are shocked and outraged at the last-minute cancellation of Islamic scholar Dr. Amina Wadud’s lecture at the University of Madras on July 29, 2013, organised by the JBAS Centre for Islamic Studies on the topic “Islam, Gender and Reform”.

The decision to cancel her lecture was taken by the University Vice-Chancellor Mr. Thandavan in response to a text message sent by a police-officer stating: “Police cannot allow this (the lecture) considering law and order. Please take action to suspend/cancel the programme.” This morning’s newspaper (The Hindu, July 31, 2013, ‘Islamic scholar claims voice through social media’) reported that police had “cautioned” the VC about “possible violence by protest groups”. Ostensibly “Muslim groups” had threatened to protest Dr. Wadud’s programs in the city, claiming that she was a puppet in the hands of the U.S. government and “anti-Islam”.

Continue reading ‘“We Demand that Madras University Restores Academic Freedom, Dignity and Honour by Re-inviting Dr.Wadud to give Lecture Series on its Premises”’ »

A day after she was forced to call off her visit to the city and prevented from speaking at the University of Madras, US Islamic scholar Amina Wadud sharply questioned the capitulation of intellectuals to fringe groups and voiced her disillusionment with the country.

Dr. Wadud was scheduled to speak at the University of Madras, interact with select media at the US Consulate and give a talk at the Justice Basheer Ahmed Sayeed College For Women, mainly on issues concerning gender and Islam.

Continue reading ‘US Islamic Scholar Amina Wadud Whose Lecture was Cancelled by Madras University Questions Intellectuals Capitulating to Threatening Fringe Groups’ »

All it took for American Islamic scholar Amina Wadud’s programme in the city to be cancelled were a few phone calls to the police and to the event’s organisers, and the mere threat of a protest.

“I received a text message that said we have to suspend or cancel the lecture, as many groups were contemplating a protest. When I called number I received the text from, it was answered by someone who said he was at the Triplicane police station,” said P.K. Abdul Rahiman, head of the Centre for Islamic Studies, University of Madras, where one of Dr. Wadud’s lectures was to be held.

Continue reading ‘US Islamic Scholar Amina Wadud’s Lecture Cancelled by Madras University Authorities due to Vague SMS Threat’ »

by

N Sathiya Moorthy

It is an irony of our times that the State that caused linguistic consolidation of free India should now be divided on a premise that has since been consigned to the nation’s post-Independence history. Andhra Pradesh was born after ‘Potti’ Sriramulu gave his life in a fast-unto-death. The States Reorganisation Commission (SRC) that was a product provided for merging the erstwhile Nizam’s State into Andhra Pradesh, giving a go-by to the commitment at the height of the ‘Hyderabad Police Action’ that the latter could wait until after 1960 decide on the same.

Today, Telangana is becoming a reality, though the locals themselves may have forgotten the history that goes with it. Instead, the decades-old premise since has been based on perceived economic imbalance between what today is dubbed ‘Telangana’ and the other two regions of united State of Andhra Pradesh. Questions however have been flagged if residual Andhra Pradesh would retain the same name, or would it be rechristened ‘Seemandhra’, borrowed from the names of Rayalaseema and Coastal Andhra regions.

Continue reading ‘Telengana is Becoming a Reality Today but the Locals Themselves May have Forgotten the History that Goes with it’ »

This year’s lecture will be delivered in Sinhala.

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Prof. Nandadasa Kodagoda Memorial Oration

The event is open to the public.

by
Maheen Senanayake

Eran Wickramaratne

Quintessential banker (former) and silent activist, I have observed from afar Eran Wickramaratne for his silent pursuit of a brand of politics that is appealing to the intellectual and petit bourgeois and inspirational to the working class. The few debates we have been privy to on mass media are succinct, to the point and devoid of clouding of issues. He appears to have a vision and a touch of professionalism rarely seen on the Diyawanna. His cordial manner and sharp grasp of matters of a diverse nature is refreshing; yet for those accustomed to the vociferous ferocity of the traditional politician, perhaps too soft. But make no mistake, his approach has much merit and as we discussed many issues way into the night, his overarching grasp of issues and his ability to dig deep makes him a man to watch, a politician to listen to and most importantly a glimmer of hope as we will find out below.

Q: What is your view of the economy?

Continue reading ‘COPING with COPE -A message of hope – An Interview with Eran Wickramaratne M.P.’ »

By

Dharisha Bastians

“Is there no woman here? …Is there no man in this land? Is there no honest man or only the sort of man who nourishes and protects the sons of his own blood? Is there no god in this country? Is there no god in this country where the sword of the king is used for the murder of innocent strangers?” – Kannahi’s lament outside the Madurai court from the 3rd Century Tamil epic, Silapathikaram as referenced by Dr. Vasuki Nesiah, delivering the 14th Neelan Tiruchelvam Memorial Lecture

There was a poignancy about the Black July commemorations this year that has been absent for decades since the ethnic riots of 1983.

Memory of those black days 30 years ago have been stirred over the last seven months, as whispers of communal violence sweep across the island, from Anuradhapura to Tangalle, striking familiar rhetorical chords and inspiring quiet yet ever-present fear for the country’s Muslim population, set against the deafening silence of the rulers. It is this same silence that consumed a nation in communal violence, tore a society apart and set the country on course for nearly three decades of bloodletting and civil strife in 1983.

Continue reading ‘Memories of Black July 83 Have Been Stirred 30 Years Later as Whispers of Communal Violence Sweep Across the Island’ »

By

Upul Joseph Fernando

Recent weeks saw the emergence of two new political trends in two different camps that are indicative of diverse repercussions yet to be assessed. One was the unanimous decision of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) to nominate former Supreme Court Judge, C.V. Vigneswaran as its chief ministerial candidate, having successfully ironed out the differences of opinion that prevailed among the contending parties until the final moment.

Continue reading ‘Sampanthan on Mission to Resurrect Minority Community Political Power in Sri Lanka’ »

By

Charles Haviland – BBC News in Batticaloa, eastern Sri Lanka

There are not nearly enough jobs despite reconstruction work in mainly Tamil Batticaloa-pic: Charles Haviland

On a beach in the midday breeze fishermen stitch their nets and smoke, waiting for the wind and weather to turn favourable.

But by night such beaches have witnessed something different: the departure of boats crammed with people seeking new lives in Australia.

Since the civil war ended in 2009, thousands of Sri Lankans, especially Tamils, have fled the country from points around the coast.

But Canberra recently introduced much tougher immigration rules and has forcibly deported planeloads.

Those the BBC met are scared and do not want to be identified.
Continue reading ‘Tamil Speaking “Boat People” of Batticaloa who see no way out are Jobless, Penniless and Stigmatised’ »

by

Kath Noble

An awful lot of effort is being put into bringing the killers of Khuram Shaikh to trial. The British aid worker died in Tangalle in December 2011, having been set upon by a group of men at a party in the hotel in which he was staying. His girlfriend was raped.

Of course the people who did it should be punished. His brother is doing what is both right and natural in using every opportunity to press the Government to move ahead with the investigation. And his MP, Simon Danczuk, should be congratulated for taking his job as a representative of the British people seriously – in addition to speaking and writing about the case, he has now visited Sri Lanka a number of times, most recently last week as a member of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association delegation.

It is also virtually guaranteed that they are correct in thinking that without this pressure, very little would happen. The main suspect is the Chairman of the Pradeshiya Sabha – a member of the UPFA.

But what is everybody else doing?

Continue reading ‘Thugs who beat up Tourists in Sri Lanka must First Check Passports to Ensure they are not British like Khuram Shaikh.’ »

By

Shamindra Ferdinando

President Mahinda Rajapaksa yesterday said that he had faced far more serious situations than the prospect of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) winning the forthcoming first Northern Provincial Council polls scheduled for late September.

Addressing newspaper editors and electronic media heads at Temple Trees, President Rajapaksa said that the government was ready to cooperate with former judge C. V. Wigneswaran in case of the TNA’s victory at the September polls. The situation was not as bad as it looked, President Rajapaksa said, ruling out the devolution of police and land powers under any circumstance.

Continue reading ‘President Rajapaksa Declares he Wont Devolve Police and Land Powers to Provincial Councils Despite Pressure from India’ »

By

Menaka Indrakumar

Two Ceylon Today journalists were manhandled by Malaka Silva’s bodyguards as they were covering the incident where Malaka Silva was assaulted at the premises of a leading shopping mall in Colombo on Monday.

The duo had followed Malaka to the private hospital when they were confronted, threatened and manhandled by the bodyguards till the police had come to their rescue. The journalists – Kasun Ganewatta and Gayantha Wanasinghe – were at the Tower Hall when they were informed about the assault on Minister Mervyn Silva’s son. The journalists rushed to the scene to cover the incident. “When entering the shopping mall, we were informed that Malaka Silva was admitted to a private hospital,” Kasun said.

Continue reading ‘Mervyn Silva’s Son Malaka Silva’s Bodyguards Manhandle Two Journalists from “Ceylon Today”Newspaper’ »

Public Relations Minister Mervyn Silva yesterday allegedly walked into Hayleys Group’s Venigros Ltd in the Gampaha District and ordered its closure endangering 600 jobs and key supplies for exports, to the cheer of residents accusing the factory of a major pollution scandal.

Continue reading ‘Mervyn Silva Acts on Behalf of Protesting Public and Orders Closure of Gloves Factory Run by Hayleys Group for Alleged Pollution of Groundwater in the Area’ »

By
SANJAYA

Public Relations Affairs Minister Mervyn Silva’s son, Malaka, was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the Nawaloka Hospital after being attacked with a sharp instrument, at the Odel clothing store car park, in Town Hall, around 4.15 p.m. on Monday July 29th 2013.

The minister’s son who has been embroiled in many fisticuffs and night club brawls over the years, had been coming out of the restaurant at the ODEL shopping arcade with his foreign girlfriend around 3:15 p.m., when he was attacked. A gang of 12 had pounced on him and, struck him on the head with glass bottles while also attacking him physically.

Continue reading ‘Mervyn Silva’s Night Club Brawling Son Malaka Admitted to Nawaloka Hospital After Being Mauled in Daylight at ODEL Store Car Park by Unknown Persons in Jeep and Three-wheeler’ »

by

Prof.Rajiva Wijesinha M.P.

(This article was written originally to be translated into Tamil and published in the Tamil Fortnightly newsmagazine “Samakaalam”.)

The last couple of weeks have seen momentous changes. Basil Rajapaksa has been to Delhi and Shivshankar Menon to Colombo, reminding one of the very successful manner in which relations between the two countries were conducted during the conflict. Even before the visits, the President announced the long delayed elections to the Northern Provincial Council, a move that Basil Rajapaksa is reported to have described as ‘a big victory in democratization’.

Given that Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa had come out swinging as it were against the 13th Amendment and Provincial Councils, this would suggest that the new situation represents a defeat for him, and a resurgence of moderation. But it would be a mistake to think that the viewpoint represented by Gotabhaya is either negative, or that it has been negatived.

After all, it should be remembered that he was part of the troika (along with Basil and Presidential Secretary Lalith Weeratunge) who were responsible for relations with India during the conflict period, and he was at that stage perhaps the Sri Lankan in whom the Indians had the greatest confidence.

Continue reading ‘Understanding Gotabhaya’s Real Fears and Not Misunderstanding his Viewpoint as Being Negative’ »

By

Manekshaw

‘Daya Master’ – pic courtesy of frontline.in

The names of several former bigwigs of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) from the North, including its former head of the media unit, Daya Master, had come up as potential candidates of the United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) for the Northern Provincial Council (NPC), following the government’s announcement to hold Provincial Council polls in September.

Other names to surface as potential candidates were Subramaniam Sivagami alias Thamilini, the former political wing leader of the LTTE’s women wing who was recently deemed ‘rehabilitated’ and ‘integrated into society’ and Kumaran Pathmanathan (KP), the former international coordinator of the outfit. Rumours abound that the UPFA would be fielding these ex- LTTE ‘big guns’ in the NPC polls in a manner similar to how S. Chandrakanthan alias Pillaiyan and V. Muralitharan alias Karuna, were brought into the political scene and given prominence in the Eastern Province.

Continue reading ‘Ex-LTTE Bigwig “Daya Master” Feels he has been Stabbed in the Back by the UPFA Govt After Promising him Nomination’ »

by

Ananth Palakidnar

pic courtesy of: tnainfo.com

The chief ministerial candidate of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) at the Northern Provincial Council polls, C.V. Vigneswaran, has appealed to the Northern voters to vote for the TNA and help the Alliance register a landslide victory, to enable it to implememt the 13th Amendment to the Constitution.

Former Judge of the Supreme Court, C.V. Vigneswaran, filed his nomination as the chief ministerial candidate of the TNA at 12:21 p.m. at the Government Secretariat in Jaffna, yesterday.

Soon after filing his nomination, he addressed the media and said the voters in the Northern Province should show their solidarity by making the TNA victorious at the forthcoming Northern Provincial Council polls.

Continue reading ‘Ex -Supreme Court Judge CV Wigneswaran Files Nomination Papers at Auspicious time of 12.21 pm in Jaffna as TNA Chief Ministerial Candidate for Northern Provincial Poll’ »

By
Wasantha Rupasinghe

In the face of opposition from India, Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse has shelved, at least for now, proposed changes to the 13th amendment to the constitution aimed at reducing the powers of the country’s provincial councils.The amendment was introduced in November 1987 under the Indo-Lanka Accord signed between the two governments, as a means of disarming the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). The devolution of limited powers at the provincial level was to establish a power-sharing arrangement between the island’s Sinhala and Tamil elites.

Having defeated the LTTE in 2009, the Sri Lankan government is attempting to wind back the powers granted to the provincial councils, including over police, land and the merger of adjoining councils. At the same time, Rajapakse is exploiting the issue to whip up anti-Tamil chauvinism as he seeks to ram through International Monetary Fund demands for austerity.

Continue reading ‘President Rajapaksa Shelves Proposed Constitutional Changes Due to Opposition from India’ »

By

Sulochana Ramiah Mohan

A six-member Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) delegation representing the UK Parliament visited Sri Lanka last week, on the invitation of the Sri Lankan Government. However, they were disappointed that neither President Mahinda Rajapaksa nor Defence Secretary, Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, could meet them.

According the British High Commission, a meeting with the Defence Secretary was scheduled, but due to a ‘busy diary,’ the meeting had to be called off.

Continue reading ‘British Parliamentary Delegation Disappointed that Neither President Rajapaksa nor Defence Secretary Rajapaksa Met them in Sri Lanka’ »

The Coalition promises it will “turn back” asylum seeker boats in Australian waters where it is safe to do so if it wins the next election.

Professor Ben Saul ~ pic courtesy of: sydney.edu.au/

With Australian border patrols said to be at “breaking point” with the numbers of boat arrivals, the asylum debate has reached a heightened pitch in intensity.

But what are the facts? Can the Coalition legally turn back boats? Can boats be towed back out of Australian waters? Or intercepted in international waters?

The Conversation spoke with Ben Saul, Professor of International Law, Sydney Centre for International Law at the University of Sydney, to gain a sense of the legal ramifications of a potential “tow back” or “turn back” policy.

Continue reading ‘Prof Ben Saul of Sydney University Explains the Legality of Turning or Towing back Asylum Boats Coming to Australia’ »

By
Paul Toohey

SHE was sold a cruel lie by the people smugglers. She would be travelling on a luxury ocean liner from Indonesia to Australia. They showed her photos of the ship that would transport her, her beautiful son and her brother to their new life in Australia.

It was a superb vessel, with three storeys of cabins.

“I believed them,” she says.

She had dreamed of nothing else but being with her husband, who had escaped to Australia four years earlier on a boat to build a new life in Perth for his wife and unborn son, their first child.

He had left Sri Lanka when she was five months’ pregnant.

He had cut up photos and built a montage that depicted his family together, as one. He had never seen his son. He never would – at least, not alive.

Continue reading ‘How Selvamalar Lost her only son Darmithan when Vessel Capsized in Perilous Sea Journey to Reunite with her Husband Balamanokaran in Perth’ »

(Text of a Press Release Wriiten by Jayantha Dhanapala and Rev.Jayasiri T.Peiris on behalf of Friday Forum,the group of Concerned Citizens)

This week we remember with deep regret, shame and sadness, the Black July of 1983, now chosen to be forgotten in history. Many factors paved the way for the incidents that took place during the 1983 Black July. We remember the intensifying hate campaigns, the terrorism and the ever increasing tensions between the ethnic groups that preceded black July and the thirty year war this led to. During this long period of hate and war citizens of this country were subject to terror and unimaginable destruction was caused to life and property.

It is consequently important that we should be of one mind and collectively learn from the lessons of this evil and traumatic experience so that similar mistakes will not be repeated now or in the future. It is regrettable that in spite of the destructive war, many seem to have failed to learn lessons from this sad period in our history and continue to promote hatred among different ethnic and religious groups.

Continue reading ‘Lessons from Black July for Law and Order and Tolerance – Friday Forum’ »

By

Prof. Rajiva Wijesinha M.P.

Chanaka Amaratunga died tragically on the 1st of August 1996. Almost nine years previously he had penned the Liberal Party statement on the Indo-Lankan Accord, which still stands as the most intelligent assessment of that seminal episode in modern Sri Lankan history. It was a ringing assertion of principle and moderation at a time when dogmatic opponents of the Accord were suggesting that disaster had struck us, as though a remedy was not urgently needed for the disasters the country had been going through for years.

The relentless erosion of democracy – with the referendum that postponed elections, the political arrests and torture and murder that were widespread (Ananda Sunil for example, and the state sponsored murders in Welikada in 1983), the intimidation of Judges of the Supreme Court who delivered unwelcome judgments or statements (which the West delighted in during those Reagan days, when ‘our bastards’ were protected whatever they did) – and the ruthless suppression of moderate Tamil opinion had led to violence that was corrosive. Though it is now argued that the Indians prevented what would have been certain victory over the Tigers in 1987, that was certainly not assured, nor could it have led to lasting peace and reconciliation, given the deep resentments in the country at the time, in the South as well as the North.

Continue reading ‘Chanka Amaratunga, the Liberal Party and the Thirteenth Constitutional Amendment’ »

By

Nalaka Gunawardene

“I’m everything you lost. You won’t forgive me. My memory keeps getting in the way of your history.”

So wrote Agha Shahid Ali (1949 – 2001), Kashmiri-American poet, in a famous poem called Farewell where he grappled with memories and histories that were both intertwined and warring.

This has been a week of reminiscences, mostly unpleasant or outright horrific, relating to Sri Lanka’s worst communal riots of July 1983. People from across the ethnic spectrum have recalled, in public media, a range of emotions they experienced –from trauma and anguish to shame and helplessness. This mosaic of collective memories is part of the legacy of Black July.

Continue reading ‘Every Word,Image,Audio and Video Recalling Black July Events Helps us Fight Against the Fall of Memory.’ »

By

Ranga Jayasuriya

Last week, during an embassy luncheon, this columnist happened to have a chat with a diplomat who, has recently arrived in Colombo for his posting. “Political columns in your (Sri Lankan) newspapers are informative,” he told me. I replied that it was because newspapers sell for political news and that we hardly have inspiring business news that would tickle public attention, which most emerging market economies do have. Hence political news makes the staple of newspaper coverage.

But, Sri Lanka has a vibrant press, he quipped. I reminded him that we are ranked fourth from the bottom in the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) Impunity Index, and are classified as ‘not free’ in terms of press freedom by the Freedom House.

Continue reading ‘Real Problem for Sri Lankan Media Begins After Publication of News when Angry Defence Officials Call for the Blood of the Reporter and send a White Van too.’ »

By

Dilrukshi Handunnetti

Dayasiri Jayasekara

Former Kurunegala District Parliamentarian, Dayasiri Jayasekara, who quit Parliament and the United National Party (UNP) last week to contest the forthcoming North-Western Provincial Council election under the ruling coalition’s banner said, he had no regrets about leaving a political party that had no future.In an interview with Ceylon Today, Jayasekara said it was a misconception to believe only the Centre was capable of delivering and expressed a strong desire to work at the provincial level and did not rule out the possibility of becoming the next Chief Minister of the Province.

Excerpts from the interview:

Q: Your exit from the UNP was speculated for at least a couple of years. Did you decide to quit when you have the opportunity to run for Chief Minister’s post?

A: For everything there is a time and a reason. I stayed the course for 13 long years before deciding to quit. I am too young and too interested in being able to contribute to this country’s developmental process, of being able to drive positive change at national, provincial and district level, to continue to bury myself in the UNP. It has no future as it has no prudent leader. There is no hope for people like us there.

I did not quit with the intention to becoming the Chief Minister as some speculate, though I now want to dedicate myself completely, to winning this election for the UPFA. I have a proven track record. The President will do me justice.

Continue reading ‘“If People who Voted For me Think my Decision to Leave the UNP was Wrong I will be Defeated at the Elections”-Dayasiri Jayasekara’ »

By

Shamindra Ferdinando

Tangalle Pradeshiya Sabha Chairman Sampath Vidanapathirana and seven of his associates will be shortly indicted, in the High Court of Colombo, for the 2011 Christmas Eve killing of British national Khuram Shaikh (32) and rape of his partner, Victoria Aleksandrovna Tkacheva (23).

Authoritative sources told The Island yesterday that the suspects would be charged on ten counts including murder, attempted murder and unlawful assemble. The Attorney General has given the green light for non-summary proceedings against them.

Continue reading ‘Tangalle PC Chairman and 7 Others to be Indicted in High Court for Killing British Citizen&Raping his Girl Friend in 2011’ »

by

Ranga Jayasuriya

Crossovers in Sri Lankan politics are cyclic. In 2001, during an earlier bout of pole vaulting, the former military spokesman turned then ruling People’s Alliance Parliamentarian, Sarath Munasinghe, was asked by a scribe whether he would be among a group of ruling party parliamentarians rumoured to be planning to cross over to the opposition.

Munasinghe denied and pledged his allegiance to the government passionately, and said “not even my dog will go to the UNP.”

A week later, when incentives appeared to be too irresistible, he cleared the fence. A government MP later told the House, tongue in cheek, that, General Munasinghe had bolted to the UNP, having chained his dog and left it at home.

Last week, there had been another crossover of one-time UNP firebrand, Dayasiri Jayasekara. Even before he announced his defection, President Mahinda Rajapaksa told a public event that a ‘singing elephant’ is joining the government; a reference to Dayasiri’s reputation as a reality TV star.

Continue reading ‘UNP Will Feel the Absence of Dayasiri Jayasekara whenever the Party Needs a Participant for a TV Debate’ »

By Dasun Edirisinghe

The SLFP-led UPFA has finalised its nominations lists for the forthcoming polls to three provincial councils, a party source said yesterday, adding that the selected candidates had signed their papers at the Presidential Secretariat.

The source said that former UPFA North-Western Provincial Council member Ananda Sarath Kumara, who is alleged to have forced a female teacher, at the Nawagaththegama Novodya School, to kneel down, had not received nominations.

Continue reading ‘Daya Master and Ananda Sarath Kumara not Nominated as Candidates by SLFP for Northern and Wayamba Provincial Polls’ »

By Udaya Gammanpila

Justice C. V. Vigneswaran

Justice C. V. Vigneswaran may have been well known among the legal community, but until two weeks ago not many knew him, except perhaps the Sinhala nationalists. He garnered their attention because of the harsh sentiments expressed in the speech he made at the ceremonial sitting as a new Supreme Court Judge in 2001, on extremism and against the Sinhala community.

This compelled legal luminary, S. L. Gunasekera, to publish a response in the mainstream newspapers. Now, he has become the leading newsmaker in the country, courtesy the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) naming him as their Chief Ministerial candidate for the North. Unless, there is a miracle performed or blunder committed by the government, the TNA will secure victory at the Northern Provincial Council election. Hence, the Chief Ministerial candidate of the TNA is essentially the Chief Minister of the North.

Continue reading ‘“I am Seeing Another General Sarath Fonseka Who Failed as a Political Animal in Judge CV Wigneswaran”’ »

By

Vishnuguptha

“Everybody is damaged goods. Everybody got bumps and dents, ja? But sometimes two people fit together, and the bumps go into the dents, and you have a whole thing like a potato.”
― Paul Quarrington

It is dreaming season again for Ranil Wickremesinghe, the leader of the United National Party (UNP). With the nominations for the Wayamba, Central and the Northern provinces already scheduled to be closed on July 31, 2013, the UNP leader and his coteries have begun their prediction game in earnest. And they believe that the UNP would receive at least 45% of the vote in the Wayamba, a hard-fought victory in the Central Province and a decent showing in the Northern Province. This, Ranil thinks, would catapult him to be the ‘joint-opposition’ candidate in the forthcoming Presidential Elections, contesting under the UNP banner. But the unfortunate part of this is that it is only an illusion, an illusion in which Ranil and his cohorts have been dwelling in for the last eighteen years. Defeat after defeat, the Party has been rotting away in the Opposition benches in Parliament, Provincial Councils and Pradesheeya Sabhas.

Continue reading ‘Brain Drain From UNP is Almost Complete So That What is Left Behind is Utter Rubbish and Garbage’ »

By

Tisaranee Gunasekara

“….for what may seem
Terrible or bizarre, when once our eyes
Have had time to acclimatise,
Becomes quite commonplace.”
La Fontaine (Selected Fables)

For 12 years the semiotics of Nazi Germany shaped Victor Klemperer’s existence. As a German Jew, he witnessed how the Nazis turned the language of Goethe, Schiller and Heine into a tool; and experienced, at first hand, the diabolical results of the consequent transformation of German society and the German mind.

The Nazis would take a familiar word, give it a new meaning by implication, and use it intensely and extensively until it sank deep into the public mind and caused noxious changes in the public consciousness: “If someone replaces the words ‘heroic’ and ‘virtuous’ with ‘fanatical’ for long enough, he will come to believe that a fanatic really is a virtuous hero, and that no one can be a hero without fanaticism. The Third Reich did not invent the words ‘fanatic’ and ‘fanaticism’; it just changed their value…. ”

An analogous process is at work in Rajapaksa Sri Lanka. It was evident in renaming the Fourth Eelam War a ‘Humanitarian Operation (with Zero Civilian Casualties), the giant internment camps ‘Welfare Villages’ and the Witch Trial of Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranaike an impeachment. It is evident in the deliberate fanning of the flames of ethno-religious racism, in the whipping up of ant-devolution hysteria, in the transformation of Gen. Fonseka from Patriotic Hero to Arch Traitor.

The latest manifestation of this toxic process of psychological and moral transformation is the case of Dayasiri Jayasekara.

Continue reading ‘Obeying the Rajapaksa Siblings Worshipfully is the First Precept of the Rajapaksa Reich’ »

By

Megara Tegal

As crimes continue with impunity, attacks against mosques around the country have become more obscene and portentously fatal. The latest attack occurred in Mahiyangana on 18 July, when a mob of masked individuals attacked the Mahiyangana Masjidul Araba mosque while a group of Muslims prayed in the house of worship.
Continue reading ‘Mob of Masked Men Launch Hurtful “Pork Attack” on Masjidul Araba Mosque in Mahiyangana’ »

by Meera Srinivasan

Hema Perera – pic: The Hindu

Returning to my home-office from a meeting or a press conference, I’d got used to find steaming hot tea in a flask and a plate of sandwiches waiting on my dining table.

They were from the “lady downstairs”. I already knew about her before I moved to Colombo four months ago. My predecessors had told me about her. I thought they were exaggerating a landlady’s warmth and affection for her tenants, until I got here.
Continue reading ‘Hema Perera: Loving Land Lady with Warm Hearted Affection For her Tenants.’ »

By M. A. Sumanthiran – Member of Parliament, Tamil National Alliance

For the past 30 years, July 23, 1983 has been remembered in Sri Lanka as ‘Black July’. It marks the tragedy and horror of thousands of Tamil people being attacked by rioting mobs acting with impunity. Hundreds of Tamils were killed and thousands of homes and businesses destroyed. Many Tamil people who survived these attacks fled the country, fearing they would never be able to see their home again. The repercussions of these brutal actions are still felt by the Tamil people in Sri Lanka and abroad. The ’83 pogrom is widely seen as a trigger to Sri Lanka’s civil war.

The importance of remembering such atrocities cannot be underestimated. It is only remembrance of such tragedy that will, one hopes, ensure that such horrors will never again take place. It is only such remembrance that will ensure that action is taken to prevent Sri Lanka ever having to face yet another ‘Black July’.

It is, however, most unfortunate that we, as Sri Lankans, have not seemed to come very far from ‘Black July’. Instead of dealing with, and eradicating the root causes of the conflict, we seem to be intent on exacerbating them.

Today, more than four years after the end of a bloody war, reconciliation amongst Sri Lanka’s peoples is still very far away. In fact, sadly, 30 years later, not much has changed.

Continue reading ‘Remembering the Tragedy and Horror of “Black July” Thirty Years Later’ »

By

N.Sathiya Moorthy

It is sad and unfortunate that even years after the forced exit of the LTTE, the government is unwilling to bury it in the past, and move on. The recent media discourse, limited or otherwise, that there could not have been elections in the North or the East if the LTTE were around, may have achieved nothing more than keeping memories of what the government calls the ‘terror outfit’ alive – if not kicking.

It is equally unfortunate that ‘Tamil nationalists’ and the TNA should be talking about possible malpractices in the upcoming Northern Provincial Council polls, as if they had no role in, or benefit from the LTTE-manipulated parliamentary polls of 2001.

Without having the courage to stand up and apologise to the nation (as a whole) for this, and the LTTE forcing the Tamil boycott of the presidential polls of 2005, the Tamils cannot expect their futuristic charges on this score to stick against this government, or any other, nearer home in particular. For ethnic mistrust to evaporate and mutual trust to emerge, both sides have to contribute to reconciliation and accommodation. Just because the international community is sympathetic to the Tamils, based also on imbalanced and incomplete information about the past in particular, it does not flow that they alone could get away with it.

Continue reading ‘For Many in the Sri Lanka Govt the TULF then and the TNA now is the “Moderate Face” of Tamil Separatism’ »

by

Camelia Nathaniel

The Sunday Leader reliably learns through senior CEB sources that the Sampur coal power plant that was to be constructed through a joint venture between India and Sri Lanka has hit several snags, casting doubts on whether the Indians are in fact having other interests in this location.

When open proposals were called for the setting up of a private coal power plant in Puttalam, where the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) could purchase power, the most profitable proposal that was selected was tendered by India’s National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) company.

However it seems that a conspiracy had been launched in order to hand it over to China’s CMEC Company that had also submitted proposals but had not been selected for the contract.

Continue reading ‘Sampur and Puttalam Coal Power Plant Conspiracies and Geo -Political Intrigues with India and China’ »

By

C.A.Chandraprema

Two events that occurred last week highlighted the strange position that the present government finds itself in – politically it is unassailable but administratively, it’s teetering on the brink of imminent collapse.

Kurunegala district parliamentarian Dayasiri Jayasekera’s crossover from the UNP to the government last Wednesday came as no surprise. He and the leadership of his party were working at cross-purposes from the very moment he entered politics from the Kurunegala district in 2001. When he got the highest number of preference votes in the district getting over double the number of votes of his nearest rival, Akila Viraj Kariyawasam, he became a target of the leadership who would have preferred Akila to be number one.

Now with Dayasiri gone, Akila does become the number one candidate in the Kurunegala district – he got about 50% more votes than his nearest rival Gamini Jayawickreme Perera who is unlikely to contest another parliamentary election due to his advanced age.

Continue reading ‘Mahinda Govt is Politically Unassailable but Teetering on the Brink of Imminent Collapse Administratively’ »

by

Shamindra Ferdinando

Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa urged the northern electorate to shun those who had been overtly and covertly supportive of the LTTE terror project for personal gain as well as due to fear, particularly since the launch of the Norwegian-led peace initiative in February 2002.

Whatever the Opposition propagandists and a section of the international community say in the run-up to the first Northern Provincial Council polls scheduled for late September, he said those who had been trapped on the Vanni front in early 2009 couldn’t be deceived as they knew none of those shedding crocodile tears for war victims today opposed them being used a human shield.

Continue reading ‘Gotabhaya Rajapaksa wants Candid Discussion About the TNA at the Behest of the LTTE Ordering Tamil Speaking People to Boycott November 2005 Presidential Polls’ »

By

Kishali Pinto Jayawardene

This week’s dire warning by the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) that Sri Lanka’s public and state banking sector would collapse if loss-making public bodies are not made duly accountable deserves immediate and imperative public attention.

Serious warnings and general despair

COPE has called for the re-capitalization of the country’s national carrier as well as the gloriously unnecessary Mihin Lanka, (the sole purpose of which was to satisfy the egoistical whims of this administration), both of which have incurred gargantuan losses. It has also recommended that other loss-making enterprises be liquidated.

Yet it was not as if this warning comes as any surprise. It is also not as if the warning would be heeded by this government. In a private conversation last month, a senior public official with decades-long experience in Southern provincial land administration confessed to a looming uncertainty over the ability of the state coffers to pay the salaries of public servants in the forseeable future. ‘Will we have to privatise public administration? I cannot get persons of good education to even apply for public sector positions as no one trusts the state sector to deliver’ he said despairingly.

Continue reading ‘We Go Merrily To Our Doom With Scarcely Any Protest Over The Grievous harm Being Done To The Country’ »

Areas surrounding the Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport have been declared a free port in the latest bid to attract business to this multi-billion rupee venture. There will be exemptions from customs duty, exchange control and import-export regulations, in terms of an order signed by President Mahinda Rajapaksa as Minister of Finance and Planning.

The order for declaring the MRIA premises as a bonded area along with its boundaries in Thammennawa Kurudana of Thammennawa in the Hambantota Divisional Secretariat area has been made by the Department of Trade and Investment Policy, under the Customs Ordinance.

A part of the development plan for MRIA is to set up a tax-free industrial zone within the area allocated for the airport.

Continue reading ‘Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport Declared “Free Port” Exempted from Custom Duty,Exchange Control and Import-Export Regulations’ »

The 14th Neelan Tiruchelvam Memorial Lecture will be delivered by Dr Vasuki Nesiah, Associate Professor of practice, New York University today- Sunday, July 28 at 6 p.m. at the BMICH, Committee Room B. The lecture will be chaired by Dr Radhika Coomaraswamy.

Continue reading ‘Vasuki Nesiah Delivers 14th Neelan Tiruchelvam Memorial Lecture on “The Law,This Violent Thing” at BMICH Event Chaired by Radhika Coomaraswamy’ »

by Dilrukshi Handunnetti

Madeline Albright – pic: Courtesy of World Economic Forum

A report co-authored by the former US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, and former Presidential Special Envoy to Sudan, Richard S. Williamson, has urged the United States to strengthen its work in implementing the doctrine of the Responsibility to Protect (R2P), and critiqued the international reaction to Sri Lanka during the final stages of the conflict.

The report released on Monday (22) at a symposium titled ‘The United States and R2P: From Words to Action’ at the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington DC, noted the international community held a ‘mixed track record’ when applying the principle when mass violence was likely to take place.

Referring to Sri Lanka it said: “Despite the high number of civilian casualties, the international community did little beyond issuing statements of concern. The UN Security Council, High Commission on Human Rights, and the General Assembly held no formal sessions on Sri Lanka during this period. In Sri Lanka, both the government and the rebels can be faulted for failing to protect civilians.

Continue reading ‘Report Co-Authored by Former US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright Faults International Community for Failing to Protect Civilians in Sri Lanka During Conflict’ »

By Dasun Edirisinghe

Former UPFA North-Western Provincial Council member Ananda Sarath Kumara, who is alleged to have forced a female teacher to kneel down before him on June 14, was yesterday re-remanded till August 08 by Anamaduwa Magistrate Ranga Dissanayake, for violating bail conditions.

Continue reading ‘Ex-Wayamba Provincial Councillor who made Lady Teacher Kneel in Front of him is Re-remanded by Anamaduwa Magistrate for Violating Bail Conditions’ »

By

Goolbai Gunasekara

So we may now look forward to another King George after the many we have had in the past. I had hoped that with all the unusual and glamorous names in British History, Kate and William might have been a trifle more adventurous.

Alas they have not. So let’s take a look at some of the more exciting names for which they could have opted.

Continue reading ‘Kate and William Could have Named Son as Asoka,Shah Jehan or Maximillian Instead of “Plain” George.’ »

by

Vishnuguptha

The scourge of Ranil Wickremesinghe has fallen on the United National Party (UNP), the ‘Grand Old Party’ of Sri Lanka. The Party that once was the strength of the common masses, the Party towards which scores of Parliamentarians of the opposition ranks flocked, the Party that could boast about many a national achievement, from Mahaweli Program to Mahapola, massive housing schemes, land grants and of course, free education and the open-market economy has ended up as the laughing stock of Sri Lanka.

The UNP did not fall into this pit by accident, although its demise began with the assassination of the trio of its post-J R leaders, R Premadasa, Gamini Dissanayake andLalith Athulathmudali. Ever since the present leader took over the navigational wheel into his hands, the United National Party has been drifting away in the muddy waters of Sri Lanka’s politics, handing over key Party positions to his cronies whose physical closeness to himself was placed as a premium on the party hierarchy.

Continue reading ‘Unless Ranil Wickremesinghe Resigns Now or is Immediately Ousted the UNP may Soon Become the Third Political Force in Sri Lanka’ »

Dr.Vickramabahu Karunaratne

Here is a definite victory now, for the pro-devolution forces. It is not necessarily achieved,with the intervention of the Indian rulers. There is no doubt that Indian pressure is a significant factor, but a combination of forces within Lanka played a key role in pushing the Sinhala chauvinist lobby to a corner.

One thing critical in this combination is the development within the JVP; the most important organisation that backed the military campaign of the Mahinda regime. Its help surpassed in a way, the entire Indian help given in kind.

Continue reading ‘Both the JVP and Breakaway Frontline Socialist Party Condemn Chauvinist Bodu Bala Sena and Ravana Balakaya’ »

By

S.L.Gunasekara

Sri Lanka is a Country where everybody (with hardly any exception) loves a Tamasha. This is particularly so among politicians who not only gain from them but are also avid supporters of Tamashas provided they are paid for by somebody else – preferably from the public purse.

One attempt at such a Tamasha made at a colossal expense to the Country was made when the Government sought to have at a sports meet staged in Sri Lanka. A team of ‘hurrah-boys’ and/or favourites of the Government headed by `no less’ a person than Nivard Cabraal, the political appointee who functions as the ‘Governor of the Central Bank’ went to Australia, in pursuance of that endeavour and, from all reports had a ball of a time. There was an aircraft of the National Carrier idling on the tarmac for several days (with the crew idling) to bring them back to Sri Lanka.

The newspapers featured a photograph showing a party thrown by our delegation at which this political appointee was depicted playing the children’s game of ‘trains’ with the son of the President, Namal Rajapaksa, MP both of whom had inane smiles pasted on their faces. The People of this Country regardless of political affiliation, race, ethnicity, caste or religion rejoiced about the failure of our Country to secure even at such colossal expense as the People were compelled to bear, the right to stage that sports meet in Sri Lanka. Indeed I was unable to find a single person who grieved about that `failure’.

Continue reading ‘Canada’s Stephen Harper is Unwittingly Helping Sri Lanka by Opposing”Trojan Horse”Commonwealth Summit Being Held in Sri Lanka’ »

BY

DR DAYAN JAYATILLEKA

While I wish that Dayasiri Jayasekara had broken away from the UNP to form a new party rather than join the government, he has, I must admit, made a smart move, as has his new leader Mahinda Rajapaksa.

The smart move was not to cross the floor and accept a cabinet portfolio but to move out to the provincial level. If Dayasiri is half the success that Gamini Jayawickrema Perera was as Chief Minister of the North Western Province (‘Wayamba’), the sky is the limit as far national political possibilities go, because he is young enough to outlast the shelf life of the ruling elite.

It is also a cannily played hand on the part of President Rajapaksa, who is more than aware of twin dangers within his coalition—from those who resent the glass ceiling imposed by family rule and are speculating about a comeback by their deposed queen, and the racist hardliners who are dismayed by the entirely pragmatic Presidential decision to proceed with the Northern Provincial election. Mahinda Rajapaksa seems to be inducting and building up a core of SLFP ‘young Turks’, some of whom are ex-UNPers.

By sandwiching the Northern election between two others, and by making it an interesting race with Dayasiri’s induction, the President has just diverted attention from the Northern controversy and more crucially, given the provincial council system a renewed local legitimacy.

Continue reading ‘“Dayasiri Detonation”Demonstrates that Unless Leader is Changed the UNP is Doomed to a Slow Death’ »

By
Tisaranee Gunasekara

“….anyone who dresses or speaks differently is not simply a different person, but a different animal from a different sty with whom there can be no accommodation, and who must be hated and hounded out”.
Victor Klemperer (The Language of the Third Reich)

The spirit of Black July is not dead. It is alive; triumphantly, confidently and self-righteously alive.

The politico-economic and socio-psychological premises which enabled the shameful carnage of Black July did not emerge from a vacuum, instantly. The actual killing and the pillaging may have been the work of a criminally-inclined minority; but these miscreants could not have indulged in their fanatical desires with such brutal and deadly abandon, without the consent of state-entities and the approbation of a societal-majority. Had the state made a serious attempt to impose order, had society not discarded basic humanity and ordinary decency, no minority, however fanatical, however intoxicated by hate, could have continued that orgy of Tamil-hunting, day after day, for almost two weeks.

Continue reading ‘The Spirit of Black July is Triumphantly ,Confidently and Self-righteously Alive’ »

By

Kelum Bandara

(An Interview with Traditional Industries and Small Enterprise Development Minister Douglas Devananda who is also the Secretary-General of the Eelam Peoples Democratic Party(EPDP)

Excerpts:

Q: You said right throughout that you would be the chief ministerial candidate of the United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) for the Northern Provincial Council Election. Now the election has been declared. What is your stand now?

Continue reading ‘President Rajapaksa Does not Want to Lose the only Tamil Minister from North Serving in his Cabinet –DouglasDevananda’ »

By Saman Indrajith

UNP Kurunegala District MP Dayasiri Jayasekera yesterday resigned from his parliamentary seat after making a 40-minute special statement in Parliament, where he said that he would lead the UPFA campaign at the North-Western Provincial Council to victory and become its Chief Minister.

As Jayasekera accused the UNP leadership of inaction and being shiftless, Leader of the Opposition Ranil Wickremesinghe remained in his seat listening to accusations.

A large number of government members were present in the House listening to Jayasekera and thumping their desks approving of what he said.

Continue reading ‘UNP Kurunegala Dist MP Dayasiri Jayasekera Resigns Parliamentary Seat to Lead UPFA Campaign in Wayamba Poll and Become Chief Minister’ »

By Raashid Riza

(This article was first published in the print version of the “Ceylon today” on 24 July 2013 and is in response to an interview of Dr.Ameer Ali published in the paper on 19 July 2013 titled ‘Muslims are self-alienating’.The interview by Ranga Jayasuriya was posted on the dbsjeyaraj.com blog under the heading “Muslims in Sri Lanka are self-alienating themselves from the mainstream community –Dr. Ameer Ali)

The state of Muslims in Sri Lanka has been closely observed over the last few years. Indeed the plight of Sri Lankan Muslims has become somewhat dire; new radical Sinhalese groups like the Bodu Bala Sena (BBS) and the Sihala Ravaya (SR) have hijacked Buddhism and are both committing and advocating crimes against the Muslim community. It is in such a context, that Dr. Ameer Ali’s interview was published a few days ago.

When asked if he concurs with the widely asserted notion that a peaceful Muslim minority are under threat by elements representing a hegemonic Buddhist nationalism, Dr Ali opines that after more than a hundred years of ‘rationalism’, religion is once again in the ascendency. As such, Buddhism in Sri Lanka is seeing a revival.

Continue reading ‘When it Comes to Languages Muslims are the Least Polarised and Insular and the Most Diverse Sri Lankan Community’ »

By

Dilrukshi Handunnetti

There was not an iota of doubt that popular UNP Parliamentarian, Dayasiri Jayasekera, would get tired of an ongoing political duel with his Party Leader and eventually call it a day. Yesterday, he made public, his decision to move on and to move into the ruling coalition, offering charismatic leadership to the UPFA’s electoral campaign in the North-Western Province (NWP).

Few would doubt his capacity as a crowd puller, his ability to lead or to win. But the decision to part did not come easy to Jayasekera after nine years as a UNP Parliamentarian. He is established, has mass appeal and has the necessary political savvy. His mature years as a politician were indeed spent within the green camp, though his beginnings were essentially within the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP). Though a troubled return, to that extent, Jayasekera is only returning home.

Continue reading ‘Appointment of Akila Viraj Kariyawasam as UNP Kurunegala District Leader by Ranil Wickremesinghe Led to Dayasiri Jayasekera’s Defection’ »

By

Dharisha Bastians

Dayasiri Jayasekera

“Harima dukayi (very sad)” muttered a senior Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) legislator, almost to himself inside an elevator at the Parliamentary complex two days ago.The implication could not be clearer.

After months of speculation and back and forth, President Mahinda Rajapaksa had finally clinched the deal by afternoon on Tuesday (23) to ensure the defection of UNP Kurunegala District MP and popular politician Dayasiri Jayasekera to the ruling coalition. It is the worst kept secret in Parliament and political circles that SLFP stalwarts are disgusted by the move.

Continue reading ‘Mahinda Ensures Victory at Wayamba Province Poll Through Defection of Dayasiri Jayasekera From UNP to Govt Ranks’ »

By

Elise Sole

Meet His Royal Highness Prince George Alexander Louis of Cambridge!

Kate Middleton and Prince William revealed their baby name via a statement through Kensington Palace on Wednesday, only two days after Middleton gave birth.

Continue reading ‘Royal Baby’s Name is Prince George Alexander Louis of Cambridge: He will become George the Seventh when Mounting Throne’ »

By Latheef Farook

(This article is a response to the article “Refusal by Butchers to Stop Barbaric Cruelty Justifies Raising Demand to Stop Slaughter of Cattle” written by Sagarica Rajakarunanayake of Sathya Mithra)

I admire Ms Sagarica’s compassion towards animals especially cows. Reflecting the general mindset she has accused Muslims of committing these cruelties.

However the question is what is preventing the relevant authorities from stopping such cruelties by strict legal measures. Most meat traders point out that this is not a common practice though there may have been incidents where animals were ill treated.

I agree with her demand to ban on cattle slaughter and turn this country into a nation of vegetarians. The question is that, according to meat traders, around 80 to 85 percent of the customers have been non Muslims, Sinhalese and if they stop buying the demand drops abruptly and the number of animals slaughtered too will drop accordingly.

There is some good news for Ms Sagarica and her likeminded Sathva Mithra colleagues and friends. A group of Muslims are exploring the possibility of launching a nationwide campaign to not only stop slaughtering cows but seeking to impose complete ban on the import of any meat products. After all animals are animals wherever they come from- be it America Europe, Asia or Australia.

Continue reading ‘80%-85% of Customers in Meat Trade in Sri Lanka are Non-Muslims and if they Stop Buying Beef Cattle Slaughter will Drop Dramatically.’ »

By

Sagarica Rajakarunanayake -Sathva Mithra

The government is going ahead with a national scale milk industry incurring a massive investment. Its aims are to provide nutrition to the people, and eliminate the huge cost incurred by the state in importing milk powder to the country. The fillip given to dairy farmers in the way of enhanced prices for milk, and the improvement of the local strains of animals through high yielding imported breeds will bring them a better income. The milk cow will save our children from malnutrition and usher in health and prosperity, once more becoming an important asset. Strict laws must, therefore, be introduced to protect it. Such laws will be instrumental in reviving in our people the traditional values of compassion and gratitude to animals that help us in agriculture, dairy farming and other livelihoods.

In the past, before the commercialization of our economy, animals were used by people to work in the field, obtain milk, and for transport .However, in accordance with Buddhist culture, animals were not cruelly and ruthlessly exploited; in fact people treated work animals with gratitude and cared for them until the end of their lives. The cow had gained a ‘mother image” in our society, because children were nourished by her milk and until about sixty years ago, the family cow was not sold to the butcher even past the age of productivity. Selling one’s cow was considered a despicable act and looked on with contempt.

Continue reading ‘Refusal by Butchers to Stop Barbaric Cruelty Justifies Raising Demand to Stop Slaughter of Cattle’ »

by

Upul Joseph Fernando

“Justice Vigneswaran has consented to a media interview regarding growing threats against the judiciary”.’Editor of The Sunday Leader, Lasantha Wickrematunga, who was brutally gunned down in 2009, spoke of C.V. Vigneswaran’s decision to talk to the media with some surprise. It happened close on the heels of a Supreme Court order to imprison S.B. Dissanayake for contempt of Court. None had the nerve, nor dared, to challenge the then Chief Justice, Sarath N. Silva.

It was at such a time that Vigneswaran came forward to talk about the breakdown in the system of justice in the country under Chief Justice, Sarath N. Silva, during the government of Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga.

In that interview, Vignenswaran did not talk about either Norway or the Norway-sponsored peace process. Instead, he harshly criticized the erosion of law and order and the rule of law in the country affecting all communities, be they Sinhalese, Tamils or Muslims.

Vigneswaran, who has much unpretentious credentials, has now thrown down the gauntlet, entering the fray for the coveted Chief Minister post. The Tamil National Alliance (TNA), which succeeded in getting a unanimous vote over his nomination, has earned kudos from one and all for its choice of a crusader for rule of law as the Chief Ministerial candidate.

Continue reading ‘Will Opposition in South Field Shirani Bandaranayake in the Future Like the TNA Did with CV Wigneswaran in North?’ »

By

Kath Noble

For the first time in a long while, I feel hopeful about the future of Sri Lanka. Everybody accepts that the main challenge at this juncture is reconciliation – uniting the country in spirit now that it has finally been united in body. And despite the many appalling failures of the Government – together with the complete inability of the Opposition to make any impact whatsoever on even absolutely mundane issues – there is suddenly reason to feel positive.

The Northern Provincial Council election is going ahead.

It is of course a reflection of the dismal state of post-war Sri Lanka that this very basic democratic requirement should be considered an achievement. Still, after months of frenzied campaigning by Sinhalese extremists, the fact that candidates are being nominated and preparations made is a huge relief.

Denying residents of the North the right to elect their representatives as people living elsewhere in the country do as a matter of course would have given the Tamil separatist project a tremendous boost.

Continue reading ‘Justice Wigneswaran’s Nomination Indicates the TNA wants to Try to find a Way to Work with the Govt’ »

AP- Prince William’s wife, Kate, has given birth to a boy, a child now third in line to the British throne.

The Queen’s Press Secretary and a footman post the official announcement of the birth of The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s baby on an easel in Buckingham Palace forecourt-pic by: British Monarchy

The child was born on Monday, after many Britons woke up to the news that Princess Kate had gone into labour with the couple’s first child.

The birth announcement, via a press release from Kensington Palace, said the boy was born at 4.24 p.m. weighing 8 pounds 6 ounces.

Continue reading ‘Princess Kate Gives Birth to a Boy Weighing 8 Pounds and 6 Ounces at 4.24 PM on July 22nd 2013’ »

by

Manekshaw

Rajavarothayam Sampanthan

Leader of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), Rajavarothayam Sampanthan, has proved his political maturity and his able leadership in maintaining the integrity of the TNA by getting all five constituent parties in the Alliance to concur with his decision to nominate former Judge of the Supreme Court, C. V. Vigneswaran, as the chief ministerial candidate of the TNA for the Northern Provincial Council, election.

The trilingual Sampanthan is named after South India’s Pallava period Hindu saint, Thirugnanasampanthar, who had rendered 10 devotional lyrics in Tamil on the Koneswaram Rock Temple of Lord Siva in Trincomalee in the 7th century.

The members in the TNA or from Sampanthan’s own party, the Illankai Tamil Arasu Katchchi (ITAK), may occasionally fall out with the Leader, but his security personnel who are Sinhalese officers from the Sri Lanka Police, treat him with due reverence and utmost care, and will even sacrifice their lives to safeguard him. The devotion is to be expected, as the 80-year-old veteran Tamil politician is extremely fluent in the Sinhala language and is known to treat his men in a gentlemanly manner.
Continue reading ‘TNA Chief Sampanthan Kills Two Birds with One Stone Through Selection of Justice Wigneswaran as Chief Ministerial Candidate’ »

By
Prof. Rajiva Wijesinha M.P.

Perhaps the clearest test of a pluralistic outlook amongst Sri Lankans, to say nothing of basic decency too, is their response to the events of July 1983. Anyone fit to pass the test sees it as an aberration in Sri Lankan history, an outrage in which defenceless Tamils were systematically persecuted.

Those who offer excuses or play down the event seem to me morally repugnant. That is why, despite his comparative efficiency and honesty, I think Ranil Wickremesinghe would not be a suitable leader for Sri Lanka. His comments soon after the riots, when he played down their impact, and claimed that far worse things had happened to the Sinhalese because of the Bandaranaike policy of nationalization of businesses, were disgusting.

Since he also claimed that that policy had not affected businesses in the hands of minorities, he was in a sense parroting the Cyril Mathew line that was one of the reasons behind the attacks on Tamil businesses in Colombo, namely greed and the use of emotive racism to suppress competition. I can only hope that those politicians and decision makers now in government who are encouraging the Bodhu Bala Sena, and the shadowy forces behind it that are trying to knock out successful Muslim commercial enterprises, realize that they are repeating history and behaving just as a more callow Ranil Wickremesinghe did in his youth.

Continue reading ‘Recognizing and Regretting the Outrage of July 1983 when Defenceless Tamils were Systematically Persecuted’ »

by

W.A.Wijewardena

The return of a girl condemned to die

Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani school girl who was shot by Taliban in October 2012 when she was 15 years old for the crime of fighting for the right of Muslim girls to education and thereby defying a Taliban order that girls should not go to schools, celebrated her 16th birthday on 12 July 2013 in a way that no other girl has ever done. She did so by delivering a very powerful and inspirational speech at the UN Youth Assembly in the presence of a large number of dignitaries including the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon and former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown now a UN Ambassador on inclusive education (available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QRh_30C8l6Y).

Malala Yousafzai at the United Nations ~ Pic by: Rick Bajornas, UN Photo

Her address at the UN coincided with the declaration of her birthday as ‘Malala Day’ by the UN, a rare honour which a girl of her age and status could expect from a world body. She is not big-made and could not even reach the top of the podium of the UN Assembly without the support of a low deck to stand on. Yet, the powerful speech she delivered with confidence throughout and meaning in every word spoken captivated not only the high dignitaries who were present in the Assembly but also millions of viewers and readers worldwide.

Continue reading ‘Malala’s Message is an Inspiration not only for Sri Lanka’s Youth but also for its Adults’ »

By Dean Nelson

Khuram Shaikh

Khuram Shaikh, a 32-year-old Red Cross aid worker from Rochdale, had been in Sri Lanka to rest after an assignment in Gaza, when he and his Russian girlfriend were attacked by eight men in a hotel bar in Tangalle, on the south coast. One of the men accused of the attack is a prominent figure in Rajapaksa’s Sri Lankan Freedom Party (SLFP).

Shaikh was stabbed in the throat and shot dead after he complained about the men sexually harassing his girlfriend as they enjoyed a drink in the early hours of Christmas Day 2011. His girlfriend was beaten unconscious and gang-raped, according to Sri Lankan Police.

But despite assurances from Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa, suspicions of a politically-motivated cover-up to protect a key supporter have grown, amid threats against witnesses and misleading statements by government figures.

Continue reading ‘Politically Motivated Cover Up of British Tourist Murder at Tangalle to protect Key Supporter of Rajapaksa regime’ »

The National Film Archive of India (NFAI) and New York-based World Cinema Foundation (WCF), have decided to restore the film Nidhanaya, a Sri Lankan masterpiece.

Nidhanaya is a 1972 Sinhalese language film directed by Lester James Peries, starring Gamini Fonseka and Malini Fonseka. The movie is based on a story written by G.B. Senanayake in one of his short story collection known as ‘The Revenge.’

The film would have been lost forever to the world, but for the NFAI, the Pune-based institute’s Director, Prashant Pathrabe, said. There is no film element available of this title in the whole world, neither with the producer, the right holder nor with the director in Sri Lanka, he said. The only surviving film element was the dupe negative that had been preserved at the NFAI.

Continue reading ‘“Nidhanaya” (treasure) the Masterpiece Movie by Lester James Peries to be Restored by Cineteca Bologna in Italy’ »

Coming out strongly against Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi, Nobel laureate Amartya Sen on Monday said he does not want him to become India’s prime minister as he does not have secular credentials.

Amartya Sen

On being asked why he did not want so, Sen said, “He could have first of all been more secular and he could have made the minority community feel more secure.”

The prominent economist also criticised Modi’s model of governance saying he did not approve of it.

“Yes, I don’t want him,” Sen told CNN-IBN in reply to a question on whether he wanted him as his prime minister.

“As an Indian citizen I don’t want Modi as my PM… He has not done enough to make minorities feel safe,” he said.

Continue reading ‘Indian Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen says he does not want Gujerat’s Narendra Modi as BJP Prime Minister of India’ »

By
Supun Dias

Outgoing Army Commander General Jagath Jayasuriya who will be the next Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) spoke to Daily Mirror on a wide range of key untapped developments already underway and responded to a number of allegations levelled against the Army. The second longest serving Army Commander in the country pointed out that no one could criticise the role played by the troops.

Excerpts

Q:What was your role during the war?

Continue reading ‘We are Investigating into the Summary Executions of Captured LTTE Cadres as Alleged by Channel 4 TV says Outgoing Army chief Gen.Jagath Jayasuriya’ »

(Text of Joint media release attributed to Kevin Rudd – Prime Minister, Mark Dreyfus – Attorney General and The Hon Tony Burke MP – Australian Minister for Immigration, Multicultural Affairs and Citizenship)

As of today asylum seekers who come here by boat without a visa will never be settled in Australia.

Under the new arrangement signed with Papua New Guinea today – the Regional Settlement Arrangement – unauthorised arrivals will be sent to Papua New Guinea for assessment and if found to be a refugee will be settled there.

Arriving in Australia by boat will no longer mean settlement in Australia.

Continue reading ‘Australia has had enough of Seeing Peoples Smugglers Exploiting Asylum Seekers and Seeing Them Drown onthe High Seas-Rudd,Dreyfus and Burke’ »

(Text of an Editorial Appearing in the “Ceylon Today”Newspaper)

The retiring Army Commander, General Jagath Jayasuriya, is reported to have told a section of the media that the Army is planning to enter profit-making ventures and that Cabinet approval is being awaited to start these activities. The General is reported to have specifically mentioned construction works as an area that the Army could handle profitably. He had cited countries such as Russia and China where the State gets involved in such activities by using the armed forces.

As mentioned by the General, the Army may be able to execute projects with profit, because unlike the odds faced by civilian contractors, the Army would not have many overheads to meet, with almost all heavy equipment already in its possession and paid personnel too readily available. Of course one needs to agree that in projects handled by the Army, there would be strict military discipline with no delays in their execution, which is absent when projects are handled by civilian contractors who have to discipline construction workers to get the best of the wages paid to them and also make a profit.

Continue reading ‘Is it Ethical for the Sri Lankan Army to Compete with Civilian Contractors for Profit Making Construction Projects?’ »

By
Shamindra Ferdinando

A British passport holder of Sri Lankan origin, Logeswaran Manimaran, 37, wanted by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) for fraudulently withdrawing Rs. 3,28,71,000 from the Commercial Bank and the Hatton National Bank, has been recently produced in Cardiff Magistrate’s court, Wales, under a different name.

The suspect, Manimaran Sadasaramoorthy, 42, of Mitcham, Surrey was produced before Judge Martin Brown on July 10 for invading the Swalec stadium pitch during an ICC Champions Trophy match between Sri Lanka and India on June 20. The court appearance was made in the wake of Interpol issuing a red notice on behalf of the Sri Lankan government for his arrest. Interpol has identified the suspect as a one-time resident of Polikandy, Jaffna.

Continue reading ‘Is Cardiff Pitch Invader Manimaran Sadasaramoorthy(42)the Logeswaran Manimaran(37)Wanted by CID for Bank Fraud in Colombo?’ »

by
Dilrukshi Handunnetti

A defiant and determined Sanjeewa Pushpakumara, the director of the Sinhala-Tamil anthological film Igillena Maluwo (Flying Fish) finds the current controversy surrounding his anthological film, ‘truly interesting.’

pic courtesy of: sanjeewafilm

Denying allegations of being a conspirator to being funded by the Tamil Diaspora to create films detrimental to national interest, Seoul-based Pushpakumara in a telephone interview with Ceylon Today said, he had no wish to insult the Sri Lankan Security Forces, but expressed dismay over the inability to appreciate art, for the sake of art.

Excerpts:

Q: How do you react to the current controversy that surrounds your film?

A: I find it truly interesting. I am happy that so many talk about a film many have not seen or even heard of, until the recent problem about a special screening. Finally, I feel my work is up for discussion, whichever way people receive it.

Continue reading ‘“Flying Fish” Film Director Sanjeewa Pushpakumara Denies Allegations of Being Funded by Tamil Diaspora to Make Movies Insulting Lankan Security Forces’ »

by

Nasser Al-Awlaki

I learned that my 16-year-old grandson, Abdulrahman — a United States citizen — had been killed by an American drone strike from news reports the morning after he died.

The missile killed him, his teenage cousin and at least five other civilians on October 14, 2011, while the boys were eating dinner at an open-air restaurant in southern Yemen.

Continue reading ‘The American Drone that Killed my 16 Year old US citizen Grandson Eating at a South Yemen restaurant’ »

Agence France-Presse – Buildings were razed as hundreds of asylum-seekers escaped detention during riots at an Australian refugee facility on Nauru, witnesses said Saturday, following the launch of a hardline immigration crackdown.

Australia announced on Friday that boatpeople will no longer be resettled in the country and all future unauthorized arrivals will be sent to poverty-stricken Papua New Guinea for permanent resettlement.

The riots on Friday night saw detainees many of them Sri Lankans take control of the Immigration Processing Centre on the remote Pacific atoll of Nauru and arm themselves with makeshift weapons.

Nearly half of the facility’s 545 asylum-seekers escaped and a number of buildings were set alight, according to local photographer, Clint Deidenang.

Continue reading ‘Asylum Seekers Including many Sri Lankans Revolt in Nauru Taking Control of Australian Refugee Facility with Makeshift weapons’ »

By

Padma Rao Sundarji

Justice CV Wigneswaran

Justice CV Wigneswaran, chief ministerial nominee of Sri Lanka’s oppositional Tamil National Alliance (TNA) for the forthcoming northern province elections spoke to Padma Rao Sundarji. Here’s the exclusive interview:

HT: President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s decision to hold elections in Sri Lanka’s Northern Province (NP) in September, for the first time in the history of the region rocked by 30 years of Asia’s bloodiest civil war and despite opposition from Sinhala chauvinist coalition members is being touted as ‘historic’. Equally so, your nomination by the hitherto fractious five parties of the oppositional Tamil National Alliance (TNA), as its candidate for chief minister. The jubilant Sri Lankan media is calling you the ‘next Laxman Kadirgamar’: a tough-talking, legal eagle who will not stand bullying by the Colombo coalition. And yet, you told a local channel that you “feel like a person who has jilted his lover and is getting married to the person his parents found for him”. Why the despondency?

Justice CV Wigneswaran: I used the analogy to indicate that I am giving up something I have loved all my life to take on something I am obliged to do. My life has been quiet: I have been largely involved in religious activities and my profession. But for a long time, my friends, others lawyers, judges and my students were pushing me to enter politics.

The most difficult argument to counter was when they asked me why, if I took the advice of the Bhagwat Gita to perform one’s duties seriously, was I shirking my responsibility? Then, the TNA’s five component parties finally saw eye-to-eye over one single candidate. So I had to accept it.

Why this euphoria over me? So far it has been only about politicians. I suppose I bring a fresh air of perception. Politics has no meaning for me. I am also not interested in this post. I am just taking on a job. If it is possible to do it, I will, otherwise I’ll just turn back and go away.

Continue reading ‘Friends in Tamil Nadu Must Allow us to Work out Our Own Solution to Our Own Problems Within a United Sri Lanka says Wigneswaran’ »

by
Ananth Palakidnar

Justice C. V. Vigneswaran

The Tamil National Alliance’s (TNA) decision to nominate Justice C. V. Vigneswaran, as its chief ministerial candidate for the Northern Province for the September Provincial Council (PC) elections, has been hailed by many, in politics and out of it, as a judicious move that illustrates the kind of strategic thinking needed in politics when fundamental issues are at stake. Identified as a symbol of Tamil ‘soft power,’ he has made no bones about the unsuitability of persons with military mindsets being Governors of democratically elected administrative bodies. In a wide ranging interview with Ceylon Today, the Colombo born and educated retired judge of the Supreme Court, who will be creating history by becoming the first Supreme Court Judge to contest elections, talks about his candidacy, the 13th Amendment, the significance of land and police powers and his role as a politician.

Following are excerpts:

Q: How do you see your nomination as the TNA’s chief ministerial candidate for the NPC polls?

Continue reading ‘13th Amendment Gives with the Left hand and Takes away with the Right Hand -CV Wigneswaran’ »

by

Vishnuguptha

“Some things you must always be unable to bear. Some things you must never stop refusing to bear: Injustice and outrage and dishonor and shame. No matter how young you are or how old you have got. Not for kudos and not for cash. Your picture in the paper nor money in the bank, neither. Just refuse to bear them.”

~ William Faulkner quotes

When paranoia, takes hold of a mindset of a majority which is already in the grips of a ‘minority complex’, the consequential stream of thinking in that mindset tends to produce and manufacture deceptive and illusory nightmares that continue to haunt the entity, whether it’s a person or a society, to such a frightening degree that the dividing line between illusion and reality becomes blurry and invisible. In such a situation, dreams become nightmares; hunter becomes the hunted, perpetrator becomes the victim and an illusion becomes reality.

Police powers granted to the Northern Provincial Council under the auspices of the Thirteenth Amendment of our Constitution would eventually lead to the establishment of a parallel army within Sri Lanka is such a frightening nightmare born out of that warped mindset trapped in its own creation of suspicion, fear and incompetence. Yet it serves the purpose of local politics and plays right into the psyche of the majority that is increasingly becoming intolerant, irrational and unaccommodating.

Minister Basil Rajapaksa has opened his mouth- though very rarely does he express his views on the ethnic issue- of all places to the Hindu newspaper in an exclusive interview. He is reported to have said that Sri Lanka would never risk a provincial government forming its own “army” through devolved police powers. The fear factor is distinct and as clear as crystal. Maybe, once bitten, twice shy.

Continue reading ‘Basil Rajapaksa’s Baseless “fear” about a Parallel Tamil Army Through Police Powers to Provincial Council’ »

by

Tisaranee Gunasekara

“…..he who erected
His own gallows was the one who least expected
To end up dead.”

La Fontaine (Selected Fables)

Vellupillai Pirapaharan could have been the saviour of his people. He could have won for the Tamils a federal solution, perhaps even a con-federacy. He could have, but didn’t, because that was not his goal. His goal was His own state; the Eelam he worked towards was not Tamil-speaking Eelam, Tamil Eelam or even Tiger Eelam; his goal was a Pirapaharan Eelam, a country where he was the state, the law and the religion.

That megalomanic quest ended in an apocalyptic devastation which consumed the Tamil people, the LTTE and, ultimately, Vellupillai Pirapaharan.

Post-victory, the Rajapaksas could have chartered a different path for Sri Lanka, towards democratic peace and humane development. They could have resolved the Tamil issue, strengthened religious-amity and created the political and socio-economic foundations of truly Lankan nation. They could have, but didn’t, because that is not what they want. They used the enormous political capital they gained by defeating the LTTE to transform Sri Lanka into a familial oligarchy, because that was what they wanted.

Democracy is a shell, the judiciary and the bureaucracy subjugated, minorities disempowered and majority addicted to ethno-religious extremism because these are essential steps in the road towards Familial Rule and Dynastic Succession.

Continue reading ‘Rajapaksas are Incensed and Worried About the TNA’s Chief Ministerial Choice’ »

by

Dr.Kumar David

Everybody has an opinion about which way the ship is listing, and I have mine, but the answer to the question in my caption is important; it will set the national course for the coming months. Let me add that I take no side in this purported sibling row as I am implacably opposed to both.

Rather, my effort is to read the signs, summarise arguments of pundits and punters, and to think through what either the great deception, or a parting of ways will mean in the medium term – say next 12 months.

If Lanka was a normal political dispensation, where what leaders say could be taken as frank, and not as deception and sham calculated to deceive, then there is a searing deadlock in government.

Continue reading ‘Is There a “Real” Split Between Brothers Mahinda Rajapaksa and Gotabhaya Rajapaksa?’ »

by

Capt Elmo Jayawardena

Jagath Chamila

The show was a class act, organized by the 19-year old Moratuwa Arts Forum. I sat and watched the passed years come alive when they all strutted on stage – the old, the young and the new and took the audience back on ‘Memory Lane.’ Who sang? Man! They were all there, one song each as the performers’ list was so long. Don’t forget this is Moratuwa, out here they jump out of the cradle strumming guitars and dancing the Baila. I have never heard of a town anywhere in the world having an Arts Forum of this sort and a website too. Whoever the ‘live wires’ are behind the Arts Forum, they’ve moulded musicians together from 18 hamlets and done something fantastic in ‘show-casing’ them, promoting art and music in an entire town.

Jagath Chamila was the Chief Guest. We all know he sky-rocketed from Moratumulla to the Big Apple as Sammy in the silver screen. Biscuits and tea at Temple Trees and gifted houses and Jagath became an instant celebrity lauded by all. But out here he was among the ‘people next door.’ The best actor in New York got on the ‘Pun Sanda Paya’ stage and sang. He was a national hero and a common ‘home town man’ rolled into one and that song and performance he gave certainly was not acting, but came from the depth of his very Moratuwa heart.

Continue reading ‘“Pun Sanda Paya”- Marvellous Display of Moratuwa’s Musical Spirit and Artistic Talent’ »

By

Steve A. Morrell

The remote possibility that ‘Fifty fifty’, ‘Well Mudaliyar’ and Jith Peiri’s current offering He comes from Jaffna’ superimposed to the ‘50s, then the’ 70s could be viewed in concurrence will not be quite a just evaluation of what we saw last week – end. ‘He comes from Jaffna’ this time around was in context of the times, and cleverly interspersed with current day histrionics to give it that nippy fast paced dialog the that had the audience eagerly looking forward to what would come next.

English theatre; in its current form, notwithstanding the senior audiences who view these stage offerings attend just as a selected diversion. More factual would be that young theatre goers, if at all, would come only if ‘their’ crowd will be there. That too a remote possibility. Pity, really, in these days of some sort of English revival.

Naturally there are exceptions who have made an impact.

Within this somewhat limited medium, ‘He comes from Jaffna’, and Jith Perris’s newest interpretation, was a breath of fresh air infused in to the realm of theatre. In this instance, audiences in Colombo.

Continue reading ‘Contemporary Interpretation of “He Comes from Jaffna” by Jith Peiris Infuses Breath of Fresh Air to the Realm of Theatre’ »

By

C.A.Chandraprema

Last week, there was a mighty furore over the screening of an anti-war film Igillena Maaluwo (Flying Fish) at a French Film Festival held in Colombo.

The festival itself was halted, probably the first time that such a thing happened in Sri Lanka. This has led to cries that the freedom of expression was being stifled. Dharmasiri Bandaranayake, a veteran film maker has said that ‘regimented jackboots’ were ‘crushing artistic expression’. Rajpal Abeynayake, editor of the government owned Daily News countered by pointing out that in almost all Western countries, it is still a punishable offence to deny that the Holocaust took place and that for many years after the Second World War, it was illegal to paint the victorious allied armies in a bad light and that the West was now trying to deny the same right to Sri Lanka.

Continue reading ‘Ban on Producing Films Depicting the Armed Forces will Prevent Sri Lanka from Becoming an International Joke’ »

By

Malathi Rangarajan

Vaali (born T. S. Rangarajan; 29 October 1931 – 18 July 2013)

Rangarajan of Srirangam may have become the popular poet, dramatist, novelist, painter, lyricist, actor and even director Vaalee, but at heart this theist was a simple man. Besides being an ardent admirer of his prodigious talent, I have been in awe of the genuineness of the multi-faceted personality who treated all those who came his way with respect.

I attended his functions because of the urge to listen to the litterateur and master orator. Casual and friendly, yet poignant and philosophical, his speeches were akin to taking a walk down literary lane. As I run the recording of my last interaction with him, I realise the void his passing away has created, both in cinema and the world of Tamil literature.

Continue reading ‘Poet Vaalee Whose Staying Power was due to his Astounding ability to Evolve with the Times’ »

Helen Thomas, the irrepressible White House correspondent who used her seat in the front row of history to grill 10 Presidents — often to their discomfort — died here on Saturday. She was 92.

Helen Thomas

She was persistent to the point of badgering. One White House press secretary described her questioning as “torture” and he was one of her fans.

In 2010, that tendency finally ended a career which had started in 1943 and made her one of the best known journalists.

Continue reading ‘Pioneering White House Woman Correspondent Helen Thomas who Grilled 10 US Presidents Dies at 92’ »

by

Meera Srinivasan

For those in Jaffna who have, for long, felt the need for a space that allows dialogue and discussion, this weekend has been promising.

The 41st edition of ‘ Ilakkiya Sandippu ’ (literary meet), which began here on Saturday, saw people from varied fields articulate their views on topics ranging from omissions in history and caste politics to gender biases and educational needs. This is the first time that the event, organised by Sri Lankan Tamils living abroad, is being held in Sri Lanka.

It took over two decades for the literary meeting to travel all the way from Europe to the northern province of Sri Lanka, which will soon have its first ever provincial council election.

Continue reading ‘41st “Ilakkiya Sandippu” (Literary Meet) Gets Underway in Jaffna with over 200 Participants’ »

By

N. Sathiya Moorthy

Independent of whoever is the chief ministerial nominee of the ruling UPFA coalition, and those of other electoral players like the estranged Government partner SLMC and the Opposition UNP, it looks as if the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) stands more than a fair chance in the first-ever elections to the Northern Provincial Council (NPC).

Justice Wigneswaran ~ pic: AdaDerana.lk

Favourable results for the Government in the North-Western and Central Provinces, where too elections have been ordered for September, could lead to a toughening of political positions on the vexatious ethnic issue if the TNA in particular did not handle the situation with clarity, maturity and sagacity that it expects from the leadership of President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

The ‘unanimous choice’ of retired Supreme Court Justice C. V. Wigneswaran as the TNA’s chief minister candidate for the North may not have been all that unanimous. Yet, it’s only a reflection on the reality of the political situation, which is not peculiar to the Tamil polity or Sri Lanka. The final declaration showed that the TNA, like many other political parties have ‘arrived’, has acknowledged internal differences matter-of-factly, and is capable of accepting larger realities, going beyond the narrow strand of ‘Tamil nationalism’ and through internal discussions.

Continue reading ‘Champika Ranawaka Comparing TNA’s Justice Wigneswaran to Anton Balasingham of LTTE is “Mischievous, Improper, Uncharitable and Untenuous”’ »

by

Namini Wijedasa

Canagasabapathy Viswalingam Wigneswaran

He might have made a career out of music, had his mother not pushed him to study Law.

Canagasabapathy Viswalingam Wigneswaran is still an accomplished sitar player. The retired Supreme Court Judge was last week named as the Tamil National Alliance’s Chief Ministerial candidate for the Northern Provincial Council election.

“My mother was the one important cause for me to take up Law because that was such a passion on her part,” smiled Justice Wigneswaran, at his residence in Cambridge Terrace, Colombo 7. “But there is another interesting story.”

Continue reading ‘TNA Northern Poll Chief Candidate Canagasabapathy Viswalingam Wigneswaran Feels at Home in the Whole of Sri Lanka’ »

By

Latheef Farook

Organized attacks on Muslims which began almost two years ago continue unabated while the government remains indifferent, impatient Muslims thinking of turning to streets to highlight their grievance and Muslims worldwide closely monitoring developments here.

Growing feeling within the Muslim community is that though these attacks look isolated, but they are well organized and coordinated with ulterior motive .The deliberate employment of few Buddhist monks in the forefront in these attacks is dangerous as, at some point that some Muslims may be provoked to react and trigger a calamity leading to unpredictable consequences.

However the country which has just emerged after a thirty year ethnic war cannot afford another catastrophe. Muslims suspect that this is what the racist provocateurs wanted, to implement their design to attack, loot, plunder and kill Muslims least bothered about the impact on the country.

Continue reading ‘Organized Attacks on Muslim Continue Unabated for Almost Two Years While Govt Remains Indifferent’ »

Uva Province Minister, Anura Vithanagamage, has allegedly threatened the trustee of the Mahiyangana Mosque against holding Jumma prayers, Minister Rauff Hakeeem, Leader of the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) said in a statement issued to the media.

The Masjidul Arafa Mosque in Mahiyangana was closed…….yesterday, subsequent to the threats.

Continue reading ‘Mosque in Mahiyangana Closed for Prayers After Uva Provincial Minister Anura Vithanagamage of UPFA Threatens Trustee’ »

Naam Thamizhar (We Tamils), a Tamil activist group, has sought a ban on John Abraham-starrer Madras Café for reportedly portraying members of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) as terrorists.

“We have requested the Government of Tamil Nadu to intervene and stop the film from releasing,” Tamil filmmaker Seeman, who heads the group, told IANS after seeing the movie’s trailer.

Continue reading ‘“We Tamils” Leader Sebastian Seeman Wants Hindi Film “Madras Cafe” Release Stopped for Portraying LTTE Negatively’ »

By Bianca Hall and Jonathan Swan with Daniel Hurst and Tom Allard

No asylum seeker who comes by boat will ever be resettled in Australia under Prime Minister Kevin Rudd’s dramatic and ”hardline” new refugee laws.

They will instead be sent to Papua New Guinea for processing and, if found to be refugees, will be resettled there.

In the strongest line a modern Labor prime minister has taken against asylum seekers, Mr Rudd said: ”As of today, asylum seekers who come here by boat without a visa will never be settled in Australia”.

Continue reading ‘Australia will send Asylum Seekers Arriving by Boat to Papua New Guinea For Processing and Resettle Those Accepted as Refugees There’ »

By
Meera Srinivasan

Sri Lanka will not need the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with India any longer, as both countries had moved on, said Economic Development Minister Basil Rajapaksa.

According to him, the Sri Lankan business community felt it did not need CEPA as they had found good markets. In any case, he said, India did not make things easy for Sri Lanka, as, on the one hand, while it seemed like India was opening up its market, there were new barriers [non-tariff], on the other.

Continue reading ‘Sri Lanka Does Not Need the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) With India any Longer says Basil Rajapaksa’ »

By

DR DAYAN JAYATILLEKA

I met Sanjeeva Pushpakumara last year in a little art cinema off the Champs Elysees at the showing of Ashoka Handagama’s Ini Avan. It seemed he knew me from his days as a student or a journalist.

A pleasant, articulate yet understated young man, of less taciturn intensity than Handagama, he debated Ini Avan with me. He introduced me to his Professor who was a member of the Jury at Cannes. Sanjeewa also turned up at a reception we hosted at the Embassy. Sanjeewa now owes a great debt to the officials of the Sri Lankan state, who in their generosity have given him and his movie global publicity. Next stop Cannes and then Hollywood perhaps?

Continue reading ‘Hysterical Reaction to the Movie “Flying Fish” and the French Film Festival Raises Many Disturbing Questions’ »

By

Vishnuguptha

“When you’ve told someone that you’ve left them a legacy the only decent thing to do is to die at once.”

~Samuel Butler

Politics refers to achieving and exercising positions of governance — organized control over a human community, particularly a state. Once you achieve the position of governance, how you manage it, governance, to the best of those who are governed is good governance. But when politics assumes a superior power over governance, you get something akin to what we have today in Sri Lanka- the uneducated trying to teach the educated; the incompetent dictating to the competent, the corrupt corrupting the incorruptible and the tail wagging the dog!

This all-pervasive phenomenon has seeped into every possible layer of society and in the process of that oozing, without its knowledge, each layer is being eaten into, in a manner akin to a bookworm destroying some priceless writings of a celebrated author of yesteryear.

Continue reading ‘Good Governance is Good Politics,Mr.President,Not Necessarily the Other Way Around’ »