By B.Raman
The Indian media has reported last week the arrest of a suspected spy of an ISI officer posted in Colombo by the Tamil Nadu Police. Our media has stated as follows:
“The arrest of Dhameem Anzari, the alleged spy nabbed while attempting to pass on sensitive information to the ISI in Colombo, has reportedly exposed an increase in the activities of the Pakistan intelligence agency in Sri Lanka.
by Karu Jayasuriya M.P.
The onslaught on this country’s democratic establishments and rule of law institutions by the incumbent regime, warrants attention and unreserved condemnation by all those who aspire to higher democratic standards.
Continue reading ‘Time has Come for Silence of the Good People to Come to an End’ »
The connecting of the Jaffna peninsula to the national electricity grid after a period of 25 years will take place today under the patronage of President Mahinda Rajapakse.
Continue reading ‘Jaffna Peninsula to be Linked Today to National Electricity Grid After 25 Years’ »
Meera Udayakumar, wife of S P Udayakumar the leading activist of the anti-nuclear protests in Koodankulam, talks about her hopes and fears:
Meera Udayakumar, showing her school for unprivileged children which was disrupted by ‘unidentified’ miscreants in March this year
“I meet him once every month. Since the past few months it has been like that. I would go to Idinthakarai with my two sons and meet him. I have commitments here. My mother is sick. Things are not easy. People at home are upset. I find myself responsible for two sets of parents.
Continue reading ‘Koodankulam is about India’s hopes- Meera Udayakumar’ »
Ernest Macintyre ~ pic by: Manjula Dayawansa
By Thulasi Muttulingam
Ernest Macintyre is one of the most famous names in Sri Lanka’s golden era of theatre but having emigrated to Australia in 1973 to provide a better education for his children, he might not be so familiar a name to the generations that have come after.
Acting and directing plays since his student days at the Peradeniya University, Macintyre has been into theatre for well over 50 years.
Continue reading ‘Ernest Macintyre: Half a century of Theatre in Sri Lanka and Australia’ »
By Risidra Mendis
The death of yet another victim of a crocodile attack, has once again brought to the surface, the human-crocodile conflict, and the need to introduce stringent measures to protect the large aquatic reptiles, whose population is rapidly diminishing in the country.
Crocodiles are strictly protected under the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance (FFPO) and are an important part of the environment.
Continue reading ‘Coping with Human – Crocodile Conflict and Hosting Global Crocs Confab’ »
By Chackravarthy
SLMC’s going with the government in the East is not a surprise. This order was written by the higher ups. Present day SLMC is a party where cadres and leaders think differently.
Swearing in ceremony – Sep 18, 2012
While the former is prepared to shed blood for the party the latter is accused of looking for a cushy political life at the cost of policy and dignity, but in the name of development. Whose development is a question?
Continue reading ‘Will the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress run into an Eastern storm?’ »
by Ajith Samaranayake
(This article was first written to commemorate the 87th birthday of Hector Abhayavardhana and is reproduced from the “Daily News” of January 5th 2006 to honour the life and memory of the veteran LSSP theoretician who passed away yesterday)
At the age of 87 today Hector Abhayavardhana is the last of the great stalwarts of the Lanka Samasamaja party, at 70 the country’s oldest and first organised political party whose history has been indissolubly linked to Sri Lanka’s politics since its birth.
Continue reading ‘Hector Abhayavardhana: The wise elder of the Left’ »
by Jayantha Somasundaram
If a man does not keep pace with his companions,
Perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer.
Let him step to the music that he hears,
However measured or far away. – Henry Thoreau (1854)
Last month the Lanka Sama Samaja Party (LSSP), the country’s oldest political movement, celebrated its 70th anniversary. The founding generation of Sama Samajists encountered a world that was vastly different from our’s.
Hector Abhayavardhana (5 January 1919 – 22 September, 2012)
It was a world rigidly stratified by social class and caste hierarchy. It was a world in which it was seditious to question the legitimacy of European colonial rule. It was a world that was so steeped in tradition and conservatism that it was revolutionary to even contemplate change.
Continue reading ‘Hector Abhayavardhana: The Internationalist’ »
by Dilrukshi Handunnetti
The name Menik Farm, can only conjure up memories of one kind; of displacement, overcrowding, unhealthy conditions and even flooding. Three years after the war, and after multiple deadlines for its closure, the camp that grabbed international headlines will be finally empty this week.
Recently returned IDPs meet with Ambassador Michelle J. Sison, Sep 18. These communities near Jaffna received assistance from USAID to support their new homes – items such as water pumps and housing assistance have made for a much better transition – pic: via facebook.com/usembassycolombosl
Moves are underway to bring closure to the Menik Farm resettlement programme; a site that currently contains only 1,185 internally displaced persons (IDPs). Government officials are said to be working together with aid agencies to help resettle the people who are ready to leave the site.
Continue reading ‘World’s Largest Internment Camp Menik Farm to be Closed Down Permanently This Week’ »
By Vishnuguptha
The process that started with the easy passage of the 18th Amendment to the Constitution of Sri Lanka, seems to continue without any break towards a certain death of democracy and freedom. The right to information is acknowledged as a universal right of each and every human being.
Of all SAARC countries, only Bhutan and Sri Lanka do not have a Right to Information Act in place. Even Pakistan, which does not have a tradition of democratic governance, but for a few short years under the Bhuttos, father and daughter, and Bangladesh that came into existence as recently as 1971, have Right to Information Acts.
Continue reading ‘Trio Concept of ‘the land, the race and the faith’ has driven the country into a corner, from which it seems extremely hard to come out’ »
by MA Sumanthiran M.P.
For many persons of Sri Lanka, survival is daily struggle. In Mullaitivu fishermen aren’t allowed to fish. In Kilinochchi, homemakers and housewives are displaced from their homes and houses; In Kanguveli farmers are denied access to their farms.
Rally on Aug 23, 2012: pic courtesy of: VikalpaSL
It is easy to recognize this coerced decay of livelihood. Because Government abuse is most conspicuous in these areas, we trace our communal dissatisfaction to pigeonholed problems in the North and East.
Post-War politics is then consigned to finding an answer to the ever-festering ‘Tamil problem’, masking the more subtle scents of decay emanating from the deepest foundations of the Sri Lankan polity and wafting over the entire Island.
Continue reading ‘This Govt has Adversely Affected all Sri Lankans by Severely Diminishing Their Quality of Life’ »
By a staff writer
The Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) yesterday passed two strong resolutions.
One resolution condemned interference in the work of the Judicial Service Commission (JSC), Bar Association President Wijedasa Rajapakshe said.
Continue reading ‘Legal Profession up in Arms Against Govt Interference with Judiciary’ »
The death occurred yesterday of Mr. Hector Abhayawardhana, a founder member of the Lanka Sama Samaja Party and perhaps the last of the party’s old guard from its glory days.
He was over 90-years old at the time of his death but was in command of his faculties almost to the end of his life. An authority on the history of the party, he had over a long period contributed much intellectual input into its deliberations.
Continue reading ‘Veteran LSSP Theoretician Hector Abhayawardhana Passes Away’ »
by Raja Senanayake
The official language refers to the language in which records are maintained in official records. British colonial rulers used English as the Official Language, and Court proceedings were recorded in English even when witnesses spoke in Sinhala and Tamil.
Lawyers too spoke in English. It was the same in government offices – both at headquarters and in district and field offices. Government employees knew English and were able to record their views in the form of minutes.
Continue reading ‘Sinhalese Politicians Oppose Devolution For Fear of Losing Power and Control’ »
By Waruna Rajapaksha
After the prolonged nationalist war the reality confronting the masses from all national communities should be explored carefully.
‘Stop Disappearances and Abductions’ ~ [International day against disappearances] ~ in Vavuniya – 2012 August 30, Organized by-Committee for Investigation of the Disappeared- pic: courtesy of: VikalpaSL
The Rajapaksa regime manipulates the so-called victory to implement its militarized political programme in the North and East by forcing the Tamil masses to believe that the defeat of the LTTE is a defeat for the Tamils.
Continue reading ‘United Movement to Struggle Against Oppressors for Equal Rights of Every Community Necessary’ »
by Kishali Pinto Jayewardene
D0ictators do not believe in half hearted measures. This is an essential lesson that Sri Lanka is now learning at a painful cost.
Lawyers protest against white van abductions in the court premises-Feb 2012-pic: courtesy: VikalpaSL
We were immeasurably too ignorant, too consumed by self interest or too stubborn to realize this until it was too late.
Continue reading ‘Popular Movement of Legal Professionals Must Fight for Survival of the Judicial System Facing Crisis’ »
By Tisaranee Gunasekara
“…they were cunning, ignorant and cruel like old beasts of prey and…if we let ourselves be overcome by fear or piety, they would finally destroy us”. – Jose Luis Borges (Ragnarök)
The king can do no wrong’ was a foundational premise of absolute monarchy. The Rajapaksas have taken this anti-democratic concept to the nethermost extreme. In Rajapaksa Sri Lanka the President – and his kith and kin – can do no wrong.
Minister Mervyn Silva occupies an outstanding position amongst Rajapaksa kith.
Continue reading ‘Why Major Chandana Pradeep Withdrew his Charges of Malaka Silva and Rehan Wijeratne Assaulting Him’ »
Groucho Marx
by Gamini Weerakoon
Groucho Marx an outstanding comedian for about four decades of the last Century described ‘Military Intelligence’ as a ‘contradiction in terms’.
Groucho’s perception can be appreciated. In his time the gentlemen in khaki were not considered to be blessed with much intelligence. And those with intelligence – ‘nerds’ as we call them now – did not want to get into khaki.
Continue reading ‘Justice in Sri Lanka is Where the Victim Begs Pardon from the Offender for Daring to Challenge the Offender!’ »
by Gnana Moonesinghe
I accepted the invitation from Sri Lanka Unites to participate at the Fourth Season of the Future Leader’s Conference to be held in Jaffna with interest but without any notion of what course the meeting on reconciliation will take.
That it turned out to be an invigorating experience, an event that made one proud to be Sri Lankan is not an exaggeration.
Continue reading ‘‘A new Generation Dares to Unite the Nation’: Fourth ‘Sri Lanka Unites’ Future Leaders Conference in Jaffna’ »
by Randima Attygalle
“There is no friend as loyal as a book.” -Ernest Hemingway
Colombo International Book Fair 2012, Sri Lanka’s premier and best attended consumer fair marked its 14th milestone last week, with crowds flocking to BMICH.
Spearheaded by Sri Lanka Book Publisher’s Association in 1999, the Fair has grown into a much sought after national event, attracting local and international publishers alike.
Continue reading ‘Colombo International Book Fair 2012 Underway at BMICH with over 400 Stalls’ »
by Kamani Hettiarachchi
Despite several political upheavals the government last week managed to appoint the new chief minister to the Eastern Province, Abdul Majeed Mohammed who polled 11726 preference votes contesting under the UPFA banner in the Trincomalee district.
He also created history in the annals of the PC polls in Sri Lanka by becoming the first Muslim chief minister since Provincial Councils came into being way back in 1987.
Excerpts of the interview with the new Eastern Province chief minister:
Continue reading ‘First Muslim Chief Minister of East Speaks Out: An Interview with Najeeb A Majeed’ »
By D.B.S. Jeyaraj
Mohamed Najeeb Abdul Majeed made history when he was sworn in as the chief minister of the Eastern Provincial council before President Mahinda Rajapaksa on Tuesday September 18th 2012. After the swearing in ceremony at “Temple Trees” , Najib as he is generally known has become not only the first Muslim chief minister of the Eastern Province but also the first Chief minister of Muslim ethnicity in the Island nation.
The first Muslim chief minister of the East will hold office for a period of two and a half years. Thereafter the post would be filled by a nominee of the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress(SLMC). The arrangement to share the Eastern chief ministership on a rotational basis was the result of an agreement between President Rajapaksa and Muslim Congress leader Rauf Hakeem.
Continue reading ‘Najeeb Abdul Majeed Makes History as The First Muslim Chief Minister of Sri Lanka’ »
By Uditha Jayasinghe
The Government has leased the iconic Transworks House land to India’s Krrish Group for 99 years at $ 49 million, whilst the $ 450 million mega project is slated to be completed by 2014.
The land encompasses the Transworks House, a colonial building that once housed the former Public Works Department (PWD). The building is documented as a place of archaeological value.
Continue reading ‘Four Acre Property in Colombo Fort Encompassing Heritage Building “Transworld House” leased for 99 years to Indian Firm for 49 million Dollars’ »
In clear signs that Sri Lanka’s trade with India is set to grow further and recent noise about Sri Lanka in Tamil Nadu has almost no impact on the surging Business-to-Business (B2B) linkages, a 45-member strong biz delegation led by S. Rethinavelu, Senior President of the Tamil Nadu Chamber of Commerce and Industries (TCCI) is now in Colombo and successfully finalising B2B meetings and linkages across town
The TCCI is one of the powerful business chambers in all of India and the principal business chamber in Tamil Nadu with more than 6,500 member organisations.
Continue reading ‘45 Member Tamil Nadu Top Business Delegation in Colombo to Promote Greater Trade Cooperation with Sri Lanka’ »
by Sandeep Dikshit
With Sri Lanka’s human rights record coming up for review towards the end of the year, India believes that Colombo should accept the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) as a credible interlocutor and get down to discussing a road map for political devolution of powers as this will send a positive signal world-wide to groups instrumental in arraigning it before the United Nations Human Rights Council in March this year.
Prez Mahinda Rajapaksa of Srilanka meets with PM Manmohan Singh of India in New Delhi- pic courtesy: twitter.com/AkbarMEA
During talks with Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa on Thursday — the first in over two years — it is understood that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh reiterated that the sooner the Sri Lankan government finalises a road map with the TNA, the better it would be for all sides.
Continue reading ‘Manmohan Singh Asks Mahinda Rajapaksa to Discuss with TNA and Devise Road Map For Devolution of Powers’ »
By Salma Yusuf
The release of the publication titled Faithing the Native Soil: Dilemmas and Aspirations of Postcolonial Buddhists and Christians in Sri Lanka, authored by Dr. Shanthikumar Hettiarachchi, specialist in religion, conflict and community engagement, is timely for its potential contribution to the ensuing discourse on post–war reconciliation in Sri Lanka.
Continue reading ‘Silence on the ‘Religious Issue’ Between Buddhists and Christians is no Indication of Resolution, but a Dormant Spark Waiting to Catch Fire on a Dangerous Scale’ »
by Vishnuguptha
Could we envision a country that is devoid of racial discrimination, where each citizen is judged, in the immortal words of Martin Luther King Jr., “not by the colour of their skin but by the content of their character”?
Can we envision a nation that is free of racial prejudice and ‘white vans’ and a country and a people that enjoy the freedom to information, so that those who wield power cannot engage in underhand deals at the expense of the national coffers?
Continue reading ‘Could we Envision a Country That is Devoid of Racial Discrimination?’ »
By G. Ananthapadmanabhan
On 24 January 2010, Prageeth Eknaligoda, journalist, cartoonist, father of two, stepped out of his office near Colombo. Prageeth had been actively reporting on the country’s forthcoming Presidential Election.
The previous week, he had done a comparative analysis of the two main presidential candidates, coming out in favour of the opposition candidate, Sarath Fonseka.
Continue reading ‘India Despite its Dubious Human Rights Record Must Exert Pressure on Sri Lanka’ »
by Sanjeewa Ranaweera
During the 90s, I was a boarder at the Royal College Hostel. We, the hostellers were supposed to shift dormitories annually. And once, I was in the dormitory called ‘Galoya – III’. (Yes, all our dormitories were given the names of these well-known water reservation projects – Victoria, Kotmale, etc. And I still don’t know why!).
If my memory serves me right, ‘Prasad’ was the only Tamil who shared our humble abode, ‘Galoya III’.
Continue reading ‘Have we made Gestures of Goodwill Towards the Tamils of this Country After the War?’ »
Jayakanthan – pic by: K. Pichumani
by S.Dorairaj
In his literary career spanning six decades, Dhandapani Jayakanthan, ‘JK’ to his friends and comrades, has won acclaim for wielding his pen against social injustices and economic inequality.
An inimitable orator, committed film-maker, accomplished journalist and fearless activist besides being an outstanding writer, he has never hesitated to join hands with the votaries of democracy, equality, peace and progress at the global level.
Continue reading ‘An Interview with ‘JK’ Jayakanthan the Award-winning Tamil writer’ »
By Thulasi Muttulingam
The peninsula of Jaffna is famous for its unique and flavourful cooking.
Pix by Dushiyanthini Kanagasabapathipillai
The cooking style is heavily influenced by the neighbouring regions of Kerala and Tamil Nadu but there are a few items considered to be uniquely Yarlpaanum; savouries made from the palmyrah fruit such as Panangai Paniyaarum being one example.
Here are two such recipes:
Continue reading ‘Jaffna Titbits: Pt.Pedro Thattai Vadai and Panangaaip Paniyaaram’ »
courtesy of Newyorker.com ~ Aug 13, 2012
by Taylor Dibbert
Barack Obama inherited a mess, but his presidency has been, by most historical standards, a massive disappointment. Obama has had some foreign-policy successes, but most Americans could not care less about foreign policy.
Besides, he has alienated the left-wing of his party by perpetuating (and even expanding upon) many of the counterterrorism policies of his predecessor.
Continue reading ‘Some Thoughts on a Frustrating Presidential Race’ »
Col R Hariharan
OneIndia: What can India ideally do to force the Sri Lankan government in the process of reconciliation of the Tamils?
Irrespective of the Tamil politicians’ fury, the fact is that Sri Lanka is an independent country and we have already paid a price of intervening in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
India can only try to create pressure on Rajapaksa by means of canvassing international support. But then again, given the age-old relation that exists between the two countries, any unbalanced act can complicate the issue further.
Continue reading ‘No Nation not even India or US can Force Lankan Govt to Carry out Reconciliation Process with Tamils | Col.Hariharan (retd) Interviewed by ‘One India’’ »
(Text of Press communique Issued by the TNA)
A delegation of the Tamil National Alliance met with Mr Hanny Megally, Chief, Asia, Pacific, Middle East and North Africa Branch, Field Operations and Technical Cooperation Division of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and his team of officials on 20th September 2012 at the office of the Resident Coordinator of the United Nations, Mr Subinay Nandy, who was also present.
Continue reading ‘Tamil National Alliance Briefs Visiting UN Human Rights Team’ »
by P S Suryanarayana
Abstract
The real storyline of the Chinese State Councillor and Defence Minister’s latest talks withIndian leaders in New Delhi is in the timing and the broad-based themes of his visit to India –the first in eight years by a military dignitary in his position.
Continue reading ‘China-India Defence Diplomacy: Weaving a New Sense of Stability’ »
By D.B.S.Jeyaraj
Sivanesathurai Chandrakanthan alias “Pillaiyan” who served as Chief Minister of the Eastern Provincial Council from 2008 to 2012 is now obstructing the appointment of a Tamil provincial minister in the envisaged administration of new Eastern Chief minister Najeeb Abdul Majeed.
Sivanesathurai Chandrakanthan alias ‘Pillaiyan’
Although Pillaiyan expected to be chief minister again and was disappointed, the ex-chief minister has reconciled himself to the prevailing state of affairs and smilingly accepted the situation.But the former child soldier of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam(LTTE) is firmly opposed to the idea of a Tamil being appointed as a Provincial minister it is learnt.
Continue reading ‘Puerile Pillaiyan Blocking Tamil Provincial Minister Appointment for East’ »
Kamala Ranatunga
By D.B.S.Jeyaraj
United Peoples Freedom Alliance(UPFA) national list MP Kamala Ranatunga is to be “requested” to resign her seat “willingly” by the Rajapaksa Government in order to fill the vacancy created with Former Eastern province parliamentarian and recently elected Provincial Councillor SMM Ameer Ali.
This move is being enacted in a bid to appease two constituent Muslim parties of the Government namely the National Congress led by Local Govt and Provincial Councils cabinet minister ALM Athaullah and the All Ceylon Peoples Congress led by cabinet minister for Industries and Commerce Rishad Badhiutheen.
Continue reading ‘Kamala Ranatunga to Resign Seat for Ameer Ali to be made National List MP and Deputy Minister’ »
by Charitha Ratwatte
The Government has gazetted a Bill, on 27 July 2012, to set up a Divi Neguma Department, which will take over the existing Samurdhi Authority, the Southern Development Authority and the Udarata Development Authority (successor to the Kandyan Peasantry Commission).
The Bill will also set up a Divi Neguma Community Based Organisation, Divi Neguma Community Based Banks and Banking Societies.
Continue reading ‘‘Divi Neguma’ Dept: Development catalyst, dependency creator or just a white elephant?’ »
by Dharisha Bastians
The Silvas are at it again. A week dominated by news of political brats on the rampage once more, this time directing their rage at an Army Major, ended with the soldier recanting his story and the two main suspects in remand being transferred to prison hospital on “medical” advice.
Continue reading ‘Mervyn Silva the Rascal-in-chief of Rajapaksa Govt Shows That Sri Lanka’s Justice System is Broken and Perhaps Irrevocably Lost’ »
By Kath Noble
Mahinda Rajapaksa must really love elections. Since he came to power, at least some part of the country has gone to the polls almost every year, sometimes more than once.
We had local and provincial council elections in both 2008 and 2009, parliamentary and presidential elections in 2010, more local elections in 2011 and now more provincial council elections in 2012. No prizes for guessing that in 2013 somebody somewhere in Sri Lanka will be voting.
Continue reading ‘A TNA-led Administration in North is Necessary to Show Govt It Cannot Get Away with Everything Everywhere’ »
Niromi de Soyza
Niromi de Soyza Speaks to Shanika Sriyananda
“We had lost our footwear in previous skirmishes; but we still had our ‘kuppies’, the cyanide capsules we wore around our necks. We were better prepared for death than for life.” This is what a 17-year-old child soldier holding the AK-47 thought to herself while moving forward to escape soldiers in an ambush.
Continue reading ‘“War Doesent Determine Who is Right -Only Who is Left”’ »
By Fr JC Pieris
Like the low black monsoon clouds heavy with unshed rain ominously raising a dark fearful mood is the state of mind of the normal, good and decent citizens of Sri Lanka who are depressed and infected with discontent, discouragement and the frustration of helplessness with the disgusting situation in the country.
Everything is wrong and simple decency has vanished from the Pearl of the Indian Ocean.
Continue reading ‘Monsoon of our Discontent will Cause Downpour to Wash Away Rotten Muck from our Country’ »
by K S Sivakumaran
Writers in Tamil in Lanka include Tamils, Muslims, and Malays. They are from different parts of the island. One such place is Mannar in the Northern Province.
Almost an icon in the area and a widely known writer, poet, journalist and critic is Kalai Vaathi Kaleel. He hails from a traditional family of artistes and artists. His grand father was a poet. His mother was a folk-singer.
Continue reading ‘“Kalai Vathi” Kaleel : A versatile Muslim Writer from Mannar’ »
by Dr. S. P. Udayakumar Ph D
Just like a hapless wife brutally assaulted by her male chauvinistic and drunken husband, like an innocent little child beaten up by his abusive parent, our honest, hardworking, and pious people have been violated, their possessions vandalized, their 400-day long nonviolent movement vilified.
By our own government! By our own Chief Minister who we brought back to power to rescue us from corruption, power abuse, nepotism, dynastic rule and double speak! An overwhelming majority of the Tamil voters including almost all the coastal communities voted for the Chief Minister’s party.
Continue reading ‘The Global Nuclear Mafia Sees our People as Their Sworn Enemies’ »
by Col R Hariharan (Retd.)
Al Qaeda in Yemen has asked Muslims to step up their protests and kill more U.S. diplomats after the U.S. ambassador to Libya was killed when violent anti-U.S. protestors attacked the U.S. embassy in Benghazi.
In a significant statement, the Libyan Prime Minister has said the attack on the U.S. embassy was a preplanned one. Libya was one of the many countries across the world where anti-U.S. protests were triggered when a U.S. made film depicting Prophet Mohammed in a highly objectionable way was put on YouTube.
Continue reading ‘Use of social media for “war by other means”’ »
By Col R Hariharan
Post Conflict Sri Lanka: Rebuilding of the Society
Edited by VR Raghavan
Vij Books, New Delhi, 2012, pp 194, Rs 850
Sri Lanka army ended 25 years of Tamil separatist insurgency on May 19, 2009 when it defeated the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). But the victory in what the government called the Humanitarian War (an oxymoron as no war is humanitarian) came at a colossal cost.
Continue reading ‘Post Conflict Sri Lanka: Rebuilding of Society and Roadblocks to Ethnic Reconciliation’ »
(Text of a press communique issued by the Tamil National Alliance)
Following on an invitation from Mr Lalith Weeratunga, Secretary to the President to the TNA leader Mr. R Sampanthan on the night of 1th September 2012, for a meeting at the Presidents House on 18th morning, a mee ting took place between the President and Mr. Sampanthan as arranged. Ministers Maithripala Sirisena and Prof G L Peiris were also present at the meeting.
by Sachin Jayawickreme
(The writer is the elder brother of Rehan Wijeratne-Jayawickreme who is at the centre of the controversy regarding the assault on an Army Major outside the JAIC Hilton.)
First of all I must say that I was indeed surprised when I read the Sunday papers early this morning. I was expecting a bloodbath to say the least. Instead, what I read was both thought provoking and humbling and this is why I believe I should write this. I have given this matter a bit of thought and I thought I might contribute towards the debate in constructive manner.
by Sachin Jayawickreme
(The writer is the elder brother of Rehan Wijeratne-Jayawickreme who is at the centre of the controversy regarding the assault on an Army Major outside the JAIC Hilton.)
First of all I must say that I was indeed surprised when I read the Sunday papers early this morning. I was expecting a bloodbath to say the least. Instead, what I read was both thought provoking and humbling and this is why I believe I should write this. I have given this matter a bit of thought and I thought I might contribute towards the debate in constructive manner.
Continue reading ‘Alleged Assault on army Major by Malaka and Rehan-An Elder Brother Says “He is not Proud”’ »
By D.B.S.Jeyaraj
The prickly issue of forming a new administration for the Eastern Provincial council was finally resolved by the direct intervention of Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapaksa after a high level meeting held at “Temple Trees” in Colombo on September 17th.
Najeeb A Majeed ~ via facebook.com/abdulmajeed.mn
President Rajapaksa after discussing matters with some ministers and influential Parliamentarians has decided upon a formula to appoint the new chief minister for the Eastern province and also allocate provincial ministry and chairman,deputy chairman posts.
Continue reading ‘
’ »
By Salma Yusuf
The race to the Whitehouse has begun. With the conventions concluded, attention is turning to the upcoming debates. It is less than two months until Election Day, November 6.
Thus far the quality of the discourse has been disappointing as the major party candidates have seemed to focus much of their efforts on defining each other in starkly negative terms
Continue reading ‘South Asia Including Sri Lanka is now Central to American Foreign Policy and Security Establishments’ »
By Radhieka Peeris
“Ganga addara ma sihil senehi sanahi…” an all time favourite hit song from the 1980 Sinhala classic movie Ganga Addara starts playing in the background.
Vijaya Kumaranathunga comes to mind on the banks of the Kelani river, balancing on his left palm a miniature boat made of dried leaves, extending it towards a young and coy Vasanthi Chaturani in a gesture of friendship mixed with the innocence of pure love.
Continue reading ‘Sumitra Peries Celebrates her Fiftieth Year in Sinhala Cinema’ »
Pix by Amitha Thennakoon
By Anukshi Jayasinha
When Jacqueline Fernandez won the title of Miss Sri Lanka Universe in 2006, Sri Lankans across the island knew she would somehow bring fame and success to our tiny island.
Unlike former beauty queens who went on to win titles only to retire in obscurity a few years later, Fernandez, popularly known as Jackie, was driven enough to make it all the way to the glamorous Bollywood industry.
Continue reading ‘Dazzling Lankan Beauty Jacqueline Fernandez Shines in Hindi Cinema’ »
by Sir Alan Haselhurst
(Text of the he Lakshman Kadirgamar Memorial Lecutre 2012 delivered by Sir Alan Haselhurst M. P. Chairman of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association Executive Committee on 12th September 2012 at the Sri Lanka Foundation Institute)
It was a huge surprise, but a great honour to be invited to deliver the sixth Lakshman Kadirgamar Memorial Lecture. I feel very flattered to be the next in line to the distinguished figures who have preceded me.
I am conscious too that the lives of Lakshman Kardirgamar and myself have not been exactly intertwined. Our actual connection spans only a few years when we were at Oxford together.
by P S Suryanarayana
Abstract
The X-factor that makes China view India more seriously now than at any time before is the rising interest in both Washington and New Delhi for reciprocal defence cooperation.
There is,of course, no direct evidence, at the official levels, to suggest that the United States and India have already begun to act in concert against China.
Continue reading ‘X-Factor in Sino-Indian Detente and Deterrence’ »
Kumar Sangakkara
by Rex Clementine
Sri Lanka’s struggles to gain Test status were many, but since becoming full members of the ICC in 1981, the three decade period has been an eventful one.
Sri Lanka became World Champions in ODI cricket in 1996 and on four other occasions reached finals of various ICC events, once ending joint-champions alongside India after the 2002 Champions Trophy was rained off. Over the years there have been Test wins in England, New Zealand, South Africa, Pakistan and West Indies.
Continue reading ‘Kumar Sangakkara’s Secret of Success: ‘Work,Work and More Work’’ »
by B.Kolappan
Thyagaraja Vilas, the house of the grand old man of Tamil literature (Tamil Thaatha), U.V. Swaminatha Iyer, and one of the city’s landmarks, will soon disappear.
The descendants of Iyer have reportedly sold the property at Thiruvatteeswaranpet and the buyer is demolishing the house. The inner walls have been brought down. Nameboards bearing the titles ‘Thyagaraja Vilas’ and ‘U.Ve. Swaminatha Iyer Illam’ have been removed.
The Hindu ERASING HISTORY: Demolition work in progress at U.V. Swaminatha Iyer’s house at Triplicane in Chennai on Saturday, Sep 15. Photo R. Ravindran
The man overseeing the demolition said that he worked for the buyer.
“It is really sad because it is from this house he edited and published many ancient literary works such as Silapathikaram, Patthupaatu and Ettuthogai after collecting palmleaf manuscripts from every nook and corner of the country. Even a university cannot match his efforts,” says writer Indira Parthasarathy.
Continue reading ‘Historic House in Thiruwatteeswaranpet Where ‘Thamizh Thaathaa’ Swaminatha Iyer Lived is Being Demolished’ »
by Kishali Pinto Jayewardene
It is a profound paradox of sorts that while Sri Lankans fight to save a hapless Sri Lankan housemaid from public execution in Saudi Arabia, this government itself is readying the hangman’s noose for implementation of the death penalty after more than two and a half decades of being a de facto abolitionist country.
Continue reading ‘Activation of the Death Penalty is no Solution to Our Problems’ »
By Tisaranee Gunasekara
“And the people bowed and prayed, To the neon god they made” Simon and Garfunkel (The Sound of Silence)
How more blatant can it get?
Kapilavastu relics return to India after exposition at 10 venues in Sri Lanka, Sep 12. Approx 3 million pay their respect- pic via: Syed Akbaruddin, Official Spokesperson, Ministry of External Affairs, India ~ twitter.com/AkbarMEA
President Mahinda Rajapaksa had reportedly wanted a special exposition of Kapilawastu-relics at Temple Trees.
‘Relic diplomacy’ is a standard weapon in the arsenal of those in possession of movable holy-objects, from the Catholic Church to India and China. The Rajapaksa version is relic-politics: using sacred items venerated by masses of believers as a means to bridge popularity deficits.
Continue reading ‘Provincial Poll Results Show UPFA voter base is Eroding and Rajapaksa Magic is Weakening’ »
M.A. Sumanthiran MP
by M.A. Sumanthiran MP
The Tamil People of this country have one big complaint. They’ve had it for over sixty years. The ‘democracy’ that is practised in this country since ‘independence’ in 1948 is nothing but majoritarianism.
When the colonial masters left, we were handed over to the Sinhalese to rule over us. Not even the purported protection in Section 29(2) of the Soulbury Constitution could prevent the disenfranchisement of the Tamils of recent Indian origin in 1949 and the passage of the ‘Sinhala only’ Official Language Act on 1956.
Continue reading ‘Skewed Democracy Enables Defeated UPFA to Form Govt in the East’ »
by Tisaranee Gunasekara
“What sheer unfeeling idiocy”. Rolf Hochhuth (The Deputy)
In Sri Lanka ‘War Hero’ reigns supreme; he is feted and honoured, loved and respected, invoked and venerated. In the abstract!
In the concrete, flesh and blood war heroes plant grass and pull weeds, sweep sidewalks and carry garbage, build and maintain exercise tracks for the wealthy to sweat off their gargantuan meals
Continue reading ‘Duminda, Mervyn and Malaka are the ‘Silva Symptoms’ of a Plague Called Rajapaksa Rule’ »
by Namini Wijedasa
A top US official passed through Sri Lanka last week with a fresh dose of pressure on everything from the business environment and elections to accountability and demilitarization.
Significantly, this is US Assistant Secretary of State Robert Blake’s last visit to Sri Lanka before the US presidential election. An observer of US-Sri Lanka relations commented that it is interesting to note how, even three-and-a-half years after the war ended, the US remains engaged on Sri Lanka.
Continue reading ‘Blake Visit Shows Continuing Concern of US About Sri Lanka’ »
by Ahilan Kadirgamar
With the university teachers on strike for over two months, what has been most impressive about this struggle is its national character and independence from party politics.
The public debate created by the breadth and commitment of this struggle provides great hope for rethinking our political culture and people’s participation in shaping post-war Sri Lanka.
Continue reading ‘FUTA Strike Action and Trade Unionism at Jaffna University’ »
Rehan Wijeratne (L) and Malaka Silva
by Frederica Jansz
Rehan Wijeratne was the first to arrive at Apartment 15/03 at the JAIC Hilton on Saturday September 8. The time was around 6 p.m. The apartment had been rented for a day by his best friend and buddy Malaka Silva.
The two boys have told their friends that they had done so in order to watch the election results of the three provinces where polling had concluded that day – Wayamba, North Central and the Eastern Provinces.
Continue reading ‘Malaka Silva,Rehan Wijeratne and the Assault on an Army Major: What Really Happened?’ »
By D.B.S.Jeyaraj
The Tamil National Alliance(TNA) which won eleven seats in the recently concluded elections to the Eastern Provincial Council is currently facing a serious crisis of a bizarre nature.
The premier political formation of the Sri Lankan Tamils that garnered almost 90 % of the Tamil votes in the East has to now cope with the task of “quarantining” the newly elected councillors in safe and secure locations in a bid to ensure that the provincial legislators are not “pressured” into joining the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) Administration to be set up soon.
Continue reading ‘Military Intelligence Operatives ‘Pressure’ TNA Eastern Councillors Into Supporting UPFA Administration’ »
By D.B.S. Jeyaraj
While parties such as the Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Puligal(TMVP), Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC)and the All Ceylon Muslim Congress (ACMC) want to gain the chief ministership of the Eastern Provincial Council, the United Peoples Freedom Alliance(UPFA)led Government of President Mahinda Rajapaksa seems to have chosen Najeeb Abdul Majeed from Kinniya in Trincomalee district for the coveted post.
A decision to this effect was made by a high level ministerial committee appointed by President Rajapaksa to determine the choice of a new Eastern Provincial chief minister and composition of the provincial ministerial board.
Continue reading ‘Govt wants to appoint Najeeb Abdul Majeed of SLFP as First Muslim Chief Minister of Eastern Province’ »
(London, September 15, 2012) – The United Kingdom should immediately suspend deportations to Sri Lanka of ethnic Tamils with real or imputed links to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) or who have engaged in activities the Sri Lankan authorities might view as anti-government, Human Rights Watch said today.
The next scheduled deportation of Tamils from the United Kingdom to Sri Lanka is due to take place on September 19, 2012.
Continue reading ‘Human Rights Watch Urges UK to Halt Deportation of Tamils to Sri Lanka and Urgently Review Allegations of Tamils Being Tortured’ »
An Interview with Hirunika Premachandra by Hafeel Farisz
Q:There were many “pretty faces” that spoke on different issues with the same venom that you have in the recent past like for instance Anarkalee, Upeksha, Malini Fonseka etc. What makes you different from the rest? Do you have anything beyond a “pretty face”?
Hirunika Premachandra – Pics by Kithsiri de Mel
All of them are actresses and I’m different from them. My main issue is to speak on behalf of my father and three people who were killed with him. I represent everyone who have been killing in this manner.
Continue reading ‘‘I am not Against This Govt but I am Against Certain Personalities who are part of this Govt’’ »
Hirunika Premachandra-pic: by Kithsiri de Mel
by Mike Andree
When Giuseppe Verdi wrote the lyrics and composed the music of ‘la donna è mobile’, for his opera ‘Rigoletteo’ and it was sung by the famous ‘Raffaele Mirate’, it became an instant hit.
The very next day, the whole of Venice, including the gondola boatmen and thereafter the whole of Europe, was singing this internationally famed operatic masterpiece.
Continue reading ‘Hirunika Premachandra: ‘Always a Lovely, Pretty Face, She Changes in Voice and Thought Like a Feather in the Wind’’ »
by Navamalar Kanagasuntherie
Jaffna Holy Family Convent alumni from around the world are on their way to Sri Lanka to celebrate their alma mater’s sesquicentennial in October this year
Starting with a dinner in Colombo on the 21st of October, hosted by the Colombo Branch of the School’s Past Pupils Association the celebrations will move to the School’s home town, Jaffna, where the School will celebrate the 150th Anniversary on the 25th of October, followed by the Global Union of the Alumni on the 26th.
Continue reading ‘Jaffna Holy Family Convent Celebrates sesquicentennial in October’ »
Pix by Kithsiri Gunawardana
by Risidra Mendis
A study conducted by the Joint Secretary of the Ceylon Bird Club (CBC), Kithsiri Gunawardana, on ground nesting Terns at the Adams Bridge Islands in Mannar, has revealed that many species are breeding and producing young successfully.
The Adams Bridge Islands and Thalaimannar have become a breeding ground for a wide variety of Terns, including Little Terns, Roseate Terns, Bridled Terns, Saunders Terns, Large Crested Terns and Sooty Terns, since the end of the war.
Continue reading ‘Ground-Nesting Terns in Mannar are Breeding and Producing Young Successfully’ »
by D.B.S. Jeyaraj
Sinhala and Tamil are Constitutionally recognized as Official languages in Sri Lanka but there are many miles to go before Tamil achieves parity of status with Sinhala in the Island.
While the necessary legislation for language equality exists on paper and has been accepted by all shades of political opinion in Sri Lanka implementation of language provisions on ground has been extremely slow and tardy leaving much to be desired.
Continue reading ‘Equality of Languages to be Enforced on Currency Notes and Pharmaceuticals’ »
By Jagath Gunawardana
To many in Sri Lanka, bird watching denotes a long excursion to a far-off location to observe some unusual, illusive and rare birds. But, unknown by many is that all areas of the country, including busy and urbanized cities, still support a lot of wildlife, especially birds.
This situation is even true for Colombo. My bird list for Colombo has over 100 species, including seabirds and other rare species. But, any home garden in any township will definitely harbour several species of birds, and the larger and more foliaged the garden is, the more species it will have.
Continue reading ‘Birdwatching in an Urban Environment is Possible’ »
By Pranay Sharma
The Road To Antipathy
-August 13: DMK-sponsored TESO conference in support of Tamil minority in Sri Lanka held in Chennai
-Sept 2: AIADMK leader and state chief minister Jayalalitha ask Sri Lankan football teams to leave TN
-September 3: Sri Lanka issues travel advisory, asks its nationals to stay away from Tamil Nadu
-September 4: Sri Lankan pilgrims visiting Christian shrines in the state stoned by demonstrators
– September 6: Delhi assures Sri Lanka all steps will be taken to safeguard safety and security of Lankan nationals
***
Panic-stricken Sri Lankan pilgrims huddled in a convoy of buses with broken window panes and smashed windshields while being rushed to the Tiruchi airport in Tamil Nadu under heavy police security as they flee India—it’s hardly a picture to promote good neighbourly relations and strengthen the credentials of the world’s largest democracy.
Continue reading ‘Anti Sri Lanka Wave in Tamil Nadu is Born of New Political Compulsions’ »
by Dharisha Bastians
On Friday (7) afternoon, the eve of provincial council elections in three provinces, a certain gathering took place at 101, Rosmead Place, which houses the corporate offices of Democratic National Alliance (DNA) National List Parliamentarian, Tiran Alles.
Consultations that lasted for hours, took place between Alles and UNP Deputy Leader Sajith Premadasa and a few of the DNA MP’s other close associates.
Continue reading ‘Political pickles and quicksilver fortunes’ »
Sri Lankan singer Ashanti-pic: The Hindu
by Madhulika Gautama
Sri Lankan artiste Ashanti has a string of sobriquets attached to her name. She is affectionately called the ‘Darling of Sri Lankan Music”; sometimes more formally “The Queen of Sri Lankan Hip Hop”.
But none impress as much as her distinction of being the youngest and only female artiste from the island to have been signed by an international record label: Universal Music.
Continue reading ‘Ashanti: Darling of Sri Lankan Music Teams up with Benny Dayal to Give Peace a Chance’ »
By S.S. Selvanayagam
The legal battle between Ceylon Biscuits Ltd, the manufacturer of the ‘Munchee’ brand of biscuits, and biscuit titan Maliban Biscuit Manufactories Ltd. has been amicably settled.
The settlement was arrived at as the Defendant Maliban Biscuit Manufactories agreed to change its trade dress, which the Plaintiff Ceylon Biscuits Ltd. alleged had been its trade dress for ‘Munchee Hawaian Cookies’ and ‘Munchee Lite Marie’ products.
Continue reading ‘‘Biscuit Battle’ Ends in Sri Lanka as Maliban and Munchee Reach Settlement in Court Case’ »
SLMC leader Rauff Hakeem – pic courtesy of: AlJazeera
by D.B.S. Jeyaraj
The Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) which has the power to determine which political formation could form a viable administration in the Eastern Provincial Council is yet to arrive at a decision formally.
However informed sources revealed that unofficial discussions are currently on between the party and Government circles and that the SLMC is very likely to support the United Peoples Freedom Alliance(UPFA)in setting up the Eastern province administration and will be an integral part of the new dispensation.
Continue reading ‘Muslim Congress will support UPFA in East but remains officially ‘Undecided’ still’ »
By M. S. Shah Jahan writing from Tamilnadu
Is Tamilnadu hostile to Lankan visitors?
No not at all!
It is only a splinter group known as Eelamists do involve in such activities to gain publicity.
Ranganathan Street T Nagar-pic via: wikipedia.
Politically this group including the ardent Tiger supporter, Vaiko’s MDMK has no strength in the state even to save deposit in a legislative election in any electorate of the state contesting on their own.
Continue reading ‘Except for Eelamist Groups Tamilnadu on the Whole is not hostile to Lankan visitors!’ »
Portrait of Bharathiyar in Chennai (1920)
by C.N.Annadurai
(Former Tamil Nadu Chief minister “Arignar” C.N.Annadurai, M.A. Delivered his first English Speech over the All India Radio on Bharathi:THE PEOPLE’S POET” in the Year 1948. The text of that speech is posted here to commemorate the 91st death anniversary of the bard on September 11th)
Mandolin Instrumental ~ Bharathiyar Song ~ Kaaikkai Siraginile ~ Rendered by ‘Madolin’ U. Srinivas
PEOPLE’S POET!
C.N.Annadurai – pic: The Hindu
Charming and significant as the term is, it is a warm tribute not only to the poet but also to the people – for the people had their monarchs and ministers, their warriors and saviours, their seers and saints, miracle – mongers and priests, but had no poets – and from ages past there were poets in abundance, poets who supplemented the scriptures or who polished the palaces by their poetry, but poets who sang for and about the people, in the people’s tongue, were very very rare.
Continue reading ‘Subramania Bharathiyar: The People’s Poet’ »
by Camelia Nathaniel
Local election monitoring bodies Sunday ruled the Provincial Council Elections in the North Central, Eastern and Sabaragamuwa Provinces as neither free nor fair.
Campaign for Free and Fair Elections (CaFFE), People’s Action for Free and Fair Elections (PAFFREL) and the Network for Election Monitoring of Intellectuals for Human Rights (NEM-IHR), at the culmination of Saturday’s polling said the elections had not been held in a fair and free manner.
Continue reading ‘Three Provincial Elections Were not Free nor Fair Allege Election Monitors CAFFE,PAFFEREL and NEMIHR’ »
President Mahinda Rajapaksa addressing the 58th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference. Picture by Sudath Silva
by Mahinda Rajapaksa
(Text of address by President Mahinda Rajapaksa at the 58th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference in Colombo on September 11th 2012)
As the current Vice Patron of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, I am pleased to welcome all delegates to this 58th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference in Colombo and honoured to address you on this occasion.
Continue reading ‘There Cannot be Peace Without Development or Development Without Peace’ »
By Salma Yusuf
Walking into the auditorium of Jaffna College Vaddukodai last week was not overwhelming as a sea of smiling faces came way. Rather, what instantly struck us was the effervescence that filled the air in a room of nearly 500 youth from all ethnic and religious communities, who had come together from the 22 districts of the country to the culturally and historically reputed seat of learning, in the hope of playing their part in national reconciliation.
Video Interviews from FUTA Citizen Channel
Dr. Nirmal Ranjith Dewasiri explaining why arbitration is unacceptable in resolving the issues regarding the FUTA trade union action and the main decisions of the FUTA executive committee meeting held on the 11th of September 2012:
Continue reading ‘FUTA Strike Action: Why Voluntary Arbitration is Unacceptable’ »
by Leena Manimekalai
One has no options but to be aghast of the fact that even after 64 years of Independence and a 30-year civil war, there is negligible devolution of power to the Tamils under a rigid unitary constitution of Sri Lanka. Even after the horrendous genocide committed by the Mahinda Rajapaksa regime, which claimed at least 40,000 civilians towards the closing stages of the war in 2009, the traditional homelands of Tamils are still militarised.
With growing authoritarianism of the Sri Lankan government and increasing incidents of human rights abuses and excesses in the island nation, Tamils are left with no hope but memories of terror and loss.
Continue reading ‘Total Sri Lanka Boycott Call is very Glamorous and Sensational but Would Barely Affect Rajapaksa’ »
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh
by Pritish Nandy
Middle class India has few heroes. Once in a while we find someone. But even before he can settle in, we are disenchanted. Either he fails to live up to our high expectations after the first burst of success, like those guys who win crores on KBC and then vanish into the woodwork.
Or worse, he swiftly morphs into monstrous money making machine. Like some of our sportsmen and movie stars.
Continue reading ‘(Manmohan) Singh is not King any More’ »
By Gagani Weerakoon
Aggrieved Sri Lankan Tamil parents, whose children have been forcibly taken away by Norwegian Child Welfare Authorities and placed in foster care, are planning to launch a hunger strike, taking their campaign for justice and to get back their children, to the next level and create a broader global awareness about the actions of the Norwegian Government.
Continue reading ‘Children From 60 Tamil Families in Norway Taken Away by Authorities and Placed Under Foster Care’ »
Sivanesathurai Chandrakanthan alias “Pillaiyan”
by D.B.S. Jeyaraj
Sivanesathurai Chandrakanthan alias “Pillaiyan” is likely to be appointed as Chief Minister of the Eastern Province for the second time if the ruling United Peoples Freedom Alliance(UPFA)forms the Eastern Provincial Council Administration again.
Chandrakanthan alias Pillaiyan is the head of the Tamil Makkal Viduthalaigap Puligal(TMVP)which is a faction that broke away from the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam(LTTE) in 2004.
Continue reading ‘‘Pillaiyan’ may become Eastern Province Chief Minister for the second time’ »
by Col R Hariharan
Chinese defence minister’s visit to Sri Lanka: an Indian perspective
China’s Defence Minister General Liang Guanglie’s visited Sri Lanka for five days from August 29, 2012. The first-ever visit by a Chinese defence minister to Sri Lanka with an entourage of 23 members indicates the ever increasing Chinese interest in the island nation.
The defence minister called upon President Rajapaksa and met with the Secretary of Defence Gotabaya Rajapaksa.
Continue reading ‘India Must Upgrade its Relationship with Sri Lanka so That China Gets the Message’ »
by D.B.S. Jeyaraj
The Tamil National Alliance(TNA)which contested the Eastern Provincial Council elections under the House symbol of the Ilankai Thamil Arasu Katchi(ITAK) has initiated moves to form the Eastern provincial administration despite the party coming second in the hustings with eleven seats in the thirty-seven member council.
The United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) with twelve seats edged out the TNA by one seat to become the party with the most number of seats in the Eastern council. Coming first entitled the UPFA to additional bonus seats of two thus taking its total to fourteen.
Continue reading ‘TNA Trying to Form Eastern Administration with UNP Support under Muslim Chief Minister’ »
Dr. Tanya Ekanayaka
by D.B.S. Jeyaraj
Jaffna described as the cultural capital of the Sri Lankan Tamils has for decades been a war affected region. The absence of military conflict in recent times has afforded an opportunity for the ravaged people to re-build their battered lives.
Many hands of concern and amity have been extended in friendship towards the North as its denizens strive to restore tranquility and harmony into their shattered society.
Music workshop conducted by Dr.Tanya Ekanayaka in Northern Sri Lanka, 31, Aug 2012
Genuine people to people contact of a heartfelt nature at multiple levels is providing the healing touch which a society wounded by war requires so badly.
Continue reading ‘Post-War Jaffna Children Feel The Healing Touch of Music’ »
Sri Lanka cricket legends Mahela Jayawardena and Kumar Sangakkara launched the 2012 Murali Harmony Cup on Saturday by opening the newly-built IODR Oval in the previously war-affected northern town of Oddusuddan in Mullaitivu Province.
The school cricket ground is the flagship venue of the 20-team reconciliation tournament staged to promote community-building and friendship in post-war Sri Lanka.
Continue reading ‘Murali Harmony Cup Cricket Tournament in the North launched by Mahela and Sanga’ »
M.A. Sumanthiran MP
by M.A Sumanthiran .M.P.
A Protest rightly understood is a form of mass communication with the intent to persuade policy change. The freedom to protest is characteristic of a healthy democratic society.
It is a safeguard mechanism for the rights of the marginalized. Bertrand Russell argued that the most salient facts in a nationally contested issue are often lost in conventional mediums because those with unpopular views are given limited space by the mainstream media to make their case. Niche news doesn’t sell papers.
Continue reading ‘Sri Lanka: Noisily Divided House is Waking up its Neighbours’ »
By Tisaranee Gunasekara
“We were given a King; Come, Rally, All as One.”
(UPFA Propaganda Song)
Last week Sri Lanka won her first Paralympic Medal.
Sooner, or later, the credit for that triumph would be laid at some Rajapaksa-door, though Lankan Paralympic-entrants were left to fend for themselves even more than Lankan Olympic-entrants.
As the winner of that lonely Bronze told the BBC, “I have to buy all the equipment, shoes and clothes, everything from my own salary. I did not get sponsorship for my training…”
Continue reading ‘The Myth of a Rajapaksa Family of Supermen’ »
by Leon Berenger
The travel industry is feeling the crunch of the government’s ban on pilgrim tours to Tamil Nadu where scores of pilgrims have been stoned by mobs.
Indian media reports have accused supporters of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, Jeyalalithaa Jeyaram, who is spearheading an anti-Sri Lanka campaign of carrying out the attacks. However, in Colombo, the Deputy External Affairs Minister, Neomal Perera has accused Tiger guerrilla groups.
Continue reading ‘Travel Industry Feels Crunch of Govt Ban on Pilgrim Tours to Tamil Nadu’ »
by C.A.Chandraprema
As the provincial election campaign came to a close, the incident where some Sri Lankan pilgrims were attacked by Tamil extremists in Tamil Nadu overshadowed everything else.
The election was completely forgotten due to this incident.
Continue reading ‘Tamil Extremists Attack Sri Lankan pilgrims in Tamil Nadu’ »
By L.C. Arulpragasam
This article deals with the patterns, problems and some stories of Sri Lankan immigration into Italy during the period 1970 to 2000. Although it focuses on immigration into Italy, the problems discussed are common to most “new” countries of immigration.
The latter are the non-English speaking countries, which have become Sri Lankan’s most important immigrant destinations since 1980. The writer and his family lived in Rome for 30 years during this period and were able to witness the progress and problems of this immigration and to listen to some immigrants’ stories: some of them glad, some of them sad.
Continue reading ‘Sri Lankan Immigration to Italy: Reflections and Anecdotes’ »
by Dr A.C.Visvalingam, President, CIMOGG
The composition of the population of Sri Lanka is such that no one can ordinarily become its predominant leader unless he happens to be a Sinhala Buddhist.
Needless to say, the leader would make his own assessment of the stance that most Sinhala Buddhists would be likely to take in respect of important national issues and adjust his political manifesto accordingly.
Continue reading ‘Repeating ‘Mantra’ That This is a ‘Sinhala Bauddha Rata’ is Particularly Hurtful to Minorities’ »
By Vishnuguptha
“Voting is the most precious right of every citizen, and we have a moral obligation to ensure the integrity of our voting process.” -Hillary Clinton
Voting for Provincial Council elections in Eastern, Sabaragamuwa and North Central Provinces are scheduled to begin in 24 hours. Voters in these Provinces will walk and line up along the rugged roads to cast their precious ballots for the party and candidates of their choice. The question is whether this choice is made independent of any intimidation or whether it is really a free choice.
Continue reading ‘Elections Commissioner has Enormous Powers Vested in Him to Ensure Free and Fair Provincial Elections’ »
pic courtesy of: adaderana.lk
By P.K. Balachandran
The Munneswaram Kovil in Chilaw is presently at the centre of a controversy over animal sacrifice.
Although animal rights activists are among those, who are fighting for the end of this practice, the opposition voiced by the standard bearers of Sinhala-Buddhism like the Janthika Hela Urumaya (JHU), a section of Buddhist monks, and the ebullient Minister of Public Relations, Mervyn Silva, has given the movement an ethno-religious colour.
Continue reading ‘Munneswaram in Chilaw: Heritage of Ethno-Religious Harmony and Plural Worship’ »
By A.D. Ranjith Kumara
The movie Outcasts of the Islands was a 1951 film directed by British filmmaker Carol Reed based on a novel by Joseph Conrad.
It was shot on location in Ceylon in 1950, and premiered on January 2, 1952.
It also went into the annals as the first British movie that was produced on location in Ceylon before being screened here and the rest of the world.
Continue reading ‘Ranjana Thangaraja who Danced in the Carol Reed Film “Outcasts of the Islands”’ »
by Kishali Pinto Jayewardene
Making an extraordinarily acute observation, veteran broadcaster and scriptwriter Tilak Jayaratne who passed away this week after battling a killer disease with characteristic courage, pointed out in a telephone conversation with me on the phone barely two months ago that there was little point in ‘grumbling about bad political leaders or voting them out in the hope that the replacement would deliver the goods.’
Continue reading ‘Tilak Jayaratne: Indomitable Broadcaster with a Stubborn Conscience’ »
By Ayesha Zuhair
It was the most high-profile diplomatic gathering in Iran since the Islamic Revolution of 1979. As leaders from 120 non-aligned nations converged in Tehran for the 16th Summit of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) they were defying calls from both the US and Israel to shun the event.
It was a turning point not only for Iran – a country that has been ostracised for opting to follow a fiercely independent foreign policy – but for all third world nations struggling to achieve greater justice, equality, and fairness on the world stage.
Continue reading ‘Tehran NAM summit a Turning Point for Iran and all Third World Nations’ »
by Rajavarothayam Sampanthan
(Text of letter sent by TNA leader R.Sampanthan to President Mahinda Rajapaksa)
R.Sampanthan,
Member of Parliament,
Trincomalee.
President, Ilankai Tamil Arasu Kadchi (I.T.A.K.)
Parliamentary Group Leader,
Tamil National Alliance (T.N.A.)
176, Customs Road, Trincomalee.
5th September 2012.
His Excellency President Mahinda Rajapakse,
President, Democratic Socialistic Republic of Sri Lanka,
Presidential Secretariat, Colombo.
Your Excellency,
Provincial Council Election-Eastern Province- 8th September 2012
I write to you in regard to the above.
Continue reading ‘Take Steps to Ensure a Genuine Free and Fair Election is held in the Eastern Province’ »
Pradeep Sanjaya poses for ‘The Island’ with his Asian Para Games gold medal at the Bogambara Grounds in January 2011-Pix by Reemus Fernando
by Reemus Fernando
Soldier Pradeep Sanjaya proved his coach Jansz Dissanayake’s prediction right, when he won the bronze medal in the T46 400 metres at the 2012 Paralympics in London on Wednesday, to become the country’s first Paralympics medalist.
There were many doubters, when Jansz predicted that his unassuming protege would be a prospect at the Paralympics, nearly a year ago, in an interview with ‘The Island’.
Continue reading ‘Pradeep Sanjaya Injured at Kilinochchi Wins First Paralympic Medal for Sri Lanka in London’ »
by Meena Kandasamy
A visiting football team sends out the superficial message: all is well in Sri Lanka. It does not reveal that 4,000 university teachers have been striking for the past two months demanding better wages and greater spending on education, or that the government ordered the closure of all universities last week.
It conceals a genocide that claimed 1 lakh Tamil lives in 2009 and a structural racism that marginalises minorities. In enthusiastically supporting the sporting spirit, even sections of the media fail to note that the football team had no permission to play in Tamil Nadu.
Continue reading ‘Jayalalithaa has Shown how far an Autonomous State could Offer Resistance Instead of Mutely Following the Dictates of the Central Government’ »
We the undersigned are aghast and anguished by the recent decision of the government of Tamil Nadu, acting on the Chief Minister’s orders, to send back two sports teams from Sri Lanka that were in Chennai to play matches against local school teams.
Two days after the Chief Minister issued her orders, members of a Tamil nationalist group, Naam Tamizhar Iyakkam protested against a group of pilgrims from Sri Lanka visiting a church near Thanjavur.
Continue reading ‘Protesting the Forced Repatriation of Visiting Sports persons and Others from Sri Lanka’ »
By Chitra Weerarathne
The Court of Appeal yesterday committed Cabinet Minister Rishad Bathiudeen to stand trial on Contempt of Court charges following his pleading not guilty. Trial was fixed for February 13, 2013.
Bathiudeen has been charged on three counts.
The first charge is telephoning Mannar Magistrate Anthony Judeson on July 17, 2012 and attempting to interfere with a judicial order.
Continue reading ‘Appeal Court Commits Minister Bathiudeen to stand trial charges of contempt of Court’ »
Rauff Hakeem
by Dr.M.A.Mohamed Saleem
“You are with us or against us” and many other slogans President Bush used after 9/11 to force an alliance. In the forthcoming local elections, The Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) position is better described as ‘with you and also against you.’ The SLMC joined the United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) to get the 18th Amendment through Parliament, for which the party was rewarded, although the SLMC had backed Sarath Fonseka in the last Presidential Elections and the United National Party (UNP) in the parliamentary elections.
Continue reading ‘Muslim Congress Assumes People can be Fooled All the Time’ »
Shrine in Iyakkachchi, Sri Lanka North
by Kath Noble
The government has been trumpeting its success in resettling IDPs to all and sundry of late.
Hardly a week goes by without some reference to the official statistics, which indicate that at the end of July there were only 5,443 people remaining at Manik Farm, while another 7,329 were staying in welfare centres elsewhere in the Northern Province.
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