The Japanese government decided to extend an emergency grant of $2.5 million to cyclone-hit Sri Lanka, Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said Tuesday.
The emergency grant will be used to provide humanitarian assistance through international aid agencies, including food and other daily necessities.
Landslides and floods caused by a cyclone that hit the island nation in late November have killed more than 600 people.
Motegi told a press conference that Japan intends to continue providing seamless support to our long-time friend, Sri Lanka, to ensure the earliest possible recovery and reconstruction of the affected areas.”
The minister also said a disaster relief medical team returned from Sri Lanka earlier Tuesday after handling 1,250 treatments in about two weeks.
Source: KYODO NEWS
–Agencies
Comments Off on Japan to give $2.5 million in emergency aid to Sri Lanka
‘Before you study the economics, study the economists!’
400th Weekly Edition
e-Con e-News 7-13 December 2025
Who offered to suddenly call off ‘in 45 minutes’ the self-styled aragalaya, which the merchant media had been pumping up, which had been spouting hot air for months, and was now at the gates of parliament in July 2022? Who offered to crown a mere parliamentary speaker as Executive President? Is it the forever-leaving-but-never going US envoy Julie Chung or long-gone-but-forever-haunting Indian envoy Gopal Baglay? Is the former Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena a gallant, for refusing such a poisoned chalice, and upholding parliamentary decorum? Or was Abeywardena, a ‘grotesque mediocrity’ playing ‘a hero’s part’? Yet, does it matter who took on the role of undiplomatic peon delivering the instructions of their controllers in Washington &/or Delhi?
The merchants’ media can’t seem to make up their mind if it was one or the other or both, or if it matters. Whoever it was, seemed to be able to deploy both the paramilitary Special Task Force (STF) at the Speaker’s residence (to threaten or protect him, we are not told), or to assure the Speaker that such a grab for power would gain acceptance by the ‘strugglers’ (merchants, moneylenders, GNGOs, church, anarchists, nihilists, etc), a nod by the wielders of the state monopoly of violence (private & public), and thumbs up by the state monopoly of consent (the media, private & public).
‘The Moving Finger writes; &, having writ,
Moves on: nor all thy Piety nor Wit
Shall lure it back to cancel half a Line,
Nor all thy Tears wash out a Word of it.’
– Omar Khayyám
The question of who wore the outer raiment of the rainmakers on that fateful day July 13 in 2022 was given new life with the publication of a book by the then-soon-to-be-next ‘unelected’ President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s media advisor Sunanda Maddumabandara. The author appears to be a hand who writes, and yet his hand is moved by other hands. (Incidentally, this week saw the US embassy’s Chamber of Commerce (AmCham SL), sit together with Wijeya Newspapers and Unilever’s Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR), to ‘Narrate Sri Lanka’s Story’,see ee Who’s Who) Maddumabandara, as unreliable a narrator as ‘media advisors’ tend to be, claims the Speaker himself has told him it was the Indian envoy, Baglay. Maddumabandara’s master Ranil Wickremesinghe, the recovering Anglican, has been flying in all directions (except Moscow & Beijing), visiting Red Forts & diverse Hindu temples. Wickremesinghe too is heroically portrayed as having refused a poisoned chalice and upheld parliamentary decorum, and attended the book launch, though the ousted President Gotabhaya Rajapakse did not, and has chosen not to comment on the matter in his biography.
The JVP appears to have been the main (temporary) beneficiary of the aragalaya’s strivings, and was also baying at the gates of parliament that day. They were apparently not the first choice of the imperialist conspirators, though they now seem to be following the Wickremesinghe script. Wickremesinghe’s writ, which appears to echo the demands of the imperialist hegemon, sees his will being done, even if by remote control. The Island’s Shamindra Ferdinando (see ee Focus) highlights the claim made by nationalist analysts that it was the US Envoy who secretly made such demands. Ferdinando wonders who deceived the nationalists into claiming it was only the US Envoy, though all agree the ouster of a democratically elected President was a joint US-India project. The version in the Sinhala Divaina of the Ferdinando essay omits his assertion that the nationalist analysts were deceived. Anyway, such speculations ultimately appear to be diversions.
After over 500 years of imperialist invasion & intrigue, it is more than time to shed illusions. The wars in Asia (West, East, North & South), and in Africa (again, in all its compass directions) are being led and coordinated by the USA. The wars in the Ukraine & on Palestine are led by the USA, with all their running dogs in tow and on cue. The USA is now the conductor of the Concert of Europe, with its white settler territories seeking to spread their ‘occupying’ tentacles.
While much is being made of Russian President V Putin’s visit to India, the situation is fluid. While there are forces that seek a newer & better world, India was the largest English department in the world, and there are powerful interests, legacies of colonial vintage, in all our countries, who serve the imperialist hegemon’s desire for manifest destiny, as presumably ordained by their white god (see ee Quotes). The US in order to assert its dominance as the sole superpower is stalking & striding the world, seeking belligerent allies (Europe, Japan), suicidal proxies (Ukraine, Israel), fake enemies & asymmetrical foes, threatening confrontation and, when thwarted, unfurling chaos through their ‘grey channels’.
Now President (ee Agriculture, Who sowed the cyclonic wind…?)
*
Sri Lanka’s tea industry not impacted by Ditwah, traders’ body says
– see ee Agriculture
While media argues back & forth about whether early warnings about the flooding (including from India, BBC, Al Jazeera etc, always sure to send mixed messages) and conspiracy theorists (divine & secular) abound regarding extra-special seedings of clouds, by imperialists in Asia, the tea trader chose to declare their deforested plantations were untouched, even as plantation workers insist that they too suffered inundation.
In Sri Lanka, the US & Indian militaries bearing ‘gifts’ (which inevitably have to be paid back with exorbitant interest) have stomped their boots on the ground, while proclaiming to bring relief to the country. The best relief or the best aid these tax-avoiding philanthropists could give, as former PM Sirimavo Bandaranaike once quipped, is to leave the country alone. For what is given by one hand is usually taken by innumerable other hands.
While Indian companies have been handed the production of electronic ID cards, the US’ Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT aka Murder Inc) claims to have developed an information system to collect Ditwar-related data ‘free of charge’. US’ Microsoft will provide ‘the necessary technical support’; and another US Embassy outfit called GeoAI, combining AI & Geographic Information Systems (GIS) promises ‘to strengthen early warning systems, improve emergency response and enhance long-term planning.’ This is the same USA that has openly opposed (via their World Bank, and innumerable economists) and quietly subverted long-term economic planning by the Sri Lankan state (see ee Random Notes). What has happened to the numerous equipments installed in the country to supposedly early-warn us, even as they appear to be dual-use, collecting information on us & the seas around us? (see ee Who’s Who, Japan’s Doppler)
*
The new Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, packaged as a heavy-metal head-banging rock&roller, shows where she obtains her real cultural & political tunes from, by threatening to deploy even heavier metals – missiles in Taiwan against China. Warwick Powell discusses the backdrop: the paranoia (see ee Focus) the US exhibits against any North Asian alliance between Japan, China, Russia & Korea, and Japan’s purported anxieties of an ageing population, midst rising food & energy insecurity (this is what prompts their need for Sri Lankan workers in labor-intensive operations). Warwick also describe the manoeuvres of US & Europe speeding into overdrive to prevent any coming together of India, Africa, China, Russia, which they seek to blockade & strangle, like what they are doing in Cuba & Venezuela etc. Warwick doubts any major nuclear confrontation:
*
‘What’s the likelihood that
Washington will sacrifice Washington,
or put at risk Washington, New York,
Boston, Los Angeles, San Francisco,
Miami, & every other city in between,
in the name of defending Tokyo, or Seoul,
or Taipei, or Manila for that matter?‘
Warwick wonders if Japan is ready to take on the role of an Asian Ukraine, ‘to go & fight & die for the USA’. And while the USA’s vassals in Europe, Africa & Asia seek to somehow become honorary whites or equals at least, the US plan seems to be to carve out ‘geo-economic blocks’, demanding their allies ‘cut themselves off from important centers of power like China and to commit themselves solely to the USA.’
*
Should Japan have invaded Sri Lanka first, rather than attack the USA in Hawaii’s Pearl Harbor? is the subject of an extended dissertation in the LankaWeb (see ee Quotes). The Sri Lankan author Senaka Weeraratna laments, ‘Day after day we are constantly bombarded with propaganda against the Japanese & the Germans despite the end of the war 80 years ago’. The argument for Japan invading Sri Lanka first is based on the work of a Japanese militarist & prolific author of such books as How China Started the 2nd Sino-Japanese War: Why Should Japan Apologize to China? There is no mention of Japan’s colonization of China, Taiwan, or Korea, or of the massacres of 100,000s in Nanjing, etc. Weeraratna mentions DS Senanayake, Dudley Senanayake & JR Jayawardene (Ceylon) as friends & admirers of Japan. JR is credited with foregoing demands for reparations from Japan at the infamous Treaty of San Francisco in 1951, which turned Japan into a colonial US military base, with the US inscribing its constitution. JR curiously stated:
‘We in Ceylon were fortunate that we were not invaded,
but the damage caused by air raids, by the stationing of
enormous armies under the SE Asia Command,
& by the slaughter-tapping of one of our main commodities,
rubber, when we were the only producer of natural rubber for
the Allies, entitles us to ask that the damage so caused should
be repaired. We do not intend to do so, for we
believe in the words of the Great Teacher [Buddha]…’
The USA’s 1951 San Francisco Treaty,opposed by the USSR because China was excluded from the Conference & it violated China’s sovereignty over Taiwan, studiously gave no guarantees against theUSA’s revival of militarism in Japan, now on full display.
*
This week’s ee continues examining how socialism defeated fascism, even as the English & US hedged their bets, hoping the USSR with China & Germany with Japan would all destroy each other. It was the Red Armies of the USSR & China that held off & vanquished the brunt of the fascist attacks. Again, Roy Singham delivers incredible statistics on the sacrifice made. The Nazi Yellow Stars that Jews were later forced to wear were preceded by forcing Communists to wear Red Triangles:
*
‘Before fascism turned outward to conquer nations,
it perfected mass murder at home. Fascism’s first
victims were domestic communists from 1931-45’
It was communists arrested in the 1,000s who filled the first concentration camps. Here in this ee Focus you can read of the love affair between the USA’s Henry Ford & the Nazi leader Adolf Hitler: ‘Western leaders did not just know – they applauded’. US media praised Hitler’s anti-communist violence as ‘necessary housekeeping’, revealing ‘capitalism’s preference for fascism over socialism.’ Again, fascism itself had its roots in the colonization of much of the world, and particularly in the practices of the settler colonies.
*
The development pattern of the white settler colonies is the focus of Chapter 4 of SBD de Silva’s classic The Political Economy of Underdevelopment. This ee Focus concludes this chapter, which seeks to also explain the seeming exceptions in the Congo & IndoChina (Vietnam), to SBD’s division of the world into settler & non-settler colonies. While exhibiting certain advanced features, the Congo & IndoChina’s basically colonial status prevented their advance into the ranks of developed countries. The settler colonies focused on their home markets & developed their societies, while non-settler colonies are constantly told to focus on exports, giving over our home markets to multinational corporations (MNCs) like England’s Unilever in Sri Lanka. The settler colonies fought major battles with their European governments even as they repressed the indigenous peoples.
This ee discusses more fully the example of Vietnam’s economy, which was subject to genocidal wars waged by the Japanese, French & US governments. SBD discussed how industrial development took place in Indochina before WW2, due to ‘adventitious factors’ such as being far from France, and a ‘balcony on the Far East’. Large numbers were employed in a range of industries. SBD de Silva, however, examines what ‘made the French Parliament & industrialists willing to finance Ferry’s conquest of Tonkin’. He also detailed the 3 devices France used ‘to pre-empt the Indochinese market’. He noted how Indochina’s exports to France were regulated, while ‘French goods could enter Indochina freely’.
*
ee Focus also continues Gustavus Myers’ 1917 History of Tammany Hall. Here Myers, even as he drearily narrates the system of organized bribery in New York involving the monopolies – traction, railroad, telephone, electric lighting, industrial & other financial interests – finally highlights the criticism by US socialists, of so-called ‘anti-corruption campaigns’:
‘The political ‘bosses’ were only the tools of the great financial
& industrial magnates; & that where the political ‘bosses’
gathered in their millions, the magnates accumulated their 10s
or 100s of millions of dollars as their individual fortunes.
Why, queried the Socialists, concentrate attention on the instruments?
Why not, said they, attack the power of the whole social, political
& industrial system of which the political ‘boss’ was merely one
expression? This system, according to the Socialist party, was the
capitalist system for the overthrow of which they declared & agitated.’
It makes most of us inquisitive to know, how the routine use of AI would impact the way the learners go about their learning process, acquire necessary cognitive skills, etc. A new report published by Oxford University Press says that AI makes students gain speed but lose depth in thinking.
Many students say that the AI helps them think faster and solve difficult problems. However, the experts in the field say that this fluency comes at a cost. Further, the authors say that the students are now getting used to think alongside machines and gain fluency and speed in processing data but losing the depth that comes from pausing, questioning, and thinking independently.
This situation reminds us of the case where the ability of mental math, which many in the older generations used to hold as a valuable skill, faded away with the introduction of the calculators. Did we lose anything in this major technological shift? While calculators bring efficiency and accuracy, this technological shift has led to a trade-off where some of the fundamental cognitive skills and intuitive understanding of mathematics are less developed in newer generations. Similar trade-offs are inevitable with the introduction of AI too.
The authors of the above report added that, “The true challenge ahead is not mastering technology but safeguarding the depth of human thought in an age of synthetic cognition and artificial intelligence.”
What is ‘synthetic cognition’? Before trying to understand what ‘synthetic cognition’ is, let us examine the meaning of ‘cognition’. Cognition is defined as the mental action or process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, experience, and the senses. As one would appreciate the emphasis here is on thinking, experiencing and sensing. These are deliberate actions to be undertaken by the learners. However, the ‘synthetic cognition’, as Oxford researchers call it, reflects a new kind of thinking emerging among what they dub as the “AI-native generation” — teenagers who have grown up learning side by side with algorithms. Algorithms are known as processes or sets of rules to be followed in calculations or other problem-solving operations, especially by a computer. In summary, the cognition which is generally understood as a deliberate effort by the learner is now relegated to a process that is dependent on rules that are set for and by a computer (synthetic cognition).
Artificial intelligence (AI) has become an integral part of daily life, streamlining everything from search queries to complex decision-making. While AI tools offer convenience and efficiency, they also raise concerns about cognitive offloading—the process of delegating cognitive tasks to external aids. As reliance on AI grows, experts warn that it could diminish critical-thinking skills and alter fundamental cognitive processes. It is not about avoiding its use entirely; the incorporation of AI is essential for the advancement of our societies. However, it is advisable to learn how to use it properly and in a balanced manner.
INFLUENCE OF AI ON critical thinking
Recent studies investigating how the use of AI influences cognitive abilities bring several important issues to light. Studies observed a negative link between frequent AI use and critical-thinking skills, indicating that people who depend heavily on automated systems may find it harder to think independently. One reason for this is cognitive offloading. This means regular AI users tend to engage less in deep, analytical thought and instead opt for quick answers produced by AI.
The studies also looked at how age and education affected reliance on AI. Younger participants showed greater dependence on AI tools and performed worse on critical-thinking tests than older individuals. In contrast, those with higher levels of education maintained stronger reasoning skills even when exposed to AI. Moreover, greater trust in AI-generated material lowered the likelihood that users would verify information themselves, contributing to a drop in healthy skepticism.
A further concern raised in the studies involve algorithmic bias and how it shapes the information users encounter. AI systems often present content based on past user behavior, which can reinforce existing beliefs and reduce access to differing viewpoints. Notably, the studies report a non-linear connection between AI use and cognitive effects—moderate use did not significantly weaken critical-thinking abilities, but overreliance resulted in declining cognitive performance.
EFFECTS ON education and decision-making
Research findings raise important concerns about how AI influences both education and professional decision-making. In classrooms, AI tools can make learning more efficient, but they may also reduce students’ motivation to practice problem-solving and analytical thinking. When learners rely on AI-generated answers instead of working through challenges themselves, their cognitive flexibility and ability to evaluate information may decline.
Educational researchers highlight the above issue, noting that essential intellectual skills must be cultivated from early childhood—particularly during adolescence. They emphasize that educators have a responsibility to ensure that young people actively engage in meaningful cognitive effort.
In professional environments, excessive dependence on AI can similarly weaken analytical skills. The problem is compounded by algorithmic biases, which can lead users to accept AI-generated recommendations without questioning the assumptions behind them. A careful balance is needed between leveraging AI tools and maintaining strong human judgment.
(Dr. Gamini Padmaperuma is a Chartered Professional Engineer, Honorary Fellow Member of the IESL, former Director, Academic Affairs at Saegis Campus and Senior Lecturer at OUSL. He holds a PhD in Instructional Design for Computer-Based Learning from the University of Canterbury, New Zealand and can be contacted at gamini_pad@hotmail.com)
Comments Off on Synthetic Cognition and AI: Making Students Faster but Shallower Thinkers
The first successful human implant of a 3D-printed cornea made from human eye cells cultured in a laboratory has restored a patient’s sight.
The North Carolina-based company that developed the cornea described the procedure as a ‘world first’—and a major milestone toward its goal of alleviating the lack of available donor tissue and long wait-times for people seeking transplants.
According to Precise Bio, its robotic bio-fabrication approach could potentially turn a single donated cornea into hundreds of lab-grown grafts, at a time when there’s currently only one available for an estimated 70 patients who need one to see.
This achievement marks a turning point for regenerative ophthalmology—a moment of real hope for millions living with corneal blindness,” Aryeh Batt, Precise Bio’s co-founder and CEO, said in a statement.
What a privilege it was to connect with Dr. Ruwan M. Jayatunge, M.D. PhD. We spoke about the nature of suffering, Buddhism, happiness, Dostoyevsky, Tolstoy, Nietzsche, and his work across the globe, treating patients with PTSD. I promise you that if you listen to this conversation with an open mind and with good intentions, you will walk away a better person. I hope you enjoy today’s episode of the Max Depth Podcast.
Colombo, Dec. 15 (Daily Mirror) – Sri Lanka could face an economic crisis by the Sinhala New Year 2026, fueled by Cyclone Ditwah as it has been predicted by former President Ranil Wickremesinghe, United National Party (UNP) Deputy General Secretary Harin Fernando said today.
Sri Lanka is moving towards a forex crisis. Remember what I said today (December 15 2025) and you will understand it on April 15 2026,” the UNP Deputy General Secretary said.
Comments Off on Sri Lanka could face economic crisis by Sinhala New Year: Harin
Red landslide warnings have been issued by the National Building Research Organisation (NBRO) to residents of several Divisional Secretariat divisions in the Kandy District.
The warning issued by the NBRO will remain in effect until 4:00 p.m. tomorrow (16).
Accordingly, red landslide warnings remain in effect for Udadumbara, Dolosbage, Minipe, Medadumbara and Ganga Ihala Korale Divisional Secretariat divisions in the Kandy District.
Additionally, the National Building Research Organisation has issued level two landslide warnings for several other divisional secretariat divisions.
Comments Off on Several areas in Kandy remain under red landslide warning
A total of 640 schools in the Uva, Central and North Western provinces will not reopen tomorrow, the Secretary to the Ministry of Education, Nalaka Kaluwewe has announced.
Schools that were closed due to the disaster situation caused by Cyclone Ditwah are scheduled to reopen island-wide tomorrow (16).
Accordingly, the Ministry of Education convened principals, teachers, and non-academic staff today (15) to undertake necessary preparations for the reopening of schools.
Secretary Nalaka Kaluwewe noted that 640 schools affected by the disaster in three provinces will be unable to resume academic activities tomorrow.
A total of 524 schools in the Uva Province, 111 schools in the Central Province and five schools in the North Western Province will remain closed.
The Ministry of Education further announced that a relaxed policy will be implemented with regard to school uniforms for students, as well as academic and non-academic staff, in areas affected by the disaster.
Comments Off on 640 schools in three provinces will not reopen tomorrow – Secretary
As a result of the ‘Ditwah’ disaster, 6,164 houses have been completely destroyed, and another 112,110 houses have been partially damaged.
Meanwhile, as of December 14, 72,911 individuals are residing in 796 safe locations.
Furthermore, 15,000 houses have been identified as being located in current high-risk zones.
These figures were revealed yesterday (15) during a meeting of the National Council for Disaster Management, chaired by the President.
During the meeting, a Cabinet memorandum was presented regarding the establishment of a National Integrated Disaster Management Mechanism and proposed amendments to the Sri Lanka Disaster Management Act, No. 13 of 2005.
Comments Off on Over 6,000 homes destroyed by Ditwah disaster
COLOMBO, December 15, 2025: The World Bank Group has expressed deep sorrow over the devastation caused by Cyclone Ditwah in Sri Lanka.
In response to the Government’s request, the Bank is making up to US$120 million in emergency support available by repurposing funds from ongoing projects. This assistance will help restore essential services and infrastructure—including healthcare, water, education, agriculture and connectivity—in the areas most severely affected.
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, will continue strengthening the private sector through advisory support and strategic investments in key sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing and logistics, including support for MSMEs, to create jobs and drive economic recovery.
To guide recovery efforts, a Global Rapid Post-Disaster Damage Estimation (GRADE) assessment is already underway in partnership with the Global Facility for Disaster Risk Reduction (GFDRR). This rapid assessment will provide credible estimates of disaster impacts to inform early decisions and better target response and recovery efforts.
The Bank is also working closely with the Government as it prepares broader recovery measures, including the Rebuilding Sri Lanka” Fund and the next phase of post-disaster needs assessments.
Our hearts go out to every Sri Lankan affected by Cyclone Ditwah. We are inspired by how communities across the country have come together to support each other during this difficult time,” said Gevorg Sargsyan, World Bank Group Country Manager for Sri Lanka and Maldives. The World Bank Group is committed to helping Sri Lanka restore livelihoods, accelerate economic recovery and rebuild stronger, safer and more resilient communities.”
Looking ahead, the World Bank Group stands ready to work with the Government to mobilise additional resources based on GRADE assessment findings and the financing needs for recovery and resilient reconstruction. We will also make necessary adjustments in our future programs to accommodate the impacts of this crisis.”
The World Bank Group emphasised that support will be delivered quickly, transparently and effectively, with strong oversight mechanisms in place alongside implementing agencies and local authorities.
Comments Off on World Bank pledges USD 120mn support for Sri Lanka
Cyclone Ditwah has come and gone, leaving a trail of extensive damage to the country’s infrastructure, including buildings, roads, bridges, and 70% of the railway network. Thousands of hectares of farming land have been destroyed. Last but not least, nearly 1,000 people have lost their lives, and more than two million people have been displaced. The visuals uploaded to social media platforms graphically convey the widespread destruction Cyclone Ditwah has caused in our country.
The purpose of my article is to highlight, for the benefit of readers and the general public, how a project to establish a Doppler Weather Radar system, conceived in 2007, remains incomplete after 18 years. Despite multiple governments, shifting national priorities, and repeated natural disasters, the project remains incomplete.
Over the years, the National Audit Office, the Committee on Public Accounts (COPA), and several print and electronic media outlets have highlighted this failure. The last was an excellent five-minute broadcast by Maharaja Television Network on their News First broadcast in October 2024 under a series What Happened to Sri Lanka”
The Agreement Between the Government of Sri Lanka and the World Meteorological Organisation in 2007.
The first formal attempt to establish a Doppler Radar system dates back to a Trust Fund agreement signed on 24 May 2007 between the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) and the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO). This agreement intended to modernize Sri Lanka’s meteorological infrastructure and bring the country on par with global early-warning standards.
The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations established on March 23, 1950. There are 193 member countries of the WMO, including Sri Lanka. Its primary role is to promote the establishment of a worldwide meteorological observation system and to serve as the authoritative voice on the state and behaviour of the Earth’s atmosphere, its interaction with the oceans, and the resulting climate and water resources.
According to the 2018 Performance Audit Report compiled by the National Audit Office, the GoSL entered into a trust fund agreement with the WMO to install a Doppler Radar System. The report states that USD 2,884,274 was deposited into the WMO bank account in Geneva, from which the Department of Metrology received USD 95,108 and an additional USD 113,046 in deposit interest. There is no mention as to who actually provided the funds. Based on available information, WMO does not fund projects of this magnitude.
The WMO was responsible for procuring the radar equipment, which it awarded on 18th June 2009 to an American company for USD 1,681,017. According to the audit report, a copy of the purchase contract was not available.
Monitoring the agreement’s implementation was assigned to the Ministry of Disaster Management, a signatory to the trust fund agreement. The audit report details the members of the steering committee appointed by designation to oversee the project. It consisted of personnel from the Ministry of Disaster Management, the Departments of Metrology, National Budget, External Resources and the Disaster Management Centre.
The Audit Report highlights failures in the core responsibilities that can be summarized as follows:
· Procurement irregularities—including flawed tender processes and inadequate technical evaluations.
· Poor site selection
—proposed radar sites did not meet elevation or clearance requirements.
· Civil works delays
—towers were incomplete or structurally unsuitable.
· Equipment left unused
—in some cases for years, exposing sensitive components to deterioration.
· Lack of inter-agency coordination
—between the Meteorology Department, Disaster Management Centre, and line ministries.
Some of the mistakes highlighted are incomprehensible. There is a mention that no soil test was carried out before the commencement of the construction of the tower. This led to construction halting after poor soil conditions were identified, requiring a shift of 10 to 15 meters from the original site. This resulted in further delays and cost overruns.
The equipment supplier had identified that construction work undertaken by a local contractor was not of acceptable quality for housing sensitive electronic equipment. No action had been taken to rectify these deficiencies. The audit report states, It was observed that the delay in constructing the tower and the lack of proper quality were one of the main reasons for the failure of the project”.
In October 2012, when the supplier commenced installation, the work was soon abandoned after the vehicle carrying the heavy crane required to lift the radar equipment crashed down the mountain. The next attempt was made in October 2013, one year later. Although the equipment was installed, the system could not be operationalised because electronic connectivity was not provided (as stated in the audit report).
In 2015, following a UNOPS (United Nations Office for Project Services) inspection, it was determined that the equipment needed to be returned to the supplier because some sensitive electronic devices had been damaged due to long-term disuse, and a further 1.5 years had elapsed by 2017, when the equipment was finally returned to the supplier. In March 2018, the estimated repair cost was USD 1,095,935, which was deemed excessive, and the project was abandoned.
COPA proceedings
The Committee on Public Accounts (COPA) discussed the radar project on August 10, 2023, and several press reports state that the GOSL incurred a loss of Rs. 78 million due to the project’s failure. This, I believe, is the cost of constructing the Tower. It is mentioned that Rs. 402 million had been spent on the radar system, of which Rs. 323 million was drawn from the trust fund established with WMO. It was also highlighted that approximately Rs. 8 million worth of equipment had been stolen and that the Police and the Bribery and Corruption Commission were investigating the matter.
JICA support and project stagnation
Despite the project’s failure with WMO, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) entered into an agreement with GOSL on June 30, 2017 to install two Doppler Radar Systems in Puttalam and Pottuvil. JICA has pledged 2.5 billion Japanese yen (LKR 3.4 billion at the time) as a grant. It was envisaged that the project would be completed in 2021.
Once again, the perennial delays that afflict the GOSL and bureaucracy have resulted in the groundbreaking ceremony being held only in December 2024. The delay is attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic and Sri Lanka’s economic crisis.
The seven-year delay between the signing of the agreement and project commencement has led to significant cost increases, forcing JICA to limit the project to installing only one Doppler Radar system in Puttalam.
Impact of the missing radar during Ditwah
As I am not a meteorologist and do not wish to make a judgment on this, I have decided to include the statement issued by JICA after the groundbreaking ceremony on December 24, 2024.
In partnership with the Department of Meteorology (DoM), JICA is spearheading the establishment of the Doppler Weather Radar Network in the Puttalam district, which can realize accurate weather observation and weather prediction based on the collected data by the radar. This initiative is a significant step in strengthening Sri Lanka’s improving its climate resilience including not only reducing risks of floods, landslides, and drought but also agriculture and fishery.
Based on online research, a Doppler Weather Radar system is designed to observe weather systems in real time. While the technical details are complex, the system essentially provides localized, uptotheminute information on rainfall patterns, storm movements, and approaching severe weather. Countries worldwide rely on such systems to issue timely alerts for monsoons, tropical depressions, and cyclones. It is reported that India has invested in 30 Doppler radar systems, which have helped minimize the loss of life.
Without radar, Sri Lanka must rely primarily on satellite imagery and foreign meteorological centres, which cannot capture the finescale, rapidly changing weather patterns that often cause localized disasters here.
The general consensus is that, while no single system can prevent natural disasters, an operational Doppler Radar almost certainly would have strengthened Sri Lanka’s preparedness and reduced the extent of damage and loss.
Conclusion
Sri Lanka’s inability to commission a Doppler Radar system, despite nearly two decades of attempts, represents one of the most significant governance failures in the country’s disastermanagement history.
Audit findings, parliamentary oversight proceedings, and donor records all confirm the same troubling truth: Sri Lanka has spent public money, signed international agreements, received foreign assistance, and still has no operational radar. This raises a critical question: should those responsible for this prolonged failure be held legally accountable?
Now may not be the time to determine the extent to which the current government and bureaucrats failed the people. I believe an independent commission comprising foreign experts in disaster management from India and Japan should be appointed, maybe in six months, to identify failures in managing Cyclone Ditwah.
However, those who governed the country from 2007 to 2024 should be held accountable for their failures, and legal action should be pursued against the politicians and bureaucrats responsible for disaster management for their failure to implement the 2007 project with the WMO successfully.
Sri Lanka cannot afford another 18 years of delay. The time for action, transparency, and responsibility has arrived.
(The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the policy or position of any organization or institution with which the author is affiliated).
By Sanjeewa Jayaweera
Comments Off on Why Sri Lanka Still Has No Doppler Radar – and Who Should Be Held Accountable
The Most Venerable Denmark Meththawihari Thero, born as Jacub Jacobson, a pioneering figure in digital Buddhism and education, passed away on Sunday night, December 7, 2025, at the age of 80.
The Venerable Monk had been receiving treatment for cancer in Denmark while under the care of his sister at his home in Denmark. His passing is regarded as a significant loss to the global Buddhist community, particularly in Sri Lanka, where he spent much of his monastic life.
Funeral and Memorial Services
Final Rites: According to the Dharmavahini Foundation, his final rites and funeral ceremonies will be conducted in Denmark.
Sri Lanka Memorial: A memorial Paṁsukūla (merit-sharing) offering was held on Monday, December 8, 2025, at the Narada Buddhist Center in Colombo 7, organized by the Ajahn Brahm Society of Sri Lanka.
Legacy and Contributions
Originally born as Jacub Jacobson in Denmark, he was a successful businessman for nearly two decades before being drawn to the teachings of the Four Noble Truths and ordaining as a monk. He is best known for revolutionizing the dissemination of the Dhamma through modern technology:
Digital Buddhism: He founded metta.lk, one of the world’s first online Buddhist databases, which digitized the Tripitaka (Buddhist scriptures) in three languages.
Media Foundations: He was the founder of the Dharmavahini Channel, Sri Lanka’s first Buddhist television channel, and served as an advisor to the Saddhammavahini Channel.
Educational Impact: In response to the 2004 tsunami’s impact on education, he launched LearnTV, a 24-hour educational channel developed in collaboration with the Sri Lankan Ministry of Education to support rural students.
Cultural Support: He was a dedicated supporter of the Light of Asia Foundation, advising on projects like the Siddhartha movie and the establishment of the Sakya Kingdom.
Despite his extensive service to Sri Lanka, it was noted by associates that his application for distinguished citizenship had been rejected during his lifetime; however, he continued his work with humility until his final days.
AI Overview
https://share.google/aimode/ijaQS9aiYMTUKUxaY
German Dharmaduta Society
Comments Off on Death of Most Venerable Denmark Meththawihari Thero, a pioneering figure in digital Buddhism and education, at the age of 80 years, in Denmark
Finally, former Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena has set the record straight with regard to a controversial but never properly investigated bid to swear in him as interim President. Abeywardena has disclosed the circumstances leading to the proposal made by external powers on the morning of 13 July, 2022, amidst a large scale staged protest outside the Speaker’s official residence, situated close to Parliament.
Lastly, the former parliamentarian has revealed that it was then Indian High Commissioner, in Colombo, Gopal Baglay (May 2022 to December 2023) who asked him to accept the presidency immediately. Professor Sunanda Maddumabandara, who served as Senior Advisor (media) to President Ranil Wickremesinghe (July 2022 to September 2024), disclosed Baglay’s direct intervention in his latest work, titled ‘Aragalaye Balaya’ (Power of Aragalaya).
Prof. Maddumabandara quoted Abeywardena as having received a startling assurance that if he agreed to accept the country’s leadership, the situation would be brought under control, within 45 minutes. Baglay had assured Abeywardena that there is absolutely no harm in him succeeding President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, in view of the developing situation.
The author told the writer that only a person who had direct control over the violent protest campaign could have given such an assurance at a time when the whole country was in a flux.
One-time Vice Chancellor of the Kelaniya University, Prof. Maddumabandara, launched ‘Aragalaye Balaya’ at the Sri Lanka Foundation on 20 November. In spite of an invitation extended to former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, the ousted leader hadn’t attended the event, though UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe was there. Maybe Gotabaya felt the futility of trying to expose the truth against evil forces ranged against them, who still continue to control the despicable agenda.
Obviously, the author has received the blessings of Abeywardena and Wickremesinghe to disclose a key aspect in the overall project that exploited the growing resentment of the people to engineer change of Sri Lankan leadership.
The declaration of Baglay’s intervention has contradicted claims by National Freedom Front (NFF) leader Wimal Weerawansa (Nine: The hidden story) and award-winning writer Sena Thoradeniya (Galle Face Protest: System change for anarchy) alleged that US Ambassador Julie Chung made that scandalous proposal to Speaker Abeywardena. Weerawansa and Thoradeniya launched their books on 25 April and 05 July, 2023, at the Sri Lanka Foundation and the National Library and Documentation Services Board, Independence Square, respectively. Both slipped in accusing Ambassador Chung of making an abortive bid to replace Gotabaya Rajapaksa with Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena.
Ambassador Chung categorically denied Weerawansa’s allegation soon after the launch of ‘Nine: The hidden story’ but stopped short of indicating that the proposal was made by someone else. Chung had no option but to keep quiet as she couldn’t, in response to Weerawansa’s claim, have disclosed Baglay’s intervention, under any circumstances, as India was then a full collaborator with Western designs here for its share of spoils. Weerawansa, Thoradeniya and Maddumabandara agree that Aragalaya had been a joint US-Indian project and it couldn’t have succeeded without their intervention. Let me reproduce the US Ambassador’s response to Weerawansa, who, at the time of the launch, served as an SLPP lawmaker, having contested the 2020 August parliamentary election on the SLPP ticket.
I am disappointed that an MP has made baseless allegations and spread outright lies in a book that should be labelled ‘fiction’. For 75 years, the US [and Sri Lanka] have shared commitments to democracy, sovereignty, and prosperity – a partnership and future we continue to build together,” Chung tweeted Wednesday 26 April, evening, 24 hours after Weerawansa’s book launch.
Interestingly, Gotabaya Rajapaksa has been silent on the issue in his memoirs ‘The Conspiracy to oust me from Presidency,’ launched on 07 March, 2024.
What must be noted is that our fake Marxists, now entrenched in power, were all part and parcel of Aragalaya.
A clandestine meeting
Abeywardena should receive the appreciation of all for refusing to accept the offer made by Baglay, on behalf of India and the US. He had the courage to tell Baglay that he couldn’t accept the presidency as such a move violated the Constitution. In our post-independence history, no other politician received such an offer from foreign powers. When Baglay stepped up pressure, Abeywardena explained that he wouldn’t change his decision.
Maddumabandara, based on the observations made by Abeywardena, referred to the Indian High Commissioner entering the Speaker’s Official residence, unannounced, at a time protesters blocked the road leading to the compound. The author raised the possibility of Baglay having been in direct touch with those spearheading the high profile political project.
Clearly Abeywardena hadn’t held back anything. The former Speaker appeared to have responded to those who found fault with him for not responding to allegations, directed at him, by revealing everything to Maddumabandara, whom he described in his address, at the book launch, as a friend for over five decades.
At the time, soon after Baglay’s departure from the Speaker’s official residence, alleged co-conspirators Ven. Omalpe Sobitha, accompanied by Senior Professor of the Sinhala Faculty at the Colombo University, Ven. Agalakada Sirisumana, health sector trade union leader Ravi Kumudesh, and several Catholic priests, arrived at the Speaker’s residence where they repeated the Indian High Commissioner’s offer. Abeywardena repeated his previous response despite Sobitha Thera acting in a threatening manner towards him to accept their dirty offer. Shouldn’t they all be investigated in line with a comprehensive probe?
Ex-President Wickremesinghe with a copy of Aragalaye Balaya he received from its author, Prof. Professor Sunanda Maddumabandara, at the Sri Lanka Foundation recently (pic by Nishan S Priyantha)
On the basis of what Abeywardena had disclosed to him, Maddumabanadara also questioned the circumstances of the deployment of the elite Special Task Force (STF) contingent at the compound. The author asked whether that deployment, without the knowledge of the Speaker, took place with the intervention of Baglay.
Aragalaye Balaya
is a must read for those who are genuinely interested in knowing the unvarnished truth. Whatever the deficiencies and inadequacies on the part of the Gotabaya Rajapaksa administration, external powers had engineered a change of government. The writer discussed the issues that had been raised by Prof. Maddumabandara and, in response to one specific query, the author asserted that in spite of India offering support to Gotabaya Rajapaksa earlier to get Ranil Wickremesinghe elected as the President by Parliament to succeed him , the latter didn’t agree with the move. Then both the US and India agreed to bring in the Speaker as the Head of State, at least for an interim period.
If Speaker Abeywardena accepted the offer made by India, on behalf of those backing the dastardly US backed project, the country could have experienced far reaching changes and the last presidential election may not have been held in September, 2004.
After the conclusion of his extraordinary assignment in Colombo, Baglay received appointment as New Delhi’s HC in Canberra. Before Colombo, Baglay served in Indian missions in Ukraine, Russia, the United Kingdom, Nepal and Pakistan (as Deputy High Commissioner).
Baglay served in New Delhi, in the office of the Prime Minister of India, and in the Ministry of External Affairs as its spokesperson, and in various other positions related to India’s ties with her neighbours, Europe and multilateral organisations.
Wouldn’t it be interesting to examine who deceived Weerawansa and Thoradeniya who identified US Ambassador Chung as the secret visitor to the Speaker’s residence. Her high-profile role in support of the project throughout the period 31 March to end of July, 2022, obviously made her an attractive target but the fact remains it was Baglay who brought pressure on the then Speaker. Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena’s clarification has given a new twist to Aragalaya’ and India’s diabolical role.
Absence of investigations
Sri Lanka never really wanted to probe the foreign backed political plot to seize power by extra-parliamentary means. Although some incidents had been investigated, the powers that be ensured that the overall project remained uninvestigated. In fact, Baglay’s name was never mentioned regarding the developments, directly or indirectly, linked to the devious political project. If not for Prof. Maddumabandara taking trouble to deal with the contentious issue of regime change, Baglay’s role may never have come to light. Ambassador Chung would have remained the target of all those who found fault with US interventions. Let me be clear, the revelation of Baglay’s clandestine meeting with the Speaker didn’t dilute the role played by the US in Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s removal.
If Prof. Maddumabandara propagated lies, both the author and Abeywardana should be appropriately dealt with. Aragalaye Balaya failed to receive the desired or anticipated public attention. Those who issue media statements at the drop of a hat conveniently refrained from commenting on the Indian role. Even Abeywardena remained silent though he could have at least set the record straight after Ambassador Chung was accused of secretly meeting the Speaker. Abeywardena could have leaked the information through media close to him. Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Ranil Wickremesinghe, too, could have done the same but all decided against revealing the truth.
A proper investigation should cover the period beginning with the declaration made by Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s government, in April 2022, regarding the unilateral decision to suspend debt repayment. But attention should be paid to the failure on the part of the government to decide against seeking assistance from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to overcome the crisis. Those who pushed Gotabaya Rajapaksa to adopt, what they called, a domestic solution to the crisis created the environment for the ultimate collapse that paved the way for external interventions. Quite large and generous Indian assistance provided to Sri Lanka at that time should be examined against the backdrop of a larger frightening picture. In other words, India was literally running with the sheep while hunting with the hounds. Whatever the criticism directed at India over its role in regime change operation, prompt, massive and unprecedented post-Cyclone Ditwah assistance, provided by New Delhi, saved Sri Lanka. Rapid Indian response made a huge impact on Sri Lanka’s overall response after having failed to act on a specific 12 November weather alert.
It would be pertinent to mention that all governments, and the useless Parliament, never wanted the public to know the truth regarding regime change project. Prof. Maddumabandara discussed the role played by vital sections of the armed forces, lawyers and the media in the overall project that facilitated external operations to force Gotabaya Rajapaksa out of office. The author failed to question Wickremesinghe’s failure to launch a comprehensive investigation, with the backing of the SLPP, immediately after he received appointment as the President. There seems to be a tacit understanding between Wickremesinghe and the SLPP that elected him as the President not to initiate an investigation. Ideally, political parties represented in Parliament should have formed a Special Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) to investigate the developments during 2019 to the end of 2022. Those who had moved court against the destruction of their property, during the May 2022 violence directed at the SLPP, quietly withdrew that case on the promise of a fresh comprehensive investigation. This assurance given by the Wickremesinghe government was meant to bring an end to the judicial process.
When the writer raised the need to investigate external interventions, the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) sidestepped the issue. Shame on the so-called independent commission, which shows it is anything but independent.
Sumanthiran’s proposal
Since the eradication of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in May 2009, the now defunct Tamil National Alliance’s (TNA) priority had been convincing successive governments to withdraw the armed forces/ substantially reduce their strength in the Northern and Eastern Provinces. The Illankai Thamil Arasu Kadchi (ITAK)-led TNA, as well as other Tamil political parties, Western powers, civil society, Tamil groups, based overseas, wanted the armed forces out of the N and E regions.
Abeywardena also revealed how the then ITAK lawmaker, M.A. Sumanthiran, during a tense meeting chaired by him, in Parliament, also on 13 July, 2022, proposed the withdrawal of the armed forces from the N and E for redeployment in Colombo. The author, without hesitation, alleged that the lawmaker was taking advantage of the situation to achieve their longstanding wish. The then Speaker also disclosed that Chief Opposition Whip Lakshman Kiriella and other party leaders leaving the meeting as soon as the armed forces reported the protesters smashing the first line of defence established to protect the Parliament. However, leaders of minority parties had remained unruffled as the situation continued to deteriorate and external powers stepped up efforts to get rid of both Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Ranil Wickremesinghe to pave the way for an administration loyal and subservient to them. Foreign powers seemed to have been convinced that Speaker Abeywardena was the best person to run the country, the way they wanted, or till the Aragalaya mob captured the House.
The Author referred to the role played by the media, including social media platforms, to promote Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s successor. Maddumamabandara referred to the Hindustan Times coverage to emphasise the despicable role played by a section of the media to manipulate the rapid developments that were taking place. The author also dealt with the role played by the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) in the project with the focus on how that party intensified its actions immediately after Gotabaya Rajapaksa stepped down.
Disputed assessment
The Author identified Ministers Bimal Rathnayaka, Sunil Handunetti and K.D. Lal Kantha as the persons who spearheaded the JVP bid to seize control of Parliament. Maddumabanda unflinchingly compared the operation, mounted against Gotabaya Rajapaksa, with the regime change operations carried out in Iraq, Libya, Egypt and Ukraine. Asserting that governments loyal to the US-led Western block had been installed in those countries, the author seemed to have wrongly assumed that external powers failed to succeed in Sri Lanka (pages 109 and 110). That assertion is utterly wrong. Perhaps, the author for some unexplained reasons accepted what took place here. Nothing can be further from the truth than the regime change operation failed (page 110) due to the actions of Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Mahinda Yapa Abeywardana and Ranil Wickremesinghe. In case, the author goes for a second print, he should seriously consider making appropriate corrections as the current dispensation pursues an agenda in consultation with the US and India.
The signing of seven Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with India, including one on defence, and growing political-defence-economic ties with the US, have underscored that the JVP-led National People’s Power (NPP) may not have been the first choice of the US-India combine but it is certainly acceptable to them now.
The bottom line is that a democratically elected President, and government, had been ousted through unconstitutional means and Sri Lanka meekly accepted that situation without protest. In retrospect, the political party system here has been subverted and changed to such an extent, irreparable damage has been caused to public confidence. External powers have proved that Sri Lanka can be influenced at every level, without exception, and the 2022 ‘Aragalaya’ is a case in point. The country is in such a pathetic state, political parties represented in Parliament and those waiting for an opportunity to enter the House somehow at any cost remain vulnerable to external designs and influence.
Cyclone Ditwah has worsened the situation. The country has been further weakened with no hope of early recovery. Although the death toll is much smaller compared to that of the 2004 tsunami, economic devastation is massive and possibly irreversible and irreparable.
By Shamindra Ferdinando
Comments Off on Finally, Mahinda Yapa sets the record straight
The German Dharmaduta Society (GDS) recently held a book donation event for the children of Udaragama Primary School, a remote school located in the Medirigiriya District of Polonnaruwa. The donation included exercise books and CR books, essential for the students’ education.
The event was spearheaded by Ven. Pelane Dhamma Kusala Thera, the Chief Monk of Das Buddhistische Haus (Berlin Maha Viharaya) in Germany, with funding collected from his international donors, known as dayakayas. This marks the second annual book distribution event initiated by Ven. Dhamma Kusala Thera, with the first taking place at a different school in Polonnaruwa in December 2023.
The distribution event was coordinated by Keminda Silva, the long-serving Administration Secretary of the GDS. The guests at the ceremony included Senaka Weeraratna (Secretary, GDS), Priyanka Denukedeniya (Principal, Udaragama Primary School), WAS Wejarthna (Principal, Mahinda Maha Vidyalaya, Medirigiriya), Peggy Moeller (German National and Buddhist Social Worker), Wickrama Jayawickrema (TV and YouTube Programme Producer), S Dhammika Silva (wife of Keminda Silva), and the Members of the Udaragama Primary School teaching staff.
As part of the welcoming ceremony, the school children performed several musical items. Refreshments, including a traditional plant-based vegetarian lunch, were served to all attendees.
During the event, Senaka Weeraratna delivered a speech and donated copies of the recently published book 100 Years Das Buddhistische Haus,” which commemorates the centenary of the founding of Das Buddhistische Haus (1924–2024), to the Principals of Udaragama Primary School and Mahinda Maha Vidyalaya, Medirigiriya.
A large number of students and parents were present to witness the occasion. A group photograph captured the officials of the German Dharmaduta Society alongside the staff of Udaragama Primary School.
Comments Off on German Dharmaduta Society Donates Books to Udaragama Primary School in Polonnaruwa
The Ministry of Industries and Enterprise Development has announced that a total of 13,698 businesses across the country have been affected by the recent emergency disaster situation.
Information regarding these affected enterprises has been received by the Industry Disaster Support Centre (IDSC).
Of the 13,698 businesses impacted, 5,639 are micro-scale, 4,636 are small-scale, 2,986 are medium-scale, and 437 are large-scale enterprises.
The Ministry is urging all affected industrialists to submit their details to the data system as quickly as possible. The deadline for submitting this information is 2:00 p.m. on December 16.
Information can be entered via the Ministry’s website at www.industry.gov.lk.
To facilitate the process, the Ministry has introduced the telephone number 0712666660 for industrialists to provide information regarding their affected industries.
Support can also be obtained from the relevant Ministry officials at the Divisional Secretariat and District Secretariat levels where the business is located.
Comments Off on Nearly 14,000 businesses affected by disaster
The World Fellowship of Buddhists (WFB), which was founded by Dr G.P Malalasekare and was originally headquartered in Colombo, celebrated its 75th anniversary with a general conference in Bangkok earlier this month, attended by about 500 Buddhists from across Asia and some from the West. But, disturbingly, the memory of Dr Malalasekare and even that of Sri Lanka, is being systematically wiped out, projecting the WFB as a Thai organization led by Thais.
This has happened because of inactivity by Sri Lankans within the WFB for over a decade, and also a desire by the Thais to project the organization as a Thai-led global Buddhist fellowship project. At the opening session of the conference an AI-generated glossy video presented the history of the WFB that only had a passing reference to Sri Lanka as where it originated, but no mention of its founder Dr Malalasekare. The video gave focus to the adoption of the 6-colour Buddhist flag as a global icon of Buddhism. It would have been a decent thing to do to pay some homage to Dr Malalasekare for his untiring efforts to make it so.
At a formal session of the general conference, when the Vice Presidents of WFB were given the floor to speak, Japanese, Korean and Chinese spoke, but Sri Lanka was missing. This reflects a monumental failure of Sri Lanka, in the past decade, to give itself a voice within WFB, and assertively resist attempts to marginalize its role within the organization. Just getting your name into a standing committee and taking a trophy” picture with the president at the end of the conference is not the way to go.
An article transmitted by the Malaysia-based Buddhist Channel[1], a few days before the WFB conference, gave a scathing account of the rot that has set in at the WFB. A shadow has fallen over our shared ‘World Buddhist’ spiritual home’, the article noted. For some time now, whispers and then shouts have echoed through our global community, pointing to a deep-seated malaise within the very organization entrusted with nurturing the Buddha’s teachings.”
Allegations of corruption, financial opacity, favouritism, and a profound inactivity in the face of our mission are no longer deniable,” the article went on to explain the malaise, pointing out that the organization is now shunned by both the Thai Royalty and the Government. They asked: How do we, as followers of the Buddha, address such profound failure?”
After failing to secure the presence of a member of the Royal family to grace the opening of the 75th anniversary conference, an official of the cultural ministry delivered a short message from the Palace. This year, there was no message from the President of Sri Lanka, as traditionally done to acknowledge WFB’s origins.
Dissatisfied with the organization and its lack of transparency, many long-time members of the WFB did not turn up at the anniversary meeting. But, many others within the organization, who are concerned, including some members of the executive committee, have formed a transformational committee” led by a Nepali, Mr Padma Jyoti in March. He presented to the conference a strategic framework for transforming WFB”.
The framework advocates engaging the existing members more actively and attracting young members to WFB by leveraging digital platforms for content generation, outreach, and building a closely-knit fellowship. It has also called for a more professional secretariat, and setting up information dissemination networks among members via the secretariat. These are some of the main recommendations among many that addressed the lack of transparency, financial accountability, and space for members to discuss issues.
As pressures grow across South and Southeast Asia, Buddhist communities face increasingly political challenges, while climate change is becoming an existential threat, especially for largely agrarian populations now exposed to deeper poverty, predatory micro-credit, and aid-driven evangelical conversion. In its current state, the WFB is not equipped to respond,” argues Mr Thusitha Perera, ACBC (All Ceylon Buddhist Congress) representative to the WFB conference.
The World Buddhist University (WBU) is the affiliate body of the WFB that should tackle these issues as a Buddhist think tank. But, it is defunct at the moment, since the departure of its rector about a year ago over a dispute with the President about financial accountability issues.
I was involved with its former director of research Dr Tavivat Puntarigvivat in 2018 where I researched the issue (Mr Perera pinpointed) in Sri Lanka and published a book title The Scourge of Poverty and Proselytism”. We had planned to do follow up reports on Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar. But, after Dr Tavivat left WBU over a dispute with the President, the research unit collapsed and no funds were available for such research.
The WFB secretariat, located in a prime real estate in the center of the city in Bangkok, is a White Elephant. It has two good auditoriums, a meeting room, a museum and a library, all gathering dust. They hardly organize activities there. The WFB constitution doesn’t have proper guidelines on how to manage and protect this asset.
At the general conferences, members hardly get an opportunity to speak and air their views. But, this time, space was given, but at the very last session of the conference. That was after both the Malalasekare Foundation (MF) and ACBC wrote to the secretary general before the conference, pointing out a constitutional clause, we demanded the five-minute speaking slots allocated there as a right and not a privilege. I spoke on behalf of MF and Dr Palitha Kohona spoke from ACBC. Such voices of Sri Lankans from the podium were lacking in recent WFB meetings.
In my presentation, I emphasized that the WFB is an international NGO and does not belong to any one country, and that the President and the Secretary General need not be Thai. I also pointed out, that there is no need for a physical headquarters building these days for an international body like this in the Cyberspace age, where meetings could be conducted via platforms like Zoom. But, periodical physical conferences like this are important for fellowship.
ACBC nominated Dr Khona to a Vice President post to liaise with the UN system, and MF supported the nomination. The secretary general informed us before the conference that 6 vice presidents’ posts will be up for election, but at the conference they said the current VP’s term will end only at the next general conference in 2 years. Instead, elections were held for 8 positions for the executive council, but it lacked transparency, and no independent scrutineers were present at the counting. Thus, no Sri Lankan was able to get elected. It is doubtful if all the Sri Lankan delegates voted for their own.
There are a number of Standing Committees (SC) at WFB where there are some Sri Lankan representations. But, these SCs are a joke. They appear and disappear between general conferences after the photo opportunities are over. Hardly anything worthwhile is done in between. The transformational committee has recommended a streamlined system to bring them into the mainstream of WFB work.
There are serious issues regarding transparency, with the WFB being run like someone’s private company. The budget presented was not available for detailed discussion. It needs to be circulated in advance, so that it can be carefully studied by members,” notes Dr Kohona.
The budget was presented as a slide projected to the screen during a plenary session, and it was for 2022-2023. The ACBC questioned an allocation of 1 million baht for Sri Lanka in the budget, and no clear explanation was given.
Management needs to be more transparent,” argues Dr Kohona. Too many things are decided and done privately without the involvement of the members”.
This is exactly the concern of many dissatisfied members, and even a number of office bearers of WFB, I privately spoke to. But, many feel that it is not Buddhist to confront. However, the Buddha has encouraged questioning, if you are not sure, as he prescribed in the Kalama Sutra. So, when transparency issues are there, should Buddhists be quiet?
* Dr Kalinga Seneviratne is the international affairs consultant to the Malalasekare Foundation and a Research Fellow at Shinawatra University in Bangkok. He has monitored the activities of the WFB closely over the past decade, and has visited the secretariat often for discussions with the President and Secretary General as an independent Asian Buddhist.
The television documentary Udumbaragiri – Dumarakka Pabbatha, Dimbulagala, Palatiyawa unfolds as a cinematic journey into one of Sri Lanka’s most sacred landscapes. Directed and produced by Sri Lanka National Artiste Athula Srilal, the film is both a historical retelling and a cultural awakening, weaving together royal chronicles, Buddhist monastic traditions, and indigenous voices.
The story opens with the dream of Queen Mahasundara Devi, who envisions the Waduga Nayakkar royalty of Senkadagala in regal attire. Her devotion is remembered in chronicles that describe her offering of five hundred stone cells and images to the Sangha at Dimbulagala, a gesture that ensured the continuity of Buddhist practice. The film also recalls King Pandukabhaya, the first monarch to unify Anuradhapura, who recognized the Vedda people as part of the kingdom’s social fabric. His reign established shrines and settlements that honored indigenous traditions, bridging myth and nationhood.
At the heart of the narrative lies Dimbulagala, historically known as Udumbaragiri, a ridge that has served as a monastic citadel for centuries. Here once stood the Kassapa Pirivena, a great university of Buddhist learning. Historical records suggest that monks and even princes from abroad, including Thailand, studied at this site, where eighteen languages were taught. Today, the Pirivena lies in ruins, but its stones still whisper of a time when Sri Lanka was a hub of international scholarship.
The film also traces the eighteenth‑century revival of the Upasampadā ordination, when Sri Lanka’s monastic order had declined. With the guidance of Weliwita Sri Saranankara Thero, King Kirti Sri Rajasinghe invited monks from Thailand. The arrival of Upali Maha Thera re‑established the higher ordination, giving birth to the Siam Nikaya and securing the survival of the Sangha.
Filmed across Dimbulagala and Polbadda Wadda, the documentary honors the Wanniyala‑aetto, Sri Lanka’s first people. Their presence in caves, rituals, and oral traditions is woven into the narrative, reminding audiences that the island’s heritage is not only royal and monastic, but also indigenous and ancestral.
The production brings together a distinguished team. Photography was led by Ananda Deegala, Jayakody, Rajanayake, and Pasindu Navaratna. The cast includes Athula Srilal, Sheren Malsha, Kalhari Savandi Malsha, Thakshila Dilrukshi, Siriyawathie, Ratina, Alexander, Sudeshani Karunaratna, and Desapriya. Religious authority is provided by Venerable Dibulagala Mahanayaka Vijithalankara Thero, Chief Incumbent Siriyalanka Thero, and Honour Ariyawansa Thero. My own contribution as film editor and post‑production editor included archival recovery, audio and video remastering, final arrangement, and creative advice, alongside music and flute composition for the songGi Tharuwa Oba.
Udumbaragiri – Dimbulagala Legacy preserves the sacred history of Sri Lanka’s kings and queens while honoring the Vedda natives, including the first native Buddhist monk, son of Appuhami Uruwalge. It is both a documentary and a cultural act of remembrance. Looking ahead, we are preparing to film Gabina, a new heritage project with a larger budget and expanded production scale, which will deepen the exploration of indigenous voices and historical memory, positioning Sri Lanka’s heritage on the global stage.
Special thanks are extended to the indigenous community of Polbadda Wadda, to Siriyawathie as the first representative actress, and to all members of the community who contributed to this cultural legacy.
Janaka Perera saw action against JVP communist insurgents in 1971 and steadily rose through the ranks being promoted Lt Col in 1986 and later, as a Colonel was the chief instructor at the Sri Lanka Military Academy. During the second JVP insurgency of 1987-89 he headed an operation which resulted in the capture of the JVP leader and he was promoted to Brigadier in 1989.
On 28 June 1995 Tamil Tiger forces launched an attack on four army camps near Weli Oya using female suicide bombers as the spearhead. Perera, the local commander, led a disparate group of reservists, national guardsmen and support troops and routed the insurgents killing over 300 for the loss of only two Government troops. The control of the battle was a masterpiece of combined operations with the rebels attacked by both strike aircraft and fast patrol boats.
Soon afterwards, Perera took command of the elite Reserve Strike Force and later 53rd Division which was responsible for the recapture of the Jaffna Peninsular from Tamil Tigers. Initially advancing on a narrow front to minimise civilian casualties, as the battle developed, he committed three brigades to attack the enemy from different directions leaving them unable to coordinate a defence.
Promoted to Major General in 1996 a series of high-level appointments followed culminating in Chief of Staff of the Army in 2000. Overlooked for promotion to Army Commander, Perera retired the following year and was made High Commissioner to Australia while Several hundred Tamils protested outside the Parliament building in Canberra protesting against the appointment of a man they regarded as a war criminal. Four years later, he was appointed High Commissioner to Indonesia.
On retirement from the Diplomatic Service, he turned to politics with the United National Party. On the 6th of October 2008 a suicide bomber targeted the UNP office in Anuradhapura where Major General Janaka Perera and his wife were killed in the blast.
The government put the entire blame on the LTTE but the truth remains that it was a plot within the Army to oust him being becoming more popular and powerful than many within the higher ranks.
(“Voice for Truth” by Professor Nishan C Wijesinha.)
Comments Off on The Rise and Fall of Janaka Perera
Dr. Abhishek Gandhi Advocate, Delhi High Court Home Our Team Contact
The environment is not collateral damage. It is a new front line of hybrid warfare, and defending it is quite literally defending life itself,” — Ruslan Spirin, a Ukrainian diplomat based in Kyiv.[i]
US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Allison Hooker arrived in Sri Lanka December 11, on an official visit. US C-301 Hercules Planes also used in cloud seeding were on the ground in a Sri Lanka Air force base—unprecedented and concerning developments in the historically Non-Aligned geostrategic Indian Ocean Island nation.
The Environmental Modification Convention (ENMOD), formally the Convention on the Prohibition of Military or Any Other Hostile Use of Environmental Modification Techniques, is an international treaty prohibiting the military or other hostile use of Geoengineering and environmental modification techniques.
ENMOD opened for signature on 18 May 1977 in Geneva and entered into force on 5 October 1978.
ENMOD emerged from concerns raised in the international community over US weather warfare, specifically Operation Popeye, a Cloud Seeding Operation to flood Vietnam and the Ho Chi Minh trail during the Vietnam War. Cloud seeding was used to extend the monsoons in the hope of drowning in Mud the Vietnamese troops fighting American military in South Vietnam in the 1970s, and impeding their supply chains.
Recently, the Indian Ocean region with South and Southeast Asia being the Growth Centers of the world in the Asian Century has again become the epicenter of hybrid warfare including Monsoon geoengineering with weather modification technologies greatly enhanced by the use of Drones.
The last week of November 2025 saw monsoon related weather warfare in Sri Lanka just as the geostrategic Indian Ocean country was hosting Indian, Russian and other Indian Ocean Navies for a Fleet Review celebration of the Sri Lanka Navy’s 75th anniversary. Ships from Malaysia, Maldives, Pakistan and Bangladesh were also participating.
The ‘cyclone’ named Ditwah hit two days before the Fleet Review on November 30, and effectively aborted the event.
Ditwah had a very mysterious pincer trajectory across the geostrategic island, already caught in an IMF Eurobond debt trap. Ditwah inflicted maximum damage to strategic transport and energy infrastructure and cities deepening the economic crisis.
Ditwah originated in Arugam Bay, where the US Ambassador had the previous year predicted terror attacks perhaps also given the settlement of Israeli tourist on the southeast coast, and then headed West across the central hill country to Kandy and then mysteriously turned around and went northeast to Trincomallee only to dissipate before landfall in South Indian, It’s impacts were even more mysterious than its trajectory–designed to destroy the country’s resilience.
Plausible Deniability: Hybrid War or Climate Change in the Faux Anthropocene
Ditmar’s ferocity was blamed on climate change” rather than on Geoengineering, hybrid and weather warfare in the Indian Ocean World, and masked by the faux Anthropocene narrative which has become a front for many distortions and Climate Disaster Capitalism including Green, Blue bonds and scams based on spurious Carbon credit calculations. Meanwhile, climate disaster insurance has become a financial growth sector the world over at this time.
The UN’s faux Anthropocene which was debunked in 2024 after 15 years of debate by the International Union of Geologists experts panel which rejected the official proposal to formalize the Anthropocene as Earth’s new geological epoch bringing an end to the current Holocene, has been effectively buried. This has enable the weaponization and financialization of Mother Nature for Green and Blue Sustainability Bond Scams via the Climate Boiling narrative and the UN’s permanent ‘polycrisis’.
Hybrid warfare is designed to enable Plausible Deniability, but Geopolitical Developments in India and the Indian Ocean region provide context to the timing of the monsoon related weather disasters in South and Southeast Asia at this time.
Two days before Ditmar arrived in Sri Lanka a mysterious Ash cloud blew over New Delhi from a Volcanic Explosion in Ethiopia Nov 25, 2025. The Hayli Gubbi volcano blew in the Afar region, after 12,000 years sending an Ash Cloud to India. This was just as India was pivoting once more to Russia’s orbit with preparations ongoing for the December 4 State visit of Russian President Putin due to land in New Delhi to expand and widen trade and defense corporation. The Reciprocal Exchange of Logistics Agreement (RELOS) providing access each other’s ports and airports was also signed.
No Mention of Geoengineering Weather Warfare at UN Cop Summits
Remarkably, few in the UN’s climate crisis Conference of the Parties (Cop) Summits ever mention the grave threat of geoengineering and weather warfare, distracted with targeting and blaming the fossil fuel lobby.
While state parties may avoid mention of the military business industrial complex it is puzzling that the gravy train of NGOs and civil society climate activists ever refer to ENMOD or the environmental pollution caused by the war machine – the tanks, bombs, mines, submarines, aircrafts, missiles, drones, aircraft carriers.
Indeed it appears that the United Nations under the current Secretary General Antonio Guterrez has abdicated the UN’s primary responsibility of maintaining World Peace. Rather, the UN seems to be drawing it its own rhetoric of Permanent Global Polycrisis” and Climate Crisis Gaslighting, enabling Humanitarian Disaster Capitalism and the UNDP to market Green and Blue Bonds scams with, Debt for Nature Swaps or sustainability bonds, while the Electric Car companies and solar panel manufactures benefit from the Climate crisis narrative, while mining rare earth to cause more climate crisis!
Indeed, few of the UN’s CoP regulars seem to have ever heard of ENMOD at a time when the damage cause by wars and the Military Industrial Complex to the earth far exceeds any other industrial source of pollution to the planet. The recent UN CoP Summit in Belem was silent on the threat of weather warfare and the environmental impacts of the US military business industrial complex/ war machine which hit a trillion-dollar budget this year. The US is the largest military business industrial research and development complex by far.
While technologies such as cloud seeding date to the 1970s, generating earthquakes and tsunamis with nuclear and hydrogen bomb explosions was done by the United States in the Bikini Atol of the Marshall Islands in the early 1950s. The Bikini Atoll remains contaminated and is uninhabitable.[ii]
In 2004 The Indian Ocean was hit by a n earthquake and tsunami off the coast of Sumatra, particularly Ache Province, Thailand, Malaysia and Sri Lanka. Curiously, the monsoons of 2025 also hit the same countries and inland rather than coastal communities and there was simultaneously a Tsunami warning issued! Remarkably, after the 2004 Asia tsunami the QUAD targeting China and the CIA’s String of Pearls” came into existence.
Now in Sri Lanka with 60 US air force officers purportedly for humanitarian aid, the C-130 Hercules aircraft that flies into storms, including the specialized WC-130 weather reconnaissance variant, have been used for cloud seeding operations. The aircraft is valued for its durability, large cargo capacity, and ability to operate in diverse conditions. [iii]
At this time, questions remain about how long the two giant C-130 Hercules Planes and US troops would be in the geostrategic Indian Ocean island nation?
The current faux-Leftist National Peoples’ Power (NPP) regime’s recent agreements with the United States which has enabled the US to land in Sri Lanka military bases and bring troops in an unprecedented manner into the geostrategic Indian Ocean Island nation.
History may be repeating itself as India returns to Russia’s orbit as during the Cold War, while Sri Lanka is drawn into the US orbit. Back in 1977 this led to an internal Cold War proxy war ‘ethnic conflict’ between the Sinahla and Tamil linguistic communities that had oexisted for centuries and inter-married for generations.
Is it an accident that in an era of Unnatural Natural Disaster such as so-called Cyclone Ditwah that recently hit US dollar Eurobond-debt trapped in Sri Lanka, few environmental activists and NGOs on the green gravy train I know of the history of Geoengineering and weather warfare by the United States in Vietanam and the Pacific Ocean?
and other flashfloods that hit the same countries that were struck by the Asia Earthquake and Tsunami disaster The Convention bans weather warfare, which is the use of weather modification techniques for the purposes of inducing damage or destruction. An analysis of the
Dr. Abhishek Gandhi Advocate, Delhi High Court Home Our Team Contact
July 23, 2025 9:34 AM
A Treaty Worth Strengthening Introduction: War, Weather, and the ENMOD Convention
In the modern world, where technology has advanced to unprecedented levels, humanity now faces an eerie question: Can nature itself be turned into a weapon? The answer came into alarming focus during the Cold War era, prompting the international community to act. Thus was born the Convention on the Prohibition of Military or Any Other Hostile Use of Environmental Modification Techniques, commonly known as the ENMOD Convention (1977).
Adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on December 10, 1976, and opened for signature in Geneva on May 18, 1977, the ENMOD Convention came into force on October 5, 1978. This landmark treaty is a cornerstone of international humanitarian law, uniquely designed to address a very modern threat — the militarization of natural processes like weather, oceans, and the earth’s ecosystems. In this article, we will delve into the history, significance, structure, criticisms, and continuing relevance of the ENMOD Convention, while answering frequently asked questions for legal and academic clarity.
Historical Background of the ENMOD Convention
The seeds of ENMOD were sown during the Vietnam War, where allegations surfaced about the United States’ use of cloud-seeding operations (Project Popeye) to prolong the monsoon season over enemy supply routes. This use of environmental modification for military objectives raised serious ethical, legal, and environmental concerns. With growing public outcry and a rising awareness of the destructive potential of manipulating nature, the United Nations began considering legal instruments to restrict such activities. The Cold War’s geopolitical tension, paired with the potential for climate modification to escalate conflicts, pushed nations to agree on a preventive legal mechanism — thus giving rise to the ENMOD Convention. What is the ENMOD Convention?
The ENMOD Convention (1977) is an international treaty prohibiting the use of environmental modification techniques for military or hostile purposes. It obligates state parties not to engage in any environmental manipulation — such as changing weather patterns, ocean currents, or geological structures — to cause destruction, damage, or injury to another State Party. The Convention acknowledges the peaceful use of environmental techniques, such as for agriculture or climate adaptation, but draws a clear line when such use turns hostile or poses risks to human or environmental safety.
Core Objectives of the ENMOD Convention To Prevent the Weaponization of Nature: By banning hostile uses of weather modification or environmental engineering. To Promote International Peace and Security: Through the limitation of emerging environmental warfare techniques. To Establish Legal Norms: Around the definition and use of environmental modification in armed conflict. To Create Accountability: Among nations for actions that could result in large-scale environmental destruction.
Key Definitions and Provisions
Environmental Modification Techniques (Article II) Defined as: Any technique for changing — through the deliberate manipulation of natural processes — the dynamics, composition or structure of the Earth, including its biota, lithosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, or of outer space.” Examples may include: Induced earthquakes or tsunamis Artificial weather control (e.g., excessive rainfall or drought) Altering ocean currents Triggering volcanic eruptions Changes in ionospheric conditions 2. Prohibition Clause (Article I) The heart of the Convention, this article prohibits the military or hostile use of such techniques that have: Widespread Long-lasting, or Severe effects on the environment or populations. 3. Permissibility of Peaceful Use (Preamble & Article III) The Convention allows for peaceful applications of environmental modification — such as combating desertification or controlling pests — so long as these do not result in harmful consequences to other states. 4. Consultations and Complaints (Article V & VI) States can consult each other on issues arising from the Convention. Complaints can be lodged with the United Nations Security Council, which is empowered to investigate violations. ENMOD vs. Other Environmental & Warfare Treaties
The ENMOD Convention stands at a unique intersection between environmental protection and international humanitarian law (IHL). Treaty Purpose Difference from ENMOD Geneva Conventions Regulate conduct of war Does not specifically cover environmental modification Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) Bans chemical weapons
ENMOD targets techniques rather than substances. Biological Weapons Convention (BWC) Prohibits biological weapons ENMOD is broader in scope, including geophysical tools.ENMOD deals with deliberate manipulation for harm Compliance and Monitoring Challenges While the ENMOD Convention sets forth a moral and legal framework, its enforcement mechanisms are limited. There is no dedicated body to verify or monitor compliance, unlike the Chemical Weapons Convention which has the OPCW (Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons).
Dual Use Technologies
Furthermore: Verification is difficult, especially with dual-use technologies (e.g., cloud seeding can be both peaceful and hostile). Evidence gathering is complex, as attribution for natural disasters remains scientifically and politically challenging.
States Parties and Global Participation
As of now, 78 countries are parties to the ENMOD Convention, including major powers like the United States, Russia, China, and India. However, some countries have neither signed nor ratified the treaty, limiting its universal applicability. It remains one of the lesser-known but crucial disarmament instruments in the international legal framework. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) Q1.
Is the ENMOD Convention still relevant in 2025? Absolutely. With growing capabilities in geoengineering and climate intervention, the line between peaceful and hostile use of environmental modification is becoming increasingly thin. ENMOD provides a legal and ethical framework for countries to restrain weaponized climate action. Q2. Does ENMOD apply to non-state actors like terrorist organizations? The Convention is a state-level treaty, so it does not directly bind non-state actors. However, states are expected to prevent their territory or resources from being used by such actors in violation of ENMOD norms. Q3. Can ENMOD be invoked in climate change litigation? Not directly. The ENMOD Convention deals with deliberate hostile actions, whereas climate change is a result of industrial emissions and negligence but has relevance for new patterns of Hybrid Warfare. However, the ethical principles may be cited to highlight state responsibility in international environmental discourse. Q4. Are there any real-life cases where ENMOD has been violated? There is no officially confirmed violation, although the historical example of Project Popeye is widely seen as the trigger for ENMOD’s creation.
Modern technologies are kept in check more by deterrence and political consequences than by formal ENMOD sanctions. Q5. How does ENMOD relate to space and extraterrestrial domains? Interestingly, ENMOD covers modifications of the outer space environment as well. This anticipates futuristic threats involving space-based weapons that could influence earth systems. Q6. What is the punishment for violating the ENMOD Convention? There is no specified punitive mechanism in the Convention itself. Violations can be referred to the United Nations Security Council, which may impose sanctions or take other measures under international law. Q7. Can climate engineering or solar geoengineering violate ENMOD? If such techniques are used with hostile intent or cause widespread, long-lasting, or severe damage, then yes — they could potentially violate ENMOD provisions. Q8. Who monitors global compliance with ENMOD? There is no dedicated treaty body. However, state parties can hold consultations, and complaints can be brought before the UN Security Council. In practice, compliance is largely voluntary and diplomatic. Modern Challenges and the Future of ENMOD With the rise of: Geoengineering proposals to combat climate change, Military interest in weather-control research, and Unpredictable natural disasters where attribution is difficult, …
ENMOD Convention faces new interpretive challenges.
Artificial rain induction, carbon capture, or stratospheric aerosol injection could be considered double-edged swords. If used with peaceful intent, they are permissible. However, if misused in war or cross-border disputes, they could come under ENMOD scrutiny. Updating ENMOD to include clearer mechanisms for: Verification Transparency Accountability …is the need of the hour, especially as climate security becomes a pillar of international peace.
Conclusion: A Treaty Worth Strengthening
The ENMOD Convention (1977) may not be the most famous international treaty, but its purpose is profoundly relevant in today’s world. It reminds us that even the clouds and the oceans must not be weaponized, and that science, for all its power, must remain within the bounds of ethics and legality. For advocates, environmentalists, policymakers, and the global citizenry, ENMOD stands as a cautionary shield, warning against the misuse of our planet’s very fabric. In an age where environmental security is national security, this often-overlooked treaty is not just a relic of Cold War anxiety — it is a living document of global responsibility.
· The primodial Sinhalese identity is rooted in the Sinhalese ethnic group which has a long history of existence for over 2500 years, unique and distinct language (Sinhala), and a strong connection to Buddhism and the historical kingdoms of the island. The Sinhalese are world renown as the custodians of Buddhism and Sri Lanka has the proud record of having the longest unbroken period of association with Buddhism than any other country. Every Sri Lankan, not only the Sinhalese, must be proud of this unflinching stubborn fact.
· The Sri Lankan identity, in contrast, is a latter-day creation which encompasses all citizens of the country, including major ethnic groups such as the Sinhalese, Tamils, Muslims, and Burghers. Both these nomenclatures have validity and strong claims to prevail in the multi – culturally fertile landscape of Sri Lanka. But not to jettison one for the other.Sri Lankans are basically people with a dual identity. National and Ethnic cum Religious identity. For example, the Sinhala Buddhist identity. It is a birthright. In the pre – colonial era the Sinhalese had only one religion, namely Buddhism.
· The State should respect this inheritance of the Sinhalese. It causes no violence to any one else. National Unity cannot be forged by destroying the identity and
· heritage of the primordial race purely in order to appease ethnic and religious minorities who are all latter day entrants.
· Everyone’s contribution to the social fabric of Sri Lanka must be acknowledged and valued, irrespective of ethnic and religious backgrounds. Individually every citizen of Sri Lanka is equal and has the right to equal treatment by the State under the Constitution (Article 12). No one with a sane mind can begrudge that right. But there is a limit to the extension of the notion of ‘ Equality’. It cannot be used as a weapon to deny the cultural rights of the majority Sinhalese and to due recognition for building the wonderful Buddhist Civilization of Sri Lanka. ( Read ‘ Revolt in the Temple ‘ by D.C. Wijewardene, 1953). Individual Rights and Group Rights are not the same.
Treating unequals as equals given the huge disparity of their contributions over a long period in a country’s history is morally wrong. Justice requires that outcomes or recognition should be proportional to inputs or contributions. If one group contributed significantly more (economically, culturally, or in nation-building) over a long period, they arguably deserve a different, often greater, share of recognition, resources, or political power today. Equity favours this approach.
The foremost place given to Buddhism in Article 9 of the Constitution is based on this fact of proportionality and validation of Sri Lanka’s History.
Senaka Weeraratna
Comments Off on Historically culturally rich ‘Sinhalese’ identity is not interchangeable with the language rootless ‘Sri Lankan’ identity. They are mutually exclusive.
The Mind of King Parakramabahu I (1153–1186 CE) was that of a visionary and pragmatic ruler, characterized by a relentless drive for the unification of Sri Lanka, a deep commitment to the welfare of his people through massive engineering projects, and a strategic, sometimes ruthless, approach to governance and military affairs.
Visionary and Pragmatic Governance
King Parakramabahu I was a highly organized and determined ruler. When faced with the seemingly impossible task of restoring an ancient causeway, he famously stated, “What is there in the world that cannot be carried out by people of energy?” This reflects a mindset focused on overcoming obstacles through sheer will and efficient administration.
Unification He spent years in civil war to unify the island’s three fragmented kingdoms (Rajarata, Dakkhinadesa, and Ruhuna), a goal he achieved around 1153.
Administration His governance was influenced by Kautilyan statecraft, involving centralized control over trade and the establishment of an efficient administration to manage the kingdom’s resources and finance his ambitious projects.
Social Welfare He prioritized the welfare of his subjects, establishing hospitals and social welfare units and managing trade to ensure the quality of local produce and reduce social issues like alcoholism.
Master Engineer and Agriculturist
His philosophy regarding water management is captured in his most famous adage: “Not even a drop of water that comes from the rain must flow into the ocean without being made useful to man“. This highlights a mindset that valued resource optimization and self-sufficiency above all else.
Irrigation Marvels He initiated massive irrigation projects, including the construction of the colossal Parakrama Samudra (Sea of Parakrama) reservoir, which transformed the region into an agricultural hub and ensured food security.
Infrastructure Development He constructed or renovated over 165 large tanks and thousands of canals and dams, demonstrating advanced hydraulic knowledge still evident in systems used today.
Warrior and Expansionist
Parakramabahu was a skilled military strategist who reorganized the army into a professional force.
Internal Security He was decisive and brutal in suppressing internal rebellions, such as the major revolt by Queen Sugala in Ruhuna, to ensure stability within his unified kingdom.
Foreign Campaigns He projected Sinhalese power abroad through naval expeditions to South India (against the Cholas) and Burma (Myanmar) to secure trade interests and regional influence.
Devout Patron of Buddhism
He was a devout Theravada Buddhist who sought to purify and unify the Buddhist Sangha (monastic community) into one orthodox order, purging corrupt elements and building numerous religious monuments, including the Gal Vihara rock temple and the Temple of the Tooth Relic shrine in Polonnaruwa. This shows a mind dedicated to preserving and promoting a single, pure form of the state religion.
In essence, the mind of King Parakramabahu I was a blend of grand vision, meticulous planning, unyielding determination, and a utilitarian approach to governance that, while achieving a golden age of prosperity and cultural revival, also placed immense fiscal and human strain on the kingdom that contributed to its later instability.
Colombo, Dec 12 (Daily Mirror) – As of 2025, Sri Lankans have the highest average IQ levels in South Asia with an average IQ level of 102, which has also been ranked in the top 12 countries with the highest average IQ level in the world, according to the data from International IQ Test (IIT).
The research done was based on data from 1,352,763 participants worldwide who took the same IQ test on the website, and substantial research on the subject of national IQs was conducted by psychologist Richard Lynn, working alongside Tatu Vanhanen. IQ scores typically reflect the quality of education and resources available to people in their local geographic regions.
According to IIT the global average IQ level is 100 which is surpassed by the average IQ level of Sri Lanka.
A total of 2840 participants from Sri Lanka were evaluated based on a standard IQ test. China ranked first in the world for highest average IQ level with an average of 107.
Several factors can influence a country’s average IQ, Infectious Diseases, dietary habits: A 2024 study showed that children with good dietary habits have higher IQs than other children. Therefore, countries with good dietary habits tend to have higher average IQs. Intellectual Activities: A 2022 study found that regularly playing chess can increase children’s IQs. Another 1962 study showed that bilingual children score higher on intelligence tests than children who speak only one language. Thus, regular intellectually stimulating activities within a country’s culture tend to raise its average IQ. Genetics: A 2013 study on over a thousand twins demonstrated that IQ is influenced between 50 percent and 80 percent by genetics.
Countries with good healthcare systems, that promote healthy dietary habits, and encourage their citizens to engage in intellectually stimulating activities, tend to have populations with higher average IQs,” the website stated.
Comments Off on Sri Lankans have the highest IQ in South Asia
Former Speaker and NPP Parliamentarian Asoka Ranwala, who was arrested over the vehicular collision at Sapugaskanda last night (11), has been granted bail, according to the Police Spokesman.
He has been ordered release on cash bail of Rs. 200,000 by the Maligakanda Magistrate’s Court this evening.
The MP, who is currently receiving treatment at the Colombo National Hospital, was taken into police custody earlier today on charges of dangerous driving and failing to prevent an accident.
However, he had remained in hospital under police custody before being granted bail.
The accident occurred yesterday (11) when the jeep in which the former Speaker was travelling collided with a car in the Denimulla area of Sapugaskanda.
A 25-year-old woman, her 6-month-old infant, and 55-year-old mother, who were travelling in the car, sustained injuries and were hospitalised.
Police added that the infant has been transferred to the Lady Ridgeway Hospital for Children for further treatment.
Comments Off on Former Speaker Asoka Ranwala granted bail
Former Member of Parliament, President’s Counsel Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe, is slated to be appointed as a Senior Vice President of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP).
SLFP Chairman Nimal Siripala de Silva stated that the appointment is expected to be made during the party’s upcoming Executive Committee meeting.
Former MP Rajapakshe currently serves as the SLFP District Leader for Colombo and the Maharagama Electorate Organiser.
Comments Off on Wijeyadasa to be appointed SLFP Senior Vice President
