Senaka Weeraratna, a prominent Sri Lankan Attorney-at-Law and legal scholar, has made foundational contributions to shaping domestic and international legal frameworks across multiple sectors, including foreign investment, unit trusts, environmental law, and animal rights. Though globally famous for conceptualizing cricket’s Decision Review System (DRS), his domestic legal legacy is rooted in public interest litigation and structural law reform. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
Weeraratna was a pioneering academic voice advocating for structured statutory control and institutional oversight over foreign capital in Sri Lanka.
The Proposed Foreign Investment Authority Law (1976): He authored a definitive legal treatise, The Proposed Foreign Investment Authority Law of Sri Lanka (1976) (published in 1982).
Intellectual Advocacy: His publication was one of the earliest critical legal analyses arguing for a centralized authority to filter, regulate, and safely promote foreign direct investment (FDI) while protecting national economic interests. This structural approach heavily mirrored the eventual legal and institutional evolution of bodies like the Board of Investment (BOI) of Sri Lanka. [1, 2, 3, 4]
🏛️ Unit Trusts Law
Weeraratna advanced the commercial legal framework of Sri Lanka by providing critical legal literature on collective investment schemes.
Public Unit Trusts Framework: He authored and edited several legal papers and foundational books detailing the operational and regulatory mechanics of Public Unit Trusts.
Market Democratization: His legal interpretations helped clarify how mutual funds and unit trusts could safely operate within Sri Lanka’s jurisdiction. This paved the way for retail investors to securely participate in capital markets via legal instruments governed by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka. [1, 2]
🔊 Noise Pollution Control
Weeraratna directly reshaped Sri Lankan environmental jurisprudence by legally establishing a citizen’s right to silence. [1]
Ashik v. Bandula (2007): Weeraratna served as a critical intervenient litigant (8th respondent) in this landmark Supreme Court case. The case originally centered on loudspeaker restrictions at a religious venue, but Weeraratna intervened on behalf of the general public.
The “Captive Listener” Argument: He introduced the groundbreaking legal argument that individuals are “captive listeners” when excessive sound is forced into their homes, violating their fundamental right to the quiet enjoyment of property and the right to a clean, healthy environment.
The Judgment: His participation led to a landmark Supreme Court ruling that strictly banned or heavily restricted the use of sound amplifiers and loudspeakers in public spaces between 10:00 PM and 6:00 AM, forming the bedrock of modern domestic noise pollution law. [1, 2, 3]
🐾 Animal Welfare Legislation
Weeraratna is widely considered an architectural force behind modern animal rights law in Sri Lanka, pivoting the system away from archaic colonial legislation. [1, 2]
Law Commission Role: He served as the Honorary Legal Consultant on Animal Welfare Legislation to the Law Commission of Sri Lanka from 2000 to 2006.
Drafting the Animal Welfare Bill: During this tenure, Weeraratna was the primary force steering and drafting the progressive Animal Welfare Bill. The bill was designed to replace the outdated Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Ordinance of 1907.
Key Innovations: His draft legally recognized animals as sentient beings rather than mere property, criminalized specific acts of cruelty, stiffened archaic monetary penalties, and created mechanisms for community-led animal welfare governance. [1, 3, 4, 5]
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Sri Lankan lawyer Senaka Weeraratna’s core global legacy is the conceptual invention of the “Player Referral” system, which fundamentally revolutionized international sports jurisprudence and laid the foundational architecture for cricket’s modern Decision Review System (DRS). By utilizing his legal background to challenge centuries of absolute on-field umpiring authority, Weeraratna introduced a paradigm shift that transferred the right of appeal directly to the competitors. [1, 2, 3]
The extensive breadths of Weeraratna’s global and institutional legacies span across sports law, international animal welfare, and intellectual property rights. [1, 2]
1. The Architectural Blueprint for DRS
Legal Analogy to Sports: In March 1997, Weeraratna published a pioneering letter in The Australian newspaper. He argued that just as a dissatisfied litigant holds the right to access an appellate court, an athlete should possess an appellate mechanism to contest on-field human errors.
The Four-Pillar Framework: He constructed the initial rules dictating how a player invokes a review, the role of the television umpire, and the preservation or loss of reviews. This served as the direct operational model adapted by the International Cricket Council (ICC) into the Umpire Decision Review System (UDRS) in 2008.
Quantifiable Fairness: His conceptual work effectively changed cricket from an environment vulnerable to unchallengeable officiating mistakes into a high-accuracy sport. The ICC has noted that the integration of this framework raised on-field decision accuracy by roughly 7% (from 91% to 98%). [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7]
2. Cross-Sport Technological Ripple Effects
The Multi-Sport Precedent: Weeraratna’s “player-driven challenge” concept broke strict cricket boundaries. It established the psychological and structural framework for modern technology review protocols worldwide.
Global Systems: The mechanism paved the evolutionary path for Football’s Video Assistant Referee (VAR), Tennis’s Hawk-Eye challenge framework, Rugby’s Television Match Official (TMO) reviews, and Major League Baseball (MLB) replay reviews.
Economic Industry Growth: His insistence on error-correction rule changes forced a technological boom. It drove the rapid development of ball-tracking, ultra-edge audio engineering, and infrared sports imaging into a multi-million dollar global business infrastructure. [1, 2, 3, 4]
Shaping Global Sports Law: Weeraratna’s ongoing pursuit of formal legal credit from the ICC has turned into a classic landmark case study for sports law and intellectual property curricula worldwide.
Moral Rights Advocacy: His legal campaign highlights global copyright treaties (such as the Berne Convention). It emphasizes that a creative composer retains the moral right to attribution and naming rights for a framework even if a formal technical patent was not initially filed.
The Naming Campaign: Backed by global sports figures, historians, and South Asian legal ministries, there is a prominent international movement to formally rewrite history and rename the officiating architecture the Weeraratna Decision Review System (WDRS). [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]
4. Animal Welfare and Domestic Legislation
Global Legal Paradigms: Beyond the sports arena, Weeraratna worked extensively as an Honorary Legal Consultant on Animal Welfare Legislation to the Law Commission of Sri Lanka.
The Animal Welfare Bill: He was a principal legal architect behind the structural drafting of Sri Lanka’s modern Animal Welfare Bill. His domestic legal contributions regarding animal rights, environmental noise pollution, and foreign investment models have frequently been studied internationally as frameworks for progressive South Asian governance. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
Sri Lankan lawyer Senaka Weeraratna is globally recognized as the conceptual architect of the Decision Review System (DRS) in cricket. He first published the idea of a “Player Referral” mechanism in 1997, which revolutionized international sports by challenging the centuries-old absolute authority of on-field umpires. [1, 2, 3, 4]
His global impact extends across multiple areas:
1. The Decision Review System (DRS)
The “Player Referral” Concept: In March 1997, Weeraratna published an article in The Australian proposing that players should have the right to appeal an umpire’s decision to a third official, functioning similarly to an appellate court.
Global Implementation: This framework became the foundation of the Umpire Decision Review System (UDRS), which the International Cricket Council (ICC) formally implemented in 2008.
Ongoing Advocacy: Weeraratna’s legacy also includes an ongoing, high-profile intellectual property battle to secure proper official and financial recognition from the ICC, leading many commentators to advocate for renaming the DRS to the “Weeraratna Decision Review System” (WDRS). [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
2. Multi-Sport Influence
Paving the Way for Replay Systems: Weeraratna’s “Player Referral” concept broke the boundaries of cricket by serving as a historic, multi-sport precedent.
Global Sports Jurisprudence: His original framework directly paved the way for modern, player-driven review systems worldwide, including Video Assistant Referee (VAR) in football, Hawk-Eye line-calling in tennis, and replay reviews in baseball (MLB) and American football (NFL). [1, 2, 3]
3. Animal Welfare Advocacy
Legal Drafting: Beyond sports, Weeraratna has been an advocate for global animal rights, notably serving as an Honorary Legal Consultant on Animal Welfare Legislation to the Law Commission of Sri Lanka between 2000 and 2006.
Legislative Reforms: His legal draftwork and campaigns have significantly contributed to advancing modern animal welfare laws and rights both regionally and internationally. [1, 2, 3]
Would you like more information on Senaka Weeraratna’s ongoing IP campaign against the ICC, or details on his contributions to Sri Lankan animal welfare laws?
View in BrowserMEDIA CONTACT: Amy Colgan Amy.Colgan@osumc.edu https://wexnermedical.osu.edu/mediaroomFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 25, 2026 (EDITOR’S NOTE: Video and photos are available for download: https://bit.ly/4vou0bm) New vaccine offers hope against growing tropical disease in U.S. Ohio State researchers develop a first-ever vaccine against leishmaniasis, which could infect more than 10% of the worldKey takeaways: Researchers at The Ohio State University are leading work on a first-ever vaccine for leishmaniasis. The vaccine is moving toward human testing. After strong results in animal studies, clinical trials are expected to begin later this year. As leishmaniasis becomes more of a concern in the U.S., Ohio State physicians and researchers are raising awareness about symptoms, testing and treatment. COLUMBUS, Ohio – Abhay Satoskar, MD, PhD couldn’t get the image out of his head. A young boy had just died after falling on the playground. He had no visible injuries, but a parasite caused by a tropical disease had silently damaged his spleen, causing it to rupture. Satoskar was a surgical intern at a hospital in his native India and felt the calling to do something. That day more than 30 years ago led to a lifetime of studying the disease, leishmaniasis, a world away at The Ohio State University. This year, clinical trials are expected to start on a vaccine he helped create. An effective vaccine is indispensable for the elimination of leishmaniasis. More than 10% of the world is at risk of contracting the disease. Leishmaniasis is a completely new disease for the U.S. When I started my career, it was only a problem of Third World countries,” said Satoskar, a professor of pathology at The Ohio State University College of Medicine. Satoskar has spent his career looking for a way to develop a safe vaccine against leishmaniasis, a disfiguring skin disease. Earlier attempts used parasites that could spread in the body and included antibiotic-resistant genes, making them unsafe for human use. A game changer was the development of CRISPR gene-editing technology. Satoskar and his team realized they could use CRISPR to remove the gene from the skin-only species of the parasite and create a safer vaccine that can train the immune system without causing disease. In animal studies, the vaccine was 100% effective. It worked beautifully. It worked beyond my imagination to be honest,” Satoskar said. Last year the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the vaccine as an investigational new drug. What is leishmaniasis and where is it found? Leishmaniasis is a disease caused by tiny parasites that are spread through the bite of an infected female sand fly, which is much smaller than a mosquito. For decades, it was predominantly found in tropical regions like Africa, the Middle East and South America. It is now endemic – or regularly occurring – in other regions such as Europe and the U.S. because of deforestation and climate change, Satoskar said. Sand flies don’t know borders, and more and more infected sand flies are being found in U.S. states that border Mexico,” said Bradford McGwire, MD, PhD, an infectious diseases physician and professor at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center who has treated patients that acquired leishmaniasis while traveling, living or stationed in endemic countries while in the military. How many people are affected by leishmaniasis? The World Health Organization lists leishmaniasis as one of the top neglected tropical diseases in the world. At any given time, about 6 million people are infected with up to 1 million new cases annually. More than 1 billion people in 99 territories and countries where leishmaniasis is endemic are at risk of getting the disease. Satoskar, a world-renowned expert on leishmaniasis, was asked to write an explainer article for the New England Journal of Medicine to help raise awareness about the growing threat of the disease now that it’s endemic in the U.S. In the last two years, we’ve seen on average two to four cases per year at Ohio State. In the past we used to see maybe one case per year. It’s definitely been ticking up over time in the U.S.,” said McGwire, who for the past 35 years has studied leishmaniasis as well as the tropical parasitic disease Chagas, which is caused by contact with kissing bugs. Chagas disease is also on the rise in the U.S. What are the symptoms and treatment of leishmaniasis? Many patients are asymptomatic (don’t show signs of the disease), or it could take months or over a year for symptoms to start showing up. While there are several forms of the disease, the three main forms are: Cutaneous leishmaniasis This is the most common form of leishmaniasis and affects the skin. Symptoms may include one or more skin sores or ulcers that can take months to heal, bumps that may slowly grow larger or scars that remain after healing. Some cases heal on their own over time without medication while others require medications or creams, especially if sores are large or infected or likely to leave scars. Mucosal leishmaniasis In this form, parasites infect cells lining mucosal areas, causing disfiguring lesions of the mouth, nose, sinuses, palate and vocal cords. This form is particularly difficult to treat because it is often slow to respond to medications and can often reoccur. Visceral leishmaniasis This is the most serious form of leishmaniasis and affects internal organs, especially the spleen, liver and bone marrow. Symptoms may include fever, weight loss, weakness, enlarged liver and spleen or anemia (not enough healthy red blood cells). Doctors typically use anti-parasite medications via pill or IV to treat patients. Visceral leishmaniasis can be life-threatening without treatment. An Ohio State researcher’s vaccine could be a medical breakthrough This summer, Satoskar has been traveling the world meeting with the vaccine manufacturer, investors and leishmaniasis experts as his team prepares to start the first human trials in Brazil and Kenya. Plans are to add a U.S. site. Satoskar is passionate about raising awareness about the vaccine as well as a skin test that he helped developed that is similar to a tuberculosis test. The skin test would help detect the disease and track its spread. Because this is a new disease in the U.S., many physicians don’t know that a mysterious skin disease they’re seeing may be leishmaniasis. We’re hoping to get the word out to educate more people,” he said. Funding for the vaccine trial comes from Japan-based Global Health Innovative Technology Fund and the Wellcome Trust in the United Kingdom. ### The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center 452 W. 10th Ave, Columbus, Ohio, 43210 United States
In May 2020, during the most volatile period in the oil & gas sector in 40 years, Nigeria LNG Ltd (NLNG) signed a historic US$3 billion corporate loan to finance the construction of its seventh liquefied natural gas(LNG) train. The Nigeria LNG Train 7 project (Train 7), expected to boost Nigeria’s LNG output by close to a third, is seen as a strategic imperative for the country’s long-term economic stability.
The financing package for the development of Train 7 set a new template for structuring expansion financings in the international oil & gas sector. The large and complex financing is the first time that development of an LNG project has been financed using a multi-sourced corporate loan structure.
Train 7 will be financed by a combination of NLNG’s internally generated cashflows and US$3 billion of debt raised from a broad range of financiers, including three export credit agencies (ECAs), two developmental financial institutions (DFIs) and 26 international and Nigerian banks.
Structured as hybrid corporate finance, the Train 7 financing shares features of both corporate and project finance, even though it fits more towards the corporate end of the finance spectrum. From a bankability perspective, regardless of the financing’s ultimate classification, the overall risk assessment was similar, although financiers derived comfort from NLNG’s operational and financial track record and its robust credit history.
During a difficult period for the market, the Train 7 financing sends a signal to international markets that oil & gas projects with strong fundamentals can continue to raise debt—even in the midst of a global pandemic and one of the worst oil & gas shocks in history.
This financing package is a new template for structuring expansion financings in the international oil & gas sector
THE PROJECT
The Train 7 project is led by NLNG, a joint venture between the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and international oil majors Royal Dutch Shell, ENI and Total, established in 1989 to monetize Nigeria’s vast but underutilized natural gas reserves. NLNG commenced operations following the successful completion of its two-train base project in October 1999 on a site approximately 40 kilometers south of Port Harcourt on the eastern part of the Niger Delta.
NLNG currently operates a liquefaction complex comprising six complete liquefaction trains and associated facilities with a capacity of 22 million tons per annum (mtpa) of LNG and five mtpa of liquefied petroleum gas and condensates. It has grown to become a leading LNG producer in the Atlantic Basin and transformed Nigeria into one of the largest LNGexporting countries in the world.
Train 7 will add approximately eight mtpa of LNG and increase NLNG’s overall capacity to 30 mtpa, while further bolstering Nigeria’s competitiveness in the global LNG market. The Train 7 financing leveraged NLNG’s credit history and long-term operational and profitability track record to establish the hybrid structure, which enabled NLNG to raise a nine-year US$3 billion corporate loan with an availability period of four years. Lenders will rely on NLNG’s balance sheet and will have no direct recourse to NLNG’s shareholders for the Train 7 financing, including during the construction phase.
Train 7 has received support from a diverse group of global financiers, including:
26 international and Nigerian commercial banks
Two DFIs—the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) and the African Export-Import Bank (Afrexim)
Three ECAs—Korea Trade Insurance Corporation (KSure), the Korea Export-Import Bank (K-EXIM) and SACE
The international and Nigerian banks and the DFIs provided US$1.5 billion of debt on an uncovered basis, and the South Korean and Italian ECAs directly funded or covered the remainder of the Train 7 financing. Guaranty Trust Bank and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) were the joint financial advisers.
A NEW FRONTIER
Train 7’s financing structure has created a new playbook showing how similar projects may be funded in the future. NLNG’s strong cash position provided a solid foundation for the innovation.
Prior to the Train 7 financing, NLNG was essentially a debt-free company with significant cash reserves on its balance sheet. Its lease obligations under LNGtanker time-charters with its wholly owned shipping subsidiary, Bonny Gas Transport, accounted for the balance of its substantive financial liabilities. In addition to its strong credit history and low leverage, NLNG built a successful operational track record over two decades and attracted a strong portfolio of internationally rated buyers under long-term sales arrangements.
As NLNG expanded production capacity over time, its turnover grew substantially, with high profit margins allowing it to deliver consistently strong financial results year-on-year. Even as its business matured, NLNG’s shareholders continued to be integrally involved throughout the value chain, from dedicated long-term gas supply through to technical support and marketing and sales. NLNG’s credit strength meant it could approach the market with a financing proposal for Train 7 that was heavily slanted towards corporate finance. The group was able to rely heavily on its historic financial performance and operating track record, which allowed for flexibility when choosing its financing model.
Traditionally, large-scale LNG expansions have been financed using a project finance model with some degree of recourse to additional credit support during the construction phase.
This reflects the capital-intensive nature of expansion projects, the associated construction and interface risks, and the longer debt tenors typically sought. However, NLNG’s financiers accepted hybrid financing terms for Train 7 on the spectrum between corporate and project finance.
Although NLNG sought to raise US$3 billion in debt, it had significant turnover from its existing operations, with multiples of earnings to cover debt service—even before factoring in the future cashflow from Train 7. This provided a strong mitigant for the financiers against the completion risk of Train 7. Nevertheless, NLNG is still essentially a single asset business operating within the LNG industry, and the Train 7 financing was seeking a nine-year tenor, which was at the high end for corporate finance. Therefore, certain project finance characteristics, in particular lender controls and oversight, were incorporated into the financing terms. These characteristics were generally much lighter than would be found in more classic project finance models. For example, the security package provided as part of the Train 7 financing is not the full-blown security regime typically found in project finance transactions.
While security extends to NLNG’s bank accounts and LNG sales, the controls over its commercial arrangements are less extensive. NLNG retains the flexibility to manage its business with minimal interference in the normal course. This includes the freedom to establish and operate its accounts and manage its cashflows and investments outside the confines of a controlled payment waterfall structure.
Notwithstanding the hybrid nature of the Train 7 financing, the overall risk assessment was very similar from a bankability perspective, regardless of its ultimate classification, whether as corporate finance or project finance, or a combination of the two. However, the financiers derived comfort from the management of NLNG’s operations over the preceding 20 years and assumed that NLNG would continue to conduct future business in a prudent and rational manner.
PROFITABILITY
The Train 7 financing undoubtedly benefited from a number of economic factors that facilitated the financing terms it was able to secure.
A number of NLNG shareholders, well known in the international debt and capital markets, had interests in successful LNG operations across the value chain in other parts of the world. NLNG had generated close to US$7 billion in gross revenues in 2018 and consistently achieved approximately 30 percent average profit margins. Based on its historical financial performance, the financial model in the management case presented to the financiers indicated that NLNG was expected to maintain a strong financial profile during the life of the Train 7 financing. Even under conservative assumptions, it was projected to be able to service its debt obligations through its contracted LNG volumes from its existing Trains 1 to 6 operations.
From the financiers’ perspective, these factors reduced the Train 7 completion risk and reinforced the approach of focusing on NLNG’s balance sheet rather than relying onmodeling the forecast revenues from the Train 7 project. Although NLNG ran a number of modeling sensitivities for the financiers, the corporate finance approach of balance sheet financial ratios was adopted, with a focus on EBITDA, gearing and net worth, rather than forecast cashflow ratios applied in project finance.
TRACK RECORD
Before Train 7, NLNG had implemented three expansions, including the NLNG Plus Project, comprising Trains 4 and 5, which had been funded through multi-sourced project finance in 2002. Each of the expansion projects was built in line with Shell’s design and engineering practices under its own lump-sum turn-key construction contract. Each project was delivered under budget and within three months of the scheduled completion date.
NLNG’s operations have been underpinned by technical support and robust health, safety and environmental management systems. Shell Gas Nigeria BV provides ongoing technical and operational assistance to the existing LNG complex and will continue to do so for Train 7. Shell’s active participation has played a key role in ensuring that NLNG’s production consistently exceeded its nameplate capacity over the past ten years. From the financiers’ perspective, NLNG’s experience in completing expansion projects and the technical combined with operational support provided by Shell Gas Nigeria BV mitigated NLNG’s construction and operating risks for Train 7.
SUPPLIER AND CUSTOMER DEALS
The natural gas for the complex is supplied to NLNG by experienced upstream gas developers affiliated with its shareholders under three long-term gas supply agreements. The gas developers source natural gas from a large number of fields with proven, deliverable reserves. These are transported to the plant by gas transmission systems.
NLNG’s gas supply agreements allow for capacity optimization among the gas suppliers to ensure NLNG’s supply security. In addition, NLNG benefits from long-term take-or-pay sales agreements for the existing Trains 1 to 6 with LNG buyers with strong credit and/or long-term access to regasification terminals, and it has concluded the LNG sales agreements in connection with Train 7.
To further mitigate marketing risk from a bankability perspective, NLNG has undertaken to maintain a minimum annual base contract quantity of LNG sales contracts for the duration of the Train 7 financing. The basket gives NLNG the flexibility to respond to current market conditions and optimize its sales strategy, while providing assurance to the financiers that NLNG will maintain a minimum contracted volume of LNGsales at all times.
THE VALUE CHAIN
NLNG makes a significant contribution towards the Nigerian government’s revenue drive and its objective of eliminating all flaring of associated gas. In recognition of the likely benefit to Nigeria’s economy, the Nigerian government promulgated the 1993 Nigeria LNG (Fiscal Incentives, Guarantees, and Assurances) Act, which allows NLNG to establish and operate foreign accounts with minimal foreign exchange restrictions.
The NLNG Act granted NLNG and its shareholders certain tax incentives, guarantees and assurances by the government. This legislative backing mitigates foreign exchange and volatility risks, as the requirement for repatriation of proceeds of sale is not applicable to NLNG’s revenue flows.
NLNG’s entire gas intake is supplied under three gas supply agreements with gas suppliers operated by affiliates of its shareholders. Similarly, some of its produced LNG is sold to affiliates of its shareholders. This vertical alignment of interests has guaranteed NLNG’s enduring success. It reduces conflicts of interest related to delivery delay or failure, force majeure and other defaults, which could typically cause tension between gas suppliers and LNGproducers (on one side) and LNG producers and their buyers (on the other). This dynamic provides a further measure of justification for the limited controls that the financiers agreed to impose on NLNG’s commercial arrangements.
THE WAY FORWARD
It is clear that strong fundamentals underpinning NLNG’s business enabled it to attract the groundbreaking US$3 billion hybrid corporate loan and to introduce ECAs into the debt mix to augment the commercial bank offering and enhance liquidity and pricing. NLNG responded to bankability issues and structured the financing to accommodate the needs of a diverse range of financiers.
This financing sets the benchmark for future LNG financings globally, as LNG markets continue to develop and companies mature into significant industrial players worldwide.
Some business leaders and professionals are now lamenting that projects for FDI are not coming
They suggest privately that decision -makers who are cabinet ministers may be allowed to take an incentive rather than calling it bribery, so that FDI can grow in
Large infrastructure projects are often evaluated on their economic return. In capitalist economies, investors expect profits, dividends, and performance-linked rewards. Corporate executives are compensated based on the value they create for shareholders
Governments, however, operate under a different principle. Ministers and public officials are custodians of public funds rather than investors. Consequently, any personal financial benefit derived from awarding contracts is generally considered corruption rather than profit sharing. Yet this distinction raises an interesting question. If private-sector decision-makers are rewarded for successful investments, should governments develop transparent mechanisms that reward public-sector leaders for creating measurable national value?
Sri Lanka has invested heavily in highways, ports, airports, conference halls, sports facilities, and other strategic infrastructure. Some projects have generated substantial economic benefits, while others have produced returns below expectations. The challenge is that the individuals responsible for selecting, designing, and implementing these projects often receive the same compensation regardless of the outcome.
In the private sector, a failed investment affects profits and shareholder value. In the public sector, the consequences are often borne by taxpayers. This creates what economists call an incentive gap.” The solution is not to legalize commissions or unofficial payments. Instead, governments could explore transparent performance-based systems. Rewards could be linked to measurable outcomes such as increased trade, higher tax revenue, job creation, export growth, foreign direct investment, or improved public services. Such incentives would need to be publicly disclosed, independently audited, and approved through legislation.
For example, a port expansion that increases national export earnings and attracts international shipping lines could justify performance rewards for the institutions responsible. Similarly, a successful industrial zone that generates thousands of jobs might warrant recognition and incentive payments to the agencies involved.
At the same time, projects that fail to meet economic objectives should be subject to review and accountability. Public investment must be assessed not only on construction costs but also on long-term economic returns.
The debate is therefore not whether bribery should be renamed or accepted. Rather, it is whether governments can create transparent, legal, and accountable incentive structures that encourage better decision-making while preserving public trust.
As Sri Lanka seeks to accelerate development, attract investment, and improve infrastructure, the country may need to reconsider how public-sector performance is measured and rewarded. The ultimate objective should be to align the interests of decision-makers with the prosperity of the nation rather than with personal financial gain. Sarath Obeysekera
MEDIA RELEASE | June 24, 2026 Collective for Social Media Declaration (CSMD)
The ‘Collective for Social Media Declaration'(CSMD) hereby expresses its grave concern regarding the. “CHARTERED INSTITUTE OF MEDIA PROFESSIONALS OF SRI LANKAl” gazetted by the government in June 2026, which poses a serious risk of severely restricting the digital civil space and the freedom of expression of independent voices in this country. While this bill presents itself as introducing and maintaining professional standards in the media sector, it carries a high potential of becoming a repressive tool that directly silences independent journalism and professional criticism in practice.
It is factually clear that the very initial operation of this bill, upon enactment, opens the door to direct political interference. Under Clause 5(4) of the bill, the “Interim Council” appointed for the first year of the act’s operation falls entirely under the influence of the Minister in charge of the subject. This council, composed of members nominated with the consent of the Ministry Secretary and the Minister, is empowered to determine the foundational criteria for selecting members of the permanent council – paving the way for the institution’s very foundation to be shaped according to political will, devoid of any independent professional basis.
In this context, the three primary threats posed by this bill – particularly to the digital space, social media activists, and content creators – can be identified as follows:
1. Entrapping Digital Creators Through the Definition of “Media Professional” This bill directly includes not only traditional journalists but also “content creators” and “content editors” operating on online platforms such as YouTube, Facebook, and TikTok within the legal scope of “media professional.” While on the surface this may appear to be professional recognition or appreciation extended to them, its true underlying intention is to bring independent citizens under an institutional and state regulatory framework.
2. The Risk of Vague “Misconduct” Rules and Disciplinary Control The governing council established by the bill is granted full authority to impose a professional code of ethics and exercise disciplinary control over members. The most serious legal gap therein is that “professional misconduct” is not specifically defined within the bill itself. Leaving this to be determined by rules subsequently formulated by the governing council creates a broad political opening to persecute independent journalists by labeling any content critical of the government or corrupt officials as “unethical” or “misconduct.”
3. The ‘Triple Legal Threat’ Converging with Other Repressive Legislation If a social media activist’s professional registration is revoked through disciplinary proceedings under this bill, the impact is not limited to mere institutional punishment. A deadly ‘triple legal trap’ is activated here, where this bill converges with the already-enforced Online Safety Act (OSA) and the proposed Protection of the State from Terrorism Act (PSTA).
As a practical illustration:an independent social media activist (YouTuber) who exposes large-scale government corruption could have their professional registration revoked under this bill on grounds of “ethical violation.” They could then be reduced to the status of an ordinary unofficial citizen, after which the content could be removed from the internet under the Online Safety Act(OSA) on claims of spreading misinformation, and punishment imposed. Furthermore, if the exposure triggers public outrage, it could be framed as inciting anti-state sentiment, and if the proposed PSTAl is passed, the mechanism would be in place to arrest the individual without a warrant.
Our Request and Emphasis
As a collective that stands for and operates with socially responsible, human rights-based ethical social media activism, we make our emphasis on that ethical foundation.
The combination of these laws has the full capacity to directly or indirectly threaten the freedom of speech and expression guaranteed under Article 14(1)(a) of the Constitution, and to create a dark era of “self-censorship” in this country’s digital space – where media personnel, especially social media activists, censor themselves out of fear of legal punishment.
Therefore, we strongly urge the National People’s Power (NPP) government to immediately withdraw this bill, which suppresses civil space and the right to criticize under the guise of professionalism. We, as the ‘Collective for Social Media Declaration (CSMD),’ also earnestly call upon all civil society organizations, media professionals, and citizens who respect democracy to immediately unite in defense of both media freedom and democratic rights in this country.
Faithfully yours, Sampath Samarakoon, Convener | Collective for Social Media Declaration (CSMD) +94 777 248304
ABOUT CSMD: The Social Media Declaration collective is a coalition established by civil society organizations, citizen activists, websites, and subject-matter experts, with the aim of promoting a ‘human rights–based’, Socially Responsible use of Social Media’. This collective is dedicated to advancing human rights, including digital rights, and to systematically analyzing online content through research, advocacy, training, awareness-raising, and critical inquiry. It continuously strives to foster and sustainably promote democratic discourse in online spaces grounded in internet freedom, transparency–openness, and democratic values. In this way, the collective remains committed to ensuring societal well-being through the influence of technology and to encouraging the development of responsible, ethical use of social media in the digital age.
The following organizations belong to this collective. Sri Lanka Working Journalists Association | Jaffna Press Club | Eastern Provinces Journalists Forum | Centre for Policy Alternatives | Human Elevation Organization | Movement for Land and Agricultural Reform | ActNow Youth Campaign | Wedabima Media collective | National Collaboration Development | Foundation Best Vision foundation | Internet Media Action | maatram.org | vikalpa.org | groundviews.org
” If you do not claim recognition for what you have done others will claim credit for what you have done like the way the ICC (International Cricket Council) has done at the behest of its Legal Team fraudulently and thereby depriving a Sri Lankan Inventor cum Lawyer due credit and compensation”.
“Never be afraid to say ‘ I did it’ if you have really done it.”
Senaka Weeraratna
Architect of ‘Player – Referral’ (DRS)
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Sri Lankan lawyer and inventor Senaka Weeraratna is widely documented as the pioneering intellectual architect behind cricket’s Decision Review System (DRS), originally conceptualized as the “Player Referral System”. His quote highlights a long-standing grievance regarding intellectual property (IP), corporate recognition, and the fight for creators to stand up for their work. [1, 2]
The Dispute and Core Facts
The 1997 Blueprint: Weeraratna first published the foundational mechanics of the player-led review system in a letter to the editor of The Australian newspaper on March 25, 1997. He formally communicated the design to the International Cricket Council (ICC) that same year.
The Legal Framework: As a qualified attorney, Weeraratna modeled the concept after an appellate court system. He argued that allowing human umpiring errors to stand when television technology could correct them violated natural justice.
The Four Pillars: His original publication outlined the exact operational pillars the ICC later implemented: player empowerment to initiate reviews, the third umpire acting as an appeals judge, limiting unsuccessful appeals to prevent tactical time-wasting, and using slow-motion replay technology.
The ICC’s Stance: The ICC trialed and launched the system between 2008 and 2009 without attributing authorship or providing financial compensation to Weeraratna. The ICC’s historical legal position has been that an unpatented “idea” published openly does not carry copyright protection and that the framework evolved via internal committees. However, the ICC has admitted it holds no official copyright or specific named author for the system. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
Comparison of Structural Innovations in Cricket
Unlike mechanical broadcast technologies, Weeraratna’s contribution altered the rules and legal jurisprudence of sports officiating. [1, 2]
Frank Duckworth, Tony Lewis, and Steven Stern (DLS)
Mathematical and statistical calculation for resetting targets.
TV/Third Umpire (Line Calls)
Mahinda Wijesinghe (Sri Lanka)
Allowing on-field officials to seek video help for run-outs and stumpings.
Decision Review System (DRS)
Senaka Weeraratna (Uncredited by ICC)
Player empowerment to challenge on-field rulings via appellate authority.
Current Status of the Movement
Because the system fundamentally reshaped global sports officiating—serving as a blueprint for football’s VAR and tennis’s challenge mechanics—the dispute has evolved into a broader campaign for regional recognition: [1]
Renaming Campaigns: Cricket historians, commentators, and legal groups continue to lobby for the system to be formally renamed the Senaka Weeraratna Decision Review System (SWDRS) or Senaka Decision Review System (SDRS).
Institutional & Government Support: Advocacy groups in South Asia have routinely called upon Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) and regional sports ministries to diplomatically leverage their institutional weight against the ICC to secure formal credit for this indigenous innovation. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
The International Cricket Council (ICC) adapted its Decision Review System (DRS) from the “Player Referral” concept originally conceived and published by Sri Lankan lawyer Senaka Weeraratna in 1997. Weeraratna has extensively advocated for his rightful intellectual property (IP) and moral rights, arguing that the ICC and its legal team fraudulently claimed or ignored the system’s Sri Lankan origins to avoid paying compensation. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]
The lack of formal naming or compensation has sparked an ongoing, decades-long dispute. Historical and legal advocates consistently press the ICC to acknowledge Weeraratna’s four-pillar appellate architecture, which fundamentally shifted power from an unchallengeable on-field umpire to technology-backed accuracy. [1, 2, 4]
Key arguments in Weeraratna’s battle for recognition include:
The Original Blueprint: Weeraratna first published his “Player Referral” idea in March 1997 via The Australian, proposing that players be empowered to appeal subjective umpiring decisions to a third umpire using television replays.
ICC’s Stance: The ICC and its legal counsel have historically maintained a “no awareness” defense, claiming the system was built independently and that Weeraratna waived his rights by publishing the idea openly without a patent.
The Call for Justice: Backed by various regional advocates and cricket historians, Weeraratna and his legal team continue to press for proper attribution and financial restitution, frequently drawing comparisons to the DLS method, which officially credits its inventors. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
If you would like to delve deeper into this ongoing intellectual property battle, I can provide information on:
The specific legal arguments Weeraratna’s representatives have used (such as the Doctrine of Constructive Notice).
Details of how Weeraratna’s four-pillar concept aligns with modern DRS rules.
Steps being taken by advocates and Sri Lankan institutions to secure official national recognition.
Let me know which aspect you want to explore further.
Medical prescriptions were written down on palm leaf manuscripts. Besajja Manjusa is the oldest medical manuscript written in Sri Lanka. There is a Sinhala translation of the Pali original in the Colombo Museum library. The manuscript of Bessajja Manjusa held in Ayurveda Research Institute, Maharagama was included in the UNESCO Memory of the World national register in 2016.
Bessajja manuscripts can be found in Dalada Maligawa patirippuwa library, Galvene purana vihara Angoda, Mettaramaya in Bambalapitiya, Colombo , Valukaramaya at Pamburana,Matara and Kosgodella raja maha vihara
Sirancee Gunawardana says she has seen a medical manuscript belonging to Ms. Sirimavo Bandaanaike, handed down from her grandfather, a medical practitioner. It had prescriptions using herbs, roots, barks of trees and indigenous seeds, for ailments ranging from stomach trouble, pediatric, pregnancy, fever, headaches, cholera, small pox, chicken pox, eye, cancer and snake bite. It was written in 1850. There are 39 other such manuscripts in the collection.
Palm leaf manuscripts mention immersion therapy and acupuncture. Sirancee has paid special attention to acupuncture. Sirancee found a very old manuscript on acupuncture in Institute of Ayurveda, Rajagiriya. It is very well illustrated. Pelmadulla Raja maha vihara has a 12 th century manuscript giving acupuncture points for humans, also for cock, horse, buffalo. The full manuscript is reproduced in her book. She has also included in full another acupuncture manuscript by Sadiris Perera.
Manuscripts that give remedies for snake bite were known as Sarpa veda poth. Colombo Museum Library has one where the prescriptions are given in verse. Sirancee owned a ‘very interesting’ ola on herbal treatment of cobra and other snake bites.
The Sinhala state had its own healing system in the Udarata before the British took over the kingdom. Western medicine soon displaced the vederala but some parts of the native system survived up to the middle of the 20 century.
The Report of the 1950 Commission on the Ancient system of Sinhalese Medicine (SP 17 of 1950) stated that Sihala vedakam was a distinct medical system with its own drugs, diagnostic methods and treatments. It was particularly effective for snake bite, fractures, rabies and cancerous tumors, said the Report.’ The Sinhala vedakam or Desiya chikithsa physicians saw themselves as a distinct group, belonging to ‘veda parampara’ through the possession of secret family recipes, the report said. A national health system cannot operate on secret prescriptions. This secrecy would have been a later aberration.
Sinhala vedakam prescriptions would have been recorded on palm leaf. The National Library of Sri Lanka has publicized the fact that it has manuscripts on Sinhala Vedakam. Hugh Neville collection has a Sinhala pharmacopeia, written in 19 century. Pelmadulla purana Viharaya had an ola dealing with surgical specialties, written in Sinhala, copied in 1862.
There are many palm leaf manuscripts written in Sinhala containing herbal prescriptions that have originated in Sri Lanka, said Sirancee. Firstly, there is the collection of prescriptions which the vederala carries with him for immediate use. It is a collection compiled by him or his ancestors and is known as ‘beheth vattoru potha.’ This potha contained prescriptions for emetics, purgatives, medicine for diarrhea, piles, worm treatment and blood ailments.
There is a ‘beheth vattoru pota’ in the Kosgoda vihara library. There are about 103 beheth vattoru poth in the TPP Goonetilleke collection. Historical Manuscripts Commission was shown a Udarata beheth potha, One manuscript held in a curated collection, contained the prescriptions of a physician named Hatara Korale Huhgampola Ruppege Dara Mudalihami (sic).
Elephants played a major role in the Sinhala state. There are many palm leaf manuscripts on how to manage elephants and treat their illnesses. The manuscript titled ‘Hasti Yoga Silpa’ , seen by Sirancee is in verse and has charms for protection of elephants. Harakola Sri Anandarama Viharaya in Gampola had two manuscripts on elephants, one manuscript was an Ali veda pota , the other was on elephant charms and sensitive spots.
Palm leaf manuscripts provide scattered information on music, song and dance. Alutnuwara Raja Maha vihara had a manuscript with music notations. Sirancee Gunawardana in her book ‘Palm leaf manuscripts of Sri Lanka’ said she has not seen anything else like it and published a photograph of the manuscript in her book, see p 169. Historical manuscripts Commission found a manuscript which had a stanza in very rare meter in a chant for Kataragama deviyo
On the subject of drums, Andreas Nell presented the Colombo Museum library with a copy of an ola titled Bera, davul, tammata adiye upata.” The original is in the British Library. Tupavamsa manuscript mentions 20 types of drums used in Sri Lanka. The Isavara nartaya” manuscript in the Colombo Museum, which is in Sinhala, gives 32 tunes for drums written in kavi style.
Regarding dance, Hugh Neville collection has a manuscript titled nrutya upata”. It has three sections, gitaya, nrutya, and pada and provides 36 different beats for the drum. Alutnuwara Raja Maha vihara had a manuscript called Pada Natuma.
There were three other manuscripts on movement. Hugh Nevill collection had 100-year-old manuscript on Sokari nateema,. There were many palm leaf manuscripts on leekeli in Colombo Museum library. Historical Manuscripts Commission (1951) had found a manuscript, titled Pandama ganna kavi ,5 verses sung to invoke the blessing of the gods before the dancers approach the road. This would have been for a perahera.
There was some information on song. Historical Manuscript Commission (1933) found in family collections, lots of panegyric type songs for the Udarata kings.One manuscripthad verses sung at the coronation of Kandyan kings. Verses sung at the coronation of king Narendrasinha were recorded in a manuscript titled Sringara alamkaraya (1842).
Sri Lanka has a notable kavi tradition. There are many kavi manuscripts dating from the 18 th and 19th centuries, in palm leaf collections. An interesting feature in these collections, are the kavi to be sung at work, including songs to be sung when spinning thread.
Colombo museum library has a manuscript with two sets of kavi. Kavi to be sung when weeding paddy fields and Nelum kavi to be sung when reaping the harvest. The Nelum kavi manuscript was prepared by Tikiri Yadesguru in 1862.
Olas contain kavi for harvesting Kurakkan. Colombo Museum library has a manuscript on growing kurakkan (millet), how to sow the grain, protect it, fence it from wild pigs , how to put up a watch hut, how to harvest the millet and how to cook it.
Hugh Nevill collection has a kavi manuscript titled Peduru Male” This manuscript relates the story of a rush mat weaving competition between a mother-in-law and a daughter in law. They first weave ordinary mats then a strong knotted mat, gold flowered mat, tasseled mat, mat with hare, mat showing a jackal about to eat the hare, then a deer mat, leopard mat, cat, rat, lion and elephant mats. Thereafter, they weave a mat with a buddha’s throne and finally a mat with loha-maha-paya and dagoba design. Sirancee observed that this ballad describes various unusual mat designs and provides information on the art of weaving rush mats.
Historical Manuscripts Commission (1933) found an architectural plan at Lankatilleke vihara, 17th or 18th century . It was the ground plan of a royal palace, a ‘raja maliga salasma’. Design was rectangular, with ornate triangular and circular buildings within the space. The plan gave the Sinhala names for special buildings and the different departments set aside for different services. This was of considerable value since these words are rarely met and indicates the functions of these apartments.
Cook books were found among curated collections. Dalada Maligawa library has a book titled ‘Supa Sastra’ containing recipes and food prepared for the king. Hugh Neville collection has a manuscript in Sinhala which gives rules for selecting a cook, how to arrange the logs in a hearth, how to make a fire and how rice should be cooked. The ola gave instruction on cooking fish, meat, broths, vegetables, sambals, chutneys and spiced curries. The ola had recipes for making milk rice, pickle, jak fruit curry, and oil cakes. There was advice on how to avoid over eating and how to distinguish poisons in food.
Traditional Sinhala society believes in astrology. Horoscopes are cast when a child is born. The chart and interpretation are inscribed on an ola. This was the tradition up to the first half of the 20 century. My horoscope, prepared in the 1940s, is on palm leaf. It is wound round and round and fastened through a slit in the leaf itself. From 1960 onwards, horoscopes were written on paper, but there are persons capable of recording them on palm leaf, if requested, even today.
Traditional Sinhala society also believes in the supernatural. There is a great fear of sorcery in our society. Yantra (talisman) are used in Sri Lanka to counter such sorcery. Yantra are mystic diagrams and geometrical designs, drawn onto strips of palm leaf or engraved onto copper or gold foil which are then rolled up and worn in a little metal case around the neck or upper arm as a protection against harm.
Yantra are meant to be protective charms primarily, but yantra are also used for curative purposes, for soliciting favors, and in rituals of revenge. Yantra were inscribed on palm leaf until recently. They are now etched on thin copper sheets.
Yantra manuscripts are profusely illustrated. They have diagrams and also ritual images drawn on them. Yantra drawings are in secret code. Hugh Neville collection has manuscript containing seven yantras which served as guidelines for those creating yantra images. These were kept secret by the practitioners.
LSD Peiris has one of the largest collections of Yantra manuscripts in the country. He has written a book titled ‘Yantra drawings in palm leaf, Sri Lanka.’ He has studied the subject for many years and has some interesting observations.
He says there is intricacy in the art forms way beyond what is needed, while preserving their ritual properties and intended purpose. I found the proportions and the ornamentation around the geometric outlines, the circles, ovals, square, rectangles, diagonals and arcs very pleasing to the eye, though I could not appreciate their ritual significance.
Peiris says the script in which the text is written has ‘the authentic flavor of the Sinhala written script’. He says it is possible to locate fragments of letters from the Sinhala alphabet in the drawings. This can be seen in the fingers, toes and facial features of the figures drawn in the yantra. CONCLUDED.
REFERENCES
1st report of Historical Manuscripts Commission 1933 SP 9 of 1933
3rd report of Historical Manuscripts Commission 1951, SP 19 of 1951.
Report of the Commission on ancient system of Sinhalese medicine SP 17 of 1950
Sirancee Gunawardana Palm leaf manuscripts of Sri Lanka . 1977
L.S.D. Pieris Yantra drawing on palm leaf Sri Lanka 2018
I often reflect on my days as a young engineering student in the former Soviet Union. My mentor, a Russian Jew and a passionate patriot of Russia and its revolution, frequently spoke about how a nation becomes powerful through knowledge, discipline, and scientific inquiry.
Under leaders such as Stalin, he believed that Russia transformed itself into an industrial and scientific giant because it encouraged rigorous study and intellectual curiosity.
I was fortunate to receive both theoretical and practical training in oil and gas exploration, learning about the machinery and technologies of the 1960s and 1970s.
During those days there was no internet, no search engines, and certainly no artificial intelligence. Knowledge had to be earned through long hours in libraries and laboratories.
At one stage, my professor entrusted me with an important research task. I had to develop a method for predicting the remaining operational life of enormous eight-cylinder reciprocating gas compressors. These machines pumped natural gas through large pipelines and into underground porous limestone formations for storage before it was later cooled to nearly minus 160 degrees Celsius and converted into liquefied natural gas (LNG).
My research focused on the hydrodynamics of the lubricating oil film in the journal bearings of these compressors.
I travelled to libraries searching for books and scientific papers, studying every available publication on the subject. I eventually developed a mathematical formula and tested it on actual compressors in Kaluga, a suburb of Moscow.
I still remember how the engineering fraternity there helped me verify my calculations, despite our journey being made without official permission from Soviet authorities.
The most valuable lesson I learned came from Professor Kozobkov. His words remain with me even today: Do not try to invent before you study what has already been invented. Visit libraries, examine the literature, understand existing formulas, and then derive a better one.” This advice is remarkably relevant in the age of Artificial Intelligence.
Today, many educators fear that AI tools such as ChatGPT and Gemini will make students lazy thinkers. I respectfully disagree. AI should not be prohibited. Instead, it should be guided and harnessed.
I propose a simple methodology for schools. Before students use AI to write an essay, they should first write a short paragraph expressing their own understanding, opinions, questions, and ideas on the topic.
They should then submit this paragraph together with the prompt they gave to the AI system and the final AI-assisted essay.
P This initial paragraph will reveal the depth of the student’s thinking. It will show whether the child merely asked the machine to think for him or whether he used AI as a partner to expand his own ideas.
The libraries of my youth have now become digital and intelligent. Artificial Intelligence is perhaps the greatest library ever created by mankind. But just as my professor advised me decades ago, young people must first learn to think, question, and explore before asking for answers.
The future does not belong to those who merely use AI.
It belongs to those who can ask profound questions, challenge existing knowledge, and use AI to discover what has not yet been discovered.
The true purpose of education is not to create children who can copy answers from machines; it is to create curious minds capable of exploring the universe and imagining possibilities beyond the limits of today’s knowledge.
Under the doctrine of stare decisis, the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka generally treats its own prior judgments as binding. However, it can and does overturn its own previous decisions to correct legal errors, adapt to changing social realities, or rectify judgments made per incuriam (through carelessness or lack of regard to the law). [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
The primary mechanisms for doing so are assembling a larger Divisional Bench (e.g., a 5, 7, or 9-judge bench overriding a 3-judge bench) or invoking its inherent revisionary powers to vacate an earlier order in exceptional circumstances. [1, 2, 3, 4]
1. Key Landmark Examples of the Supreme Court Overruling Itself
Sunpac Engineers (Pvt) Limited v. Abeygunawardena (2023)
The Overruled Case: Ramachandran v. Hatton National Bank (2006).
The Legal Context: For nearly two decades, the Ramachandran ruling dictated that under the Recovery of Loans by Banks (Special Provisions) Act, a bank could not use parate execution (selling mortgaged property by public auction without going to court) if the property belonged to a third-party guarantor rather than the primary borrower.
The Overruling: A larger bench in Sunpac Engineers explicitly overruled the majority decision in Ramachandran. The court ruled that Parliament intended to facilitate speedy debt recoveries for the entire banking sector, meaning third-party mortgaged properties can be subjected to parate execution. [1]
Walker Sons & Co. Ltd. v. Gunatilake (1978/1980)
The Overruled Case: Various early split-bench decisions regarding appellate finality.
The Legal Context: This case heavily debated whether the Supreme Court was strictly bound by its own prior interpretation of labor laws and industrial disputes.
The Overruling: The Supreme Court formally affirmed that while it values consistency, it regards itself as bound by its own decisions subject to their being overruled by a bench of greater numerical strength. This landmark case set the modern procedural baseline for how the apex court can legally overturn its own jurisprudence. [, 2, 3]
Pathirathne v. Abeywardena and others (2024)
The Overruled Principle: Previous restrictive judicial remarks regarding the scrutiny of the Constitutional Council.
The Legal Context: The case was filed seeking a judicial review of the Constitutional Council’s refusal to approve a judge’s nomination to the Supreme Court.
The Overruling: The Supreme Court explicitly affirmed its jurisdiction over the council’s vetting powers. In doing so, it overruled by implication previous apex court remarks that limited inter-branch accountability concerning the executive and the council. [1]
2. Legal Mechanisms Used to Overturn Previous Decisions
The Supreme Court utilizes specific frameworks when departing from its own precedent:
A bench with a greater numerical strength of judges (e.g., 5 or 7) is constituted by the Chief Justice to deliberately re-evaluate and overrule a prior 3-judge bench decision.
Used to overrule Ramachandran via the Sunpac ruling.
Per Incuriam Rule
The Court establishes that a previous decision was reached in ignorance of a statutory provision or a binding case law, rendering it non-binding.
Regularly argued in land partition and prescriptive title disputes.
Inherent Revisionary Power
The Court uses its exceptional powers to vacate its own order if it is proven that the initial judgment caused a gross miscarriage of justice or was based on fundamentally wrong facts.
Exercised strictly to prevent an abuse of process or structural injustice.
If you are looking at a specific legal domain, please share if you are focusing on commercial law, fundamental rights, or criminal jurisprudence so I can provide the most relevant localized citations.
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AI Overview
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In Sri Lanka, the Supreme Court is the apex judicial body and is technically bound by its own prior rulings under the doctrine of stare decisis. However, an enlarged bench (usually 5 or 7 judges) can explicitly overturn a previous Supreme Court precedent if it was decided per incuriam (in error) or if societal and legal shifts require a departure from past interpretations. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
Notable instances and contexts where the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka has varied or reconsidered its earlier positions include:
Rights of the Accused & Confessions (Ediriweera vs. The Attorney General): The Supreme Court has historically revisited strict rules of evidence. In notable evidentiary and criminal jurisprudence, the Court has sometimes had to re-examine or re-interpret earlier categorical stances established by prior benches regarding circumstantial evidence (such as the strict application of the Ellenborough dictum) or the admissibility of confessions, adapting precedents to ensure no miscarriage of justice occurs.
Administrative Law & Statutory Ouster Clauses (Maradana Mosque Trustees vs. Mahmud): The Sri Lankan Supreme Court historically adopted the English Anisminic approach, which allowed the higher judiciary to disregard statutory ouster clauses and review decisions that were deemed erroneous. This represented a significant shift in judicial review and administrative law, setting aside older, more restrictive precedents regarding the finality of administrative tribunals.
Devolution and Self-Determination (Federal Party Case of 2017): In a landmark 2017 determination assessing whether the advocacy of a federal constitution violates the Sri Lankan Constitution, the Supreme Court revisited earlier post-1972 and post-1978 foundational rulings. The Court expanded the scope of permissible constitutional discourse by determining that advocating for federalism is not tantamount to secession, and recognizing the Tamil minority as a distinct “people” entitled to internal self-determination—a notable jurisprudential pivot from earlier, rigid unitary interpretations.
Fundamental Rights and Confiscation (Manawadu vs. The Attorney General): A classic example of the Court correcting a previously harsh statutory interpretation was seen when the Supreme Court re-evaluated legislative provisions (like those under the Forest Ordinance) that allowed the automatic confiscation of vehicles used in offences. The Court recalibrated the balance between the State’s power to penalize and the fundamental right to own property, ensuring constitutional fairness. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
Note: In Sri Lankan legal practice, the Court more frequently overturns decisions made by the Court of Appeal to reinforce its ultimate hierarchical authority. Instances of the Court explicitly overruling its own prior apex determinations require the convening of specially constituted benches to ensure legal certainty and finality. [1, 2, 3]
The Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (MRIA) remains one of Sri Lanka’s most debated infrastructure projects. Built in 2013 at an estimated cost of US$209 million, with the majority financed through Chinese loans, the airport was originally designed to handle one million passengers and 50,000 tonnes of cargo annually. Unfortunately, traffic projections never materialised, and the airport became globally known as one of the world’s least utilised international airports. However, underutilisation does not necessarily mean failure. Around the world, many airports have been successfully repurposed as aviation maintenance centres, logistics hubs, industrial zones, and aerospace parks. Mattala could still become a major economic asset if repositioned strategically. Construction Cost and Environmental Considerations The initial investment exceeded US$209 million, and some estimates place the total implementation cost at approximately US$240 million after variations and associated expenditure. Environmental criticisms focused on: • Proximity to wildlife habitats and bird migration corridors. • Disturbance to elephant movement and local ecosystems. • Increased bird-strike risks to aircraft operations. • Conversion of large tracts of land for airport development. These concerns require continuous environmental management rather than abandonment of the facility. What Could a 50-Year Lease Generate for Sri Lanka? A long-term concession model could unlock substantial foreign direct investment (FDI). A reasonable estimate for a 50-year concession could include: Initial Upfront Lease Premium: US$150–300 million Additional Capital Investment: US$500 million–US$1 billion over 10–15 years Annual Lease and Revenue Sharing: US$10–20 million per annum plus passenger, cargo and commercial revenue-sharing arrangements. The exact figures would depend on the investor’s development commitments and land utilisation rights. Which Countries Are the Most Suitable Investors? India Advantages: • Geographical proximity. • Synergy with Indian tourism and airline markets. • Potential integration with Hambantota Port and regional logistics. • Growing demand for aircraft maintenance services. United Arab Emirates (Dubai) Advantages: • Expertise in aviation hubs and airport city developments. • Experience in free zones and logistics parks. • Strong tourism marketing capabilities. Singapore Advantages: • World-class airport management expertise. • Integrated airport-commercial development experience. • Excellent reputation for MRO and logistics. South Korea Advantages: • Advanced aerospace manufacturing capabilities. • Strong engineering and vocational training systems. • Potential for electronics and aviation component manufacturing. A consortium involving India, Dubai and Singapore may offer the most balanced commercial and geopolitical solution. Infrastructure Required Around Mattala The airport alone cannot succeed. Supporting developments are essential: Airport City Hotels, convention centres, shopping malls and entertainment facilities. Eco-Tourism Zone Safari parks, bird-watching centres, wellness resorts and adventure tourism. Aviation Free Zone Duty-free logistics centres, bonded warehouses and cargo distribution facilities. Industrial Zone Aircraft component manufacturing, marine engineering workshops and precision engineering industries. Education and Training Aviation academies, aircraft engineering institutes and technical universities. Transport Connectivity Rail links, expressway improvements and dedicated public transport systems. Employment Potential Direct Employment: 3,000–5,000 jobs Indirect Employment: 15,000–25,000 jobs Induced Employment: 10,000–15,000 jobs Total long-term employment potential: Approximately 30,000–45,000 jobs. Employment opportunities could arise in: • Airport operations • Tourism and hospitality • Engineering and manufacturing • Logistics and warehousing • Technical training • Construction and support services Can Mattala Become an MRO Hub? Yes. Mattala has several advantages: • Long runway capable of accommodating wide-body aircraft. • Large land availability. • Low air traffic congestion. • Proximity to major East-West shipping routes. Potential MRO activities include: • Heavy aircraft maintenance • Aircraft painting facilities • Engine overhaul centres • Aircraft storage and preservation • Conversion of passenger aircraft into freighters • Aviation training centres The global aircraft maintenance industry exceeds US$100 billion annually and continues to grow rapidly in Asia. Can Mattala Become an Aircraft Storage and Recycling Centre? Yes. Several airports worldwide generate revenue from: • Long-term aircraft parking • Aircraft dismantling and recycling • Salvage and resale of components • Storage during airline downturns • End-of-life aircraft processing The dry climate of southern Sri Lanka and abundant land availability make Mattala suitable for an aircraft storage and recycling park. A New Vision for Mattala Mattala should no longer be viewed solely as a passenger airport. Its future lies in becoming: 1. South Asia’s aircraft maintenance and MRO hub. 2. Aircraft storage and recycling centre. 3. Aviation training and technical education city. 4. Logistics and free-trade zone linked with Hambantota Port. 5. Eco-tourism and convention destination. 6. Aerospace and precision engineering cluster. If integrated with Hambantota Port and the Southern Expressway, Mattala could evolve into a specialised aviation-industrial ecosystem that generates significant foreign direct investment, creates tens of thousands of jobs and transforms southern Sri Lanka into a new economic growth pole.
ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka has urged investors from Belgium and Luxembourg to seize opportunities in the island nation, citing economic reforms, affordable real estate and cheap labour.
Speaking at a panel discussion during the BELGOLUX -Sri Lanka Business Forum with a number of Belgian and Luxembourg delegates at Colombo Port City, deputy minister of Industries and Entrepreneurship Development Chaturanga Abeysinghe called on investors to capitalize on early-stage opportunities to maximize returns.
Being a part of this growth as early as possible is going to yield greater returns because land is competitively priced, real estate is affordable, and you can hire talent that is not as costly as in other developed regions,” Abeysinghe said.
Abeysinghe said the government was was planning to push through reforms such as the Investment Protection Act, Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Act, along with land and labor policy overhauls.
The event, organized by the BELGOLUX – Sri Lanka Business Council of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, highlighted growing trade relations with the European Union while emphasizing Sri Lanka’s strategic maritime location.
I think the number one investment opportunity is in infrastructure because we will open up public-private partnerships this year through the new Public private partnership act. There will be a significant opportunity to partner with the government of Sri Lanka in investing in infrastructure. May it be energy, may it be telecom, may it be road networks, ports, or airports,” Abeysinghe said.
Extract
Green Hydrogen and Green Ammonia Pilot Project for Sri Lanka: A Strategic Opportunity
The global engineering consultancy Royal HaskoningDHV has extensive experience in developing green hydrogen ecosystems and has undertaken similar World Bank-supported studies in countries such as Morocco. Sri Lanka has now embarked on a serious initiative to develop green hydrogen and green ammonia projects, supported by its National Hydrogen Roadmap and recent investor outreach initiatives.
Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Energy and the Board of Investment (BOI) have invited international investors to submit proposals for:
* Green hydrogen production facilities * Green ammonia manufacturing plants * Storage and export terminals * Hydrogen component manufacturing facilities * Associated renewable energy infrastructure
Why Sri Lanka Has Potential
Sri Lanka possesses significant renewable energy resources:
* Solar potential of approximately 16 GW * Wind potential exceeding 50 GW, particularly in the Northern and Eastern Provinces * Deep-water ports suitable for export and bunkering operations * Strategic location on major East-West shipping routes
Potential Pilot Project Locations
Trincomalee Harbour
* Offshore wind-powered hydrogen production * Green ammonia export terminal * Bunkering hub for future green-fuelled ships * Heavy engineering and assembly base for hydrogen equipment
Hambantota Port
* Industrial-scale green ammonia production * Export hub to Asia and the Middle East * Integration with industrial zones
* Generate significant foreign direct investment (FDI) * Create high-skilled engineering and technical employment * Produce future marine fuels for global shipping * Reduce dependence on imported fossil fuels * Position Sri Lanka as South Asia’s first green hydrogen and ammonia export hub
Sri Lanka’s National Hydrogen Roadmap aims to establish a green hydrogen economy and has set an aspirational target of generating around US$1 billion annually from the green energy value chain by 2030.
For your interest in developing Trincomalee Harbour as a heavy engineering and offshore services hub, a World Bank-funded pilot project led by Royal HaskoningDHV could be expanded beyond hydrogen production to include:
* Green ammonia bunkering facilities * Assembly and repair of offshore wind equipment * Manufacturing of electrolyser components * Production of green fuels for shipping and industrial users
This could transform Trincomalee into a regional Green Energy and Offshore Engineering Hub of the Indian Ocean.
The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that was finally unveiled a few days ago only reaffirmed how misguided the joint US-Israeli attack on Iran on February 28 was, as by every account and careful analysis, despite Iran’s heavy losses, it has come out on top. Should the US and Iran negotiate the various provisions of the MUO in good faith, the latter will likely gain considerably more at the negotiating table than it would have before the war.
Before we delve into the reasons why Iran has emerged victorious despite its massive losses, it is important to revisit the reasons why the US and Israel attacked Iran in the first place and why they failed to achieve any of the objectives that they set out to accomplish. The war’s stated objectives—regime change, the dismantling of Iran’s nuclear program, the curtailment of its ballistic missile arsenal, and the weakening of its regional proxy network—were not merely ambitious; they were fundamentally detached from what defines Iran as a state, a society, and a strategic actor. The US’ and Israel’s failure should not come as a surprise. It was, in fact, predictable.
Before any military confrontation or serious negotiation, a state must rigorously assess its adversary across several dimensions: political structure, ideological conviction, historical experience, cultural identity, geostrategic positioning, and national aspirations. In the case of Iran, the US and Israel ignored the implications of these dimensions that characterize the country and how they might manifest themselves in a time of national crisis.
Iran’s psychological national mindset is anchored in a powerful sense of civilizational continuity and historical grievance, fusing Persian pride with an acute memory of foreign intervention and betrayal. This produces a deeply entrenched siege mentality—a conviction that Iran must rely on self reliance, strategic patience, and asymmetric power to withstand external threats—let alone existential ones—and to preserve its revolutionary identity at home and across the region.
Politically, Iran is not a fragile state susceptible to rapid political internal breakdown. Its governing system, complex, layered, and deeply entrenched, has demonstrated remarkable durability. The regime’s political cohesion, particularly among its security apparatus in support of the regime, has repeatedly proven resilient in the face of both domestic unrest and international sanctions and military threats.
Ideologically, Iran’s leadership operates within a framework where religion and governance are inseparable. The Islamic Republic’s worldview is not merely strategic but also ideological and theological. It perceives resistance to external pressure, particularly from the US and Israel, as both a political necessity and a religious duty. This ideological foundation reinforces, rather than weakens, the regime under attack. External aggression tends to consolidate internal support rather than ignite a popular uprising, as was hoped.
Historically, Iran’s sense of identity is shaped by more than 2,500 years of history. This long civilizational memory has cultivated a deep-seated buoyancy and a capacity to absorb and outlast external threats. Unlike younger states, which lack that historical perspective, their endurance becomes far more brittle. Iran draws strength from its continuous survival and adaptation. This historical consciousness cannot be bombed out of existence, as Iran has proved.
Culturally, Iran is a nation of profound pride and sophistication. Iran’s deep intellectual, artistic, and philosophical heritage contributes to a strong national identity that resists humiliation. Any strategy predicated on coercion or submission fundamentally misunderstands this cultural reality. Iranians, regardless of their views on the regime, will not accept externally imposed dictates that compromise national dignity.
Geostrategically, Iran occupies one of the world’s most critical positions. Its proximity to the Strait of Hormuz—through which one-fifth of global energy supplies pass—grants it immense leverage, as demonstrated by Tehran’s closure of the Strait. Combined with its natural resources and substantial human capital, Iran is not easily isolated or neutralized. The failure to account for this reality has triggered a global economic disruption, especially in the oil and gas sectors.
Military Capabilities: The US and Israel failed to accurately assess Iran’s military capabilities, including its vast arsenal of missiles and drones, along with proxies capable of asymmetric warfare. Its armed forces and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps have for years been in combat readiness and deeply committed to regime preservation. This ensured that Iran would absorb the attacks and continue to retaliate unabatedly.
The Memorandum of Understanding
The extent of the US and Israel’s miscalculation becomes clearer. The MOU ensures freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz—something that existed before the war—and reaffirmation that Iran will not pursue nuclear weapons, a position Tehran has publicly maintained for years. These provisions amount to a return to the status quo rather than a strategic breakthrough.
Instead, Iran has achieved unprecedented milestones: control over the Strait of Hormuz at will, uncontested power in the Gulf, bringing Lebanon into the MOU, and partially realizing its regional hegemonic ambition. It has also shown it can withstand both the US and Israel, the most powerful global and regional militaries. All of this was predictable, but Trump and Netanyahu conveniently chose to ignore it.
Moreover, Iran has secured the suspension of crippling economic sanctions, the ability to export oil freely, and access to approximately $100 billion in previously frozen assets, and substantial international investment—potentially reaching $300 billion—to support Iran’s economic development.
The agreement defers critically crucial contentious issues, such as Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs and its regional proxy network, to future negotiations, effectively sidestepping Israel’s primary security concerns.
Negotiating these unresolved issues will not be quick or straightforward. A comprehensive agreement addressing Iran’s nuclear stockpile of uranium enriched to 60 percent—alongside its missile capabilities and regional proxies—will likely take many months, if not longer. The current 60-day timeline is unrealistic, albeit it may be mutually extended as stipulated in the MOU.
The Adverse Implications for Trump and Netanyahu Facing economic pressures and upcoming mid-term elections, Trump appears eager to declare a diplomatic victory and was compelled to make concessions, making a mockery of his earlier demand for unconditional surrender. Netanyahu, confronting an election in the fall, sought to demonstrate that a joint military action could achieve his long-standing strategic goals of regime change and permanently wiping out Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missiles program, which has proven to be nothing but a mirage. Instead, both leaders now face the consequences of their arrogance toward and misreading of Iran.
The broader geopolitical fallout was equally troubling. The conflict has strained the US’ relations with European allies, disrupted global trade, and driven up energy prices, contributing to inflationary pressures worldwide. Gulf states, long reliant on American security guarantees, are reassessing their strategic alignments with the US amid the rise of Iran as the undisputed leading power in the Gulf, which will have lasting repercussions for the US’ strategic regional interests and influence.
Paradoxically, despite suffering significant military damage—including the destruction of naval assets, missile infrastructure, and key military installations—Iran has emerged with a strengthened strategic position. By failing to assess how Iran’s national character and resolve have shaped its reaction to the war, the US and Israel have inadvertently strengthened Iran and forced the US to engage it on terms that preserve its core interests.
The central lesson is unmistakable: wars conceived on illusion and waged in defiance of a nation’s historical identity do not transform that nation—they reaffirm it. In Iran’s case, force did not weaken the regime or bend its ambitions; it consolidated both. What was meant to compel surrender instead elevated Iran’s standing and leverage, leaving diplomacy to recover, at a higher cost, what military power failed to secure—and what, from the outset, it could never have achieved.
____________
Dr. Alon Ben-Meir is President of the Institute for Humanitarian Conflict Resolution.
Many of the world’s great advances came from exceptional individuals such as J. Robert Oppenheimer, Tim Berners-Lee, and countless scientists, engineers, and thinkers whose creativity changed civilization. Their inventions brought enormous benefits but also risks. Nuclear technology, for example, can generate electricity or destroy cities.
Will AI make human genius unnecessary?
Probably not. AI can:
Process vast amounts of information.
Generate ideas and designs.
Accelerate scientific discovery.
Assist with research and decision-making.
However, humans still provide:
Values and ethics.
Purpose and goals.
Empathy and moral judgment.
The ability to decide what should or should not be done.
AI may become a powerful intellectual partner, but it does not eliminate the need for human wisdom.
Could AI develop technologies that seem impossible today?
History shows that many things once considered impossible became real:
Flying across oceans.
Speaking instantly with someone on another continent.
Organ transplantation.
Landing humans on the Moon.
Could AI help develop technologies that allow a person to appear” in two places? In a practical sense, perhaps through:
Highly realistic holograms.
Telepresence robots.
Digital avatars that act on one’s behalf.
Advanced virtual or augmented reality.
Whether a person can literally exist physically in two places at the same time is a different question and currently lies outside established science.
Regarding spiritual traditions, many religions, including some Buddhist traditions, describe extraordinary abilities attained by enlightened beings. These are matters of faith, philosophy, and spiritual experience rather than subjects that science has verified or disproved.
Could AI destroy the world?
AI itself has no desires, ambitions, or intentions. It is a tool created by humans. The danger arises from:
Misuse by people.
Autonomous weapons.
Large-scale misinformation.
Poor governance and lack of safeguards.
Concentration of power.
This is similar to nuclear technology: the technology itself is neither good nor evil; its consequences depend on how humans use and control it.
Many religions speak of a day of reckoning or the end of the world. AI cannot determine whether such prophecies are true. From a secular perspective, AI is one of several powerful technologies that humanity must govern responsibly.
A useful way to think about it is:
Human intelligence created AI. The future depends not only on how intelligent AI becomes, but on whether human wisdom, ethics, and compassion grow alongside it.
AI may become extraordinarily capable, but the responsibility for its direction remains with humanity.
Yes, the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka can overturn its own decisions, but only under strictly defined, highly exceptional circumstances. [1, 2, 3]
As established in landmark rulings, the Supreme Court is the apex judicial body and its judgments are constitutionally final. It has no statutory or constitutional power to rehear, review, or alter its decisions simply because a party is dissatisfied. However, the Court possesses inherent powers to vacate or set aside its own orders to prevent a miscarriage of justice or an abuse of the process of Court under specific conditions. [1, 2, 3]
Exceptional Circumstances Permitting Revision
The Court may exercise its inherent power to overturn its own final decision in the following exceptional situations: [1]
Decisions Passed Per Incuriam (Through Inadvertence/Lack of Care):
This is the primary ground. A decision is per incuriam if it was made in ignorance of an inconsistent statutory provision or a binding legal precedent that would have altered the outcome.
It also applies if the judgment is based on a manifest, obvious mistake of fact where the court accidentally misunderstood the record.
Breach of the Rules of Natural Justice (Audi Alteram Partem):
If a final order was made without giving an affected party a right to be heard (e.g., passing an adverse judgment against a party who was never legally noticed or substituted).
Fraud or Collusion:
If it is subsequently proven that the judgment was obtained through patent fraud, deception, or false evidence practiced directly upon the Court.
Lack of Jurisdiction:
If the decision was a complete nullity ab initio because the Court acted entirely outside its legal jurisdiction or composition. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]
Supporting Case Law
The boundary between finality and the inherent power to correct mistakes is governed by several core Sri Lankan cases:
1. Jeyaraj Fernandopulle v. Premachandra De Silva (1996) 1 SLR 70 [1]
Principle: This 5-judge bench decision definitively ruled that the Supreme Court does not have a general revisionary jurisdiction to review its own final decisions.
Ruling: The Court emphasized that its decisions are final to ensure litigation comes to an end. However, it explicitly preserved the Court’s inherent power to correct decisions made per incuriam (defined strictly as decisions made in ignorance of an inconsistent statute or binding case law). [1, 2]
2. Gunasena v. Bandaratilleke (2000) 1 SLR 292
Principle: The Court invoked the Roman-Dutch and Common Law maxim actus curiae neminem gravabit (an act of the court shall prejudice no man).
Ruling: The Supreme Court affirmed that all superior courts possess the inherent authority to repair an injury caused to a litigant by the court’s own obvious mistake or slip, extending the per incuriam rule to clear clerical or factual errors made by the judges during the reading of the record. [1, 2, 3]
3. Ganeshanantham v. Goonewardene (1984) 1 Sri LR 319
Principle: One of the earliest major jurisprudence inquiries into whether a bench of the Supreme Court could revise a decision made by a previous bench of the same court.
Ruling: It established that while final judgments stand, they can be set aside if there is a fundamental violation of natural justice or a clear per incuriam error that invalidates the proceedings. [1, 2]
4. Kariyawasam v. Priyadarshani (2004) 1 SLR 301
Principle: Reaffirmed the per incuriam doctrine regarding an error of oversight.
Ruling: The Court ruled that because a critical page of a final decree was overlooked during the initial hearing, it was a duty of the court to exercise its inherent power to rectify the error, stating “No man shall be put in jeopardy by a mistake made by a court“. [1]
If you are evaluating a specific judgment for a potential review, please let me know:
Did the court overlook a specific section of an Act or a prior Supreme Court precedent?
Was there an obvious administrative or factual slip in the final text?
I can help you evaluate whether the situation fits the strict definition of per incuriam.
As a child, my mother was an ardent devotee of the deity of Kataragama Temple. Before every important examination or milestone in my life, she would take me on a long journey by bus to Kataragama. In those days, it was an adventure in itself. We travelled for an entire day and stayed in a simple dormitory near the temple. We enjoyed the hospitality of the devotees and even received free northern-style breakfasts. Early in the morning, we stood in long queues carrying a basket of fruits and a humble offering of one hundred rupees, hoping to attract the attention of the temple’s custodian, the Kapuwa”. Did the ritual itself make me pass my examinations? Perhaps not directly. But I always returned home with renewed confidence, optimism and determination. Faith gave me courage, and courage often became the key to success. My father was different. He was a devoted Buddhist and never accompanied us to Kataragama. Every evening at seven o’clock, he gathered his eight children and taught us Anapanasati—mindfulness of breathing. We sat quietly, observing our breath and learning to calm our minds.
As I grew older, I realised that both my parents were teaching me valuable lessons in different ways.
My Tamil friends visited the sacred Nallur Kandaswamy Kovil in Jaffna. My Muslim friends sought blessings at the historic Kahatagaha Mosque. Though our places of worship differed, we all searched for the same things—hope, protection, courage and peace of mind. Later in life, a friend introduced me to the teachings of S. N. Goenka and a ten-day residential retreat at a Vipassana Meditation Centre.
The experience was transformative. For ten days there was no communication with the outside world. No telephone, newspapers, television or social media. There was noble silence. One simply observed one’s breath, sensations and thoughts.
Initially, the silence seemed difficult. Then, gradually, the mind became calm and clear. I discovered that true confidence does not come from external praise or possessions. It arises from understanding one’s own mind.
Vipassana taught me mindfulness, kindness, compassion and equanimity—the ability to remain balanced in success and failure, pleasure and pain. The Buddha taught that suffering arises because we constantly react to pleasant and unpleasant experiences. Through mindfulness and meditation, we learn to observe without attachment or hatred. This understanding gradually brings peace and wisdom.
What Can Young People Learn?
From Kataragama: Faith can inspire confidence and hope.
From Nallur Temple: Devotion teaches discipline, gratitude and respect for tradition.
From Kahatagaha Mosque: Prayer and community strengthen brotherhood and compassion.
From Anapanasati: Awareness of breathing develops concentration and emotional stability.
From Vipassana: Mindfulness teaches us to understand ourselves and respond wisely rather than react impulsively.
Why Religious Education Alone Is Not Enough Every child should learn religion. Religion provides moral values, teaches right from wrong and nurtures respect for others. However, as young people mature and face the pressures of examinations, careers, relationships and an increasingly digital world, they need another essential skill—the ability to manage their minds. Meditation develops: • Concentration • Emotional intelligence • Self-discipline • Resilience under stress • Compassion and kindness • Inner confidence and peace Modern education teaches us how to make a living. Meditation teaches us how to live. Perhaps this was the wisdom of the Buddha’s teaching. Faith may guide us to the temple, church, kovil or mosque, but mindfulness guides us to understand ourselves. Sri Lanka is blessed with many religions and sacred places. Yet all of them ultimately point towards similar human values—kindness, compassion, self-discipline and inner peace. Our children should learn religion to become good human beings. As they grow older, they should also learn meditation to become peaceful, balanced and wise human beings. The journey that began for me as a little boy carrying a basket of fruits to Kataragama eventually led me to discover something even deeper: the greatest temple we can ever explore is our own mind.
President Dissanayake authorizes security forces to join mosquito-control efforts as daily hospital admissions surge past 1,000
ISTANBUL
Sri Lanka has deployed its military to assist in dengue-control operations amid a sharp rise in infections that has pushed daily hospital admissions above 1,000, local media reported Tuesday.
President Anura Kumara Dissanayake authorized the armed forces to support public health authorities in eliminating mosquito breeding grounds and strengthening prevention measures in areas hardest hit by the outbreak, according to local broadcaster Ada Derana.
On Monday, a high-level meeting, chaired by Health Minister Nalinda Jayatissa and Secretary to the President Nandika Sanath Kumanayake, decided key measures to control the outbreak.
The meeting decided to establish a monitoring unit, strengthen legal enforcement measures, and expand dengue prevention efforts through community empowerment and public safety committees already operating at the local level, according to a statement issued by the President’s Office.
The intervention comes as health officials warn of a worsening dengue situation driven by seasonal rains and an increase in stagnant water, which provides ideal breeding conditions for Aedes mosquitoes, the primary carriers of the disease.
Hospitals across the country are now recording more than 1,000 dengue-related admissions daily, raising concerns about mounting pressure on Sri Lanka’s healthcare system.
Military personnel will work alongside public health inspectors, local authorities and community volunteers to identify and destroy mosquito breeding sites, participate in cleanup campaigns and assist with public awareness efforts.
Authorities have urged residents to regularly inspect homes, schools and workplaces for standing water and take preventive measures to reduce mosquito populations.
Dengue fever remains a recurring public health challenge in Sri Lanka, particularly during periods of heavy rainfall. Symptoms include high fever, headaches, muscle and joint pain, while severe cases can lead to potentially fatal complications.
Officials said the government would continue monitoring the outbreak and could expand response measures if infections continue to climb.
Colombo, June 22 (Daily Mirror) – The United States today announced the provision of a Fleet Broadband satellite communications system worth approximately US$4 million (over Rs. 1.2 billion) to the Sri Lanka Navy, in a move aimed at strengthening maritime security and connectivity across the Indian Ocean.
The announcement was made by U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Paul Kapur during a visit aboard SLNS Gajabahu at the Port of Colombo. Deputy Minister of Defence Major General (Retd.) Aruna Jayasekara and Commander of the Sri Lanka Navy Vice Admiral Kanchana Banagoda hosted the visiting U.S. official.
During the visit, the officials held discussions on expanding maritime cooperation and the role of advanced U.S. satellite communications technology in safeguarding international shipping lanes, supporting regional disaster response, and combating illicit activities across the Indian Ocean.
The Fleet Broadband system, manufactured by Cobham and Inmarsat, will be installed across the Sri Lanka Navy’s fleet of offshore patrol vessels. The technology provides secure ship-to-ship and ship-to-shore communications, enabling reliable voice, data, and information sharing while operating far beyond coastal waters.
According to the U.S., the new system will enable the Sri Lanka Navy to maintain real-time connectivity with headquarters, aircraft and other vessels across vast maritime areas, strengthening maritime domain awareness, improving operational coordination, enhancing emergency response capabilities, and supporting efforts to interdict vessels involved in illicit trafficking and protect key international shipping routes.
Speaking at the event, Assistant Secretary Paul Kapur said the technology represents a transformational upgrade for the Sri Lanka Navy, ensuring uninterrupted communications across its offshore patrol vessel fleet. He said the capability would help Sri Lanka respond more effectively to emergencies, protect commercial shipping, and counter illegal activities in the Indian Ocean.
Deputy Minister of Defence Aruna Jayasekara said the introduction of the Fleet Broadband system significantly enhances Sri Lanka’s maritime domain awareness and further strengthens defence cooperation between Sri Lanka and the United States. He noted that the technology will improve fleet-wide connectivity, support real-time situational awareness, facilitate information sharing with regional partners, and reinforce the security and reliability of international shipping lanes.
Claudia Sallay, the mother of the Major General (Retd) Suresh Sallay, who is the former head of the State Intelligence Service, forwarded a letter to Pope Leo XIV today (23).
The letter requests justice, human dignity, and a compassionate intervention regarding Suresh Sale. Accordingly, arrangements were made to hand over the relevant letter to the Apostolic Nuncio, the representative of the Holy Father in Sri Lanka, at the Vatican Embassy in Colombo.
The letter is mentioned below:
His Holiness Pope Leo XIV
The Apostolic Palace
00120 Vatican City
23rd June 2026
Your Holiness,
Humble Appeal for Justice, Human Dignity, and Compassionate Intervention Regarding Retired Major General Suresh Sallay
I write to Your Holiness with profound humility, deep respect, and unwavering faith in the moral leadership of the Holy See. I humbly seek your compassionate intervention regarding the continued detention, alleged torture, and public vilification of my son, Retired Major General Suresh Sallay, whose life, dignity, and reputation are being irreparably destroyed before any court of law has determined his guilt or innocence.
My son, Retired Major General Suresh Sallay, is one of Sri Lanka’s most highly decorated senior military officers. During more than thirty-five years of distinguished military service, he received numerous gallantry, campaign, and long-service decorations in recognition of his dedication, leadership, and service to the nation. Throughout his career, and particularly in his senior appointments, he faithfully served under five successive Presidents of Sri Lanka, irrespective of political affiliation, demonstrating unwavering loyalty not to any political party or individual, but to the State and its people. He devoted his life solely to the security and protection of Sri Lanka. Never during his career was he found guilty of misconduct or convicted of any criminal offence. His professional life was built upon discipline, integrity, honour, and selfless service, making the present circumstances all the more painful for our family.
Today, however, he remains detained under the Prevention of Terrorism Act merely as a suspect in an ongoing investigation. He has not been convicted of any offence. No court has found him guilty. The judicial process remains ongoing, and under every principle of justice recognised throughout the civilised world, every individual is presumed innocent until proven guilty by a competent court of law. Despite this fundamental principle, my son has already been publicly condemned.
Your Holiness, throughout the many investigations conducted into the Easter Sunday terrorist attacks, my son was never identified as a suspect. The Presidential Commission of Inquiry did not identify him as a suspect. The investigation conducted with the assistance of the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) did not identify him as a suspect. Reports associated with the Australian Federal Police (AFP) likewise did not identify him as a suspect. Despite years of investigations by both local and international authorities, no official investigative body concluded that my son bore criminal responsibility for those tragic attacks.
Yet today, before a court has had the opportunity to examine the evidence against him, he is publicly portrayed as the principal architect, the alleged “mastermind”, behind one of the darkest tragedies in Sri Lanka’s history.
It is with great sadness that I respectfully bring to Your Holiness’ attention our deep concern regarding the continuing public narrative surrounding my son, which has been actively promoted by Rev. Fr. Jude Rohan Silva and Rev. Fr. Cyril Gamini Fernando through repeated public statements concerning the Easter Sunday attacks.
For a considerable period, these repeated public statements have advanced the allegation that my son was the “mastermind” behind the Easter Sunday attacks despite the fact that judicial proceedings remain ongoing and no court has found him guilty of any offence.
In our respectful view, these repeated public statements have significantly influenced public opinion and contributed to sustaining a narrative that presents my son as guilty before the courts have had the opportunity to determine the truth.
Given the moral authority enjoyed by priests of the Catholic Church, such statements inevitably influence the thoughts and emotions of many faithful Catholics. The continuing repetition of these allegations has fuelled conspiracy theories, intensified public hostility towards my son, and created an atmosphere in which he has effectively been judged in the court of public opinion before any judicial determination has been made.
It is with equal sadness that we note that these public statements have continued over an extended period without any apparent public intervention to discourage the prejudgment of a person who remains presumed innocent under the law. We respectfully believe that this has contributed to the perception that the continuing public narrative has the support or acquiescence of the Church’s leadership, thereby further reinforcing public conviction before trial.
It is pertinent to note that the present investigation was initiated following a complaint made by Rev. Fr. Jude Rohan Silva of the Catholic Church and, subsequently, based on a letter which contained allegations by Mr. Azad Maulana, which were submitted by Rev. Fr. Busebaduge Cyril Gamini Fernando.
In these circumstances, I am deeply concerned that certain members including the said two members of the clergy who have provided statements and are witnesses in this matter have continued to conduct regular press briefings and make public pronouncements regarding the case. These statements, made on an almost biweekly basis, appear to advance a narrative that my son is the alleged mastermind behind the Easter Sunday attacks, notwithstanding the fact that the matter remains under investigation and has not been adjudicated by a court of law.
With the utmost respect to the clergy concerned and to the Church they represent, I submit that such conduct is inconsistent with the principles of fairness, impartiality, and justice that should guide all persons, particularly those who hold positions of spiritual and moral leadership. It is especially concerning when such public commentary emanates from individuals who are themselves witnesses in the proceedings and are therefore closely connected to the matter under investigation.
Furthermore, Article 13 of the Constitution of Sri Lanka enshrines the fundamental principle that every person is presumed innocent until proven guilty according to law.
Public statements that appear to prejudge the outcome of an ongoing investigation risk undermining this constitutional safeguard, influencing public opinion, and causing irreparable prejudice to the reputation and rights of the individual concerned.
Your Holiness, I respectfully submit that no individual, regardless of the seriousness of the allegations against him, should ever be publicly condemned before an independent court has spoken.
Another matter of profound concern is the apparent conflict of interest surrounding the present investigation.
Individuals against whom serious allegations have previously been made, and against whom findings and recommendations have been issued concerning their failure to prevent the Easter Sunday terrorist attacks, negligence in the discharge of their official duties, failures in the handling of intelligence, and shortcomings in the subsequent investigations, are now exercising authority over the very investigation into my son.
It is deeply troubling that officials whose own conduct in relation to the Easter Sunday tragedy has itself been questioned are now directing, supervising, or influencing an investigation arising from those very same events.
This creates a serious and unavoidable perception of a conflict of interest.
Justice requires not only that investigations be fair and impartial, but also that they be manifestly seen to be fair and impartial. Public confidence in the administration of justice is inevitably undermined when those whose own actions and omissions have been the subject of criticism, adverse observations, or recommendations are entrusted with investigating another individual connected with the same events.
It is particularly troubling that while these unresolved questions concerning institutional accountability remain, public attention has instead been directed almost exclusively towards portraying my son as the alleged “mastermind” behind the Easter Sunday attacks. The combination of an apparent conflict of interest within the investigative process and an ongoing public campaign declaring his guilt before trial risks undermining confidence in the administration of justice, the independence of the justice system, and the rule of law.
Justice cannot be delivered through public opinion.
Justice cannot be determined through rumours, speculation, or sustained public campaigns.
Justice belongs only in the courts of law.
If the courts, after hearing all the evidence, determine that my son is guilty, we shall respectfully accept that judgment. However, if the courts determine that he is innocent, no judgment will ever restore the honour, reputation, dignity, and life that have already been taken from him through relentless public accusations and character assassination.
An acquittal cannot erase years of humiliation.
An acquittal cannot restore a destroyed reputation.
An acquittal cannot undo the suffering inflicted upon his wife, his children, his elderly mother, and our entire family.
It is therefore essential that every person, especially those entrusted with immense moral influence, exercise restraint while judicial proceedings remain before the courts.
Your Holiness, my son has also endured immense physical and psychological suffering while in State custody.
As detailed in communications submitted to the United Nations Special Rapporteurs, he has been subjected to torture and cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment while under detention. Judicial medical assessments have reportedly found evidence of severe psychological trauma consistent with torture and ill-treatment. His health deteriorated to such an extent that he commenced a hunger strike in protest against his treatment and was eventually admitted to the National Hospital, where he continues to receive medical treatment.
This appeal is not made against the Catholic Church. On the contrary, our family has always held the Catholic faith in the highest regard.
My family has deep Catholic roots. I am a devout and faithful Catholic who has lived my entire life according to the teachings of the Church. I was baptised on 24th February 1946 in the Catholic Church in Colombo, Sri Lanka (Certificate of Baptism is attached at Annex A). I belong to the parish of St Joseph’s Church, Nugegoda in Colombo District and attend church regularly. I raised my children with Christian values of compassion, honesty, humility, forgiveness, and love for one’s neighbour. Above all, I have taught them to respect every religion equally and to treat every person, regardless of faith, ethnicity, or background, with dignity, kindness, and compassion.
The Catholic faith has long been part of our extended family. My brother-in-law’s sister, the late Rev. Sister Martha Costa of the Holy Cross Convent, Jaffna, dedicated her life to God and to the service of the Church. Her life of faith, sacrifice, and devotion reflected the Christian values that have guided our family for generations. These values profoundly shaped my son’s character and have remained with him throughout his life and distinguished military service.
It is therefore especially heart-breaking for our family to witness him being publicly condemned before the courts have spoken.
The Easter Sunday attacks brought unimaginable pain and suffering to countless innocent Catholic families. Their grief deserves truth. Their loss deserves justice. Those genuinely responsible must unquestionably be brought before the law.
However, justice for victims can never be achieved by condemning someone before a fair and impartial trial has taken place.
Justice demands truth.
Justice demands fairness.
Justice demands impartiality.
Justice demands that no innocent person be sacrificed to satisfy public expectation or political expediency.
Your Holiness has consistently reminded the world that every human being possesses an inherent dignity bestowed by God and that justice must always be accompanied by mercy, truth, compassion, and respect for the rule of law.
It is in that spirit that I humbly appeal to Your Holiness to use your immense moral authority to encourage that the judicial process in Sri Lanka be allowed to proceed free from prejudice, political influence, public campaigns, and premature declarations of guilt.
I respectfully ask Your Holiness to encourage all religious leaders, public officials, and persons of influence to allow the independent courts of Sri Lanka to determine the truth solely upon the evidence presented before them.
I further humbly appeal to Your Holiness to encourage that every person involved in this matter, particularly those who possess significant moral influence over public opinion, exercise restraint until the judicial process has concluded, so that justice may not only be done but also be seen to be done.
Above all, I humbly beseech Your Holiness to intervene, within your moral and pastoral authority, so that justice may prevail; so that the dignity of my son may be protected; so that due process may be respected; so that torture and inhuman treatment may cease; and so that no individual may ever be condemned before the law has spoken.
I also humbly ask Your Holiness to remember my son in your prayers, together with all those who continue to suffer because of the Easter Sunday tragedy. May God guide Sri Lanka towards truth, reconciliation, justice, healing, and lasting peace.
May Almighty God continue to bless Your Holiness with wisdom, strength, and abundant grace as you shepherd the Universal Church and continue to be a beacon of justice, mercy, peace, and hope for all humanity.
The proposal to reduce the annual turnover threshold for Value Added Tax and Social Security Contribution Levy from Rs. 60 million to Rs. 36 million, which was proposed in this budget to be implemented from the upcoming 1st of July, will not be implemented.
Deputy Minister of Economic Development Nishantha Jayaweera stated this while addressing the parliamentary session held today (23).
Prioritising the protection of existing garment factories, which face severe risks amid the current economic crisis, must take precedence before the government considers manufacturing textiles from banana plant fibres, Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa said.
Addressing a public gathering, the Opposition Leader pointed out that Sri Lanka’s garment factories currently stand in an unstable position due to prevailing economic difficulties.
“Due to the current economic crisis, garment factories in Sri Lanka are at a very risky stage. Therefore, the most essential thing at this moment is to protect those factories. Before thinking about manufacturing textiles from banana fibres, the government must find solutions to this problem,” the Opposition Leader stated.
The Opposition Leader shared these views responding to a recent statement made by Deputy Minister of Agriculture Namal Karunaratne regarding a plan to manufacture textiles utilising banana plant fibres.
‘Before you study the economics, study the economists!’
e-Con e-News 14-20 June 2026
In November 2020, 120 whales were run aground on Panadura beach, gasping for breath. There was widespread despair at the unfolding scene. Yet there was nary an exclamation from such environmental babblers as the Wildlife & Nature Protection Society (WNPS). These ecomaniacs daily dominate the media, with their chirpings & tweeting & wailings for diverse exotic animals, while groaning about the backwardness of rural cultivators – their subtextual sotto voce being: opposition to industrialization,
It is not that ee does not care for the health of workers & cultivators. But the WPNS’ eerie muffling on the whale strandings may be traced to the emission of submarine sonars during the ‘Malabar maritime war games’ in the same week, wherein for ‘the first time all 4 Quad nations – India, the USA, Japan, & Australia – were exercising their naval sinews in the waters nearby. The USA’s courts restrict sonar usage in such ‘marine sanctuaries,’ yet the WNPS, heavily funded by the US & EU, etc, exhaled not a hum.
‘Foreign plans involving Sri Lanka’s ports are progressing apace’, observes Foreign Ministry veteran Sarala Fernando (see ee Focus). Especially after the recent US attack on an unarmed Iranian ship near Galle, murdering over 100 sailors, she wonders if it is not time to declare Marine Mammal Protection areas especially around Mirissa & Trincomalee? The US, Australia, Japan & India have been ‘donating’ to Sri Lanka, secondhand sensors & ‘stores’ & sea buckets (minus the facilities to make any parts for their ageing equipment), which yet apparently cannot protect us from ‘marauding Indian trawlers’ and the endless seaborne & airborne drug smugglers…
Fernando wonders if the security largesse is an attempt to grab Trincomalee, the 5th deepest harbour in the world. She also points to the damning clause in the 1987 Indo-SL pact to limit Trincomalee’s use to India alone. The plan to involve the USA & UAE in creating an oil hub in Trinco also poses a threat. The UAE & Israel (both colonies of the USA) are waging war on Palestine, Iran & East Africa. She also points to the growing Israeli incursions into Sri Lanka’s East Coast. The local & foreign attacks on patriotic military officials are also a pressing issue, and she calls for a national conversation on the need to protect our sovereignty & phenomenal biodiversity.
It is therefore amusing if not intriguing that the USA embassy (and US & EU government-related NGOs) has been busy ‘training’ military and civilian personnel about ‘disasters & emergencies’ across Sri Lanka. Last week the US state department also summoned shipping officials to Washington, on the pretext of offering investment (and inducements to alleviate their economic strangulation of Sri Lanka & Asia’s economies) but, more apparently, to warn Sri Lanka to submit to US dictat to turn Sri Lanka into another node to harass navigation in the ocean called Indian (ee Sovereignty, 13 June 2026, USA facilitates 8 Lankans to participate in Indian Ocean Ports & Supply Chains Forum).
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The USA has unleashed their ‘social media’ Gen Z poodles & pitbulls on Indonesia for refusing to base US aircraft there to harass China at the Straits of Malacca. Meanwhile, the influx of officials ‘bearing gifts’ & uttering anodynes on climate change & human rights may be linked to their quarterbacking of the attempt to jail former President Gotabhaya Rajapakse, who presumably refused their demands to park military hardware & belligerents on our soil. The intermittent popping up of shady characters during the so-called ‘aragalaya’, who hark back to the 1959 assassination of SWRD Bandaranaike (see ee 12 Oct 2019) and the 1962 coup attempt against Sirimavo Bandaranaike (ee 16 July 2022) in this current endeavour to isolate, neutralize & eliminate national leaders, augurs more than an astrological confluence (see ee Random Notes, Psycho’s Coup Daddy).
The origins of the diverse coalition that has been assembled by the USA & its acolytes to bring about so-called ‘regime change’ is recalled in review of the novelist Gunadasa Amarasekera’s Roopantharaya. ee continues Sena Thoradeniya’s 2013 keynote at its book launch, which fictionalizes the proceedings of the Criminal Justice Commission (CJC), aka Maha Naduwa – the Grand Trial – investigating the now-ruling JVP’s 1971 insurrection against the State.
Thoradeniya compares the real-life roles of Amarasekera’s characters. He feels Amarasekera’s ability to hold up a mirror to these actors brought upon him unparalleled vituperation, isolation and ostracism. A recent English anthology purporting to represent Sri Lankan poets, Out of Sri Lanka: Tamil, Sinhala & English Poetry from SL & its Diasporas (Blood Axe, England) leaves Amarasekera out, as do reviews purporting to represent those who were left out! Amarasekera’s novel tracks these masked pilgrims’ progressions from prison to NGOs and to advisors & policy makers, where the tragedy of July 1983 offers them a stepping stone. Provided with names barely disguised in the novel, the characters go on to occupy so-called ‘elite’ positions in universities & the foreign service. They have apparently come into their own now. But what a path of destruction they have left and will leave in their wake, heightens the drama. Thoradeniya feels Amarasekera in full bloom may only find resonance in the fictional exertions of famed African novelists such as Kenya’s Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o…
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The USA’s War Department this week excised their ‘Indo-Pacific Command’ moniker into ‘Pacific Command’, dropping the ‘Indian’ allusion from their name, just after the USA attacked Indian ships in the Persian Gulf and killed several Indian seafarers, to which India apparently and unusually reacted ‘sharply’. And midst all natter about ceasefires & ‘freedom of navigation’, England also hijacked a ship bound for India, claiming it to be a Russian tanker. They then sent their top trade envoy, John Hannett (a Labour-Party Lord!), to presumably ‘talk shop’ in Colombo.
Hannett inspected English parasites like HSBC (famed opium smuggler), Unilever (which this week claimed marketers should not just promote consumption & monopolize markets but ‘guide transformation’), Coats Threads (supplying the rag fraud, which does not make a pin) and several auto ‘showrooms’ & ‘service centres’ (responsible for importing cars & parts to bulge the ever-widening trade deficit). Hannett avoided visiting English chemical importer CIC (ICI) & English cancer-spreader Ceylon Tobacco (CTC)…
‘Just won’t do, old chap to rattle them skeletons.’
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One of their favourite politicians – who the English grease amply replenish – the footnote fetishist Harsha de Silva, MP, was heard this week warning the Central Bank, to ‘prevent non-technical interpretations’ for ‘becoming a narrative’. This de Silva is given electronic stuttering ample enough to disorient whales. The footnote fetishist’s accomplice in the 2015 bond scam and its coverup, Ravi Karunanayake, was even heard declaring, ‘CBSL has today become ‘the branch of the IMF in Sri Lanka.’Errrr…, so what else is new?
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‘Corruption & abuse of the public’s Employment Provident Fund (EPF)
under the custody of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) represents
one of the largest financial integrity failures in the country’s history,
one that continues to this day with zero regulatory obstacles.’
The monopoly media splutters faux outrage about the US President’s petty efforts to insinuate toadies into strategic positions in the USA’s financial, regulatory as well as judicial bureaucracies. Accounts of his insider dealings to profit off his purportedly crazed & volatile pronouncements about the progress of the USA’s incessant warring, may make us mix laughter with any tears, as long as we are not recipients of his terror. Trump’s enablers claim he is giving the finger to his real handlers who have covertly massaged his entry into political power. And yet he is perhaps trying to do what he knows the ruling class already does.
In thisee Focus, Dhanusha Pathirana exposes how an ‘exclusive CBSL Staff Provident Fund (SPF)’ of senior employees, which controls the pensions of workers around the country, leaves it ‘wide open to the private gain of an exclusive group of rogue financiers, bureaucrats, and politicians.’ The SPF having access to insider information, possessing ‘a total monopoly over privileged market-altering macroeconomic information’, can manipulate the economy, while claiming to be independent, thanks to the new IMF-inspired Central Bank Act. Pathirana’s answer is to merge the CBSL Staff Provident Fund into the general public EPF. Yet, would this prevent so-called inside market manipulation? Will the ostensibly ruling class stop ruling?
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• The media is in late pregnancy with advices on the economy from various experts (see ee Economists) but none dare call a mamoty a mamoty (nor ask why England that does not use mamoties still owns the IPR to their usage here!). The much-published economists keep hoping that matters will return to ‘normal’, and they can get back to playing their rentier games, of speculation, peculation & money-laundering. Yet they cannot openly admit that it is abundantly clear the USA & Europe & Japan are escalating war on Asia, Africa & the Americas, east, west, south, north & central. They cannot name the USA as the main perpetrator, the leader of the pack of jackals or hyenas or whatever quadrupeds one seeks to blame for capitalist proclivities. Israel (& the Jews) are convenient patsies, when Christian & Muslim & so-called Hindu egoists could very well compete for ranking in these ‘hunger games’. Egoism which drives capitalism, though rooted & well-versed in white supremacist patriarchy, honors no epidermis, genitalia or national boundary…
Sri Lanka spends Rs300bn a year on advertising in the media, much of it controlled & wielded by multinational banks & corporations (MNCs) such as Unilever, etc. At least this is what they say they spend. And how much of this is to avoid paying taxes, we do not know. USA’s Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon, & Microsoft (GAFAM) control more than 7,000 companies, ‘giving them an extensive but largely underappreciated form of market power’ (see ee Quotes). It is no surprise therefore that the media, despite its claims to be ‘free’, ‘diverse’, inclusive’ and ‘equal’, saturates our eyes & ears.
It is equally no surprise therefore that we were harangued this week thus: ‘Today, large business giants such as Samsung, Apple & Microsoft began as small businesses and gradually developed into the global corporations they are today.’ Absolute nonsense! An old fairy tale. Apple & Microsoft & Samsung are linked to the US government’s largesse, the former coming out of Xerox. The author of this article in the Wijeya Group’s Financial Times, presumes to offer a headlined ‘Way Forward for SME Borrowers.’ His prolix bio proclaims himself ‘a senior banker who served in the corporate management of a leading private bank in Sri Lanka before retirement. He currently serves as a Non-Executive Independent Director of the Regional Development Bank of Sri Lanka. He is a Fellow Member of the Institute of Bankers of Sri Lanka (FIB), an Associate Member of the International Professional Managers Association (UK), and holds a Diploma in Management from ICFAI University, India,’ etc, etc.
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• The changes that have taken place in the world since VI Lenin wrote his classic Imperialism at the turn into the 20th century to this day at the beginning of the second quarter of the 21st century, is tracked in our latest excerpt of the Tricontinental Institute’s (TI) argument for calling the latest stage: Hyper-Imperialism(see ee Focus). Lenin tracked the growth of monopolies and cartels to the last quarter of the 19th century – something the much-decorated FT banker appears oblivious to.
This TI excerpt begins with describing the effects of the USA going off the ‘gold standard’ in 1971, forcing other central banks ‘to recycle their dollar surpluses into buying US Treasury bonds’. TI also recalls the pyrrhic defeat of the USA by the Vietnamese people, and the shift to new technologies midst the translation of Italian Communist leader’s concept of hegemony into ‘soft power’:: ‘culture, information, entertainment, non-profits (NGOs), academia, & thinktanks’.
They tabulate the 5 stages of communications technologies, commercialized and weaponized, between radio, telephone, internet, streaming, & smart phones. They describe the new methods of mass dissemination and blanket censorship. Alongside this is the rise of fictitious capital, its role in the 2007-8 financial meltdown, as well as the USA’s subordination of Europe & Japan, and the rise of China, is being met by rising hysteria. It concludes with a valuable ‘Periodization of Imperialism’.
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It is no wonder that SBD de Silva, to whom this blog is dedicated, proclaimed, that he wrote for himself. He wrote to make sense and tease out what he was trying to say. He inscribed for himself alone. Such a media, ruled by petty merchants & moneylenders, on behalf of their colonial masters, would not be interested, let alone comprehend what he sought to explain, by traversing history and the world, in order to aid in the transformation of the society he knew best.
We wanted to tape our conversations with SBD de Silva, but he would adamantly refuse. He saw it as a means to supress his free flow of thoughts: ‘What if I change my mind!’ We even tried to secretly tape him, but strangely they never ever came out. Perhaps we should ask the US or English government who would surely have, having tried to prevent his policies being implemented, calling him a ‘commie’ etc, and eventually driving him out of the country.
Those who heard him, with no urging, voluntarily addressed him as ‘Doctor’ & ‘Professor’ & ‘Sir’, but most called him SB! February this year would have dated him 100 years old. Yet this week witnessed the 8th anniversary of the passing of SBD de Silva. His 100th year passed publicly uncommented in a media terrain known for its effusive & paid-for obituaries & eulogies, and yet he is remembered mostly by those who were aware of his unparalleled genius, where any RIP would demand of this unrepentant historical materialist: Return if Possible!
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‘In a landscape that is intellectually sparse & monotonous,
any contribution to, or contact with scientific effort becomes
magnified. In such a wasteland collaboration including scrutiny
& comments on work in progress is hard to get, especially
when not directly related to one’s professional commitments.
However, the advancement of knowledge is not generally possible
without some degree of collaboration – preferably of an
interdisciplinary nature – & this means working together, not just
good fellowship. One carries out research as well as participates
in it, whether in formulating problems, in administering
questionnaires & obtaining data, or in subjecting to criticism
what one writes before publication. There are several reasons why
social scientists would want to publish their works. One of them is
that knowledge has to be tested & developed through a process of
confrontation. This need first found public expression in the scientific
journal & the device of the learned paper. ‘It is astonishing’, said
Keynes, ‘what foolish things one can temporarily believe in if one thinks
too long alone.’ Another reason for publication is that the development
of science is a process of interchange, & an individual’s work must be
adjusted to already existing work & also pave the way for others. In the
end there is inevitably a personal element – not just a ‘narcissistic instinct’
to see one’s ideas in print but the expression of one’s social involvement.
As Erich Fromm explained, every human being has a natural urge to
become related to society through ideas & moral values.
The social scientist cannot endure loneliness; for him communion is life.’
– SBD de Silva, The Political Economy of Underdevelopment (PEU)
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• This week saw the celebration in the USA of Juneteenth, which recalls the supposed fall of the last stronghold of slavery in the USA’s state of Texas in 1865. The US army arrived to declare ‘absolute equality of personal rights & property rights between former masters & slaves’– though the enslaved owned no property! The US Army also demanded that ‘The freedmen are advised to remain quietly at their present homes & work for wages. They are informed that they will not be allowed to collect at military posts…’ (see ee Quotes)
This ee continues Chapter 11 of SBD de Silva’s classic PEU, where he recounted how the new wage slavery, was more profitable to the capitalist than chattel slavery: ‘debt, became a substitute for the slave driver’s whip.’ This excerpt describes how plantation slavery blocked the use of technology, for ‘technology is the child of competition…’ Money was not to be invested in technology but in increasing the use of enslaved, low-paid, resident labor. The other reason was the expenses of absentee ownership. SB provides searing examples from Sri Lanka, the rest of Asia, Africa, & the Americas. The use of technology was prevented even if such inventions were available. Experiments were made that showed that mechanization of tea production was possible. but it was rejected.
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‘The production monopolist must be distinguished from the trading monopolist.
The former protects himself by reorganizing the production process or by putting
out new products (ie, differentiating his market). The latter resorts to extra-economic
restrictions & vested interests, including trade licences, royal charters, legal privileges
&, in the heyday of merchant capital in Europe, physical violence.’
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This is one of the most amazing insights SBD offered: the difference between industrial producer capital which dominated in the imperialist countries and merchant capital, which depends on privileged access to the state and physical violence. Welcome then, to the whole merchant media game of ‘corruption’ which is promoted by the media as some kind of genetic flaw inherent in the darker peoples!
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• ee therefore dedicates this bumper issue to SBD de Silva. This ee recalls rather cursorily, inadequately, and rather maddeningly, the history of the short-lived Steel Corporation of Ceylon (SPC): how it was built, how it was sabotaged & privatized, and how the merchant media has sought to justify its destruction & retardation. We also record how the exploitation of our abundant sources of energy & minerals are blocked. (see eeFocus, ee Random Notes).
The sabotage of the Steel Corporation follows a trajectory, very much resembling the history of the country after 1948 in particular. The attempt to sabotage the 1952 Ceylon-China Rubber-Rice Pact, the prevention of a development bank, the undermining of the Paddy Lands Act by a London court, the expulsion of ministers advocating industrialization, the tripping of the 10-Year plan, the assassination of SWRD Bandaranaike, the plan to set up a Steel Corporation, the setting up of the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation, the attempted coup d’etat against Sirimavo Bandaranaike, bribery to prevent the takeover of the private news monopolies, the splitting of the Sirimavo cabinet, and that government’s eventual defeat…
This week saw the crashing of 2 trains in England, whose train system is in the process of being renationalized, after being privatized & run into the ground. No matter that Europe is in a state of anarchy & renascent fascism, our merchant-media-promoted economists, prompted by the latest fads in Washington & London, and bribed to the hilt, have no use to examine the models offered by the East Wind.
The much-touted ‘failure’ of state corporations is their supposed inability to make profits. Not their inability to make steel or machines, clothes or paper. The question then arises of why something is made. ‘When it is done for profit, you get what happened to all the privatized industries… like US Steel.’
With real industry, one thing leads to another…and another…and another…and people are employed with dignity, unlike by private companies who monopolize the country’s resources and cannot or will not treat people well. More importantly:
‘Steel is the rice of industry’, reminded SBD de Silva, quoting an unnamed Japanese sage. He could have added….. ‘and our people are needlessly being kept hungry…’
Sri Lanka has historically financed large infrastructure projects through sovereign loans, bilateral financing, multilateral development banks, and foreign direct investment (FDI). While these mechanisms have delivered highways, ports, airports, and power plants, they have also contributed to high levels of external debt and fiscal vulnerability.
The emergence of tokenized digital asset markets presents an alternative financing mechanism that could fundamentally change how Sri Lanka mobilizes capital for strategic projects such as the development of Trincomalee as an offshore engineering and industrial hub.
If implemented with proper regulation, Sri Lanka could potentially become the first country in South Asia to finance large-scale strategic infrastructure through regulated tokenized securities and digital asset markets.
What is Infrastructure Tokenization?
Infrastructure tokenization is the process of converting ownership rights or revenue streams from physical assets into digital tokens recorded on a blockchain.
Instead of raising capital entirely through:
Sovereign debt
Government guarantees
Conventional bonds
Foreign loans
the project issues digital tokens representing:
Equity ownership
Revenue-sharing rights
Lease income participation
Green energy credits
Infrastructure bonds
Investors worldwide can purchase these tokens in small or large denominations.
A retired engineer in Australia or UK , a Sri Lankan doctor in the UK, a sovereign wealth fund in the UAE, or a pension fund in Singapore can all invest in the same project through digital platforms.
Why Trincomalee is Ideal for Tokenization
Trincomalee possesses unique assets that generate predictable future revenues:
1. Deep Natural Harbour
Trincomalee Harbour is one of the world’s finest natural deep-water harbours capable of accommodating large offshore structures and heavy engineering activities.
Potential revenues include:
Port charges
Berthing fees
Heavy lift operations
Offshore vessel services
2. Offshore Engineering Base
Trincomalee can become a regional centre for:
Oil rig repair
FPSO assembly
Subsea equipment servicing
Offshore wind platform fabrication
Ship repair and MRO facilities
These activities generate long-term lease and service revenues suitable for securitization.
3. Industrial Land Development
Thousands of acres around Trincomalee could be developed for:
Steel fabrication
Green hydrogen
Petrochemicals
Renewable energy
Logistics parks
Marine engineering industries
Lease rentals can provide stable cash flows over several decades.
4. Energy Infrastructure
Existing facilities such as Trincomalee Oil Tank Farm and future LNG and renewable energy projects create additional revenue streams that can be tokenized.
How Tokenization Could Work
Step 1: Establish a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV)
Trincomalee Offshore and Industrial Development Corporation (TOIDC)
Ownership example:
Government of Sri Lanka – 25%
Strategic Investors – 35%
Tokenized Infrastructure Fund – 40%
The SPV owns:
Industrial land
Infrastructure assets
Lease rights
Port facilities
Revenue agreements
Step 2: Issue Digital Infrastructure Tokens
Infrastructure Equity Tokens
Represent ownership shares.
Revenue Participation Tokens
Provide a percentage of annual income.
Tokenized Green Bonds
Finance renewable energy projects.
Diaspora Development Tokens
Allow Sri Lankans abroad to invest directly in national development.
Step 3: Global Distribution
Tokens could be listed through regulated digital asset platforms in:
Singapore
United Arab Emirates
Luxembourg
Bahrain
which already have legal frameworks for tokenized securities.
Why This is Different from Sovereign Borrowing
Such a capital base would be sufficient to transform Trincomalee into:
South Asia’s offshore engineering hub
Regional ship repair centre
FPSO assembly base
Renewable energy and green hydrogen cluster
Heavy industrial and logistics hub
Regulatory Reforms Required
Sri Lanka would need:
Digital Securities Act
Tokenized Asset Regulations
Digital Custody Framework
AML and KYC Regulations
Taxation Rules for Digital Securities
Cross-border Capital Market Regulations
Investor Protection and Disclosure Rules
The regulatory framework should be jointly developed by:
Central Bank of Sri Lanka
Securities and Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka
Board of Investment of Sri Lanka
Ministry of Digital Economy.
Diaspora Infrastructure Tokens
1 Billion
Strategic Investors
1.5 Billion
Tokenized Green Bonds
500 Million
Multilateral Institutions
500 Million
Total Potential Capital
3 Billion
Strategic Opportunity for Sri Lanka
The world is moving toward the tokenization of real-world assets, including:
Real estate
Infrastructure
Energy projects
Carbon credits
Private equity funds
If Sri Lanka establishes an appropriate regulatory framework and launches a Trincomalee Infrastructure Tokenization Initiative, the country could position itself as:
The first South Asian nation to mobilize global and diaspora capital for strategic infrastructure development through regulated digital asset markets, reducing dependence on sovereign borrowing while creating a new model of participatory national development.
Trincomalee’s transformation from a natural harbour into a globally financed offshore engineering and industrial ecosystem may therefore become not only an infrastructure project but also a pioneering financial innovation for Sri Lanka
The Trincomalee Marine Industrial Hub Tokenized Fund (TMT Fund) is a pioneering initiative designed to mobilize private and diaspora capital for the development of Sri Lanka’s proposed Marine Industrial and Offshore Repair Hub in Trincomalee. Using blockchain-based tokenization, the fund allows fractional investment and transparent participation in a Public–Private Partnership (PPP) structure. The pilot model aims to attract USD 500 million in capital while ensuring traceability, liquidity, and compliance with national
financial regulations.
How the Tokenized Fund Works
1. A licensed fund manager establishes a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to own project equity.
2. The SPV issues digital tokens (TMT Tokens) on a regulated blockchain network (e.g. Polygon or
Ethereum).
3. Each token represents a fractional ownership share, with a proposed value of USD 10 per token.
4. Investors—local, institutional, and diaspora—purchase tokens through a compliant digital platform.
5. Capital raised funds marine infrastructure: dry docks, rig repair yards, and offshore mooring systems.
6. Revenues from dock fees, oil storage leases, and vessel conversion projects are distributed as automated
token dividends.
7. Tokens can be resold or redeemed, enhancing liquidity and secondary market access.
Key Benefits for Sri Lanka
Regulatory and Implementation Pathway
The project will operate under the supervision of the Securities and Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka
(SEC) and the Central Bank’s regulatory sandbox for digital assets. The fund manager will be a licensed
entity under the Unit Trust Code. All investor onboarding will comply with KYC/AML standards. A local
custodian bank and blockchain registry will jointly maintain records of ownership to ensure legal
Sri Lanka opens Mattala Airport to local & foreign investors
The Ministry of Ports & Civil Aviation, through Airport & Aviation Services (Sri Lanka) (Private) Limited (AASL), has invited Expressions of Interest (EOI) from investors to utilize resources at Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (MRIA) in Hambantota. Submissions are due by 09 June 2026, with a pre-proposal briefing on 22 May 2026.
The main objective is to attract investment for direct and indirect aviation-related business ventures, enhancing the commercial use of the airport. A Cabinet Appointed Negotiation Committee (CANC) is handling the evaluation of EOI submissions to select parties for the Request for Proposals (RFP) stage.
The initiative aims to revitalize MRIA, which was developed with substantial debt by attracting international investors, including interest from companies in the Middle East, India, and China. This move is part of a broader, renewed push to maximize the potential of the Hambantota region’s infrastructure, including the adjacent port. The calling of EOI consists of two segments, Airside/ Aerodrome Operations (Civil Airport Operations within the inner perimeter) and Landside Operations (within the outer and inner perimeter operations). The proponents are invited to submit their EOI demonstrating their qualifications and relevant experience to carry out the investments as described under the scope of the EOI. EOI is open to both domestic and international entities. The proposals shall remain valid for a minimum 120 days from the closing date of the EOI from 09 June 2026 to 06 October 2026, inclusive of both days.
Investment areas include Airport & Cargo Operations, Logistics & MRO Services, Aircraft Spares Manufacturing, Industrial Parks (manufacturing, packaging, warehousing), renewable energy and resort hotels and hospitality. MRIA’s strategic location near Hambantota Port and major shipping routes offers exceptional air-sea connectivity and a gateway for global trade and tourism.
Despite its natural formation including its depth, historical economic use – the world has changed vastly since then, very limited modern economic current use and continuing military and fisheries utility, Trincomalee port and the region has no economic potential. All profitable ports are either on world’s largest shipping lanes or just adjacent to them. Trincomalee has neither, and that seals its fate.
But how about its heavy engineering potential, both as an enabler of other industries and as a heavy industrial hub itself?
There are successful offshore and onshore heavy industrial facilities around the world but they have other enablers that made them. One main industry is petroleum and chemical extraction. Trincomalee has zero potential in this regard. There are no known petroleum or other resources in the Bay in commercially useful quantities so no potential there. The other is developing Trincomalee as a heavy engineering hub. This has even less potential as Sri Lanka has no heavy industrial base on one hand and on the other deep draft ports far away from industrial bases offer no usefulness in modern engineering. All successful heavy industrial ports are in nations with a heavy industrial base. Sri Lanka is thousands of kilometers from them and has no industrial base at all. Colombo Dockyard is currently engaged in profitable commercial ventures and they may expand in operations if such expansion is profitable including Trinco if that is feasible. This is a commercial venture but is not worth any government investments. In addition, modern ship building and testing have changed from older methods. There is no utility of Trinco port in this regard whatsoever for the builders.
There are examples from North Korea to Zimbabwe of white elephants being built with just hope in sufficient supply. Wasting public funds to build cricket stadiums hoping for matches to come there in sustainable numbers, building ghost cities hoping for people to come and live there and building seven-lane highways hoping for traffic to come have been proven disasters across the world, particularly driven by a now outdated economic system. Instead, the right thing to do is to profitably enhance support for existing businesses helping them grow and branch out to new arenas where the investment amount can be recovered by the government within a short period of time. The government should never invest in any venture run commercially elsewhere if no commercial entity has invested in them in Sri Lanka. They have done their due diligence and found them to be duds; hence, they avoid it and save themselves from certain bankruptcy. With a continuing trade deficit since 1977, a continuing budget deficit since the 1980s and a looming 2027 end to temporary debt relief, Sri Lanka has no funds to waste. If commercial entities want to invest, that is great – let them subject to environmental concerns and national security concerns. This does not rule out foreign military or military-aligned investments; however, they will unfortunately drag Sri Lanka into their wars.
Fifty years after the Vaddukoddai Resolution and seventeen years after the defeat of the LTTE, it is time for an honest assessment. While separatist politicians, their supporters, promoters and beneficiaries continue to commemorate Vaddukoddai, it is ordinary Tamil families who paid the real price—through death, displacement, lost opportunities, economic hardship and generations of suffering. The Tamil people were promised security, prosperity, dignity and a separate state. Instead, they endured decades of war, destruction and the silencing of dissenting voices. Who benefited from fifty years of separatist politics? Who paid the price? Why are the same failed narratives still being promoted today? Fifty years after Vaddukoddai, the Tamil people deserve honest answers.
Political Outcomes
Was Tamil Eelam achieved in Sri Lanka or even in Tamil Nadu where the idea was first birthed?
Human Cost
How many Tamil youth died in the conflict? What would they have become if they had not been sent to the jungles holding guns
How many Tamil families lost loved ones? Where would they be if alive
How many Tamils live with injuries?
How many children grew up without parents because of the war?
Economic Impact
How many decades of development were lost in the North and East? Inspite of making millions of profits did LTTE spend on its people?
How many businesses were destroyed?
How many educated Tamils emigrated permanently?
Social Impact
Did separatist politics strengthen Tamil society or fragment it?
What happened to dissenting Tamil voices? How many Tamils did LTTE kill
What happened to Tamil politicians who disagreed with militancy? Entire moderate Tamil politicians were wiped away.
Future Generations
What lessons should Tamil youth learn from the past?
Should the next generation inherit unresolved grievances or opportunities for advancement?
Fifty years after Vaddukoddai and seventeen years after the defeat of the LTTE, are ordinary Tamils better served by continuing to pursue separatist narratives, or by focusing on economic development, education, investment, and equal citizenship within a united Sri Lanka?
It is a good time to look back on how they lived under LTTE iron rule and how they are now living without LTTE.
What were the outcomes of the strategy chosen in 1976?
The Tamils were promised:
Promise
Outcome
Separate state
Not achieved
Security
Decades of war
Prosperity
Economic destruction
Political empowerment
Reduced leverage
Youth advancement
Thousands of deaths
International recognition
Continued uncertainty
Were all Tamils supporters of separatism?
Why were the voices of the following forgotten:
Tamil political moderates.
Tamil intellectuals who opposed violence.
Tamil public servants.
Tamil religious leaders.
Tamil civilians caught between the LTTE and the state.
Tamil Victims of the LTTE
Many international audiences are told about abuses committed during the conflict, but fewer know about Tamils who were victims of LTTE actions.
What happened to Tamil politicians who opposed the LTTE?
What happened to Tamil academics who disagreed?
What happened to Tamil villagers who resisted recruitment?
What happened to children recruited into the movement?
The first victims of extremism & terrorism were Tamils themselves.”
Lost Opportunities
What might the North and East look like today if a different path had been chosen?”
Have Tamils themselves wondered where the following would have left the North & East if 3 decades of LTTE terror did not prevail?
Education.
Infrastructure.
Tourism.
Ports.
Fisheries.
Technology.
Foreign investment.
Damage done by Tamil Political Elites
What responsibility do political leaders bear for the consequences of the path they advocated?
Why is the Same Narrative Continuing
If the strategy failed to achieve its stated goal, why is the same political narrative still being promoted 50 years later?”
What new outcome is expected?
What evidence suggests a different result?
What practical pathway exists today?
Positive Alternative
From Eelam to Excellence”
Education.
Entrepreneurship.
Technology.
Global Tamil success.
Economic empowerment.
Regional development.
The next generation deserves opportunities, not inherited conflicts.”
International forums must realize that accepting Tamil grievances should not equate to endorsing separatism while rejecting terrorism does not reject Tamil grievances.
Democracy.
Human rights.
Protection of civilians.
Rejection of terrorism.
Equitable citizenship.
Fifty years after Vaddukoddai, where are the Tamil people today compared with where they were promised they would be?”
Population movement.
Youth migration.
Economic indicators.
Political influence.
Social well-being.
Educational outcomes.
50 Years After Vaddukoddai: Time for an Honest Audit”
What was promised?
What happened?
Who paid the price?
Who benefited?
What lessons were learned?
What future should Tamil youth choose?
The Forgotten Victims of Tamil Separatism
While much attention is given to the grievances that led to the Vaddukoddai Resolution, far less attention is given to those who suffered because of the separatist project itself.
Who remembers:
The Tamil children forcibly recruited into militancy?
The Tamil parents who watched their children kidnapped?
The Tamil civilians used as human shields?
The Tamil families prevented from leaving conflict zones?
The thousands of Tamil mothers who never saw their children return?
If Tamil political leaders claim to speak for the Tamil people, who speaks for these victims? The above crimes were committed by LTTE & no other.
Did Separatism Deliver Democracy?
The Vaddukoddai Resolution was presented as a democratic aspiration.
But what followed?
Were alternative Tamil political views tolerated? How many Tamil politicians were killed by Tamils?
Could Tamils openly oppose separatism?
Could Tamils criticize the LTTE without fear?
Could Tamils freely choose their political representatives?
Could elections take place without intimidation?
If democracy was the objective, why did democracy disappear from areas under LTTE control?
The Elimination of Tamil Leadership
A tragic consequence of militancy was the destruction of Tamil moderate leadership.
How many Tamil leaders who sought democratic solutions were assassinated?
How many Tamil intellectuals, academics, journalists, religious leaders and public servants were silenced by LTTE?
What would Tamil politics look like today had those voices survived?
Did Tamil society lose its best minds to extremism?
Who Benefited From the Conflict?
Who gained politically from keeping the conflict alive?
Who gained financially?
Who built political careers from the conflict?
Who raised funds internationally in the name of Tamil suffering?
Who became influential while ordinary Tamil families buried their children?
While the ordinary Tamil family paid the price, who collected the dividends?
The Diaspora Question
Many who advocate separatism today do not live in the areas where the conflict occurred.
Therefore:
Would they send their own children to fight for the cause they advocate?
Would they relocate permanently to a future Tamil Eelam if one emerged?
Why do many promote separatism abroad while enjoying the stability and opportunities of foreign democratic countries?
Should Tamil youth in Sri Lanka carry burdens that Tamil youth advocate from a safe distance overseas? Why should they outsource to Tamil youth in Sri Lanka?
The International Double Standard
Many foreign actors condemned terrorism elsewhere while remaining silent when Tamil civilians suffered at the hands of the LTTE.
Questions for international forums:
Would they tolerate an armed separatist movement in their own countries?
Would they permit child recruitment?
Would they accept political assassinations?
Would they allow ethnic cleansing?
Would they negotiate with armed groups indefinitely while civilians suffered?
Why should Sri Lanka be judged by standards different from those applied elsewhere?
The expelled Sinhalese & Muslims
What lessons were learned from the expulsion of Northern Sinhalese and Muslims?
How can reconciliation occur without acknowledging all victims?
What responsibility do separatist advocates bear for addressing this history?
Can a political project claim moral legitimacy while ignoring those displaced by it?
The Cost of Inherited Grievances
For fifty years, each generation has inherited the grievances of the previous generation.
But what has this inheritance produced?
More opportunities?
More investment?
More jobs?
More development?
More influence?
Or has it produced continued political stagnation?
At what point does remembrance become a barrier to progress?
The Next Fifty Years
The most important question is not what happened in 1976.
The most important question is:
What future do Tamil youth want in 2076?
Will the next fifty years be spent pursuing the same unresolved political project?
Or will they be spent building:
World-class education.
Modern industries.
Technology hubs.
Global entrepreneurship.
Regional prosperity.
Genuine reconciliation.
The next generation deserves a future larger than the conflicts of the past.
The Final Audit
Fifty years after Vaddukoddai, the Tamil people deserve honest answers.
What was promised?
What was delivered?
Who paid the price?
Who benefited?
Who was silenced?
Who was forgotten?
What lessons were learned?
And most importantly:
Should the next generation repeat the journey—or choose a different path?
Who Owns the Tamil Mandate Today?
Who elected current politicians to pursue the objectives of 1976?
Is there a modern democratic mandate for separatism?
Have Tamil youth been consulted?
Have Tamil women been consulted?
Have Tamil professionals been consulted?
Have Northern and Eastern Tamils been asked whether they want another fifty years centered on the politics of grievance?
50 Years After Vaddukoddai: The Tamil People Deserve an Honest Audit.
History must be judged by outcomes, not promises.
Fifty years after Vaddukoddai, the Tamil people have a right to ask whether separatist politics delivered what it promised or whether ordinary Tamils paid the price for a failed project.
Fifty years after Vaddukoddai, the time has come for an honest audit and an end to Tamil politicians & cohorts fooling the Tamil people.
The next generation deserves opportunities, not inherited conflicts; progress, not division; and a future built on education, prosperity and peace.
