April 29 (AdaDerana) – Around 10% of Sri Lanka’s population is afflicted with Chronic Kidney Disease, the Chief Patron of All-island Kidney Patients’ Association Nephrologist Sanjaya Heiyanthuduwa says.
Dr. Heiyanthuduwa expressed that the increase in diabetes among the population is the major cause of the increased figures of kidney patients.
Especially, diabetes is the main factor affecting kidney damage in Sri Lanka. Better diabetes control should be done to prevent kidney disease in these patients,” he said.
Additionally, adherence to medical advice and proper attendance at clinics are very important. The intake of excessive salt, sugar, and oil in food should be reduced. A healthy person should consume around three and a half liters of water per day in order to avoid this disease,” Dr. Heiyanthuduwa added.
According to statistics from the National Kidney Foundation in the United States, 10 percent of the world’s population is affected by chronic kidney disease and it is the 12th most common cause of death. Millions die annually due to a lack of access to affordable treatment.
Furthermore, according to an analysis by the Global Burden of Disease Study in 2019, chronic kidney disease (CKD) has increased by 40 percent over the past 30 years and is one of the fastest-rising major causes of death. Common precursors to CKD include diabetes and hypertension – diseases increasingly endemic to urbanising populations.
But across rural Sri Lanka, there’s a relatively new phenomenon; chronic kidney disease of unknown aetiology (cause)” (CKDu). A flurry of scientific research studies has provided no concrete reason as to why as many as 22.9 percent of residents in several hotspot” areas in the north-central districts of Polonnaruwa and Anuradhapura, plus some neighbouring districts, are suffering from acute kidney damage or failure, a recent report published on ‘Al Jazeera’ news mentioned.
On a national level, 10 to 15 percent of Sri Lankans are impacted by kidney diseases, according to Nishad Jayasundara, who is from a farming community in Sri Lanka and now works as an environmental toxicologist at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, US, and specifically researches the causes of CKDu, it added.
[The disease] disproportionately impacts farming communities,” Jayasundara tells Al Jazeera. The current estimates indicate that more than 20,000 people [in Sri Lanka] are at end-stage kidney failure, with no alternatives left, while 6 to 10 percent of the population in impacted communities are diagnosed with CDKu.”
A lack of early symptoms
While CKD has identifiable symptoms, such as weight loss and poor appetite, swollen ankles or hands, shortness of breath and itchy skin, early on, CKDu is asymptomatic until the latter stages of the disease, so early detection is nearly impossible, say doctors. By the time a patient receives a diagnosis, the disease is usually untreatable.
Even when symptoms do appear, they usually include back pain, swelling in the arms and legs and body aches”, not uncommon for farmers and fishermen used to hard manual labour.
Dr S B A M Mujahith is a nephrologist – a doctor who specialises in treating kidney diseases – at Batticaloa Teaching Hospital on Sri Lanka’s eastern coast. He grew up just 50km down the coast from Batticaloa in the town of Nintavur and this played an important role in his career choice: It was a community investment,” he tells Al Jazeera.
CKDu was first identified as an issue in Sri Lanka in the 1990s. There’s a geographical link, says Mujahith – some parts of the eastern and north-central provinces seemed especially hard hit. Many, like himself, wanted to investigate further and identify the causes.
A World Health Organisation (WHO) team even came to investigate the causes of CKDu in the 2010s, but ultimately the study was inconclusive.
Mujahith likes to use the term chronic interstitial nephritis in agricultural communities” (CINAC) since the disease is rather specific to the nation’s agricultural workers. It affects mainly men – most patients live and work in poor agricultural communities and may be exposed to toxic agrochemicals through work, inhalation, and ingesting contaminated water and food, explains Mujahith.
Sri Lanka, a small tropical nation with a population of about 22 million people, is undergoing the fifth year of the worst economic crisis in its history. The result has been limited access to medicine and food which hinders treatment and management of the disease, particularly in remote and under-served places such as Ambagaswewa, the report said.
Sri Lanka hopes to join BRICS+ in the near future, Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to Russia Janitha Abeywickrema Liyanage said recently while addressing the media.
He made the remarks following Sri Lanka’s participation in a recent international meeting of high representatives responsible for security issues in St. Petersburg, Russia.
Liyanage said Sri Lanka could gain many benefits in transport and food security by joining BRICS+.
BRICS is the acronym for an emerging-market cooperative mechanism that initially includes Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. On Jan. 1, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Iran and Ethiopia joined BRICS, doubling its members from five to 10.
‘Before you study the economics, study the economists!’
The Pettah Mafia, Mannar Mafia & the Indian Ocean’s Mahamolakaru
e-Con e-News 21-27 April 2024
‘The country is aware of several mafiosi like the Diesel Mafia, Rice-Mill Mafia & Drug Mafia which are a curse on the country but it is very rare that people refer to the Pettah Mafia, which is the mother of all mafiosi,’ writes the perceptive Vichara (see ee Focus)
Vichara cites the curious example of how the July 1983 pogroms carefully avoided burning down the Indian-Tamil-dominated Pitakotuva (aka Pettah, Outer Fort), and its glistening street of gold, Sea Street, even as the Kotuva (Fort) was set ablaze. Other ee informants assert they saw ‘Indian Tamils’ massacre Sri Lankan Tamils in July 1983. So is July 1983, ‘black’ as all the ‘free’ media refers to it as, or does it remain ‘White’? We therefore rephrase Shakespeare’s Hamlet & say, ‘There are more things in Heaven & Earth, dear capitalist media, than are whipped up in your editorial rooms.’
ee wrote to Vichara, asking him about this mafia – if the gold business links to their extralegal transfers of wealth to India (as evident in sporadic arrests of petty gold smugglers reported)? We wondered if misinvoicing is fundamental to the legal practices of multinational corporations (MNCs) like Unilever & Exxon, who are the real mothers & fathers of it all. And on a more whimsical note, ee asked if Sri Lanka should deport all these merchants to Kacchativu, where they can set up shop, while we take the back the Pettah & the rest of the ocean?
Vichara wrote back, that it is not only the gold business, but the whole of thePettah Trade is suspected of illegal transfers. Though, yes, it is the MNCs who have made a fine legal art of this crime. S/he added that Pettah has had powerful political patronage, which would make it difficult to control the Pettah Merchants, who are an ingenious lot. One way to reduce their power is to strengthen the Ceylon Wholesale Establishment (CWE) and take over the wholesale business. Vichara also says they forgot to mention the Saree Monopoly of the Pettah mafiosi. Of course, the CWE is being gradually taken over by Unilever – Fair and Ugly in deed!
The capitalist media focused on the Indian claim to tiny Kachchativu island, while India was at the UN’s International Seabed Authority (ISA) planning to grab even vaster mineral riches in those parts of the ocean (coincidentally called Indian) already claimed by Sri Lanka. Meanwhile, Serendive Energy, which the media says is ‘linked to a large Indian conglomerate’ (tho you can bet it’s the Rockefeller’s Exxon USA quaterbacking it all!) has got a court order restraining companies (unnamed by the media!) from granting to any 3rd party the rights to offshore exploration of over 5,000 sq.km with potential oil & gas resources in the Mannar Basin.ee has long been told that these wars of terror Sri Lanka has been subjected to, that all such bloody roads lead to the mahamolakaru (the great brains) of the Mannar Mafia. Welcome, then Rockefeller’s Exxon, the mom & pop of all mafioso, including the NGO Mafioso (note all the graphic blocks already blocked off on Sri Lanka’s map, in this week’s ee poster!).
*
• The US City of Baltimore has been careful to not include Danish Maersk (linked to the US military) in their recent lawsuit against the owners & managers of the ship MV Dali that crashed the Baltimore bridge. Maersk ‘does not appear to be implicated in the case, and is likely to escape liability thanks to the particulars of its charter agreements’! What these ‘charter agreements’ are, the media dare not divulge.
Instead, a US FBI criminal investigation is still holding hostage the ship’s ‘Hindu’ crew (with no protests from India! Hey Ram!), while the city of Baltimore is suing the ship manager Synergy Group & shipowner Grace Ocean, both based in Singapore. They allege MV Dali, taller than the Eiffel Tower, left the port in an ‘unseaworthy condition & with an untrained crew’. All the way to Sri Lanka… and …now, guess what, they say the Dali was going to China!
The US military is meanwhile removing the 4,700 containers (most supposedly ‘empty’) under cover of a no-drone zone. The US government is also trying to craft a bedtime story to explain why the ship (having first gone to New York & US Navy’s Norfolk port) was coming to Colombo. While most media say the ship was on its way to Colombo, a recent New York Times report now says it was going on to Yantian, Shenzhen, in China. The ship carried many ‘empty’ containers, plus those 764 tons of hazardous materials. Environmentalists fear they could have leaked into the River Patapsco (from Algonquian pota-psk-ut, meaning ‘backwater’ or ‘tide covered with froth’). Froth in deed! These hazardous materials included corrosive & flammable liquids & lithium-ion batteries – at least 14 of the 56 containers onboard were reported as damaged. Lithium-ion batteries contain toxic cobalt, which causes cancer in people & animals following exposure through food or water.
*
‘One of the economic principles is that growth rate and interest rates
must be roughly equal. If the profit rate is significantly higher
than the growth rate, there will be significant inequality.
Thus, the proposals of the bondholders and the government
is a violation of basic economic principles…
What the Chinese ask is, why aren’t the multilateral agencies
taking a haircut for the loans they have given?’
– Dhanusha Gihan Pathirana, see ee Focus,
• The IMF has been demanding a law to seize the proceeds of crime, and wants Sri Lanka to enact such legislation before it releases its3rdtranche of US$337million. Yet, it is the IMF who should be charged with criminality. And, what’s happened to the proceeds from colonialism & imperialism? – isn’t colonial and debt bondage the greatest crime, the greatest corruption? No colonialists & imperialists have been arrested, jailed or hanged over these 75 years and more, of so-called independence. Instead, they’ve been mollycoddled as ‘nominated’ unelected MPs, allowed to remove their capital to London, retain their shares in major companies (which now dominate the so-called private sector) and return to tell us we owe them, and then give us regular lectures & sermonson human rights!
Sri Lanka being Fleeced through Debt Restructuring
As this ee Focus notes, imperialism’s economics require a ‘persistent & long-term net appropriation of surplus value by the high-technology advanced capitalist countries transferred from the low-technology dominated countries’, and this is all legal of course. They identify, ‘4 channels by which surplus value flows to the imperialist countries: currency seigniorage (profits made by the USA by printing dollars); income flows from capital investments; unequal exchange (UE) through trade; and changes in exchange rates.’ So why do our so-called Marxists & Trade-Unionists harp on about corruption & ‘illegal’ transfers? It’s all legal!! And yet it is not just a matter of capital and brain drains:
Yet ee has our very own and different definition of imperialism, as taught by our muse SBD de Silva: ee prioritizes the prevention of modern industrialization (machine-making, our engineers make no engines!); The undermining of a class dedicated to capitalist accumulation: No investment in machine industrialization. The stealing of skilled workers & the deskilling of artisans. The prevention of modern vocational and technical education, especially through on-the-job training in machine-industrialization, and the wholesalediversion of education into non-technical pursuits and conceits, etc.
*
Meanwhile as May Day approaches, we also note that the biggest capitalist organizations in the USA have gone to court (in Texas!) to overturn a US federal law which prevents the imposition of ‘non-compete clauses’ – ‘worker handcuffs’! In the labor market, such agreements prevent workers from freely moving across employers, and weakens the bargaining leverage of workers (see ee Quotes and ee Workers).
Our brainy scholars and half-brights with foreign degrees meanwhile demand piecemeal reforms to control capitalist banks, and a runaway Central Bank and other hijacked government institutions, etc. Rather than seeing that loan-sharking and rent-gouging and overpricing arise from the wage relation at the core of capitalism (see ee Ecoonomists, Engels), they refuse to demand that workers and peasants take over and rule the country through a different set of human relations, getting ready to take over as the world (the US just poured $95 billion this week into waging wars on Russia, Palestine & China) is being hurtled into a 3rd World War (even as our world in Sri Lanka has always been at war, declared and undeclared)
Pro-Palestinian protesters were arrested on a handful of U.S. university campuses on Saturday, as activists vowed to keep up the movement seeking a ceasefire in Israel’s war with Hamas among other demands.
The Indiana University police department in Bloomington said in an emailed statement that 23 protesters were arrested there.
Indiana State Police along with Indiana University police told demonstrators they could not pitch tents and camp on campus. When the tents were not removed, police arrested and transported protesters to the Monroe County Justice Center on charges of criminal trespass and resisting arrest.
The Indiana University Police Department continues to support peaceful protests on campus that follow university policy,” the police statement read.
Pro-Palestinian protests have spread to college campuses across the U.S., stoked by the mass arrest of over 100 people on Columbia University’s campus last week.
In addition to a ceasefire, protesters are demanding that their schools divest from companies involved with Israel’s military and seeking an end to U.S. military assistance for Israel along with amnesty for students and faculty members who have been disciplined or fired for protesting.
School leaders at several universities have responded in the past week by asking police to clear out camps and arrest those who refuse to leave. While saying they defend free speech rights to protest, the leaders say they will not abide activists infringing on campus policies against hate speech or camping out on university grounds.
Massachusetts State Police said in statement that they helped cleared out a protest encampment at Northeastern University in Boston and that 102 protesters who refused to leave were arrested and will be charged with trespassing.
Northeastern University said in a statement on social media that it decided to call in police as what began as a student demonstration two days ago was infiltrated by professional organizers with no affiliation to Northeastern.”
At Arizona State University, campus police arrested 69 protesters early Saturday, the school said in a statement.
The university said a group of people – most of whom were not ASU students, faculty or staff – created an encampment and demonstration” and were arrested and charged with criminal trespass after refusing to disperse.
On Sunday 21 April massive anti-imperialist events took place all over Greece. They were protesting against Greece’s involvement in US-NATO-EU militarism and the ongoing bloodshed of the Palestinian people.
As if to impede the protests with climate modification technologies or Directed Energy Weapons (DEW), Greek skies turn orange as a ‘Saharan dust storm’ set in the following day.
In Athens a 42km peace march took place along the route of the original Marathon: The march ended in front of the Ministry of Defense in Athens:Thanasis Paphilis, secretary general of the World Peace Council, spoke at the event and noted:
We are here today, outside the Ministry of National Defence, at the end of the 41st Marathon March to condemn Greece’s involvement in the murderous US-NATO plans.
To demand the closure and removal of the US-NATO-EU bases and barracks that have turned our country into a military base and our people into a target for retaliation. To return here and now the frigate ‘HYDRA’ and the Armed Forces personnel from the Red Sea.
For the withdrawal of Greece from the EU’s SHIELD” mission and the return of the PATRIOT” artillery from Saudi Arabia.
To express our solidarity with the heroic people of Palestine, who for the past six months have been dying from genocide, from the murderous attacks of the terrorist state of Israel, with the blessing of the USA – NATO – EU, but also with the support of the Greek government.”
‘What side of history are you standing on?’
Vaios Tsaproounis is an army lieutenant in active service and president of the Officers’ Union of the Region of Xanthi. They said:
It is a great joy and emotion, and even greater is the honour I feel to be among you today, with people who, steadfast, with patience and perseverance, are fighting for the supreme good of peoples, peace, while exposing all those who usurp it.
My decision to join with you, to lead my steps alongside yours, to join my voice and my agony with yours, was for me a conscious one-way street. A choice, identified with my love for our people, but also with my status as a serving military man committed to serving the interests of the people from whom I come.
Feeling the debt to my conscience, to my roots, which are inextricably linked to our people, I declare and at the same time I commit myself to stand by you, to be inspired by the messages of your struggle, to fight with you for a better tomorrow, a tomorrow that I, my colleagues, our people, the peoples of the world deserve.
This is my choice of which side of history to stand on.
Yes, I choose to be on the side of the people and their interests, because they are the only ones who can stop war plans wherever they are hatched.
Yes, I choose with you to demand the return now of the Hydra frigate from the Red Sea, the Patriot artillery from Saudi Arabia, the anti-tank platoon from Bulgaria, and every Greek colleague of mine from missions outside the borders.”
Protesters also descended on two military bases in Greece that are either run by NATO or the EU:
Meanwhile in Athens, staff sergeant Orion Papadakis summed up:
I am proud to be here and join with you to make the slogans for:
Disengagement of Greece from the imperialist wars.
No participation in the NATO – USA – EU plans.
Close the bases of death in Greece.
Over six months now, you get a knot in your stomach with the images coming out of Palestine. Nearly 20,000 children alone have been killed by the State of Israel. It makes you despair that the Greek state is openly supporting the murderers. And not only in words, but also in deeds. The flame of war burns not only in Gaza, but throughout the Middle East, in Ukraine and elsewhere. And it is only getting hotter.
And you wonder. What business does Greece have getting involved in two wars? Why become a perpetrator and a potential victim? What business do Armed Forces personnel, permanent and enlisted, have participating in war missions? To load white phosphorus missiles, banned by international conventions, to go to Ukraine?
What does the oath you took when you presented yourself to the Army, to serve with faith and devotion, to the last drop of your blood, the flags” have to do with defending the flags of murderers?
Worried about all of the above, scared a lot of times. That’s why you have to say one more time, even louder:
Greece out of the war. The Greek army has no business outside the borders!”
We remind our readers that publication of articles on our site does not mean that we agree with what is written. Our policy is to publish anything which we consider of interest, so as to assist our readers in forming their opinions. Sometimes we even publish articles with which we totally disagree, since we believe it is important for our readers to be informed on as wide a spectrum of views as possible.
Anti-War Students vow to ‘de-occupy’ Princeton University after administration halts encampment
Hours after administrators shut down a fledgling encampment at Princeton University on Thursday morning, hundreds of students took control of a central courtyard at the Ivy League institution, vowing to remain until the university divests from companies profiteering from the Israeli occupation of Palestinians.
Princeton University is widely considered to be more conservative than other major east coast universities.
Students, faculty and community members brought blankets, books, laptops, and blank canvasses to the lawns across the university’s chapel in the McCosh Courtyard on Thursday, setting up a “Popular University for Gaza” to push back at the university’s decision to shut down the anti-war encampment as their peers had already done in more than 30 other universities across the US over the past week.
Through the course of the morning, select faculty visited the lawn where the students had assembled, leading teach-ins and discussions.
Organisers said they were calling on the university to divest from companies that profit from or engage in the State of Israel’s ongoing military campaign” in Gaza as well as for an academic and cultural boycott of Israeli institutions. Activists also demanded the university end all research on “weapons of war” funded by the US Department of Defense.
Between the talks, students painted, passed out leaflets, and set up a mobile library with books ranging from the works of Frantz Fanon to Rashid Khalidi. They also called on passersby to join and chant to make their presence felt.
Bottom of Form
“We will not stop, we still not rest,” the students chanted.
“Resistance is justified when people are occupied.”
The coalition of groups under the banner of Palestine Divest Now had originally arrived shortly before 7am local time on Thursday morning to set up camp when they were promptly met by campus security.
Within 10 minutes of setting up their tents, the group was cautioned to dismantle their camp or face arrest and suspension.
“The university claims to protest free speech but drew a hard line on tents because they knew it symbolised solidarity with Gaza with the students all across the country,” Sophie, a graduate student at Princeton University who only offered her first name, told Middle East Eye.
“It’s quite frustrating that they can change what free speech means when it’s convenient to them.
“We were just a few minutes into setting up the tents when they started arresting students,” Sophie said.
Two students were subsequently arrested and immediately evicted from student housing and barred from campus, students said.
Students arranged teach-ins from faculty on the lawns (Azad Essa/MEE)
Students said university administrators had been tipped off earlier this week about a possible encampment on the campus.
On Wednesday, administrators informed students via email that those participating in an encampment, occupation, or other unlawful disruptive conduct who refuses to stop after a warning will be arrested and immediately barred from campus”.
Princeton University did not reply to MEE’s request for comment.
Protests extend
The developments at Princeton come as the number of student-led protests continue to spread to other campuses around the US.
On Thursday, hundreds of students at the Harlem campus of City College of New York (Cuny) established its own encampment for Palestine, becoming the fourth to do so in New York City, joining Columbia, New York University, and The New School.
“Students will remain encamped until the CUNY administration meets their demands for divestment, boycott, demilitarization of the campus and solidarity with Palestinian liberation,” a statement from CUNY read.
“Students have linked these demands to a vision of a tuition-free, open admissions, people’s CUNY, as well as an end to retaliation against CUNY students and workers speaking out about the genocide of the Palestinian people,” the statement added.
Organisers at Cuny said they drew on the legacy of the 1969 Cuny student protest movement, when more than 200 Black and Puerto Rican students de-occupied campus buildings, shutting down the campus for 17 days.
Students with the DC, Maryland, Virginia (DMV) Coalition of Students for Justice in Palestine said they had also set up an encampment at the George Washington University Yard on Thursday morning.
Though the encampment was physically situated at George Washington University, it was organised by and for eight universities in the DMV area.
The protests that have taken place across the US have been perceived as taking place on more liberal campuses in the country, but Princeton is widely considered to be more conservative than other major east coast universities.
One website ranks it as the most conservative of all the Ivy League schools but when compared to schools nationwide, it doesn’t crack the top 70 schools with the highest number of conservative students.
“It is known to be the least radical, the most politically apathetic. This has been a longstanding assumption of the university,” Aditi Rao, an organiser at Princeton, told MEE.
Another student described the university as striving to “be in service to the nation”.
Students at Princeton did however play a role in the international boycott movement against apartheid South Africa in the late 1960s and 1970s.
“This is why the anti-apartheid movement was so productive here. Because it was the first time that the students were gathered en masse to make political change possible,” Rao added.
Aditi said they have modelled themselves on the work done by the predecessors at Princeton on fighting for divestment against Apartheid South Africa.
Over the past six months, several students at Princeton who have expressed pro-Palestinian views have faced intimidation, including doxxing and harassment by pro-Israel groups.
Students have previously told MEE that Palestinian perspectives at the university were routinely undermined and conflated with antisemitism by mainstream pro-Israel student groups without any consequence or accountability from the university.
High-ranking officials from around the world gathered in Saint Petersburg for the 12th International Meeting on Security Matters from April 22nd to 25th, 2024. This prestigious event serves as a platform for global leaders to discuss and address pressing security challenges facing nations today.
One notable highlight of the meeting was a bilateral discussion between the Secretary Defence of Sri Lanka General Kamal Gunaratne and Mr. Nikolai Patrushev, Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation. The meeting underscored the importance of fostering international cooperation and collaboration in addressing security threats and promoting peace and stability in the region.
The discussions covered a wide range of topics, including counterterrorism efforts, cyber security and defence cooperation. Both parties expressed their commitment to strengthening bilateral ties and exploring avenues for enhanced cooperation in the security domain.
The 12th International Meeting of High-Ranking Officials Responsible for Security Matters provided a valuable opportunity for participants to exchange insights, share best practices and forge partnerships aimed at addressing common security challenges facing the global community.
The promulgation of a Republican constitution on 22 May 1972 saw the end of Dominion status (rather colonial subservience and servility) and the birth of a completely an independent Sri Lanka, thanks to that great and patriotic lady Sirimavo Bandaranayaka, the modern Vihara Mahadhevi of Sri Lanka.
Under the new Republic Constitution of 1972 enacted at her command, the office of Governor General, the Head of the State, hitherto appointed by the Queen of the United Kingdom, was replaced by the office of President appointed by the Prime Minister. Mr William Gopallawa the Buddhist mahopasaka going by the age old tradition of this country became the first President of the fully Independent Sri Lanka, while Mrs Bandaranaike became Prime Minister.
With the promulgation of the Constitution of the Republic of Sri Lanka, the National State Assembly superseded the Seventh Parliament. The country thereafter came to be known as the Socialist Democratic Republic of Sri Lanka and the Parliament as the National State Assembly, thus giving a sense of a national outlook and pride, replacing the colonial Parliament. This event marked the birth of a new era of a new nation flowering the aspiration of a newly independent nation, ever since 1815 after 133 years of colonial subjugation and oppression
Since then, the Republic Day was celebrated for 6 years with pomp and glory as the Independence Day of a free nation up to 1977.With the change of Government in 1977 July, the UNP came in to power. JR Jayawardhana became the President of the Republic. But JR keeping in line with his Western bias replaced the newly invented National State Assembly with the old colonial Westminster Parliament. Also, once again he reversed the Independence Day back to Feb 4th in 1978 as if he was a family member of the British Royalty, to perpetuate the colonial imprint displaying the servility to the colonial west. This aptly shows his patriotism setting a wrong example and a black mark as the Head of the State.
Ever since all governments, even those of Chandrika, Mahinda Rajapaksa, Sirisena and even Gotabhaya, all of whom had cut their umbilical codes in the SLFP labour room shamelessly and disgracefully sticked to the JR model of the British inherited Parliament in place of the indigenous term Jaathika Raajya sabhaava”,betraying not only their leader who gave birth to these terms, Mrs Bandaaranayaka in 1972 in keeping with her fervent patriotism and respect to tradition of her motherland and the Sinhala Nation but also the whole nation, without a shame unto them and also structed to Feb 4th as the Independence Day continuously thereafter, completely ignoring may 22nd the real independence day of the native people of Sri Lanka , ignoring their celebrated leader and all the patriotic policies of the SLFP and the burning aspirations of the newly born Sinhala nation. Finally, the 1972 Republican Constitution was also replaced with the 1987 Constitution. The only thing they did not change was the Republican status.
Thereafter, the much celebrated Janaraja Dinaya, the pride of the nation, has been in limbo for the past 26 years since it was discontinued in 1978 by JR, after it had been celebrated with patriotic pomp and glamour for 6 years from its first celebration held on the Mahamaluwa in front of the Sri Daladaa Maaligava in Mahanuwara marking a historic land mark in the political history and the dawn of a new era in the history of this country.
Since I too had the fortune to be a member of the organizing committee headed by the Government Agent Kandy S. Maaralanda, as a young Assistance Director of Small Industries, I could still remember the enthusiasm, the joy and the sense of pride abundantly displayed by the organizers as well as the participants at this state function presided over by the most Venerable Mahanaayaka Theros of Aagiriya and Malwatta attended by the Governor General William Gopallava and Prime Minister Sirimavo Bandaranayaka, that great lady who created world history as the first woman Prime Minister in the world and her Cabinet and decorated with diplomatic dignitaries. I too had the privilege of being a party to this historic national ceremony as the person who provide 2500 chairs for the function.
Is it persistence of colonial subservience and servility and stupidity on the part of political leaders of the post 1977 and their lack of commitment for nation building and the indifference on the part of the general public or something entirely different, invisible and externally manipulated only the presidents will know.?
It is a well-known fact that this country got full independence from the British colonial rule only on the 22nd of May 1972 and definitely not on the 4th of February 1948 for the following reasons.
I. It is only with the enactment of the 1972 Republican Constitution on May 22nd this country became a fully independent and sovereign country as the following three things happened only on that date.
The Legislative, Executive and the Judicial powers of the country became fully independent for the first time only in May 22nd 1972 after ceding it to Britain in 1815 by the Kandyan Convention. Sovereignty of the people and the country was also restored only on that day after 157 years of subjugation. The day a new nation was born.
Until then, although we were supposed to have received full independence, as a section of the politicians and also some political pandits say, from the British rule on the 4th of Feb 1948 as the books record it, in reality, even after 1948, we were functioning more or less as a suzerainty of the British empire with constitutional restrictions as given below.
1 Legislation in the Sri Lankan Parliament of the country up to May 1972 was made in the name of the Queen of England
2.The executive Head of the State who was called Governor General was also appointed by the Queen of England answerable to the King/Queen of England and finally,
3. The appellate power of the Judiciary was also with the Privy Council of the United Kingdom of Britain and as such there was no independent Judiciary in this Island.
Furthermore, the Legislative power of the Parliament was also restricted by the conditions set out in chap 15 on Defense and External affairs of the Solebury Constitution.
Is it sheer political ignorance or lack of an iota of sense of Independence, patriotism or national pride on the one hand and colonial subservience and ugly servility on the part of all post 1977 politicians that made them to go back to past colonial subservient and servile mentality on the other hand is a moot question that baffles my mind as a patriotic son of Mother Lanka. Truth like oil always come to the surface. As such I hope, the day a patriotic leader comes to power this deplorable political decision will definitely be reversed.
Taking all these facts in to consideration, I hope and wish the President and the Prime minister will take action to restore May 22 as the Republican Day and the Independence Day of this Nation, at least from next year and go down in history as two rare leaders who took the correct decision making the people of this country to think and feel that once again they have become an Independent nation on this planet.
Our Parliament is again beating the dead horse of the Easter bombings when the people are beating their breasts on the travails of living. The debate is all about a Brains (the Maha Mola Karr- MMK) behind the horrible deed. What was his objective? Was it an evil political strategy to gain the support of the Catholic community? What were the objectives of Zahran Hashim the leader of the Jihadist group for the suicide attack? It appears that Zahran had two objectives, one been killing as many Catholics as possible at prayers in response to the shooting of Muslims at prayers in a Mosque in New Zealand. It tallies with a political strategy to obtain the sympathy of the Catholics.
It is submitted that Zahran had two objectives the second one was to hurt the economy. This would have been his primary objective. He blasted himself and used another important colleague Ilham Ahmed Mohamed Ibrahim to bomb the key target the Shangri-La Hotel. Cinnamon Grand and Kingsbury were also blasted by members of Zahran’s closely knit group of educated and wealthy Jihadists whereas local Muslim extremists were enlisted to attack churches.
Zahran’s action on the first objective hurt the Catholic community disastrously whereas the attack on the hotels affected the whole nation. The tourist industry crashed and contributed to a foreign exchange crisis and the final bankruptcy of the country.
Now the question is did the fictitious Maha Mola Karu encourage this no brainer.
No politician would have been so stupid. Now, nobody seems to bother about the attack on the tourist industry.
Which foreign power wanted to bring down Sri Lanka.
Das Buddhistische Haus (DBH) Berlin – Frohnau, Germany
Buddhist Theme
Avoid all unwholesome deeds
Cultivate wholesome deeds”
(Sabba Papassa Akaranam”
Kusalassa Upasampada”)
Two Day Program
Exhibition – August 3, 2024 (Saturday)
Venue – DBH premises
Exhibition on the founding of the DBH, History, Pioneers, German Dharmaduta Society, and the Buddhist Mission to Germany from Sri Lanka.
Tour of the premises of DBH
Release of Festschrift
International Buddhist Conference – August 4, 2024 (Sunday)
Venue: Zehelendorf Community Hall or a Hall in Berlin – Tegel
Hosts – Das Buddhistische Haus and the German Dharmaduta Society
Historical Background and Rationale for holding the Conference
The success of Buddhism is mainly due to the Buddha. He taught universal truths applicable anywhere and at any time. He was an exponent of natural law. Buddhism starts with the knowledge of the known ‘Dukkha‘(suffering) and places emphasis on self–reliance for salvation. ‘Wander alone’ like a rhinoceros said the Buddha (“Khaggavisana Sutta: A Rhinoceros”). The current explosion of ‘Atheism’ in the Western world has its roots largely in the Buddhist teachings of Meditation and Mindfulness based on self–reliance without dependence on an external saviour. However, the survival of the Dhamma in its pristine form requires support and organizational help from time to time to enable the Buddha’s message to be preserved. Great personages have been born to protect and spread Buddhism.
Anagarika Dharmapala, the World’s first global Buddhist Missionary, delivered a far-reaching speech under the topic ‘The World’s Debt to the Buddha’ at the World Parliament of Religions held in Chicago in 1893 and drew international attention to the Message of the Buddha. The Anagarika was particularly concerned with making Buddhism attractive to a Western audience.
Furthermore, the interest in Buddhism generated by the Buddhist Revival movement in Ceylon and the victories won by the Buddhists in the five great debates in Ceylon (especially the debate held in Panadura in 1873, known colloquially as the ‘Panadura Vadaya’) attracted Western scholars, professionals, writers and many qualified individuals to visit Ceylon, embrace Buddhism and follow the Buddhist way of life. Anagarika Dharmapala himself was present at the ‘Panadura Vadaya’ (1873) as a young boy of nine years. Colonel Henry Olcott and Madame Helena Blavatsky (from the USA) were the most prominent of the visitors from overseas. Their contribution to the cause of Buddhism is legendary.
Dr. Paul Dahlke
Dr. Paul Dahlke (Germany) was a successful Doctor practicing in Homeopathy Medicine. He falls into the category of visitors who traveled to Ceylon seeking a wider knowledge of Buddhism. However, he was exposed to Buddhist thought at the outset by the writings of the eminent German Philosopher, Artur Schopenhauer. Dr. Hellmuth Hecker, one of the Chroniclers of Buddhism in Germany, adds that Dahlke was not initially interested in Buddhism, but that Buddhism would not let go of him. Dahlke traveled to Ceylon in 1900 for the second time to study Buddhism. He embraced Buddhism on this visit. He visited Ceylon eight times.
He studied Pali and Buddhism at the Parama DhammaChethiya Pirivena, Ratmalana. He met highly reputed Buddhist teachers among them the monks Ven. Hikkaduwe Sumangala, Suriyagoda Sumangala, Nyananissara and Wagiswara. When World War I (1914 – 1918) intervened Dahlke was in Germany and could no longer travel to Ceylon as he had planned. His desire to lead the life of a Bhikkhu (monk) in a Buddhist Temple could not be realized due to the hot humid weather conditions in Ceylon. Alternatively, he led the life of an Upasaka in Germany.
After the end of WW I, with great determination and vision, Dahlke bought a plot of land (6 acres) in the scenic town of Berlin – Frohnau and commissioned the architect Max Meyer to build ‘Das Buddhistische Haus’ using symbols of Theravada Buddhist architecture prevalent in Ceylon. He moved into the House in 1924. His activities comprised daily Buddhist meetings as well as presentations and publications. He died in 1928 and his remains were buried on the property of DBH.
He was a prolific Buddhist writer. Anagarika Dharmapala called Paul Dahlke one of the ‘most efficient and able pens’ for the Buddhist cause in Europe”.
Das Buddhistische Haus was originally meant to be a mid-way solution between a monastery and laymen’s habitation (Kurt Fischer). DBH is the oldest Theravada Buddhist Centre in Germany (and Europe). It is an architectural marvel that reflects the essence of Theravada Buddhist principles. The Dahlke family was in charge of DBH after the death of Dr. Dahlke. His sister Bertha Dahlke managed the premises with the help of Kurt Fischer (Dahlke’s Secretary) for a short time. However, in 1930 there was a rift with Bertha Dahlke, which led to Kurt Fischer and Lavinia Countess Monts founding their movement ‘Buddhistes Holzhouse’ in 1930 in Holzhaus on the site in competition with Bertha Dahlke.
Uposatha ceremonies were conducted when the opportunity arose at DBH (1928 – 1957).
Asoka Weeraratna is the next important figure in the History of Das Buddhistische Haus. As much as Paul Dahlke will be remembered for being the ‘Founder’ of DBH, Asoka Weeraratna will be remembered as the ‘Saviour’ of DBH.
In a seminal article on the state of Buddhism in Germany, ‘Buddhism and Buddhist Studies in Germany’, Maha Bodhi Journal, Vol. 79, (February – March 1971) page 99, Dr. Hans Wolfgang Schumann, a Chronicler of Buddhism in Germany, raises a significant question as follows: Shouldn’t Germans be grateful to Sri Lankan Buddhist Societies for giving organizational help at several critical periods of Buddhism in Germany and thereby helping in saving the flame of the Buddha Dhamma in Germany”?
Dr. Hans Wolfgang Schumann, answers as follows:
Another important Buddhist Centre is the ‘Buddhist House’ founded by Paul Dahlke in Berlin – Frohnau in 1924. It survived World War II in a dilapidated condition and probably would have been auctioned and dismantled if the Ceylonese ‘German Dhammaduta Society’ (founded in 1952) which inherited a large sum of money from a German Buddhist (Walther Schmits) had not come to its rescue. The GDS purchased the house in 1958, renovated it, and furnished it with additional rooms, and a well-stocked library, and Ceylonese Bhikkhus (monks) sent by the GDS took charge of regular lectures and meditation courses.” (Maha Bodhi Journal, Vol. 79) (March 1971).
Dr. Schumann further states: Asian Buddhist mission was successful. The organizational help that Asian Buddhist Societies, in particular Ceylon, in several critical periods, had extended saved the flame of the Dhamma in Germany. Isn’t this for the Germans’ reason enough to be grateful?”
Note
These are the words of an eminent German i.e., Dr. Schumann, crediting Asoka Weeraratna and the German Dharmaduta Society for helping save the flame of the Buddha Dhamma in Germany by rescuing Das Buddhistische Haus.
Asoka Weeraratna was a visionary Sinhala Buddhist (birth in the town of Galle). He had his early education at Mahinda College, a Buddhist Boys’ School established by Henry Olcott in 1892. Asoka was a partner of P.J. Weeraratna & Sons (a firm of Jewellers and Watch dealers) together with his elder brother Dharmasena Weeraratna (partner).
Asoka Weeraratna founded the Lanka Dhammaduta Society in Colombo on September 21, 1952, following a Business Trip to Europe in 1951. Disheartened heavily by what he saw on this trip – a devastated Germany and the misery of its people adversely affected by the effects of World War Two, Asoka Weeraratna decided to bring to Germany the Buddha’s healing message – the best gift that Asia could offer to the Western World i.e., the gift of the Buddha Dhamma.
Asoka led a band of enthusiastic noble Buddhists including the former Prime Minister Hon. Dudley Senanayake and with their blessings public support and a zealous fund-raising drive, Asoka Weeraratna succeeded in leading the First Buddhist Mission to Germany comprising Three Buddhist Monks Ven. Soma, Kheminda, and Vinita (all selected from the Vajiraramaya Temple in Bambalapitiya) in June 1957. The Mission on arrival in Berlin took up residence in Das Buddhistische Haus on July 02, 1957.
The next milestone in this remarkable story is the purchase of DBH from the family of Dr. Dahlke. Asoka Weeraratna bought the property of DBH after conducting elaborate negotiations with the relatives of Dr. Dahlke on December 13, 1957. There were several hurdles to clear concerning the purchase of the premises. There were three owners of the property of which one was a minor and therefore Asoka had to make a special trip to the island of Sylt (near Denmark) where he had to obtain sanction from the District Court for the sale of the minor’s share.
The ‘Observer’ (January 12, 1958) reported the acquisition of the DBH as follows:
Buddhists of Ceylon have taken a great stride forward in establishing the Buddha Sasana in Germany and other countries of the West. They have acquired the famous Frohnau House in West Berlin which will become the first Vihara and permanent Buddhist Settlement in Europe. The German Dharmaduta Society acquired the premises from the heirs of Paul Dahlke, pioneer of Buddhist work in Germany. He studied Pali and Buddhism at the Parama Dhamma Chetiya Pirivena at Ratmalana. After his return to Germany, he led the life of an Upasaka and devoted his time to the dissemination of Buddhism among the German people. He is the author of several scholarly works on Buddhism”.
Today
Ever since 1957, Buddhist Monks from Sri Lanka have taken up residence at DBH for the propagation of Buddhism in Germany and the West. Dhamma discourses, Meditation Retreats, and Mindfulness teaching are a few of the many forms of disseminating the wisdom of the Buddha to Europeans as well as non–Europeans. This is happening regularly at DBH.
The resident monks have braved the cold weather, the different varieties of food, and other challenges that confront visitors from Asian countries to Europe. The Govt of Sri Lanka and the Embassy of Sri Lanka in Berlin have been extending unstinted support and patronage to the work of DBH and the GDS (since its founding in 1952 beginning with the then-former Prime Minister Dudley Senanayake).
The Dayakayas (patrons) constitute Germans and other European and non–European nationalities and last but not least the members of the Sri Lankan (Sinhala) community of Berlin and other parts of Germany. Their cooperation is wholeheartedly welcomed and gratefully appreciated.
The transformation of DBH into a modern and much improved Centre for the propagation of Theravada Buddhism with monks brought over from predominantly Buddhist countries, mainly Sri Lanka, constitutes a watershed in the history of Buddhism. If it wasn’t for the vision and boundless energy of ‘Weera Asoka’ and his German Dharmaduta Society we would not be having a Maha Viharaya of Berlin (DBH) being the oldest Theravada Buddhist Temple in Europe, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of DBH founded by Paul Dahlke.
Several new developments have taken place in the last couple of years at DBH. Berlin Maha Viharaya (colloquial Sinhala term for DBH) also functions as a Dhamma School for school children and is equipped with IT facilities to facilitate the teaching of the Dhamma. The number of students is growing. The Berlin Vihara thereby provides an immeasurable service to the whole world. The teaching faculty includes volunteers who are well qualified and multilingual i.e., German, English, and Sinhala.
Being able to participate in an event that commemorates the services rendered in the last 100 years (1924 – 2024) by the Maha Viharaya (DBH) is a great honour. The Berlin Maha Viharaya dedicates itself to continuing to spread the teachings of the Buddha in Europe with piety and in the interest of the well-being of humanity and all other living beings.
The Aims and Objectives of the Conference
a) The Conference aims to bring together participants from leading Buddhist institutions worldwide to focus attention on the scope for the spread of Buddhism and the challenges faced in such endeavours including the protection and preservation of Buddhism in traditional Buddhist countries.
b) The Conference will provide a platform for scholars, practitioners, and devotees to read papers, engage in meaningful discussions, share insights, and foster fellowship and a sense of unity and collaboration among the global Buddhist community.
c) The Conference will discuss the key issues and barriers that stand in the way of the propagation of the Dhamma in Western countries amidst the rapidly changing political and religious landscape in Europe. It will also support the
1. Buddhist contribution to world peace and harmony, and
2. Give an insight into the history of the Buddhist House (Das Buddhistische Haus) and the service it has rendered in the last 100 years.
d) Questions for long-term evaluation
1. Critical review of current activities and developing an outlook for the coming years
2. How should GDS/DBH want to distinguish itself from the many other Buddhist institutions in the future (what are our unique points?)
Conference Participants
The Conference is intended to bring together Buddhist leaders, Buddhist research institutions, scholars, and the General community.
Program
Exhibition Venue:
The exhibition will be held at the temple premises on 03rd August 2024 (Saturday) with a focus on the establishment, history, and pioneers of the DBH at various stages of its history.
Conference Venue:
The Conference will be held at an outside venue (preferably Zehlendorf community hall or a hall in Berlin – Tegel) on 04th August 2024 (Sunday).
02nd August 2024 (Friday)
Arrival of Participants and check-in to the hotels
03rd August 2024 (Saturday)
07:30 am – Breakfast
09:30 am – Gathering at the Temple and Registration for the first day.
09:45 am – Welcome remarks and Opening Ceremony.
10:00 am – Official commencement of the Exhibition
11:00 am – Dana meal for the monks and nuns
12:30 pm – Lunch for the laypersons
04:00 pm – Meditation program for all participants
06:00 pm – Tea Break
07:00 pm – Evening chanting
08:00 pm – Dinner for the laypersons
04th August 2024 (Sunday)
07:30 am – Breakfast
09:30 am – Gathering at the Temple and Registration for the second day
10:30 am – Lunch time for the monks and nuns
Noon 12.00 p.m. – Lunch time for laypersons
01:00 pm – Departure from the Temple to the Conference Hall.
03:00 pm – Commencement of the Conference.
06:00 pm – Conclusion.
06:30 pm – Departure from the Hall to the accommodations
Refreshments
08:00 pm – Offering tea for the monks and nuns / Dinner for the laypersons
05th August 2024 (Monday)
07:30 am – Breakfast
09:00 am – Sightseeing tour for the guest participants.
Note: – The monks, nuns, and lay persons who participate in the ceremony as the invitees may depart on the same day to your countries or choose to travel wherever you would like to visit by yourself. This is the last day that we are responsible for the accommodation of those who arrive from other countries. If you want to continue to stay longer, you may reside in the Temple, but let us know about it in advance. We provide accommodation in the Hotels only until the 05th of August. You have to check out from the Hotels on the 06th of August before noon.
Minister of Environment, Sri Lanka State Minister of The Envkironment, Sri Lanka Minister of Power and Energy, Sri Lanka
Your Excelleny, The President of Sri Lanka, State Minister of the Environment and Minister of Power and Energy,
I wish to send to you a plea made by Prof. Rohan Pethiyagoda about the lack of an environment assessment in the authorization of the Wind Power generation project in the Mannar region where we have a wealth of migrating birds arriving to nest and avoid the colder winds of the winter in the northern regions. A large number of these birds including protected birds are severely endangered by the transmission lines and the grave risk faced by these birds in flying past these tall wind turbines being erected by the Adani Group of India.
Furthermore, Prof. Rohan Pethiyagoda has drawn attention to the premium Sri Lanka swill be paying for the power that would be produced by the Adani Group for which Sri Lanka will be required to pay nearly five times the cost of production of the energy by 52 turbines in US Funds for the next 25 years when Sri Lanka is faced with a foreign currency crisis.
No proper environmental assessment has been carried out, and it is a unwise step taken which will tie future generation to pay the billions of US Dollars for about 6 percent of our energy needs.
Please look into this matter urgently and take immediate steps to restore normal procedural means and not be carried over to please any party as the terms of the contract are adverse to Sri Lanka’s interests.
A meeting between Chinese Association of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (CASMCE) and Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena was held today (25.04.2024) at the Temple Trees. Attention was paid onto expansion and trade investments in renewable energy, vehicle manufacturing, agricultural technology, paper and printing related fields. Mr Ren Xinglei, President of CASMCE, said that the Chinese people are very happy about the Prime Minister’s visit to China and expressed his heartfelt gratitude for the visit. Mr Xu Xiang, Vice President of CASMCE said that there is potential to invest in the development of industries related to solar power, wind power and biomass energy in Sri Lanka. The Prime Minister pointed out the possibility of exporting high quality cinnamon to China and the possibility of giving priority to the import of electronic vehicles. MP Yadamini Gunawardena, Secretary to the Prime Minister Anura Dissanayake, and many Chinese entrepreneurs including officials of the Chinese Association of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises and a group of officials from the Ministry of Agriculture and Plantation Industries, the Ministry of Industry and Sri Lanka Board of Investment also participated in this event.
At an event held to mark the fifth anniversary of the Easter Sunday suicide bombings, His Eminence Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith made the following allegations against me.
That the day after the report of the Presidential Commission of Inquiry on the Easter Sunday attacks was handed over to me, I had spoken to the Cardinal over the phone and said that I had difficulties in implementing the recommendations in that report as it would entail the arrest of individuals and even the banning of organisations that were supportive of me.
That I had delayed giving the Cardinal a copy of the first volume of the Presidential Commission report and that I had not given him the remaining volumes.
That I had appointed a six-member cabinet sub-committee to selectively implement only a few of the recommendations made by the various Committees and Commissions appointed to inquire into the Easter Sunday attacks.
That I had transferred the CID officers investigating the Easter Sunday attacks and even imprisoned one such senior officer in order to sabotage the investigation.
With regard to the first allegation, I categorically state that I did NOT speak to the Cardinal over the phone after the Presidential Commission report was submitted to me and tell him that the recommendations of the Presidential Commission could not be implemented because that would entail the arrest of people and even the banning of organisations allied with me. It is a well-known fact that the Muslim community in general did not vote for me or support my candidacy at the Presidential election, so I cannot possibly have had any allies in any organisation that would need to be banned over complicity in the Easter Sunday attacks.
As for the second allegation, the report of the Presidential Commission was handed over to me on 1 February 2021. Having studied it myself and referred it to the Attorney General, it was handed over to the Speaker of Parliament on 23 February 2021 and by 1 March 2021 copies had been given to the Venerable Mahanayaka Theras, the Cardinal and the Catholic Bishops. There was no delay in handing over the report to the Cardinal.
After the Presidential Commission of Inquiry submitted its report, I appointed a six-member Cabinet Sub-committee to prioritize and apportion to the relevant government departments and agencies the task of implementing the recommendations in the reports of the Presidential Commission of Inquiry and the Select Committee of Parliament on the Easter Sunday attacks. Those familiar with public administration will know that the departments and agencies of the government cannot act without such instructions from the Cabinet.
In November 2019 the then Director of the CID was transferred by the Police Commission on the recommendation of the then IGP. That was by the Police Commission appointed under the 19th Amendment by the previous government. A few weeks later this officer was interdicted by the Police Commission over an investigation into the leaked recordings of his telephone conversations with the then Deputy Minister Ranjan Ramanayake regarding the influencing of judges in an ongoing High Court case. Several months later, he was remanded by the Courts over an investigation into the alleged fabrication of evidence in a criminal case concerning a former police DIG. Hence, I reject the allegation that I transferred the CID Director and even placed him in remand custody in order to sabotage the Easter Sunday investigation.
This particular CID Director had been appointed to that office in 2017 and he continued to hold that position for over seven months after the Easter Sunday attacks. In the months prior to the Easter Sunday attacks, it was the CID that investigated the Vavunativu murders, the vandalizing of Buddha statues in Mawanella and the discovery of explosives in Wanathavilluwa involving the very same individuals and groups that perpetrated the Easter Sunday attacks. The Presidential Commission has observed that if the law enforcement authorities had been more vigilant, Zaharan and his group could have been apprehended before the Easter Sunday attacks took place. The failure to prevent the attack was a failure of the CID under that Director.
In his speech mentioned above, the Cardinal accused me of not having brought the perpetrators of the Easter Sunday bombings to justice. However, criminals have to be brought to justice not by politicians but by the police, the Attorney General’s Department and the Courts system working together. That process is now ongoing and according to the media, 93 persons are now facing legal proceedings in court for offences relating to those suicide bombings.
The Easter Sunday attacks were perpetrated by a group of Islamic extremists. The highest investigative arm of the then government – the CID – had for several months prior to the attacks, been investigating the activities of the very same individuals and groups that carried out the suicide bombings but failed to apprehend the terrorists before they struck. The public should take good note of the fact that His Eminence Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith either glosses over the responsibility of, or expressly absolves the two parties mentioned above, while continuing to relentlessly attack and criticize me over the Easter Sunday suicide bombings.
දේශපාලන ඕනෑ එපාකම් වෙනුවෙන් මෙරට බුද්ධි අංශ පාවාදීම සිදු නොකල යුතු බව පිවිතුරු හෙළ උරුමයේ නායක නීතිඥ උදය ගම්මන්පිල මහතා පවසයි.
ගෝඨාභය රාජපක්ෂ හිටපු ජනාධිපතිතුමා විසින් කාදිනල්තුමා විසින් ඔහුට එල්ල කරන්නට යෙදුණු චෝදනාවලට පිළිතුරු බඳිමින් යවන ලද ලිපිය පිළිබඳව ‘ලංකා ලීඩර්‘ ජාතික සංවිධානවල මතය විමසන ලදී මේ වෛද්ය වසන්ත බණ්ඩාර මහතාගේ අදහස ඔහුගේ වචනයෙන්.
සමලිංගික චර්යා ප්රචලිත කරන පනත හා දුරාචාරයට ඉඩකඩ සැලසීමට ගෙනන පනත් තුළ අන්තර්ගත කරුණු පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ සිටින මැති ඇමැතිවරුන් සහ විශේෂයෙන්ම මන්ත්රීවරියන් කියවා බලා ඇත්දැයි බරපතළ සැකයක් ඇති බවත්, තමන්ටත් දරුවන් සිටින දෙමාපියන් ලෙස ඔවුන්ට මෙබඳු සමලිංගික හැසිරීම් ප්රචලිත කරන පනත්වලට සහාය දිය හැකිදැයි යන්න ගැටලුවක් ඇති බවත් නීතිඥ මධුමාලි අල්විස් මහත්මිය පවසයි.