KAMALIKA PIERIS

Tamil Separatist Movement is scared that Buddhism will become popular in the north and east. That it will catch on and the Hindu population will decrease. That is one of the reasons for the strong resistance to Buddhistization.

The Hindus do not permit low castes to enter their best temples. Buddhists allow anyone to worship in any temple irrespective of caste. There is a possibility therefore that the low castes in the Hindu community may readily leave Hinduism for Buddhism in the north east, if there is a Buddhist temple nearby. Tamil Separatist Movement knows this. TNA MP Sumanthiran went to Supreme Court in August 2022, saying that the Hindu heritage would disappear because of Kurundi.[1]

Those engaged in archaeological work in the north and east have repeatedly stated that the Tamil population in the north and east are not against Buddhism .The Tamil villagers do not mind the conservation work on ancient temples. They seem to welcome the Buddhist temples.

The Department of Archaeology team, who went to the north in 2010 to look at the Buddhist ruins there, found that rehabilitated LTTE had also given them information on where the ruins were to be found.

Ven .Medhananda came on You Tube in July 2022    (Talk with Sanath channel. https://youtu.be/Tmw6767lSqA )

and stated firmly that there was no animosity on the part of the Tamil villagers, to the Buddhist ruins in the north. He was certain of this. I know because I have spoken to them. They like these viharas”.

Medhananda said he first went to see Kurundi before the Eelam war started. That would be in the late 1970s probably.  A Tamil living in a nearby village had offered to show him the way and was very helpful and friendly throughout the visit.   Api atara sahodarathvayak tibuna.

After the war ended Medhananda visited Kalvilan, a town in Mullaitivu. The Tamil villagers in Kalvilan readily helped him to locate the Kalvilan ruins.  They were very cordial and hospitable. He got on well with them. He showed photos taken with them in the You Tube discussion.  Medhananda added that the Tamil villagers were prepared to leave if the Buddhist ruins were to be conserved, provided they were given land elsewhere.

Ven. Santhabodhi also said the same thing. He too said in several YouTube presentations that he had no trouble at all from the Tamil villagers who lived around Kurundi. Relations with them were cordial. They brought him curd .He had visited them. He helped the children of these villagers with their education. The archaeology team working at Kurundi also said that they had no difficulty with the villagers. They all said that opposition to Buddhist temples came from the Tamil politicians alone.

Tamil Separatist Movement observed that expansion of Sinhala-Buddhism in the north and east is not simply religious expansion but a political, economic and geo-strategic project.  Buddhist temples were built at geo-strategic locations. The Buddhist claims to ancient sites in the Trincomalee area is of geo-strategic importance.  Transformation of geo-strategic locations into a Buddhist sacred space” is another type of post-war” activity, they said. Expansion of Sinhala Buddhism in the Tamil region is a war by other means, said Jude Lal Fernando.  

As a part of the geo-strategic project, the navy has acquired land in Mātakal in Jaffna’s Vallikamam division and naval cantonments have been constructed. Authorities are transforming the region into a sacred place”; claiming it as part of the Sinhala Buddhist heritage, said Jude Lal Fernando.

There is a newly built a large Buddhist stūpa    on the A9 road, near Mankulam junction. The place is being designed as a Buddhist monastery with the aim of bringing in monks to reside there. A plan for expansion is visible. Mankulam is the main junction between Vavuniya and Kilinochchi towns.

A sampling of the Śrī Mahā Bodhi has been planted in Kanakārayakuḷam on the A9 road between Vavuniya and Jaffna. Three roads near the Bo tree area, have been given Sinhala names—Kōsala Perērā Māvata, Anura Perērā Māvata, and Pūjya Yaṭirāvaṇa Vimala Thera Māvata. The first two are names of soldiers who took part in the war, and the last is the name of a Buddhist monk. Roads from four directions meet at Kanakārayakuḷam. Mankulam and Kaṉakārayaṉkuḷam junctions are the key business locations in Kilinochchi district.

Koneswaram and Thiruketheeswaram are the two main Hindu temples in north east. A massive Buddha statue was erected near Koneswaram Temple in Trincomalee some years ago. In 2021, a Buddhist shrine was erected by a monk on land belonging partly to the Thiruketheeswaram temple and partly to private ownership.

A large Buddha statue has been built near the Jaffna harbor making it clearly visible to the vessels that reach the shore. On the third anniversary of the final battle a Buddhist stūpa has been constructed at Muḷḷivāikkal. It had a Sinhala name board.

Buddhists are also holding Buddhist ceremonies in public in the north and east. The Bō sapling of Śrī Mahā Bodhi donated to Buddha Gaya in India was paraded throughout Jaffna peninsula accompanied by Buddhist monks with heavy military protection before it was sent to India. A stone inscription was set up in Mātakal to mark the occasion.

They organize Buddhist rituals and festivals in the Tamil region said the Tamil Separatist Movement angrily. Pirit ceremonies are organized for poya days throughout the night with loud-speakers, in strictly Hindu, Muslim or Catholic locations like   Jaffna town, Maṉṉār town, Muruṅkaṉ and Pesalai village.

The most celebrated moment of Buddhist rituals and festivals in the post-war” Tamil region was the government sponsored celebration of Vesak in May 2011 . There are no Buddhists in the North except the occupying army. But the whole of the North, from Vavuniya to Jaffna along the A-9 road, was full of colorful Vesak decorations, huge lanterns and flying Buddhist flags as if the people of the North are Buddhists. Vesak dansal had been set up in several places. All this was done by the occupying Sri Lanka armed forces and Police, as a sign of subjugation of the Tamils by the Sinhalese Buddhists, reported Jude Lal Fernando.

As part of its geo-strategic project, the Buddhist lobby is asking for more land for its strategically placed temples. There is an ongoing dispute as to the extent of land that should be given to ancient temples in the north and east. Anti-Eelamists see this as a way to take back the land and the alarmed Tamil Separatist Movement is frantically trying to get these requests squashed.

At the Eastern Province Development Committee meeting chaired by President Ranil Wickremesinghe, in May 2023 it was shown that land had been given to places of worship in the Trincomalee District without any formal procedures. .A request had been made for 100 acres for the Arisimale temple and a letter issued to the monk in charge of that temple. 27 perches of land have been requested for Boralukanda Rajamaha Vihara to develop it as a sacred area.

3,065 acres requested by the Thiriyaya Temple was later reduced to 265 acres, by the Parliamentary Select Committee. Department of Archaeology made a case for Tiriyaya. Tiriyaya is on a hillock and the whole hill has to be protected not only the top. So it was necessary to declare over 600 acres of land at Tiriyaya as a protected site. Tiriyaya will require more and more land for the pilgrims rest, modern temple and other infrastructure connected with sacred area, Said the Department of Archaeology. It was decided in May 2023 to re-survey and settle the issue.

The name of the Jaffna peninsula is Nagadipa, not   Jaffna or Yalpanam. Ptolemy called the Jaffna peninsula   ‘Nagadiboy’.  Vallipuram manuscript (2 AD) of Vasabha called it Nakadiva.   A coin dated to 2 AD found at Ututturai in Tenmarachchi division of Jaffna peninsula confirms that the north was called Nagabumi, said P.Pushparatnam of the University of Jaffna.[2]

The British rulers probably transferred Nagadipa to Nainativu to eliminate Buddhism from Jaffna. Critics have repeatedly observed that Nainativu is far too small for the clash between the Chulodara and Mahodara factions.

The Buddhist lobby must ensure, as a part of its geo-strategic approach, that Jaffna is given back its original name ‘Nagadipa’.  Jaffna must   replace Nainativu in the list of   ‘solosmastana’. Jaffna must become part of the annual northern pilgrim route for Buddhists .Facilities must be provided for Buddhists to worship in Jaffna as part of the ‘solosmastana ‘pilgrimage.  Buddhists should have asked for this long ago.  (CONTINUED)

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[1] මුලතිව් ඓතිහාසික කුරුන්දි විහාරයේ ඇත්ත කතාව | Madhura TV | 2022-07- 20 

[2] P.Pushparatnam. Festschrift for Prof. S Pathmanathan. Godage  p 384

KAMALIKA PIERIS

When the Eelam war ended, the Southern Sinhalese Buddhists took the opportunity to travel to

 Buddhist sites in the north that had long been inaccessible. As a result, busloads of Sinhalese Buddhists flocked to the Northern parts of Sri Lanka.

The A9 highway, which connects the North and South of Sri Lanka, was reopened on December 21, 2009. 58,694 people travelled to Jaffna from December 21 to 29 of that year, said the media. At the end of December 2009, about 30,000 tourists had visited Jaffna daily. 200,000 to 300,000 people visited Jaffna during weekends in 2010. By the end of December 2011, about 3 million Sri Lankans had visited Jaffna.  By   2019, visits had reduced since most people had visited Jaffna, reported Samaratunga et al. [1].

The security forces and the government encouraged Buddhist pilgrimages to come to Jaffna. This was to show Southern power in the North   said Samaratunga et al. Sinhalese Buddhists visiting Jaffna gaze upon the region with a sense of ownership fueled by the triumphalism.

 These tours will link the north with the rest of the island, said the deeply anxious Tamil Separatist Movement. This will break the isolation of the north and east and make it more accessible to those in the rest of the island.

Tamil Separatist Movement has looked at the Buddhist places tourists visit in the north and they have picked out Kantarodai as the place which will act as the symbol of Buddhist Jaffna to the Sinhala tourist.

Highly guarded by the Sri Lanka Army, this space is entirely detached from the Tamil neighborhood it is located in, they said. An old Tamil woman recalled the good old days when they used to collect beads from the premises and sell them to tourists. She complained that they are no longer allowed to do so.  

The ancient Bhikkhu burial mounds of Kadurugoda  is  a must-see destination for Buddhists visiting Jaffna since it provides clear evidence of Buddhism’s presence in ancient Jaffna, said Samaratunga et al. Buddhists do not visit the ancient Kadurugoda Viharaya to  worship. They visit this place to witness the ancient Buddhist Heritage in Jaffna district, they observed.

 Actually, Kantarodai does not rank highly in the history of Buddhist Jaffna. Paul E Pieris made much more significant discoveries in other parts of Jaffna such as Chunnakam. These findings showed the wide spread of Buddhism in Jaffna in the ancient period. The attraction of Kantarodai is in its architecture which reminds one of Borobudur.

 But Tamil Separatist Movement is thinking of the impact on the contemporary Sinhala visitor, who they imagine will be greatly impressed by Kantarodai. (They will not, they have seen much more imposing Buddhist monuments elsewhere in Sri Lanka.)

Therefore Tamil Separatist Movement has provided a history for Kantarodai which is a mirror opposite of the orthodox history. They declare that the original name was Kantarodai, now Sinhalised to Kadurugoda. Although the official name of the area is ‘Kandarodai’, the specific site of pilgrimage is named ‘Kadurugoda Viharaya’, a Sinhalised form of the Tamil term ‘Kandarodai’, said Nirmal Dewasiri.[2]

The conversion of this site into an exclusively Sinhala-Buddhist space can be seen as the emergence of a parallel ‘super space’ in the middle of the Tamil North,  Nirmal said .This ‘super space’ is constructed as a part of the broader strategy to dominate the postwar North.

I visited the place in April 2010, and interviewed a number of pilgrims. Almost all of the interviewees had no prior knowledge of the place. Many came to know of the place after they visited Jaffna. All of them were unaware of the Tamil name and only knew the Sinhalised form ‘Kadurugoda’. There were several boards erected by various organizations and business firms from the South. They clearly represented the dominant Sinhala-Buddhist accounts of the place, said Nirmal.

WHMS Samarathunga, Li Cheng, and PR Weerathunga wrote on Buddhist gaze and power in a post-war destination: case study of Jaffna”. They studied how the post-war Buddhist gaze helped to strengthen Sinhala-Buddhist nationalism after the war.

They also saw these visits as Tours of Power”. The pilgrimages conducted by Sinhalese Buddhists to post-war damaged and restricted areas can also be identified as a Tour of Power,” they said. Domestic Buddhist pilgrims visit post-war destinations with a sense of triumphalism. They perform power” via Buddhist gaze” and inspecting gaze” and try to visually claim what they believe was originally theirs. This” Buddhist gaze” and inspecting gaze” could eventually impact the cultural and religious values of the Jaffna Tamil people, suggested Samaratunga et al.

Samaratunga et al looked at the Buddhist places the tourists/pilgrims visited. The authors went to Nagadipa and noted that the entrance to Nagadipa is set in such as manner that the pilgrims saw the stupa first, not the Hindu kovil.  I would add that there is no need. The kovil, strategically set at the tip of the island can be seen for miles from the sea. The dagoba is not visible.

Nagadipa is now displaying itself as a temple that survived the Eelam war. Nagadipa   stood up to the LTTE. It was challenge several times but Nagadipa survived due to the   personality of the chief priest and the army. It was said that even the LTTE was afraid of this monk. The chief priest at Nagadipa had a gallery of photographs to bring pilgrims’’ attention to the difficulties the temple faced during the war period, reported Samaratunga et al.

Naga Vihara is the first Buddhist temple one meets on entering Jaffna. It is located approximately two kilometers away from the city center and is a popular Buddhist site among Sinhalese and Buddhist travelers.  It is a popular pilgrim shelter where Sinhalese Buddhists to stay overnight even today. During the Ceasefire Agreement period, the temple expanded the small Vishrama Shala that existed before the war to cater to the influx of tourists’ demands.

 In addition, since Naga Vihara is the only Buddhist Temple in Jaffna city the government wanted it to stand strong because it represents Buddhism in a non-Buddhist region. As a result, both Sri Lankan security forces and the Sri Lankan government sponsored and assisted in the construction of the Vishrama Shala, said Samaratunga et al.  (Continued)

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[1] WHMS Samarathungaa,c*, Li Chengb,c, and PR Weerathungaa, cBuddhist gaze and power in a post-war destination: case study of Jaffna,Sri Lanka https://www.academia.edu/44622423/Buddhist_gaze_and_power_in_a_post_war_destination_case_study_of_Jaffna_

[2]Nirmal Ranjith Dewasiri. ‛History’ after the War:Historical Consciousness in the Collective

Sinhala-Buddhist Psyche in Post-War Sri Lanka. International Centre for Ethnic Studies

July 2013

C. Wijeyawickrema

In Sri Lanka higher courts are under attack for using contempt  of court as a sword making everybody fearful to comment about court decisions which appear manifestly defective. The Bar Association of Sri Lanka is getting funds from USAID to sanitize the judicial system, and its officers now face accusations of misappropriation of dollar donations received for that purpose. The system change that all are wanting must include the judicial apparatus in Sri Lanka. It cannot be a pillar of democracy unless this happens.  See what is happening in the USA now with regard to its Supreme Court.

Judges Rebel Against the Supreme Court (msn.com)

Dr Sarath Obeysekera

PULSE OF THE INVESTORS

Dr Sarath Obeysekera

Condominium Mgmt Authority, National Gem & Jewellery Authority to share information with the Financial Intel Unit

in terms of the provisions of the Financial Transactions Reporting Act, No. 6 of 2006 (FTRA), the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of Sri Lanka entered into Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) with Condominium Management Authority (CMA) and National Gem and Jewellery Authority (NGJA) on 28 August 2019 at the Central Bank of Sri Lanka with the objectives of outlining the process for providing information and defining the nature of the support that the FIU expects from the CMA and NGJA in ensuring effective implementation of Anti-Money Laundering/Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) legal obligations for condominium developers and licensed gem and jewelry dealers in Sri Lanka.

LankaWeb – Money Laundering and development

Courtesy Tom Dispatch

June 25, 2024

Hey, electric cars? It’s obvious that they’ve come into their own now that Tesla’s Elon Musk has once again been granted his (no, this is not a misprint!) $44.9 billion pay package by that company’s shareholders after a Delaware judge all too unreasonably tossed it out last year. Admittedly, given court issues, he won’t get it immediately, but he’s still promised to continue helping make Tesla’s vehicles fully artificially intelligent and “self-driving.” And what could possibly go wrong, once AI is at the wheel instead of us humans? I still recall my dad teaching me to drive in New York City. I can remember being at a corner downtown with cars zipping by in either direction and my dad yelling, “Turn left! Turn left!” In that moment of ultimate pressure, I simply couldn’t remember which direction left was. Had I then been artificially intelligent, there would have been no problem. Now, it seems, with future AI and billions of dollars more in the hands of Musk and his like, grammar school kids or even toddlers may someday be able to “drive” their artificially intelligent family cars. (Something to look forward to, right?) And the same, it seems, may be true when it comes to making war. Thanks in large part to the new-age militarists of Silicon Valley that TomDispatch regular and Pentagon expert William Hartung describes so vividly today, sooner or later, this country’s generals and admirals, fighting soldiers, sailors, and pilots will assumedly be replaced at the wheel of war by artificial intelligence. And what could possibly go wrong? I mean, isn’t war, like driving a car, potentially a matter of child’s play? And won’t AI ensure that war-making never again falters — no more Vietnams, Afghanistans, or Iraqs, thanks to us increasingly (in)human beings. On the other hand, I can imagine a few problems (as can Hartung). I mean, when you think about it, what has war ever had to do with intelligence? Tom

Geopolitical Economy Report

Countries around the world are seeking alternatives to the US dollar. IMF economists say de-dollarization is “broad-based”. The Federal Reserve reluctantly admits that it is happening. Ben Norton analyzes the latest research.

Ministry of Defence  – Media Centre

Sri Lanka has made history by achieving Tier 2 status in the U.S. Department of State’s Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report for the third consecutive year. This notable accomplishment underscores the country’s sustained efforts to combat human trafficking and protect its victims.

The National Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force (NAHTTF), under the leadership of the Defence Secretary General Kamal Gunaratne has been pivotal in this achievement. As the Chair of the NAHTTF, the Defence Secretary has provided essential guidance and strategic direction, ensuring continued progress in Sri Lanka’s fight against human trafficking.

Courtesy Adaderana

The Ministry of Education states that all schools across the island will function as normal tomorrow (June 27).

This was communicated in a statement issued by the Ministry of Education this afternoon (26).

However, the General Secretary of the Ceylon Teachers’ Union (CTU) Joseph Stalin stated this afternoon that the teacher-principal trade unions will continue their strike action tomorrow as well, protesting against the firing of tear gas and water cannons to disperse their protest march in Colombo today.

The teacher-principal trade unions engaged in an island-wide trade union action by reporting sick leave today (26) based on several demands. At the same time, the members of the trade union launched a protest in Colombo which commenced from near the Colombo Fort Railway Station.

Meanwhile, the non-academic staff of the government schools are also engaged in a strike action, demanding a national policy for the non-academic service in the education sector.

උපුටා ගැන්ම  ලංකා ලීඩර්

ජාතික න්‍යාය පත්‍රයක මූලාරම්භය දෙවන පියවර ඊයේ (25) ජාතික පුස්තකාල ශ්‍රවණාගාරයේදී ජාතික සංවිධාන නියෝජිතයන්ගේ සහභාගීත්වයෙන් පැවැත්විණි.

කුමන පුද්ගලයෙකු හෝ කුමන පක්ෂයක් ජනාධිපතිවරණය හෝ මහ මැතිවරණයට ඉදිරිපත් වුවද පිළිතුරු බැදිය යුතු 20 වැදැරූම් ප්‍රශ්න මාලාවක් සමාජ සම්මුතියක් ලෙස එළිදැක්වීම මෙහිදී සිදුවිය. 

මෙය ගෝලීය ශ්‍රී ලාංකික සංසදය විසින් සංවිධානය කර තිබූ අතර  මහාචාර්ය පූජ්‍ය ඉදුරාගාරේ ධම්මරතන හිමි, මහාචාර්ය පූජ්‍ය මැදගොඩ අභයතිස්ස හිමි, දෙවන පරපුර සංවිධානයේ උවිදු විජේවීර, වෛද්‍ය වසන්ත බණ්ඩාර, ආචාර්ය ජගත් චන්ද්‍රවංශ, ගෝලීය ශ්‍රී ලංකික සංසදයේ ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ නිත්‍ය නියෝජිත නීතිඥ නුවන් බැල්ලන්තුඩාව යන මහත්වරු  මෙහිදී විශේෂ දේශන පැවැත්විය.

මෙම 20 වැදැරුම් ප්‍රශ්න මාලාවට එකගතාවය පළකරමින් සංවිධාන 66ක් අත්සන් තබා ඇති බව එහි සංවිධායකන් පවසයි.

ජනාධිපති අපේක්න්‍ෂකයින් විසින් පිළිතුරු බැදිය යුතු ප්‍රශ්න මාලාව සදහා මෙතැනින් පිවිසෙන්න – ජාතික පත්‍රයක මූලාරම්භය – දෙවන පියවර

මෙහිදී මහාචාර්ය ඉදුරාගාරේ ධ්මරතන හිමියන් දැක්වූ අදහස්

මහාචාර්ය මැදගොඩ අභයතිස්ස හිමියන්  දැක්වූ අදහස්

වෛද්‍ය වසන්ත බණ්ඩාර මහතා දැක්වූ අදහස්

උවිදු විජේවීර මහතා දැක්වූ අදහස්

නීතිඥ නුවන් බැල්ලන්තුඩාව මහතා දැක්වූ අදහස්

ආචාර්ය ජගත් චන්ද්‍රවංශ මහතා දැක්වූ අදහස්

2024-06-26

Courtesy Adaderana

President Ranil Wickremesinghe says that today marks an important day in the country’s recent history and a unique turning point, as Sri Lanka reached final restructuring agreements for its external debt owed to bilateral creditors. 

Delivering a special address to the nation on Wednesday (26) evening, the Head of State said that the country is benefitting from the positive results of the hard work carried out by the government in the recent past. 

He said that this morning, Sri Lanka reached a final restructuring agreement for USD 5.8 billion of debt with its bilateral lenders’ Official Creditor Committee in Paris, France. 

Meanwhile, Sri Lanka today also signed debt treatment agreements with the Export-Import Bank of China (EXIM) in Beijing to restructure USD 4.2 billion of debt.

He stated that the necessary formal procedures are currently being implemented.

For those who truly love the country, this is a ‘good news’. Sri Lanka won,” he declared in the televised speech. 

Wickremesinghe states that as Sri Lanka has reached agreements with the bilateral creditors, the international trust in the country will be increased.

This is an international assurance in a certain way”, Wickremesinghe expressed.

The international communities, who didn’t even accept the letters of credit from us, are now at a situation which gives us a certification of trust”, he added.

Commenting further, the Head of the State highlighted that both the agreements reached today will be tabled in the Parliament by Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena during the special parliamentary session to be convened on July 02.

I urge all the members representing the Parliament, who are patriotic to the country to help pass these agreements in Parliament”, said the President.

Meanwhile, Wickremesinghe emphasized that the country cannot find solutions to the economic issues through strikes or threats, but by joining hands for strengthening the economy.

In his special statement, President Wickremesinghe announced that debt restructuring agreements will postpone all bilateral loan payments to foreign countries until 2028. 

Additionally, Sri Lanka will have until 2043 to repay these loans on concessional terms, he said. 

The President also highlighted that in 2022, Sri Lanka allocated 9.2% of its GDP to foreign debt payments. 

However, with ongoing efforts, this percentage is expected to decrease to less than 4.5% between 2027 and 2032, reflecting significant fiscal improvement, he said.

President Wickremesinghe highlighted that following Sri Lanka’s official declaration of its inability to repay loans, all transactions and foreign-funded development projects were suspended. He emphasized that the successful debt restructuring now paves the way to resume these projects and transactions.

Emphasizing that agreements with bilateral creditors bolster international trust in Sri Lanka, the President noted that the global community, which previously rejected the country’s Letters of Credit, now offers assurances regarding Sri Lanka’s credibility.

Wickremesinghe said that Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena will present these agreements to Parliament on July 2nd, and urged all patriotic MPs to help ratify them.

He also expressed gratitude to all parties involved, including ministers, officials and the majority of the people who patiently supported the country through challenging times.

President Wickremesinghe stated that while a few are trying to disrupt the country’s progress, they will one day have to face shame before their children for betraying their nation.”

The President noted that as the country’s economic conditions improved, relief was provided to the people. He emphasized that continuing on the correct path to strengthen the economy can further alleviate existing difficulties, adding that issues cannot be resolved through protests and threats

Wickremesinghe stated that he accepted the challenge unconditionally when some people proposed various conditions to rescue the country from its economic abyss. He expressed confidence in his ability to rebuild the economy through his experience, planned policies, commitment, and capacity to garner international support.

Courtesy Adaderana

The proposal to extend Attorney General Sanjay Rajaratnam’s term by another 06 months has been defeated again at the Constitutional Council meeting today (26).

The proposal, which was submitted by President Ranil Wickremesinghe was defeated with 05 votes against it while 03 members voted in favour.

Courtesy Adaderana

Sri Lanka signed debt treatment agreements with the Export-Import Bank of China (EXIM) in Beijing, a short while ago, to restructure USD 4.2 billion of debt, the President’s Media Division said. 

The Framework Agreement related to this was signed between Sri Lanka and China in Colombo, Sri Lanka. 

This restructuring provides significant debt relief, allowing Sri Lanka to allocate more funds to essential public services and resume concessional financing for critical infrastructure development, the PMD added. 

State Minister of Finance Shehan Semasinghe also confirmed that Sri Lanka signed a debt treatment agreement with the Export-Import Bank of China to restructure USD 4.2 billion of its debt. 

This move is part of an ongoing effort to manage the country’s financial challenges. The framework agreement for this debt treatment was signed between Sri Lanka and China in Colombo,” he posted on ‘X’. 

He stated that this debt treatment agreement is a crucial step for Sri Lanka in stabilizing its economy and addressing its debt crisis.

Meanwhile, the total value of debt restructuring agreements that Sri Lanka reached today with creditor nations, including the Official Creditor Committee and with EXIM Bank of China is USD 10 billion.

They will provide up to 92% relief on debt repayments during International Monetary Fund (IMF) Extended Fund Facility (EFF) program.

 Dr. Sudath Gunasekara

Part 1

I would like to draw the immediate attention of all-patriotic citizens of this country particularly living in the downhill areas of these Tea plantations and on the lowland areas below the hills that will be affected by earth slips in the hill country and flood in the downstream area that will recur as these hanging houses on these unstable and exposed hills will give way one day,( definitely in the near future) burying them en-masse leading to unprecedented natural disasters not only for the occupants of these pigeon holes but also to all those who live in the downstream areas right round the hill country up to the sea, for no fault of theirs’s.  

Finally, one day it will lead to the complete extinction of all forms of life, both fauna and flora, in this Island due to lack of water and ending up all living forms on this land and finally the curtain will fall on human civilization on this land. Readers of this article should not dismiss this prediction as mere fantasy. It will definitely happen if all Sri Lankan patriotic people don’t get together as one family immediately to stop this wanton destruction done to the entire hill country, jointly by the government, Tamil politicians representing the plantation sector, the Indian government and international agencies and anti -Sri Lankan NGOO.

The loss of physical stability of the central hill country can occur due to the loss of one or a combination of the following factors.

1 Loss of the forest cover due to continuous deforestation

2 land degradation taking place thereafter due to heavy erosion and exposing land to elements of weather

3 disturbances to land due to construction of building either for residence purpose or any other either for residence or industrial or other purposes.

4 constructions of roads and railways lines or any other activity that exposes the earth to the elements of weather

5 Unexpected Tectonic movements

5 Bad land use by the millions of Indian Tamil labor settled all over the hill country on land even going up to 8ooo ft msl.

Therefore I call upon all concerned parties including the government, the patriotic masses and intellectuals who love this country to take immediate action to stop this criminal devastation and take  steps to protect the physical stability of the central highland of this country above 1000 ft msl, which I have named as the HADABIMA of this country, as it functions as the heart of the body Sri Lanka that determines and dictates the survival of the entire life system of this Island by providing the main source for all the rivers in the Island,  that keep the entire life system alive.

Furthermore it is also the sacred land the gods have bestowed on this island nation of the Sinhalese that was blessed thrice by the Lord Buddha as the land where his sublime Dhamma will be preserved for 5000 years to come and also as the country blessed with  the sacred mountain Samanala kanda, sanctified by the Buddha’s sacred foot  print on the top of which, the first ancestor of Man, Adam is also supposed to have   placed his foot, as the legend has it, making it a sacred land for all the three religions in this world and further making it a sacred land for humanity the world over. As such it is the bounden duty not only of all Sri Lankas but also of all devotees of all three main religions the world over to protect it together with the whole hill country, the Geographical HEARTLAND” of this blessed land.

Therefore ,I also call upon the NBRO the main Organization responsible for all programmes to assist a disaster-free built environment in the future in this country , to  take  up this issue immediately with the sleeping government that does not take any action against this type of disastrous  and devastative actions  done by these Tamil politicians , the Indian government and some International agencies who are playing havoc, as it considers the estate Tamil vote is even more important and valuable than the destiny the country and its people whose sovereignty and welfare they have vouched to protect

Pl see the following news item issued by the (NBRO), that should act as The Guardian God of the central hill country who take care of its physical stability.

Sri Lanka’s Central Hills at risk: One-fifth of land prone to landslides

28 October 2023 06:31 am – 5     – 832 A news item Daily Mirror.

One–fifth of Sri Lanka’s total landmass, particularly the areas in the central hills- is prone to landslides according to a study by the National Building Research Organization (NBRO).

According to the NBRO study, around 13,000 square kilometers of lands spread over in Badulla, Nuwara-Eliya, Kandy, Matale, Ratnapura, Kegalle, Kalutara, Galle, Matara and Hambantota- are landslide –prone.

The study has found that incidences and frequency of landslides are growing, and it is common to have such disasters after every rain.

The major causes for the increase in the frequency of landslides are un-planned land use practices and unplanned intensive cultivation, ever increasing non- engineered constructions, construction blocking the waterways, construction in the reservation area of water bodies, deforestation and human intervention.

Another study done Professor in Earth Resources Engineering University of Moratuwa and President of Institute of Geology Sri Lanka Prof. Ranjith Premasiri, major landslides which occurred during the past two decades have claimed thousands of lives, about 175,000 people have been rendered homeless. Besides, damages in multi-millions have been caused to property.

He says Sri Lanka can be divided in to three main climatic zones on the basis of annual rainfall- wet zone (over 3000mm annual rainfall), intermediate zone (2000 to 3000mm), and dry zone (less than 2000mm).

Landslides are very often triggered by continuous rainfall characterized by showers of high intensity that occur for short periods of time. Central hilly area of Sri Lanka experiences rain from two monsoons, North-East and South-West,” he said.

Sudden opening and progressive widening of cracks on sloped surfaces or on the walls of building are signs of landslides. (Kelum Bandara)

My comments

Dr Sudath Gunasekara

10..12.2023

It is in this gloomy backdrop one has to take extremely serious notice of the ongoing largescale, unplanned and uncontrolled political housing construction activities, by The Ministry of Upcountry New Tamil Villages, Estate Infrastructure & Community Development, that is going on in the above-mentioned 10 districts exclusively for the estate Tamil labour force of Indian origin. It is reported that the construction of 14,000 houses all over the hill country and it’s adjoining areas is funded by the Indian government for the benefit of nearly 1. million living on the central hills (which already they call Malayaha) in the plantation sector is nearing completion. (902,000 persons in 2012).

The following housing project in Bogawantalava completed under Indian funding in 2019 clearly shows the wanton destruction and irreparable damage already done to the fragile landscape in the hill country by this type of housing projects coming up all over the hill country and   its neighboring hilly areas extending to 10 districts.

V.K. Vellayan Puram” Housing Scheme Bogawantalawa  from www.smehci.gov.lk

State Ministry of Estate Housing and Community Infrastructure

http://www.smehci.gov.lk › Uncategorized Feb 24, 2019 — Under the Indian government funds, V.K. Vellayan Puram Housing Scheme with the 155 houses constructed at Bidwell Estate in Bogawantalawa. Elevation above sea level. It is at 1514 m =approximately 4600 ft msl.

This is only one out of hundreds of such haphazardly constructed housing schemas all over the 10 districts mentioned above covering around 13,000 square kilometers (1/5^th the area of the country)

 Government official like GAA have no control over these housing projects

When I made inquiries from the GA Nuwara Eliya and the Divisional secretaries they said they were never consulted and they had no say or any authority what so ever on the construction of this type of houses within their divisions. Apparently, they were invited to attend the ceremonies only. Only, later I came to know that all land powers that were formally under the GAA had been transferred to Div Sects by Act. no 58 of 1992 during the Premadasa time. But regarding the construction of these houses in the plantation   areas, I am informed that it is The Ministry of Upcountry New Villages, Estate Infrastructure & Community Development and the local Tamil politicians who organize these housing projects in collaboration with the Indian Embassy in Colombo. Starting from the selection of lands, planning and constructions of buildings and roads and the selection and handing over the houses to the recipients are done under the supervision of the same Ministry.

As it is the government of the country or its administration and the Minister of Lands has no say what so ever in the whole process. Technical advice of agencies like the NBOR is never sought. It so happens that the officials like the GA and divisional Secretaries are invited only for the opening functions. As such it appears as if the government officials like the GA and the Div Secs now have no control over these unplanned and haphazard constructions which have already posed a big threat not only to the physical stability of around 13,000 square kilometers of lands spread over in Badulla, Nuwara-Eliya, Kandy, Matale, Ratnapura, Kegalle, Kalutara, Galle, Matara and Hambantota-that is almost 1/5^th the area of the whole country as stated by the NBRO as landslide –prone areas. What is even more dangerous is the complete collapse of the subject of   land administration by the government that covers ten administrative areas in the south, as if it has been already handed over to the Indian Government. In sum for an outside observer, it appears as if this area is already run as a legitimate part of the Indian subcontinent by the Ministry of Upcountry New Villages, Estate Infrastructure & Community Development that comes under the government of Sri Lanka on behalf of the Indian Government. 

Isn’t it a shame for the Government of Sri Lanka, if there is one, and for all political parties at home, to keep deaf dumb and blind over this irreparable and irreversible devastation being done to mother Lanka by a group of British Indian labourers who were brought in the late 19^th century and left behind destitute when they left the Island din 1948.  for the shake of a dangling goats testicle called the vote” that will never fall in to their plate, as the parable says.

 It is high time that all patriotic citizens of this country wakeup up immediately from their death slumber, as one nation to stop this all-time disaster that is going to befall on the entire life system and the civilization to this country within few decades. The devastation that will follow this hazardous and unscientific construction activities will be million times more destructive than what the British did by removing the forest which was subsequently covered with a carpet of tea bushes that protected the earth to some extent. The degree of devastation then was less as the construction were limited to few factories residential Bungalows for the management of communal line rooms on selected places. The degree e of disturbance done to the physical stability under the present system is thousand time greater. The earlier system was reversible. But not the present system. What is more is the then labourers had no permanent interest as they knew that one day they will go back to their motherland. Today the situation is very much different as they not only have permanent interest to stay but they also dream to make this their permanent homeland and finally make it a Malayanadu, a part of India. sponsored by the expansionist Indian Government.

The subject of land administration in the whole country has to be brought under the central Government Immediately

The effect on land administration in the whole country has to be assessed in this backdrop very seriously with no delay as the government has already lost land administration powers in the Northern and Eastern Provinces long time ago, especially after the implementation of Act no 58 of 1992 and the PA circular 21/92.

Beside this there is also a far more serious threat of life in the downstream area right round the hill country due to continuous floods devastating these areas as frequent earth slips and floods occurring in this area due to the collapse of the physical stability of the central hill country. There is a third danger of all the103 rivers that have their sources on the hills running dry in the long run due to the loss of the physical stability of the central hill country, which I have identified as the geographical heart land (The HADABIMA) of Sri Lanka in 1991 whose physical stability determine and dictate the survival of the entire life system in this country and therefore the civilization of this island as well. The degree of land degradation and the rate of deforestation and the drying up of river flow and the underground water deposits that keep the rivers perennial is alarming and beyond imagination.

Who gave permission and final approval for this type of pigeon hole housing complexes on the hills?

By looking at above housing complexes, the impression I got is that it is a hanging housing nursery built on highly fragile and steep land (over 60% slope) not suitable for any kind of construction. With one earth slip the whole thing will be found in the valley bottom. I wonder who gave permission and final approval for this type of pigeon hole housing complex to be built on such slopy and fragile land.  This land Bogawanthalaava hosing scheme is located at 4600 ft msl if not more. This is part of the central hills of this country that provides the main water source for the whole Island. All 103 main streams of the country have their sources here. The central hill country covering roughly about 1/5 the area of the Island was under thick forest before the colonial British invaders ceded the Island by convention in 1815.

This land above 3500 ft was a strictly forbidden and conserved national reserved forest declared by royal decree. No man was allowed even to enter these forests at that time. There were no human settlements in the whole area above 3000 ft at that time with two exceptions, one at Kotmale, an ancient small village, and the other in Uva Welimanda a settlement found in medieval times as the upstream surge for new irrigable land from the northern dry one began. The ancient Kings preserved this hill country covered by forests as their heart as they knew the value of this region as the main water source for the agricultural civilization thriving in the lowlands around the central hills. The hill country also served as a hide out for royalty at times of distress due to South Indian invasions.

The destruction and the devastation of this national treasure began with the land hungry British ravaging the entire forest cover by felling and burning all the forest converting the whole hill country in to a scorched barren land to find way for their coffee and later tea plantations. When the native Sinhalese refused to labour for the invader, the British brought indentured labour from British South India as slaves who had to walk for South India to the central hill country more than 200 miles to work on these newly opened up plantations. The first batch of these very small slave labour arrived in this country around 1840. Since then, hard life in South India and lucrative job opportunities in this country with subsidies with permission to go back to India annually to deposit their savings and travelling made easy after the construction of the railway connecting Mannar with the central hill country was completed. The Mannar line was built by 1914 to connect Talaimannar on Mannar Island to the Sri Lankan mainland, and the Indian rail network was extended to Dhanush Kodi; Thus, it became an annual pilgrimage type of a joy ride for these laborer s to travel between Sri Lanka and India. Although the trade union people complain of suffering in Sri Lanka it was actually a heaven in Sri Lanka for these jobless underprivileged poor lot in India.

 From the time they were herded here it is true, that they worked hard under difficult conditions and toiled from 6 am to 4 pm to earn their living. But it is not rue to say that the toiled for this country and claim to be residents here for 200 years as they claim under the banner Nam 200” and now claiming a separate administrative division now with the intention of converting it. To a separate part under the Indian Government. The stark truth about their contributing to the growth of this country is this. Considering the economic benefits, they have got from this country they have only found lucrative employment here, what they did not have in India. The subsidy on this 1.2 million had been burden for this county right from the beginning. In reality what they have done was filling the banks of the colonial empire while draining what they earned here to banks in Indi in Sterling pounds and gold. In the past even at present the process hasn’t changed he claim that Hye make a big contribution to earn safe is bushtit Today more the 65 % of income from tea comes from low grown If you subtract what they are provided by the SL government I think they are a big liability from an economic point of view, On the other hand the following negative factors also hold be noted

1 finally the main the political Now look at the number of Minister Ministries and institutions both Govt and Non Govt Othe political bribes like Governors etc

Who will pay the damages for the devastation for the occupants of these pigeon holes when one day they slip down the hills Who will take the responsibility for the huma misery that will follow.

More than that just imagine the environmental devastation that will occur to the hill country when hundreds of this type of pigeon holes constructed on such slopy fragile land over 60% slope at such higher levels in the country. What will happen to those living in villages below who will get buried under this debris for no fault of them. What they enjoy are thousand times more thaw ha the son’s pf the soil the Kandyan who owned these lands Compared to the privilege enjoyed by the what re the benefits the Kandy peasants etc have got, Nothing S They don’t have even mainstay The only dept the Kandyan Peasantry is also closed. No Ministry for Kandyan affairs No dept None in the KPC Report are attended to. But they are the sons of the soil who created the civilization here and protected against 3 colonial powers nearly for 500yeara.

Indian labour on finally other were just indentured clave laborers brought by the British I late 19^th c and early 20^th C whom were never here in 1815 when we handed over the land to them. As such it is incumbents on them to take them back to from where they came and hand over the vacant possession of our land to us. True no one had asked for it.  But the fact remain that they are Indians.  We the Native Sinhalese were the people who had been here for 2600 years as the owners of this land.

Ministry of Defence  – Media Centre

State Minister of Defence Hon. Premitha Bandara Tennakoon presided over a discussion to look into the measures to be taken to provide relief to people whose houses were damaged in the recent floods. The discussion was held today (Jun 25) at the Disaster Management Centre (DMC).

The Minister discussed the steps to be taken to provide assistance to the disaster-affected people to restore their damaged houses.

The President has approved the necessary financial allocations for compensation for fully or partially damaged houses. Required funds have already been allocated from the treasury and it is planned to distribute these funds through district secretariats and divisional secretariats, the State Minister said. It has been proposed to provide Rs. 2.5 million for each totally damaged house. Further, it is also proposed to obtain services from the armed forces for the reconstruction work which will avoid the difficulties in obtaining necessary labour, the Minister added.

It has been under discussion with the state officials the possible practical issues that may arise during this process and counter measures to be taken. Accordingly, the Minister also emphasized that the cooperation of all public service officers including Grama Niladharis, Development Officers, Agricultural Officers and Disaster Relief Officers is essential for this process.

Director General of DMC Major General Udaya Herath, Director General of the National Building Research Organization Asiri Karunawardena, Director General of the Department of Meteorology Athula Karunanayake, Additional Secretary of the DMC Gamage Dharmathilaka, officials of the Ministry of Finance, District Secretariats and Divisional Secretariats, staff officers of the DMC and senior military personnel were present for this discussion.

by Chandre Dharmawardana, Courtesy The Island

The signing of the Indo-Lanka Accord, which led to the establishment of Provincial Councils.

by Chandre Dharmawardana,
chandre.dharma@yahoo.ca

The TNA is the main political party of the North. S. Shritharan was recently elected its leader and M. A. Sumanthiran, who is regarded by some as being barely Tamil”, as one Eelamist resident in Canada put it, was sidelined.  Sritharan’s vision, expressed in post-election speeches, demands the merger of the Northern and Eastern provinces; he rejects the 13A as being grossly inadequate to meet the aspirations of the Tamils. The political parties of Gajendra Ponnamblam, and of C. V. Wigneswaran takes an even harder public stand. All tactically reject 13A, even though they rush to India to support 13A when support for 13A weakens in the South. The positions taken by southern politicians regarding 13A are also merely tactical and opportunistic.

Ironically, 13A is already a part of Sri Lanka’s Constitution, with some parts of it implemented, and others in suspense, mainly due to a huge lack of trust across the Northern and Southern political formations. Even the Eastern Tamil leaders do not trust the Northern leaders.

While the minority leaders still seek the chimera of an Indian supervisory role, the majority-community politicians know that strong Indian interventions, even parippu dropped from air” are no longer a part of the show. President Ranil Wickremasinghe was seated next to Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the latter’s inauguration, while no TNA leader was visible. Meanwhile, the provincial councils themselves have atrophied, with provincial elections not even considered worth the cost, under the current circumstances.

The Northern political leaders rightly believe that any government in Colombo will be a government of the Majority Community and that minority rights will NOT be protected under such a set-up, judging by past history. So, they aspire to have a separate government of their own as the only effective approach”. However, this approach triggered the past history of communal politics and violence that led to terror and counter-terror. Finally, the TULF leaders, Sinhalese politicians, even the Indian Leader who fathered the 13A, and thousands of innocent civilians got wiped out.

If there is no trust, there can be NO federalism, nor an effective 13A. Even an independent Eelam, separate from a Sinhalé by a physical border is not viable, as the two neighbours will be continually at war, as is the case between India and Pakistan, or across and even within Indian states (e. g. Manipur), even though the Indian Model”, like 13A, is claimed to resolve these conflicts. Furthermore, such independent” states will be forced to join up with big powers and become mere pawns of global proxy wars. That is the end of their self-determination”.

The TNA says, We don’t trust the majority, so we want our own government; but the minorities who will be under us, i.e., Muslims of the East or any Sinhalese who live in our exclusive homeland” must trust us. Just forget attacks on Muslims or Sinhalese minorities when the TNA was an LTTE proxy”! This aspiration” for hegemony by Tamil leaders over other minorities will be rejected by the respective minorities, just as the Tamil leaders reject being ruled by the Majority that they do not trust.

Social-choice theory

How can we equitably allocate agents (or electoral seats) to represent a group of people within a unitary setup (with a total quota of 225 seats), or with subdivided setups (e. g., with provincial councils or federal states with quotas of seats reflecting minority groups)?

This question falls within a class of much studied mathematical problems in game theory, mathematical economics as well as in the theory of social choice. Intellectual giants like John von Neumann and other mathematicians pioneered these studies. However, the most important results relevant to our discussion here came from Blinski and Young as well as from Kenneth Arrow. The latter won the Nobel Prize for economics in 1972 for his theorems on social-choice theory”.

Blinski and Young proved a theorem showing that any apportionment rule (or representation and devolution rule) that stays within an assigned quota (say, of seats) suffers from what is known as the population apportionment paradox. This states that unless the populations remain absolutely static, even if the minority has a decisively large rate of population growth, the majority still gains more representation (or more power) inexorably! There is NO fair apportionment scheme!

 Blinsky and Young’s result was a surprising no-go” theorem. However, Arrow’s theorem, formulated in 1951 was even more surprising and counter-intuitive. Arrow laid down five self-evident” axioms (or rules) about what may be called the Will of the People” to be represented. For instance, a key rule is that the preferences and aspirations of a group should be chosen only from the group members (and not from outsiders). Another axiom is that the will of the group” must not be that of one particular person; this is known as the no-dictator rule. The other axioms are similar harmless-looking rules about the group having specific preferences (e.g., favouring a set of religious or cultural traits against another set), or having maverick members who have changed policies in the past on a specific preference, although now in accordance with the will of the group”.

Arrow’s impossibility theorem

Kenneth Arrow proved that, in spite of the highly democratic and seemingly fair” formulation of these axioms, no such fair representation is possible. This is known as Arrow’s Impossibility Theorem. This theorem states that mandating the preferences and aspirations of the group cannot be ensured while adhering to usual democratic” principles of fair voting procedures!

The mathematical conclusion is that a selection of people making decisions for those who elected them can never be a rational or fair process, however wise or benevolent they are! Their decisions will be necessarily autocratic! Naturally, the minorities within any group, be it under the Sinhalese majority in the main government, or under the Tamil majority in the TNA government reigning over the North and the East, will discriminate against the minority in each case.

Every available constitutional representation that satisfies Arrow’s axioms (i.e., common-sense ideas of fairness) is a perverse one. There is no will of the people” or a democratic way of representing it. This very painful conclusion, reached by mathematicians in the 1950s, has stood all critical attacks on it. For over twenty-two decades, political scientists for whom the concept of the will of the people” is as sacrosanct as the geocentric universe was to the medieval church attacked it! Instead of disproving Arrow, similar impossibility theorems, no-cloning theorems, etc., have been established in quantum information theory and quantum mechanics.

Devising an electoral scheme is mathematically equivalent to an apportionment scheme. Instead of allocating seats on the basis of population (i.e., The People”), one may consider allocating seats” on the basis of votes. This leads to models based on proportional representation (PR) instead of apportionment.

Mathematicians have shown that PR leads to even more serious negative consequences than apportionment. A variety of paradoxes of the Blinsky and Young type have been established. A very serious conclusion is that even the mildest PR system will confer a disproportionate amount of power to the third largest party in parliament! The third largest party becomes the king maker and often comes into a coalition with the second-ranking party to become the government! The validity of these results from game theory in practical politics has been established by studies of the history of governments in Germany, Israel and Denmark where high levels of proportional government have been legislated.

In my opinion, a way around these problems is to abandon electoral methods and return to the method of SORTITION advocated by Aristotle and used in several Hellenic cities during the time of Pericles.

Sortition has been adopted today in various limited ways, especially for local or provincial governments, in Ireland, France, Belgium, Canada and even Mongolia. In the simplest sortition model one arbitrarily selects by lottery a group of people who constitute the parliament. While these legislators last only five or six years, it is the administrative service that persists. The sortition parliament is not claimed to represent the will of the people”. The lottery may be open to all the people, or only to a selection defined by their public service, education etc., as specified by a parliament chosen initially by simple sortition. That is, the first sortition parliament may enact more elaborate sortition models, but ensuring that the random element implied by sortition is never negated.

The sortition model ensures that the same set of corrupt politicians do not continue to get elected every time by controlling the list of candidates as well as the vote-gathering infrastructure which favours existing parties that have accumulated much wealth, by hook or crook. It also eliminates demagogues as the election is by lottery.

In other words, SORTITION ensures that a system change” occurs every time. It ensures that political crooks, their henchmen and progeny do not entrench themselves and hold onto power over decades and decades, be it in the North or the South. I had given a discussion of the sortition model in a previous article in the Island (02-01-2023). It may also be accessed via the web (

https://thuppahis.com/2023/01/02/crunchtime-resolving-sri-lankas-political-dilemma/ The applicability of the sortition model to the political problems in the USA has been discussed in the Harvard Review of politics  The Case for Sortition in America – Harvard Political Review 

Curated By: Shankhyaneel Sarkar News18.com

This photograph shared by the European Space Agency (ESA) shows the photo of Ram Setu, a former land bridge connecting India and Sri Lanka. (Image: ESA)

Ram Setu, aka the Adam’s Bridge is a chain of shoals stretching 48 kilometres and at one point of time connected Rameswaram Island in India to Mannar Island in Sri Lanka.

The European Space Agency (ESA) released a photo of the Ram Setu, which is also known as the Adam’s Bridge, located between India and Sri Lanka. The photos were captured by the ESA’s Copernicus Sentinel-2 satellite.

The Adam’s Bridge is a chain of shoals that link India and Sri Lanka and stretches for almost 48 kilometres from Rameswaram Island, off the southeast coast of India, to Mannar Island in Sri Lanka.

The chain of shoals also separates the Gulf of Mannar from the Palk Strait. The Gulf Of Mannar is an inlet of the Indian Ocean to the south while the Palk Strait is an inlet of the Bay of Bengal to the north.

Many theories exist about how this bridge was formed but geological evidence indicates that these limestone shoals are the remains of a landmass that formerly linked India and Sri Lanka.

According to historical records, this natural bridge could be crossed until the 15th century. After that, it slowly eroded because of storms, the ESA said. The space agency also said that some sandbanks in the Ram Setu are dry, and the sea in this area is very shallow, with depths ranging from 1 to 10 metres, as shown by the light colour of the water.

Mannar Island, which is about 130 square kilometres in size, is linked to mainland Sri Lanka by a road bridge and a railway bridge. These bridges can be seen at the southern end of the island.

On the Indian side, there is Rameswaram Island, also called Pamban Island. To reach this island from the Indian side, one must cross the 2-kilometre-long Pamban Bridge. This bridge connects the two lands and enables the transfer of people and goods.

Rameswaram Island, also known as Pamban Island, features two primary towns: Pamban, located on the western edge, and Rameswaram, situated approximately 10 kilometres east of Pamban.

Both sections of Adam’s Bridge are incorporated into protected national parks in India and Sri Lanka. The sand dunes in these parks provide essential breeding grounds for bird species like the brown noddy.

Courtesy Adaderana

National People’s Power (NPP) Parliamentarian Dr. Harini Amarasuriya states that their party will support the private member’s bill tabled by SLPP MP Premnath C. Dolawaththa to decriminalize same-sex relationships under the penal code. 

Joining the ‘Derana 360’ programme, Dr. Amarasuriya explained their party’s stance regarding the LGBTQ+ community.

We have been advocating for this community for a while. They are also a part of this society. Gender identities are diverse, including those of the same-sex community. From the beginning, we are of the stance that individuals should not be discriminated based on their gender”, she said.

Specifically, these same-sex relationships have been criminalized in our penal code. This is not a law which was originated in our country; it was introduced during the Victorian era by the British. Therefore, we believe it should be amended,” Dr. Amarasuriya expressed.

MP Premnath C. Dolawaththa, a government representative, has tabled a private member’s bill in the Parliament to amend the penal code…”

Commenting further, Dr. Harini Amarasuriya said: Our party believes that decisions regarding the relationships of two adults should be made by the individuals involved, not dictated by law. However, a law should remain in place to protect children and minimize potential harm.”

…Only the sexual relationships with animals are a crime…So, the NPP will back this during its third reading,” she assured.

Courtesy Adaderana

The Cabinet of Ministers has approved the signing of debt restructuring agreements with Paris Club and other stakeholders, Cabinet Spokesperson, Minister Bandula Gunawardana said.

Speaking during the Cabinet press briefing held today (25), Minister Gunawardana said the relevant agreements will be signed tomorrow (26).

A Sri Lankan delegation comprising the Secretary of the Finance Ministry, State Ministers and other relevant officials have left for France for the discussions with the Paris Club group of major creditor countries.

Furthermore, the Cabinet Spokesman stated that President Ranil Wickremesinghe assured, during the Cabinet meeting, that detailed information regarding all the agreements being signed in this manner will be submitted to the Parliament. 

He said that additionally, President also mentioned this ‘good news’ will be communicated to all the people of the country in the President’s address to the nation. 

In response to a question raised by a journalist, Minister Gunawardena also expressed that he cannot mention the exact time frame regarding the matter, since both the negotiations with bilateral creditors and commercial creditors are still underway.

Shenali D Waduge

Is it because the British British don’t go to vote that all these British MPs go wooing immigrants for votes? Or is there some other reasons not made public! Hot on the heels of the Labor Leaders pro-terrorist sponsored speech is one delivered by former PM David Cameron. He has been careful to omit mullaivaikkal” tens of thousands dead” and the usual mumbo jumbo in prepared scripts given to foreign MPs. Nevertheless, Cameron who has visited Sri Lanka on personal & business visits during the past few years has unceremoniously omitted mention of the Sinhalese community in Sri Lanka who have also contributed to the British economy. This is a major affront even for a sponsored speech!

Cut the Bull on Human Rights” Song by Rukshan Perera / late Sunil Perera & Sohan (a must listen song)

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Clearly the team that prepared David Cameron’s sponsored script & the team that prepared the Labor Leaders sponsored script differ in many ways. While the former showed restraint in use of words & facts, those who wrote the Labor Leaders script were like bulls in a China shop and left nothing to the imagination but openly showed empathy for LTTE dead. Cameron’s speech on the other hand was well thought out, careful marshalling of words & left arguments only in interpretation. So bravo to team Cameron’s script writers!

We certainly agree. Give the devil his due they say. But, what about the Sinhala community living in the UK, have they not qualified for these golden sentiments expressed above?

For what purpose was this speech made?

Does it mean the Sinhala community have to chip in & sponsor a speech praising them along the same lines too?

Is this all part of election campaign democracy”?

Nothing to be surprised about sponsored scripts as it targets only a particular audience. It is noteworthy that aspirations” are mentioned. Aspirations are like promises – never fulfilled and differ from person to person. Similarly, aspirations are not rights & just to reiterate separating Sri Lanka is an aspiration but not a right!

We must highlight this part of his speech. Notice no mention of genocide” war crimes” mullaivaikkal” tens of thousands of deaths” and more importantly he states ‘armed conflict”. This is a far cry from the bogus use of ethnic conflict” as the national army was fighting with a non-state armed group. By virtue of LTTE killing even Tamils, it disqualifies the use of ethnic conflict”. It is unfortunate that no post-LTTE government has thought fit to correct this simple fact. If his thoughts are also with the killed & disappeared it would and should also include the 5000 missing soldiers of the national army who have names & IDs unlike the numbers being plucked from the air as being killed. Also David Cameron may like to get the UK police to filter all the asylum seekers and refugees & investigate how many of them fled to UK from Sri Lanka to qualify as missing” or disappeared” some of these end up on international reports with new names & living in the UK & contributing no doubt to the British economy! Mr. Cameron may also like to ask Scotland Yard to investigate that nurse called Adele living in the UK & personal trainer of child soldiers from 1980s to late 1990s. She not only trained children to kill but also trained them to commit suicide. How about some accountability for these crimes too!

Oh we remember this trip very well. Maybe he also remembers refusing to sign the nation’s guest book or accept the welcome on arrival & then dashing off to Jaffna. Camerons behavior was a stark contrast to then Prince Charles now King of England. Prince Charles was happy to be greeted by the traditional ayubowan” welcome and was polite enough to speak to all present. While mourning all those killed, Cameron didn’t even remember the names of the 3 Britishers LTTE killed in 1986. Many were to say that 2013 visit was of a Prince (Charles) & a Punk (Cameron). Just to jog Camerons memory!

Britain’s moral audit doesn’t give much scope to be pointing fingers! From colonial crimes to becoming America’s poodle in illegal invasions is nothing to really brag about. Exactly what is this transitional justice, another hobby horse so a bunch of people can get jobs & go poking fingers into other nations! When these so-called human rights champions cannot even define terrorism or a terrorist and one’s terrorist becomes another freedom fighter – what transitional justice!

Speaking of diplomatic breakthroughs we can recall UK envoy Gladstone being unceremoniously packed back to London by President Premadasa for interfereing in local elections and successive UK envoys have all been interfering in the internal affairs of Sri Lanka too.

David Cameron since his departure as PM has visited Sri Lanka several times. He arrived in 2023 on a personal visit. He was also in Sri Lanka to promote the Colombo Port City – no wonder he says Sri Lanka’s extraordinary potential”, its big business for him!

Shenali D Waduge

KAMALIKA PIERIS

It is absurd to argue that Sri Lanka has to wait for three hundred years to receive Buddhism.  Buddhism would have come into Sri Lanka in the time of the Buddha (6 BC). There was close contact between the Ganges area (Gangetic plain) and Sri Lanka during this time.  Buddhism was officially installed as the state religion later on, in the 3^rd century BC.  From 3 BC onward, up to the present day, Sri Lanka was able to show a continuous Buddhist civilization.

Sri Lanka’s Buddhist civilization was recognized in Asia as something special. In the ancient and medieval periods India, China, Burma, Thailand sent emissaries to   Sri Lanka to learn more about Buddhism. In the modern period Buddhism went to the west from Sri Lanka.

Buddhism   is a living religious tradition in Sri Lanka today.  Buddhists flock to temples for Wesak, Poson and other poya days. Poson Zones across the country were full of devotees on Poson Full Moon day in 2023, reported the media.

In 2023 Hundreds of thousands of people came to worship Buddhist shrines across the country including Anuradhapura and ‘Dharma Rashmi’ Homagama-Pitipana Poson region on Poson full moon day. Buddhist devotees came in thousands to visit the Temple of Tooth, Kelaniya, Kataragama, Mahiyanganaya, Kalutara, Kande Viharaya, Muthianganaya, Polonnaruwa, Bellanwila, Seruvavila, Dimbulagala Buddhist shrines.

 Temples in Moneragala district Buddharuvagala, Okkampitiya, Dematamal Viharaya, Maligavila, Yudaganawa, Bibile, Piyangala Rajamaha Vihara, Moneragala Bukkiriyagolla, Buddama Rajamaha Viharaya were also crowded with devotees.  There were dansalas near the main roads.  All age groups participate in these ceremonies.  The crowds are a mix of young and old.

The Poson crowds seem to have increased in 2024. Poson festival at Anuradhapura included Anuradhapura, Mihintale and Tantrimalai. Anuradhapura was bursting with worshippers. There were more than one million. This is the highest number of people who have come to Anuradhapura during Poson in recent times said officials.

Dalada Maligawa, Hantane Sandagiri, Kelaniya, and Gangaramaya too had many worshippers in 2024.  The Homagama Dharma rashmi Poson zone was conducted this year too. For the first time, a Bhakthi Gee Recital was held from a specially prepared train carriage operated from Homagama to Malapalla and Padukka Railway Stations.

But Buddhism is not confined only to temple- going”, there is also an abiding interest in the Buddhist philosophy and the benefits of   meditation. The audience at Poya  bana preaching shown on You Tube   consists of mature  adults and their children, not senior citizens, which means that the tradition will continue for another  two  generations at least.

Buddhism is recognized in the Constitution of Sri Lanka .It is mentioned in both 1972 and 1978 Constitutions.   Clause 6 of the 1972 constitution stated The Republic of Sri Lanka shall give to Buddhism the foremost place and accordingly it shall be the duty of the State to protect and foster Buddhism , while assuring to all religions the rights granted by Articles 10 and 14(l)(e)”.  

Clause 9   of the  1978 constitute stated  The Republic of Sri Lanka shall give to Buddhism the foremost place and accordingly it shall be the duty of the State to protect and foster the Buddha Sasana, while assuring to all religions the rights granted by Articles 10 and 14(l)(e).”

The 1978 Constitution has retained the 1972 clause word for word but substituted the word Buddha Sasana’ for Buddhism”. This is a very significant change. It has widened the scope of the clause immensely.  Clause 9  now means the  total  social  institution of Buddhism not the  religious philosophy alone, said Sunil Bastian.  This clause must be respected and retained in future constitutions.  

In 1994, Supreme Court  gave a detailed   interpretation of the term Buddha Sasana. This interpretation makes the clause on Buddhism even more relevant and important.  The Supreme Court (in SC Determination 1/94 (1994) held; The expression ‘Buddha Sasana’ is wider than ‘Buddhism’ and includes the entire establishment together with objects and places of religious practices and worship of Buddhists”. Hence the term Buddha Sasana could be further extended to include Maha Sangha, archaeological sites, villages, lands and properties owned by  Buddhist temples. Buddha Sasana includes both tangible and intangible feature,” 

The notion of a Civilization State” is now gaining support. Civilization state” means a state that has a unique  civilization , historical continuity and cultural unity, a Jathika Chintanaya. The first state to be accepted as a civlizational state is China. China is   planning to lead an International Civilisational Dialogue soon.

The Buddhist  civilization in  Sri Lanka is  also special. Sri Lanka preserved the Theravada doctrine vocally,   then put it in writing, and supplied commentaries.   Sri Lanka influenced Buddhism in several Asian countries, including Tibet. After some 2000 years which included 450 years of Christian rule, 70% of the population is still Buddhist.  There are 1284 Buddhist temples registered with the Department of   Buddhist Affairs. There is an active Sangha whose ordination is traceable to Arahant Mahinda and a growing Bhikkuni Sasana.

 The local temple has always played an important role in the village. The head priest has much influence in the village even today.  The temple has been a source of solace and refuge in addition to its function as a place of worship. This is well depicted in teledramas. During natural disasters or periods of social unrest, the temple becomes a shelter for those who need it, irrespective of their ethnicity or religion. During the 2004 tsunami the  Sangha were the first on the  scene after the tsunami  ended.

Buddhism in Sri Lanka is not ‘heritage’. Heritage means something that is handed down from the past.  Buddhism    is part of the contemporary, living culture of Sri Lanka . Sri Lanka has many ancient sites with a long record of historical continuity.  Most of the monuments of    Sri Lanka belong to a living religious tradition, said Gamini Wijesuriya.

Kurundi is part of this vibrant civilization. It is the latest discovery in a continuous process of conserving our ancient Buddhist monuments.   Kurundi is the largest Buddhist shrine in the Northern Province and it is in a strategic location in Mullaitivu. Kurundi vihara is about 20 kilometres from the sea coast. It was part of the Mahayana belt in the east coast.

We must insist that Kurundi be given the recognition it deserves. An extensive Kurundi reserve must be created, covering the 400 acres of ruins with an additional buffer zone.  The law provides for a buffer zone to the site. We should be proud of Buddhism and proud of Kurundi.

 It is outrageous that we should have to fight for the Buddhist monuments in the north and east and be asked to make out a case for Buddhism in the north and east, as though it is something new and alien.

The north and east, including Mullaitivu and Vavuniya, were part of Sri Lanka‘s Buddhist civilization. North and east were a part of the Rajarata in the ancient period. Inscriptions show that Abhayagiri Nikaya had monasteries at Kantarodai in Jaffna, Nedunkerni and Ottimalai in Vanni.[1]     

The north and east were part of the Sinhala kingdom in the ancient period. The major part of the north and east continued under the Sinhala king in the medieval period. The  north and east were a recognized as part of the Udarata Kingdom in the last phase of Sinhala rule. Trincomalee and Batticaloa ports were under the Sinhala king in Udarata time. The British and Danish envoys arrived at these two ports.

After independence, the public were reminded that Mannar and Vavuniya was once Sinhala. Ceylon Observer 14th October 1949 said There is ample evidence carved in stone all over the Mannar and Mullaitivu districts that the Sinhalese had occupied these districts”.

Later surveys confirmed this. A map drawn up by the Dept of Archaeology in 1980 showed 109 sites in Vanni, mostly in Mullaitivu and Vavuniya. In 2010the Department of Archaeology initiated a survey of the Buddhist sites in the north. They found 175 sites in Mullaitivu and 80 in Vavuniya.

The north and east became Tamil during British rule. The British allowed the Sinhala villages in the east to die out by depriving them of water. The British     refused to renovate the small village tanks, despite the pleas of the British Government Agent who said these villagers are dying due to lack of water. All they need is a little help to renovate their tanks.

This deliberate action of the British rulers can be described as Genocide. The Genocide Convention (1948) says genocide may take place not only in war, but in a peaceful situation. Deliberately inflicting on a group conditions calculated to bring about its physical destruction is considered genocide, Genocide Convention said, but there must be a proven intent to physically destroy a group.

As the Sinhala villages in the east died out, due to genocide, so did Buddhism. After the Sinhala villages died out the British administration brought in Tamil settlers from Tamilnadu.  They were Hindu, but converted to Christianity after settling here. This means that the Ceylon Tamil” is simply a 19^th century settler brought in by an alien administration.

Therefore the argument that there are no Sinhalese and Buddhist in north and east today and   it must stay that way cannot be accepted. The creation of an exclusive Hindu north and east cannot be accepted either. Buddhism was erased from north and east  through   Genocide.  The return of Buddhism to the north and east is legitimate.

Further, the Northern Province and Eastern Province are artificial provinces created by the British .They have no historical validity whatsoever. But the eastern coast which faces the Bay of Bengal all along its way is very important for the Indian Ocean politics of world powers like USA.

The north and east are also important for Sri Lanka‘s economy. Much of the future economic zone of the Indian Ocean which will belong to Sri Lanka is in the Northern and eastern sea coast.

A strong Buddhist lobby should now be set up for the return of Buddhism to north and east. That lobby should also ensure the protection of Buddhist ruins in north and east. I suggest that the All Ceylon Buddhist Congress take up the matter. (  CONTINUED)

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[1] TG Kulatunge Buddhist Nikayas in Sri Lanka .( author pub) p 16

දේශමාන්‍ය ආචාර්‍ය සුදත් ගුණසේකර මහනුවර. අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය සිරිමාවෝ බන්ඩාරනායක මැතිනියගේ හිටපු ස්ථිරලේකම් සහ ශ්‍රී ලන්කා පරිපාලන සේවා සන්ගමයේ සභාපති (1991-94)  

එමනිසා රට ජාතිය සහ සසුන බේරාගැනීම සඳහා මෙම ලිපීයේ පහතින් දැක්වෙන සුදුසුකම් ඇති එසේම එම වැඩපිළිවෙල ක්‍රියාත්මක කිරීමට ප්‍රතිඥාදෙන 4 වැනි සින්හල බෞද්ධ අපේක්ෂකයෙකු මේ රටේ ජනාධිපති කමට තෝරා පත්කරගත යුතුය.

මේ රටේ කුමන පක්ශයක් බලයට පැමිණියද එම රජයේ පළමු වගකීම විය යුත්තේ, 1505 සිට ආරම්භවූ පෘතුගීසි,ඕලන්ද සහ ඉන්ග්‍රීසි යන ත්‍රිවිධ ආක්‍රමනිකයින් විසින් සිදුකරණලද ඝාතන කිරීම්, ඔවුන් විසින්ම ලක්ෂගණන් ඉන්දියානුවන් ගෙන්වා සිංහල ජනසන්යුතිය අඩුකිරීම සඳහා උතුරු නැගෙනහිර සහ රට මැද පදින්චි කිරීම සහ ඒ අතරම දකුණු ඉන්දියාවෙන් අනවසරයන් පැමිණි (කල්ලතෝනීන්) දසදහස්ගානක් මෙහි  පදින්චිවීම ආදී හෙතූන් නිසා මේ රටේ භූමිපුත්‍රයින් හා  ජාතිය වන සිංහලයින්ගේ සන්ඛ්‍යාව ශීග්‍රයෙන් අඩුවුවද අදටත් මුළු ජනගහනයෙන් 75% ක් වන ස්වදේසික සිංහල ප්‍රජාව වෙනුවෙන් සේවය කිරීමය. මන්ද මේ රට සොයාගත්තෝද එහි  ශිෂ්ඨාචාරය බිහිකළෝද, වසර 2600 කට ආසන්න කාලයක් සියළුම විදේශ ආක්‍රමණ වලින් එය රැකගත්තෝද ඔවුන් නිසා එහි භූමිපුත්‍රයින් හා අයිතිකරුවන් වනුයේ ඔවුන් බැවිනි.

 1665 වනවිට සමස්ථ ජනගහනයෙන් 100% ක් ම සිංහලයින් වුවත් ඉහත සඳහන් අධිරාජ්‍යවාදින් විසින් 1505  සිට  1948 දක්වාම ලක්ෂ ගණනින් දකුණු  ඉන්දීය මලබා ජාතිකයින්, පළමුව උතුරු නැගෙනහිර දුන්කළ වගාවට කමකරුවන් ලෙසත්, දෙවනුව රටේ සිංහල ජනගහනය අඩු කිරීම සඳහා උතුරු නැගෙනහිර වියලි කලාපයේ පදිචිකිරීම සඳහාත්, තෙවණුව 1817-18 (ඌව ) සහ 1848 (මාතලේ) නිදස් අරගල වලදී ස්වදේසික සිංහලයින් මර්ධනය කිරීම සඳහා යුධ කුලීභටයින් මෙන්ද සිව්වනුව 1840 න් පසු විශේෂයෙන්ම උඩරට සිංහලයින්ගෙන් කොල්ලකාගත් ඉඩම්වල ව්‍යාප්තවූ කෝපිහා තේ වතුවල වහල් කුලිකරුවන් මෙන්ද ලක්ෂ ගණනින් ගෙන්වා  පදින්චි කළ නිසාද පස්වනුව නිරන්තරයෙන් පැමිණ මෙහි පදින්චිවු දකුණුඉන්දීය හොර වැසියන් (කල්ලතෝනීන්) නිසාද මේ වන විට ස්වදේසික සිංහලයින්ග් 75% දක්වා අඩුවී ඇතත් සෑම රජයකම පළමු වගකීම වනුයේ මේ රටේ ප්‍රවේණී උරුමකරුවන් වූ ස්වදේශීන් වන  සිංහලයින්ගේ අපේෂාවන් සහ ඔනෑ එපාකම් සම්පාදනය කිරීමය. එසේ කීමෙන් නීත්‍යානුකූලව මේ රටේ රටවැසිභාවය ලබාසිටින දෙමළ සහ මුස්ලිම් වරුන්ට නොසැලකියයුතු බවක් ඉන් අදහස් නොකෙරේ. කෙසේ වුවද ප්‍රමුකත්වය දියයුත්තේ ස්වදෙසික සිංහල ප්‍රජාවටය. මන්ද දෙමළ ප්‍රජාවට ඔවුන්ගේ මව් බිම ඉන්දියාවේද මුස්ලිම් වරුන්ට ඔවුන්ගේ මව් රට්වල් ලොව පුරාද ඇතත් සින්හලුන්ට එසේ යාමට ලෝකයේ කිසිම තැනක් නැති නිසාය.මේ මහපොලව මත ඔවුන්ට ඇති එකම බිම්කඩ වණුයේ ඔවුන්ගේ පාරම්පරික මාතෲභූමිය වු  වර්ග සැතපුම් 25,332 ක්වූ මේ කුඩා දිවයින පමණි. ලෝකයේ සිශ්ඨාචාරය ඇතිවූ දා සිටම අද දක්වාම ඔවුන්ගේ අඓතිහාසික මාතෲ භූමිය වූයේ මේ රටය.

1505,1665 සහ 1815 බටහිර අධිරාජ්‍යවාදීන් එදා බලයෙන් පැහැරගත්තේ ඒ සිංහලයින්ගේ මව් රටය. ඔවුන් විනාශකළේත් සිංහලයින්ගේ වසර 2048 ක් පැරණි ශිෂ්ඨාචරය සහ අයිතිවාසිකම්ය.

රට, ජාතිය ගැන හෝ ඔවුන්ගේ අභිලාශයන් ගැන නොදන්නා, භූමිපුත්‍රයින් වන සිංහලයින් තුට්ටුවකට නොසලකා සුළුජන චන්දය පසුපසම යන ජනාධිපති තරඟ කරුවන්.

දැනට ජනාධිපති තරඟයට ඉදිරිපත්ව සීටින ප්‍රධාන අපේක්ෂකයින් වන රනිල්,සජිත් සහ අනුර යන තිදෙනාම මේ රටේ වසර 2600 කට ආසන්න පරම උරුමකරුවන්වූ රටේ ජාතිය වන75% ක් සිංහලයින් සහ බෞද්ධයින්ගේ මෙම ජන්ම අයිතිය තුට්ටුවකට ගනන් නොගනී. ඔවුන් භූමිපුත්‍රයින් වන සිංහලයින්ගේ ජන්ම අයිතිවාසිකම් මුලුමනින්ම නොසලකා හැර, දෙමළ සහ මුස්ලිම් චන්ද ලබා ගැනීම සඳහා එකිනෙකා තරඟයට මෙන්, විශේෂයෙන්ම මේ රටේ වෙනම දෙමළ රාජ්‍යයක් ලබාගැනිමට සටන් වැද සිටින උතුරේ දෙමළ ප්‍රජාවට පවා, පණින රිළවුන්ට ඉනිමන් බඳින්නාසේ, 13 වන සන්ශෝධනය යටතේ ඉඩම් සහ පොලිස් බලතල සහිතව වෙනම් රාජ්‍යක බලතල ලබාදෙන බවටද,  රට මැද 1987 දී  ජේ. ආර්. විසින් දෙනලද නීතිවිරෝධි රුපියලේ පුරවැසිකම් ලැබුණු වතුකරයේ  ඉන්දීය දෙමළ  කම්කරුවන්ට උඩරට සිංහලයින්ගේ වසර දහස් ගණනක ප්‍රවේණී ඉඩම්  ලබා දෙන බවටද, ඊටත් අමතරව නිවාස,රැකියා, විශ්ව විද්‍යාල ආදි දහසකුත් එකක් දෙන බවටද  පොරොන්දු දෙයි.

එහෙත් 1815 සිටම තම උපන්බිමේම අනාථයින් බවට පත්ව සිටින මේ රටේ භූමිපුත්‍රයින් වන සිංහල බෞද්ධයින්  වෙනුවෙන් ඔවුන්ගේ වරප්‍රසාධ පසෙක තබා 1815 සිට අද දක්වා වසර 209 ක් තිස්සේ අහිමිකළ ඔවුන්ගේ ප්‍රවේණී ඉඩම් සහ ජන්ම අයිතිවාසිකම් ලබාදීම පිළිබඳ හෝ එකම වචනයක් හෝ කථා නොකරන මොවුන් තිදෙනා හැසිරෙන්නේ මේ රට, හෝ තම මව්බිමේ ඉතිහාශය ගැන කිසිවක් නොදන්නා පිටසක්වලින් පැමිණි අද්භූත ජීවීන් තුන්දෙනෙක් මෙනි.

එසේම කෞටිල්‍යන් පෙන්වාදුන් රාජ්‍යයේ මුලික කාර්‍යයන් වන රක්ෂ, (රටේ ආරක්ෂාව) පාලන (පාලනය) සහ යෝගක්ෂේම (ජනතා ශුභසාධනය සැළසීම) යන ත්‍රිවිධ කාර්‍යයන්ද නිසි පරිදි ඉටුකරන බවට සහ පුරාන රජදරුවන් විසින් දිවුරා පොරොන්දු වූ පරිදි ශ්‍රී දළද වහන්සේ ඇතුලු බුද්ධ ශාසනය ආරක්ෂාකරණ බවටද මේ සිංහල බෞද්ධ රටේ හා ජාතියේ මුරදේවතාවුන් වන ගරුතර සන්ඝරත්නය ප්‍රමුඛ ජාතිය ඉදිරියේ මොවුන් දිවුරා පොරොන්දු වීද නැත.

එමනිසා මේ තුන්දෙනාටම නාමයෝජනා භාර දීමට පෙර ශ්‍රී දළදා මාලිගාවේදී ත්‍රයිනිකායික මහානායක හිමිවරුන් ප්‍රමුඛ සන්ඝසභාවක් ඉදිරියේ මේ රට, සිංහල බෞද්ධ රට බවද, එහි ජාතිය සින්හල ජාතිය බවද, රාජ්‍ය ආගම බුද්ධාගම බවද තමන්ගේ මූලික වගකීම ඒ ත්‍රිත්වය ආරක්ෂාකිරීම බැවින් දිවිහිමියෙන් ඒ ත්‍රිත්වය ආරක්ෂාකරන බවට දිවුරා සපථක කරණ මෙන් මම අභියෝග කරමි. එසේ නොකරණ කිසිවෙකුට තම චන්දය නොදෙන මෙන්ද මේ රටේ සියළුම සිංහලයින්ගෙන් මම ඉල්ලා සිටිමි.

එසේ කරණු වෙනුවට මොවුන් සියළු දෙනාම අදත් කරණුයේ, 1799 සිට සුද්දන් විසින්, සින්හල දෙමල වශයෙන් ජාතින් හා රටවල් දෙකකට බෙදා, මේ සිංහල බෞද්ධ ජාතිය හා ශිෂ්ඨාචරය විනාශ කිරීමට ගෙනගිය වැඩපිලිවෙලම තවදුරටත් අධිරාජ්‍යවාදීන් වෙනුවෙන් අඛන්ඩව කරගෙන යමින් තම ජාතිය ආරක්ෂා නොකොට පාවාදෙමින් 1665 න් පසු සුද්දන් විසින්  ඉන්දියාවෙන් ගෙන ආ ඔවුන්ගේ වහළුන් ආරක්ෂා කිරීමය.

1665 පමණ සිට ඕලන්ද කාරයින්ද 1799 න් පසුව ඉන්ග්‍රීසින්ද පළමුව උතුරුනැගෙනහිර පලාත්වල විශාල වශයෙන් මලබා ජාතිකයින් පදින්චි කිරීමෙන්ද එසේම 1840 න් පසු උඩරට කඳුකරයේ තේ වගාවට ලක්ෂ ගණනින් දකුණු ඉන්දීය වහල් කම්කරුවන් ගෙනවිත් පදින්චි කොට 1948 දී ඔවුන් රට හැරයනවිට එම ලක්ෂ 12ම, රටේ හදවත වන උඩරට පදින්චි කොට මේ රටේ භූමිපුත්‍රයින්වන අපගේ හිස මත තවත් දේශපාලනික,ජනවාර්ගික,ජනසන්යුතියික,අර්ථික හා සන්ස්කෘතික අවුල් ජලාවක් පටවා ගියහ.

1948 න් පසු මේ රටේ පාලනය භාරව සිටි සියලුදෙනාම එම අවුල් ජාලාව විසඳා 1815 ට පෙර මේ සිංහල තිබුණ සිංහල බෞද්ධ ආදිපත්‍ය නැවත පිහිටුවණු වෙනුවට සිදුකළේ යටත් විජිතවාදීන්ගේ සිංහල බෞද්ධ රට විනාශ කිරීමේ වැඩපිලිවෙලම තව දුරටත් පවත්වාගෙන යාමය.

ළබන ජනාධිපතිවරණයට ඉදිරිපත්ව සිටින මේ තුන්දෙනාද ක්‍රියාත්මක කරණුයේ එම වැඩපිලිවෙලමය.

මේ රටේ උරුමකරුවන් වන  සිංහල බෞද්ධයින්ට අද අවශ්‍යව ඇත්තේ  එකී යටත්විජිත රාමුවෙන් මිදී යළිත් 1815 ට පෙර පැවැති ස්වාධීන,ස්වෛරී නිදහස්  සිංහල බෞද්ධ රාජ්‍යය නැවතත් මෙ ලක්පොලව මත පිහිටුවා ගැනීමය. 1956 දීත් එසේම 2019 දීත් නැගී සිටියේ එමජාතික බලවේගයමය.

අද මේ ලක්පොලව මත බුර බුරා නැවතත් නැගී සිටිණුයේ එදා 1956 සහ 2019 දී නැගී සිටි දේශානුරාගි දේශප්‍රේමී ඒ සිංහල බෞද්ධ බලවේගයමය. එමනිසා මේ රටේ මිනිසුන්ට අද අවශ‍යව ඇත්තේ ඒ සිංහල බෞද්ධ ජාතික බලවේගයට නායකත්වය දිය හැකි ශ්‍රීමත් අන්ගාරික ධර්මපාල චින්තනය අනුව ක්‍රියාකරණ ජාති වාත්ශල්යෙන් ඔද වැඩුනු දේශප්‍රේමි  සින්හල බෞද්ධ ජාතික නායකාත්වයක් මිස  සුදන්ගේ න්‍යායපත්‍රයම තවදුරටත් ක්‍රියාත්මක කරන රනිල්,සජිත් සහ අනුර මොඩලයේ පරගැති, ඉන්දීය ගැති නිවට නියාලු දේශ පාලුවන්ගේ නායකත්වයක් නොවේ.

දැන්වත් ජාතිකත්වය මුල් තැන්හි තබා ක්‍රියා නොකරණ කිසිවෙකුට තම චන්දය නොදෙන මෙන් සමස්ථ ලන්කාවාසි සියළුම සිංහලයින්ට මම ආයචනය කරමි.විශේෂයෙන්ම දෙමළ වන්දනාවේ යෙදි සිටින, නලලේ අලුගාගෙන උඩුකය නිර්වස්ත්‍රව  දෙමළ චන්ද හිඟමින් මේ උතුම් සින්හල ජාතියට අවමන් කරන, රට ජාතිය පාවාදෙන ජාතිද්‍රෝහි, දේශද්‍රෝහී  සියළු දෙනාටම පාඩමක් ඉගෙන ගැනිමට කිසිම සිංහලයෙක් මොවුන්ට දැන්වත් චන්දය නොදිය යුතුයයි මම කියමි.මෙම මූලික අවශ්‍යතාවන් සපුරන්නේ නැතිනම් මේ තිදෙනා පමණක් නොව අන් කිසිවෙකු වුවද මේ රටේ රාජ්‍ය භාරකාරපදවිය දැරීමට සුදුසු නැත.

සිංහල බෞද්ධයින්ගේ අයිතිවාසිකම් ලබා නොදෙන,  ඔවුන්ගේ උරුමයන් ආරක්ෂා කරණ  බවට එසේ ප්‍රතිඥා නොදෙන මේ තුන්දෙනා ඇතුළු  සෑම අපෙක්ෂකයෙකුටම සුළුජන චන්ද වලින්ම ජනාධිපති වෙන්ට කියා මේ රටේ කිසිම සිංහලයෙක් තම චන්දය නොදිය යුතුයයි මම අව්ධාරණය කරමි. සෑම සිංහලයෙක්ම දැන්වත් දේශපාලන පක්ෂයට වඩා තමන්ගේ රට සහ ජාතිය මෙන්ම ආගම ගැන සිතා තම වටිනා චන්දය පාවිච්චි කිරීමට වග බලාගත යුතුය.

මොවුන් තිදෙනාගෙන් කිසිවෙකු නම් කිසිදිනෙක එසේ ප්‍රතිඥා නොදෙන බව මට විස්වාශය. මන්ද මේ වනවිටත් දෙමළුන්ට දියයුතු සියළුම පොරොන්දු දී අවසන් බැවිනි. අනෙක එසේ කීවොත් සුළු ජන චන්ද නොලැබෙන නිසාය.එම ආකල්පය ඔවුන්තුල තැන්පත්වී ඇත්තේ සුළුජන සහාය නොමැතිව මේ රටේ ජනාධිපති විය නොහැක යන මිත්‍යාව නිසාය. 2019 දී කිසිදු සුළුජන සහායක් නැතිව ගෝඨාභය 69, 24,255 ක් ලබාගත් බවවත් මොවුන් නොදන්නා බව මින් පෙනේ.ඔවුන් තිදෙනාම මේරට මෙන්ම පිට රටවලදීද දිවාරෑ නිදි නොලබා කථාකරන්නේ, සැළසුම් හදන්නේ සහ සිහින දකින්නේ සුළු ජන අයිතිවාසිකම් ආරක්ෂාකිරීම යන ඇම යොද  දෙමළ ලබාගෙන බලයට ඒමටය.

මන්ද 1956 සිටම කළ පරිදි පක්ෂය පාට අනුව දෑස් පියාගෙන මේ වතාවේදීද තම පාක්ෂිකයින් චන්දය දුන්නද එය මේ තුන්දෙනා අතර වෙනදාට වඩා සමානව ලැබීමට ඉඩ ඇති බැවින්, සුළු ජන චන්ද වැඩියෙන් ලබාගන්නා අපේක්ෂකයාට ජයග්‍රහනය කිරීමේ අවකාශය වැඩි බව ඔවුන් තිදෙනාම සිතන බැවිනි, උතුරු නැගෙනහිර සහ උඩරට වතුකරයේ දෙමළ ප්‍රජාවගේ චන්ද මෙහිදී ඔවුන් තිදෙනාගේම ප්‍රමුඛත්වය බවට පත්ව ඇත්තේ.

 වැඩිම ළන්ශුවට තම වර්ගයාගේ චන්දය දැක්කීම සුළු ජන දේශපාලකයින්ගේ සිරිත නිසා, තම ඉලක්කය සපුරා ගැනීමට අනෙකා පරදවා ඉහලම ලන්සුවක් දීමේ මාරාන්තික සටනක දැන් මේ තිදෙනා යෙදී සිටී.

ඒ බව ඔවුන්ගේ කථාවලින් සහ හැසිරීමෙන්ම සක්සුදක් සේ  පැහැදිළිවෙයි. එසේ කරණුයේ ඔවුන්ගේ චන්දය ලබාගැනීමට මිස ඔවුන්ට ඇති විශේෂ ආදරයක් නිසා නොවන බව සුළු ජනයාද හොඳාකාරවම දනි. එහෙත් වරින් වර කළදුටුකළ වල ඉහගැනීම මෙන්ම තැටිය රත්වී ඇති අතරේ රොටිය පුළුස්සා ගැනීම ඔවුන්ගේ සිරිතය.

මේ අවස්ථාවේදි තව විශේෂය කරුණක් කිය යුතුව ඇත. එනම් රාජපක්ෂලාට,චන්ද්‍රිකාට, සිරිසේනට සහ නිමල් සිරිපාලල-අමවීරලාට පින්සිදුවෙන්ට දැන් ශ්‍රී ලන්කා නිදහස් පක්ෂයක් නැත. ගෝඨාභයට චන්දය දුන් ශ්‍රී ලන්කා කාරයින්ට සිංහලබෞද්ධයින්ට අද යන එන මඟක් නැතිව  අසරනව ඇත. එහෙත් ඔවුන්ගේ සින්හල බෞද්ධ කම ගත තුල මෙන්ම සිත තුලද නිදන්ගතව ඇත. කවදාටත් රට ජාතියට සහ බුදු සසුනට එකහිතින් ආදරය කළ ඔබ සියළුදෙනාම එකාවන්ව එක් රොක්වී දැන් කලයුතුව ඇත්තේ, රනිල්,සජිත් සහ අනුර යන තිදෙනාටම මේ රටේ සහ පිටරටවල සිටින දෙමළ මුස්ලිම් චන්ද වලින්ම  ජනාධිපති වන මෙන් අභියෝග කොට කිසිම සින්හලයෙක් මේ තුන්දෙනාට චන්දය නොදී  රට, දැය සමයට  ආදරයකරණ  ජනතා හිතවාදී සැබෑ සින්හල බෞද්ධ නායකයෙකු ජාතියේ නායකත්වයට දැන්වත් පත් කොටගෙන මේ රටේ 75% ක් වන දේශප්‍රේමී, ජාතිහිතයිෂී  සිංහලයින්ගේ බලය ඔවුන්ට පෙන්වන මෙන් මම දේශප්‍රේමයෙන් මේ රටේ සියළුම සින්හලයින්ගෙන් ඉල්ලා සිටිමි.

ඔබ සතු ඒ ඓතිහාසික ධූත මහෙවර වණුයේ 1948 සිට මේ දක්වා කිසිවෙකු නොකළ ඒ වීර ක්‍රියාව කොට මේ උතුම් සිංහලරටත්, සිංහල ජාතියත් එසේම සම්බුදු සසුනත් බේරාගත හැකි,  අභිමානවත් සින්හල ජාතියේ අපේක්ෂාවන් ඉටු කළ හැකි, ශ්‍රීමත් අනගාරික ධර්මපාල චින්තනයෙන් පෝෂනය වූ සැබෑ වීර  සින්හල බෞද්ධ නායකයෙකු වටා එක්‍ රොක් වී ඔහු ජනාධිපති වශයෙන් තෝරාගැනීමයි.එසේම  ඔබවිසින් තෝරාගණු ලබන එම නායකයා, රජිව්/ජේ ආර් ගිවිසුම මෙන්ම 13 වන ව්‍යවස්ථා සන්සෝධයද විධායක ජනාධිපති කම සමඟම 1978 ව්‍යවස්ථාවද අහෝසිකොට  මේ රටේ සභ්‍යත්වයට අනුරූපවන ව්‍යවස්ථාවක් නිර්මානය කරණතුරු රට පාලනය කිරීම සඳහා 1972  ජනරජ ව්‍යවස්ථාව බලගැන්වීමට පොරුන්දුවන අයෙක්ද විය යුතුය.

පහතින් දැක්වෙණුයේ මේ රටේ ජාතිහිතෛෂී, දේශප්‍රේමී සියලු දෙනාම රට, ජාතිය සහ බුදු සසුන බේරාගැනීම සඳහා වහාම අහෝසි කළයුතුයයි එකහඬින් කියා සිටින නමුත් ඉහත සඳහන් තිදෙනාගෙන් එක් අයෙක් හෝ එසේ ප්‍රකාශ නොකරන ආයතන සහ කරුණු කීපයකි.

1.1978 ව්‍යවස්ථාවෙන් හඳුන්වාදුන් ඒකාධිපති විධායක ජනාධිපති තනතුර

2වර්තමානයේ රට තුල පවතින සෑම අර්භුධයකටම හේතුවවූ දේශපාලකයින් විසින්, ඔවුන් සඳහාම සහ ඔවුන්ගේම යහපත සඳහා සකස්කොට ඇති 21 වතාවක් සන්ශෝධනය කොට සකස්කරගත් 1977 ට වඩා මන්ත්‍රීවරුන් 57 වැඩි කර,රටට පැරණි ආසන ක්‍රමයද අහෝසිකොට දිස්ත්‍රික් මන්ත්‍රී ක්‍රමයක් හඳුන්වා දිමෙන් නියෝජිත ප්‍රජාතන්ත්‍රවාදය විකාරයක් සහ විහිළුවක් බවට පත් කළ අබමල් රේණුවක සේවයක් නොකළත් වසර 5 කින් පසු  මන්ත්‍රී වැන්දඹු සහ අනත්දරු විශ්‍රාම වැටුප් ක්‍රමයක් ඇත්ලු අනේකවිධ දේශපාලන වරප්‍රසාධ වලින් පිරුණු මන්ත්‍රී වරප්‍රශාද කෙන්ද්‍රීය, ජනතා සේවාව මුඛ්‍ය අරමුණ නොවූ ජේ. ආර්. ගෙදර හැදූ ජනතා වරමක් නැති 1978 ආණ්ඩුක්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථාව අහෝසි කිරීම.

3. රටේ බහුමික අඛන්ඩතාව සහ ස්වයිරීත්වය විනාශකළ, බෙදුම්වාදය ප්‍රබල ලෙස වර්ධනය කළ එසේම දිසා පර්‍රිපාලනය අවුලෙන් අවුලට පත්කළ සහ පරාජිත සහ චන්දයකින් කිසිම දිනක දිනන්ට බැරි දේශපාලකයින්, ගජමිතුරන් සහ ජනාධිපති වරයාගේ සහ ඇමතිවරුන්ගේ නෑදෑයින්ට  රට හා ජාතියට කිසිදු සේවයක් නොකලත් කුමාර සැප විඳීම සඳහා  ජනාධිපතිගේ බලතල සහ වරප්‍රසාද සහිත ආණ්ඩුකාර තනතුරු9 ක් ,කැබිනට් ඇමතිවරයෙකුගේ බලතල සහ අසීමිත වරප්‍රසාද සහිත මහ ඇමැතිවරුන් 9 ක් සහ තවත් ඇමති වරුන් 45ක් ,පලාත් සභා වසා තිබුණත් පඩිනඩි,යාන වාහන සහ නිලරථ ඇතුලු වරප්‍රසාද ලබන කථානායකයින් (සභාපතීන්) 9 ක් වැනි රටට දැරිය නොහැකි දේශපාලන, පරිපාලන සහ මූල්‍ය බරක්වූ 1987පලාත් සභා ක්‍රමය නමැති මේ රට බෙදා අවුලෙන් අවුලට පත්කොට දේශපාලන,ආර්ථික සාමාජීය වෂයෙන් මුළු රටම අකර්මණ්‍යකොට විනාශකිරීමට ඉන්දියාව විසින් අපගේ ගෙලේ බැඳි දේශපාලන කාල බෝම්බයක්ක්වූ ඉන්දීය ව්‍යාප්තිවාදයේ උරචක්‍ර මාලය අහෝසි කිරීම.

4 යටත් විජිත වාදීන්ට කඩුවෙන්, උන්ඩයෙන්, මන්කොල්ල කෑමෙන්, දේශපාලන වශයෙන් අස්ථාවර කිරීමෙන්, මනස් සෝධනයෙන් සහ බෙදා පාලනය කිරීමෙන් විනාශ කිරීමට නොහැකිවු රටවල්,තව දුරටත්  සූරා කෑමට සහ සදාකාලිකවම ඔවුන්ගේ යටත්විජිත වෂයෙන් තබා ගැනීම සඳහා යොදාගෙන ඇති නවතම  උපාය මාර්ගය සහ අවිය වූ, උන්ගේම භාණ්ඩාගාරයන් පුරවන ආර්ථික, මූල්‍ය, වෙළඳ සහ වානිජ  ආයතන වන ඊනියා ලෝක බැන්කුව, ජාත්‍යන්තර මූල්‍ය අරමුදල වැනි, අපවැනි රටවල් සදාකාලික දරිද්‍ර භාවයේම තබාගැනීමේ ක්‍රම වේදයන්ගෙන්  නිදහස් වීම. 

5.මහපොලව, වරායවල් ගුවන්තොටුපලවල්, රටේ ඛනිජ සම්පත්,රාජ්‍ය දේපල සහ බැන්කු, ගුවන් යානා,ගුවන් තොටුපල,ත්‍රිකුණාමලේ තෙල් ටැන්කි 100, වරායන් වැනි ජාතික සම්පත් පමණක් නොව මේ කුඩා රටතුල ඉන්ධන සහ භූමිතෙල්ටික බෙදීමද පවා  අහසින් වැටෙන හිරු එලිය මෙන්ම  දිවයින හරහා හමන සුළඟ සහ ගන්ගා වලින් ගලායන ජල සම්පත ඇතුලු සියලුම ජාතික සම්පත් පිට රැටියන්ට කුණු කොල්ලයට විකිණීම වහාම නතර කිරීම

6 1505 සිට 1848 දක්වා ලක්ෂ ගණනින් ජීවිත පූජාකොට උඩරට වීරෝධාර සිංහලයින් විසින් බටහිර අධිරාජ්‍යවාදී ම්ලේච්ච මිනීමරුවන් ගෙන් බේරාගත් 1840න් පසු සුද්දන් විසින් බලයෙන් කොල්ලකෑ අක්කර ලක්ෂ 13 ක සිංහලලෙයින් තෙත් වූ මව්බිමේ මහපොලව සුද්දාගේ තේ වතුවල වහල් වැඩට ඉන්දියාවෙන් ගෙනවිත් 1948 දී උන් ආපසු යනවිට මෙහි අතරමන්කොට දමාගිය වසර 27ක පමණ ජේ.ආර් ගේ අනීතික පුරවැසිකකම් ඇති තොණ්ඩමන් වාර්ගික ඉන්දියානු දෙමළුන්ට සින්නක්කරකොට උරුමකොට දී  මේ සිංහලේ කන්ද උඩරට ඉන්දියාවේ 29 වන ප්‍රාන්තය කිරීම නතර කිරීම.

7.උතුරු නැගෙනහිර මුලු රටෙන් 1/3 ක් සහ රටේ මුහුඳු තීරයෙන් 2/3 ඊලාමයට දීම.මේ වනවිටත් 2009 දි මහින්ද රාජපක්ෂ බේරාගත් එම දෙපලාතම අනාගත ඊලමට දී තිබීම  එම. දෙපලාතේ ආණ්ඩුකාරයින් දෙදෙනාම දෙමලය, සියලුම් රාජ්‍යය නිලධාරින් දෙමලය. සියළුම දේශපාලනඥයින් දෙමලය. පාලන භාෂාව දෙමලය.  පාලනය දෙමලෙන්ය.  ස්ථානනාම සියල්ල දෙමලය. ක්‍රි.  පූ. යුගයේ සිට එම පලාත් පුරාම තිබුණු පුරා විද්‍යාත්මක බෞද්ධ ස්ථාන සහ නටබුන් මත හින්දු කෝවිල් ගොඩ නැගී හෝ නැගෙමින් ඇත. වසර 2600 කට ආසන්න සින්හල බෞද්ධ ශිෂ්ඨාචාරය අවුරුදු 340 කට වඩා අඩු ඉතිහාසයක් ඇති ඕලන්ද සහ බ්‍රතාන්‍යයින් විසින් උන්ගේ වහලුන් මෙන් ඉන්දියාවෙන් මෙහි ගෙනවිත් දමාගිය මළබා දෙමලුන් මේ සිංහලබෞද්ධ ජාතියේ උතුරු නැගෙනහිර දැනටමත් වෙනම ජාතියක් වශයෙන් අල්ලාගෙන හමාරය.

මේ විනාශයෙන් රට ජාතිය බේරාගැනීම සඳහා13 වන ව්‍යවස්ථා සන්ශෝධනය අහෝසිකිරීම සහ 92/58 බලය විමධ්‍යගතකිරීමේ  පනත සහ රා.ප, පා චක්‍ර ලේඛ 92/21 යන දෙකම අහෝසිකිරීම. උඩරට වතුකරයේ මෙන්ම උතුරු නැගෙනහිර පලාත් දෙකේම මේ වන විටත් කොළඹින් ක්‍රියාත්මක වන ආණ්ඩුවේ බලයක්  නැත. උතුරු නැගෙනහිර රජුන් සුමන්දිරම්ලා විග්නේශ්වරන්ලාය.උඩරට වතුකරයේ රජුන් තොණ්ඩමන් මුණුබුරන්ය. දිගම්බරන්ලාය.වඩුවේල්ලාය

මොවුන් මෙසේ රජුන් බවට පත්කොට ඇත්තේ මේ වන විටත් මේ රටේ විධායක ජනාධිපති වීමට මාරාන්තික බලුපොරයක යෙදී සිටින තුන්දෙනා සහ ජේ ආර් වැනි රටක්.ජාතියක්,ආගමක් නැති දේශ ද්‍රෝහී ජාති බ්‍රෂ්ඨ බලකාමයෙන් මත්වූ රාෂ්ට්‍රපාලනය යනු කුමක්දැයි නොදන්නා චන්ද අතීසාරයෙන් පෙලෙන මනසින් යුරෝපයේම ජීවත්වන මානසික රෝගීන් වන  දේශපාලකයින්මය. එසේම මොවුන් තිදෙනාම දෙමල සහ මුස්ලිම් සුළු ජනකොටස්විසින් ඔවුන්ගේ තුනටියේ බැඳි චන්ද නමැති ලණුවෙන් ඉරිදා පොලේ නටවන රිලවුන්වැනිය.

සුළු ජන කොටස් ගැන දිවා රාත්‍රි මෙසේ කිඹුල් කඳුළු හෙලන මේ තුන්දෙනාගෙන් එක් අයෙකු හෝ රටේ උරුමකරුවන් වන සිංහලයින්ගේ ඉඩම්,රැකියා,ආහාර,වස්ත්‍ර,  නිවාස, රැකියා, අධ්‍යාපන, සෞක්‍ය ප්‍රශ්න සහ අනෙකුත් අයිතිවාසිකම් ගැන එක වචනයක් වත් කතා කරන්නේ නැත.විශේෂයෙන්ම  රටේ ජනගහනයෙන් ලක්ෂ 75ක් පමණවන සුදු අධිරාජ්‍යවාදීන්ගෙන් මැරුම්කෑ  එසේම තම ඉඩකඩම් වලින් පන්නා දැමු මුතුන් මිත්තන්ගෙන්  පැවතඑන උඩරට සිංහලයින් ගැන හෝ ඔවුන්ගේ උග්‍ර ප්‍රශ්න ගැන හෝ මොවුන් එක වචනයක් හෝ කතා කරන්නේද නැත. 

වතුකරයේ දෙම්ලුන් වෙනුවෙන් කථාකිරීමට, සටන් කිරීමට  පමණක් නොව රටේ නීතියද කඩමින් ජනාධිපතිට පමණක් නොව විපක්ෂ නායක මෙන්ම අනුර දිසානායක යන ජනාධිපති අපේක්ෂකයින්ටද අභියෝග කරමින් පශ්චාත් භාගයද පෙන්වා  රටේ ජනාධිපතිද පවා දනගස්වා ඔවුන්ගේ හොට බිම ඇතිල්ලිය හැකි, එසේම වතු අධිකාරීන් සිර අඩස්සියේ තබාගෙන ඔවුන්ට මරණ තර්ජන පවා කරමින් තම ඕනෑ එපාකම් ලබාගතහැකි, වසර 37 ක මේ රටේ නීතිවිරෝධි රුපියලේ පුරවැසිකම පමණක් ඇති  තොණ්ඩමන් මුණුබුරන්, බාන් පිටින්ද, ඊටත් අමතරව එවැනිම බලතල ඇති එම වර්ගයේම වඩිවේල් සුරේෂලාද, දිගම්බරන්ලාද එමට සිටිත්.

මෙම වතු මාපියා කරුවන්ගේ නීති විරෝධී ක්‍රියාවන් පිලිබඳ කිසිදු පියවරක්ද නොගෙන චන්දයක් නිසා මුනිවත රකින්නාසේම ඔවුන්ගෙන් ඉල්ලීමකුත් නැතිව 75% පහකින් පඩි වැඩිකරන, සිංහලයින්ගේ පාරම්පරික ඉඩම් මේ වතු කම්කරුවන්ට ලබා දීමට සහ නිවාස ඇතුළු දහසකුත් එකක් පොරොන්දු ලබාදෙන මෙවැනි දේශද්‍රෝහීන් සහ රනිල්, සජිත් සහ අනුර වැනි ජාතිද්‍රෝහී පුද්ගලයින් මේ රටේ නායකත්වයට සුදුසු වන්නේ කෙසේද. නැගෙනහිර ආණ්ඩුකාරයා වන සෙන්තිල් තොණ්ඩමන් කඳුරටේ කම්කරුවන්ගේ වැටුප් ප්‍රස්නය ගැන කථා කරන්නේ ඔහු මධ්‍යමපලාතේත් ආණ්ඩුකාරයා වශයෙන්ද පත්කර තිබේදැයි  ජනාධිපතිවරයාගෙන් ඇසිය යුතුව ඇත. එසේ නොමැතිනම් ඔහුට විරුද්ධව ජනාධිපතිවරයා විනයානුකූළ පියවර නොගන්නේ ඇයි? ඔහු සවුම්‍ය මූර්ති තොණ්ඩමන්ගේ මුණුබුරා නිසාදැයි ඇසිය යුතුව ඇත. එසේත් නැතිනම් පෙර දවස එක් නරියෙක් මොකක්දෝ වැටෙන තුරු එලුවෙකු පස්සෙන් ගොස් කරගත් වින්නැහිය ඔහුත් කර ගැනීමටදැයි ඇසිය යුතුව ඇත. වතුකරයේ චන්ද කුට්ටිය වැටෙන්නේ තොන්ඩමන්ලාට දිගම්බරන්ලාට සහ වඩුවේල්ලාට ඔනෑ තැනට මිස මේ චන්ද යාචකයින්ගේ ඔඩොක්කුවලට නොවන බව පමණක් කිව යුතුය.

මා දකින අන්දමට ජනාධිපතිවරයා සෙන්තිල් තොණ්ඩමන් නැගෙනහිර ආණ්ඩුකාරයා වශයෙන් පත්කලේද එසේම ඔහුගේ නිළ පලාතෙන් පිට ඔහුට අයිති නැති ප්‍රශ්නයකට හොට දැමීම ගැන ඔහුට එරෙහිව විනයානුකූල පියවරක් නොගන්නේද ලබණ මැතිවරණයේදී වතු දෙමළ චන්ද ලබාගැනීමේ එකම බලාපොරොත්තුවෙන් බව ඉතාමත් පහැදිලිය.එසේම පැහැදිලිවම ඔහු නැගෙනහිර ආණ්ඩුකාරයා වශයෙන් පත් කිරීමත්  වතුකරයේ වැටුප් ගැන කථාකිරීම  ගැන නිහඬව සිටීමත් යන දෙකම චන්ද අත්ලස්ය. චන්ද කොමසාරිස් වාර්යාගේ මෙන්ම ඒ පිලබඳ උනන්දුවක් දක්වන සන්විධානවල අවධානය මීට යොමුවණු ඇතයි සිතමි.

මෙවැනි පුද්ගලයින් තම රාජ්‍ය නායකයින් වශයෙන් පත්කර ගෙන සිංහලයින් තම ගෙල සියතින්ම කපාගන්නවාද, එසේම තම මව්බිම සහ ජාතිය නැතිකරගන්නවාද කියා සිහිබුධියෙන් හොඳින් සිතා බැළිය යුතු කාලය දැන් එළඹ ඇත.

වතුකරය ආශ්‍රිත චන්ද කොට්ඨාශ නියෝඉජනය කරන අඳ, ගොලු, බිහිරි සිංහල මන්ත්‍රීන්

ඒ අතර වතුකරය ආශ්‍රිත චන්ද කොට්ඨාශ නියෝඉජනය කරන සිංහල මන්ත්‍රීන් 75 ක් පමණ පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ සිටියද පරදේශක්කාරයින් පිරිසක් විසින් වතුකරයේ සිදුකරන මෙවැනි චණ්ඩිකම් ගැන හෝ මේ මහ පොලවට වසර 2600 අඛන්ඩ උරුමයක් ඇති තම න්ගේම ලේඥාතීන් වන සිංහලයින්ගේ අයිතිවාසිකම් වෙනුවෙන් එක වචනයක් කතා කිරීමට  කොණ්ද පණ ඇති, එක වචනයක් කථා කිරීමට  කටක් ඇති එක බණ්ඩෙක් හෝ අප්පුහාමි කෙනෙක් නොසිටීමද විලිලැජ්ජා සහගත නොවේද.

එමනිසා ලබන ජනාධිපති තරඟයේදී මේ තිදෙනාම ප්‍රතික්ෂේපකොට රටේ සහ ජාතියේ ඉරණම භාර දිය හැකි භූමිපුත්‍රයින් වන සිංහලයින්ගේ උරුමයන් සහ අයිතිවාසිකම් වෙනුවෙන් පෙනීසිටින එසේම කථාකරන, මා ඉහතින් සඳන්කළ ප්‍රතිඥාවන් ගරු ත්‍රයිනිකායික මහානායක හ්මිවරුන්ප්‍රමුඛ මහා සන්ඝ සභාවක් ඉදිරියේ දිවුරා සපථ කරන  සිව්වැනි සිංහල බෞද්ධ අපේක්ෂකයෙකු පමණක් අපගේ මීලඟ ජනාධිපති වරයා වශයෙන් තෝරා පත්කොට ගැනීමට සමස්ථ ලන්කාවාශී සියළුම සිංහලයින් එකාවන්ව පෙළැගැසෙනමෙන් දේශප්‍රේමයෙන් සහ ජාතිවාත්ශල්‍යෙන් මම ඉල්ලා සිටිමි. එසේම දිවයින පුරා සිටින සියළුම සිංහලයින් සහ මන්ත්‍රිවරුන්, විශේෂයෙන්ම සින්හල බෞද්ධ  මන්තීවරුන් මෙන්ම රට හා ජාතියට අදරය කරණ සමස්ථ ලාන්කික ජනතාවම තරයේ අධිෂ්ඨාණය කරගෙන, ශ්‍රීමත් අනගාරික ධර්මපාල තුමා සහ පෙර දවස මේ රට දැය සහ සසුන ජීවිත පරිත්ත්‍යාගයෙන් රැකගත් දුටුගැමුණු, මහා පරාක්‍රමබාහු, ගජබා,විජයබා සහ සීතාවක රාජසින්හ වැනි නරපතීන්ට නිගරු නොකොට යලිත් නියම වීර සින්හල බෞධයින් වශයෙන්, එසේම ජේ ආර්/ රජිව් ගිවිසුම, පලාත්සභා ආදි රට දැය නසින,රට දැයට හා සසුනට අහිතකර ,බටහිර සහ ඉන්දීය ව්යාප්ත වාදයන්ගෙන් මේ සිංහල බෞද්ධ රට සහ සින්හල ජාතිය තවත් වසර 2500ක් හෝ ලොව පුරා බැබලවීමට පදනමක් දැමිය හැකි  අනගාරික ධර්මපාල දර්ෂනය පදනම් කොට ගෙන ක්‍රියාකල  හැකි නියම සිංහල නායකයෙක් මේ සිංහලේ ජනාධිපති වශයෙන් එළබෙන ජනාධිපති වරණයේදී තෝරා පත්කොට ගැනීමට සිංහලේ වාසී සියළුම වීර සිංහලයින්ගෙන් ජාත්‍යාලයෙන් සහ දේශප්‍රේමයෙන් මම ඉල්ලා සිටිමි.

මක්නිසාදයත්. මේ තුන්දෙනාගෙන් කාට චන්දය දුන්නද රටත්, සිංහල ජාතියත් සාශනයත් යන තුනම දසකයක් තුල අවසන්වන බැවිනි. එසේම සිංහල බෞද්ධ ශිෂ්ඨාචාරය මේ ලක් පොලවෙන් අතුගැවිලාම යන බැවිවිනි.මොවුන් තුන්දෙනාගෙන් කවුරු ජනාධිපති උනත් ප්‍රථම්යෙන්ම, මේ රට ඉතා ඉක්මනින් ඉන්දියාවේ 29 වන ප්‍රාන්තය වීමද සහතිකය. අන්න ඒ විනාශයෙන් රට හා සිංහල ජාතිය සහ බුදුසසුන බේරාගැනීමටයි,  මා මූලින් සඳහන් කළ පරිදි අනාගරික ධර්මපාල චින්තනය ඇති නියම සිංහල බෞද්ධ නායකයෙකු මේ රටේ මීලඟ ජනාධිපතිවරයා වශයෙන්හෝ මේ රටෙ සියළුම සිංහලයින් විසින් එකාවන්ව එක්වී සොයාගෙන පත්කරගත යුත්තේ.                                          

අවසාන වශයෙන්

මොවුන් කිසිවෙකුට හෝ චන්දය දෙන්ට පෙර, මේ තුන්දෙනාගෙන් එක් අයකු හෝ පහත සඳහන් පොරොන්දුවලින් එකක් හෝ ඔවුන්ගේ මැතිවරණ ප්‍රකාශවල හෝ රැස්වීමකදී ප්‍රකාශකර තිබෙණවාදැයි බලන මෙන් මම ඔබගෙන් ඉල්ලා සිටිමි.

1.මේ රටේ දේශපාලන පිළිකාවන විධායක ජනාධිපති ක්‍රමය,

2 ඉන්දීය ව්‍යප්තිවාදයේ බිලී කොක්ක වූ 1987 ජූලි 30 රජිව්/ජේ.ආර් ගිවිසුම

3 මේ රටේ ප්‍රාන්ත පාලනය විනාශ කළ රාජ්‍ය භණ්ඩාගාරය හිස් කළ 13 වන ව්‍යවස්තා සන්ශෝධනය ව්‍යවස්ථා සන්ශෝධනය සහ පලාත් සභා

යන තුන වහාම අහෝසි කිරීම

4, 1978 ව්‍යවස්ථාව වෙනුවට 1972 ජනරජ ව්‍යවස්ථාව නැවත  බලගන්වා වසරක් තුල මේ රටේ  සභ්‍යත්වයට හා ඉදිරිගමනට ගැලපෙන රටේ භෞමික අඛණ්ඩතාව, ඒකීය භාවය,  ස්වාධිපත්‍ය, ස්වාධීනත්වය හා නිදහස, සින්හල බෞද්ධ ජාතියේ අභිමානය ආරක්ෂාවන  නව ආණ්ඩුක්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථාවක් රටට ඉදිරිපත් කිරීම

5 සියළුම ජාතිවාදී,බෙදුම්වාදී ආගම් හා ප්‍රදේශවාදී මේරටට නොගැලපෙන මතවාදී දේශපාලන පක්ෂ තහනම් කිරීම

6.ජාතික රාජ්‍ය සභාවේ වර්තමාන ආසන සන්ක්‍යාව ජාතික ලැයිස්තුවේ 29 සහ 1978 ව්‍යවස්ථාවෙන් එකතු කළ 28 ද අහෝසිකොට 1972 ව්‍යවස්ථාවේ පැවති 168 දක්වා අඩුකිරිරීම.

7 දැනට පවතින දිස්ත්‍රික් මන්ත්‍රී ක්‍රමය අහෝසිකොට නැවතත් පැරණි ආසන ක්‍රමය ඇති කිරීම

8 අමාත්‍ය මන්ඩලය 18 කට සීමාකිරීම

9. රටට කැපීපෙනෙන සේවයක් කල ජනාධිපති වරුන්ට සහ වසර 25 කට වැඩි  සේවයක් කළ මන්ත්‍රීවරුන්ට පමණක් විශ්‍රාම වැටුප් ගෙවීමේ ක්‍රමයක් ඇති කිරීම සහ දැනට පවතින ක්‍රමය අහෝසි කිරීම

10 රාජ්‍ය සේවය දේශපාලනයෙන් තොර ජනතාහිතවාදී වුර්තීය සේවයක් කිරීම

11 දේශපාලනයට එන අයටද දැඩි සුදුසුකම් හා විනය මාලාවක් මෙන්ම නිශ්චිත කාර්‍යසාධක වැඩපිළිවෙලක් නියම කිරීම.

12. ජාතික රාජ්‍ය  සභා නියෝජිතයින් අදාල ආසනවලින් පමණක් පත්කරගැනීම

13 රාජ්‍ය වියදම අඩුකර ගැනීම සඳහා දැනට සිටින 16 ලක්ශකට අධික  ගානක රාජ්‍ය සේවය, සේවා සහ සැපයුම් අධ්‍යයනයකින් පසු අඩුකොට විශ්‍රාම ගැන්වෙන අයට ස්වයන් රැකියා කිරිමේ වැඩපිළිවෙලක් සකස් කිරීම.

14. දේශපාලනයේ මෙන්ම රාජ්‍යසේවයේ දුෂන, නාස්ති, සහ වන්චා සහ අකාර්‍යක්ෂමතාව පිටු දැක ඒවා ජනතා හිතවාදි සහ ජනතා කේණ්ද්‍රිය සේවාවන් බවට පත්කිරීම

15.කෘෂිකර්මය ප්‍රධානකොටගත්, දීපව්‍යාප්ත වගා සන්ග්‍රාමයක් සහ කර්මාන්ත සන්වර්ධන වැඩපිළිවෙලක් ක්‍රියාත්මකකොට රටේ නිශ්පාදනය වැඩිකිරීම සහ රැකියා උත්පාදනය ඉහල නැන්වීම

16.සමස්ථ ආර්ථිකයේ මෙන්ම රාජ්‍ය පරිපාලනයේ කාර්‍යක්ෂමභාවය ඉහල නැන්වීම

17.දැනට විනාශකොට ඇති උතුරු නැගෙනහිර ඇතුළු රට පුරා ඇති අයිතිහාසික පුරාවිද්‍යාත්මක බිම් සහ සිදස්ථාන පුනරුත්ථාපනය කිරීම

18.වසර 10 කින් මේ රට ආසියාවේ ආශ්චර්ය බවට පත් කිරිම.

19.වසාර් 10 කින් මේ රට නැවතත් ලෝකයේ සව්භාග්‍යමත්, සාමකාමි සහ අභිමානවත් බෞද්ධරාජ්‍යක් බවට පත්කිරීම

20. ජාතියේ හදබිමවන මු.ම,අඩි1000 ඉහල මධ්‍යම කඳුකරයේ භෞතික ස්ථාවරත්වය ආරක්ෂාකරණ විධිමත් වැඩ පිළිවෙලක් කඩිනමින් ක්‍රියාත්මක කිරීම

22 පවතින සුද්දාගේ 1833 පලාත් ක්‍රමය අහෝසිකොට සිව් සින්හලේ නැවත පිහිටුවීම, (රුහුණු,පිහිටි,මායා සහ උඩරට)

23කලුගඟ දකුනටද කැළැනි ගඟ වයඹටද හරවන වැඩ පිලිවෙලක්

24ශ්‍රී ලංකා ජනරජය රාෂ්ට්‍ර පාලනය කළයුතු ආකාරය සහ නීති සම්පාධනය පිලිබඳ රජයට උපදෙස් දීම සඳහා, ජාතික ජනාධිපතිට, රාජ්‍යසභාවට ඉහලින් ව්‍යවස්ථාපිත ත්‍රයිනිකායික මහනාහිමිවරුන් වහන්සේලා 4 දෙනා (සන්ඝරාජ කෙනෙක් නැති නිසා) ප්‍රධාන 18 දෙනකුගෙන් යුත් නිර්දේශපාලන උත්තරීතර ජාතික රාජ්‍ය පුරෝහිත සභාවක් 25.පන්සිල් රකින සමාජයක් මේ රටේ ඇතිකිරීම

නීතීඥ අරුණ ලක්සිරි උණවටුන B.Sc(Col), PGDC(Col) සමායෝජක, වෛද්‍ය තිලක පද්මා සුබසිංහ අනුස්මරණ නීති අධ්‍යාපන වැඩසටහන

පාර්ලිමේන්තු මන්ත්‍රීවරයන්ගේ බලතල සහ වරප්‍රසාද අභිබවා 2024 අංක 8 දරන අධිකරණයකට, විනිශ්චය අධිකාරයකට හෝ ආයතනයකට අපහාස කිරීම පිළිබඳ පනතේ විධිවිධාන ක්‍රියාත්මක කරවීමට හැකි පරිදි මේ වන විට නීති සම්මත කරවාගෙන ඇත. එය පැහැදිලි කර ගැනීමට 1953 අංක 21 දරන පාර්ලිමේන්තු බලතල හා වරප්‍රසාද පනතේ 3 වන වගන්තිය සහ 2024 අංක 8 දරන අධිකරණයකට, විනිශ්චය අධිකාරයකට හෝ ආයතනයකට අපහාස කිරීම පිළිබඳ පනතේ 15 වන වගන්තිය හොඳින් අධ්‍යයනය කළ යුතුය.

1953 අංක 21 දරන පාර්ලිමේන්තු බලතල හා වරප්‍රසාද පනතේ 3 වන වගන්තිය මෙසේය.

3. පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේදී, භාෂණයේ විවාද කිරීමේ හා කටයුතුවල නිරත වීමේ නිදහස තිබිය යුතු අතර, ඒ භාෂණයේ, විවාද කිරීමේ හෝ කටයුතුවල නිරත වීමේ නිදහස පාර්ලිමේන්තුවෙන් පිටස්තර වූ යම් අධිකරණයකදී හෝ ස්ථානයකදී දෝෂාභියෝගයකට හෝ ප්‍රශ්න කිරීමට භාජනය කළ නොහැකි වන්නේ ය.

එසේ වුවත් 2024 පෙබරවාරි 01 දින මහින්ද යාපා අබේවර්ධන කතානායකවරයා සහතිකය තබා නීතියක් කළ 2024 අංක 8 දරන අධිකරණයකට, විනිශ්චය අධිකාරයකට හෝ ආයතනයකට අපහාස කිරීම පිළිබඳ පනතේ 15 වන වගන්තිය මගින් වෙනත් සියලු නීති අභිබවා එකී පනත ක්‍රියාත්මක විය යුතු බව දක්වා ඇත.

පාර්ලිමේන්තුව තුළ කරන අධිකරණයට අපහාසයන්ට නඩු පවරා දඬුවම් කළ හැකි වන ලෙස 2024 අංක 8 දරන අධිකරණයකට, විනිශ්චය අධිකාරයකට හෝ ආයතනයකට අපහාස කිරීම පිළිබඳ පනතේ 15 වගන්තිය  දැක්වේ.

2024 අංක 8 දරන අධිකරණයකට, විනිශ්චය අධිකාරයකට හෝ ආයතනයකට අපහාස කිරීම පිළිබ‍ඳ පනතේ 15 වන වගන්තිය මෙසේය.

15. වෙනත් ලිඛිත නීතියක පටහැනිව කුමක් සඳහන් වුවද මේ පනතේ විධිවිධාන බලපැවැත්විය යුතු අතර, ඒ අනුව මේ පනතේ විධිවිධාන සහ ඒ වෙනත් නීතියේ විධිවිධාන අතර යම් අනනුකූලතාවයක් ඇති වුවහොත් එවිට, මේ පනතේ විධිවිධාන බලපැවැත්විය යුතුය.

15. The provisions of this Act shall have effect notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in any other written law, and accordingly, in the event of any
inconsistency between the provisions of this Act and such other law, the provisions of this Act shall prevail.

වෙනත් ලිඛිත නීතියක් යන්නට, 1953 අංක 21 දරන පාර්ලිමේන්තු බලතල හා වරප්‍රසාද පනත, සාක්ෂි ආඥා පනත, 1978 අංක 2අධිකරණ සංවිධාන පනත, 1979 අංක 15 දරන අපරාධ නඩු විධාන සංග්‍රහය ඇතුලු ආණ්ඩුක්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථාව හැර අනෙක් සියලු නීති අදහස් කරයි.

ඒ අනුව 1953 අංක 21 දරන පාර්ලිමේන්තු බලතල හා වරප්‍රසාද පනතේ 3 වන වගන්තිය, 2024 අංක 8 දරන අධිකරණයකට, විනිශ්චය අධිකාරයකට හෝ ආයතනයකට අපහාස කිරීම පිළිබඳ පනතේ 15 වන වගන්තිය මගින් යටපත් කර ඇත.

ඉහත කාරණා අනුව අදාලව
1953 අංක 21 දරන පාර්ලිමේන්තු බලතල හා වරප්‍රසාද පනතේ විධිවිධාන අභිබවා යන ලෙස පාර්ලිමේන්තුව විසින් මේ වනවිට නීති පනවාගෙන ඇති හෙයින්, 1953 අංක 21 දරන පාර්ලිමේන්තු බලතල හා වරප්‍රසාද පනතේ 3 වන වගන්තිය, 2024 අංක 8 දරන අධිකරණයකට, විනිශ්චය අධිකාරයකට හෝ ආයතනයකට අපහාස කිරීම පිළිබඳ පනතේ 15 වන වගන්තියෙන් යටපත් කර ඇති අතර, පාර්ලිමේන්තුව තුළදී මන්ත්‍රීවරුන් කරන අධිකරණයට අපහාසයන්ට අධිකරණවල නඩු පවරා අදාල පාර්ලිමේන්තු මන්ත්‍රීවරයන්ට දඬුවම් කළ හැකිය.

පාර්ලිමේන්තු මන්ත්‍රීවරුන් සහ කතානායකවරයා මේ වන විට තමන්ද පාර්ලිමේන්තුව තුළ  භාෂණයේ විවාද කිරීමේ හා කටයුතුවල නිරත වීමේදී, අධිකරණයකට, විනිශ්චය අධිකාරයකට හෝ ආයතනයකට අපහාස කිරීම සම්බන්ධයෙන් නඩු පවරනු ලැබීමට යටත් තැනැත්තන් බවට පත්කරනු ලැබගෙන ඇත.

පාර්ලිමේන්තුව 1953 අංක 21 දරන පාර්ලිමේන්තු බලතල හා වරප්‍රසාද පනතේ 3 වන වගන්තිය නැවත බලාත්මක කර ගන්නේ කෙසේද?

පාර්ලිමේන්තු මන්ත්‍රීවරුන් සහ කතානායකවරයාට එරෙහිව 2024 අංක 8 දරන අධිකරණයකට, විනිශ්චය අධිකාරයකට හෝ ආයතනයකට අපහාස කිරීම පිළිබඳ පනත ක්‍රියාත්මක වීම වැළැක්වීමට නීතියට අනුව කළ හැක්කේ එම පනතේ 15 වන වගන්තිය ඉවත් කිරීම හෝ 1953 අංක 21 දරන පාර්ලිමේන්තු බලතල හා වරප්‍රසාද පනතට, 2024 අංක 8 දරන අධිකරණයකට, විනිශ්චය අධිකාරයකට හෝ ආයතනයකට අපහාස කිරීම පිළිබඳ පනත බලනොපාන බවට නීති සංශෝධනයක් ගෙන ඒමය.

එය 1953 අංක 21 දරන පාර්ලිමේන්තු බලතල හා වරප්‍රසාද පනතට හෝ 2024 අංක 8 දරන අධිකරණයකට, විනිශ්චය අධිකාරයකට හෝ ආයතනයකට අපහාස කිරීම පිළිබඳ පනත සංශෝධනය කිරීමෙන් කළ හැකිය.

එතෙක්  පාර්ලිමේන්තු මන්ත්‍රීවරුන් සහ කතානායකවරයාට එරෙහිව 2024 අංක 8 දරන අධිකරණයකට, විනිශ්චය අධිකාරයකට හෝ ආයතනයකට අපහාස කිරීම පිළිබඳ පනත ක්‍රියාත්මක වීම වැළැක්විය නොහැකිය.

කියවන්න…

අධිකරණ ඇමතිවරයා අධිකරණයකට අපහාස පනත ගෙනාවේ, පාර්ලිමේන්තු වරප්‍රසාද අහිමි කර මන්ත්‍රීවරුන්ට එරෙහිව අධිකරණයට අපහාස නඩු පැවරවීමේ අරමුණෙන්ද?

http://neethiyalk.blogspot.com/2024/06/blog-post_23.html?m=1

2024 අංක 8 දරන අධිකරණයට අපහාස පනතේ 15 වගන්තිය නිසා පාර්ලිමේන්තු මන්ත්‍රීවරුන්ට එරෙහිවත් අධිකරණයට අපහාස කිරීමේ නඩු පැවරිය හැකියි…!

http://neethiyalk.blogspot.com/2024/06/2024-8-15.html?m=1

අධිකරණයකට අපහාස පනතේ 15 වන වගන්තියෙන් පාර්ලිමේන්තු බලතල පනත යටපත් වන හෙයින් පාර්ලිමේන්තුව තුළ කරන අධිකරණයට අපහාසයන්ට නඩු පවරා දඬුවම් කළ හැකිය…!

http://neethiyalk.blogspot.com/2024/06/15.html?m=1

චූදිතයෙකු ජීවිතාන්තය දක්වා සිරගත කළ හැකි වන ලෙස සාක්ෂි සටහන් වෙනස් කළ විනිසුරු තවමත් නඩු අහන රටේ, අධිකරණයේදී නීතිය කතා කරන නීතීඥයන් රක්ෂිත බන්ධනාගාර ගත කරන අධිකරණයට අපහාස කිරීමේ නීතිය නිවැරදි කළ යුතුය…!

http://neethiyalk.blogspot.com/2024/03/blog-post.html?m=1

ඉහත කාරණා අනුව පාර්ලිමේන්තු වරප්‍රසාද අහිමි කරගත් මන්ත්‍රීවරුන් ඉන්නේ ලංකාවේ බව අධිකරණ අපහාස පනතේ 15 වගන්තිය කියා දෙන අතර පාර්ලිමේන්තු වරප්‍රසාද අහිමි කරවූ ක්‍රියාදාමයේ මහමොළකරුවන් කවුද යන්න විසඳීමට තවම කාලය නොවේ. ඒ යම් සංවිධානයක්ද හෝ නීති ක්ෂේත්‍රයේ ප්‍රභලයෙකුද හෝ කවරෙකුද යන්න විසඳිය යුතුය.

වර්තමාන අධිකරණ ඇමතිවරයා 2024 අංක 8 දරන අධිකරණයකට, විනිශ්චය අධිකාරයකට හෝ ආයතනයකට අපහාස කිරීම පිළිබඳ පනත ගෙනාවේ, පාර්ලිමේන්තු වරප්‍රසාද අහිමි කර මන්ත්‍රීවරුන්ට එරෙහිව අධිකරණයට අපහාස නඩු පැවරවීමේ අරමුණෙන්ද? ඒ බව නොදැනද? යන්න තවමත් ප්‍රශ්නාර්ථයකි.

නීතීඥ අරුණ ලක්සිරි උණවටුන B.Sc(Col), PGDC(Col) සමායෝජක, වෛද්‍ය තිලක පද්මා සුබසිංහ අනුස්මරණ නීති අධ්‍යාපන වැඩසටහන දුරකථන 0712063394 (2024.06.23)

e-Con e-News

blog: eesrilanka.wordpress.com

‘Before you study the economics, study the economists!’

e-Con e-News 16-22 June 2024

‘He discarded his Western dress, donned his national garb & began

his pioneering effort to teach economics in the Sinhala language,

a feat those at the helm of affairs at that time, thought unattainable.

Supported by like-minded contemporaries he set about his task

gathering Sinhala equivalents for various terms used in the study

of economics. He later wrote books on economics in Sinhala…

ee began learning this week of the work of FR Jayasuriya (www.lankafreelibrary.com), who was involved in setting up the fledgling educational system of the country, particularly its early Economic Departments at the universities, post-1948.

‘The University of Ceylon was established for the benefit of the elite

& not for the common man. As you may know in those days

government helped only the Christian schools & the University

was meant to educate the students from those schools only.

The University was designed on Oxbridge lines. FR Jayasuriya had

a different view & he believed education to be a universal right.

He fought with university authorities tooth & nail to make education

available to the masses. To get him out of the system they tried dangling

carrots… a proposed UN appointment was one. On another occasion

the VC Jennings said he wanted to see all university academics dress

like the Oxbridge dons of the time & it was from that day onwards he stopped

wearing Western clothes. When Lake House papers refused publicity

to his activities, he started a newspaper, The Colombo City News,

published under the name of a 3^rd party. In return, he paid dearly,

in terms of opportunities & perks, but he was happy doing it….

*

‘At the invitation of the Ceylon University authorities &

in the absence of any Ceylonese who was at the time qualified

in Economics (a curious statement on the studied discouragement

of Economics by the Imperialists who have been continuously

at the head of the University) he proceeded to the London School

of Economics where he obtained Honours at the London BSc (Economics).

Returning to Ceylon Mr Jayasuriya interested himself in the Leftist

political movement & at the same time engaged in wider educational

activities becoming Assistant General Manager of Schools

under the Buddhist Theosophical Society.’

– City News, 15 March 1948

*

So, in 1948 there still were no ‘qualified’ economists in the country. Professor Jayasuriya developed a Sinhala glossary of economics terms, and wrote 3 economics textbooks in the Sinhala Language. He was in the forefront of making Sinhala the national language, and turns out to have been indeed ‘a formidable critic of Vice-Chancellor Ivor Jennings’ educational policy’. Among his first students was later UNCTAD Secretary-General Gamani Corea, as well as his own nephew, the eminent GVS de Silva, architect of the Paddy Lands Act.

     Jayasuriya also worked with SA Wickremasinghe & Pieter Keuneman, who later formed the Communist Party of Sri Lanka. Jayasuriya went on to help set up the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) with H Sri Nissanka & SWRD Bandaranaike. He also advised the Tamil Congress on the economics of federalism. But he then started a fast unto death at Galle Face Green to demand the abrogation of the Bandaranaike-Chelvanayagam Pact in 1958.

     The fate of FR Jayasuriya resembles that of DJ Wimalasurendra and of the exiled Anagarika Dharmapala before him. ee decided to look at the challenges involved in Jayasuriya’s appointment as an Economics professor, his relationship with the other Economics departments & universities. We wonder how it compared to the policies of modernized machine-developed polities elsewhere, and how the English has actively prevented certain types of knowledge (see ee Focus).

*

Last ee examined some of the early and ongoing studies of economics after 1948, and the uses to which this subject was subject. We earlier looked at the demand for state banks to invest in industrialization, and how that was blocked. The demand for industrialization itself was fueled by the struggle to enable energy security, and the last 100 years offers amazing & vivid ‘ingenious’ testimony to how industrialization has been systematically blocked by a variety of actors from embassies to foreign multinational corporations (MNCs) & banks & their avatars, the aid agencies & the chambers of commerce, etc.

• Delaying Electricity & the Early Demand for Industrialization and Independence – In 1924, DJ Wimalasurendra, who was uniquely both a Chartered Civil Engineer as well as a Chartered Electrical Engineer, was appointed head of the Electrical Engineering Section of the Public Works Department. 1924 is also the year the Aberdeen-Laxapana Scheme, the hydroelectricity generation project linked to power of the falls of the 4^th-longest river in the country, the Kelani River, was finally given the go ahead…

     But, guess what? Wimalasurendra, originator of the Aberdeen-Laxapana Hydroelectric Scheme, ‘found to his surprise that he was bypassed & not given any responsibility,’ for the scheme.

     Promising to generate more electricity than entire demand of the city of Colombo, the project began but was again blocked in 1927. In fact, it had been repeatedly blocked since the beginning of the century, despite the ‘expectations, estimates, designs & plans’ being ‘in circulation’ to tap ‘the potential of falling water of the Aberdeen Falls of the Kehelgamu Oya & of the Laxapana Falls of the Maskeli Oya. And it kept being blocked.

     The Aberdeen-Laxapana Hydroelectric Scheme was finally allowed to enter into operation in 1950. ‘It was during this long delay in construction and implementation, that a Ceylonese discourse… emerged and evolved’, imagining ‘an industrially advanced Ceylon… made possible by the less expensive & mass-scale electrical energy generation capacity of the hydroelectric scheme’, writes BD Witharana in his thesis, Negotiating Power & Constructing the Nation: Engineering in Sri Lanka.

     While the media try to blame the delay only on differences between Wimalasurendra and his white overseers in the colonial government, ‘Wimalasurendra took it even further to position the delay in a discourse on the business & economic interests of the English imperialist project.’ At that time, in 1924 electricity was provided to Colombo at the highest prices in the region by England’s Boustead Brothers. Boustead fronted for a whole web of interests linking then-power equipment provider Pearson (now educational publisher, examiner & immigration gatekeeper) to Shell & British Petroleum (BP), and the role of Singapore as regional economic policeman. Those who represented those interests were knighted & rewarded, and their children & grandchildren & great-grandchildren still rule, still pontificate.

• This week saw further steps to sell off control over energy, and the generation of electricity. With India’s foreign secretary S. Jaishankar in town, it may be enlightening (to use an energy-appropriate metaphor) to learn how India’s ‘power policy’ was ‘liberalized’ under the US (read: IMF/ World Bank) dictat. India is showing us where Sri Lankans are being taken, or dragged.

*

‘Gautam Adani would have thought Sri Lanka has no energy economists

or power system engineers, or would have wrongly assumed that all

Sri Lankan professionals were as mediocre as the politicians or the

handful of administrators & engineers in the power sector and its

2 regulatory institutions they directly deal with.’

– T Siyambalapitiya, see ee Industry,

Adani Wind Power Project: Making a curvy record

straight needs more than quoting tweets

We are also like Adani. We are also not aware of the various kinds of economists we have and who they serve. Openly promoted economists in Sri Lanka are part of the public-relations mafia – salaried apologists for the old colonial import-export plantation economy that continues to this day. Some are honest:

‘Since much of [power] reform is politically unmarketable…

the implementation game is all about stealth, ambiguity,

& following the path of least resistance.’

– World Bank Consultant (see ee Random Notes)

Indeed, the present IMF ‘communication’ strategy’ is all about stealth & strategic ambiguity, and attacking the weakest in society.

     Analyze ee’s weekly News Compendium. Like the legendary moneylenders who gather often in their inner sanctums  – at least weekly & monthly – to whisper the unofficial interest rates, the media within and across its domain of misinformation & disinformation, has to plan its ‘optics’ & ‘talking points’. Like sky rockets they splutter, zoom and burst and flair and fall uselessly into our nostrils and back to earth. This week, business headlines were about purported wealth taxes on houses, even as the Japan’s car import lobby displayed its muscle. In the outside world, the imperialists are threatening ‘tactical’ nuclear war on West Asia, Europe & East Asia.

     ‘Salaries must increase when overcoming a crisis’, headlines an Ada Derana interview this week apparently quoting US-Embassy-darling & Central Bank Governor Nandalal Weerasinghe. Yet this is decidedly unclear. Does he mean increases only for Central Bank Officials? & does he mean before or during or after the crisis is overcome? & how about increasing other wages too? Take the ongoing choreographed nadagam about hiking plantation wages. There’s little talk about investment in modern technology, which could assure higher wages? Yet Weerasinghe as one of the leading advocates of the ‘neoliberal economic model’, declares, ‘the manufacturing economy is a myth!’

     So with all this, is it so difficult to find out exactly what these unelected bureaucrats are up to? Let’s examine the recent marketing of the 17^th IMF ‘reform’ & the mercantile commitment to democracy:

*

‘When it comes to implementing trade reforms,

it is not merely a matter of economic theory,

but of a communication strategy that needs to be in place’

– England’s Ceylon Tobacco Co (CTC) director Suresh Shah,

Head of State-owned Enterprises Restructuring Unit (SRU) in SL

*

     Power. Energy. Fuel. Oil. Gas. Solar. Wind. Nuclear. ‘Electricity is critical for capital accumulation.’ India’s power sector was the first selected for capitalist ‘reform’ in 1991. The media harangued that ‘India’s pre-liberalization power policy’ was ‘characterized by vast subsidies for irrigated agriculture, widespread theft, scarcity & underinvestment’ – a victim of ‘short-termist populism’. However, these problems continue today despite the IMF/WB (read: US) reforms. (see ee Focus)

     This ee briefly recaps India’s 1948 Electricity (Supply) Act, which created state electricity boards (SEBs), which may turn out to have formed the basis of dividing India into pieces.

     The 1991 US-funded reforms first supported Independent Power Producers (IPPs, sound familiar?) which have ended up generating extremely expensive power, if sometimes not producing any power at all.

     The capitalists argued that India’s energy policy (electrical subsidies) were due to a surfeit of politics, ‘short-termist logic of electoral democracy’, etc. Ah! It turns out the grumblings of economists beloved of the IMF & World Bank’s cussing elections & populism are not new or just about Sri Lanka. They said the same in India & we are sure they claim so everywhere else.

*

‘We are not sure democracy is a good thing.’

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‘The principal objective of reform became

‘to depoliticize economic life’.

But the attempt to supposedly depoliticize power policy has enabled its repoliticization forging closer relationship between so-called ‘independent’ officials, politicians & capitalists local & international – concentrating secretive & technocratic decision-making power‘ (see Random Notes).

*

• Votes Did Not Count – 1924 indeed. The English railroad finally reached Badulla but would not be budged further. But those were still ‘the good old days’ when only a few white people & their off-white friends were allowed to vote. And even fewer allowed to go to school, or to rule. At the 4^th election to the Legislative Council of Ceylon, only 205,000 propertied Ceylonese men who could speak & read English and were loyal to the English crown – ie. about 4% of the entire population – were deemed eligible to vote. 34 ‘unofficial members’ were elected out of the 49 members in the Legislative Council. 11 of those elected were from the ‘communal constituencies’, the English were busy sharpening. The other 23 were from the ‘territorial constituencies’. We are not sure if they were unofficial, territorial or communal, but the list includes an elected representative of the Chamber of Commerce, as well as Europeans, Burghers, and appointed Kandyan Sinhala, Muslim & Indian Tamils. Not everyone subscribed to the identities reinforced by the limited franchise. Only 3 ‘Kandyans’ were elected to 7 Kandyan seats, as Kandyan voters were said to have ‘preferred low-country representatives’.

*

• This ee Focus also has Deshika Mendis pointing to the ‘incredible list of seemingly small & random train accidents & incidents of the past few months, wondering if there are subtle attempts to sabotage the Sri Lanka Railways (SLR), damage passenger confidence and profits, then privatize it also given valuable land holdings?’

     And speaking of national vandalism, ee also reproduces the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA)’s take on recent Elections & Coalitions there. They point to the present sabotage of the electrical system (Eskom) as a prelude to its privatization. NUMSA describes the South African economy as a ‘Minerals-Energy-Finance Complex’, and is very critical of the recent coalition between the ANC & former rulers of the Apartheid regime, who are linked to US-backed Israel. Critics of NUMSA point to its’ spewing fire in its rhetorical revolutionary prose’, even as it is ‘still hamstrung by the 1954 ANC’s racist-Zionist African Freedom Charter (aka ‘Cheater’) proclaiming that Azania/ South Africa belongs to everybody & everyone who lives in it – the oppressed & the oppressor, European slave masters & enslaved African…’ Let us see what their Nobel-Prize-winning ‘reconciliation’ has amounted to (see ee Focus).

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If a true detective murder-mystery thriller novel were to be written on Sri Lanka, it would not just be about how Unilever & their League of Multinational Corporations (LMNC) in Sri Lanka massaged and diverted the so-called aragalaya in SL. The tragicomedy (let us laugh, for we have cried too much…) would also recount how they have systematically blocked industrialization, particularly our struggle for energy security. This thriller would also detail the various false scents (exports, foreign investment) and crumbs (MSMEs, assembly, handicraft) thrown to divert us.

*

_________

Contents:

Our First Economists & the Fight for Our Own Electricity

Courtesy The Island

Criticism of Adani projects is not new in Sri Lanka. For the first time now, a public interest litigation has been filed in the Supreme Court against Adani Green Energy.

Last week, the Bishop of the Diocese of Mannar along with three prominent environmentalists, filed a public interest litigation in the Sri Lankan Supreme Court, challenging the proposed 250 MW Mannar Wind Power Project.

In February 2023, Sri Lanka’s Board of Investment approved the development of the $442-million wind power project by Adani Green Energy. Wind power plants were to be built in Mannar and Pooneryn in Northern Sri Lanka.

Indian billionaire Gautam Adani’s Adani Group is also developing a $700-million container terminal at the strategically located Colombo Port. While Adani’s projects have faced setbacks and criticism previously, the litigation against Adani Green Energy is the first legal challenge facing the formidable Adani Group in Sri Lanka.

The legal petition in the Supreme Court has challenged the procurement process and construction of the project by Adani Green Energy.

It names 67 respondents, including the Cabinet of Ministers, the Sri Lanka Sustainable Energy Authority (SLSEA), the Central Environmental Authority (CEA), the Board of Investment, the Ceylon Electricity Board, the Public Utilities Commission Sri Lanka, and the Attorney General. In addition to raising concerns about the credibility of the project’s environmental impact assessment (EIA) and the role of the SLSEA, the petition highlights procedural issues in the awarding of the contract and questions the characterization of the project as a government-to-government deal.

The petition challenges the basis for the negotiated tariff. It argues that the tariff of $0.0826, or 8.26 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh) for 20 years would lead to financial losses for the country and burden consumers.

It was reported that a Technical Evaluation Committee appointed by Sri Lanka to negotiate the Adani project had recommended to the government that a unit of electricity should be bought for $0.05 per kWh. Independent Sri Lankan energy experts have pointed out that Adani is selling power to the Indian state at less than $0.04 per kWh.

The petitioners also say that despite the project’s national importance, the two sides have not made data available for public scrutiny. The petition requested the Court to order the release of all files and records, including bids for the Mannar and proposed 234 MW Pooneryn plants; deliberations and negotiations; Cabinet decisions; unit price discussions; and criteria for project assessments.

The petition argues that like most EIA reports on major projects in the past decade, the EIA on the Mannar wind power project is mere eyewash. The EIA was manipulated to award the project to Adani, it says.

The petitioners also wondered why the Power and Energy Minister acted as the project’s approving authority when there is a designated body — the CEA — for such tasks.

There is no transparency regarding the lease of 202 hectares on Mannar Island for the project, nor information on compensation for affected landowners. The EIA also did not adequately evaluate alternative sites — Ambewela, the South East coast, Kalpitiya, and Jaffna — or provide a rationale for choosing Mannar Island.

The petition emphasizes the importance of Mannar Island as a focal point of the Central Asian Flyway, making it crucial for conservation and tourism. In March this year, Prof. Sampath S. Seneviratne of the University of Colombo’s Department of Zoology and Environment Sciences told The Island that around 15 million birds migrate to Sri Lanka from 30 countries each year. We are going to establish 52 windmills that have 96-metre rotor blades that rotate at about 100 km per hour in the path of these birds,” he said.

The petitioners seek a declaration from the Supreme Court that their fundamental rights and those of the citizenry have been violated and that the decisions to award the project to Adani are wrongful and should be declared illegal. The petition aims to further the national interest by preserving and protecting public property, the environment, flora and fauna, public finances, and the rights and freedoms of the general public and future generations of Sri Lanka.

The Adani Group has emerged as a major player in Sri Lanka’s renewable energy sector in recent years, entering the country amidst increased Indian geostrategic presence in the Indian Ocean island, especially after India provided $4 billion worth of credit during the country’s financial crisis in 2022.

However, the Group’s presence in Sri Lanka has been fraught with controversy. Most Sri Lankans believe that giving Adani a number of large and strategic projects is the Ranil Wickremesinghe government’s way of repaying the debt. The Adani Group’s transformation from a medium-scale enterprise to an economic powerhouse over the past two decades is closely linked to the owner’s relationship with Prime Minister Modi.

In June 2022, M.M.C. Ferdinando, chairman of the state-run Ceylon Electricity Board, informed Parliament’s Committee on Public Enterprises that the Sri Lankan government had faced pressure from Prime Minister Modi to award renewable energy project tenders to the Adani Group.

Sri Lanka’s opposition parties view the government’s agreements with Adani as back door” deals. Environmentalists and civil society organizations too have protested the social-environmental impact of these agreements. What these groups often lack is the financial resources and institutional backing necessary for a prolonged battle with a powerful multinational company.

Anti-Adani sentiments in Sri Lanka can be expected to grow in the coming years, and the concerns of those who oppose agreements with the Adani Group will be validated by the petition filed recently by Sri Lanka’s powerful Catholic Church.

The Catholic Church has shown that it can be persistent in pursuit of its objectives and this, coupled with the high possibility of the election of a less pro-India government in Sri Lanka later this year would make Adani’s operations in the island more difficult.

Ministry of Defence  – Media Centre

A series of programmes, including the proposed distribution of cement under the decentralized budget, the laying of foundation stones for school development projects under the ‘Kandukara Dashakaya’ programme and the progress review of completed projects, were conducted under the patronage of State Minister of Defence Hon. Premitha Bandara Tennakoon yesterday (Jun 23) at several places in the Dambulla and Matale districts.

The required resources, budgetary allocations and labour for the development projects implemented in Dambulla and Matale were facilitated through the direct intervention and supervision of the State Minister.

Accordingly, a programme commenced yesterday to distribute cement for development work in registered Buddhist temples at the Laggala Divisional Secretariat.

Subsequently,  site visits were conducted to inspect work on the construction of partially completed two-story building and the smart classroom at Ranamuregama Vidyalaya, Wilgamuwa, new office building at Narangamuwa Primary School, concrete road repair work and the proposed site for the construction of a bridge in Guruwela area, road development project near Velankatiya lake, renovation of new classroom building and the main hall of Wilgamuwa Hattotamuna Vidyartha Primary School, conversion of No 2 and 3 classrooms into smart classrooms and the repair work of the main hall of Wilgamuwa Minipura Vijaya Maha Vidyalaya, construction of smart classroom at Wilgamuwa Agrabodhi Vidyalaya and the renovation of the laboratory and the sanitation facility at Wilgamuwa Ma Oya Junior school.

The State Minister instructed the officials concerned to expedite work in progress and carry out the proposed programmes to be implemented more effectively.

School Principals, teachers, students, parents and many local residents were present on these occasions.

අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය මාධ්‍ය අංශය 

කොට්ටාව ආනන්ද විද්‍යාලයේ නව තෙමහල් ගොඩනැගිල්ල සිසු අයිතියට පත්කිරීමේ අවස්ථාවට එක්වෙමින් 2024.06.23 දින අග්‍රාමාත්‍යවරයා මේ බව සඳහන් කළේය.
එහිදී අදහස් දැක් වූ අග්‍රාමාත්‍යවරයා –  
නව දැනුම නව තාක්ෂණය උපයෝගී කර ගැනීම  වර්තමාන සිසු පරම්පරාවට අවශ්‍යතම අභියෝගයයි.  එම අභියෝගයට අප පිවිසිය යුතුයි. එම අභියෝගය හරහා අපේ දරුවන්ට අනාගතයට ගමන් කළ හැකි මාර්ගය ශක්තිමත් කර දෙන්නට ඕනේ. හැම ජයග්‍රහණයක් වගේම අනාගතය සැලසුම් කරගැනීමේ ඕනෑකම සුවිශේෂව ඇති කරගනිමින් කොට්ටාවේ ප්‍රධාන විද්‍යාලයක් බවට පරිවර්තනය වීමට කොට්ටාව ආනන්ද විද්‍යාලය අවශ්‍ය ශක්තිය ලබාගන්නට ඕනේ. ඒ ආකාරයෙන් තමයි අපිට දියුණුවට පිවිසෙන්නට පුළුවන් වෙන්නේ. පාසල්වල සංකීර්ණව තිබෙන අධ්‍යාපන දැනුම වැඩිදියුණු කර ගැනීමට තිබෙන ක්ෂේත්‍රයන් අතරේ සම්පත් අඩු බව එක් වැදගත් ක්ෂේත්‍රයක්.
සම්පත් සඳහා ආයෝජනය කළ හැකි ප්‍රමාණය බලාපොරොත්තු වන ඉලක්කයන් වලට වඩා අඩුයි. ඒ නිසා අසමාන ලෙස රට පුරා අධ්‍යාපනය වැඩෙනවා. බලාපොරොත්තු සහගත ඉලක්කවලට පිවිසෙන්නට පරම්පරාවකට අවස්ථාව ඇතිවීම හරහා යාම නිසා තරඟය වැඩිවී තිබෙනවා. තරඟය වැඩිවීම හොඳ වගේම ගැඹුරු දැනුමකට අපේ දරුවන් පරිවර්තනය කරගැනීමේ ඕනෑකමට ගමන් කරන්නට ඕනෑ.  
විදේශ රටවලින් ලැබෙන ආධාර, තාක්ෂණික දැනුම, විවිධාකාර පුහුණු පාඨමාලා උපයෝගී කරගත් ගුරු පරම්පරාවක් මෙලෙස ඉදිරියට  සකස් කිරීමේ ඕනෑකමට මුළු ආණ්ඩුවම කැපවී සිටිනවා. මේ හැම දරුවෙක්ම රටේ අනාගතයේ භාරදූර වගකීම් ගන්න පුළුවන් දරුවෝ බවට පත්විය යුතුයි. අපේ දූ පුතුන් දෙගොල්ලොම අද සමාජයේ හැම අවස්ථාවකටම පිවිසී වගකීම් භාර ගත හැකි ලෙස තම දැනුම පරිත්‍යාග කරමින් සිටිනවා.
පවතින පාසල් සංඛ්‍යාව හොඳින් ගොඩ නැගෙනවා. හොඳින් මෙහෙය වෙනවා. නමුත් අවසාන පන්ති කාමරය දක්වා ඒ හා සමානව අපේ දරුවන් සම්පත් වලින් යුතුව ගමන් කරවීමේ ඕනෑකමට අපේ අධ්‍යාපනය ක්‍රමයේ වැය ශීර්ෂයන් සකස් විය යුතුයි. අපේ දරුවන්ට ලබා දිය හැකි උතුම්ම දායාදය වූ අධ්‍යාපනය අඛණ්ඩව ඇති කරගෙන යාමට පුළුවන්කම හා දෙමාපියන් හැටියටත්, පාසලක් හැටියටත් ඒ සන්තෘෂ්ටිය ඇතිකර ගැනීමට හැකිවන්නේ එසේ වුවහොත් පමණයි.
පාර්ලිමේන්තු මන්ත්‍රී යදාමිණී ගුණවර්ධන, රාජ්‍ය පරිපාලන අමාත්‍යාංශ ලේකම් ප්‍රදීප් යසරත්න, කොට්ටාව ආනන්ද විද්‍යාලයේ විදුහල්පති දිස්නා  වැලිකල, හිටපු පළාත් සභා අමාත්‍ය උපාලි කොඩිකාර, විද්‍යාලයීය ආදි ශිෂ්‍ය සංගමයේ සභාපති දුමින්ද සංජීව  බාලසූරිය, ගුරු, සිසු, දෙමාපියන් මෙම අවස්ථාවට සහභාගී වූහ.

අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය මාධ්‍ය අංශය     

Wimal Weerawansa