Courtesy Adaderana

There is no change in the government policy.” President Gotabaya Rajapaksa stressed that the country’s agriculture policy is only for a green agriculture that focuses on the sole use of organic fertilizers.

President Rajapaksa said that the government will only distribute organic fertilizer and provide subsidies only for organic farming, the PMD reported. 

He also said that the farmers should be properly educated and that it is also vital to identify the chemical fertiliser mafia that exists when implementing this. The President emphasized that the commitment of the officials was essential to make the right policy victorious.

The President made this observation at a special discussion held at the Presidential Secretariat this morning (22) regarding the cultivation for the Maha Season and the supply of organic fertiliser.

The President inquired from officials at the district level about the cultivation of paddy and other crops in all parts of the country. 

The heavy rains that prevailed have reduced the yield of many crops including vegetables. Moreover, the delay in the distribution of organic manure affected the cultivation activities during the Maha Season. However, at the district level, the cultivation activities commenced in nearly 70% of the total agricultural lands, the officials were quoted as saying.

The President pointed out that the reason behind farmers organizing protests and delaying cultivation was that they have not been properly educated. The President expressed his displeasure to the officials for not accurately educating the farmers, the statement said. 

The President emphasized that the officials should work to find answers on behalf of the agitating farmers in accordance with the green agriculture policy and added that there is no obstacle for the officials who do not agree with the government policy to leave.

The President also said that the support of a team that works clearly according to their conscience is needed for the success of this programme.

Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage, State Minister Shasheendra Rajapaksa, Governors Marshal of the Air Force Roshan Goonetileke and Anuradha Yahampath, Secretary to the President P.B. Jayasundera, Principal Advisor to the President Lalith Weeratunga and Heads of the Ministry of Agriculture and its affiliated line agencies and organic fertilizer manufacturers were also present on the occasion.

-PMD

Courtesy Adaderana

The Ministry of Health says that another 197 persons have tested positive for the novel coronavirus today, increasing the daily count of new cases to 735. 

Sri Lanka’s tally of Covid-19 cases reported increases to 557,361 with this while over 16,000 infected patients are currently undergoing treatment.

The Director General of Health Services has confirmed another 31 coronavirus related deaths for November 21, increasing the death toll in the country due to the virus pandemic to 14,158.

The deaths confirmed today includes 21 males and 10 females while one of the victims is below the age of 30 years. Seven are between the ages 30-59 years while the remaining 23 are aged 60 and above. 

Courtesy Adaderana

Agriculture Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage has instructed the Secretary of the ministry to call for an explanation from the Registrar of Pesticides regarding the gazette issued revoking a previous gazette imposing a ban on the use and sale of Glyphosate and four other agrochemicals in several areas. 

An Extraordinary Gazette notification had been published today (22) revoking the Gazette issued in 2014 prohibiting the use and sale of several pesticides including Glyphosate. 

Issued by the Registrar of Pesticides Dr. J. A. Sumith and dated November 01, it revokes the previous Gazette in the interest of the public and on the advice of the Pesticide Technical and Advisory Committee.”

The Gazette revokes the Order made under Section 11 of the Control of Pesticides Act, No. 33 of 1980 and published in Gazette Extraordinary No. 1894/4 of December 22, 2014.

The  Gazette issued in 2014 had prohibited the use, offer for sale or sale of agrochemicals containing the active ingredients Glyphosate, Propanil, Carbaryl, Cholopyrifos and Carbofuran in the following areas:

Within the Districts of Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa, Kurunegala, Monaragala and within the Divisional Secretariat, Divisions of Mahiyanganaya, Rideemaliyadda, Kandaketiya in the Badulla District.

Courtesy Hiru News

Control of Pesticides act that was issued prohibiting the use, sale of Glyphosate, Propanil, Carbary1, Cholopyrifos & Carbofuran in December 22, 2014 has been revoked today by the Registrar of Pesticides through an Extraordinary Gazette.

Courtesy Hiru News

Control of Pesticides act that was issued prohibiting the use, sale of Glyphosate, Propanil, Carbary1, Cholopyrifos & Carbofuran in December 22, 2014 has been revoked today by the Registrar of Pesticides through an Extraordinary Gazette

Chanaka Bandarage

Sri Lanka has one of Asia’s worst traffic problems. Prior to Corona, it was a nightmarish exercise to drive around Colombo during peak hours. In Colombo, people spent long hours in vehicles to travel from one place to another. Eg: prior to Corona, it took about 120 minutes to drive from Athurugiriya to Colombo Fort during peak hours. It is a distance of mere 21 km.  Thanks to   Corona the traffic flow has drastically reduced.  But, Corona is only a temporary solution.

Traffic is common to many world’s big cities. But, modern cities have well coped with the problem. Colombo is notorious for its bumper to bumper traffic. This is common in all areas of the city even now; it is particularly bad in Duplication Road, Wellawatte, Dehiwela, Borella, Orugodawatta, Rajagiriya and Colombo 12 -15 areas.  The problem in these areas is that traffic stays stagnant for extra-ordinarily long times or move exceptionally slowly.

After the war, the governments believed that building of expressways was the best solution to solve Sri Lanka’s traffic problem; they also foolishly thought that expressways would bring economic prosperity. It has now been proven that this belief was misconceived. Despite the expressways, the major cities continue to have major traffic problems. And, the economy did not improve.

True, expressways did solve some transport problems.  Eg: a person can now drive from Kottawa to Mathara within 2 hours (this used to be a 4 hour trip). Then, the travel time between Peliyagoda interchange to Katunayake airport is now about 30 minutes (this used to be a 90 minute trip).

Work on the Kandy expressway and the Colombo Outer Circular Road is largely finished.

The Katunayake (Airport) expressway was a must; it was a long felt need. It was completed in 2013. The then government must be congratulated for doing it successfully.

But, the fact of the matter is that expressways have caused enormous economic and environmental problems. In some instances expressways have created new traffic problems.

This paper intends to analyse the expressways’ negative impact on Sri Lanka and how they can be used to effectively solve Sri Lanka’s massive traffic problem.

All recent governments rushed to believe that expressways is the solution to enhance the country’s GDP growth. They borrowed money heavily from overseas banks on high interest rates.

Again, expressways failed to deliver the rapid economic development that the governments had anticipated.

The governments failed to realise that like tea, rubber, fishery, garments, agriculture, small industry etc roads cannot bring in direct foreign investment ($) to the country. Expressways is a non-essential capital investment. Subject to strict environmental guidelines, they are good to build when the country’s economy is healthy. Today, the country is struggling to feed its people due to lack of foreign currency ($) to import essential foods like sugar, wheat and onions etc.  In such a situation it is insane to go spending billions of rupees to build more and more expressways.

Instead of spending the borrowed dollars on expressways (some expressway projects are white elephants), if they were given as micro loans to disadvantaged people to start self-employment projects, that would have been very healthy to the GDP. But, corrupt politicians are obsessed with building these concrete jungles, they are an easy way for them to steal part of the borrowed money to fatten their bank accounts.

The writer states that expressways have benefitted only a privileged minority. It is a fact that more than 60% of the country’s vehicles are excluded from expressways. This issue is addressed in detail later.

It was reported in the media that the present government intends to construct/extend at least four expressways. As stated before, the burning transport problem of Sri Lanka is not the lack of expressways but the lengthy traffic jams in major cities especially Colombo. Not only that the expressways have failed to solve this massive problem; they have created bottlenecks that acerbated the existing problem.

In Colombo, reaching the expressway entry points is a herculean task. It took 90/120 minutes for a person to drive from Borella to Athurugiriya/Kottawa Southern expressway entry points (prior to Corona). The time saved by faster driving on the Southern expressway is wasted by the enormous extra driving one has to make, also the lengthy delays at entry points.

We are neither a continent nor a large country; but a tiny island nation in the size of 65,600 sq km. Sri Lanka only has a maximum length of 268 miles (432 km) and a maximum width of 139 (224 km) miles.  Expressways are best for large countries. What Sri Lanka requires is a well carpeted network of roads everywhere, including in rural areas. Preferably they should at least be dual track each side on main highways (this is what they are currently doing everywhere in Galle Road). There are lots of dilapidated roads in the interior that requires immediate attention. 

Instead of spending large amounts of money on expressways that will extend to very remote areas, the governments should have given top priority to fixing the traffic problem in Colombo and other major cities like Kandy, Kurunegala, Galle, Mathara, Negambo etc.

To ease the huge traffic congestion in major cities especially Colombo we require efficient, computerized traffic lights, wider streets, new alternative roads/overhead bridges (flyovers). We must consider building underground road tunnels and sometimes overhead roads.  The Colombo Outer Circular Road is a good initiative. Parking should be banned on all main roads. The road side parking spaces should be amalgamated to main roads. New multi-storey car parks as private ventures must be erected to park vehicles.

Improvement of public transport is a must to reduce the traffic flow. Then, people will leave their vehicles home and start using SLTB/private buses and trains. Currently the public transport facilities are most appalling. We still have a 1970/80 style public transport system. In this 2021, people travel in rickety old buses and trains, jampacked. Surely they deserve better.  The governments should ensure that every passenger will have a seat in public transport (Malaysia is an example).

An underground Metro rail system is good but the cost of such a project is astronomical. The advantage of the underground Metros is that they are linked with the existing railway system.

Light rail will not solve Colombo’s traffic problem. It is unlikely that people will leave cars at home and board the light rail to travel to work. People are obsessed with their cars and are too lazy to substitute car travel with any other mode of transport.

Empirical evidence shows that those who are addicted to cars will continue to use them whatever the good alternative provided to them. This same rationale applies to motorcycle/scooter riders. Mumbai, Bangkok, Kuala Lampur – all have above the ground Light Rail.  They still have very bad vehicular traffic problems.

What Light Rail would do is to take over some of the existing omnibus loads. This means if Light Rail is to reduce Colombo’s traffic that would only be in relation to reducing some omnibus operations. It is not worthwhile to spend such a lot of money for such a small advantage.

Light Rail will cause huge environmental and logistical problems. It will take several years to complete the 1^st stage of the Light Rail. During the construction period, the traffic problem from Malabe to Fort via Rajagiriya and Borella would increase by tenfold. This congestion will flow on to other parts of the City. 

Due to lack of sunlight the ground underneath the Light Rail concrete slab is always dark; also that valuable area is unproductive (note areas under Colombo flyovers – Dematagoda, Nugegoda, Dehiwala; under the Katunayake expressway in Ragama; under the Light Rail tracks in Mumbai/Bangkok). Light Rail introduces a new darkness to the environment; the brightness in the townships will end.

Large, dark swaths of land that lie under the giant concrete structures of the Southern and Katunayake expressways (due to lack of sunlight) are now unproductive and cannot be used for any purpose. They are eyesores too.

Sri Lanka’s traffic jams are a major impediment in attracting foreign investment and tourists. No one wants to spend long hours in traffic jams.

The governments have been slack on developing/upgrading interior roads of towns/villages. The previous government’s ‘Gamperaliya’ project which was introduced in its final year did a good job in this regard.

As outlined before, most of the rural roads are still not tarmacked/concreted. They are in pathetic condition especially after torrential rains.

When town/rural roads are improved, farmers are able to sell their produce speedily at reasonable prices as trucks and lorries would be able to reach villages directly/easily.

Owing to the Southern expressway one could see how fertile rubber estates and paddy fields have been divided into two. As a result, apart from the environmental degradation, the adverse impact to the economy is huge. Some of these estates have become more or less useless in value.

As the expressways cut forest lands into two, wildlife become stuck on both sides. This has serious problems in their mating and reaching breeding grounds. Some try to cross the expressways and die after becoming hit by speeding motor vehicles. It is sad to see carcasses of dead wildlife, especially of various alligators, iguanas, peacocks, butterflies, stray dogs, snake type serpents frequently on the expressways.

Now that a long road has been cut through the Sinharaja National Park – a World Heritage Site, one day it too could be connected to the Southern expressway. Then, that could be the end of Sinharaja?

A similar road is being constructed in Meemure in the Knuckles range. Meemure is dubbed Sri Lanka’s remotest village.

The new Buttala – Kataragama road (B35) that was built after the war (around 2012) has resulted in causing massive damage/disturbance to Yala wildlife, including wild elephants.

Cutting across vehicular roads through nature reserves means the gradual ending of them.

Due to the Southern expressway, the roadside businesses, especially restaurants that operate on the Galle Road had a huge economic setback. Even the temples such as Kaluthara Bodhi, Wewurukannala in Mathara and Tissamaharamaya now attract less pilgrims. These temples depend on public donations for survival and their revenues have significantly dwindled since inception of the Southern expressway. 

It has been reported that the loss of agricultural land as a result of the Kandy expressway is far worse than the Southern and Katunayake expressways combined together. These are some of Sri Lanka’s best fertile lands. Acres of valuable paddy, coconut and tea lands have been acquiesced for the project. Many people living on the sides of this expressway have lost valuable crop trees – coconut, jack, mango, coffee, cocoa and various spice crops such as cloves, cardamom, and pepper vines. The value of the lost produce is priceless. For many people these valuable trees were their livelihood. People have lost houses and some were uprooted from their original habitats and were settled elsewhere.

After the present government came to power a decision was taken to build an expressway from Kadawatha to Kurunegala. For this large swaths of very fertile private paddy, rubber lands and the natural environment went under the concrete and rubble. A person who travels by train from Veyangoda to Mirigama (especially on the right hand side) could see the damage this project has caused. The beautiful serene, natural environment that existed is gone/hidden. They are taken over by ugly concrete structures and the new tarmacked road.  Some waterways, anicuts, wildlife have obviously been badly affected. Local residents complain of massive flooding after major rains. Even Gampaha town submerges after massive rains. This has not happened before.

It is rumored that thanks to the Katunanayake expressway, politicians/top officials (from both sides of the politics) grabbed and acquired valuable state land for themselves. Even the most precious Muthurajawela marshy land was not spared. There are stories that the illegal land reclamation of Muthurajawela has secretly re-commenced. This is currently somewhat visible in Jaela, Delathara, Uswetakeiyyawa, Bopitiya, Pamunugama, and Wahatiyagama areas – how marshy lands have been filled. An Association must be formed urgently to stop this illegal land grab. The legal action initiated by His Eminence the Cardinal must be highly commended.

The writer states that there was no need to further extend the Mathara expressway.  There was simply not enough traffic to cater to from Mathara to Hambanthota and Mattala. The Katunayake expressway is also to be extended, the final destination is unknown. This is unnecessary. It is not necessary to extend the Kandy expressway beyond Kandy. There is absolutely no need to build a Northern expressway when vehicular traffic on the current A9, which is a well carpeted, modern road, is minimal.

Due to the new expressways are to be built/extended, it is feared that these forest/nature reserves, various parks, important areas could face serious environmental damage/destruction: Udawalawe Nature Reserve, Vitharakanda, Lunugamwehera, Madunagala, Weerawila, Kalamatiya, Nimalawa, Bundala, Ussangoda, Kataragama, Yala, Buddhangala, Ulpassa, Egodayaya,  Mahakandarawa, Anuradhapura, Mihintale, Ritigala, Somawathiya, Elahera, Bakamuna, Kaudulla, Chundikulama, Wilpattu, Yodawewa, Muthurajawela, Madhu Reserve, Bibile Nilgala and Pallekelle. Do we really want this to happen?

Contrary to what was anticipated, foreign tourists who travel to the south prefer taking the Galle Road instead of the Southern expressway. The former is more scenic, lively and refreshing (runs parallel to the coast).

It is sad to note that between Ambalangoda and Tangalle, tourist hotels and private residents have built huge boundary walls covering the sea view that was available from Galle/Weligama/Hambanthota main roads previously. The lack of proper regulations and vision are the reasons to lose same.

Now, back to the discriminatory aspect of the expressways – only about 20% of the country’s population – those who own a car/vehicle reap the benefit of expressways. A few luxury buses (who charge a higher fare) are allowed to carry passengers on expressways; meaning the poor who does intercity travel on ordinary buses are excluded.

Motorcycles, three wheelers and InterCity Buses comprise more than 60% of Sri Lanka’s registered motorized vehicles.  These three categories are excluded from expressways.

The fact that Sri Lanka’s expressways are confined only to high income earners is a clear anomaly. This is discriminatory (all people are paying off the massive foreign debts, borrowed to build the expressways).

Today it is true that vehicles do ply on expressways, but, most of the time they are empty.  In the night, expressways are like ‘ghost towns’. This is not so in developed countries. They are busy all the time. The volume of traffic is definitely insufficient.

On the other hand the roads that feed the expressways (ie, High Level Road, Galle Road, Kandy Road, Old (Avissawella) Road, Negambo Road etc) are jam-packed with vehicles especially with three wheelers, motorbikes and InterCity buses.  They should be allowed to ply on expressways.

Yes, expressways must be opened up for these vehicles (the 3 categories mentioned herein). This could be introduced as a pilot project for 3 months to assess the change. If successful, it should be made permanent.

Allowing three wheelers, motorbikes and InterCity buses to ply on the expressways will become a healthy source of revenue for the government (the government is hugely cash strapped). This will be a major solution to the country’s ever increasing traffic problem. The traffic on the main roads will significantly reduce as a result.

True some of the poor man’s vehicles may not be able to travel at the maximum speed of 100 km per hour, but it is not a serious issue.  For three wheelers, on expressways they can be restricted to the maximum speed at 70 km per hour.

In Sri Lanka, it is not a must that vehicles should drive on the expressways at the maximum speed. We are a small island nation, we can reach any destination by road within a relatively short period of time. What is required is to ensure a smooth flow of traffic on expressways.  Because there are no traffic lights on expressways, this could be achieved.

During very busy periods (April New Year, Christmas holidays) the three wheelers and motorbikes could largely be confined to the left lane or their access to the expressways can be totally stopped.

In regards to Australia and New Zealand, motorcycles and intercity buses are allowed to run on their expressways and they do not have three wheelers. Even cyclists, huge container lorries are allowed on their expressways. These two countries have only banned certain land vehicles (like tractors) and pedestrians from entering the expressways. Their highways are always busy (24/7) and earn terrific incomes for the governments.  The situation in most western countries is similar. They build their highways for all peoples, not just to a privileged few.

සමස්ත ලංකා ප්‍රවාහන සේවක සංගමය

ගරු මුදල් අමාත්‍ය,
බැසිල් රාජපක්‍ෂ මැතිතුමා,
මුදල් හා ක්‍රම සම්පාදන අමාත්‍යංශය,
කොළඹ 01.

ගරු ඇමතිතුමණි,

ශ්‍රී ලංගම සේවකයින් හට ප්‍රසාද දීමනා සහ පාසල් උපකරණ මිලදී ගැනීම සඳහා අවම වශයෙන් රුපියල් 30,000/- ක මුදලක් කඩිනමින් ලබාදීමට මැදිහත් වන ලෙස ඉල්ලා සිටීම.

ශ්‍රී ලංගම සේවකයින් හට ප‍්‍රසාද දීමනා වශයෙන් රු. 15,000/- ක මුදලක් ද පාසල් උපකරණ මිලදී ගැනීම සඳහා රුපියල් 15,000/- ක මුදලක් ද වශයෙන් රුපියල් 30,000/- මුදලක් ලබාදීමට කඩිනමින් මැදිහත් වන ලෙස අප සංගමය ප්‍රථමයෙන් ඔබතුමාගෙන් ඉල්ලා සිටින්නෙමු.

ශ්‍රී ලංගම සේවකයින් ඔවුන්ගේ ජීවිත වලට සිදුවිය හැකි හානිය පවා නොතකා #කොරෝනා වෛරසය දීප ව්‍යාප්තව තිබූ කාලය තුලත් මේ මොහොතේත් ජනතාවට යහපත් ප්‍රවාහන සේවාවක් ලබාදීම වෙනුවෙන් ඔවුන් දැවැන්ත කැප කිරීමක් සිදුකළ අතර, මේ මොහොතේ පවා එම ක්‍රියාවලිය සිදුකරමින් සිටී. ශ්‍රී ලංගම සේවකයින් මෙම කැපකිරීම සිදුකරනු ලබන්නේ මනා අවබෝධයකින් යුතුවය. #කොරෝනා උවදුර වලක්වා ගැනීමට විධිමත් අංග සම්පූර්ණ සෞඛ්‍ය පහසුකම් පවා මෙම සේවකයන්ට ලබා දෙන්නේ නැත.  

මෙම මොහොතේ අප රටේ උද්ගත වී ඇති ආර්ථික අර්බූදය නිසාම පාසල් උපකරණ මිලදී ගැනීම සඳහා අධික මිලක් දැරීමට සිදුවේ. එම නිසාම පාසල් උපකරණ මිලදී ගැනීම සඳහා අවම වශයෙන් රු. 15,000/- ක මුදලක් නැවත ගෙවීමේ පදනම මත ලබා දෙන ලෙසත්, ප‍්‍රසාද දීමනා මුදල වශයෙන් රු. 15,000/- මුදලක් ලබා දෙන ලෙසත් ඒ අනුව, රුපියල් 30,000/- මුදලක් ශ‍්‍රීලංගම සේවකයින් හට ලබාදීමට මැදිහත් වන ලෙසත් අප සංගමය ඔබතුමාගෙන් කාරුණිකව ඉල්ලා සිටින්නෙමු.

පසුගිය වසර තුල අප සංගමය මෙම මුදල ඉල්ලා සිටියමුත් ලබාදුන්නේ ප‍්‍රසාද දීමනා වශයෙන් රුපියල් 13,500/- ක මුදලක්ද පාසල් උපකරණ මිලදී ගැනීම සඳහා ගෙවීම් පදනම මත රුපියල් 10,000/- ක මුදලක්ද වශයෙන් රුපියල් 23,500/- ක මුදලක් පමණි. මෙම වසර තුල රටේ සියලූම දේවල් අධික ලෙස මිල ඉහළ ගොස් ඇති නිසාම රුපියල් 30,000/- ක සමස්ත මුදලම කිසිදු වර්ගීකරණයකින් තොරව සියලූම ශ්‍රී ලංගම සේවකයින් හට ලබාදීමට කඩිනමින් මැදිහත් වන ලෙස නැවත වතාවක් අප සංගමය ඔබතුමාගෙන් ඉමහත් ගෞරවයෙන් ඉල්ලා සිටින අතර, අදාල පිටපත් ඔබතුමාගේ කාරුණික අවධානය සඳහා මේ සමඟ අමුණා එවන්නෙමු.

විශ්වාසී,

මෙයට,
සේපාල ලියනගෙ
ප්‍රධාන ලේකම්
සමස්ත ලංකා ප්‍රවාහන සේවක සංගමය.

තිසර සමල්    – අනුරාධපුර 

අද රසායනික පොහොර ගේනවා කියලා තීන්දු කරා කියලා කියනවා.මම ඒ පිළිබඳව ඉහළ ඉඳන් පහලට ඉන්න නිළධාරීන්ට කථා කරලා බැලුවා.නෑ එහෙම තීන්දුවක් අරන් නෑ, දීලීර හා පලිභෝද නාශක වලට පමණයි ඒ තීන්දුව අරන් තියෙන්නේ.ඒ අවස්ථාව හරි ලබා දුන්න එක ලොකු දෙයක් යැයි රාජ්‍යය අමාත්‍යය දුමින්ද දිසානායක මහතා පැවසීය.

 අමාත්‍යයවරයා මේ බව ප්‍රකාශ කර සිටියේ අනුරාධපුර මිහින්තලය ආසන ශ්‍රී ලංකා නිදහස් පක්ෂ බළ මණ්ඩලය අමතමින්ය.

අනුරාධපුර මිහින්තලය ආසන ශ්‍රී ලංකා නිදහස් පක්ෂ බල මණ්ඩලය රාජ්‍යය අමාත්‍යය දුමින්ද දිසානායක මහතාගේ ප්‍රධානත්වයෙන් තිරප්පනය ප්‍රාදේශීය සභා ශ්‍රවණාගාරයේදී පැවැත්විණි.එහිදී ආසන බල මණ්ඩලය, මිහින්තලය ආසන කාන්තා, තරුණ, ගොවි, ගුරු බලමණ්ඩල ඇතුළු අනුබද්ධ සංවිධාන සඳහා නිළධාරීන් පත් කර ගැනීමද සිදු විය.

එහිදී වැඩිදුරටත් අදහස් දැක්වූ රාජ්‍යය අමාත්‍යය දුමින්ද දිසානායක මහතා,

අපි ගෝඨාභය රාජපක්ෂ මැතිතුමන්ව ජනාධිපති කරන්න ශ්‍රී ලංකා නිදහස් පක්ෂයේ අපි උපරිම සහයෝගය දුන්නා, මම එදා ජනාධිපතිවරණයේ මංගල රැළියේ  අනුරාධපුර සල්ගාදු පිටියේ වේදිකාවට නැග්ගා, අපි ඡන්ද ලක්ෂ 69 ක් ලබා ගත්තා.එදා ශ්‍රී ලංකා නිදහස් පක්ෂයට පුලුවන්කම ලැබුණා ගෝඨාභය රාජපක්ෂ මැතිතුමා ජනාධිපතිවරණයට ඉල්ලන කොට ඒ වෙලාවේ හිටිය වඩාම හොඳ සුදුස්සා, ප්‍රථිපත්තිය හා අනාගත දැක්ම අනුව රටට යහපතක් කරන්න පුලුවන් නායකයා විදිහට අපි ශ්‍රී ලංකා නිදහස් පක්ෂය විදිහට ගෝඨාභය රාජපක්ෂ මැතිතුමන් ජනාධිපති කරන්න තීන්දුව ගත්තා.ඒ වගේම අපි ඊට පස්සේ පාර්ලිමේන්තු මැතිවරණයට ඉල්ලනකොට අපි තිබුණ දීගය ඉස්සරහට ගිහින් අපි පාර්ලිමේන්තු මැතිවරණයත් එකට ඉල්ලන්න තීන්දු කළා.මේ සියලු දේවල් අපේ පක්ෂය යහපත් බලාපොරොත්තු එක්ක ශ්‍රී  ලංකා නිදහස් පාක්ෂිකයාගේ හා රටේ අනාගතය වෙනුවෙන් ගත්ත තීන්දු, බැරිවෙලාවත් අපි ඒ තීන්දු ගත්තේ නැත්නම් බැරි වෙලා හරි මේ දේවල් මේ විදිහට නොවෙන්නත් පුලුවන්.හැබැයි අදත් අපි සතුටු වෙනවා එදා අපි ගෝඨාභය රාජපක්ෂ මැතිතුමාව ජනාධිපතිකරවන්න අපි හිට ගත්ත එක ගැන, එදා රටේ ජනතාවට වගේම අපිට ලොකු බලාපොරොත්තුවක් තිබුණා.ශ්‍රී ලංකා නිදහස් පක්ෂය විදිහට අපිට හැමදාමත් මේ රටේ ජනතා ජයග්‍රහණ වෙනුවෙන් පෙනී සිටිය පක්ෂයක්.අද අපි ගාව ඉතුරු වෙලා යමක් තියෙනවා නම්, අද අපිට ආඩම්බරයෙන් කථා කරන්න පුලුවන් දෙයක් තියෙනවා නම් ඒ සියලු දේවල් ශ්‍රී ලංකා නිදහස් පක්ෂය මේ රටට ලබා දුන් ජයග්‍රහණ කියන එක ගෞරවයෙන් සිහිපත් කරනවා.

ඒ නිසා අපි ශ්‍රී ලංකා නිදහස් පක්ෂය නැවත ශක්තිමත් කරමු, ඒ වෙනුවෙන් තමයි ආසන බල මණ්ඩල ඇතුළු අනුබද්ධ සංවිධාන පිහිටුවලා ඉදිරියේ එන ඕනෑම මැතිවරණකට සූදානම් වෙන්නේ.ඉදිරියේ එන මැතිවරණ වලදී සන්ධාන ගත වෙලාද? තනියමද? එහෙමත් නැත්නම් වෙන මොකක් හරි ක්‍රමවේදයකටද? මේ මොන විදිහකට වුණත් ශ්‍රී ලංකා නිදහස් පක්ෂය ශක්තිමත් විය යුතුයි.අපි නෑ බෑ කිය කිය ඉන්නවාද? තාම වෙලාව නෙමෙයි කිය කිය ඉන්නවාද? එහෙම නැත්නම් අපි අපේ පක්ෂය ශක්තිමත් කරලා, ප්‍රවර්ධනය කරලා අනාගතයේ එන ඕනෑම තත්වයකට මුහුණ දෙන්න පුලුවන් ආකාරයට ශ්‍රී ලංකා නිදහස් පක්ෂය ශක්තිමත් කිරීම තමයි අපි හැමෝගෙම වගකීම වෙන්නේ.ශ්‍රී ලංකා නිදහස් පක්ෂය කියන්නේ කවදාවත් මරන්න පුලුවන්, පාගලා දාන්න පුලුවන් පක්ෂයක් නෙමෙයි.අපි හැමදාමත් වැටිලා තියෙනවා, වැටුණු හැම වෙලාවේම නැගිටලා තියෙනවා.ඒ නැගිටින හැම වෙලාවකදීම රටට සාධාරණයක් ඉෂ්ඨ කරලා තියෙනවා.

ගෝඨාභය රාජපක්ෂ මැතිතුමන්ව ජනාධිපති කරන්න අපි තීන්දු කලේ පක්ෂයක් විදිහට, අපි ගෝඨාභය රාජපක්ෂ මැතිතුමන්ව ජනාධිපති කරගන්න හිටගත්ත බව ඇත්ත, අපි පක්ෂයක් විදිහට සන්ධාන ගත වෙලා පාර්ලිමේන්තු මැතිවරණයට ඉල්ලපු එකත් ඇත්ත, හැබැයි අපිට ශ්‍රී ලංකා නිදහස් පක්ෂයේ දැන් දේශපාලන කටයුතු වලින් පැත්තකට වෙන්න  පුලුවන්කම තියෙනවාද?  අපි ආණ්ඩුවේ බව ඇත්ත, ජනාධිපතිතුමා හදන කොට ජනාධිපතිතුමන්ගේ පාර්ශවකාරයෙක් බව ඇත්ත, හැබැයි අපි දේශපාලන පක්ෂයක් ලෙස දේශපාලනය කළ යුතු වෙනවා.අපි සන්ධානයේ ප්‍රධාන පක්ෂයක් විදිහට, සන්ධානයේ ප්‍රධාන කොටස්කරුවෙක් විදිහට අපි අපේ පක්ෂයේ දේශපාලනය තමයි අපි ආරම්භ කරලා තියෙන්නේ.අපේ පක්ෂයේ දේශපාලන ගමන ආරම්භ කරලා තියෙන කොට අපිට මාධ්‍ය මගින් අහන්න දකින්න ලැබෙනවා සමහර වෙලාවට සමහර කට්ටිය නොයෙකුත් දේවල් කථා බහ කරනවා අපි ඒවා ගැන කණගාටු වෙන්නේ නෑ.ඒකට හේතුව අපි දන්නවා ශ්‍රී ලංකා නිදහස් පක්ෂය කියන්නේ දේශපාලන පක්ෂයක්, අද ඒ කථා කරන අයට අමතක වෙන්න පුලුවන් ඒ අයගේ මහ ගෙදරත් ශ්‍රී ලංකා නිදහස් පක්ෂය කියලා.ඒ නිසා ඒ අයට මතක් කරන්න ඕනකම තියෙනවා, අපි ශ්‍රී ලංකා නිදහස් පක්ෂය විදිහට අපි ගෝඨාභය රාජපක්ෂ මැතිතුමත් එක්ක අත්වැල් බැඳගන්නේ සහයෝගය ලබා දෙන්න, ගිවිසුම්ගත වෙලා, ඒ වගේම අපි සන්ධානයක් ලෙස පොහොට්ටුවත් සමඟ අත්වැල් බැඳගන්නේ ශ්‍රී ලංකා නිදහස් පක්ෂය ඇතුළු අනෙකුත් පක්ෂ ගිවිසුම් ගත වෙලා,එහෙම නම් අපිට කාගෙන්වත් අහන්න ඕන නෑ ශ්‍රී ලංකා නිදහස් පක්ෂය දේශපාලනය කරන්න.දේශපාලනය කරන කොට පාක්ෂිකයත් එක්ක කථා කරන්නේ මොනවද කියලා කාගෙන්වත් අහන්න ඕන නෑ අපිට, අපි අමනාපත් නෑ, ඒ අය සමහර විට ඒවා නොදන්නවා ඇති.සමහර විට අපි ලබා දුන්න ශක්තිය පිළිබඳව ඒ අයට හැඟීමක්- දැනීමක් නැතිව ඇති, අපි කියනවා ශ්‍රී ලංකා නිදහස් පක්ෂය කියලා කියන්නේ මේ සන්ධානයේ ප්‍රධාන පක්ෂයක් විදිහට අපට තියෙන දේශපාලනය කිරීමේ අයිතිය කාටවත් නවත්වන්න පුලුවන්කමක් නෑ.අපි ඉදිරි මැතිවරණ වෙනුවෙන් දේශපාලන පක්ෂයක් විදිහට අපි සූදානම් වෙනවා.

පොහොර ගැටලුව සමග ගොවිතැන ගැන කෘෂිකර්මය ගැන බොහෝ දෙනෙක් දැන් කථා වෙනවා.අපි මේ සම්බන්ධයෙන් ජනාධිපතිවරයා සමඟ සාකච්ජා කළා,පක්ෂයක් විදිහට වගේම පුද්ගලිකවත් මේ ප්‍රශ්නය ගැන කිව්වා, අපි කෘෂිකර්ම ඇමතිතුමා ඇතුළු නිළධාරීන් බළධාරීන් එක්ක සාකච්ජා කළා.මේ කාබනික කෘෂිකර්මය ඉතාම හොඳයි, අපි සියලු දෙනාම මේකට කැමතියි.අපි දැන දැන මැරෙන්න කැමති නෑ, අපේ එකම ගොවි මහත්තයෙක්වත්  තමන් වවන දෙයින් කෙනෙක් මැරෙනවාට කැමති නෑ.අද ගොවි මහත්තයාට තියෙන්නේ තමන්ගේ වගාවෙන් බලාපොරොත්තු වෙන අස්වැන්න ලැබුණේ නැත්නම්, අස්වැන්නට මිලක් නොලැබුණොත් තමන්ගේ දරුවෝ පාසල් , පන්ති යවාගන්නේ කොහොමද? කන්නේ බොන්නේ කොහොමද? ලෙඩක් දුකක් හැදුනොත් බෙහෙත් හේත් ගන්නේ කොහොමද? ගොවීන්ට තියෙන ප්‍රශ්නය හා ගොවියට තියෙන භය  මේවා.කාබනික කෘෂිකර්මාන්තයට එකම ගොවිමහත්තයෙක්වත් විරුද්ධ නෑ,අපි කියන්නේ ගොවියට දෙන දේ හරි වෙලාවට දෙන්න, අපි ගන්න ලෑස්තියි කාබනික පොහොර හරි, රසායනික නොවන පොහොර පාවිච්චි කරන්න ලෑස්තියි.වෙලාවට මේවා ටික දුන්නොත් තමයි වෙලාවට මේ ටික දාලා අපේ අස්වැන්න අපිට ගන්න පුලුවන්කම තියෙන්නේ.දෙන්නම් කියලා කිව්වට හරි යන්නේ නෑ, වෙලාවට මේ ටික ලැබුණේ නැත්නම්, වෙලාවට මේ ටික කුඹුරට දැම්මේ නැත්නම් අන්න එතනයි ප්‍රශ්නය තියෙන්නේ.ඒ නිසා ගොවියන්ට අද පාරට බහින්න වෙලා තියෙනවා.සමහරු මේක අර්ථ දක්වනවා දේශපාලන ව්‍යාපාරයක් කියලා.මේක දේශපාලන ව්‍යාපාරක් නෙමෙයි.මේක ගොවියාගේ සැබෑ ප්‍රශ්නයක්.ආණ්ඩුව නිසි වෙලාවට රසායනික හෝ කාබනික පොහොර දෙනවා නම්, පාඩුවක් වුණොත් ඒ අලාභය ගෙවනවා කියලා විශ්වාසයෙන් කියනවා නම්, ඒක තහවුරු කරනවා නම් ඒක දකින්න-පේන්න තියෙනවා නම් අපේ ගොවිමහත්වරු භය වෙන්නේ නෑ.

අද රසායනික පොහොර ගේනවා කියලා තීන්දු කරා කියලා කියනවා.මම ඒ පිළිබඳව ඉහළ ඉඳන් පහලට ඉන්න නිළධාරීන්ට කථා කරලා බැලුවා.නෑ එහෙම තීන්දුවක් අරන් නෑ, දීලීර හා පලිභෝද නාශක වලට පමණයි ඒ තීන්දුව අරන් තියෙන්නේ.ඒ අවස්ථාව හරි ලබා දුන්න එක ලොකු දෙයක් යැයිද පැවසීය.

මෙම අවස්ථාවට හිටපු අමාත්‍යය තිස්ස කරල්ලියද්ද මහතා ඇතුළු අනුරාධපුර දිස්ත්‍රික් ආසන සංවිධායකවරුන්, පළාත් පාලන නියෝජිතයන් ඇතුළු පාක්ෂිකයන් විශාල පිරිසක් සහභාගී වූහ.

මාධ්‍ය ඒ්කකය කැෆේ සංවිධානය

පොදුජන පෙරමුණේ පාර්ලිමේන්තු මන්ත්‍රී තිස්ස කුට්ටිආරච්චි මහතා පසුගියදා පාර්ලිමේන්තුව අමතමින් කාන්තාවන්ට අපහාස වන අන්දමේ ප්‍රකාශයක් කර ඇති බව කැෆේ සංවිධානය පවසයි. එම සංවිධානයේ අධ්‍යක්ෂිකා සුරංගි ආරියවංශ මහත්මිය පෙන්වා දෙන්නේ පාර්ලිමේන්තු මන්ත්‍රී තිස්ස කුට්ටිආරච්චි මහතා පාර්ලිමේන්තු වරප්‍රසාද වලට මුවාවි පාර්ලිමේන්තු මන්ත්‍රිනි රෝහිණි කවිරත්න සහ විපක්ෂ නායක සජිත් ප්‍රේමදාස මහතාගේ බිරිඳට අපහාස වන ආකාරයේ අසභ්‍ය ප්‍රකාශනයක් සිදුකිරීම ශිෂ්ට සමාජයක් විසින් අනුමත නොකරන බවයි.

රටේ උත්තරීතර ආයතනය වන පාර්ලිමේන්තුව තුළදී  පවා කාන්තාව මෙලෙස හෑල්ලුවට ලක් කරන්නේ  නම් තිස්ස කුට්ටිආරච්චි වැනි මන්ත්‍රී වරුන්  ජනතාවට නායකත්වය ලබාදෙන ආකාරය පිළිබඳ සිතාගත හැකි බව ආරියවංශ මහත්මිය අවධාරණය කරයි. කුමන තරාතිරමක සිටිය ද මුවින් පිටවන්නේ පුද්ගලයෙකුගේ බුද්ධියේ සහ අධ්‍යාපනයේ ප්‍රමාණය බව තිස්ස කුට්ටිආරච්චි මන්ත්‍රීවරයා විසින් තවදුරටත් පාර්ලිමේන්තුව හමුවේ තහවුරු කර ඇති බවද කැෆේ සංවිධානයේ  අධ්‍යක්ෂිකාව පෙන්වා දෙයි.

පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ උත්තරීතර බව නොදත් මෙවැනි මන්ත්‍රීවරුන්ගේ හැසිරීම් නිසා ජාත්‍යන්තරය හමුවේ රට අපකීර්තියට පත්වන බවත් ජන නායකයින් කෙරෙහි මෙරට සමස්ත කාන්තා පරපුරේ විශ්වාසය ගිලිහී යන බවත් ආරියවංශ මහත්මිය  වැඩිදුරටත් පෙන්වා දෙයි.

වර්තමානයේ දේශපාලනයේ නිරත කාන්තාව මුහුණ දී සිටින ප්‍රධාන අර්බුදය මෙවැනි “ඊනියා චණ්ඩි පිරිමින්ගේ ” හැසිරීම් බව පෙන්වා දෙන ආරියවංශ මහත්මිය සඳහන් කරන්නේ මෙවැනි තර්ජනයන්ට මුහුණ දීම සඳහා බිම් මට්ටමේ දේශපාලනයේ නිරත කාන්තාව ශක්තිමත් කිරීමේ වැඩපිළිවෙළක් කැ‌ෆේ සංවිධානය විසින් මේ වනවිටත් දියත් කර ඇති බවයි.

මාධ්‍ය ඒ්කකය කැෆේ සංවිධානය

Courtesy NewsIn.Asia

Colombo, Nov 21 (NewsWire) – The Government has decided to obtain an emergency loan of US$ 500 million from India to import fuel, which has become a serious crisis at the moment, Lankadeepa Newspaper reports.

A senior government minister has told Lankadeepa that top government leaders have already begun discussions with the Indian government on this regard.

The Petroleum Corporation is facing a crisis due to the shortage of foreign reserves and are reportedly having a difficult time finding the required amount of US dollars for fuel imports.

The Sapugaskanda oil refinery was shut down last week due to the lack of dollars for crude oil imports, and a date for its reopening has not yet been announced yet.

Meanwhile, Minister of Energy Udaya Gammanpila has stated at the cabinet meeting last Monday that monthly US$ 350 million is needed to import fuel and it has become a real issue to find money for this purpose.

Considering this situation, the government has decided to obtain an emergency loan of US$ 500 million from India for fuel imports, Lankadeepa added.

Courtesy The Daily Mirror

People queueing up near a Sathosa outlet to buy daily essentials

Sri Lanka is mired in multiple crises. The country continues to be devastated by the pandemic, crippled by balance of payment problems that are only the surface of a long economic depression, and rising cost of living contributing to food insecurity. 

Significantly, the Minister of Finance in his Budget Speech recognises the severity of the economic situation: We are living through the history’s most challenging period in terms of people’s lives, livelihoods, sources of income, and job security.” Furthermore, he identifies the systemic character of this crisis and the structural problems of the economy reaching back over the decades. While the diagnosis of the macroeconomic crisis is for the most part correct, the priorities are wrong and the solutions are flawed. 

During these times of great social and economic suffering, the citizenry should be vigilant. Where the budget has failed to correct course of the sinking Sri Lankan economy, it is public protests that can ensure we don’t completely drown with the most severe crisis affecting the country over the last century.   

Diagnosis of problems

This is how the Budget Speech sets out the economic problems in Sri Lanka, from the global character of the crisis to the everyday challenges facing people. It states: Disruption to food production chains, climate change, natural catastrophes, energy crises, and fluctuations in international commodity prices over which we have no control, have become common. These cannot be solved only through domestic measures. These require collaborations internationally.” 

Then it goes onto accept the Government’s inability to address the much-talked about rising cost of living as follows: We have to accept that the increase in prices is due to a shortage of goods, the imposition of import restrictions, the overreliance on imports, the depreciation of the rupee together with the failure to adequately encourage manufacturers. Given the aforementioned, it must be understood that the solutions available to control the behaviour of the goods and services market are both medium to long term.” Next, the structural problems of the economy are identified as relating to a tilt towards the trading sector: For a long time now, imports have been double of exports. This is not sustainable and it is challenging.” 

So we have it finally from the horse’s mouth after two years wasted in denial with the horse shit about prosperity and splendour! That is valuable time lost to provide relief to the people. And sadly, even as the Government recognises the situation for what it is after being ridiculed in public and challenged by powerful protests, it lacks the vision and the political will to even chart a credible path out of this crisis.

Revenues and investment

Government revenues over the last decade have been relatively low on the order of 12% to 14% of GDP. Furthermore, since the tax cuts soon after President Gotabaya Rajapaksa came to power, revenues in 2020 and 2021 are abysmally low and on the order of 9% of GDP. For a country that should eventually target revenues above 25% of GDP, the budget measures to raise revenues to even 12.3% of GDP next year are unconvincing. This begs the question whether the proposed budget proposals will be implemented. Measures such as wealth taxes targeting the stock of wealth, rather than income taxes difficult to raise with falling income, are needed during a time of crisis. But the Government beholden to the wealthier classes lacks interest and the political will for such redistribution.

Much of the Government spending is focused on infrastructure build-out and populist measures of hand outs to rural constituencies. Neither are going to get the country out of the crisis. A country like Sri Lanka cannot stimulate itself out of the economic crisis through infrastructure spending. And there are no measures to mobilise the rural economy with appropriate investment and programmes. 

“Sadly, even as the Government recognises the situation for what it is after being ridiculed in public and challenged by powerful protests, it lacks the vision and the political will to even chart a credible path out of this crisis”

Budgets set the direction for the economy mainly through capital expenditure; where recurrent expenditure mainly goes for maintaining state services through salaries and social welfare. The Budget Estimates and Proposals show that highways and roads receive the largest development allocations amounting to Rs. 270 billion, which is 29% of the total allocated public investment of Rs. 931 billion. The question asked by working people in these dire times is, can we eat roads?

Compare this with the crucial sectors of fisheries – the major source of animal protein for our people – and livestock – important for milk production – have only been allocated Rs. 1 billion each. In recent years, imports of seafood have been Rs. 40 billion (US$ 200 million) and of milk powder Rs. 60 billion (US$ 300 million); which is foreign exchange the country cannot afford today, leading to shortages and price hikes. While the Budget Speech mentions import substitution in many places, these meagre allocations betray the Government’s disregard for food security and meaningful solutions of self-sufficiency. 

The other major set of proposals in the Budget are for populist measures such as allocations for the village level GS and electoral divisions claiming to allow for local level development. The reality seems more akin to an election budget with hand outs, particularly at a time when provincial elections are on the cards.  

Protests and resistance

One of the few meaningful allocations in the Budget is the Rs. 30 billion to address the school teachers’ salary anomalies. While that amount is not enough, it is a first step thanks to the strikes and protests sustained over months by the teachers. It is also a valuable lesson that unless there are continued protests by the public the Government cannot be held in check.

As the crises deepen, and the public and even the bureaucracy resists the Government’s policies, the President may rely even more on the military further damaging public institutions. With the deteriorating situation of state coffers, the Government may run to the IMF and even consider privatising public services including education and healthcare, as hinted at the end of the Budget Speech claiming we have an obsession with ownership”. Indeed, we should eschew such an obsession with ownership, but not of public ownership, rather private ownership and property. During these times of multiple crises it is protests and demands for redistribution that may ensure even survival including the very basics of life such as food.

Courtesy MailOnline

Sri Lanka has abandoned its quest to become the world’s first completely organic farming nation

Sri Lanka abandoned its quest to become the world’s first completely organic farming nation on Sunday, announcing it would immediately lift an import ban on pesticides and other agricultural inputs.

The island country has been in the grips of a severe economic crisis, with a lack of foreign exchange triggering shortages of food, crude oil and other essential goods.

Authorities had already walked back restrictions on fertiliser imports last month for tea, the country’s main export earner.

But ahead of planned farmer protests in the capital, Sri Lanka’s agricultural ministry said it would end a broader ban on all agrochemicals including herbicides and pesticides.

“We will now allow chemical inputs that are urgently needed,” ministry secretary Udith Jayasinghe told the private News First TV network.

“Considering the need to ensure food security, we have taken this decision.”

Vast tracts of farmland were abandoned after the import ban, first introduced in May.

Shortages have worsened in the past week, with prices for rice, vegetables and other market staples having doubled across Sri Lanka.

Supermarkets have also rationed rice sales, allowing only five kilograms (11 pounds) per customer.

Farmers’ organisations had planned to march on the national parliament in Colombo on Friday to demand the import of essential chemicals to protect their crops.

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa had justified the import ban by saying he wanted to make Sri Lankan farming 100 percent organic.

The policy was introduced after a massive hit to the cash-strapped island’s economy in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, with tourism earnings and foreign worker remittances drastically falling.

Authorities attempted to save foreign exchange by last year banning a host of imported goods, including some food and spices.

Sri Lanka also shut its only oil refinery last month after running out of dollars to import crude.

By Shivanthi Ranasinghe Courtesy Ceylon Today

Last week, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa quietly celebrated completing two years in Office. He was elected as president with an overwhelming majority, and shortly thereafter won a rare two-third parliamentary majority. However, it is obvious that the honeymoon is clearly over. 

The President is being troubled by not only an unprecedented global pandemic or an Opposition hell-bent on behaving like brats, but also by those who supported him into presidency. The fact that this is not a seven-year itch compels us to study the root causes for the general sense of disappointment and dissatisfaction. 

The facts standing as they currently are:

– A strong government with a two third majority;

–  A government elected on the sole strength of the people unlike the Yahapalana Government that was supported by powerful nations such as the US and India;

– A man of integrity with proven track record elected as the Executive President. Throughout these two years he has worked diligently and with responsibility towards clearly defined goals. He works without seeking political glorification. He is noted for his thriftiness, which is a welcome change;

– The most successful president of our times, with brother Mahinda Rajapaksa as the Prime Minister;

– As controversial as it is, a considerable number of family members in key government positions is a strength to the President. This gives him a support system that he can trust to carry out his policies. During the war against terrorism, President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s main strength was that his Defense Secretary was his own brother. When we suffered defeat in battles, President Mahinda was able to trust his brother’s advice to continue. This trust President Mahinda could not have placed as easily on another – especially when political and geopolitical pressures were mounting on him to abandon the war effort. 

The Seven Year Itch in Two Years

Therefore, even with this kind of power and support, the reason for the disunity within the Government is an interesting question. The first fracture appeared with the proposed 20th Amendment to the Constitution. The main Opposition that arose against it originated from those closest to the President. 

They worked tirelessly to topple the Yahapalana Government. Some of them such as present Cabinet Ministers Udaya Gammanpila and Wimal Weerawansa even had to endure months of detention in remand prison. Yet, they never gave up their fight. Today however, they are at the forefront with other national list MPs like Vasudeva Nanayakkara and Gevindu Cumaratunga challenging the President’s decisions. 

The only reason those opposed to the 20th Amendment eventually agreed to support it was after the President promised to redress it in the new Constitution. They also opposed honouring the move to give the East container terminal in the Colombo Port to India’s management. They are currently opposing the US-based New Fortress Energy contract to acquire a 40% ownership stake in West Coast Power Limited, the owner of the 310 MW Yugadanavi Power Plant and build an offshore liquefied natural gas system. 

It was also after they sent a very public letter urging the President to lockdown the country, the third lockdown took place. From the very beginning the President was not in favour of lockdowns. Yet, he always heeded the advice of the experts. 

When the first lockdown took place, we had no other alternative. However, by August 2021, the country had already embarked on vaccinating the population against the virus. Still, on the very day this letter was issued, the President imposed a lockdown. However, he allowed as much as possible the wheels of economy to spin as the country’s finances were equally in trouble. This includes allowing certain sectors of tourism as surfing to continue, despite making those who advocated for a lockdown unhappy. 

The financial situation inherited from the Yahapalana Government was deeply troubling. The raging pandemic had effectively closed all revenues that was bringing in foreign revenue. The resulting expenses continue to rise. Furthermore, lockdowns only offer temporary relief. While the lockdowns are in effect, the numbers of new infected and COVID-19 related deaths drop but again increases once the lockdown is lifted. Therefore, President’s reservations are understandable. 

Gammanpila, as Energy Minister, stated on 15.11.2021 that the Sapugaskanda oil refinery was closed for 50 days to manage the limited foreign reserves to import essential items to the country. Though he assured an uninterrupted supply of fuel, it naturally caused a scare. The resulting run in petrol stations as everyone tried to top up their vehicle tanks and even keep spare cans ready led to stations running out of fuel. The more pertinent point here is the decision Gammanpila et al pushed the President to take in August and its consequences. 

Without a proper survey it is impossible to judge the people’s take on the incumbent Government. When the next presidential or parliamentary elections roll, it is highly doubtful that the present Administration will secure the similar majority as it did in years 2019 and 2020 respectively. That however is not a gauge on the incumbent Government’s performance. 

2019 was an extraordinary year and hopefully one never to be experienced again. People were keenly feeling the effects of the foreign interference and manipulations that marked the Yahapalana Government. 

– The economic sabotage that included the Central Bank bond scams and of losing strategic national assets, unprecedented binge on foreign loans and the inability to attract investors left the country in dire straits. Even without a pandemic, war or any other constraints, nearly half a million lost their livelihoods as the country’s GDP fell to almost that of Afghanistan. 

– The systematic detention of military intelligence men and officers whilst releasing hardcore LTTE terrorists into society deeply troubled the nation’s conscience. 

n People drew a parallel between the Norwegian drafted Ceasefire Agreement Ranil Wickremesinghe signed with the LTTE in 2002 and the US drafted UNHRC Resolution 30/1 his Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera co-sponsored in 2015. Both were signed without the knowledge of the then President or Cabinet much less debate in Parliament or mandate from the people. Both agreements were detrimental to the sovereignty and integrity of the country. 

– The Easter Attack bombs shattered the peace the country enjoyed for 10 years. 

– The MCCC agreement that Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera was keen to sign alarmed Sri Lankans as it threatened our economic freedom. Interestingly, while as a Cabinet Minister Sajith Premadasa never protested over the MCCC. However, as the Opposition Leader he was howling to have the proposed Compact binned as President Gotabaya was tactfully trying to get it off the table without offending the US. Though Cardinal Ranjith is under the impression that it was on the wave of the Easter Attack that the present Government rode to power, it was really the proposed MCCC that scared the people. Even forest monks disengaged from public life and concerns and Sri Lankan expatriates came to vote for President Gotabaya in protest against the MCCC. As presidential candidate Gotabaya had to pledge in writing that he would not allow the MCCC. 

– The nation will not be grappling over such fears and concerns at the next presidential and parliamentary elections. Therefore, the need to vote will not be felt by all. The issues then will be quite tame compared to the concerns that prevailed in year 2019. 

President Gotabaya’s Challenges

Without argument, the kind of challenges Gotabaya Rajapaksa faced were not experienced by any other president of Sri Lanka. Shortly after President Gotabaya took office an abduction story was concocted by the Opposition in which the Swiss Embassy played a major role. Fortunately, technical evidence proved the allegation to be fabricated and the Swiss Government was left red faced. They however never apologized to Sri Lanka. Never in history had there been such an attempt to embarrass a leader of a country. 

The COVID-19 pandemic has been a global calamity. Overall, President Gotabaya’s and his task force’s performance have been outstanding. Many developed countries like Australia learnt lessons from Sri Lanka on how to manage the pandemic.

While responding to the virus, taking timely and prudent measures to keep people safe and well, it is unfortunate that this Government dropped the ball on the youth. When the virus first hit the country, the response from the youth was amazing. They displayed their innovative skills as they invented various forms of armor to protect against the virus as well as save the country’s dollar reserves.

However, by the second wave there was only silence from the youth. When the third wave hit, many were trying to get out of the country in search of overseas jobs. Whether they will find jobs outside Sri Lanka at a time when all countries are adversely affected and economies have collapsed, remains to be seen. 

The Government’s failure is not in managing the economy. It is not due to lack of employment opportunities the youth are leaving. The reason being is the lack of recognition they received when they first started to innovate. Though PM Mahinda inaugurated a youth center for such innovations, it was insufficient. 

A recognition is only when it has a direct impact on one’s life. The Education Ministry should have jumped at the opportunity and have translated such innovation into education qualifications. When a 14-year-old builds a sensory motion water tap, he should not have to sit for Ordinary Levels. A promotion to either Advanced Level classes or at least a diploma from a University would have encouraged other youth also to innovate and this would have been the trend instead of the silence. 

The country would not have been as affected by the third wave if not for the teachers’ protests. The teachers’ grievance was almost a quarter century issue. Then, for them to violate the health regulations and push the Government to the wall for an immediate solution at a time when the country was in a desperate situation cannot be without a hidden agenda. These protests of unprecedented ferocity take place at a time vaccination drive was bringing the country to normalcy. 

Many blame trade unionists such as Joseph Stalin. However, teachers cannot be equated to puppets. Those who did not personally agree with the protests also discontinued from their teaching engagements for fear of being shamed on social media. An important question before us is not the protest or its agenda but the moral fiber of our teachers. If they cannot withstand peer pressure, we cannot expect them to build the character of our children. 

It is an open secret that foreign influences play a significant role at these protests – whether it may involve teachers or farmers. It is common knowledge that these trade unionists as well as other NGO actors are handsomely paid by their foreign handlers. 

Security is a priority on this Government’s agenda. Ensuring democracy and fundamental rights is one thing. Allowing that freedom to misguide people with the agenda of toppling a government to meet a geopolitical agenda is quite another. Without addressing these underlying causes it is futile trying to rectify teachers’ salary anomalies. The problem will only manifest elsewhere in another format. State sector trade unions demanding a salary hike to meet rise in cost of living is a case in point. 

Both Mahinda and Gotabaya are good leaders. They have rendered an enormous service to the country. They are both patriotic and pragmatic but they do drop the ball. 

One area that they always mess up is their PR. Both work on the assumption that actions will speak louder than words. This strategy does not work or President Mahinda would not have been ousted in year 2015. Unfortunately, this Administration too has not realised that a mere statement on the manifesto is insufficient to change a mindset. 

For example, on the fertiliser issue, the Government ought to have first embarked on an awareness campaign on the ill effects and the recourse for it. Without that national conscience it is difficult to make that commitment. Experience should tell this Government that any change in this country is met with protests. A simple example would be the protests mounted by the plant sales associations when the previous Rajapaksa Government shifted the plant sale venue from Vihara Maha Devi Park to Battaramulla.

We hardly hear of the Colombo Port City. This is to be the largest investment project of our times and expected to generate at least 80,000 jobs within the first two years. The Government must embark on an aggressive campaign to train and educate our youth to grab the best jobs. Had there been an awareness campaign on the Port City there would not be so much new applications for passports. 

Another point where both Rajapaksa Administrations dropped the ball was in trying to protect unpopular figures. Today, many are disenchanted with this Government over its foreign relations management. 

Though this Government withdrew from co-sponsoring the inimical Geneva 30/1 Resolution, we are still stuck with the Resolution itself. While there is some effort to negotiate terms less detrimental, the shaming of the country by the LTTE international network and its hangers on continues. Negotiating the Resolution and putting the truth out to the world are two very different operations. 

As there is no effort on our part to correct the falsehoods regarding alleged war crimes, our top military officers remain under an international cloud. Using these falsehoods our economy is being threatened. The recent visit by an EU delegation is a case in point. 

However, both the current Foreign Minister Professor G.L. Peiris and High Commissioner to India Milinda Moragoda were at the forefront in signing the 2002 Ceasefire Agreement. Professor G.L. Peries was also the Foreign Minister in President Mahinda’s Government. It was our failure to stop the anti-Sri Lankan project that manifested into the UNHRC Resolution 30/1. 

In their defense of course they may have learnt from their experiences and mistakes. However, their appointments trouble the expectations of those who believed this Government will appoint officers with proven record and expected better performance. 

The current Opposition, taking its role literally continues to endanger the people by embarking on protests without any regard to the health regulations. Due to their carelessness, during the second wave both Premadasa and his wife contracted the virus. It is feared that their current actions will generate a fourth wave.  The discerning voter is quite disgusted by these actions. Compared to this Opposition, the incumbent Government is million times better. However, they too have much to improve if the country is to develop into the aspiring nation in the next three years. 

ranasingheshivanthi@gmail.com

T.P. Lokuliyana Courtesy Ceylon Today

Top economist Dr. W.A. Wijewardena stresses the need for revisiting all public policies that have been made without due appraisal.

The former deputy governor of the Central Bank took to twitter welcoming the reversal of the chemical fertilizer ban.

…though it’s welcome, it shows a grave deficiency in democratic economic policy governance; missing are consulting, flexibility, proper cost-benefit assessment, humility & humbleness…,” he noted.

Wijewardena said this is only one and there are many other blunders that have been committed with huge costs to society.

He hoped other policy blunders too, will be reversed.

by Ifham Nizam and Prabhath Withana Courtesy The Island

An investigation by the Colombo Crimes Division (CCD) into a complaint of fraud, which caused a loss of over USD 18 million to the government coffers, has been stalled by a minister, according to police sources.

The CCD commenced the investigation, several weeks ago, following a complaint against a Singaporean, of Sri Lankan origin, and a Sri Lankan, for using forged documents to cheat a Sri Lankan company out of Rs 35 million.

Investigators uncovered a customs fraud, amounting to USD 18 million using a Power Purchasing Agreement (PPA) between the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) and a Hongkong-based company. The Customs Department’s Compliance and Facilitation Division commenced a separate investigation.

The Customs investigation found that the suspects had deprived Sri Lanka of USD 18 million by using the PPA, which had been cancelled by the CEB. As per the PPA, the V Power Holdings could import to Sri Lanka power generators, duty free, to supply 34 MW to the national gri, for a six-month period. As per the PPA, after six months the company is required to re-ship those generators and is also requested pay a 10 percent tax on revenue from the generators. That tax could have been around one million USD. They brought down 350 generators. The duty for the generators would have been around 14 million USD. The company obtained a duty waiver to the tune of around three million USD. However, the PPA had been cancelled by that time by the CEB because V Power Holdings failed to deliver 34 MW, within the stipulated one-month period,” a senior CCD officer said.

The company has to pay over 18 million USD to Sri Lanka. It did not re-export the generators. In addition, the suspects have also been charged with defrauding Rs 35 million from the Green Win Holdings Lanka Ltd., the local agent company of the Hong Kong-based Listed Company, V Power Holdings.

The CCD investigation has been halted due to political interference, sources said, adding that the suspects had approached a Cabinet minister.

Asked for comment, senior CEB officials said that there had been a PPA with V Power Holdings but it had been cancelled by the CEB. With the cancellation of the agreement, the company loses their rights for duty concessions, a top management level officer of the CEB told The Island.

Customs Media Spokesman and Deputy Director (Legal) Sudattha Silva said that the Compliance and Facilitation Division of the Department was conducting an investigation. He said he was not in a position to comment more as the investigation was in progress.

The V Power Holdings was accused of violating the Section 50 (A) (1) (a) (b) of the Customs Ordinance.

When contacted for comment, Chairman of Green Win Holdings Lanka Ltd, Vajira Wickramasinghe said. That there were two investigations into the aforementioned incidents.

We signed the PPA with CEB as the Sri Lankan representative of the V Power Holdings of Hong Kong. The V Power Holdings’ Chief Commercial Officer sent a Singaporean of Lankan origin to work with us. Later, it was found that Singaporean with the help of a former director of our company, carried out the fraud. They have misused the canceled PPA to clear the consignment from the harbour. Now, the CCD says that they cannot find the Singaporean and the Lankan who have gone into hiding. I hope that the investigations will resume and the culprits will be caught so that justice will be done.”

Courtesy The Daily Mirror

TNA Parliamentarians M.A Sumanthiran and Shanakiyan Rasamanickam, who are presently in Canada, were driven away from a meeting held with a group of Tamil diaspora, who branded them as ‘traitors’ alleging the diaspora wanted a separate Tamil state in Sri Lanka.

Both Sumanthiran and Rasamanickam came under heavy criticism while the meeting was on, with the group alleging that the MPs had severely failed in their duties towards the Tamil community, especially in north-east Sri Lanka, the Daily Mirror learns. 

The Police had to intervene to safely lead the two Parliamentarians out. 
Sources said when Sumanthiran participated in similar meetings in Australia and in Switzerland earlier, he had faced a similar issue and was forced to leave the meeting due to heavy criticism by these diaspora groups. 

Rasamanickam in a Twitter post today said the protestors claimed they did not want a political settlement and insisted that a separate state of Tamil Eelam was the only solution to the Tamil national question in Sri Lanka.

Courtesy Adaderana

The Health Ministry says another 189 persons have tested positive for Covid-19, pushing the daily count of new cases to 697.

Earlier today, the ministry had confirmed 508 new cases of the virus.

This increases the total number of coronavirus cases confirmed in the country to 556,626.

Over 15,000 infected patients are currently undergoing treatment island-wide.  

The Director General of Health Services has confirmed another 19 coronavirus related deaths for November 20, increasing the death toll in the country due to the virus pandemic to 14,127.

The deaths confirmed today includes 12 males and 07 females while eight of the victims are between the ages 30-59 years while the rest are aged 60 and above. 

Courtesy Adaderana

Rev. Father Cyril Gamini Fernando has been informed to appear before the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) tomorrow morning, the Police Spokesman said.

SSP Nihal Thalduwa said that Father Cyril Gamini has been notified to appear at the CID at 9.30 a.m. tomorrow (22).

He had previously appeared before the CID on two occasions to record a statement in connection with a complaint filed by the country’s intelligence chief. 

Father Cyril Gamini was questioned by the CID for around 8 hours on November 15 and 16.
 
On October 25, the Director of the State Intelligence Service (SIS), Major General Suresh Sallay had filed a complaint with the CID pertaining to the allegations made by Fr. Gamini and several other individuals during an online forum held on October 23 to brief Sri Lankan community living overseas on the Easter Sunday attacks.

The complaint referred to comments made by Rev. Fr. Cyril Gamini, who is a member of the National Catholic Committee for Justice to Easter Sunday Attack Victims, during the online forum alleging that the country’s intelligence units had provided financial and other assistance to Zahran Hashim, the leader of the National Thowheed Jamaath (NTJ) who was behind the suicide bombings.

The complaint stated that it was also alleged, during the webinar, that the then-Brigadier Suresh Sallay had played an active role in nurturing Zahran Hashim and his followers.

Major General Sallay had strongly denied the allegations leveled by Father Cyril Gamini and others during the webinar while also charging that the allegations were made with the intention of discrediting him” and are completely false.

Courtesy Hiru News

Trade Union representatives state that stocks of vegetables grown in Nuwara Eliya did not reach the Manning Market or the Dambulla Economic Centre.

All Ceylon Dedicated Economic Centres’ Association Chairperson Aruna Shantha stated that the Nuwara Eliya Economic Centre was also closed considering the farmers’ refusal to supply vegetable stocks in protest for the reduction in yields due to the non-provision of chemical fertilizers to vegetable growers in Nuwara Eliya.

The prices of vegetables are seeing a sharp increase following the decline in vegetable supply to economic centres.

It is reported that wholesale and retail prices of vegetables have recorded a price hike and that the retail price of some vegetables is over Rs. 250 per 100 grams.

Farmers in Nuwara Eliya have decided to close all shops in Nuwara Eliya and Kandapola towns today (21) and hold a black flag protest demanding a solution to the issued faced due to the fertilizer crisis.

The daily supply of vegetables to the Katugastota Economic Center has also been reduced by 90 percent, stated President of the Economic Center Wholesale Traders Association, D.N. Silva.

The Dambulla Economic Center Management Trust stated that the prices of vegetables could go up further due to the non-availability of vegetables in the Nuwara Eliya area from tomorrow.

Our correspondent stated that there was a shortage of farmers and traders visiting the Thambuththegama Economic Center today.

H. L. D. Mahindapala

The utter failure of our intellectuals to grasp the turbulent historical and political under currents that destroyed all possibilities of peaceful co-existence has been one of the  main contributory factors that prolonged and sustained the 33-year-old war launched officially by the Tamil leadership on May 14^th, 1976 at Vadukoddai. It ended on May 19, 2009 in the murky water of Nandikadal. The Vadukoddai Resolution began by outlining its own historical and political reasons for declaring war and concluded by calling upon the Tamil nation” and the Tamil youth to take up arms against the democratically elected state. The ageing Tamil leadership, some of whom were ensconced in the parliamentary seats, including S. J. V. Chelvanayakam, the leader of the TNA, deliberately decided to commit the crime against peace in the Vadukoddai Resolution by legitimising violence officially as a political instrument of the Tamil community to achieve their political goal of Eelam, a separate state exclusively for the Tamils. Declaring war was the biggest gamble of the Tamil leadership. There was no guarantee that their violence could win. Violence could go either way. Despite investing their best political, intellectual and financial resources, it didn’t go their way. It ended in Nandikadal. It was a futile war that boomeranged on the Tamil aggressors. The failure of the Tamil leadership to recognise the new realities is a major obstacle to reconciliation. Even after Nandikadal they are flatly refusing to accept responsibility for their miscalculated political gambit. They declared war. They waged war. They financed it. They directed it. They legitimised it. They internationalised it. They theorised to justify their violence. They glorified every massacre and destruction as a victory for the creation of Eelam. They manufactured excuses to justify the killings of the Tamils by the Tamils and other civilian non-combatants. They hailed the forcible recruitment of under-aged Tamil children into the futile war as heroic sacrifices of the committed Tamil youth. They backed to the hilt the Tamil Pol Pot who led the war on their behalf. They even elevated him to the divine status of Surya Devan”. And when they failed they blamed the Sinhala-Buddhist, as usual, for the war they declared and lost. 

The reaction of the state to combat the aggressive separatist forces was inevitable. Separatism and violence are inseparable. Besides, the seasoned Tamil leadership knew the consequences of going to war with the state. Rightly or wrongly, no democratically elected state would agree to divide a nation to gratify the political aspirations of an aggressive minority, sacrificing the interests and aspirations of the other communities which formed the majority. By 1976 Tamil politics had come to the end of their tether and was determined to declare war – the last remaining political weapon available to them to achieve Eelam. The calculated declaration of war by the Tamil leadership was a challenge that no elected state could accept lying down. So, at the end of the Vadukoddai Resolution the Tamil leadership, declared war, urging the Tamil nation” and the Tamil youth to take up arms. The Resolution said :   This Convention directs the Action Committee of the TAMIL UNITED LIBERATION FRONT to formulate a plan of action and launch without undue delay the struggle for winning the sovereignty and freedom of the Tamil Nation;

And this Convention calls upon the Tamil Nation in general and the Tamil youth in particular to come forward to throw themselves fully into the sacred fight for freedom and to flinch not till the goal of a sovereign state of TAMIL EELAM is reached.”   

Considering the internal political pressures pushing the Tamil leadership during this time the declaration of war (throw themselves into the sacred fight for freedom and flinch not”)  was, in a sense, inevitable. The Tamils had come to the end of the road of Tamil extremist politics. The declaration of war to achieve a separate state was the last option available to them in their desperate pursuit of Elam. Their long journey on the road to Nandikadal, the futile end of Tamil extremism, began in the early 20^th century. It began in the 1920s with the Tamil leadership demanding one extra seat in the Western Province. This was in addition to the seats allocated by the British administration to the Northern Tamils in the Legislative Council. The Oliver Twistian craving  for more and more power in the administration, legislature and the economy has been a pathological condition with the Tamils. Driven by the Vellalas it has been a chronic and incurable condition that dominated Tamil politics.

The two communities went apart with the Tamil leadership escalating their demands each step of the way, from decade to decade. From the base of demanding one extra seat in the twenties the Tamil leaderhip led by G. G. Ponnamabalam jumped to demand 50% of power for 11% of Tamils in the thirties, crying discrimination” when, mark you,  the British were ruling Ceylon, as it was known then. The British were the first to dismiss the accusation of discrimination” as unsubstantiated fiction. In the forties, Tamil demands escalated from 50 – 50 to federalism with S. J. V. Chelvanayakam breaking away from Ponnambalam and forming his Illankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi ( Federal Party) in 1949.  From federalism the Tamil leadership leapt to separatism in the fifties onwards. In the fifties it became increasingly clear that federalism” meant separatism in Tamil. The Tamil leadership marketed their increased demands as federalism” in English but in Tamil the phrase Arasu Kachchi” was used to convey the concept of a separate state”.  It culminated in declaring war in the Vadukoddai Resolution. After declaring war to achieve a separate state there was no other higher political goal left for them to negotiate. Separatism was, of course, non-negotiable.

However, what is significant is the Southern reaction to the escalating demands of the Tamils of the North. When the Tamils demanded an extra seat in the South in addition to seats given to them in the North the Sinhala leadership agreed, after controversial disputes, to grant the seat to Sir. Ponnambalam Arunachalam. But, as revealed in the magisterial monographs on the break-up of the Ceylon National Congress and the rise of Tamil separatism Prof. K. M. de Silva, Sri Lanka’s foremost historian, revealed that Sir. Ponnambalam rejected the offer. The Northern Tamils then blamed the Sinhalese for not keeping their word given to Sir. Ponnambalam. That is the first time  that the Tamils arrogantly rejected the offer to heal the North-South conflict.  Second, when G. G. Ponnambalam demanded 50-50 he was offered 45%. He rejected that and insisted on 50 -50. As pointed out by political scientist Prof. A. J. Wilson and historian   Prof. Sinnappah Arasaratnam, it was a colossal blunder. These two major events prove that there was always willingness on the part of the South to accommodate the North. The final proof came when Chelvanayakam, the father of separatism, discovered that there was ample room for peaceful co-existence through cooperative politics. The best period for inter-ethnic relations was when the Tamils worked jointly with the Sinhalese. Prof. Wilson wrote: Yet for all this (unfulfilled promises) the period of Dudley Senanayake’s ‘National government”, 1965 -1970, marked the golden years of Sinhala-Tamil reconciliation. The President of the FP, S. M. Rasamanickam, in his presidential address to the annual convention of 1969, spoke of  the rewarding relationship: During the last four years we were able to gain some rights, if not all of what we expected, through the method of cooperation.” FP parliamentarians for once had the opportunity of participating in  government and of benefiting from belonging to the government parliamentary group. They had endured a period of tribulation when the Bandaranaikes were in office in 1956 – 1965 and the 1965 – 1970 phase had been the much-needed breathing spell.” (p.111 – S.J.V. Chelvanayakam and the Crisis of Sri Lankan Tamil Nationalism, 1947-1977, A Political Biography, A. Jeyaratnam Wilson.}

This is a telling piece of evidence, coming from the highest Tamil political sources, which debunks  the political myth that the Sinhala-Tamil relations were irretrievably irreconcilable because of the intransigence of the Sinhala governments” to negotiate with the Tamils and accommodate the Tamil needs. Clearly, there were golden” opportunities for both sides to negotiate within the non-violent democratic framework, despite the sporadic ethnic explosions and complaints of discriminations etc. As stated by Rasamanickam there were always means of achieving  political goals through the method of cooperation”, though dilatory. But the Tamils opted for Vadukoddai formula which meant war.

Each mishap was exploited by the Tamil leadership to crank up hate politics and demonise the Sinhala-Buddhist South as the enemy of the Tamils that had to be defeated.  Tamil extremism was escalating  hate politics to a violent pitch. The Sansoni Commission report documents how the Tamil leadership spoke of non-violence in Parliament and stoked violence in Jaffna. For instance, it records the evidence of how two Tamil leaders, A. Amirthalingam and T. Sivasithamparam, openly condoned the killings of  the boys”. Quite brazenly, without any moral compunction, they encouraged the killings of the boys” promising to defend them in courts. That is the fundamental difference in the politics of the North and the South: the South had no organised militant units based on hate culture to launch racist attacks targeting those perceived to be the enemies of the state, including dissidents. In the South the sporadic violence fizzled out almost soon after the outburst. The North, however, had numerous militant units organised  specifically to pursue politics of hate to the extreme end. According to Taraki”, (pseudonym of Dharmeratnam Sivaram) a leading Tamil journalist, there were 37 militant units in 1983, the largest and the most effective being the LTTE and PLOTE. There were no such killing machines organised at the grass root level to target the perceived enemy systematically in the South. On the contrary, the ‘Sinhala state” provided protection to the Tamils persecuted by Prabhakaran. The South had sporadic mob violence which invariably were knee-jerk reactions to Tamil provocative  violence. But the sporadic mob  violence was not run by institutionalised militant groups organised to hunt and terrorise or kill the opponents/dissidents.

The ruthlessness of Tamil violence exhibited its brutal face when the LTTE assassinated Amirthalingam and Neeelan Tiruchelvam – two of the leading intellectuals who  manufactured legal and theoretical excuses for the violence of the Iyakkum” (movement). It was the lethal ideological bullets manufactured by them that ricocheted and hit them. The Sinhala state”, on the contrary, protected the Tamil Parliamentarians who had sworn allegiance to Prabhakaran, the enemy of the state. In short, the Sinhala state” was giving protection to the  enemies of the state. The Sinhala state” was also commended by the UNICEF for being the only state that provided essentials – food, medicine, welfare facilities etc., — to a rebel-held territory. If by any chance there was a short supply of the essentials or delay in delivering due to bureaucratic bungling there was a huge cry by the intellectuals, particularly in the NGOs, accusing the Sinhala state” of the using food and medicine as weapons of war. The role played by the Tamil MPs was like that of other peaceniks : both used their accusations, theories and cries for peace to tie the hands of the Sinhala state” and strengthen the hands of Prabhakaran to wage his war. Every mishap, misstep, misstatement, was used by them to justify the refusals of Prabhakaran to negotiate. The intellectuals failed to recognise that it was their excuses that emboldened Prabhakaran to prolong the war. He knew that the intellectuals were there behind  him to justify his war-mongering tactics.

A  glaring example is that of the three intellectuals — Prof. Jayadeva Uyangoda, Charles Abeysekera, an NGO apparatchik, and, most of all, Bishop Kenneth Fernando — who sat at the feet of Velupiallai Prabhakaran,  drank his Orange Barley, (a fizzy drink), chewed his biscuits and came back to Colombo from Vanni, to glorify him. With his two fellow-travellers sitting on both sides, Bishop Kenneth Fernando, told a press conference that Prabhakaran  is humane”. By no stretch of imagination could an indiscriminate killer of non-combatant civilians and dissident Tamils be considered humane”. Prabhakaran demanded total obedience to his one-man regime and had no reservations about liquidating anyone that crossed his path. It is incredible that a Bishop of the Anglican Church would justify the indiscriminate massacres of non-combatant civilians as humane”. The other two intellectuals who flanked him gave their consent with their silence.  The mendacity of our leading intellectual is execrable. It is our intellectual who gave oxygen for Prabhakaran to pursue violence with a vengeance. He knew that there are professors, Churchmen at the highest level, and intellectuals in organised centres of research, who were willing to suck his toes just for a glass of Orange Barley served at this table.

Among partisan intellectuals it was a common  practice to lie on behalf of Prabhakaran and his regime. Take the case of Jehan Perera, the head of the National Peace Council. He referred to Anton Balasingham, the theoretician of the LTTE, as Dr.” Balasingham, knowing that he never had a doctorate. When I asked him why he conferred a doctorate on Balasingham knowing very well that he had not earned one his reply was that others too do the same. Our conversation didn’t stop at that. In the end he promised not to use it. But he never kept his word.  He continued to lie misleading the public. Why did our intellectual deliberately lie? Answer: Simple. They were batting for Prabhakaran. They were out to justify, and sometimes even glorify Tamil violence. Lies were told to cover up the crimes and the only way crimes can be covered is by lying. Furthermore, lies are told because the truth hurts your cause. Lies were told by our intellectuals to elevate the criminals to a higher level of respectability. Jehan Perera conferred a doctorate on his idol Balasingham even though he knew he had not earned it. Our intellectuals went all out to glorify criminals. It ws their mean of financing and maintaining their expensive life-style. In short, they were complicit in the crimes committed by the Tamils. Uyangoda and Jehan are two intellectual scavengers who were ever ready to clean  up the blood spilt by the Tamil killers.

The scales of their pretentious political morality were always weighted in favour  of Tamil violence. The worst offenders were the Tamil intellectuals. The common morality of the Tamil intellectuals was to defend Prabhakaranism as a liberating force. As the success of Prabhakaranism depended on pure violence – it never relied on diplomacy, negotiations or compromises — their intellectual energies were focused on defending Tamil violence.  Justifying and/or glorifying Tamil violence was an indispensable political strategy for their success.  The success of Prabhakaran, for instance, was measured by the corpses he buried. His war chest increased in proportion to the new widows he left behind. It was his power to kill that elevated his status to Surya Devan”.  His early military success raised the hopes of the Tamil intellectuals. Rationalising violence became a specialised intellectual activity among the Tamil intelligentsia. A high water-mark in Tamil society, particularly in the Tamil diaspora, was to receive public recognition from Prabhakaran. Tamil intellectuals were craving to receive honours from Prabhakaran. Prof. Jeyam Eliezer, the leader of the Australian Iyakkum”, for instance, thought it was a great honour to be awarded the title of Mahamanithar (Distinguished Person) by Prabhakaran, the worst killer of Tamils banned by the international community. He celebrated this honour in January 1998. It was a time when Tamil violence had reached divine status: Prabhakaran  was worshipped as Surya Devan”.

By 1976 the anti-Sinhala-Buddhist politics of the North had reached a point of no return. On one foot they were demanding a separate state or else……….? At this point the Tamil leadership was stuck. There was nothing to aspire to beyond the demand of setting up a separate state. The next step was to declare war to achieve it. Separatism had led them to violence. In passing the Vadukoddai Resolution they had painted  themselves into an ineluctable corner. Declaring war was the only option left to fight their way out of the corner. So, separatism led to the  declaration of war in the Vadukoddai Resolution which dragged them all the way to Nandikadal. The incremental Tamil extremism, driving Tamil politics all the way from demanding one seat in the Western Province in the 20s to Vadukoddai declaration of war in 1976, determined the ill-fated and  short-sighted politics of the North. They dug their own grave by pursuing extremist politics that escalated incrementally from one seat in the Legislative Council to separatism in Vadukoddai. The rest, as they say, is history.

This incontrovertible sequence of events that unravelled incrementally, driving the North to the end of mono-ethnic extremism in Vadukoddai, is recorded in history. But it is precisely this sequence that has been brushed aside by the intellectuals in surveying the North-South conflict. The partisan intellectuals invariably begin their history from 1956 – the critical year in which the anti-Sinhala-Buddhist hate politics stoked in the North clashed head-on with the nationalist forces of the south. Starting from 1956 also is advantageous to Tamil politics because it leaves out a whole chunk of history that had gathered momentum in the North from the twenties. Northern politics was throbbing and waiting for an opening to come sweeping down to the South like a juggernaut destroying everything in its wake.

It is at this point that the intellectuals stepped in forcefully to demonise S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike. Tamil attempts to block the nationalist movement to gain independence had failed. On November 20, 1947 G. G. Ponnambalam, the then acknowledged leader of the Tamils, cabled Whitehall asking for the right of self-determination for  the Tamils”. (p. 30 – Sri Lankan Tamil Nationalism: Its origins and Development in the 19^th and 20^th centuries, A. J. Wilson). This was the year in which Ponnambalam and Chelvanayakam were fighting each other for leadership in Jaffna. Chelvanayakan had called for a plebiscite on self-determination for Tamils. Besides, the low-castes were also getting restive. The threat of Jaffna fragmenting on caste lines was a possibility. Vellala casteism which ruled Jaffna had lost its power to retain its supremacy. There was no ideology for the Vellalas to hold Jaffna together under their hegemony except Tamil language. As a last resort, they latched on to  the language issue to save their skin. The Sinhala Only Act was the gift that Bandaranaike gave Chelvanayakam to overthrow Ponnambalam and take over the leadership of Jaffna.

In the South, the English-speaking elite of all three communities too ganged up against Bandaranaike. They were the ruling elite of the nation. They also constituted the intellectual elite. The 1956 wave” busted the supremacy of the minority (6%) English-speaking rulers. The hostility to linguistic democratisation was essentially an elitist resistance. Forced by the new realities the Marxists began to talk about language as a class issue. With great foresight Bandaranaike had redressed the historical imbalances. He was not anti-Tamil. Nor did he overthrow Tamil. Sinhala Only Act overthrew only English and the English-speaking elite who never forgave him. They too joined the Tamils in demonising him as a reactionary racist.

Not surprisingly, the English-speaking intellectuals joined them and distorted history to demean and ridicule the Sinhala-Buddhists.  This, in brief, is the history that brought us to where we are today.

(To be continued)

Shenali D Waduge

What is Maaveerar Naal? Who originated it, when & why are fundamental questions anyone commenting on the subject should know to answer. Maaveerar Naal translated means ‘Great Heroes Day’ but it is not a Tamil civilian, Hindu or traditional event. Commenced first on 27 November 1989 by LTTE, it is a LTTE event to commemorate LTTE dead. Not Tamil dead but LTTE dead. It essentially means that Maaveerar Naal omits non-LTTE dead. Maaveerar Naal is certainly not commemorating Alfred Duraiappah (Mayor Jaffna), A. Amirthalingam, Sarojini Yogeswaran (Mayor Jaffna), Neelan Thiruchelvan, Sam Thambimuttu or even Lakshman Kadiragamar. Maaveerar Naal is a commemoration ONLY for LTTE dead – it is not for Tamil civilians & certainly not for Tamils (politicians, academics, public servants, clergy, children) killed by LTTE.

More importantly the Great Heroes imply only LTTE & does not include any of the dead from other Tamil militant groups – PLOTE, EPRLF, these families were forbidden from mourning the loss of their loved one’s publicly.

Maaveerar Naal is NOT commemorating these dead Tamils

V. DHARMALINGAM – TULF MP for MANIPAI father of D. SIDDHARTHAN (PLOTE leader) killed by LTTE in 1985

A. AMIRTHALINGAM – MP, Secretary General of the TULF/ a Former Opposition Leader killed by LTTE in 1989

K. PATHMANABHA – EPRLF leader killed by LTTE in India in 1990

TELO Leader K Sabaratnam killed by LTTE in 1986

Uma Maheshwaran, PLOTE leader killed by LTTE in 1989

Gopalaswamy Mahendraraja (Mahaththaya) Deputy leader of LTTE killed by Prabakaran in 1994

Here’s a list of prominent Tamils LTTE has killed …. http://www.internationallawbureau.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Law-Paper-Attachment-2-List-of-Tamil-Politicians-Assassinated-by-the-LTTE.pdf

Wigneswaran, TNA or Diaspora or even the Western leaders & NGOs commenting on allowing the commemoration of this event are speaking of mourning for the Tamils, that LTTE has killed. The commemorations are ONLY for LTTE dead & no one else so who is Wigneswaran & TNA really fooling?

The LTTE Great Heroes Week to honor dead LTTE commences on 21November & ends on 27 November while Prabakaran’s birthday falls on 26th November. It was during one such event that Prabakaran announced that if he betrays the Tamil Eelam cause he should be killed. The annual event turned into a type of cult martyrdom. Another noteworthy aspect is that Hindus do not bury their dead. Committing suicide is considered a crime – burial is more of an Abrahamic faith & martyrdom was also part of brainwashing LTTE to think they were going to heaven for the cause of Eelam.

Yes, there is mass participation with civilian members – but these are family members of dead LTTE. They are known as Maaveerar Kudumbangal”(Great hero families).

What it means is that Maaveerar Naal is for dead LTTE by LTTE families. All LTTE families take part in these events in Sri Lanka & overseas… so everyone attending the events are linked to LTTE. During LTTE heyday only these families were given preferential treatment. Non-LTTE Tamil civilians or non-LTTE other Tamil Groups or their families did not get any preferential treatment.

Non-LTTE Tamils civilians do not attend & these public mourning’s are not for non-LTTE dead – neither Tamil civilians nor Tamil militants from other armed groups.

None of the family members of the dead in other Tamil militant groups attended or were even invited. In fact families of these dead were not even allowed to mourn their loss publicly. Their families are not known as Maaveerar Kudumbangal”(Great hero families)

Part of the Maaveerar Naal commemorations are the Maaveerar Thuyilum Illangal” LTTE cemeteries. Each dead LTTEr had a tomb allocated though the actual body was not buried inside.

Maaveerar Naal ceremonies were in red & yellow the colours of the LTTE, LTTE flag is hoisted, Eelam map is prominently displayed, a garland is placed first for Shankar the 1st great LTTE hero.

As D B S Jeyraj says Maaveerar Naal is an event ‘of the Tigers, for the Tigers & by the Tigers’ – It is not a day or week of mourning for all Tamils killed but ONLY for LTTE dead & ONLY LTTE dead.

Therefore, while Maaveerar Naal is only for commemorating LTTE by LTTE supporting Tamils, the hype of ‘war widows’ are also relevant to only spouses of LTTE dead & is a term that should be immediately disallowed from use. LTTE being a non-state actor are legally not entitled to the use of the terms political prisoners nor POWs & the term war widows specifically applies to only wives of soldiers of a national army & not armed terrorists.

It is time these abused phrases & terms are corrected locally & internationally as even international experts, media & UN are using these terms inspite of knowing their connotations & inapplicability to the LTTE.

If LTTE commemorated only their dead even going so far as to disallow families of other Tamil militant groups to mourn their dead publicly, we demand to know why Wigneswaran & TNA should be allowed to mourn LTTE dead only & it is now long overdue to take action against the University of Jaffna, its academic staff & students who are commemorating these dead LTTE unabashedly with LTTE flags, emblems, garlanding portraits of dead LTTE but completely ignoring the other Tamils killed by LTTE or even other Tamil militant dead.

Shenali D Waduge

By HELENA HORTON FOR THE DAILY MAIL

• The Government has recognised crabs, octopus and lobsters as sentient beings
• A report for ministers confirmed evidence of sentience in decapod crustaceans
• It recommended that they should be included in animal protection legislation 

A ban on boiling lobsters alive came closer yesterday after the Government recognised crabs, octopus and lobsters as sentient beings.

An amendment to the Animal Welfare Bill currently going through Parliament was tabled which makes it illegal to cause needless harm and suffering to invertebrate animals.

It came after a report for ministers by the London School of Economics confirmed there is strong scientific evidence of sentience in decapod crustaceans, such as crab and lobster, and cephalopod molluscs, octopus and squid.

Stunning lobsters with an electric gun or by chilling them in cold air or ice before boiling is a more humane method, according to animal welfare charities

It recommended that they should be included in animal protection legislation.

There had previously been much debate over whether lobsters and crabs have feelings similar to vertebrates – animals that have a backbone – as they have different nervous systems.

The amendment published on the Government’s website read: ‘This amendment adds cephalopod molluscs and decapod crustaceans to the definition of animal” for the purposes of the Bill.’

This would make it an offence for any person who is responsible for a kept animal – including crabs and lobsters – to cause it unnecessary suffering or to fail to provide for the animal’s welfare needs.

Though the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) insists this will have no impact on restaurant kitchens, campaigners could use the new law to argue in court for a ban on boiling the animals alive in eateries as they say there are less painful ways to kill them.

An amendment to the Animal Welfare Bill currently going through Parliament was tabled which makes it illegal to cause needless harm and suffering to invertebrate animals

It is currently illegal to do this in Switzerland, Norway and New Zealand.

Stunning lobsters with an electric gun or by chilling them in cold air or ice before boiling is a more humane method, according to animal welfare charities.

But restaurateurs are unlikely to be impressed by the new law, which may make them subject to checks by Defra and, if a ban does come into effect, could criminalise those who kill the lobsters in a traditional way.

The move has been pushed for by animal welfare minister Lord Goldsmith and the Prime Minister’s wife Carrie Johnson – who are patrons of the Conservative Animal Welfare Foundation (CAWF).

Lord Goldsmith said: ‘The Animal Welfare (Sentience) Bill provides a crucial assurance that animal wellbeing is rightly considered when developing new laws.

‘The science is now clear that crustaceans and molluscs can feel pain and therefore it is only right they are covered by this vital piece of legislation.’

by Senaka Weeraratna

Build your wealth on right living and not through causing injury or destruction to the lives of innocent animals.

Remember that kill and eat is not a Buddhist tenet.

Snuffing out the life of a defenseless animal is not sporting conduct.

It is contrary to all tests of fairness. The animal has absolutely no chance.

Our national cricketers must strive to be good role models.

Compassion for living beings is part of Sri Lanka’s Heritage.

These principles are worthy of being borne in mind when our top national cricketers venture into investing in private enterprise. The moral sensitivities of their cricket fans deserve to be taken into account when investment choices are made.

There is an entirely new field called ‘Ethical or Social Conscious Investment’ which encourage investors to choose to invest in activities that are morally and ethically defensible, are run ethically, provide social benefits and are sensitive to the natural environment and the living creatures that inhabit it.

The story with a photo in Sunday Times (Dec. 4, 2011) entitled ‘ Crabs for Grabs’ showing two former cricket captains looking gleefully at a giant crab in a crab shop they had set up at a new food court opened in the Fort yesterday, took me aback.

http://sundaytimes.lk/111204/Sports/spt06.html

These crabs are not there for decoration. Very soon the legs of these live crabs can be expected to be ripped apart and both the legs and the torso thrown into the boiling pot.

Recent studies show that both Lobsters and crabs i.e. crustaceans, feel pain and stress. These findings add to growing evidence that virtually all animals can suffer.

In the Vyagghapajja-Sutta (AN) the Buddha gave some sensible advice. The Buddha said that before one acts, one should consider the possible effects or consequences thus: whether the action will be harmful to oneself or others. If it is damaging to oneself, others or both, such an action should be abandoned. Conversely, if it is beneficial to oneself and others, it ought to be committed.

In Buddhist phraseology one’s “neighbour or others’ includes other living beings ( Siyalu Sathwayo). The moral community in Buddhism encompasses all living beings.

The Buddha’s advice on Right Livelihood

Significance of the Vyagghapajja-Sutta (AN)

The Vyagghapajja-sutta (A.N) is the Buddha’s discourse on the Conditions of Welfare expounded for the material or financial and spiritual development of the lay Buddhists. The Buddha admonishes his followers to preserve a balanced development between material dimension and the spiritual dimension and to construct personal ethical ideal so as to help realize the social ideal.

As long as a lay Buddhist amasses and expands his or her material or financial wealth ethically or righteously through Right Livelihood (Sammā Ajīva)1 , the Moral Law of Action and Reaction (Kamma-Vipāka Dhamma) will reward the ethical or righteous individual correspondingly.

Right and wrong livelihood

Right Livelihhod are occupations which do not transgress the Five Precepts (Pañcasīlas) and Ten Wholesome Courses of Actions (Dasasīlas)

According to the Buddha the five [types of business] to be refrained from are:

1. selling weapons,

2. selling human beings [slavery],

3. selling animals to be killed for food, or the flesh of animals that one has killed oneself,

4. selling intoxicants,

5. selling poison.

In the Suttanipata: 2:7:27-30 it is said that Kshatriyas and self-styled Brahmins and others protected by rank destroyed the repute of their caste and lost their own high status in society because of their involvement in the sin of causing injury to living beings and falling off their virtues.

Senaka Weeraratna

MD Pathik Hasan

Sri Lanka and Bangladesh should set up a Free Trade Agreement as soon as possible for ensuring their own business interest.  Sri Lanka and Bangladesh as South Asian Countries share some common economic platforms. Sri Lanka and Bangladesh were parties to the SAARC Preferential Trading Arrangement (SAPTA), South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA). The two countries were also parties of Global System of Trade Preference (GSTP), Asia – Pacific Trade Agreement (APTA), and Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC).

But Sri Lanka and Bangladesh both need a bilateral Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) to boost up trade and connectivity for ensuring greater mutual interest. This will be big bilateral progress towards trade and investment between the countries

Bangladesh has always expressed its keen interest to sign a free trade agreement (FTA) with Colombo to exploit the huge potential of bilateral trade between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. If signing the FTA takes a long time, the two nations will sign a preferential trade agreement (PTA). The PTA will begin with a shortlist of products that could open up opportunities for expanded trade, investment, and tourism in the future. But at first Bangladesh and Sri Lanka can sign a preferential trade agreement initially to tap the untapped potentials. Bangladesh and Bhutan signed a PTA on December 06, 2020. Now Bhutan and Bangladesh both are benefitting from the PTA.

The two Countries should emphasize utilizing the huge trade potential between the two countries by signing a bilateral trade agreement. Both parties can increase cooperation in various fields including pharmaceuticals, IT, agriculture, maritime security, and disaster management. Bangladesh has already expressed keen interest to provide training to Sri Lankan nationals in the field of paddy production, climate adaption, disaster management, and information technology and urged Colombo to extend training programs for Bangladeshis on marine fisheries and nursing.

According to 2019 data of the Export Promotion Bureau, the annual trade volume between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka is about $13 crore. Of this, Sri Lanka exports goods worth $9.86 crore while Bangladesh’s exports amount to about $3.7 crore. This trade volume could be increased easily if Sri Lanka and Bangladesh sign a trade agreement as soon as possible. Sri Lankan investors can invest more in our special economic zones, industrial parks, and high-tech parks.

Bangladesh can share with Sri Lanka its experiences in agriculture, particularly in rice farming and freshwater fisheries, its experiences in emergency response, disaster management, climate adaptation, and mitigation. Bangladesh can obtain technical know-how from Sri Lanka in coastal, aquaculture, marine culture, and deep-sea fishing. In the education sector, both countries should have more institutionalized cooperation in capacity building, vocational training, and skill development.

In the case of the health sector, Bangladesh can put emphasis on core training of Bangladeshi nurses and other health professionals in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka may benefit immensely by importing our world-class pharmaceutical products and medical devices in greater quantities. Basically, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka both would benefit from sharing experiences in the fields of agriculture, health, and education for mutual benefit.

Bangladesh is moving forward on the path of rapid development. Sri Lanka should sign a trade agreement for ensuring its maximum business interest. Bangladesh produces garments, pharmaceuticals, cement, paper, electrical items, and jute goods, which are high in demand in Sri Lanka.

Bangladesh and Sri Lanka should identify potential investment sectors, including the areas of information technology, agriculture, health, education, tourism, and services to tap the untapped potentials. The investors of the two countries should come forward to exchange experiences of the development trend in the respective countries in the days to come.

FTA negotiations with Bangladesh have been in the works since 2013 and signing an FTA would mean successful completion of this discussion. It is expected that the FTA will enable both countries to overcome tariff and non-tariff barriers that exist and therefore hamper trade between the two countries.

Signing PTAs and FTAs (free trade agreements) would help both Bangladesh and Sri Lanka to address the challenges in the trade sectors. The preferential trade deals will help boost exports significantly. Bangladesh also needs to sign several PTAs and FTAs before (Bangladesh’s) graduation, to reap benefits of the least-developed country category. Earlier, Both Bangladesh and Sri Lanka already agreed to sign the deal.

In 2017, both the countries had finished the required preparations to sign a free trade agreement (FTA) – but the initiatives did not see the light of the day due to internal issues. Currently, both should give priority to PTAs. To some extent, the FTA deal is very difficult. Some issues, including revenue losses, have been involved with FTAs as all products of both the countries under FTAs enjoy duty-free facilities. Bangladesh and Sri Lank signed the 06 Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) to increase bilateral cooperation between the two South Asian countries. Now it is high for Sri Lanka and Bangladesh should sign a PTA as soon as possible to tap the potentials. Then Bangladesh and Sri Lanka can move the path of FTA.

Sri Lanka is in an advantageous position in the value-added apparel industry, shipping lines and deep-sea port, financial services, ICT, and skilled technical people in different sectors. On the other hand, Bangladesh enjoys advantages in the apparel sector, skilled workforce in the garment sector, agricultural products, processed foods, and migrant workers. Bangladesh would be immensely benefited if the FTA is signed with Sri Lanka, as a portion of its exports and imports of goods are done through the Colombo ports. Sri Lanka also would benefit from signing the trade agreement. Although there are some complexities in the case of signing the ‘FTA’ deal, an effective diplomatic negotiation through dialogue can remove the obstacles. Thus, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh should sign PTA as soon as possible to tap the untapped potential to move forward the issue of ‘FTA’. Sri Lanka and Bangladesh could benefit from signing PTA.

Hafizur Talukdar

‘Bangladeshis shot dead by BSF near Lalmonirhat border: Families still waiting for bodies’ This was the headline of Bangladesh’s leading daily ‘Daily Star’ on September 26, 2021. BSF shoots Bangladeshi youth dead along Satkhira border (July 12, 2021, Dhaka Tribune)

A horrible picture was found in Dhaka’s leading daily ‘Dhaka Tribune’s article titled ‘Bangladesh sees highest border deaths in 10 years’ on December 22, 2020.

‘Unlawful killings’ along India border: Bangladeshi families seek justice. Over 1,200 Bangladeshis killed across the border by Indian forces for the past 2 decades, according to a local human rights group

In a major international border-related move, India has increased the jurisdiction of the Border Security Force (BSF) empowering its officers to make arrests, search and seizures up to an area of 50 km in its states that share borders with Pakistan and Bangladesh.

Although India claims that the move is meant to improve BSF’s operational efficiency” and crackdown on smuggling rackets”, drawing sharp criticism from West Bengal and Punjab ministers. But I think, amidst these, the Indian government has given license to BSF to kill more in the name of National Security.

For example, let’s talk about Bangladesh. A Bangladeshi man was shot dead by the Indian Border Security Force (BSF) at the Dantbhanga border in Roumari Upazila of Kurigram. The murder took place last month. A few days ago, BSF shot dead two Bangladeshi youths at the Burimari border in Patgram Upazila of Lalmonirhat. On July 14, another Bangladeshi was shot dead by BSF at the Lohakuchi border in the same district. The killing of Bangladeshis by firing for no reason and for negligent reasons has become a habit of the BSF. The Bangladesh-India border is considered to be the most dangerous border in the world. This is because of the reckless behavior and role of the BSF. There have also been comments in the international media that BSF members are using Bangladeshis as targets for their target practice.

The BSF’s offensive activities do not provide much security to the lives, property and dignity of the Bangladeshi citizens on the border. They are always terrified of the BSF’s terror. The issue of non-use of deadly weapons on the border and reduction of killings to zero has been discussed at various levels apart from the border guards of the two countries. India has repeatedly promised that no deadly weapons will be used at the border and that killings will be reduced to zero. But India did not show any goodwill in keeping these promises. Statistics show that 1,238 Bangladeshis have been killed by the BSF in the last two decades. In 2020, the BSF killed 46 Bangladeshis as a human rights organization, the Law and Arbitration Center. At the same time, 48 people were picked up, but no trace of them was found. In the previous year, 2019, 43 people were killed by the BSF. Is the life of Bangladeshis so cheap that BSF will take it whenever it wants?

It goes without saying that India’s promise has turned out to be a deception. Many claims that Bangladesh-India relations are a role model in the world in terms of bilateral relations. Not only that, but it is also claimed that the relations between the two countries are the most developed, the most cordial so far. Yet why this fragile situation on the border, this aggression, this relentless killing? Indian authorities should think and consider this cordially. According to some observers, the reason lies in the mindset of Indian security agencies to Bangladesh. They should respect the sovereignty of Bangladesh and the Bangladeshi people.

 India has fulfilled all its demands from Bangladesh. Whatever India wants, Bangladesh has given it unconditionally. But India doesn’t want to give in exchange. Bangladesh has a border with India, not just that. Apart from Bangladesh, several other countries have borders with India. However, the borders of those countries are calm and stable. The Indian border guards do not shoot at those borders, do not kill people, do not infiltrate, and do not loot. One of the reasons why Bangladesh is an exception may be that India and the BSF do not have due respect for the sovereignty and citizens of Bangladesh. Occasional tensions, shootings, and even casualties are reported on the Pakistan border or the China border. Of course, it is never one-sided. The Indian border guards respect and fear the Pakistani or Chinese border guards. That is why he is always restrained and avoids conflict. There is no question of quarreling. In the case of Bangladesh, the Indian policy of not valuing or weakening Bangladesh is behind the BSF’s chauvinism. As the saying goes, cats scratch their feet on soft soil.

The killing of Bangladeshis on the border is an attack on the sovereignty of Bangladesh. Had India had so much respect for Bangladesh’s independence and sovereignty, the BSF would never have dared to shoot at Bangladesh. In this regard, the International community should give utmost importance to the issue. The border must be made peaceful and secure, that is the last word. No more concessions can be made in this regard.

Dr. Chula Rajapakse MNZM Lower Hutt NZ’

Minister Udaya Gammanpila has to be roundly congratulated and thanked  for promptly accessing media to explain the truth to the world and demolish the well organised &  well funded propagation of misrerepresentations, deliberate lies and myths when ever they arise. This is a desperate requirement in SL where baseless Rumour and Myth rules the roost where the truth is often relegated to the bottom of a heap of these lies, a consequence of this organised and well funded misuse of the democratic freedom of speech, which was meant to be exercised with responsibility and not deliberately and wrongly exploited as in Sri Lanka.

Sri Lankan’s should rise up big time against this  deliberate misuse and wrong exploitation of the sacred democratic freedom of speech.

On the Big Focus program on Derana TV on 19/11/21 Minister Gammanpila was at his brilliant best demolishing the claims made in Parliament, by one who had been challenged by his own cabinet colleagues to show some of his educational credentials . This member based his claims  on  a deliberately misleading analysis of the government’s  handling of the current challenges on acquisition of it’s fuel requirements by one known at school as  Pacha Upali” . The minister explained that as the govt was often obtaining fuel on credit for several months at a time , they would need to source petroleum products from those prepared to do this and not necessarily from the lowest spot price that would require prompt payment. . This is not possible on account of the destroyers economy left by Yahapalana now compounded by Covid. Not buying the  cheapest was suggested in parliament by the Pacha Upali” mislead member as fraudulent.! The real reason for this is as above.

The Minister also explained why they chose to close Sapugaskanda refinery for 50 days, a planned closure already announced in September during which time it’s service needs would be addressed,  .Imported refined products accounts for 70% of Sri Lanka’s requirements , while the old technology based Iran manufactured Sapugaskanda only provided 30% of the oil requirement. Most of this was the type used for firing oil powered electricity generation, which has a low need now with overflowing hydroelectricity reservoirs and completely full storage capacity for these petroleum products.Hence the planned closure.

This is the response to the triumphant question raised by the member with questionable educational credentials, of how the govt had money to buy refined oil and not crude”. This was based on the current requirement.

The current need was to maintain the requirement of the importation of the 70% refined oil, of which there was their current usual back up fo  10-15days, as has been the practice for years.base on SL’s low levels Forex availability  These reserves have not been challenged at all in the past years and the plans to maintain this level for the foreseeable future are well established and no cause for concern at all. As we write several ships with refined oil are in the  Colombo Harbour.

Against this back ground , despite government’s repeated reassurances of no shortage of fuel, panic buying was created by these deliberately misleading  mischievous claims of fuel shortage, orchestrated by media , some deliberately, some in their ignorance , that led to the shortages at the pumps where their usual stores for   3 days was exhausted in a day through panic buying  and replenishing the stocks at the pump takes a few days . Despite the Minister reassuring the public, the false and misleading alternative was so pervasive , leading to the above results..

Thank you again Minister  and congratulations  for your brilliant work, keep doing the same, encourage more of your colleagues to do the same & please don’t fail to deliver on your promise of making commercially available , the first gushes of Natural Gas from the Mannar Basin within 3 years.

අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය මාධ්‍ය අංශය

පාකිස්ථානයේ බෞද්ධ උරුමය අලළා නිර්මාණය කළ ගාන්ධාර” වාර්තා චිත්‍රපටය අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය මහින්ද රාජපක්ෂ මහතාගේ ප්‍රධානත්වයෙන් පසුගිය දා (16) අරලියගහ මන්දිරයේ දී එළිදැක්විණි.

පාකිස්ථාන අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය ඉම්රාන් ඛාන් මහතාගේ ශ්‍රී ලංකා සංචාරය අතරතුර අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය මහින්ද රාජපක්ෂ මහතා සමඟ පැවති ද්විපාර්ශ්වික සාකච්ඡාවේ ප්‍රතිඵලයක් ලෙස මෙම වාර්තා චිත්‍රපටය එළිදැක්විණි.

ඒ සඳහා බුද්ධශාසන, ආගමික හා සංස්කෘතික කටයුතු අමාත්‍යාංශයේ සම්බන්ධීකරණය ඇතිව ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ පාකිස්ථානු මහ කොමසාරිස් කාර්යාලය සහ සිද්ධිවිනායක් සිනෙ ආර්ට්ස් පෞද්ගලික සමාගම සම නිෂ්පාදනයෙන් දායක වී ඇත.

මෙම වාර්තා චිත්‍රපටයෙන් ක්‍රිස්තු වර්ෂ 1වැනි සියවසේ සිට 7 වැනි සියවස දක්වා බෞද්ධ ශිෂ්ටාචාරයේ පොහොසත්ව පැවැති පාකිස්ථානයේ ගාන්ධාර ශිෂ්ටාචාරය ගැන අවධානය යොමු කරයි.

ලොව ප්‍රථම බෞද්ධ විශ්වවිද්‍යාලය ලෙස සැළකෙන තක්ෂිලාව පාකිස්ථානයේ පිහිටා ඇති අතර බුදුරජාණන් වහන්සේගේ ප්‍රථම මානවරූපී ප්‍රතිමාව නිර්මාණය කරන ලද්දේ ද පාකිස්ථානයට අද අයත්ව තිබෙන ප්‍රදේශයේ බව සැලකෙයි.

ගාන්ධාර වාර්තා චිත්‍රපටය මගින් පාකිස්ථානයේ පිහිටි මෙම ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨ බෞද්ධ උරුමය ශ්‍රී ලාංකික බෞද්ධයන්ට මෙන්ම ගෝලීය බෞද්ධ ප්‍රජාවට සම්බන්ධ කිරීමට ප්‍රයත්න දරා ඇත.

දින 12ක් පාකිස්ථානයේ සංචාරය කරමින් නිර්මාණය වූ මෙම වාර්තා චිත්‍රපටයේ සමස්ත ව්‍යාපෘතිය භාර ජ්‍යෙෂ්ඨ උපදේශක ලෙස ආචාර්ය අග්‍රහැර කස්සප හිමියෝ කටයුතු කළහ.

ගාන්ධාර වාර්තා චිත්‍රපටය ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ පාකිස්ථානු මහ කොමසාරිස් කාර්යාලය සමඟ සම නිෂ්පාදනයෙන් කෞශල්‍යයා වික්‍රමසිංහ සිද්ධිවිනායක් සිනෙ ආර්ට්ස් පෞද්ගලික සමාගම, පාකිස්ථාන රජයේ විශේෂ අවසරය ඇතිව අධ්‍යක්ෂ මාතෙන් සහෙරායි සහ නිෂ්පාදන පාලක ලෙස එංගලන්තයේ සිට සජාද් මොහොමඩ් මහත්ම මහත්මීන් දායක වී ඇත.

පිටපත් රචනය හා සම අධ්‍යක්ෂණය විද්‍යාජෝති මහාචාර්ය නිමල් සිල්වා මහතාය. පාකිස්ථානයේ ෆල්කොම් ක්ලබ් පෞද්ගලික සමාගම රේඛීය නිෂ්පාදනයෙන් ඊට සහය වී තිබේ.

ගාන්ධාර වාර්තා චිත්‍රපටය එළිදක්වන අවස්ථාවේ ආචාර්ය අග්‍රහැර කස්සප හිමියෝ මෙසේ පැවසූහ.

පාකිස්ථානයේ අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය ඉම්රාන් ඛාන් මැතිතුමා ශ්‍රී ලංකාවට පැමිණි වෙලාවේ අපේ අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය මහින්ද රාජපක්ෂ මැතිතුමා සමඟ සාකච්ඡා කරනකොට එතුමා ඉල්ලීමක් කළා පකිස්ථානය බෞද්ධ වටිනාකම් තිබෙන රටක් විධියට,බෞද්ධ ස්තූප, බෞද්ධ නෂ්ටාවශේෂ, විවිධ වටිනාකම්වලින් යුක්ත බෞද්ධ පෞරාණික වස්තූන්ගෙන් ඉතාමත් ගහණ රටක් හැටියට මේවා ලාංකීය බෞද්ධයන්ට දැක බලා ගැනීම උදාකර දීම ඉතාමත්ම කාලෝචිතයි කියලා.

ඒ නිසා මා ඉල්ලීමක් කරනවා.අපේ අග්‍රාමාත්‍යතුමාගෙන් මේ නටබුන්, ඒ වටිනාකම් ලංකාවේ බෞද්ධයන්ට පෙන්වන්න අවස්ථාවක් සළසා දෙන්න කියලා. මෙම වාර්තා චිත්‍රපටය සකස් කිරීමේ සංචාරයට පාකිස්ථානයේ ආරාධනය ඇතිව මා සමඟ අපේ ගංගාරාම විහාරාධිකාරී ආචාර්ය කිරින්දේ අස්සජි හිමි ඇතුළු මහා සංඝරත්නයත් වැඩම කළා.

බුද්ධශාසන, ආගමික හා සංස්කෘතික කටයුතු අමාත්‍යාංශයේ ලේකම් මහාචාර්ය කපිල ගුණවර්ධන, අග්‍රාමාත්‍යතුමාගේ බෞද්ධ කටයුතු පිළිබඳ පෞද්ගලික ලේකම් ඒ.එම්.රත්නායක මහත්මා ආදි කොට අමාත්‍යාංශය මැදිහත්වෙලා, පාකිස්ථානු මහ කොමසාරිස්තුමා ඇතුළු මහ කොමසාරිස් කාර්යාලය සහ කෞශල්‍යයා වික්‍රමසිංහ මෙනවිය සහ මහාචාර්ය නිමල් සිල්වා මහතා ඇතුළු විශාල පිරිසක් එක්ව මෙම වාර්තා චිත්‍රපටය නිර්මාණය කළා යැයි ආචාර්ය අග්‍රහැර කස්සප හිමියෝ පැවසූහ. 

චිත්‍රපටය එළිදක්වන අවස්ථාවට කොළඹ විශ්වවිද්‍යාලයේ කුලපති බස්නාහිර පළාත් ප්‍රධාන සංඝනායක නාරාහේන්පිට අභයාරාමාධිපති මුරුත්තෙට්ටුවේ ආනන්ද නාහිමි, ගංගාරාම විහාරාධිකාරී ආචාර්ය කිරින්දේ අස්සජි හිමි ඇතුළු මහා සංඝරත්නය ද වැඩම කළහ.

ඉස්ලාම්, හින්දු සහ ක්‍රිස්ත්‍රියානි පූජකතුමන්ලා ඇතුළු අන්‍යාගමික නායකයෝ ද ඊට එක්වූහ.

කථානායක මහින්ද යාපා අබේවර්ධන, අමාත්‍යවරුන්වන චමල් රාජපක්ෂ, සී.බී රත්නායක,ඩග්ලස් දේවානන්දා,නිමල් සිරිපාල ද සිල්වා, අලි සබ්රි, පවිත්‍රා වන්නිආරච්චි, රාජ්‍ය අමාත්‍ය පියල් නිශාන්ත, අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය ලේකම් ගාමිණී සෙනරත්, ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ වැඩබලන පාකිස්ථාන මහ කොමසාරිස් තන්වීර් අහමඩ් මහත්ම මහත්මීහු සහ සිද්ධිවිනායක් සිනෙ ආර්ට්ස් පෞද්ගලික සමාගමේ අධිපතිනි කෞශල්‍යයා වික්‍රමසිංහ මෙනවිය ඇතුළු නිෂ්පාදන කාර්යයට දායකවූවෝ හා  ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ පාකිස්ථානු මහ කොමසාරිස් කාර්යාලයේ නියෝජිතයෝ පිරිසක් මෙම අවස්ථාවට එක්ව සිටියහ.

අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය මාධ්‍ය අංශය

අනුරාධපුර දිස්ත්‍රික්කයේ අඩු ආදායම්ලාභී පවුල් 100ක් සඳහා අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය මහින්ද රාජපක්ෂ මහතා ඊයේ (19) දින පස්වරුවේ පානීය නල ජල පහසුකම් ලබාදුන්නේය.

නල ජල පහසුකම් ලබාදීම සංකේතවත් කරමින් පවුල් 5ක් සඳහා එම අයිතිය ප්‍රදානය කිරීමේ උත්සවය අනුරාධපුර මිරිසවැටිය රජ මහ විහාරස්ථානයේ දී පැවැත්විණි.

පෙරේදා දිනට යෙදුණ සිය ජන්ම දිනයට සමඟාමීව අඩු ආදායම්ලාභී පවුල් සඳහා අග්‍රාමාත්‍යතුමාගේ පෞද්ගලික ධන පරිත්‍යාගයෙන් මෙම වැඩසටහන ක්‍රියාත්මක විය.

රජරට විශ්වවිද්‍යාලයේ කුලපති,මිරිසවැටිය චෛත්‍යාරාමාධිකාරී පූජ්‍ය ඊතල් වැටුණු වැවේ ඥානතිලක නා හිමි, මහාචාර්ය ඉඳුරාගාරේ ධම්මරතන හිමි, ගංගාරාම විහාරාධිකාරී ආචාර්ය කිරින්දේ අස්සජි හිමි, ආචාර්ය අග්‍රහැර කස්සප හිමි ඇතුළු මහා සංඝරත්නය මෙහි වැඩම කළහ.

මහාචාර්ය ඉඳුරාගාරේ ධම්මරතන හිමියෝ මෙහි දී කෙටි අනුශාසනාවක් පැවැත්වූහ.

අපි හරි හරිම ආසාවෙන් ආදරෙන් සුභ පතන්නෙ අපේ  ගරු අගමැතිතුමාට,එතුමා ගැන සාමාන්‍යයෙන් ඔබ්බට ගිය කරුණක් කියන්න මම කැමැතියි.

සිංහල දුටුගැමුණු දෙමළ එළාරට එරෙහිව සටන් කළා කියලා.එළාර රජු හා දුටුගැමුණු රජ්ජුරුවෝ අතර ඇතිවුණ යුද්ධය නිර්වචනය කරන්න බැහැ. ඒකට හේතුව එළාර දෙමළ නෙමෙයි නිසා. දුටුගැමුණු රජු සටන් කළේ දෙමළ හමුදාවකට එරෙහිව නෙමෙයි ආක්‍රමණික සොලී හමුදාවකට එරෙහිව. ඒ නිසා චෝල අධිරාජ්‍යයේ ආක්‍රමණිකයාට එරෙහිව තමයි දුටුගැමුණු රජතුමා ක්‍රියාත්මක වුණේ.

ඒ නිසා යුද්ධය යැයි කියනු ලබන්නාවූ ත්‍රස්තවාදයට තේරෙන භාෂාවෙන් ප්‍රතිචාර දැක්වීමක් සිද්ධ වුණේ. යුද්ධයක් නම් රටවල් දෙකක් අතර ඇතිවන එකක්. ඒ නිසා ලංකාවේ යුද්ධයක් තිබුණෙ නැහැ. යුරෝපීය ඒජන්තයන්ගෙ සහ දේශීය නියෝජිතයන්ගෙ කලබැගෑනිය අන්තිම තත්පරයෙදි නවත්වන්න

හෙලිකොප්ටරයෙන් ගිහිල්ලා ඇඹිලිපිටියෙදිත් උත්සහ කළා. අන්න ඒ වෙලාවේ ආක්‍රමණිකයාට එරෙහිව කටයුතු කරපු අපේ කාලේ රජ්ජුරුවෝ තමයි මහින්ද රාජපක්ෂ කියල කියන්නෙ.

අපිට වටින්නෙ ඒක. අල ලූණු දේශපාලනය නෙමෙයි. අල ලූණු අඩු වේව් වැඩි වේව් එහා මෙහා යාවි. හැබැයි මේ රට නිදහස් කරගන්නවා කියන කාරණාව කෙනෙක් නිර්වචනය කළා දෙමළ ජනතාවට එරෙහි ද්‍රවිඩ සංහාරය කියලා. එහෙම නෙමෙයි ඒක ආක්‍රමණිකයාට එරෙහිව ක්‍රියා කිරීමයි. දෙමළ ජනතාවට එරෙහිව යුද්ධ කළා නම් ඉස්සෙල්ලාම ගහන්න ඕන වැල්ලවත්තට. ඉස්සරවෙලා ගහන්න ඕනි කෝවිල්වලට එහෙම උනේ නැහැ.

ඒක නිසා යුද්ධය කියලා හඳුන්වපු මේ මහා කලබගෑනියේ අද ප්‍රතිලාභ ලබන්නේ සිංහලයන් ද නෑ. සාමාන්‍ය ජනතාව ද ? ඒත් නෑ. ව්‍යාපාරිකයො සියලු දෙනා. ඒ නිසා එදා මේ රටේ ජනතාව ඉල්ලුවේ අල අඩුකරන්න හරි, ගෑස් බහුල කරන්න හරි කියලා නෙමෙයි. රට බේරාලා දෙන්න කියන කාරණාව විතරයි එදා ඉල්ලුවේ. ඒ නිසා තමයි රටේ ජනතාව අදටත් ඔබතුමාට ආදරය කරන්නෙ.

ඒ නිසා මේ රටේ ඉන්න ලක්ෂ ගණනක් මිනිස්සු ඔබට සුබ ප්‍රාර්ථනා කරනවා. ඔබතුමාගේ උපන්දිනයට එක දවසක දි දිනලා රටක් හම්බවුණා. අනිත් සැරේ ලංකා ඉතිහාසයේ රජ පරපුරෙන් පසු මෑත ඉතිහාසයේ කරන ලද සුවිසල් දා ගැබ සඳහිරු සෑය පූජා කිරීමේ අවස්ථාව හම්බවුණා. එහෙම වරමක් මේ රටේ රජ කෙනෙකුටවත් හම්බවෙලා නෑ. මේ වගේ උපන් දින තෑගි තව කෙනෙකුට හම්බවෙලා නෑ යැයි ද මහාචාර්ය ඉඳුරාගාරේ ධම්මරතන හිමියෝ අනුශාසනාව අතරතුර පැවසූහ.

කථානායක මහින්ද යාපා අබේවර්ධන, අමාත්‍ය වාසුදේව නානායක්කාර, බුද්ධශාසන ආගමික හා සංස්කෘතික කටයුතු අමාත්‍යාංශයේ ලේකම් මහාචාර්ය කපිල ගුණවර්ධන, මහාභාරකාර තැන්පත් නීතිඥ ගනේශ් ධර්මවර්ධන, බෞද්ධ කටයුතු කොමසාරිස් ජනරාල් සුනන්ද කාරියප්පෙරුම ,පොල් සංවර්ධන මණ්ඩලයේ සභාපති කීර්ති ශ්‍රී වීරසිංහ මහත්වරු ඇතුළු පිරිසක් මෙම අවස්ථාවට එක්ව සිටියහ.

Courtesy The Island

The 22nd of October 1902, was a busy day for Muhandiram Dionysius Sepala Panditha Dahanayake. The Dayaka Sabha of the Wijayananda Viharaya at Weliwatta, Galle, of which the Muhandiram was the Pesident, was holding a special pooja. Suddenly in the middle of the ceremonies, Muhandriam Dahanayaka got an urgent message from his home. His face wreathed in smiles, the Muhandiram hurried to his walauwwa. Yes! He had just become the father of twin boys.

He named the elder of them Wijayananda after the Wijayananda Viharaya. As the happy news was heard when performing a meritorious act while in convivial company, the other twin was named Kalyanapriya.

Of historical interest;

(I) It was at this Viharaya that Colonel Henry Steele Olcott and Madame Blavatsky observed Pansil” for the first time and embraced Buddhism, on the 19th of May 1880.

(ii) the Sunday Dhamma School in this Viharaya is the oldest in Sri Lanka. It was started in 1895.

For the first time in Sri Lanka, Jayamangala Gathas were recited at a wedding, by a bevy of girls from this sunday school in 1897.

(iii) The Ramanya Nikaya (Sect) originated at this temple in 1864, under Ven. Ambagahawatte Indra Sabhowara Gnanasami.

(iv) A relic of the three relcs of Buddha, gifted to Sri Lanka from the kapilawastupura relic discovery and offered to the Ramanaya sect, is enshrined at this temple.

A personal note:

Weliwatta is the native village of Ruhunu Puthra. He personally knew the Nayaka Theros Ven. Mawelle Sri Dharmarama Ariyakeerthi (Alinkiththe Hamuduruwo) and Ven. Galle Gnanabasha, of this temple.

The mother of W and K, Caroline Dahanayake lulled the twins. They cried together, fell ill together, felt the pangs of hunger and the other wants together.

There were no pre-schools at the time. So, their father sent them to the Rippon Girls School, which was close to their home, with a domestic aide. They both were playful mischievous boys. Before the last bell for the day at school, they would scoot down the hill. One day at a function at this girls’ school, W then a Cabinet Minister said amidst loud laughter, that He and his twin brother were old girls of the school”.

Although they attended the Sunday school at the Galketiya Temple close to their home, they hardly learnt any dhamma from it, not due to any lapse of the school but due to their misbehavior and playing truant.

Thereafter they both attended Richmond College, which was also close to their home. They studied together and also played together and it was a difficult task to identify them when they were together, as they were identical twins.

While in the 5th standard they were given a double promotion. At the Cambridge Junior Examination held in 1917, K beat W obtaining an upper 2nd class o W’s 3rd class pass. Their names appear in the distinguished students’ name board in the college hall.

In 1927, when Mahatma Gandhi visited Galle, they both went to greet him. W also presented him an English poem written by him about Gandhi.

After the death of Baanu Ransi, one of their elder brothers, who was a law student, their elders suggested that they become lawyers as they both were endowed with the gift of the gab.

We don’t want to be barefaced liers” they chorused spontaneously.

To hell with both of you then! And have your own way”, the elders told them with a feeling of disgust.

After they passed the Cambridge Junior Exam at Richmond, they both were sent to S. Thomas’ College, Mount. Lavinia.

They concentrated mainly on studies, lest other extra activities would interfere with their studies. However K was in the college debating team. They were both fond of seeing dramas.

Eventually, the duo entered the Training College at Thurstan Road in Colombo. The vice-principal G.A. Hard who had heard of their barefaced liar story” called them the heavenly twins”. The trainees were given small rooms. Though living in them was not comfortable, what was uppermost in their minds was to study.

Their meals were served at the dining hall. Sinhala food (rice and curry) was served and nobody complained about them. One day the Warden found fault with W and K for using their fingers instead of fork and spoon, to partake of murunga (drum sticks).

The following day, they were hauled up before the authorities who warned them not to do so in the future. They both protested and said that eating with the fingers was in keeping with the Sinhala custom, adding that even Maha Mudliyar Bandaranaike ate murunga with using fingers.

Another day when murunga curry was served again, they started eating with their fingers keeping away the folk and the spoon, when the trainee leader asked them not to do so, as, it contravened the rules of conduct. Both of them then left the dining table in protest.

The following day, Principal A. F. Harrison asked them to leave the boarding house forthwith. However, he magnanimously gestured to pay their food and lodging scholarship allowance. Also, he saw to it that they were not discriminated against.

One day W and K were seated in the garden of the Training College, when W wrote this poem. He stoops to conquer.”

The poem was on the famous romance of Prince Saliya, son of warrior- King Dutugemunu. and the Chandala girl, the beautiful Asokamala; a romance that shook the Royal Court and the entire country and has been told and re-told, sung and re-sung down the centuries.

In palm- thatched hut, alone she sat

And breathed the jasmine – scented air,

Whilst woodland bird so blithely chirped

To greet this maiden wonderous fair,

An outcast born, unloved, unknown, What passing phantom greets, her sight: ‘Tis stately Sal, King Gemunu’s sort: Her bosom heaved with mad delight, Whilst Sal, with magic dreams a -lit, Beheld this sprite of Heavenly beauty, No darksome rift his thought did sift, For lingering love had conquered duty! This pangs lingering love was far above,

The harrowing pangs of princely pride; By the Gods he swore. I thee. adore!” And lost a kingdom fora bride!”

The poem was on the famous romance of Prince Saliya, son of warrior- King Dutugemunu. and the Chandala girl, the beautiful Asokamala; a romance that shook the Royal Court and the entire country and has been told and re-told, sung and re-sung down the centuries.

In palm- thatched hut, alone she sat

And breathed the jasmine – scented air,

Whilst woodland bird so blithely chirped

To greet this maiden wonderous fair,

An outcast born, unloved, unknown,

What passing phantom greets, her sight:

‘Tis stately Sal, King Gemunu’s son-

Her bosom heaved with mad delight,

Whilst Sal, with magic dreams a -lit,

Beheld this sprite of Heavenly beauty,

No darksome rift his thought did sift,

For lingering love had conquered duty!

This lingering love was far above,

The harrowing pangs of princely pride;

By the Gods he swore. I thee adore!”

And lost a kingdom for a bride!”

It appeared in the Training College magazine.

At the final exam held after 2 years, K came first among the trainees with W the second.

Once when one Dahanayake was teaching the children in a classroom at St. Aloysius College, Galle another Dahanayake was on the C.W.W. Kannangara’s election stage. Actually, the one on the stage was W who should have been in the classroom a the time. But it was K who was there.

To be Continued

Courtesy The Island

The beginning of November is known for its Remembrance Events — All Souls, Poppy Days and in our political past the Suriyamal Day too.

But as we move to mid-November it marks the highlights of Political Power. Who could forget the election of Gotabaya Rajapaksa as President of Sri Lanka, by 69 lakhs of voters! Just two days after that is the birthday of Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa – reaching 76, with a political record of much success.

But Gotabaya’s second election anniversary was certainly not one with much celebration. Why did anyone think of closing down the Sapugaskanda Oil Refinery at a time of such important celebration? Is this a Weerawansa, Gammanpila, Vasudeva play of loud-mouthed and spineless politics?  The oil should have flowed freely in the country, with no queues seen at any petrol shed. Even the flow of crude oil is the stuff of a political celebration for Gotabaya, Mahinda and Basil, and the other Rajapaksas, too.

As these two Rajapaksa events were celebrated with the vesting of the ‘Sandahiru Seya” to the Maha Sangha, and the offering of Kiri Amma’ alms at the Abayarama Vihara, Narahenpita, to bring mothers’ milk blessings to Mahinda Rajapaksa, there was also the Opposition leader, Sajith Premadasa, having one’s own celebrations. On the round-about at Galle Face, with certainly a large gathering of supporters, and thousands more kept away by the police from all parts of the country.

Basil will certainly celebrate the passage of his first Budget, with his ministerial and dual-citizen absence from the bulk of its debate in parliament.   He must be enjoying the people celebrating his cut off of just five litres from the petrol for MPs cars, and the delay of the MPs pension till ten years in parliament. What else could the people celebrate, with the cost of living reaching unachievable heights, and queues becoming the stuff of urban display, and a new tourist attraction with the Sand Dune racing of Namal Rajapaksa.

Amidst all these celebrations, the Public Health Inspectors, and the well manipulated Health Authorities, are talking of another wave of the Covid pandemic. The Health Authorities should often go before a mirror, and see themselves as the promoters of the next wave, supporting the political movers – on where no health guidelines should be followed. Not at any crowded Katina Pinkama, any annual celebration of the Pohottuva Party, and where political leaders of the government can get some hundreds, or thousands to gather around them; though not so easy today.

For nearly two years we have been talking about a virus – that came from China. What we see today is much more than a China Virus. It is the Chinese direction of the political leadership of this country. From the Port City of Colombo and all the sway China has at Hambantota, as well as many other parts of the country, we are now certainly trapped and bound by this Virus of Non-diplomacy.

We are now also caught in the wider Political Virus – Deshapalana Virasaya – which has no vaccination against it. The speeches  by government MPs in the Budget Debate, the regular headlines about the government’s so-called achievements, the many Task Forces that do very little other than echo the Gotabaya Thinking (not very smart), and the new rise of some yellow robes for Constitutional Thinking – One Country, One Law, and Chancellors of Universities, with more cheap yellow stuff to follow —  let’s cherish our memories of the great monks of the past — is the pervading threat to this country and people.

Two Years of Pohottuva Power have taken us to the edge of a political cliff, the fall from which will be disastrous. How can the people recede even to a slope of democratic safety, and escape the further spread of the Rajapaksa Power Virus?

Many are talking about how our politicians have brought us to this near disaster from the time of independence. Surely, not all those leaders were as bad as what we have today. Many of them had shortcomings in governance. Some were swayed by ethnic and religious divisions, to please their politics and greed for power. But we are now led by the worst of them all, a shameful pack of Family Power Dominance.