8
suicide bombers carried out an unimaginable mass suicide. That these suicide
bombers were Muslims & quoted the Koran is a fact. That they targeted 3
Churches holding Easter Sunday masses reconnects with historical angst between
Islam-Christianity (Clash of the Civilizations) and brings back memories of the
many religious wars held. That 3 hotels were also targeted with 2 suicide
bombers dispatched to only one hotel raises speculation as to something more
than religious hatred. It is therefore no surprise that even after over 2
years, even after arrests & interrogations the ‘maha molakaru’ remains at
large & we can only wonder if their involvement will ever come to light
just as President John F Kennedy’s assassination remains a controversy even
after 50 years!
But
we certainly do have questions …..
No leader commits suicide (Prabakaran is the best example who
was too chicken to even wear a cyanide capsule) – therefore, Zaharan was just
an interim sub-leader tasked to create a team & following orders.
Who gave the orders to Zaharan – who was or were Zaharan’s
superiors from whom he took advice or instructions are they Sri Lankans or
foreigners or were there a pyramid of people unknown to each layer.
Other than the suicide bombers & others who committed suicide
in Sainamaridu and at the home of the 2 suicide bomber brothers – are they more
suicide bombers lined up – does the intelligence units who had been tracking
the movements of this nexus know who they are?
We know from the Wanathawilluwa explosive discovery – Buddhist
sites were next on target, this means another gang of suicide bombers are still
at large.
LTTE carried out suicide missions with an objective – they
killed people who had defied their orders or whom they saw as a threat or those
that had double crossed them – but in the case of the Easter Sunday suicide
team, we do not know what they wanted or why they targeted 3 hotels and 3
churches and on whose instructions and what was the benefit to them to end
their lives.
We saw a video clip of the suicide team showing allegiance to
ISIS – was this a wannabe attempt, or a subtle message to ISIS handlers that
they had potential people in Sri Lanka to tap for future anarchy or was it
aligned to the desire to create an Islamic Caliphate out of Sri Lanka – this
objective is happening incrementally – subtle incursions to Buddhist heritage
sites, bribing weak and vulnerable Buddhists, writing false history claiming
Buddhist sites as ‘theirs’ & even arranging tourist visits for this purpose
& silencing politicians not to take action by diverting attention to
revenue brought from tourist visits for bogus reasons.
Every citizen has a right to feel worried when over 600 persons
have been arrested in connection with the Easter bombings and over 200 are in
prison including those that society have held in high esteem. Their religious
texts permits feigned appearances to fool others until their real objectives
are met This immediately raises the question how many more are pretending to be
what or who they are really not, simply to fool others until their inner
objectives are met?
In 2020 intelligence became aware of an ISLAMIC FEMALE UNIT –
cctv footage of women purchasing white clothes made everyone to be alert to the
likelihood of Vesak being the next likely target.
17 Muslim women had been trained & had taken an oath of
allegiance (Bayat” oath to do what & on behalf of whom) – where are these
women today? Does this not warrant the country to be worried. Of the 17 – 5 are
dead, 3 are in prison, 7 under detention – where is the other women?
Who provided the explosives? Were they locally made & materials
supplied by whom?
Who provided the transport for the suicide bombers, did those
who helped also know about the ultimate targets?
Other than the 8 suicide bombers – who else knew about the attack
and who took part in planning & coordinating the attacks?
The list of people who are guilty of neglect inspite of knowing
about an impending attack include the entire government hierarchy, heads of the
intel units & head of Police – having gone through 3 decades of terror,
they should have known not to take 97 warnings lightly. All that required was
for the Churches to be told to cancel mass and the hotel to be asked to beef up
security while the armed forces & police should have been asked to block
all entry & exit points. Parliamentarians who knew of the attacks from the
grapevine & chose not to attend mass are equally guilty of looking after
only their lives and allowing others to meet their sad fate.
Be that as it may, a coterie of people while demanding justice
for the victims are making feverish efforts to release some of the arrested
hailing them as angels of justice & human rights. Not one of them appear to
be bothered to even wonder if the people they are lobbying to release could
have been among the inner circle of people who planned calculated murder. Being
lawyers themselves, these arrested should know the gravity of their crime. The
crusaders fervently seeking release of the arrested are portraying these as
bigger victims than those now in their graves. With their pressure heavily
influenced even from foreign quarters, it is not a surprise that we cannot get
to the bottom of these mass murders.
Since
Zaharan and his suicide team affirmed allegiance to ISIS – we need to link ISIS
to their real paymasters who takes ISIS wherever their interventions are earmarked.
ISIS, Al Qaeda, Boko Haram and a list of other Islamic terrorist groups
function as Mary’s lambs eventually killing more Muslims than non-Muslims. So
we have to wonder who this ‘maha molakaru’ is who planned to place ISIS in Sri
Lanka immediately after a US-funded regime change in 2015.
Let
us further connect the dots – in 2009 after the defeat of the LTTE & US
losing their cannon, they rechartered their Asia strategy obviously giving up
on LTTE for strategic advantage & turning to their more loyal lambs. 2019 –
Sri Lanka had its first taste of that medicine on Easter Sunday. Now
these ‘maha molakaru’ are using their other pawns to spread wild notions &
remove decorated officers and further weaken national security. So obviously
the key target is to destabilize Sri Lanka & the pawns are many but the
‘maha molakaru’ are still at large.
We
must always turn to history to see the connections.13 dead soldiers was enough
to stage an attack on Tamils to write the story – Sinhala discrimination &
justify LTTE taking arms though everyone conveniently forgot LTTE started
killings way before 1983.
Similarly,
Easter Sunday attack saw international media end their reports with a tagline
giving the impression that Sinhala Buddhists were attacking Muslims and
tactfully diverted attention from the Easter Sunday victims to presenting
Muslims as victims & spread the notion that Buddhists were attacking
Muslims. Attacks on 3 churches had nothing to do with Sinhala Buddhists, the
churches were the worship centres of Catholics. This version was spread to
dilute the swords in Mosques and other dangerous weapons found after raids by
armed forces & police.
The killings took place under the watch of Yahapalana government
where majority of Catholics had voted for them to come to power. The spin
masters quickly turned the guilt of negligence by yahapalana to spread notion
that the present government (then opposition) were linked to the attacks to
return to power. By April 2019, yahapalana had by its own follies proved its
inability to run the country. There was no requirement for any opposition
role. However, it was a preposterous
notion that 8 Muslims would blow themselves to bits to bring a Sinhala Buddhist
leader to power!
The
suicide bombers left no note, they pledged allegiance & blew themselves up.
Something is missing in this story – who are the maha molakaru
that ordered these men to carry out the killings. Indoctrination using verses of the Koran is not difficult – all
over the world Islamic suicide bombers use the same quotes but who are the
one’s manipulating the verses – this is the answer, we all want to know.
Colombo, November 16 (newsin.asia): President of Sri Lanka H.E Gotabaya Rajapaksa inaugurated the National Defence College (NDC) on 11 November.
Keeping up the legacy of strong relations between Pakistan and Sri Lanka, the Government of Pakistan donated a fully furnished library to the National Defence College. Pakistan also provided its fullest support in setting up the curriculum of the inaugural course at NDC.
Mr. Tanvir Ahmad, Acting High Commissioner and Col. Muhammad Safdar Khan Defence, Advisor of the Pakistan High Commission, Colombo attended the inaugural ceremony which was also attended by senior political and military leadership of the country, Ambassadors/High Commissioners of Diplomatic missions and Defence Advisors/ Attachés based in Sri Lanka.
Colombo, November 16 (newsin.asia): A documentary on the Gandhara civilization in Pakistan, jointly produced by Pakistan and Sri Lanka, was launched by the Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa here on Tuesday.
Titled Gandhara” the documentary is jointly produced by the High Commission of Pakistan in Sri Lanka and Siddhivinayak Cine Arts (Private) Limited of Sri Lanka with the support of and in coordination with, the Sri Lankan Ministry of Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs.
It takes viewers on a visual journey of the Gandhara Buddhist heritage sites of Pakistan.
One of the relics of Lord Buddha discovered in the Gandhara region is preserved at the Taxila Museum in Pakistan. It is the region where the Gandhara Buddhist civilization reached its pinnacle of glory from 1st century AD to the 7th century AD.
The first anthropomorphic statue of Lord Buddha was created in the region now called Pakistan. Known for hosting the world’s oldest Buddhist University, Thakshashila (Taxila), Pakistan is home to some of the most sacred Buddhist artifacts.
A sapling from the sacred Bodhi Tree in Anuradhapura, gifted by the government of Sri Lanka to the government of Pakistan, also grows in the gardens of the Taxila Museum.
In order to present this heritage to the Buddhist world in general and Sri Lanka in particular, the idea of Gandhara: The Buddhist Heritage of Pakistan” was conceived.
Launched with the support of the Prime Minister and Minister of Buddha Sasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs, Mahinda Rajapaksa and the Prime Minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan, this documentary will open up new avenues in religious tourism as well as strength cultural and people to people ties between Sri Lanka and Pakistan.
With special permission from the Government of Pakistan, both local and foreign technicians including Director, Mateen Saherai & Production Controller Mr. Sajjad Mohommad (Gateway To Production, England) from England have contributed to this film. The film is based on a screenplay that explores the historical ruins and artifacts captured in a realistic way while also exploring background historical information.
Ven. Agrahera Kassapa Thero is the Senior Adviser to the entire project. The concept and script has been prepared by the Project Consultant Director, Vidyajothi Prof. Nimal Silva. The film is co-produced by Siddhivinayak Cine Arts (Private) Limited, known for producing, marketing, distribution and exhibition of international films. The sound and movie editing is done by local artistes.
Ms. Kaushalya Wickramasinghe, the Chairperson of Siddhivinayak Cine Arts (Private) Limited, mentioned that the film is expected to be screened in local cinemas as well as on local TV channels and abroad in collaboration with international organizations.
The Acting High Commissioner of Pakistan, Tanvir Ahmed said that Gandhara” was conceptualized with the aim of bringing the peoples of Sri Lanka and Pakistan together through their shared history and heritage. Venerable Dr Kirindey Assaji Thero, Chief Incumbent of the Gangaramaya Temple, while fondly recalling his visit to the Holy Buddhist Trail in Pakistan organized by the High Commission of Pakistan, gave his blessings for the success of the documentary and closer relations between the two countries.
The daily count of COVID-19 cases confirmed in Sri Lanka moved to 720 today (November 16) as 192 more people were tested positive for the virus, the Epidemiology Unit said.
This brings the total number of confirmed cases of coronavirus reported in the country to 552,994.
As many as 524,740 recoveries and 14,034 deaths have been confirmed in Sri Lanka since the COVID-19 outbreak.
More than 14,000 active cases in total are currently under medical care, official figures showed.
Meanwhile, the Director-General of Health Services has confirmed 18 new coronavirus-related deaths for November 15, pushing the death toll in the country due to the virus infection to 14,034.
The deaths confirmed today include 09 males and 09 females, according to the Department of Government Information.
Two of the victims are between the ages 30-59 years and the remaining 16 are in the age group of 60 years and above.
Let
us not beat about the bush. UNP has never supported the national army or the
police & have always preferred to side with LTTE terrorists – why would
they raise hands in parliament to give compensation to LTTE and not to the
slain police officers/armed forces by LTTE? The 2002 CFA gave territory to
terrorists, confined the national army to barracks & allowed LTTE to travel
anywhere with guns. Such was the humiliation the national army was subject to
and putting military intelligence personnel in prison became a witch hunt! The
manner that over 600 policemen were given as live sacrifice by UNP leadership
speaks volumes of its anti-national objectives. The purpose behind this was to
destabilize the country & weaken the security apparatus protecting the
country as desired by those that funded the party. According to Prof. Dov Levin
of Carnegie Mellon university, US had funded UNP during several elections since
1956. $3.4m was given by USAID to UNP for 2015 elections! It is a pity that UNP
supporters cannot see this aspect of their green party.
Ranil
Wickremasinghe became Prime Minister on 9 December 2001. The raid on the ‘safe
house’ in the Millennium City housing complex, Athurugiriya took place on 2
January 2002 less than a month after coming to power
On
22 February 2002 the Cease Fire Agreement between Ranil & Prabakaran was
signed.
The
house was used by the Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol (LRRP) which came under
the Directorate of Military Intelligence. This was a top-secret unit &
known only to a handful within the military establishment as their mission was
to penetrate LTTE.
The
raid took place without even informing army commander Gen. Lionel Balagalla.
The IGP at the time was Lakdasa Kodituwakku. Efforts to release the detained
military intelligence personnel arrested under PTA was blocked by then internal
security minister John Amaratunga. Their release came only after Gen. Balagalla
issued a public statement that the unit was used against LTTE. This was a clear
case of politicized police action & willful treachery of politicians and
speaks volumes as to why the war lasted 3 decades. These intelligence personnel
were later gunned down by LTTE after their names were known by the LTTE.
An
attempt to assassinate PM Ranil was the reason given for the raid. The UNP
leader himself claimed to have information of a group of soldiers planning to
murder him.
When LTTE had not wasted a
bullet on him, it is baffling to even think that a bullet would be wasted by
others!
The
UNP that ran torture chambers in Batalanda being concerned about a ‘safe house’
in Millennium City is equally baffling.
We
don’t know how many were killed in these torture chambers. But we do know that
they were all Sinhalese & Buddhists. Between JVP & UNP this period saw
the annihilation of thousands of some 60,000 Sinhala Buddhists. That both
entities are controlled by external entities & their main objective would
have been to annihilate Sinhala Buddhists should now be clear.
The
Batalanda Commission (covering period 1988-1990) 6780page final report has yet
to be made public. The main suspect was ASP Douglas Pieris, a politicized
appointee given promotions above others who fled the country. This led to the
politicizing of the police service. Coded words were used as orders to
‘eliminate’. RanilW’ name figured prominently in this report.
A
prominent name featured during UNP’s Premadasa era was DIG Premadasa
Udugampola. His vengeance stemmed from his mother & sisters being raped
& massacred by JVP. After packing off his wife & children to US, he
began his revenge. Not ironically, it was his brother Kulasiri Udugampola who
conducted the raid on the Millennium City safe house.
This
same UNP under Premadasa not only put up LTTE in Hilton Colombo & gave
police escort, but even handed arms to them taking the side of LTTE over the
national army. LTTE was even allowed to carry arms on the SLAF aircraft to
Palaly against objections by military. Gen. Cyril Ranatunga & Bradmon Weerakoon
applied the see no evil, hear no evil, say no evil principle! Only after
President Premaadsa’s death did Cyril Ranatunga admit in his memoirs that the
army was not been given training for over a year (May 1989 to June 1990)
A
hallmark of UNP was to please the LTTE more than the armed forces!
It
was on presidential orders that the 636 police officers were told to surrender
to the LTTE. Each were tortured & killed. Retired SSP Tassie Seneviratne
gave details to the LLRC in 2011 of President Premadasa’s role in the massacre
of these policemen in June 1990 denying the Air Force to attack & provide
support to the police under siege. President Premadasa got IGP Ernest Perera to
fly to East to personally ask 324 police officers to surrender to LTTE – nothing
but a live sacrifice as they were lined up & killed. ASP Ivan Boteju of
Kalmunai Police division chose to not comply with the Presidential directive to
surrender & fired back at the LTTE. 636 policemen by the arms given to LTTE
by the UNP government. What more treachery! Ironically the LTTE showed
thanks by wiping out the cream of the UNP leadership leaving its present leader
untouched! Why would LTTE chose not to harm him?
It
was during UNP’s rule that LTTE’s forwarded PTOMs & ISGA agreements – these
were negotiated on behalf of the UNP by the current foreign minister &
current Sri Lankan envoy to India both crossing over to UPFA in 2007 for
personal gain!
When
UNP came to power riding on Sirisena in 2015, it was no surprise that another
treachery took place in Geneva via co-sponsorship of the UNHRC Resolution
admitting that the Sri Lanka Armed Forces committed war crimes requiring a war
crimes court to hold the military to account. The UNP chose not to use Lord
Naseby’s despatches that would have cleared the military of any bogus claims.
As a result of these bogus claims senior military commanders have travel
restrictions imposed on them & are being hounded & humiliated
internationally for ending a ruthless terrorist movement. There is sadly
no committed plan to set the story straight & absolve the national army of
bogus allegations sans facts.
There
are many other instances of treachery and these are all connected, well-planned
& well-funded. The UNP may die with the UNP leader but the same objectives
have been palmed off to the born again SJB so we are unlikely to see the
national army or police deserve the respect & dignity it deserves.
Nonetheless,
no political party should be allowed to politicize the pillars that defend the
nation – it was as a result of closing down intel units after 2015, locking up
military personnel to please NGOs and packing off decorated military officers
overseas and pitting officials against each other that led to the weakening of
the security apparatus & Easter Sunday bombings after the enemy realized
its golden opportunity to inflict harm upon lives & prove some key points.
We have yet to read the bigger messages behind these mass murders by those that
plotted & those that are equally guilty by neglect & purposeful ignorance.
“If we are going to have one nation under
God, which we must, we have to have one religion. One nation under God, and one
religion under God.” –
Michael Flynn, Nov 10, 2021
The
Buddhists wish—and quite rightly—that in this country where they form 70
percent of the population, Buddhism should be recognized as the predominant
religion of the people. In the rest of the world, Ceylon is regarded as
essentially a Buddhist country, and they want this claim established here as
well…They will not be content to remain in the position of inferiority to which
they have been reduced by 450 years of foreign occupation. They have no desire
to make Buddhism the State religion—in spite of the cry raised by self-seeking
politicians— but they want the State to help them rehabilitate themselves and
undo some, at least, of the injustices perpetrated against them during the days
of their subjection.”(quoted from a speech by Professor
Gunapala Malalasekera, President of ACBC, reproduced in Times of Ceylon,
January 15, 1956, and referenced on page
196 of the book, Ceylon: Dilemmas of a New Nation,” by W. H. Wriggins, Princeton Univ. Press,
1960)
Colombo, November 15 (Daily Mirror): China’s Qingdao Seawin Biotech Group, the fertilizer company caught in a controversy with Sri Lanka’s Agriculture Ministry, has warned that it will lodge a complaint against Sri Lanka at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) if the National Plant Quarantine Service (NPQS) does not rectify its report over the company’s organic fertilizer, which it has called ‘inaccurate’, causing loss of reputation and goodwill.
This matter, which is of national and public interest, is now before the court and the necessary documentation which was shown to Daily Mirror by Qingdao Seawin, has been submitted in the form of evidence for the consideration of court in dealing with the interim injunction issued against the company.
This has been confirmed by the lawyers of the Chinese company.
Determination Pending.
In an exclusive interview to Daily Mirror, the Vice General Manager and Chief Technology Officer of Qingdao Seawin Biotech Group, Anna Song, said that the organic fertilizer manufactured by the Qingdao Seawin group was supplied to over 56 countries including the USA, UK, Australia and Italy and the local buyer – Ceylon Fertiliser Company (CFC) and Colombo Commercial Fertilisers – had signed a contract with Qingdao Seawin on August 26, after it had won the tender called out by the Agriculture Ministry.
Song said that the tender was called by Sri Lanka at the end of June after which an official from the Sri Lankan government had contacted the Chinese Embassy in Colombo to recommend a supplier of organic fertilizer. The Chinese Embassy had in turn informed China’s Agriculture Ministry which recommended 24 qualified suppliers including Qingdao Seawin.
Meanwhile, Song said that Sri Lanka’s Embassy in China had recommended a local agent for Qingdao Seawin and on July 28, the company submitted the bidding documents for the tender.
Sri Lanka’s Agriculture Ministry shortlisted 5 companies from across the globe including Qingdao Seawin from China and on July 23, the company submitted 500 grams of its fertiliser to the local buyer in Colombo for testing and confirmation.
The CFC, by the end of July, had confirmed they had received the sample and on August 11, Qingdao Seawin was awarded the contract.
According to international trade practice, after the buyer confirms the sample and accepts it, it is only then that they award the tender. So accordingly on Aug.26, Qingdao Seawin signed a contract with the Sri Lankan buyers to supply 99,000 metric tonnes of our organic fertilizer, which will be broken up in four shipments,” Song said.
Accordingly, the Chinese company prepared 20,000 metric tonnes of its organic fertilizer as part of its first shipment and dispatched it on board the ‘Hippo Spirit’, which to date is docked in the outskirts of the Colombo Port.
Song said that the Sri Lankan buyers had in August requested for more samples to test the fertilizer and a further 10 kgs of the organic fertilizer was sent immediately.
Song alleged that their company was never informed that their sample was rejected.
Our company has been focusing on organic fertilizer for more than 20 years. So we went with our good quality and complete certificate system. All the certificates were submitted to the Sri Lankan side and we met all the requirements although they were very strict. Time was short and the requirement was high and we completed all the procedures which is why the contract was signed with us by Sri Lanka,” Song said.
However, in early September, the Sri Lankan buyer sent an email to Qingdao Seawin saying their fertilizer had been rejected as it contained harmful bacteria.
We then had a Zoom meeting with them and explained to them what the nature of organic fertilizer is. That it contains bacteria but not the harmful kind. Actually, the Chinese government encourages farmers and manufacturers to use beneficial bacteria which is very good for the soil and crops as it improves the structure of the soil and releases nitrogen to the soil which is very good,” Song said.
Following this meeting, the Chinese company sent a reply by email as well, explaining this after which Sri Lanka confirmed they had opened an LC.
Our organic fertilizer does not contain harmful bacteria such as Erwinia as alleged by the NPQS. Our product does not use compost but we use commercial raw materials. Our products are also sterilized in very high temperatures for at least 20 minutes so even if there was harmful bacteria, as alleged by NPQS, it will all be killed,” Song said.
So we insist our products do not contain Erwinia. This is the first time in our 20 years we have faced these allegations,” Song said.
On September 23, Qingdao Seawin said it had informed CFC that their shipment was on its way, after which CFC had replied saying they had not received the import permit as the samples had been rejected by NPQS.
As a result, Hippo Spirit remained docked in the Singapore port for several days, with Qingdao Seawin awaiting CFC to get the import permit.
Usually the local buyer has to get the import permit before signing the contract with us,” Song said.
Following the controversy which erupted in Sri Lanka, Song said the Sri Lanka Standards Institution (SLSI) nominated German-owned Schutter Global Inspection Lab Co. Ltd. as the third party to test the Chinese organic fertilizer.
The Beijing-based international company dispatched a team to the Qingdao Seawin premises where they studied the sterilization process and obtained samples for testing.
Following their tests, Schutter concluded that the Chinese organic fertilizer did not contain harmful bacteria as alleged by NPQS and submitted its report to the SLSI.
Meanwhile, the NPQS in a written query informed China’s NPQS of the controversy and the harmful bacteria contained in the organic fertilizer. But they were informed in writing by China that
Sri Lanka had tested the fertilizer under wrong temperatures and tested it on potato slices which was wrong.
Song alleged that Sri Lanka had tested it at 37 degrees and on potato slices, whereas the organic fertilizer should be tested at 25 degrees and on a living plant. The method used by Sri Lanka’s NPQS was unscientific,” Song alleged.
Qingdao Seawin have now demanded that the Additional Director of the NPQS, Dr. W. Wickramaarachchi, accept his mistake and put out an accurate report immediately or face legal action.
Further, Song says, if the company’s name is not cleared from such baseless allegations against their products, they will be compelled to lodge a complaint with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, to which Sri Lanka is also a member.
Song said their battle to clear their name is on and they would not back down till their company is cleared off all allegations.
A team led by Shashi Danatunge, former vice chairman of the Sri Lankan Civil Aviation Authority, looking for traces of Sri Lanka’s ancient aviation past in the forests. (Special arrangement)
Sri Lanka wants to reclaim its ancient glory by conducting a detailed scientific research into its aviation past. Many Sri Lankans believe that King Ravana was the world’s first seasoned aviator and that during his days, the island had aircraft and airports. Dismissing the argument that these are mythological beliefs with no scientific backing, some enthusiasts have gone ahead researching on their own.
Two years ago, a conference of civil aviation experts, historians, archaeologists, scientists and geologists was held in Colombo to give a push to the idea. The conference had concluded that Ravana first flew his aircraft from Sri Lanka to India and back.
After the conference, the then Sri Lankan government had sanctioned an initial grant of 5 million Sri Lankan Rupee (SLR) to start the research. The research was stopped due to Covid-19 lockdowns. The current government of the Rajapaksas is also interested in it. They have agreed to continue the project as an initiative of national importance. I expect the researchers to resume work by early next year,” said Shashi Danatunge, former vice chairman of the Sri Lankan Civil Aviation Authority.
Shashi, a history buff and also former CEO of Sri Lanka Cricket Board, has travelled across the island looking for traces and evidences of the country’s civil aviation past.
I am convinced that Ravana is not a mythological figure. He was a real king and he indeed had aircraft and airports. They may not be today’s aircraft and airports. Certainly, the ancient Sri Lankans and Indians had access to superior technologies. We need to conduct an objective research into it,” Danatugne said.
He has also requested the Government of India to join the project believing it to be an important research for both countries to assert their ancient achievements.
Shashi is not alone in advocating for a research on this. Sunela Jayewardene, Sri Lanka’s leading environmental architect, in her book The Line of Lanka – Myths & Memories of An Island writes passionately about Ravana’s aviation.
In the adult world, Ravana’s flight is fictitious, as any educated adult knows that the American Wright brothers invented flight as recently as the last century. But that belief stems from a few centuries of mental conditioning that the West has the most sophisticated technology,” she said.
She also argues that descriptions in the ancient texts of the Vimana or aircraft are too detailed and technical to be labelled as myth. Her uncle, the late Ray Wijewardene, a Sri Lankan pioneering modern pilot, had also backed this theory, she says.
If I had doubts about ancient flights, they were swept away in a gust of excitement when he told me that he believed the Mayuranga kings (Ravana’s dynasty) had aircraft and even airports. They would have had gliders he said, and look for water nearby, not necessarily runways,” she writes.
According to her, there are places associated with aircraft landing such as Thotupolakandha and Ussangoda, Weheranganthota, Rumassala and Lakegala in Sri Lanka.
There is a renewed interest in Sri Lanka about Ravana and his kingdom. The island nation has also sent a satellite called Ravana to the outer space to honour him.
Smoke billows from a chimney at the Sapugaskanda refinery
Sri Lanka shut its only oil refinery Monday after running out of dollars to import crude, in an escalating economic crisis that has triggered shortages of food and other staples.
The country’s foreign reserves had fallen to $2.3 billion at the end of October, down from $7.5 billion when the current government came to power almost two years ago.
International rating agencies have downgraded Sri Lanka’s credit worthiness as the economy shrank an unprecedented 3.6 percent last year with the Covid-19 pandemic.
The island’s tourism earnings and foreign worker remittances have dropped, sparking an import ban on a host of goods including vehicles, spare parts and spices since March last year.
Energy Minister Udaya Gammanpila said it was the first time the Sapugaskanda refinery has been shut down since it was built by Iran in 1969.
Gammanpila said the country instead planned to import refined petrol and diesel and that the government would save an unspecified amount of money by doing so.
“When we refine crude at Sapugaskanda, we get 37 percent furnace oil and 19 percent aviation fuel and only 43 percent petrol and diesel,” he told reporters in Colombo.
“There is no big demand for furnace oil and aviation fuel so it is better to import refined petrol and diesel which are in high demand,” Gammanpila said.
Top Sri Lankan officials have warned of fuel rationing by the end of the year unless consumption is cut drastically.
Sri Lanka’s oil import bill was $2.32 billion last year when a barrel of crude had fallen to about $45, but 2021 imports were expected to be about $4.0 billion because of the sharp rise in oil prices in the international market, according to an official report five months ago.
Official sources said the government had been banking on huge loans from Oman and India to finance oil imports, but they had not materialised and negotiations appeared to be inconclusive.
The foreign exchange shortage has already led to rationing of milk powder, sugar, cooking gas and cement.
In a bid to earn desperately needed foreign cash, the central bank last week announced tighter controls on exporters forcing them to covert their foreign exchange earnings within 180 days at official exchange rates.
The Central Bank of Sri Lanka has pegged the dollar at 202.99 rupees, but commercial banks have run out of dollars. However, on the black market, rates have soared to over 240 rupees to the dollar.
The bank expects the economy to expand 4-5 percent this year with the gradual re-opening of the economy and the roll-out of a vaccine programme.
The Mirigama-Kurunegala section of the Central Expressway will be opened this month, Highways Minister Johnston Fernando said today.
He told Parliament that the Central Expressway from Colombo to Kandy will be completely opened during the next two years.
The minister said this while responding to a question raised by Chief Opposition Whip Lakshman Kiriella whether the Mirigama-Kurunegala section of the Central Expressway would be opened soon as the vehicular movement on the Kandy-Colombo Road has been disrupted at the Pahala Kadugannawa area.
I inquired from the engineers and they said the Mirigama-Kurunegala section is ready to be opened now. This is the time to do it,” he said.(Ajith Siriwardana and Yohan Perera)
The death toll from the COVID-19 pandemic in Sri Lanka has surpassed the 14,000 mark on Monday.
The official death toll reached 14,014, after 21 more coronavirus related deaths for November 14 were confirmed by the Director General of Health Services.
The deaths confirmed today include 15 males and 06 females while four of the victims are between 30-59 years of age. The other are aged 60 and above.
The Ministry of Health says that another 220 persons have tested positive for Covid-19 today, increasing the daily count of new cases to 732.
The new cases reported today includes one returnee from overseas while the rest are associated with the ‘New Year’ cluster.
This pushes the tally of confirmed cases of the virus in Sri Lanka to 552,274 while nearly 14,000 infected patients are undergoing treatment across the island.
The Samagi Jana Balavegaya stated in Parliament today that the reason for the current financial crisis in the country is the loss of Rs. 800 billion in revenue due to tax concessions given in the last budget.
Chief Opposition Whip Lakshman Kiriella made this statement while State Minister Shehan Semasinghe, Parliamentarian Ranil Wickremesinghe, Leader of the House Dinesh Gunawardena, Parliamentarian Shanakyan Rasamanikkam and Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena also expressed their views.
Right now, C. V. Wignewaran is labouring indefatigably to lead the next
Tamil brigade to Nandikadal. Right now, there is no one in the Tamil political
arena who represents Tamil extremism more than C. V. Wigneswaran, the
unrepentant devotee of Swamy Premananda – a convict who died in a S. Indian
prison while serving his term for the murder of a Tamil youth and serial rape
of under-aged Tamil girls. Deifying violence and worshipping evil figures who
commit mass murders have been an integral part of the violent
Sankili-Vellala political culture of Jaffna. The cruel oppression of the
Tamil low-castes by the Vellala leaders throughout the feudal, colonial and
post-colonial periods has been the norm in the violent Vellala culture Jaffna.
The serial killing of Tamil leaders and Tamil dissidents by Prabhakaran is
typical of the violent Sankili cult. It is also typical of the Tamil political
culture to deify him as Surya Devan”. At the ideological level Tamil
violence found its ultimate expression in Arumuka Navalar, the highest
spiritual guru of Jaffna, who told his followers to kill the blasphemers and if
they can’t hire someone else to kill. This made Saivism of Jaffna another facet
of the Sankili-Vellala cult.
Tolerant democratic liberalism failed to rise as a ruling ideology to
liberate the individual from the tyranny of its inflexible religio-casteist
forces. The ideologies and the political forces that ruled Jaffna failed to
deliver equality, liberty, justice and dignity to the oppressed Tamil minority.
Jaffna was dominated by the Vellala majority which kept the low-caste in their
place by imposing its iron-fisted rule. The oppressive political class/caste at
the top demanded total political supremacy and submission to the ruling Vellala
ideology which culminated in the Vadukoddai Resolution of May 14, 1976 – the
comprehensive political manifesto of the Vellala supremacists who declared war
legitimising Tamil violence against the democratically elected state.
Velupillai Prabhakaran was the child that came out of the war-mongering
Vadukoddai Resolution. The violent casteist culture that kept the oppressed
Tamil minority under the feet of the Vellalas during the feudal and colonial
periods was the fertile soil for his rise in the peninsula. The transition from
the casteist violence of Vellalaism to Pol Potist Prabhakaranism was only a
changing of hands from one set of fascist tyrants to another. Both cultures
produced violent tyranny. Jaffna produced two prominent political rulers:
Sankili and Prabhakaran. And both were violent killers of Tamils. Liberalism,
democracy, socialism, feminism, humanism, egalitarianism are ideologies that
failed to win over deep-rooted Sankili-Vellala cult — the overwhelming
force that ruled Jaffna, particularly from the Dutch period. When Jaffna raised
the cry of discrimination, they were expressing the fears of the Vellalas
losing their casteist power and privileges which remained in force even
under British rule and not the mass oppression of the ostracised Tamil
low-castes.
Wigneswaran is the latest manifestation of this Vellala-Sankili cult. He
worships two Tamil criminals. He has no inhibitions in devoutly worshipping the
convicted criminal Swamy Premananda. He even holds poojas for this murderer and
serial rapist. He manufactured legal arguments to defend this criminal who was
convicted by an Indian court in S. India – please note, not by a Sri Lankan
court. He even wrote to Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, pleading for his
release. Colombo Telegraph reported that one of the images
erected in his temple in Jaffna is that of Swamy Premananda. Mark you,
Wigneswaran cannot be dismissed as an eccentric from the hoi-polloi of Jaffna.
He studied in the best state school (free of charge – no discrimination there!)
and rose to be a Judge of the Supreme in the Sinhala state” (no discrimination
there again!). He moves in the highest social levels of the elitist Sinhala
circles in Colombo. It is reported that A. T. Ariyaratne, leader of the
Sarvodaya Movement, too had participated in his poojas. Wigneswaran’s son
is married to Vasudeva Nanayakkara’s daughter. This is typical of the Tamil
elite. They keep one foot in Jaffna plugging anti-Sinhala-hatred to win votes
and the other in Sinhala South to get whatever they can to advance their status
and fortunes. After they extract the best from the South they revert to their
mono-ethnic roots, demonising the Sinhala-Buddhists. They demand the fulfilment
of every comma and full stop in the UN Charter but they have no
compunction in worshipping criminals, knowing that they had killed and
raped Tamils civilians. Is it, therefore, surprising to find Wigneswaran
arguing in defence of Tamil terrorists? Writing in their defence he says
: The activities of the Tamil youths was (sic) a reaction against
State Terrorism.”
But was Tamil terrorism a reaction to State terrorism”? If it was a
reaction to State terrorism” why did the Tamil terrorists slaughter Tamil
leaders, the Muslims and Rajiv Gandhi, all of whom who had helped the Tamils
all the way? What wrong did they do to the Tamils? What wrong did Appapillai
Amirthalingam and Neelan Tiruchelvam do to the Tamils to be killed by
Prabhakaran? What wrong did Uma Maheswaram, the Chairman of the LTTE, do
to the Tamils to be killed by Prabhakaran? Did he kill his chairman to get even
with the Sinhala state”? Sivaram Dharmeratnam, better known as Taraki, the
leading Tamil political analyst of his time, has stated that there were 37
militant organisations in 1983 fighting the Sinhala state”. (p.81 — Learning
Politics from Sivaram, Mark. P. Whitaker.) Each one of them
was a killing machine. In time, they disappeared one by one, eliminated
by the LTTE. Why did Prabhakaran eliminate these Tamil organisations who were
fighting for the same cause, Eelam? Did Prabhakaran decimate his rivals
to help the Sinhala state”? Or was it because he was a creation that came out
of the womb of the violent Tamil political culture?
Clearly, indiscriminate Tamil violence that went berserk targeting Tamil
leaders, dissident Tamils, Muslims, and Indians debunk the myth of Tamil
terrorism was a reaction to the violence of the State terrorism”. The
mindless character of Tamil violence indicates that Tamil terrorism had its
origins in the violence of the Sankili-Vellala political culture that ruled
Jaffna. Tamil violence has its roots in the Sankili-Vellala cult which
established political violence as the norm to counter any threats to the
mono-ethnic power of Jaffna. Tamil violence is an autochthonous force that grew
and rose like Jaffna onions from its soil. It needed no external stimulus to
break out in full force. The declaration of war in the Vadukoddai Resolution is
a clear manifestation of the inherent Tamil violence. It legitimised violence
and urged the Tamil youth to take up the gun against the democratically elected
state. In keeping with their violent political culture, the Tamil leadership
gave the Tamil youth the licence to kill in the Vadukoddai Resolution and the
Tamil youth went wild with the new toy of guns in their hands, targeting the
Tamil leaders first.
Why? Why did Tamil violence target Tamils? According to
Wigneswaran’s argument, the Tamil terrorists were response to
State terrorism”. This raises a fundamental question: why did the Tamil fighting
State terrorism” kill Tamils? They should have reacted by targeting State”
actors only. But the available evidence proves that Tamil violence
indiscriminately fired bullets in all directions. Besides, the rationale used
to justify Tamil violence is that it was necessary to protect Tamils from
Sinhala violence and give them security which the state could not or would not
give. But Tamil violence began with Tamil youth killing Tamil leaders.
Velupillai Prabhakaran’s first victim was Alfred Duriyappah, the mild-mannered
Mayor of Jaffna. He later assassinated the Chairman of the LTTE, Uma Maheswaran
and the rival militants. The list of Tamils assassinated by him is long.
Wasn’t this a recrudescence of the innate Tamil political culture? It was as if
the bottled-up violence in the Tamil political culture had at last found an
avenue to explode. They took to the firing of guns as if it was another
festival of lights. It also means that Tamil violence had no moral
limits. If Tamil violence was to protect Tamils, then Tamils killing Tamils
makes no sense. It was inexcusable. Above all, it undermined the argument that
Tamil violence was a reaction to State terrorism”.
Sinhala state certainly was not the primary source of Tamil violence. It
is also true that sporadic violence of the Sinhala lunatic fringe, reacting to
Tamil provocations, (as seen in the Sansoni Commission report) did alarm the
Tamil community and heightened their sense of insecurity. Sinhala violence too
has its origins in Tamil politics and violence. Each violent bout of Sinhalese
was a reaction to the provocative politics of the Tamils. The explosion of
1983”, for instance, was a reaction to the chain of Tamil violence that
had gathered momentum from the time the Tamil leadership declared war in the
Vadukoddai Resolution. The Vadukoddai Resolution legitimising and urging Tamil
voice was passed in May 1976. Ever since then the Tamils militants have been
escalating their violence, mostly to provoke the Sinhalese as seen in the
Sansoni Commission report. The last straw that broke the camel’s back was the
killing of the thirteen soldiers in Jaffna. The killing of Sinhala soldiers was
committed deliberately to provoke Sinhala violence. All hell broke loose after
that.
It was also the known practice of the Tamil leadership to needle the
lower-level of Sinhala leadership to provoke them into ethnic violence
against the Tamils, as stated by Prof. A. J. Wilson. Tamils invariably
gloated in Sinhala violence against the Tamils as it enabled them to win
political sympathy abroad. Provoking the Sinhalese into violence against the
Tamils paid political dividends internationally. It enabled them to play the
sympathy card of a persecuted minority. But the extraordinary feature of Sri
Lankan ethnic violence has been that it has not driven both parties to
bitter hatred of each other. There was always space left over for the
communities to get back to normalcy within a short space of time. Sri Lankan
street violence is like the fizz of a soda bottle: it subsides as soon as it
explodes. Besides, the ethnic divide has not been irreconcilable like the
visceral Arab-Jewish antagonisms.
It must be mentioned that there were some Tamil intellectuals who were
disturbed by the absurdity and dared to condemn it. The obscenity of Tamils
killing Tamils was unacceptable. Prof. Rajan Hoole was one of them. S. C.
Chandrahasan, son of S. J. V. Chelvanayakam, father of Tamil separatism and V.
Anandasangaree, leader of the Tamil United Liberation Front, have openly denounced
Velupillai Prabhakaran for killing more Tamils than all the others put
together. Shocked by the horrors of Tamil violence Prof. Rajan Hoole asked why
such fratricidal violence came from the womb of Jaffna? Now, why did
Prabhakaran kill Tamils ? Was he reacting to State terrorism” or was he
killing Tamils because he was a product of the violent Tamil political culture?
So, was he a liberator” of Tamils or a liquidator of Tamils? On whose side was
he fighting?
The most glaring example of Tamil
arrogance was displayed when Prabhakaran decided to kill Rajiv Gandhi. As a
political decision it was counterproductive. As a calculated strategy to
display the invincible power” of the LTTE it misfired. It took them nowhere.
It was a futile act that boomeranged on the Tamils as a community. They were
branded as ungrateful killers. They were compared to dogs who bite the hands
that feed them. From all points of view — political, military, power relations
with India, his image in the international arena etc., — there was nothing
substantial that Prabhakaran could have gained by killing Rajiv Gandhi.
Replacing Gandhi with another prime minister would not have changed India’s
stance of adhering to an undivided Sri Lanka. So, why did he do it? Killing of
Gandhi opened a window into the brutal psyche of Prabhakaran. It
certainly confirms that his thinking was driven by insane fury”. A
recent book published in Melbourne throws new light on the issue. It reveals
that it was the insane fury” of Prabhakaran that prompted him to kill Gandhi.
The following passage from Sabaratnam Sundaramoorthy’s Dare to Differ
reveals the hidden cause:
Killing of Rajiv Gandhi
blackened the image of Tigers in the eyes of the world. Many countries that had
lot of sympathy for our freedom fighters started questioning the rationale
behind this murder. They were not prepared to listen to any reason, or anyone
trying to justify it. International media even began to address Tigers as
international terrorists. Though Rajiv was not the prime minister of India at
the time of his murder, the Gandhi dynasty and the way in which the
murder took place on Indian soil invitably made the Tigers look
like the enemy of India. The editor of The Hindu newspaper went all out to
condemn Tigers with venom never shown anytime before.
There was, however,
considerable speculation about the death of Rajiv Gandhi. No one dared to
implicate Tigers with murder except the Sri Lankan and Indian politicians and
the media. So, I decided to find out from Bala (Anton Balasingham) during a
conversation as to why we killed Rajiv.
Bala said, Iysay, when
Thalaivar (Leader, V. Prabhakaran) was there (in Delhi) during talks it was
India’s plan to push Tigers to accept their proposals which Thalaivar refused
to sign”.
During this time Thalaivar
was guarded by Indian protective services, the Black Cats, at Asoka Hotel and
was man-handled by them in a manner that made the rest of the Tiger
participants furious. It made their blood boil to the extent of seeking
revenge. The immediate response was to make Rajiv pay for this and
the rest is history.
I said to Bala: To me it
seems that it was not a valid reason to kill anyone.”
Bala responded: Sundar, we
are talking about Thalaivar who is regarded as our supreme leader. There are
thousands who would give their lives for him and for them it’s something they
could not bear to see. It was an affront to their pride and dignity. They could
not accept anyone manhandling our Leader in such a crude and humiliating
manner. How dare anyone lay a hand on him? Many Tamils across the world regard
Thalaivar Prabhakaran as a God or an avatar.
I did not want to question
him further on such a history-changing event. Besides, I knew what his answer
would be if I questioned him further. Our Boys” would not simply listen to
anyone when they decide to eliminate one deemed to be an obstacle standing in
the way to achieve their goal.”
According to this report
Rajiv Gandhi was kiilled not because of any serious political differences but
because the Black Cats, the Indian commandos dealing with anti-terrorist
activities, had man-handled” Prabhakaran when he was at Asoka Hotel in Delhi.
The immediate response was to make Rajiv pay for this and the rest is
history,” said Anton Balasingham. Undoubtedly, it was an act of personal
revenge. It had nothing to do with the larger issues of Tamil politics. As stated by the Melbourne Tamil political
activist, Sundar, who knew the inside workings of the organisation, hurting the
pride and dignity” of Prabhakaran was not a good enough reason to kill Gandhi.
Besides, there was more than the pride and dignity” of Prabhkaran at stake.
The lives of millions of Tamils were hanging on the relationship between Rajiv
Gandhi and Prabhakaran. But Prabhakaran was concerned only with his pride and
dignity”. He had only one answer to all his political problems: his insane
fury” to kill.
It reveals the narrow
limits of Prabhakaran’s small mind. Balasingham asked: How dare he lay an hand
on him?” There is a point in what Bala says: Prabhakaran should have been
treated with some respect. The Indian Black Cats obviously had given him
the third degree. It was not the way to win his heart. The Indians should have
handled him with greater finesse. But Prabhakaran had averred that he
launched his movement to serve the Tamil people not his ego. So, how did
killing Rajjiv Gandhi help the Tamil people? How did the killng of
Amirthalingam and Tiruchelvam help the Tamil cause? Killing Tamils who had done
so much for the Tamil cause served no purpose. It is obscene. Killing a fellow
Tamil because he poses a political threat to his exitence is
unpardonable. The insane fury” of Tamil politics was blind. They
were killed for disagreeing with the Tamil quasi-state. Is that a valid
reason to kill? It is like killing Rajiv Gandhi because he hurt the ego of Prabhakaran.
Violence based on insane fury” is immoral and counter productive. Tamil
violence was driven by insane fury”. It has been a part of Tamil political
culture. The two leading heroes of Tamil politics, Sankili and Prabhakaran, –
both ruthless killers of Tamils – reflects the innate characteristics of the
Tamil political culture. The post-Nandikadal anti-Sri Lankan campaigns of
Tamils based on human rights is to revive Prabhakaranism and return to
terrorism. Tamil activists in Western capitals aim to win through human rights
what Prabhkaran lost through brutal violence. Can a return to Tamil tyranny
redeem the Tamil people? After centuries of suffering under Vellala and
Prabhakaranist facism do they not deserve even a modicum of freedom in a democratic
state?
Rajiv Gandhi’s story above
reflects the arrogant nature of egotistic Prabhakaran who was basking in the
glory of his initial military successes. As Bala says, his Tamil followers had
elevated him to a deity. They admiringly overlooked the nature of his
insane fury” that was driving his politics because his violence was
promising Eelam. Justifying and glorifying Tamil violence was a political
necessity for the Tamils desperately chasing Eelam. After declaring war in the
Vadukoddai Resolution the Tamils had to produce a Sankili to eliminate all
opposition. Prabhakaran was born out of the Vadukoddai Resolution – the
imprimatur of the Tamil leadership to take up the gun. The misguided Tamil
youth marched all the way from Vadukoddai to Nandikadal propelled by the power
to kill authorised in the Vadukoddai Resolution. Tamil tyranny could only live
on Tamil violence. Sankili killed because the Tamil Catholics owed allegiance
to the King of Portugal. Prabhakaran too killed the Tamils who owed allegiance
to his rivals. History repeated itself in Sri Lanka, first as an insane fury”
and then as a cultural habit of egotistic maniacs, (apologies to Marx!). It was
the insane fury” of the Tamil leaders that eventually destroyed the Tamils.
The immorality is in killing, whatever the cause. The morality was
in both parties putting an end to their killing. One party cannot claim that
they have a higher morality that justifies the killings of the other”. In
declaring war against the Sinhalese in the Vadukoddai Resolution the Tamil
leadership assumed the right to kill the Sinhalese for the political reasons
outlined by them. It spawned dozens of militant groups — all aiming to achieve
Tamil Eelam. They were all killing machines of the Tamils. They were
armed not only with the gun but also with the war-mongering Vadukoddai ideology
that justified killing. They assumed that attaching a political label like
liberation” would give them the moral right to kill with impunity. They
assumed that killing for their political cause was the morally correct
decision. The problem is a that the other side too believed they had the moral
right to kill Tamils for the good of all, just not the Tamils. Each claimed the
superior moral right to kill the other”. Eventually, their righteousness
decimated all parties competing for the right to kill.
Tamil capacity to destroy Tamils is unlimited. Tamil violence is also
self-destructive: it kills more Tamils than the enemies. As some Tamils used to
say, Prabhakaran was determined to fight until the last Tamil left for Canada.
Fortunately, Jaffna was saved for the Jaffnaites by the Sri Lankan before
Prabhakaran could eliminate them all.
In the coming week the newlypresented Appropriation Bill 2022 (Budget for 2022) will come under the scrutiny of politicians of both divides, economists and other stakeholders. Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa is already on record that it is a ‘Somalia-like’ Budget. The Yahapalana Government’s economic guru, Dr Harsha de Silva commented that despite the enormous effort to produce the Appropriation Bill, the result is insignificant. The kind of Budget the Opposition had in mind is an interesting question.
Both Sajith Premadasa and Ranil Wickremesinghe, who has the potential to grab Premadasa’s vote base, were not present when the Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa began his presentation. Neither had either Premadasa or Wickremesinghe, despite their long political careers been able to inject the economy with any growth during the Yahapalana Governments reign.
What should have been the Island’s golden era was scuttled away by the Yahapalana Government. Locally, regionally and globally conditions were conducive for the economy to grow, during the four years of the Yahapalana Government. After the conclusion of a 30 plus year war against terrorism, the country was ready to move forward.
While neighbouring countries like Pakistan and Bangladesh boomed, the mismanagement of Sri Lanka’s economy was appalling. It was as if the Yahapalana Government’s true agenda was to sabotage the economy. Therefore, whatever criticism the Opposition offers that is not supported with hardcore facts or sensible alternatives is nothing more than just noise – noise made just to have their presence felt and nothing towards the intellectual discourse that the country really needs.
Expectations and Reality
Realistically it is not possible to expect a people’s-friendly Budget at this point of time. The whole world is grappling with a pandemic of proportions not experienced in living memory. Even economically-strong countries are struggling to keep afloat. It is not only in Sri Lanka where hundreds of thousand people lost their jobs – it is a global phenomenon. The cost of living rose and continues to rise exponentially not only in Sri Lanka but globally. Already many countries including Sri Lanka are facing shortages of various commodities as gas.
This situation may well continue to the next year. At a time when the Government’s own revenue has fallen drastically whilst its expenses has risen dramatically, it is not possible to expect a Budget that can cushion the people from the dwindling economy. Nevertheless, the Appropriation Bill presented for 2022 appears to be a reasonable one.
It seeks to redress those affected by the pandemic, reduce State expenditure, resolve teachers’ salary anomalies, strengthen industries such as transport and uplift rural development. However, we cannot escape from the underlying fact that this is a deficit Budget. It has been estimated that the total income for 2022 would be Rs 2,284 billion, but the total expenditure would be Rs 3,912 billion. This amounts to a deficit of Rs 1,628 billion. Clearly, we need to seek financial assistance to meet this gap.
Getting into debt is not the issue. Even economically-solid countries manage their affairs on financial assistance. The trick is to manage the debt. During the war days, successive Governments managed day-to-day affairs on debt. The Finance Ministers of each Government was to travel around the world seeking financial assistance from other countries. It was President Mahinda Rajapaksa who broke this cycle. His Administration concentrated on investments with the objective to increase productivity.
Within ten years, he managed to increase per capita income, reduce debt to GDP ratio, improve and modernise the infrastructure and add strategic assets to the country’s portfolio. The 2022 Budget too seeks to increase the productivity of the country. However, if the Gotabaya Rajapaksa Administration is to sustain this development program, they must first have a fundamental understanding of the reasons for the Mahinda Rajapaksa Administration to fail.
Facts that toppled Mahinda Rajapaksa’s Administration
It is true that India and the West played a pivotal role in toppling the strong nationalist Government of Mahinda Rajapaksa. However, this project would not have been possible if not for the small minds and opportunistic politicians in this country. Technically, only the people can decide the fate of politicians. Therefore, getting rid of opportunistic politicians who betray the country to come to power lies in the hand of the voter.
It is unfortunate that there are loopholes in the Constitution that allows rejects as Wickremesinghe to be a Member of the Parliament. Likewise, there are MPs who are in trouble with the law who attend Parliamentary sessions while on bail or even in remand custody. There are also MPs who are engaged in divisive politics. The presence of such MPs affect the trust people have in the Parliament.
It is hoped that the new constitution will close all these gaps that allow less than honorable as our lawmakers. The Rajapaksa Administration must also make an effort to understand the mindset of the people. When John F Kennedy said, Ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country,” it was hailed as one of the greatest quotes. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa addressing the Nation hours before the third lockdown outlined the seriousness before the country and warned that if this situation continues we would all have to make sacrifices. His remarks were met with derision.
His warning was seen mostly as an excuse. The social Media went into a frenzy of sorts demanding to know the sacrifices the MPs would make. Basil Rajapaksa’s maiden Budget for 2022 had responded well to this question. It is proposed in the new Budget that an MP can only qualify for a pension if only he acts as a people’s representative for 10 years.
This means, an MP must be elected twice into the Parliament if to receive a pension. This is applicable even to the Executive President. Furthermore, all MPs and Government officials will receive five litere less fuel from their monthly allowance. New construction or modernising office premises is also to be suspended for two years.
None of these proposals will be popular among the MPs – on both sides of the divide. Yet, these are necessary measures to be taken notwithstanding the political consequences. It is a matter of grave concern that most of our MPs are motivated by privileges and perks. Switching sides or condemning the Government whilst being in power just because the desired position was not granted is not uncommon in Sri Lanka. Former President Maithripala Sirisena switched his alliance from President Mahinda Rajapaksa, while being the Health Minister and the General Secretary of the SLFP, because he was not appointed as the Prime Minister.
Wijeyadasa Rajapakse’s grouse with the Government is because he did not get the Justice Ministry portfolio. National List MP Tissa Vitharana’s disappointment with the Government is because the allegedly promised Cabinet portfolio was not given. These disgruntled elements are waiting to be cherry picked by those who need to topple the Government in power.
Therefore, policies that directly affect politicians have the potential to boomerang on the policy makers. In that context, Finance Minister must be applauded for his courage to curtail these privileges. However, factors that affected Mahinda Rajapaksa’s presidency were not limited to a geopolitical agenda or unprincipled politicians. That administration was very weak in its communication. That lack of engagement created the vacuum that was filled by the opposition with falsehoods.
Changes the Budget cannot address
The Gotabaya Rajapaksa Administration too is making the same mistake by not strengthening its propaganda arm. This Government was able to manage the pandemic admirably. It was at a time when vaccines were hoarded by the West and many smaller nations were thereby denied of even a single vaccine, we got ours.
Throughout the three lockdowns, the vulnerable communities were well looked after. Despite this calamity, both construction and agricultural sectors were protected. Provisions were also made to allow other economic sectors to function. By the time the country was facing a third lockdown, the tourism industry was just beginning to open up.
Instead of allowing months of hard work to be reversed, the Government allowed certain areas of tourism as surfing to continue. Yet, the increasing perception amongst many is that this Government has not been able to fulfil its pledges. While battling a crisis as huge as the pandemic, it is unreasonable to expect a Government to fulfil pledges made before the crisis. However, the Government ought to promote its agenda more aggressively and keep the people engaged. The crisis over the organic fertiliser is a case in point. Even though this was spelt out in President Gotabaya’s manifesto, the Government should have gone into an awareness creating programme first.
This conversion back to organic fertiliser was a long overdue project. This demand to change should have precipitated from the farmers themselves. Yet it did not. Today, farming communities are up in arms against the banning of agrochemicals. This in itself is surprising as agrochemicals did not reduce the cost or production nor increased its yield. Desperate farmers thus resorted to applying five times the recommended dose. Even after Government subsidies and price controls, he is unable to make much of a profit.
However, none of these factors are taken into account as the debate on organic fertiliser conversion rages on. The farmer in Sri Lanka being poor is an anomaly. After all he is engaged in producing a commodity essential to the Nation. Yet, he is unable to make a profit, which is due to his ignorance. He is simply following the same steps he has been taking over the years. However, agriculture is a subject that is taking giant leaps in technology. None of these thinking have reached Sri Lanka.
Therefore, the Government must take steps to expose this kind of new technologies and experiments to them farming communities. There must be an effort to educate the farming communities and engage them also in research and development of best techniques and practices. The much needed call for new agricultural methodologies and practices should come from the farming communities.
The Government must be shrewd enough to nudge the farmer into insisting on best and new practices instead of dictating terms to the farmer or forcing him to adapt out of his comfort zone. In the new Budget it is being proposed to confirm jobs in the State sector for graduates. At the same time, the retirement age has been extended to 65 years. At the same time, the Finance Minister promised that the State sector will be able to absorb new cadre. However, the State sector is already bulging with over employment.
This large numbers at Government officers is not reflected in its efficiency. This has also led to large scale corruption. Instead of jobs within the Public Sector, this Government must revamp the education system to produce more entrepreneurs than job seekers. While a job guarantees security in the form of a pay cheque, an entrepreneur gains freedom to manage his economy irrespective of the country’s economy. With more entrepreneurs a country will enjoy better service, innovation and leadership. This Government should also inculcate an environment of accountability. For instance, this budget proposal seeks to redress the teachers’ salary anomalies by allocating Rs 30,000 million.
However, the more important move for the Government is to bring better education tools and training to teachers. It is vital that children receive a proper education with the required support needed by each student at school itself. The current practice where children must be supported with tuition to follow class lessons needs to be made redundant. Without ensuring that the teacher performs and delivers, it is unfair to tax the society to foot the teachers’ salary bill. As a community, we must understand the difficult situation before the country.
Instead of arguing over taxes and subsidies, we must aim to reduce our imports and wastage whilst increasing our productivity. We must reconcile to do without luxuries without blaming the Government. Our focus should be strengthening the country’s economy and not on our personal comforts. ranasinghehsivanthi@gmail.com
By Shivanthi Ranasinghe | Published: 2:10 AM Nov 15 2021
By Noor Nizam – Peace and Political Activist, Political Communications Researcher, SLFP/SLPP Stalwart and Member “Viyathmaga”, 14th., November, 2021.
Look at the way of their life style
and the houses they have built while they are in Public Service.
The Honourable Minister of Finance was very
correct in saying that the Public Service is a burden on the government and
demands for more salary increase cannot be allocated. Look at the salary
structure of the public service, especially that of the Sri Lanka
Administrative, Sri Lanka Foreign Service and Sri Lanka Education Services and
the “PERKS” they have been getting/enjoying, ONLY just working for 4
hours of the 8 hours duty responsibility and that too palming the
responsibility to juniors who cannot accomplish anything without authority.
They are either at “so-called meetings at
various ministries” or attending functions or weddings, or on wild
jaunting tours of the resort areas under the pretext of official duties taking
their family members too in those tours. Some are more often visiting abroad
saying they are attending conferences and raking in thousands of dollars as
subsistence allowances while they are abroad.
The worst is how they earn big “kick backs”
from tenders and other deals conniving with unscrupulous businessmen hand in
glove with corrupt politicians and international business companies and how
they have amazed enormous amounts of money. Look at the way of their life style
and the houses they have built while they are in Public Service.
In fact all there wealth has to be seized by the
government if they cannot account for it, when they retire, notwithstanding the fact that there are also
honest and dedicated public servants who are not corrupt and dishonest who do not fall into this
category.
The
Honourable minister of Finance was very correct in saying that the Public
Service is s burden on the government and demands for more salary increase
cannot be allocated.
Geneva: Press Emblem Campaign (PEC), the global media
safety and rights body, condoles the sad demise of two young journalists in
India and Afghanistan within 24 hours and urges the concerned authorities to
probe the developments that led to their untimely deaths, and subsequently to
book the perpetrators to justice.
It may be mentioned that a 22 years old journalist cum
Right to Information (RTI) activist named Buddhinath Jha (also known as Avinash
Jha) was found dead in Madhubani district of Bihar in
eastern India.
Buddhinath used to report on many fake medical clinics
operating in his locality and some of those were also closed by the authority.
Suddenly he went missing four days back and later his
charred body was found by a roadside on 12 November. The Benipatti-based family
claimed that Buddhinath was offered a lot of money (as bribes) by some illegal
healthcare clinic owners, but he did not respond to them. Later he received a
number of threatening calls from unknown persons.
It is frustrating that
a young scribe has to lose his life for exposing the fake clinics, which
are otherwise killing innocent people with incompetent medical interventions.
It seems, those criminals are more organized to offer bribes as well as
threats. The Bihar State government must ensure an authentic probe into his
death and punish the culprits,” said Blaise Lempen, secretary-general of PEC (https://pressemblem.ch/).
Meanwhile, an Afghan television news presenter named
Hamid Saighani was killed in an explosion that rocked Kabul city on 13
November. The young scribe used to work for Khurahid and Aryana News. Hamid’s
wife, also a journalist, Fawzia Wahdat confirmed the heart-breaking news. He is
the 12th journalist (including Indian photojournalist Danish
Siddiqui) to be killed in the war-torn Afghanistan since
the beginning of 2021.
Prior to Buddhinath, India lost five journalists namely
Ashu Yadav, Sulabh Srivastava, Ch. Keshav, Manish Kumar Singh and Raman Kashyap
to assailants this year, said PEC’s south Asia representative Nava Thakuria,
adding that India’s two neighbours Pakistan and Bangladesh reported seven and
two casualties of media workers respectively, where Bhutan, Nepal, Maldives,
Sri Lanka, Myanmar have not reported any incident of journo-murder.
Food banks across the United States are struggling to keep up with the number of Americans in need of assistance amid record inflation and the supply chain crisis, which have gripped the nation ahead of the holiday season.
The Alameda County, California Community Food Bank was forced to make a lot of really tough choices” due to inflation and the rising costs of food, its executive director, Regi Young, told NPR on Saturday. With prices spiking for some core food items,” such as fruit, vegetables, and canned meats, he said the bank was forced to stretch their budget as much as possible to ensure that families in our community have the food that they need.”READ MORE: Biden admits prices ‘too high’ & promises to save Christmas
The food banks are also being crippled with transportation issues and lengthy delivery times. Last year, we were able to get things from about two to three weeks. However, today, we have to really double that time frame,” Young said.
Growing inflation and supply hiccups are especially painful ahead of America’s upcoming holiday season, with some food banks already resorting to giving out chicken, fish, and other meats for Thanksgiving instead of the traditional turkey.
Just to put it in perspective, last year, we did anywhere from 5,000 to 6,000 turkeys, and, this year, I have five in my freezer,”said Tracey Engel, director of Arkansas’ River Valley Regional Food Bank on Friday, adding that food deliveries are now taking up to four months” due to the huge rise in transportation costs.
It’s not because there’s no turkeys, it’s that the turkeys are in the wrong places at the wrong time,” an agricultural economist at Michigan State University, Trey Malone, explained to Vox earlier this week, dismissing the term shortage.”
Feeding America COO Katie Fitzgerald warned this week that food insecurity” for those in need has gotten worse and that food banks across the country will be unable to absorb the costs for much longer. Fitzgerald – whose organization oversees more than 200 food banks in the US – called the shortages an insult to injury” to struggling families who have already suffered so much over the past few years.
President Joe Biden has been widely criticized for his perceived failure to rein in the country’s inflation, with even CNN calling it a political nightmare” for the 46th president. The cost of living in the US has risen by a two-decade record 6.2%, according to a Department of Labor October report. Goldman Sachs recently warned that inflation will likely get worse before it gets better,” and even Biden himself admitted that the prices are too high.
The US military tried to cover up a deadly attack on Syrian civilians that killed as many as 80 people, claiming that women and children could have been terrorist fighters, according to a New York Times investigation.
On March 18, 2019, a US F-15E fighter jet dropped a bomb on a large crowd of women and children huddled against a river bank” near the town of Baghuz and then proceeded to drop several more, killing survivors, according to a New York Times report published on Saturday.
At nearly every step, the military made moves that concealed the catastrophic strike,” the report alleged, claiming that the death toll was downplayed,” reports were delayed, sanitized and classified,” the blast site was bulldozed, and top leaders were not notified,” in an effort to keep what happened firmly under wraps.
US Central Command admitted that the strike killed 80 people – of which only 16 were alleged Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS) terrorists – after being approached for comment by the newspaper, and Central Command bizarrely attempted to justify the rest of the deaths by claiming that the women and children could also have been terrorists.
According to the report, after Central Command identified 16 alleged fighters and 4 civilians killed in the strike, it said that it was not clear” that the 60 other casualties were civilians, in part because women and children in the Islamic State sometimes took up arms.”
The strike would be one of the Pentagon’s worst civilian casualty events in Syria, if 64 civilian deaths were officially acknowledged, but even the Times admitted that civilian deaths in US strikes are often undercounted even in classified reports” – hinting that the true number of casualties could be even higher.
With memories still fresh of a US drone strike in Kabul that killed an aid worker and seven children – but not a single ISIS terrorist – also first unveiled by the NYT, the new revelation shocked readers in the US and around the world, who called for action over what many called a war crime.
The US needs to leave Syria ASAP. Our military presence there makes us LESS safe!”At nearly every step, the military made moves that concealed the catastrophic strike. The death toll was downplayed. Reports were delayed, sanitized and classified.”https://t.co/eCjxblUXie— Trita Parsi (@tparsi) November 13, 2021
How do you even get around a defense like you don’t know for certain that those babies weren’t ISIS fighters?” journalist Caitlin Johnstone questioned, while Center for Civilians in Conflict (CIVIC) director Daniel Mahanty tweeted, This is nothing short of criminal conspiracy. They bulldozed the strike site and manipulated logs. Who is going to jail for this?”
The US killed 70 civilians in a strike in Syria. It was flagged internally as a possible war crime. Instead of investigating, the military buried it. More troubling, it looks like US forces were systemically circumventing targeting requirements. Horrific. https://t.co/WnI8GJMxJa— Bassam Khawaja (@Bassam_Khawaja) November 13, 2021
A former spokesperson for President Barack Obama, Tommy Vietor, called on the Department of Defense to release all information related to the attack, describing it as a truly horrifying story.”
Colombo, November 14 (newsin.asia): Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner to India, Milinda Moragoda sought avenues for further strengthening bilateral cooperation in the civil aviation sector with India, when he met the Civil Aviation Minister of India Jyotiraditya Scindia in New Delhi.
Minister Scindia accorded a warm welcome to High Commissioner Moragoda. The High Commissioner thanked the Minister for the hospitality, and the excellent arrangements that were in place for the Sri Lankan delegation that arrived in India for the opening of the Kushinagar International Airport in the inaugural flight from Colombo.
Scindia thanked Sri Lanka for this gesture and said that the opening ceremony was enriched by the presence of the Sri Lankan delegation.
The High Commissioner requested the Minister to seek the possibility of resuming flight operations between the two countries as per the pre-COVID schedules, and sought his assistance for greater connectivity via increased air services, particularly through budget airlines.
He also mentioned that Indian tourists have accounted for 20-25% of the total tourist arrivals in Sri Lanka; by far the largest single source of tourism.
Recalling the presentation by Sri Lanka of the photographs of two murals from the Kelaniya Rajamaha Vihara to be installed at the Kushinagar International Airport, High Commissioner Moragoda stated that Sri Lanka is willing to present similar photographs to the other two international airports in the Buddhist circuit, i.e., Bodh Gaya and Varanasi to be displayed permanently. Minister Scindia responded to this proposal affirmatively.
Minister Scindia who commenced his public service career in 2002, has served as the Minister of State for Telecommunications, Minister of State for Commerce and Industry, and Minister of Power (Independent Charge) previously.
There are two main types of cardamom: green (Elettaria cardamomum) and black (Amomum subulatum). Green cardamom, also known as true cardamom, is a sub-species of the ginger (Zingiberaceae) family. Green cardamom is native to Southern India and Sri Lanka.
The botanical has long, pointed leaves and pretty, white flowers. The seed-containing pods are light green in colour and paper-like in texture. They are about one centimetre long, triangular in cross-section and taper to a point at the end.
The seed pods of green cardamom contain small, black seeds. Green cardamom seeds have a strong, sweet, pungent flavour, with hints of citrus and ginger.
Green cardamom is the third most expensive spice in the world – only saffron and vanilla cost more by weight.
The first written reference to green cardamom comes from the Sumer Civilisation, which evolved within the Tigris-Euphrates valley circa 5000 BC and was the world’s first civilised society. It boasted a highly developed social structure, advances in agriculture, industry and technology, a complex religious system, and the pièce de résistance – a developed writing system.
The Ancient Greeks thought highly of green cardamom, and the Greek physicians Pedanius Dioscorides and Hippocrates of Kos wrote about its medicinal properties, identifying it as an aid to digestion.
Due to demand in Ancient Greece and Rome for this botanical, which was used as a spice in both sweet and savoury dishes, the cardamom trade developed into a luxury business. During the Medieval period, the Republic of Venice became the western world’s principal importer of green cardamom, which it obtained from Oriental merchants along with cinnamon, cloves and pepper in exchange for meat and salt products.
The seeds, oils and extracts of green cardamom are thought to have impressive medicinal properties and have been used in traditional medicine for centuries. The Ancient Greeks and Romans chewed green cardamom seeds or mixed them with other medicinal spices to treat gastrointestinal disorders, food poisoning, nausea, and vomiting.
Green cardamon was also used in Ancient Rome as an aphrodisiac. The use of green cardamom seeds to treat bad breath and improve oral health is also an ancient remedy, which may have to do with the botanical’s ability to kill common mouth bacteria and prevent cavities. This is probably why the chewing gum manufacturer Wrigley uses green cardamom in its Eclipse Breeze Exotic Mint Sugarfree Gum.
The antimicrobial properties found in cardamom essential oil mean that the botanical is also often used in soap manufacture.
Green cardamom is widely employed in Indian, Middle Eastern and Swedish cuisine. In Sweden, green cardamom is used to season everything from baked goods to hamburgers and meatloaves. In Middle Eastern recipes, ground green cardamom is used to flavour desserts.
The botanical can also be found along with cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg in the garam masala spice mixture that seasons meat and vegetable dishes, and in hot beverages such as hot cider, masala chai tea, mulled wine, and Turkish coffee. Green cardamom is used as a major ingredient in curries throughout the Middle East and South-East Asia.
In gin manufacture, during distillation, it is possible to extract the essential oils from within green cardamom seed-containing pods by placing them intact into a still. However, some distillers lightly crack open the seed pods before placing them in the still.
In gin production, green cardamom adds a complex, earthy, grassy and bittersweet aroma to the spirit, along with a citrus sweetness, and hot spicy ginger notes.
General Shavendra Silva and wife Sujeewa Nelson at the Mikhailovskaya Military Artillery School(pic courtesy Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation)
General Shavendra Silva’s recently concluded visit (Oct 23 to Oct 30) to Russia should be examined against the backdrop of an unprecedented travel ban by the United States on the Sri Lanka Army Commander over hearsay war crimes accusations, including extrajudicial killings, during the last phase of the Vanni offensive.
Sri Lanka brought the war to a successful conclusion on the morning of May 19, 2009, on the banks of the Nanthikadal lagoon, despite a chorus of ‘expert’ opinion generated by the West over the years claiming that the country’s armed forces were incapable of defeating the LTTE and they had literally elevated the Tigers to a mythical and invincible status.
Combined Sri Lankan armed forces, however, conducted a relentless campaign, over a period of two years and 10 months, until Velupillai Prabhakaran was trapped in the one-time LTTE stronghold Mullaitivu. Prabhakaran was killed the day after the then General Sarath Fonseka’s Army declared the end of the war, on May 18, 2009. The Vijayabahu Infantry Regiment (VIR) was credited with the killing of Prabhakaran and recovery of his body more or less intact.
The US, one of the worst violators of human rights in many conflict zones, in the world, imposed a politically-motivated travel ban on General Silva, the first General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the much-celebrated 58 Division (formerly Task Force I).
Having launched offensive operations in early Sept 2007, from the Western front, the area popularly known as the Mannar rice bowl, the TF 1 troops fought their way northwards, captured Pooneryn (late Nov 2008) and then turned eastwards, crossed the Kandy-Jaffna A9 road, at Paranthan, and in quick succession stormed enemy defences at Elephant Pass and also brought Kilinochchi South under their control by early January 2009. With the fall of Kilinochchi, the Army stepped up offensive action leading to the final confrontation with Prabhakaran on May 19, 2009 in the environs of the Nanthikadal lagoon.
It must be noted here that Fonseka’s Army changed overall tactics in the northern and eastern theatres. The enemy simply had no answer to several fighting formations advancing on its bases and troops causing havoc, deep inside enemy held territory.
It would be pertinent to mention that the Army-raised TF 1 comprising two infantry Brigades on August 31, 2007, at Irattaperiyakulam camp under the leadership of the then Brigadier Chagie Gallage who carried out the first successful mission which resulted in the liberation of Silavathurai.
Earlier in April of that year, men Gallage led, captured the Thoppigala base of the Tigers, which some thought was impregnable. After its capture, ironically, then Opposition Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe tried to denigrate the victory as just the capture of a rock outcrop. We can recall that when Brig. Gallage went to announce the capture of the Tiger Jungle base at Toppigala he drove his own jeep like an ordinary soldier with a staff officer next to him also dressed like an ordinary soldier, but the media that had converged at his base close to the Black Bridge Batticaloa were not aware of the important if not symbolic achievement till it was announced over the TV and radio that night.In fact, Gallage spearheaded the Eastern campaign except the action at Mavilaru, conducted by the then Brigadier Prasanna Silva.
While TF 1 was steadily advancing from the Mannar Rice Bowl, Brig. Gallage suffered a heart attack in the Vanni west, Gallage had to undergo emergency surgery in Colombo. Fonseka brought in Shavendra Silva to command TF 1. The Army never revealed at that time military strategist Gallage suffered a heart attack on Oct 22, 2007, the day the LTTE mounted a commando-style raid on the Anuradhapura air base. Because of the calamity at the air base, Gallage had to be taken by chopper to Sigiriya air base and then flown to Ratmalana air base in a fixed aircraft. The rest is history.
Army Chief blacklisted
The US blacklisted Gen. Silva close on the heels of Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Ground Forces, General Oleg Salyukov’s five-day visit to Colombo in early Feb 2020 on the invitation of his Sri Lankan counterpart the then Lieutenant General Shavendra Silva. General Salyukov extended an invitation to General Silva to visit Russia though the eruption of Covid-19 epidemic prevented him from leaving the country as he was appointed as the head of the Task Force appointed to prevent the spread of the pandemic.
General Silva’s wife, Sujeewa Nelson accompanied him on his second foreign visit since the imposition of the US travel ban. Their first overseas visit was in March 2021 to Islamabad on the invitation of the country’s all-weather friend Pakistan. General Silva and Sujeewa Nelson were invitees at Pakistan’s national military parade. A section of the foreign media condemned and disputed Pakistan’s invitation to General Silva on the basis of him being among those accused of war crimes.
Having solidly defended Sri Lanka at the Geneva-based United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), both Pakistan and Russia have absolutely no qualms in inviting General Silva. Both countries voted against anti-Sri Lanka resolutions spearheaded by the West moved in Geneva.
The timing of the US ban underscored the Superpower’s intention to meddle in local politics. The announcement was made between the last presidential election held in mid-November 2019 and the parliamentary polls in August 2020. It would be pertinent to mention that the parliamentary polls, scheduled for April 25, 2020, had to be put off to August due to the Covid-19 eruption. The UNP suffered a very heavy defeat with the over 70 year-old party that had 106 MPs in Parliament (2015-2019) being reduced to a solitary National List slot.
Most probably the US never expected the then Maj. Gen. Silva to receive an opportunity to command the Sri Lanka Army. Had that happened, the US wouldn’t have had to blacklist the highly decorated soldier. Obviously, the UNP-led government and the then President Maithripala Sirisena didn’t agree on how to deal with Silva.
The failed constitutional coup in late Oct 2018 ruined the political relationship between President Sirisena and Premier Ranil Wickremesinghe. Therefore, no one would have been surprised by the yahapalana leaders’ disagreement on the Army Commander’s appointment.
President Sirisena appointed the distinguished ground combat commander as the 23rd Commander of the Army on August 18, 2019. Maj. Gen. Silva was also elevated to the rank of Lieutenant General effective the same date. Had efforts to deprive Silva of the top position succeeded, the US wouldn’t have had to play politics with the Sri Lankan military by imposing a controversial travel ban on him. Or had the Presidency been in the hands of the UNP it would have appointed one of its uniformed ‘yes’ men as the new Army Commander and definitely not one who helped to defeat the most ruthless terror outfit in the world.
Whatever the reasons, the stand taken by President Sirisena, the Commanding-in-Chief of the armed forces as well as the Defence Minister should be appreciated.
Following wartime Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s triumph at the Nov 2019 presidential election, Silva was promoted to the rank of a 4-star General on Dec 28, 2020. With the retirement of Admiral Ravi Wijegunaratne on Dec 31, 2019, Gen. Silva was named the Chief of Defence Staff. Six weeks later the US categorised General Silva as a war criminal.
Denigration of an Army Chief
Why did the US categorise General Silva a war criminal well over a decade after the conclusion of the war? Let me remind the reader that Silva, in 2010, received the appointment as Deputy Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the United Nations, in New York. Silva is the one and only serving military officer in Sri Lanka’s history to be promoted to an ‘Ambassadorial’ rank in the country’s Foreign Service. Most importantly, why on earth the US found it necessary to declare Silva a war criminal having backed the war-winning General Sarath Fonseka’s candidature at the 2010 January presidential election.
In fact, the US played a significant role in building up a UNP-led coalition that included the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) in support of Fonseka. War crimes accusations against the Army seemed ridiculous against the backdrop of all predominantly Tamil speaking electoral districts in the North and the East voting overwhelmingly for Fonseka. But, incumbent President Mahinda Rajapaksa polled 1.8 mn votes more than Fonseka. The silly Opposition blamed Fonseka’s defeat on what the late JVP leader Somawansa Amarasinghe called a computer jilmart.
When the then government arrested Fonseka under controversial circumstances and was sentenced, the US intervened on the retired General’s behalf despite then US Ambassador Patricia Butenis having named Fonseka a war criminal along with the Rajapaksa brothers, Mahinda, Basil and Gotabaya. Butenis assertion is in the public domain thanks to secret Wiki Leaks. Butenis’ cable sent just weeks before the January 2010 presidential election underscored duplicitous US strategy.
Ten years after the 2010 presidential election, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo tweeted: I am designating Shavendra Silva making him ineligible for entry into the US due to his involvement in extrajudicial killings during Sri Lanka’s Civil War. The US will not waver in its pursuit of accountability for those who commit war crimes and violate human rights.”
Designation of the Army Chief took place soon after Pompeo declared the US looked forward to deepening ties with Sri Lanka. How did the US expect to improve ties by blacklisting a hugely popular Army Chief?
In a previous statement, Pompeo said that allegations of gross human rights violations against Shavendra Silva had been documented by the United Nations and other organisations. US sanctions barred both Silva and his immediate family members from entering the US.
The Government of Sri Lanka takes strong objection to the imposition of travel restrictions on Lieutenant General Silva and his immediate family members by the Government of the United States, based on independently unverified information,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Lanka responds to US
Sri Lanka’s Ambassador in Washington Rodney Perera declared that the US decision hadn’t been based on independently verified information, but on the much-disputed OISL Report of 2015 and accusations propagated by various other organisations.
Ambassador Perera urged the US to verify the authenticity of its sources of information. Ambassador Perera said so addressing the American Foreign Service Association Club in Washington D.C. The gathering included several former U.S. Ambassadors and senior officials who served in Colombo.
Commenting on the inclusion of the family members of the Army Commander on the blacklist, Ambassador Perera declared: Even though we are now in the 21st Century, even members of his family who have not been accused of any wrongdoing, have been subjected to a collective punishment reminiscent of the practice in medieval Europe.”
The career diplomat assured Sri Lanka would remain strongly engaged on this issue with the United States to have it review its decision. The assurance was given about a week after the US blacklisted the much decorated soldier. What have we done since then to disapprove unsubstantiated war crimes allegations against General Silva? In fact, the despicable project against the Commander of the Army is nothing but an affront to the country. Parliament never really took up the Western powers’ campaign against the war-winning military here. During Karu Jauasuriya’s tenure as the Speaker, the UNP politician never bothered to take it up with Western diplomats. One shouldn’t be surprised over that, as his party betrayed the military by co-sponsoring an accountability resolution on Oct.01, 2015. However, the failure on the part of incumbent Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena to speak on behalf of the military when foreign diplomats called on him, cannot be justified.
Before General Silva undertook the visit to Russia, Chief of Indian Army Staff General Manoj Mukund Naravane was here. In spite of India being a US ally, New Delhi went ahead with its Army Chief’s visit to Colombo. Naravane had been here with the Indian Peace Keeping Force during its deployment in terms of the Indo-Lanka Accord and had been based in Trincomalee. Now, the issue is how is it that those countries demanding action against the Sri Lankan military for eradicating terrorism on its soil are silent on India’s accountability issues here. Unfortunately, Sri Lanka lacked the political will to present its case properly before the international community.
Failure on the part of successive Sri Lankan governments to address accountability issues since the end of the conflict has underscored utter irresponsibility on the country’s part. Against that pathetic background, the Russian invitation extended to Gen. Silva is of paramount importance.
Considered to be one of the highest honours, presented in recent times, the formal and elegant Guard of Honour parade with four squads of the Russian Land Forces, together with a Russian Army band distinctively featured the significance and the recognition the Russian Land Forces attach to the visiting Sri Lankan Army Chief.
General Silva after formal honours was ushered to pay floral tribute to the monument at Alexandrovsky Garden of Moscow Kremlin where the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier stands.
During General Shavendra Silva’s stay in the Russian Federation, he visited the Moscow Higher Combined Arms Command School and met its Commandant, Major General Roman Binyukov, Division Commander of the 4th Guards Tank Division in Naro-Fominsk and the Commandant at Mikhailovskaya before he visited the Military Artillery Academy, Military Medical Academy and several other places of military and tourist attractions.
Saliyapura bombshell
The writer earlier mentioned the change of command of the TF 1 in Oct 2007 following Gallage’s predicament, but what is of far more importance is what he said at Saliyapura Gajaba Regimental headquarters in the first week of Sept 2018 as his farewell speech when he retired from the service after an illustrious military career, much of it having spent leading combat troops. Gajaba veteran General Gallage didn’t mince his words when he questioned how having served the Army for well over 30 years he was compelled to retire being categorised as a war criminal. Why did Gallage have to say that? Gallage had sought a visa in Sept 2016 to visit his brother living in Australia. He wanted to visit Australia from Dec. 2016 to January 2017. Gallage’s brother, an Australian citizen of Sri Lankan origin, had visited Colombo especially to make representations to the Australian HC.
Following that meeting the Australian department of Immigration and Border Protection issued a report titled ‘Potential Controversial Visitor’ citing war crimes and crimes against humanity as reasons for denying Gallage a visa.
In the absence of specific accusations against Gallage, Australia found fault with him for giving leadership to the 59 Division after the conclusion of the war. In other words, those who commanded fighting formations during the war (Divisions 58, 59, 57, 53, 55 et al) on the Vanni front and after can be humiliated. Gallage’s is a case in point.
Interestingly, the Army celebrated its 72 anniversary at the Saliyapura base last Oct with the participation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa formerly of the Gajaba Regiment. In his speech at Saliyapura, Rajapaksa, who retired having achieved Lieutenant Colonel’s rank (1971-1992), acknowledged shortcomings on the part of his government. The government should examine the aptness of its response to war crimes accusations. President Rajapaksa made reference on Nov 6 to Sri Lanka having to face Geneva accusations though in a different context.
Designation of the Army Chief should be examined taking into consideration overall war crimes accusations directed at Sri Lanka. How can the government forget the US declined to issue a visa to Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka and the circumstances?
Haven’t those in authority observed how Canada and Italy rejected retired Air Force Commander Air Marshal Sumangala Dias as Sri Lanka’s top diplomatic envoy?
British Conservative politician Lord Naseby in an interview with this writer in late Sept 2019 questioned Sri Lanka’s response to the accountability issue (Naseby disappointed in Lanka’s collective failure to use ‘Gash reports’ for its defence-Sept 25, 2019, The Island.’
Why didn’t Sri Lanka continue to refrain from effectively using British cables that had been obtained by Lord Naseby after near a three-year legal battle and wartime US Defence Advisor Lt. Colonel Lawrence Smith’s taking a view 100 percent contrary to the US and its allies as regards the accountability issue, at the 2011 Colombo Defence seminar? Nothing can be as important as the US official’s statement exclusively reported by The Island as it was made just two months after the much debated highly controversial Darusman report’s release. The split in the war-winning team with Fonseka’s entry into politics in late 2009, too, also contributed to Sri Lanka’s overall failure. Instead of countering lies, the first Rajapaksa administration squandered millions of USD in foolish image building projects.
Sri Lanka’s relations with the world should be examined in the context of Quad strategies and new trilateral security partnership AUKUS under which Australia would get a fleet of nuclear-powered submarines for the first time and Sri Lanka’s strong partnership with China. The ongoing controversy over Sri Lanka moving the Colombo Commercial Court against top Chinese fertiliser company, its local agent and the People’s Bank to stop payment for carbonic fertiliser consignment shouldn’t be allowed to ruin relations between the two countries. Like Pakistan, the emerging world power China is an all-weather friend, whose continuing support to Colombo is essential. Therefore, the issue at hand should be dealt carefully taking into consideration all factors. But, under no circumstances, should corruption be allowed to undermine Lanka-China relations.
