Dilini Madushanki Courtesy Ceylon Today

Having grabbed international attention and spurring a flurry of renditions to her hit cover Menike mage hithe, Sri Lankan singer Yohani de Silva has entered Bollywood with the female version of the title track of the movie Shiddat.

The song, originally sung by Manan Bhardwaj and released today (28), features Sunny Kaushal, Radhika Madan, Diana Penty and Mohit Raina.

Loved the song #ShiddatTitleTrack beautifully composed by Manan Bhardwaj. Here’s my rendition: https://youtu.be/4K6RlzLXAtk @T-Series  @Maddock Films  @Sunny Kaushal  @Radhika Madan,” Yohani said on Facebook. 

The Hindi film Shiddat is scheduled to be screened in India and other countries around the world from 1 October.

Yohani has already signed up with an Indian Entertainment Company and is set to perform in New Delhi and Hyderabad soon.

Watch her song here:

Courtesy Hiru News

A group of monks from the Polonnaruwa District and representatives of the United Farmers’ Organization handed over a letter to the Governor of the North Central Province, the Polonnaruwa District Secretary, and the Chairman of the District Development Committee today requesting a halt to the construction of the walking lane planned to be built along the Parakrama Samudraya.

They marched from the Dharmapala statue in the new town of Polonnaruwa to the auditorium of the District Secretariat when it was reported that the Polonnaruwa District Coordinating Committee was meeting to approve the lane.

North Central Province Governor Mahipala Herath, District Secretary, and other government officials were present in the auditorium when the group arrived at the scene.

However, when the monks and the representatives of the farmers’ organizations went to hand over the letter, a tense situation arose due to the presence of a non-responsible official to receive the letter.

Later, Polonnaruwa District Coordinating Committee Chairman Amarakeerthi Athukorala arrived at the scene and received the letter.

Courtesy Hiru News

A group of naval officers has arrived at St. Nicholas Church in Ja-Ela-Bopitiya and asked persons there to be vigilant as information has been received that a bomb attack is being carried out.

Rev. Father Jayantha Nimal of the church stated that a team of naval officers returned this afternoon and rectified the situation.

CCTV footage also showed a group of naval officers arriving at the church in a cab at around 10.05 am today (28).

The church priest had not been present at that time, and the navy officials had stated to a maid who was at the church that there was a possibility of an attack.

Rev. Jayantha Nimal had telephoned the naval officer who had arrived at the church and inquired about the incident.

The church priest had also inquired from the Archbishop’s Palace regarding the relevant message given by the Navy officers.

Rev. Jayantha Nimal stated that a group of officers from the Uswetakeiyawa Naval Base had visited the church this afternoon and stated that the statement made by the Welisara Naval Base this morning that there was a possibility of an attack was a mistake and that steps would be taken to rectify it.

Hiru News team inquired about this from the Public Security Minister Sarath Weerasekara.

He told Hiru News team after a discussion with the Navy Media Spokesperson that it was part of a security plan.

However, the Minister further stated that the officials who visited the church have made more statements than required and that they would rectify the statements made.

According to the church priest, a group of officers from the Uswetakeiyawa naval base had come to the church and rectified the facts that had been presented in excess of the required amount.

Ajith Siriwardana Courtesy The Daily Mirror

Fully vaccinated local and overseas passengers who had negative PCR test results done within 72 hours before their departure, are not required to be subject to an on arrival PCR test at the airport in Sri Lanka from midnight today, Health Minister Keheliya Rambukwella said.

He said all passengers should have received both doses of the Covid-19 vaccine before two weeks of their arrival.

The Health Ministry said in a communiqué that the decision was taken during a meeting at the Ministry chaired by Health Minister Rambukwella this evening.

The meeting was held at a request made by Tourism Minister Prasanna Ranatunge and was attended by higher officials of the Health and the Tourism Ministries.

Health Services Director General Asela Gunawardane said foreigners and overseas tourists who were not fully vaccinated would be allowed to travel to their hotels under bio-bubble and that they would be subject to a PCR test there.

He said however, Sri Lankans would be subject to a PCR test at the airport or at the hotel where they were staying and would be allowed to leave home based on the results of the PCR tests.

He said they will be  subject to another PCR test on the 12th day and would be allowed to mingle with the society, only if the PCR test result is found negative.

He also said those who do not have home quarantine facilities could choose either state-run quarantine centres or hotels to undergo the mandatory 14-day quarantine.

Courtesy Adaderana

Following the removal of price controls, the Large-Scale Mill Owners’ Association have announced revised retail prices for rice.

The following prices of three types of rice per kilogram were announced by the chairman of the association, Dudley Sirisena during a media briefing held today (Sep. 28).

Nadu – Rs. 115.00
Samba – Rs. 140.00
Keeri Samba – Rs. 165.00

The mill owners have also decided to purchase paddy from farmers at following rates:

Nadu – Rs. 62.50 per kilo
Samba – Rs. 70.00 per kilo
Keeri Samba – Rs. 80.00 per kilo

The Cabinet of Ministers yesterday decided to remove the price control imposed on rice and import a buffer stock in a bid to prevent any possible shortage.

Accordingly, the Gazette notification issued imposing a maximum wholesale and retail price on rice has been cancelled.

The gazette imposing maximum retail prices on Keeri Samba, White and Red Samba, White and Red Nadu and White and Red Raw Rice was issued on September 02, by order of the Chairman of the Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA), under Section 20(5) of the Consumer Affairs Authority Act, No. 09 of 2003.

Courtesy Adaderana

A software engineer of the Epic Lanka Technologies company has been arrested over the deletion of data from the database of the National Medicine Regulatory Authority (NMRA).

The arrest has been made by the Criminal Investigations Department at around 11 am this morning (September 28).

Interrogation of the said software engineer has revealed that he had erased the relevant data from the database using a special command.

CID investigations have revealed that the IP address of the source of the command and the IP address of the software engineer’s computer is the same.

Courtesy Adaderana

The total number people who fell victim to COVID-19 infection in Sri Lanka moved up as 55 more fatalities were confirmed by the Director-General of Health Services on Monday (September 27).

The new development has pushed the official death toll from the virus outbreak in Sri Lanka to 12,786.

As per the data released by the Department of Government Information, the latest victims include 29 males and 26 females.

As many as 39 deaths were reported among elderly people aged above 60 years. In addition, 16 individuals aged between 30-59 years have also fallen victim to the virus infection.

Courtesy Adaderana

The Ministry of Health reported a total of 932 persons have tested positive for Covid-19 today, (September 28).

This brings the total number of confirmed cases of Coronavirus registered in Sri Lanka to 515,534.

Total recoveries have increased to 456,087 while currently, 46,651 infected patients are under medical care and home-based care. 

The death toll meanwhile has risen to 12,786.

KAMALIKA PIERIS

REVISED 12.10.21

There was a strong elephant culture in ancient Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka has had a long association with elephants and as a result a lasting affinity has developed between the two, observed Jayantha Jayewardene .  Knowledge of elephants” was one of the skills listed in the medieval Sinhala literature. . The variations in physical appearance amongst elephants were noticed and recorded in ancient Sinhala manuscripts. There are ten such groups or ‘castes’ noted Jayantha Jayawardene.

Elephants are mentioned in the Sinhala literature. D.V. Seneviratne has written on Elephants in Sinhala Literature. (Sri Lanka Wildlife Bulletin No. 27-30. 1973.) Dhanesh Wisumperuma has written on Elephants in “Sandēśa Kāvyas”. (Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Sri Lanka New Series, Vol. 57 (2011), pp. 71-94.) Due to Covid restrictions I have not been able to look at these two items and convey their contents.

The elephants lived in the forests of Sri Lanka. There were special forest reserves for them. Ptolemy identifies the area between Sri Pada that includes the Walawe Ganga basin and the Rakwana hills to the sea, as being ‘Elephantorum Hic Sunt’, an elephant feeding ground.  Merlin Peiris, former Professor of Western classics, had brought this to the attention of Ashley de Vos. The first description of the capture of elephants is by Pliny in 40 AD. The information   was provided by the Sinhalese ambassador to the court of the Emperor Claudius.

.In the ancient period Sri Lanka had an extensive area under forest cover and elephants were widely distributed from sea level to the highest mountain ranges.  They were found in all parts of the country except in the southwestern coastal belt from Chilaw to Matara, and in the Jaffna Peninsula in the north. They were in the dry zone, in the lowland wet zone as well as in the cold damp Montane forests.  Elephants were captured when they ventured into the forests in the lower plains. 

Elephants were very important in ancient Sri Lanka. They were used in a variety of ways and were greatly valued and protected. D’Oyly writing in 1809 said that All elephants are considered the property of the Crown. There were laws designed to protect these animals. Killing an elephant, specially tuskers and large elephants was considered a despicable crime.

The elephant was a royal animal. The king rode on an elephant, presumably in processions. The elephant on which the king rode was known Mangalahasthi. This elephant was always a tusker and had a special stable called the Hasthisala. The post to which it was tethered was called Atheka (Seneviratne, 1973). 

There were elephant stables in the palace during the Anuradhapura period. The Mahavamsa speaks of the ‘chief elephant of the king’s stable’ in the time of King Devanampiya Tissa. An inscription at Navalar Kulam in Panama Pattu in the Eastern Province, dated to 1 BC refers to Ath Arcaria or Master of the Elephant establishment. The Elephant establishment was called the Ath panthiya.

The tradition continued. The palace of the Udarata king had an elephant stable. In 1706 king Narendrasinha had over 300 tuskers in his stables.  The elephant stable in the   Palace was under the Gajanayake Nilame. This was a high ranking position. 

Some of the chieftains who helped the Sinhala kings to capture elephants were allowed to keep an elephant or two for themselves. The Portuguese and the Dutch continued this practice. This is how the long Sri Lankan tradition of private ownership of elephants started, observed Jayewardene.

Elephant fights called Gaja Keliya were staged for the entertainment of nobles.  An inscription on a stone seat at Polonnaruwa records that King Nissanka Malla sat upon it while watching elephant fights.

Elephants were given as gifts to the kings of countries that had friendly relations with the Sinhala kings and with whom they traded. Elephants were used on all important ceremonial occasions, especially where pomp and pageantry were required. Gaily caparisoned elephants went in temple peraheras.

The Ceylon elephant was an important item of trade in ancient Sri Lanka. The Sri Lanka elephant was highly regarded abroad. Onesicritus (360- 290 BC) said the elephants in Sri Lanka    were bigger and more warlike, than those found in India. Aelian (175 – 235 AD) records that the elephants in Sri Lanka were physically stronger and bigger in appearance than those in India, also more intelligent.

Cosmos Indicopleustes (d.550 AD) said that the elephant from Sri Lanka was highly priced in India for its excellence in war. The Ceylon elephant was highly prized in India for its special docile qualities, said another commentator.   Aelian   said that they were exported to India in special boats. Ptolemy said Mantota was the main port for the export of elephants.

The Russian traveler Athanasius Nikitin (1470) who visited India in 1466 and Add-er-Razzak (1442) Persian ambassador in India also spoke of the trade in elephants between Calicut and Ceylon.

Elephants were used in building construction. The Mahavamsa records the use of elephants to stamp down large stones for the foundation of the Mahāthūpa. The elephant’s feet were covered with leather to prevent injury from the stones. Elephants transported materials to construction sites. The giant stones used in the Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa consecutions would have been moved into place by elephants.

Elephants were also used for the construction of the large reservoirs. They were used for transport and haulage, too and for logging operations and to clear jungles. They were also sometimes used for ploughing the land. 

Elephants were also used in battle. Being built like a tank, elephants were used in war not only as a means of transport but also as a war weapon. Ives observed “in time of war, they now and then fix a heavy iron chain to the end of their trunks, which they whirl around with such agility, as to make it impossible for an enemy to approach them at that time”.

Elephants were used to ram barricades.  Dutugemunu used the elephant Kandula to break down the wall around Vijitapura.   Initially he was not put into protective gear and the enemy poured boiling tar on him. Then the Sinhala forces put armor on Kandula, with a well softened buffalo hide underneath the armor and sent him back. Kandula broke down the wall. In the final battle Dutugemunu and Elara faced each other on elephants, Dutugemunu on Kandula.

The use of elephants in battle did not end there. In 1586, Rajasingha I led an army which included a force of 2,200 highly trained elephants for fighting and for other services, and laid siege on the Portuguese fort in Colombo. This number may not be accurate, but the records confirm that elephants were used in this battle.

 The elephant was used for capital punishment In the Udarata kingdom. Robert Knox (1681) said that “that the King makes use of elephants as executioners: they will run their teeth

[tusks]

through the body, and then tear it in pieces, and throw it limb for limb. They have a sharp iron with a socket with three edges, which they put on their teeth at such times. Henry Charles Sirr (1850) also said that elephants were used as executioners of criminals in the Udarata kingdom.

Sri Lanka had a reputation for skilled elephant management.The Sinhala kings had special elephant trainers. In the Udarata kingdom the capture and training of elephants   came under the supervision of the Kuruwe Lekam. The Kuruwe trained elephants both for   peace time purposes and also for war. They trained the mahouts too.  Kuruwe clan had their own Muhandiram. Kuruwe was not a high caste group. In the 20^th century, the Kuruwe were living in Kegalle. A brass model of an elephant with a number of movable joints was used in the training of the mahouts.

 There was also the ‘Ath-bandina-vidane’, master of the hunt, ‘Ath- Panthiya-Aratchies’, Overseers, the ‘Ath-Bandina Rala’, who supervised the ‘Badinno’, noosers ‘Vel-Kareya’, cutters of lianas, ‘Vaga-kareyo’, scouts who located the herds, ‘Panikkayo’, officers over the  Kurunayake’ mahouts, ‘Dureyo’, who assist in tying the tamed animals, ‘Pannayo’, foragers, ‘Diyakum- kareyo’, suppliers of water, ‘Gaja-Pattiya’ or elephant veterinary officer, ‘Oli’, who collect ingredients for medicines, ‘Thundugattene Hulavalliyo’, Headmen of the Rodi caste who were the rope makers or ‘Thondugattene Hulavalliyo’, Headmen of the Rodi caste who were the rope makers or ‘Thondu-gattene-karayo.

There was a specific body of knowledge relating to elephant care. Status of elephant medicine in ancient Sri Lanka was very high due to the value placed on elephants.   King Buddhadasa appointed medical practitioners to attend to his elephants, his horses and his army”. Physicians for elephants, horses as well as humans, accompanied the king and his convoy to war.

Ancient Sinhala palm leaf manuscripts describing the veterinary aspects of elephant management are preserved in the Colombo Museum. The National Museum of Ceylon has placed on permanent record, a national science, which had reached a high level of development under the Sinhala kings, although it is but little known today even among the mahouts, said P.E.P. Deraniyagala (1952)

The manuscripts held in the National Museum included

i Hasti Yoga Satakaya” and Hasti Silpaya” (a Sanskrit work with a verbatim translation in to Sinhala), describes the medicines, their preparations and the diseases they cure; remedies for eye diseases, gastric, bowel and bilious disorders, skin diseases, ointments, conditioning medicines and cautery; prescriptions for oils, ointments, pastes, powders, pills, etc.; sores and ulcers; a glossary of medical terms.

ii The Ath Veda Pota”, a Sanskrit work with a verbatim translation in to Sinhala, describes medicines for adults as well as calves.

iii Thun Alinta Vedakam” and Gaja Yoga Ratnaya” describes medicines administered to ensure affection and fidelity.

iv Ali Torana Pota” describes ophthalmic medicines.

v Sri Yoga Sataka” describes diseases, their symptoms and treatment.

vi Hasti Cikitsava” describes various medicines, drugs, pills used in the treatment of elephants.

According to these manuscripts, the type of diseases and conditions that existed in elephants in ancient Sri Lanka include, skin and foot conditions (wounds, ulcers, abscesses), wounds on genital organs, worm eating” of tusks, worms in ulcers, eczema, gunshot wounds, eye diseases, gastric, bowel and bilious disorders, said Asoka Dangolla and Indira Silva. (Continued)

චාල්ස් පෙරේරා විසින්.

අද අපේ රටේ කුඩු ජාවාරම් කාරයෝ සල්ලිවලට නොකරන පිළිකුල්  අසික්ෂිත අමනුස්ස වැඩක් නැත. උන් අනාගත දරු පරපුර ගැනවත් රට ආගම ගැනවත්  නොසිතන්නොය. අද අනාගත දරු පරපුර ගැන නොසලකා ජෝසොප් ස්ටාලින් පිටිපස්සේ සල්ලි වලට කෑදරකමින්  සල්ලි හොයා පාරට බැහැ  සිටින  ගුරු විදුහල්පතියෝ කුඩු ජාවරම්කාරයින්ට වඩා වෙනස් යයි කිව හැකිද ? 

 රටේ මව් පියරුවන්  මේ ගුරු විදුහල්පතිවරුන් විස්වාශය කරලා නොවේද තම දරුවන්ගේ අනාගතය ඔවුන්ට බාර දී තිබෙන්නේ ? ඒ ගුරුවරු නොවේද කුඩුකාරයන් මෙන් ඒ දෙමාපියන්ගේ විශ්වාශය කඩ කර තියෙන්නේ ?.  

අපේ ගුරු විදුහල්පතිවරුන් අතර මුදලට පාරට නො බැහැපු  ප්‍රෂන්ශනීය  ගුරු දෙවිදේවතාවුන් නැත්තේ නොවේ ?  ඔවුන්ට අපි ගරුත්වයෙන් නමස්කාර කරන්නෙමු. 

අපේ කාලේ අපේ ගුරුවරු අපේ දෙමවුපියෝ මෙන් සිසු දරුවන් ගැන සොයා බැලුවෝය. කොළඹ  කෙසේවෙතත්  ලංකාවේ පිටපලාත්වල ගුරු මහත්ම මහත්මියන්ට විශාල වැටුපක් නොලැබුනා  විය හැකියි. නමුත් ඔවුන් අඩු ආදායම් ඇති පවුල්වල දිලිඳු ලමයින්ගේ  ඔනා  එපාකම් ගැන සෝදිසියෙන් සිටියෝය. ඔවුන්ට පොත් පත් ඇදුම්  පවා  ඔවුන්ගේ සුළු වැටුපෙන්  ලබා දුන්නෝය. සමහරක් ළමයින්ට ඔවුන්ගේ කෑ ම වෙලත් ඒ ගුරු වරුන් ලබා දුන්නෝය. ඔවුන් වැටුප් උදෙසා පාරට බැසීමට තරම් අසන්වර හිඟන්නන්  නොවීය.    

අද වෙන්නේ ඊට හාත් පසින්ම වෙනස් දේශයක්. ලංකාවේ එකෙකුගේ නමක්වත් නැති දරුවන් නැති තනිකඩයෙක් බව සලකුණ වැඩසටහටනේදී පිළිගත්  2015 දීත් ගුරුවරුන් පාවා දීගෙන දියුණුවෙමින් තිබුණු ශ්‍රී ලංකාව රුපියල් 10 දාහකට  රට  යහපාලනයකට  පාවා දෙන්න ගුරුවරුන්  රවට්ටලා  ශ්‍රී ලංකාව ඇෆ්ඝනිස්තානය තරම් දුප්පත් තැනකට පත්කරපු ජෝසේෆ් ස්ටාලින්,  ජනතාවිමුක්තිපෙරමුනේ මහින්ද ජයසිංහත්  එක්ක එකතුවෙලා අදත් වෑයම් කරන්නේ  නැවතත්  ගුරු විදුහල්පති ගොන්නුන්ට අන්දවලා  රටේ දරුවනුත් පාවාදීගෙන  ජනාධිපති  ගොටාබය රාජපක්ස මැතිතුමාගේ ආණ්ඩුව පෙරලන්න හිතා ගෙනයි.

 මේ ජෝසොප් ස්ටාලින් කරන්නේ  ආණ්ඩුවේ විරෝධකාරි දෙස් විදෙස් හතුරන් වෙනුවෙන්  රට පාවාදීමේ  සටනක්.  ඒ බව තාමත් ඔහුත් සමග පාරට  බැහැ  සිටින ගුරු විදුහල්පතිවරුන්ට  නොතේරෙන්නේ උන් රැකියාව කරන්නේ සල්ලිවලට මිස අනාගත පරපුරවෙනුවෙන් කරන අසමාන ජාතික සේවයක් බව නොදන්නා නිසාවිය හැකියි..  

මේ ලංකාවේ NGO  කාර ජෝසප්  ස්ටාලින්  කිසි පැකිලීමක් නැතිව රට විනාශයකරා  ගෙනයන්න හදන්නේ ලංකාවේ හතුරන්ට  ඔහු  දුන් පොරොන්දුවක් සපුරාලීමට  වියහැකියි.  ගුරු විදුහල්පතිවරුන්ගේ  වැටුප්  විෂමතාවයට සුදුසු වැඩපිළිවෙලක්  පිළිබඳව  ගොටාබය රාජපක්ෂ ජනාධිපති  තුමා එතුමාගේ සෞභාග්යේ දැක්ම ප්‍රකාශයේ  සඳහන්කර තියෙනවා. එය පමා වීමට හේතුව වුයේ කොවිඩ් වසංගතයයි. ඒ බව අපි නැන වත් යයි  සිතා සිටි  ගුරු විදුහල්පතිවරු දැනගත යුතුව තිබුනා.   අද රට මුහුණපා සිටින ආර්ථික හා සෞක්‍ය  අපහසු තාවයන්  සිතාබලා  ජනාධිපති තුමා විෂවාශයට ගෙන රටේ  දරුවන්වන්-අනාගත පරම්පරාව  වෙනුවෙන් අවුරුදු 24ක් පමාවුනු මේ ගුරුපඩි විෂමතාවය  නැතිකරගැනීමට තව  ටික කලක් ඉවසා දරා සිටිය යුතු බව මොවුන්ට   නොතේරෙන්නේද ? 

මේ මුනෙවත් මිනිස්කමක් නොපෙනෙන ජෝසප් ස්ටාලින්  ගුරු විදුහල්පතිවරුන්ගේ පඩි  විසමතාවයන් වහා  ඉටුකරන්නයයි අද රට මුනපාසිටින  අභාග්‍යසම්පන්න තත්වයත් නොසලකා  සටනක් ගෙනයන්නේ ඔහුගේ වෙන යම් කුට උපක්‍රමයක් සඳහා බව ගුරුවිදුහල්පති පැලැන්තිය තේරුම්ගත යුතු නොවේද ?

 රටේ  දරුපරම්පාරව වෙනුවෙන් මේ අමනුස්සයා පිටිපස්සේ නොගිහින් හර්ද සාක්ෂියට එකඟව මේ ජෝසප් සටලින් ගේත් ජනතා විමුක්තිපෙරමුනෙත් විනාශකාරී කෘර අරමුණට ඉඩ නොදී   අද පාරට බැස සිටින ගුරු විදුහල්පතිවරු රටේ දරු පරපුර වෙනුවෙන්  ආපසු වැඩට යායුතු නොවේද ? 

අද අපේ රටට අවශ්‍ය ආර්ථික දියුණුවක් සඳහා මොනයම් වැඩ පිලිවෙලක්වත් ගන්නට  ඉඩ නොදෙන්නේ අපේ ම හිතුවක්කාර ගුරු සංගම් කාරයොයි . අවුරුදු 24ක් වැටුප් විෂමතාවයන් වෙනුවෙන් සැලැස්මක් බලාපොරොත්තුවෙන්  හිටපු ජෝසොප් ස්ටාලින් නඩය එයට විසිඳුමක් අද අදම ඔනෑ කියනවා, ඒ අස්සේ  අතුරලියේ හාමුදුරුවන්ගේ නඩයත්  වැටුප් වැඩිවීමක් සඳහා මිනීපෙට්ටියෙන් නැගිට්ටුන් වගේ පෙලපාලි කරනවා.  මේ ඇත්තන්ට පඩි දෙන්න,  රටේ නය ගෙවන්න, පටන්ගෙන තියෙන වැඩකටයුතු ඉවරකරන්න,  කොහෙන් කියලා සල්ලි හොයන්නද ?  සල්ලි අච්චු ගහන එකේ සීමාවක් තියෙනවා නේ? 

ගුරු පඩි විසමතාවයට විසඳුමක් ඔනෑ . ඒ බව රාජපක්ෂ ජනාධපතිතුමන් දැන සිටියා, නමුත්  කොවිඩ් වසංගතය කවුද බලාපොරොත්තු උනේ?

 ජෝසොප් ස්ටලින්ටත් ගුරුවිදුහල්පති වරුන්ටවත්  මේක පෙනෙන්නේ නෑ.. දරු පරපුර ගැනවත් රටේ අසීරු  ආර්ථික තත්වය  ගැනවත් මොවුන් හිතන්නේ නෑ.  මේ ගුරු විදුහල්පතිලත්  දැන්නම් පෙන්නේ  කුඩු ජාවාරම්  කාරයෝ  වගේ. කුඩු ජාවාරම් කාරයින්ට දරුපරම්පරාවට සිදුවන විපත ගැන හැඟීමක්  තියෙනවද ? උන්ට රට ජාතිය ගැන  හැඟීමකුත්  නෑනේ.  උන් දකින්නේ  අරගන්න පුළුවන් සල්ලි විතරයි.  ඒ වගෙයි ජෝසොප් ස්ටලින් පස්සේ පෙළපාලි යන ගුරු විදුහල්පතිවරුන්. මෙවුන්ට දරුපරම්පරාවට සිදුවන විපත, අසාධාරණය  ගැන හැඟීමක්  තියෙනවද ?   එකයි උනුත් කුදඩු ජාවාරම් කාරයෝ වගේ කියන්නේ. 

2015 මහින්ද රාජපක්ෂ මහතා පරාජයකරන්න  සතාට චන්දේ  දෙන්න මේ ගුරු විදුහල්පතිවරු  එක එකා පොරොන්දුකරගෙන  ගිහිල්ල මේ රට අවුරුදු පහකින් අගාදියට ඇද දාන්න  යහපාලනයක් හදාගත්ත. එදා ඒ විනාශය කලෙත්   රුපියල් දහදාහකට ආත්මය විකුනපු මේ ගුරුවිදුහල්පතිවරුන්මයි නේ.  මේ අය අතරත් හිටියා  යහපත්ව හොඳට හිතන්න පුළුවන්  රුපියල් දහදාහට ආත්මය විකුණුවේ නැති ගුරු විදුහල්පති  කොටසක්. ඒ උතුම් ගුරු වරුන්  සතාට චන්දෙ දුන්නේ නෑ. 

මේ කරුණු හිතට ගෙන රටේ  දරුපරම්පාරව වෙනුවෙන් මේ අමනුස්සයා පිටිපස්සේ නොගිහින් හර්ද සාක්ෂියට එකඟව මේ ජෝසප් සටලින් ගේත් ජනතා විමුක්තිපෙරමුනෙත් විනාශකාරී කෘර අරමුණට ඉඩ නොදී   අද පාරට බැස සිටින ගුරු විදුහල්පතිවරු රටේ දරු පරපුර වෙනුවෙන්  ආපසු වැඩට යායුතු නොවේද ? 

Courtesy CGTN

In 2013, French industrial conglomerate Alstom’s executive Frederic Pierucci was arrested, and Alstom was then”dismembered” by the U.S. Five years later, Huawei’s CFO Meng Wanzhou was also arrested and Washington is trying to ban Chinese telecom giant Huawei around the world. Now Meng has returned, but America’s suppression of other countries’ tech development continues. How many more “prey” will fall into the “American Trap”?

by S.A. Wijayatilake (former Principal, Ananda College) *

Three and a half centuries of foreign aggression and occupation – at first partial, but since 1815 complete – of the land had not only demoralized and emasculated the Sinhalese people generally, but had adversely affected the position of Buddhism in this Island in particular. The Portuguese, whose arrival in Ceylon synchronized with the activities of the Counter-Reformation in Europe, believed that the Flag follows Trade and the Cross follows the Flag. In the words of Albuquerque, The new heroes of Portugal are not her soldiers or sailors, but her missionaries. These were the men who made their way into the interior of India and who penetrated the furthest East. China, Japan, and even Tibet witnessed their presence and heard their preaching”. (Quoted by C. M. Fernando, M. a., LL.M. (Cantab) in Twentieth Century Impressions of Ceylon, p. 45, in Part XL The Portuguese Period,” of his article on the History of Ceylon. I should add that the late Mr. C. M. Fernando was a Roman Catholic.) Along the Western littoral of Ceylon the Portuguese established Roman Catholic Missions with the same thoroughness with which they built magnificent fortresses at every key point. Even as Italy, the premier Roman Catholic country in Europe today, has been recently civilizing the savage” Ethiopian with the aid of such beneficent instruments as bombs, cannon, and poison gas so her prototype of the 16th Century, the great Portugal, tried to wean the benighted heathen from the ways of evil by such gentle means as wanton desecration of Buddhist and Hindu temples of far-flung fame.

The Hindu Temple of a Thousand Columns in old Trincomalee was razed to the ground and the granite of its carved columns and cornices was used in the building of a fort. The ancient Buddhist Temple of Devi Nuwara in the South, which had evoked the homage of poets and of kings, was demolished, and only the story of its pristine splendor remains. Such was the thoroughness and the loving kindness with which the Portuguese, followers of the Prince of Peace, disseminated Peace on Earth, goodwill to men.”

BUDDHISTS TAKE THEIR OATH ON THE BIBLE!

The Dutch, who invaded and later occupied a large part of Ceylon, supplanting the Portuguese, did not believe in pushing their religion forward by fire and sword, but adopted a telling tactic instead: they denied Government jobs to all but members of the particular Protestant sect to which they belonged. The British, to whom the Island was ceded in 1815, undertook to safeguard the interests of Buddhism in Ceylon, but, as too often happens in such cases, the British were at no time enthusiastic in carrying out their promise and at times were even actively hostile to the cause of Buddhism. They withdrew from Buddhism, quite rightly from their point of view, the patronage that Buddhism had always enjoyed under our own kings. They did their best to foster among the Buddhists a feeling of inferiority. Mr. (late Sir) P. Arunachalam, Registrar-General of the time, says in the Census Report of 1901: – Previously it was considered among Sinhalese rather fashionable to be thought Christians, and I have, in my judicial experience, known Buddhists taking their oath on the Bible as a matter of course. This is no longer the case. They are rather proud of their religion, and have even become aggressive to Christianity … The Buddhists, too, show a considerable increase in the number of literates. In every hundred Buddhist males there were, in 1901, six literates more than in 1891 and eleven more than in 1881, while the proportion of Buddhist female literates (5.2) is twice the proportion of 1891 and nearly four /times that of 1881. (Quoted in Twentieth Century Impressions of Ceylon. P.224, in an article on Buddhist Education).

What has been the cause of this change for the better in the position of the Buddhist community? I give the answer in the words of the same report, dispassionate and unimpeachable testimony as it is: Of late years, thanks to Colonel Olcott, the Buddhist community has awakened from its lethargy and made great advance in the spread of instruction. There are now Buddhist schools throughout the island, under the management of the theosophical Society founded by him, and really good work is done by them.”

      *     S.A. Wijayatilake ‘Ananda in Swaddling Clothes’ (Extracted from the Ananda College Golden Jubilee Souvenir – 1936)

Palitha Mapatuna

The position of certain quarters seems to be that it is mandatory upon a government to implement recommendations of a commission.

This position is not tenable, because it would, then, amount to a transfer of powers of an elected government to a commission, which is not legitimately possible.

The decision of implementation, or otherwise, regarding any of the recommendations of a commission, it seems needless to say, is the prerogative of the government.

If this is not the case, an appointed commission would, in effect, be the government.

Palitha Mapatuna

ආචාර්ය වරුණ චන්ද්‍රකීර්ති

බෞද්ධ පරිභෝජනයේ ආදර්ශය අල්පේච්ඡතාව ය. බහුභාණ්ඩික බව විසින් ජනිත කරනු ලබන අසහනය, නාස්තිය, ආර්ථික අකාර්යක්‍ෂමතාව සහ සම්පත් භාවිතයේ අසාධාරණය අල්පේච්ඡතාව විසින් දුරුකරයි. මෙයට පෙර ලිපියෙන් අපි ඒ ගැන සාකච්ඡා කළෙමු.

බුදුදහම විසින් අනුදැන වදාරනු ලබන තවත් වැදගත් පරිභෝජන මූලධර්මයක් වනුයේ අරපිරිමැස්ම ය. ධම්මපද අටුවාවේ අප්‍රමාද වර්ගයෙහි පළමුවන සාමාවති මාගත්‍දියාදීන්ගේ මරණය දැක්වෙන උදේන වස්තුව තුළින් මෙම අරපිරිමැසුම් මූලධර්මය මැනැවින් විස්තර කෙරෙයි. ආනන්ද හිමියන් ප්‍රමුඛ භික්‍ෂූන්වහන්සේලා පන්සිය නමකට උදේන රජ මාළිගාවේ දී පූජා කෙරුණු උත්තරසාටක පන්සියය මුල් කරගෙන මෙම අරපිරිමැසුම් භාවිතාව වර්ණනා කෙරී තිබේ.

එම වස්ත්‍රවලින් කුමක් කරන්නාහු ද?” යනුවෙන් රජතුමා භික්‍ෂූන්වහන්සේලාගෙන් විමසීය. මහරජ අපට පොහෝනා තරම් අරගෙන සෙස්ස දිරූ සිවුරු ඇත්තන්ට දෙන්නෙමු”. ඉක්බිතිව රජතුමා විසින් ඇසූ ප්‍රශ්න සහ භික්‍ෂූන්වහන්සේලා ඒවාට ලබාදුන් පිළිතුරු මෙ සේ ය. ඒ අය තමන්ගේ පුරාණ සිවුරුවලට කුමක් කරන්නාහු ද? ඊටත් වඩා දිරූ සිවුරු ඇත්තන්ට දෙති. ඔවුහු තමන්ගේ දිරූ සිවුරුවලට කුමක් කෙරෙත් ද? ඇතිරිලි කෙරෙති. පුරාණ ඇතිරිලිවලට කුමක් කෙරෙත් ද? බුමුතුරුණු කෙරෙත්. දිරූ පසු බුමුතුරුණුවලට කුමක් කෙරෙත් ද? මහරජ පාපිසි කෙරෙති. පුරාණ පාපිසිවලට කුමක් කෙරෙත් ද? මහරජ කුඩා කැබැලිවලට කඩා මැටි සමග අනා බිත්තිවල ආලේප කරති”

මෙම අරපිරුමැසුම් පරිභෝජනය විවිධ අයුරින් අගය කළ හැකි ය.

අප ජීවත්වනුයේ සීමිත සම්පත් ඇති ලෝකයක ය. තම රට, තම ප්‍රදේශය සහ ගම අනුව ද සම්පත්වල මෙම සීමිත බව අප හට හඳුනාගත හැකි ය. මෙම සම්පත්වල උරුමය ඇත්තේ දැනට ජීවත්වන්නන්ට පමණක් නොවේ. අනාගතයේ උපදින අය සඳහා ද මෙම සම්පත් උරුමකර දිය යුත්තේ ය. එය කළ හැක්කේ සම්පත් නාස්තිය වැළැක්වීමෙනි. අරපිරුමැසුම් භාවිතාව තුළින් එය සිදුවෙයි.

අවශ්‍ය සියලු භාණ්ඩ තම රට තුළ නිෂ්පාදනය නොකරන කල්හි අදාළ පරිභෝජන අවශ්‍යතා සම්පූර්ණ කරගත හැකිවනුයේ ආනයනයෙනි. භාණ්ඩ ආනයනය සඳහා රට සතු විදේශ විනිමය වැය කළ යුතු වේ. අරපිරිමැස්මකින් තොරව මෙම භාණ්ඩ පරිභෝජනය සිදුකෙරෙන්නේ නම් ඒවා නිතර නිතර ම ආනයනය කළ යුතු වෙයි. ඒ හේතුවෙන් විදේශ විනිමය විශාල වශයෙන් අදාළ භාණ්ඩ නිපදවන රාජ්‍යයන් වෙත ඇදීයන්නේ ය. අරපිරිමැසුම් භාවිතාව විසින් මෙම ගැටලුව විසඳිය හැකි ය.

අරපිරිමැසුම් භාවිතය තුළින් දේශීය පරිභෝජන අවශ්‍යතා සීමාවෙන විට එම භාණ්ඩ සඳහා ද ඒවා නිෂ්පාදනය සඳහා යොදාගනු ලබන සම්පත් (අමුද්‍රව්‍ය) සඳහා ද වන ඉල්ලුම් අඩුවෙයි. අඩු ඉල්ලුම විසින් උද්ධමනය ද පාලනය කෙරෙයි. මිල මට්ටම පහළ අගයක් ගන්නා විට ශ්‍රමය සඳහා ගෙවිය යුතු මිල ද ඉහළ අගයක් නොගනියි. ඒ අනුව භාණ්ඩ නිෂ්පාදනයේ කාර්යන්‍ෂමතාව ඉහළ යන්නේ ය. නිපදවනු ලබන යම් අතිරික්ත භාණ්ඩ ප්‍රමාණයක් වේ නම් ඒවා අපනයනයෙන් විදේශ විනිමය උපයාගැනීමට අවස්ථාවක් ද සැලසෙන්නේ ය.

අලුතින් යම් භාණ්ඩයක් මිල දී ගත්විට හෝ ලැබුණු විට කලින් භාවිතා කළ දෑ ඒවා අවශ්‍ය වෙනත් අයට දීම ද අරපිරිමැසුම් පරිභෝජනයට අයත් වේ. පැරැණි ඇඳුම්, පොත්පත්, ගෘහභාණ්ඩ වැනි බොහෝ දෑ සඳහා මෙම කාරණය අදාළ වේ. මෙවැනි කටයුතු පින්කම් ආකාරයෙන් දැනට ද බොහෝ අය සිදුකරති. පිනට දීමට අමතරව සාධාරණ මුදලකට ඒවා අලෙවිකිරීම ද කළ හැකි ය. දැනට ද වාහන වෙළෙඳපොළ තුළ මෙය සිදුවෙයි. මෙම ක්‍රමය තෝරගෙත් වෙනත් භාණ්ඩ සඳහා ද හඳුන්වාදිය හැකි ය. ඒවා වෙනුවෙන් වෙළෙඳපොළ නිර්මාණයකිරීම අපහසු කාර්යයක් නොවේ.

භාවිතයෙන් ඉවත්කරනු ලබන ඇතැම් භාණ්ඩ අලෙවිය සඳහා සුදුසු වෙළෙඳපොළ හඳුන්වාදීමෙන් නව රැකියා අවස්ථා විශාල ප්‍රමාණයක් ද බිහිවන්නේ ය. තවදුරටත් භාවිත කළ නොහැකි අබලි ද්‍රව්‍ය මිල දී ගැනීම සහ විකිණීම සඳහා දැනට ද වෙළෙඳපොළ ඇති වී තිබේ. මෙම ප්‍රවාදයෙන් මගපෙන්වන්නේ එකී සීමාව ඉක්මවා තවදුරටත් භාවිතා කළ හැකි රෙදිපිළි, ගෘහභාණ්ඩ, විදුලි උපකරණ ආදිය අලෙවි කළ හැකි වෙළෙඳපොළ හඳුන්වාදීම වෙනුවෙනි. මුල් හිමිකරුවන්ගෙන් අදාළ භාණ්ඩ මිල දී ගෙන ඒවා පිළිසකර කර විකිණීම ද මේ යටතේ කළ හැකි ය.

නිෂ්පාදනය සඳහා අවැසි උත්තේජනය ලැබෙන්නේ පරිභෝජනයෙනි. එහෙයින් නිෂ්පාදනය ඉහළ නැංවීම උදෙසා පරිභෝජනය ඉහළ දැමිය යුතු බව ආර්ථික ශාස්ත්‍රයේ ඉගැන්වෙයි. එය සැබෑවකි. එහෙයින් පරිභෝජනය වැළැක්වීම සිදුකළ යුතු නොවේ. සැබැවින් ම, මෙම ප්‍රවාදය විසින් නිර්දේශ කෙරෙනුයේ පරිභෝජනය වැළැක්වීමක් හෝ සීමාකිරීමක් හෝ නොවේ. අරපිරිමැසුම් පරිභෝජනය විසින් ද අවශ්‍යතා සංතෘප්ත කරනු ලබයි. ඒ අතර ම, එය විසින් සම්පත් නාස්තිය වළක්වනු ලබයි. බෞද්ධ ජනරජය විසින් අනුබල දියයුත්තේ එවැනි චිරස්ථායි, සැමට සෙත සළසන පරිභෝජනයක් සිදුකිරීම වෙනුවෙනි.

ආචාර්ය වරුණ චන්ද්‍රකීර්ති

Embassy and Permanent Mission of Sri Lanka Bangkok, Thailand

To further enhance and expand investment corridors between Sri Lanka and Thailand, the Embassy and Permanent Mission of Sri Lanka in Bangkok, together with the Board of Investment of Sri Lanka and China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) Port City Colombo (Pvt) Ltd, co-hosted a high-powered dialogue by inviting leading line agencies and trade chambers of commerce of Thailand to an opportunity exploration meeting recently.

Several senior level dignitaries from Thai-Sri Lanka Chamber of Commerce, Thailand Board of Investment, Thai Chamber of Commerce and Board of Trade Thailand, Federation of Thai Industries, Department of South Asian, Middle East & African Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand and Department of International Economic Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand actively participated in these progressive talks to explore and identify bilateral investment opportunities between the two countries.

The discussions explored multiple investment opportunities Sri Lanka could offer by way of the CHEC Port City and also, its six thrust sectors of Manufacturing, ICT, Hospitality & Tourism, Agri & Food Processing, Infrastructure and Other Services, in addition to options that could also enable Sri Lankan enterprises to expand supply chain operations in Thailand.

Opening the high-powered forum, Ambassador of Sri Lanka to the Kingdom of Thailand and Permanent Representative to United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), C.A. Chaminda I. Colonne  warmly welcomed representatives from both Sri Lanka and Thailand and said, Under the National Policy Frame Work ‘Vistas of Prosperity & Splendour’, and the twenty Foreign Policy guidelines of the present Government led by H. E. the President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa of Sri Lanka, priority has been given, Sri Lanka to become an investment friendly country with high level of doing business to attract sustainable foreign direct investments.”

Ambassador recalled with honour, the acceptance of her invitation extended to Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha, for Thai investors to invest in the Colombo Port City Project and other investment opportunities in Sri Lanka, during her recent courtesy call and conveyed special gratitude to Director-General Darm Boontham of the Department of South Asian, Middle East and African Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand for facilitating to arrange the virtual meeting within a short time span.

Chairman Board of Investment (BOI) Sri Lanka, Sanjaya Mohottala while providing a comprehensive overview of Sri Lanka’s compelling investment climate and outlining Sri Lanka’s unique investment focused propositions, said, These discussions have exposed us to the vast potential of investment prospects that can open the doors for transformational change and positively impact the future of both our economies. Sri Lanka offers dynamic and multifold opportunities, and we warmly welcome the investment community of Thailand to take advantage of this potential, which enables global enterprises to establish regional headquarters in Sri Lanka through the CHEC Port City and make full use of our suite of strategic investment propositions ranging from its key thrust sectors, market access, geographic location, economic fundamentals, winning & capable talent, and quality of life.”

Port City Colombo Country Manager – Sales and Investor Relations, Radhika Ellepola presented the project’s Master Plan. He elaborated on the progress of the project, state-of-the-art infrastructure, sustainability, unmatched opportunities to invest in the multi services Special Economic Zone (SEZ) and its salient features. He apprised the Thai business chambers and other officials of the four main real estate asset classes – Residential, Commercial, Hospitality and Mixed Use Developments in which opportunities can be explored.

He added that Port City Colombo offers a unique advantage given its geographically significant location and that it can serve as the region’s hub for services.

Director of Thai Enterprise Development Division of Board of Investment Thailand, Punlop Punyasiri, Vice Chairman of Committee on South Asia, Middle East and Africa Affairs of Board of Trade Thailand, Songsang Patavanich, and President of Textile Industry Association, Somsak Srisupornwanich, representing Federation of Thai Industries also addressed the forum. 

Embassy and Permanent Mission of Sri Lanka Bangkok, Thailand

27^th September 2021

Nava Thakuria

Guwahati: As Durga Puja (also known as  Durgotsav or Sharodotsav) is set to begin next month (11-15 October 2021), a northeast India-based forum of nationalist citizens reiterates its demand to revitalize the Hinglaj Mata Mandir, a Shakti Peeth located in Baluchistan, which has mythological connections with Kamrup Kamakhya legends.

Patriotic People’s Front Assam (PPFA) in a statement urged the Union government in New Delhi to pursue with the Baluchistan authorities for necessary steps so that the Sanatani Baloch nationals  can worship the deity without any fear or trepidation during the annual religious festival that marks the victory of Maa Durga against the demon Mahishasura.

The Hinglaj Mata temple in a mountain cave on the bank of Hingol river inside Hingol National Park, adjacent to the Makran coast of Arabian Sea in the south-western part of Pakistan, is a revered place for Hindus and thousands gather there to pray in front of Goddess Shakti with rituals.

Prominent Baloch nationalist leader Hyrbyair Marri, while interacting with the PPFA recently, mentioned that the Hinglaj Mata temple is in a deplorable condition due to the indifferent approach of occupying Pakistani forces in Baluchistan.

President of the Free Baluchistan Movement said Baloch people have high regards for the shrine even though majority of them practise Islam. The spirited  Baloch leader also greeted the Hindu families of Baluchistan and Bharat (Hindustan) on the occasion of the impending religious festival that epitomizes the victory of good over evil.

The Hinglaj temple has an idol of Goddess Shakti (Sati), daughter of Daksha Maharaj, who married Lord Shiva against her father’s wish.

According to popular belief, in an important Yajna organised by proud king Daksha, Sati (Parvati) and Shiva were not invited, but she wanted to attend the ritual. Daksha made humiliating comments against Shiva and, faced with the disgrace, Sati immolated herself.

Angry Maheswar soon arrived there and cut Daksha’s head. Mahadev then took Sati’s corpse on his shoulder and performed Tandava Nritya as he started wandering about. Then, with an aim to douse Shiva’s rage, Lord Vishnu cut Sati’s mortal remains into 51 pieces through Sudarsan Chakra. Body parts of Sati fell at various places and all these locations became places of deep significance and came to known as Shakti Peeths.

It is believed that Sati’s head with Hingul (vermillion/sindoor) fell on the place (now in Baluchistan) where the Hinglaj temple is located.

The most sacred part (Yoni) fell on Nilachal hills of present-day Guwahati (then a part of Kamrup empire), where the famous Kamakhya temple is located.

The PPFA appeals to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to take a personal interest to activate diplomatic channels with an aim to revive the Hinglaj temple and pave easier ways for Indian pilgrims to visit the shrine. As the Baloch nationals are secular in nature, they should also be taken into confidence in fulfilling the dream, concluded the forum.

-තරුණ හා ක්‍රීඩා, සංවර්ධන සම්බන්ධීකරණ හා අධීක්ෂණ අමාත්‍ය සහ ඩිජිටල් තාක්ෂණ හා ව්‍යවසාය සංවර්ධන රාජ්‍ය අමාත්‍ය නාමල් රාජපක්ෂ මහතා –

2022 වර්ෂයේ අය වැය සම්පාදනය කිරීම සදහා ග්‍රාමීය මට්ටමේ සංවර්ධන යෝජනා ලබා ගැනීම වෙනුවෙන් සාකච්ඡා මාලාවක් තරුණ හා ක්‍රීඩා, සංවර්ධන සම්බන්ධීකරණ හා අධීක්ෂණ අමාත්‍ය සහ ඩිජිටල් තාක්ෂණ හා ව්‍යවසාය සංවර්ධන රාජ්‍ය අමාත්‍ය නාමල් රාජපක්ෂ මහතාගේ ප්‍රධානත්වයෙන් ඊයේ (25) දින පැවැත්විණි.

මාතර දිස්ත්‍රික්කයේ වැලිගම, මාතර, දෙවිනුවර, හක්මන යන ඡන්ද බල ප්‍රදේශ ආවරණය වන පරිදි ස්ථාන කිහිපයකදී මෙම සාකච්ඡා සංවිධානය කර තිබූ අතර, මේ සදහා ප්‍රදේශයේ මහා සංඝරත්නය, පළාත් පාලන මන්ත්‍රීවරුන්, තරුණ සංවිධාන, ස්වේච්ඡා සංවිධාන ගණනාවක නියෝජිතයින් සහභාගී වී සිටියහ.

2022 සදහා ප්‍රතිපාදන වෙන් කිරීමේදී සංවර්ධනයේ ප්‍රතිලාභ කඩිනමින් මහජනතාව වෙත ලබා දීම උදෙසා ප්‍රාදේශීය සංවර්ධනය කෙරෙහි ප්‍රමුඛ අවධානයක් යොමු කිරීමට රජය තීරණය කර ඇති බව මෙම සාකච්ඡාවේදී ප්‍රකාශ විය.

වත්මන් රජය විසින් මෙවර ඉදිරිපත් කරන 2022 වර්ෂයට අදාල අය වැය යෝජනාවලිය වඩාත් සුවිශේෂී වන්නේ ග්‍රාමීය මට්ටමින් සිදු කළ යුතු සංවර්ධන යෝජනා සදහා ප්‍රමුඛත්වය දී රට තුළ නව ව්‍යවසායකයින් බිහි කිරීම වෙනුවෙන් වැඩි මුදල් ප්‍රතිපාදන ප්‍රමාණයක් වෙන් කිරීම බව අමාත්‍යවරයා සදහන් කළේය.

ඒ අනුව ග්‍රාමීය ආර්ථිකය නගා සිටුවා ජාතික ආර්ථිකයට ශක්තියක් ලබා දීමට රට තුළ දේශීය ව්‍යවසායකයින් බිහි කර නිෂ්පාදන ආර්ථිකයක් හරහා රට  ස්වයංපෝෂිත කිරීමේ බලාපොරොත්තුව ඇතිව මුදල් අමාත්‍ය බැසිල් රාජපක්ෂ මහතා  නව රජයේ 2022 වර්ෂයට අදාල අය වැය වාර්තාව ඉදිරිපත් කිරීමට නියමිත බව මෙහිදී ප්‍රාදේශීය නියෝජිතයින් දැනුවත් කළේය.

නව රජය පත්වී ඉතා කෙටි කලකින් කොවිඩී 19 දරුණු ගෝලීය වසංගතයට මුහුණ දුන් අතර, එහි ව්‍යාප්තිය වැලැක්වීම සදහා ප්‍රමුඛත්වය ලබාදෙමින් සෞඛ්‍ය අංශ සමග සහයෝගයෙන් වැඩ කරන කළ බවත්,

ලෝකයේ එන්නත්කරණය අතින් ප්‍රමුඛ ස්ථානයක රැදෙමින් සාර්තක ලෙස රට නැවත සාමාන්‍යකරණය දක්වා ගෙන ඒමට වර්තමාන රජයට හැකි වූ බවත් නාමල් රාජපක්ෂ මහතා පෙන්වා දෙන ලදි.

කොවීඩ් වසංගත තත්ත්වය හමුවේ වුවද රටේ සංවර්ධන ව්‍යාපෘති නොනවත්වා ඉදිරියට කරගෙන ආ රජය 2022 වසරේදී ග්‍රාමීය සංවර්ධනය මෙන්ම මහා පරිමාණ ව්‍යාපෘති රැසක් සමග සුවිශාල සංවර්ධන ක්‍රියාන්විතයක් ආරම්භ කිරීමට සැළසුම් සකස් කර ඇති බව මෙම සාකච්ඡාව අතරතුර අමාත්‍යවරයා ප්‍රකාශ කළේය.

කොරෝනා වසංගතයත් සමග අඩාලව ඇති ග්‍රාමීය සංවර්ධනය නැවත නගා සිටුවීමට පළාත් පාලන ආයතන නියෝජනය කරන මහජන නියෝජිතයින් සදහා තමන්ගේ කොට්ඨාශයේ සංවර්ධන කටයුතු වෙනුවෙන් මෙවර අය වැයෙන් ලක්ෂ 40 ක මුදලක් ලබා දීමට කටයුතු කර ඇති බවත්,

මීට අමතරව දිවයින පුරා ග්‍රාම සේවා වසම් සියල්ලටම ලක්ෂ 30 බැගින් ප්‍රතිපාදන හිමි වන අතර එම ප්‍රතිපාදන ගමේ පොදු කටයුතු සංවර්ධනය හා ව්‍යාවසායකයින් නගා සිටුවීමට ප්‍රමුඛත්වය ලැබෙන ලෙස යෝජනා ඉරිදිරිපත් කරන ලෙස ද මෙම සාකච්ඡාවේදී අමාත්‍යවරයා ප්‍රකාශ කරන ලදි.

ප්‍රාදේශීය සම්බන්ධීකරණ කමිටු සභාපතිවරයෙකු හට තමන්ගේ මැතිවරණ බල ප්‍රදේශයේ සංවර්ධන කටයුතු සදහා ලක්ෂ 1000 ක මුදලක්ද, ප්‍රාදේශීය සම්බන්ධීකරණ කමිටු උප සභාපතිවරයෙකු හට රුපියල් ලක්ෂ 200 ක මුදලක්ද වෙන් වන බව මෙහිදී ප්‍රකාශ විය.

ඒ අනුව කොවිඩ් 19 වසංගතය තුළින් පැන නැගුණු කෙටි කාලීන අභියෝග සදහා විසදුම් සෙවීම මෙන්ම ආර්ථික වර්ධනය සදහා ප්‍රාදේශීයව පවතින බාධාවන්ට විසදුම් ලබා දීමට මෙමගින් අපේක්ෂා කරන බවත්,

දැඩි මූල්‍ය විනයක් සහිත ක්‍රමවත් ආර්ථික කළමනාකරණයක් තුළ සියලු අභියෝග ජය ගැනීම ඒකායන අධිෂ්ඨානය කරගනිමින් සංවර්ධන වැඩසටහන් සදහා ප්‍රතිපාදන වෙන් කොට ඒවා අඛණ්ඩව පවත්වාගෙන යාම රජයේ බලාපොරොත්තුව බවත්,

ඒ අනුව පහත සදහන් ක්ෂේත්‍ර ඔස්සේ ග්‍රාම නිළධාරී වසම්, ප්‍රාදේශීය ලේකම් කොට්ඨාස සහ දිස්ත්‍රික් මට්ටමින් සංවර්ධන ව්‍යාපෘති සිදු කිරීමට බලාපොරොත්තු වන බවත් අය වැය යෝජනා ලබා දීමේ සාකච්ඡාවේදී ප්‍රාදේශීය දේශපාලන අධිකාරිය දැනුවත් කරන ලදි.

ජීවනෝපාය සංවර්ධනයට 40% ක් ද, පොදු යටිතල පහසුකම් සංවර්ධනයට 40% ක් ද, පරිසර හා තිරසර සංවර්ධනටය 10% ක් ද, සමාජ සුභසාධන හා සමාජ සංවර්ධනය වෙනුවෙන් 10% ක් ද ලෙසින් මෙවර අය වැයෙන් වෙන් වන මුදල් ප්‍රතිපාදන යෙදවීමට කටයුතු සැළසුම් කර ඇති අතර,

මෙවර අය වැයෙන් වෙන් වන මුදල් ප්‍රතිපාදන යන්ත්‍ර සූත්‍ර/ උපකරණ බෙදා දීම සදහා වැය නොකර, පුළුල් ලෙස අධ්‍යනය කර සකස් කරන ලද ජීවනෝපාය ව්‍යාපෘති යෝජනා සදහා ලබා දීමට කටයුතු කරන ලෙස මෙම සාකච්ඡාවට එක් වූ ග්‍රාමීය නියෝජිතයින්ට අමාත්‍යවරයා පෙන්වා දෙන ලදි.

මෙහිදී අදහස් දැක්වූ නාමල් රාජපක්ෂ අමාත්‍යවරයා මෙසේද පැවසීය.

පක්ෂයක් විදියට ඉතිහාසයේ කෙටිම කාලයක් තුළ ලබා ගත හැකි සියලුම ජයග්‍රහණ ශ්‍රී ලංකා පොදුජන පෙරමුණ ලබා ගත්තා.

සමූපකාර ඡන්දයේ සිට තුනෙන් දෙකක පාර්ලිමේන්තු බලයක් සමග රටේ විධායක ජනාධිපති දක්වා බලයක් ජනතාව අපිට ලබා දී තිබෙනවා.

ඒ ජනතා විස්වාශය රකින්න අපි බැදී සිටිනවා. බිද වැටුණු ආර්ථිකය නගා සිටුවා ජනතාවට වූ පොරොන්දු ඉටු කරලා තමයි අපි ඊලග මැතිවරණයට යන්නේ. එම සංවර්ධන ඉලක්ක ජය ගැනීමට අපිට හොද සැළැස්මක් තිබෙනවා.

රාජ්‍ය අමාත්‍යාංශ 10 ක් ඒකාබද්ධ වෙලා ග්‍රාමීය ආර්ථිකය ගොඩ නගන්න සුවිශාල කාර්යයක් සිදු කරනවා. ව්‍යාපෘති වාර්තා සකස් කර ඒ ඒ ග්‍රාම නිළධාරී කොට්ඨාශ වල එම වැඩසටහන් ක්‍රියාත්මක කර අධීක්ෂණ කටයුතු සිදු කරගනෙ යනවා.

ව්‍යාපාර ආරම්භ කිරීම සදහා ලක්ෂ 05 ක් අවශ්‍යනම් එම මුදලද, ලක්ෂ 15 ක් අවශ්‍යනම් එම මුදලද අපි ලබා දෙන්න කටයුතු සූදානම් කර තිබෙන්නේ. වඩා හොද ව්‍යාවසායකයෙක් බිහි කරන්න අවශ්‍ය මුල්‍යමය ශක්තිය අඩුවක් නොමැතිව අපි ලබා දෙන්න සූදානම්.

මෙම වැඩපිලිවෙල හරහා ග්‍රාමීයව ව්‍යවසායකයින් බිහි වෙනවා වගේම ජාතික ආර්ථිකයට ද එය ශක්තියක් වෙනවා.

එක් ග්‍රාමසේවා කොට්ඨාශයකට එක් ව්‍යවසායකයෙක් බිහි වුණොත් අලුතින් ව්‍යවසායකයින් 14,000 ක්  රට තුල බිහි වෙනවා. ඔවුන් හරහා රැකියා අවස්ථා බොහෝමයක් නිර්මාණය වෙනවා.

මේ කටයුතු සාර්ථක කර ගැනීම සදහා මෙවර අය වැයෙන් ලැබෙන ප්‍රතිලාභවලින් 40% ක් ජීවන උපාය සංවර්ධන වැඩවලට යොදවන්න උපදෙස් ලැබී තිබෙනවා.

ගමේ හා නගරයේ මහා පරිමාණ සංවර්ධන ව්‍යාපෘති මේ ලැබෙන ප්‍රතිලාභ වලට අමතරව ඒ ඒ අමාත්‍යාංශ හරහා සිදු කරනවා. 

දැනටමත් රටේ  මාර්ග පද්ධතිය කිලෝමීටර් ලක්ෂයක් කාපට් කිරීමේ වැඩසටහන යටතේ සිදු වෙනවා. එයින් දැනට වැඩ ආරම්භ කරලා තිබෙන්නේ 20% යි. ඉතුරු 80% වැඩ ආරම්භ කරද්දි ඔබේ ප්‍රදේශයේ මාර්ග ටිකත් කාපට් වේවි. අය වැය හරහා ලබා දෙන ප්‍රතිපාදන ගමේ පාරවල් හදන්න යොදවන්න අවශ්‍යය නැහැ කියන එක මම පෙන්වලා දුන්නේ.

ඒ වගේම වාරි සෞභාග්‍යා වැඩසටහන යටතේ ගම්වල වැව් ප්‍රතිසංස්කරණය කරනවා. සැමට පානීය ජලය ව්‍යාපෘතිය යටතේ ගම්මානවල පානීය ජල ගැටලුව සදහා විසදුම් ලබා දෙනවා.

ගමට පිටියක් වැඩසටහන ක්‍රියාත්මකයි. ඒ හරහා ගමේ ක්‍රීඩා පිටි සංවර්ධනය වෙනවා. සෞඛ්‍ය අමාත්‍යාංශය හරහා, පළාත් පාලන අමාත්‍යාංශ හරහා අනෙකුත් සංවර්ධන වැඩ සිදු කෙරෙනවා.

මේ වැඩසටහන් සදහා ඔබ නායකත්වය දෙන්න. ගමේ ජනතාව ඔබව විස්වාශ කරලා ඡන්දය ලබා දුන්නා. අපිට සහයෝගය දුන්න, නොදුන්න සියලුම දෙනා මේ කටයුතු සදහා එකතු කර ගන්න.

ගමේ සංවර්ධනය විය යුතු අංශ පිළිබදව සාකච්ඡා කරන්න. ඒ සදහා දළ ඇස්තමේන්තුවක් සමග යෝජනා අපිට ඉදිරිපත් කරන්න.

මේ වන විටත් මාතර දිස්ත්‍රික්කය තුළ රුපියල් බිලියන 206 ක සංවර්ධන ව්‍යාපෘති ක්‍රියාත්මකයි. හම්බන්තොට දිස්ත්‍රික්කය තුළ රුපියල් බිලියන 195 ක සංවර්ධන ව්‍යාපෘති ක්‍රියාත්මකයි.

මෙයට අමතරව ඉදිරි වසර 05 ඇතුලත හදුනාගත් නව සංවර්ධන ව්‍යාපෘති 12 ක් හරහා මාතර දිස්ත්‍රික්කයට රුපියල් බිලියන 200 ට වඩා වැඩි ආයෝජනයක් කරන්න අපි සැළසුම් කරලා තිබෙනවා.

විපක්ෂයට අවශ්‍යය රට වහන්න. ගමේ ජනතාව ජීවත් වෙන්න, දරුවෝ පාසල් යන්න, ජනතාව රැකියා සදහා යන්න අවශ්‍යය නැහැ ඔවුන්ට.

කරට අත දාගෙන උද්ඝෝෂණ පවත්වන්න විපක්ෂයට පුලුවන්. අහිංසක මනුස්සයෙක් කඩයක් ඇරියොත් කොවිඩ් ව්‍යාප්ත වෙනවා කියලා මාධ්‍ය ඉස්සරහා කෑ ගහනවා.

අපි එන්නත්කරණය සාර්තකව සිදු කරලා කොවිඩ් ව්‍යාප්තිය පාලනය කර සෞඛ්‍ය අංශයේ මාර්ගෝපදේශයන් අනුව රට සාමාන්‍යකරණය යටතේ විවෘත කර සංවර්ධන ක්‍රියාවලිය ආරම්භ කරනවා.

දිළිදුකම තුරන් කොට ඔබ සැම බලාපොරොත්තු වන ආර්ථික දියුණුව මෙන්ම සංවර්ධිත හා ස්වයංපෝෂීත රටක් නිර්මාණය කරන්න නව වසරේ අය වැයෙන් ලැබෙන ප්‍රතිලාභ නිසි ලෙස කළමණාකරණය කර වැඩ කටයුතු කරමු යැයි අමාත්‍යවරයා වැඩි දුරටත් ප්‍රකාශ කර සිටියේය.

මෙම අවස්ථාවට ගරු කතානායක මහින්ද යාපා අබේවර්ධන, අමාත්‍ය ඩලස් අලහප්පෙරුම, රාජ්‍ය අමාත්‍ය ඩී.වී.චානක, කංචන විජේසේකර, මාතර දිස්ත්‍රික් සංවර්ධන කමිටු සභාපති පාර්ලිමේන්තු මන්ත්‍රී නිපුන රණවක යන මහත්වරුන් ඇතුලු ප්‍රදේශයේ දේශපාලන අධිකාරියේ නියෝජිතයින් පිරිසක් සහභාගී විය.

මාධ්‍ය ඒකකය,

තරුණ හා ක්‍රීඩා අමාත්‍යංශය,

සංවර්ධන සම්බන්ධීකරණ හා අධීක්ෂණ අමාත්‍යාංශය,

ඩිජිටල් තාක්ෂණ හා ව්‍යවසාය සංවර්ධන රාජ්‍ය අමාත්‍යංශය.

Courtesy NewsIn.Asia

Colombo, Sept 27 (NewsWire) – The Colombo Municipal Council (CMC) has released the list of properties within the Colombo city limits that are reportedly not registered.

Issuing a notice, the CMC said 67,741 properties within Colombo have not been registered and have no ownership.

The CMC informed property owners who have not registered with the Council, that it is mandatory to confirm their ownership by registering in the Assessment Register before the 30th of November 2021.

It further said adhering to the instructions will enable the Council to issue a Notice of Assessment for 2022 with the name of the registered owner.

Following is the list of properties that are reportedly unregistered published in CMC website:

Download: Full list of properties

More Details: https://www.colombo.mc.gov.lk/news-more.php?id=178

By Frances Bulathsinghala/Sunday Observer Courtesy NewsIn.Asia

Colombo, September 26: The Sinhala Weda Uruma Baraya, a collective of Sri Lankan professionals and traditional physicians promoting Deshiya Chikitsa (Sinhala Wedakama) as part of Sri Lankan Ayurveda has commenced a pioneering residential Sinhala Wedakam based COVID19 treatment centre in Sri Lanka. The treatment centre which uses the expertise of an island-wide panel of over 25  wedamahattayas/weda nonas is located within the Heritage Eco Resort which is a 4-star hotel situated down Jayanthi Mawatha, Peliyagoda, Kelaniya. The treatment centre is named the Lak Suwa Sahana Maha Weda Gedera; a place of peace, healing and knowledge of how our ancients lived well and happy.

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The treatment centre at this hotel was formally launched under the auspices of the State Minister of Indigenous Medicine, Rural and Ayurveda Hospital Development and Community Health in early September and from the launch day alone registered 5 in-house patients.

This writer has chosen to use the term ‘Doctor’ when referring to the indigenous physicians of Sri Lanka because they were the only ‘doctors’ this nation knew in its collected history of thousands of years until colonization and the modern Western science alongside the Pharmaceutical industry which gave a sense of Western science-based superiority to the term ‘Doctor’ and affixed it with career ambitions.

This pioneering initiative in Sri Lanka – the Lak Suwa Sahana Maha Weda Gedera, has already recorded what could be described as remarkable success with the curing of two COVID19 afflicted persons aged 90 and 95 years respectively. They had been transferred by their family members from the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the Allopathy medicine system to the traditional in house system in Kelaniya after the Allopathic system did not work for these patients. One of the close relatives of the 90-year-old patient who took the decision to  opt for Sri Lankan Ayurveda/Sinhala Wedakama is a Western medical (Allopathy) doctor.

Giving hope to all Sri Lankans that Sinhala Wedakam (Deshiya Chikitsa)/Sri Lankan Ayurveda can be revived and that this pandemic time may be the best chance to showcase this ancient medical system to the world, the Weda Uruma Baraya initiative is likely to have lasting impact in Sri Lanka regaining its currently ignored roots. The COVID19 treating residential facility is open to both Sri Lankans and non Sri Lankans.

READ: Lankan medical specialists urge parents to get their children vaccinated

Among the board of directors of this initiative is Lasantha Prasad Lokupitiya , a veteran environmentalist and business personality who is part of the Sinhala Weda Uruma Baraya.

The idea to start the residential treatment centre was based on the Sinhala Weda Uruma Baraya contemplating about the calamity of COVID19 patients being sent to Western medicine treating government hospitals, facing serious bed shortages and other sanitary issues juxtaposed by the counter calamity of private Western medicine treating hospitals charging exorbitant rates per day,” explains Lasantha Lokupitiya.

He points out that what the Sinhala Weda Uruma Baraya has initiated is a health and relaxation-based endeavor deeply rooted in the ancient medicinal culture of Sri Lanka and located in the heart of the scenic and historic city of Kelaniya.

This is a 4 star hotel which has all comforts and the full rate we are charging per day is inclusive of a patient-specific traditional diet based on recommendations by the wedamahattayas/weda nonas on our Sri Lankan Ayurveda medical panel.  The charges do not exceed Rs. 10,000 per day which includes all per patient specialized traditional medicine treatment costs,’ says Lokupitiya. He points out that a totally free facility which will be akin to a government hospital ward currently followed for COVID will be also provided soon.

In the current facility those who have contracted the COVID virus will be treated not as patients but as guests receiving an opportunity to rejuvenate themselves and rid themselves of all ailments, not just this particular virus.”

He explains that traditional physicians of Sri Lanka do not mystify this flu mimicking virus and see it as a semprathrishaya that weakens the immune system. He emphasizes that based on so many case studies in the past two years that traditional physicians of Sri Lanka can handle any complication arising out of this disease.

However he adds that those who come to get this residential treatment should be those who have faith in the medical heritage of Sri Lanka and not those who doubt it. If they want Western kind of treatment or technology connected with it they can go to Western medicine based hospitals,” he states.  He emphasizes that the panel of indigenous doctors have proven within the last week that oxygen levels can be raised through traditional methods alone.

In Sinhala Wedakama/Sri Lankan Ayurveda, the opportunity to relieve someone of their ailment is considered a Karmic boon. It is keeping this in mind that we decided to retain only an extremely small profit only for the maintaining of the rooms and hotel. We do not add onto the fee of the traditional physicians or keep profit from it. We have residential Sinhala Wedakam/Sri Lankan Ayurveda doctors (referred to in Sri Lanka as wedamahattayas) and indigenous health experts who visit based on request or health specification,” explains Lokupitiya.

This residential treatment  centre  has overall managers, a General Manager, nurses,  and a Chief Executive Officer (CEO), collectively providing communication mainly in Sinhala but also in English to cater to all citizens of Sri Lanka and even foreigners.  With regard to Sri Lankan citizens, anyone whether they be Sinhala, Tamil, Muslim or Burgher are welcome. The residential facility is a weda gedera and thereby run under Buddhist traditions and culture.

Among the Indigenous medical experts who make up the team of physicians affiliated with the Residential Treatment Centre in Kelaniya include Indigenous Sinhala Wedakam/Sri Lankan Ayurveda Doctor Mrs. Swarnachandra Hulangamuwa having more than 40 years of registered practice  and with wide scale experience of treating patients who are often regarded as incurable. She and her son practices the Hulangamuwa tradition indigenous medical treatments. She and her son Indigenous Doctor Tharanga Hulangamuwa who have treated scores of patients of COVID19 prevention and cure, play a major role at this COVID19 treatment centre.

Among the other Sinhala Wedakam/Lankan Ayurveda experts affiliated with the Lak Suwa Sahana Maha Weda Gedera is Doctor H. M. Jayatilleke, a former Public Health Officer (PHI) who has studied Ayurveda from the Gampaha Wickremarachchi Ayurveda University. He has developed a range of herb based health treatments for different conditions of COVID19. He conducts an Ayurveda school.

Veteran Sri Lankan Ayurveda Doctor DD. Hettiarachchi of Ganemulla who was among the first to research and develop COVID19 specific medications exported to Italy last March to treat primarily Sri Lankan patients is among the expert indigenous medical panel of the  Lak Suwa Sahana Maha Weda Gedera.

Sinhala Wedakam based researcher carrying the lineage family based wedakam knowledge, Doctor Lakman Embuldeniya who has developed the world’s first oral vaccine as in how ancient Ayurveda inspired Western Science doctors is among the expert panel.  He has so far provided his oral vaccine to garment factories and has been approached by eight Western countries for obtaining it for controlling this COVID19 pandemic in those countries.

Also specifically affiliated with the residential medical facility treating COVID19 patients is indigenous medical practitioner Priyantha Dharmawansa Weda Mahattaya linked to the Nilakadi weda paramparawa and practices all the traditional practices of Deshiya Chikitsa (Sri Lankan Ayurveda). He has been practicing for over 30 years the family based inherited medical science of Sinhala Wedakam.

Indigenous medical practitioner and Sri Lankan Ayurveda Doctor. Sampath Kalutharage who has to date treated over 30,000 COVID19 patients and cured them within an average of 3 days is also part of the expert panel. He holds the knowledge of an inherited medical lineage and has trained under veteran Sinhala traditional medical practitioners and holds formal qualifications in Ayurveda from the Malawena Ayurveda Vidyalaya. His mother is a weda nona specializing in ancient Deshiya Chikitsa treatment for diseases of children.  

Indigenous medical practitioner Ayurveda Doctor Seewali Bandara is yet another veteran expert in Sri Lankan Ayurveda treating and advising on the treatment of  patients at the Kelaniya residential facility as required.   He hails from the upcountry based Bandara weda paramparawaa and has received formal qualification of Rasa Wedakama in India. He is often called upon by those in foreign countries for carrying out treatments for ailments Allopathy cannot cure. He has developed specific treatments for COVID19 complications and for acute pneumonia. To date he has cured large number of COVID patients.

READ: There’ll be a new normal” when Sri Lanka re-opens on October 1 after lockdown

Among the female Indigenous/Sri Lankan Ayurveda experts that treat patients at the residential medical facility is Doctor Dulari Mataraarachchi Wedamahathmiya who hails from the Kevitiyagala Jayasinghe wedaparapura from the father’s side and from the Kalumada lineage of indigenous physicians.  Her formal Ayurveda qualification is from the Malawena Ayurveda Waidya Vidyalaya. This wedamahathmiya treats patients for all general ailments and specializes in Kadun Bindun wedakama and the Shara wedakama. Indigenous/Sri Lankan Ayurveda Doctor Mataraarachchi Wedamahathmiya has developed a specific wattoru based syrup for fever that could be used even for COVID like conditions (named as the Shri Wimala Una Peniya and also a peyawa (Jarabanga peyawa) that has so far succeeded in curing many early COVID19 specific symptoms.

All the Sinhala Wedakam/ Sri Lankan Ayurveda   medical experts use the ancient Nadi wedakama to identify diseases. All the doctors practice Buddhist meditation in their personal lives and as part of their medical tradition and are of a calm and kind disposition which is a major pre-requisite in Sinhala Wedakama and Ayurveda in general as authentically practised.

In addition to the doctors practising Sinhala Wedakama (Deshiya Chikitsa) as part of Sri Lankan Ayurveda there are MBBS qualified doctors of the Western medical tradition who are equally qualified in the Nadi  Wedakama and deep Buddhistic meditation which they use for heightening their awareness in healing.  These doctors are affiliated with the Hela Suwaya traditional medicine facility which focuses significantly on pure earth-based food as medicine where Dharmika Govithena/Govithenata Aushada ancient farming concepts are used for cultivating thousands of acres in Sri Lanka to provide poison-free food.

All the food obtained and provided to the guests recovering from the COVID virus at the Kelaniya residential weda gedera cum hotel, is fully organic/nature-based. Ancient medicinal heirloom rice such as Kaluheeneti, Pachaperumal and Kuruluthuda and many other varieties are used for main meals as well as lunu kendha (traditional Lankan broth). Only food suitable for the specific health condition and which will not aggravate the symptoms will be provided.

We believe this step we have taken is a beacon of light not only for Sri Lanka but for the world. This is a chance for us to return from the synthetic to mother nature. Wedakama and Ayurveda is based on the core principles of nature,” states Buddhima Mendis, the General Manager of the Lak Suwa Sahana Maha Weda Gedera located within the Heritage Eco Resort.

By Shivanthi Ranasinghe  Courtesy Ceylon Today

The United Nations Human Rights Commission (UNHRC) holds three sessions per year. Its stated purpose is to discuss what the UNHRC describes as ‘thematic human rights issues and situations that require its attention throughout the year.’ In reality though, this inter-Governmental body behaves no different to the dime a dozen so-called civil societies with its armchair critics that plague us with politicised Human Rights agendas. 

The UNHRC High Commissioner Michelle Bachelet behaves no differently than did her predecessor Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein. Bachelet too does not miss a single session to flay Sri Lanka. Though the UN has an office in Sri Lanka, the High Commissioners’ views strongly reflect those of politically partisan civil societies, rather than of ground realities. 

The UNHRC blinders 

It is not an accidental omission by any means that Bachelet fails to congratulate Sri Lanka for the superb management of the COVID-19 pandemic. When even anti-COVID vaccine producing countries like the US has failed to vaccinate more than a quarter of its population, Sri Lanka’s vaccination drive has inoculated more than half its population. This deserves to be commended. 

Contentiously, the western nations that produce these vaccines are shamelessly hoarding it amongst them. Currently, the vaccine is the only safeguard against the virus. Without it, both lives and economies are at stake. These countries refuse not only to share their vaccines but also to recogniSe the vaccines produced by other countries. India has threatened to retaliate if UK continues to quarantine fully vaccinated Indians with the Covishield, of which the original manufacturer is in the UK.

 According to a statement issued by New Delhi, India provided 4 million doses of Covishield vaccine to the UK at their request as this is also used in the British health systems. Therefore, there is no rational explanation for UK not to recognise Covishield other than as a marketing ploy. The behavior of these western countries is a clear violation of humanity. Yet, this is largely ignored by the UNHRC. Interestingly, UK is leading the self-appointed core group that has taken upon itself to address the human right allegations against Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka is also the first country to install a State of the art facility at the Katunayaka airport to expedite the PCR testing of all arrivals into the country. 

Within the space of three hours, each traveler will receive the test report, clearing him or her from being quarantined. This facility at any given hour can simultaneously test 500 samples. Just before the pandemic broke, Sri Lanka was considered the second safest travel destination. It would not be long before Sri Lanka once again regains this title. 

Whoever wants to be quarantined has the option of choosing a Government facility if they do not wish to pay for the two-week stay at a designated hotel. These facilities provide meals and all other services absolutely free of charge. 

These facilities thus allow all to enjoy the same safeguards irrespective of their economic capacities. Yet, the only point Bachelet and likeminded NGOs focus on is that these are managed by the Military. Strangely, their reaction to any Military involvement is not different to that of a rat snake to kerosene. Factually though, the Military of Sri Lanka is under political authority and trained to manage a wider range of subjects other than the business of toting guns. For instance, Sri Lanka as a country does not deal much with radioactive substances. 

Yet, when the pandemic broke, it was the training the Military had to handle a radioactive calamity that helped design the first quarantine facility. This allowed those Sri Lankans residing in Wuhan to be safely brought back to the country without allowing any room for the virus to spread into the country. Likewise, Sri Lanka is the first country to ban agrochemicals. This was a bold decision. 

There will be many challenges Sri Lanka will have to overcome before this program can be pronounced a success. Yet, in the interest of people and environment this was a vital decision. Many countries have applauded Sri Lanka and pledged their support. These positive steps and clear leadership undoubtedly influenced the UN to place President Gotabaya Rajapaksa as a speaker on the first day itself of its 76th General Assembly. UNHRC on the other hand had largely ignored these developments that are core areas in human rights. 

UNHRC’s new pet concerns 

It appears that the last phase of the war against terrorism is beginning to fade from UNHRC’s memory. Instead, judging by High Commissioner’s opening remarks at the ongoing 48th regular session; the focus is shifting from unsubstantiated war crime allegations to the detention of the Easter Attack perpetrators.

 Bachelet made a special reference in her speech on behalf of Easter Attack suspects in custody, namely Hijaaz Hisbulla and Afnaf Jazeem. However, she failed to note that they are in custody in connection over the Easter Attack that destroyed the lives of a thousand or more lives. Instead she described Hisbulla as a lawyer and Jazeem as a poet. Hisbulla is a human rights lawyer. 

However, it is not his profession that is at odds but his clientele. Everyone deserves due legal representation. However, it is worth noting that the role of a lawyer representing a mafia is not an ordinary one. Furthermore Hisbulla’s detention stems from his connection to a madrasa school that promoted extremism. Jazeem may be a poet but then Hitler was a talented artist. 

It is thus important to understand ones profession or passion need not necessarily reflect ideologies they promote. Bachelet’s demand to either charge or release them is met with silence from the Sri Lankan Catholic community. They in turn are pushing the Government to take firm action against all those culpable for the atrocity. This includes not only those who failed in their duty to prevent the attack but also those who aided and abetted the terrorists. One of the turning points where the Catholic community lost confidence in the Government was when MP Rishard Bathuideen and subsequently his brother were released from the CID custody. 

Even though they were later re-arrested, the Government had been unable to restore the community’s confidence. Interestingly, during PM Mahinda Rajapaksa‘s recent visit to Italy the Tamil Diaspora and SJB supporters with their civil societies gathered to protest over PM’s presence. 

Their main slogan too was of those arrested in connection with the Easter Attack. Interestingly, the protestors did not gain the support of the church. The Italian police too played an active role to ensure that the protestors were kept out of sight and hearing from the Sri Lankan delegation. 

This is a stark difference to their British counterparts. Fundamental Rights of Terrorists More Important than Civilian Safety Bachelet also found fault with the Sri Lankan authorities for their lack in progress in the investigation over the Easter Attack. However, she did not make any reference to the New Zealand authorities’ deliberate concealment of information pertaining to the knife attacker from the Sri Lankan authorities. Instead, they were trying to portray him as a failed asylum seeker. Had they managed to deport him to Sri Lanka, the local authorities would have had no idea of what a danger he posed and would neither have had sufficient evidence to detain him: which would have endangered innocent civilians. 

The New Zealand authorities’ excuse is that they were concerned over the PTA in Sri Lanka. It is contemptuous that the fundamental rights of a terrorist suspect was placed above the safety of civilians – especially that of a friendly Nation. Instead of apologising to Sri Lanka, weeks later the New Zealand authorities granted asylum to a Sri Lankan couple. They were seeking to escape the investigations in Sri Lanka over their connection in funding the Easter Attack bombers. The Catholic community in Sri Lanka continues to maintain their silence over these developments. 

The UNHRC’s silence is unacceptable but also unsurprising. The UNHRC failed to question the West over its failure to prevent their Tamils citizens from getting intimidated by the LTTE’s international network. During the years of the separatist war, through direct and indirect forms of harassment, these citizens were extorted to fund their terrorist activities in Sri Lanka. 

The Office for Missing Persons (OMP) was created as stipulated by the UNHRC Resolution 30/1. Yet, the western Governments have refused to corporate with the OMP to share information of those who had received asylum in those countries. This is despite the fact that a large number of hardcore terrorists escaped to the West. Adele Balasingham who created the LTTE suicide cadres who comprised mostly of young men and women continues to live in UK. Not a single human rights activist has protested about her presence there. 

The Draconian PTA 

Instead Western communities and Bachelet focus their contention on Sri Lanka’s Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA). This act was introduced because of the Tamil separatist terrorist’s horrendous atrocities. Whether it is draconian or not is debatable. Sri Lanka is not the only country to take a tough stand against terrorism. Sri Lanka does not maintain offshore detention centers like the notorious Guantanamo Bay Detention Camp, nor does it hold a single inmate who had threatened Sri Lanka or her interests in any manner. Hence in comparison describing it as draconian is an overstatement. At the same time, whether we can afford a more lenient act is questionable. The pressure is for us to comply with international standards. 

Yet, we need to understand whether these international standards are indeed international or influenced by the west and promoted as international. Perhaps countries in the West can afford to take a more lenient approach to deal with prospective terrorists. After all, countries in our region neither fund nor advocate terrorism in those countries. 

Nor do we interfere in their internal affairs and prevent them from taking appropriate action to safeguard their territory and lives of citizens. Countries like ours on the other hand have the additional challenge to overcome the sympathy and support of the western nations given to those who commit terrorism in our countries. It is hardly a secret that larger and powerful nations directly and/or indirectly promoted terrorism in our country. 

At one point one of our closest neighbors armed, trained and funded terrorism in Sri Lanka. At the same time, just as there are no financial fraud prisoners there is no such thing as PTA prisoners. Therefore, to refer to those taken into custody over terrorist acts cannot be referred to as PTA prisoners, as if somehow the person under detention is a victim of the PTA. To refer to one imprisoned for terrorism as a PTA prisoner is simply to whitewash the severity of the crimes committed by these prisoners. Terrorism is not a clearly defined topic. Especially for onlookers the subject can get blurry as terrorists often disguise their agendas with political, religious or equally emotive stance. 

However, terrorism is a serious business as the victims are always the innocent civilians. It is important to understand that terrorists are those who have renounced all forms of politics and threatens the very framework of democracy. There is absolutely no reasoning with the terrorists. This is unfortunately compounded by geopolitics that seeks to gain from confusion. Therefore, especially interGovernmental bodies as the UNHRC is beholden to support Governments to deal with these dangerous elements than denounce their efforts. 

This makes the need for its officials, specifically the High Commissioner to act on facts than mere allegations, especially from non Government actors who do not hold the lives of civilians in their hands. Most importantly, the UNHRC must maintain a balanced approach and treat all countries with equity. UNHRC must also make an effort to appreciate the constructive steps of a Government. Bringing such positive endeavors into the world’s attention is an important part of the process in promoting human rights. ranasingheshivanthi@gmail.com

Courtesy Adaderana

Courtesy Adaderana

The Cabinet of Ministers have decided to remove the price control imposed on rice and import a buffer stock to prevent any possible shortage.

Accordingly, the Gazette notification issued imposing a maximum wholesale and retail price on rice has been cancelled. 

The decision was taken during the Cabinet meeting held this evening (27).

The Cabinet has decided to import up to 100,000 MT of rice to prevent any ‘artificial shortage’ of rice in the market. 

The gazette imposing maximum retail prices on Keeri Samba, White and Red Samba, White and Red Nadu and White and Red Raw Rice was issued on September 02.

It had been issued by order of the Chairman of the Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA), under Section 20(5) of the Consumer Affairs Authority Act, No. 09 of 2003. 

However, the relevant gazette notification has now been cancelled.

Meanwhile Trade Minister Bandula Gunawardena said that the Cabinet also decided to provide necessary funds from the Central Bank for the release of essential food items held up at the Colombo Port.

Courtesy Adaderana

The Cabinet of Ministers has reportedly not taken any decisions on price revisions of essential items including powdered milk, LP gas, wheat flour and cement.

It had been reported yesterday that the a decision would be taken with regard to the proposed revisions to the prices of several essential items, at the Cabinet meeting today. 

Meanwhile Trade Minister Bandula Gunawardena said that the Cabinet decided to provide necessary funds from the Central Bank for the release of essential food items held up at the Colombo Port.

During the Cost of Living (CoL) Committee meeting held last week, the prime minister had instructed relevant authorities to immediately clear all essential food items currently in the port. 

The Cabinet today also decided to remove the price control imposed on rice and import a buffer stock of up to 100,000 MT of rice to prevent any possible shortage.

Accordingly, the Gazette notification issued imposing a maximum wholesale and retail price on rice has been cancelled, the government said. 

Courtesy Adaderana

The total number people who fell victim to COVID-19 infection in Sri Lanka moved up as 51 more fatalities were confirmed by the Director-General of Health Services on Sunday (Sep. 26).

The new development has pushed the official death toll from the virus outbreak in Sri Lanka to 12,731.

As per the data released by the Department of Government Information, the latest victims include 29 males and 22 females.

As many as 41 deaths were reported among the elderly people aged above 60 years. In addition, 10 individuals aged between 30-59 years have also fallen victim to the virus infection.

Courtesy Adaderana

The Ministry of Health reports that another 268 persons have tested positive for coronavirus, increasing the daily count of new Covid-19 cases to 983.

This marks the first time that the daily count of Covid-19 cases has dropped below 1,000 since the start of the third wave in the island. 

Meanwhile this also brings the total number of Covid-19 cases registered in Sri Lanka to 514,592.

Over 46,000 patients infected with the virus are currently under medical care at hospitals, treatment centers and under home based care while total recoveries have climbed to 455,344.

The death toll due in Sri Lanka stands at 12,731.

What is life like for Afghan women now and how did it use to be before the Taliban? When militants seized Afghanistan in August 2021, they promised to respect women’s rights ‘within the limits of Islamic law’. The current reality there is grim: a strict Islamic dress code has been imposed, classrooms have been segregated by gender, and women have been told to stay home. During the Taliban’s previous reign between 1996 and 2001,

Afghan women were excluded from education, work, government, sports, and public places. Women had to observe a strict dress code, covering themselves from head to toe. Draconian punishments were widespread: women were flogged, stoned, and executed in public for violating the terrorist group’s rules. Yet, Afghanistan had made significant strides in women’s rights long before the Taliban appeared.

In the 1920s, the country’s first queen consort, Soraya Tarzi, shocked the conservative society with her open-arm dresses and public appearances with King Amanullah Khan. By mid-century, women were wearing Western attire and embracing new opportunities in education and the workplace. During the Communist era, women actively participated in government, policing, business, and education. Check out the up-and-down history of women’s rights in Afghanistan and find out how the country went from a Golden Age to the Stone Age of Taliban rule.

This new episode of InfoBites also looks closer at what Sharia law is and the Taliban’s interpretation of it. RT Documentary offers you in-depth documentary films on topics that will leave no one indifferent. It’s not just front-page stories and global events, but issues that extend beyond the headlines. Social and environmental issues, shocking traditions, intriguing personalities, history, sports and so much more – we have documentaries to suit every taste.

RT Documentary’s film crews travel far and wide to bring you diverse and compelling stories. Discover the world with us! 0:00 – Intro 1:14 – King Amanullah Khan’s reforms 2:14 – Kabul as the ‘Paris of Central Asia’ 2:51 – Afghanistan’s Communist era 3:11 – Rise of the Taliban and fall of women’s rights 3:52 – Taliban ‘justice’ 4:30 – What is Sharia law? 5:18 – Taliban promises 5:55 – Has the Taliban really changed? 6:52 – What have Afghan women achieved in the last 20 years? SUBSCRIBE TO RTD Channel to get documentaries firsthand! http://bit.ly/1MgFbVy

RT Documentary

In the We Are Different film by RT Documentary, three people born with various genetic disorders adjust to life and find purpose and happiness against the odds. According to Konstantin Severinov, Doctor of Biological Sciences, Genetic information is stored in DNA as a sequence of chemical letters, figuratively speaking.” The human genome contains around 6 billion of these letters”. And every unique combination of them makes one person different from another. But when genes don’t line up as they are supposed to, it can affect appearance.

Lalit from India has a condition known as werewolf syndrome. It is extremely rare, and although doctors are convinced it’s genetic, they still haven’t learned what gene mutation causes excessive hair growth or hypertrichosis. It has only been diagnosed in 50-60 people in the entire world. Lalit’s face and body are covered with thick hair.

Everyone who sees him for the first time is stunned, but they change their minds when they know Lalit better. He is friends with Umesh, a social worker, who comes over to help him adjust and teaches him yoga. Lalit used to be teased and stared at, but now he sees it as his uniqueness, something that defines him. Watch our film and learn how two other heroes are dealing with their otherness.

Courtesy Adaderana

Central Bank Governor, Ajith Nivard Cabraal, who insists that a home-grown solution is the key to address Sri Lanka’s debt issues, says IMF involvement and debt restructuring are not required.

International investment banks have been told that Sri Lanka is willing to settle the debt maturing in January ahead of time, the Central Bank governor revealed.

He further stated that a road map outlining the work the Central Bank and the government will do is expected to be unveiled on October 01.
 
However, former Acting Chief Economist of the World Bank Group, Prof. Shantha Devarajan suggested that Sri Lanka should to the IMF with a programme consensually devised within the country.

Arguments for and against seeking help from the International Monetary Fund in dealing with Sri Lanka’s financial issues were put forth at a webinar on Friday.

A programme with the IMF enables Sri Lanka to get budget support from the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank,” Prof. Devarajan said further.

The support of the IMF to this programme will be a signal of confidence to the international community, he pointed out adding that it is time for Sri Lanka to start debt restructuring.

Meanwhile, former Prime Minister and Leader of the United National Party, Ranil Wickremesinghe warned of an imminent crisis.

He insisted on addressing the gradual decline in foreign exchange reserves in the country.

Speaking further, the former prime minister said a lifting of the current lockdown could be put off to mid-October due to a possible delay in the arrival of diesel supplies purchased for the local market.

MD Pathik Hasan

For decades, Myanmar has gone through extreme cruelty to the Rohingya. Never cared about the law. The Rohingya problem is not new to Bangladesh. This problem, which started in 1978, became apparent in August 2017. More than 1 million Rohingyas fled to Bangladesh to save their lives when the Myanmar army launched a brutal operation against the Rohingya ethnic group. Bangladesh is seeking the intervention of the United States, the European Union, and the United Nations as well as the regional alliance ASEAN for a lasting and acceptable solution to the Rohingya problem.

Now Bangladesh is facing serious problems for this artificial crisis committed by Myanmar.  Some socio-economic threats are rising in Bangladesh. Bangladesh has given shelter to Rohingyas for humanitarian reasons. But because of this humanity, the country is now at risk. As a result, there is a danger of Rohingyas spreading all over the country, there are also many challenges

The forest is being uprooted, they are cutting down the mountains and destroying them. There are also long-term economic risks Socio-economic and political problems may also be evident, and security risks may increase. Illegal narcotics trade, human trafficking, prostitution, terrorism in Rohingya camps is increasing in camps.

Bangladesh and Myanmar signed an agreement to repatriate the Rohingya to Myanmar within two years in 2017 and 2019 respectively. The Myanmar authority did not take back the Rohingyas according to the agreement. It is true that they don’t want to repatriate Rohingyas in Myanmar. Bangladesh raised the issue in every international forum. Many countries have supported Bangladesh. But Myanmar has no respect the international law and norms. Some mighty powers may have behind the scene.

Bangladesh Prime Minister has raised the issue at UNGA on September 25, 2021 to draw the attention in solving the Rohingya crisis. She has focused specially on the engagement of ASEAN leaders. It is ASEAN which can solve Rohingya refugee problem easily.

As a South Asian country and well trusted friends of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka can easily solve it. Sri Lanka can be mediator in this regard. Sri Lanka has very warm relations with both Myanmar and Bangladesh.

Various countries and international organizations have taken various measures to solve the Rohingya problem. Former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has criticized Myanmar authorities for being lax in repatriating displaced Rohingya. UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has expressed deep concern over the ongoing Rohingya crisis. Yang Lee, the UN special envoy for human rights in Myanmar, said all major countries in the world had a responsibility to resolve the Rohingya crisis.

In this regard, Sri Lanka can and should play a very significant role to solve the crisis such ways:

1. Sri Lanka can support Bangladesh at every international forum such as at UNGA, regional conference. They can vote in favor of Bangladesh. They can raise the issue in BIMSTEC and SAARC platforms.
2. Sri Lanka can negotiate with Myanmar diplomatically and bilaterally. It has good bilateral relations with Myanmar)
3. Sri Lanka can engage with others regional states to solve the crisis.
4. Sri Lanka’s Buddhist society can play an effective role in this regard. The relations of Theravada Buddhists between Myanmar and Sri Lanka are well established. Sri Lankan Buddhist can do it very easily. Buddhism is more related to establishment of Peace and non-violence. Sri Lankan Buddhists can play a significant role in this regard. They can exercise the path shown by the founder of Buddhism, Gautama Buddha. Buddhist will be recognized as the Avatar of human rights if Buddhist community plays to role in solving Rohingya crisis. It will ensure the regional to some extant World peace and communal harmony.
5. Sri Lanka’s businessmen can engage to some extent. Because stability in the region is very needed for investment.

Why should Sri Lanka Mediate to solve the Problem?

1. This issue is a humanitarian issue. Rohingyas are the son of Land in Rakhine in Myanmar. They have birth rights to reside in Myanmar.
2. It is an issue of Justice. According to Luther king Junior, Nelson Mandela “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” Myanmar authority committed genocide. The perpetrators should be under international legal jurisdiction.
3. It is the issue of region. The whole South Asia and South East Asia may be volatile for this issue. As a South Asian state, Sri Lanka has some responsibilities.
4. Sri Lanka has very good relations with both Myanmar and Bangladesh.
5. Enhancing bilateral relations could contribute to the growth of trade and investment relations with ASEAN and SAARC countries. This will create an opportunity to serve grater regional interest.
6. Re-establishing the Himalayan-South Asian connectivity can occur if political and diplomatic solutions of Bangladesh-Myanmar strained ties can be found.
7. Bangladesh has been supporting Sri Lanka at every international forum. For example, in a vote on March 23, the UN Human Rights Council has been given a mandate to collect and preserve information and evidence of crimes related to Sri Lanka’s civil war. In the resolution brought by Britain on behalf of a group of countries, 22 countries voted in favor of the text, 11 opposed and 14 abstained, including Sri Lanka’s neighbors, India and Nepal, and most Muslim majority countries. Bangladesh, Pakistan and Uzbekistan voted against the motion. Now it is time and duty for Sri Lanka to stand in favor of Bangladesh in her crisis moment.

However, Bangladesh has agreed with Sri Lanka to promote bi-lateral trade, work together in maritime security sector like Colombo Security Conclave. Bangladesh-Myanmar-Sri Lanka can work together in maritime trilateral trade, counter terrorism approach, tourism if the problem between Bangladesh-Myanmar is solved. On the other hands, Bangladesh has contribution to Sri Lanka. Bangladesh is providing $250 million loan assistance to Sri Lanka through currency swap. Sri Lanka sought this loan assistance from Bangladesh. This (assistance) proves that Bangladesh is always sincere in regional cooperation. Bangladesh will lend $250 million to Sri Lanka as part of Bangladesh’s efforts to support the island nation suffering from a foreign exchange crisis. Sri Lanka should consider this. Sri Lanka should do somethings in favor of Bangladesh regarding Rohingya refugee repatriation to Myanmar. Sri Lanka can make Myanmar understand and agree in this regard.

Sri Lanka can play a very significant role in this regard. Sri Lanka can mediate to bolster the strained relations between Bangladesh-Myanmar. Sri Lanka can play to repatriate the Rohingyas in Rakhine in Myanmar. Sri Lanka can easily solve the problem because it has a very good relations with Myanmar.

However, as a well-wisher friend and partner in the development process and trade, Bangladesh can expect cooperation and support of Sri Lanka regarding the repatriation of Rohingya refugees to Myanmar. Bangladesh deserves it. So, Sri Lanka should help, support Bangladesh and mediate in solving the crisis as soon as possible.

 චාර්ල්ස් පෙරේරා විසින් 

අමෙරිකාවේ  විශාල කර්මාන්තසාල  හෝ අමෙරිකානු පලතුරු  කොම්පැනි කාරයෝ නොදියුණු රටවලට ඇවිත් කරන ලද ව්‍යාපාරවලින් දියුනුඋන එකරටක් ආණ්ඩුවේ මුදල් ඇමති වරයාට හෝ වෙනත් අමාත්‍යවරයෙකුට නම් කල හැකිද?  නමුත් එවැනි ඇමෙරිකානු ආයෝජකයන  ඇවිත්  දුප්පත්වුන රටවල් නම් බොහොමයක් නම්කරන්න පුළුවන්- පැනමාව ෆිලිපිනය.

ඇමෙරිකාවට අවශ්‍ය ඔවුන්ගෙන් උපකාර බලාපොරුත්තුවෙන් ඇමෙරිකාවට යටත්පහත්ව කටයුතු කරන නොදියුණු රටවල් , ඒ නිසා ටිකක්වත් දියුණුවන්න උත්සාහා කරන නොදියුණු රටක් දුටුවොත් අමෙරිකාව උත්සහාකරන්නේ ඒ රටට උපකාර කරන විලාශයෙන් පැමිණ රට දියුණු කරන පිළිවෙල,  ප්‍රවේශයන්  රටේ දේශපාලන  නායකයින්ට පෙන්වාදීලා ඒ රටවල් නයගොඩක හිරකරලා  සදහට ඇමෙරිකාවේ  යටත්  විජිත” වගේ තියාගන්නවා . 

ඒවා කරන හැටි  ඒවා කල ඇමෙරිකානුවෙක්‌ම පවසලා තියෙනවා. ආර්ථික ඝාතකයකුගේ පාපොච්චාරණයක් කියල ( Confession of an Economic Hit man),  ඇමෙරිකාව ගෝලීය ආදිපතිත්වය ගන්නට කරන  භයානක  උත්සාහයේ ඇතුල්කතාව ලියු John Perkin  ගේ පොත කියවන්න. මම අපේ නව මුදල් අමාත්‍ය බැසිල්  රාජපක්ෂ  මහතාට ආරාධනාකරනවා. 

රුපියල් මිලියන 250 ක් ගන්න බලාපොරොත්තුවෙන් කෙරවලපිටියේ  විදුලි බලාගාරය තැනීම සඳහා ආයෝජනයක්  සඳහා ඇමෙරිකන් සමාගමට දීම තමන්ගේ මිනීවල කපාගන්නා හා සමානයි. එහෙනම් MCC ගනුදෙනුවටත්  කැමැත්ත දෙන්න තිබුනා  නේද ?  

අමෙරිකාවෙන් වත්  යුරෝපීය සංගමයෙන්වත් අපවෙනුවෙන් යහපත් වැඩපිළිවෙලක් බලාපොරොත්තුවිය නොහැකියි. ඔවුන්  හැකිතරම් අහිතකර ක්‍රියාවන් කරන්නේ  මේ කොවිඩ් වසංගතය වැනි ඉතා දුක්කිත කාලයකදී දියුනුවෙන්නට අපමණ වෙහෙසක් දරන අපේ රටට. 

 අමෙරිකාවත් සමග කරන ගිවිසුම් ඉතා ප්‍රවේසමෙන් කලයුතුය. ඇමෙරිකානු සමාගමක් ඔවූන්ගේ කාර්යාලයක් ලංකාවේ පිහිටෙව්වොත් එය   ඇමෙරිකාවේ CIA එකේ කොටසක් වෙනවාට අනුමානයක් නෑ. ඊට පස්සේ CIA ක්රියාකාරකයින්ගේ  වැඩපිලිවෙල ලංකා  ආණ්ඩුවට කිසිම දැනුමක් නැතිව සිදුවෙනවාට කිසිම අනුමානයක් නෑ . අපි හොඳට දන්නවා ඉරානයේ, කොන්ගෝ , චිලි ,පැනමා,  ආදී රටවල් වල CIA කරපු ක්‍රියාදාමයන්. 

CIA කියන්නේ  ඉතා පළපුරුදු ඇමෙරිකානු දේශපාලන හස්තයක් ඔවුන් කෙසේ කොහොම කොහේ  ඔවුන්ගේ කාර්යයන් කරාවිදැයි ලංකාවේ රහස් අංශයට සොයාගන්නට පුළුවන් කමක් නැතිවෙයි. 

ඔවුන් දෙමල diaspora වත් TNA  එකත් සමග වැඩකරනවාට අනුමානයක් නෑ.

එනිසා මෙම ඇමෙරිකානු සමාගම සමග කෙරවලපිටියේ   විදුලිබලාගාරයක් පිහිහිටුවීම්ට ගිවිසුම් අත්සන් කිරීමට විරෝධය පළකර එය නතරකරන මෙන් ආණ්ඩුවට බලගන්වන ලෙස පොදුජන පෙරමුණ සමග වැඩකරන අනිත් පක්ෂනායකයින්ගෙන් ඉල්ලා සිටිනවා.