Courtesy Adaderana

The World Health Organization called Wednesday for countries to avoid giving out extra Covid jabs until year-end, pointing to the millions worldwide who have yet to receive a single dose.

I will not stay silent when the companies and countries that control the global supply of vaccines think the world’s poor should be satisfied with leftovers,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told journalists.

Speaking from WHO’s headquarters in Geneva, Tedros urged wealthy countries and vaccine makers to prioritise getting the first jabs to health workers and vulnerable populations in poorer nations over boosters.

We do not want to see widespread use of boosters for healthy people who are fully vaccinated,” he said.

The WHO called last month for a moratorium on Covid-19 vaccine booster shots until the end of September to address the drastic inequity in dose distribution between rich and poor nations.

But Tedros acknowledged Wednesday that there had been little change in the global situations since then.

So today I am calling for an extension of the moratorium until at least the end of the year,” he said.

High-income countries had promised to donate more than one billion vaccine doses to poorer countries, he said — but less than 15 percent of those doses have materialised.

We don’t want any more promises,” he said. We just want the vaccines.”

Appalled”

Despite the call for a moratorium, some countries have been arguing for booster jabs not only for vulnerable people but also for the wider population, citing signs of waning vaccine effectiveness against the highly transmissive Delta variant.

The WHO has acknowledged that an additional dose could be needed for immunocompromised people, but stresses that for healthy people, the vaccines still seem very effective, especially in preventing severe disease.

There is not a compelling case to move forward with a generalised recommendation for booster doses,” Kate O’Brien, the WHO’s vaccines chief, told Wednesday’s news conference.

The UN health agency has set a global target of seeing every country vaccinate at least 10 percent of its population by the end of this month, and at least 40 percent by the end of this year.

It wants to see at least 70 percent of the world’s population vaccinated by the middle of next year.

But Tedros lamented that while 90 percent of wealthy countries have hit the 10-percent mark, and more than 70 percent have already reached 40-percent, not a single low-income country has reached either target”.

He expressed outrage at a statement by a pharmaceutical industry organisation that the world’s seven wealthiest nations, known as the G7, now had enough vaccines for all adults and teenagers — and to offer boosters to at-risk groups — and so the focus should shift to dose sharing.

When I read this, I was appalled,” he said.

In reality, manufacturers and high-income countries have long had the capacity to not only vaccinate their own priority groups, but to simultaneously support the vaccination of those same groups in all countries.”

-Agencies

Wishmitha Wedakama – විශ්මිත වෙදකම

අපේ රටේ හොදින් වැවෙන පළතුරක් වන කටු අනෝදා ශාකය මෙන්ම දේශීය පළතුරු සහ හෙළ ඔසු රට තුල වගාකිරීමට අපි සැවොම එක් වෙමු. එම ඖෂධීය බෝග භාවිතයෙන් නිරෝගිමත් රටක් බිහිකරමු. සියලු හෙළයන්ට බුදු සරණයි!!!

https://youtu.be/2NqBZYC4Q8E

Leelaratne Geekiyanage

https://www.facebook.com/neelaratna.geekiyanage.31/videos/871722856609401

KAMALIKA PIERIS

The fourth country that supported Eelam was Canada. Sri Lanka was handled at the UNHRC in the 1980s by Canada, said Pathfinder Foundation. Canada is part of the Core group which put forward resolutions against Sri Lanka at the UNHRC in Geneva in 2021.

 Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, tens of thousands of Tamils arrived in Canada and settled in large metropolitan cities like Toronto and Montreal. The Tamil asylum claims lodged with the Canadian Immigration and Refugee Board between 1989  and 1998 had an average acceptance rate of 85 percent, compared to 60-70 percent acceptance rates overall .  The largest number of expatriate Ceylon Tamils therefore are in Canada, totaling 157,000 in 2016. The second largest group is in UK, totaling 120,000 in 2007.

Canada has provided asylum to LTTE members convicted of criminal charges. Canada gave   asylum to Ravi Sanker Thiagarajah who was found guilty by Supreme Court of Sri Lanka of terrorist charges. He disappeared. He is now living safely in Canada.

The plot for the bomb explosion at the Central Bank (1996) had originated in Toronto. Sri Lankan intelligence officials tell me they traced the explosives used in the bomb and found they had come from the Ukrainian shipment purchased two years earlier with money wired from British Colombia, Canada, reported Ranjit Soyza.

It was decided that an organization should be created in Canada that could provide support for the notion of Tamil Eelam as well as the Vaddukoddai Resolution., with its separatist platform. The Eelam Society of Canada (TESOC) was registered as a non-profit organization in 1978.

TESOC functioned throughout the late-1970s, and gradually developed a very strong relationship with the Canadian government, reported Amaranth Amarasingham. Stewart Bell in his book Snow Tigers” said that Canadian Government had helped fund Tesco which in turn funneled funds to the LTTE. One of the directors of TESCO, Devakumar Sabapathy, issued a threat to kill the former President of Sri Lanka and his brother.

World Tamil Movement (WTM) was created in 1986. WTM was the Canadian arm of the LTTE, and was tasked with not only raising money for the LTTE, but also keeping alive the sentiment of Tamil separatism among the Tamil in Canada.

WTM employed sophisticated methods of remitting funds from Canada to the LTTE via Singapore and Malaysia using Bank of Nova Scotia and Canadian Trust Bank. WTM had once remitted a sum of 3 million dollars via Singapore to the LTTE. WTM had also deposited approximately dollars 7,63,000   collected by force from the Tamils in Canada.

Stewart Bell stated that the LTTE and its fronts used every conceivable tactic, government grants, front companies, every type of migrant smuggling and drugs. ” Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) estimated that $2 million a year, in collections were  funnelled to the  LTTE in Jaffna from Canada. Another CSIS study puts the figure at $ 1 million a month.

Federation of Associations of Canadian Tamils (FACT) was formed in 1992. It lobbied the Canadian government about Tamils in   Sri Lanka undergoing persecution by Sri Lanka government. FACT was replaced in 2000 by Canadian Tamil Congress.  CTC focused mainly on facilitating the integration of Ceylon Tamils into Canadian society but it also supported the political aspiration of the Tamils in Sri Lanka.

Many Tamil organizations  arose in Canada after the end of the war in May 2009 , reported Amaranth  Amarasingham .The National Council of Canadian Tamils (NCCT) was  set up  in 2010 with the expressed purpose of serving as an ethnic lobby group in Canada. In 2012 it submitted a memorandum to the UNHRC’s Universal Periodic Review.

The NCCT and the Canadian branch of Tamil Youth Organization (TYO)   organized conferences and meetings to push the idea of the self-determination of Tamils in Sri Lanka. In February 2012, they organized an Eelam Tamil Youth conference in Toronto where they brought together representatives from 14 Tamil student associations in high schools, colleges and university and they pledged to ‘continue the struggle for Tamil sovereignty.”

The meeting passed nine resolutions, two  of which said, we reject the territorial integrity of Sri Lanka state that occupies Tamil Eelam and we reject the imposition of Sri Lanka identity on Eelam Tamils. This meeting was opposed to presenting the conflict in Sri Lanka as a civil war. They rejected the unitary state of Sri Lanka.  The conflict is between two nations, and can only be resolved through a two-state solution. 

In 2014 the Canadian ambassador in Sri Lanka demanded the cancellation of the victory parade, on behalf of all those, who had been pursuing war crimes allegations, against the Sri Lankan military.”

In 2014, Canadian High Commissioner in Colombo, sent a strongly worded statement, saying that five years after the end of the conflict, the time has arrived for Sri Lanka to move past wartime discourse and to start working seriously towards reconciliation. Canada has encouraged the Government of Sri Lanka to retire its annual Victory Day Parade, which perpetuates roles of victors and vanquished within the country, for a day of remembrance for all those who suffered as a result of the conflict.

Sri Lanka quite rightly rejected this as blatant Canadian interference in purely a domestic matter, said Shamindra Ferdinando . Canada then declared that it would not attend the victory parade.

In August 2021,  Canada announced funding to nine Sri Lanka  NGOs to the tune of CAD 300,000 under a programme labeled Canada Fund for Local Initiatives. These nine Organizations includes Centre of Human Rights and Development, Transparency International Sri Lanka, Verité Research, as well as Colombo Friend in Need Society. ( Continued)

KAMALIKA PIERIS

In 2019 a Private Member’s Bill (Bill no104) titled An Act to Proclaim Tamil Genocide Education Week was placed before Ontario Legislative Assembly, Canada   by Vijay Thanigasalam, MP for Scarborough-Rouge Park. Vijay Thanigasalam is a LTTE supporter.  The move had been facilitated by the Committee on Regulations and Private Bills coming under the purview of Logan Kanapathi also of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario. The Bill claimed that 146,679 were killed in the final days of the Eelam War that civilians were starved and Tamil children were forcibly taken away from their homes.

The progress of this Bill was closely watched by the anti-Eelamists in Canada.  Several Sri Lankan organizations strongly opposed the Bill. Submissions were made in writing to the Standing Committee on regulations and Private Bills. 

The Bill stalled at the second reading, Only 59 supported it. 66 either refrained from voting or said ‘No.’ The Bill was then referred back to the relevant committee for want of required support.  In the meantime anti-Sri Lanka resolutions were passed in Brampton, Pickering and Toronto Municipal Councils, though the matter was outside local politics.

On May 6, 2021   Ontario Legislative Assembly, Canada, voted in favor of the Bill. It was carried through without a vote taking advantage of the Covid-19 pandemic which had restricted the participation of the majority of members. Vijay Thanigasalam declared the passage of the Bill ‘a historic event for Tamil people in Ontario and across the world.  Ontario is the first government worldwide to pass such a law.”

The newly passed Tamil Genocide Education Week Act establishes a week each year, May 11 to 18, during which Ontarians are encouraged to educate themselves about, and to maintain their awareness of, the Tamil genocide and other genocides that have occurred in world history. However, the Bill would not become law until Ontario Lieutenant Governor General gave her consent on behalf of the Canadian Government.

Analysts saw this Ontario move as very   significant. This Bill is an attempt to legitimize the claim that a Tamil Genocide happened in Sri Lanka. Such projects intended to legitimize war crimes accusations, should be nipped in the bud, they said.

Canada-based Dr. Chandre Dharmawardana said that the move in the Ontario Legislative Assembly was a prelude to the Diaspora grouping seeking to move a similar Bill in the Canadian Parliament. The provincial move couldn’t be dismissed lightly.  He appreciated the fact that the government of Sri Lanka took up the issue with both Federal and Provincial authorities of Canada.

It would be a serious mistake, on Sri Lanka’s part, to consider the genocide rap as a project of the Ontario Legislative Assembly instead of a Canadian move. The Canadian move is severely inimical to Sri Lanka. The Ontario project would further strengthen the Geneva-led campaign meant to weaken Sri Lanka, said Shamindra Ferdinando. The Geneva onslaught will take a new turn with this Genocide charge.

Sri Lanka acted promptly. The Sri Lanka High Commission in Ottawa protested.  In Colombo, Foreign Minister Dinesh Gunawardena   conveyed Sri Lanka’s deep concern to Canadian High Commissioner.. Canadian High Commission in Colombo responded.”It is important to recognize the high degree of autonomy of the federal governments of the provinces in Canada, including on issues such as this one.

Anti Eelamists in Canada also responded.  Neville Hewage,  went to Supreme Court against the Act. He said that Ontario Legislative Assembly did not have the jurisdiction to pass Bill 104  and the facts presented in Bill 104 were completely false.

Mahinda Gunasekera sent an open letter to^. Prime Minister, Ministers, Premier of Ontario, Members of the Federal Parliament/ Ontario Legislature and GTA Mayors on the matter   It was titled On the Impact of Ontario’s Bill 104, Tamil Genocide Education Week Act, 2021 and GTA ( Greater Toronto Area)Mayoral Proclamation of Tamil Genocide Remembrance Day on May 18^th..

He pointed out that Eelam war IV was a civil war not a genocidal one and its was initiated by the LTTE not the government, that the UN has not declared the Eelam war to be genocidal and that the Ontario Provincial Legislature does not have the authority to determine Genocide.

The Ontario Centre for Policy Research organized a webinar on LTTE Terrorism and Alleged Tamil Genocide in June 2020 to discuss the Ontario Bill. The panel consisted of Neville Hewage, Sarath Chandrasekara and Chandre Dharmawardana.

On June 3 2021, the anti-Eelamists in Canada issued a joint statement. We are pleased to announce that the following Sri Lankan-Canadian organizations have joined as a united front to fight a Superior court case against the Ontario law on Tamil Genocide Education Week, Sri Lankan Canadian Action Coalition (SLCAC) Canadian Sri Lankan Center for Social Harmony (CSLCSH) Sri Lanka United National Association of Canada (SLUNA) and Sri Lanka Canada Association of Brampton (SLCAB). A 12-member steering committee will address aspects of the proceedings and fundraising campaigns, we hope to draw attention to the misinformation contained in the Act, and see that Tamil Genocide Education Week Act is repealed, this group said.

On the 2nd of October 2020 Gary Anandasangaree, MP for Scarborough tabled a petition in the Canadian Parliament.  He wanted Sri Lanka taken before the Committee established under the Convention Against Enforced Disappearances. He said, inter alia, that genocide in Sri Lanka is unique among genocides in history because it has occurred over several decades and under different governments before intensifying into a no- holds-barred war for nearly three decades and culminating in the mass atrocities of 2009. Sri Lanka’s historic violations against Tamils, such as 1958 and 1983, in addition to the 2009 war must go before an international court.

Canada said that it could not comply since it was not a member of CED. Full response from the Government of Canada can be found at: https://petitions.ourcommons.ca/en/Petition/Details?Petition=432-00052. Neville Hewage submitted a 619 page rebuttal against the petition. His full rebuttal can be found at: https://policy-research.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/01-Neville_Hewage_Report_432-00052_V3.pdf  (continued)

KAMALIKA PIERIS

At the June 2021 session of the UNHRC in Geneva, Canada led an alliance of 44 States (mainly Western and European countries), demanding that China allow meaningful and unfettered access to investigate credible reports of widespread human rights violations against China’s Muslim minority Uighur in Xinjiang province.

Immediately after this China delivered a joint statement, on behalf of eight countries (Belarus, China, DPRK, Iran, Russia, Sri Lanka, Syria, and Venezuela) expressing ‘[deep concern] about serious human rights violations against the indigenous people

Canada,’ and demanding a UN investigation into Canada’s serious human rights violations against indigenous people.’

This was a reference to the recent discovery of a mass grave containing the remains of over 200 children, at the site of a former ‘residential school’ for indigenous children in British Columbia. China argued that the discovery of the mass grave demonstrates long-standing discrimination against indigenous people in Canada, and drew particular attention to the treatment of indigenous children from the 1830s to the 1990s. During this period, many children were forcibly taken away from their parents and sent to boarding schools, where they were often victims of malnutrition, violence, rape, and abuse.

Canada has this image internationally of a great defender of human rights violations, the protector of human rights throughout the world, but in its own backyard it has ’ violated the rights of   the indigenous inhabitants, agreed critics. Canada’s ugly record of Genocide is now emerging.

Canada has its own ugly record of Genocide, critics said. Canada destroyed the indigenous people of Canada. There was forced sterilization. Canada created a special school system for the indigenous children, the Resident or Industrial School system run by the Federal Government and the Church. Residential Schools were part of a policy to eliminate Aboriginal people as distinct peoples and to assimilate them into the Canadian mainstream against their will.”

From the 19th century until the 1970s, more than 150,000 Indigenous children were forced to attend state-funded Christian schools, most run by Roman Catholic missionary congregations, in a campaign to assimilate them into Canadian society. Nearly three-quarters of the 130 residential schools were run by Catholic missionary congregations, with others operated by the United, Presbyterian and Anglican churches.

This school system removed children from parents, who were not permitted to visit their children. They in fact never saw their children again. The result was children who lacked family love and parental guidance.

Over 70% of the children were tortured, sexually abused by school teachers, priests, and nuns. When they left school after 10 years, their level of knowledge and education was at the level of a Grade 2 child. They did not receive higher education or skills. They often resorted to larceny, drug and alcohol addiction, ending up as urban poor.

Five generations of children went through this school system. Between1890-1970 over 100,000 children were forced to attend 139 resident schools. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada in 2015 released its final report, documenting the tragic experience of at least 150,000 residential school students.

The government has admitted that physical and sexual abuse was rampant in the schools, with students beaten for speaking their native languages. Thousands of children died there of disease and other causes, many never returned to their families.

The discovery of 600 or more remains of children at the Marieval Indian Residential School, which operated from 1899 to 1997, in the province of Saskatchewan, the remains of 215 children, some as young as 3, were found buried on the site of what was once Canada’s largest Indigenous residential school near Kamloops, British Columbia.

Canadians across the country are waking up to something that quite frankly that Indigenous communities have long known,” Mr. Trudeau said . Canada’s genocide was camouflaged as state policy and it was carried out with state patronage and blessings. Former Prime Minister Stephen Harper issued a formal apology in Parliament in 2008 and Canada offered billions of dollars in compensation as part of a lawsuit settlement between the government, churches and the approximately 90,000 surviving students. ( CONTINUED)

තිසර සමල් – අනුරාධපුර

මහවැලි අධිකාරියෙන් සෑම ගොවියකුටම කාබනික පොහොර නිෂ්පාදනයට නොමිලේ ජපන් ජබර ට්‍රැක්ටරයක් හා පොස්පේට් පොහොරත් ලබා දීම හේතුවෙන් මහඉලුප්පල්ලම ගොවියෝ කාබනික පොහොර ඒකක සකසා මහ කන්නයට සූදානම් වෙති..

මහවැලි එච් කළාපයේ, මහඉලුප්පල්ලම කොට්ඨාශයේ අක්කර 10 200 ක භූමි ප්‍රමාණයක් වෙනුවෙන් පසුගිය කන්නයේ  රසායනික පොහොර ලෙස යූරියා කිලෝ 880 000 ක්, ටී.එස්.පී පොහොර කිලෝ 2 04 000 ක්, එමි.ඕ.පී පොහොර කිලෝ 2 24 000 ක්  ගොවිබිම් වෙත මෙවර මහ කන්නයේ කාබනික පොහොර ටොන් 4080 ක් නිෂ්පාදනය කිරීමේ ඉල්ලක්කය වෙත ලඟා වෙමින් පවතියි.

මේ වන විට එම ඉලක්කයෙන් 70 % ක් සම්පූර්ණ කර ඇතැයි මහවැලි එච් කළාපයේ, මහඉලුප්පල්ලම කොට්ඨාශ කළමණාකාර කපිල කුමාර මහතා පවසයි.

රසායනික පොහොර භාවිතය වෙනුවට කාබනික පොහොර වලට ගොවීන් යොමු කරවීමේ වත්මන් රජයේ ප්‍රථිපත්තිමය තීරණයට අනුව රසායනික පොහොර ආනයනය සීමා කිරීමත් සමඟ මහවැලි එච් කළාපයේ ගොවීන් කාබනික පොහොර නිෂ්පාදනයට යොමු කරවීමට මහවැලි අධිකාරිය හා ගොවිජන සේවා දෙපාර්තමේන්තුව ඒකාබද්ධව වැඩපිළිවෙලක් ආරම්භ කරනු ලැබීය.ඒ වෙනුවෙන් ගොවීන්ට කාබනික පොහොර නිෂ්පාදනය කිරීම සඳහා දැනුම ලබා දීමට මෙන්ම රසායනික පොහොර නොමැතිව වුවද කාබනික පොහොර තුලින් හොඳ අස්වැන්නක් ලබා ගත හැකිය යන ආකල්පමය වර්ධනයන් ඇති කිරීම සඳහා ප්‍රායෝගික පුහුණු වැඩමුළුද සංවිධානය කර ඇත.ඉන් පසු ගොවීන්ට කාබනික පොහොර නිෂ්පාදනයේදී අමුද්‍රව්‍ය සොයා ගැනීමේ ගැටලු පැවතීම හේතුවෙන් මහවැලි අධිකාරිය මගින් වැව් වලින් ඉවත් කරන ජපන් ජබර, පාසි ඇතුළු ජලජ ශාඛ ට්‍රැක්ටරයක් ගොවීන්ගේ නිවසේ හෝ ගොවිබිම් වෙත නොමිලේම ප්‍රවාහනය කර දීම හා අමුද්‍රව්‍යය ලෙස අවශ්‍යය වන එප්පාවල පොස්පේට් නොමිලේ ලබා දීමද මහවැලි අධිකාරිය මගින් සිදු කිරීමත් සමඟින් කාබනික පොහොර සෑදීමට මැලිකමක් දැක්වූ ගොවීන් කාබනික පොහොර නිෂ්පාදනයට මහත් උනන්දුවක් දක්වන බව මහවැලි අධිකාරිය පවසයි.

මේ වන විට මහඉලුප්පල්ම කොට්ඨාශයේ ගොවි සංවිධාන 50 කට අයත්, ගොවීන් 5 600 ක්, තම වගාබිම් වන අක්කර 10 200 ක ඉදිරි මාස් කන්නය වෙනුවෙන් කාබනික පොහොර නිෂ්පාදනය ආරම්භ කර ඇත.මෙම කොට්ඨාශයේ වගාබිම් සඳහා කාබනික පොහොර ටොන් 4080 ක් පමණ අවශ්‍ය වෙතැයි ගණන් බලා ඇත.ඉන් 70% ක් පමණ මේ වන විට නිෂ්පාදනය කර ඇති අතර, ඉතිරි ප්‍රමාණයද මෙම කොට්ඨාශය තුළ ගොවීන් අතින් නිෂ්පාදනය කරන බව මහවැලි අධිකාරිය පවසයි. ගොවීන්ට නිසි ප්‍රමිතියකින් යුතු කාබනික පොහොර ඒකක පිහිටුවන ආකාරය පුහුණු කිරීම, පිහිටවූ කාබනික පොහොර ඒකක ගොඩපෙරළීම , තෙතමනය හා උෂ්ණත්වය පරික්ෂා කරමින් පවත්වාගෙන යාම සම්බන්ධයෙන් ගොවීන් දැනුම්වත් කිරීම මෙන්ම අදාළ කාබනික ඒකක පරික්ෂාවන්ට ලක් කිරීමද මහවැලි අධිකාරියේ ක්ෂ්‍රේත්‍ර නිළධාරීන් හා කෘෂිකර්ම පර්යේෂණ නිළධාරීන් මගින් සිදු කරනු ලබයි.

මේ වන විට මහඉලුප්පල්ලම මහවැලි කොට්ඨාශයේ ගන්තිරියාගම වැවේහි පැවති ජපන් ජබර හා පාසී ඇතුළු ආක්‍රමණික ශාඛ වැවෙන් ඉවත් කර වැවද සංවර්ධනය කර ඇති අතර, ඉවත් කළ ජපන් ජබර  හා පාසී ගොවීන්ගේ නිවෙස් හා ගොවිබිම් වෙත ප්‍රවාහනය කර ඇති අයුරු දැක ගත හැකිය.

මේ සම්බන්ධයෙන් අදහස් දැක්වූ මහඉලුප්පල්ලම මහවැලි කොට්ඨාශකාර්යාලෙයේ වාරී මාර්ග ඉංජිනේරු,  ඒ.එම්.ඩබ්ලිව් අලුත්ගල  මහතා,

ගන්තිරියාගම වැවේ ජලජ ශාඛ ඉවත් කිරීමේ ව්‍යාපෘතියට සමගාමීව මේ දින වල සිදු කරන කාබනික පොහොර නිෂ්පාදන කටයුතු සඳහා එක ජලජ ශාඛ ට්‍රැක්ටර් ලෝඩ් එකක් ගොවි මහතෙකුට නොමිලේ ලබා දෙනවා. ගොවි මහත්වරුන්ට ඒත් සමඟ තවත් අමුද්‍රව්‍ය හා සත්ව අපද්‍රව්‍යයත් යොදා ගෙන කොම්පෝස්ට් නිෂ්පාදනය කර ගැනීමේ හැකියාව තියෙනවා.

මේ සම්බන්ධයෙන් අදහස් දැක්වූ ඉපලෝගම ගොවි සංවිධානයේ සභාපති එච්.එම් අමරසිංහ මහතා,

මේ දිනවල රට පුරාම කාබනික පොහොර සකස් කිරීමේ ව්‍යාපෘති  සිදු කෙරනවා, ඉපලෝගම ගොවි සංවිධානයේ ගොවීන්ට ගැටලුවක් තිබුණා මේ සඳහා අමුද්‍රව්‍යය සපයා ගැනීම පිළිබඳව.ඒ නිසා ගොවීන් කාබනික පොහොර සකස් කිරීමට තරමක මැලිකමක් දැක්වූවා.ඒ අවස්ථාවේදී මහවැලි එච් කළාපයේ, මහඉලුප්පල්ලම කොට්ඨාශ කළමණාකාරතුමා ඇතුළු නිළධාරීන් එකතු වෙලා මේ ගැටලුවට විසදුම් ලෙස ගොවීන්ට කාබනික පොහොර නිෂ්පාදනය සම්බන්ධයෙන් දැනුම ලබා දීම සිදු කරනවා, ගොවීන්ට පවතින අමුද්‍රව්‍යය හිඟයට විසඳුමක් ලෙස සෑම ගොවියකුටම වැව් වලින් ඉවත් කරන ජලජ ශාඛ ට්‍රැක්ටර් ලෝඩ් එකක් සහ කාබනික පොහොර නිෂ්පාදනයේදී  මිශ්‍ර කිරීමට යොදන පොස්පේට් පොහොර මිටියක්  නොමිලේ ලබා දීම සිදු කරනවා.ඒ නිසා මේ වැඩසටහන ඉතා සාර්ථක තත්වයට පත් වෙලා තියෙනවා.

මේ සම්බන්ධයෙන් අදහස් දැක්වූ ගෙවිලියක වන   රේණුකා එදිරිසිංහ මහත්මිය,

අපි අක්කර 3 1/2 ක් පමණ ගොවිතැන් කරනවා, මාස් කන්නයේදී වී වගාවත්, යළ කන්නයේදී සොයා/ බඩඉරගු වගේ දේ වගා කරනවා.රසායනික පොහාර භාවිතය තහනම් කිරීමත් සමඟ අපි කාබනික පොහොර නිෂ්පාදනයට යොමු වුණා. මහවැලි අධිකාරිය මගින් ඒ සඳහා උපදෙස් හා මගපෙන්වීම ලබා දුන්නා.අපි කොම්පෝස්ට් එකක 03 ක් මේ වන විට නිෂ්පාදනය කරලා තියෙනවා.ඉදිරි කන්නයේදී අපි 100% ක් කාබනික වගාවකට යොමු වෙන්න බලාපොරොත්තු වෙනවා.

මහඉලුප්පල්ලම රන්කැකුළු ගොවි සංවිධානයේ, අලුවිහාරේගම ගොවි ජනපදයේ එච්.එම් තිලක් සුසන්ත හේරත් මහතා අදහස් දක්වමින් කියා සිටියේ,

ෙමගේ ප්‍රධාන ආධායම් මාර්ගය ගොවිතැන,  මම අක්කර 05 ක පමණ ගොවිතැන් කරනවා, රසායනික පොහොර තිබුණ නිසා බොහෝම පහසුවෙන් ගොවිතැන් කළත්, දැනට රජයෙන් රසායනික පොහොර තහනම් කිරීමට ගත් තීරණයත් එක්ක අපි ඉදිරියට කොහොමද ගොවිතැන් කරන්නේ කියන ප්‍රශ්නයක ඉද්දී  මහවැලියෙන් අපට උපදෙස් දුන්නා කොම්පෝස්ට් ව්‍යාපෘති ආරම්භ කරමු කියලා. ඒ සඳහා අවශ්‍යය දැනුම ලබා ගැනීමට පොත් පිංචක් ලබා දුන්නා, ඒ වගේම කොම්පෝස්ට් සාදා ගන්නා ආකාරය පිළිබඳව  පුහුණු වැඩමුළු පවත්වනු ලැබුවා. ඒ වගේම මහවැලිය මගින් වැව් වලින් ඉවත් කරන ජපන් ජබර හා එප්පාවල පොස්පේට් පොහොර නොමිලේ ලබා දුන්නා. මම දැනට අක්කර  3 1/2 කට කොම්පෝස්ට් හදලා අවසන් කරලා තියෙනවා.ගොවි මහතුන් විශාල ප්‍රමාණයක් මේ වන විට කාබනික පොහොර නිෂ්පාදනයට යොමු වෙලා තියෙනවා.‍

මහඉලුප්පල්ම රංකෙත ගොවි සංවිධානයේ සභාපතිතුමන් කියා සිටියේ,

අපේ ගොවි සංවිධානයේ ගොවි මහතුන් 72 ක් අක්කර 196 ක් කුඹුරු වගා කරනවා. අපි සියලු දෙනාම මේ වන විට කාබනික පොහොර නිෂ්පාදනය කරලා තියෙනවා.ඒ සඳහා මහවැලි අධිකාරිය හා ගොවිජන සේවා දෙපාර්තමේන්තුව මගින් අපිට විශාල සහයක් ලැබුණා. කාබනික පොහොර නිෂ්පාදනයට උපකාර මෙන්ම උපදෙස් ලබා දුන්නා.අපි ඉදිරි කන්න වලටත් වී ගොවිතැනට, එළවලු හා පළතුරු වගාවන් වලටත් කාබනික පොහොර යොදා ගෙන වස විසෙන් තොර ශ්‍රී ලංකාවක් බිහි කිරීමට දායක්තවය ලබා දෙන්න බලාපොරොත්තු වෙනවා.

මේ සම්බන්ධයෙන් අදහස් දැක්වූ ඉපලෝගම ගොවිජන සේවා මධ්‍යස්ථානයේ, ගොවිජන සංවර්ධන ප්‍රාදේශීය නිළධාරී  ඩී.එම්.ජී.එස් ජයරුවන්  මහතා,

වත්මන් රජය විසින් ක්‍රියාත්මක කරන වස විසෙන් තොර කාබනික පොහොර භාවිතයෙන් වගා කිරීමේ කාර්යය සඳහා ඉපලෝගම ගොවිජන සේවා බලප්‍රදේශයේ ගොවීන් ඉතා හොඳින් පෙළගැසෙමින් සිටිනවා. ගොවිජන සංවර්ධන දෙපාර්තමේන්තුව හා මහවැලි අධිකාරිය ඒකාබද්ධ වෙමින් ගොවීන් උත්තේජනය කිරීම සිදු කරනවා.කාණ්ඩ  03 ක් යටතේ ගොවීන් ලියාපදිංචි කිරීම අප සිදු කරනවා. තම වගාවට කාබනික පොහොර නිෂ්පාදනය කරන ගොවීන්, සුළු පරිමාණ හා මහා පරිමාණ කාබනික පොහොර නිෂ්පාදකයින්  ලෙස ලියාපදිංචිය සිදු කරනවා.බිම් මට්ටමේ ගොවීන් ට මේ පිළිබඳ විදිමත් පුහුණුවක් ලබා දී අවසන් කර තිබෙනවා, ගොවීන් උත්තේජනය කිරීම සඳහා මහවැලි අධිකාරිය මගින් වැව් වලින් ඉවත් කරන ජලජ ශාඛ ගොවීන්ගේ නිවසටම නොමිලේම ලබා දීලා ගොවීන් උත්තේජනය කිරීමේ කටයුත්තක් සමඟ අපි ඒකාබද්ධව කටයුතු කරනවා.එය ඉතා සාර්ථකව සිදු කෙරනවා.මහවැලි බලප්‍රදේශයේ 70% ක් පමණ ගොවීන් මේ සඳහා යොමු වී තිබෙනවා. මුල් කාලයේ ගොවීන් මේ සඳහා පසුගාමීව කටයුතු කළත් ගොවීන් හා ගොවි සංවිධාන සවිබල ගන්වමින් මේ කටයුත්ත අපිට සිදු කරන්න හැකියාව ලැබුණා.අපි නොහැතපු අකාරයේ ප්‍රථිචාරයක් මේ වන විට  ගොවීන්ගෙන් ලැබෙනවා. ඉදිරි කන්නය සඳහා අවශ්‍ය සියලු කාබනික පොහොර ප්‍රමාණය අපේම ගොවි මහතුන්ට මේ ප්‍රදේශයේම නිෂ්පාදනය කර ගත හැකි වේයැයි බලාපොරොත්තුව අපිට තියෙනවා. 

මේ සම්බන්ධයෙන් අදහස් දැක්වූ මහවැලි එච් කළාපයේ, මහඉලුප්පලම කොට්ඨාශ කළමණාකාර කපිල කුමාර මහතා,

මහඉලුප්පල්ලම කොට්ඨාශයේ 2021/22 මාස් කන්නයේ වගාවන් සඳහා අක්කර 10 200 ක භූමි ප්‍රමාණයක් වගා කිරීමට නියමිතයි.ඒ වෙනුවෙන් රජය මේ වන විට ගෙන ඇති ප්‍රථිපත්තිමය තීන්දුව අනුව යමින් කාබනික පොහොර නිෂ්පාදනය කිරීම මේ දින වල සිදු වෙනවා.ඒ සඳහා ගොවීන්  යොමු වීමට මුලදී යම් මැළිකමක් දැක්වීම හේතුවෙන් මහවැලි අධිකාරිය මගින් ගොවීන්ට කාබනික පොහොර නිෂ්පාදනයට අවශ්‍යය දැනුම හා අකල්පමය වෙනස ඇති කිරීමට පුහුණු වැඩසටහන් ක්‍රියාත්මක කරනවා.මේ කොට්ඨාශයේ ගොවීන් 5600 ක් පමණ සිටිනවා. ගොවි සංවිධාන 50 කට ගොණු ගත වෙලා ඉන්නවා. ඔවුන් අක්කර 10 200 ක භූමි ප්‍රමාණයක් වගා කරනවා.ගොවීන් 30 දෙනෙකුට එක් පුහුණු වැඩසටහන බැගින් පුහුණු වැඩසටහන් රැසක් මේ වන විට සිදු කර තිබෙනවා.කොම්පෝස්ට් නිෂ්පාදනයට අවශ්‍යය අමුද්‍රව්‍යය  ලෙස ජපන් ජබර හා පාසි සහිත ජලජ ශාඛ ට්‍රැක්ටරයක් ගොවීන්ගේ නිවස හෝ ගොවි බිම වෙත නොමිලේම ප්‍රවාහනය කරලා දෙන වැඩසටහනක් ක්‍රියාත්මක කෙරෙනවා, ඒ වගේම පොස්පේට් පොහොර අක්කරයකට කිලෝ 20 බැගින් නොමිලේ  සියලුම ගොවීන් වෙත ලබා දීමට අවශ්‍යය කටයුතු සිදු කර තිබෙනවා.මේ වන විට ගොවීන් 70% ක් තමන්ගේ අවශ්‍යතාවට සරිලන ලෙස කාබනික පොහොර නිෂ්පාදනය කරලා අවසන්.මහඉලුප්පලම කොට්ඨාශය කියන්නේ කලාවැවෙන් පෝෂණය වන, පුරාණ  යෝද ඇළෙන් දියවර ලබා ගන්නා  ගොවි බිම් ඉදිරි මාස් කන්නයේදී වගා කටයුතු සිදු කළ පසු මේ කාබනික පොහොර නියමිත පරිදී දිරාපත් වෙලා වගාවන්ට යොදන තත්වයට පත් වෙයි.ඒ අනුව අපි ඉලක්කය වී ඇත්තේ අක්කර 10 200 ක භූමි ප්‍රමාණයට කොම්පෝස්ට් ටොන් 4080 ක වගේ ප්‍රමාණයක්  ගොවීන්ගේ අතින්ම නිෂ්පාදනය කිරීමයි. පසුගිය කන්නයේදී මෙම කොට්ඨාශයේ ගොවීන් වෙත රසායනික පොහොර ලෙස යූරියා කිලෝ 880 000 ක්, ටී.එස්.පී පොහොර කිලෝ 2 04 000 ක්, එමි.ඕ.පී පොහොර කිලෝ 2 24 000 ක්  පමණ ලබා දී තිබෙනවා.  ඒ වෙනුවට තමයි කාබනික පොහොර ටොන් 4080 ක් නිෂ්පාදනය කරන්න වැඩසටහන් ක්‍රියාත්මක වෙන්නේ.කාබනික පොහොර නිෂ්පාදනය කරන මෙම කොට්ඨාශයේ ගොවීන් වෙත දිරි දීමනා ලෙස රුපියල් මිලියන 50 ක් පමණ ගොවීන් වෙත ප්‍රදානය කිරීමටද නියමිතයි.ඒ සඳහා අවශ්‍යය කටයුතුද මේ වන විට සිදු කෙරනවා.

අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය මාධ්‍ය අංශය

ටෝකියෝ නුවර පැවැති පැරාලිම්පික් 2020 තරගාවලියේ දී හෙල්ල විසි කිරීමේ ඉසව්වෙන් නව ලෝක වාර්තාවක් තබමින් මාතෘ භූමිය රනින් සැරසූ දිනේෂ් ප්‍රියන්ත හේරත් සහ ලෝකඩ පදක්කමක් දිනාගත් සමිත දුලාන් කොඩිතුවක්කු අද (08) දින අරලියගහ මන්දිරයේ දී ගරු අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය මහින්ද රාජපක්ෂ මහතා හමුවූහ.

පැරාලිම්පික් තරගබිමේ නව වාර්තා තබමින් ඔබ ලැබූ ජයග්‍රහණයන් ශ්‍රී ලංකා අභිමානය ජාත්‍යන්තරය තුළ ගෞරවාදරයට ලක් කිරීමක් බව අග්‍රාමාත්‍යතුමා මෙම සුහඳ හමුවේ දී ක්‍රීඩකයන්ට සුබ පැතුම් එක් කරමින් ප්‍රකාශ කළේය.

ඉතිහාසය අලුතින් ලියා තැබූ මෙම ජයග්‍රහණයට මග පෙන්වූ පුහුණුකරුවන් නිලධාරින් ඇතුළු සියලු දෙනාට සිය ප්‍රණාමය පුද කරන බව සඳහන් කළ අග්‍රාමාත්‍යතුමා, ක්‍රීඩා ජයග්‍රහණ හිමිකර දෙමින් රටට අභිමානයක් එක් කිරීමට කැපවන සියලු ක්‍රීඩක ක්‍රීඩිකාවන්ගේ පුහුණුවීම් සඳහා අවශ්‍ය පහසුකම් අඛණ්ඩව සැපයීමට රජය පියවර ගන්නා බව අවධාරණය කළේය. 

ජපානයේ ටෝකියෝ හී පැවති 2020 පැරාලිම්පික් තරගාවලියේ දී F46 හෙල්ල විසිකිරීමේ ඉසව්වෙන් මීටර් 67.79ක දුරක් හෙල්ලය විසිකරමින්  නව ලෝක වාර්තාවක් පිහිටුවමින් රන් පදක්කම දිනා ගැනීමට දිනේෂ් ප්‍රියන්ත හේරත් සමත් විය.

එම තරගාවලියේම F64 හෙල්ල විසිකිරීමේ ඉසව්වෙන් මීටර් 65.61 වාර්තාකරමින් සමිත දුලාන් කොඩිතුවක්කු ලෝකඩ පදක්කම දිනා දුන්නේය.

ජයග්‍රහණ ලබා ගැනීම උදෙසා ක්‍රීඩා අමාත්‍යතුමා ඇතුළු රජය ලබා දෙන සහයෝගයට සිය ප්‍රණාමය පුදකරන බව මෙහි දී පැරාලිම්පික් පදක්කම් දිනූ දිනේෂ් ප්‍රියන්ත සහ සමිත දුලාන් ක්‍රීඩකයෝ අග්‍රාමාත්‍යතුමාට පැවසූහ.

තරුණ හා ක්‍රීඩා අමාත්‍ය නාමල් රාජපක්ෂ මහතා මෙරට ක්‍රීඩාව සැළැස්මකට අනුව දියුණු කිරීමට පියවර ගැනීම ජයග්‍රහණ පිළිබඳ අනාගත බලාපොරොත්තු තැබීමේ හැකියාව උදාකරන බව ද අග්‍රාමාත්‍යතුමා මෙහි දී විශ්වාසය පළ කළේය.

මෙම අවස්ථාවට තරුණ හා ක්‍රීඩා අමාත්‍ය නාමල් රාජපක්ෂ, ග්‍රාමීය හා පාසල් ක්‍රීඩා යටිතල පහසුකම් ප්‍රවර්ධන රාජ්‍ය අමාත්‍ය තේනුක විදානගමගේ, ක්‍රීඩා සංවර්ධන දෙපාර්තමේන්තුවේ අධ්‍යක්ෂ ජනරාල් අමල් එදිරිසූරිය, ජාතික ඔලිම්පික් කමිටුවේ සභාපති ලුතිනන් කර්නල් දීපාල් හේරත්, ලේකම් බන්දුල බණ්ඩාර, හෙල්ල විසිකිරීමේ පුහුණුකරු ප්‍රදීප් නිශාන්ත මහත්වරු ඇතුළු පිරිසක් එක්ව සිටියහ.

තරුණ හා ක්‍රීඩා අමාත්‍යංශය, සංවර්ධන සම්බන්ධීකරණ හා අධීක්ෂණ අමාත්‍යාංශය,ඩිජිටල් තාක්ෂණ හා ව්‍යවසාය සංවර්ධන රාජ්‍ය අමාත්‍යංශය.

ශ්‍රී ලංකා ක්‍රීඩා ඉතිහාසය තුළ රන් සලකුණු තබමින් මළල ක්‍රීඩාවෙන් ලද ඉහළම ජයග්‍රහණය රැගෙන දිවයිනට පැමිණි ජාතික පැරාලිම්පික් කණ්ඩායම අද (08) දින තරුණ හා ක්‍රීඩා අමාත්‍ය නාමල් රාජපක්ෂ මහතා හමු වූ අවස්ථාවේදී අමාත්‍යවරයා මේ බව පැවසීය.

ජපානයේ ටෝකියෝ නුවර පැවති 2020 පැරාලිම්පික් උලෙළේ දී ලෝක වාර්තාවක් සමගින් රන් පදක්කමක් සහ ලෝකඩ පදක්කමක් දිනාගත් ජාතික පැරාලිම්පික් කණ්ඩායම ඊයේ දින සන්ධ්‍යාවේදී UL 455 දරණ ගුවන් යානයෙන් කටුනායක ජාත්‍යන්තර ගුවන්තොටුපොළ විශේෂ ප්‍රභූ පර්යන්තයේ රතුපලස මතින් දිවයිනට පැමිණියහ.

පවතින වසංගත තත්ත්වය හමුවේ සෞඛ්‍ය මාර්ගෝපදේවලට අනුකූලව අද (08) දින තරුණ හා ක්‍රීඩා අමාත්‍යාංශයේදී ජාතික පැරාලිම්පික් කණ්ඩායම  ඉතා ම උණුසුම් අන්දමින් පිළිගත්  අමාත්‍යවරයා ඔවුන් සමග කෙටි පිලිසඳරක යෙදිණි.

ලෝක ශූර රන්පදක්කම්ලාභී දිනේෂ් ප්‍රියන්ත හේරත් ක්‍රීඩකයා තමා ලබාගත් ජයග්‍රහණය පිළිබඳව ක්‍රීඩකයන් අමාත්‍යවරයා සමග අදහස් බෙදාගත්තේ මෙලෙසිනි.

”අපිට ගොඩාක් සතුටුයි ලෝක වාර්තාවක් සමග රන් පදක්කමක් සහ ලෝකඩ පදක්කමක් දිනා ගැනීමට හැකි වීම පිළිබදව. ඉදිරියේදී  අපි වාර්තාවන් අලුත් කරන්න කැපවෙලා පුහුණුවීම් කටයුතු කරනවා.

යුද්ධ හමුදාවෙන් ලැබුණු පන්නරය සමග ඔවුන්ගේ සහයෝගය අපිට ශක්තියක් වුණා. ක්‍රීඩා අමාත්‍යාංශය, ජාතික පැරාලිම්පික් කමිටුව මේ ජයග්‍රහණවලට ලොකු පිටුවහලක් වුණා.

ක්‍රීඩා අමාත්‍යාංශයෙන්  අපි වෙනුවෙන් සැලැස්මකට අනුව ලබාදෙන පුහුණුව, පහසුකම් හා දීමනා මේ ජයග්‍රහණවලට සුවිශාල සහයෝගයක් වුණා වගේම ක්‍රීඩකයන් හැටියට අපිට ඒක ලොකු දිරිගැන්වීමක්.”

අපේ පුහුණුකරු ප්‍රදීප් නිශාන්ත මහතා අපිට ඉතා දක්ෂ ලෙස අවශ්‍ය පුහුණුවීම් කටයුතු කිරීම සදහා උපදෙස් ලබා දුන්නා. ඔහුගේ මගපෙන්වීම යටතේ මා ලෝක වාර්තාවක් සමගින් රන් පදක්කම ජයග්‍රහණය කිරීමට හැකියාව ලැබුණා යනුවෙනි.

ලංකා ඉතිහාසයේ පළමු වතාවට ජාතික ගීය වාදනය වුණා. හරිම සතුටක් දැනුණා ඒ වෙලාවේ.  ඒක අපිට ඉමහත් අභිමානයක්.

ඒ අභිමානය ජාතික පැරාලිම්පික් කමිටුවටත්, ක්‍රීඩා අමාත්‍යතුමාටත් ක්‍රීඩා අමාත්‍යාංශයටත් හිමිවිය යුතුයි. හැමෝම එකතුවෙලා මේ ගමන ගියේ නැත්නම් අපිට මේ ජයග්‍රහණ හම්බවෙන්නේ නැහැ.

ඒ එකමුතුකම, සහයෝගය ඉමහත් අගේ කොට සළකනවා යැයි ඔවුන් අදහස් ප්‍රකාශ කර සිටියහ.

එම අවස්ථාවේදි ජාතික පැරාලිම්පික් කමිටු සභාපති ලුතිනන් කර්නල් දීපාල් හේරත් මහතා විසින් අමාත්‍යවරයාගෙන් කළ ඉල්ලීමකට අනුව මෙම ක්‍රීඩක ක්‍රීඩිකාවන්ගේ පුහුණු කටයුතු සඳහා ක්‍රීඩා සංකීර්ණයක් හා අනුව පැරාලිම්පික් කමිටු කාර්යාලය පවත්වාගෙන යාමට සුදුසු ස්ථානයක් ලබාදීමට කටයුතු කරන ලෙසත් අමාත්‍යතුමා විසින් නිලධාරින්ට උපදෙස් ලබාදුනි.

එහිදී අමාත්‍යවරයා මෙසේ ද කීය.

පළමුවෙන් ම ජාත්‍යන්තර වශයෙන් ලෝක වාර්තාවක් ද සමග පැරාලිම්පික් රන් පදක්කමක් සහ ලෝකඩ පදක්කමක් සමගින් රට සහ ක්‍රීඩාව වෙනුවෙන් ඔබ ලබාගත් ජයග්‍රහණ වෙනුවෙන් ක්‍රීඩක ක්‍රීඩිකාවන්ට වගේම ඔවුන්ගේ පුහුණුකරු වන ප්‍රදීප් නිශාන්ත මහතා ඇතුළු සියලුම පුහුණුකරුවන්ටත් මා ගෞරවනීය ස්තූතිය පුදකරනවා.

ඒ වගේම මෙවර පැරාලිම්පික් තරගාවලියේ දී  බොහෝ ක්‍රීඩක ක්‍රීඩිකාවන්  ඔබගේ හොඳම පෞද්ගලික දක්ෂතාවයන් වාර්තා කළා. ඒ පිළිබඳවත් ඉතාමත් ම සතුටුයි.  

එළඹෙන තරගාවලි ඉලක්ක කරගනිමින් ඒ සඳහා පුහුණුවීම් ආරම්භ කර හොඳින් සූදානම් විය යුතුයි.

ක්‍රීඩාවෙන් ඉදිරියට යන ඔබ දෙස බලා සිටින අපේ දරුවන්ට ඔබ ආදර්ශයක් වි යුතුයි. ඔබේ දක්ෂතා වැඩි දියුණු කරගනිමින් සාර්ථකත්වය කරා යන ගමනේ දී  ඔබ දෙස බලාගෙන සාර්ථක වෙන්න උත්සහ කරන අපේ ඊළග පරම්පරාවට ඔබ ආදර්ශයක් වෙන්න.

අපේ ඉදිරි පරම්පරාව තීන්දු තීරණ ගන්නේ සාර්ථක කතාන්දර දිහා බලලා. ක්‍රීඩාවෙන් ජාත්‍යන්තරය  ජයගත් ඔබේ කතාවත් ඔවුන්ට ආදර්ශයක් විය යුතුයි.

ක්‍රීඩාවෙන් මගේ දරුවාට හොඳ අනාගතයක් තිබෙන බව පසක් වූ විට අපේ රටේ දෙමාපියන් වුණත් බියකින් සැකයකින් තොරව තමන්ගේ දරුවන් ක්‍රීඩාවට යොමු කරාවි. ඒ විශ්වාසය ඔවුන්ට ලැබෙන විදියට කටයුතු කරන්න.

ස්වයං විනය ඇතිව ක්‍රීඩාවෙන් වගේම ජීවිතය දිනන්නත් ඔබ සියලුදෙනාට මා සුබ පතනවා.

ඉදිරි තරගාවලිවලදීත් ඔබ සියලුදෙනා ඔබේ උපරිම දස්කම් දක්වමින් අපේ රට වෙනුවෙන් ජයග්‍රහණ ලබා ගනිවී යැයි මා  විශ්වාස කරනවා.

ඒ වෙනුවෙන් ක්‍රීඩා අමාත්‍යවරයා සහ ක්‍රීඩා අමාත්‍යාංශය ලෙස උපරිම සහයෝගය මා ඔබට ලබාදෙනවා යැයි අමාත්‍යවරයා පැවසීය.

මෙම අවස්ථාවට ග්‍රාමීය පාසල් හා යටිතල පහසුකම් ප්‍රවර්ධන රාජ්‍ය අමාත්‍ය තේනුක විදානගමගේ මැතිතුමා, තරුණ හා ක්‍රීඩා අමාත්‍යාංශයේ ලේකම් අනුරාධ විජේකෝන්, අතිරේක ලේකම් (පාලන හා ප්‍රසම්පාදන) චන්ද්‍රරත්න පල්ලෙගම, යුද්ධ හමුදාධිපති ජනරාල් ශවේන්ද්‍ර සිල්වා, ක්‍රීඩා සංවර්ධන දෙපාර්තමේන්තුවේ අධ්‍යක්ෂ ජනරාල් අමල් එදිරිසූරිය, ක්‍රීඩා වෛද්‍ය ආයතනයේ අධ්‍යක්ෂ ජනරාල් වෛද්‍ය ලාල් ඒකනායක, ජාතික ක්‍රීඩා සභාවේ සාමාජික යෂ්වන්ත් මුත්තෙට්ටුවගම යන මහත්වරුන්, ක්‍රීඩා සංවර්ධන දෙපාර්තමේන්තුවේ අධ්‍යක්ෂ (පාලන) කේ.පී.පී සිරිවර්ධන මහත්මිය ඇතුළු ව ජාතික පැරාලිම්පික් කමිටුවේ සමාජික මහත්ම මහත්මීහු  පිරිසක් සහභාගි වූහ.

මාධ්‍ය ඒකකය,

තරුණ හා ක්‍රීඩා අමාත්‍යංශය, සංවර්ධන සම්බන්ධීකරණ හා අධීක්ෂණ අමාත්‍යාංශය,ඩිජිටල් තාක්ෂණ හා ව්‍යවසාය සංවර්ධන රාජ්‍ය අමාත්‍යංශය.

අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය මාධ්‍ය අංශය

ඉතාලියේ සංචාරයකට එක්වන ගරු අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය මහින්ද රාජපක්ෂ මහතා එම සංචාරයේ දී අතිඋතුම් ෆ්‍රැන්සිස් පාප් වහන්සේ වතිකානුවේ දී බැහැ දකින බවට පළවන මාධ්‍ය වාර්තා මුළුමනින්ම අසත්‍ය වේ.

බොලොඤ්ඤා විශ්වවිද්‍යාලයේ පැවැත්වෙන අන්තර්ජාතික සමුළුවක ආරම්භක සැසියේ ප්‍රධාන දේශනය පැවැත්වීම සහ රාජතාන්ත්‍රික හමුවීම් පදනම් කරගනිමින් අග්‍රාමාත්‍යතුමාගේ ඉතාලි සංචාරය සැළසුම් කර තිබේ.

By Dr.Tilak S. Fernando

In 1927 the Secretary of State for the Colonies announced a special Commission under the Chairmanship of the Earl of Donoughmore to visit Ceylon and submit an account of the Constitution with any difficulties of administration that needed to be surmounted at that time.

The Secretary wanted the Earl of Donoughmore to consider any proposals for revising the Ceylonese Constitution and to report, if any amendments of the Orders in Council were necessary. 

The Commission’s primary function was to draft a new Constitution for Ceylon that would satisfy the aspirations of the British plantation owners so that it would enable all Ceylonese to work in partnership with the British Empire. 

The most significant apprehension of many of the Ceylonese leaders, both Sinhalese and Tamil, was the recommendation of Universal Franchise, the right to vote for all adult citizens, regardless of wealth, income, gender, social status, race, ethnicity, political stance, or any other restriction. The four Commissioners arrived in Sri Lanka in 1927 and spent four months and forty days interviewing one hundred and forty Ceylonese in thirty-four separate sessions. 

The Commissioners paid heed to Ceylonese women’s suffrage and their right to vote in Elections. From the beginning of the mid-19th century, women intended to participate in the society & getting their voice heard for their work broad-based on economic and political equality and social reforms. They planned to seek change in the voting system that allowed them to vote at elections.

 The Commissioners listened to their requests and appeals and granted educated women over the age of twenty-one suffrage. Therefore, all citizens of Ceylon, who were over twenty-one years of age, were granted the Universal Franchise in 1931, unless they were subjected to any special disqualification. The right to cast a vote was lowered from twenty-one to eighteen years of age by the Elections Amendment Act No.11 of 1959. 

The Commission’s revelations 

The four Commissioners noted, Ceylon, even at that time, was driven by power struggles amongst ethnic groups. Therefore, they devised a system of Executive Committees to control all Government Departments and rejected the principle of communal representation to ensure that no ethnic group could control all power and financial gain. The most significant apprehension about the outcome came from both Sinhala and Tamil leaders against the recommendation and implementation of Universal Franchise by the Donoughmore Commission. 

Sir Ponnambalam Ramanathan was a Tamil lawyer, politician, and SolicitorGeneral of Ceylon. He and most of the ‘conservatives’ believed and argued that allowing the vote to the nonvellala castes and women was a grave mistake, and it might lead to disturbances. Ramanathan explicitly suggested that it was anathema to the Hindu way of life”. 

According to Jane Russel’s study, the political leadership of the Ceylon Tamils became dumbfounded by the complete bouleversement of the policies they had pursued for the previous decade (page 16 & 18). Jane Russel of DC also stated that the Sinhala leaders were also very dubious about the new franchise, but they were willing to support it in a quid pro quo for the abolition of communal electorates (page 17).

The All-Ceylon Tamil league first opposed the Donoughmore Commission’s suggestions because the abolition of the communal (representation) principle, coupled with the proposed universal franchise would mean ‘death to the minorities’, as the Sinhalese would receive over 50 per cent of the seats. Then in 1929, there was a tactical change when the Tamils opposed it and the Donoughmore Commission did not grant full self-government to any community. 

The report of the Donoughmore Commission was presented to the British Parliament in July 1928, soon after it was received and studied at home (Ceylon). One of the most critical issues was the Constitutional reforms in Ceylon by introducing the Universal Franchise with the right to participate in the administration of the country by electing their representatives. Universal Franchise, at that time, was enjoyed by only a privileged few according to their literal and communal basis. Ceylonese finally managed to get rid of it in 1947 when the Soulbury Constitution came into being with the declaration of Independence to Ceylon in 1948.

 Oral Evidence

 The recordings were obtained at the public sittings of the Donoughmore Commission in 1928 and did not ‘record’, but were confined to oral evidence only. It contained some solid and rare evidence based on the Constitution of Ceylon and consisted of four volumes, which were in cyclostyled typescripts in duplicated form. 

These typescripts were neatly bound with buckram binding and carried the word ‘Library House of Lords’, on its upper covers, with morocco gilt labels on covers and spines. This valuable oral evidence was auctioned at the world-renowned auctioneers in London, Sotheby’s on Thursday, 27 June 1996 for a reserved price of eight hundred pound sterling (£800). A Japanese collector of valuable literary property purchased the whole records and took those to Japan in June 1996. His name remained anonymous. 

Expatriate Sri Lankan Community 

Ceylon became a Republic within the Commonwealth, and its name was changed to Sri Lanka on 22 May 1972 under Sirimavo Bandaranaike’s premiership. When the Donoughmore Commission Records on Ceylon were auctioned by Sotheby’s there was a strong Sri Lankan expatriate community in London.

 They became interested in the auction knowing to what extent those were invaluable pieces of documentary evidence from the Colonials. They were also aware that it contained four volumes and how important those were legally, its validity and beneficial to the Sri Lanka Government at a time when the Sri Lanka Government was concentrating on making amendments to the existed Constitution. 

President Kumaratunga was very keen to acquire those records from the Sotheby’s auction for a reserved price. The archaeological authorities in the UK advised the President that copies of the same documents were available in the Sri Lankan archives. A letter signed by Lord Donoughmore accompanied the four volumes of the typed script version of the Ceylon Report of Special Commission on the Constitution. 

Records were bound in half Morocco, 8Vo, and recorded on a Downing Street headed paper (British Prime Minister’s official residence) stating that the set of four volumes in cyclostyled typescripts should be made available at the Library of The House of Lords for public reference to the public. 

The letter by Lord Donoughmore stated thus: We had hoped to present to you in companion volumes to this report a verbatim record of our proceedings in public sessions.’ We regret that the high cost of printing has precluded the adoption of this course. We are, however, forwarding duplicated copies of this material with the recommendation that a complete record, which the public may be free to consult, should be made available both in London and Ceylon.”

 tilakfernando@gmail.com 

By Dr. Tilak S. Fernando

The writer met with the most Venerable Aggamahapandittha Balangoda Ananda Maitreya Mahanayake Thera in London, when he was 99 years old. The Venerable observed the rainy season (Vassana retreat) in London at that time.

The Buddhist Centre organised a religious ceremony on account of his 99th Birthday, on 23 August. Many Buddhist devotees gathered at the Buddhist Centre to participate in a religious ceremony. Addressing a large gathering, the venerable said:

“You have organised a pinkama on my Birthday to celebrate. I will be 99 years old. That means my life span is fast coming to an end! Is this a thing to celebrate? It is an important day for me because the sooner I move towards death, the happier I feel as death means moving towards a new birth! I could not fulfil my desire in its pristine purity in this life, but I know in my next life, I will be much more vigorous in carrying out my services to propagate Buddhism in the world.”

 The writer had direct access to the Venerable amidst the crowd. Seizing the opportunity, he wanted to discuss many things with the most eminent monk.

“I was born on 23 August 1896 to Heenmenike and Mathies Appuhamy. My certificate of birth carried the name ‘Punchi Mahattaya’. Fourteen days after I was born, I lost my mother. My grief-stricken father not only left me but the village altogether. I was orphaned. My uncle Dingirihamy Mudalali and aunt Yasohamine brought me up. 

An Internal revolution 

A representative from the Mahabodhi Society visited our school in 1905, when I was nine years of age. Mr Harishchandra Walisinghe delivered a speech on Buddhism that made an internal revolution in me. I wanted to emulate him. At the age of fifteen, my foster parents gave their blessings and I ordained as a ‘Samanera‘ priest at Nandaramaya, Balangoda Udumulla Temple.”

 Venerable Sir, with your long experience in life I would like to hear from you about the moral decadence in Sri Lanka over the years.”

 “Towards the latter part of the British rule, Ceylonese were happy and did not eat beef at all, because the majority being Buddhists. When foreign influence began to invade, individuals like Anagarika Dharmapala fought against foreign influence because he foresaw the impact on the local community. Such protests gradually continued towards the ousting of the colonial rule. 

But it was rather unfortunate that once Ceylon gained Independence on 4 February 1948, our national leaders continued to govern in a worse manner than the Colonials.Foreigners at least listened to peoples’ claims and agitations, but Lankan leaders turned a deaf ear to any public outcry! The Ceylonese leaders caused a steep division in society by forming different political parties and working on their agendas. During the colonial era, local society was united as one unit and preserved the Buddhist cultural values, but since the Independence, morality and cultural values became tainted.” 

The writer focussed then on Buddhist stanzas like ‘Eththa Watcha’ and ‘Akastata Bhummatta’ and wanted to know from the monk whether Buddhists could transfer merit to various gods (Devas) as is the current practice today; whether it could reconcile with such practices within the concept of Buddhism?

“Buddhists do not believe in an Omnipresent or Omnipotent God.” Also, by merely repeating Gathas ( stanzas) in parrot form, out of habit, or offering alms for the sake of name and fame, no transference of merit to any god will happen.” Today, when some people want to give alms to priests, they search for prominent priests (‘big guns’ with an infectious laugh) and forget about the poor monks who lead sanctified and secluded lives. By offering alms to the sangha alone, one cannot expect any help from devas! In my personal opinion every deva has forgotten this country.”

Is there a difference between the ‘Soul’ and ‘Athma’? The writer became curious.

In Buddhist philosophy it does not mention the word Soul or Athma.”

 How would you then, Venerable Sir, account for the cycle of birth and rebirth?

There are two answers to your question. Let’s take the sun as an example. A teacher may explain to young children that the sun is rising and setting down, although no such phenomenon occurs. On mature students he uses a scientific example. We know that it is the earth that rotates while the sun is stationary. Therefore, Lord Buddha used the words ‘Soul’ and ‘Athma’ in the proper backdrops.”

 Likewise, Lord Buddha’s teachings varied according to the level of intelligence of seekers of the truth. That is why Lord Buddha taught Vipassana Meditation to deal with this topic to those aspirants who had opened their intelligence. Also, according to Buddhist philosophy, a person may be born in one of the six Deva worlds. To achieve that stage, one needs to lead a moral life in the human world; mind you, some people have ascended to higher levels of intelligence due to their good karma!”

The human being consists of a mind and matter. The mind is a series of impermanent occurrences as unchanging essence( ‘soul‘). The Physical body is a stream of material state subject to momentary change. In Buddhist, philosophy the word soul does not exist at all. This practice of understanding is dependent on one’s level of intelligence, wisdom, and training.”

 The writer then became curious about ghosts, a subject that the Venerable was familiar with publicly. Reverend Sir, Currently, there is a Chair for Parapsychology at the University of Edinburgh to deal with the study of ghosts. Do you accept that ghosts do exist?

 When a person dies, that person will be born in a different world, sometimes with a subtle body due to his attachment to his loved ones and property. In that fine (astral) body form the dead person can live for some time until that astral body ascends to a higher phase with the help of meritorious deeds done by his relatives. It all depends on the amount of direct transference of merit to the dead person. Some astral bodies can travel at a tremendous speed faster than light!”

How is it that some individuals can see such subtle bodies whereas others do not? The writer queried. 

Some of the dead could freeze their astral bodies, and others may not, that is why astral body can be seen.”

Astrologers do often say that humans belong to various categories, known in Sinhala as ‘Gana,’ meaning Rakksa, Deva and Manussa, Gana. Is there any truth in the saying that only those born under Manussa Gana can see ghosts?

It is only an astrological interpretation. Now, I belong to Rakksa Gana, and do you find me as a horrible person?” (Venerable monk gave my chin a little tickle).

 Concept of worshiping Sai Baba 

Many Buddhists worship Sai Baba these days! Some Buddhists have a different opinion and say because it is due to devotees’ confused state of mind. What do you think about this question, Sir?

I visited Sai Baba some 20 years ago when I suffered a cataract in my eyes. Everyone advised me against the operation because I was over 70 years of age. I was confused. But out of the blue, a Dayaka, in our temple, requested me to be his translator as he could not speak English. He wanted to visit India to see Sai Baba and promised to look after all my expenses, including my air ticket. I accompanied him to Bangalore.”

 Sai Baba came straight to where I was standing. Next moment Sai Baba waved his right hand in the air and wrote something and walked away from me. After taking a few steps forward, he turned back and walked back towards me, smiled and said, “Get your eyes operated“. I was stunned. At that exact moment I wanted to ask him about my eyes! Two weeks after my return from India I went blind. Immediately, I was admitted to the General Hospital and got my eyes operated on. 

Politics 

Some people spread the rumour that the Venerable was involved in politics ! The writer was compelled to enquire about it, but the venerable quite calmly said:

“I am not a politician but a steadfast Buddhist priest. I knew President Premadasa from his youthful days when he came to our temple to learn Dhamma lessons. I was in the USA when the President named a village in Balangoda as ‘Ananda Maitreya Gama in the Gam Udawa programme’. I was clueless about the whole exercise. When I returned to Sri Lanka, President Premadasa invited me again and showed me a video of a plot of land and said:

Hamuduruwane, do you like this place?”

It was a plot of land near a river and ideal for my meditation. I told him so, and I proceeded to England. But when I returned home, he phoned me again and requested me to occupy the new temple he had built (completely without my knowledge). Mr Ranasinghe Premadasa had already named it The Battaramulla Chitta Viveka Asramaya.

President Premadasa said, “Hamuduruwane, this is a personal religious gift to you from me.”

 ” What are your final plans, Venerable Sir?

I want to engage in Dhamma whenever I get an opportunity. But the problem is that I never get a free moment whether I am in Sri Lanka, England, or the USA, because people always visit me seeking advice. My main aim is to accomplish a higher level of mental development. When I die, I would like to be reborn in Sri Lanka again to develop Buddhism further and propagate Lord Buddha’s philosophy throughout the world.”

The Most Ven. Aggamahapandittha Balangoda Ananda Maitreya Mahanayake Thera expired at the age of 103! 

tilakfernando@gmail.com

Yohan Perera Courtesy The Daily Mirror

UNP MP Ranil Wickremesinghe yesterday urged the Speaker to take action against Lawyer Nagananda whom he claimed had insulted Parliament.

Mr.wickremesinghe said the particular Lawyer had made a false allegation that the 14th Amendment to the Constitution which was passed in Parliament way back in 1980s was a false one.

Mr. Nagananda has filed legal action stating that one time Speaker Late E. L Senanayake had put his official signature on a wrong document claiming it to be the 14 th Amendment to the Constitution while the Parliament at that time,had approved a different document claiming it to be the legislation,”he said referring to the Lawyer.

Courtesy Adaderana

Courtesy Adaderana

Another doctor of the Health Ministry’s COVID-19 Technical Committee has stepped down from his membership from the committee.

Reportedly, Specialist Dr. Ashoka Gunaratne has resigned from the committee in this manner.

This is the second medical professional to quit the COVID-19 Technical Committee of the Health Ministry.

Recently, Dr. Ananda Wijewickrama also stepped down from the Committee.

Joining the ‘Big Focus’ program on Ada Derana 24 today (September 08), Dr. Anwar Hamdani commented on the resignation of Dr. Ashoka Gunaratne.

There was such a thing this morning. It is informed through an email. That email goes to the Director-General of Health or the Secretary. Several doctors have resigned. It is their personal opinion. But these [doctors] are resources. These are resources that should be with us.”

Courtesy Adaderana

The Epidemiology Unit of the Health Ministry reports that another 648 persons have tested positive for COVID-19 in Sri Lanka, moving the daily total of new cases to 2,917.

This brings the total number of confirmed cases of coronavirus reported in the country to 474,780.

As many as 389,969 recoveries and 10,689 deaths have been confirmed in Sri Lanka since the outbreak of the pandemic.

The Epidemiology Unit’s data showed that 74,122 active cases are currently under medical care.

Courtesy Adaderana

The total number of people who fell victim to COVID-19 infection in Sri Lanka soared yet again as 185 more fatalities were confirmed by the Director-General of Health Services on Tuesday (September 07).

The new development has pushed the official death toll from the virus outbreak in Sri Lanka to 10,689.

According to the data released by the Department of Government Information, the latest victims include 102 males and 83 females.

As many as 140 deaths were reported among elderly people who are aged above 60 years.

In addition, 44 individuals aged between 30-59 years and 01 below 30 years have also succumbed to the virus infection.

Courtesy Hiru News

The government has taken over the stocks of rice owned by large-scale rice mill owners in the Polonnaruwa area today.

Accordingly, the acquisition of stocks of Nipuna, Lathpandura, Temple, Hiru, Nivratna, and Suriya rice mills was carried out under the direct supervision of the Commissioner General of Essential Services, Major General Senarath Nivunhella, and the Chairman of the Consumer Affairs Authority.

With the acquisition of rice stocks that were not issued to the market owned by all large-scale rice mills in the Polonnaruwa area at government-controlled prices, the transportation to Sathosa outlets has commenced at the same time.

The Office of the Commissioner-General of Essential Services stated that the government intends to release these stocks of rice to the consumers as soon as possible.

The owners of the New Ratna rice mills have deliberately objected to the takeover of their stocks and obstructed the duties of officials.

The Office of the Commissioner-General of Essential Services stated that the Commissioner of Essential Services had discussed with the rice mill owners how to maintain adequate production capacity and release rice to the market without shortage after the government sets a control price for rice.

However, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has instructed the Trade Minister, the Commissioner General of Essential Services, and the Chairman of the Consumer Affairs Authority to take over and distribute the stocks of rice to the government as they have not acted as agreed.

Officers of the Consumer Affairs Authority inspected the four large-scale rice mills with the intervention of the Polonnaruwa District Secretary and the Police.

Accordingly, the government seized nearly 1.2 million kilograms of rice from 4 large-scale rice mills operating in Polonnaruwa at Rs. 03 per kilogram less than the government-controlled price.

Nadu, Samba and Kiri Samba rice stocks have been purchased there. The maximum retail price set by the government is 98 rupees per kilogram for Nadu, 103 rupees per kilogram for Samba and 125 rupees per kilogram for Kiri Samiba.

While inspecting the rice mills, a group of people gathered near a public rice mill and protested against the officials of the Consumer Affairs Authority.

Meanwhile, 200,000 kilograms of rice have been sealed in a joint raid carried out by the Anuradhapura District Consumer Affairs Authority and the police.

However, State Minister for Provincial Councils and Local Government Roshan Ranasinghe speaking to the media today stated that action should be taken to find those who are hiding paddy stocks on a large scale.

Meanwhile, another sugar warehouse in the Peliyagoda area was inspected by officials of the Consumer Affairs Authority and representatives of the Office of the Commissioner-General of Essential Services today.

The Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA) seized 1300 tons of illegally hidden sugar and sealed it.

Meanwhile, it has been revealed that 320 metric tons of sugar have been removed from a warehouse in the Enderamulla area in Wattala which was sealed by the Consumer Affairs Authority.

Police Special Task Force (STF) and Consumer Affairs Authority officers were on their way to inspect the warehouse when they were preparing to transport another consignment of sugar. The STF arrested two warehouse keepers and the driver of the lorry.

Courtesy Hiru News

The CEO of Epic Lanka Technology, Tharindra Kalpage, who had won the tender to maintain the database of the National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA), has been arrested by the CID a short while ago.

The arrest was made in connection to the incident where the data was lost recently from the database of NMRA.

The tender was awarded to the company during Rajitha Senaratne’s tenure as Health Minister.

By Raj Gonsalkorale

Sri Lanka is at the precipice of an economic disaster. The country’s foreign debt is suffocating the country, it is its biggest immediate problem, and the problem for the foreseeable future unless urgent and drastic action is taken, now. The crisis arises due to several factors, the primary factor being the high component of market borrowings in the form of International Sovereign Bonds (ISBs) in the country’s foreign debt portfolio. ISBs account for 47% of the debt. The following Central Bank chart shows this

ISBs are short term loans attracting high interest rates (around 6%) with no grace periods while loans from international institutions such as the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, IMF, attract low interests and long term repayment terms including grace periods. ISBs are usually not conditional while others like WB, ADB, IMF have conditions that a country has to fulfil to qualify for the loans. Besides the ISBs, the Chinese debt component is stated as 10% of the total debt. These loans are reportedly similar to short term ones as IDBs, and attract a higher interest like ISBs. If this is so, 57% of the loan portfolio is in high interest, short term loans.  In the absence of exports income that brings in a nett inflow to the country after accounting for the import component of exports, a serious drop in tourist earnings, foreign remittances and much anticipated FDIs not materialising, Sri Lanka will not have a choice but to take more loans in the form of ISBs and other high interest, short term loans, to repay loans and interest components that will be falling due.

It is perhaps time that the country came to terms with the fact that we are skating on thin ice and pretending there is no berg at the bottom of the ice berg and only its tip. What is visible in an ice berg, it’s tip, is only a small part of the entirety of the ice berg, and Sri Lanka’s debt problem is that big part of the ice berg which politicians do not wish to see preferring to see only the tip. The Titanic sank because of the underestimation of the unseen part of the ice berg it collided with. Sri Lanka could be the next Titanic.

In the past, Sri Lanka managed to settle large debt repayments with foreign exchange inflows from exports, tourism and foreign emittances, and also build a small reserve for a rainy day. Today that reserve is down to USD 2.5 Billion, while our accumulated debt is around USD 35 Billion without counting the interest component of this debt.

The spin that is given to Sri Lanka’s economic woes reminds one of very commonly used Australian and New Zealand expression She’ll be right, mate”. This is a frequently used idiom in Australian and New Zealand culture that expresses the belief that “whatever is wrong will right itself with time”. In recent years, the term has taken on a less than flattering connotation, with “a she’ll-be-right attitude” referring to a willingness to accept a low-quality or makeshift situation rather than seek a more desirable solution. This definitely rings a bell with regard to the situation in Sri Lanka. Postponing the inevitable, and administering stop gap measures seem to be the modus operandi that seems to be a common thread that links all politicians.

Sri Lankan politicians of whatever hue, when they are in power, seems to be experts at deception with their feigned assessment of the country’s economic situation. It has never been more evident than now. Internal mismanagement over the years, the economic situation in the rest of the world on account of the pandemic, and not having a clear direction for now, and the next 10 -20 years, have all contributed to this artificial situation.

The President and the rest of the country, must come to terms with the fact that she, meaning the Sri Lankan economy is not all right. That is the first thing that must happen. The Sri Lankan economy, its structural fundamentals, and its financial situation is in a perilous state and that is a kind word to use to describe an extremely dire situation. The country has a short term policy of virtually robbing Peter to pay Paul, and scraping money from any quarter in order to settle foreign debt, and fund essential imports in order to survive.

The direness of the economy is well explained by Umesh Moramudali, a lecturer at the University of Colombo in an article titled Sri Lanka’s Foreign Debt Crisis Could Get Critical in 2021 published in the Diplomat (https://thediplomat.com/2021/02/sri-lankas-foreign-debt-crisis-could-get-critical-in-2021/)

The situation outlined by Moramudali did not start with the Pandemic, nor just the current administration. Those currently in the Opposition should not clap and gloat that they would have done a better job. They have had enough opportunities to fix the problem, but they did not do so. This article is therefore not about who is to blame for what, but to throw open the question as to how one should reset the economic fundamentals and why.

The writer is no economist, but an ordinary pragmatist. It is hoped that readers will use their common sense and give thought to the issues mentioned here, use their common sense to question, debate and discuss, but importantly arrive at conclusions which are solution oriented and not ones that exacerbate the problems.

Firstly, the economic fundamentals and the foreign policy of the country, which have a relationship to global political relationships, have to be questioned, assessed, and re set where necessary. In a sense, one should question which side of the bread slice is buttered, meaning, if the country’s future is to be based primarily on export earnings, then questions like, where do we export now, where does the biggest future potential lie and whether our foreign policy is conducive to sustain and grow export markets needs to be questioned.

It is understood that Sri Lanka’s primary export markets are to Western nations and the country has a trade balance in Sri Lanka’s favour when it comes to these countries. On the other hand, China, a country very supportive of Sri Lanka at all times when others virtually abandoned it, reportedly has a substantial trade balance in their (China’s) favour. While efforts need to be made to address this situation, it should surely be important to examine whether Sri Lanka’s foreign policy is conducive or not to support the overall future direction of export markets and earnings.

The width and depth of Chinese economic associations with a multiple number of developing countries is substantial and is a reality that needs to be known and faced. Sri Lanka is well aware of this, and the extent of their portfolio of direct and indirect loan facilities, and equity participation is probably not known in its entirety by the public. 

Sri Lanka however cannot go down the path it has been traversing for a considerable period of time, and it needs to diverse its own equity and loan facility portfolios with international bodies and countries who are their primary export markets. China too should become an investor in Sri Lanka and importer of products and services from Sri Lanka and not just a lender.

In relation to exports, it is not clear whether what is being reported as export earnings are presented as nett export earnings after accounting for the import component of the exported item/s. A gross export earning is like a mirage particularly where there is a very high import component. The long term future benefits will naturally accrue only if the import component decreases in order to give the exporter and the country a higher earning component. This is where a value adding export industry is needed and earnings increased either by using more and more local inputs, or where the exported value has a substantially higher margin over the imported component. While Sri Lanka has been moving in this direction, this needs to be the policy that underpins the export industry. Tax incentives perhaps should be enhanced for export industries that have a substantial local cost component and/or where the value adding component is high.

Much has been written about the need somehow to recommence tourism as soon as possible, and also to recommence overseas travel for workers employed overseas. Both income earners are critical for the country’s survival and it is hoped both will commence soon. However, both have an international dependency and therefore the status of the pandemic in other countries.

While it is an understandable reaction when faced with a devastating pandemic that has caused economic havoc throughout the world, to curtail imports and conserve foreign exchange, it is a very short term measure as many economists have pointed out.

From all accounts of expert economists, it appears that Sri Lanka needs a bail out with long term, low interest loans, with a grace period to tide over the current economic situation that is going to prevail at least for another 2 to 3 years if not more. The IMF is the only obvious institution that comes to mind to obtain such a bail out as that is more or less their core business.

Of course any such a bail out will be conditional on Sri Lanka agreeing to major structural reforms. Some of these will be painful in the immediate to short term, but they will be less painful than the repercussions of an economic collapse or a marginal existence with adhoc borrowings to sustain the country. A weak economy will impact on the popularity and the credibility of a government and it will provide ample opportunities for Opposition parties to destabilise the government. Political stability, the one key criteria that foreign investors will look for when they make decisions about investing in Sri Lanka, will be gravely impacted, and the much anticipated Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs) will be hard to come by.

All above economic worries will destabilise the Rupee even further from its present status. Today, the market rate that commercial banks pay to purchase US Dollars outside of the Central Bank rate is said to be between Rs 230 to Rs 240 for 1 US Dollar although the Central Bank rate is Rs 202. This dichotomy is real and it is not a fantasy according to reports from Sri Lanka. Many suspect that the real value of the Sri Lanka value is far worse and if allowed to float, it will sink Sri Lanka. The current defacto devaluation is bound to exacerbate unless the country’s economy is stabilised, and its economic fundamentals are reset in such a manner that it can prepare the country for its next many generations and for them not to live a lie perpetrated on them by the successive governments.

Dr. Sudath Gunasekara Retired Secretary to PM Sirimavo Bandaranayaka,

Part 1

Dr. Sudath Gunasekara Retired Secretary to PM Sirimavo Bandaranayaka, Past President Sri Lanka Administrative Service Association (1991 Nov 1994 nov) and President Mahanuwara Sinhala Baudha Jestha Purawesiyange Sanvidhanaya

The Preamble

 (The task before you is to give a new lease of life, to the ashes of a 2500 year old great civilization that was murdered in 1815 by the British, burned in 1818 and 1848 and buried 10 feet below, by the same British in 1948, by a vicious fraud called the Soulbury Constitution, fathered by Jennings and delivered by D.S.Senanayaka, the midwife, to perpetuate the grip of the colonial hold indefinitely on this Island , without allowing the Sinhala Buddhist Nation to raise its head from that grave of the dead, is a Herculean task. But you too can do it, MY SON”, like the Phoenix that rose from the ashes of an Arabian Desert graveyard; if you have the will and the determination to do it and if you have the patience to read this article without prejudice, and finally if you get this proposed Sinhale New Constitution 2022/3 enacted and declared, which four Presidents and thirteen Prime Ministers could not do for 74 years, since the so-called Independence supposed to have been given by the British and blindly embraced by our leaders in 1948.

                                                                                                  Mother Lanka”).

Mr. President, your decision to have a New Constitution to this country in this backdrop is most commendable and welcome.

It is an excellent decision on your part to initiate action to solve a long overdue national problem, going back to 1948, of not having a proper Constitution that safeguards the birth rights of the Sinhala people (Bhoomiputras) of this country since they were savagely robbed by the British over a long period of 133 years and which they still continue to do directly and indirectly, not allowing Sri Lanka to raise its head.  This is a historic opportunity god has bestowed on you to give a New Constitution to this nation based on their indigenous system of state craft, legal traditions and customs to usher in a prosperous era of peace and development that left unresolved for 73 years after we got relieved from the repressive clutches of British colonial rule and exploitation in 1948.

Therefore it is history re-making, Mr. President, and if you do it, you will go down in the annals of history of this Island nation as the hero of this land who liberated the Sinhale and its people from 206 years  (133+73) of British  rule under their own laws and system of government that continues even after they left. It also marks the end of 73 years of negligence and time marking by our own native leaders turned the faithful proxies of the British, who became a pack of local political betrayers thereafter, instead of playing the role of national heroes of liberating the Motherland and the  Sinhala nation from 133 years of direct colonial destruction and exploitation by the British and converting it again to be the Granary of the East and the Pearl of the Indian Ocean, as it had shined in its glorious days, at least from 307 B.C. to the end of the 13th Century.

It is this onerous responsibility and duty of enacting a New Constitution to liberate this country and the Sinhala nation that has fallen now upon your shoulders by destiny. Once you fulfill that responsibility it will go down on record as the third post Independent landmark adding to the other two highlights of this country’s contemporary political history, namely the declaration of the Independent Republic of Sri Lanka on 22nd May 1972 under Mrs B and defeating the LTTE in 2009 under MR.

In order to achieve this goal I propose a two way approach.

Step 1

First method to enact a new Constitution removing all faults of the two previous and the present within the same existing Constitutional framework making all changes that could be done to make the people happy and to make this country a prosperous and vibrant land where law and peace will reign.

This package has to be completed within the provisions of the existing Constitution first, with what you can do with a simple majority and Step2

Second, with what you can do with a 2/3 majority without a referendum.

Step3

Having done that as the next step should be to go for an overall change in the entire system by getting a New Constitution enacted based on the indigenous cultural matrix of this Island nation with suitable adaptations from modern Constitutions to fill the gaps where the indigenous system is silent, to establish the lost Kingdom of the Sinhala Buddhist nation in 1815.  (This has to be done by a New Committee that should be appointed after dissolving the present.

For this you need to go for a fresh mandate from the people in order to fulfill the wishes of Mother Lanka stated above. This you can do either at the next election or even before after completing step 1 and 2 as given above, provided you can get the 2/3 within the present Parliament for step 2.

Step 3

There is of cause a third way of doing the Step 3 which is faster than the second approach. ?

That is with the detailed manifesto in hand you suspend this useless alien Parliament set up under the colonial British Westminster system, that has ruined this country for 73 years and declare Presidential rule for a period of 05 years and then go for a public referendum seeking a public mandate for a completely New Constitution to be made on the foundation of the 2500 year old cultural matrix of this Island nation.

Once that New Constitution is in place, the golden Key of your dream Kingdom of Prosperity and Splendor” will be in your hand, Mr. President.

Whatever approach you select it should end up 

1 First in giving a new form and new life to a dead and buried Great nation and

2 Second giving it a Constitution by removing the faults of the 1947, 1972 and 1987 Constitutions and

3 Finally give them completely a New Constitution enacted on the pillars of its own civilization in keeping with the aspiration and dreams of the Sinhala nation, with suitable adaptations from modern Constitutions where the indigenous system is silent, to establish the lost Kingdom of the Sinhala Buddhist nation in 1815. This entails restoring all what we have lost to the  British in 1815, for example, the vacant possession of the land free of foreign labour brought by the British to work on their projects and plantations, our religion, Language, name of the country, legal system and values, full freedom,  sovereignty and our own system of Government

 Mr President a word of wisdom, I wish to remind you the trust and the faith 6.9 million people in this county covering the whole Island   had in you when they voted you in to power and I request you to keep in mind the message conveyed by them to you on 16^th Nov 2019, as shown in the following map right throughout this noble mission by your Motherland and the Sinhala nation.

Presidential Election results 2019

 Have a closer look at this map

Please have a closer look at the behavior of the electorate as shown in this map right through out, as a guiding search light as to who are the people who have voted you and who have not and why they are against you and the Sinhala nation and what the 6.9 m Sinhala people aspire you to do.  The map clearly shows that the majority who voted against you are mainly Tamils and Muslims and ironically they are the only areas won by the Premadasa camp lead by Sajith. That also clearly reflects the UNP communal vote base as Premadasa represents the old UNP. However there is a large number of voters within this areas as well, who are within the 6.9 m, who have voted you. My conviction is the 6.9 million want you to make the whole map orange permanently.. It is nothing new. It is only re-making what it had been there for 2500 years since 543 B.C. I have no doubt that all Sinhala people who have voted the dead UNP will also fully approve your Constitution based on the indigenous matrix. Thereafter our dream of forming a government without political parties, the bane British have introduced to this country to divide mother Lanka in to pieces could also be easily realized. Please treat what I have expressed in this article as a message to you from all those 6.9 million people living all over the Island who have made you the President of this country.  Thereafter I expect communal politics to vanish from this country

This map speaks million words on the burning aspiration of its people in mute terms to its Head of State, the President and why they have elected you and what they wanted you to do.

But Mr. President, before starting on that historic mission of Constitution making the following basic issues have to be clarified first, as it is going to be the supreme law of the country, around which the unified Lankan nation will gather up as one family and take the country to political, economic and social stability and prosperity once again making it the granary of the East and the Pearl of the Indian Ocean.

a) What is the country for which it is going to be made?

b) Who are the people to whom it is made and what is their cultural legacy?

c) What are the main objectives of that Constitution that will lay the solid foundation for the future destiny of the nation as the supreme law of the land and finally,

d) What is the best way to do it?

These problems have to be carefully sorted out first. Thereafter having prepared the terms of reference you have to select the best expert scholars in the country who are thoroughly conversant in the history, religion, system of government, the law, State craft and geopolitics (local, regional and International), traditions, customs and social values of the country and its people, from the beginning of history to date and their future aspirations to entrust with that yeoman responsibility. In addition to these experts  three  other experts who know the failures and weaknesses of the 1947, 1972 and 1987 Constitutions and modern Constitutional Law and International Law also have to be included in this Committee in order to make it a perfect Constitution that will usher in an era of peace, order and prosperity.

I also suggest that you entrust the compiling of all the three Constitutions to the same Committee.  So that there will be uniformity and conformity without clashes between objects and interests.

In preparing the terms of reference I propose the following format

Having first decided on the format of the Nation’s New Constitution as outlined in a, b, c and d, above the next thing you should do is direct the New Committee to make a thorough study of the following subjects and prepare a comprehensive document on the following subjects as a prerequisite for drafting the Constitution.

1The legacy of our state craft from 543 B.C. to 1815 A.D.

2 The ancient legal system in Sri Lanka

3The Administrative machinery and hierarchy of Officials

4 Defense and Foreign relations

5 Religions and Education

6 Economic, Social and cultural and spiritual development

7 Agriculture, Industry, Ports, Trade and shipping, Land, Forests & Irrigation and Environment with special reference to the welfare of Animals

8 The Land, Sea and Air space

9 Policy regarding citizenship and Foreigners

10 Their strengths and weaknesses

11 What should be adapted from modern Constitutions?

(The Committee should be directed to give a list  of items that should be included from modern Constitutions in the New Constitution as an annex).

Selecting the Members of the Committee

Thereafter having prepared the terms of reference you have to select the best expert scholars in the country who are thoroughly  conversant in things like its history, religion, system of government, state craft and geo politics (both local and International), traditions, customs and social values etc from beginning of history to date. In addition three experts in the 1947, 1972 and 1987 Constitutions, modern Constitutional Law and International Law also have to be included. 

Then dissolve the Experts Committee already appointed by you to prepare the draft

a)      For not handing over the draft in time as directed.

b)      As it is ill-constituted and it does not have the expertise to prepare a draft of a Constitution that will meet the requirements of the country and the aspiration so fth epeople and as such it cannot prepare a draft to meet the aspirations of the 6.9 million people who voted you

c)      As there is a greater possibility of rejecting their draft by the people

For these reasons there is no point in proceeding with that Committee wasting public funds.  This is why I request you to dissolve it and tell the country that a new Committee to study and draft a new Constitution will be appointed soon as the people want and their draft will be ready before the end of next year

Then what happen to the Committee already in place.

The Committee you appointed in Sept last year and expected to have the draft by March this year has already defaulted.

Therefore considering the inordinate delay in submitting the draft of the Constitution by the Committee already in place, it is very unlikely that it will be ready by October this year as envisaged by you to put it to the Parliament. Even if it is going to be ready by mid-2022, I can assure you that the Constitution drafted by the Present Committee will be definitely rejected by the 6.9 people who had voted you and the government as it will never meet the aspirations and the needs of the people, I vouch for this statement publicly and openly for the following reasons.

 Why the present Committee cannot do the expected job

1 This Committee will never be able to produce a Constitution that will remove the ills of the 3 previous Constitutions (1947, 1972 and 1987), which is the top priority of the people, including myself, who voted for you and the Government in to power.

2 This Committee will never be able to produce a Constitution acceptable to the majority, I guess around 80% or even more, people since it will not include any provision that meet their aspirations. For eg the abolition of the 13th A and the Provincial Councils and the Rajiv/JR Accord of 29^th July 198, that was the source of the PCC  and all other divisive provisions like the Traditional Tamil home land which have  put all of us in to a no return political Bermuda trough.

3 As this Committee will also  definitely include many Provisions that will go against the Sinhala majority to satisfy the International Community, India, Tamils and Muslims who cry for separation and self- determination, while betraying the Sinhala majority who voted for  you. Because, they are the true Bhoomiputras of this Island.

Now look at what happened  on 21^st  April 2019 and what is being done in the Eastern Province and many other places all over the Island like Mawanella, Danakirigala, Kuragala and many other places in the Eastern Province and what religious and communal lunatics like  Hisbulla, Dr Lafir of the Kurunegala Hospital,  Asad Sali, Rishard Badurdeen and Rauf  Hakiim  have done. See what happen in Afganistan and even in New Zealand. The whole Muslim world is either ISIS or Thaleiban. They want to kill all others and create one Muslim world. It is even worse with Tamil who are supported by LTTE Diaspora all over the world and India ignited by Tamilnadu.

The situation within the country is even worse. Look at the behavior of men like Sambandan, Vignesvaran, Sumantiram, weekly shuttling between the American, .Indian and British Embassies and India carrying tales against the Government asking for separation and self-determination and parceling out this country belonging to the Sinhala nation. In this backdrop don’t you think it is sheer                                                                        madness to include a Tamils and a Muslim in this Committee? Don’t you think it is like putting the poultry yard in charge of a pack of cunning foxes to take care of the chicken? Now that we are a fully independent country, a Republic of our own since 1972, we must emphatically and categorically make it very clear that the time of Portuguese, Dutch and English or their chak golayas and Tamils and Muslims made Constitutions to this country should end forth with. No should the Tamils and Muslims who are only transitory minorities who are looking for greener pastures elsewhere, as the conditions in their own countries like Tamilnadu and Arabian deserts are far from satisfactory. They should opt to either live among the Sinhalese as minorities or get back to those places, from where the hell they have migrated here without trying to rob this heavenly Island, the Traditional Home land and the abode of the Sinhala nation for more than 25oo years.

As a Sinhala Buddhist country certainly anyone who wants to live here should not exceed his or her legitimate limits. We have tolerated and accommodated them throughout history. Not only we have allowed them to live here, we have given the land, our women and everything  without any discrimination, though they have never being grateful. Like in any other country in the world, they should behave only as minorities. The Sinhalese are a civilized nation. They are always prepared to tolerate anyone so long as they don’t become a headache for them. Both Tamils and Muslims want to be separate nations on our land. Tamils want to make this country, a Tamilnadu and Muslims want to make it an Arab country. Therefore obviously if you put a Tamil in this Committee he will definitely want provisions to meet that end and in the same way a Muslim will also ask for the same provision in the supreme Law Book of the Land of the Sinhala people. Therefore we hold no Tamil or a Muslim should be appointed to this Committee.

4 This Committee will also not include any special provision to protect the birth rights of the Sinhala Buddhists in this country.

5 This committee will also definitely propose additional safeguards to Minorities aimed at reconciliation and human rights as they would argue, eroding whatever birth rights of the Sinhalese, the British forgot to remove before they left the shores of this Island. Let the whole world know that this had been the Home Land of the Sinhala Buddhist and they had been the legitimate Bhoomiputras of this Land who owned it from the inception of history or at least for 2500 years from 543 BC.

6 Above all, in sum, their proposed Constitution will be only another sour and salty pickle of the three old Constitutions, with few silly changes made here and there to suit the terms of reference and advice coming from the Minister of Justice Ali Sabry (imagine a hard core Muslim and a National list MP in this Buddhist country) as if Gothabahya could not find even a puppet Sinhala Buddhist from among the 140 odd MPP in his party.  

7. Since all Lawyer Committee members, both as students and practitioners of that Law are familiar only with the Roman-Dutch and English law and it is so even with the other members we can’t expect them to make a Constitution to suite the indigenous Sinhala Buddhist cultural matrix of this country.

This outcome is unavoidable, as none of the Committee members is conversant with the law of the land. They all are only loyal students of Roman Dutch Law that had its origin in a far corner of the Occidental European Continent. It is neither your fault nor the fault of the Committee members

The original blame for this situation should first go to those who meekly and blindly accepted the Soulbury Constitution and all others who followed the same beaten track as if we were a set of uncivilized aborigines who had no previous civilization.

Therefore I think this is the best opportunity to make a radical change; a complete change that is acceptable to the Boomiputras as they are the real owners of this country.

In this backdrop I would like to make an alternative proposal here for your serious consideration, for the good of the President, the government the country and its people at large.

Meanwhile under the prevailing Covid 19 pandemic, the economic depression, sky rocketing cost of living and on the top of all that the ongoing other festering problems like numerous anti-Government demonstrations organized by various trade unions and the JVP who are suspected to have some links with the US strategy of dislodging China from Sri Lanka, (the way they destroyed Afghanistan by dislodging Russia from it in 2001), obviously, you want be able to give priority for constitution making either.

In fact it is already a back seat issue in the government’s agenda as I see it. But a new Constitution is a crying need to rescue this country from the miserable political and economic abysmal depths in to which it had been pushed by all politicians since 1948.  

New Constitution to be written by a New Committee

Therefore action should be initiated for drafting a new Constitution for the nation as promised in your election manifestoes of 2019 and 2020 as soon as possible, as it will take a long time to put out the final draft. .

I have already stated above under a, b, c, and d the issues that have to be clarified and a comprehensive document after an in depth study of items listed from 1 to 10 under New Committee Above has to be carried out before the New Committee of Experts start to draft the Constitution.

A completely new Constitution enacted on the native cultural matrix with suitable additions adapted from modern Constitutional literature  to meet the present day needs of the  new world  is what the people in the country want.

However in adapting new legal concepts it must be said that we have to update it without killing the spirit of the native system. But it had to be one law for the whole country. The Thesavalamei and all branches of Muslim law should be immediately abolished. There should also be only one court system for all the people irrespective of one’s religion or ethnicity.

I now give you here a brief description of the evolution of the Sinhale Kingdom from the beginning for the benefit of the makers of the New Constitution.

The evolution of the Sinhale Kingdom

This country as you know was a Sinhala Buddhist Kingdom for 2122 years, in spite of trials and tribulations of short lived Indian invasions from time to time both in Pre-Christian (BC)  and Post-Christian (AD) times that were precisely defeated at war by our Kings , this country had been a Sinhala Kingdom of great fame in the ancient world at least from 543 BC to 1815 AD, until the whole country was annexed to the British Empire, for the first time in its long history, by intrigue manipulated by John Doily documented as  the Kandyan Convention of 2nd March 1815. It was an International Agreement signed between two Independent Sovereign countries, the Great Briton on the one hand and Sinhale on the other. This country never had a written Constitution up to that date or even up to 1948, though there were occasional royal edicts, made by the Kings engraved on rock slabs (Mihintala Sellipiya), stone pillars (Badulu stone pillar) and copper plates (Panaakaduwa) and gold sheets (Vallipuram Gold Plate) in the yore.

Since 543 BC the Sinhale Kingdom was governed by traditions, customs and conventions molded on the principles of Vedic traditions, pre- Vijayan traditions and principles of Buddhist teaching (after 307.BC) adopted by popular consent. The King in that Kingdom according to Mahavansa was one with the religion and the people. The Mahasangha played the role of the guide and preceptor of the nation, guiding the King, Ministers and the people for the good of the country and the people and even the animals and the environment 

The country was divided in to villages by using geo graphical (natural) features like mountains and rivers as boundaries in 427 BC by King Pandukaabhaya. Since 427 BC the village became the basic administrative unit in the Kingdom and the whole country became a village Kingdom, in other words a conglomeration of villages governed as a village Kingdom with its capital at Anuradhapura.

Thereafter the Island was divided in to three sub-kingdoms called Rhunu, Pihiti and Maya, using Mahaweli, Deduru and Walave as the boundaries of the three Subkingdoms, which underwent minor changes from time to time. The two Subkingdoms were governed under two Sub-Kings who came under the control of the King in Anuradhapura as the King of the Island nation.  In 307 Buddhism was introduced to the Island with the advent of Arahat Mahinda during the reign of King Devanampiyatissa. Under his reign the whole country became a Buddhist Kingdom, the first of its type outside Jambudveepa as India was called at that time) after Asokas Buddhist Kingdom in India and the nation became the Sinhala Buddhist Nation.

In each village a Buddhist temple was established. It was presided over by a Buddhist monk who became the leader, and preceptor of the village folk ever since, both over their spiritual and mundane affairs. Not only that, he was also the teacher, physician, astrologer and advisor in all matters to his village folk. This social system prevailed all over the country until 1815, the year British got the Island ceded to the British Empire by intrigue. After 1815 Even the British promised to rule the country under the Sinhala law and customs and under sec 5 of the Kandyan Convention they agreed to protect Buddhasasana and all institutions connected with it, being the religion of the native people.

However they abrogated this  agreement unilaterally on Nov 21st 1818 by Royal Proclamation on the wake of the first freedom struggle by the natives called the Uva Uprising (1817-1818) and had their own hegemonic rule thereafter up to 1948 under Royal Proclamations and enactments passed in the Legislative Council 1833 and the Executive Council 193i under the direct control of the British Parliament.

 It has been said that we got Independence in 1948. This in my opinion is a first class myth. The Soulbury Constitution under which the Island was governed up to date is another British fraud and a well-designed colonial trap to perpetuate their control eternally over the affairs of this Island under the same old British Westminster system of Government, deceptively designed by Ivor Jennings. The foundation of this system of government is the Greeko-Roman and Germen  traditions to which we are now accustomed to be governed for the past 69 years as a nation. The Law that prevailed in this country during this period was the Roman Dutch Law and it has come to stay as the Law of the land for all purposes. As such a sudden change over from that Bread and Butter” of the legal world is almost unthinkable for our Westernized generation. So naturally they will revolt against this proposal. In order to rebut that argument I give here a bit of a revelation to show how small the Roman–Dutch law looks in our context when compared with our great and long native traditions of the yore.

The myth of the legitimacy and supremacy of the Roman Dutch Law        in Sri Lanka

Roman Dutch Law under which we are governed at present (a Law based on Germanic customs and Roman Law) was introduced to the Maritime Provinces of the Island by the Dutch in 1652 with their taking over from the Portuguese who occupied it from 1505. British took over the Maritime Provinces in 1797 from Dutch and declared Roman Dutch law as the Law of the Maritime Provinces for the first time in 1799 by Royal Proclamation by Governor Francis North.

The Kandyan Provinces were ceded to Great Briton in 1815 by intrigue and deception hatched by D’Oyly by the Kandyan Convention between the two countries by which British agreed again deceptively to govern this country Sinhale (Ceylon, as they named it in their language, simply meaning ‘the Land of the Sinhala people’) according to the law of the Land with special provisions to protect Buddhism and institutions connected therewith (under sec 5). But this convention was unilaterally abrogated by Governor Brownwrig by a Royal Proclamation issued on 21st of November 1818 in the wake of the first Freedom struggle by the Sinhalese under Keppetipola Disava and thereafter the country was governed under Royal proclamations one after another and Orders issued by British Governors.

However Roman Dutch Law was introduced to the Kandyan Provinces only in 1852 in the wake of the 1848 second Freedom Struggle (Matale Rebellion as they called it) under order No 5 by the Governor George Anderson.  Thereafter the Island was governed by the British under laws declared in Royal Proclamations by Governors and a Legislative Council set up in 1833 and an Executive Council (1931) up to 1948, under their full control to suit their hegemonic  rule of the Colony.

 History of Roman Dutch Law in Sri Lanka

Therefore actually the Roman Dutch Law has been used in our legal system all over the Island only after 1852. As such the total number of years it has been in use up to date (2021) is 169 years only. This in brief summarizes the short history of Roman Dutch Law in Sri Lanka.

So how silly it is to argue that a 169 year old legal system is more sacrosanct and irreplaceable than a 2122 year old native system that was in force on this land. Ours has deeper roots and it was an inherent part of the Sinhala Buddhist Civilization in our whole social fabric. What is more important is it is firmly and deeply established in our hearts and minds as a nation for two millennia and has its roots in Buddhist Tri Pitaka sometimes much older than the Greek and Roman traditions as evinced from the following quotation.

Marquess of Zetland Viceroy of India in his introduction to the Legacy of India has stated as follows

Some interesting quotes on Democracy in Buddhism”,

It is indeed to the Buddhist that we have to turn for an account of the manner in which the affairs of early examples of representative self-governing institutions were conducted. It may have come as a surprise to many to learn that in the assemblies of Buddhist in India two thousand years and more ago are to be found the rudiments of our own parliamentary practices of the present day. The dignity of the assembly was preserved by the appointment of a special officer the embryo of our Speaker in our House of Commons. A second officer was appointed whose duty was to see that when necessary a quorum was secured-the proto type of Chief Whip in our own system. A member initiating business did so in the form of a motion which was then open to discussion. In some cases, this was done once only, in others three times anticipating the practice of the Parliament in requiring that a bill be read a third time before it becomes law. If discussions disclosed a difference of opinion that was decided by the vote of the majority, the voting being by ballot”

So how can you say Roman Dutch Law is irreplaceable and much more important than our own system that was in full force on this soil for 2122 years under which a glorious Kingdom that was in par with the Roman Empire in the past, more than 2 millennia ago.

Those who argue against our indigenous systems are doing so, I think for four reasons. First, their ignorance of the existence of a native  legal system; Second again their ignorance on the value of our own traditions and Laws. Third, their servility and superiority notion attached to the European traditions which most post -colonial generation people are accustomed to and fourth, their apathy and laziness to dig in to our past and finally their habitual underestimation of four own traditions.

The following evidence further confirms the recognition accorded to ancient Lanka and its traditions and Laws among other nations. In the reign of King Bhaatikaabhaya (38-68 Ad) his envoy who was sent to Rome was seated next to Augustus Ceaser the  Roman Emperor, on his right, when the two British Kings Karadock and Karattakak in exile as war prisoners were parading in front of Augustus Ceaser at the public square. (Source Plyni) This shows the high recognition accorded to Sri Lanka by Rome in its glorious days.

Furthermore I invite you to read the five lectures by Prof K.N.Jaaytilaka on The Fundamental Principles of International Law and Buddhism” delivered at the Hague Academy in 1967, to understand how old and how deep our legal system had been.

 In addition I would also like the New Committee to make a deep study of works of earl Modder, Armour, John D’Oyly, and Sawyer  and T.b.Panabokka and Lamamesure and Legal Philosophy of Medieval Sinhale by Harischandara Wihetunga.   I have no doubt that these sources will help the New Committee to dig out what is buried under sand. It is the conviction that matters here. I would like to remind the Sinhala Adage ‘Hita Atnam pata kudada” in this context. Let us think great of our own heritage and strive forward with determination and fortitude and work hard day and night until we reach the desired goal. That is how all great nations are found in world history. Let us stop degrading and despising ourselves. Isn’t it like spitting while you are looking up?  It falls on your own face. Isn’t it?  

Mr. President although I address you this note please treat this message as a one coming from all those 6.9 million who have voted and worked hard foryou.  In conclusion I would like to remind you of a famous saying Mao Tsetung has once said it is with the same hands that put you on the thrown that the people will again lift and throw you on the ground” This happens to all politicians who don’t listen to people who put them there and who don’t keep their promises.

Even if you also evade or neglect this golden opportunity for personal or other reasons, as all the politicians who are supposed to have ruled this country since 1948, I am confident that someone will do it someday, either through Constitutional or unconstitutional methods. 

But as a person who was dreaming for your victory day and night still I like to see you do it so that I also can die happily as a man who has contributed in my own way for that noble mission..

By Garvin Karunaratne 

I wonder what the Government Agent at Polonnaruwa was doing while the relapanawa was removed or damaged to make a walkaway. Walk ways have to be appreciated but to damage the irrigation heritage that our forefathers have bequeathed to us is unforgivable. 

The G.A’s residence is on the bund and he must have known what was happening. The G.A.  is the highest ranking officer in the District and to my thinking though the Prakrama Samudra belongs to the Irrigation Department, it should have been his concern. 

The Prakrama Samudraya is a masterpiece of irrigation engineering.  

My knowledge of irrigation work was in the Agrarian Services when minor irrigation work was taken over from the Government Agents and handed over to the Agrarian Services Department. I was in charge of minor irrigation work in the Anuradhapura District in 1963 and 64, when my team of Technical Assistants and Cultivation Superintendents did repair and rebuild tanks. 

A tank bund is no mean feat. At its base there is a core of puddled mud  mixed and  settled in like concrete. The earth is put over this puddle mud and rammed in.The  relapanawa is to withstand the waves and the water beating on the bund. I have on my inspections seen how the waters beat on the  bunds and the stone relapanawa is an essential part of a tank bund to ensure that the earth on the tank bund can withstand the beating it gets from the water of the tank. This is no mean beating when the tank is full. 

I wonder why no one in the irrigation department talked. The Relapanawa is an accepted integral part of any tank.  We should be very thankful for the MahaSangha who took up this cause. 

Our irrigation works are precious marvels bequeathed to us.  There will be no life in Polonnaruwa if not for the Parakrama Samudraya. 

I can quote a bit of the marvels in irrigation. 

The gradient of the Jaya Ganga, the fifty mile canal that brings water from the Kalaweva to Nachchaduwa and finally to the City Tanks in Anuradhapura  is on a gradient of six inches to a mile, i.e. six inches  to 5280 feet or to 63,360 inches. It is a gradient that defies all engineering knowledge today. This came to the fore when I presided over at the Cultivators Meeting of the Tanks under the Jaya Ganga in 1963, when to settle the problem of the water not reaching all tanks in time suggested a concrete base for the full length. The District Irrigation Engineer was baffled and was silent for over five minutes and then he replied that it cannot be done. How do you attend to repairs on the Jaya Ganga I quipped and he admitted that  They would never dare to touch the entirety of Jaya Ganga, but would attend to limited work  in disconnected sections.” 

Let me close with a quote from my book. 

We are all novices in the vast field of irrigation.  The Kashmiri Chronicle, the Rajatarangani  tells us that King Dighadipa wanted irrigation engineers from Sri Lanka in the ninth century., Has any one ever heard of the ancient tanks collecting silt. Our ancient engineers knew the art of designing tanks in such a manner that silt did not collect in them. It has so happened that We do not have the administrative and technical capacity to even maintain the vast irrigation systems  that have been handed over on a platter  to us by our ancient engineers.” (From How the IMF Ruined Sri Lanka and Alernative Programmes of Success,  Godages, 2006, 

It is necessary to replace the removed relapanawa immediately before the November rains. Otherwise  the Prakrama Samudra is very likely to breach. In Nuwarakalaviya it is not the rain we know in Colombo. It is a deluge that lasts for days. That will be a major disaster. Further the Relapanawa consists of massive rock boulders These boulders settle in and I would expect them to gradually sink in.at least a foot.  Thus even to restore the removed Relapanawa it is necessary that the new Relapanawa is at least a foot higher. 

Over to the Department of Irrigation. Please restore the Relapanaway in October before the onset of the monsoon rains if Polonnaruwa is to be saved. 

Garvin Karunaratne 

Former G.A. Maytara.7 th September 2021

By Palitha Manchanayake Courtesy The Island

Former Irrigation Engineer, Sri Lanka and Hydrologist/Flood Forecaster to the Commonwealth Bureau of Meteorology, Sydney, Australia In this article, the author wishes to highlight his experience during the November 1978 cyclone, while working as an Irrigation Engineer (IE) attached to the Hydrology branch of the Irrigation Department, Sri Lanka.

That particular morning, Tilak Nikapitiya (IE) and I were called in by late Olsen Gunawardane, Senior Deputy Director (Research), to his office and asked us to take a ‘Four-Wheel Drive’ and proceed to Polonnaruwa immediately to meet A.D.S. Gunawardane (IE, Polonnaruwa). We were also expected to rescue and look after the Hydrological Field Unit and the Drilling Team of the Engineering Geology Division who had got marooned in the flood while working in the Maduru Oya area. Before leaving, Gunawardane showed us a photograph that had appeared on page one of the Ceylon Daily News on that day. It had been taken from a helicopter hovering above the Parakrama Samudraya .It showed the flood waves of Parakrama Samudraya overtopping its bund in many places. The Parakrama Samudraya Reservoir was at full capacity, and the water level was quite close to the bund top. Owing to the reservoir’s long fetch of water-spread and the high wind velocities that prevailed during the cyclone, the flood waves generated at the surface were overtopping the reservoir bund.

The author recollects that he had never encountered such a drastic and serious situation during his entire 49-year career as an Irrigation Engineer/Hydrologist. It was an alarming and critical situation considering the danger to the large population living in Polonnaruwa suburbs located below the Parakrama Samudra.

The Parakrama Samudraya Reservoir was built by King Parakramabahu the Great, during his reign (1153-1186 AD) and it has a capacity of 98,000 acre-feet, feeding approximately 18,200 acres of paddy cultivation. This reservoir has a tank bund,which is 52 feet high and nine miles long. When the reservoir is full, the entire nine-mile long bund is tested. It is an earthen dam constructed by the ancient Sri Lankan dam builders about 1,000 years ago.

If an earthen dam is to be built today, one has to follow the principles of soil mechanics, and adhere to the criteria involved in selecting the particular type of soil to be used in construction and the identification of suitable borrow areas for them, and maintaining the required standards of compacting and consolidating the soils. In this process, the mere ramming of soil would not do. It has to be done with the appropriate addition of water so that the maximum soil density is achieved through the optimum soil-moisture content. In the present day, this is achieved by compacting the soil with sheep-foot rollers and performing the ‘in-situ’ soil tests on site. But when the reservoir is on the verge of being overtopped by flood waves, it, in fact, tests the soil mechanics and the compaction techniques adopted using cattle and elephants done in ancient times. If there was a portion of earthen bund of poor quality it could fail and the dam could breach at that point. If this impending dam break happens at an unwanted and unexpected point on the dam, it could be disastrous and devastating, as so many civilians and property downstream of Parakrama Samudra would be seriously affected.

Knowing the imminent catastrophic danger, the Irrigation Engineer (IE) in charge of Polonnaruwa, A.D.S Gunawardane, the Government Agent (GA) Polonnaruwa, Austin Fernando, and a few other officials on duty, decided to get over a few bulldozers and retain them at the sluice and spillway sites, to breach the dam at these points if the need arose. The idea behind it was, if the predicted overnight rainfall occurs and the anticipated inflow to Parakrama Samudra does eventuate, then an artificially introduced breach of the dam at one of these particular outlets would enhance the draining of the floods along the already existing channels, rather than haphazard catastrophic flood damage occurring at an unwanted point over the downstream townships. In doing so, the ‘flood operation team’ would be controlling the flood somewhat, minimising damage to life and property, but the IE would be facing the danger of not being able to continue the issue of water to about 18,000 acres of paddy cultivation which was halfway through the Maha Season. Because of this artificial breaching of the dam, no water would be retained in the reservoir as it would completely empty. As such, it could result in crop failure of a vast acreage, which would be a significant political issue. Farmers who have invested their money in land preparation, seed-paddy, weedicide and pesticides would end up desperate and without any income, possibly creating farmer unrest in the area.

As such, the flood operators were very reluctant to go through with the breaching option unless they were left with no alternative. Yet another unknown factor was how much of the predicted rainfall would occur overnight in the already wet 28 square-mile catchment of Parakrama Samudraya , in addition to whatever inflow that came through Amban Ganga. So, after much deliberation that night, the ‘flood operation team’ decided to stay overnight leaving all sluice and spillway gates open, anticipating the predicted rain to fall over the catchment.

At dawn the following morning, a completely unexpected phenomenon was evident. Even though the reservoir water levels did not overtop the bund and were under control, the anticipated overnight rainfall had not really eventuated, and because the sluice and spillway gates were kept open overnight, the water levels had gone down drastically, causing ‘slip circle failures’ in the dam at many places along the entire stretch of the dam.

Even though there was a 12-foot wide roadway at the crest of the dam, a fair portion of the dam had caved-in with earth slips slumping into the reservoir, leaving only about a four-foot-wide section of the former roadway intact (Figure 2). This could be explained in engineering terms as ‘slip circle failures caused by the sudden drawdown of the water table. The increased pore water pressures of the soil have caused these slips to occur’. It was inevitable, as there were predictions of more overnight rain in the catchment which required due consideration, and there was no way of monitoring the inflow to Parakrama Samudraya at that late hour of the night. This happened in Polonnaruwa, Sri Lanka in November 1978.

The Parakrama Samudraya had to be restored by re-constructing the entire stretch of the damaged bund, which resulted in a major exercise of dam construction. It was re-done with a much broader roadway at the dam crest, and also with big rock boulders in rip-rap to serve as wave-breakers in future.

In this ‘flood operation’ exercise of November 1978, all of 18,200 acres of paddy cultivation was saved, as the Parakrama Samudraya Reservoir was able to issue the required water for the rest of the Maha Season. Luckily, the much-feared disastrous breaching of the bund did not happen. It was indeed a revealing experience for all the Irrigation Engineers of the present day, who manage the ancient reservoirs built by Sri Lankan Kings. On further reflection, one could argue that had we taken the option of artificially breaching the dam bund at a sluice or spill site, we would have overcome the flood dissipating problem easily with a lesser cost of dam construction, but ended up with devastating crop failure of 18,200 acres of paddy cultivation.

What is amazing is that the nine-mile-long earth bund of Parakrama Samudraya stood strong without breaching against the force and the head of water generated by the cyclone, giving full credit to King Parakramabahu the Great and his men.

These were the sort of risks, problems and threats we were faced with when handling the 1978 flood event.

If the eight-foot-wide jogging strip (as proposed in Figure 3) were to be constructed, then it should be at least three feet below the Bund Top Level (B.T.L), in which case a retaining wall of some sort has to be built to ensure the safety of the 16-foot-wide roadway at the top. The construction of this retaining wall could be of concern with the existing structure of the earthen bund.

One case that comes to mind is how late R. Premadasa (then Prime Minister and the Minister of Local Government) around the 1985/86 period, installed a Pumping Station on top of the old Kantale Bund to provide drinking water to the nearby town. After operating the huge pumps for some time, the Bund failed due to the vibrations of continuous pumping. But in the case of the jogging strip at Parakrama Samudraya , one could expect minimal vibrations.

Some point out that no problems have been reported regarding the jogging track at Tissa Wewa in Tissamaharama, built in 2014. At Tissa Wewa, the road is by the side of the lake with a low bund height of about 15 ft. But in the case of Parakrama Samudra, the tank bund is higher, and it is a completely different scenario.

One more important aspect of the new construction that merits discussion is the non-existence of the rip-rap. They say that they are going to roll the big rock boulders downward. The big rock boulders or the rip-rap is actually there to break the waves that occur when the reservoir is operating with water levels above the High Flood Level (H.F.L). The Full Supply Level (F.S.L) generally corresponds to the Full Operating Capacity of the Reservoir. During a special situation, when a flood occurs while the water level remains at F.S.L., the radial gates would be opened. At the point when this flood passes through the spillway system with all its gates open, the extra lift of the water level of the reservoir is called the ‘Flood Lift’. In Sri Lankan reservoirs, the ‘Flood Lift’ is generally calculated for a flood event of 1 in 100-year frequency. This ‘Flood Lift’ is the basis to decide on the H.F.L. of the reservoir. The difference between the H.F.L. and the Bund Top Level (B.T.L) is referred to as the ‘Free Board’ which accounts for the waves that are generated at the surface of the reservoir. The rip-rap which consists of the big boulders is there to break the waves, and it has to be placed between the H.F.L and B.T.L of the reservoir. So, if they are going to roll the big boulders below the H.F.L with the new construction, the purpose would be lost, and if a flood event like the one in 1978 occurs again, there would be one less defence mechanism for wave-breaking, which could be awful.

Therefore, I do not think that it is advisable to do any sort of alteration, meddle with or disturb the good old bund.

(The writer is a former Irrigation Engineer, Sri Lanka and Hydrologist/Flood Forecaster to the Commonwealth Bureau of Meteorology, Sydney, Australia)

Ruwan M Jayatunge M.D. 

A significant number of Sri Lankan soldiers sustained head injuries during the Eelam War that lasted from 1983 to 2009. These head injuries mainly occurred due to gunshot wounds, mortar blast injuries, grenade explosions and artillery blasts. Traumatic Brain Injuries increased High morbidity and mortality rates among the Sri Lankan combatants. Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) had been one of the signature injuries of the Eelam War.  

Traumatic brain injury has short and long term consequences. It affects the physical, social, psychological and occupational aspects of a combatant’s life.  The combatants with severe TBI have permanent neurobiological damage with profound psychosocial problems. TBI has been identified as one of the disabling conditions among the combatants.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) refers to a physiologically significant disruption of brain function resulting from the application of external physical force, including acceleration/deceleration forces (Silver et al, 2009). The victims experience emotional lability, sensory impairments, neuro- cognitive deficits and spasticity following traumatic brain injuries.

Traumatic brain injury is a common cause of neurological damage and disability among civilians and servicemen (Auxéméry, 2012). Schneider and colleagues (2009) elucidate that behaviorally the military population in general is considered to be a high risk group for TBI.  According to Scherer et al., (2013) within the last decade, more than 220,000 service members have sustained traumatic brain injury (TBI) in support of military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.

In Sri Lanka from 1983 to 2009 over 200,000 military personnel were deployed in the operational areas and considerable numbers sustained mild to severe head injuries following enemy attacks. In a convenience sample of 824 Sri Lankan Army servicemen who were referred to the Psychiatric ward Military Hospital Colombo during August 2002 to March 2006 time period 29 combatants (3.51%) were diagnosed  with TBI. These diagnoses were based on International Classification of Diseases- Tenth Revision (ICD-10) criteria and done by the Consultant Psychiatrist of the Sri Lanka Army. 

The Immediate Impact of TBI

Traumatic brain injury has immediate impacts. TBI combines mechanical stress to brain tissue with an imbalance between cerebral blood flow and metabolism, excitotoxicity, oedema formation, and inflammatory and apoptotic processes (Werner & Engelhard, 2007). The immediate effect of head trauma could be loss of consciousness followed by headaches and dizziness. Sometimes confusion and disorientation could occur from mild to moderate form of head injuries. In a severe form of TBI prolonged periods of loss of consciousness, seizures and paralysis could occur.

Traumatic Brain Injury in the War Zone

During the Eelam War some of the combatants who sustained head injuries were not immediately evacuated due to technical difficulties. Intensify heavy fighting and weather conditions affected evacuation of the battle casualties. However the wounded received first aid and then brought back to the rear zone medical aid point where they were examined by a qualified medical officer.  The head injuries were assessed and then transferred to the Palali Military Hospital or to a nearby hospital. Some battle casualties who sustained severe head trauma were airlifted and transferred to major hospitals in Anuradhapura or in Colombo. In these hospitals the war casualties received specialized treatment by the Neurosurgeons.

TBI and Cognitive Impairments

The combatants who sustained serious head trauma later found with cognitive impairments. Neurocognitive impairments are prevalent in TBI. Among the debilitating conditions, memory impairments, difficulty with attention and concentration, difficulty with new learning, and impaired problem solving skills are frequently identified. As indicated by Arciniegas (2003) cognitive impairments are among the most common neuropsychiatric sequelae of traumatic brain injury at all levels of severity. Traumatic brain injury (TBI) can produce persistent attention and memory impairment that may in part be produced by impaired auditory sensory gating (Arciniegas et al., 2000).

Cognitive dysfunctions associated with TBI were known to military psychologists since World War One. The British Physician Frederic Mott (WW1) and Dr Alexander Luria of the Soviet Army (in the WW2) extensively studied the impact of combat related head injuries. Caveness , Walker, & Ascroft (1962) believed that World War I, World War II, and the Korean war produced a large number of combatants with TBI and other associated complications. In the Vietnam War 12 to 14 percent of all combat casualties had a brain injury (Okie , 2005).

TBI-related cognitive impairment is common in veterans who have served in recent conflicts in the Middle East and is often related to blasts from improvised explosive devices (Halbauer et al., 2009). The Sri Lankan combat veterans who sustained severe form of head injuries reported drastic impairments in memory and concentration. Some were found with post-traumatic amnesia.  A large percentage of combatants were found with intellectual disabilities and impaired language skills.

Personality Changes Following Head Injury

Personality change has been reported in 49% to 80% of patients with traumatic brain injury (Brooks et al., 1986). A significant number of Sri Lankan combatants with TBI were found with subsequent Personality changes. Some of the personality changes such as agitation, paranoia, mood swings, aggression, lack of inhibition, inappropriate sexual activity and impaired self control have caused major barriers to their military and personal lives.

Prominent behavioral characteristics in TBI patients have included altered emotion (including restricted emotions with occasional inappropriate or uncontrolled emotional outbursts); impaired judgment and decision–making (including difficulty arriving at decisions as well as poor decisions); impaired initiation, planning, and organization of behavior; and defective social comportment (including egocentricity and impaired empathy). These impairments tend to be accompanied by a marked lack of insight. (Fowler, 2011: Barrash et al.,2000). According to Oddy et al. (1985) two thirds of individuals with TBI experience personality changes for long periods and sometimes over 15 years.

TBI and Depression

Mood disturbances are common sequelae of traumatic brain injury (Hurley &   Taber, 2002). Bay and colleagues (2004) are of the view that Pre-injury factors (such as mood and anxiety disorders, psychosocial dysfunction, and alcohol abuse), injury factors (such as left ventrolateral and dorsolateral injury and serotonergic dysfunction), and post-injury factors (such as postconcussive symptoms, psychosocial dysfunction, and lack of social supports) contribute to the development of depression after TBI, although the relevance of each factor varies among patients.

Combatants with TBI have a large array of psychosocial problems that affect their professional and family lives. Jorge et al. (2004) observed strong association between posttraumatic depression and psychological and psychosocial factors.

Sometimes post TBI depression could   increases anger, aggression and   suicide risk (Fann , Katon , Uomoto & Esselman, 1995). An increased suicide risk has been identified among the combatants who fought in the Eelam War.  According to the Military Spokesperson of the Sri Lanka Army from 2009 to 2012 postwar period nearly 400 soldiers had committed suicide (Sriyananda, 2012).

TBI and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injury (TBI) often coexist because brain injuries are often sustained in traumatic experiences. In addition evidence suggests that mild TBI can increase risk for PTSD (Bryant, R 2011).

Some investigators have argued that individuals who had been rendered unconscious or suffered amnesia due to a TBI are unable to develop PTSD because they would be unable to consciously experience the symptoms of fear, helplessness, and horror associated with the development of PTSD. Other investigators have reported that individuals, who sustain TBI, regardless of its severity, can develop PTSD even in the context of prolonged unconsciousness. (Sbordone & Ruff, 2010).

Despite the discrepancies, a strong connection between Post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury has been reported from battlefields around the world. Hoge et al. (2008) point out that mild traumatic brain injury (i.e., concussion) occurring among soldiers deployed in Iraq is strongly associated with PTSD and physical health problems 3 to 4 months after the soldiers return home. Elder & Cristian (2009) too report high association of mild traumatic brain injury with posttraumatic stress disorder among the veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. A notable number of Sri Lankan combatants have been diagnosed with TBI and PTSD during the Eelam War.

Posttraumatic Epilepsy

Posttraumatic epilepsy is a major source of disability following traumatic brain injury (TBI) and a common cause of medically-intractable epilepsy (Guo et al., 2013).  As indicated by Diaz-Arrastia and colleagues (2009) posttraumatic epilepsy is a common complication of traumatic brain injury (TBI), occurring in up to 15-20% of patients with severe brain trauma. There are a number of risks associated with Posttraumatic epilepsy. Yeh et al. (2012) hypnotize that the risk of epilepsy after TBI varied by patient gender, age, latent interval and complexity of TBI.

Combat veterans with head trauma are at high risk of developing posttraumatic epilepsy. As indicated by Chen and colleagues (2009) both Korean and Vietnam War veterans with penetrating TBI had a 53% risk of developing PTE.

Neurologist Ranjani Gamage (2003) reported that in Sri Lanka there were 300,000 persons with epilepsy.   This number would have included combatants with epilepsy due to TBI

Psychiatric Symptoms Followed by TBI

The intersection between traumatic brain injury and Psychosis has become one of the major concerns. Some of the Sri Lankan combatants with TBI were later found with psychosis and these individuals had disorganized thought and speech, paranoid delusions with loss of contact with reality.

Koponen et al. (2002) suggest that traumatic brain injury may cause decades-lasting vulnerability to psychiatric illness in some individuals. In addition they hypnotize that traumatic brain injury seems to make patients particularly susceptible to depressive episodes, delusional disorder, and personality disturbances. In one of the studies that was conducted by Deb and colleagues (1999) found that in comparison with the general population, a higher proportion of adult patients had developed psychiatric illnesses one year after a traumatic brain injury. Fann et al. (1995) point out that psychiatric disorders are a major cause of disability after traumatic brain injury.

Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy in Combatants 

Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) is thought to be a neurodegenerative disease associated with repeated concussive and subconcussive blows to the head (Mez ,Stern & McKee , 2013).  During military training soldiers repetitively sustain mild head trauma that has a negative impact on their mental health. According to Zhang et al. (2013) subconcussive blows can result in cognitive function changes that are consistent with mild traumatic brain injury of the frontal lobes.

The soldiers who served in the artillery batteries during the Eelam War were frequently exposed to blast impacts. Furthermore they faced artillery attacks, mortar fire, grenade and claymore blasts initiated by the enemy. Although a large number of combatants did not sustain any head trauma a considerable percentage experienced the blast shockwaves.  The shock waves   may have had a negative cumulative effect on them. A considerable fraction of combatants who were exposed to   blast shockwaves complain of chronic headaches, tremors and generalized body pain.  This factor was evident in the numerous battles that were fought in different countries.

Military physicians of World War One believed that artillery blasts could cause miniature hemorrhages in the brain causing tremors and long lasting headaches in soldiers. Teland,& Huseby (2102) of the Norwegian Defence Research Establishment  (FFI) hypothesize  that  military personnel who are exposed to blast waves during training and combat are at a significant health risk.

The combat-related traumatic brain injuries (TBI) resulting from exposure to explosions is highly prevalent among military personnel who have served in current wars. Blast trauma can be understood as experiencing a shockwave on the brain and as a psycho-traumatic event (Auxéméry, 2012). Chronic pain is a common complication of TBI. It is independent of psychologic disorders such as PTSD and depression and is common even among patients with apparently minor injuries to the brain. (Nampiaparampil, 2008).

Head trauma could cause degenerative changes in the brain tissue. Byrnes et al. (2012) point out that traumatic brain injury initiates biochemical processes that lead to secondary neurodegeneration.  Traumatic brain injury causes progressive neurodegeneration associated with chronic microglial activation (Xue et al, 2013). Atrophic changes of the brain that are resulted by TBI can have a lasting impact on soldiers. Symptoms can range to prolong headaches to severe neurological and psychological consequences.

Treatment Options

TBI has drastic impacts on independent living skills of the combatant. The survivors need effective psychosocial rehabilitation. The outcome and impact evaluation following combat related TBI is highly essential in the rehabilitation process.  The concept of the outcome of brain injury” needs to be viewed in the context of a dynamic and changing series of events which occur throughout a person’s life Gainer, 2010).

Various risk factors for poor outcome after TBI have been identified. Most of these are fixed at the time of injury such as age, gender, mechanism of injury, and presenting signs (Glasgow Coma Scale and pupillary signs), but some such as hypotension and hypoxia are potential areas for medical intervention (Moppett, 2007).

Cerebral metabolic derangement and excitotoxicity play critical roles in the evolution of traumatic brain injury (Hwabejire et al., 2013). Expert opinion suggests that combination therapies will be necessary to treat any stage of TBI recovery (Shear & Tortella, 2013). Drug management is important in seizure control. Chen and colleagues (2009) are of the view that optimal seizure control is essential to the physical and emotional health of veterans with TBI and to their ability to lead productive lives.

Psychotherapy is an important component of the treatment of neuropsychiatric problems following TBI (Arciniegas et al., 2000).  Cognitive rehabilitation may also be useful for the treatment of impaired attention, interpersonal communication skills, and executive function following TBI (Arciniegas et al., 2002).  Bédard et al. (2003) suggest mindfulness-based intervention to improve quality of life among individuals who sustained traumatic brain injuries. In addition occupational therapy, speech language therapy and physiotherapy play a key role in the rehabilitation process.

 Case Discussion

1)    Private SNX764 joined the Army in 1991 and served in the operational areas. He took part in several major military operations against the LTTE. In 1995 he was posted to Mallakam -Jaffna. There he had to face fierce enemy attacks. Once the enemy attacked them with mortars. Following nonstop mortar attacks, Private SNX764 was stunned and disoriented. His bunker was damaged severely and he wanted to crawl to a safe area.  When he tried to reach the next bunker an incoming mortar blasted a few meters away from him. Suddenly he could feel bleeding from his ears and he lost consciousness. After a few hours of fighting the enemy retreated.  Then he was evacuated and taken to the Palali military hospital. He was treated for a head injury. Although he survived the mortar blast his speech was impaired. He experienced severe intermittent headaches and insomnia. By 1996 he had intrusions, flashbacks and marked avoidance for combat related settings.   His mental health started deteriorating further. Several times Private SNX764 had tried to commit suicide while serving in the operational areas. Finally he was referred for a psychological evaluation and found with chronic PTSD.

2)    Capt. KXXC385 was an experienced field officer who participated in numerous commando operations. He sustained a head injury as a result of a parachuting accident. He was unconscious for over two weeks and treated at the Neurological unit.  After the acute phase he was referred for rehabilitation therapy. After years of treatment he returned to his unit as a completely changed person. He had difficulty in concentration, Emotional lability and cognitive impairments. His personality changed tremendously after the head trauma.  Once a skillful professional soldier turned into a dependent unsteady person with marked psychosocial dysfunctions. His professional and private life fell apart.  His decision–making and initiation were significantly deteriorated and sometimes he engaged in socially inappropriate behavior failing to detect social cues. Capt. KXXC385 was diagnosed with Personality changes following head injury.

3)    Major WXX856 sustained a head injury due to a grenade blast in a training mission. He was unconscious and treated at the Neurosurgical unit of the National Hospital Colombo. Major WXX856‘s injury was reordered as a moderate type of head injury based on the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS). After the injury he experienced frequent headaches and irritability. He had low frustration tolerance and often became very impulsive. His family members observed drastic changes in his behavior. Frequently he engaged in family violence. His personality started to change with head trauma. The senior officers found that Major WXX856 was neglecting his duties. A number of times he was reprimanded. To displace his psychosocial difficulties Major WXX856 started to drink alcohol in large quintiles in daily basis. His treatment schedule was interrupted and eventually in the final two years he did not receive any treatment at all. Major WXX856 became more and more isolated and had homicidal urges. In 2004 Major WXX856 committed several murders secretly and enjoyed the brutal acts. He took his final victim – a cab driver to his remote camp and intoxicated him and then killed him by cutting the victim’s throat. He had no remorse or any regrets after committing these murders. Major WXX856 was looking for more victims to fulfill his homicidal urge.  In his final attempt he tried to abduct a victim near a remote tea estate but the attempt was unsuccessful. Some estate workers alerted the Police. Hence he was arrested and sent to the remand prison. The investigators found several other murders that were committed by Major WXX856. While his trial was pending Major WXX856 committed suicide by hanging.

4)     Private KXXT342 met with a landmine explosion in Chunnakam –Jaffna in 1996 while travelling in a military vehicle. Some of his buddies got killed due to the blast. He could only remember the black smoke and fatal outcry of his buddies. The soldiers from the second vehicle took the wounded to the hospital immediately. Private KXXT342 sustained a head injury and was treated at the Palali military hospital and then referred to the National Hospital -Colombo. He underwent treatment for several months. He had impaired hearing, slurred speech and loss of coordination after the injury. In addition he suffered epileptic fits. Private KXXT342 was diagnosed with Posttraumatic Epilepsy. After becoming a battle casualty Private KXXT342 experienced a number of psychosocial problems which affected his life. He was treated with antiepileptic drugs and CBT. Following treatment he was able to overcome most of his psychosocial problems.

5)    Corporal BXVX486 served in an artillery battery for over 9 years. During this time period his team had fired a large number of artillery rounds. Although he was physically unharmed throughout the war his luck changed dramatically. Corporal BXVX486 complained of tremors in both hands, frequent headaches and myalgia after serving lengthy years in the artillery battery. The physicians who examined him found no organic factor associated with his condition. There were no Electroencephalography (EEG) changes and his brain scan and other reports were normal. He was suspected as a malingerer at one point but later found that his symptoms were real. Corporal BXVX486 poorly responded to the painkillers. His condition started to improve with relaxation therapy and EMDR.

6)    L/ Cpl AXXCX831 sustained a TBI following a gun short injury. After he became a battle casualty L/ Cpl AXXCX831 experienced a number of psychosocial problems. He could not control his anger and became extremely hostile. He used to physically abuse his wife and children. He had depression and several times he planned to end his life. Once he took poison and immediate hospitalization saved his life. He was treated with Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI ) and mood stabilizers with CBT. Following drug therapy and psychotherapy L/ Cpl AXXCX831’s condition improved notably.

Conclusion

Although Traumatic Brain Injury has impacted a large number of Sri Lankan combatants who fought in the Eelam War, the psychological sequelae of brain trauma were not adequately studied. The combatants who sustained TBI have persistent headaches, memory impairments, sleep difficulties, low frustration tolerance, impaired life skills, emotional difficulties, impaired decision making and behavioral changes.TBI has caused profound psychosocial problems among the veterans. These problems affect their private and professional lives. The combatants with TBI need effective psychosocial rehabilitation to overcome their current difficulties. Further research is needed to estimate the overall impact of TBI among Sri Lankan combat veterans.

Acknowledgements

1)    Dr. Rolf B. Gainer – Consultant Neurologist – Brookhaven Hospital Tusla Oklahoma

2)    Professor Daya Somasundaram – University of Adelaide Australia

3)    Dr. (Mrs) N.K Ariyarathne – Consultant Physician – Military Hospital Colombo.

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Pathik Hasan

Myanmar is one of the closest neighbors of Bangladesh. Which is also known as Burma. Before the Second World War, many people from Bangladesh used to travel to Burma in search of livelihood. Since then, the people of this country have developed an economic and social relationship with Burma. Apart from India, Bangladesh shares a border with Myanmar. The 271 km long Bangladesh-Myanmar border is very important for Bangladesh due to geographical reasons. Bangladesh can use Myanmar by land for communication in Southeast Asian countries including China. Road connectivity is possible through Myanmar. Maybe a new horizon of relationships and possibilities unfolds.

Myanmar can also use Bangladesh to reach South Asia specially Nepal, Bhutan, Mainland India. Bangladesh and Myanmar both share a common regional platform like ‘BIMSTEC’. On the other hand, Bangladesh is considered as a ‘Hub ‘between South Asia and South East Asia. It is true that Bangladesh is a South East Asian country geographically but South Asian country culturally, demographically and historically. This is an outstanding geo-strategic characteristic of Bangladesh. Therefore, without the involvement of Bangladesh, any connectivity amongst the states of ASEAN and SAARC is absolutely impossible.

Myanmar is a country rich in natural resources. There are huge amounts of natural resources like tin, zinc, copper, tungsten, coal, marble, limestone, natural gas, hydropower etc. The major resource of this country is mineral resources. Myanmar can be a major source of energy for Bangladesh to ensure its energy security. Food and grains are produced in large quantities in Myanmar. Myanmar can also be a big helper of Bangladesh in the field of food security.

Myanmar has a huge potential of rice cultivation. But lands of Myanmar are unutilized for decades due to lack of human resource. Myanmar needs labors. Rice production in Myanmar accounts for approximately 43% of total agricultural production in the country, making it the seventh largest producer of rice in the world. Out of 67.6 million hectares of land, 12.8 million are used for cultivation. In 2019 alone, Myanmar accounted for 13,300 million metric tons of milled rice production. Rice production in Myanmar is heavily dependent on human and animal power, both traditional methods of cultivation. Myanmar has lack of Manpower and technology in this regard. But Bangladesh has these two things. Bangladesh has surplus human resource. Myanmar can utilize the human resource of Bangladesh for the maximum gain.

But Bangladesh has never been able to take full advantage of this opportunity. This country of 135 tribes and different ethnic groups has been under military rule for many years. That may be one of the reasons why the relationship is not deep. If Bangladesh had good relations with Myanmar, its dependence on India could be reduced in many cases. If contacts were made in Southeast Asia and China through Myanmar, there would be immense potential for investment and trade.

Bangladesh and Myanmar are both on the way to be developed countries. Bangladesh is going to be a South Asian Economic Miracle. Bangladesh can play a significant role in Myanmar to some extent whole South East Asia. For this, Myanmar should increase its diplomatic relations with Bangladesh for the better mutual interest for whole South Asia and South East Asia. EU, China, India, Russia and North Korea are becoming allies in Myanmar’s oil, gas, mineral resources and military markets. Taking advantage of the US negligence, Myanmar’s military junta extended a helping hand to China to invest. So, China is now the biggest investor in this country. According to Earth-Rights International, a private group, more than 26 Chinese companies are investing in Myanmar’s oil, gas, mineral resources and allied sectors. China has already become its biggest ally in building and supplying arms to Myanmar. Myanmar has developed relations not only with China but also with India. India and China are building trade relations with Myanmar. The United States is also changing its approach to the Myanmar question. That is why America, a strong economic country, has started taking new initiatives to develop relations.

Recently, a 41-year dispute over the maritime border with Bangladesh-Myanmar has been settled by the International Court of Justice. As a result, the rights of Bangladesh have been established in an area of ​​1 lakh 11 thousand square kilometers. Myanmar’s waters have also been identified. As a result, this problem has been eliminated. The path of creating tension in the Bay of Bengal has been blocked.

Myanmar is rich in minerals, ores, oil, gas, precious stones and other natural resources. The country is a major supplier of natural wood to the world. While attracting foreign investment has been limited to the oil and gas sector, the country has recently shifted its focus to attracting production-based investment. The country is well ahead in power generation due to good investment in hydropower generation. The tourism industry is also a promising sector of the country. Myanmar’s economy has so far been limited to extracting natural resources, said Nobel laureate economist Professor Joseph Stiglis, who warned that the country would suffer a “curse of wealth” if it continued. Some resource-rich countries in Africa, including Nigeria, Sudan and Benin, have been plagued by corruption, internal strife and poverty. These countries could not adopt proper wealth management system. Economists have the opinions that if democracy is restored in Myanmar and corruption is reduced, it will not have to go to the level of countries that have failed in wealth management. Therefore, it can be assumed that Myanmar will become a country with rapid economic growth in a few years. The country’s biggest economic advantage is that they are members of the ten-nation ASEAN. ASEAN is one of the three most successful trade blocs in the world. The trade consists of Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, Brunei, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar. The alliance controls about 24 percent of total world trade and their share in world trade is growing every year. Their trade relations with China, Japan and South Korea are deepening due to the increase in trade. ASEAN countries account for more than 50 percent of total trade between themselves and the three countries. As a result, Bangladesh has the opportunity to benefit by strengthening ties with this trade alliance, that is, Myanmar. Bangladesh and Myanmar are among the seven member countries of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC). Therefore, there is ample opportunity to increase trade and investment relations between the two countries through BIMSTEC.

There are many opportunities to enhance Bangladesh’s bilateral trade and investment relations with Myanmar. Through the import of gas and electricity, Bangladesh can get future energy security. The two countries can jointly explore for oil and gas in the Bay of Bengal. Bangladesh can also contribute to the development of Myanmar’s infrastructure.

The proposed construction of the Asian Highway, funded by the Asian Development Bank and other donor groups, could also increase land connectivity between the two countries. And there is ample opportunity to increase shipping. Besides, joint investment can be made in fertilizer, plastic, cement, furniture etc. Both countries will benefit if Myanmar produces raw materials and Bangladesh with skills, technical knowledge and labor. Because, Myanmar imports every product. Bangladesh can also export readymade garments.

Bangladesh produces medicines, electronics. Myanmar can import these from Bangladesh hugely. On the other hands, Myanmar is a source of agricultural products. Bangladesh can import these from Myanmar. During the moment of Bangladesh’s onion crisis with India in 2019, Myanmar provided onions to Bangladesh. Bangladesh understood the importance of bilateral trade with Myanmar at that time. On the other hands, Bangladesh is keen to provide assistance to Myanmar.

Covid-19 vaccine diplomacy, counter terrorism approach for the regional security are some sectors. Rohingya refugee problem has made distance between Bangladesh and Myanmar. Myanmar should solve this problem to serve its own and reginal interest. Myanmar should understand that it is the issue of the region. Whole South Asia and South East Asia may be volatile and unstable for this problem.

However, the two countries can also increase production in the agricultural sector through joint ventures. Apart from adopting joint investment projects, Bangladesh can increase imports of various agricultural products including pulses, spices, fish and rice. Thus, enhancing bilateral relations could contribute to the growth of trade and investment relations with ASEAN and BIMSTEC countries. This will create an opportunity to solve the Rohingya problem and stop militant activities. Therefore, Myanmar should take effective steps to strengthen bilateral relations. Pathik Hasan, Dhaka based NGO activist and Writer on contemporary international issues. He can be reached at pathikhasan1141@gmail.com

Courtesy The Daily Mirror

Sri Lankan government has lost a total revenue of Rs 1,600 billion this year due to COVID-19 pandemic, Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa told Parliament today.

Speaking during the debate on regulations imposed under the Financial Bill and Export Import Control Bill the Minister said 70% of indirect tax revenue has been recorded since the current lockdown was imposed. The revenue received from the Inland Revenue Department, Customs and Excise Department had gone down drastically because of the lock down,” Mr. Rajapaksa said.

Total revenue has dropped drastically compared to expenditure. This is not totally due to the pandemic as Sri Lanka’s state expenditure has exceeded the revenue for centuries,” he said at the same time.

We have decided to use foreign assistance with utmost diligence and will only work with institutions such as the World Bank and Asian Development Bank and will only for concessionary loan schemes. Sri Lanka will not agree to political based conditions any doner would impose when it comes to external borrowings,” the Minister added.

Government is not prepared to face the crisis situation alone and is prepared to work with the opposition in dealing with is financial crisis,” he also said.(Yohan Perera and Ajith Siriwardana)

Courtesy Adaderana

The Finance Bill which was debated in Parliament today (07) has been passed with amendments by a majority vote.

During the second reading of the Bill, Chief Opposition Whip Lakshman Kiriella called for a division and second reading of the bill was passed with 134 parliamentarians voting in favour and 44 voting against the bill. 

The Finance Bill enables individuals to voluntarily disclose undisclosed taxable supplies, income and assets which are required to be publicize under some laws.

In addition, it allows the imposition of taxes on taxable income and assets.

Further, the bill will enable granting tax amenities and indemnification of individuals who voluntarily disclose taxable supplies, income or assets against liability from investigation, prosecution and penalties under specified laws.

Meanwhile, the Securities and Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka Bill, which was taken up for debate today, was passed with amendments without a vote.

Meanwhile, a resolution under the Essential Public Services Act, an Order under the Excise (Special Provisions) Act and three regulations under the Imports and Exports (Control) Act were also approved by Parliament today.

Courtesy Adaderana

The Director-General of Health Services has confirmed another 184 coronavirus-related deaths for September 06 (yesterday), increasing the official death toll in the country to 10,504.

According to the figures reported by the Department of Government Information today (07), the victims include 97 males and 87 females while four of the deceased, including 1 female, are below the age of 30.

Forty-six of the Covid-19 deaths are individuals between the ages of 30-59 and the remaining 134 are persons aged 60 and above.

Courtesy Adaderana

The Epidemiology Unit of the Health Ministry reports that 1,141 more people have tested positive for COVID-19 in Sri Lanka, moving the daily total of new cases to 2,964.

This brings the confirmed tally of coronavirus infections reported in the country to 471,863.

A total of 388,278 recoveries have been confirmed in Sri Lanka since the outbreak of the pandemic last year.

As per official data, more than 73,000 active cases are currently under medical care at hospitals, treatment centres and homes.

Meanwhile, Sri Lanka registered 184 new COVID-related fatalities confirmed by the Director-General of Health Services on Monday (Sep. 06). The new development pushed the official death toll from the virus outbreak in Sri Lanka to 10,504.

Sangadasa Akurugoda

As per a main news item appeared in ‘Divaina’ dated August 22, 2021, a foreign organisation has already given  Rs 850 millions, via a NGO, to some political parties and trade unions etc to embarrassed the current government. The news item revealed how this money has been distributed among the various recipients, including a media team and popular monk. The money said to have been given with the intervention of a top official in the relevant foreign organisation. Out of this amount, Rs 500 million has been distributed to the relevant media team, Rs 50 million to the popular monk and Rs. 300 million to the trade unions and political parties.

 (https://divaina.lk/ආණ්ඩුවට-ගහන්න-රුපියල්-කෝ/?fbclid=IwAR3xWsxthuBvoPm7ux24c-rssD9hzVu3S6DVUzSNhm0GA_iarZT0O4XBmO8)

https://divaina.lk/%E0%B6%86%E0%B6%AB%E0%B7%8A%E0%B6%A9%E0%B7%94%E0%B7%80%E0%B6%A7-%E0%B6%9C%E0%B7%84%E0%B6%B1%E0%B7%8A%E0%B6%B1-%E0%B6%BB%E0%B7%94%E0%B6%B4%E0%B7%92%E0%B6%BA%E0%B6%BD%E0%B7%8A-%E0%B6%9A%E0%B7%9D/?fbclid=IwAR3xWsxthuBvoPm7ux24c-rssD9hzVu3S6DVUzSNhm0GA_iarZT0O4XBmO8

Use of foreign funding to brainwash the people, to regime change and to destabilize the country is not something new to our country.    We have come across several articles and books providing details of how foreign funds were used to achieve such goals of the foreign organisation in the past.

We can see that most of the well-known NGOs and trade union activists are getting wide publicity to their statements in the media today, similar to the period we had during the war against terrorism. Like mushroom and many other fungus, these activists popup whenever the environmental conditions suits them. 

The easiest way to find out what they said and how some of these mushroom activists contributed to the continuation of terrorism in the past is to search their records on line.    Interestingly, I found a list of names of politicians, so-called civil societies and trade union activists, who were promoting LTTE as an integral part of ‘the solution’ and campaigning in support of the CFA  in 2006,  in a pro LTTE website. (https://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?artid=19261&catid=13).   

Although some of activists appeared in the list were very active, when promoting the so-called yahapalana regime during 2015-1019 too, most of them are no more, most likely with time.  Those politicians, civil societies and trade union activists who promoted the yahapalana regime appeared nowhere to go now, as the majority of general public are aware of their past and the damage they have done to the country. The Covid-19 pandemic appears to be a golden opportunity after the disappearance of LTTE terrorism from the country‘s soil for the so-called activists to raise their heads, once again, to destabilize the country.

How these foreign funded NGOs, politicians and the so-called activists attempted to brainwash the people of the country and the entire world are well known and we can imagine the status of our country today, if their motives were successful in the past, by looking at how terrorism grew and gained control in Afghanistan today.

Freedom to involve in political activities were very limited (or not at all) for the government employees prior to 1970.  As a result granting some political freedom to the government servants under the United Front government (comprising SLFP, LSSP and CP) elected in 1970 and by allowing politicians of successive governments to interfere with the appointments of various positions within the public service, the government servants and their trade unions are politically divided to an uncontrollable extent today.

Instead of carrying out government policies, some government officials and trade union leaders are fulfilling the needs of their political parties while criticizing the government policies in public. Media statements issued, almost daily, by the two well-known trade unionists like Ravi Kumudesh and Saman Rathnapriya attached to the health sector that are very critical on every action taken by the government to control the present-day pandemic is a typical example. Appearance of the two names of these politically motivated trade unionists in the said list found in the TamilNet is a clear example of their past and to whom they are serving. In addition, we can see that even the politicians rejected by the mass with a overall majority during the last Presidential and general elections are getting wide publicity in the media to make frequent statements to demoralize the general public mind against the steps taken by the government to control the Covid-19 epidemic and to recover the economy at this crucial stage.

We were under foreign powers for centuries due to the acts of saboteurs and traitors. We have witnessed, during our life time, how powerful are enemies within, when destabilizing regimes. The coming months will be very decisive as local paid agents of  the enemies of our nation will work overtime and will use the money said to have been distributed among them, to achieve their desired goals disregarding the extent of hardships causing  and loss of lives of the general public. The public must be aware of these enemies, as a priority, and should rally against such elements in order to protect our nation.

Sangadasa Akurugoda