KAMALIKA PIERIS

UNESCO recently announced that it has accepted for its Memory of the World Register 2025, the Trilingual inscription” found in Sri Lanka. The tablet   containing the inscription was brought to Sri Lanka from China by Chinese Admiral Cheng Ho.  The item was therefore submitted to UNESCO jointly by Sri Lanka and China.

UNESCO described the Trilingual Inscription as a stone tablet with Chinese, Persian and Tamil inscriptions, praising Buddha, Vishnu and Allah. [1] It is the only trilingual inscription having texts in Chinese, Tamil and Persian, said UNESCO.

UNESCO has uncritically parroted the popular account attached to this tablet, regardless of the fact that it is partially incorrect. This shows that UNESCO has not done any independent examination of this trilingual tablet, neither it appears, has China.

UNESCO’s recognition of this trilingual tablet has aroused fresh interest in the tablet. This tablet is seen as a unique one specially prepared for Sri Lanka. Observers want to know, therefore, why did the tablet not contain a statement in Sinhala if it was intended for Sri Lanka.

Can someone enlighten me on why the Sinhala language was not used in this plaque, asked retired Navy Admiral Ravindra C Wijegunaratne, when the UNESCO recognition was announced.[2]

From 1405 to 1433 Chinese admiral Cheng Ho directed seven ocean expeditions for the Ming emperor Zhu Di. They are considered to be unmatched in world history. The first expedition was to Champa (central Vietnam), Siam (Thailand), Java to   Cochin and the kingdom of Calicut in Kerala. The second expedition (1407-1409) took 68 ships to the court of Calicut to attend the inauguration of a new king.

The third voyage (1409-1411) with 48 large ships and 30,000 troops, visited many of the same places as on the first voyage but also went to Malacca. The fourth voyage (1413-15) in addition to visiting many of the earlier sites, Zheng He went onto Hormuz on the Persian Gulf. The fifth voyage (1417-1419) went to Aden, and then on to the east coast of Africa, stopping at the city states of Mogadishu and Brawa (in today’s Somalia), and Malindi (in present day Kenya).

The sixth expedition (1421-1422) of 41 ships sailed to many of the previously visited Southeast Asian and Indian courts and stops in the Persian Gulf, the Red Sea, and the coast of Africa, the fleet was then sent on to pursue several separate itineraries, with some ships going perhaps as far south as Sofala in present day Mozambique.

The seventh and final voyage (1431-33) had more than one hundred large ships and over 27,000 men, and it visited all the important ports in the South China Sea and Indian Ocean as well as Aden and Hormuz. One auxiliary voyage traveled up the Red Sea to Jidda, only a few hundred miles from the holy cities of Mecca and Medina.

Records show that on this journey, the ships left for Sri Lanka from Banda Atjeh, in Indonesia, reached Sri Lanka on October 10, 1432 and   arrived at Calicut in Kerala  on December 10.

 Zheng He’s voyages would have required many independent fleets to be simultaneously at sea, said one analyst. Dates for out bound and returning voyages make it clear that different fleets departed and returned under different commanders, often years apart. [3] Chinese records indicate that more than 2,700 ships were built during this time.

The distances travelled and places reached in these seven voyages are not   disputed. Historians agree that Zheng sailed the Indian Ocean as far as East Africa and the Red Sea.[4] They also agree that China had the capacity to undertake such voyages.

The Chinese fleet visited Sri Lanka on the first voyage and probably on all subsequent voyages too, as Sri Lanka was a useful port of call. On the third voyage, Zheng Ho brought a tablet to be erected in Sri Lanka. The tabletwas prepared in Nanking, dated 15^th February 1409. It was set up in Galle in 1411.

The slab said that We (i.e. China) have dispatched missions to announce our mandates to foreign nations”. It spoke of the Buddhist temples in the mountainous isle of Sri Lanka, and listed the   generous gifts the group had made to a Buddhist temple in the mountain of Ceylon, presumably Sri Pada. This inscription appears to be intended for Sri Lanka alone.

The other two inscriptions in the Trilingual slab made similar statements. One gave praise to Allah and the   other praised the god Tenavarai-Nayanar.  To each god the Chinese offered similar lavish tributes. However, there is no definitive translation of the full text and it is not possible to say anything more about the text.

The local researchers easily identified two of the three scripts as Chinese and Persian. The choice of Persian for Islam probably indicates that Persian would have been the common language in Islamic countries at the time.

Paranavitana thought the third script was Tamil. However, Tamil historians in Sri Lanka had great difficulty in reading this so-called Tamil inscription.  ‘This inscription is of a unique kind. There is no similar record in the whole range of Tamil inscriptions,’ they said. The language and orthography show characteristics which are not found in any other Tamil inscription.   The word ‘Manittar’ found in the inscription is not found in Tamil, they added. (Tamil inscriptions in the Colombo National Museum p 53, 56)

Gavin Menzies in his book 1421: The Year China Discovered the World”, gives the third language in the inscription as Malayalam, the language of Kerala. it appears that the Galle tablet is not the only one with Malayalam.  Menzies says Matadi Fallsinscription was also in Malayalam. Presumably the two slabs in Kerala were in Malayalam too, which makes a total of four slab inscriptions using Malayalam. (Menziesp 120, 134-136).

 Menzies views on the Cheng Ho voyages have been heavily disputed but as far as I know, the identification of Malayalam  as the third language in the stele (slabs) has not been contested.

The choice of Malayalam for the Hindu inscription suggests that the one location Cheng Ho visited regularly in the Indian peninsula was Kerala, the other Indian stops would have been brief ones. Cheng Ho’s voyages included regular visits to Kerala. It was the next stop after Galle. 

The first and second voyages ended at Kerala.  The second voyage was to attend a coronation there. The sixth expedition saw three units of the fleet go   to Kerala and   separate at Kerala. The Chinese fleet probably touched Kerala on the other three visits too. 

Gavin Menzies in his book 1421: The Year China Discovered the World”, suggests that the Galle slab inscription is one of a series of trilingual slabs prepared in China, and deposited in various foreign ports visited by the Chinese fleet of Cheng He.  Similar tablets have been found elsewhere.

 Menzies says that slab inscriptions were   found in Cochin and Calicut in Kerala, at Ribiera de Janela in Cape Verde and Matadi Falls in Congo. The Janela one is rejected by critics. There is no such tablet at Janela, they said. The other inscriptions were not rejected but critics point out that Menzies has not supported his statement with photos of the other tablets.[5]

The argument that the Galle Trilingual tablet proves that Sri Lanka had three religions which ranked equally, cannot be accepted. It is also difficult to believe that China specifically sent to Sri Lanka a tablet written in Persian and Malayalam.

 One possible explanation is that these tablets were designed to suit several countries at one go. Three inscriptions in three languages for three religions all carved on one tablet ensured that each country would find an inscription that would suit them. This eliminated the need to carve different tablets for different countries, also the problem of getting   the right ship into the right port to deliver the right tablet to the right country.

Sri Lanka ‘s Trilingual slab was discovered in 1911, by the British engineer H.F. Tomalin, who was told of a carved stone covering a culvert near Cripps Road in Galle. There is no record of a any other inscription in Sri Lanka getting tossed about in this manner. This shows that the Sinhala king was not interested in this tablet, otherwise it would have been carefully preserved.

One possible reason for this indifference is that Cheng He meddled in the internal politics of the host country. On his first voyage, he put down a pirate uprising in Sumatra, bringing the pirate chief, an overseas Chinese, back to Nanjing for punishment. On his third visit he had clashed with the authorities in Sri Lanka and had taken some persons to China. They were treated well and were returned to Sri Lanka.

 Amateur historians have woven a story around this event. But professional historians, such as W.I Siriweera   have told me that the available information is insufficient to form any opinion about the event. It is agreed, however, that the Sinhala king was not captured and taken to China and that Sri Lanka did not pay tribute to China. There is no evidence of either.

It is argued that Cheng He’s visits to Sri Lanka were a great honor for Sri Lanka. That is the attitude displayed in the museum in Galle Fort when I visited some years ago. There was a huge picture of Cheng Ho and an emphasis on every possible foreign ruler and visitor who had come to Galle, little or nothing on indigenous culture.

Cheng He was engaged in ocean exploration and was using Sri Lanka as a stopover. Sri Lanka was a much-patronized port of call for foreign ships. In addition to its strategic location, It had bays and harbors that could accommodate visiting ship and foreign  ships had been making use of this facility for centuries.

Sri Lanka ports were more than a mere stop over. Sri Lanka provided ship repair services as well. Sri Lanka coir rope was much valued for ships.  Sri Lanka would have provided good service to Cheng He and that may be why Sri Lanka was gifted one of the trilingual tablets with special reference to its Buddhist temples.

The ‘Tamil inscription’ in the Trilingual slab, (which local Tamil scholars have said is not Tamil) has been greeted with great joy by the Tamil Separatist Movement, saying that it shows the importance of the Tamil language in international relations and international trade. They triumphantly point out that there is no Sinhala inscription on the slab.

Nirmala Chandrahasan says, we have seen from the Galle Inscription that China gave the Tamil language pride of place in Sri Lanka at a certain point of time, and similar inscriptions have also been left by them in other south Asian countries.  We learn that the Tamil community in Sri Lanka was a powerful and respected one, hence the inscriptions in Mandarin along with Tamil and Persian.  She adds that at that time Tamil was a language of commerce and trade in the Indian Ocean region. Tamil Buddhist monks from Kancheepuram brought Buddhism to China. [6]

This is a load of nonsense. Buddhism would have gone to China directly from North India via the land route, not from Kancheepuram in far away south India. It is also most unlikely that Buddhism was introduced to China by Tamil Buddhists. Tamilnadu was never a strong, Buddhist state. In the 7th century the Bhakthi school of Hinduism replaced Buddhism in Tamilnadu.

Tamil merchants could not have led international trade, as Nirmala says, because the Tamil kingdom was not even on the international trade route, to start with. The main East-west international trade route went along the north-west and south-west of the Indian peninsula. Tamilnadu is on the south-east, far away from the international trade route.  Tamilnadu lost its proximity to the east-west trade route when Kerala broke away and became independent. 

 Further, the Tamil kingdom had lost its sovereignty before the Cheng He voyages had even started. Tamil kingdom was conquered by the Vijayanagara kingdom of Karnataka in 1378.  The kingdom was thereafter administered in Telegu. Tamil language was suppressed. Therefore, the Tamil language could not have been a language of commerce and trade in the Indian Ocean region in the time of Cheng He.

Tamil language lost vitality thereafter and did not recover for a long time. The following account shows the low standing of Tamil writing. In 1816, Rasmus Rask left Denmark to collect Asian manuscripts for the University of Copenhagen library. Rask returned to Copenhagen in May 1823, bringing manuscripts in Persian, Middle Persian (Zend), Pali and Sinhala languages.  He had   travelled through Madras and Jaffna, to get to   Colombo, but showed no interest in acquiring Tamil manuscripts.   (concluded)

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[1] https://www.unesco.org/en/memory-world/register2025

[2] https://island.lk/why-sinhala-omitted-in-famous-stone-inscription-by-ancient-chinese-admiral/

[3] https://archive.org/stream/1434theyearamagnificentchinesefleetsailedtoitalyandignitedtherenaissancebymenziesgavin/.

[4] https://www.historynewsnetwork.org/article/is-gavin-menzies-right-or-wrong

[5]https://nabataea.net/explore/travel_and_trade/book-review-1421-the-year-china-discovered-the-world/

[6]  https://www.lankaweb.com/news/items/2021/06/13/chinese-admiral-zheng-he-and-the-tamils-of-sri-lanka/

Sasanka De Silva Pannipitiya

Sri Lanka stands at a critical economic crossroads.

After weathering a historic financial crisis, the country is showing robust signs of recovery, with GDP growth outpacing expectations and a rebound driven by strong performances in industry and services. Yet, beneath this recovery lies a persistent challenge: a significant portion of the population-especially the youth-remains vulnerable, with poverty rates still alarmingly high and household incomes lagging behind pre-crisis levels.

The Promise of the Stock Market in a Low-Interest, High-Inflation Environment

With benchmark interest rates at 8% and inflation recently turning negative due to energy price cuts but expected to rise again, traditional savings offer limited protection against the eroding power of inflation. For young Sri Lankans seeking to build wealth and secure their financial futures, the stock market presents a compelling alternative. By investing in regular dividend-paying and growth-oriented shares, individuals can potentially outpace inflation and benefit from the country’s economic resurgence.

A vibrant stock market does not just benefit individual investors. Increased participation boosts market liquidity, supports business growth, and, crucially, channels more revenue into government coffers through taxes on capital gains, dividends, and broker transactions. This creates a virtuous cycle, reinforcing fiscal stability and funding essential public services.

Barriers to Entry: Broker Houses and the Cost of Exclusion

Despite these clear benefits, many aspiring investors-particularly novices and young people-face daunting barriers to entry. Leading broker houses often impose high minimum deposit requirements to open trading accounts, a practice that effectively excludes those without significant upfront capital. This not only stifles individual ambition but also undermines the broader goal of democratizing wealth creation and deepening the capital market.

Globally, best practices show that zero or low minimum deposit requirements, as offered by platforms like Easy Equities and XTB, can dramatically expand access and foster a more inclusive investment culture. In contrast, restrictive policies in Sri Lanka risk keeping the market shallow and less dynamic, ultimately reducing potential tax revenue and stunting economic growth.

The Economic Imperative for Reform

Research consistently shows that well-functioning capital markets are essential for economic development. High liquidity, efficient trading, and broad participation are all linked to stronger GDP growth and improved living standards. When broker houses set arbitrary barriers, they not only limit their revenue potential but also deprive the government and the nation of the full benefits of a thriving stock market.

The value of businesses and the stock market size determine the economic growth of the country. The Sri Lankan government needs to maintain a peaceful, conducive environment for investors and ensure secure functionality of capital markets that will help implement socio-economic policies to promote better living standards in the country.”

• Thehani Egodawatte, Research on Capital Markets and Economic Growth in Sri Lanka

The Role of the Colombo Stock Exchange and Regulatory Authorities

The Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) has a pivotal role to play. Without assertive oversight and a clear mandate to promote accessibility, the CSE risks becoming, as critics put it, a tiger without teeth”-unable to drive the reforms necessary for national progress. Regulatory authorities must intervene to establish investor-friendly policies, standardize reasonable account-opening requirements, and ensure that broker houses align their practices with the broader interests of the country.

A Call to Action

Sri Lanka’s economic recovery is fragile, and the path to sustained prosperity requires bold, inclusive policies. Lowering barriers to stock market entry is not just a matter of fairness; it is an economic imperative. By empowering young people and first-time investors, Sri Lanka can unlock new sources of growth, boost government revenue, and build a more resilient, equitable society.

It is time for the authorities to act. By bringing broker houses in line with the needs of the people and the nation, Sri Lanka can transform its stock market from an exclusive club into a true engine of national development.

Sasanka De Silva

Pannipitiya.

 lanka C news

කැබිනට් ප්‍රකාශක අමාත්‍ය නලින්ද ජයතිස්ස මහතා කළ ප්‍රකාශයක් සම්බන්ධයෙන් හිටපු ජනාධිපති රනිල් වික්‍රමසිංහ මහතාගේ මාධ්‍ය ඒකකය විසින් නිකුත් කළ නිවේදනයක් මෙහි දැක්වෙයි.

හිටපු ජනාධිපති රනිල් වික්‍රමසිංහ මහතා අල්ලස් කොමිසමට කැඳවීමේ සිද්ධිය සම්බන්ධයෙන් කැබිනට් ප්‍රකාශක අමාත්‍ය නලින්ද ජයතිස්ස මහතා අද(29) කැබිනට් මාධ්‍ය හමුවේදී සදහන් කළ කරුණු අසත්‍යය.

එම මාධ්‍ය හමුවේ දී අමාත්‍යවරයා කියා සිටියේ රනිල් වික්‍රමසිංහ මහතා අල්ලස් කොමිසමට කැඳවීමෙන් පසුව අප්‍රේල් 11 දා ඔහු තමන්ගේ සමාජ මාධ්‍ය වල 11 වැනි දා එන්න විදියක් නැ යනුවෙන් සඳහන් කර තිබූ බවයි.

11 වැනිදා එන්න විදියක් නැති බවත් 17 වෙනිදා කොමිසමට එන බවත් රනිල් වික්‍රමසිංහ මහතා ප්‍රකාශ කළැයි නලින්ද ජයතිස්ස මහතා කැබිනට් මාධ්‍ය හමුවේදී සඳහන් කර තිබිණි.

කෙසේ වෙතත් අප්‍රේල් 12 වැනිදා මඩකලපුවේ පැවති රැස්වීමකදී ජනාධිපති අනුර කුමාර දිසානයක මහතා ” ලියුමක් දුටු බව සඳහන් කර කියා සිටියේ හිටපු ජනාධිපතිවරයා 17 එන්න විදිහක් නැ අවුරුදු කනවලු” සදහන් කරමින්.

නමුත් හිටපු ජනාධිපති රනිල් වික්‍රමසිංහ මහතා කිසිම අවස්ථාවක අල්ලස් හෝ දුෂණ චෝදනා විමර්ෂණ කොමිසම වෙත ලිපියක් මගින් දැනුම් දීමක් කර නොමැත. කොමිසම වෙත පැමිණිමේ දිනය කල් දමන ලෙස ඉල්ලා ලිපියක් යොමු කළේ ජනාධිපති නීතිඥ රොනල්ඩ් පෙරේරා මහතා විසිනි. ඒ් මහතා එහිදි ඉල්ලා සිටියේ අප්‍රෙල් 17 වන දා දිනය වෙනුවට අප්‍රෙල් 28 වනදා යින් පසු දිනයක ලබා දෙන ලෙසයි.

ජනාධිපති අනුර කුමාර දිසානායක මහතාගේ ප්‍රකාශයෙන් අනතුරුව අප්‍රෙල් 11 වනදා ලිපිය ට අනුව සාක්කි දිමට පැමිණන ලෙස සදහන් කලත් අප්‍රේල් 21 වැනිදා අල්ලස් කොමිසම මගින් හිටපු ජනාධිපතිවරයා වෙත යොමු කළ ලිපිය මගින් 2023 අංක 09 දරණ දුෂණ විරෝධී පනතේ ප්‍රකාරව චෝදනාවක් ද එල්ල කර තිබිණි.

ඉන් පසුව අප්‍රේල් 25 වැනිදා අල්ලස් කොමිසමෙන් එවා තිබූ ලිපියේ තවදුරටත් සදහන් කර තිබුණේ හිටපු ජනාධිපතිවරයා අනවශ්‍ය ලෙස මැදිහත් වීමක් කර ඇති බවයි.

මීට අමතරව හිටපු ජනාධිපති රනිල් වික්‍රමසිංහ මහතා වෙත අප්‍රේල් 11 වැනිදා ලිපිය යොමු කර තිබුණෙ අල්ලස් කොමිසමේ නියෝජ්‍ය අධ්‍යක්ෂ ජනරාල් අසිත ඇන්තනි මහතා වන අතර ඉන් පසුව ලැබුණු ලිපි දෙකම යොමු කර තිබුනේ කොමිසමේ අධ්‍යක්ෂ ජනරාල් අර්.එස්. ඒ. දිසානායක මහතා වීම ද විශේෂත්වයකි.

Courtesy Daily Mirror

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Colombo, April 29 (Daily Mirror) – Former President Ranil Wickremesinghe asked yesterday how President Anura Kumara Dissanayake was aware of his correspondence with the Bribery Commission on negotiating a date for him to testify before it.

“I was asked to come to the Bribery Commission on April 15. The Commission said that it had to question me with regard to the statement which I released to the media on April 10, 2025. I said I could not do it as I was out of Colombo during the New Year holiday. Then I was asked to come on April 25. I said I could not come as my lawyer was out of the country. I insisted that I must have my lawyer with me as I am named a suspect. However, President Dissanayake made a remark in Batticaloa stating that I had informed the Bribery Commission that I could not come on April 15 as I was going to celebrate the New Year. I wonder how President Dissanayake became aware of my correspondence with the Bribery Commission,” he said.

The former President also said that the Bribery Commission initially refused to allow a lawyer to accompany him.

Former President, who made a three-hour statement to the Bribery Commission said withdrawing funds of the Uva Provincial Council from the bank and spending them for recurrent or capital expenditure is not a crime.

Mr. Wickremesinghe was summoned before the Bribery Commission yesterday in relation to the withdrawal of Uva Provincial Council funds from a bank by former Chief Minister of Uva Province Chamara Sampath Dassanayake, during the previous regime. “I made a statement to the Bribery Commission and explained my point, and thereby I said keeping funds in a bank account is the real crime,” Mr. Wickremesinghe told the media.

Funds allocated to Provincial Councils by the central government have to be spent on various purposes. Funds have to be spent on recurrent and capital expenditures. The economy becomes active when money is circulated. Spending funds for recurrent and capital expenditures will keep the economy going. If you deposit your money in a bank, it will not circulate in the economy. You cannot gain economic growth by depositing your funds in a bank. Depositing funds in a bank without spending it on day-to-day expenses is a real crime. I explained this point to the Bribery Commission. I told the Commission that the Public Financial Management Act of 2024 clearly defines this point and provides provisos for legitimate spending,” he said.

I told the Commission that there are instances in the past where the state funds, which were deposited in a bank at a high interest, were withdrawn and deposited in another bank at a lower interest. This took place in 2008. Our government in 2002 allowed state funds to be deposited in banks which offered higher interest,” he also said.

Courtesy Adaderana

Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya should have sought a meeting with the Vice President of the United States, J.D. Vance, who was in India recently to discuss the reciprocal tariffs announced by President Donald Trump, former President Ranil Wickremesinghe has asserted.

According to Wickremesinghe, Prime Minister Amarasuriya should have sought the intervention of the Indian government to set up at least a one-hour meeting with Vice President Vance while in India.

Speaking during an event in Colombo today (29), the former President said the latest tariffs imposed by US President Trump will have a major bearing on local companies and therefore the government should take all possible steps to minimise the adverse impact.

The former President said, according to certain claims, India and Sri Lanka are the only countries to have presented proposals to the US Special Trade Representative regarding the new US tariffs.

Former President Wickremesinghe noted that there is a distinct difference between Sri Lanka and India, as Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was able to bring US Vice President Vance down to his country for a four-day visit to offer a set of proposals regarding the revision of new tariffs.

The former President highlighted that Indian Prime Minister Modi had previously indicated that he is willing to support Sri Lanka and local companies, and therefore the government should act proactively in the matter.

Wickremesinghe, while recalling how US President Donald Trump contacted him and offered help following the 2019 Easter Sunday attacks, said through diplomatic channels, the present government should be able to minimise the impact the new tariffs will have on local companies.

Courtesy Adaderana

International Monetary Fund (IMF) Sri Lanka Mission Chief Evan Papageorgiou says Sri Lanka should restore cost-recovery electricity pricing as soon as possible to minimise fiscal risk and is essential to complete the fourth review of the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) program.

He stated this in response to a question raised during a virtual press conference on Tuesday (29).

He said the staff-level agreement is subject to IMF Executive Board approval, contingent on the implementation of prior actions relating to restoring electricity cost-recovery pricing and ensuring proper function of the automatic electricity price adjustment mechanism and the completion of financing assurances review, which will focus on confirming multilateral partners’ committed financing contributions and adequate debt restructuring progress.

Upon completion of the Executive Board review, Sri Lanka would have access to SDR254 million (about US$344 million), bringing the total IMF financial support disbursed under the arrangement to SDR1,270 million (about US$1,722 million).

Darini Rajasingham-Senanayake

The Easter Attacks, Mossad’s Foot Prints and Britain’s Keenie Meenie Mercenaries in Sri Lanka’s Eastern Province, and Ill Winds across the Indian Ocean

Leaders of the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka have called again for a new investigation into the Easter attacks staged six years ago. Meanwhile, a local political blame-game, starring Pillayan, to conceal the foreign finger prints and geopolitical motives of the attacks has ramped up.

The Easter suicide attacks claimed by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), which had no previous history in Buddhist and Hindu majority Sri Lanka, were a complex multi-sited logistics operation that was clearly remote controlled and coordinated. Mysteriously, the Islamist bombers targeted fellow minority Christians, rather than the Buddhist majority in the country despite claims that some nationalist Buddhist groups had harassed Muslims.

The attacks were designed by the Mastermind to target both the Economy and Society of the geostrategic island at the center of the Indian Ocean that sits on some of the most important energy, trade and Submarine or Undersea Data Cable (UDC), Routes in the world.  This by Weaponizing Religion/s

Subsequent, cover up investigations and copious Disinformation in the corporate and social media echo chamber, as well as, from national security think tanks, captured by foreign funders and experts have all but buried the external interests evident in the design and targets of the Islamic State (ISIS), claimed Easter crime that killed hundreds at Easter in 2019.

Earlier this year a smokescreen ‘investigation’ headed by the redoubtable sleuth Shani Aberysekere, of the Criminal Investigation Division was launched. This, seemingly to quiet Church leaders and public outcry that justice be served for the victims; and the Mastermind (Mahamolakaru), revealed. The Cover story about Pillayan once again masked the role of foreign intelligence agencies, both in the Easter crime and subsequent investigations. 

Yet despite and perhaps because of endless disinformation by local and foreign intelligence networks, such as the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) which removed the cell phones of the Easter suicide bombers, the Mastermind’s networks have become increasingly visible. This, given new information and geopolitical developments in the Indian Ocean region.

ISIS targets a Chinese Research Vessel: Local-Global Networks

The Suicide bombers targeted a curious mix of four sea-side luxury hotels and three churches, signifying a hybrid attack on the tourism-dependent economy. Simultaneously, religion was weaponized to stage a distracting Cascade of violence”. Both the west and east coast of the country were hit in an operation calculated to conceal other Geopolitical targets.

Four Chinese marine scientists who were part of a research program with Sri Lanka’s National Aquatic Research Agency (NARA) were killed in the attacks at Kingsbury Hotel which overlooks South Asia’s busiest Port on Easter Sunday, 2019.

Remarkably the religiously motivated ISIS-inspired Easter bombers had targeted a Chinese Marine research mission whose ship the Shi Yan-3, was berthed in the Colombo Port, as well as, Chinese owned Shangri La hotel. Indeed, the lead suicide bomber Zaharan exploded his bomb at Shangi La Hotel, along with another bomber, and NOT at any religious establishment.

War religion used as a smoke screen, a false flag, by the Mastermind of the Easter carnage to distract from its Geopolitical Motives and Message?

Both the US and lately India had expressed grave concern about any Chinese research ships that may visit the island. As more than 8 foreign intelligence agencies, including Australia’s ASIO and India’s RAW arrived in the country to investigate the Easter crime, it was revealed that while both India and Saudi Arabia had advance information about the attacks, only the Indian authorities had shared the information with the Sri Lankan authorities.

Wisdom of Hindsight: New Geopolitical Economic Developments

New developments, such as the statement of the nominee for the post of US Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Elizabeth K. Horst, at Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearings last year throw light on the geopolitical dimensions and international networks behind the Easter attacks in Sri Lanka. 

Speaking of Chinese marine research vessels Horst had stated: we have huge concerns and have asked for a moratorium. We think it is in Sri Lanka’s best interests”. After the Easter attack that killed the Chinese scientists, the research mission was aborted and the Shi-Yan 3 ship left the Colombo Port to return to China.

Was it an accident, coincidence or conspiracy that ISIS inspired suicide bombers killed four Chinese scientists and aborted a research mission, given US concerns about Chinese research vessels in the Seas of Sri Lanka? This happened just as a new hybrid economic Cold War led by the United States ramped up across the Indian Ocean targeting Chinese assets and the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) for global connectivity.

Geopolitical economic developments in Sri Lanka also throw retrospective light on the hybrid Easter crime.

The 2019 ISIS-claimed Easter attacks were a body blow to Sri Lanka’s tourism-dependent economy. This was followed by two years of Covid-19 Lockdowns in 2020-21. These Exogenous Economic Shocks to Make the Economy Scream” set the groundwork to stage Sri Lanka’s first ever Sovereign Default amid Lawfare by the shadowy off-shore Hamilton Reserve Bank in 2022, precipitated Sri Lanka into the waiting arms of the Washington Twins (IMF and World Bank). At this time, the Eurobond debt neocolonized country has lost economic sovereignty and policy autonomy to the IMF and bond holders of Odious debt, the largest being BlackRock.

From ISIS to I2U2: Mossad’s Foot Prints in the Eastern Province

Other geopolitical developments such as the emergence of the I2U2, comprising India, Israel, United Arab Emirates (UAE) and United States, also known as the QUAD targeting China in the highly militarized western Indian Ocean are relevant to understand how religion was weaponized at Easter Sunday 2019.

There is a long history of Israel’s Mossad operating in the Eastern Province of Sri Lanka where the lead Suicide Bomber hailed from and the mysterious Zion Church mushroomed.

Mossad and British SAS officers of Keenie Meenie KMS mercenaries arrived in the early 80s in Sri Lanka on the invitation of the Washington-backed J.R Jayawardena regime purportedly to help train Sri Lanka forces fight the Liberation Tigers (LTTE). The LTTE was backed by India, then closely allied to the Communist Block/Soviet Union/ Russia.

What unfolded then was a Cold War Proxy War between western allies keen to establish a military base near the strategic deep sea Trinocomalee harbour. This Cold War proxy war in Sri Lanka was glossed and masked as an internal ‘ethnic conflict’” in the geostrategic island amid population resettlement and social engineering under the Mahaweli Development Scheme.

July 1983: Onset of Cold War Proxy War in Sri Lanka

While India’s Role in the Cold War proxy war which structured conflict in in Sri Lanka is relatively well known the role of Western allies and their intelligence agencies and covert operation has remains relatively hidden.

After the staging of the July 1983 Pogrom/riots, camps for Mossad and KMS mercenaries to train Special Forces were set up in the Eastern Province while the Mahaweli scheme was ongoing.  Israeli Agricultural ‘experts’ entered Sri Lanka while Mossad’s training of Special paramilitary groups were under Ravi Jayawardena and later when the Indian Peace Keeping Forces (IPKF) occupied the northeast of Sri Lanka in 1987, these moved south including to Batalanda under the purview of Ranil Wickramasinghe, nephew of JR. Jayawardena.

Batalandaa has been in the media after the Al Jazeera interview with ex-President Ranil Wickramasinghe who was implicated in the Batalanda Commission Report. However, ‘Operation Colombo’ in Santiago de Chile which resonates with the Dirty war Disinformation remains unknown in Sri Lanka.

Some of the Special Forces and paramilitary groups trained by Mossad and British Special Air Service (SAS) officers of the Keenie Meenie (KMS) mercenaries in the Eastern Province in the mid-1980s were later implicated in war crimes and in the Batalanda terror and torture house networks and disappearances by Paramilitaries. South American Dirty War style killings and disappearances happened in Southern Sri Lanka in 1988-1990 after the STF moved south following the Indian Peace Keeping Forces (IPKF), moving into the northeast in August 1987.

Weaponizing Religion? Zionist Christians, Muslims and Chabad Houses in Sri Lanka

The staging of the Kattankudi mosque massacre and subsequent inter- and intra-community violence let to the LTTE expelling Muslims who were increasingly perceived as a ‘security threat’ from Jaffna in 1990. The same playbook had been used in Palestine to divide and colonize the various ethno-religious communities (Muslims, Christians), there in the guise of counter-terrorism.

Mossad has a great deal of Cold War expertise and experience weaponizing Islam in Palestine and other multi-religious countries, in partnership with Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, etc which have huge US military base.  Indeed, the Arab Muslim dominated Middel East and North Africa Region is the most violent region on the planet because of the link to Zionist Christian networks and the US-led NATO military business industrial complex. Indeed, Muslims have been used as its Cat’s paw and handmaiden with the Wahabi-Salfi- Islamist-ISIS global terror project.

Mossad trained and worked with Sri Lanka counter-terrorism” special forces, subsequently the Special Task Force (STF) to target and sunder long standing ties and trust between Muslims and Tamils in the Eastern Province

The UAE and India are now set to build a Liquid Natural Gas power plant in strategic Trincomallee Harbor according to a MOU inked between Sri Lanka President Anura Dissanayaka and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the latter’s recent visit to Sri Lanka.

Does I2U2 signal another vicious Arab Muslim-Zionist partnership for the New World Order across the multi-religious Indian Ocean world, or the onset of evangelical Christianity’s (a.ka. Christian Zionist), biblical ‘End Times’ for Palestine? Are these the same thing—now that the Saudis have graduated to being peace brokers” with the US war on Yemen ramping up, ironically after running the Wahabi-Salafi-Islamist/ ISIS weaponizaiton of religion project across the MENA and the Indian Ocean World for decades?

While I2U2 is said to be about economic corporation and soft power, it is also about normalizing the Abraham Accords and ethnic cleansing Gaza. In the context, the question arises at this time: Is India taking Sri Lanka for a ride with various defense agreements and energy MOUs, while being also taken for a Petrodollar fueled ride by the U2 (UAE and USA), as Zionists and Arab Muslims (Israel and UAE) become proxy partners in weaponizing religion/s, staging Clashes of Civilizations and other crimes across the Indian Ocean world and Afghanistan?

Moreover, recently Zionist Chabad houses have popped up in Arugam Bay, where the US Ambassador Julie Chung predicted a terror attack last year and issued travel warnings—to again crash Sri Lanka’s tourist dependent economy.

Revisiting the Evidence: Foreign Penetration of Investigative Agencies and Justice System

In the context of the clear geopolitical dimensions of the Easter attack, would it not be appropriate for the redoubtable Mr. Shani Abersekere to invite the former Attorney General Mr. Dappula De Livera who stated that there was a Conspiracy behind the Easter attacks? De Livera was harassed by the previous regime for saying so, but perhaps he should be given a chance to reveal what he had gleaned during his investigations.

So too, it would be appropriate to summon then head of the Institute for National Security Studies (INSSSL), Asanga Abeygoonesekere, who clearly told this writer that several foreign experts from Germany and Bangladesh had informed him that a leader of such a group as Zaharan’s National Thawheed Jamat would never kill himself in the first operation. In other words, the conspirators and mastermind were at large and did not die in Suicide attack despite FBI claims to the contrary.

A related question is: Do Petrodollars and/or Political Correctness play a role in the impunity and immunity of promiscuous Muslim Politicians like MLAM Hizbullah of Kattankudi, in the Eastern Province, where the lead bomber Zaharan hailed from? Hizbullah who was building a Sharia University had passed Saudi fund to Zaharan, and switched sides among all major political parties during his political career. Apprehending the no doubt dubious Tamil Pillayan instead of Hizbullah seems like a decoy especially since many of the bombers were Muslims from Kattankudy.

It is increasingly clear that the greater the penetration of national institutions by Western intelligence, security agencies, aid and experts, the greater the crises and never ending investigations. The US backed, (neo) liberal democracy of J.R. Jayawardena  (JR was nick named Yankie Dickie), saw the worst violence in Sri Lanka’s post-independence history, instrumentalizing and weaponizing linguistic and religious identity politics.. There were simultaneous Dirty wars ongoing when Mossad, British mercenaries and the Indian Peace Keeping Forces were in the north and south 1987-1993. While India’s Role in Sri Lanka’s conflict is relatively well known the role of Western allies remains hidden. The ISIS attacks were staged when Ranil Wickramasinghe was Prime Minisery.

Finally, the Pillayan story sold in lieu of the long promised genuine investigation into the Easter crime seems to have let the new President Anura Dissanayaka who appointed Shani Abeysekera to the top investigator job off the hook. Shani was parachuted in from retirement despite many questions about the adequacy of investigations conducted by the Criminal Investigation Department which he headed. So too, there are new questions as to how and why Mossad-linked, Zionist Chabad houses have mushroomed across the country and enjoy Sri Lanka military and the President’s protection at this time?

TO BE CONTINUED:

A History of Cover up Investigations and the Weaponization of Religion

PHIL MILLER

18 November 2020

A British mercenary kept working at Sri Lanka’s military headquarters in the late 1980s during a bloody crackdown on left-wing activists from the country’s Sinhalese majority, new evidence obtained by Declassified UK reveals.

Young people were disappeared or killed by Sri Lankan security forces during the second JVP uprising in the late 1980s (Photo: Journalists for Democracy in Sri Lanka)

• New revelations come as UK Metropolitan Police launch an unprecedented war crimes investigation into allegations British mercenaries were involved in atrocities against Sri Lanka’s Tamil minority in mid-1980s
• The new evidence was kept in a ‘cupboard’ at British High Commission in Sri Lanka for over three decades and not given to National Archives
• Foreign Office claims to UN ‘we do not believe they add anything of substance’ to the allegations against British mercenary firm Keenie Meenie Services
• Crackdown on leftists from 1988-89 used the ‘Jakarta Method’ of exterminating Marxist sympathisers, killing around 60,000 people

British mercenaries were active in Sri Lanka for up to a year longer than previously thought, Declassified has found.

The company for which they worked, Keenie Meenie Services (KMS), kept an intelligence officer stationed at Sri Lankan military operations headquarters during the brutal suppression of one of the country’s left-wing organisations in 1988–89.

Around 60,000 people, mostly students, are alleged to have been killed by Sri Lanka’s security forces during a crackdown on the People’s Liberation Front (Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna or JVP), a controversial leftist movement drawn from the majority Sinhalese ethnic group.

Shenali D Waduge

It is shocking that Sri Lanka’s stature in the global arena & among the diplomatic community has stooped to an all-time low. When a proud Sri Lanka proposed in 1971 the Indian Ocean as a Zone of Peace, a resolution was passed in the UNGA 2832 (XXVI). Today, successive leaders & their policy stooges have ignored the vision of that Resolution & has over the years diminished Sri Lanka’s sovereignty to a level where our leaders are even agreeing to divest critical national security assets for foreign companies to manufacture warships. The citizens of Sri Lanka, must unite to object to Sri Lanka’s geographic location becoming prostituted for geopolitical goals of others while make the lives of Sri Lanka’s vulnerable. The proposal for a Zone of Peace was by one of Sri Lanka’s greatest leaders Madam Sirimavo Bandaranaike whose proposal was greatly supported by China in 1971. It is a pity Sri Lanka has no farsighted leaders with pragmatic vision.

A_RES_2832(XXVI)-EN

Historical importance of the Indian Ocean

The 3^rd largest ocean in the world, it plays a pivotal role in global trade, geopolitics & ecology.

The Indian Ocean covers about 20% of the Earths water surface & borders West & East Africa, North & South Asia, East & South East Asia, Australia, South Ocean near Antarctica.

About 38 countries (littoral & hinterland) of which 25 directly bordering the Indian Ocean (10 states in African East Coast), 4 states in Middle East & West Asia, 6 states in South Asia, 5 states in South East Asia & Australia.

13 countries however are strategically engaged in hinterland or with littoral states through port agreements, naval bases or other geopolitical interests. This countries include France, UK, US, China, Japan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Iran, Qatar, Israel, Turkey & South Korea.

There are also important chokepoints –

Strait of Hormuz  – strategically important energy transit point (Between Oman & Iran) 21m barrels of oil daily passed through Indian Ocean in 2023 (20% of global oil consumption)

Strait of Malacca (between Malaysia & Indonesia) – is the shortest route between Indian & Pacific Oceans. 100,000 vessels transit annually carrying 25% of global trade. This lane is vulnerable to piracy & congestion.

Bab el-Mandeb (between Yemen & Djibouti) – connecting Indian Ocean to the Red Sea & Suez Canal. 62m barrels of oil pass daily (large container traffic)

as well as strategically important islands in the Indian ocean – Sri Lanka, Maldives, Mauritius, Seychelles, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Diego Garcia.

The Indian Ocean is home to around 2.7billion people spanning 3 continents.

The Indian Ocean hosts the major shipping lanes, energy routes & is of significant geopolitical interest to all major powers.

80% of the world’s maritime oil trade passes through the Indian Ocean

40% of global trade by volume moves through the Indian Ocean

1/3 of worlds bulk cargo & half of container traffic moves across the Indian Ocean sea lanes.

Servicing these are critical Ports in Chennai, Mumbai, Kochi in India, Durban in South Africa, Mombasa in Kenya, Port Klang, Tanjung Pelepas in Malaysia, Singapore, Dubai & Sallalh in Oman & Port of Colombo, in Sri Lanka.

One has to wonder if the sudden pirate” issue emerging in early 2010s was a justification to militarize & increase surveillance for the superpowers using the Indian Ocean for strategic goals.

The Indian Ocean is the artery of global trade especially energy. Control over its lanes, controls global economic stability.

Historic importance of the Indian Ocean

Since 3000 BCE the Indian Ocean has been an ancient maritime trade hub connecting Africa, Middle East, South Asia & South East Asia.

It was the Silk Road of the sea for spices, textiles, gold, & an exchange between ancient civilizations.

Buddhism spread to South East Asia, Islam reached Indonesia & East Africa & Hinduism influences regions through the oceans.

Controlling the seas was key to empire building -thus the Portuguese, Dutch, British & French fought naval battles to dominate trade routes & colonize coastal terrain.

Eventually the British Empire controlled major choke points – Aden, the Maldives, Mauritius & Ceylon (Sri Lanka)

Presently, the Indian Ocean is claimed by QUAD (US-India-Japan-Australia) while they claim China is building its String of Pearls.

Fortunately, or unfortunately, Sri Lanka is at the centre of the Indian Ocean. Close to the major east-west shipping routes (Colombo & Hambantota Port are pivotal for global maritime logistics) and the geographic value of Sri Lanka is a prize for geopolitical rivalries competing to secure Sri Lanka for its own geopolitical & trade goals.

Sri Lanka’s call in 1971 for the Indian Ocean to become a Zone of Peace” is important in taking to account how important Indian Ocean is & the militarization of the Indian Ocean that is now unfolding.

Key aspects of the UN Resolution 2832 (XXVI) – Indian Ocean as a Zone of Peace (1971)

1. Demilitarization – urging global powers, especially nuclear states to refrain from military build-ups & to dismantle existing military bases in the Indian Ocean region.

• Geopolitical Neutrality – to shield the Indian Ocean from rivalries, maintaining it as a neutral space to avoid tension among superpowers.

• Protect Sovereignty – respecting sovereignty & independence of all littoral & hinterland states in the Indian Ocean region.

• Freedom of Navigation – unimpeded maritime movement ensuring Indian Ocean remains open to peaceful use by all nations.

• Dialogue & Cooperation – regional & international consultations involving Security Councils permanent members & major maritime users to formulate the regions peaceful status.

How relevant is Sri Lanka’s Zone of Peace Resolution now?

Indian Ocean is the new theatre of activity which makes promotion of the Zone of Peace essential.

Increased naval exercises by global powers, increased strategic agreements & defense pacts are all leading to increased tensions & making citizens of littoral & hinterland states apprehensive.

While Sri Lanka’s leaders were pragmatic & forward thinking enough to foresee the scenario in the Indian Ocean way back in 1971 to promote the Zone of Peace, Sri Lanka’s present leaders lack foresight or vision.

Sri Lanka’s leaders instead of taking advantage of Sri Lanka’s geopolitical location to Sri Lanka’s advantage have doled out Sri Lanka to the advantage of rival nations competition with each other & now using Sri Lanka as a political football.

Sri Lanka has found itself caught between rivalries for lack of ability to stand up against power players and negotiating deals not from the bearer of a beggar’s bowl. That Sri Lanka’s leaders have made Sri Lanka vulnerable & dependent on foreign investment, economic reliance & trapped into divesting all that is precious to Sri Lanka is tragic.

The argument that Sri Lanka has to divest in order to repay debt is not a solution. If Sri Lanka’s leaders & policy makers divest all that Sri Lanka holds dear & how is Sri Lanka to survive with nothing to make income from & perhaps more loans to repay?

While Sri Lanka’s leaders have signed secret agreements with India’s PM, it has been revealed that one of these agreements is to divest Sri Lanka’s Colombo Dockyard to an Indian company. This action is a direct violation of Sri Lanka’s own Zone of Peace” resolution. Handing over a critical maritime asset to a major regional power undermines Sri Lanka’s own vision & Sri Lanka will only be opening the door to geopolitical leverage & military industrial entanglement in Sri Lanka’s own waters.

Sri Lanka’s leaders cannot be ignorant of India’s regional history especially when India secretly trained & armed guerilla warfare in Sri Lanka while also sending Indian troops who committed mass crimes. India’s economic blockade on Nepal in 2015, cutting electricity to Bangladesh in 2024 & the recent military tensions between India & Pakistan while also forcing Sri Lanka to cancel military exercises with Pakistan are signs Sri Lanka’s leaders are signing off Sri Lanka’s sovereignty, betraying the citizens of Sri Lanka. A strategic shipyard under foreign control reduces maritime autonomy & poses a national security risk, surrendering Sri Lanka’s infrastructure diminishes long-term self-reliance & economic independence especially when Sri Lanka has talented people working at the dockyard. We were a nation that took orders to build mighty ships for foreign kings.

The spirit of Sri Lanka’s 1971 Zone of Peace UN Resolution is lost when alongside the buildup of militarization of ports & sea lanes, proxy naval competition via infrastructure deals, nuclear competitions & undermining & bullying of smaller nations to which is added Sri Lanka divesting its assets for warship manufacture to foreign company. This proposed handover is far more than a commercial deal – it’s a strategic realignment with deep implications for Sri Lanka’s future & it diminishes the proud historical past of Sri Lanka and will diplomatically places Sri Lanka as a vassal state.

How shortsighted & foolish can Sri Lanka’s leaders be?

Shenali D Waduge

ආචාර්‍ය සුදත් ගුණසේකර. මහනුවර 27.4/25.

(Indo-Lanka energy agreements revealed (by Udaya Gammanpila)

2025.Apr 27 ™

මෝඩි-අනුර ගිවිසුම් ඉන්ග්‍රීසි, හින්දි සහ අරාබි භාෂාවලින් පමණක් සකස්කොට ඇති බවද සින්හල භාෂාවෙන් එය නැති බවද  ගම්මන්පිල මහතා පවසා ඇති බැවින් අදාල ගිවිසුම් වල ඇති නීත්‍යානුකූල භාවය පිළිබඳවද බරපතල නීතිමය ගැටළුවක්ද ඇත.ගිවිසුමේ ප්‍රධාන පාර්ෂවකරු වන මේ රටේ රාජ්‍ය භාෂාව වූ සින්හල භාෂාවෙන් එය නොතිබීම නීති ගැටළුවක් වීමට අමතරව එය හිතා මතාම මේ රටේ අයිතිකරුවන් වන සින්හලයින්ට කරණ ලද බරපතල අවමානයක් සහ නින්දාවක් ද බව කිව යුතුය.

එමනිසා මේ රටේ පරමාධිපත්‍ය ඇති සමස්ත ජනතාව, පාර්ලිමෙන්තුව මෙන්ම නීතිපතිවරයාගේද එසේම නීති විසාරධයින්ගේද  දැඩි හා ක්ශනික අවධානය මෙයට යොමුවිය යුතුයයි මම සිතමි.

By Palitha Ariyarathna 

The recent exposition of the Sacred Tooth Relic was a monumental event that demonstrated the profound spiritual devotion of Sri Lankans. Held from April 18 to April 27, 2025, it marked the first public display of the relic in 16 years. The event drew over 500,000 devotees to the Dalada Maligawa in Kandy, a testament to the sacred relic’s importance in Buddhist culture. However, while spiritually uplifting, the event revealed significant challenges in managing such a large gathering.

The Dalada Maligawa is one of Sri Lanka’s most revered religious sites, serving as the spiritual heart of the nation. Housing the Sacred Tooth Relic of the Buddha, this temple is a beacon of Buddhist culture and tradition. The relic, believed to be the left canine tooth of the Enlightened One, holds an extraordinary place in Sri Lanka’s history. It was brought to the island in the 4th century AD by Prince Danta and Princess Hemamali during the reign of King Kirti Sri Meghavarna. For centuries, the relic has symbolized the sovereignty of rulers, safeguarded as a divine testament to their legitimacy and spiritual connection to the Dhamma. Today, the Dalada Maligawa continues to attract millions of pilgrims each year, serving as a place for devotees to seek blessings and deepen their faith. Recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Kandy represents the cultural and spiritual legacy of Sri Lanka.

This year’s exposition allowed devotees to visit within a fixed time frame, typically between 11:00 AM and 5:30 PM daily. During peak days, over 120,000 devotees venerated the Sacred Tooth Relic, underscoring the logistical challenges posed by such massive crowds. Across the 10-day period, total attendance numbers were expected to exceed two million. The event’s scale highlighted the urgent need for better crowd management strategies and infrastructure planning.

While this year’s exposition was a profoundly significant event, it also highlighted logistical challenges that need to be addressed. The massive influx of devotees, coupled with unseasonal heat, led to severe health emergencies. Over 420 individuals required medical assistance within a single day, and tragically, three deaths were reported during the event. The streets surrounding the temple were left strewn with litter, as the lack of adequate waste disposal facilities failed to accommodate the crowds. Traffic congestion further exacerbated frustrations, with queues stretching up to 10 kilometers. Additionally, the introduction of a separate VIP queue caused unrest, sparking protests among ordinary devotees who felt neglected after waiting in extreme conditions.

Moving forward, it is essential to adopt a more structured and comprehensive approach to crowd management for future events. A pre-registration system could be implemented to control the number of visitors each day. This system could be organized by district to ensure equitable access across the country. Each district could be allocated a fixed number of attendance slots, helping to distribute crowd density more evenly. Local temples and government offices could assist those without internet access in registering, ensuring that no devotee is excluded. To further streamline the experience, visitors could be assigned specific time slots for entering the venue. Additionally, incorporating real-time monitoring through surveillance systems would allow authorities to track crowd movement and respond promptly to any issues.

Creating temporary resting and assistance zones in large empty spaces such as stadiums or grounds near the Dalada Maligawa could provide significant relief for attendees. These zones could include shaded areas, hydration points, medical aid stations, and overnight stay facilities for those traveling long distances. Organizing scheduled relocations from these zones to the main queues could further alleviate congestion and reduce physical strain on devotees, especially the elderly and children.

Upgrading public facilities in and around the temple is another key consideration. Increasing the availability of sanitation facilities and shaded waiting areas is essential for maintaining comfort and dignity during events of this scale. Dansals, or free food distribution points, could be expanded to meet the needs of larger crowds.

Traffic management strategies also require attention. Designated parking areas and shuttle services to transport devotees into Kandy could help ease congestion. Collaborating with transportation authorities to implement temporary road closures and controlled diversions would further streamline vehicular and pedestrian traffic.

Security must also be a priority. Deploying specialized security teams trained in crowd management, installing access control systems, and using surveillance tools such as thermal imaging can enhance safety. Emergency response teams should be on standby to address unforeseen incidents, and clear communication protocols should be established to guide attendees in case of emergencies.

I bore witness to the full spectrum of human experiences—pain, grief, joy, and camaraderie—all woven into the fabric of this extraordinary event. While some viewed the ceremony through lenses of jealousy—political, religious, cultural, and business rivalries—the community spirit flourished nonetheless. As a native of Mahanuwara, I felt a deep connection to the collective effort displayed by the people of the region. Many devotees expressed gratitude, saying, We had enough food and everything we needed from your area. Thank you so much.” This statement is a powerful testament to the unity and generosity born from shared spiritual devotion, reminding us that compassion and gratitude are the true essence of such gatherings.

Maha Nuwara – Kandy’s unique geographic location as a hill city brings both charm and challenges. The limited availability of land and resources imposes constraints on large-scale infrastructure expansion. To overcome these barriers, it is essential for authorities to adopt innovative and strategic approaches to urban planning.

One possible solution involves utilizing nearby towns or areas outside Kandy as satellite hubs for event-related facilities. Temporary shelters, parking lots, and waste disposal systems can be established in these satellite locations, with shuttle services transporting devotees to the Dalada Maligawa. This decentralized approach reduces the strain on Kandy’s infrastructure while maintaining accessibility.

Additionally, leveraging technology to manage crowds and traffic virtually can be transformative. Pre-registration systems, AI-driven crowd monitoring, and real-time updates on queue lengths and parking availability could optimize resource utilization without requiring physical expansions.

Waste management systems need specific attention. Building advanced recycling facilities or collaborating with nearby regions to process waste could address the environmental impact of events. Portable waste disposal units and public education campaigns focused on reducing litter can also help maintain Kandy’s scenic beauty.

These strategies take into account Kandy’s geographic limitations while addressing the needs of large-scale gatherings. Implementing such measures would preserve the city’s heritage and infrastructure for future generations.

The government holds a significant responsibility in addressing the challenges posed by high-attendance events like the Sacred Tooth Relic exposition. Proper planning, infrastructure development, and systematic management are essential to ensure the safety and comfort of devotees while preserving the sanctity of such gatherings.

One of the most crucial steps is gathering comprehensive data from recent events. Detailed records of health emergencies, crowd density patterns, environmental impact, traffic congestion, and overall logistics should be compiled into a robust report. This evidence-based approach will allow authorities to identify gaps in infrastructure and operations, as well as design effective solutions for future events. Such a report should become a blueprint for strategic improvements, not only in Kandy but across the country.

Infrastructure development is fundamental. Building larger, more accessible roads, increasing parking facilities, enhancing public amenities, and creating dedicated waste management systems are long-term investments that would benefit not only religious gatherings but also the city’s overall functionality. Improved waste management, in particular, should be a priority, as the litter and environmental strain from the recent event underline the need for sustainable systems. Setting up more waste disposal points, recycling programs, and educating the public on responsible waste management could be transformative.

Furthermore, having structured policies for crowd management and event planning ensures accountability and consistency. The government should allocate budgets for conducting studies, implementing recommendations, and collaborating with local authorities and stakeholders to ensure inclusive participation.

The exposition of the Sacred Tooth Relic is much more than a public gathering; it is a profound reflection of Sri Lanka’s Buddhist values. True VIPs in Buddhism are not recognized by their worldly privileges or status but by their spiritual achievements. By cultivating Sīla (morality), Samādhi (concentration), and Paññā (wisdom), devotees can aspire to embody the principles of Sotāpanna, Sakadāgāmi, Anāgāmi, or Arahant. These qualities, rather than material distinctions, truly honor the teachings of the Buddha and serve as an inspiration for building harmony and compassion in society.

“I have witnessed those who disregarded the Buddha’s teachings in every aspect of life—politically, culturally, and irreligiously—come forward during the Sacred Tooth Relic exposition to venerate Sri Danthadanu Hamuduruwo. Let this sacred act serve as a reminder: if you are truly a person of integrity and morality, not just a bearer of a ‘good name,’ then worshipping the Buddha must be more than tradition—it must be a heartfelt gratitude. This gratitude should extend to those who have tirelessly fought to protect the true existence of Sri Dalada Whansa, for they embody the essence of a true Sinhala Buddhist.”

By Palitha Ariyarathna 

(As of 27 April 2025, 5:30 PM)

Analyst of Buddhist Affairs, Desha Abhimani Surya Vansa Ratna Vibhushan President of TCFBI PEC (Unethical Conversion of Buddhist) International Co-ordinator, TCFBI Convenor, President, and Founder of Sinhala Buddhist Policy Centre Secretary, Hela Abhimani National Foundation Author, Publisher, and Journalist from Senkadagala Sinha Dwaraya

JICA Volunteer Team Member and Secretary for the Commercial Grid, Specialist in Large-Scale Project Management, with Hands-On Leadership in Beach Projects and Coastal Development  Oversaw safety protocols achieving zero casualties—both on land and water—for over one million participants in mass events.

Reference:

The exposition drew over 500,000 devotees over nine days, with significant waste management challenges and protests over VIP queues.

Schools in Kandy were temporarily closed to accommodate security personnel during the event.

The event concluded as scheduled after discussions with the President and religious leaders.

Daily attendance exceeded 120,000 devotees during peak days, with health emergencies and crowd management measures implemented.

The Kandy Municipal Council provided extensive support, including food distribution, public lavatories, and drinking water facilities.

Dr. Ruwan M Jayatunge M.D PhD 

In his book Medusa’s Hair: An Essay on Personal Symbols and Religious Experience, Gananath Obeyesekere – Professor of anthropology at Princeton University, discusses profound anthropological and psychological themes. He uses religious symbolism to explain psychopathologies that impact people and their outer society. He applies his knowledge of anthropology to analyze human behavior, human biology, culture, and society. He scrutinizes social life, social change, and the social causes, presenting a number of case studies.

It’s an in-depth discussion about psychodrama and the relationship between public and private symbols. It’s a cultural, anthropological, and psychological analysis. It is one of the ethnographic studies, and he uses the symbol of Medusa’s hair to describe and appraise his case studies.

Medusa’s head is an apotropaic symbol. Medusa represents trauma. It signifies misogyny, sexism, and the extreme misrepresentation of women. The myth of Medusa has been viewed through two distinct lenses over time: the male gaze and that of early feminism. Ultimately, Medusa became a symbol of female empowerment.

In ancient mythology, Medusa is a symbol of protection and best known for having hair made of snakes. The story of Medusa comes from the Roman poet Ovid. Medusa was a beautiful woman with long, flowing hair, and she was cursed by Athena. After the horrific curse, she turned into a monster. Her ability to turn anyone she looked at to stone symbolizes a transformative force.  

Medusa represents a complex interplay between good and evil and having an astounding legacy. Medusa was killed by the Greek hero Perseus. Instead of looking directly at Medusa, Perseus used a reflective surface of the polished shield to see her without becoming Medusa’s victim.

Although Medusa was destroyed, Medusa will remain destined to be misunderstood. Medusa’s story carries significant symbolism pertaining to guardianship and protection.   Freud’s 1923 essay The infantile genital organization” explains the concept of infantile sexuality in relation to the sexual life of adults. His short essay Das Medusenhaupt—TheMedusa’s Head (1922)—stated that Medusa’s head depicts a terror of castration, aka a reflection of the castration complex. To Freud, the female castration complex” refers to the belief that women have an envy for the penis.” Freud suggested that Medusa’s serpent hair is a metaphor for the hair surrounding a woman’s genital area (Sakulwattana, 2013).  Hence Freud viewed Medusa as the castration threat.

Carl Jung interpreted Medusa as the figure of the Great Mother. Jung viewed Medusa as Athena’s shadow, an archetype that personifies the unconscious as a figure of the same gender. Medusa may be understood as a psychological archetype of a young and beautiful woman being abused by a powerful man. God Poseidon represents a lustful man who is abusing his position of power.

The attachment theory uses the Medusa Complex to refer to a self-destructive early state of inwardly directed aggression produced by a disruption of the mother/child mutual gaze. A Canadian analytical psychologist, Marion Woodman, saw the Medusa complex as a dissociated state produced by paralysis of the fight-or-flight response in a state of petrified fear.

Medusa is a symbol of female rage. Medusa is a large part of a symbolic system. Symbolic systems play a crucial role in anthropology by helping to describe and understand how different cultures interpret the world around them. Symbolic systems in anthropology are studied through ethnographic methods, examining cultural symbols, rituals, languages, and artifacts. People use language, art, and rituals to communicate, represent, and make sense of their social realities.

Medusa stands for the archetype of the so-called monstrous feminine, an exposé of patriarchal narratives that transform non-subservient women into monsters (Fremi, 2022). The Eastern European psychoanalyst Veronika Berkutova highlights that the Medusa myth unites psychoanalytic conceptions of castration anxiety with a feminist reflection on the topic of the female.

Professor Obeyesekere narrates the psychology of Medusa via real-life stories of the abused woman archetype. It’s mainly the victim archetype. A person with a strong victim archetype lives in fear. Fear that things are going to be taken away from them. Fear that people are going to take advantage of them. They have fear that they cannot survive. It’s not only the physical survival but the survival of their identity, their hopes and dreams, or their sense of self. They are forced to give up their own sense of independence and empowerment. 

Professor Obeyesekere explains, like Medusa, how an Indian woman with matted hair obtains her particular status in a society brimming with mythological images and tales very much pervading daily life. He indicates the conventional distinction between personal and cultural symbols is inadequate and naïve. He presents a number of women who lived through immense psychological trauma, later transformed, and then created a noxious safety net around them. Like Medusa, they reflected fear and angst. For Obeyesekere Medusa was an ongoing painful life experience of heavyhearted people who had no voice in their society. He was their anguish in an anthropological lens. 

In his book, the author analyzes the symbolism of guilt, the adaptational and integrative significance of belief in spirits, and a host of related issues concerning possession states and religiosity. He places an emphasis on the traditional anthropological and psychoanalytic theories of symbolism.  

Professor Obeyesekere provides exceptional case studies of a number of women who endured physical and sexual trauma. Most of the women reacted to their initial traumas with shock, fear, anxiety, confusion, and withdrawal. Most of them experienced depression, PTSD, and dissociation. They were transformed following their trauma. Professor Obeyesekere elucidates, like Medusa, that these women projected their anger onto society.

Medusa was sent to a faraway island and was cursed so that no man would want her.  She was roughened by Poseidon, and he rapes Medusa in Athena’s temple. Finally, Perseus kills her. Even after Medusa’s death, the course did not end. Perseus used her head as a weapon to eliminate his enemies. At the end, Perseus buried it in the marketplace of Argos. Medusa faced multiple victimizations.  

The story of Medusa is about sexual abuse and suffering. Snakes in her hair represent the knots of negative emotions and thoughts formed as a consequence of sexual abuse. Medusa is an image of evil to repel evil. The Medusa effect is a phenomenon in which people judge a person to be more mindful when they appear as a picture than as a picture within a picture.  

Professor Obeyesekere narrates about the Hindu goddess Kali. Kali is the ultimate expression of nature, both destructive and benevolent, and the principal deity of the Tantric cult. Kali is the personification of sin and represents death and destruction, sexuality, violence, and doomsday. A fierce deity who destroys all the redundant and wasteful beings and matters for cleansing the society, paving the way for new creation, is adored by the strong and the great (Mukhopadhyay, 2022).  Although there is no significant evidence that directly links the mythological figure of Medusa and the Hindu goddess Kali, we can find some thematic and symbolic parallels. Both Medusa and Kali symbolize feminine rage with embodied aspects of power and fear. 

Professor Obeyesekere discusses the symbolic integration of personality. An integrated personality is the sum total of harmonious expression of physical, mental, intellectual, energetic, and blissful self. It is a process through which all mental qualities come together to form a person. Carl Jung considered individuation to be the central process of human development. Jung believed that the human psyche had three parts: the ego, personal unconscious, and collective unconscious. By enduring psychological trauma, symbolic integration of personality could be damaged.

Obeyesekere indicates the symbolization of guilt in his case studies. Guilt is a complex emotion. Guilt represents the emotional burden stemming from sin and past actions, impacting individuals across generations. The phenomenon of guilt contains certain elements of shame, aggression, and vagueness. Guilt may interact with dissociative tendencies to specifically predispose individuals to acute dissociative states. Dissociation is evident in victims who suffered long-term physical, sexual, or emotional abuse during childhood.

We see numerous dissociative reactions in Obeyesekere ’s case studies. The impact of shame and guilt also contributes to dissociation. Moreover, Obsekara writes about possession states, especially spirit possession. Possession is defined as an episode of alteration in the state of consciousness with the replacement of the customary sense of personal identity by a new identity, identified by the patient or his entourage as the spirit of an animal, a deceased individual, a deity, or a power. The affected individuals have delusions of control in which there is a false belief that one’s thoughts, feelings, actions, or impulses are controlled or ‘made’ by an external agency. According to van Duijl and team (2010), the impact of potentially traumatizing events related to war, poverty, and societal disruption on the occurrence of dissociative and possessive trance disorders in developing countries.

Obeyesekere describes ghosts and demons. A demon is a malevolent supernatural entity. A ghost is the soul or spirit of a dead person or non-human animal that is believed by some people to be able to appear to the living. Although their existence is impossible to falsify, Obeyesekere‘s narrative has clinical significance in order to understand how these beliefs affect people and society.

Obeyesekere elegantly dealt with psychoanalysis and anthropology and indicated how personal symbolism is related to religious experience, symbolic meanings, personal mythology constructs, and psychological trauma and its transformation. The symbolic representation of mental images can be seen in traumatized individuals.  The symbolic function is central both to the fracturing of selfhood due to early trauma and to its resolution (Spermon et al., 2009). We can easily identify symbolic representation of mental images that were described in his case studies.

The distinction between symbolism and symbolization is important. A symbol might be an object, a mark, an image, a character, a name, or a place, whereas symbolism is a literary device that uses symbols to imbue meaning in a story. Symbols can be transformative.

Symbols are mediators between the pleasure principle and the reality principle (Bonomi, 2004). Trauma operates as a symbol; on the other hand, trauma destroys the capacity of symbolization. The ability to symbolize memories is of paramount importance during the process of coping with trauma (Na’ama et al., 2015).

As Wirtz (2009) specifies, the symbolic attitude is most essential for traumatized individuals because it reconnects the person with something beyond; it re-establishes a broken connection and facilitates a shift of attitude, a metanoia. We can find these features in the case studies that were presented in Professor Obeyesekere’s book. Furthermore, he provides a dichotomy between the symbolic and anti-symbolic reading of the traumatic experience that these people endured.

In phenomenological terms, trauma is an injury and manifestation of the lived body. Professor Obeyesekere highlights trauma reenactment or repetition compulsion, describing some of the case narratives.  We can easily identify reenacting relationships in his case studies. Most of them are trapped in the Karpman triangle. We see a lot of empathy in his writings, and indeed he viewed these victims with a compassionate eye.  

References

Bonomi, C. (2004). Trauma and the symbolic function of the mind. International Forum of Psychoanalysis, 13(1–2), 45–50. https://doi.org/10.1080/08037060410031052.  

Fremi S. Medusa, trauma-informed. Lancet Psychiatry. 2022 Jun;9(6):433-434. doi: 10.1016/S2215-0366(22)00143-2. PMID: 35569501.

Mukhopadhyay, A. (2022). Immortal Mahakali and Her Mortal Critics. International Journal online of Humanities 8(1):1-20 DOI:10.24113/ijohmn. v8i5.265.

Na’ama Eisenbach, Sharon Snir, Dafna Regev, Identification and characterization of symbols emanating from the spontaneous artwork of survivors of childhood trauma, The Arts in Psychotherapy, Volume 44, 2015, Pages 45-56, ISSN 0197-4556, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aip.2014.12.002.

Obeyesekere , G (1984).Medusa’s Hair: An Essay on Personal Symbols and Religious Experience. University of Chicago Press.

Spermon D, Gibney P, Darlington Y. Complex trauma, dissociation, and the use of symbolism in therapy. J Trauma Dissociation. 2009;10(4):436-50. doi: 10.1080/15299730903179083. PMID: 19821178.

Sakulwattana, J. (2013). Medusa Myth: Reflecting Human Collective Experiences of the Femaleness. JSEL.

van Duijl M, Nijenhuis E, Komproe IH, Gernaat HB, de Jong JT. Dissociative symptoms and reported trauma among patients with spirit possession and matched healthy controls in Uganda. Cult Med Psychiatry. 2010 Jun;34(2):380-400. doi: 10.1007/s11013-010-9171-1. PMID: 20401630; PMCID: PMC2878595.

Wirtz, U. (2009). The Symbolic Dimension of Trauma therapy. Published in: Symbolic Life, Spring Journal vol.82, p.31-52.

e-Con e-News

Posted byee ink.April 26, 2025Posted inUncategorizedTags:China, economy, India, politics, tariffs

blog: eesrilanka.wordpress.com

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

e-Con e-News 20-26 April 2025

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India’s External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar’s son Druva Jaishankar has joined a US War Department-linked thinktank to advise US President Donald Trump on their plans for war on China, while pushing Europe to also fight Russia. The younger Jaishankar is the Quad personified: half-Toyota, half-Tata & Totally Disoriental. The Marathon Initiative thinktank is a brainchild of Trump’s earlier Assistant Secretary of State for European & Eurasian Affairs, A Wess Mitchell. Mitchell has teamed up with former CIA director William Colby’s grandson Elbridge Colby, now the third-ranking official at the Pentagon, as Trump’s Undersecretary of Defense for Policy.

     Colby wishes to fabricate a ‘counter-hegemonic coalition’ in Asia, against China. Both Mitchell and Colby are considered anti-China hawks. They spend their time ‘sequencing’ world wars – which countries should the US attack first, second, and third, or all at once: Iran, Russia and/or China. The Marathon thinktank is expected to stuff dollars in their potted bellies as fast as the US Treasury print them, and the Pentagon finds ways to burn them in forever wars. The Jaishankars appear overjoyed to stage such wars (see ee Quotes, Marathon). They wish the NPP government to tag along, tail wagging.

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‘International media reported that the US has shown a willingness

to use trade concessions to isolate China – potentially by lowering

tariffs for third countries, like Sri Lanka, in exchange for those

countries preventing China from shipping goods through their territory.’

– ee Economists, Lankan Delegation to Meet US Trade Chief on Tuesday

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Last week, the NPP apparently refused entry to a Pakistani naval vessel. They then entertained a US-colonized-Korean junk, armed to the teeth. Pakistan, like China, Russia & Iran, has always stood with Sri Lanka, through thick and thin, while the US & India, England and Europe, have waged war, covert & overt, against the country.

     Veteran Communist leader DEW Gunasekera suggested last week, the NPP government is bent on creating chaos: Not only the government but the opposition too, all feigning a studied ignorance about the larger world foaming and frothing around us. This week, CPSL leader G Weerasinghe declared, that having made Sri Lanka totally dependent on the USA, the ruling merchants wish to abase ourselves even further to the war-mongering imperialist camp (see ee Random Notes, CPSL).

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Comments by US Vice-President JD Vance in India suggests that the US deeply seeks to massage Indian conflict with China, proclaiming India’s supposed economic power and provoking border conflicts, to threaten the routes through which China takes its oil from West Asia across the Indian Ocean to China.

     The US is also using Europe to threaten the northern route, the Russians have developed to carry oil from Russia to China. They want to use India to begin to assert control over the Indian Ocean potentially against Chinese movement of oil to China. Vance’s recent statements in India indicate the belief that the US can manipulate India into an even more hostile posture towards China. It regards the Quad as an anti-Chinese alliance. Indian may not fully see it that way, but this is the plan of the Australian Japanese and US point of view.

     Having replaced England and France as the top colonial power in West Asia, the US government wants to cement its domination of West Asia and constrain or limit China’s access to the fossil fuel resources of the region. This is why West Asia is crucial to international trade routes. The US foreign policy elite decades ago decide to destroy 7 West Asian states, first the secular and then the religious, to cement their control of the resources and trade. (see ee Sovereignty, Trump’s ’Grand Protection Racket’)

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Vance, playing angel of death, met with Pope Francis, who then died one day later. Vance & his Indian visa-wife then waddled to India, where US allies in India & Pakistan staged a massacre in India-held Kashmir. The last massacre in Kashmir was when US President B Clinton (‘Killington’ as Sri Lankans evocatively elocute him) came to visit. Wearing eyeliner made in China, the Yale-educated & PayPal-funded hillybillly Vance, also took time off to call the Chinese, ‘peasants’. ‘Peasant’, to the meth-brained faux hillbilly, is a bad word. Yet the synonyms for a peasant – goviya, paisan, fella, are words for cultivators, beloved around the world, for they provide us food. Pity the over-skooled kraka!

     Meanwhile, a lot of ink was spilled groaning about the failure to name the ‘mastermind’ behind the April 2019 terror, with the US and India providing their ‘evidence.’ In the classic Japanese movie Rashomon, there are as many versions as there are witnesses to one murder, yet here everybody is being implicated. From the assassination of SWRD Bandaranaike to the mass sackings of July 1980 to the pogroms of July 1983 and the horror of the late1980s onward, all our great intellects can only offer their doubts, and like social scientists submitting a grant proposal keep stating ‘This matter needs further investigation’…

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A foreigner who has acquired a US dollar in 1982 by sacrificing

a dollar’s worth of a real good or service has been condemned

to hold a worthless piece of paper today. Therefore, by having

a trade deficit with other countries, it is the US citizens who

have looted from the citizens of those countries. Hence, instead

of punishing them, Trump administration should compensate them.’

– WA Wijewardena (see ee Economists, Trump(dis)order:

Harsh tariffs rates – wrong philosophy & wrong formula)

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Meanwhile, a Sri Lankan delegation met with the IMF’s masters in Washington, who then divulged the terms under which Trump’s tariffs are being weaponized to buy temporary friends and destroy their permanent enemies. The NPP visit is being touted as a win-win, for Sri Lanka has passed yet another ‘review’. These ‘reviews’ appear to be as excruciating and never-ending as their human-rights versions. Another EU delegation is expected, which is threatening to get their citizens not to wear our underwear threaded fully with foreign imports, unless we remove our prevention of terrorism act!

     Indeed, as Henry Kissinger reminded us: it is dangerous to be their enemy, and absolutely fatal to be their friend. Kissinger perhaps stole his aphorism from Karl Marx, who noted that the English treated their Indian allies like the Romans did theirs: fattening them before they were worth devouring (see ee Quotes). The question is when the USA will decide to gobble Sri Lanka’s bribed classes whole, who have been fattened so well by the import-export plantation farce. The US also wishes to, among other demands, put Sri Lanka’s relatively lean populace on a high-fat diet!

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Not only do we not have the capacity to fatten more chickens with the USA’s (genetically engineered) soy, which is our biggest agricultural import from the US, Rathindra Kuruwita records (see ee Focus) that the poultry industry here is overproducing right now. Increasing US imports would be neither ‘economically viable nor strategically sound’, without first bolstering domestic production through state-led industrialization. Trump’s tariffs are gifting us a grand opportunity to re-imagine our economic policies, but we should not be rushed into ‘making hasty bilateral concessions without a strategic long-term vision’.

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Meanwhile, our mollycoddled, thoroughly fake, ‘manufacturers’ are threatening to ‘Walk the Palk’ to India, ‘where export access to the US’ will be significantly cheaper. But this export bull, beloved by our economists, has to cease. Sri Lanka’s best hope lies ‘not in bilateral deals but in collective bargaining’ with other ‘recovering’ colonies, facing similar disabilities,  a structural rethinking of Sri Lanka’s trade & industrial policies. The current US tariff game is being sold as ‘a short-term diplomatic problem’, but it has exposed ‘the long-standing weaknesses in Sri Lanka’s economic model. We have lost decades, marooned in low-skill manufacturing which is fully addicted to imports.’ ‘This is the moment to rethink everything, from how we produce to what we consume, & whom we trade with’. Meanwhile, there is no shortage of those promoting a servant… oops… service economy and destroying the remnants of any manufacturing, primitive as they may be – and by ‘primitive’ we mean the pre-industrial methods of production.

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Shiran Illanperuma (see ee Focus) explains, why is manufacturing ‘so special’? – He points to the ‘transformative nature of manufacturing and its unique ability to drive economic growth, generate technical innovation, and provide positive spillovers to other sectors. Manufacturing profits provide the basis on which modern services thrive.’ However, thanks to our merchants, ‘Sri Lanka exhibits the telltale signs of ‘premature de-industrialization’, which has become a trend in underdeveloped countries. The importance of modern industry is exhibited in the ‘US ruling class’s panic over China’s rapid industrialization, which has shifted the centre of gravity of the world economy towards Asia and threatens their ‘unipolar’ dominance.

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‘What we are dealing with is a legacy of China

having never properly transitioned from its

Soviet-era Material Product System (MPS)

system of national accounts to the UN System

of National Accounts standard. MPS accounting

is only concerned with material production. Services

are considered costs of production & excluded by design.’

– Han Feizi (ee Economists, Consumption in China: Is it really that bad?)

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• With yet another election around the corner, the PM Harini ‘the Harried’ Amarasuriya, has called municipal administrations: the ‘nursery’ of corruption. The oh-so-spotless US & their Europeons are also ever ready to give us yet another lecture on corruption. This ee recalls the role of that ‘most ingenious and most pretentious’ of yankee political influence peddlers in the USA: The late 18-20^th-century tale of the ‘Tammany Hall’ machinery that controlled New York, using ingenious methods that were soon spread by their missionaries of vendable democracy across the world. The ‘American’ style of ‘democracy’ – a particular subspecies of capitalist politics, is evident in our take on Gustave Myers’ 1917 History of Tammany Hall.  We thought of Tammany, after hearing the earnest and ubiquitous US Professor Jeffrey Sachs (who helped dismantle the former USSR and now repents). At a meal organized by the Exxon-Rockefeller-funded Asia Society in Hong Kong, Sachs claimed that the current state of US politics had to do with the increasing capture of the political process by moneyed interests, which has become more evident in the last 30 years. The Tammany Hall story, which involves the origins of the Chase-Manhattan bank and the JP Morgan fortunes, tells us how organized plunder & corruption is a great and long English & US tradition, where only the suckers who do not rob enough, get crucified in full display.

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Contents:

India joining USA Wants Sri Lanka to Wage War on Asia

Shenali D Waduge

Indo-Pak tensions, African civil wars, Middle Eastern border crises all share a root cause – these are all artificial borders created by colonial invaders as part of their Divide & rule policy. While former colonial powers tell the former colonies to forgive & forget” move on” & close the chapter of colonial crimes, no former colonies can move forward because every issue they currently face are all legacies planted during colonial rule. Artificial borders they drew still bleed, conflicts & communal divisions they engineered still burn, systems they imposed still oppress. The past is not past when its consequences still continue to define our present. However, the current scenario unraveling between India & Pakistan is of concern. We do not wish to see any more bloodshed. Sri Lanka must take a leaf from Mrs. Sirimavo Bandaranaike’s diplomacy & launch a mini Non-Aligned Peace Dialogue to help reduce the tensions as well as pledge all member nations to reiterate Indian Ocean as a Zone of Peace. Terrorists have no caste, religion, ethnicity or nationality. They are hired freedom fighters”. Terrorists have no allegiance. They will even turn against those that created them. Therefore, terrorists should be shunned globally. 

The present Indo-Pak conflict is another colonial legacy. Religious divisions between Hindus & Muslims became a political tool & that hatred continues. When Britain partitioned India the Radcliffe Line was drawn in just 5 weeks with no understanding of the region, splitting villages, communities & rivers – it resulted in over 1million deaths, largest forced migration.

Kashmir unresolved border is a colonial legacy that led to the first Indo-Pak war. British failed to define outcome of princely states” like Jammu & Kashmir. Technically they were free to join either India or Pakistan. Kashmir had a Muslim-majority population but a Hindu ruler Maharaja Hari Singh. In 1947 he signed the instrument of accession to India” which led to eventual division of Kashmir but not a legal international border. Britain is responsible for fostering separate religious electorates conceptualizing religious identity as a political tool. Unnatural boundaries & religious politics make a lethal combination, a scenario applicable not only to Kashmir.

Mini-NAM Peace Initiative – People to People Initiatives 

Inviting all Non-Aligned Member Nations as well as neutral global powers & launch an Indo-Pak Peace Fellowship for youth & scholars.

Sri Lanka has played a pivotal & historic role as a founding member in the non-aligned movement & has the credibility to lead such an initiative having ended 30 years of terrorism.

The framework for the Summit is to renew trust & reduce tensions, to de-escalate a brewing conflict and facilitate dialogue.

Sri Lanka must reach out through informal diplomatic channels to friendly third parties of both Pakistan & India & key NAM allies to support the effort, not forgetting the global south powers. Sri Lanka’s Foreign Ministry must play a strategic role in dispatching confidential exploratory notes, expressing intent & inviting informal feedback. A steering committee comprising senior diplomats, conflict resolution experts, former NAM officials & youth representatives must be part of this initiative.  

The Summit can be titled Island of Dialogue: Sri Lanka’s Call for Peace in the Subcontinent” with hashtag #PeaceFromOurIsland. Film makers/documentary makers must be encouraged to come up with a short film on shared Indo-Pak heritage & good times shared. The Summit can perhaps end with a Colombo Peace Charter.

The Indian Ocean must be reclaimed as a Zone of Peace, not a playground for global powers. 

For centuries, this ocean was a bridge for trade, culture, and migration — connecting East Africa, South Asia, and Southeast Asia. Today, it risks becoming a theater for military competition and proxy conflicts. 

For centuries our ancestors have used the Indian Ocean to carry ships not submarines, trade not tensions, unity not war. In this new developed 21^st century that Non-Aligned aspiration for an Indian Ocean Zone of Peace cannot become a theatre of war. 

Superpowers cannot be allowed to play chess with our sovereignty. We are not pawns to bleed to satisfy geopolitical goals. 

By refusing to sign foreign defense pacts, the nations of the Indian Ocean region can reject the militarization of their waters and assert their right to sovereignty & peace. 

This also requires Sri Lanka to relook at all agreements / MOUs signed compromising Sri Lanka’s territory & Indian Ocean peace.

Sri Lanka must not sign any defense pacts or withdraw any pacts signed that militarizes the Indian Ocean & divides into spheres of influence.

The Indian Ocean belongs to its littoral states — not to distant empires, foreign navies, or military blocs. To honor the legacy of the Non-Aligned Movement, and to secure true independence, we must demand demilitarization, promote regional cooperation, and restore the Indian Ocean as a shared space of peace, not power.

The Peace Summit must call upon all coastal nations from Africa to South Asia to South East Asia to reject defense pacts that create foreign conflicts. There should be no foreign military bases in littoral states, no military alliances that lead to regional tensions, environmental protection of our shared waters & respect for sovereignty. 

UN General Assembly Resolution 2832 (XXVI) 1971 adopted on 16 December declared the Indian Ocean as a Zone of Peace. It called for the prohibition of great power military presence, elimination of foreign bases & promotion of peace & cooperation among coastal states.

Though UN General Assembly resolutions are non-binding, it carries a moral & political importance & will become significant if the people of these littoral states unitedly demand all nations honor the resolution.

An Ad Hoc Committee on the Indian Ocean was established by the UN to develop legal & political measures to implement the Zone of Peace, especially its relations to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea that does not prohibit military use.

What is now required is for the Indian Ocean Zone of Peace is to be made into a legally binding law formulated along the lines of the Treaty of Tlatelolco (declaraing Latin America as a nuclear free zone).

It is now time to revive the Indian Ocean as a Zone of Peace given the current political scenario. Sri Lanka holding a non-aligned peace summit can take the lead in this regard.

Sri Lanka may be a small island nation sitting at the heart of the Indian Ocean. We were & continue to be the centre for trade, shared cultures & Buddhist diplomacy that once united the East & West.

While many nations seek dominance through weapons & wars, Sri Lanka is offering Buddhist diplomacy as a founding member of the non-aligned movement, Sri Lanka is a friend to all & an enemy to none. 

The world has seen too many wars & mini-conflicts, too much of bloodshed & tears. Global supremacy, regional supremacy at the cost of lives & tears is meaningless.

The waters of the Indian Ocean must spell peace not turn the ocean & nations into pieces.

Shenali D Waduge

Rohana R. Wasala

Sri Lanka becoming a macbethian sick state?

The traditional ritual of anointing medicinal oil (or ‘hisa thel gaema’ in Sinhalese, literally, applying oil to the head) is unique to the Sinhala Aluth Avurudda observances. This year, the ritual was performed at the auspicious moment of 9:04 a.m. (Sri Lanka time) on Wednesday April 16. It was observed at appointed venues across the island at the same time. The anointing was done, as usual, mostly by Buddhist monks in their monasteries. Where they were not available for the purpose, a senior citizen would do the needful. The oil anointing ceremony was held to invoke blessings of good health on all the individuals who subjected themselves to the ritual. Prime Minister  Amarasuriya was shown participating in the oil anointing ceremony at the historic Kolonnawa Raja Maha Viharaya. There were many social media videos showing similar oil anointing scenes that included even elephants and hippos in a zoo receiving the compassionate treatment; this is not seen as going too far with traditions, for extending loving-kindness even to animals is taken for granted in the majority Buddhist Sri Lanka. Watching this ritual (that used to be so familiar for me in my childhood and youth) from abroad I couldn’t help my eyes  filling with tears, feeling kind of homesick, in spite of me having spent more than forty-three years of my adult life living and working away from my Mother Country Sri Lanka. 

Though usually Buddhist monks do the anointing, it is not considered a religious practice by the ordinary Buddhists. It is only a part of the completely secular Sinhala Aluth Avurudda festival. The most important annual religious festival for the Sinhalese (especially Sinhalese Buddhists)  is Vesak, which will be held next month. However, the oil anointing ceremony impresses on the Avurudu celebrants the great importance of maintaining their physical and mental health throughout the coming year, reflecting the high level of attention that our traditional culture pays to that objective. However, the actual discrepancy that is noticed between the ideal and the reality in the mundane world, as in other countries, is a different matter. Shining beacons like ideals of a long evolved culture are important for what they are; their importance doesn’t go away because those ideals are only imperfectly realised by the people of that culture. But the values endure.

The news of this happy occasion and my awareness of a deepening political and cultural malaise in my beloved Motherland backhome reminded me of a book I read during the Covid-19 lockdown period of 2020-2022: OUR MALADY by American historian and public intellectual, the Yale University professor Timothy D. Snyder published in 2020. The book, whose subtitle is ‘Liberty and Solidarity’, is about the weakness of the American healthcare system that he himself got a taste of, privately. Professor Snyder came to know first hand how America failed its citizens in the public healthcare sphere as an inmate of a hospital ward, where he was admitted to the emergency room at midnight on December 29, 2019. He was complaining of a condition of severe bodily ‘malaise’. Malaise is ‘a general feeling of discomfort, illness or unease whose exact cause is difficult to identify’ (Google Dictionary). Doctors later told him that he had an abscess the size of a baseball in his liver. The emergency operation to remove the abscess was done after seventeen hours of his having had to wait confined to a hospital bed!

‘Rage’ is the word he repeatedly uses to describe how he felt during his hospitalisation. He was not raging against God or any particular person or a group or the bacteria that caused his illness. ‘I raged against a world where I was not’, Snyder writes in the Prologue to the book (implying how much he was angry about there not being a healthy enough healthcare system to look after Americans who fell ill like himself. The book grew out of entries he made in a diary that he maintained while recuperating in hospital. Proficient in a number of European languages including English, French and Polish, he adopts a sort of poetic idiom to deal with his naturally dull subject.

 He imagined he was not suffering in solitude, though. He thought about other Americans in his situation, and empathised with them. The absence of a sound healthcare system is America’s malady according to Snyder. Probably, the current situation in America is different, having changed for the better. We must remember that the time he is talking about was the last year of  the first term (January 20, 2017-January 20, 2021) of the 45th US president Donald Trump of the Republican Party. Currently, Trump is serving as the 47th US president. The ideas that professor Snyder develops in the book have global topical relevance, I think. They are organised into four Chapters or ‘Lessons’ as he dubs them, which in my opinion, have implications that could be utilised even by the citizens of the Macbethian ‘sick state’ that Sri Lanka has become today, complete with a Macbeth (though a muppet) and a shadowy but more determined Lady Macbeth.

Timothy Snyder offers the four Lessons for his fellow Americans, and by extension, to fellow humans around the world including us, Sri Lankans. Perhaps these are uniquely American issues, with little direct relevance to a small country like Sri Lanka with no stake in the international pharmaceutical industry. But then no country can escape from the implications of the following facts (taken from Wikipedia): In 2023, the global pharmaceutical industry earned revenues of US $ 1.48 trillion, whereas the top 10 arms manufacturing companies earned only US $ 632 billion. In the same year, the global life and health insurance carriers industry, which is  the biggest industry in the world in terms of revenue, earned US $ 4.3 trillion. 

Our own late medical professor Senake Bibile (1920-1977), a pharmacology expert and a rare philanthropist and compassionate social activist of the Trotskyite Sama Samaja party persuasion who always had the welfare of the suffering poor at heart, met his death allegedly in mysterious circumstances in Guyana where he was attending a UN conference, promoting the domestic drug policy that he had developed for Sri Lanka, as a model for use in other countries and by the World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), and the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) for developing policies for ‘rational pharmaceutical use’.

 It goes without saying that Sri Lankans are also highly vulnerable to the deleterious effects of the inhuman excesses of the purely profit oriented international Big Pharma; these harmful consequences get transferred to the innocent citizens magnified several times through  the unholy alliance between the local corporate drugs mafiosi and corrupt politicians. Be that as it may, Snyder adds another three equally important related points, covering all four, each in a Lesson that must receive the utmost attention of all adult Sri Lankans: health care for children and children’s education, truth in politics, and the supremacy of the doctors’ role in a malady situation. We will look at these briefly, intermittently taking our eyes off America  to reflect on our own country Sri Lanka.

Lesson 1 is ‘Health care is a human right’. 

Despite its wealth, professor Snyder complains, America is a sick nation; life expectancy is falling for Americans. Moody’s Analytics suggests that US millennials will die younger than their parents or grandparents, though there is no lack of money spent. What is causing this decline in life expectancy? Snyder’s unsettling answer is that the American healthcare system prioritises profit over people’s lives. America still lacks a universal healthcare system, in spite of being a supporter of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and this leads to unequal access to health care, as Snyder asserts. 

Exorbitantly priced commercial medicine has a devastating effect on the protection of the health-care rights of the people. It has robbed the American citizens of their health, in Snyder’s view. The American health-care system’s profit-focussed approach and lack of investment in protective equipment for medical professionals jeopardised their safety during the Covid-19 pandemic. In America, 20 million people lost their jobs and over 150,000 died from pandemic. Health insurance became too expensive, and health care unaffordable. Without a diagnosis, many became dangerously ill or unknowingly infected others with the virus. 

Though poor, Sri Lanka beats America in respect of looking after public health. It has a better record in providing satisfactory health care for the citizens. The state runs an almost 100% free medicare service for all the citizens. There is a (kind of) parallel paid private hospital system as well, that caters to the better off segment of the population that can resort  to it if they prefer to do so. This potentially eases the burden on the free state medical services, which can then focus more on attending to the needs of the economically weaker section of the population. The maintenance by the state of such a public welfare based healthcare system is desired and supported by our dominant socio-cultural background that strongly resonates with the humanistic spirit of the Aluth Avurudda that prioritises health over all forms of wealth. This is embodied in the principle ‘Arogya parama labha’ ‘Good health is the greatest wealth’, the antithesis of the American attitude towards citizens’ health.  

Sri Lanka was among the handful of countries that contained the Covid-19 pandemic most efficiently, minimizing deaths, whereas in America, according to Snyder, flaws in the healthcare system were aggravated by the contagion. This led to more deaths in America than in other wealthy nations like Japan and Germany. But the not so well-to-do Sri Lanka escaped with a minimum number of Covid-caused fatalities amidst obstacles mounted by antinationalist  ill-wishers as I saw it at the time. That is Professor Snyder’s Lesson 1, which is about the human right of easily accessible health care. Sri Lanka is actually ahead of America in this respect in spite of relative poverty.

To be concluded

By Sena Thoradeniya

Julie Chung continued in meeting with Sri Lankan politicians without interruption.

On 19 March 2025 she lured Dilith Jayaweera of Sarvajana Balaya, as a part of her cross-party outreach to hear perspectives on political and economic developments and seek way to continue strengthen US- Sri Lankan ties”.  It is worth noting that Chung refers to Dilith, merelyas Sarvajana Balaya MP, without acknowledging him as the leader of Sarvajana Balaya.

Mano Ganeshan (on 24 March), Minister of Plantations and Community Infrastructure (on 25 March), Bathiuddin (on 26 March), Chairman and General Secretary of UNP (on 27 March), Foreign Minister (on 7 April 2025; her second meeting with him within a fortnight), Jeevan Thondaman (on 7 April 2025), NPP General Secretary (in the first week of April), Sajith Premadasa (on 9 April 2025; her second meeting with him in 3 weeks) were the other politicians she met with during this period.

Chung’s recent meeting with the Foreign Minister (who was in casual attire, a rare sight of morphed Malimavuns; maybe because he was seated on a burning stove) took place on 7 April, soon after Trump imposed his new reciprocal tariffs. Chung posted that her meeting with the Minister was, on rebalancing Sri Lanka’s trading relationship with the US’’.  I emphasized the importance of reciprocal treatment for US exports. A fair, balanced trade relationship supports economic growth, create jobs and strengthens industries in both our countries.”

Thus, Chung had delivered a resounding slap to the entire Malima government. The honeyed words she spoke earlier when she met with Malima Ministers have now turned bitter with venom, adding sharp, stinging remarks.

On 21 March, meeting with the same Minister Chung spoke on shared priorities, Sri Lankan investment in the US, economic cooperation and maritime cooperation.”

Julie Chung met with more than 21 Malima Ministers, mostly inexperienced street demonstrators, platform speakers, 1988-1989 Gonibillas, trade union ransom money collectors and village-level tough guys who do not possess prior professional experience.

She gave lessons to them on thriving local economies, fostering economic growth and prosperity, shared goals, shared priorities, and Sri Lanka’s economic future.

On 22, April 2025 Chung addressed the AmchamLK Board and emphasized the need for Sri Lanka to reduce trade barriers & narrow its deficit with the US – key steps to unlock more opportunity for American business”.

She does not say anything about economic policies, international relations and market dynamics in doing so. This sounds more like political rhetoric than a substantive plan. It’s easy to throw around phrases like reducing trade barriers” and narrowing deficits”, but without clear actionable steps. This is merely wishful thinking seen like lack of acknowledgement of the complexities involved, a hollow statement without specific strategies to reduce trade barriers” and narrow its deficits”. Local industries may struggle even barriers are reduced.

Meeting with Malima Ministers and its bigwigs she tossed them all in a chaotic soup and now ask them to unlock more opportunity for American business”.

10. How Chung Interfered in Sri Lanka’s Economic Sphere

Chung met with business leaders, leaders of Chambers, climate change” leaders, economists and female” economists (whatever it means), cyber security experts and policy makers. She was passionately drawn to the Chairman of Ceylon Chamber of Commerce meeting him on several occasions whenever he changed roles under different Presidents.

Her other meetings were with small and medium scale dairy farmers, representatives of theNational Chamber of Exporters, Joint Apparel Association Forum and Sri Lanka Apparel Exporters Association (SLAEA), Business Forums (with Harsha de Silva and NGO women), Indian CEO Forum in Sri Lanka (to discuss how they are partnering with Sri Lankan organizations and encourage economic growth through investment” (this has nothing to do with her work as US Ambassador, something better left to Indian envoy),  Sri Lanka Strategic Trade Forum (supported by US), entrepreneurs and business leaders at GPTWSL (Great Place to Work ) and many more. She addressed the members of the Sri Lanka-USA Business Council at their AGM.

Opening of the RM Park’s Shell fuel station, speaking at Rotary Club joint meeting, participating in groundbreaking ceremonies, visiting a facility producing aviation cargo and inaugurating Indo-Pacific Business Forum were the other activities that completely consumed her time.

11. Interfering with Sri Lankan Politics, Policy Matters and Other Internal Affairs

Discussing with Jennifer Rosenbaum of Global Labor, Chung explored labor law reforms in Sri Lanka and innovative solutions to combat gender-based violence”. What right Chung has to explore the ways to reform Sri Lanka’s labour laws?

Despite her meetings with the Chairman and Executive Director of the Office ofthe Missing Persons (OMPSL) she also took the time to meet with families of the disappeared” and PTA detainees.

With civil society” men and women she made it a habit to talk about amending   legislation like the PTA, On-line Safety Bill and NGO Bill; with them she  influenced the new NPP government to incorporate the views of all stakeholders to ensure that inclusive dialogue is key to advancing democratic governance and protecting human rights”.

As an elderly traveler embarking on her pilgrimage in Sri Lanka, she added to her viaticum a load of anti-corruption slogans as a critical priority.

On the anniversary of Black July” on 24 July 2023, she attended a special exhibit” of an NGO sculptor, to see the powerful and moving stories expressed through art that reveal past wounds & hopes to create a future that is just for all Sri Lankans”. According to her message Chung seems to be fond of revealing past wounds, not healing them; the task of art she advocates, revealing- exposing the darker side which is full of pessimism, not the bright side and continue fanning flames of discord. Her hope to create a future that is just for all Sri Lankans” was only a façade.

This was the second time Chung met with this artist. Soon after the ousting of GR, Chung felicitated a group of visual artists along with this artist, who moved the Court of Appeal against GR’s candidature that he (GR) had not renounced his US citizenship. Foreign – funded visual artists played a major role at the Galle Face Protest site.

Human trafficking was a pet subject she spoke at various fora; she saw it as modern slavery”.She was obsessed to visit trafficking victims” in the North and East and among Malaiyaha” Tamils. She must have thought that the so-called trafficking was confined only to the Tamils.

12. Issuing Statements Interfering with the Internal Affairs

Chung issued various statements regarding internal affairs of the country in contravention of Geneva protocols. Statement issued on 8 January 2024 to mark the 11^th death anniversary of Lasantha Wickrematunga, criticizing the law enforcement operations (Yukthiya Operation” inaugurated to combat organized crime and drug trafficking (on 10/1/24), sharing the views expressed by the HRCSL and the Bar Association of Sri Lankaare some examples.

Soon after the Online Safety Billwas passed in the ParliamentChung issueda Statement on 25 January 2024 lamenting that the bill was passed without incorporating input from key stakeholders, including Civil Society and tech companies who say that this legislation threatens freedom of expression, innovation and privacy”. In addition to jeopardizing democratic values, vague and overly restrictive legislation can hinder investment and the development of a digital economy, undermining the economic growth that Sri Lanka needs. The US urges Sri Lanka to prioritize transparency and ensure any legislation does not stifle the voices of people”.

This was nothing more than threatening the government and fear mongering about investment, development of a digital economy and economic growth. The Statement was authoritative and carries the tone and tenor of a Statement issued by the US State Department.   

In a Statement issued on 11 March 2024 Chung said: We continue to monitor legislative developments in Sri Lanka that could challenge its progress on human rights, reconciliation and civic space.”  Referring to recent Core Group joint statement for the 55^th Session of the UNCHR, Chung said that the Online Safety Act could be used to criminalize a wide range of expression, suppress dissent and undermine Sri Lanka’s digital economy.” Further she opined that the Sri Lankan government brings forward other legislation with potentially serious implications for fundamental freedoms and civic space”. She advocates comprehensive consultation with stakeholders including civil society”.

This is none other than dictating Sri Lankan government how to conduct its activities.   

She did issue a statement in 2024 marking 15 years since the end of war, declaring she remains a steadfast partner including those who continue seeking justice, equal rights and access to opportunities”. 

She discussed economic recovery, debt restructuring and progress of IMF programme and ongoing reforms with the Governor of the Central Bank more than once; she welcomed debt restructuring between Sri Lanka and creditor nations at the Paris Forum 2024. With government Ministers and Governor of the Central Bank she discussed the progress towards implementation of the IMF programme. 

With US Treasury Deputy Assistant Secretary Robert Kaproth she discussed with the then President Wickremasinghe, Ministers, government officials, think tanks”, financial sector leaders, MPs and advisors in the SJB.

Chung called for political solutions, Truth and Reconciliation. Meeting with the families of the disappeared” and former PTA detainees just a few days before Mullivakkal, Chung said, even now Sri Lankan citizens face continued indignation. All families have the right to memorialize loved ones. Their stories are poignant reminders of the need for a peaceful, durable political solution”.

She met with the members of the International Secretariat for the Truth and Reconciliation Mechanism (ISTRM), to discuss their outreach and reconciliation efforts in Sri Lanka”.   

With all these meetings and dialogues, it is discernible that Chung had acted as the de facto President of Sri Lanka.

Commemorating International Day of the Enforced Disappearances Chung did not forget to add that Sri Lanka’s affected deserve answers and accountability”.

She welcomed the OHCHR engagement joining with Canada, Malawi, Montenegro, North Macedonia, UK and US, urging Sri Lanka to build a conducive environment for meaningful reconciliation and transitional justice”, urging the Sri Lankan government to re-engage with the HR Council process”.   

13. Elections

Chung took a keen interest in Sri Lankan elections concluded last year; with Donald Lu, State Assistant Secretary she met with many political leaders across the political spectrum to learn about the (upcoming) Sri Lankan elections, their perspectives on Sri Lanka’s economic recovery and their vision for the nation’s path forward”. Sajith, Harsha, GL, Eran, Niroshan and Kavinda of SJB and Jayatissa and Herath of NPP were the politicians met by them.

In May 2024 she met with the Election Commission to hear the plans for elections and upholding a transparent process”, importance of voting in free and fair elections. She should be taught that the Sri Lankan people were enjoying universal suffrage since 1931.

On 26 July Chung welcomed the Election Commission announcement of September 21 Presidential Election.

On 29 August 2024 Chung met with the EUEOM Sri Lanka 24 Chief Observer,Deputy Chief Observer and EU Ambassador to discuss the vital role of free and fair elections in Sri Lanka”. It should be noted that Chung met with these observers even before their press briefing.  Again, she had played the role of a de facto President.

She used her statement issued on the International Day of Democracy in 2024 to preach us that no process is more essential to Sri Lanka’s democracy than free and fair elections”.  

14. Touring Provinces and Visiting Religious Places

As an ancient ruler of Sri Lanka, Chung toured Southern Province, NorthernProvince, Central Province, Uva and the Eastern Provinceseveral times like an ancientSinhala King who visited ancient Dissavanis and Ratas, popularly known in the ancient times as Rata Meda Yaama”.  The most noteworthy part of her provincial visits was visiting religious places (Dalada Maligawa, Sri Maha Bodhiya, Thuparamaya, Sri Pada, Mihintale, Kelani Vihare, Nagadipa, Kataragama, Kirinda, Madhu shrine, Christ Church Warleigh, Adhisham, Seetha Amman Kovil, Koneshwaram, Naguleshwaram Kovil, Thirukeeswaran Kovil and mosques in the city and provinces.

On 23 August 2023Chung attended the Pooja Day at Thirukeeswaran Hindu Temple, Mannar wearing a saffron coloured cloth holding a tray of flowers. Rewriting the history of Sri Lanka, she wrote that Thirukeeswaran Hindu Temple has a 2500-year tradition and history. We debunked this myth in our article Julie Chung re-writes history of Mannar” posted on August 26, 2023.

In August 2023Chung had a hectic  programme in Jaffna meeting with families of the disappeared , female officers of the CBSL Regional Office in Kilinochchi, woman – majority workforce producing and packaging curry and chillie powder, people engaged in USAID-funded sea weed cultivation, North Central Naval Commander (discussed maritime security in the area” ), Bishop of Mannar and priests at the Madhu shrine.

On 24, August 2023 she met with brave families of the disappeared to hear their continued quest for answers, transparency and accountability in the healing and reconciliation process.”  No doubt she refers to perished armed LTTE cadres. How can their families become brave”?  Do the disappeared” also mean thousands of Tamils who left the shores under questionable operations -people smuggling-trafficking who add to the numbers alleged to have been killed by the Sri Lankan security forces? 

With her long experience in dealing with the disappeared”, rather her pastime digging the past and opening old wounds,  can Chung name these people, names of the people dead or disappeared, people killed by the LTTE including Tamils, the number of Tamils who fled to Western countries  adopting new identities?   

On 23 August 2023, she addressed Jaffna College First leadership Training Programme.

Again in 2024 she visited Jaffna. She paid visits to Green Memorial Hospital, founded by an American Missionary, religious places such as Nagadeepa, site for Sri Lanka’s diverse faith” as she perceives it, Palmyrah Research Institute, Northern Chamber of Information Technology and met with fishermen in Delft.

In July 2024 Chung embarked on a tour across the Uva Province. She met with farmers and staff at CAP Ceylon (which exports organic certified products), Nelna Agri mango producers, Uva civil society and religious leaders, MalaiyahaTamils, Women’s Campaign Academy, Youth Civi League in Badulla and small business owners. She visited Adisham Hall at St. Benedict’s Monastery, Lipton’s Seat and a water project.

She toured Southern Province again in August 2024; opening Matara American corner; meeting with Jez Looks Batik artist, representatives of civil society” including an organization carrying an esoteric name, Women Are Well”, Hambantota District Chamber of Commerce and other NGOs and BOI officials at Mirijjawila.  

She visited Kirinda Viharaya, sounded the bell, all against Buddhist traditions and customs; went to Kataragama, declared it a sacred place for Buddhists, Hindus and the Veddah Community”.

There is no justification or no grounds for her to include the Veddah Community in a discussion on Kataragama which is totally unnecessary, as both these communities visit Kataragama without any labels or distinctions attached. This is yet another method of causing divisions on her part.

She was seen worshipping at a Buddhist temple and a Hindu shrine, visiting a mosque wearing a hijab.

Chung toured NWP in September 2024: Visited Anaivilundawa Ramsay Sanctuaryto see how US partnership with the Wild Life and Nature Protection Society supports local conservation efforts in the mangrove forests and dairy farmers in Chilaw.

She toured North again in October 2024 visiting Jaffna,Mannar and Vauniya districts; she started her day from Keerimalai Naguleshwaran kovil, lighting an oil lamp and posing for a photograph with the priest. Met with the new NPP Governor and Bishop Gnanapragasam (as usual discussed justice and reconciliation”), sex workers (says, sex workers were deeply impacted by the conflict”. How? Lack of customers?); she attended an exhibition Women’s Histories of Sex Workers” exhibited in Jaffna (again tells about truth, justice and human rights”, peace and security”, challenges faced by conflict victims and advancing justice.”

It is apparent that Chung cannot meet even sex workers without uttering truth, justice and human rights”, peace and security” and conflict victims”. She was not concerned about how women chose to be sex workers, its impact to their families and children. 

She met with Jaffna Access Micro Scholarship Students”, (conducting a class) and Tamil political leadersin the North (discussing the need for accountability, mechanism that have the trust of victim communities”.

Wherever she visits she fans the flames of discord covering the flames with hackneyed words like justice and reconciliation”, truth, human rights”, peace and security”, conflict victims”, this time coining a phrase, victim communities”.

But when she visited the Central Province and Uva Province she did not realize that the Kandyan Sinhalayas   also belong to her category of people, victim communities”. 

Chung visited Aham” Mental Health and Psychological Lab at the Jaffna University funded by USAID, NatureWins and a USAID -fundedwoman-owned cashew processing center; met with families of the disappeared” (all families deserve to know the fate of their loved ones”. She willfully forgets that many of the so-called disappeared” live in Western countries), MAGSaversLives demining groups; declared open the newUSAID-aidedIntegrated Audio-Visual Unit at the Harmony Centre University of Vauniya.

Visiting North Central Province in January 2025 Chung met with farmers and officials of the Department of Agriculture. She says that she shared ideas with the farmers over locally grown cassava and belli flower herbal tea, carrying a pol katta (coconut shell cup).

15. Meeting with Religious Dignitaries

Chung met with Malwatte and Asgiriya Manayakas, Mihintale Nayaka Himi , Atamasthana Nayaka Himi , Bhante Piyaratna,(a Buddhist Chaplain of Sri Lankan origin working with veterans in the US Department of Defense, (see: A Sri Lankan Buddhist Priest as a Chaplain in US Defence Establishment” posted on January 12, 2024), Bishop of Mannar and other Catholic and Christain priests, Hindu and Muslim religious leaders. She climbed Sri Pada (on January 26, 2024), Mihintale (several times), Kelani Vihare (with Pathfinder Foundation celebrating Olcott’s American Roots in Buddhist Revival”); participated in the reopening of the restored King’s Palace in Kandy and restoration of Thuparama Image House in Polonnaruwa utilizing Ambassador’s Fund for Cultural Preservation (AFCP) respectively.

Chung celebrated Avurudu cooking kevum, Wesak, making pahan kudus and was seen with a group of Tamil girls wearing a pottu” (colored dot on the forehead placed by Hindus); in mosques she wears a hijab (but supports  Iranian women’s struggle against wearing hijab; in Buddhist temples she ties a pirith noola”.

Truly a person of diverse religious beliefs!

Chung was mesmerized trekking along US-funded Pekoe Trail.

In June 2024,Chung who was in Washington to attendthe Annual StateDepartment Global Chiefs of Mission Conference, did not forget to visit StatenIsland Hindu Temple, a Sri Lankan Buddhist Vihara tying a pirith noola, Tamil community in  Staten Island (to hear their views on justice, accountability and reconciliation” ; wherever she goes she fans flames of division in the name of justice, accountability and reconciliation”), Sri Lankan small business owners, eating lump rice,  roti and lunu miris. 

16. With Women

Chung met with the representatives of Women’s Chamber of Commerce and Industries, members of the Women Organized for Inclusion through Community Engagement (WOICE), (promoting peace and human rights” (an arm of the USAID-funded National Peace Council); US – funded women entrepreneurs; congratulated Women in Motion Showcase, those underwent an animation and game development course; in January 2025 she participated in Prathibabisheka Women Entrepreneurs Awards”; discussed menstrual health with women; attended panel discussions on Closing the Gender Gap” etc.

17. With Youth

Chung was drawn to the world of youth with her youthful attire, youthful gestures and youthful dreams; her spirits danced where young people thronged, yearning to join their song and merrymaking.

Meeting with Youth Forum members, Young Leaders (in her words changemakers), Business English students, students from Colombo schools as a part of CyberSecurity Awareness Month, teachers and students and providers in connection with a US funded Child Nutrition Programme, youth and students atthe Access English Intensive Camp  at Kandy, NextGen leaders, bringing together diverse young politicians and political activists from all of Sri Lankan political parties;  attending NYSC Youth Dialogue 2004; launching CyberHero, a mobile game app; visiting American Corners in Kandy, Matara and elsewhere; addressing the participants of American Spaces South Asian Youth Network Development Workshop. 

With US Global Youth Special Envoy Abby Finkenauer, she met with youth leaders of Young South Asian Leaders Initiative (YSALI); all these initiatives are US-funded, recruited and trained to serve US interests; she celebrated International Youth Day with a group of Sri Lankan youth.  

Attending the Royal-Thomian in March 2024, she danced with Harsha de Silva to the tunes of papara bands.

She attended the Annual National Sea and Air Farers Sunday Service at St. Peter’s Church Fort with Navy personnel.  

18. Art and Literary Workers

Having a dialogue with art and literary workers, she met with Gratian Prize winners, novelists, creative artists, young artists, film makers and young journalists on many occasions.

19. Malaiyaha Tamils

Another contentious area Chung had overstepped was the affairs of the so -called Malaiyaha Tamils”. She had brazenly encroached upon one community in the Central Highlands sparking significant controversy. This was audacious and caused widespread suspicion and outrage among Kandyan Sinhalayas. This was nothing more than sowing confusion and disrupting the harmony that unsettled and perplexed them. 

In many of our writings we have discussed how Chung was engaged in a destabilization programme in Sri Lanka’s Central Highlands, Udarata, from the day she came to Sri Lanka by fostering the so-called Malaiyaha Tamil” community. 

Proposed establishment of a Non-territorial Community Council” for hill country Tamils or Malayahah Thamilar” of Malai Aham” (Hill Country Territory) with the blessings of Western powers, Indians and NGO coterie, will create confusion and a feeling of betrayal among the Upcountry Sinhala people living from time immemorial in Kandy, Matale, Nuwara Eliya, Badulla, Moneragala, Kegalle and Ratnapura districts, encompassing four provinces.

Politicians representing Tamils of Indian origin, (Indian indentured labour brought by British colonialists to work in British-owned coffee, tea and rubber plantations), clamor that they are a unique ethnic group, that they are one of the national communities” in Sri Lanka and be treated along with Sinhala, North and East Tamils and Muslims. Thus, a breeding ground for Prabhakaran type ghosts is being created in the Hill country.  

True to her mission Chung on June 5, 2023 met with Hill Country families” to hear directly about the economic and political obstacles they face and their aspirations”. She twittered many of them have ties to the region going back to 200 years”.

This is tantamount to sowing seeds of separation among plantation Tamils and propagating misbeliefs of an imagined Traditional Homeland”.

On May 19, 2023 the then USAID Deputy Mission Director for Sri Lanka and the Maldives Debra Mosel addressed Hill Country Tamils” to celebrate 200 years of their presence in Sri Lanka. She said: Full citizenship however does not automatically translate into meaningful citizenship”, adding that the Hill Country Tamils” are not enjoying the same benefits enjoyed by the rest of the society. The new generation asks not sympathy but for dignity and equality. The United States support these aspirations and look forward to them becoming reality”.

We should not be surprised if the youth of Malai Aham” begin an armed struggle on these lines. 

Have Mosel and Chung studied how the British colonialists grabbed land owned by the Kandyan peasantry to open up coffee and tea plantations in the Central Highlands of Sri Lanka and the effects of Grain Tax imposed by the British rulers on paddy cultivators in the Central Highlands, how the real inheritors of the Central Highlands being impoverished, a cursed inheritance and oppressive burden they carry for more than two centuries?

Chung was delighted at the completion of the 2-week walk from Talaimannar to Matale commemorating the arrival of Indian indentured labour (in her words Malaiyaha Tamils”). Sadly, she said that they arrived in Sri Lanka’s hill country plantations 200 years ago”. She should be given a lesson in the history of Sri Lanka’s plantations because at the time of their arrival there were no entities that can be called plantations.

Visiting trafficking victims” in the North and East and Malaiyaha Tamils she created the impression that there are trafficking victims” in the plantations. 

Chung met with MP Mano Ganeshanand other civil society” members on 28 June 2024, to exchange ideas and discuss US support for Maliayaha Tamil community.” Among the support provided by the US were land and housing rights, English education and skills development for journalists.

Again, Chung met with Mano Ganeshan in January 2025 (always a pleasure to speak with Mano Ganeshan”); from him she wanted to hear political and economic priorities for the year ahead” (as political and economic priorities” change year to year!). She did not forget to discuss her pet project advocating and supporting Malaiyaha Tamil community in Sri Lanka”. This shows that Chung was also behind land fragmentation in the plantation areas. 

Meeting with the Governor of the Uva Province in July 2024, she discussed needs of vulnerable communities like the Malaiyaha Tamils” and met with leaders of Malaiyaha Tamils.

On 10, December 2024 Chung met with a group of Malaiyaha Tamils near Kandy; in her conversation with them she had directly interfered with the internal affairs of Sri Lanka, in contravention of all diplomatic protocols and conventions. She said: Our conversation touched on their hopes for the new government now featuring the first woman elected Malaiyaha Tamil parliamentarian and the crucial role of USAID”;strengthening and advancing inclusion”, challenges they face”, testament of resilience” and the power of partnership” were her words drenched in honey-like sweetness!

With Chung’s blessings, Indian-assisted development programmes, fragmentation of estate land and NPP government’s collaboration with Modi, it is undeniable that the Central Highlands will transform into a Tamil enclave.

NEXT: PART III:  HOW SISTER JULIE CHUNG PROMOTED USAID AND LGBTIQ ACTIVITIES IN SRI LANKA

Justice for Animals and Nature

“Until one has loved an animal, a part of one’s soul remains unawakened” ( Anatole France )

Pope Francis’ gesture of love for his dog Esterban ( once a stray dog six years ago) on his deathbed is inspirational.  It should inspire countless numbers of people and religious institutions especially the Churches, and Governments including the Government of Sri Lanka to embrace Karuna (Compassion) and Metta ( Loving – Kindness) towards not only dogs but all living beings existing in Samsara.  This is the Message of the Buddha –  the Compassionate One who taught unequivocally the right of every living being to lead and complete the total span of their natural life undisturbed by others.

The Government of Sri Lanka must take note of world trends including Pope Francis dying declaration of love for (once a stray) dog and take necessary action to: 

1) Enact the Animal Welfare Bill without any further delay

2) Stop giving firearms to people to shoot wild animals and stray animals. 

   – Animals have a right to live and move in any part of the country as human beings. The King or the Government is not the owner of animals but the Guardian of all living beings’. Refer the solemn advice of Arahant Mahinda to King Devanampiyatissa at Mihintale 2, 300 years.

3) The Human – Elephant conflict must be resolved without any further escalation of the deaths of elephants.  2000 elephants have been killed in the last five years. This is a national shame. The escalating figure of Elephant deaths per annum must be brought down dramatically 

4) Religious festivals must be made animal friendly, cruelty and slaughter free. Only when there is no shedding of blood or no unnecessary sacrifice of an animal’s life can it be said that a belief system is true to the spirit of true religion. Peace towards all beings is true religion. 

5) All religions, ideally speaking,  must become a platform to voice the suffering of both humans and non – humans. A voice for the voiceless.

6) Pope Francis in the very last moment of his breadth showed that he cared for his dog, Esterban. There is a strong message here.  The Christian Message of ‘ Love thy Neighbour ‘ must now take a new meaning.  Our neighbours are not only human beings but include the animals on the land and birds in the air. Treat them with Kindness.  That is the final message of Pope Francis to humanity.

There must be a sequel to the Pope ‘s conduct in the larger world.  What follows afterwards is what would really matter.

Both the Vatican and the Christian Churches have a great moral responsibility to extol reverence for life – for all life as Buddhism has done in its First Precept.

They must join hands and support the Animal Rights Movement including the local animal rights activists that comprise a number of Buddhist Monks who are spearheading the Justice for Animals and Nature campaign in Sri Lanka.

Senaka Weeraratna

Director

Justice for Animals and Nature

By Palitha Ariyarathna

Sri Lanka has always been a land of bravery and resilience, shaped by countless individuals who have dedicated their lives to protecting its sovereignty, culture, and people. While some of these heroes have gained recognition, many continue to serve in silence, their sacrifices remaining largely unnoticed. To honor these unsung defenders, I have composed four heartfelt songs that celebrate the unwavering dedication of the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Police.

Each composition serves as a powerful reminder of the courage and commitment displayed by Sri Lanka’s protectors:

• Guardians of Freedom: This stirring anthem pays homage to the brave heroes of the Sri Lanka Army, whose resolve and sacrifices have safeguarded the Nation’s integrity during times of great adversity. Watch it here:

• Wings of Glory: A tribute to the aviators of the Sri Lanka Air Force, this song captures their courage and grace as they take to the skies to defend the homeland from above. Watch it here:

• Sailors of the Deep: Dedicated to the heroes of the Navy, this moving composition highlights the valor of those who navigate the treacherous waters, ensuring the safety and security of Sri Lanka’s coasts. Watch it here:

• Honoring Police Officers: This poignant tribute acknowledges the bravery of police officers who have laid down their lives or sustained injuries in service to the Nation, embodying the essence of silent yet steadfast guardianship. Watch it here:

https://youtu.be/1WMKu_2qYpk YouTube Share your videos with friends, family, and the world youtu.be Through music, I aim to amplify the gratitude and respect we owe to these protectors. These compositions stand as both a tribute to the past and a call to inspire future generations to uphold the spirit of service and sacrifice for our Nation. Let us unite in this endeavor to celebrate the guardians of Sri Lanka and preserve their legacy for eternity. “A Nation that forgets its defenders risks losing its soul—let us stand as the memory keepers of our heroes.”      

Dasatha News

LAK FM

Dasatha News

by Nicholas Mwangi

April 20, 2025

Kinshasa’s pivot towards the US for security in exchange for minerals has alarmed activists who say that the US is responsible for the ongoing violence in the country’s east.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), a country endowed with some of the world’s most coveted minerals, continues to be at the heart of global geopolitical interests. And this time, the stakes are higher.

As M23 rebels continue to gain ground in the eastern provinces of the DRC, the embattled government of President Felix Tshisekedi, facing rising unpopularity and legitimacy questions, appears to be inching closer to a controversial deal with the United States: security assistance in exchange for strategic mineral access. The details of the deal, timelines, and key points have yet to be announced, but officials from the Trump administration have told the press that negotiations continue.

At the center of these unfolding negotiations is Erik Prince, founder of the notorious private military company Blackwater and a close ally of US President Donald Trump. According to a report published by Reuters on April 17, Prince is brokering an agreement that would position him to oversee the security and taxation of mineral extraction in the mineral-rich nation.

Given Blackwater’s infamous record of violence and impunity during the Iraq War, along with the company’s subsequent rebranding, Prince’s involvement signals a troubling turn. Instead of the DRC moving in a sovereign path, Tshisekedi appears to be opening the doors to the US and its private companies to operate in the country and have access to the DRC’s sovereign wealth.

The deal that wasn’t debated

What’s alarming is not merely the substance of the potential deal between Washington and Kinshasa, but also the process. Or rather, the absence of it. The announcement of the deal did not come from Parliament or the National Assembly, it was revealed through the press. As Kambale Musavuli, a Congolese analyst pointed out to Peoples Dispatch, Can you imagine that a whole country is making a decision on a mineral deal, and Parliament never discussed it?”

The Congolese constitution nominally vests ownership of the country’s land and resources in the state, but the lack of popular or parliamentary oversight raises profound questions. The contradictions of the Congolese Constitution are being exposed,” said Musavuli. Legal experts are now debating whether the president even has the authority to make such sweeping deals unilaterally.”

What’s at stake is not merely legality, but also legitimacy.

A crisis of sovereignty

The larger backdrop to this unfolding deal is the resurgence of M23, a rebel group long accused of operating with the backing of neighboring Rwanda and Uganda both of whom have enjoyed US military and political support over the years. In Musavuli’s view, this casts an ominous light on any purported US military assistance: Why should the DRC go to the US when, for all intents and purposes, they are the ones arming, training, and equipping the Rwandan and Ugandan militaries?”

Civil society actors, particularly from mineral-rich Katanga province, have issued statements condemning any mineral-for-security arrangements that bypass the Congolese people. Yet their voices have been conspicuously absent from international headlines. Which denies its right as a sovereign nation with its own people, political will and agency.

Stewart Muhindo, a member of the civil society movement LUCHA, echoes this sentiment. Congolese are not enthusiastic about this deal. We are pessimistic. Foreign interventions have done nothing for years. We don’t think solutions for our problems can come from other countries. We need to build our country ourselves.”

Sovereignty undermined

The geopolitical tensions and interests vying for control over critical minerals only intensify the internal contradictions of the DRC. As Musavuli explains, the crisis is not just external: We also have our local comprador class, who are in bed with the West. These leaders do not serve the interests of the Congolese people. The future is being sold without their consent.”

This dual crisis, external intervention and internal collaborationism, mirrors the dilemmas that haunted Congo’s post-independence era. Patrice Lumumba’s assassination in 1961 at the hands of Western-backed conspirators marked the beginning of decades of resource extraction at the expense of national sovereignty. Today, in 2025, the echoes of Lumumba’s dream still haunt the Congo, that its land belongs to its people not to corporations, multinationals, or foreign armies.

Looking at the Sahel’s fight for Sovereignty

In stark contrast, the Sahel region is witnessing a resurgence of popular anti-imperialist politics. Countries like Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger have rejected French and Western military partnerships, opting instead to nationalize resource control and assert regional autonomy. They are following Nkrumah’s ideas,” said Musavuli. They are saying the resources should benefit the people.”

Yet in Kinshasa, the direction appears reversed. The leadership’s desperation to stay in power, amid mounting insecurity and waning legitimacy, has pushed them toward the very powers that have long destabilized the country. If the reported deal with Washington goes through, it will not represent Congolese empowerment, but Congolese submission for its minerals.

Congolese activists decry US-Congo mineral deal

By Shamindra Ferdinando Courtesy the Island

Weerasekera

Former Navy Chief of Staff, Rear Admiral Sarath Weerasekera, said that the National People’s Power (NPP) government owed the public an explanation regarding Indian media reports of the cancellation of joint naval exercise involving SLN and PNS (Pakistan Navy Ship) Aslat off Trincomalee.

Weerasekera, who also served as the Public Security Minister during Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s presidency, asked whether the recently signed MoU on defence cooperation with India paved the way for New Delhi to interfere in bilateral relations between Sri Lanka and Pakistan.

Acknowledging that the MoU on defence cooperation hadn’t been signed at the time Sri Lanka cancelled planned naval exercise off Trincomalee, the former parliamentarian said that the issue at hand should be examined also taking into consideration the one year ban imposed on foreign research vessels on 01 January, 2024, bythe then President Ranil Wickremesinghe.

Weerasekera contested Colombo district at the last parliamentary polls on the SLPP ticket but couldn’t retain his seat.

That was meant to bar Chinese research vessels from visiting Sri Lanka, ex-MP Weerasekera said, urging the government to explain its stand on the ban imposed by Wickremesinghe. Referring to government statements that dealt with foreign research vessels late last year, the former Minister said that the government couldn’t keep silent on this issue.

We would like to know the status quo with regard to foreign research vessels, Weerasekera said.

Responding to The Island queries, the former lawmaker, who once served as Chairman of the Sectoral Oversight Committee (SOC) on National Security, said that the government was yet to table the MoU on defence cooperation with India in Parliament. In fact, none of the MoUs that had been signed with India on 05 April were presented to Parliament yet and the Opposition should pressure the government to reveal the contents, the former Colombo district MP said.

Pointing out that the government had done away with the SOC on national security when the Parliament, in consultation with the UNDP, restructured the SOC system, thereby accommodated the vital subject under SOC on Governance, Justice and Civil Protection, Weerasekera emphasised that the Opposition should vigorously take up this issue.

Dr. Najith Indika heads the SOC on Governance, Justice and Civil Protection. Former Minister Weerasekera said that Pakistan was one of the few countries, along with China and Russia, that always backed Sri Lanka at the Geneva-based United Nations Human Rights Council over the years.

Weerasekera said that the Sri Lanka-India defence cooperation MoU was yet to be taken up at the SOC level.

Weerasekera alleged that India was taking advantage of the situation as it tightened its grip on the government. The former Minister said that the government seemed to have meekly succumbed to Indian pressure and caused irreparable damage to long standing ties with Pakistan. Sri Lanka couldn’t, under any circumstances, forget the unprecedented support provided by Pakistan throughout the war against the LTTE, Weerasekera said.

Among the armaments that had been provided by Pakistan were multi-barrel rocket launchers that were deployed in the northern and eastern theatres during Eelam War IV, especially in the aftermath of the LTTE laying siege to the Jaffna peninsula after the fall of the vital Elephant Pass and was threatening to storm the last bastion in the North.

The former Minister said that Sri Lanka paid a huge price to bring the war, initiated by India, to an end.

Meanwhile, top SJB spokesman Mujibur Rahman said that the NPP should be ashamed to ask MPs to seek MoUs signed with India through the Right to Information (RTI) Act. Parliamentarian Rahman said that he was quite surprised and disappointed by the position taken by Health Minister and Cabinet spokesman, Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa, that those who wanted the MoU on defence cooperation should do so through the RTI Act. This is nothing but a joke. The Cabinet spokesman’s current stand is contrary to what the JVP has been saying over the years.”

By Shamindra Ferdinando

By Dr Muralidaran Ramesh Somasunderam.

254 Vahland Avenue, Willetton 6155, Western Australia.    

The upcoming Federal Elections in Australia is not focusing on full employment, capital punishment for crime specifically murder, rape and incest, dental treatment based on Medicare, especially for unemployed and Age Pensioners, waiting period to see specialist doctors and euthanasia for incurable illnesses and suffering due to these incurable aliments or illnesses.

Australia has lovely sunshine and the majority of people love their sports especially Australian Rules football and cricket, but do not care for politics as they believe that majority of politicians lie and not state the truth. Unfortunately in a democratic system of government one requires politicians like or dislike them and this is what the majority of Australians fail to understand.  It will be great if Civil Servants made policy and ruled the country based on equity, fair play and justice, but this does not happen in any part of the world including Australia. Therefore this Sinicism by majority or mainstream Australians has made people who have not been a successes mainly to become politicians and thereby as Australia also does not have a quality Higher Administration or Civil Service puts a great amount of pressure on politicians to govern and rule the nation well based on equity, fair play an a sense of justness. Unfortunately as Australia does not have a quality Civil and District Administration like India for example the country is governed poorly and especially government departments are not efficient at all in my candid opinion after living forty one years in Australia. For example my Australian passport, which I lost, has taken seven weeks, but I have not been issued a new one even if I paid three hundred dollars for the new  passport to be issued to my father and myself within ten days for travel overseas to travel to Sri Lanka for a holiday. This is a very good example where quality Civil Servants does not work in Australia today because under former Prime Minister John Howard he made examinations to be stopped and only through interviews that people are selected into the Public Service today in Australia. This has caused favoritism to mainstream Australians more than migrant Australian citizens like me for example who gained a PhD in British Colonial History but I had to take work as a History Consultant in the Professional Historians Association of West Australia even though I love to do policy work in the government sector because I do not know anyone to have influence or favoritism. It is whom you know and not what you know in getting a job in Australia and especially the Public Service in Australia at presently.

There is a huge amount of stabbing murderers in Australia where if a man or woman kills a person they if they are twenty years old are left after a life sentence when they are forty years old. A twenty years life sentence is given. Inside prison the prisoner is given education, training for employment, and quality gum and health facilities. So it is only like a house arrest and most reoffend again. So in my candid view if capital punishment if reintroduced it will make a person think twice about premeditated murder or murder in regard to break and entering houses where the perpetuator cannot  be harmed beyond reasonable force but the victim can be killed or very badly injured. So the laws of self-defense have not been spoken by Labor or Liberal or even the minor parities such as the Greens.

I honestly believe Australia should address all what I have mentioned above and get retired Civil Servants from Britain and India to address Australia’s desperate need for quality Civil and District Administration, including law and order, which is today a big problem for the reasons stated above in Australia.

I agree that cost of living and housing are issues but one does not have to be stabbed when going for work, shopping or doing anything for that matter, which needs to be addressed immediately.

Ramping in hospitals, including finding hospital beds for the ill are administrative issues and if Australia can have a quality Civil Service in all the States and Territories the country will be run fare better in my candid opinion.

The other issues are making Department of Employment, Disability and Age Care under government and not privatize as it as is the case presently in Australia.

 The political parties should believe in Keynesian economics and not the Chicago School of Economics where big business is assisted by government and hopefully this will infiltrate to the poor in society. This is a failed policy and unless the central government or in Australia the Federal Government directly controls employment creation, education, health, age care, public administration, including district administration, law and order and housing rather than privatize some areas, one will find inadequate or poor government in Australia nationally, including State and Territory governments.  

Ahmadi News

I was deeply saddened to learn of the passing of His Holiness Pope Francis. Throughout his life, Pope Francis sought to serve the poor and vulnerable, demonstrating immense sympathy for those suffering under the heavy weight of warfare, persecution and injustice. He was a man of compassion, humility and faith who strived to build bridges between people of different faiths and beliefs.

During his Papacy Pope Francis received representatives of Ahmadiyya Muslim Community with warmth and grace at the Vatican for which we will always be grateful.

On behalf of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, I extend our sincere condolences to the Catholic Church and its members around the world.”

Yours Sincerely

MIRZA MASROOR AHMAD

Khalifatul Masih V.

HEAD OF THE WORLDWIDE

AHMADIYYA MUSLIM COMMUNITY.

Source: www.pressahmadiyya.com

Shenali D Waduge

When national leaders are absent from the most important cultural event of the majority, it is not just an oversight — it is a message. A message of disregard, of disconnect, and desire to diminish the very values that built this nation.” Sri Lanka has had 9 Presidents since 1978, 16 Prime Ministers since 1947 all of them were seen holding the traditional Sinhala New Year customs in their homes, attending public ceremonies. However, this year to the shock of all, neither the President nor PM held any festivities in their homes while the PM only took part in Hindu religious ceremonies on the day of the New Year which was publicized over their media channels giving little or no publicity for Sinhala avurudu customs. With this scant disregard for the majority Sinhala Buddhists, it makes a mockery of their hyped Rs.300m allocation for a Rainbow Day” they term as inclusivity & unity? Where is the unity when an event celebrated by some 14million Sinhala Buddhists was completely disregarded?

President & PM by their own actions have delivered a slap to the Sinhala Buddhists.

Their action suggests they wish to ignore the cultural foundation of the Nation, thus neglecting the national heritage.

Their action highlights a lack of respect for the values of the people they claim to represent & shows disregard for the majority sentiment.

Their action indicates the failure to show proper recognition or respect for core traditions passed down through generations.

Their action suggests an attempt to undermine the national identity of the nation & as such is construed as a betrayal of the people.

Their action shows their lack of national leadership & intentional avoidance for political reasons, a deliberate snub bordering divisive politics.

This action must be condemned by all to ensure no such similar repetition takes place in future.

Duty of Public Officials to uphold national unity & cultural sensitivities

In a democratic society, public officials are entrusted with responsibilities that transcend personal preferences. Their actions and decisions should reflect the collective will and sentiments of the people they serve. Their personal lives, personal choices cannot take centre stage.

Constitutional Framework

Sri Lanka’s Constitution delineates the roles and responsibilities of public officials. Article 3 asserts that sovereignty resides in the people, and Article 4 outlines how this sovereignty is exercised through the executive, legislative, and judicial branches. The President, as the head of the executive, is entrusted with the duty to act in the best interests of the nation. Furthermore, Article 9 grants Buddhism the foremost place” and mandates the State to protect and foster the Buddha Sasana, while assuring to all religions the rights granted by Articles 10 and 14(1)(e). This provision underscores the importance of Buddhism in Sri Lanka’s cultural and national identity.

It is nothing that a President or PM chosen for a term can change or erase because they personally disagree or disapprove.

Public Duty Over Personal Preference

Public officials are not representatives of their personal beliefs; they are custodians of the public trust. Their actions should reflect the collective values and traditions of the people they serve. By abstaining from Sinhala New Year celebrations, officials may inadvertently signal a disregard for the cultural significance of this festival to the Sinhala Buddhist majority. Such actions can be perceived as neglecting the sentiments of a significant portion of the population, a portion that voted for them.

Balancing Inclusivity and National Identity

While inclusivity is a cornerstone of democratic governance, it should not come at the expense of eroding the cultural identity of the majority. Public officials must navigate the delicate balance between honoring the traditions of minority communities and upholding the cultural heritage of the majority. Participation in minority festivals should not overshadow the importance of national festivals that hold deep significance for the majority population especially when the Constitution clearly mandates them.

The Role of Leadership in Fostering Unity

Leadership entails making decisions that promote national unity and social harmony. By actively participating in national festivals, public officials can demonstrate their commitment to preserving the cultural fabric of the nation. Such actions convey respect for the traditions and values that bind the nation together, fostering a sense of belonging among all citizens. This does not entail boycotting the festival of the majority populace believing this would make the minorities happy.

Public officials, by virtue of their positions, bear the responsibility of representing the collective will and sentiments of the people. Their actions should reflect a commitment to national unity, cultural preservation, and the values enshrined in the Constitution.

How cute to see the Opposition Leader and his little doni in traditional attire

International examples: When National Identity Takes Precedence Over Personal Preference

1. United Kingdom – The Monarchy and Christian Tradition

Although UK claims it is a secular democracy, the British monarch remains the Supreme Governor of the Church of England. British leaders – regardless of their personal beliefs – attend national Christian events such as the Commonwealth Day Service* or Remembrance Sunday at Westminster Abbey. Leaders like Rishi Sunak, a practicing Hindu, have continued to attend Christian events as part of their national duties, recognizing their symbolic role in maintaining national cohesion.

2. India – Prime Ministerial Presence at Hindu Festivals

India, though says it is secular, sees its leaders participate in major Hindu celebrations such as Diwali and Navratri. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, despite his position over a multi-religious population, participates in these events to connect with India’s Hindu majority. This is seen not as favoritism but as national duty — given the cultural roots and identity intertwined with the majority’s traditions.

3. USA – Presidential Role in National Christian Holidays

The United States President — including Barack Obama (born Muslim), Donald Trump, and Joe Biden — have honored Christian traditions. The annual National Prayer Breakfast, Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony, and Easter Egg Roll are all state-sponsored traditions. No matter the President’s denomination or private belief, attendance and leadership during such events are considered part of the role of head of state.

4. Thailand – National Unity Through Buddhist Traditions

Thailand’s monarchy and political leadership, while constitutionally limited, maintain regular public observance of Buddhist traditions. Makha Bucha and Visakha Bucha Day are state holidays with official state ceremonies, regardless of the personal beliefs of any ministers or politicians. The state and religion remain connected through cultural obligations, not dogmatic enforcement.

Lessons for Sri Lanka: Symbolism, Representation, and Public Duty

In all the examples above, regardless of personal belief, public office bearers CANNOT ignore or neglect major cultural or religious events linked to their national identity.

• This symbolic representation is honoring the national fabric and social harmony.
• For a nation like Sri Lanka, where Buddhism holds a constitutionally enshrined foremost place” (Article 9), public officials — especially the President and Prime Minister — carry not just ceremonial responsibility but also moral and symbolic accountability to show respect to the Buddhist majority’s cultural calendar.
• Refusing to attend or acknowledge Sinhala Avurudu, while publicly participating in minority religious events, is not neutrality — it is selective neglect, which can erode trust, alienate the majority, and sow division.

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=9423146587798078 – exactly a month before the Sinhala Avurudu on 14 March / Ifthar ceremony was held at TEMPLE TREES graced” by the President

(source: social media posts circulating)

https://pmd.gov.lk/news/special-iftar-ceremony-with-the-participation-of-the-president

Among the distinguished guests were Minister of Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs, Dr. Hiniduma Sunil Senevi was the only Minister’s name included in the communique issued by the Presidents Media Division.

There is absolutely no issue to holding such an event, but why disregard only a Sinhala event?

Likewise, the PM participated in the Thai Pongal at the PM’s office, but no such Sinhala Avurudu was held at the PM’s office.

On 14^th April the day of the Sinhala avurudu, she attended the Hindu religious ceremony at Vishnu kovil & thereafter to the residence of Attorney-at-Law Mr. Saman Leelarathna.

https://www.pmoffice.gov.lk/news.php?para=RU5vekFVR2dpQTd2VGRiMkZUNE4wSWxieVAvNmY1d0pOUnZ5a0Z5bW9NZm5QNWR4eTVvWC9NbXZSclRaVXR4Yw==

Neither the President or PM lit the hearth as is customary in their homes, or attended any public ceremonies while the President announced that Avurudu would not be telecast though the Ifthar was telecast in all news channels.

Another slap to the Avurudu was the ignoring of the National oil ointment ceremony usually held in Kandy for which neither the President nor PM attended.  Historically the Maha Sangha applied oil on the head of the King/Head of State.

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has consistently advocated for national unity, emphasizing the importance of transcending ethnic and religious divisions.

In his Christmas message, he highlighted the need for unity, peace, and humanity, encouraging all Sri Lankans to follow the example of Jesus Christ by working together to build a fair and prosperous nation.

Additionally, during the ceremonial, he pledged to eliminate racism and religious extremism, acknowledging past divisions and their devastating impact.

However, the decision by both President Dissanayake and Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya to abstain from participating in the Sinhala and Tamil New Year (Avurudu) celebrations raises questions about the consistency of their commitment to fostering unity among all Sri Lankans.

Implications and Public Perception

The Sinhala and Tamil New Year is a time for national celebration and cultural expression, particularly for the Sinhala Buddhist community. The decision by the President and Prime Minister to abstain from these celebrations, while simultaneously advocating for unity and equal treatment of all religions, may be perceived as inconsistent. It could lead to feelings of alienation among the majority community, who may interpret this as a disregard for their cultural identity and traditions.

Public office bearers are not private citizens when they act in their official capacity. They are expected to reflect the values, sentiments, and traditions of the people they represent. Participation in national cultural events like Avurudu is not about personal belief, but about leadership, representation, and respect. By their absence, the President and Prime Minister effectively signaled a disconnect with a key component of the nation’s heritage.

While President Dissanayake’s calls for unity and equal treatment of all religions are commendable, the decision to abstain from the Sinhala and Tamil New Year celebrations appears contradictory. To foster true national unity, it is essential for leaders to actively engage in and honor the cultural traditions of all communities, thereby setting a precedent for inclusivity and mutual respect.

Conclusion with International Perspective

If world leaders can rise above personal identity to honor national tradition, Sri Lankan leaders — bound constitutionally and culturally — have no moral ground to neglect Sinhala Buddhist traditions in favor of minority-only observance when that is not what either majority or minorities expect from their leaders. Leaders should not by their actions divide the people because people are very happy to enjoy each others celebrations while maintaining their own identity.

While those in leadership roles parrot the need for this reconciliation & that reconciliation do they even send a plate of sweatmeats to their neighbors? These are customs that most of us happily do. The Sinhalese exchange plates of their sweetmeats, the Tamils & Muslims do same. Sharing & partaking of foods is the best way to bring harmony. How many of the human rights & other activists who promote concepts on paper actually do such sharing in their own neighborhoods?

We do not need any new Rainbow” days. All that is needed for leaders to stop trying to kill the cultures that exist & bring in new foreign ones that are alien to the country’s culture.

The essence of public duty is representation of the people, and in a Buddhist-majority nation, this includes showing due respect to its sacred traditions — not just in private, but in public, as leaders of all citizens.

The manner even the media has intentionally dropped usage of Sinhala” in reference to Avurudu has also been noticed & showcases a bigger plan & agenda in place.

When the cultural identity of the majority is erased, the spine of a nation is broken. The cultural erasure of the majority is not inclusivity — it is slow-motion civilizational suicide. A people stripped of their cultural pride become strangers in their own land. No democracy can survive if it weaponizes equality to suppress the heritage of the majority. Neglecting the majority is not neutrality — it is betrayal wearing the mask of progress. When leaders celebrate every culture but ignore their own, they send a message: the majority must be ashamed of who they are. The first sign of a crumbling state is the silent burial of its majority’s culture in the name of modernity. Peace cannot be built on the humiliation of the people who built the nation.

Shenali D Waduge

LAK FM

Dasatha News

Gune Aiyage Kamare

Shenali Waduge

Too many self-less individuals have come & gone, they have dedicated their lives, time & wealth to defending the Nation but they have never or rarely been appreciated. Let us change the status quo. The role of the nominator is as imporatnt as the nominee because nominators are people who have identified & appreciated these self-less unsung heroes & are coming forward to nominate them for recognition. Let us archive all the great humans Mother Lanka has produced so that our younger generations get inspired by the efforts people have taken to defend our sacred Nation.

Please help me this iniaitive a success which we can continue forever….

OUR VISION**

To build a national archive of remembrance that honors and preserves the legacy of Sri Lanka’s unsung heroes — patriots who, through quiet resolve or courageous action, safeguarded the soul of the nation.

We envision a Sri Lanka where those who served in silence are remembered in pride, and where future generations draw strength from their stories.

OUR MISSION

To identify, document, and celebrate individuals who have dedicated their time, knowledge, energy, and resources to protect Sri Lanka’s sovereignty, cultural heritage, national assets, environment, and people — often without reward, recognition, or political power/position.

This platform seeks to correct historical oversight, give voice to those who spoke when it was difficult to do so, and ensure that patriotism — in all its forms — is preserved for posterity.

OUR OBJECTIVES

1. Recognize Real Patriots

To honor individuals who have worked tirelessly, often behind the scenes, to defend the nation through advocacy, activism, education, legal action, policy, diplomacy, or community work.

2. Document Their Contributions

To create a lasting digital archive featuring their names, photos, stories, and achievements — accessible to all Sri Lankans and future generations.

3. Inspire a Culture of National Responsibility

To encourage citizens, especially the youth, to learn from these heroes and emulate their spirit of service and sacrifice.

4. Bridge Generational Gaps in Memory

To ensure that the contributions of elders, especially those now in their 70s, 80s, or 90s, are not forgotten — and that new voices are also acknowledged for their courage and commitment.

5. Encourage Community Participation

To invite the public to nominate individuals they know — whether a neighbor, teacher, writer, monk, lawyer, or international advocate — who may not be famous, but whose impact has been invaluable.

6. Preserve National Identity

To safeguard the memory of those who defended Sri Lanka’s culture, values, and independence, especially during times of political compromise, foreign pressure, or internal upheaval.

7. Ensure Integrity and Accountability

To protect this platform from misuse by introducing a thorough vetting process and allowing community oversight through respectful feedback mechanisms.

Why its time to honor our unsung heroes

In a world where loud voices often overshadow quiet strength, many patriots who truly served the nation remain unknown or forgotten.

This project is a call to restore balance to memory — to bring to light those who didn’t seek fame, but gave everything for their country.

Let us recognize those who have stood guard over Sri Lanka — not just on battlefields, but in offices, temples, courts, classrooms, and international forums.

Let us give them the respect they never asked for — but always deserved.

Nomination Criteria for Unsung Heroes

We are committed to honoring true patriots who have dedicated their lives to defending Sri Lanka’s sovereignty, cultural heritage, and the well-being of its people. To ensure the integrity of this platform and the authenticity of its nominees, we have established the following criteria:

1. Dedication to National Defense or National Well-Being

Nominees must have demonstrated a sustained commitment to the defense and prosperity of Sri Lanka, including protecting national security, national assets/resources, cultural heritage, environmental protection, or the overall welfare of the nation.

2. Service in Silence or Without Public Recognition

Nominees must have worked largely in the background, contributing to the nation’s development, protection, or unity without seeking public attention or recognition.

Their service should have been selfless, motivated by a desire to serve Sri Lanka rather than gain personal accolades.

3. Exclusion of Individuals Serving Foreign Interests

Individuals who have received funding, support, or guidance from foreign governments, organizations, or entities with the aim of destabilizing Sri Lanka, undermining its sovereignty, or promoting foreign political or economic agendas are not eligible for nomination.

This includes those acting as agents for foreign interests or who have engaged in activities that directly or indirectly harm Sri Lanka’s national security, social cohesion, or national identity. The platform is dedicated to honoring those who have selflessly worked for Sri Lanka’s benefit, not those whose actions serve external purposes that threaten the nation’s peace, unity, and independence.

4. Clear Evidence of Positive Impact

Nominees should have clear, documented evidence of their positive contributions to Sri Lanka. This can include testimonials, media coverage, reports, or any other credible documentation that supports their role in protecting or advancing the nation.

5. A Commitment to National Unity and Cultural Heritage

Nominees should have demonstrated a commitment to unity and harmony across Sri Lanka’s diverse communities. Their efforts should have contributed to strengthening national identity, fostering & preserving the Buddha Sasana, promoting peace, and preserving Sri Lanka’s cultural and religious heritage.

6. Respect for Sri Lanka’s Constitution

Nominees should have consistently respected and upheld the principles of the Sri Lankan Constitution & its ancient Sinhale civilizational rule, especially in protecting Buddhism, cultural values, and protecting all citizens. Their work should align with Sri Lanka’s constitutional framework and ancient national values & heritage.

Vetting and Accountability

To ensure the integrity of this platform, every nomination will undergo a detailed vetting process. This includes verifying the nominee’s contributions, assessing supporting evidence, and ensuring that the individual has no ties to foreign agendas that may compromise Sri Lanka’s national interests.

If there are concerns or doubts about a nominee’s affiliations, we will conduct thorough reviews and take appropriate action to ensure that only genuine heroes are recognized. A public report a concern” option will be available, where individuals can raise questions or concerns regarding any nominee’s background.

The platform is committed to maintaining full accountability in this process.

How to Nominate

If you know someone who fits the criteria and has selflessly defended Sri Lanka or contributed positively to its welfare, we encourage you to nominate them.

Please submit their name, a brief description of their contributions, supporting evidence, and a photograph (if possible).

Refer the attached template that has to be filled & forwarded to

Nomination Template – Honoring Unsung Heroes (please click & fill the template)

Shenali Waduge

shenaliwaduge@gmail.com

0771569969 (whatsapp)