Navy joins forces with rescuers and volunteers in effort to push pilot whales back into ocean.
Volunteers try to push back a stranded short-finned pilot whale on Panadura beach, Sri Lanka. Photograph: AFP/Getty ImagesAgence France-Presse in ColomboMon 2 Nov 2020 17.11 GMT
Rescuers and volunteers were racing to save about 100 pilot whales stranded on Sri Lanka’s western coast in the country’s biggest mass beaching.
The short-finned pilot whales began beaching at Panadura, 15 miles (25km) south of Colombo, shortly before dusk. Within an hour their numbers swelled to about 100, a local police chief, Sanjaya Irasinghe, said.
With the help of local residents we are trying to push them back [into the ocean],” he said. But they keep getting washed ashore. We are getting help from the navy to rescue these whales.”
The national Marine Environment Protection Authority (Mepa), whose officials were helping with the rescue operation, said it was the largest single pod of whales stranded in Sri Lanka.
It is very unusual for such a large number to reach our shores,” Mepa’s chief, Dharshani Lahandapura, said, adding that the cause of the stranding was not known. We think this is similar to the mass stranding in Tasmania in September.”
Rescuers work through the night to save dozens of short-finned pilot whales. Photograph: Lakruwan Wanniarachchi/AFP/Getty
The beaching of 470 pilot whales in a remote harbour in Tasmania was Australia’s largest ever. About 110 whales were saved in a rescue effort that took days.
Pilot whales, which can grow up to six metres (20ft) and weigh a tonne, are highly social.
The causes of mass strandings remain unknown, despite scientists studying the phenomenon for decades.
… we’re all in. Are you? On November 4, a day after the presidential election, the US will formally withdraw from the Paris agreement on constraining global heating. It’s urgent that we tell the world what this means, and the Guardian is pulling out all the stops to do so.
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Did you know you’ve read 32 articles in the last year? One year ago, the Guardian made a pledge in service of the planet.
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The Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, headed by Basil Rajapksa, today decided to cancel the two days allocated for people to visit supermarkets and grocery stores in the curfew areas, in order to minimise the risk of a possible spread of COVID-19.
Director General of Government Information Department, Nalaka Kaluwewa told the Daily Mirror that following recommendations, the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 decided to suspend the two days allocated for purchases as this would lead to people congregating, posing a big risk.
Kaluwewa said that as a result, from tomorrow, the government had made arrangements for essential supplies and food rations to be supplied to people’s door steps so this would prevent people from leaving their homes.
The National Operations Centre for the Prevention of COVID-19 (NOCPC) last week announced that essential goods outlets and pharmacies will be allowed to operate on Mondays and Thursdays in the Gampaha and Kalutara districts, and on Tuesdays and Fridays in the Colombo and Kurunegala districts.
However, Head of the NOCPC Army Commander Lieutenant General Shavendra Silva also confirmed today that the previously announced system was cancelled in order to prevent people from stepping outdoors.
However even till last evening, there was no official announcement that the two day system had been cancelled by the government. Supermarkets and grocery stores were given until yesterday to sort out their delivery systems to curfew imposed areas.
Meanwhile, Police Spokesman DIG Ajith Rohana told the media today that essential goods outlets, such as supermarkets and Lanka Sathosa, had been permitted to operate 15 delivery services. These outlets will be allowed to operate delivery services using cars, vans, motorcycles, and three-wheelers.
The DIG said that food centres have been permitted to operate 10 delivery services, while pharmacies can implement their own delivery services. Divisional Secretariats of curfew imposed areas have been placed in charge of issuing curfew permits for delivery services. (JAMILA HUSAIN)
A group of Pakistani nationals who are in Sri Lankan prisons for various drug related offences are to be handed over to Pakistani prison officers at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA).
Commissioner General of Prisons Thushara Upuldeniya stated that 44 Pakistani prisoners will be handed over to prison officers from their country at the BIA tomorrow (03).
The prisoners are expected to complete lengthy prison sentences for drug-related offenses in their home country close to family and friends, in accordance with a 2004 agreement on the transfer of offenders between Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
Transfers are allowed in cases where sentences exceed a minimum of six months, the agreement states.
Pakistani media last week reported that the country will be sending a plane to bring back Pakistani prisoners from Sri Lanka.
The decision had been reached during a meeting summoned by Pakistan’s Interior Ministry to discuss the matter pertaining to the repatriation of Pakistani prisoners from Sri Lanka.
Pakistani authorities have worked to bring back Pakistani prisoners stranded abroad and in a similar successful effort, at least 250 Pakistani inmates arrived at Allama Iqbal International Airport, Lahore from Malaysia on board a Malaysian airline flight in May this year.
All the prisoners were shifted to quarantine facilities after screening for the novel coronavirus at the airport.
The Attorney General has directed the Acting IGP to investigate into a social media disclosure regarding alleged land grab of properties owned by persons living abroad by an influential political group.
All tourist lodges and camping sites under the Department of Wildlife Conservation will be temporarily closed for the public.
This comes as a measure to curtail the spread of the COVID-19 outbreak within the country.
The Department stated the decision will be in effect until further notice.
However, the travelers who had previously booked the aforementioned facilities will be informed in due time regarding alternative dates, the Department said.
The Department has also taken measures to individually inform all tourist groups who had booked the facilities regarding the decision.
It
seems that many people of Sri Lanka talk about the 13th amendment to
the constitution before the quick boost of opinion on the arrival of the US
Secretary of State. The visit was highly focused on opinion on the MCC
agreement and political talks on the agreement, and it is clear that these talkative
people have no clear understanding of the concept and contents of the 13th
amendment. Media of the country attempt to divert the flow of opinion and India
also wants to lie down the matter relates to the 13th amendment.
However, people need to understand the truth about the amendment rather than
motivating from time to time based on an unimportant statement of a politician.
Why
did the 13th amendment pass, it might associate with the historical
experience of Indian behavior toward Sri Lanka and the other neighboring countries?
The general understanding of Sri Lankans implied India has hegemony over
surrounding countries, and the manner of Indian opinion and the foreign policy demeanor
toward the 13th amendment displays that the amendment was originated
with the supports of India, and its hegemonic approach, but it is difficult to
explain how it happened? During the British rule, Indian people took to various
countries such as Sri Lanka, Fiji, and Certain African countries Western
entrepreneurs at that time, Indian nationals or the freedom movement did not
oppose the actions, but later Indian governments use migrated Indians to create
distress against the legally elected government in such countries.
Was
there a compromise between Sri Lanka and India when the amendment was enacted,
and the implementation of the amendment? Mr. J.R. Jayawardane, a party to the signatories
to the Indo-Lanka Accord stated that the action was a strategy to live under
the shadow of India without surrendering the country. The assassination of Mr.
Rajiv Ghandi practically convinced India that the amendment might have negative
effects concerning defense affairs and also showed the risk of using migrated
labor from India for international politics. An article published in the Hindu
paper on 07.09.2020 in India described the reasons why is the 13th
amendment contentious based on four points and also indicated two significant
points regarding the amendment.
The
recent behavior of Mr. Sarath Weerasekera, who was appointed as the State
Minister of the Provincial Councils shows that the hard-line approach to abolishing
the provincial councils has either changed or underwater, resulting in the
visit of the American Secretary of State, Mr. Mike Pompeo. Otherwise,
abolishing the 13th amendment was a headache for many parties and it
might re-emerge the environment change after COVID-19 19 epidemic and when a
new constitution making emerged in the parliament. What people observe regarding
the debate is Mr.Sarath Weerasekera has failed to point out the disadvantages
incurred from the 13th amendment and how he is supposed to change
the amendment give benefits to both sides India and Sri Lanka. When impartially
considering the 13th amendment, it was a humanistic approach of Sri
Lanka’s government toward the Tamil ethnic community and the experience after
the enactment of the amendment since 1987 it has not been any disadvantage to
neither Sinhala, nor Tamil, nor Muslim community of Sri Lanka.
Before
the arrived European invaders, the reign of Sri Lanka’s political
administration was successfully used and tackled ethnic issues in the country
adopting appropriate techniques to deal with ethnic issues in the country from
time to time. Before the king Dutugemunu, Sri Lanka used a technique that
divided the political administration as Ruhuna, Maya, and Pihiti, and it was changed
by King Dutugemunu. The evidence relating to the provincial administration is
not written in historical sources.
However, historical books in Sri Lanka provide evidence that King
Dutugemunu did not extend the war beyond Vavuniya and respected the right of
Tamils. I assume that from King Dutugemunu there is no harm if Tamils are
living in the country respecting the right of the Sinhala Community without
making distress to the government s of Sri Lanka and India. The problem was South Indian invaders
promoted actions against the Sinhala community and their religion Buddhism. If
we look at the approach of King Dutugemunu, the contents of the 13th
amendment would not be harmful to the Sinhala community or the country either.
The
specific nature of the historical reign was that people were treated as human
residing in the country and allowed to use owned language and religion or any
other identity if there were not harmful to others in administration
activities. The ethnic division was based on the language used by people, but
it was not established on scientific reasons such as biological deviations. The
wars incurred when ethnic groups (Tamils) attempted to control the right of the
majority ethnic group, Sinhala, and India played a role to settle ethnic
problems without favoring any ethnic groups.
The culture of India showed similarities in the practices of Sri Lankans
and Indians.
The
creation of provincial councils by the 13th amendment was
conceptually associated with the division of the central government power than
to delegation of the authority to nine provincial councils, and the division of
power is not distinguished and the amendment indicates that irrespective of
size and the nature of power given from the amendment are equal whether people
living in provinces are Sinhala or Tamil or Muslims. The concept of the 13th
amendment shows equity and justice incorporated into the amendment, without
harm to the right of any ethnic community in the country. For example, if particular
power is given to the northern province, the same power was given to the
southern province. The concept relates to the 13th amendment that
might difficult to understand by ordinary citizens.
People
going against the provincial councils need to clearly understand the concept of
the separation of power and delegation of power. Many political scientists
talked about separation of power especially considering the separation of power
between the executive, legislature, and Judiciary. The delegation of power in
the 13th amendment is not related to the concept of separation of
power, and the content of the 13th amendment indicated that the delegation
of power is equally delegation of the authority subject to the commandment of
the executive president of the country.
The
Hindu paper highlighted that the criticism against the 13th
amendment states that the provinces could be effectively controlled by the
Centre. This is an opinion based on the
situation and experience when the population of Sri Lanka remained less than
15.0 million, However, the population of the country has been increased to 22.0
million, and the delegation of power economically is cost-effective and
efficiency in providing services is more effective under the provincial council
system as long as there are no attitudes toward to territorial integrity is
respected and assured by members of provincial councils. The best example is the current issue of the
COVID 19 crisis, that invites the use of the authority of the center and the
provinces. Many people have difficulty understanding the situation.
Strategically,
Mr.J.R. Jayawardane disagreed with India the delegation of police power and
land power. If police power delegated in an environment that the separatist
movement was powerful the delegated power could have used to disturb the law
and order, especially in North and East provinces. The land power should be in the hand of the
center as in an environment that the population is expanding there should be
lands for the increase in population to live. It is accepted that in the
international legal framework no person should be landless to live and the
central administration of the country is responsible to provide to live all
people in the country. The delegation of power from the point of view of Tamil
politicians was more selfish and there was a nature of rejecting people of the
country giving lands to live. Mr.J.R.
Jayewardene viewed that there should be an opportunity to expand the excess
population in the Western province to expand in the east and I feel that India
has agreed with the points of Mr. Jayewardene. The current wish of the Indian
prime minister is not going beyond international justice.
Mr.Sarath
Weerasekera has failed to develop concrete points in favor of why the
provincial council should be canceled and what would be the alternative he
suggests to implement after the cancellation.
He may know that this is a complicated issue that involves India
too. Various points JR highlighted to
India not to give police and land management power to provincial councils were
accepted by India and considered valid.
Lands of the country are to all people without an ethnic difference and
the giving full power on land management to the council will prevent expanding
population in the western province to North and East. It is unacceptable. When grants the police power to the
provincial council it might lead to conflict between the federal police and provincial
police services. Sri Lanka doesn’t want such a situation in the name of the
provincial councils and India understands that such conflicts between the
federal police and provincial police could emerge in India.
The
concept and the contents of the 13th amendment should be educated to
people through media and the amendment should not use as a wound of a beggar to
manipulated political opinion. If the
government suppose to introduce a new constitution the concept and the contents
of the 13th amendment should be incorporated into the new
constitution.
(April 08, Ontario, Sri Lanka Guardian) The United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, should establish a commission to investigate the tens of thousands of Muslim civilians killed by US and UK forces in Iraq and Afghanistan.Instead, all the indications are that the Secretary General has succumbed to pressure from Tamil Tiger lobbyists and commenced an inquiry into 1,500 civilians killed in the final stages of the LTTE-Sri Lankan military confrontation. (External Link) This is further to the news that is emerging on the killing of innocent civilians by the US forces, in Iraq, in which Reuter reporters and children were killed.
US invaded Iraq, and killed millions of innocent civilians, the body count, being 104,492 according to the sources: External link. Yet, we never saw, any UN human rights violations charges being laid on them? Now why was that? Why has not UN’s Navi Pillay being actively recommending an investigation to these deaths, which are becoming apparent to the world?
By afternoon today, there were more news emerging, (viewer be aware the video can be very sensitive nature) the subject being Collateral Damage”, which shows the shooting that took place without any provocation by these innocent people, who were only walking in the street, and the Reuter reporter, who was carrying a camera. As you will see in the video, after being shot, he tries to get up, and the soldiers surveying him, watches everything and when a van comes in to save this man, the whole van consisting of two children and men are shot at! The brutality of it all is revealed.
There have many protests, who have demanded that President Bush be brought to trial for the human rights violations done in the Iraq. But somehow, it has gone unnoticed.
One of the world’s most vicious terrorist groups – the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Ealam) was militarily defeated by the Sri Lankan security forces in May 2009. Today, no insurgency can be fought without civilian deaths. The LTTE in particular was notorious for using Tamils as a human shield and its propaganda organ TamilNet provided false civilian fatalities and injuries. Western governments reacted not to the ground reality in Sri Lanka but to the LTTE propaganda. If the UN report is going to have any credibility it must investigate the colossal loss of civilian life and property by US and UK forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. If the United Nations and the Office of the Secretary General are to regain the prestige it has lost as a result of scandals, it must not only be just but appear to just.
I wonder what the UN has to say now, with these new allegations emerging. When there was no known terrorism in Iraq, but US still decided to go ahead and invade, and subsequently, there is horror upon horror stories are being revealed. What more new stories will the world have to hear before, this so called United Nations will take action to bring the perpetrator to justice?
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has taken several decisions for Covid-19 prevention without harming the public life or the economy.
He had a meeting today (01) with members of the presidential task force for Covid-19 prevention.
Accordingly, he ordered that PCR tests for persons under home-quarantine be carried out on the 10th day and to allow them to return to normal life after 14 days if results return negative.
The home-quarantine process should be made more efficient through constant monitoring by MoH officers, PHIs, police and the army, he said.
Also, movements between the districts have been barred, excepting for the transportation of goods and other essential services.
Head of the task force Basil Rajapaksa said the distribution of essential goods would continue as had been done previously.
The district and divisional secretaries, Grama Niladhari officers and local government representatives will be given the responsibilities, he said.
The dole for the elderly and essential goods worth Rs. 10,000 for persons under home-quarantine would be provided to their homes, according to him.
The president instructed further that if new cases were reported even after the spreading of the virus ended, the causes should be investigated separately.
He added that curfew permits be not issued in the western province and in the Eheliyagoda and Kuliyapitiya police areas and the Kurunegala municipality areas where a curfew will be in force until 09 November.
Any form of entanglement with India or the US on the strategic plane will be anathema to Sri Lanka’s Rajapaksa rulers, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Third-country cooperation is highly complex, unpredictable phenomenon. Not even the closest allies can pull it off easily.
Lord Curzon, the then British foreign secretary, denied that oil interests influenced policy in Iraq, but archives show that the British government rushed troops to Mosul in 1918 to gain control of the northern oil fields in a sharp course reversal to recoup what had already been given away to France under the secret Sykes-Picot Accord of early 1916.
Even before World War II had ended, Washington began wondering about how an exhausted Britain would adjust to a world where it had less power and influence vis-a-vis the US.
Then US secretary of state Edward Stettinius wrote to then President Frankin Delano Roosevelt, ‘Never underestimate the difficulty an Englishman faces in adjusting to a secondary role.’
Matters came to a head with the Suez Crisis of 1956 when Britain and France sent troops to seize the Suez Canal and the US was not informed of the operation. President Dwight David Eisenhower hit back showing how power had shifted in the post-War world.
Ike blocked the IMF from granting Britain emergency loans unless it called off the invasion. Britain, militarily, never acted again against the explicit wishes of Washington.
Such lessons of history should not be forgotten, as India becomes an ally of the US. The nascent signs of India’s ‘bloc mentality’ first appeared within months of the Modi government assuming power in May 2014.
Mahinda Rajapaksa later recounted with great bitterness that a high level of US-Indian political, diplomatic and intelligence coordination in that project had done him in.
The intricate plot apparently involved splitting the Sri Lankan ruling party by cultivating pockets of influence in the Sinhala Buddhist establishment to weaken Rajapaksa’s political base and bringing in the hapless Jaffna Tamils as doormat.
Rajapaksa, a tough politician himself, was completely outwitted.
The regime change in Sri Lanka was the first of its kind in South Asia and bore striking resemblance to the US playbook in Latin America to undermine legitimate governments by using comprador elements and put in power ‘our s.o.b’ (as FDR once derisively called Nicaraguan dictator Anastasio Somoza García).
Indeed, it was a radical departure in India’s foreign policy to have dragged a small neighbour to become a platform for its ‘Indo-Pacific’ strategy with the US — a daring move, too, given Sri Lanka’s robust record of nonalignment.
The present ruling elite in Colombo will remain extremely wary of the US and India. The happenings in next-door Maldives must have rung alarm bells already that eternal vigilance is the price of liberty.
Plainly put, any form of entanglement with India or the US on the strategic plane will be anathema.
This is the stark message coming out of the visit by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to Colombo on October 28. Pompeo’s counterpart Dinesh Gunawardena said at a joint press meet, ‘As a Sovereign, Free, Independent nation, Sri Lanka’s foreign policy will remain neutral. Non-Aligned and Friendly.’ Gunawardena was responding to Pompeo’s overtures.
Importantly, the readout of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s meeting with Pompeo says, ‘Elaborating on the foreign policy of Sri Lanka, President said it is based on neutrality. Relations between Sri Lanka and other nations are determined by several conditions. Historical and cultural relations, development cooperation are some of the priorities.’
‘President stressed that he is not ready to compromise the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the nation in maintaining foreign relations whatever the circumstances may be.’
‘Noting that China assisted in the development of the country’s infrastructure since the end of the separatist war, President reiterated that Sri Lanka is not caught in a debt trap as a result.’
Simply put, the nadir has been reached for the ‘Indo-Pacific’ strategy in the Pearl of the Orient.
Without doubt, this constitutes a humiliating rebuff to the US-Indian fantasy that Sri Lanka could be frog-marched into the so-called Second Island Chain strategy in the Indian Ocean, alongside the Maldives which signed in September a Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) with the Pentagon to build American military bases there.
In 2013, India resented the US efforts to sign a SOFA with the Maldives, but in September 2020, when the American efforts fructified, Delhi became ecstatic.
This must be the first instance in diplomatic history when a regional power congratulated its tiny neighbour for granting military bases to a superpower from the other side of the planet 16,000 kilometres away.
The obsession with collaring the Maldives clouds Delhi’s judgment. The ruling elite blithely assume that having American military bases scattered over those 1,190 coral islands grouped in a double chain of 26 atolls, spread over roughly 90,000 square kilometres, serves India’s long-term interests.
They suffer from dementia. They have forgotten the tragic story of Diego Garcia, which used to be part of Mauritius till 1965 and was rechristened British Indian Ocean Territory by London, only to be leased out to the US in 1967 to develop American bases.
There was strong opposition from littoral States of the Indian Ocean area — including India — who wished to preserve a non-militarised status in the region. However, the US simply rounded up the indigenous inhabitants, put them in overcrowded boats and dumped them on the beaches of Mauritius and Seychelles.
The UN overwhelmingly pleaded with the US to return Diego Garcia to its rightful owners but Washington, which swears by ‘rules-based international order’, simply thumbed the nose at it.
Do not rule out if a similar fate awaits the half million Maldivians at some point. The great game in the Indian Ocean is only beginning.
This geographical base is estimated to contain 62% of the world’s oil reserves, 35% of its gas, 40% of gold reserves, over 60% of uranium and 80% of its diamond reserves. Any doubt who will want to monopolise this fabulous wealth?
At best, Americans might send a bagful of diamonds to Surat for polishing before selling them in Midtown Manhattan’s Diamond District.
Make no mistake, the military bases in the Maldives will be a great asset for Americans to keep Indians under check. They must be anticipating already that some day an authentic nationalist ruling elite might appear in the corridors of power in Delhi elbowing out the pretenders, and revert India to independent foreign policies.
The mystique of geopolitics is such that you never know what lies in the womb of time. Just return for a moment to the fag-end of the Cold War
Margaret Thatcher and Francois Mitterand were so deeply sceptical about the wisdom of Mikhail Gorbachev’s plan to disband the Warsaw Pact that they descended on Moscow to prevail upon the Soviet leader to go slow on the unification of Germany, while Washington on the other hand was lustily encouraging him to press ahead.
Yet, only thirty years ago, Lord Ismay (the Nainital-born first secretary general of NATO) had thought that NATO was formed ‘to keep the Russians out, Americans in and Germans down.’
Already by the 1980s, the calculus had phenomenally changed.
stay out of any conflicts amongst the world powers.”
We request all foreign nations to respect
the sovereignty and the unity of our nation”
In using the term neutrality, none of the QUAD states or any other partnering the Indo-US Pacific strategy with intent to go to war with another country, can use Sri Lanka’s territory. With the territorial integrity of Sri Lanka clearly defined under Hague Convention, the GoSL is bound to withdraw from ACSA with US. ACSA was signed on 4 August 2017 in secret, amidst much controversy. It has not been tabled in Parliament. No one knows the contents of it. Only 180 days’ notice is required for Sri Lanka to exit from the agreement. Sri Lanka should exit from ACSA.
We are well aware that the QUAD nations are signing defense pacts and engaged in maritime exercises in preparedness for a confrontation with China. This is certainly not to exchange roses with each other. Sri Lanka wishes to engage with all nations for development but not to be used as a platform to engage in rivalries or to have Sri Lanka used to launch attacks against other nations.
2017 United States National Security Strategy paper
clearly identified China as a competitor to
American power, influence and interests”.
Sri Lanka’s Government & Foreign Ministry must make this clear in the 2-2 Ministerial Dialogue scheduled for 2021 decided after Pompeo’s visit to Sri Lanka. No US-Sri Lanka military training or naval training should be with intent to be used against China or any other country. Obviously 2021 is planned to rope in Sri Lanka to signing pacts with US along the Indo-US-Pacific Strategy and Sri Lanka must remain unfettered by the coercions at play.
Having weathered 2 insurrections by JVP, 3 decades of terror by LTTE – NO SRI LANKAN wishes to have Sri Lanka enter into any confrontations with external parties or have Sri Lanka used for interventions or skirmishes between countries. We are not willing to have Sri Lanka as a punching bag by powerful nations for their petty political games. We have always wanted to have good relations with all nations and that must continue to be the basis of our diplomacy.
What also needs to be added is that while NEUTRALITY is simply a stand taken, Sri Lanka is by signatory a Member of the Non-Aligned Charter and that membership is powerful and therefore Sri Lanka must continue to nurture ties with the Non-Aligned Members.
We have had ties with China & India when countries like USA, Canada, Australia, Singapore did not even exist. Our ties are long and old and we cannot forget the richness of those ties simply because we are living in the ‘modern’ and ‘development’ dictates ‘olden cultures and traditions’ to be taboo. When the world find itself returning to fundamentals and basics, Sri Lanka is ever reminded that old is gold and the past cannot be buried or forgotten.
We want to be friends with all and enemies of none.
30 October 1964 marks a landmark agreement by Prime Minister of then Ceylon, Sirimavo Bandaranaike & Indian Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri. It was formerly known as the Sirima-Shashtri Pact and was signed to solve the issue of citizenship of Indian workers living in then Ceylon.
Sirima Shastri Pact
Is a bilateral agreement deciding the citizenship of persons of Indian Origin granting 525,000 Indian citizenship and 300,000 Ceylonese citizenship.
Who are persons of Indian origin living in Ceylon
This question takes us back to the period of colonial rule and how indentured laborers were brought from India to work on plantations on the island.
The colonials completely changed the native and heritage cultural and administrative practices. Capitalist economic system & private entrepreneurship was introduced and land belonging to the natives was confiscated via Wasteland Ordinance Act of 1840. Falsely acquired land was sold to foreign private planters. Plantations needed workers and the vacuum was provided by bringing in South Indian workers in the central hill area.
They were brought down because they afforded cheap labor and mostly on account of Sinhalese refusing to work on plantations.
What is important to understand is that at the time of independence these indentured laborers were more than the so-called new nomenclature of Ceylon Tamils coined in 1911.
However, the question of what was to be their future when Ceylon gained independence was an issue. They did not come on their own free will. They were not invited by the Ceylonese – these Indians were forcibly brought to Ceylon to work by the colonial rulers. Ideally, it is they (Portuguese – Dutch and mostly British) who should provide them citizenship in their countries without demanding Ceylon provide citizenship to them. These colonials brought people from other countries to work for their personal profits and it is they who should have looked after them not dump them upon the country they brought the workers to work on. This debate continues!
Firstly, these workers brought in by the colonials were not citizens to be given citizenship & claim their rights were denied via citizenship act of 1949. If anyone had to solve the problem it was the creators of the problem. These were the colonials in particular the British. Having brought natives from other countries to work on plantations for their profit, the British & other colonials dump these people on the newly independent nations and demand they give them citizenship. This is the crux of the situation vis a vis Indians brought from South India and settled down in Sri Lanka.
It is true that while the same Tamils got termed as Ceylon Tamils on the one hand from 1911 the rest became simply Indian Estate Workers.
The Portuguese-Dutch-British used them, dumped them and then went off to their nations & demanded the newly independent colonies look after them. This was another phase of divide & rule. These Indian Tamils were made stateless not by Ceylon but by the Colonials.
The gist of the 1964 Sirima-Shashtri Pact was to afford a choice for those who were neither citizens of India nor Ceylon to choose where they wished to be citizens.
This number was 975,000 and excluded illegal migrants from India.
300,000 were to be given Ceylon citizenship while 525,000 were given Indian citizenship.
The status of the remaining 150,000 was to be decided later.
India was to accept repatriations within 15 years from date of agreement (up to 1979)
Ceylon agreed to allow people employed to continue until 1979 repatriation and Ceylon agreed to repatriate with all assets (provident fund/gratuity etc but not exceeding Rs.4000)
It is via these Indian estate workers that Sri Lanka’s tea industry thrives as a major economic contributor. Ceylon tea has become world famous.
Yet the immigrant factor was always an issue and an irritant between the two nations. Many illegal immigrants posed off as Hill Country Tamils. There was always the question of loyalty. Were they loyal to India or Sri Lanka. How far could India ‘influence’ them – then and even now. How would that pose a threat to Sri Lanka’s sovereignty. Yet, why were they dislodged even from the upper caste/class Tamil society. Mano Ganeshan would be able explain this treatment only too well.
Why was the fate of 150,000 not solved and how many has this number today increased to?
The 1964 Sirima-Shashtri Pact was amended against by the 1971 Sirima-Indira Pact and another in 1986 and in 1988 a law was passed to Grant Citizenship to Stateless Persons.
In the 1987 Indo-Lanka Accord (2.16d) repatriation of illegal Tamils was one of the 5 main clauses which India did not uphold and was a prerequisite condition to the validity of the accord.
The debate surrounding the issue of Tamil illegal immigrants, Tamil indentured labor, origin of Ceylon Tamils and the role of western divide & rule will continue but the facts cannot be kept under politically correct stalemate.
With
a Sri Lankan American population in the United States now lingering between the
third and fourth generation, the time has come to face one of the most decisive
elections experienced by native and naturalized citizens with voting rights in
the USA. The choices are easy and plain
to those who follow the facts and closely examine priorities for the country
and its people. Above all, we have a
responsibility to uphold higher values than what we have experienced in the
last four years. It is imperative to
pick the right reasons for making choices because this election is unique in
the use of twists in the truth, vindictive actions and false unproven
allegations, personal financial motives, and plans to destroy democratic rights
of the people that can take the country on a journey of no return.
Fascism
is staring in the face of the United States with the growing lean towards
dictators, and the expanding empowerment of race based heavily armed white
supremacist militia dragging the country back to dark ages. Nothing said to the country can be withdrawn
as sarcasm or jokes after it is spoken. Words are also to be spoken with
responsibility in public speeches spoken to the country. Their words translate to assumed approval of action
whether good or bad, whether it kills people in the process or incites
violence. The ultimate responsibility
must be with the leaders whose words incite.
The mantra of white supremacy is frighteningly Neo-Nazi type and
endangers nonwhite minorities including immigrants like us. Even one life lost is one too many.
The
anti-immigrant sentiments are so strong that it seems like the established
policies to welcome diverse groups to the country with a welcome from the Statue of Liberty and,
accountability to all international conventions are on the brink of being ignored. The FBI has warned that the greatest security
threat faced by the US is not from foreign terrorism but more from domestic
terrorism that defy factual truths. The number of armed militia groups have
grown rapidly in the last four years.
They are free to carry assault weapons that belong in wars, in public
places because Trump has the support of, and approval of the gun lobby. With elections, weapons have been banned at
polling stations due to the fearful threats that have crept into politics. Weapons can be carried only by law enforcement.
We have yet to see what happens on Tuesday, November 3, 2020, a historic day.
Priorities
in a democracy is to evaluate whether the democracy is preserved by our voting
choices. Any country with democracy is
aware that democracies are hard fought. In doing so, one must examine the value of the
ability to vote and how it can be preserved for future generations. On top of
this basic value to be preserved is the peoples wishes and choices made for the
better good of the country and its people who elect representatives to steer
the country in the right direction. The
United States cannot survive with an isolationist policy that is the mantra
today. We live in a global community
that requires participation of all countries. Biden advocates bringing back
unity within the country and with international allies. This is in shreds in
these four years with citizens and allies in friendly nations worldwide no
longer able to look at the US as a beacon of hope and a leader.
Four
years of a Trump administration saw some destructive policies that do not sit
well with reasonable and intelligent voters.
The Trump base was supported mainly by non-college educated white men
who did not consider or understand important factors that played a part in the
global standing of the United States. Understanding global interaction between
countries is beyond the understanding of some of the base that drove the agenda.
Policy decisions were made mostly by Twitter and with abuse of Executive orders. Basic needs of humans as citizens can be
funneled to include healthcare, education, jobs and equal racial status, equal
justice.
With
immigrants like us, race relations are critical, and so are other basic values
tied to administration determined policies.
Currently policy takes shape determined by future votes for re-election
and not the needs of the nation. Encompassing all of this is respect for human
life and acceptance of all beings regardless of color, creed, national origin,
or religion. With the Trump
administration, those of us who brought value with our choice to emigrate to
the US were dismissed with disparaging name calling. Our skin color was denigrated and what was
not visible in the form of our education and value was ignored. We were stereotyped and our homelands
disrespected using language not permitted in the public domain as s**t hole
countries. We came from countries that
invested in us and benefited the United States, but we were insulted as if it
was a one-way street scraping the bottom by immigration. America gained from us too. We the Sri Lankan American citizens bring
solid values and work ethic, education, assets and we abide by the law as a
community with exceptions of some violations of the Patriot Act by supporters
of terror who were dealt with the law to some extent when criminal activities
were proven.
The
choice to support Biden is not because he is a Democrat alone. The basic choice of a leader for a country
that is a democracy is human decency. The US has lost its footing internally in
terms of race relations and respect for the ordinary citizens who pay taxes and
work hard to keep the wheels turning. The
treatment of racial, economic, political, and other diverse groups with lack of
respect and decency has been the hallmark of the last four years. Speaking the truth, acknowledging education, knowledge,
and expertise like world renowned scientists received arrogant egotistical
insults when they served humanity.
Every
occupation is a necessity whether it requires education or only skills and
desire to work. Healthcare is an issue
that has become the foundation on which fear has grown in the richest country
in the world. With dismantling the
Obamacare that provided affordable healthcare to a third of the population that
had no healthcare, the battle for four years has been to remove Obamacare by
using the Supreme Court that is also politicized with the long term plan to
defer decisions against that of the people to the divided court. Favoring appointees who must pledge loyalty
to the leader who put them there and not independent decisions guarantees a one-sided,
self-driven agenda that moves away from a democracy to a dictatorship style.
The
vindictive threat of removal of healthcare from 20 million people is
preposterous. Education and educated
opinions have been dismissed in the last four years. With the Biden-Harris ticket, there are some
rough edges that need to be worked on, but people live in hope that they will listen
to the people’s wishes and weigh decisions with input from those who bring
knowledge and experience. One such area
that we must work on is a review of the Foreign Policy toward Sri Lanka that
has resulted incomplete knowledge that has not done justice to Sri Lanka. We must take responsibility for criticism
over action that has resulted in less than favorable views except when firsthand
information is shared by us. Work to be
done in this regard is staring in our faces and we must move forward.
Taxes
are another issue. It is known that the
top 1% hold about 90% of the wealth in this country and they manipulate
financial markets that almost throttled the small investor planning for
retirement. They used to pay 28% in
taxes that the super-rich wanted reduced to 25%. Self-serving Trump reduced it further to 21%
giving them a 7% drop in 2017 serving himself and his wealthy friends, while he
had not paid taxes and cheated the country for 10-15 years. How can one respect this kind of individual
to make serious decisions for We the people” as stated in the Constitution of
the United States?
This
gap to give a 7% reduction in taxes was filled with deprivation of people like
me by taking away tax deductions that ordinary middle class workers and
retirees were able to claim at the end of a financial year in tax filings. This meant piling a further 7% taxes to be
paid by working and retired middle class to bridge the gap. We felt duped to lose 7% of the tax
exemptions we had prior to Trump. With
Biden-Harris, he has recognized an immediate need to remedy the tax structure
and restore healthcare. Biden has vowed to and will ensure that those earning
wages higher than $400,000 pay their fair share. Biden will reduce the burden
on the middle and working class with tax reform that will make the rich pay a
fair share. Prescription drugs have
increased 300% for some of us while the President claims he gave us the lowest
drug prices which is not the truth.
Covid
19 has been the test for most American voters.
The callous politicizing a pandemic with selfish motives to use it for
election vote winning, misleading the masses and calling world renowned
scientists and doctors idiots” hit home to those of us who are educated in
advanced science and exposed to biotech environments in our careers. Biden understands the value of contribution
from the experts who know more than a state leader. He respects science and we as citizens have
the confidence that when it comes to major issues he will respect the
collective opinion of experts and not be afraid to make unpopular decisions,
enforce policies with explanations that citizens can trust. Bidens desire to encompass the input of
experts in all areas to get the best of the better brains is a sharp contrast
to Trump who is poorly informed, hardly educated and had to pay someone to take
his college admission SAT tests. Respect
must be earned and not demanded. Biden
served one of the most popular Past Presidents, Barak Obama giving a sense of
security to people. His inability to
fulfill some of his policies was due to partisan and deliberate blocking by an
opposing Republican Senate that vowed to obstruct him even before he
started. The falsehood about Obama’s
birth on US soil was Trumps birtharism lies that took more energy away from
productive action with proof that was ignored to promote lies. Not only have we lost respect within the
country, but the USA has also lost respect worldwide among leaders and even
ordinary citizens of other countries.
Biden was Vice President of the country.
He knows the norms and the accepted conduct we expect from our
leaders. He knows what is good for the
country and people and will not be self-serving. His morality is above
board. He has lived by the laws of the
land.
When
immigrants came to the USA, it was based on voluntary choice. We are Sri Lankan in origin and familiar with
our democratic right to vote and make choices.
Although many do not value what our home country provided with the
freedom to choose, the free education, free healthcare with built in choices
that are available according to affordability, it is comparable to the desires
of Americans too. However, in the USA
education is not affordable, healthcare is unaffordable and until Obama stepped
in, it was tied to the employer who had the choice to not offer health
insurance. The government took its share
of taxes and social security but there were few guarantees of job security or protection
from healthcare costs.
With
Biden, he understands the basic needs of people. As a Sri Lankan American I feel very strongly
about the foreign policy toward Sri Lanka after ending the war on
terrorism. There was not enough force to
set the tone that Sri Lanka was victorious against the terrorists who were
labelled by the US Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) as the most brutal of
all terror groups. The Mackenzie
Institute of Canada in a study determined that Sri Lanka’s terrorists stood
among the top three most brutal in the world that included Al-Shabaab and
Hamas. Yet, the US took a hard line to
march our trained military that lost 29,000 lives in uniform for Human Rights
Violations. Having been vocal about this
discrepancy needs more support from Sri Lanka.
The elimination of over 70,000 civilian lives of all races has only been
portrayed in half truths. With a Biden
administration, Sri Lanka’s foreign relations can be reviewed by educating a
new administration with truth and facts that give a balanced picture. It will not come by default. We, the voters of the American system must
use our avenues of input to follow up on requests to honor the independence to
defend our home country from the same terrorism that is on the radar of the US
government. Terrorism is terrorism. The tactics are the same. Only the cause” varies and sometimes, with
closer look at the so-called cause, it is evident that the cause is only an
excuse that is hardly honored.
With
a Biden-Harris administration, we as Sri Lankan Americans must do our part for
the bridge building between our countries.
When we leave Sri Lanka and become citizens, we must not forget that it
is not only the affluence and economic success that we enjoy. We must also remember that some of us brought
a high level of education, assets, and our values that we contribute to the
American System. We have added
value. It is disheartening to note that
some Sri Lankan Americans look at the two countries and condemn Sri Lanka as
all bad. Some Sri Lankans condemn the US
as all bad. There is no such pure and clear-cut
classification. We the people of this
world have individual responsibility to contribute with a balance of good and
bad for the better good of humanity that stretches beyond the labels by
country, politics, race, religion, and economic standing. The world of humans must be built on values
good for humanity and not personal gain.
In
this decisive time of the US Presidential elections referred to as the most
important in history, each of us bear responsibility to make the world work and
drive it in the right direction. It
takes effort beyond words and contempt.
China kept mum during the time of the general election of 2020. But soon after, China moved quickly to re-affirm friendly relations.
The first high-powered Chinese business delegation to Sri Lanka to arrive was a 15-member business delegation from Mianyang, to sign agreements with Sri Lanka’s Confederation of Micro, Small and Medium Industries (COSMI). They came in December 2019.
Two landmark agreements were signed. A Cooperation Framework Agreement between COSMI and China Mianyang Enterprise Union for Import and Export, and a Strategic Cooperation Agreement between COSMI and Sichuan Yiyang Xuanyu Trading Co. Ltd were signed. The visiting Chinese businessmen also took part in many one-to-one B2B ‘COSMI matchmaking sessions’ with Lankan firms. .
COSMI President said COSMI works for the revival of the industrial sector in Sri Lanka that now faces various setbacks including lack of new tech and international links. This is why we bring international businesses here and link them to our local SMEs for investment and cooperation.
COSMI said Mianyang is an important pivot city on the junction of the OBOR project. It is the most dynamic city on China’s OBOR belt. Mianyang is the only science and technological city approved by the Chinese government. It is also one of eight Chinese national ‘layout areas’ for systematic promotion of comprehensive innovation and a leading electronic and intelligent manufacturing hub with multiple research and tech centres, and is the second largest economy in Sichuan Province,”
There were other China- Sri Lanka discussions, too. China-Sri Lanka Belt and Road Political Parties Joint Consultation Mechanism between the Communist Party of China (CPC) and main political parties of Sri Lanka has been established on June 2020. The first meeting of the mechanism, with the theme of Building the Belt and Road Initiative and Promoting Economy and People’s Livelihood, was held via video link in June. United National Party, Sri Lanka Freedom Party, and People’s United Front of Sri Lanka had attended.
Song Tao, Minister of the International Department of the CPC Central Committee, addressed the event. He said China was ready to work with Sri Lankan political parties to implement the consensus reached by the two Heads of State, strengthen the exchange of experience in state governance, consolidate the political foundation and public support for China-Sri Lanka ties, promote bilateral cooperation in all areas and contribute to the high-quality Belt and Road cooperation. The meeting also approved a joint initiative of the political parties of China and Sri Lanka to support Belt and Road cooperation.
A high level Chinese delegation, from Beijing flew into Colombo, and met President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa in October 2020. The Chinese team were visiting Sri Lanka, UAE, Algeria and Serbia on invitation. Sri Lanka was their first destination. This was a very significant visit.
The Chinese delegation comprised seven members, led by senior Chinese leader and top foreign policy official Yang Jiechi. He was Chinese Foreign Minister from 2007-2013 and China’s Ambassador to US from 2001 to 2005. He is presently a member of the Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party and the director of its Central Committee’s Foreign Affairs Commission, a top policy-making body. He holds a position equivalent to Vice Premier.
Also in the delegation were China International Development Cooperation Agency chairman Wang Xiaotao, Assistant Foreign Minister Deng Lee and the Foreign Ministry’s Asian Affairs Deputy Director General Chen Song.
The leader of the delegation said that the present status of bilateral relations between China and Sri Lanka was highly satisfactory. Maintaining and promoting this friendship is a key priority of President Xi Jingping. China wanted to maintain high-level exchanges and consolidate political mutual trust. Chinese President Xi Jinping considered further improvement of China-Sri Lanka relations a priority.
The delegation recalled past history. China–Sri Lanka relations have stood the test of time, they said. What continued from the ancient spiritual ties since the visits of Chinese Buddhist monks centuries ago, received a big boost when the Rubber-Rice deal was signed in 1952, even before the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two newly emerged independent countries.
The Ceylon–China Trade Agreement of 1952 was undoubtedly the most useful trade agreement negotiated by Sri Lanka and one of the most successful and durable trade agreements in the world, having been in operation for 30 years , the delegation said.
The head of the delegation said that China will firmly stand with Sri Lanka to protect the country’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity at international fora including the United Nations Human Rights Council.
The delegation said that China would continue to assist Sri Lanka ‘s development drive. China has identified a number of areas conducive to the development of multilateral cooperation with Sri Lanka in addition to completing large-scale projects already underway; these include agriculture, education, tourism, water supply, healthcare, medical supplies, modern technology, the Digital Economy, the Blue Economy, and labor training.”
We will support not from words but by action,” said Jiechi. China announced a US$ 90 million grant to Sri Lanka, for medical care, education and water supplies in Sri Lanka’s rural areas.
There was a discussion on rural development . China and Sri Lanka could jointly implement rural revitalization (RR) projects based on the successes achieved in underdeveloped provinces in China. NeoChina Research Centre could help develop a centralized ICT platform and a Control and Coordination Centre for Rural Revitalization.
The delegation wanted China and Sri Lanka to restart discussions on a FTA. There were discussion on Colombo Port City and Hambantota Port, Yang asked that the Port City law to be passed no later than November. The law is expected to declare the reclaimed land to be the country’s first service-oriented special economic zone (SEZ). It will address red tape and shortcomings in approval processes within a ring-fenced, controlled environment. The Hambantota Port was Sri Lanka’s, not China’s, idea, President Rajapaksa said. But China had offered to fund it. Hambantota Industrial Scheme will be speedily completed.
Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa thanked China for its support in combating the Corona virus, saying China’s strong support in various fields has helped Sri Lanka strengthen its capacity to resume work and production amid the pandemic. Sri Lanka will work with China to maintain the firm mutual support, and welcomes more Chinese companies to invest and do business, he said, while hoping for increased bilateral people-to-people exchanges in the future.
The 26-member higher-powered Chinese delegation, which arrived on Thursday night, was whisked away under a tight security escort. the VVIP Lounge was declared out of bounds to journalists and no photographs of the visiting delegation were allowed. The delegation, which arrived aboard a special flight BJN099 from Beijing at 7.40 pm, had undergone a PCR test prior to arriving in Sri Lanka.
According to officials at the Ministry of Foreign Relations in Colombo, a special travel bubble” set up for the Chinese delegation, which will confine its members to Colombo, and restrict their engagements to just two meetings with the Head of State and the Prime Minister, under the strict health protocol” prescribed by the Ministry of Health.They stayed at a restricted floor of a local hotel and followed all health guidelines and regulations by the Health Ministry during their 18-hour visit.
China followed up on its promises. The Chinese ambassador met State Minister of Money & Capital Markets and State Enterprise Reforms Ajith Nivard Cabraal and the Governor of the Central Bank Professor W. D. Lakshman to discuss the financial instruments to be implemented after the Yang Jiechi visit.
Sri Lanka will aggressively pursue the signing of the much talked about and long overdue Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with China soon, said Sri Lankan Ambassador designate to China Palitha Kohona. Kohona said that the China Sri Lanka trade balance is strongly in favor of China with USD 5 billion imports and USD 30 million exports and local exporters are partly to be blamed for this. Sri Lanka tea is considered a high fashion drink in China especially among youngsters and local exporters have not successfully exploited this.
The Sri Lankan Government, Kohona said, will formulate a reliable legal framework for special economic zones in the Colombo Port City and the Hambantota Port. There will be flagship cooperation projects between Sri Lanka and China within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative, which would be attractive to investors from all over the world. . “What we need are investments and more investments. We need to create wealth. We need to create jobs. We need to create prosperity for our people,” Kohona said.
Sri Lankan exporters should particularly take advantage of the annual China International Import Expo set to open next month, November, to boost exports, said Kohona, “I would like to see a number of tea companies, rubber products companies, spice companies, coconut products companies, gem and jewelry producers, and other service providers, including Sri Lanka Tourism and Sri Lankan Airlines, make use of this opportunity to access the Chinese market, he said. ( Continued)
PM Modi was wrong to reiterate his call for the 13th Amendment’s implementation – especially when President Gotabaya Rajapaksa had already articulated his position on the matter. In the past, this has been a bait for the Tamils in the north and east to turn antagonistic to their own Government. This kind of interference on Sri Lanka’s internal affairs had not only led to the destruction of innocent lives, but had been catastrophic to India as well
It is ironic that Dr. Dayan Jayatilleka’s ‘Avoidable Crashes: Economics and External Affairs’ was published on 15 October. Exactly 30 years ago to this date, the LTTE began its brutal campaign of evicting Muslims from the Northern peninsula. Over the next two weeks, the LTTE targeted different areas of the peninsula and systematically forced the Muslims out of their homes at gunpoint. By 30 October 1990, all Muslims were forced out.
They were robbed of their valuables, dignity and heritage. Those who accuse the Sri Lankan military of ‘credible war crime allegations’ never speak of this atrocity, which includes the kidnapping of wealthy Muslim entrepreneurs. While some returned to their families after paying a hefty ransom, others have disappeared to thin air. D.B.S. Jeyaraj’s LTTE’s Mass Expulsion of Muslims from the North 30 Years Ago” is a worthy read.
As revealed at the LLRC, the Sinhalese had been ethnically cleansed long before this date. Forcing Sinhalese out began as far back as 1977. By 1987, out of the 5,684 families recorded by the 1981 census, there was not a single Sinhalese living in the north.
This is how the north became exclusive to Tamils. The east, despite its violent past and brewing extremism, continues to home almost equal proportions of the three communities. The Muslims though may soon overtake the other two communities. Even with a near 100% Tamil population in the north, more than 52% of the Tamils continue to live outside the Northern and Eastern Provinces. For the first time since 1975, the Northern and Eastern Tamils have expressed their confidence in the incumbent administration via the August 2020 General Elections.
Premier Narendra Modi faux pas
Indian Premier Narendra Modi ignored all these glaring facts when he reiterated the long hackneyed demand for ‘Tamil aspirations’ at the virtual bilateral summit with Premier Mahinda Rajapaksa on 26 September 2020. It is just not possible to devolve power to the Tamils in the north and east. Before any political solution can be considered, the grave injustice to the Sinhalese and the Muslims who were living in these areas must be corrected. As attorney-at-law and author Dharshan Weerasekera reasons, to ignore this fundamental step would in effect be validating ethnic cleansing as a tactic for gaining ‘self-determination’”.
Dr. Jayatilleka warns that if the incumbent administration does not improve its image and continues to project itself as ‘hawkish Sinhala supremacists’, Sri Lanka will suffer economically. However, it is noteworthy that even when the country was under siege from terrorism, it was not the supremacists but the nationalists that stood for the country’s interests. As nationalists, Sri Lankans fought for a country that belongs to all communities. As supremacists, the LTTE terrorised all for an exclusive homeland for ‘only’ the Tamils in the north and east.
In their quest, they terrorised the Tamil civilians the most. Those who could escape from the physical reach of the LTTE’s terrorism and fascism did do so. Many resettled outside the north and east and only returned after the LTTE was annihilated. Others in Western countries can now enjoy their comfortable lives in peace as the extortionists who used to regularly visit have disappeared. Those who escaped to Tamil Nadu too would like to continue with the lives that they had rebuilt in India. However, most are still confined to refugee camps and subject to strict regulations.
Thus, for PM Modi to speak of ‘Tamil aspirations’ without addressing this anomaly is questionable. However, the greater concern is that for over four decades Sri Lanka has been unable to convince the world that the issues before the Tamils are not exclusive to the minorities or the privileges are not only for the Sinhalese. Just as there are very wealthy and successful Tamils, many Sinhalese are poverty stricken. When the LTTE was enjoying ‘the upper hand’, the Tamils preferred to live amongst the Sinhalese.
Yet, this has not been communicated to the world. Dr. Jayatilleka’s article may hold the clue to this abysmal failure. It appears that he is intimidated by the ‘colossal asymmetry of power’ wielded by India. He is aghast that a State Minister dared to state the obvious that the Indian Premier was out of line. Yet, as the subject minister, Rear Admiral Sarath Weerasekera was correct to point out that implementing the 13th Amendment or to change the unitary status of the country to a united nation is a decision solely for the people of Sri Lanka. As a subject expert, Minister Weerasekera was also correct to note that the 13th Amendment is not a solution for Sri Lanka.
Surely, as a seasoned political analyst and a former diplomat, Dr. Jayatilleka cannot find the Indian Premier’s focus on one ethnicity acceptable. This was a bilateral summit and as such, was between nation to nation. Thus, neither country can address the concerns of only one community as artfully demonstrated by Premier Rajapaksa. The very implication that arises by doing so is undiplomatic and therefore unacceptable. In fact, PM Modi committed quite a faux pas by calling on the Sri Lankan Government to ensure equality, justice, peace and respect to Tamils. By doing so, he accused Sri Lanka of maltreating Tamils.
Yet, even India knows that this is not the case as visible from the controversial India’s Citizenship Amendment Act. By excluding Sri Lankan Tamils from this Act’s eligibility list, India acknowledges that Tamils are not under any sort of persecution or discrimination in Sri Lanka.
Small is no reason to be scared
It is true that territorially Sri Lanka is a small landmass. As Dr. Jayatilleka notes, Sri Lanka is no longer simply on the doorstep of the regional sub-super power; it is now located on the doorstep of a member of ‘The Quad’, a quasi-military, strategic alliance covering the Indo-Pacific vastness, with implications for the global balance.”
On this basis, if we are to silently concede to India simply because it is a larger force and a member of an even greater force, what should be our position if the Muslim nations collectively impose on us to deliver on the ‘aspirations’ of the Muslims? The ‘extremist’ Tamil youth fought for an exclusive Tamil homeland while the ‘moderate’ Tamil elders worded it as ‘devolving power’ for Tamil areas. The Easter attack by the ‘extremist’ Muslims was to rid the non-believers. Can we even allow a ‘moderate’ wording of this ‘aspiration’?
Clearly, Sri Lanka cannot afford to cower in fear or nod to every diktat in silent submission just because we are small. It means that we need to learn to speak up and articulate our position clearly. We need to be a lot more politically savvy than we are presently.
Therefore, we must analyse the geopolitical implications behind PM Modi’s call for the 13th Amendment. As an Amendment it has utterly failed. It failed to disarm the LTTE. In fact, the ill-advised Indian intervention resulted in strengthening the terrorist organisation. The teacher could not control the student and India that trained, armed and financed the LTTE ended up with over 1,300 dead Indian soldiers and twice as many casualties. India’s foreign policy blunder vis a vis Sri Lanka came crashing down on India with former Premier Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination by an LTTE suicide bomber.
Nalini Sriharan is currently the sole surviving member of the five-team squad accused in connection of the assassination. After Sonia Gandhi’s appeal for clemency, her death sentence has been commuted to life imprisonment. Rotting away for the last 29 years in jail, she is India’s longest serving female prisoner. Those who fight for Easter attack suspect Hijaaz Hisbulla’s release are silent over the torture and indignity Sriharan is said to suffer. According to her mother, Sriharan is not even allowed access to her own lawyer. These allegations, if true, are a testament of India’s bitterness over the episode.
India’s cost is however not remotely close to that of Sri Lanka. The IPKF left abandoning the crucial satellite military camps. These were promptly taken over by the LTTE. Over the next 19 years, the LTTE grew in strength and ferocity. The LTTE was not only a threat to Sri Lanka, or the region but to the whole world. Its ships provided logistics to other terrorist organisations and smuggled people and narcotics that mostly ended in the Western streets. Sri Lanka must be saluted for defeating the LTTE against all odds.
Who wants the 13th Amendment?
Presently, the Provincial Councils ushered by the 13th Amendment are defunct because of the mess created by the Yahapalana Government, in which the TNA was a significant partner. Yet none of the minority politicians are worried over the PCs’ fate. TNA’s proposed constitution attempted to turn PCs into power centres and render the Central Government powerless. This would have adversely affected the minority communities living outside the north and east. The minorities therein will be under the rule of that province’s majority community. They would be without an overriding power to redress any communal injustice. In this context, the outcome of the east will be interesting, where the Tamil and Muslim communities vie for dominance.
The two provinces – north and east – cannot and should not be merged without a referendum. It is unlikely that the Muslims in the east would agree to a merger that would bring them under Tamil dominance. Without the merger, the Eastern Tamils would be under the Muslim dominance, which would be disagreeable to them.
Therefore, it is very clear that unless force is used the 13th Amendment is not feasible. Even then, it will not resolve any real or perceived grievance, but likely create problems of unmanageable proportions. Yet, as observed by Dr. Jayatilleka, Prime Minister Modi only reiterated what he had said many times before”. The reasons for India’s continued interest in an unattainable objective ought to pique political analysts’ interest.
‘Good Governance’ as elusive as the 13th Amendment
The unhappy truth is that the West bludgeons Sri Lanka on imaginary human rights allegations. Likewise, India uses the 13th Amendment to keep Sri Lanka off balance. Both the West and India scheme to manipulate Sri Lanka’s governance. Dr. Jayatilleka’s argument that the Western investor/buyer is morally conscious is illogical when the worst violators are the West and have been so for the past so many centuries. West is more adaptable as obvious with their relationships with countries with terrible political and humanitarian track records.
We must not repeat Yahapalana Government’s mistakes. Instead of standing firm on the ground that we had not committed war crimes nor engaged in systematic discrimination, we timidly scrambled to measure up to ‘good governance’. This exposes our failure in foreign relations. Our attempt to please the ‘asymmetrical powers’ resulted in dismantled intelligence networks, incompetent officers, a confused chain of command, politicised commissions and the worst terrorist attack on Sri Lankan soil.
Interestingly, not a single Western Government or agency nor India for that matter has expressed an opinion over any of these failures. On the other hand, grave concerns over the ‘draconian measures’ taken over the COVID-19 pandemic and the 20th Amendment were prompt. The Gotabaya Rajapaksa Administration’s success in containing the pandemic and managing associated social costs was impressive. Furthermore, the Administration’s quick responses and timely safeguards protected and strengthened the economy to outperform even pre-pandemic days. Studiously ignoring all these achievements, serious doubt is now being cast over Sri Lanka’s ability to meet its financial commitments. This is clearly to dissuade investors and lenders.
Towards a peaceful coexistence with all stakeholders
To be pro-nationalist does not make one an antagonist of another nation or a xenophobic. Therefore, speaking on behalf of Sri Lanka does not make one anti-Indian, anti-West or an isolationist. In fact, if we are to enjoy robust relations with the world, Sri Lanka must learn to speak up and have the courage to call a spade a spade.
This is especially important as the US gears itself to defend their interests against China’s rise in power. Most of our neighbours have already picked a side. Sri Lanka on the other hand has taken the challenging but noble path to maintain a zone of peace for all to trade and engage in commercial activities.
In this context, PM Modi was wrong to reiterate his call for the 13th Amendment’s implementation – especially when President Gotabaya Rajapaksa had already articulated his position on the matter. In the past, this has been a bait for the Tamils in the north and east to turn antagonistic to their own Government. This kind of interference on Sri Lanka’s internal affairs had not only led to the destruction of innocent lives, but had been catastrophic to India as well. Therefore, it behooves India also to move out of ‘traditional politics’ and partner with Sri Lanka towards a peaceful coexistence with all stakeholders.
(The writer can be reached via ranasingheshivanthi@gmail.com.)
After
a long march, a great leap, a cultural revolution and ‘Tiananmen Square’, China
is today emerging as the most powerful country in the world. China is the
world’s first Communist state with a capitalist economy. China has managed to
stay Communist while engaging in free market enterprise. This is considered
unique and not to be replicated anywhere else. No other country plans to
imitate China.
At
the
19th Congress of the Communist Party of China in 2017, the Party declared that
its philosophy is based on
Marxism-Leninism, Mao Zedong thought, Deng Xiaoping theory and Xi Jinping’s
Thoughts on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era”.
China
is ruled by one party, Communist Party of China.
Analysts observed in 2016 that the ruling Communist Party is very strong and is
‘unlikely to fall in the next ten years’. There is a sort of recruitment
policy. A person joining the Chinese Communist Party must satisfy many
conditions. His background is scrutinized very carefully. He is not allowed to rise
in politics very fast. Third rate persons get excluded early on, said
analysts.
China’s
miraculous economic growth, which started around 1980, has enabled China to lift more than 850
million people out of extreme poverty. in 2015
China created 11 million jobs.
China moved
rural people into urban settlements without waiting for it to happen as a
natural outcome of the development process. This brought rural people out of
poverty and allowed them to engage in more productive jobs in the industry and
service sectors.
The quality
of life improved. There is almost
universal literacy today, in China. many
attend primary and secondary schools. life expectancy has shot up and infant
mortality has plummeted, said TIME in 2009.
But China is
not complacent. China has further to go, said the Congress in 2017.China still
needs to cater to the peoples ‘ever-growing desire for a better life.’ There are a lot of poor areas still in
China, announced officials. The economic
development achieved so far, is inadequate and unequally distributed.
A two stage
plan was formulated for the period 2020 to 2050. From 2020-2035 China would build a moderately prosperous society and
from 2035 onwards, china would ‘fully
build’ a modern socialist China. The Party will ‘develop China into a great
modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally
advanced, harmonious, and beautiful.”
China became
rich through exports. Export production was
initially through FDIs. China’s factories were set up by foreign
multinational corporations, said analysts.
These MNCs had direct access to world markets and they produced goods
that would sell.
Production
was on a large scale. The industries
were supported by vertically integrated state owned enterprises in logistics,
energy, roads, shipping and ports. State
owned banks financed the infrastructure needed. China also started many Special
Economic Zones such as Shenzhen and these were used as a model by other
countries, including Sri Lanka.
China now
produces everything from stuffed toys to IPads, said analysts in 2015. China is the largest producer of ships,
steel, aluminum, furniture, clothing, textiles, cell phones, and computers.
China has become the manufacturing powerhouse of the world.
It is also a
leader in technology. Alipay, the Alibaba payment system, is more sophisticated
than anything in the west. Then there is Huawei whose 5G technology is
considered superior and cheaper. The successful 5G provider will also have a head-start into
6G and 7G.
China has
also become the world’s largest consumer. China imported more oil, consumed
more energy, and installed more solar power than any other nation, said
analysts. China has the world’s largest
internet users.
There are new consumer groups who have
capacity to spend on sports, entertainment, clothes and shoes. Chinese consumers are now setting the pace
for global commerce. For consumer product companies, you can’t win the world if
you are not winning in China. China encourages domestic consumption and much of
the spending is moving back into the country.
China was
expected to overtake the United States as the largest fashion market in 2019,
according to a report by McKinsey & Company. For example, Italian brand Ermenegildo Zegna
now looks to China, instead of the US, as the place for testing new products,
before deciding whether to promote them globally. The website said many luxury
brands already depend heavily on Chinese customers, who have for some time been
the world’s biggest buyers of luxury goods.
China has presided over the greatest economic
transformation in modern history, said China’s admirers. China has
vaulted to the top in a single generation. In 1980, China’s GDP was less than
$300 billion. By 2015, it was $11 trillion, making it the world’s second
largest economy by market exchange rates. In
1980, China’s trade with outside world amounted to less than $40 billion. By
2015, it was $4 trillion. Hong Kong is
now only 2.9% of the Chinese economy, TIME observed in 2019.
China is now
the world’s second largest economy and the world’s top trading nation. It has
more billionaires than the US and more high speed rail than the rest of the
world combined, said TIME in August 2020. China’s march towards becoming the
world’s largest economy is just a matter of time.
China has now
overtaken the US to become the world’s largest economy according to the IMF’s
World Economic Output 2020. Using the more reliable and now widely accepted
measurement, Purchasing Power Parity (PPP), IMF has determined China’s economy
at $24.2 trillion compared to America’s $20.8 trillion. This is a massive leap
from less than USD 200 PPP in 1970. The PPP calculation method enables you to
compare how much you can buy for your money in different countries.
By 2017, on
most indicators, China had already surpassed the United States. Chinese consumers bought twenty million cars
in 2015, three million more than were sold in the US. . TikTok, a leading
social media app in the United States, is owned by the $75 billion Chinese tech
giant Bytedance.
In 2015,
Tsinghua University passed MIT in the US News and World Report rankings to
become the number one university in the world for engineering. Among the top
ten schools of engineering, China and the US each had four.
There is an increasing emphasis on Buddhism in China today. China
is emphasizing Confucian and Buddhist values, said TIME in 2009. Buddhism is encouraged by President Xi in
order to fill China’s moral vacuum.
members of the Chinese elite including Xi Jinping’s wife, Peng Liyuan,
are interested in Buddhism. growing number of wealthy Chinese, have been
drawn in recent years to the mysticism of Tibetan Buddhism, said the media.
There is a chain of Buddhist clubs and Tibetan gurus like Geshe
Sonam preach in China. The travel guide DK Eyewitness travel” (Dorling Kindersley
2012) listed around 63 Buddhist monuments and temples for tourists to visit. There is hardly any mention of mosques,
churches, Confucian or Taoist temples.
China has
land borders with 14 countries and maritime borders with at least nine other
countries. Since 1960, it has settled its
boundaries with 12 of the 14
countries with which it shares land borders. They are Myanmar, Nepal, North
Korea, Pakistan, Mongolia, Afghanistan, Laos, Vietnam, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan,
Tajikistan and Russia.
Its land
boundaries remain unsettled only with India and Bhutan. The territory in
contention with Bhutan is not large but is of strategic significance. once
India settles the boundary dispute with China the boundary with Bhutan will automatically
be settled.
China has
very strong connections with other countries. Of
the 53 states in Africa only Lesotho has no connection to China, the other 52
states all have connections with China.
China
has signed agreement to allow Nepal to use Chinese harbors and roads for
supplies. But those ports and roads are far away, observed analyst. China’s
investments and presence in the Indian Ocean have increased, and no country can
match China in that respect today, said analysts .
The countries
which have benefited from Chinese assistance in Asia, Africa and Europe have
not suffered a breach of their independence and sovereignty or lost any
significant extents of resources. China has not dictated to any of these
countries on how to run their country, how to change their constitutions, how
to look after their security, or preached on democracy, human rights, minority
rights and other internal affairs. China has not forced or pressurized any of
the recipients of its aid to fall in line and join the B & R I. They have
instead requested them to evaluate the pros and cons of the project and join if
they agree with its broad principles, said .N.A. de S. Amaratunga.
China
does not interfere in the internal affairs of any country agreed analysts.
China never considers themselves to be a model.
China does not have the evangelistic approach of USA, which says Be like
us, said analysts. China strategy for south East Asia is , come grow with me, said Lee Kuan Yew.
China’s most
recent linkup is with Iran. China and Iran have drafted a Trade and Military
Partnership Agreement in 2020 which will vastly expand Chinese presence in
Iran. The military agreement proposes deepening military cooperation. It calls for joint military training and
exercises, joint research and weapons development and intelligence sharing.
The trade agreement
includes inter alia, new ports along the coast of the Sea of Oman, a 5G
telecommunications network, Chinese Global Positioning System and cyberspace
control by China’s Great Firewall. Chinese investments in Iran would total $400
billion over 25 years. In exchange, China would receive a regular, heavily
discounted supply of Iranian oil over the next 25 years.
One of the
proposed new ports is at Jask, just outside the Strait of Hormuz, the entrance
to the Persian Gulf. This will give the Chinese a strategic vantage point on
the oil route. The passage is of critical strategic importance to the United
States, as well, the US Fifth Fleet is headquartered in Bahrain.
Due to US sanctions,
China is the only major player active in Iranian oil. China considers sanctions
against Iran as an opportunity to secure huge fields and markets which might
have gone to Western companies. Iran needs to increase its oil production to at
least 8.5 million barrels a day to remain a player in the energy market, and
for that, it needs China.
Beijing allows its companies to do business in Iran.
Chinese goods and services have flooded Iran’s market. Iranians welcomed this.
Apart from Russia other nations were not willing to come in.
China
and India are seen as rival for power in South Asia. Comparisons have been
made. In 2016 it was said that China’s economy was five times that of India. That was not all. Inflation is low in China
and high IN India, said analysts. There is political stability in China, political instability in India.
Chinese firms
including Tencent, Alibaba, and Xiaomi
have poured more than $5 billion into Indian enterprises in 2018,
surpassing flows from Japan and the United States. Five of the top 10 mobile
apps in India are now Chinese compared with just two out of 10 in 2017. The
media warned of a Chinese invasion” of the Indian tech sector. Beijing now has
access to Indian social media messaging, health records, user-generated
content, and consumer spending and financial information, with New Delhi’s
tacit consent, said observers.
China
faces opposition from its ‘enemies’. There have been tensions between the
Chinese and the majority Muslim group in China, the Uighur. The Uigher are
claiming genocide. They say that China
had been introducing Han settlers into the area and giving them privileges such
as the lion’s share of investments. Uighur
rights groups are demanding an independent Xinjiang. Chinese say this is instigated
abroad. The headquarters of the World Uighur Congress is in
USA and the Uighur leader, Rebiya Kadeer, lives in the US.
Analysts say the agitation regarding the Rohingya in Burma has little to do with religion. The west will not take an interest in the Rohingya of Myanmar unless there is some hidden agenda, they said. China has an oil and gas pipeline there.
China wants
to build a 120-kilometre canal cutting through the isthmus of Kra in Thailand. (
Kra canal). China can then get to the Indian Ocean bypassing the Strait of
Malacca. Now other countries such as
India, USA and Australia wish to join the project. More than 30 foreign firms
have shown an interest in investing, providing financial and technical support
. They want to sign a memorandum of understanding with us, said Thailand. Foreign embassies have contacted us to get
the latest status on the project .
Lee Kuan Yew told TIME in 2013, China has transformed from a poor society to become now the second largest economy in the world on track to become the word largest economy. They have a culture 4000 years old. And a huge population pool to draw from. How could they not aspire to be No 1 in Asia
At the 19th CPC Congress in 2017 China pledged to be
a major factor in the world. China will
be called on to play a stabilizing,
responsible role when it comes to questions of trade, security and
international order, the Congress said.
As part of
this, China is preparing for war. Beijing will not take a single step back in
the contested South China Sea, China said. China’s navy has become the world
largest navy, said Economist in September 2020. China is now working at
building a great navy, said Statesman. Navies do far more than fight. They
protect trade routes, observed
Statesman.
When
China becomes the world’s largest
economy over the next decade the global system will be led by a non-English
speaking, non-Western, non-democratic state, observed Australia’s Kevin Rudd. (
continued)
In France, the recent attack in Nice and
following on from the murder of Samuel Paty on 16 October, the World
Head of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, His Holiness, Hazrat Mirza Masroor
Ahmad has condemned all forms of terrorism and extremism and called for mutual
understanding and dialogue between all peoples and nations.
His Holiness, Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad states:
The murder and beheading of Samuel Paty and the attack in Nice
earlier today (29 October) must be condemned in the strongest possible terms.
Such grievous attacks are completely against the teachings of Islam. Our religion
does not permit terrorism or extremism under any circumstances and anyone who
claims otherwise acts against the teachings of the Holy Quran and contrary to
the noble character of the Holy Prophet of Islam (peace and blessings of Allah
be upon him).
As the worldwide Head of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, I
extend our deepest sympathies to the loved ones of the victims and to the
French nation. Let it be clear that our condemnation and hatred of such attacks
is not something new but has always been our position and stance. The Founder
of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community (peace be upon him) and his Successors have
always categorically rejected all forms of violence or bloodshed in the name of
religion.
The fallout from this heinous act has further exacerbated the
tensions between the Islamic world and the West and between Muslims living in
France and the rest of society. We consider this to be a source of deep regret
and a means of further undermining the peace and stability of the world. We
must all join together to root out all forms of extremism and to encourage
mutual understanding and tolerance. From our perspective, the Ahmadiyya Muslim
Community will spare no effort in our mission to foster a better understanding
of the true and peaceful teachings of Islam in the world.”
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announced a second national lockdown for England to prevent a “medical and moral disaster” for the NHS.
He said Christmas may be “very different” but he hoped taking action now would mean families can gather.
Non-essential shops and hospitality will have to close for four weeks on Thursday, he said.
But unlike the restrictions in spring, schools, colleges and universities can stay open.
After 2 December, the restrictions would be eased and regions would go back to the tiered system, he said.
Mr Johnson said: “Christmas is going to be different this year, perhaps very different, but it’s my sincere hope and belief that by taking tough action now we can allow families across the country to be together.”
The prime minister told a Downing Street news conference that he was “truly, truly sorry” for the impact on businesses, but said the furlough system paying 80% of employee wages will be extended through November.
He said hospitals even in the south-west of England, where cases are among the lowest, will run out of capacity in weeks.
“Doctors and nurses would be forced to choose which patients to treat, who would get oxygen and who wouldn’t, who would live and who would die,” Mr Johnson said.
Takeaways will be allowed to stay open as pubs, bars and restaurants close and people are being told they can only meet one person from outside their household outdoors.
Mr Johnson, who chaired a cabinet meeting on Saturday afternoon, will make a statement to Parliament on Monday.
The UK recorded another 21,915 confirmed coronavirus cases on Saturday, bringing the total since the pandemic began to 1,011,660.
Another 326 people were reported to have died within 28 days of a positive test.
The UK is the ninth country to reach the milestone of a million cases – after the US, India, Brazil, Russia, France, Spain, Argentina and Colombia.
But the true number of infections is expected to be higher due to a lack of widespread testing at the start of the pandemic.
Names reflect beliefs and attitudes and give an insight into the manifold influences a people have been subjected to in the past, says Asiff Hussein, in his article in Roar.lk.
Little do we realise that names are the foundation of all knowledge. Naming people and things makes it easier for us to make sense of our world. In the Muslim creation story, for example, we are told how God taught Adam the names of all things, thus giving him knowledge of matters even the angels could not fathom. The names we give ourselves not only help us identify one another, but are also replete with meaning. However, our names have not always been the same; they have been changing over the ages and have intriguing stories to tell.
The earliest names Sri Lankans gave themselves were very simple. One has only to look at the names of the founding fathers of the Sinhalese nation to realise this. There was Vijaya, whose name literally means ‘victory’ or ‘conquest’. Then there were his ministers, like Anuradha and Upatissa, all of whom had names of a very simple kind.
Simple names continued to be used in the Brahmi inscriptions of the 3rd century BC – 3rd century AD in Sinhala Prakrit (an early form of Sinhala), where we find names like Abaya, Data, Guta, Deva, Mita and Sena. Abayameant ‘fearless’, Mita ‘friend’ and Sena ‘Army’. These simple names continued until the 10th century, as we find in the Sigiri graffiti of the 8th to 10th centuries, where there are names like Agbo, Bodur, Dev, Kasub and Mihind, though we also meet with a few double-barelled names like Mahamal Bud, Golagamu Niladevala and Salame Dev. These compound names reflected a trend slowly catching on then, that in later centuries would result in some really long names that peaked during the colonial era with the addition of names of European origin. That’s when we come across names like Johannes Franciscus Dias Wijeyasekere Bandarenayeke and Julius Valentyn de Saram Wijeyasekere Goenatilakaratne figuring in a list of Sinhalese headmen in the Ceylon Almanac of 1844.
Family Names
A few of the composers of the Sigiri verses a little over a thousand years ago were already identifying themselves as belonging to the house of so and so, such as Kasub himiyan-ge Mihind (Mihind of the House of Lord Kasub) and Magalamb Mihidala-malun-ge Agboy (Agboy of the House of Mahadala-Mal of Magalamb).
The suffix -ge used here means ‘of the house of,’ and serves a similar purpose to the ‘Von’ of German names. To this day, the Sinhalese use family ge-names such as Hevage (House of the Soldier), Liyanage (House of the Scribe) and Bambaravanage (House of the Forest of the Bees). These preceded the proper names of persons and in the olden days served as a sort of surname. Today, they may simply be adopted as surnames. For instance, Luvishewage Dayapala’s children would be called Chaminda Luvishewa and Lakmali Luvishewa.
E.B. Denham, in his Ceylon at the Census of 1911 (1912), already noted the tendency of ge-names to be adopted as surnames after the European fashion by dropping the -ge at the end. Among the examples he cites are Kodituwakkuge Andiris becoming Andiris Kodituwakku and Ratnayakage William becoming William Ratnayaka. He noted: The tendency to-day in the towns is to drop the ge-name altogether and to adopt surnames after the English fashion. In the interior and in the villages the ge-name is scrupulously regarded”.
Women’s Names
In the earliest Brahmi inscriptions of the country c. 2nd century BC, women tended to identify themselves as the daughter of so-and-so. For instance, Revati called herself the daughter of Mitapala (Mitapalasa jhita Revati) while Princess Anuradi described herself as the daughter of Prince Abaya (Aya Abayasa jhita Abi Anuradi). In later medieval times, as we gather from the Sigiri graffiti, the ladies tended to identify themselves more with their husbands, as the wife of so-and-so. One female composer identifies herself as Sevu, the wife of Nidalu Mihid (Nidalu Mihid Abu Sevu), while another calls herself Lady Nal, wife of lord Mahamet (Mahamet-himiya abu Nal himiyabuyun).
This does not necessarily reflect a patriarchal society, since there is a case of a man named Mahasattay identifying himself as the husband of Lady Boya (Boya kala semi Mahasattay). We also know that even up to Kandyan times, Sinhalese women did not take their husbands’ surnames, but kept their family names. It was only as a result of British rule that local women gradually took to adopting their husbands’ surnames. This British practice was no doubt a spillover from the days of Roman rule, reflecting the wife’s transfer from the patria potestas, or paternal power of the father, to that of her husband.
Caste Factor
Both personal names and family ge-names differed by caste. For instance, the name Banda in forms like Heen Banda, Tikiri Banda and Dingiri Banda was commonly borne by members of the Govi caste.
The fairer members of this caste bore names like Menike(Jewel) in forms like Ran Menike, Podi Menike, and Dingiri Menike. The untouchable Rodi caste had names that were vastly different. Hugh Nevill, the well-known British Civil Servant and Orientalist, in his Taprobanian (August 1887) mentions names like Asura, Wisiya, and Suruwana borne by Rodi men and Asurangi, Bingumali, and Singowalli borne by Rodi women.
As for ge-names, we would find that the Govigama, who have been traditionally considered farmers and hence much rooted to the land, have names based on localities like Bovattegedara (the House of the Garden of Bo Trees) and Siyambalagodage (the House of the Grove of Tamarind Trees). Karava ge-names may reflect a sea-faring and military tradition like Marakkalage (House of the Skipper), Galappatige (House of the Caulker, one who puts away water from a ship), Hennedige (House of the One prepared for War), Gardiya Punchi Hevage (House of the Little Soldier of the Guard) and Patabendige (House of those bound by the Band). Patabendige refers to a titular rank by some Sinhalese monarchs of old for some heroic deed by means of fastening a band of silk or gold round the forehead.
The Vahumpura have names like Devage and Hevage, testifying to a warrior tradition in the olden days, Deva being a synonym for the Aryan warrior caste known as Kshatriyas and Heva meaning ‘Soldier’. The Radawa commonly bear names connected to washing, like Haluge and Apullanagedara, Halu meaning ‘shawl’ and Apullana meaning to ‘wash clothes by beating them against a rock’, which is the manner by which they used to wash clothes in the olden days.
The Navandanna have names referring to their artisan tradition like Acharige, Badalge, and Abharana Gedara, and the Bathgama very often have Pedige of dubious meaning prefixed to their names.
Portuguese Names and Titles
The arrival of the Portuguese on our shores in 1505 had a profound impact on local society, not the least in the names of low country Sinhalese.
For one thing, the Portuguese title of Dom, originally applied to nobles and churchmen, caught on by undergoing a slight corruption to Don to precede the proper names of local men. Its feminine form, Dona, applied to ladies of very high standing (to this day the first lady of Brazil, which used to be a Portuguese colony, is called Dona), was also adopted by local women, especially of the south.
J.W. Bennett noted in his work, Ceylon and its Capabilities (1843), how the Sinhalese of his day still aspired for Portuguese names and titles, adopting names such as Don Louis and Don Christoffel. German Barons” he says, are scarcely less plentiful than Ceylon Doms and Dons, and the latter appendage is just as easily assumed as the former title”. Who can, after all, forget our well known Queen Dona Catherina, whom the conquistadors installed on the throne of Kandy? Or our first Prime Minister, Don Stephen Senanayake?
The Portuguese also left a very large number of their surnames behind, although this does not mean that those who bear them have Portuguese ancestry. Rather, these surnames seem to have been adopted by their forebears when they converted to Christianity, possibly taking after the names of Portuguese godfathers. Such Portuguese surnames were called alukunna from the Portuguese alcunna, which in turn had derived from the Arabic al-kunya.
While common Sinhalese surnames like Almeda, Cabral, Costa, Dias, Silva, Perera, Fonseka, Fernando, Pinto, Rodrigo, and Salgado are pretty straightforward Portuguese, there are others that have undergone slight variations such as Aponsu (Affonso), Livera (Oliveira), Grero (Guerrero), Peiris (Peres), Nonis (Nunes), Gomas (Gomes), Mendis (Mendes), Suwaris (Soares), Sigera (Siqueira), Pigera (Piqueira), Tisera (Teixeira), Thabrew (D ‘Abreu), Doluvira (De Oliveira), and Salpadoru (Salvador). Many of these Portuguese names have lovely meanings. For example, take Silva (of the Woods), Costa (Sea Coast), Perera (Pear Tree), Oliveira (Olive Tree), and Correa (Place covered with Carriolas plant). Yet others are diminutives, like Pinto (Chick) or suggestive of a heroic tradition, like Guerrero (Warrior).
Dutch Names
The Dutch influence on Sinhalese names was not as profound as the Portuguese whom they succeeded in 1658. They did not bestow any surnames on the Sinhalese or Tamils as they were more keen on trade than converting or culturally influencing the local populace. However, they did leave behind a number of personal names, many of which continued to be borne by the Sinhalese of the humbler classes until very recent times.
In fact, one may still come across such names borne by an older generation of men. Thus we have Karolis, Tepanis, Harmanis, Yohanis and Girigoris,which have arisen from the Dutch Carolus, Stephanus, Hermanus, Johannes and Gregorius. Not all such names are, however, of Dutch origin. Paulis is from the English Paul, Jaamis from the English James, and Chaarlis from the English Charles.
Tamil Names
The Tamils are fervent Hindus and believe that adopting the names of Hindu divinities are the best form of flattering the gods. Popular names include Arumugam (‘the six-faced one’, a reference to Skanda), Kanapati (a reference to Ganesh, the elephant-headed god), Murugan (another ancient name for Skanda, the god of war) Nadaraja (King of the Dance, meaning Siva in his manifestation as the cosmic dancer) for men and Lakshmi (Goddess of Fortune) and Sarasvati (Goddess of Knowledge) for women. There are also a few corrupted names like Lechchumi (a corruption of Lakshmi) and Meenachchi (a corruption of Meenaakshi meaning ‘the fish-eyed one’, the tutelary goddess of Madura). Although most Jaffna Tamils are Saivites or worshippers of Siva, they also bear Vaishnava names like Alvar, Gopal and Krishnan, which are connected with Vishnu (Personal Name in Jaffna Society, in the research journal Tamil Civilization, 1986).
Colour Names For Untouchable” Castes
The untouchable” castes were hardly, if ever, given the names of deities. Rather, they were often given names that indicated colour, height, or terms referring to demons. They bore names like Karuppan (black one), Kattaiyan (short one) and Muniyan (demon). The women were given names like Karuppi (black girl) and Puti (devil lady) (Caste and Language in Jaffna Society by S. Suseendirarajah, Anthropological Linguistics, 1978).
The Tamils of Jaffna, especially those of the Vellala caste, had a practice of prefixing their father’s names to their personal names by adding the word pillai or pullai (son) to it. Thus, Velu’s son Shanmugam would be called Velupillai Shanmugam. Even today this is known among older sections of conservative Tamils, though the practice has declined of late. In the olden days, this was fairly common. For instance, in a list of Tamil headmen of Jaffna given in the Ceylon Almanac of 1844, we come across one Sangerapulle Velyden.
To this day among the Jaffnese, one’s initials generally stand for one’s father’s name in the case of males and unmarried females. In the case of married women, it often stands for the husband’s name, perhaps a result of Dutch rule in Jaffna.
Muslims’ Ge Or House Names
It is a little-known fact that many Muslims of the country, more properly known as Moors, bear Sinhala ge-names. This is especially so of the Moors of the Kandyan areas, among whom one could find ge-names like Galgedara, Lindegedara, Kandegedara, Muhandiramla-gedara, and Nagahadeniya-gedara. These ge-names precede the personal names of individuals. Thus we have names like Alakoladeniya Gedara Yusuf Lebbe, Kurugoda Vidanalage Gedara Abdul Hameed Wahabdeen, and Kandegedara Abdul Gafoor Sitti Nafiya.
However, what is interesting is that the Moors of maritime districts like Aluthgama, Beruwala, and Maggona also formerly bore ge-names which are widely attested in the Dutch Tombos covering the period 1766-1771, where we find such names like Ibrahim Tandellage Ahamadoe Nainde, Daroebesie Lienege Oemoer Lebbe, Iratnewalli Aratjege Oedoema Lebbe, Ismail Mokedonge Oemoer Lebbe, Pawelekodige Sleman Lebbe, Kopeaediaerlage Ibrahim Lebbe, Mamina Marekelage Ahamadoe, and Assena Lebbelage Potoema Natja.
These ge-names could have come into existence among the Kandyan Moors due to one of two reasons: they were either borne by the Sinhalese ancestresses of these Moors, who passed it down to their offspring; or else might indicate the readiness of the Moors to adopt the salient features of the host culture, so as to identify themselves more closely with their Sinhalese neighbours, with whom they maintained friendly relations. Parallel situations were found among the Turkic-speaking Muslim peoples of Central Asia, who, after Russian practice, follow their personal names with the names of their fathers suffixed with –ov e.g. Karimov, Sultanov, and Rakhmanov. However, there is reason to believe that at least a few ge-names such as Muhandiramlage, borne by a number of Moor families, were acquired as a result of their ancestors being appointed to the high office of Muhandiram etc. by the Kandyan kings.
Funny Names Among Muslims
The Moor Muslims of old commonly bore nicknames. Such patta-perus, as nicknames were called, included Baba (Baby), Kolanda (Infant), Echchi (Miserly), Pushana (Indolent), Shoththian (Feeble-handed), Shemata (Brown or Tan), Dada-bada (Noise made when walking), Munda kan (Big-eyed), Poona kan (Cat’s eye), Madayan (Fool), Jemmi (Jewel) and Poo (Sweet).
There were others like Karupati (Jaggery), Kochchika(Chillie), and Pila kotta (Jak seed), perhaps referring to their tastes for these particular items of food. More interesting were names like Aana Bulingi ‘Swallower of elephants’, Baang Koli ‘Turkey’, Koli Kunji ‘Chick’, Porichchakoli ‘Fried Chicken’, Kumbala Mashi ‘Maldive Fish’, Karapothan ‘Cockroach’, Katchcha Karupatti ‘Bitter Jaggery’, Shappatayan ‘Flat Nose’, Velli Baba ‘Silver Baby’, Vengalam‘Loud-mouthed’, Bavulthavaly ‘Stomach ache’ and Anjishazathu Mapulle‘Five Cents Bridegroom’ who traveled as such in a decorated tramcar with his entourage” (Some Nicknames of Sri Lanka Moors by M. M. B. Ansari 1981).
There was a very good reason as to why some nicknames gained currency among the Moors. This was the similarities in many personal names borne by Muslims, which called for some way of distinguishing them. This is suggested by M. M. Thawfeeq who, in his Muslim Mosaics (1972) refers to the practice of calling people by nicknames in the early part of the last century and observes that: It just happened that there were scores of Hamids, Yoosoofs, Haniffas, Mohideens etc. in that concentration of Ceylon Moors”. The easiest way out, he says, was nicknames emphasising their attributes, penchant, and failings – even physical defects.
To conclude, we can see that the names we give ourselves say a lot about us as individuals and as communities. They give us identity and a sense of belonging to a particular group and help others identify us as such; they reflect our beliefs and attitudes and even give an insight into the manifold influences we have been subjected to in the past. In essence, they capture in a word or two what we are all about. There’s really no such person as a nobody if he or she has a name ‒ and therein lies the power of names.
Following is a statement issued by the State Minister of Money & Capital Markets and State Enterprise Reforms Ajith Nivard Cabraal on 30th October 2020
With the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, all countries including Sri Lanka, observed a contraction in economic activity, reduction in foreign exchange earnings, decrease in revenue collection, and increase in health and welfare related expenditure. However, the prompt and measured policy support provided by the Government and the Central Bank enabled Sri Lanka to contain the unfavourable effects of Covid-19 to a great extent, and return the economy to near-normalcy by mid-May 2020. In fact, most economic activities have displayed a notable revival from May onwards, and this recovery is on-going. The recent detection of a new Covid cluster is now being decisively addressed by the Government, and this wave is also expected to be short-lived. Accordingly, the expansion of the fiscal deficit and the increase in debt levels in 2020, should not be generalised as a prolonged debt distress, but rather as a one-off” deviation from the clear fiscal consolidation path that has been well articulated in the new Government’s policy framework.
The election of a new President in mid November 2019 and the formation of a single-party Government with a sizable majority in August 2020, has enable the new Government to address the uncertainties in the political and policy spheres observed during the period 2015 to 2019. Consequently, Sri Lanka has been able to address public health concerns swiftly, as well as take difficult economic decisions with greater confidence. For example, when the Government was of the view that it was necessary to conserve forex, given the likelihood of low foreign exchange earnings due to the pandemic, and the need to prioritize foreign debt service obligations, the Sri Lankan authorities imposed restrictions on non-essential imports from March 2020. Such decisive and bold action, along with the reduction in global petroleum prices, resulted in a substantial saving of nearly US$ 3 billion in terms of expenditure on merchandise imports in the first nine months of the year, compared to the same period of the previous year. This saving, along with the better-than-expected outcomes in terms of merchandise exports, services exports other than tourism, and workers’ remittances, is now projected to compress the external current account deficit to below 1.5% of GDP in 2020.
It would also be noted that capital flows and official reserves were also affected during the early months of the global outbreak of Covid-19. However, growing business confidence due to decisive action by the Government and the Central Bank has enabled the country to stabilize the exchange rate with only a marginal depreciation of around 1.5% so far this year, even while the Central Bank was able to purchase/absorb US$ 300 million from the domestic foreign exchange market during the year. As a result, official reserves remain close to US$ 6 billion, after settling foreign debt service repayments of around US$ 4 billion thus far during the year, including the repayment of the matured International Sovereign Bond of US$ 1 billion in October 2020. In the meantime, it would be further noted that the Sri Lankan authorities are presently negotiating a loan of USD 700 million from the China Development Bank which is expected to be at an interest rate and terms of repayment that are significantly more favourable than the USD 1 billion Sovereign Bond that was just re-paid. In addition, an attractive, exchange rate risk-free, Forex SWAP facility has been introduced for any foreign investor who invests in Sri Lankan government securities, which is expected to boost foreign exchange inflows particularly from the Middle-East, in the period ahead.
In terms of growth performance, Sri Lanka is once again set to embark on a growth path, following the setback in the first half of 2020 caused by the pandemic. The formulation of the new Government Cabinet and State Ministerial structure, with clear performance indicators has been geared towards improving the efficiency and effectiveness of the economy. These new governance structures are bound to enhance agriculture and agro-based and mineral-based industries, increase export opportunities, as well as facilitate large projects within the Port City, Hambantota Port, and dedicated industrial zones. The expected revitalization of state owned enterprises, together with the private sector-led growth projects would also revert the Sri Lankan economy to the high growth path that was observed prior to 2015 whereby annual growth rates of over 6.5% were regularly recorded.
In the meantime, Sri Lanka’s entire local debt stock of about Rs. 7.7 trillion (USD 42 billion) as at end July 2020 is being rolled-over and re-priced now at interest rates which are almost half of what was paid in 2019, while the Rupee remains stable. It may also be noted that a new trend has been established where greater reliance is being placed on domestic financing, and that strategy has already improved the domestic: foreign” ratio of the debt from 51:49 at end 2019 to 56:44 now, which trend the authorities are keen to improve further in the period ahead. It is therefore clear that the Government’s commitment and support towards better debt management, both directly and indirectly, has already started to take effect.
Sri Lanka is justifiably proud of its immaculate debt service record, without a single default. It would also be noted that Sri Lanka has experienced similar challenging circumstances previously, with high levels of debt. For instance, during 2001-2004, the country’s debt to GDP ratio was well over 100%, and by end 2005, it was at 91%. Nevertheless, Sri Lanka was able to gradually reduce the debt to GDP ratio to just 72% by end 2014 through decisive and innovative action.
The police have traced 454 individuals in total who had left the Western Province on the 29th of October, before quarantine curfew came into effect.
They have been placed under self-isolation at the establishments they are currently staying at, the Police Spokesperson DIG Ajith Rohana said.
Addressing a special media briefing held this evening (31), he said these persons were found while holidaying at tourist hotels in Bandarawela, Batticaloa, Ampara, Jaffna, Tangalle and Nuwara Eliya areas.
Further search operations to trace people who left the province on the 29th and 30th of October are underway, the police spokesperson added.
Quarantine curfew was imposed in the Western Province from midnight on Thursday (October 29) until 5.00 am on Monday (November 02) in an attempt to prevent long weekend getaways amidst the alarming pandemic outbreak in the country.
The members of the public were requested to refrain from leaving the Western Province before curfew is enforced, however, a large number of people have disregarded the announcement issued by the health authorities and security forces.
The police spokesperson said those who enter the Western Province on Monday will be strictly monitored and will be directed to quarantine procedure if it is revealed that they had left on the aforementioned two days.
He also noted that legal action will be sought against these persons for violating quarantine regulations.
The unfortunate news of a young special needs boy committing suicide after his mother was admitted to the hospital by public health inspectors due to symptoms related to the coronavirus was reported from the Dolahena, Homagama.
The infected woman had bought fish from a fish market in Maharagama and was admitted to the Kalubowila Teaching Hospital yesterday (30) due to her coronavirus symptoms.
She lives alone at home with her 25-year-old son with special needs. The residents of the area stated that the son who was shocked when his mother was taken, had committed suicide by hanging himself inside the house.
Health Minster Pavithra Wanniarachchi, states that her Ministry has received the research report on the new coronavirus strain.
A special statement was made at the Ministry of Health today (31) regarding the relevant research report.
The Minister of Health stated that the research conducted by the team led by Professor Neelika Malavige, Director of the Dengue Research Unit of the University of Sri Jayewardenepura on the instructions of President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa has revealed that there is only one variety of the Covid 19 virus in Sri Lanka.
Meanwhile, Prof. Nilika Malavige has further pointed out in the report that the corona variety which is currently spreading in several parts of the island including Minuwangoda and Peliyagoda has been revealed to be similar to the fastest spreading virus variety in Europe.
The scientists at the Department of Immunology and Molecular Medicine and Allergy, Immunology and Cell Biology Unit of University of Sri Jayewardenepura embarked on carrying out whole genomic sequencing of the virus, to determine to see if the current outbreak is due to spread of different strains, if there are certain mutations that result in the rapid spread of the virus and to investigate the relationship between the current circulating virus strains to previous strains circulating in Sri Lanka.
<strong>Key findings of the study were: The current circulating strain is different to the strains that circulated previously. It has the mutation associated with high transmissibility due to high viral loads.
The same virus strain is so far responsible for the infections detected in the Minuwangoda, Colombo Municipality area and the Fish market cluster
16 virus strains originating from Brandix, Minuwangoda, the Colombo Municipality area, Beruwala fish market and patients admitted to tertiary care hospitals were subjected to sequencing.
The team of scientists that carried out the sequencing work are Dr. Chandima Jeewandara, Dr. Deshni Jayathilaka, Dr. Dinuka Ariyaratne, Mr. Laksiri Gomes and Mr. Diyanath Ranasinghe led by Prof. Neelika Malavige
