Courtesy dnaindia.com

Citing a ban on the burqa in Sri Lanka after the deadly Easter Sunday attacks, Shiv Sena mouthpiece ‘Saamna’ on Wednesday demanded the imposition of a similar ban in India.

 Citing Sri Lanka blast Shiv Sena calls for burqa ban in ‘Ram’s land’, NDA ally RPI disagrees

Citing a ban on the burqa in Sri Lanka after the deadly Easter Sunday attacks, Shiv Sena mouthpiece ‘Saamna’ on Wednesday demanded the imposition of a similar ban in India.

The Sena’s proposal, however, was rejected by another NDA ally, Union Minister Ramdas Athawale of the Republican Party of India, who said that burqa should not be banned as it forms part of the country’s tradition.

The Shiv Sena editorial states “It has happened in Ravan’s Lanka. When will it happen in Ram’s Ayodhya? We ask this question to the PM as he is scheduled to visit Ayodhya on Wednesday”.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to address a political rally near Ayodhya today.

“The present government has made a law against Triple Talaq to stop the exploitation of Muslim women. After the ghastly bomb attacks, Sri Lanka has imposed a ban on the burqa and all types of face covers. President Maithripala Sirisena also announced that the decision has been taken for national security,” Saamna said in a write-up published on Wednesday.

“We welcome this decision and in the national interest, we demand Prime Minister Modi to also follow the footsteps of Sri Lankan President and ban burqa and face covers in India as well,” the Shiv Sena mouthpiece said.

In an editorial titled “Question to Prime Minister Modi, it happened in Ravan’s Lanka, when will it happen in Ram’s Ayodhya?”, Samna has also cited the death count of Colombo’s Easter Sunday attack to assert that the country which freed from itself of LTTE’s terrorism is now under the grip of Islamic terrorism.

Sanjay Raut, Shiv Sena leader said, ” Burqa and niqab are not religious attires for India, they are being banned all over the world. If some people relate it to religion and Islam in India then they must not have read the Quran, they should read it properly.”

RPI leader Ramdas Athwale, however, disagreed with the Sena’s proposal to ban the burqa in public places and said it is a tradition in India and there should be no ban on it.

“Not all women who wear the burqa are terrorists if they are terrorists their burqa should be removed. It is a tradition and they have the right to wear it, there shouldn’t be a ban on the burqa in India,” Athwale told ANI.

Meanwhile, BJP’s national spokesperson GVL Narasimha Rao said there was no need for imposition of any kind of ban in the country.

“We have zero tolerance towards terrorism but I don’t think there is a need to impose any kind of ban as the country is already in safe hands of Prime Minister Modi. 

Everyone is free to make suggestions but the whole world knows that the Central government has effectively dealt with terrorism and I don’t think any new steps are required for this.”

In its editorial, the Shiv Sena mouthpiece has pointed to countries namely France, New Zealand, Australia and Britain who have put a ban on the burqa.

Shiv Sena also claimed that the practice of burqa has nothing to do with Islam and is actually, a practice that was adopted in the Arabian countries due to their climatic condition.

“Basically, the burqa is not at all concerned with Islam, and Indian Muslims are following an arrangement of the Arab nation. At one time, to avoid desert heat and sunlight in 

the Arab nation, women used to cover their face and get out of the house.

“In Maharashtra also when the temperature rises at many places, the women travelling through cycle and scooters cover their face with a cloth or handkerchief, but this usage is limited to that. But in this delusion or blind faith, that wearing a face cover or burqa is the order of Koran, Muslims continue to use it,” an excerpt of the Samna editorial reads.

The Sri Lankan government on Sunday adopted measures to impose a complete ban on all types of burqas and face covers in the wake of the horrific terror bombings that rattled the entire country on Easter Sunday, claiming lives of more than 250 people and injuring hundreds. 

Yohan Perera Courtesy The Daily Mirror

There is a possible linkage between Eastern Province Governor M. L. A. M. Hisbullah to Batticaloa Campus Private Ltd., which has been identified as a sharia university, UNP MP Ashu Marasinghe charged today. 

Dr. Marasinghe is a member of the parliamentary oversight committee on education and higher education.  He is also chairman of the subcommittee on higher education who function under the oversight committee.  

At a press conference, Dr. Marasinghe advised that probes must be carried out to determine the connection between the campus and the governor. He also advised that an Islamic institution named ‘Hira Foundation’ possess a 90% stake in the campus.

He said a total sum of Rs 3.6 billion had gone to this foundation for several years and that the campus is not registered under the Ministry of Higher Education or with the University Grants Commission (UCG). 

The MP suggested that the institution should be converted into a state university so that monitoring would be easier. MP Mujibur Rahman also attended the press conference and said the amendments which the opposition wants for the Counter Terrorism Bill could be accommodated so that it could be approved in parliament soon. 

This legislation comprises necessary laws to combat global terrorism” he said. He said the support of the opposition is needed to bring in new laws to apprehend global terrorists as many areas have to be looked into when combating international terrorists. 

Therefore, he said using modern technology for training and communication should also be looked into when making laws to combat global terrorists. One could even learn how to use weapons online with the available technology,” he said.

Courtesy The Daily Mirror

Girls too young to understand the essence of religion adorn the Nikab. Some forced due to cultural imposition, and others too young to know why. Madrasas spread across the island ignore history, art culture, literature and theology which form the core of religious education. 

Instead the focus is on rituals and taboos. Kattankudy, in the East, is but one example of cultural alienation and segregation.The effects of the alienation and archaic practices which the majority of Muslims in Sri Lanka are against and don’t adhere to have to face, day in and day out. Some 36 Muslims have left to fight for the IS (Islamic State), and we wonder why?  

Following the opinion piece titled ‘Sinhaley, Muslims and Fascim’ the response from the Sri Lankan Muslims has been overwhelming. Many have written to say that their fears were exactly the same as penned down and their oppositions were no different. Many others have written in to say that they have been left helpless and are merely bystanders witnessing the usurpation of a once vibrant culture, unique to Sri Lankan Muslims.

• The closing of the gates of ‘ Ijtihad’ (Independent Reasoning) was a period in Islamic history where the rulers, fearing revolt from the masses, imposed strict and harsh interpretations of religion
• An Islam that is lost without art, culture or literature and in complete denial of the essence of the liberation of the soul. Instead it has been usurped by a version which has suppressed any creativity

However there has been a backlash of sorts. On the one hand for which the crux stems from the reasoning given behind the face veil, a garment alien to Sri Lankan and South East Asian culture and its practices. A symbol of the radicalism among Sri Lankan Muslims. And on the other from those who espouse their fascist ‘Sinhaley’ agenda. 

They are but two sides of the same coin. For the purpose of this article, the focus will be on the former. I am inclined to believe that the many who adorn the face veil and those who justify the wearing of such have based their reasoning on a practice that goes beyond the realms of logic and reasoning. I am aware that rationality would not prevail within their minds. The essay therefore is to provide the majority of Muslims in Sri Lanka a grounding through which they could withstand any further escalation of radicalism.   I understand that the dichotomy between the ‘moderates’ and the ‘extremist’ when faced with an external threat, could cause division and dilution. However, I believe it is imperative that the moderates of the minority quell the extremism within first because one form of extremism is always fuel to the other.   

The fallacy of scripture 

My opposition to the face veil and the irrational religious and cultural imposition justified through scripture stems from simple logical reasoning. The Ku Klux Klan believed that scripture was what guided them, and they quoted scripture to justify their horrific actions against the blacks. The slave owners of yore were also guided by religious scripture, which they quoted freely to shut down any opposition to slavery. Today the Islamic State (IS), also quotes scripture to justify their actions, which has left thousands dead and millions destitute. The crusades are but another example. Israel’s, justification of the occupation of Palestinian land is also based on scripture. The very same scripture used by the Zionists are opposed by the Hasidic Jews. Why? They use the same scripture to say that the rule of Palestine by the Jews should not form a part of Judaism until the return of the messiah. The evangelicals who support Donald Trump, also draw inspiration from scripture.   

Madrasas spread across the island ignore history, art culture, literature and theology which form the core of religious education. Instead the focus is on rituals and taboos

So how then is it logical to seek justification from scripture? Thousands of examples could be cited of the different variants within Islam itself which use the same scripture – the Quran – to justify their beliefs and practices;one always insisting that their interpretation is superior to the other. Wars have been waged, and lives lost within the Muslim community itself based simply on different interpretations given to the exact same text. The Sunni-Shia conflict is just one example. Similarly, there is an argument going back and forth, again based on scripture, for and against the face veil.  

However, as reasoned, to argue on scripture is futile. It’s ones word against the other. Instead it is imperative that the Muslim community of Sri Lanka understands the politics behind the radicalization of a culture in Sri Lanka in which the Muslims thrived, enjoyed freedom and in which they remained an integral component of, as so strikingly illustrated by Dr. Lorna Devaraja in her work titled  ‘Muslims of Sri Lanka – one thousand years of ethnic harmony’.  

The history of the veil 

The Arabian peninsula of pre-Islamic times comprised harsh living conditions exposing the mostly nomadic inhabitants of each tribe to severe sandstorms, heat, and at points winters which were much harsher than what we witness in the modern day. In order to protect themselves from these severe weather conditions, as is logical, men and women of the peninsula devised garments which would protect their bodies. The face veil was used to counter the harsh conditions of an often unwelcoming desert. A basic, reading of pre- Islamic Arabia, or Persia would give anyone a clear notion about the garments worn. Tertullian, in his pre-Islamic treatise ‘Virgins of Veil’, makes reference to Pagan Arabian women who covered their faces.   

While this was the reasoning, among others, for the Nikab in the Peninsula, many ancient civilisations, pre- Islamic of course, adopted different variants of the veil for different reasons.  

The Assyrian women (upper Mesopotamia, descendants of which live spread across the continent) who lived under strict and inhumane conditions under their men, are one example. Following the conquests of the Assyrian Empire starting from before 2000 BC, the empire was flooded with labour from conquered territories. Men were used as slaves, and women as prostitutes and domestic slaves. However as time passed, distinguishing between the ‘immigrants’ and the ‘homelanders’ was problematic. Therefore as a method of distinction between the two, women who were considered ‘homelanders’ were ordered to cover their faces. The face veil thus distinguished the Assyrian women from the prostitutes and the domestic slaves and was viewed as a sign of respect, a privilege denied to the slaves and prostitutes . The logic of the devise is questionable, of course, but historical fact shows that this was a practice adopted in a cruel and backward civilization that existed over 4000 years ago. Once these territories were captured by the Muslims, and one religion was promulgated amongst the masses, the face veil evolved into a cultural phenomenon, supported of course, by the environmental and other social needs of the time. 

Islam was the first religion to have founded a state and religion in quick succession, and adhering to this cultural norm was not seen as a threat of any sort. Rather, it was the costume of the day, and it blended with the culture of the time. The repeated use of the word culture is intentional.  

Islam was the first religion to have founded a state and religion in quick succession, and adhering to this cultural norm was not seen as a threat of any sort. Rather, it was the costume of the day, and it blended with the culture of the time. The repeated use of the word culture is intentional

Accordingly the Nikab continued to be a cultural phenomenon, and a cursory glance at the Islamic conquests by the ‘first Muslims’ headed by the ‘Rashidun’ (the rightly guided ones- the four Caliphs who headed the Empire after the death of The Prophet (PBUH)), is enough evidence to negate any claim that the Nikab had anything to do with Islam. The face veil was not imposed in any of the invaded territories which included Egypt to present-day Tunisia and what is today’s Iran to the borders of Central Asia.   

The conquests by the Umayyads followed the same pattern, with the conquerors not impeding on the cultural identity of the conquered land. This is why we do not see the Nikab prevalent in Palestine, Tunisia, Turkey or Egypt, which were among the earliest territories to be conquered , except of course for the imposition of fundamentalists.  

The Nikab remained a cultural garment except, for an imposition in the 12th and 13th Centuries, again by fundamentalist, who were threatened by the crusades. Despite the imposition it largely remained a garment worn by women for environmental and now cultural reasons. That was as far as it went.  

Fast forward to the 20th Century, Islam was shaken by a similar threat from western imperialism. The free market and governance structures of the west that commenced in the 17th Century threatened the very existence of the States which were under ‘Islamic’ rule. Moreover, it had a massive economic impact on Muslim territories. It was in this backdrop that a move back to ‘fundamentalism’ akin to the one witnessed during the crusades took place.  

The Nikab evolved, from being a cultural attire to a symbol against the expanding European forces and was encouraged by religious and political authorities. Similarities could be drawn here with that of the Assyrians and their adoption of the veil. The veil was seen as an icon of resistance, again confined to Muslim held regions in the Middle East. Theologians and the states worked hand in glove to provide religious reasoning to those who resisted. A fact often overlooked is that politics played an integral role in the expansion of the Islamic empires, as oft is the case with any conquering army and state. Each time the rulers were threatened with internal revolt or external conquests, religion was used as a centre- point to garner support and conformity.   

Closing the gates of Ijthihad – Independent reasoning 

It was in the early 1920s however that the Salafist-Wahabi movements expanded territorially, with the backing of the yet to be found state of Saudi Arabia. The state, which was yet to be formed,adopted its ideologies for purely political and economic reasons. It funded the exporting of a strict and literal interpretation of religion to justify its archaic actions. If not, there seems no other plausible justification for the existence of a ‘Kingdom’ or a ‘Sultanate’ or a deviant of it, in an ‘Islamic’ country.

The closing of the gates of ‘ Ijtihad’ (Independent Reasoning) was a period in Islamic history where the rulers, fearing revolt from the masses, imposed strict and harsh interpretations of religion that blocked the questioning of religion and most importantly prevented questioning of the rulers and their modes of governance. Madrasas and the Ulama who were working hand in glove with the rulers facilitated this imposition. It was akin to the era of Mahinda Rajapaksa in which the entire state machinery worked hand-in-glove with the regime to promote its narrative. The difference however, was that the imposition was systemic and long drawn. The religion was the same, and therefore resistance was not as strong as when religions and races differ. The politics involved with the radical Islamic element of the 20th century was no different.   

The conquests by the Umayyads followed the same pattern, with the conquerors not impeding on the cultural identity of the conquered land. This is why we do not see the Nikab prevalent in Palestine, Tunisia, Turkey or Egypt, which were among the earliest territories to be conquered , except of course for the imposition of fundamentalists

It is the long reach of this imposition, a new wave of which began in the 1970s that we are witnessing in Sri Lanka today. The main form of exporting the fundamentalism was through migrant workers who found employment in Saudi Arabia, after which the structures were established in different parts of the world. 

Radical Islam has a political goal. The root of the message which rally’s people behind any ultra nationalist movement, which scholars draw parallels with ‘radical Islam’, is a ‘return to the forgotten past or a greater future’. This wave of radical Islam is no different. It is this political element that channels the funds and drives the masses to alienate their culture and locality and adopt alien and extreme practices.  

The spiritual Islam – beyond the radicalism 

But behind the noise and drama, there lies an Islam that is spiritual. An Islam among others that attempts to understand the true essence of the spiritual retreats and solitude The Prophet (PBUH) underwent prior to the revelations. An Islam in which religion is a personal relationship between the adherent and the creator. It is an Islam in which prayer is not simply a ritual but is meditation. Fasting is not only confined to staying hungry from dawn to dusk. Instead, it includes the fasting of the mind, from anything that could impede the minds meditative state. An Islam which gave the world some of the most modern architectural wonders and important components of Algebra, Geometry, Astrology and Medicine. An Islam which gave the world some of the most comprehensive music compositions. An Islam which produced Gibrans, Rumis and may I even dare say Tagores.   

An Islam in which Nasrudeen Shah was a sage and not a heretic. It is an Islam of ‘peace’, in which the attainment of being at peace with oneself and with the nature surrounding the individual is the essence of its teachings. An Islam that enacted some of the most modern elements of International Law, including Human Rights Law, Family Law and Contract Law. An Islam which gave the world jurisprudence unparalleled in human civilization.

A brief look at the modes adopted to trace a Hadith would amaze any modern archivist, historian or academic. An Islam in which debate and discourse was a central element in its evolution. An Islam that is lost today among the cacophony of rules and impositions. An Islam that is lost without art, culture or literature and in complete denial of the essence of the liberation of the soul. Instead it has been usurped by a version which has suppressed any creativity.   

It was in the early 1920s however that the Salafist-Wahabi movements expanded territorially, with the backing of the yet to be found state of Saudi Arabia. The state, which was yet to be formed,adopted wahabi ideologies for purely political and economic reasons

Creativity gives rise to revolt and reform. So quelling it using religious justification was the best way forward for the rulers, the effects of which we are witnessing in Sri Lanka today. 
Today Islam as espoused by these fundamentalist elements is confined to an empty shell full of taboos and rituals, of which the original meaning seems to be lost. The usurpation of a century’s, if not millennia, old culture which has evolved, that is unique to Sri Lanka and to South East Asia must be resisted, and the leadership for it must come from Muslim communities itself. It is against this usurpation that the Sri Lankan Muslims must make their stand clear. The time is now, if not before long Sri Lanka will suffer the consequences of segregation from the countries’ ethos.  

The writer is a Journalist, Attorney-at-Law, Graduate in International Relations. He is also a Fulbright scholar having studied Journalism at the New York University (NYU) 

Courtesy The Daily Mirror

The British Government has consistently made clear its unreserved determination to fight the scourge of terrorism, the British High Commission (BHC) in Colombo said today.

Issuing a statement following reports that suggest that His Eminence Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith might have questioned the UK’s commitment to the fight against terrorism, the BHC said the UK Unreservedly committed to fight terrorism on the United Kingdom’s own soil and to help others to fight it on theirs.

The British Government has consistently made clear its unreserved determination to fight the scourge of terrorism on the United Kingdom’s own soil, and to help others to fight it on theirs.  

It has also made very clear its view that the international community must remain firm in its determination to counter and defeat the poisonous ideologies that lie behind terrorist attacks around the world.

On Tuesday 23 April, the National Day of Mourning in Sri Lanka, the British Foreign Secretary, Jeremy Hunt MP, led a debate in the House of Commons on the Easter Sunday attacks.

He said: Today, the flags in Downing Street and on the Foreign and Commonwealth Office are flying at half-mast following the horrific Easter day terrorist attack in Sri Lanka.

These attacks were a primitive and vile attempt to sow division between people of different faiths. Religious tensions have caused some of the bloodiest battles in human history, and it is sombre and sobering that even in the 21st century attempts continue to set believers of different religions against each other. Our response must be to deny the perpetrators the satisfaction of dividing us by being united in our condemnation of the attacks and united in our support for religious tolerance – surely one of humanity’s greatest achievements.

The UK will never stand by in the face of such evil. Today, we stand in solidarity with the Government and people of Sri Lanka, who have made enormous strides towards stability and peace following the conclusion of the civil war almost exactly 10 years ago. To attack Christian worshippers at Easter, which is a celebration of peace and the holiest day in the Christian calendar, betrays in the attackers an absence of the most basic values of humanity.   

Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth wrote to President Sirisena last week: Prince Philip and I were deeply saddened to learn of the attacks in Sri Lanka earlier today, and send our condolences to the families and friends of those who have lost their lives. I pay tribute to the medical and emergency services who are providing support to those who have been injured. Our thoughts and prayers are with all Sri Lankan’s at this difficult time.”

The Prince of Wales has written of his and his wife’s profound sadness on hearing of the attacks.   

Such acts of dreadful brutality, wherever they occur, are an appalling assault on our shared humanity, and our values of understanding and compassion. That so many men, women and children should be targetted for their faith, and so cruelly killed and injured in their places of worship on this most holy of days for Christians, is a despicable atrocity and an attack on us all.  

We did just want you to know how much our hearts go out to everyone who has been so cruelly bereaved or injured, and that all Sri Lankans are in our most special thoughts and prayers as you mourn those you have lost.”

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have also written to the people of Sri Lanka: Our hearts go out to the families and friends of those who have lost their lives, to the Christian community, and to the people of Sri Lanka at this tragic time. You are all in our thoughts and prayers.”

Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and British Prime Minister Theresa May spoke last week. Mrs May told Mr Wickremesinghe that the UK would stand with Sri Lanka in the fight to counter terrorism and tackle extremist ideologies. She reconfirmed the UK’s readiness to support Sri Lanka. A Metropolitan Police team and British counter terrorism experts have been in Sri Lanka since soon after the attacks and are working very closely with the Sri Lankan authorities and other international partners,” it said.

Courtesy Adaderana

Security forces are continuing to carry out island-wide search operations to ensure the security of the country following the Easter Day attacks.

Mullaitivu police stated that 09 walkie-talkies generally used by security forces and clothing similar to Army uniforms among other items have been found in a luxury hotel under construction in the Alampil area in Mullaitivu.

The Army has found these today (01) in a search operation carried out at the construction site of the hotel.

Among the seized items, a pair of binoculars, 11 SIM cards, batteries used for walkie-talkies, a dagger, and 02pairs of boots used by Army personnel have also been found during the search.

Reportedly, no one had been at the construction site when the search was carried out and the hotel construction is funded by a person residing abroad, stated the Police.

No individual has been arrested on the matter and Mullaitivu Police are carrying out further investigations.

Meanwhile, 12 persons and other items including swords have been found in another raid conducted by the Sri Lanka Army in Akurana.

The Army has found 03 swords, parts of firearms, clothing similar to Army uniforms, posters, banners and CDs that may belong to the Thowheed Jamaath organization, several number plates of vehicles, fake passports, National Identity Cards, birth certificates in the area.

Search operations are still carried out in the area, stated the Sri Lanka Army.

Furthermore, the Police have also found 03 swords near a mosque in Galenbindunuwewa, stated Ada Derana reporter.

Courtesy Adaderana

Four oceanic scientists were among the six Chinese nationals killed during the Easter Sunday bomb blasts in Sri Lanka, the Chinese Embassy in Colombo said.

The deceased included Li Jian, 38, and Pan Wenliang, 35, who were senior engineers at the South China Sea Institute of Oceanology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (SCSIO). 

Two others, Li Dawei, 30, and Wang Liwei, 26, were from the First Institute of Oceanography under the Ministry of Natural Resources, state-run Global Times reported on Wednesday.

Websites of both the institutes turned black and white to mourn the dead scientists.

Li, along with four other scientists, arrived at the Kingsbury Hotel in Colombo on April 18 and 19, respectively. They were supposed to participate in joint scientific cooperation between China and Sri Lanka, the SCSIO said. 

The embassy said another five people from the Chinese Academy of Sciences were injured during the explosions. All of them have returned to China for further treatment, state-run China Daily reported.

They had traveled to Sri Lanka in the mid of April for research purposes, it said. 

The series of coordinated attacks that ripped through three churches and luxury hotels claimed 253 lives and injured over 500 others.

The Lankan foreign ministry has confirmed the death of 42 foreign nationals, including 11 Indians, in the blasts.

A total of 106 suspects, including a Tamil medium teacher and a school principal, have been arrested in connection with the Easter Sunday blasts.

The Islamic State claimed the attacks, but the government has blamed local Islamist extremist group National Thowheeth Jamaath (NTJ) for the attacks.

-Agencie

Courtesy Adaderana

The police, based on a tip-off by the residents of Polpithigama, Kurunegala, have managed to find a Singapore-manufactured hand grenade near the Moragollagama railway station.

Subsequently, the bomb disposal squad of the Sri Lanka Navy disarmed the bomb, stated the Police.

Meanwhile, a special operation carried out by intelligence officers on a tip-off received by the State Intelligence Service has found 04 swords at a restaurant situated closeby to the Badulla-Badulupitiya and Badulla Jumma mosque.

Two suspects have also been arrested by the intelligence officers and they have been handed over to the Badulla police for interrogation.

Courtesy Adaderana

Badulla Police have inspected a house 12 feet away from the Badulla prison, today (01), and had managed to discover a suspicious ongoing construction within the house.

Ada Derana reporter states that 5 persons have been taken into the custody of the police for questioning.

The construction was made 12 feet deep from the floor of the house and it two rooms had been built inside it while another was still mid-construction.

The owner of the house and 04 other persons who had been involved in the constructing process have been apprehended in this manner.

According to Ada Derana reporter, the Badulla prison is in the perfect view from the upstairs of the house.

Apprehended persons will be produced before Badulla Magistrate and Badulla Police are conducting further investigations on it.

Courtesy Adaderana

Just three days after Sri Lanka issued a ban on all face coverings in the wake of Easter Sunday terror attacks, a regional party in India affiliated to Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party has openly called for banning face masks and the burqa. 

Maharashtra’s Shiv Sena party, which is known for its parochial politics and majoritarian Hindutva ideology, has reportedly recommended a similar ban in India, as an emergency measure to ensure that security forces do not encounter difficulties in identifying anybody.” 

South Asia, largely, has been on an alert since the terror attacks in Sri Lanka that killed over 350 people. In India, a hoax call warning the Karnataka police, claiming knowledge of a possible terror attack in South India, led to much panic and confusion led to much panic and confusion. 

While the Sri Lankan government’s ban stopped short of naming the niqab, burqa or the hijab, the ban is being seen as a crackdown on the country’s Muslim community and has divided opinion in the island nation. 

The call for the ban in India from Shiv Sena is not surprising, and it’s likely to open up a wider political debate on the garment identified with Muslim women. Given the party’s close ties with the RSS, the ideological parent of the BJP, the polarising rhetoric may even find vocal support. After all, the general elections are underway in the country and 30% of the electorate is yet to vote. 

The BJP, Sena’s ally, itself has led the charge against some of the Muslim social practices. The regressive triple talaq” — where the husband can divorce a wife just by saying talaq” thrice — has been one of the party’s flagship campaigns. Even as India’s supreme court sought to ban the practice through an ordinance, a bill introduced by the BJP banning triple talaq faced opposition in the upper house of the Parliament. 

There is also a campaign against nikah halala” — the practice that forces some Muslim women to marry another man in order to be married again to their divorced husbands. 

BJP has also promised to introduce a uniform civil code that will exclude any existing privileges afforded by Indian law based on religion. This was an election promise in 2014 too, but the debate hasn’t progressed since.

-Agencies

Courtesy Adaderana

Speaking at a foreign media interview, Kishu Gomes, the Chairman of the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau, stated that the Easter Day attacks are a blow in the economy at large, not just tourism industry.

However, the Chairman says that when considering other tourist destinations which also received similar attacks in similar incidents such as Bali or Paris, he is fairly confident that Sri Lanka might be able to bounce back in a few days time.

Army is in well control. They have been able to apprehend most of the culprits and they say that they will be able to apprehend the masterminds behind the organizations. They have so far been very very effective”, said Gomes.

Therefore, he is sure that over the next couple of months Sri Lanka will be able to reach that safe environment within which the rebuilding process could begin, he said.

Speaking of the people in the industry who have been affected by the attacks, he says nearly 700,000 persons are involved in the tourism sector and make a livelihood from the tourism sector. Out of which nearly 400,000 persons are directly involved with the sector, he pointed out. It is quite significant given that tourism is the 3rd largest revenue generator of the country, he said.

According to the Chairman, the maximum impact on the tourism industry will be about 20%, both in terms of the number of tourists and the economic impact.

Many have come up to me to show their support and condolences. This is global terrorism. In a situation of that nature we all have to get together and support each other that the world is a safer place for all tourists to enjoy all destinations”, concluded Gomes.

Courtesy Adaderana

Sri Lanka Army has uncovered explosives and weapons during an operation conducted in the Mallar area in Samanthurai this morning (01), stated Ada Derana reporter.

When inspecting an abandoned land plot in Mallar, 20 pistol ammunition, 08 bullets, an Army uniform, and a belt have been discovered by the Army.

The forces had then inspected the house next to the land and had found 200 Gelignite sticks, 200 detonators, 46 wire cords, and 100 kg of Ammonia.

Subsequently, the Army had carried out a search operation in the whole area with the assistance of Police canines.

One of the canines led the officials to the house the driver of an MP from Digamadulla district where they discovered a pistol.

It has been revealed that the owner of the land plot which contained the explosives and weapons was also the said parliamentarian.

Security forces searched many houses in Sammanthurai area. They had found 02 guns, 5 bullets, and a motorbike without number plates in the search operations.

Ada Derana

Ada Derana

Courtesy The Daily Mirror

The US believes members of the militant group blamed for Sri Lanka’s Easter Sunday attacks may be at large and planning more assaults, US Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Alaina Teplitz has told Reuters on Tuesday.

We do believe that the terrorist threat is ongoing and there may be active plotters. Active members of the attack group that carried out the terror attacks on Easter Sunday may still be at large,” Ambassador Teplitz said.

We certainly have reason to believe that the active attack group has not been fully rendered inactive. We do believe that there is active planning underway,” she said.

Courtesy Adaderana

The U.S. ambassador to Sri Lanka said on Tuesday that some of the Islamist militants behind Easter Sunday bombings that killed more than 250 people were likely still at large and could be planning more attacks.

Sri Lankan security forces also said they were maintaining a high level of alert amid intelligence reports that the militants were likely to strike before the beginning of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, which is due to begin next Monday.

Tremendous progress has been made towards apprehending those plotters but I don’t think the story is over yet,” Ambassador Alaina Teplitz said in an interview.

We do believe that there is active planning underway,” she said, referring to the possibility of more attacks.

Scores of suspected Islamists have been arrested in the multi-ethnic island nation since April 21 suicide bomb attacks on hotels and churches. Among the dead were 42 foreign nationals.

Security will stay tight for several days because military and police are still tracking down suspects,” a senior police intelligence official said. 

Another government source told Reuters security authorities had ordered police and other security forces across the Buddhist-majority country to remain on high alert because the militants were expected to try to strike before Ramadan.

Teplitz told Reuters the risk of more attacks remained real.

We certainly have reason to believe that the active attack group has not been fully rendered inactive,” she said.

The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation is assisting Sri Lankan authorities in the investigations but Teplitz declined to give more details.

The State Department has issued a travel advisory suggesting people reconsider plans to travel to Sri Lanka.

Source: Reuters

සුදත් ගුණසේකර

මානම් හිතුවේ ලන්කාවෙ ඉන්න හාමුදුරුවරු ඔක්කොම සාසනය සහ ජාතිය බේරගන්ත මහපාරට බසි කියලා.මේ රතේ 30000 දාහක් පමන් ඉන්නවා කියන හාමුදුරුවරු අදවන තුරු හමුදුරුවරු100 පාරට බෑස්සාද ඒ හාමුදුරුවෝ වෙනුවෙන්  1818 නිදහස් සටනේදිත් සුද්දගෙ පෑත්ත අරගෙන රට හා ජාතිය පාවාදුන්න එක්නෙලිගොඩ පරම්පරාවෙ උපාසක අම්මා කෙනෙක් මස් රාත්තලම ඉල්ලා සතනේ.

අඩුගානෙ මේ පාපකර්මයෙන් බේරෙන්ට කියලා මේ චින්චිමානවිකාවට කියන්ත්ටවත් එක හාමුදුරු කෙනෙක්වත් නෑ නේ.

මේවිදියට හාමුදුරුවරු නිස්සබ්දව හිටියොත් තව අවුරුදු පහක් යන්ත ඉස්සරවෙලා උලමෝ සහ බස්සෝ මේ රට අල්ලගන්නව නියතය. එදාට අපේ හාමුදුරුවරු අදිපථිකම් කරන්නේ මොන පන්සලේද.මොනනිකායේද.
ඒ නිසා දෑන්වත් එක හාර පන්සියක්වත් ජනාධිපති මුනගෑහිල මේ හමුදුරුවෝ නිදහස් කරන්ට කියන්නෙ නෑත්තේ මොකද.

එහෙම කිවාම ථ් අහන්නෙ නෑත්නම් අඩුගානෙ හාමුදුරුවරු1000 වත් ජනාධිපති කාර්යාලය වටකරලා ර්ට වෙනුවෙන් නහින මේ බුදුපුතුන් වහන්සේ වහාම නිදහස් කරන්ට කියලා කීවොත් නේද හොදඉ කියල මම හිතනවා.
 සින්හල බෞදයෙක් වසයෙන් ජනාධිපතිවරයාට ඈස් එරේවා කියල මම ප්‍රාර්තනකරනවා.

Dr Sarath Obeysekera  

I was trying to drive to Cinemen Grand Hotel  and found that driving to the foyer was  blocked .Tried few other places and failed due to increased checking ,

Managed to enter one of the four star hotels by Galle Face but parking was not allowed .I got down and walked in .Staff was looking at me with caution and did a body check and with some sort of a detector .

Walked to coffee shop in the empty ground floor and bought a teas and sat down to kill time to collect my wife from work.

Few week back I had a bitter experience in the same hotel, when I was not treated well as I was not a foreigner .A manager was uncaring of me and I wrote to this paper about the bad experience.

Now we are back to the era similar to what we had during the war .Hotels are empty and local visitors may be treated better.

At that time when I had the bitter experience there was no much attention paid by them to my complain.

Yesterday I saw the Muslim owner of the hotel standing by the reception and watching the  entrance helplessly .

I found that there are only four guests in the whole hotel in contrast to the occupancy few weeks back.

I am not sure how long it will take to revive the tourism unless hotels rethink about their strategy for survival.

Soon people will be laid off and unrest may start.

Banks should not charge interest for the next year for the loans they have taken to develop the hotel.

Hotels should reduce rate by  50-75 % to attract more locals if they want to service

Dr Sarath Obeysekera  

Ira de Silva Canada

The Prime Minister of Sri Lanka is giving interviews to foreign news media regarding the bombings on Easter Sunday in Sri Lanka. He tried to tell the world that he did not know that there were warnings given to Sri Lankan authorities prior to the bombings.

To the BBC it was that he was “not in the loop”. This was not acceptable to the interviewer and the Prime Minister then backed down and gave a vague response of the government knowing something. In another interview when he tried to indicate that he did not know, when challenged, he had to backtrack and claimed partial knowledge but would not accept responsibility.

Perhaps he was afraid that the next question to him would have been why he did not resign which would have happened in the country the interviewer came from.

What he did was to re-enforce to the world that Sri Lanka has a government that is dysfunctional, completly oblivious of and uncaring of what is taking place in the country that even when there is such a tragic incident, it does not take the incident seriously and is not taking adequate steps to investigate and stop any further terrorist attacks.

The people of Sri Lanka who are dying because of the governments complacency regarding terrorism do not accept this attitude neither does the outside world.  The Cardinal is correct when he states “even if Parliamentarians and politicians were behind these attacks – directly or indirectly – people expect them to be arrested, questioned and punished if they have any connections”. Sadly, although that is what needs to be done, the people of Sri Lanka know that this government is not capable of thinking in this manner much less acting to stop this terrorrism because of incompetence and political expediency

By ; A.A.M.NIZAM – MATARA

The foreign servile Ranil Wickremesinghe has acknowledged in an interview with Susan Ormisten of the CBC News when he was asked as to why, as prime minister, he did not known about repeated serious warnings, he has  accepted accountability and said: My being aware is separate from the fact that the security system had failed to implement it — some of them didn’t take it seriously (his usual habit of evading responsibility and blaming others) and has shamelessly said that government machinery was faulty and warnings from intelligence agencies were not implemented before the Easter Sunday attacks  

Wickremesinghe said that for the next few days or weeks, he worries most is that one of those individuals may not turn up in surveillance inquiries or isn’t detained before acting independently may commit suicide by blasting himself in public. (an absurf statement and a deliberate attempt to incriminate the dedicated security services personnel who are carrying out a dedicated service round the clock under immense threat to their own life.  Where on earth, the terrorist suspects or potential terrorist voluntarily turns up to get himself subjected to surveillance? It is shame to find this kind of an imbecile functioning as the Prime Minister of our country)”

The interviewer said that Sri Lankan security officials warned lawmakers on 4^th April almost two weeks before the attacks and asked why these warnings were ignored by the government and kept only the Christians of the government inform therebypreventing them getting caught in the carnage? Evading direct response to the question, Mr. Wickremasinghe said that in future they have to put into effective measures to ensure it doesn’t happen again, that information comes to be acted upon.”

 But pressed as to why, as prime minister, he did not know about repeated serious warnings, he accepted accountability and acknowledge  the fact that the government machinery was faulty.

”Sri Lankan Archbishop Cardinal Dr.Malcolm Ranjith criticized top leaders in government for feuding during the crisis. He said that at a time when the whole country has been affected by a major catastrophe, politicians should stop finding fault with each other.

The economic impact of the attacks could cripple the tourism industry — at least for awhile.Sri Lanka’s Tourism Bureau has warned that tourist arrivals in Colombo could drop by 50 per cent over the next two months, and with 30 per cent fewer travellers predicted according to chairman Kishu Gomes

But the prime minister who has ruined the economy of the country for the last 4 years, despite claims made by him and his butterfly cabal (including those holding commercially acquired Doctorates)   that he is an economic wizard, predicted a smaller impact in the long-term. In another bluffing he claimed that Sri Lanka is in its low tourist season now.  If that was true why he ans his butterflies claimed two weeks before that there is a steep increase in high end tourist arrivals?.  

In a photograph published by the CBC News damage from the blast surrounding a statue of St. Jude at St. Sebastian’s Church in Negombo has killed ore than 100 around this statue.

It is shameful and disgusting to note that this sadist Prime Minister has said that there was no significant community backlash causing more violence in the critical first three days after the attacks. It may be one of the reasoms that he was hiding for those three days like his uncle after black        July.   Uttering another blatant lie he has said that it was terrible when the civil war (it was not a civil war but over three decades of terrorist aggression, shamrlessly attempting to distort the truth for which he has gained notoriety) ended in 2009. It   seems that this idiotic Prime Minister edo not know what happened in the country after our gallant soldiers vanquished the terrorists.  19^TH May 2009 was the Deepavali of Sri Lanka in which people of the country devoid of party, colour, religious, and ethnic differences celebrated distributing sweets and kiribath, holding motor vehicle parades and many expressing their gratitude to Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksa for ending terrorism by prostrating before him.  He was almost considered as a diety by the people with the song of Maharajanani played in full blast in the background.

Renember Mr. Wickremasinghe that you will never achieve a status like this even if you rule the country for the next 100 yearsand you will only be considered as DDon Juan Dharmapala.

While Ranil Wickremasinghe shamelesslt claim that our intelligence is not capable of dealing with what he calls the globalterrorism and the country needs international spies to face the current situation the former President and the Leader of the Opposition Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksa has thanked India for the help in uncovering the extremist plot but has said  that Sri Lanka does not want any foreign forces, like the Indian National Security Guard, on its soil.

“India has been helpful. But there is no need for the NSG to come in. We don’t need foreign soldiers. Our forces are capable enough… We just need to give them powers and freedom,” he has told News18 in an exclusive interview. 

His reaction came after a government official told CNN-News18 that the elite force has been kept on standby if the island nation needed any help. 

The former president, who was involved in a soft coup attempt last year, blasted the government and said both President Maithripala Sirisena, who is also the minister of defense and in charge of national police, and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, who has been kept out of high-level security meetings since Sirisena tried to oust him last fall, were responsible for the series of blasts in which over 300 people were killed on Easter Sunday. 

“They are busy playing politics at the cost of national security. Everyone knew about the growth of radicalism. They were worried about votes and their vote bank and did not act,” Rajapaksa told News18.

News 18 saif that Elections to pick a new president are due between October and December and Rajapaksa has started targeting Sirisena and his Wickremesinghe for failing to preserve the hard-fought peace that he helped to bring by crushing the Tamil Tiger separatists. Although Rajapaksa cannot contest for president again, his brother Gotabaya is ready to make a bid, his aide has said.

India has said that it had shared very specific intelligence inputs about the Islamic State’s plans of the bombings, but the warnings had remained unheeded. 

Top officials have acknowledged that some of the intelligence units were given advance notice about the attacks — starting weeks ago and up until the morning of the bombings — but that little was done to prevent them. 

N 18 ai  that the country’s police chief Pujith Jayasundara and defense secretary Hemasiri Fernando have both have been asked to resign over their failure to prevent the blasts despite having prior intelligence.

In a tweet, PM Wickremesinghe said, “We take collective responsibility and apologize to our fellow citizens for our failure to protect victims of these tragic events.”

Mr. Rajapaksa also dismissed the PM’s view that no action could be taken against citizens who had left to join the Islamic State. “The existing laws are good enough to act against those with terror links,” he argued. 

PM Wickremesinghe said that the government had known that Sri Lankan nationals who had joined the Islamic State had returned to the country, but they could not be arrested as joining a foreign terrorist organization is not against the law.

The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for the Easter terror attacks on three Catholic churches and three luxury hotels that claimed over 300 lives but the government has blamed a local Islamist extremist group National Tawheed Jamath (NTJ) for the bombings.

A report published by tr Island said that Archbishop of Colombo Dr.Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith has told the government, in no uncertain terms, that he is utterly displeased with the security measures adopted since the Easter Sunday attacks. He has urged the government to ensure that the armed forces and police went beyond merely acting on tip-offs. He has struck a responsive chord with the public.

The Island said rhat one cannot but endorse the prelate’s call for the government to pull all stops to remove the scourge of terror. Schools and places of worship cannot remain closed for fear of terror attacks an it is the bounden duty of the government to ensure public safety. The country was not crippled in this manner even during the height of war. It is in this predicament because national security did not figure high on the yahapalana agenda. Shaken awake by the Easter Sunday bombings, the government is now running around like a headless chicken. The police and the armed forces have been allowed to do what they should have been ordered to carry out long before the Easter tragedy.

IGP Pujitha Jayasundara has been sent on compulsory leave over the Easter Sunday incidents which the police failed to prevent in spite of intelligence warnings. Secretary of Defence Hemasiri Fernando was made to resign within a few days of the bombings.

Terrorists only have to be lucky once, and their targets have to be lucky always, as the IRA told Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, having failed to kill her. This country suffered a countless number of terror attacks, for nearly three decades, many in the city and its suburbs, while Prabhakaran was around. Thousands of people perished in them. Terrorists killed one President, in 1993, and another came very close to being blown to smithereens, six years later. The Army Headquarters was bombed and the then Army Commander Lt. Gen. Sarath Fonseka seriously injured. But the Easter Sunday blasts were different in that they could have been averted as the government had been sufficiently warned.

The Islabd report askrf is it only the IGP and the Defence Secretary who should take the blame for security lapse and queried what about the political grandees who did not care to take any action though it was brought to their notice, in Parliament, way back in 2016, that several Sri Lankan families, trained by the ISIS had returned home? When the then Justice Minister Dr. Wijeyadasa Rajapakse made that revelation, he drew heavy flak from the government MPs themselves,  .

The President and the PM claim they were not aware of the pre-Easter intelligence warning. So does Opposition Leader Mahinda Rajapaksa. Try as they might, they won’t be able to dupe the public into taking their claims seriously. The intelligence document, containing the warning, at issue, had been copied to all VVIP security divisions as a leaked image thereof shows. Some members of the Cabinet have admitted they had been aware of the danger well in advance. Are we to conclude that the President, the PM and the Opposition Leader are less informed than others the report asked.  It pointed out that the  PM has claimed that there are no laws to deal with Sri Lankans who have joined foreign terrorist groups. Some legal experts have pooh-poohed this claim, arguing that the existing laws are sufficient for action to be taken against them. Even if there had been a lacuna in the country’s laws, remedial measures should have been adopted as a national priority to arrest the terror suspects concerned. New laws could have been passed immediately.

The reports also pointed out that the 19th Amendment was passed in record time at the behest of the UNP. The FCID (Financial Crimes Investigation Division) was set up almost overnight to deal with the rivals of the yahapalana government, which dragged its feet on matters concerning national security and said that Cardinal Ranjith has proved that he is a much better leader than the self-proclaimed ones who are making a lot of noise in politics. In the immediate aftermath of the terror attacks, he intervened to defuse tension and ensure that the public acted with restraint despite the sheer magnitude of the disaster. He was, of course, assisted by other religious leaders in the noble task.

The Island emphasized let the government be urged to heed the Cardinal’s warning that the people’s patience is wearing thin and their anger might spill over into the streets unless the situation is brought under control and the remaining terrorists brought to justice forthwith.

below is a translation of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) proposals submitted by Mr. Mahinhxda Rajapaksa at the All Party Conference inParliamrnt on 25^th April. (courtesy Lanka CNews)

The Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) extend our gratitude for calling an all party conference to discuss the situation that has arisen following the terrorists on the Easter Sunday and for inviting our party to attend this conference. We hereby submit our proposals relating to the terrorist attacks, the situation that led to these attacks, the after effects of the attacks, about the steps that need to be taken to ensure and strengthen national security and reconciliation among all communities while expressing our whole hearted readiness to extend our unhesitant and fullest cooperation for the future measures.   

Our vision as the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP)

It is our sole expectation to build the modern  Sri Lankan nation in which all Sinhala, Tamil, Muslin, Malay and Burgher could communities could live freely and harmoniously upholding theit cultural identity and with religious and ethnic freedom and reconciliation. All other rights in the human society come only after the right to live. Therefore there can be nothing above the national security. It is only within a secured society that all matters relating to ethnic cooperation and religious reconciliation that take place. The reconciliation remains within the common factor of national security.

But in the recent past an attitude showinh that there is a contradiction between national security and national reconciliation, socialized from top to bottom. This attitude showed the opinion that showing interest on national security is tantamount togo against national reconciliation.

It is like an unscientific expression saying that breathing is injurious to the heart. This condition knowingly or unknowingly and directly or indirectedly contributed to this massive tragedy.

What we urge for is to place the national security in its due place. To give its due place to the national security. To entrust the task of managing the national security to                        qualified professionals.

We did observe a sever collapse in the National Security Council and the in the institutions in charge of national security.  Immediately restructure these institutions on a scientific basis.

It is a well known fact that the State Intelligence services are being subjected to abhorrent suppression.  Due to this factor the State Intelligence services have become ineffective.

We emphatically request to immediately understand the importance of a State Intelligence service for the prevalence of a State and activate the State Intelligence service which has been inactivated.

It is only after proper scientific filtering that information collected becomes usable data

It is not gossips that data collected by a State Intelligence service..  When we analyse the recent events it becomes clear that State Intelligence data has not even received the importance given to a normal goddip.

There is no use of obtaining medicine if you do not consume it.  It is the prime responsibility of those who are in charge to utilize the State Intelligence properly.

The government should immediately analyse on steps to be taken er a national disaster.In this instance civil and leaders and the general public displayed a verty progressive behaviour. They were very much ahead of the responsible authorities. 

At this moment as there is a possibility of creating hatred on Sei Lanka Muslims and a conspiracy to shatter national unity as it was done after Black July it is the bounden duty and responsibility of the government to enhaance security for all communities

We respectfully bow down our heads in gratitude to the neighbours who rushed to assisy and help the victims, the staff of hospitals, officers of the security forces, to all disaster management services . and to the public who came forwatd to provide material and physical help d assistance.    

Sri Lanka Podejana Peramuna (SLPP).  …

(To be copntinued)  .

Ben Silva

The brutal act of terrorism that killed over 250 innocent civilians, by an Islamic terror group is beyond comprehension. During the attack a man lost his wife and two children. Another man lost his three children. The victims were doing peaceful things attending a church or having a meal in a  luxury hotel in our beautiful  island. The victims of the terrorist act were innocent people.  They have done nothing wrong to deserve this barbaric treatment in the hands of Islamic extremists.  It is important to find out the root cause that produced the terrorism. Is it the belief by terrorists  that they should  kill non believers? In my view, all religions are mind viruses that distort the thinking of the believers.

Religions produce NLP processes that affect the minds of persons. Some processes are therapeutic and produce a peaceful mind whilst others produce a hateful mind that produces violence. Media reports allege that 400 NTJ mosques have been allowed to be built in Sri Lanka; when not even 1 temple is allowed to be built in Arab countries. These mosque constructions would bring about serious instability to Sri Lanka. The policies of this Govt.  could destroy  Sinhala Buddhists in Sri Lanka.

Ref: http://www.adaderana.lk/news/54760/dayasiri-alleges-muslim-affairs-minister-allowed-construction-of-400-ntj-mosques

 Why is so much apathy amongst the Sinhalese?

There may be a need to integrate Muslims to the mainstream Sri Lankan society. Further, isolated Muslim educational establishments should not be allowed due to the potential for brainwashing of children.

In my view no innocent human, whatever the ethnicity or religion should be  harmed or killed.

If we look at the situation around the world, we can see Islam followers of various flavors, kill each other and treat others in an uncivilized brutal manner. Around the world, Muslims have killed non Muslims including Hindus, Buddhists and Christians. I do not think this sort of violence and uncivilised conduct should be allowed in the modern world.

The Yahapalanaya comedians have produced the biggest banking scan known and one of the biggest terrorist attacks during their watch. How did the people manage to appoint the alleged Batalanda mass  killer of brave Sinhala youth as the PM ? The damage done to the economy by the terrorists  is so huge that the government should have resigned.

 In the past, Muslim invaders from Turkey invaded countries from Afghanistan to Indonesia, killed non Muslims, mainly Buddhists and converted people to followers of Islam. Famous merciless killing of Buddhists took place at Nalanda, India. Buddhism did not recover in India, after the Nalanda debacle. Note that countries from Afghanistan to India and even Maldives were formerly Buddhist countries. It appears that there is a violent gene in Islam. Further it appears that there is no hope for passive Nirvana seeking Buddhists unless they become aware of internal and external threats. There should be an organization to  protect the  interests of the Sinhala people.

There are certain groups in Sri Lanka that follow Islam, an ancient foreign medieval religion that has teachings of violence.   I am not sure if those that believe  in non violence, Buddhists,  can survive, specially if the Buddhists  want to live in the past and are not prepared to change according to the present day conditions. The evidence is that, being a passive Buddhist, seeking Nirvana, does not help in the survival process.

It is generally known that some madrases in various countries are breeding grounds for Islamic extremists. It is reported that the biggest Sharia University, in East Asia, is to be constructed in the East of Sri Lanka. What is the reason for this ? Why can’t the University be based in Bangladesh or Malaysia? Could it be that the aim is to destabilize Sri Lanka and convert Sri Lanka to a Muslim country ?  Buddhist leaders such as the Mahanayakes appear to be in the dark and inactive related to this proposed Sharia University in the East, Is it due to an intelligence failure?

If Sinhala Buddhists are to survive in a hostile environment, then they need to learn business and other skills needed to survive in a highly competitive, materialistic global world.

It is reported that the mastermind of the recent terror attacks studied at a local Arabic College. I believe all religious educational establishments must be monitored to ensure that dangerous material is not taught. The potential Wahabi Sharia University is a serious threat to Sri Lanka and it’s construction should be halted. Sinhala people should stand up and be counted.

For the stability of Sri Lanka population growth amongst various groups need to be monitored

Most Muslim countries do not allow temples to be constructed in their countries. Muslim countries usually do not even allow Buddhist statues into their countries. The construction of an Islamic   University is extremely dangerous as it could breed Islamic fundamentalists. Why do we allow hostile foreign bases to be established in Sri Lanka, when Buddhists are not even allowed to construct a peaceful temple in Muslim countries ?

Islamists also practice stoning people to death and cutting people’s arms. These are  barbaric practices and  are not suitable for a civilized Buddhist country such as Sri Lanka.

Sri Lankan’s also need to be aware of serious problems related to climate change, deforestation and  uncontrolled population growth.

I repeat hate crimes should not take place and not a single  peace loving Muslim be harmed or killed. Any disputes should be settled through dialogue, discussion and debate and not using violence.

Ben Silva

Mohammed Rasooldeen- Justice of the Peace Media Secretary Western Province Governor’s Office

අතිගරු ජනාධිපති මෛත්‍රීපාල සිරිසේන මැතිතුමා විසින් හදිසි නීතිය යටතේ සදුදා දින සිට වහාම ක්‍රියාත්මකවක පරිදි මුහුණූ ආවරණය සම්බන්ධයෙන් පනවන ලද තහනම තරයේ පිළිපදින ලෙස බස්නාහිර පළාත් ආණ්ඩුකාරතුමා විසින් මුස්ලිම් පාසල් ප්‍රධානීන්ගෙන් ඉල්ලා සිටින ලදී.

පසුගිය සදුදා දින බස්නාහිර පළාත් ආණ්ඩුකාරවර කාර්යයාලයේදී මුස්ලිම් පාසල් 59 යක විදුහල්පත්වරුන් අමතා ගරු ආණ්ඩුකාරතුමා මේ බව ප්‍රකාශ කර සිටියේය.

විදේශිකයින් 40 දෙදෙනකුද ඇතුළුව පුද්ගලයින් 268 දෙදෙනකු ඝාතනය කරමින් පසුගිය පාස්කු ඉරු දින එල්ල කරන ලද බෝම්බ ප්‍රහාරය හේතුවෙන් අතිගරු ජනාධිපතිතුමා විසින් මුහුණු ආවරණය සම්බන්ධයෙන් තහනම පනවන ලද බව ගරු ආණ්ඩුකාරතුමා පහදා සිටියේය.

මෙම නීතියේ ඇති වැදගත්කම අවධාරණය කළ ගරු ආණ්ඩුකාරතුමා පවසා සිටියේ මෙම නීතිය යටතේ මෝටර්සයිකල්කරුවන් හටද සම්පූර්ණ පරිදි මුහුණු ආවරණය වන හිස්වැසුම් පැලදීය නොහැකි බවයි. නීතිය ක්‍රීයාත්මක කරන නිළධාරීන් සඳහා පුද්ගලයින් පහසුවෙන් හදුනාගැනීමට මෙන්ම ඔවුන්ගේ ජාතික හැදුනුම්පත් සමඟ එම පුද්ගලයින්ගේ අනන්‍යතාවය තහවුරු මෙම නීතිය බලය ලබාදෙයි. ජනාධිපතිතුමා විසින් මෙම නීතිය පැනවීමටත් පෙර ජමියාතුල් උලමා සංවිධානය විසින් මේ සම්බන්ධයෙන් පුර්ව දැනුවත් කිරීම් සිදුකර ඇත.

පාසල්වලට ඇතුල්වන සිසුන්ගේ සහ දෙමාපින්ගේ මුහුණු ආවරණයට ඉඩලබා නොදෙන ලෙස මීට දින දෙකකට පමණ පෙර ගරු ආණ්ඩුකාරතුමා විසින් සිදු කල ප්‍රකාශය ද මතක් කරමින් එතුමා පවසා සිටියේ  අතිගරු ජනාධිපතිවරයා විසින් සියළුම පාසල්වලට අදාල වන පරිදි ජාතික මට්ටමින් නීතියක් ඇති කරනු ඇති බවයි.

පාසල් තුල මුහුණු ආවරණය කරන සිසුන් මෙන්ම ගුරුවරුන්ද සිටින බවත් මෙම නීතිය ක්‍රීයාත්මක කිරීම සඳහා ඔවුන් සහාය ලබා  දෙනු ඇති බවත් ගරු ආණ්ඩුකාරතුමාගේ කථාවට පිළිතුරු ලෙස විදුහල්පතිවරු පැවසූහ.

 ආරක්ෂක විධිවිධාන සම්බන්ධයෙන් විදුහල්පතිවරුන් බොහෝමක් පැමිණිලිකර සිටියේ දිවා රාත්‍රී කාලවල පාසල් දේපල ආරක්ෂා කිරීම සඳහා මුරකරුවන් නොමැති බවයි. ඇතැම් පාසල් වල තාප්පද නොමැත.

අද දින පැවැති ශී‍්‍ර ලංකා පොදුජන පෙරමුනේ මාධ්‍ය හමුව

අද දින පැවැති මාධ්‍ය හමුවට සහභාගි වූ නියෝජිතයින්
x පාර්ලිමේන්තු මන්තී‍්‍ර අනුර පි‍්‍රයදර්ශන මහතා
x පාර්ලිමේන්තු මන්තී‍්‍ර ලක්ෂ්මන් යාපා අබේවර්ධන මහතා
x පාර්ලිමේන්තු මන්තී‍්‍ර එස්. එම්. චන්ද්‍රසේන මහතා

පාර්ලිමේන්තු මන්තී‍්‍ර අනුර පි‍්‍රයදර්ශන මහතා
අකිල විරාජ් කාරියවසම් ඇමතිවරයා විරුද්ධ පක්ෂය මළමිනි මතින් දේශපාලනය කරන බව ප‍්‍රකාශ කරලා තියෙනවා. අපි මළ මිනී මතින් දේශපාලනය කරලත් නැහැ. දේශපාලන බලය ලබා ගන්නෙත් නැහැ. මේ ආණ්ඩුව අසමත්. මේ බියකරු ත‍්‍රස්තවාදි ප‍්‍රාහරය ගැන ආරක්ෂක අංශ දැනුම්වත් කරලා තිබ්බත් ආණ්ඩුව පියවර ගත්තේ නැහැ. ඒක කාදිනල්’තුමාත් කිව්වා. මේක බියකරු ප‍්‍රහාරයක්. ඉන්දියාවේදි සහරාම් හසිම්ගේ පුද්ගල කණ්ඩායමක් අත් අඩංගුවට අරන් තියෙනවා. ඔවුනුත් මේ විදියේ මරාගෙන මැරෙන කි‍්‍රයාවන්ට යොමු වෙන්න ඉඩ තියෙනවා කියලා අත් අඩංගුවට අරන් තියෙන්නේ. ඉන්දියානු ඔත්තු සේවා මේ සිද්ධිය වාර්තා කළත් ඒ කිසිවක් ගණන් නොගෙන ඇඹරි ඇඹරි ඉදලා, දැන් ඒකට අනෙකුත් දේශපාලනඥයොත් තල්ලූ කරන්නයි මේ උත්සාහ ගන්නේ. ඒ නිසයි අපි දේශපාලනය කරන්නේ මළමිනි මතින් කියලා ප‍්‍රකාශයක් කලේ. ඇමතිවරු ඉතාම අමනෝඥ පුද්ගලයෝ කියලයි මේ ප‍්‍රකාශ වලින් සලකන්න වෙන්නේ. විරුද්ධ පක්ෂය මේ වනතාක් වගකීම් සහගතව කි‍්‍රයා කළා. ඒ වගේම ත‍්‍රස්තවාදය පැරදවිමට සියලූ සහාය ලබා දෙන බව මහින්ද රාජපක්ෂ මහතා ඇතුලූ සියලූ දෙනාම ප‍්‍රකාශ කරලා තියෙනවා.
ලංකාවේ දණ්ඩ නිති සංග‍්‍රහය 1882දි ඇරඹෙන්නේ. පසුව 1991, 2006 විදියට සංශෙෘ්ධනය වෙලා තියෙනවා. මේ රටේදි අත් අඩංගුවේ ගැනීමේ බලය මේපනතින් තියෙනවා. ඊට අමතරව ත‍්‍රස්තවාදය වැලැක්වීමේ තාවකාලික විධිවිධාන අඩංගු පනතක් එජාපය විසින් ආරම්භ කරලා තියෙනවා. සංශෙෘ්ධන 1982දි කරලා තියෙනවා. පුද්ලගලයෙක් විදේශ රටක ගිහින් හිටියත් ඔහු සම්බන්ධයෙන් කි‍්‍රයා කරන්න බලතල එමගින් ලබා දිලා තියෙනවා. මේ පනත් තිබියදි අගමැතිතුමා කියලා තියෙනවා ත‍්‍රස්තවාදය වැළැක්වීමේ අලූත් පනත් කෙටුම්පත සම්මත නොකලොත් මේ ත‍්‍රස්තවාදය වැලැක්වීමේ හැකියාවක් නැති බව අගමැතිවරයා සදහන් කර තිබෙනවා. මේක සම්පූර්ණයෙන් ජනතාව නොමග යැවීමේ ප‍්‍රකාශයක්. අපේ රටේ එල්. ටි. ටි. ඊ ත‍්‍රස්තවාදය හා අනෙකුත් ත‍්‍රස්තවාදයන් වැලැක්වූවේ දණ්ඩ නිති සංග‍්‍රහය හා ත‍්‍රස්තවාදය වැලැක්වීමේ පනත් උපයෝගී කර ගෙනයි. මේ පනතට විපක්ෂව ජාත්‍යන්තර වශයෙන් කොටි ඩයසස්පෝරාව ගෙන ගිය මතවාදයත් සමග එකල විදේශ ඇමැතිවරයා එක්සත් ජාතීන්ගේ සංවිධානයට ගිහින් මේ පනතට වෙනත් පනතක් ගේන බවට පොරොන්දු වෙලා තියෙනවා. මේ ගේන්න හදන පනතේ විශේෂත්වය මොකක්ද?
මේ පනත මගින් ත‍්‍රස්තවාදියාට සාමාන්‍ය නිතිය යටතේ අත් අඩංගුවට ගන්න පුද්ගලයෙකුටත් වඩා අයිතිවාසිකම් ලබා දෙනවා. සාමාන්‍ය පුද්ගලයාට නැති අයිතිවාසිකම් ත‍්‍රස්තවාදියාට ලැබෙනවා. ත‍්‍රස්තවාදී කි‍්‍රයාවක් සම්බන්ධයෙන් අත් අඩංගුවට ගන්න පුද්ගලයෙක් පැය 24ක් ඇතුළත මහේස්ත‍්‍රාත්වරයෙක් ඉදිරියට ඉදිරිපත් කළ යුතුයි වගේම අත් අඩංගුවට ගත් සැනින් මානව හිමිකම් කොමිෂමට තොරතුරු ලබා දිය යුතුයි. අත් අඩංගුවට ගත්ත පුද්ගලයාගේ නම, තනතුර, වගේ සියලූ තොරතුරුත් මේ සමග දිය යුතුයි. නිලධාරියාට බලය ආරක්ෂා කළ හැක්කේ පෞදිගලික ආරක්ෂාවට පමණයි. ඒ විදියට ත‍්‍රස්තවාය වළක්වන්නේ කොහොමද? මෙහි හදිසි නිතිය පැනවිමටත් සීමා තියෙනවා. 85 වගන්තිය යටතේ පොලිස්පතිවරයාගේ උපදෙස් මතයි ජනාධීපතිවරයාට අනෙකුත් සන්නද්ධ හමුදා කැදවිය හැක්කේ. ඒ කියන්නේ මේක එහෙම පිටින්ම ත‍්‍රස්තවාදියා ආරක්ෂා කරන්න හදපු එකක්. මේක ක‍්‍රියාත්මක කලොත් ත‍්‍රස්තවාදය පැතිරෙන එකයි වෙන්නේ.
සිරභාරයට ගන්න විට සිරකරු අත් අඩංගුවට ගන්නා නිලධාරියාගේ තොරතුරු, ත‍්‍රස්වාදියා කියන පුද්ගලයි කළ වරද, සියල්ල ලබා දෙන්න වුනත් සාමනා්‍ය නිතිය යටතේ අත් අඩංගුවට ගත්තොත් මේ දේවල් ලංකාවේ නිතියේ නැහැ. යම් සැකකරුවෙක් මහේස්ත‍්‍රාත්වරයෙක්ට ඉදිරිපත් කරනවා නම් සැකකරු හමුවී පුද්ගලිකව සාකච්ඡුා කරලා ඔහුගේ යහපැවැත්ම හා සුබසිද්ධිය හොයා බලන්න ඕනේ. මේ පුද්ගලික සාකච්ඡුාව කියන්නේ සැකකරුගේ සිද්ධිය විමර්ශනය කරන නිලධාරියෙක් නැතිවයි කරන්න වෙන්නේ.
ලංකාවේ සාමාන්‍ය නීතිය යටතේ පසුතැවිල්ල ප‍්‍රකාශ කරලා සමාව ඉල්ලන්න පුලූවන්ද? සීමාවන් ඉක්මවන රජයේ නිලධාරීන්ට වසර තුනක සිරදඩුවමකට යටත් වෙන්න වෙනවා. ති‍්‍රවිද හමුදා කැදවන්න වෙන්නේ පොලිස්පතිවරයාගේ උපදෙස් අනුවයි. පොලිස්පතිවරයාට මේක තනියම කරන්න බැහැ කිව්වොත් විතරයි හමුදාව කැදවන්න වෙන්නේ. මේ වගේ පොලිස්පති කෙනෙක් හිටියොත් මොකද වෙන්නේ.
කාත්තාන්කුඩිවල පුපුරන ද්‍රව්‍ය අත් අඩංගුවට ගත්ත වෙලාවේ සහරාන්ව අත් අඩංගුවට ගත්ත කෙනෙකුත් නැහැ. ඒ අත් අඩංගුවට ගැනීම වැලැක්වුව කෙනෙකුත් නැහැ. අවසාන අවස්ථාවට දින 10ට කලින් මේ ගැන ඉනිද්යානු ආරක්ෂක අංශ වාර්තා කළත් පියවරක් ගන්නේ නැතිව අපේ රටේ සියලූ දෙනා නිදියගත්තා. කාදනල්තුමා කියනවා අලූත් පනත් අවශ්‍ය නැහැ. ඕනේ නම් තියෙන පනතකට සංශෝධනයක් ගේන්න කියලා. ත‍්‍රස්තවාදිය සාමාන්‍ය පුද්ගලයෙකුට වඩා නිතියේ බලාධිකාරියට යටත් පුද්ගලයෙක් වෙන මෙම්පනත ගෙන ඒම භයානකයි. මේක රැුවටිමක්. මේ රැුවටීමට යට වෙන්නේ නැතිව ජනතාවට නිදහසේ සිටිය හැකි වැඩපිළීවෙලකුයි අවශ්‍ය වෙන්නේ. ත‍්‍රස්තවාදය වැලැක්වීමේ නිති නැහැ කියන්නේ බටහිර මිතුරන් පිනවන්න. ත‍්‍රස්තවාදය හා මත්ද්‍රව්‍ය අතර ලොකු සබදතාවයක් තියෙනවා. මත්ද්‍රව්‍ය වෙනත් රටවලට යවන මද්‍රස්ථානය වෙලා තියෙන්නේ අපේ රට. ඒ වගේම මේක අන්තවාදි ආගමික ත‍්‍රස්තවාදයක්. බහුරතයක් මුස්ලිම් ජනයා මේකට සම්බන්ධ නැහැ. මොවුන්ගේ ප5දාන ඉලක්කය තමන්ගේ ආගම අදහන්නේ නැති පිරිසක් මරාදැමීමයි.මිට වඩා දැඩි කි‍්‍රයාමාර්ග යොදා ගෙනව මේක අවසන් කළ යුතුයි.

පාර්ලිමේන්තු මන්තී‍්‍ර ලක්ෂ්මන් යාපා අබේවර්ධන මහතා

පාර්ලිමේන්තු මන්තී‍්‍ර එස්. එම්. චන්ද්‍රසේන මහතා

x මේ සිද්ධියට වගකියන්න ඕනේ රජය කියලා හැමෝම කියනවා. රජය කියන්නේ ජනාධිපති ඇතුලූ කැබිනට් මණ්ඩලයයි.
x නීතිවල අඩුපාඩුවක් නෙවෙයි ලැබුණු තොරතුරු වලින් ප‍්‍රයෝජන ගෙන ජනතාව ආරක්ෂා කිරීමට රජයේ දෙපාර්ශවය අපොහොසත් වීමයි සිදුවුනේ.
x රටේ වාසනාවට තව මාස හයයි තියෙන්නේ. ඒ කාලයේ අවම වශයෙන් ජනතාවගේ ජිවිත ආරක්ෂා කර ගැනීමට උත්සුක විය යුතුයි.

ශී‍්‍ර ලංකා පොදුජන පෙරමුනේ සභාපති මහාචාර්ය ජි. එල්. පිරිස් මහතා
මෙවැනි සිද්ධියක් නැවත සිදුනොවිමට වගබලාගත යුතුයි. ඒ සදහා ආණ්ඩුව එකක් ලෙස වැඩ කළ යුතුයි. රටකට ආණ්ඩු දෙකක් තියෙන්න බැහැ. රජයේ පාර්ශවයන් දෙක එකිනෙකාට ඇගිලි දිගු කරනවා පමණය’. එකට එකතු වෙලා රට පාලනය කරන්න වරමක් මොවුන් ජනතාවගෙන් ඉල්ලා සිටියා. අද ජනාධිපති ශී‍්‍රලනීපයේ. අගමැති එජාපයේ. මොවුන් එකතු වෙලා සාමුහිකව රට පාලනය කරන්නයි ජනතාවගෙන් වරමක් ගත්තේ. ජනාධිපතිතුමා බුද්ධි අංශ දුර්වල කිරීමේ වගකීම රජය භාරගත යුතු බව කියනවා. කවුද රජය. ජනාධිපති ඇතුලූ කැබිනට් මණ්ඩලය. රජයේ උච්ඡුතම ස්ථානය ජනාධිපතිවරයායි. ජනාධිපතිවරයාට රජයෙන් බැහැර වෙලා රජය විවේඡුනය කරන්න බැහැ.
නිව්යෝක් ටයිම් පුවත්පතේ පළවෙනි පිටුවේ තියෙනවා ශී‍්‍ර ලංකා රජයට බුද්ධි අංශවලින් තොරතුරු ලැබුණු බව. පුද්ගලයින්ගේ නම් දුරකතන අංක, සාකච්ඡුා පැවැත්වූ ස්ථාන පවා එහි සදහන් වෙනවා. මේ තොරතුරු රජය අතට පත්ව තිබුණත් පියවරක් ගත්තේ නැහැ. මේ තොරතුරු අගරදගුරුවරයාට දිලා තිබුණා නම් කිසිදු දේව මෙහෙයක් පවත්වන්නේ නැහැ. යුද හමුදාපතිවරයා කියන්නේ මේ ගැන තොරතුරක් තිබුණා නම් ඔවුන් කි‍්‍රයාත්මක වෙන බවයි. හොටල් ක්ෂේත‍්‍රයේ අයට මොන යම් හෝ තොරතුරක් ලැබී තිබුණානම් හෝටල් ආරක්ෂා කර ගන්නවා. මේකට ජනාධිපතිතුමා අගමැතිතුමා වගේම සමස්ත රජයම වගකිව යුතුයි. රජයේ ස්ථාවරය මෙහි වගකීම භාරගෙන ආරක්ෂක ලේකම් හා පොලිස්පතිවරයා ඉවත් වීමයි. අපි එය පිළිගන්නේ නැහැ. දේශපාලන අධිකාරියම වග කිව යුතුයි. මෙවනි නිලධාරීන් පත්කිරීමේදී රජය වගකිව යුතුයි. සිද්ධ වුනු ඛේදවාචකය වගේම හිටපු ආරක්ෂක ලේකම්වරයාගේ ප‍්‍රකාශයත් රටට බලපෑවා. සිද්ධි එකක් දෙකක් වෙයි. මෙතරම් දෙයක් වෙයි කියලා හිතුවේ නැහැයි එතුමා කළ ප‍්‍රකාශය ලොව පුරා ප‍්‍රචලිත වුනා. හදිසි නිතිය නොතිබුණු නිසා හමුදාවෙන් ප‍්‍රයෝජන ගැනීමේ හැකියාවක් රජයට තිබුනේ නැහැු කියලත් හිටපු ලේකම්වරයා කිව්වා. හදිසි නීතිය තත්ත්පර 30න් කි‍්‍රයාත්මක කරන්න පුලූවන්. ජනාධිපතිවරයා ලියවිල්ල අත්සන් කිරීම පමණයි ප‍්‍රමාණවත්. ගැසට් කරන්නේ ජනතාවගේ දැන ගැනිම සදහායි. හදිසි නීතිය නොතිබු බව කියමින් කෙදිරි ගෑමෙන් ප‍්‍රයෝජනයක් නැහැ. අවශ්‍යතාවය තියෙනවා නම් ඒ බලතල ලබා ගන්න පුලූවන්. නිතියේ අඩුපාඩු නෙවෙයි දේශපාලන අධිෂ්ථානය නැති එකයි වුනේ.
පොලිස්පති ගැන මුලූ රටම දන්නවා. පළමු දවසේ සිට තනතුර දරන්න නුසුදුසු බව එතුමා මැනවින් ප‍්‍රදර්ශනය කළා. ව්‍යවස්ථා සභාවේ නිර්දේශය මත මිසක් හැකියාව හා ජ්‍යේෂ්ඨත්වය අනුව නෙවෙයි ඔහු පත්වුනේ. කරූ ජයසූරිය මහතාගේ ප‍්‍රධානත්වයෙන් රැුස්වුනු ව්‍යවස්ථාදායකයයි මේ පත්කිරිම කලේ. පටු දේශපාලන වාසිගැන නොහිතා රටේ ජනතාවගේ ජිවිත ගැන සිතා දැන්වත් ජනාධිපති හා අගමැතිවරයා කියන දෙපාර්ශවය සාමුහික වගකීමෙන් කිසියම් විදිමත් වැඩපිළිවෙලකට පැමිණිය යුතුයි. නිලධාරීන් දඩමිමා කරගැනීමකයි මොවුන් යෙදී ඉන්නේ. ඒ අතර අගමැතිවරයා ස්කයි නිව්ස් සමග සම්මුඛ සාකච්ඡුාවකදී නීතිවල අඩුපාඩුවක් තියෙන බව ප‍්‍රකාශ කර තිබෙනවා. ඒක සම්පූර්ණයෙන් වැරදයි’ එතුමා වගකීමෙන් මිදෙන්න කරන ව්‍යාජ තර්කයක්. ත‍්‍රස්තවාදය ආරක්ෂා කිරීමේ පනත, මහජන ආරක්ෂණ පනත හා දණ්ඩ නීති සංග‍්‍රහය කියන පනත් තුනේම ප‍්‍රමාණවත් විදිවිධාන අඩංගුයි මෙ තත්ත්වය සම්බන්ධයෙන් කටයුතු කරන්න. මිහිපිට තිබුණු භයානක ත‍්‍රස්තවාදී කණ්ඩායමක් මහින්ද රාජපක්ෂ මහතාගේ රජය සමයේ මර්දනය කලේ මේ නීතිවලින්. ඒ කියන්නේ නීතිවල අඩුපාඩුවක් නෙවෙයි ලැබුණු තොරතුරු වලින් ප‍්‍රයෝජන ගෙන ජනතාව ආරක්ෂා කිරීමට රජයේ දෙපාර්ශවය අපොහොසත් වීමයි සිදුවුනේ.
රනිල් වික‍්‍රමසිංහ මහතා කියනවා මේ සියලූ ප‍්‍රශ්න ඇති වුනේ ප‍්‍රති ත‍්‍රස්තවාදි පනත පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ සම්මත නොවුනු නිසා. පොල්් ගාන්නේ නැතිව ඉක්මනින් මෙය සම්මත කරන්නලූ. ත‍්‍රස්තවාදය වැළැක්වීමේ පනත අහෝසි කරන්නයි මේ යන්නේ. එහෙම කරනවා කියලා ජාත්‍යන්තරයට පොරොන්දුවක් දීලා තියෙනවා. මේ ඛේදවාචකය ඇති වුනාම රජය යොදා ගත්තේ ත‍්‍රස්තවාදය වැළැක්වීමේ පනතයි. අද වෙන කොට 150ක් පමණ සිරභාරයට අරන්. ඒ ත‍්‍රස්තවාදය වැළැක්වීමේ පනත යටතෙයි. පනත අහෝසි කරලා තිබුණා නම් මේ කි‍්‍රයාමාර්ග කඩිනම් වෙන්නේ නැහැ. ඒ වගේම ත‍්‍රස්තවාදය වැලැක්වීමේ පනතේ සමහර වගන්ති හදිසි රිති රෙගුලාසිවලටත් යටත් කළා. ප‍්‍රති ත‍්‍රස්ත පනතින් වෙන්නේ ත‍්‍රස්තවාදින් නලවලා පෝෂණය කිරිමයි. මිනි මැරුමකදි දෙන්නේ මරණිය දණ්ඩනය. හැබැයි මෙම්පනත යටතේ 350ක් මැරුවොත් සිද්ධ වෙන්නේ ජිවිතාන්තය දක්වා සිරදඩුවමට යටත් කිරීම පමණයි. ත‍්‍රස්තවාදින්ට පුදුම දයාවක් කරුණාවක් මේ පනතින් දක්වනවා. පනතේ දෙවැනි උපලේඛණය අනුව ත‍්‍රස්තවාදියෙක් අත් අඩංගුවට ගත්තොත් වහාම ශී‍්‍ර ලංකාවේ මානව හිමිකම් කොමිෂමට දැන්විය යුතුයි. තුන්වැනි උපලේඛණය අනුව පොලිස්පතිවරයාට වහාම දැන්විය යුතුයි. මන්තී‍්‍රවරයෙක් අත් අඩංගුවට ගත්තොත් එවැනි අවශ්‍යතාවයක් නැහැ. මේ පනත ගේන්නේ ත‍්‍රස්තවාදය වළක්වීමේ අරමුණින් නෙවෙයි. වෙනත් අරමුණකින්. විශේෂයෙන් මාධ්‍ය, වෘත්තීය සමිති සිවිල් සංවිධාන මර්දනය කිරීමේ අංග සම්පූර්ණ වැඩ පිළීවෙලක් මේ පනතේ ගැබ්වෙලා තියෙනවා. රාජ්‍ය දේපල වලට හානි කිරීම ත‍්‍රස්තවාදී කි‍්‍රයාවක් කියලා තුන්වැනි වගන්තියේ සදහන් වෙනවා. මේ පනත යටතේ අත්‍යවශ්‍ය සේවාවලට බාධා කිරීම ත‍්‍රස්තවාදී කි‍්‍රයාවක්. අවුරුදු 20ක් බන්ධනාගාර ගත කරන්න පුලූවන්. එයට අනුබල දීම වසර 15ක් බන්ධනාගාර ගත කරන්න පුලූවන් වරදක්. එවැනි කි‍්‍රයාවකට තොරතුරු සැපයිමත් ත‍්‍රස්තවාදයට සම්බන්ධ කි‍්‍රයාවක් කියලා 10 වැනි වගන්තියේ සදහන් වෙනවා. මේවා බෝම්බ පුපුරන ත‍්‍රස්තවාදින්ට ගේන නීති නෙවෙයි. ප‍්‍රජාතන්ත‍්‍රවාදි සමාජයක තමන්ගේ නිත්‍යාණුකූල අයිතිවාසිකම් වලට පෙනි සිටින මිනිසුන් නිහඩ කිරිමයි. අද රටේ මැතිවරණ නැහැ. පළාත් සභා අකර්මන්‍යයි. මැතිවරණ ඉල්ලා අපේ හිටපු මහ ඇමැතිවරු දෙන්නෙක් අධිකරණයට ගිහින්. මැතිවරණ ඉල්ලා ජනතාව පාරට බැස්සොත් ගන්න දරුණු කි‍්‍රයාමාර්ග තමයි මේ පනතේ අඩංගු වෙන්නේ. 62 වැනි වගන්තිය පොලිස් රාජ්‍යයක අඩිතාලමයි. අගමැතිවරයාගේ අත්සාහය මෙරට පොලිස් රාජ්‍යයක් බිහිකිරීමයි. 62 වගන්තියෙන් යමම්නිෂ්චිත ප‍්‍රදේශයකට හෝ පරිශ‍්‍රයකට ඇතුල් නොවන ලෙස, නිශ්චික ල‍්‍රදේශයකින් පිට නොවන හෝ රැුදදිසිටින ලෙස, යම් මාර්ගයක ගමන් නොකරන ලෙස, නිෂ්චිත ස්ථානයක රැුස් නොවන ලෙස එක පෑන් පහරකින් කිරීමේ හැකියාව පොලිසියට ලැබෙනවා. 95 වගන්තිය තවත් භයානකයි. මේ යෝජිත නිතිය සමග ගැටෙන වෙනත් නිති තියෙනවා නම් ඒවා අහෝසි වෙනවා. මේ නිතියයි බලාත්මක වෙන්නේ. එවැනි භයානක පනතක් තමයි අවශ්‍ය වෙලා තියෙන්නේ. මාධ්‍යවේදින්ට කිසියම් ස්ථානයකට ගිහින් ජායාරූප ගැනීම සටහන් තබා ගැනීම පවා තහනම් වෙනවා. මේ හදන්නේ ආඥාදායකත්වයක් රටේ ඇති කරන්නයි. ජිවිත 350ක් බිලි දීලා භයානක පනතක් සම්මත කර ගැනීමේ උත්සාහයකයි රජය ඉන්නේ.
පළමු දවසේ ඉදන් අදක්ෂභාවය හා තනතුරට නුදුසුදු බව පෙන්වූ පොලිස්පතිවරයා පිට වගකිම පවරලා මෙයින් මිදෙන්න රජයට හැකියාවක් නැහැ. දැන් මේ රජයේ 6 වැනි ආර්කෂක ලේකම්වරයා පත්කරනවා. හිටපු ලේකම්වරයා පත්කලේ කවුද. පත්කරන අයගේ වගකීම මොකක්ද. ජනතාව තමන්ගේ ආරක්ෂාව භාර දුන්නේ පොලිස්පතිටවත් ආරක්ෂක ලේකම්ටවත් නෙවේ. දැන්වත් එකිනෙකාට චෝදනා කිරිම් නතර කරලා ජනාධිපති හා අගමැති එකතු වෙලා රට කරන්න වෙනවා. රටේ වාසනාවට තව මාස හයයි තියෙන්නේ. ඒ කාලයේ අවම වශයෙන් ජනතාවගේ ජිවිත ආරක්ෂා කර ගැනීමට උත්සුක විය යුතුයි.
x පොලිස් මාධ්‍ය ප‍්‍රකාශය ප‍්‍රහාරය එල්ල වී පැය කිහිපයක් ඇතුළත කරපු ප‍්‍රකාශයේදී නියෝජ්‍ය පොලිස්පති නිකුත් කරපු චක‍්‍රලේඛණය ගැන දන්නේ නැහැ කිව්වා. ඒ බොරුකාරයෝ තමයි අදටත් මාධ්‍ය ප‍්‍රකාශයක කිය කිය ජනතාවට කරුණු දක්වන්නේ
x අගමැතිතුමාට වගකීම ගන්න බැරිනම් පොල් ගාන්නේ නැතිව අයින් වෙන්න.
x අපරාධ නඩු විධාන සංග‍්‍රහය හා දණ්ඩ නිති සංග‍්‍රහයට අනුව මනුෂ්‍ය ඝාතනයට සහාය දුන්නේ කවුද කියලා හොයලා නඩු දාන්න. ත‍්‍රස්තවාදය වැලැක්වීමේ පනත, අපරාධ නඩු විධාන සංග‍්‍රහය, දණ්ඩ නිති සංග‍්‍රහය තියෙනවා
x මගේ තාත්තා කිව්වා. මම ගියේ නැහැ කියන්නේ සාක්ෂි තමයි. තොරතුරු සැගවීම යටතේ නඩු පවරන්න පුලූවන්.

පාර්ලිමේන්තු මන්තී‍්‍ර සුසිල් පේ‍්‍රමජයන්ත මහතා
මේ ආන්ඩුව තොරතුරු ජනගත විම වළක්වන්න සමාජමාධ්‍ය තහනම් කරලා, ආන්ඩුවට එන ප‍්‍රකෝපය හා අවලාද වෙනතකට යැවීමට දරපු උත්සාහය අපි හෙළා දකිනවා. රාජ්‍ය ආරක්සාව සම්බන්ධයෙන් එවැන්නක් කළාට ප‍්‍රශ්නයක් නැතත් ජනතාවට යම් යම් සත්‍ය තොරතුරු දැන ගැනීමට තිබුණු හැකියාව වැළැක්වූවා. පොලිස් මාධ්‍ය ප‍්‍රකාශය ප‍්‍රහාරය එල්ල වී පැය කිහිපයක් ඇතුළත කරපු ප‍්‍රකාශයේදී නියෝජ්‍ය පොලිස්පති නිකුත් කරපු චක‍්‍රලේඛණය ගැන දන්නේ නැහැ කිව්වා. බොරු කිව්වා. ඒ බොරුකාරයෝ තමයි අදටත් මාධ්‍ය ප‍්‍රකාශයක කිය කිය ජනතාවට කරුණු දක්වන්නේ. ත‍්‍රස්තවාදය වැලැක්වීමේ පනත 1978 අංක 48. වත්මන් අගමැතිවරයා ඇමැති ධූරය දරපු ජේ. ආර්. ජයවර්ධන ආණ්ඩුවෙන් තමයි මේ පනත ගෙනාවේ. ඒ පනත හා ඊට පස්සේ ගෙනාපු සංශෝධනත් එක්කයි අවුරුදු 30ක් තිබුණු ත‍්‍රස්තවාදයක් නැති කරන්න හැකිවුනේ. ඒ පනත ඉතා කෙටි පනතක්. ඒ යටතෙ පාර්ලිමේන්තුවට බෝබ්ම ගහපු විත්තිකරුවන් වෙනුවෙන් පෙනි හිටපු එක නිතීඥවරයෙක් මම. මම අගමැතිවරයාට අභියෝග කරනවා. ඒ අත්දැකිම තියෙන එක පාර්ලිමේන්තු මන්තී‍්‍රවරයෙක්වත් අද ඉන්නවාද. ඒ පනත යටතේ නඩු සිය ගණනකට වඩා මම කතා කරලා තියෙනවා. මේ ත‍්‍රස්තවාදි ව්‍යාපාරයට එකතු වුනු සැකකරුවන්ට,තවත් ඉන්නවා නම් අල්ල ගන්න, මේ කර මර්ධනය කිරීමට මේ පනත ප‍්‍රමාණවත්. දැන් අගමැතිවරයා කරන්න හදන්නේ මොකක්ද?පුර්විකාවේ ප‍්‍රතිත‍්‍රස්ත පනත කියලාවත් නැහැ. දැනට තියෙන පනත ඉවත් කිරීම පිණිසද කියලා තියෙන්නේ.මේකකාගේ වුවමනාවක්ද. මංගල සමරවිර ඇමැතිවරයා විදේශ ඇමැතිවරයා විදියට 2015 සැප්තැම්බර් මාසයේ ජිනිවා වලට ගිහින් 30 යෝජනාව සම්මත කරන්න සහාය දැක්වූවා. එහි කොන්දේසියක් තමයි ත‍්‍රස්තවාදය වැලැක්වීමේ පනත අහෝසි කිරිම. ත‍්‍රස්තවාදින්ට පනත දියාරු කරලා සාමාන්‍ය ජනතාවගේ පුරවැසි අයිතිවාසිකම් මැඩ පවත්වන්නයි මේ පනත ගෙනත් තියෙන්නේ. වෘත්තීය සමිති වලට කිසිම කි‍්‍රයාමාර්ගයක් ගන්න ලැබෙන්නේ නැහැ. මාධ්‍යවේදින්ට තොරතුරු වාර්තා කරන්න ලැබෙන්නේ නැහැ. අගමැතිතුමාගේ පළවෙනි කතාවෙන් කිව්වේ ගෝලීය ත‍්‍රස්තවාදයක් කියලා විශ්වීය ත‍්‍රස්තවාදයට සම්බන්ධයි කිව්වා. ඊට පස්සේ ස්කයි නිව්ස් එකට කියනවා මෙම්පනත ගෙනාවේ නැත්නම්නඩු පවරන්න බැහැලූ. මම අභියෝග කරනවා අගමැතිතුමාට පුලූවන් නම් පෙන්වන්න තියෙන පනතෙනක් කාටද නඩු පවරන්න බැරි කියලා. පාර්ලිමේන්තුව පොල් ගහන්නේ නැතිව මේක සම්මත කරන්නලූ. අගමැති එතුමා. කමිටු පත්කලේ පාර්ලිමේන්තුව. පොල් ගාන්නේ නැතිව සම්මත කරන්නලූ. අපිට කියන්නෙ වෙන්නේ පොල් ගාන්නේ නැතිව අයින් වෙන්න කියලයි.
වගකීම ගන්න බැරිනම් පොල් ගාන්නේ නැතිව අයින් වෙන්න. එතුමාගේ ඇමැතිවරු දෙන්නෙක් ආරක්ෂක ලේකම්වරයා, පොලිස්පතිවරයා කරුණු දැනගෙන හිටියේ නැහැ කියන්න බැහැනේ. පිළිඅරන් තියෙනවානේ. මේ අයට පුලූවන්නේ දැන් තියෙන ත‍්‍රස්තවාදය වැළැක්වීමේ පනත යටතේ නඩු පවරන්න තොරතුරු වසන් කිරිමට එරෙහිව. ඇමැතිවරු දෙන්නෙක් දැනගෙන හිටිය බව කියනවා.ආරක්ෂක ලේකම් දැනගෙන හිටියා. මේ තරම් දෙයක් වෙයි කියලා හිතුවේ නැහැලූ. පොලිස්පතිවරයා දැන නොසිටියා කියන්න බැහැ. චක‍්‍රලේඛණය යැව්වේ පොලීසියෙන්. ජනවාරි 8 වැනිදා මේ විනාශය කරන්න යහපාලනය ගෙනාපු රාජ්‍ය නොවන සංවිධාන නඩයත් මේකට වගකියන්න වෙනවා. අද කෝ ඒ එන්. ජී. ඕ නඩය.
මේ සිද්ධීයෙන් කියන්නේ ආන්ඩුවට සහාය දෙන අයගේ යෝජනා කි‍්‍රයාත්මක කරන බවයි. ජිනිවා වලට සහාය දෙන්නේ කොටි ඩයස්පෝරාවේ හා බටහිර වුවමනාවට. ආන්ඩුව පවත්වා ගෙන යන්නේ සමහර ජනවර්ගවල සහාය ඕනේ වෙනවා. විශ්වාස භාගයේදිදිනුවේ කොහොමද. හොයලා බලන්න. බහුතරය පෙන්නුවේ කොහොමද. හොයලා බලන්න. ඒ අයට අත තියන්න කැමැති නැහැ. නොරතුරු දැන ගෙන හිටියත් අත් අඩංගුවට ගන්න හෝ අත් අඩංගුවට ගන්න හැකියාවක් තිබුනේ නැහැ. එහෙම කළා නම් ආන්ඩුව වැටෙනවා. රට බිල්ලට දුන්න ආන්ඩුවක් ඉතිහිසයේ තියෙනවා නම් රනිල් වික‍්‍රමසිංහගේ මේ ආන්ඩුවයි. අපරාධ නඩු විධාන සංග‍්‍රහය හා දණ්ඩ නිති සංග‍්‍රහයට අනුව මනුෂ්‍ය ඝාතනයට සහාය දුන්නේ කවුද කියලා හොයලා නඩු දාන්න. ත‍්‍රස්තවාදය වැලැක්වීමේ පනත, අපරාධ නඩු විධාන සංග‍්‍රහය, දණ්ඩ නිති සංග‍්‍රහය තියෙනවා. දැන් දේශපාලන සිරකරුවෝ කියලානේ කියන්නේ. එහෙම කියන්නේ ලක්ස්මන් කදිරගාමර්, ජෙයරාජ් ප‍්‍රනාන්දුපුල්ලේ මහත්වරුන්ට බෝම්බ ගහලා මරපු පිරිසට. මේ අයට සහාය ලැබෙන්නේ රනිල් වික‍්‍රමසිංහ මහතාගේ පනත ගෙනාවොත් පමණයි. මේ උත්සාහ කරන්නේත‍්‍රස්තවාදින්ට උඩගෙඩි දීමට මිසක් ත‍්‍රස්තවාදය අවසන් කරන්න නෙවෙයි කියන දේ හොදින්ම පැහැදිලියි.
මේ පනතේ 85න්, සන්නද්ධ හමුදා කැදවීම කරන්න වෙන්නේ මේවගේ අවස්ථාවකදී මහජන සාමය පවත්වා ගෙන යන්න බැරි බව පොලිස්පතිවරයා ප‍්‍රකාශ කලොත් විතරයි. මේ පොලිස්පති ඉන්න වෙලාවක මෙම්පනත අද තිබුණා නම් ජනාධිපතිතුමාට සන්නද්ධ හමුදාව කැදවන්න වෙන්නේ මේ විහිලූකාර පොලිස්පතිවරයා යටතෙයි. උසාවිවල නඩු කතා කරපු අපිව මෝඩයාට අන්දන්න ද යන්නේ.ජනතාව වගේම ජනතාවත් මුලා කරන්නයි හදන්නේ. බැරිකම හා නොහැකිව හැරෙන්න ිසිවක් අගමැතිගේ මුවින් පිට වෙන්නේ නැහැ. දැන් ඉන්නේ මාරපන විදේශ ඇමැතිවරයා. මේ ජායාරූප අරන් ගිහින් අපේ රටේ මානව හිමිකම් අහිමි වෙන හැටි පෙන්වන්න පුලූවන්. අපිට කටු ඔටුනු දාන්න එනවා වෙනුවට අපේ මානව හිමිකම් අහිමි වීම් දැකගන්න කියන්න පුලූවන්නේ. අපේ ජනතාව මියගියාම මැනව හිමිකම් වලට යන්න මැලිද කියලා අපි ආණ්ඩුවෙන් අහනවා. එහෙම කලොත් රණ විරුවන්ට” බුද්ධි අංශවලට ප‍්‍රශ්නයක් වෙන්නේ නැහැ.ප‍්‍රශ්නයක් වෙන්නේ අගමැතිතුමාටයි ඔහුව බලයේ තියාගන්න හදන අයටයි. මගේ තාත්තා කිව්වා. මම ගියේ නැහැ. කියන්නේ සාක්ෂි තමයි. තොරතුරු සැගවීම යටතේ නඩු පවරන්න පුලූවන්.

x ලෝකේ දරුණුම ත‍්‍රස්තවාදින් කියපු අයව, රටවල් 193ක් එක්ක සම්බන්ධකම් තිබුණු ධනවත්ම ම්ලේඡු්ඡු සංවිධානයක් අවුරුදු දෙකහමාරක් ඇතුළත පාලනය කලේ මේ ත‍්‍රස්තවාදය වැලැක්වීමේ පනතෙන්. අගමැතිතුමාට ඒ පනතෙන් වැඩක් කරන්න බැහැලූ.
x දැනගෙන පුරවැසියන් ගැන අනුකම්පාවක් නැතිව ඡුන්ද පදනමට හානියක් නොවන විදියට වැඩ කිරීම නිසයි මේ ඛේදවාචකය වුනේ.
පාර්ලිමේන්තු මන්තී‍්‍ර කෙහෙළිය රඹුක්වැල්ල මහතා
මෙවැනි අවස්ථාවක රනිල් වික‍්‍රමසිංහ අගමැතිවරයා හා ජනාධිපතිවරයාගේ හැසිරිම දිහා බැලූවම හිතෙන්නේ මේකියන කරුණු ඇත්තද කියලයි. මේකරුණු සත්‍යයද, ඇයි මෙහෙම හැසිරෙන්නේ. 2015 ජනවාරි 8 වැනිදා ජනතාවට අහසක් උසට බලාපොරොත්තු දිලා මේ ආන්ඩුව පත්කර ගත්තේ. තිස් අවුරුදු යුද්ධය අවසන් කරපු හමුදා සහ බුද්ධි අංශ වගේම මහින්ද රාජපක්ෂ රජය ලෝකය ඉදිරියේ අවමානයට ලක්කිරිමයි සිද්ධ වුනේ. මානව හිමිකම් යෝජනාවේ සිට රටේ ස්ථාවරත්වය බාල්දු කිරීමට මොවුන් කටයුතු කරලා තියෙනවා. අතුරුදන්වූවන්ගේ පනත හරහා ගෙනයන වැඩපිළීවෙල වගේම ප‍්‍රතිත‍්‍රස්ත පනත කියන එක ගේන්න යන ගමන් කියන කතා බලන්න. ලෝකේ දරුණුම ත‍්‍රස්තවාදින් කියපු අයව, රටවල් 193ක් එක්ක සම්බන්ධකම් තිබුණු ධනවත්ම ම්ලේඡු්ඡු සංවිධානයක් අවුරුදු දෙකහමාරක් ඇතුළත පාලනය කලේ මේ ත‍්‍රස්තවාදය වැලැක්වීමේ පනතෙන්. ජිනීවා වලට දුන්න පොරොන්දුවක් මේ ඉටු කරන්නේ. ඒ වගේම ත‍්‍රස්තවාදියෙක් අල්ලගත්ත ගමන් මානව හිමිකම් කොමිෂමට දැන්වීම වගේම නිතිපති දෙපාර්තමේන්තුවට අධීචෝදනා නැගීම වසර 10ක් පමා කරන්න පුලූවුන්. දේශපාලන වශයෙන් ඛේදනිය තත්ත්වයකට මේ වෙද්දි රනිල් වික‍්‍රමසිංහ මහතා මුහුණ දිලා තියෙනවා. වොක්ස්වැගන් සිට සාවද්‍ය තොරතුරුයි කිව්වේ. සීතලයි කියලා කියන යුද්ධයක් එජාපයේ තියෙනවා. එහි දුර්වල තැනකයි රනිල් අගමැතිවරයා ඉන්නේ. ඔහුගේ ස්ථාවරය ඇති කර ගන්න නම් මෙම්සිද්ධිය වෙස් වලාගත්ත ආශිර්වාදයක් විදියට යොදා ගන්න උත්සාහයකයි ඉන්නේ. මේ වනවිටත් විදේශිය හමුදාවන් මෙරටට ඇවිත්. සිරියාවේ හිටපු අගමැතිවරයා පවත්වා ගෙන යන මුවාවෙන් කරන විනාශයයි අද සිරියාවේ දකින්න තියෙන්නේ. එවැනි විනාශයක් වුනත් තනතුර ආරක්ෂා කරගැනීමයි රනිල් වික‍්‍රමසිංහය අවශ්‍ය. මේ ප‍්‍රහාරය සම්බන්ධයෙන් ආරක්ෂක අංශ හා පාලකයින් දැනුවත් නැති බව කියන්න පුලූවන්ද. පවතින පාලනයට ඇලූම් කරන අයට වුනත් හෘද සාක්ෂියෙන් අහලා බලන්න පුලූවන්. දැනගෙන පුරවැසියන් ගැන අනුකම්පාවක් නැතිව ඡුන්ද පදනමට හානියක් නොවන විදියට වැඩ කිරීම නිසයි මේ ඛේදවාචකය වුනේ. මේ ඛේදවාචකය කොහොන් කොහොම නැවත ඇරෙඹිදිද කියන්න බැහැ.
දෙමුහුන් ආණ්ඩුව රජය නම් රජය එකිනෙකාට චෝදනා කරන්න බැහැ. ආරක්ෂක මණ්ඩලයට මාස 6ක් තිස්සේ කැදවුයේ නැත්නම් ඒක පාර්ලිමේන්තුවට කියන්න තිබුණා. වෙන දෙයක් වෙන්න කියලා බලන් හිටියා. අපි ඒකාබද්ධ විපක්ෂය විදියට අපිට හැකි උපරිම පරිත්‍යාගයක් කරමින් නැවත නගා සිටුවීම්වලට සහාය දෙනවා. අපි දැවැන්තම මැයි රැුළිය කරන්න සූදානමින් සිටියා. නමුත් මේ තත්ත්වය මත අපිට මැයි දින රැුළිය පවත්වන්න වෙන්නේ නැහැ.
x ත‍්‍රස්තවාදයක් තුරන් කරපු හමුදාවක් බුද්ධි අංශයක් හිටපු රටක් වෙලත් අගමැතිතුමාට ජාත්‍යන්තරය තමයි විශ්වාස.
x මේ සම්මත කරගන්න හදන පනත තිබිලාද 30 වසරක යුද්ධය අවසන් කලේ. තිබුණු නිතියයි, හැකියාව හා නායකත්වය තිබිලයි යුද්ධය අවසන් කලේ. මීට වැඩි පනතක් ගෙනාවත් මේ ආන්ඩුවට කවදාවත්ම බැහැ. මේක නොහැකියාව.
x අල්හාජ් මොහොමඞ් ඉබ‍්‍රහිම් අපේ ජාතික ලයිස්තුවේ ඉබ‍්‍රහිම් හිටියා නම් මොකද වෙන්නේ.
පාර්ලිමේන්තු මන්තී‍්‍ර රෝහිත අබේගුණවර්ධන මහතා
මේ අවස්ථාවේ රටේ වගකීම දරණ ආන්ඩුවේ අගමැතිතුමාගේ හැසිරීම රටම බලා සිටිනවා. ගිය ඉරිදා බෝම්බ ප‍්‍රහාරය එල්ල වුනා. කතෝලික දේවස්ථාන වගේම හෝටල්වලට බෝම්බ ප‍්‍රහාරය එල්ල වෙද්දි අගමැතිතුමා හිටියේ කොහෙද කියලා අපි දන්නේ නැහැ.නමුත් බෝම්බ ප‍්‍රහාරයේ ශබ්දයෙන් දැන් එතුමා කම්පනයට පත්වෙලා. යම් අනතුරක් වුනාම ඒ කම්පනයෙන් කරන්නේ මොනවාද කියලා දන්නේ නැහැ. විදේශීය හමුදාවන් ගෙනත් මේ සම්බන්ධයෙන් හොයන්න පුදුම වුවමානවක් තියෙන්නේ. ත‍්‍රස්තවාදයක් තුරන් කරපු හමුදාවක් බුද්ධි අංශයක් හිටපු රටක් වෙලත් ජාත්‍යන්තරය තමයි එතුමාට විශ්වාස. මේ ඊළග තුරුම්පුව. මේ තුළින් විදේශීය හමුදාවන් ගෙන්වා ගෙන රට තළ අස්ථාවරභාවයක් තියෙන්නේ කියලා මේ ආන්ඩුවම ගෙනියන්නයි හදන්නේ. අගමැතිතුමනි මේ සම්මත කරගන්න හදන පනත තිබිලාද 30 වසරක යුද්ධය අවසන් කලේ. තිබුණු නිතියයි, හැකියාව හා නායකත්වය තිබිලයි යුද්ධය අවසන් කලේ. මීට වැඩි පනතක් ගෙනාවත් මේ ආන්ඩුවට කවදාවත්ම බැහැ. මේක නොහැකියාව. තමන්ට රට ආරක්ෂා කරගන්න බැරි බව එතුමා පිළීගන්න වෙනවා.
දිගන සිද්ධයේදී මාධ්‍ය වාර්තා කළා දිලූම් අමුණුගම මන්තී‍්‍රවරයාව පැය 18ක් ප‍්‍රශ්න කිරිම ගැන. මොන විදියකින් හරි දේශපාලන දඩයමක් කර ගන්නයි බැලූවේ..මේ සිද්ධි දෙක අහසයි පොළවයි වගේ. ආන්ඩුවේ අයගේ නම් තුනක් ප‍්‍රසිද්ධියේ කියැවෙනවා. එක රිෂාඩි බදියුදීන්. දෙක අසාත් සාලි ආන්ඩුකාරවරයා. තුන මුජිබර් රහුමාන්. අද වෙනතුරු මොවුන්ගෙන් එක ප‍්‍රශ්නයක් ඇහුවද. ඒ ඡුන්ද මල්ලට. ගෙනත් ප‍්‍රශ්න කලොත් ඔවුන් ඡුන්දෙ දෙන්නේ නැහැ. ආන්ඩුව ඉවරයි. දේශපාලන පොතෙන් සිද්ධිය වැහෙනවා. ජවිපේ නායක අනුර කුමාර දිසානායක කට අල් කරගෙන ඒක වුනේ කොහොමද. කියලා කියනවා. ඒ අනුර කුමාර දිසානයක නායකයාගෙන් අපි අහන්නේ එතුමාලාගේ ජාතික ලයිස්තුවේ 11 වැනියා අල්හාජ් මොහොමඞ් ඉබ‍්‍රහිම්. අපේ ජාතික ලයිස්තුවේ ඉබ‍්‍රහිම් හිටියා නම් මොකද වෙන්නේ. දැන් කියනවා එතුමාට සම්මානයක් මහින්ද රාජපක්ෂ මහත්තයා දීලාලූ. එතුමාලාගේ ජාතික ලයිස්තුවට දාන්නේ මහින්ද රාජපක්ෂ මහත්තයා සම්මාන දුන්න අයද. මේ කන්න ඕනේ වුනාම කඹරගොයා තලගොයා කර ගන්න උන්නැහැලා ටිකක්. මේවාට වගකියන්න ඕනේ නොහැකියාව තියෙන රූකඩ පාලකයින් රටට දායාද කරපු ජනතා විමුක්ති පෙරමුණත්. රාජ්‍ය ආරක්ෂාව බිංදුවට දාලා අද වැඩිය ශබ්ද නැහැ. මාධ්‍ය ඉස්සරහට වැඩිය එන්නෙත් නැහැ. මහානායක හාමුදුරුවෝ ප‍්‍රකාශ කළා චෝදනා විරහිතව ඉන්න බුද්ධී අංශ නිලධාරින් නිදහස් කරන්න කියලා. රට අස්ථාවර කරන ස්වාධිනත්වය නැති කරන තින්දුවක් ගත්තා නම් ඒ මංගල සමරවිර තමයි. අපේ ගෙවල්වල දරු පැටව් ඉන්නවානේ සමරවිරට පැවැත්මක් නැති වුනාට. බුද්ධි අංශය විනාශ කිරීමේ වගකිමත් මේ රජය ගන්න වෙනවා. රජය බලයට පත්වුනු දා ඉදන් බුද්ධි අංශවල චිත්ත ධෛර්යය වැටෙන දේ කලේ. අපි කියන්නේ මේ ආන්ඩුවට ඉදිරියට යන්න බැහැ. රටේ ආර්ථිකයත් දැන් කඩා වැටිලා. සංචාරයට එන්න හිටපු සංචාරකයෝ සියල්ල අවලංගු කරලා. මිනිස්සු රුකියාවට එන්නේ නැහැ.

Malin Abeyatunge

Let me give a grim reminder what happened during Eelam War.

In year 2000, when the then Govt., accepted Norway’s help to facilitate the negotiations with the   Terrorist LTTE outfit, I wrote a small letter to Sunday Observer on March 12, 2000  titled SCREEN PEACE TALKS FACILITATORS and not to accept the chief facilitator Eric Solheim from Norway  without investigating into his credentials and his hidden agenda but instead then government received him and his team with red carpet welcome. What was the outcome? Eric Solheim  the facilitator became the best of friends of LTTE leader Prabhakaran and connived with him and LTTE until the end against the Government. He went to the extent of acting as God Father of LTTE drafting infamous PTOM and CFA to facilitate LTTE agenda. Under the patronage of Eric Solheim, Tamil terrorists were nurtured on Norwegian soil as his own baby. They were given military training and visits to military operation units in Norway;  gave refugee in Norway to the LTTE terrorists. Norwegian government financed the LTTE to the teeth. Norway covertly assisted LTTE to smuggle arms illegally to the Tamil tiger area; Norway supplied LTTE with the State of the Art military communication systems thro its Embassy abusing the Diplomatic Immunity. This is our past bad experience in inviting   an unknown devil to facilitate the peace talks with LTTE.

Are we going to do the same mistake now by accepting offers from some outside countries?

With the recent Islamic terror attack in Sri Lanka on 3 Christian churches and three five star hotels killing 243 and injuring and maiming over 500 innocent citizens of the country. In an interview with a foreign journalist SL PM  mentioned that Donald Trump has called him personally and promised Sri Lanka with necessary help to Sri Lanka to get over the current situation. Even the President of SL also said the same thing that some countries including some western countries have promised to help us. It’s a known fact that most of the western block countries and their allied are covertly helping the ISIS financially through its friendly Middle East countries. In such circumstances, can we trust those who have offered us help without any hidden agenda? By accepting help from the western block to fight the growing menace of Islamic militants, we will face worst dangers by becoming  a target of ISIS enemy which will be a worst outcome for our country.

Sri Lanka does not need any help to overcome present calamity created by ISIS and other Islamic militants. We have our expertise to fight against any kind of terrorism and amply demonstrated by annihilating the world most dreadful and dangerous terrorist outfit LTTE conclusively. Our Police, STF and the three armed forces are currently doing   excellent operations all over the country to arrest the members of these Islamic militant groups and their hide outs. We have bad experience of having invited Norway to facilitate peace talks with LTTE. Our seeking help from western countries will   have the same effect by planting their stooges in our country by to achieve their targets and exposing our country to multiple dangers by ISIS and other related Islamic militant groups.

So, to save our country from any future dangers from any kind of militant groups be local or global, please do not accept any voluntary help from any foreign country who have connections with ISIS and other militants. Of course, We must accept intelligence reports with thanks.

Bodhi Dhanapala Quebec

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe during Chandrika Kumaratunga’s presidency and today as well, has in his many statements on the Easter suicide bombings emphasized the global nature of the problem, and referred to the need for international help..

Given all the US and Western support available to the Prime Minister, didn’t his security network, or the FBI, or the CIA, warn him independently of the messages that Sirisena is supposed to have got, three times over? Isn’t it likely that the Prime Minster who considers himself a great tactician actually GOT the news, and since Sirisena had hogged security, decided to let Sirisena take the blame too?

Now that the Prime Minister has declared that we need international help to resolve this problem, and given his statesman-like approach of holding talks and never becoming a hawk, shouldn’t we hold talks with the ISIS and the NTJ about these bombings, just as we did with Prabhakaran? Wouldn’t this be a policy advocated by political thinkers like Minister Mangala Samaraweera who even inspired Samatha Power to fly into Colombo to felicitate him on his work anniversary?

After all, NTJ has done only ONE day of suicide bombings, while the LTTE did it every other day for many years. Of course, Sri Lankans by themselves are not trusted to hold such talks, as they may succumb to the pressure of bigots like Balagoda Atthe Gnanasara. Fortunately, we locked him up while the Wanathawilluwa owner of the weapons cache was released to ensure ethnic reconciliation.

So, clearly the best approach is to declare a CFA with the ISIS, and get Solheim to meet Al Bagdadi himself, because Erik was a man who got along famously with Prabhakaran and Anton Balasingham. So he will have no problem, given his diplomatic skills, in getting right into the Al Bagdadi’s tent, charm him and get him to sign the CFA. Like the CFA that Eric and Ranil signed with Prabhakaran, the President doesn’t have to even see it. Even Chandrika Kumaratunga, an admirer of Solheimian slickness in peacemaking would love all this and the return of Erik. The Swedes might even give a Nobel prize to the right person, for getting them back on the stage.

Solheim acted for a while as the European Union minster of the environment. So may be Eric S could even get Qatar which funded the building of houses and Mosques in the Wilpattu to demolish those houses and plant trees there – even date tress, as has been done in Kattankudi. Just as we had the TNA becoming the servile political voice of the LTTE, we need to promote the NTJ to act as the spokesman of the ISIS instead of banning it. Furthermore, Eric S and his friends could finance a few more NGOs, say a Centre for Political Advancement. That will be to bridge the gap between the ISIS and the Sinhala Buddhists who should be chastised and weaned of their dangerous “Mahawamsa Mindset”, and their tendency to “triumphalism”.

Or maybe Erik Solheim can convince Wickremesinghe and Sirisena that the only decent thing they can do is to resign from their respective positions and live in the Andaman Islands, scrubbing their hands for ever, of those layers of negligence of duty and guilt, surrounded by the pictures of 300 people dead, and 600 people injured, and the two people who were made to resign as scapegoats. That could have been the slogan of the now canceled May day events.

Bodhi Dhanapala ,

Sunil Vijaya

Sarath Fonseka states his security personnel hid the information from him about the terrorist attack on Easter Sunday.

Mahinda Rajapakse states the same thing and the so is the incompetent Ranil Wickremasinghe.  What does this mean?

Simply the security people have no confidence in any of them and would have thought ‘what use of telling Our boss’.   This is the pathetic situation in the country .

Sarath Fonseka further declares that the Government should resign.  But who is Government?  He himself is part and parcel of the administration and to set an example for others he should take the lead and resign.

A corrupt administrator had been holding the position of Defence Secretary appointed by the incompetent Maithreepala Sirisena, as per report by Railways Union.

Cardinal Ranjith says he would have cancelled the Easter mass if he came to know about these attacks or if he was briefed about the intended attacks. But would he too NOT take this SERIOUSLY and continued with the mass?

No one take anything seriously anymore in this country!  The consequence, mayhem.

A police office dies in a vehicular crash at a crossing, the two jeeps ignoring the Red light and people involving a politician’s son did flee the scene and let the office die on the road.  This was murder and what was the consequence?

All given bail by the magistrate. 

Where is the Mafia? Is it just the CEB, RDA, PORT etc. or the Parliament it-self?  The president cannot be trusted.  The PM cannot be trusted.  The  cabinet cannot be trusted.  The whole Government cannot be trusted.

And whats going on here?

Two men from the west in possession of explosives? And they say for their own protection and government Official pressuring the security forces to drop the investigation?

What is going on in the country?  or is there a govermnment and who is running it?

වෛද්‍ය රුවන්  එම් ජයතුංග

ඒබ්‍රහම් තුල මානසික අසමතුලිතභාවයක් තිබුනේය. ඔහුට කටහඞවල් ඇසුණි. ඔහු සිතුවේ දෙවියන් විසින් ඔහුට නියෝග දෙනවා කියාය. වරක් ඒබ්‍රහම්ට තම දරුවා වූ අයිසෙක් කඳු මුදුනට ගෙන ගොස් බිලිදෙන ලෙසට කට හඞ නියෝග කලේය. මෙම ශ්‍රවණ භ්‍රාන්තිය මත ඒබ්‍රහම් තම කුඩා දරුවා වූ අයිසෙක්ව රැගෙන කඳු මුදුනට ගියේය.

කන්ද උඩදී ඒබ්‍රහම් තම දරුවාව බිම හෙලා ඔහුගේ උගුර තියුණු පිහියකින් කපා දැමීමට සූදානම් විය. තම දරුවා කෙරෙහි වූ ඇල්මත් ශ්‍රවණ භ්‍රාන්තිය කෙරෙහි වූ අප්‍රමාණ ගෞරවයත් නිසා ඒබ්‍රහම් ගේ මනසේ ප්‍රගල්භ ඝට්ටනයක් ඇති විය. ඔහු කිහිප වතාවක්ම දරුවා මරා දැමීම සඳහා පිහිය එසවූවද දරුවාගේ මුහුණ දකිත්ම එම බිහිසුණු  ප්‍රයාපනය දියාරු විය.

එහෙත් ඔහුට නියෝග දෙන ඔහුව පාළනය කරන බලවේගයට පිටුපෑමට ඒබ්‍රහම්ට නොහැකි විය. මෙම මානසික සංඝට්ටනය නිසා ඔහු ව්‍යාකූල විය. ඒබ්‍රහම් තුල ඩිසෝෂියේටිව් හෙවත් විඝටන තත්වයක් ඇති විය. පියවි සිහියකින් තොරව ඔහු දරුවා අතහැර කන්දේ ඒමේ අත සැරිසරමින් සිටි ඔහුගේ බැටළු රංචුවේ සිටි කුඩා  බැටළු පැටවෙකු අල්ලාගෙන උගේ ගෙල සින්දේය.

ඉන්පසු ඔහු අපස්මාරික ගැස්මකට ලක් විය. ඒබ්‍රහම්ට පියවි සිහිය එන විට ඔහුගේ කුඩා පුතු අයිසෙක් නිරුපද්‍රිතව දෑස් යොමා පියා දෙස බලා සිටියේය. ඔවුන් අසල මිය ගිය බැටළු පැටවෙකුගේ මළ සිරුරකි. උගේ ලේ වලින් පස තෙමී තිබුනේය. බැටළු පැටවෙකුගේ ජීවිතය ගෙන තමන් ගේ පුතාගේ ජීවිතය  ජීවිතය බේරා දීම ගැන ඒබ්‍රහම් තමන් වන්දනා කල බලවේගයට මුණින් වැටී ප්‍රණාමය පුද කලේය. 

(වෛද්‍ය රුවන් එම් ජයතුංගගේ පරිකල්පනික අතික්‍රමණය  කෘතිය ඇසුරෙනි)

Rev. Fr. Vimal Tirimanna, CSsR  Rome Courtesy The Island

Ever since the Easter carnage the previous week, we had been saturated with all sorts of bizarre and horror stories linked to those blasts which depict how just a few fanatic human beings could be so cruel and inhuman towards their fellow human beings. According to my barber, here in Rome not even animals have ever descended to the levels of those fundamentalist Islamic terrorists though the former would kill if at all to satisfy their natural hunger or in self-defence. Almost all the newspapers and other media channels here in Italy are still replete with news on that senseless Easter massacres in Sri Lanka. One of the main questions raised by many is: “If the Sri Lankan authorities knew beforehand what was going to happen, why did they not act to prevent such a disaster?” Most of us Sri Lankans here are quite embarrassed because we are pathetically helpless in responding to it. But with the media here communicating the superficial and ridiculous responses that had been voiced by our political leaders and those who were in charge of security, the embarrassment has become worse. Consequently, the next question asked is: “Why is the government in Sri Lanka not resigning, if it is a democratically elected government?”

Who will take Responsiblity?

In the aftermath of the Easter massacre, the vital issue that cannot be avoided is what happened to the excellent security network that was in place when the present government took over in January 2015? The extremely effective Sri Lankan intelligence service that played a leading role in militarily wiping out what the FBI itself used to call “the most ruthless terrorist organization in the world”, the LTTE, was unceremoniously and humiliatingly dismantled by the present government leaders, all in the name of human rights. That was mainly to appease the Western governments and the LTTE diaspora who live in those countries. Our government leaders seemed to have forgotten even in countries which self-righteously and hypocritically dare to preach to us about human rights, their national security comes first and in view of that, the intelligence services are always strengthened and never weakened or compromised by those respective governments. But here in Sri Lanka, [in order to please the LTTE diaspora, and in turn, to win the minority Tamil votes], the present government unscrupulously weakened our intelligence services. Of course, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe is so notorious for his endemic allergy to these security networks because even in 2003 thanks to his then interventions in parliament about sensitive information, some of our leading intelligence service personnel were routed by the LTTE terrorists at that time. For him, his own survival as Prime Minister seems to override any concerns for national security. So, for the second time in our history during his tenure as the Prime Minister of our country the nation has suffered with such a tragedy. But will he and his government take responsibility for it?

Equally worse is the news that some other foreign intelligence services had informed our security personnel days before this massacre took place (on 4th and 20th April). Quite a number of ministers of the present government themselves have vouched for it. But the way our government leaders had behaved even in view of such information is utterly irresponsible if not whimsical to say the least. To begin with, the Minister of Defence – who is the President himself – was in Singapore at the time of the tragedy. As the government members themselves have pointed out, instead of taking the first flight and getting back home to attend to the unprecedentedly serious security situation, he chose the last flight which reached Sri Lanka almost after 24 hours of the tragic incidents. The President who is the official head of the present government should take responsibility also for not having appointed someone to act on behalf of him as Minister of Defence. Instead of taking responsibility for the lack of security even in the face of prior warnings, the President gleefully dared to tell the media that security heads will change, and that he wished both the Secretary of the Ministry of Defence and the Inspector General of Police (IGP) resign. But by such resignations, who will take the responsibility? As the Italian media reported, the Defence Secretary even as he resigned reiterated that he had informed the relevant authorities (the President?) about the warnings received from external intelligence services. Interestingly, till the penning down of these thoughts the IGP had been giving the impression that at this crucial moment he has gone deaf and dumb!

Not to be outdone by the President, the Prime Minister told foreign media that though the government was aware of ISIS fundamentalist activities in Sri Lanka, none of them could be arrested because the Sri Lankan law does not permit such arrests! As The Island editorial last Saturday so eloquently and convincingly retorted, if what the Prime Minister said is true, under which Sri Lankan law did the then government (also of the same Ranil Wickremesinghe) went out of its way to arrest and hand over some suspected Al Qaida terrorists in Sri Lanka some 16 years ago? If Wickremesinghe’s government really believes in national security of Sri Lanka, they could have emulated the very act they so gleefully performed to please their main patron, the USA, in 2003, the moment they got the intelligence information about ISIS links of local groups. In a democracy personal animosities and tensions between those who lead cannot be reasons for national disaster, but in Sri Lanka apparently the tensed personal relationship between the President and the Prime Minister seemed to have taken the upper hand, and none of them seems to be bothered about what happened as a result.

When the possible threat of Islamic fundamentalism was brought up in parliament by the former Minister of Justice of the present government, Wijedasa Rajapaksa, he was ridiculed and shut down by many of the front-liners of the present government saying that he was raking up racism (“jathiwadaya avussanawa”!). In fact, quite a number of prominent figures of this government, including the Prime Minister do not seem to know to make that subtle but important distinction between raking up racisim and facing the true threats to national security from wherever it may come, whether from the majorities or minorities. The nation as a whole is paying the price so dearly with precious human lives for such ignorance and indifference of our present rulers. The preludes to the last Easter Sunday massacre, such as the ones in Digana and Mawanella, were all hushed up by the present government in the name of protecting minorities, instead of immediately attending to the causes and putting a stop to them. They tried to politicize them by scape-goating only the Opposition for those violent incidents in Digana and Mawanella. In Sri Lanka, today, the fact of being a minority (especially in race or religion) is often used as a political shield to cover whatever the members of such minorities do, and this dangerous attitude is openly patronized by the present government merely to win the minority votes. Again, we see how the main motive of this present government is their own sheer survival.

Security Threats are not yet over!

Worse still, even as these thoughts are jotted down, there is a news item just coming in which says that President Sirisena using the power vested in him, under Emergency Regulations, has at last banned the two extreme fundamentalist Islamic groups, the National Thawheed Jammath (NTJ) and Jamathei Millathu Ibraheem (JMI). Till now (that is even a week after Easter Sunday ), except for the dedicated and enthusiastic operations of the Sri Lankan security forces and the police, the government seems to be in deep slumber with regard to brining in laws to arrest this curse of fundamentalist Islamist terrorism in Sri Lanka, and also in banning such extremist Islamic organizations. This is the same government which lost no time in passing laws even in an undemocratic way in order to harass their local political opponents. Today after one of the worst national disasters of our country, we have our President and the Prime Minister blaming each other! Why is the government not so enthusiastic to enact anti-terrorist laws even at this late hour, with the same enthusiasm they evinced in bringing in laws to imprison and harass their political opponents? Again, we see how the present government would go out of its way, walking even the extra mile, whenever it wished to pass laws to stay-put in power such as postponing Provincial Council elections, while hesitating to get laws enacted to do with national security.

Ever since the Easter Sunday massacre, huge amounts of terrorist gear with dangerous weapons re being continued to be discovered each passing day, from all parts of the island (even within some of the Muslim places of worship), indicating clearly the nefarious plans of the extremist Islamist groups. This clearly indicates a very serious and continuous security threat to our nation. Yet the present government seems to be least interested in enacting laws for national security, and thus, enabling the security forces their tasks even smoother at this critical juncture. Except to pass laws of emergency and to impose night curfews, on the part of the government nothing special to meet this unprecedented dangerous situation is done. This is the government which came to office haranguing about human rights, democracy and anti-corruption, and by now, it has demonstrated very convincingly that it has failed in all these three important issues, and in fact, it has performed worse than the previous government. That the right to life of any and every citizen is the first and most important fundamental human right is ignored or waived off by their lackadaisical approach to security. By deliberately postponing the elections to the Provincial Councils, the government has destroyed the franchise of the citizens which is a main tenet of any democracy. To top all that, by protecting those who robbed the Central Bank in daylight and sweeping all information about it under the carpet, this government has topped the list of corrupt governments in our post-Independence history. In other words, it has failed to keep the promise to protect the human rights, democracy and be anti-corruption. Does such a government has a right to continue? This question becomes even more acute when we consider the fact, that Ranil Wickremasinghe never got a clear-cut mandate to form a government because his party, the UNP, won only 105 seats at the 2015 August general elections, 8 seats short of an absolute majority. It is simply by offering ministerial posts to others who got elected from different political platforms, with different political agendas, that the UNP managed to form a government.

Government should bow out respectfully!

Why does a country need a government? First of all for its own national security, which is part of the common good. This is an agreed tenet of belief with regard to rulers even much before democratic forms of governments came into being. The bounden duty of rulers even in ancient times has always been to protect its citizenry. It is not to narrate fairy-tales about human rights (though it is a vitally important concept for any contemporary society) at the expense of national security. Whatever their other faults may had been, it is an objective fact that the previous government did safeguard the ordinary citizens, even by waging a war against the ruthless LTTE terrorists as a last resort, when all the other available alternatives failed. Those who had been crucial of that decision to wage a war against the LTTE basing themselves on human rights, should tell us clearly now what is more important for an elected government – to allow ordinary unarmed citizens to suffer at the hands of terrorists or doing everything possible to eliminate such terror and save the citizens? As this writer had been consistently sharing his views in the columns of this newspaper, whether it is the LTTE, the ISIS linked extremist Islamist terrorist organizations (or whether it is his own kith and kin) who are engaged in terrorism, no government can (and should) turn a blind eye to them, leaving the innocent citizens to be brutally murdered by the terrorists. Just because some of those involved in terrorism are my relatives/acquaintances, or just because they are linked to those political parties that support my government, is no excuse to let terrorists have an upper hand over the ordinary peace-loving Sri Lankan citizens. Whoever is a threat to national security is a threat to the democratic functioning of a government, and so, they need to be stopped in order to save the ordinary peace-loving citizens and their fundamental right to live. Without attending to the national security that would first of all safeguard the fundamental right to live, to give fairy tales about human rights, as so many in the present government and their NGO cronies are still doing while sitting in their arm-chairs, is ridiculous.

Just because the Sri Lankan Catholic community is pacifist, our present rulers should not take them for granted. Their patience, too, has limits. The Catholic community had been exemplary in their behaviour with regard to this most outrageous and barbaric act committed on one of their most sacred days and that too in the very heart of one of the Catholic bastions in the island, Negombo. By averting a revengeful bloodbath, they have borne witness to their Lord Jesus Christ who Himself did not act violently against those who heaped violence upon Him on a cross. But their good will and love for peace should not be used to sweep under the carpet what happened on Easter Sunday. The government has to take responsibility and go ahead and bell the cat, even if it means losing the minority votes! Just appointing commissions is nothing but hoodwinking the masses as we had seen in recent times with regard to other notorious crimes of the present government, such as the day-light robbing of the Central Bank through the Bond Scam scandal. The reader ought to recall that it was the same Prime Minister and some of his close cronies who insisted that the main accused of that Bond Scam be appointed the Governor of the Central Bank, and then, went on to defend him in no lesser place than the parliament itself. But has any culprit been brought to the book till now? Has anyone in the government taken responsibility for that day-light robbing? What guarantee is there that the same procedure of buying time to forget things (by appointing committees!) may also not be the fate of this most heinous crime of Easter Sunday?

As already mentioned above, this so-called ‘yahapalana’ government has become a ‘yamapalana’ government for the country in every sense of the word, just feathering nests of their own kith and kin. It is high time now for them to bow out respectfully, before they would be chased out of office disgracefully, by the people. For they have failed in all the major duties of a responsible government. The recent callous attitude towards the foreign intelligence warning before-hand of the impending danger of Easter Sunday, and the lethargic attitude even in the aftermath of that carnage with regard to national security are clear indications that the present government is not interested at all in saving the lives of innocent citizens, the most fundamental of all human rights. As such, they have no right to continue in office. It is time for them to resign as any other democratic government anywhere else in the world would have done, and then, call for fresh general elections. After all, the present government claims that they are democratic. So please God let them resign and face an election and thus save our dear country and its peace-loving citizens.

By Norman Palihawadana and Rathindra Kuruwita Courtesy The Island

Eastern Province Governor, M. L. A. M. Hizbullah’s driver and former cook were arrested, yesterday, following the detection of 48 rounds of ammunition in a building at Kattankudy.

The Police and Special Task Force officers had searched the building rented by the Governor, and detected the ammunition, a senior police officer of Kattankudy police said. 

The driver and the former cook of Hizbullah were arrested as the keys to the building were in their custody. 

Kattankudy police are conducting further investigations.  Security forces are conducting search operations throughout the country, police spokesperson, SSP Ruwan Gunasekera said. Hizbullah was accused by a number of persons for having links to the National Thowheed Jamath (NTJ) who are behind the Easter Sunday attacks. He has denied the allegation.

TNA spokesman MP M.A. Sumanthiran went to the extent of publicly urging President Sirisena to probe Hizullah’s connections with extremist elements in the aftermath of Easter Sunday carnage.

Courtesy NewsIn.Asia

Colombo, April 30 (newsin.asia): In a press release issued by the Sri Lankan Presidential Media Division on Tuesday, the government refuted Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith’s allegation that the Presidential Commission appointed to probe the Easter Sunday suicide blasts has not even started its work.

The Special Investigation Committee appointed by President Maithripala Sirisena on April 21, 2019 to conduct investigations into the series of incidents occurred in 08 places of the country due to the explosions, commenced its works on April 22. The Special Investigation Committee headed by Supreme Court Judge Vijith K. Malalgoda and former IGP N.K. Ilangakoon and former Law & Order Ministry Secretary Padamasiri Jayamanne have been appointed as members of the committee.”

At present, the Investigation Committee has recorded statements from several high ranking state officials including the former Defence Secretary Hemasiri Fernando and outgoing IGP Pujith Jayasundara. It is scheduled to obtain statements from many persons and through the paper advertisements published in several leading newspapers on April 25, requesting the public and institutions to submit their opinions and information in this regard to the Investigation Committee.”

Courtesy Ceylon Today

The Special Task Force (STF) raided Eastern Province Governor A.L.M. Hizbullah’s Kattankudy office today (30) and found 35 Type 56 bullets which the Governor claims belongs to the Police security officers working for him. 

According to the Police Media Unit, this office was shut down a month ago.

The STF detained two of Hizbullah’s office staff for further questioning.