{"id":51244,"date":"2016-01-19T20:27:39","date_gmt":"2016-01-20T02:27:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=51244"},"modified":"2016-01-19T13:25:41","modified_gmt":"2016-01-19T20:25:41","slug":"sri-lanka-is-sinhala-country-buddfhism-is-its-official-religion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2016\/01\/19\/sri-lanka-is-sinhala-country-buddfhism-is-its-official-religion\/","title":{"rendered":"Sri Lanka is\u00a0 Sinhala Country, Buddfhism is its Official Religion."},"content":{"rendered":"

By Charles.S.Perera<\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n

France is the country of the French, England the country of the English . Italy the country of the Italians and Germany the country of the Germans, India\u00a0 \u00a0the \u00a0country of the Indians, and Sri Lanka \u00a0the country of the Sinhala etc.<\/p>\n

One cannot say the same about USA as the Original Americans \u00a0the Cherokee, Chippewa, Sioux,\u00a0 Cheyenne, Comanche, Navajos, Apaches etc were chased away or decimated-\u00a0 a genocide of the native Americans, \u00a0and \u00a0if one were to \u00a0read the history of America one would see that even\u00a0 their history has been deprived to them. The Immigrant Europeans who came to America in 1620 and after, occupied the \u00a0land of the Indians to became the majority . Now with a \u00a0Constitution ratified in 1788 the European Immigrants have become the people of the \u00a0United States- the Americans. But now it is the country of the Americans.<\/p>\n

France has its national flag, its national anthem, and its own language recognised as such in the French Constitutions, so has\u00a0 England, Italy, Germany, even United States and others.\u00a0 Each of these countries recognise the religion of the majority as the national religion, which is also Constitutionally protected. Nevertheless, its\u00a0 citizens have\u00a0 the freedom to practice a religion of their choice.\u00a0 In\u00a0 France \u00a0it was obligatory that even the names given to the children had to be taken from the calendar which had a name of a Christian Saint for each day. Now this practice has changed.<\/p>\n

No country go by the minorities and do not share the country with different ethnic groups as separate communities. In France\u00a0 too there were groups in Corse, Basque, Normandie, Alsace calling for\u00a0 independence.\u00a0 But they\u00a0 never\u00a0 overstepped the boundaries of French \u00a0nationalism.<\/p>\n

These developed countries like USA and the countries of Europe do not allow political parties promoting minorities. In France there are Greeks, Italians, Russians, Algerians but they become members of \u00a0French National political parties and have no political parties by racial and religious denominations. If Barack Obama contested US Presidency from an Afro American Political Party he would have never been the President of United States. In Canada the Tamils who have accepted Canadian nationality have become members of Canadian Parliament.<\/p>\n

The minorities become a part of the majority so to say in a country and are recognised as nationals of that country. Thereafter they respect the Constitution of that country and do not seek independence as separate ethnic groups.<\/p>\n

Should not that be the norm every where including Sri Lanka ?<\/p>\n

The Government of Australia told Muslims, \u2026.Basically, people who don\u2019t want to be Australians, and they don\u2019t want to live by Australian values and understand them , well then they can basically clear off .\u201d<\/p>\n

In France before a citizenship is granted, \u00a0the applicant has to show that he is proficient \u00a0French.\u00a0 Otherwise the applicant will have to learn to speak French before applying again for citizenship. It is the same in other European countries, and USA as well.<\/p>\n

Sri Lanka is also a Sovereign State like France, Italy, Germany, United States and others.\u00a0 Therefore it cannot be different. Sri Lanka is the country of the\u00a0 Sinhala. The religion of the majority\u00a0 Buddhism is Constitutionally protected.\u00a0 Sri Lanka has its National flag, its National anthem sung in the language of the majority Sinhala.( though the people who did not\u00a0 understand how to reconcile the Communities allowed it to be sung in Tamil) \u00a0Sri Lanka should recognise Sinhala as the national Language\u00a0 and allow Tamil as a provincial language.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong>Sri Lanka had made the mistake since independence, forced by Tamil politicians<\/strong>,\u00a0 \u00a0to recognise minorities as separate communities.\u00a0 They should not have given into Ponnambalam\u2019s fifty fifty or Chelvanayagam\u2019s demand for a Tamil Eelam and recognised Tamil Language along with Sinhala, and mutilate the National flag by adding a green and an orange stripe to represent the minorities. Unfortunately Sri Lanka is \u00a0continuing to sacrifice lot of\u00a0 identifiable\u00a0 national sovereign rights for one purpose of pacifying the minorities.<\/p>\n

Reconciliation is not giving parts of the country to minorities to set up Communal provincial areas or devolve political rights that belong to the government.\u00a0 At least now Sri Lanka has to stop being a country making sacrifices to reconcile with the minorities and stand firm to maintain its right as a sovereign State with its identifiable national rights and symbols.<\/strong><\/p>\n

It is the Tamils and Muslims who should recognise Sri Lanka as the Sinhala country and accept to live with the citizens of Sri Lanka as national entities.\u00a0 The Tamils and Muslims have no right to claim provinces to be administered by themselves ,but help \u00a0build Sri Lanka as a unitary state which is the motherland of everyone living in it.<\/p>\n

Sri Lanka Government should \u00a0recognise as an offence punishable for high treason, \u00a0any one demanding separation or asking special rights for\u00a0 minority communities.\u00a0 It is not the minority communities that have the right to decide on how \u00a0security of \u00a0the country and to the people should be maintained.<\/p>\n

Sri Lanka<\/strong> should strengthen security by setting up military camps every where in Sri Lanka.\u00a0 Sri Lanka should be put on a military footing as long as the Tamils demand separationist political solutions.\u00a0 The government \u00a0should abolish all political parties\u00a0 representing\u00a0 minority Communities or religions of minorities.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Everyone who speaks for separation of communities in Sri Lanka should be arrested and imprisoned. No body should be allowed to make public statements\u00a0 promoting minority communal rights.\u00a0 Wigneshawaran, Sampanthan and the members of the TNA, Anandasangaree, and Muslim politicians such as Rauf Hakeem, Rashid Badiudin should be arrested and imprisoned if they continue their racist demands for separation.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong>Sri Lanka has three main Communities, the Sinhala , Tamil and Muslim. They represent Sri Lanka having Sinhala Nationality.\u00a0 All Communities make up the Sinhala Nation.\u00a0 All Communities should be proficient in Sinhala language.\u00a0 But they should have the right to profess\u00a0 any\u00a0 religion or belief system.\u00a0 Those who have another religious belief other than Buddhism should respect the National religion which is Buddhism.<\/p>\n

In recent time the Tamils of the diaspora had begun rewriting the history of Sri Lanka.\u00a0 In the Wikipedia in internet there are several diversification\u00a0 or interpolation of the National history of Sri Lanka discrediting\u00a0 its history and accepted historical documents such as the Mahavamsa.<\/p>\n

Buddhism was introduced to Sri Lanka by Venerable Arahath Mahhinda Thero during the rein of King Devanampiyatissa in the third century before the current era. Then Sri Lanka was occupied by Sinhala people from north to South and East to West.\u00a0 There are no historical remains to show Hinduism had existed in Sri Lanka before the arrival of Venerable Arahath Mahinda Thero.<\/p>\n

There may have been Tamil incursions for plunder and theft, but that does no give credit to the fact that there were Tamils in Sri Lanka or Hinduism existed before the advent of Venerable Arahat Mahinda thero.<\/p>\n

Hinduism had different divisions and before Hinduism there was Vedantism, and Jainism.\u00a0 Therefore it is not possible even to say which existed in Sri Lanka and before which.\u00a0 However, it is possible that Hinduism in some form or other existed in Sri Lanka before Chritianity and Islam. There were Indian ambassadors, and Hindu Sages in the courts of the Sinhala Kings. Later \u00a0there was a Tamil King who ruled in Anuradhapura from 205 to161before current era.<\/p>\n

Christianity came to Sri Lanka in the first century of the present era- 72 AD.\u00a0 Muslims were sea traders who often landed in Sri Lanka to buy or sell merchandise. The Portuguese, when they started using the seas around India and Sri Lanka chased away the Muslim traders.\u00a0 The Muslims traders thus chased by the Portuguese came to Sinhala Kings and asked for protection. They were settled in the east and allowed to marry local women. That was in around 12th<\/sup> century.<\/p>\n

Recognising provinces as Tamil or Muslim,\u00a0 devolution of political power, giving police and land rights are not how real reconciliation of communities should be done.\u00a0 These are only political manoeuvres to satisfy some Tamil and Muslim politicians. \u00a0Reconciliation should be for the welfare of the people of all communities sharing same rights and live as brothers and sisters of the\u00a0 same country \u2013the country of the Sinhala. \u00a0Reconciliation should not be\u00a0 just to satisfy the Tamil and Muslim politicians.<\/p>\n

It is\u00a0 very important\u00a0 for the people to understand what is really meant in the statement in the preamble to the Constitution of UNESCO:<\/p>\n

\u00a0..Since wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the defences of peace must be constructed. \u201d <\/strong><\/p>\n

Do the Tamil and Muslim politicians of Sri Lanka understand the deep sense in this simple phrase ? If they have understood its meaning \u00a0they will not be calling for separation as means of reconciliation. This phrase should open the minds closed with hatred, desire for power, racial pride, and meaningless desire not to be second to\u00a0 the other. Because its larger meaning is to be human to stretch one\u2019s arms to clasp the other as an equal. It is to build a nation together which would be the real reconciliation amoung human beings.<\/p>\n

To be \u00a0a human being\u00a0 is above\u00a0 being closed up in \u00a0prisons of Communality. To be a human being is greater than being a Sinhala, Tamil or Buddhist. <\/strong><\/p>\n

The phrase in the preamble to the constitution of UNESCO should also be a lesson to the Western political agents like John Kelly, \u00a0Hugo Swire coming from UK, and others from Netherland , Germany and France\u00a0 etc, who come to Sri Lanka to talk about reconciliation with the minorities.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Is it the religion of the Tamils and Muslims that make them racial and hateful ?<\/p>\n

The Sinhala, Tamils and Muslims have lived together for generations in Sri Lanka \u00a0without major social problems , \u00a0why is it now that they want\u00a0 separation as a means of reconciliation after having suffered\u00a0 under an unwanted \u00a0terrorism ?<\/p>\n

This idea of reconciliation according to Wigneshawaran, Sampanthan and\u00a0 the TNA,\u00a0 Anandasangaree, and the Muslim Rishad Badiudin who vandalises Sri Lanka forest reserves to find settlements for Muslims, and Rauf Hakeem\u00a0 who demands a separate province for Muslims, should look inside into their own minds to intellectually understand \u00a0that meaningful \u00a0reconciliation cannot come about from outside but from inside.\u00a0 <\/strong><\/p>\n

Once mentally the problem of separation as a means of reconciliation is understood as a problem arising within oneself, \u00a0it is thereafter through friendly dialogue and the willingness to cohabit together as citizens of one unitary State, that answers could be found for reconciliation to \u00a0make Sri Lankans a happy nation living together in peace and security.<\/p>\n

Therefore accept Sri Lanka as\u00a0 a nation of Sinhala. The Sinhala, the Tamils and the Muslims are all a part of that one nation.\u00a0 Let us salute the flag of our country and\u00a0 Sing the National anthem together in Sinhala and let us profess our religion according to our choice freely without being a \u00a0cause of harassment or a disturbance to others.<\/p>\n

Excerpt from: http:\/\/www.snopes.com\/politics\/soapbox\/australia.asp<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Charles.S.Perera France is the country of the French, England the country of the English . Italy the country of the Italians and Germany the country of the Germans, India\u00a0 \u00a0the \u00a0country of the Indians, and Sri Lanka \u00a0the country of the Sinhala etc. One cannot say the same about USA as the Original Americans […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-51244","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-charles"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51244","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=51244"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51244\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=51244"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=51244"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=51244"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}