MaRa betrays people’s faith: says mass killer, illicit arms dealer KP collected money for Tamils’ welfare

(Lanka-e-News -20.Oct.2012, 10.30PM) A  historic betrayal of Mahinda Rajapkse is being exposed herein with deep regret. The MaRa regime officially announced on 17th that there are no complaints , evidence or charges against KP in order to get the red warrant issued by the Interpol against KP withdrawn. Mahinda Rajapakse had made a request for this , and he had told a profusion of lies in that regard , according to reports reaching Lanka e news.

It was on August 6th , this red warrant was withdrawn at the request of Sri Lanka. However the Interpol has only withdrawn the red warrant that was issued at SL’s request , but the red warrant issued against KP at India’s request is still valid. ( the photograph herein depicts that warrant). When withdrawing the red warrant against KP , Mahinda Rajapakse as the Minister of defense of SL had informed the Interpol , that KP collected funds internationally all these years for and on behalf of the Tamil people and towards their development which included welfare and social service to them .

How can the President of SL who is the highest in the hierarchy of this country say such a blatant lie just to save a terrorist who not only got down arms for his terrorist Organization but even used them to devastate the people and property of SL , about which even a kindergarten child knows ?

The request to issue an international warrant against an accused must be requested by the police of that country. It is based on that the International warrant is issued. There are many varieties of warrants. They are orange, yellow, brown, blue, green and black in accordance with the crime and its gravity. The most grave and serous warrant of them all is the red warrant.

SL has so far requested 109 red warrants from the Interpol.. KP is the 37th in that list. In that request for the red warrant at that time against KP , the charges were explained thus :

“Purchasing of dangerous arms and explosive devices from those in foreign countries to incite unrest and overthrow unlawfully the Govt. of the Democratic socialist Republic ; to commit murders ;collection of funds and arms against the SL govt.; acting as a recipient of illegal funds of the fund raisers abroad; prying into the SL state intelligence service divisions; and garnering and accumulating inside information and details of the Govt.; maintaining and operating illegally armed rebellious groups to overthrow the SL socialist democratic republic Govt., and has been the international linchpin in illicit drug businesses to generate income . These details had been uncovered by the SL State intelligence services with international assistance.”

Following the end of the war however , the Rajapakses began wooing KP as they found in him the right partner for their joint and common treacherous goals, and on the 8th of March 2011 the President Rajapakse instructed the Interpol to withdraw the name of Dharmalingam Shanmugam Kumaran alias Kumaran Pathmanathan alias KP against whom all the aforementioned heinous charges including treason exist from the list of red warrants.

When the Interpol Asian office had requested to adduce reasons and grounds to support that request of withdrawal, the Rajapakses had given the explanation noted below ,by their letter dated 23 -06 -2011 in order to whitewash the criminal KP’s records and antecedence with a view to making KP innocent of all those traitorous , murderous crimes and monumental destructive activities against the State and the people of SL.
“The letter had stated ,according to the reports of the State intelligence service and the Attorney General of SL , no charges whatsoever can be mounted against KP , and the funds that were collected internationally by him were for the development of the Tamil people of SL and for their welfare and social services, as concluded by the State intelligence division. The SL Govt. had secured a confidential report on him. Hence as the defense Minister and the commander in chief of security of the Govt. of the Democratic republic of SL , it is requested that the red warrant issued against KP be withdrawn.”
In pursuance of this instruction , the international warrant against KP had been withdrawn on the 8th of August 2012 in compliance with the request of the SL Govt. Now , it is only the international red warrant issued at the request of India that exists. 

In connection with this KP’s warrant withdrawal order , his file in the Colombo CID had been called by Mohan Peiris the legal advisor of President Rajapakse over a hundred times going by the minutes made in that file. Very soon this file will perhaps be destroyed by the Rajapakses themselves. 

It is paramount therefore that the parties that are trying to safe-keep this file should know to protect this file before that by locking it in a safe in the court through court procedures .

Of course , Mahinda Rajapakse’s action will go down in history as the worst betrayal ever committed by a leader on his own people and country. Neither the President of the Country because he has ruthless powers nor any other without any power , can forget or obliterate the fact that it is because of the arms and explosive devices illicitly brought in by KP during the 30 year old war, half the number of people during the war including Sinhalese , Tamils and Muslims died. Moreover , there are so many physically disabled individuals whose lives have been destroyed in their young age because of these illicit arms of KP. Despite this, if the President of the country elected by the people in whom the whole nation reposes faith that he would not betray his country, after the war was won for him by the Forces stoops so low as to give in writing that KP collected money internationally for the welfare of and to do social service work for the Tamil people , none could have committed a worse treason than this in the whole history of SL. Certainly posterity is going to curse such traitors though they may by abuse of unlimited power suppress the truth now.

‘Govt. not keen on devolving power’

– Premachandran

By Ranga Jayasuriya-Sunday 21 October 2012

TNA stalwart Suresh Prema-chandran questions the rationale in joining the Parliament Select Committee (PSC), ‘when the president and his siblings are speaking out against power sharing.’ 
Premachandran, a member of the seven-member TNA delegation that visited India last week says that the TNA did not agree to attend the PSC appointed by the president to explore a political solution. Speaking to LAKBIMAnEWS, he insisted that there should be an agreement between the TNA and the government on ‘substantial matters’ before the Tamil party joins the PSC.

Excerpt:

The TNA has agreed to take part in the Parliament Select Committee. Is that right? It was reported in the Indian media.
No, we did not agree. That is not reported in the media...not even in the Indian media.

 No? The Indian newspapers reported that you, the TNA, have agreed to consider joining the PSC...
No. Actually, we explained (to the Indians) about the Parliamentary Select Committee, the 18 rounds of talks that were held with the government and what happened to them. We also told the Indian prime minister that we are willing to attend the Parliamentary Select Committee, provided that there is an agreement between the TNA and the government on substantial matters. If there is an agreement on substantial matters, those matters can be taken before the Parliamentary Select Committee to get the support of the other political parties. That is the best way to find a solution. If there is no agreement between the TNA and the government, what would happen is that the government would have more seats in the PSC and we would only have three or four members and would be outnumbered; and the government is not going to accept anything we would propose. That is not a conducive situation. That is the answer given to the Indian prime Minister and he understood our position. He said we must find means so that the Tamil people would get their due share. 

The Indian media reported that the TNA agreed to join the PSC provided that you won’t be cheated again.
Not being cheated again, in the sense that there is an agreement on substantial matters.

Substantial matters – what are they?
There are a number of issues to discuss. They may be land power, police power, financial powers, taxation, etc. Also, powers should be vested with the board of ministers of the provinces but at the moment powers are vested with the governor. These are some examples. 

You referred to a bilateral agreement. Are you suggesting that this agreement be reached at the two party dialogue between the government and the TNA? Do you want these talks, which have been at a standstill to be resumed?
The president told Mr. Sampanthan that ‘we will continue with bilateral talks and whatever agreement we reached would be put before the PSC.’ But after sometime, the president is not willing to stick to his promise. If the president says he is willing to start bilateral talks, we don’t have any problem.

When did the president give that assurance to Mr. Sampanthan.
The president met Mr. Sampanthan  two or three times and on each occasion, he told Mr. Sampanthan we have to go to the PSC and it would be the forum to discuss matters. 
Mr. Sampanthan in turn, told him that there were issues that need to be addressed, such as bilateral talks. He (president) said ‘that is alright, bilateral talks can continue.’ 
From last January, bilateral talks stalled. If the president wanted to, he could have continued the bilateral dialogue. He is not willing to do it. Now, almost 10 months has passed. I think he is thinking the only place to solve those problems is the Parliamentary Select Committee. 

You have submitted your proposals (on a political solution) to the government. What happened to them?
We have given a set of comprehensive proposals to the government delegation. 
We have been expecting a response from the government. Until today, there is no response, at all, from the government.

What is the Indian position, as they informed you? Are they trying to get the government to resume bilateral talks with the TNA?
I don’t know whether they need bilateral talks. That is a different matter. 
But India seems to be concerned about the whole thing. India is very worried about the government’s attitude, because the government of Sri Lanka has given so many promises to the Indian prime minister, foreign minister and other delegates. 
But all this time they never kept those promises. So India is very worried about it. 
One thing that was clear in our dialogue with the Indian side was that they want the Tamils in Sri Lanka to get their proper rights. For that purpose, the prime minister of India said, ‘we will be with you and  you have justifiable grievances.’ In this context, India would take necessary action to have a proper settlement as far as the national question is concerned.

In order to attend the PSC, do you have preconditions? It is widely reported that the Indians have worked out a deal, under which the government would resume the bilateral dialogue with the TNA and the TNA would attend the PSC.
So far no request has been received from the government to restart the bilateral dialogue. If they start the bilateral talks, we will think about it.

Did the TNA meet any of the government ministers after your Indian visit?
No, not yet.

Are you planning to meet the president any time soon?
I don’t know. I did not discuss that matter with Mr. Sampanthan.

About the Northern Provincial Council. The TNA has gone to court over as to whether the governor’s verdict  on the Divineguma bill could be tantamount to the will of the people, in the absence of elected members. Constitutionality of the matter apart, I understand that the TNA wants to have early elections in the Northern Province.
You can interpret the matter in your own way. But the governor is a government employee and is appointed by the president. He is not an elected representative. He cannot give his approval to a bill, which is against the provincial council system. That is our position.

About the provincial councils, we have this strange situation. The provincial councils were meant to devolve powers to minority dominated areas. Now, we have eight provincial councils, but not the one that is most wanted. During your deliberations with the government, has the TNA insisted  that the Northern Provincial Council elections be held?
We have not insisted. But we know some countries such as the United States, India and civil society have demanded that the Northern Provincial Council elections be held. If the government can hold the Eastern Provincial Council election during the war and if they can dissolve the other provincial councils before their term expires to have new elections, I don’t know why they cannot hold Northern Provincial Council elections. Now, the government is saying that the electoral list is not in the proper order. That is not correct. 
The government held the presidential election and parliamentary election in the North. And the election commissioner has the 2011 electoral list. In that situation, why does the government not have elections in the North? Because, they know that the TNA is going to win the election in the north and have power in the Northern Provincial Council. They don’t want that to happen. Even though the 13th Amendment is meant to devolve powers to the Northern and Eastern Provincial Councils, the government still wants to control the Northern and Eastern Provinces and keep that under its control. Therefore, there is no point of talking about the 13th Amendment. 
While we were talking to the government, the president was telling in other forums that: ‘I won’t give police powers, I won’t give land powers, etc.’ Then why did he send a delegation to talk to the TNA about power sharing?
Number two is that Basil Rajapaksa under the Divineguma bill has taken back powers given to the provincial councils. Now, another brother, Gotabaya Rajapaksa says that the provincial councils be abolished. That is the clear attitude of President Rajapaksa and his siblings. They don’t want to devolve powers. They don’t want to share  power with the Tamil people. So what’s the point of talking in the PSC? 
If the president’s attitude is like that, you can understand the attitude of the government members he would appoint to the PSC. That is the problem. That is the basic problem.

At the end , there should be a solution to the ethnic question and one that is good for everybody. What do you think is a good starting point? 
First, the government should have the right mindset. If they think that ‘we don’t want to share power with the Tamil people’ there is no point in talking. Also, there should be clarity among the president and his minister that they are ready to share power. Second, there should be willingness in the government to discuss matters with the elected representatives of the Tamil people. Then if they want to get the approval from the larger Sinhala community, we are willing to go to a Parliamentary Select Committee. But there is a way to do it. 
The first and foremost question is whether the government is in a position to discuss with us about power sharing because the president and his siblings are speaking out against sharing powers. Therefore, we need a change in the mindset of the president and his siblings that they are ready to share power with the Tamil people. Only then we can discuss matters.

PERSON ABDUCTED BY GROUP IN WHITE VAN IN ALEWATTA

October 21, 2012 

A person was abducted by an unknown group of people who arrived in a white van in the Alewatta area of Ragama while he was on his way home.

The wife of the victim who was riding back home on their bike stated that the white van had blocked off the road after which a group of people had assaulted her husband and abducted him.

She stated that one of the assailants was carrying a firearm. 

She informed the police through the 119 emergency line while she also made complaints to the Mahabage and Peliyagoda police stations.

She also alleged that a policeman was involved in the abduction.

Police Spokesman SSP Prishantha Jayakoddy stated that her statements to the police did not specify any police involvement in the incident but added that inquiries will be conducted concerning the claims.

Further investigations are being carried out.

University Dons, Doctors And Capitalist Society Ruled By Mahinda chinthanaya

By Vickramabahu Karunaratne -October 20, 2012

Dr. Vickramabahu Karunaratne

We hear that if the university dons get a higher pay and other benefits that doctors are prepared to launch their struggle. Latter should be looked after by the state, if not we are in for trouble. It is and interesting question. Why is medical care subsidized by welfare states  and under socialism? The answer is quite obvious in that medical care requires highly trained practitioners and state-of-the-art technology to provide the absolute best care. Such trained practitioners and technology is of limited supply inspite of increase in number doctors produced by our universities. In any case it is a problem allover the world. Hence doctors with accumulated knowledge are in great demand and thus incredibly expensive to procure for the average person without financial assistance, be it from welfare, insurance schemes or socialist handouts. However, one could argue that perpetually subsidizing medical care will never address the underlying cause of its scarcity and in turn, its incredible price. Also it is claimed that subsidizing is also unsustainable economically. For example it requires rationing and difficult “moral” decisions to be made regarding who receives what treatment. Such scenarios belittle both human dignity and the full potential of human existence.

Of course no one other than an extreme pragmatist tied to the market economy could seriously suggest that people deserve to be denied medical care for the simple fact that they cannot afford it. Yet the sad reality is that many people do not receive the best treatment available, subsidized or not, because neither they nor the state can afford it.
The answer to this problem is quite simple – perhaps so simple, especially when divorced from political ideology. So called Socialist handouts are tools. Like any tool they are only as good as the people using them. While the intentions of socialist medicine, welfare, education and so on seem noble, in reality in the present capitalist society ruled by Mahinda chinthanaya they are primarily used by self-serving crooked politicians as bribes handed out in exchange for the voting public’s servile dependency on a particular political agenda. Many kinds of voting blocs have been created using so called socialist handouts in just this fashion. Pragmatic solutions based on proper care and kindness are never seriously pursued because pragmatic, permanent solutions – while alleviating entirely any particular social problem – would undermine the real purpose of the handouts, namely, building a dependent, servile voting bloc. In the end we find drug companies and equipment sellers take control of the system creating a totally corrupt system.

In this situation it will be interesting to see what has been done in Venezuela. Hugo Chavez had agreed to invest in education and development of technology that includes medical sciences as well. For instance, if  Venezuela elect to pursue more permanent, technological solutions to problems currently subsidized, then it  would not by necessary to “open their markets” to foreign multinationals and crippling “neoliberalism.” In many Western countries one can already observe truly free markets or economic anarchy where giant corporations are free to do anything they wish. Hugo has avoided that situation for Venezuela. This has created many powerful enemies for his regime. For Venezuela, the threat of foreign subversion is still very real. There is a very real global network of subversion maintained by the corporate-financier interests of Wall Streetand London, forming the foundation of modern super imperialism. If President Hugo Chavez wants to put down the hammer and begin using more articulate tools, he should communicate these intentions to his support base and mobilize the Venezuelan people and make them aware of the dangers, and payoffs of pursuing the next step. Finally, as a growing front of nations begin to rise up against Western global hegemony and the “Washington Consensus,” it is important to understand that people around the world are fighting the global power of the capital.

Executive Presidency the root of all evil

Are they preparing to lynch the CJ?
Sunday 21 October 2012
A fortnight ago several senior ministers were told to hold a press conference and con the public that the government was not after the blood of the CJ. In Lanka, in these times, people know this means they are planning to do exactly the opposite of what they say! They told us they would abolish the Executive Presidency, but they enacted the 18th Amendment which aims to impose it in perpetuity; they told us they would not privatise state assets, but they alienated every inch of prime property in Colombo and the best along the seafront to foreign capital; they promised reconciliation, but they won’t let the Tamils have the Northern Provincial Council. For these reasons I think an e-mail that is doing the rounds saying the President has decided to impeach the CJ and install Mohan Peries in her place is very believable. We will soon see, maybe before the year is out; furthermore, impeachment is not the only way of getting rid of someone in these days of carrots and sticks.
The attack on the Judicial Services Commission Secretary does not make sense unless it’s part of a bigger game plan and that cannot be to take on the whole judiciary and bar. The limited lethal plan that makes sense is that they have decided to go after the CJ only; mounting pressure that elicits an abject capitulation or removal by intimidation or by impeachment. No arrests have been made for the Thilekaratne attack, why? Because I think the attackers have disappeared into the usual encampments into which Lasantha’s killers, the grease yakkas, abductors of journalists and Frontline Socialists, and for a long time Tamil youth suspected of LTTE connections, all vanished. That’s evidence enough of who the black hand behind the attacks is.  
Ok if you are sceptical of my hypothesis, just grant for arguments sake that the regime does intend to impeach or otherwise remove the CJ. What is the presumed larger game plan and what consequences follow from this? Let me dwell on this theory.

The big battle ahead
I have said in several pieces since the beginning of this year that serious economic difficulties lie over the horizon. The twin forks of a pincer movement that is strangling the economy are foreign trade deficit and government fiscal deficit (better known among us laymen as the budget deficit). Every indication is that both deficits will deteriorate further in 2013-15, it is difficult to see farther. There is no sign that exports can improve much, it is not possible to curb imports greatly and I cannot see the government increasing revenue except modestly. Fiscal expenditure cannot be cut without provoking resentment and the device of deferring 2012 expenditure to 2013 will snowball. With these twin hands choking its throat the government faces social unrest and mounting debt.
By the end of 2012 the government’s foreign debt will stand at about $27 billion (Rs3.5 trillion) and domestic debt will also be about the same amount, Rs3.5 trillion. It is simply not true that the Central Bank’s foreign reserves are healthy. My estimate is that at the end of year 2012 government (official) reserves will be about $7.5 billion and commercial bank foreign holdings and financial market (portfolio) related holdings about another $1.5 billion. A simple analogy will be a lady working in the Middle East who has $7.5 thousand in her NRFC account, much of it short term loans from friends, and is safe-keeping another $1.5 thousand for other parties; however, she is indebted to big lenders in Dubai to the tune of $27 thousand, and that hole is getting deeper. Add to this that she owes another Rs3.5 million to local money lenders at home.
Read more...

MaRa imposes tax on wells too! ‘Dig your graves not wells’ is his motto for the people
(Lanka-e-News -20.Oct.2012, 10.30PM) The ‘patriotic’ Rajapakse Govt. is very soon going to impose tax even on the wells of drinking water ! The amount of tax is from Rs.7500/- to Rs. 15000/- per year. Minister Nimal Siripala presented a Cabinet paper in this connection yesterday (20) to the Cabinet.

According to this tax imposition , to dig a well that is 12 feet wide , permission has to be obtained from the MaRa govt. Whether it is a cultivation well or a drinking well they must be registered with the MaRa Govt. This applies to tube wells too.

For the first 100,000 liters of water for the year , Rs. 7500/- will be levied . Any consumption over that will be taxed in slabs of Rs. 10,000/- , 12500/- and over commensurate with the consumption of water measured in liters . 

Tube wells where water is used for bottling , a tax of Rs. 15000/- per year will be charged. This tax is in addition to the annual renewal fee of Rs. 10,000/-
In Nimal Siripala ‘s cabinet paper it is mentioned that all these taxes are imposed to ensure the supply of pure water for the future generations .

It is the general consensus , MaRa and his Govt. which have no sleep unless they burden the people as often as possible , after imposing taxes on wells , may turn to taxing the breast milk of mothers even before it is formed in their breasts . Nimal Siripala of course it is learnt has the special tool which he is using already ,going by media reports about him ,to tell whose breast has milk to tax.

Political Activity Stifled; Authoritarian Agenda Swells

By Kumar David -October 20, 2012 

Prof. Kumar David

The Frontline Socialist Party (FSP) launched a campaign in Colombo on 11 October to fight harassment and attacks on political activity in the North, especially in Jaffna, by state authorities, namely the military and the police. The launch was supported by a persuasive video of widespread anger about abductions and arbitrary arrests and included sound bites from Mano Ganesan, JC Weliamuna, Nirmal Dewasiri, Vickremebahu, Lal Wickrematunga (Lasantha’s brother) and others. It is a production of a new Centre for Rights Protection which, to the best of my knowledge, is the first explicitly pro-left human rights civil-society entity. Most human rights groups sport liberal, religious or rightist ideological flavours, or are linked to international organisations. I was pleased to see an alternative that leftists can link up with.

The meeting was captioned as a campaign to secure the release of Lalith and Kugan, two FS members who were abducted in Jaffna about 11 months ago, but the purpose was not merely to shed tears about its own cadres. The emphasis was on highlighting the repression of Tamils, on a daily basis in the North where abductions and disappearances continue unabated. Out of sight of Colombo society, folks in Jaffna are facing intimidation, confiscation of lands and humiliation. The reports are first hand from FS cadres working among Tamil youth for over a year despite threats and attacks by the military. The video showed gatherings of Tamil women carrying placards and chanting slogans demanding to know about their abducted sons, husbands and men folk. All this corroborates what the TNA has been saying in parliament and conveying to the international community, and is a wake up call to Colombo on a theme the media prefers to pay little attention to.

These young chaps are not going to be intimidated; Rajapakse and the military have caught a tiger by the tail! The FSP made no bones about explicitly accusing the military of abducting and holding Lalith and Kuhan in an army camp and made mention of eye witness sightings. A fortnight ago burnt oil was thrown on FSP’s Dimithu Attygalle and two others while campaigning in Jaffna and police foot-dragging and indifference told a stark story. The cops know who the attackers are but will not go into camps or make arrests. When Attygalle and Premkumar Gunaratnam were abducted and tortured in March in Colombo, Gothabhaya did not conceal from the Australian High Commissioner that his forces were the perpetrators.

Unlike in the first six years of the Rajapakse Administration when some attempt was made to hide sate involvement in abductions, now it is blasé. A “So what! Who the hell cares?” attitude pervades; state terrorism is on the loose, flagrant arrogance compounded by unconcealed impunity. The hubris of threats to the judiciary and manhandling of the JSC Secretary are symptomatic of siblings drunk on power. Sadly for those who remember the old left, today’s Vasudevas, DEWs and Tissas will drain the last dregs of this goblet of shame before they make their exit rolled in Dead Left shrouds. Alas, such are the joys and perks of ministerial office.

The question that many ask is when or where will this stop? Are we on an inexorable road to dictatorship, or will an explosion involving parliamentary and extra-parliamentary arenas spell the end of the Rajapakses? There is no open and shut answer to these questions; the political analyst must consider options and weigh possibilities. Let me have a jab at gauging what I think the Rajapakse game plan is, and then pronounce why I think their well laid schemes will “gang aft agley”.

Towards a Corporatist State                              Read More

Kidney disease spreads tentacles

Concern over Sri Lanka kidney disease

05 Oct 2012
Incurable ailment linked to farming chemicals prompts calls for controls on pesticide use.

Thousands of Sri Lankans suffer from an incurable kidney disease that researchers have linked to chemicals used in modern agriculture. Unlike other kidney conditions, Chronic Kidney Disease of unknown etiology or CKDu has baffled the medical community. Now the World Health Organisation is calling for better controls on the use of pesticides and fertilisers in Sri Lanka. Al Jazeera's Minelle Fernandez reports from Anuradhapura. ‘Govt members beholden to multinational firms’– Rathana Thera

Kidney disease spreads tentacles


100,000 undetected patients – WHO
By Sugath P Kulathungarachchi
Sunday 21 October 2012
The increasing incidence of chronic kidney disease (CKD) which ravaged people in the Anuradhapura district has now started to affect the people of the Uva and Southern Provinces as well due to the excessive use of pesticides and chemical fertilizer.
Farmers in the Uva Province use pesticides and chemical fertilizer for banana plantations, sugarcane and vegitable cultivations.

Reasons for CKD revealed
Following extensive research carried out by the World Health Organization (WHO), the reasons behind the rapid spread of chronic kidney disease in the Anuradhapura district has now come to light.
According to WHO experts, they have determined that some of the reasons behind the rapid escalation of CKD have been the mixture of water with harmful toxins such as cadmium, mercury, arsenic and uranium, among other chemicals.
According to statistics compiled by the WHO, so far 22000 people have succumbed to this disease in Anuradhapura alone and the registered number of those suffering from the disease is 20,000 persons.
According to WHO sources there could be around a further 100,000 more patients afflicted with chronic kidney disease who have not been detected so far.
This disease which was first detected in Nikaweratiya, had then spread rapidly to other areas such as Polpithigama, Dehiattakandiya, Kekirawa, Dambulla and Girandurukotte.
H. Subasinghe, a sugarcane grower in the Kovulara village in the Moneragala district noted that he has been using pesticides and other chemical products to sustain his sugarcane plantation.
He also pointed out that lately, there has been a sizeable number of patients who have been reported from the Monaragala as being afflicted with the kidney disease.
He added that there has also been a sizeable number of patients who are reported to be suffering from diabetes, high blood pressure and heart attacks.
Subasinghe is of the view that one of the reasons for the rapid spread of kidney disease is the generous use of pesticides and chemical fertilizer by farmers.

Compounded by other ailments
Medical officer, Thanamalwila Regional Hospital, Dr. Ajith Priyantha said that the number of patients afflicted with kidney disease has risen.
He noted that males between 40-45 years are mainly afflicted by this disease and in addition to that, there are cases of diabetes being reported as well.
Dr. Priyantha observed that youths between the ages of 25-30 have also shown a tendency to being diabetics.
“Several patients that I checked are already afflicted with diabetes. Even some of those who have come from other areas are also suffering from either diabetes or kidney disease. There are also various other cases such as those suffering from disabilities, and some having had abortions. The reason for such cases increasing is that they coming into contact with agri chemical products,” said Dr. Priyantha.
He is of the view that according to WHO statistics the prevalence of agri-chemical products and coming into contact with them regularly have greatly contributed to the rapid rise of diseases of the kidney, and diabetes, high blood pressure and heart attacks.

Tests need to be done
A leading doctor of the Lunugamvehera area, Dr. Shashindi Wijewardene has also observed that of the patients visiting her clinic, there has been a steady rise of patients suffering from kidney disease.
She explained that one of the reasons for the escalating number of such cases has been people coming into contact with chemical products regularly, especially those from the farming community.
But she added that more tests need to be done to conclude without any doubt whether there could be a direct connection between those products and its users coming into contact with them, and thereby being afflicted with these diseases.
Now the latest ‘casualty’ has been certain areas in the South.

South too affected
District doctor of the Tissamaharama Base Hospital, Dr. M.N.H. Krishantha said that there has been an increase in the number patients being afflicted with kidney disease and diabetes in addition to high blood pressure.
He said that as Tissamaharama is a farming area where more agricultural products are being used they need to carry out more research and find out whether there could be any connection between the increasing patients who are afflicted with various illnesses and the use of chemical products for agriculture. 

Ethics of ‘Post-War’ Reconstruction: Resistance to 'War by Other Means'

17 OCTOBER 2012 BY JUDE LAL FERNANDO

The US-led invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq, and the Israeli invasion of Palestine were met with a division of opinion throughout the world. Such division could be observed in the UN Security Council regarding the case of Syria too. However, no such division existed, particularly in the final phase (2007-2009), of the Sri Lankan government’s war against the de facto state of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) – in spite of massive demonstrations, marches and fasts organised by Tamils all over the world. Countries that are antagonistic vis-a-vis one another on crucial political issues on the international arena (USA/China, Britain/Russia, Israel/Iran, India/Pakistan, etc.) were united in their support for the Sri Lankan government’s military answer to the nearly six decades long nationalist conflict. The UN agencies that did not leave Gaza during Israeli invasion acted differently in the last phase of war on the Tamil de facto state and left the region at the request of the Sri Lankan government. It was only after the end of the war in May of 2009 that an ex-UN officer admitted that there have been at least 40,000 Tamils killed in the last phase of the war, but this has not been formerly stated.

This shows that the UN was aware of the fact that one of its member states (that of Sri Lanka) was committing a mass atrocity. The position of the UN then, reflects the political stand of the above mentioned powers. The reason for these international actors’ difference of positions/actions concerning the first set of contexts and Sri Lanka lies in the specific character of the Sri Lankan state. Two states, or a political arrangement that dismantles the colonially forged unitary character of the Sri Lankan state would clash with the geopolitical interests of the major powers in the world, mainly US and UK led governments (interested in expanding their military empires into South Asia), and who have been competitively followed by China, Russia, Iran and others (with the China-led extension of an economic empire).

The ethics of international relations concerning the island of Lanka have been constructed on the basis of the need to protect the unitary character of the state against the Tamil national movement and its de facto state. The latter state emerged as a result of Tamil national resistance to over six decades spanning oppression by the Sinhala-dominated Sri Lankan state. The ethic of international relations that justified and legitimised the military victory of the Sri Lankan government against the LTTE –  the main architects of the Tamil de facto state – highly informs the ethic of internationally aided ‘post-war’ reconstruction efforts of the Sri Lankan government. These efforts are geared towards consolidating the unitary state structure through heavy militarisation of the Tamil region accompanied by a process of cultural, economic and administrative re-structuring through Sinhala settlements, acquisition of land for military and local/ multinational business purposes and gerrymandering of constituencies that radically alters the demographic composition of the Tamil region.¹  This ethic is in direct conflict with an ethic based on the right of oppressed peoples to resist domination. Therefore, the Sri Lankan context is neither a post-war condition (as in the case of Vietnam after the withdrawal of American troops) nor a post-conflict condition (as in the case of Northern Ireland and South Africa after formal peace agreements have been reached), but a condition where war continues to be waged against the Tamil national movement by other means.

Calculated Politics of Duplicity                                                Read more...

Colombo’s claims of diaspora dialogue challenged in the diaspora

[TamilNet, Saturday, 20 October 2012, 13:45 GMT]
None of the Tamil diaspora bodies that have democratic or institutional mandate of Eezham Tamils have opted to engage in talks with the Sri Lankan government, which continues to negate the nationhood and right to self-determination of Eezham Tamils, said Dr Panchakulasingam Kandiah, the president of the democratically elected Norwegian Council of Eezham Tamils and a director in the board of the Global Tamil Forum. He was responding to a question by TamilNet on Saturday, on the statement of Sri Lanka's cabinet spokesperson and minister Keheliya Rambukwela telling that Colombo was “making headway in its dialogue with the Tamil Diaspora”. The ‘dialogue’ will be held in Colombo shortly under the direct patronage of SL President Mahinda Rajapaksa, media reports from Colombo said. 

Dr. Panchakulasingam Kandiah

The SL government must concede the status of Eezham Tamils as a Nation in the island, entitled to the Right to Self-Determination, and it should fully address the accountability issue by going through an independent international investigation. Only then there would be any chance of internationally mediated talks, Dr. Kandiah said. 

“Even a person like Mr Sumanthiran of the TNA, working under gagged conditions in the island, and was arguing earlier in favour of negotiations for non-descript solutions, has come to the point of asking the question on Thursday that what hope is there in TNA participating the Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) of Rajapaksa regime to discuss solutions, when there are no guarantees on the fundamentals, going beyond the majoritarian formula,” Dr. Kandiah cited. 

A publication summarising the results of diaspora referenda in 10 countries on independent and sovereign Tamil Eelam, brought out by Tamil National Council that coordinated the referendum in the UK

The mandate of Eezham Tamil diaspora was very clear. The mandate of the elected representatives of all the democratic bodies in the diaspora is based on the independently held referenda in 10 countries, during and after May 2009, he asserted. 

“We are in touch with almost all the democratically elected representatives belonging to country councils, transnational institutions and members of other time-tested organizations. There is no such move, ‘making headway’ as claimed by Colombo,” he categorically stated. 

• Word Wide Tamil Referendum - Full Report

The re-mandate of Vaddukkoaddai Resolution was carried out in 10 countries, Norway, France, Canada, UK, Germany, Switzerland, Netherlands, Denmark, Italy and Australia. More than 210,000 people voted in the polls in these countries alone. 

“This is the popular mandate of all our diaspora organizations, be it elected or non-elected,” he said. 

“It is a significant number, especially when you compare it with the number of people who had voted for the TNA in 2004 polls in the homeland, which stands at 233,000” Dr. Kandiah told TamilNet. 

Political observers in the island find a connection between Rambukwela’s statement and Colombo’s propaganda this week that it has ‘freed’ Selvarasa Pathmanathan alias KP. 

KP, who lost his credibility with the Eezham Tamils as he had become a pawn in the agenda of Colombo and its abettors, is perhaps now groomed with the ‘freedom of travel’ to mobilize some of his former colleagues in the diaspora, who have not distanced themselves from his activities, the political observers in the island said.

Engineering at least a section in the diaspora to enter into submissive negotiations with the Rajapaksa regime and in the process simulating a ‘negotiating’ image of the genocidal regime in order to shield it in the international arena are in the agenda, the observers further said. 

“None of them have any democratic mandate,” the NCET chairperson commented referring to individuals identified as having dealings with KP and through him with the Rajapaksa regime.

NCET is a pioneering organization among the political bodies in the diaspora that were democratically elected after May 2009.

It Is Unbelievable That The Sunday Leader Has Apologised To Gotabaya, Says ARTICLE 19

By Article 19 -

In a shocking turn of events, Sri Lankan newspaper The Sunday Leader has formally apologised to defence secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa for reporting that the secretary had threatened the then editor with death.

Dr Agnes Callamard

“It is unbelievable that The Sunday Leader has apologised in front of the Sri Lanka Press Council to defence  secretory   Gotabaya Rajapaksa for reporting that the secretary had threatened former editor, Frederica Jansz with death – even though she recorded his call and the minister admitted to making it,” said Dr Agnes Callamard, ARTICLE 19 executive director.

“Sri Lanka is due to go before the UN Human Rights Council in two weeks time for its Universal Periodic Review, and member states must urgently raise the terrible increase in impunity which is being reinforced by the highest levels of government,” she added.

The Sunday Leader – once one of Sri Lanka’s few remaining independent voices – was bought out by an ally of the president in September 2012. The new owner, Asanga Seneviratne almost immediately sacked the newspaper’s editor, Frederica Jansz, after she refused to prevent her reporters from criticising the government.

ARTICLE 19 warned the UN in April that affiliates of the president appeared to be buying up the private media in order to control their editorial lines, resulting in a severely reduced debate in a country that has only just emerged from conflict.

In the shadow report for the Universal Periodic Review of Sri Lanka – due in October 2012, ARTICLE 19 highlighted that media diversity and press freedom are under threat in Sri Lanka where affiliates of the president appear to be buying newspapers that criticise the government, in order to censor them.

Jansz was threatened with death in July 2012. She was conducting an interview over the phone with Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa when he told her: “You pig that eats shit! You shit shit dirty fucking journalist! […] People will kill you! People hate you! They will kill you!”

The Sunday Leader and its journalists have until now faced regular attack. The newspaper’s editor, Lasantha Wickramatunge, was assassinated on his way to work on 8 January 2009. Nobody has ever been prosecuted for the crime.

Related posts;

Bowed And Afraid: The Sunday Leader To Apologize To Gota For Calling Former Editor “A Fucking Pig Who Eats Shit”