June 24, 2013
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இதுவரை காலமும் பெதுபலசோனவிற்கு அரச ஆதரவு இல்லை என்று ஜனாதிபதி மஹிந்த உள்ளிட்ட அரச தரப்பினர் மறுத்து வந்த போதிலும், அமைச்சர் ராஜித சேனாரத்தின தெரிவித்துள்ள இந்தக் கூற்றின் மூலம் உண்மை வெளிப்பட்டுள்ளது.
Nimalka Fernando
Jaffna Peninsula has an area of 1000 square km and being flat has no rivers and is totally dependent on the annual rainfall of about 1270 mm, of which about 87% falls during the north-east monsoon from October to December, for recharge of the water table in the underground aquifer. In the past, water was drawn from wells for domestic and agricultural use by well sweeps, but from the 1950’s onwards pumps have been used to draw water from these wells. There are nearly 100,000 wells in the Peninsula. This over pumping for agricultural use has drawn down the fresh water stored in the limestone aquifer resulting in sea water percolating into the wells through the fractured limestone, as no part of Jaffna is more than about 15 km from the sea. At present about 30% of the wells in the Jaffna Peninsula are saline. Recent reports from agricultural experts state that more than 4500 hectares of fertile agricultural land have turned saline and have become unsuitable for cultivation.
The secret behind the good health of Minister of Public Relations and Public Affairs Mervyn Silva is due to his emulating former Indian Prime minister Morarji Desai who lived up tp a hundred years
After Morarji’s disclosure about drinking urine he became the butt of many jokes.
The recent arrest of the head of the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, a German NGO working in Sri Lanka, was initially said to have been made due to a “compensation issue” with a former employee.
Außenminister Westerwelle protestiert gegen Umgang mit Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung in Sri Lanka
The accord between Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi of India and the President of Sri Lanka J R Jayawardene was signed on 29th July 1987 to end the on going conflict between Sinhala and Tamil Nations, which started almost four decades ago with gaining of independence in 1948. A few of the key events which led to worsening of conflict and inevitable intervention of India are: disenfranchisement of Indian Tamils in 1948 brought by British to work in plantation sector, government sponsored colonization of North East Sri Lanka started in 1948 (recognized in the accord as area of historical habitation of Tamil speaking people, it is referred to as Tamil Eelam using the acient name), introduction of “Sinhala Only Bill” in 1956, deportation of large number of disenfranchised Tamils to India started in 1964 under Srimavo-Shastri Pact (no other country with Indian Tamils in Malaysia, Singapore, South Africa has done so), depriving of economic benefits to Sinhala youth resulted in armed rebellion against the government in 1971, indirectly inspired by the Sinhala youth together with denial of educational and employment opportunities to Tamil youth initiated the Tamil militancy under the name of TNT in 1972, repeated anti-Tamil riots or pogroms (1956, 1958, 1974, 1977 and 1983) against Tamils as a reaction to the demand for recognition and equal rights. The accord and the direct intervention of India to enforce resolution of Sinhala-Tamil conflict, brought hope to the Tamil Nation and adverse reaction from a section of Sinhala Nation; but, overwhelmingly there was hope that the military confrontation between the Sinhala and Tamil Nations will be brought to an end and usher peace and prosperity to all. Contrary to expectations, after a brief period of “peace”, fighting broke out and continued for another two decades. The fighting intensified after President Mahinda Rajapaksa of Sri Lanka in January 2008, unilaterally abrogated the Cease Fire Agreement (CFA); signed on 21 February 2002 between Sri Lanka Prime Minister and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam – LTTE, faciliated by US, EU, Norway and Japan, this was the second international
| India wants 13A in ‘present form’ By Our Political Correspondent-2013-06-23 |
A diplomatic crisis has been brewing between Colombo and New Delhi after the government forged ahead with the plans to scrap several clauses in the 13th Amendment, specifically a clause that provide for the merger of two provinces.
Balance of forces lie against - anti-devolution elements  By Dr. Vickramabahu Karunaratne-WEDNESDAY, 19 JUNE 2013 Mahinda is conducting a difficult battle for anti-devolution because he has already made a commitment both locally and internationally to implement the 13th Amendment and to go even beyond it while also giving an assurance to implement the LLRC recommendations. However, such assurances given by the President would not give him much comfort as he also has to satisfy the demands of his chauvinist battalions who are so dear to him.  Often he identifies with the thinking of the chauvinists than with the populist ideology of the mainstream SLFP. This does not however generate the finances necessary to run the government and keep the so-called development programmes moving ahead.Chauvinist mobilisations have won almost all the major political battles they unleashed since 2009. However, Mahinda faced a few problems lately. In the recent past, it was apparent. In his attempt to introduce a fraudulent private sector pension plan, he had to back off. It was a serious and significant exception. True, it took the united effort of the country’s private sector employees, mobilization of other sectors and one young life, to beat the Rajapaksa plan to buttress their tottering finances by robbing private sector workers. Since this retreat, Mahinda has been working carefully always consulting loyal trade union leaders. But the Opposition has grown stronger and the regime weaker. Given the current class mobilization and the actual shifting of forces, defeating the administration does not look as difficult a task as it had been seen earlier. Mahinda supporters would have been able to win the anti-devolution battle with ease, had the balance of forces not undergone a dramatic change, momentarily, due to the activation of class forces here and an external mobilisations made by Tamils. The latter was able to exert much pressure on India. In this scenario, Indians were outraged by the Mahinda regime’s latest attempt to disembowel the 13th Amendment. Indian leaders had to ask themselves “Do Mahinda and Prof. GL think we in New Delhi are blithering idiots who can’t see through their hocus pocus”? Mahinda perfectly understands that all cannot be fooled all the time. He came up as a centre-left leader working closely with the CP and the LSSP. He was very close to Vasu too. He is not prepared yet to completely abandon this political image he has built with a lot of patience and hard work. He does not want to relinquish his radical populist past. " The widespread complaint is that the Opposition Leader has none of the abilities the President has got, so he is incapable of defeating Mahinda. But one can easily see that the problems faced by the government cannot be solved only by tactics. Mahinda is not doing do very well in the arena of strategy and programme. The country cannot survive only by tactical steps taken by its political leaders. Serious and far-reaching changes are essential to unite the country " In my opinion, Mahinda is a maestro of evasion. His ability to slither out of a tight corner will put an eel to shame. His ability to make friends is unbeatable. When confronted with strong resistance, he could make a feint of retreating, without conceding any real ground. Once resistance has been disarmed by promises, he returns with lightening speed, without giving their distracted opponents the time to re-arm. At least that is what he will attempt. The widespread complaint is that the Opposition Leader has none of the abilities the President has got, so he is incapable of defeating Mahinda. But one can easily see that the problems faced by the government cannot be solved only by tactics. Mahinda is not doing very well in the arena of strategy and programme. The country cannot survive only by tactical steps taken by its political leaders. Serious and far-reaching changes are essential to unite the country. |
