This is What Happens When You Put Cut Up Onions in Your Socks While You Sleep

ENLIGHTENED PLANET

The bottom of your feet are powerful and direct access points to internal organs in your body through what is known as meridians in Chinese medicine.  These meridians are pathways to each organ with your body. Some people say that meridians do not exist within the body or at the bottom of the feet. For those that understand Chinese medicine you may know that the meridian system is very closely correlated with the nervous system.

If you believe you have nerves and a nervous system, you believe you have meridians too, it’s basically the same thing when you interpret it and look at where the meridians are within the body.
The bottom of the feet have many different nerve endings, approximately 7,000 (basically meridians) that directly link to different organs within the body.

They are very powerful electrical circuits within the body and are often dormant because we wear shoes and don’t get accupuncture done to help the meridians or nerves in any way. This is why I recommend walking outside barefoot! To stimulate those meridians on the bottom of your feet as well as to ground yourself with the earth’s negative ion field.

One of the coolest ways to open up these electrical pathways (meridians) and to help purify your internal organs without doing anything internal (diet related) is to cut up onions or garlic and put them in your socks (at the bottom part of your feet) while sleeping.

Onions and garlic are known air purifiers and when applied to the skin topically they kill germs and bacteria but also the phosphoric acid (the substance from onions that makes you cry when you cut them open) enters the bloodstream it helps to purify the blood and kill any bacteria or germs that may be festering waiting to give you the flu.

Some people go so far as to say to never reuse an onion because it will collect germs and bacteria and then you’re eating that. I am not sure if this is true or not because it’s a percentage of people that say it is, and some that say it isn’t! What I do know though is that the onions do age (oxidize, age from oxygen) on the layer that’s cut open and eating oxidized food isn’t the freshest and healthiest form of that food, so cutting that layer off before you eat the onion may be smart to avoid eating germ or bacteria infested layer of onion.

So it’s fairly simple, here are the two steps to purify your blood, and kill germs and bacteria.

Step 1: Cut Up Organic Onions Into Slices (White or Red Onions)

You’ll want to use organic onions because they will be free of pesticides and other chemicals you don’t want sitting on your feet and entering your bloodstream all night. You’ll just want to cut the onions into flat slices so that they can be applied to the bottom of your entire foot (like a platform) so the bottom of your feet are immersed with onion while you sleep.

Step 2: Put The Onions In Your Sock Under Your Foot (on the bottom) And Sleep!

As you sleep the natural healing powers of the onion will go to work through your skin (trans-dermal application) purifying your blood and killing bacteria and germs as well as absorbing toxins! It will also help to purify the air in your room.

You’ll benefit from the air purifying effects as well! In England, during plagues they would chop up onions and leave them in the room to purify the air and to help them not be susceptible to infections, the flu or anything that may harm them.

As you can see here in the picture below the organs and systems within the body and their meridian connection points in the foot.

Here are the benefits of cutting up an onion and putting it in your sock (at the bottom) while you sleep…

1. Purify your blood: Phosphoric acid from the onions as it’s applied and absorbed through trans-dermal means purifies the blood.

2. Kills bacteria, germs and pathogens: Onions (and garlic) have strong anti-bacterial and anti-viral benefits!

3. Purify the air: This little chamber of smelly onion around your feet will purify the air and keep your feet smelling better and free of toxins and chemicals pulling them out of your feet while you sleep.

If you found this information cool, useful or valuable please hit share and let your friends on facebook benefit from this as well!

போர்க் குற்றவாளிகள் தண்டிக்கப்பட வேண்டும் : ஐ.நா சிறப்பு தூதுவரிடம் வலியுறுத்தியது த.தே.கூ

ஏப்ரல் 2015, வெள்ளி "இலங்கையில் இடம்பெற்ற போர்க்குற்றங்கள் மற்றும் மனித உரிமைகள் தொடர்பில் அரசு ஆரம்பிக்கவுள்ள உள்ளக விசாரணையில் எமக்கு நம்பிக்கையில்லை.    எதிர்வரும் செப்டெம்பரில் ஐ.நா. விசாரணை அறிக்கையையே நாம் எதிர்பார்த்திருக்கின்றோம். ஐ.நா. விசாரணை அறிக்கையின் பிரகாரம் போர்க்குற்றவாளிகள் தண்டிக்கப்படவேண்டும்.''என்று, ஐ.நாவின் சிறப்பு நிபுணர் பப்லோ டி கிரெய்ப்பிடம் நேரில் வலியுறுத்தினர் இரா.சம்பந்தன் தலைமையிலான தமிழ்த் தேசியக் கூட்டமைப்பின் நாடாளுமன்ற உறுப்பினர்கள்.    நேற்று  கொழும்பு தாஜ் சமுத்திரா ஹோட்டலில் தமிழ்த் தேசியக் கூட்டமைப்பின் நாடாளுமன்ற உறுப்பினர்களைச் ஐ.நா. சிறப்பு நிபுணர் சந்தித்துப் பேச்சு நடத்தினார்.    காலை 7.30 மணியிலிருந்து 8.30 மணிவரை இந்தச் சந்திப்பு இடம்பெற்றது. இந்தச் சந்திப்பில் தமிழ்த் தேசியக் கூட்டமைப்பின் சார்பில்  தலைவர் இரா.சம்பந்தன், நாடாளுமன்ற உறுப்பினர்களான சுரேஷ் பிரேமச்சந்திரன்,செல்வம் அடைக்கலநாதன், எம்.ஏ.சுமந்திரன் ஆகியோர் கலந்துகொண்டனர்.    இந்தச் சந்திப்புக்குறித்து கருத்து தெரிவித்த கூட்டமைப்பு உறுப்பினர்கள் மேலும் தெரிவிக்கையில்,   இலங்கையில் ஜனாதிபதி மைத்திரிபால சிறிசேன தலைமையில் ஆட்சிபீடத்தில் ஏறிய புதிய அரசுஇ தமிழ் மக்களின் அனைத்துப் பிரச்சினைகளுக்கும் தீர்வு காண்போம் என்று வாக்குறுதியளித்துள்ளது.    ஆனால், இந்த வாக்குறுதிகளை செயலில் காட்டுவதில் தாமதம் காட்டுகின்றது புதிய அரசு. எனவே, வடக்கு,கிழக்கில் மீள்குடியேற்றம், இராணுவக் குறைப்பு, தமிழ் அரசியல் கைதிகளின் விடுதலை மற்றும் காணாமல்போனோர் விவகாரம் உட்பட மக்களின் உடனடிப் பிரச்சினைகளுக்கும், இலங்கையில் நீண்டகாலமாகத் தொடரும் இனப்பிரச்சினைக்கும் உடன் தீர்வை வழங்க இந்த அரசு நடவடிக்கைகளை எடுக்கவேண்டும்.    இதற்கு ஐ.நாவின் அழுத்தம் தொடர்ந்து இருக்கவேண்டும்'' - என்று கூட்டாக வலியுறுத்தpயுள்ளோம்.   மேலும் "சர்வதேச அரங்கில் தமிழர் பிரச்சினை ஒலிக்க இலங்கை மீதான ஐ.நா. தீர்மானங்கள் முக்கிய பங்கு வகிக்கின்றன.    எனவேஇ இலங்கையில் தமிழர் எதிர் நோக்கிய அவலங்களுக்கு ஐ.நா. நீதியைப் பெற்றுக்கொடுப்பதுடன் நிரந்தர அரசியல் தீர்வையும் பெற்றுக்கொடுக்கவேண்டும்'' - என்றும் கோரிக்கை விடுத்துள்ளதாக் தமிழ்த் தேசியக் கூட்டமைப்பின் நாடாளுமன்ற உறுப்பினர்கள் தெரிவித்தனர்.

Water Pollution At Chunnakam & Surrounding Areas

By Murali Vallipuranathan -April 3, 2015

Dr. Murali Vallipuranathan

Hon. Mr. P.Ayngaranesan
Minister of Agriculture
Northern Province

2nd April 2015

Dear Mr. Ayngaranesan,

Since you have stated in your mail (pasted below) that “Dr. Murali Vallipuranathan is free to contact us direct, rather than through others, and we will certainly provide him the information he needs. “ I am writing to you as follows:

1. I have already sent an open letter on 20th February 2015 to Hon. Chief Minister of the Northern Province on the Chunnakam water pollution issue which was widely reported in the media. In response to my letter the Private Secretary of the Chief Minister Mr. A. Suntharalingam informed me that the Chief Minister wanted to meet me on 13th March 2015 and the exact time for the meeting would be conveyed to me after consulting you because the Chief Minister wanted your presence at this meeting. However, to date Mr. Suntharalingam neither called me confirming a meeting with the Chief Minister nor informed me that this matter is referred to you. If you are not fully aware of the contents of my letter to Chief Minister please see a copy of my letter is attached herewith. I still look forward to have a meeting with you and the Chief Minister on this issue.

2. It is incorrect to imply that I have tried to contact you through third parties abroad. All I wrote to Dr. K.Rajaram was about the field equipment FROG 4000 funded by him and other diaspora members believing that it would help the affected people in Chunnakam to get relief and certainly not to clear the Northern Power Company from the charges it faces for polluting the environment disregarding the law. I wanted this equipment to be tested in some of the visibly polluted wells in the region with utmost transparency and that to be video recorded so that those who are not present also will come to know the truth.Read More

Chandrika calls for national reconciliation

Sri Lanka's former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga. File photo

MEERA SRINIVASAN-April 3, 2015

Sri Lanka is now reverting to a foreign policy based on a principle of "dynamic active non-alignment", the country's former President said.

The government’s efforts to promote national unity in Sri Lanka will break down unless there is reconciliation, according to the former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga.

“I think it is absolutely crucial,” Ms. Kumaratunga told The Hindu in her first interview to international media in some years.

Recently invited to head a special presidential task force on reconciliation, she said it would be transformed into a permanent office on national unity and reconciliation. “We have been very encouraged by the reaction we have had already [received] from the international community, including India which is offering us a lot of help to do all this work,” she said.

‘Sri Lanka restoring ties with India’

Sri Lanka is now reverting to a foreign policy based on a principle of “dynamic active non-alignment”, Ms. Kumaratunga said.

She said the country was working hard to re-establish good relations with India after they were “completely sabotaged” by the past government.

Ms. Kumaratunga — who met Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to Sri Lanka in March – said Mr. Modi, was the first Indian Prime Minister to visit the country in a long time, and also two months after the new government came in. “So it was a very strong message of friendship that he gave us.”

Ever since her return to politics late 2014, backing the joint opposition platform against former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, Ms. Kumaratunga has been actively engaged in the reconciliatory efforts of the new government under President Maithripala Sirisena.

Attired in a summery white kurta and trousers, Ms. Kumaratunga spoke to this correspondent in the high-roofed reception room of her home in the heart of Colombo.

Currently focusing on rebuilding the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) — founded by her father S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike, subsequently led by her mother Sirimavo Bandaranaike and later herself — which according to her was effectively weakened by Mr. Rajapaksa, she plans to travel across the country with President Maithripala Sirisena to speak to the people at the field level and “alleviate the problem”.

Mr. Rajapaksa, she said, was defeated by the people of Sri Lanka in a democratic election mainly for his bad governance “his family’s corruption, the lack of human rights and some murders and the lack of freedom overall”.

Commenting on the regime change that the island witnessed in January 2015, the former President said: “One thing that everybody says, including his Ministers, is that even if we get nothing the feeling of freedom we have, after the Rajapaksas went, is so great. This was a police state. The people voted them out.”

After the new government took over, the engagement between Colombo and the Tamil National Alliance, the main Tamil party representing Sri Lanka’s northern Tamils, in her view, has been “excellent.”

“They [the TNA] have to shout once in a while to keep their identity but we have very good relations,” she said, on concerns raised by sections within the TNA over the pace and direction of the new government’s efforts.

Rules out return to ‘ugly’ electoral politics

Observing that she would now like to contribute to reconciliatory efforts in the country, Ms. Kumaratunga however ruled out returning to electoral politics. Asked if her son Vimukti would — amid local reports speculating on his entry to politics — she said: “I don’t want to speak for my son but I definitely will not come into electoral politics. I think it is very ugly.”

This, she noted, despite sections among the international community insisting that she consider returning. On whether India was among those countries keen on her return, she said, “No comments.”

'Success depends on accountability and reconciliation' in Sri Lanka says US official

Tom Malinowski        ✔ @Malinowski Follow Just met w/ #SriLanka FM @MangalaLK; Agreed that success depends on accountability & reconciliation 3:53 AM - 2 Apr 2015

 02 April 2015
The United States Assistant Secretary for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor met with Sri Lanka's Foreign Minister today, emphasising the importance of accountability and reconciliation.

'Success Depends on Accountability and Reconciliation' in Sri Lanka Says US Official by Thavam Ratna

Redbridge Council Passes Motion Calling For Justice For SL Tamils

April 3, 2015

The Council of the London Borough of Redbridge has passed a historic motion calling upon the British Prime Minister and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to ensure justice is delivered to the Tamils in Sri Lanka by implementing a solution to the conflict that meets the people’s aspirations.

Paul Canal

The motion that had been proposed by Conservative Group Leader Paul Canal had received cross party support and had been carried unanimously. While noting that for many decades the Tamils of Sri Lanka have been subjected to many atrocities of genocidal proportions by the Government of Sri Lanka, the motion points out that even presently the Government of Sri Lanka has not expressed any will to address the root cause of the conflict.

Pointing out that the international community has failed to deliver on its promises by the deferral of the OISL; the Redbridge Council has called upon the UK Prime Minister, the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and the UN Secretary General to facilitate the delivery of the following:

• The delivery of a permanent political solution to address the root cause of the conflict that would meet the aspirations of the Tamil people
• Justice for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed against the Tamil people
• A mechanism that would ensure the socio-economic and cultural well-being while safeguarding historical identity

While expressing his pleasure on the passing of the motion, the Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group for Tamils Chair and Ilford North MP Lee Scott has said, “It is important that the entire population of this country is informed of the positive contribution that the Tamil community makes to this country and of the issues faced by their kith and kin in Sri Lanka.”

A Proof of Feasibility of Accommodating FPP within the PR System

by Laksiri Fernando

( April 3, 2015, Sydney, Sri Lanka Guardian) Reforming of the electoral system is a hot topic these days. Even abolishing or reforming the executive presidential system might (or threatened to) depend on finding a feasible reform for the electoral system. There are some who want to get back to the old first past the post (FPP) system. There are others who prefer or want to stick to the proportional representation (PR). The general thinking for a long time has been to employ a mixed system which is again controversial due to a lack of feasible method or controversy over employable different formulas. The Dinesh Gunawardena Report is one example for this imbroglio.

A Proof of Feasibility of Accommodating FPP Within the PR System by Thavam Ratna

Hindutva India and the Ethnic Problem

By Izeth Hussain-April 3, 2015, 7:52 pm 

This article is really in continuation of my two previous articles (Island of March 21 and March 28) in which I covered the implications of what transpired during Prime Minister Modi’s visit to Sri Lanka. A third article covering the same ground might seem redundant, or at least excessive considering that no one else is now writing on that subject. Actually I am writing this article because I have come to a novel conclusion that had not occurred to me earlier. It is that there has been a paradigm shift in our ethnic problem in relation to India, a shift that can lead to the most fateful consequences. The shift is this: hitherto India has had a legitimate concern with securing a political solution for the Tamil ethnic problem through devolution in the North and East; now it is concerned about the welfare of the hill-country Tamils as well. I believe that the explanation for this shift is to be found in the politics implicit in the ideology of Hindutva.

According to a detailed comment on my last article by my former erudite colleague Bandu de Silva, Prime Minister Modi had declared that the issues of the hill-country Tamils had not been properly addressed and he had invited their representatives to visit him in Delhi. That apparently was more or less the gist of what he had reportedly said. If that is correct, It signifies a new departure in India’s thinking about Sri Lanka, which in my view has sinister implications and therefore requires scrupulous analysis. In this situation, we must first of all be absolutely clear in our minds about how far India can legitimately go in intervening over the Sri Lankan Tamils. On this matter we must be prepared to jettison widespread Sri Lankan preconceptions and prejudices and accept the standards of the international community.

We have to abide – whether we like it or not, and in terms of international norms – by commitments made under the Peace Accords of 1987. That certainly means that we are committed to working out a political solution on the basis of 13A. Equally certainly it means that we are not committed to going beyond that to something vaguely known as 13A+. If India insists on that, it would be tantamount to inadmissible interference in our internal affairs. According to the feedbacks I have been getting it appears that some Tamils, perhaps most, hold that we are indeed committed to 13A+ because President Rajapakse kept on speaking about it and even made a pledge to the UN Secretary General about it. But he did not have the backing of the Parliament and Government for doing that, and besides he was tantalizingly obscure about what he meant by 13+. A convenient amnesia has overtaken the Tamils I have cited about the fact that when President MR eventually did explain what he had in mind to Tamil leaders it turned out to be devolution into small units, which the Tamil leaders quite rightly regarded as risibly nonsensical. The plain truth is that Prime Minister Modi had no warrant at all for recommending that we go beyond 13A.

Before dealing with Modi’s reference to the hill country Tamils I must make my position clear about India’s intervention over our ethnic problem. I hold that India meant to help us, not to dominate us, though it committed some gigantic blunders just as the rest of the international community did. The guiding principle behind Indian intervention was this: what is done to the Tamils here inevitably causes a fall-out in Tamil Nadu, which can even lead to a separatist drive there. JR began his State terrorism against the Tamils in 1977 and allowed it to go to a genocidal extreme in 1983. But even before 1983 India gave training to Tamil rebels, but that was of a token order and was clearly meant to appease Tamil Nadu in terms of the principle I have just set out. The real civil war began around April 1984, which was the consequence not of anything done by India but of JR’s genocidal State terrorism. Later India did everything possible to help end the war. The IPKF troops were not imposed on us but sent here at the request of JR, and they were withdrawn without demur when Premadasa requested it. By then India had lost over a thousand of the IPKF troops. We must bear in mind that India denied the use of South India as a hinterland for the LTTE, which was a crucial factor behind the LTTE’s defeat. I strongly suspect that at the final stage of the war India cleverly contrived the wiping out of the entire LTTE leadership – just punishment for having dared to assassinate an Indian Prime Minister.

I am aware that much more can be said against Indian intervention but that does not cancel out the fact that we owe recompense to India for what it did for us. If we don’t acknowledge that fact we will be regarded by the international community as ingrates of a low order. By way of recompense all that is required is a final political solution through the implementation of 13A so that India could be rid of an irritant that could prove to be dangerous sometime in the future. Sri Lanka has misgivings about land and police powers, but it should be quite feasible to work out a compromise on that. Now Prime Minister Modi has compounded the problem by recommending going beyond 13A and even federalism, though he must be quite well aware that it is an F word both in Sri Lanka and in India. And now comes the report about his concern over the hill-country Tamils. It certainly amounts to interference in the internal affairs of Sri Lanka.

The important point is that the hill country Tamils, also referred to as Indian Tamils of recent origin and estate Tamils, have never been a component in Sri Lanka’s Tamil ethnic problem. The reason is that because of caste taboos they have been treated as a people apart who have had little or no interaction with the fully indigenous Sri Lankan Tamils. They have never asked for Eelam or even devolution as a solution for their problems. The elder Thondaman, among the ablest of Sri Lankan politicians, followed pragmatic policies that paid rich dividends for his people. Doubtless ills remain and may be they have not been properly addressed, but that surely was a matter for private discussion, not public declaration.

Was it no more than a faux pas? Significantly it was believed that RAW had persuaded the hill country Tamils to vote against Rajapakse despite the contrary preference of their political leaders. It seems reasonable to suppose that a paradigm shift is taking place because of the present Indian Government’s Hindutva ideology. I leave it to the interested reader to turn to the internet for plenty of information about that ideology. It is Fascist, racist, retrogressive, atavistic, maniacally anti-Muslim and anti-Christian, and in relation to modernity it is certainly a bizarre ideology. In several places in India there are projects to build temples in honor of Godse, the assassin of Gandhi. How bizarre the ideology is, is shown by its policy on conversions: it is forbidden for Hindus to convert to other religions but it is alright for Muslims and others to convert to Hinduism because that is seen as reconversion to their original religion and the recovery of their birthright. Low-caste Hindus who converted to Islam because as Hindus they were spat on every day of their lives are asked to believe that in reconverting to Hinduism they will be regaining their birthright. That’s hard to beat for its sheer idiocy. I won’t be surprised if Modi’s sudden concern for the hill-country Tamils has arisen out of a fear that they might convert to Islam.

Anyway the important point for Sri Lanka is this: what happens to our Tamils has up to now been a matter of concern to Tamil Nadu, but if they are seen as Hindus it becomes a matter of concern for the whole of India. It is a paradigm shift that makes me feel uneasy. Did our Tamils inspire that shift? It is quite possible that when Modi came to power with the reputation of being an extraordinarily tough character our Tamils sensed an opportunity to persuade the Indian Government to adopt a tough policy towards Sri Lanka. I won’t blame the Tamils for that considering that our Governments have had a horrible record of reneging on commitments on the ethnic problem. I am now wondering whether a political solution will ever be possible through an agreement between the Government and the Tamil parties. On the other hand a grass roots strategy might succeed. If we fully implement 13A minus, that is minus land and police powers, and combine it with the plus factor of a fully functioning democracy, we might see the end of the ethnic problem. In fact, quite frankly, I feel sure of it.

izethhussain@gmail.com

சிறுவர் இல்லத்திலிருந்த சிறுமியை காணவில்லை

01 ஏப்ரல் 2015, புதன் யாழ்ப்பாணம், ஆனைப்பந்தியில் அமைந்துள்ள தியாகி அறக்கொடை சிறுவர் இல்லத்தில் தங்கியிருந்த சிறுமியை காணவில்லையென இல்ல உத்தியோகத்தரால், யாழ்ப்பாணப் பொலிஸ் நிலையத்தில் நேற்று முறைப்பாடொன்று செய்யப்பட்டுள்ளது. நிஷாந்தன் திலக்கி (வயது 11) என்ற சிறுமியே இவ்வாறு காணாமற்போயுள்ளார். நேற்று மதியம் மலசல கூடத்துக்குச் சென்ற சிறுமியே இவ்வாறு காணாமல்போயுள்ளார் என்று பொலிஸ் முறைப்பாட்டில் தெரிவிக்கப்பட்டுள்ளதாக கூறிய யாழ்ப்பாணம் பொலிஸார், சம்பவம் தொடர்பில் மேலதிக விசாரணைகளை மேற்கொண்டு வருவதாகவும் தெரிவித்துள்ளனர்.

MR Is Suffering From Raaja Una: Harrison

April 3, 2015

ByMinister P Harrison has said former President Mahinda Rajapaksa is suffering from රාජ උණ (an obsession with royalty) that cannot be cured by any type of medication.

Harrison

While making these remarks during a press conference held today, the Minister had said MR should take cues from the results of the recent Presidential election and realize that people have in fact rejected him.

“Every other President before him retired – but he, after holding an arbitrary election even before his term ended – was voted out by the people. He should realize that the people have rejected him,” he said.

The Minister went on to say that a few politicians including Wimal Weerawansa, Udaya Gammanpila, Dinesh Gunawardena and Vasudeva Nanayakkara without a political future are the ones who have forced him to attempt to re-enter politics since they are well aware that their future security in politics depends on the survival of MR. “They have latched on him like leeches and would push MR into more trouble that he already is in,” he added.

He had went on to state that MR should take pointers from President Sirisena on how to give up and form former President JR Jayawadena on how to behave like a gentleman after leaving the position.

Cabinet nod for laws banning hate speech

2015-04-03
The Cabinet has approved an amendment to the Penal Code by including strict laws to take action against those who engage in hate speech that would result in communal, religious and ethnic disharmony.

The amendment was submitted by Justice Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe in keeping with the recommendations made by the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC).

Cabinet Spokesman and Minister Rajitha Senaratne said today the amendment which bans hate speech was essential for peaceful co-existence and political consensus.

“In the recent past there have been speeches which promoted religious extremism. Such an amendment has been recommended by the (LLRC),” he told the weekly Cabinet news briefing.

The Penal Code, when amended by the Legal Draughtsman will be published in the government gazette and presented in Parliament for approval and enactment. (Lahiru Pothmulla)
- See more at: http://www.dailymirror.lk/68387/cabinet-nod-for-laws-banning-hate-speech#sthash.Hq93PPxe.dpuf

Global politics and the further rise of anti-democratic forces

April 1, 2015, 8:20 pm 

A handout picture released by the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) on March 31, 2015, shows Syrian pro-government fighters sitting on an armoured vehicle in the mountains surrounding the city of Zabadani, some 50km northwest of Damascus, after they retook the area from the rebel fighters. Zabadani is considered strategic because of its proximity to the Lebanese border and the mountainous border region where many rebels sought refuge after being routed from the Qalamun area earlier this year. AFP

Looked at from this point of view, it could be said that Sri Lanka too has contributed quite substantially towards these pernicious trends in international politics. Particularly appalling in recent times was the anti-Muslim violence in some parts of Southern Sri Lanka two years ago, where governmental complicity was evident, in that nothing was done by the then central administration to quell the violence. It brought to mind the mind-numbing ethnic riots of July 1983 in Sri Lanka, where the then UNP administration was accused of ‘turning the other way’ and letting it all happen.

While it is indisputable that religion and ethnicity are markedly present in global politics and are proving increasingly divisive in their impact, what is equally thought-provoking is the unsettling emergence of sectarian violence in those regions where religion-fuelled armed militancy has been on a steady rise. A case in point is the Shia-Sunni divide in the Middle East. The cumulative impact of these trends in international politics could very well be the steady erosion of democratic politics globally and the institutions and values that go along with it.

Looked at from this point of view, it could be said that Sri Lanka too has contributed quite substantially towards these pernicious trends in international politics. Particularly appalling in recent times was the anti-Muslim violence in some parts of Southern Sri Lanka two years ago, where governmental complicity was evident, in that nothing was done by the then central administration to quell the violence. It brought to mind the mind-numbing ethnic riots of July 1983 in Sri Lanka, where the then UNP administration was accused of ‘turning the other way’ and letting it all happen.

The current administration in Sri Lanka is faced with the surmountable challenge of fostering and consolidation ethnic and religious harmony and in this task it cannot afford not to be forthright and plain-spoken about the chores confronting it. The clear answer to ethnic and religious strife is equality in its numerous dimensions and unless and until Sri Lanka is equal to the task of establishing a solid institutional basis for equality it cannot expect to manage ethnic and religion-based disharmony.

In other words, Sri Lanka cannot expect to launch the never- touched mega project of nation-building unless the issue of ethnic and religious equality is faced and resolved in the form of a state where all our ethnic and religious groups could live on the basis of equal citizenry. It needs also to be remembered that the Mahinda Rajapaksa administration was shown the door by the majority of local voters on account of its affiliations with religious extremists. Those so-called Leftist and ‘progressive’ political forces and individuals who consorted with the previous administration, stand accused too of turning the other way, while the government concerned enjoyed close, fraternal ties with extremists.

The other side of the coin, as it were, to the rise of religious and other forms of extremism, is the erosion of democratic governance and its connected institutions. The brutal intolerance of organizations such as the IS and Al-qaeda is proof of this tendency. Besides, some of these extremist political forces are backed by regimes the world over whose democratic credentials, if any, are very much in doubt. Some of these issues are currently coming to the fore in Yemen, for instance, where the Yemenese government is battling religious extremist forces which are backed by external quarters which have tenuous links with democracy and its institutions. The forces of extremism and their backers apparently have as one of their objectives, the weakening of the democratic process, which, if taken to its logical conclusion, should lead to the establishment and institutionalization of equality.

It does not follow from the foregoing that the West in general epitomises the essence of democracy. The latter system of government is essentially all about the steady empowerment of people in diverse ways. To the degree to which this happens, a state could be said to be democratic; to the extent to which this does not happen a state could be described as repressive. It ought to be clear that very many Western states do not answer to this description fully.

As this is being written, President Bashar Al Assad of Syria is reported as saying in an interview given to PBS television that Syria’s close allies, Russia and Iran, are seeking a ‘balance in the world.’ Clarifying the nature of Syria’s alliance with Russia and Iran, Assad said: "It’s not about Syria. I’m a small country. It’s not about having a huge interest in Syria. They could have it anywhere else.....So, it’s about the future of the world. They want to be a great power that has their own say in the future of this world.’

The Syrian President has said a mouthful about current developments in global politics in the plainest terms. In the current multipolar international political order, countries, such as, Russia, China and Iran are in a bid to counterbalance the power of the West ,led by the US; which power and control is on the decline. The rising power of states, such as , China and Iran, is something the West would need to continuously contend with, but the concern for the world ought to be the empowerment of peoples or citizens everywhere. To what extent are ‘ordinary people’ being provided their legitimate dues by their governments? This is the prime question which begs an urgent answer by rulers everywhere.

The latter questions are of the first importance because security issues which come in the wake of extremist violence in the developing world, have the effect of further eroding the rights of people and their empowerment. While sectarian violence further compounds a state’s security issues, the tendency of most governments in the face of these crises is to curtail the rights and freedoms of citizens.. The seemingly unending suffering of the people of Syria and Iraq, graphically substantiates this point. In most areas of the developing world in particular the people are facing exceedingly oppressive conditions, resulting from war and conflict.

Governments of the developing world would not be easing the lot of their publics by aligning themselves strongly with major powers who may be mostly engaged in consolidating their influence and control internationally. in relation to like actors. On the contrary, the developing world needs to reactivate organizations such as the Non-aligned Movement which have as their prime aim the furtherance of the wellbeing of ‘ordinary people’ everywhere. They would do better to re-energetically explore the possibilities of South-South Cooperation.

Arms dealer Ex ambassador Udayanga ,a relative of Mahinda Rajapakse who disappeared is murder suspect – victim’s body to be exhumed

(Lanka-e-News- 02.April.2015, 11.45PM)  The remains of Ranaweera Kaluarachige Noel Ranaweera (36) , the translator and personal secretary of Udayanga Weeratunge the ex ambassador of Russia and relative of ex president Mahinda Rajapakse is to be exhumed from the place of his burial at Welikadamulla cemetery on the  2 nd - nine months after his death. Udayanga Weeratunge is the ex ambassador against whom there are charges of supplying arms to rebels in Ukraine and a partner in Gotabaya’s illicit arms deals. He is at the moment gone missing. 

The relatives of Noel Ranaweera are harboring suspicions that Noel was murdered by Udayanga as the former  was  aware of the illicit weapon deals of Udayanga . Noel ‘s mother Josephine Nona had therefore made an application to the Attanagala magistrate  court , and the  Magistrate M Y.M. Irshadeen had granted her request to exhume the body.

Udayanga Weeratunge had informed the family of Ranaweera that the latter died in a vehicle accident on the night of 2014- 06-11  in south of Russia. The relatives said , the remains of Ranaweera was flown to Colombo ,Sri Lanka (SL) on 2014. 06.15. The body was taken to a funeral parlor , and the relatives revealed there was a huge bruise on Ranaweera’s neck. Udayanga had at that time told Ranaweera ‘s relatives that as all  the post mortem  examinations had been already conducted in Russia , further examination in Sri Lanka is not necessary. This statement of Udayanga had triggered their suspicions , the relatives of Ranaweera  disclosed.  Since that day until the body was interred on the 18 th of June 2014 , Weeratunge and his group have had stayed  put in the funeral house .

The mother of the deceased has lodged a complaint with   the Attanagala police on the   22 nd of March, as she could not garner any information under the last government .

Noel Ranawera residing at 112 , Welikadamulla, Nittambuwa was invited on 2002-07-21 by Udayanga to Ukraine to work in the Rest house , ‘Laklab Lankala’ run by  Udayanga. Subsequently , when Udayanga was appointed as the Ambassador , Noel was given employment in the embassy office.

It has also come to light that after obtaining monies from Ranaweera , Udayanga had maintained a joint bank account with the former .Meanwhile , when the CHOGM conference was held in SL in 2013 , Noel along with a group of 60 arrived here from Russia for a trade conference held about the same time as the CHOGM . In the death certificate  it was mentioned that Noel  Ranaweera  died of  chest injuries.
 
A Lanka deepa newspaper  reporter revealed, at that time when Udayanga was questioned in his house at Nittambuwa about the doubts surrounding the death  of Ranaweera , Udayanga Weeratunge was evasive in his answers and simply replied that all the post mortem examinations were done in Russia duly.

---------------------------
by     (2015-04-03 09:43:12)