Conditional nominations for MR

CBK will join the fray to counter MR nominations

Fresh issue over UPFA national list slots

Rasika Jayakody-Wednesday, July 8, 2015

President Maithripala Sirisena, after lengthy negotiations with different stakeholders of the UPFA, has agreed to offer conditional nominations for former President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

According to conditions laid out by the President, Rajapksa should only contest from Hambanthota and he will not be named as the Prime Ministerial candidate of the UPFA. In addition, he will not be appointed as the head of the campaign or the district leader, informed party sources told the Daily News last night.

President Sirisena had also declined to give any promise that Rajapaksa would be appointed as the Prime Minister even if the UPFA secured a majority at the Parliamentary election. The President had said that a decision would be made on the Prime Minister after the election, based on the preference of the MPs.

"According to the conditions, former President Rajapaksa will have to remain in Parliament as an ordinary MP if he doesn't get appointed as the Prime Minister," a strongman of the SLFP, who was privy to discussions on Tuesday, told the Daily News.

Meanwhile, a section of staunch supporters of the former President will not receive nominations to contest under the UPFA ticket.

Sajin Vaas Gunawardena, Duminda Silva, Mervyn Silva and Premalal Jayasekera will not receive nominations on the grounds that bribery, corruption and criminal charges have been leveled against them.

The President has opposed giving nominations to Rohitha Abetgunawardena, Johnston Fernando, Lakshman Wasantha Perara and Mahindananda Aluthgamage. However, the pro-Rajapaksa group has now embarked on a feverish mission to get the President's consent to give nominations to the four ex-Parliamentarians.

Meanwhile, Western Provincial Council member Samanmalee Sakalasooriya, a member of the pro-Rajapaksa camp, is unlikely to receive nominations to contest the election, SLFP nominations committee sources said.

Former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga had insisted she would contest the election if Rajapaksa signed nomination papers. "The former President's stance is very clear. She would not come from the National List; she would contest the election and come to Parliament from people's votes," a spokesperson close to the former President told the Daily News last night.

A fresh issue has emerged in the SLFP over national list slots. Professor G.L. Pieris, Anura Priyadarshana Yapa, Susil Premajayantha, Dullas Alahapperuma, Dilan Perera and several key members from the constituent parties of the UPFA have expressed willingness to come from the National List, without contesting the election.

This move has met with heavy resistance from President Maithripala Sirisena and former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga who are of the view that professionals and intellectuals should be given more space in the national list.

Speaking to the Daily News, members of the Rajapaksa camp said Rajapaksa was expected to sign nomination papers today (July 08) or tomorrow (July 9). 

- See more at: http://www.dailynews.lk/?q=local/conditional-nominations-mr#sthash.OMljjLWX.dpuf

Granting MR Nominations: ‘President Sirisena Should Come Clear’

(Puravesi Balaya co-convener Saman Ratnapriya addressing the media on 06th .)

07/07/2015

President Maithripala Sirisena should make a clear statement on whether he has agreed to give nominations to former President Mahinda Rajapaksa from the UPFA since the people have not been formally informed of the decision, Puravesi Balaya co-convener Saman Ratnapriya said. President Sirisena will be going against the public mandate he received at the January 8 polls, if he gives nominations to former President Rajapaksa to contest the upcoming parliamentary election, he said.

Addressing the media at the Public Library Auditorium yesterday, Ratnapriya added that the very person who came forward to establish good governance by defeating Rajapaksa has agreed to work together in the future with the latter.

He said if the President decides to give nominations he will lose his credibility.

The promise given to the people were to govern the country under the policies of good governance. President Sirisena has to take a strong decision on Rajapaksa’s eligibility to contest. President Sirisena is going against the wishes of the very people who voted for him, he added.

Puravesi Balaya co-convener Gamini Viyangoda said that the move to allow Rajapaksa to contest the parliamentary elections on the UPFA ticket was the result of a behind-the-scenes dialogue during the past few days.

President Sirisena’s decision to give nominations to Rajapaksa has put people in distress. Mahinda Rajapaksa trying to enter politics through a different channel is unacceptable, he added.

President Sirisena is expressing contrary opinions where he has failed to respond to the promises given to the people. He stated at Matara that he has 47 years of experience as a politician.

The people do not question his experience. He has to assure that an anti-Rajpaksa political campaign is carried out – the very reason why people voted for him at the presidential election, Viyangoda said.

Giving importance to the people’s mandate, President Sirisena should make a clear statement to the people, said Puravesi Balaya co-convener K.W Janranjana.

The President’s move is a disappointment to the people and all the other political parties who supported him during the election.The country saw horrendous human rights violations under the former regime. There was a collapse of law and order. Journalists were harassed.The people rejected the former president for these reasons, he added. He said that Puravesi Balaya is confident that the people would deliver a suitable reply to the former President at the forthcoming polls. They urged the people to reject politicians with questionable backgrounds at the upcoming polls.

Nushka Nafeel
CDN

Nimal, Susil, Anura, Dallas and Dilan demands national list, Maithri refuse

Wednesday, 08 July 2015

Yesterday 7th during a meeting held at Rajitha Senarathna’s house with the participation of President Maithripala Sirisena and senior SLFP leaders, the opposition leader Nimal Siripala De Silva, UPFA secretary Susil Prem Jayanth, SLFP secretary Anura Priyadharshana Yapa, Dallas Alahapperuma and Dilan Perera has demanded national list MP posts from the president.

The president who has called both Susil and Anura has said since both are vigorous figures in the SLFP it is important that both should contest and win. Meantime the president has challenged Nimal Siripala and the other two members also to contest and win.

Iraqi militias vow to push Islamic State from Fallujah, site of tough U.S. battle

In this Tuesday, July 7, 2015, photo, Iraqi security forces and allied Shiite militiamen launch rockets against Islamic State extremist positions in Saqlawiyah near Fallujah, Iraq. (AP Photo) (Uncredited/AP)

By Loveday Morris-July 8 

BAGHDAD — Iraq’s powerful Shiite militias are vowing to drive Islamic State fighters out of Fallujah, setting off a panic in the city where U.S. Marines saw their bloodiest combat of the Iraq war.

Iraqi militias vow to push Islamic State from Fallujah, site of tough U.S. battle.odt by Thavam Ratna

Yemen critically short of food, fuel imports as war cuts supply lines

A boy carries his sister near the collapsed house of Yemen's late prime minister Faraj Bin Ghanim after it was hit by a Saudi-led air strike in Sanaa July 2, 2015.-REUTERS/KHALED ABDULLAH

 Wed Jul 8, 2015 

Yemen is running critically short of imported food and fuel as war has cut internal supply lines and a near-blockade by Saudi-led naval forces has held up shipping to the country, the Arab world's poorest even before fighting erupted.

Ground combat between various Yemeni armed factions and Saudi-led air strikes have deepened the plight of civilians in Yemen, with the United Nations saying more than 80 percent of its 25 million people need some form of emergency aid.

Before Saudi Arabia intervened in March to try to restore Yemen's president to power and roll back the Iranian-allied Houthi militia now controlling large areas of the country, Yemen imported more than 90 percent of its food, mostly by sea.

Since then, many shipping companies have pulled out. Those still willing to bring cargoes face incalculable delays and mandatory searches by coalition warships hunting for arms bound for the Houthis, the dominant warring faction.

According to a humanitarian aid assessment compiled by the U.S. Navy and obtained by Reuters, just 42 ships reached Yemen with goods in June compared with 100 in March.

Further data was not available. Before the crisis, the number of ships making calls to Yemen's major southern port of Aden alone averaged over 1,000 annually in recent years.

The 15-page report, which bears the insignia of the U.S. Navy's Central Command and the Saudi flag, has been circulated among coalition militaries and humanitarian agencies which send in aid with the Saudi alliance's approval.

The report said imports into embattled Aden's terminals had halted almost completely, with port calls by cargo, container ships and fuel tankers down over 75 percent between January and June versus the same period last year.

Aid agencies have called for an immediate humanitarian truce and warned that their efforts alone cannot meet Yemen's vast needs. More than half the population lacks proper food, and commercial imports of fuel, food and medicine are "severely" below pre-crisis levels, the U.N. agency OCHA said on Wednesday.

"Whatever we bring ... is clearly not sufficient. What you need for Aden in particular and for the country as a whole is to resume commercial imports into the country. Whatever we do as humanitarian workers is only a fraction of what is actually needed," Antoine Grand, head of the International Committee of the Red Cross in Yemen, said on Tuesday.

"This is clearly deteriorating by the day, and that's what makes this situation so catastrophic," Grand told a U.N. briefing in Geneva by telephone from Sanaa.

The Saudi-led Arab campaign aims to reinstate Yemen's exiled government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, but has yet to loosen the Houthis' grip on the capital Sanaa or overcome their upper hand in fighting stretching across the country's south.

Over 3,000 people have died in the conflict.

FUEL CRISIS

Nationwide fuel shortages have spread disease and suffering in arid Yemen, where access to water mostly depends on fuel-powered pumps. Aid and commercial assessments show Yemen needs to import over 500,000 tonnes of fuel every month.

The U.S. aid report said Yemen had managed to import only 11 percent of its monthly fuel needs in June versus 18 percent in May, 1 percent in April and 23 percent in March, with the country facing a 1.8 million tonne shortfall in fuel imports.

"On average (there is) less than one hour of electricity per day," it said. "The lack of storage capacity and fuel for milling of grain into flour is discouraging traders from taking orders for more grain."

Despair reigns among residents of Aden largely pinned down by artillery battles between Houthi fighters and local militia in one of the country's deadliest and most deprived war zones.

"Nothing remains of normal life for people here because of the siege imposed by the Houthis and because food and fuel are not coming in," retiree Abu Bakr Ahmed said.

"On top of this, there's indiscriminate shelling by mortars and Katyusha rockets almost all the time. Water and electricity are cut, all while temperatures range from 40-45 degrees (104-113 degrees Fahrenheit). The state of people's lives and health here is awful."

(Additional reporting by Stephanie Nebehay in Geneva and Mohammed Mukhashaff in Aden; Writing by Jonathan Saul; Editing by Mark Heinrich)

Obama Should Stay Away from Ethiopia

Washington wants a stable partner in the Horn of Africa. But cozying up to the repressive regime in Addis Ababa isn’t the way to go about finding one.

BY JEFFREY SMITH, MOHAMMED ADEMO-JULY 8, 2015

Later this month, President Barack Obama will become the first sitting United States president to ever visit Ethiopia, Africa’s second most populous country, and a nation viewed by many as a bastion of stability in a region otherwise beset with civil strife. The trip — which will also include a stopover in Kenya — is being billed as part of the Obama administration’s regional efforts “to accelerate economic growth, strengthen democratic institutions, and improve security.”

Obama Should Stay Away From Ethiopia by Thavam Ratna

Chinese stock markets continue to nosedive as regulator warns of panic

Main markets open sharply down as nearly 700 companies request their shares be suspended in unprecedented move

Jennifer Duggan in Shanghai and agencies-Wednesday 8 July 2015

China’s stock exchange regulator has imposed severe limits on stock market selling, having earlier warned of panic in the market as a range of recent government measures failed to prevent stocks plummeting a further 6%.

After 10 minutes of morning trading a wave of listed companies’ shares had been suspended across China’s two stock markets after they dropped by the daily limit of 10%.

The China Securities Regulatory Commission ruled that controlling shareholders and managers holding more than 5% of a company’s shares could not reduce their holdings for six months, in an attempt to maintain stability in the markets.

Earlier, the regulator’s statement saying there had been a surge in “irrational selling” and “panic sentiment” had done little to calm investor nerves.

The Shanghai composite index closed down 5.9%, while the SCI 300 index of the biggest listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen lost 6.8%.

The rout spread to other world stock markets, with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index closing almost 6% down, its biggest one-day drop for nearly seven years.

Since their June peak, Shanghai stocks have plunged 30% in the space of three weeks, having soared more than 150% in the previous 12 months as millions of -private investors piled in. “It’s a stampede,” said Wang Feng, a former Wall Street trader who founded the hedge fund firm Alpha Squared Capital. “And the problem of the market is that all the players move in the same direction and are too emotional.”

About 1,400 companies, or more than half of those listed in Shanghai and Shenzhen – filed for a trading halt on Tuesday in an attempt to prevent further losses. Chen Jiahe, chief strategic analyst at Cinda Securities, said this suspension was likely to last until the market was stabilised and liquidity was returned to the market.

Christopher Balding, professor of economics at Peking University, said it was not possible to know exactly why so many companies had suspended trading, but that a large number were doing so because they had used their own stock as collateral for loans and wanted to “lock in the value for the collateral”.

Unlike most other stock markets, where most investors are institutional, in China 80% are small retail investors. Balding said this was raising concerns of “political risk” in Beijing. With large numbers of private investors losing a lot of money, the government would be worried about “people protesting on the streets”.

As part of the attempt to prevent further losses, China’s state asset regulator had already ordered state-owned enterprises not to sell shares of their listed companies.

The People’s Bank of China said it was assisting the China Securities Finance Corporation (CSFC), the national margin trading service provider – which helps brokers lend money to institutions to buy shares – to help steady the market.

It said it would do this through measures such as aiding interbank lending. It would keep a close watch on the market, continue to support the CSFC and guard against systematic and financial risks.

The CSFC said it would buy more shares of small and medium-sized companies, which have suffered the biggest losses.

Chen said: “The market is panicking and the government is trying to save it, so we are having something like a conflict between the two powers and we are not sure which will be the strongest.”

Ayako Sera, a senior market economist at Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank in Tokyo, said: “Today is all about China, with Greece in the background … Shanghai’s early losses were like a cliff dive, which had a huge impact on investor sentiment.”

The continued sell-offs came after a surprise interest rate cut by the central bank at the end of June. Relaxations in margin trading and other “stability measures” have done little to calm investors. Analysts said they expected the falls to continue.

“I don’t see it getting better,” Balding said. “There is not going to be a turn around within the next week or two. It probably has a long way to go.”

Greece’s rebellion will only harden Germany’s approach 

Tuesday 07 Jul 2015

If Angela Merkel has her way, the euphoria in Athens about Sunday’s referendum result will prove short lived: far from forcing the rest of the eurozone to compromise, there’s a discernible hardening of attitudes in Berlin.

“The door is still open,” the German chancellor claimed last night, but she has also made it clear that the chances of Greece staying in the euro will diminish by the hour unless Alexis Tsipras and his new Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos come up with new proposals for economic reform here in Brussels today. In other words, the ball is not in the eurozone’s court but has been quickly knocked back to Mr Tsipras again.

Early indications are that Tsipras will not give Merkel what she wants. It is reported that he wants Greece’s debt to be cut by 30 per cent. In other words, for Greece’s creditors to take another financial “haircut”.

Even if Tsipras now agrees to the fiscal and pension reforms he angrily rejected last month, Merkel surely could not agree to a further write-off of Greek debt.

It would appal her Finance Minister, Wolfgang Schauble, and the risk to Merkel is that he would resign, signalling the beginning of the end of her own chancellorship. Her Vice-Chancellor, Sigmar Gabriel of the Social Democrats, has also hardened his position.

“The political costs of doing a deal with Germany are very large,” as Alex White of the Economist Intelligence Unit put it to me.

Merkel doesn’t want to go down in history as the woman who pushed Greece out of the eurozone; but nor does she wish to remembered by Germans as the chancellor prepared to do a deal with Greece at any price – a legacy which could destroy her political career.

So what happens next? Serious talks in Brussels about keeping Greece in the eurozone are very unlikely even to begin today unless Greece makes a positive first move.

Instead, Greece may be left to stew in its own juice, its banks continuing to run out of capital, the European Central Bank unlikely to extend a further financial lifeline unless the eurozone’s political leaders signal that negotiations have begun again in earnest.

The French, Spanish and Italians are more inclined to give Tsipras some of the relief from austerity that he has been pleading for for months. But the Germans are not.

Berlin’s hope is that as this week progresses, and the crisis deepens, the Greeks will be forced into doing a deal. Greece has already begun to leave the Eurozone, with its banks shut and dispensing little cash and last week’s default on an IMF loan. So the pressure is certainly on.

Though this strategy of isolation might well underestimate the determination of Alexis Tsipras, who still seems to believe that the cost of Greece leaving the Eurozone is so very high and so unknown that Merkel and others will eventually give him more of what he wants.

So another few days of dangerous brinkmanship lie ahead. A deal is certainly possible – a restructuring of Greek debt, tied to economic reform, worded in such a way that both sides can claim domestic political victory. But it is also conceivable that Angela Merkel will decide that Greece should be “let go”.

And though Greeks would never forgive her for that, Germans would say they did their best to revive the patient, who failed to respond to treatment and eventually slipped away.

Follow @jrug on Twitter

PAKISTAN: Citizens 'Half Fried - Full Fried' by Law Enforcement Agencies

July 8, 2015

The anecdote of the boiling frog springs to mind. The story goes that if a frog is placed in boiling water, it will jump out. However, if it is placed in water that is heated slowly, it will not perceive danger until it is boiled alive.

Citizens of Pakistan suffer from this predicament today. Rather than water, they are being fried in a vat of oil, heated slowly with the help of dictators and dynasts overseeing decades of cruelty and impunity from men in uniform that is now at boiling point. Not having re-engineered a colonial criminal justice system to fit the needs of a modern democracy, citizens are now being “fried” by law enforcement agents on a rampage.

The formation of the Apex Committee in Sindh Province, ushering increased presence of the Military and the Pakistan Rangers, has made the terms “half-fry” and “full-fry” common in the ranks of the police and other law enforcement agencies. The Apex Committee was formed to control serious crimes like terrorism, abduction, extortion, and target killings. And, the result has been a tremendous upsurge in extrajudicial killings.

The use of the term “full-fry” to indicate extrajudicial killings showcases how common and open this outrageous practice by law enforcement officials has become. Judges and murderers all rolled into one, extrajudicial killers in uniform, have been using the pseudonyms of ‘half-fry’ and ‘full-fry’ to indicate the condition of a suspect.

The term half fry is colloquial for maiming a person for life. For example, if officers are convinced arrested suspects are involved in crimes they will be shot in the leg to render them disabled before they are sent to jail. This practice of maiming suspects gained notoriety during the tenure of former SSP Farid Jan Sarhandi of Hyderabad. The term “full-fry” on the other hand is used when the person is extrajudicially murdered.

The Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Sindh, Sanaullah Abbasi, upon being asked about the legality of the “half-fry full-fry” formula in a press briefing this year, said he was confident that society had come to accept the “formula”. The “Half-fry and “full-fry” terms are used far more by the police in the interior parts of Sindh Province. These are used as code words for extrajudicial killings or for injuring a suspect to disabled him.

The Mr. Faqeer Saleem, a Sindh Express columnist has noted that during the first six months of 2015, about 26 persons have been “full fried”, whereas 120 persons have been “half fried”. Mr. Imdad Soomro, a correspondent of The News has stated that in the last six months 118 suspects have been killed in fake encounters and more than 200 have become handicapped by the police as a result of the police drive of half-fry and full-fry.

The Express Tribune, a national English daily, has, on 21 May 2015, carried an article with details of a horrifying case of police excess in which a Hindu psychiatrist, Dr. Deepak Raj, has been “half-fried”. Dr. Raj was shot 15 times— 12 bullets to his left leg, two to his right leg, and a single shot to his right arm. His left leg has been amputated while his other leg and arm is also in bad shape. Dr. Raj was grilled by the police in relation to Hyderabad police being given the task of arresting or killing a notorious robber, Shareef Panhwar, who has a bounty of Rupees 2.5 million on his head. Dr. Raj shares resemblance with this hardened criminal.

According to The Express Tribune, on April 10, policemen in plainclothes raided a teashop in Hyderabad’s Kali Morri area as Dr. Raj was sitting there. “I had to meet some relatives there and I just stayed for a cup of tea”, the article quotes Dr. Raj as saying. The policemen caught hold of him at the shop and shot at his legs, he recalled, adding that they kept calling him Shareef Panhwar. “They wanted me to say that I am Shareef Panhwar. I cried and told them that I am not even a Muslim and that my name is Deepak”, recalled Dr. Raj in the article. Dr. Raj went on to tell told the correspondent: “they called me half fried, it would have been better that they had full fried me”.

The Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Irfan Baloch confirmed the man has been identified as Deepak but he insisted that the encounter was genuine. The police killed two of his aides and injured one, while two others escaped, he told The Express Tribune.

In a press briefing on 7 March 2015 that was recorded by Dawn newspaper, the Deputy Inspector General of Sindh, Sanaullah Abbasi, claimed that extrajudicial killings are the best modus operandi to curb crime. The official said that

“Extrajudicial killings and other actions cannot be justified officially but society has come to accept this ‘modus operandi’ of police to eradicate crimes and make streets safer. It is not necessary for an encounter to be seen as genuine only if a policeman loses his life in it. You can see police have restored peace and order in the city through this modus operandi.”

He also claimed that Districts of Sindh Province such as Hyderabad and Khairpur had become model districts — thanks to this ‘modus operandi’. “If this [formula] continues then I can assure you that we will be able to create ideal conditions in crime control,” said the officer.

Even for the sake of argument, if the statement of the officer is to be believed, then there is no need to have courts and fair trials. There is also no use of civil and political rights. The country only needs to be handed over to police so that whole country can become a model for the other countries.

During the briefing the SSP Irfan Baloch referring to his brave actions of “half-fry”, claiming that during the first quarter of the year, 73 suspects were “arrested” after they fell “injured” in encounters. He warned, “Remember, none of them [suspects] can obtain bail. We have made a strong case to ensure they were denied any chance of getting bail”.

Apart from the drive of extrajudicial killings and disabling for life, the police and Rangers are also not happy with the post-mortem practice. They have given a strong message to the doctors conducting autopsy, by abducting a medico-legal officer (MLO) and his brother at gunpoint and torturing him to delete important files— pertaining to autopsies of suspects killed in “encounters” with police— from his laptop and mobile phone. (Please see the details of the case by clicking this link).

Karachi, the capital of Sindh Province, the country’s largest metropolis is a hub of extrajudicial killings. It has been listed as the 10^th most violent city of the world, according to Al Jazeera, with a murder rate of 12.3 per 100,000 residents. The United States Department of State Bureau of Diplomatic Security website, warns citizen’s of United States to postpone all non essential journeys to Karachi: “Despite a large-scale security operation carried out by the Pakistani Rangers and the Sindh Police, the violent crime rate remains high.” Yet, the Sindh Cabinet, on 11 February 2015, was briefed by the IGP Ghulam Hyder Jamali, who informed Members that the crime rate had declined significantly in the Province.

Under Article 9 of the Constitution of Pakistan it is incumbent upon the state to ensure the safety and security of the people. The right to life as enumerated by the Supreme Court in Shezla Zia vs WAPDA case expanded the meaning of the right to life to mean a dignified life free from fear of being killed. However, at the same time, the law enforcement agencies (LEAs), particularly the military and its intelligence agencies have been given the power to shoot suspects on sight and to try them in military courts as a result of a constitutional amendment. LEAs are therefore free to kill any person on the pretext of terrorism or encounters. And, the result of this freedom and impunity is a terrorized population.

Between the extremists and the rampaging law enforcement officers lies a fast shrinking space for citizens. Those that cannot jump are being fried, in either the frying pan or the fire.

Rights group condemns Burma bill on interfaith marriage

An internally displaced Rohingya boy wraps himself with a sarong as he walks in rain at a makeshift camp for Rohingya people in Sittwe, northwestern Rakhine State, Burma. Pic: AP.

By AP News Jul 08, 2015

YANGON, Burma (AP) — An international human rights group has accused Burma’s parliament of playing with fire by passing a bill regulating the right of women from the country’s Buddhist majority to marry men from outside their religion.

Phil Robertson of New York-based Human Rights Watch said Wednesday the bill was related to a campaign by extremist Buddhist groups that have incited anti-Muslim hatred. Religious tensions have led to deadly violence, especially against Rohingya Muslims in western Burma, who have felt compelled to flee abroad.

The bill passed Tuesday is one of four known as the Protection of Race and Religion Laws, which have been criticized as discriminatory by rights groups. It mandates that Buddhist women register their intent to marry outside their faith, and that they can be stopped if there are objections.

(READ MORE: Burma announces November 8 election date)

You’ll Never Eat McDonald’s Again After You 

Read These Horrifying Facts 

Posted by Ryan on June 22, 2015
McDonalds is the most famous fast food company in the world, many people are literally addicted to the taste of McDonald meals. If you are one of them, you will surely avoid eating at McDonald’s after reading these horrific facts. It’s a known fact that in order to give the flavor and taste to their meals, fast food restaurants use different chemicals. But did you ever think that your favorite burger would have crushed beetles, soil fertilizer or plastic in it? Well we are sorry to inform you that you might just be eating these disgusting additives every time you decide to hit the drive-thru. 

Fertilizer:

If you eat fast food regularly then chances are, you have been regularly consuming ammonium sulfate which is a soil fertilizer. Fast food companies openly list “yeast food for bread” in their ingredients which actually is ammonium sulfate bought from chemical companies.

Preservatives derived from Petroleum:

Most of the processed food contains Tertiary butyl hydroquinone (TBHQ) which is a compound made from petroleum. And guess what McDonald’s has about 18 items including your favorite MC-Nuggets in which it is used.

Wood:

In order to stabilize the foods, and boost fiber content in them, the food processors use wood pulp which is known as cellulose.

Silly Putty – (Plastic):

In order to stop the fryer oil from foaming, fast food restaurants use Dimethylpolysiloxane which is a form of silicone. It is commonly used in stretchy toys. So next time you order Fillet-O-Fish or anything deep fried, chances are you will be consuming some plastic.

Duck Feathers:

The Baked Hot Apple Pie of McDonald’s contains an ingredient derived from duck feathers.

Pink Slime:

When you eat those MC-Nuggets do you really think that you are eating some healthy chicken? MC-Nuggets actually are a mixture of carcass of chicken and its bones. A famous ingredient of MC-Nuggets is Pink Slime. It has ammonia and small amounts of petroleum as well.

The $200 billion fast food industry wants to keep feeding you these disgusting chemicals and preservatives. Now it’s up to you to lose your money on unhealthy food or eat fresh and healthy food which will also save you money.

Awantha Artigala: Sri Lanka’s quiet cartoonist

For someone relatively new to game – he published his first piece in 2006 – he has gone farther, and faster, than anyone else in his generation.

by Smriti Daniel

( July 7, 2015, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) The first time I asked Awantha Artigala for an interview, he laughed and said no. This was partly because we communicated in staccato, he in English (my first language) and I in Sinhala (his first language), both of us struggling to frame sentences. So the second time I asked, I decided to go through a friend who I was hoping would also be an informal referee for me, and eventually a translator. Artigala agreed but we didn’t manage to meet that day. His phone was off and none of our mutual acquaintances had heard from him. It was also the Sinhala and Tamil New Year in Sri Lanka and everyone, even a newspaper cartoonist, must be allowed to enjoy this long holiday.

Awantha Artigala Sri Lanka’s Quiet Cartoonist by Thavam Ratna

The Choice Before The Country Is Between Good & Evil

By Fr Chryso Pieris –July 7, 2015

Fr Chryso Pieris SJ

Strange happenings are taking place in our country in the socio-political field at the national level. Behind the struggle between political parties for power and influence and behind the choice between the economic theories of socialism and capitalism we can clearly see another struggle taking place. It is the eternal struggle between Good and Evil, Virtue and Vice, Decency and Grossness, Beauty and Ugliness. The contention between good and evil takes place in the hearts of men and women. It could be often seen among individuals in court cases. But today it has come on to the national stage where all the citizens of the country will be challenged to choose between good and evil and be arrayed on opposite sides not according to political party affiliations, nor according to differing economic theories but according to good and honest governance against evil and venal governance. 

I met a man, not very young, in his late thirties, educated, professional and working in a bank. We had a frank chat. He is discouraged with the situation in the country. He remembered the great difficulties his family underwent when both his parents were out of work due to the tragic general strike of 1980. He prefers to emigrate to Australia or Canada, where he says he may be a third class citizen but he is assured of law and order, justice and fair play. I was speechless; I had nothing to offer him to keep him in the country. Apart from the fact that losing men like him is a terrible loss to the country, the brain drain, what is more tragic is that the younger generation is losing all motivation to be loyal to the country, the nation where they were born. I should not generalize from just one example, though given a chance, I know, many will fall over one another to immigrate to a better country. They have lost faith in their country.

The above is only one symptom of a sickness in the country. And the sickness is that Evil is triumphing over Good, Vice over Virtue and Grossness over Decency. All are equal before the law only in theory. It is enough to read the “Unfinished Struggle” of Victor Ivan to realize the utter degradation our judiciary has descended to. Most of the Police were boot licking lackeys of the powerful. The financial and administrative regulations were thrown overboard and forgotten. Too many civil servants became partners of racketeers, commission grabbers and various illegal traffickers. There was no place for merit and fair play. Graft, nepotism and greed reigned supreme. Who wants to live in a country like this especially decent, good young people?Read More