Islamist hacker group attacks Thai government websites

The hackers left messages in support of Rohingya Muslims.

By Daniel Maxwell-Aug 25, 2015

Islamic cyber group Fallaga hacked six Thai government websites on Monday, replacing the sites’ original content with images and messages condemning the treatment of Rohingya refugees. The attacks which took place during the early hours of the morning, targeting the official government websites of four provinces (Lamphun, Sing Buri, Sa Kaeo and Tak), a government hospital and a university publishing house. A Ministry of Information spokesperson confirmed the six sites had been compromised but that the hackers had not accessed any government information.

The hackers identified themselves as members of the Tunisia-based Fallaga Team, a name they claim to have taken from anti-colonial militants that fought against the French occupation of Tunisia. Fallaga has previously hacked French, Belgium, Tunisian, and Israeliwebsites. They were also one of the groups involved in the unprecedented cyber assault on French media in the wake of the Charlie Hedbo killings. They admit to sharing religious and political beliefs with ISIS but have confirmed that they are an entirely independent organisation.

This message was left on the Lamphun provincial government’s website.

Government websites in Thailand are notoriously insecure and are hacked on a regular basis. Just last month hacker group Team GhostShell were believed to have hacked over 80 websites in the country. Security experts estimate that Thai government websites often account for 85% of all government-hosted malware in the world. Improving security and cleaning up Thailand’s government websites will take a substantial commitment but given the more pressing concerns the country is currently facing it will probably remain a low priority until more urgent reforms have taken place.

Monday’s cyber-attack on the Mahasarakham University’s publishing website read “hacked by Tunisian Fallaga Team just for our Muslims in Burma” and it appears the attacks were aimed at raising awareness of the treatment of Muslim minority Rohingyas. The Fallaga hackers made no reference to the expatriation of Uighur Muslims to China, a move that was criticized by Muslim communities and human rights organisations.

(READ MORE: Has Thailand’s treatment of displaced Muslims made it a target for extremists?)

Coming just one week after the bomb blast at the Erawan shrine, which killed 20 people, these cyber-attacks hit Thailand while the country is still on high alert. Police leading the bombing investigation have yet to identify who is behind the attacks. In the absence of any clear motive a wide range of theories have been circulating. One theory is that the bombing is linked to an international jihad group. Thai authorities have been reluctant to comment on this theory, despite the arrest warrant describing the suspected bomber as a ‘foreign man’.

Despite its extremist rhetoric, there is no evidence that the Fallaga group has directly engaged in terrorism and it’s very unlikely this cyber group has any links to last Monday’s tragic events. Yesterday a spokesperson for the Royal Thai Police confirmed this, saying thehacking was not believed to be related to the bomb attack.

Despite being unrelated to last week’s deadly attacks, the hacking of Thai government websites by a notorious Islamic cyber group strengthens the argument that Thai authorities must face a new reality – the country is no longer impervious to the growing threat from religious extremists.

(READ MORE: Contradictions mount as Thai authorities hunt Bangkok bombing suspect)

About the author:

Daniel Maxwell is a writer and educator who has been living and working in Southeast Asia since the late 1990s. An English literature graduate from the University of London, Daniel previously worked with the publishing company EMAP before relocating to Asia. Found elsewhere: Maxwell’s Notes

Are you risking cancer when you put that meat on the grill?

By Christie Aschwanden-August 24

Firing up the backyard grill to cook some juicy meat over a hot flame: It’s an American tradition, especially on the coming Labor Day weekend. Charring pork, beef, fish and poultry is a good way to kill bacteria, but studies show that high heat and flames can create potentially cancer-causing compounds.

But how dangerous are these chemical compounds, really? Are they harmful enough to reconsider our love of grilled meat?

When I posed those questions to Rashmi Sinha, deputy branch chief at the National Cancer Institute, she hedged. Numerous studies have linked chemicals in grilled meat to cancer, she says, but the evidence is circumstantial and it’s not clear how much you would have to eat to substantially increase your risk.

Cooking meat at high temperatures produces two main types of compoundswith cancer-causing potential: heterocyclic amines (HCAs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). At high temperatures, the amino acids, sugars and other compounds in meat undergo chemical reactions that generate HCAs, while PAHs emitted from flames or smoke stick to the surface of the meat.

[Testers find twice as many ‘superbugs’ in conventional burgers as organic ones]

 

Much of the research linking HCAs and PAHs to cancer comes from studies in which laboratory animals were fed the compounds at levels thousands of times greater than people would get from a normal diet. Researchers can’t ethically feed these chemicals to people to see what happens, Sinha says, so they compare people who were exposed to more of the compounds with those who had less. “You ask people about their eating habits, so it’s not a direct measure,” she says.

In one such study, Kristin Anderson at the University of Minnesota School of Public Health and colleagues looked at the eating habits of more than 60,000 people, 208 of whom were diagnosed with pancreatic cancer over a nine-year period. The researchers found that those who reported the highest consumption of meat cooked at high temperatures had a 70 percent greater risk of developing pancreatic cancer than those with the lowest intake; colorectal and prostate cancer have also been linked to grilled meat consumption.

While more studies are investigating HCAs and cancer in humans, the link is still not definitive, Anderson says.

Figuring out whether grilling meats poses a cancer risk is more challenging than it might seem. For starters, HCAs and PAHs must be metabolized by specific enzymes in the body to become dangerous, and people have varying levels of these enzymes. It’s also difficult to accurately measure how many HCAs and PAHs people consume, Anderson says. In part, this is because there’s no easy way to estimate the levels of these compounds in any particular serving of food: That depends on factors such as how the meat was cooked and how much meat people actually ate.

Imagine that you were asked to recall how often you’d eaten grilled meat in the past six months, how large the portions were and how hot the grill had been: How confident would you be in your response? Your answer suggests why population studies are not seen as hard proof.

If grilling meat does pose a danger, the best way to reduce your risk, of course, would be to cut meats out of your diet, or at least stop cooking them on high heat. But if you’re not ready to give up the grill, adopting a few tricks will reduce your exposure to HCAs, Anderson says. Microwaving ground meat for two to three minutes and pouring off the juices before cooking can reduce the precursors of the carcinogens, she says. Another good strategy is to employ some patience and not expose the food to direct heat, “particularly the flames lapping at the meat,” she says. Don’t char or burn meat, and cut off burned portions.

You never want to eat undercooked meat, but it’s not a bad idea to avoid overcooking. A 2012 study found that well-done meat had 3 1/2 times the amount of HCAs that medium-rare meat did.

 

More tips: Wrap your meat in foil to protect it from smoke. If you can, cut away fat before grilling. “Taking away the fat is good, because it drips onto the hot surface, which causes more smoke and flashing,” Sinha says.

Some studies have suggested that certain marinades — those containing rosemary, for instance — might reduce the production of HCAs, but whether this reduces cancer risk isn’t clear, Sinha says. “You might reduce one [type of HCA] but increase another one, and we don’t know which are the worst.”

Given all these uncertainties, it’s impossible to declare how much grilled meat is safe, Sinha says. She recommends moderation: Eating meat from the grill every day is clearly much riskier than eating it once a month, she says, “but I can’t give you a number where it goes from okay to bad.”

Read more from Health and Science:

Report details bacteria found in ground beef

Cold turkey is no way to curb late night eating

Drought: The big fish story everyone is missing

They said he had fatal dementia. He never had it.

Get a second opinion: The top four surgeries you may not need

Eknaligoda case: CID questions four more army personnel

August 24, 2015

The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) on Monday (24) arrested an Army Corporal, a Sergeant, and two Lieutenants, in connection with the mysterious disappearance of journalist Prageeth Eknaligoda, a police source said.

The suspects were arrested after interrogating them at the Police HQ for over five hours with respect to the case, it was reported.

Earlier, the police announced that the CID had apprehended two suspects in connection with the case as well. Police Spokesperson ASP Ruwan Gunasekara said that an ex-LTTE carder and a retired army officer were arrested.

At present, a Habeas Corpus case continues at the Homagama Magistrate’s Court over the disappearance of Eknaligoda.

Road-map to Reconciliation: 4 Challenges for Sri Lanka After Polls – Erik Solheim and Mark Salter

23/08/2015

These are critical times for Sri Lanka. This week the country completed its second round of elections this year. A coalition led by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe scored a narrow victory. By contrast, presidential elections held in January ended in a surprise victory for Maithripala Sirisena, a veteran government minister who broke ranks with Mahinda Rajapaksa.

A notable feature of the latest election was Sirisena’s decision effectively to back the opposition coalition running against his own party, while also refusing to countenance Rajapaksa’s return to power under any circumstances. In many ways the campaign was a referendum on continued Rajapaksa rule. He lost, however, and Sri Lanka can now look to its future rather than its past.

While the Sirisena-Rajapaksa standoff may become less prominent, in another sense it will remain a critical factor. The muscular nationalism Rajapaksa cultivated among majority Sinhalese still poses a potentially serious challenge to reforming ambitions. It will be hard, for example, to achieve political reforms to address the legacy of conflict with minority Tamils without securing majority – Sinhalese – support for them.

Nor is this the story’s end. In September the UN Human Rights Council will consider a report into war crimes committed during the final years (and beyond) of the country’s civil war. Colombo won a deferral of the UN report’s release after it asked for more time to establish a domestic accountability mechanism. This means putting the legacy of the Tamil Tigers as well as Rajapaksa and his coterie on the spot. And it forces difficult choices on Wickremesinghe and Sirisena.

Almost six months on, they have pushed the real decisions forward, preferring to avoid moves that will upset parts of their support base. The real obstacles to movement – from Rajapaksa, from sections of the military – should not be underestimated. With its new majority, and with the UN soon to hand over its report, however, the government needs to begin providing clear indications of plans for addressing wartime accountability and, in the longer term, reconciliation.

The challenges confronting the new government are considerable. They include:

Corruption and restoring rule of law

Crony capitalism, mega-corruption, family fiefdom: many terms are used to describe the system Mahinda Rajapaksa put in place and – with help from brothers Basil and Gotabhaya – used to run the country for a decade. There’s no doubt, moreover, that much of the legacy of that misrule remains either still in place, uninvestigated – or both. As the recent election campaign made equally clear, however, corruption, impunity and good governance are very high on the public agenda.

Over the last half year the interim government has taken a number of important initiatives, notably establishing a Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID). At the same time, efforts to clean up corruption have been stymied by its past beneficiaries’ continued hold on power. That said, there is often talk of the billions the Rajapaksas are supposed to have stashed away abroad. Exposure of this abuse would undoubtedly assist in stabilizing the new government.

Reconciliation

Beyond accountability issues there is a vital need to address reconciliation. One consequence of the triumphalist nationalism trumpeted by Rajapaksa is that relations between Sinhalese and Tamil communities have not been given the needed space – or support – to heal. On a raft of other aspects of the war’s legacy, too, there is likewise a pressing need for action. A few months ago a reconciliation office headed by former President Kumaratunga was established. That can potentially play an important role.

Security sector reform

One of the first things ordinary Sri Lankans noticed following Rajapaksa’s ouster was a new atmosphere of public freedom. The result of Sirisena’s dismantling of security apparatus elements responsible for controlling and – all too often – terrorizing the public, it is unquestionably the most important reform to date. At the same time the use of forcible abduction, torture, rape and other forms of physical abuse appears to continue among sections of the military. While uprooting this culture, and more broadly restructuring civil-military relations will be assisted by Rajapakasa’s latest electoral loss, it will still not be an easy task. Ultimately, however, the success of attempts to build new relations between communities may depend on it.

Constitutional reform

The legislative success of the past half-year has been the 19th Amendment, fulfilling Sirisena’s campaign promise to abolish executive presidential powers installed by Rajapaksa in 2010. Beyond that, parliamentary gridlock has kept reforming aspirations in check. In a new legislature containing a government majority, however, now is the time to return to the constitutional reform agenda.

Add the need for rapid growth and inclusive development to unleash the Island’s true potential, and a recipe for challenging, but exciting times presents itself. All with Sri Lanka’s best interests at heart will be wishing the new government every success in charting the way forward. (Hindustan Times)

Second victory offers unique opportunity for problem solving 

By Jehan Perera-August 24, 2015,

At the presidential elections held in January this year Sri Lanka made its initial transition away from authoritarian rule in which ethnic nationalism was utilised to deliver repeated electoral mandates. The victory of the coalition of parties led by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe at the General Elections on August 17 will ensure that the changes brought about at the presidential election will be sustained. The majority of Sri Lankan voters reaffirmed the choice they had made in January when they voted in President Maithripala Sirisena and rejected the siren call of narrow ethnic-based nationalism. The main significance of the latest election verdict is that it paves the way for transition to take place in two key aspects of governance. The first is that will consolidate the changes that have taken arbitrary power away from individuals and vested them instead in systems.

Second victory offers unique opportunity for problem solving .odt by Thavam Ratna

Sri Lanka's New Foreign Policy Presents Opportunities for India

Sri Lanka’s government wants a more balanced foreign policy and that’s good news for India.

By Jhinuk Chowdhury-

August 24, 2015

One of the election platforms of the recently sworn-in Sri Lankan prime minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe, has been to revise Sri Lankan foreign policy, which has been excessively oriented toward China in recent years, instead favoring a more balanced posture.

Under the previous regime of Mahinda Rajapaksa, both India and the West were increasingly alienated while the Chinese had free play in the country, crystallized in terms of investment in infrastructure or financing offers.

Wickremesinghe is expected to reverse this by devising a foreign policy that is more broad-based, with renewed outreach to India, the United States, Europe, and Japan.

As Sri Lanka continues this process, New Delhi–with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s new focus on the Indian Ocean Region (IOR)–could become Colombo’s most important partner as it strives to revamp its economy and emerge from over a decade-long period of international isolation.

As Wickremesinghe stated after his victory in the recent elections, “It’s a new chapter in Sri Lankan politics itself. Therefore, we should have close relations with India.”

With bilateral trade at $5.2 billion in 2013-14, Modi, during his visit to Sri Lanka earlier this year, pitched an expansion of the India-Sri Lanka free trade agreement (FTA) and came out in favor of balancing bilateral trade, which currently favors India.

Apart from an agreement on civil nuclear cooperation for peaceful use, Modi also pushed for a coal-based power project and over- and under-sea transmission line projects connecting India and Sri Lanka.

Experts say this could well lead to a “renewed wave“ of Indian investment in the country. As India steps up its investment in the Indian Ocean, financing projects like the Sittwe port in Myanmar, and Chabahar port in Iran, Sri Lanka rises in importance.

So far, New Delhi has focused on reconstructing the war-ravaged Tamil-dominated northern areas of the country. Future focus will be on investment in the maritime realm.

Experts say that with the right amount of investment, Colombo and Mumbai, today the busiest ports in South Asia, could become regional hubs rivaling Singapore.

However, with its own infrastructure overhaul requirements, India cannot entirely fulfill the needs of Colombo. Invariably Sri Lanka will have to look toward investments from bigger powers.

The U.S., Japan and Australia are the most important countries that Colombo can turn to. All three countries are highly interested in deepening their footprints in the IOR.

The keen interest of Western powers in the region is evidenced by the fact that immediately after Maithripala Sirisena assumed the presidency earlier this year, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry visited the country, representing the first U.S. secretary of state visit since 2005.

Ahead of Kerry’s visit, a delegation of Sri Lankan naval officers were on board the USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier, underscoring the burgeoning naval relationship between the two countries and their move toward increased maritime security cooperation.

Sri Lanka will also have noticed that Japan, in its bid to counter China’s growing involvement in the Asian infrastructure market, announced a capital package of $110 billion dedicated to infrastructure development projects in Asia.

A significant part of the funds would be allocated to projects that will be executed in collaboration with the Asian Development Bank. Sri Lanka would certainly want a share of this.

Finally, in an interview with The Australian, Wickremesinghe also indicated his intent to restore relations with Australia by addressing the issue of asylum-seeker boats.

This new thrust in Sri Lankan foreign policy augurs well for India as it steps up its efforts toward building partnerships across the IOR. Sri Lanka’s proximity to these powers will help India’s aspirations for multilateral leadership in the Indian Ocean gather more mass.

Sri Lanka says good riddance to Rajapaksa

Colombo should heal wounds and develop a balanced foreign policy

Mahinda Rajapaksa, Sri Lanka's former president

August 23, 2015

Sri Lankan voters have dealt a decisive blow to the comeback ambitions of former president Mahinda Rajapaksa, who ran the island nation of 20m people in authoritarian style for a decade. Their rejection of his bid for the premiership almost certainly ends his chances of leading the country again. It also opens up the possibility of the former strongman being investigated for both corruption and human rights violations. He denies both accusations.

The voters in one of Asia’s oldest democracies have made an excellent choice. True, under Mr Rajapaksa, Sri Lanka ended 26 years of vicious civil war, and embarked on a phase of rapid development. But Mr Rajapaksa, who began to rule more like an emperor, oversaw an administration that reeked of nepotism and paid scant attention to the rule of law.

The main winners are Ranil Wickremesinghe, the returning prime minister and, especially, Maithripala Sirisena, the president, a former ally of Mr Rajapaksa, who surprised almost everyone by dislodging him in January’s presidential election. Together, they must deal with several legacy issues, including strengthening the democratic institutions undermined during the previous presidency.

Most urgent is to reach a political settlement with the minority Tamils in the north and east. They must be convinced that the Sinhalese chauvinism practised by Mr Rajapaksa is over. Power is already devolved to some extent, but this may have to go further. Any settlement must also involve a credible inquiry into the final months of the civil war in 2009 when the government launched a crushing offensive against the Tamil Tigers. Its victory involved the shelling and bombing of civilians and other alleged atrocities. The UN estimates that 40,000 civilians died in the final stretch of the war.

Second on the agenda is to tweak foreign policy. Colombo had become too close to Beijing, which spent lavishly on infrastructure, including roads and ports. That made Delhi nervous. It saw Sri Lanka as being co-opted into a Chinese strategy of encircling India, a fear that was exacerbated when Chinese submarines twice docked in Colombo harbour. Part of the reason voters rejected Mr Rajapaksa in January was nervousness at Beijing’s growing influence. Sri Lanka should now develop a balanced foreign policy in which it maintains good relations with both India and China, as well as the US.

Third is the economy. Although it has been growing fast, much of this has been turbocharged with debt. Some efforts have been made to rein in fiscal deficits, but tax revenue remains too low. Under Mr Rajapaksa, business was regularly handed out to friends and relatives. Investigations into past misdemeanours, already under way, must continue. Even more important, however, is to put in place the conditions for more sustained and balanced growth.

The government must show zero tolerance of continued corruption and should work harder to cut the red tape that still puts off foreign investors. If Sri Lanka were an easier place to do business, it could rapidly develop as a regional centre for manufacturing and service exports. Although the tourist industry has come on significantly, Sri Lanka’s beaches and culture could draw many more visitors.

Sri Lanka may never quite be the Singapore of South Asia to which it aspires. Unless it can get its business environment right it risks getting stuck in a middle-income trap. Sri Lankans have voted for what could be a new era in a country that has seen too much tragedy and wasted potential. The winners of the election must not squander this opportunity to set a better course.

Challenges before Wickremesinghe

_

Kalyani Shankar

| 23 August, 2015

The Sri Lankan parliamentary poll results have shown that the voters have rejected divisive politics and authoritarianism by electing Ranil Wickremesinghe. The message is the defeat of former President Mahinda Rajapakse rather than the victory of the UNP-led coalition. Rajapakse’s bid for a return despite his humiliating defeat in the Presidential elections has been foiled. However voters have not given a decisive mandate to the UNP-led coalition.

Wickremesinge  has formed his government with the country’s two major political parties - formerly bitter rivals - agreeing  to work together in the new parliament. If this experiment works it will be a hopeful sign in tackling the country’s most pressing challenges -national reconciliation after a long and brutal civil war and overcoming economic hardships. 

Wickremesinghe  has promised a “new Sri Lanka in 60 months” which will focus on the economy, and on fighting corruption, ensuring freedom for all, creating infrastructure and improving the education system.

The new government faces many challenges. The first is to provide a stable administration. Will the new coalition experiment of the UNP and Sri Lankan Freedom Party succeed?  There are bound to be some pulls and pressures. The Tamil National Alliance has not attended the swearing-in ceremony of Wickremesinghe.  Going by the support of the Sinhalese voters to Rajapakse, his brand of politics is still alive and might pose a challenge for undertaking bold reofrms. Rajapakse has decided to sit in the opposition and might create mishcief.

The second is the minority question. The new government should not miss the chance of finding a solution to this contentious issue. How will Wickremesinghe deal with the Tamils and Buddhists? The TNA, by  winning 16 seats in the recent polls, has had its hands strengthened not just in negotiations with Colombo but also with respect to other political forces that have criticized the TNA for not pursuing hardline nationalist politics.

The TNA has fully supported the BNP as it had supported Maithripala Sirisena in the presidential elections eight months ago. The Tamil question has been dogging the country for decades now and they are looking for some solution. Will the new dispensation be able to engage with the minorities? What would be the formula for devolution of powers to the Tamils? How will the new government deal with the Sinhala Buddhist nationalist party, the Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU), which is part of the UNP coalition?  The Sirisena-Wickremesinghe duo should not miss this opportunity of coming up with out-of-box thinking to satisfy the minorities.

The third challenge will come after the UN Human Rights Commission releases its report next month of human rights violations during the Eelam War 4, which is expected to report abuses on both sides.  There is need to set up a credible enquiry commission to satisfy all parties and also the international players.  But the new government  will face a major challenge in balancing complex domestic and external political pressures with the  release of the report.

The fourth is corruption. The Sirisena government in the past eight months had made some attempts clean things up but it could not go the whole hog. For instance, establishing a Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID) was a bold step

Will the new government investigate the financial irregulaties allegedly committed by Rajapkse, his family and friends and if so to what extent will it go?

The fifth is a balancing act between India and China. Wickremesinghe is pro-India if you go by his statement to the media soon after the victory that “It’s a new chapter in Sri Lankan politics itself. Therefore, we should have close relations with India.” There is all possibility of enhanced cooperation between New Delhi and Colombo as India  is more sympthaetic and supportive of the new government. It is faced with addressing India’s concerns such as the fisehrmen issue, the return of Sri Lankan refugees in Tamil Nadu as also implementatin of the 13th amendment plus. 

The sixth is that  there is the huge task of  reconciliation and rehabilitation ahead as war wounds are not fully healed.  The Sirisena government had taken some steps like removing the governor who was  at loggerheads with the elected chief minister of the Northern Province, CV Wigneswaran. But the CM wants autonomy, land and police powers and removal of military forces form the area. One of the steps taken was the  setting up of a  reconciliation office headed by former President Kumaratunga. 

The seventh issue is the economy which is not in good shape. The Wickremesinghe victory has raised hopes of speeding up reforms and fuelling faster economic growth. The poll outcome was also in line with the market expectations. The new government has to take long-pending decisions to improve liquidity and broaden the overall market.

Last but not least the constitutional reforms need to be addressed. It is indeed a good thing that the government  is in a posiiton to undertake reforms although the Rajapakse faction will try to  oppose every piece of legislation.

The new government  has a chance to take the war weary  country forward and India should support  all its efforts to deal with the eocnomy and seucity aspects . Wickremesinghe has a lot good will from India as well as the west and with his right of the centre policies he should  not miss this golden opportunity.

Ranil hopeful of political solution to Tamil question

Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe during an interview to “The Hindu” at his Temple Trees residence in Colombo. Photo: N. Ram

• N. RAM-August 24, 2015
• 
  

A day after he assumed office, Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe spoke to N. Ram, former Editor-in-Chief of The Hindu, on a wide range of issues.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe is confident and hopeful that the political situation in Sri Lanka following the August 17 general election, although complex, is favourable for forging an enduring political solution to the Tamil question. Noting that the two main national parties, his United National Party and the Sri Lanka Freedom Party, and the Tamil National Alliance were “the three key players” in formulating the proposals for an enduring solution, he said he had “tried to keep the UNP position flexible so that we can bridge the differences.” Responding to a question on former President Chandrika Kumaratunga, he confirmed that she would have a significant role to play in this regard.

Ranil Hopeful of Political Solution to Tamil Question by Thavam Ratna

On Creating Our Future

Photo via #happysrilankans

• by Ranil Senanayake 
• - on 08/24/2015 

We have emerged, as a nation that is maturing politically and can determine its future in a participatory, democratic manner. Now that the process of lying out of our future has begun, the vision should never again be left to a few individuals, but discussed widely and embarked upon with the widest consensus. We all have to imagine, the future that we want, for us, our children and their country. For without any well-considered goals, there will be a perpetual journey with no direction. Thus, a public debate as to the direction of ‘growth’ and ‘development’ must become a national obligation.

We are told that we need to invest such that economic indices such as the GDP show growth. Development in this context is to move society to activity that increases these indices. The current paradigm would have us dependent on consumption as the driving factor. The more one consumes the better the GDP.  But to consume more, one must crave more, a particular worldview driven by a pecuniary philosophy that is replacing the more conservative spiritual philosophies the world over.  It has nothing to do with contentment, health or awareness.  It is driven by greed, desire and fear, the same values that created the problems that we face, in the first place.

Economic development comes in many forms. The consumption patterns may be renewable, in which case they are sustainable or non-renewable in which case they are unsustainable. Development that relies on fossil fuel is certainly short term and a very dangerous path. Sadly, the growth of fossil fuel consumption has been long cherished desire among some powerful bureaucrats with vested interests in the supply of fossil fuels to Sri Lanka. They have even created a myth that development can only be achieved through the consumption of fossil fuels and sold this myth to the politicians. It is this myth of ‘development’ that has brought us to the energy-addicted state of today and it is this same myth that drives the ‘economic development’ vision for our tomorrow.

It was our great hope that the ‘ silly season’ of borrowing money to construct fossil profligate projects such as Coal fired power plants; roads to nowhere and pointless airports will be over with the dismissal of the poorly informed. But now rumors swirl that the new lot might not be much better. Now we hear of megapolises, bridges and energy guzzling urban infrastructure. We are being are asked to perceive a future, like Singapore or Dubai.  Simplistic, ill-considered proposals by people who have never understood the nature of this nation. Locked away in air-conditioned cocoons in tall buildings or in chummy networks of bankers and businessmen, such proposals may seem practical and perhaps for the short-term gain of money it might be so. But they are neurotic decisions, made with no reference to reality and will wind up hurting us all. The German Psychologist Carl Jung, sums the situation well, “those who know nothing about nature” he states “ are of course neurotic, because they are not adapted to reality”. The more such decision makers move away from reality by abstracting nature, the more dangerous their decisions are to us.

But let us take the fossil carbon cost of Dubai and Singapore as examples and consider what reaching for such a goal will mean to us; the current consumption of   electricity in Singapore  (43.23 billion kWh), Dubai (85.1 billion kWh) and Sri Lanka (8.927 billion kWh).  Where will this energy come from ? Has this proposed ‘development’ scenario that seeks to make us a city-state to rival Singapore or Dubai even considered such fundamental realities?

Whatever flows of money such an urban project is supposed to attract, it looks like suicide in terms of climate change, not to mention becoming a totally irresponsible member of the global community.  The fossil carbon cost of such a project attains even further staggering proportions when the fossil carbon dioxide cost of cement (fifteen times more than oil) is brought into the equation.

We have been a nation of wanabee’s for quite some time now. We wannabe like Singapore, we wannabe like Dubai, why are we not satisfied with who and what we are?  The current wannabe development processes, only wants us to be rich (in a monetary sense), not understanding the truth of the saying “money cannot be eaten”. The cost to the individual, in terms of personal health, social health and community stability of these mad schemes are not considered.

The monetary system, as pointed out by innumerable people, is merely a creation of our imagination and there is nothing that can validate it except for a total faith in that system.  Of course, the same can be said for religion, the major difference being, that while piety drives one, greed drives the other.

It is to this system then, that we are asked to place our faith in. The tragedy of today is that total faith in the  values of monetary system (greed) is rapidly replacing faith in the religious (piety) and it is the handmaidens of the monetary system who seem to control the entire dialogue on ‘development’.

Is it not time to question this vision of ‘development’, so that the consequences of that we are asked to place our faith in, become clearer and we become part of the dialogue?

United government is not formed to give portfolios to former corrupt ministers - New Parliament’s maiden session on 1 st Sept. New cabinet will 50 ministers

(Lanka e News -23.Aug.2015, 11.30PM) The UNF has notified the SLFP groups who are creating issues by demanding ministerial portfolios that a united government is formed to carry out what is in the people’s mandate , and not to re appoint corrupt ministers who have been rejected by the people, while adding  it is only the president they  trust and not corrupt ministers . The UNF  has made this  stance very clear to these corrupt self -seeking politicos.

The Cabinet will be sworn in on the 25 th most probably and not tomorrow , according to sources within  the government. A final discussion is to be held this evening between the prime minister (P.M.) and the president in this connection.

Karu Jayasuriya is tipped to be the speaker and Lakshman Kiriella is tipped to be the leader of the house  who held the same post under the 100 days interim government . Gayantha Karunatileke is tipped to be the government chief whip.

The new cabinet will comprise 50 ministers , out of which 17 will be from the SLFP, based on unofficial reports. In any case attempts are being made to curtail the number of ministers to 45 . Not many changes in the UNP are expected to be effected as regards the ministerial portfolios that were allocated under the 100 days interim government .

However , Malik Samarawickrama , Sagala Ratnayake , Vajira Abeywardena, Harin Fernando and Daya Gamage are also to be appointed to the cabinet additionally , based on unofficial reports.

It is learnt that Dr. Jayampathy  Wickremrathne of the leftist party who is appointed as M.P. through the national list is also to get a ministerial portfolio.

Meanwhile based on reports of other media , there will be no change in regard to the  finance ministry portfolio , and that will be Ravi Karunanayake again. The SLFP had asked for the finance ministry portfolio , but the UNF had declined that request by pointing out the economic bungling and the bankruptcy that resulted during the SLFP  period under its finance ministers. However like under the 100 days interim government , the state minister of finance is going to be appointed from the SLFP.

Although some media publicized Dr.Harsha De Silva is to be appointed as the finance minister, that is part of  ‘Warnapala theory’ campaign.

More than knowledge of economics it is knowledge of financial management or accountancy  is what is of paramount importance for a finance minister . A case in point is Late Dr. N.M. Perera  a former finance minister who had a doctorate in economics .During his tenure of office , by trying to implement his economic theories , people were driven to starvation – people were compelled to forgo their staple food –rice  on two week days every week. Finally that government collapsed. 

On the other hand Ravi Karunanayake is a CIMA qualified chartered accountant , and is the frist finance minister in the world who has a dual  international qualification in financial management.

Formation of a cabinet with the participation of two main political parties is a most arduous and difficult task in the world. That challenging task has been undertaken by prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe. The latter has therefore requested his group to be ready to accept what is offered without creating problems.

The maiden session of the new parliament is slated for  01 st September .

---------------------------
by     (2015-08-23 22:43:04)

Ministerial aspirants should be good learners too

 24 August 2015 00:05

Fourth Century Indian Guru Kautilya offers several pertinent lessons for Sri Lanka’s new Government

The late Singaporean leader Lee Kuan Yew made certain that all his ministers possessed the virtues of competence and integrity - AFP 

Lessons from Kautilya and Singapore

Ministerial Aspirants Should Be Good Learners Too by Thavam Ratna

‘ It Is That One Minute ….’

By Thangamuthu Jayasingam –August 24, 2015

Dr. Thangamuthu Jayasingam

Rudyard Kipling states elegantly in ‘IF’,

“If you can fill the unforgiving minute with sixty seconds worth of distant run”

Many of us face this, and later regret to state ‘it is only that minute’ I lost my temper other wise, I would not have done it. Unfortunately, It is that minute that matters and not all the thousand of minutes before or after. Swami Vivekananda says in one his preaching ‘it is easy to be a hermit in wild with no interference but more difficult to practice purity living with all forms of distractions around you’. This again reiterates that, it is what one does when confronted with issues that matter, rather than all the preaching you make when you are completely free and away and are non accountable. It is that minute….

It is that minute now for the President and perhaps the Prime Minister. Elections are over, Prime Minister is appointed, there si support for a stable government. Every move that is made now, will be weighed against the pledges they made and the principles they preached. It is only the time will tell your success or failure; their ratings.

The National, List and the enrollment of those who lost at elections

Many had already commented on it but it is important to also realize that many hundreds who had not, are talking about it in the rural areas. How can a loser be appointed to the parliament under the National List? Yes, I am aware that the act provides for it. If so, then it is the act we should change as much as we did with 18th amendment, if necessary. The VOTE is considered as a symbol of democracy and also the power of the people and once they had spoken, then there should not be means to alter it. This violates the basics of the principles of the VOTERS POWER and rights of the people to elect their representatives? Look at the case in Kattankudy. On the announcement of appointing a member who was not elected, there had been violence against those who ‘may not have ‘ voted for that candidate. Few had been in the hospital. Is this the price one has to pay for exercising their rights? NO. The same is bound to happen in all the places, where such replacements have taken place, whether physically, mentally or socially. Is it correct to assign power to those who have been rejected by the people at an election specifically made for their selection. It is different from those who have not contested as they are appointed to the parliament, on their own merit, and with no rejection by the people. The ONUS is also on the persons concerned, should they accept such a post or position having lost at the election? If these such appointed members become further as MINISTERS then the fundamental of the FRANCHAISE would be in question, do they represent the people? This will be an issue spoken of the ‘government ‘ and ‘presidency’ over the years as a historical mistake. If the power is to vested in a few against the peoples wish, then the democracy takes a walk out of the back door. It is that minute that matters..

Read More