SL cricket abounding with match fixing coaches, players, wheeler dealers , teledrama sleaze balls – an Exposé..

(Lanka-e-News -16.Jan.2016, 8.20PM) In the Sri Lanka cricket history of match fixing  there are many including  Arjuna and Aravinda who have been tainted with such charges. Based on a report of Indian secret espionage service , during a match in Lucknow in 1992, accusations  were mounted against Arjuna  and Aravinda of collecting US. Dollars 15000.00 , but because of lack of evidence those charges went underground.

Recently too,  Thilakaratne Dilshan  and his wife were accused of match fixing , and of collecting a colossal amount of cash , again because of lack of evidence charges were dropped.Hashan Thilakaratne  on a television channel also gave hints of such individuals.

In the meantime , there were discussions regarding officers of the selection committee , as well as other cricketers  who were involved in match fixing , and about the match fixing during the premier league tournament in SL. The latest match fixing story revolved around Kusala Janith Perera and Rangana Herath in connection with the recent tournament held in SL , and about an individual who tried to give cash on account of match fixing.

Meanwhile the minister of sports Dayasiri Jayasekera instructed the CID to investigate whether there is a link between  the detection  of use of performance enhancement  ‘drugs’ based on the urine sample of Janith Perera ; the match fixing proposal that was made , and his repudiation of that proposal.

At the same time a fast bowling  coach  had  brought in another trained fast bowler; and it is the latter who had made this proposal   to Kusal and Rangana , the minister himself has revealed. 

When Lanka e news inside information division made a probe into this murky scenario, the following discovery was made …

The  fast bowling coach   is Anusha Samaranayake the minister had disclosed. The trained fast bowler  Anusha  brought to bowl to  SL fast bowlers for training was Gayan Vishvajith . However, the no cricketer of the  cricket clubs , knew about this fast bowler Gayan in the cricketing arena. This is because he is not a player for any cricket club  .Hence , such an individual being introduced to SL cricketers has aroused suspicions. 

This fast bowler with the name of Gayan Vishvajith  , is one who runs a ‘model farm’ . He supplies models to establishments from his models factory .Among these models are actresses . Most of them are actresses who had acted in one or two teledramas , and wayside sleaze balls. Anusha Samaranayake is a bosom pal of Gayan, and it  is reported that Anusha’s wife renders assistance towards this business. 

Like the latest breed of corrupt businessmen owning super luxury vehicles which are only symbolic of their illicit and corrupt earnings, unlike in the days gone by when a BMW was synonymous with prestige , Gayan Vishvajith too owns a luxury BMW vehicle , and he is prone to frivolities and frolicsome activities. He has through Anusha Samaranayake created close links with SL  cricket captain Angelo Mathews , Lasith Malinga and Kusal Janith Perera Gayan travelled to India for the last IPL tournament last match with Anusha Samaranayake in the company of an actress by the name of Janaki. The latter was Keheliya Rambukwela’s paramour since the time he was the mass media mess up minister , and was involved in teledrama  productions jointly with him when  he was a minister.

While  this group enjoyed to the hilt along with Angelo Mathews and Lasith Malinga in Taj Mahal hotel in Mumbai , they had amassed huge sums of money by the time they returned to SL , based on information received. Janaki the teledrama sleaze ball is  specialized in  crooked and corrupt deals , and most notorious in that sphere, it is learnt. 

Gayan Vishvajith the bosom pal of Anusha Samaranayake and Lasith Malinga had tried to give monies to Kusal Janith and Rangana to arrange  match fixing , and the latter have lodged a complaint with the ICC and SL cricket association , and already investigations are under way in this connection.

It has come to light that Vishvajith has had close friendship with Kusal Janith for a long time. Meanwhile Kusal Janith was accused of taking prohibited ‘performance enhancement drug. 

After Kusal rejected the match fixing proposal of Gayan, the latter had gone to Kusal’s residence and met him on several occasions. At those meetings , because Kusal refused  the   earlier match fixing proposal of Gayan , it is being doubted whether Kusal was given a performance enhancement drug mixed with a beverage . The CID based on these details is conducting an investigation. 

A close friend of Angelo Mathews by the name of ‘Kris’ too who came into their midst was also discussed , it is learnt.This individual may be a member of the match fixing chain  , it is suspected.

Based on reports , if the investigations are duly conducted , names of a number of players will be dragged into these murky goings on including how matches were lost on the New Zealand tour : winning the toss and taking first lease of the wicket ; and about players having a drinking orgy throughout the night until dawn at a house of a Sri Lankan the day before the last match . 

An individual who knew the inside out of these incidents speaking to Lanka e news said,  if the assets of the cricketers and the coaches whose names are revealed in the aforementioned paragraphs are probed , copious details can be uncovered. One of these coaches whose name is referred to above in these sordid involvements  is currently constructing a four storeyed business premises , sources say.

By a special  reporter of Lanka e news inside information division
Translated by Jeff

---------------------------
by     (2016-01-16 14:51:34)

Will the world economy tank in

Friday, 15 January 2016

In the first two weeks of the year, unlike in the past few years, we saw foreign exchange volatility jump to the most in a month as Chinese stock markets plunged and tensions escalated in the Middle East.

According to Morgan Stanley, swings like this will persist after averaging the most in four years in 2015. While Deutsche Bank AG sees a “minor retreat” in volatility, it says more turmoil may come from China and rising US interest rates. Therefore, 2016 is certainly turning out to be a very difficult year for all foreign exchange managers and for central banks of emerging markets.

EUR/USD

It is very unlikely according to currency speculators that the EUR/USD is likely to depreciate rapidly, despite all arguments in favour of a strong dollar and a weak euro. The Fed would likely react to an overshooting of the dollar, while Mario Draghi and the ECB are tempering expectations of larger-scale asset purchasing in the New Year.

In light of this, analysts say only a very moderate downtrend in EUR-USD is likely. However, the firmer dollar could draw capital into the US from the European Union creating problems for some of the weaker currencies.

EUR/GBP

Low energy prices continue to put pressure on consumer prices in the UK, and as a result the Bank of England revised its inflation outlook downwards in November. Market participants have drawn their own conclusions and have postponed their expectation of a first rate hike well into 2016. However, it is very possible the Bank of England will follow any Federal Reserve move and hike rates as early as May, pushing the EUR/STG pair lower in the New Year.

Crude oil

The slump in oil prices, stemming from OPEC’s recent reluctance to come to an agreement to cut output, has triggered risk aversion across the world. The Bloomberg Commodity Index has slipped below 80 for the first time in nearly 17 years. As expected, market participants have sold risk assets and bought debt. Global indices have been severely hit, with many of the majors, including the S&P, now down on the year.

Low crude prices are helping Saudi Arabia’s plan to expand its market share by forcing out the US shale producers and the Russians.

Therefore, the lower-for-longer oil prices are here to stay. This means the global inflation outlook continues to look subdued, which will complicate the central bank policies of many economies. However, it will help many of the unprofitable airlines the space to restructure.

2016 and beyond

It is very likely 2016 will see high asset volatility with central-bank-policy divergence, an expensive US dollar becoming even more expensive and political uncertainties acting as the catalyst. According to Hans Redeker, Head of Global Foreign Exchange Strategy at Morgan Stanley in London: “Volatility will be the name of the game, and the very first trading day of this year provides us with a taste of what to expect.”

The Federal Reserve might have finally raised interest rates thanks to lower unemployment, but there’s no doubt much of the US public still feels the effects of the long recession the country endured, not to mention the global economic risks, ranging from China’s slowing growth to terrorism threats in the Middle East and beyond.

Given the many risks involved, the world economy can certainly tank in 2016. If this happens there is the chance of another prolonged recession that can certainly impact countries like Sri Lanka negatively.

(The writer is a senior company director.)

Truth Without Hurt

By Jayakumar Thangavelu –January 17, 2016

DIG Jayakumar Thangavelu

A Senior Police Officer’s Perspective Of Investigations Into Political Crimes

In addressing this subject, I put down my experience of forty years in the Sri Lankan Police, where I retired as Deputy Inspector General, Legal Range, of which twenty years were spent in the Criminal Investigation Department, where I had the privilege of starting under Tyrell Goonetilleke, the renowned investigator, as my mentor. My experience in political crimes began with the Tamil insurgency in the 1970s, through the Sinhalese youth (JVP) insurgency of the latter 1980s, the commissions of inquiry in the 1990s, to the last phase of the war (2006 – 2009). Contrary to popular perception, it is my experience that the overwhelming majority of the police officers are well-trained, capable and if left free of interference by politicians and senior government officials, would do an honest job in investigating and interdicting crime. I had shunned politics and worked according to my professional and religious conscience. Indoing so I once confronted a Supreme Court judge who manoeuvred a commission of inquiry towards a political verdict and in another instance defended at the Human Rights Commission two police officers who tried to check criminal behaviour by a minister’s, son in the face of abusive language by the Minister which should have been disallowed in that forum. Nevertheless, I got my due promotions and was never penalised by the department. My career with the Commission of Inquiry into serious violations (2006 – 2009), headed by Justice Udalagama, continued into my retirement. I submitted my resignation to the Commission upon receiving and confirming instructions for my elimination instituted by some senior government officials on account of my witness protection activity. On finding that my resignation did not stanch the active threat to my life, I explained to the Commission and withdrew my resignation. From then on, until the Commission wound up in 2009, my dynamic protection activity had been greatly impaired; it had largely become a matter of protecting myself.

Consequent to certain adverse observations by the United Nations, as mentioned in page 2, in its report titled – ‘Observations of United Nations’, on the Domestic Inquires conducted by Sri Lankan Tribunals, which included the UDALAGAMA COMMISSION, there is much discussion for and against the creation of a hybrid court to investigate alleged war crimes.

As the Head of the VICTIMS AND WITNESSES ASSISTANCE AND PROTECTION UNIT (VWAPU) of the saidUDALAGAMA COMMISSION I consider it my duty to defend the honour, integrity and capability of the Commissioners of the said Commission who were highly respected, proficient, diligent, independent and equal to any task expected of any International Tribunal. I was the Deputy Inspector General (DIG) in charge of the Police Legal Range when I was appointed to head the VWAPU.      
                  
Read More

SRI LANKA: The Constitution making and brutal police murder at Embilipitiya

January 11, 2016

The Government has announced another attempt at constitution making in Sri Lanka which, this time is to begin, with the hope to complete the process, by the end of this year. A resolution to this effect has already been introduced in the Parliament and a Drafting Committee has been named. A valid question that begets asking is; what, does a constitution making in Sri Lanka imply?

Some reflections of the alleged brutal murder in Embilipitiya, may provide some answers to this very important question about the purpose and direction of constitution making in Sri Lanka.

The broad details of the incident as described in many reports, including many photographs and videos is quite simple. A party, was being held, at a residence in the Embilipitiya town and many people were attending this private celebration. During this party, two un-invited guests – who were two policemen - arrived at the house to the surprise of all guests and the residents. They were there not for any particular police duty, but to ask for Arrack (a local liquor), for their own consumption. As this request was not heeded to by the owners and residents there began a quarrel which quickly turned aggressive. The two policemen had beaten up several people at the house, in particular a young man, Sumith Prasanna Jayawardana who was the owner of the house. The policemen had then called their colleagues at the local police station as reinforcements, and soon thereafter a large group of policemen had also arrived and they had severely beaten the people attending the party, including women. The people who were at the event, have later spoken to the media including London based Sinhala BBC service, and had given accounts of the cruel manner in which they were treated by the officers attached to the Embilipitiya police. As a result of the police beating, Sumith Prasanna Jayawardana, a young man, was killed. This naturally provoked reaction from the people of Embilipitiya, who in large numbers began to gather and also put up black flags in protest of the police action. They also signed a petition, addressed to the Government to complain about this action. Meanwhile, police sought the intervention of the Magistrate in the area, and later served the pregnant widow, of the deceased young man with a notice ordering her to ensure that there will be no protest against the police and in particular forbidding anyone to carry a coffin, while demonstrating. As the tensions were building large numbers of police were called to the streets including, as reports stated, around 500 STF personnel (Special Task Force), in order to prevent a mass protest by the people.

This incident is the thus far the first killing to take place, due to police brutality in 2016. Going by the experiences of the previous years, this will certainly not be the last.

A Constitution is the first law or the paramount law of a country, that lays down the rules that the government, all its institutions and the people should abide by, if they are to achieve the great goals that the nation has set out to achieve, such as development, prosperity, peace and harmony and orderly behaviour in every aspect of the nation’s life. The simple question that would arise is ask then, as to whether it would be possible for the new constitution, to provide for a legal arrangement within which, the police in Sri Lanka will cease to act brutally. Or will it be the case that even after promulgation of the new constitution, the police will be allowed to act as brutally as they do now. If later be the case, then the people, particularly the people of lower income groups in the country will inevitably question, what good will such a constitution bring about to the people and the nation. Will this constitution making be another failed attempt as the two previous constitution makings were?

In no country is the maintenance of law and order possible, if the law enforcement agency of the country, the police itself, does not abide by the law. The Embilipitiya incident and many other similar incidents, only indicate that the Sri Lankan police do not consider it their duty, to abide by the law. A commonly held belief seems to be, that the police can break any law and get away with it.

The Embilipitiya incident confirms this perception. Despite of a brutal murder taking place, about which there is a large body of evidence, eye witnesses, photographs, videos and the like, the murders have not yet been arrested. They have only been transferred.

Looking at the scale of indiscipline in the Sri Lanka police, it can be assertedwithout hesitation, that the police hierarchy and even they Government fears to take action against the police. The fear is that the police will retaliate and withdraw cooperation, which in turn will create even more problems for the Government to tackle.

What use would any constitution be, if this situation is allowed to be continued? Thus a test for the effectiveness of any new constitution,that promises to restore the rule of law and good governance, is that it will develop constitutional strategies, to create a law abiding police force. Given the conditions in Sri Lanka, this will not prove to be an easy task. To bring about such effective reforms would require considerable discussionwith the people about what has become of their police force, quite openly and frankly. If that cannot happen, Sri Lanka will continue to be a place of disorder, which is caused mainly by its main law enforcement agency.

The President and the Prime Minister and even some ministers have spoken eloquently about the making of the new constitution and how it will make Sri Lanka a prosperous country. If they are serious about what they are talking, they should look into the state of policing in Sri Lanka and place before the people a perspective, as to how a policing that has turned wild, could be tamed and will become an instrument that generates an environment where law enforcement will become a civilised practice. An uncivilised policing and a good constitution are incompatible. One would hope that the President and the Prime Minister will demonstrate their wisdom and capacity to deal with this difficult problem.

It was not so long ago that the National Police Commission and the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) forthright, condemned the police attack on the NDTA Students. The HRCSL, also imposed fines on the culprits. However, that does not seem to have awakened the Inspector General of Police, to take firm action to restore discipline. Instead, the Police Headquarters have moved the Courts, to challenge the action of the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka. The internal disciplinary process of the police has broken down to these extents.

The Constitution Drafting Committee, when it starts its work therefore, should seriously ponder on these questions. If they cannot find a way to create a law abiding police force, their efforts towards making a new constitution will not bring any good tidings to Sri Lanka.

Drafting of a constitution, is not a matter of engaging in some paperwork. A nice constitution can be written by anyone, who has an access the text of other good constitutions in other countries. A really good drafting process of a constitutions involves dealing with threats to liberty and equality that the people are faced with and deliberating solutions that should be incorporated into the law so as to overcome these issues. Thus the drafters must address the socio political situation of the country and be ‘clear-headed’ about how to bring an enlightened approach to discipline within the government and amongst the people. If there is indiscipline in the government apparatus, the discipline among the people can be only brought about by repression. Then, what is required is not a constitution, but draconian national security laws. The period of rule under the last two constitutions (1972 and 1978) was a one that was carried out through such draconian national security laws. Naturally, Sri Lanka does not need a third one, to achieve the same purpose.

At the heart of constitution making should be the idea of people security, as against the narrow idea of national security. It is the people’s security that is being threatened by actions such as the one that took place in Embilipitiya. People’s security is also being threatened at almost every police station, every day, when the police brutally assault people under the guise of conducting criminal investigations.

What has failed in Sri Lanka, is the ‘law enforcement’ within the democratic and rule of law framework. This failure cannot be cured by adding another paper law, even if one calls it a constitution. There has to be an intellectual attempt to grasp the violence that is perpetrated on the people through the very apparatus of the Government. Having understood the causes of such violence, it is up to the Constituent Assembly to debate the ways by which such violence could be brought to an end. The task of the Drafting Committee should be to help bring about such a debate, so that through a genuine discussion on actual problems, solutions can be found which could be incorporated into the new constitution.

Here come the Brits!

We know it was in Britain’s interest to come back and “redeem” so to speak Sri Lanka by betting big on Sri Lanka, by using their diplomatic clout, when the time was right, the conditions were right, the terms of business in favour of a negotiating position?

by Victor Cherubim

( January 16, 2016, London, Sri Lanka Guardian) Beside the satire, wit and accent, the British people are a very clever people. They survive on using ingenuity to achieve their ends. They use diplomacy to carry the day.

They live and believe on smart working.

We were not surprised to hear after having ruled over the colonies for several hundred of years, they have left an indelible legacy, their language, the English Language.

Who says Sri Lankans can speak English? They learn English and English literature before Swabasha was introduced. But they cannot speak English for toffee.

You say “tom AA tow,” they say “Tom ah toe,” you say “advertist TISE ment,” they say

“ad VERT isment,” you say “bal COHN ny,” they say “Bal cony.” Your foreign accent is just too obvious. This can make understanding more difficult with different pronunciation ways and accents. We know each sound is produced in a certain way and when you produce it right, it sounds right, it sounds “natural.”

Word stress and syllables have always let Sri Lankans down either when we have a difficult and uncompromising negotiating position or in diplomacy. It gives an overdue advantage to Brits. Ask a Sri Lankan to say the word, “think,” and the pronunciation can vary a variety of decibels. Our elocution teachers are a dying breed.

Here comes Mr. Swire

In one breath he says we have to deliver on all our commitments before the Geneva deadline, in another he says British companies are competing in Sri Lanka for £1 billion in Sri Lanka investment.

Rt. Hon Hugo Swire is Her Majesty’s Minister of State … for Asia at the FCO. Really he holds the position for India, Far East, Latin America and Australasia. He is Conservative MP for East Devon. He hails from a well connected Swire family. His great, great great grandfather ,John Swire (b.1793) was the founder of the Liverpool textile trading business, later to become the Swire Group, the multi billion US $ conglomerate based in Hong Kong. He attended Eton College, attended University of St. Andrews before going to the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst. He served in the Grenadier Guards.

With such a history or a pedigree shall I say, imagine him listening to either our Foreign Minister, on. Mangala Samaraweera or for that matter, Chief Minister of Northern Province, C.Vigneswaran. Could we have a chance in hell negotiating anything with such ancestry? But who says, diplomacy is the art of the impossible?

Everything in this world is timing?

Sri Lankans know that everything in this world revolves around timing. President Mahinda Rajapaksa believed in his astrologer(s) who advised him of his every move. Could he have not seen that he was put in a cul de sac that he could not get out, by perhaps, British diplomacy? He had won the “almighty war.” He had got the infrastructure done by the Chinese, the railroad to the North done by the Indians, all his fancies covered, that it was time for a new beginning?

We know Britain or the rest of the world was not ready to come and take over or pump in investment in war torn Sri Lanka. The spoils of war had to be attended first, with someone having laid the foundations for future development. They had MR to do it for them.

Big Deal

We know it was in Britain’s interest to come back and “redeem” so to speak Sri Lanka by betting big on Sri Lanka, by using their diplomatic clout, when the time was right, the conditions were right, the terms of business in favour of a negotiating position?

The previous Labour Government tried it with Lord Mark Mallock Brown of the FCO. It did not work, The stars were not right? The accent was not right?

Who better could the Brits have sent other than a Grenadier Guardsman, a man of substance, a businessman, perhaps a Liveryman, a thorough diplomat to tie up the loose ends in this deal to bring Sri Lanka back into its fold?

Wimal’s associate squeals about Mahinda’s ‘white vans

SATURDAY, 16 JANUARY 2016

“People were abducted using ‘white’ vans during Mahinda Rajapaksa period. What’s wrong with it?” type of statement has been made to ‘Mawbima’ newspaper issued yesterday (15th) by Niroshsan Premaratna who entered Parliament through UPFA as a Member of Wimal Weerawansa’s NFF.

When the journalist said, “Despite stating thieves are not arrested now there were no investigations regarding the culture of white van, abductions and murders that existed during the last regime,” Weerwansa’s close associate Niroshan Premaratna says, “I vehemently oppose abducting journalists. It occurred not only during Mahinda Rajapaka regime but also during J.R. Jayawardene and Premadasa regimes.

All murders were not committed by Mahinda Rajapaksa.  There was a ‘white van’ culture during that period. However, I did not see any righteous person or any person useful to the country being abducted by white vans and murdered. Members of the underworld and terrorists were abducted using white vans. Only those who were an obstacle for the path taken to solve the main issues during that time were abducted in that manner.

I don’t know whether they were disappeared or murdered. However, on 8th January, 2015 that government got the answer for certain things they did. The leader who saved the country was sent home. However, what the people expected by sending home the previous regime could not be realized through ‘yahapalanaya’.

When Parliamentarian Niroshan Premaratna says Mahinda Rajapaksa did not commit all the murders, it implies that Mahinda Rajapaka is responsible for some murders.

Whether a person is a member of the underworld or a terrorist or was an ‘obstacle’ for the path taken by the government, such per sons should be punished according to the law of the country. According to Parliamentarian Niroshan Premaratna Mahinda Rajapaksa had unleashed terror by committing extrajudicial murders, abductions, breaking limbs and carrying out various punishments deploying thugs. These are gross violations of human rights.

The important fact said by Parliamentarian Niroshan Premaratna is that his statement made in public that “those who were an obstacle for the path taken to solve the main issues during that time were abducted.” He has been engaged as a journalist for several years. It is a tragicomedy that a person such as Parliamentarian Niroshan Premaratna, who had been a journalist for some time, had to come out with the statement that those who were obstacles for the path taken by the government should be stopped by abductions, murder , terrorizing and threat.

According to the Parliamentarian no good persons had been abducted with white vans, murdered or terrorized. Then, weren’t journalist Prageeth Eknaligoda, political activists Lalith and Kugan, journalists Lasantha Wickremetunga, Keeth Noer and JVP activist Nainavavadu good people?

Nikawathalannda people suffer from kidney disease

Jan 16, 2016

Reports reaching us confirm due to the discontinuation of the Nikawathalanda reservoir project which is situated at the Ampara Pollonnaruwa border village the villagers has seriously affected for drinking water and health hazard.

Attached to the Mahaweli C zone Judicial monk Ven. Nikawathalanda Sri Poorvaramadipathi Morawaka Narada alleged although Rs. 14 million received to start the reservoir project no credible work has been started and money utilized.

Out of 500 families living in the Nikawathalanda village 65 kidney patients are found and 15 people have been died so far.

Gemidiriya
Principal of the Nikawathalanda College said 11 students have been found affected by the kidney disease due to no water.

Due to the discontinuation of the reservoir project the villagers had to use tube wells to fetch the water said the secretary of the Nikawathalanda divisional farmers union. He said some villagers walk 4 km distance to take water.

When the BBCinquired from the divisional secretary of the Dimbulagala pradeshiya sabah S. Jegadeesam he said the relevant project was started not by the Praseshiya officers but by the Gemidiriya project.

However the divisional secretary said following the complaint made by the rev. Morawaka instructions has been given to start the proposed reservoir project. 
 
Source - http://www.bbc.com/sinhala/sri_lanka/2016/01/160115_sp_ampara_kidney_disease

After Islamic fundamentalism?

by Izeth Hussain-January 16, 2016, 9:21 am 

In recent articles I have tried to establish that there is no nexus between Islam and terrorism, or between fundamentalism and terrorism, and I have also written about the widespread Islamophobic campaign to spread prejudice and hatred towards Islam. Each of those articles may seem valid to the reader but he may yet wonder whether, after all, I am not indulging in Islamic apologetics. I seem to be blaming the ills of the Islamic world on Islamophobic outsiders instead of recognizing that there has to be something indigenously wrong with that world to produce such monstrosities as Wahabism and its clones, particularly the Boko Haram and the IS. The truth is that for clarity of presentation I have to limit the number of subjects in each article. What is wrong with the Islamic world is a huge subject that has to be dealt with separately.

What is wrong is partly the spread of Islamic fundamentalism in various forms after 1979 in parts of the Islamic world. More particularly, what is wrong is the violence and terrorism that has gone with it, not everywhere but in some parts only. In earlier articles I have expounded the theory of Emmanuel Todd that the violence and terrorism correspond to a phase in the transition to modernity. There is also much else that is wrong with the Islamic world, such as for instance the recalcitrance to democracy. I cannot deal with all that in this article. Here I will limit myself to a few topics. I will firstly note that the fundamentalist drive could have reached its climacteric and will probably enter into a phase of decline. Thereafter I will make some observations on the impact of Islamic fundamentalism on Sri Lanka and what we might do to counter it.

The spectacular recent beheadings in Saudi Arabia of no less than 47 persons in one day, most of them reportedly Al Qaeda terrorists apart from an eminent non-violent Shia cleric, seems to be a highly significant development. There is more than a touch of hysteria, even of panic, about it. Saudi Arabia, the headquarters of Islamic fundamentalism, seems to be reacting against it, at least in its violent form. What has gone wrong? Western reactionaries used to be enamored of Islamic fundamentalism, first in the form of the Moslem Brotherhood as it was seen as a counterweight to Communism. Thereafter Islamic fundamentalism could be seen as a useful instrument to keep Islamic countries in a backward and therefore manageable condition. But retrospectively it would seem that things took a different turn after the Taliban’s splendid performance in Afghanistan: it saw itself as the power that had destroyed Soviet Communism and destroyed the Soviet Empire.

It is understandable that fundamentalist movements became more powerful and more violent thereafter. We have had Al Qaeda and now we have the much more monstrous Boko Haram and the IS. The IS is unique because it functions as a state and is beyond the control of Saudi Arabia and the rest of the Islamic world. It is totally impervious to criticism, and proceeds to perpetrate its subhuman horrors with impunity. Most of its funds come from Saudi donations and most of its fighters are from Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, the two great headquarters of Islamic fundamentalism today. In the context of serious schism within Saudi Arabia there is a prospect of the IS coming to power there. The point I am coming to is this. Islamic fundamentalism has been promoted mainly by Saudi Arabia mainly for the purpose of serving its political objectives. But that promotion has had behind it the backing of Zionists and powerful groups in the US who would want to keep the Islamic world in as backward and degraded a condition as possible for as long as possible so that it will never become a counterweight to the West. But the fundamentalist drive has become seriously counterproductive, and we could therefore expect, on commonsensical grounds, a significant diminution in the potency of that drive.

It is in that perspective that we must examine what looks like a success story of the Wahabi promotional drive of the Saudis, which I hold to be the greatest tragedy that has befallen the Sri Lankan Muslims in a long while. I will mention only one detail in illustration of that success story. I am told that in every mosque across the length and breadth of this island, Friday sermons are used to inveigh against Shi’ism in Sri Lanka’. Apart from the Borahs – who are definitely not being targeted – there have been only a tiny handful of Shias here, admirers of the Iranian Revolution practically all of whom I used to know. So, who is being targeted? I don’t want to go into details that might bore the reader but it is clear that the targets are strictly orthodox Muslims some of whose tenets and practices correspond to those of the Shias. So the Wahabis are spreading schism, which could have a violent potential, among orthodox Muslims here.

There are two reasons – apart from doctrinal ones – why I would regard the spread of the Wahabi version of Islam in Sri Lanka as a great tragedy. One is related to the fact that under modernity – more than under any earlier phase of civilization – achievement has been given a central value. Two and a half centuries of Wahabism has not brought forth any achievement worth speaking about, unless we regard the terrible destruction wrought in the holy places of Islam as mighty achievements. Islam came out of the desert and led to a great and glorious flowering of civilisation. Wahabism came out of the desert and wherever it has gone it has created a desert. The achievement level of Muslims practically all over the world tends to be lower than that of non-Muslims. I don’t want it to become even lower.

The other reason is related to the fact that during the decadent phases of Islamic civilization Muslims tend to withdraw into a shell. They seem to have an in-built ghetto mentality, so much so that it might be said that one of the essential differences between Jews and Muslims is that the Jews were forcibly confined to ghetto for centuries and were glad to get out of it while the Muslims create their own ghetto and are very reluctant to leave it. In Sri Lanka they were leaving their ghetto after 1945 but they started retrogressing into it in the ‘seventies. At present there are Muslims who want to show not only that they are different but that they don’t belong here. The retrogression corresponds to a period when the Middle East started making a significant impact on Sri Lankan lives, and in subsequent decades Wahabism became an important part of that impact. At present the Sinhalese power elite seems to have realized, at long last, the need for some degree of cohesion, for some degree of national integration, in this tragically fragmented country where there are many tribes and no nation. Wahabism, unless we are sensible and vigilant about it, could become a factor standing in the way of national integration.

I have to be brief about the measures that might be taken to counter Wahabism. I have two proposals that should contribute to the process of national integration, proposals on which I will have to expand later. The first is that the Muslims should be persuaded that Buddhism is not idol-worship. In recent times this idea seems to have assumed importance in Muslim consciousness almost certainly because of the spread of Wahabism, the central tenet of which is that nothing should come between man and the transcendental. The point is that when a Buddhist performs an act of worship before a Buddha statue, he is not worshipping a statue made of stone but the transcendental reality that is symbolized by the statue. He is really engaged in prayer which puts him in relation to the transcendental, which is the function of prayer in all religions. The Buddha statue is not an idol, a fetish endowed with supernatural powers. The correct notion about Buddhism should be implanted in the minds of young Muslims who are studying in the madrasahs.

My second proposal is that we Muslims must struggle to establish a form of Islam in which the following verse from the Koran assumes central importance: "Verily, those who believe and those who are Jews, Christians, and Sabaeans, whoever hath faith in God and the last day, and worketh that which is right and good – for them shall be the reward with their Lord; there will come no fear on them; neither shall be they grieved". It is clear that according to the Koran the adherents of the three monotheisms who lead virtuous lives will go to heaven. What about Hindus and Buddhists? Not only Vedantists but average Hindus also speak of a transcendental God, and Buddhists clearly believe in a transcendental One, not in a multiplicity of Gods. All this is consistent with the fact that the Koran is insistent that the revelation of the one true God was given to the whole of humanity, not just to the Arabs. The version of Islam that I am advocating can be validated on Islamic texts just as much as other versions that are validated on alternative Islamic texts.

izethhussain@gmail.com

US drone strike kills three suspected al-Qaida fighters in Yemen, tribesmen say

Drone targeted militants’ vehicle, say tribesmen, amid reports of dozens of defections from Yemen’s Isis affiliate

Yemenis walk past graffiti showing a US drone last year. Photograph: Yahya Arhab/EPA

Associated Press in Sanaa-Saturday 16 January 2016

A US drone strike killed three suspected al-Qaida militants in southern Yemen on Saturday, according to local tribesmen.

Believed to be the first drone strike this year in Yemen, it targeted the militants’ vehicle while they were travelling in Shabwa province, the tribesmen said. They spoke on condition of anonymity because of security concerns.

It was not immediately possible to verify their account. US officials rarely comment on the covert drone program.

The latest strike comes amid reports of divisions and defections among al-Qaida’s rival group, the Islamic State affiliate in Yemen, as a defected group leader gave an online testimony, claiming that Isis fabricated videos to exaggerate their strength and presence.

In testimony posted online by al-Qaida supporters, a man calling himself Antar al-Kanadi said he defected from Isis because its leadership had become too extreme. Al-Kanadi’s allegations seem to match reports elsewhere of dissension within the Yemeni Isis ranks.

According to The Long War Journal, which monitors militant group activity, more than a dozen Isis leaders and scores of their fighters have rebelled against the top leader, Abu Bilal al-Harbi, for alleged violations of Shariah law.

“Seventy members of the Islamic State’s Yemeni branch announced their ‘defection’ from the Islamic State’s wali in a letter published online on 15 December,” it said.

Al-Kanadi also alleged that Isis in Yemen released two videos of training camps in Hadramawt province and fraudulently claimed they were elsewhere in the country.

Yemen has been mired in conflict between Shia Houthi rebels and an internationally recognized government backed by a Saudi-led military coalition. Both Isis and al-Qaida in Yemen have exploited Yemen’s chaos and expanded their reach over the past year.

Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula has long been described by Washington as the global network’s most active and dangerous branch. The Isis affiliate in Yemen has claimed responsibility for a series of bloody attacks including four suicide bomb attacks on mosques in Sanaa in March and the assassination of the governor of Aden province.

Iran frees Post correspondent Jason Rezaian, 3 others, officials say

Iran has freed Washington Post journalist Jason Rezaian, according to Iranian news media. He was arrested in Iran in 2014 and convicted of espionage last year. Here's what you need to know about the case against him. (Monica Akhtar/The Washington Post)

By Carol Morello, William Branigin and Karen DeYoung-January 16 


VIENNA — Iran released Washington Post correspondent Jason Rezaian and three other detained Iranian Americans on Saturday in exchange for seven people imprisoned or charged in the United States, U.S. and Iranian officials said, a swap linked to the imminent implementation of a landmark nuclear deal between Tehran and six world powers.

Iran Frees Post Correspondent Jason Rezaian, 3 Others, Officials Say by Thavam Ratna

Missing the Peace for the Trees

Natural resources play a role in nearly half of the world's conflicts, but when it comes to ending wars, they're almost always forgotten.

BY ARTHUR BLUNDELL, EMILY HARWELL-JANUARY 15, 2016

It has been more than a decade since warring parties signed a deal to end Liberia’s bloody conflict. Fueled by the pillaging of the country’s rich natural resources — diamonds, gold, iron, and timber — the two civil wars that raged across 14 years left more than 250,000 people dead and displaced more than 1 million others. When the final peace deal was signed in 2003, however, the resources that had sustained the war for so long were not mentioned at all. The oversight, though common, has often proved disastrous for countries trying to break free from years of violence.

Missing the Peace for the Trees by Thavam Ratna

Maldives allows jailed former leader to travel to UK for surgery

Maldivian presidential candidate Mohamed Nasheed, who was ousted as president in 2012, speaks during a news conference in Male, October 20, 2013.REUTERS/DINUKA LIYANAWATTE/FILES

 BY SHIHAR ANEEZ-Sat Jan 16, 2016

The Maldives on Saturday granted permission for jailed former leader Mohamed Nasheed to travel to Britain for surgery after pressure from the international community including human rights groups and his lawyer Amal Clooney.

Nasheed, the Maldives' first democratically elected leader, is serving a 13-year sentence on terrorism charges after a rapid trial last March. The case drew international criticism.

The decision by President Abdullah Yameen's government, which rejected the same request two months ago, comes after pressure by rights groups and the United Nations over the case.

"Maldives has granted permission to former President Mohamed Nasheed to travel to the United Kingdom to undertake a surgery at his request," the Maldives foreign ministry said.

"Nasheed was granted permission under the condition to serve the remainder of the sentence upon return to the Maldives after the surgery."

Political colleagues say he is suffering from back pain.

The permission was granted after a visit of India's National Security Advisor S. Jaishankar, an unannounced visit by Sri Lanka's two top ministers and ahead of a visit of Hugo Swire, British minister of state for Asia.

Hamid Abdul Ghafoor, Nasheed's Maldivian Democratic Party spokesman, said a similar request was rejected two months ago, but was granted this time after Nasheed's legal team headed by human rights lawyer Amal Clooney started lobbying for sanctions on Maldives leaders.

"This medical leave comes after heavy international pressure. The whole trial process is wrong," he told Reuters.

Nasheed was ousted in disputed circumstances in 2012 for ordering the arrest of a judge.

The United Nations, the United States and human rights groups have said Yameen's government failed to follow due process and that the case was politically motivated.

Clooney, who is married to Hollywood actor George Clooney, early this week criticised Yameen's administration.

"Democracy is dead in the Maldives," Clooney told NBC News. "Literally, if there were an election now there would be no one to run against the president. Every opposition leader is either behind bars or being pursued by the government through the courts."

(Additional reporting by Ranga Sirilal; Editing by Stephen Powell)