Peace for the World

Peace for the World
First democratic leader of Justice the Godfather of the Sri Lankan Tamil Struggle: Honourable Samuel James Veluppillai Chelvanayakam

Monday, March 27, 2017

British scientists in world-first TB breakthrough



British scientists claim major advance in TB treatment
BBC24 March 2017

British scientists have made a world-first breakthrough in the diagnosis of tuberculosis.
Researchers in Oxford and Birmingham say they can isolate different strains of the disease using a process called genome sequencing.
It means patients who may have waited months to get the right drugs can now be diagnosed in just a few days - so they have a greater chance of recovery.
Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt said the breakthrough "will save lives".
Cases of TB in the UK have begun falling recently, but England still has one of the highest rates in Europe.
The scientists who made the discovery say genome sequencing allows them to identify the DNA of different samples in little more than a week.

Drug-resistant strains

Speedy diagnosis means patients can begin their recovery much quicker and also reduces the chances of the infection being spread.
Consultant microbiologist Dr Grace Smith said: "We're able to provide information on the species of the organism and the drugs to which it may be resistant if it's TB."
Public Health England says it is the first time anyone in the world has applied the technique on such a large scale.
The breakthrough comes after experts warned that a rise in drug-resistant strains of TB was threatening to derail efforts to eradicate the disease.
A new study found one in five global cases of the disease is now resistant to at least one major treatment drug.
Health secretary Mr Hunt said: "If we can show that using the most modern technology can help reduce the time it takes to identify who has got TB and get them onto a treatment programme, we can move closer to what we all want, which is to eradicate TB from the shores of the country."

Sunday, March 26, 2017

UNHRC Resolution: Govt. in trap of its own making 


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March 25, 2017, 8:02 pm


The UNHRC resolution which was co-sponsored by Sri Lanka and passed without a vote last Thursday has given the government two years to deliver on the commitments made in UNHRC Resolution No: 30/1 of October 2015. Unlike in previous years, this year’s UNHRC resolution did not generate much heat in Sri Lanka because the expectation was that the government would be given a further period of time. However, this extention of time to deliver may be more to the detriment of the government than if the things had come to a head right now.  A two year postponement means that this matter will come up for discussion at the March 2019 Sessions of the UNHRC. However, 2019 will be election year for this government.

The Islamic Hijab & Veil

Colombo Telegraph

By Charles Ponnuthurai Sarvan –March 26, 2017
Prof. Charles Sarvan
A Quiet Revolution (Yale University Press, 2011) is by Leila Ahmed, an Egyptian-American; Professor of Divinity at Harvard University. Unless otherwise made explicit, what follows is from this study. The work’s focus is mainly from the 20th century onwards, with much of the reference being related to Egypt (to a lesser degree to Saudi Arabia) and the USA. The hijab and veil are emblems of Islam (p. 132) though, of course, there are pious Muslim women who don’t wear the hijab. Equally, to be a Muslim is not necessarily to be an Islamist: ‘Islamism’ is a very political form of Islam (ibid).
Women’s rights have been used as a cloak to attack Islam and the Muslim world in general; to denigrate and dominate (pp. 223-4). For example, the British Occupation of Egypt began in 1882, and Lord Cromer was appointed consul-general, a post he held for twenty-four years. Cromer who repeatedly decried the position of women in Islam was a fierce opponent of women’s rights in England. Indeed, he was for a time president of the ‘Society Opposed to Women’s Suffrage’ (p. 31). The presence of the veil was taken to be an indicator of the level of the backwardness of a society (p. 20) – isn’t it still? The Oxford historian Albert Hourani in The Vanishing Veil (1956) predicted that it would soon be a thing of the past (p. 19) but the veil reappeared in the 1970s (p. 8), and today we live in a world where veiling steadily gains ground across the globe (p. 305).
The Caliphate which had existed under the Ottoman Empire was abolished in 1924 by Kemal Ataturk. In 1928, the Muslim Brotherhood was founded by Hasan al-Banna whose ideal was to work for humanity, particularly for the poor and oppressed. Their clinics, health-care centers and hospitals were open also to the needy who didn’t belong to the Brotherhood (p. 51). A Muslim Sisterhood was established in 1937 (p. 136). The Brotherhood was dissolved in 1948 and al-Banna murdered. Fleeing persecution in Egypt, members of the Brotherhood found refuge in Saudi Arabia which from the 1950s saw a massive increase in its oil-based wealth. The Kingdom, established in 1932, followed the teaching of Abd al-Wahhab (1709-92), and sought to Wahhabize Islam (p. 97). Members of the Brotherhood offered their experience and expertise, and it is they who ran Saudi projects, including publications and missions. (In the past, wealthy Egyptians had taken to wearing European-style dress. Now women returning from Saudi Arabia with money to buy houses, property or businesses imitated the Saudi dress-code: Saudi chic, p. 101. Besides, wearing the hijab a woman could leave the home, go out to work and yet signal that she was a good wife and mother: p. 122. This is particularly relevant in the context of over-crowding in buses, trains and offices.) A university was set up in Medina in 1961 to train Muslim missionaries (p. 61). The word jahiliyya (jahl = ignorance) referred to the pre-Islamic era in Arabia but Egyptian Sayyid Qutb (leading intellectual of the Brotherhood, hanged in 1966) asserted that most so-called Muslim countries were in fact not Islamic but rather were jahiliyya societies (p. 69). To Qutb, the Islamic confession of faith, “La illaha illa Allah”, was revolutionary: sovereignty lay not in governments but in Islam (p. 71), and the true path was through dedicated and selfless labour and struggle. Of the four types of jihad (jahada = to strive): the first and the greatest is the struggle with oneself. I am reminded of one of the sayings attributed to the Buddha, very much in line with Stoic philosophy: Greater than conquering others is the winning of control over oneself.
The 1956 constitution gave Egyptian women the vote. “By 1962 women had been appointed to senior government positions, and all the women holding such positions were bareheaded” (p. 64). But more than the defeat by Israel in 1948, the defeat of 1967 had “an earthquake-like effect on the Arab world” (pp. 65-6): I suppose because it was not an honourable defeat but a humiliating debacle. Arab efforts at Westernisation hadn’t brought results, and the people now believed that salvation lay not in nationalism, not in socialism, but in Islam: an attitude encouraged by the ruling elite of Saudi Arabia and other Gulf kingdoms threatened by notions of socialism. The wearing of the hijab is influenced by non-religious factors and developments as well.
African Americans make up a considerable percentage of US Muslims (p. 11). Similarly, some of the so-called ‘Untouchable’ caste in India, rejecting a religion which sanctioned their rejection, converted to Buddhism. And Arundhati Roy in her novel, The God of Small Things, suggests with ironic humour that if there are “untouchables”, then there must also be “touchables”. Following the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979, America became an “Islamist haven” (p. 177) with the Reagan administration elevating Wahhabism to the status of ‘liberation theology’. Abdel Rahman, known as the blind sheikh, obtained his green card quickly, and Ayman al-Zawahiri was also in the US (p. 180).

A Review of Razeen Sally’s “Sri Lanka: Three Scenarios for the Future”

What is more conspicuous in his ‘scenario analysis’ is his China bashing. The main predicament of ‘drifting’ he identifies as the following.


by Laksiri Fernando-
But it is also time to step back and examine the practice of scenario analysis and invest in addressing its weaknesses. We need to bolster its scientific credibility by adding rigour to its procedures.” – Joseph Alcamo
( March 27, 2017, Sidney, Sri Lanka Guardian) A scenario analysis undoubtedly can be used effectively to visualize the future under different possible conditions and make recommendations for policy decisions. In that sense, it is a planning tool. One of the main exponents of this method, Peter Schwartz, called it “The Art of the Long View” (1991). However, the scientific or the objective aspects of such an exercise also should not be denied. The practice shows that this method is more effective in planning business or other organizations, than in overall economic planning of a country. Application of this method for countries, unless in selected sectors (i.e. energy, environment, roads, education, housing etc.) is problematic as many variables, both national and international, must be carefully taken into account. Otherwise, the use of the method may appear superficial.

Education is not a commodity: but it is and it should be negotiable 

IN-1

IN-1.3logoMonday, 27 March 2017

Students claim that education is not a commodity

‘Education is not a commodity’ has been a popular view almost universally held by Sri Lanka’s student community in higher learning institutions. For them, it is non-negotiable. Even some university academics at the country’s state universities have been ardent proponents of this view.

Fonseka to be AL of UNP

Fonseka to be AL of UNP
Mar 26, 2017
United National Party (UNP) senior member and former Army Commander Sarath Fonseka is to be made an assistant leader in the UNP sources said to Lanka News Web.
The decision to appoint him as an assistant leader was taken by the UNP working committee.
UNP MP Ranjith Madduma Bandara is also expected to be appointed as an assistant leader.
The move is part of an attempt by the UNP to restructure the party ahead of the next election.
AshWaru Colombo

Killing Lasantha And Attacking Journos: Was It Gota Or Fonny Or Both?


Colombo TelegraphMarch 26, 2017

Torture survivor journalist Keith Noyahr informed the Sri Lankan government via Interpol that he would not participate in the ongoing investigations until they arrest the persons who gave the orders for his abduction out of fear for his life, Colombo Telegraph reliably learns.
The Keith Noyahr abduction in 2008 took a decisive turn when the journalist made a written complaint to the Criminal Investigation Department a few months ago. Noyahr fled the country with his family to Australia no sooner he was released from hospital without making a detailed statement of his abduction and assault.
The CID who were thick into the investigations into the murder of Senior Journalist Lasantha Wickremetunge, assault of Editor Upali Tennakoon were poised to make a breakthrough after much painstaking leg work. They had unraveled the hitherto mystery and found a link between seemingly unconnected events between the three separate incidents.
The Criminal Investigations sleuths needed a detailed statement from Noyahr to tie up the loose ends. Noyahr finally made a statement and the CID pieced together the loose ends. All of the above mentioned crimes were handled by one group. The CID informed the Mt Lavinia Magistrate of their findings in open court when the Lasantha Wickremetunge case came up for hearing last week.
Prior to the last hearing the CID had reported to Court of the progress that was being made into each of the cases and the links between them. The telephone records that were unavailable turned up after the change of government, supported by new equipment which enabled the investigators to go far beyond the three month records the telecom provider had hitherto maintained.
The Mt Lavinia Magistrate had ordered an identification parade in to the Noyahr assault and the victim was requested to present himself in the country for such purpose. The CID had informed Keith Noyahr to present himself at such parade in person via Interpol.
Colombo Telegraph understands through reliable Interpol sources that Keith Noyahr has made a startling revelation as to why he is unable to present himself in the island before an identification parade.
Noyahr has stated via Interpol that he did not know any of the military persons who are in remand for his abduction and assault nor had any dealings with them. He further states that these officers obviously were used or ordered to carry out an attack on him by others who had authority over them. Therefore since these people in authority are yet running loose, he fears for his life to be present at an identification parade at this juncture.
“It is perfectly understandable that Noyahr is apprehensive to say the least when one peers back into the dark period when journalists were harassed, assaulted, abducted and murdered. Those in command positions in the Army and even above them have been named and shamed for being behind the dastardly attacks on journalists. Noyahrs predicament should be understood in this backdrop.” the CID sources told Colombo Telegraph.
Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka too was questioned by the CID in connection with the murder of Lasantha Wickremetunge. The Field Marshal’s name too was linked time and again as being a possible suspect even by the high and mighty. Fonseka even after eight years, made a statement laying the blame at the doorstep of Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Gen. Kapila Hendavitharna, the “Army Intelligence Chief”. Gotabaya in turn makes public statements accusing Field Marshal of being behind the murder of Lasantha.

As Lanka e news revealed so it happened! Weerawansa pulls a fast one -hospitalized within 3 days of fasting !


LEN logo(Lanka-e-News - 27.March.2017, 6.00AM)  As Lanka e news predicted so it happened! Lanka e news on  the day following the commencement of the fast by Weerawansa revealed it is a ‘Lemon puff’ fast No.2’ –a  conspiracy to get himself admitted to hospital and spend his period there while in remand. Just as we predicted, Weerawansa was admitted to the prison hospital within three days of his commencement of  his fast which was  truly designed to pull a fast one !
Even though an individual who contracts fever and does not eat for 4 -5 days will not  die , Weerawansa  the notorious criminal and  trickster who staged a fast has become ‘critical’ within three days of the commencement of the fast  , and has got himself admitted to prison hospital.
Weerawansa who nursed high hopes  after his incarceration   that  the UPFA would overturn the country and turn everything topsy turvy was thoroughly disappointed ( not enough the irretrievable havoc they have already wreaked on the country)  when all his expectations came a cropper , hatched  this latest  conspiracy , that is to stage a fast to show off to  the UPFA leader, to exert pressure on court  to grant  him bail ,and  to remain in prison hospital during the rest of his  period in remand custody. 
Indeed Lanka e news earlier on revealed “ it is the plan of Weerawansa , in the event he does  not get bail , to spend his time in prison hospital by  staging  a  fast and undoubtedly ,just two days of  beginning his ‘fast’ he will be  admitted to the prison hospital. Weerawansa’s plan thereafter is to continue his stay in hospital for the rest of his period in remand custody with the support of the doctor mafia’ .This report was posted by Lanka e news on the 23 rd morning at 6.10.
It is well for everyone to know,  Weerawansa is incarcerated because he misused a whopping Rs. 90 million of public funds ,as well as for illegally  distributing  40 official vehicles  of the state among his cronies, stooges, henchmen and relatives , and not because Viagra was found in his home in excess , or somebody in the house was making another to take that in excess resulting  in the death of that  youth. 
In addition , the Commission investigating allegations of Bribery and corruption is on the verge of concluding its investigations into Weerawansa M.P. ‘s amassment of wealth . How did Weerawansa who is just an M.P earning  a monthly salary and  not engaged in any legitimate business amass so much wealth as to build a mansion worth many millions of rupees ? Since Weerawansa had been unable to explain how he came by such huge  assets , the Bribery commission is about to file a case , based on reports reaching Lanka e news.
 
In the circumstances , the prospects are , Weerawansa will have to be behind bars for a long while .  Since Weerawansa is not having the will power to face the reaction of his own actions (in spite of the fact he is the architect of his own misfortunes)  , and there is a possibility for him to  take his life either by starving or hanging himself on a beam using even a  robbed sarong , or from an overdose of Viagra (which are in plenty at  his home used not by him but by other visitors ) , it will be safe if the security personnel of the prison keep him under their special  surveillance .
We are issuing this warning not without valid reason: Weerawansa in the past  threatened his wife Sashi with  taking his life  . He was so distraught and demented that he even wrote a letter to that effect. That letter was published some years ago  by the media.
Unfortunately the copy of that letter that was in our library  was destroyed after the Lanka e news portal was set on fire . (If that copy of letter is available with anyone , please send it to us for  publication ) 
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by     (2017-03-27 00:27:59)

Don’t turn justice into a fast-moving comedy

Don’t turn justice into a fast-moving comedy

Mar 26, 2017

At a national and international level, important factors such as the restoration of judicial independence, the independence of the police and the rule of law have been important factors in restoring Sri Lanka’s image and relationships for more trade and aid. However, certain parties or groups appear to be trying to undermine this or make it a political drama. 

One such case is the arrest and remand, since January,of National Freedom Front leader and parliamentarian Wimal Weerawansa. The charge is that while he was a Minister in the Rajapaksa regime he had misused about 40 government vehicles and thereby caused a loss of about Rs.90 million. Mr. Weerawansa is alleging his arrest and remand are acts of political revenge. Based on this he and his joint opposition appear to be producing political drama after drama and at times are getting far too much publicity for it. Earlier this month, Mr. Weerawansa walked into parliament proudly displaying his handcuffs and later there was a ceremony to mark his 47th birthday. The guests included former president Mahinda Rajapaksa. The same week a major controversy erupted over the appeal made by the NFF to function as an independent party in parliament. Speaker Karu Jayasuriya after consultations with party leaders including the Sri Lanka Freedom Party’s senior vice President Nimal Siripala de
Earlier this month, Mr. Weerawansa walked into parliament proudly displaying his handcuffs and later there was a ceremony to mark his 47th birthday. The guests included former president Mahinda Rajapaksa. The same week a major controversy erupted over the appeal made by the NFF to function as an independent party in parliament. Speaker Karu Jayasuriya after consultations with party leaders including the Sri Lanka Freedom Party’s senior vice President Nimal Siripala de Silva, disallowed the appeal on the basis that the NFF had contested the August 2015 general election on the United People’s Freedom Alliance ticket. The Speaker’s ruling caused pandemonium and behaviour that bordered on hooliganism. Eventually the Speaker imposed a week’s suspension on joint opposition leader and veteran parliamentarian Dinesh Gunawardena. This week we saw a new episode in the Weerawansa political drama. On Wednesday he announced he was launching a hunger strike to protest against what he saw as political revenge. On the
This week we saw a new episode in the Weerawansa political drama. On Wednesday he announced he was launching a hunger strike to protest against what he saw as political revenge. On the sidelines Mr. Weerawansa’s teenage daughter who also joined in going on a hunger strike herself has now been admitted to hospital. Justice Minister Wijedasa Rajapakshe referring to the issue in Parliament on Thursday made it clear that the President, the Prime Minister or the law and order Minister had nothing to do with Mr. Weerawansa’s arrest and remand. That is how it should be because the police, its investigative
Justice Minister Wijedasa Rajapakshe referring to the issue in Parliament on Thursday made it clear that the President, the Prime Minister or the law and order Minister had nothing to do with Mr. Weerawansa’s arrest and remand. That is how it should be because the police, its investigative units and the judiciary are independent and there is no need for them to even inform government leaders of their decision to arrest Mr. Weerawansa. It is also clear that the Magistrate Courts or the High Courts should not and do not act on any political guidance or influence though it is known to have happened even in the Supreme Court during the worst days of the former regime. The courts are now independent and take decisions on evidence placed before them by the police, prosecuting counsel and the defence counsel. On Friday, Mr. Weerawansa’s lawyers made another move to get him out on bail. They went to the Fort Magistrate’s Court, this time citing Mr. Weerawansa’s daughter’s admission to hospital as the reason for bail. Some legal analysts are calling it a fast move. Whatever be the case, we urge government and opposition party politicians to respect the independence of the judiciary, the police and the rule of law. This is one of the pillars of democracy and
On Friday, Mr. Weerawansa’s lawyers made another move to get him out on bail. They went to the Fort Magistrate’s Court, this time citing Mr. Weerawansa’s daughter’s admission to hospital as the reason for bail. Some legal analysts are calling it a fast move. Whatever be the case, we urge government and opposition party politicians to respect the independence of the judiciary, the police and the rule of law. This is one of the pillars of democracy and provide the checks and balances for the democratic process to work well. Mr. Weerawansa and other politicians need to be made aware that if other remanded prisoners also decide to go on hunger strikes demanding bail, the law might become a fasting ass with little more than skin and bone. With media independence also restored to a large extent, media groups need to be aware that rights are linked to responsibilities and if we fail in our responsibilities we might have to forfeit our rights. Therefore, there is a need to ensure that there is no abuse of media freedom by giving far too much publicity to what happens outside a court of law or commission of inquiry while giving
With media independence also restored to a large extent, media groups need to be aware that rights are linked to responsibilities and if we fail in our responsibilities we might have to forfeit our rights. Therefore, there is a need to ensure that there is no abuse of media freedom by giving far too much publicity to what happens outside a court of law or commission of inquiry while giving little publicity to more important matters that are taken up in these cases. If populism or any form of extremism is bad in politics so is it for the media and we need to maintain ethics and principles and be the voice of voiceless while campaigning for justice and equality.
Public policy failures, social unrest and economic decline

2017-03-27
here are more than enough signs of social unrest in the country today. In fact, the prevailing state of affairs in could be described as unsettling, to say the least. Inhuman ragging in the universities is nothing new but has become more endemic within the system. Our streets have become unmanageable, even by an ever-increasing number of traffic police officers. They built environment in and around urban centres is a big mess and threaten public health as well as civilized urban life. A majority of young people are almost completely lost in schools, universities and everywhere else. The country’s human resources are almost totally mismanaged. While we employ over 260,000 teachers in about 10,000 public schools in the country, private tuition masters visit middle class houses in hybrid vehicles to coach well-to-do children in order for them to have an edge over the underprivileged. Nearly a million three-wheeler drivers cannot help but drive their vehicles all over the place to earn their rupees before their potential customers disappear from the city streets in the evening. 


Meanwhile, the country is yet to recover from the 1956 shock and its consequences. The list goes on and on. So, let me sum up in one sentence. The colossal public policy failures have contributed immensely to the present political, economic, social and cultural chaos and our political leaders do not appear to know how to reboot the policy making machinery to set in motion a process of recovery. The fact that political vultures are hovering above the heads of gullible masses is no doubt a major worry for them but, every single day lost by postponing a serious overall policy analysis and mapping out strategies to sort out the mess can only make the recovery harder.   
It is true that public policies, no matter how sound they might be, take time to bring about the desired change, either in the national economy or in important sectors like health, education and transport. But, we have no choice in the matter. More we wait to formulate and implement evidence based policies, our problems can only get worse, creating more unrest in the country. This is true at an institutional level as well as at a national level.   
Given the vastness of the subject at hand, let me just give a few illustrative examples. First, ragging in the universities, is a symptom of a deeper malaise within the education system. We had a similar situation in the universities in the late 1980’s, following the second JVP uprising and the student agitations against the establishment of the North Colombo Medical School. Inhuman ragging was part of a complex situation that prevailed in the universities. In the Colombo university, we formulated and launched a comprehensive programme of interventions that involved various cultural activities, community work for students, teaching of languages involving university alumni, counselling, disciplinary action against ‘raggers’, internships for undergraduates in private firms, etc. In spite of initial resistance by a minority of students, sadistic ragging was stamped out from the university. Some of the then students who contributed to the above program are at present people’s representatives in parliament and they know that what is mentioned above is true. Yet ragging is not just an internal affair, but a part of youth unrest in society at large and deserves more than an institutional response.   

What is important to note here is that the stamping out of the ragging was achieved not by simply imposing punitive measures but by adopting a holistic approach to student affairs that helped transform the university landscape in to a vibrant intellectual environment where academics and students work together to make campus life productive and satisfying for all segments of the university community.   
The issues connected with ragging are equally significant and important but space does not permit any discussion here. But the point is already made. We have a top heavy government, but the political leaders and the bureaucrats often do not make things happen but let things happen leading to the proliferation of public protests in almost all sectors.   
Space does not permit me to look at various issues and the policy environment in the country in detail. So, let me take one or two examples. It is crystal clear from the available official data that income inequality has got worse over the last several decades while the GDP of the country has expanded steadily. The poorest 10% of the people earn about 2% of the national income while the richest 10% control nearly 40%. This situation has serious adverse economic consequences and these consequences and these consequences should be addressed through appropriate policy responses. It is proven beyond doubt that progressive taxation is the key policy option available to us to rectify this situation. For lower taxes, in particular lower personal income taxes, do not necessarily result in more productive investment but lead to ever increasing, wasteful and unproductive private consumption. What is even more important is the resulting contraction of public finances, preventing the government from making critical public investments in areas that matter for economic and social development in the country.   

"Another area that is almost totally neglected is human resource management. We have no clear national policy or plan to make optimal use of the country’s labour force which stands at just over 8 million persons"

On the other hand, the tax revenue of a government depends not only on the rate of taxation but also on the effective governance of the taxation system. The confidence and trust that taxpayers have in the posses of governance of tax revenue go a long way in ensuring the efficiency and fairness of the tax system in a country. Where there is no accountability on the part of decision makers with respect to the management of public finances, potential tax payers and officials become indifferent, or even cynical towards payment and collection of taxes. Tax evasion is often the result, producing low tax revenue.   


Colossal mismanagement of public finances in the recent past has not only contributed to the current public debt burden, putting the country at risk but also led to the current negative public attitude towards taxation. The continuing wasteful public spending, the instances of which are reported almost daily in the media can only make the situation worse. Only careful efforts to maintain a high level of fiscal discipline can reverse this trend. The country can ill-afford to postpone critical investments in strategically important areas like Research and Development, education, health and public transport. Governments ability to do this depends on a higher level of tax revenue.   
Another area that is almost totally neglected is human resource management. We have no clear national policy or plan to make optimal use of the country’s labour force which stands at just over 8 million persons. Nearly a million of them drive three wheelers partly due to lack of better alternative employment and partly due to the transport mess in the country. Many male youth have no faith in the education system and leave school early leading to an increasing feminization of the student population.   

 In other words, some of the problems we face could also be addressed at an institutional level. But most of the problems we face in the country today cannot be resolved unless we come up with decisive policy responses. Since the life chances of a majority of citizens depend on such policy responses, any delay in adopting such measures could ruin the lives of thousands of people - both young and old.   

Another report confirming bond scam released

Take action against Arjun Aloysius: COPE

March 26, 2017

Another audit report that states the extent of the bond scam committed when Arjun Mahendran was the governor of Central Bank has been released. According to this report it is revealed that the EPF has incurred a loss of Rs. 9.6 billion due to the relevant bond auction.
A similar internal audit report had been presented to the Monetary Board by the present Governor of Central Bank Dr Indrajit Coomaraswamy. However, the copies of the report distributed among members of the Board were later collected back to prevent them from being made available outside the Bank.
According to this report the EPF had incurred a loss of Rs.11.9 billion due to Arjun Mahendran’s bond scam. The convener of Voice Against Corruption (VAC) Wasantha Samarasinghe said several matters that lead to suspicion have surfaced due to the release of two reports.
He says the Governor of Central bank should explain whether the audit report stating Rs. 9.6 billion and the one stating a loss of Rs.11.9 billion released by Dr. Coomaraswamy were two separate reports or the first is an amended report of the second. Mr. Samarasinghe says if the reports are different it means the EPF has incurred a loss of Rs.21.5 billion due to Mahendran – Aloysius bond scam.
The profit of Perpetual Treasuries Ltd. From 1st January to 31st March, 2015 had been Rs. 959 million. However, the profit of the 12 month period from 1st April, 2015 to 31st March, 2016 had increased to Rs.5,124 million. Again the profit during the period from 1st April, to 30th September, 2016 has risen to Rs. 6815 million. Businesses in this field have to release their financial reports every three months. However, Perpetual Treasuries has not done so. The company has gained a profit of Rs. 12,628 million within 21 months.
According to the statistics it is evident that Perpetual Treasuries Ltd. has gained a colossal profit after the bond auction of the Central bank and it has been proved that the profits the EPF should get is being spuriously absorbed into Perpetual Treasuries Ltd. Says Mr. Samarasinghe.
He says legal action should be taken against the fraudsters and the money plundered should be recovered, the Governor of Central Bank Dr Indrajit Coomaraswamy should explain to the country immediately regarding the two audit reports on the bond issue and the country should be told how the loss due to the scam would be recovered.
He said masses would be rallied to take stern action if the authorities fail to punish the culprits and recover the stolen money.

Weerawansa the born trickster ‘sells’ his daughter to obtain bail ! -Can a 16 year old be admitted to children’s hospital meant for children under 12 years ?


LEN logo(Lanka-e-News- 27.March.2017, 5.00AM) Machiavellian Wimal Weerawansa the accomplished liar and crook by birth who is currently in remand custody on grave charges of misusing public funds to the tune of Rs. 90 million ; unlawfully distributing State official vehicles to his stooges ,party henchmen , family members and relatives;  is once again seeking to hit news headlines  via attempts to fool the court with a view to secure bail by even ‘selling’ his daughter .
Weerawansa started a fast within the remand prison on the 22 nd to pull a fast one  in order  to cheat all and sundry, applied for bail again from the Colombo Magistrate court on the 24 th through his lawyers. This application was made after the high court had refused bail .

It is a pity this Weerawansa only proved what a stupid idiot and imbecile he is by requesting bail from a lower court when the high court has refused same. This grade nine nitwit did not have even that little grey matter to realize , it is only the appeal court that can consider a bail application when that has been refused by the high court. Believe it or not this is the Weerawansa who heard a case under the lawless corrupt Rajapakse regime to dismiss a chief justice !

16 years old grown up girl in children’s hospital meant for treatment of children below 12 years of age !!

Be that as it may , the grounds on which Weerawansa sought to secure bail from the magistrate  court on the 24 th was even more ridiculous and ludicrous ! In the application for bail of Weerawansa , it was stated  Wimasha Vishwadari Werawansa  ,the 16 years  old daughter of Weerawansa is in a state of shock over her father’s  fast  , and as she is suffering from fever , she has been  warded at Lady Ridgeway hospital for medical treatment .
It is worthy of note , the Lady Ridgeway hospital is the only children’s hospital in Sri Lanka  where  children under 12 years of age are treated, whereas daughter of Weerawansa is nearly 16 years old (about five months more to reach 16 ) . Then how come she was  receiving treatment after being warded at Lady Ridgeway hospital ?

It is most clear this Weerasangili Pannikiyage Wimalasena alias Wimalasiri Gamlath alias Wimal Weerawansa who has made his whole  life and living a pavement melodrama while existing entirely on guiles and guises exploiting the gullible nature of Sri Lankans , has even in this instance lied blatantly  and brazenly to court , and sought to ‘sell’ his daughter to ‘buy’ his freedom after committing the gravest  crimes for which he is incarcerated .

This most crafty corrupt criminal had first got his daughter and 20 years old (5 months more to reach 20) son Vibuthi Vishwajith admitted to Ragama teaching hospital . Thereafter Vibuthi was discharged ,and it was stated  that daughter Wimasha was admitted to Lady Ridgeway hospital .

Who is the fool will  seek a hospital far away when treatment can be obtained from close by?

Weerawansa lives in Colombo while his wife and children reside at Hokandara in the ‘Viagra house’ and the hospital in close proximity is therefore Sri Jayawardenapura hospital . Then why were the children who were supposedly sick taken to Ragama hospital which is far away for ‘treatment ’ instead of the closest hospital  ? If any parent  takes his/her child who is having fever unless it is for specialist consultations , to a far away hospital instead of the closest , surely that parent must be treated first at the mental asylum , Angoda.
It is a well known fact that Machiavellian Weerawansa  is a  crook  who defrauded public funds to the tune of Rs. 90 million , and involved in other deceitful practices . Werawansa who is accustomed to cheating the gullible Sri Lankans  wholesale as a politico ,bankrupt though ,  obviously  is aware he cannot get bail because of the gigantic fraud he has   committed. Hence , he is   trying every trick in the book and conspiracy to secure bail . He is seeking every hospital where his crooked doctors are , to get ‘treatment’ for his children in order to make that a sympathetic ground  to request bail .

Are the courts and hospitals arenas of clowns and acrobats ?

It is  imperative and important that r the judicial courts inquire into  who is the doctor who admitted an almost  16 years old girl to the Children’s hospital ? Does the hospital administrator have the powers to make such admissions ?
It is noteworthy ,after five months that is when Wimasha reaches 16 years of age she can marry of her own accord . That means,  Wimasha will have need to seek admission thereafter to the Castle maternity home .  In which event he will have a sympathetic ground to cite in his present  bail applications.
At the outset ,when Weerawansa was incarcerated, his daughter mounted the stage on 27 th January at Nugegoda with great glee ,delight  and full pride to greet the public  to create the impression   her crooked mentally zero father is   a ‘hero’ . Now after three months however ,  suddenly when he is leaving no stone unturned to secure bail , he ‘ sells’  his daughter again. He makes her develop great ‘anxiety’  for him.  A true child does not develop anxiety for the father who she misses, only after several months.  Besides , anxiety state is developed by small children and not grown up children. If  Wimasha has any anxiety state at this age , certainly that  is not anxiety for her father ,rather it is anxiety for something else which has made girls of that  age in their extreme anxiety state even to end up in the lunatic asylum  ,when they are denied that special gratification peculiar to that age. Hence if  Wimasha is truly suffering from anxiety state , she must be admitted to the mental asylum to find the extreme cure for the gratification  she is starving from.
In the circumstances , this play acting of this family of tricksters and crooks must be stopped once and for all. Not enough robbing public funds and the country , these criminals and crooks are having the height of  cheek to try and  make courts and hospitals in the country too  jokes of the century .

Fasting or pulling a fast one ?

As elders , Lanka e news wishes to proffer a piece of sincere advice to Weerawansa : Do not try to involve your family in your treacheries and trickeries.  Just because you could not go beyond grade nine in education ,  could not even see Sigiriya ,  could not become a journalist ,  could not even get a young life partner   commensurate with your  age , could not become an honest respectable  politico, does not mean you should drag down the lives of your own children too to those lowliest levels . At least at this belated stage try to be true to yourself and reform  with a view to building an image that can command minimum respect even if you think it is now moth eaten beyond repair.

Copy of the birth certificate of Weerawansa’s daughter is herein. 


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by     (2017-03-26 23:58:18)