By Philippa RoxbyHealth reporter, BBC News-31 January 2019
Breakfast may be the most important meal of the day, but eating it won't help you lose weight, research suggests.
Those who ate breakfast consumed 260 more calories per day and gained 1lb more than those who skipped it, a review of previous studies found.
But experts say a healthy breakfast can be a good source of calcium and fibre.
It has also been shown to improve concentration and attention levels, particularly in children.
Breakfast gives you energy, stops you snacking later in the day and supplies essential nutrients - so we are told.
Its reputation as the nutritional backstop to our day stems from observational studies showing a positive link between people eating breakfast and having a healthy weight.
But this new Australian research in the BMJ, which reviewed the results of 13 separate trials on breakfast eating, weight change and energy intake, found little evidence for those views.
The findings of the Monash University research team suggest that skipping breakfast might in fact be a good way to reduce total daily calorie intake.
They found that breakfast eaters consumed more calories overall and breakfast skippers did not have a greater appetite in the afternoon.
And they say caution is needed when recommending breakfast for weight loss in adults - because it could have the opposite effect.
However, the researchers added that there were limitations to their study.
Try mashing avocado on toast for a light healthy breakfast
What is a healthy breakfast?
For an energy boost - try an "apple pie" porridge, with cinnamon, or baked beans on wholemeal toast
For protein - try scrambled eggs with spinach on toast or low-fat Greek yoghurt with fruit and nuts
For a light bite - make a smoothie from tinned fruit, banana and spinach or mash avocado on toast
The participants in the studies were only followed for short periods - from between two and 16 weeks - and the difference in calorie intake between breakfast eaters and skippers was small.
The researchers concluded that working out the long-term effect of skipping or adding breakfast to diets still needed more research.
Calcium and fibre boost
Prof Kevin Whelan, dietetics expert and head of King's College London's nutritional sciences department, says we should not get too hung up on calorie intake first thing in the morning.
"This study does not say breakfast is bad for the health," he said.
"Breakfast is important for nutrient intake, such as cereals and milk which are good for calcium and fibre."
But the BMJ research did not look at this aspect of breakfast.
"We are not talking about breakfast being the cause of obesity," he said.
Photograph: A UK mercenary pictured training Sri Lankan soldiers in the 1980s. JDS Lanka
Britain’s Foreign Office plans to shred dozens more files about its relationship with Sri Lanka, in addition to the hundreds of diplomatic it has already destroyed, writes Phil Miller in JDS Lanka this week.
“I found, from British air force files that had survived the shredder, that a senior British intelligence officer made two visits to Sri Lanka in 1979 to advise how to deal with the Tamil militancy,” writes Miller. “In 1980, a British special forces training team visited Sri Lanka to help set up an army commando unit.”
Destroyed files include the following titles:
- UK Military Assistance to Sri Lanka
- Sri Lankan Police Force
- Sri Lanka: Security Assessment
- Export Licence Applications for Sale of Military Equipment to Sri Lanka
- Sri Lanka: Military Visits to UK
- Sri Lanka: Defence Visits from UK
- Sri Lanka: UK Military Assistance
- Tamil community in Sri Lanka
- Human rights in Sri Lanka,
- Police training for Sri Lanka
- Applications for political asylum from Sri Lanka
- Sri Lanka interest in Northern Ireland as a military problem
- Detention of British nationals in Sri Lanka
- Terrorist activity in Sri Lanka against British nationals
Miller goes on to say,
“For now though it seems urgent that the Foreign Office is challenged about its casual attitude towards preserving Tamil history. As a journalist I have exposed the destruction by writing newspaper articles about it, and several people have written to their MPs. However, I am yet to see a single British politician raise this issue in Parliament, or any lawyer try to challenge the legal basis for what some might regard as sheer vandalism. Burning books was the stuff of Nazi bonfires, but shredding history seems to be a very British tradition.”
SRI LANKA: COUNTERING
TERRORISM AT THE EXPENSE OF
HUMAN RIGHTS
BACKGROUND
When the government of the time lifted the State of Emergency in August 2011, the Emergency
Regulations that had paved the way for prolonged detention of suspects without charge under the
Public Security Ordinance also lapsed. However, the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), intended
as a temporary piece of legislation in 1979 that contained provisions similar to the Emergency
Regulations, was retained to become a permanent feature of Sri Lanka’s criminal justice system.
It allowed for extended periods of detention without charge. It was intended to prevent “elements
or groups of persons or associations that advocate the use of force or the commission of a crime
as a means of, or as an aid in, accomplishing governmental change within Sri Lanka.”1
The lines snaked their way past and around the calm Buddha, who in Chinese before Tamil, greeted one to Sri Lanka. The visa on arrival counter was clearly marked by a throng of very tired looking foreigners, some with families seated on the floor, because there’s no seating in that area. A man, magically and out of nowhere, appeared behind me, placing himself in front of a foreign couple without so much as a glance or apology. I introduced him to the concept of a line and the virtue of patience, asking him to return to wherever he first came from. The foreign couple expressed their thanks, and I apologized on behalf of the country, expressing the hope the rest of their holiday would be as they had expected it.
The airport security I smiled and spoke briefly with guided me in the direction of a line he had observed moved faster than others. I asked him what he thought of the scene that lay before us. At least three hundred people, mostly foreigners, in various stages of fatigue and frustration, lined up like cattle. He shrugged his shoulders, smiled and said in Sinhala that he and I, being small men, had no power to change anything. I wasn’t inclined to disagree.
I eventually encountered an immigration official whose moustache held, as evidence of a large pot belly’s sustenance, a small remnant of dinner or a midnight snack.
He was completely disinterested in everything and everyone. My passport was handed back with a barely covered yawn. Looking around, I couldn’t see a single improvement in the Arrivals Hall since the last time I was in it, a year ago. A leading bank’s poster, inviting the Chinese to bank with it because staff spoke fluent Mandarin, was a reminder of how much Sri Lanka was indebted to footfall from one country. Downstairs, the staccato movement of the luggage carousels, unchanged for over a decade, ejected some lighter pieces of luggage on to the floor. The airport staff didn’t seem bothered.
Outside the airport, complete chaos reigned. Horns, some with short, repetitive tunes and others making up for this lack of musical talent by sheer volume, competed with each other to signal their presence to specific groups of passengers who amidst this cacophony, like drunk or lost bats, tried to navigate to the sound they were most familiar with. Heavy luggage carts kept catching into the ankles of those around and in front. From my vantage, the yelps of pain accompanied by a jump and glare back frequently dotted the throng of people waiting for their vehicle. The transport itself had many logics. The larger vehicles assumed the smaller ones should give way, and were affronted when, often, they did not. The smaller ones, to compensate for this bullying, generally had the louder horns.
Vans disregarded the presence of taxis, and taxis disregarded the presence of all other vehicles. Brand-new Range Rover Sport HSE’s, with their signature grace and disdain, glided above this melee. Their drivers and occupants never looked to the side or out the window, and appeared to be a continent away even in same country. A large billboard featuring a well-known casino’s promise of entertainment and rich winnings welcomed everyone to Sri Lanka. I do not know if the Gautama inside was consulted before its erection. Policemen whistled non-stop and at everything, or nothing in particular. Sometimes the whistle went off to even their surprise when they exhaled their exasperation. At times, the simultaneously flashing headlights of dozens of vehicles - all indicating importance and impatience - gave the shabby outside of the airport the appearance of a post-apocalyptic nightclub.
Colombo’s streets, for every kilometre travelled, now feature more high-end European marques that I’ve ever seen in New York over a comparable distance. The very day I landed, my son and I spotted an Aston Martin wasting - with a low and menacing growl of dissatisfaction - a fraction of its power, inching forward in a gigantic traffic jam. Everyone, all the time, is anxious and angry when driving. Everyone is fighting for a time or positional advantage that doesn’t exist, where a car’s length or just an inch ahead is valiantly fought for by violently revving, braking, horning, shouting and gesticulating. Lane divisions seemingly exist to alert drivers, especially in white or black SUVs, as to how far away from them they can drive.
Pedestrians are both hapless victims as well as active agents in the chaos. Many cross wherever they please, with a signature grin that gets wider the closer they brush against death. Others wearily wait for ages by a pedestrian crossing, often with no hope passing vehicles caught in their own battles will stop for them. The horning starts the second the lights turn yellow. Images of or quotes from Che, Marley, religious deities, sons, daughters as well as soulful paeans to mothers, excerpts from the Dhammapada, and entirely meaningless combinations of English words adorned on three-wheelers scurry and creep everywhere, like the hurried movement of red corpuscles under a microscope. In just a week, I’ve driven past three serious accidents where it is utterly confusing as to how the vehicles and seriously injured occupants ended up the way they did, if common sense and road rules were adhered to.
The ostentatious display of wealth has got worse. Hip new coffee shops and swank restaurants help clean black money. It is unclear who can afford to actually buy anything at Colombo City Centre. The throngs of people the evening I ventured into it were far more interested in selfies than sales. A colleague at work extolled the virtues of the new cinemas, which I know I will venture into before I leave the country again. But the complete lack of any arthouse cinemas or film screenings, easily found even in other South Asian cities, indicates a market tellingly only interested in the mindless, mainstream, mundane or mercantile.
These are select snapshots of a country I’m engaging with in person after being absent for a year. Both regressive change and shocking stasis - starkly rendered because I’ve not been part of an invisible incrementalism that has normalized exceptions over time - were violent. The experiences made me wonder what we celebrate tomorrow.
Recently, politicians publicly fought over the first new railway line laid in the country since Independence. The bone of contention was around who should get the most or sole credit. Lost in, as usual, the pointless tirades was the fact that it took over 70 years to lay just 26km of new railway track. En route to Colombo from a country that reveres nature, I read on Facebook that an access road to Sinharaja was being widened. I just couldn’t fathom why. The jingoism and militarism of Independence Day celebrations mask enduring existential challenges for those in the North, a decade after the end of the war as well as relative poverty in the South. Evident even just in Colombo, wealth brings insulation, lower temperatures, higher elevations, better reception, privileged access, easier negotiation and more opportunities. A new wealth is here, along with its attendant mindset and values. From respecting nature to civil nurture, everything else is dispensable.
Including, evidently, democracy - over 70 years after the Raj receded.
The unfortunate attacks on a Buddhist statue in Mawanella was not something unexpected. Such an incident, likely to trigger violence against Muslims, was expected in view of the presence of global anti-Muslim forces in the island.
In an article in October 2018, I predicted such incidents may happen in view of the government policy of opening the country to global evil forces which have unleashed unprecedented violence demonizing Islam, invading and destroying Muslim countries and killing millions of Muslims.
In that article I explained how global anti-Muslim forces which destroyed ten Muslim countries, killed millions of Muslims and driven out around seven million Muslims to refugee camps to live in appalling conditions, are here. This include United States, Britain, France, Russia, Israel and India and China, persecuting Muslims in their own countries, besides their Saudi and Abu Dhabi collaborators.
These forces especially Israel and India’s RSS, parent body of ruling BJP, are entertained in Sri Lanka by ministers known for their hostility towards Muslims. So much so there were reports of VHP mercenaries opening an office in Vavuniya while some Tamil mercenaries went on demonstration in Batticaloa with Israeli flags shouting pro-Israeli slogans provoking Muslims.
Former Federal Party member Maravanpulavu Sachithananthan who calls himself Sri Lanka Shiv Sena chief together with Batticaloa TNA Parliamentarian Yogeswaran began a campaign in Jaffna against cow slaughter. Sensing the threat to Tamil-Muslim relations sensible Tamils crushed this movement at inception.
Presence of these forces is recipe for disaster as they are busy cultivating politicians, media, intellectuals and others brain washing them against Muslims.
However the island’s sinking Muslim community, betrayed by their politicians and so called preachers, remains clueless. This is dangerous especially with a government which remains indifferent towards Muslims as demonstrated in its failure to prevent violence against Muslims in Gintota, Amparai, Digana, Akurana and numerous other places.
Muslims are sandwiched between these forces and their politicians and religious body, All Ceylon Jamiathul Ulema, ACJU, which is incapable of understanding the potential threats to the community and accused of widespread corruption.
BBS General Secretary Ven. Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara
Saturday, 2 February 2019
The disorderly and bellicose reverend with an irrepressible proclivity for vitriol and incitement met his waterloo of all places inside a courthouse.
Bodu Bala Sena (BBS) General Secretary Ven. Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara shouted at the presiding Judge and lawyers as the accused military men of the murder of journalist Prageeth Ekneligoda were refused bail. On the same day he also threatened the wife of the missing journalist, Sandhya Ekneligoda.
A kind of a constitutional and moral irony lingers in this whole hideous saga. Prima facia evidence of breach of peace, arson, anarchy, violence and loss of life are second rated and interred for contempt of court.
Contempt of court no doubt is a serious offence according to Sri Lankan law for that matter any court of law. The misguided monk also demonstrated a spirited penchant to demonise, discredit and distort other faiths and their teachings contrary to the very foundations of his own, wantonly inflicted irreparable harm to Buddhism and its adherents. Never in Sri Lanka’s history have we witnessed such militancy emerging from an individual/adherent of such a peaceful philosophy.
He took this issue of communalism to extreme lengths, often unleashing violence repeatedly. Four innocent lives were lost in the infamous Aluthgama incident. Scores of Muslim businesses became victims of arson and pillage. Lies, deception, falsification and outright dishonesty were effortlessly hurled and no time or space was extended to the victims to defend themselves or protect their businesses.
He certainly was not working alone, it was an open secret that there was an entire system backing him up rock solid. The whole process was well lubricated with money, machinery, material, merchants and misinformation.
The most knowledgeable Gnanasara Thero got down his Burmese counterpart the most pious Ashin Wirathu and threw quite an exhibition. An elaborate spectacle of Buddhist machoism with a definite will to instil fear in minorities, especially Muslims, took root.
Ahsin Wirathu was a notorious communal leader of the anti-Muslim movement in Myanmar. He has been accused of conspiring to persecute and kill Muslims in Myanmar through his speeches and actions. Hundreds if not thousands of Muslims perished as a result of his active involvement.
“Hatred does not cease through hatred at any time. Hatred ceases through love. This is an unalterable law.” This quote is common and it’s a genuine scriptural quotation. It’s from verse 5 of the Dhammapada. If incarceration had healed the reverend Thero, it’s time he comes out and serves his community at the next available opportunity, whether it’s a general pardon or presidential amnesty.
“Let them pardon and overlook. Would you not love for Allah to forgive you? Allah is Forgiving and Merciful” (Al Quran 24:22) The Messenger of Allah, (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Be merciful to others and you will receive mercy. Forgive others and Allah will forgive you” (Musnad Ahmad 7001, Grade: Sahih)
The ability to forgive is a distinguished trait in a human being. It elevates him in great measure. Seen as evidence of how high humans rank in the chain of beings. Animals don’t forgive, they’re bereft of such faculties though some humans behave worse than animals. Yes it obviously conveys a moral superiority. Most cultures embellish the virtue of forgiveness, it’s associated with religiosity, magnanimity, spiritual growth of a people. In this respect Buddhism occupies a very important place.
Webster’s Third New International Dictionary defines forgiveness in this manner: “To cease to feel resentment against on account of a wrong committed.” This definition is poignantly illustrated in a well-known Tibetan Buddhist story about two monks who encounter each other some years after being released from prison where they had been tortured by their captors. “Have you forgiven them?” asks the first. “I will never forgive them! Never!” replies the second. “Well, I guess they still have you in prison, don’t they?” says the first.
Forgiveness essentially a spiritual practice not necessarily forthcoming in an inveterate hedonist or callous legislator whose numbers on planet earth are larger and greater. Their embrace of the world so entrenched and adhesive. They pave the way for their own offspring to succeed with the same kind seizure and squeeze. Build dynasties and eliminating than forgiving those who oppose and critique them for the ownership of this palpably impermanent world.
Arriving in Sri Lanka or living in Sri Lanka one gets a sense as if you are filled with religiosity and compassion on account of both the human contact and the public display of symbols. No doubt the Buddhists of Sri Lanka a very forgiving people. It’s the politics and politicians and more specifically their political ambitions that contributes to the toxic milieu.
Gnanasara Thero who was jailed on 8 August 2018 for six years was a victim of local politics and politicians. He gleefully accepted the role he was asked to play and when he tried to overdo had to pay the price.
As a cardinal rule members of the clergy and all those overtly representing faiths are hereby politely and cordially requested to keep a good distance between politicians. If you are in need of the politician’s dough to purchase the latest driving machine to do your errands you must be prepared to defend the politician at all times at least by remaining quiet. This is the only way the distinguished members of the clergy can maintain their integrity and dignity. I am reminded of a true incident involving one of the greatest scholars of Islam in this era from the kingdom of Saudi Arabia. This is what makes a true scholar. Story of Shaykh Ibn Uthaymeen (d. 2001) Rahimahullah, may Allah have mercy on him. When the Saudi King Khalid and then Crown Prince Fahad visited him in his humble mud house, looking at the crude structure of the house, the King wished to gift him a new house, and offered to build him a palace. The Shaykh responded, “I appreciate the offer, may Allah reward you! But I’m already building a house in Salihiyya” (an area of his city).
The King insisted on doing something for him, to which the Shaykh said, “If you must, then please build a hostel for my students to live in, for otherwise they are living in the masjid and that is difficult for them.” At this, the King turned to his entourage of accompanied clergy and remarked in the local Arabic vernacular, “You see? This is what you call a real scholar!” meaning that the people who sought fame and money for the sake of religion were not true scholars.
After the King left, his students asked him, “Shaykh, we didn’t know you were building a house in Salihiyya?” He replied, “Don’t you know the graveyard is in Salihiyya?” They said, “Yes.” He said, “So I am building a house for my afterlife over there.” May Allah bless the Shaykh and raise his ranks.
Colombo - Bone fragments from one of the biggest mass graves found in Sri Lanka since its civil war ended nearly a decade ago have been sent to the US for analysis, officials said yesterday.
The remains of dozens of men, women and children were found at the site in the northern Mannar district where Tamil guerrillas fought security forces during the conflict.
The fragments were sent with a forensic expert to a Miami-based laboratory this week to determine when those buried had died, a senior official from the Office on Missing Persons (OMP) said.
Establishing a timeframe would point to which forces were in control of the area at the time.
Tamil Tiger rebels and government forces both held the region at different times during the conflict, as did troops from neighbouring India, who were originally deployed as peacekeepers in 1987, but ended up fighting the Tigers until 1990 when they withdrew.
In a statement, the OMP said it expected a report from the US lab by the end of next month.
The mass grave in the former war zone was discovered in March last year by construction workers.
The OMP, which is independent of the government but has a state mandate, said just over 300 skeletal remains had been found so far, including the remains of about 20 children.
The office has wide powers to investigate cases of people still missing after the conflict and started work last year.
The report will determine whether the bones "are from one or multiple historical periods", the OMP said.
Mannar was the scene of heavy fighting between government forces and the Tamil Tigers during the civil war that ended in May 2009.
A government-appointed panel said in 2013 that about 19,000 people were missing, including 5,000 security personnel, since the conflict began in 1972.
Both troops and Tamil rebels have been accused of targeting civilians.
The ‘Ceylon Malay’ community which is rich in culture and religious traditions is an important ethnic minority that has played a major role in shaping the history and diversity of Sri Lanka. Howbeit, Ceylon Malays have been facing a relentless demographic decline & their numbers have plummeted, falling by approximately 8 per cent a decade. Alas, there are only 40,000 Malays in Sri Lanka today and they comprise less than 0.18% of the country’s population. That fact itself is so alarming that it demands measures to help the community from fading away.
History has it that large proportion of them came as mercenaries from the Indonesian Archipelago (then called Dutch East Indies) and Malayan Peninsula (former British Malaya) during the Dutch Colonial Era. Some were exiled Royals, princes, their entourages, their retinue of servants, courtiers, and those of distinction, who were condemned to Ceylon, then a Dutch Colony as state prisoners. The Dutch referred to them as ‘Oosterlingen‘ meaning easterners as they hailed from Dutch East Indies. They belonged to different ethnic groups, tribes & castes and they spoke different languages & practiced different religions including animism. In contrast to the past almost all Malays living in present day Sri Lanka are Muslims. After the advent of the British Colonists, the easterners were identified as “Malays”, in spite of the fact that, most were not “ethnic Malays” by origin. Because majority of them came from the Island of Java & were ethnic Javanese, the Malays are still known as “Ja Minussu” by the Sinhalese folks & as “Ja Manissar” by the Tamils & Moors. They can be distinguished from the rest of the Ceylonese population thanks to their distinctive ‘Mongoloid’ physiognomy, traditional clothing, patois, cuisine, music, culture, unique rituals and by their peculiar surnames. Amit, Allang, Booso, Bongso, Bucker, Bangsajaya, Dulapandan, Dewangso, Jumat, Jayah, Lantra, Lappen, Kayat, Ossen, Sally, Sampan, Savanghan, Singhawansa, Sinnen, Raban, Rawdin, just to name a few. Unlike their Muslim counterparts, the Malays use distinctive prefixes along with their rare sounding surnames. The prefixes Tuan/ Maas/ Raden/ Tunku/ Den are used by the male folks while their women use Gnei/Nona/ Sitti Nona before their names. The Peranakan Malays, a separate clan of Ceylonese Malays of mixed Chinese & Malay ancestry use different prefixes, Baba (for males) & Gnonya/Nonya (for females) to differentiate them from the rest of the Ceylonese Malays. Alas, there are no pure Peranakans left in Sri Lanka, but, however there are several mixed raced Peranakan Malays. Lye, Saldin, Bohoran, Burhan, Jainudeen, Jurangpathy, Sainon, Dole, Chunchie, Doole, Amjadeen, Kutinun and Hallaldin are some examples of families that claim Peranakan lineage.
Though a small minority, Malays played a pivotal role in the security forces & bureaucracy of Colonial Ceylon. The Dutch originally imported large numbers of Malay and Javanese lascarins for military service, mainly to fight the natives of the Island, to suppress the revolts against colonial rule and to protect economically important maritime forts from foreign incursions. According to Lankan history, the Malays not only protected these impregnable fortresses but also built them. The Island’s forts eventually became prisons for those who opposed colonial presence in Dutch East Indies & from 1700 onwards Malay/ Javanese Royals, aristocrats, their entourage of courtiers, retinues of servants & slaves were exiled to Ceylon. In Colombo, the Malay/Indonesian exiles lived in Hulftsdorf in an area known as Kampung Pangeran or Princes’ quarters. After the advent of the British, the Malays joined the English troops and under the British rule, they became a ‘privileged minority’ who formed a socially exclusive intermediate stratum between the natives of the Island and the British/ Burgher elite.
They practically composed the well-known Ceylon Rifle Regiment (CRR) which became the first Asian Regiment in history to be bestowed with the prestigious King’s colours in 1802. After the disbandment of CRR in 1873, a great many of the Malay Riflemen joined the Police Force of which they became the most efficient members with their distinctive horsehair-like whiskers and moustaches. In the Report on Ceylon Police for 1877 by George Campbell, there were 420 Malay constables alone in the force and by 1879; there were 493 Malays in the Police Constabulary. Every Police station became a “Malayu kampong” meaning Malay village. In fact, the first police officer who died during the course of his duties was a Malay Constable named Sabhan who was shot dead on March 21st, 1864 in an attempt to apprehend the Highway Bandit Saradiel. Many Malays have been bestowed with higher ranks in the armed forces in recognition of their yeoman services. The appointment of Brigadier T.S.B. Sally on the 1st of December 1977 as the Chief of Staff of Sri Lanka Army helps affirm the fact. He also holds the distinction as the last ex Ceylon Defence force veteran to leave the army after his service tenure that ended in 1979. Later he was appointed as acting Commander of the Army on two occasions, thus being one of the first and only Malay to serve with such distinction. The present Commandant of the Special Task Force Snr DIG M. Ruwaiz Latiff is yet again a Sri Lankan Malay. The war records of World War II help exemplify the enormous contribution of Malays in Ceylon’s Security Forces back then. One-sixth of all Ceylonese troops that fought in the ghastly battle were Malays. At the turn of the 20th C. Malays formed 75 % of Ceylon’s police force, 90 % of the staff of the Prison Service, 95 % of Colombo Town guards and almost 100 % of the Colombo fire brigade.
Their service to the local Nayakkar monarchs has also played an imperative role in historic battles such as the Kandyan British conquests in 1803 & 1815, in which they served as valiant soldiers in both the Kandyan and British belligerents. In 1810, the British Resident in Kandy, John D’Oyly, who famously depended on spies disguised as monks and traders to discover the workings of the Kingdom, noted that the Kandyan king’s paid soldiers included 300 to 350 Malays. The Sinhala term Padikara Peruwa meaning a stipendiary class of paid levies was used to refer to the Kandyan King’s Malay troop freighted with those of Malay & Javanese descent, who had escaped from the clutches of the Dutch. During the reign of King Sri Wickrema Rajasinghe, the Kandyan Malay regiment had raised its strength to 22 companies with 32 men each and by the turn of 19th C. these Malay soldiers made up half the Kandyan King’s force.
Even the military chief of ‘Padikara Peruwa’ was a Makassarese Malay Captain, Karaeng Sankilang referred to as “Sankelan” by Prof.Paul E.Peiris, son of the exiled King of Gowa [Celebes], Batara Gowa Amas Medina II. Prince Sankelan was killed by Major Davie in the 1803 Kandyan- British war. Chief Assana Kapitan, Chief Kuppen, Chief Greasy (some books refer to him as Creasy) and Kaladay Kaya (Kayat) are few notable Malay/Ja Chieftains appointed during King Wickrama Raja Singh’s reign. Malays were occupying far too many official positions i.e. disproportionate to the strength of their population. It is gratifying to know that the 1897 Ferguson’s Census shows that the Malays in Ceylon stood first among the native races in the number of their boys & girls at school. In fact for long periods of time they had a monopoly of literacy.
During the last two centuries, the Malays in Ceylon have come to play a noteworthy role in the domain of economics, politics, science and the arts which is out of proportion to their negligibly small number. In 1947, Dr. T.B. Jayah was appointed as the Minister for Labour and Social Services and was the first Muslim Malay to be exalted to such an esteemed position. Dr M.P. Drahaman MBE, Senator M.K. Saldin, Baba Zahiere Lye and M.D. Kitchillan are examples of Malays who excelled in the political arena. The first non-Christian appointed to the Supreme Court bench in 1929 was a Malay Judge, Puisne Maas Thajon Akbar, who was responsible for the introduction of the first Muslim marriage, divorce and wakfs ordinance in Ceylon. Justice M. T. Akbar established the Crime Prevention Society in Ceylon and organised frequent meetings to address the issue of Narcotics in the Island. It is his family that built the Akbar Mosque, on Kew Road, Slave Island. Under the British rule, Malays were conferred with native titles & peerages, and they became an integral part of the administration of the island. Baba Hakim Muthaliph of Magampattuwa and Baba Thajon Arifin Doole of Hambanthota were appointed as Maha Wasala Mudaliars (Gate Mudaliyars). Mudaliyar Ahamath Ibrahim Jainu-Deen of Badulla, Mudaliyar Baba Junoor Haji Bahar & Muhandiram Tuan Kitchil Abu Cassim Burah are examples of other Malay feudal chiefs of British Ceylon. Even the famous De Seram family is of mixed Sinhala & Malay ancestry.
In the field of theatre Malays were the pioneers. Tuan Ibhan Saladin Saldin, a Malay dramatist organized the first ever Sinhala Ballet “Vijaya & Kuveni” in 1936. Kalabushana Vernon Saldin, Kalavibhooshana Tuan Alaldeen Ibbon Saldin, Marquez H.H. Saldin, Gemini Kantha, Fareena Lye, Kalabushana Raheem Saheed and Kalabooshana Tuan Ruffin Saldin are other notable artists who have left an indelible mark on theatre history. Malay musicians also have a notable presence in the Lankan music scene in relation to the size of the community. Kalabooshana Stanley Oumar, G.S.B. (Gnei Seenar Bangsajayah) Rani Perera, Haroon Lanthra, Lakshmi Bhai, Umara & Umaria Sinhawansa are few notable examples.
The Malay community of Ceylon was most sports-conscious and pioneered many activities in a variety of sports in the Island especially the game of Cricket. In point of fact, Colombo Malay Cricket Club founded in 1872 is the oldest Cricket Club in Sri Lanka and in 1907, it became the first Ceylonese club to embark on a cricket tour overseas. In later years Malay club cricketers added finesse to their play & in 1920, Malays became Ceylon’s club champions in cricket. Former Captain of the National cricket team, Tillakaratne Dilshan (Tuan M. Dilshan), Baba Roshan Jurangpathy, Tuan Nishan Sampath, AC Amath, Allal Careem, T.K. Burah, A.A. Deane, Dr. A. Sourjah,Dr A.R. Deane & Sharmila Kitchill are some of the notable cricketers of Malay descent. Malay sporting zeal was not restricted to cricket alone. They took up a number of other European sports, including football, rugby, hockey, tennis, boxing, horse-racing and swimming. Swimming Champion Geoffery Dulanpandan & mermaids of Sri Lanka, the Raheem sisters Mayumi, Michiko & Kimiko Raheem are Sri Lankan Malays. In the bygone days Malay men in the Ceylon’s Police Force & Rifle Regiment were known for the game of ‘tug of war’, an ancient & dynamic contest in tugging known amongst Ceylon Malays as, “Tarek Tambang”. According to the books authored by Colonial powers, some of the ponderous men of the Malay Rifle regiment engaged in epic fights known as “Pukulan Cheena”, which was a combination of bare knuckle fighting, wresting & traditional Malay martial art known as “Silat”. While the playing of wicker ball known as “Sepak Raga”, a novel game very much like football was introduced to Sri Lanka by the Malays of the CRR.
Members of Malay Community are largely Muslims. The Colombo Grand Mosque and the Jawa Mosques located at Kirinda, Slave Island, Nanu Oya, Kalpitiya, Kandapola Wekanda, Bogambara, Kinniya, Jawatte, Alopotha, Bakinigahwela, Kurunegala, N’ Eliya, Badulla and other well known edifices were built and donated by the pious forefathers of the Malay community. Even the Kandarodai Buddhist temple in Jaffna was built under the patronage of a Malay/ Javaka Buddhist Conqueror, Chandrabhanu the ruler of Tambralinga, a state in the Malay Peninsula. Noteworthy, however, is that Methodist Minister & WWI veteran, Kamal Athon Chunchie, a world renowned British humanitarian & political activist was actually a Ceylonese Malay born in Kandy. As a matter of fact the first Sri Lankan to have set foot on Australian soil was a Ceylonese Malay non Commissioned Officer, Drum Major William O’Deen who was banished with his family to Australia in 1816. As we delve deep into the history concerning the etymology of anchorages such as Hambanthota, Kinniya, Samanthurai, Chavakachcheri, Jaffna (Java Pattinum) & villages/towns like Jagama, Jakotuwa, Ja- Ela, Jawatte, Jagoda, Kartel (Slave Island), Bandagiriya, Bolane, Cassimgama, Akbar Town, Taiyiddi (Jaava-veedi), Thachathopu (Jaava-thopu), Thavady & Tavasikulam it is evident that the names of these places were either derived from Malay literature or named in memory of Sri Lankan Malays.
When Malays came from the Indonesian Archipelago, they brought their drums, music and their dances, ancient ways their parents taught them, their culinary habits, literature & fashion. They introduced kite flying, rabana, the large single-faced circular drum, Anklung a musical instrument consisting of two to four bamboo tubes suspended in a bamboo frame bound with rattan cords, Cadjan palm matting, rattan weaving, and the art of making the Beeralu lace and the fabled cloth of Java, “sarong” to Sri Lanka, which is the traditional garment of Indonesian / Malay origin. In strict usage, the term sarong or “sarung” is based on the Indonesian and Malay word for “sheath”. The art of batik printing which has come down the ages in Indonesia and Malaysia has become a lucrative cottage industry in Sri Lanka, thanks to the Malays who brought Batik to Ceylon. The word batik originates from the Javanese tik meaning ‘to dot’. Sinhala women wear the “ja-hatta” and the “cambaya” introduced by the Javanese. Unlike their co-religionists (Moors/ Marakkar), Malays do not wear the thurukki toppi, (Moroccan Fez/ Turkish hat) instead Malay men wear a special headgear known as “Stangan Kepala” or “Songkok”. The Kebaya is the traditional attire for Malay woman, but they also wear “Baju Melayu” & “Baju Panjang”. Research has confirmed that the Nilama dress worn by the custodian of the Kandy’s Temple of Tooth also has several Malay, Javanese and Southeast Asian influences. Meanwhile, the seven-looped chain ‘maala hata’, the padakkama-pendant, daggers worn by Kandy Nilames, the tuppodiya-tippotiya, the long white muslin cloth tied repeatedly in folds around the waist of the Kandyan aristocratic Radala men and the raeli kalisama or the frilled trouser of plain white were introduced to the Island by the exiled Malay/ Javanese Royals who settled in the Kandyan Kingdom.
When we speak about tantalizing delicacies of Malay Origin much of the Lankan food we know and love isn’t Lankan at all. Throughout the subcontinent’s history, new foods have been introduced through foreign invasions, trade and colonialism, creating the rich tapestry of cuisine we enjoy today. Wattalappan (sirkaya in Malaya), kokis (kembang goyang in Indonesia), bibikan (bikan cake in Indonesia), sambol, nasi goring, cina kue (introduced by the Peranakans), kavum (cucur), laveriya, dodol, the soft and spongy Idli and of course the Malay Pickle are of Malay/ Indonesian origin. Unlike many other ethnic groups living on the Island, Malays have their own language, which they have preserved for over four hundred years. However, it is sad that most Malay youngsters do not speak Sri Lankan Malay language known as, “Bahasa Melayu Sri Lanka” and it is predicted to disappear in the next ten years if the current trend continues.
The age old Malay traditions, customs, rites & rituals might seem unusual, unique, or exotic to Sri Lankans. Unfortunately many Lankan Malays have abandoned their Malay/ Kejawen customs, adats & traditions, for the reason that Malay culture is based on Hinduism, Buddhism, animism & folk traditions. Islamisation is not about Arabisation, but what we are seeing in this country today is the process of Arabisation of the Malays mainly by Wahabis & other religious extremist groups. Their numbers have dropped dramatically in the past few decades & it is evident that the future of Malays in Sri Lanka remains uncertain.
There are two rea sons that prompt me to re-visit the draft prepared some months ago. Firstly, Canada has reversed the criminalization of Cannabis, permitting it to be used for medical and leisure use. Secondly, the recent massive hauls of contraband by Police, Customs and Excise authorities of quantitieswhose street valuesare astronomical and point to a well organized criminal network. There are well-founded, ugly rumours of the involvement of those holding high political office. The nexus between such persons and criminal gangs, have led to a general revulsion against such substances. Unfortunately, the culprits continue in positions of power and wealth, where in more refined countries would invite jail and banishment from public life. Although our President has implied that the Draconian measures adopted by President Duterte of the Philippines , would bear imitation in our country. One hopes that our President has been mis-quoted.
Much material has been published on the subject of narcotics and other substances which affect nerve functions, mood as well as their addictive and intoxicant properties. Before serious and irreversible actions (eg execution) are taken, there is a need to recognize that all “narcotics” are not the same.
Narcotics in general fall into two major groups – the opioids derived from the gum from the opium poppy ( Papaver somniferum) and those from Cannabis ( Cannabis sativa). The most widely and legally grown cultivar of Cannabis is the hemp of commerce. The opioids include heroin, morphine and codeine. The latter deserve their ugly image as addictive, intoxicant and with harmful side effects.In contrast, the Cannabinoids – glorying under a vast number of names, including Marijuana, weed, pot, ganja, Hashish, The Sacred Plant and grass, are generally considered non-addictive, giving only transient effects and with few or no side effects. They are considerably more benign in this sense than tobacco or alcohol. Users tell of heightened tranquility and mood improvement, no hangover and a general feeling of exhilaration and euphoria – altogether pleasing.
Cannabinoids (as also the opioids) have been used for centuries mainly for pain relief, including the acute pains of terminal cancer. Cannabis, has been widely used in Ayurveda and as a meat tenderizer. There is copious and authoritative books and scientific papers on Cannabis, which has also been called the “Sacred Plant”, on account of its traditional use in Hindu festivals for as long as ten centuries ago.
Ayurveda has recognized its value for inclusion in several prescriptions. More recent work has shown it to be of astonishing value in relieving the symptoms and claimed to even cure, a plethora of common ailments. These include depression, epilepsy, Parkinsonism, diabetes, arthritis, cardiac and pulmonary afflictions and a near endless list of others. Literally, daily publications in reputable Journals and textbooks reveal a great potential. There is a lingering fear that indulgence in Cannabis could lead to graduation to harder drugs like heroin. There seems to be no convincing evidence that this is so. In fact, the opposite seems to be true – that Cannabis is probably an “Exit Drug” – that it is useful in weaning away hard drug users from their addiction.
Unfortunately, it being banned in many countries, has prevented Cannabis being subjected to the rigorous testing that is normally required before a drug can be approved. Thus, the bulk of evidence has been anecdotal. In the early thirties, when criminal mafias were involved in narcotic trading, the US banned all drugs suspected of being traded by criminal gangs. Marijuana and preparations derived from it were included in the ban. Until then, reputed pharmaceutical companies were selling it in many forms – tinctures, syrups, pastes, powders, capsules, tablets, inhalations and smokes. It even found use in recipes for biscuits and sweets.
Several countries and several US States have liberalized the medical as well as “recreational” use of Marijuana. The latest country to do so is Canada. It is likely that liberalization will spread rapidly and more virtues for this amazing substance will be uncovered. Therefore, is Sri Lanka making a grave error in its crusade of destroying Ganja Plantations? Evidence prompts a much more enlightened attitude towards this product – which could even be a major export commodity. Of course prices will decline when the mistaken aggression towards Ganja diminishes. For us, it will still remain a good prospect for land use in areas considered poor or marginal for other crops. It offers much opportunity for “value addition” in view of the many formulations that can offer an opportunity for exports to those regions where an enlightened approach allows entry. Criminalization of its use is clearly misdirected.
A rational approach is necessary as much of the information is anecdotal (naturally, when even experimentation is restricted by Law). This urges that a competent team should filter the claims made and to examine the subject in detail. A team representing Agricultural, Scientific, Health, Excise, Police and possibly even Religious(in anticipation of a puritanical reaction to good sense) be tasked with examining the existing wealth of published material available, to help develop anapproach that is in our best interests.
