China-Lanka relations, its debt burden and China’s BRI - EDITORIAL

3 June 2019 

China and Sri Lanka have historically maintained close relations. In AD 400, it is recorded, Chinese monks visited the country. After it achieved independence from the British in 1948, Sri Lanka established diplomatic relations with Beijing in 1950 and co-sponsored the resolution giving the People’s Republic of China permanent membership in the United Nations (UN) Security Council.  

In 1952, when Sri Lanka was facing a grave food shortage as she did not have the withal to import her requirements in rice, due to a sharp drop in the price of natural rubber, China bailed us out via a barter deal - the Rubber-Rice Pact. China exchanged Sri Lanka’s rubber at higher than market rates for rice cost at far less than market prices! The US cut off all aid to Sri Lanka for entering into a trade deal with a China!  

During Lanka’s near three-decade long civil war, when all western nations led by the US refused to sell weaponry to the country alleging war crimes, and India was supportive of the militant groups, China helped provide the much-needed logistics which ultimately helped defeat the rebels and bring peace to the country.  
Today China is embroiled in a trade war with the United States. The US accuses China of breaking a deal to settle their trade dispute, and has imposed tariffs on a broad range of Chinese goods. China has denied the allegations. The US has imposed taxes on Chinese goods and a Reuters report (June 1, 2019) said the United States began collecting higher, 25% tariffs on many Chinese goods arriving in US seaports on Saturday. The tariff increase affects a broad range of consumer goods, and intermediate components from China.  

On Saturday, China began collecting higher retaliatory tariffs on much of a $60 billion target list of U.S. goods. The US has also blacklisted Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd, the world’s largest Telecom Network Gear maker and is pressuring its western allies to do the same and three days ago (May 29, 2019) Chinese newspapers reported China was preparing to retaliate by blocking the sale of rare earths to the US - a move which could cripple the US manufacturing sector.  At another level, the US has been warning Sri Lanka against aligning itself with China’s ‘Road and Belt Initiative’ which the US claims it entices states into undertaking prestige projects with little practical value and end up being indebted to China.   
The US, its western and eastern allies take as an example, the construction of the mega port at Hambabtota, the construction of the little-used international airport at Mattala as unnecessary projects constructed with Chinese loans to entice Sri Lanka into a debt trap. The subsequent leasing of the facility to China on a long-term lease these countries claim is proof of their claims. This project is largely the reason why Sri Lanka is cited as a clear example of getting trapped in Chinese debt and being forced to hand over assets with national and strategic importance to China.   

The general belief is that Sri Lanka was unable to pay off the loans obtained from China to construct the Hambantota Port, had no alternative, but hand over the same to Chinese control to pay off the debt. What many have failed to recognise is that Sri Lanka’s total debt, includes loan repayments to individual nation lenders such as Japan and China, as well as to multilateral financial institutions like the IMF. 

However as the Central Bank reported in 2018, 14% of the US$55,000 million Sri Lanka owes in foreign debt is owed to the ADB, while 12% to Japan, 11% to the World Bank and 10.6% to China. The country will have to pay back US$17,000 million worth of debt between 2019 and 2022, mainly to commercial banks and to traditional multilateral donors.   
Its currency reserves - US$9.100 million - are insufficient to meet the payments in the medium term, especially given that the country’s balance of payments in the last four years has barely reached a surplus of US$150 million. Further, the Sri Lankan public debt stands at 77% of its GDP, making it the most indebted among other neighbouring countries such as India, Malaysia, Pakistan and Thailand.   This suggests Sri Lanka has a debt problem that extends beyond its commitments to China. Indeed, the South China Morning Post reports states, part of China’s loan to Sri Lanka is intended to serve some of the debt owed to other creditors.   

An Open Letter To The Chairman, Human Rights Commission, Dr. Deepika Udagama: On The New Government Uniform

By S. Ratnajeevan H. Hoole –JUNE 1, 2019

J.J. Ratnasiri, Secretary of the Ministry of Public Administration and Disaster Management has issued the following Circular dated 29 May 2019:

These are times when madmen filled with hate set off explosives blowing themselves up and taking the lives of many innocent persons. The issuance of this circular is yet another act of hate-filled madness, even mad jingoist expansion  imposing this crazy view of culture on the rest of us. Indeed the heading with the word security is hardly addressed in the body of the circular.

This insane circular prohibits the decent skirt and blouse that many women of good backgrounds wear to office, exposing perhaps their neck, bare arms and lower-legs. It scoffs at the sensibilities of many decent women – importantly Islamic women following their scriptural advice – who do not want their body shape to be shown to voyeurs. Our society is so degraded that my wife and daughters do not like to ride a bus, and indeed even trishaws after the driver in separate incidents exhibited his private parts. Only rich women with chauffeur driven cars are safe – such as the wife and daughters of Permanent Secretaries. Many of the common folk get their husbands to take them to work on motorbike pillions. How in a sari now? Perhaps the men at Public Administration want more opportunities to pinch buttocks and touch the bodies of women in buses by forcing them off their husbands’ pillions? Or they want to see women’s midriff and navel in sexily draped saris? Is it to prevent hiding a bomb under a skirt-blouse dress? Now that he has prohibited decent clothing for women, will Mr. Rathnasiri in his sartorial vanity and fantasy even specify the length of the blouse and how low it may be cut at the top?

For men, the circular calls for  a trouser but not the pair in which trousers are worn. Does it mean that we have to cut off one leg of our trousers to fit the new uniform? The uniform allows a shirt but not a business suit. I would truly like to see Mr. Rathnasiri in trousers with one leg cut off and no coat or tie at cabinet meetings.

These are times when in a decent democracy the call is to uphold the rights of everyone so that extremism will be blunted. Instead the Sri Lankan state seems determined to expand its stale mono-cultural view of itself, destroying anything that fails to fit their view of Sri Lankan culture, wanting to walk over every deviation from its mono-cultural worldview, the juggernaut of Public Administration crushing to death all different expressions of culture that do not fit their view of Sri Lanka should be. The new discussions on whether ours is a Sinhalese-Budhiist country are a part of this sickness.

I reliably know from sources in the Prime Minister’s Secretariat that this insane circular did not come from the Prime Minister or the cabinet. That leaves only one other authority with the clout to order the Secretary for Public Administration and Disaster Management to issue this vicious circular which surely he would have known (that is if he had any sense) exposes him to ridicule as a pompous fuddy duddy,  a man with no sense of the balm of kindness required now to heal the nation, especially our relationship with innocent Muslims who are being hounded at every turn using the Easter Day calamity. It is the same authority that pardoned and released the mad monk, as if to say “Go beat up some more Muslims.” And that monk says he is ready to go!

I write this as an individual citizen although I am a member of the Election Commission. As an individual I do not think our beautiful Hindu receptionist who greets visitors to the Commission with her characteristically friendly smile in a decent flowery frock reaching well below her knees would relish switching overnight to exposing her breasts and midriff the way Mr. Rathnasiri seems to want. We have a lady Muslim Assistant Commissioner who is very decently dressed without showing a single contour of her body. Indeed even Chairman Mahinda Deshapriya will be out of line because the handsome and colorful tunics he wears are North Indian and not count as a part of our national dress.

I know that Mr. Deshapriya is sympathetic to the views I express here. He has already told some ladies who expressed discomfiture over the new dress code not to change anything until we can decide as a Commission which will be on 4 June, 2019. In any case, as an independent Commission we are not bound by Mr. Rathnasiri’s fantasizing circular about clothing.

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In search of sensible Sri Lankans: Seeking tranquillity amid turbulences

In the absence of one voice from the ruling front, solidarity within the religious fronts in coming out as one voice of unity is indeed encouraging – Pix by Shehan Gunasekara

 Monday, 3 June 2019

The aftermath of the Easter Sunday tragedy witnessed many a calamity, confusion and chaos. The need to rebuild trust among communities amidst the mistrust among politicians, has become crucial.

In the absence of one voice from the ruling front, solidarity within the religious fronts in coming out as one voice of unity is indeed encouraging. In the wake of sensational media revelations, how to respond with responsibility in upholding peace and harmony? Today’s column will ponder on such pertinent points relevant to Sri Lankans. 
Overview

Many of us have to face the hustle and bustle of life amidst rush and push. It becomes more challenging when the outer world is increasingly turbulent. How can we maintain inner tranquillity in the face of chaos? 


How can we become more objective with sensible decision making through facts rather than being impulsive in jumping into conclusion? It can be true for not only caesarean operations ending up in complications, but many other current issues in the country. 

The beginning, I believe is to see things clearly, cleverly and comprehensively. It requires inner stillness. It should be the essential nature of a human being, according to Canadian author of spirituality fame Eckhart Toll. As he goes further: “You are that awareness, disguised as a person. When you lose touch with inner stillness, you lose touch with yourself. When you lose touch with yourself, you lose yourself in the world. Your innermost sense of self, of who you are, is inseparable from stillness. This is the I Am that is deeper than name and form.”

The equivalent of external noise is the inner noise of thinking. The equivalent of external silence is inner stillness. Whenever there is some silence around you – listen to it. That means just notice it. Pay attention to it. Listening to silence awakens the dimension of stillness within yourself, because it is only through stillness that you can be aware of silence. 

See that in the moment of noticing the silence around you, you are not thinking. You are aware, but not thinking. Eckhart Toll invites us to experience silence in a deeper sense. When you become aware of silence, immediately there is that state of inner still alertness. You are present. You have stepped out of thousands of years of collective human conditioning.

I thought the above sharing would shape our thoughts on tranquillity. That means the need of it and the deed of attaining it. In fact, what needs to be done can be recognised as a recipe of seven Rs, namely, relaxing, reflecting, revamping, reconnecting, recognising, revitalising and reinforcing. Let’s explore those further.
1. Relaxing

Stillness offers us relaxation in abundance. When our inner world becomes silent, it is an invitation to relax. It simply allows us to be aware of what’s going on. The key aspect is awareness. One needs to be aware of the importance of present moment living. Focus is a force for anyone to achieve results. Slowly but surely, modern managers are realising that the complex situations they face cannot be approached in a routine stressful manner. Indeed, the quest towards higher awareness through a deep relaxation is evident.

“If a man insisted always on being serious, and never allowed himself a bit of relaxation, he would go mad or become unstable without knowing it,” so said Herodotus, an ancient Greek historian. This is relevant even today, especially for the decision makers in all levels. 
2. Reflecting

In a mind of stillness, past can be viewed as series of mental pictures. It invites us to recall past and to reflect on positive and pleasant moments. This is all about challenging the assumptions. One needs to avoid the ‘quick fix’ trap.

Most organisations will acknowledge their need to be more creative, and many will be tempted to pursue the ‘quick fix’ option. Some will, no doubt, claim that they’re satisfied with the degree of success found in the status quo, while failing to realise the long-term benefits of developing a strategy that will ensure an ongoing focus on creativity and innovation to sustain their competitive edge and their very existence. Will your organisation fall into such a trap?

The simple argument here is that conventional thinking will take you only to one point. If you truly want your organisation to make a difference in this world and in the marketplace, then be vigilant in scanning the horizon for new and creative models for doing business.

Invite your employees to create new initiatives that provide positive turning points in the lives of consumers and the organisation.

When more attention is given to the untested and untried and less attention is spent on the routine and status quo, this climate can happen. When such creativity is embraced, the key questions become ‘What’s new? What’s next? What’s better?’
3. Refreshing 

Tranquillity shares with us a golden opportunity to generate refreshing thoughts.

In an era where creativity is the cutting-edge factor, we need to refresh our ideas a lot in becoming innovative. Freshness of ideas is the key thing that a competitive organisation gets going. It applies to managers and leaders alike.

Consider a pond with a quite surface. When you look down, you can easily see the bottom with clarity. When you throw a stone and disturb the surface, your vision gets blurred. That’s when the freshness is gone.
4. Reconnecting  

Tranquillity invites us to reconnect with the nature. Haiku poetry from Japan is a treasure that brings in this reality. In essence, it is sharing of one’s experience for the betterment of humanity. As one such Haiku poem goes:

• Falling night
• Cool breeze
• Speaking trees
• Few moments
• Always a treasure

The words are simple and the meaning is profound. It is same with the following as well:

• Stillness in existence
• or a chaotic order
• Should I not
• Delve deep 
• or escape this phenomenon

In his bestselling book, ‘Stillness speaks’, Eckhart Toll goes on saying, “Look at a tree, a flower, a plant. Let your awareness rest upon it. How still they are, how deeply rooted in being. Allow nature to teach you stillness.” 

It is simply reconnecting with our roots. Managers need such a refreshing departure in order to balance the work stress with natural bliss.
5. Recognising 

“It is not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters,” said Epictetus (55-135), a Greek Philosopher. Inner stillness is essential to look at things in a focused, unbiased manner. Tranquillity provides us an opportunity to recognise our feelings and thoughts. Emotions are feelings and their associated thoughts.

Thus, tranquillity is a state where we can recognise our emotions clearly. This is one of the fundamentals of emotional intelligence. Self-awareness leads to self-regulation, as Daniel Goleman advocates. Eastern spiritual masters have shown that to us through their own experience a long time ago.

Managers can use the experience of tranquillity to recognise their constructive and destructive emotions. Constructive emotions such as happiness, cheerfulness, enthusiasm help us to progress. Destructive emotions such as anger, frustration, jealousy, on the other hand, retard our growth. Recognising the presence of both types of such emotions is useful to ensure self-regulation.
6. Revitalising

Tranquillity offers a great deal of freshness. You become renewed and revitalised. It is like adding vitality to life.

“There is a vitality, a life force, an energy, a quickening, that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one of you in all time, this expression is unique,” so said Martha Graham, an iconic American dancer.

The more you experience tranquillity, the more vibrancy you would have in your actions. This is vital for managers who have to maintain their energy in facing multiple challenges.
7. Reinforcing

Tranquillity invites you to strengthen your values. It reinforces deeply held convictions that enable you to form your character. “A person that values its privileges above its principles soon loses both,” so said Dwight D. Eisenhower.

Values are associated with behaviour. Oxford dictionary defines them as standards of behaviour. Stephen Robins, a scholar in organisational behaviour, describes them, as “the basic convictions that a specific mode of conduct or end-state of existence is personally or socially preferable to an opposite or converse mode of conduct or end-state of existence”. In brief, it is a preferred way of thinking, feeling and doing. 

Experiencing a deep inner silence will reinforce your values. This is crucial when the trend is to move away from values in search of quick financial ‘value’.  At least, professionals should show the way to politicians, in doing right things and doing things right.
Way forward

Time has come for us as a nation to think and act to foster harmony among races and religions. “If a man speaks or acts with an evil thought, pain follows him. If a man speaks or acts with a pure thought, happiness follows him, like a shadow that never leaves him.”

This is what Buddha preached. Perhaps, provocative remarks for petty political gains serves the contrary in creating chaos. 

We need to be still in order to be sharp and focused. It applies to all levels in all fronts. Focus brings results, as global and local success stories reveal. It should not be an accident but a concentrated effort in committing time to be with oneself. With a true sense of spirituality, an Inward bound journey begins there.

Despite the ‘doom and gloom’ looming large in the minds of many a Sri Lankan, with regards to the way forward as a nation, the first step begins with oneself. We need to experience the tranquillity of stillness, in becoming inspired individuals, interactive teams and innovative institutions.

(Prof. Ajantha Dharmasiri can be reached through director@pim.sjp.ac.lk, ajantha@ou.edu or www.ajanthadharmasiri.info.)

On the importance of countering false political narratives

Sunday, June 02, 2019

In the wake of Sri Lanka’s Easter Sunday attacks, we have one (Muslim) Minister confessing to calling the Army Commander to ‘inquire into’ the fate of a Muslim suspect arrested following the Easter Sunday attacks and another (Sinhala) Minister being so bold as to transport Sinhalese rioters attacking Muslim shops in Kurunegala from one police station to another where they were given bail. Both acts are equally condemnatory. But the media focus is on the first and not on the second. Why is this?

Irrationality is in the air

The problem of bypassing the Rule of Law posed by these two incidents, (one being an attempt and the other amounting to a success), captures in a nutshell precisely what is wrong with our law enforcement and media. The National Human Rights Commission’s succinct finding as conveyed to the acting Inspector General of Police (IGP)  following a recent fact-finding mission to areas affected by anti-Muslim communal violence was that ‘equal protection of the law had been denied to affected citizens and also to the public at large.’ The law had not been allowed to take its proper course. The Commission called upon law enforcement authorities to strictly act against instigators of communal violence and ‘ensure that no undue political or other external interventions are tolerated.’

These reminders are timely, going beyond the specific context in which they were made. Yet and quite tangibly so, irrationality is in the air. The xenophobes and the zealots in Sri Lanka have invaded the public space. We see spokesmen of every lunatic fringe outfit in town being given media time to expound their favourite fantasies,as unashamedly and un-apologetically racist as these may be. A case in point is the return to an old exhortation by one spirited fanatic this week that Sinhalese mothers should give birth to more and more children to prevent hordes of Thawheed extremists from invading the Dhammadeepa.

And the very mention of ‘Thawheed’ suffices to push even generally sober citizens to (metaphorically) run for cover exclaiming in horror, notwithstanding repeated attempts by persevering scholars to explain that the term only symbolizes quite un-alarmingly, the sense of ‘oneness with God’ or ‘unification’ in other words. It is simply that this word has been used by jihadists to dignify themselves and their various organisational covers even as they act in a manner that puts every basic tenet of that spiritual injunction to shame. But this call to sanity is to no avail.

Hysteria over Sri Lanka’s NTJ ‘goni billa’

In particular, the now banned National Thawheed Jamath (NTJ) has assumed all the dreaded characteristics of the proverbial ‘goni billa’ in Sri Lanka or the bogeyman carrying a sack commonly evoked by parents to scare recalcitrant children into obedience.  As local level and municipal politicians of both the UNP and the Rajapaksa-led Sri Lanka Podujana Party are arrested for membership of the NTJ, some possessing swords, knives, petrol bombs and quantities of uniforms similar to those worn by army officers, the questioning of professionals allegedly having links to the NTJ is routinely reported. There is, in that sense, much of the same hysteria associated with the name ‘Bin Laden’ in the United States following the 2001 September 11 attacks by al-Qaeda on the twin towers in New York and elsewhere.

Sri Lanka’s media has played a considerable role in promoting this hysteria. Though some newspapers in the Sinhala media retained their customary notoriety in this regard, it is the electronic media that takes the prize for communal reporting. One good example was the hype surrounding the discoveries of swords in Muslim houses during raids immediately following the Easter Sunday attacks. The taking into custody of swords found in one or two mosques (which certainly raises questions) aside, the rest of these discoveries in Muslim households were represented as if out of the common way.

But one would surmise that a great number of Sinhala households in Sri Lanka’s villages would also possess one or two swords, which is quite run of the mill as it were. However the terrifying sight of twenty and more swords laid out methodically for the roving eye of the television camera to infer that all these came from one source and that there was undoubtedly evil intent at play, hinted at unabashed communal propaganda. There are other instances of subverted reportage that raises serious questions of ethics. For example, press releases by the police on arrests made during a particular day are reproduced quoting the ethnicity of the suspect as Muslim but when Sinhalese are arrested, as was the  case of the suspect  apprehended in connection with the concealment of hand grenades near a school in Badureliya, the ethnicity is concealed.

Diversion of attention from core issues

This is a classic example of manipulation of news on a grand, even fantastic scale. It is fear mongering with no apparent fear of consequences. Journalists indulging in the same should be brought before the penal law, even under stringent emergency regulations notwithstanding our natural distaste in urging its use in these contexts. Nonetheless, scandalous, incendiary reporting must be dealt with firmly.  In the alternative, the push-back by the Government may reverse all the gains in the past few decades. We are already hearing talk of criminal defamation being brought back into the statute books to counter media excesses.

Most importantly, there is a danger in this enveloping media hysteria as it diverts attention from important issues that should be at the front and centre of public attention. Despite the banning of the NTJ ‘goni billa’ along with the Jamathei Milathu Ibrahim (JMI), Muslim elders have themselves warned that this does not comprise the sum total of the threat. Fundamentalism has been evidenced by other organisations that still operate freely and deploy their writ in other areas with force such as in the resistance to reform of laws and practices relating to women.

Indeed for years, the East’s Muslim politicians, protected by various power centres in Colombo, were responsible for encouraging and instigating the growth of communal enclaves, reacted to adversely not only by the Sinhalese but also by Tamils. Numerous tugs of war took place, administrative or political as the case may be, where Tamil villages bordered Muslim villages. Eastern centres of regional influence such as Kattankudy grew reclusively into themselves with home-grown radicals exerting knock-on impact in areas as far away as Mawanella to the profound displeasure of Muslims elsewhere. These were the seeds that finally destructively flowered in the form of the jihadist cell carrying out the Easter Sunday attacks.

This media circus must be halted

As Sri Lanka faces communal hysteria to an extent that is unprecedented even during war times, addressing these issues with restraint is important. For that, the media circus of shrill propaganda that is in full swing now must be halted. And as reiterated in these column spaces, framing the crisis entirely within the context of Sri Lanka’s majoritarian violence as directed against the minorities is profoundly disrespectful of the truth.

Militant Sinhala-Buddhist action by the BBS and others may have enabled a breeding site for Muslim youth to turn disaffected in a familiar vicious cycle. But as the radical trajectory of the NTJ and the specific targeting of Catholics and Christian on Easter Sunday tells us, that is not the whole truth here. Framing the narrative in this way to protect political interests can only continue to be counter-productive.

It is time that these collective cautions are taken to heart.

REPARATIONS FOR VICTIMS OF THE EASTER ATTACK – SHIVANI DE ZYLVA

01/06/2019

In the face of the damage to life and property caused by the terrorist attacks on 21^st April 2019, it is the duty of the state to support the victims with rebuilding and restoring their lives to normalcy. While their loss and pain cannot be erased, every effort must be made to ensure that these citizens are provided with the best possible remedies to recover and move forward. This sheds light on the importance of reparations now more than ever.

State initiatives towards supporting victims

Cabinet Decision No. 19/1266/105/043 dated 24.04.2019 granted the following assistance for affected victims:

• One Million will be granted for each dead person and each victim with permanent disability
• A maximum amount of Rs.500,000 will be granted for each injured person (depending on the disability percentage)
• A maximum amount of Rs.5 Million will be granted for the damaged private properties based on the valuation report by the Government Chief Valuer.

Documents needed to receive reparations
The Office for Reparations has provided a list of documents necessary for victims to receive compensation.
Compensation for next-of-kin of deceased persons:

• Relief application with two copies certified by the Divisional Secretary, issued by the Office for Reparations (earlier Rehabilitation of Persons, Properties and Industries Authority). This can be obtained from the Divisional Secretariat.
• Death Certificate
• Documents to prove the relationship to the dead person (Marriage Certificate if married/ Birth Certificates of the Dependents)
• Bank Account Details (of Applicant and Dependents)
• Copies of the National Identity Card of the Applicant and Dependents

 Compensations for the injured persons:

• Relief application with two copies certified by the Divisional Secretary, issued by the Office for Reparations (earlier Rehabilitation of Persons, Properties and Industries Authority). This can be obtained from the Divisional Secretariat.
• Medical Certificate – the form of the Medical Certificate can be obtained from the Divisional Secretariats.
• Birth Certificate of the Applicant
• Bank Account Details
• Copy of the Applicant’s National Identity Card

The Office for Reparations[1] identified the need to expediate the process of assisting victims and has taken measures to provide an advance payment to the victims of incidents that took place in relation to the Easter Sunday attacks.
The advance payments are to be made to the next-of-kin of the deceased person based on the Coroner’s report and the Order issued by the Magistrate in releasing the deceased body before obtaining necessary documents for compensations, with the recommendations of the Divisional Secretary.
Payments made to victims thus far
The following payments were granted to victims of the attacks. The payment percentages granted to victims vary according to the number of documents presented by them to the Office for Reparations:
Compensation for deceased persons

• 82,800,000.00 for 92 deceased persons from the Katuwapitiya St. Sebastian Church incident
• 21,200,000.00 for 27 deceased persons from the Batticaloa St. Zion Church incident
• 12,150,000.00 for 18 deceased persons from the Kochchikade St. Anthony’s Church incident
• 2,800,000.00 for 4 deceased persons from the Shangri-La Hotel incident
• 1,400,000.00 for 3 deceased persons from the Cinnamon Grand Hotel incident
• 900,000.00 for 1 deceased person from the Kingsbury Hotel incident
• 1,100,000.00 for 2 deceased persons from Dehiwala Tropical Inn incident

Compensation for injuries

• 13,425,000.00 for 137 injured persons from the Katuwapitiya St. Sebastian Church incident
• 3,675,000.00 for 35 injured persons from the Batticaloa St. Zion Church incident
• 1,300,000.00 for 4 injured persons from the Kochchikade St. Anthony’s Church incident

It is important to note that while some victims were granted an advanced payment as immediate relief measures, other victims were granted full/half compensation based on the necessary documentation provided by them.
The process of granting reparations to all victims is still underway.
For further details contact
Mr.Ananda Wijepala (Director) on +94 112575826 or Mr. J. P. Shantha Padmasiri (Assistant Director) on +94 112575831.
[1] Earlier known as the Rehabilitation of Persons, Properties and Industries Authority (or REPPIA)

CNI post powerless under present govt.

PSC probe into Easter Sunday carnage:

By Shamindra Ferdinando-June 2, 2019, 12:00 pm 

The wartime Rajapaksa administration, having created the post of Chief of National Intelligence (CNI) to run an efficient network involving all three services, the police and the State Intelligence Service (SIS), placed Maj. Gen. Kapila Hendavithana, in charge of the powerful Office in January, 2007.

The CNI tasks included managing local and foreign intelligence and briefing the National Security Council (NSC) chaired by the President.

Then, President Mahinda Rajapaksa, in his capacity as the Minister of Defence, Public Security and Law and Order, established the Office of CNI by way of a Cabinet Memorandum to accommodate Hendavitharana, who functioned at the Defence Ministry, as the Intelligence Advisor, following his retirement in Oct 2006.

President Rajapaksa secured cabinet approval for the appointment though an attempt was made initially to accommodate Hendavitharana on Pay and Pension scheme.

The post of the CNI was meant to be held by a senior military intelligence officer though the incumbent government replaced Hendavitharana with Sisira Mendis, retired DIG, who was in charge of the Police Narcotics Bureau (PNB) at the time of his retirement.

A Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) probing the alleged lapses on the part of those in authority leading to the single biggest security breach in Sri Lanka’s history on April 21, last week questioned Mendis. During the proceedings opened to the media, it transpired that Mendis lacked the authority to function the way his predecessor Hendavitharana had done.

Hendavitharana was based in Thailand as ‘regional intelligence coordinator’ for several months in the wake of accusations the Military Intelligence, which he served, was undermining the Oslo-led peace process. Hendavitharana was away for about six months and returned in January 2006.

PSC member, Field Marshal Fonseka pointed out to Mendis how Hendavitharana had functioned. Mendis said Hendavitharana had the authority to act.

In addition to Mendis, Defence Secretary Maj. Gen. Shantha Kottegoda, the retired army commander, too, appeared before the PSC.

The PSC first met on May 29 under the leadership of MP Dr. Jayampathy Wickremaratne, PC, in the absence of its Chairman Ananda Kumarasiri, currently overseas on an official visit. Moneragala District MP was expected to return in the coming weekend, his family said yesterday.

MP Wickremaratne yesterday told The Island that he would chair the PSC when it meets tomorrow (4). UNP representative Dr. Rajitha Senaratne and M. A. Sumanthiran of the TNA would participate in the proceedings though they weren’t present at the inaugural session.

he PSC comprises Ananda Kumarasiri (Chairman/UNP), Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka (UNP National List), Dr. Jayampathy Wickremaratne (UNP National List), Rauff Hakeem (SLMC), Ravi Karunanayake (UNP), Prof. Arsu Marasinghe (UNP National List), Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa (JVP), M.A. Sumanthiran (TNA) and Dr. Rajitha Senaratne (UNP).

Joint Opposition (JO) lawmaker Wimal Weerawansa yesterday told The Island that their group boycotted the PSC as at the time Speaker Karu Jayasuriya named members for it, there was likelihood of the government not giving dates for debate on two-day the JO’s no-faith motion against Industry and Commerce Minister Rishad Bathiudeen.

Weerawansa said they were also concerned about the government using PSC to clear Bathiudeen, leader of the All Ceylon Makkal Congress (SCMC) accused of having clandestine links to those responsible for the Easter Sunday carnage.

Speaker Jayasuriya subsequently set June 18 and 19 for NCM.

MP Weerawansa said that the government lacked interest in maintaining intelligence services. National security was certainly not a priority for the yahapalana politicians, Weerawansa said, pointing out that the National Security Council (NSC) had last met, on Feb 19, 2019, prior to the Easter bombings. The government owed an explanation as to why it had not met for over a month, Weerawansa said. Answering another query, the MP said that it would be the responsibility of the PSC to identify the person responsible for summoning the PSC in case of an emergency.

Lanka blasts widen existing communal divide

(MENAFN - NewsIn.Asia) "> By P.K.Balachandran/Daily Express-5/31/2019

Colombo, May 29: The motive of the nine Sri Lankan Muslim suicide bombers, who attacked four hotels and three churches on April 21, might have been to punish the Western powers and their religion Christianity for the atrocities being perpetrated against Muslims in the Middle East.

But what the bombers have achieved concretely and visibly is quite different. They have significantly widened the gulf between the Sinhala Buddhist majority and the minority Muslims in Sri Lanka.

On the one hand, many sections of the civil society have stood up for innocent Muslims who were attacked and harassed following the blasts. On their part, Muslims have offered to help rebuild the three destroyed churches. Heads of mosques from Galle have appealed to the government to remove Wahhabism from Sri Lanka root and branch in the interest of communal harmony.

But on the other hand, there is also poisonous anti-Muslim propaganda aired through the social and mainstream media.

While there is a case for asking the Muslim community to stop some of the divisive religious and cultural practices that have gained currency due to the excessive influence of Wahhabism in recent times, there is also an unseemly tendency among a growing section of Sinhala-Buddhists to make unreasonable demands from the Muslims.

Wild charges are made against Muslims with the intention of tarnishing their collective image. There is a tendency to demonize the Muslims as a whole, and hold each and every Muslim responsible for the horror of April 21.

The government has already outlawed the niqab which is a full-face veil. But the population apparently wants the entire female Muslim attire, including the abaya to go. There is a subtle call to boycott Muslim businesses and Muslim suppliers.

A group of Sinhala Buddhist customers in a Colombo restaurant reportedly protested vehemently when the Sinhala-Buddhist owner was seen in discussion with her regular Muslim supplier. The customers stormed out of the restaurant and threatened never to return, when the owner stuck to her stand that the religion of her suppliers did not matter to her.

In another instance, a group of customers called the police to evict a Muslim girl wearing a head scarf though the law allows head covering so long as the face can be seen.

The Sri Lanka Human Rights Commission has written to the University Grants Commission to ensure that there is no invidious communal distinction in the universities when security measures are taken. It had received complaints that the security staff are frisking only Muslims.

Dr.Jehan Perera, Executive Director of the National Peace Council, wrote of an itinerant Muslim sweetmeat seller who lost his market after April 21, because non-Muslims had stopped buying from him. Perera also noted that in the Iftar party organized by the Colombo Municipal Council with much fanfare recently, Sinhala-Buddhist participation was low, 'reflecting a polarization of Lankan society.'

He further says that there is a propaganda barrage to make it seem that many, if not most Muslims, are acting in a way adverse to other communities.

'During the first three weeks of panic, the media contributed substantially to the consternation of people by repeatedly showing pictures of piles of swords in mosques, which created an impression that swords were being found in a large number of mosques. This generated a fear in people of an assault on them by sword-wielding Muslims, though swords were found only in two of the 2000 mosques in the country,' Perera points out .

Then there is the running story about a Muslim doctor, Shihabdeen Shafi of Kurunegala government hospital who has allegedly sterilized over 8000 women while delivering babies. The furor that these reports raised led to the police calling upon women to submit complaints about the doctor. About a 128 women have so far submitted complaints. Under pressure, the Minister of Heath, Dr.Rajitha Senaratne, has appointed a six-member committee to probe the deeds of the doctor.

Initially arrested for having unaccounted wealth amounting to Rs.400 million, the doctor, who is also a follower of the controversial Muslim minister Rishad Bathiyudeen, is now suspected to be part of an alleged Wahhabist plan to reduce the population of the Sinhalese-Buddhists.

Meanwhile, the Tamil press has been reporting about the questionable conduct of a Muslim convert to Hinduism working in a Hindu temple in Kiliveddy in Tricomalee district.It is alleged that he has been mixing in the panchamritam given to devotees to consume after the pooja, a substance that will affect fertility.

In February 2018, there were riots in Ampara over a suspicion that a certain popular Muslim eatery, patronized by Sinhalese Buddhists, was mixing an anti-fertility substance in a fast moving food item. In 2013, a leading Muslim clothing outlet was targeted by Buddhist monks as it was alleged that the candy it was giving as a PR exercise, had an agent which would adversely affect fertility.

Though an overwhelming majority, the Sinhlese-Buddhists harbor the fear that they may be outnumbered by the Muslims who allegedly do not limit their families.

Partisan Politics

It is now clear that the post-blast anti-Muslim riots in the North Western Province, which took place three weeks after the April 21 multiple blasts, were politically organized to gain the support of the majority Sinhala-Buddhist community.

'Many of those arrested were affiliated to the opposition political parties. Opposition politicians were seen fearlessly mingling with the mobs even as they took the law into their own hand,' Dr.Perera of the National Peace Council observes. red.

President Maithripala Sirisena issued a Presidential pardon and released the radical anti-Muslim Buddhist monk Ven.Gnanasara Thero on the grounds that the monk had forewarned Sri Lankans about the dangers from radicalized Muslims when others ignored radicalization.

Gnanasara Thero was serving a six year sentence for contempt of court.

But the monk's release (made on questionable legal grounds according to the Bar Association of Sri Lanka) was politically driven. Sirisena is using it to garner support for his bid for a second term as President of Sri Lanka in the election due at the end of this year. Significantly, a photograph of the President entertaining the monk to tea at the Presidential house was flashed in the newspapers.

Through the release of Gnanasara Thero, who had led movements against the burqa and Halal certification, and had instigated riots in Aluthgama in 2014, Sirisena has sent a message to the Sinhala- Buddhist majority that he is the champion of their rights vis-à-vis the Muslim extremists. Subsequent to his release, Gnanasara Thero has threatened to launch an agitation if the government fails to curb Islamic extremism.

After the Tamil separatists were militarily crushed in 2009, the majority community Sinhala-Buddhists began to look at the growing influence of the Muslims and their ministers with disfavor. The Sinhala-Buddhists felt that their political and economic space was being usurped by a minority which was also becoming an exclusive group culturally through the adoption of an alien Arabic culture. The Sinhala-Buddhist character of Sri Lanka appeared to be under threat from Wahhabism.

This is the reason for accusing influential Muslim politicos like minister Rishad Bathiyudeen and Eastern province Governor MLAM Hisbullah of financial fraud and terrorist links. There is a No Confidence Motion against Bathiyudeen. There is a demand that the two be inquired into and sacked.

With such demands emanating from the majority community, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has said that the so-called 'Shariah University' being set up by Hisbullah will not get permission. He also said that the thousand odd Madrassahs will be put under government control.

To curb the tendency in some Muslim areas to put up signboards in Arabic, the government has said that sign boards can only be in Sinhalese, Tamil and English. Sale of beef is banned within the municipal limits of Kurunegala.

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A combined dose of ginger and chilies

If Sri Lanka is not divided by way of ethnicity and religion that would be the best internal defence we would have in this type of troubled times – Pic by Chamila Karunarathne 

Monday, 3 June 2019

 Lanka is in a strategic location of the Indian Ocean. Throughout the history of Sri Lanka there were foreign interventions. Sri Lanka was invaded constantly by the foreign forces from south India initially and later by European forces. In certain instances, Sinhala kings invaded south India and Parakramabahu the Great (1123-1186) had gone to the extent of invading Burma. Sinhala kings came to treaties with Pandyan kings against the Cholas.

In the 17th Century during the time of Rajasinghe II (1608-1687), assistance of the Dutch was sought to defeat the Portuguese and it was done in 1656. However, Rajasinghe realised that the Dutch replaced the Portuguese as a colonial power in the low country districts, previously occupied by Portuguese. Hence the origin of the Sinhala proverb, exchanging ginger with chilies.


J.R. Jayewardene in 1977 opened the economy and had connections with the western powers. Indira Gandhi, who was in the opposition of India, came back into power in 1980. India had a treaty with USSR for friendship and cooperation and was following a closed economic model. Indira Gandhi did not like the outlook of the Jayewardene government and she thought that Sri Lankan government would be a threat to the defence of India. Therefore, it was a necessity in the eyes of Indian Government to destabilise the Sri Lankan Government.

As a result, when Sri Lanka had a problem with Tamil minorities, India provided its soil for the military training of the militant minority Tamil youth of Sri Lanka. Tamil Nadu being a province of Tamils created sufficient ground support for this exercise.

During those days where the Sri Lankan ethnic issue was in a constant rise, Tamil Nadu had a considerable influence on the Indian central government towards its Sri Lankan policy. Professor Ralph Buultjens once said the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu was ‘the’ key person of this whole affair. When the Sri Lankan forces led by field commander Denzil Kobbekaduwa, were advancing and when there was an imminent threat of the defeat of the Liberation Tigers, India tried to send humanitarian aid to Jaffna by sea.

When they were turned back by the Sri Lankan Navy, India took an unprecedented action of violation of the Sri Lankan air space and dropped humanitarian aid to the Jaffna peninsula. At this point the Western friends of Jayewardene advised him to liaise with India and sort the issue out. The action of India was not protested internationally. As a result, the military operation of Kobbekaduwa was halted and Indo Lanka pact was signed.

Firstly, if Jayewardene was able to handle India effectively India would not have interfered with domestic affairs of Sri Lanka. Secondly if Jayewardene has treated the minorities of Sri Lanka with dignity, he could have given no ammunition to India to meddle with internal affairs of Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka had a problem of balancing Indian influence. Neville Jayaweera reported that one time powerful Secretary to the Ministry of Defence and Foreign Affairs N.Q. Dias wanted to develop relationships with China in 1960s to counter the Indian influence. However, during the time of Sirimavo Bandaranaike foreign policy of Sri Lanka was well managed in the guidelines of non-alignment. She had very good relationship with India and was able to sign the Sirima-Shastri pact with the Indian Prime Minister and was able to secure Katchatheevu Island for us. Yet she was bold enough to allow Pakistani planes to use Sri Lankan air space during the time of Indo Pakistan war in 1971. It was true non-alignment.

During the time of the last stages of the war in Sri Lanka, Rajapaksa government had a close relationship and understanding with the Indian government. However, at that time the political situation was completely changed in India after the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi by the LTTE. Therefore, the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu has ceased to be an influential figure in relations with Sri Lanka. In fact, India also wanted to eliminate the LTTE. Hence Rajapaksa did not face the crucial situation faced by Jayewardene.

Soon after the ending of war Rajapaksa did not abide by the promises he made to India and world community that he would address the grievances of Tamils in Sri Lanka. When the Indian pressure was mounting up, he turned to China. The Chinese Government which helped Sri Lanka during the war as well, helped Sri Lanka by way of granting loans for development. The end result was selling the land which occupies Shangri-La Hotel in Colombo and allowing freehold right of a portion of the land to be reclaimed at Port City project. Rajapaksa also did the same mistake of Jayewardene by not treating the Tamil community with dignity and thereby paving the way for foreign influences.

Dr. Ajith Kolonne has given an interview to Ravaya (19 May) and said that Prof. Patrick Mendis of US government service revealed that when US forces came into the territory of Pakistan to kill Osama Bin Laden, US did not violate sovereignty of Pakistan since there was an agreement called Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement (ACSA) between US and Pakistan. Even at that time similar agreement was signed between USA and Sri Lanka and it was signed by Robert O Blake, US Ambassador and Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Secretary to the Ministry of Defence. It was not revealed to the Parliament.

Vasudeva Nanayakkara came to know about this and inquired from Mahinda Rajapaksa, the President. He had brushed it off saying that it was just an agreement signed by a Ministry Secretary. Sunday Times (19 May) revealed that after the lapse of the previous agreement the present government signed a fresh agreement extended to 80 pages signed by Atul Keshap, US Ambassador and Kapila Waidyaratne, Secretary to the Ministry of Defence. According to the agreement USA and Sri Lanka have reciprocal logistics support in the case of military exercises.

When Sri Lanka was burning recently the President was ‘summoned’ to China to sign a defence agreement. According to the agreement as reported by newspapers China can send armed military officers to defend Chinese interests in Sri Lanka. While signing this serious agreement the President was in begging mindset. It was reported that he requested 100 jeeps instead of 50 jeeps previously planned.

Sri Lanka being a small country should be very careful when dealing with foreign countries, especially when rival forces are in operation. Ukraine, sometime back, was in between US and Russian influences and at the end Ukraine lost Crimea to Russia.

During the past we had to face regional geopolitics but today the situation is quite different. Global geopolitics is at our doorstep. USA treats China as its main opponent and waged a trade war against China as well. American foreign policy is derived from its defence policy. They do not all the time support democratic and free market-oriented governments. They support anybody who is willing to serve their global interests at that point.

Trying to make deals out of this type of situation is dangerous. If you are in the middle of rival forces that may cost you a part of your territory. It is walking in a tightrope. Intelligent diplomats should be principled and firm and should not try to get benefits out of the auctioned position he is in. The best foreign policy advocate we had in recent times was Sirimavo Bandaranaike. Act of Rajasinghe II was a failure. Now it is not exchanging ginger with chilies. It is a combined dose of ginger and chilies. If Sri Lanka is not divided by way of ethnicity and religion that would be the best internal defence we would have in this type of troubled times.

Sri Lanka College Of Obstetricians And Gynecologists: Covering The Fallopian Tubes With A Thousand Rupee Note

By Grusha Andrews –JUNE 1, 2019

First thing first.

I have no intention of white washing the infamous Dr Shafi Siyabdeen who has allegedly caused unconsented infertility in 4000 mothers. Whatever the truth of that allegation may be, it is obvious that Dr Shafi was involved in a money laundering exercise which would put a final nail on his professional life for sure.

Dr Shafi Siyabdeen

However, alternatively, in this weird country it won’t be a huge surprise if Dr Shafi was resurrected from the death of his profession and was made Governor of the Eastern Province tomorrow, or something. 

But that is not the real issue here. 

It is now ten days since a guy with a dead political life ignited the whole Sri Lankan society with Islamophobia targeting an allegation surrounding Dr Shafi. As I suggested previously we must not even mention the name of that putrid professor for Rajarata University who is trying to give oxygen to his dying political potential by igniting racism. By his own admission he and others have known of this atrocity for quite the while and waited for the opportune moment for themselves to “reveal“ it. 

Gynecologist Cats That Sh*t On The Infertility Rock

It is questionable how an entire fraternity of Obstetricians and Gynecologists are maintaining an official silence (excluding one or two sporadic personal statements on Facebook by expatriate, retired Gynecologists) regarding this professional crisis that is eroding the trust of the public in the entire medical profession. The magnitude of this destruction is of a national scale. They are behaving pretty much like the cat that defecated on a rock and is unable to cover it up with sand. 

Sri Lanka College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (SLCOG) is the apex professional body for its specialty. It is also the only official body that lays down clinical guidelines, norms, guidelines for patient safety, facilitate post graduate education and is committed to maintaining the good name and the highest professional standards of the discipline. It is the foremost and the un-challengeable organization that stands for the discipline of Obstetrics and Gynecology in Sri Lanka.  

When a super serious allegation is made against Dr Shafi that he made 400 mothers infertile without consent whilst under the supervision of a Consultant Gynecologist leading to a national uproar and calamity, the SLCOG is maintaining meek silence as if gone deaf and dumb. What they should have done is to immediately offer their technical expertise to the Ministry of Health without even waiting for a request. They should have immediately engaged with the post Easter Sunday Sri Lankan society still in uncertainty and shock to alleviate their hysterical reaction to this allegation. They should have issued a professional statement to control the escalation. 

Instead what happened? 

What happened was that a member of the council of SLCOG called Professor Hemantha Dodampahala issued a statement that women can be made infertile by pressing the Fallopian tubes with an instrument during the Caesarian Section. Theoretically it is plausible that if any live tissue, blood vessel or tube, when compressed with a surgical instrument for an hour or two will obviously lose its vitality and die. You don’t need a professor to spread that two bit theory. A child knows that. 

By this logic, if a patient undergoing a surgery today in their abdominal cavity, perineal cavity of any other organ dies tomorrow, the relatives can complain that this was due to the compressing of an organ by the surgeon. From tomorrow it would be impossible for a patient to die without the doctor being implicated with murder. Tomorrow if a Muslim patient dies after being treated by a Sinhala doctor, his Muslim relatives can make the same allegation. 

What Dodampahala is raping is the very nobility of the medical profession. Its humanity and vulnerability.  From tomorrow it might be impossible for a patient to die. Dodampahala has taught the public the theory of keeping the knife to the throat of the doctors. 

Does The Sri Lanka College of Obstetricians And Gynecologist Have Morals? 

Dodampahala and all other Gynecologists who came of Hiru and Derana TV wagging surgical instruments and instilling mass hysteria and fear are doing so irresponsibly, destroying the trust placed on the medical profession by the public. Do these Gynecologists actually have a moral background to do these things? If you search a little deep on the internet you will find the black marks and the red spots of their histories. You will find out what their political orientations are. 

The President of the SLCOG has a huge responsibility to become the professional mediator between the profession and the public. Because Dr Shafi worked under the supervision of a member of the SLCOG. The President of the SLCOG should have taken immediate measures to carry out a confidential internal fact finding about the conduct of the Consultant connected to this situation. He should have come out to the public and shared the needful facts and give the public the confidence that this problem is being tackled at the professional level. He should have been the builder of confidence in the medical profession when it is crumbling in all direction. It was the moral prerogative of the President of the SLCOG. 

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