As towering waves came crashing into the southern coast of Sri Lanka on Dec. 26, 2004, Kushil Gunasekera gathered up his children and they ran for their lives to a nearby temple, the highest point they could find.
via: http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/12/24/us-tsunami-anniversary-srilanka-idUSKBN0K219J20141224
“On Jan. 8, two years ahead of schedule, Sri Lanka will hold a presidential election that could help restore democracy by scrapping the country’s authoritarian presidency and replacing it with a strong parliament. Real change, however, seems unlikely.”
via: http://foreignpolicy.com/2014/12/24/sri-lankas-electoral-dysfunction/
“The diverse factors that shaped the emergence of the Indian diaspora in the colonial period have aroused the interest of historians and anthropologists alike. While a sizable body of literature emerged in the early 1990s on the economic aspects of migration, linking it to colonial exploitation, more recent studies have brought out its sociocultural aspects. Some recent studies have focussed on the notions of hybridity, dislocation and transnationalism to outline the complex forces that shape the lived social realities of migrant experience.
Rajesh Rai’s Indians in Singapore 1819-1945 makes a significant contribution to this aspect. The book draws on the official and unofficial records available in the state archives in Britain, Malaysia, India and Singapore; newspaper reports; and observer accounts in the 19th century. The author conjures up an encyclopaedic view of the port city’s evolution through several turbulent periods in history, including the First World War. The book successfully traces the dynamic interaction between political events and sociocultural processes that shaped the lives of the Indian diaspora in Singapore and the emergence of a multi-ethnic and multi-religious urban space through varied interactions between diverse communities. The book is divided into three parts.”
via: http://www.frontline.in/books/diaspora-dynamics/article6718913.ece
source: Frontline
Earlier this year, a group of scientists claimed with certainty that tiny fossils uncovered inside a meteorite found in Sri Lanka in late December 2012, are proof of extraterrestrial life. A paper was published in the Journal of Cosmology (1)(3) by Chandra Wickramasinghe. Wickramasinghe is the director of the Buckingham Centre for Astrobiology at the University of Buckingham in the U.K. The study was conducted alongside researchers at the School of Mathematics at Cardiff University and from the Medical Research Institute in Colombo, Sri Lanka.
via: http://earthweareone.com/extraterrestrial-fossils-uncovered-inside-meteorite-found-in-sri-lanka/
And yet in the midst of the misery I witnessed in Sri Lanka was incredible generosity. Residents who had lost everything, who had seen horror beyond imagination, running up to us to offer a face mask to help cope with the unmistakeable stench of death, trying to give us a bottle of water.
via: http://edition.cnn.com/2014/12/24/world/asia/remembering-sri-lanka-tsunami/
It is beyond debate that the Tamils have suffered immensely under the incumbent President’s regime. It was under his rule that the worst and most destructive chapter of the genocidal process against the Tamil people was carried out. Even after the end of war his Government continues to ferociously implement a multi-faceted genocidal programme that aims at destroying the collective existence of the Tamil people. The suffering of the Tamil people continues unabated in the form of land grab, Sinhala Buddhisisation, Militarisation, violence against ex-combatants, illegal arrests etc. Hence the question of Tamil people voting for the incumbent President just does not arise.
However we are also aware historically that regime change does not necessarily result in change in the lives of the Tamil people.
Read the full statement by the Tamil Civil Society Forum here – http://f.cl.ly/…/TCSF%20on%20Presidential%20Elections%2023%…
Violence leading up to the Presidential Election 2015, monitored and reported by the Centre for Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV).
via: https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/viewer?mid=z7dYBkirDZa0.k9eciaEtFJR0
As the COP20 comes to a close in Peru, France is starting to prepare the COP21 which it will host in 2015, H.E. Mr Jean-Paul Monchau, the Ambassador of France explains the importance of these conferences which are significant milestones in the field of international climate change mitigation. Interview conducted by staff at the French Embassy in Colombo.
The Editor of Vikalpa, Sampath Samarakoon, was mercilessly attacked by Hambantota Urban Council Chairman Eraj Frenando (of the toy pistol infamy) yesterday as he was taking part in a street drama with leading rights activists and artistes. A detailed report by the Centre for Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV) around this incident can be read here. The Police arrested Eraj Fernando today in connection with the incident and remanded him till the 24th of December.
Groundviews caught up with Sampath upon his return to Colombo and recorded the following interview in Sinhala. You can also access the interview directly here. Key points made by Sampath during the interview are summarised in English below.
via: http://groundviews.org/2014/12/22/an-attack-on-unarmed-citizens-interview-with-sampath-samarakoon/
One of the features about the run up to the January 2015 Presidential election is the uncertainty about how the Northern voter will vote. This short article cannot cover all the nuances of the ‘national’ problem as it is called. However at this time of elections, it may be pertinent to consider two approaches towards seeking national integrity (i.e. integrating the South and the North).
via: http://groundviews.org/2014/12/24/does-the-north-of-sri-lanka-need-a-movement-joint/
No one was aware and no one was prepared when the first waves of the tsunami struck Sri Lanka’s east coast at 6:40 a.m. on 26 December 2004. The tsunami was not done. It was still roaring and thought it would be much later before it thundered across Sri Lanka’s western coast, even then, no warning message was sent out. As a result, more than 35,000 people lost their lives.
President Mahinda Rajapakse says the people living in welfare centers in Jaffna for 24 years will be resettled soon. The President pointed out although the government attempted to resettle these people with parallel to the programme implemented to resettle the families who were displaced from terrorism, certain political leaders averted it. President Rajapakse also said although those groups are attempting to exaggerate the matter as an issue that should be given international attention, it is entirely an internal matter. He pledged that a solution will be provided for the matter as soon as he emerges victorious at the upcoming presidential election. The President made these remarks when he met the people who are living in welfare centers in Jaffna last evening. These groups of people are living in welfare centers since year 1999. At the meeting they pointed out the welfare centers are submerged when heavy rains occur. Responding to the matter the President directed governor of northern province
G.A. Chandrasiri to provide required facilities for them. Minister Douglas Devananda was also present at this occasion.
India will now export two warships to Sri Lanka after delivering a warship to Mauritius for the first time, minister of state for defence production Rao Inderjit Singh said here on Saturday.
Enabling resettlement in Akkarai village, Sri Lanka The inhabitants of Akkarai village on the northern side of the Jaffna peninsula were displaced from their small fishing village in 1986. The Sri Lankan Army (SLA) advanced from the west and set up a camp to defend against LTTE attacks from the east, forcing the 105 families to abandon their homes, boats and livelihoods. In 1990, the families were allowed to return to the area, but when one man lost his leg in a mine accident people were once again displaced and the land surrounding it was again occupied by the Army. This land then became part of the military High Security Zone which covered the northern coast of the Jaffna peninsula. – See more at:http://www.halotrust.org/node/908#sthash.80e0Q8ZB.dpuf
“As many as 87 Indian fishing vessels are in custody of Sri Lanka and the government has taken up the issue with the country’s authorities, Lok Sabha was informed today”
