Microphone goes dead as Governor hits out at politicos

'Anagarika a racist to today's intellectuals'

Anagarika Dharmapala be considered the father of modern Sri Lanka and who fought for his race, his religion and for freedom for his country would today be branded a racist by so called Intellectuals of today, said the Most Ven. Pallantara Sumanajothi, the chief priest of the Southern Province.

He could be jailed or even stoned were he alive today exposing what he did at the turn of the century, when we lived as a subjugated race. The chief priest said that the Anagarika dedicated a lifetime of service to make Sri Lankans proud to be Sri Lankans, but there was a tendency in society to revert to the old ways and habits of aping the West, he said.

He cited as an example Dharmapala's introduction of the sari to Sri Lankan women by getting his mother Mallika Hewavitarane to wear it.

Today, Sri Lankan mothers have abandoned the sari and wear frock. This is he example they set for their daughters, he said

Ven. Sumanajothi criticised the media for side lining Eastern values and cited the prominence given to Diana, a British princess, in the local media.

He said the people seem to care little for Sri Lanka's cultural heritage and added that some people have even begun to plunder treasures from Buddhist temples.Governor of the Southern Province and one-time Ambassador to Washington, New Delhi and Moscow, Neville Kanakaratne hailed the Anagarika as the first to spread the teachings of the Buddha throughout the world via the Maha Bodhi Society he established in world capitals.

He was speaking at the 134th birth anniversary celebrations of the late Anagarika Dharmapala held at the Galle Town Hall on Thursday, September 17.

He said that the Anagarika together with other Buddhist leaders travelled the length and breadth of the island by bullock cart, by boat and even on foot.

Today teachers ask for transfers from schools if it is two miles away from their homes, he said.

Anagarika travelled not in search of votes, but to uplift the people. "Where are the leaders of today, he asked, saying today's credo was to work for yourself, your relatives, your party or your class.

At this stage, the electricity supply failed and the hall was plunged into darkness. Mr.Kanakarutne continued his speech without the aid of the microphone. The electricity supply was restored after his speech ended.

Ven. Akuretiye Nanda of the Vidyodaya Pirivena, Colombo also spoke.

The celebrations included a photographic exhibition organised by the Galle YMBA, a perahera by school children from the Anagarika Dharmapala statue opposite the railway station to the Town Hall, the distribution of awards for the all island oratorical contest, a pahan pinkama in the evening at the Wijeyananda Vihare followed by a film show organised by the Indian High Commission.

Who wants to talk peace with LTTE

It was reported in the media recently that you gave an interview to P. Gurunath, writer in a journal called 'Sanjiv' in the 'Udayan' newspaper published in Jaffna. It is no secret that 'Udayan' is in fact the voice of the LTTE. In that interview you have announced that talks should be re-opened with the Tigers without any conditions.

When we examine your recent past, this is indeed no surprise. When you signed the Chandrika-Ranil pact under the intervention of the British Foreign Secretary, you were not doing so in the national interest in opposition to the terrorists. You and the President signed that agreement to re-open negotiations with the terrorists. But the forces in this country who are opposed to the terrorists managed to push this conspiracy into the background. After that when the terrorists bombed the pinnacle of Buddhist worship in this country, the Dalada Maligawa, the government was forced to proscribe the LTTE because of the massive protests by the people. We have not forgotten how you shed tears on that occasion, saying the door had been closed to the last opportunity for negotiations. So it is not surprising that you have demanded that the Fox-Chandrika-Ranil agreement be re-activated, and negotiations be held with the Tiger terrorists.

It is worth reminding you of what was in the UNP manifesto in 1977, "When we come to power we will hold a round-table conference." Your party came forward to hold this conference with none other than the TULF, which on June 14, 1976 vowed at Vaddukodai to divide Sri Lanka and establish a sovereign and independent Eelam.

In 1984 the All Party Conference was held, and in 1985 negotiations were held with the Tamil parties in Thimpu, Bhutan. From June 18 onwards the army was sent back to barracks, and during that ceasefire the terrorists prepared for further hostilities. They laid landmines around the army camps apart from reinforcing themselves with arms, ammunition and new recruits. Your government told us that peace was at hand. Now you propose further peace negotiations with the Tigers, without conditions. What you do not seem to realise, or refuse to remember, is that the Tigers and the so-called moderate Tamil parties have already put forward conditions which are inflexible and non-negotiable. These are -

1. The recognition of the 'Tamil-speaking people' as a distinct nation, possessed of the inalienable right of self-determination.

2. The recognition of the northern and eastern provinces as presently constituted, as the 'homeland' of the 'Tamil-speaking people'.

3. The recognition of the Tamil secessionist groups represented at Thimpu as being the sole representatives of the 'Tamil-speaking people'.

4. The grant of citizenship to all Tamil residents in Sri Lanka. This would mean that the Tamils of the plantations in the hill country would be part and parcel of this 'Tamil nation' and cannot be separated from the state of Eelam.'

Next we have to remind you of the 'Indo-Lanka Accord'. On April 12, 1987, when your government declared a ceasefire, the terrorists responded appropriately. On April 17, they attacked a bus at Habarana and massacred 127 persons, of whom 31 were police and security personnel and the rest were civilians. They were hacked to death. On April 21, they exploded the bomb at the Pettah bus stand, killing 114 civilians and injuring 1052 others. Your government then indicated that terrorism would be crushed.

Be that as it may, on July 29, 1987 your leader, the late President Jayewardene addressed the nation and announced that peace had dawned, and that by the following Monday the militants would surrender their weapons. That Monday never dawned. As a result of this futile exercise, the south was plunged into anarchy as well. The JVP, taking advantage of the vehement opposition to the 'Indo-Lanka Accord', started an insurgency, which your government crushed by extra-legal methods. We certainly cannot remember you preparing to talk unconditionally to the JVP.

We ask you to refresh your memory about how the peace talks with the LTTE in June 1989 ended. On June 11, 1990 the Tiger terrorists carried out simultaneous attacks on the police stations in the Eastern Province. Your government ordered 900 police officers to lay down their arms and surrender to the terrorists. Try to remember, Mr. Wickremesinghe, that these police personnel were massacred with the weapons donated to the terrorists by your government. The responsibility for this lies with you as well.

Recently at a meeting in Colombo Central you made the statement that during your regime the war had been confined to the north. There is frequent bragging that the east was regained from the Tigers by your government. Could you tell us what war you were fighting during the period you were Prime Minister from May 1993 to August 1994? The army was confined to barracks at Palaly and Elephant Pass after the other northern camps were abandoned, Prabhakaran ruled the unofficial state of Eelam with his police, courts, banks, and radio and TV. Nobody, not even the members of your UNP, have forgotten your 'peace' which was born of murder, blood and humiliation.

We hoped that you would have learnt a lesson from the peace negotiations conducted by the PA with the Tigers between November 1994 and April 1995. While these talks were going on, the Tigers brought in three shiploads of arms and ammunition. It is reported that among them were SAM-7 missiles bought in Cambodia.

The consequences of the peace talks were written in blood thereafter. Until 1994, the number of security forces personnel killed was 3916, while 6408 went missing or were disabled. However, between 1994 and March 1998, the number of security forces personnel killed doubled to reach 7748. The number that went missing or were disabled reached 15,334. If you look at these statistics without prejudice, you should realise that the only consequence of peace talks has been the killing of more soldiers and civilians, and the progressive escalation of the war.

It has been reported that the UNP will present proposals for power sharing at the centre, along with alternate proposals for devolution of power to the periphery. The Tamil racists first tried between 1911 and 1931 to take over the rule of the whole country after the end of colonial rule. When this failed they tried to take over legislative control at the centre with their 50/50 demand. When this attempt failed as well, they turned their efforts towards the establishment of a separate state. It is these efforts which are continuing even today.

But the Sinhala Buddhists of this country do not want peace talks with the Tigers who attacked worshippers at the Sri Maha Bodhi, bombed the Dalada Maligawa, killed the Dimbulagala Bhikku and massacred Buddhist monks at Arantalawa. The Muslims of this country do not want peace talks with the Tigers who slaughtered worshippers in their mosques at Kattankudy. The Catholics of this country do not want peace talks with the Tigers who burnt down churches and slaughtered Catholic fishermen and their families at Kokilai and Nayaru. The Tamils of this country do not want peace talks with the Tigers who have killed 3000 Tamils for opposing them and displaced 70,000 from their homes. The members of the security forces do not want peace talks with the Tigers when they have already sacrificed 12,000 of their comrades in the defence of the country.

Peace talks are wanted only by those people who live comfortably in Colombo and feed off the scraps which fall off the NGO table.

We give notice hereby to the UNP, the PA and to all power-hungry politicians in general, that should peace negotiations with the Tigers be initiated we will take whatever steps on behalf of all the people of this country who have suffered at their hands.

Mail bag missing

By Nilika de Silva

A mail bag with 39 foreign letters including an American Express Gold Card has mysteriously gone missing after being sent from the Colombo Central Mail Exchange to the Dehiwela post office three weeks ago.

A professional who did not want to be named said that the American Express Gold Card despatched from UK had been sent on August 28 from the CME along with 38 other letters, but none of them had received the letters.

The Tamil professional claimed that all his foreign letters were being opened before they were sent on to him.

An official of the Central Mail Exchange when contacted by The Sunday Times confirmed that this letter together with 38 other foreign letters had been sent on to Dehiwela on August 28.

He said that an investigation was underway to find how this batch of foreign letters sent along with two other bags of local mail Dehiwela had got misplaced while the other two bags had reached their destination.

Dehiwela post master said that so far no information about the missing bag of mail had been found.

He said that according to documents the Dehiwela Post Office had, they had only received two bags of local mail.

He said that the carbon copy the Central Mail Exchange possessed had a signature on it stating the mail had been received at the post office.

Meanwhile the complainant states that this is the third time a foreign letter addressed to him has disappeared.

Mumbai ship sinking in port

A ship carrying cargo from Mumbai to Sri Lanka was sinking in the Colombo Port last night.

The vessel called 'MV Lee Rort' started sinking around 6 p.m as the ship berthed at the Jaye Container Terminal, a Port spokesman said.

All crew members were rescued.

A team from the harbour and the Police were rushed to scene.

PA scuttling talks, says UNP

In the aftermath of an allegedly government initiated boycott of the UNP organised All Party Conference on free and fair elections, its coordinator has pledged that a determined UNP would gain "legal status" for its recommendations by way of a private members motion in Parliament.

Accusing the government of canvassing support of its constituent parties and minority parties, to boycott the conference last Monday, UNP Parliamentarian Mahinda Samarasinghe warned that the UNP might not co-operate with the government, in talks for constitutional reforms and other issues. Only a few minor parties attended the conference along with officials of NGO's and foreign diplomats, But the UNP has said it will be going ahead with a second session with invitations being reissued to all parties.

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