Thuppahi's Blog

Dash De Soysa

The controversy at Panadura or the Panadura Vadaya, which had its beginnings in 1873, may be considered a cornerstone of the modern society in which we live today. It is not a symbol of fanaticism but a landmark in the social transition which this island has undergone. 

The western engagement with Sri Lanka moved from curiosity and trading in the sixteenth century to dominance and exploitation in the seventeenth to nineteenth centuries before autonomy and independence in the twentieth century. Portuguese, Dutch and British colonialists brought various forms of Christianity of which Roman Catholicism has proved the most enduring. Inadvertently they revived Buddhism and helped create the religious foundation for the modern state of Sri Lanka.

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Jonathan Manz, an article sent to me by Chulanand Goonasekera, one bearing this title: “Is the World Moving Towards a ‘One-World’ Dictatorship of the Oligarchs?”

Is Trump’s conduct demented, as portrayed? Or, are the Republicans, and the Democrats playing out a charade to hoodwink the world and the American people by working towards a ‘One-World’ Dictatorship’ of the Oligarchs as was planned at Bretton Woods in 1944?

The USA pays plenty of lip-service to Democracy. Is there democracy in the USA?

Today, the Oligarchs control the USA totally; the American peoples are helpless, tied down with a 4.5 trillion Dollar debt, owed to the oligarchs.

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Ajit Varuna Rodrigo-Candappa, … with highlights imposed by the Thuppahi who is cheered by AJIT’s free-wheeling baila-script

Hi Michael,  ………..Your site evokes warm hearts, kind reflections – it dispels the aralu-bulu-nelli of weasel political concoctions about race. The sheer puhu-manya behind this fellow’s odorous heaving-up is perhaps characteristic of what is afflicting Lanka – this hooniyama society seeks to exorcise – these obstacles to Development. Such corrosive virulence must surely come from a mortal fear lurking in that paathala-lokaya – he/she subsists in. [Ajit is referring here to an obnoxious personal jibe from one “Goonewardena” directed at me within this TPS site —Michael Roberts]

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ICG HEADLINE = “Sri Lanka’s Bumpy Road to a Political Reset”

Report  356 / Asia-Pacific 16 April 2026 20+ minutes

Twin elections in 2024 transformed Sri Lanka’s political landscape, bringing to power a president and parliamentarians who pledged sweeping reforms. So far, however, the new government has made little progress toward this end. It has work to do to show it can do politics differently.

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Dan Piachaud (1937-2026)

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Lokubanda Tillakaratne

 This past November and December, Ditwah showed us how dark, eerie, and haunting cyclones can be.  Past generations have suffered: per PWD records, in 1834, the Mahaweli rose 60 feet above its usual flood level at Gampola, and the Canberra Times reported in 1911 the great flood of Ceylon on December 30 of that year. It killed 200 people and left over 300,000 homeless. Half a century later, on December 25, 1957, a nameless cyclone brought severe rain to the North Central Province (NCP). The Nachchaduwa reservoir near Anuradhapura city breached, releasing its full volume into Malwatu Oya, a mid-level river flowing through the city, nearly washing away its colonial-era bridge near the Lion Tower.   A cyclone paid a visit to the Eastern Coast of Sri Lanka on November 17-23, 1978.

Half a century later, Ditwah came with swagger.

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Professor Sandagomi Coperahewa …. in  Facebook 

Happy 89th Birthday, Professor J. B. Disanayaka

I first met Professor J. B. Disanayaka (fondly remembered by his students as “J.B. Sir”) during my first year, in his Introduction to Language course at the University of Colombo in 1992. That initial encounter left a lasting impression on me, as his teaching combined clarity, scholarly depth, and a remarkable ability to make complex linguistic ideas accessible to undergraduates. Since then, we have worked together on many occasions in the field of language studies in Sri Lanka for over 33 years. These professional engagements have further strengthened my respect for his intellectual contribution and his enduring role in shaping the study of linguistics and Sinhala language in the country.

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James Phelan  in USA **

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Colombo — The evening of 11th April 2026, marked the launch of Professor
Sivasubramanium Pathmanathan’s groundbreaking research, Glimpses of an Ancient
Civilization, Society and Culture in Jaffna 300 BC–AD 500. Distinguished academics,
legal luminaries, and members of civil society gathered at the Cinnamon Grand Hotel for an evening of celebration of the seminal new book. The event was graced by President’s Counsel Mr Kanag-Isvaran, who served as the Chief Guest and Dr J.M. Swaminathan, Dr B.A Hussainmiya and Dr Jehan Perera who participated as the distinguished speakers.

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Jehan Perera, reviewing the new book by Professor  Pathmanathan … entitled Glimpses of an Ancient Civilisation: Society and Culture in Jaffna (300 BC to AD 500)  SSSR Investments Pty Ltd, Australia, 2026 ,,,, 370 pp……

In reflecting on the work of Professor S. Pathmanathan, my mind goes back to the difficult years of war, when fear and mistrust had entered almost every sphere of national life. Those were times when it was easier, and often safer, to remain on one side than to reach across to the other. Yet what I remember most about him from those years is not only the depth of his scholarship, but the steadiness of his convictions and the generosity with which he engaged those who differed from him. At a time when history was often invoked to divide, he remained committed to using it to illuminate and connect. It is with that memory in mind that I read his latest work, Glimpses of an Ancient Civilization.

Pathmanathan- Glimpses of an Ancient Civilzation Book Cover

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