Kamanthi Wickramasinghe, in Daily Mirror, 1 August 2020, where the title is;“Communal harmony will commence from Vanni District -Rathnapriya Bandu”
Colonel Rathnapriya Bandu who served as the Commander of the Civil Defence Force in Vishwamadu made headlines when he was transferred to the Sinha Regiment in Ambepussa. He received a warm farewell from the Tamil community, including rehabilitated ex-LTTE cadres proving that he was embraced by all communities alike. Upon his retirement, Col. Bandu made his entry to politics and will be contesting under the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) ticket from the Vanni District. Although it was once a hotbed of communal violence, he assures that communal harmony will soon commence from the Vanni District and spread to all parts of the country.
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Kalani Kumarasinghe, in Daily Mirror, 9 July 2020, where the title is “Change? Let’s start from the Cabinet”
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Chandre Dharmawardene, in Island, 26 July 2020, with this title “Ontario’s Bill on Alleged Genocide of Sri Lankan Tamils”
It was interesting to read Lynn Ockersz’ posting in The Island titled “UN Genocide Convention and Social Peace”. What should rise to the top of the minds of most Sri Lankan readers when the word “genocide” is mentioned, is the allegation against the Sri Lankan state. The columnist states that “As is known, some sections have been flinging the allegation of genocide against the Sri Lankan state in matters arising from its 30-year war against the LTTE, but it is clear that, going by the UN definition, the Lankan state has not committed genocide“.
C.V. Wigneswaran, Chief Minister of the Northern Provincial Council in Sri Lanka, addresses members of the Tamil community in Markham, Ontario, Canada, on January 15, 2017. During his trip to formalize a friendship agreement between the City of Markham and district of Mullaitivu, Northern Province in Sri Lanka Chief Minister C.V. Wigneswaran spoke about the importance of issues of transitional justice and post-war development to diaspora Tamils in Canada……..Photo by Creative Touch Imaging Ltd./NurPhoto via Getty Images
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Yesterday (29/07/20) in the House of Lords, Lord Naseby spoke in the debate on Global Human Rights Sanctions Regulations 2020: “My Lords, I have no problem at all with the financial aspects of this SI. I think there is a big challenge with individuals and human rights; I remember Gaddafi, Saddam Hussein and Assad, all of whose communities we interfered in at huge human cost to those communities. I want to focus, though, sadly, on the Sri Lankan Tamil Tigers—LTTE—which we proscribed in 2001. It was succeeded by the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam—TGTE—itself proscribed in Sri Lanka. It is staffed and organised by former LTTE people and yesterday it started a legal action in the courts here in the UK to lift the proscription on the Tamil Tigers.
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Vagisha Gunasekara, in lsland, 27 July 2020, where the title runs “Breathing new life into domestic production: BCC’s plan for the next hundred years”
The need to turn the current economic crisis that was pushed off the edge by the COVID-19 pandemic into an opportunity to reconfigure national economies is the topic of many policy discussions, both in Sri Lanka and elsewhere.
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Tissa Vitarana, in Island, 29 July 2020, where the title runs “TNA has failed to come up with a realistic plan to address problems of the North-East people”
The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) has come out with its manifesto for the August 5 general election, and it is disheartening to see that the TNA has failed to come to grips with the new reality and introduce a realistic plan to address the problems facing the people of the North and the East, says LSSP leader, Professor Tissa Vitarana,
Prof. Vitarana has said in a media statement: “They have come out with the same set of demands that were raised by the TNA at the time the 30 year war of separation began. A news report of July 19 labeled it as a “low key event”, a clear indication of the lack of enthusiasm among the Tamil people.
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‘Sam’ Samarasinghe aka “SWR deA” in USA in Island, 29 July 2020, where the title is “The Nation’s Choice”
In the August 5th parliamentary election, the voter has three choices. The first is to give the SLPP a two-thirds majority as the leadership of that party is urging the voter to do. The second is to give the SLPP a working majority in parliament – 113 seats or more – but not a two-thirds majority. The third is to deny the SLPP 113 seats. This third possibility can lead to one of two outcomes. One outcome is for the SLPP to form a coalition government with one or more of the other parties. The other is for the opposition parties to form a coalition and govern with
Gotabaya Rajapaksa as president. This last option is in effect a “national” government. Its “national” flavour will be enhanced if minorities and at least some of the SLPP members also become a part of the government.
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thuppahi
