Category Archives: atrocities

November 12, 2020 · 2:27 pm

Kamikaze, Mujahid, Tamil Tiger: Sacrificial Devotion in Comparative Lens

Michael Roberts, reprinting an essay drafted in 2007 and since presented in Fire & Storm in 2010 (chapter 19: 131-38)

  • “Gandhi tried for years to reduce himself to zero” (Dennis Hudson 2002: 132).
  • Hitler: “You are nothing, your nation is everything” (quoted in Koenigsberg 2009: 13).
  • LTTE: “the martyr sacrifices himself for the whole by destroying the I…” (Dagmar Hellmann-Rajanayagam’s interpretation of a Tamil Tiger supporter’s poem; 2005: 134).
  • Spokesman for Al Qaida after the Madrid bombing: “You love life and we love death”
  • Col. Karuna, ex-LTTE: “Death means nothing to me….”
  • The Hagakure is “a living philosophy that holds that life and death [are] the two sides of the same shield” (Yoshio Mishima in his The Way of the Samurai, quoted in Moeren 1986: 109-10).
  • “Bushido means to die” (Emiko Ohnuki-Tierney 2002: 117).
  • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SVpbl0azdFM …. Kamikaze strike

Continue reading →

3 Comments

Filed under accountability, arab regimes, atrocities, Australian culture, australian media, authoritarian regimes, centre-periphery relations, chauvinism, communal relations, conspiracies, cultural transmission, economic processes, Eelam, ethnicity, European history, female empowerment, fundamentalism, historical interpretation, immolation, Indian Ocean politics, Indian traditions, Islamic fundamentalism, jihad, landscape wondrous, law of armed conflict, life stories, LTTE, martyrdom, meditations, Middle Eastern Politics, military strategy, nationalism, patriotism, political demonstrations, politIcal discourse, power sharing, propaganda, psychological urges, religiosity, religious nationalism, security, self-reflexivity, Sinhala-Tamil Relations, Sri Lankan scoiety, suicide bombing, Taliban, Tamil Tiger fighters, terrorism, the imaginary and the real, trauma, truth as casualty of war, unusual people, violence of language, war reportage, world events & processes, Zen at war

November 11, 2020 · 9:47 am

Stomping on Trump in the Manner-Trump

Continue reading →

Leave a comment

Filed under accountability, atrocities, life stories, performance, power politics, taking the piss, trauma, unusual people, wild life

November 11, 2020 · 3:48 am

Combatting Terrorism Today: Three Imperatives

John Richardson

For what they are worth, here are three “imperatives for preventing conflict and terrorism” (from the 10 that conclude Paradise Poisoned) that seem particularly relevant to this discussion. These are excerpted from “elevator talk” I gave to Board members of the US Association for the Club of Rome a year or so ago.

Continue reading →

Leave a comment

Filed under accountability, atrocities, chauvinism, communal relations, cultural transmission, disparagement, fundamentalism, historical interpretation, immolation, landscape wondrous, life stories, LTTE, martyrdom, performance, political demonstrations, politIcal discourse, power politics, refugees, self-reflexivity, suicide bombing, Tamil Tiger fighters, terrorism, the imaginary and the real, trauma, truth as casualty of war, unusual people, vengeance, war reportage, world events & processes

November 6, 2020 · 10:58 am

Allahu Akbar! Missing Dimensions in Contemporary Reportage

Michael Roberts

I recently watched a good part of Stephen Sackur’s dialogue with a French lady politician [whose name I have forgotten]. Sackur pursued his usual hard-line aggressive and bullying mode of questioning – posing vigorous criticisms of the French government’s position on secularism and its hostility to the carving out of sacred domains by French Muslim peoples.  The implicit suggestion[1] was that the British system’s tolerance of religious sensibilities was a better line of policy.[2]

Muslim protests … and the selfie proudly posted by the Islamic terrorist who was responsible for the killings in Nice in October 2020

Continue reading →

3 Comments

Filed under accountability, Al Qaeda, arab regimes, atrocities, authoritarian regimes, centre-periphery relations, conspiracies, cultural transmission, ethnicity, European history, fundamentalism, heritage, historical interpretation, Indian Ocean politics, Indian traditions, Islamic fundamentalism, jihad, landscape wondrous, life stories, martyrdom, Middle Eastern Politics, politIcal discourse, power politics, religiosity, religious nationalism, self-reflexivity, suicide bombing, Taliban, terrorism, the imaginary and the real, unusual people, vengeance, violence of language, world events & processes

September 25, 2020 · 1:53 pm

Sri Lankan Expressiveness: Warm Gratitude and Vicious Vituperation

Michael Roberts

I did not see the article that highlighted the manner in which the Tamil people of Vishvamadu feted and lamented the departure of the Sinhalese Military Commander of that arena, Ratnapriya Bandu, when it was originally placed in the public domain in late 2018. This striking presentation was the result of a combination between Shenali Waduge in Lanka and the SPUR organisation in Melbourne, an alliance that immediately indicates orientations laced with sentiments of a chauvinist Sinhala hue.

Continue reading →

1 Comment

Filed under accountability, atrocities, charitable outreach, communal relations, cultural transmission, disparagement, ethnicity, heritage, historical interpretation, landscape wondrous, life stories, LTTE, meditations, politIcal discourse, prabhakaran, psychological urges, religiosity, self-reflexivity, Sinhala-Tamil Relations, slanted reportage, sri lankan society, Tamil civilians, Tamil Tiger fighters, the imaginary and the real, tolerance, unusual people, vengeance, welfare & philanthophy, world events & processes

September 25, 2020 · 12:04 am

Confronting Tamil Distortions: Webinar in Their Face Sunday 27th September

Global Webinar to Combat Baseless Propaganda of Tamil Tiger Agents

A group of Sri Lankan professionals have teamed-up for a two-hour Webinar on Sunday, 27 September at Sri Lanka time 7:30 in the evening which will go globally live for a presentation of cogent facts and data to combat the still-prevailing misinformation campaign undertaken by the former Tamil Tiger agents now operating within the Tamil Diaspora worldwide.

Continue reading →

2 Comments

Filed under accountability, asylum-seekers, atrocities, centre-periphery relations, communal relations, disparagement, doctoring evidence, ethnicity, historical interpretation, Indian Ocean politics, landscape wondrous, life stories, LTTE, nationalism, performance, politIcal discourse, power politics, prabhakaran, propaganda, security, self-reflexivity, Sinhala-Tamil Relations, slanted reportage, sri lankan society, Tamil migration, tamil refugees, truth as casualty of war, unusual people, vengeance, war crimes, war reportage, world events & processes, zealotry

September 11, 2020 · 1:10 pm

Myth-making Ridiculous: Raavana on Fire!

Grace Bains in  Scoopwhoop where the title is “A Demon For Us But A Hero For Sri Lankans, The Fascinating Story Of Ravana, According To Lanka” and Chandre Dharmawardena, in Island, 11 September 2020

As we celebrate Dussehra, we recount Ramayana and the lessons that come with it. For us, the Ramayana isn’t just a story of Lord Rama winning over Ravana and rescuing Sita. It is about good winning over evil despite the many obstacles. It is the story that gives Indians hope and motivation to keep fighting for what they know is right.

But we all know that every story has two sides.

Source: Daily Mirror

Continue reading →

Leave a comment

Filed under accountability, ancient civilisations, art & allure bewitching, asylum-seekers, atrocities, chauvinism, conspiracies, cultural transmission, disparagement, doctoring evidence, education, fundamentalism, heritage, Hinduism, historical interpretation, Indian traditions, landscape wondrous, life stories, meditations, pilgrimages, politIcal discourse, power politics, psychological urges, religiosity, Saivism, self-reflexivity, Sinhala-Tamil Relations, sri lankan society, taking the piss, unusual people, world events & processes

September 7, 2020 · 7:17 pm

Experiencing Denigration in Sri Lanka: The Muslims Yesterday and Today

Shamara Wettimuny, in History Workshop, 7 September 2020, where the title runs “The Colonial History of Islamophobic Slurs in Sri Lanka”**

Sri Lanka is a multi-ethnic, multi-faith island. Yet despite centuries of physical coexistence, ethnic, religious and linguistic differences continue to bring communities into conflict. Muslims in Sri Lanka (comprising around 9.7% of the population) are often vilified by both the Sinhalese majority (who are either Buddhist or Christian) and Tamil minority (either Hindu or Christian) for their religious beliefs, practices, and dress. Following the Easter Sunday suicide attacks in April 2019 – carried out by a group of extremists linked to the Islamist group, the National Thowheed Jamaat – the wider Muslim community faced a discriminatory and sometimes violent backlash. In 2020, as COVID-19 spread in Sri Lanka, Muslims were blamed for ‘spreading the disease’, and for wanting to bury their dead in line with traditional Islamic burial practices (as opposed to cremation as stipulated by the Sri Lankan government).

Continue reading →

1 Comment

Filed under accountability, atrocities, British colonialism, centre-periphery relations, chauvinism, communal relations, cultural transmission, discrimination, disparagement, economic processes, fundamentalism, heritage, historical interpretation, island economy, landscape wondrous, legal issues, life stories, Muslims in Lanka, politIcal discourse, religiosity, riots and pogroms, self-reflexivity, sri lankan society, the imaginary and the real, unusual people, world events & processes, zealotry

September 4, 2020 · 10:45 am

A Personal Message from South Australia

Dear Michael,

Thanks to the ongoing cooperation of South Australians, we are in a position to announce further relaxing of restrictions today.

As of midnight tonight, weddings and funerals can have up to 150 people.

Eating and drinking while seated at a bar will be allowed, provided no food preparation or production occurs at or near the bar (i.e the bar is not a kitchen bar).

AFL crowds can now be up to 15,000, with gradual increases to crowds (up to 25,000), phased in over the coming weeks.

We know many workplaces have worked hard over the past months to put the right measures in place to keep their workforce safe and, as such, we have formally removed our advice that people should work from home where possible.

WhatsApp_Image_2020-09-04_at_5.13.18_PM.jpeg

I want to genuinely thank every single person in South Australia for the contribution they have made to keeping themselves, their families and community safe by abiding by the restrictions that have been put in place.

We can’t be complacent but we should take this moment to pause and reflect on how lucky we are to be in South Australia at this time.

Regards,

signatures_steven_blue.jpg

STEVEN MARSHALL
Premier of South Australia 

 

**** ****

“Bl…. Hell STEVE!….. How can I benefit when you do not permit Sri Lanka Air or any other airline to fly to Adelaide !! Do not expect my vote at the next election.”

Leave a comment

Filed under accountability, asylum-seekers, atrocities, australian media, taking the piss, truth as casualty of war, vengeance, welfare & philanthophy, world events & processes

August 19, 2020 · 4:25 am

Fortitude: Murali’s Fight to stay on the Field

Andrew Fidel Fernando. in Cricket Monthly within ESPNcricinfo, 11 August 2020, where the title runs  “Growing up with Murali,”

Ten years after he retired, a reflection on what Muttiah Muralitharan has meant – and means – to a nation

Before I watched an umpire no-ball Muttiah Muralitharan at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, I had no idea that cricket mattered.

Security personnel and spectators look on next to a giant cutout of Sri Lankan spin bowler Muttiah Muralitharan erected on a 17th century Dutch-built fortress during the third day of the first test cricket match between India and Sri Lanka in Galle, Sri Lanka, Tuesday, July 20, 2010. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

Continue reading →

2 Comments

Filed under accountability, atrocities, Australian culture, australian media, centre-periphery relations, discrimination, disparagement, ethnicity, historical interpretation, landscape wondrous, life stories, performance, politIcal discourse, rehabilitation, self-reflexivity, sri lankan society, taking the piss, the imaginary and the real, trauma, unusual people, world events & processes