Thalif Deen … in Email to Roberts, 1 April 2024**
At a press conference last night, New York City Mayor and his Police Commissioner tried to justify the police intervention against pro-Palestinian demonstrators at Columbia University claiming the protests have been corrupted by “outside agitators.”
I think this is a steaming pile of horse-shit.
Filed under accountability, anti-racism, centre-periphery relations, democratic measures, disparagement, economic processes, governance, human rights, legal issues, life stories, political demonstrations, politIcal discourse, power politics, press freedom, self-reflexivity, truth as casualty of war, unusual people, war reportage, world events & processes, zealotry
Abeysekara, Ananda …. presenting a synopsis of an article with the same title presented in the web journal Academia …………………. https://www.academia.edu/116523255/Buddhism_Politics_and_Criticism_in_a_Time_of_Struggle_in_Sri_Lanka
As I have argued elsewhere (Abeysekara 2002), the relation between religion and politics changes in historical debates. Debates themselves are forms of “criticism” in that debates change the questions of who and what constitute the parameters of religion and politics.[1] In that sense, I want to think about how the relation between religion, politics, and the state became the subject of debate during postwar Sri Lanka and ask what such a debate may say about our postcolonial politics and democracy itself.
The Sandahiru Saya under construction Continue reading
Filed under accountability, architects & architecture, authoritarian regimes, Buddhism, centre-periphery relations, governance, heritage, historical interpretation, Left politics, legal issues, life stories, modernity & modernization, nationalism, patriotism, performance, political demonstrations, politIcal discourse, power politics, press freedom, Rajapaksa regime, self-reflexivity, sri lankan society, truth as casualty of war, world events & processes
Michael Roberts …. presenting a talk which he delivered at the National Trust in Colombo in June 2018 following a brief to the effect that he should present motifs from the book People Inbetween. The Burghers and the Middle Class in the Transformations within Sri Lanka, 1790-1960s, (Ratmalana, Sarvodaya Book Publishing Services, 1989) and more specifically its first chapter viz. “Pejorative Phrases: The Anti-colonial Response and Sinhala Perceptions of the Self through Images of the Burghers.”
Many think People Inbetween is a history of the Burghers. Not so. It is multi-faceted. It describes (a) the rise of the middle class in British times, an influential force within which the Burghers were a critical element and a vanguard in the questioning of British rule; (b) the initial strands in the development of Ceylonese nationalism and (c) the development of Colombo into a metropolitan hub that became the island’s hegemonic centre.
Filed under anti-racism, art & allure bewitching, British colonialism, centre-periphery relations, citizen journalism, communal relations, cultural transmission, disparagement, economic processes, education, ethnicity, heritage, historical interpretation, island economy, language policies, life stories, literary achievements, modernity & modernization, nationalism, patriotism, politIcal discourse, power politics, press freedom, racism, self-reflexivity, sri lankan society, unusual people, world events & processes
Michael Roberts
Percy Abeysekera has passed away recently …. carrying the Sri Lankan flag and reams of cricketing memories with him to an abode in the skies: memories that encompassed at least 70-72 years of cricketing cheer. Yes, that long a span. To me, Percy was first and foremost, an Aloysian. When I joined the St. Aloysius cheering squad as a 14-to-16 year old at the Galle Esplanade during our cricketing matches against Richmond, Mahinda and other schools, Percy was one of our cheerleaders. So, his patriotism and his crazy cricketing virtuosity was nurtured in Galle …. at our school.
Rohini Hensman, in a commemorative essay about her politically committed parents in the SSA journal POLITY in 2023 where the title runs “A Hundred Years of Pauline And C. R. (Dick) Hensman”
Filed under accountability, anti-racism, art & allure bewitching, British colonialism, British imperialism, caste issues, citizen journalism, cultural transmission, democratic measures, economic processes, education, electoral structures, ethnicity, governance, heritage, historical interpretation, language policies, Left politics, life stories, literary achievements, nationalism, patriotism, political demonstrations, politIcal discourse, press freedom, racism, self-reflexivity, social justice, sri lankan society, tolerance, unusual people, women in ethnic conflcits, world events & processes
Naledi Pandor,….., speaking at
VISIT the site AfrikaNowAfrika T …. and listen to her in this VIDEO-CAST: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jC_lfJMaWn0
NOTE the title: “She Spoke With No Fear! African Politician Slams Israel & The West”
Filed under accountability, anti-racism, atrocities, centre-periphery relations, democratic measures, disparagement, economic processes, ethnicity, governance, human rights, legal issues, politIcal discourse, power politics, power sharing, press freedom, self-reflexivity, sri lankan society, truth as casualty of war, unusual people, world events & processes
Deutsche Welt …… Oct 3, 2023 #ranilwickremesinghe #exclusiveinterview #SriLanka
“We take a closer look at Sri Lanka, with a special DW interview with President Ranil Wickremesinghe. The country has faced crisis after crisis, both political and economic, and there is no clarity on how the government and the people can recover and get back on their feet. DW’s Martin Gak questions the Sri Lankan president about the crises the country faces.”
……. https://www.youtube.com/user/deutsche..
Filed under accountability, British imperialism, centre-periphery relations, communal relations, disparagement, doctoring evidence, governance, historical interpretation, human rights, Indian Ocean politics, landscape wondrous, law of armed conflict, legal issues, life stories, news fabrication, performance, politIcal discourse, power politics, press freedom, security, self-reflexivity, Sinhala-Tamil Relations, slanted reportage, sri lankan society, taking the piss, truth as casualty of war, world events & processes
Michael Roberts
The burgeoning news in August that Percy Abeysekera had passed away — news that spread faster than Percy’s sprints around the boundary during his younger days — is FALSE. Percy is merely in hospital.
As an Aloysian who is a tad younger than Percy, let me note that as a 14-year old I was part of the cheering squad marshalled by Percy and Royle Barthelot when the Aloysian cricket team faced opponents at the Galle Esplanade.
An Observer in A Black Sea Town
Filed under accountability, american imperialism, australian media, British imperialism, centre-periphery relations, citizen journalism, democratic measures, discrimination, education, foreign policy, governance, historical interpretation, life stories, nationalism, Pacific Ocean issues, politIcal discourse, power politics, press freedom, self-reflexivity, slanted reportage, truth as casualty of war, world events & processes
A Canary Club Reader .… with highlighting emphasis inserted by The Editor, Thuppahi
Does Peter Hartcher understand anything? …..
Filed under accountability, Australian culture, australian media, centre-periphery relations, disparagement, governance, historical interpretation, military strategy, politIcal discourse, power politics, press freedom, self-reflexivity, the imaginary and the real, truth as casualty of war, war reportage, world events & processes
thuppahi
