Category Archives: sri lankan society

Penetrating White Australia, 1948-to-1970s: Burghers and Amahs

Earl Forbes,  whose preferred title is  “Burghers and Amahs.  First to enter White Australia from Independent Ceylon, ,”.… Note that the highlights are impositions by The Editor, Thuppahi

The diplomatic relationship between Ceylon and Australia commenced even before the formal declaration of Ceylon’s Independence. Australia established a Representative Office in Colombo, on the 29th April 1947. On Independence Day, (4th February 1948) this representation was upgraded to High Commission status. As further indication of the importance placed on the relationship between the two countries, the Australian High Commission Office was moved from its temporary location at the Galle Face Hotel, to more permanent premises at Gafoor Building, in the Fort, Colombo.

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More Tourists reaching Sri Lanka Now, But … …..

Tourism Minister overwhelmed by rebound in arrivals. Nearly 130,000 tourists have come since reopening of borders in late Jan. With just 15 days to year-end, original target of 200,000 tourists unachievable


[However} a record 24,773 tourists have arrived in the country within the first two weeks of December, reinforcing the industry’s optimism for the winter season. “There is a significant increase in the tourist arrivals to the country from September, and we hope the trend will continue,” Tourism Minister Prasanna Ranatunga said yesterday.

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Mahathma Gandhi at Mahinda College in 1927

Ruhunu Puthra

In November 1927, Mahatma Gandhi and Kasturbai Gandhi arrived in Galle. They were the chief guests at the prize-giving of Mahinda College, on the 24th. The Olcott Memorial Assembly Hall of the College was filled to capacity. Never was there such a large gathering of Buddhists, Hindus and Christians. The speech given by Gandhi is excerpted from the Mahinda College Magazine of 2002:

“It has given me the greatest pleasure to be able to be present at this very pleasant function. You have paid me, indeed, a very great compliment and conferred on me a great honour by allowing me to witness your proceedings and making the acquaintance of so many boys.

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Defining Ethnicity in Sri Lanka and the United States: David Graham’s Story

David Graham

I only refer to myself as a Burgher or lansi with people who are likely to know who Burghers or lansis are–or rather, were. It wasn’t until 1986 that I was required to classify myself racially. This was in Grand Junction, Colorado. I needed a social security number to open a bank account, and back in those days the application form said nothing about Eurasians. Since Asian was the closest it came to describing what I was, that was the racial classification I was obliged to choose. Pursuant to U.S. law, my race isn’t mentioned anywhere on my passport or driver’s license.

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Vanni Hope keeps Batting for the Underprivileged

ONE = VANNI HOPE – RATNAM FOUNDATION EDUCATION & SKILL ENHANCEMENT DESSFORD TAMIL SCHOOL NANU OYA DEC2021

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VANNI HOPE – RATNAM FOUNDATION EDUCATION & SKILL ENHANCEMENT ICT COMPUTER LAB DESSFORD TAMIL SCHOOL NANU OYA DEC2021

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Geoffrey Bawa’s Lunuganga in Colour with Chandra Dasswatte

A Christmas special! We are so happy to be able to share with you this special vlog that we’ve been wanting to create for oh so long! This is one of Sri Lankas best kept secrets and its something we want to share with travelers who have a keen interest in local architecture and history. it was an absolute honour to have Channa Dasswatte share some amazing insight into the life & work of Geoffrey Bawa & his Lunuganga Estate. Hope you guys enjoy this vlog as much as we did making. Wishing you all a very happy Holidays!

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An Indian Scholar’s Griefstricken VALE for Malathi De Alwis

Nivedita Menon, in Colombo Telegraph, 22 January 2021, where the title is  “Malathi De Alwis (1963-2021) – Beloved Friend, Feminist Comrade”

This is my Mala.

Every person touched by her friendship felt this sense of unique connection to Mala. To receive the gift of her attention was to forever feel the tug of a thread that attached you to a part of her heart. She would remember you at some point or the other even if you were not constantly in touch, with that fine-tuned sensitivity that brought to you the exact poem or thought or photograph or  experience that linked the two of you.

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Searching Review of Sri Lanka’s Economic Performance, 1980s-2019 from Howard Nicholas

#adaderana #derananews #tvderana

Dr. Howard Nicholas joins @HydePark on Ada Derana 24 with Indeewari Amuwatte

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Dr. Howard Nicholas joins @HydePark on Ada Derana 24 with Indeewari Amuwatte Associate Professor of Erasmus University of Rotterdam, Dr. Howard Nicholas dissected the current state of the Sri Lankan economy and prescribed what’s needed to rectify the lapses, while speaking to Indeewari Amuwatte on our current affairs programme @HydePark on Ada Derana 24. Watch More Video – http://goo.gl/2QWjSA #adaderana #derananews #tvderana

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A Critical Assessment of the Sri Lankan Government’s Budget

   Chandrasena Maliyadde, in DailyFT, 21 December 2021 …. where the title is ” The Budget: As I See it” &&&

The Budget is a mirror effect of the inconsiste  …ncy, incoherence and confusion prevailing at different levels of the Government The second Budget of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s Government was presented on 12 November by his younger brother Basil Rajapaksa. Cheerleaders and image builders claim the Budget is extraordinarily beneficial and presented by a Minister exceptionally clever. Hence, one has to think twice before commenting on it. 

 

 

 

 

 

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Sri Lanka’s Wildcats: In the Depths of the Jungle

Uditha Devapriya, in The Island, 18 December 2021, …. Review of Phantoms of the Night: Wildcats of Sri Lanka, by Thilak Jayaratne, Janaka Gallangoda, Nadika Hapuarachchi, and Madura de Silva …..  Chaya Publishers, 2022,… 160 pp…. with highlighting imposed by the Editor, Thuppahi.

The leopard is perhaps the most photographed animal in Sri Lanka. Slinking through grassy terrains and up sprawling trees, it has acquired a life of its own. Elusive and enigmatic, it tends to avoid human contact, preferring to lay low. This only belies its reputation as one the country’s most fearsome hunters, the undisputed elite among its predators. Indeed, the number of photographs and exhibitions organised every other year attest to its place in our collective consciousness. Although the lion has become the definitive symbol of the country, it is the leopard which has come to epitomise our forests and our parks.

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