June 17, 2022 · 4:05 pm

Community Kitchens: New Charitable Avenue in Crisis Situation in Sri Lanka

News Item in Daily Mirror, 17 June 2022

Sri Lanka is seeing the first signs of some sections of the community thinking of whether the ‘neighbour’ had his or her meal. Just the other day ‘Sarvodaya’ together with ‘Singularity Sri Lanka’ organised a ‘community kitchen’ to ensure that people in the Grandpass area had a solid meal for dinner. The food kitchen was held on June 14 at the St. Joseph’s Church in Grandpass and as many as 1700 people were fed. For the record dry rations were also distributed.

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June 17, 2022 · 3:38 pm

Vale: Two Appreciations of Sandadas Coperahewa

Mevan Pieris, presenting the Funeral Oration for Sandadas Coperahewa, teacher of S.Thomas’ College Mt Lavinia, Tuesday 7th June 2022.... [with highlighting imposed by The Editor, Thuppahi]

We are gathered here this evening to pay our final respects to a great teacher. In my days in the School by the sea in the 1950s and 1960s, Mr Sandadas Coperahewa was my revered teacher in art and Sinhala, and I thought I should pay a tribute to him as he is the last of my teachers to depart with all other sacred spirits who taught me having gone ahead.

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June 17, 2022 · 2:10 pm

A Capsule Presentation of the Aussie Cricket Tour of Sri Lanka

 A NOTE from Joe PAIVA in Adelaide, 17 June 2022

https://www.foxsports.com.au/cricket/australia/australia-vs-sri-lanka-live-cricket-scores-second-odi-start-time-stream-how-to-watch-teams-weather-updates-in-pallekele/news-story/419d45b7896168f95474b139b8f2fc83

Ape Ratta Jayawewa!
SL no longer fears the Aussies. Young Guns…Fortune Favors the Brave …SAS motto.
Joe

 

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June 17, 2022 · 12:09 am

Test Cricket of a Different Kind in 1948

Dr. Srilal Fernando in Melbourne, reproducing an essay that appeared originally in The CEYLANKAN, a quarterly produced by the Ceylon Research Society in Australia**

Early last year [probably 2004] I received a call from Michael Ludgrove the then head of the rare book section at “Christies” Auction house requesting help to decipher the names of Ceylonese cricketers who had signed a cricket bat in the 1930’s following a combined India-Ceylon match against the visiting MCC. This led to my keeping an eye out for unusual items on Ceylon cricket. A few months later a set of autographs came up for sale. They were of the visiting English women cricketers who played a match in Colombo, against the Ceylon women in the first “test” of its kind. I was lucky to trace two of the test cricketers from the Ceylon team who now live in Victoria, Beverly Roberts (Juriansz) and Enid (Gilly) Fernando. Incidentally Gilly is called Gilly after AER Gilligan the Australian Cricketer and answers to no other name.

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June 15, 2022 · 11:53 am

Pete Seeger: Songs from the past still relevant for our time

Tony Donaldson

Let me present three different types of songs performed by Pete Seeger in 1960 – a lullaby, protest song, and an entertainment song.

Seeger said learning another language is like entering the soul of another people. He included in his repertoire songs from all over the world, including this gentle Indonesian lullaby called Suliram, which was traditionally sung to children in Indonesia and Malaysia at bedtime. Here is the first verse with an English translation.

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June 14, 2022 · 12:40 pm

US Conspiratorial Hands Underdpinning the Political Turmoil in Sri Lanka?

Jonathan Manz, in an article circulated by “The Sri Lankan Study Circle” whose background & politics is not known to Thuppahi…. with the title they have imposed being “Pivot-to-Asai: America executes a Lightning coup to take control of a Strategic Island in the Indian Ocean” 

Bewildered, reeling and confused, Sri Lankans are just beginning to pick up the pieces of the jigsaw to decipher the events of Black-Monday, 09 May 22, when America, with its all-too-familiar ‘false-flag’ operations, executed a lightning Coup, to take control of the strategic Island in the Indian Ocean.

Taking control of the Island-Nation was critical to the Americans to implement their re-chartered game-plan for the Indian-Ocean region; this plan, they were compelled to develop following the unexpected defeat of their proxy mercenaries in Sri Lanka.

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June 13, 2022 · 9:12 pm

Gamini Goonetilleke’s Medical Services Across Battle Zones during the Eelam Wars

Vijitha Yapa, reviewing The Extra Mile …. with highlighting emphasis imposed by The Editor Thuppahi

The ‘ethnic conflict’ in Sri Lanka had another side to it: writers in uniform whose existence was known only by a name in some instances have come forward to record their memoirs. General Kamal Gunaratne, now Secretary of Defence, led the way with his classic Road to Nandikadal. The book estab­lished records and remains a bestseller as he wrote not only about victories, but also mistakes made – and what really went on in the army.

However, the book authored by Dr. Gamini Goonetilleke explains how he didn’t fight the same war with guns, but syringes and a surgeon’s skills instead.

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June 13, 2022 · 12:34 am

China at Cutting Edge in Sea Warfare? A Drone Ship

Item at https://youtu.be/KkQrTjcqWNc …. 12 June 2022 with headline  = “Chinese AI-operated drone ship completes maiden sea voyage (VIDEO)”

Beijing’s unmanned stealth combat vessel has successfully completed its three-hour maiden sea voyage off Panzhi Island in the East China Sea, Chinese media reported on Saturday. The state-run newspaper Global Times reported that the 200-ton ship can be sent into “dangerous combat zones” on reconnaissance missions and to fight aircraft, submarines and other surface vessels without the risk of casualties aboard.

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June 12, 2022 · 8:07 pm

Horrendous Western Misreadings of Sri Lankan Situation in 2008-09

  Tony Donaldson’s Capsule Comment in Facebook A Few Years Back++
Michael, …. Two great articles in “Ambassador Blake in Never-Never Land…” and “The imperious interventions of David Miliband….” I am not surprised by any of this. US diplomats should study anthropology for a few years. It might teach them to recognize neo-colonialism in their own value system.
It reminds us that the US., its diplomats and think tanks which operate in the guise of academic institutions, do not present global or universal values as they pretend or claim, but a deeply entrenched relativist one that is tied to US interests (but in this instance, the sheer lack of understanding about what occurs in SL is mind-boggling).
Displaced Tamils on the movein the northern Vanni  — from west eastwards in mid-late 2008

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June 12, 2022 · 1:44 pm

A Miracle at Pallekele: Dasun Shanaka’s Fireworks

Andrew Fidel Fernando, in ESPNcricinfo, 11 June 2022, with this title “Shanaka’s 25-ball 54* scripts stunning victory for Sri Lanka”

If you were watching on TV, you might wonder what the big deal was. Khettarama, one of cricket’s great party grounds, overflowing as it almost always is for T20 internationals, roaring for Sri Lanka lbw appeals, vibing to papare even through rain breaks, generally being its regular rambunctious self. On the field, a dramatic batting collapse is unfolding. Even this feels like a familiar and comforting companion to Sri Lankan life. Even this only slightly dampens the mood.

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