Tutu: A Moral Pillar in Our Troubled Times

Basil Fernando, in Groundviews, 29 December 2021, where the title reads “Desmond Tutu: The Man who revived the Moral Universe”

Archbishop Desmond Tutu who passed away this week will be counted among the great human beings who contributed to the political transformation of his own country and a person who revolutionised the idea of achieving equality under the most difficult of circumstances.

Cape Town, South Africa – October 6, 2011: The Arch Bishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu at his official book launch , St George’s Cathedral 2011                

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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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Export Boost for Sri Lanka in 2021

Rubber based export sector becomes a one-billion-dollar Industry in 2021

Sri Lanka’s Export Performance in November 2021

Sri Lanka’s merchandise exports increased by 55.11% to US$ 1,215.6 Million in November 2021 compared to November 2020 as per the data released by the Sri Lanka Customs. Exports maintained above one billion dollars for the fifth consecutive month in November this year.

EDB Chairman & CE, Suresh D. de Mel said, “Sri Lanka’s exports continued its remarkable achievement in November 2021, registering another USD one billion monthly revenue. The growth in exports was not only due to the effective prevention and control of the pandemic in Sri Lanka, but the commitment of exporter community to support the national economy by bringing in the much-needed foreign currency. I commend the exporters for their resilience and commitment at this time.

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Along a Winding Russian Road

Tony Donaldson, …. with highlighting imposed by The Editor, Thuppahi

In 1926, the Russian poet, singer, composer, and cabaret artist Alexander Vertinsky recorded the song Dorogoi dlinnoyu (Дорогой длинною) which may be rendered as “Along a winding road” or “By the long road.” Vertinsky was born in the Ukraine in 1889 and died in St. Petersburg in 1957.

Alexander Vertinsky

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Ganging Up against China in France and Elsewhere

Global Times Item, 10 December 2021, where the title runs thus “French media pushes anti-China narrative in a monolithic block, but at least one man is fighting for objective views”… with highlighting imposed by The Editor, Thuppahi

“Bursting alliance”

Photo: Zheng Ruolin, a senior Chinese media professional and European studies expert talked with Maxime Vivas,French writer and journalistPhoto: Zheng Ruolin, a senior Chinese media professional and European studies expert, talks with Maxime Vivas, French writer and journalist
Editor’s Note:  “Maxime Vivas (Vivas), French writer and journalist, has been insulted and attacked for his objective views on China. Vivas started in early November on the world’s largest petition platform, change.org, a petition to call on all sectors of society to have an objective view of China. But then the link for the petition quickly became unavailable, as the US-based website deleted the petition. “Respect China like we respect ourselves!” Vivas openly criticized the Western media outlets and social media that demonize China, but was frequently attacked by the French media. The Global Times reporters Chen Qingqing and Liu Xin recently had an online forum with Vivas and Zheng Ruolin (Zheng), a senior Chinese media professional and European studies expert who has lived in France for several years, to look into where the Western media bias came from on China-related coverage and how to deal with their smearing of China.”

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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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A Medico stirs the Graduand Law Students of Colombo University

Dr. Sarath Gamani De Silva’s  Motivational speech to the law graduates of the University of Colombo **

The Venerable Chancellor, Madam Vice Chancellor, the Dean, Faculty of Law and  the Deans of other Faculties, Professors, Lecturers and other tutorial staff, University officials, the new graduates and their parents.

Good morning, Ladies and gentlemen, Let me first thank the Madam Vice Chancellor for inviting me to make this presentation.

I whole heartedly congratulate the new graduates for completing your tertiary education and entering the society as productive citizens of the motherland. Notwithstanding your superior academic capabilities, it is indeed an achievement to have completed your tertiary education at troubled times like these, when education in general had come to a virtual standstill for the majority of the younger generation. I have no doubt that your graduation is long overdue for no fault of yours. The very problems and delays in our system of education make you waste much of your childhood, adolescence and early adulthood. The frustration of such delays, compounded by the COVID pandemic, must weigh heavily on your attitude to life. Most of you I understand will become practising lawyers in courts of law while others may continue in allied fields. Some of you may proceed to engage in politics, a field where many past luminaries in your profession have left an indelible footprint.

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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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Cross-Cultural Amity: Sri Lankan Canadians Reach Across Difference

To Canada with Love from Sri Lanka …. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RJ9QjZLhavQ …. in  2021

In 1864 Leonard Tilley was instrumental in naming Canada as Dominion of Canada. He was inspired by Psalm 72:8 of The Bible. This song is composed with the inspiration of the entire psalm which calls for justice and righteous ruling by the king and prayer for it. This is a tribute song for Canada by the Sri Lankan Christians living in Ontario and whole of Canada. Sung in all three languages of English Sinhala and Tamil. A Sri Lankan original in Canada.” ………… JOHN PERERA Continue reading

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