December 12, 2018 · 1:39 am

Evaluation: Forces and Strands in Sri Lanka’s Cricket History

Binod K. Mishra, reviewing “Forces and Strands in Sri Lanka’s Cricket History” by Michael Roberts, Colombo, Social Scientists’ Association, 2006, 64 pp., 21 photographs, bibliography, Rs. 300 (paperback), ISBN 9559102826 …. location of original review and date of publication is yet unclear

“Arise Sir Davenel”

Cricket brought to Sri Lanka the reputation of, and a genuine recognition as, a nation. The rationale for such an observation is the infamous reputation Sri Lanka has earned due to decade-old ethnic rivalry and insurgency that has threatened the concept of nationhood in the country. The World Cup triumph in 1996 and the heroic performances before and after that event have put Sri Lanka prominently not onlyon the sports map but also on the political map of the world in a positive sense. But the story of the riseof Sri Lankan cricket is not a normal rags-to-riches story but is filled with events that in some sense correspond to its political history. Michael Roberts’ work presents this interesting story of Sri Lankan cricket. Written in the year 2004, the booklet recapitulates, albeit briefly, the entire history of the game on this country. It is a vivid description of the evolution of cricket in the former colony of Britain. Throughout the evolutionary history of cricket, the author finds a clear reflection of the socio-political situation of Sri Lanka. Continue reading →

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Costly WASTE in the Heart of Canberra

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December 12, 2018 · 12:40 am
December 11, 2018 · 3:27 pm

Vibrant Lifeways in Sri Lanka via Its Literary Figures and Places

Uma Mahadevan Dasgupta  in The Hindu, 8 December 2018,  where the title is “In Sri Lanka, Life imitates Art”

As we travel through Sri Lanka, its strong literary voices come crashing in like waves, and life seems to imitate art

I sit in the huge living room of the old governor’s home in Jaffna. The walls, painted… a warm rose-red, stretch awesome distances away to my left, to my right and up towards a white ceiling. When the Dutch first built this house egg white was used to paint the walls. The doors are twenty feet high, as if awaiting the day when a family of acrobats will walk from room to room, sideways, without dismantling themselves from each other’s shoulders. —Running in the Family, Michael Ondaatje

 Hectic colours: Second Cross Street Pettah 

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December 11, 2018 · 2:21 pm

Rescuing Sri Lanka’s Ailing Economy: Pathways Now

W. A. Wijewardena,* delivering the Professor H A de S Gunasekara Memorial Oration 2018 — entitled “Sri Lanka’s Economy at a Crossroads: The Way to Rescue the Ailing Economy” …. also available at http://www.ft.lk/columns/Sri-Lanka-s-economy-at-crossroads–The-1972-76-Five-Year-Plan-and-its-diagnosis-of-economic-ailments/4-668469

ABSTRACT: Sri Lanka is at a crossroads today because it is snared in what is known as the middle income trap. It was easy for Sri Lanka to move up from a low income country to a lower middle income country by using its abundantly available cheap labour resources. However, moving up further to an upper middle income country was challenging since the country had to spend about 24 years in the lower middle income country category before making a breakout. Unless it attains an economic growth rate of about 9% per annum in the next 15 year period, it is unlikely that it will be able to beat the middle income trap. The way to do so is to produce for a market bigger than the market in Sri Lanka and supply goods that are demanded by that market. It requires the country to convert its production system from a simple technology based one to a complex technology one and join the global production sharing network to keep its presence in the market. The flipside is that these are challenging targets but not impossible since there are many countries that have done so with appropriate investment in science and technology leading to research, development and marketing.

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December 11, 2018 · 10:52 am

Donald Trump receives Award from the American Indian Nations

 

Donald Trump was invited to address a major gathering of the American Indian Nation two weeks ago in upstate New York.  He spoke for almost an hour about his plans for increasing every Native American’s present standard of living. He referred to how he had supported every Native American issue that came to the news media.  Although Mr Trump was vague about the details of his plans, he seemed most enthusiastic and spoke ‘eloquently’ about his ideas for helping his “red sisters and brothers.”  At the conclusion of his speech, the Tribes presented him with a plaque inscribed with his new Indian name, “Walking Eagle.”  The proud Mr Trump accepted the plaque and then departed in his motorcade to a fundraiser, waving to the crowds. 

A news reporter later asked the group of chiefs how they came to select the new name they had given to the Presidential Candidate. 

They explained that “Walking Eagle” is the name given to a bird so full of shit it can no longer fly.

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December 6, 2018 · 4:05 am

Wickrema Weerasooriya leaves Our World

Rohan Pethiyagoda, Daily News. 6 December 2018, where the title is “Wickrema Bida Adieu“

Sri Lanka is the poorer due to the passing away last Tuesday of Dr Wickrema Sena Weerasooria. There were so many aspects to his life, and he was so many things to so many people, that it is difficult to know where to begin. Most Sri Lankans who can yet recall the J.R.Jayewardene presidency remember Wickrema as the all-powerful Secretary to the Ministry of Plan Implementation, one of the few ministries of which the President was the subject minister.

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December 4, 2018 · 1:08 pm

Forgotten Scars of War: Clearing Mines and UXO … One

Camelia Nathaniel, in Daily news, 14 Marhc 2018 where  the title runs “Mine free by 2020: Sri Lanka heading towards becoming a landmine free country: Lanka heading towards becoming a landmine free country:”

Sri Lanka has come a long way in clearing the mines from the war affected areas after three decades of war. In fact Sri Lanka can be proud of their achievement in mine clearing in comparison to many other countries in the region that faced similar situations. Having already cleared over 90 percent of the mines in these areas and facilitated the people in those areas to engage in their day to day activities without fear of landmines, Sri Lanka only has around 27 Sq. Km left to complete the task of completely ridding the country of mines by 2020.

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December 4, 2018 · 9:19 am

Sunil Vijayapala’s Terse Comments on the Crisis in Lanka & the Samarasinghe Article

Sunil Vijayapala, in Email Memo to The Editor, Thuppahi …. partly a response to the article which SWR de Samarasinghe presented in three outlets including Thuppahi

A= There is no solution other than going for a general election, which might materialise.

B = Tourism is not a solid dependable income, it depends on so many factors – a single bomb going off in Colombo is all that takes to reverse the flow.  Besides it’s all cheap shit arriving here – lower end tourists – hardly a good investment.

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December 4, 2018 · 1:09 am

Pathways towards the Transformation of South Asia

SinhaRaja Tammita-Delgoda, in Eurasia Review, 7 September 2017, where the title is  “Transforming South Asia: A Key To The Future ”

Commonalities are what we have in common. In most parts of South Asia the inheritance is common, shared origins, shared languages, shared religions and shared cultures. Yet in each case this common inheritance has diverged and taken its own unique path. This divergence has occurred at different times, in Sri Lanka it has taken place over millennia, in Bhutan and Nepal over several centuries, in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh it has happened during the 20th century. It is a history of common origins taking different shapes and forms with very different interests.

As South Asians we have a shared inheritance but do we have common interests? Do these common interests coincide with our national interests? Do our national interests converge? Where, when and at what cost? Only once we have achieved it can we seek transformation.

 Hambantota Continue reading →

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December 3, 2018 · 2:47 pm

The Grim Prospects Sri Lanka Faces Today

SWR de  “Sam” Samarasinghe, Island, 3 December 2018, where the title reads  “The Crisis in Governance: Likely Economic Consequences and the End Game” ….. Also presented in Colombo Telegraph, https://www.colombotelegraph.com/index.php/the-crisis-in-governance-likely-economic-consequences-the-end-game/

The crisis of governance that Sri Lanka is currently facing is unprecedented in post-war Sri Lankan politics. Two individuals claiming to be prime minister and one major party boycotting parliament illustrate the point. There is no need to recount in detail the events of the past five weeks that are publicly known. The purpose of this article is to note some of the serious implications of this crisis for the economy of the country and to stress the importance of resolving the crisis in a manner that would reverse these adverse trends.

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