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Arms producers benefitted from Sri Lanka’s 30-year war!
National Shoora Council Biennial Meeting
We are now begging their governments for food and fuel – Zuhair
Six to seven million Sri Lankans are reportedly undergoing tremendous hardship, for their second meal, every day. The 303 Sri Lankans who ended up in Vietnam three weeks ago, rescued by a Japanese vessel from a virtually drowning Myanmar flagged fishing boat, had one distressing message, ‘”take us anywhere but not to Sri Lanka!” This is a damning indictment upon our country. Large numbers of others are leaving the country for good. We all have a national role to play to overcome the crisis.
This was stated by former Member of Parliament, M M Zuhair, PC, who was the guest speaker at the biennial meeting of the National Shoora Consultative Council (NSC), on Sunday, presided by NSC President, T K Azoor, Attorney-at-Law. NSC is the consultative body, comprising 14 Muslim national level organisations in the country.
Speaking further, Zuhair said, the people of this country had been in search for peace and tranquility, since independence, 75 years ago, but they never found them. We neglected focusing on economic development, with dangerous consequences.
Within the first 10 years after, independence, the country was embroiled in the first notable racial riots, in 1956. In 1958, the second such riots engulfed a major part of the country. In 1962, we saw the attempted coup to topple the government, blamed on a powerful minority. In 1971, and again in 1989, the country witnessed a youth uprising, primarily from the majority community. In 1979, an uprising in the North, followed by the major islandwide 1983 July racial riots put the LTTE on top, becoming Sri Lanka’s formidable foe, aiming to establish a separatist State.
The war, launched in 1979, to suppress the uprising in the North, armed with the notorious Prevention of Terrorism Act, instead of containing terror, helped to multiply terrorism in the country. There was no dialogue between the elder brother and the younger one. The globally shamed 1983 riots laid the foundation for war. The 1984 All Party conference (APC) and the 1985 Political Parties Conference (PPC) came too late. They were mere eye wash!
Who benefitted from the war between the brothers? Arms manufacturers in the USA, USSR, Britain, France, Germany, Israel and China were the beneficiaries, though we must blame ourselves for it. The country’s wealth, savings and the dollars ended up in foreign countries for the next 30 years. Today we are pleading with those governments, with the begging bowl, for food and fuel, for the survival of our people.
With the end of the war, in 2009, we missed another golden opportunity to unite the people, at least for the sake of the country’s economic revival. The unity of the people, and the communities, was severely dented by allowing anti-minority attacks against the Christians and the Muslims. Muslims were, thereafter, more specifically targeted with wild allegations about Halal Food, Women’s attire, population canards, discriminatory birth control allegations etcetra!
All these culminated in several anti-Muslim riots, in 2014, 2017, 2018, with over 18 Mosques being attacked, prior to the reprehensible damaging of Buddha Statues, in December 2018, and the widely condemned Easter Sunday attacks of April 2019. Both these acts of Muslim violence were not aimed at toppling any elected government but, on the contrary, governments allegedly benefitted. They do not come anywhere near any act of treason, though the Easter suspects are being treated much worse.
All these came upon a community that ought to be placed first in national patriotism but for the false propaganda by vested interests in sections of the media. Historian Dr Lorna Dewaraja says that 900 years ago, during the reign of King Parakramabahu, a significant contribution, for building the Parakrama Samudra, came from the Arab descendent Muslims of Sri Lanka. Since then, the patriotic role of the Sri Lankan Muslims, in the progress and development of the country, for over a thousand years, has been recorded by Dr Dewaraja.
It is in this background that the NSC should continue to guide the community, and the country, to play this historical role at this time of distress. NSC, Zuhair said, should resist attempts to divide the majority from the minority communities. We have several issues the NSC should address, such as the proscription of some Muslim civil organisations, in violation of the constitutional protections, proposed rehabilitation without judicial determination, State interferences in Mosque administration, discriminatory restriction in importing Islamic books, North-East Merger, the proposed abolition of Quazi Courts, etc. We need to resolve these problems expeditiously.
The U.S. Embassy in Colombo welcomed the U.S. Sports Envoys to Sri Lanka, former National Basketball Association (NBA) and Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) players Stephen Howard and Astou Ndiaye, from June 8 through 14.
The Public Diplomacy section of the U.S. Embassy said that it would launch a weeklong basketball program intended to harness the unifying power of sports, made possible through collaboration with Foundation of Goodness and IImpact Hoop Lab.
While in Sri Lanka, Howard and Ndiaye, both retired professional basketball players, will conduct a weeklong program, Hoops for Hope: Bridging Borders through Basketball. The Sports Envoys will lead basketball clinics and exhibition matches and engage in leadership sessions in Colombo and Southern Province for youth aged 14-18 from Northern, Uva, Eastern and Western Provinces, offering skills and leadership training both on and off the court. The U.S. Envoys will also share their expertise with the Sri Lanka Basketball Federation, national coaches, and players, furthering the development of basketball in the country. Beyond the clinics, they will collaborate with Sri Lankan schoolchildren to take part in a community service project in the Colombo area.
“We are so proud to welcome Stephen and Astou as our Sports Envoys to Sri Lanka, to build on the strong people-to-people connections between the United States and Sri Lanka,” said U.S. Ambassador Julie Chung. “The lessons that will be shared by our Sports Envoys – communication, teamwork, resilience, inclusion, and conflict resolution – are essential for leadership development, community building, equality, and peace. The U.S. Sports Envoy program is a testament to our belief that sports can be a powerful tool in promoting peace and unity.”
SJB Colombo District MP Mujibur Rahuman in parliament demanded to know from the government the reasons for CEB suspending the leave of all its employees until further notice from Thursday.
MP Rahuman said that the CEB has got an acting General Manager anew and the latter yesterday morning issued a circular suspending leave of all CEB employees with immediate effect until further notice.
“We demand that Minister Kanchana Wijesekera should explain this to the House. This circular was issued while this debate on the new Electricity Amendment Bill was pending. There are many who oppose this Bill. The Minister must tell parliament the reason for the urge to cancel the leave of CEB employees,” the MP said.However, Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena prevented Minister Wijesekera responding to the query and said that the matter raised by MP Rahuman was not relevant.
The Chartered Institute of Personnel Management (CIPM) successfully concluded the 8th Annual CIPM Symposium, which took place on 31st May 2024. Themed “Nurturing the Human Element—Redefining HRM in a Rapidly Changing World,” the symposium underscored the pivotal role of human resource management (HRM) in today’s dynamic global landscape. Since its inception in 1959, CIPM has been dedicated to advancing the HR profession through education, professional development, and advocacy, solidifying its position as Sri Lanka’s leading professional body for HRM.
Ken Vijayakumar, the President of the CIPM, graced the occasion as the chief guest. The symposium commenced with the welcome address by the Chairperson, Prof. Arosha Adikaram, followed by the Web Launch of the Symposium Proceedings and Abstract Book by the CIPM President. The event featured distinguished addresses, including a speech by Chief Guest Ken Vijayakumar, President of CIPM, and an address by Guest of Honor Shakthi Ranatunga, Chief Operating Officer of MAS Holdings Pvt. Ltd., Sri Lanka.
The symposium also featured an inspiring keynote address by Prof. Mario Fernando, Professor of Management and Director of the Centre for Cross Cultural Management (CCCM) at the University of Wollongong, Australia.
Vote of Thanks of the inauguration session was delivered by Dr. Dillanjani Weeratunga, Symposium Co-chair.
The symposium served as a comprehensive platform for researchers to present their findings across a wide range of critical topics in HRM. These included Cultural Diversity and Inclusion, Talent Development and Retention, Ethical Leadership and Corporate Social Responsibility, Adapting to Technological Advancements, Mental Health and Well-being at Work, Global Workforce Challenges, Employee Empowerment, and Reskilling and Upskilling.
The plenary session was led by Prof. Wasantha Rajapakse. Certificates were awarded to the best paper presenters during the valedictory session, followed by a vote of thanks delivered by Kamani Perera, Manager of Research and Development.
The annual symposium of CIPM was a truly inclusive event, attracting a diverse audience that spanned undergraduates, graduates, working professionals, research scholars and lecturers. This widespread interest highlights the symposium’s significance in the field of HRM, offering a unique opportunity for everyone to network and learn from scholarly brains.The CIPM International Research Symposium was sponsored by Hambantota International Port, Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology (SLIIT), E B Creasy & Co. PLC, and Print Xcel Company.
US sports envoys to Lanka to champion youth development
Rahuman questions sudden cancellation of leave of CEB employees
