Wednesday 18 January 2012

Sinhala people always gave into others, allowing others to profit from what really belonged to them.

Thaipongal Celebrated at Temple Trees-16 January,2012

Sinhala people has always given into others and accommodated them through their inherent kindness, fair play and  sense of justice.  Today they are the ones that suffer most.  The English  Colonialists came to power sitting on the back of the Sinhala people, and once in power they dropped them, taking into confidence the Tamils and the Moors brought from abroad. 

If a Sinhala speaks for the rights of the Sinhala, many would be those who will treat him as a racist, chauvinist or a Sinhala supremacist. It is time that the  Sinhala should no  more feel shy about being one.

Today after having been made to silently suffer for nearly thirty years by a group of Tamil terrorists, the Tamil National Alliance has begun to dictate terms to the Government of Sri Lanka, while the Ordinary Tamil people in  the North and East are considerably better off than they were ever before.  But their voices are not heard or they are made to parrot the Tamil politician who are seeking a power base to divide the Country.
Indian External Affairs Minister S.M.Krishna at Thaipongal celebration at Temple Trees-16.January,2012

The Sri Lanka Government leaders praise the Indian Government and lay the red carpet to receive any one of the Indian Ministers paying a visit to Sri Lanka.  So much so that they begin feel that Sri Lanka is already an Indian Colony, and issue directions as if they are the Masters.

They come to Sri Lanka and do not help the Government to settle the disputes between the Tamil politicians and the Government but make matters worse making  impossible demands  such as to implement an obsolete Amendment 13 of the Constitution. The President apparently cooed his acceptance to implement the Amendment 13 and plus.

The problem with the Tamil National Alliance cannot be settled unless the Government is prepared to take drastic action against the group of the undesirables in the TNA.   Tamil National Alliance is following the exact  modus operandi of  Prabhakaran the terrorist.  A government which eliminated terrorism through military action is today, weakened by the necessity to come to a political settlement with the politically distasteful Tamil National Alliance an arm of the former terrorists.

This is what Robert O.Blake foresaw when terrorism was still a strong decisive force ,and asked the Government to come to a political settlement, saying that  there was no Military solution to the terrorist problem.  Had the Government listened to Robert Orris Blake, we would still be having the terrorists, perhaps with their own Homeland.

Should not we take a lesson from the past experience and deal with the Tamil National Alliance in the same way the government dealt with terrorism ? 

Not by eliminating them but by saying a loud and firm NO to them. For that we should stop laying the red carpet to Indian government officials coming to Sri Lanka, but ask them to tell the Tamil National Alliance to join hands  and work together with the government to develop not only the Tamil Community but all the Communities in Sri Lanka,  without being critical of the actions of the Government and running all over the world praying every government or political groups to help them  obtain “what they want” from the government of Sri Lanka

The Indian Government takes a favourable attitude towards the Tamil National Alliance as it has a problem with TamilNadu.  It is for the Indian Government to settle their problem with TamilNadu without Sri Lanka having to give in to the demands of the Tamil National Alliance  to help India with its problem with TamilNadu.

Tamil National Alliance is not speaking for the Tamil  people but for themselves. 

It is a pity that Sinhala people are called upon to suffer due to the government’s dilly dallying without taking immediate action on important issues.  One of this is the nightmare the country is made to suffer  having the  Tamil National Alliance as a political party. It was due to the  failure of the government to have banned the Tamil National Alliance immediately after the elimination of the terrorists that we are still burdened with this lot of “idiots”. 

The government should have also enacted laws against any political party, groups or individuals acting against the unity of the people of the country ,  promoting political dissention  taking the cause of one Community disregarding the cause of  other  Communities,  for promoting    separatist ideology , and against political parties with ethnic labels.

The Government also delayed settling down the displaced Muslims in Jaffna and settling Sinhala Families in the North and the east, to create a multi ethnic population in the North and the East.

Sinhala people are made to accept silently the appropriation of their cultural assets by the Muslims and the Tamils.  It has been reported recently, that
Muhudu Maha Viharaya-Pottuvil

“……… the original 70 odd acres belonging to Muhudu Maha Vihara in the East have been reduced to eight acres - the rest having been encroached upon by Muslim squatters.  But the extent actual archaeological reserve is even less - four acres and the additional four acres had been acquired by a Buddhist monk for the reserve but Muslim squatters have threatened to take legal action against the monk claiming that have land rights to the area. …..”  What has the government to say on this matter ?

It has been said that the , “late Mallika Wanigasundera wrote article after article highlighting this issue since about 2005.  But all her appeals fell on deaf ears. ” 

It is time that some one takes up the issue. If the political leadership does not take an interest in the matter  the Maha Sangha led by the Chief Priests of Malwatta and Asgiriya, and political parties like the JHU should be made to move in the matter to recuperate the  Vihara land grabbed by the Muslims. 

It is time that the Sinhala people wake up to fight for their rights and preserve their ancestral heritage.

Much had already been said about the Digawapi temple land encroached upon by the Muslims.  There was a Muslim Minister of a former government who was  even accused of having bulldozed Digawapi temple land for a Housing Scheme for the Muslims.

Not only are the Sinhala people loosing their cultural assets, but are also made to downgrade their religious values in favour of those of others., the Catholics, Muslims and the Hindus.

Lakbima, of the 16 January, 2012 carried the following  news item, about how certain Officials of the Buddha Sasana Ministry sabotaged the Buddha Jayanthi Celebrations.

“All Sambuddhatva Jayanthi Commemoration Programs Sabotaged Certain officials of the Buddha Sasana Ministry sabotaged all programs the government had planned for the Sambuddhadva Jayanthi,according to ministrysources.

They allege that the ministry’s top most official and certain other hypocritical official there had not given any cooperation to make a success of the programs in accordance with Mahinda Chinthana to which the President had given his approval.

Ministry sources say that steps had been taken to declare the period from 2011 to Vesak 2012 a Sambuddhatva Jayanthi year and launch many programs, none of them have been activated.
The officials in question had not approved any of these programs which included establishing

(1)  a Pali Language Promotional unit under the Buddha
      Sasana Act,

(2)  appointing a Buddha Sasana Regulatory Commission and

(3)  having a system by which foreign Buddhist monks visiting Sri Lanka and Sri
     Lankan Buddhist monks traveling abroad can obtain visas without difficulty.

Although the government had allocated a massive amount of money to implement these programs, they had spent it on festivities, erecting pandals and organising processions thereby deliberately ignoring the priorities.

After wasting funds in this manner they had given the excuse they had no money to implement the programs which been agreed upon. Some others had spent part of the money on their personal needs including repairing their private vehicles.”

Is the President and the Government aware of this ? If so what actions have the government taken against the miscreants ?

The Buddhist Clergy  of the Malwatta and Asgiriya who are there to look after the interest of the Buddha Sasana seem to be inactive and appears to be unconcerned seemingly  satisfied meeting politicians and being critical of politics, while the Sasana is being dragged in the mud.

The Prime Minister as the Minister of  Buddha Sasana and Religious Affairs has failed miserably in that position playing politics with  Buddhism. It appears that he even wanted to appoint a committee representing all religions to celebrate the Buddha Jayanthi.

It is in the interest of the Buddha Sasana to have a separate Ministry for the Affairs of Buddha Sasana, preferably headed by a Woman Minister, “ nominated”  from amoung  learned female Buddhists in Sri Lanka such as for instance Dr.Hema Goonatilake, as women  are far better to promote Buddhist Religious Affairs, because of  their devotion and attachment to Buddhism, and not being politically motivated.

The Hindu Thaipongal, Christian Christmas and Muslim Eid Ul are all  celebrated at the Temple Trees.  The  President  even participated in a Hindu Kovil Ceremony bare bodied with a pottu on the front despite being a Buddhist.  But do the Tamils(other than Sampanthan and his cohorts of  the Tamil National Alliance), appreciated this  gesture of the President ?

All these cerebrations and festivities at the Temple Trees may perhaps forge a Communal unity through respect for the culture of each other.  But, it is time that the Government begins to pay more attention to the Buddha Sasana, as the rampant indiscipline of young Buddhist Monks in Universities


if left unchecked will be the beginning of a disastrous end to Buddhism, in a country where all forces lead by the Catholic Church are awaiting a chance  to stamp out the importance of Buddhism in Sri Lanka.

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