Condemning Assassination and Continuing
Appeasement
By D.B.S. Jeyaraj
The assassination of Lakshman Kadirgamar has brought in its wake a
series of statements by world leaders. They denounce it very correctly
as a terrible act of terrorism. They also want the perpetrators to be
caught and brought to justice.
The Fate of Sri Lanka
by Wakeley Paul, Esq.
A few teasing and troublesome questions arise from the assassination
of the Sri Lankan Foreign Minister.
Kadirgamar and the Tamils
By: Dr. Rajasingham Narendran
The assassination of Lakshman Kadirgamar has for the first time in the
post-independence history of Sri Lanka united the Sinhalese, Muslims
and the Tamils who have managed to retain their sanity amidst the
lunacy around them, if not in grief, at least in condemnation of one more
senseless murder.
BBC Have your Say:
Will Sri Lanka's peace process totter?
"Mr. Kadirgamar is considered as an opportunist by over 3 million
Tamils living in Sri Lanka. He is an obstruction for the peace process. He
showed no sympathy and fairness for the 66,000 Tamils killed since
1957. His death may help the country move forward towards where the
country was 50 years ago."
- S. Haran, Morris Plains, NJ, USA
The spotlight shift from Horagolla to
Weeraketiya
By D.B.S. Jeyaraj
Whatever the political compulsions or inner- party intrigues involved the
overt and united decision of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party in declaring
Mahinda Rajapakse and Anura Bandaranaike as the Presidential and
Prime Ministerial Candidates respectively is a very welcome one. It
comes at a critical juncture when the 54 year old party was on the verge
of splitting due to internal political strife. Saner counsel seems to have
prevailed at the last moment and a very worthwhile compromise has
averted a crisis.
The Barber and the Policeman
By: Dr. Rajasingham Narendran
The recent murders in Inuwil of Jayaseelan Shantharuban (Barber) and
Charles Wijewardene (Superintendent of Police) and how the story has
since unfolded will be recorded in the annals of the Sinhala- Tamil ethnic
conflict in Sri Lanka as landmark incidents. The events leading to the
so- called accidental shooting of Shantharuban are yet shrouded in
mystery.
Tigers admit inabillity to counter Karuna threat
By D.B.S. Jeyaraj
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam organization led by Velupillai
Pirapakaran is finding it increasingly difficult to counter the politico -
military threat posed by its erstwhile Eastern regional commander
Vinayagamoorthy Muraleetharan alias "Col" Karuna.
Despite the tough talk over a potential threat to the ceasefire being
imminent and the double - speak about the activities of "para - militaries"
hindering the LTTE political cadres from doing political work the reality is
that the powerful tigers are feeling insecure and beleagured in the face
of increasing risk from the Karuna factor.
Tamil broadcaster shot dead [BBC]
Sri Lanka’s Tamil activists say suspected Tamil Tigers have shot and
killed a senior Tamil broadcaster and her husband in the capital
Colombo.
Relangi Selvarajah, 44, a well-known newsreader worked for
government owned Sri Lanka Rupavahini Corporarion, and her husband
were gunned down around 1300 SLT.
Close encounter with a Tamil Tigress [CS Monitor]
When Thamilvilly walked in to meet me, I wondered if she was some big
cheese’s assistant coming to tell me my interview was canceled. In
neatly pinned-up pigtails, austere pants, and a belted baggy shirt, she
looked more like an intern than the deputy head of the women’s wing of
the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).
How one Sri Lanka city stays above
the ethnic fray [CS Monitor]
One of the few times Kandy saw bloodshed and violence was during
widespread riots of 1983 which set off the ethnic war in Sri Lanka that
still has not ended. However, rioting was less intense here and local
Tamils have not bitterly nursed memories of the event, which remains a
rallying cry in northern Sri Lanka.
Charity
Navajeevanam:
On the 29th of April 1959, the Rev. & Mrs. Thambyrajah, with their eight
sons (one of' them very sick) and Sister Elizabeth Baker (with a little boy
hanging to her saree and his mother) arrived about 4. p.m. at the village
of Murasumoddai, three miles from the Paranthan junction, in a place
adjoining the Third Conduit from the great Tank. Miss Muriel Hutchins a
dedicated CMS Missionary, who had started a Home in Kilinochchi five
miles away in 1957, was there to welcome them.
The spot they had bought was half a mile from the main road and to it,
they proceeded. Though there was no regular path by which they could
go, they still "made it". They decided to call the place "Navajeevanam:"
(New Life). Here, they had built a little house and kitchen which had
been burnt down the previous year and now it was rebuilt. The house
was too small to accommodate the whole company, and a tent was
erected to hold the overflow.
"All Lands Home"
Peacemakers of the world [The Hindu]
A thousand women from 153 countries have been jointly nominated for
the Nobel Peace Prize this year. These are women who have turned
personal tragedies into opportunities to fight for others, says Kamla
Bhasin, South Asia Coordinator of the forum which nominated the
women. Excerpts from a conversation with Meena Menon.
Who Owns Hans Island? [NPR Audio]
For 20 years, Canada and Denmark have disagreed over who owns
Hans Island. It's a small, uninhabited territory with no reliable natural
resources. But when Canada's defense minister raised a Canadian flag
there, Denmark sent a warship to the island.
Arts - Culture - Heritage
Mary Anne Mohanraj: new voice in South Asian
literature [SFGate]
Now after several hot-off-the-Internet collections of steamy sex writing,
South Asia's most famous smut author has expanded her literary
repertoire. HarperCollins has just published Monhanraj's debut collection
of short fiction, "Bodies in Motion," which follows two sprawling Sri
Lankan Tamil families joined by marriage through interlinked stories over
several generations, crisscrossing between America and Sri Lanka,
scarred by civil war and immigration.
Drama group aids tsunami victim [BBC]
A Sri Lankan teenager has spoken of how a drama group now
performing at the Edinburgh Festival eased the trauma she suffered
from 26 December's tsunami.
Ruwani Sitara, 15, lost seven members of her family in the disaster.
She is now taking part in Children of the Sea - based on Shakespeare's
Pericles - as part of the Fringe Festival at the Royal Botanic Garden.
A legacy called Chettinad saris [Hindu]
At a time when the handloom industry is going through a bad patch, the
Karaikudi-based Chettinad handloom products are sailing through,
thanks to their durability, quality and continuous support from the
Nattukottai Chettiar community.
The Weaver's Colony, four km away from here, came up in 1976.
Though the number of handlooms is not many, the colony is busy
weaving exclusive Chettinad cotton saris. The customers, mostly
Chettiars, make a beeline for the exclusive showrooms. Their aim is to
save poor weavers depending on Chettinad saris and to make the
younger generation, attracted by the modern dress culture, to continue
the traditional way of dressing. Though the community members are not
against modern attires, they prefer traditional saris for family functions.
King Maker: A message goes global
Even when `Kamaraj' was first released in Tamil in early 2004, you cried
yourself hoarse about the worth of the film that projects the life of a
selfless man. But sadly neither Ramana Communications the producer,
nor A. Balakrishnan the director, could smile their way to the bank.
An undeterred Balakrishnan now returns with a dubbed English version
of `Kamaraj,' entitled `Kingmaker,' and plans to take it to the global
audience.
`Kingmaker,' to be released on August 15, traces the history of our
nation during the time of Kamaraj, and incidentally, touches upon the
foibles of those in power then.
A Memon's engagement in Tamil Poetry
By K.S. Sivakumaran
Even if we forget the fact that quite a few people belonging to various
minority communities have contributed to the Lankan mosaic of varied
cultural webs, the world outside knows that we are not a homogeneous
nation. Invariably we speak of only the Sinhala, Thamil and Moor
communities as important segments in our society. However, there are
Muslims, Christians and others belonging to different religious beliefs.
We have for instance the Burghers (descendants of both the Dutch and
the Portuguese), the Malays, the Farsis, the Borahs, the Sindhis, the
Memons, the Bhaiis, the Goans, the Anglo-Indians, the Malayalees, the
Telugus, the Kannadigas, the Kafirs, the Veddhas and others. The
Memons have a spoken dialect but it is not a written language. They
speak a language akin to a mixture of Gujarati, Sindhi and perhaps
Persian. However, the younger generation among those remaining in Sri
Lanka is knowledgeable in either Sinhala or Thamil.
The Big B's Tamil voice [Rediff]
Nizhalkal' Ravi, a leading Tamil character actor, stopped his car in front
of a dubbing theatre and stepped out. A passing biker braked to a halt,
took a U-turn and rode towards Ravi. He took off his helmet and said,
'Sir, you have done an amazing job! It was marvellous.'
The biker was not referring to Ravi's performance in any of his movies;
he was referring to his dubbing for Amitabh Bachchan in KBC 2.
Ever since the first episode of KBC 2 went on air on August 5, Ravi's
phone has not stopped ringing. "It is just overwhelming," he says,
happily. "I never imagined I would get a response like this. People told
me it seemed as if Mr Bachchan was speaking in Tamil."
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