The government today muddled up the day of mourning declared following the death of former Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickramanayake.
Ratnasiri Wickremanayake
Within an hour since announcing the day of mourning as December 31, the Home Affairs Ministry quickly retracted the original statement and issued a new date of mourning as December 30, as Sri Lankans took to social media to protest the day of mourning.
No sooner the government announced that the day of mourning as December 31, ‘panic’ Sri Lankans who love their booze, fun and frolic, were seen posting questions on Facebook and Twitter asking, ‘Will the parties be cancelled?,” “Is there no liquor on Saturday?.”
However, realizing its ‘grave’ mistake, the Home Affairs Ministry withdrew the original statement and issued a new statement declaring December 30 as the new day of mourning in view of the late Prime Minister’s funeral.
Leelagemalli / December 28, 2016
Just opportunists – even if their mothers would have been abducted, those party men would focus only their parties. That is like a severe health problem. Not even westerners would act so.
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kp / December 28, 2016
You clearly have never been to the west.
That said, you can’t change human nature by announcing a day of mourning on new year’s Eve. The only thing that leads to is people doing what they want anyway. The only reason people like you have never understood this is because we haven’t yet had a fiasco like the US had prohibition. None of your petty laws matter. When will you open your eyes and see instead of trying to pretend to be Bodhisattvas to show to the world?
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Leelagemalli / December 28, 2016
May the former PM rest in peace – attain Nirwanna. We should all be grateful to him for his services given to the nation during his tenure.
Being emotional- I could not add my condolence above.
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Anyways -my response to KP:
Me being on the west, not just for one single day but for last few decades, I added my thoughts above.
I hate to see lanken people becoming more unlike they had been decades ago. Today s folks seem to have norespect and dignity to anyone.
You can also celebrate your new year s eve -without alcohol.
Besides, why you guys need to celebrate like the way the westerners do ? Not that numbers on the west consume alcohol and get addicted to it as is the case in our country today. Those who promote drugs and anything destructing the poor folks can breath in easily, but we cant.
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Raj / December 31, 2016
” ….. attain Nirwanna?”
You must be joking. From what I know about this man, he will rot in hell, that is if there is such a place after life.
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kp / January 10, 2017
Oh gee, I wonder why so many people here get addicted to alcohol and drink incessantly. Could it have something to do with the poverty problems we’ve ignored for decades?
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AshyD / December 30, 2016
WHO IS MOURNING WHOM ?
And the biggest question is, WHY?
What has this joker done for the country other than being a lame duck, Prime Minister, MY FOOT, we have better things to do than mourn for him.
So let the Booze flow and the music belt up, after all it is a fun week for all.
If those who want to mourn for him mourn, let the others enjoy the week. New Year comes but once a year, and what a time to die.
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Amarasiri / December 28, 2016
May the former Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickremanayake rest in peace, or attain Nibbana.
The dead should be respected. Good move to change the date.
Friday is a good day to stay away from booze and meat, declare as a day of mourning.
Saturday can be a day of booze and parting.
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Native Vedda / December 28, 2016
Amarasiri
“The dead should be respected.”
I agree however his racist past should not be forgotten.
May he attain Nibbana.
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Amarasiri / December 28, 2016
Native Vedda
“I agree however his racist past should not be forgotten.”
What do you expect? He was a member of the SLFP, and most, not all, were.
Those things shoukd have been confronted when he was alive… like Mahaverran, Periyavar, VP, just the same way VP was dealt with for all his crimes and racism.
Now that he is dead, it will be addressed by the after life beliefs, and how valid those beliefs are, still nobody knows, but it is brisk business for the Monks, Priests, Mullahs, Ulama and others.
Now, there will be a Dana, for the monks stretching over a year, to pacify and help cope with for the loved ones who are still living, and move on.
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BBS Rep / December 29, 2016
And his deals with the large scale Pakistani drug importation should also not be forgotten.
What is Nibbana. Just a myth. We die and that is the end of the story. Resurrection, the day of judgement and pansiya panas jatakaya are good stories.
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Native Vedda / December 29, 2016
BBS Rep
“What is Nibbana.”
It is our way of bidding final adieu, making sure they don’t return to this world once again. In other words, we have had enough pain while they were alive here.
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Nimal / December 28, 2016
What the hell is he talking about? Nothing wrong to take a bit of booze and be happy. He must address his former boss for giving a blue whiskey party in US at our expense and even getting HC at London assaulted. Not forgetting the fake relics he tried to peddle in Japan.Ratnasiri get a life and you don’t have a clean sheet either.
Politicians all are there to do the same, to make money and likes of you know all about it.
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Nimal / December 28, 2016
Oh dear he is dead! Rest in Peace.
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Tungsan Yu / December 28, 2016
“Sri Lankans who love their booze, fun and frolic, were seen posting questions on Facebook and Twitter”
That is not the point you stupid shit, (CT if you have the guts , let the people read this) Its bloody new year, we are sick and tired of politicians taking center stage in everything. We want to celebrate our way.
What the heck is wrong in bringing it a day forward??
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Amarasiri / December 28, 2016
Tungsan Yu
“Its bloody new year, we are sick and tired of politicians taking center stage in everything. We want to celebrate our way.
What the heck is wrong in bringing it a day forward??”
Well said, and a good compromise.
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danusia / December 28, 2016
He allegedly was an hardliner, was against negotiating peace, against ceasefire, against family planning. He paved way for Rajapakse to be seated in power and subsequent erosion of law and order in our country.
In the aftermath of Tsunami and surveying the damage he claimed that Buddhist statues were intact as a proof
that non-Buddhist religions like Hinduism and Islam were evil!
He will rest in peace now, whether we like it or not.
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Amarasiri / December 29, 2016
danusia
“Buddhist statues were intact as a proof
that non-Buddhist religions like Hinduism and Islam were evil! “
He was from the Horana Electorate, Kalutara District. Horana was perhaps 98-99% Sinhala Buddhist, and his audience. He was a politician and he said what his audience wanted to hear, whether true or not. He very well knew that the other politicians are doing that as well, some more, some less.
Until Separation pf Sate and Religion is pushed as state policy, the Tribal Religious problem will continue, and the politicians will use to their advantage.
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LANKANIDIOT / December 29, 2016
Those statues were there after the Tsunami, because they are anchored with a steel dowel or rod at the
bottom. How about statues and temples that were affected. Why the heck have you to bring religions into
every discussion.
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Rajash / December 28, 2016
was Lakshman Kadirgamar assassinated by inside job , so this guy could become PM?
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Words / December 28, 2016
Yahapalanaya cannot even get a mourning day right! !
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Lankan / December 29, 2016
May all Lankans live in peace in 2017!
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sarrij / December 29, 2016
Why can’t we celebrate his death with “bottoms up”.That would be civilized.
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Gamarala / December 29, 2016
This is probably an economic decision. Lots of hotels in Sri Lanka have New Year Eve celebrations and would have suffered massive losses. Thus it is a good thing that this was shifted to 30th.
Its not to appease the boozers but good management of the economy.
Also it is very rare in Sri Lanka people of all communities rejoice in a single day instead of fighting and bickering. It would have been a shame to take that away.
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BBS Rep / December 29, 2016
Ah a fat cat, became even a fatter cat during MRs Mafia Rule. Unlike Leelagemalli choking with sadness I for one will pour another one.
Cheers mate, your legacy is best forgotten – so so rotten.
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Dark Angel / December 29, 2016
Good riddance!
May all the other crooks and thugs follow suit SOON and let our country recover from the recent history of a parliament of self-serving goons!
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Spring Koha / December 29, 2016
Load of rubbish! Our NEW TEAR is in APRIL when the Koha is at his best.
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Adrian / December 29, 2016
As far as an ordinary citizen is concerned, RW has done more harm than good while living of their funds. So do all the politicians always. During his period people had become much more poorer than prosper. So many got killed, so many suicides , so many frauds, swindlings despite which he held office at peoples expense without voicing his opposition. How can one mourn? We have to help the people to overcome the misery caused by so called politicians.
Anyway RIP.
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Ben O.T.Dowt / December 29, 2016
Decent society everywhere respects the dead. As the Bard said the good one does is often forgotten. It is the evil that men do that lives after them. He will be remembered for that visit to Japan as ex-PM, when the alert Japanese knew what he was carrying and why he was there. They kept him in Line for hours. As usual, the news was leaked to Colombo.
After he was given the short shrift by MR he continued to suffer the indignity of being a “Senior” Minister – one of dozens. To show his anger, he sometimes went to his office in Shorts. What comedy the country was entertained with.
He died an unhappy man.
Ben O.T. Dowt
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Deshapremiya / December 29, 2016
These Yakko+palanaya baiyya’s scuttled my plan to celebrate with fireworks by a day and forced to re-schedule the firework displays in Colombo. Must thank RW’s son Vidura for urging the government to scrap any mourning at all. What this communal minded racist deserve is not a mourning but for the mourners to lift their sarongs and moon the devil on his way to the “Narakaadiya” (Hell).
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Native Vedda / December 30, 2016
Deshapremiya
Please refrain from wishing him ill, he might come back and haunt you.
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thepanis / December 29, 2016
Why should Sri Lankans mourn when thieves die. These are the guys who ruined/fucked Sri Lanka beyond the point of no return.
Simply put….these politician bastards made SL the “Loken utum amana rata”.
No need to mourn the death of a moron. SL should celebrate that one robber is dead…..but 1000s will be born.
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Nimal / December 30, 2016
Point taken but we must forgive, even likes of them because he is no more.
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