28 March, 2024

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Sirisena’s Order To Extend Wilpattu National Park: Is It To Please Racists & Deprive Muslims Of Their Lands?

By Latheef Farook

Latheef Farook

Latheef Farook

President Maithripala Sirisena’s order on 30 December 2016 to issue a gazette notification extending the land area coming under the Wilpattu National Park has shocked the Muslims who were trying to get back to their own lands to rebuild their shattered lives.

They fear that this announcement include nearby villages such as Marichichukaddy, Karadikuli and Palaikkuli where Muslims lived for generations in their own lands with valid title deeds but were kicked out by LTTE .

Responding to president Sirisena’s order, Muslims who are trying to return to their lands pointed out that “we have not encroached even an inch of land in Wilpattu or anywhere else. We only wanted to return to our own lands and the allegation that Muslims in the encroach Wilpattu National Park or destroying forests is calculated lie to prevent us from returning to our lands”.

They pointed out that relevant officials and all others involved are very well aware that these were Muslim villages and their dilapidated houses, schools ,mosques and other such structures still remain there. When they tried to return to their lands after the war in May 2009 racist elements created many controversies distorting facts giving ethnic twist to prevent them from returning to their lands.

They suspect it was under the influence of such elements that President Sirisena may have issued his 30 December 2016 order.

They also pointed out that Muslims trying to resettle in their own lands has nothing to do with Industrial, Commerce and Cooperative Minister Rishard Badurdeen though vested interest in the media drags him due to political reasons. Thus this presidential decision was only aimed at pleasing Sinhala racist elements who are hell bent on preventing Muslims from settling in their lands in these three villages.

A six member team of academics led by Professor Shahul H. Hasbullah of Peradeniya University prepared last year an extensive research document on the issue of Musali South Muslims returning to their lands under the title “Denying the Right to Return- Resettlement in Musali South and the Wilpattu Controversy. Their plea was “Help Us Return Home”. They appealed to all to help them return to their lands and homes with dignity and self-respect to end their more than three and half decade old sufferings.

In his author’s note Prof Shahul H Hasbulla stated that; “When the “Wilpattu controversy” flared up, the turn of the debate surprised me. I knew for certain that the contested area in question was not located in Wilpattu. In a published newspaper article, I emphasized the issue of returnees, which in my view, is the crux of the matter. But the ongoing debate paid no attention to this issue. To the contrary, the public discourse continuously labeled returnees as ‘criminals’.

The bleak situation spurred me to take on the mission of uncovering the truth. I visited all corners of “Musali South” in order to get to know its history and its peoples, reflecting on the claims and counter claims of land ownership. I learned from the people who were paddy, chena and cattle farmers; sea, lagoon, river and tank fisher folk; teachers, religious dignitaries; men, women, young and children of all religions.

According to our findings people have lived in the Musali Region for generations. They toiled on this land and roamed the region for various livelihood activities without any interruption, while keeping the tradition of protecting the forest and the environment. They are a part of the nature and culture of the region. ”.

Muslims had nothing to do with the devastating ethnic war between successive governments and the LTTE. However sandwiched between the two they suffered immense and the plight of Musali South Muslims was no exception as they too were kicked by the TTE within two hours’ notice. They suffered in refugee camps and temporary shelters where they were longing for the day to return to their lands and resume their traditional life.

While Musali South Muslims were in refugee camps the Rajapaksa Government had acquired major part of their traditional lands under various pretexts knowing very Well that the owners would claim this land once the ethnic war ends.

First around 40% of their traditional lands in the Musali South was acquired. This was followed by the acquisition of another 30 percent of their land without any consultation or consent to establish security Establishments. Added to this Muslims owned lands were acquired to establish a naval agricultural project. Furthermore a Navy Regional Commanding Office was established in two prominent villages and the Muslims were prevented from entering their own lands, dwellings and other properties.

Thus Musali South Muslims were deceived and deprived large extent of their traditional lands despite possessing genuine title deeds and permits.

Judging from the subsequent anti Muslim campaign under Rajapaksa government aimed at virtually eliminating the Muslim community it is not difficult to now realize that Muslim owned Musali South lands were acquired to deliberately deprive them of their traditional lands.

Commenting on the controversy in the same document Professor Arjuna Parakrama of University of Peradeniya stated in the Special document that ;

“The issue of resettlement in Musali- Wilpattu has divided and destroyed relationships built up among “progressive” groups who hitherto shared similar positions on other national concerns. Environmental activists allowed this discourse to be narrowly ethicized, and emulated populist majoritarian rabble rousers in their passion to “save Wilpattu” from what they saw as corrupt and opportunist minority politicians.

A small band of human rights professionals and academics who took up the cause of the displaced were unable to disentangle them from the political leadership that was using the issue in at least of the ways that the environmental lobby claimed.

The Media exploited all of this – generally on the side of the single-issue environmentalists – to rekindle anti-Muslim sentiment among the Sinhala polity. As a result, those who had no interest in the preservation of wild life became passionate campaigners, while dedicated eco-types transformed into ethno-nationalists overnight. In all of this the affected people remained voiceless – pawns in a series of chess games – and this denial of agency is as damaging as the continued deprivation of their rights”.

Meanwhile Professor M A Nuhman lamented in the same document that seven years have passed since the war ended ,the ethnic relations in the country further deteriorated because of the short sighted political leadership to further their own agendas.

Resettlement of internally displaced people is one of the major issues today that demands an immediate solution in post war Sri Lanka. Hundreds of thousands of people from all three
Communities were displaced internally during the war, losing their houses, land and sources of livelihood; most of them are not resettled so far and they are longing for return to their own soil to live peacefully.

To this day, we have not been able to formulate a national policy of resettlement to resolve the problem of the displaced people justly and permanently. Therefore, resettlement programs are being carried out in an ad hoc manner and have led to further problems and tensions among the communities. Resettlement in Musali South is a case in point.

When the displaced Musali people started to resettle in their places clearing the jungle, it exploded into environmental and ethnically sensitive issue; extremists and the Media carried out a concerted campaign against resettlement creating fear and tension among the people.

Explaining the situation in her preface to the document Professor Sivamohan Sumathy of Peradeniya University said “the return of the Displaced in Musali South has evoked a variety of responses and competing claims that have taken on national and nationalist proportions. The returning population of Musali South has tried to eke out a living in the midst of harsh conditions, unaided by state forces for the most part. Yet the region has become needlessly entangled in a controversy over environmentalism.

While the navy has claimed large acres of land for its own entrenchment in the region, environmentalists have accused settlers, the IDPs, who have returned and staked out a claim for their lands, as destroyers of forest. The displaced themselves. And in this instance, the displaced Muslims of Musali South, account for some of the most marginalized sections of the population, but the debate that the putative return has spurred in the media and in political circles has cast them as adversaries of both nature and the state”.

It was under such circumstance comes President Sirisena’s order to issue a gazette notification extending the land area coming under the Wilpattu National Park and declare it a ‘Wildlife Zone’, by a gazette notification. He told the officials to include all the adjacent forest areas of the Wilpattu National Park that presently does not coming under the Wildlife Department.

Muslims of the area point out that;

  • No Muslim driven out by the LTTE during the ethnic war ever entered the Wilpattu National Park or any other nearby area.
  • Wilpattu National Park is situated in the North Western and North Central provinces and all resettled areas belong to Mannar District
  • Southern border of Mannar District is Moderagama River ( Upparu).Wilpattu National Park is located south Moderagama in the Puttalam District.
  • All resettled Muslim refugees who lived in their own land were resettled in the Mannar District
  • All these resettled refugees have their own government issued annual permits , LDO permits and have their own private deeds which were given as early as 1905.
  • Mosque built in 1940 and renovated in 1970 is still there in dilapidated condition with its Minaret and date of construction written on its front wall.
  • There are tanks supplying water to paddy fields built more than a century ago.
  • Those who went to resettle only tried to clear the jungle grown up during the 26 year period when they were in refugee camps.

Thus the unfortunate Muslims from these three Muslim villages Marichichukaddy, Karadaikuli, said that they did not encroach or do not want even an inch of land from Wilpattu or anywhere else. Their re settlement has nothing to do with Wilpattu National Park.

Muslims are asking the government not to block their return to their own lands. Instead they wanted the government to facilitate their return.

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Latest comments

  • 4
    3

    Mr Prophet, Could they (Muslims) still vote for JVP? That is what Hilmi asking.

    This guy is one step ahead to all others; he is noticing Hilmi is too fast and that is in the end going to have wedged in the Sinhala-Muslim government and the end will not produce the fruit Hilmi looking for.

    “Never pass judgement on others, as no body is perfect. To err is human. Forgive and forget, you shall attain peace of mind as long as you Serve Your Creator faithfully sincerely”. So Prophecy is telling the Angels to excuse the humans. He is telling this to his people, the Muslim angels that “err is to human”. Only Modayas are the Human for Prophet. He probably is herding the LTTEs with Wilpattu animals. No mention about them.

    “We Muslims …. keep the commandment and fulfill to the best of your ability and never argue with the foolish folks” Hey Angels, even I don’t argue with foolish Modayas…. why are you doing it? (This guy is a real cunning hyena.)

    “Do not get into vain argument as to who is the owner of Sri Lanka, as its rightful owner is none other its Maker, Creator Almighty “ I have been telling to that half nude Nirvani not to be indulged in too many filtering flight for too long as somebody may steal his 2500 years lease of Lankawe. Now let him fly back try with Thunder and Lightning if it can scare the Almighty (Allah) who has already occupied it.

    I thought Modayas are leasing the Lankawe to China, but now it seems to be Saudi.

    Idiots…. People are fighting for living lands, these are writing cut throat philosophies- This god’s land that god’s land….. What an unreadable rubbish! Shame, this prophecy is here.

    • 4
      4

      Mallaiyuran, Real Siva Sankar Sarma you both a filthy hindus who hail from South Indian famous Aghori caste who eat the death human flesh, in this modern civilized era you rotten hindus still eat human flesh of the live Muslims and Sinhalease, such dirty shit tamils, who ruined this country for almost 30 years, you shit haters of Muslims and Sinhala people who have given you all the opportunity to live in this beautiful island how come you try to portray your hindus as civilized when you hindus are the one who burn the widows alive in the funeral pyre of the hindu husband, how come you try to tell us that Muslims were south indians, when the Muslims are the more generous than the Jaffna tamils a thousand times. It is the tamil kallathooni who came from the south of India with these barbaric bizarre human sacrifices in the avatar of black aghori sadhus and do all dirty works of speaking ill of other communities, do you know how generous a Muslim or a Sinhalease is? even if you go to jaffna and ask for a glass of water, you shit fuckers close the door on the face, such is the evil you tamil suckers are. But we in our areas, are more humane than you. Whatever said and done, Muslims are more generous, we witness this with our own eyes, during a recent flooding in Colombo, how Muslims generosity was displayed to the highest level of humanity, Even the temple chief incumbents mentioned about the Muslims generosity and how every victims be it tamil, sinhalease or muslim, all victims received from many Muslims brand new household items such as fridges, cookers, and many other utensils and new clothing if that was jaffna, do you think jaffna tamils ever help another human? you hindus of south indian aghori cannibls only know to show jealousy to Muslims and Sinhalease people we are best human being you do not try to tell us who is a Muslim or a Sinhalease. you hate mongers the dirties people on this earth, Dont you go to India where your brethern shit on the road, piss on the pathway of the people, dirty smelling hindus you put your house in good before commenting on Muslims who are more civilized and good humored people, that is half of your hindus are earning their livelihood in Muslim countries and enjoying the Muslim generosity.

      • 1
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        Deanmartin your comments on tamils are 100% true. I am a tamil myself and have been in the receiving end of some arrogant wellala tamils from Jaffna. My neighbor is both Muslims and Sinhala. They are peaceful people and never shown any inferiority complex. I and my family is invited to all their ceremonies and have enjoyed their hospitality. I have to confess the bitter truth about our hindu community who shows a very rude difference simply because of my complexion and caste. Contrary to these my Muslim neighbors never show any kind of inferiority complex and they welcome us very warmly and entertain us so indifferently and my family feels they are my relatives. If these arrogant tamils who always spew venom on Muslims and degrading their culture, should learn from the Muslim the raw truth all about humanity and cleanliness and their piety and rituals of daily five times prayers. I am amazed at their sincerity and brotherhood with non-Muslims. I warn these two hardcore tamils in these columns that too much of criticism and lies said upon Muslims will backfire on we Hindus and our bizarre cultures and rituals its a shameful culture indeed.

        • 2
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          Another Idiot

      • 2
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        Mad creature

      • 1
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        Dean Martin aka Sarathbabu( name stolen from a Tamil/Telugu movie star). It is not Sivan Sankaran or Malllaiyuran who are the extremists but you, a fundamentalist Wahhabi/Salafist Islamic extremist. You do not like their home truths. I have read their comments, no where have they advocated anti Muslim hatred or destruction of Muslims or non resettlement of genuine displaced IDPs. They have only denounced the attempt by many Muslims extremists and organisations, many funded by foreign outside sources, to settle hundreds of thousands of outside Muslims at various strategic areas in the north, falsely stating that they are northern Muslim IDPs.
        Stating the real South Indian Tamil origin of the Sri Lankan Muslims is not anti Muslim. It may be to you and other Islamic extremists, as you desperately want to create a separate identity for the island’s Muslims based on religion and a false Arab heritage and origin and these constant reminders of your real Tamil Dravidian origin irks.
        As for the island’s Muslims being generous don’t make me laugh. They are opportunists and the biggest backstabbers. From the time of independence they have joined hands with all Sinhalese governments, hardliners and racist to undermine and discriminate the island’s Tamils to obtain benefits for their immigrant community. It was a Muslim minister who introduced standardisation during the racist Srimavo regime to deliberately deny Tamils higher education and allow Muslims and Sinhalese with far lower competency to enter university.
        Despite being ethnically Tamil, in the name of their religion, they do everything to destroy the Tamil culture language and wait for an opportunity to steal from the Tamils. Lands jobs resources, so that their immigrant community can get established, at the expense of the island’s Tamils.
        Muslim home guards heavily armed by the Sri Lankan government killed raped and ethnically cleansed thousands of Tamils in the east. Stealing their lands and homes and are still occupying them. Many Hindu temples were destroyed and Mosques built on them. To this day the Muslims are still preventing the Tamils in the east from returning to their lands. It is this large scale ethnic cleansing of Tamils in the east and south at the hands or Muslims and Sinhalese and other incidents by certain Muslims in the north, that resulted in the expulsion of around 55000 Muslims from the north. Most of these Muslims are now well settled in Puttalam and do not want to return. No Tamil is preventing them.
        Whilst Muslims are not allowing thousands of Tamils to return to their lands in the east, they are jumping up down about the Northern Muslims, not with the intention of returning them back to their original lands, as they know that they are allowed to return but do not want to return, but using them as an excuse to settle thousands of out of area Muslims, who have no connection to the north to deliberately change the demography of many areas in the north, in order to claim future Muslim homelands in the north just like they are now doing in the east. Any opportunity to steal what rightfully belongs to the Tamils.

  • 9
    3

    Author portrays muslims as if they are an innocent community who got caught in the crossfire between the LTTE and the SL armed forces.
    While the LTTEs actions to chase muslims out was very bad, understand their motive for doing so. Muslims were actively playing both sides against each other for their own benefit. Muslims in LTTE areas were pretending to be supporters and friends of the LTTE and then acting as informants for the SL government. The LTTE suffered some losses because of this. And it provoked and annoyed them enough to chase the entire muslim community out.
    They are part of the Tamil speaking community but want to identify themselves as something separate. Only in Sri Lanka do you see something as silly as ‘Sinhala, Tamil and Muslim’
    The former two are languages and the latter is a religion.
    Muslims did this so they can escape the wrath of the Sinhala racists. But as you can see in recent years the plan didnt work as the Sinhala racists turned on them also.
    Muslims have also been moving away from their more moderate sufi foundations in SL and becoming hardliners like the Saudi Arabians. SL muslims are very reluctant to talk about this openly. I suspect many of them are supporting this dangerous change in attitudes.
    The Sinhalese are also acting hypocritical with this Wilpattu issue as the SL armed forces have been illegally encroaching into several national parks. But nobody wants to talk about that.
    I am not going to get into a numbers argument over how many muslims and sinhalese the LTTE chased out and how many Tamils and muslims the SL government has stolen land from. Its really impossible to know the truth. And there is so much communal hatred among everyone, it seems all are prone to exaggerations on this issue.

    • 0
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      “Muslims have also been moving away from their more moderate sufi foundations in SL and becoming hardliners like the Saudi Arabians.”

      Sufi foundations?
      Is Tamil nationalism rewriting the history of the Muslims?

      • 2
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        sekara

        “Sufi foundations?”

        Haven’t you heard, met or seen member of Sufi tradition?

        Please refer to

        “Islamic Orthodoxy and Sufism in Sri Lanka”
        Victor de Munck

        Anthropos, Bd. 100, H. 2. (2005), pp. 401-414

        Anthropos Institut

        Abstract

        Abstract. – Historic and ethnographic materials are used to
        examine the opposition between local Sufi and fundamental-
        ist models of Muslim identity. Sufism is personified by the
        Moulana, a descendant of the Prophet Muhammad. Since 1914,
        a Moulana makes the rounds of Muslim villages to participate
        in an eight-day annual festival. He is thought to possess super-
        natural means for restoring social order and ensuring village
        prosperity. Members of the Tablighi Jama’at (a transnational
        Islamic orthodoxy movement) also visit Muslim villages. Their
        goal is to eradicate heretical practices such as the worship of the Moulana. Sufism is shown to connect villagers to supernatural
        funds of local and regionally constructed power; orthodoxy
        connects villagers to a global identity that supersedes the Sri
        Lankan national identity from which they are presently ex-
        cluded. [Sri Lanka, Muslims, identity, Islamic junaamenmusm,
        Sufism, Tablighi Jama’at

        Jailani A Sufi Shrine in Sri Lanka

        by Dennis B McGilvray
        colorado.edu/anthropology

      • 4
        3

        Tamil Nationalism is not rewriting the history of the Muslims but Wahhabi Islamic fundamentalism is trying to rewrite the history of the Muslims. Muslims of Sri Lanka are not Arabs or Moors but Dravidian Tamils from South India whose ancestors converted to Islam and migrated to the island a few centuries ago. If there is any Arab or other western Asian heritage, it is very little and only found amongst a few elite trading families, that had a very distant Arab male ancestor with all the rest Tamils. Arabs never came in their thousands to the shores of South India or Sri Lanka but a few hundred here and there to trade over a span of centuries and even only a few amongst them took local Tamil women as their Wives or concubines.
        The religion of the Sri Lankan Tamil Muslims was Sufi form of Islam, that was practised in Tamil Nadu and is very tolerant and is almost 1000 years old not this virulent intolerant Arabic Wahhabi form of Islam that they are now increasingly taking up to and deliberately Arabizing themselves to prove a point that they are different from their fellow Hindu and Christian Tamils.

        It is very obvious to everyone else that the Muslims of Sri Lanka are of Tamil ethnicity, other than to people like you and the Muslims living here who have been brainwashed by their elite to think that they are Arabs or Moors.

  • 5
    0

    Dear Mr Latheef Farook,

    I asked you a question three days ago: no response from you!

    Instead Bisthan Batcha came up with some pretty interesting factual stuff which I respected. I did pose two question to him as well, to which he has not responded, but I have no problem with that. I think him an honest man, but he can’t take on the entirety of your very unforgiving community! Fantastic comment by Bodin, January 12, 2017 at 8:21 am.

    One can make statistics lie in all sorts of ways, but I’m happy that Bisthan has presented what he has, because it is true that racism from us, Sinhalese, has become all too obvious in recent months. On the other hand, it is true that, worldwide, many non-Muslims are now becoming anti-Muslim. And for that, typical Muslim arguments and approaches are to blame. I’ve said enough in my first two comments.

    Up to a few months ago I used to receive a steady stream of nasty/ dirty jokes about Muslims, until I separately requested each of the senders to stop sending me such offensive stuff. I’m pretty sure that the stuff is snowballing, although I’m spared the worst of it now. I tell you, seriously, there could be great danger for all Mulsims everywhere.

    Now, Latheef, what is your response to my question, which was essentially, what are you doing to emancipate your women-folk?

    Markar (is HE a Muslim? Name suggests it!) has observed:

    “Lateef farook obviously has no idea of the need for forest conservation and biodiversity protection in our small country . . . .”

    Sorry if I’ve picked on YOU without ascertaining whether you’re the worst of the ill-liberal Muslim bloggers. I must check whether on other occasions you’ve responded to more comfortable questions. I have checked, and find that you have a blog praising Ven. Sobhitha, and condemning that (thankfully aborted) Saudi attempt to stone the housemaid.

    The award for worst must go to AYMAN!

    But you see, you initiate so many blogs; the reasonable Bisthan has responded to what I said, possibly realising that I was open to correction. Where are your responses? This paragraph written before checking!

    • 3
      0

      @Sinhala_Man

      My apologies for not responding to your queries sooner. I was a little pre-occupied with adding the final touches to my article titled ‘The Muslim Sri Lankan Population : Debunking Myths & Phobias’ which has now been posted in my blog.

      Firstly, thank you for engaging with the Muslim writers / commentators in these columns in a truly respectful manner. I will try to respond to your queries to the best of my ability.

      “ … though your figures for Tamils and Malays is at variance with what I see in the different table that I have directed you to. Can you explain the difference that I allude to?”
      The website you refer to does not give any data pertaining to the fertility rates for Tamils and Malays. So could you please indicate the specific table or data that you are referring to ?

      “May I ask if, having given figures that indicate higher than average Muslim population growth, YOU personally are doing anything to counter the trend ?”
      I am not involved directly with any collective effort at reducing the growth of the Muslim population in our Motherland. My fields of specialization lie elsewhere. However, the trend among all communities towards smaller families has definitely encompassed the Muslims. A study of 5 predominantly (98%) Muslim DS Divisions and 5 predominantly (98%) Buddhist DS Divisions has revealed that while the size of the average Buddhist family is 3.5, that of the average Muslim family is 4.0. The difference is not too significant.

      Secondly, I am strongly of the opinion that every female (Muslim or non-Muslim) has to be given the opportunity to realize her full potential during her lifetime. I therefore believe the time for amending the MMDA is long overdue based on the simple fact that our Holy Quran advocates gender equality very clearly.

      Finally, in all my writings and communications I have advocated the adoption of an empathetic approach towards the resolving of the ‘Muslim problem’. The recent upsurge in anti-Muslim sentiment is not the cause of the ‘problem’, it is a symptom of a much deeper issue.If you can access my blog, please read the post titled ‘Identifying the Muslim Problem’.

      So please stay engaged Sinhala_Man. There are many divisive forces (internal & external) at play. We must ensure that what we have in common (as Sri Lankans – our National identity) remains much stronger than our differences (as Buddhists, Hindus, Christians & Muslims – our Global identities).

    • 3
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      Dear Bisthan Batcha,

      Thanks for your objective, well-organised response here, and I have looked at your blog, which has indeed been created only today, so you would really have been working at it:

      https://bisthanbatcha.wordpress.com/2017/01/12/the-muslim-sri-lankan-population-debunking-myths-phobias/

      You quite rightly talk about: “The . . . stupidity and ridiculousness of estimating population sizes beyond reasonable limits of time.” Because of course such trends will NOT always remain the same’; but that is only because with education people like YOU will emerge even from “communities” that are – what word should I use – “conservative?”

      On the other hand, I knew that I was letting in a fallacy here:

      “You are quite right about it being impossible for Muslims to OUTNUMBER the Sinhalese given present trends.”

      Yes that’s what I wrote! I knew it was sitting there for exploitation because it incorporated Zeno’s Paradox:

      http://platonicrealms.com/encyclopedia/zenos-paradox-of-the-tortoise-and-achilles

      And you are aware of it; in your own blog you have adopted a reductio-ad-absurdum method to get to the conclusion that:

      (By Year 2262), the Total Population of Sri Lanka will be in excess of 1.1 Billion !!

      One MUST exercise a bit of wit and humour in these matters, and not get all tensed over issues.

      Long before THAT the trends would, of course, have necessarily changed owing to a number of possible causes that we cannot foresee at this point of time. This acceptance by me is possible because UNLIKE certain other commenters, you show a personal awareness of issues like MMDA and the anxieties of other groups in society, and you ARE able to affirm that we have more in common than the differences that get identified. So, let it rest there, for now. I will be aware that when you speak, you do so rationally. However, while I had the patience to track down your blog, don’t you think that you ought to have provided the “htpps link”?

      Lastly about the figures: you have used the more sophisticated fertility rates, whereas I extrapolated mainly from the growth of percentages of the population for Sri Lankan Moors. I’ve referred to Malays, but there are all sorts of other factors in relation to that tiny community, who are intermarrying (which I see as good! – and not necessarily because the resultant children will have a “Sinhalese identity”). We’ve got to STOP thinking on such rigid labelling lines! Similarly, in the example that you have used in your blog: Christians: Roman Catholic vs Other Christians. Yes, a use of statistics that ignores common sense can be most misleading.

      Bisthan would have understood what I’m saying, others may not unless they look at his blog. I haven’t attempted to plug the holes in my arguments, because the last thing we should try to produce in matters concerning human beings is to obtain QED victories. On the other hand there ARE persons in all communities who are so fanatical and dogmatic that we cannot afford to be so lassez faire in our approach!

  • 4
    2

    Certain Muslim politicians and individuals are going around and lying to various Indian and other foreign newspapers that around 100000 Muslims were evicted from the north and now their natural increase after 20 years is 300000 and they want to return.
    What a blatant lie. This is a deliberate attempt to settle large numbers of out of area Muslims in the north and swamp the Mannar and Vanni regions with Muslims, change the demography from overwhelmingly Tamil to Muslim.
    http://www.newindianexpress.com/world/2017/jan/12/sri-lankan-muslim-body-challenges-north-chief-ministers-claim-on-resettlement-1558917–1.html
    As per population statistics there were only around 55000-60000 Muslims in the five northern districts. The most in Mannar. The entire Mannar district’s population as per 2012 in around 99000. Jaffna district had only around 13000 Muslims.
    Where is this figure of 100000 drawn from and their natural increase to 300000. It is humanly impossible for even 100000 to increase to 300000 within 20 years. Leave alone the actual figure of around 55000 or thereabouts. Many of this 55000 would have had old men and women and others of non child bearing status.
    This is a sinister planned move to use the pathetic plight of expelled northern Muslims, most of whom are have now been given land and settled in Puttalam and do not want to return, to bring hundreds of thousands of outside Muslims to the sparsely populated Mannar and Vanni regions and create Muslim majority regions. For a future Muslim homeland in the north too. The east is not enough. Now the Tamils in the north must also suffer. They are aggressively going about this on this forum and at various places.

    • 0
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      robbing from robbers?

      • 2
        0

        Sinhalese looting from Muslims?

        • 3
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          Rohan

          “Sinhalese looting from Muslims?”

          Actually robber barons (clan and cronies) robbed the innocent Sinhalese more than they did from others except Gota’s Gold loot from Vanni,

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