By Farweez Imamudeen –
Farweez Imamudeen
The holy site was apparently unmarked. No signs indicating an ancient religious site, were to be seen in the vicinity. In addition, people had in the past taken pictures standing on it. Yet, when it was brought to the attention of the Horowopathana police that seven South Eastern University students had taken pictures, while standing on the Kiralagala sthupa they were apprehended and remanded with a sensational news story to supplement the whole drama.
Fair enough. Those who intentionally revile a religious site need to make amends by going through the systematic process of law and order, for treating such an act with indifference may have grave consequences for the society at large.
However, justice is not to apprehend civilians for merely climbing atop an ancient ruin, which is claimed to be an ancient religious site; justice is not to remand a group of students for standing on an ancient sacred site, which apparently bore no signs or indications of its sacredness; justice in fact is to consider the context of the incident before randomly throwing people behind bars.
To find out whether it was justice that was truly served we need to assess the site in which the so called abominable act took place. Was there any indication to say that it is an ancient religious site? Apparently NO! There are hundreds of ruins all over the island, but how many of them are religious and thus holy? How is anyone to know if there is nothing to indicate to distinguish the sacredness of the site? If there’s nothing to indicate that the site is sacred, and therefore ought to be treated with respect, what is the logic behind apprehending someone for reviling it by standing on it?
After all every ruin are merely remains of building materials. Thus in the absence of a sign to distinguish a sacred location, the general and lay public will merely and naturally regard it as another ancient building. It is the responsibility of the archeological department to label the sacred sites. Why did they not take measures to inform the public? Do they expect the citizens to carry a manual of all the archeological ruins wherever they go, or to have knowledge of the sacredness and non-sacredness of every single archeological ruin in Sri Lanka?
Does the innocent and ignorant public have to pay for the negligence of the archeological department?
Isn’t the archeological department the real perpetrator here?
Had they stood on the ruins of Kiralagala sthupa knowing it was a religious site these students deserve to be apprehended, but how could they have known if there was no indication of any sort? If an offensive act needs to be proved beyond reasonable doubt for the suspects to be accused, then the fact that there was no sign to indicate the holiness of the site should be sufficient to prove their innocence. This is basic logic! But logic is one ingredient that is perpetually lacking in the enforcement of Sri Lankan law; justice in Sri Lanka has turned out to be a mirage in a desert.
Sri Lanka has become a land where law is only for the weak, vulnerable and the oppressed; the masters write the law and choose the victim to serve their purpose. Justice therefore, is not in the agenda of rule-making and law-making. Rather, justice is what the authorities in power craft by twisting the law that is made for the survival of the greedy masters.
On the other hand, these Muslim students are not the first ones to stand on Kiralagala Sthupa. As seen in the picture even people from other cultures have done the same. I’m not as illogical as the Sri Lankan police to ask why the law is biased in this case, for I strongly believe that this cannot be regarded as reviling since the site is unmarked. But my question is, despite this photo making its rounds in the media (Lanka True News) for the last couple of weeks, why hasn’t any other media published this at least as a means of creating awareness of the subtle racism that is in play behind this fiasco? Why did not Daily Mirror, Ada Derana, Daily News and Sunday Times, which responded at lightening pace to publish the photo of the seven Muslim boys, to sensationalize the issue and to accumulate cheap readership, never did the same with the photo with the non-Muslims? This is a blatant demonstration of the kind of bubble media ethics practiced by our biased media supermarkets.
How many of us knew that this photo with the seven boys from the South Eastern University was published on the Facebook page of the students concerned over a year ago? Why did it then take over a year for the police to apprehend them? It is noteworthy that this drama took place soon after their final exam was over. Friends of these students have posted on their Facebook pages claiming that this was a planned revenge against a couple of boys who were bound to be top scorers.
Regardless of whether this is a planned or unplanned act, the apprehension and remanding of the boys remains truly and absolutely a mockery of justice.
But we live in a gone to dogs land where Karuna Amman who played an active role in massacring Sinhalese, Tamils and Muslims in thousands has earned state protection, while a man who yawned inside courts premises is remanded for three months.
With men and women whose rationality has been severely crippled, not even God can save Sri Lanka.
chiv / January 30, 2019
Enough of this crap. It is not even fun any more. We hear all kind of shit including sterilization pills, offensive dresses, undergarment, taking pictures which turned as punishable offences. At this rate very soon if you take a leak or a dump in your own house it may turn to be an offence because some idiot thought it was of a ruin.In fact the whole country is in ruin which is not an issue at all. Soon Lanka as a country will be history (turned into archaeological site) In Lunatic Lanka to illegally confisticate lawful property criminals, politicians, mafia, land grabbers ,or fanatic religious heads, all they have to do is hang a notice board overnight and it is theirs the next day. Truly a “archaeological shit hole like no other”. Stop people from pissing and spitting by the road side and then look for the ruins which is not there.
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Fathima / January 30, 2019
I hardly see a problem is sorted out in SL, it is just forgotten over the time when a new problem over takes the highlight. (However, the privileged ones’ issues are sorted out when they demand, not the underprivileged ones, take for example the doctors demand for vehicle, school etc, versus the poor tea estate workers demand for day salary increment).
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sach / February 1, 2019
This island was a center of civilisation unlike the barbarian ruled Mecca which is still infected by barbarians. If the brits did not dig up oil there and created KSA, the founders of Islam would be still staying in huts humping the camels. So unlike that barbarian ruled Mecca, you will see and witness evidences of human civilisations in this island. They may look like archaeological shit holes to aliens who worship a pedophile from barbarian mecca but not to the native people who lived here. So if you dont like it, you have the option of leaving
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sathsidu ganasara / February 1, 2019
Sach The idiot writes
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Ranjith(SPRRW) / January 30, 2019
Notices is there or not It does not change Islamist’s mind set. Their god rewheelation is to destroy the other religion & make whole world adhere to So called almighty Allah. Koran 8;55 verse very clearly indicate this ” None believers are viliest animals on earth so that if they are killed in halal way Islamists can even consume their flash even with-out cooking. I suppose That was why ISIS terrorist killed foreign Journalists in Halal way and consumed their hearts.
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Mov. Shafeek Mohideen / January 30, 2019
Ranjith(SPRRW),
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People like you are the curse for this country’s development. Don’t you realize that unwarranted fear in you is putting you and the country in deep $hit?
If you try to translate Quranic verses without properly understading the context under which a verse came. Or read some Internet blog posts of anti-Islamic propaganda, this happens. I am sure even those Islamic extremists read it the same way as you did. This is what it is meant for:
These verses (start from 8:55 to 8:59) refer to the Jews of Medina, and in particular to those of the clan of BANU QURAISA, who frequently made covenant with the prophet, to observe the limits of the new Divine Movements; but they repeatedly broke their treaty, and betrayed! An instance of their betrayal was in the battle of Moat.
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Al-faqurlah / January 30, 2019
Please do not come up with excuses to cover up a crime. This was deliberately done and to say that those who committed it did not know that it was a sacred site cannot be accepted. It is well established that Muslims do not respect other religions and this act is not something of an exception but a norm in Muslim countries. When Muslims desecrated Hindu sites in eastern province and in Mannar, government took no action. Now they have become bold and have targeted Buddhist temples in Mawanella and Anuradhapura. This is an act of hatred and those who did must be given deterrent punishment. otherwise this will repeat and Buddhism will not be safe. Since Pakistan supreme courts have ruled that insulting Prophet Mohamed is not blasphemy, why are authorities in Sri Lanka fearing for these Islamic extremists. Again in Kinniya Muslims have attacked a navy camp for apprehending Muslim crooks excavating sand illegally, and the navy was asked to show restraint. This is blatant interference in the enforcement of law, and is a dangerous precedent for future Islamic arrogance.
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M. Sajjad / January 30, 2019
Hello Al-faqurlah,
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Your tea estate boss gave a break finally? You should have taken the leave during election days so I can give you a “Paappa baldi” and a brush to stick some posters around city in the wee hours.
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Al-faqurlah / January 30, 2019
Sajjad the Islamic infidel, allow the legal process to proceed. In Indonesia the Christian mayor was jailed for blasphemy for his constructive criticism of Kuran. In Pakistan a Christian woman was held in custody for nine years on a false charge of blasphemy. In this case an open crime has been committed and it has been boasted in social media as some feat against Sinhalese. Still the culprits have not issued a statement apologising for the act and regretting for it. If they are really sorry they must go to a Buddhist temple, kneel in front of Buddha and ask for pardon. If government does not take strong action to stop this type of Islamic racism, people are likely to take the law into their hand. When Rev Gnanasara was active all these Islamic racists were like dogs, and now that he is in prison, they have started to bark about. Remember with one shout the big talking Ridshard Badurdeen put his tail between his legs.
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ghk / January 31, 2019
Al-faqurlah – If you didn’t understand, Sajjad suggested what the best you can offer back to the mother land within your capacity, and not to get into any serious stuff. You must thank him for finding some use in you. Why burst?
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Your once lived “ruthless leader” might be cursing you in his grave for switching sides with the south suddenly?
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Al-faqurlah / January 31, 2019
Another Islamic infidel coming out with two cents worth. My ruthless leader is going to be elected as next president and he will make you piss in your pants. Start worshipping Buddha to get your brain cleansed of rotten Koranic curse.
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ghk / January 31, 2019
“My ruthless leader is going to be elected as next president” – See the moment you said that, the other Tamils started labeling you a traitor and thumbs down starts :-(
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Ranjith(SPRRW) / January 31, 2019
In a military doctrine like Your Islam doctrine Lying & Lying low may be essential part of your final goal achievement. But actually punishment for the them will be very sever in this life & next lives to come as per our belief. Obtaining luxury life in heaven with seven virgins might be only a dream.
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sach / February 1, 2019
Most may not tell it open, but almost all non Muslims’ perception of Islam your religion, is similar to Ranjith. They are not just open with it. For example, I treat Islam as the worst thing on earth, but whenever I meet a Muslim I say good things about it. Just practicing taqqya.
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M. Sajjad / January 30, 2019
Mr. Ranjith:
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The writer says where the fault is, yet you don’t seem to understand the logic. First of all, there is something wrong in your mindset to look at every Muslim as an extremist linking irrelevant stories that happens else where. Psychological issue.
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Muslims are too busy making money greedily, they don’t care about even good things said in Quran, let alone this type of a thing. Let the Law and relevant authority deal with the matter whenever an extremist raises his head. This sort of fears will only affect your good health. Life is too short and we don’t take anything when we go. Enjoy the life man! :-)
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Real Revolutionist / January 30, 2019
Those youth who climbed up that apparently Buddhist place of worship should not be punished because they might have done it without knowledge as the writer suggests.
Even if they’d done it with evil intention, true Buddhists shouldn’t take it seriously because their evil intention itself becomes a sin for them.
Just make them aware that almost all the debris are related to Buddhism or culture of the people. & take them to respect them unless there might be some to tread on their holy book to make them vile.
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K.Anaga / January 30, 2019
The people who climbed the sacred ruins are are arrested forthwith, whether they did it knowingly or unknowingly, But those who have played out the money of the public knowingly are free to climb on the CITIZENS who are sacred. They only become sacred just before the elections.
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Socrates / January 30, 2019
Islamic logic
According to your religion I have the freedom to practise my religion. According to my religion I have the freedom to kill you. Therefore according to your own religion I have the freedom to kill you.
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farweez imamudeen / January 30, 2019
I don’t even see the point of arguing with you since your claim has nothing to do with Islam. Please do yourself a favour and go read a proper book instead of finding your evidence from some dubious internet source. Do some justice to your username.
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Real Revolutionist / January 30, 2019
Socrates
As a matter of fact
One day this Islamic logic itself will bring them the deserved disaster unless the so called believers open their eyes to see the truth. Still they have time.
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ghk / January 31, 2019
Real Revolutionist.
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“so called believers open their eyes “
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In the world, Saudi Arabia is the country which is very strict about what is said in Quran. And this is the country that provides highest number of job opportunities to the Sri Lankans (Sinhalese being majority here, obviously most of workers are Sinhalese).
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To say the importance of Saudi Arabia to SL, if Saudi announces they will stop taking workers from SL, I am sure a SL govt delegation will be in Riyadh in the next flight with some Muslim ministers to convince them, because they are a major part of our main income, “foreign workers” without whom, we couldn’t have bought our soldiers boots to fight Tigers – unfortunately this is the fact.
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My point here is, if Muslims discredit or discriminate non-Muslims, it should have started with extreme Saudi Arabia? There are too many non-Muslims from SL in the top positions in Saudi Arabia, and there is no reason that they could not find better candidates from elsewhere with all the money they have – THINK PLEASE
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Real Revolutionist / February 5, 2019
It’s not always poverty that sends SL workers, especially women as house maids to Saudi-Arab & other ME countries, it’s their greed for money.
Politicians have made it to their benefit, sacrificing the dignity of the country.
It must be appreciated if Saudi or any such country stop employing SL workers in their country to give Sri Lankans a challenge.
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Smart / January 30, 2019
Does anything relevant in your comment to the article. Not extremists, ignorance fellows like you makes problems worse and make the extremists more extreme.
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Rtd. Lt. Reginald Shamal Perera / January 30, 2019
The nefarious Muslims will not do anything without the intention of degrading another religion.
This was done and posted on Facebook because when other Muslims see it, they are also encouraged by it to degrade other religions.
The Ponna govt. we have is to be blamed for this. These rif-rafs should be caught and their legs amputated so that they or any other Monkey will never attempt this sort of thing ever again.
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Sach / January 30, 2019
This author displays the same mentality of the Muslim terrorists who were apprehended after demolishing Buddha statues. The Muslim terrorists had plans to attack Buddhist Hindu status and crosses islanwide.
If they are simply building materials I wonder why non Muslims are barred from entering Muslim holy places. I would like to go to Mecca in a shorts and throw stones at their Satan wall for fun. Would I be allowed?
If these adults do not know that they are standing on a Buddhist stupa that’s their issue. It shows how alien the modern Muslims are to the national psych. You don’t go to another’s place of worship and disrespect it and come with no issue.
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Medalankara de Choppe / February 1, 2019
Sach- What value do you attach to a mass of earth, rock and bricks.Only value if at all is it’s age and nothing else.
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wannihami / January 30, 2019
This site was clearly marked both as a Stupa and as a site belonging to the Archeological Department, and the Archeological department sign also says it is an ancient Buddhist religious site (all signs are in English and Sinhala). There is no point anyone trying to whitewash the actions of this intellectually challenged group of students. It is the same mentality that expanded into destroying the ancient Buddha statues in Afghanistan. Imamudeen, your religion is not at fault it is the people like you are born to that religion who desecrate it. Shame on you.
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Mohamed Sazni / January 31, 2019
Hi guyz
From your brain & mind, Do you think minority even less than a half quarter will harrash intentionally the majority who are far more than half in all
Please leave your singular thoughts
We accept extremists are being every node but in this case it is not.
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sach / February 1, 2019
Does anyone here say a minority is harrasing? The bottom line is some adults entered a religious place of worship and disrespected it. They were arrested. But another one from that same community comes here whitewashing it.
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Lankan 7 / January 31, 2019
what happened to Sri Lankan logic, when Sinhalese did same things some times ago.. It was not a crime. 8 Students took photos of climbing this same place and it is everywhere in Facebook and social media. This was not crime but when Muslim boys by mistake have done this. It was looks like a big crime. If Lord Buddha is born again now He would detest and abhor what this so called educated judges do for these 7 boys.. There are innocent .. All international law, common law, Roman law, Islamic law and all sort of law tell us that if a mistake is done unconsciously or by mistake it is not a crime .. First put a sign that climbing here is prohibited.. there are hundreds of places like this .. please put a notice in all those places..
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sach / February 1, 2019
Who are the 8 sinhalese who climbed here? Are you talking about the Pidurangala incident? The boys who climbed Pidurangala and posted nude pictures were arrested and punished.
Are you saying the law must be lenient on them because they are Muslims?
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Nathan / January 31, 2019
This is nothing but classical Sinhala Buddhist Paranoia. It is a serious identity crisis and nothing else. Even if there is a Buddhas image on a dress or a tattoo it is a crime. Come on guys, please feel free to say how many of you Buddhists really follow at least 10% of what lord buddha preached? Alcohol, drugs, rape, murder, assault, theft, robbery, prostitution, child sex and you name it and all that is there. Even the so-called tourists who visit SL are mostly these perverts and crooks who are seeking such unlawful pleasures. Hardly any real spending tourists come to this country. SL is the world centre for drug transit. Even yesterday a chief of police crime investigation branch was arrested with his wife possessing so much drugs, and come on.
So guys please hang your morality and be realistic. Just do sensible things. Start teaching the youngsters at school about morality, drug menace, honesty, values, true SL history instead of talking the BS about Vijaya and Mahavamsa and Duttu gemnu as a Sinhala king who killed Dhemalus, etc, etc and your claim of your adi vasi concept where as Sinhala in present format only appeared around 50 century BC.. Stop distorting the history and teach people what the truth is. We all no doubt came from India and all lived along for many centuries. Pancha Isthalam is prehistoric long before Buddhsim and what had happened to Thondeswaram, present Dondara, where you guys have completely distorted the truth while foolishly worshipping the Hindu Deities.
Please accept that we are all from a common stock and no one is superior or no one is original.You guys are like a prostitute suddenly gave up her job and become an honourable house wife! It is all uncertainty. Please leave Buddhsim aside and it will proliferate. Check your clergy and politicians and that will save Buddhsim instead of looking at peoples underwear as to whether there are any Buddhas image down there.
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sach / February 1, 2019
Tamil mytho mania patients who believe everything in the world came from an orifice belonging to a Tamil need to take psychiatric treatment. Your lack of understanding of history in this country is not the problem of other people. Sinhalese live in an island with two groups of fascists, linguistic fascists and religious fascists.
If I say I want to stand on top of Nallur Kovil and piss on the statue there. How would that be greeted? With open arms?
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sach / February 1, 2019
Just asking Tamil mytho maniacs like you always say Buddhist remains of North and East were part of an Tamil Buddhist population ( which was invisible), but why dont these Tamil nationalists rise up and criticize when supposedly ruins of their ancient Tamil civilisation are attacked? Because deep in your heart, Tamil mytho maniacs know you are just lying, right?
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Rtd. Lt. Reginald Shamal Perera / January 31, 2019
What a disgraceful whitewash. At the very least, if some dogs from your community were cowardly enough to go after religious monuments because they have no guts to anything better, have the decency to own upto it and condemn it rather than condoning it.
And the picture of the stupa in this post is marvelous indeed. If you look at a proper picture of the Kiralagala stupa one will see that it’s impossible to mistake it for something other than a stupa. And in contrary to what this rogue has written here, there are clear signs erected by the Arch dept. that describes the historical and religous value of this stupa.
This is why I say Muslims scoundrels should never be trusted. Gnanassara thero didn’t tell us a single lie when he spoke about the nefarious activities of these scoundrels. Like the infertility pills, and forced conversions of Sinhalese Buddhist employees working at No-Limit.
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Bodin / February 1, 2019
Although this site has been marked as an ancient archeological site, it is clear that people have been misusing it and standing on it. There should be a protective fence to keep off people. Also, Buddhist or Hindu or Islamic, we need to protect historical sites or even POTENTIALLY historical sites.
I am a Muslim (of the Ismaili sect) and I don’t have any antipathy to historical relics, and fully condemn the idiotic Taliban-like mentality of some individuals. Islam teaches you to respect other religions. The historical monuments in India were well protected under the Moguls. Christian monuments were well protected in Spain under the Muslim rules in medieval times. Unfortunately, UK and US intervention in the middle east in the 1900-1930s led to their installing various regimes that they could manipulate to get cheap oil. These were not very educated or cultured rulers, and had extremely primitive ideas. Using their oil money, they have exported their unfortunate version of Islam which is in fact contrary to the true spirit of Islam. The latter requires harmony and goodwill of all beings (and this includes women) under God.
The students should be given a sentence of community service work, and the site should be cordoned off so that no one can get on the crumbling brick work. The archeological dept. must put a more detailed plaque explaining the history of the ruins, and a warning that disrespectful behaviour can lead to prosecution. Then people will respect it.
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Thassim / February 1, 2019
Total cover up of th le Mawanella issue by Jihadists. That is more important because those Wahabi or Taleban type primitives should never be allowed to attack other religions. Same way BBS types should not be allowed to harm other religions either. They gave wide coverages to BBS and Gnanasara’s antics, but zero coverage of the desecration of statues, beheading of statues in Mawanella etc. Why? I have seen photos of those. In Batticoloa, a monk has been threatened with beheading. Why not discuss those issues civilly?
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chiv / February 1, 2019
Retarded Perera why dont you take some of those miracle infertility pills your self. It will be a service to humankind, you pervert.
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