By Emil van der Poorten –
As if Easter Sunday 2019 wasn’t bad enough, we had a response that was stereotypical of the JR Jayewardene era where the racist hounds of hell were unleashed on a segment of the population whose only crime was that they belonged to the same community as a handful of terrorists.
“Yankee Dick” was responsible for a massive relocation of Sri Lankan Tamils to such places as Canada, the US and the antipodes where they have contributed to those parts of the world far out of proportion to their numbers.
Before I deal with the recent fate of the Sri Lankan Muslim community let me reiterate, perhaps repeat, recent history.
When the Jihadist fringe was giving evidence of preparation for the kind of fundamentalist mayhem for which they are now only too well recognized, many orthodox members of the Islamic faith, prominent and respected members of that community, pleaded with members of this Yahapalanaya government to take appropriate action before it was too late. To no avail, despite those appeals, more often than not, being directed to those of the Islamic faith in the current ruling coalition who would have had the clearest understanding of the differentiation made by their co-religionists. Tragically, this is yet another instance of formal religious affiliations having very little to do with the practice of that faith.
Even though it might now seem as too little too late, the gravity of the decision by the mainline Muslim community not to accord the Jihadists a Muslim burial must be appreciated. After the Easter Sunday atrocity, the mainline Muslim community put action into words and visited upon the heretics the ultimate in rejection: not according the suicide bombers an Islamic burial. There is no denying the sincerity and gravity of this action.
And what of our Yahapalanaya lot? When the looters cut loose on, inevitably, those members of the Muslim community least able to defend themselves inclusive of members of a sect that had been provided sanctuary by Sri Lanka from the persecution of the very types responsible for the Easter Sunday massacre, our President reportedly sought some means of sending them away from Sri Lanka: this from a man who is only too ready to talk about our homeland being the final refuge of all that is good and great in Theravada Buddhism!
To say, “A pox on all your houses,” would be totally inadequate in the circumstances. People guilty of practicing this kind of hypocrisy and its terrible outcomes deserve something more appropriate in the way of punishment.
According to widely-circulated video, one of the major figures in Sirisena’s hodge-podge of Parliamentarians, had sought to have freed those taken into custody for looting and worse very recently. The general public expectation here is that if that stooge doesn’t succeed in having the criminals released, our President himself or one of the dozens of henchmen on tour in the Far East with him will be delegated to issue instructions, long distance, to the police that those taken into custody are to be restored to the bosoms of their families without delay.
This is the kind of country we are compelled to live in.
Is there nothing that can be done to rid ourselves of the Sirisena pestilence?
K.Pillai / May 17, 2019
Emil van der Poorten wants the answer to {“Where Will It All End?”}
To recap: Lankan Muslims have accepted blame for the ‘tragedy’ that was 2019 Lankan Easter Sunday.
The Lankan Elites without political borders are busy blaming each other as to why the ‘tragedy’ was allowed to be screened at all.
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A troupe in the ‘tragedy’ is the rightwing extreme nationalist Bodu Bala Sena (BBS).
Contribution of BBS to the ‘tragedy’ to be assessed.
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Without much ado: The answer to Emil’s “Where will it all end?” is………..”Where BBS takes us”
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Spring Koha / May 18, 2019
Darshini,
The ill-fated SWRD was born into a Church of England family; his colonial time ancestors converted to Church of England in order to serve the British Colonial masters. Baby Solomon was born during the time of Governor West Ridgeway and his papa Sir Solomon was the governors gatekeeper – that is, ensure that we natives behaved properly and served our colonial masters well. So, when the time came to baptise the young child he was named. . . Solomon West Ridgeway Dias B….hence the SWRD. This was the ultimate suck up!
With the usual influence, young SWRD went to Oxford wearing Oxford Bags and behaving like a proper WOG Charlie. At Oxford, our favoured son was often called unkind names reminding him that he was a pampered colonial upstart. When he returned, he quickly caught the mood of the coming nationalist times and quickly changed into an Arya Sinhala suit, and converted to Buddhism. His trump card was to promise ‘Sinhala in 24 hours’.
Alas, he did the right thing in the wrong way. That was the start of this country’s inexorable slide to eternal damnation.
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Nimal Tissa Wijethunga / May 18, 2019
Moulavis have confirmed on several occasions that they have provided the list of Mosques preaching whabism, salafism format of fanatic islam with hate speeches, sermons, separate food, separate clothes like ghost, niqab, burkha, alienating with Arabian Penninsula are identified and bulldoze as part of fighting Islamic terrorism because these are the places where brainwash of the people are being taken place and almost the factories producing fanatics, terrorists and suicide bombers.
Besides, all ministers, MPs connected or supported or known of these activities must be arrested in the first place and then started investigation without bail.
The Muslim society must have self -criticism shed all the fanatic format of Islam practises originated recently through ahabism, Sufism, Salafism etc ad must start to align with Sri Lankan values, traditions, custom and must not ask for separate clothes, food, madrasa, law, schools, universities, in order to be Sri Lankans in the first place and otherise the antagonism will continue and the problem will continue.
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Plato. / May 18, 2019
Srilankan Govts: since Independence in 1948 have not been Minority friendly.
The first to leave [voluntarily] were the Burghers in the post 1956 period. They had distinguished themselves in the Professions and in all walks of life.We lost most of them to Australia.
The next to go ,almost chased out, were the Tamils in the post 1983 anti Tamil pogrom.There are Tamils even in Iceland!
This time around due to the extreme elements within the Muslim community, all Muslims run the risk of being labelled as Islamic terrorists!
Now I know why Emil has titled the essay Where will it all end?
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Kailainathan / May 19, 2019
Violence against minority’s can only be stopped by ending impunity .And also bring them all perpetrators to the court of Justice . We never hear any one being bring ,booked .punished for their crimes/violent act .
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