Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

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nvishal
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by nvishal »

Global economic slowdown is increasing. If CPEC's purpose is to provider an energy corridor for manufacturing china, then this corridor will not be maintainable or viable. My guess is that this corridor has a military purpose. Both china and the US are extremely worried with the concept of a south-asia without pakistan.

How would south-asia look like without pakistan? Can you think of this situation from their(West/china) eyes? I have tried but am not able to see what they see.
chetak
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by chetak »

Thanks to Peregrine ji. 8)

cross posting from the paki thread.

this is what the lankans are looking at some years down the line.

let the little buggers stew in their own juice and suffocate in the steely embrace of the hans.



Hail to the new master

Hail to the new master
By: Syed Muhammad Saad
19-Feb-17

The year is 2050. Pakistan is lined with motorways and railroads. Highways begin at the head of the country in Khunjerab and reach all the way to its tail in Gwadar. Every major power hub of the country has a power plant dedicated to it. Industrial parks are found at the outskirts of major cities. The cities have changed too. City skylines are lined with huge malls and skyscrapers housing multinational corporations. City markets are filled in excess with all kinds of services. The country is replete with economic activity. Pakistan, with its plethora of infrastructural facilities, has become what people, mostly politicians, had envisioned in their wildest dreams. And let us not forget the crown jewel. The icing on the cake. The cherry on top. Gwadar. Gwadar’s cityscape is no different than that of Shanghai or Dubai. Gwadar port exudes an aura of a thriving machine, at the epicentre of a massive manufacturing system. Many perceive it as having surpassed Dubai in terms of economic value. Its deep water port seemingly has more traffic than Dubai, Mumbai, Singapore. Pakistan is thought by many to have become a regional economic superpower. All is well. But is it?

All is not well. The reality behind this façade of economic development and political stability in the country is quite different. What lies behind this is quite bitter as opposed to the superficial image of economic prosperity portrayed by our skyscraper filled skylines. It is a truth that many do not want to speak of or write about. People who do intend to disseminate information about the actual politico-economic reality of the country face opposition from the general narrative prevalent among the economists within the country and those outside it. Reports by international ranking agencies rank Pakistan as one of the largest economies in the region. Such reports are used by the government, for political purposes, to suppress the truth and portray the country as a regional economic superpower. The majority of people have swallowed this narrative and the propaganda spread by the government to augment it. Many Pakistanis like to refer to the country as the Fifth Asian Tiger now. Anyone who says otherwise is seen as a foreign agent and a traitor, which does not come as a major surprise, as the art of terming people who speak the truth as traitors is a century old now. Many a times, journalists who talk about this issue are arrested on false charges. With blatant opposition from both the government and the blinded masses, and the fact that people are content with the false reality they are in, the unnerving truth remains buried deep down.

What is this truth that the government is trying to mask? What is this dark secret that the government has managed to hide, but which is whispered quietly among people who dare? What is this truth that the government has coated over with its lies to blind the country? It is the fact that we were deceived. We were misled by our leaders. We were fooled. Fooled by a dear friend of ours. This friend had always portrayed itself to have our best interests at heart. This friend, with whom we thought we had a friendship higher than the highest mountains, deeper than the deepest oceans, and sweeter than the sweetest honey, fooled us. This friend gave us a medicine that he claimed was the panacea for all our ills. But through that medicine, he enslaved us and it is a kind of slavery whose shackles of domination cannot be thrown off easily. The dear friend was China. And the medicine was CPEC.

A few decades back, our country was in a perilous state. We were deemed an economic failure by many. Our industries were falling apart. Unemployment was rife. Power shortage had become the bane of our existence. The solution to all our problems was given to us by our dear friend. China promised to build an economic corridor through our country. The economic corridor would include highways, pipelines, power plants, industrial parks, and a road connecting Pakistan’s north to its south. We wholeheartedly accepted the idea of CPEC, like a sick person desperately seeking a medicine. Due to our poor, economically miserable state, coupled with our obsession with infrastructure and our misguided perception that roads and buildings signify development, we fully swallowed this idea. And hence began our downward spiral into slavedom. Again.

We were drilled with the notion that the realization of CPEC would transform us into a self-sustaining entity able to stand on its own legs. We were not aware that this very same CPEC would break our legs. That it would bend us before someone who was doling out gifts wrapped in their concealed desire for economic imperialism. We were told that China would give us loans to finance a large number of infrastructural, energy and industrial projects. It is beyond me what went through the minds of economists and statesmen at the time that they were unable to understand that this was a project financed by a huge amount of loans. I cannot possibly comprehend that with Pakistan’s public debt of $180 billion at the time the project was in its initial stages, why did we agree to burden ourselves with $50 billion in addition. Why did we not understand that the loans we were taking for these projects amounted to a value that even our total public debt should not have been?

All that the enlightened economists at the time could say to critics was that they did not understand development. That they did not understand how debt worked. That these are ‘soft’ loans. That their interest rate is minimal compared to the prevailing interest rate. No one however realized that a ‘soft loan’ is a loan nonetheless, that even if interest was totally waived off, the amount of the loan in itself was humungous. But sadly we were convinced that these projects would generate foreign investment that would boost our economies. And that the revenue generated from these economic activities would pay back everything. Build-operate-transfer had become the slogan of economists at that time. Their narrative was that the Chinese would build all the projects, operate them, and transfer projects back as their debt is paid. Well, decades have passed. The Chinese did build those projects. They did operate these projects. But they never transferred a majority of those projects to us. It was simply because we haven’t been able to pay back that debt. Now, most of these projects are owned by the Chinese companies. Industries, power plants, even all these highways are operated by the Chinese. Recently, some lawmaker made an allegation that the transport tax we were promised years back is collected by Chinese companies that operate these highways. Pakistani entities do have a share in the companies that operate or work on CPEC, but these are minor shares. Our status is just like that of a parasite feeding on a large organism. We are in this situation because we could not generate the revenue to pay back the gigantic amount of debt incurred to finance these projects. How could we? We never owned the projects. What we owned was our minimal share as compared to that of our debt-financiers. Pakistani entities owned a stake in CPEC ventures that generated revenues which were as meagre as the share that they had in those ventures. So, we never had a way to generate enough revenue in order to pay back the loans. And our inability to pay back that debt has prevented us from actually reaping the benefits of CPEC.

Although CPEC brought in a lot of investment in the form of foreign investors like MNCs, but as is the case with every developing country with capitalist corporate entities present in it, the revenue generated is flown out of the country. What CPEC managed to do was provide a fertile ground to these foreign entities and a route for China to send its goods abroad. And the vast presence of Chinese goods and companies in Pakistan has been detrimental to the local industry. Pakistan is not only a passageway for the Chinese, but also a dumping ground for their low quality goods. The Chinese economic presence has suffocated us. The whole corridor, from the roads to the plants to the port is technically like a tentacle that rings through Pakistan’s land right to its tail. A tentacle of the octopus that is the Chinese economic imperialism. An arm that they dug through Pakistan to solidify their economic hegemony in the region and in the wider world.

This economic supremacy of the Chinese has also transformed the political setup in Pakistan. The vast economic influence in turn calls for political influence at a similar scale. People have started feeling that Chinese influence is seeping into our political circles. Many of the decisions made by our politicians seem to uphold Chinese interests. Taxes being waived off for Chinese companies and traffic, Chinese companies not being scrutinized and regulated are a few examples of the Chinese having a free reign in our country as our politicians look the other way.

Another way in which our slavery has manifested itself in the economic arena is the Chinese domination in the job arena. CPEC projects caused an influx of Chinese people into the country. Resultantly, majority of these ventures are operated by the Chinese. All the higher officials of these companies are Chinese. The lower jobs are reserved for our graduates. It’s like how Pakistanis were treated in Dubai. Now Pakistanis get a similar treatment in their own country.

CPEC has also given the Chinese politicians and officials a reason to feel that we owe them. After all, they ‘transformed’ our country into a hustling bustling hub of gigantic malls and wide highways. And this is why they feel entitled to a higher status than the common citizens of Pakistan. Interactions between Chinese officials and Pakistani people in public exhibit an aura of condescension and patronisation on part of the Chinese officials. Recently, a Chinese diplomat misbehaved with a law enforcement official and beat him up. The story goes that his guards also fired at the official. But strangely, the matter was brushed under the carpet by the government. No action was taken against the diplomat. Times are eerily reminiscent of the era when Americans used to manhandle our citizens. Maybe someday we will witness a Chinese Raymond Davis.

How naïve were we? How did we not realize that this would happen? Maybe we were ignorantly optimistic. Maybe we were swept away by the promises of the ruling government of the time. Our gullible selves were implanted with the notion that CPEC would benefit Pakistan and not the entity that financed those projects, built those projects, and now operated those projects. We were under the naive impression that CPEC would not only benefit the Chinese corporations that will operate their businesses here, but the wealth generated by those businesses would be shared among the common man like langar at a shrine on Thursday. Our deluded selves, which were greatly attracted to infrastructural ventures and were constrained by the inability to understand the importance of self-sustainability, wholeheartedly accepted this project.

We were seemingly oblivious to the fact that this was a ploy by the Chinese to economically enslave us as part of their campaign of economic imperialism. Two hundred years back, we were enslaved by the British through the East India Company. But that enslavement was aided by military conquests. Our knees were brutally and explicitly broken. Following our independence from the British, we were enslaved by the Americans. The Americans gave us enemies and made us fight their wars. Because of our innate desire to not ever become a self-sustaining entity, and the fact that we would get military aid in return for fighting their wars, we happily became their mercenaries. However, this time it was different. The British and the Americans were open bullies, forcefully making us do what they asked, but China was different. Our dear friend China had always portrayed itself to have our best interests at heart. Our enslavement at the hands of our dearest friend was subtle and discreet. When we had fallen down, and were weak and hopeless, this friend gave us a pat on the head and told us that everything would be okay. That he had a panacea for all our miseries. This friend, who was in reality a demon at the crossroads, gave us a medicine in the form of CPEC and told us that it would help us get up.

And here we are now. Years later. Still down. Still a slave. With our begging bowl in front of a new master. I don’t know what the future holds for us, whether we will ever be economically independent. What I know is that when China is done with us, it would dispose us off and go on to prey upon a new victim. But for now, we are their slaves. So all we can say is; Hail to the new master.
Philip
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Philip »

The fishermen's spat is like a festering diabetic sore .Something drastic needs to be done.Joint patrolling by the CG/SLN is the only answer to prevent illegal fishing by fishermen from either side. After the end of the Eelam War,Jaffna Tamil fishermen want to resume their old routine,but find poaching by Indian fishermen detrimental to their livelihood. Secondly,there has been a long tradition of lucrative smuggling going on between India and Ceylon/SL for decades. A dear departed Lankan pal of mine said he used the unofficial Palk Straits "ferry" years ago. But the fundamentla problem is depleted fish stocks because of over fishing by trawlers using deep trawl methods.Fishing fleets have to go out and fish within our 200 EEZ zone. To increase fish stocks around the coastline,rustbucket merchantmen must be sunk near the shore,outside shipping lanes,which will prove to be breeding grounds for fish as has been seen worldwide. There are umpteen number of redundant oil rigs available which could be good platforms for other purposes too.canning factories could be set up in them.

The SLN is looking to revamp its navy with cooperation from Russia,looking at acquiring Gepard class frigates. This is a good development,choosing Russia instead of China like BDesh!
https://sputniknews.com/military/201606 ... -ministry/
Xcpt:
Russia, Sri Lanka Aim to Strengthen Military Cooperation - Defense Ministry © Sputnik/ Министерство обороны РФ
MILITARY & INTELLIGENCE
15:23 05.06.2016
Russian Deputy Defense Minister Anatoly Antonov and Sri Lanka's Defense Secretary Karunasena Hettiarachchi during a bilateral meeting on Sunday pledged to deepen military cooperation between the two countries, according to a statement issued by the Russian ministry.
"Karunasena Hettiarachchi reaffirmed the intentions of further strengthening and development of mutual contacts. Within the meeting the Russian Deputy Defence Minister pointed out the future directions of the Russian-Sri Lankan cooperation including the one in the field of preparation of military officers in the educational institutions of the Russian Defence Ministry," the statement reads.

Xcpt:
Russia, Sri Lanka Discuss Delivery Contract of Gepard 3.9 Frigates © Sputnik/ Maksim Bogovid
MILITARY & INTELLIGENCE
10:12 22.03.2017
Russia and Sri Lanka are in discussions over a contract on the delivery of Gepard 3.9-class frigates to Colombo, the deputy director of Russia's Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation (FSMTC) told Sputnik.

Russia delivered two Gepard 3.9s to Vietnam in 2011, with two other guard vessels under construction in Russia's Republic of Tatarstan.
The sides "positively estimated the developing cooperation" while the meeting was held in a friendly atmosphere, the ministry added.
Philip
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Philip »

Great news! We've kept out other firangi interlowers in this JV. I think the subtle pressure put upon the GOSL reg. the Chinese presence in H'tota,saw the Lankans balance the equation by giving us this opportunity.Now that we have the lease,it is upto the GOI to make it a commercial success by involving Indian majors in the pvt. sector to exploit the opportunity.
Trinco oil tanks to be leased out to India
2017-04-07

After deliberations involving President Maithripala Sirisena and Indian High Commissioner Taranjith Singh Sandhu, the government has decided to lease out the Trincomalee Oil Tank Farm for development jointly with India, a Minister said yesterday.

In the lower farm, there are 14 tanks currently being used by Lanka Indian Oil Company (LIOC). However, there are 84 tanks in the Upper Tank Farm that are not being used at the moment.

Petroleum and Petroleum Gas Minister Chandima Weerakkody told the Daily Mirror that ten of these tanks would be retained by the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC), and the rest would be developed jointly with LIOC under a joint venture.

He said the government decided on this after a series of meetings involving President Sirisena, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe , the Indian High Commissioner and him.

The initial move was to hand over all the tanks to the Indian authorities. However, the Minister said President insisted that at least ten tanks should be vested with the Sri Lankan side. (Kelum Bandara)

- See more at: http://www.dailymirror.lk/article/Trinc ... jsOLr.dpuf
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Tuan »

The Five Eyes are said to be expanding operations in the Indian Ocean region and subsequently building an observation post in Kollupitiya.

Foreign intelligence warns of US observation facility at Kollupitiya
Attention of the intelligence communities of several countries has been drawn to the US embassy’s having purchased a six-acre plot of land next to the British high commission at Kollupitiya.

This property is to be used by the US, Britain, Canada, Australia and New Zealand to establish an operations centre for their respective intelligence services. If high-tech radar and communication equipment are installed there as planned, that will have a serious impact on the Asian countries, intelligence services of several countries in the region are concerned. It was ex-president Mahinda Rajapaksa who had approved this, as a government-to-government deal.

Both India and China have taken serious note of the US establishing a regional observation centre in the heart of Sri Lanka’s nerve-centre where the Colombo port, Galle Face green, Colombo Fort and commercial establishments are located. If the US installs a radar system, India and China are to follow suit.

This plot of land is heavily guarded and the buildings constructed there by Britain have been demolished to prepare the land for a new construction. Intelligence services of several countries have told government politicians that such a centre would severely compromise Sri Lanka’s security in the future.

When asked if the US can make a direct purchase of the said land, defence secretary Karunasena Hettiarachchi said as far as he knew, there was nothing to prevent it, noting that the land where a diplomatic mission is located is owned by the respective country. He said he was unaware if the US is going to build a regional observation centre there.
chetak
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by chetak »

X posted from the political thread

No wonder the sickular TN fishermen are so insistent on "fishing" in SL waters.

There is a lot more than fish involved.

Like drugs, weapons and human trafficking, no??.


Sri Lankan coast guard seizes Indian boat with Myanmar Rohingya refugees
Sri Lankan coast guard seizes Indian boat with Myanmar Rohingya refugees

30th April 2017 |

COLOMBO: Sri Lankan coast guards have seized an Indian fishing boat and detained two Indians and 30 Rohingya refugees, including 14 children, after the vessel illegally entered the country's territorial waters, authorities said today.

They were detained off the coast of Kankesanturai in the country's northern Jaffna peninsula, the navy said.

"Sri Lankan coast guards were observing the International Maritime Boundary Line. They found this Indian fishing boat with unusually large group of people," navy spokesman Chaminda Walakuluge said.

The people held include seven men, seven women and 16 children, besides the two Indian crew.

A 15-day-old baby and a four-month-old child were also on board, the official said.

The boat was carrying Myanmar refugees who had fled to India four years ago due to clashes in Myanmar.

The vessel, operated by the two Indians, had entered Sri Lanka's northern waters after crossing the sea border, the officer said.

They were handed over to local authorities to decide further action.

Investigators suspect that the crew were trying to bring the Rohingya illegally to Sri Lanka.

The Muslim Rohingya in Myanmar's Rakhine state are denied citizenship and face brutal discrimination in the Buddhist- majority country.
Philip
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Philip »

The upcoming mtg. between Modi and Sirisena/Ranil W should forge ahead on the joint Indo-Lanka accords that need to be sealed,no matter what the tyrant Rajapakse tries to do fomenting protests,etc. It was his grand corruption that brought in the Chinese ,Lanka selling off the family silver to pay for its debts,to squat in our backyard. India must make it abundantly clear to the Lankans that it will never tolerate any foreign entity using the island in any military form detrimental to India.Should the "5 eyes" gang of "suddhas" (paleskins) attempt to establish their intel set up which will then have a virtual common boundary with our HC,one US blg. does so,then we must shift our HC to more secure premises and convert the exg. HC into an Indian equiv of the "5-eye" setup!
Bhurishravas
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Bhurishravas »

http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-new ... bmmjK.html
Sri Lanka rejects Chinese request for submarine visit over India’s concern; Modi lands in island nation.
Sri Lanka last allowed a Chinese submarine to dock in the capital of Colombo in October 2014, a move that triggered fierce opposition from its northern neighbour India, which worries about growing Chinese activity in a country it has long viewed as part of its area of influence.
Philip
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Philip »

Diplomatic rejection of "request". It was deliberately timed so that a Chinko sub could show the upturned finger to Mr.M during his visit.But what happens afterwards ,when he returns to India? Is this Lankan establishment strong enough to resist Beijing? Ranil W is scuttling off like a hungry crab on his way to the Beijing OBOR buffet,and everyone knows that the GOSL is ehavil;y in debt to the Chinese loansharks. The GOSL has tried to balance the Htota port ,a Chinese base in effect,by letting us partake in a JV for the Trinco oil tanks,but local protest orchestrated by Rajapakse and his Chinese masters are trying to derail the same.

In fact this is a sad commentary about our great MEA,in that not a single agreement will be signed during Modiji's visit! Some have been pending for years. All one can say is that after years of screaming about neglect of the "Indian Tamils",plantation workers in the hill regions of SLModiji is finally visiting Kandy (to pay his respects to the Sacred Tooth at the Dalada Maligawa and the Maha Sangha) and opening a hospital in Dickoya. 75% of the population in SL is Sinhalese and Buddhist.India must leverage its ancient status as the origin of Buddhism and assist lankans who visit India on pilgrimage.Similarly,we must also help our pilgrims ,both Buddhist and Hindu who wish to visit Lanka ,and pay their respects to the many sacred sites of Hinduism and Buddhism.

Lanka and India are joined not only at the hip but also spiritually,most importantly,unlike the greedy atheist Commie Chinese who only want to rape smaller nations of their wealth and turn them into vassal slaves. SL should be the primary priority of the MEA as under no circumstances should we allow a Chinko mil presence on the island anywhere. Even the Htota project and Colombo Port City project must be derailed.
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Muns »

Didn't see too much information on recent navy involvement in Sri Lanka posted so :

From India Aware ;

Sri Lanka floods: Indian Navy teams deployed: Battle to rescue stranded as death toll mounts ; http://www.india-aware.com/sri-lanka-fl ... ll-mounts/
INS ‘Shardul’ has nearly 200 personnel on board, including specialised rescue, diving and medical teams, as well as a large amount of relief material and Gemini inflatable boats.

Medical and diving teams along with boats and helicopters are also being sent on board INS Jalashwa to assist Sri Lanka in rescuing people from flood-hit area, Indian Navy spokesperson Captain D K Sharma said.

The Indian contingent of more than 300 navy personnel was assisting in the relief, with divers searching the brackish waters and medical teams seeing patients in makeshift tents set up at shelters.
Previously ;

Modi’s Sri Lanka Visit: Says It Reflects Strong Relationship ; http://www.india-aware.com/modis-sri-la ... ationship/

As it is a new site guys, a lot of changes over the next couple of day. We welcome opinion writers and section writers. Get BR's gyan out and have your name posted. Any concerns or feedback, let us know in the contact section and we'll get back to you.
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Muns »

Sri Lanka floods: Death toll exceeds 200, over 60 lakh displaced : Foreign aid arrives.
http://www.india-aware.com/sri-lanka-fl ... d-arrives/
Sri Lanka had sought international assistance, with India sending three naval ships laden with supplies in the last a couple of days. India sent first ship INS Kirch with 40 tonnes of relief materials, second relief ship INS Shardul with specialized rescue, diving and medical teams and relief material and third ship INS Jalashwa with additional relief materials.

Indian naval divers and medical teams have joined rescue efforts in Lanka’s flood-hit regions. The Indian contingent of more than 300 navy personnel was assisting in the relief, with divers searching the brackish waters and medical teams seeing patients in makeshift tents set up at shelters.

Following India’s lead in sending out emergency relief to Sri Lanka, more countries started pledging assistance to provide relief to the flood victims.
Philip
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Philip »

When disaster strikes it is always and only India that responds in record time.I know when the tsunami struck,a v.close pal,army doctor,spent weeks in a plastic sheet tent in the affected zone helping the affected Lankans.the IN did a superb job in Galle harbour,so much so that a month later when the US marines came ashore,there was nothing to do!

Unfortunately,many Lankans take us for granted and have a dog-in-the-manger attitude when it comes to JVs on the Trinco oil tank farm,etc. Scumbags like Rajapakse are ready and willing to drop their sarongs and get rogered by the Chinese as long as they get their 50% commission! So Lanka gets into the debt trap with Beijing and forget about Indian sensitivities.This is an opportune time to remind the Lankans that they too must do their bit to allay Indian concerns about the Chinese presence and engage with India in vital projects.
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by svenkat »

http://www.dailymirror.lk/article/C-V-Wigneswaran-hurts-Christian-sentiments-127591.html
Northern Province chief Minister Canagasabapathy Visuvalingam Wigneswaran, who possesses a remarkable flair for getting embroiled in controversial issues, is in the eye of a storm again. This time it is over some remarks made by him during the course of a media interview on April 14th 2017. Mr. Wigneswaran was interviewed by a Tamil website called “Thinappuyal” meaning “Daily Storm”. Well, the interview has certainly caused a storm centring around the Northern Chief Minister. While responding to a question by the interviewer, Mr. Wigneswaran had referred to Jesus Christ and Swami Premananda in a manner that appeared to draw an analogy between both. This reference has hurt the sentiments of Christians, who regard Jesus Christ as the “Son of God” and believe in him as their “Lord and Saviour”. Many are angry that the Chief Minister was comparing Jesus Christ to a “Swami” or “God man” who was convicted of rape and murder by the Indian courts. The You tube posted on the web by “Thinappuyal” showed the interviewer asking Mr. Wigneswaran about his being a Premananda devotee and whether it was correct to be a devotee of a man convicted as a criminal by the courts. The ex-supreme court judge responded to the question by saying Jesus Christ was convicted 2,000 years ago but people were worshipping him now as God. Mr. Wigneswaran re-iterated his point about Jesus Christ by saying again in Tamil “Avar oru Kuttravaali. Avarukku Marana Thandanai Theerkkappattathu. Aen Innum Kireesthavargal Avarai Iraivanaahap Paarkkiraargal”? (He was a criminal. He was convicted and given a death sentence. Why are Christians still seeing him as God”? The point Mr. Wigneswaran was trying to make through his counter question seemed to be that like Premananda, Jesus Christ too had been convicted 2,000 years ago.
Mr. Wigneswaran’s remarks and question about Christians regarding Jesus Christ as God touched a raw nerve among Christians of all folds - Catholics, Protestants and Evangelicals. It became a heated issue as the YouTube was shared widely via social media. Mr. Wigneswaran came in for heavy criticism for what was seen as a comparison between Jesus Christ and Premananda.

Even several Tamil speaking Muslims took umbrage at this remark about “Eesaa Nabhi” as “Prophet” Jesus is referred to in Islamic tenets. Tamil Catholics vehemently protested against Mr. Wigneswaran’s remarks. Many young members of the Catholic Laity wanted to stage widespread protest demonstrations against the Chief Minister. They were restrained by the Catholic clergy, who did not want an ugly situation to develop. A significant section of the Catholic clergy in the North and East has been strongly supportive of Mr. Wigneswaran’s hawkish political approach in the recent past. These sections were agitated and upset over the new development.
A public statement condemning Mr. Wigneswaran’s comments was issued by Mr. Anton Punithanayagam, the president of the Mannar Diocese Catholic Federation. (Mannaar Maraimaavatta Katholikka Ondriyam) The senior lawyer is also the adviser on legal affairs to the Dioceses of Mannar and Jaffna. Mr. Punithanayagam called upon Mr. Wigneswaran to withdraw his comments and issue an apology to the Catholic Church. If not the Chief Minister would have to face questions and protests from Tamil and Sinhala Catholics warned, Anton Punithanayagam.
Bishop Emeritus Kingsley Swampillai There is currently no Bishop for the Mannar Diocese after Bishop Rayappu Joseph retired. The Bishop Emeritus of Trincomalee-Batticaloa Diocese, Most Rev. Kingsley Swampillai is functioning in Mannar as the Apostolic Administrator. Bishop Swampillai contacted senior Jaffna district MP Somasuntharam Senathirajah alias “Maavai” Senathirajah and informed him that Catholics were deeply hurt by Mr. Wigneswaran’s remarks. He made an amicable suggestion that the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) as a party could intervene in the matter and engage in damage control. Thereafter the TNA leader and Leader of the Opposition R. Sampanthan communicated with his hand-picked Northern Chief Minister and asked Mr. Wigneswaran to issue an unqualified apology. Meanwhile, the Central Committee of the Ilankai Thamil Arasuk Katchi (ITAK) is scheduled to meet in Batticaloa on April 29th. It is expected that the Wigneswaran issue would be raised and discussed at length on that occasion.
What is of importance is that the comparison of Jesus Christ with Premananda was made by Mr. Wigneswaran himself. The “Thinappuyal” interviewer did not refer to Jesus Christ in his questioning. He only asked the Mr. Wigneswaran about Swami Premananda. It was the Northern Province Chief Minister who referred to Jesus Christ in the conversation and tried to draw a parallel. He added insult to injury by posing the question as to why Christians regard Jesus Christ who was sentenced to death as a criminal 2000 years ago as God?
Mr. Wigneswaran’s Apology This then is the crux of the matter. Upon seeing some reports in the Tamil media that Mr. Wigneswaran had issued a statement clarifying his position, I e-mailed the Chief Minister requesting that he send me a copy of his statement in full. This was because the statement purportedly issued by Mr. Wigneswaran did not appear to be an unqualified apology. Apart from complaining against the website, which interviewed him and emphasizing that he won a prize at Royal College for the study of comparative religions by reading the Gospel according to St. Mathew and that he participated at the annual St. Anthony’s feast, there was very little substance in the statement. Also Mr. Wigneswaran’s apology seemed half -hearted and confusing. He expressed regret if he had hurt the feelings of Christians but also said that he had not done so by his actions. When reading the statement in Tamil, I was quite doubtful whether the statement had been accurately published. This was because the statement was so confusing, meandering, contradictory and did not address the issue at hand properly. It did not appear to have been drafted by a retired Supreme Court Judge. In a bid therefore to ascertain whether the statement had indeed been issued by the Chief Minister, I requested that he send me the statement in full in English. There has been no response so far. As such I was unable to incorporate Mr. Wigneswaran’s viewpoint in this article. It is to be hoped that I receive a positive response from Mr. Wigneswaran in due course.
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by svenkat »

Shri Wigneshwaran is a devotee of Premananda.

And Premananda was defended by Ram Jethmathalani in the Supreme Court.And finally Shri Wigneswaran appealed to NaMo for clemency to three people now in puzhal prison.On top of it,Shri Wigneswaran was judge of SC of SL.

My head is spinning.
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by chetak »

Philip wrote:When disaster strikes it is always and only India that responds in record time.I know when the tsunami struck,a v.close pal,army doctor,spent weeks in a plastic sheet tent in the affected zone helping the affected Lankans.the IN did a superb job in Galle harbour,so much so that a month later when the US marines came ashore,there was nothing to do!

Unfortunately,many Lankans take us for granted and have a dog-in-the-manger attitude when it comes to JVs on the Trinco oil tank farm,etc. Scumbags like Rajapakse are ready and willing to drop their sarongs and get rogered by the Chinese as long as they get their 50% commission! So Lanka gets into the debt trap with Beijing and forget about Indian sensitivities.This is an opportune time to remind the Lankans that they too must do their bit to allay Indian concerns about the Chinese presence and engage with India in vital projects.
exactly the same shit in the maldives.

familiarity breeds contempt and fetches us nothing in terms of diplomatic and commercial clout but all these aholes swarm to India for their medical needs as a matter of right.
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Philip »

For too long has the iron fist of India been hidden by its velvet...oops!....sorry,khadi glove. Past time to extract the promises given but have yet to be kept,esp. keeping the Chinese out Both SL and the Maldives must be read from time to time,"Bedtime stories" about the "Big Bad Wolf"!

Now the Lankan ban on bottom trawling in the Palk Straits seas..on its side,is a v.welcome move,as for too long has such trawling beggared the seas and depleted fish stocks massively,leading to Indian fishermen literally fishing in "troubled waters" of SL,SL Jaffna Tamil fishermen now want Indian boats out of their waters since the war is over and they can resume their own fishing .Howls of protest are being seen in TN,but why? These waters have nothing to do with Katchativu,a dead sea-horse of an issue,and expose the nefarious links between some political entities with some in the TN fishing community who engage in illegal activities like smuggling,drug smuggling,now human trafficking,etc.,etc.Some have even been allegedly aiding ISI agents in smuggling of fake currency.

If we too pass a law banning bottom trawling on our sides,fish stocks will rise,if old ships are sunk near the coastline as is being done elsewhere,these wrecks become fish breeding zones.Trawlers will now have to go out to sea an exploit our huge potential which we've been happily leaving to foreign boats to poach.

http://indianexpress.com/article/opinio ... t-4749452/
Healing The Sea
India must learn from Sri Lanka’s ban on bottom-trawling.


Written by John Kurien | Published:July 14, 2017
Sri Lankan Parliament, Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Act, Indian Tamil fishermen, Indian Tamil fishermen conflict, palk bay, ltte naval, fishermen arrest, indian express news, india news, opinion Small-scale fishermen in Asia catch prawns using selective fishing nets during the season when the prawns moved up to the surface waters. (Representational image)

The Sri Lankan Parliament’s unanimous amendment of its Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Act last week to ban trawling is a bold step from both political and ecological perspectives. It will have an impact on the conflict between Indian Tamil fishermen and the fishermen of Northern Sri Lanka who fish in the Palk Bay, a highly productive but spatially limited marine ecosystem.
During the ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka’s northern districts, Colombo had prohibited all coastal fishing in a bid to curb the LTTE’s naval prowess. The Indian fishermen in the Palk Bay took advantage of the cessation of fishing on the Sri Lankan side and expanded their trawler fleet. They also made risky fishing ventures into Sri Lanka’s Exclusive Economic Zone. Their clashes with the Sri Lankan Navy often resulted in the impounding of trawlers, arrests and jail terms for fishermen. The civil war in Sri Lanka ended in 2009. When the fishermen of northern Sri Lanka set out to restart their lives, they found the coastal ecosystem significantly damaged. It was attributed to incessant bottom trawling by Indian fishers. Requests were made to their Tamil brethren in India to stop this manner of fishing. Negotiations yielded little in terms of a sensible compromise from the Indian side. Politicians and fishermen were unwilling to give up trawling due to large profits.
However, from a marine ecological standpoint and socio-economic and justice perspectives, trawling must be banned in coastal waters of all tropical Asian countries.
Trawling — more specifically bottom-trawling — is a fishing technique where a heavy bag-shaped net is dragged along the sea bottom using a mechanically powered boat. The technique, originally applied in fishing nations in the temperate waters, was introduced in Asian tropical waters on a commercial scale after World War II. In India, it was popularised in the late 1950s by the Indo-Norwegian Fisheries Project in Kerala to take advantage of the demand for prawns in the international market. During that time trawling was banned in Norwegian coastal waters.
Small-scale fishermen in Asia catch prawns using selective fishing nets during the season when the prawns moved up to the surface waters. Trawling, a more efficient and active technique, could “plough out” prawns from their marine habitats at the sea bottom, resulting in a manifold increase in output.
The bonanza from this “pink gold” rush resulted in another sea change in Asian fisheries. The need for large investment and the huge profit potential of prawn exports saw new capital entering marine fisheries in Asia. Foreign exchange earnings from prawns meant that trawlerisation got state support. In India, prawns was the top commodity in our foreign trade basket during the 1970s and ’80s in terms of net foreign exchange earnings.
Extensive trawlerisation engendered conflicts in Asian waters. In Indonesia, conflicts took racial overtones as trawlers were owned by Chinese capitalists. The widespread and violent protests by local small fishermen forced the military dictatorship to pronounce the first-ever trawler ban in Asia in 1980. In India, the National Fishworkers Forum started protests against trawling in 1978. Monsoon trawl ban was introduced in Kerala in 1984. Other maritime states followed.
Trawling was developed in the temperate marine waters, which are home to fewer species. Inter-species interactions are limited there, while each species is available in millions of tonnes. In such an ecological context, trawling is not overly destructive.
In tropical marine waters, there are thousands of species, exhibiting phenomenal inter-species interactions, but each in limited quantities. Trawls used in such a milieu damage the ecosystem. Trawling of the sea bottom is akin to clear-felling of tropical forests. Trawling is not an ecosystem-neutral technology. Every technology carries the code of the ecosystem and the society in which it is created. Merely changing the ownership pattern does not solve the ecological issues.
The Sri Lankan trawling ban is bound to upset the calculations of trawler owners on the Indian coast of the Palk Bay. But in the long run, this bold measure will be a source of healing for the marine ecosystem and a blessing for the smallscale fishers on both sides.
The writer is a visiting professor, Azim Premji University, Bengaluru
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Philip »

Finally the "mills of God have started grinding",slowly but surely,bringing some of the war criminals to justice. Wat is needed is a fuller expose and the arrests of the Rajapakse brothers for their numerous crimes.

https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/216078 ... abductions
SL arrests naval officer over wartime abductions
SL arrests naval officer over wartime abductions
COLOMBO: Sri Lanka’s police on Wednesday arrested a senior navy officer in connection with the disappearance of 11 young men during the final phase of the island’s Tamil separatist war.

The move is the latest in a series of arrests and marks an escalation of government investigation into wartime atrocities.

Commodore D. K. P. Dassanayake “was arrested in connection with an investigation into the abduction and illegal detention of the 11 youth,” between 2008 and 2009 in Colombo, police said in a statement. Three other suspects were also in custody, the statement said.

Dassanayake was the navy’s spokesman during the final stages of the military’s no-holds-barred offensive against Tamil Tiger rebels who were defeated by May 2009. The arrest comes amid allegations that senior military personnel and members of the former regime of Mahinda Rajapakse were responsible for high profile killings.

Several military intelligence officers were arrested this year in connection with the assassination of a prominent anti-establishment newspaper editor, and for orchestrating attacks on other journalists and dissidents during Rajapakse’s rule that ended in January 2015. Wickrematunga had accused Rajapakse’s defence secretary and brother Gotabhaya of taking kickbacks in arms purchases, and was due to testify in court when he was killed. Gotabhaya Rajapakse has denied he operated death squads
.
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Tuan »

Return to Sri Lanka: Indian soldier revisits a brutal battlefield
https://www.bbc.com/news/amp/world-asia-india-41377725
A 26-year civil war in Sri Lanka left at least 100,000 people dead on both sides of the conflict. In 1987, India sent a peacekeeping force, but it ended up getting drawn into the fighting. Thirty years on, BBC Hindi's Vineet Khare revisits the former battlefields of Sri Lanka with a retired Indian major-general who served there
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Philip »

Pl read in the eco td. a piece on "hubris" with examples from India.Mr.M and the demon project,our IPKF involvement,and other western/US denouements like Vietnam,Iraq,etc.In short,we were arrogant and thought that the LTTE,whom we had also helped train and arm,would simply salute us when we went into their homeland. Indian diplomutts ,mil strategists,intel,etc.,and co. were so off the mark about events in SL despite sev. years of the SLA fighting the LTTE,etc. I was told firsthand that we were stunned at the quantity and level of sophistication of arms that the LTTE had,which it used against us,as we had only given them relatively unsophisticated arms.Our troops went in without proper maps,etc. ,suffered grievous ambushes since the entire local people were with the LTTE,and were also told to fight with one hand tied behind their back,Prabhakaran an "untouchable" and suffered a few thousands of casualties before we were able to take control of the NE region.

Rajiv was fooled by arch-trickster Romesh Bhandari,well "looked after" by the GOSL of the time,treated like a visiting head of state,sirens blaring,etc.etc.,by the GOSL of "the island of gems" mentioned in the tales of Sindbad the Sailor. You get my drift! He overthrew the earlier conservative policies of Mrs. G. who never trusted Jayawardene,a Yanqui stooge, and thought that a "quick fix" in SL plus his attempts to broker a deal in the Iran-Iraq war(where his bumchum Kashoggi was raking in zillions selling arms to all and sundry),would help him get the Nobel peace Prize! Such were his alleged ambitions. It all came a cropper.The wily fox,JRJ,put the onus and guarantor of peace upon India and the IPKF ,arrstd key LTTE leaders and an enraged LTTE fuhrer quickly saw to it that the IPKF were now the enemy ,collaborators with the GOSL and launched surprise attacks against it. Gen.Sunderji highly acclaimed for his mil. intellect was disastrous in SL becos everyone in the (partly-racist) Indian establishment in Lutyens' Delhi at that time, thought that the darkie Tamils were just like their TN counterparts,softies,inferior beings who could be pushed around and would salute when a flag march took place! They never understood the psyche of the Jaffna Tamils who think that they're the greatest ,most intelligent human beings on the planet ,intensely clannish,and in general looked down upon Indian Tamils to boot! Neither did Delhi listen to its HC in Colombo.When I spoke to a veteran diplomat knowledgeable about SL,etc. and asked him why we got it so badly,he said that "unfortunately Delhi doesn't view the south and SL as we who know what's happening do.They don't listen to us..." Therefore we too suffered "hubris".

It took a Mani Dixit to be sent as HC to Colombo who took the situ by his hands,was reviled and respected by Lankans who described his actions as if he was an Indian "viceroy" ,who was able to bring the situ under control.The NEast was under IPKF control,the LTTE marginalised and elections were held there,with an Indian puppet installed as CM. When shamefully "Weepy" Singh pulled out the IPKF without ensuring a political settlement,treated them back home like traitors,the LTTE came back with a bang,extending the war for another 15+ years. RG was during this time assassinated by the LTTE and his boldness in attempting to clear up our own backyard (SL and the Maldives) in our won interests was forgotten by weak spineless govts. that came after him,allowing the Chinese to now gain foothold all across the IOR .

After the assassination of RG,the Indian govts. that came later should've hounded the LTTE fuhrer and his outfit to destruction .Our frightened leadership that came after RG only encouraged the Pakis to wage an unceasing terror war against India upto today and the rapid Chinese execution of their "string of pearls" strategy in the IOR.
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Tuan »

Nice summary Philipji,

Do you think when politicians interfere in military affairs, the outcome of their operations always become disastrous, as you are drawing an example of V.P. Singh’s decision to withdraw the IPKF from SL? In my opinion, J.R. Jayewardene’s successor R. Premadasa is the one to blame for the IPKF withdrawal as the LTTE was negotiating with Premadasa and consequently he began arming and funding the LTTE to fight against IPKF and eventually ordered the latter to withdraw from SL.

According to LTTE insiders, the organization’s theoretician Anton Balashingam played a key role offstage during that time simultaneously negotiating in multiple fronts and acted as a liaison between Sri Lankan secret service NIB - now known as SIS (State Intelligence Service) – and their American and British counterparts. In his book “The Indian Intervention in Sri Lanka”, the country’s former national security advisor, Rohan Gunaratna writes that Balashingam was very promising as an ideologue of the LTTE, because he turned the organization from a Soviet-led cold-war proxy to a western allied proxy by negotiating with aforementioned Sri Lankan and western entities at the peak of the Cold War .

They also modernized the LTTE’s armory, e.g. form Soviet AK47 (supplied by India) to American M16 (supplied by Sri Lanka) and even Heckler & Koch assault rifles and grenade launchers etc., a figurative reformation in LTTE’s Marxist–Leninist (communist-cum-socialist) ideology to a pro-western one. The LTTE also changed its policy of cremating the dead to burial, a resemblance of Christianity thereafter. It was also during this time the LTTE sent a six-man team to Israel to be trained by Mossad, that was also arranged by Balashingam as a part of the deal.

All these eventually collapsed when Premadasa refused to accept the LTTE’s demand for self-determination, which culminated in the assassination of the master himself in May 1993. It was clear that the unbending, militant vision of Pirabhakaran, who would have never settled for anything less than Eelam, was fighting on until his total destruction in the hands of international collaboration, due to the post-9/11 world order.
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Tuan »

Philip wrote:Pl read in the eco td. a piece on "hubris" with examples from India...
Philipji, could you please provide the link for this reference. Thanks!
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Philip »

Posted in the Ind. eco.td or Strategic thread.

Yes,Balasingham's death was a killer blow to the LTTE.He understood politics,Prabhakaran was a thug.His death and Prabhakaran forcing Karuna to defect ,effectively splitting the LTTE and seeing the rival faction collaborate with the GOSL doomed it.Being surrounded by sea made logistics v.v.difficult after India and the SL govt. collaborated in Intel,etc. Famous saying,"amateurs talk tactics,professionals logistics".He also placed too much trust in his western backers whom he thought would save him! He never learnt his history where Uncle Sam betrayed his closest bumchums like the Shah of Iran,Noriega,Osama ,Saddam,Mubarak.....they list goes on.
Unfortunately some in Delhi today are lobbying hard for us to replace Pak as the region's US catamite.
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Tuan »

Spot on Philipji. I was just wondering if the rest of the world fighting terrorisom could learn anything from the Sri Lankan counterterrorism model. I believe that the global intelligence community knows how to end all their conflicts, like they eradicated terrorism in Sri Lanka by an international intelligence collaboration. Most importantly, they won the bloody war by eliminating the “cephalothorax” of the Tamil Tigers.

Although it did work in Sri Lanka, when the US removed Al Qaeda’s “cephalothorax” in the FATA region, the remnants of Al Qaeda operatives, dispersed throughout the Arabian Peninsula. Consequently, they reorganized and formed Daesh. This was only possible because of the geostrategic porous borders, caves and tunnels that spread from Central Asia, Persian Gulf and to Greater Middle East, even some parts of North Africa.

The Tamil Tigers didn’t have this geostrategic advantage since they operated from pockets of a tiny island, their first and foremost FDL happened to be the Indian Ocean and thus the Tamil Tigers’ survival essentially depended on their marine unit for logistics. When the Sri Lankan Navy was assisted by the global powers on taking control of the territorial waters and established sea denial, the terrorist organization was paralyzed.

Equally important is that during last years of the conflict, the Tamil Tigers were isolated form the rest of the world. There was no state support/sponsor for them other than the weak and divided Tamil diaspora, whereas Al Qaeda, Taliban, Hezbollah, Hamas and now Daesh all have always been sponsored by multiple nation states.

As such, like the Japanese Samurai dictum reminds us that “to kill an enemy, shoot his horse first”, we must first eliminate the support bases of all the terrorist organizations to obliterate them. This can only be done through a fusion of soft diplomacy and hard military might. As Roosevelt put it: "speak softly, and carry a big stick".
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Philip »

Essential is that the enemy must not find "fertile soil" in which it can grow.That requires both political knowhow and when to use the hammer. In the case of a hostile vengeful neighbour like Pak,we have not used the diplomatic hammer whatsoever.The US imposed sanctions on Iran for decades making it v.difficult to do biz with it.We should adopt similar methods.Declare Pak a rogue state,ostracise it and all MNCs dealing with it.They can choose between Pak's business or India's.Unless we act tough no one will respect us.The sad truth is that "Delhi" has always been for sale barring a few periods when strong rulers were in place ,while some not totally clean,did not allow a "garage sale" of India like the last UPA!

It is these firang vested interests who've wanted the Indo-Pak equation to continue ,keeping the subcontinent from exercising its global power and India permanently under neo-colonial diktat.

The west by indulging in global regime change in the Muslim world sowed the seeds and reaped the whirlwind.Read "The last Crusade".About Vasco Da Gama's voyage to discover India.It was to counter the might of the Islamic world which threatened Europe for centuries.That game is still being played 500+ years since!
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Tuan »

Philipji I understand your concern about the western powers’ practice of using capitalism, globalization and cultural imperialism to influence developing countries in lieu of direct military control (imperialism) or indirect political control (hegemony), coined by Kwame Nkrumah as neocolonialism in 1960s.

However, in the 21st century, the world’s most powerful people are working relentlessly to establish a “one world” for the future. For instance, in his book, The True Story of the Bilderberg Group, author Daniel Estulin writes that the nature and secret meetings of the world’s most powerful people call for a united globe as one system. According to Estulin's book, the secretive Bilderbergers have been making major political, economical, military and social decisions for future peaceful coexistence of the global community. It is like the biggest fish is the ultimate survivor, which Spencer called as "survival of the fittest” rather than neocolonialism.
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by periaswamy »

This is all OT, so I don't want to distract this thread. but just want to mention. How different is "biggest fish is the ultimate survivor" from "biggest empire is the ultimate winner"? Colonialism by a different name -- letting the slaves sign up the dotted line to remain slaves rather than any explicit occupation of territory -- not that such ideas will work, even if this bogus "international global community" keeps spreading propaganda against nationalist movements in all countries and pretending protecting of national boundaries is a bad idea. Nothing has changed not withstanding all the poppycock about uniting the world for "peaceful coexistence" of this ephermal "global community".
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Tuan »

While foreign journalists such as Anthony Bourdain visits Sri Lanka to experience "reinvigorated" people and culture, the local Tamil societies’ situation tells us completely a whole different story.

Debt drives Jaffna mom, children to death
http://www.thehindu.com/news/internatio ... 937411.ece
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by periaswamy »

Will Hambantota be the Next Chinese Military base in the Indian Ocean
As the Sirisena government stared at the ballooning debt, which was a result of the profligacy of the earlier government, it was compelled to renegotiate the Hambantota Port deal by turning debt into equity and leasing it out for a period of 99 years. Colombo, it seems, did not have much of an option to ward off the Chinese when contractors of the Southern Port, China Communication and Construction Co. Ltd, demanded US$ 143 million as compensation for stopping work. The Sirisena government was forced to walk the thin line between saving the country from default and pursuing development with little resources.
Maybe India can assist the SL govt. and pay up these loans to the Chinese, and in exchange get these contracts for Indian companies.
Now, the Sri Lanka Navy and Police will handle the security of the port, which will be used only for commercial purposes. Does that satisfy Indians? In the words of a diplomat who spoke to this writer, “To clear the deal, the Chinese may have agreed to these changes, but make no mistake that this will be the next Djibouti  –  which is now China's military base in Africa.”
If the Indian govt. cannot get the SL govt. to cooperate, maybe sri lanka needs to be treated as a hostile neighbour.
Last edited by periaswamy on 08 Nov 2017 10:08, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Aditya_V »

periaswamy wrote:Will Hambantota be the Next XYZ
As the Sirisena government stared at the ballooning debt, which was a result of the profligacy of the earlier government, it was compelled to renegotiate the Hambantota Port deal by turning debt into equity and leasing it out for a period of 99 years. Colombo, it seems, did not have much of an option to ward off the Chinese when contractors of the Southern Port, China Communication and Construction Co. Ltd, demanded US$ 143 million as compensation for stopping work. The Sirisena government was forced to walk the thin line between saving the country from default and pursuing development with little resources.
Maybe India can assist the SL govt. and pay up these loans to the Chinese, and in exchange get these contracts for Indian companies.
Explain rationally, so we indirectly finance the Chinese building project and SL will jump on the next Chinese offer? None of our neighbours have been grateful in the past.

Let the Chinese use strong arm tactics to recover thier loans.

All our neighbors have jumped at deals with the West and China thinking they are good people and what they are doing is mart. Once they learn the true face, it is better for us in the long term.
Last edited by Aditya_V on 08 Nov 2017 10:11, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

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Explain rationally, so we indirectly finance the Chinese building project and SL will jump on the next Chinese offer? None of our neighbours have been grateful in the past.
No charity. The goal here is, to wean SL away from China by some means -- and if SL wants to be vassal state of China (high chance), then so be it.
Let the Chinese use strong arm tactics to recover thier loans.
SL is a weaker power, so they will just GUBO to china, given the amount of money they owe china via high-interest loans. What other option do you think they have? Do tell. India will have to deal with a potential chinese nuclear sub mooring in Sri Lanka for the next 99 years. Maybe that is a better option for India?

If SL makes a deal with China to make Hambantota a military base, in a "legal" manner, there is diddly squat India can do about it, even if the Sri Lankans get all wised up to how bad China is.
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Aditya_V »

But in this Gubo resentment will builds, Chinese sub will not sit so close to India, it will probably be launched somewhere else and come here. Basing something here just makes China vulnerable with long supply lines. At some point SL is going to show China the middle finger and that time better to arm the SL. That will be a far better option.

Bailing out SL will be forgotten in no time and China will take another project and SL will continue to play India Vs China.
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

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At some point SL is going to show China the middle finger and that time better to arm the SL. That will be a far better option.
Not all that sure about this being the only outcome. It is possible for the SL govt. to strong-arm the civilians out of the area and create a chinese protectorate -- if SL is unable to fulfil its debts to China. Bailing out is not for "free" -- it will have to come with guarantees that SL will not allow any military bases of any other power in SL. But hey, if SL wants to be India's enemy, it is their choice. I am sure India can deal with a hostile SL easier than it can deal with a hostile China.

Best outcome is if the SL politicians renege on their deal with China. But if that does not come to pass, SL will have to be treated as a hostile neighbour along the lines of Pakistan.
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Aditya_V »

Given the way things have moved, SL will have no choice but the renege from the deal, SL people were hostile as Pakis in 2010. Bailing them out now will get us nothing.
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Philip »

I've been advocating for aeons that the GOI to save SL from becoming a Chin mi.base settlement,invests hard cash in the island ,a fraction of which had it been done instead of the billions reqd. now to help SL pay off its debts ot to counter the Chin occupation of SL militarily. sadly the jokers in the MEA in Lutyens' Delhi sneer at any advice that come south of the Jamuna.Delhi is a state within a state where power brokers of every kind like leeches bloodsuck the nation.If there's nothing in it for them ,they just don't care.So we dropped the ball in SL-no one wanted to go down "Rajiv's Way",and allowed the Chinese to squat there before our diplomutts could even belch and let out a fart after a hearty dpl. banquet!

There is now strong opposition to India managing the "Mattala Intl. Airport",named after Rajapakse,which in truth should be renamed with a Tamil word "Muttal" airport because of its asinine location,etc.,reviving the Trinco Oil Tnk Farm and even IOCbeing blamed for the current petrol shortage in the island ,where the JV between IOC and the Lankan entity supplies just 18% of the demand.The rest is by the CPC which has debtors like Sri
Lankan Airlines to the tune of billions of SL Rs.

Western countries are now deeply concerned over the Chin invasion of SL,where the JV for the HT Port venture is officially being inaugurated today .The day chosen is numerologically auspicious to the Chins,where unlike in India , "8" is the luckiest number. That's why we're trying to grab some crumbs in the region with the "Muttal" airport contract.If the Chinese get their way and thousands of hectares in HTota,bring lakhs of Chins to settle there,it will become a de-facto Chinese colony.What will India do then? The GOI has to act very diplomatically using the most forceful language possible that if such an event happens,India will have to recourse to "other means" to safeguard its security. Time to dust off Mrs.G's old plans what?
Tuan
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Tuan »

In a 2015 interview to Aljazeera, SL prime minister Wickramasinghe outlined his country’s foreign policy that it will not be hostile to any one nation state. He stated that SL will be willing to accommodate such regional and global powers as India, China and the USA. Most importantly, he put forward a proposal that his country will give access to Kankesanthurai, Hambantota and Trincomaliee ports to India, China and USA respectively, if I remember right. IMO, the Trincomaliee port is historically and strategically important to world powers whereas Hambantota can be equally important to China particularly because it needs an observation post and refueling and storage point in IOR, when in fact, an insignificant port such as Kankesanturai was considered for India. It clearly demonstrates how small states react to power play projection and set their agenda in order to draw the lines in the world order and hegemony dictated by the aforementioned global powers. Therefore, I think at this point, GOI must pursue and build and stretch Ramasethu Bridge project to better reconnect its « géostratégique » neighbor as a preventive and responsive measures, instead of helping SL to pay for its loans to China.
ashish raval
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by ashish raval »

Bailing out SL will be forgotten in no time and China will take another project and SL will continue to play India Vs China
This point says it all. Sri Lanka knew what geo strategic games it was playing and yet choose to do d$#k measurement via a vie India by trying to please China with whom they have no proximity whatsoever. This was due to their increased testosterone after killing LTTE with help of likes and Chinese supplied weapons.

Now to repay they have to surrender something!! This is what Chinese were after. We should not help Srilanka and instead try to keep it on sweat in the region for path they choose. They don't have option other than to cooperate with India. If they don't they will soon be learning Chinese in next generation and their island will be turned into casino and military garrison of Chinese whom we can keep on the run there. We shall say thanks but no thanks until Chinese are out? It is either us or them and knives should be out now rather than postpone it for a decade to be facing same situation again.

We can salvage the island by signing war pact with Srilanka to help if someone attacks in this way Chinese will not dream of attacking the land to usurp it by force.

Only Srilankans can help Srilankans as they are in deep crap now..
I am not impressed by people who for decades used Indian education system and diplomatic help at every place to suddenly ditch old friend because someone with Lamborghini appeared on campus to take them to ride.
Gagan
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Gagan »

After Hambantota, the Chinese are already neck deep in building the Colombo port and an island off colombo which will have skyscrapers on land reclaimed off the coast.
More Billions going down the sea here.
This is an even bigger investment than Hambantota
ArjunPandit
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by ArjunPandit »

ashish the problem is that ..the guy with lamborghini will rape our friend too...and will take over the flat of our friend who is our neighbour too, the question is you pull the friend out of this deep shit or wait for the guy to be at door with a gun in your hand,
make this situation when the 'friend' becomes son or brother. I will not go to the xtent of saying porkis as our friends who are just 'misguided' but SL is seriously. We both have rough patches in our relationship, but let's realize we dont want another pakistan in our neighbourhood
periaswamy
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by periaswamy »

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Last edited by periaswamy on 13 Nov 2017 19:35, edited 1 time in total.
Aditya_V
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Re: Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

Post by Aditya_V »

I do not agree, support to the LTTE was always wrong in the 1980's, a lot of people died unnecessarily, it has only created problems and it did not serve the purpose of Indian or SL tamils( any Tamil opposing LTTE was mascaraed by them). It is good it is gone.

But unless the SL and our all Neighbours realize the hard way that the Chinese are nothing but the East India Company with a new name, they will continue to play .

We can invest in infrastructure in SL creating jobs for Indians or Sri lankans and win win for both countries, but no way we should bail out projects which were nothing but Chinese Companies sourcing materials from China. SL should simply make the Chinese write off these investments.
Last edited by Aditya_V on 13 Nov 2017 11:15, edited 1 time in total.
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