This morning, I woke up to the news that the LTTE had declared an unilateral ceasefire during the SAARC conference. Of course, war is not a sport - but their declaration must be causing a slight dilemma for the Sri Lankan Military. Here’s an extract from the LTTE’s press release that was said to have originated from LTTE’s Political Office in the Vanni during the early hours  of this morning:

As a sign of this goodwill, our movement is glad to inform that it will observe a unilateral ceasefire that is devoid of military actions during the period of the SAARC conference from 26th July to 4th August and give our cooperation for the success of the conference. At the same …

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This video was filmed approximately two and half hours after the bomb exploded on a crowded bus at a bus-stop in Piliyandala, near Colombo, in Sri Lanka. There was a mobile phone ringing inside the bus.

(please note the date-stamp on the video should read 25th April, NOT 24th April)

The LTTE are being blamed for the bus explosion. Latest reports say that 24 people are dead and 40 wounded.

Reuters reports that Mr Fernandopulle was “the second minister to be killed since January”, citing Minister for nation building, D.M. Dassanayake, as the first.

I seem to recall the killing of the UNP’s T. Maheshwaran on January 1 2008, and the TNA’s K. Siwaneshan on March 6. I may be wrong, but it is my understanding that both these politicians were members of parliament.

However, whether Reuters got it right or wrong isn’t the issue. (Though if Reuters did get it wrong, then its local bureau chief needs to take his job a little bit more seriously)

The issue is that international media coverage on Sri Lanka is, generally, relatively poor. The Reuters story is already spreading through the wires and getting …

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This video clip contains a brief interview with A.L Thavam – Chairperson of Akkaraipattu Pradeshiya Saba (local government).

It is presented here as is, without analysis or comment.

Summary of the interview.

• Feels that Batticoloa election was successful because of the lack of incidents, and says therefore Government has been successful in liberating the Eastern Province.
• Acknowledges there may have been ‘little incidents’ but says these do not carry significance when the bigger picture is considered.
• Says that if the people did not want to vote, they could have made a mark on the ballot paper and submitted it – in effect, just pretended to vote. But says the number of these …
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A day or two ago, Time Magazine announced its Person of the Year: Vladimir Putin.

I wonder, if this audience was to make a selection, who the Groundviews Person of the Year would be?

This is how the Time Warner Inc’s publication describes its annual award:

TIME’s Person of the Year is not and never has been an honor. It is not an endorsement. It is not a popularity contest. At its best, it is a clear-eyed recognition of the world as it is and of the most powerful individuals and forces shaping that world—for better or for worse. It is ultimately about leadership—bold, earth-changing leadership.

The whole concept of a ‘person of the year’ is highly problematic, but it helps make …

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The following article, which is a commentary on HLD Mahindapala’s speech given recently at the BMICH, arrived in my inbox earlier today.

It was sent to be by someone who had received it from someone else. Googling the title suggests the commentary was originally produced by a Janaka Perera  and published at the Lanka Herald.

I normally wouldn’t cut and paste such a text - but I feel the commentary below raises some interesting issues, some of which we may be familiar with, but worth revisiting and reconsidering again.

Western baloney on ‘human rights’
Written by Janaka Perera
Saturday, 01 December 2007

In a scathing attack on Western double standards on human rights, veteran Journalist and Editorial Adviser Asian Tribune, H.L.D. Mahindapala last week accused …

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I got a glimpse of Louise Arbour last Thursday, late in the afternoon. She had just completed her meeting with Mano Ganeshan and some family members of the disappeared. Arbour peered out of the small entrance door to the UN compound. Photographers and video men crammed the entrance. Behind the media scrum were about a 100 or so members of families of the disappeared - all holding up large scale prints of their loved ones for the Human Rights Chief to see.

I doubt Louise Arbour really got to see past the hungry media - but either way, it was a nice gesture by her. She gave some more hope to those who are fighting for the human rights of their …

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Earlier today, a friend sent me an email saying he was reading Dr Rajan Hoole’s “Sri Lanka: The Arrogance of Power“. Michael gives a brief summary of the book, which I won’t go in to, and concludes the message with a poem, suggesting that “sometimes a poem in a few lines can express what a 1000 page treatise never can”.
The poem is by a Miss Sivaramani Sivanandan, which can be found reproduced in the book.
This is what Poole wrote about the poet in his forward to the book:

The Tamil people would become liberated only when there is freedom for the creative use of the energies of their men and women. …

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Recently, the group Beyond Borders – a networking initiative of the British Council for young people in Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, UK and Sri Lanka - organised a presentation by Professor Christopher Lingle in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Being a fan of cultural globalisation and liking the idea internationalisation – I was eager to attend.

Sadly, Lingle’s presentation, titled “Globalisation and Cultural Change”, came across to me as a rant by a neoliberal-aligned ‘evangelist’ than a talk by a neoliberal-aligned academic. I don’t have a problem with academics presenting their views and ideas, but Lingle’s style and substance was superficial and very disappointing.

Globalisation and culture are fascinating fields. Unfortunately, Lingle simplified the topic by asserting at the very beginning that the only way …

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Exhausted after reading too many verbose analysisez of Sri Lanka’s conflict?
Ashamed of having to recite “Namo tassa, bhagavato arahato, samma sambuddhasa” over and over again?
Bored with the mediocrity of your surroundings?
Then, open your ears and eyes to some tunes and video clips from Maya Arulpragasam aka MIA.
I am no reviewer or critic - so this is not a review or critique.
I stumbled across MIA’s music at the start of 2005 when a friend was interviewing her for an article. Back then, she was about to launch her first album Arular - the alias name of her PLOTE activist father.
There was something very exciting about discovering music that sounds completely different to what I had been listening to. It stands out …

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