Federal experts in sub-committee: Threat to SL’s unitary nature
Posted on November 8th, 2016
Courtesy The Daily Mirror
Mr. Gammanpila said the proposals in sub-committee report on the Central Government and Provincial Councils had proved that there was a conspiracy to include federalism in the proposed new constitution.
The government has repeatedly stressed that it would not compromise on the unitary nature of Sri Lanka. But the situation has changed with there being none to speak up on the unitary state in the sub-committee though there are several federal experts in it,” he said.
The MP said this would lead to the setting up of a Constitutional Assembly based on racism.
He said according to the sub-committee reports the police powers were to be devolved to the provincial councils.
The central government should retain police powers,” the MP said and warned that if there were to be a war in Sri Lanka in the future, it would be between the Army and and the Police in Northern Province.
He said the sub-committee report proposes to hand over ownership of the lands in the Northern Province to Chief Minister C.V. Wigneswaran who is currently on a mission to expel Sinhalese from the Northern Province.
Giving powers to the provincial councils will mean supporting Mr. Wigneswaran. It is evident from his actions that he is racially motivated,” the MP said.
Meanwhile, he invited patriots to refrain from voting for the proposed new constitution in a referendum. (Kalathma Jayawardhane)
– See more at: http://www.dailymirror.lk/article/Federal-experts-in-sub-committee-Threat-to-SL-s-unitary-nature-118865.html#sthash.u5ccG6CW.dpuf
November 8th, 2016 at 5:19 pm
The demand [quote] the central government should retain police powers [unquote] makes no sense. Police and land powers are already granted to the province according to 13A.
If you don’t want police and land powers granted to provinces, start a process to abrogate 13A. Otherwise, you have no case. Udaya should also clarify with the JO leader about Vigneswaran’s racism. According to the JO leader, Vigneswaran is not a racist so he cannot be [quote] on a mission to expel Sinhalese from the Northern Province [unquote]. The JO must get its act together. Do they support retaining 13A? If they do they support police and land powers to Vigneswaran. Does the JO consider Vigneswaran not a racist? If so he is not trying to expel Sinhalese from the north. If these are not the JO position, they must clearly say so without playing it both ways which is contradictory and the JO loses credibility.
November 9th, 2016 at 4:36 am
There is no Tamil Homeland! It is a completely bogus invention. The writer has got the history slightly wrong. Even the most recent Pandyan invasion just prior to the arrival of the Portuguese in the 16th century by Aryachakravarthi only invaded the Jaffna peninsula only and the settlement of the Jaffna peninsula was very sparse. All earlier invasions by the Cholas etc. they invaded Anuradhapura and Pollonnaruwa and these was for short periods of time and there were no settlements whatsoever at all as a result. Most Tamils were brought over by the Portugese and the Dutch to work on Tobacco and Indigo plantations set up by the Portugese and the Dutch after the 16th century.
There were from around 600BC over 43 attempted invasions of the island by the Chola, Kalinga, Pandya, Vijayanagar and other South and Indian Kingdoms etc. However only six succeeded. There was one invasion by a Malayan kingdom too. These were during Sinhala Kings Walagamba, Dhutugemunu, Dhathusena, Vijayabahu I, Parakramabahu II, Buvanekabahu V and Parakramabahu VI times. However invaders invaded Anuradhapura, Pollonnaruwa and stayed only for a short period of time and left the island once they were overwhelmed. There were no settlements due to these invasions except the very last invasion by Aryachakravarthi of the Jaffna Peninsula.
When looking at Sri Lanka’s history, it is extremely obvious that from 600BC to around 1400AD there were three kingdoms, all Sinhala Buddhist, Ruhuna, Pihiti or Rajarata and Maya or Malayarata. Rajarata encompassed today’s North Central, North Western, Northern and even the Central Province. Ruhunu rata encompassed today’s Uva, Eastern and Southern Provinces. The Kandyan Kingdom from 1400AD encompassed most of the island inclusive of today’s Northern and the Eastern Provinces except for the Jaffna Peninsula. Even the Jaffna Peninsula was invaded and occupied by force by Aryachakravarthi (Pandyan) and actually did belong to Rajarata earlier and later the Kandyan Kingdom.
Today’s provincial boundaries were drawn up by the British colonialists as per their divide and rule policy and the Sinhala people were not consulted when drawing up these provincial boundaries. In the meantime, most Sri Lankan Tamils of today were actually brought over during Dutch and British times to the Jaffna Peninsula and elsewhere to work on tobacco and indigo plantations which were planted extensively in all the colonies since they were much sought after and made a lot of money for the colonialists. Therefore they are recent arrivals and cannot claim homelands or separate states whatsoever.
The usual practice when a colonial power hands over their former colonies is to hand it over to its original owners. Therefore the British colonialists should hand over the Kandyan Kingdom to the Kandyan Sinhalese from whom they took it by force. Since the Kandyan Kingdom encompassed the North and the East, these provinces too should be handed over to the Kandyan Sinhalese who are its rightful owners. Even the Jaffna Peninsula should be handed over to the Kandyan Sinhalese since it was part of Rajarata and was forcefully occupied by Aryachakravarthi (Pandyan).
Since this has now been done already, the TNA, other separatists or the US, UK EU, Canada, Norway, Sweden and India cannot demand that present day Northern or even the Eastern provinces be provided any more powers or be made into federal states since this is totally going against the history and archaeology of the island and totally going against the rights of the Sinhala people who also have fundamental rights to claim the entire island inclusive of the North and the East as their homeland first and foremost.
History which was dropped as a subject should be taught at school since Sri Lanka has a very long history and it is very beneficial for the next generation to learn the history and archaeology of the island based on actual archaeological findings, archaeological ruins, artefacts, stone inscriptions, ola leaf writings and so on. Otherwise people will believe any bogus history invented by interested parties to their benefit, not based on facts but invented for their own nefarious purposes. Today these settlers such as the Sri Lankan Tamils are inventing history for their own purposes without any archaeological evidence whatsoever to back up such bogus claims. Therefore it is imperative that history is taught as a subject in school as soon as possible.
November 9th, 2016 at 4:37 am
The writer has asked for further historical facts and figures. Apart from many Buddhist ruins, the writer has missed a very important part of the Sinhala Buddhist civilization which is the extensive hydraulic system that still prevails in the dry zone of Sri Lanka. The Sinhala kings built over 10,000 (please check this figure in research papers for accuracy) large, medium and small scale irrigation reservoirs in Rajarata and Ruhuna encompassing today’s, North Central, North, Eastern, North Western provinces. For example Yodha Wewa Reservoir in today’s Mannar in the North was built by the Sinhala King Dathusena or Mahasen. The Pavatkulam Reservoir in Vavuniya in the North was built by the Sinhala King Dathusena or Mahasen. The Kanthale Reservoir in the East was built by Sinhala King Agbo II. All of the irrigation reservoirs present in the North Central, North, North Western and East were built by Sinhala Kings.
In fact, to get the water to flow out of the reservoirs in a smooth manner, the Sinhala Engineers invented the biso kotuwa or the besi kotuwa (as in wathura besi kotuwa), a type of valve pit, or a type of water outlet out falling from the reservoir where water pressure can be managed so as not to damage the tank bund. Another use of the Sinhala irrigation Engineer was the anicut where a river’s water was diverted using a dam type structure built across the river partially blocking the river flow and diverting the water into open flow canals.
The amazing and extensive irrigation system in Sri Lanka’s dry zone encompassing today’s North Central, North, East and North Western Provinces encompassing over 10,000 (please check this figure for accuracy) large, medium and small scale reservoirs, open flow canals etc. was built by the Sinhala Kings.
Therefore there is no doubt whatsoever that there was a Sinhala Buddhist civilization encompassing today’s North Central, North, East and North Western Provinces, even just by considering this extensive irrigation reservoir system. R.L. Brohier , H.C.P. Bell, D.LO. Mendis, Henry Parker and many archaeologists, irrigation engineers and surveyors have written many books and research papers on this subject. In fact even the British Governor at the time Sir Henry Ward marvelled at the ingenious of the Sinhala irrigation engineer and wrote on the subject and Even Sir Emerson Tennent, another British Governor marvelled at the ingenious Sinhala irrigation engineer and wrote on the subject. In fact, the Sinhala irrigation engineer was a master of hydraulics. Not only that extensive data on rainfall patterns would have had to be collected to figure out the capacity of the irrigation reservoirs and their placing. Very accurate surveying of the lay of the land would have had to be carried out to come up with very accurate contour maps in order to figure out the trace of the open channel flow canals.
November 9th, 2016 at 4:37 am
The Sri Lankan Tamils demanding a ‘Tamil homeland’ is a bogus demand as per the history and archaeology of the country. Even a few months back, a discovery was made of an archaeological site in Anuradhapura dating back to 800BC and included beads, pottery etc. Anuradhapura was a large village by 900BC and there was an expansion into a city by 600BC. There is plenty of evidence of pre-historic cave discoveries such a the Fa Hien caves, the Bellanbendi pellessa and other cave discoveries especially in the wet zone of pre-historic sites or iron age and stone age discoveries (due to the clay in the wet zone preserving such sites well). The oldest skeleton found on the island is 37,000 years old. We know there were four tribes Yaksha, Naga, Raksha and Deva and around 600BC there was an influx of people from India, possibly Bengal or Orissa. These people together with the four tribes Yaksha, Naga, Raksha and Deva together then formed the Sinhala nation. This is why Anuradhapura which was a village by 900BC expanded into a city by 600BC.
Does all this archaeological evidence not prove that the Sinhala people are the descendants of the indigenous people of the island i.e. the yakshas, Nagas, Rakshas and Devas? Much later by around the 16th century due to the Aryachakravarthi invasion of the Jaffna Peninsula the Sri Lanka Tamils migrated but into the Jaffna peninsula only. Later during the Portuguese, Dutch and British colonial times, there were further migrations of Sri Lankan Tamils (called Malabars meaning those from the Malabar coast of India) for purposes of planting tobacco and indigo brought in by the colonialists.
Of course other people such as the Arab traders, Malays, then the Burgers (descendants of colonisers) also migrated to the island too.
Does this not then prove that this island inclusive of the North and the East is the homeland of all its people? So is this demand for a separate state by the Sri Lankan Tamils (called Malabars meaning those from the Malabar coast of India), descendants of recent migrations to the island, not absurd and unacceptable?
Let us state in the constitution that this island is the homeland of all its people, for the sake of justice and fairplay, by everyone concerned.
November 9th, 2016 at 6:44 am
There is no Tamil Homeland!- Who said Tamil have homeland in Sinhela Island ( Chignkela Theevu) ? We-Tamil homeland in TN.
We-iLankaiyar who speck Demila only have Hela (Eelam) .
NPC- Saiva TE & EPC -Muslim TE .
November 9th, 2016 at 3:02 pm
Mahinda is determined to keep 13A and he avoided discussing “Police and land powers” under it. It is a matter of time he gives everything plus MORE , sneakily , secretly but he will fully implement even if it kills few Sinhaleses. That is his “statementship”. Under 13A IT IS ALREADY FEDERAL.
Maru Sira made his determination clear recently. He said he is the only president managed to reduce own powers in the world. He is prepared do everything to get JO to approve new constitution and he will scarifice REAL YAHAPALANAYA to give Federal officially.
I beleive JVP fully support Federal as they do not have “Sinhala” idea even unofficially.
Finally, it is the same with all major parties and even smaller parties who seek survival.
We need a new Nationalist leader, like TRUMP.
Can we convert the old man MR to this by pumping some FEAR ?
November 9th, 2016 at 10:43 pm
Every committee and every government department of the government is NOW STACKED with Yamapalanaya ACTIVISTS or Yamapalanaya PUPPETS bought and sold lock, stock and barrel with curative jobs, business opportunities, real estate, luxury vehicles and outright bribes!
That is why NONE OF THE LEGISLATION and Government Directives of this government should be viewed as having the public’s acceptance, especially from the Majority Sinhala Buddhist community, now or in the future.
As such, ALL of these new laws and regulations shoved down our throats by force, are INVALID and SHOULD BE REPEALED as soon as this PUPPET government OF the minorities, BY the minorities, FOR the minorities is OUSTED FROM POWER.
The MESSAGE sent to the Yamapalanaya should be, you can PLAY with the POWER you have STOLEN for a while, but you CANNOT FORCE US TO ACCEPT THEM permanently! NONTHING that you do without our APPROVAL will SURVIVE when you are OUSTED ….. SHORTLY!
November 10th, 2016 at 3:32 am
The new constitution is nothing but a federal state or even worse Eelam. The treacherous Ranil, CBK, Mangala and Sirisena and the godfather of the federal or Eelam constitution Dr. Jayampathy Wickramaratne are going to abolish the concurrent list. Even India and Pakistan which are huge countries and which have federal constitutions have a concurrent list. Even South Africa which is huge country but is a unitary state have a concurrent list. However small Sri Lanka is going to get rid of its concurrent list as per the wishes of the TNA, other separatists, the US, EU,UK, Canada, Norway, Sweden etc.
The godfather of the new federal or Eelam constitution the treacherous Dr. Jayampathy Wickramaratne is going to set up a constitutional court which is above the supreme court to deal with constitutional issues which arises which will be manned by foreign funded NGO lackeys. Not only that, the Governor of a province who is the executive at the provincial level, his powers will be given over to the Chief Minister of the Province.
Not only that, land and police powers will be given to the provincial councils which means there will be nine different police forces in the country. Vigneshwaram will then use his police force to ethnically cleanse the North of Sinhala people. Giving land powers to Vigneshwaran means he will ethnically cleanse the entire North of Sinhala people using his Eelam police force. Giving land powers to provincial councils in equivalent to handing over Eelam.
Not only this, the subject national planning is to be handed over to the provincial councils. This is similar to handing over an Eelam if the provinces can draw up their own national plans.
This new constitution is highly dangerous and equivalent to handing over an Eelam. It should be rejected in total by the Sinhala people and all patriotic Sri Lankan people if they have even an ounce of sense. Let us keep what is there at present which is more than sufficient as per the centre periphery relations.