Gas leak hospitalises 47 workers, Ja-ela factory closed for now

Gas leak hospitalises 47 workers, Ja-ela factory closed for now
Wednesday, March 21, 2018 - 01:00

Camelia Nathaniel and Kusum S.HennadiRagama group correspondent

Some of the hospitalised employees. Picture by Kusum Hennadi.  

Around 47 employees of a factory in Ja-ela were hospitalised following a gas leak, which had taken place on Monday around 11.30 pm. They were admitted to the Ja-ela, Ragama and Gampaha hospitals.

It was reported that the employees of the factory located in Ekala, Ja-Ela were hospitalised on Monday due to the gas leak which has been occurring since Monday. According to hospital sources, 12 women were among those hospitalised.

Meanwhile another batch of employees were reportedly admitted to hospital yesterday morning.

Police had been alerted to the incident through a call on the emergency 119 hotline. Police Media Spokesman SP Ruwan Gunasekara said the gas leak had occurred through a pipeline that combines a certain gas to operate the machines.

The workers who had inhaled this gas had taken ill and were taken to the hospital. It was reported that there were around 1,200 workers in the factory premises at the time of the gas leak.

The police said that after the initial gas leak on Monday the authorities of the garment manufacturing company had been told by the police to close the factory until the gas leak was repaired.The authorities had paid no heed to the warnings and recommenced work again last morning.

The gas leak had re-occurred around 10 am last morning, affecting around 52 workers who were at work within the factory. They were admitted to the Gampaha and Ragama hospitals for treatment.

The Ja-Ela Police had taken measures to obtain a Court Order to temporarily close down the factory until the relevant authorities conduct further tests to ensure that it was safe to reopen.

The Negombo Magistrate issued an order closing down the factory until March 22.Police are expected to take action against the factory owners for negligence.

Daily News LK

Putin wins new six-year term, Western leaders mum on victory

Putin wins new six-year term, 
Western leaders mum on victory
Sheetal Sukhija - Monday 19th March, 2018

Putin got over 76 percent of the vote, won a new six-year term as Russian President 

He has said he is considering changes to his government including the post of Prime Minister 

World leaders have congratulated Putin but no Western leaders have responded to his victory

MOSCOW, Russia - 65-year-old Vladimir Putin, already Russia’s longest-serving leader since the Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin, won another term as the country’s President after securing a stunning 76 percent of the vote in Sunday’s election.

The man, who has been undefeated since 1999, when he became president on New Year's Eve that year, following Boris Yeltsin’s resignation, has dominated Russian politics since then.

And while it was a victory in an election that was widely projected to have no chance of going any other way - grand celebrations marked his victory nonetheless.

Putin’s landslide victory also came on the fourth anniversary of the treaty in which Putin formally declared Crimea part of Russia following its annexation.

Putin is set to serve to the end of his new fourth term, which will take his political dominance of Russia to nearly a quarter of a century until 2024, making him the longest ruler since Soviet dictator Josef Stalin, by which time Putin will be 71.

According to official results, Putin got over 76 percent of the vote.

His nearest competitor, millionaire communist Pavel Grudinin, received 11.8 percent of the vote.

Ksenia Sobchak, a former reality TV host got less than 2 percent of the vote, while veteran nationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky got 5.6 percent.

Putin’s fiercest political opponent, Alexei Navalny was prohibited from contesting due to a fraud conviction that he has criticized as being politically motivated.

The scale of victory in the Presidential election had been widely predicted and appears to be a marked increase in Putin's share of the vote from the 64 percent he won in 2012.

Meanwhile, voter turnout stood at 67.47 percent, which was also said to have risen considerably since 2012.

The English-language Moscow Times said in a report, "In a widely-expected result, an exit poll by pollster VTsIOM showed Putin, who has already dominated the political landscape for the last 18 years, had won 73.9 percent of the vote. Backed by state TV, the ruling party, and credited with an approval rating around 80 percent, his victory was never in doubt. Critics alleged that officials had compelled people to come to the polls to ensure that voter boredom at the one-sided contest did not lead to a low turnout."

Following the elections, Igor Morozov, a member of the upper house of parliament, said on state television, “I think that in the United States and Britain they've understood they cannot influence our elections. Our citizens understand what sort of situation Russian finds itself in today.”

His statement came after Russia's Election Commission said in a report on Sunday their “website was hit by a cyberattack overnight” and adding that “the cyberattack originated overseas - in 15 countries overseas. We don't have much more detail than that, and we'll see if the claim goes anywhere."

Addressing a late night victory rally near Red Square in Moscow, Putin told a cheering crowd he interpreted the win as a vote of confidence and said that voters had "recognized the achievements of the last few years” in tough conditions.

He led the crowd in repeated chants of “Russia” and said, “It's very important to maintain this unity.”

Later, he told a meeting of supporters that difficult times were ahead, but that Russia had a chance to make "a breakthrough."

He also said that he was considering changes to his government, including the post of prime minister.

Since 2012, the post is held by former President Dmitry Medvedev who changed places with Putin that year.

Putin has also vowed to use his new term to beef up Russia's defences against the West and to raise living standards.

On Monday morning, Russia's Central Election Commission said it had not registered any serious complaints about violations.

However, video recordings from polling stations showed irregularities in a number of towns and cities across Russia.

Some even showed election officials stuffing boxes with ballot papers.

Independent election monitoring group Golos reported hundreds of irregularities during polling day.

The group said these irregularities included webcams at polling stations obstructed by balloons and other obstacles.

However, Ella Pamfilova, head of the Central Electoral Commission, said there were only half as many reported violations compared to 2012, and that none had been serious.

International observers are due to give their verdict on how clean the election was later on Monday.

Meanwhile, Valentina Matviyenko, speaker of the upper house, hailed the victory as a moral one over the West and said, "Our elections have proved once again... that it's not possible to manipulate our people. People came together."

Opposition leader Navalny, reacting to the election result indicated he had been unable to contain his anger.

He tweeted, “Now is the season of Lent. I took it upon myself never to get angry and not to raise my voice. Oh well, I'll try again next year.”

He is expected to call for anti-Putin protests demanding a re-run of an election and has claimed that the polls were neither free nor fair.

As world leaders congratulated Vladimir Putin on Sunday night and into Monday morning, no Western leaders have responded to his victory so far.

The Chinese President Xi Jinping was among the first to offer his congratulations to Putin and said in a Chinese Foreign Ministry statement, that he believed Russia would "definitely continue to create new glories for national development."

Jinping added, "Currently, the China-Russia comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership is at the best level in history, which sets an example for building a new type of international relations."

Leaders of Kazakhstan, Belarus, Venezuela, Bolivia and Cuba also sent their best wishes to Putin.

However, no Western leaders have so far made any comment.

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas questioned the fairness of the election.

Maas said Russia would remain a difficult partner, but added, "We want to remain in dialogue."

In recent weeks, tensions between Russia and the West have deepened after the poisoning of an ex-spy in Britain.

The U.K. government, blaming Russia and Putin directly for the poisoning has expelled 23 Russian diplomats from London, triggering a tit-for-tat response from Moscow.

Meanwhile, the U.S. has imposed sanctions on a group of Russians over alleged interference in the 2016 election.

சமரன்: காவிரி: கழக தெருமுனைப் பொதுக்கூட்ட உரை

சமரன்: காவிரி: கழக தெருமுனைப் பொதுக்கூட்ட உரை: https://youtu.be/x4IhzadhRo4 காவிரி மேலாண்மை வாரியத்தை உடனே அமை! ம.ஜ.இ.க. கண்டன பொதுக்கூட்டம் மீஞ்சூர் கடை வீதி,சென்னை....

Stephen Hawking, science's brightest star, dies aged 76

ENB Poster Stephen Hawking

He warned against a looming conflict between robots and humans before his death

Stephen Hawking’s final Reddit post is going viral over its ominous warning about robots

Stephen Hawking, science's brightest star, dies aged 76

The physicist and author of A Brief History of Time has died at his home in Cambridge. His children said: ‘We will miss him for ever’

Published: Mar 14, 2018 

KARI PAUL REPORTER

By KARI PAUL REPORTER

Famed physicist Stephen Hawking died Tuesday at the age of 76, and before he departed this world, he left us with warnings that Earth is headed for a “catastrophic ending” in the near future.

This doom will not come from a fiery asteroid or even global warming, but from rising inequality fueled by increasingly smart robots, Hawking said.

“Intelligent future AI will probably develop a drive to survive and acquire more resources as a step toward accomplishing whatever goal it has, because surviving and having more resources will increase its chances of accomplishing that other goal,” he said in a Reddit Ask Me Anything forum in 2015. “This can cause problems for humans whose resources get taken away.” His solution? We should all leave the planet and find new lives in outer space.

His dire prediction came as robots and artificial intelligence increasingly take over human jobs, with some 800 million people around the world — including a third of the workforce in the U.S. — predicted to be out of jobs by 2030 because of automation, according to an eight-month study from the McKinsey Global Institute. Though Hawking often warned about the upcoming robot takeover, he noted technology could also produce new solutions.

“If machines produce everything we need, the outcome will depend on how things are distributed,” he wrote. “Everyone can enjoy a life of luxurious leisure if the machine-produced wealth is shared, or most people can end up miserably poor if the machine-owners successfully lobby against wealth redistribution.”

This philosophy has also been described as automated luxury communism: the idea that in a future in which labor is automated, machines will do work that profits people and those profits can be distributed amongst them equally. In such a post-work society, things like a 10-12 hour work week, a guaranteed social wage, guaranteed housing, universal education, and healthcare would be the norm, Aaron Bastani, author of “Fully Automated Luxury Communism,” set for release in September 2018, told the Guardian.

“There may be some work that will still need to be done by humans, like quality control, but it would be minimal,” he said.

He noted Uber as an example: now the company employs hundreds of thousands of drivers around the world, but it is anticipated to replace them with self-driving cars by 2030. Under the tenets of luxury communism, such services would be provided by the state rather than a private company, with profits being used to increase the standard of living for all.

Can AI improve the taste of kale?

Some argue automation will not evolve to meet all of the needs of humans, or that the model of luxury communism isn’t environmentally sustainable. Hawking himself said the future didn’t seem bright for such a model.

“So far, the trend seems to be toward the second option, with technology driving ever-increasing inequality,” he said.

Others say some form of shared wealth from automation is inevitable and already coming to fruition. In 2016, Swiss voters rejected an initiative to create a guaranteed minimal income on which to live, a concept that tech magnates like Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerburg have both promoted.

“A world of increasing abundance, even luxury, is not only possible, but likely,” Erik Brynjolfsson, author of “Second Machine Age,” a book on the rise of robots, said. “Many of things we consider necessities today – phone service, automobiles, Saturdays off – were luxuries in the past.”

Sri Lanka Declares State of Emergency After Mob Attacks on Muslims

ASIA PACIFIC

Sri Lanka Declares State of Emergency After Mob Attacks on 
Muslims
By MUJIB MASHAL and DHARISHA BASTIANS
MARCH 6, 2018

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Sri Lanka’s government imposed a nationwide state of emergency on Tuesday after mob attacks against the minority Muslim population in a central district, violence that has highlighted the country’s fragility as it tries to recover from decades of civil war.

The unrest in the district of Kandy began on Sunday as angry mobs made up of the majority Sinhalese ethnic group attacked dozens of Muslim businesses and houses and at least one mosque. At least one person was killed. Hundreds of security personnel, including special forces, were deployed to Kandy on Monday and a curfew was declared there.

Officials feared that the death of a 27-year-old man — who was trapped inside a burning house and who described the attack on the building in an audio recording — could provoke violence across the country.

Kandy communal violence Video by Colombo Gazette

“We have decided to declare a state of emergency to ensure these clashes and tensions don’t spread elsewhere in the country,” said Dayasiri Jayasekera, a government spokesman.

Mr. Jayasekera said the state of emergency would last 10 days and that law enforcement would also act against “all communal hate speech posts on social media.”

“There were mistakes on the part of the local police in implementing the law. Some of the attacks happened in front of them,” Mr. Jayasekera said.

The victim was identified as Abdul Basith, who had just gotten a job as a local reporter for a radio station. He lived with his parents, who ran a small shop selling slippers on the first floor of their two-story house. The house was burned to the ground, witnesses said.

Fayaz Samsudeen, Mr. Basith’s father, said they had escaped the first floor when the fire started. But his son was on the second floor.

“When the fire started, he screamed for help and asked people to help us get out of the house. There is no way to get outside from upstairs, but we thought he would have escaped,” Mr. Samsudeen said. “In the morning when we came back to see our house, we found his body.”

Mr. Basith’s uncle, Mohammed Maleek, said he was in communication with Mr. Basith in his final minutes and that his nephew had assured him he would be safe because the police were everywhere.

In an audio message sent to his uncle, Mr. Basith described the scene as the mob could be heard outside. The audio was circulating in Kandy after his death and as a sign of its authenticity, a cabinet minister who had visited the scene referred to the message in Parliament on Tuesday.

“They have broken all the doors in our house, large stones are falling inside,” Mr. Basith said in the message. “Hello, yes I am inside our house and they are burning something. There are flames coming inside.”

Later, his voice grew tense.

“They have burned the house,” he said. “The house is burning.”

The latest tensions, coming a week after similar mob attacks against Muslims in an eastern region, erupted after a Sinhalese truck driver was injured by a group of Muslim men in what has been described as a road rage incident. The man died from his injuries on Saturday.

After his death, officials and Kandy residents said, extremist Buddhist monks who have incited communal violence in the past descended on the area, offering their condolences. But many believed that their presence amid the tensions fueled the violent backlash against the Muslims.

“Two controversial Buddhist monks who have been at the center of similar anti-minority clashes before had been in the area on Sunday night,” said Rishad Bathiudeen, Sri Lanka’s minister of industry and commerce who was in Kandy to survey the damage. “We demand their arrest for inciting communal violence.”

Mr. Bathiudeen said that after the truck driver died, the police in Kandy were warned about the rising tensions and urged to send reinforcements.

“The deputy inspector general told us to tell the Muslims to stay at home and close up their shops in the Digana town,” Mr. Bathiudeen said. “The Muslims stayed at home and the mobs came and burned the deserted shops.”

“How are minority communities supposed to feel when the police stand by and watch while their houses and their businesses are destroyed by violent mobs?” said Mr. Bathiudeen, who is Muslim. “We are urging our people to remain calm. But when their houses and livelihoods go up in flames, how long will they bear it?”

Four mosques, 37 houses, 46 shops and 35 vehicles have been damaged in the attacks, according to Hidayath Saththar, a member of the provincial council in Central Province, where Kandy is located.

Ranil Wickremesinghe, Sri Lanka’s prime minister, told the Parliament on Tuesday that local community elders, both Buddhists and Muslims, had tried to ease tensions after the driver’s death through dialogue. “Extremists” from outside had come in to the area to stir violence in what he called “organized acts of sabotage.”

“All of us who have experienced a 30-year war know the value of peace, harmony and unity,” Mr. Wickremesinghe said.

Anti-Muslim violence has been on the rise in Sri Lanka in recent years as the country’s leaders have struggled to rein in the nationalist fervor of the majority Sinhalese Buddhists. President Maithripala Sirisena’s fragile coalition government has been accused of emboldening extremists by failing to hold groups that incite hatred to account.

Sri Lanka’s long civil war ended in 2009 with the bloody crushing of an insurgency by the Tamil ethnic minority. But observers say many of the underlying causes of the war still remain and the country’s relative stability could further deteriorate if the government does not win trust of the minority groups by providing protection and justice. Thousands of families, mostly Tamil, are still looking for loved ones who were forcibly disappeared or trying to take back land taken over by the military.

One recent example of how tense relations remain was an episode involving the country’s military attaché to the United Kingdom. From the steps of the Sri Lankan high commission in London, video cameras captured Brig. Priyanka Fernando, who was in uniform, making a throat-slitting gesture to Tamil protesters gathered there, which many saw as a threat.

The foreign ministry suspended him from his job but the president stepped in to reinstate him.

Eventually, Brigadier Fernando was recalled from London — not to be disciplined but for his own security, the army said.

Amparai: Suspected food sample sent to Government Analyst

Secret birth control project:
Suspected contaminated food sample sent to Government Analyst
March 1, 2018,

Health Minister Dr. Rajitha Senaratne, who is also the co-cabinet spokesman on Wednesday (Feb. 28) said that he was ready to assist in the ongoing investigations into allegations that birth control pills had been mixed with food served at a roadside eatery.

Commenting on media reports, Dr. Senaratne said that over the years there had been a spate of allegations, in some instances directed at doctors. But, subsequent investigations had proved there was no basis for such accusations.

When journalists pointed out that social media had reported that an employee of an eatery in the Eastern Province had admitted serving food with crushed birth control pills, Dr. Senaratne stressed that such claims couldn’t be taken seriously.

Dr. Senaratne explained the difference in male and female birth control methods.

Deputy Inspector General of Police, Ampara, K. N. J. Wedisinghe yesterday told The Island that allegedly contaminated food sample had been sent to the Government Analyst. Wedisinghe said that investigation undertaken by the GA would help establish the truth. The DIG said that five persons had been so far arrested over their alleged involvement in organised attack on the eatery and damaged to other property in the vicinity.

Dr. Senaratne said that mob violence should be examined against the backdrop of nearly 30 year long war and the previous government habitually promoting ethnic tensions for petty political reasons.

In world report Sri Lanka listed among countries unsafe for Muslims

In world report Sri Lanka listed among countries unsafe for Muslims

Sri Lanka has been listed among countries unsafe for Muslims in a newly released world report.

In the report, Amnesty International notes that Sri Lanka saw a rise in Buddhist nationalist sentiment last year, including attacks against Christians and Muslims.

In September, a group of hardline Buddhist monks attacked the homes of Rohingya refugees in Boosa, southern Sri Lanka. In November, dozens of home and businesses of Muslims were attacked near the southern city of Galle.

The State of the World’s Human Rights report for 2017 to 2018 by Amnesty International notes that in South Asia, governments invoked law and order, national security and religion as they engaged in attacks against religious minorities, criminalized freedom of expression and subjected civil society to a campaign of intimidation, threats, smears and violence

“Over the past year, the region was marked by assaults on civil society. Journalists, bloggers, activists and others human rights defenders have been vilified and subjected to threats and violence. Meanwhile, online, invasive new cybercrime legislation has been used to criminalize freedom of expression and subject people to unlawful surveillance,” said Biraj Patnaik, Amnesty International’s South Asia Director.

“South Asia also remains one of the most dangerous regions to be a member of a religious minority. Muslims in India and Sri Lanka, Shi’as in Pakistan and Afghanistan, and Hindus in Bangladesh have all come under attack over the past year. In each case, the governments have either failed to protect them, been indifferent to their fate, or even encouraged a climate of hostility.”

The report also says that in Sri Lanka, families attempting to arrange stones as memorials for loved ones lost during the 26-year internal conflict were stopped by security forces last year. Human rights defenders were also subject to surveillance and intimidation. Women human rights defenders in the north and east reported that interactions with the police were often degrading and sexualized.

(Colombo Gazette)

நல்லாட்சி அரசு நழுவிப்போக முடியாது – முஜிபுர் ரஹ்மான்

முஜிபுர் றஹ்மான்

நல்லாட்சி அரசு நழுவிப்போக முடியாது – முஜிபுர் ரஹ்மான்
2018-02-28

அம்பாறை நகரிலுள்ள பள்ளிவாசலுக்கும் முஸ்லிம்களின் உடைமைகளுக்கும் சேதம் விளைவித்த சிங்கள இனவாதிகளின் செயற்பாட்டைக் கண்டித்தும், அதற்குக் காரணமானவர்களை தேடிப்பிடித்துத் தகுந்த தண்டனை வழங்க அரசாங்கம் தக்க நடவடிக்கையை உடனடியாக மேற்கொள்ள வேண்டும் எனவும் பாராளுமன்ற உறுப்பினர் முஜிபுர் றஹ்மான் அரசாங்கத்திடம் வேண்டுகோள் விடுத்துள்ளார்.

அம்பாறை நகரில் ஏற்பட்ட வன்முறை தொடர்பாக அவர் வெளியிட்டுள்ள அறிக்கையில் மேலும் தெரிவிக்கப்பட்டுள்ளதாவது;

சில இனவாதிகள் இலங்கையின் கிழக்கு மாகாண அம்பாறை நகரிலுள்ள பள்ளிவாசலுக்கும், முஸ்லிம்களுக்குச் சொந்தமான உடைமைகளுக்கும் சேதம் விளைவித்துள்ளனர்.

முஸ்லிம் உணவு விடுதியொன்றில் ஏற்பட்ட சச்சரவு ஒன்றை மையமாக வைத்தே இனவாதிகள் மேற்படி திட்டமிடப்பட்ட தாக்குதலைத் தொடர்ந்துள்ளனர். இந்தத் தாக்குதல் இடம்பெற்றிருக்கும் முறையைப் பார்க்கும் போது இது நன்றாகத் திட்டமிட்டு நடாத்தப்பட்ட இனவாதத் தாக்குதல் ஒன்று என்பது தெளிவாகிறது.

'பிரச்சினை இடம்பெற்ற உணவு விடுதியைத் தாக்கிய இனவாதக் காடையர்கள் முஸ்லிம்களின் உடைமைகளையும் தாக்கித் தீ வைத்துச் சேதப்படுத்தி விட்டு சுமார் ஒன்றரை கி.மீற்றருக்கு அப்பால் உள்ள அம்பாறை பள்ளிவாசலுக்கு ஊர்வலமாக வந்து தாக்கியுள்ளனர்.` 

நாட்டில் தோற்கடிக்கப்பட்டிருந்த இனவாத சக்திகள் மீண்டும் தலைதூக்கி நல்லாட்சியின் உருவாக்கத்திற்கு உரமாக, உறுதுணையாக இருந்த சிறுபான்மை சமூகங்களை சீண்டிப் பார்த்துவருகிறது.

நல்லாட்சியின் வருகையோடு சிறுபான்மை சமூகமான முஸ்லிம்கள் மீது பலதரப்பட்ட இனவாத செயற்பாடுகள் அரங்கேறின. முஸ்லிம்களுக்குச் சொந்தமான கடைகள், வர்த்தக நிலையங்கள் தீவைக்கப்பட்டன. சமூக ஊடகங்களில் முஸ்லிம்களுக்கெதிராக திட்டமிட்டு மோசமான பிரசாரங்கள் முடுக்கி விடப்பட்டன.

நல்லாட்சி அரசாங்கத்தில் கிந்தோட்டையில் முதலில் இது அரங்கேற்றப்பட்டது. கிந்தோட்டையில்  சட்டம் ஒழுங்குக்குப் பொறுப்பானவர்கள் கூட ஒழுங்கான நடவடிக்கையை மேற்கொள்ளாமல் இருந்தனர்.

2015 ஜனவரியில் தோற்கடிக்கப்பட்ட இனவாத சக்திகள் அடிக்கடி தலைதூக்கி இத்தகையை நாசகார செயல்களை அரங்கேற்றி வருகின்றன. நல்லாட்சி அரசாங்கம் கூட இத்தகைய இனவாத சக்திகளை முடக்குவதில் பாராமுகமாக இருப்பதாக மக்கள் மத்தியில் குற்றச்சாட்டும் எழுந்து வருகிறது.

கடந்த உள்ளுராட்சி தேர்தலில் இனவாத சக்திகளுக்குக் கிடைத்த வெற்றி ஒரு புது தெம்பை வழங்கியிருக்கிறது. ஓடி ஒழிந்து மறைந்திருந்த இனவாதிகள் வீதிகளில் துணிச்சலுடன் இறங்குவதற்கு இப்போது சந்தர்ப்பம் கிடைத்திருக்கிறது.

இனவாதிகளை அடக்குவதில் நல்லாட்சி பொலிஸார் காட்டும் அசமந்தப் போக்கும் இந்த இனவாதிகளுக்கும் இந்த இனவாதிகளை பின்னணியில் நின்றும் இயக்கும் அரசியல்வாதிகளுக்கும் தைரியத்தை ஊட்டி வருகிறது.

`பொலிஸ் நிலையமும், இராணுவ முகாமும், விமானப்படை முகாமும், விஷேட அதிரடிப்படை முகாமும் இருக்கும் அம்பாறை நகரில் இடம்பெற்ற இந்த முஸ்லிம்களுக்கெதிரான வன்முறையைத் தடுக்க அரச பாதுகாப்பு இயந்திரத்திற்கு இயலாமல் போயிருப்பது எம்மை வெட்கித் தலைகுனிய வைத்திருக்கிறது.`

காலி கிந்தோட்டை சம்பவம் முதல் அம்பாறை சம்பவம் வரை இனவாதிகளின் செயற்பாடுகளை முடக்குவதில் நல்லாட்சி அரசாங்கம் தோல்வியடைந்திருக்கிறது என்பது மிகவும் தெளிவாகிறது.

அம்பாறை சம்பவத்தின் போது பொலிஸாரின் முன்னிலையிலேயே இந்த இனவாதக் காடையர்கள் அசம்பாவிதங்களை அரங்கேற்றியுள்ளனர்.

சம்பவம் இடம்பெற்ற இடத்திற்கும் பொலிஸ் நிலையத்திற்கும் 300 மீற்றர் இடைவெளியே இருந்திருக்கின்றன. காவல்துறையினர் இந்த அசம்பாவிதங்களை கைக்கட்டிப் பார்த்துக்கொண்டிருந்துள்ளனர்.

பிரச்சினை இடம்பெற்ற உணவு விடுதியைத் தாக்கிய இனவாதக் காடையர்கள் முஸ்லிம்களின் உடைமைகளையும் தாக்கித் தீ வைத்துச் சேதப்படுத்தி விட்டு சுமார் ஒன்றரை கி.மீற்றருக்கு அப்பால் உள்ள அம்பாறை பள்ளிவாசலுக்கு ஊர்வலமாக வந்து தாக்கியுள்ளனர்.

இதன்போது அம்பாறை பொலிஸார் எவ்வித நடவடிக்கையையும் மேற்கொள்ளாமல் இருந்துள்ளனர்.

பொலிஸ் நிலையமும், இராணுவ முகாமும், விமானப்படை முகாமும், விஷேட அதிரடிப்படை முகாமும் இருக்கும் அம்பாறை நகரில் இடம்பெற்ற இந்த முஸ்லிம்களுக்கெதிரான வன்முறையைத் தடுக்க அரச பாதுகாப்பு இயந்திரத்திற்கு இயலாமல் போயிருப்பது எம்மை வெட்கித் தலைகுனிய வைத்திருக்கிறது.

இனியும் பார்த்திருக்காது இனவாத அரசியல் சக்திகளினால் திட்டமிட்டு வளர்க்கப்படும் இந்த இனவாத அலையைக் கட்டுப்படுத்த அரசாங்கம் கடுமையான காத்திரமான நடவடிக்கையை மேற்கொள்ள வேண்டும்.

குறித்த சம்பவத்தின் போது கடமை தவறிய பொலிஸார் மீதும் வன்முறையில் ஈடுபட்ட இனவாதிகள் மீதும் அரசாங்கம் கடுமையான நடவடிக்கையை மேற்கொள்ள வேண்டும். சட்டம் ஒழுங்கு அமைச்சராகப் பிரதமர் ரணில் விக்கிரமசிங்க பதவியேற்று இரண்டு நாட்களுக்குள்ளேயே முஸ்லிம்கள் பெரும்பான்மையாக வாழும் ஒரு மாவட்டத்திலேயே இனவாதிகள் தமது ஆட்டத்தை ஆரம்பித்து காட்டியுள்ளனர். இதற்கான ஒழுங்கான உண்மையான இதயசுத்தியுடனான நடவடிக்கையை அரசாங்கம் மேற்கொண்டு குற்றவாளிகளை சட்டத்தின் முன் நிறுத்தாவிட்டால் மஹிந்தவின் அரசியலுக்கும் நல்லாட்சியின் அரசியலுக்கும் இடையில் வித்தியாசம் இல்லாமல் போய்விடும் என்பதை ஆணித்தரமாக முன்வைக்கிறேன்.

நல்லாட்சி ஆட்சியில் காலி கின்தோட்டை முதல் இன்றைய அம்பாறை வரை இனவாதிகளின் அசம்பாவிதங்கள் தொடர்ந்திருக்கின்றன. இதற்கு இன்றே முற்றுப்புள்ளி வைக்கப்பட வேண்டும். இந்த இனவாத அலையைத் தடுத்து நிறுத்தி இந்நாட்டுச் சிறுபான்மை சமூகங்களைப் பாதுகாக்க வேண்டிய தார்மிக பொறுப்பிலிருந்து நல்லாட்சி அரசாங்கம் நழுவிப்போக முடியாது என்றும் அவர் குறிப்பிட்டுள்ளார்.

Amparai: Establish the RULE OF LAW in this country

Mass Usuf

‘Wanda Pethi’ My Foot!   
By Mass L. Usuf –

How many of the Sinhalese people can be fooled?  I have to deliberately mention Sinhalese because the fictional ‘victims’ are the Sinhalese people. ‘Victims’ of what? The ‘victims’ of ‘wanda pethi’. Victimised by whom? By the Muslims who are targeting the Sinhalese by

mixing ‘Wanda Pethi’ (tablets to make a woman barren) in the food that they eat. The alleged objective is to reduce the Sinhala population while increasing the Muslim population so that Sharia law can be introduced in Sri Lanka.

Foolishness sometimes comes out of innocence and that can be understood. However, foolishness arising from gullibility conditioned by prejudice is unpardonable. Especially, when such tomfoolery paradoxically, are from the educated lot.

New Discovery

Eureka! It seems that the Muslim Hotels and Muslim Garment outlets in Sri Lanka have discovered what the advanced medical scientists of the developed world has not; That is, a tablet by which a woman can be made barren. Many Sinhalese people including many monks have fallen hook, line and sinker to these absurd lies. In Ampara, on 27th February, a Muslim hotel was attacked by a Sinhalese mob over the allegation that they were mixing these tablets with food served to the Sinhalese customers. The customers in this instance were men and the food served obviously would have been consumed by them. One wonders how could the women become barren through this. Sounds illogical and unscientific.

Reportedly at least five people were wounded and several shops and a mosque damaged. A video clip where the cashier admits that he had mixed the tablets has gone viral. The fact is that the video recording had been done under coercion and the cashier who is not fluent in his Sinhala does not even know what ‘wanda pethi’ is. In a later recorded clip the Cashier explained what had happened. He said that he had nodded his head in admission that the hotel used to mix chick peas flour to thicken the gravy. It was after he was told by his friends at the Police Station that the issue is about mixing some tablets in food which causes infertility that he realised what all this was about.

Law And Order

The serious lapse in the enforcement of the law, interference by corrupt politicians in matters of the Police and the general lack of self-confidence in the Police force is portending disaster to this country. It is alleged that the distance between the Police Station and the Hotel that was attacked is less than one kilometre. Strangely, it had taken a longer time for the Police to arrive at the scene of crime. The attack party was mobilised without delay indicating that this was organised and pre-planned. Altogether, giving credence to the theory that there was collusion. Something that needs to be investigated. Also, the Police needs to be instructed with regard to efficiency in response time, making it mandatory.

The mission statement of the Sri Lanka Police reads:

“Sri Lanka Police is committed and confident to uphold and enforce the law of the land, to preserve the public order, prevent crime and Terrorism with prejudice to none – equity to all.”

In contrast to this idealistic Mission statement, in real life today, we find a driver abandoning his vehicle and running away from an accident site fearing for his life. We find organised racist mobs storming into a hotel and perpetrating a litany of crimes. In a properly functioning democratic state any breach of the law will be duly reported to the Police by the person affected. The Police on its part will protect, investigate and enforce the law. No citizen is expected to take the law into his hand in normal circumstances. Well, if this is how as we know civilised society functions, what then has happened to this country?  Can we call ourselves as civilised people?  Are the democratic institutions functioning as they ought to? Where is the Rule of Law? Why is the Police hesitant to arrest or file action against the monks who commit crimes? Where does one find in practise the idealistic Mission statement of the Police – with prejudice to none – equity to all. Is it reasonable to deduce that these are the serious indicators of institutionalised racism? Have the people developed an anarchic mentality engendered by the circumstances? Where is the constitutional guarantee of and, the fundamental right of equality and equal status before the law? Why is there discrimination when it comes to enforcing the law in situations where the Sinhalese are involved with the Tamils or Muslims or the Christians?

The Constitution of Sri Lankan guarantees to its citizens, thus:

12. (1) All persons are equal before the law and are entitled to the equal protection of the law.

(2) No citizen shall be discriminated against on the grounds of race, religion, language, caste, sex, political opinion, place of birth or any one of such grounds.

The demise of greats like the late Venerable Sobitha Thero and Bellanwila Wimalarathana Thero who were strong supporters of the Rule of Law is a tragedy for the nation.

Mr. Prime Minister

It was not too long before that you received the appointment as the Minister for Law and Order. The Muslim community is waiting in anticipation to see what action you will be taking on what transpired in Ampara at the Hotel. Absolutely unfounded and scientifically fallacious accusations levelled against the hotelier. Clearly, several crimes had been committed like assault, damage to property, criminal trespass, unlawful assembly, hate speech etc.

The Muslim community is looking for justice. Justice that is manifested in its true sense that is equitable justice to all sides. If there is evidence that the hotelier has mixed the so called ‘wanda pethi’ prosecute him to the maximum. In the same way arrest all those who were directly responsible for causing this mayhem on that day. Also, arrest all those who were accomplices and those who aided and abetted in the violence that took place in Ampara. Let the IGP instruct the CID to identify the persons who misuse social media to spread false news and to take stern action against them.

Mr. Prime Minister both you, as the Minister for Law and Order and the IGP need to focus investigation on the following premise. If these criminals acted as they had done because the hotelier had mixed these tablets in their food, why did they attack and cause damage to the mosque?  What could have been the possible correlation between the two? They are mutually exclusive entities. The mosque is a revered place of worship of the Muslims.

The Constitution in Article 14 (1) (e) states:
“Every citizen is entitled to –  the freedom, either by himself or in association with others, and either in public or in private, to manifest his religion or belief in worship, observance, practice and teaching;”

'The Muslims are not asking for any special favours from you as the Prime Minister nor as the Minister for Law and Order nor any favours from the Inspector General of Police. Both of you belong to the Executive arm of this country. What the Muslims are asking for is very simple and clear. 
Please establish the RULE OF LAW in this country.'

Special Favours

How can anyone vandalise and desecrate a place of religious worship and remain free from the arm of the law? Will you enforce the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) law on these unsocial elements? The above is a more stringent piece of substantive law compared to the concomitant relevant Sections in the Penal Code. In many circumstances before there had been reluctance to indict under the ICCPR. Such unwillingness is interpreted by these racist elements as leniency shown towards them. How and when will the Rule of Law be upheld in this country. The eclectic application of the law is a violation of fundamental rights of the citizen as articulated in 12 (1) of the Constitution.

The ICCPR states:

3. (1) No person shall propagate war or advocate national, racial or religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence.

(2) Every person who—

(a) attempts to commit;

(b) aids or abets in the commission of; or

(c) threatens to commit,

an offence referred to in subsection (1), shall be guilty of an offence under this Act.

The Muslims are not asking for any special favours from you as the Prime Minister nor as the Minister for Law and Order nor any favours from the Inspector General of Police. Both of you belong to the Executive arm of this country. What the Muslims are asking for is very simple and clear.

Please establish the RULE OF LAW in this country. This country cannot afford to continue in this path of growing anarchy and chauvinistic hegemony. This has to stop.

No arrests in Ampara clash

No arrests in Ampara clash
Thursday, 1 March 2018 00:00

By Skandha Gunasekara

Authorities are yet to arrest anyone involved in Monday’s clash in Ampara, which left three injured and several establishments damaged.

Police media spokesman, Ruwan Gunasekara, told the Daily FT yesterday that while the investigations were ongoing into the violence, no suspects had been arrested.

“So far we have not been able to arrest anyone responsible for the clash. Our officers are carrying out investigations as we speak and we hope to apprehend suspects soon,” he said.

SP Gunasekara went on to say that security forces were still stationed in Ampara. “Police officers along with Special Task Force personnel have remained in Ampara to maintain the peace and to ensure no further incidents happen.”

The unpleasant incident is said to have taken place due to a rumour regarding a local eatery that had allegedly been serving contaminated food.

Ampara police had been called to the restaurant to resolve the issue but had been unable to contain the situation. Subsequently, an angry mob had attacked several shops in the area, compelling authorities to bring in more police officers from nearby police stations as well as contingent of STF troops.

As a precautionary measure, security forces were deployed to safeguard religious places in the area as well.
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அமைச்சர் ராஜித சேனாரத்ன

அம்பாறையில் தாக்குதலுக்கு தூண்டியோரை கைது செய்வதற்கான நடவடிக்கை ஆரம்பம்

Thursday, March 1, 2018

குடும்பக் கட்டுப்பாட்டு மாத்திரை குற்றச்சாட்டு உண்மையல்ல

அம்பாறை சம்பவத்துடன் தொடர்புள்ள சகலரையும் கைது செய்யும் நடவடிக்கை ஆரம்பிக்கப்பட்டுள்ளது. இந்த பிரச்சினையை சிலர் வேண்டுமென்றே தூண்டி விட்டனரா என்பது குறித்தும் ஆராயப்படுவதாக இணை அமைச்சரவை பேச்சாளர் அமைச்சர் ராஜித சேனாரத்ன தெரிவித்தார்.

குடும்பக் கட்டுப்பாட்டு மாத்திரை வழங்கியதாலேயே இந்த ​மோதல் ஏற்பட்டதாக தெரிவிக்கும் குற்றச்சாட்டில் எந்த உண்மையும் கிடையாது என்று குறிப்பிட்ட அவர், சமூக வலைத்தளங்களினூடாக இனவா தத்தை தூண்டி விட சிலர் முயல்வதாகவும் குறிப்பிட்டார்.

அமைச்சரவை முடிவுகளை அறிவிக்கும் ஊடக மாநாட்டில் அம்பாறை தாக்குதல் தொடர்பாக வினவப்பட்டது.

இதற்குப் பதிலளித்த போதே அமைச்சர் இதனை தெரிவித்தார். அம்பாறை நிலைமை கட்டுப்பாட்டில் கொண்டுவரப்பட்டுள்ளது. இதன் பின்னணியில் இருப்போர் குறித்து ஆராயப்படுகிறது.

கேள்வி: குடும்பக் கட்டுப்பாட்டு மாத்திரை தான் இந்த பிரச்சினைக்கு காரணம் என குற்றஞ்சாட்டப்படுகிறதே?

பதில்: சில மருத்துவர்கள் மீதும் இவ்வாறு குற்றஞ்சாட்டப்பட்டது. தமிழ் முஸ்லிம் மருத்துவராக இருந்தால் இவ்வாறு பழி சுமத்தப்படும்.ஆனால் அது பற்றி விசாரித்த போது அவை பொய் குற்றச்சாட்டு என்பது கண்டு பிடிக்கப்பட்டது. சுகாதார அமைச்சின் திட்டங்களை தான் அந்த மருத்துவர்கள் முன்னெடுத்திருந்தார்கள். இங்கும் குடும்பக் கட்டுப்பாட்டு மாத்திரை குறித்து கூறப்படுகிறது. பொலிஸார் விசாரணை நடத்துகின்றனர். அவ்வாறு ஏதும் மாத்திரை கண்டுபிடிக்கப்பட்டால் விசாரிக்கத் தயார்.

கேள்வி: இது தொடர்பான வீடியோக்கள் வெளியாகியுள்ளன.

பதில்: எனக்குக் கிடைத்துள்ள தகவல் படி இது பொய் குற்றச்சாட்டாகும். சமூக வலைத்தளங்கள் தான் இவ்வாறு குற்றஞ்சாட்டுகின்றன.

கேள்வி: கடை உரிமையாளர் தான் மாத்திரை விற்றதாக ஏற்றுக் கொண்டுள்ளாரே?

பதில்: வீடியோக்களில் காட்டப்படும் நபர் தான் கடை உரிமையாளர் என எப்படி கூற முடியும். வேறு ஒருவரின் வீடியோவை கூட அவ்வாறு வௌியிட்டு குறித்த கடை உரிமையாளர் என்று கூற முடியும். சமூக வலைத்தளங்களில் தான் இதனை வௌியிடுகின்றனர். இனவாதத்தை தூண்ட சமூக வலைத்தளங்கள் பயன்படுத்தப்படுகின்றன. கடந்த காலத்திலும் இவ்வாறு இனவாதம்  தூண்டப் பட்டவர்கள் கைது செய்யப்பட்டார்கள்.

கேள்வி: உலகில் இவ்வாறு குடும்பக் கட்டுப்பாட்டு மாத்திரைகள் பயன்படுத்தப்படுகிறதா?

பதில்: உலகில் எங்கும் ஆண்களுக்கு குடும்பக் கட்டுப்பாட்டு மாத்திரை வழங்கப்படுவதில்லை.பெண்களுக்கு வழங்கினால் தான் குடும்பக் கட்டுப்பாடு செய்ய முடியும். ஆண் குடும்பக் கட்டுப்பாட்டு மாத்திரை சாப்பிட்டால் பெண்ணுக்கு குடும்பக் கட்டுப்பாட்டை ஏற்படுத்த முடியுமா?

உலகில் எங்கும் அவ்வாறு முடியாது.

கேள்வி: இவ்வாறான சம்பவங்கள் இடைக்கிடை நடந்து வருகின்றன.அதனை தடுக்க அரசாங்கம் என்ன நடவடிக்கை எடுத்துள்ளது?

பதில்: 2014 ஆம் ஆண்டு வரை நடந்த இனவாத செயற்பாடுகளுடன் ஒப்பிடுகையில் தற்பொழுது சிறிதளவே நடந்துள்ளன. 30 வருட யுத்தத்தின் பின்னர் மக்கள் மத்தியில் யுத்த மனப்பாங்கு தான் இருந்தது.இதனோடு இனவாத உணர்வுகளும் தூண்டப்பட்டன. இவை கட்டம் கட்டமாகத் தான் குறையும். கடந்த கால இனவாத செயல்களுடன் நோக்குகையில் தற்பொழுது குறைந்தளவே நடக்கிறது.இந்த நிலைமை மாறும் என்றார்.

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