Sri Lankans First

WE ARE SRI LANKANS FIRST
Let's Tread Lightly, Speak Softly.Let's respect the cultures of all our citizens in My Sri Lanka, Our Island.

The defining statement of how, we Sri Lankans, i.e. Sinhalese, Sri Lankan Tamils, Sri Lankan Muslims, Burghers, Sri Lankan Chinese and other citizens ought to view ourselves, has now arrived from a most unlikely source: Muttiah Muralitharan. Muralitharan, by profession, isn't one of those so called intellectuals. He is a Sri Lankan Cricketer, a member of the 1996 World Champions. Most of all Murali, as he is adoringly called by the Sri Lankans, is a patriot, a son of the soil, a man worth his salt.

Today  is 2013 Sinhala & Hindu New Year Day. No community of ours in Sri Lanka has a right to attempt to push down its culture, even in a form of a spicy hot beef steak, down the throats of other communities with a label or without a label. Then again no community of ours ought to be too loud, too vociferous on the slaughter of animals for meat, not to mention what others of ours shouldn't eat.

Let's Tread Lightly, Speak Softly.

Let's respect the cultures of all our citizens in My Sri Lanka, Our Island.

We are one country, one nation. After three decades of terrorism and war, now we have peace. Let's secure it tight.

“I am a Tamil. But I’m a Sri Lankan first. I can assure you that there has been immense peace all around Sri Lanka since the war ended and the Tamils are living very happily here. They are treated equally well.”  28th March 2013, Muttiah Muralitharan

Muttiah Muralitharan (born 17 April 1972), is a Sri Lankan cricketer who was rated the greatest Test match bowler ever by Wisden Cricketers' Almanack in 2002. He retired from Test cricket in 2010, registering his 800th and final wicket on 22 July 2010 from his final ball in his last Test match.
On 10 January 2008, the Parliament of Sri Lanka felicitated Muttiah Muralitharan for his world record breaking feat of being the highest wicket taker in Test cricket. That was the first time that a sportsman has been honoured in the country's Supreme Legislature.

Those who are unable to follow Murali, too still has an option: just pick what that Indian Murasoli Maran had said.

 “I am Tamil first, but I am also an Indian. Both can exist together, provided there is space for cultural nationalism.” Murasoli Maran

Murasoli Maran (August 17, 1934- November 23, 2003) was a prominent Tamil politician in India, and an important leader of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) party which is headed by his maternal uncle and mentor, M. Karunanidhi. A Member of Parliament for 36 years, he was made a Union Minister in three separate central governments, in charge of Urban Development in the V.P. Singh government, Industry in the Gowda and Gujral governments, and finally Commerce and Industry under Vajpayee. Apart from being a politician, Maran, was a journalist and scriptwriter for films too.

Let's Tread Lightly, Speak Softly.

Let's respect the cultures of all our citizens in My Sri Lanka, Our Island.

Written by bunpeiris of Moratuwa http://www.mysrilankaholidays.com/

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DON PERCY

23 April 2009
Mennon calls Gota [1] on his personal mobile phone
Gota, the Tamil Nadu problem is hoting up. Things are very sensitive here
OK, I’ll call you back
Don Percy M. R.: Tell them to come tomorrow morning for breakfast
The northerners speak briefly: southerners were laboring under the delusion their brethren were being massacred.
Gota, Don Percy M. R. and Weere listen attentively
Don : Even if you invade my country, I am not going to stop this. We are just a few weeks away from eliminating terrorism in this country.
Don then reminds the neighbors of previous military intervention [2] and loss of two decades of  development.
Mahinda puts his hand gently on Shiv.
Look, my friend, short of stopping this thing, what do you want me to do?
At least you can stop using heavy guns- heavy artillery. And no air strikes
Don agreed. The neighbors sigh..

29 April 2009
At a house at Embilipitaya Don had the two Europeans fed with Sinhalese Milkrice kiribat and hoty hot red chille pepper lunumiris paste for the breakfast.
Silliband [speaking with force] : This massacre needs to be stopped immediately.
Don [ losing his cool temper] : We are trying to free these people from the terrorists Do you think we are still a colony of yours?
B. Nard Kouch: We are your friends, we  want to help
Don [still in bad mood]: I know who my friends and enemies are.
Later on Wikileaks revealed that Silliband spend 60 perecent of his time on Sri Lanka’s war in his campaign to win Labour-held seats in which Tamils [ from Sri Lanka & Tamilnadu] had the say.

Footnotes
[1]
It was certainly a privilege to be part of the Troika that dealt with the Indian bureaucracy – another aspect during the period of 2005 to 2009 which needs to be highlighted and it is so well written in this book. Mr Basil Rajapaksa, Minister today, at that time a Member of Parliament, led the troika that included Gota and myself. Chapter 70 is all about the Troika. The unique experiment in foreign relations that brought Sri Lanka-India relations to a new high from a very low in the early 80s. The author says of this, “this was a groundbreaking arrangement and probably unique in the annals of bilateral diplomatic relations at least in South Asia.”

[2]
 It is during this famous operation that many claim could have liberated Sri Lanka from terrorism saw the high handed interference of the then Indian envoy, Mr J N Dixit. Mr Chandraprema describes this in a very lucid manner. “While the Vadamaarachchi Operation was on, the Indian envoy, J N Dixit had met President Jayawardene and bluntly told him that India will not stand by idly and allow Jaffna to fall into the hands of the Army. And if the military operation continued there could be unforeseen consequences. Asked to explain what these unforeseen consequences could be, Dixit had told Jayawardene that military aid may be given by India to the LTTE leading to the possible dismemberment of Sri Lanka.”Let me tell you, my dear friends, bluntly that Mr Dixit was lucky because it was not President Mahinda Rajapaksa to whom he threw this threat
India meddled & muddled with peace keeping force, defeated by the terrorists and withdrawn back to India.

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