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Waves from the past

Published on 17/12/2006 in press coverage and surf. 0 Comments

LankaA?a??a??s surfing pioneers look back four decades

By Mayura Botejue

As we live through this fast paced and rapidly changing world, each one of us may recall wonderful and nostalgic times of the past. This anecdote concerns a diverse group that was passionate about the noble and exhilarating sport of surfing and goes back to the period from mid 1960s to the early1970s.

The A?a??A?surfing gangA?a??A? in the early days included Faiz Ahmed, Anil Amarasekera, Wendell Flamer Caldera, Jan Prins, Asita Tennekoon, Jan Vanden Driesen and the writer. Peter Dharmaratne, Gihan Jayatileka, Cedric Martenstyn and Niranjan Sinnatamby were part timers while new enthusiasts Astika Botejue (writerA?a??a??s brother) and Ananda Ranasinghe joined the fray later.

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Asita Tennekoon rides a gently rolling wave at Closenberg Bay. The hotel is in the background (1969)

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The common bond that brought us together was the love of aquatic sports – whether in a pool, lake or ocean and the outdoors. Some of us were competitive swimmers, water polo players and volunteer lifeguards on weekends at the beach in Mount Lavinia.Besides swimming, we had all mastered the art of body surfing and would enjoy the excitement of timing the sprinted swim to catch the waves at Mount Lavinia. While enjoying this pursuit we would watch with awe as Pat Guinan, a regular yachtsman and ocean enthusiast used a surf kayak to ride the waves. A surf kayak is a small board-like craft with foot straps. You sit on it with feet secured in the straps and use a paddle to propel and steer.

Pat, who was later to become Commodore of the Royal Madras Yacht Club and then Commodore of the Royal Colombo Yacht Club, taught us the art of using the kayak to ride waves.

Soon some of us had mastered this pursuit as well. As we became more daring, the kayak was used as a surfboard with the arms replacing the paddles for propulsive power. Riding the waves while standing on the kayak was a dangerous pursuit since a fall from a wave (called a wipe out in surfer jargon) would end with both body and cumbersome kayak rolling in the same surf. Luckily there were no major injuries to report.

Peter Dharmaratne had other ideas. He created a surfboard of his own, crudely made of wood, which was an extremely heavy monstrosity that belonged to the age of The Flintstones. I recall Peter trying out his board at Mount Lavinia. He fell repeatedly while attempting to ride the waves. Thankfully the piece of lovingly crafted lumber did not hit him on the head during one of the spills!

It was about this time that the legendary Englishman Mike Wilson appeared on our horizon.

Jan Vanden Driesen, Jan Prins and Anil Amarasekera line up with the “elephant guns” at Pinwatte (1968)

He turned up at the Surf Club in Mount Lavinia to meet some of us A?a??A?surfing typesA?a??A?. Mike was an ex-paratrooper, adventurer, diver, film maker, etc. Some years earlier, he led a team that discovered a 250-year-old shipwreck six miles off the southern coast of Sri Lanka, in the Great Basses (the underwater expedition was described in Sir Arthur C. ClarkeA?a??a??s non-fiction book, The Treasure of the Great Reef).

Mike arranged to show a surfing movie called A?a??E?Locked InA?a??a?? at the Otter Aquatic Club where some of the gang were active members. Mike knew we were hooked when he observed us watching with gleeful amazement as the footage of surfers taking off on giant Hawaiian waves rolled on.
He then planned a surfing trip down the south coast and both Jans (Prins and Vanden Driesen) and the writer packed into his VW van with four surfboards strapped to the roof rack. Our first outing was at a location off Ahangama. Mike convinced Sir Arthur – his business partner – to accompany us on the trip. Sir Arthur brought his Questar celestial telescope and took pictures of us from the shore.

MikeA?a??a??s fibre glass boards were referred to as “elephant guns” because they were long, heavy and unwieldy. These were no ordinary boards. The best board in MikeA?a??a??s collection was shaped by Greg Noll, a legendary big wave surfer from California. Naturally each one of us wanted to ride the 10 foot Greg Noll. There was another surfboard that emitted a sound as it skimmed the waves: a clearly audible hum coming from the fin located at the rear of the board, a vibration known as the Von Karman Effect (a phenomenon understood later when I studied fluid dynamics as an engineering student in London).

The Ahangama outing was followed by a surfing trip nearer to home, in Moratuwa. By now the word had spread and the gang of three young Sri Lankan surfers had grown in numbers with others in the close-knit aquatic sporting community eagerly coming on board.

Still at it! Jan Prins and Mayura Botejue- surfing reunion in Oahu, Hawaii (June 2005).

Meanwhile, our horizon was widening. From Mount Lavinia we graduated to locations further down the coast. Surfing trips were now regular weekend affairs. We would gather at dawn on a Saturday or Sunday morning and head south, checking out waves in Moratuwa, Pinwatte, Paiyagala and Closenberg Bay, Galle. Mike was not able to join us on all the trips, but he would very kindly make his surfboards available. Mike finally stopped the surfing activity altogether and we all missed him very much. A few years later he chose to lead the life of an ascetic and lived that way until his death.

Our means of transport for travelling to surfing spots were either Faiz AhmedA?a??a??s mini-van, with four boards strapped on the roof and the gang packed inside, or Anil AmarasekeraA?a??a??s trusty Land Rover, which was a bit more spacious.

The sun would be coming up behind the tops of coconut trees as we trudged towards the beach, past local residents going about their morning ablutions. Children would greet us with cheerful shouts: A?a??A?kalu suddho enavoA?a??A? (black whiteys are coming). This was because we were bare-chested Sri Lankans clad in beach shorts and wearing rubber sandals, the kind of look only foreigners would affect.

When the surf was good, we would be out at sea for a good three to four hours. At the end of an exhausting but thrilling session a very tired and dehydrated group of surfers would rush to the nearest milk booth – often drinking the booth dry.

It was a big thrill to know that we were the very first local surfers in the country. We would get into furious competitions as to who would be the first to perfect the various styles and manoeuvres surfers perform on their boards while riding a wave. I wanted to be the first to stand on my head. This was accomplished after several attempts, but the experience lasted only a few seconds and was never repeated. I rolled off the front of the board and the back end tipped over and whacked me on the head as I surfaced for air!

Pinwatte became our preferred surfing destination, because of its proximity to Colombo. Anil used his persuasive charm with the Pinwatte railway station master to store our surfboards in his house. When no vehicles were available, some members of the gang would go surfing by catching an early-morning train and get off at Pinwatte station.

Jan Vanden Driesen recalls an interesting encounter at Pinwatte. A local politician came by to talk to us. He could not understand what we were doing and why we were doing it. Puzzled and shaking his head, he muttered: A?a??A?Well, anyway, itA?a??a??s good to see our Sinhalese boys doing this kind of stuff.A?a??A?

Jan was amused and promptly engaged the politician to explain the cultural diversity of the group.

“He’s a Muslim,” he said (pointing to Faiz), “He’s a Tamil (Niranjan), these two are Sinhalese (Anil and Asita), and I’m a Burgher.”
The confused and embarrassed politician quickly went his way.

With increasing experience at sea came increasing recklessness.

Closenberg Bay, in Galle, one of our favourite destinations, is ringed by granite boulders. Rather than taking the time to paddle out from the beach, we would often clamber down the steep slope by the side of the Closenberg Hotel premises and jump off the rocks into the sea. This was no small feat when you were carrying a board 10 feet in length and weighing 40 pounds, and timing your leap to the split second before the next wave struck.

This radical Closenberg rock descent was abandoned after Jan Prins narrowly missed being seriously injured when a wave caught him just before he made the jump. His plunge had been delayed by a few critical seconds when the board got stuck between two rocks. When Jan abandoned the board and dived into the approaching wave, the surge dragged him back onto a rock. Luckily, it was smooth and generously rounded and his back collided with the rock while the wave rushed on. Although dazed and bruised he scrambled up the rocks before the next wave struck. The precious board came through with a few A?a??A?dingsA?a??A?, or ruptures, on its fibre-glass skin.

As the A?a??a??60s drew to an end, the original gang broke up as many of the members headed overseas to pursue education and employment opportunities. The surfing continued, but less frequently. Eventually careers, marriage, parenting and other responsibilities took over, and the sun finally set on the gangA?a??a??s glorious days of surfing in Sri Lanka.

Sadly, this wonderful sport has never really caught on with later generations of Sri Lankans. A few locals living down south have learnt the art and practise it at Narigama, near Hikkaduwa, the best-known surf spot on the south coast. These youngsters have been influenced by Australian surfers who are regulars at this spot, and some of the more enterprising among them run surfing tours for Japanese tourists on the southern and eastern coasts of the island.

There is a modern day twist to this surfing saga.

When the tsunami hit Sri Lanka on December 26, 2004, it left little untouched wherever it struck, including our surfboards.

Anil Amarasekera, guardian of the surf boards, had stored them in the garage of a holiday bungalow near Arugam Bay, one of Sri LankaA?a??a??s most famous surfing havens. The surge of water destroyed the garage and snatched away two of the boards and dumped them in a paddy field two kilometres away. The car in the garage ended up 10 feet in the air, wedged between two Palmyrah trees. The lost surfboards were subsequently retrieved – with hardly a scratch on them.

If the gang ever decides to get together again on a beach somewhere in Sri Lanka, armed with surfboards, it would be a much smaller group, and the feelings of nostalgia would be tinged with sadder emotions. It would be more of an A?a??A?in memoriamA?a??A? outing. Five members of the crew are no more. They are the late Astika Botejue, Peter Dharmaratne, Gihan Jayatileka, Cedric Martensteyn, and Niranjan Sinnatamby.

Those of us survivors from the original group include five who are now based overseas: Wendell Flamer Caldera and Jan Vanden Driesen (Australia), Jan Prins and Ananda Ranasinghe (United States), and the writer (Pakistan). Only Faiz Ahmed, Anil Amarasekera and Asita Tennekoon have stayed consistently within the shores of Sri Lanka.

These days the only active surfers from the original gang are the two Jans – Jan Prins, who lives in Hawaii, a surfer’s paradise, and Jan Vanden Driesen, who has settled in Perth, Australia, where surfing is a popular recreational pursuit. Meanwhile, others “have a go” at this wonderful activity whenever opportunities arise.

The writer is a management consultant, and is currently based in Karachi

see the original article:
http://www.sundaytimes.lk/061217/Plus/0010_pls.html

STF Arrests Two Civilians With Unauthorized Timber

Published on 17/12/2006 in press coverage and wild life. 0 Comments

16 Dec 2006 – 12:55

Nitrofurantoin price in india AMPARA: THE STF OFFICERS OF SHASTRAVEDI camp arrested two persons in JAMMANTHURA area on Friday (15) afternoon transporting timber as they did not possess the necessary documents.

The STF also took into custody Four Bullock carts and bulls, six Satinwood and Two Velan logs, one Mora log and six iron chains.

These items were handed over to two arrested with unauthorized timber to the POTTUVIL forest office.

POTTUVIL Police are conducting investigating.

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see the original article:
http://www.nationalsecurity.lk/fullnews.php?id=2880

Uncle Shelton

Published on 15/12/2006 in front page, parties, people, press coverage and the bay. 0 Comments

sheltonx.jpg
Shelton is Arugambay’s unemployed hero.
Today we bring you a real life story from Arugam Bay.
Uncle Shelton was perhaps the only fit person to report for duty at 07:00 sharp! just over two years ago. Typical, because during the past 20 years or more he never missed a single day’s work.
His pride and joy was to create and look after the perhaps best tropical garden at Order ethionamide prothionamide Arugam Bay. The owners had collected many unique seeds and saplings on their global travels and uncle Shelton took care; in the days when Ceylon had no such import restrictions.

Two year’s ago, just when the rest of Arugam Bay retired, after extensive Christmas and Full Moon Party Celebrations, this wise old man notice a strange behaviour out at sea. Fearing no good, uncle Shelton became (then) our first and only Tsunami Early Warning System: He run around, waking everybody up, yelling at the neighbors, evacuating the sleepy, drunk crowd onto higher ground and into the restaurants upstairs.

The rest is well documented and history: Our uncle Shelton was celebrated and reported to be Arugam Bay‘ s hero, having saved many lifes that morning.

But: What has since happend to our hero?
In the wo full year’s with hundreds of organizations erecting huge banners, “creating jobs and sustaining livihoods” and so on?

Today Uncle Shelton, who speaks good English dating back from his perfect colonial schooling, is a broken, unemployed, old man.
Without doubt, the biggest blow for him was to see quarter of a Century’s caring work, creating a tropical paradise destroyed in just one hour.
The second huge disappointment is that nobody seems to care for him. There is no more garden, the Tsunami sand is far too salty, the owners are too poor to buy new plants. This particular establishment lost more than anyone else in the entire region – but they never, ever receive a single rupee from any organization or the Government. So they can’t help even themselves these days and may have to close up; for the first time in 20+ years.
(Even on Tsunami day afternoon they reopened for ‘business’!)
Plenty of NGO’s donated trees for various publicity purposes; most of them have since died by the roadside where nobody takes care of them – and of course the ENJOY’s have long left.

No trees or plants were ever given to private premises, no compensation offered to Shelton. He is not a direct flood victim. The owners could not afford to continue to employ a gardner; also because there is no more garden to look after.

Shelton has saved many Souls: Has anyone ever contacted him, or helped him?
We wonder: Is there anyone out there who hears uncle Shelton’s own : “SOS”
Before this brave, but now very sad, broken and depressed old man is no more?

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Top photo shows the tropical garden @ around 10:00hrs. 26/Dec/2004
And below, just the day before, Full Moon Party day 25/Dec/2004

If you like to hear of more Real Life Stories and accounts, please let us know!
We have plenty tales to tell; or please come and meet the people in person.

Tsunami temporary camp becomes permanent abode

Published on 11/12/2006 in press coverage. 0 Comments

By Jeevani Pereira
 A?a??A?TemporaryA?a??A? shelters are threatening to become a permanent part of the landscape in some parts of the east of Sri Lanka. The most of the tsunami temporary shelters put up two years ago in the East still remain occupied by people who are slowly losing hope that they will ever receive the permanent housing they were promised. To worsen matters a new dilemma has entered their lives, the possibility of being evicted by the end of the year by original landowners of these shelters.

At Aridadithottam camp in the Ampara district, 100 families have been already evicted by the landowner who wanted the 10 acres for his personal building purposes. With no place to live the families were reported to return to the 55m buffer zone areas where they were originally from. In some of the shelters the landowners have broken down most of the shelters A?a??a??which some of them call the A?a??E?second tsunamiA?a??a??.

Living mostly on privately owned land for which the government pays rent, most of these landowners want their land back before a six year completion when the people living there will be able to claim rights to it. However, as by law, construction cannot be done from the sea to a certain distance inland as most of the tsunami victims never had deeds in the first place.

Camps in Nindavur, Karaitivu and Sainthamadu in Ampara are all facing the same problem. Besides worries of basic survival, hundreds of families are on tenterhooks as to when they would be asked to leave.

In a camp at Karaitivu more than 50 families spoke of how after several attempts, they still had neither houses nor land.

With no deed for lands they occupied prior to tsunami. the government is refusing these people permanent housing. Furthermore, the landowner of the area had given them till January to vacate the premises. A?a??A? If that happens we will be forced to go back to the 55m buffer zone,A?a??A? Kangamma, an occupant of one of the temporary shelters said. A?a??A?And in the future if any life is lost as a result it will be the governmentA?a??a??s fault.A?a??A?

Where to order cytotec Day by day life becomes harder and harder, Kangamma said, particularly when the camp is flooded during the rains and the toilets overflow. A?a??A?There were people to clean the toilets earlier but they stopped coming after a while. The Municipal Council came once and never came again. The irony is they distribute leaflets on Chikungunya to clean our environment but the Public Health Inspector has only come here only once during this two year period,A?a??A? she said

Feeling ignored and frustrated, most of these families are only receiving support from some local organizations and INGOs. It is a day to day struggle to live in these camps. A?a??A?We have lost everything for the tsunami and now we are going to lose again,A?a??A? said Buwana Sellathangam from the Karaitivu camp

Altace for sale online A?a??A?The government authorities ask us to buy land and for them to build houses for us but when we donA?a??a??t have enough money to survive, how could we find Rs 300,000 required to buy a plot of land?,A?a??A? she questioned.

At the Aerolanka camp in Ninthavur 13 families have received land and have been promised to construct houses by the government but still seven remain landless two years after the tsunami. Salma and Jezeema, mother and daughter who now live in the camp said, A?a??A?We too lived in the 55m buffer zone. We spoke to the Grama Sevaka and though initially they promised to give us land they later told us to show our deeds.A?a??A? They who lived by the sea had no deeds they said.

A?a??A?Even those who had been promised by the government to give houses are not sure when it would be done,A?a??A? continued Jezeema adding that though promised in January. they hope the houses would be completed by December 2007.

The situation in Sainthamadu MFCB temporary shelter is not any better. Scores of men and women said that the landowner wanted to evict them some time back and they are not sure as to when he would return and ask them to leave.

A?a??A?Government authorities came and wrote down the number of people living here and asked us where we wanted to live. They told us that construction work of houses was going but we donA?a??a??t know when we are getting it,A?a??A? some of the women said adding that they found it difficult to live in the shelters any longer as there were snakes and insects creeping in.

Thus two years after the disaster many tsunami affected families, particularly in the north and east of the country, still struggle to live trying to avoid reliving the disaster. Surrounded by tin walls and leaking cadjan roofs they are still close to giving into their fears.

see the original article:
http://www.dailymirror.lk/2006/12/11/front/7.asp

Surfing Tours in Sri Lanka – Arugamaby

Published on 07/12/2006 in press coverage. 0 Comments
ARUGAMBAY is on the list of the top ten surf points in the world. Situated on the South East side of Sri Lanka Arugam Bay receives the same Antarctic winter swell’s that hit Indonesia in the in the middle of the year. The best time of the year is between May and November when the predominant wind is offshore for at least the first half of the day.

Due to its location and southerly swell direction the area is dominated by right hand point breaks. There is a beach break in front of the Stardust Hotel, which can be fun for body surfing or for beginners but that’s about it.

Three of the point breaks “The Point”, “Pottuvil Point” and “Crocodile Rock” are within a A?A? hour tuk-tuk ride from the center of line of hotels. There are several other points that are within a 1A?A?-hour’s ride or can be accessed by boat.

surfer in arugambayARUGAMBAY ……………….. Cost of differin 0.1 cream
Arugambay, situated on the South-eastern coast of Sri Lanka , just next to Potuwil, around 320 km from Colombo , is a unique and versatile tourist destination. The uniqueness is that unlike many other coastal areas, it is unaffected by both the monsoons A?a??a?? South-west and North-east A?a??a?? which affect almost all other coastal areas for at least half the year. Even the rain during the monsoon is not continuous but intermittent, making it an year round tourist destination.

The versatility of Arugambay is that, apart from being one of the Top Ten Surf Points in the world , it offers a vast clean beach, beautiful inland landscape, very rich birdlife, equally rich wildlife and even ruins of ancient Buddhist Culture. Excavations outside Potuwil have unearthed a 2000 year old Buddhist Temple named A?a??A? Muhudu Maha ViharayaA?a??A? Cheap apcalis sx 20mg jelly

Despite being a popular Tourist Destination, Arugambay has remarkably preserved its’ beauty, tranquility, charm and has remained unspoiled. This, coupled with the availability of cheap transport, low cost accommodation and its’ friendly people, Arugambay is an ideal tourist destination to the ordinary tourist. However Arugambay has several star class hotels too, opening its’ doors even to the high class tourist.

surfer in arugambayArugambay, only 2 km away from Potuwil which is the closest town with a population of around 12,000 inhabitants, consists of three villages, namely Ullae , Perie Ullae [ Bigger Ullae- Perie in Tamil is Big] and Sinne Ullae .[ Smaller Ulle-Sinne in Tamil is small ] Though there are Sinhala and Tamil communities living in these areas, these are predominantly Muslim areas.

Ullae, which is in the centre of these villages, is a very famous place among the Sinhala fishermen in the west coast. The village, being in the corner of the bay, has a very quiet sea and is an year round fishing area and is a very colourful place bustling with activity. As such, the fishermen from the west coast flock to this village during the South-west monsoon which hits the west coast.

Apart from fishing, people in these areas and in Potuwil are engaged in cattle farming and paddy cultivation.

The fishing boats go out around 4.00 am about one and a half hours before the sun rises.

Starting a jeep drive or a walk along the lagoon towards the south a little before sun rises and between 5.00 pm and 7.00 pm, one can encounter wildlife such as elephants, boar, dear, crocodiles and many other animals in addition to bird watching.

With the North-easterly wind starting to blow and temperature being lowest at around 28-30 C , November and December is a good period for bird watching especially with the advent of lots of migratory birds. Though this is the rainy season in the east, the rain around this area is not continuous with many sunny days.

evening sundown in arugambayThe blowing of refreshing wind in January, February and March dissipates the slight increase of humidity and temperature (to about 30-32 o ) and make the weather and wave conditions very good wind surfing, swimming and fishing. This period is also the best for bird watching.

Months of April and May are the hottest and most humid months. The temperature from April to August varies between 36-32 o . The changing of the wind direction to South-easterly in April/May starts the body surfing season which spans up to October. During this season, the sea in the west coast being very rough, holiday makers and surfers from these areas flock to Arugambay.

Magul Maha Viharya A?a??a?? Lahugala

This historical and very beautiful temple has being constructed by King Dhatusena who ruled Sri Lanka more than 1500 years ago [AD 516 A?a??a?? 526]

According to a stone inscription which was found here ,there had being another name for this – Ruhunu Maha Viharaya.

There had being a renovation to this temple in 14 th century too.

There is another belief that this is the place where parents of Sri Lanka ‘s one of most famous kings Dutugamunu, was married.

KutmbigalaA?a??A?Aranya SenasanayaA?a??A? [HERMITAGE] Panama

In the historic Digamadulla in Ampara District, is the Lahugala provincial secretarial division representing a cluster of villages by the name of Panam Paththuwa. This secretarial Division constitutes of five Sinhala Buddhist villages, namely: Panama , Lahugala, Hulannuge, Bakmtiyaava and Kumana. The original occupants of these villages in the recent history were the Sinhalese people who escaped from the Uwa Wellassa during the uprising against invading English armies in the year 1818.

Situated 16km southwards from the Panama village is the very important ancient A?a??A?Kutumbigala Aranya SenasanayaA?a??A? [Buddhist Hermitage]. This Hermitage, built with the advent of the Mihindu Maharath Thera, dates back to the early Anuradhapura period. This Hermitage, covering a vast area where, the most number of Arahath Theras dwelled is considered one of the most important ancient Sacred Lands (Pudha Bima) in the country. A Sthupa built on a rock called A?a??E?Belum Gala’ is built as a replica of the Dharmachakra Dhammika Stupa of Isipathanaranama of India and is the only such Stupa in the country. The ancient Dagoba built in the centre of the land too show great craftsmanship. The symbol on top of the rock inscription at the entrance to cave housing the great A?a??A?SudharshanaA?a??A? rock statue is unique in the country in its features. This A?a??E?sacred land’ has more than 200 caves with drip ledges cut into them indicating number of Arahath Theras who dwelled in this land. An area of over 11,000 acres surrounding this land was declared as the A?a??A?Kutumbigala sanctuaryA?a??A? in 1974.

At end of the Hulannuge village is the A?a??E?Karandahela’ tank. Just over this tank is situated another very important monastery called the A?a??A?Tharulengala Aranya SenasanayaA?a??A? (Hermitage), which is affiliated to the Kutumbigala Hermitage. This Tharulengala Monastery has a very large cave with a drip ledge 512ft long, which is the longest in the country. In addition, there is a rock cave facing the east with a drip ledge 175ft long with an ancient shrine room (Buddha Mandiraya) built into it, which houses a reclining Buddha statue. At the water’s edge of this Karandewewa tank is an ancient dagoba. Next to the cultivated land below the tank is the village. This is a clear example of the ancient concept taught to our Kings by the Mihindu Maha Rahath Thera that, the tank, the dagabo, the village and the temple should be close together.
Okanda Dewalaya

This small shrine is located on the eastwards river bank of the Kumbukkan Oya [Stream] which divides Yala National park as Yala Park [Ruhunu national park] and Yala East [Kumana national park]

Dedicated to the God Katharagama this shrine is worshiped by all three main religious communities of Sri Lanka A?a??A?Buddhists / Hindus and Muslims.

In the month of August where the annual main religious worshipping festival takes place, this jungle area becomes filled with people who come from very far places. Families comprising very old / young / infants come in Tractors [other wise it’s impossible to traverse in the road] spending days and days on this pilgrimage.They will spend a day two under a tree or a temporary cover made out of polythyne doing various poojas [worshipping] to the shrine.

Murugan Kovil Hindu Tempel

This shrine dedicated to God Katharagma is located at the northern border of the Kumanaa national park, very closer to the beach.

In spite of the road conditions many devotees come here for poojas [worshiping]

right through out the year. In the month of August, where the main festival takes place this areas gets crowded with thousands of devotees.

According to the legend, It’s believed that from India , God Katharagama landed here first. But as the people who lived in this area did not take much interest of him, he converted the canoe he came in to a rock and moved more south to Katharagama and stated living there.

This rock [canoe shaped] is lying in the beach even as at today.

From May to October, sea in front of this rock becomes a very good location for surfing.

Habuthagala Viharaya or Tharulengala A?a??A?Aranya SenasanayaA?a??A? [HERMITAGE]

Hulannuge is one of the five villages in Panam Paththuwa in the Ampara District. Karandahela is a 633foot hill situated in Hulannuge with the Karandahela tank situated on the south close to the base of the hill. This Karandahela hill, having an elongated shape, and appearing to jut out of the ground like other hills in the area is the home for the famous and very important hermitage A?a??a?? the Habuthagala Vihara or the A?a??A?Tharulengala Aranya SenasanayaA?a??A?.

To reach this hermitage one has to turn off at Hulannuge junction near 13 th km post along Monergala-Pothuwil road, proceed along the cart track towards Bakmetiyawa for 2km and walk by the paddy field and the bushy forest to the base of Karandahela hill. This road is traversable by vehicle only during the drought.

In addition to the caves found on this hill, one can see ruins of so many buildings at various stages of the hill. Among these ruins are some artifacts hitherto unidentified. As there is no archaeological survey done here, it is not possible to date these ruins correctly. However from one or two stone inscriptions and other historic documents elsewhere in can be deduced that this hermitage is built before the 2 nd century BC.

Another important feature here is that, there have been three sthupas in this sacred land: two of them on rocks on the hill and one at the base of hill. The two on rocks are completely destroyed leaving only signs of them on top and bricks can be seen fallen down. The remainder of the other, which is at the base of the hill, has a circumference of 150ft and a height of 20ft.

The caves on top of the hill and on slopes are amazing creations of nature. There so many caves here with and without drip ledges. Among them the most amazing is the cave in the second circle, perhaps the largest in Sri Lanka . This cave 512ft long, 30ft broad and 82ft high at the highest point has a drip ledge cut right along. This cave has a flat outer area and the interior is in eight levels. Another important cave found here is the shrine room cave which is situated near the entrance and facing the east. This cave, 175ft long, 31ft broad and 35ft high, has in it a 41foot reclining Buddha statue, which is considerably damaged by treasure hunters.

http://www.srilankaecotourism.com/arugambay.htm

Tsunami buoy laid in Indian ocean

Published on 06/12/2006 in front page and press coverage. 2 Comments

“The first of a planned network of tsunami early warning buoys is being laid in the Indian Ocean. The buoy is being placed between Thailand and Sri Lanka, two of the countries worst-hit by the 2004 tsunami which killed more than 200,000 people.

The buoy, provided by the US, is able to detect sudden increases in pressure deep under the sea and give coastal communities early warning of a tsunami.

The US already operates a similar system in the Pacific Ocean.

The cost of the US-designed device is being shared by the US and Thailand.”
see the full article:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/6197766.stm

sirene1.jpg

At Arugam Bay, the first and still only Hi Tec Early Warning Centre in Sri Lanka exists to this very day.
The system is privately funded by the SVH and came into full operation on 29th December, 2004 (!). This reliable system is still powered by a direct Inmarsat link to the Pacific Early Warning Systems based at Hawaii and Alaska.
More recently these old existing contracts have been suplimented by Japan and most received Data has been replaced by a permanent connection to the brand new, and regionally much more relevant Thai Monitoring HQ at Silom, Bangkok.

Indeed, to this day Thai expat staff of the Siam View maintains very close and personal contacts with their fellow Nationals based in Bangkok ensuring that a timely warning is given in the event of any ocean surges in the future.

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Three sirens Buy betnovate ointment online located on a water tower are activated to warn the population.
In addition, SMS messages are sent at once to multiple recipients who have registered with the AbaY Centre. These include Governmental departments, military and civil authorities as well as individuals who long placed their trust in this unique local self-help project.

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The Germans say …..

Published on 05/12/2006 in front page, Money Matters, press coverage, presse-deutsch and Security & Safety. 2 Comments

Arugam.info has been asked to publish a scanned reply, reproduced below.
Some concerned people and many generous donors are beginning to question why no help seems to get through to the poor Eastern Provinces; after 2 full years.
 A translation will be posted soon if requested or of interest.
Over years, and with various, polite requests on behalf of the Community, Arugam.info has actually written to all Foreign Missions resident in Colombo, on more than one occasion:
Most did not even acknowledge our letters; or indeed reply to our plight.
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Translation

Dear Herr Poos (translator: a fitting recipient, maybe??),

Many thanks for your letter dated 23 October, 2006. The Tsunami-disaster on 26th December, 2006 indeed created a lot of desruction and suffering. A large proportion of Sri Lanka’s costal stretch has been affected.
In recent history there has rarely been any event of a similar magnitude which moved the emotions of all peoples. Many Germans donated towards this natural event. The Federeal Government started an immediate Help program. Many National and International Aid Organizations were concerned with the reconstruction; even now some are still enganged in this very activity. Many destroyed houses were rebuild, many schools reconstructed, many hospitals were repaired or relocated.

The German Embassy, working together with our partners and also in connection with some bilateral Emergency and Development Programs also are in Cooperation with the EU and the UN manged to assisgn funds to various tasks connected with Tsunami relief.

The Sri Lanka Government is responsible and also accountable for the coordination and the overall control of all the tasks concerning the reconstruction efford. This very difficult task has been carried out with various results in differend parts of the Country. The continued civil war/unrest has resulted in the fact that many organizations have long cancelled their programs.

The fate of the (one) mentioned hotel operator is deeply regretted. The Embassy as well as any of our partners are not responsible to respond to, or indeed assist in, any possible way to any isolated enquiry from such a hotel, no matter how severely affected they may have been.
For example, this view was mentioned to the owners of the ‘Siam View Hotel’ in our email dated 9th March, 2005.
On January 12th the Embassy outlined their position again in a letter to the operators. However, a request for assistance has not been received.

with friendly Greetings,
on behalf of
Cornelious Hupperts

PS: (Translator:) “What to do”?????

Casp

Published on 01/12/2006 in front page and press coverage. 1 Comment

Cheap biaxin 500mg Casp Cheap mircette dosage has revamped its impressive “Ampara” Home Pages
see the link below:
http://rebuildampara.com

It remains to be seen if there are any actual activities locally, and specially in the most severely affected area of Arugam Bay

Forum Meeting

Published on 27/11/2006 in front page. 2 Comments

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Arugam.info managed to send, for the first time ever, representatives from the East Coast to attend a Forum Meeting held at Beruwella recently.
Although known to each other through Internet discussion web sites such as www.sri-lanka-board.de nothing can replace a person-to-person, personal contact.
A common feature of everyone attending was obvious:
All share a deep love and concern for Sri Lanka.
Also present were Mr. Ibrahim,of PottuVille and Mr. Kapila Amarasinghe.

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Hero’s Day

Published on 26/11/2006 in front page and Security & Safety. 1 Comment

Arugam.info Order danazol medication Purchase tadapox tablets does not get involved in politics.
But we are certainly very much committed to the safety and security of our visitors.
Following credible information received it is felt that there is a fair possiblity of some sort of attack on a high profile, political or military target.

Please take extra care and avoid places which could be considered as such.
Rural Sri Lanka and tourist zones are considered to be as safe as ever.

Watch this space for further news as we receive it, direct from the source!
Arugam.info hopes and prays to be proven wrong this time in its prediction.

Rajapaksa anniversary: The grim realities

Published on 19/11/2006 in press coverage. 0 Comments

Rajapaksa anniversary: The grim realities

  • Heavy arms procurements as both sides prepare for escalation of conflict
  • Defence Ministry forms company for import of arms but serious questions arise
  • After the Budget, focus now on Prabha’s heroes’ day speech

By Iqbal Athas

President Percy Mahinda Rajapaksa today marks an important milestone in his political career – the completion of a year in office as President, Head of Government, Head of Cabinet, Minister of Defence and Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces.

Nothing has been more exacting in the first of his six year tenure than the spheres of defence, security and peace. Just weeks after assuming office, the Security Forces and Tiger guerrillas were engaged in skirmishes. One blamed the other for the actions. It escalated gradually. The guerrillas launched a major military campaign to lay siege on the Jaffna peninsula. Though undeclared, that saw the birth of Eelam War IV.

Despite the early confrontations, he succeeded in reviving peace talks with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). That was in Geneva in April, this year. It came after the talks remained suspended since February 2003 during the tenure of the former United National Front (UNF) Government. The next round, however, in Geneva failed. Yet, it was revived again. Government and LTTE delegations met in Geneva on October 28 and 29 but the talks collapsed on an unexpected issue – the re-opening of the Muhamalai end of A-9 highway. The issue has quite clearly distanced the two sides from the negotiation table and forced them to focus on the battlefield.

Thus, a climate for resumed peace negotiations has virtually disappeared. On both the Security Forces and the Tiger guerrilla sides, there have been hectic military preparations to cope with imminent threats from each other. The Security Forces have gone on a high state of alert countrywide. For the first time, unprecedented security preparations have gone into effect in the South. President Rajapaksa and his government leaders are taking part in ceremonies today to mark his first year in office. They do not want the guerrillas to mar them.

In guerrilla dominated areas in the North and East, fears of strikes by the Security Forces have led to enhanced measures by them. Ahead of LTTE leader, Velupillai Prabhakaran’s “Maveerar (Great Heroes) Day” address the guerrillas fear Security Forces may strike at their positions. This, they worry, is to mar ceremonies that begin tomorrow (Monday) during the “great” heroes week. They engage in religious observances to remember their dead cadres.

The week culminates with Mr. Prabhakaran’s 52nd birthday when he delivers his address.

It is in this grim backdrop that President Rajapaksa looks to his second year in office. The deadlock over the re-opening of the A-9 highway has diminished the prospects of an early resumption of peace talks. It has consequently increased the spectre of a heightened Eelam War IV. That has left President Rajapaksa with little choice but to ensure a much greater military preparedness by the Security Forces.

On Thursday President Rajapaksa, in his capacity as the Minister of Finance and Planning, introduced in Parliament his Government’s second budget. It made no reference to a significant rise in defence expenditure. Yet, the much revised Rs 108.67 billion in the current year will rise to Rs 1.29 billion in 2007 – a reflected increase of 28 per cent. That constitutes a 45 per cent increase in defence spending. Further revisions cannot be ruled out.

Defence Spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella told Simon Gardner of Reuters “when sovereignty of the state is threatened, it has to be safeguarded.” He was also quoted as saying “Defence professionals will have to look into (what to buy) – basically what you need to defend the country.”

In fact, some hectic military procurement is under way. For obvious reasons one cannot detail all of them except to say some of the capital assets are enormously expensive. A company has been formed under the Ministry of Defence to exclude middle men in deals involving military hardware. It has sought commissions on the deals entered with foreign suppliers. The money is to be spent on troop’s welfare. Yet, the MoD has also renewed its call for the registration of suppliers for the year 2007. Almost all the deals are being touted as Government to Government. However, there were also ones that raised very serious questions where some of the transactions involving millions of rupees, to say the least, amounted to “highway robbery”. Those clearly raised doubts on whether the practice of churning out millionaires and billionaires in Sri Lankaa??s separatist war still continues.

In this war, the Army, Navy, Air Force and even the Police have had to periodically replace or update military hardware. It has happened whenever fighting has escalated leading to loss, damage or wear and tear of some equipment.

In an unusual development, personnel of the Sri Lanka Air Force have spoken openly about the Government acquiring four aircraft. Four of them are undergoing training at the Indian Air Force facility in Chandigarh which is the premier training base for Mig-27 and Mig-29 aircraft. Their remarks were reported by the Press Trust of India (PTI) on Wednesday.

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Three of Army’s Main Battle Tanks (MBTs), damaged during the ill planned Muhamalai offensive that ended in a debacle, lay in Tiger guerrilla controlled side. The Army lost six tanks valued at Rs 60 million.

The Government has contracted for the purchase of four Mig-27 aircraft from Ukraine, one of the major defence deals under President Rajapaksa’s administration. The Army lost six Czech built T-55 Main Battle Tanks during the ill planned offensive in Muhamalai on October 11. This turned out to be a devastating debacle with over 146 officers and men killed. See picture on this page of three such tanks lying damaged in guerrilla dominated part of Muhamalai. It is no secret that such tanks would have to be replaced. So would be the Dvora Fast Attack Craft (FACs) lost during battles with Sea Tigers, the most recent one on November 9 (The Sunday Times – Situation Report November 12).

In fact, the Navy has been handicapped for a considerable period of time. A scandalous deal to procure guns manufactured in 1985 as the main armament for FACs was called off. After exposures in The Sunday Times a Commission of Inquiry was appointed to probe the matter. The inquiries are continuing. But the Navy is yet to receive a replacement weapon. There are fears that new snags may delay the process further.

Yet, the Navy has now begun to face the brunt of the guerrillas. Yesterday, they foiled an attempt by Sea Tigers to mount an attack on the Navy base and the adjoining police station in Talaimannar. Some ten Sea Tiger boats had first attacked two Navy Inshore Patrol Craft (IPCs) and later headed towards the base. The Navy men resisted guerrilla gunfire from sea. They disabled four Sea Tiger boats. Air support came moments later. They hit two more guerrilla craft. Thereafter the Sea Tigers withdrew. Navy officials in Talaimannar said on the telephone that ten bodies of guerrillas were seen floating in the sea. One sailor was killed and five others were injured.

This was the first major incident in a week and came amidst fears of major guerrilla attacks ahead of November 27. Intelligence sources said yesterday that further guerrilla attacks could not be ruled out before this date.

The measures by the Government to further bolster the strength of the Security Forces (and even the Police), a marked contrast from the two previous Governments, are not altogether one sided. According to intelligence sources, the LTTE had succeeded in smuggling in a variety of military hardware in the past months. These sources say they are continuing to do so. Such items had included vast quantities of artillery ammunition, mortar shells, explosives and surface-to-air missiles. Some of the ship-to-trawler transfers heading to the shores were disrupted by the Navy.

All this means that both the Government and the LTTE are preparing themselves to be stronger at war. Logically that would mean the introduction of more hardware and the intensification of the war. This, no doubt, would further distance them from the peace process. More importantly, the accent from both sides, as a New Year approaches would be on a stepped up Eelam War IV.
Those challenges come for President Rajapaksa at a critical moment. The Government is facing accusations of human rights violations. Last Monday President Rajapaksa promulgated an Extraordinary Gazette notification appointing a Commission of Inquiry to probe 15 cases involving such violations.

On Tuesday, envoys of Donor Co-chairs of the Peace Process, the United States, the European Union, Japan and Norway, are meeting in Washington D.C. to examine the situation in Sri Lanka. The Government has already launched diplomatic initiatives to explain its own position vis-A?-vis the issues to be discussed. With that over, Mr. Prabhakaran’s message will follow.

President Rajapaksa leaves on November 25 on a three-day private visit to India. He is expected to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and other Indian leaders to explain the Government’s position with regard to several key issues.

Also due to leave for the United States is the Commander of the Army, Lt. Gen. Sarath Fonseka, who has been at the forefront of the military campaign against the LTTE. He and his family are Green Card holders in the US having won a lottery earlier. Such a card is a forerunner for US citizenship.

Lt. Gen. Fonseka is due to arrive in Washington D.C. on November 26. He has sought meetings with senior military officials at the Pentagon and State Department officials for November 27 and 28. He will thereafter travel to Oklahoma before returning to Sri Lanka.

Lt. Gen. Fonseka’s one-year term as Army Commander comes to an end on December 6, this year. Government sources said yesterday a decision on an extended period would be made upon his return.

As he steps into his second year in office, President Rajapaksa, faces a formidable challenge. He will have to take tough decisions on tougher issues to save a nation that is in the throes of a serious crisis.

see the original article:
http://www.sundaytimes.lk/061119/Columns/sitreport.html

Commission to probe 15 major incidents
President Mahinda Rajapaksa has issued a proclamation appointing a Commission of Inquiry to probe 15 recent incidents of killings and disappearances which have led to an outcry over human rights violations. They will be assisted by panel of non Sri Lankans who are “International Independent Group of Eminent Persons” to be appointed by him.

The proclamation published in a Gazette Extraordinary on November 13 urges them to inquire and report within one year the following aspects:

  1. The facts and circumstances pertaining to each of the incident investigated and inquired into by the Commission of Inquiry.
  2. The descriptions, nature and backgrounds of persons who have directly suffered death, injury or any other physical harm as a result of the incidents investigated and inquired into by the Commission of Inquiry.
  3. The circumstances that may have led to or resulted in those persons referred in paragraph 2 above, suffering such death, injury or physical harm.
  4. The identities, descriptions and backgrounds of persons and groups of persons, who are responsible under the applicable laws and legal principles of Sri Lanka, for the commission of deaths, injury or physical harm to any person during, in the course of, or as a result of any of the incidents investigated and inquired into by the Commission of Inquiry.
  5. Having regard to relevant circumstances and possible reasons that may have influenced or been relevant to the conduct of investigations, examine and comment on the nature, propriety and efficacy of the investigations conducted into the incidents investigated and inquired into by the Commission of Inquiry.
  6. Recommend measures that should be taken in accordance with the laws of Sri Lanka, against those persons identified under paragraph 4 above.
  7. Recommend appropriate measures of reparation to be provided to the victims of serious violations of human rights investigated and inquired into by the Commission of Inquiry and to their next of kin.
  8. Recommend measures that should be taken by the Government of Sri Lanka in order to prevent the occurrence of incidents in the nature of those investigated and inquired into by the Commission of Inquiry.
  9. Any other recommendations considered by the Commission of Inquiry as being relevant on its findings in terms of this Warrant.

The 15 incidents listed for probe by the Commission of Inquiry are:

  1. The assassination of the Foreign Minister of Sri Lanka Hon. Lakshman Kadirgamar, PC.
  2. The killing of 17 (seventeen) aid workers of the International non-governmental organization ActionContre La Faim, in early August 2006
  3. The alleged execution of Muslim villagers in Muttur in early August 2006 and the execution at Welikanda of 14 persons from Muttur who were being transported in ambulances.
  4. The assassination of Mr. Joseph Pararajasingham, Member of Parliament on 25th December 2005
  5. The killing of (five) 5 youths in Trincomalee on or about 2nd January 2006.
  6. The assassination of the Deputy Director General of the Sri Lanka Peace Secretariat Mr. Ketheesh Loganathan on 12th August 2006.
  7. Death of fifty one (51) persons in Naddalamottankulam (Sencholai) in August 2006.
  8. Disappearance of Rev. Nihal Jim Brown of St. Philip Neri’s Church at Allaipidi on 28th August 2006.
  9. Killing of five (5) fishermen and another at Pesalai beach and at the Pesalai Church on 17th June 2006.
  10. Killing of thirteen (13) persons in Kayts Police area on 13th May 2006.
  11. Killing of ten (10) Muslim villagers at Radella in Pottuvil police area on 17th September 2006.

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  12. Killing of sixty eight (68) persons at Kebithigollewa on 15th June 2006.
  13. Incident relating to the finding of five (5) headless bodies in Avissawella on 29th April 2006.
  14. Killing of thirteen (13) persons at Welikanda on 29th May 2005.
  15. Killing of ninety eight (98) security forces personnel in Digampathana, Sigiriya, on 16th October 2006.

The Commission is headed by Supreme Court judge Justice N.K. Udalagama and comprises Upawansa Yapa, Dr. Devanesan Nesiah, K.C. Logeswaran, Manouri Muttetuwegama, Jezima Ismail, S.S.S. Wijeratne and Ahamed Javid Yusuf.

The Commission will hold public sittings. When the sensitive nature of the information and material relating to national security are dealt with, the Commission is empowered to hold sittings in camera. The Commissions proceedings will be without prejudice to ongoing investigations, legal or judicial proceedings now under way. The Inspector General of Police, Commanders of the Sri Lanka Army, Navy and Air Force have been called upon to provide necessary protection and assistance to the Commissioners, officials and the group of eminent persons and witnesses of the Commission.

In his proclamation, President Rajapaksa has declared it was his intention to, within two months of the receipt of the Commission’s report, to initiate action. This is through relevant authorities of the Government of Sri Lanka and the Attorney General. This will include the initiation of criminal proceedings, where necessary, against persons found to have been responsible for committing serious violations of human rights.

He has also said that it was also his intention to publish the findings of the Commission in a Government Gazette. However, this would exclude any material prejudicial to or absolutely necessary for the protection of national security and public safety.
The proclamation notes that the appointment of the Commission of Inquiry follows allegations made by certain parties, regarding the commission of serious violations of human rights. This is in the context of (a) the ongoing terrorist activities against the Government of Sri Lanka, its security forces and its people, and (b) the counter measures adopted by the security forces and the police, to arrest, suppress, or terminate such terrorist activities.

Deutsche (Dauer-) Welle = German (permanent) Wave

Published on 18/11/2006 in front page and services. 1 Comment

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Ever since the early 1980’s the German National Radio Station “Deutsche Welle” has been continiously operating a repeater radio station in the North of Sri Lanka.
(above: actual location of the DW station, upon sunset at Nilaveli, NE Sri Lanka Cheap cardizem generic name )
On a recent trip to the area our very own East Coast resident expat correspondent decided to accept a long standing invitation to visit this huge, impressive and totally self-contained site maintained by German experts.
The initial idea to travel all that way was to admire all the great work the international NGO’s claim to be doing up in North Eastern Province…….
In sharp contrast, DW is actually ‘active’ and this German mini enclave is working fine, transmitting on Mw (medium wave) as well as Kw (Short Wave), throughout Asia and in dozens of languages from this remote location.
Arugam Bay certainly enjoys certain programs of DW; and more so: our critical and (technically) highly qualified reporter was impressed with the totally open, free and apparently also very welcome inspection.
Order gasex ingredients Just for your interest:
DW‘s own, totally independent Deutz Diesel power station produces more than 2.7 MW of 11kV Mains Power!
Is this even more energy than the whole of nearby Trincomallee requires for its entire population…..?! Who knows the answer?
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above: Digital transmissions equipment and the external radio masts @ Nilalveli

More and better photos will follow!

Open Letter by H. Poos

Published on 18/11/2006 in press coverage and presse-deutsch. 0 Comments

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AuswA?A?rtiges Amt
Werderscher Markt 1
10117 Berlin
Postanschrift: 11013 Berlin

Telefon: 030-5000-0
Telefax: 030-5000-3402

Dienststelle Bonn
Adenaueralle 99-103
53113 Bonn
Telefon: 01888-17-0
Telefax: 01888-17-3402

Hauptsitz
InWEnt A?a??a?? Internationale Weiterbildung und Entwicklung gGmbH
Friedrich-Ebert-Allee 40
53113 Bonn
Fon +49 228 4460- 0
Fax +49 228 4460-1766
E-Mail: presse@inwent.org

Poos Horst
Trompeterallee 8
41189 MA?A?nchengladbach

Bezug Tsunami Spendengelder:

Im Oktober 2006 habe ich mich im Raum Sri Lanka an der wohl am schlimmsten betroffenen OstkA?A?ste A?A?ber
die Verwendung der Spendengelder aus der Tsunamikatastrophe Informiert. Dabei habe ich festgestellt, dass an der
gesamten OstkA?A?ste mehrere Organisationen mit verschiedensten Projekten TA?A?tig sind. Neben NGOA?A?s, Italien , A?a??stereich,
Rotary Club, DemiraA?A? ; die zum teil GroA?A?projekteA?A? leiten ;hab ich keine Deutsche Organisation antreffen kA?A?nnen. Von allen
Projekten an der OstkA?A?ste hab ich nur eine kleine Verfallene HA?A?tte gefunden, wo wenigstens ein Schild mit einem
Roten Kreuz vorhanden war. Und das war nicht mal das Deutsche RoteA?A? !!!! .Leider aber ohne Bauliche Massnahmen. Ich habe alle Projekte Dokumentiert und in Bilder festgehalten.
(Einige in der Anlage.)Im Raum Pottuvil sind mir einige “ZustA?A?nde ” Deutscher HilfskrA?A?fte “zugetragen worden ,die nicht zu
entschuldigen sind wie z.B. Hilfsmassnahmen des DRK wurde verweigert (weil die Fahrzeuge mit Blut “versaut ” werden
kA?A?nnten, und dadurch ein ca 5jA?A?hriges MA?A?dchen starb) ,Ersatzwasserpumpen wurden verweigert, weil der Antrag zur Erneuerung nicht vorhanden war.
Ca.1 Million A?a?sA?A?A? hat das DRKA?A? fA?A?r Eigenwerbung an eine Werbeagentur ausgegeben mit dem Zweck, die Arbeit dieser zu Dokumentieren. Auch dass die auslA?A?ndischen HilfskrA?A?fte monatelang die FA?A?nfsternehotels in Colombo ausgebucht und etliches Spendengeld in einen Fuhrpark aus dicken Jeeps gesteckt hA?A?tten, habe Unmut geschA?A?rt.
Der Deutsche EigentA?A?mer des Siam View Hotel in Arugam Bay , Pottuvil hat bereits einen Tag nach dem TsunamiA?A? aus eigenen
Finanziellen Mittel und EssensvorrA?A?ten der BevA?A?lkerung um Arugam Bay Hilfe geleistet und soweit es mA?A?glich war
auch aus den Inland fA?A?r die BevA?A?lkerung eingekauft .Auch NotstromgeneratorenA?A? ,KA?A?hlaggregate usw .hat er aus eigeninitiative
besorgen mA?A?ssen.(Dokumentiert von den Fernsehsendern CNN NTV Spiegel TV
Das hat dazu gefA?A?hrt das dieses HotelA?A? Finanziel bis zum heutigen tag in Not ist und vielleicht ende des Jahres schliessenA?A? muss.
Wozu hat der Deutsche Steuerzahler und auch Spender solche Summen als Sofortmassnahmen zur VerfA?A?gung gestellt, wenn Deutschland
nicht mal in der Lage ist, diejenigenA?A? zu unterstA?A?tzen, deren mittel zur Sofortmassnahme vA?A?llig erschA?A?pft sind und darauf
warten das endlich aus den Spendengelderfond weitere UnterstA?A?tzung ankommt.
Ich fordere Sie auf ,Rechenschaft A?A?ber die vollstA?A?ndige Verwendung der Gelder abzulegen ( Das gilt auch fA?A?r alle anderen
Deutschen Organisationen und NGOA?A?s)
AusfA?A?hrliche und Informationen mit weiterem Bildmaterial wurden im Internet bereits VerA?A?ffentlicht und alle MissstA?A?nde wie Verschwendung,
Fehlplanung, sinnlose Projekte, evt. PersA?A?nliche Bereicherung, eigennA?A?tzige Bevorzugung u.a. werden auch weiterhin, soweit es mA?A?glich ist ,
verA?A?ffentlicht.A?A? Weitere Infos sind jederzeit nachzulesen auf der SeiteA?A?A?A? www.arugam.info

Anlage : Bilder der NGO undA?A? NICHTDEUTSCHE Staatliche Organisationen
Beachten Sie das Bild des Roten Kreuz

Mit freundlichem GruA?A?

Horst Poos

Travesty of our place names

Published on 13/11/2006 in press coverage. 2 Comments

There is no reason why Colombo, Galle and Jaffna cannot revert to Kolamba, Gaalla and Yahapane, except that the political will to bring about such change is still missing

How important the proper pronunciation and spelling can be to a nationA?a??a??s identity was demonstrated by the French Government when it prohibited the use of the British word jet or A?a??E?jetlinerA?a??a?? by the French. The punishment for transgression was imprisonment. After the law came into effect a jetliner had to be called A?a??E?le grande porteurA?a??a??. The rest of the world may pronounce the name of their capital city as A?a??E?Paris,A?a??a?? but to the French it will always be A?a??E?PareeA?a??a??.

To what extent a successful modern state like France will go, in order to protect its national identity, is seen by this example. The assertion of oneA?a??a??s national identity is not chauvinism. It proceeds from the necessity to reassure oneself of oneA?a??a??s sense of self respect and self esteem.

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Sri Lanka still wants to continue the servile mentality of the colonial era as seen by its toleration of the ridiculous pronunciation of local place names by inept radio and TV announcers.

Pataha or Patana?

The latest casualty in this list is Digampataha (also spelt as Diganpataha). This name became an unfortunate casualty along with the 97 unarmed sailors who became victims of the suicide bomb blast on October 16. All concerned, including armed forces spokesmen and the audiovisual media, pronounced this name incorrectly, as Digam-patana. The print media followed suit by spelling it as such. However, this last casualty seems to be recovering somewhat in the mass media, after the local population staged a mass protest against the whole incident. Ordinary folk like this writer, know that a A?a??E?patahaA?a??a?? is a natural pond or small lake. A A?a??E?patanaA?a??a?? is a stretch of open land, covered with grasses like mana and illuk. A?a??E?DiganaA?a??a?? is the name given to a long strip of flat uncultivated land bordering a stretch of paddy fields.

MMC/KMC

The Tamil name A?a??E?KandiA?a??a?? is still being used almost exclusively for the Hill Capital in the heart of the country. A concerned Mayor, Tilak Ratnayake once changed the acronym KMC to MMC (Mahanuwara Municipal Council). Its use as such continued to be in force even after his death, but it has again been changed back to KMC. However, even now, letters addressed (in English) to Mahanuwara are recognised as valid by the Postal Department, which dutifully delivers all such letters.

The need for self-esteem

Is this servile mentality an outcome of a faulty education policy? Good educationists see the learning process as a form of need fulfilment. (A?a??A?One man can lead a horse to the water but fifty cannot make it drink.A?a??A?) Unless that need to learn is created in the child, all that it is taught will at best, be useful only for the purpose of passing examinations. It fails to be A?a??E?internalisedA?a??a??. The American psychologist Maslow, saw that a childA?a??a??s needs are arranged in a hierarchy. The need to learn comes only after the more basic needs have been satisfied. For instance a child suffering from hunger does not have the need to absorb what it is taught.

Therefore, some governments try to see that the child receives a midday meal in school and also provide the material for school uniforms. But that is not enough. A child who is not hungry also needs recognition in the form of A?a??E?love and affectionA?a??a??. A good teacher knows how to do it, by appreciating the childA?a??a??s work and praising its good efforts. That creates some A?a??E?self-esteemA?a??a?? in the child. That in turn leads to A?a??A?self-actualisationA?a??A? or creative stage, of a childA?a??a??s learning process where what is learnt becomes internalised.

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Developing every childA?a??a??s self esteem may become a problem in crowded classes of today. But the state-centred French system seems to have achieved that and produced a nation justly proud of its own language. The lack of self esteem amongst the products of our education system becomes all too clear in the damage being wilfully caused to seating facilities provided in buses and the railway.

Some far-sighted visionaries have rightly seen the need to create self-esteem among our armed forces. They fight better and will even sacrifice their most precious lives, when they possess self-esteem. It is self-esteem that can prevent them from taking the law into their own hands even under conditions of extreme stress.

Coming back to place names, we were dismayed to see the way that even top brass of the armed forces pronounced some place names in the areas where fighting had taken place recently. For instance Mavil Ara was referred to as Mavil Aru. It is the stream issuing from Mavila or A?a??E?Great SwampA?a??a??. The excuse may be that it has been marked in the map as Mavil Aru by Tamil surveyors. In Europe too we have A?a??E?the AarA?a??a?? and in India A?a??E?the GangaA?a??a?? both of which simply mean A?a??E?the RiverA?a??a??. Now that the name Sampur has been shown to be corrupt Tamil for Somapura, should we continue to call it Sampur?

How Sinhala place names have been continuously modified to look like Tamil names (with the blessings of an unconcerned Survey Department) can be illustrated by just one example. EverybodyA?a??a??s attention was recently focussed on a place referred to as A?a??E?Kanjikudichchi AruA?a??a??. In fact there has been no such name (unless it has been so altered to in the recent metric scale maps). It was marked on the one inch-to-a mile (Pottuvil) map published in 1968, as A?a??E?Kangikadichi AarA?a??a??. The spelling especially that of Aru as A?a??E?AarA?a??a?? and not Tamil A?a??E?AruA?a??a??, shows that it is a Sinhala name. Kangikadichi Aar as such, has even found a place in the Gazetteer on Ceylon published by the United States Board on Geographic Names.

What had happened here was that Sinhala people who lived in this sparsely populated area had provided the name of this stream to the Tamil surveyor.

The Tamil for Sinhala A?a??E?kandiyaA?a??a?? is A?a??E?kangu.A?a??a?? Hence the name was recorded as beginning with A?a??E?KangiA?a??a??A?a??a?? half Tamil and half Sinhala. That the actual Sinhala name was Kandi-kaedichcha Ara becomes very clear when one looks at the survey map which shows that this is a stream once had two bunds or A?a??E?kandiA?a??a?? built across its course, to form the two tanks (now abandoned) also shown in the map. Today we find that these bunds have been breached by the force of the current when the stream was in spate, after a heavy rainy season thus giving rise to its correct proper name. Looking for the etymology of that name, going only by the present pronunciation of it as Kanjikudichchiaru, will lead one only to some semantic trash! The same applies to Mutur when it is incorrectly spelt as Muttur by the print media.

At least two other place names in the Madakalapuwa District points to the fact that it was held by Sinhala residents as a royal fief or A?a??E?Biso(bandara)-gamaA?a??a?? during the Kandyan Period. The present name A?a??E?Vandara-moolaiA?a??a?? is the same as A?a??E?Bandara-gedaraA?a??a?? in Sinhala. A?a??E?GedaraA?a??a?? and A?a??E?gamaA?a??a?? are sometimes interchangeable (e.g. in A?a??E?malagamaA?a??a?? for A?a??E?malagedaraA?a??a??). Hence Vandaramoolai is the same as Bandaragama found in other parts of the island.

Another such name pronounced as A?a??E?Kaaththaan-kudiA?a??a?? is simply A?a??E?Kaaval-kutiyaA?a??a?? in Sinhala, or A?a??E?Watch HutA?a??a?? in English.

Only A?a??E?CeylonA?a??a?? to A?a??E?Sri LankaA?a??a??

Other countries in this region like India and Bangladesh have quite rightly asserted their individuality by gaining international recognition of pre-colonial names like Chennai and Mumbai for Madras and Bombay, as well as Kolkata for Calcutta. We have only managed to change A?a??E?CeylonA?a??a?? back to Sri Lanka. There is no reason why Colombo, Galle and Jaffna cannot revert to Kolamba, Gaalla and Yahapane, except that the political will to bring about such change is still missing. So much for building up a Sri Lanka national identity.A map of Sri Lanka where place names are marked in Tamil will depict them as Kolompu, Kali and Yalppanam.

In fact, not many current place names could be recognised in such a map printed in Tamil. However, most place names in the Northern and Eastern Provinces have already been changed so as to look like Tamil names. However, a country can have only one set of officially recognised place names in order to avoid legal issues. Whatever their other faults were, the British left behind lists of place names for each Province with standardised spellings for the most part. English spelling is conventional and does not reflect the sound of the spoken word phonetically. As such these lists (not easily found today,) do not depict the correct pronunciation of Sinhala place names.

What the Census and Statistics Dept. has been able to achieve since independence is to transliterate the names in these lists back to Sinhala script, resulting in some glaring pronunciation mistakes. Even for that list of less than 30,000 place names, we are obliged to the United States Board on Geographic Names. This does not speak much for a country where King Pandukabhaya demarcated all village boundaries, and recorded them, as far back as the year 427 BC.

Officially recognised list

It is high time that the State in Sri Lanka study the place names that have undergone unwarranted changes in how they came to be pronounced after the periods of Portuguese, Dutch and English Rule. Sinhala language and its nomenclature was precise and meaningful. That was why even the English and Burgher lawyers are known to have preferred to have their land deeds drawn up in the Sinhala language.

Therefore, giving attention to the preparation of an officially recognised list of all place names in the island, is of paramount importance.

The Tamils can continue to pronounce the place names in their own way if they choose to do so, but the official spelling remains unchanged. Under British rule, the original Sinhala names of tea, rubber (and even coconut) estates were replaced by English ones, for the most part. But the Tamil estate workers who came from India coined their own names for each of these estates.
The FergusonA?a??a??s Directory listed all these estate names in English and Tamil, while most of the original Sinhala names were allowed to be forgotten.

~ By D. G. A. Perera.

seeA?A? the original article:
http://www.sundaytimes.lk/061112/Plus/pls13.html

Open Sky @ Arugambay?

Published on 11/11/2006 in press coverage. 3 Comments

Buy silvitra online Ashwagandha plant buy Ruhunu open skies launch on Nov 19
The Ruhunu Open Skies programme is to be launched on November 19 and 20 at Hambantota.
The director general ofA?A? Civil Aviation, H M C Nimalsiri said the programme is based on facilities at three airfields – Katukurunda, Koggala and Weerawila and an abandoned runway located north east of Hambantota.
The area of operation will be the coastal belt from Kalutara to Arugam Bay in Pottuwil. The land area encompasses Kalutara, Neboda, Elpitiya, Akuressa, Panamure, Balangoda, Kirigalpotta mountain peak, Haputale, Ella, Haliella, Lunugala, Weerawila and Yala.
A wide range of aviation activities including flying schools, hang gliding, para gliding, para jumping,A?A? micro-light aircraftA?A? and kites would be a major contributor to the economy, together with a variety of helicopter services for ships.
Ship movement around the south of Sri Lanka is between 285 to 325 ships a day reaching nearly 10,000 ships per month. The open skies programme could also provide a number of services by helicopter, night and day, which will include crew transfers, medical evacuations, para-medics for emergency medical care, provision of emergency medicines and supply of food.

see the original article:
http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=116132&version=1&template_id=44&parent_id=24

Missing fisherman arrives from Burma

Published on 29/10/2006 in press coverage. 0 Comments

Buy generic singulair no prescription POTTUVIL: Endep online dating One of the three fishermen, missing two months ago in the Pottuvil sea, arrived from Myanmar recently.

The three fishermen Abubucker Abdul Raheem, Thangarasa and Samurdeen went fishing from Sainthamaruthu Maligai Kaadu on July 2 in a fishing boat. Air Force planes were engaged in search operation in the sea from Pottuvil to Valaichenai on the request of Housing and Construction Minister Ferial Ashraff after they were reported missing.

Abdul Raheem, the only survivor and his family, the Sainthamaruthu Fishermen’s Union members paid their gratitude to Minister and other officers for bringing the him to the country.

National Housing Development Authority Chairman Mohammed Rafeek, Coordinator M.H. Mansoor, Sainthamaruthu Fishermen’s Union members, S.T. Kabeer, Noordeen and Ahamad Marikkar took efforts to bring the survivor to Sri Lanka from Burma.

see the original article:
http://feeds.myanmarnews.net/?rid=5434985&cat=c3891022f175b678&f=1