by Nilantha Ilangamuwa
(February 27, New Delhi, Sri Lanka Guardian) This is not first time the Sri Lanka Guardian has faced attacks by the Sri Lankan media who are based in Colombo as well as abroad. Mr. K.T. Rajasingham a fanatical fan of the President Mahinda Rajapakse attacked us two years ago with fabricated charges that I had links with the Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW), an Indian intelligence agency who deal with external affairs. Mr. Rajasingham became a fan of the president through Dr. Palitha Kohona for no other reason than to gain political advantage and earn something, similar to what he did from his so-called friendship with Mr. Vinayagamoorthy Muralitharan a.k.a. Col. Karuna Amman. Still other media personnel write something about us without verifying their sources. Perhaps the defense establishment of the Country is closely monitoring our web site and it is contributors to find some juicy gossip about us. What they do not bother to understand or consider is that we are doing what we are doing in the name of journalism.
To begin my reply to the latest attack carried by Lakbima News, I would like to quote the words of a philosopher and author of several books including, "On Bullshits", Mr. Harry Frankfurt's:
"One of the most salient features of our culture is that there is so much bullshit. Everyone knows this. Each of us contributes his share. But we tend to take the situation for granted. Most people are rather confident of their ability to recognize bullshit and to avoid being taken in by it. So the phenomenon has not aroused much deliberate concern. We have no clear understanding of what bullshit is, why there is so much of it, or what functions it serves. And we lack a conscientiously developed appreciation of what it means to us."
In other words, as Harry Frankfurt writes, "we have no theory."
However we welcome what others say about us in terms of freedom of expression. The other comments, the bullshit cannot stop our role because as Frankfurt writes, bullshit is a greater enemy of the truth than lies are.
People like Underpala's rantings and his questioning of our journalism is laughable. I have enough intelligence to understand that the Underpala is doing what is meant by his/her name. This is what we call the " Sri Lankan mentality". There are no differences between the Underpalas and Pandamkaraya who I met a few years ago when I worked with various newspapers in Sri Lanka.
Let us put this ideology on our subject which make headaches to Underpala of the weekly LakbimaNews. We are doing what people of Sri Lanka find interesting. But that can be a threat to the so called "leaders" of the Country. We never favour of any kind of politicians in the Country, who must be responsible for the disasters of the institutions of Sri Lanka. This is not the time to talk about present leader Mr. Rajapakse but as we expressed earlier Rajapakse also is nothing new but rather an assassin of real freedom and democracy in Sri Lanka.
The extremist Jayaweva (Victory) brigade based in London is unable to think and act further than its jubilation over the defeat of the LTTE in May 2009 and is now actively involved in a highhanded campaign to discredit the Sri Lanka Guardian.
This racist brigade conveniently campaigns against the LTTE to cover up its anti-minority racism whilst strongly upholding its innermost belief of hatred towards accommodating the minorities as part of Sri Lankan society with due respect and political empowerment.
The writ of the Jayaweva brigade is not confined to its respective organizations; it extends further and its body politics dictates the running of the Sri Lanka High Commission in London. The brigade that is made up of the London branch of the SLFP (Sri Lanka President's party), Sinhala Association, Sri Lankans Against Terrorism (SLAT) and the Sinhala Bala Mandalaya work in tandem with the Dirty Tricks Department of the Sri Lanka High Commission in London headed by the present acting High Commissioner P M Amsa, who is well known to be associated with the Sri Lanka Intelligence Service.
Our correspondent in London was singled out and targeted by this extremist alliance with the backing of the External Affairs Ministry in Colombo for being outspoken and revealing facts under constrained circumstances about Sri Lanka and its disruptive agents.
Disregarding the motto of the Sri Lanka Guardian of playing an important role to uphold media freedom and justice to break the iron curtain drawn against the very foundation of democracy and good governance in Sri Lanka has come under systematic campaign by these warlords.
The Sri Lanka Guardian was the first media to report on the appointment of Bell Pottinger as the image building consultant for Sri Lanka; revelation of Tamil National Alliance compromising on not to speak about war crimes; the murderous mission of the army intelligence head Major General Kapila Hendawitharane who runs clandestine military outfits to involve in human rights violations; short lived appointment of the High Commissioner K Pathmanathan in London, etc., etc., that has irked the agent provocateurs of the Sri Lanka government to go on the offensive against the independent Sri Lanka Guardian.
As I mentioned above that their latest attack was published in the Lankbimanews written by the anonymous Underpala. The writing was so insinuating that one wonders what was special in this anonymous name for the writer to use. Like the pseudonym name, the issues revealed in the write up only reflect the typical below the level mentality of the racist brigade.
What is interesting is the Jayaweva brigade preaching journalistic scruples to us citing and praising Sri Lanka media standards under the present regime? They make their assertions by walking over skeletons and white van abductions of the honest media men and destruction of media outlets in a state sponsored campaign.
As I mentions earlier the Sri Lanka Guardian too is a victim of inhuman conduct of the state intelligence service and one of the Tamil paramilitary outfits associated with the government. I personally was hounded, harassed and hunted by the lethal state machinery and thanks to God, I'm lucky to be alive to publish this useful organ at the most testing time for the media and people in Sri Lanka. Today the term, National Security, after the total elimination of the LTTE terrorist outfit becomes a tool of control of political activists and other social activists. As Mr. Hendawitharane mentioned at a weekly defence discussion just week ago, you may not allow what K.P wanted to do but we are keen on what happened in last few days in Jaffna peninsula. If you can't accept that Tamils are part of this great nation then just vanquished people how will you address your next generation in another way. And you must answer in genuine way with details reports of recent killing of innocent unarmed civilians in Jaffna. And where is the freedom? Do you think freedom is that we have to accept what you guys doing on people?
Months before Defence Secretary Col. (rtd) Gotabhaya Rajapakse talked about police reform but have you looked into what is happening in police stations in Sri Lanka, every day. Where is your police reform plan when your police officer allowed a man who raped a disabled girl in Dodangoda to escape? Do you think it justice when they (the people in Dodangoda police station) gave Rs. 10,000/= to the victim's family to keep silent? You and your guys can categorize these kinds of incidents also as an issue of National Security.
Vituperation of the state and its paid agents based in Colombo, Helsinki and London reflect the common trend of branding the Sri Lanka Guardian as an agent of the Indian intelligence service Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW). These servile and obsequious persons of the state who frame us for their personal satisfaction cannot subdue us by their snobbish ranting. The Sri Lanka Guardian has published news and views of ex-R&AW officials like publishing contributions of many important persons in the public life. R&AW may be anathema for raw sewage writers of the state and the Jayaweva brigade, but for the peoples' journal, the Sri Lanka Guardian, all those who put across sensible arguments have a space and accommodation in its journal.
If we are permitted free journalistic access in Sri Lanka without intimidation, blackmail, threats and white van abductions, we will visit all the nooks and crannies of the country and unearth the hidden truths to help unravel the facts and build reconciliation in Sri Lanka. This will be the true homage we can give to the violently dead and suffering people of all the communities.
We do not thrive on Jayaweva slogans over the deaths and disablement of our people. We will not say Jayaweva for our leaders when they are soaked in the blood of our people. We know where, when and how to say Jayaweva. True Jayaweva comes when the state become accountable and respond to the crimes it had committed against its people (humanity) and the victims of war criminals are provided justice. Jayaweva will truly flow when our fellow journalists in captivity are released and media is allowed to play its due role without the fear of persecution by the state.
The Sri Lanka High Commission in London is a disabled mission due to its inability to uphold truth and due to its conduct against the Sri Lankan citizens. It is functioning with an acting High Commissioner for the past three months and its functions are constrained and subcontracted to the international consultants like Bell Pottinger. Due to the attitude of the High Commission, even Bell Pottinger is unable to execute their agreed terms. Fees paid to Bell Pottinger are enormous compared to the cost incurred for the staff at the High Commission. Since their appointment, the image building consultant was only able to arrange a speech for our External Affairs minister in a public forum and push through some image building articles in some unknown British media to attract tourists to Sri Lanka.
The latest attack in the Lankbimanews also targetted an individual in London without naming him! Interestingly, the write up praised the LTTE for providing the story for the Jayaweva Brigade to attack the said unnamed individual. The Brigade that hates the LTTE to its roots is willing to go on honeymoon with the hated group when opportunities knock at the door to drumbeat.
Nevertheless Underpala talked about the Asian Human Rights Commission, a regional human rights body and one of its directors Mr. Basil Fernando. I do not have any objections at all to what the AHRC is doing in terms of human rights work and their great role not only in Sri Lanka but throughout Asia. But I’d like to request you to hold talks with your chief editor who wrote the editorial on Mr. Basil Fernando and his work against police torture in Sri Lanka a few months ago. The Sri Lanka Guardian will stand beside anyone who tries to restore the principalities of the good governance including rule of law, good policing system… etc., in this Country.
The Sri Lanka Guardian has faced the wrath of the anti-democratic mission of the state of Sri Lanka. Despite being a victim of state terrorism, it has gone a long way to build its stand as a reliable media. We will not run away so long as the last pulse of our operation stops beating due to the anti-democratic/terror activities of the government of Sri Lanka and its agents. At last I would like to request you in humble way, Mr. /Mrs./Ms. Underpala, do not waste my time.
( The writer can be reached at editor@srilankaguardian.org )
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