Gajalakshmi Paramasivam

23 April 2018                                         

Facebook Karma

As I read the Quartz Heading “1984 - In Sri Lanka, Facebook is like the ministry of truth.” - I burst out laughing.

Following is an excerpt of what happened :

[Rumors of a Muslim plot to sterilize Sri Lanka’s Sinhalese majority led to real-life violence in February that resulted in the beating of a Muslim restaurant worker. He was falsely accused of spiking the shop’s food with sterilization pills in the small town of Ampara.

Because of rumors on Facebook, a lump of flour found in the food was transformed in the mind of the patron into a sterilization pill. Language barriers between the Muslim operators and the Sinhalese patron made it impossible to correct the falsity and a mob at the restaurant formed beat the worker, destroyed the shop, and set fire to a local mosque.

A mobile-phone video of the incident got posted on a Facebook group called the Buddhist Information Center. It spread, stoking violence toward Muslims across the country that resulted in more than one death. Mobs in several towns burned mosques, shops and homes owned by Muslims, the Times reported.

In March, the government of Sri Lanka shut down Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, and Viber in an attempt to quell ethnic strife in the country. But the issue of Facebook’s role remains.]

Shutting down Facebook is an example of shooting the messenger.  Below is a report of what happened in this issue between myself and Asian Tribune who to my mind are not much more regulated than Facebook users but are / were not banned by the Government:

http://www.asiantribune.com/node/4188

‘Australian Human Rights Commission dismisses complaint lodged against Asian Tribune

Thu, 2007-01-18 02:30 — admin

Sydney, 18 January, (Asiantribune.com): Australian Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (HREOC) has dismissed a complaint lodged against the Asian Tribune by Ms Gaja Lakshmi Paramasivam on the grounds of "lacking in substance."

She had "alleged racial discrimination in the provision of goods and services within the meaning of the Racial Discrimination Act 1975". HREOC dismissed her complaint saying: "Having considered all the information she has provided to date, I am satisfied that Ms Paramasivam's complaint is lacking in substance."

Her complaint was based on the rejection of her comments by the Administrator of the Asian Tribune who wrote:

Submitted by Gaja on Tue, 2006-06-27 06:25.

Ms. Gaja, It seems that you have so many personal problems. You have a habit of making use of the forums to air your personal problems

Kindly don't make use of the Asian Tribune forum to wash your dirty linen.

If you persist airing your problems in the guise of making comments to the news items posted in Asian Tribune,then we may have to remove your membership in our forum.

Administrator

Ms. Paramasivam responded by saying: "I challenge you to do so and face the consequences."

She has a history of complaining regularly. The following complaint against Caritas is typical of her string of complaints. When the AsianTribune reported Duncan MacLaren,Secretary General of Caritas Internationalis of saying:"Weare here (in Colombo) in solidarity with all those who believe inpeace (in Sri Lanka), a peace with justice that is promoted through dialogue between human beings, not through the barrel of a gun," she responded with the following comments:

Mr.McLaren,

I am a victim of Caritas here in Sydney, Australia. On 06 May 2005, I was sent to Caritas by the Courts, for an assessment. The doctor in charge threatened me with enforced medication and suggested that I ought to take instructions from my husband and children. I had to pray hard to get myself out of the situation and urged the medical team to contact my husband on the phone. This was done and my husband informed them as to how highly I was valued by the Medical Faculty of the University of New South Wales, and referred them to the Dean of Medicine -Professor Bruce Dowton who gave a glowing reference about me on the basis of my work. I believe that if not for that Goodwill from Professor Dowton, I would have been more traumatized that night at Caritas. I was taken back to Mulawa prison which felt heavenly after this ordeal. There I was placed with mentally ill inmates and I decided not to eat any food except fruits - which I felt were safe - in case they sought to enforce medication. I later learnt from another inmate that they do inject medication if you are disobedient.

What authority does Caritas have to take a higher position in Peace Development than the fighters / workers at the coalface?

Her comments on other issues to ran in a similar vein.

Editor's comments : No comment.

- Asian Tribune -

The credibility of my sharing could easily have been checked with the sources that my husband referred Caritas to – starting with the Australian Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission. That Commission limited its services to the level of lower courts – requiring complainants to produce direct evidence that there was racial bias. When the Police listed me as Sri Lankan despite my protests that I was  ‘Australian’ by law – they exceeded their jurisdiction and that was a social opinion and not a lawful derivation. Yet there was ‘no evidence’ verdict by the Commission. I was sent to prison by the Vice Chancellor of the University of NSW – strongly infected by Americanism, who used his position as a social medium and not as part of the boundary within which the University upheld the order of law. Eventually Mother Truth took the dismissal baton in Her hand to send the Vice Chancellor out of the University.

The Quartz confirms:

‘The social-media company isn’t quite like the Ministry of Truth in George Orwell’s dystopian novel, Nineteen Eighty-Four, which works to change, correct, and falsify news and information to keep Big Brother in power. Facebook does not manipulate and edit the content on its site. It just provides a platform for distribution.

But that vast power has governments throughout the world questioning how social media is shaping opinions and behavior, raising questions of censorship, free speech, and technology’s ability to shape and form modern society.’

Good governments whose relationships with citizens are regulated by law, based on common belief, would not fear Facebook. If the official mainstream media, likewise had regulated themselves and operated within their institutional boundaries, they would not have lost their audience to Facebook users. Recently I participated in a relevant conversation with a fellow Sri Lankan professional who responded to my article ‘Is Terrorism a thing of the Past?’

[Where Ignorance is Bliss It is Folly to be wise

Don't caption your article with the word Terrorism

In this country and perhaps in others as well, writers have liberally used the word Terrorism. Applied it to all manner of violations of discipline, social discipline and get away saying it is Terrorism

Quite frankly if the definition were to be applied loosely Terrorism begins with the parents who at times Terrorise the children in order to discipline them or for other reasons

What about teachers in schools and then in civil society the Law enforcing authority Terrorises you as if they were the  authorities of Terror. There is no greater Terrorist than the country’s Police Force. Don't they terrorise the general public.

Take it easy 

Terrorism has many faces]

I responded as follows:

[Thank you for sharing your wisdom with me also.

I treasure the  experiences of continuing with engagements where the other side took refuge in ‘blissful ignorance’ and used ‘freedom of expression’ to display that ignorance. My belief in myself – helped me complete both side positions and strengthened the common structure. One of the first Sri Lankan high officials I so engaged with is the immediate past Sri Lankan High Commissioner to Australia – Admiral Thisara Samarasinghe. He is a good man but badly brought up by his government parents.  I informed him that if his intention was to win over the Tamil community of Lankan origin then to not refer to the Tigers as Terrorists.  In fact one could be sued for defamation over such statements because LTTE is not listed as a Terrorist organization here in Australia. I think that is how we Australians get insider information from communities.

You say ‘Quite frankly if the definition were to be applied loosely Terrorism begins with the parents who at times Terrorise the children in order to discipline them or for other reasons’

My two girls said as teenagers when I asked them to stir the gravy – that it looked like the witch’s brew.  That meant that I was the witch to them. They said they would not be strict with their children. One did not get married which I think because to her ‘freedom’ was bliss. The other one has two daughters whom she is soft with except when they are really disobedient. But when they are in my care – I discipline them. I said to one when she was about 2 years old – and I referred to her skirt as ‘dress’ that when ‘Patti’ says it’s a dress it’s a dress. She needed me to allow her to play with the rotti dough – and hence she said ‘yes patti it’s a dress’

I learnt early to reverse terrorism charges. When the little one was about a year old and I insisted she had to have shampoo – she moved to the other end of the bathtub and said ‘I love grampsie and nana’ – her Dad’s parents. I said that’s ok – you still have to have the shampoo. Then when I was towelling her dry, she said ‘Patti – you don’t speak English’.  Puzzled I asked her whether her Mum spoke English and she said yes. Then I asked ‘what about Thaatha? (my husband whose Lankan accent is stronger than mine) . Kali said ‘he speaks English’. Then I knew it was her way of taking revenge. When the parents came home to pick her up – I shared the experience with them and David asked her ‘what language does Patti speak?’  Kali said ‘mandarin’ . She had a Mandarin speaking carer on some days and she used it to say I was not ‘Australian’. If she were not my granddaughter I would say that racism was budding in her. It’s belief that absorbs such ignorance and prevents reverse terrorism. To the extent of our own belief in the other – we could never be terrorised by the other.

You say ‘What about teachers in schools and then in civil society the Law enforcing authority Terrorises you as they were the  authorities of Terror. There is no greater Terrorist than the countries Police Force. Don't they terrorise the general public.’

The armed forces in North were seen as terrorists by the few who were neither here nor there. But the rest is political hype which can only be negated by opposite political hype. In this instance a leader in media resorted to it and I became her/his opposition. Otherwise it is bad for Sri Lanka where it was said and would have been open to be abused by those looking for shortcuts. If it is good for Sri Lanka – it is healthy.

Warm Regards

Gaja]

The above sharing was strongly based on common belief at that level. It would not go out of the boundaries of our relationship through email. When there is lack of belief – one has to look within and not to the other to blame or for cure.

The Facebook ban was the other side of the Truth known to the Government about itself – that it banned global media from the battlefields in 2009. So long as Tamils and other minorities remain within their respective community boundaries and do not react – it’s a war between  the Buddhists in Government and the Buddhists in society.

The 1972 Constitution empowered Buddhist leaders – due to lack of belief in Buddhist monks – one of whom murdered the Prime Minister who expressed his political desire in the form of ‘Sinhala only’ Act. Like Soorapathman – who changes form as per his desires that ‘Sinhala Only’ desire is now sitting as ‘Buddhism foremost’ Article in the Constitution. For the Constitution to be politically balanced – the desire of leader must become the fear of the citizen. When this is regulated by law – the relationship is confirmed.

But when the citizen takes over the Government – the citizen’s pleasure becomes the Government’s pain. In democracy reverse hierarchy happens when there is confusion between skin (majority vote) and substance (belief based Administration). The mind obese from majority power is unhealthy. A party  that looks outside the boundaries of relationship based on Belief, becomes distracted by hearsay. Non-Buddhists are ‘outside’ the boundaries of Buddhist relationships. If they stay within the Sovereign borders of their own communities – one can observe the manifestations of Buddhism foremost karma. Minorities are entitled to  protect themselves but not attack. That is the non-violent, non-cooperation pathway shown by Mahatma Gandhi.

Gajalakshmi Paramasivam

22 April 2018                                         

The Ex’s avoiding the Why’s

[Sri Lanka Unites is also training these youth on how to use Social Media more effectively in order to counter hate speech, expose harmful rumors and to speak up against violent rhetoric. SLU believes that this, in tandem with grassroots engagement is key to transform the current context. Many youth have been brainwashed and bought into the hateful narratives of racism via social media. These systematic efforts to poison the hearts and minds of our children for political and nationalist gains needs to be thwarted at the root. Sri Lanka Unites looks to do this through their YouTube channel SLUTV , their facebook and instagram platforms. To do this they need the assistance of moderate Sri Lankans who are clearly the majority, to aid their efforts online and on the ground. For more information you can visit their website: www.srilankaunites.org and gain access to their social media platform from there.]- Island article ‘Sri Lanka Unites Prepares Leaders for Tomorrow –Jayantha Dhanapala’

I did as suggested above and visited www.srilankaunites.org.  I discovered that their certifiers  were:

- "Ambassador Jayantha Dhanapala" - Fmr. UN Under- Secretary General for Disarmament

- "Susil Premajayantha" - Fmr. Education Minister

"Theja Tanchangya"  - Volunteer

Ritu Sharma", (Intern at Sri Lanka Unites-Universitat Erfut)

"Eran Wickremaratne" - Fmr. Sri Lanka Unites Board of Trustees Member

"David Cameron" - Fmr. British Prime Minister

I noted also the following message flashing:

“BE THE CHANGE YOU WANT TO SEE - MAHATHMA GHANDI”

4 out of the 6 leaders above are ‘formers’ / Ex’s. As a believer in Ghandi,  I could not identify with  the picture projected by the Ex’s with the picture projected in my mind, when I read Gandhi’s message.  Recently when a close relative said something – I asked him whether he was the brother of ‘X’ or the husband of ‘Y’ speaking at that moment at that place? My question to the above leaders with colourful certificates is ‘are you ‘X’ past or ‘Y’ present?’

Let us take for example the expressions of "Ambassador Jayantha Dhanapala" - Fmr. UN Under- Secretary General for Disarmament

Is he talking as the representative of the past Administration through whom he was promoted to the above position or is he talking as the Ambassador of the victims of that Administration that he was a part of?  The roles have to be reversed for one to be able to ‘see’ and know how the other side felt and thinks now because of those feelings. Otherwise it is mere preaching to the choir  (Government) and the converted (victims who have the wisdom of experience).

At Emotional level - Desire enjoyed by one is Fear for the other at that time.  

At intellectual level – the brain recognises that Fear as being deserved by the other only when the Common yardstick is used on a lateral plane – i.e. – with zero advantage or disadvantage in the mind of the user of the yardstick. The brain must not have eustress due to advantage nor distress due to disadvantage.

At Feelings level – the other side’s pain and pleasure are ours as if we are One.

Gandhi lived as part of the victims and Felt one with them.

Politics is emotional and hence needs Equal Opposition with the right to express the ‘other side’. If one side politician has eustress the other side must present distress at the same time within that structure. One needs Equal Opportunity and therefore status to do this.

Administration is reliable only when the mind is able to use the Common ruler without favour or bias. Instead of two sides with opposite emotions, the one party’s brain divides into two equal halves in the present.

Governance happens when the Believer of the whole is at the top.

In Hindu philosophy – the above picture  is presented as  Brammah, Vishnu and Shiva respectively.

In terms of his past, at UN level,  Dr Dhanapala ought to have played the role of Shiva – the destroyer of Body Consciousness. His role as global authority on Disarmament, if successful would have prevented excessive armament by the Sri Lankan government on civilians. Since it did not – he needs to take rebirth as an ordinary citizen on the other side of the politicians who were seen and known to represent him. These victims are the Tamils & Muslims.

The fact that Tamils had earned that Equal other side of Government was upheld twice – once in 1977 and more recently in 2015. How did this happen? It happened because the mind of ordinary Sinhalese without portfolio merging with the mind of ordinary Tamil without portfolio. One who renounces earned portfolios would naturally identify with this Common Sri Lankan.

As per my Common Sri Lankan mind  – the 1972 Constitution in which ‘Buddhism foremost’ article was included – became the enemy of Articles 10 and 14(1)(e) within the same Constitution – causing internal imbalance:

10. Every person is entitled to freedom of thought, conscience and religion, including the freedom to have or to adopt a religion or belief of his choice.

14. (1) Every citizen is entitled to –

(e ) the freedom, either by himself or in association with others, and either in public or in private, to manifest his religion or belief in worship, observance, practice and teaching;

The Constitution divided the whole into two distinct entities – one with the responsibility to apply ‘ Buddhism foremost’ and the other to be ‘free’ to act as per their belief in terms of religion. The outcome was Vaddukoddai Resolution 1976  which was the other side of Buddhism foremost – i.e. – Hinduism foremost for non-Buddhists. Most of the militants were Hindus by birth. True Buddhists demoted their leaders in 1977 to confirm that equality they felt with their true other half – the coalition of religious  minorities. It happens when more and more Believe in  their home religion/area. They are the ones that do not leave home.

Recently, during a discussion between the pathway through which my generation had our  education compared to current generation have their education in Jaffna – I said - during my generation we were less distracted by the easier ways than the current generation and even my children’s generation in Jaffna. We knew we had to study to get jobs in Colombo. When my children were in last year of high school – we cut down on socializing so the whole family had nothing else to think about. That was my true inheritance from my parents – and the Jaffna Community. That heritage blooms within me as current knowledge whenever I need to guide a young one at that level.

Militants who hijacked the Independence Agenda, demoted the value of this heritage. There is no evidence that Dr Dhanapala engaged with the ‘other side’ nor advised the Sri Lankan government about the ‘other’ side of the benefits -  returning to them if two different measures were used. Wikipedia presents Dr Dhanapala’s credentials in this regard as follows:

[Dhanapala was hand picked by UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan to take on the challenging job of Under Secretary General to re-establish the Department of Disarmament after the UN reforms of 1997 (1998–2003). During his tenure he piloted the UN role in arresting the proliferation of small arms and light weapons, anti-personnel landmines, conventional weapons, and weapons of mass destruction while reinforcing existing norms and norm-building in other areas such as missiles. He also broke new ground both in-house in taking managerial initiatives in gender mainstreaming and in work-life issues, as well as in the disarmament field by innovating the exchange of weapons for a development programme in Albania and other areas, and also in the cross-sectoral linking of disarmament with development, the environment and peace education programmes.

Dhanapala was appointed Secretary-General of the Secretariat for Coordinating the Peace Process (SCOPP) in Sri Lanka from 2004 - 2005. He was also Senior Special Advisor to both Presidents Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga and Mahinda Rajapakse during the period 2005-2007. Senior Special Advisor on Foreign Relations to President Maithripala Sirisena 12 January 2015

Candidate for the post of UN Secretary-General

Sri Lanka's civil war hobbled Dhanapala's candidacy for United Nations Secretary-General. The opposition parties in Sri Lanka joined hands with the government on the day that his candidacy was announced. ]

There is no record that Dr Dhanapala engaged with Tamil Political leaders as leading part of the ‘other half’ to identify with their feelings and form the knowledge needed by Sri Lanka that was divided on the basis of ethnicity at political level. The opportunity was available in 2002 during Ceasefire between the Government and the LTTE. I got the invitation through a UNDP project to discover the feelings of the LTTE cadre largely at middle management level.  That helped me identify with their need for ‘jobs’ – especially for the physically driven. My contributions to prevention of war within Sri Lanka, continue to include that need – intuitively felt through Common life. THAT to me is the core message that Gandhi delivered – to become the change that I want to see. If one keeps seeing the past – when one was part of the Administrators and Politicians who went wrong – one becomes blind to the ‘other’ side that became victims of the leaders.

I met Dr Dhanapala as the leader of the Friday Forum. I did note the partnership of Tamils like Dr Devanesan Nesiah but I have no knowledge of partnership with Tamil Political Adviser by position.

By 2015, Sinhalese also became common victims and scientific analysis would confirm that the Presidential elections and the Parliamentary elections were strongly influenced by Tamil votes due to Tamil National Alliance (TNA) – supporting the side against the Rajapaksa regime. Everyone who becomes a victim of Separation – be it the Rajapaksa Regime or the LTTE – caused the current structure to surface – with TNA  as the Administrative other side as per the rules of Democracy.

Those who try to fool apparent victims would influence the dismantling of the current structure. Those who renounce their high position comforts to identify with the victims will become part of the root solution. THAT heritage will sustain the next generation.

One who believes no proof and one who seeks proof except to teach others is not a believer.

As per the article – Dr Dhanapala states:

[With an annual flagship National Conference they have now assembled a national movement powered by a National Office and five Reconciliation Centres in Mullaitivu, Matara, Monaragala, Kalmunai and Nuwara Eliya (and more planned) These centres provide leadership and reconciliation training and experiential opportunities]

Reconciliation is needed only where the two sides produce Independent outcomes. This ought to have happened between Jaffna-Vaddukoddai and Colombo-Hambantota coalitions. The above places are driven by belief in the local and hearsay about the outside. Belief does not need reconciliation and hearsay does not deserve any reconciliation investment.

Gajalakshmi Paramasivam

21 April 2018                                         

Is Terrorism a thing of the Past?

“Northern terrorism is, thankfully, a thing of the past, but, sadly, southern terrorism is on the rise”  - Island Editorial - Barbarians on beaches

In the absence of scientific definition, the terminology ‘Terrorism’ is taken to describe the  mind of Politicians to describe their mental picture about the group concerned. Those who do so for pleasure/benefits  would experience the fear of pain. So says the  law of karma which the Buddhists of Sri Lanka have the duty to follow before applying any external secular measures. Since the militants upstairs (in North) are Non-Buddhists, the Communities they are a part of  are entitled to apply their own religious laws to describe the wrong doers for their own purposes.  As per that description, to majority Tamils of that era - they are the Tamil parallel of the Sri Lankan Army.

If Sri Lankan Government claims that the terminology is valid due to UN, America and others listing the Tamil Tigers as Terrorists, then they have the DUTY to follow the instructions of the UN in terms of War-Crimes inquiry by an International panel of judges. Likewise, those who use the term ‘terrorists’ on LTTE, have the DUTY to themselves to call the armed forces who are known to have gone outside the rules of war – ‘war-criminals’. The easier way is to use the impartial name the LTTE or not include them in the relativity formula.

As per the Island Editorial :

[It was thought that the law and order situation would improve considerably after the 2015 regime change, but there hasn’t been any discernible improvement, if the spate of grave crimes, reported in the media, is any indication. The netherworld of crime and drugs remains as impregnable as it was before.]

This then means that according to the Truth in the deep mind/heart of the Editor, Southerners were also Terrorists. When the Army moved back to South, it brought with it – the same knowledge and the same disorder which would operate naturally in its birthplace. This then infects the families and communities that they are ‘part of’.

What is the solution then? Do what was done to Tamils!  Send the rehabilitated LTTE soldiers now in the army, to South. The Government would if it truly believed it cured the LTTE as well as Tamils in Northern Sri Lanka.

The Editor’s choice to present his suggestion is:

‘In Mirissa, two foreign women, on holiday, were sexually assaulted, and others who attempted to save them brutally attacked, on April 08. According to some eyewitnesses who have spoken to the media, on condition of anonymity, a powerful ruling party politician was sighted where the attackers had been boozing, prior to the attack.’

Majority Tamils in North know that this kind of conduct was summarily dealt with by the LTTE. This was reported to be the reason for the rift between LTTE leader Prabhakaran and PLOTE leader Uma Maheswaran who was rumoured to have had an affair with one of his staff.

That was the good side of the LTTE which would stay to strengthen the conduct of its believers at individual and community level. If the Terrorism label is foremost in the minds of Southerners – the passage is blocked for this natural sharing. Solution? – eliminate the excess authority through intellectual discrimination where one part of the brain sees the other part – in Administration using Common measure – or take the label attributed by Tamil Political leaders with respect. The latter confirms attribution of Equal status to those with whom we do not share common belief. Tamils do with the LTTE and all militant groups. Mere law without belief returns the karma on the user as per the purpose. Hence the escalation in South who produced those who profited from the war.

If one is able to use labels such as ‘terrorism’ only after it has happened – then that confirms that such a person lacked the intellectual discrimination and cognisant power through which one side of the brain recognises the other side on a flat plane of Equality in the present. This is the reason why the claim of Tamil politicians were not recognized by those who enjoyed majority vote pleasures – which are actually stagnant waters.

The water that falls from Lord Shiva on Mount Himalaya runs as river Ganga. The fall happens due to gravitational force. The water runs even on flat plane due to this stored energy. Without that hierarchical Energy – the water becomes stagnant on flat plane. Likewise, democracy and majority vote without belief in higher structures – stagnate and pollute.  

When the Island Editor had used Buddhism foremost Article with belief in Lord Buddha – the above philosophy of karma would have flowered in her/his mind. If s/he is non-Buddhist – then s/he has no authority to use the terminology of majority – even if such expression was derived through Buddhist pathway.   

Gajalakshmi Paramasivam

20 April 2018                                         

Tamil Caste system would have prevented Ethnic war in Sri Lanka

[Prof. Bryan Pfaffenberger of the Syracuse University, USA, produced magisterial studies of the Jaffna caste system, in which he detailed the misery of low-castes. In Political Construction of Defensive Nationalism: The 1968 Temple Entry Crisis in Sri Lanka he wrote: “In Jaffna in the 1940s and 1950s, for instance, minority Tamils were forbidden to enter or live near temples: to draw water from the wells of high-caste families; to enter laundries, barber shops, or taxis; to keep women in seclusion and protect them by enacting domestic rituals; to wear shoes; to sit in bus seats; to attend school; to cover the upper part of the body; to wear gold earrings; if male, to cut one’s hair; to use umbrellas; to own a bicycle or car; to cremate the dead; or to convert to Christianity or Buddhism.” Compare this to the hue and cry they raised to high heaven about the Sinhala Only Act of 1956 which would have affected, if at all, only the Vellala high-caste in Government service. The champions of the Tamil masses, the Marxists, the Churchmen, the NGO-allied academics, and fashionable pro-Tamil (Vellala) pundits turned a blind eye to the insufferable indignities imposed by the Vellalas. This gave the Vellalas the opportunity to turn their guns on the Sinhala-Buddhists who had given to all layers of Tamils what the Tamil leadership of Jaffna refused to give their own people. ] Ceylon Today Book Review -  Mirage The great Tamil novel of our time

As a Jaffna Tamil who grew up in Jaffna in the 1950s and 1960s – I did not identify with  trauma experienced by anyone due to them being of junior caste. Our family owned/s a temple at Sangarathai-Thunaivi in the district of Vaddukoddai. My father did have the rule that the Toddy Tappers of that area were not to draw water from the well. As I grew older and thought more about Equality I did question my father as to why he drew the line on the basis of caste. My father whose formal education  stopped at grade 8 said ‘ that is the way I have grown up’. It was recently when I had a family need to study Thesawalamai law that I realised that my father who was a descendant of  Udayar cultural group had to be conscious of separation. The Udayars are recorded to have had the responsibility of advising the rulers on issues of Justice. Such separation is not different to Judges having separate chambers to cleaners in a Court of Law.  In any case, later by living as part of the Toddy Tapper community I realised that most of the youth who used the temple well did not consider it to be sacred. Some even used it as ‘toilet’ – in fun and/or in revenge.

After my Australian experience in Racial inequality, which seriously damaged my career opportunities as a paid professional – I responded to calls from Sri Lanka’s needy. As part of this I lived in Thunaivi as part of the Toddy Tapper community. It was then that I realized that those who separated themselves from the senior caste folks ended up disenfranchising themselves. They just do not relate to higher values but are highly emotional and settle their scores emotionally. I learnt to not interfere with their fights which are regular events. Just last week – there was a request to play our camera recording to find out who had set fire to the fence of the house to the left of our temple. I declined because none of them from that side came to my rescue when my cottage was stoned because I went to the police after our temple barbed wire was cut and stolen by some folks of that area. There was some circumstantial evidence available on camera which I did produce to the police. Our coordinator provided security services for the rest of my stay – but the stoning continued. I stayed at Jetwing Jaffna on my following visit and went to the temple only for the poojah / mass.

Recently, when our coordinator approached us for contribution to their football activities – my rule was that they needed to agree not to come to Australia illegally. Their elected representative in Local Government is reported to have stated  that some folks got into trouble after agreeing to a similar condition which they breached.  So far no one has come forward to agree to our condition.  As an indigenous community, they have their own rules. Unlawful occupation of others’ land is a hobby in that area. The laws and rules of wider community are irrelevant to these folks.

Had these folks been connected to the Vellala/Farmer  caste through work – their belief in law and order at national level would have been strengthened. I know that when I accepted within limits, unjust subjective discrimination by my seniors – due to respect for their position – my thought structure was naturally elevated. Where there is genuine respect – there is common belief with the person and/or with the structure that the positions are part of and v.v.

Where a junior caste chose to separate – including due to abuse by senior caste, it is the right kind of separation if such separation is due to weakened belief in the senior caste. If such separation is for some in the junior caste to takeover power – then it is the wrong kind of separation. In Thunaivi – it was the wrong kind – resulting in ‘addictions’ to possessions and welfare pleasures. Those who continue to remember their old connections with senior castes – do demonstrate order but they do not have control over their children – especially after 1983 when a large number joined armed militants. Those who asked for separation due to lack of belief in the Government sought the right kind of separation. But given that majority Tamils of Sri Lanka did / do believe in ‘common’ system – the separatists became minority power within the Tamil community. It is the educated and/or Believing Tamil who strengthens the national heritage that we carry as a community at a higher level than those who are pampered by easy benefits. The ‘right’ to foremost religious status confirms this pampering allowance to Buddhists. When it is in the constitution – the benefit is equal in number of units to the population that has the entitlement – whether or not it is activated. 

The Sinhala Only Act 1956 did offend Tamil leaders who had enjoyed equal status as Sinhalese leaders, under Colonial rule. It would have offended every true Sri Lankan. If Mr Bandaranaike had genuinely felt the pain of discrimination by British – he would not have hurt Tamils, Muslims and Burghers by such a rule. I recently highlighted the following from a UK Telegraph report about compensation being paid to a young Tamil mother who did not know English:

[On Friday in London, Judge McKenna ruled that Barking, Havering and Redbridge NHS Foundation Trust was liable.

He ruled midwives failed to hire an interpreter to tell her to feed her baby and the eight-year-old is now in line for multi-million-pound NHS compensation because midwives were negligent in failing to tackle the language barrier.]

In terms of global governance and administration, the British are certainly far more advanced than Sri Lankans. If the above mentioned Tamil mother had suffered in Sinhala only Sri Lanka, due to not knowing the official language Sinhalese and there was no compensation from the Government – the government naturally loses power due to Negligence of Duty as carer of the Public. The less educated can be cared for through belief and not through rules that have the effect of enforcement. Sinhalese language and Buddhism have become the political chips of Sinhalese leaders who lack Administrative skills needed to govern at the higher common level. What they do not seem to appreciate is that karma happens as per our intent / nature and not as per unpractised human law.

‘Buddhism foremost’ article in the Constitution naturally separates Buddhists from minorities by religion, whose part of the constitution  states that they have freedom to practice their religion on equal footing – something that most Sri Lankans would not understand, until they believe in the common secular system or live in Truth discovered by themselves. When it comes to ‘belief’ , based on religion – there is fundamental difference in rule for Buddhists on the one hand and Non-Buddhists on the other. This naturally separates the two groups. To the extent non-Buddhists followed other laws  more than Buddhists – they become seniors in Administration at group level. Hence TULF and TNA won the position of Opposition leadership after Vaddukoddai Resolution 1976 and by not reacting to 2009 war but escalating the pain to global level and thus invoking global powers of democracy through the Diaspora who then had access to global institutions and also invested in global laws.

Belief works independent of even the believer. One who believes needs no logic. One who uses logic to mark someone right or wrong is not a believer and/or is communicating with non-believers.  In this instance Mr H.L.D. Mahindapala, the reviewer,  is not a believer in Tamils.

Interestingly though Mr H.L.D. Mahindapala reveals the Truth about the author, as follows:

[Daniel however, remained faithful to his Marxist tenets. He identified the Vellalas, the ruling caste/class, as the enemy of the Tamils.]

One who is a Marxist is a foreigner to Tamils who respectfully fulfilled their duties to society as per their caste hierarchy and followed the law of Thesawalamai which no longer uses caste based hierarchy because majority Tamils have moved away from traditionally inherited jobs from father to son. Those who have inherited job skills from their parents and ancestors – do not have to do as much merit based work – to perform as well as the group that starts without such heritage.

The reviewer highlights the 1983 riots as follows:

[In his preface to the Tamil classic Mirage, the author, K Daniel wrote a revealing note in the opening line. He said: “On the day which I finished writing this novel was the 9th May, 1983”.  Mark you, within two months the whole of Sri Lanka was to explode with the worst  communal riots between the Jaffna Tamils and the Sinhala-Buddhists – a momentous event which the Tamil political  class had never ceased to exploit to their advantage as an indicator of Sinhala-Buddhist oppression and discrimination against the Tamils. But there isn’t a single word/reference in the novel to Sinhala oppression or discrimination against the Tamils in the novel.]

I do not exploit and I obeyed the message that came to me intuitively when I prayed at the Sri Sathya Sai Center in 2009 – not knowing who caused the war pain. The vision that came to my mind was the 13 soldiers whose bodies were returned to Colombo in 1983.  Tamil politicians who fought for Equal footing – would never have done that. Majority Tamil militants using arms were from junior castes and they needed weapons to think equal or superior to politicians. One LSSP/Marxist  supporter said to me recently – that ‘something needed to be given to the Tamils’. He was of Karawa (junior) caste in the Sinhalese community. Even though a professional – his thinking was limited to Equal benefits and not Equal Opportunity to earn benefits. Earned Benefits need to be foregone for Opportunities to develop. When it is done top-down, the opportunity to develop belief is limited. The LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran also invested in Marxism.

Possession needs to pass the test of time to satisfy the requirement of natural ownership. In Sri Lanka this is generally by law, 10 years of uninterrupted undisturbed possession. Areas where Non-Buddhists have managed themselves as per their religious laws are owned by Natural rights of belief. Abuse of the caste system did not lead to major war – which was noted by global leaders. Abuse of the power of human law to damage natural laws of belief – did.

Gajalakshmi Paramasivam

20 April 2018                                         

Mothers of Refugees & Social Media

[For several years, Ms Wilson, 69, has been sending items to Manus and Nauru -  a tiny island country northeast of Australia - from her home in the small town of Kyogle, New South Wales.

“Postage is expensive, it’s $70 for about four kilograms. It often goes astray, or gets stolen or just takes a long time,” she told SBS News. “But it’s probably one of the most practical things I can do.”

Mums 4 Refugees'

Ms Wilson, a local councillor, is part of a loose network of dozens of women who support refugees and asylum seekers on Manus Island and Nauru who have been trapped in immigration limbo for more than four years.

There are about 309 people left on Nauru and several hundred on Manus Island. Many of those remaining are single men. 

The women are connected through Facebook; they’re members of groups such as ‘Mums 4 Refugees’, ’Grandmothers against detention of refugee children’ and ‘We Care Nauru – Gifts Network’. ] SBS news – Editor’s Choice.

To me it was no coincidence that I read the above this morning. I do not read all the mail that comes my way. My intuition takes me to important mail.  There was the caring response from Tamil Diaspora leader Mr I T Sampanthan on my article ‘Jaffna Land Rights’.  Yesterday I noticed that my emails to the University of NSW (UNSW) were getting returned. I could not ‘capture them as the ‘System’s Returned mail messages vanished as soon as they appeared in my inbox.  I could not work out the technical reason. I eventually concluded that the UNSW IT system was blocking my mails. I decided to ‘stop’ sending mails to UNSW because I felt ‘tired’.  But during this morning’s meditation, I felt that I needed to ‘work’ my investment in the University of NSW – so it would be protected – even if one person currently working there – read or is an active part of that system did not object to the mail but considered it valuable in Spirit – even if one did not understand the substance. So I used my gmail account to resend the messages. I felt better because I felt that the UNSW was better protected by my positive Energy if I sent it without feeling rejected. That is the way of ownership.

Those Energies cannot be worked by those without faith. UNSW needs the protection from racism karma.

With all this as my understanding of the system of Truth,  I fully identified with the above Mothers who spent money and sent parcels – without the assurance that the parcels  would reach the refugees. They are Mothers of Australia who protect Australians from negative karma due to taking credit as global participants but failing in their duty as global participants.  In the early days of my ‘service’ to educate Australians in high positions – I spent quite a sum in postage – and they came out of my superannuation savings because I was unemployed due to my UNSW experience.  I was once feeling really dejected when I crossed the road to the Coogee post-office.  A mother pushing her crying baby (about a year old)  in a pram crossed the road from the other side. When the child got close to me – he stopped crying, gave me a smile and put his hand out to touch me. I also touched him. The following from the song ‘Little Drummer Boy’ came to my mind:

[Then he smiled at me ; Pa rum pum pum pum; Me and my drum]

In my case my mails are my drum. In that experience I felt that God received my mail and the little boy was God’s messenger.  So long as I feel Australian, God will ensure that Australia is protected by my global feeling which is my interpretation of being in the Kingdom of God.

Like the packages by the Mums 4 Refugees – my emails to the UNSW will elevate to global level the value of  the investment of all investors – including the two Chancellors of my time – beyond their duty,  in UNSW and its core purpose-  for future generations and also protect those who do not reject such blessings. If the rejecters’ Negligence of Duty force is greater than the positive forces from the owners – then one has to sadly watch and know that they have condemned themselves to Hell by taking over power through temporary cleverness for selfish reasons. That is also the philosophy of Karma – the hell being the opposite of the pleasures they enjoyed compounded over time.

Social Media is driven by natural forces. The above report confirms the good powers of social media that brought me happiness today from two sources. That is global freedom and return for my investment in  Common Australia.

Gajalakshmi Paramasivam

http://austms.blogspot.com.au/

19 April 2018                                         

Social Media – Addiction or Passion?

[When the Sri Lankan Government took action to impose the curfew, banning the social media and declaring the State of Emergency to control the Sinhala-Muslim unrest in the Kandy District in March, there were undue pressures from certain diplomats on the Government, President Maithripala Sirisena said on Tuesday in London.

“Certain diplomats spoke against the Government moves to take necessary action-including banning access to social media sites. Some of the diplomats acted beyond their mandate against the move,” the President told a group of Sri Lanka community in London Tuesday night.

“But despite those oppositions, the Government had taken necessary action, and because of that we able to prevent a major tragedy,” he said.

The President also said that at that time, an organization connected to the UN had stated that Sri Lanka had managed to impose a complete ban on the social media sites-something even the US couldn’t do.] – Daily Mirror article -  Social media ban: Undue pressure from diplomats: President

A Sri Lankan comparing her/himself with an American and taking credit is acting in breach of the laws of Equality which prohibit direct relationships between sovereign bodies. This habitual breach of crossing cultural borders is the root reason for Sri Lanka’s ethnic problems.

It was the same social media that influenced Starbucks Café to take internal action to address the problem reported as follows by SBS news:

[Starbucks announced Tuesday that it would close all company-owned stores and corporate offices in the United States on May 29 to conduct "racial-bias education," following outrage over the arrest of two black men in one of its cafes.

It was the latest move by the CEO of Starbucks to recover from damage to the mammoth chain's reputation by the incident, captured on video and posted last Thursday on Twitter, which has been viewed millions of times and drawn widespread condemnation.

The curriculum will be designed "to address implicit bias, promote conscious inclusion, prevent discrimination and ensure everyone inside a Starbucks store feels safe and welcome," the company said in a statement.

Starbucks boss apologises after arrests of black men spark accusations of racial profiling

Starbucks said more than 8,000 stores would be closed and training provided to nearly 175,000 employees and incorporated into company training going forward.

"While this is not limited to Starbucks, we're committed to being a part of the solution," said Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson, who earlier apologized for the incident.

"Closing our stores for racial bias training is just one step in a journey that requires dedication from every level of our company and partnerships in our local communities."

The video posted by a Starbucks client shows uniformed police questioning and then handcuffing the two men, who offer no resistance, as a white client repeatedly asks an officer, "What'd they do? What'd they do?"

Philadelphia police said they received a 911 call from a Starbucks worker who said the men were trespassing, after sitting down and refusing to buy anything. Police said officers had "politely" asked the two to leave before finally arresting them.]

The Sri Lankan Government’s action was top-down and may suit Sri Lanka, where there are no special laws to confirm the existence of racial discrimination. In America, this law helps people have ‘reasoning’ on the basis of race as well, when someone of a different cultural group feels victimized. The parallel of such a law for majority Sri Lankans is Buddhism foremost article in the Constitution – so majority Sri Lankans would ‘understand’ each other through Buddhist values. But this requires for Buddhists to stay within their cultural boundaries and not infiltrate into another culture under the pretext of secularism. When attacking Tamil militants, a Buddhist Sri Lankan soldier who was/is outside the boundaries of rule of law, stands unprotected by Common Belief.  Likewise a Muslim. Given that the average Sri Lankan operates at cost-benefit level rather than policy level – they need rules through which they can measure each other and correct each other including through social media where the citizen is ‘free’ of pressure from unpractised rules that the formal media are bound by and more importantly are free of the bias that the formal media demonstrate when they think they are not accountable but that others are accountable to them.

In his Easter message, the Pope is reported to have shared the following message:

[The Pope recalled that the apostles  had been forbidden to preach, to announce Jesus and yet, after their release from prison by an angel, they return to teach in the temple. As narrated in the First Reading today taken from Acts (Acts 5: 27-33), they are brought before the Sanhedrin where the high priest reminds them they were forbidden from teaching in the name of Jesus. "We must obey God instead of men" : is Peter's answer. The word "obedience" returns, then, also in today's Gospel (Jn 3: 31-36). And the Pope underlined it because "a life of obedience" is what characterizes the apostles who received the Holy Spirit. Obedience to follow the path of Jesus who "obeyed to the end" as in the Garden of Olives. Obedience consists in doing the will of God. Obedience is the path that the Son "has opened to us", says Francis, and the Christian therefore "obeys God".] Asianews.it article - Pope: today there are Christians 'in prison, slaughtered and hanged because they proclaim Jesus'

The media ban by the Government of Sri Lanka is an example of requiring obedience to man. Obedience to God who has no particular physical form Common to all – is Obedience to Law. Like in the case of religions – a law would be given form by each cultural group as per their respective beliefs. Hence in the same country, one law would legitimately be interpreted in different forms by diverse cultural groups who carry distinct cultural identity. The interpretation of the victim is the appropriate form where it is different to that of an authority who shows no lawful reason for punishing the victim – as was the case in the Starbucks Café arrests.

If the arresting officers were Christians and America had ‘Christianity foremost’ article in its constitution they would not have been obedient to the receptionist who called them to the scene. They would have obeyed God / the law

The social ban happened due to there being pathway open to minorities to be heard first when especially when they are victims. While emotions could be kindled through social media those who value ‘freedom’ of speech that comes from obedience to God/Law, would cure each other through social sharing. Otherwise we would need more and more ‘irreconcilable items’ that would continuously keep separating us due to lack of trust in each other. This is what the President has confirmed by taking credit for media ban.

In the kingdom of God – we are all sovereign entities and therefore would protect our sovereignty as individuals. One who obeys God/the law that leads to Truth – is independent of man – any man or group with particular form.