1. OXFORD UNION

2. WHITE HOUSE

3. BUCKINGHAM PALACE

4. WASHINGTON DC

100% guarantee you will NEVER see Mahinda at any of the above places.

Mahinda’s PREFERRED travel destinations:

1. Russia

2. China

3. Libya

4. Iran

5. Burma

DC Court to serve summons to Rajapakse
[TamilNet, Wednesday, 09 February 2011, 01:38 GMT]
Attorney for the three Tamil plaintiffs who are suing Sri Lanka’s President Rajapakse in the District of Columbia Federal court for monetary damages under US’s Torture Victims Protection Act (TVPA) said in a press release issued Tuesday that he will be requesting the Clerk of the United States District Court to send summons by mail to Rajapakse’s residence “Temple Trees” in Colombo 3. Civil procedure rules normally require a properly served defendant 21days to file an answer.

After two days of dissent inside his Socialist party that threatened to bring down his government, Prime Minister George Papandreou named his main internal rival as finance minister. The move is expected to solidify the support from lawmakers Papandreou needs to pass a 28 billion euro ($39.5 billion) package of steep tax hikes and budget cuts so despised inside Greece that riots exploded outside parliament this week.

European donors and the International Monetary Fund require Greece to pass the austerity measures before releasing the next 12 billion euro ($17 billion) loan from a 110 billion euro package agreed on last year to keep Greece afloat until it reins in spending and increases government revenue.

We Shot The Lasantha, And We Also Burnt The MTV (sung to the tune of ‘I Shot the Sheriff’)
By Rogerproxy and the Righteous Brothers

We shot the Lasantha, and we also burnt the MTV.
We shot the Lasantha, and we also burnt the MTV.
All around in ‘The Land of the Blind,’
They are blaming our ‘Gang of Four’.
They say they want to bring us in guilty,
For the killing of ‘Lasantha’,
And burning of the ‘MTV’.

But we say:

We shot the Lasantha, and we also burnt the MTV,
but we swear it was not in self-defense, (it was just to teach the media a lesson.)
We shot the Lasantha, and we also burnt the MTV,
and we say it is a minor offense…(an International Conspiracy)
Lasantha always hated us;
For stealing the ‘Tsunami Aid’ and ‘Crooked Arms Deals’.
He exposed are dirty deals in the ‘Sunday Leader,’
So we said ‘Kill him before he exposes more!’
So we said ‘Kill him before he exposes more!’

We say:

We shot the Lasantha, and we also burnt the MTV,
but we swear it was not in self-defense, (it was just to teach the media a lesson.)
We shot the Lasantha, and we also burnt the MTV,
and we say it is a minor offense…(an International Conspiracy)
Lasantha was on his way to the office,
To expose all our dirty deals.
So we shot, we shot him down.

We say:

We shot the Lasantha, and we also burnt the MTV.
We shot the Lasantha, and we also burnt the MTV.

The irony of all this is that the Govt tells us that it is fighting the LTTE to free the people of the North and East from the oppression of a fascist dictator – to return to those people the freedoms of speech, dissention, and democratic franchise. If that is what the Govt is truly committed to achieving, then why are they not fighting the same fight in the South? Under the Govt’s logic, journalists and others who enshrine freedom-of-speech should be protected, and those who seek to silence them should be brought to justice.

If the Govt is truly fighting for a Sri Lanka where anyone is free to express their opinions and views, journalists should be receiving Police and/or military protection in order to safeguard said freedoms. The fact that the Govt turns a blind eye to the intimidation, assault and murder of journalists and other political opponents smacks of hypocrisy.

I ask myself, what exactly are we fighting for?

and the post is hilarious, please learn at least one of the two major languages of the country

Does that include those who cry ‘true tears’ for what Lasantha’s death symbolises? The rape and murder of democracy in Sri Lanka; with the democratically elected government cheering (and probably sponsoring) the rapists and murderers.

You posted it because it happened. The official media sanitizes the news already; don’t be tempted to do the same. Just tell it how it happened, warts and all.

I still ‘support’ the government and Mahinda as a citizen. In a democracy your party can lose but you’re still loyal to the nation, and its institutions. And I think that sort of basic citizenship and law-abidingness is possible while still being in the political opposition. I don’t want revolution, and certainly not violence. I just want the basic levers of democracy (free speech for one) to be available.

I agree with you that Mahinda & Co. must be held responsible for the poisonous environment that resulted in Lasantha’s murder. I would go so far as to say that most people probably do. But do they want this government to fall? Not on your life. It is not that they don’t care. It is just that they feel that getting rid of the LTTE is job No.1, and they have no faith that the opposition, as it is currently constituted, can do it better than the incumbents. They may be wrong, but no one is giving them any good reasons why.

There is this perception that in the minds of the effigy-burning elite, the GoSL is more tyrannical than the LTTE, Mahinda is more savage than Prabhakaran, the death of Lasantha is of far more import than the fall of Killinochchi, the freedom to condemn the state deserves more protection than the unity of Sri Lanka, and the nation’s sovereignty should be traded away for money to bust at R&B. Of course I know these are all crude simplifications/prejudices/false choices. But falsehoods that have a grain of truth to them are the hardest ones to correct.

That chant is quite clever though.

//But then this assassination itself is a politically motivated act\\ – May be that’s one theory. Other alternative is, some “top dog” (political, administrative, business, or underworld) decided to get rid of Lasantha, to avoid being black mailed by Lasantha. Not necasarily politically motivated.

If we stay inside the domain of “politically motivated murder”, they how can someone say only the governments can do politically motivated murders? You say “we (you) needed a political platform to fight against this anti-democratic tendency”. Now, to create that platform; can’t someone plan a murder like this? Isn’t it politically motivated.

What you are trying to prove here is; “someone” (as you propose us to do) can make a “funeral” of some prominent figure in the society,into a political platform to fight against the existing political power (Mahinda government), if they “think” or “believe” that the government is anti-democratic. Then, if that is possible to do (turining funerals into political platforms against existing government), isn’t it possible some anti-government hands to “create a funeral” and make it a political platform against the government?. And if you endorese the idea that it is a good tendency that people turn funerals into political platforms, then the type of people I am talking about are more motivated to create more funerals like this one in the future. Because, such funerals will continue to create them good platforms to carry out the politics they want. if you look at this development; it is very dangerous for all of us. So, what we have to do is not to burn dummies of Mahinda. But to be logical, and probe for the facts. This is the “core point” of my post “politics over dead bodies”. Hope at least few people will make sense of what I am trying to say; without being carried away with “anit Rajapakshe” emotions.

This is an oversimplified depiction of what went on. why do you suggest that the political tears were “fake” and those who went there with “political” motivations were not “true” mourners? Then a political intervention into the present situation can be seen as a fake/dishonest attempt.

But then this assassination itself is a politically motivated act. I honestly think it was a MUST to make his funeral a political platform to fight against this anti-democratic tendency. It gives a totally negative impression when you name it a “political carnival”. I suggest that we call it a political platform :-)

Yes, unfortunately, it was UNPs political platform. But still, if the UNP isn’t legitimate enough to undertake and lead that fight “we” must invent political alternative. Proposing to depoliticize a funeral of a killed journalist means abandoning all viable solutions. Protests alone won’t make a change. Problem is a political one. So should be the solution.

corrected, my Sinhala is terrible

The YouTube is linked with the low-res version. The hack I’m using to embed HD doesn’t work anymore

May be now you can go on another campaign to condemn this! “Satakaya! Hands off Youtube!!!” might be a good slogan.

I try to make sense of the feelings of you people who blame the government and Rajapakshe’s of every “un explained” things, and everytime it makes a “sense of humor” to me. I don’t see much difference between you guys and those ancient people who worshipped trees and rocks. They beleived, if there’s anything that we can’t understand; that’s something done by god. You believe, if there’s anything that we can’t understand, that’s something done by Rajapakshes. Difference is, you don’t believe Rajapakshe’s are gods. For you all, Ranil is almighty!

There were several groups of people last evening, at the funeral.

1) True mourners of Lasantha’s death. With true tears.
2) Those who went there, just as a response to the “tide”. They don’t know what’s happening. But they had to be there, because some other people around them are pushing them.
3) Those happy bunch of people, who went to do the political carnival

As far as I believe, only the close family members of Lasantha were among the first group. Do you think, CBK, Mangala or Sanath Gunathilake had a real reason to mourn about Lasantha’s death??? They were the people who got hit by Lasantha the most!!!

Although I condemn this murder, the attack on sirasa was some what deserved.. capturing kilinochchi was a great military victory.. why it wasnt broadcasted i have no idea..
this is just my opinion..