“It’s a miracle that I survived. I was beaten almost to death. Many attempts have been made to kill me, so that my writing will come to an end!. I did not think that, I will survive. The God has saved me to serve the people through journalism. I am slowly recovering. Today, I am blessed to be alive. I have highlighted many issues in my writing. I want to continue to highlight the activities against the humanity, but I am not sure whether I will be able to hold the pen again, because my right hand fingers are frozen” emotionally shares Gnanasundaram Kuganathan (59) while tears filled his eyes.

The News Editor of Uthayan ~  Tamil language daily newspaper Gnanasundaram Kuganathan (59) was brutally assaulted by unknown men on 29^th of July 2011 at night at 7.30pm on Kasthuriyaar road in Jaffna, as he was walking back home for dinner from work. I met him in Jaffna recently, as he is currently recovering from the severe injuries caused by the brutal assault.

“It was a Friday. On 29^th of July 2011, I was walking home for dinner from the office. I shouted “அம்மா”  “அம்மா” ~  Amma”, “Amma” (Mother, Mother) after the two young men hit me with iron rods on my head and right hand. I ran into my house, I was in critical condition, and later I was admitted to the Jaffna Teaching Hospital (Intensive Care Unit) by my fellow journalists. I was unconscious for three days at the intensive care unit of the hospital.

I can identify the two young men who have brutally assaulted me. One person is a tall man and the other is a short man. Both men are below 30 year old” keeps sharing Gnanasundaram Kuganathan, while holding the right hand tightly with his left hand, and continues to speak softly with his usual sweet smile. Gnanasundaram Kuganathan can communicate in Tamil, English and Sinhala. He is one among a few journalists who can communicate in all three languages in Jaffna Peninsula. He has 30 years of experience in the field of journalism. Due to the numbness in the right hand, he had to remove his wedding engagement Gold ring from the right hand to left hand ring finger.

A protest was organised by Free Media Movement (FMM), Sri Lanka Tamil Media Alliance (SLTMA), Sri Lanka Muslim Media Forum (SLMMF), Sri Lanka Working Journalists Association (SLWJA), Federation of Media Employees Trade Union (SLMETU),Media Movement for Democracy (MMD) and South Asia Free Media Association (SAFMA).Nearly 47 journalists from Colombo traveled to Jaffna by A9 highway to show solidarity. They condemned the brutal assault by protesting in front of the Sri Lanka Transport Board bus stand in Jaffna on 16^thof August 2011. It was a rare protest for the Peninsula people to witness.

“ஏதாவது பிரச்சினையோ?”  ~ “Is there any problem?”, “என்ன பிரச்சினை?” ~ “What is the problem?”, “இங்கை என்ன நடக்குது?” ~ “What is happening here?” a few onlookers, passers ~ by and shop keepers asked me while the protest was getting underway on a balmy day in Jaffna. “இங்கை உண்மையா என்ன நடக்குது?  ~ “What is actually happening here” asked the owner of a newly built restaurant, while I was running to the restaurant roof top to capture the moments on my camera.

There was chaos as the protesters arrived in Jaffna town with placards in Tamil. Police in the vicinity came closer and asked them not to block the traffic. Verbal argument took place between the Police and the protesters. But the protesters kept chanting and walking. The traffic came to a standstill for a couple of moments, as the protesters took the space on the mot busiest road in Jaffna, the Hospital road while carrying the placards in Tamil ~ “யாழ்ப்பாண ஊடகவியலாளர்களுக்கு யார் பாதுகாப்பு?” ~ “Who is responsible for the lives of the journalists in Jaffna?”, “ஊடக சுதந்திரம் பாதுகாக்கப்பட வேண்டும்” ~   “Media freedom needs to be protected”, “எப்போ  முடியும் யாழ்ப்பாணத்தில் அடக்குமுறைகள்?” ~  “When will the suppression come to an end in Jaffna?”, “ஊடக சுதந்திரத்தைப் பாதுகாக்க ஒன்றுபடுவோம்” ~   Let’s unite to protect media freedom”, “குகநாதனுக்கு விழுந்த அடி உண்மைக்கு விழுந்த பேரிடி”~  Assault on Kuganathan is an assault on the Truth, “ஊடகத்துறைக்கு எதிரான  அடக்குமுறையை ஒழிப்போம்” ~ Eradicate Suppression Against the Media” “ஊடகத்தின்  மீதான தாக்குதலை உடனே  நிறுத்து” ~  “Stop Attacking the Media Immediately”, “ஜனநாயகத்தின் குரலை ஒடுக்காதே” ~  Don’t Suppress the voice of Democracy”, “தேர்தலில் தோற்றவர்களா மண்டையைப் பிளந்தார்கள்?” ~ “Did they split the head those who lost the elections?”

The protesters chanted “Let Us Write”,“Continue; Continue; Continue to Write”,“Do Not Kill; Do Not Kill; Do Not Kill Us; Do Not Kill the Journalists, Do Not Kill the Democracy”,“Uthyan was attacked, but nobody was arrested”, “Bring the culprit to the courts”“Do Not Attack; Do Not Attack; Do Not Attack the Media”, “Take Your Hands Off Media”“Stop; Stop; Stop the Suppression” “Kuganathan; Kuganthan who wrote the plight of the people”, “Kuganathan was attacked with Iron rods”,“Kuganathan; Kuganathan; Keep Writing, Lift the Emergency Immediately”   in Tamil and Sinhala. There were nearly 350 journalists, activists and politicians participated in the protest according to the organisers.

“Journalists from Colombo came to Jaffna to condemn the assault on Gnanasundaram Kuganathan and participated in the protest. It’s the best way to show solidarity. We, journalists should unite and act against the continuing suppression” says Sellappa Kathirgamathamby, the President of North Sri Lanka Journalists’ Association.

The RSF ~ Reporters Without Borders pointed out in its recent statement “This attack must not be the prelude to a new wave of violence against journalists, which has been on the wane during the past year, in part because so many journalists are in exile. We remind the authorities that impunity continues to encourage wrongdoers.”

• 42 Political Activists and HRDs Detained and Prevented from Participating in Peaceful Protest in Jaffna Town on Human Rights Day
• In conversation with Chandana Sirimalwatte
• Trail Sri Lanka: Celebrating the Sri Lankan spirit
• Sri Lankan journalists: An extinct and unprotected species
• Going for the Kill in More Ways than One

Jaffna: Two years ago, Sri Lanka’s three decade long war ended in May 2009. But, those who witnessed the brutality of the war are still suffering and struggling to forget the traumatic past.

Apputhurai Arumainathan (53) is one among many. He lost his wife Gunaambaal Arumainathan (50) in the last phase of the war in Vanni.

“My wife was killed in a shell attack, when she went to the shop on 28^th of April 2009 in Mullivaaikkaal. She got injured in her waist, and died on the spot” says Apputhurai Arumainathan with pain in his heart.

Like many others Apputhurai Arumainathan too got displaced many times, and spent time in the internally displaced camp in Vavuniya. Finally, he managed to physically relocate himself in Jaffna peninsula with his other relatives. But he still struggles to forget his traumatic memories.

Roman Catholic priest and a trained psychologist Father Damian Soosaipillai is helping the war affected children and widows in Jaffna. The dedicated service provided by the team is to help them adjust to normal life after the traumatic experience.

“Thirty years of civil war has caused tremendous problems both physically and psychologically for the children as well as for the adults. The innocent civilians became the victims of this war. These civilians have already had many displacements, and above all they had been hit very badly by natural as well as manmade disasters. The fierce fighting has caused severe psychological damage and scarred mind” says Reverend Father Damian Soosaipillai.

Father Damian Soosaipillai and his team of eight counselors work in 21 villages in Jaffna. Father Damian Soosaipillai has been involved with psycho ~ social activities in the Jaffna Peninsula since 1980s.

“I am a farmer and have been living in Maankulam for more than 30 years. I have a lot of farm lands there on Mallaavi road in Maankulam. I visited twice after the war ended in 2009. But, I am unable to go and live there permanently, because memories of my beloved wife always keep bothering my mind and thoughts. Both of us led a blessed life together. We never fought. I am unable to forget the wonderful memories of our wedded life. I always treasure them. She took care of me like a mother. I do not even know how to make a cup of tea. Now, I feel terribly lost and helpless without my wife. I will not be able to live peacefully without her. Everyday, I am struggling to come to terms with the reality, but I fail. War is cruel. Loss, displacement and trauma continued in our lives. On the other hand, the survivors are struggling to lead a life even after the war ended” laments Apputhurai Arumainathan.

There is a need for more counseling for the survivors of the war in Sri Lanka.

“During the past few months people who came for psychological assistance including children have suffered much trauma and other symptoms like PTSD ~ Post Traumatic Stress Disorder such as grief, loss, depression, anxiety, psychosomatic illness sleep disorder, nightmare, starling for sudden noises, loss of interest, trust in the future irritability, poor concentration, poor memory aggressiveness. This evidence shows that there is an urgent need for psychological assistance in the North” further says Reverend Father Damian Soosaipillai.

• Hear My VOICE: Bonsika Vadivel Vasanthan ~ “Please bring my father back to me”
• Disappearance
• Hear My VOICE: Thenuja Tharmeshwaran ~ “I am always my father’s favourite”
• The psychological trauma of an age old war
• Jaffna: Moments of Nostalgia

Journalism is still a heavily male dominated field in Sri Lanka. Women are slowly but steadily getting into the field of journalism. On the other hand, we are mostly assigned to cover “soft” issues such as to handle the women’s page of a newspaper or cover culture or sub edit stories. We are hardly and rarely assigned to cover conflict or sports, because male journalists and editors think that these are “hard” issues women are unable to cover. Women are equally dedicated, determined, educated, focused and of course talented. We have proven our talents over the years, while standing side by side and shoulder to shoulder on the field with men to cover from disaster to design.

34 women photographers participated in the Women’s Photography Exhibition 2011. The exhibition was organised by the Women and Media Collective. The event was organised to celebrate the International Women’s Day. It was held at the Harold Peiris Gallery in Colombo. It was held from 25 - 27 March 2011.

The photography exhibition displayed the work of women, from professionals to amateurs, and featured a wide range of photography, from travel photography to portraiture to wildlife photography. The photographers featured were:

• Aamina Nizar
• Adilah Ismail
• Anushka Fernando
• Arosha Ranasinghe
• Azra Abdul Cader
• DushiYanthini Kanagasabapathipillai
• Gazala Anver
• Himadhu Kottege
• Hiranya Malwatte
• Indu Bandara
• Iresha Umagiliya
• Jayanthi Kuru-Utumpala
• Keren Sadanandan
• Maduri Raja
• Manikya Kodithuwakku
• Marisa de Silva
• Naomi Fernando
• Natalie Soysa
• Nathali Devinka
• Nihara Fernando
• Piyumika Pathirana
• Poornima Perera
• Rasika Deepani
• Revati Chawla
• Roshanthi Weerawardena
• Rushika Silva
• Sepali Kottegoda
• Shifani Reffai
• Shyala Smith
• Surani Bandara
• Tehani Ariyaratne
• Thilina Kaushalya
• Tia Goonaratna
• Velayuden Jayachitra

• The Beauty of Barbed Wire: Sri Lanka’s cutting edge exhibition
• Gender and Journalism
• Black Paintings & Other Works: An exhibition by Chandraguptha Thenuwara
• Women on Top: Sexuality and rights in Sri Lanka
• Why women in politics always matters: A conversation with Chulani Kodikara

I always feel enchanted, whenever I travel to Jaffna by bullock cart, bicycle, car, foot, helicopter, jeep, motorbike, plane, ship, train or even through Kilali lagoon during difficult times. Journey to Jaffna ~ may it be before the war, during the war or after the war, I always cherish the memories of Jaffna which is closer to my heart.

Jaffna which is beautifully called “Yaazhpaanam” in Tamil. It is famous for its unique architecture, tradition, cuisine, rituals and festivals. According to 2007 statistics, Jaffna district’s population was 650,720 (1,85,405 families). Jaffna district is geographically divided into Valikaamam, Vadamaraatchchi, Thenmaraatchchi and Jaffna Islands. It has an area of 1,025 square kilometres (approximately 395.8 square miles).

Jaffna as it today begins to bustle with visitors and new businesses. Beautifully woven Palmyrah products in bulk cross the Pannai Lagoon, and decorate the stalls. Old statues still stand in line as landmarks are cleaned and painted and polished. Travellers from the rest of the country storm the stalls to buy authentic Jaffna products

Bicycles ~ the common mode of transport for women, children and children in Jaffna take the lead as usual on highways, streets and alleys. Sometimes, the whole family travels on a bicycle which can be often witnessed in the Peninsula. Men and boys whistle and ride, if their bicycles do not have bells. Women, of course, ride carefully with full gear! “Wow! Women in Jaffna are so brave and manoeuver through vehicles without getting hit” mentioned by my fellow foreign journalist while visiting Jaffna in 2000.

“The heart that truly loves, never forgets people and place!”

• Questionnaire And Licenses In Jaffna
• Hear My VOICE: Jalajakumari Selvarasa ~ “I could often feel the nostalgia”
• Hear My VOICE: Arumugam Varatharajan ~ “I want to feel “belonged”
• Buying Onions From India & China
• Like Slaves In Jaffna

Louisa Arulamma Thambyrajah celebrates her centenary birthday today ~ 6^th of February 2011. She was born on 6^th of February 1911 in her ancestral home in Chaavakachcheri in Jaffna Peninsula, North of Sri Lanka.It is a great miracle that she survived the brutal war. Her life, experience and challenges are unbelievable, but they are true.

She is a daughter of a priest. She had her education at Uduvil Girls College ~one of the famous Girl’s schools in Jaffna peninsula. After completing her studies, she went back to her home town Chaavakachcheri to serve the community in the Church and teach at Sunday school.

“I enjoyed cooking and serving food for all. I love to take care of others. I like all food. I led a healthy and wealthy life in my village ~ Murasumottai” says charming and soft spoken Louisa Arulamma Thambyrajah who sits straight on a chair in a living room of her son’s house in Kalubowila.

Her children, daughters-in laws, grandchildren, great grandchildren, relatives and friends gathered today at St.Paul’s Milagiriya Church in Bambalapitty for Eucharistic Worship to celebrate her centenary birthday and wished her long life. Louisa Arulamma Thambyrajah has 8 sons (her third son died when he was 18 year-old), 12 grandchildren and 6 great grandchildren.

She moved with her family to Murasumottai on 29th of April 1959, and continued to live there till she got displaced in 2009. She was evacuated months before celebrating the Golden Jubilee of “Navajeevanam” in 2009. She came to Colombo in October 2009 after spending some time in the IDP camp in Poonthottam, and later with her granddaughter in Vavuniya after the displacement. She did not want to come to Colombo, but her children wanted her to rest in Colombo for awhile. Her husband Reverend Thambyrajah was a Priest of Church of South India and he died in 1982.

She told me, when I met her in February 2010 ~ “I am the youngest in the family of five girls and three boys. I am the first person in our family who lived this long, and I very much want to go back to my lovely village Murasumottai, celebrate my centenary birthday and live there happily and die peacefully. It is my dream” mentioned Louisa Arulamma Thambyrajah in her pleasant voice in 2010.

“It was a miracle that we were not injured and survived. My sons carried me on a chair all the way throughout the journey. Initially I slept on the mat on the ground in the IDP camp. It was difficult for me, so I arranged a few suitcases on the ground and slept on them. I found this was better. I have seen things that I never thought I would in my life. I heard heart-rending tales of human suffering. Myriad memoires of war are like a long and bad dream. It is a God’s blessing that we all survived unhurt. I thank the God wholeheartedly. I thank him everyday for sustaining me throughout the life” says Louisa Arulamma Thambyrajah with a big smile on her beautiful face. The war began when she was in her 60s and was already a grandmother. She remembers everything with clarity such as the disturbing memories of the decades of war.

“I miss my beautiful village very much” says a very gracious person Louisa Arulamma Thambyrajah while tears fill her eyes and about to trickle down.

She is the only surviving founding member and moving spirit of “Navajeevanam” (New Life), which was established in 1959, and provided education and rehabilitation for the children in need. It was a home for Tamil, Sinhala and Burgher boys. It is situated on Paranthan-Mullaitheevu main road in Kilinochchi district. Their motto is “Ready for Both: Service and Sacrifice”.

“We built “Navajeevanam” brick by brick while facing physical and economical challenges. It withstood cyclone, floods and war. But, I heard recently that “Navajeevanam” has been destroyed during the last phase of the war in the Vanni, and the belongings were looted. Rubble and ruins are left. I feel very sad when I think about it. I pray for the wellbeing of the people I know. My heart and soul are with them” shares Louisa Arulamma Thambyrajah with pain in her voice and emotions gather on her bright face.

Many call her “Amma”, her grandchildren call her “Appuchcha” while the others call her “Arul Aunty”. Her memory is intact and still strong .She is very well informed about the news from around the world. She remains a loving and caring person and strong-willed source of inspiration. She continues her habit of reading the newspapers and books daily in the morning.

As the French philosopher and Writer Michel de Montaigne said ~ “We are born to inquire into truth; It belongs to a greater to possess it”, she has experienced destruction, displacement, IDP (Internally Displaced Persons) life, loss, suffering and violence, nevertheless her courage and motivation can move the mountains.

• My abducted brother found in Colombo National Hospital
• “I need to move out of this camp and have a place of my own”
• Doesn’t she have the right to live with her daughter?
• My life and my choices in a country at war: A personal reflection
• Disappearance

“Absence of war does not mean peace. Meaningful peace can only be achieved by accepting separate identities and by trying to understand and accept the differences and uniqueness of cultural diversity. Peace cannot be achieved by blurring the uniqueness and denying separate identities. Peace cannot be achieved by suppression or by force; peace has to emerge from mutual understanding and respect” says Godwin Constantine.

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Godwin Constantine’s work takes us to a space engulfed with acute political and social implications that are connected with ethnic conflict and the resultant war that was fought for over 30 years in the land of his youth, Jaffna. Born to a middle class family in Kandy, doing his early schooling at St. Anthony’s College and Trinity College (Kandy) and now a leading cardiologist, one would wonder why Constantine’s work does not really sync with the usual art aspirations or aesthetics of the comfortable upwardly mobile middle class. In actuality, his work constitutes uncomfortable reminders to the comfort zones of many by constantly pushing us to think beyond the surface rhetoric of politics to unearth harrowing realities and layers of ignored truths.

In his early paintings, Constantine has developed a haunting iconography within his visual language where fleshless sculls peep from every corner making the foreground, and devastated landscapes forms the backdrop.  Here, his work could find affinity with Kathy Kollwitzs’ numerous drawings of  ‘death’ and Anslem Kiefer’s tortured landscapes that stretch into infinity.   The ‘existence’ that is challenged in traumatic circumstances of war becomes Constantine’s constant thematic. His personal experiences living in Jaffna as a youth partly forms the strength of his conceptual intensity.  In these art works, the boundaries that demarcate the personal and political are subsumed into one, leaving no space for a reality other than the political.

Like with many self-taught artists, Constantine’s primary sense of aesthetics, form and structure of paintings has roots in different art historical phenomena or thrusts.  His obsession with textual excerpts and collage in paintings draw its inspirations from Jasper Johns or Robert Rauschenberg’s  neo-dada and pop art renditions.  At the same time, Constantine’s format of placing texts in his paintings cannot distance from the format of text placements in Buddhist mural paintings. Whether consciously or unconsciously executed, such close similarities make us think of the spectrum of sources and socio-cultural influences that crisscross in the art and the thematic that Constantine tries to attempt.

“One specific work comes to my mind that carries the following disturbing phrase uttered by  George W. Bush: ‘ If you are not with us you are with the  enemy.’ This phrase is written on the backdrop of a star spangled banner of red and white grids and white stars on a blue square similar to that of Jasper John’s work ‘Flag’ (1954). This work was done in relation to the paranoia of the global politics seen soon after the World Trade Center bombing in the USA on September 11^th2001” says his fellow artist and curator of IMAGING THE AFTERMATH Anoli Perera.

The colour bars in his current work titled “Peace Dove” uses a graphic format containing colours similar to that of the Buddhist flag.  It creates a visual interplay with a repetitive image of a dove carrying a leafy twig emerging out of a background creating a sense of a mirage. At the same time, the image of the dove gets camouflaged as part of the background. This denotes our vulnerability in consuming the ideas of peace on the one hand, and its illusionary nature in the grasp of the institutionalized power of ethicized religion, chauvinist politics and divided masses on the other.

Working with images used with loaded symbolism, Constantine continuously refers to the unspoken and the tabooed in relation to issues dealing with war, conflict, violence and their scars on humanity that reappear in different forms through generations. The work “Revisiting Guernica” uses imagery and mood of Guernica, the famous painting by Picasso done as a critique of the air raid of the village of Guernica in 1937 by Nationalists led by Franco during the civil war in Spain. Conceived as a symbol that stands to memorialize the destruction of war, human tragedies and pain inflicted on individuals and communities, particularly the innocent civilians, Guernica, through generations stand as a universal anti-war symbol and embodiment of peace that has been referred to many times by artists and others. While Guernica is a universal sign of peace, Constantine’s use of Guernica as a major component in his work also highlights the nature of Constantine’s highlights the nature of Constantine’s engagement with the Tamil ~ Sinhala ethnic issue as much as the resultant armed conflict and its consequences to humanity itself. His work “Revisiting Guernica” shows a camouflaged background in green, white and black with  similar  forms found in Picasso’s Guernica, but though done in transparent form giving it a ghostly atmosphere. On the one hand it reminds us of the unresolved human tragedies in the aftermath of conflict where so numerous deaths, disappearances and loss of place and soul have taken place. On the other hand, it also nudges us to rethink the notion of peace and its fragile nature in situations where the human predicament caused by war is not rectified and emotional wounds are not healed.

Constantine, belonging to the Tamil Christian community, which is a minority within a minority, his overall reaction to politics and issues pertaining to the anxieties of the larger Tamil community presents a marked difference to that of highly emotional deeply personal ethicized rhetoric that comes  from the deep north and the deep south. Larger part of his childhood was spent in Kandy and his intense familiarity with Jaffna began after the 1977 Tamil ~ Sinhala riots which made the family to move to the safety of Jaffna when Constantine was aged 14 years. He received his medical training from Jaffna Medical College, and during this period as a young adult he closely experienced traumas of the armed conflict in the north which made him change his beliefs and convictions towards life and humanity. While these intensely experienced human suffering and anxieties were captured in his early works done in charcoal  which are  powerful reminders of pain and suffering of war and death, his art articulates a suffering and affectation that somehow goes beyond the personal, and utters a universalized pain and concern. Greatly influenced by the illustrations of Kathy Kollwitz found in a psychology textbook that he once read, his initial use of visual language and aesthetic preferences were developed using transnational symbolisms and art formats rather than referencing the ethicized and historicized signs and nuances from the locally rooted history.  This is not about the denial of his roots to the Tamil community in Jaffna, but it’s more about his ability to avoid burdening himself with the emotional and rhetorical aspect of bearing the history of the Tamil community.  His art illustrates a position that believes ‘personal is political and therefore it also has a possibility to be universal’.  His use of Guernica as a central theme in his work emphasizes this aspect and urges us to transcend or rethink our obsessive preferences and tastes for privileging exclusivist ethno-religious experiences when it comes to human suffering.

Constantine’s expressions of art transcend visual art boundaries and extend into performance work.  It is not an overstatement to say that G. R. Constantine along with Bandu Manamperi established ‘performance’ as a form of visual art in the Sri Lankan visual artists’ community. As noted by Weerasinghe, their work is seen as ‘a major confrontational stance that emerged from the para-modernist ideology of the ‘90s Trend’.‘Performance’,  as a genre of art has a history that is rooted in the New York avant-garde movements such as  Neo-Dada and Fluxusin the 1950s  and 1960s as well as art personalities such as Yves Klein, Robert Raushenberg and Niki de Saint Phalle and  musician John Cage where ‘happenings’ became part of art-making. In ‘performance’, the body of the artist is transformed into an object of art, allowing it to be opened to interpretation and attack. This places the body of the artist in a vulnerable position removing the distance between the artists~author and his~her work.Performance, as an art medium that emerged in the Sri Lankan visual art within the trans-formative space ushered in by the ‘90s Trend’back-grounding a highly volatile socio-political environment, it allowed artists such as Constantine and Manamperi to engage in an intense political critique within the visual art discourse.

Constantine’s past performances includes a powerful work titled “Homage to Thiranagama” making it a remembrance of RajaniThiranagama who was killed by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Ealam in Jaffna in 1989.  His performance “Shifting Identity”(1999) at the ‘No Order’ exhibition surfaced the anxiety of displacement in terms of geographical territory, history and emotional belongingness to a community ~ country. Coming out from a newspaper wrapped cocoon implying a ‘womb,’ he read phrases which unraveled the dilemma of uncertainty in displacement.  The “Silent Witness” (2004) and the “Story Untold” (2005) both discussed the predicament of an individual who has to bear in silence the  perceptions, stereotypes, myths and histories constructed and narrated by the media to the public about his/her own ethnic community with innumerable biases in a situation of armed conflict.

His installation work and performance (in collaboration with Bandu Manamperi)  “Maze” held in 2006 at Lionel Wendt Gallery presented an intense critique on the numbness of the Sri Lankan society that precludes it from intervening against  social injustice, racism and extreme nationalism.

If the 90s Trend’s major intervention is to unearth the artist’s body as a political body and to be the prime site of experience that translates into form his ~ her art, then Constantine has unhesitatingly embraced such artistic interpolations and used them as effective weapons of socio-political critique. By doing so as an artist he has taken the risk to challenge, probe and intervene in the thought processes that constantly threaten to negate humanity’s most precious element, the ‘freedom of speech’.

IMAGING THE AFTERMATH an exhibition of paintings by G.R.Constantine opens @ Red Dot Gallery in Pittakotte . The preview was held on 29th of January 2011.The exhibition will remain open until 9th of February 2011. The Gallery hours are Monday~Wednesday 10.30AM~5.00PM, Sundays 11.00AM~4.30PM.

• Conflict on canvas
• Sethu Samudram: Bridging art, history and human relations
• The Incomplete Thombu: A compelling interlace of architecture, drawing, memory and art
• Black Paintings & Other Works: An exhibition by Chandraguptha Thenuwara
• A thought for the stranded refugees in Vanni

Bonsika Vadivel Vasanthan (7) always stays alone and confines to a brown plastic chair with flower work. The chair is bigger than she. She wears a pristine white pleated frock, which is the school uniform with light Blue and white stripe tie. A light blue silk ribbon holds her straight hair into a ponytail, and she wears a pair of artificial white stone ear studs. She does not mingle with anybody. She seldom talks or plays. She stays quiet.

“My father used to tell me a lot of nice bed time stories, before I go to sleep everyday. We used to sing a lot of beautiful songs together in Tamil. Now, nobody either tells me any story or sings with me. I feel very lonely as my father is not with me” laments Bonsika Vadivel Vasanthan while tears fill her both eyes.

Her father got injured during the last phase of the war in Vanni, North of Sri Lanka in April 2009 and was admitted to hospital. But, Bonsika Vadivel Vasanthan has not seen her father afterwards. She moved from Bharathipuram in Vanni to Jaffna Peninsula along with the rest of her family members, and is living here in a small apartment.

“I pray three times a day, and ask God to send my father safely to me wherever he is now. I am neither able to study nor sleep without my father. His wonderful memories stay intact. Please bring my father back to me. I want my father. Nobody can replace him. I have a younger sister, she too needs our father” laments Bonsika Vadivel Vasanthan. There is seemingly no end to her search.

• Hear My VOICE: Thenuja Tharmeshwaran ~ “I am always my father’s favourite”
• Hear My VOICE: Velupillai Yesupalan ~ “My father is my role model”
• There is an urgent need for psychological assistance in the North
• Hear My VOICE: Arumugam Varatharajan ~ “I want to feel “belonged”
• Tears

“Sethu Samudram” is the name of the mythical bridge found in Ramayana, meaning the bridge across the ocean. This bridge connects Sri Lanka and India.

There is substantial amount of good reasons to believe the existence of a real “Sethu Samudram”– a bridge across the ocean – between the two geographies in the ancient times, not only conceptually but also physically. This naturally-formed ancient bridge in the Palk Strait has acquired numerous mythical dimensions through millennia.

South India is only 22 miles across the Palk Strait from North of Sri Lanka. Considering the proximity of South India to Sri Lanka, even without much hard arguments, the possibility of cultural exchanges and human migration between these two geographical zones for millennia can be an obvious presumption.

Now a construction of a real human-made bridge is scheduled to be constructed linking Sri Lanka and South India on the same place where the ancient bridge was supposed to have been. The mythical bridge is under physical threat and is drawing critical attention from various interest groups, mostly Indian. They are highlighting many opportunities and potentials as well as imagined ecological, social, political, and cultural threats, which might ensue from the building of this bridge.

“Sethu Samudram” ~ an art project that Theertha and 1 Shanthi Road have developed collectively, is envisioning to investigate this highly complex and variegated history and emotions surrounding the concept of “Sethu Samudram” and foreground the links, similarities, and shared anxieties, emotions and histories between the two geographical areas. The overall research will cover a wide area of study that includes society, politics, history, religion, and mythology as relevant to Sri Lanka and India. The “Sethu Samudram” project would like to engage in the wider discussion of History navigating through the contemporary ideological and methodological innovations of visual arts within the South Asian region. With this in mind, “Sethu Residency 1 @ Theertha 2010”, is the very first research-based art residency under “Sethu Samudram” the art project held in Sri Lanka.

Participating artists are Koralagedara Pushpakumara (Sri Lanka), Madhu D (India), Pradeep Chandrasiri (Sri Lanka), Sharni Jayawardena (Sri Lanka) and V.G. Venugopal (India). The Sethu Residency 1 @ Theertha 2010 was inaugurated on 27^th of December 2010 at Theertha Red Dot gallery in Pittakotte. The exhibition will remain open till 11^th of January 2011. The gallery hours are Monday to Wednesday 10.30 AM – 5.00 PM, Sundays 11.00 AM – 4.30 PM.

Sri Lankan visual artist Koralagedara Pushpakumara expanded his imagination by using the distance between North of Sri Lanka and South India ~ 22 Miles. He used 22 sacks of various groceries imported from South India to Sri Lanka.

Creation by Indian artist Madhu D

Series of shirts by Indian artist V.G. Venugopal

Sri Lankan artist Pradeep Chandrasiri’s creation on display

Performance by guest artist Bandu Manamperi

• Female deities of Theravada Buddhism: Kannagi and Pattini
• The Incomplete Thombu: A compelling interlace of architecture, drawing, memory and art
• Artistes of hypocrisy in Sri Lanka
• Why not sing Kolaveri Di in Jaffna Tamil?
• An ‘Ausgleich’ for Sri Lanka: Equalization – not Devolution

Thenuja Tharmeshwaran struggles and unable to forget the traumatic past

Thenuja Tharmeshwaran (15) waits with hope at the entrance of her school~ Kondavil Hindu Maha Vidyalayam in Jaffna district in Sri Lanka. Her eyes are full and filled with tears and roll down her cheeks while she shares her agony with me sitting closer in Jaffna, North of Sri Lanka. She wears a pristine White pleated frock which is the school uniform with Light Blue and White tie, her hair is middle parted, neatly plaited into two and tied with matching brilliant blue silk ribbon. Red stone circle ear studs add colour to her complexion. A White pair of shoes tightly tied and feet are fixed to the cement floor. She sits straight on a Brown plastic chair and makes instant eye contact. Her fingers are crossed and she keeps quiet most of the time thinking deep. Black round “Pottu” (dot) is placed perfectly between her two eyebrows along with sandalwood and holy ash on top decorating her smooth forehead. It shows her strong spirituality.

“I lost my father during the war. I feel sad and helpless, when I think of my beloved father. I always feel terribly lost after his death .He is my bestest friend, and I am always his favourite. My heart does not allow me anytime to speak in past tense, when I talk about my father. Because I feel he is always with me~ he loves me, listens to me, cares for me, talks to me and watches me, although he is not physically near to me. But he is always dear to me” shares Thenuja Tharmeshwaran.

She lived in Vanni, North of Sri Lanka, which was formerly controlled by the Tamil rebels known as Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam who were defeated by the Government security forces in May 2009. She got displaced during the war and stayed in the internally displaced camp in Vavuniya in Sri Lanka. Gradually she moved to Jaffna, and she currently lives there with her extended family.

“I have nightmares while sleeping, because I am unable to forget my father and the sweet memories. We used to play hide and seek and snake and ladder together. These are our favourite games. I miss him so dearly.I often dream that, my father is still alive somewhere, but it is not true in reality. He is (was) such a loving and caring father, who never failed in his duties. He attended to my needs and wishes whether he had enough money or not” her voice cracks down and tears begin to pour through her both eyes endlessly. She uses her pink handkerchief with embroidery to wipe the uncontrollable tears.

She is unable to get rid of the trauma of losing her father suddenly. But she tries to attend the school regularly, pay attention to her studies and pass the exams. She rarely mixes with the rest of the kids.

“My favourite subject is Tamil. I want to study hard and become a teacher. I want to make my father’s dream come true to change the lives of the people” continues Thenuja Tharmeshwaran with hope in her eyes and heart.

• Hear My VOICE: Bonsika Vadivel Vasanthan ~ “Please bring my father back to me”
• Hear My VOICE: Velupillai Yesupalan ~ “My father is my role model”
• Hear My VOICE: Arumugam Varatharajan ~ “I want to feel “belonged”
• Tears
• The voice of an IDP single mother in Puttlam

Velupillai Yesupalan feels empty and withdrawn

Velupillai Yesupalan (16) seems nervous and unsettled as he waits at his school during the morning break~ drinks interval as it is called here in Jaffna. He wears a pair of Dark Blue shorts, White short sleeve shirt with the school batch stitched on the pocket of the shirt on left. A pair of his Black shoes removed and kept outside the library of his school. Normally shoes are removed when entering the library, because it is compared to a shrine and considered sacred. Feet covered with a pair of Cotton socks upto his knee are fixed firmly to the Grey cement floor. He takes a while to settle down and talk to me. He is a Grade 11 student of Kondavil Hindu Maha Vidyalayam in Jaffna district, North of Sri Lanka.

“I do not have a father. He was killed during the war. I feel sad and depressed, because I am fatherless. My father is my role model. I want to be like my father, who was helpful to others despite many setbacks” emotionally shares Velupillai Yesupalan as he continuously bites his right hand finger nails, and tears pour through his both eyes and roll down quickly through his tender cheeks.

His family is originally from Thellipalai, moved to Thirunelvely, Iranaimadu, Vallipuram and Puthukkudiyiruppu due to war. They are currently occupying the station master’s quarters in Kondavil.

“My mother works hard to look after us carefully. She tries very hard to feed us with three meals. She is becoming old and finds it hard to do a lot of work. I have three younger brothers and a younger sister. Since, I am the eldest in the family, I have to take care of my mother and siblings. I am trying to study hard and pass the exams, but I get disturbed when I think of my dear father” continues Velupillai Yesupalan.

He rarely talks and plays with his fellow students and friends. He stays reserved.

“My favourite game is cricket. I used to play with my father. Now, I rarely play with my younger brothers. My dream is to become a school teacher” continues Velupillai Yesupalan as he adjusts the school badge on his shirt pocket.

• Hear My VOICE: Thenuja Tharmeshwaran ~ “I am always my father’s favourite”
• Hear My VOICE: Bonsika Vadivel Vasanthan ~ “Please bring my father back to me”
• Hear My VOICE: Arumugam Varatharajan ~ “I want to feel “belonged”
• A-Z of Sri Lankan English: C is for cousin brother
• The divide between Muslims and Tamils: Perspective of an IDP

Jalajakumari Selvarasa is convinced and lives daily with hope

Jalajakumari Selvarasa (41) is very duty conscious in a bottle green traditional Shalwar Kameez. She sits at the entrance of the women’s side of the springs, and gives the instructions in Tamil to the devotees who visit “Keerimalai” springs in Jaffna district, North of Sri Lanka. She shows the way with her shiny smile to the new comers here in “Keerimalai“.

Keerimalai literally translates Mongoose Hill in English. Naguleswaram temple is one of the five hallowed Lord Sivan temples (Panchcha Ishwaram) in Sri Lanka. Naguleswaram temple is situated here in “Keerimalai“, which is 50 feet above the main sea level.

“I am happy to be here and help the devotees. It is a sacred place and sanctity should be maintained at all times. I am doing a small service to the community” says Jalajakumari Selvarasa while wearing a cotton cap to compete with the balmy weather here in “Keerimalai” .

Red vermilion called “Pottu” (dot) is placed on her forehead and pair of Silver toe rings on her feet show that she is married. A sharp line of holy ash on her forehead and a multi colour holy thread on her left wrist show her strong spirituality.

She has five children~ 2 sons and 3 daughters. She got displaced several times due to war. She lived in “Pandatharippu” and “Vanni“. She currently lives in Alavetty in a rented house. Her house in “Keerimalai” stands still and empty with names written in English, Sinhala and Tamil and pictures painted in colour.

“Displacement has become a part of my life. I initially got displaced in 1983 from our house in Keerimalai, during the heavy fighting between the security forces and Tamil Tiger rebels known as Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. My house falls under the High Security Zone (HSZ) in “Keerimalai”. Now, I get to see my house everyday when I come here for my duty. But I could often feel the nostalgia. I am looking forward to a day, when I will be able to live in my hometown again with my family. I hope and pray that, the day is not too far. I have a few dreams to come true, one is returning to my hometown and live with my family and serve the God” shares Jalajakumari Selvarasa with her unambiguous hope flickering in her heart.

• Hear My VOICE: Arumugam Varatharajan ~ “I want to feel “belonged”
• Hear My VOICE: Thenuja Tharmeshwaran ~ “I am always my father’s favourite”
• The Jaffna priest and the policeman who turned IGP
• “Oya Sinhalade? Demalade?” – Questioning a question in post-war Sri Lanka
• The divide between Muslims and Tamils: Perspective of an IDP

Arumugam Varatharajan wants to spend the rest of his life in his ancestral house

The time is 12.10PM, it is lunch time in Sri Lanka. The scorching Sun shines bright in Jaffna, North of Sri Lanka. Arumugam Varatharajan (56) wrapped in an old Blue Sarong and wears no shirt as the weather is balmy. He is seen busy stitching bags at his small tailor shop in Kondavil~ Jaffna district. A ladies’ bicycle is parked on the wall. His shop also has candy, shampoo and pen for sale. A piece of used sack is placed on the steel pedal of his old USHA sewing machine to comfort his tired feet. A straight line of White Holy ash from the nearby temple still stays on his forehead amidst non-stop sweat, which proves he is an ardent devotee of Goddess.

“I left my ancestral home in Kaankesanthurai, which is in High Security Zone (HSZ), in 1990 along with my family. Ever since, I have been living in a rented house in Alavetty in Jaffna district. My ancestral house was destroyed during the war. I still treasure those old memories of living in Kaankesanthurai with all the relatives” says Arumugam Varatharajan while his fingers race with an old USHA sewing machine needle.

He was a farmer before the displacement in 1990, he followed his forefathers. Later, he turned into a tailor and began to stitch bags, dresses and footwear.

“My average daily income is Rs.500/=~Rs.1,000/=. I have some regular customers. I work 365 days to earn an enough income to look after my family. I have three children who are still schooling. I want to educate them well, and make them understand the human values which are currently being forgotten” continues Arumugam Varatharajan.

People visited their houses and properties in the High Security Zone (HSZ) in Jaffna district. Arumugam Varatharajan too has visited his ancestral house a few times.

“I am looking forward to go back to my house and live in Kaankesanthurai before I die. I want to continue with farming there. I feel being myself, when I am in my own house and surroundings. I easily connect myself to the place, where I was born and raised. I feel the “belongingness” whenever I visit Kaankesanthurai, which brings the most happiest memories ever. I feel lost being displaced and living in another place. I am unable to fit in another place. I neither wanted to leave Jaffna nor Sri Lanka. I want to continue living in Jaffna with my family” continues Arumugam Varatharajan while his eyes get filled with tears, but he tries hard not to let them roll down his cheeks.

• “I need to move out of this camp and have a place of my own”
• Hear My VOICE: Jalajakumari Selvarasa ~ “I could often feel the nostalgia”
• The voice of an IDP single mother in Puttlam
• No one to listen to our pleas
• People Reading Newspaper At Shop In Jaffna

Abhilash Jeyaraj who is usually very shy to meet visitors waits with his mother Junita Jeyaraj at their gate. He wears a pair of jeans and long sleeve tshirt with stripe and neatly combed hair. His big smile invites me immediately, while he holds my hands and directs me through the main entrance of the house. He calls his cousin Thulanika Uthayaramesh and they begin to play cricket in the courtyard at dusk. His mother joins them. Abhilash is excited and begins to bat as quickly as possible.

“My favourite subject is English. I like to play cricket with my cousin” says smiling Abhilash. As the sun sets its rays, he quite often hits the soft ball over the wall for six runs. He enjoys playing cricket.

“I am very sad and worried when people call my son as “Tsunami Baby” at his school and village. On the other hand, I am helpless as I am unable to do anything to change the attitude of the people. We have given him a nice name-Abhilash, which means aspiration or desire or wish ” says Junita Jeyaraj while her voice breaks down and tears fill her both eyes and rolls down her cheeks.

“Abhilash wakes up at nights and asks us “Why do people call me “Tsunami Baby”?. We do not have any answer for his question except to say that, they do not mean to call you by that name” mentions in his gentle voice Murugupillai Jeyaraj while joining the conversation. His parents shared their agony when Abhilash plays cricket with his cousin in the courtyard. They do not want him to listen what they discuss. They are concerned when he grows up, if the people still keep calling or identifying him as “Tsunami Baby”, it will affect their son Abhilash. Both Junita and Jeyaraj discussed about it and decided to describe it to their son later when Abhilash is able to understand what happened to him in Tsunami. His parents are carefully preserving the newspaper clippings, cds of photos and videos to show him and tell the true story in a few years. His parents do not like their son to be called “Tsunami Baby” or “Baby 81” anymore. They want him to be called Abhilash.

History
Baby Abhilash Jeyaraj was admitted at the Kalmunai Base Hospital after Tsunami stuck the Eastern coastal belt in December 2004. He was given a number Baby81; from then onwards he was called Baby 81.

He was reunited with his parents on Valentines’ Day (14.02.2005) after almost two months. Junita and Jeyaraj were happy to get their child back nearly after two months (52 days) of continuous battle. He was separated from his parents and their house in Kalmunai was washed away. Parents continued to fight to get their child back. DNA test was carried out in Colombo and it was proven Baby Abhilash belongs to Junita and Jeyaraj.

Baby Abilash hit the headlines locally and internationally after Tsunami. He was two months when he was washed away with waves. Luckily baby Abhilash survived, but the bitter battle continued till he was handed over through Kalmunai Magistrate Courts to his parents. Little Abhilash Jeyaraj was the centre of attraction in late 2004 and early 2005. He and his parents flew to United States of America to participate in a popular television show in 2005.

“Our son Abhilash brought fame to us. But our neighbours and relatives think the fame brought money as well, which is not true and causes a lot of painful. If we have got enough money, we will be leading a luxury life without any problem. I am unable to effort to send my son to a famous school in Batticaloa town or admit him at an institute where he can study in English medium. The media followed and flocked us wherever we went earlier, now nobody cares. Many promises and pledges were made by various people to help us in the future. But nothing materialized so far, except my own younger sister gave her empty land to me, and a Non-Governmental Organisation built a three roomed house on that land. But that particular organisation could not finish the house, therefore it is incomplete, and I do not have money to do plastering for the house and buy the necessary household items. No other organization or individuals want to help me to complete the house, because it was built by another organisation. My priority is to educate my son, and I want to see him as a doctor. I work hard at my roadside barber saloon and earn Rs.15,000/= monthly. I managed to pay-off the debt, I got from many people while going through the hard time in 2004 and 2005” explains Murugupillai Jeyaraj while keeping his son Abhilash on his lap.

Murugupillai Jeyaraj (35) and his wife Junita Jeyaraj (30) lived in Kalmunai after they married, and till the Tsunami shook the coastal line. Later, they have abandoned their destroyed house in Kalmunai as they do not want to be reminded of bad memories of Tsunami. They currently live in half completed house in Kurukkalmadam, and looking forward to a better future for their son Abhilash. It is their biggest dream!

From Dushiyanthini Kanagasabapathipillai in Kurukkalmadam

• The Publicity Baby
• Prices Improve In Jaffna
• Unshed Tears
• Superstitions in the 21st century: Of black pottu, politicians and punools
• A Wave of Relief

Dushiyanthini Kanagasabapathipillai in Saainthamaruthu

Today is the 5^th anniversary of a tsunami that devastated our country.Five years on, but how many of us still care for the people who suffered?

The tsunami hit the Indian Ocean, killing nearly hundreds of thousands in eleven countries and inundating coastal communities with waves unto one hundred feet. According to experts, it was one of the deadliest natural disasters in recorded history. Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Thailand and India were the hardest hit.

About thirty thousand people were killed in tsunami, millions injured and many more left homeless in Sri Lanka. The tidal waves hit North, East and South coastal areas.

All rushed to the spots to help the victims on December 26^th 2004. People canceled their holidays, and work and took part in the process of recovering dead bodies and clearing debris. I covered the tsunami stories continuously for many months. I have traveled to North, East and South of Sri Lanka to cover untold stories. I kept traveling to the same areas after many years. My memories stand still like statues in my mind. I keep meeting the same people in these areas, where they are still struggling to survive. Most of the survivors are hesitant to recall the memories saying “it brings sadness and they want to pray for their loved ones who were killed to rest in peace”. The memories are sad and unforgettable!

There are 55 families – 205 persons (males-60 persons, females-80 persons, and children-65 persons) still live in tin sheds in Sainthamaruthu (in the Eastern Province), living behind the Jummah Mosque. Their living space is squeezed into few meters. There are only two toilets which are currently functioning, there in only one bathroom for males and females. And only three drinking water taps are in the compound. The place gets flooded immediately when it rains. It is very hot inside during the Sunny days. Snakes are their frequent visitors in the night. Flu and Chicken Pox have been infected by many in the past.

The living space looks congested with few furniture, kitchen utensils and clothes and few of them have pets such as cats and chicken. The residents here are frustrated to continue live under these circumstances. Their houses were under 65 meter buffer zone in Saainthamaruthu. They feel that “they are nobody’s people”. Most them here in Saainthamaruthu think they are not lucky, and curse their fate for being unfortunate. “Will we be getting permanent houses next year?” many ask often, but the question remains unanswered.

• Sri Lanka on tsunami alert after Indonesia quake (Updated)
• Daily Security Report from UN – The plight of the North & East
• A Wave of Relief
• Better Governance: The Biggest Lesson of 2004 Tsunami
• Baby 81: 6 years after the tsunami

by Dushiyanthini Kanagasabapathipillai

“Udappu” is situated between the Dutch Canal in the East, Indian Ocean in the West, Poonaipitty village in the North and Pinkatti village in the South. According to some reports, that there was a flood in this area earlier, and it was called “Udaippu” afterwards. Another report says that people were looking for pure water and sea side, while searching for such place they found “Udaippankarai”. Later, the name derived from “Udaippu” to “Udaippankarai” to “Udappu”, which is currently being called.

This is a traditional Tamil fishing hamlet, which is situated 150kilometers away from the commercial capital Colombo. A sandy stretch road which is about six kilometers off the Colombo to Puttlam main highway takes to Udappu. It is located on a tip of rectangular shape land between Mundal lake and the sea. Udappu’s current population is 15,000. It’s is believed that their ancestors came from Akka Madam and Thangachchi Madam in Rameshwaram in Southern India in 1630, and settled down in Udappu. This small fishing village has a very strong tradition and custom, which is being followed very strictly by the people of Udappu upto now. The fishing folk of this pristine coastal village has a different custom compared to the other fisher folk in the country. They still follow the same tradition which is being followed in Rameshwaram for weddings, funerals and temple festivals. Drama and theatre and folk songs play a major role while observing these traditions. The vibrant tradition keeps the families close to each other.

It is said that due to some ethnic tension in 16^th Century, 18 families from Udappu went to Aanai Vaasal and Karaiyaar Kudiyiruppu in Katpitty in 7 fishing boats. The portraits of these 7 fishing boats are drawn on the wall of Sri Veerapththirakaali Amman temple in Udappu. The fishing boats are identified as “Sinnadappan Thoni”, “Sinna Thoni, “Mugaanthiram Thoni”,“Kappanaa Thoni”, “Vaavaa Thoni”,and “Poththi Thoni”. And those 18 families are known as “Ampalakaaran”, “Sinnadappanpuram”, “Kathiran Sammaattipuram”, “Sinnaiyanpuram”, “Kaamapuram”, “Aavaththaaarpuram”, “Pachchaiyappanpuram”, “Seruvanththaarpuram”, “Moosaapuram”, “Paasamandaadi Kudumbam”, “Muththupillaipuram”, “Palliyar Kudumbam”, “Sittampuram”, “Sinnaandipuram”, “Kottaavaariyaar Kudumbam, and “Moovar Kudumbam”.

Most of them are fishermen, some do farming or small business such as owning a grocery shop or tailor shop or a telephone booth or an eating house. And some are vegetable sellers or meat sellers. The people of Udappu read and recite the Mahabharatham epic in Tamil. The “Aadi Vizha Mahotsavam” of the Rukmani Sathyapama Sametha Sri Paarthasaarathy Thiraupathathevi Devasthaanam is based on the popular epic Mahabharatham, which lasts for 18 days. Dance and drama are performed during these days to attract the devotees and make them understand the epic better. The whole village comes alive during the festival. Udappu is usually known as a very calm and quiet place.

People of Udappu are very entertaining and hospitable. The first invitation that they always extend to a visitor is “Come to our house and have meals”. Then the conversation follows with several other invitations such as “Come and stay with us in our house”, “Please feel free to ask anything that you need”, “We have made these special curries for you, because you are a pure vegetarian”, “Please let us know when will you be here next time, so that we can make your stay comfortable”, “Take some fresh drum sticks and fresh Jasmine flowers with you when you return to your house in Colombo”.  They do not show any difference between a visitor and a stranger, they treat both equally. It is a beauty of the people in Udappu that, the invitation is always extended wholeheartedly.

The men in Udappu say that “They have “Murattu Bhakthi” (pitiless or rough devotion) towards the Goddess”. They say that they are willing to go through any pain in order to fulfill her (Goddess’s) wishes. They gather in groups to carry out the rituals. Most of the men are fisher folks. They are known for their hard work and dedication. Women of Udappu are very passive and soft-spoken. Men and women of Udappu are very spiritual, and they observe the knit tradition very carefully. The people of Udappu are very proud of their more than 350 years old unique and elegant tradition. The people of Udappu insist that they neither belong to the North and East of Sri Lanka nor to the hill country. They always say that, they are different from the rest of the Tamil community in the country. They mostly worship Sri Thiraupathai Amman, Sri Kaali Amman and Sri Maari Amman. These three Goddesses are considered to be the Kula Theivam (Family Guardian Deities) of Udappu. A strict vegetarian regimen is observed during the time of the temple festival.

If a man marries outside Udappu, he will be detached from the family and community, and his mustache will be shaven completely to humiliate him. The custom is called “Meesai Kattal”. As a result hardly any men marry outside his village, and the entire population believes that they need to maintain the speciality. Men folks respect the women folks. The men extend their extra care and support to the women during the festival time, because they feel that men from outside visit Udappu during the festival, and the unique culture needs to maintained and protected, and there should not be any room left for misbehaviors and misconducts.

There are 30 Muslim families currently living in Udappu. Sinhala traders from Aaraachchikattu, Aaandigama and Vijayakattupeththa come daily to the main market in Udappu to sell vegetables. They come very early in the morning in a lorry and return to their respective villages after the business. The primary vocation of Udappu was tobacco cultivation, the tobacco plants were affected due to some disease. Thereafter, the people of Udappu began to concentrate on prawn hatchery. There is a couple of medical doctors and engineers produced from Udappu.

A couple of visitors from Jaffna shared their experiences while being in Udappu this year. Most of them said that, “We feel like Udappu is their second home next to Jaffna. And, we like to retire in Udappu”.  It gives the similar feeling of being in Jaffna, surrounded by coconut and palmyrah trees, mild breeze with the sweet sound of the palm leaves, even though it is hot. The fences for the houses are woven neatly with either coconut or palmyrah leaves. The houses hardly have brick or cement walls. Most of the houses are shady and cool.

The people of Udappu like to remain different, while some of the young men left the village to seek employments in foreign countries. Some of them come annually during the festival time to take part in fire walking. This is when most of the match making takes place in Udappu!

Time for celebration and joy.

• Robberies Increase In Jaffna
• Jaffna People Back To Barter Business
• Jaffna: Moments of Nostalgia
• Sri Lanka’s Flood Response: In Dimbulagala, people protest and plead
• In the midst of the Adi Vel festival

“Dhammapada and Other Works”- An exhibition of Paintings and Installations by Chandraguptha Thenuwara was inaugurated at the Lionel Wendt Gallery in Colombo on 23rd July 2008.It was organised to ‘Commemoration of the Un-Commemorative Julys’. Being an anti-war artist, Chandraguptha Thenuwara has sought to remind his fellow Sri Lankans of Lord Buddha’s teachings about tolerance and peace.

The exhibition will remain open till 29^th July 2008 from 10am-7pm. Chandraguptha Thenuwara is a senior lecturer at the University of Visual Arts in Colombo. He is also the Director of Vibhavi-Academy of Fine Arts, which was founded in 1993.

An abstract of “Dhamapada” by Chandraguptha Thenuwara:-
From childhood we are never allowed to forget that we live in a dharma-dveepa (an island of righteousness).  The full force of modern communication technology and the education system are both harnessed to this ‘fact’. Even if we don’t awaken to the sound of the bells in the nearby Buddhist temple, we open our eyes to a world in which there is some Buddhist preaching going on, on the radio or on television. Moreover, we live with the confidence that Buddhism is safe in our island, protected even by our Constitution.  

Our culture is always described as a ‘Buddhist’ culture. Politicians remind us of this whenever they have the occasion to do so. Saying that ordinary politicians were abusing both the religion and the people by making false references to Buddhism, the most precious Sangha was escorted ceremoniously into that most hallowed shrine of politicians, the Parliament, and are now firmly ensconced there through the ballot of the people. The people know all this very well.  

Most venerable statues of the Lord Buddha are to be seen coming up at every junction.  Residents of some areas have become so holy that when they are helpless in the face of a garbage heap, they erect a Buddha statue in that place, and erase the garbage dump forever. 

Each year since 1983, the month of July has dawned as no ordinary month. July acquired a new meaning as a marker of terrorism and militarism by spreading a stain of shame that we cannot wash away even today. On July 23, 1983, 13 soldiers were killed in the north.  An attempt was made to play politics with their bodies, which were brought to Colombo. Because of this, a massacre of Tamils took place. Since ‘Black July’, since that day, July 25, 1983, the rate of destruction of human lives has grown rapidly. Thousands of politicians, soldiers and other professionals, so-called Liberation Tigers and all those who are labeled as opponents have been brutally murdered using a hundred and one justifications.  Today, these deaths are reduced to a ‘News Alert’ SMS or a ‘Breaking News’ story. 

The cycle of assassination that began with the killing of Alfred Duraiappah in Jaffna on July 25, 1975, moves ever forward. While they are in power, no politician accepts that there are specific issues that are based on ethnicity. While in power politicians turn a deaf ear to whatever is being forcefully brought to their attention in a democratic manner.  When there seemed to be no further room for democratic manoeuvre, the young took up arms on behalf of those who confronted the issues. At one time, they were Sinhalese. At another time, they were Tamil. The armed Sinhalese were repressed. Perhaps this could be done because the majority of the rulers were Sinhalese themselves. The consequences occasionally still rear their heads, although they do not any longer bear arms. The educated young Tamils who have taken up arms have grown to the point that they cannot be repressed.  For years now we have heard those who declare, at times loudly and at other times softly,  that those who take up arms can be destroyed by arms, as if to fool themselves. Yet each time, it is the words of the Buddha that have been proven to be true. That is, that those who take up arms will perish by arms. Those who are crazy with racism and militarism boast that they can defeat the enemy.  In order to hide the fact that soldiers who bear arms are also dying, they say that they have sacrificed their lives. In the same way, in the terrorist operations arena, those who kill themselves and kill others also become heroes who have sacrificed their lives. While they race on in the spirit of self-sacrifice, they also compel innocent civilians to sacrifice their lives.        

The question is not being resolved. Rather, it is becoming worse by the day. There is no end to the bomb explosions. Neither does there seem to be an end to the operations to save the country. After each operation we hear repeated State appeals, calling on us to sacrifice our lives for the sake of our country. We see the same images again and again on posters and billboards, and in advertisements. Time flows on. Politicians work hard to drive the scoreboard of the rate of dying ever higher. 

On our dharma-dveepa, no death can take place that is not a natural death. Why do we say so? Because most Sri Lankans are Buddhist, who promise, in the first of the five precepts of Buddhism that they will refrain from taking life. But what actually happens?  This island which the Buddha visited three times, became formally Buddhist after the arrival of Arhat Mahinda on our shores. From that day onwards, the preaching of the dharma became official.

Rivers of blood will continue on our earth, on this land that is the like our Holy Land according to the sacred teachings of the Buddha, until we eradicate terrorism and militarism. It is only we who can call a halt to this.  All politics can do is fan the flames again and again, and drag our people and our country further into sacrifices of more and more blood. It is clear by now that they are not capable of doing anything. We should not allow the Buddha’s preachings, which are two thousand five hundred years in our land, to remain in camouflage. 

Let us once more listen to what the Buddha preached, with consciousness, free of the shadows of race and caste and politics. If we were to at least pay attention to these three verses of the Dhammapada, and if we were to strive to put them into action, we will be able to honour these human forms that we have attained through much exertion and we will be able to bring about peace to our island. 

The three key paintings in this exhibition are three verses of the Dhammapada that are hidden, as if they are yet to be heard.

      Na hi verena verāni – sammantÄ«’dha kudacanam
      Averena ca sammanti – esa dhammo sanantano
      (In this world hatred never ceases by hatred; it ceases by love alone.
      This is an eternal law) – Yamaka Vagga, (5). 

      Sabbe tasanti dandassa – sabbe bhāyanti maccuno
      Attānam upamam katvā – na haneyya na ghātaye
      (All fear punishment; all fear death, comparing oneself with others,
      one should neither kill nor cause to kill) – Danda Vagga, (1). 

      Sabbe tasanti dandassa – sabbesam jivitam piyam
      Attānam upamam katvā – na haneyya na ghātaye
      (All fear punishment; to all life is dear.  Comparing oneself with others,
      one should neither kill nor cause to kill) – Danda Vagga, (2). 

The Dhammapada constitute the footsteps of Buddhist philosophy, as they are the path of the teachings of the Buddha.  Those who travel on the path of the dharma, are those who are suited to attain nirvana. The dharma that was preached by the Buddha is based on material fact.  Therefore, there is always a practical meaning to his teachings. The text that accompanies the Dhammapada, the Dhammapadattha-katha contains the description of each verse and sets out the fact on which the verse is based and the person for whom it is intended.  The Dhammapada was preached in order to help human beings better understand the problems they face in life, to bring them relief and to guide them on the path to Nirvana.

For more articles on July 1983, please click here.

• Black Paintings & Other Works: An exhibition by Chandraguptha Thenuwara
• The transformation of Buddhism in Sri Lanka
• Akon and Buddhism in Sri Lanka
• Akon and Buddhism in Sri Lanka: A Response to Bhikkhu K. Tanchangya
• The Priority Vesak Thought for Action: “Care and Compassion for the Most Needy”

Anoma Rajakaruna shares her photos of people in black and white. Anoma has captured many expressions and many environments. Every photograph speaks differently. As a film-maker, photographer and poet ,Anoma has well captured the many moods of men, women and children around the Island. The exhibition is divided as My story, her story, his story and their stories comprising 34 photographs.

Anoma Rajakaruna’s exhibition of photographs was inaugurated on July 16th 2008 at Alliance Francaise in Colombo by the Ambassador for France in Sri Lanka and Maldives Michel Lummaux. The exhibition will remain open to the public from July 18th-24th  2008 , and the exhibition will be held at Alliance Francaise in Kandy from August 8th-14th 2008.

 

My Story

As a child I walked down the main street of my home town Panadura,

In Southern Sri Lanka, with my mother.

We walked the familiar route doing so many things together,

Going to the railway station to catch a train, going to the fisheries harbour to buy fish,

Going to the weekly fair to get seasonal fruits,

Going to the beach on Sundays to make sand castles,

Going to the library to return a book,

Going shopping to buy a new pair of shoes or

Going to the temple at the end of the street to meet a Buddhist monk, who is a scholar.

On these walks we would drop in at the corner shop or the adjoining pharmacy to say hello to some of our friends.

I remember, Uncle Joe from the pharmacy and a few others from the nearby shops with whom we communicated in a mixture of languages: Sinhalese, a little bit of Tamil and English.

We belonged to different ethnic groups and spoke different languages.

Yet we were friends.

Then a day dawned in July 1983, which changed this familiar routine and landscape completely.

I was in school.

The Hindu temple across the road went up in flames.

Thereafter every building owned by a Tamil in town was caught up in black smoke and red flames.

My teenage self was surrounded by smoke, flames, charred door frames and lifeless half burnt houses.

Days, weeks, months and years passed thereafter.

There was no trace of Uncle Joe and his friends.

The landscape of main street in Panadura had changed.

I grew up.

I met new friends. They were Sinhalese, Tamils, Muslims, Burghers and Malays.

I started traveling. I went to places away from home all across Sri Lanka.

One day, I met a woman in Polonnaruwa who lost all her seven sons.

Two years after that, I met a sculptor in Nikaweratiya. He sculptured statues of Buddha.

I met a woman in Madhu who lost the place she called home 16 times and now lives out of suitcase.

I met people who didn’t have a place called home.

I met people who didn’t like to talk about their original homes because it brought back sad memories.

I met children who were born in temporary shelters.

Some of them have lived in such “temporary” places for a very long time.

Most of them were Tamils.

I have listened to their stories and to many other similar stories.

I have documented their lives during the last 17 years.

It’s 25 years after July 1983.

It’s time for me to share their stores with you.

I never met Uncle Joe again.

“July: Life after 25 years” is my search for him and others who were swept away from their homes and families into strange and often threatening and terrifying new environments and social contexts.

It is also my way of honouring the courage of all these women, men and children who have dared to rebuild their lives in Sri Lanka.

25 oil lamps were lit to commemorate the Black July.

These pots have an ethnicity too.
The clay pots are used by Sinhala people.
The brass pots are used by Tamil people.
They are known as “Sinhala” pots and “Tamil” pots.
Women who fetch water for their families from both communities come together with their pots at the common wells in many villages on the borders of the conflict zone.
They not only share water, they share life too.
 

For more articles on July 1983, please click here. 

• Black Paintings & Other Works: An exhibition by Chandraguptha Thenuwara
• TNA MP Mr. R. Sampanthan remembers the events of July 1983
• Black July – My Story
• ‘Baaldhiya’ or ‘Vaaldhiya’: Two Wor(l)ds Separated by a Consonant
• Memories of a Black Moon – the 1983 riots in Sri Lanka

“We lack road, water, and housing facilities. Our children are unable to attend school regularly as there is no proper transport service. We don’t have any facility and leading the same life even now as same as 18 years ago”.

This is a cry of an Internally Displaced single mother from Jaffna, A. Shahula who chewed betel and shared her agony. She is living with her two kids in Saltern 2 welfare camp in Puttlam.

Most of them are still leading their lives in welfare camps, and lack the normal living standard of a person. A large number of internally displaced persons from Jaffna are living in Thillaiyady, which is called “Little Jaffna”. These Internally Displaced Persons feel that, there is a discrimination between the Internally Displaced Persons from Jaffna and Mannar. They are frustrated about the long delay in distribution of services and goods.

The People’s Revival Front was inaugurated in order to fulfill the needs of the IDPs, who languish in the welfare cam[s for nearly two decades. They say that, they have been cheated by the politicians, and they want a political representation for the Internally Displaced Persons from Jaffna.

“Our people have lost many of their rights. We want to make a difference in their lives and restore their rights. We like to resettle them back in their own places and solve their hardships. These are the main reasons for us to start a new political party. Starting a new  party was a long due, we must have started this party 10 or 15 years ago” says M. M. Kuthoos, the President of People’s Revival Front as a call for prayer was called in the evening.

There were 20,000 Muslims, who got evicted from Jaffna district in 1990. The number and the needs have doubled during  nearly two decades. There are about 15,000 registered voters among the Jaffna Internally Displaced Persons in Puttlam.

The part of the trouble that has developed in Puttlam is between the IDPs and the host community, there aren’t enough jobs and resources for both.

“We are living with a lot of hardships in the welfare camps. There is no job opportunity, rations are not given at regular intervals. We receive the rations after four or five months” lamented S. H. Mansoor, who is running a small grocery shop adjoining his thatched house in Saltern 2 camp.

The members of the host community in Puttlam believe that, the beginning of a new party such as People’s Revival Front is a good move to meet the needs of the Internally Displaced Persons.

“When the minority political parties contest along with the majority political parties, there are injustices such as poll rigging” said  S.R.M.Muzammil, the Chief Trustee of Puttlam Grand Mosque and a member of the host community as her relaxes and supervises in his coconut grove.

Internally Displaced Persons are hopeful that the People’s Revival Party will be able to solve their problems in the future. According to the President of the People’s Revival Front that, they are planning to register it in the near future.

Puttlam is situated on the coastal belt of North Western Province. According to a survey carried out by the District Secretariat of Puttlam, the total population of the district is 8,14,000. Sinhala population is 5,85,000, Muslim population is 1,49,000, and Tamil population is 80,000. There are currently 75,000 Internally Displaced Persons from Northern Province in Puttlam.

• The divide between Muslims and Tamils: Perspective of an IDP
• Feature story: Cries for help from Puttalam
• Forgotten IDPs from the North
• A veteran internally displaced person (IDP)
• Analysis of how Jaffna voted and why the EPDP feels defeated in Sri Lanka’s first post-war elections