anyways, I am glad I have groudviews to turn to when in need of somewhat credible information.. Thanks groundviews and the readership!!! keep up the good work.. love the concept of citizen journalism..

May God bless our country…

Island reportage is a joke now, with perhaps a few exceptions.
Daily Mirror is better, but it too has been a bit namby pamby seemingly: for example the FT’s editorial today seems to believe the masses’ intention was correctly reflected in this election and that the charges of nepotism and so on are ill founded. Huh, what? Perhaps Daily Mirror is becoming afraid too; anyways it is better than Island.

Search for CMEV’s blog too, and CPA.

As for “supporters to the hilt” of Fonseka, they might want to think whether they honestly believe he’s a saint, or if he’s simply the lesser of atwo evils. Don’t get carried away while correctly supporting the smaller, weaker, less charismatic and less dangerous evil choice.

About what you said regarding the Election Commissioner… FYI, MTV news showed, when a foreign journalist asked govt. chappies about where some chappy called Basil is now, he got a tongue lashing and was told – in effect – that you foreigners have no right to come to our country and ask us what Basil is doing, how dare you ask such things, and so on; and he was told that Basil is sleeping! The govt chappy was very upset at the question and very taken aback and anxious and – to my eyes – looked like a guilty child trying to hide something : WHY, I ask? You decide what set of circumstances this would support such a reaction.

One more relevant piece of information: when the Election Commissioner came on TV, he was almost stammering, and he was clearly distraught unlike his usual self and seemed to have been under great stress and pressure – and in my eyes, seemingly fear- in the previous few hours. You decide what that suggests, together with the fact that he clearly said that his instructions were not carried out and that he couldn’t even protect the ballot boxes (something like that, I may be mistaken) and YET he seemed not to do anything about it. I wonder why not? What was he doing – or being done to him – in the previous several hours? Perhaps we’ll be told that he was also sleeping, perhaps he had had nightmares in which this Basil chappy figured?

Moreover, if indeed a tourist hotel with lots of foreigners was brazenly and confidently surrounded by military, such as to cause some people to feel deeply afraid and intimidated, and (as BBC reports) even caused a foreigner ambassador to say that there was a tense climate, then, if (hypothetically) some election officials and vote counters were indeed attacked (see also CMEV/Pakiasothy’s statement) as you heard, do you think that these facts would actually come to light. Do you think people (the aforesaid – purported – victims) would dare to mention such facts? I think not, but then we would never know if it happened or not, no? In that case, what is the only way to at least INFER the veracity of such facts: Answer: observe whether there’s any disparity or weirdness in election results which tallies with the truth of such facts. Perhaps a non-naive person who is well sighted to clearly see both the forest and the trees (and the Basil Leaves and Goats/Gotas and Hinds “dictating” in the paradisial forest) and if therefore one is indeed able to conclude that such facts do support such purported incidents, then I suggest that one should be afraid, very afraid, and shut one’s mouth and suck up big time to the charismatic and despotic regime that has been able to fool so many fairly intelligent people. And don’t write truthful comments here!

quote: “Can someone please explain to me what is going on?”
I think a small percentage of the population can explain. However they probably won’t; and if they do explain to you during the next 6 years, then, in the words of “‘Allo ‘Allo”:
“ALLO ALLO….Listen very carefully, [they] will say zis only once …”, because they probably won’t be in any condition to repeat it a second time…

I can tell you that the Island has been supporting the UPFA Government for quite sometime now. The Island supported the war and has continued to support the Rajapakse administration. So naturally the Editorial would say all is well.
Try the Daily Mirror it gives a better picture.

How can you know that he is hiding there. If you have faced threats of that degree, how would you react ?

Guy:

I am not sure, that oppotion will be respected by MR adminsitation any more. I believe strong oppotion should e there in a good democratic rule.

sinhala_voice… “accept the peoples’ choice…”… yes I agree: the peoples’ choice. I’m still waiting for the PEOPLES’ choice, as are a few other unblinded citizens.
“work with Mahinda to improve Sri Lanka”; yes I agree: and the first thing to do for such improvement is to throw out the accumulated garbage … but it seems he/it is staying another 6 years instead of throwing himself out…