King Sasanka – Sri Lankan Writer & Retired Aviation Professional.

The letter below was published in three of the widely read newspapers in Sri Lanka , Sultanate of Oman and in United Arab Emirates in April 2002 and after watching the recent agitations going on in London and other countries by the acolytes of a banned terrorist organization prompted to republish it in my own blog. See how appropriate it is in today’s context too. Sorry guys, your days are numbered………….! Misconceived notion IT IS a common misconception that some ethnic Tamils in Sri Lanka took up arms against the government because of the discriminatory practices by the latter against the former. In truth, there are two types of Tamils in Sri Lanka. One is the Sri Lankan Tamils and the others the Indian Tamils. The latter were brought to the island by the British to work in tea plantations. They comprise 5.6 per cent of the population. On the other hand, the Sri Lankan Tamils, whom the LTTE terrorists claim that they are duty-bound to liberate and are calling for the Eelam, are ...

It is said that, "if there is a will, then there is a way" too. How appropriate, it is in the context of the present situation is Sri Lanka. The bloody war has been dragging on for almost three decades due to lack of (political) will to settle the matter, militarily once and for all. However, with the change of political scenario and the new found will to settle the issue of terrorism militarily, Sri Lanka has achieved great success recently.   The dawn of a new era and the total annihilation of hither to label as the most dedicated, ruthless and invincible (paper) tigers, is just a few days away. But, are we ready for “the Day after” is really a worrying issue for me. I strongly think that we all Sri Lankans have to be prepared, both physically and mentally for that day and we cannot be complacent and Squander this great opportunity now. So let us “Be together for all”.

This letter was published in the Week magazine, published in the sultanate of oman and i think the contents therein are applicable in sri lanka too. thus decided to put it up in my blog.  LETTERS TO THE EDITOR March 18, 2009 Shopping mall failing The norm today is to go green and use only renewable and reusable products. But be aware of the pitfalls and unwarranted troubles one invites by doing that. Recently someone gifted me a reusable jute bag. Since then I have been using it when I go for my weekly shopping to the nearest mall. The mall started selling the same jute bags, but they are only available at the checkouts and customers do not have access to their display location. If you need a bag then you have to request the person who is behind the checkout to give you one. Despite all these precautions, on every single occasion when I have approached the counter, I have been questioned as if I have committed a crime. The queue gets held up, security personnel converge on the scene an...

Human Rights, Democracy, tolerance of other religious believes etc are some of the topics, often we hear when the West or the so-called developed world talk about another country. Some of the big institutes in the so-called developed world, such as The United Nation, Lending Organizations and the European parliament etc are happy to hurl such topics, when discussing an internal affair of another country, especially a poor one. Let us take the issues one by one and see who is right and who is wrong. First tackle the human rights issue. Even up to this moment, many people are being held against their wills in Military camps, without any credible charge being brought to justify their detention. Who indeed was instrumental in killing leaders like Major Thomas Sankara or Patrice Lumumba? The list is long and bloody too. The latest reported case is Binya Mohammed, who was released without being charged after holding and torturing for more than six years in a Military camp. If...

The suicide bomb attack by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Elam (LTTE) in southern town of Matara in Sri Lanka on the day of The Prophet Muhammad’s birthday celebration, tells us two important messages. The first and the most important one is that the Tigers have no respect or tolerance for peoples of other faiths, except theirs only. This was not the first instance; the Tigers have killed innocent peoples of other faiths, during their religious celebration times or desecrated their places of worship. But I am confident that this would be their last. The second message is that there is no truth in their or their acolytes claims that the Tamils are not safe anywhere else except in north of the country. If that is true, then how come a sleeper can wait for it’s pray in a town predominantly Sinhala Buddhist and a southern city like Matara. 

Heroes are born instantly.  Some get due recognition and others fade in to obscurity. When the Captain of the airliner ditched his aircraft safely in the Hudson River, few weeks back, he was transformed instantaneously in to a hero. Indeed, it was a heroic act and he deserves all the credit he gets from media and others. Unfortunately, when the coach driver of the Sri Lankan Cricket team drove his coach to safety amidst gun fire in Lahore recently, he did not even get mentioned in the media. My understanding is that aircraft pilots are taught and trained to glide aircraft without engine power and ditch in water. It is part of their training. But I do not think that anywhere in the world, coach drivers are being trained to drive with deflated tires and that too amidst gun fire. If one puts those two incidents juxtapose, one has performed an act that he was taught and trained to perform successfully and became a hero.  The other too has successfully performed an act th...

What happened in Lahore Pakistan this morning was despicable and shocking but it was something that was expected to happen sooner or later. Pakistan has been a friend of Sri Lanka, politically and sportingly for many years. We all remember their support given, during the 1996 World cup cricket tournament times. However, not that we were concerned about some issues going on there, but we were like a hapless but concerned fellow watching his good old friend going on a destructive path. The predicament, our good old is in now, reminds me of an old Sinhalese saying that says “when you lie down with dogs, you get up with fleas”.