Films
December 5 & 6
‘Les Brodeuses’ by Eléonore Faucher (88 min – 2003) in French with
English subtitles at the Alliance Française – 3.00/6.30 pm
December 8
‘All that Jazz’ by Bob Fosse (123 min – 1979) at the Vibhavi Academy –
3.00pm
Exhibitions
December 3
An exhibition of paintings by Suwinitha de Silva at the Lionel Wendt Art
Gallery
December 3
An exhibition of paintings by Shiromi Karunaratne, Subhashi Bugahewatta,
Sonali Kodithuwakku at the Harold Peris Gallery
Till December 8
‘Pruned’ an exhibition of charcoal drawings by Kingsley Gunatillake at
the Auditorium of Alliance Française
December 8 - 10
An exhibition of paintings by Anushka Jayasekera at the Harold Peris
Gallery
December 8 - 10
An exhibition of paintings by Janake Kosta at the Harold Peris Gallery
Concerts
December 5
Concert by Achievers at the Russian Centre – 4.30pm
December 8
Concert by ABC School at the Russian Centre – 6.00pm
***
Isipathana AGM
The Annual General Meeting of Isipathana College Old Boys’
Association will be held on December 3 (today) at 9.30 am at the College
Hall. All old boys are invited.
***
Please help Amadi
Baby K.A. Amadi Numaya Gunathileke (7 months) of Dematagahawela,
Narammala,is suffering from a profound hearing loss. The only treatment
available, a cochlear implant, to be done by the Consultant ENT Surgeon,
Dr.T.R.C.Ruberu at Durdans Hospital, Colombo 3, costs around Rs.
2,650,000.00 (2.65million). An account for her has been opened at
People’s Bank, Narammala – A/C No: 082-209-204056-5.
***
Pre-schools for Ranna
MP for Hambantota and Chairman, Janasuwaya Development Foundation,
Sajith Premadasa, has embarked on a wide ranging program to uplift and
enhance the infrastructure and livelihoods of the various communities of
Hambantota district.
Shown above is the inauguration of a pre-school built at a cost of
Rs.1.2 million at Wadigala village in the Ranna area of Tangalle
division of the Hambantota district. Presently nearly 200 such schools
have been newly constructed on behalf of the pre-school children of
Hambantota district.
***
French DJ night
French DJ night will be held on December 9 at the H2O. Tickets will
be available at the entrance.
***
‘Gateway College carnival 2006’
‘Gateway College carnival 2006’ will be held on December 8, 9 and 10
from 6.00pm onwards at the Race Course Grounds, Colombo 7. The three
evenings will feature BNS, Sirasa Super Stars, Shehan, Amila, Malith
with the Jayantha Rathnayake Band, Sunil Perera, Rajiv & Clan.
***
Merci Lanka Foundation Colombo office opens
Chairman, Centre for Islamic Studies (CIS), M. C. M. Zarook declared
open the Merci Lanka Foundation Colombo office at the CIS Building,
Wellawatte. Former DGM, BOC, Aroos Liyawdeen and Chairman, Merci Lanka
Foundation and Chairman and Managing Director, Messrs Cadillac Garments
Ltd, Alhaj. M. Wazeer also participated.
Addressing the gathering on the occasion, Mr. Zarook mentioned that the
micro credit scheme that Merci Lanka was indulging in for the benefit of
the poor and the downtrodden was a brainchild of Prof. Mohamed Yoonus of
Bangladesh.
***
Appreciation ceremony for Jana Sevana families
A special appreciation ceremony for the householder families of the
Jana Sevana accelerated programme was held at the head office of the
National Housing Development Authority (NHDA) on November 17 with the
commemoration of the 1st anniversary of President Mahinda Rajapaksa.
Minister of Housing & Construction, Mrs. Ferial Ashroff, handing over
the gift package to a householder who constructed the house in the
remote village in Anamaduwa electorate. Deputy Minister of Housing &
Construction, Gunaratne Weerakoon, Acting Chairman, NHDA, Dayananda
Wijesinghe, and Chairman, Condominium Management Authority, Abdul Kalam,
were also present.
***
Shipping Awards
Nuwan Peiris, Attorney-at-Law, received the prestigious ARMAC Award
for obtaining the highest marks in the world for Port Agency at the
Shipping Award Ceremony for the World Prize Winners of The Institute of
Chartered Shipbrokers UK on September 28 at the Trinity House, London.
The chief guest for the occasion was the president of Baltic and
International Maritime Council (BIMCO), Knud Pontoppidan. Secretary
General Emeritus of the International Maritime Organization, William ‘O’
Neil also participated.
***
The Singapore Story
Senior Sri Lankan Foreign Service officer and Director General, East
Asia & Pacific Division, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ranjith
Gunaratna,presented the first copy of the Sinhalese translation of the
‘Singapore Story’ to Minister Janaka Bandara Tennakoon on November 11 at
Bandaranaike Center for International Studies in Colombo.
The guests seated from left to right at the head table are First Sri
Lankan Envoy to Singapore, Stanley Jayaweera, Governor, Central Bank,
Ajith Nivard Cabraal, Group General Manager, Prima Sri Lanka, Tan Ben
Chuan.
***
‘Spirit of Sunera’
The Sunera Foundation, a government approved charity that focuses on
working alongside people with disabilities in Sri Lanka will hold a
thought provoking photo exhibition titled ‘Spirit of Sunera’ that will
feature their work with people with disabilities in Sri Lanka at the
Ladies’ College on December 8.
***
Book launch
‘Jaffna and Colombo, A Century of Relationships in 3 Plays’ is the
intriguing title of a book that was released on December 2, at the
Bandaranaike Centre for International Studies, BMICH.
The book, published by Vijitha Yapa Publications, contains E. F. C.
Ludowyk’s ‘He Comes From Jaffna’ and two plays by Ernest Macintyre,
‘Rasanayagam’s Last Riot’ and ‘He Still Comes From Jaffna.’
The publishing of these plays is important at this stage of our history.
Ludowyk started the history of English theatre in this country and
Macintyre has made an important contribution to the contemporary
literature scene in Sri Lanka.
***
Vivian French at the BC
On Monday, December 11 at 4.30 p.m. the British Council (Colombo),
will present its first ever KIDZ Book Buzz featuring leading UK
children’s author and storyteller Vivian French. If you are between 6-11
years and think literature and books are boring, then think again-
Vivian is coming to change your mind!
***
Christmas happenings
Christmas Sing Along 2006
The Christmas Sing Along 2006 organised by the Old Boys Union of St.
Peter’s College, Colombo 4, will be held on Saturday December 9, from
7:30pm onwards at the college gym.
This event is an annual gathering to enable the Peterite community,
their families and friends to come together in a spirit of fellowship
and spread a little Christmas cheer to society during the season.
This year the show will feature the popular band Kings and compered by
Mr. Priya Peiris. The show will also have many games and surprises for
the young and old. Special appearance by Santa, plus food & beverage
stalls.
Tickets are priced at Rs. 300/= is available at the college swimming
pool and gym.
***
Voices in Praise to perform
Voices in Praise (VIP) choir will for the third consecutive year
perform in Colombo at the Salvation Army, Colombo Central Church ,Sir
James Peiris Mawatha, Colombo 2, on December 4 at 6 pm.
Anglican Bishop of Kurunegala, Rt. Rev. Kumara Illangasinghe, and his
wife Dr. Lakmini Illangasinghe, will be the chief guests.
The choir, popularly known as ‘VIP Choir’, is perhaps the only choir
that performs in all three languages. The choir will also sing chorales
composed by Mozart and Bach along with other Sinhala and Tamil lyrics.
Veteran pop queen, Mariazelle Goonetilleke, will be the guest artiste
while Niroshinie Nayagam will compere the concert. Entrance is free.
***
Enchanted Christmas
December, in its tinsel clad, pine scented, mistletoe dangling glory,
is upon us once again and the Senior School Choir of The British School
in Colombo prepares to present ‘Enchanted Christmas’ in its school
auditorium on December 11 at 7:30 p.m. Proceeds from ticket sales will
go to the Ceylon School for the Deaf and Blind, a charity that has long
been associated with The British School and its choir. Tickets will be
priced at Rs. 300 and available at the Reception of The British School
in Colombo, 63 Elvitigala Mawatha Colombo 8.
***
Symphony Christmas Concert
The Symphony Orchestra of Sri Lanka (SOSL), Asia’s pioneering
Symphony Orchestra conducted by Prof. Ajith Abeysekera will be on stage
at Ladies’ College in Colombo, presenting its Annual Subscription
Concert on December 8.
The concert will feature a host of talented musicians, in its effort to
add variety to the evening of music that would give the audience a
feeling of Christmas.
***
Capella group Quink in Colombo
The widely acclaimed capella group Quink – a Dutch band of five
professional singers, comprising Mariët Kaasschieter, Mariette Oelderrik,
Elsbeth Gerritsen, Harry van Berne and Kees Jan de Koning will perform
in Colombo on Tuesday December 5, at 7pm at the British School
auditorium. The ensemble is being sponsored by the British School in
Colombo, the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Commercial Bank
of Ceylon and MIT Cargo (Pvt) Ltd.
Tickets are available at the British School, Elvitigala highway, from
Monday to Friday between 8am to 5pm.
***
Appreciation
An educationist and patriot par excellence
November 1, 2006, marked the 39th death anniversary of Mr. L.H.
Mettananda, an educationist, humanist, nationalist and Buddhist
revivalist. Even after 39 long years, his very name brings about a deep
feeling of reverence for this exemplary ‘Lanka Puthra’.
Lokusatu Hewa Mettananda was born on March 19, 1894 at Kaluwadumulla,
Ambalangoda, as the eldest son of L.H.Kovies De Silva, a businessman,
and Weerasooriya Karalinahamy. He had four brothers and one sister. He
had his primary education at Dharmasoka College, Ambalangoda, his
secondary education at Richmond College,Galle, where he had a
distinguished academic record. In 1912 he passed the Cambridge Senior
Examination and in 1913 he successfully completed the London
Matriculation examination. During the period 1914-1915 he studied at the
Teacher’s Training College-Colombo.
In July 1930, he obtained the Diploma in Education from the London Day
Training College and continued to study for a Masters’ Degree in
Education. In between these years he joined the tutorial staff of Sri
Sumangala Boy’s School,Panadura, in 1912 and served as an assistant
teacher at Holy Cross College-Kalutara during the years 1916-1918. He
joined Ananda College as an assistant teacher in 1919 and the Buddhist
Theosophical Society(BTS) selected him to become the first principal at
Nalanda Vidyalaya in 1923, which was a new school.
In 1923 Mr. Mettananda married Celia, daughter of Mudliyar J.De
S.Wickremesooriya. They had three sons and two daughters all of whom
have done justice to their late father by qualifying academically and
becoming useful citizens of Sri Lanka.
Those who knew Mr. Mettananda well respected him as a man who had five
basic principles which guided him through life. They were (1) never
sought personal gains; (2)never amassed unnecessary wealth; (3) never
made irresponsible statements; (4) always safeguarded democracy; (5)
simple life style.
It could be said of Mr. Mettananda, that his first love was education.
It is evident from documents available, to see how much time and energy
he spent in each school he worked, to find ways and means of
implementing an environment which was conducive for children to gain
maximum benefits to widen their horizons in knowledge, sports, service
to others during their school life. Discipline was absolutely essential
and he took great pains to instill discipline in the students at every
school he worked.
During the period he was acting principal of Ananda College (1932-1936)
and principal (1945-1955), he improved the standard of education and the
curriculum to be practical and constructive. Instead of punishing
students for misdeeds, he taught them to be responsible and
self-reliant. He was of the strong opinion that children must be
conversant in both Sinhala and Tamil and therefore, made them compulsory
subjects for grades 1 and 2 at Ananda College. He was also of the
opinion that English must be taught to students for them to be able to
use it fluently in later life, when they go out into society and the
world at large. He himself taught Latin and English for four years at
Ananda College.
Under him, education was based on Buddhist traditions and the mother
tongue was used as the medium of instruction. He introduced handicrafts
and gardening as subjects and also introduced vocational training
subjects such as carpentry, book binding and iron works to enable
students to appreciate manual work and vocational education.
Mr. Mettananda was closely associated with Ven. Balangoda Ananda Maithri
Thera (who was on the staff of Ananda College), Ven. Madihe Pannaseeha
Thera and Ven. Henpitigedera Gnanaseeha Thera who all worked together to
bring about an awareness among the Buddhist population of this country
and helped to bring about a change in the discriminatory treatment meted
out to Sinhalese Buddhists in the post-independent era of the late Mr.
D.S.Senanayake and other leaders thereafter. The Buddhist revival work
commenced by Anagarika Dharmapala continued even after his untimely
death, thanks to personalities like Mr. Mettananda, Mr. P de S Kularatne,
Mr. G.P.Malalasekera and many others. He was instrumental in forming the
‘Bauddha Jatika Balavegaya’ to champion this cause and also initiated
the ‘Temperance Movement’ in this country.
He was elected President of All Ceylon Buddhist Congress (ACBC) at the
AGM held in Galle in 1935. In his inaugural presidential address he
reportedly stated that it was of paramount importance to steer education
based on Buddhist principles. He was of the opinion that poverty and
illiteracy were the main causes of crime and therefore, it was important
to remove these two evils from our society. By some, he was labeled as a
‘religious fanatic’ purely because he stood his ground on Sinhala
Buddhist issues.
It was he who first demanded that the 5th Clause in the Kandyan
Convention of 1815 on protection being given to Buddhism be included in
the Constitution. He demanded that the proclamation of 21st November
1818 regarding temple lands be implemented. He also demanded that
Article 29(2) of the 1947 Constitution be abolished. He also requested
the government of the time, to publish the Tripitaka in Sinhala.
Mr. Mettananda never had aspirations to enter active politics but
whenever there was any national crisis, he would invariably get
involved. His sole mission in life one could say, was to ensure that a
Sinhala Buddhist awareness was initiated which would eventually bring
about the necessary changes.
In 1934 Mr. Mettananda played a very active role in the Anti-Malaria
campaign.
In 1956 when the late Mr. S.W.R.D.Bandaranaike was planning to come
forward to contest the elections, Mr. Mettananda and those who worked on
the issue of gaining the rightful place for Sinhala Buddhists decided to
meet him and discuss matters.
It takes a man of extreme commitment, to go to the lengths that Mr.
Mettananda ventured for the sake of the country and her people. Let us
hope that in the not too distant future, there will come a time when Sri
Lankans will be proud of their identity and their culture. Let us hope
that the late Mr. Mettananda’s efforts have not been in vain!
Ramani D.Wickramaratne |
