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| Sunday, 27 July 2003 |
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Reign forest Sel Lipi by Gotabhaya Swasthi Shree! Thus says his sacred Majesty, the gracious Great King, glorious Chakravarthi, King of the Kings of Maya, Pihiti and Ruhuna, Mahoora of the Vanniala-aeththo and ruler of all lands from Yapapatuna to Sampanthota: It has come to the notice of the Maha Wasala that certain unsavoury practices are coming to light in the jungle abhayabhoomiyas of this resplendent isle. It seems that a certain vessapathi samoohaya is building an eating hall at Paathalangala in the Yaala abayabhoomiya, and that it is excavating the sand of the sacred Menik River for its construction. Furthermore, the dwelling at Buttuwa is being repaired using palu trees, of 2 riyan and more in girth, which have been felled within the protected forest area. These are just a few instances of depredations against the ruk devathaas, the spirits that dwell in these protected groves. The legions of ruk devathaas are continually fearful as the vessapathis of logs mow down with abandon the trees in the forests of this land, even in the Sinharaja adaviya. Our manthris and korales appear to have lost the will even to defend that which is left of the verdant jungle that once throve over the greater part of the heaven-like land. But now, it is said, the god-like korales of Amerikaawa are coming to our aid. Their 105th Sangaayanaawa made a law, the 214th of that convocation, whereby the jungles of poor but hot countries will be administered by their representatives, to be paid for by repayments for the debt owed by those countries. Accordingly, our ruk (tree) manthri has appointed a sabaawa to go into the question and to write a suitable law to accommodate the reign of Amerikaawa over the forests of Sinharaja, of the Malayarata, of Namunukula and of Matale. Of course, there are those who will always oppose any action at all by the ruk manthri. They say that the vessapathis of Amerikaawa will be able to use this law to harvest the herbs and roots found in these jungles, and perhaps fell the trees as well. They complain that this law will lead to a loss of our sovereignty over our rain forests. But what is to be done? On the one hand the ruk devathas watch helplessly while vessapathis chop down their dwellings while, on the other, the citizens of this dhammadweepa watch helplessly as the debts that they and their progeny have accumulated rise into thousands of kotis of kahapanas. Surely, the law of hethu pala vaadhaya, of cause and effect, shows that the only means of escaping from this trap is by means of this law made by Amerikaawa? The fact that the value of the plants and the knowledge hidden within these forests is perhaps many thousands of kotis of kahapanas (perhaps as uncountable as the devas in the Thusitha heaven and the bambalova), while we are trading our rights over them for 130 lakhs of the kahapanas of Amerikaawa, is of no consequence. The argument that the Chakravarthi of Amerikaawa has not signed his name to the treaty for the protection of nature drawn up in the city of Kyotowa, in Japaanaya, is also irrelevant. When we see that our manthris and korales, to mention nothing of the lekams, are incapable of protecting our forest heritage, why should we not hand it over to Amerikaawa to defend for us? It is obvious to those with eyes to see that we do not reign over our rain forests as it is. Swasthi Shree! This rock edict is made on this day of Ravi of the month of Esala of the year of the Saka Era 1930. |
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