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HomeWorldColourful lanterns, a modern take on a Buddha painting at the GotaGoGama...

Colourful lanterns, a modern take on a Buddha painting at the GotaGoGama village on Vesak 

Volunteers on site said there was a day of activities planned which included a protest, pirith chanting, an open meeting of groups and almsgiving at the Youth Centre

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Colombo: It takes strips of bamboo, rope, tissue, and gum to make a lantern for the Vesak festival – a popular Buddhist festival that commemorates the birth, death, and enlightenment of the Buddha.

The festival comes days after Sri Lanka witnessed violent protests which saw eight people dead and several injured.

The calmness at the site on Sunday was in contrast to the mayhem on May 9 when goons allegedly egged on by the ruling party attacked protestors leading to chaos and loss of property.

Reports on Sunday revealed that 230 people had been arrested pertaining to over 700 violent incidents including the burning of houses that was reported in the country. Though Vesak may have brought some calm, volunteers’ demand on Sunday remained the same: President Gotabaya Rajapaksa must exit office and abolish executive presidency.

Subhashini Myilvaganam, a 21-year-old Sri Lankan Tamil who works as a garment supervisor in a shop, joined the ‘GotaGoGama’ protests three days after people started gathering in April. On Sunday, Subhashini, her husband, and a friend were making lanterns of different shapes and colours.

They had been at it since 7.30 AM, she told The Print. “We live in a tent on the site, and we don’t intend to leave till Gota leaves office,” she said. As for Ranil Wickremesinghe, the new Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, she didn’t have much hope. “Anyone who comes will do the same job as the ones before: they will indulge in corruption. They won’t help the poor.”

By 11.30 AM on Sunday, strings of lanterns had either been strung high above peoples’ heads or were lying in a line on the ground ready to be pulled up to rock haphazardly in the wind. Volunteers on site said there was a day of activities planned which included a protest, pirith chanting, an open meeting of groups and almsgiving at the Youth Centre.

“The main thing about Vesak is it is giving away a share to the people. In the whole country, on Vesak, people give ‘dhanasala’ or charity,” a nun from a Colombo-based convent told The Print. “You’d see Buddhist monks, Catholic priests, Muslim religious heads, people from different faiths are here to show support to the youth. It gives them strength,” she said.

The event to distribute alms was arranged by 30-year-old Manish Galappaththi, a librarian. | Photo: Sowmiya Ashok | ThePrint
The event to distribute alms was arranged by 30-year-old Manish Galappaththi, a librarian. | Photo: Sowmiya Ashok | ThePrint

It was 30-year-old Manish Galappaththi, a librarian, who organised the almsgiving. “We have also organised rice packets to give away to whoever stops by,” he said. Others, elsewhere in the protest site, were distributing bananas, sweet buns, and water bottles.

Manish’s group of friends included Yohan, Piyuni and Nithyasree, who all launched into explaining Piyuni’s cast on her left hand. “She got injured in the May 9 attacks. We think she was targeted since some goons came looking for her, asked for her and attacked her,” said Yohan Chandrasekaran. “It was because she had come up with a very interesting chant during the protests, which the government didn’t like,” he said.


Also read: ‘Govt did not see this coming’ — protestors at Colombo’s ‘Gota Go Gama’ talk of public support


Discontent on the streets

 Elsewhere Angelo Kulasuriya, a former cop and now a graphic designer, was hanging out with artist Chatharanga as the latter made bold strokes with a paintbrush on a large rectangular canvas. “Sri Lanka has seen many corrupt Buddhist priests who are selling Buddhism in the name of politics. So, what he (artist) is drawing here is a ‘new reality’, a modern version, where he takes the popular Buddhist drawings and imagines what will happen to these corrupt priests if Buddha really comes back to Sri Lanka at this moment,” Angelo told The Print. “I am sure they are all going to run,” he laughed.

The men, like many others, have camped out on the site for over a month and won’t leave till “Gota Goes Home”. Angelo said that he was in touch with many of his former colleagues in the police force. “They think and feel the same as us protestors and they are on our side but of course, they won’t be able to show their support openly. I left the force because I couldn’t live like that every day,” he said.

Young Buddhist monks at the youth centre. | Photo: Sowmiya Ashok | ThePrint
Young Buddhist monks at the youth centre. | Photo: Sowmiya Ashok | ThePrint

Back at the youth centre, where a line of Buddhist monks sat eating, Manish and his friends launched into a conversation about the new Prime Minister. “I don’t know if he is good or bad for Sri Lanka but he has definitely come to save the (Rajapaksa) family,” said Yohan. “There is a travel ban to stop Mahinda from fleeing the country and Ranil has come to help them out.”

Nityashree, who did not wish to reveal her second name, pitched in to point out how racist the ruling regime has been: “Sri Lanka is always referred to as the land of Ravana. Honestly, he is a gentleman when compared to this government.”

On the hill in front of the Shangri-la Hotel, stood little kids in a row, holding up signs: “Protect our future.”

(Edited by: Manoj Ramachandran)


Also readRajapaksas brought own ruin. India knows it must support Sri Lankans now, not just the govt


 

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