{"id":56357,"date":"2021-01-16T07:56:43","date_gmt":"2021-01-16T07:56:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/?p=56357"},"modified":"2021-01-16T07:56:43","modified_gmt":"2021-01-16T07:56:43","slug":"illegal-clearing-of-attidiya-sanctuary-with-powerful-political-patronage-by-piyumi-fonseka","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/illegal-clearing-of-attidiya-sanctuary-with-powerful-political-patronage-by-piyumi-fonseka\/","title":{"rendered":"Illegal clearing of Attidiya Sanctuary with powerful political patronage-by Piyumi Fonseka"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Illegal clearing of Attidiya Sanctuary with powerful political patronage-by Piyumi Fonseka<\/span><\/h1>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-56358 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Illegal-clearing-of-Attidiya-Sanctuary.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"450\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #800000;\"><strong><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\">Source:<\/span><\/strong><\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><a style=\"color: #000000; font-size: 20px;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.dailymirror.lk\/news-features\/Illegal-clearing-of-Attidiya-Sanctuary-with-powerful-political-patronage\/131-203715\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Dailymirror<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;\"><strong><big>The political hand is so powerful that they even managed to prevent a major television channel from reporting this issue<\/big><\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;\"><strong><big>Violating the 30-meter condition, there is not even a 3-meter gap left between the canal reservation and an illegally put up wire fence demarcating the land for the construction purposes<\/big><\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;\"><strong><big>Sahanoda Foundation is a charitable organization formed by well- known businessman Bandula Weerawardana and Ven. Haputale Pannarama Thera<\/big><\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;\"><strong><big>The WLCD is currently under pressure to issue a letter, allowing the parties to go ahead with the construction and the unauthorized filling<\/big><\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\"><strong>Environmental destruction under political patronage is not new in Sri Lanka. Although the bio-diverse wetland in Bellanwila-Attidiya is beyond measure, and officially protected since 1990 as a bird sanctuary, it appears that its protected status is no longer sufficient. Violating conditions and guidelines imposed by the Wild Life Conservation Department (WLCD), a private party backed by a powerful political hand has cleared and filled a part of land belonging to the Attidiya sanctuary.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">The revelations were unearthed in an investigation by Daily Mirror Eye, followin<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-56359 alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Piyumi-Fonseka.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"250\" height=\"207\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"color: #000000; font-size: 20px; text-align: justify;\">g complaints from environmentalists who did not want to be named in fear of ongoing political intimidation. Political power coming from government higher-ups have so far been more effective than the orders and recommendations that have been issued to prevent this unauthorized clearing and filling.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #ff0000;\"><strong>Who, When and Where<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-56360 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Illegal-clearing-of-Attidiya-Sanctuary-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"473\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">This particular block of land in extent of 0.7 hectares is bounded on the East by a reservation abutting a canal named Thel Ela located in the Attidiya bird sanctuary. The most important fact is that this land is adjacent to another land at No.28, D.S. Kahawita Mawatha in Attidiya &#8212; owned by a proprietor the late D.S. Kahawita, who lived at the same address \u2013 it was later transferred to Sri Lanka Public Trustee.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">The Public Trustee\u2019s Department had then transferred this land to the \u201cSahanoda Foundation\u201d to construct a home for elders where the Sahana Udaya Elders Retreat Home is now located.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Sahanoda Foundation is a charitable organization formed in 1992 by well-known businessman Bandula Weerawardana and Ven. Haputale Pannarama Thera. Another startling revelation is that businessman Weerawardana whose name has been linked to several powerful politicians had in 2017 been arrested and remanded for a multi-million international financial fraud connected to the Far Eastern International Bank in Taiwan.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Leaving that aspect aside, the parties led by Pannarama Thera had plans to build a \u2018training college\u2019 in the questionable land next to the elders home. Based on their request, The Wildlife Conservation Department (WLCD) has given them the green light to go ahead with the construction based on the fact that the land is a private land despite it being located within the boundary of the sanctuary.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #ff0000;\"><big><strong>How WLCD conditions have been violated\u00a0<\/strong><\/big><\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-56361 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/How-WLCD-conditions-have-been-violated.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"717\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>Most of the six conditions have been violated and the current situation has posed a threat to the sanctuary which is rich in marshy lands and water bodies with a large number of terrestrial and aquatic habitats.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">The green light, given by the then WLCD Director General W.A.D.A. Wijesooriya in a letter dated September 2009 has specifically mentioned six conditions.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Most of the six conditions have been violated and the current situation has posed a threat to the sanctuary which is rich in marshy lands and water bodies with a large number of terrestrial and aquatic habitats.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">The third condition specifies that the construction process needs to be carried out under the supervision of WLCD officers and the officers need to be allowed to enter the premises whenever it is necessary.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">During the Daily Mirror Eye investigation, it was revealed that Wildlife range officers have not been allowed into the land when they requested permission to observe the clearing and filling activities which ultimately resulted in the constructors violating the fifth condition as well.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">The fifth condition categorically states that no constructional activity is allowed within a 30-meter gap from the Thel Ela canal reservation and that a 30-meter area has to be protected by planting trees such as bamboo, kumbuk and mee. However, the current situation is such that there is not even a 3-meter gap between the canal reservation and a wire fence which has been installed, illegally demarcating the land for construction purposes.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><big><strong>Why WLCD is under political pressure<\/strong><\/big><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">It is disappointing to learn that the Wildlife Conservation Department (WLCD) has undergone much public criticism over the political interference and pressure which their officials have gone through over time when fulfilling their duties towards protecting flora and fauna in Sri Lanka.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Attempts to get the unauthorized filling of this land stopped have fallen on deaf ears, because a political family which is currently in power is backing those responsible for the violation. The political hand is so powerful that they even managed to prevent a major television channel from reporting on this issue.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">It is also learned that the WLCD is currently under more pressure to issue another letter, permitting the parties to go ahead with the construction and unauthorized land filling. If that happens, it will be similar to a government department responsible for maintaining nature reserves and wildlife habitats in the country granting official approval to cause environmental destruction.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Last month, another environmentalist had filed a complaint (Ref. No:4814) with the WLCD against the illegal filling of the Thel Ela reservation. So far, there has been no meaningful action taken by the WLCD with regard to the complaint or the case.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">The current Director General is not even aware of any complaint or any problematic situation with regard to this Kahawita land. When the Daily Mirror inquired from DG Chandana Sooriyanbandara, he said; \u201cusually such issues reach my office only if regional wildlife officers cannot handle them. So far I am not aware of any such issues\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #ff0000;\"><big><strong>How serious is the damage to the sanctuary<\/strong><\/big><\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-56362 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Illegal-clearing-of-Attidiya-Sanctuary-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"337\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\"><strong>Violating the 30-meter condition, there is not even a 3-meter gap left between the canal reservation and an illegally put up wire fence demarcating the land for the construction purposes.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\"><big>Unless this illegal act is prevented immediately, it could pose several environmental issues in the days to come<\/big><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote><p><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\"><strong><big>Although some people are aware of this unauthorized act, no one is objecting as a powerful political family is backing the monk<\/big><\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote><p><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\"><big>Most of the environmental problems are caused by the ineffectiveness of the supervision by the government itself<\/big><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Attidiya Sanctuary is home to several species of aquatic birds, many varieties of endemic fish and a host of amphibious creatures ranging from frogs to crocodiles. An environmentalist on the basis of anonymity told Daily Mirror that though the filling of this particular land is currently on hold, damage has already been done by those who filled the land.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">\u201cUnless this illegal act is prevented immediately, it could pose several environmental issues in the days to come. Although some people are aware of this unauthorized act, no one is objecting because the powerful political family is backing the monk. Needless to say that most of the environmental problems are caused by the ineffectiveness in the supervision by the government itself,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">The environmentalist then explained the importance of protecting wetlands. \u201cThe wetlands supply crucial human and animal needs such as drinking water, protein production, water purification, wildlife habitat, and flood water storage.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">As specified in the Ramsar Convention, wetlands are among the most diverse and productive ecosystems which provide essential services and supply all our fresh water. The convention was negotiated in the 1960s by countries and non-governmental organizations concerned about the increasing loss and degradation of wetland habitat.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/rSotN3ZA9EA\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><\/iframe><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Illegal clearing of Attidiya Sanctuary with powerful political patronage-by Piyumi Fonseka Source:Dailymirror The political hand is so powerful that they even managed to prevent a major television channel from reporting this issue Violating the 30-meter condition, there is not even a 3-meter gap left between the canal reservation and an illegally put up wire fence [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":56358,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"aside","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[32098,32099],"class_list":{"0":"post-56357","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-aside","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-articles","8":"tag-the-sahana-udaya-elders-retreat-home","9":"tag-the-wild-life-conservation-department","10":"post_format-post-format-aside"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v25.7.1 (Yoast SEO v25.9) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Illegal clearing of Attidiya Sanctuary with powerful political patronage-by Piyumi Fonseka<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The political hand is so powerful that they even managed to prevent a major television channel from reporting this issue\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, 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