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Last Updated : 2024-05-10 08:00:00
18 August 2023 11:55 pm - 18 - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
Opposition MPs seem to be holding different ideas on the recent remarks made by President Ranil Wickremesinghe that Sri Lankan children will have to learn Hindi and Chinese in the future.
An MP who represents one of the parties which back SJB told the Daily Mirror that the remark made by the President correctly reflected his policy of thinking out of the box.
“The President is correct in what he said about the children having to learn Hindi and Chinese in the future. It reflects his out-of-the-box thinking,” the MP who did not wish to be named said.
“However the issue is the implementation. It is not clear whether there are enough people to back him on implementing various projects which go in line with out-of-the-box thinking,” he added.
SJB MP S. M. Marikar on Thursday said the President’s remark was an indication that national assets were to be sold to China and India.
“The remark made by the President at Anula Vidyalaya Prize giving is grave as the hidden message is that an effort is made to sell assets to China and India. Earlier foreign investors came to Sri Lanka making offers but now the opposite is happening as Government is offering assets to foreign investors,” he told a briefing on Thursday
MP Eran Wickramaratne, who also commented said the President’s statement was rational.
“The World economy is growing and India and China are developing as giant economies while Asia becoming a Centre where development is concerned. Therefore Sri Lankan children who learn Chinese and Hindi languages will have an advantage in the given circumstances. However, learning English should also be given prominence.
MP Patali Champika Ranawaka also said the comment made by President is correct. “Chinese is a Cynic core language. Languages spoken in several countries in the Asian region are connected to Mandarin and therefore it is a cynic core language. China is also a giant economy. Therefore learning the Chinese language will help from an economic point of view as well. India is also close to Sri Lanka and the world’s 4th largest economy.
“Besides India has planned to develop a search engine similar to Google. Therefore Sri Lankans will have to learn Hindi as well. In that contest President Wickremesinghe was correct. “Late Singaporean Prime Minister also made a similar comment years ago,” he said. (Yohan Perera)
Paralised Paradise Saturday, 19 August 2023 01:53 AM
This is something similar to what chinthana vision of maharaja song, trilingual baila in the black box never found.
Jaffna Logic Saturday, 19 August 2023 02:02 AM
Learning additional languages can be a fun or a hobby but not at all essential for individual or national progress. South Korea has rapidly become a scientific and an industrial power without even the global language of English, so is Russia from agrarian society 125 years ago to a superpower using only Russian , even Japan operates mainly in it’s own language. What Sri Lanka needs is not Hindi or the Chinese but a rapid industrialisation and a focus on vigorous fundamental Science research, then all else would fall in right places. Just a word of caution, China so faraway from Sri Lanka, does not have the logistical capability, across many seas, to keep and successfully dominate Sri Lanka as its colony like what Britain did many years ago, but “over crowded” Indians are just next door to us, thus introducing Hindi in Sri Lanka carries with it a definitive existential threat.
US Citizen Saturday, 19 August 2023 03:02 AM
It seems to me Sri Lanka is in dire straits. So how come this newspaper is filled with trivial news, ideas and statements from the government and people commenting on very unimportant matters like this or for example a singer singing the anthem wrongly. Come on, wake up! Don't you understand this is only to distract the people from the real issues like corruption, suppression of minorities, economic problems, bad health and education system etc. It seems to me there is a lot of work to be done.So build up your country and stop fooling around.
Lawry Saturday, 19 August 2023 04:10 AM
Thinking out of the box is excellent. However a school leaver now cannot speak English after studying it as second language for 10 years. Evidently our method of educating is wrong. House maids speak halting arabic without the help of our faulty system of teaching.
Hitlers retarded brother Saturday, 19 August 2023 04:34 AM
Since Ranil is planning to make our country a colony of the India and China, it would be important for our survival if we could at least learn the words " I am hungry give me food my Indian/Chinese master". Whereas as the politicians only need to learn the words "What is my commission?"
The most reviled president Saturday, 19 August 2023 04:42 AM
Next the traitor will make it easier for the colonizers and make Hindi/Chinese our official languages.
chris Saturday, 19 August 2023 06:50 AM
Modern world no need to own assets to benefit from them. Sri Lanka will be like Hong Kong now under China.The Panagoda Pitipana area education city development should add an International Language university abd teaching university with 100% residency abd ebcourage overseas students to participate. student visas to be for 4 years etc.
AkaAD Saturday, 19 August 2023 07:41 AM
its insane to think about teaching Chinese and Hindi when only 1 percent of Sinhalese can speak Tamil. Sinhalese must speak Tamil that how we can break the barrier between the two races.
das Saturday, 19 August 2023 08:09 AM
For goodness sake! Is it really necessary to analyze every offhand idea expressed? India and China as growing economies will of course expand their influence and knowing their languages would be useful.
rbh Saturday, 19 August 2023 08:47 AM
But the Chinese and Japanese governments are not asking to learn English as they self-sufficient without it why is Ranil saying to learn Hindi and chineses to depend on them
Jude Saturday, 19 August 2023 09:20 AM
What's RANIL'S obsession with ......!!???
Mark Anandappa Saturday, 19 August 2023 11:17 AM
Before teaching any languages , children should be taught to learn english
Sam Daniel Saturday, 19 August 2023 12:18 PM
May be Marrikkar wants SL's to learn Urudu
Gamini Saturday, 19 August 2023 12:19 PM
Before learning Hindi or Chinese, first learn each others language. Let Tamil's learn Sinhala and Sinhalese learn Tamil. That will pave the way for mutual trust and break the barrier between the two communities, which itself will pave the way for a better SL
Kps Saturday, 19 August 2023 04:37 PM
How about Chinese
Volker Metzger Saturday, 19 August 2023 05:10 PM
RW is by no means a lateral thinker, as the SJB MPs think! Rather, his repeatedly expressed language recommendations and his visionary predictions for the future of Asia clearly show what they are: diversionary maneuvers of his domestically failed policy to realize a socially just Sri Lankan society for all and to meet the elementary needs of the population !!! His forecasts for the future of Asia in world affairs remain hypotheses, which have a certain degree of probability, but do not change the fact that one's own country must first be freed from the spiral of descent and decline !!! To date, there has been a lack of usable and hope-giving concepts and strategy papers from domestic policy that convince people and are supported by them! One thing seems certain to me, with RW and the current cast of politicians there is a real (radical) change in policy, and it is absolutely necessary not to do it!
Fairy floss Saturday, 19 August 2023 06:23 PM
Had the president found an Indian boy friend?
Volker Metzger Saturday, 19 August 2023 10:09 PM
One thing seems certain to me, with RW and the current political caste there is a real (radical) change in policy, and it is absolutely necessary not to do it!
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