Features
‘Batten down the hatches’!

By Rajitha Ratwatte
fromoutsidethepearl@gmail.com
OK, so we have an officially acknowledged wave of the virus sweeping though the Pearl! We in Aotearoa went through this albeit under slightly different circumstances. We have much less people, we live in much less crowded conditions, our controls and tracing apps etc. are better but the basic rules for overcoming this are much the same.
Listen only to the medical professionals. Do not listen to politicians and their lackeys and others with agendas trying to capitalize on the situation. Make sure you have access to a qualified, credible epidemiologist who is independent of the Government. In fact, I know some in the Pearl and should anyone need to establish contact, I can arrange if you ask me via E mail, with their agreement of course.
In Aotearoa we had Dr. Bloomfield who is now treated as a national hero, because he stood on the podium next to the Prime Minister and expressed his views fearlessly and answered questions directed at him by journalists at the daily press conferences. Dr. Bloomfield kept us focussed and kept us doing the right thing. If the answers and directives came only from a politician, they may not have been followed with the diligence shown by the people of Aotearoa. The politicians of Aotearoa don’t think of themselves akin to the Gods’, in fact the opposite is the established opinion! And the same goes for our Doctors.
Do what you are advised to do in the airline safety messages when it comes to deploying the safety masks. YOU first and then those around you! Secure your supply lines. Make sure only one person from your family goes shopping, make them wear a mask and disinfect thoroughly when they come back. Fortunately, all it takes is hand sanitizer and water in this case. If there is no contact tracing app available in the Pearl, keep a clear record with dates and times of the places you visited and any people you met.
Stay at home and do not encourage visitors. Stick to the rules, in fact follow them to the letter. Now these are things that we Lankans are not used to doing! All rules are flexible noh and machang, anything can be fixed noh?! How to wait without a drink with so and so? PEOPLE get out of this mode! This is a life and death situation both literarily and metaphorically. You could actually die and if you handle this wrong the Pearl could plunge into economic depths that have never been imagined.
Above all else if you are sick, stay at home and get tested! There is no stigma attached to the disease but if you are the perpetrator of the crime of spreading an epidemic, you will have to live with that record for the rest of your life.
Not to mention how and all powerful, dictatoresque (another new word?!) ruler will react in such circumstances. This could actually be a blessing in disguise. Here is the chance to bring discipline and respect for the rule of law, back into society. Tell them that they will literarily die in droves if they do not stick to the rules! Fill the airwaves (and you have SO many of them controlled by the Government) with facts and figures of what Corona does and the way people die. Use terror in another form to ensure a positive reaction and save the nation.
We will not starve, not in the Pearl. Most of us have a jack fruit tree, a bread fruit tree or some sort of edible foliage in our gardens. Eating some of this rather than the processed food that we love so much, for an extended period of time, will do no harm at all. In fact, tend to that foliage while you are at it! You probably haven’t looked at it or fertilized it since the days of the Srimavo Bandaranaike government, if you have lived that long! Eating rice and a fresh mallung (plenty of recipes available on the internet) for a meal is very healthy, especially if the leaves for the mallung comes from your garden. Imagine organic and FREE besides, it is time our younger generation of males (and females?) learnt to scrape a coconut!
Above all do not panic. Do not listen to rumours or pass them on. Just look after your own situation and make sure you don’t break any rules. If everyone does this the situation remains under control. This is how we did it in Aotearoa. Of course, we did have the idiots, but they got no publicity and they really felt the full weight of the law!
This is a game of patience, self-discipline and showing the virus that we humans are really the most superior life form on this earth. We will not succumb to a miniscule germ. YES, livelihoods, income streams and businesses may go under. All those can be recovered. Ask any major billionaire how many times he was declared bankrupt on the road to his billions.
Nothing matters more now, than your health and decimation of this virus. Things will get worse before they get better but do something about what you can do and don’t worry about things beyond your control. Look after your own patch, obey the rules and above all be KIND to each other, O people of the pearl.
The Land of Lanka is a thrice blessed land and may the blessings of the triple gem, all the devas and the God’s you believe in be with you!
Features
The iconic Roger Federer: The Full Measure of a GOAT

There is an unending debate about the Greatest of All Time (GOAT) of the global sport of tennis. The debate is on, as to which one is the GOAT of the players of the “Big Three” era. Those three are Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. All three were very prominent figures in that period. Their intense rivalries pushed the sport to new heights and captivated millions of people in a global audience, thereby significantly increasing tennis’s popularity. However, of the three, Roger Federer was a rather central figure.
Federer’s list of tennis accolades is staggering, and his greatness is often reduced to headlines and statistics: 20 Grand Slam titles, including a record eight Wimbledon singles crowns, 103 Association of Tennis Professionals Tour Singles titles, and 237 consecutive weeks atop the world rankings. He is well-known for his fabulous all-court game, and he is one of only four players to have won a career Grand Slam on three different surfaces: hard, grass, and clay.
His career is marked by remarkable consistency, including reaching 10 consecutive Grand Slam finals and 23 consecutive Grand Slam semifinals. Federer’s game was often described as graceful, effortless, and artistic. His fluid movement, powerful forehand, and elegant one-handed backhand made him a joy to watch for fans worldwide. He redefined modern tennis with his blend of power and finesse. Yet for all that, beneath the elegance of his backhand and the sheen of trophies lies a deeper heritage; one that elevates him from tennis legend to a true Great Of All Time.
Federer views these achievements as milestones, not the destination. He has always emphasised relationships, gratitude, and giving back, values instilled by his South African mother, Lynette, and nurtured over a lifetime of turning success into service. His effortless finesse and mental fortitude created ballet on grass and clay; moments etched forever in sporting memory. But narrowing Federer’s story to courts and scores does him a disservice.
Federer’s South African heritage cultivated a profound connection to the continent. He holds dual Swiss and South African citizenship and has frequently returned to support earlychildhood education via the Roger Federer Foundation, impacting over two million children across Southern Africa. More than just funding, Federer has rolled up his sleeves, visiting rural schools, launching coaching clinics, and advocating for play-based learning. Philanthropy is woven into Federer’s identity just as deeply as tennis. As he once said, “greatness is not confined to silverware; it lives through the lives we touch“.
Among his lesser-known acts of compassion is one of the most profound. It was in 2005 when Federer was fast turning into a tennis sensation, that he found twin infant girls abandoned outside a health clinic during a charity trip to a remote village in South Africa. The man did not walk away. Moved by their vulnerability, he quietly ensured their care and education, funding their essentials through a foundation partner. He did this without fanfare or media attention, and no publicity followed.
Fast forward to July 11, 2025. At a gala event in Geneva celebrating Federer’s stellar career, two young women took to the stage. It was the same pair of South African twins, now in their early 20s, returning to honour the man who saved them.
The sisters spoke with composed gratitude: “We do not remember being abandoned as infants. But we remember being saved. And the man who saved us is sitting right here tonight.”
Then came their own act of generosity. They said, launching a scholarship fund under Roger Federer’s name, to support rural children, “It is dedicated to helping underprivileged children in rural areas gain access to sports and education, the very things Roger had given us. It is our turn to give back, just as Roger gave to us, without expecting anything in return.” A visibly emotional Federer was left speechless before he gathered himself and said in a shaky voice, “I thought I was just helping two lives.
I had no idea they would come back and inspire the world.” That moment, a twin act of kindness born and returned, was described as “grander than all the 20 Grand Slam titles… one of the most powerful moments in tennis history“. That evening rippled globally, it flew virally across social media, confirming that character can outrank championship counts.
Off the court, Federer’s family life is rich and intentional. Married since 2009 to former player Mirka Vavrinec, they have four children: twin daughters Myla Rose and Charlene Riva (born in 2009) and twin sons Leo and Lenny (born in 2014). Their household, brimming with two sets of twins, reflects unity, resilience, and love, values the Father and Mother Federer’s cherish.
If tennis is art, then Federer’s philanthropy is impact. His “Match for Africa” series: exhibition matches featuring Nadal, Murray, and Gates, has generated over 12 million US dollars to support education in Africa. Beyond big events, his foundation has supported earlychildhood programmes in six countries, deployed digital teaching tools and training tablets for educators, and engaged communities and governments to bolster preschool readiness. These are not just token gestures; they are sustained efforts that aim to change systems, not just headlines. He privately supports coaching and education in African villages: a lyrical service that mirrors his gameplay: smooth, reliable, and deeply invested.
In his understated way, Federer has consistently reinforced kindness and integrity. He funds an elderly couple every Australian Open; the parents of his first coach, late Peter Carter, covering flights, hospitality, and box seats, every year, since 2005. Federer has never forgotten the Carter family’s role in his life and career.
These gestures resonate because they are personal, respectful, and ongoing. They speak of a man who remembers where he came from, on and off the court, and who sees grand gestures in the small, consistent acts of humanity.
When discussing Federer as the GOAT, numbers will take you so far. But greatness also measures intangible things: compassion, humility, and legacy. What Federer did for those abandoned twins, and how they returned that grace, reveals more about his character than any gold trophy could. It is easy to point to “trophies won” as the final verdict. But Federer’s life story adds nuance: identity, empathy, and generosity, which truly elevate his accomplishments to a celestial level. His Wimbledon stamps, Swiss coins, and honorary degrees are symbols. The real trophy is the networks of lives he has touched: the rescued twins, African children on new educational pathways, and the families of those who supported him along the way.
Roger Federer’s journey from a junior champion to a record-breaking legend serves as a benchmark for aspiring tennis players and inspires millions around the world to aim for greatness while remaining grounded. In essence, his legacy celebrates not just a phenomenal tennis player but a true sporting icon who left an indelible mark on the game through his achievements, style, character, and humanitarian efforts.
In the court of moral measure, Federer is undisputed. His twin daughters and twin sons will grow up knowing that their father is more than a record-holder. He is a man defined by action. The twins in South Africa, now embroidering his legacy with their own generosity, complete a cycle: champions saved, and champions paid forward.
Yes, Roger Federer is the tennis GOAT. But he’s also the GOAT of genuine kindness, empathy, and impact. That, ultimately, is why the story of greatness cannot, and should not, be limited to statistics alone.
Role models are remembered, not just for what they win… but for the gratitude they inspire, the opportunities they create, and the kindness they live out.
The story of the South African abandoned twins was garnered from the News Arena Network – Geneva through News Arena India on 14th July 2025.
by Dr B. J. C. Perera ✍️
(Tennis Player)
Features
A book on iconic Sri Lankan poems

Lakdasa Wikkramasinha
(1941-1978) has been acknowledged as one of the finest Sri Lankan poets writing in English. The Sri Lankan born Booker Prize winner Michael Ondaatje says Wikkramasinha has written “some of the most permanent and iconic poems of this country”.
In a period spanning only thirteen years before his untimely death, Wikkramasinha published six collections of his English poems (and two collections of Sinhala poems as well).
Rage and Heartbreak fulfills the pressing need for a collection of critical writings on Wikkramasinha’s poetry. Essays authored by Gamini Haththotuwegama, Lilani Jayatilaka, Annemari de Silva, Nihal Fernando, Vihanga Perera, Madri Kalugala, Chandana Dissanayake, Nipuni Ranaweera, and George Braine are followed by Indrakanthi Perera’s brief memorial.
Most authors are practicing or retired academics, mainly in English literature. Some are published poets.
Rage and Heartbreak is published by Tambapanni Academic Press and priced at Rs. 3000/.
Vihanga Perera (Ph.D., Australian National University) is an academic and researcher working at the Department of English, University of Sri Jayawardenapura. He is also a poet and novelist, an arts critic, and editor of creative work. He is a recipient of the Gratiaen Prize and the State Literary Award.
George Braine (Ph.D., The University of Texas at Austin) taught English in four countries before retiring from The Chinese University of Hong Kong. He was acquainted with Lakdasa Wikkramasinha in the 1970s.
Features
Babies made using three people’s DNA are born free of hereditary disease

Eight babies have been born in the UK using genetic material from three people to prevent devastating and often fatal conditions, doctors say.
The method, pioneered by UK scientists, combines the egg and sperm from a mum and dad with a second egg from a donor woman.
The technique has been legal here for a decade but we now have the first proof it is leading to children born free of incurable mitochondrial disease.
These conditions are normally passed from mother to child, starving the body of energy.
This can cause severe disability and some babies die within days of being born. Couples know they are at risk if previous children, family members or the mother has been affected.
Children born through the three-person technique inherit most of their DNA, their genetic blueprint, from their parents, but also get a tiny amount, about 0.1%, from the second woman. This is a change that is passed down the generations.
None of the families who have been through the process are speaking publicly to protect their privacy, but have issued anonymous statements through the Newcastle Fertility Centre where the procedures took place.
“After years of uncertainty this treatment gave us hope – and then it gave us our baby,” said the mother of a baby girl. “We look at them now, full of life and possibility, and we’re overwhelmed with gratitude.”
The mother of a baby boy added: “Thanks to this incredible advancement and the support we received, our little family is complete. “The emotional burden of mitochondrial disease has been lifted, and in its place is hope, joy, and deep gratitude.”
Mitochondria are tiny structures inside nearly every one of our cells. They are the reason we breathe as they use oxygen to convert food into the form of energy our bodies use as fuel.
Defective mitochondria can leave the body with insufficient energy to keep the heart beating as well as causing brain damage, seizures, blindness, muscle weakness and organ failure.
About one in 5,000 babies are born with mitochondrial disease. The team in Newcastle anticipate there is demand for 20 to 30 babies born through the three-person method each year.
Some parents have faced the agony of having multiple children die from these diseases.
Mitochondria are passed down only from mother to child. So this pioneering fertility technique uses both parents and a woman who donates her healthy mitochondria.
The science was developed more than a decade ago at Newcastle University and the Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and a specialist service opened within the NHS in 2017.

There was a case of epilepsy, which cleared up by itself and one child has an abnormal heart rhythm which is being successfully treated.
These are not thought to be connected to defective mitochondria. It is not known whether this is part of the known risks of IVF, something specific to the three-person method or something that has been detected only because the health of all babies born through this technique is monitored intensely.
Another key question hanging over the approach has been whether defective mitochondria would be transferred into the healthy embryo and what the consequences could be.
The results show that in five cases the diseased mitochondria were undetectable. In the other three, between 5% and 20% of mitochondria were defective in blood and urine samples.
This is below the 80% level thought to cause disease. It will take further work to understand why this occurred and if it can be prevented.

Prof Mary Herbert, from Newcastle University and Monash University, said: “The findings give grounds for optimism. However, research to better understand the limitations of mitochondrial donation technologies, will be essential to further improve treatment outcomes.”
The breakthrough gives hope to the Kitto family.
Kat’s youngest daughter Poppy, 14, has the disease. Her eldest Lily, 16, may pass it onto her children.
Poppy is in a wheelchair, is non-verbal and is fed through a tube.
“It’s impacted a huge part of her life,” says Kat, “we have a lovely time as she is, but there are the moments where you realize how devastating mitochondrial disease is”.

Despite decades of work there is still no cure for mitochondrial disease, but the chance to prevent it being passed on gives hope to Lily.
“It’s the future generations like myself, or my children, or my cousins, who can have that outlook of a normal life,” she says.
The UK not only developed the science of three-person babies, but it also became the first country in the world to introduce laws to allow their creation after a vote in Parliament in 2015.
There was controversy as mitochondria have DNA of their own, which controls how they function.
It means the children have inherited DNA from their parents and around 0.1% from the donor woman.
Any girls born through this technique would pass this onto their own children, so it is a permanent alteration of human genetic inheritance.
This was a step too far for some when the technology was debated, raising fears it would open the doors to genetically-modified “designer” babies.
Prof Sir Doug Turnbull, from Newcastle University, told me: “I think this is the only place in the world this could have happened, there’s been first class science to get us to where we are, there been legislation to allow it to move into clinical treatment, the NHS to help support it and now we’ve got eight children that seem to free of mitochondrial disease, what a wonderful result.”
Liz Curtis, the founder of the Lily Foundation charity said: “After years of waiting, we now know that eight babies have been born using this technique, all showing no signs of mito.
“For many affected families, it’s the first real hope of breaking the cycle of this inherited condition.”
[BBC]
-
Business7 days ago
SLIC Life among Asia’s Best: Finalist in 3 key categories at 10th Trusted Life Awards
-
Features7 days ago
Afghanistan:Broken promises, burning nation
-
News7 days ago
Utilize capital allocated by the government effectively to reach targeted economic development goals – President
-
Editorial7 days ago
Navigating tariff shocks
-
Opinion4 days ago
‘Daily shooting of wild elephants’ in Sri Lanka? Govt. gives out guns
-
News7 days ago
Cardinal honoured for national contributions
-
News6 days ago
Environmentalists welcome presidential probe into X-Press Pearl disaster
-
Features7 days ago
How one man’s call to action could save Sri Lanka’s vanishing wings