(Continuing Himal Southasian article by Tisaranee Gunasekera) On September 21, 2024, Sri Lanka will hold (Note: this was written before the election) its ninth presidential election. Unlike all previous such polls, which were in effect two-way battles between the governing party and the main opposition party, this is a three-way contest between Wickremesinghe, Premadasa of the SJB and Dissanayake of the JVP – the latter heading a coalition dubbed National People’s Power (NPP). But the election is taking place on a battleground largely of Wickremesinghe’s making. The 21st Amendment he pushed through gave birth to an independent Election Commission. He also enacted a campaign finance law that enables the commission to decide the amounts candidates can spend and to enforce these limits. The commission is conducting this election with unprecedented even-handedness and applying long-ignored election laws – including against Wickremesinghe’s own campaign. Wickremesinghe’s deal with the IMF earlier came under severe opposition criticism; Wickremesinghe’s campaign theme, “Sri Lanka Can”, is a spin on the decades-old “Ranil Can’t”. He claims credit, rightly, for saving Sri Lanka from going the way of Lebanon or Greece, and for achieving an economic turnaround less than two years after the country went bankrupt. It is due to his machinations that the Rajapaksa candidate is vying for third position in this election rather than first. And despite his authoritarian tendencies, he has contributed to the strengthening of Sri Lankan democracy. The 2024 presidential election promises to be Sri Lanka’s most free, fair and non-violent poll in living memory, thanks in the main to the constitutional and legal changes Wickremesinghe effected. And, II. RANIL WICKREMESINGHE got his start in national politics in 1977, when the UNP won a landslide victory in a parliamentary election. He was one of the Young Turks surrounding the new prime minister, J R Jayewardene, though not a front-ranker. After a brief stint as the deputy minister of foreign affairs, he became, at the age of 28, Sri Lanka’s youngest ever cabinet minister to that point, in charge of youth affairs and employment. In this capacity he set up the National Youth Services Council, which provided many talented young men and women with a springboard into prominence and success, especially in the cultural fields. In 1980, Wickremesinghe became the minister of education. By then Jayewardene had introduced two systemic changes which remain in place today. He opened up the economy, doing away with a model of protectionism and state control that had resulted in major shortages and queues in the preceding years. He also replaced the parliamentary form of governance with a particularly authoritarian executive presidency – which, unsurprisingly, he assumed himself. In 1945, Ceylon – still a British colony – introduced free primary and secondary education. Free tertiary education soon followed. But by the late 1960s and early 1970s, free and universal education had given rise to an “inflationary” situation in the labour market, with too many graduates – mostly from the arts stream and largely mono-lingual – chasing too few jobs, mainly in the public sector. In 1971, the JVP launched an insurgency that exposed this contradiction and its political consequences, with educated but unemployed youth forming the main force of a bloody attempt at armed socialist revolution. Wickremesinghe proposed a set of education reforms as a solution to this problem. The main aim of his proposal – known simply as the White Paper – was to reduce unemployment by making future graduates more employable in the private sector. University admissions were to be streamlined based on the needs of the economy, producing fewer graduates in the arts and more in fields like science and technology. Arts students would be taught at least one science subject. Students would be exposed to industry, schools would have career-guidance units, and students would have to choose between academic and vocational or technical education when they reached the eighth grade, leaving the school system if they picked the latter. But the proposals failed to contend with a fundamental fact: an absolute majority of graduates did not want to be employed in the private sector. Most students belonged to the Sinhala rural middle class, and this class had long regarded government jobs, with their permanence and pensions, as the acme of success. More than that, these students regarded government jobs as a right – particularly after the Sinhala Only Act and other reforms in the preceding decades had tilted the balance of public education and employment in the favour of the Sinhala community, while shutting out the country’s Tamil minority. They regarded Wickremesinghe’s reforms as a class-based conspiracy to deprive them of upward social mobility. The White Paper failed to withstand the opposition to it, which crossed party lines, and Wickremesinghe was forced to withdraw it. University student unions played a leading role in securing this outcome. Then, in 1983, democratically-elected student councils were abolished – a decision commonly blamed on Wickremesinghe. This would soon backfire. For as long as they were elected bodies, student councils had to maintain a balance between political and welfare work. The unofficial and unelected action committees which replaced them could focus on politics alone. The ban led to the rapid radicalization of the student movement and its eventual takeover by the JVP. This movement played a key role in a second insurgency, in the latter half of the 1980s, that was even bloodier than the first. Wickremesinghe’s botched attempt at educational reform bestowed on him a lifelong reputation for being inorganic, a socio-political and cultural alien. The UNP, despite commanding a rural support base, was commonly regarded as less of a pro-people party than its main competitor, the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), which called for socialist economic policies (in reality, state capitalism) and championed Sinhala nationalism. Some UNP leaders were able to transcend this to an extent with popular programmes and a populist demeanour – the future president Ranasinghe Premadasa, for example, whose signature scheme was a massive housing programme. Wickremesinghe may have meant his reforms to be a popular platform for his own ambitions, but they achieved the very opposite effect. His stiff public manner, his manifest inability to connect with an audience – already in evidence in his failure to sell his reforms to the populace – further cemented his image as being disconnected and withdrawn. It would come to haunt him at critical points in his career. If Wickremesinghe lacked the gifts of a natural politician, he was amply blessed in social and political pedigree. Born in Colombo in 1949, he was a nephew of J R Jayewardene and the grandson of D R Wijewardene, the country’s pioneering press baron. His father, Esmond Wickremesinghe, was a prominent UNP leader and managing director of the Lake House publications until they were nationalized by an SLFP government in 1973. By then Wickremesinghe had passed through Royal College, one of the country’s most distinguished schools, and then the University of Ceylon, where he studied law and became involved with the UNP’s youth wing. Wickremesinghe got his most important break under Jayewardene’s successor, Ranasinghe Premadasa. Premadasa appointed Wickremesinghe as the leader of the house in 1989, soon after he took over the presidency, bypassing Lalith Athulathmudali and Gamini Dissanayake. Athulathmudali and Dissanayake had been Premadasa’s competitors for the UNP leadership. He did not trust them and felt they would try to undermine his leadership at the first opportunity. Wickremesinghe, by contrast, was younger and thus not a threat. A joint attempt in 1991 by Dissanayake, Athulathmudali and the opposition to impeach Premadasa proved his instincts correct. When Sirisena Cooray, Premadasa’s long-standing companion and UNP general secretary, organized a round of top-secret meetings between the UNP and the rebels, Wickremesinghe was asked to join – a sign of the trust Premadasa reposed in him. The talks failed, as did the impeachment, and Athulathmudali and Dissanayake were expelled from the UNP. Wickremesinghe became, by default, a frontline leader of the UNP. Wickremesinghe remained steadfastly loyal to Premadasa before, during and after the impeachment attempt, defending the president within and outside parliament. And, over the years, he built up a reputation for understated competence. He did not dazzle, but did the job he was given without making unwanted waves. If Wickremesinghe had leadership ambitions, he did not wear them on his sleeve. Instead, he built a close relationship with important Premadasa loyalists – especially Cooray. By inches, he cemented an image of himself, based largely on fact, as a true party-man, a loyal UNP-er who never let the side or the leader down. The seeds of Wickremesinghe’s reputation as a protector of the minorities were also sown during this time. In July 1983, Sri Lanka’s ethnic tensions erupted in a barbaric anti-Tamil pogrom. Militancy escalated in the North and East, and the Sri Lankan state entered a decades-long war against Tamil separatist groups. Premadasa took office while the LTTE was locked in a brutal war with the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF), which had come to Sri Lanka, at Jayewardene’s invitation, to monitor the implementation of the 1987 Indo-Sri Lanka Accord. Premadasa invited the LTTE for talks, much to India’s chagrin, and the Tigers accepted. In 1989, he publicly asked the IPKF to leave. The move was aimed at neutralising the JVP, which had cast its second insurgency as a national liberation struggle against occupying Indian forces. In mid-1990, the peace talks with the LTTE collapsed and the war resumed. Yet Premadasa kept the door open for negotiations and said so. He also became a proponent of the 13th Amendment, which addressed Tamil demands for self-government to a degree via the devolution of some government powers to provincial councils. On May 1, 1993, Premadasa was killed by an LTTE suicide bomber. D B Wijetunga, Premadasa’s hand-picked prime minister, became the acting president and was soon confirmed by parliament. Wijetunga, at the request of Sirisena Cooray, appointed Wickremesinghe as prime minister. Wickremesinghe was also generally credited with the smooth transfer of power following the assassination, thereby gaining a reputation for a cool head in a crisis and a thorough grounding in constitutional nitty-gritty. Later that year, Wijetunga brought Gamini Dissanayake back into the UNP fold. Dissanayake made no secret about his leadership ambitions. Cooray responded with a highly symbolic gesture; he presented Wickremesinghe with Premadasa’s Colombo-Central constituency – which Premadasa had called his “other child” and had handed over to Cooray when he became president. A tussle for eventual party leadership was in the making, with Wickremesinghe pitted against Dissanayake. In 1994, Wijetunga called a sudden parliamentary election, taking even his own cabinet by surprise. The gambit did not work out well for him or the UNP. The party was roundly beaten by the People’s Alliance (PA), led by Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga of the SLFP. Dissanayake tried to form a minority government with the backing of smaller parties and possible crossovers, with himself as prime minister. Wickremesinghe forestalled him by resigning from his post as acting prime minister and leaving Temple Trees in a highly publicized and choreographed move – a harbinger of much more UNP infighting to come. Kumaratunga formed the government and took the prime minister’s seat. After 17 long and turbulent years in government, the UNP was back in the opposition. (To be continued next Sunday)Winter has arrived in Vancouver, and it has brought a bunch of great events to enjoy without breaking the bank. Here’s our rundown of 24 free and inexpensive events you’ll want to check out this season around Metro Vancouver! Family Day, Japanese New Year, and more. Be sure to check out our for more fantastic things happening around town. PuSh International Performing Arts Festival is back for another groundbreaking year this winter, and it promises a lineup of works for every type of live arts enthusiast. Highlights include the return of Dances for a Small Stage, Dune Wars Kiki Ball, and the popular Club Push. January 23 to February 9, 2025 Various times Various venues Various prices including several free events. Purchase Winter has arrived in Vancouver and it has brought a bunch of great events you can enjoy without breaking the bank. Here is our rundown of 24 free and inexpensive events you’ll want to check out this season around Metro Vancouver! Family Day, Japanese New Year, and more. And for more great events happening around town, be sure to check out our . Music on Main, Roundhouse Community Arts and Recreation Centre, and Zonzo Compagnie are teaming up for the inaugural Big Bang Festival, a day of musical adventure for children ages five and up. The immersive festival will be a journey through music and sound art, with mini-concerts, interactive activities, and surprise performances throughout the day. Featuring performances by Belgian singer Naomi Beeldens, Vancouver musicians Dailin Hsieh and Saina Khaledi, and more. February 16, 2025 Doors at 11:30 am, festival starts at 1:30 pm Roundhouse Community Centre, Vancouver Free and ticketed events. Purchase Calling all whimsical winter lovers! The Robson Square Ice Rink is open for the new skating season and all ages are invited to hit the ice. Located under the covered outdoor plaza at Robson Square, the rink operates seasonally when temperatures begin to dip. Skating is free, and those without skates can rent them on-site for a fee. Helmets are mandatory for anyone under the age of 12. The downtown Vancouver wintry tradition will operate until the end of February. Open daily until February 28, 2025 9 am to 9 pm (holiday hours apply on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day) Robson Square — 800 Robson Street, Vancouver; beneath Robson Street and Howe Street Free for all ages if you bring your skates. Skate rentals are also available for a fee. Car lovers, start your engines! The Vancouver International Auto Show is making its highly anticipated return to the Vancouver Convention Centre from March 19 to 23, 2025 The 2025 Auto Show will feature displays of the latest vehicles, test drive opportunities, and insights into electric and hybrid technologies from top automotive manufacturers as well as local BC dealerships. March 19 to 23, 2025 12 to 9 pm (Wednesday), 10 am to 9 pm (Thursday to Saturday), 10 am to 6 pm (Sunday) Vancouver Convention Centre West — 1055 Canada Place $19 to $21 for general admission | $14 to $15 for students and seniors | $6 for kids | $38 to $53 for a family pass. Purchase Nikkei National Museum & Cultural Centre invites guests to begin 2025 with free Japanese New Year Celebrations. Guests can take part in free calligraphy lessons. You can also learn how to play Shogi, a popular mind sport from Japan, try Japanese tea, and join a free Hawaiian Hula dance class. January 4, 2025 10 am to 3 pm Nikkei National Museum & Cultural Centre – 6688 Southoaks Crescent, Burnaby Free Gingerbread Lane, the sweetest street in Vancouver, is back for its 32nd year as the Hyatt Regency once again plays host to the popular festive tradition. Now until December 27, 2024 Regular hotel hours Hyatt Regency Vancouver — 655 Burrard Street, Vancouver Free Head to VIFF Centre – Vancity Theatre for the latest Wallace & Gromit classic, Various dates until January 2, 2025 Various times. See the full schedule VIFF Centre – 1181 Seymour Street, Vancouver Various prices, including $10 for youth under 18, $11 for students and accessible patron, $14 for seniors, and $16 for adults. Purchase New Year’s Eve is just around the corner, and if you’re looking to welcome 2025 with a bang, Whistler Blackcomb’s Fire and Ice is the perfect event for you. North America’s largest ski resort is bringing back its popular outdoor winter event starting on Tuesday, December 31, at 8:30 pm. The free signature event features exciting performances, freestyle skiing and riding, and a stunning pyrotechnics display for all ages. December 31, 2024, then every Sunday from January 5 to March 9, 2025 8:30 pm (New Year’s Eve), 7:30 pm (January 5 to March 9, 2024) Skiers Plaza at Whistler Village base between Whistler and Excalibur Gondolas Free Place des Arts invites guests of all ages to immerse themselves in art. Tour the not-for-profit arts education centre, then take part in the drop-in style activities inspired by the content and/or mediums in the current exhibitions. : February 4, 2025 1 to 3 pm : Place des Arts – 1120 Brunette Avenue, Coquitlam Free, register Heritage Christmas and the Burnaby Village Museum are truly where history comes alive. Enjoy the magical atmosphere of festive lights and traditional decorations in this 1920s-era village. There will also be seasonal entertainment, demonstrations and activities, and delicious food served up at Heritage Christmas. Keep an eye out for the historic streetcar on your way to the old-timey ice cream parlour. Now until January 3, 2025 Various times Burnaby Village Museum — 6501 Deer Lake Avenue Free; Carousel rides $2.62 plus tax or a Baker’s Dozen (13 rides) for $31.45 plus tax The Vancouver Polar Bear Swim returns to English Bay on Wednesday, January 1, 2025, and you’re going to want to bring your warmest towel. Start off the new year the right way by plunging into the Pacific Ocean during the frigid 105th event. The chilly event takes place from noon to 4 pm, with the program starting at 2 pm and the official swim happening at 2:30 pm. Those who register for the event online can also receive a commemorative certificate. January 1, 2025 Noon to 4 pm; official swim at 2:30 pm English Bay Beach – Beach Avenue between Gilford Street and Bidwell Street Free. Participants are encouraged to There is plenty of family fun and holiday cheer in Stanley Park throughout the festive season, even with the . Guests will be treated to stunning light displays during their visit to the Train Plaza, including returning favourites like the giant red reindeer, a vintage fire truck, and the tunnel of lights in the plaza. The event is also in support of the Burn Fund. Now until January 4, 2025 (closed on December 25) 4 to 10 pm Pipeline Road in Stanley Park, via the West Georgia Street park entrance Free to visit the holiday lights display and festive activities in the plaza Lights at Lafarge, Metro Vancouver’s largest free outdoor winter lights display, is back again for another holiday season. The annual tradition will illuminate Lafarge Lake in Coquitlam throughout the season, with over 100,000 twinkling lights to enjoy until the end of February. Guests of all ages can explore the outdoor display that wraps its way entirely around the lake, leading them on a 1.2 km loop through themed zones. Now until February 2025 Nightly from 4 to 11 pm Town Centre Park – 1299 Pinetree Way, Coquitlam Free Help remove invasive plants and clean up litter at various parks in Surrey this winter. Tools and training will be provided, and all ages are welcome. Nature Work Parties are drop-in, rain or shine, though events may be cancelled in high winds or extreme weather conditions. Participants are also asked to wear appropriate clothing for outdoor winter activities. Various dates 10 am and 10:30 am staggered start times Various parks in Surrey Free The City of North Vancouver’s free is welcoming skaters until March 2025. Skaters of all ages can glide on the approximately 12,000 sq ft surface daily from noon to 8 pm. And fun can be had no matter the weather – the Shipyards Skate Plaza is covered by a retractable roof. Now until March 2025 Noon to 8 pm The Shipyards Commons, North Vancouver Free. Skate rentals are available for $7 for adults and $5 for children (quantities are limited) The Bill Reid Gallery is named after the renowned Haida artist and is the only public gallery dedicated to contemporary Indigenous Art of the Northwest Coast in the country. The gallery is home to the Simon Fraser University Bill Reid Collection and also hosts a variety of special exhibitions, workshops, panel discussions, and more. Guests can visit the Bill Reid Gallery for free from 2 to 5 pm on the first Friday of each month. The first Friday of every month 2 to 5 pm 639 Hornby Street, Vancouver By donation Vancouver Public Library hosts a variety of movie screenings for the public at its branches throughout the winter, and the best part is they are free to check out. Upcoming movie screenings include , Window, and Various dates Various times Various VPL Branches Free The Vancouver Art Gallery was founded in 1931 and is renowned as one of North America’s leading visual arts institutions. The largest public art museum in Western Canada currently has a variety of exhibitions on display, and you can check them out for free during the Free First Friday Nights events. The first Friday of every month 4 to 8 pm 750 Hornby Street, Vancouver Free Learn about Chinatown’s heritage and culture through hands-on activities during Family Saturdays at the Chinatown Storytelling Centre. The event happens on the third Saturday of each month from 11 am to 1 pm and includes guided tours, prizes, special offers from neighbouring restaurants, and free admission for youth 17 years and under. The third Saturday of each month 11 am to 1 pm (Centre is open daily from 10 am to 5 pm) 168 East Pender Street, Vancouver Free for youth 17 and under; an adult must accompany guests under 12. Admission is $10-$12; purchase The Improv Centre welcomes performers of all levels to get up onstage with professionally trained improvisers at its free monthly community jam. The 18+ event features theatre exercises, improv games, and more during the fun, interactive jam. The last Saturday of every month 3:30 to 5:30 pm The Improv Centre — 1502 Duranleau Street, Vancouver Free Visitors will find over 85 farms and producers and a selection of food and coffee trucks. Shop for fruits and veggies, eggs and dairy, meat, prepared food, craft beverages, craft items, and more. Every Saturday until March 29, 2025 10 am to 2 pm 50 E 30th Avenue and Ontario Street, Vancouver Kitsilano Farmers’ Market takes place on Sundays in the parking lot of the Community Centre and offers a good selection of fresh local produce and gourmet treats to stock up on the week. There are also a number of artisan vendors and food trucks to check out at the market. : Every Sunday until April 27, 2025 10 am to 2 pm : West 10th Avenue and Trafalgar Street, Vancouver You can shop at the Granville Island Public Market year-round. It’s indoors, so it’s a great option on a rainy day. This place is loved by locals and tourists alike. Shop for all your basics and extras here and grab lunch from some of the city’s best eats. Every day 9 am to 6 pm Granville Island – 1661 Duranleau Street, Vancouver Established in 2008, the Port Moody Winter Farmers’ Market began as a bi-weekly market in the lobby and courtyard of the Port Moody Rec Centre. Now a weekly market, shoppers can stop by every Sunday for local BC produce, artisan crafts, and delicious baked goods. Every Sunday until April 2025 10 am to 2 pm Port Moody Recreation Complex – 300 Ioco Road, Port MoodyTV Don't miss out on the headlines from TV. Followed categories will be added to My News. Nearly 30 years after Sean “Diddy” Combs appeared as a musical guest on Saturday Night Live, Ana Gasteyer is calling him out. The comedian labeled the embattled music mogul an “a**ehole” for allegedly demanding “a totally closed set” during his 1998 appearance, reports Page Six . “He, of course, shut down the whole building,” Gasteyer, 57, said on the Las Culturistas podcast on Wednesday. “You can tell the five a**eholes in the six years that I was there when they would be like, ‘So-and-so is in the building, everybody stay in your dressing rooms!’” While the Mean Girls actress called this behaviour “applicable” for presidential candidates, she quipped, “Apart from that, it’s really my house.” Ana Gasteyer was a cast member on SNL for six years. Picture: Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images Combs appeared on the show in 1998. Picture: YouTube She also described her fellow cast member Will Ferrell making Combs, now 55, “very uncomfortable” during his rehearsal. “They were like, ‘Wouldn’t it be so funny if Ron just went in?’” she recalled in the episode, referencing a character Ferrell was playing. “And he did.” SNL stars Ana Gasteyer and Will Ferrell. Gasteyer remembered, “He went on down the stairs and he marched right in. And I have the video from the control room where Sean Combs is rapping Come With Me, and behind him Ron is just walking around looking really disoriented. “It is the greatest thing that’s ever happened, because what a deserved person to have their ‘Kashmir’ moment interrupted by Ron,” she continued. Diddy is now in jail awaiting trial. Picture: Angela WEISS / AFP After clarifying that the rapper “really did not roll with” the interruption, the Suburgatory star blasted his “faux importance.” She added, “Like, what’s gonna happen? You’re gonna walk into the studio and you’re gonna be like, ‘I’m in the studio. I work here.’” Combs’ team has yet to respond to Page Six’s request for comment. Ferrell, 57, previously spoke about the moment with Combs during a January 2020 interview with Vulture . “Someone said, ‘Ron should go up onstage,’ and before everyone turned to see, I had sprinted out the door,” the actor said. Combs’ behaviour has come under scrutiny amid his recent legal troubles, from the Grammy winner’s September arrest to numerous sexual assault lawsuits against him. Combs has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing. This article originally appeared in Page Six and was reproduced with permission. More Coverage Controversial Block star’s racy makeover Nick Bond Why A-lister quit Hollywood at peak of fame Nika Shakhnazarova – the New York Post Originally published as ‘Totally closed’: SNL star slams ‘a**ehole’ Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Join the conversation Add your comment to this story To join the conversation, please log in. Don't have an account? Register Join the conversation, you are commenting as Logout More related stories Entertainment Controversial Block star’s racy makeover Controversial Block contestant Kylie Baker has unveiled a racy new look on social media, weeks after the show’s dramatic end. Read more Shark Quiz How long has the Leaning Tower of Pisa been leaning? The Chase Australia’s official Shark, Brydon Coverdale, has created a new daily quiz challenge. Test yourself. Read more