June 28, 2013, 8:19 pm

At a press conference held recently the President nonchalantly declared that (a) No new casino licenses will be granted and the new multi-purpose development project of James Packer, which includes a mega casino, will be set-up with an ‘existing" license (b) That all existing seven casinos will be relocated at D.R. Wijewardene Mawatha (c) that since 2005, the President has not issued liquor or casino licenses.


Now, we all know that existing casinos are involved in prostitution, as can be seen by the number of foreign harlots carrying on their activities there. We are also aware that to lure tourists from India and other countries in the region, a "Red Light District" is planned for D.R. Wijewardene Mawatha.


My first objection is by doing so we dishonor the name of D.R. Wijewardene who was a decent man on of integrity; a true patriot; we also insult his descendents, one of them being Leader of the Opposition Ranil Wickremesinghe, whose mother Nalini was a daughter of D.R. Wijewardene and whose sister Elena Wijewardene was the former President J.R. Jayewardene’s wife.


Secondly, as the Gambling Approval Act was passed in Parliament only in 2010, how did those seven existing operate if they were not legal entities? Who gave such approval?


Many liquor licenses were issued since 2005, so much so that some villagers came out in protest against such opening of liquor outlets in their villages, which would make their family lives miserable.


Addiction to gambling has ruined families and made people destitute. I have visited the massive Packer "Crown Casino" in Melbourne on a site of many acres, taken their by my hosts of Sri Lankan origin. There were miles of car parks and a shuttle bus took us to the main entrance. The lady was totally addicted to the pinball machines (one-armed bandits as they are known), just hundreds of them row by row, every one of them occupied and the din was unbelievable. I had three coins in my purse and I thought I would just use them and find some place to sit. My second coin yielded a big booty and so I stuffed my handbag with them and went to the nearby coffee shop.


My friend was so addicted that she would sneak out from the office to play with the one-armed bandits as her husband disapproved of it (but he was addicted to betting on horses!). There were Australians who gambled away their homes, cars and savings and had become destitute. Some ladies would lock their kids up in cars and race into the casino to gamble; one toddler died of suffocation in the car in the 400C summer heat.


It would be imprudent to set up new casinos; the existing ones I believe are sleazy and tawdry, with harlots galore. The social and cultural negative impacts are numerous.


Linda von Schagen


Mt. Lavinia

island.lk