SUNIL JAYASIRI 
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Exempt Veddah people from marriage tax-Veddah chief
Veddah Chief Uruwarige Wanniyale Aththo expressed his dissatisfaction over the imposition of the new marriage registration tax of Rs. 5,000 on Veddahs.
He said that when the country was under British rule, the government had levied many taxes but that the Veddahs had been exempted from all taxes.
He requested that the government exempt Veddahs from the marriage tax or at least reduce it for Veddahs.
He said that according to their customs marriages took place between cousins and they were not registered in the past.
But today it is important to register marriages. If a person doesn’t register his or her marriage he or she will have to face many problems in the future, he said.
When a child is born in hospital one must register his birth. If a child has no birth certificate he will find it difficult to enter school.
According to the prevailing laws Rs. 5,000 should be paid to register a marriage. This amount is sufficient for a Veddah family to live on for a year.
These fees are suitable for rich people. But Veddahs can’t afford them.
There are 58 Veddah villages. The people living in these villages are not government servants. They live by hunting and gathering and growing their food.(Palitha Ariyawansa)
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