International Cross-Border Commandment Enforcement
EndChannel is a business entity being built around an on-demand video streaming website.
Our Mission
Our mission is to protect and foster Buddha Sasana.
The Background
The modern day advancements in the information and communications technology have enabled the societies to use new media, new platforms and new modes for communication. The ability to communicate quickly, the ability to communicate with the masses easily, the ability to communicate while being anonymous, the ability to communicate across the socioeconomic boundaries often without being subject to controlling policies have empowered the individuals to exercise the freedom of speech - in ways that had not been possible earlier.
Equal treatment is valued, respected and encouraged by the wise. Respecting the freedom of speech is a form of it. Preventing the same based on factors like age, gender, social status, race, cast, color, wealth, power, knowledge and religion is inhumane.
What is meant by freedom should however be understood with respect to the unconstrained opportunity made available to exercise the rightful speech, but not the opposite. Rightful speech is characterized by being facts based, expressed in true words and being beneficial. It could either be liked and favored, or disliked and disfavored by the others. Such speech needs to be exercised in a timely manner.
While the modern day advancements in the information and communications technology can be used for the betterment, it is not uncommon to see that the new communication media, platforms and the modes are being used by some in ways that can be categorized as cases where the opportunity made available to exercise the rightful speech is abused. Communication platform owners who treat the availability of constantly engaging users as being valuable can often be seen not taking sufficient measures to stop the abuse. At times, it is a challenge to improve their comprehension to a level that would let them see, of their own, how their platforms are being used to abuse the freedom of speech thus producing detrimental effects.
Spreading lies in the name of Buddhism or in association to Buddhism, seeking protection for the same by incorrectly referring to the freedom of speech, communication platform owners valuing engaging users over the proper use of their products and services, and the communication platform owners not being sufficiently aware of Buddhism to distinguish between what is correct and what is wrong have created an environment that is damaging to the continuity of Buddhism.
Secondly, the inappropriate claims of ownership of the content and the attempts to enforce license and copyright terms that are not compatible with Buddhism have lead to more trouble.
Not limited to where the modern day advancements in the information and communications technology are used, some of the issues discussed can be seen elsewhere as well.
To protect Buddha Sasana, EndChannel would educate and guide the users and platform owners to uphold the freedom of speech and refrain from abusing the same. EndChannel would educate and guide the users and platform owners about the proper terms of use for Buddhist content.
When education and guidance are not sufficient, EndChannel would seek and take stronger and more forceful nonviolent means to protect Buddha Sasana.
EndChannel would operate across international borders so that threats of similar nature can be thwarted.
EndChannel would operate based on the single version of truth. Where needed, the teachings of different schools like Theravada, Mahayana and Vajrayana would be compared, contrasted, and the single version of truth and what is compatible would be strengthened.
Related Efforts
EndChannel is not an isolated effort. EndChannel solves certain problems that are beyond the scope of some other efforts. Some of such other efforts, mostly done in Sinhala language, include thripitaka.org - a website that hosts the Pali Canon and commentaries, www.trekmentor.org/bhikkhu - a regularly updated large catalog of sermons of buddhist monks, www.trekmentor.com/si/enlighten - a collection of articles written by Kamal and www.unbright.org - a registry of unbright websites that spread distorted views of Buddhism and related history, and the websites that promote and/or support the same.
Who
EndChannel is brought to you by H. M. K. S. K. Wickramanayake (Kamal Wickramanayake) from Sri Lanka.