Sarath Wijesinghe President’s Counsel, former Ambassador to UAE and Israel, President Ambassador’s Forum, (currently in United Kingdom) sarath7@hotmail.co.uk

(Sri Lankan Lawyers in the United Kingdom (ASLLUK) made a request from the British Prime Minister Boris Jonson for vaccinations for Sri Lanka and it will be followed by a webinar organized by the Ambassador’s Forum and the Expats Community with the same request, urging the Sri Lankans worldwide to follow suit. We are informed that many countries have made the same request and there is a possibility for a favourable response considering the circumstances. Read below for details on British PM 0044207219568 Boris Jonson Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, Westminster SW1AOAR to whom the Lawyers Association has made the request)

We have messed up but must get over the crisis

It is admitted that we have messed up in the second and third waves and the entire operation on the vaccine process, not having managed well and not taking prompt steps on time and professionally not meeting the unexpected and unforeseen demands. Please do not get angry with us on our constructive remarks to correct ourselves when we are in real danger on looking for a solution. Somebody must bell the cat and we though we should do it however risky it is. Rich countries had sufficient funds to combat with expert and scientific knowledge which we discuss below taking the success story of UK as an example. But to the credit to the Armed forces and the medical sector we won the first wave over successfully in an exemplary manner setting an example to the rest of the world mainly to the credit to the health sector and dedicated armed forces. News we receive are frightening on possible predictions of thousands and millions of cases on the way threatening to exceed the Indian situation fearing of deaths, and uncontrolled crisis situation. This is not the time for a blame game, and not to find who is responsible; instead we must find a temporary and a permanent solution by setting aside al differences in the interest of the nation. UK has proved that vaccines have answered the call to bring the death to zero from thousands. It may be an uphill task to vaccine majority of citizens until a consorted effort is exerted by Sri Lankan, and the community world over, including the network of the Ambassadors, Human Rights Commission in Sri Lanka with funds and contacts world over and Sri Lankans spread worldwide as one with determined aim to mobilize on countries with sufficient and excess vaccines to help us win the war on Covid19.

Covid 19 fast spreading like wildfire

‘Covid 19’ situation is fast increasing worldwide with no visible signs of a permanent solution preventing deaths, infections and spread of the pandemic with a tremendous speed compared to the world trends. Virus is so crafty that it adopts itself with different variants. Despite the developments in science and technology, no country or a multinational company has come even near to a permanent cure to the virus attach and the vaccines invented are of quality and stranded to meet the change, faced by the world. Sri Lanka won the first wave with ‘’0 ‘’deaths when UK was facing deaths facing over tens of thousands. Today UK is zero deaths with Sri Lanka facing average 38 deaths daily with 2123 deaths these days, which is horrifying and worrying indeed. Apparently UK went through 3 and 4 months continuous lock downs and got ready to bail out the economy by pumping 5 billion pounds to the business, industrial, government and private sector pumping funds and paying 80% salary of all government and private sectors with a long master plan on economic recovery while strictly adhering to the advice of the experts and scientist leaving them to fight the pandemic war interfered. Prime Minister Boris Jonson who himself a victim said that he will be in the back seat allowing the experts to fight providing them with all facilities. Penalty of breaking the law was at tiles 10,000 pounds which is far excessive but it worked.

It is north worthy for us to find out what went wrong in the second and third waves and to find out ways and means for complete eradication of the crisis, whilst looking for interim solutions. Let us admit we blundered by politicising   the issue without strictly adhering to the expert advice like UK, and also misbehaviour of the citizen and their indifference and regardless to the law and procedure. It is never too late in life of a nation!

Nation

Nation is a large body of people united by common descent, history culture or language inhibited by particular country or territory. United Kingdom and Sri Lanka are such two nations situated in Europe and Asia with distinct people living different parts of the hemisphere. United Kingdom found the way to Sri Lanka in Asia due to the naval power then and colonized as a part of the Kingdom then under the Queen. Both nations are victims of the ferocious Cvid19 that has engulfed the entire world mercilessly killing thousands with no notice or giving an opportunity to cure themselves in this highly scientifically advanced society. Covid19 has ferociously and successfully won over the modern science and developments that has been a threat to the nature with miraculous inventions and scientific cures with modern science and advancements in the field of medicine. There is first, second and third worlds categorized by the economic strength and poverty as they say which varies  from time to time as in Korea  an emerging power stepping up to the developing world leaving away from the stigma once of poorest of the  poor. It is interesting and noteworthy to note how two nations UK and Sri Lanka managed to hold the covid 19 enemy temporarily, in different ways to what it is today. Death rate in UK have been in hundreds and thousands once  on covid 19  has now come down to two figures on infections  and less infections and zero deaths, only fearing of the Indian variant and other possible variants  from other countries. UK did not talk proper precautionary measures in the first wave, but tightened the rules and acted swiftly and scientifically strictly based on scientific advice and not politicians who kept away leaving the campaign to the professionals. NHS the health service in UK appear to have taken full control of the situation today bringing down the situation near normalcy except for new threats. Vaccination process is swift, methodical and no pressure was exerted to the NHS in any way disturbing them due the process and the programme. United Kingdom is an economically stable world power experienced in world trade as a world business centre and swiftly took steps to manage trade, economy, and the trader including Banks to strengthen them economically despite Corona menace in the peak with thousands of deaths per day which has now come to two figures due to hard and committed work by the committed and professional health sector. I arrived UK with the first vaccine, and compelled to go through the compulsory ten day quarantine at home under the online supervision of NHS who sent the PRC kit with advice and assistance by post. End of ten days we went through the PCR again and called for the second vaccine at a public surgery on appointment close to my residence. The reception at the surgery have been warm and friendly and it is a matter of few minutes for me to go through the second test in this world with law and order in a disciplined society, reminded of the first vaccine taken in so harsh and not that friendly atmosphere. It was in a website that in Australia the wait for a vaccine in four to five hours showing the problem is worldwide and serious. Sri Lankan doctors in UK are so friendly and polite to the patients giving kind advice and detailed assistance in information are completely changed in Sri Lanka assuming a most serious unfriendly attitude especially to the poor is something we cannot understand as it seems the attitude changes on changing the boundaries of the new nation of theirs which we understand common to many Asian and African countries. Funniest part and the matter we cannot understand is very kind and professional Sri Lankan Doctors in the United Kingdom when serve  in Sri Lanka completely changed to be most  unfriendly and arrogant! (Not all only some).Today the good news in UK is there is no single corona death that has come down to three figure numbers, few months ago. When the situation is worsening in Sri Lanka with number of deaths and suspected positive cases positive cases, which is worrying in a country where the first wave was successfully contained. What went wrong and what is the remedy we presume is within ourselves where we ourselves had messed up probably on excessive intervention of the politicos and by passing the scientific and health advice and guidelines in the system messed up by the media, politicos, and those enjoyed in giving voice cuts in the guise of professionals and experts. System in this nation is systemic, orderly with application of due process and law and order with an excellent control on the systems of governance with control of private and state sector which the other nation too have inherited not taken notice of. United Kingdom handled the ‘Covid 19’ menace in an exemplary and professional way with directions and advice of the professionals unlike in Sri Lanka where the politicians and business interests took control and precedence over the professionals.

Sri Lanka’s worrying story with death on coid19 in thousands

Sri Lanka with unsuccessful story in fighting coid19 with in Lanka with a reasonably advanced medical system in South Asia imported from the UK NHS model, with western qualified doctors among Sri Lankans with commendations from the WHO as reasonably good system compared to many developing nations, having gone through Malaria, Small Pox, and many pandemics previously until the invasion of Covid19 having now going through three waves to date. It is to the credit to the then governance, the health workers and the security forces the first wave was successfully controlled with the minimum number of deaths and infections standing on lower levels in line with the other countries fighting hard to contain. Reason for the initial containment is not known, but could be presumed as discipline, acting on and following basic rules, inbuilt immunity and administer of traditional precautionary measures, or all the death toll and the infections were minimum at the first wave. Today the situation has escalated to the worst situation with 1484 deaths and 189241 detected cases to date a sorry state when UK has come down to zero from three figure numbers months ago – we must somehow contain short and long term, learning from our mistakes and success stories of other countries. Obviously it is a world pandemic the world powers too in a pathetic position with the maximum number of deaths and cases spreading fast by the ferocious virus spreading at will worldwide with no control or sympathy and it is not the time to engage in the blame game today instead of finding a solution short and long term with the world over. Bhutan is a Buddhist country living with nature with 80% forest cover which is carefully and jealously guarded, and supposed to be in the highest in the index of happiness, is a case study, when we destroy our nature at a terrible rate actively engaged in deforestation, sand mining, and many other destructive ways. Ship disaster is the worst among generation when generations are bound to suffer on the environmental disaster due to the mismanagement and lack of professionalism and knowledge of the subject and lacking required supervision and discipline on the subject matter which has add to fuel to the volatile situation brewing out of control.  In the United Kingdom we observe an orderly nature, displayed in every respect and following the rules on health and other ways of many other steps in life, which unfortunately is lacking in Sri Lanka. It is a pity today things have turned around United Kingdom with zero deaths down from three figures and Sri Lanka is rising to three figures fast with worst news and many more to come with unsatisfactory and disturbing information from all corners. At the same time please keep in mind that we are not the worst compared to the world situation when in Australia it is in news that sometimes the citizen has to be in a queue for four to five hours to receive the vaccination being a comparatively rich country with enormous resources and vaccines in stock showing that the issue is no simple and we are not alone in the maize of complicated world crisis. Having said that we should keep in mind we should be quick and smarter in winning the war as proved to the world in the first wave as a successful nation to contain and control then. Then what went wrong? Economy and the covid-19 control is interconnected with the measures taken strictly on professional advice and guidance. UK gave full attention an prominence to economy and to strengthened the business community and trade an economy with the Banks giving facilities to the business community and the professionals giving sufficient hand-outs for their maintained and existence despite lock downs strictly on the advice of the professionals and the medial sector, using the reserves and other funding available for a rainy day when Sri Lanka is compelled to think hard and long for lock downs due to eh economic constraints. It was too late to take strict and strain measures in Sri Lanka due to compulsion and until it was necessary and compelling. In the UK the system is orderly and the law and order is strictly adhered to by imposing heavy fines to the community breaking the law on regulations and rues made by the health sector. NHS in UK is the most advanced spread length and beneath of UK through the network of GPs and teaching hospitals, monitoring and supervising the covid19 an addition, was doing a wonderful job in controlling the pandemic to what it is today. Legal system and the administrative set us contributed immensely in strengthening the system supported with the free legal aid scheme and the police station mechanism with the computer links with the courts, police stations, legal aid and other government institutions. The prime Minister of UK who himself a patient and the Chancellor of Germany publicity declared that they will be in the backseat allowing the professionals and the medical team backed by NHS to fight the crisis. In UK the lock down is effective with airports closed and the state seriously clamping down with the help of friendly and effective police force, when in Sri Lanka even today there are thousands of vehicles and commuters driving through with lame excuses in the corruption full system in place. This is the time the Unions, Professional bodies such as OPA, BASL, and NGO’s be active on the roads to feed the 80% the population with no proper wages and income with hand to mouth existence. Top fat cat companies in Sri Lanka are exploiting the citizen with 500% profits linked to international companies with soring profits adding injury to the wounds.

 Duty of all to work together to save the globe from Pandemic spreading fast

We compared the two nations and the conduct of the crisis to learn from each other and help each other when every world citizen is faced with the same danger in various degrees, with no success in sight, requiring a joint effort of the countries and the world over with a common plan and strategy which is formulated by the UN with greatest difficulties that requires world attention and support. It is time for the world citizens, diplomatic community worldwide and countries to act as one and fight together against this unseen, undetectable, enemy of all for the betterment of all.