Patients with an infection of the highly transmissible B.1.1.7 (Alpha) UK variant of the coronavirus have been reported from multiple areas of the island.
As per the biological samples obtained from COVID-19 patients, the cases are reported from Batticaloa, Trincomalee, Kuliyapitiya, Wariyapola, Habaraduwa, Tissamaharama, Karapitiya, and Ragama areas, Dr. Chandima Jeewandara, the Director of the Department of Immunology and Molecular Medicine of the University of Sri Jayewardenepura said.
Meanwhile, a patient infected with the B.1.617.2 (Delta) Indian variant has been identified from a quarantine center in Wadduwa.
Reportedly, the relevant patient had arrived in the country from India.
The latest study report on the spread of COVID-19 in Sri Lanka was handed over to the Director-General of Health Services this morning (10), Dr. Chandima Jeewandara said.
Meanwhile, Australian authorities reported that the recent outbreak of the Delta variation of coronavirus in Melbourne was transmitted by a person who arrived from Sri Lanka.
However, during a press conference today (June 10), Dr. Jeewandara stated that this information was untrue.
The person in question had traveled to Melbourne via transit in Sri Lanka, Dr. Jeewandara clarified.
He said, that Sri Lankan authorities had looked into the matter and it has been confirmed that the relevant passenger had not entered the country and that no infection of Delta variation has been reported from the community on the island.
Countries & governments of the world must begin to worry
about a future scenario of Chinese in US seeking homeland in USA, Sikhs in UK
seeking a homeland in UK, Muslims in US seeking a homeland in USA, Chinese in
Australia seeking a homeland in Australia, Muslims in India seeking a homeland
in India & Tamils in Canada, UK, South Africa, Singapore also seeking a
homeland in those countries using the very arguments being used to demand a
homeland in Sri Lanka. All of the Tamils living around the world – in the
Caribbean, East Asia, South Africa etc were Tamils plucked by colonials and
planted in all parts of the world to work as indentured laborers. They were
later absorbed as citizens. But, the crux of the argument is that their natural
home was Tamil Nadu, South India. It is where they evolved from and there are
millions of such Tamils around the world. It is therefore mindboggling that a
handful of pro-LTTE groups & some bankrupt TNA politicians claim that the
homeland of Tamils is in Sri Lanka. Yet, they cannot prove that all of the
Tamils domiciled around the world were taken from Sri Lanka but there are
enough of evidence to showcase Tamils being brought by colonials & settled
in Sri Lanka. What if the 47million blacks in
US start demanding a separate black homeland in the USA?
Tamils
in Tamil Nadu raised a very valid reason for self-determination based on the
key argument that Tamil Nadu was always a separate & autonomously run area
during pre-colonial rule. It was only in 1947 that the colonial British cobbled
up princely kingdoms and independent territories and created INDIA – which in
reality has a history of 74 years. There was no India before 1947. No
pre-colonial ruler, ruled all that which is termed India today.
Ethiopian
Origin Of Tamils & Dravidian Indians,
The Tamil homeland demand for self-determination was denied by
Gandhi & the British. The take away from this is that Tamils of Tamil Nadu
sought self-determination first. India palmed off India’s headache to Sri Lanka
helping arm, train and fund Sri Lankan Tamil separatism & militancy to use
for India’s political mileage. The scenario served the Tamil militant groups
and Sri Lankan Tamil politicians as it propped up their importance among Tamil
people, brainwashing their minds into believing in the creation of a utopian
homeland, without fundamentally realizing that the same ethnic group cannot demand a homeland for the same ethnic
group in two different sovereign countries.History will show
that Sri Lanka was never ever linked to India even looking at the Pangaea map
of how lands split to create modern day countries. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojxWbZqG-HA&t=56s
Therefore, the
same ethnic group cannot demand homelands in 2 different countries.
If so, there is no reason why
using the same arguments the American Chinese can demand a homeland in USA, the
American Muslims can demand a Homeland in USA, the British Sikhs can demand a
homeland in UK…. So large congregations of immigrants will also use the
arguments that they have their own language, their own culture, they had been
living in an area and have their own history and demand their homeland on
mono-ethno-religious lines. It also may even open doors for pro-LTTE Tamils in
Canada, UK, France, US & Australia (their heavenly abodes) to also seek a
separate homeland in those countries.
So,
what happens to all the big talk by the UN, international bodies & foreign
governments about ‘multiculturalism’ ‘secular states’ ‘assimilation’
‘cohabitation’ ‘united in diversity’, cultural diversity etc.
Therefore, everyone must start thinking wiser and not fall prey
to fake propaganda that was
created to justify militancy in Sri Lanka and justify refugee/asylum status in
western countries and justify collecting funds that created the LTTE kitty and
a nexus of international legal & illegal money making ventures on which
many of these Tamils depend on to survive and lead rich and luxurious lives far
above the ordinary Tamils who have gone to make a home overseas.
The GoSL via the Foreign Ministry must convey this basic and
fundamental logic and argument that the
same ethnic group cannot demand 2 different homelands in 2 different countries
as it is only paving the way for other ethnicities living in foreign shores to
also argue for a separate homeland.
This is going to cause chaos across the world as there are
plenty of people counting fingers to create conflicts to enable the sustenance
of the arms supply, weapons industry for profit. The world does not need any
more conflicts, loss of life and divisions as no ethnic group can live in isolation and no ethnic group can
claim to be living happily ever after even amongst their own. Look at how
divided Tamils are in Tamil Nadu – where caste & class are shocking
dividers no different to the same scenario amongst Tamils in Sri Lanka as well.
If
anyone says a mono-ethno-religious homeland is going to be honky dory and happy
ever after they are reading too many fairy tales!
Its
time to stop these politically advantageous but socially dangerous stunts to
break up and divide nations on silly arguments created to suit a handful of
people.
People must learn to live, they
must learn to adapt to their environment, they must cohabitate, they
must respect others & their cultures and realize that their human rights stops the moment they violate
the human rights of another.Separatist demands are
hurtful of others and foreign governments & UN officials must stop
providing fuel to separatist agendas in whatever form.
UN should be showing people of
the world to live together in peace not in pieces.
The United
Nations is not as pure as we think. The
United Nations, along with the 193 diplomatic missions located in New York,
have long been veritable battlegrounds for spying, wire-tapping and electronic
surveillance, said Thalif Dean. (2021). At the UN, virtually all the big powers
play the spying game. US National Security Agency (NSA) and Britain’s spy
agency, the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), had once targeted
over 1,000 political leaders, diplomats, and international institutions.
During the
height of the Cold War in the 1960s and 1970s CIA had planted one of its
Russian lip-reading experts in a press booth overlooking the Security Council
chamber so that he could monitor the lip movements of Russian delegates, as
they consulted each other in low whispers.
US had
cracked into the UN’s encrypted video system and there is very aggressive
monitoring of UN officials and high-ranking diplomats, continued Thalif.in 2013,
Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff, launched a blistering attack on the United
States for illegally infiltrating its communications network, surreptitiously
intercepting phone calls, and breaking into the Brazilian Mission to the United
Nations.
The illegal
electronic surveillance of Brazil was conducted by the US National Security
Agency (NSA). NSA technicians had managed to decrypt the UN’s internal video
teleconferencing (VTC) system.This finding not
only embarrassed the United Nations but also put its integrity, impartiality
and credibility in doubt.
When UN
member states compete for the Presidency of the General Assembly or membership
in the Security Council or various other UN bodies, the voting was largely
tainted by bribery, cheque-book diplomacy and offers of luxury cruises in
Europe.
Just ahead of
an election for membership in the Security Council, one Western European
country offered free Mediterranean luxury cruises in return for votes while
another country dished out — openly in the General Assembly hall— boxes of
gift-wrapped expensive Swiss chocolates.
Fathulla
Jameel, a former UN Ambassador and later Foreign Minister of the Maldives, said
that when Maldives asked for foreign aid, to help fund some of country’s
infrastructure projects. One rich Asian country, a traditional donor, had responded.
The project would be fully funded and for free, but there was a catch: If
there is a vote at the UN, and it is not of any national interest to your
country”, said the donor country’s foreign ministry, we would like to get your
vote.”
There is
horse trading of votes at the UN, observed Guardian. One country will pledge to
vote for a motion here in exchange for a vote to be on a committee there. There
is arm twisting too. The weaker nations are made to vote against their
conscience. In the case
of Sri Lanka, US got reluctant countries to at least abstain. The countries that
refrained from voting made speeches in Sri Lanka’s favor and then refrained
from voting, which was their way of indicating that they were refraining from
voting only under duress, reported the media.
‘All
member states in the UN rank equally at the formal level, but the money
contribution to the UN varies and some countries such as USA pay large amounts,
said critics. Over the years, instead of keeping the UN as skeleton
organization to maintain a line of communication between sovereign states and a
meeting place for them, the west have taken the lead in piling more and more
tasks on the UN system creating a great
dependency on the voluntary contribution to keep the system going. This has
made the UN depend on about ten to
15 western countries, and these countries have turned this dependency to a
handle to make the UN further their foreign policies. There is at least one document that admits
that this distorts the priorities of the UN system. And to retain their jobs
the UN officials have to pander to these countries, including Ban Ki Moon, said
Chandraprema in 2013. (continued)
Mahinda Rajapakse Prime Minister and Finance Minister of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
Ministers, Secretaries,
Distinguished Invitees, Ladies and Gentlemen
It is with great pleasure that I issue this message
today as we celebrate the World Accreditation Day under the theme
Accreditation: Supporting the implementation of Sustainable Development Goals
(SDGs).
Sri Lanka, along with the other member states of the
United Nations endorsed the Sustainable Development Agenda (the Sustainable
Development Goals) in 2015, a
Universal Call to Action to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure that all
people enjoy peace and prosperity by 2030.
Sri Lanka has begun its transformation towards a
sustainable and resilient society. Even with the challenges imposed by the
global Covid-19 pandemic,
the government is taking concrete efforts to make progress towards achieving
the SDGs. Our National Policy Framework ‘Vistas of Prosperity and Splendor’ is
a comprehensive and holistic development framework that has effectively
integrated our global SDG commitments. The three core areas; economic growth,
social inclusion, and environmental protection are all addressed in the
National Policy Framework and all institutions must work towards achieving
these objectives.
Our government has established an inter-ministerial
Steering Committee under my leadership to steer and guide the SDG
implementation process in Sri Lanka by mobilizing various government agencies
around SDGs whilst ensuring and facilitating integrated approaches towards
implementation. The Sustainable Development Council, as the mandated agency to
provide technical guidance and coordination support towards this process, has
been empowered to perform its core functions.
Considering the strategic importance of SDGs for the
upliftment of mankind and the environment, the two global organizations namely,
the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC) and the
International Accreditation Forum
(IAF) have
declared the theme of this year’s Accreditation Day as Accreditation:
supporting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)”. I am happy to note that
the Sustainable Development Council is entering into a partnership with the Sri
Lanka Accreditation Board (SLAB), the apex organization in the Quality
Infrastructure of Sri Lanka to assist the government and private sector
organizations meet sustainability standards. The SLAB supports internationally
recognized conformity assessment services through testing, inspection and
certification.
We must all work towards ensuring that the
accreditation process delivers the best quality and environmentally sound
outputs benefitting both the people and the planet. I am confident that this
partnership will assist the relevant public and private agencies to work
towards this objective which in turn will accelerate Sri Lanka’s journey
towards sustainable development.
I wish both organizations all success in their
future endeavors.
Mahinda Rajapakse Prime Minister and Finance Minister of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
THE Sri Lankan government aims to vaccinate its entire population against the coronavirus by the end of 2021 or early 2022, said Army Commander General Shavendra Silva.
The country has been able to manage the pandemic without any delay in major development projects and infrastructure project, Silva said, adding, the health and safety of the workers too had not been compromised”.
Sri Lanka’s pandemic management strategy included the uninterrupted running of industries, factories, export agencies, and international businesses, where employees had been assured to work amid the pandemic with all necessary healthcare precautions and associated facilities. This has been the strength of Sri Lanka so far,” he said, while addressing a virtual summit of the Sri Lanka Investment Forum (SLIF) on Tuesday (8).
Silva said despite the disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, it was necessary to maintain economic, diplomatic, and social relationships with the world.
Managing the pandemic, preserving the economy, and restoring complete normalcy is an enormous challenge,” he added.
In order to reinstate the economic normalcy, usual livelihood and social aspects amid the Covid- 19 pandemic, it is decisive to bring the country into a certain condition in which socio-economic activities could be continued with the best practices under minimum regulations.”
A Singapore-registered container ship sank off Sri Lanka last week, causing the worst marine ecological disaster for the South Asian country.
SINGAPORE: As Sri Lanka deals with its worst marine ecological disaster after the sinking of a Singapore-registered container ship, questions have been raised about who bears the responsibilities in maritime incidents.
The stricken ship, X-Press Pearl, sailed under the flag of Singapore. It is owned by Singapore-based shipping group X-Press feeders, which has offices around the world.
The vessel was sailing from India to Colombo when it caught fire on May 20 off the west coast of Sri Lanka. It burned for 13 days before the blaze was finally put out.
But it left behind a huge environmental impact, with possible oil spills and tonnes of plastic waste already washed ashore. The ship’s cargo included 25 tonnes of nitric acid, sodium hydroxide and other chemicals.
The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) said on Jun 2 that as the flag state, it is communicating with the Sri Lankan authorities and other parties to minimise the environmental impact of the incident.Advertisement
WHERE A SHIP IS REGISTERED – DOES IT MATTER?
Maritime experts said there are several considerations in the decision to register a vessel under a certain country or territory – and the flag state does not typically bear the liabilities in incidents such as that of the X-Press Pearl.
International law requires every merchant ship which is participating in international trade to be registered with a country. This is also known as the ship’s flag state,” said Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS) maritime expert Yap Wei Yim.
A vessel is bound by the laws and regulatory requirements of the flag state, which is responsible for the enforcement of standards, noted Dr Yap, who heads the international trade management minor programme at SUSS.
Flag states have certain duties under Article 94 of the United Nations Convention for the Law of the Sea, he added.
According to Article 94, these responsibilities include taking measures to ensure the safety of ships through their construction, equipment and seaworthiness, as well as conducting an inquiry into incidents such as those that cause “serious damage” to the marine environment.
However, it is not uncommon for vessels to fly the flag of one country even while their owners are based in another country.
As shipping is an international business, ship owners and operators typically have many options to choose their flag of choice” from a variety of ship registers around the world, said Dr Yap.
Shipping lawyer Dennis Tan, a partner with law firm DennisMathiew, said that the choice of flag or ship registry depends on a variety of factors.
These include the amount of tonnage taxes payable to the ship registry, as well as the standards on matters such as compliance with international conventions and marine environmental protection.
Another factor is the reputation of the ship registry, said Mr Tan, who is also the Member of Parliament for Hougang.
He noted that the registries of territories such as Panama, Singapore and Hong Kong are relatively more well-regarded compared to those of so-called flags of convenience”.
A vessel registered with a more reputable registry may also invoke more confidence from port state control of the ports the vessel may visit,” he said.
Despite the country’s size, Singapore has the fifth largest ship registry in the world, with more than 4,400 vessels on its register.
The Singapore Registry of Ships is an important component of Singapore’s maritime ambitions, said Dr Yap, adding that one key aspect is the decision to position the registry as a quality flag”.
The MPA requires ships registered under the SRS (Singapore Registry of Ships) to comply with international regulations and practices. This distinguishes the SRS from flags of convenience which are run purely on commercial terms,” he said.
CIVIL LIABILITY LIES WITH SHIP OWNERS
Despite the associated responsibilities, a flag state does not typically bear the liability in incidents such as the one involving X-Press Pearl, said lawyer Mr Tan.
In such a marine casualty involving one vessel, civil liability for the damages caused does not usually rest with the port state or the flag state as such,” he said.
“The civil liability of the ship owners for the losses to cargoes onboard and for damage to the environment will depend on the evidence in respect of the cause of the fire and the actions taken by the shipowners and/or crew.”
This will likely be covered by the vessel’s insurers, Mr Tan added.
The Sri Lankan government has said it would seek compensation for the incident.
Speaking to CNA last week, X-Press Feeders chief executive Shmuel Yoskovitz said it would be very hard to assess the damages now and that it would be a “long process”.
He noted, however, that the direct financial burden on X-Press Feeders would be “very limited” as the company is insured.
In a statement on Jun 8, X-Press Feeders said there are no confirmed reports of fuel oil pollution as of 6pm Sri Lanka time.
“The shoreline cleanup is ongoing, and we remain committed to contributing earth movers to assist,” it added. Source: CNA/az(gs)
Image:The oil can be clearly seen drifting over a large area of open water. Pic: Planet Labs
Evidence of the spill comes just days after attempts to assess the vessel for leaks were delayed due to rough seas and poor conditions.
The environmental impact of the disaster is being closely monitored by the International Maritime Organization.
The ship broke apart the day after authorities managed to put out the fire on board the vessel, which had been raging for 12 days.
Image:A crab roams on a beach polluted with polythene pellets that washed ashore from the burning ship. Pic: AP
Most of the ship’s cargo, which included 23 tonnes of nitric acid and other chemicals, was destroyed in the fire. Efforts are under way to clear up and prevent the remaining materials from reaching the surrounding beaches and wildlife.
The navy believes the blaze was caused by its chemical cargo.
An investigation is under way. The ship’s Voyage Data Recorder (VDR), commonly known as the “ship’s black box”, was recovered. It records data on the operation of the vessel.
Play Video – Drone footage of sunken cargo shipDrone footage of sunken cargo ship
Image:Sri Lankan navy soldiers clad in protective suits attempt to evade a wave drifting debris ashore. Pic: AP
The captain, chief engineer and assistant engineer of the Sri Lankan-flagged vessel have been banned from leaving the country.
The government has said it will take legal action against the owners of the ship to obtain compensation.
Shumel Yoskovitz, chief executive of the ship’s operator X-Press Feeders, apologised for the disaster, saying in an interview with Channel News Asia last week: “I’d like to express my deep regret and apology to the Sri Lankan people for the harm this incident has caused both to the livelihood and environment of Sri Lanka.”
‘The best option available is to use a mixture of both synthetic and carbonic fertilizers, benefiting from their advantages to help farmers increase the agricultural output.’
Emeritus Professor of Agriculture Biology University of Ruhuna and Former Executive Director Sri Lanka Council of Agriculture Research Policy
The Cabinet of ministers last month approved President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s proposal to ban the importation of chemical fertilisers. In addition to synthetic fertilisers, the importation of synthetic pesticides whether they are CLASS 1A or Class1B (Toxic) or Class 2 Less toxic is also banned. The reasons for the ban are listed according to our knowledge
The President has emphasised that despite the claim that the use of chemical fertilisers leads to a better harvest, their adverse effects on human lives through the pollution of lakes, canals, and groundwater outweigh the benefits and profit. State expenditure on treating patients with non-communicable diseases caused by these chemical fertilisers remains high.
Saying that organic fertiliser will be provided instead of subsidised fertiliser to farmers, the President has stressed that USD 400 million is spent on fertiliser imports and it could be used to uplift the lives of the farmers.
The Agriculture Ministry has undertaken to convert the state-owned Ceylon Fertiliser Company Ltd. into an institution that would produce, supply, and distribute organic fertiliser with the help of local government institutions.
Minister of Agriculture Mahindananda Aluthgamage says the government will do everything in its power to increase the use of organic fertiliser for the cultivation of paddy and other crops up to 30% within the next three years. Accordingly, private companies that come forward to manufacture organic fertiliser will be provided tax concessions, technology and technical expertise, land and raw materials.
It has also been reported that the government has turned away two shipments of 18,000 MT of chemical fertilisers for paddy and other crops.
Political decision not practical?
Does the country have the capacity and capability to produce a large amount of organic fertilisers in the short-run for next Maha season. Secondly, the methodology as regards the application of such a huge quantity of natural fertilisers has not been defined. Farmers across the country are already facing a shortage of fertilisers and pesticides for the current Yala season although the authorities claim adequate stocks are available.
In this respect, one may recall that the previous government launched the politically-motivated non-toxic agriculture” project in 2016, and it failed and the Strategic Enterprise Management Institute (SEMA) established to implement that programme was closed down in 2018.
Such experiences in the past are the reasons why farmers are uncertain and confused as regards the ban on the import of agrochemicals.
Dr Warshi Dandeniya Head of the Department of Soil Science University of Peradeniya has disclosed why and how agrochemicals have become such a big problem in Sri Lanka, One of the major problems in Sri Lankan agriculture is the application of fertilsers outside the fertiliser recommendations. Farmers misuse or overuse fertilisers. When more fertiliser is applied, they can be washed away and added to water sources. The relevant nutrient content may be greater than the amount a plant actually needs. When used sparingly, the plants may not get proper nutrition, which can lead to many diseases. Both of these methods cause damage. Also, soil degradation is accelerated as the soil contributes as much as possible to the plant with less fertiliser application.”
It is thus clear that a proper assessment of soils is necessary before fertiliser application.A similar situation has arisen as regards pesticides. With the devolution of power, the subject of agricultural extension which had been under the Department of Agriculture was devolved and brought under the Provincial Ministries of Agriculture. NGOs like Sarvodaya, private sector pesticide companies and leading farmers started advising farmers on crop protection and fertiliser applications creating much confusion. Farmers anticipating higher profits use higher amounts of agrochemicals. Cocktails of pesticides result in toxic problems for themselves and the environment. The Sri Lanka Tea Board (SLTB) has stated recently that it has performed well in January and February this year, earning Rs 41 billion in export revenue, compared to the beginning of last year. The total tea production too has increased when compared to last year, it has said.
According to the SLTB statistics, tea exports in 2021 amounted to Rs 41 billion, as compared to the beginning of last year, when the revenue was Rs 38 billion. The price of FOB (Full on Board) had increased from Rs. 832 to Rs 932.
The SLTB expects to export 295 – 300 mn kg of tea this year, and more than 100 countries are importing Ceylon tea. The SLTB is planning to promote artisanal teas such as Ceylon green tea and organic teas to very specific markets segments.
Sri Lankan planters use urea as a synthetic fertiliser to promote vegetative growth of tea.
With the fertilizer ban it may be not possible to achieve the targets’ of SLTB
No country in the world depends entirely on organic agriculture for crop production as the plant varieties bred after green revolution in 1960s are fertilizer responsive and will give the maximum yield only with correct fertilizer application. The ban on synthetic fertilizer have a drastic effect on tea and rice yields.
Here are some major pros and cons of organic and synthetic fertilizers:
Organic fertilizers
Advantages
Retention capacity of water is high No toxin buildup
Fosters a sustainable ecosystem for plants and organisms alike and improves plant structure
.Can breakdown contaminants
Disadvantages
It takes lot of time to show results
Natural fertilizers can be messy and difficult to apply precisely
The number of nutrients and microorganisms in the soil can vary
Synthetic fertilizers
Advantages
The synthetic products act fast
Easy to handle and available everywhere
Inexpensive when compared with organic products in the long run
Disadvantages
The majority don’t contain micronutrient organisms
Can easily be over-applied or less
Can release nutrients too quickly or too slowly
The best option available is to use a mixture of both synthetic and carbonic fertilizers, benefiting from their advantages to help the farmers to increase the agricultural output.
Sri Lanka on Wednesday (June 09) registered 54 more victims of COVID-19, marking the highest number of deaths recorded in a single day.
The latest fatalities have moved the country’s death toll to 1,910, the Department of Government Information said.
The Department of Government Information stated that 19 of the victims had succumbed to the virus infection between the period of May 17 – May 31. The rest of them have died between June 01 – June 08.
The Epidemiology Unit of the Health Ministry reports that another 543 persons have tested positive for COVID-19 in Sri Lanka, moving the daily total of new cases to 2,716.
This brings the total number of confirmed cases of coronavirus reported in the country to 213,396.
As many as 180,427 recoveries and 1,843 deaths have been confirmed in Sri Lanka since the outbreak of the pandemic.
The Epidemiology Unit’s data showed that 31,126 active cases are currently under medical care.
The Regional Director of Health Services and the Regional Epidemiologist of Galle District have been demoted and transferred over the incident of vaccinating many people from Western Province as revealed by Ada Derana ‘Ukussa’.
This is the result of the preliminary inquiries carried out by the Health Ministry following the exposé by Ada Derana, which the ministry says is being further investigated.
The Ministry of Health had launched an investigation into the irregularities at a COVID vaccination program held recently at Unawatuwa in Galle, after the matter was exposed by Ada Derana ‘Ukussa’ on Monday (07).
Several politicians and trade unions had highlighted the incident after it was uncovered by Ada Derana while the State Minister of Production, Supply and Regulation of Pharmaceuticals, Prof. Channa Jayasumana also brought the matter to attention during the parliamentary session yesterday (08).
As per ‘Ukussa’ revelation, a group of individuals from the Western Province had also arrived for the vaccination program in Galle to receive the second dose of Oxford-AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine, despite the islandwide travel restrictions in place.
State Minister Prof. Jayasumana had said a team from the Health Ministry has been deployed to Galle to look into the matter and that legal and disciplinary action will be sought against those the individuals who attended the vaccination program violating the protocols.
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s request made to the Prime Minister of Japan, Yoshihide Suga, seeking to obtain 600,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine has been met with positive responses.
This was disclosed during a meeting held between the President and the Japanese Ambassador to Sri Lanka Sugiyama Akira at the Presidential Secretariat this morning (June 09), President’s Media Division revealed.
The Japanese Government has also acceded to the President’s request to provide medical supplies and healthcare equipment needed to contain the spread of the COVID-19 virus.
The President also drew the attention of the Japanese Ambassador to obtain technical assistance required for expeditiously respond to maritime accidents.
Deputy Ambassador at the Japanese Embassy Kitamura Toshihiro, First Secretary Imamura Kayo, Secretary to the President P.B. Jayasundera, Principal Advisor to the President Lalith Weeratunga, and Foreign Secretary Admiral Jayanath Colombage were also present at the meeting.
There are two
schools of thought in Sri Lanka regarding the UNHRC Resolutions against Sri
Lanka. There are those who are delighted that their country is censured by the
UNHRC and there are those who are not delighted. They are indignant.
The first
group contains those who wish to see Sri Lanka lose its independence, fail as a
country, and eventually become a puppet state of the USA. The second group is
loyal to the country. They are fiercely proud and protective of Sri Lanka,
despite its many deficiencies. The senior members of this group remember the British
colonial experience and do not wish to see it repeated. This group is contemptuous of the USA and do
not wish to see Sri Lanka come under US influence.
Marwan Macan
Markar saw the UNHRC voting as an indicator of Sri Lanka’s standing in the UN
and therefore, in the world. In the 2009
Resolution,, Sri Lanka got 29 votes, then
in 2012, it was 15, 2013 it was 13 in
2014 it was 12 and in 2021 it was 11, a
clear downward spiral. Can the country
sink any lower, he asked.
The Sri Lanka
intelligentsia however, is not very concerned about what the 47 countries which
constitute the UNHRC panel think. Sri Lanka is utterly contemptuous of the Resolutions
and the countries that support it.
Sri Lanka‘s
pro-Eelam group have tried to present the UNHRC as a fearsome body. Many
years ago a newspaper ran the headline, Sri Lanka to be roasted at the UNHRC.”
That was intended to frighten Sri Lanka. UNHRC cannot roast any country. Instead there is a good chance that UNHRC itself
may get roasted by the UN General Assembly when UNHRC comes up for review. Its
very existence is uncertain today.
One USA
supporter stated triumphantly, that even if Sri Lanka withdrew its sponsorship
from Resolution 30/1 of 2015, the
resolution still remains. M.A. Sumanthiran said that though the Government is not
legally bound to implement the UNHRC 2021 Resolution the Government will have
to implement it. UN Peace Keepers might
come to Sri Lanka if the Government fails to implement the UNHRC Resolution.
Another
commentator observed that if Sri Lanka does not comply with UNHRC, then the European
Union may withdraw its GSP concession and the Sri Lanka economy will get into difficulties. A critic
observed that the values and scruples of those who support these Resolutions in
this manner should be examined.
A UNP politician
sneered that in going to Geneva and
opposing the UNHRC resolutions, Sri Lanka was trying to show a ‘nethi loku kamak’. He saw Sri Lanka as inferior to the UNHRC and
wanted to see Sri Lanka humbled. Actually it is not’ nethi’. It is ‘ethi loku kama”. Sri Lanka is a member state of the UN. Sri
Lanka therefore ranks above UNHRC. UNHRC was set up by the UN General Assembly
of which Sri Lanka is a member.
Further, UNHRC
is
toothless. It does not have the power to act against
countries. It cannot impose
economic sanctions. UNHRC
Resolutions cannot be enforced. The resolutions of other UN special agencies such as International
Maritime Organization (IMO) and International Civil Aviation Organization
(ICAO) are binding on all nations, but
UNHRC resolutions are not.
By 2021, the
west had realized that it was not going to crush Sri Lanka through the UNHRC. That
is why the US at its fifth try, in 2021,
decided to move the action from UNHRC to the Office of the High
Commissioner of Human Rights which is a department of
the Secretariat of the United Nations.
The current Resolution,
Resolution 46/1 of 2021 stated that it Recognizes
the importance of preserving and analyzing evidence relating to violations and
abuses of human rights and related crimes in Sri Lanka with a view to advancing
accountability, and decides to strengthen in this regard the capacity of the
Office of the High Commissioner to collect, consolidate, analyze and preserve
information and evidence and to develop possible strategies for future
accountability processes for gross violations of human rights or serious
violations of international humanitarian law in Sri Lanka, to advocate for
victims and survivors, and to support relevant judicial and other proceedings,
including in Member States, with competent jurisdiction. (clause 5)
Analysts have
looked at the Resolution. There are
certain gains, they said. The Resolution
recognizes the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of
Sri Lanka. The demand for setting up of a hybrid court with foreign and local
judges has been removed. There is a grudging acceptance of the Lankan Government’s
insistence on having its own domestic mechanism”. Also the focus on war crimes has given way to
a survey of present day violations of human rights.
The
weaknesses attributed to Sri Lanka (section 7) are not unique to Sri Lanka,
said Ladduwahetty. There are similar weaknesses in every country. elsewhere too
there are policies that affect freedom of religion or belief; marginalization
of persons or groups; restrictions on media freedom; shrinking democratic
space; sexual and gender-based violence and so on. these defects could be found
in all of the 22 countries that supported the Resolution Therefore, what is so
special or unique about Sri Lanka for it to deserve special attention, asked Ladduwahetty.
Don Manu saw
the gravity of the Resolution. Don Manu said the United Nation’s watchdog on
human rights, the UNHRC, has put the Government of Lanka in the dog house and
warned: ‘From henceforth, everything you say, every move you make will be
monitored and held against you in any future legal proceedings. We will be
watching you.’
Pohottu will
have to run the Geneva gauntlet and survive its spikes for a considerable time
in the future. After going through the wringer in what crumpled wretched state
Lanka will emerge is anyone’s guess, concluded Don Manu.
OHCHR is now empowered to look also at the
present and ongoing situation in the country .
it is not longer limited to war time violations only. This effectively
means that the government will be monitored 24/7 to collect and collate
necessary evidence of possible human rights abuse, observed Don Manu.
But, UNHRC
has neither the mandate nor the competence to collect evidence relating to International
Humanitarian Law or to support judicial proceedings in member states, said
critics. UNHRC is expected to function within the mandate stated in UN
resolution 60/251. Sri Lanka should
table a resolution in the UN General Assembly highlighting the issues at stake
and seek redress, said critics.
There is
another aspect to this. Since the war ended a long time ago, in 2009, it will not
be easy to collect war crimes data. It will be interesting to see what the
OHCHR comes up with. OHCHR will not find it easy to obtain evidence. They will
need a bit of help.
The Tamil
Separatist Movement faced this same problem when the Darusman committee was
sitting. They had to launch a special project to collect evidence. They cajoled
people to lodge complaints with the Darusman committee.
On Dec 08,
2010, seven days before the expiry of the first deadline to submit complaints,
‘Eelam View’ website appealed for more complaints including ones from those who were not
directly affected by the conflict. ‘Eelam View’ posted 25 sample letters for
the complainants to choose from. Click the
line below to access sample letters they said. (http://www.eelamview.com/2010/12/08/un-submission-sample-letters-7-days-left-have-you-made-your-submission/). Since the
number of complaints received by the Darusman committee was not sufficient, the
UN extended the deadline for complaints to Dec 31, 2010
In 2019, two
international NGO’s appealed for help to collect the names of the conflict dead
to estimate the final death toll, says a report published by the Human Rights
Data Analysis Group. The report said that the International Truth and Justice
Project (ITJP) and the Human Rights Data Analysis Group (HRDAG)
urge groups inside and outside Sri Lanka to share existing casualty lists
and go out and record new ones.
A decade after the war ended, nobody knows to
the nearest ten thousand how many people died in Sri Lanka in 2009, let alone
in the decades before. The aim of this initiative is to use a statistical
approach to estimate the probability of a final death toll, the two NGOs
said.
“We urge
Tamils all round the world in the next few months to speak to their families,
their friends, and their neighbors to collect the names of the dead. We
have suggested a format to collect the information.” said Patrick Ball
of HRDAG.”Several groups inside and outside the country have already
started collecting lists. Recording the names of the dead is a way of
collating the available information. And we can use statistical models to
estimate how many people are likely missing from the data collected. Don’t
worry about duplication! We will take care of the lists.”
Particularly important is to collate all existing lists so if you know of a
list please contact us. (continued)
Contaminants released from the wreckage of a container ship off the coast of Sri Lanka could be dragged thousands of kilometers by ocean currents, impacting wildlife and humans in far-reaching latitudes.
Authorities and salvage crews are now working to prevent the more than 300 metric tons of oil transported by the MV X-Press Pearl from spilling out of the ship’s fire-damaged hull. But significant damage has already been done. Chemicals and tiny plastic pellets that were once onboard the 186-meter vessel have already entered the ocean, causing one of Sri Lanka’s worst environmental disasters to date.
Oil, chemicals and plastic pellets are probably the worst combination you can have,” said Delphine Lobelle, a postdoctoral researcher specializing in ocean plastics at Utrecht University in the Netherlands. It’s really unfortunate that the ship was carrying so many harmful materials.”
Millions of plastic pellets have washed up on Sri Lanka’s southwestern coast, a tourist destination famous for its golden-sand beaches, fringed by palm trees and coconut groves. Debris from the vessel has already affected about 150 kilometers (93 miles) of shoreline, and the Singapore-based ship operator, X-Press Feeders Ltd., faces criminal charges for pollution, the Straits Times reported earlier this week.
Images from the beaches in Colombo, Sri Lanka’s capital, show the sand covered in a layer of white plastic pellets and people in blue scrubs and white boots shoveling them in bags.
Pellets the size of a grain of rice can easily be mistaken for food by birds or fish, Lobelle said, but consuming them can be deadly. If the animals don’t die and are instead eaten by predators, the plastics can move up the food chain until they eventually reach humans. With time, the pellets break into even smaller pieces, known as microplastics, which are even more difficult to detect and control.
The real danger of having plastic on a beach is if it’s brought back into the ocean by tides,” Lobelle said. If it moves further offshore then it’s impossible to clean up. Currents spread plastic everywhere and there’s no way to collect it.”
The ship was carrying 1,486 containers holding chemicals such as nitric acid, a highly corrosive mineral acid, methanol, sodium hydroxide and about 400 containers of small plastic pellets known as nurdles, according to ITOPF, a nonprofit set up by the shipping industry that’s assisting the Sri Lankan government in the emergency response to the incident.
How many pellet containers have either burned or fallen off the ship isn’t clear, said ITOPF’s technical director Richard Johnson. At least four containers have washed ashore and many more are thought to have sunk. About 1,000 people are participating in cleanup efforts, Johnson said, with the rest of the city under a strict lockdown to prevent the spread of coronavirus.
About 11 million metric tons of plastic find their way into oceans every year, causing damage to wildlife habitats, humans and animals, according to a report on ocean pollution last year. If no action is taken, plastic litter will almost triple by 2040 as humanity increases the use of hydrocarbon-based plastics, which don’t degrade naturally. The cumulative amount of plastic in the ocean could reach 600 million tons in 20 years’ time.
Studies done by Ifremer, the French institute for research and exploitation of the seas, show that fish can actually expel small pieces of virgin plastic like the ones in the Sri Lanka shipwreck, according to project manager François Galgani. If local bacteria and plankton get stuck in the plastic and wash up in other countries and continents, it can disrupt existing ecosystems. That phenomenon occurred in the aftermath of the Fukushima disaster in Japan, said Galgani, who also advises the International Maritime Organization on shipping-related environmental issues.
Some potential damage can be avoided by loading pellets at deck level or below instead of on top, according to Galgani. But ship owners tend to put these containers on top because they’re the cheapest load, and they leave the most expensive goods at the bottom. We know that certain ship owners load ships with more containers than they should,” Galgani said. Then captains throw the containers on top off board because they can endanger the safety of the whole ship.”
Even if authorities manage to seal the oil containers aboard the X-Press Pearl, the fuel will remain at the bottom of the ocean and could start leaking any time.
Maybe a black tide doesn’t touch the Sri Lankan coast in the next days or months,” Galgani said. But in 30, 40, or 50 years, there will be a leak, and the hydrocarbons will end up getting there. Even if it looks like the problem is fixed today, it’s just pollution being delayed through time.”
Photograph: The container ship MV X-Press Pearl sinks while being towed away from the coast of Colombo on June 2. Photo credit: Ishara S. Kodikara/AFP/Getty Images.
A man who contracted the infectious Delta COVID-19 strain mistakenly opened his room door soon after entering hotel quarantine in Melbourne, but Victorian authorities are downplaying the chances this incident caused transmission.P
A worker at a Melbourne medi-hotel. Photo: AAP /James Ross
Health officials have linked an outbreak of the Delta strain in Melbourne to the hotel quarantine case, a man in his 40s, who returned from Sri Lanka on May 8.
They are now scrambling to work out the connection, with health officials believing it is most likely the man transmitted the virus to a staff member while in transit or to a fellow guest.
Genomic sequencing shows his infection is identical to one of two families linked to the North Melbourne Primary School, which has emerged as the epicentre of the West Melbourne outbreak.
But it remains unclear how the virus was transmitted from the returned traveller – who lives in the suburban Glen Eira area in Melbourne’s southeast – to the infected family.
The man initially stayed at the Novotel Ibis Hotel before testing positive and transferring within 24 hours to the Holiday Inn health hotel”.
During his stay at the Ibis, the man opened his door while a staff member was in the corridor.
But Emma Cassar, the head of COVID-19 Quarantine Victoria, says this incident is unlikely to be the reason for the Delta variant spreading.
The only IPC (infection prevention control) breach is when this resident opened (his) door for less than a minute – he thought there was a knock on the door (but) it was a room further up,” Cassar said.
He even acknowledged the staff member on the floor was more than six metres, so it’s not enough for a transmission event … he would have had very low levels of infectiousness at that point.”
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She added the worker in the corridor was wearing an N95 mask and a face shield.
The City of Whittlesea cluster, which triggered Melbourne’s current lockdown and is separate to the Delta cluster, is linked to a Wollert man who caught the virus at Adelaide’s Playford medi-hotel.
An SA Health report said the man most likely caught the virus because of the opening and closing of doors in the hotel corridor.
Meanwhile, acting Premier James Merlino says Melbourne and regional Victoria remain on track” for eased restrictions at 11.59pm on Thursday.
State prosecutors in Sri Lanka‘s Colombo Magistrate’s Court on Monday accused the operators of the ship that caught fire with 25 tons of acid onboard of a cover-up. The Deputy Solicitor General alleged that Sea Consortium Lanka, the local agent for the ship, deleted several emails exchanged with the vessel’s captain that were characterized as important to the investigations.
The Singapore-registered MV X-Press Pearl cargo ship caught fire on May 20 and burned for 13 days while anchored in the waters near Colombo, Sri Lanka’s capital. As a result, tons of chemicals spilled into the Indian Ocean. Potentially toxic debris and plastic pollutants also washed ashore the nearby beaches in what’s been called one of the worst ecological disasters to hit the island nation.
Authorities are still bracing for a potentially larger problem. The International Maritime Operation is monitoring the stranded ship in case the 278 metric tons of bunker oil and 50 metric tons of gasoline aboard leak into the ocean.
Smoke billows from the Singapore-registered container ship MV X-Press Pearl as another vessel unsuccessfully attempts to tow it away from the coast of Colombo on June 2, 2021.GETTY
When the case was taken up before a Colombo magistrate on Monday, Deputy Solicitor General Madhawa Tennakoon—appearing on behalf of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID)—sought an order naming seven individuals as suspects of the case and to issue notices ordering them to appear before the court. One individual named was the managing director of Sea Consortium Lanka.
President’s Counsel Sarath Jayamanne, who represented the cargo ship’s chief engineer and the first assistant engineer (whose names were also among those named by the Deputy Solicitor General as suspects) appealed the order. He said the Magistrate’s Court had no jurisdiction to hear the case, and that any proceedings should be carried out by the country’s High Court.
The magistrate sided with the President’s Counsel and dismissed the request, stating the Magistrate’s Court does not have the jurisdiction to issue notices to the said individuals. The magistrate, however, did accept a request made by the CID to order the Navy to protect the vessel’s submerged wreckage.READ MORE
Perhaps the biggest development from the court hearings came when Deputy Solicitor General Tennakoon said Sea Consortium Lanka had deleted several emails exchanged with the X-Press Pearl’s captain. The magistrate called for the original emails to be recovered and handed over to the CID.
Tennakoon also said probes have found that the acid leak onboard the vessel that caused the fire was first reported on May 10. Tennakoon alleged the captain and the crew were aware of the situation and gave false information in order to enter Sri Lankan waters. He also claimed that Sea Consortium Lanka informed the Colombo Harbor Master of a fire onboard the vessel after it had already entered Sri Lankan waters and was awaiting permission to anchor.
President’s Counsel Jayamanne denied the allegations that the crew concealed the truth about the acid leak when the vessel entered Sri Lankan waters.
Xi Jinping is winning the war without firing a shot in Sri Lanka, observes Colonel R Hariharan (retd).
IMAGE: Sri Lanka’s Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, right, bumps fists with China’s State Councilor and Defence Minister General Wei Fenghe in Colombo, April 28, 2021. Photograph: Dinuka Liyanawatte/Reuters
Many would consider the passing of the controversial Colombo Port City Economic Commission Bill by the Sri Lanka parliament, with a comfortable margin on May 20, as a victory for President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.
President Rajapaksa’s personal reputation was at stake, after supreme court scrutiny had found both constitutional and procedural anomalies with the draft.
In the end, the government accepted all the amendments suggested by the supreme court, though it bypassed suggestions for referendum and two thirds majority for certain sections, to rush it through parliament.
The Act empowers the Sri Lankan president to create a commission for the special economic zone to manage the SEZ, accord tax and duty concessions for investors.
Concerns of ‘foreigners’, euphemism for Chinese, being inducted into the commission were assuaged after President Rajapaksa appointed President’s Counsel Gamini Marpana to head the Port City Commission with six other Sri Lankans including Treasury Secretary S R Attygalle as members.
The Economic Commission, which was mooted as an independent body, will now function under the country’s regulatory authorities and constitutional bodies including the parliament.
The companies in the Colombo Port City will have to operate under Sri Lankan laws and judiciary and conform to financial and customs regulations applicable to elsewhere in the country.
This has taken some sheen off the original proposal, depriving the Colombo Port City much of the hype to become an international financial hub on the lines of Dubai or Singapore.
Reconciling the demands of the SEZ to attract investment with the constraints imposed by the Act, must be worrying the Rajapaksas.SponsoredMore from around the web
The project is being developed by CHEC Colombo Port City Pvt Ltd with an initial investment of $1.4 billion.
Reclamation of 269 hectares of land was completed by January 2019.
The development of common infrastructure underway now is expected to be completed by the end of the year.
According to a PwC report, in the next 20 years, real estate development, including commercial, financial, hospitality, residential and social infrastructure, is expected to be completed.
In this period, a total of 160,000 jobs are expected to be created.
After that in the operational stage when the project matures, in all 210,000 jobs are estimated to be created.
The PwC report also envisaged the value addition to the GDP due to the project at infrastructure, lease of land and construction stage at $4.16 billion and $13 billion respectively.
During the debate in parliament Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa spoke of $15 billion investments flowing into the project in the next five years.
He also touched upon the huge potential for creating 200,000 jobs during the construction phase of the project.
These claims have given rise to huge expectations about the project among the people, though many have expressed their concern over sovereignty of the project, because of increasing Chinese domination seen everywhere.
The Colombo Port City Economic Commission Act coming into being may be considered a victory for China as it gains yet another strategic foothold in the heart of Colombo.
In the larger context of China’s global image building under President Xi Jinping, the CColombo Port City project promoted by the state-owned China Heavy Engineering Corporation (CHEC), is set to showcase the success of the Bridge and Road Initiative.
Quoting what it claims to be a cabinet paper submitted by Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa on May 17, Nimal Ratnaweera writing in the Web-based Colombo Telegraph, averred, ‘Over the next two years, the government plans to sell hundreds of acres of prime State-owned land in Colombo Fort and its adjacent Slave Island area, including property currently being used by the Sri Lanka Air Force and Sri Lanka Army.’
The Colombo Telegraph, known to be critical of the Rajapaksas, said it learnt ‘the bulk of these properties have been reserved for the China Harbour Engineering Corporation, through an intermediary local firm created specifically for the purpose of easing the path for transfer to the Beijing-owned entity and other affiliated investors.’
The report further added the state owned Selendiva Investments ‘has been tasked with transforming several underperforming state-owned assets into ‘viable, profitable and marketable’ assets.’
The Urban Development Authority was seeking approval to move ahead with three investment portfolios: The Colombo Fort Heritage Square, The Immovable Property Development and The Government-owned Hospitality Sector under Selendiva Investments.
The earlier Sirisena-Wickremesinghe government was known to have listed many of these government properties in a bid to transform Colombo City into a commercial and financial capital.
According to the Colombo Telegraph, ‘that diversification was to be streamlined under a competitive bidding process for interested investors.’
But given the speed at which the Chinese operate, the competitive bidding process may be given the go by as it happened recently.
Close on the heels of the enactment of the Colombo Port City Economic Commission, the cabinet decided to award the contract to build the 17 km Kelaniya-Athurugiriya elevated highway project, estimated to cost $1 billion to the CHEC, without competitive bidding.
The Chinese company will build, own and transfer the major highway after 17 years, adding yet another feather in Xi’s BRI cap.
While Chinese investors would probably bid for ‘choice property’ in the Colombo Port City, will the investors from the West and India be keen to invest in the CPC? Any international investor other than local or from China, is likely to have two concerns before opting for the Colombo Port City.
First, the ability of the government to provide a safe and corruption-0free environment with good governance both within and outside the economic zone.
The Sri Lanka government under Rajapaksas carries a legacy of total disregard for international concerns since the end of the Eelam War in May 2009.
These include issues of governance, rule of law, restoring ethnic peace and human rights, which continue to figure in the UN Human Rights Council deliberations.
The Sri Lankan judiciary has not covered itself in glory in quite a few cases. The state of law and order has been subject to severe political influence.
Corruption is endemic. The mess created in handling the COVID-19 pandemic speaks poorly of the administration’s ability to handle critical situations facing the country.
Cumulatively, these issues could make international rating agencies think twice before recommending the Colombo Port City as a favourable investment destination.
The Rajapaksas have become increasingly dependent upon China to bail them out, not only in the UNHRC and the UN Security Council, but to ward off financial crunch.
They are paying the price for it by taking decisions favouring the Chinese, to the detriment of other nations.
They cancelled the memorandum of cooperation the previous government had signed with India and Japan to jointly develop the Eastern Carrier Terminal at Colombo port, on the specious ground of Sri Lankan sovereignty.
Such concern was markedly absent when it came to the Colombo Port City project, actively and publicly promoted by the CHEC.
The Rajapaksas also decided against signing $480 million investment plans of the Millennium Cooperation Corporation on similar grounds, though in his earlier term as president, Mahinda Rajapaksa had mooted the proposal.
Both the US and India are unlikely to forget such conduct, when they deal with Sri Lanka.
With both the US and India recasting their relations with China, Sri Lanka could face the flak of their reaction.
Lastly, one wonders how President Gotabaya Rajapaksa would stick to his assurance to India’s concerns on security, with the Chinese literally breathing down his neck.
The situation reminds us of the visuals of the Singapore-registered cargo ship MV X-press Pearl burning off the Wwest coast of Sri Lanka for over two weeks, polluting the environment around, while Sri Lanka, India and international fire fighters douse the fire.
They learnt rather too late that the ship was carrying 25 tons of a toxic chemical: Nitric acid.
2021 is the Chinese Year of the Ox, considered good for those born in the Year of thr Snake, like Xi Jinping (born in 1953); Mao Zedong was also Snake year-born.
So far it seems to be working for him in Sri Lanka. Xi is winning the war without firing a shot in Sri Lanka.
Colonel R Hariharan, a retired military intelligence officer, is associated with the Chennai Centre for China Studies and the South Asia Analysis Group.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Viktorovich Lavrov who had a telephone conversation with his Sri Lankan counterpart Dinesh Gunawardane said Russia was fully cooperative of the initiative to co-produce its Sputnik V vaccine here and asked the Sri Lankan authorities to expedite the process.
Minister Gunawardane told Daily Mirror that the Russian Minister assured him of the supply of Sputnik V vaccine to Sri Lanka as committed.
Besides, the two countries are expected to resume their trade dialogue as early as possible.
Sri Lanka has given regulatory clearance for emergency use of this vaccine against Covid-19.
Russia is keen to send its tourists to Sri Lanka once the situation is normal. This is another aspect we discussed ,” he said.
He said he, on behalf of Sri Lanka , thanked the Russian Minister for support at the UNHRC. (Kelum Bandara)
Ajith Siriwardana and Yohan Perera Courtesy The Daily Mirror
While claiming that five committees have been appointed to work on the procedures to demand claims from the X-Press Pearl vessel, Ports and Shipping Minister Rohitha Abeygunawardane said today steps were being taken to seek assistance of the international legal experts on the matter.
The Minister told parliament that international legal procedures would also come into play in this process in addition to the domestic legal framework.
He said legal assistance of the international legal experts would be sought in a transparent manner.
The Minister said the matter with regard to the claiming of compensation from the vessel was discussed with the Justice minister and the Attorney General.
“We have identified five areas such as environment pollution, marine pollution, air pollution,lagoon pollution and damage caused to the fishing community. We have appointed five committees to study these affected areas,” he said.
He said steps would be taken to compensate those directly affected due to the incident initially and secondly the institutions such as Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA), Sri Lanka Navy, air force and the Marine Environment Protection Authority (MEPA) that engaged in dousing the fire would claim compensation.
He said compensation would be sought for marine pollution as well. ()
Chaturanga Samarawickrama Courtesy The Daily Mirror
The reason for the flood situation in the Gampaha district was caused by reckless actions taken by the previous government during the construction of the segment from Kadawata to Gampaha of the Central expressway, Tourism Minister Prasanna Ranatunga said.
He told the Daily Mirror that the proposed segment from Kadawata to Gampaha of the Central expressway was to be constructed as an elevated highway.
However, the previous administration did not follow the proposed plans, and they used it to fill the ground with earth for the construction of the highway, he said.
“The Central expressway was a combination of selected segments of previously proposed two Expressways. The segment from Kadawata to Gampaha remains the same alignment on the previously proposed Colombo – Kandy Alternate Highway (CKAH) trace (2001 – 2011) and beyond Gampaha, the trace is the Northern Expressway trace (2011 – 2014) up to Dambulla and Kandy (Galagedara). After that, the previous government had decided to change the starting point of the NEP and also to implement it with the assistance of Donor Agencies. Then it was decided to change the project name to Central Expressway in 2015,” he said.
Minister Ranatunga said a meeting was held today to review the construction work of the Central Highway from Kadawata to Gampaha.
During the meeting, it was discussed to review the appropriation of the number of estimated culverts used during the construction.
When running the expressway parallel to and in line with the existing railway line, the culverts should be placed according to the recommended sizes and to the approved numbers of culverts.
He pointed out that the outlets of those culverts were not equal to the size of the inlets. According to the Minister, the expressway was discovered to be parallel to the existing railway line, and the outlet sizes of the culverts under the railway track were smaller than the inlet size of the culverts under the expressway.
Therefore, the culverts can not hold the water capacity running through them during high rain fall. As a result, the current flood situation in Attanagalla, Magalegoda in Veyangoda, Meerigama, Ganegoda, and Gampaha town had been created.
Instructions were given in this regard to the Highways Ministry Secretary, Irrigation department and the Expressway Operation Maintenance And Management Division of the Road Development Authority to seek solutions and procedures for the recent floods in Gampaha.
No flood situation would occur in Gampaha if the previous government built the expressway as an elevated highway, the Minister said. ()
Foreign Minister Dinesh Gunawardena today sought the immediate intervention of the US State Department to convey the concerns and the position of the government on the proposed resolution No. H.Res.413, which was introduced by Congresswoman Deborah Ross,to the Chair and members of the House Foreign Affairs Committee as well as the respective Congresspersons in order to withdraw or amend it.
The Minister made this appeal when Charge d’ Affairesmof the US Embassy in Colombo Martin T. Kelly called on him at the Foreign Ministry today.
The Minister explained that the said Resolution will not be useful for reconciliation efforts in Sri Lanka.
The Foreign Minister thanked the government and people of the United States for the continued support extended to Sri Lanka.
He particularly appreciated the US President’s recent announcement that Sri Lanka will be one of the countries receiving COVID-19 vaccines through the COVAX programme.
He also thanked for the consignment of USAID emergency medical supplies which arrived on 04 June 2021 and possible US technical assistance to mitigate adverse environmental impact caused by the MV X-Press Pearl disaster.
A wide range of bilateral matters, including convening of Partnership Dialogue and Joint Commission of Trade & Investment Framework Agreement, were also discussed.
Joining the meeting, Foreign Secretary Admiral Prof. Jayanath Colombage elaborated on the government’s efforts to control the COVID-19 pandemic and the status of the on-going national vaccination programme.
Kankyo Daizen’s fertilizer wins over farmers in Vietnam and Cambodia
ASAHIKAWA, Japan — An organic products company based in northern Japan hopes its environmentally friendly fertilizer made from cow urine will catch on with farmers in Southeast Asia.
The liquid fertilizer, Tsuchi Ikikaeru — or “soil comes back to life” — is sold in five countries including Vietnam and Cambodia. Farmland in much of Southeast Asia faces degradation and declining fertility, the result of longtime overuse of agrochemicals.
Kankyo Daizen collects the urine from dairy farmers in Hokkaido, the northernmost of Japan’s main islands, where the company is located. In 2012, it began exporting Tsuchi Ikikaeru to agricultural producers through two Japanese trading houses.
Cow urine, which is often dumped into rivers or sprayed over farmland, contaminates water sources and has an offensive smell. Kankyo Daizen has turned this nuisance into a valuable resource for Hokkaido farmers. Now the natural soil conditioner is winning new customers abroad.
Kankyo Daizen, which also makes organic deodorizers, estimates that its overall sales rose 11% to 230 million yen ($2.13 million) for the 12 months ended in January. Its overseas business has grown and now accounts for 10% of total revenue, as the company has expanded its sales channels.
“Southeast Asia has a young and growing population,” Kankyo Daizen President Makoto Kubonouchi said. “It is a promising market as long as we can meet registration requirements in different countries.”
Kankyo Daizen’s environmentally friendly liquid fertilizer is making inroads in Vietnam and elsewhere in Southeast Asia.
Growing incomes in Southeast Asia have spurred interest in more natural farming practices in the region. Kankyo Daizen’s organic fertilizer, for example, is a good substitute for conventional agrochemicals. The company says the product, which is diluted with water when applied, is an effective growth booster for a wide range of crops including rice, vegetables, flowering plants and farmed shrimp. It also helps maintain soil fertility when the same crop is grown on the same plot of land year after year.
Kankyo Daizen also plans to sell Tsuchi Ikikaeru in Malaysia and the Philippines, but it is not limiting its ambitions to Asia. In February, Kubonouchi traveled to Brazil as part of a research tour organized by the Japan International Cooperation Agency, inspecting large farms growing crops such as soybeans and sugar cane. The company plans to explore market opportunities there after receiving a positive response from local farmers. One challenge to overcome is the shipping cost, given the distance between Japan and Brazil.
In Japan, the company works with a number of dairy farmers in Kitami and areas along the Sea of Okhotsk. The manufacturing process starts by fermenting cow urine using a special mix of microbes. The liquid is collected in a tanker truck and then fermented some more in six 18-ton tanks at Kankyo Daizen’s headquarters. The company believes lactic acid bacteria and yeast grown with cow urine inhibit the growth of harmful bacteria in the soil.
Kankyo Daizen sells 50 products in all, including a clear, colorless liquid designed to eliminate household odors. The fertilizer and the deodorizer look different but the bacteria that they contain work the same way. The company provided the deodorant free of charge to evacuation shelters and temporary toilets in areas hit by recent earthquakes in northern Japan.
Kankyo Daizen verified the effectiveness of its cow urine-derived products in tests conducted at the Kitami Institute of Technology. But mysteries remain, including how the active ingredient forms through fermentation and how it reduces odors and increases soil fertility. The company plans to work with a private research group to solve these puzzles.
