The Sri Lankan Navy has intensified its coastal patrolling to prevent the possible spread of the novel coronavirus through “infected” Indian fishermen that it fears might “poach” in their territorial waters.
he Sri Lankan Navy has intensified its coastal patrolling to prevent the possible spread of the novel coronavirus through “infected” Indian fishermen that it fears might “poach” in their territorial waters.
Navy chief Piyal de Silva on Friday said they have strengthened patrolling, especially in northern, western and northwestern coastal areas. The Lankan Airforce would also be on hand to assist.
There is a possibility that infected Indian fishermen could poach in our waters. They could have contact with our people and pass on the virus,” he said.
Poaching in each other’s waters by fishermen of both the countries has been a recurring problem since the recent past.
The frequent incidents of poaching have drawn top-level talks between the two nations across the Palk Strait, which is between Tamil Nadu and Jaffna district of the Northern Province of Sri Lanka.
The fishermen issue also figured in the talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Sri Lankan counterpart Mahinda Rajapaksa during the latter’s visit to India in February.
Referring to the issue, Modi had said both sides have decided to adopt a humanitarian approach in dealing with it.
“It directly affects the livelihood of the people of both countries. Therefore, we agreed to continue to adopt a constructive and humanitarian approach in dealing with the issue,” he said.
Sri Lanka is under a lockdown since last month to tackle the fast-spreading virus.
The country has till now reported 197 confirmed cases of coronavirus with 7 deaths.
By Suryamithra Vishwa/Harmony Page-DailyFT Courtesy NewsIn.Asia
Immunity-building which is fundamental to traditional Lankan medicine is the best answer to viral pandemics
This article is part of the series the Harmony page is running on Sri Lanka’s indigenous medical heritage, medicinal-food culture and traditional lifestyle/values. We, the Harmony page team believe that this is the ‘now or never’ moment to revive our ignored wealth of knowledge on well-being practiced for thousands of years in our land and known traditionally as Hela Wedakam or Sinhala Wedakam although the encompassing term ‘Ayurveda’ is also used.
We as a nation are sitting on a gold mine; the gold mine of our Lankan indigenous medicine and food culture that those of us who know its value respect deeply and practice it with reverence in our everyday life while watching sadly as many, many of us ignore it and even scoff at it.
Dr. Seela Fernando in her book ‘Herbal Food and Medicines in Sri Lanka’ points out that Ayurvedic science in Sri Lanka shone at its best during the reigns of King Buddhadasa and Parakrama Bahu the Great. She points out: ‘During these days, every Sinhalese of noble birth was expected to know Ayurveda; besides Royalty, they included Buddhist monks and poets. These physicians attained a high degree of efficiency in both medicine and surgery, yet they did not work for pecuniary gain. Even the Sinhalese kings, among whom were famous surgeons and physicians, practiced medicine as an act of service to gain merit.”
She further quotes Robert Knox, the British East India company sailor who was taken captive in 1659 by the military of the King of Kandy. This is what Robert Knox had to say about Sri Lanka’s indigenous medicinal system/culture that was inculcated within society at the time: Here are professed Physicians but all in general have some skill that way and are Physicians to themselves. The woods are the Apothecaries shops, where with herbs, leaves and rind of trees they make all their physics and their plasters with which they do notable cures.”
Today how will a foreigner, say one of the multitudes of so-called western ‘experts’, whose advice we have ardently listened to, for the past decades, speak of contemporary Lankan society? Will they say what Knox said?
Western science has failed us
It is now clear that Western science has failed us – at least it has failed us in the murky and unclear ongoing saga of COVID-19. But has our traditional medicine failed us in the face of COVID-19? What is being used to successfully rid our bodies of this virus of questionable origin and nature, are methods such as steaming which our ancient medical practice had recommended through the use of the Dhum Hattiya infused with herbs to clear the lungs and aid in respiratory health.
In the Dum Hattiya, among the herbs used are those such as nidhikumba flowers, karapincha leaves, kuppameniya dalu, marakondi leaves, kohomba leaves, devadara and vishnukanthi (to name a few). The above herbs are mentioned based on a discussion with Ayurveda physician D.D. Nawarathenna of Kandy who is one among the hundreds of traditional physicians and Ayurvedic medical suppliers who are striving to save our country from this COVID-19 pandemic, even if they do not seem to be at the medical forefront battling this virus.
Sri Lankans unfortunately are today brainwashed to think that Western science is ‘superior’ but let us look at what Western doctors who were intrigued by the accuracy of our traditional medical practices, had to say as quoted in the book Herbal Food and Medicines in Sri Lanka.
Dr. John Attyagalle, a British qualified Doctor of medicine who compiled the Sinhalese ‘Materia Medica’ in 1917 mentions that he himself has administered these decoctions in their proper order and found them most effective.”
Dr. George Clarke, M.D., M.A. of Philadelphia is quoted as stating after reading the Charaka Samhita, the ancient text on the Ayurvedic medical tradition; As I go through a part of Charaka, I come to the conclusion that if present day physicians drop all modern drugs and chemicals from their Pharmacopoeia and adopt the methods of Charaka in treating diseases, there will be less work for undertakers and fewer invalids in the world.”
‘Tablet gulping’ human machines
Is it then not pathetically ironic that we are a country where thousands die of cancer, are ridden with diabetes and diverse other ailments and have become ‘tablet gulping’ human machines, half dead before they are fully dead?
Some months ago, on a visit to an Ayurvedic doctor practicing in the Piliyandala area, as part of a research on indigenous wellbeing in Sri Lanka, I was watching the crowds of patients, for whom the Allopathic tradition of cure had not worked. Although this doctor had got his certification from the Institute of Indigenous Medicine in the 1980s he had included into his knowledge the training he received from a senior Hela Weda Mahattaya from Anuradhapura at whose house he had worked as a servant for more than two years, in order to persuade him to pass on his ancient medical knowledge gained from generations, dating back to the dynasty of physicians in Sinhala kingdoms. He still has with him few of the ancient medical documents used by that doctor, although dozens of others he had given to the Ayurvedic Department.
Having got permission to sit and observe the patients being treated, one thing I noticed was the extremely unhealthy eating habits of the patients which they reveal during the questions the doctor raised when he was checking their ‘naadi’. Nowhere in their diet were village rice varieties such as Rathu Nadu, Bata Pola El, Haya Masa wee, Kalu Heeneti , grains such as Kollu, Mineri, Olu haal, or the many variety of leaves/trees that usually were grown in our gardens such as masbedda, thebu, thulasi, gotukola, kos, manokka (the writer has opted to identify these food in our everyday Sinhala parlence).
I asked one 65-year-old woman suffering from many ailments such as arthritis, diabetes and cholesterol why she can’t take foods such as lunu kenda and for lunch prepare simple traditional rice varieties and boil them with herbs such as garlic, perumkayam, kaha, goraka, gammiris, kottamalli seed and karapincha leaves. She looked at me as if I had asked her some impossible to do task. I then told her that this is how I eat daily and that I am totally disease free. She seemed quite aghast.
‘Modern’ diet
In the conversation that ensued with this physician, as with many other physicians of Ayurveda/Hela Wedakam, comes up the sad topic of today’s ‘modern’ diet where we have ‘imported’ into our bodies every kind of immunity impairing ‘chemically induced’ and ‘processed’ rubbish that passes off for ‘taste’. Yes, the same rubbish that the hundreds who are dying in Western countries following COVID-19 have been consuming all their lives.
Thus, the desperately needed focus now in Sri Lanka is to revive our traditional/indigenous patterns of consumption/living and attitude where there was a thin divide between medicine and food. As the Ven. Omalpe Sobhitha Nayaka Thero stated in his address at last December’s Royal Asiatic Society (RASL) symposium, focusing on Indigenous Medicine, Health Care and Wellbeing; If you do not consider food as medicine in your diet then one day you will have to consume medicine as food.” This is exactly what the Western world has done – consumed manufactured substance euphemistically called ‘food’ to encourage greed/craving alone and then consumed medicine as food. We now see the difference between the death toll of the coronavirus in countries such as India and Sri Lanka and the so-called ‘developed’ world.
This means that although we have aped the West including diet, whatever fragment left in practicing our food culture such as even a sparse use of everyday herbs in our curries have possibly held us in good stead. Imagine if we had fully followed our indigenous diet and had a strong food production policy based on our traditional foods, traditional agricultural methods/philosophy and had educated the masses on practicing our disease prevention focused medical heritage as well as enabling the individual’s cultivation of our own food sans pesticide? Would not we than have been a formidable mass of people, with unconquerable immunity that could face even an army of pandemics which may just be at worst as irritating as common cold? Why on earth are we not focusing on the topic of immunity and encouraging our professionals to study this aspect in depth? (https://dailyftepaper.pressreader.com/daily-ft/20200328)
Those practicing Ayurveda/traditional medicine and cultivating indigenous ‘food/medicines are now the most wanted humans of our country and they are unable to keep up with the orders that come for everyday spices/medicines such as Kaha, beheth inguru, perumkayam and veniwel.
The elite of this country revel in the use of Western oils such as Olive oil imported from far away countries, extolling its purported goodness , but how many of us cook with oils from our traditional herbs such as those made from the seeds of Sri Lanka’s ‘miracle tree,’ the Mee tree that was protected by law during the times of the Sinhala kings because it facilitates innumerable cures to both humans and the soil.
Some of us buy almonds and pumpkin seed imported from other countries without a second thought as to how they are cultivated – whether chemical agricultural process is used or not, while our own kotang seed known to be an equivalent or even superior to organic almond and our kos eta known to be a powerhouse or nutrients are hardly talked of and the same persons who are paying hundreds of rupees on imported pumpkin seed throws away the pumpkin seed before cooking!
While the elite in America who are becoming conscious of their health are getting coconut water imported into their country, we throw it down the sink and then reach for dubious fizzy drinks that are marketed as must-haves with our food.
This writer along with few likeminded others who have spent much time educating ourselves on our indigenous food/medicine, fear no virus in the planet, bio weapon or bat weapon. This is because we thoroughly respect, love and strive to know our nation’s indigenous food/medicine/lifestyle methods and are aware of what happens to our immune system when we eat anything that is not part of our ancestral heritage such as white bread, known for gluten and the harm it does to the human body. Although many Lankans are now addicted to ‘kade paan’ almost to the effect that we think it is part and parcel of our food culture, it is an alien thing to our diet.
It is said that when the Sinhalese saw the Portuguese who invaded this country in 1505 eat bread that they mistook them for cannibals thinking they were consuming human flesh. If we must eat bread, we can bake it ourselves with flour made of traditional rice varieties. Today we use chilli amply but it was pepper which was the dominant spice infused into our curries in pre-colonial times and because of its constant use ancient Sri Lankans scarcely had respiratory issues. The Kaluheeneti rice known for boosting of immunity and vigour constituted of the diet of the fighting forces of the ancient kings of Lanka. We now drink tea introduced to us by the British and promote it as our traditional drink but we had many herbal drinks that were consumed prior to colonisation including beli mal, ranawara and boiled Kansa leaf.
This writer recalls of how two years ago in a visit to a Weda Watta in Kottawa area how it was explained that in ancient times our robust Sinhala farmers, would return from the field and how he would be served by the Hamine, with a cup of boiled kansa leaf to remove the ‘thehettuwa’ of the body (causing no addiction or danger to society). However today it is arduous even for the traditional medicine sector to grow the Kansa plant.
Kansa/Canabis was outlawed by the British with their introduction of the Dangerous Drug Ordinance, so that they could sell British made arrack and cigarettes. This was well-explained by Dr. Vajira Seneviratne, senior scientist at the Bandaranaike Memorial Ayurvedic Research Institute at the conference on indigenous well-being, who pointed out that today one is fearful even to discuss the topic. (http://www.ft.lk/harmony_page/A-brief-look-at-pre-colonial-wellbeing-models-of-traditional-medicine/10523-691121)
What the colonisers did was to break our backbone. They shot at the knee to kill our traditional martial arts and feared our herbs. They knew that when you break the backbone of traditional sustenance pillars of wellbeing of a country, giving ‘independence’ to that does not mean a thing.
Western advancement
In a recent conversation with renowned Lankan chef Deshabandu Dr. T. Publis Silva, the author of Mahasupavamsaya; the great Chronicle of Sri Lankan culinary art, he lamented that Lankans have forgotten our diverse kinds of traditional potatoes/vegetables/fruits and instead import potatoes like we do apples and oranges. To listen to him was as equally depressing as it must have been for him to say it, as he explained how blindly seeped we are in pesticide, weedicide ridden agro culture ‘gifted’ to us by Western ‘advancement.’
In Sri Lanka, so far only seven or so patients have died after contracting the coronavirus. It would be interesting to see how many usually die of cancer or dengue in about a four-week time frame in Lanka.
We speak so much about building cancer hospitals, donating equipment needed but there is hardly any public discourse on the hundreds of native vegetables that renew damaged cells in the body and eliminate all poisonous or damaged conditions of the body. Sarath Perera of Waaduwa who has cured over 50,000 Lankan dengue patients in the past 10 years, in conversation with this writer spoke of the power of bee honey as a base for removing infections of the body (http://www.ft.lk/harmony_page/The-man-who-saves-bees-and-humans/10523-694329).
If there was ever a time for us Lankans to wake up, it is now. It is time to revert to our traditional truly ‘developed’ states of well-being that is part of our forgotten history.
It is lamentable that we as a nation have not asserted ourselves since 1948 using our own common sense. If we did, we would not have cultivated pine trees that destroy our soil beyond imagination while we ridiculed and debunked the advice of world-renowned Lankan ecologists such as Ranil Senanayake (who was the advisor to the ministry of Mahaweli in the 1970s). The proposal by Senanayake to grow trees such as Kos, Mee Kohomba and other native trees, vegetables, fruits and medicinal herbs in a ‘foresting pattern’ on mountain tops and link these ‘forests’ to the surrounding villages to serve the nutrition and medicinal well-being of people were debunked (http://www.ft.lk/opinion/A-journey-to-keep-the-land-forested/14-661038).
We as a nation are sitting on a gold mine; the gold mine of our Lankan indigenous medicine and food culture that those of us who know its value respect deeply and practice it with reverence in our everyday life while watching sadly as many, many of us ignore it and even scoff at it
Reality of non-support
The torturous reality of non-support facing those of us who are trying to grow our indigenous heritage foods and come up with innovative business/educational concepts woven around our indigenous culture is the non-ending virus that we battle. But we carry on with persistence because we love our country despite being turned away from our banks, refusing us financial assistance ‘because it takes a long time for plants to grow and provide financial benefits.’
It is our fervent hope that policy makers (beyond party politics) will make attempts to truly work with those who are with honest intention, committed to studying, analysing and reviving indigenous well-being models to ensure that we are prepared in knowledge and practice to defend the health of our nation. If we do this firmly rooted in thorough knowledge and confidence of our medical/food heritage, we need not wait for the West to sell us pandemic vaccines, when we do not know just how many such ‘pandemics’ would be in store in this age of virus and vaccine intrigue.
Instead our vaccine against all ills, will be in how we educate every child, every adult on techniques of immunity boosting, on how cells within the body regenerate/heal and the ability for the body to fight/resist infection, if assisted by our ancestral food habits, preventive and curative indigenous medicinal practice. Thus, we have to take our indigenous health ‘vaccine’ by consuming only our traditional foods and putting into practice the Buddhist wisdom ‘Arogya parama labha. Santutthi paramam dhanan’. Health is the ultimate profit. Happiness is the ultimate wealth.
Instead of the unhealthy fast food shops that dot our streets in every corner of our country we need urgently to usher in a culture of food entrepreneurship that is aligned with our traditional indigenous foods (http://www.ft.lk/harmony_page/Health-is-the-ultimate-profit-An-effort-at-serving-health-and-wellbeing/10523-687052).
We have to recognise that our indigenous food is replete with almost magical medicinal nutrient benefits which are a luxury for many Western nations. This is a good opportunity for all sectors, from allopathic medical system to the banking sector, to the local business sector and the education system, to function in unity and in genuine consideration for the common Lankan cause in the sphere of promoting well-being/immunity. The financial wealth, the lives and the self-sufficiency of our nation, depends on it.
References:
Herbal Food and Medicines in Sri Lanka by Dr. Seela Fernando
Mahasupavamsaya; The Great Chronicle of Sri Lankan Culinary Art of Sri Lanka by Deshabandu T. Publis Silva
Sinhala Nadi Waidya Vidyawa by Sarath P. Ambathalawa
A new bank account termed Special Deposit Account (SDA) has now been introduced for all Sri Lankans living in and outside the country to remit their foreign currency earnings, savings and investments to any bank of their choice in Sri Lanka. It is in the form of Term Deposits either in any designated foreign currency or in Sri Lanka Rupees, the Presidential Media Division said. Any Sri Lankan individual resident in or outside Sri Lanka as well as dual citizens, citizens of other States with Sri Lankan origin, non-nationals residents in or outside Sri Lanka, Funds, corporate bodies, associations incorporated/registered outside Sri Lanka and any other well-wishers can open Special Deposit Accounts at any Sri Lankan bank of their preference.All the regulations related to the new account have been incorporated in the Extraordinary Gazette notification issued by the Ministry of Finance, Economic and Policy Development on April 8th. The notification announces that all interested Sri Lankans and well-wishers accordingly can instruct their foreign banks to transfer their funds to Sri Lanka.There is no prescribed minimum amount to be deposited. The minimum period of maturity is six (06) months. Higher interest rates than the normal rates offered to foreign currency deposits will be offered at maturity. Accordingly, 1 percent and 2 percent points per annum for SDA with a tenure of 6 months and 12 months respectively will be paid. Funds are freely convertible and repatriable outside Sri Lanka on maturity.All these accounts are free from taxes and foreign exchange regulations. All such deposits shall be protected under banking secrecy provision and further benefits with the relevant supporting legislations will be introduced with the 2020 Budget. Acceptable currencies are United States Dollars (USD), Euro, Sterling Pounds, Australian Dollars, Singapore Dollars, Swedish Kroner, Swiss Franc, Canadian Dollars, Hong Kong Dollars, Japanese Yen, Danish Kroner, Norwegian Kroner, Chinese Renminbi and New Zealand Dollars. Further information could be obtained from the websites of the Presidential Secretariat, the Ministry of Finance, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka or Sri Lankan overseas missions. All Sri Lankans who are willing to express their solidarity to sustain Sri Lanka’s resilience are invited to this opportunity in support of COVID – 19 prevention and social security initiative.
The second term of all government schools will commence on the 11th of May, 2020, stated President’s Media Division.
Previously, the new school term was to commence on the 20th of April.
However, considering the outbreak of COVID-19 in the country, the government has decided to postpone the commencement of the second term.
The Government has prepared to provide facilities for students to continue their education during school hours through distance learning.
The Ministry of Higher Education has been notified to review the date of commencement of universities with the agreement of the university authorities and the University Grants Commission (UGC) by considering the current situation of the country.
Another patient has tested positive for the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) today bringing the country’s infections tally to 198, says the Ministry of Health.
According to the Epidemiology Unit, 137 coronavirus patients are currently under medical care.
Out of the total number of confirmed cases in Sri Lanka, 54 patients have recovered completely while 7 persons succumbed to the virus.
The deadly virus has so far claimed more than 100,000 lives and infected over 1.6 million population worldwide.
(A paper prepared by the Sri Lanka Geo-Political Study Circle to insulate Sri Lanka against extinction from natural and man-made disasters in a globalised world.)
Situational Background
Sri Lanka is a spiritual Nation, blessed with a land that is naturally fertile and whose eco-system, supports the waters flowing within and, sustains the birds, the animals and the creatures that share with the people the country’s natural wealth.
The philosophy of the Buddha pervades the Nation and has permeated all sectors of the country, especially the agricultural, the educational and the health sectors.
This philosophy does not subscribe to the European philosophy of ‘the-survival-of-the-fittest’ but rather has empathy with the socialist philosophy of sharing with those, who are not the ‘fittest’ and with those who are in want.
The Buddha Dharma made this country a contented and self-sufficient country, at peace with herself and with her neighbours.
Then came, four hundred years of barbaric rule that destroyed all this; Man was made to compete against, man, birds, animals, and creatures that shared the land; above all, the man was made to believe that the land of his birth is just another commodity, available to be grabbed, traded, bought or sold, by or to anyone whomsoever, at whatever cost such practice demands.
The barbarians attempted to erase from our collective id a sacred duty, entrusted to us, to keep safe this land for our progeny; it is a duty, we have to fulfill to ensure the fundamental rights of our unborn to this blessed land and to make this land available to them for their use, in their time.
Barbarian culture eroded the serenity of our lives, degrading man to a commodity, a piece of chattel to be bought and sold.
The concept of ‘family’, with members bonded together as a homogeneous unit to provide the first line of human security, was undermined by the barbarians; they manipulated a system where mothers, the key to a family unit, were lured out of the family, causing the collapse of the family as a social unit.
The role of Government, in playing a pivotal role in the education, health and economic advancement of the people and as a guarantor and underwriter of their security, was disdainfully dismissed by the barbarians as being obsolete; the barbarians projected instead, a nebulous ‘Private’ sector.
Trade unions were treated with scant respect; the barbarians considered them more as impediments to development than as partners in development.
Bereft of support from ‘Family’, ‘Unions’ and ‘Government’, man has been deviously isolated and manipulated to be a mere cog in a human chain, akin to a galley-slave, vulnerable to exploitation and whose very life depends on the charity of the malevolent galley-tyrant.
But there remained a gap; the ‘detached-man-in-a-Nation- State’ (the man without protection from Family, Union and Government) was not yet under the direct control of the global tyrant.
This lacuna was addressed by that notorious US contractor Moragoda, via his ‘Pathfinder’ organisation, in the immediate aftermath of the Easter bombing in 2019.
Moragoda, with CIA projects partner – The Cornell University -unsolicitedly prepared Sri Lanka’s ‘National Security’ Policy’, a subject that has ‘TOP SECRET’ classification and is the exclusive preserve of the highest echelons of security in the country.
Moragoda had no fears that he may be transgressing Sri Lanka’s laws and threatening her security; and this, at a time when hundreds of innocents had been massacred and many fingers were pointing angrily towards Teplitz, as they still do a year later.
Moragoda’s Policy paper on ‘ National Security’ is a poorly argued, shoddy piece of work that could, at best, be described as ‘The US Plan for Sri Lanka’s National Security’.
The Plan is based on a fallacious assumption that National Security has two mutually exclusive components, ‘the security of the State’ and ‘the security of the people within the State’. Moragoda argues moronically that with globalisation, the dynamics of State Security has lost much of its relevance and that the remaining component – security of the people – is the foremost concern in National Security.
Moragoda psittacinely continues; the threat to the people is mostly extrinsic (like COVID 19?) and the State cannot be relied on to provide security to her people. Moragoda devilishly plants the notion that the security should, therefore, be outsourced to the International community. In short, Sri Lanka’s National Security should be handled by the Americans.
Moragoda subtly severs the nexus between the ‘unprotected-man’ (no family, no union, no government) and Sri Lanka, and leaves his fate to be decided on by the Americans.
And Moragoda goes on to diabolically suggest that there may be times when the ‘safety’ of the Sri Lankan people may have to be compromised for the survival of mankind taken as a whole!
Considering that the world is in the throes of a virus pandemic and considering that Pathfinder International is a eugenic organization committed to reducing the world population by various means including viruses, Moragoda’s statement in his report, paraphrased here, takes on a more ominous complexion, …the core objective of National Security is the safety of its citizens. Long term survival of humanity, a noble ideal, is a far broader objective beyond the capabilities of a single State.”
Moragoda’s subversive ‘US Plan for Sri Lanka’s National Security’ was presented to all the major contenders before the Presidential Election last year.
With globalisation, the barbarians dictated what we should eat or not eat, what medications we should take or not take, what items we should produce or not produce, what jobs we should do or not do, whether we should own the land of our birth or whether someone else should own our Motherland, whether we should follow our laws or whether we should follow the barbarian’s laws and which of us should live and which of us should die.
While the barbarians were thus lording over the world, a tiny little virus has surreptitiously crept in and has brought the world to a virtual standstill; it threatens the very existence of the barbarians and the civilised alike.
The barbarians who bullied the civilised to silence, with their nuclear weapons and military arsenal, are unable to bully the tiny virus; the virus mocks the barbarians with a V finger-gesture in their face.
The virus has, at present, evened the playing field; the bully and the bullied have to play together, on equal terms, if each is to survive.
But eliminating the virus is just one dimension of the problem; the virus has dented the existing World Order that was being created by the barbarians.
Sorely wounded, the barbarians have a few options and they include (1) Accepting the defeat of their ‘bubble’ Empire which was based on globalisation. (2) Cashing-in on the destabilization caused in the bullied countries and ease into power ‘friendly’ military juntas which would do the barbarian’s bidding; through them achieve their thwarted geopolitical objectives (3) Playing the ‘doomsday’ game by ensuring the safety of ‘selected’ people in all countries around the world and thereafter eliminating the rest,the prototype-model fancied by Hitler. Is this what Moragoda meant when he said that Sri Lankans may have to be sacrificed for the nobler ideal of saving humanity?
With the world-order of the barbarians collapsing, the civilised people around the world must perforce take precautions against the barbarians who, in a desperate death-gasp, may attempt to take control of the land of the civilised, through extra-judicial means.
Within the country, the distributive mechanism for food, medicines and essential items, is dislocated and has to be vastly improved.
It is imperative therefore to put in place immediately, an effective distributive mechanism in the context of the present scenario and forestall any destabilisation of the country by the barbarian and his pathfinding man-Friday.
The virus has brought us back to reality. In the globalised world of the barbarian, whenever the system gets dented by a virus or any other factor, the countries that are most vulnerable are countries such as ours. Having slavishly, forfeited our right to produce our own food, forsaken our traditional medicines and copied an economic model of the barbarians, we are left without food, medicines, jobs, and money when the globalised template is unjointed.
There are many organisations within the country working against the interest of Sri Lanka. They – the organisations and persons working therein –need to be identified, investigated and prosecuted.
The Pathfinder Foundation is a case in point; they and their sister organisations must be investigated immediately for any culpability in this current COVID 19, human tragedy.
The barbaric enemy is trying to project solutions to the present crisis within the current globalised structure and with the life-threatening virus floating amidst us. We need to tear down our shackles and go for an unglobalised world; break away from the globalised banking, trading, and financial systems, adopt a new currency of exchange (a basket of currencies), renegotiate our debts, bring the Central Bank under our control and reintroduce the barter system of exchange wherever possible
The need of the hour is to formulate a plan to contain and eliminate the virus from Sri Lanka. While doing so the Government must get its act together, to ensure there is food on every Sri Lankan table, medicines at hand in all homes requiring them and education is brought unhindered to all the young, within their homes.
While doing so, we need immediately to formulate another plan to succeed in the New World Order -a non-globalised world -where no Sri Lankans would ever be without food, healthcare, education, housing, and employment.
The latter plan would rechart new goals, re-set our values and ensure we would never be subject to being bullied by another country because of economic wants.
This plan would include the steps to be taken NOW to make our country self-sufficient in our basic needs within one year while developing industries, research, services and IT in support of our basic needs.
Ven. Udakendawala Siri Saranankara ( January 7,1902 – November 13,1966) was an outstanding political bhikkhu of Sri Lanka. He is forgotten today. However, his name should not be erased completely from history. He was continuously active under a hostile British administration, and unlike most activists of the time, he was very influential. His activism straddled both British rule and the subsequent period of independent rule. Saranankara was the first President of the Communist Party of Sri Lanka, in 1943. He was awardedthe International Lenin Peace Prize for the Consolidation of Peace among Nations in 1957.
In his autobiography, Saranankara had stated that he was orphaned when very young and was looked after by his elder sister. He became a samanera in at the village temple in his early teens. He then moved to Kospillewa Vihara near Gampaha, where he lived for many years. Probably sensing his potential, his superiors sent him to Paramananda Pirivena, Kotahena, but he did not like it there and returned to Gampaha.
Saranankara wished to work with Anagarika Dharmapala. Anagarika sent him, in April 1921, at the age of nineteen, together with Tennekoon Vimalananda, to work at the Mahabodhi Society in Calcutta. Instead, Saranankara went to Shantiniketan where he learned Bengali and studied Comparative Religion, Political Science and History.
At Shantiniketan, Saranankara came in contact with Tagore and the Bengal renaissance movement. More importantly, he came in contact with the Indian National Movement and its main personalities. He also met the Bengali communists and was inducted into Marxism by them.
The Indian national movement was particularly militant in Bengal. Saranankara witnessed a number of terror activities of the Bengali radicals. He recalled that they killed British officers in broad daylight. Two schoolgirls had shot a British government agent dead when he came to attend a ceremony in their school.
Saranankara came into contact with the young independence fighters there. He met the Chittagong young revolutionary Group in secrecy. He went along to Chittagong, to help rouse them up. Chittagong at the time, we are told, was predominantly a Buddhist area.
Saranankara picked up all sorts of ideas during his stay in India. The Bengalis, with their anti-imperialist fighting traditions, was critical of the non-violence movement of Mahatma Gandhi, saying that it was not the proper strategy to fight the British. Years later, Saranankara wrote in his autobiography, Non-violence may be a great concept of Dhamma. Nevertheless, it has no meaning to the common man. More so, it has no bearing at all on a movement of national liberation.”
Throughout his stay In India, Saranankara sent essays on the Indian anti-imperialist movements to the journals, Sinhala Jatiya”, Swadesha Mitraya”, Sarasavi Sandaresa”, Saraswati”, Lakmina” and Sinhala Balaya”.
Having passed the London Matriculation Examination, Saranankara entered the Calcutta City College in 1931. He was the only Buddhist priest there. He promptly became the President of the Students Union.
He was closely watched by the British government. In March 1932, Saranankara was arrested for helping Bengali radicals in their subversive activities. He was jailed in Calcutta. In prison, he met Subhas Chandra Bose, the Indian National Congress leader as well as members of the Communist Party of India. Then he was exiled to Benares, under police surveillance. He was in Benares for nearly four years.
During his
exile in Benares, Saranankara formed a Bengali Literary Circle which attracted
young radical patriots. In 1936,
Saranankara was seen at the head of a procession in Benares when the people
demonstrated against the British Governor visiting the city. Despite police restrictions, Saranankara
left Benares and came to Calcutta in April 1936. A few weeks later, Saranankara was deported
to Sri Lanka.
On his return to Sri Lanka Saranankara plunged into Marxist politics. Saranankara became a member of the Central Committee of LSSP (est. 1935). He was very welcome because he helped to show that Marxists were not against religion. He had a hand in the LSSP newspapers ‘Samasamajaya’, and ‘Young Socialist’.
He was also involved in the trade union activity of the LSSP. He was a live wire in all trade union struggles, said Wiswa Warnapala. He presided over the first meeting of the Ceylon Trade Union Federation in 1940. In 1941 Saranankara tried to bring the farming sector also into this socialist fold. He set up Lanka Govi Sammelanaya. This was not a success.
Saranankara left the LSSP and joined the Communist
Party when it was set up in 1943. Saranankara was the first President of the
Communist Party of Sri Lanka. The most outstanding monk in the left movement in Sri Lanka,
was Udakandawela Siri Saranankara, concluded Kumari Jayawardene.
He was one of the first monks to clash with prominent Sri Lanka politicians, observed Kumari Jayawardene. He seems to have started this when he was In India. In 1922 when the Legislative Council in Sri Lanka had walked out as a protest against government policies, Saranankara has sent a strong letter to T.B. Panabokke, the Kandyan member saying that his refusal to join the walkout was a disgrace to those Kandyans who had revolted. Panabokke had replied that he was loyal to the King and that Saranankara, a wolf in sheep’s clothing, was no credit to either the Buddha or Tagore. Back in Sri Lanka, he was active in many battles against conservative politicians using temple sermons (bana) as a method of propagating socialist ideas, said Kumari Jayawardena.
Saranankara was sentenced to two years imprisonment for a seditious speech made at Tiranagama against World War II. He was in jail from 1942-1944. He refused to wear prison garb and insisted on wearing the Sangha robe in prison. The prison authorities agreed to this.
After independence, Saranankara turned his energies to Peace. Saranankara was active in the cause of world peace. The World Peace Council was formed in 1949. Saranankara created the local counterpart, Lanka Sama Mandalaya which included, among others TB Subasinghe, TB Ilangaratne, and Vivienne Goonewardene.
In 1950 the World Peace Council initiated a petition to ban nuclear weapons, known as the Stockholm Appeal. Under the leadership of Saranankara, Sri Lanka sent in 50,000 signatures for this. In recognition of this, the World Peace Council, in 1957, organized a special conference in Colombo, the first to be held in Asia. It focused attention on the Buddhist attitude to nuclear testing. There were 400 delegates representing 69 countries.
Saranankara attended the World Peace Conference in 1952 and 1953. In 1954, he attended the Tokyo Buddhist Conference on Peace and went on to China. In 1956, Saranankara attended a World Peace Council meeting, to oppose the invasion of the Suez Canal, held in Bengal. He spoke in Bengali at this meeting.
In 1957, the UK was planning to test nuclear weapons in the Christmas islands ( Kirimati). The tests were carried out successfully, but Saranankara strongly opposed this in a radio broadest where he said he would go to Kirimati and there sacrifice his life. ‘This sent waves,’ said Wiswa. Nehru had praised his courage. In recognition of his continued commitment to world peace, in 1957, Saranankara received the International Lenin Peace Prize for the Consolidation of Peace among the Nations.
Saranankara thereafter turned to the newly developing Asia and Africa Solidarity Movement. He was the first President of the Sri Lanka branch of this Movement. Saranankara also presided over the 2nd conference of the Asian and African Writers Union in 1962 in Cairo. The standing committee of this Union functioned from Colombo under Saranankara.
Saranankara was concerned about the plight of Vietnam, which was then fighting the USA. Saranankara said that the international Buddhist community should rally round the Buddhist community in Vietnam. Saranankara was the secretary of the Lanka Buddhist Vietnam Society.
In 1941, Saranankara started the journal Navalokaya. Navalokaya was published regularly for the next 25 years. It appeared even when Saranankara was in Jail. It was very popular and had a dedicated clientele. I recall reading this as a schoolgirl.
Navalokaya played a significant role in moulding public opinion in the country said Wiswa Warnapala. Navalokaya helped to propagate socialist ideas in Sinhala. Saranankara was able to put across Marxist ideas in Sinhala terminology, Wiswa said.
Navalokaya dealt primarily with international affairs. The objective was to oppose ‘American Imperialism’ and counter anti-soviet propaganda. Navalokaya reported developments in Soviet Russia and activities of the Soviet Sri Lanka Friendship Society. It also drew attention to the activities of its Communist Party of China and it emphasized the need to maintain good relations with China. Saranankara did not forget Vietnam. There was a lot about the Vietnam War in Navalokaya, including a special issue.
Navalokaya also gave coverage to the national liberation struggles in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Navalokaya became the vehicle through which information on Africa-Asia Solidarity Organization, and Organization of Africa-Asia writers, were disseminated. Navalokaya gave considerable space to these events. Local issues were also discussed. The importance of national interest in the making of foreign policy was stressed.
Navalokaya encouraged contributions from young writers with ‘progressive views.’ , Navalokaya was therefore also a training ground for writers and many good writers started with Navalokaya. Saranankara wrote some at least, of the editorials and also had his own column.
The elite Buddhists who were supporters of the USA and a capitalist economy objected to Navalokaya and spread lies about it, saying that it was distorting Buddhism. The more the attacks, the more popular the journal became, observed Wiswa.
Saranankara was known as a courageous writer who fearlessly expressed his views on matters national and international. He wrote a book on ‘why Sri Lanka needs Sama samajism.’ Piyadasa Sirisena replied, under the title ‘Communist falsehoods’.
Saranankara wrote a booklet My Country”, where he attacked both British rule and the slavish attitude of the Sinhala people, especially those who worked for the British. Ten thousand copies of this booklet were distributed among the people. He then received a warning from the British administration.
Saranankara was also interested in providing Sinhala translations of foreign literature. ‘Saranankara’s fluency in Bengali was very helpful to him when he started translating Bengali literary works into Sinhala during the latter part of his life. Saranankara also translated Maxim Gorky’s book, Mother”. If my recall is correct, Saranankara was also associated with the ‘Colombo poets’ of the time.
Ven. Udakendawala Siri Saranankara published his autobiography ‘Satanaka Satahan’ in 1965. I have not seen this book. I have used three other writings. They are Kumari Jayawardena ‘Bhikkus in revolt.’ Lanka Guardian. July 1979 / W.A.Wiswa Warnapala Udakendawala Siri Saranankara, an assessment of his role in the anti-imperialist struggle (2002) / W.A.Abeysinghe Sunday Observer, reproduced in Lankaweb (2018).
Bankrupt political losers of November 2019 are pushing for elections when no country in the world hold elections during the COVID-19 pandemic! They don’t even bother hiding their desperation and greed for power. Sadly, no national politician caught Coronoavirus and as a result, they don’t care for the plight of the nation.
Looks like some aligned to the president have also taken the bait of the other camp that was defeated in November 2019. They too now demand early elections. If the parliamentary election is held within the coming few months it will be political suicide for president Gotabaya who is inexperienced in politics. The country is in a very bad shape as hunger, unemployment, restrictions, sickness and hopelessness grip the entire society. Farmers are unable to sell their products while consumers are unable to buy those products. Restrictions are essential to stop the pandemic.
However, people are adapting very well to the situation. Local new manufacturing is picking up. Sri Lanka’s economy will ferociously rebound within months of ending the pandemic. Learnings and leanings during the pandemic have shown a new path to Sri Lanka – self-sufficiency, import-substitution, new industries, and minimalized consumption. All point to unprecedented prosperity once the pandemic is over. Best to hold the election on the rebound which will take at least another six months.
Wise men do say that
only fools rush in. There is a time for elections and it is not now.
The President and the military are doing a great job that was done by various politicians before. They were highly inefficient (to say the least) and there was no national plan on anything. In this desperate situation, the country does not need any hiccups. Let the current governance mechanism continue until the World Health Organisation declares the pandemic is over. Then it is the right time for the election.
The previous government signed an agreement with a Chinese bank to obtain funds to build a Light Rail system from Malabe to Fort via Borella. This is only the first stage of the proposed project. The idea was to eventually cover the whole of Colombo with Light Rail. The estimated cost for stage 1 is somewhere around US$ 2.2 billion. Obviously the end cost would be much higher.
After the new government came to power (in
November 2019), this project has been put on hold. The writer states that this
is good. But, Light Rail continues to run their office in Colombo; possibly
with the hope of continuing with the project.
True, Colombo has a massive traffic problem. In any busy time, it takes about 10 – 15 minutes for a vehicle on the Cotta Roadside to cross the Borella junction and reach the Maradana Roadside. Anyone would agree that this is insane.
It is also true that Light Rail can travel uninterruptedly above the ground, but that does not mean that it can solve Colombo’s traffic problem.
Parts of Malabe to Fort roads are very narrow, the writer believes that Light Rail in some areas will run a single track on both ways, for example around Welikada flyover (he is not a technical expert on this subject). Then, this would significantly reduce the number of Light Rail cars that can be operated. This means Light Rail will not be able to cater to a very large number of people.
In Russia, it is stated that when light rail lines run 20 trains per hour; a normal bus service runs 42 buses per hour.
Light Rail intends to acquire lots of lands, including private land; but these are highly congested areas. And, they are very valuable land. The owners will no doubt put up stern fights against the acquisitions. Simply, there is hardly any space available in Stage 1 for specific road widening.
Proponents of Light Rail say that private
car users will start using it; hence Colombo’s vehicular traffic will be
reduced. It is difficult to agree with this. Empirical evidence suggests that
those who are addicted to cars will continue to use them; they will not give up
the addiction easily. The same rationale applies to motorcycle/scooter riders.
No doubt, Light Rail will have passengers,
but they would not be much.
The majority of them will be existing bus commuters; not the car and motorbike drivers.
What Light Rail would do is to take over some of the existing busloads. This means if Light Rail is to reduce Colombo’s traffic, that would only be in relation to reducing some bus operations. Is it worth spending such a lot of money then?
Would the average working-class – they consist of the bulk of the bus commuters, be able to afford Light Rail? Some even can’t afford the current low-cost bus fares.
Mumbai and Bangkok are notorious for very bad vehicular traffic. They have some of Asia’s biggest traffic jams. And, they both have above the ground Light Rail.
The writer invites readers to examine
carefully – should we improve the
existing public bus (also rail) transport system instead of Light Rail?
All would agree that this proposition will
save us lots of money.
This question compels us to examine Sri Lanka’s
especially Colombo’s, bus transport system:
To improve bus transport, the government must take full charge of the operations. Currently, private bus operators run the show.
In Colombo, there are hardly any CTB buses being run. All the lucrative routes like 102, 103, 138, 154 are in the hands of the public bus operators. Basically they have a larger say in determining the number of buses running on routes, issuing of route permits, timekeeping and preparing bus timetables.
The private bus operators want to make maximum
profits. They would not like more buses on the routes. Fewer buses mean more
opportunity to jampack. Then, of course, more money for them.
And, this is what happens today.
They remain stationary at bus halts for
extra-ordinarily long times. The writer was informed by a bus commuter that her
178 private bus from Narahenpita to Mattakkuliya stops and wait at some bus
halts for over 10 minutes. In Kosgashandiya, it stays stationary for about 15
minutes to pick commuters. This means the whole journey which should take about
45 minutes could take about 90 minutes. As they have no other alternative,
people have become used to this rort. They suffer in silence. The massive time wastages
adversely affect the economy.
Basically, the private bus operators have the
complete freehand to do whatever they want; the authorities keep a blind eye.
They detest SLTB buses running in their routes. They do not want to run buses at night, say after 730 pm, as there are fewer passengers. This has also adversely affected the economy. This is also the main reason why there are fewer people on the streets at night. Sri Lankan cities have little nightlife, and this is one reason. Not everyone has money to travel in three-wheelers.
What a good, caring government must do is rather than spending billions of public funds on a seemingly useless Light Rail project, to improve the SLTB/private bus network, and also the trains. Rather than rickety old buses that run on lorry chassis, comfortable, automatic, A/C, buses must be introduced (like in Kuala Lumpur).
To do all this, the power and control of
the bus operations must be firmly in the hands of the government, and not the
private bus operators. In the current context, this is a very difficult thing
to achieve, but it is not impossible.
As stated before, we have narrow roads/streets in Sri Lanka, especially in Colombo. Most were built during the colonial period. The buses that we have are very large. They are too big for the roads/streets. That is the main reason for the huge traffic jams and a large number of road accidents. The authorities must consider introducing smaller buses, like 26/18 seater buses, on some routes. This will be in addition to the existing big buses. A blend of big and small buses is the best way forward. Small buses are ideal for night-time transport (then, the 103 Fort to Borella, 138 Fort to Homagama can be able to run until midnight).
Sri Lanka is one country where public transport is run solely based on profitability. This is the problem of privatizing public transport (in the early 1980s).
Public transport must be people-focused. This is how they are run in developed countries.
Buses must be freely available at all
times. Passengers must travel in comfort, without harassment. Every effort must
be made that every passenger will have a seat.
During CTB days buses were run until late nights regardless of whether there were passengers or not. The rule of thumb is that when a bus (or a train) is run regularly for a long period of time, even if it is in the night, that route will attract passengers. What is required is strictly adhering to the timetable.
As they can be jampacked, private bus operators like big buses. They are money-making machines.
Their only focus is to increase passenger
numbers. They pay scant regard to passenger interests/comforts. The fact that they
cause huge delays to passengers is immaterial to them. They know there is no one to check/complain
to.
Another reason why they like big buses is that in the event of an accident most of the time their lives are safe; it is people in smaller vehicles/pedestrians that will suffer.
Now, back to Light Rail:
Light Rail is an extremely expensive mode of transport. They run on elevated tracks, built on the concrete slab technology. As we have to start from scratch, it will include the building of overhead rail tracks, light rail stations, lifts/escalators, overhead electric lines, rail cars, overhead platforms, public toilets, shops, etc.
It will take several years to complete the
1st stage of the Light Rail. During
the construction period, the traffic problem from Malabe to Fort would increase
by tenfold. This congestion will flow on to other parts of the City.
Due to lack of sunlight, the ground underneath the Light Rail concrete slab is always dark; also that valuable area is unproductive (note areas under Colombo flyovers – Dematagoda, Nugegoda, Dehiwala; under the Katunayake expressway in Ragama; under the Light Rail tracks in Bangkok/Mumbai). Light Rail introduces new darkness to the environment; the brightness in the townships will end.
In the US and Canada, passengers have faced assaults, sexual rape in light rails stations during nights.
Let us hope that the new government will call for pubic views/comments before embarking on this controversial project. It is not something that could be launched without extensive public consultation/discourse. The writer believes that some of the feasibility studies are yet to be completed and private landowners may not have been notified about the acquisitions.
Light Rail will not solve Colombo’s appalling traffic problem. The only solution is to where possible widen existing roads, build new roads (underground/overhead roads should be considered), ban parking on main roads (build multistorey/underground car parks) and significantly improve the passenger bus/rail transport (encourage as much as possible people to give up cars/motorbikes). As indicated before, the introduction of small buses, in addition to existing large buses, is a must. Any opposition by private bus operators must be disregarded.
An underground Metro rail system like in New Delhi is ideal for Colombo, but given our current financial constraints, we may have to leave it to our future generations to start. The advantage of Metros is that they are linked with the existing railway system. The writer believes that an underground Metro rail project in Colombo will be about 20 times more expensive than the Light Rail project. Meticulous digging of the surface to create a very elaborate underground Metro network is a humongous job.
The writer believes that electrifying our
existing railway network is more important than Light Rail (at least from Fort
to Polgahawela and Fort to Panadura). Since Independence, governments have indicated
this but no one had the audacity to undertake it. The benefits of train
electrification are enormous. In South Asia, only India has electric
trains.
Due to the Corona Virus pandemic, our economy will be in shambles. We are a nation already in debt to the tune of about US$100? billion. And, we are struggling to pay off them (this is a good time to ask for write-offs), mostly accrued during the past 10 years. Most of the past borrowed money were simply wasted. Surely, we do not want to become further debt-ridden with Light Rail. It is our future generations that will curse us one day.
Light Rail is an excellent opportunity for
politicians to make money (by way of kickbacks/commissions/bribes). This is
always what happens in Sri Lanka with Mega Projects. Rather than Mega Projects,
the governments must focus on ‘Micro Finance’ (small (micro) loans to small
people).
In summary, rather than Light Rail, the government should utilize the money to improve the existing public transport system. Light Rail cannot stop Colombo’s traffic problem. At the moment our bus/train services are appalling. Just like in the 1970s and 80s, people still travel in jampacked, old buses/trains. There is no incentive for vehicle owners to switch to public transport.
The public transport commuters undergo
untold hardships; an increasing number of them are women. As they do not travel
in them, the politicians do not know about the conditions. They ‘fly’ on our
roads bypassing all traffic using Police escorts.
Central Bank has issued a promising circular 05 of 27tj March 2020 informing banks and businesses and also individuals who have either borrowed or obtain finance /leading facilities can apply for redress to reschedule loans and maybe even writing off interests for s limited period
Circular also stipulates that and legal action taken by banks against borrowers for defaulting repayment and servicing interest payable may also be withdrawn. Please
It is interesting to know how many enterprises have sought redress
and how many have been given any relief.
We as a Foreign exchange earning enterprise requested a bank
to provide redress in line with the circular.
Within 25 hours bank wrote back informing that they are unable to consider our important foreign exchange earning enterprise that we are not eligible
These banks show thumping profits and pay high dividends to their shareholders and massive bonuses to the top management
But during these difficult times, they are armed with loopholes and refuse to provide any redress undermining the government efforts
The government should request the banks to provide data about how many companies requested redress and how many have been granted redress
These data should be published for the public to know
TV channels only talk about the number of people who have been arrested, how many have fallen ill etc, but never talk about ways of the revival of the economy. In some channels, the talkative interviewers have no knowledge about banking or investment strategies and try to show unnecessary controversial programs with racial bias
Discussions should be carried out with banks and request the
managers to explain how they can be part of the effort by armed forces and
medical professionals
We lost the chance of earning a few millions of dollars due to Corona spread and yet the Bank does not consider any redress.
We are disappointed
Dr. Sarath Obeysekera CEO Walkers Colombo Shipyard Colombo Sri Lanka
By P.K.Balachandran/Daily Express Courtesy NewsIn.Asia
Preference for guns over butter is cited as a reason for America’s current plight
Colombo, April 9: The absence of a State-funded or backed general healthcare system, huge expenditures on weaponry for wars which will not be fought, and neglect of new sources of threat like viruses have combined to make the American population a happy hunting ground of the novel coronavirus, reports say.
The United States, the world’s only superpower in political, military and economic terms – a power which has not been humbled by any other country, has now been severely mauled and humbled by an invisible virus – the COVID-19. The novel coronavirus may have originated in Wuhan in China, but it has wrought havoc in the US, not in China.
Extent of Damage
The US now accounts for a third of the active cases” of COVID-19 infection in the world. According to the latest figures put out by the World Health Organization (WHO), there were 1,101497 active cases in the world as a whole on Thursday April 9. Out of this, 397,472 were in the US. In contrast, China today has only 1160 active cases.
Of the 88,565 deaths due to COVID-19 in the world as a whole, the US accounts for 14797 and China 3335. The US stands at the top of the pile in terms of active and critical cases, though in terms of the number of deaths, the toll is more in Spain and Italy.
President Donald Trump is blaming China and WHO for the plight of his country. On Tuesday he accused WHO of soft pedalling the threat in the initial stages under the influence of China. Trump alleged that China had hidden from the world, the situation in Wuhan when the depredations of the virus first came to light. Trump has now threatened to cut funding for WHO to cripple the organization. WHO survives on US funding.
We pay for a majority or the biggest portion of their money. They (WHO) actually criticized and disagreed with my travel ban at the time I did it. They were wrong. They’ve been wrong about a lot of things. They had a lot of information early and they didn’t want to —they’re very — they seem to be very China-centric,” Trump charged during a press conference.
Weak Healthcare System
But informed critics of the American system have been pointing out that the US healthcare system is not good. In an article in The Atlantic Olga Khazan has quoted the Commonwealth Fund ( which regularly ranks the health systems of a group of developed countries) to say that the best countries for healthcare are the UK, the Netherlands and Australia. The US is not among the top, even though it spends a lot.
There are a few recognizable reasons why the United States lags behind its peers in the Western world. Firstly, health insurance coverage is not up to the mark. Insurance, it is pointed out, reduces mortality. In 2016, more than 27 million people in the US were uninsured which is nearly a tenth of the US population. This is partly because insurance is expensive. And America has no subsidized medicare system like the National Health Service in the UK.
Secondly, the US wastes a lot on administrative overheads. Time and energy are spent in billing and insurance claims. Other countries which rely on private health insurers, like the Netherlands, minimize some of these problems by standardizing basic benefit packages, which can reduce the administrative burden for providers.
Thirdly, the US system is inefficient. In 2014, the Commonwealth Fund found that many primary-care physicians struggle to receive relevant clinical information from specialists and hospitals, complicating efforts to provide seamless, coordinated care.”
Lastly, the emphasis in the US is not on primary care. The US doesn’t invest in social services. Things like home visiting, better housing, and subsidized healthy food could improve chronic disease outcomes don’t exist there. It is because of all these factors that life expectancy has been going down in the US as compared to the 1960s, Khazan points out.
Spending On Weapons In Preference To Health
Gregory D. Koblentz and Michael Hunzeker of the George Mason University, experts in biological threats to national security, wrote in The Atlantic that the US Establishment has been consistently ignoring threats from viruses and has been spending heavily on weapon systems.
The way the Trump Administration treated the COVID-19 attack on the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt which was on duty in the Pacific, is symptomatic of the mindset of the Establishment in Washington.
Narrating the sequence of events relating to the carrier, Koblentz and Hunzeker say that on March 30, with 100 confirmed cases on board, the ship’s commander, Captain Brett Crozier, had sent an urgent four-page letter to the Navy requesting emergency measures to halt the outbreak. He warned that normal shipboard operating conditions made social distancing impossible. The ship did not have appropriate quarantine and isolation facilities for sick and exposed sailors.
Crozier ultimately decided that the only way to protect his sailors’ health was to temporarily sacrifice his ship’s considerable war-fighting capabilities by pulling into port in Guam and evacuating most of the crew until the outbreak could be eradicated. In doing so, Crozier had defied the Navy Secretary Thomas Modly’s order not to put the ship to port. Modly sacked Crozier.
This raised a storm in Washington with Congressmen getting involved in favor of Crozier. Drawing heavy flak, Navy Secretary Modly had no option but to hand in his papers.
The American Establishment had forgotten that viruses could kill more Americans than weapons in war. The 1918 Spanish flu pandemic killed at least 40 million people—roughly four times as many soldiers perished in the World War raging at the time. Among the dead were 195,000 Americans.
Koblentz and Hunzeker point out that the Trump Administration was not interested in fighting threats from viruses. It raided the Defense Threat Reduction Agency’s budget for working with other countries on biosecurity threats to pay for more research on hypersonic missiles. The National Nuclear Security Administration saw its budget increased by 20 percent to pay for new nuclear weapons, even as the Administration slashed the budget for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) by 15 percent.
The entire 2019 federal budget for all health security-related programs was about $13.6 billion. In contrast, the Trump administration has requested almost $46 billion in funding for nuclear weapons programs in its 2021 budget proposal, the authors point out.
They quote Nobel laureate Joshua Lederberg who said that the single biggest threat to humanity’s continued dominance on this planet is the virus. Biomedical research, public health preparedness, and international cooperation are the keys to global health security.
But what Trump is doing is just the opposite. He is going to cut funding for WHO and cripple the only international organization thinking and working for disease control and health across the globe.
(The picture at the top shows empty shelves in a US grocery store)
Some 20,064 COVID-19 test kits (PCR-Fluorescence Probing) donated by the Alibaba Foundation in collaboration with the Jack Ma Foundation will arrive in Sri Lanka tonight from Shanghai, the Chinese Embassy said.
It said the kits are produced by the DAAN Gene Co and meet the requirements and standards indicated by the Ministry of Health and Indigenous.
Four more persons who tested positive for COVID-19 have been discharged as they have made complete recoveries.
The Ministry of Health stated that the total count of coronavirus recoveries in the country now stands at 54.
As of Friday evening, Sri Lanka’s confirmed coronavirus cases tally was at 190 and 129 out of them are currently under medical care at the Infectious Disease Hospital (IDH), Welikanda Hospital and Mulleriyawa Hospital.
In the meantime, 224 suspected coronavirus patients are under observation at selected hospitals across the country.
Sri Lanka has so far reported 7 deaths due to the deadly virus that has claimed over 95,700 lives globally. Over 1.6 million infections are reported around the world.
The Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA) says that Maximum Retail Prices have been imposed on several rice varieties with effect from today (10).
A maximum retail price (MRP) of Rs. 125 has been imposed on a kilogram of Keeri Samba while a maximum price of Rs. 90 has been imposed on a kilogram of Samba (red/white).
Meanwhile the MRP on Nadu is Rs. 90 per kg while the MRP on white-red raw rice is Rs. 85 per kg.
No new COVID-19 infections were reported in Sri Lanka during the past 24 hours, says Director General of Health Services, Dr. Anil Jasinghe.
He announced this during the media briefing held at the National Operation Centre for Prevention of COVID-19 today (10).
Speaking further, Dr. Jasinghe noted that in addition to testing patients at hospitals for COVID-19, tests are now carried out using samples from the community. This has increased the daily testing capacity, he added.
As of Friday evening, Sri Lanka’s confirmed coronavirus cases tally was at 190 and 133 out of them are currently under medical care.
According to the Epidemiology Unit, 89 COVID-19 patients are being treated at the Infectious Disease Hospital (IDH), 17 patients are at Welikanda Hospital and 27 are at Mulleriyawa Hospital.
The total count of coronavirus recoveries in the country stands at 50.
In the meantime, 224 suspected coronavirus patients are under observation at selected hospitals across the country.
Sri Lanka has reported 7 deaths due to the deadly virus that has claimed over 95,700 lives globally. Over 1.6 million infections are reported around the world.
The operations of all rice mills in the country have been declared an essential service until further notice, the President’s Media Division said.
Since the provision of essential foods and rice production, storage and distribution is imperative to ensure food security, services of the owners of all rice mills have been declared an essential service under the COVID – 19 quarantine process, the statement said.
Rice mills owners of the country must produce rice in their respective areas using paddy stocks in their possession.
Under the instructions of the President, the Secretary to the President P. B. Jayasundara in a letter had informed the Acting Inspector General of Police, the Director General of Health Services, the Commissioner General of Food and the Chairman of the Consumer Affairs Authority to take measures enabling small scale rice mill owners to distribute rice stocks within their respective Divisional Secretariat Divisions, medium scale owners to distribute within the district and large scale owners to distribute in the entire country.
A harvest of around 3 million metric tons of paddy has been yielded by now and the quantity of rice that can be produced is equivalent to 2/3 of that amount. Accordingly, all the relevant parties have been told that increasing the rice prices or hampering the supply of rice pose a major impediment to the effective implementation of quarantine activities.
Accordingly, the Secretary instructs relevant parties to pay more attention and give the highest possible priority to maintain food security during this period when the people have been subjected to some form of quarantine and the food and other essential items are being delivered to the door-step of the people.
The Osu Sala, pharmacies and banking services remain in the category of essential services, the PMD added.
A citizen must be proud of his nation and the
nation must have reason to be proud of him/her. One’s pride is shown not by
waving the national flag or memorizing the national anthem or showing the power
speech by plucking out the most difficult words from the dictionary. One’s love
and pride for the nation is shown by serving the nation by deeds. It is this
what makes the Armed Forces – the defenders of the Nation. The depth of love
can also be seen when people reside in a foreign land but realize where their
heart truly is. In times of national calamity, it is the common goodwill and welfare
of the State & its people that must take precedence over all others. In a
national crisis time should be spent in chipping in and contributing in
whatever ways possible not to stand on a pedestal and criticize what others are
doing but failing to do anything yourself in return.
Patriotism means you stand by the country
during all its times of difficulty
Patriotism does not mean standing against the
country during times of difficulty
Nationalism means togetherness of people to
defend their own
Nationalism does not mean togetherness
excludes others
Democracy means nothing if people don’t know
to work towards the common good
Democracy does not mean paid opinion or paid
publicity but public opinion
Human rights stops where another’s rights are
infringed.
No one’s right is above that of another.
The Armed Forces & Police have sacrificed
much. The sacrifices left 23,790 Sri Lankan Army personnel dead, 1000 plus Sri
Lankan police dead since 1981.
During the final phase of the conflict from
August 2006 commencing with the start of opening the Mavil Aru reservoir to the
elimination of LTTE on 19 May 2009 – 6261 Sri Lankan soldiers were killed and
29,551 were wounded.
Their youth cut short, their children in
tears, their parents & spouses left with only memories but they departed
without debt to the State & Nation.
They will always hold a special place because
they defended the nation against foreign invaders from South India and the 3
European invaders and then against 2 insurgencies and finally against LTTE
terrorists. They have not only come forward to defend the nation but to assist
in times of humanitarian disasters as well.
While Sri Lanka’s Armed Forces defended the Nation, protected the citizens they also took part in the world’s biggest humanitarian rescue operation while fighting the worlds’ most ruthless terrorist organisation.
While fighting the enemy they lost over 6000 lives attempting to rescue civilians who were being kept by LTTE as hostages and human shields.
Sri Lanka’s Armed Forces will always be known as the Defenders of the Nation fighting against the Enemy of the Nation
The LTTE will always remain the Enemies of the Nation fighting AGAINST the NATION and its CITIZENS.
This is just one picture that depicts the sorry that LTTE made the people suffer. But the NGOs/foreign paid media/HR activists project the notion that ONLY ONE COMMUNITY SUFFERED and LTTE was justified in what they did.
While Sri Lanka’s Armed Forces defended the Nation, protected the
citizens they also took part in the world’s biggest humanitarian rescue
operation while fighting the worlds’ most ruthless terrorist organisation.
While fighting the enemy they lost over 6000 lives attempting to rescue
civilians who were being kept by LTTE as hostages and human shields.
Sri Lanka’s Armed Forces will always be known as the Defenders of the
Nation fighting against the Enemy of the Nation
The LTTE will always remain the Enemies of the Nation fighting AGAINST
the NATION and its CITIZENS
This is just one picture that depicts the sorry that LTTE made the
people suffer. But the NGOs/foreign paid media/HR activists project the notion
that ONLY ONE COMMUNITY SUFFERED and LTTE was justified in what they did
And Sri Lanka’s Armed Forces are continuing their magnanimous support towards covid-19 pandemic too. Along with the Sri Lanka Police the Sri Lanka Armed Forces are complimenting Sri Lanka’s Health Services to contain and curtail covid-19 in Sri Lanka under the stewardship of HE President Gotabaya Rajapakse
PAID DESTABLIZING
AGENTS: NGOs/Human Rights Groups/Media
Then you get a bunch of people who think they are the cat’s whiskers
just because they are selected by forces out to destabilize Sri Lanka.
What role did they play throughout Sri Lanka post-independence troubles?
Did they speak a word against victims of LTTE?
Did the people who pay them also speak a word against LTTE?
Why do they always fish in troubled waters?
What constructive contribution to the country or its people have they made
other than issuing disparaging statements, writing lies and distortions,
framing bogus reports, training ‘witnesses’ to lie, following the Goebbels theory
of telling a lie long enough to turn it into truth.
Why should people listen to these paid
trouble makers? Just what have they done to society. Have they spent a penny of
their personal funds to even feed the needy? They will happily pose with
cheques and goodies but all these are bought with someone elses money and they
get all the credit and then apply for various tax holidays etc for their
organizations. All of the donations given to their charities 80% goes for their
own maintenance and a large chunk goes for the media and hype where they show a
small act as if it was the biggest charity event of the century.
Eternally their chorus is all about what the
State/the Govt or the Armed Forces hasn’t done, shouldn’t do, should have done,
should try to do … not a word of Thank You escapes their mouths or petitions.
They dart to file FR petitions without any scruples as to the ethics of their
action. All that they care about is turning any bad situation into a moment for
them to get some publicity for themselves and divert media attention to their
focus area for that is what sustains their livelihood and makes them
marketable.
Who are they you may ask — drop a few names
and the instant remark of many is ah the usual culprits’ so they are notorious
for the uncivil acts and they call themselves ‘civil society’ too. How
representative are they? They gain their publicity by the power of the coterie
that they cling to and all of them either share a similar ideology, they are
linked to the destablising elements in Sri Lanka, they are funded by the destabilizing
elements or they just simply get a kick out causing a rumpus in Sri Lanka
because of their antics.
The love to throw the terms and words in
vogue in the halls of the UN – use of human rights, democracy, rule of law,
gender equality, transitional justice, accountability, transparency are words
that automatically pop out every time they speak. They are just words for them
to garner importance upon themselves.
The source of their vindictiveness, hate and animosity can only be
understood by the perks and remunerations they receive for the role their play
to destabilize Sri Lanka.
The U.S. and South Korea confirmed their first coronavirus patients on the same day. Yet South Korea is containing its outbreak while cases in the U.S. have soared.
South Korea learned from its traumatic experience with its MERS outbreak in 2015. But, this time, the country has contained COVID-19 with its Trace, Test, Treat” program (and a little help from K-pop megastars, BTS). More than 350,000 South Koreans were tested by the end of March. The country hasn’t seen the lockdowns that are in place in the rest of the world.
Despite an outbreak traced back to patient 31” and a cluster centering around the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, South Korea managed to flatten the curve of infections. Now its policies are being praised as the gold standard of dealing with coronavirus. What can the U.S. learn from South Korea’s handling of the crisis? Is it already too late? And how are the two countries set up differently going into this unprecedented health crisis?
By Takis Pappas, Political scientist, the University of Helsinki, Finland* Courtesy Greek Reporter
When the covid-19 pandemic broke out in Europe, no government had any experience of how to face it and each tried to weather the storm in its own ways. Some governments fared better, some less so.
By and large, there are three major factors that have determined, and still do, how governments cope with the virus.
These are, first, the resoluteness and efficiency of their leadership; second, the capacity of states and public health systems in particular to deal with such an extraordinary health crisis situation; and, third, the cooperation of national publics in following emergency rules.
At a more specific level, as shown by an even cursory comparison of the Spanish and Greek experiences with the pandemic, it seems that a well-integrated and liberal government performs significantly better than one which is disunited and, moreover, diluted with populists. Let’s have a closer look at the two cases.
At the time of this writing (April 5, 2020), Spain has close to 130,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus victims and about 12,000 deaths. At the same time, Greece has about 1,700 confirmed cases and 68 deaths.
So, the question is: Why these two Mediterranean countries, whose people are equally sun-loving, bar-hopping, and intensely social, and which should have drawn the same lessons from Italy’s preceding experience, have had such different fates during the early phase of the coronavirus crisis? The answer is simple, almost mundane: Different governments!
The little comparison table below shows the reaction of Italy, Spain, and Greece to the coronavirus outbreak. It reveals three things.
First of all, Italy, the first country in Europe to be hit by the virus with catastrophic results, offered valuable lessons that shouldn’t be missed by other governments.
Secondly, Spain’s government failed to learn and, in fact, performed even worse than Italy.
And, finally, among these countries, Greece is by far the best performer in confronting the pandemic, at least so far.
It certainly helped, of course, that Greece has a centralized state administration system which, unlike in Spain or Italy, facilitates the fast implementation at regional and local levels of decisions taken at top state level. But this explains only part of the different reactions to the pandemic in Spain and Greece. Let’s have a closer look beginning with the case of Italy, which served as a backdrop against which the Spanish and Greek governments made their decisions.
Data collected from various sources by the author
Italy, indeed, offered early valuable lessons to any government that was willing to learn. Coronavirus was confirmed there on January 31, when a traveling Chinese couple, originally from Wuhan, China, tested positive in Rome. In the next three weeks, more cases of infection were confirmed in the northern regions of Lombardy and Veneto and, on February 22, the first death from the coronavirus was reported.
From there on, the number of deaths in Italy went into an upward spiral. By March 5, as the number of the deceased had reached one hundred, the government shut down all schools and universities nationwide.
On March 8, with the number of confirmed cases approaching 6,000, Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte extended the quarantine lockout to all of Lombardy and other northern provinces, which, at the time, was the most radical measure to combat the virus taken anywhere outside China. On March 10, the government expanded the quarantine to all of Italy and ordered Italians to stay at home.
From the first confirmed case, it took the Italian government 38 days (and 16 days since the first death) before it imposed a first nationwide lockdown. It was, unfortunately, too late. A few days later, on March 19, Italy became the country with the highest number of confirmed deaths in the world, according to figures reported by government sources.
Clearly, then, the chief lesson from Italy was that governments elsewhere would need to react early and take the most aggressive measures in order to check the pandemic. But the reactions of the governments in Spain and Greece couldn’t have differed more than they actually did. And that had very different consequences in each of these two countries.
Spain, first, was reluctant to learn from Italy. We are going to have only a handful of cases,” asserted Dr. Fernando Simón, an epidemiologist serving as the head of medical emergencies in Madrid, on February 9. Even as the number of confirmed cases of coronavirus continued to increase, the Spanish government still resisted taking mitigating steps so as to combat the spread of the virus; in fact, it initially defended the decision to let mass gatherings go on.
On March 8, about 120,000 people were allowed to march through the center of Madrid to celebrate international Women’s Day and some 60,000 soccer fans filled one of the city’s stadiums. During that same weekend, 9,000 supporters of Vox, an upcoming right-wing party, gathered inside a former bullring.
By Friday, March 13, Spain already had the second highest number of coronavirus infections of any European country after Italy, now facing the fastest spreading contagion on the continent and an already overwhelmed health care system. Two ministers of Sánchez’s cabinet, including Irene Montero, the partner of Deputy Premier Pablo Iglesias and who had participated in the women’s march, tested positive. Another prominent victim of the virus was Santiago Abascal, the leader of Vox.
It was only then, on March 13, one full month after the first death from the virus was reported (February 13) and with the tally of deaths at 189, that the government decided to close all schools and declare a state of emergency across the country. Why was all this allowed to happen?
PSOE leader Pedro Sánchez and Unidas Podemos leader Pablo Iglesias formed Spain’s first post-authoritarian coalition government in January 2020
For one thing, it didn’t help that Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez leads a leftist minority government which only formed with difficulty after the inconclusive elections in November of 2019.
In the aftermath of that contest, Sánchez, leader of the center-left PSOE, and Pablo Iglesias, leader of left populist Unidas Podemos, formed an alliance which subsequently produced Spain’s first coalition government since its transition to democracy. The new government, consisting of the prime minister, four deputy prime ministers and 22 ministers, formed on January 13, 2020.
Nor did it help that Podemos as a populist party has thrived on political polarization, often militated against the legality of Spain’s institutions for allegedly failing to serve the people’s interests, and typically opposes technocracy and the expert knowledge stemming from it. All that played at the level of micro-politics with disastrous consequences.
Friday, March 13 was a critical moment. Sánchez announced his intention to enact emergency measures and decree a state of alarm across all the country on the following day. But things went terribly wrong.
The coalition government’s Council of Ministers, which was meant to include only ministers considered essential for responding to the crisis, was marred by intense infighting. Pablo Iglesias, who was supposed to be in quarantine after his partner had tested positive for the virus, appeared unexpectedly at the Council, objecting the concentration of powers under the ministries of interior, defense, transport, and health, all headed by PSOE politicians, and demanding that his party be given prominent roles in the national emergency situation.
He also insisted that the government take social measures for helping poor families, such as paying rents and mortgages. According to El País, the minister of finance rejected the proposal for the high cost it involved amid the developing economic crisis.
The Council of Ministers meeting lasted eight hours and ended with acrimony on both sides — with dire consequences for the country. It first of all delayed the implementation of lockdown and other emergency measures, and also led to the cancelling of a teleconference planned for the same day between Sánchez and the leaders of Spain’s regional governments.
Even worse, since all that happened on a sunny Saturday, several people from Madrid and other big cities left for the regions, bringing the virus with them. One such case was José María Aznar, Spain’s former conservative prime minister, who moved to his holiday villa in the rich resort of Marbella, fueling public anger against him and the government alike.
Meantime, as the death toll kept rising, Spain’s fissured coalition government utterly failed to rally the opposition parties to its side for creating a unified front against the pandemic. Pablo Casado, the leader of the center-right People’s Party, accused Prime Minister Sánchez for spreading lies and misinformation, while ultra-right Vox called for Sánchez’s resignation and replacement by a government of national unity.
To make things even worse, most of the regional governments, especially in separatist Catalonia, missed no chance to show their displeasure with the incompetence of, and health crisis mismanagement by, the central state administration.
How different from Spain was the reaction to the coronavirus pandemic in the other Mediterranean country, Greece!
For starters, the effect of the virus in Greece was a particularly big setback since the country was just coming out of years of recession and recent projections for its economic future were quite optimistic.
But the Greek government was quick to learn from Italy and Spain, and act decisively and swiftly, despite having to simultaneously face additional difficulties.
In February, Turkey ignited a refugee crisis by opening its border with Greece to Europe and aiding thousands of displaced persons to cross it. Greece responded by strengthening the border with soldiers and armed police, soliciting the support of her EU partners, and by refusing to accept asylum applications for a period of one month. The situation at the border remained tense during most of March, which diverted part of the Greek government’s attention to that crucial front.
Another problem was the cramped living conditions in refugee camps in both Greece’s islands and the mainland. And yet, the government’s response to the coronavirus outbreak was frankly outstanding, as it determined to reduce the spread of the virus within the country and flatten the curve as early as possible in the hope that the long-term effects on both society and the economy could be minimized. Here’s what happened in Greece, in brief.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announces measures against the pandemic
The first case in Greece of a person to test positive – a woman who had recently traveled to Milan – was reported on February 26 and, on the following day, two more cases were confirmed.
That same day, Greece’s minister of health cancelled all planned Carnival events throughout the country and the government banned all educational trips abroad.
Only thirteen days later, on March 10, with the number of confirmed cases totaling 89 and no deaths, the government closed all daycare centers, schools, and universities nationwide.
On March 11, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, in a nationally televised address, urged the public to follow the instructions of doctors and other experts, and admonished the Church to refrain from delivering holy communion and instead cooperate with the state authorities in enforcing the public health regulations.
On March 12 the first death from coronavirus was reported in Greece. In the few days to follow, the government shut down theaters, cinemas, restaurants, bars, shopping centers, playgrounds, museums, courthouses, parks, recreational areas, marinas, organized beaches and ski resorts; it only excluded supermarkets, pharmacies and food outlets.
Eventually, the government suspended all religious services, including the Sunday liturgies of the Greek Orthodox church, and also announced the closure of most hotels in the country and subjected all Greek citizens returning from abroad to mandatory 14-day quarantine.
During March, the Greek Prime Minister gave five nationally televised addresses (on 11, 17, 19, 22 and 25 March), every time explaining to the Greek people the development of the situation and asking them to comply to the new rules.
The government’s infectious disease spokesman, epidemiologist Sotiris Tsiodras, goes on TV every afternoon to both brief journalists and offer advice to citizens. As for Greece’s significant opposition parties, they all showed an admirable sense of social responsibility, political moderation, and even readiness to support the government in its difficult decisions during the crisis.
The major moral from the different stories of pandemic prevention in Spain and Greece is that governments matter a great deal.
More specifically, they need to set aside their political compulsion and listen to experts and other technocrats; they must act early and swiftly; and they should be efficient in making working trade-offs with the society at large, various economic interest groups, and, perhaps more importantly, the political opposition.
So far, Spain’s government has unfortunately failed in all these areas, at an enormous cost to Spanish society. And the Greek government gets all credit due for its success in preventing the wild spread of the virus and minimizing the suffering Greek society would otherwise have had to endure.
*Takis Pappas is a trained political scientist with a PhD from Yale University and leading world expert on populism, democracy, and political leadership. The above article was published in his blog https://pappaspopulism.com/. The original article titled The politics of pandemic prevention in Spain and Greece is republished here courtesy of the author.
Customers select seafood at a wet market in Dandong, Liaoning Province, China, in 2017. (Philip Wen/Reuters)
They’re more alike than not in their violations of moral common sense.NRPLUS MEMBER ARTICLEAlthough no government is better than China’s at making troublesome people disappear, a strange leniency has been accorded vendors at the country’s live-animal meat markets, who by most accounts gave us the pandemic and yet, reports the Daily Mail, have lately been allowed to set up shop again. China’s coronavirus lockdown is over, authorities have encouraged celebrations of victory,” and citizens may once again go about their food shopping amid the cries and mayhem of animal slaughter. Ahh, back to normal life!
In these parts, we’re told, you’re not really celebrating unless there’s bat, pangolin, cat, or dog meat on the table — the latter, notes the Daily Mail, a traditional ‘warming’ winter dish.” Reporter George Knowles, writing late last month, provides one of the milder accounts of scenes that will quickly exhaust anyone’s supply of culturally sensitive euphemisms, describing one of the markets — also known as wet markets,” where both live and dead animals are on offer — in China’s southwestern city of Guilin: Terrified dogs and cats crammed into rusty cages. Bats and scorpions offered for sale as traditional medicine. Rabbits and ducks slaughtered and skinned side by side on a stone floor covered with blood, filth, and animal remains.”
If you’re up for a few further details, we have travel writer Paula Froelich, in a recent New York Post column, recalling how in the Asian live-animal markets she has visited the doomed creatures stare back at you.” When their turn comes, she writes,
the animals that have not yet been dispatched by the butcher’s knife make desperate bids to escape by climbing on top of each other and flopping or jumping out of their containers (to no avail). At least in the wet areas [where marine creatures are sold], the animals don’t make a sound. The screams from mammals and fowl are unbearable and heartbreaking.
The People’s Republic has supposedly banned the exotic-meat trade, and one major city, Shenzhen, has proscribed dog and cat meat as well. In reality, observes a second Daily Mail correspondent, anonymously reporting from the city of Dongguan, the markets have gone back to operating in exactly the same way as they did before coronavirus.” Nothing has changed, except in one feature: The only difference is that security guards try to stop anyone taking pictures, which would never have happened before.”
Lest we hope too much for some post-pandemic stirring of conscience, consider the Chinese government’s idea of a palliative for those suffering from the coronavirus. As the crisis spread, apparently some fast-thinking experts in traditional medicine” at China’s National Health Commission turned to an ancient remedy known as Tan Re Qing, adding it to their official list of recommended treatments. The potion consists chiefly of bile extracted from bears. The more fortunate of these bears are shot in the wild for use of their gallbladders. The others, across China and Southeast Asia, are captured and farmed” by the thousands, in a process that involves their interminable, year-after-year confinement in fit-to-size cages, interrupted only by the agonies of having the bile drained. Do an image search on bear bile farming” sometime when you’re ready to be reminded of what hellish animal torments only human stupidity, arrogance, and selfishness could devise.
If one abomination could yield an antidote for the consequences of another, Tan Re Qing would surely be just the thing to treat a virus loosed in the pathogenic filth and blood-spilling of Wuhan’s live market. There’s actually a synthetic alternative to the bile acids, but Tradition can be everything in these matters, and devotees insist that the substance must come from a bear, even as real medical science rates the whole concoction at somewhere between needless and worthless. President Xi Jinping has promoted such traditional medicines as a treasure of Chinese civilization.” In this case, the keys to the treasure open small, squalid cages in dark rooms, where the suffering of innocent creatures goes completely disregarded. And perhaps right there, in the willfulness and hardness of heart of all such practices, is the source of the trouble that started in China.
Already, in the Western media, chronologies of the pandemic have taken to passing over details of the live-animal markets, which have caused viral outbreaks before and would all warrant proper judgment in any case. News coverage picks up the story with the Chinese government’s cover-up of early coronavirus cases and its silencing of the heroic Wuhan doctors and nurses who tried to warn us. To brush past the live markets in fear of seeming xenophobic,” racist,” or unduly judgmental of other people and other ways is, however, to lose sight of perhaps the most crucial fact of all. We don’t know the endpoint of this catastrophe, but we are pretty certain that its precise point of origin was what Dr. Anthony Fauci politely calls that unusual human–animal interface” of the live markets, which he says should all be shut down immediately — presumably including the markets quietly tolerated in our own country. In other words, the plague began with savage cruelty to animals.
Discussion of the live-animal markets is another of those points where moral common sense encounters the slavishly politically correct, though it’s not as if we’re dealing here with Asia’s most sensitive types anyway. No Western critic need worry about hurting the feelings or reputations of people who maximize the pain and stress of dogs in the belief that this freshens the flavor of the meat, and who then kill them at the market as the other dogs watch. Customers of such people aren’t likely to feel the sting of our disapproval either.
About the many customers and suppliers in Asia, and especially in China, of exotic fare, endless ancient remedies, and carvings and trinkets made of ivory, the best that can be said is that these men and women are no more representative of their nations than are the riffraff running the meat markets. Their demands and appetites have caused a merciless pillaging of wildlife across the earth — everything that moves a living resource,” no creature rare or stealthy enough to escape their gluttony or vanity. Of late even donkeys, such peaceable and unoffending creatures, have been rounded up by the millions in Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and South America for shipment and slaughter, all to satisfy demand for yet another of China’s traditional-medicine manias.
Easy to blame for all of this is the government of China. Authorities took forever, for example, to enforce prohibitions on ivory carving, despite an unquestioned competence in carrying out swift crackdowns. And in general, at every level, the government tends to tolerate a culture of cruelty, or else to actively promote it at the prodding of lucrative industries, both legal and illicit. But the problem runs deeper than that, even as many younger Chinese, to their enormous credit, have tried to organize against the ivory trade, the wet markets, and other depravities in their midst.
In the treatment of animals and in safeguarding human health, there are elementary standards to which all must answer. The challenge to clear thinking, as Melissa Chen writes in SpectatorUSA,
is to avoid falling into the trap of cultural relativism. It’s perfectly appropriate to criticize China’s rampant consumption of exotic animals, lack of hygiene standards and otherwise risky behavior that puts people at risk for zoonotic infections. Until these entrenched behaviors based on cultural or magical beliefs are divorced from Chinese culture, wet wildlife markets will linger as time-bombs ready to set off the next pandemic.
Acknowledging that Western societies have every moral reason to condemn the barbarism and recklessness of the live-animal markets only invites, however, a tougher question: Do we have the moral standing? And if any of us are guilty of blind cultural prejudice or of a smug sense of superiority toward Chinese practices, a moment’s serious thought will quickly set us straight.
When the Daily Mail describes how Chinese guards at the live-animal market now try to stop anyone from taking pictures,” who does that remind us of? How about our own livestock companies, whose entire mode of operation these days is systematic concealment by efforts to criminalize the taking of pictures in or around their factory farms and slaughterhouses? The foulest live-animal-market slayer in China, Vietnam, Laos, or elsewhere would be entitled to ask what our big corporations are afraid the public might see in photographic evidence, or what’s really the difference between his trade and theirs except walls, machinery, and public-relations departments.
If you watch online videos of the wet markets, likewise, it’s striking how the meat shoppers just go on browsing, haggling, chatting, and even laughing, some with their children along. Were it not for the horrors and whimpers in the background, the scene could be a pleasant morning at anyone’s local farmer’s market. As the camera follows them from counter to counter, you keep thinking What’s wrong with these people? — except that it’s not so easy, rationally, to find comparisons that work in our favor.
No, we in the Western world don’t get involved while grim-faced primitives execute and skin animals for meat. We have companies with people of similar temperament to handle everything for us. And there’s none of that staring back” that the Post’s Paula Froelich describes, because, in general, we keep the sadness and desperation of those creatures as deeply suppressed from conscious thought as possible. An etiquette of denial pushes the subject away, leaving it all for others to bear. Addressing a shareholders’ meeting of Tyson Foods in 2006, one worker from a slaughterhouse in Sioux City, Iowa, unburdened himself: The worst thing, worse than the physical danger, is the emotional toll. Pigs down on the kill floor have come up and nuzzled me like a puppy. Two minutes later I had to kill them — beat them to death with a pipe. I can’t care.”
Following the only consistent rule in both live-animal markets and industrial livestock agriculture — that the most basic animal needs are always to be subordinated to the most trivial human desires — this process yields the meats that people crave so much, old favorites like bacon, veal, steak, and lamb that customers must have, no matter how these are obtained. When the pleasures of food become an inordinate desire, forcing demands without need or limit and regardless of the moral consequences, there’s a word for that, and the fault is always easier to see in foreigners with more free-roaming tastes in flesh. But listen carefully to how these foods or other accustomed fare are spoken of in our culture, and the mindset of certain Asians — those ravenous, inflexible folks who will let nothing hinder their next serving of pangolin scales or winter dish of dog — no longer seems a world away.
We in the West don’t eat pangolins, turtles, civets, peacocks, monkeys, horses, foxes, and wolf cubs — that’s all a plus. But for the animals we do eat, we have sprawling, toxic, industrial mass-confinement” farms that look like concentration camps. National herds” and flocks” that all would expire in their misery but for a massive use of antibiotics, among other techniques, to maintain their existence amid squalor and disease — an infectious time bomb” closer to home as bacterial and viral pathogens gain in resistance. And a whole array of other standard practices like the intensive confinement” of pigs, in gestation cages that look borrowed from Asia’s bear-bile farms; the bulldozing of lame downer cows”; and maceration” of unwanted chicks, billions routinely tossed into grinders. All of which leave us very badly compromised as any model in the decent treatment of animals.
Such influence as we have, in fact, is usually nothing to be proud of. It made for a perfect partnership when, for instance, one of the most disreputable of all our factory-farming companies, Smithfield Foods, was acquired in 2013 by a Chinese firm, in keeping with some state-run, five-year plan of the People’s Republic to refine agricultural techniques and drive up meat production. Now, thanks to American innovation, Smithfield-style, the Chinese can be just as rotten to farm animals as we are — and just as sickly from buying into the worst elements of the Western diet.
In China and Southeast Asia, they have still not received our divine revelation in the West that human beings shall not eat or inflict extreme abuse on dogs but that all atrocities to pigs are as nothing. They’re moving in our culinary direction, however, and more than half the world’s factory-farmed pigs are now in China and neighboring countries. In the swine-fever contagion spreading across that region right now — addressed as usual by mass cullings: gassing tens of millions of pigs or burying them alive — our industrial animal-agriculture system is leaving its mark, while providing yet further evidence that factory farms are all pandemic risks themselves.24
How many diseases, cullings, burial pits, and bans on photographing these places even at their wretched best will we need before realizing that the entire system is profoundly in error, at times even wicked, and that nothing good can ever come of it? Perhaps the live-animal markets of China, with all the danger and ruin they have spread, will help us to see those awful scenes as what they are, just variants of unnatural, unnecessary, and unworthy practices that every society and culture would be better off without.
Plagues, as we’re all discovering, have a way of prompting us to take stock of our lives and to remember what really matters. If, while we’re at, we begin to feel in this time of confinement and fear a little more regard for the lives of animals, a little more compassion, that would be at least one good sign for a post-pandemic world.
MATTHEW SCULLY is the author of DOMINION: The Power of Man, the Suffering of Animals, and the Call to Mercy. A former literary editor of National Review and senior speechwriter to President George W. Bush, he lives in Paradise Valley, Ariz.
Doctors with the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine say live animal markets should be shut down in the U.S. to prevent coronavirus-like pandemics in the future.
Doctors are urging the U.S. Surgeon General to shut down live animal markets amid the current coronavirus outbreak.
The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM)—a nonprofit health organization of 12,000 physicians that promotes plant-based, preventative medicine—filed the petition on Tuesday.
We just filed a petition urging the Surgeon General to immediately shut down U.S. live animal markets to protect public health and prevent future pandemics,” PCRM tweeted.
The petition is signed by 225 physicians, including Eric J. Brandt, MD, of Yale University School of Medicine, and Michelle L. O’Donoghue, MD, MPH, of Harvard Medical School.
The COVID-19 outbreak is believed to have originated from a wet market in Wuhan, China last December. Wet markets sell live and dead fish and wild animals, including snakes and bats for human consumption.
Live animal markets aren’t exclusive to China. They are located around the world, including Europe and the U.S.
Live animal markets are a welcome mat to coronaviruses,” the doctors state in the petition. The failure to close a single live animal market in China led to a pandemic that has closed countless businesses worldwide and led to an enormous death toll and economic havoc.”
The petition states that in order to prevent another viral pandemic in the U.S., the Surgeon General must ban the sale, transfer, donation, other commercial or public offering, or transportation, in interstate or intrastate commerce, of live birds, mammals, reptiles, and amphibians to retail facilities that hold live animals intended for human consumption.”
Doctors are urging the U.S. Surgeon General to shut down all live animal markets.
World Health Organization Urged To Ban Wet Markets
According to Worldometers, there are currently more than 1,450,000 total cases of coronavirus around the world. More than 83,600 people have died and more than 310,000 have recovered.
In order to help prevent future outbreaks, activists are also urging the World Health Organization (WHO) to call for a shut down of live animal markets.
Activists launched a petition online demanding the WHO to call for an end to live animal markets. The petition states that markets are breeding grounds for zoonotic diseases. Zoonotic diseases—such as the coronavirus, SARS, and Ebola—can jump the species barrier from animals to humans.
The TV news item today was about Sri Lankan specialist doctors undergoing training in the UK desperately want to return home. It is quite strange that they all want to come back when only a small percentage of the doctors return after going abroad.
Some specialists trained in a lucrative specialty return to join the private sector while hardly discharging their duties in the state hospitals where they are assigned to.
It is obvious why these doctors want to return al of a sudden
Surely because they are not safe in England and do not trust NHS in the UK
One consultant has already died
I wonder what GMOA is going to say about this.
Dr. Sarath Obeysekera CEO Walkers Colombo Shipyard Colombo Sri Lanka
As you all are aware, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa established the COVID – 19 Healthcare and Social Security Fund” to strengthen the mitigation activities aimed at controlling the spread of COVID-19 virus in the country and related social welfare programmes.
Accordingly, the Sri Lankan Embassy in Washington D.C. invites fellow Sri Lankans living in the United States of America who are interested in this meritorious deed, to extend their generous contributions to the said Fund directly or through the Embassy.
A note containing information on the COVID – 19 Healthcare and Social Security Fund”, and the process to contribute to the Fund can be viewed at link.
The Embassy of Sri Lanka wishes to express its sincere gratitude to Sri Lankans living in the United States of America for extending their support towards this worthy endeavor.
We have seen the yeoman services rendered by the armed forces in controlling corona spread with political backing where relevant measures are taken to prevent people from moving around by establishing control points
Many youngsters who have been employed and unemployed are staying in boarding houses, frustrated cursing the patients as well as authorities
Though some are trying to paint a picture of an authoritarian regime is going to be in place, the government and the president should continue using forces to enforce the rules.
We also note that the police force cannot handle the controlling part due to lack of manpower and trained commanders
It is high time that The President uses some remaining
powers and start National Service in the country and mobilize the youngsters
who are doing nothing at the moment
They can. not only help regular forces ad police to control
corona spread but also distribute food items and collect agricultural products
from villages
The government also commandeer trucks and buses which are idling and use them
If necessary, the Constitution may be suspended for a year to avoid delays in getting a parliament appointed and get the legislation approved
Let the world including the UN complain about it but they have enough in their plates to worry about
Just like I have proposed several times President can be called Benevolent Dictator.
Title: Putting Buddhism to Work: A New Approach to Management and Business
Author: Shinichi Inoue
Publisher: Kodansha International Ltd. (Tokyo) Year of publication: 1997
Buddhist Economics: The Emerging Middle Path between Capitalism and Socialism
Shinichi Inoue, a former President of the Japanese Miyazaki Bank and reputed economist, has proposed a novel approach to economic management that goes beyond socialism and capitalism. He calls his proposed economics for the 21st century ‘Buddhist Economics’, a phrase first used in print by Dr. E.F.Schumacher in 1973 in his best-selling book ” Small is Beautiful “.
Based on the insight of the Buddha that spiritual liberation is attained by avoiding extremes, whether by indulgence in worldly pleasures or severe asceticism, and treading namely ‘ the Middle Way ‘, Inoue recommends ‘Buddhist Economics ‘ as the ideal middle path between the competing models of capitalism and socialism. Both these systems, Inoue argues, have failed to contain the relentless destruction of the natural environment and the human community, thereby forcing leading executives and planners to search for new solutions for planetary problems.
Inoue draws on the best aspects of both capitalist and socialist economic systems, in his ‘ Buddhist Economics ‘ model. It supports the conventional forces of a free market and competition without destroying either nature or human society. His alternate vision of sustainable economics is meant to be more just and more ecologically sound.
Inspired by the fundamental Buddhist insight of the inter-connectedness existing among all living things, Inoue says that Buddhism, Economics and Ecology are all inter-related. He places a heavy emphasis on the concept of freedom as understood in Buddhism in contrast to the Western concept of ‘freedom’. In the West ‘freedom’ revolves around the rights of the individual i.e. freedom to do what one wishes. In Buddhism, ‘freedom’ means freedom from personal desires or attachments.
In Inoue’s view, a Buddhist approach to economics requires an understanding that economics and a moral and spiritual life are neither separate nor mutually exclusive. The 20th Century has been ravaged by a materialistic, self-centered consumerism. The next century needs to focus on the quality and spirituality of life itself. Buddhism, which advocates the ‘Middle Path’, serves as an important resource to pursue an alternative to the extremes of capitalism and socialism, or pure self-interest and utter self-negation.
The Essence of Buddhist Economics
Inoue identifies three key phrases that underlie his model of Buddhist Economics.
They are:
1) an economics that benefits oneself and others 2) an economics of tolerance and peace 3) an economics that can save the earth.
An Economics that benefits oneself and others
Adam Smith developed his theory of free enterprise based on the concept of self-benefit’. This led to people being more concerned with enriching themselves and disregarding the interests of others. At the international level, during Adam Smith’s day, major colonial powers such as England, Netherlands, France, Portugal and Spain developed their economies from the resources taken from other poorer regions, without an adequate resulting benefit accruing to the colonies. In contrast, the earlier Buddhist societies such as India during the time of the Buddha or Japan during the time of Prince Shotuku ( 574 – 622 AD ) existed with a radically different social approach. In Japanese society where the density of population was high, human relations were tightly interwoven, and Japanese people were encouraged to pay great attention to how other people thought or reacted. In the Japanese world of business, earning the trust of others and entering into mutually beneficial transactions have always been given priority. Such conduct was the result of deep-seated Buddhist influence.
The Western obsession with ‘self-benefit ‘ and indifference to the rights of non-European people has been well analysed by former Indian diplomat K.M.Panikkar in his ground breaking book ‘Asia and Western Domination – A Survey of the Vasco De Gama Epoch of Asian History 1498 – 1945, published in 1953. Panikkar says that western colonial powers were reluctant to recognise that doctrines of international law applied outside Europe or that European nations had any moral obligations when dealing with Asian people. For example, when Britain insisted on the opium trade against the laws of China in the 19th Century, there was a prohibition by law on opium smoking in England. In countries under direct British occupation eg. India, Ceylon and Burma, though there were equal rights established by law, there was considerable reservation in enforcing the law against Europeans. Maurice Collis, a British magistrate in Burma, gives a rare candid account in his book ‘Trials in Burma’ ( 1938 ) about the pressures brought upon him by the members of the Colonial Government and the British expatriate community, to be partial towards Europeans in his judgments. Panikkar avers that this doctrine of different rights (which made a mockery of the concept of the Rule of Law) persisted to the very end of western colonial domination and was a prime cause of Europe’s ultimate failure in Asia.
An Economics of Tolerance and Peace
The Indian Emperor Asoka established the world’s first welfare state in the third century BC upon embracing Buddhism. He renounced the idea of conquest by the sword. In contrast to the western concept of ‘ Rule of Law ‘, Asoka embarked upon a ‘policy of piety or rule of righteousness’. The basic assumption of this policy of piety was that the ruler who serves as a moral model would be more effective than one who rules purely by strict law enforcement. The right method of governing is not only by legislation and law enforcement, but also by promoting the moral education of the people. Asoka began by issuing edicts concerning the ideas and practice of dharma, dealing with universal law and social order. Realizing that poverty eroded the social fabric, one of his first acts was to fund social welfare and other public projects. Asoka’s ideals involved promoting policies for the benefit of everyone in society, treating all his subjects as if they were his children and protecting religion. He built hospitals, animal welfare shelters and enforced a ban on owning slaves and killing. He gave recognition to animal rights in a number of his rock edicts and accepted state responsibility for the protection of animals. Animal sacrifice was forbidden by law.
An important aspect of Asoka’s economics of peace was tolerance. In one of his rock edicts, Asoka calls for religious freedom and tolerance, and declares that by respecting someone else’s religion, one brings credit to one’s own religion. Inoue says that the idea of religious tolerance only emerged in the West in 1689 with the publication of John Locke’s book ‘ A Letter Concerning Toleration ‘.
Inoue says that from a Buddhist perspective, politics can be summed up by the Sanskrit word 4 cakravartin ‘ (the wheel turner ), which means a king or political ruler who protects his people and the Buddhist teachings. Asoka was the prototype of this ruler whose political ideas were to inspire a countless number of other Asian Emperors and rulers. One enthusiastic follower of Asoka in Japan was Prince Shotuku. (574 – 622 AD ). An ardent believer in Buddhism, Shotukti drafted a 17 Article Constitution (the first Buddhist Constitution of Japan), which was promulgated in 604 AD. Shotuku appeals neither to ‘self-evident truths ‘ (as in the American Constitution ) nor to some divine right of kings as the basis of law. Instead he begins pragmatically by stating that if society is to work efficiently for the good of all, then people must restrain factionalism and learn to work together. A key feature of this Constitution is the emphasis placed on resolving differences by appeals to harmony and common good, using the procedure of consensus. This approach is in marked contrast to the western view that factions can be controlled only legally by a balance of powers. Decision making by consensus is a significant characteristic of Japanese society. Every effort is made to ensure that minority dissident factions are not allowed to lose face.
The influence of Buddhism in Japan was such that in 792 AD Emperor Kammu (781 – 806 AD) despite constant threats from Korea, abolished the 100 year old national army, except for one regiment to guard the region near Korea. National security was maintained by sons of local clan leaders somewhat similar to the present day police. Japan was effectively without an army until the emergence of the new warrior class before the Kamakura, Shogunate (1192 – 1333 AD). Tibet is another example of demilitarisation (in the 17th century). What is significant to note here is that long before the ideal of demilitarisation was espoused in western countries, ancient Buddhist countries had already implemented it. In Japan, beginning from the 9th century, the death penalty was abolished for nearly three and a half centuries.
An Economics to save the Earth
Inoue is vehemently critical of the practice of industrial societies indulging in a policy of take-and-take from nature, despite economics being fundamentally about exchange or give-and-take. He identifies a passage in the Bible (Genesis 1: 27 – 28) as a possible root cause of the western attitude towards nature. This passage declares:
“So God created man in his own image, in the image created he him, male and female created he them. And God blessed them, and God said unto them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and replenish the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth”.
Some have interpreted this passage literally, as one giving divine sanction to domination of the earth for the benefit of only human beings and disregarding the interests of both plants and other living creatures of this world. In contrast, Buddhist sacred texts are much more humble and always emphasise the need to live in harmony with nature and peacefully co-exist with other living creatures, as the ideal and noble way. In the Buddhist worldview, humans rather being masters of this earth, simply make up one tiny element in a vast cosmos. In the Buddhist Economics that Inoue proposes, the earth rather than human beings will be placed at the center of our worldview.
History of Economics
Inoue examines the major ideas in the theories of prominent economists such as Adam Smith (1723 – 1790), David Ricardo (1772 – 1823), Karl, Marx (1818 – 1883), John Keynes (1883 – 1946) Joan Robinson (1903 – 1983) and the German Economists Friedrich von Hayek (1899 – 1992), Wilhelm Lopke (1899 – 1966) and Ludwig Erhard (1897 – 1977). Inoue singles out Lopke’s best-selling book ‘ Civitas Humanas (Human Citizen) published in 1949 as laying the foundation for the new humanistic school of economics. Inoue uses the concept of `social market economics’ advocated by Ludwig Erhard in his 1957 book ‘Woffistand fur Alles (Happiness for All ) as the precedent for developing the new Buddhist Economics. Erhard called for the need to overcome the inherent tensions between the haves and have-nots in society, through such governmental policies as the banning of cartels, using government ‘price valuation’ to ensure fair pricing, rent control and supporting people with disabilities.
Inoue was also inspired by Dr. E.F Schumacher’s book ‘Small is Beautiful’, which has a chapter on ‘Buddhist Economics.’ Schumacher was heavily influenced by Buddhist meditation and wisdom during his time in Myanmar (formerly Burma). Though Schumacher recommended a new approach to economics based on Buddhism, Inoue says that Schumacher’s ultimate solutions were sought in Christian oriented ethics. Nevertheless, Inoue says that Schumacher’s book should serve as a wake up call for those living in Buddhist countries. He further says that given the destruction of the natural environment that has taken place in the industrial West, the time has come to use a Buddhist approach to economics.
Historical Background of Buddhist Economics
The life story of the Buddha offers a valuable lesson when focusing on Buddhist economics. Prince Siddhartha rejected the material comforts of a royal life, and also realised the futility of asceticism and denial of natural physical needs. Inoue says ”The Buddha walked a fine line between materialism and denial of the world, and this middle way or moderate standpoint is fundamental to understanding Buddhist Economics’.
The ordinary public and the merchant class supported Buddhism from the very outset. As Buddhism moved eastwards over the centuries, to China, Korea and Japan it absorbed elements of the culture of these countries and became transformed along the way. It also managed to transform the societies and economies of these countries by introducing ethical concepts into the pursuit of profit. In Japanese history there has been substantial Buddhist support of commerce, which had come to fruition during the Edo period (1603 – 1867). This period witnessed an explosion of economic activity. Some sociologists have found interesting parallels in the connections between the Protestant work ethic and capitalism, and between the rise of Japanese Capitalism and the religious thought of the time.
Unrestrained Consumption
The world’s natural resources would be depleted if two factors are not immediately addressed:
1) the ever increasing population growth, and 2) the mismanagement of desire ( particularly of those people in the so-called advanced countries)
In the Ryoan-ji, the Buddhist Temple of Kyoto, famous for its stone and sand garden, there is a poem carved on a stone, which says ‘ Know what one really needs ‘. Inoue says that this is no simple injunction. To know what one really needs in life requires great wisdom. But to have the strength to say ‘no’ to the unessential products in life would release a person from the coils of consumption. Inoue says that this view i.e. of wanting what is really essential reflects the Buddhist view of consumption and it is the ideal attitude to be promoted in the coming century.
Right Livelihood
Right livelihood is one of the components of the Noble Eightfold Path. Its importance lies in the fact that the work one does for a living influences a person’s thinking. The Buddha has named five types of occupations as unwholesome ways of earning a living. They are 1) Selling liqour or being connected with the production and sale of liquor 2) Sale of flesh or being connected with the raising and killing of animals 3) Poison (includes drugs) 4) Trading in living beings (includes slavery or for similar purposes) 5) Dangerous weapons.
Inoue uses the ‘Sigalovada Sutta ‘ (which is also called the layman’s code of discipline or gihi vinaya ) as the premise for developing the right work ethic for the next century. In one passage of this Sutta, the Buddha says “One should work like a bee to earn one’s livelihood. Do not wait for others to help, nor depend on others foolishly”. In the Sigalovada Sutta, the Buddha showed his concern for the material welfare and the spiritual development of his lay disciples. In the discourse to young Sigala, the Buddha explained the full range of duties owed by a layman to all those with whom he interacts. The Buddha also indicated how wealth has to be spent i.e. one portion for one’s needs, which includes offerings to monks and charity, two portions on investment and the fourth portion to be kept for an emergency.
The Author
Inoue was born in 1918 in Southern Japan. Upon graduating from the Department of Economics of the University of Tokyo, he joined the Bank of Japan. In 1975 he was made the President of the Miyazaki Bank. Throughout his career Inoue has sought to combine the practice of Buddhism with his expertise in Economics and Management. He is the current Chairman of the Foundation for the Promotion of Buddhism, and a member of the Buddhist Economics Research Institute of Komazawa University.
In the concluding chapters of this book, Inoue illustrates his creative approach to business with a number of anecdotes of leading Japanese entrepreneurs who had incorporated Buddhist principles and meditation techniques in their day to day work in an effort to develop a more humanistic and environmentalist business ethic.
Buddhist Economic Vision
Though much of the postulates of Inoue have been developed in a Japanese Mahayana Buddhist context, the contents of this book nevertheless provide food for thought to anyone wishing to adopt an innovative approach to Management and Business. However the greatest appeal of this highly readable book lies in the elaborate development of Schumacher’s profound insight that there is another way of approaching economics, based on the ideas taught in the East 2500 years ago, particularly of the fundamental interconnectedness of people and nature. It is upon this premise that the world can shift from a throw-away culture to a more sustainable* civilisation. This work also throws a challenge to governments in Buddhist countries to develop a Buddhist economic vision as a part of national planning, as we move towards a new millennium.
Preconceived notions lead to distortions in reporting on the issue
At the time of writing, Sri Lanka has suffered six deaths due to complications arising from the COVID-19 virus. Information on the latest victim, who died few hours ago, is yet to be made public. Three of the victims were Sinhalese, out of which two were Buddhists (1st and 4th victims) and one was Catholic (the 5th), whilst the other two were Muslims (2nd and 3rd). The bodies of all were disposed in the same manner, following the most stringent procedures to eliminate any possibility of contamination – now or in the future.
There was a seventh patient, whose body was also disposed in this same manner. This patient however was not infected with COVID-19. This patient was warded in Kalubowila Hospital for a different ailment. Whilst this patient was thus receiving treatment, another patient in the same ward was tested positive for COVID-19.
Immediately, the hospital officials took steps to transfer that patient tested positive for COVID-19 to the Institute of Infectious Diseases Hospital (IDH). At the same time, all the other patients in this ward were transferred to the Homagama Base Hospital, which is dedicated to only treat patients who may have got exposed to the virus but not yet confirmed as infected. That night, this patient succumbed to his illness for which he was hospitalized.
Test results confirmed that he was not infected with the virus. Nevertheless, his body too was disposed in the same manner as the other five COVID-19 victims. This eliminated any possibility of contamination.
Disposing the Dead Body of a COVID-19 Patient
These seven patients died on different days. Yet, the same stringent procedures were followed in all these cases. As such, the bodies were,
– Not washed, embalmed or unnecessarily touched;
– Placed inside a sealed bag and then inside a sealed coffin;
– Not allowed final rites;
– Taken to the crematorium within about 15 hours after death;
– Only two of the closest relatives allowed to be present;
– Cremated in an incinerator that generates a heat of over 1,200 centigrade. The COVID-19 virus cannot survive temperatures over 30 centigrade.
In addition,
– The protective garments of the pallbearers were also destroyed at the same time;
– Crematorium was disinfected afterwards;
– All personnel present was sprayed with disinfectant from head to toe;
– The vehicle that transported the body also disinfected.
Before placing the coffin in the incinerator, a Government Medical Officer explained to the nearest relative the cause of death and the procedure that was about to be carried out.
It must be emphasized that none of the patients, who belonged to different faiths, had their final rites performed. It was not to condemn the patients or disrespect them, but to ensure
– Speed and
– Minimum exposure.
Cremation over Burial
A controversy over cremation of Muslims began with a message posted in Facebook by Leader of the Muslim Congress MP Rauf Hakeem. Whether his post initiated the controversy or whether he simply articulated some discontent from within the Muslim community is difficult to say.
However, at the All Party Conference, he did not want to bring this issue before the assembly. Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa then pointed out that there is nothing to hide and it is best to discuss this matter openly as all political leaders and officials responsible for decision making were present.
After much insistence from the Premier, MP Hakeem noted his concerns as,
– According to the earlier guidelines issued by the Director General of Health Services Dr Anil Jasinghe, burial or cremation was permissible
– This is in line with the guidelines issued by the WHO as well
– WHO has clearly stated that the possibility of the COVID-19 spreading from a corpse is a myth.
Dr Jasinghe, who was also present at this conference, then explained the reasons for the officials to eventually choose cremation as the best and most effective means to dispose bodies of COVID-19 positive patients as,
– The WHO guidelines is only a general guideline. It has not taken into consideration the topography and other factors that are unique to each country.
– In Sri Lanka, the water table is high, which is the main issue in this matter.
– In addition, our soil is very porous and the composition itself is very absorbant. This might pose a danger of becoming a medium for the virus to spread.
– The topography in Sri Lanka changes within kilometers. This makes it difficult to separate areas with a clear demarcation line. Therefore, it is not possible to accommodate these variations when formulating a standard.
– It is the people that needs to be taken into consideration. Then, differentiate people according to ethnic groups is not possible.
– When a death occurs, the priority is to dispose the body as quickly as possible. Thus it needs to be disposed at the closest possible location.
It must be also noted that,
– As SLMC leader Hakeem quoted at the All Party Conference, WHO does note that, It is a common myth that persons who have died of a communicable disease should be cremated, but this is not true.” However, with regard to COVID-19 virus, WHO while noting that,
To date there is no evidence of persons having become infected from exposure to the bodies of persons who died from COVID-19”, also notes that,
this is a new virus whose source and disease progression are not yet entirely clear, more precautions may be used until further information becomes available.”
At the moment of writing, the number of COVID-19 infected patients in Sri Lanka are low:
total number of infected – 185; number of active cases – 137; number of recovered – 42 and number of deaths – 6.
However, according to the mathematical modeling done by the Medical Faculty of Colombo University, the number of infected can reach as high as 1,400.
Dr Jasinghe assures that the free health service in Sri Lanka is getting ready to meet this challenge.
In the meantime, the Government Medical Officers Association has warned that if this number exceeds 2,500, our systems will fail.
It is impossible at this stage to predict whether the numbers would reach 1,400 or exceed 2,500.
This virus is spreading exponentially. We do not have any immunity against it. Therefore, we must physically stop it from spreading.
Unlike in a war, where the outcome is dependent largely on the combatants, in this crisis the outcome lies with each and every individual citizen. This means that we are dealing with a situation with a large number of variables.
For example, the third Sri Lankan patient to die of this virus has compromised at least 326 people through simple association. Thus it is clear that one person’s irresponsible act(s) can unravel even the best laid plans.
Hence, we must prepare for the possibility of dealing with a large number of deaths, as is the reality in many other countries.
As WHO notes, we still know very little about this virus. According to the findings so far, it is believed that while heat kills it, dampness helps it to thrive. What does this mean in an untreated body filling with fluids remains to be seen. Certain scientists claim that the virus can survive in the refrigerator for up to 28 days. This of course perhaps needs to be verified further by other scientific sources as well.
Even though this body is in a sealed body bag and in a sealed coffin, it is not possible for us to guarantee the outcome in 100 or more years. One may dismiss this as far fetched or an exaggerated worry. At the same time, let us not dismiss offhand accounts of scientists and excavators dying suddenly due to unknown cause after days of opening ancient tombs and coffins. It is easy enough to blame a mysterious curse, when in fact it might have been a virus as deadly as COVID-19. The last thing we would want is for this highly infectious, deathly virus to revisit our world – even 100 or 1,000 years later.
Taking all these factors on board, it is obvious to the logical mind that the best option is to destroy this virus completely.
Media Freedom without Responsibility is not Possible
When so many countries with advanced healthcare systems are failing before COVID-19, Sri Lanka is managing to keep the situation thus far under control. It is neither incidental nor coincidental. It is against all odds and tremendous challenges that Sri Lanka is doing so.
It is due to meticulous planning that Sri Lanka has thus far succeeded. From the beginning, Sri Lanka placed systems to manage every aspect of the crisis. The Administration anticipated possibility of the virus reaching Sri Lanka before even WHO warned the world of the pandemic. Measures were taken long before supply chains got disrupted.
Singapore Prime Minister addressing his nation admitted that their systems are struggling to find the contacts of the infected. In Sri Lanka, all hands in the intelligence agencies are on the job. The accuracy of identifying the contacts and their associations in turn have contributed largely to containing this virus in Sri Lanka.
Yet, instead of reporting on Sri Lanka’s success or even mentioning it, certain international media channels have erroneously reported that the Government,
– Held hostage by extreme hardline Buddhist monks
– Had forcibly cremated the bodies of the Muslim patients
– To hurt the feelings of the Muslims.
Very mischievously, these journalists have completely omitted that the final rites of the other patients, who were not Muslim, were also not allowed. It must be noted that the Catholic too bury their dead. Buddhists also sometimes opt for burial than cremation.
This raises the question, whether these journalists who wrote these very erroneous and utterly irresponsible articles were truly ignorant that,
– Buddhists and a Catholic were also among the dead;
– Final rites of all were not performed;
– The disposal of the bodies was not in line with any cultural values or religious practices.
The bodies of the patients who were Buddhists were not treated any differently from those of other faiths. This thus discredits the accusations that,
– Buddhist monks played a decisive role in this matter;
– the bodies of the Muslim patients were cremated to hurt the Muslims.
Interestingly, though these articles appear in different channels, the same errors are seen to eclipse in most reports. Perhaps these journalists were too lazy to do their own homework. They may have copied each other’s work and instead of verifying, modified it enough to pass it off as their own work. It is also possible that these journalists might have been sponsored to write such tribal-minded, incidiary articles. Either way, the result is the same. Their unprofessionalism compromises the integrity of the media.
Today, it is not possible for a country that allows Internet technologies, social media and messaging platforms to suppress media. The options these tools provide are so vast and versatile that the media will always find a gap to reach the public. In the past couple of years there had been attempts to blackout the media, but with zero success. Users found Virtual Private Networks, which worked just as well.
Therefore, media freedom is now more in the hands of the media than with the Government. It is important never to lose sight of the objective of ensuring media freedom. It is to guard the right of our audience to access facts true to the case. Media as such needs to be free to report comprehensively and without bias. Media Freedom must never be misconstrued as the right to doctor information to promote a subversive agenda or for personal gain.
When vital facts are omitted, it amounts to falsifying information. This infringes on the audience’s right to understand the situation in its true context. It is a moot point whether the reporter failed to be true to the profession for personal gain, with malicious intent or due to sheer incompetence. The result is the same. The audience’s right to know the truth and the right to make decisions based on true facts gets compromised.
Colombo, April 8 (newsin.asia): On 8th April, Mr. Luo Chong, the Spokesperson of the Embassy of China in Sri Lanka wrote an open letter to Mr. Ranjith Wijewardene, the Chairman of the Wijeya Newspapers Ltd, presenting the Embassy’s strong position against the irresponsible publication of articles that completely violate the facts and stirs up hatred speech.
Full text of the open letter is as follows:
Dear Mr. Chairman,
Greetings at a difficult moment for both Sri Lanka and China.
I write this open letter to bring into your good attention that it is very unfortunate to read 3 irresponsible articles on the Daily Mirror (27/3 and 8/4) and the Sunday Times (22/3): One echoes an old American pettifogger from the administration of Ronald Reagan with his brain still in the Cold War era, shouting and instigating that Sri Lanka must ensure China is held accountable”. The other Editorial Sunday Punch” insists to use Wuhan COVID”, claims the Chinese gave birth to the virus” and stirs up Sri Lanka should demand compensation from China” for allowing the virus to escape from its land”.
It is of no surprise to see some one, either blinded by misinformation or driven by different agenda, keep making groundless remarks. But how could it be accepted and tolerated for the Wijeya Newspapers, a most reputed and respected media group in Sri Lanka to publish these non-senses and hatred speeches on two of her most popular papers? During last couple of days, quite a few friends, no matter from China or Sri Lanka, approached the Embassy to show their disagreement and resentment against the articles. We also witnessed that dozens of netizens commented on website and shake their heads. They joined us for the same question: What is going wrong?
These articles, lack of basic facts, knowledge and compassion, full of prejudice, racism and hatred speech, are not only obviously against the Vision of Wijeya Newspapers of being the most independent and socially responsible” as well as its Mission of to report the facts as they are”, but also totally against common sense and humanity. Especially under current situation when both Sri Lanka and China are fighting all their best together against COVID-19, a common enemy of human kind, these stigma and discrimination are absolutely inappropriate and not helpful whatsoever.
Dear Mr. Chairman,
We would like to reiterate that the origin of the novel coronavirus is a matter of science, which requires professional and scientific assessment. Although Wuhan city in China first reported the outbreak, there is no evidence that it is the source. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that the season flu starting from September 2019 has so far killed more than 20,000, and CDC Director Dr. Robert Redfield admitted that post-mortein confirmed some actually died of COVID-19. Similar early cases were also found in Italy. Research by scientists from China, Japan, the United States, Europe as well as the World Health Organization have shown no certain conclusion yet on the origin. How could we stigmatize China gave birth to the virus” without professional medical knowledge?
More importantly, there is a clear consensus and practice by WHO and the international community that a virus should not be linked to any specific country, region or ethnic group, and such stigmatization should be rejected. In the fight against COVID-19, WHO has consistently called on the international community to respect science and respond rationally, and all the governments to educate the public the correct disease naming. WHO has also stressed that any discriminatory practices should be condemned, the use of China” and Wuhan” naming the virus by some media must be corrected. UN Secretary-General António Guterres urged it is shameful to see increasing acts of racial discrimination and prejudice as we fight the COVID-19 pandemic” and we must always fight racism and prejudice”.
After the outbreak was reported, Chinese government has timely adopted the most comprehensive, rigorous and thorough measures, to prevent and control the epidemic in an open, transparent and responsible manner. A comprehensive, transparent and detailed timeline of China’s efforts has also been released recently. Since January 3, China has been regularly notifying WHO and relevant countries about the outbreak. On January 12, China had already shared with WHO the genetic sequence of the novel coronavirus, fastest in epidemiological history. Since January 23, China made decisive decision to lock down Wuhan with its 11million population, which may have prevented 700,000 cases of coronavirus according to some US experts. All outbound tourist groups were canceled to prevent the spread of the epidemic across the borders. The WHO appraised China has offered a precious window period for the world to fight the epidemic with its huge sacrifices. Singapore, the Republic of Korea, etc have made full use of the time window and taken necessary measures to stem the spread. But it is very regrettable for some other administrations wasted the time China bought, and a big shame for some politicians and media trying to deflect their responsibilities by discrediting China. These stigmatization have ignored the huge sacrifices of the Chinese people, and vilified China’s full strength contributions to global public health security. For those who shouting to hold China accountable, please ask themselves if the outbreak first happened in their countries, would they be able to do better and control the pandemic in two months?
Dear Mr. Chairman,
The first confirmed case of COVID-19 in Sri Lanka is a Chinese national, no doubt about it. But we should not forget that this Chinese lady came to Sri Lanka before Wuhan lockdown on 23 January, being not aware of her condition. After the breakout, the Embassy immediately warned all the Chinese tourists and workers in the Island to examine their health condition and report on a daily basis. Through this timely intervention, she was filtered by the Embassy and her group as a suspicious case, reported to IDH and then confirmed on 27 January. We also requested all Chinese nationals including diplomats of the Embassy to self-quarantine for minimum 14 days strictly in their apartments after entering Sri Lanka. Only thanks to all these concrete measures, among thousands of students, businessmen and workers returned from China to Sri Lanka after the outbreak, there is no a single infection or transmission. For the following 180+ cases (as of 7 April), none of them is Chinese or from China. Ironically, some virus carriers from other countries hid their travel record, broke from self-isolation, and forced thousand of innocent people to be quarantined.
I would also like to bring into your attention that, from the very beginning until to date, the Embassy keeps updating the pandemic situation and all our prevention & control measures to the Sri Lankan government especially the Health Ministry, which are very helpful for our Sri Lankan colleagues to make their decisions according to the health department. Besides the experience sharing, huge amount of medical supplies have also been donated by the central and local Chinese government, enterprises, organizations and the overseas Chinese in Sri Lanka. According to our incomplete statistics, at least 500,000 masks, 41,000 test kits, 15,000 PPE, 130,000 medical gloves have been or ready to be gifted from China to the front line medical workers and other friends across the island to meet their most urgent need. We will provide more assistance within our capacity, because we won’t forget all the solidarity and support extended by all sectors of Sri Lankan society to China when we were fighting COVID-19 at the darkest moment.
Dear Mr. Chairman,
COVID-19 is no longer a battle of one city or one country. It has already become the biggest challenge for all human kinds after WWII. Although we’re still in heavy difficulties, the Chinese Government has extended numerous assistance to almost 100 countries, including sharing diagnosis and treatment experiences, dispatching medical teams and providing all kinds of medical supplies. I firmly believe that this war could be won, but only with joint efforts of all countries despite political, religious and cultural differences. I’m also confident you will agree with me that all our media including the Wijeya Newspapers should play a more responsible and constructive role in this war closely related to the future of our countries and the whole humanity.
Best wishes and good health to you, your family and all members of the Wijeya Newspapers. ”
(The picture at the top shows Chinese officials gifting coronavirus medicines to the Sri Lankan Minister of Health, Pavithra Wanniarachchi)
