There is an argument being made that in accordance with Article 150 (3) of the Constitution the President has power to appropriate funds from the Consolidated Fund only until 20 April 2020; hence, the dissolved Parliament should be reconvened. This argument is wrong.
The
writer states that in accordance with Article 150 (3), the President has power
to raise such funds on his own accord, at least 14 -21 days after 20 September
2020 (which is 3 months+ from the date of the election on 20 June 2020 – the current
scheduled date).
The 14
-21 days apply because the date of summoning the new Parliament happens after the
lapse of such a number of days from the date of the election.
See especially the
bold in Article 150 (3), both English and Sinhala versions below:
150(3)- Where the President dissolves Parliament before the
Appropriation Bill for the financial year has passed into law, he may, unless
Parliament shall have already made provision, authorize the issue from the
Consolidated Fund and the expenditure of such sums as he may consider necessary
for the public services until the expiry of a period of three months from
the date on which the new Parliament is summoned to meet.’
Currently, the
Opposition’s argument that the President’s financial power under Article 150
(3) ends on 20 April 2020 has merit.
This is because the Government has failed to set a date for the new
Parliament to meet after the election. The Election Commission has set a date
for the election (20 June 2020), but Article 150 (3) refers to the first date
which the new Parliament meets. This has to be set by the President.
This is a major
drawback on the part of the Government!
Thus, at the moment
the 2 March 2020 gazette notification seems to be ineffective. Technically, the
Opposition’s Petition should succeed.
Thus, what the
Government must do is to immediately gazette such a first Parliament meeting
date.
If they are slack,
the Government will have to pay a huge price.
The Writer in his
article dated 26 April 2020 (published in Lankaweb) stated that the proposed Petition
before the Court is doomed to fail. He
standby his assertion.
Those who demand
reconvening of the Parliament seeks a declaration from the Court that the President’s
gazette notification dated 2 March 2020 issued under Article 70 (1) should be
declared null and void. They have failed to substantiate their argument
sufficiently and adequately. Their current argument that the election date mentioned
in the gazette – 25 April 2020, and sitting date of the new parliament – 14 May
2020 are unachievable is a weak one. The
defective date for holding the election has already been cured by the Election
Commission by proclaiming a new election date of 20 June 2020. The Government should soon
gazette the first date that the new Parliament meets.
The only way to mount
a proper challenge that the Parliament must be immediately reconvened is to
allege that given the dangerous Corona Pandemic, the President has failed to
exercise his discretion in relation to Articles 70 (1) and 70 (7) in good faith. But, the Opposition’s proposed Petition does
not raise this.
Article 70 (1) – The President may by Proclamation,
summon, prorogue and dissolve Parliament.
Article
70 (7) – If at any time after the dissolution of Parliament, the President
is satisfied that an emergency has arisen of such a nature that an earlier
meeting of Parliament is necessary, he mayby Proclamation summon the
Parliament which has been dissolved to meet on a date not less than three days
from the date of such Proclamation and such Parliament shall stand dissolved
upon the termination of the emergency or the conclusion of the General
Election, whichever is earlier.
Note mayin both Articles. That suggests the President’s power is discretionary (not
mandatory).
The
exercise of a discretionary power is subject to judicial challenge.
The
following are grounds of review that could be relied upon (they are set out
herein only for academic purpose):
(a) taking an irrelevant consideration into account in the exercising of
the discretionary power (showed the desire to dissolve the Parliament early and
hold early elections disregarding the danger of Corona Pandemic (breach of Article 70 (1);
(b) failing to take relevant considerations into account in the exercise
of the discretionary power (the
dangerous Corona Pandemic has created an Emergency situation in the country,
and during the Corona Pandemic the government is ought to be present in the
Parliament to answer to the people (breach of Article 70 (7). Refuses to reconvene
the dissolved Parliament (breach of Article 70 (7));
(c) exercise of the discretionary power for a purpose other than a
purpose for which the power is conferred (dissolved the Parliament disregarding
the Corona Pandemic and set down a date for early elections with the view of securing
an absolute parliamentary majority (breach of Article 70 (1). Refuses to reconvene the
dissolved Parliament (breach of Article 70 (7));
(d) exercise of a discretionary power in bad faith (dissolved the
Parliament and set down a date for holding elections during a deadly Corona Pandemic
that is likely to expose the public to unnecessary risk including death (breach
of Article 70
(1). Refuses
to reconvene the dissolved Parliament (breach of Article 70 (7));
(e) exercise of the discretionary power in accordance with a rule or
policy without regard to the merits of the particular case (dissolved the
Parliament disregarding the importance of upholding ‘representative democracy’ –
the Government is answerable to people through the Parliament during an Emergency
(breach of Articles
70 (1) and 70 (7). Refuses to reconvene the dissolved Parliament (breach of Article 70 (7));
(g) exercise of the discretionary power that is so unreasonable that no
reasonable President could have so exercised the power (the Government is
committed to explain to the public through the Parliament about distribution of
food/how essential services would operate during the curfew, social distancing
measures/conduct of PCR tests, receipt and disbursement of very large foreign/local
aid/funds etc (breach of Article 70 (7). Refuses to reconvene the
dissolved Parliament (breach of Article 70 (7));
(h) exercise of the discretionary power in a way that constitutes abuse
of the power (breach of Articles 70 (1) and 70
(7)).
Rap music
evolved around 1960s from hip hop music. It involves delivering existing songs
in hip hop style, rock rhythms and fast beats.
Sri Lanka’s
current young performers are heavily involved in rapping music (songs). By doing so, they do a great disservice to
our highly respected, old, established songs.
Dhanno
Budunge is such a song. It was written by John De Silva in early 20th
century (precisely in 1903). The first singer is unknown. Some say it was the
song writer himself. In 1940s and 1950s Rupasinghe Master sang it brilliantly.
Dhanno
Budunge was first released as a LP record under ‘His Master’s Voice’ label in late
1950s. The cassette, CD, DVD, MP3 versions later emerged.
Dhanno
Budnuge has been played in Sinhala homes with devotion to Lord Buddha and
Anuradhapura, the ancient city. The song has nobility, impeccability and
perfection.
Even Dhanno
Budunge has been rapped. It has been sung by artistes over different pop vocal
deliveries/beats. The writer has been told that there had existed baila versions
of Danno Budunge.
By rapping
our highly respected, oldish songs like Danno Budunge with cynical/ulterior
intention, these artistes not only cause disrespect to the song but also to our
traditions, customs and heritage.
Dhanno
Budunge is not a song that should be sung in a baila beat to dance.
Amazing
Grace is sung devotionally in Anglo Saxon countries since late 18th
century. There is so much respect shown to this song in those countries. They
would never allow it to be rapped.
Another
similar song is Australia’s Waltzing Matilda. It is protected in that country
as a National Treasure.
In 1960s
and 1970s Sri Lanka produced brilliant and finest singers and musicians. Rapping music (songs) was never done by them.
They created their own, original, authentic music. Sunil Shantha, CT Fernando, Amaradeva,
Victor Rathnayake, Nanda Malini, Milton Mallawarachchi, Clarence Wijewardane,
MS Fernando, Anton Jones, Freddie Silva, Sanath Nandasiri, TM Jayarathne, Abeywardane
Balasuriya, Dyarathne Ranathunge, Amara Ranathunga, Chitra Somapala and Anula
Bulathsinhala come to mind.
The
importance is that the highly respected artistes never stole others’ songs to
create their own. It is true that Amaradeva too sang Dhanno Budunge. But, that
was alright. He never tried to own it. Furthermore, he did not disturb the song’s
originality, seriousness and sacredness.
Unarguably
Victor Rathnayake has produced some of the best music of our time. He is a
living legend. He must receive the State’s patronage. The remarkable thing is that
at nearly 80 years of age he continues to produce brilliant masterpieces. His most
recent මගේ සඳ ඇවිත්, නිවී සැනසිල්ලේ and හිතින් යන අය are examples. If he sings someone
else’s song (very rarely), he would always mention the original artiste’s name.
We have highly
talented young artistes today. Some of the music that they have created is most
outstanding and marvelous.
But, sadly there
are many that tend to sing old, favourite songs. They think that this is the
only way to become popular. This inhibits their creativity. They should try to
make their own quality songs/music.
On two different aspects –
(1) Dancing
to famous old tunes has become a new norm; veteran artistes in gala shows,
children in school concerts commonly do this. They dance beautifully wearing
incredible costumes. Often, they demonstrate superb choreography. The writer is
not saying that this is bad, but it is good if new music is also created.
Rather than dancing to old songs/old beats with new words/Hindi songs;
performers should try to dance to new songs/music either created by themselves
or others. This is how a culture is progressed. As stated earlier there is
enormous new talent today. In olden days children performed in school concerts
of their own creations (songs, acts/dances); later in life they ended becoming
highly talented artistes. Even in
‘Handa Mama’ today, children tend to recite old children songs; those days they
mostly sang their own songs. During the show, some children made new songs
instantly.
(2) There
is a tendency to ‘rap’ our traditional dancing as well – Kandyan and Low
Country. They rap them with Indonesian/Korean, Lebanese, Latin American style
dancing. Sadly sometimes such things are done by our ‘acclaimed’ dancing
teachers. The writer has attended events where our Kandyan dancing had contained
‘sexy’ overtures. Recently dancers did inappropriate Kandyan type dancing
before an audience that was largely of foreign dignitaries. Their costumes
exposed body parts – something abnormal in our traditional Kandyan dancing. In
a certain scene, a Kandyan type dancing couple as part of the dance kissed each
other on the stage. Why did the organisers tolerate such nonsense?
Again, rapping
old songs is very common and fashionable in Sri Lanka today. Such rapped music
is in demand and promoted heavily by our TV stations and FM radio stations. Unlike
their older counterparts, many of our younger generation seem to accept any
music that comes their way.
About 30 – 40
years ago, it was SLBC and Rupavahini/ITN that promoted good, local music. They
may still be trying to do that; but very few people listen/watch them. As they
have lost dominance, they are no longer the major source of local music.
Rapping our
older, quality songs like Dhanno Budunge, Shantha Me Re Yame, Lo Ada Ninde/Mal Bara
Himidiriye (CT Fernando version) should not be allowed. The writer states that
it is alright to sing others’ songs in public including older, quality songs. But, it
should be done without harming the songs originality, meaning and authenticity.
What they must not do is to rap them, like hip hop, heavy metal or baila.
Mr. Soyza writes (Lanka Web, 27-04-20) that “We
hear many a good story about how Hela Vedakama can restore immunization in the
human body from Hela Suwaya school of medicine. The time tested methods
are available to our citizens in these times of fear to protect them from a
virus for which there is hardly any treatment except vaccinations under the
Western system….”
The Hela suvaya system is NOT Hela
vedakama. One may “hear” many stories, but nice anecdotes
are NOT sufficient for sick people to rush to them. Fortunately
hospitals as well as “Hela Veda hal” are equally available to the
public for them to choose. Note that the Helas Suvaya team do not observe
physical distances, or wear face masks in their U-tube display. Do they claim
that they don’t need such things because they have boosted immune systems?
The “Hela Suvaya”
publicity claims that they get their “vattoru” directly from Gods
like “Daedimunda, Natha” and other Gods that Mrs.
Senanayake is able to communicate with. This is indeed stated in the
U-tube that they have issued, with the claim that:
“”දුමක් අල්ලා
කැඳක්
පොවලා
දින
3න් කොරෝනා සුව කළ හැකි” යි (Can cure Corona in three days, giving a herbal smoke and a
rice broth). No one has heard of proven cases of “immunity being built up
in three days”, even with a vaccine. Immunity building up involves
building up specific proteins (antibodies), or the capacity to build such
proteins when needed, and inactivate pathogens as well as control oxidative
stress etc., that build up in the body when faced with a disease.
Cocvid-19 is a NEW virus, and so the body does not know how to deal with it.
All evidence point to the need for some two weeks or more, for even a very
healthy person to build immunity.
The very claims of the Hela Suvaya group seems too extreme and raise red flags
in the minds of those most people.
It was said at one time that God Natha revealed to Mrs. Senanayake that
there is Arsenic in the Rajarata soil, and that was the cause of the mysterious
chronic kidney disease found in some villages of the Rajarata. Dr. Nalin de
Silva was the Dean of Science in Kelaniya at the time, and so manged to direct
the Chemistry Dept. of Kelaniya University to look for Arsenic in the Rajarata
soil. When they could NOT find any adequate arsenic in the Rajarata soil , one
can imagine that Dr. Nalin de Silva was not at all amused!
If Mr. Ranjith Soyza is talking
of “Sinhala vedakama”, or Ayurveda, then indeed, such medical
systems have existed in Sri Lanka since ancient times, and there ARE various
time tested remedies for certain ailments.
When the Spanish flu epidemic hit Sri Lanka in 1918-1920 period, thousands and
thousands of village people (who had NO access to Western medicine, as is the
case today) perished. There were no flu vaccines in Western
medicine either, but the wealthier, “westernized” people had better
standards of living and were healthier – so somewhat more resistant to disease.
However, it was a new virus, and immunity to previous types of infections
was of no use. Today also we are dealing with a new virus.
Sinhala vedakama and Ayurveda were
resorted to by the ordinary people during that flu epidemic in 1918, because
they had nothing else to resort to, but it was to no avail. Prior to
vaccinations for small pox, Sinhala vedakama had no defence against small pox.
One need not mention all the other diseases, against which children are
inoculated now a days, making us forget about mumps, whooping cough, measles, typhoid,
etc, etc. All medical systems, including indigenous medicine asnd Western
medicine, had been helpless against such diseases, till vaccine development
became better understood.
So why does Mr. Ranjith Soyza claim
that “time tested methods are available to our citizens in these times of
fear to protect them from a virus”. Can he give just one instance of when
traditional methods protected people from any virus, if it is so time
tested? I think Mr. Soyza is merely expressing a common, well-entrenched
belief for which there is no evidence what so ever.
We know that Dr. Nalin de Silva and
others close to him have declared that some “non-human forces”
and “Naga beings” acting in consort are responsible for the illness.
Perhaps some people do not even believe that it is a virus?
Was
this why the Head monk of Sri Pada felt that there is no need to cancel the
Vandana season this year?
Prior to the discovery of germs, and
the rise of knowledge of human physiology etc., the so-called Western medicine
was also a system based on herbs, very similar to what we call
“indigenous medicine”, or Ayurveda. Greek and Roman medical
systems used the theory of the four humours, viz., breath (va),
yellow bile and black bile (pith), and phlegm (sem), and blood. In Ayurveda,
e.g., in the “Sushruta Samhita”, the theory of the four humours
can be found; this includes the above-mentioned
“tri-dosha” as well as blood as the fourth humour. The medical
system of Europe in medieval times was a mixture of Greek, Roman and Arabic
medical systems.
However, the discovery of the microscope which showed micro-organisms, advances
in anatomy and physiology, discoveries of gases like oxygen, changed all
that. That these are facts valid every where, be it in the West, or in the
East, and not relative to any culture is clear to most people who know
that the same diseases can be found in the East or West, and the same laws of
physics and chemistry apply every where, be it here, in Moscow, or in a space
station. However, there is an irrational fringe of people who believes that
Western Science is a well-concocted lie (“patta pal boruwa”), and
that truth must be found by meditation as revealed knowledge, given to
suitable people by divine spirits like God Natha.
That dependence on “revealed
knowledge” is NOT the tradition or the culture that we know of in
Sri Lanka, or what we see in the Pali Chronicles. The Pali texts chronicle a
people who followed the Theravada tradition, with its emphasis on an analytical
and critical approach, as exemplified in the Kalama Sutta and the Gnana Sutta.
In the Gnana Sutta, the Buddha emphasized the experimental method long before
Archimedes, wherein he says, Oh Monks, if you want to know if a piece of metal
is Gold, or a base metal, then surely you apply the test of the touch stone. In
the same way with various teachings…..”. Furthermore, in the Brahmajala
Sutta, the Buddha rejects the epistemology that the Helasuvaya is using to
justify its medications and treatments. They need some mystical
justifications as their treatments are NOT based on any hereditary knowledge or
empirical testing.
So if Mr. Ranjith Soyza believes that the Hela Suvaya medications are
“time tested traditional medicine” he is mistaken. One gets the
impression that their age is not more than when Mrs. Senanayake learned of them
through her claimed psychic powers.
Of course, if a medication works, it
does not matter to the patient whether the medication was revealed or
scientifically discovered. However, the claims of the Hela Suvaya group are
anecdotal, and it would be unethical to make guinea pigs out of Covid-19
patients on the basis of such claims.
In the 19th century, when the Veda
paramaparaavas (indigenous medical-practitioner families) were intact,
and when Western medicine had made NO INROADS into the treatment received by
the people, the average life expectancy was less than 40 years ( Dr. Jayantha
Kelgama and others have done historical research on this sort of thing). So,
if Hela Vedakama can restore immunization in the human body, we see no
clear sign of it, and no evidence for it, from verifiable cases. However,
if Mr. Soyza is able to present such cases, that would be interesting.
Some people may allude to the fact
that “in their memory” their fore fathers lived to a ripe old age.
Indeed, those who survived the infections that young children face, for which
indigenous medicine provides no protection, one came out with various types of
immunity, acquired the hard way, by actually getting measles, small pox,
mumps etc. So, those who survived did live up to a ripe old age.
But the majority died very young. So it was necessary to have big families,
with many children, so that at least a few will survive.
However, one may ask about the
power of Coriander, Nelli, Rasakinda, Veni-vael gaeta, Ashwagandha,
Kuturolu, Gotukola, tea, beli-mal, wheat germ, echinacea,
turmeric, linden flowers, cow urine, camphor, citronella, senna leaves, St
John’s wort, and so on. I have examined all these and many more plants
(see dh-web.org/place.names/bot2sinhala.html), and documented their known
pharmacological properties, as reported in Ayurvedic texts, or in Western
research documents. Indeed, all these plants have various valuable chemicals,
and also contain various stimulants which may give an uplifted feeling.
Inhaling some any plant in steam will bring along essential oils
(volatile in steam) and give a feeling of temporary relief. But NO
EVIDENCE of any enhanced immunity has been unequivocally established for any of
the above herbs, where ever such double-blind tests have been done.
The
slight exception may be citrus fruits, as they have vitamin C. However, one
hears little of it as an immunity booster in indigenous medicine. Even with
vitamin C, except for scurvy, the claimed enhanced immunity even for the common
cold has not been established. Vitamin C is the in-vivo anti-oxidant par
excellence. Linus Pauling, the great scientist and visionary suggested that Vitamin
C can be effective if taken in very large doses (e.g, 2-5 g per day). However,
even 10 oranges gives one only 0.7 g. So it is no where near
what is needed – if Linus Pauling is correct. In the same way, even herbs that
contain useful medicinal agents have them only in minuscule proportions unless
used in high concentrations, as in some “kasaahayas”.
This
is a sequel to your above captioned article by Gehan De Checkera published in
the online edition of the 25th April issue, quoting lawyers and HR
activist critical of the Prevention of Terrorism Act., under which Lawyer Heejaz Hizbulla has been arrested in connection with the Eater Sunday terrorist
attack. Although the caption also includes ‘prevention of terrorism’, there no
mention on the prevention of terrorism and instead the article throughout its
text criticizes the PTA in the context of upholding human rights.
At
the very outset it should be mentioned that the writer’s ( Mr Checkera’s)
choice of the topic, PTA, to have this debate, is an aberration. This is
because the PTA is not the real issue at hand as PTA has been introduced to our
law books in an attempt to prevent terrorism that has haunted Sri Lankan
society from time to time. The correct topic for the debate should have been
terrorism and its prevention, but the writer, for reasons best known to him,
chooses to criticize the PTA and Law enforcement completely disregarding the
effect of terrorism on our society. Yes, we do not need the PTA that bestows
extraordinary discretionary powers in the hands of the law enforcement
officials, but then how do we contain terrorism that has stalked this society,
the recent instance of which has been the brutal massacre of 262 and wounding
of about 500 devotees at their prayer?
The
writer maintains that, ‘As long as we are prepared to accept the existence
of terror laws in Sri Lanka, arbitrary actions void of accountability by the executive
such as the arrest of Mr Hizbullah will continue’. This statement is completely out
of context with a tinge of malice because,
this subject law is not a terror
law but a law to Prevent Terrorism, the arrest is not
an arbitrary action because it is as per the PTA sanctioned by the Parliament
and part
of the Sri Lankan law,
accountability is only to the
extent warranted under the PTA, and
the arrest is not by an executive
order but by the law enforcement office in the course of duty
Therefore, Mr Chickera should
understand that as long as there is terrorism among us, the SL society cannot
rid itself of Terrorism preventing laws and that prevention of terrorism is
precisely what the law enforcement officers are trying to accomplish by
arresting Mr Hizbulla. Thus, by criticizing the Prevention of terrorism act and
its enforcers, without qualification, in favor of the person who is arrested as
a suspect, Mr Chickera places himself in position where he is a purveyor of
terrorism. Whether this position is intentional or not is another matter, but
the net effect of his advocacy is to denigrate the PTA and its enforcers and to
uphold the ‘human rights’ of the suspect who has been arrested. Is Mr.
Chickera and his courtier of professionals trying to suggest that we should put
the Easter Sunday attack behind and carry on as if nothing has happened? The
big question then is, Can
we rid ourselves of terrorism if we do that ?
The society judges a person’s limits
and ethics by what he tolerates!
The Criminal Investigation
Department may not have ‘just arrested’ this person unless there is sufficient
evidence to prosecute him. We are aware that there is an ongoing battle between
the police and the lawyers to determine whose duty it is to punish a criminal.
The Courts have the power to punish a criminal when proved but that power
emanates from the power of the police to prosecute by bringing that suspect
before the law. However, this arrested person does not become a convict until
and unless he is proven guilty by the Courts.
Accordingly, this arrest, is the
first step in bringing justice to those innocent who died and were injured
during the bomb explosion; an act perpetrated with the sole intention of bringing
death and destruction to a set of persons for the fault of being pious about
their religion. Why should so many ‘reputed’ persons protest in chorus when a
person is arrested in this connection, claiming that arrest to be arbitrary and
unlawful when it is NOT. The laws of a country are enacted in the Parliament
whether the lawyers of the country like them or not.
Is it all because, the person arrested is a
lawyer? Do lawyers have better human rights that prevent them from being
arrested, impinging on the right to life of ordinary folks?
Now let me take these professionals
one by one for their statements.
PTA is an
aberration of the Rule of Law- Dr Asanga Welikala May
be under normal circumstances, but the PTA was enacted in Parliament when the
country was battling the most ruthless and organized terrorist organization in
the world, the LTTE. The situation at
the time was a social aberration with many innocent lives being lost and even
the very act of terrorism is an aberration of human civilization and modern
human rights.
Many
countries have anti- terrorism laws that respect human rights- Dr Radhika
Coomaraswamy Yes
madam, may be you could cite a few instances with your international experience
and thereby educate the SL law makers. That would be more productive than
joining the chorus in condemning the lawful arrest to prevent terrorism.
Media quick
to slap terrorist label- Ramindu Perera. This
particular person has been arrested under the Prevention of Terrorism Act and
that fact has to be stated in the media.
PTA reverses
the principle of innocent before proven guilty- Swasthika Arulingam Well, the PTA does not make
anybody guilty at the time of arrest. It is only after a trial that a suspect
is made a convict. However in view of the wanton and cataclysmic nature of the
crime of terrorism the arrest laws are stringent.
Attempt to
whip up anti-Muslim communalism before polls- Sanjay Wilson Jayasekera We deplore the attempt by this person to politicize and
communalize this issue that we think should be dealt with under terrorism in
the best interest of Tamils, Christians and Muslims.
Arrests
should not be shrouded in mystery- Ermiza Tegal Yes, it should not be and you should
be told that you are arrested under the PTA. However, when you are arrested
under the PTA the police are not obliged to disclose all the details
Attorney
–Client confidentiality is fundamental to criminal justice- Dinesha
Samararatne That is a professional ethic but however prevention of crime
is a national issue therefore individual rights have to be compromised when it
comes to national issues
Citizens
should not be misguided by public theoretical display- Vidura Samaranayake. We are not aware of an attempt to make it in
to public theoretical display. Surely these things have to be broadcast over
news. It is the lawyers by protesting against, that have given undue publicity
to this issue.
The acting envoy told President Gotabaya that China is only reciprocating the goodwill Lanka shown by Sri Lanka
Colombo, April 29 (Presidential Media Division): Sri Lanka is a special friend of China. We have long standing and cordial relations between the two countries. When we faced COVID- 19 disaster recently, Sri Lanka stood with us. China is willing to return that goodwill in the form of fullest cooperation to revive Sri Lanka’s economy in the post-COVID – 19 period”, said the Acting Ambassador and Chargé d’affaires of the Chinese Embassy in Colombo Hu Wei, during his meeting with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa at the Presidential Secretariat here on Thursday.
Quoting a Chinese saying Hu said: True friendship is to stick together in sorrow and happiness”.
The acting envoy further said that his country and the people are grateful to Sri Lanka for being a friend in both good and bad times. Hu emphasized that China expects to assist Sri Lanka to overcome its future challenges also. Sri Lanka will receive help not only from the Central Government of China but also from the country’s leading companies and banks to rebuild its economy in the post – COVID -19 period.
Recalling the assistance extended by China to Sri Lanka from the time of the Rubber-Rice Pact President Gotabaya Rajapaksa said China stood with Sri Lanka during the armed conflict and the post-conflict development drive.
The COVID – 19 pandemic has adversely impacted not only the global economy but also Sri Lanka’s, President Rajapaksa pointed out. The sharp drop in foreign exchange earnings has posed an enormous challenge to the country, President added.
Due to the nosedive of global economy we have lost income generated by the apparel industry and tourism . It might take a considerable amount of time for the global economy to recover. As such, Sri Lanka has planned to adopt a new development model to create a production economy,” the President said.
He added that he hopes to receive positive responses and goodwill from friendly nations to make the development program a success.
Our expectation is not just limited to receiving loans and financial grants. One of our prime objectives is to attract foreign investments which can contribute to increase in production. There are ample opportunities for foreign investments in various sectors including agriculture and construction. I invite China and other countries to make use of those opportunities”, President said..
Replying to a query by the Acting Ambassador on the progress of current COVID – 19 prevention campaign, President Gotabaya said that the spread of the virus is under control in general. He explained the reasons for the sudden spike in infections in the last few days and said remedial steps have been taken immediately.
Mr. President, we are with you”, the Acting Chinese Ambassador said concluding the friendly discussion.
Nineteen new confirmed cases of COVID-19 have been reported increasing the total number of cases in the country to 649, the Epidemiology Unit of the Health Ministry said.
As of 11.30 p.m. on Wednesday (April 29), a total of 506 patients are currently under medical care while 136 patients have recovered and have been discharged from hospital.
Seven Covid-19-related deaths have been reported in the country.
The curfew which will be re-imposed at 8.00 p.m. tomorrow (April 30) in all districts except Colombo, Gampaha, Kalutara and Puttalam districts will continue until 5.00 a.m. on Monday (May 04), the President’s Media Division said.
The curfew currently in effect in Colombo, Gampaha, Kalutara and Puttalam districts which have been identified as Covid-19 high risk zones is to continue until further notice.
In the other 21 districts the curfew which will be lifted at 5.00 a.m. tomorrow and re-imposed at 8.00 p.m. later that day will continue until 5.00 a.m. on Monday (May 04).
The Chinese government has re-affirmed its support to the Sri Lankan government to revive the economic in the post-COVID–19 period, the President’s Media Division said.
Sri Lanka is a special friend of China. We have long standing and cordial relations between the two countries. When we faced COVID- 19 disaster recently, Sri Lanka stood with us. China is willing to return that goodwill in the form of fullest cooperation to revive Sri Lanka’s economy in the post-COVID – 19 period”, the Acting Ambassador and Chargé d’affaires of the Chinese Embassy in Colombo Hu Wei said, during a meeting with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa at the Presidential Secretariat on Wednesday (29).
Exchanging pleasantries with President Rajapaka, the Acting Ambassador who paid a courtesy call on the President quoting a Chinese saying said that true friendship is to stick together in sorrow and happiness”.
He said his country and the people are grateful to Sri Lanka for being a friend in both good and bad times. Mr. Wei emphasized that China expects to assist Sri Lanka to overcome its future challenges.
Sri Lanka will receive help not only from the Central Government of China but also from the country’s leading companies and banks to rebuild its economy in the post – COVID -19 period.
Recalling the assistance extended by China to Sri Lanka from the time of Rubber-Rice Pact President Rajapaksa said China stood with Sri Lanka during the armed conflict and the post-conflict development drive, the PMD reported.
COVID – 19 pandemic has adversely impacted not only the global economy but also Sri Lanka, President Rajapaksa noted. The sharp drop in foreign exchange earnings has posed an enormous challenge before the country, the President added.
Due to the nosedive plunge of global economy we have lost the income generated by apparel industry and tourism. It might take a considerable amount of time for the global economy to recover. As such, Sri Lanka has planned to adopt a new development model to create a production economy said the President while adding that he hopes to receive the positive responses and goodwill of friendly nations to make it a success.
Our expectation is not just limited to receiving loans and financial grants. One of our prime objectives is to attract foreign investments which can positively contribute to the increase in production. There are ample opportunities for foreign investments in various sectors including agriculture based production and in the construction field. I invite China and other countries to make use of those opportunities”, the President said.
Replying to a query by the Acting Ambassador on the progress of current COVID–19 prevention activities President Rajapaksa said the spread of the virus is under control in general. President explained the reasons for the sudden spike in infections during the last few days and said remedial steps have been taken immediately.
Former Minister and the leader of the All Ceylon Makkal Congress (ACMC) Rishad Bathiudeen has filed a Fundamental Rights petition before the Supreme Court, seeking a court order preventing his arrest by the Criminal Investigations Department (CID).
Acting IGP C.D. Wickramaratne, the DIG in charge of the CID, the Director of the CID and the Attorney General have been named as respondents in the FR petition.
In his petition, the former MP states that the CID has commenced an investigation into an alleged incident of transporting voters from Puttalam using buses belonging to the state-owned Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB) during the last presidential election.
The former minister claims that the CID is preparing to arrest him in connection with those investigations.
Bathiudeen, in his petition, states that he has no connection to the incident in question and that the CID is maliciously attempting to arrest him over that.
He therefore requests the Supreme Court to issue an order declaring that this is in violation of his fundamental rights and to also issue an interim order preventing his arrest until this petition is heard and a verdict is delivered.
Dr. Anil Jasinghe, Director General of Health Services, said no predictions can be made at the moment regarding the emergence of new COVID-19 clusters or the growth of existing clusters in the country.
Issuing a statement, the Ministry of Health stated that all measures have been taken to control the spread of the coronavirus.
Meanwhile, the detection of infected persons among naval personnel has arrived at the last stages, said the Ministry.
It is suspected that contacts of the infected Navy personnel such as neighbors, family members, and associates may contract the virus, the statement read.
Health officials, as well as intelligence services, are keeping a close watch on the possible contacts, said Dr. Jasinghe.
However, Jasinghe said that while he does not think the existing COVID-19 clusters will not spread further, it is essential at this moment to keep a watchful eye on whether contacts of navy personnel will emerge from these clusters.
However, all suspected to have infected the virus have been directed for quarantine said the Health Ministry.
It is emphasized that the proper public adherence to health directives issued by the health sector is a key factor in the success of the disease control program.
Sri Lanka Police says that investigations into the Easter Sunday terror attacks have uncovered a location in Sampur which had been used by the terrorists to carry out weapons training while a certain organization in Puttalam linked to the attackers has also been uncovered.
Investigations pertaining to the Easter Sunday attacks are progressing successfully on a new direction, Police Media Spokesman SP Jaliya Senaratne told reporters in Colombo today (29).
Last week investigations had uncovered information regarding a location in the Sampur area which had been used by the terrorists for weapons training, he revealed.
He stated that the information was uncovered from a suspect who is currently in the custody of the Terrorism Investigation Division (TID) under detention orders and also through other investigations carried out by the TID.
He stated that a suspect who is currently in custody had directed the investigative officers to the said location last week and that according to the information uncovered thus far it is believed that this place had been used to provide weapons training to a number of individuals.
This includes basic weapons training such as dismantling, cleaning and reassembling firearms while this camp had also been used to train them on firing various types of firearms and issuing guidelines.
He said that further investigations are ongoing with regard to the information uncovered.
In addition to this, information has also been uncovered regarding a certain organization which had operated out of Puttalam, the police spokesman said.
He said that the organization in question had enrolled certain individuals and held sermons for them regarding extremism while also showing them various videos related to that.
The spokesman said that even Zahran Hashim, the ringleader behind the Easter attacks, had visited the location and held sermons for these individuals and showed them videos containing extremist religious ideologies.
He said that several other suicide bombers had also visited this location and held sermons spreading extremist ideologies with the intention of getting them involved to assist the further continuation for their operations.
He said that several suspects have been arrested in connection with this organization and that their involvement has been confirmed. Further investigations with regard to that are also ongoing, Senaratne said.
A total of 226 naval personnel is among the COVID-19 patients confirmed in Sri Lanka thus far, says the Commander of Army.
According to Lieutenant General Shavendra Silva, 147 of these cases have been detected from the Welisara Navy Base.
The rest of the 79 officers were reported while on leave, he added.
Confirmed novel coronavirus cases tally in Sri Lanka moved up to 622 as of this afternoon (29). The three COVID-19 patients identified today were also revealed to be naval personnel.
The number of active coronavirus cases under medical care accordingly stood at 481.
With the current uncertain outcome of the COVID-19 pandemic, re-opening of the economy, let alone holding public elections, seem to be at a distant future. However, the current situation, where the country is without a parliament, makes holding an election a dire necessity.
Online campaigning via social media or television can avoid public political meetings. The University of Colombo could create history by being the first to create an online voting system that is foolproof. For those who do not have access to electronic sources, the Grama Sevaka could distribute postal voting cards after checking the ID of each person. All the above would avoid costly human interactions that would lead to disease spread, and a violence-free, fraud-free election.
The news of the postponement of scheduled parliamentary elections
by the Elections Commission was carried in the online Asian Tribune newspaper
with an apparent anti-government bias. After closing the nominations on March
19, 2020, the EC postponed the general election, earlier scheduled for April
25, in view of the situation caused by fears of the Covid-19 pandemic gradually
engulfing Sri Lanka. The move was in accordance with the provisions of the
Parliamentary Elections Act of 1981. Immediately reporting this under the
headline Sri Lanka’s General Election postponed: Until the polls the country
comes under Election Commission”, Asian Tribune (AT) datelined March 19,
Colombo, states with strange glee:
QUOTE The Election Commission (EC) has indefinitely
postponed the parliamentary election earlier scheduled for April 25. Until the
polls the country virtually coming under the direct control of the Election
Commission. Country’s President and the Caretaker Government cant move a ‘bit’
without the consent and permission of the Election Commission even to peeing.
Country’s President had the opportunity to cancel the dissolution
of the Parliament, prorogued it obtained the resolution on Covid – 19 and had
time until August 290290 to dissolved it and could have called for election
again. A missed opportunity is a lost one.” UNQUOTE
Through such reporting, the Asian Tribune editor K.T. Rajasingham
implies, wrongly of course, that the temporary/caretaker minority government,
appointed after the November 16 presidential election, is acting in a
wayward manner and is in need of being held in check. He seems to
mistakenly assume that the existing constitution has turned the EC into a
dictatorial body that, at this moment, is poised to virtually replace the
executive president and that the Corona-19 crisis has given it the opportunity
to make the necessary intervention in controlling the government’s activities!
Nothing is further from the truth. The constitutionally valid decision to
postpone the election was taken independently by the EC with unquestioning
acceptance of the postponement by the president, who himself had already
casually mentioned its (EC’s) power to do so when the nomination process was
completed. Nominations having been accepted, the names of candidates and
polling booths had to be gazetted as per Section 24 (1) of the Parliamentary
Elections Act of 1981. This step had to be fulfilled for the EC to secure the
authority to postpone the election in terms of Section 24 (3) of the selfsame
Act.
A retrospective glance at Asian Tribune is in place at this point.
Its editor K.T. Rajasingham (KTR) started the online publication in Bangkok,
Thailand around 2002. I remember welcoming it as a novelty among the media I
routinely consulted. In a note published in his paper years later, he described
himself as a Sri Lankan Tamil journalist ‘who was forced to leave his country
after LTTE raised its head and systematically targeted him’. According to the
same note, he relocated to Sweden with his online newspaper; and at present it
is operated by the World Institute for Asian Studies (WIAS), apparently his own
creation, whose goal, KTR claims, is to bring Asian nations closer
together.
The phrase Striving for Asian Solidarity” prominently displayed
by Asian Tribune as a journalistic catchword on its masthead must be a
reference to this alleged mission of the WIAS. But it is difficult for one to
see any implicit or explicit definition of ‘Asian solidarity’ as a political,
economic, social, cultural or any other worthwhile concept or ideology that may
be identified as underlying its reportage. Be that as it may, it is worth
thinking about why the Asian Tribune founder and editor experienced such
a sense of malicious pleasure at the unanticipated postponement of the general
election. The announcement of the postponement actually caused deep frustration
and despair among the sane majority of multiracial and multireligious Sri
Lankans who have been impatiently waiting to vote in a new parliament and help
form a stable government during the executive presidency of the universally
acclaimed Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, the common target of all those who are opposed
to that extremely probable and propitious eventuality (i.e., the election of a
fresh parliament that will enable the new president’s vision and mission for
the country to be accomplished).
KTR’s complaint that the president had the opportunity to rescind
his (March 02) dissolution of parliament in view of the threatened
worsening of the Corona-19 situation that would make campaigning and polling
impossible is a frivolous one to say the least. The people are 100% sure that
nothing could be gained by reconvening the dysfunctional parliament, arguably
the worst since 1948, that was dissolved on March 02. No elaboration is
necessary to drive home the point. The government under the executive
presidency of Gotabhaya Rajapaksa has been doing everything possible, from the
third week of January itself to deal with the unfolding conditions associated
with the global Corona-19 pandemic with the dedicated participation of the
health, security, and law enforcement and civil functionaries as he
explained in his address to the nation on March 17. He said that confidence is
the mark of real leadership in a crisis. He has demonstrated that quality in
himself in abundance since 2005, as the ordinary people know. The president
concluded his speech with the words This country that is yours and mine is
secure today”. But this confidence was not shared by diehard opponents.
Sarath Alwis of Colombo Telegraph (‘A Brave President, A Benumbed
Nation’/March 24, 2020) scoffs at the president’s statement as wrong, after
first praising it as a forthright fearless statement”, adding: The President in the
statement embodied courage and sincerity.” Sarath Alwis (SA) finds fault with
the president’s assertion that the country is secure now because there is more
to national security than fighting with separatist terrorists, monitoring the
activities of religious fanatics or countering political dissenters. He states
the obvious when he says that dealing with an epidemic is different. The
extremely biased Sarath Alwis must have chosen to ignore the fact that Gotabaya
Rajapaksa has a much more profound, much more comprehensive understanding of
what national security involves and has achieved much more for the nation in
that sphere than the likes of Alwis would like to appreciate. Colombo Telegraph
is run, as they claim, by a group of ‘exiled journalists’ who, significantly,
fled the country after it got rid of separatist terrorism for good. The Colombo
Telegraph went to town with its one-sided condemnation of the presidential
pardon of war veteran Sunil Ratnayake with hardly a glance at the ground
realities or the actual circumstances that justify that move, while the Asian
Tribune has commented negatively on the pardon of the soldier without showing
the self-absorbed enthusiasm of the CT, describing it as ‘Arbitrary release of
a convicted non-commissioned military officer’. Though, outwardly, the two
publications were or still are at loggerheads with each other, they could be
journalistically contributing to the same brand of anti-Sri Lanka destabilizing
politics, which, while being sympathetic to the defeated separatist cause, is
actually part and parcel of a more global operation launched by external powers
running geopolitical agendas in the region.
Eight years ago, the Colombo Telegraph carried news about KTR
being found guilty of gross defamation” by a Swedish court in a case
instituted against him by an alleged Norwegian journalist named Nadarajah
Sethurupan (NS) under the headline Asian Tribune Found Guilty for Defamation
in Sweden” (CT/February 24, 2012). When it did so, the Colombo Telegraph
exhibited the same sort of schadenfreude that the editor of the Asian Tribune
experienced at the recent postponement of the general election. It was reported
that Sethurupan told the paper (CT) that KTR phoned him when he (NS) was in
Oslo in 2003/2004 and that KTR tried to persuade him to attack the Norwegian
peace officials and the SLMM (the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission) and to work
with him and his ‘secret unit’ in order to wreck the said peacemaking process;
but Sethurupan refused. Subsequently, Sethurupan charged, KTR started attacking
him personally calling him a ‘terrorist’ through his newspaper the Asian
Tribune. The attacks continued from 2005 to 2008 according to SN. At a
Swedish district court trial KTR was adjudged guilty and this judgement was
confirmed by a Swedish Appeal Court, which ordered KTR and the WIAS to pay
Sethurupan $ 20,000 and the Swedish state litigation costs incurred.
Whether the Swedish justice system was correctly apprised of the
facts of the case and whether the cause of justice was served is a moot point.
The CT reporter drew attention to the fact that the compensation amount of SEK
125,000 (equivalent to $ 20,000) was the highest amount imposed for defamation
in Swedish judicial history up until then! How many millions of SEK or Dollars
could be claimed by the relevant political leaders of Sri Lanka (I mean,
particularly, the Rajapaksas) as compensation if legal action was taken based
on the actually available authentic information against Tamil separatist
supporters abusing the hospitality of such gullible European societies for
defaming them over the last fifteen years calling them war criminals,
murderers, crooks, despots, etc. without any evidence to support those
denunciations!
At the time that the legal action related to, KTR was
allegedly accused by separatists of being opposed to the Norwegian brokered
peace process while being friendly towards the Sri Lankan government, which was
embattled with the anti-state separatist terrorists. It was even held among
KTR’s critics that the the then UPFA government financially supported the Asian
Tribune; but this was an assumption that was not plausible given that the then
president Mahinda Rajapaksa, though he was sceptical (with reason) about the
separatists’ actual commitment to finding a peaceful solution, actively went
along with the Norwegian mediation effort, until the terrorists forced his
hand, by closing the Mavil Aru anicut, to take decisive military action against
them, in which they vainly hoped to defeat the government defence forces and
realise their separate state dream.
It is not only online tabloids such as AT and CT that have been
co-opted (this is my hunch, but could be wrong) by the powers that be to play a
cankerous role against Sri Lanka. Even the mainstream English broadsheets with
wide circulations seem to be subject to the same pressure (The
journalists employed by them are helpless; they have no option but to toe the
line set by their employers who probably feel obliged to serve vested interests
just to sustain their businesses that in turn protect the livelihoods of their
employees). Ceylon Daily Mirror (March 27, 2020) published an exclusive
interview with a senior US lawyer, Larry Klayman, allegedly a former federal
prosecutor under president Ronald Regan. Klayman said that he was ready to work
with Sri Lankans and others towards building international pressure on China.
No need to say anything about the absurd hypocrisy or the hypocritical
absurdity of such a proposal to Sri Lanka as the ground realities relating to
the country’s vulnerable position between the two giant contenders China and
America are so well known. To his credit, the Daily Mirror journalist Easwaran
Rutnam who interviewed him made the apparently needy old lawyer eat his words
at every turn through his informed questioning, which was redolent with sarcasm
and scepticism. The Daily Mirror of April 10, 2020 carried an edited
version of an Open letter (dated April 8) from the Chinese Embassy addressed to
the Chairman of its owner Wijaya Newspapers. It was written by Luo Chong, the
Spokesperson and the Chief of the Political Section of the Embassy in response
to two articles published in the paper (one of them being the interview I have
just mentioned). Somebody seems anxious to drive a wedge between tiny Sri Lanka
and giant China, two nations that have enjoyed thousands of years of close
cultural and trade relations.
Sri Lanka is
full of crows. A writer’s friend joked him that in Colombo there are more crows
than people!
Crows live in groups; they
work together. They thrive on trash; basically any kind of food
waste.
Some think
crows are good as they clean up the environment. This is a misconception.
The biggest
problem with crows is that they are large scale waste carriers. A person who
maintains an immaculate lawn would find spoilt food, rotten meat, dead rats etc
dropped on it – by crows.
Crows form
large roosts mostly on tall trees. Crows are known as ‘pooping machines’. It is
somewhat fearsome to walk under Colombo’s big trees, lamp posts etc as it is
quite possible that a crow would poop. There is hardly anyone who has not been treated
with this offensive discharge. Whether they do it intentionally or not, only
experts could say. Crows shoot their droppings upon vehicles uttering
discomfort to vehicle owners.
Crows are omnivorous
and eating plant material lead them to discharge greater fecal output. This is
why one notices so much of crow droppings on Colombo’s sidewalks/pedestrian
ways.
In early
mornings the Galle Face Green is full of crows. It is difficult to stroll as
their numbers are too many. The crows fly in to eat the leftover greasy/oily
junk food thrown in the bins and scattered across the Green.
One could
see crows gradually taking over the domain in Vihara Mahadevi Park which is
home to so many other bird species. When they encroach as a group, other good
bird varieties gradually become displaced. Crows are strong, they compete well and
chase away the tender bird species.
The Problem
at Vihara Maha Devi Park is that there are street/junk food outlets there, in
the Children’s section. Like in Galle Face Green, crows are attracted therein to
the waste. As the Park is a permanent
source of food, they are now permanent there. They live on trees closer to the
food. At Vihara Maha Devi Park around the live food area, Rats (Mice) too have
popped up in large numbers.
It is
difficult to walk around the Beira Lake due to too many crows such as on Walkways
around the Seemamalakaya.
Crows have encroached
inside the Fort Railway Station. The
Station is well known for its Pigeons who live in nests formed under the
roof. It seems their day of exclusive
occupation is numbered as crows too have got in.
Large, highly concentrated
populations of crows can easily spread various diseases to humans directly/indirectly
(eg. TB, Encephalitis, Meningitis). Being waste carriers,
crows may be able to indirectly spread the Corono Virus (eg. carrying used masks,
swabs etc).
As their numbers are ever increasing, we need a crow
control program, especially in Colombo.
Many
countries do this (Crow Control) by way of unmerciful killings. They use many
tactics such as shooting, poisoning and gassing. We cannot do these in Sri
Lanka. We are a Buddhist country.
We must adopt humane methods. In home environments, crows
can be controlled by freighting; eg, lighting firecrackers, displaying crow
feather, hanging something shiny across the yard (like aluminum plates), using
bird (crow) traps etc. But, as the
problem is very big, we need a large scale, long term solution/operation.
One of the best methods is genetic
engineering. Australia
and New Zealand are world leaders in using gene drives to control species
populations. If Australian CSIRO is contacted (through the High Commission
here), I am sure they would assist.
We
have well controlled the stray dog population in Colombo, through intent sterilization.
We should be thankful to the hardworking staff of the Colombo Municipal Council
for this. They roam Colombo streets on mornings in search of stray dogs, then subject
them to humane sterilization. It is a very difficult job, but they do it very well.
Thanks to them, Colombo’s stray dog numbers are controlled. In Puerto Rico they
use a pill, Neutersol, as a method of non surgical stray dog sterilization. In
regards to crows, we need to adopt similar methods. We cannot let the problem
go unchecked; it is serious.
The other day I was having a nice snooze in my reclining chair, my mind wandering around in a no man’s land, now and then crossing over to my childhood-past, which lay on one side and then to the other, my adulthood-present. It was a balmy afternoon, and I found it hard not to fall asleep. Finally, I did and then I dreamed.
I was kneeling down with a couple of my childhood friends around me all looking down intently at the little funnel-shaped pit on the sand, my right index finger going around the rim of it in circles, while I kept on chanting ‘bin kundo, bin kundo….’ I can’t remember the rest of the rhyme. And suddenly there it was. It popped out from the basement of its sandy castle, hung around there for a minute or so and seemingly disappointed that it was not something, which would fit into its menu hurriedly dived back into the sand.
Eventually, I came back to the present regrettably leaving my childhood past and this thought suddenly jumped into my mind the only god knows from where: a striking behavioural similarity between that doodlebug and our present-day politician, particularly the ones, some of whom are now out and about more or less, criticizing, demanding and becoming more and more verbose and vociferous.
Up until now almost all of them were in hiding except the
President and a very few. They knew that the ‘Corona’ sees nothing except ‘ha
ha here is one from that species called human, let me be your guest please’.
And they heeded the advice of the health officials to the letter, which was
exemplary, though not exactly synonymous with their general behaviour and
conduct. But they knew very well that the Corona is made of different and
sterner stuff unlike the public. So many of them did not want to take any
chances and stayed put behind the closed doors.
And suddenly they felt the tremors like my childhood acquaintance,
but of another kind: the election tremors. Sometimes greed can be so
overwhelming that it can make one forget all around him, the mind focussed only
on how to get there and grab. So now we can see some of them are already
popping out, sliding into the right mood, talking to the media pointing at this
and that in their customary eloquence and tone with probes, promises and
proposals.
Like my tiny childhood acquaintance, they are also predators,
though of a different make and mould. And instead of ants, they prey on the
gullible public, who keep falling into their pits every five years or so to be
mercilessly devoured by them lying in wait behind a wall of promises as loose
as the sand of my doodlebugs’ castle.
We saw some endearing examples of true patriotism coming from few
foreign leaders, who decided to cut down their own salaries. Then some of
our own doodlebug-politicians probably taking their cue from those foreign
leaders were also asking for a cut-down too, but alas, of an altogether
different kind. They were requesting to consider cutting down the minimum
number of years required for them to be eligible for a lifelong pension. We all know
that these predators are master fishermen too
(my sincere apologies to the real ones), who are well versed in the art of
fishing in troubled waters.
Then going by the fact that the election will have to be held
sooner or later, the requested cut-down would surely be welcome and supported
by the rest of their kind too irrespective of what colour they wear.
Now it looks like the election-tremors are getting weaker though
temporarily for sure, losing the fight to Corona-tremors, which might prompt
many of those doodlebug-politicians to dive back into their dens. But I am sure
it won’t be too long before they will feel those election-tremors again. Then
they will be ready and eagerly waiting for you down there in their pits to
devour you. Don’t fall for the dazzling lights of several colours (you can
guess what they are) decorating the tops of their pits beckoning you to ‘please
come and have a closer look’. Don’t go near them and be their prey. Let them
starve till cows come home. Many of them have been on a feeding-frenzy, far too
long.
Failures of government agencies including local short-sighted politicians also local authorities had led to uncontrolled human settlements in the form of Ghettos and slums and Watta” within state-owned lands, road reservations, canal reservations, railway reservations.
After 1977 since the change regime from a quasi socialistic government to a more open economy, the urban population started expanding and people started forcibly settling along in lands that are owned by state agencies.
Authorities kept quite when Colombo, some parts of Gampaha, some areas of Kalutara, and Beruwala started rapidly growing with closely built clusters of shanties.
In 1975 onwards various high rise flats were built, going away from the concept of various settlement such as Jayawardene Pura Rukmal Gama Mattegoda which are settled with families widely spread out to a certain extent
There was a canal resettlement program in Colombo in 1990
where such slums were resettled in a somewhat wider area
Examples are Havelock Road near Lumbini school Narahenpita near RMV , Panchikawatte Kadirana in Colombo 15, etc .
Now we have a leadership which can emulate Singapore and take action to remove these encroached settlements, if necessary by force for this function, a task force is not sufficient but a Task Master with determination and endurance Should be appointed
State agencies should have strict control on protecting their lands from further encroachment
Physical distancing on the road or in shops and offices may
not be sufficient unless we have such plan to establish habitats with enough
space in between for the people to live in
I hope the government will take this seriously once corona spread is controlled.
Dr Sarath Obeysekera
CEO Walkers Colombo Shipyard
Colombo
Sri Lanka
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has said that he has given thought to change the current practice of useless and expensive election campaigns, the President’s Media Division said.
The President has expressed these views when be met with the Maha Nayake of Kotte Sri Kalyani Samagri Dhrama Maha Sanga Sabha, Most Ven.
Dr. Iththapana Dhammalankara Thera and His Eminence Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith at the Presidential Secretariat today.
At the meeting, His Eminence Cardinal Ranjth has observed that the time has come to deviate from election propaganda that is wasteful and spiteful and adopt a new political culture.
Meanwhile, Ven. Dhammalankara Thera has pointed out that some tanks and irrigation schemes have been neglected in areas where agricultural crops are cultivated.
The President’s Media Division said President Rajapaksa has responded saying that funds will be allocated to renovate these tanks and irrigation canals from the next Budget.
Secretary to the President Dr P. B. Jayasundera and Principal Advisor to the President Lalith Weeratunga were also present at the discussion.
Eight more positive cases of COVID-19 have been identified in Sri Lanka while the tally reached 619.
Earlier today, 23 coronavirus patients were detected in the country. Five of them were revealed to be naval personnel and the other three were from the quarantine centre in Punanai.
A total of 31 new cases of coronavirus have been confirmed within the day.
Meanwhile, 8 persons who had tested positive for the virus had recovered from the virus today (28), raising the coronavirus recoveries total to 134.
Sri Lanka saw the highest daily surge in confirmed COVID-19 cases on Monday (27) with 65 new infections. The tally went up from 523 to 588 just within 24 hours.
According to the Epidemiology Unit’s tally, 478 active cases of coronavirus are currently under medical care at selected hospitals.
Seven coronavirus patients in the country have succumbed to the disease.
NHS bosses are so concerned that they have written to doctors asking them to urgently refer any children who appear to have it to hospital. Photograph: Dave Stevenson/Rex/Shutterstock
More than a dozen children have fallen ill with a new and potentially fatal combination of symptoms apparently linked to Covid-19, including a sore stomach and heart problems.
The children affected appear to have been struck by a form of toxic shock syndrome. All have been left so seriously unwell that they have had to be treated in intensive care.
At least one has received extra corporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) treatment, which is used when someone’s life is at risk because they can no longer breathe for themselves.
NHS bosses are so concerned that they have written to doctors alerting them to the emergence of these cases and asked them to urgently refer any children with similar symptoms to hospital.
Most of the children affected have Kawasaki disease, a rare vascular condition that is the main cause of acquired heart disease in under-18s in the UK. There are estimated to be 4.5 cases for every 100,000 children under the age of 18 in the UK. These cases happen when someone with Kawasaki disease gets Covid-19 and that produces complications,” said one NHS source.
In a letter to GPs in north London, reported by the Health Service Journal , NHS bosses said: It has been reported that over the last three weeks there has been an apparent rise in the number of children of all ages presenting with a multi-system inflammatory state requiring intensive care across London and also in other regions of the UK.
The cases have in common overlapping feature of toxic shock syndrome and atypical Kawasaki disease with blood parameters consistent with severe Covid-19 in children.
There is a growing concern that a Sars-CoV-2-related inflammatory syndrome is emerging in children in the UK, or that there may be another, as yet unidentified, infectious pathogen associated with these cases.”
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A version of the warning has been sent by the Paediatric Intensive Care Society to all specialist doctors working in paediatric intensive care units in UK hospitals.Advertisement
The NHS letter adds that while some of the children did have Covid-19, others had tested negative for it. That could suggest that that group did not have it, or had had it, or that their tests were faulty.
Describing the illness, the letter added: Abdominal pain and gastrointestinal symptoms have been a common feature, as has cardiac inflammation. This has been observed in children with confirmed PCR positive Sars-CoV-2 infection as well as children who are PCR negative. Serological evidence of possible preceding Sars-CoV-2 infection have also been observed.”
Sars-CoV-2 is the official name of the virus that causes the disease Covid-19.
Doctors have been told to please refer children presenting with these symptoms as a matter of urgency”.
One intensive care doctor said: There’s been an utterly unexpected uptick in severely sick children with a late inflammatory response that we think is related to Covid-19. It’s most unusual.”
It is not known if any of the children have died.
This is not something people should be panicking about,” said Dr Liz Whittaker, a consultant at St Mary’s hospital in London and a member of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health’s allergy, immunology and infectious diseases committee.
Asked at the Downing Street daily press briefing about the reports, the health secretary, Matt Hancock, said they had left him very worried”, while the government’s chief medical officer, Prof Chris Whitty, said: This is a very rare situation but I think it is entirely plausible that this is caused by this virus, at least in some cases.”
The condition came to light when doctors saw a number of unusual cases of children admitted to intensive care with a mix of symptoms from toxic shock and Kawasaki syndrome. The children had persistent fevers and severe abdominal pain and some had skin rashes. What concerned doctors most were blood tests that revealed severe inflammation, similar to that seen in adult patients with severe Covid-19 infections.
Of the children admitted to intensive care, a number needed treatment for heart inflammation. Our worry is that paediatricians who see children with fever and abdominal pain will do blood tests to look for problems such as appendicitis, but might not do bloods that look for inflammatory issues,” Whittaker said.
Doctors suspect that the illness may be a post-infection inflammatory response” where the immune system goes into overdrive. While some children have tested negative for coronavirus, they may have cleared the virus before the inflammation took hold, or the tests may simply have missed the infection.
Prof Russell Viner, the president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, sought to reassure parents that children are generally unlikely to become very unwell due to Covid-19.
We already know that a very small number of children can become severely ill with Covid-19 but this is very rare. Evidence from throughout the world shows us that children appear to be the part of the population least affected by this infection.
New diseases may present in ways that surprise us, and clinicians need to be made aware of any emerging evidence of particular symptoms or of underlying conditions which could make a patient more vulnerable to the virus. However, our advice remains the same: parents should be reassured that children are unlikely to be seriously ill with Covid-19, but if they are concerned about their children’s health for any reason they should seek help from a health professional.”
The RCPCH’s guidance for parents on symptoms and seeking advice is available here.
Due to the imposition of curfew, to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, the Sinhala and Tamil New Year 2020 had to be celebrated in solitary comfort of their homes.
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa also remained in his residence in Mirihana during this period. At the dawn of the New Year, Rajapaksa contacted his siblings, the Minister of Mahaweli, Agriculture, Irrigation and Rural Development, Chamal Rajapaksa and the Prime Minister, Mahinda Rajapaksa and extended his New year wishes.
The President also received calls from the public while he constantly was in contact with officials for the discussion on measures to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 and the measures taken for the country to return to normalcy.
On 15 April he arrived at the Presidential Secretariat and called on the Presidential Task Force, appointed to combat COVID-19, to inquire into the updates of the measures taken.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa also celebrated the New Year with his family at the Carlton House in Tangalle. Although generally a huge crowd gathers at the Carlton House during New Year season, this year was an exception.
Certain New Year traditions have been consistently followed at the Carlton House every year and this year it took place in the presence of his whole family.
On 14 April, Minister of Passenger Transport Management, Power and Energy, Mahinda Aamaraweera arrived at the Carlton House to wish Premier while the former Governor of the Central Bank, Ajith Nivard Cabraal and Rajapaksa’s parliamentary affairs secretary, Kumarasiri Hettige travelled from Colombo to Tangalle to wish him.
On 15 April, Premier visited his elder brother Chamal Rajapaksa’s residence and spent a few days at the Carlton Estate in Weeraketiya while constantly making contact for updates on measures implemented to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.
The President, head of the Presidential Task Force, Basil Rajapaksa, the Minister of Health, Pavithra Wanniarachchi, Director General of Health Services, Anil Jasinghe and the current Commander of Army, Lieutenant General Shavendra Silva were constantly in contact during the New Year period.
Prasanna blames JVP
The National Organizer of Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) and the former Minister of Economic Development, Basil Rajapaksa appears to be held up in a busy schedule although he is not a Cabinet Minister or even a deputy minister.
While the SLPP has long been preparing for the upcoming General Elections, Rajapaksa, right after having handed over nominations, has been vested with a huge additional responsibility.
He has been appointed as the head of the Presidential Task Force formed by the President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in order to take necessary steps to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, including the curfews that have been imposed and other precautionary measures adopted by the government.
Basil has had experience in such involvement. Discussions in furtherance for measures that have to be adopted for the country to return to normalcy have thus taken place at Temple Trees under his leadership.
A similar discussion was also held on 15 April chaired by Rajapaksa. This discussion was more far-fetched as in addition to steps that have to be implemented for the country to return to normalcy, measures pertaining to that of Sri Lankans currently overseas were also discussed.
The discussion focused on the return of Sri Lankan citizens overseas who want to return to their homeland during the pandemic as there is a considerable number of such individuals. Minister of Foreign Relations, Dinesh Gunawardena and the Minister of Industrial Exports and Investment Promotion, Prasanna Ranatunga were also present at this discussion.
Basil stated that these individuals have to be brought back to Sri Lanka upon the instructions of health officials while the spread of COVID-19 will also be controlled.
Meanwhile Gunawardena noted that information on these individuals have been obtained from Embassies and High Commissions and the process of ensuring their return is being carried out methodically.
Ranatunga added that the SriLankan Airlines will begin preparations for their return upon the approval of the State while emphasizing that the instructions of the State and health officials in this regard is mandatory.
Upon approval, they will be tested at the airport following which the report could be obtained within six hours until which they will remain in the airport. They will then be subject to a 14 day quarantine period.
During the previous Cabinet meeting, matters pertaining to Sri Lankans stranded in International airports was also discussed.
Ranatunga said issue of over 33 Sri Lankans having been stranded in foreign airports and measures that have to be adopted for their return were discussed in this Cabinet meeting adding that two Sri Lankans who arrived from the London Heathrow Airport have also been subject to quarantine.
He also stated that JVP’s, Wasantha Samarasinghe had alleged that Sri LankanAirlines is operating as usual while not taking measures for the return of Sri Lankan citizens overseas.
”This is a complete hoax as this entity has carried out their social responsibility by ensuring the safe return of Sri Lankans from Wuhan China and will continue this by bringing back all other Sri Lankans overseas when time permits,” he said while blaming JVP for consistently making false accusations and not carrying out clean politics. Rajapaksa then instructed officials to take steps and formulate mechanisms for the quick return of all those who are employed overseas, involved in business and students studying in foreign universities.
It’s all about elections
The Party led by South Korea’s President, Moon Jae-In, has scored an emphatic victory in the parliamentary poll held early this week. More than 17 million had cast their vote despite some 30 persons being tested positive for the coronavirus every day.
Though political pundits had expressed doubts about people being eager to vote, due to the rapid spread of the killer virus, the voter turnout had been 66.2 percent, dispelling those predictions.
Despite the presence of some 3,100 COVID-19 infected people throughout the nation, the South Korean Government had taken measures to conduct the election at eight quarantine centres, too.
Also, unlike previous polls there, an additional five million voters had cast their vote at the poll. The Democratic Party led by President Moon Jae-In had won 180 seats in the 300-seat National Assembly.
Political pundits have pointed out that what had enabled the ruling party to post an emphatic win had been its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the prevention of the spread of the deadly virus throughout the country.
Political analysts have noted that the COVID-19 pandemic had proved to be a blessing in disguise for President Moon Jae-In and his party as they won comfortably.
However, at the onset of the disease, the handling of the pandemic by President Jae-In had come in for severe criticism.
An internet petition containing over 1 million signatures had been posted over the South Korean President’s decision taken not to prohibit travel between Seoul and Beijing.
But, despite such criticisms the handling of the spread of the pandemic by the South Korean Government sans any lockdown had come in for much praise from around the world.
Meanwhile, the South Korean Government had also made facilities available to some 44 million qualified voters to cast their vote at the election.
The talk in the town is that even Sri Lanka too, in the past, had conducted elections at the height of JVP insurgency, where people were massacred when involved in the democratic process and also when Prabhakaran obstructed the Tamils in the North and East from voting in 2005.
If both, the Director General of Health Services Dr. Anil Jasingha and the head of the presidential taskforce, to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, Army Commander Lieutenant General Shavendra Silva, were to grant approval, the stalled General Election (GE) could be held during the last week of May, sources attached to the Election Commission (EC) say.
The Election Commission headed by Mahinda Deshapriya is already planning to hold a crucial discussion regarding the present situation in the country as well as the measures that could be taken to conduct the postponed General Election which was originally slated to be held on 25 April.
These sources noted that Dr. Jasingha, who is the sole authority empowered to enforce the COVID-19 Quarantine Act in the country, as well as several other health officers have been invited for a discussion with Election Commission officials on 20 April.
Among others who have been invited for this discussion have been the Army Commander, Acting IGP Chandana Wickremaratna, DIG Priyantha Weerasuriya and PMG Ranjith Ariyaratna.
Meanwhile, Election Commission sources stated that all necessary measures to conduct the 2020 General Election has been undertaken by the Commission and they are also planning to publicize the preference numbers of all candidates through the publication of a gazette notification shortly.
A senior officer from the Commission added that if the General Election is to be held during the final week of May, the Election Commission would need a period of five weeks commencing from 20 April.
In the meantime political analysts have said that akin to South Korea staging its own General Election despite the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic there, Sri Lanka too would be able to take a lead from that book and hold its own General Election both successfully and effectively.
However, legal circles have pointed out that based on the gazette notification issued by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa the General Election would have to be held before 2 June this year.
Former Speaker Karu Jayasuriya on Friday (17) requested the Government and the Opposition to work together with the Election Commission (EC) to avoid a possible Constitutional crisis if the Parliamentary Election could not be held on time.
In a statement, Jayasuriya said that if a Constitutional crisis erupted at this particular time, there would be a risk of delegitimising and destabilising the country, which could gravely impact Sri Lanka’s prospects of obtaining economic relief.
“Sri Lanka is the only democracy to face the COVID-19 crisis without a Legislature to pass laws and financial appropriations to combat the pandemic and its economic consequences. It is my opinion that the Government and Opposition must engage with the EC and with each other urgently and in good faith. If there are any precautions or new laws that the Commission determines would allow it to safely hold the Election on time, these must be explored immediately,” he said.
Jayasuriya said he had recently been contacted by religious and political leaders, former Parliamentarians, academics, civil society and trade union representatives and members of the public seeking clarification on the impasse between the EC and the Executive on the Parliamentary Election.
“Sri Lanka is faced with an unprecedented health and economic crisis. As the prospect of a Constitutional crisis further compounding the plight of our country is a matter of grave national concern, I am setting out my position publicly rather than replying to each query individually,” he said, issuing the statement.
He noted that it was the position of the EC that the prevailing situation and logistical constraints prevented the Parliamentary Election from being held in time for the new Parliament to be summoned to meet by 2 June while the Government was of the view that there wasn’t necessarily any impediment to holding the Parliamentary Election on or before 28 May.
“In the interest of the nation, I appeal to the Government, the Opposition, and other stakeholders to set aside their political differences and to take urgent and meaningful steps to avoid an unnecessary third crisis for our country,” Jayasuriya said.
Meanwhile, all active election observation missions urged all relevant authorities to resolve their issues regarding a new election date, with the mutual understanding of not creating a Constitutional crisis against the backdrop of COVID-19.
Issuing a joint statement, they pointed out that: i) It is undesirable to head into an election with the EC and the Executive at odds with each other, ii) An environment of relief provision to those affected by the crisis is not ideal for an election campaign, as it can be exploited by candidates for their own political gain, as can already be seen; and iii) The National Operation Centre for the Prevention of COVID-19 Outbreak and health authorities must confirm that the new election date will not put voters and election officials at risk.
The tug-o- war, as to who should take initiative to declare the next date for General Election is continuing, issuing a statement on the matter, Prime Minister Rajapaksa has elaborated on holding elections amid COVID-19. Full Statement:
The Coronavirus pandemic hit countries like the USA, India and Bangladesh in a situation where their economies had been experiencing strong growth for years. In contrast, Sri Lanka has had to face this crisis in a state of economic ruin. During the five years of yahapalana misrule from 2015 to 2019, our debt burden increased by 71%, the Rupee lost one third of its value and economic growth had plummeted to 2.7%.
Furthermore, though we had won the presidency in November 2019 and formed a government, we did not have a majority in Parliament and were not able to get a vote on account passed even to pay off the previous government’s debts to suppliers of fertilizer and medicine.
The financial powers vested in the President, under Article 150 (3) of the Constitution, is the only saving grace in this situation. It was with all these debilitating disadvantages that we had to face the Coronavirus pandemic. After the first Coronavirus patient was discovered on 11 March, we introduced a raft of measures to control the disease including early detection, isolation and treatment of patients, quarantine for those exposed to risk, the tracing of patients’ contacts and social distancing measures. An operation like this has not been seen in our lifetimes. Curfews lasting for weeks on end had to be imposed to prevent the spread of the disease.
People unable to go out of their homes had to be supplied with essentials like foodstuffs, medicines, and even cash throughout the country. Aid had to be provided to low income earners. The produce of paddy and vegetable farmers and fishermen had to be bought to keep the production process going. The fact that all these tasks were dealt with simultaneously at short notice is nothing less than a managerial miracle. Today, the whole world acknowledges Sri Lanka’s success in containing the coronavirus pandemic.
The President’s leadership in this regard has to be commended. Our government doctors, nurses, and health service workers have come to the attention of the entire world. The skill and dedication of the intelligence services in tracing the contacts of patients, the efficiency of the armed forces in implementing quarantine and lockdown measures has prevented the spread of the disease.
The Police, and government officials at all levels have all contributed to the success of the anti-Coronavirus campaign. Today, our country is one of the safest places to be in the whole world. We have achieved this despite an economy that had been driven into the ground, and an unpatriotic and opportunistic opposition bent on undermining our government at every turn.
The opposition leader tried to sabotage the anti-coronavirus campaign at the very outset by personally encouraging protests against the quarantine process. Then they tried to undermine government services including the health service with the argument that the President had no power to allocate funds for government services after the dissolution of Parliament. Now they say that the Gazette dissolving Parliament should be rescinded the as the new parliament has to meet before the 2nd of June, and the parliamentary election cannot be held before that.
The yahapalana government delayed local government elections by nearly three years. Their attempt to postpone that election indefinitely by moving courts failed only because the Elections Commission declared they would hold elections to the institutions that were not involved in litigation.
With just days to go for the dissolution of the provincial councils in 2017, the yahapalana government changed the provincial councils elections system to prevent elections from taking place. When the Attorney General held that a two thirds majority in Parliament was required to pass that amendment, they bartered policy for votes in the corridors of Parliament to obtain the required majority.
As a result of that unprincipled political horse trading, the local government elections law which was passed on 25 August 2017 has 40% proportional representation whereas the provincial council elections law passed four weeks later has 50% proportional representation! Sri Lanka is also the only democratic country in the world where political parties petitioned the Supreme Court to get the declaration of a parliamentary election annulled. The present scramble to have the parliamentary elections put off is a continuation of that deplorable past.
Things have to come back to normal sooner or later. In eleven of the 25 administrative districts, there have been no coronavirus patients at all. In another seven districts, there have been only one or two patients, and five to seven patients in two more districts. Only five districts have a high incidence of coronavirus patients.
On 2 March the President dissolved Parliament and fixed 25 April for the poll and 14 May for the first meeting of the new Parliament. Ten days later, when the first Coronavirus patient was found, the President did not have the power to postpone the poll. Under Section 24(3) of the Parliamentary Elections Act No: 1 of 1981, when the poll cannot be held on the day fixed by the President, the Elections Commission is mandatorily required to fix another day for the poll.
They have no power to postpone the poll without fixing another date. Such mandatory legal requirements cannot be ignored on the basis of speculation as to what may or may not happen weeks and months into the future. The Elections Commission should first fulfill its duties under Section 24(3) and thereafter take up for discussion any outstanding issues.
Sajith begins online campaign
The members of the Samagi Jana Balawegaya have continued to communicate with the public almost every day through online platforms amid the curfew regarding the current situation of the country and through this method Former opposition Leader and SJB Party Leader Sajith Premadasa has taken the initiative to educate people on the faults evident within the relief mechanism established by the Government.
Due to this reason, the members of the SJB decided to meet President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and share with him their opinions on how the country should function under the present circumstances. Apart from this, Premadasa has also taken steps to advice his party members to help provide relief to people in any way they can sans political bias.
However the members of the SJB replied to Premadasa claiming that it is not the SJB who are favoring the people based on their political bias but rather the Government and added that the Government only provides relief to a selected group of people from which the majority is biased towards them. The members of the SJB further claimed that it is only Premadasa who truly helps people in need without having his own political agenda and further added that during the Presidential campaign there were individuals who voted for the opposing political parties while living in houses that were provided to them by Premadasa.
Premadasa then noted that political leaders should lend help to people in need without taking politics into consideration and added that he is not used to working with the hope of winning an election but rather he wants to help the people in need regardless of the time and place. Premadasa then questioned as to why the Government has failed to provide equal relief to everyone when they have successfully lead the health and defense sectors to control the spreading of COVID-19 and opined that the Government should not involve politics when helping the public.
During discussions held by Premadasa through the media, he also took the initiative to communicate to the people regarding a few important topics such as the reopening of the tourism and apparel industries. Premadasa also opined, via a message posted on twitter on 16 April, that Sri Lanka should be made into a medicine producing center and added that if the relevant authorities focus on developing modern machinery that is capable of producing medicines then the country can use its existing resources to manufacture medicines.
Meanwhile during a discussion held between party leaders Premadasa as the former Opposition Leader was given permission to use the Opposition Leader’s Office on a rent basis for the next few days due to not having a proper office to conduct his duties as the former leader of the opposition.
We hear many a good story about how Hela
Vedakama can restore immunization in the human body from Hela Suwaya school of
medicine. The time tested methods are available to our citizens in these times
of fear to protect them from a virus for which there is hardly any treatment
except vaccinations under the Western system. While a pot of medicinal smoke
provides protection at a very inexpensive cost, the broth -kenda- made out of
selected native rice varieties and medicinal herbs can supply the nutrition not
only to withstand virus attacks but also as source of wholesome food. After
listening to a very useful interview conducted by doctors who are attempting to
popularize Hela Suwaya , I learnt that they have very effective treatment for
non- infectious diseases such the Diabetes in Sri Lanka which will be a major
threat to the Sri Lankans in the near future, kidney problems and even for
Dengu
With the globalized systems facing the
challenges of Corivid 19, the government and the people should NOW consider
Hela Suwaya seriously as an effective way of restoring the health of the
people.
There is another factor concerning Hela
Suwaya which should receive the
attention of the economic planners who are probably now busy developing
economic models to get us away from the dependence on apparel exports and
export earnings remitted by the ex-patriate workers. Hela Suwaya treatment can
be developed into a feasible pharmaceutical home industry in manufacturing
herbal based medicine and types of food which can also assist in reducing our
cost of living and importing of foreign made medical supplies. Further, Hela
Suwaya has begun to promote agriculture based on organic fertilizer which too
can be developed into a feasible industry and can help in the supply of
wholesome food rather than consuming chemically treated types. While helping to
reduce the cost of agriculture inputs especially the imported fertilizer , the
alternate offered by Hela Suwaya can be a very effective impetus to real
economic growth.
It is up to the policy makers to make use
of Hela Suwaya for the nation’s health needs and to use the whole package as a
God sent economic opportunity.
By selecting the 20th
June 2020 as the date on which Parliamentary election could be held the
Election Commission has pushed the country, constitutionally, in to a no- man’s
land. The commission seemed certain that
the country would not be normal by end of next month, the month in which the
election should be held with no constitutional issue. But then it seemed certain that things will
be normal by June, the month after. The
commission appears comfortable in forecasting what will happen in two months
but not what will happen next month. Thus, we have a constitutional crisis on top
of the Covid 19 crisis, courtesy the election commission. In the end the Election commission seemed to
have made its point, ‘Well, this is why we requested the President to seek
Supreme Court opinion!’
The Commissioner maintains that he
prevailed over the pressure received to hold election as well as the pressure received
to delay it. Well, the Commissioners job is not to give in to this political
camp or that but to hold free and fair elections when they are due. However, the reason for this procrastination
appears to be that it is not possible to have an election campaign to the
heart’s content of the candidates contesting in the prevailing pandemic
atmosphere. Here again the commissioners primary concern is the democratic
rights of the people over and above those of the candidates. Alright, the
people have the right to get to know the candidates but this may not necessarily
be done in the way that we have been used to all this while.
The election campaigning ways that
continued throughout in this country was first introduced in 1947 when the
literacy level of the people was only 6% of the population. It is said that the
symbols were first introduced and displayed prominently because the majority
could not read. Today the literacy level is
90 + % and that may require a differ campaigning strategy. In 1947
public support was portrayed through community leaders, with limited political
acumen, and intoxicant was the main
method of obtaining this support, but today even though some social riffraff
would look for ‘free drinks’ during the time of an election campaign, their
support may not have a positive effect.
On the other hand today the level of communication has reached new
heights with television, internet and social media. Thus, there are better and more effective
ways of getting at a more educated polity and hence the strategies have to
follow suit. In any case we have to come
out of this culture of offering a bottle of liquor and a meal to attend a
political meeting with a free bus ride and also of holding meetings that phew
venom with no substance. Therefore let this dark cloud of Covid 19 have a
silver lining as well.
There however is another political aspect
to this procastination in holding elections and that is, some politicians expect
that the pressure of delay in elections will render the country without a
Parliament for more than three months prompting the President to reconvene the
dissolved Parliament. The fact that the Parliament was dissolved 6 months early
on Presidential proclamation has spawned a score to be settled among these outgoing parliamentarians; the
last straw of hanging in power.
Those who subscribe to this school of
thought should realize that the world and the society will never be the same in
post covid 19; at least for some time. The WHO has expressed optimism that a
cure may be found towards September but that will take some more time to reach formal
commercial levels of production. In such a light is Sri Lanka going to postpone
elections indefinitely until this pandemic is brought under total control?
The life of the Parliament, by lapse of
time or by proclamation, is constitutionally over and hence there isn’t a
chance of reviving it. The country has to go forward and not backwards and
hence the need of the hour is to elect the new Parliament rather than to resort
to political gimmicks to recall a dead body to life. The last Parliament,
though legally cremated on the 2nd march 2020 was dead in its moral
and ethical right to continue to be the legislator in February 2018 when the
people expressed an overwhelming lack of support for same at the Pradeshiya
Sabha elections. That was the day the voters of this country gave a resounding
defeat to the incumbent and brought a relatively unknown set of people with a
completely new political party; something that has never happened in the
political history of this country. The
majority overwhelmingly voted Podu Jana Peramuna, neither because they were
well educated on their policies nor on how they would govern once in power, but
because they were so disillusioned with the policies of the Government that was
in power.
Ironically, that was the only chance the
people received to concur with the policies of the government that was elected
in January 2015, promising to restore democracy! It is
indeed unfortunate that the Judiciary of the country looked only in to the
legal aspect of the life of the Parliament, when it restored it in power in November
2018, glossing over the moral and ethical aspects of the same. And now with a
new President in power, the old Parliament has no justification to exist except
to sabotage the program of work of the new President that the majority approved.
The philosophers who gave thought to
democracy ( demos– common people, kratos– strength) back in 507 BC in Athens, strictly thought in terms
of a government by the will of the majority on a day to day basis. However this
became too cumbersome an affair in practice and hence it was later decided that
the people should elect representatives for a stipulated period to govern the
country for them and ‘ in keeping with their aspirations’. In this, it was not
the period for which representative was elected that mattered, but whether that
representative truly represented the wishes of the majority at all times. Thus,
it was not acceptable (and was not democratic) for the elected representative to
act as he/ she pleased during the time stipulated, ignoring the wishes of the
majority. Therefore, did the previous legislator had a democratic right to
continue as the legislator after it received such a resounding lack of support
from the majority of this country, merely because it received a mandate for 5
years in 2015?
Thus, since the elected President has said
that he is not in favor of convening the old parliament under any circumstance,
if the Supreme Court orders to reconvene the dissolved Parliament in response
to the petition filed by M A Sumanthiran, that order will be made in defiance
of the 69 million majority who voted to elect the new President.
No man is good enough to govern
another man, except with that other’s consent–
Abraham Lincoln.
NEW DELHI/DHAKA (Reuters) – More than 500 garment factories in Bangladesh that supply to global brands reopened on Monday after a month-long shutdown to curb the spread of the coronavirus, while India considered ways to scale back its vast lockdown to reduce economic pain.A medical worker sits inside a mobile test van for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) after she collected swabs from people to test, on the outskirts of Ahmedabad, India, April 27, 2020. REUTERS/Amit Dave
Some of the world’s biggest clothing firms including Gap Inc, Zara-owner Inditex and H&M source their supplies from Bangladesh, which allowed garment manufacturers in the capital Dhaka and the port city of Chittagong to resume work from the start of this week.
We are making sure the workers wear masks, wash hands at the entrance, undergo temperature checks, and maintain physical distancing,” said Mohammad Hatem, vice president of the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association.
Bangladesh is home to around 4,000 garment factories employing 4.1 million workers, and industry groups for the sector had warned that the shutdown that began on March 26 could cause the country to lose $6 billion in export revenue this financial year.
Competitors such as Vietnam, China and Cambodia have already resumed operations, Hatem said.
Bangladesh reported nearly 500 new cases of the coronavirus on Monday to take the total to 5,913 of whom 152 have died.
While the country has allowed garment and other factories to reopen, much of the rest of the economy is still shut down and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina told government officials on Monday that schools and colleges may have to remain closed until September if the situation did not improve.
We will reopen educational institutions when the situation improves,” she said.
INDIA SAYS VIRUS FAR FROM OVER
In India, where a strict shutdown for its 1.3 billion people is due to end on May 3, Prime Minister Narendra held talks with the chief ministers of the country’s 28 states to decide on what restrictions should be kept in place.
Modi said the risk from the virus was far from over, although India had been able to save thousands of lives because of its extended lockdown, a government statement quoted him as saying.
India has reported 28,379 confirmed infections of the coronavirus, according to government data on Monday, the highest number in Asia after China. So far 886 people have died, nowhere near the levels the United States, Italy and Spain have suffered.
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Health experts say India is testing far less per capita than many countries and the virus is lurking undetected. Still, a surge in hospitalisations has not happened across the country, strengthening the case for lifting some curbs.
(The) Prime Minister said that we have to give importance to the economy as well as continue the fight against COVID -19,” the government statement said.
India’s economy, which was already growing at its slowest pace in years before the pandemic struck, could contract in the fiscal year that began in April, private economists say, making jobs even more scarce for its young population.
One way out of the 40-day lockdown would be to allow the least-affected parts of the country to return to activity while keeping a tight lid on hot zones which include major cities Mumbai and Delhi, officials said.
Neighbouring Pakistan also sought to reduce the economic pain, saying it will pay the electricity bills for 3.5 million small businesses for the next three months as part of a 50.69 billion rupees ($316.56 million) package.
The government has extended a nationwide lockdown until May 9. However, it is switching to a smart lockdown” with targeted tracking and tracing of cases while allowing some industrial and commercial activities to resume under safety guidelines.
The outbreak continued to spread through the Indian Ocean island nations of Sri Lanka and the Maldives.Slideshow (9 Images)
Sri Lanka reported 45 new cases of coronavirus on Monday, all of them navy personnel, after it surfaced in a base near the capital Colombo earlier this month. A quarter of the country’s 567 cases are from the navy, according to government figures.
The Maldives also reported a spike in cases, mostly among migrant workers living in packed dormitories in the capital Male. The country has 200 confirmed cases, the government said, a large number of them Bangladeshi migrant workers.
Here are official government figures on the spread of the coronavirus in South Asia:
* India has reported 28,379 cases, including 886 deaths
* Pakistan has reported 13,328 cases, including 281 deaths
* Afghanistan has reported 1,703 cases, including 57 deaths
* Sri Lanka has reported 567 cases, including seven deaths
* Bangladesh has reported 5,416 cases, including 145 deaths
The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has commenced a probe to trace the persons who allegedly attempted to create social disturbance, and unrest by using a letter by the Ministry of Health seeking 1,000 body bags from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), to replenish its standard stock.
The letter, dated April 24, 2020, and addressed to ICRC Forensic Coordinator, Angelica Guzman, signed by Additional Secretary (Medical Services) at the Ministry of Health and Indigenous Medical Services, Dr. Sunil de Alwis, was circulated via social media platforms on Sunday, with added captions that the Sri Lankan health authorities were getting ready to dispose bodies, during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Investigators are trying to ascertain whether some trade union members were involved in circulating the letter, with the malicious intention of creating social unrest.
Additional Secretary Dr. Alwis, contacted for comment, said the bags were required to dispose the bodies of people who may die of unidentified causes.
He said that the Ministry had 300 such bags, in Colombo, and they all had been sent to the peripheries. They would be used to dispose the bodies of anyone died of unidentified causes, he said. The bags had no direct connection with coronavirus deaths, he stressed. There had been only seven deaths, so far, from coronavirus, and the bodies of those victims had been cremated, the doctor said.
The issue of sending all 300 body bags to peripheral health centres and the need to replenish the ministry stocks, to maintain inventory, had been raised at a recent meeting where the ICRC representatives were present. The ICRC had said it had the body bags which matched the hygienic standards and could release them to the ministry, free of charge, if it made an official request. It was in response to that the letter had been issued, according to the Additional Secretary.
Dr. Alwis confirmed that he had signed the letter and was not sure how it had leaked. He said he had complained to the Police, on Sunday, and an investigation had been launched to identify those who had leaked a confidential document to the social media.
He also said that a misinterpretation of the letter had resulted in fear being spread among the public.
Dr. De Alwis said that under normal circumstances there occurred about 100 deaths a months in Sri Lanka.
He said that in a pandemic situation the bodies of people, even if they died of other causes, should be disposed in body bags.
As there was a shortage of non-transparent, quality body bags, in Sri Lanka, a request for them had been made to the ICRC.
Director-General of Health Services, Dr. Anil Jasinghe, in a statement yesterday, says that the Health Ministry had requested 1,000 bodybags from the ICRC to maintain its standard inventory and not because it anticipated a high death toll as a result of the present COVID-19 pandemic.
Dr. Jasinghe says that as a result of Sri Lanka’s successful programme to combat COVID-19, the country would not experience a high death toll and adds that measures are in place to prevent the spread of the virus from the clusters which have been detected and isolated.
The Ministry of Health always maintains its inventory at a certain level, including medicines, medical equipment, and body bags. It is a mandatory technical requirement, the DGHS stresses.
The statement says the Ministry of Health was given an opportunity to replenish its supplies with the help of the Coordinating Committee of the International Committee of the Red Cross and, therefore, it was made use of.
Dr. Anil Jasinghe has said it had been a practice for many decades to put the bodies of disaster victims in body bags.
He has said the bodies of the victims of the 2019 April attacks were also put in body bags, and it was an internationally accepted practice.
Therefore, the Director-General of Health Services has said the public need not have any unnecessary fears about the issue.
With four new patients testing positive for the novel coronavirus, the tally of COVID-19 patients identified today (27) has risen to 65.
This is the highest number of cases reported in Sri Lanka within a day. On April 26, the country reported 63 infections within 24 hours.
Accordingly, the number of coronavirus cases reported from Sri Lanka has now reached 588 cases.
The total number of recoveries reported in Sri Lanka is 126 while 455 patients are currently under medical care.
There have been 07 fatalities due to COVID-19 in Sri Lanka.
Coronavirus cases tally in Sri Lanka at 584
Three more persons have tested positive with the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, the Ministry of Health confirmed.
The new case brings the total number of coronavirus cases in Sri Lanka to 584.
Fifty-nine new cases have been identified so far today (27).
The total number of recoveries reported in Sri Lanka is 126 while 451 patients are currently under medical care.
There have been 07 fatalities due to COVID-19 in Sri Lanka
Total jumps to 581 with 10 new COVID-19 cases
Ten more persons have confirmed to have contracted the virus raising the total number of cases in the country to 581.
With the addition of new cases, 58 new cases have been reported as of 6.45 pm today (27).
The total number of recoveries reported in Sri Lanka is 126 while 448 patients are currently under medical care.
There have been 07 fatalities due to COVID-19 in Sri Lanka.
COVID-19: Four more cases bring total to 571
Four fresh cases of COVID-19 have been detected a short while ago adding to the total number of coronavirus cases in the country, says Ministry of Health.
With the addition of new cases, 48 new cases have been reported as of 6.45 pm today (27).
Accordingly, the tally of coronavirus cases in Sri Lanka has gone up to 571 cases.
The total number of recoveries is 126 while 438 patients are currently under medical care.
There have been 07 fatalities due to COVID-19 in Sri Lanka.
180 Navy personnel infected with COVID-19
Among the COVID-19 infected patients identified from Sri Lanka, 180 are Navy personnel, says Commander of the Army Lieutenant General Shavendra Silva.
Among them 112 have been identified from the Welisara Navy Base, said Silva.
The other 68 officers had been reported while on leave in different areas, he added.
Forty-four new cases were reported so far today (27) and all of them are navy personnel, the Director-General of Health Services Dr. Anil Jasinghe confirmed.
Accordingly, the tally of coronavirus cases reported in the country has gone up to 567 cases.
The total number of recoveries is 126 while 434 patients are currently under medical care.
There have been 07 fatalities due to COCID-19 in Sri Lanka.
Covid-19 cases in Sri Lanka climbs to 567
Ten more persons have tested positive for COVID-19 raising the total number of confirmed cases in the country to 567, the Ministry of Health said.
Accordingly 44 new cases have been reported so far today while all of them are navy personnel, the Director General of Health Services Dr. Anil Jasinghe confirmed.
So far 180 navy personnel have tested positive for COVID-19. 112 of them are from the Welisara navy camp while the 68 are navy personnel who were on leave.
This brings the tally of coronavirus cases reported in the country to 567.
The total number of recoveries is 126 while 434 patients are currently under medical care.
There have been 07 fatalities due to COCID-19 in Sri Lanka.
