Morning
Spice by Ginger
May Day significance misunderstood?At least one major
political party did not hold a rally on May Day due ostensibly to the ongoing war. There
was at least some respect shown for our men who are out there fighting in the north. That
however is not the point Ginger was trying to make. The day is not meant for political
parties to show their respective strengths. It is meant for workers to show worker
solidarity against exploitation and their willingness to fight for their rights.
Trade unionism here indicates a bit of a tragic situation where our workers have shown
a readiness to align themselves to political parties which means that they depend largely
on the swing of the political pendulum to get what they want. There is a total dependence
on the party and also its fortunes which make them political animals without the strength
to fight their causes on their own. The sooner our work forces learn to fight their
battles on their own the less dependent they would be on the politician to obtain their
legitimate rights.
Bottled bacteria
If you have a madness for drinking bottled water you had better learn more about it
from the American experience. Many American parents thought that bottled water was best
for the family but recent research shows that it may not be the case always. Apparently
around 20 per cent bottled water contains more bacteria than tap water.
There is a second cause for concern as well. A very low percentage of bottled water has
the recommended levels of fluoride. Your children could well get bad teeth early in life
and it would be necessary to make frequent visits to your dentist to check this out.
Mistrusting Chinese
Are those of Chinese origin living in foreign countries less inclined to trust other
races in a moment of crisis. This evidently seems to be the case judging by a recent study
made of the different racial groups in Singapore. It shows that socially the Chinese can
be more insular than other races.
The study revealed that only 44 per cent of Chinese Singaporeans were willing to trust
someone of another race to protect or befriend them in case of a racial problem. On the
other hand 63 per cent of Malays and 69 per cent of Indians indicated they were willing to
trust those of other races under similar conditions.
Resuming Israel ties: Welcome
move
India has full diplomatic relations with Israel. Palestine has long held negotiations
with Israel and it acknowledges the right to exist of the State of Israel as a nation.
Yasser Arafat has talked to Ehud Barak, Neytanyahu, late Yithzak Rabin and other Israeli
leaders over and over again in direct negotiations.
Israel can teach us a lot about agriculture, higher education, national security, and
appropriate technology. Keep in mind that they have never lost a war to overwhelmingly
numerically superior militaries of the mid-east. Their weapons systems have proven to be
far superior to the old soviet block weapons of its enemies. They have the world's most
competent military training programme. Israel also has a national compulsory military
service requirement. Israel is also a democracy whether we like it or not.
They are a nation we need to cultivate a strong friendship with. Most moderate Arab
nations, all of former soviet block nations, S. Africa have dealings with them. The old
hang ups we Sri Lankans had about Israel were vestiges from the cold war era and based on
years of unrealistic socialist brainwashing, and our being in the camp of now defunct
anti-western, anti-Israel socialist and communist non democratic countries which have now
ceased to exist in the traditional sense.
The decision to (even if came during a time of crisis) establish full diplomatic ties
with Israel was long overdue and most pragmatic and welcome. Sri Lanka needs all the help.
It is downright unfair for other nations to tell us who we can consider to be our friends
in a time of need. That is an interference in our affairs. Isn't Palestine talking to
Israel?
Mano Ratwatte
In Cyberspace.
Sabotage or idiocy?
Contrary to what the government media were known to be doing for the government all the
time, they have been behaving in a strange way in the recent past, sometimes giving away
information adverse to the government and indirectly admitting to positions they would
have normally argued against. Whether it is on the basis of a new policy of transparency
in state affairs or a clumsiness in their attempts to whitewash the government remains to
be seen.
A recent example was the publicity given to the curtailing of privileges enjoyed by
Lake House directors. It was announced that henceforth a director was to be allowed only
one company car each for personal use and the payment of cellular phone bills would be
limited to Rs. 6,000 a month. The information they unwittingly gave away was that
directors had been using more than one car and were running cellular phone bills in excess
of Rs. 6,000 a month. It must have been a scandalous state of affairs; how many cars did
each director use? Was it two or three cars? Or was there no limit? A car for each member
of the family of the director? These are legitimate questions which the news report helped
to provoke. Would the reporter who published the earlier story let the public know the
average number of cars used by a director before the new restriction was applied?
Cellular phone bills in excess of Rs. 6,000 per month is a dizzy limit. I am sure each
director must have been provided with a land phone in his office room. Assuming that the
directors came to office and attended to any work in office, such business would have been
transacted using the land phone in office. They may have been provided with land phones at
the residence of which bills are settled by the company. If so, the cellular phone would
have been needed only for emergencies during travel or while in the field. Since the
inference is that they ran bills in excess of Rs. 6,000 a month, they must have been
confronted with emergencies while travelling during the greater part of the day. This no
doubt explains the state in which Lake House was reported to be in during the recent past.
It would be revealing if the same reporter could complete his story with a statement of
the monthly average of the cellular phones the directors ran (names not important) for the
edification of the public.
Another recent story was that according to a directive issued by the President, the
Customs Officers would henceforth search the baggage of political VIPs when they travel
abroad. The inference is that this was not done earlier. Was such exemption permitted by
law? What is the assurance that they did not engage in smuggling or abetted others to do
so taking advantage of the illegitimate privilege.
The standard state media response of the challenging of the President’s academic
credentials has been to say that academic qualifications are not necessary for being a
good Head of Government and that some of the best Heads of Government like D.S. Senanayake
and R. Premadasa had no high qualifications.
Does this imply that the President does not have the qualifications claimed?
The Media Minister should see whether this is deliberate sabotage or only clumsiness
and take suitable action.
N. Wickremarachchi
Gampaha
Arrest
Balasingham for massacre of 600 policemen
On the front page of ‘The Island’ on May 3 , you carried a photograph of the
above named shaking hands with the Norwegian Foreign Minister who is supposed to be a
neutral facilitator or whatever. If I am not mistaken, I believe that Balasingham and his
wife participated in the talks held during the Premadasa regime when they were housed at
taxpayer expense at the Hilton Hotel. I believe the LTTE insisted that the Police in the
Eastern Province surrender themselves and their weapons to the LTTE giving assurances that
they would not be harmed in anyway. Our leaders even at that time demonstrated their
monumental stupidity and ordered the Police personnel to surrender themselves and their
weapons to the LTTE. Those who indicated that they prefer to die while resisting were
again reassured that they would not be harmed. The end result was the massacre in cold
blood of upwards of 600 Police personnel. Now they are conveniently forgotten.
The Police were non-combatant law enforcement officers. Even in the case of prisoners
of war, I think the Geneva convention spells out how surrendee combatants should be
killed. If Balasingham and his wife whatever citizenship they hold, were party to the
causing of this massacre, should they not be treated as war criminals? I do not have
access to any documents but I think an investigation is in order with Balasingham and
others who may be caught (most are in hiding), questioned, arrested, tried and convicted
if they were associated with this massacre. The present government would not be interested
as obviously, the previous one wasn’t. Can a private individual or a group request
the War Crimes Tribunal to take action? Can one of the countries like the US who are very
concerned about terrorism initiate action? No one in Sri Lanka was held responsible as
they as usual, showed plenty of good faith and idiocy.
Empee,
Rajagiriya.
MP assaulting park wardens
It is alleged that an MP has recently assaulted some park wardens at the Udawalawe
National Park. If the allegation is true, the MP has brought disgrace to parliament and to
the leader of the party to which he belongs. The voters will be aghast at the quality of
MPs who represent them in the Supreme Legislature. The alleged incident reveals the
following.
1. An MP and his bodyguards while enjoying the holidays have assaulted officers who
were performing duty even during the New Year season.
2. They were alleged to be badly under the influence of liquor, a shame for an MP, a
law-maker, to be found drunk in day time and in public.
3. The T 56 rifles given solely for the legitimate use of the MP, had been used to
cause injury to peaceful citizens.
4. Whereas an MP is expected to respect law and order more than anybody else, he was
conducting himself in a most unworthy manner while hundreds of people were looking on.
5. Hiding the fact from the Police that they assaulted the officers was a cowardly act.
After the incident they have acted as cowards and what a shame for an MP!
6. Nowhere in the law is it stated that the MPs and their relatives are above the law.
7. If the MP and his bodyguards are so fearless and brave as reported, they should be
in Jaffna fighting the terrorists and not the innocent park wardens, unarmed and peace
loving.
I think a self-imposed code of ethics alone could make all peoples representatives a
most honoured and respected group of persons without which people will have no faith in
any institution whether public or private.
E. M. G. Edirisinghe
Dehiwala
Telecom bungling
I was billed for an overseas phonogram purported to have been made on 31.01.1999 and
the bill for Rs. 253.55 was presented to me along with the monthly bill for the period
1.8.1999 to 31.8.1999.
On 22.9.1999 I protested to the Regional Engineer, Maradana, stating that I had never
originated the particular call and settled the bill for the particular month minus the fee
for the purported phonogram. I received the usual reply that I should pay for it.
On 19.01.2000 I appealed to the Chairman, Sri Lanka Telecom, Mr. Lalith de Mel and
demanded an inquiry. My letter was referred to the Head of the Billing Section, Mr. Sarath
Silva who directed that the charge on the particular purported overseas call should be
deleted. On 24.03.2000 I met the Assistant Superintendent of Telecommunications to whom
the decision was conveyed and he assured me that action would be taken to delete the
amount in due course.
I promptly settled the bill for 1.03.2000 to 31.03.2000 on 24.04.2000 in respect of my
telephone 911402.
To my dismay my telephone was disconnected on Saturday 29.04.2000. I reported the
matter to 121 at 4.00 p.m. under reference 53436. On 30.4.2000 at 9.34 a.m. I was informed
by the Kelaniya Exchange that my telephone had been disconnected.
On representations made by me my telephone was restored at 9.00 a.m. on 02.05.2000.
Consequently I was put into great inconvenience specially during the week-end with a
holiday (May Day) on Monday.
Sri Lanka Telecom is morally obliged to make an open apology for the damage and the
insult suffered due to no fault of mine and give assurance that repetition of the sort
should never happen.
Nanda Nanayakkara,
Kiribathgoda.
Ombudsman
Awating Kohuwala road repairs
The roads in and around Kohuwala have been dug up by a local contractor for 'telehone
cable laying'. After completion, there is still no sign of the road surfaces being
repaired.
On inquiry, it is now established that before the roads are dug up, the contractor is
required to deposit the monies for such repair with the Dehiwela-Mount Lavinia
Municipality. If this is the case, why is the repair work not carried out? What guarantees
do we the public have that this money is indeed utilised for the purpose that it is meant
for? Answers please Mr. Mayor!
Ainsley de Silva
Kohuwala
Railway disaster imminent
at Moratuwa
I am a regular visitor to Moratuwa and more often than not commute by train. During the
latter part of November, 1999 I observed about 25 labourers and about four or five
officers busily removing the ballast from about three rail lengths of the track on the up
line from near the main level crossing towards the railway station leaving only the
sleepers to rest on the ballast under the rails. I got the impression that this was being
done to replace the wooden sleepers with concrete sleepers which were lying in the
vicinity. But this has not been done up to date and this length of track is without
ballast exposing it to imminent danger as a number of express trains go over this daily.
The concrete sleepers are still lying almost covered with over grown weeds. Since November
last year there had been bouts of heavy rain and this length of track was filled with rain
water between the sleepers. I am sure this could have had some ill effect on the ballast
on which the sleepers were resting. I am only a layman, but still I feel this is not a
healthy situation.
I wish to point out that this state of affairs is due to the callous indifference on
the part of the railway staff at every level. There are two officers stationed at Moratuwa
and what are they doing about this. If the engineers in charge of the district and other
senior officers had done their regular inspections they would have observed this and taken
action to at least replace the ballast. This is clearly and instance exposing the
tardiness of the railway staff and criticism from the general public, from time to time,
about the deteriorating state of the railway service is full justified.
I hope railway officials in higher positions will see this letter and investigate as to
why this situation is allowed to exist.
Anthony Freehand
Wellawatte.
Bedlam at Dehiwala
Chaos confusion and pandemonium prevail at the Dehiwala Junction right through the day
till very late evening. A close analysis of this chaotic situation in an unbiased
practical and rational way, will clearly show and prove conclusively that the crux of the
problem lies in the haphazard and erratic parking of buses directly on and across the
pedestrian crossing.
Because of the buses parked directly on the path of those pedestrians crossing over to
the sea side, they have no option, since they are unable to see the traffic lights on this
sea side, to move either in front of the buses, from the rear, or to wriggle and scrape
through in-between, risking their very lives in order to get to the other side and very
often against the Red Light, thereby causing a further delay to traffic southbound.
I have watched amusedly a policeman blowing his whistle and gesticulating. Since the
whistle represents the law, the buses immediately roll forward thereby clearing the
crossing for the pedestrians.
The comedy begins when the Policeman having blown his lungs out, decides to take a
short breather. The buses taking advantage and capitalising on the situation, and when
there IP or Policeman on duty, park once again in a longer than before queue directly on
the pedestrian crossing, waiting again till the next whistle is blown to move forward;
typical of a Clown Act in a well rehearsed Circus Performance.
Back to square one. It is therefore implied and inferred that unless the whistle is
blown continuously, this chaotic situation will prevail perennially.
Does a bus have to be "whistle blown" to the bus stop? Does this situation
prevail in any other part of the world or the country, except at Dehiwala? I personally
feel, and I am of the opinion that the Police could be more gainfully employed serving
‘No-parking’ tickets and ‘on the Spot Fines’ at the pedestrian
crossing. But that is outside my field.
Now what is the solution? Do we need Flyovers or Subways? Yes and No. Not just yet
anyway because it is an expensive exercise. Then what is the answer?
Do simply what my hometown Wellawatte did because, even though they might encourage Bo
trees to grow in wild profusion on the rooftop of their supermarket, they will not allow
any bus to park in front of it. No sir, not under any circumstances, Why? Because being so
innovative, they, intend planting a Jak tree on the front rooftop and a Breadfruit tree on
the back rooftop (truly national) to emulate the Hanging Gardens of Babylon.
Nebuchad is a mighty worried man, for after centuries and centuries, those little Sri
Lankans outdid and outshone him in landscape gardening.
Now, now, please really what did Wellawatte do? I give credit where credit is due.
Intelligently and with a lot of common-sense, they simply moved the Central Bus Stand from
their Sacred and Hallowed Supermarket to St. Lawrence Road and to make absolutely certain
that the public was not in anyway inconvenienced, they constructed two bus halts, one for
short distance Mount Lavinia/Moratuwa and the other for long distance Panadura/beyond .
Congratulations I’m proud to be from Wellawatte. Eureka, QED, problem solved.
Now Dehiwala is not as innovative as Wellawatte. They merely hung the picture of a CTB
Boneshaker pasted on cardboard and screwed and nailed to a discarded, corroded and rusty
galvanised drain pipe that was leaning conveniently against the lamppost, below a huge
advertisement of the Aluth Avuruda Sale of all sales, just to give it its location.
I looked around but nowhere could I find any visible, physical structure of any sort
that vaguely or remotely could be identifiable with even the rooftop of a bus shelter. All
that I now saw was a row of trishaws neatly parked along the kerb, making thereby even
that picture of the CTB Boneshaker absolutely redundant, but nevertheless this picture
represented the Central High Command Transport Centre,
Passengers are advised to board hurriedly, or dive for cover, to avoid being run down
and run over, or maimed for life by a frenzied, maniacal local "Stenting Moss"
trying desperately to oust the wizardry skill of the high speed Maestro himself.
I could have cried.
Now I am only a one single individual and the administration is too big, but being
experienced and knowledgeable, having handled traffic, but in an entirely different
environment and atmosphere with the Birds, I appeal to such organisations as the:
1. Automobile Association (AA),
2. the Lions Club,
3. the Jaycees,
4. the Lawyers Association of Colombo South,
5. the Secretary General of the Citizens Front,
6. the Organisation for Human Rights,
7. or any such interested Organisation,
to initiate a dialogue with the authorities and the administration to find a solution
to this problem before a terrible tragedy occurs, for I am still suffering from shock over
what happened two weeks ago on my birthday. Will I ever forget?
What I do remember so clearly was that horrible crash into the Dehiwala roundabout
many, many years ago in which the life of a Foreign Diplomat’s beautiful youngest
teenage daughter was snuffed out like a candle in the wind.
It was only after this tragedy that officialdom awoke and cut and sliced the roundabout
on either side to make it what it is today.
I sign off with the words of that famous saying "There are none so blind as they
who do not see (or will not see, or refuse to see)".
Desmond Nicolle
Mount Lavinia. |
