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Morning Spice by
Ginger Ginger is not at his best. He is afflicted by the new GST virus that seems to be having rather an enervating effect on many persons. His telephone bill put him in a total state of shock. It was about 60% higher than it is normally. He gets totally panic stricken now when somebody even passes the phone and he yells out to them that he can't stand the phone bill. This is supposed to be the age of communication but certainly not for those like yours truly. They are incommunicado. Scribes find a phone a vital necessity for their work but right now they are forced to gnash their teeth and forced to say to hell with the work. He just heard from a friend that barbers also charge GST at some saloons. Ginger will stop cutting his hair and let it grow and then roll it up just as T. S. Elliot wanted to wear his trousers rolled as he grew old. Damn fool. He could have caught a nasty draught doing that. Will the plantain man charge us GST next. Getting back to the telephone and recent upping of bills do the authorities not realize that a telephone is an essential today considering the fact that, friends, relations doctors and so forth who have to be contacted in case of an emergency are spread out unlike in the old days. Transport too has become a problem. One should be able to go near his phone without shivering with fear. Garlic fans Ginger still hopes that what some researchers say they have discovered about garlic is not true. After all it was a home remedy in many parts of the world for many a century. These researchers have come to the conclusion that garlic powder supplements do little or nothing to bring down cholesterol levels or blood pressure. No mention however is made of garlic taken any other way and its effect on other diseases. Underwater hotel! The hotel which is to fall in to the five star class will have around 200 guest rooms underwater. Not much is known about the hotel as the owners want to spring a surprise on the travel trade when it is ready. We will know more about the hotel when it opens in 2001. Foreign investors have already pledged capital for the project. National hospitals in every district A national hospital in every district is the new plan of the Health Ministry. Well and good. When looking around the ones that are functioning already, one can only predict the level of service that will come off the new ones. What will be new will only be the name board National Hospital a few designations along with new letter heads. Out of the many issues that were raised in ’The Island' editorial of 23.06.98, maintenance was one, and this refers to present hospital buildings, medical equipment and quality of services. The new national hospitals are not only going to add to this maintenance issue, but will also bring down its own levels. The crux of the matter is that we pay only lip service to public health and primary health care. This aspect of health has not expanded to expectations. This Primary Health Care Service providers have not been strong enough is clearly outline the people's role in preventive health care. This is a tragedy. The cholera and dengue situation are good examples. In the absence of such a preventive strategy most decision makers will embark on more glamorous programme of building more and more hospitals. What grand opening ceremonies will there be. How many faces will glisten under TV lights. The more hospitals we build, we confirm the notion that in order to maintain our health we should have more and more hospitals. Health has become synonymous with hospitals, medicines and doctors. This notion is further supported by some of the indicators used in our country to assess the health status. Some of them are. a. Doctor — population ratio. b. Number of hospital beds per population. This clearly supports the above notion that in order to achieve a higher health status, one should have more and more doctors and hospitals. This has made us to allocate only a paltry twenty five percent to preventive care under the health budget. To my mind this money should be allocated the other way around; is 75% on healthy people and 25% on the sick. The anomaly is that a bigger population gets a smaller share. Let me not be misunderstood on this issue. I do not hold the view that hospitals are not required for the needy. They are essential, particularly to meet conditions that are not preventable. Statistics show that more than 60% of cases treated in hospitals are those that could have been prevented. 'Health for all by the year 2000" is our goal. It is a catchy slogan. But some mispronounce this as 'hell for all by that time'. The need for more and more hospitals could be summed up in a fictitious but fitting episode. K. D. C. Perera, Poaching at Udawalawe National Park Udawalawe National Park has the potential to be developed into one of the best wild life parks in the region. However what we saw in the park during our visit and stay at Thimbirigasmankada, last week, sadly, was a demonstration of declining standards of a government bureaucracy and management. Two factors that alarmed us was extensive burning of the jungle and poaching within the National Park itself. Severe and extensive burning of the jungle was visible and increasing in intensity. The burning of done by poachers with the hope of obtaining a lust pasture growth with the advent of rain which will attract deer to come into these areas. Thus such deer will be shot mericilessly and sold as venison. The burning also destroys not only the grass but also large trees. The long-term effect of the environment is already seen with the creeping mammoth growth of Lantana (Gandapana). Poaching is a very serious threat to wild life at Udawalawe. We could see forest fires and torch lights at several locations followed by noises of gun shots throughout the night. This was common sight at Udawalawe National Park every day. Besides this, the potential for harnessing available resources is not exploited. Though there are game rangers and staff, hardly any training courses are conducted for them. Required books and other equipment like binoculars are not available to them. Though there were 14 private jeeps waiting at the gate to transport wild life enthusiasts, on hire, the drivers of these vehicles were wearing multi-coloured dresses. They also should be educated on various aspects of wild life and also insist on wearing green colored dresses when driving within the park. Incidentally, the driver we hired wore a red colour shirt and the vehicle stalled at a crucial time. However, it was encouraging to see the private sector providing a 'jeep service' which could be further enlarged and improved. There was hardly any literature, photos, maps or posters on wild life for purchase. The map available was obsolete. The private sector should be encouraged to prepare such publications and make them available at stall at the entrance to the park. Many of the bungalows have not been correctly located. Thimbirigasmankada bungalow, for instance, goes under water with the slightest rain. It should have been located at a higher elevation surrounded by tree and also to enable occupants to have a better view rights round the tank. Construction of a wind mill will be a source of tapping wind energy to pump water to the overhead tank. Perhaps the construction of new bungalows within the park and their management could be entrusted to the private sector. Perhaps the Department of Wild Life Conservation has short and long-term plans not only to conserve wild life but also to improve National Parks. Perhaps a five-year development plan exists for all the National Parks, the wild life advisory committee' should study these development plans and ensure further improvement and monitoring of the implementation of such programmes. Dr. A. S. Abeyratne, Thoughtless planning by Cricket Board Thursday June 25 was another day of sad disappointment to all cricket lovers in Sri Lanka and abroad and to the two teams, Sri Lankans and Indians in particular, and also to the sponsors of the Nidahas Trophy Limited Overs Cricket Tournament. In fact the cause of the non-play disappointment was the thoughtless planning of Test Match fixtures, heedless of the geographical conditions in Sri Lanka, by the relevant Cricket Board authorities. Even the illiterate villager in Sri Lanka knows about the two most rainy seasons of the year and the areas affected by the rain fall during the year. Accordingly, they plan all their activities to suit the weather conditions. During the period May to October — the South/West monsoon prevails, with May, June, July and October having the highest rainfall. Similarly from November to April — the North/East monsoon brings heavy rain in the months of November, December and January to the North and the East. Among the many out door games cricket in particular is rain-prohibitive. That is the reason in Sri Lanka cricket fixtures are planned only during the months of fair weather — January to April, in the South/West, Central and Sabaragamuwa provinces. Even the schools invariably have their sports meets during the first term. By planning cricket fixtures, especially Test matches in Colombo, Galle or Kandy or even Kurunegala during the wet weather season, we may be only trying to challenge the weather gods with utter disappointment, with abandoned and incomplete matches and inconclusive decisions, to the frustration to the respective teams and wastage of funds that could have been utilized to fruitful advantage, with foresighted planning, observing time, place and manner. Why was it not planned for the Nidahas Trophy to be played during the first quarter of this year? As a world recognised test team the Sri Lankans should be able to play in Sri Lanka right throughout the year with the availability of test match pitches in the N/E provinces such as Trinco/Batticaloa, Jaffna and in the North Central province in cities like Anuradhapura and Dambulla. These are plans for peace time in Sri Lanka. Till such time it would be better to plan fixtures locally only during fair weather seasons. Norbert Manatunga, The Elections Commissioner has once again drawn attention to the production of the National Identity Card (NIC) for eligibility to vote. This is quite sensible and reasonable and an absolute necessity in the context of the present situation, where intimidation, thuggery and gunfire is the politician's forte. Apart from elections, the all importance of the NIC is too well known and needs no emphasis or elaboration. The issue of NIC became law by Act 32 of 1968. It was quite understandable to start with, for delays and refusals in the issue of the NIC to the Upcountry Tamil community, large numbers of whom became stateless by the Citizenship Act 18 of 1948. But with the passage of "The Grant of Citizenship of Stateless persons (Special Provisions) Act" 39 of 1988, all difficulties have been removed and 10 years have passed but complaints of non issue, unconscionable delay are a regular feature. There is a need to closely monitor this situation. Those of us who have been regularly following this subject have little doubt that the Registrar of persons department as a whole is not properly organised or geared to expeditiously handle the issue of the NIC. From time to time the department gives statistics of the numbers of NIC issued. Why do they not give the statistics of the numbers of applications outstanding and for how long? In the middle of 1997, when the question of producing NIC at elections was raised and spotlighted in the media (including the electronic media), I made some practical suggestions in a letter to the press, which appeared very prominently in almost all the newspapers. (Island Wed. 30.7.97). It is a statutory requirement for the Registrar of Persons to issue the NIC and if the department fails to do so or delays unnecessarily, it is failing in its duty and violates the rights of the citizen. There is provision in Section 3 (2) of Act 32 to appoint such numbers of persons as may be necessary as registration and/or certifying officers. Why does not the department act under these provisions and appoint officers in various parts of the island. This will not only expedite matters but relieve persons in the outstations from coming on request pilgrimages to Keppitipola Mawatha. Section 25 of Act 32 provides for the establishment of one member Tribunals to appeal against decisions of the Registrar of Persons. Government will do well to act immediately under these provisions. It will, I think be appropriate and useful if government is alerted to a news item in a regular weekly Tamil tabloid of 21.6.98. This is the English version — Sub-heading, ‘In the plantations’ — "The youths in the plantations are losing faith in their leaders. Their attention is now turning towards the Tigers" so stated a Plantation Trade Union chief. "Beginning with Identity Card problems, the plantation Tamils are facing serious hardships in many ways. But the plantation politicians are interested in increasing subscription fees, joining together to win elections. The youth are angry. It is true that many youths in plantations have started joining with the Tiger forces. This is the outcome of casting suspicions on them. S. Thambyrajah, Ramce Mohamed in a report in the 'Sunday Leader' of June 14, 1998 states that as the anti-rabies campaign in this country gathers momentum, dogs in their hundreds are being destroyed by gassing every day, somewhere in the country. Animal lovers feel that this type of cruelty especially in a country where Buddhism is a way of life is appalling. She goes on to ask whether there are no alternative humane methods to solve this problem. The Minister of Health states that he is most concerned but that Sri Lanka cannot afford to implement alternative methods because of the high cost factor. One method is to short the animals with a massive dose of tranquilizer which puts them to sleep. This method will not cost much to the government and I am sure that welfare associations and animal lovers will volunteer towards the cost of such injections. A meeting was held in Kandy convened by the Secretary of the Provincial Council at the Kandy Kachcheri. The Municipal Commissioner at that time Mr. Mohotti stated that there was a land already allocated by the Municipal Council together with a sum of Rs. 700,000 for an uptodate home for stray dogs. Dr. C. Godamunne, 'Why marriages sometimes end in divorce' - a reply You have chosen to highlight a paragraph in this article (appearing under the feature ''Women'') by boxing it in large print. This text states that a Muslim woman cannot divorce her husband. As a Muslim woman myself I find it extremely offensive. I must also state that I am disappointed that a paper of your standing does not research its articles sufficiently. If you are unable to check Islamic sources there are non-Islamic sources that give a correct picture of the Islamic law in this case. I will quote from the practice of the Prophet Mohammed (on whom be peace) which is one of the sources of Islamic or Shari'ah law,to prove my point. But before doing so I will quote the relevant text from the Encyclopaedia Britannica '97 on the subject. A divorce may be effected simply by the mutual agreement of the spouses, which is known as 'khul' when the wife pays some financial consideration to the husband for her release; and according to all schools except the Hanafis a wife may obtain a judicial decree of divorce on the ground of some matrimonial offense-e.g., cruelty, desertion, failure to maintain-committed by the husband. But the husband alone has the power unilaterally to terminate the marriage by repudiation (talaq) of his wife. Talaq is an extrajudicial process: a husband may repudiate his wife at will and his motive in doing so is not subject to scrutiny by the court or any other official body. A repudiation repeated three times constitutes a final and irrevocable dissolution of the marriage; but a single pronouncement may be revoked at will by the husband during the period known as the wife's Iddah, which lasts for three months following the repudiation (or any other type of divorce) or, where the wife is pregnant, until the birth of the child. Islam does give the man to uinilaterally divorce his wife by the pronouncement of talaq over a period of 3 menstrual periods, as has been stated by the prophet (on whom be peace) (Saheeh al-Bukhaaree vol. 7, p. 129, no. 178 (English translation) A Muslim wife may request for a divorce by returning to her husband what he gave her as mahr (dowry is given by the man to the woman in Islam). She can do this if she detests her husband's conduct, temper, features, impiety, impotency, or if she fears that she is unable to be dutiful to him. In the case of khul the divorce is instant, with no necessity for separation etc. This took place during the lifetime of the Prophet Mohammed (on whom be peace) as narrated by Ibn Abbas: The wife of Thabit bin Qais came to the Prophet, and said, ''O Allah's Apostle! I do not blame Thabit for defects in his character or his religion, but I, being a Muslim, dislike to behave in un-Islamic manner (if I remain with him).'' On that Allah's Apostle said (to her), ''Will you give back the garden which your husband has given you (as Mahr)?'' She said, ''Yes.'' Then the Prophet said to Thabit, '['O Thabit! Accept your garden, and divorce her once.'' (Saheeh al-Bukhaaree vol. 7, p. 150, no. 197 (English Translation). In Sri Lanka too under Muslim law, a Sri Lankan Muslim woman may divorce her husband as stated above. Raihana Sawaad, This ancient scripture more than 3,000 years old is accepted to contain concepts of Hinduism. It is a pity, some people misquote Bagawath Geetha in relation to the present ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka. Pandavas and Gowrawars are the parties to the conflict Thuriothanan who is a selfish character in Bagawath Geetha is mentioned as having said my army is fighting for ‘my personal glorification'. Compare in Sri Lanka Sinhala youth sacrificing their life and limb for the glorification of party politicians! B. D. Perera, More productivity the aim and no carnival of cricket We Sri Lankans are a most peculiar lot, for want of a better word and we fail to realize when a good thing, becomes good for nothing, especially when it becomes stale and is forced down your throats literally and ad nauseam! I am of course referring to the game of cricket, which is a game of course. We have won a World Cup (whatever that means to the economy of this country) and we carry on regardless and continue to organize international matches, making quite certain that it rains, nay pours on playing days, and to boot on ill-prepared pitches, on which even a game of 'elle' cannot be played! When the standards of politicians are dropping to zero, including the revolting language used by them in parliament and outside, can we the gullible voters expect a better deal on what is 'going on'. It was sad to see on TV sometime ago, our dimunitive Minister of Sports, carrying the World Cup trophy (not the 'cup that cheers') on an inbound flight bringing our cricketers back home, and the look on his countenance, was as if the World Bank had just given us the second tranche of 700 million dollars, so that we could curtail our begging for some time. So where do we go from here when are ball (and bat) players have been showered with gifts such as unlimited cash, land (in this land hungry country), luxury cars and local knighthoods to boot, merely for hitting the leather, or rather 'mishitting' it, as their present performances indicate. What benefit has these individuals and those that guide them (the Cricket Board) brought to this country excepting personal gains, power of office, financial gains and world tours. Can these cricketers show their prowess in other physical spheres, like going to the war front, like our brave village yokels. I doubt it. In all humility I say that we put a stop to this circus and the ongoing carnival and the players, cricket Board officials and meddling politicians jointly concentrate on more productivity work for a better Sri Lanka for us all. Rexy, |
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