      |
|
|
|
Morning Spice by Ginger
GMOA flexes its muscles againSo the GMOA was flexing its muscles and about to strike last week. Generally Ginger is not for those in that noble profession going on strike. It seems a bit unbecoming for some one who has taken the oath to down stethoscopes but there may be some justification for the mood these medics are in. One wonders whether bringing some medical officers under provincial council administration was the wisest possible move. Doctors are brought a little too close to those politicians and life could get a little complicated unlike in a centralized system where associations are more removed.
In other words the chances of the non expert fiddling about with the expert or the professional are much greater. What is more provincial councils are relatively new institutions and those within them have a lot to learn still. Their understanding, on such matters could be far too superficial or inadequate to supervise the work of such professionals. The tendency to let politics interfere with the administration could cause quite some confusion and one feels there is reason in such a request. An honest pow-wow could do much to defuse such a situation.
Did earth have life a billion years ago?
Was there life on earth a billion years ago. Scientists believe that multi cellular animals evolved around six hundred million years ago but an Indian professor of Geology has come across a piece of sand stone that may change the calculations scientists had about the origin of animal life. According to the evidence on the rock there were tracks of a worm like animal on it that could be 1.1 billion years old.There were crooked groves of a worm like animal about half a centimetre thick. What scientists want to know about this animal is why there was no evidence of any such animals during the intervening five hundred years or so. A palaeontologist of the Harvard University says that some multicellular animals may appear and then die out and appear once again but the professor has his detractors who do not accept certain aspects about his find.
Is Taslima safe?
How safe is Taslima Nasrin. Bangladesh may consider her a heretic guilty of blasphemy who deserves the worst punishment possible but many people through out the world would consider her a caring and loving daughter who braved the worst for the sake of her ailing mother. She had run away four years ago and was in hiding in Europe.She was in hiding in Europe and was to be tried for blasphemy because she wrote that the Koran needed changes. Muslim extremists wanted her hanged and even offered a reward to someone who handed her over to the police. In spite of the danger to her life she came back to Dacca when she heard that her mother was ill. She has now surrendered to court.
One 'Sri Lankan Tamil' writing to The Island of January 9 on the above topic has made many misleading and fanciful statements which need be exposed in order to prevent the gullible accepting them.
The now available MAHAVAMSA is in the Pali language and was compiled by Ven. Mahanama in about the 6th Century based on earlier historical sources one of which was the SIHALATTHAKATHA MAHAWAMSA. The script of that period was BRAHMI which had undergone evolution since its earliest form found in the Mihintale inscriptions of about 3rd century B.C. The Sinhala script we use today is the result of about 24 centuries of evolution of that same Brahmi script. In that evolution apart from internal chance there was the influence of another script - The Dravidian Grantha script, which again goes back to Brahmi origins - during the late Anuradhapura period. Only some Sinhala letters were thus influenced - others retained marks of original BRAHMI derivation.
Pali is a classical language which stands in MATRU BHASHA (parental language) relationship with Sinhala. The other MATRU BHASHA is Sanskrit. These, as we all know are, Aryan (or Indo-European) languages in contradistinction to the Dravidian languages such as Tamil, Kannada, Telagu etc.
Modern Sinhala is the evolved form of Classical Sinhala found in the early inscriptions dating from about the 3rd Century BC just as much as Modern Tamil in the evolved form of Classical Tamil found in classical period inscriptions. just wanted to pen these explanations because that letter to the editor is mischievous and misguiding.
'Sri Lankan Tamil' tries to mislead readers when he says:
(1) 'There was no written Sinhala' when The Mahawamsa was written
(2) ELU SINHALA means 'written Sinhala' and the word ELU is derived from a Tamil word
(3) There was Dravidian Buddhist priests of Theravadha, Mahayana, Vaithulyavatha, Jainism etc.
(4) Words such as SIHALA, MAMA, VAMSA, KATHA, THEKIYA, VATHA are of Tamil origin.
(5) There is a book called History of Ceylon by one 'Sir Ralph Pieris.'
The correct position with regard to the above are: (1) There are a large number of inscriptions in the classical Sinhala of the 6th century - one well known is the Tonigala Inscription edited and printed by Professor Paranavitana in Epigraph is Zeylanica (2) ELU is derived from SINHALA through the forms SIHALA, SIHELA, HELA. You can read James De Alwis's Introduction to the Sidat Sangarava (1853) for further details. (3) It is true that there was Buddhism in South India but Jainism is not a Buddhist sect. Theravada and Mahayana are the two major schools and Mahayana originated in North India as a later development from the orthodox Theravada which was the original form. ' Theravada texts are in Pali and the Mahayana texts were originally in Sanskrit. The South Indians learnt these from the North Indian masters. (4) The list of words given by 'Sri Lankan Tamil' such as borrowed from classical Sanskrit by Dravidian scholars. I challenge the SL Tamil to quote any ORIGINAL classical Tamil text where these words occur. (5) The 'SL Tamil' really has his foot in the mouth when he refers to one Sir Ralph Pieris and a non existent book written by such a person.
If some one wants to prove that Tamils are the autochthones of this island he/she should present plausible facts based on existing historical sources, which anybody can check rather than go into flights of uncontrolled imagination.
Anti-Humbug.
There is no law, order and discipline in the country because the law enforcement authorities are in slumber like Rip Van Winkle. Unfortunately the people, who are undergoing hardship as a result are blaming the incumbent Government for the sins of omission and commission of its employees.
Take for instance the spate of robberies that are taking place mostly by army deserters, who are well trained in the use of fire arms. How many cases are there where neither the culprits have been traced nor the lost goods and cash recovered? The danger here is that if the rogues are not caught and punished, they go on repeating the robberies again and again.
Pavements are obstructed mostly by taxi drivers and the police turn a Nelsonian eye on them. The pedestrians are driven to the highway at the risk to life and limb.
When you write a letter to a government institution, you get no reply Ñ nay, not even an acknowledgement in spite of the three days rule of replying to letters from the public.
Consumer protection Act No. 1 of 1979 requires products to be price marked. But how many advertisements we see particularly on TV with the price marked? Hardly any. For a matter of that, even the products themselves in many cases bear neither the price nor the date of expiry marked thereon! There are three consumer protection institutions, viz: (1) Department of Internal Trade, (2) The Fair Trading Commission and (3) the Police Department. Why on earth cannot the officers, instead of merely warming their seats, prosecute or at least warn the manufacturers for these lapses?
GP,
Mt. Lavinia.
Mr. Manil Gunawardene's letter appearing under the above caption in your journal of the 19th instant is interesting and thought provoking. I wonder how many of our readers listened to the 'Pratibhani' programme on Lak Handa on Tuesday the 12th on the same subject, broadcast between 1.00 to 2.00 pm .
The eye, whether human or not, notices the slightest motion very fast. Motion in whatever form. This is amply proved by the 'Knee waving' Snake charmer, the Spanish bull-fighter, and the mother who waves something, or even her hand, in front of the infants eyes to attract his attention. Needless to say that the blinking trafficator lights and the neon signs depend on this same character of the eye.
Same applies to the slit skirt, whether it be half an inch or half a metre, the effect is the same, a movement showing a part or whole of the bare female skin, or even a different coloured under skirt, would attract the eye of a passer-by.
As Mr. Manil says... 'Some people find semi nudity more stirring, and this sight may extend an open invitation to a sex-starved person etc.' Well, how many cases of sex harassment and abuse are reported in the papers in lone stretches of road. How many of these victims have invited trouble and even death at the hands of mentally ill persons, unknowingly.
Some media persons too should take the blame. Especially those that publish such semi-nude pictures and publish the block to make such a skirt too. The trader takes the cue and produces the skirt in no time, before someone could stitch it on her own, and put in the market. Our people are quick to be 'dressed' so they dress on their own, or rather 'undress,'
When a girl walks on the road, in these semi-nude attires, it is the mother who gets the blame. I have heard people saying? 'what was her mother doing when the daughter stepped out of the house' because no one changes her dress on the way. Similarly it is the husband who gets ridiculed when he is seen with the wife attired so.
I have seen mothers coming with their daughters for treatment, well ! the mother's skin shows more skin than the daughters, they hardly can sit properly? the skirt being so tight, so short and slit too. Similarly as Mr. Manil points out, I have even complained to our parish priest, that certain persons come to church, imagine, on Good Friday dressed like this. The temple too is not spared.
What I personally feel is that the rules and regulations should come from ones own heart? guided by the home front. No lawmaker can do this? but ones own self:
Last September when I was in India with my wife, as delegates of the Y's Mens International, we visited fifty-one Y's men clubs in five states, and we did not see even just one slit, or short skirt. We counted the number of skirts we saw in those five states, just five and only five, they too were well below the knee level. It is we, the Sri- Lankans who are so quick to pick up all the dirty habits that come from any foreign country, but, are rather slow in accepting the better things from other cultures. Few examples of such bad picks would be divorce, free sex, pre-martial sex, abortion, alcoholism, drug abuse' smoking etc.'
Whether it be Christians, Buddhists or Hindus (Muslims are to be admired in this respect) we should all remember that we are Sri Lankans, we have a rich culture and it is the Parents, Teachers, and the Clergy who should be able to instill our cultural values to our people. I, as a parent, once a teacher and now as a medical person try my best to educate, at least one at a time, whenever I get the opportunity. I also make slide presentations on Sexually transmitted Diseases and AIDS, titled 'THE BITTER HALF OF THE FORBIDDEN FRUIT'. I have presented this programme over 1025 times during the past 17 years, in all the nine provinces of Sri Lanka and even abroad. In this too I try to educate people about the harm invited by such dresses and the T-shirts with provocative print, like' 'Do you want to touch me today low price' and many more.
So let us all elders take the responsibility of guiding our youth, the back-bone of our country, in the correct direction, let this start from the cradle.
Dr. Jupiter C. E. Moonemalle,
Kurunegala.
A response to 'Eid message' of Minister Maulana
This is in reference to the 'Eid message of Minister Alavi Moulana. I was happy to observe that of all messages on this auspicious day, Alavi's was the only one that had a part of the standard method of addressing a message approved by the Sunnah of our beloved Prophet (S) viz the requirements of opening with the 'Hamd' and 'Salawat'. However this was only printed in the Daily News but omitted in the Island. Notwithstanding this aberration, the text of his message did indeed astonish me for the inappropriateness of its subject matter.
Instead of supplicating for our brethren's fast of Ramadan to be accepted he resorted to invectives and innuendos against the very spirit of the occasion. He was not even bothered to get his facts straight, thus lending to the belief that he was holding a brief and being spokesman for the deviant groups of Islam. Take for instance his mention of the 'Dharul Fana', can he give us textual evidence from the Qur'an and the authentic Sunnah for this? If he quotes this Sheik and that or his forefathers, then this is not the Islam that was taught by the Holy Prophet (S).
As regards 'audacity to question' his 'pearls of wisdom' then what he sees to be gold is only 'fools gold' in the eyes of the knowlegeable scholars. Whatever is sound religious knowledge has to be declared so by the Prophet (S) or the pious predecessors not ' patron saints', which is an idea borrowed from the Roman Catholics! It is for this reason, the propogation of ideologies against Pure Islam that the young and dedicated ones are now questioning the commercialised, deviant practices of so called 'Ulema'.
They have found in Alavi Moulana, and his ilk, patrons - they are the minions who utter and practise concepts that contend the commands of Allah and His Rasool. My humble appeal to all Muslim brethren is to question these so called Ulema when you are in doubt, and accept only that which they state with authentic textual evidence. The advice of our beloved Prophet (S) was to hold fast to the Qur'an and his Sunnah not the sunnah of the saints or deviant sheiks.
M. L. Jamaldeen,
Colombo 7.
I suppose we are the only people in the world, who enjoy the most number of holidays and who go out on strike, so many times, for the merest sneeze of an employer or employers!
I cannot anticipate the number of strikes of the future, that await declaration, but it would be interesting if someone could give stastics of the number and the cause of the strikes that took place last year and the years before, as far as possible!
Holidays apart, becausse there is bound to be clashes of opinion and interests, school interests and employee interests, supersede public interests and will never give way to any reduction of holidays! So, let us go on, plodding a sorrowful path of degeneration and laziness, like, say, the Mexicans, snoozing under their sombreros!
But, strikes, certainly, are abhorrent and distasteful.
It is, if I may say so, a crime against society! It is a canker, eating into the fabric of a healthy, peace-loving, happy-going family of people, who prefer to have sunshine always!
Some useful hints to curb useless strikes, could be considered as offered, herein:
(i) Legislation, repealing labour laws that turn blind eye to the spate of strikes, that are, prima facie, ridiculous and unreasonable!
(ii) Political, religious and other outside forces, having direct, active and even covert participation, to be prohibited by law and made punishable, like a serious crime.
Strikers, should be in a position to have leaders, from their own ranks to lead them! Otherwise, they are not fit and are not worthy of seeking demands, which apparently, they don't understand or appreciate, but merely follow, for the sake of following one who is more concerned about his own welfare, like goats following one who is leading them to the abattoir!
(iii) Strikers to be confined to their work places, only and not to come out on to the streets, to disturb the people and traffic, who are non-participants and who don't care at all!
(iv) Essential services, particularly hospitals and medical institutions, as in the case of religious institutions, should refrain from strikes and should strictly follow the oath of Hippocrates, under all circumstances. The people's awareness, should be whipped up and the people roused to go out on strike themselves, to prevent the medical profession, resorting to strike action!
As a parting shot, I wish to comment that there is no other country in the world, where doctors and nurses go out on strike, very often and where nurses or doctors are led by clergymen, to strike, except in our blessed, holy Isle!
Thambirajah Mahadevan,
Vavuniya.
It is to be commended the introduction of passes to see the patients in the Government Hospital, which has had a great impact. Although the above system has played a vital role in easing the hospital authorities in performing their duties, following inconvenience and discrepancies too have occurred on the part of the public.
Presently two passes are issued on behalf of each patient, and the visitors have to produce same at the gate/ward in order to gain entrance. However, most of the dear-ones and relations are compelled to come from their work places or distant places so that they are unable to produce the passes to enter the wards.
Further it is observed that most of the visitors are treated rudely and unscrupulous hands are playing back door in allowing visitors. In order to correct the above state we recommend to levy a nominal fee starting from Rs. 10 for a visitor who seeks entry into the ward.
By the aforesaid suggestion not only the inconvenience and the embarrassment are eliminated but also the hospital source could yield an extra income for their welfare activities.
I hope this would catch the eye of the Minister of Health for necessary action.
J. M. Siddique
The Sri Lanka Cricket Team has been subjected to the most humiliating and degrading treatment from the time they arrived in Australia. One would have thought that the 'chucking issue' regarding Mutthiah Muralitharan had been laid to rest after the panel of experts appointed by the ICC had given their verdict after a comprehensive study. However, this was not to be, and the Australian media and spectators have teamed up to harass and taunt our cricketers during their current tour of Australia. Our cricketers have conducted themselves admirably during these trying circumstances.
Arjuna Ranatunge acted the only way he could and should have when Umpire Emerson called Murali quite unnecessarily for chucking. At least part of the blame for these most unfortunate happenings must go to the Australian Cricket Board. They should have ensured that the umpires who called Murali on the previous tour did not officiate in the Sri Lanka matches on the current tour.
No matter what happens on this tour, this is the time for the entire country to stand by our heroic cricket team. On their return home, the cricket team should be given a welcome more rousing than the welcome given on their return after the world cup victory. Let the country demonstrate that we honour and respect our cricketers. Let the Australian cricket board and public know that we are solidly behind them. Let this also be our protest to the Australian public for their most unfortunate behaviour.
Let us hope the Sports Ministry organizes the most rousing welcome home for our cricketers with crowds lining the streets, garlands, bouquets, motorcade and the lot. The Cricket team certainly deserves this for the manner in which they have conducted themselves in the face of such provocative and humiliating treatment.
Old Sailor,
Kirulapone.
