27th September 1998

No patent for trees

The article titled "Taste of our own medicine" deals with an important subject, which is confusing the public. My investigations show that a tree or plant cannot be patented. I would love to have a universal patent for a jak tree or a coconut tree.

With regard to the claimed patent on Kothala Himbutu there is unfortunately a misunderstanding. A group of Japanese scientists have done a study on Kothala Himbutu and have extracted a compound Salacinol. The research paper is said to have been copyrighted by the American Chemical Society. There is a big difference between a copyright of a scientific paper and a patent. Thousands of scientific papers are copyrighted everyday, even by our own scientists. All it means is that you cannot reproduce that same article without giving the authors due acknowledgement.

The Code of Intellectual Property Act No 52 of 1979 clearly defines what is patentable.

Section 60. states "An invention is patentable if it is new involves an inventive step and is industrially acceptable.

Section 61 ( I ) an invention is new if it is not anticipated by prior art.

Patents are very .privileged facilities, which protect scientists who do invent something, which is totally original. Salacinol in its present state has no original man made properties, to warrant a patent. As a compound it is only a glucosidase inhibitor. Salacia reticulata (Kothala Himbutu) has been traditionally used for the same purpose. In other words, it was anticipated "by prior art". There is therefore no way that Salacinol can be patented. The research of these scientists however, will take us further to combat diabetes, which is reaching epidemic proportions worldwide.

With regard to the other items the article claims were patented, as a result of plants being smuggled out of Sri Lanka, I give some information which is very revealing. With the exception of a few plants, the other plants are not endemic. Most of them were identified in the last century and quite a few decades ago and relevant information on these plants had been deposited in research centres abroad. It should also be noted that several of the plants were introduced to the country from abroad and are not even indigenous. Let us also not forget that tea, rubber and coffee from which we have got and are getting enormous incomes have been introduced from abroad.

All this information however does not prevent us from asserting our rights and getting the maximum benefits for our biodiversity, which is our due through such instruments as the WTO, Trade Intellectual Property Rights and the Convention on Bio-diversity.

These are agreements, which have a legal binding and are internationally accepted. A lot of hard work and realistic intellectual input is necessary to safeguard our interests.

C. Samaraweera
Boralesgamuwa

That meteoric rise in the Police Dept.

I write with reference to the letter in The Sunday Times of 13.9.98 under the headline "That Promotion" written by Kumar Abeygoonewardena, son of a former IGP, the late Eleric Abeygoonewardena.

"Situation Report" of Sunday Times of 30.8.98 refers to three precedents to justify the appointment of Lucky Kodituwakku as the IGP, in preference to five other Senior DIGs, namely Dharmadasa Silva, Kingsley Wickramasuriya, Gamini Gunawardana, Merril Gunaratna and A. S. Seneviratne. H.M.B.K. Kotakadeniya, Senior DIG had by way of a Fundamental Rights Application No. 866/96 challenged the seniority of Lucky Kodituwakku in the Supreme Court and this appointment of IGP had been made while this application was still pending. Mr. Kotakadeniya who had joined as a probationary ASP on 1.10.66 had not been given his due seniority and Mr. Kodituwakku who had joind the service one month after Mr. Kotakadeniya, on 1. 11. 66, had been placed above Mr. Kotakadeniya in seniority.

When the history of the Police Department is written at some future date, the name of Lucky Kodituwakku would be written in letters of gold as the officer who had obtained a meteoric rise in the Police Department.

What is most surprising is the attempt made by some Defence Ministry officials to justify this appointment on the ground that there are three precedents, namely the appointment of the late M.W.F. Abeykoon, a CAS officer, as the IGP followed by Eleric Abeygoonewardena and Ana Senevirtne.

As far as the appointment of Mr. Abeykoon is concerned, the late S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike as the Prime Minister did not want to create dissension and dis-satisfaction in the Police Department, resulting in some officers leaving the service, in the event of his appointing a junior officer to fill the post of IGP and he, therefore, appointed the late Mr. Abeykoon for this post. If such an appointment had been made instead of appointing a very junior officer who should in fact be 7th in order of seniority, there would not have been dissension and dis-satisfaction in the Police Department, resulting in two most Senior DIGs tendering their papers for retirement.

In the case of Eleric Abeygoonewardena, he was an excellent Police Officer although he had joined the service as a Sub Inspector. He had, by dint of hardwork and honesty and efficiency, risen to the highest rank in the Police Department and this appointment was welcomed by all the DIGs, including A.C. Dep, who was senior to Mr. Abeygoonewardena as a DIG. There were no resignations and or retirements from the service over this appointment.

With regard to the appointment of Ana Seneviratne over Rudra Rajasingham, it must be said to the credit of Mr. Seneviratne that he was a model Police Officer and there was no Police Officer at that time who could hold a candle to Mr. Seneviratne. He joined as a probationary ASP along with Rudra Rajasingham on the same day. Mr. Seneviratne possessed an LLB (Hons) Degree from the University of Peradeniya and in the words of Goldsmith "Nothing did he touch which he did not adorn."

So that, does the Defence Ministry official who granted an interview to The Sunday Times and cited the above three precedents still maintain that this appointment was made on the basis of 'merit' as in the case of the above officers. When Eleric Abeygoonewardena and Ana Seneviratne were promoted as IGP, the rank and file received them with open arms and there were no resignations or retirements from the service in protest. What is more, Rudra Rajasingham was also subsequently promoted as IGP by the then UNP Government so that it cannot be said that the then Government victimised this officer.

I wonder whether the Ministry official who had justified this appointment is aware of the attainments of some of the Senior DIGs who were above Lucky Kodituwakku.

Dr. Dharmadasa Silva is a Graduate of the Colombo University and obtained his Ph.D from the University of Sri Jayewardenepura.

Kingsley Wickramasuriya is a Graduate of the University of Peradeniya and holds an M. Sc Degree. At the time of his tendering papers for retirement, he was writing his thesis for the Ph.D.

Mr. Wickramasuriya who received his education at Royal College, Colombo, entered the University of Peradeniya and obtained his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Economics. He also obtained University Colours in Boxing, Wrestling, Athletics and Swimming, in addition to Military training and a commission as a Second Lieutenant in the Volunteer Force prior to his joining as a probationary ASP. At the open competitive examination for the recruitment of probationary ASPs he was placed first in order of merit and obtained full marks at the Viva. He was also promoted as DIG over three senior SSPs above him, namely Dharmadasa Silva, P.B. Ekanayaka and A.J. Iddamalgoda, on merit.

The other Senior DIGs who were senior to the present IGP were all graduates of the Universities of Sri Lanka and not from Indian Universities or Madras. It must be said to the credit of Mr. Wickramasuriya that when he was sent to Jaffna as SSP, he proceeded without any protest and the late, A. Amirthalingam, the then Leader of the Opposition, paid him a glowing tribute in Parliament as the best SP that they had in Jaffna.

The appointment of Lucky Kodituwakku has resulted in the Government losing the services of two of the most Senior DIGs, at a time when their services are most required. They have tendered their papers for retirement as no officer with self respect could work under a junior officer.

A retired Police Officer.
Colombo

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