Letters to the Editor

• First shelled, then gassed, now 'coaled'?
• Food for thought
• Crossing barriers to protect art
• Bring in UN resolution to protect Heritage sites
• Don't turn big match into political pandu
• Ups and downs of common bread

First shelled, then gassed, now 'coaled'?

The only complaint about the town was the smoggy haze from the mines. 

As the years rolled by, with locomotives switching from coal, to steam and later to electricity, a slump hit the coal-market. Unemployment and economic crises strangled coal producing countries. They had to find fresh markets or perish. 

Before long they dangled the coal-carrot, as a means of cheap power, before developing nations, whose short-sighted leaders swallowed it.

This carrot seems to be on offer to us too. Cheaply, for a start, and once the bait is swallowed, these altruistic, coal producers are sure to raise their prices, blaming world-market trends, like the way we were 'shelled' and 'gassed' recently by a multinational. 

This would be in addition to the atmospheric pollution which resulted in a high incidence of lung-ailments in Newcastle, as pointed out to me by a medic there in the seventies. 

In north Nepal's village of Dolol Ghat, bordering Tibet, I have seen farmers using improvised hand-powered machines to extract hydropower from the river Sun Kosi, for agriculture. It maybe worthwhile exploring other possible sources of energy like solar power, on a household basis, and/or tapping our plentiful river ways like in Nepal before rushing into large-scale ventures like coal-plants.

Sam Wickramasinghe
Minuwangoda

Food for thought

At the end of the period, wanting them to practise speech, I asked each pupil individually, "What will you eat in the interval?" Those three girls told me what they had brought. But when the bell rang for the interval and the pupils grabbed their tiffin, the three girls sat under a tree to watch the younger children playing . They had nothing to eat. 

A.K. Lalith Kumara
Lihiriyagama

Crossing barriers to protect art

The stained glass - more than two centuries old - depicting the Nativity, Crucifixion and Ascension was shattered due to the impact of the LTTE bomb at the Dalada Maligawa. 

H.K.A. Gunasekera of the Moratuwa University and Prof. Nimal Silva had undertaken the near-impossible task of piecing together the fragmented bits of glass. Our heartfelt thanks go to Mr. Gunasekera, a Buddhist who transcending all barriers has performed a Herculean task. Neither he nor Prof. Silva have sought monetary gain or publicity for their effort. 

As L.B. Senaratne aptly puts it: "Their work of sheer determination with the sole intention of preserving this beautiful piece of art has crossed all religious and racial barriers and for that a nation must revere these silent heroes." 

Dilhara Liyanage
Kandy

Bring in UN resolution to protect Heritage sites

Yet they face the risk of destruction by fanatics who may capture power in the countries where they are sited. 

The plight of the Bamiyan Buddha statues is an example. 

The UN at its next session should find ways and means of protecting these World Heritage sites. 

Even military action should be resorted to, should the need arise. 

President Chandrika Kumaratunga should show the civilized world the concern of civilized people by presenting a resolution to this effect. 

Jayadeva Mayadunne
Anuradhapura 

Don't turn big match into political pandu

If Dissanayake senior had had the innate sense to send his son to S.Thomas' and the latter the intelligence to enter it- well Royal too-he could have bought himself a ticket as others did, to watch the match.

But no. He behaves in a boorish manner as ministerial progeny are wont to do these days and apparently even threatens to have the match stopped. No nondescript Dissanayake is going to stop the Royal-Thomian, let Dissanayake junior rest assured.

But what concerns me more than the name-wielding and childish behaviour of the sons of ministers (and high officials too) is the craven manner of the two officials who bowed obsequiously at the first mention of a minister's name.

While accepting that they were responsible for allowing S.B. Dissanayake's son- and some of his friends too, mind you-into the grounds to watch the match, neither Mr. Tennekoon nor Mr. Peiris offers any justifiable explanation for this kowtowing except mentioning that it was a minister's son.

Are we to take it that this is the only reason why junior Dissanayake and his friends were let loose on the grounds? So what if he was a minister's son? Does that give him special dispensation to watch the match free? Has the Royal-Thomian match been converted into a soft-touch for politicians and their offspring?

May I ask Mr. Tennekoon and Mr. Peiris, who appear to be falling over each other to be "gracious", whether they would accord the same facilities if the sons and daughters of other ministers turned up at the gates of the cricket board demanding admission? Where does one draw the line?

Seeing that Sri Lanka has the largest cabinet of ministers in the world, we would surely need a den larger than that of Ali Baba's to accommodate all the kith and kin.

As an old Thomian, I resent the attitude of Mr. Tennekoon (who was junior to me in school) and Mr. Peiris. The bane of this country is that officials have been trying to sell themselves for a mess of political potage.

I hope the Royal-Thomian cricket match which has stood for well over a century, will not be turned into a political pandu by macho ministerial sons who believe they are god's gift to society. It is time they were told they have no special privileges-not at the Royal Thomian match, anyway.

Neville de Silva
London

Ups and downs of common bread

Dr. (Mrs.) Mayondi Rajapaksha
Karapitiya

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