Ushering good governance and peace

 By Kishali Pinto Jayawardene

Budget boost for good governance: Finance Minister K.N. Choksy presenting the UNF government's first budget. Pic by Gemunu Wellage

In this process of healing for the People's Alliance, there are only two basic rules for the moment. The first is to cease talking about the evils of previous UNP regimes, if only for the reason that the continuing overkill engaged in by the Kumaratunga administration on this count has now become nothing if not more than slightly silly. The second - which is perhaps even harder - is learning all over again, how to work with democratic structures and processes such as an independent judiciary and a critically responsive media and not against them. The irony was that when Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga came to power in 1994, this country had an independent judiciary bidding fair to equal the strength of the Indian Supreme Court at that time and a media that strongly supported the Kumaratunga administration. The clumsy dismantling of one and the unnecessary antagonising of the other was, in retrospect, the beginning of the end for the People's Alliance government. And justly so, one might add.

In retrospect also, the gradual co-opting of civil society, which had played a vital role in the changeover of government in 1994, was highly counterproductive in that the spaces for apolitical criticism were drawn in. Whatever criticism of the Kumaratunga administration that persisted began to be regrettably personalised to the extent of virtual paranoia. This, in essence, was what went so notably wrong during the past seven years, spilling over to all areas of governance and electoral politics. And the lessons learnt therein in how not to rule a country are imperative not only for the Opposition but the Government as well.

For the moment however, as the Opposition engages in bandaging its electoral wounds, the true testing time has started ticking for the United Front Government. In this context, it was refreshing to see that this week's Budget, part from the fiscal reliefs that it announced, also contained provisions that were interesting from a civil society perspective. The policy measures reiterated the importance of the press as a neutral watchdog, reporting on the manner in which Sri Lanka's scarce public funds are utilised and promised the abolition of the criminal defamation law. The measures also stated that the policy of the United Front Government is to ensure that the state media will act impartially and that the citizens of this country will be able to obtain information on how their public finances are being used. In addition, the policy measures promised that the concerns of women will be better reflected in our political system and that the Government "will consider" making specific provision for women representation in elected bodies when the amendments to the existing electoral systems are discussed by political parties.

While these promises added a bit of spice to the Budget, the following months will demonstrate the effective commitment of the United Front Government to practically ensuring that the status quo changes. As far as the media is concerned, the overhauling of the criminal defamation law and the enacting of the Draft Freedom of Information Law that has been proposed by the media and civil society, is of relatively little controversy, given the long process of lobbying that preceded this. However, the ensuring of the impartiality of the state media would be a far more difficult task, given that the United Front Government has, up to date, wholly avoided the idea of broadbasing of the ownership of the Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited (ANCL). In that respect, it has however, certainly been more forthright than its predecessor in government which promised broadbasing (and in fact, appointed a committee which recommended the same) but went on to do exactly the opposite. At present, the relevant Law (the Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited Special Provisions Law No 28 of 1973 as amended by law No 23 of 1974 and Act No 35 of 1981) stipulates a clear statutory duty in the Minister of Media to issue written directions to the Public Trustee for initiation of a broadbasing process. These directions have not been issued by Ministers of Media in successive governments for the past twenty eight years, thus perpetrating a continuing illegal status quo regarding which nobody seems to be much concerned about.

Equally, the guaranteeing of greater women representation in political bodies (again a piquant addition to the Budget policy measures) requires specific legal reform. This week's local government elections demonstrated that despite the hype and the hoopla, the percentage amounts of women in the new local government bodies would be as low - if not lower - than the previous elections. Reform to the electoral laws requires therefore a specific percentage of reserved seats for women, commencing from the local government levels to provincial and then parliamentary levels if this country is not to become infamous for its lack of women representation in the South Asian sub continent. India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and even Nepal far outstrip Sri Lanka in this respect, a sad fact that ought to make our policy makers sit up and take some notice in the first instance. Bringing back an earlier provision in the Draft Constitution that promised some measure of representation in nominations for women at local government elections would be highly insufficient in this sense.

These - and others- are all issues that are underscored by the electoral mandate given this week which while being for peace, is also, as was recently editorialised, overwhelmingly a mandate for good governance. 

To lose sight of one in reaching out for the other would only negate the effects of both. As this country approaches the Sinhala-Tamil New Year, this would be an appropriate time to hasten processes relating to both - and be ruthless in dealing with an obdurate Presidency which complains about high electoral violence yet deliberately refrains from engaging in the processes in the setting up of an Elections Commission which might have exercised greater control over the electoral processes than a deeply politicised police force. These are the contradictions that bedevil the People's Alliance. 

It will be to the greater good of the country therefore if-in the event of such contradictions continuing-that the United Front government engages in immediate and decisive action to bring about the Constitutional Council, by an 18th Amendment if it needs be, as a first and imperative step for good governance, rather than allow itself to be constitutionally checkmated in this manner.

SLMA for human rights of patients

Though many such gatherings in recent years have been sponsored by drug companies the organisers of this SLMA symposium held at the Hotel Lanka Oberoi decided to steer away from questionable ethical practices and obtain sponsorship from the Center for Policy Alternatives.

In a keynote speech the medical luminary Prof. Carlo Fonseka pointed out that the peoples' right to good health did not merely mean the absence of disease-that was only a symptom. Instead the right to good health meant fullness and wholeness in physical health, mental health and social health in terms of right relationships with others and the environment. Prof. Fonseka in a philosophical analysis said all human kind from the beginning of history was essentially searching for a way to overcome suffering and attain happiness. Some basic needs like continuity and security, protection and belonging, freedom and good health were vital aspects of that search. He said medical professionals and others in the health care service needed to rise above self interest and commit themselves to work for the well-being of the people. 

Eminent jurist Christie Weeramanthri made a shocking revelation about the state of the world today with the gap between the rich and the poor widening to explosive proportions. He said that as much as 50% of the resources intelligence and potential of modern science was now linked to the military establishment in producing weapons and other means of mass destruction. In horrifying contrast only one per cent of resources of modern science including medical science has been channelled to vital areas like the alleviation of poverty. Human Rights activist Sunila Abeysekera and others also outlined the need to work towards the empoverment of the patient and make patient welfare the foundation of the medical service. They called on doctors to treat patents with compassionate affection.

Prof. Susirith Mendis, Dean of the Ruhunu University's Medical Faculty and patron of the Galle human rights movement alerted society to an axis that was subtlety undermining or eroding human rights of people. Tragically the axis comprised the courts, the chief medical officer and the police inspector. Prof. N. Sivakumaran of the Colombo university's Faculty of Law and a member of the Human Rights Commission challenged the ethics of doctors when examining torture victims. He said there were several cases where two doctors who examined one victim gave totally different observations on the physical injuries indicating that one of them was not telling the truth. The speakers also challenged the ethics of top doctors involved in the current case where medical certificates had been issued to the Ratwatte family. 

A parallel symposium on the rational prescription and use of medicinal drugs was also held by the SLMA on the same day. The focus there was the provision of safe and effective drugs to the people at the lowest possible cost under generic or cost-effective brand names. In the latest case of exploitation by drug companies a patient warded at a private hospital said he had been prescribed a drug costing about ninety rupees to be taken daily for two months. Fortunately the patient checked with a Osu-Sala list and found that the same drug was available under a generic name at less than Rs. 5/- a tablet. If he had bought the tablet under the brand name he would have paid as much as Rs. 5000 more for the two month quota, Eminent eye-surgeon Dr. Reggie Seiman has also written to The Sunday Times pointing out how a drug agent has manipulated the market to obtain double the price from patients for an anesthetic use for an eye operation. In this backdrop consumer affairs minister Ravi Karunanayake is taking urgent steps to set up about 150 CWE pharmacies where medicinal drugs could be sold under generic or low cost brand names. The minister has also sought clarification from the GMOA and the SLMA whether all doctors will be ready to do justice to patients by prescribing drugs mainly under generic or low cost brand names.