22nd February 1998

People & Events

A place for special children

Facilities for 'special ' children are very few i Sri Lanka. Families find it hard to find schools or nurseries that can provide the specialised care and attention required. The majority of such children are in isolation at home, and the parents cannot provide the specialised teaching, interaction and skills they need.

The Individual Development School was established for this purpose under the Canon Christopher Trust, in 1994. Canon Ratnayake is a well known educationist, and former Headmaster of Trinity College Junior School, Kandy. The School was meant for children adolescents, and adults (age 6-35) with mind to moderate learning disabilities and disorders. The Canon Christopher Ratnayake Trust has NGO status and is run on a non profit making basis, administered by five trustees.

I glanced through an end of term report, and was amazed at the varied subjects and skills the children are taught. The report gave a very a comprehensive record of the child's achievements in language and communication skills, maths, and even computer usage. In the non academic field, the curriculum includes music and dancing drama, sports art, home science self awareness independence and communication skills, fine and gross motor skills, concentration and so on.

The aim of the School is to enable the child to move in society - within limits of course. The boys are taught carpentry and vocational training. They are taken on excursions, shopping, bus travel etc. I met two lots of children the older ones all came up to me, shook hands and told me their names. They were busy turning out Christmas decorations for their end of term prize giving. The room had pictures on the walls, created by the students - some very beautiful ones. They obviously enjoyed their handiwork, supervised by two teachers. The younger children were having their morning snack. They too, told me their names. One asked if I was a new teacher.

What was obvious was the loving relationship between teachers and children. To relate to a special child, one must be compassionate caring, and have special qualities oneself. At I.D.E. School just now, there are 17 children, (they can accommodate 50) and six teachers. The student/teacher ratio is 1-4, so the school provides individual attention and approach.

The teachers are trained in either Montessori preschool teacher method, or trained in child psychology. A Psysiotherapist visits the school depending on the needs of different students.

A child seeking admission is the subject of evaluation by the Principal, after which, if it is felt that the child or adult could benefit from I.D.E. they attend as extended assessment group, as agreed with the parents. At the end of this, a decision is made about admission, involving principal, class teacher, parents and the School Social worker,. Parents are expected to make a contribution to cover monthly running costs.

This is a very worthy cause, for a section of our population who are usually passed over and forgotten. Public support for this worthy cause will be a great encouragement to the dedicated persons, who are striving to better the lot of those who are marginalised by Society.

Nalini Ismail

Towards a culture of peace and justice

We have assembled here this Sunday morning, in anticipation of the 50th Anniversary of Sri Lanka's Independence, which was regained after four and a half centuries of colonial rule, to praise and give thanks to God for the many blessings received over the years.

We have this opportunity through the kindness of the Reverend Gerald Swenson and the Bethesda Church Council. The Permanent Mission of Sri Lanka to the UN is deeply grateful for this gesture of goodwill towards the Sri Lankan community on what is surely a historic occasion for us. Allow me to convey to you Sir, and the Church Council our sincere thanks.

As we look back at the years that have gone by, we have many reasons to be glad and even modestly proud of what has been achieved. Yet, while it is an occasion for celebration, there are sobering thoughts that prevent us from being unduly elated. As with most human activity, there is a down side and a dark side which casts a shadow on our happiness, which we cannot ignore, unless we choose to live in a world of fantasy. Speaking for myself and perhaps for many others like-minded, l cannot help sharing with you a certain heaviness of heart and a sense of loss, at the tragic events which have overtaken our country where even places of worship of the highest sanctity are not spared in massive waves of terror and destruction. During the past two decades or so, violence and bloodshed have swept our country, once known to be a land of peace and tranquility, endowed with much beauty and loveliness, where the stranger encountered a friendly and generous people.

This paradisal state of affairs that once existed was, not the result of some chance happening or a stroke of fortune. It was because the Country and its People were heirs to an ancient civilization that had lasted two thousand five hundred years, where a culture of tolerance prevailed.

It was also a land where the four great religions of the world had nourished and enriched their spiritual life and where the several ethnic groups had blended to create a mosaic of cultures, existing for many years in harmony with each other.

In more modern times, it may be remembered that we were among the earliest practising democracies of Asia, having commenced this experiment in government while yet under colonial rule. After Independence, we enjoyed good governance and the population, which trebled during the last 50 years, had come to enjoy a relatively high physical quality of life, remarkable in the Third World.

What then is the reason for our present predicament? The causes for the unhappy turn of events in recent times are manifold. Perhaps the blame has to be shared by many - both living and dead. I do not wish to embark on the invidious task of analysing the causes in this short space of time and which, in any case, is bound to be contentious. But I wish to share with you some thoughts on significant phenomena, that would strike the perceptive observer. The conflict in our country has often been described as an "ethnic conflict".

While this may not accurately depict its real nature or its complexity, it is undoubtedly true that there is an aggrieved ethnic group among our People, the extremist elements of which are engaged in an armed conflict with the established authorities of the State.

It may be disputed however whether there yet remain unremedied grievances or whether the articulated complaints are merely a convenient mode for expressing the group's unfulfilled aspirations of nationhood and not really an attempt to seek relief. But there is no doubt that a political settlement that is fair and just to all has to be reached to resolve these problems.

A salient fact that emerges is that the crisis in Sri Lanka is not something unique or an isolated occurrence but is symptomatic of a world-wide phenomenon of ethno-nationalism that has increasingly come to the fore during this century. Quite often it is seen as a quest for self determination, sometimes more radically expressed as a right to a separate nationhood and a right of secession.

Although such movements often portend threats to world peace the international community has unfortunately failed and neglected to resolve the question of their legitimacy or secure their containment from the time of the League of Nations right up to the present day. In the last analysis, the question is whether there is or is not a viable alternative to the demand for a separate State by a discontented sub-national group, if indeed that demand faithfully represents the genuine wishes of the vast majority of that community.

I wish this morning to focus briefly on a moral aspect of this question from a Christian perspective for the soundness of any political movement depends on its moral underpinnings. I believe that from an ethical standpoint both nationalism and its twin concept ethno-nationalism have to be viewed with great caution. They strike at the very root of one of the great spiritual truths proclaimed by most religions namely, the Universal Brotherhood of all human beings.

The relentless pursuit of ethno-nationalism, breeds ethnocentrism and chauvinism, casting a blight on many multi-ethnic states such as ours. Linked to imagined notions of political and cultural superiority it is indistinguishable from racism and is the root cause of group conflict.

What is most unfortunate is its exploitation for the self-aggrandizement of political elites in multiracial societies in their lust for power, regardless of the disastrous effects resulting in increasing tensions and erupting in full scale violence and bloodshed. Campaigns of hate lead to persecution and oppression and resistance to it takes the form of counter violence. So when we sometimes talk in glowing terms of nationalism, or the nationalistic spirit in its varied forms we have to be cautious lest we help spread a malignant disease. Ethno-nationalism does not regenerate the nation but causes its insidious degeneration and eventual disintegration, as many ethnic conflicts all over the world bear witness.

I believe that the prevalent culture of violence needs to be transformed into a culture of peace and justice for all with an emphasis on those civilizing values which transcend racial divisions. Considering the inter-national environment which is characterized by insecurity, conflict, socioeconomic turbulence and militarization, our desire to create a culture of peace is no easy task. It demands a radical change in our attitude to our fellow beings. This is possible only if we are ready to subdue our egotistic claims and desires and draw upon the spiritual resources bequeathed to us through the four great religions of the world - practised by our People, and is part of our heritage.

The virtues and values necessary to ground a culture of peace are primarily, sacrificial love, compassion, tolerance of our differences and the sense of universal brotherhood. We must shun selfish desires, all partisanship and the craze for material satisfactions which spell death to the life of the spirit. There is a vital need for both domestic and international relations to be infused by higher standards of ethical and moral behaviour, human understanding and a sense of empathy.

The only hope for our redemption from the unending cycle of violence that has gripped our land is that, while resisting evil and oppression, we all join together to help create a culture of peace and justice for all. Let us all then, look forward to the dawning of that day in the years to come, when the promises of God envisioned in Isaiah will be fulfilled, a time and age when in the words of the prophet, "the wolf shall live with the sheep, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; the calf and the young lion shall grow up together, and a little child shall lead them".

(Isaiah 11.6)

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