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Letters to the Editor
9th August 1998 |
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Contents
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A ridiculous state of affairsThe residents of Colombo who were harassed, inconvenienced and restricted to their households for the 50th Independence Day celebrations had to put up with the same nonsense for the SAARC Summit. This was a summit of mainly Third World countries and decisions taken here have no global implication whatsoever. Nobody in the rest of the world is even interested in this summit. Decisions taken at the last summit have still to be implemented like the abolition of visas for travel between SAARC countries. These conferences are just used to boost the ego of the host nation. Colombo hosted a SAARC Summit in 1991 but the city was not shut-down. This shows that the security situation is worse than what it was in 1991 inspite of Mr. Ratwatte raising the Sri Lankan flag in Jaffna. Transport of goods to and from port were hampered due to road colosures. Deliveries of goods within the city were affected. Did the economy have to slow down for the duration of the SAARC Summit? Galle Road from Methodist College was closed from July 27. Residents and office workers in that area were expected to get police passes. In developed countries the people affected would have sued for violation of people's privacy and rights in this manner. What about the private schools in the area? The government schools could close down and have the holidays in August reduced. However as a parent of children going to private schools I prefer to have an un-interrupted August holiday. The Taj Hotel was closed to the public for two weeks even prior to the summit. Does the government compensate shareholders for the loss of revenue? For six weeks before the summit the hotel was guarded by government security personnel. They have every right to check your vehicle as it could be carrying a bomb. But why do they want to check your ID? If your place of birth is Jaffna (LTTE) or Matara (JVP) does it mean that you are a terrorist? They ask you what your business is at the Taj. I don't see what business it is of a government security guard as to what business I have in a private hotel. When guests attend a wedding where a VVIP is attending, they are asked to show their invitations to the security. If they have not brought their invitations they are asked what their relationship is to the bride or bridegroom. This is a ridiculous state of affairs which never prevailed before. If I am attending a wedding I don't have to explain who invited me to someone in a uniform. The shooting of a school van in Moratuwa was only to be expected. Sometimes the sentries stand in the shade of the pavement and expect a motorist travelling fast in the centre of the road to spot them. If they expect a motorist to stop, the sentry should stand in the middle of the road. The OIC Moratuwa says that only two policemen at the checkpoint were trained to shoot. He claims that none of the others could shoot straight. Why are they then let loose on the public? Also at night they carry torches with hardly any battery power. Surely with a large budget, the defence authorities can afford more powerful flashlights! All over Colombo there are checkpoints, sandbags and sand barrels. When the foreign correspondents covering the summit flash these pictures across the world, would any foreign investor even think of investing in Sri Lanka? Even the Taj Hotel looked like a military camp. The staff were made to live in the Hotel for four days. Isn't this a violation of one's rights under the Constitution? It is also amusing to note that a special committee has been formed to look into the harassment of Tamils at checkpoints. Apparently guidelines were given to checkpoints in September last year but these are not being followed. Does it take the authorities ten months to realize that its instructions are not being followed? Perhaps the impending provincial council election and the minority vote have something to do with this sudden awakening. After the Battle of Britain where a handful of British pilots took on the might of the German Air Force and defeated it so as to foil Hitler's invasion of Britain, Sir Winston Churchill remarked, "Never in the field of human endeavour has so much been owed by so many to so few". When motorists in Colombo sit and curse in traffic jams caused by SAARC Churchill's saying could be re-phrased as follows - Never has so much suffering been caused to so many (the motorists) by so few (The defence authorities). R. Wijesekera,
Operating on Paul to heal Peter!The recent front page reports on the Doctors' strike at Anuradhapura speaks volumes for what their attitude is : One caption reads: "GMOA claims that the strike was totally successful." The very adjacent caption goes on: "If demands are not met, strike will continue." So what is the measure of success? The number of patients who suffered! Not the solution to the problem. This time the culprit is not even the Ministry - but one of their own, refusing to allow expansion of surgical facilities. Surely there was a higher authority that could have intervened to bring on an amicable solution? To bring the facilities to the patients the doctors penalize the patients not the superintendent. This is like operating on Paul to heal Peter! As a Medical doctor, I appeal to the GMOA - stop the strikes. You may show results - but can you ever rectify the damage caused by a simple lung infection untreated in a child, for one day, with all your achievements? It is just not fair to penalize the patients for no fault of theirs. They dare not protest, for fear of not being treated tomorrow. But how do you all live with a conscience that knows that a child died, a mother became blind, a man became invalid because you struck? We all know the long- term effect of delayed treatment - though the laymen do not know. We may boast that all urgent cases were treated - but could you let your child take the risk of not being treated of a cough, which might lead to pneumonia tomorrow? We forget that irrespective of our short sighted victories retribution does come back to every perpetrator of crime! Whatever the argument may be to justify the strike, there is absolutely no excuse for making the patients suffer for no fault of theirs. Surely there is a better way? Surely there is enough brainpower within the GMOA for a little bit of lateral thinking? If there is a will, there is always a way. Where is the will? Dr. Mareena Thaha Reffai
Bad, bad, badHow fast is the postal service in Sri Lanka working? There is an inordinate delay in the despatch and delivery of letters. The postal service has not yet returned to normalcy after the strike. Although several letters have appeared in the media, the postal authorities seem to have not yet streamlined the postal service to its former position. In the interest of the Public the Media Minister should step in to rectify the situation to alleviate our difficulties, since the Inland Service is terribly bad, not to speak about the overseas service. V. Gnanesampanthen
A near missLast Saturday night, hot with the shooting of a private van being blamed on the Police, there was yet another display of boredom and lethargy, which might well have led to disaster if not for my alertness. I was on my way to attend a dinner in Pamankada Road with my wife and two daughters. The time was 8.15 p.m. and it had rained earlier the road was wet and also glistening with the lights of vehicular traffic. As all concerned motorists do, I too slowed down at the check point and not seeing any reactions from the sentry on duty, prepared to move on with my journey, when I noticed in the corner of my eye, the raised naked hand of the duty sentry, beckoning me to stop. His gesture was almost unnoticed owing to the head lights of oncoming traffic and if not for my vigilance, I would surely have continued with my journey, completely oblivious of his request. I was gripped with anger upon quick realisation of the near disaster. So I put down my shutter and spoke loudly to the sentry to have something visible in his hands to stop traffic in failing light. However, I stopped and complained to the other two persons on the road, a PC and a WPC. The PC then walked up to the other sentry PC and picked up his STOP sign from the ground and handed it over to him saying something. I hope that the OIC Wellawatta would take remedial action to avoid injury to a) innocent civilians by the incompetence of sentries on duty and b) its own image as a competent administrative force engaged in looking after innocent civillians. A. Goonawardene. |
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