|
Readers please note it is essential that all
Letters to the Editor carry the full name and address of the writer, even if it
has to appear under a pseudonym. This applies to all email letters as well.
India’s southern comfort
Of Sri Lanka’s Northern Tamils
and L.T.T.E’s ‘tiger’ terrorist
Campaign-comforts of Tamil Nadu’s politics!
History slyly reprieves and repeats
Amid a cliffhanger
Is India a push-over?
Irene de Silva
Colombo 5
Defeating terrorism - A prerequisite for peace
On Friday the 10th of this month a suicide bomber attacked Mr. Maitreepala
Sirisena’s (SLFP Gen. Secretary) vehicle on his return at Boralesgamuwa and he
was lucky to escape the bomb blast as he had changed the vehicle for the return
journey. Although he escaped death two innocent civilians who had been by the
road side had to sacrifice their lives.
It is only on the 6th of October- 4 days earlier that Major General Janaka
Perera and his beloved wife including 27 others were killed by a suicide bomber
of the LTIE at the sacred city of Anuradhapura which has been a centre for
Prabhakaran’s merciless death warrants since 1980s - shooting hundreds of school
children and innocent devotees worshiping the Sacred Bo- Tree gifted by India
itself over 2000 years ago.
Since India did not allow to wipe out the menace - the outfit which could have
been eradicated some 20 years ago saving the precious lives of many a local
politician including PM Rajiv Ghandi as well as President Premadasa who had
their sympathies at some time in their tenure of office.
No Sri Lankan is safe anywhere in the island as suicide bombers can attack
anywhere they wish. But South India is only concerned about the safety of the
Tamils in the north. The TNA has become a cat’s paw of the LTTE now and does not
stand for innocent Tamils. In these circumstances India should leave us alone
and let us solve our internal crisis.
May I say here, India should honour the five precepts of the peaceful
co-existence observed and practiced by the 1st Indians Prime Minister Sir
Jawahallal Nehru with the neighboring countries.
Let us hope for the better!
S. A. P. Subasinghe
Alawwa.
****
A pedestrian crossing the road
****
Overcrowded prisons - A waste of country’s resources
Recently it was reported that the prison’s chief had said that while the prisons
of the country could accommodate only about 10,000 prisoners, at present they
hold some 29,000, and that to reduce congestion the department is planning to
have more open prisons.
What a waste of resources. We have been visiting the Welikada prisons ladies’
section and we have found quite a few of them had been imprisoned for minor
offences such as inability to pay some debts or on suspicion of loitering. The
amount of payment required to free them is often a few thousands of rupees. Due
to their inability to pay this, they are being kept in the prison often for
years and the government pays thousands and thousands of rupees feeding,
clothing and providing medicine etc. for them. Some of them have even delivered
their children and the children too are growing among the criminals.
Specially considering the overcrowding in addition to the expenditure, it would
be much more prudent to warn those who have been imprisoned for minor offences
and set them free. This will also relieve a lot of heartaches in these people’s
families, where the spouse and the children suffer due to the absence of the
mother/father.
It will also be more effective to punish someone for minor offences by making
them do some labour which could profit the Prison Department. We, in our
country, have been following such ancient stupid practices without considering
reenacting new laws which will not only overcome the problems such as
overcrowding, but also be more effective, more productive and more beneficial to
the society and less destructive to the families. Hope the judges will remember
the overcrowding aspect when they issue punishments for offenders of law.
Dr. Mrs. Mareena Thaha Reffai
Dehiwela
****
A landmark case
I refer to the editorial of the ‘Daily News’ of 10.10.08, under the above
caption, which I am certain would be an eye-opener, mainly to most of our
politicians, who while in power forget their responsibilities, thereby misusing
the powers entrusted to them to acquire personal gain. This they do under the
pretext of developing the country, misusing the powers vested on them.
Accordingly, this ruling which is unique, becomes a landmark in the history of
our country, confirming that no one is above the law, which however was
interpreted otherwise upto now.
Hence the above ruling becomes a consolation and relief to the masses who
otherwise become the victims of such behaviour and actions.
The panel of Honourable Judges, including the Chief Justice who delivered the
above judgment, should be highly commended for the fearless, brave and impartial
judgement, while the prosecuting attorneys-at-law, including the petitioners
should also be thanked for making the above a reality, thereby, making same a
precedence to be followed in similar judgements in the future, safeguarding not
only the rights of the people, but also protecting the country as well.
Politicians in the future, I am certain, will think twice in handling public
matters, where they are only caretakers and not the owners, although some
presume to think likewise, where from now on the Supreme Court would have the
final say, and not the politicians, which, I must mention once again, is a
turning point in the history of our country. The above decision, I am certain,
would prevent the law makers from violating and twisting the law to suit their
own selfish motives, which are harmful to the people and country similar to the
one above. I trust the above would be a lesson not only to the public, but to
the private sector as well, who should be cautious in handling subjects they are
not familiar with, thereby evading similar situations tarnishing their image as
well.
I further believe, that the effects of this landmark judgement would derive many
healthy benefits to the country as well as the people in the future towards
their welfare and development including maintenance of law and order, discipline
and thereby curtailing large scale corruption, which is presently rampant in our
society.
Tommy Wanigesinghe
Kurunegala
****
The courage to fight corruption
Mr. Sugathapala Medis, in his early eighties, and Mr. R. M. B. Senanayake, in
his early seventies, have displayed civic consciousness, intelligence and
courage of a high order in taking up the question of the administrative,
executive and legal irregularities pertaining to The Water’s Edge matter. At an
age when most of our elder citizens have become anaesthetised into accepting all
kinds of chicanery, cruelty, crudity, violence, injustice and inefficiency
without protest, these two stalwarts rose up on behalf of the twenty million
long-suffering citizens of Sri Lanka and gave their time, energy, knowledge and
other resources to expose a huge fraud. In the process, they created an
opportunity for the highest Court in the land to shed fresh light on the
hitherto falsely held views regarding presidential immunity. The Supreme Court
also laid stress upon the compelling implications of the oaths taken by a
multitude of persons to obey and safeguard the Constitution, to observe the Rule
of Law, and to protect the public interest. We wish we could reward Medis and
Senanayake in some tangible way but, until such time as we are in a position to
do so, we are constrained to limit ourselves to wishing them good health and
long life to remain as beacons for the younger generations to emulate.
It was only in March 2006, following years of unending revelations in the Press,
that the Citizens’ Movement for Good Governance (CIMOGG) called for a
Presidential Commission to be appointed to inquire into The Water’s Edge matter
as well as a number of other questionable deals. If it was not for the media
taking vast risks in reporting on the acts and wrongdoings of those holding
power and wealth, CIMOGG would not even have known about any of the
misdemeanours listed. Among the media men and women who confront the most
unscrupulous rogues in our society, the public recognises the names of perhaps a
score or less, who are in constant danger, facing chilling threats when
investigating and reporting on the worst examples of corruption or inefficiency.
Many have been killed, or threatened so frighteningly that they have given up
journalism or left the country for good. Considering these facts, the minimal
action that we are entitled to expect in response to their courageous exposes is
that the IGP, the Attorney General and the Bribery Commission would follow up
vigorously on the information given in the media and take steps to carry out the
necessary investigations and prosecute the wrongdoers. Instead, these
authorities exhibit a lethargy that is not to be traced to our tropical heat but
some other source, which we fear is inimical to the People’s welfare. If there
are any shortcomings in our legislation that is tying down their hands, they
have had years and years to press government to make the necessary amendments to
the relevant laws. Taken together with the recent fiasco, where a police
investigator is credibly alleged to have been put under pressure by his
superiors to drop the investigations into a Rs.450 million fraud, the average
citizen is left with little option but to conclude that there is blanket
indifference at the highest levels of law enforcement or, alternatively, an
overpowering inclination to knavery. Thus, by inaction and/or deceit, the onus
for fighting injustice and corruption has been foisted on the backs of a few
fearless and conscientious citizens who cannot bear to remain indifferent and,
therefore, decide to take it upon themselves to seek justice from the Courts, at
much personal cost and trouble. They put themselves in great jeopardy for the
good of the nation, for no private benefit, and with practically no personal
security.
Sri Lanka is such a small country, with a highly inquisitive population, that it
is virtually impossible to protect public interest petitioners or witnesses by
giving them new identities within Sri Lanka, whatever new legislation is brought
in for this purpose. On the other hand, this country can obviously not afford to
give new identities and a safe life overseas to all those whistleblowers who
might be willing to uncover major acts of corruption, collect the necessary
documentary evidence, and give evidence in Court. The simple fact is that the
need for such protective measures would be greatly reduced if only there were
truly autonomous Independent Commissions to see to it that clean elections are
held, to ensure that the Public Service and the Police act with minimum
political bias, and human rights are safeguarded. This brings us back once again
to the non-implementation of the 17th Amendment, which has been one of CIMOGG’s
major concerns for the past three years and more.
When, in the year 2001, the 17th Amendment was passed, Parliament unanimously
accepted the principle that elections, human rights, the Public Service, the
Police, national finance and so on should be divorced from political
interference. The nauseating reality is that some of the same Parliamentarians
who voted to make the Independent Commissions truly independent now want to
bring these Commissions back under political control! Do we really deserve these
pathetic people’s representatives?
Our voters need to identify where their real interests lie and must,
consequently, continue to press for the immediate implementation of the 17th
Amendment, as it stands, warts and all. Subsequently, they must oppose all
attempts to amend it in any way that would reintroduce political interference,
which is the despicable lever that is employed to foster corruption in all its
manifestations. The public should also agitate for the passing of an effective
Right to Information Law because most crimes by politicians and public servants
would not take place at all if citizens were to have free access to documents
which are now purposefully hidden with a view to facilitating crooked schemes to
steal public property. National security and commercial confidentiality should
not, as a general rule, be accepted as grounds for the blanket censorship of
data that the public is entitled to have if it so wishes. Priority should be
given to maintaining transparency in all public sector transactions. Hence,
pressing for the immediate implementation of the 17th Amendment and agitating
for the passing of the Right to Information Law are, perhaps, the two most
worthwhile means by which we can help ourselves while showing real appreciation
of the efforts of people like Medis and Senanayake, as well as those endangered
media persons who work for little reward other than the satisfaction of fighting
for the truth.
Dr. A. C. Visvalingam
President, Citizens’ Movement for Good Governance
****
Forgotten ticket machine
The other day when I was travelling from Maradana to Fort (Bus Number NA 3741
plying on the Narahenpita –Fort route) I was not given a ticket by the
conductor. When the bus was reaching the Technical College Junction, where I had
to get down, I noticed a sticker pasted, facing the passengers, on the reverse
of the destination board, placed in the left hand corner of the bus which had
text in Sinhala , which read something like ‘valangu ticket pathak thibunoth
aseemitha rakshanyak’ – If one has a valid ticket then you are entitled to a
Comprehensive / Unlimited insurance cover . When I asked the conductor as to why
he is not issuing tickets, his reply was that he forgot to bring the ticket
machine !!! and he said that he will bring it in his next trip. He was very
courteous in his reply, maybe, he mistook me for someone influential or someone
related to a big shot in the Transport Sector. I could not continue the
conversation as I had reached my destination by that time and alighted from the
bus.
As regards the conductor not issuing tickets and not carrying the Insurer’s name
alongside the promise of aseemitha coverage, I would like the Transport
Authority and the Insurer to comment.
Mohamed Zahran
Colombo 3
****
Issuing of Halal Certificates
The All-Ceylon Jamiyyathul Ulema (Council of Theologians) has in public
statements claimed it is the sole authorised body to issue Halal certificates.
However, large number of Muslim are now perturbed over the reports that the
Council is issuing Halal Certificates for a payment of rupees two-and-a-half
lakhs. As these certificates have also been issued to a number of fast food
restaurants and chicken shops run by non-Muslims there is concern whether the
financial gain has been made at the expense of religious laws. Among the chicken
and meat firms given Halal certificate by the Jamiyyathul Ulema is one of the
largest importers and dealers of pork and pork products, while among the fast
food outlets displaying their Halal certificate is one where pork meals are also
served. The Council owes an explanation to the Muslim public as to how such
places were issued Halal certificates, and whether the payment of the large sum
to the Council overrides religious laws.
A.C. M. Salih
Dehiwela
****
Language media of seminars
It is encouraging to observe that adequate seminars / discussions are being held
at present to educate the public at large in respect of important matters such
as law, health, tax, statutory obligations, etc. However there is a suggestion
that may be taken into consideration. The language in which the seminar is to
beheld should be communicated in advance. Seminars / discussions could be held
in Sinhala, Tamil or English with or without translators. However the
participants should know this in advance (at the time of press release). This
ensures proper audience and marketability of the seminar. There have been
instances where, invitations were sent in all three languages but the seminars
were held in one language, without translators. This prevents active
participation and leads to frustration.
S. R. Balachandran
Council Member of the
National Chamber of Commerce of Sri Lanka
****
More on “A plea on behalf of pedestrians”
With reference to letter by Preneetha Perera of Moratuwa in the Island of
24.09.2008
I believe the Pedestrian Crossing as the name implies is a crossing mainly meant
for the pedestrians and they have the priority over vehicle owners who should
always respect this right and give way to them as they have the right of way
over the drivers on the crossings.
It should be remembered that the driver and other passengers are secure and safe
inside vehicles and it is pedestrians who run the risk of receiving injuries in
an accident on pedestrian crossings. Praneetha further says “only when there is
a lull in traffic movement could a pedestrian use the crossing.” There will
hardly be a lull on the present day busy roads.
The person behind the wheel always should be mindful of the pedestrians among
whom are elderly people, children and the disabled. He should respect their
right and observe rules of the road to the letter.
V. K. B. Ramanayake
Maharagama
****
Appreciation
Gerald Nanayakkara
Mr. Gerald Issidor Nanayakkara, Attorney-at-Law passed away on 19th July 2008
after a brief illness. Mr. Nanayakkara was born at Kotte on 5th August, 1935. He
studied at St. Thomas College, Kotte where he excelled in his studies. His first
place of employment was Cave and Company, Colombo. He later joined the Colombo
Municipal Council. In 1975 he was transferred to the Municipal Council of
Kalutara as the Chief Accountant.
Subsequently he was appointed as an Administrative Officer of the Printing
Division the Colombo Municipal Council and thereafter he became the Director of
the Old Town Hall. He retired from service as the Administrative Officer of the
Treasury’s Department of Colombo Municipal Council.
I came to know Mr. Nanayakkara in 1992 when he was working as the Administrative
Manager in Global Tours & Travels where I was working as a Tour Executive.
During our brief tenure there I was highly impressed with his compassion towards
others, his unselfishness and the assistance he readily gave to junior
employees.
I also have had the opportunity of accompanying Mr. Nanayakkara to the Colombo
Municipal Council on several occasions and was so impressed as to how much
respect was shown to him by his former colleagues.
Mr. Nanayakkara subsequently entered Law College in 1993 and took his oaths as
an Attorney-at-Law in 1996. Even as a law student Mr. Nanayakkara took his time
to help fellow students who were weak especially in English and Trust Accounts.
He was fondly called “GI” or “Boss.” At that time there was a joke making rounds
that GI had no time for his studies as most of his time was spent helping other
students.
He was such an unassuming person who was blessed with a heart of gold. He was
always lavish with his meagre pension and did not hesitate to help the needy.
After being called to the Bar in 1996 Mr. Nanayakkara practised at Hulftsdorp.
His clientele consisted of poor and humble people. He was a firm believer in the
justice of his client’s case. He never thought of his fees as a priority and
gave his clients a legal service of exceptional quality. Even though he was not
a high flying practitioner, he had always a few lawyers seated around him
seeking his advice on various legal matters. Mr. Nanayakkara tendered a yeoman
service to many junior 1awyers. I have seen him on many occasions spending his
time correcting junior’s plaints, draft deeds and other legal documents. He
always helped them to correct their English. There were even occasions that his
kindness was taken as weakness but he never bothered about it.
It was such a joy and pleasure to see Mr. Nanayakkara at Hulftsdorp, to have a
little chat and share a cup of tea with him. He was always a calm and quiet
person but always very witty. He was so special and rose above others due to the
wonderful knack he possessed for helping fellow human beings.
In a society where the majority are engaged in a rat race running after money,
fame and wealth, I salute Mr. Nanayakkara for his honesty, humility and for his
unlimited kindness. He set an example by giving his client’s a legal service of
exceptional quality and facilitated their quest for justice, and for this, both
community and the profession must remember and respect him. I am proud to be one
of his colleagues. GI will always be remembered with so much of love and
respect.
He leaves behind his wife, daughter, son-in-law and his two precious
grandchildren. On the 19th of October 2008 it will be 3 months after his demise
and there will be religious ceremonies where both Catholic and Buddhist rites
will be performed in his memory followed by a alms-giving to be held at his
residence.
May his soul rest in peace.
Kapila M. Sarathchandra
Attorney-at-Law
Divulapitiya.
****
|
