Features
Advice to Youth; environment; one in a thousand
A video clip of part of a conversation of local radio commentators with probably the DJ joining in during a music session, had them with good humour thrashing Meghan – the wickedly whining Duchess of Essex – on her recent Oprah Winfrey interview. They very rightly said that in Sri Lanka folk invariably comment on the skin colour of a newborn – “kaluda sududa?” and no one takes the slightest offence. People go further macabrely, Cass adds, commenting on the laid-out dead – “Myee how dark she looked. Aney, poor thing!” The final punch line of the video was the best: “Meghan had better beware of tunnels”! That was great. Cassandra now adds her own set of warnings to peoples of this fair isle of ours:
To young bucks: do not play rugby, aim at captaincy or cock a snook at those who think they are special and superior to all else.
To journos: For goodness sake, if you value your life, do not go into investigative journalism about certain families.
To the outspoken: Hold your tongue Stupid! You may land in prison for life just for one statement you make which really harms no one, except that you are of the wrong political colour and too free with your accusations.
To those who abhor corruption: pretend to be all of the three proverbial monkeys. Honesty is the worst policy. This applies especially to environmentalists now.
Misinterpretation of a single word
Cass needs to elaborate on a phrase in her last Friday’s ramblings. She had a sharp critic laugh maliciously at her (unintended) imputation that the ‘Good Morning Britain’ show anchor Piers Morgan of ITV, had a love affair with Meghan Markle during her single days. Cass wrote ‘Morgan is supposed to have had a relationship with Meghan and she had dropped him…’
It was a friendship that Cass meant and the fallout was that Morgan took offence at not being invited for the Windsor Chapel wedding to which Meghan had invited her many friends. So, he continued to thrash her on his morning talk show. ‘Relationship’ as written in the original Cry of Cassandra was not meant to be a love one, but a platonic friendship. ‘Relationship’ need not mean only sexual love; it has its many connotations.
The environment – topic of present times
‘The Environment’ is the A1 topic at the moment and widely discussed in the press, social media and talk shows. Rightly so too. There has never been such a rape of forests and over-exploitation of resources like sand, as of now. And very fortunately the young ’uns have rallied round. They have done it peacefully: planting trees; marching in protest and hoisting a huge banner-picture to awaken the somnambulant to the great danger the country faces: further depletion of its forest cover from the meager 17% of now. And how has the government taken it? The knee-jerk reaction of the President himself has been very disappointing, to say the least, and administrators have come forth in dissent to override the earnest youth. Threats have been issued and the mounted frieze in Viharamahadevi Park ordered to be brought down, in spite of official, written permission having been obtained by the young protestors from Municipal authorities. It was a completely peaceful gesture of awareness creation and timely warning. The large mounted picture was no threat to plant, animal or human, so why did the Municipal Commissioner and others see red and order it brought down? High ups work in mysterious ways.
The environment was the topic thrown forth for discussion by Shameer Rasooldeen to four environmental experts on Monday 22 March at the MTV Channel I Face the Nation panel discussion. Dr Sevvandi Jayakody – Director/Environment Foundation Ltd; Dr Ajanta Perera – scientist, activist; and Attorneys–at-Law Jagath Gunawardena and Ravindranath Dabare –Director/ Centre for Environmental Justice; took up the challenge very forcefully, convincingly and knowledgeably and in one voice pronounced our environment, and within it invaluable ecosystems, were in the height of danger from what is being perpetrated now by unscrupulous violators of law and decency. Destruction goes on apace though protests are loud and justified; the perpetrators of crimes seem to be winning. Like in the case of 19-year Baghya, who spoke of the destruction of a part of the Sinharaja forest before her very eyes, the messenger is targeted and threatened while miscreants and criminals go free to continue their rape and pillage. Another consensual fact expressed by the panel members is that the youth of the country have awoken to the danger of the undercover destruction of our natural environment and illicit exploitation of natural resources. Consensus was that they should be encouraged in their sincere crusade and not stymied or worse, marked for punishment, as they are now.
Attorney-at-law Dabare explained his theory: humans spend nine months in the environment of the mother’s womb given all nourishment and sustenance. When they are born, it is to the womb of the Environment, which again sustains them and gives them what they need. So how destroy it?
Dr Ajanta Perera was loud and clear in her condemnation of rackets of tree cutting etc going on with the patronage of VVIPs and lesser officials. She clearly explained the terms
economic development and environmental development. It had to be sustainable development without disturbing Nature. An ecosystem once harmed cannot be rejuvenated, she emphasised. A consensual and very clear opinion was that no reservoirs should, and could, be built within the Sinharaja Forest as announced by Minister Chamal Rajapaksa recently. No one can touch a heritage site without it being downgraded. Harming it is an act of robbery against future generations of Sri Lankans. Laws must be abided by and law breakers punished. Also, all MPs, top politicians and administrators should be made aware of environmental issues and world opinion and take note of dire warnings of the likely destruction of our Earth. Nature now is over-exploited without the correct action of protecting it, which is the bounden duty of a government.
Honest three-wheeler owner/driver
Readers of Cassandra have been introduced to the charioteer who spins Cass around Colombo on errands. She detailed in a previous Cassandra Cry how he redid his three-wheeler and made it a showpiece only to have it confiscated by the police disbelieving him and evidence that it was 30 years old. It lay ten days in the police station waiting to be sent to the RMV office. Ten days more in that office and what did this mean in rice and sambal terms? Tuan’s earnings were curtailed and his family suffered. Finally, a fine of Rs 50,000 was clamped on the poor man; a sure case of he who fell off a tree gored by a buffalo!
He phoned Cass on Saturday last to say a woman had travelled in his three-wheeler far out of Colombo, and getting down – nikan para meda – had left one of the two bags she carried. He discovered the bag tucked at the back of his vehicle only when he returned to Colombo. He has dropped Cass at Crescat Apartments, where she has friends, so since the woman with the two bags got in at the halt opposite the building, he requested Cass to find out if her friends had heard of a bag-losing-employee in one of the apartments. Entrusted mission was not carried out – very careless of Cass. Then on Monday he says he would hand over the bag with a pair of specs, clothes, umbrella and Rs 10,000 to the police. He did not see any boutiques or houses where the woman had alighted so no going again to the place to question people over there. Going to Vision Care to check on details of the sale of the specs seemed to be too far-fetched. At the mention of his decision on Monday 22, feeling very guilty at her remiss, Cass asked him to hold it until she phoned her Crescat friend. Merciful! Unbelievable coincidence!
The bag belonged to my friend’s house maid. Tuan was well compensated, but money alone or appreciation is insufficient to acknowledge the extent of honesty and concern. So, my friend insisted I make this tale known wider.
A very happy note to end this day’s conversation with you. There are honest persons in this fine island of ours; maybe in the proportion of one to twenty rascals, but getting better in proportion as we descend the money and clout levels. And this Muslim knew full well the woman who got in was Sinhalese. There really is no racial disharmony among the ordinary Menikas, Daisies, Naliahs and Mohammeds of (so far) Free Sri Lanka.
It’s the unscrupulous, power hungry, always eyeing the next election politicians who create the trouble, added to by thugs and now a small fraction of the Sangha. However, those in yellow robes exposing environmental abuse seem to be sincere and motivated by concern for the country.
by Dr Gotabhya Ranasinghe
Senior Consultant Cardiologist
National Hospital Sri Lanka
When we sought a meeting with Hon Dr. Ramesh Pathirana, Minister of Health, he graciously cleared his busy schedule to accommodate us. Renowned for his attentive listening and deep understanding, Minister Pathirana is dedicated to advancing the health sector. His openness and transparency exemplify the qualities of an exemplary politician and minister.
Dr. Palitha Mahipala, the current Health Secretary, demonstrates both commendable enthusiasm and unwavering support. This combination of attributes makes him a highly compatible colleague for the esteemed Minister of Health.
Our discussion centered on a project that has been in the works for the past 30 years, one that no other minister had managed to advance.
Minister Pathirana, however, recognized the project’s significance and its potential to revolutionize care for heart patients.
The project involves the construction of a state-of-the-art facility at the premises of the National Hospital Colombo. The project’s location within the premises of the National Hospital underscores its importance and relevance to the healthcare infrastructure of the nation.
This facility will include a cardiology building and a tertiary care center, equipped with the latest technology to handle and treat all types of heart-related conditions and surgeries.
Securing funding was a major milestone for this initiative. Minister Pathirana successfully obtained approval for a $40 billion loan from the Asian Development Bank. With the funding in place, the foundation stone is scheduled to be laid in September this year, and construction will begin in January 2025.
This project guarantees a consistent and uninterrupted supply of stents and related medications for heart patients. As a result, patients will have timely access to essential medical supplies during their treatment and recovery. By securing these critical resources, the project aims to enhance patient outcomes, minimize treatment delays, and maintain the highest standards of cardiac care.
Upon its fruition, this monumental building will serve as a beacon of hope and healing, symbolizing the unwavering dedication to improving patient outcomes and fostering a healthier society.We anticipate a future marked by significant progress and positive outcomes in Sri Lanka’s cardiovascular treatment landscape within the foreseeable timeframe.
by Fr. Emmanuel Fernando, OMI
Jesuit Fr. Aloysius Pieris (affectionately called Fr. Aloy) celebrated his 90th birthday on April 9, 2024 and I, as the editor of our Oblate Journal, THE MISSIONARY OBLATE had gone to press by that time. Immediately I decided to publish an article, appreciating the untiring selfless services he continues to offer for inter-Faith dialogue, the renewal of the Catholic Church, his concern for the poor and the suffering Sri Lankan masses and to me, the present writer.
It was in 1988, when I was appointed Director of the Oblate Scholastics at Ampitiya by the then Oblate Provincial Fr. Anselm Silva, that I came to know Fr. Aloy more closely. Knowing well his expertise in matters spiritual, theological, Indological and pastoral, and with the collaborative spirit of my companion-formators, our Oblate Scholastics were sent to Tulana, the Research and Encounter Centre, Kelaniya, of which he is the Founder-Director, for ‘exposure-programmes’ on matters spiritual, biblical, theological and pastoral. Some of these dimensions according to my view and that of my companion-formators, were not available at the National Seminary, Ampitiya.
Ever since that time, our Oblate formators/ accompaniers at the Oblate Scholasticate, Ampitiya , have continued to send our Oblate Scholastics to Tulana Centre for deepening their insights and convictions regarding matters needed to serve the people in today’s context. Fr. Aloy also had tried very enthusiastically with the Oblate team headed by Frs. Oswald Firth and Clement Waidyasekara to begin a Theologate, directed by the Religious Congregations in Sri Lanka, for the contextual formation/ accompaniment of their members. It should very well be a desired goal of the Leaders / Provincials of the Religious Congregations.
Besides being a formator/accompanier at the Oblate Scholasticate, I was entrusted also with the task of editing and publishing our Oblate journal, ‘The Missionary Oblate’. To maintain the quality of the journal I continue to depend on Fr. Aloy for his thought-provoking and stimulating articles on Biblical Spirituality, Biblical Theology and Ecclesiology. I am very grateful to him for his generous assistance. Of late, his writings on renewal of the Church, initiated by Pope St. John XX111 and continued by Pope Francis through the Synodal path, published in our Oblate journal, enable our readers to focus their attention also on the needed renewal in the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka. Fr. Aloy appreciated very much the Synodal path adopted by the Jesuit Pope Francis for the renewal of the Church, rooted very much on prayerful discernment. In my Religious and presbyteral life, Fr.Aloy continues to be my spiritual animator / guide and ongoing formator / acccompanier.
Fr. Aloysius Pieris, BA Hons (Lond), LPh (SHC, India), STL (PFT, Naples), PhD (SLU/VC), ThD (Tilburg), D.Ltt (KU), has been one of the eminent Asian theologians well recognized internationally and one who has lectured and held visiting chairs in many universities both in the West and in the East. Many members of Religious Congregations from Asian countries have benefited from his lectures and guidance in the East Asian Pastoral Institute (EAPI) in Manila, Philippines. He had been a Theologian consulted by the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences for many years. During his professorship at the Gregorian University in Rome, he was called to be a member of a special group of advisers on other religions consulted by Pope Paul VI.
Fr. Aloy is the author of more than 30 books and well over 500 Research Papers. Some of his books and articles have been translated and published in several countries. Among those books, one can find the following: 1) The Genesis of an Asian Theology of Liberation (An Autobiographical Excursus on the Art of Theologising in Asia, 2) An Asian Theology of Liberation, 3) Providential Timeliness of Vatican 11 (a long-overdue halt to a scandalous millennium, 4) Give Vatican 11 a chance, 5) Leadership in the Church, 6) Relishing our faith in working for justice (Themes for study and discussion), 7) A Message meant mainly, not exclusively for Jesuits (Background information necessary for helping Francis renew the Church), 8) Lent in Lanka (Reflections and Resolutions, 9) Love meets wisdom (A Christian Experience of Buddhism, 10) Fire and Water 11) God’s Reign for God’s poor, 12) Our Unhiddden Agenda (How we Jesuits work, pray and form our men). He is also the Editor of two journals, Vagdevi, Journal of Religious Reflection and Dialogue, New Series.
Fr. Aloy has a BA in Pali and Sanskrit from the University of London and a Ph.D in Buddhist Philosophy from the University of Sri Lankan, Vidyodaya Campus. On Nov. 23, 2019, he was awarded the prestigious honorary Doctorate of Literature (D.Litt) by the Chancellor of the University of Kelaniya, the Most Venerable Welamitiyawe Dharmakirthi Sri Kusala Dhamma Thera.
Fr. Aloy continues to be a promoter of Gospel values and virtues. Justice as a constitutive dimension of love and social concern for the downtrodden masses are very much noted in his life and work. He had very much appreciated the commitment of the late Fr. Joseph (Joe) Fernando, the National Director of the Social and Economic Centre (SEDEC) for the poor.
In Sri Lanka, a few religious Congregations – the Good Shepherd Sisters, the Christian Brothers, the Marist Brothers and the Oblates – have invited him to animate their members especially during their Provincial Congresses, Chapters and International Conferences. The mainline Christian Churches also have sought his advice and followed his seminars. I, for one, regret very much, that the Sri Lankan authorities of the Catholic Church –today’s Hierarchy—- have not sought Fr.
Aloy’s expertise for the renewal of the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka and thus have not benefited from the immense store of wisdom and insight that he can offer to our local Church while the Sri Lankan bishops who governed the Catholic church in the immediate aftermath of the Second Vatican Council (Edmund Fernando OMI, Anthony de Saram, Leo Nanayakkara OSB, Frank Marcus Fernando, Paul Perera,) visited him and consulted him on many matters. Among the Tamil Bishops, Bishop Rayappu Joseph was keeping close contact with him and Bishop J. Deogupillai hosted him and his team visiting him after the horrible Black July massacre of Tamils.
Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement
By Gomi Senadhira
senadhiragomi@gmail.com
“You might tell fairy tales, but the progress of a country cannot be achieved through such narratives. A country cannot be developed by making false promises. The country moved backward because of the electoral promises made by political parties throughout time. We have witnessed that the ultimate result of this is the country becoming bankrupt. Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet.” – President Ranil Wickremesinghe, 2024 Budget speech
Any Sri Lankan would agree with the above words of President Wickremesinghe on the false promises our politicians and officials make and the fairy tales they narrate which bankrupted this country. So, to understand this, let’s look at one such fairy tale with lots of false promises; Ranil Wickremesinghe’s greatest achievement in the area of international trade and investment promotion during the Yahapalana period, Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (SLSFTA).
It is appropriate and timely to do it now as Finance Minister Wickremesinghe has just presented to parliament a bill on the National Policy on Economic Transformation which includes the establishment of an Office for International Trade and the Sri Lanka Institute of Economics and International Trade.
Was SLSFTA a “Cleverly negotiated Free Trade Agreement” as stated by the (former) Minister of Development Strategies and International Trade Malik Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate on the SLSFTA in July 2018, or a colossal blunder covered up with lies, false promises, and fairy tales? After SLSFTA was signed there were a number of fairy tales published on this agreement by the Ministry of Development Strategies and International, Institute of Policy Studies, and others.
However, for this article, I would like to limit my comments to the speech by Minister Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate, and the two most important areas in the agreement which were covered up with lies, fairy tales, and false promises, namely: revenue loss for Sri Lanka and Investment from Singapore. On the other important area, “Waste products dumping” I do not want to comment here as I have written extensively on the issue.
1. The revenue loss
During the Parliamentary Debate in July 2018, Minister Samarawickrama stated “…. let me reiterate that this FTA with Singapore has been very cleverly negotiated by us…. The liberalisation programme under this FTA has been carefully designed to have the least impact on domestic industry and revenue collection. We have included all revenue sensitive items in the negative list of items which will not be subject to removal of tariff. Therefore, 97.8% revenue from Customs duty is protected. Our tariff liberalisation will take place over a period of 12-15 years! In fact, the revenue earned through tariffs on goods imported from Singapore last year was Rs. 35 billion.
The revenue loss for over the next 15 years due to the FTA is only Rs. 733 million– which when annualised, on average, is just Rs. 51 million. That is just 0.14% per year! So anyone who claims the Singapore FTA causes revenue loss to the Government cannot do basic arithmetic! Mr. Speaker, in conclusion, I call on my fellow members of this House – don’t mislead the public with baseless criticism that is not grounded in facts. Don’t look at petty politics and use these issues for your own political survival.”
I was surprised to read the minister’s speech because an article published in January 2018 in “The Straits Times“, based on information released by the Singaporean Negotiators stated, “…. With the FTA, tariff savings for Singapore exports are estimated to hit $10 million annually“.
As the annual tariff savings (that is the revenue loss for Sri Lanka) calculated by the Singaporean Negotiators, Singaporean $ 10 million (Sri Lankan rupees 1,200 million in 2018) was way above the rupees’ 733 million revenue loss for 15 years estimated by the Sri Lankan negotiators, it was clear to any observer that one of the parties to the agreement had not done the basic arithmetic!
Six years later, according to a report published by “The Morning” newspaper, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) on 7th May 2024, Mr Samarawickrama’s chief trade negotiator K.J. Weerasinghehad had admitted “…. that forecasted revenue loss for the Government of Sri Lanka through the Singapore FTA is Rs. 450 million in 2023 and Rs. 1.3 billion in 2024.”
If these numbers are correct, as tariff liberalisation under the SLSFTA has just started, we will pass Rs 2 billion very soon. Then, the question is how Sri Lanka’s trade negotiators made such a colossal blunder. Didn’t they do their basic arithmetic? If they didn’t know how to do basic arithmetic they should have at least done their basic readings. For example, the headline of the article published in The Straits Times in January 2018 was “Singapore, Sri Lanka sign FTA, annual savings of $10m expected”.
Anyway, as Sri Lanka’s chief negotiator reiterated at the COPF meeting that “…. since 99% of the tariffs in Singapore have zero rates of duty, Sri Lanka has agreed on 80% tariff liberalisation over a period of 15 years while expecting Singapore investments to address the imbalance in trade,” let’s turn towards investment.
Investment from Singapore
In July 2018, speaking during the Parliamentary Debate on the FTA this is what Minister Malik Samarawickrama stated on investment from Singapore, “Already, thanks to this FTA, in just the past two-and-a-half months since the agreement came into effect we have received a proposal from Singapore for investment amounting to $ 14.8 billion in an oil refinery for export of petroleum products. In addition, we have proposals for a steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million), sugar refinery ($ 200 million). This adds up to more than $ 16.05 billion in the pipeline on these projects alone.
And all of these projects will create thousands of more jobs for our people. In principle approval has already been granted by the BOI and the investors are awaiting the release of land the environmental approvals to commence the project.
I request the Opposition and those with vested interests to change their narrow-minded thinking and join us to develop our country. We must always look at what is best for the whole community, not just the few who may oppose. We owe it to our people to courageously take decisions that will change their lives for the better.”
According to the media report I quoted earlier, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) Chief Negotiator Weerasinghe has admitted that Sri Lanka was not happy with overall Singapore investments that have come in the past few years in return for the trade liberalisation under the Singapore-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement. He has added that between 2021 and 2023 the total investment from Singapore had been around $162 million!
What happened to those projects worth $16 billion negotiated, thanks to the SLSFTA, in just the two-and-a-half months after the agreement came into effect and approved by the BOI? I do not know about the steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million) and sugar refinery ($ 200 million).
However, story of the multibillion-dollar investment in the Petroleum Refinery unfolded in a manner that would qualify it as the best fairy tale with false promises presented by our politicians and the officials, prior to 2019 elections.
Though many Sri Lankans got to know, through the media which repeatedly highlighted a plethora of issues surrounding the project and the questionable credentials of the Singaporean investor, the construction work on the Mirrijiwela Oil Refinery along with the cement factory began on the24th of March 2019 with a bang and Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and his ministers along with the foreign and local dignitaries laid the foundation stones.
That was few months before the 2019 Presidential elections. Inaugurating the construction work Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said the projects will create thousands of job opportunities in the area and surrounding districts.
The oil refinery, which was to be built over 200 acres of land, with the capacity to refine 200,000 barrels of crude oil per day, was to generate US$7 billion of exports and create 1,500 direct and 3,000 indirect jobs. The construction of the refinery was to be completed in 44 months. Four years later, in August 2023 the Cabinet of Ministers approved the proposal presented by President Ranil Wickremesinghe to cancel the agreement with the investors of the refinery as the project has not been implemented! Can they explain to the country how much money was wasted to produce that fairy tale?
It is obvious that the President, ministers, and officials had made huge blunders and had deliberately misled the public and the parliament on the revenue loss and potential investment from SLSFTA with fairy tales and false promises.
As the president himself said, a country cannot be developed by making false promises or with fairy tales and these false promises and fairy tales had bankrupted the country. “Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet”.
(The writer, a specialist and an activist on trade and development issues . )
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