Comments on overseas news

Cassandra’s title this Friday indicates her continuing hopelessness (and yes, most certainly, disgust) with matters Sri Lankan. What pertains in this fair isle sent willfully to darkness and misery through greed and bad management? Her usual caustic Friday comments are on this land of ours and trouble with an occasional ray of hope. Today, she has nothing to write about Siri Lanka. A stubborn Prez, who makes no move to speak with trade unions et al; professionals including doctors and university lecturers striking and protesting; few trains running, many branches of banks closed, and the police rampantly tear-gassing and water-cannoning and surreptitiously manhandling protesters, and the Ordinaries suffering. That’s how the land is now. Tiny shining silver linings are mercifully glimmering dimly: the rupee temporarily appreciated against the US dollar and thus against other currencies; tourism has brought in more money and the sun shines bright and the rains come when needed. This, while countries have been rampaged by storms and earthquakes. Over here Nature is kind but Man is vile: mostly the men at the top.

The worst we, the public. have to bear is pontification by State Ministers. We heard a chappie who fell off the balcony of a hotel in a far-off land saying the health service is going on OK. This verbal assurance against TV pictures of greatly suffering sick humans gathering in closed doored hospitals and unattended outpatients’ clinics. We were not given explanations though public funds from over here went to pay his hospital bills down under, and we still wonder what urge drove him to circus crawl along the outer ledge of the hotel he was in.

Then loud and clear come speeches by a man who was quite poor when he entered Parliament but within a few years of being MP and Minister could fork out millions, it was said, as alimony to get rid of his lawful wedded in favour of another. The worst is when a supposedly former chain snatcher rumoured to have operated in a certain coastal railway station, is now one of the major defending pontificators for a fast fading bud political party. How sanctimonious he sounds; looks however betray him.

Diana Gamage’s voice advocating fun and games based on gambling and licensing of ganja has been silent, or silenced. Geetha Kum, whom we hardly listen to, has come out with a good proposition – to start an office or whatever where unwanted infants can be handed over to. Abandoning of tiny babies, a heinous unthinkable crime and if thought of producing shivers of horror, is practiced in this so-called Paradise. Recently, a couple left an infant in a train toilet. At least leave the baby on a seat instead of closeting it to probably die in a toilet. Unusual since the man too was with the woman when the baby was abandoned. Usually, it’s an unmarried woman who gives birth to an unwanted infant who does the deserting, evoking a streak of pity in our minds. What else could she do, we attempt saying in justification, which justification is NOT possible. There is no excuse possible for such a crime. Why ever should the baby pay for the mother’s sin? But maybe the baby gets a better chance in life than remaining with the woman who brought it to the world.

Commonwealth Day 

I was alerted to this day, celebrated on Monday March 13, by a circular epistle that arrived in Cass’ in-box from no less a person than Dr Anne T Gallagher AO, Director General/ Commonwealth Foundation. What earned Cass this signal honour though of course thousands of letters would have been sent out? She once submitted a short story for the Commonwealth short story competition, so her name was registered as so many others from Sri Lanka would be. I quote from the letter:

“This year marks the tenth anniversary of the signing of the Commonwealth Charter: a document that sets out, in clear terms, what the Commonwealth means and what it stands for,

That shared vision – and those shared values – can help us move towards a better and fairer world.” Sent was a video clip where a dark-skinned woman ‘speaks’ in sign language while the words appear below. Advocated are Democracy; HR; Intl. Peace and Security; Tolerance and Respect; Freedom of expression; Separation of powers; Rule of Law; Good governance; Sustainable development; Protecting the environment; Access to health; Education, Food and Shelter; Gender equality; Importance of young people in the community; Role of civil society.

The last para in the letter ran thus: “It is by respecting and protecting those values that we – the Commonwealth’s 2.5 billion citizens – can help shape a different future for our communities, our countries and our planet.”

If you study that list, we in Sri Lanka are sorely in need of most of them, though we are supposed to be a democratic country. If only our leaders have these, or at least some in mind, and work towards implementing and improving their status in the island, we could progress.

Commonwealth Day in March each year marks the beginning of a week-long series of events and activities happening around the globe, including religious and civil gatherings, debates, school assemblies, flag raising ceremonies and cultural events. This March 13, at the Westminster Abbey Celebration Roshini Abbey and Nuwan Hugh Perera sang beautifully and in perfect harmony a song in Sinhala with title Anagathaya – Future.

The Commonwealth Charter makes for interesting reading emphasising the fact it is a voluntary association of independent and equal sovereign states, each responsible for its own position … a force for good and an effective network for co-operation and for promoting development. It confirms that the special strength of the Commonwealth lies in the combination of the diversity of the 56 countries in it. Associated with reading and viewing videos on the 10th C Day, one remembers the Queen who was so concerned, committed and proud to be Head of the Commonwealth. We recall the CHOGM – Commonwealth Heads of Government biennial meeting – hosted in 2013 by Sri Lanka when Mahinda Rajapaksa was President and Prince Charles represented the Queen.

AUKUS

Another combination of countries, much more recent, much smaller with only three countries involved and having the stated purpose of being a trilateral security pact was announced on September 15, 2021, between Australia, the UK and US for the Indo Pacific region. Its most recent meeting was in San Diego with PM Anthony Albanese, President Biden and PM Rishi Sunak attending. The main topic of the meeting was arming Australia with a nuclear submarine. Necessary we suppose with China and Russia getting more powerful and belligerent too.

Watching a video and listening to the three leaders’ speeches, Cass cried out loud and clear: “Oh for a Rishi Sunak for Sri Lanka!” We had much trust in and expectations from Ranil Wickremesinghe though he had lost his parliamentary seat in the last general election and also almost annihilated the old party with the elephant symbol. Cass remembers seeing a video of him in the White House between 2001 and 2009 when George W Bush was Prez and for sure seeing Ranil W smarter, more personable and generally outshining the supposedly greatest leader of the world. Ranil has disappointed us wholesale. Too much Rajapaksas in him now.

And, so, Cassandra closes her conversation in a most fearful state of expecting longer strikes, total chaos in the country because of a lack of communication between reps of the various groups of citizens of the country with its leader.