Features
Republican Party at a Turning Point
President Biden’s First 100 Days:
by Vijaya Chandrasoma
President Joe Biden addressed Congress and the American people on April 28, just one day short of the first 100 days of his presidency. He began his address with the grim reality, that “he inherited a nation in crisis. The worst pandemic in a century. The worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. The worst attack on our democracy since the Civil War”.
President Biden has dealt with the virus and the economy with spectacular competency, using science-based policies. He has appointed a diverse cabinet, professionally experienced to handle the departments entrusted to them. Nary a crony or relative in sight!
I will list his achievements in the first 100 days later in this essay.
What he hasn’t been able to control is the continuing attack on our democracy, based on the Big Lie, that the 2020 presidential was stolen from Trump by a Democratic backed cabal. A Lie that has been rejected by district, federal and Supreme courts, which have thrown out 60 cases of election fraud brought by Trump lawyers for lack of a shred of evidence; by every election official and state legislature, Republican and Democratic; by Trump supporters, Attorney General, William Barr, Senate Minority Leader, Mitch McConnell, and even by the House Minority Leader, Kevin McCarthy, who stated during the January 6 insurrection that “Trump bore responsibility for inciting the insurrection”. He subsequently contradicted himself, in his inimitable sycophantic style a few days later, after visiting Mar a Lago and kissing the ring, stating that Trump was not responsible for the insurrection, which was not a big deal. And the election was indeed stolen from Trump.
There were only two leading Republicans who have refused to endorse the Big Lie of a stolen election, who condemned Trump for inciting an insurrection based on that Big Lie. They are the third-ranking Republican member of the House, Liz Cheney, and the 2012 presidential nominee of the Republican Party, Senator Mitt Romney. Their crime: daring to tell Republican voters that President Biden won the presidency in a legitimate election and exposing the Republicans’ effort to whitewash the January 6 storming of the Capitol, the seat of America’s democracy.
A week after the January 6 insurrection, Cheney stated, Trump “summoned this mob, assembled the mob and lit the flame of this attack”. She tweeted on May 3: “The 2020 election was not stolen. Anyone who claims it was is spreading THE BIG LIE, turning their back on the rule of law, and poisoning our democratic system”.
In a Washington Post op-ed on May 5, Cheney, the Conservative of Conservatives who has a Republican voting record of 92%, wrote, The GOP must “steer away from the dangerous and anti-democratic Trump cult of personality…. History is watching. The Republican Party is at a turning point, and Republicans must decide whether we are going to choose truth and fidelity to the Constitution” over blind fealty to a criminal tyrant, whose lies may incite future attacks.
There is currently an effort coordinated by Kevin McCarthy to purge Liz Cheney from her leadership position as Conference Chair in the House, as early as May 12. A replacement for the Conference Chair is already in place: New York Congresswoman Elise Stefanik, who has a terrible Republican voting record (34%). She had even been considered a liberal. But she passes the sole Republican litmus tests of today, of buying into the Big Lie of a stolen election, the whitewashing of the January 6 insurrection. And the ultimate test, the embrace of Donald Trump.
Cheney will go down fighting, but go down she will. Proving yet again that Trump still calls the shots in a party which refuses accept the results of a fair election, and whitewashes the January 6 violent assault against the Capitol, incited by Trump, as, at the worst, a mild protest.
A mild protest which left six people dead, hundreds wounded and the seat of American democracy vandalized and violated. And a beautiful and historic building forever marred by military-style barricades to protect the integrity of the Capitol and our elected lawmakers against white racist domestic terrorism.
Senator Mitt Romney was booed at a recent Republican Party conference in his home state of Utah when he stated that the election was not stolen, “that the Trump campaign had a chance to take their message to the courts, the courts laughed them out of court. I’ve seen no evidence that there has been widespread voter fraud…I was pulling for Donald Trump, but he lost fair and square”. When the booing subsided, and before he was escorted off the podium, he said: “Aren’t you embarrassed?”
No, there is no embarrassment in this Republican Party, the calling card of which is now the Big Lie. According to a May 3 CNN poll, 70% of all Republicans believe that the election was stolen from them. Against all evidence, including the evidence of their own eyes and ears.
The profound sadness is that America celebrated democracy in its finest form in November 2020 with an election in the midst of a pandemic, when more than 150 million Americans voted their choice; an election described by the nation’s senior election official as the fairest in its history. An election that is only rivaled in its integrity and courage of the electorate by the election of 1864, when Americans came out in record numbers to vote for incumbent President Lincoln in the middle of a Civil War.
The Civil War was about the perpetuation of slavery. The January 6 insurrection was about the perpetuation of white supremacy, an assault against the foundations of our democracy – free and fair elections. A proud, historic victory soiled by the delusional rantings of a desperate, defeated and disgraced president.
There is nothing so vicious as the fear of white supremacists losing their privileges. They will stop at nothing to preserve their supremacy, their whiteness. But remember Hitler and his quest for a blonde, blue-eyed Aryan nation? That did not work out well for the Nazis. The same fate awaits the Republican Party if it stays with the white racist leadership of the American alter ego of Hitler.
The past four years of the criminally incompetent Trump administration have been largely responsible for all these crises. Trump started his presidency with his first Big Lie, that he inherited an economy in shambles from the Obama administration. The “shambles” of 72 straight months of a growing economy, and the lowest unemployment numbers in decades.
Then the pandemic hit in January 2020. Trump’s downplaying of the virus, which resulted in over 500,000 preventable deaths and brought the economy to a standstill, is legendary in its criminal negligence.
The frightening fact is that had the pandemic, a global tragedy, not struck and exposed Trump’s self-serving incompetence, he would almost certainly have lied his way into winning the 2020 presidency. Which would have meant the destruction of American democracy and the establishment of a white supremacist oligarchy in the United States of America. A president for life who would have continued the elimination of an already fast-disappearing middle class. Frighteningly, Trump would have been cruel and dictatorial enough to carry out a Final Solution to America’s Brown Invasion.
President Biden’s move to the White House brought a deep sigh of relief from not just America but the whole world, that normality and decency had finally obliterated the vulgar stench the People’s House had exuded for the past four years. Church bells rang all over the world, especially in Europe. People of all free nations took to the streets, dancing in celebration. Why? Because they all knew that Americans had pulled themselves out of a future that had plagued Germany, Hungary, Poland, Russia, Turkey, Belarus and other totalitarian regimes. Europeans knew, better than the American voter, that once right-wing dictators seize power, they use that power to ensconce themselves and perpetuate their totalitarian, often racist ideology by all means, including military, available to them.
President Biden took swift and science-based action to combat Covid-19 and to revive the economy. His major achievements:
The signing of the Covid-19 Rescue bill, a $1.9 trillion package into law within two months, designed to help the unemployed and the needy, support small businesses and help schools reopen safely.
Covid-19 case, hospitalization and death totals are now one-fifth of what they were during the last months of the Trump administration, and diminishing by the day. Biden has exceeded the milestone of 220 million vaccinations delivered by the end of his first 100 days; at least 70% of all Americans will be fully vaccinated by July and the vaccine is now available to everyone over 16 years of age.
The economy has grown by an unbelievable 6.4% during the first quarter of 2021, and is well on the way to complete recovery. Unemployment is falling and currently is at a pandemic low, with 196,000 new jobs added during his presidency – he pitches his jobs plan as a Blueprint to Rebuild America; and schools are re-opening for in-person learning, bringing a semblance of normal life to families.
All these achievements with no whining, no bragging, no self-adulation, no bible wielding that we had been tortured with through four terrible years.
President Biden has also used his executive powers to reject many of the reactionary actions of the Trump administration. He has rejoined the Paris Climate Accord; re-engaged with the World Health Organization (WHO); revoked the presidential permit granted to the Keystone XL pipeline, which native Americans and environmentalists have been fighting against over a decade; revoked the harshest and cruelest of Trump’s anti-immigration bills; and revoked many of Trump’s laws which allowed pollution and fracking in sacred and historically protected areas.
Most importantly, he has stood up to Russia’s Putin, and has imposed a raft of sanctions for Russian interference in the 2020 elections, recent cyber-attacks and other hostile acts. Putin has woken up to the fact that he is no longer dealing with a sniveling, corrupt American president, completely beholden to the Russian dictator.
President Biden has made less progress in his efforts at restoring bipartisanship and unity. Not one Republican voted for his Covid-19 Rescue bill, and Republicans are opposed to the next major item of Biden’s agenda, the massive infrastructure bill of $2 trillion, aimed at fixing America’s damaged roads and bridges, and a list of other projects “intended to create millions of jobs in the short run and strengthen American competitiveness in the long run”.
Republican Senate Minority Leader, McConnell said “that 100% of his focus will be on stopping Biden’s policies”. As he did in 2009, when he blocked President Obama at every turn. So much for bipartisanship.
The costs of these ambitious projects will be met by the closing of tax loopholes used by corporations and super-wealthy to hide their wealth in offshore accounts. And higher taxes on these corporations and the super-wealthy, to ensure they pay their fair share in projects of development that will serve the nation and revive the middle class. It’s a good start.
President Biden has only been a huge disappointment to comedians and satirists, who were expecting an old man pottering around in the Oval Office in his pajama bottoms, looking for his car keys, and stuttering his regular gaffes on TV.
The president we see today is a confident man determined to rescue and develop the nation with or without bipartisan support. A man who is not whining and heaping blame on the administration he inherited, but taking immediate and decisive steps to reverse its often corrupt and illegal acts. Biden has armed himself with a program that is seen as the logical progression of the New Deal of FDR, which planted the seeds of compassionate capitalism in the United States after World War II, combined with infrastructure development on a scale reminiscent of Eisenhower.
The United States has regained universal respect and is once again the undisputed leader of the free world. In just 100 days.
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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