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| Sunday, 1 January 2006 |
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Editor, Sunday Observer. E-mail: [email protected] Snail mail : Sunday Observer, 35, D.R.Wijewardana Mawatha, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Telephone : 94 11 2429239 / 2331181 Fax : 94 11 2429230 A new dawn Every New Year is a time for introspection and resolution. Looking back over the past years we see much to be desired in the conduct of affairs at each level and sector of Sri Lankan society. The so-called development under the open economy has not made any impact in most parts of the country leaving more than half the population on a bare subsistence of less than US $2 per day. Clearly this called for a new vision and a new strategy of development. We enter the New Year with a President recently elected to office who had just spelt out a new vision to build a new Sri Lanka with particular emphasis on pro-poor policies. We wish the New Year would signify a new dawn in which his dream of building a new Sri Lanka would be realised. Much needs to be done in developing social infrastructure, particularly education and health services. The glaring imbalance in the development of urban and rural/estate schools as well as between urban schools catering to different communities should be eradicated. This imbalance is best seen when the teacher - pupil ratio is taken into account. In fact, the dwindling teacher - pupil ratio has been made an excuse to close down some schools not only in the periphery but also in the Western province. This is in contrast to the surplus of teachers in popular urban schools. No wonder that there is stiff competition to admit children to them. In tertiary education the biggest problem is the lack of opportunities for nearly 75,000 students who fail to gain admission to Universities after the Advanced Level. Curriculum development and restructurising of academic courses at the Universities and enhancement of the content and quality of teaching are other issues. The health sector needs much improvement if it is to cater to the poor and marginalised sections of the populations. It is the poor and the very poor that mostly patronise state hospitals. Yet drug shortages and lack of basic facilities hamper quality treatment at peripheral and estate hospitals. The latter has to be integrated to the national health system. Two urgent issues need to be addressed in the New Year. They are tsunami rehabilitation and reconstruction and the National Question. We are glad that the government is tackling both issues with new enthusiasm and dynamism. We wish that its efforts would lead to success. May the New Year bring peace and prosperity for all. Passage to India President Mahinda Rajapakse has just returned from a successful state visit to India. It has contributed to the strengthening of economic, political and cultural relations between the two countries whose bonds of friendship go back several centuries. These relations have been developing successfully ever since the strategic change in our foreign policy in the mid-fifties except for a brief period under President Premadasa. The UPFA has now raised it to a new height. As the Indo - Sri Lanka joint communiqu‚ noted the discussions reflected the consonance of views between the two countries on many international issues. The development of Indo - Sri Lanka relations would have a great impact on the development of SAARC, especially the strengthening of the South Asian Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA), which comes into operation at the beginning of 2006. It was Sri Lanka that championed the cause of SAFTA for long at SAARC. On the economic front the two countries are working on several projects to be implemented utilising the US $ 100 million Indian credit facility. What is important is the concurrence of the two countries in accelerated development of the North East and on the need to cooperate in the spheres of agriculture, education and Information and Communication Technology. India has once again reiterated its commitment to the unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Sri Lanka and assured Sri Lanka of its support to the peace efforts of the Government. It has welcomed the Sri Lankan Governments offer to resume peace talks early and its desire to resume immediately talks on strengthening the ceasefire that is under stress at present. The visit has also enabled the President and his delegation to acquaint with the system of devolution of powers under the Indian Constitution. India has also offered to provide academic and intellectual resources for the peace process in Sri Lanka. We are glad that prospects for Indo -Sri Lanka cooperation are brighter than ever in the New Year. |
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