World Environment Day - June 5:

Another day to focus on drylands

It was only two weeks ago, on May 22 to be exact, that we celebrated the International Day for Biological Diversity. Tomorrow, we will be celebrating another day related to this same issue, World Environment Day.

The World Environment Day (WED) is celebrated every year on June 5. Various activities are organised by the United Nations under the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) on this day, to increase awareness about the environment and enhance political attention and public action on the issue.

This year's celebrations, under the theme 'Deserts and Desertification', will be carried out under the slogan 'Don't Desert Drylands!'.

The slogan emphasises the importance of protecting drylands, which comprise over 40 per cent of the land surface, and provides a home to one third of the human population, the most vulnerable in the world. This theme was highlighted during the Biological Diversity Day events as well.

The UN General Assembly designated June 5 as World Environment Day in 1972, to deepen public awareness of the need to preserve and enhance the environment. The date recalls the opening day of the UN Conference on the Human Environment, in Stockholm in 1972. Another resolution adopted by the General Assembly on the same day led to the establishment of the UNEP.

The WED was introduced with the idea of empowering people to become active agents of sustainable and equitable development, promoting the understanding that communities are essential to changing attitudes to environmental issues, and encouraging partnerships which ensure that all nations and people enjoy a safe and more prosperous future.

Street rallies, bicycle parades, 'green' concerts, essay and poster competitions in schools and tree planting, recycling and clean-up campaigns are organised to commemorate the day.

The event is hosted by different cities each year. This year's events will take place in Algeria in the City of Algiers. Last year, the main celebrations were held in San Francisco, USA.

Importance of protecting natural resources stressed

Sri Lanka, despite being a very small country, is blessed with a wealth of both, natural and cultural assets. Such a rich blend of resources cannot be found in even bigger and wealthier countries. That is why we need the help of all environmentalists, organisations and individuals to preserve and protect the natural beauty of this island, President Mahinda Rajapaksa said recently.

Addressing a meeting held at the Environment Ministry to assess the work the Ministry had carried out, the President described the sustainable management of natural resources as the need of the hour. Conserving and protecting forests should receive priority, tree planting programmes should be initiated and cutting trees in areas where there are fountain heads should be totally banned.

A gazette notification should be issued to this effect, he advised. Priority will be given to making Colombo a clean, hospitable and eco-friendly city. In this regard, steps should be taken to minimise pollution, minimise vehicles entering Colombo and develop adequate parking spaces for the vehicles.

Plans are also under way to develop the Colombo-Katunayake road and the surrounding areas, as Sri Lanka will be hosting the SAF Games this August. The Chiththa Vivekashramaya in Battaramulla will be declared as a sanctuary, while the Ritigala mountain is also to be developed as a tourist location.

A tree planting programme, which is to be initiated by the President this year at the 200 village programme, is also expected to receive priority.

Child Protection Act to be amended

You may have been reading about the many plans of the Sri Lankan Government to strengthen the rights of children in this country. As yet another one of these moves, the National Child Protection Authority (NCPA) is planning to introduce amendments to the Child Protection Act.

The declining child protection standards in the country have made it necessary that amendments be introduced, Chairperson, NCPA, Pathma Wettewa said.

"We are studying proposals and have initiated a dialogue with various quarters including professionals in this field, and hope to introduce our proposals in the very near future," she said.

Strengthening school committees would be one of the major steps in this regard. These committees would be used as a forum to educate parents about the rights of children, and special attention would be given to children displaced and orphaned due to the conflict in the North and East.

The concept of Drop-in Centres, which are used as a facility to educate street children and children orphaned or displaced by the tsunami, will also be strengthened. These centres, through the many programmes they have planned, are expected to provide these children with vocational-oriented training as well as psychological support.

"The Authority has planned to propose new laws governing child abuse and the President has advised us to take all steps to strengthen the process," Wettewa added.

Schoolgirl's creation adorns hospital ward

As one enters the Maternity Ward of the Mawanella Base Hospital, one is greeted by a massive painting running across the 40 foot long wall of the ward. This beautiful drawing under the theme 'Rural Environment and Family Cooperation', was done by a 13-year-old schoolgirl.

The budding artist is none other than Pubudunee Duneesha Kulathunga, an year 8 student of Thalgamuwa Maha Vidyalaya, Mawanella. She won a prize of Rs. 10,000 for her creation from the MOM Foundation.

This foundation carried out the project of rehabilitating the hospital's Maternity Ward, which had been neglected for a long time and was in a dilapidated state. The project was the brainchild of Dr. M. Nawaz Jiffry (VOG).

The project could be completed, thanks to the untiring effort of the citizens of Mawanella. People from all communities and belonging to all walks of life worked hard to raise the necessary funds for the project, which has now resulted in a newly refurbished Maternity Ward for the area.

Children - the innocent victims

Wars are currently being fought all over the world. Civil wars are raging in some countries, while many other countries have waged war against other countries. Wherever such wars are being fought, and despite the reasons for such hostility, it's the children that suffer most.

Children are left orphans due to their parents being killed in wars, they become refugees due to their homes and properties being destroyed, they are denied the right to an education and a decent life and are even forcibly recruited to fight in wars and kill other people. None of these are unusual in a country like Sri Lanka, which has seen a two-decade old war.

Of course, children are abused and ill-treated not only in war situations. They are also exploited as labourers, forced into domestic work, deprived of an education to work in family ventures such as farms, and denied nutrition and health care.

Their problems don't receive much attention as the victims of injustice and poverty, especially children, find it difficult to be heard. Children need to be protected from this abuse and maltreatment meted out to them by adults.

This is the objective of the International Day of Innocent Children Victims of Aggression, which is commemorated around the world on June 4(today).

The United Nations Day acknowledges the pain of children around the world who are the victims of physical, mental and emotional abuse, and affirms the commitment of the UN to protect the rights of all children. The Day celebrates the many people and organisations working towards protecting and preserving the rights of the world's children.

The UN General Assembly, "appalled at the great number of innocent Palestinian and Lebanese children, victims of Israel's acts of aggression (hostility)", decided to commemorate June 4 of each year as the International Day of Innocent Children Victims of Aggression, on August 19, 1982, at its emergency special session on the question of Palestine.

Now, the world is slowly coming to recognise the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and children are receiving top attention as never before. So, there is certainly a silver lining in the dark cloud.