A tobacco-free society

Some of you may get a shock to hear that there are children like you who smoke. It may be hard to believe, but it definitely is the truth! There are millions of children and youth all over the world including in Sri Lanka, that have fallen victim to this dreaded scourge(severe affliction).

It is to bring attention to this problem that this year’s World No Tobacco Day, which is observed on May 31, has been organised under the theme ‘Tobacco-free Youth’.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), tobacco is the leading preventable cause of death in the world. It is also said to be the only legal consumer product that kills one third to half of those who use the product as intended by the manufacturers; the victims also die 15 years prematurely.

The global youth population, which comprises those between the ages of 10 and 24, stands at 1.8 billion, with 85 per cent of them in the developing world.

A significant number of them have already fallen victim to smoking. Nicotine is a highly addictive substance. Youth and children are highly vulnerable to such dangerous substances as they love to experiment. Peer pressure is also a major factor.

It’s a well-known fact that most smokers start this habit in their teenage years, around the age of 18. A significant number of them are said to start around the age of 10. The younger they start, the more difficult they will find it to give up the habit later in life. They will also be more vulnerable to diseases brought on as a result of smoking.

More youth are expected to take up smoking as the tobacco industry intensifies its marketing activities. The industry is believed to spend over 10 billion US dollars worldwide annually for marketing purposes.

Governments can do a lot towards minimising this problem by banning direct and indirect advertising, promotion of tobacco products and sponsorship of various events and activities by the industry. Many countries that have introduced legislation to ban smoking in public places have seen lowered levels of tobacco consumption.

The World No Tobacco Day will encourage countries and governments to work towards the implementation of strict regulation of tobacco products, by raising awareness about the existence of the many different varieties of products in the market.

Such regulation will help people get more accurate information, remove disguises and unveil the truth behind all tobacco products, whether traditional, new or future.

However, legislation won’t help unless the public realise the danger of tobacco and smoking. They should be aware of the impact this bad habit has on their health, economy and society. Then only will we be able to rid society of this menace(threat).

Programme to improve education in the East

A programme to improve the quality of primary and secondary education in schools and other institutions in the Eastern Province has been launched by the Education Ministry.

The programme would see six schools in each of the three districts of the province being developed under the Isuru schools programme this year.

Vivekananda Maha Vidyalaya has already being allocated Rs. 28 million, while Rs. 10 million has been allocated to Trincomalee Vendrasan Vidyalaya under the Secondary School Development Project. Development work in connection with this project was launched last year.

Nineteen schools in the North and East are earmarked for development this year under the new Model Primary School Development Project.

Eleven schools had been developed in these provinces in 2006 while 19 had been developed last year. Funds worth Rs. 4,893.1 million had been spent by the Ministry to develop 103 tsunami-affected schools in the Ampara, Batticaloa and Trincomalee districts.

Meanwhile, as a means of easing the teacher shortage, 1,088 graduate teachers were appointed to schools in these areas under the Tharuna Aruna programme. There are around 974 schools in the Eastern Province, and noon meals are currently being provided to students in 934 schools.

A large number of displaced students including 2,467 students in the Batticaloa Education Division had also been re-admitted to schools under this programme.

Peacekeepers to the world

There are wars and various other conflicts taking place all over the world. Some of these warring parties, after years of strife, have still managed to find peace, while others have not, resulting in continued violence and bloodshed.

In helping strife-torn countries create conditions of lasting peace, the United Nations Peacekeeping mission has played a leading role. Do you know what these UN Peacekeeping Forces are?

They are forces personnel derived from UN member states and deployed to conflict areas in different parts of the world to maintain peace. Such personnel are honoured on May 29, which is the International Day of UN Peacekeepers.

The day was declared by the UN General Assembly in 2002, to pay tribute to all the men and women who have served and continue to serve in UN peacekeeping operations, for their high level of professionalism, dedication and courage, and to honour the memory of those who have lost their lives in the cause of peace.

May 29 is the date in 1948 that the first UN peacekeeping mission, the UN Truce Supervision Organization, began operations in the Middle East to monitor the Armistice Agreement between Israel and its Arab neighbours. Since then, the UN has deployed 63 such missions in different parts of the world.

One of the prime objectives of the United Nations, as declared in its Charter, is “to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war”. Its peace operations have been designed with this objective in mind and incorporates three principal activities: conflict prevention and peacemaking, peacekeeping, and peacebuilding.

The role of peacekeepers has undergone vast changes over the years, evolving to suit the demands of different conflict situations and changing political landscapes. Earlier, their task mainly comprised lightly armed troops monitoring, reporting and taking confidence-building roles to support ceasefires and peace agreements.

Now, their roles have expanded to include building sustainable institutions of governance, human rights monitoring, security sector reforms, disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration of former combatants. The nature of conflicts have also changed from mostly inter-state conflicts in the early eras to intra-state conflicts and civil wars.

Medals for Lankan students

Several Sri Lankan students managed to win medals at the cultural show organised by India’s Don Bosco Wisdom Town insitutute of Chennai in association with Sri Lanka’s Children Skills Development Programme (CSDP), in India.

The medal winners were W. Ashini Nilanka Perera of Siddhartha Maha Vidyalaya, Thalapathpitiya (gold medal for dancing); M. Shalitha Eranda Pieris of Ananda College, Colombo (bronze for dancing and silver for singing); S.M. Kujani Vimansha Karunaratne of Ranpokunagama Maha Vidyalaya, Nittambuwa (gold for singing); W.A. Chamodani Chathurangi of Kumara Vidyalaya, Kotahena (bronze for singing); and H.A. Pradeepa Piumali of C.W.W. Kannangara Vidyalaya, Colombo 8 (silver for general knowledge).

Meanwhile, the CSDP has extended the closing date for applications for the World Environment Day competitions, which it is organising for the 12th year.

Accordingly, applications for the art, poster, essay, song and poetry compositions, advertising pamphlets, creating novel items and cards out of waste for the Pre-school, Under 12 and Over 12 groups will be accepted till May 25.

Applications for the short plays, new dance creations, singing, dancing, speech and announcing competitions will be accepted from 9am to 12pm on May 31 at C.W.W. Kannangara Vidyalaya, Colombo 8.