Trilingual education will promote ethnic harmony

by Ananda KANNANGARA

Education Minister Bandula Gunawardane stressed the importance of creating peace and harmony among schoolchildren and said that the introduction of the Trilingual Education System in schools is vital to make this concept a reality. Referring to a recently conducted ceremony to mark the Universal Children's Day, Minister Gunawardane said steps have already been taken by the Education Department to teach Sinhalese, English and Tamil to children in all schools, so that the language barrier too could be solved.

Minister Gunawardane told the Junior Observer that it is the responsibility of elders to refrain from segregating children ethnically.

He said they should teach them the value of co-existence from their young days. He also said that children of various ethnic groups taking part in team work, especially in sports activities, is also vital to build up a peaceful society among children.

The Minister also focused on the establishment of some schools on the ethnic basis in the past and said that children should not be separated according to their ethnic groups.

He said children should carry out their educational activities as well as sports and other school co-curricular activities together, so that it will help to create a peaceful society among all ethnic groups.

"In addition to sports activities which bring schoolchildren of all ethnic groups together, student exchange programmes too must be conducted in future, so that children from Southern schools could visit the Northern schools and vise-versa," he said.

The Minister said the Government allocates over Rs. 300 million annually to provide meals for schoolchildren.

A day to focus on the poor

The United Nations' (UN) International Day for the Eradication of Poverty is observed on October 17 each year since 1993. It promotes people's awareness of the need to eradicate poverty and destitution worldwide, particularly in developing countries.

The observance of the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty can be traced back to October 17, 1987. On that date, more than 100,000 people gathered in Paris, France, to honour the victims of extreme poverty, violence and hunger. Since that moment, individuals and organisations worldwide observed October 17 as a day to renew their commitment in collaborating towards eradicating poverty.

In December, 1992, the UN General Assembly officially declared October 17 as the date for the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty (resolution 47/196 of December 22, 1992). In December 1995, the UN General Assembly proclaimed the First United Nations Decade for the Eradication of Poverty (1997-2006), following the Copenhagen Social Summit.

At the Millennium Summit in 2000, world leaders committed themselves to cutting by half the number of people living in extreme poverty by the year 2015.

News briefs

by Rohana JAYALAL

Export of reptiles

The Export Development Board (EDB) is exploring the possibility of exporting certain varieties of reptiles to European countries.

A group of German experts has arrived in the island to look into this possibility, EDB source said.

Under the initiative, reptiles that are in high demand in the European market will be bred at special farms. According to EDB source, this process would be carried out in a manner that would not harm the country's biodiversity.

There is a demand for certain varieties of reptiles to be reared as exotic pets in some European countries.

Relic ants in Kalutara

A new study has revealed that a variety of ants, said to be going extinct in the country, has been found in Kirindawatta in the Kalutara district.

The ant is known as the Sri Lankan Relic ant or the Aneuretus simoni, is endemic to Sri Lanka. The head of the Zoology Department and Senior Lecturer of the University of Kelaniya, Prof. Shriyani Dias said that the Relic Ant is the only extant genus in the tribe in question.

Prof. Dias said that it was the first time that this variety of ants was found in forests in Kalutara.

Air taxi services

SriLankan Airlines has decided to commence its air taxi services from December. The service is eyeing 13 destinations across the island.

The national carrier will acquire two 15-seater Twin Otter aircraft capable of reaching any destination in the island in about 40 minutes. The new water-dromes that the air taxi service is likely to operate from include the Beira Lake, Negombo Lagoon, Castlereigh, Tissamaharama and Arugam Bay. It has been decided to operate in many other locations such as Kandy, Bentota, Nuwara Eliya, Galle, Ampara, Trincomalee, Dambulla and Dikwella, too.