Regional efforts for environmental sustainability

A draft proposal has been made to nominate the year 2007 as the Green South Asia Year, when regional efforts will be made towards ensuring environmental sustainability.

The Government of Sri Lanka welcomes this draft proposal, Agriculture and Environment Minister, Maitripala Sirisena said at the seventh meeting of the SAARC Environmental Ministers held in Dhaka, Bangladesh recently.

He said the responsibility towards ensuring environmental sustainability in the economic development process goes beyond national boundaries, and added: "We will be committed to undertake national programmes towards the success of this regional effort. We will also collaborate in any regional activities to be agreed under this programme."

The Minister said that while we are embarking on our national environmental management programmes, we should also pay heed to regional and global needs as well. There are international treaties, conventions and protocols to address global environmental issues through national programmes. In the meantime, each country has its national policies and action plans to address national priorities. All these should be taken into account.

Minister Sirisena described the South Asian region as being unique in many ways. "We have a wealth of resources and rich cultural and natural heritages. Our problems are also unique to the region. While we are having some fast-growing economies in the world, as a region, we are also being recognised as poor. We all share the common goal of achieving economic prosperity."

The region also faced two major natural disasters - the South Asian tsunami of 2004 and the earthquake in Pakistan in 2005.

Although these events caused much death and destruction, the affected countries took them as challenges and opportunities to design plans to prepare themselves better for such eventualities. The collective and collaborative efforts made throughout the region to help and get over these tragedies have brought people in this region together.

The regional plans and strategies that have been agreed for disaster management and disaster preparedness are already showing promising results in the affected countries. Sri Lanka has already prepared the National Disaster Management Strategy as a follow-up to these regional deliberations and recommendations, the Minister told the meeting.

Celebrate your father, today

Your mother and father are the most important people in your life. Just as we celebrate our loving mothers on Mother's Day, our fathers, who toil hard to provide a better future for us, should also be celebrated.

Today, the third Sunday of June, is the day for fathers; when fathers around the world are celebrated and honoured. But how did Father's Day originate?

Although the exact origin of this day is not clear, most believe it started with a church service in Western Virginia, USA in 1908, while others think that it started in Washington DC. However, a Mrs. Bruce John Dodd (Sonara Smart) of Spokane, Washington is largely recognised as the strongest promoter of the day. She had arrived upon this idea while listening to a Mother's Day sermon in 1909.

Sonara wanted a special day to honour her civil war veteran father, William Smart. He had brought up his six children after the death of his wife.

Sonara had realised the selflessness of her father who had made many personal sacrifices to bring up his children, and wanted to organise a church service dedicated to all fathers, on June 5, her father's birthday. However, since the minister of the church found it difficult to organise the service at such short notice, he organised it two weeks later, on the 19th. From then on, the third Sunday of June had been celebrated in the USA as Father's Day.

Children started sending cards and presenting gifts to their fathers, treating them to meals or other special activities on this day.

Wearing flowers was also a traditional way of celebrating Father's Day. A red flower was worn if one's father was alive, and a white flower, if he was dead. Some also wear white lilacs on Father's Day.

Action against child labour

The World Day Against Child Labour, organised by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) was observed in Colombo on June 7.

Over 70,000 children (aged between 5 and 14) are at high risk for being exploited as child labourers in Sri Lanka. However, this doesn't include children categorised as unpaid family workers who may also be exposed to hazardous forms of child labour due to the ignorance and the negligence of their families.

Research points out that there are children trapped in hazardous forms of child labour such as child domestic labour, the fireworks industry, in the informal sector, construction industry, motor garages, small business establishments and shops.

However, a decrease in child labour worldwide has been marked as of late. The global number of child labourers, in the age group 5-17, has decreased by 11 per cent, from 246 million in 2000 to 218 million in 2004. The number of children engaged in hazardous work declined by 26 per cent, and there has been a 33 per cent drop in the youngest age group (5-14). This reduction is attributed to increased political will and awareness, and concrete action, particularly in the field of poverty reduction and mass education that has led to a "worldwide movement against child labour".

The ILO's International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC) has several projects lined up to eliminate child labour. The main focus of these projects is on child soldiers and prevention of child labour in tsunami-affected areas. The ILO works in close partnership with a number of ministries and organisations such as UNICEF, on social mobilisation and prevention programmes, in some of the poorest regions of Sri Lanka.

The Government has also taken steps to prohibit the employment of children through various legislation. Sri Lanka has ratified all eight human rights conventions of the ILO, including the two core conventions on Child Labour.

In Geneva, Switzerland, where the ILO's annual conference was in session, World Day Against Child Labour was observed on June 12. Special events were held worldwide to highlight the second ILO Global Report on Child Labour - on the theme 'The End of Child Labour: Within Reach'.

Fun-filled afternoon at Lyceum

Vibrant colours, cheerful faces, artistic displays and innovative creations... all went into making the afternoon of May 27, a fun filled one.

Children with their parents and friends filled the compound of Lyceum International School, Nugegoda as they strolled from class to class viewing the handiwork of the pre-grade students, who were having one of their frequent and much awaited exhibitions.

The ability of children of that age to sit down and create those innovative items was amazing. No doubt, they were assisted by their teachers, but the kids had put together some beautiful creations ranging from wall hangings to glass paintings, from 'tie' snakes to ceramic paintings.

The designs drawn and colours used, enhanced the beauty of the exhibitions and indicated that children of all ages display hidden talents that need to be nurtured. While the parents and well-wishers got an opportunity to browse through the exhibits, the kids themselves had a wonderful time, playing on the bouncers and enjoying the many 'rides' that had been installed.

The shrieks and screams clearly spelt out a good time. The kids who received little tokens in their respective classes, left the school thrilled, at having displayed their creations and experiencing an enjoyable afternoon.