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Caring for the mind and heart as well as the stomach

Elaborating on what may be termed the social justice implications of the present tax amnesty, Finance Minister K. N. Choksy told Parliament on Thursday that there would now be an enlargement of the Direct Tax net resulting in increased and enhanced taxing of the affluent.

He explained that increasing Government revenue stemming from an expanded Direct Tax base would eventually enable a reduction in indirect taxes, such as VAT, which are borne by all social classes - rich and poor alike. In other words, the present tax amnesty could result in the poor being relieved somewhat of the cost of living burden.

Our wish is that this should come to pass because it is difficult to conceive of national rejuvenation plans, without the yoke of hardship patiently borne by the poor, being eased. In fact, it is with considerable gladness that we learn of plans by the Government to take more infrastructure facilities, such as power-generation equipment and better roadways, to the rural poor who usually end-up wilting and dying in benign governmental neglect. Interestingly, our news pages are replete with positive news reports these days of this kind, pointing to an unusual degree of zeal on the part of the State to alleviate the lot of the common man, including plans to introduce stable paddy prices.

Fine. But what of the people's health, particularly their mental health? This is one area on which an eagle eye has to be kept, on account of the relentlessly rising crime wave and other social instabilities. Escalating crime is a sure sign of widening social inequalities on the one hand and the rising mesmeric influence of a get-rich-quick mentality and culture, on the other. Both tendencies trigger gory violence and crime and we are now witness to such bloody convulsions.

The end result is the steady brutalization of society and the psychological dislocation of persons in increasing numbers. As we said yesterday, the task before the State is to eliminate the causes that lead to the use of violence and coercion and the taking-up of arms.

Attempts to resume the peace process could help in this connection, but the poor and other vulnerable sections, meanwhile, need to be protected, to the extent possible, from the psychological harm which is heaped on them by societal instability and violence. Sri Lanka's track record on these question, however, leaves very much to be desired - a commonality it shares with many neighbours. An International Psychiatry Conference held in Colombo recently heard that the South Asian region which is home to some 1.3 billion people, has only 4,000 psychiatrists and that too mainly in the urban sector. The rural poor, whose lot is usually deplorable, don't gain easy access to these meagre psychiatric services. In any case, it is learnt that just a handful of medicalmen take to psychiatry, for reasons which are not very clear.

That Sri Lankans are a highly suicide-prone people, then, shouldn't come as a surprise. They do not have the necessary psychiatric care when they need it most. Perhaps, Government's development plans should also now take cognizance of this most vital health need.

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