|
|
 |
 |
 |
| Friday, 28 November 2003 |
 |
|
 |
Letters | |
| News Business Features Editorial Security Politics World Sports Obituaries
|
Please forward your letters to editor@dailynews.lk in plain text format within the e-mail message, since as a policy we do not open any attachments.
According to recently published statistics on suicide rates, Sri Lanka, the highest in the world (55 out of 100,000 Sri Lankans commit suicide) which is three times the world average of 14.5 per 100,000 people. Japan rates second place. Suicide is the last desperate act of a human being without any hope. To take one's own precious life - the most valuable of our personal possessions - in a very violent way indicates, we live in a compassionless society. We always attribute attempted suicide as an act to draw attention because more often than not, it is the attempted suicidee seeks help after taking an overdose as an example - but successful suicidees are those who make quite sure they will die. Such a scenario encourages people to take their own lives. We are unable to inspire and motivate people to live happily. We are unable to provide sufficient counselling to troubled people when they most need it. We have failed in oh! so many ways. Why did so many farmers have to commit suicide before relief was given to them? Why wait for Budget reforms? Do people know what really happens when a suicidee swallows kaneru seeds? Mixed with sugar, it becomes a resinous substance which cannot be dislodged with a stomach wash. Through sophisticated TV cookery demonstrations we instruct women and men in the baking of croissants, maalu buns, and thosai. There are hundreds of delicious rice-based recipes, but we are trying our darndest to wean people away from eating rice. One of our leaders was stoned in Polonnaruwa when he suggested to farmers they uproot paddy fields and replace them with other crops. Our suicide rate was in an article in an American news magazine in their cover story on the "Mentally Ill in Asia". I felt ashamed and sad. The whole world will feel sorry for us; perhaps despise us. Once a happy-go-lucky, carefree people, we have become care-worn and troubled. LINDA VAN SCHAGEN, Senior citizens thank Minister Choksy We the old scale pensioners, once the elite in Government Service, now receiving around Rs. 5,000 per month are extremely grateful to Minister K. N. Choksy and Bandula Gunawardena for providing us "happiness in the twilight of our lives" with "a 10 per cent increase in pensions" coming to around Rs. 500 per month. We also appreciate your difficulty to increase the interest rate on fixed deposits of Senior Citizens as you have to look after your Banks and Finance Companies. When the President prorogued the parliament, we were very unhappy as the news of this unprecedented increase in our pensions was getting delayed. A half page advertisement published on November 20 by the Ministry of Policy Development and Implementation very rightly says that "it is the obligation of any society to look after the well-being of its Senior Citizens. And this is exactly what the Government believes in. Thus, the Government has decided to increase the pension of every Retired Government Servant by 10 per cent. as a result our Retired Government Servants will be able to enjoy their twilight years and hold their place in society with more dignity and have the assurance of a secure and certain future". At last we are extremely fortunate to find that with the increased Rs. 500 we can enjoy our twilight years and hold our place in the society with more dignity. The Government has forgotten to mention in the said advertisement that the Senior Citizens from January 2004, shall have the financial strength to buy a day's requirement of medicine, make another phone call to a friend or a relation, switch on another bulb in the house and attend a funeral of a friend or a relation. We categorically state that we have no objection to the pension increase by Rs. 2,500 per month to those who retired on the new scale and now drawing a pension of nearly Rs. 25,000 per month. We the Senior Citizens, if we manage to live up to the next general election with the strength given by the Rs. 500 increase, will definitely vote for the UNF as we are confident that you will give us another increase of Rs. 500 in 2006 under your Government. TJ, The salary increase made to Government employees and pensioners in the recent Budget proposals seems ridiculous in the wider context of the current Cost of Living which is spiraling sky high. Specially the 10 per cent increase of the pensions is nothing but a ridiculous proposal. While an average Government employee in service is entitled to an increase of Rs. 1,250 per month, only pensioners who draw a monthly pension of Rs. 12,500 would get an increase of Rs. 1,250 per month (i.e. 10 per cent of pension). A majority of the older pensioners draw a monthly pension of much less than Rs. 12,500. For instance, serving the Government for more than thirty years in a high executive post, I retired many years ago and now I get a paltry pension of only Rs. 4,900. The salary of Government employees then was very low when compared to the present salaries. The increase in my pension will be Rs. 490 (10 per cent of 4,900). Thus, it would be nothing but reasonable that all pensioners too be entitled to an increase of Rs. 1,250 per month. This would also prevent in creating an additional anomaly in the pensions of Government employees. On the other hand, rather than making ad hoc salary increases, it is far better to implement the Tissa Devendra Salary Commission Report. While even the President has recommended this, has the present Government forgotten about it completely? TILAK SILVA, With regards to 10 per cent pension increase granted, the pensioners who retired before 1990 wouldn't be a happy lot for no tangible benefits would accrue to them as they are drawing a mere pittance by way of pensions compared to those retired after 1990. The Commission appointed to inquire into pension anomalies of pre-1990 pensioners has submitted its Report and the Minister of Public Administration has, through several news media briefings, promised to grant relief by way of enhanced payments. U. M. G. GOONETILLEKE, GDP, bank interest rates and bank robbers A year ago a newspaper advertisement offering 9 per cent p.a. on a special "Ladies Shakthi" savings account, lured me into a private bank where I promptly opened an account for those innumerable emergencies that arise. It was a "fixed" rate and withdrawals restricted to twice a month. So, imagine my dismay when I visited the bank this week to update my savings book to find that the rate had been dropped to 5 per cent (only because I asked - the information was never volunteered). The very same bank has proudly boasted a nine-month nett profit of Rs. 1.124 billion. Their nett profit was Rs. 1 billion last year. Another bank's 9-month nett profit is Rs. 1 billion. Here is another newspaper declaration "NDB posts strong 9-month results with profit up 33 per cent to Rs. 833 millions. A new bank has excitedly declared a ten-fold increase" for 9 months of Rs. 246 million. Of course, all these profits increase the GDP (Gross Domestic Product) which is 5.5 per cent expected to go up to 6.5 per cent soon. This is attributed to good fiscal policy of the government, dictated to by the World Bank and the IMF. Who benefits by these indecent profits? Not the impoverished, over-burdened citizens of this country, but the Boards of Directors of the banks and insurance companies - around six per bank. The Government gets its cut through increased taxation on increased profits, and those very same institutions will finance the next general elections, so that the fiscal policies which benefits them and the Government will continue on the heavily-bent backs of the suffering masses. We citizens become poorer, so that a few can get filthy rich on our hard-earned savings. A few sops were thrown at us with the new Budget like scraps to pariah dogs on the streets, further insulting our intelligence and K.N. Choksy had the temerity to declare some of the Budget proposals were the "best in ten years" - mostly having cut interest rates from 14 and 15 per cent to as low as 7 and 8 per cent and then offering senior citizens special "duals" of 9 per cent at the National Savings Bank! We are not fools Mr. Choksy. As I am speaking for women, the women in Sri Lanka are very educated and can teach you a thing or two about good fiscal management. LINDA VAN SCHAGEN, Apropos D. Samarasinha's letter (Nov. 4) in response to my appreciation of the late K. S. Hapugoda (Oct. 20) I am grateful to Mr. Samarasinha for putting the record correct in that it was W. D. L. W. Samarasinha who was the first Sri Lankan Principal of Christ Church Boy's School, Baddegama, and not R. B. Gunatilake, as mentioned by me. However, my information was based on facts lost in the mists of time, culled from the oldest - living old boys whose memories are now hazy. I surmise, that they reckoned R. B. Gunatilake as the first Sri Lankan principal of the school when it came on the map during his tenure of office with versatile teachers of the calibre of Dr. W. Dahanayake and S. Arulnandan. P. U. LIYANAGE, Drastic decline in interest rates on deposits I write in response to the letter by Sunil Thenabadu (Nov. 11). He is right in saying that no spokesman has made any comments in the local media, even though several letters have appeared in the papers regarding this matter. The decline in interest rates is already causing much hardship to the retired employees of the private sector (mercantile and plantations) and will affect those to retire in the future as well. These employees are non-pensionable and they totally depend on the monthly interests from deposits of their Provident Fund for their day-to-day living. This is a matter that must be taken up with the relevant authorities by the Trade Unions and those associations representing the ex-employees of the other professions in the private sector. A. C. DE SILVA, Failure of purely academic education I read of endless seminars on education. I worked in a European country for nearly ten years. That country was not turning out B.As and B.Scs in great numbers but welders, tinkers electricians and others who could do something with their hands. There are no jobs for B.As and B.Scs but not only is the pay for skilled artisans in Sri Lanka good, but also the contribution of these artisans to the national economy is immeasurable. What is urgent is to change the whole system to give the artisan his or her proper place in the national economy. F.D.C. Wijesinghe, In his weekly discourse under the innocuous heading "No holds barred" Prof. S.R. Hoole has chosen to have a dig at Sri Lankan vegetarians (D/N 22-11) by narrating the experience of a real vegetarian at a dinner hosted by a friend. Although he calls it "in lighter vein a vegetarian's lament", a discerning reader would sense that there is a subtle or veiled derision against all those who have opted not to be, in the words of G.B. Shaw, the "graves of murdered beasts". To invite a pure vegetarian for dinner and then make him eat even a morsel of non-vegetarian stuff, even though unwittingly is to commit a heinous sin. The hapless vegetarian guest has shown an extreme urbanity and unwillingness to embarrass his host. He had to consume the bits of Maldive fish etc. masquerading as spice in the salad. The point made out by the Professor of not imposing one's religious symbol on those outside the faith is all the more relevant where vegetarianism and non-vegetarianism are concerned. C. RUDRA, |
|
News | Business | Features
| Editorial | Security
Produced by Lake House |
