Peace for the World

Peace for the World
First democratic leader of Justice the Godfather of the Sri Lankan Tamil Struggle: Honourable Samuel James Veluppillai Chelvanayakam

Monday, April 3, 2017

Damning Expose`: SL Dep. Ambassador Kamal Gunaratne brutally murdered his worker in Brazil..!

Murder suppressed jointly with Gota the dark minister of the graveyard..!

LEN logo(Lanka-e-News -03.April.2017, 11.30PM)  Retired major General Kamal Gunaratne the self proclaimed Nandikadal hero during the period he was the deputy Ambassador in Brazil  had  brutally murdered I.D. Nimal Roopasinghe who was serving  under him by launching an assault  causing injuries  to  his head with a blunt instrument . And, as always jointly with  ex defense secretary Gotabaya Rajapakse the most elusive blood thirsty criminal under the lawless Rajapakse era had suppressed this most cruel and foul murder . It is with deep sorrow Lanka e news reveals this most ruthless ghastly  murder committed with impunity .
The murdered Nimal Roopasinghe was sent by the ministry of foreign affairs to serve in Sri Lanka Embassy in Brazil on 2011-11-26 . Kamal Gunaratne was subsequently sent as deputy Ambassador by the Rajapakses in 2012. Bestial Gunaratne in much the same way he  was in the forces , had been treating the subordinate staff at the Embassy most disdainfully like stray dogs, and  had made that his favorite habit.  Though Raja Edirisuriya was the ambassador , Gunaratne who was enjoying special patronage of criminal Gota had been throwing his weight about even disregarding the ambassador, taking full control of the Embassy. The staff were kept frightened by this scoundrel by circulating the story that he was a relative of Gota . The staff knowing well about toffee nosed Gota as a most notorious and powerful criminal under the brutal lawless Rajapakse regime were gripped by a fear psychosis. 
Gunaratne has been using  Roopasinghe to do all his menial work including washing his clothes . The staff of the Embassy was therefore naturally most resentful and angry about  Gunaratne’s crude , callous  and obnoxious attitude.  
Roopasinghe in June 2013 has via phone call bemoaned  to   his only daughter I.D. Thejika Sandamalie Roopasinghe about the high handed and villainous conduct of Gunaratne , and how he is getting work done treating him like a slave . He has also said , he is thoroughly disillusioned therefore , and there are a lot of issues in the Embassy owing to Gunaratne.

On another day , Roopasinghe has phoned his daughter and complained  , Gunaratne had one day chased him out of the Embassy in the dead of  night.
Some days after this on 2013-11 -02 , Roopasinghe has phoned his daughter and stated , he was going to the Embassy the following day to collect the passport , his travelling bags , and after purchasing an air ticket he is coming back to SL , while adding he would speak to her again after buying the ticket .
However Roopasinghe has not  thereafter spoken to anybody in Sri Lanka including his household members 
Though what happened to him was kept top secret  hitherto most cruelly , now Lanka e news is in possession of all details relating to this crime .
On the 3rd of November 2013 , that is the day following his speaking to his daughter , there had been an altercation between Roopasinghe and Gunaratne over the issue of former  being treated like a slave , and Roopasinghe   being chased out by Gunaratne in the dead of the night. Gunaratne had then attacked Roopasinghe with a blunt instrument causing head injuries which had rendered him unconscious .

Since he was not duly treated  medically , he had been in a coma for several weeks before he finally died. Because all the lies were told to Roopasinghe ‘s family as regards the cause of death of Roopasinghe  in order to  cover up the cold blooded  murder, even Roopasinghe’s remains was not sent to his family in  SL .
The methods and machinations ruthlessly and unconscionably  resorted to  by Gunaratne and criminal Gotabaya who got together to suppress this brutal murder heartlessly are  most deplorable  and disgusting . Nobody will even believe their ears if they are told   such ruthless ,heartless brutal murderers are living on mother earth who can commit such  horrendous crimes.  How can a human being kill another so brutally like a fly  just because the killer enjoyed the patronage and protection of another two legged beast of a criminal  ? Isn’t the one who aided and abetted in this horrendous crime to suppress this heinous crime  a worse criminal?

Thejika Sandamalie Roopasinghe the bereaved and grieving daughter of the victim had this to say : 

The poignant  tale of most grief stricken Sandamalie ….

My father did not speak to me after 2013-11-02.  Therefore I phoned  my father on 2013-11-04, but my father did not respond. I tried to speak to my father many times daily ,but  my efforts did not bear fruit.
I even tried to speak to the friends of my father , but I could not succeed . Since I could not garner any information  , I spoke to the ambassador on the 6 th of November . After explaining to him all what my father told me ,I requested him  to furnish me with some information about my father . The Ambassador Raja Edirisuriya then told me ‘ I am a nominal ambassador only, and all actions and decisions are taken by Kamal Gunaratne” Following this discussion , Sandamalie spoke  to Anjula Ruwanpathirane a  friend of Roopasinghe working in the Embassy known to a cousin sister of Sandamalie .Anjula had revealed  a most intriguing tale : 

Anjula’s startling  disclosure …

Roopasinghe ‘s head was kicked by a horse on 4 th November(2013) . He  is being treated in the intensive care unit and his condition is critical . He is living because of the life machine support  at the ICU , and to remove the machine , the consent of a family member of Roopasinghe is  required. 
No sooner this information was received than Roopasinghe’s wife and daughter have rushed to the foreign ministry in Colombo. When they met the Director General in charge of diplomatic missions at that time , he had said , SL embassy in Brazil  has not intimated to  him of such an  incident  . Thereafter after  the foreign missions administration division contacted the Brazil Embassy , they related a different  story ..
Sandamalie went on to  relate thus :
 ‘They narrated another tale . They did not say about an attack by the horse.  The division informed,  as my father was in a most inebriated state he was shouting and behaving badly . Thereafter even without the knowledge of the Embassy he had gone away  to an unknown place. The division here further said , that information was conveyed by the embassy to them  just at that moment. When we inquired whether the Brazilian police had been notified , the division replied ,  no such complaint had been made. 
Since the foreign ministry was saying one thing and Anjula told  something else , I somehow contacted  Anjula via my phone . I told him the foreign ministry had related the incident , and therefore urged him to disclose the  factual story. He replied he will relate the truth in detail the following day , but the following day and thereafter Anjula could not be contacted. He was avoiding us. However to my cousin sister he had given some details of the hospital where my father was supposedly  being treated.

A nurse pretending to be a doctor deceived us ..

The name of the hospital was given as Do Base Df hospital ,the name of the doctor administering treatment as  Dr. Loria , and the phone number of Dr. Loria was given as 0556133151637.
After obtaining the telephone No. of the hospital ,I gave a phone call to that hospital and inquired , whether a patient by the name of Nimal Roopasinghe is a patient in that hospital and is he taking treatment ? The hospital authorities said , there was no patient by that name. 
Subsequently , we gave a call to Dr. Loria who Anjula mentioned.  ‘Yes Dr. Loria is speaking’ , she said .The patient referred to is being treated by her and not at  hospital , she answered. She also explained,’ your father ‘s heart is 85 % okay , but he is now in a coma. Because of the grievous injury caused to his brain , blood has  seeped into the brain. It is only after father regains consciousness , surgery can be performed,’ she pointed out.
Later . we somehow managed to contact a friend of ours in Brazil . His wife was a nurse there. We sent him  to St. Maria hospital to meet  my father where he  was supposedly taking treatment  . He  came back and told us , our father had all along been at St. Maria hospital and he is still in a coma. However,  do not have any hope that he  would survive , he said while  disclosing my father  had not been provided with any facility by the SL Embassy. It is later I discovered  Anjula had a love affair with  a nurse , and Dr. Loria was Anjula’s lover , the   nurse who pretended to be a doctor. 

Rs. 2.5 million needed to  bring the remains here : Don’t knock your head against granite rock 

We told the foreign ministry to get us the remains of our father or to help us go to Brazil.  They did not agree to any of these requests. On the 10 th of March 2014  , the foreign ministry informed our mother that our father has passed away. 
On the 11 th we went to the  Consular division and requested them to bring  the remains of our father to SL, whereupon we were directed to meet the Director General of the administration division of  Diplomatic missions . He told us there is nothing that he can do in this connection. The consular division assistant Director Rasik told us we will have  to pay  Rs. 1.9 million to get down the remains here.
When we tried to collect that sum ,he told us since   three days have elapsed ,  a sum of Rs. 2.5 million will have to be paid.  (This attempt to collect this large sum by the victim’s family to get their father’s remains proves how much their father was worth to them . Whereas the foreign ministry divisions dilly dallying uncaringly about this grave issue including murder demonstrates  how inhuman these two legged beasts  in human form were  under the corrupt marauding murderous Rajapakse regime  , and how unconcerned they were  about  precious human  lives , even after committing cold blooded murders).
We were also told , a large sum will have to be spent to keep the body of our father at St. Maria hospital, and only after meeting that expenditure out of father’s pension , the balance can be released. ‘You have only this daughter. Hence do not try to hit your head against a granite rock’  Rasik warned my mother.”

After that I spoke to Ms. Janaki who was functioning  as the secretary to the ambassador at the SL embassy in Brazil , and requested her  to send us every belonging of  our father to us including the photograph of my father’s remains. Janaki then said , St. Maria hospital officials are averse to taking photographs of the remains.

When she informed  , the body of our father had been received  by the embassy, I told her , okay , now the body is at the Embassy , so please take a photograph and send me.  Janaki replied , Gotabaya (the dark  minster of the graveyard) is arriving in Brazil now , and therefore photograph cannot be taken or sent. 
Subsequently the death certificate of my father was sent to the Consular division . They said that was issued by the Brazilian government.  However in that the gender , skin complexion, date of death and the hospital where death occurred were only mentioned .”
What is most paramount , pertinent and perturbing in this mysterious death  is the discovery  that  the telephone number of dead Roopasinghe is still active .  ‘Even today when I give a call , father’s phone is ringing and somebody is listening to what we say , but nobody from that side is answering. It is therefore most suspicion ridden.’ Sandamalie noted. 

Gota in Brazil to rescue the murderer 

When listening to this most poignant  and heart rending tale of the only daughter about the sudden death of her beloved father , one can imagine  what a brutal, barbaric and heartless murderer this  so called Nandikadal Kamal Gunaratne is , who is responsible for this ruthless murder. 
Gotabaya the dark minister of the graveyard visiting Brazil during that time , and meeting Kamal Gunaratne in the Embassy itself was to show  to  others he was there to suppress this brutal cold blooded murder of an innocent individual .  Consequently, no one had opened his/her  mouth to talk about it let alone spit  after seeing this dark minister of the grave yard , who was at that time like a most feared modern Dracula thirsting for blood of innocents. 
In the circumstances , the subterfuges and camouflages resorted to in order to halt the remains of  an employee under the murderer from being sent to the deceased’s   family in SL simply because the truth will come to light and to suppress the cold blooded murder are absolutely unpardonable and inexcusable .
No  matter what tricks and treacheries were resorted to so far in order to cruelly conceal this ruthless murder  ,  the situation has however changed now. The true post mortem report has been received which says Roopasinghe died due head injuries following  an attack launched on  him  using  a blunt weapon. Those who were deaf, dumb and blind to this murder have started talking now. 
This being another of the series of cold blooded  murders the lawless Rajapakses are seeking to suppress , it is the fervent hope of the masses  who are for justice that those responsible for this  ghastly cold blooded murder shall be brought before the law and duly punished  without delay.
In the first photograph is Kamal Gunaratne with Raja Edirisuriya  when they were the SL’s deputy ambassador and Ambassador respectively  in  Brazil . In the middle photograph is Nimal Roopasinghe when he was alive.Third photograph : The remains of Roopasinghe 

By Wimal Dheerasekera 

Translated by Jeff


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by     (2017-04-03 18:22:35)
Wimal Weerawansa’s free fall from grace

2017-04-04
Wimal Weerawansa is a destructive politician. After Anagarika Dharmapala, he is probably the most effective rabble rouser who could manage to send a sizeable portion of the population to an ethnic frenzy through his gifted oratory. His leader for a short while, Rohana Wijeweera was also a provocative orator, however, though he was a closeted bigot, Wijeweera spent most of his speaking prowess to promote a class struggle. The most eventful individual on the other end of the ethnic divide, Velupillai Prabakaran was a coy trigger-happy mass murderer. He mesmerized a much larger section of Tamils at home and abroad through his resort to untrammeled violence directed against Sinhalese, Muslims and dissidents of his own community.  
What all those men had in common was their ability to exploit fault lines in our society and the limits of our state, then and now. Anagarika Darmapala exploited liberal leanings of the Colonial British to espouse his border line racism. He would not have survived had it been the French, the Dutch, Belgian or any other colonizer. Rohana Wijeweera mobilized two generations of Sri Lankan youth, who were in fact the product of a baby-boom propelled by successive governments’ welfare policies, to wage a war against the very state. He was stopped on both occasions, but it was too late and too costly. Both Prabhakaran and Wijeweera thrived in the perceived and often hyperbolic grievances of a segment of people and exploited the limits of coercive power of the state to advance their myopic ends. If Sri Lanka- which invested all its fortune to maintain a bloated welfare state, which over time became too big for the limited government revenue to maintain- allocated a fraction of its budget on its internal security, both of them could have been stopped a long way before they unleashed their carnage.

  • What all those men had in common was their ability to exploit fault lines in our society and the limits of our state,

  • The government does not show the same resolve when it is most needed. Its actions are driven by political calculations

  • Mr. Weerawansa may have one well- founded grievance. He is yet to be found guilty of charges of misappropriation


Wimal Weerawansa is one of those individuals who had mastered that macabre art. He has put his skills to use quite sinisterly, feeding into insecurities of Sinhalese people, and sowing fear psychosis. Each time he contested elections, either from the JVP or the UPFA, he had a tremendous success. Since he had hardly delivered as a minister in any of his portfolios in the past , one could assume that his electoral performances were an endorsement of his rabble rousing divisive ethnic politics.   
Recently, he had been fasting against a court decision that put him in remand custody over alleged misappropriation of state property to the tune of Rs. 90 million.Last week he called off his hunger strike, according to his goons, acceding to a request by Mahanayakes. In the future, if every fraud, rapist and bond scammer in prison chose to avail himself a bit of ‘Sathyagraha’, the venerable monks would be inundated with requests for intervention.   

Our part of the world can make a historical claim for pioneering the strategies of non-violent protest. However, we also have the dubious honour of bastardizing those non-violent means into cheap political gimmicks. Tamil Nadu politicians, including former Chief Minister Karunanidhi who once fasted in between his breakfast and lunch in support of the Sri Lankan Tamil struggle, are masters of this form of chicanery.   
On other occasions, low level of social and economic progress and weaker state institutions means even the most well intended non-violent mass mobilization could drift into mass violence. Even Mahatma Gandhi could not stop a nation he mobilized through non-violence from descending on each other, hacking half a million to death after independence was granted by the British.   
A couple of years ago,Wimal Weerawansa himself fasted against the UN, which was called off when then President Mahinda Rajapaksa fed him king coconut water. This time, Mr Rajapaksa’s absence was conspicuous. Since he could make a visit anytime to the prison hospital or the national hospital, using his privileges as a Member of Parliament, one wonders whether Mr Rajapaksa himself did not want to be taken as a clown in a political drama staged by his acolyte.   

"He is not accused of parking looted money in offshore accounts or building mansions. The irony is that those who are accused of such deeds are still at large"


Mr. Weerawansa tried, but failed to intimidate the country’s budding independent judiciary into submission. That the judiciary prevailed over was a cause for celebration. This should perhaps set the precedent for the future, when the government has to deal with numerous groups with vested interests, who think the law should be bent to serve their agenda. However, the problem is that the government does not show the same resolve when it is most needed. Its actions are driven by political calculations and that itself threatens to undermine its own effort to strengthen the rule of law and independence of independent institutions.  
Mr. Weerawansa may have one well- founded grievance. He is yet to be found guilty of charges of misappropriation of state vehicles and other resources, much of which had, allegedly been allocated to the party cadres, those long neglected JVPers who defected with him to launch his new party. That is not right, but the Sri Lankan political culture demands such a patronage. He is not accused of parking looted money in offshore accounts or building mansions. The irony is that those who are accused of such deeds are still at large. So are those accused of running extortion rackets in Colombo, Kelaniya,etc. Those who ruined the Sri Lankan airline through flimsy tenders, and drained the state’s coffers of millions of dollars are now serving as the go betweens between the government and the Joint Opposition. 
Viewed against them, Wimal Weerawansa is a small fish. He should be asking himself, ‘why me?’ If his arrest is intended to tame him, it may have a political logic, but such a selective justice will do no good for accountability and rule of law in the long run.   
Perhaps, he should ask in the court: ‘why me?’  


Follow Ranga Jayasuriya at RangaJayasuriya on Twitter  

Sri Lanka: New Law Against Terrorism — leaked draft


( April 3, 2017, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) The government of Sri Lanka is working hard not only to repeal the much controversial law, Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) but also to introduce the Counter Terrorism Act.
Preamble of a draft copy of the act obtained by Sri Lanka Guardian reads as follows,
“An act to make provision for (a) the protection of Sri Lanka’s national security and the security of its’ people from acts of terrorism and related attacks, (b) the protection of the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Sri Lanka from acts of terrorism and related acts, and (c) the prevision of terrorism and related attacks on national security and the security of the public, (d) the protection of the other countries and areas from the scourge of terrorism, (e) the prevention of the use of Sri Lankan territory and its’ people for the perpetration of terrorism and related offences, (g) the identification, apprehension, arrest , custody, detention, investigation and prosecution and punishment of persons who have committed acts of terrorism and other offences which would affect national security and the security of the people of Sri Lanka, and (h) matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.”
A draft of the act reproduced below;

Sri Lankan Muslim Clerics Revert Stance On MMDA Reform; But No Mention Of Child Marriage


Colombo Telegraph
April 3, 2017
The All Ceylon Jamiyathul Ulama today reverted its said position and admitted that the Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act needs reforms, however with no reference to the need for reform of Child Marriage and the consent required from females when entering a contract of marriage among other key issues.
Rizvi Mufthi
Responding to the assertion of the head of the ACJU Mufthi Rizwi, that the MMDA is “perfect in its present state ” the ACJU said the statement had been misinterpreted.
The ACJU did not deny the contents of an alarming submission it made to several parliamentarians in which it defended thee right to marry girls before attaining puberty.
Issuing a statement today the ACJU said the main area of reform needs to be on the Qazi court system instead. The statement made no mention of the initial submission in which the main theological arm of the Muslims insisted that a “No people will ever prosper who appoint a woman in charge of their affairs” and “therefore a woman isn’t worthy of being appointed a Qazi” quoting Hadith ( narration of the Prophet ).
The statement which quotes the Quran and Hadith insists however in justice and equality to all genders.
“Finally, the correct understanding of the statement, “Islam is a religion of equality”, is that, “Islam is a religion of justice”. This means being ‘just’ in treating equally those who are equal and, being ‘just’ when differentiating between those who are different. The ACJU invites all to join hands in this noble work to reform the MMDA and to protect the rights of oppressed women and the rights of every individual” the statement says, without no mention of the agreement to appoint females as Qazis.
The statement insists that the ACJU had worked for reform with the committee “Unitedly” in stark contrast to reports and the statement made by the Chairman of the committee Justice Saleem Marsoof who said that the Ulamas were using all possible means to hamper the process.
The MMDA in its current form allows for child marriage and requires no consent from the bride. It also doesn’t permit females to sit as judges in the Qazi court.
The Colombo Telegraph is in possession of evidence in which the Ulamas and other conservative groups have been sending out forms to obtain signatures and add names of women against the MMDA reforms at the mosque during Friday sermon, attended by only men.
We publish below the abatement in full:
The All Ceylon Jamiyyathul Ulama (ACJU) ever since its establishment has always taken a very flexible and moderate approach, within the framework of Shari’ah and the greater public interest, when consulting on any issue.
Such facilitation is based on the Quranic verse where it says:
“Allah intends (to provide) ease for you and does not intend (to create) hardships for you.“ (Chapter 2 Verse 185).
In addition, Prophet Muhammed (May Peace and blessings be on him) has said :
“Make things easy and do not make them difficult, cheer the people up by conveying glad tidings to them and do not repulse (them).”
In another instance the Messenger of Allah said: “Indeed, this religion is easy”.
It becomes the duty of the Ulama (religious scholars) to ensure that matters pertaining to the religion are not made difficult to the people. Especially, because it has been mentioned that Ulama are the inheritors of the prophets.
Yet another instance by which the ACJU and Ulama are limited by the Quran is where it mentions :
“Oh you who believe do not hold as unlawful the good things Allah has made lawful for you” (Chapter 5, Verse 87).
It is clear from the above verse that the ACJU neither has the power to make what is unlawful lawful nor the power to make what is lawful unlawful.
Unfortunately, the statement made by the President of the ACJU that the “Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act (MMDA) is perfect in its present state”, has been subjected to misinterpretation.
In fact, what he wanted to express was that our predecessors who were involved in formulating the MMDA had taken great efforts to make it near perfect. Of course, given the circumstances of that period. This does not imply that there need not be any reforms today to the Act, mainly in the administration of Quazi court system.
There has also been an unfair allegation against ACJU that it is not ready to listen to the grievances of the women. There is no truth at all in this allegation. ACJU wishes to highlight that it will be a gross violation of Islamic religious teachings to ignore the women or not to give them the honour and respect that Islam has bestowed on them. ACJU is therefore, bound by these religious teachings.
See the examples elucidated below, where the Almighty Allah, the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and the Righteous Caliphs were ready to listen to the women.
‘Tug-o-war’ between the GMOA and the Government - EDITORIAL

2017-04-04
The deadline given by the Government Medical Officers Association (GMOA) for the government to settle the issue involving the South Asian Institute of Technology and Medicine (SAITM) lapsed yesterday. The powerful trade union of doctors had warned last week that they would decide on the course of action they would take if the government did not provide a solution for the issue within the deadline.   
In fact, although the medical doctors called for a solution for the SAITM issue in general, the only solution they press for has been the closure of the Private Medical College in Malabe or taking it over by the government which the government has rejected. They also had hinted last week that they would launch an islandwide strike to press the government towards their solution – the closure of the SAITM.   

Apart from the SAITM being an institution that might affect the future revenue of the medical doctors in the lucrative health industry, the matter surrounding the institute has become a prestige issue for the GMOA and the government, especially Health Minister Dr. Rajitha Senaratna, after the Appeal Court verdict issued recently ordering the Sri Lanka Medical Council to provisionally register the MBBS graduates from the controversial private medical college. Hence, the reaction by the GMOA to the government’s apathy towards their demand this time might be strong.   
Most probably they might decide on an island-wide strike as indicated by them last week, but only in state hospitals. They might stop work in government hospitals and spare more time for private practice during the strike when more patients would turn to private hospitals. In any strike, whether it is launched by the doctors or the private bus operators or any other group, to maximize the effect or the success of it, the harm done to the people or to the authorities concerned or to both by the strike must also be maximized. Maximizing the effects of a strike by medical doctors means more deaths and more horror in hospitals.   

"they might decide on an island-wide strike as indicated by them last week, but only in state hospitals"


People go to hospitals when their lives are in danger or when they are in severe pain. Therefore unlike in respect of other professions, defending work stoppages by doctors is very difficult, as it involves the very lives of the people whom the doctors claim to be fighting for. It is like the LTTE taking hostage the people whom they claimed to be fighting for during the last lap of the war. The strategy of the LTTE was and that of the doctors is to put the people’s lives in danger and push the government to come to the rescue of the people by way of giving in to their demands.   

Demanding that a private medical college be closed down while being involved in the private health care industry is ludicrous and hypocritical. In fact people are affected not by the private health education but by the private hospitals where exorbitant amounts are levied as doctors’ fees and other charges. The mechanism of the private health industry has been arranged in such a manner that it would squeeze out the patients as much as possible and this was done through doctors who were mostly GMOA members. Even the poorest of the poor who opt for State hospitals are also not spared by this mechanism as they are being pushed to go to private hospitals for various tests costing thousands, citing long delays and various other reasons in state hospitals. The government recently decided to ban the blood tests of patients of the state hospitals done at private hospitals. But patients at State hospitals do not voluntarily opt for tests done at private hospitals.   
Will the GMOA come forward to launch a strike at private hospitals as well at the same time if they stop work at State hospitals. For an argument, we point out to them that it would further maximize the effect of their trade union action and show their genuineness as well in their struggle against SAITM.

DFT-14-13

logoTuesday, 4 April 2017

Over the weekend I was invited to address the final year MBA graduates of a premier university in Sri Lanka, the Colombo University, at their residential workshop. The topic was ‘Key Challenges of Sri Lanka for a Young CEO and Their Role Today’.

Let me share the 10 key points discussed given that the university attracts the top talent from the business world in a given year and there is diversity in their experience as they hail from different sectors.


1) Learning will not end at MBA

When one enters an MBA there is so much of enthusiasm and pride but when one comes to the end of the programme the only thought is about when one can complete the dissertation and graduate. The logic being balancing studies, family, work, industry get-togethers and looking after one’s health is an absolutely horrendous task, especially in today’s working environment where there are protest campaigns that affect travelling on a daily basis.

But the reality is that in today’s dynamic environment, the only way to survive is to be switched on to the latest ‘best practices’ continuously. This means that the MBA learning ethos will have to be engraved in our daily lives even after graduating. My view is that the Daily FT gives a good balanced view of the changing environment and its best practices but it will be useful to select some online updates that can raise the flag. I use the Harvard internal newsletter but I also find CNN Board Room, HBR and Economist also give a good perspective. The SC Nielsen quarterly update is a good analysis on the Sri Lankan economy whilst lately the Central Bank weekly economic update also gives a strong view.
Untitled-2681

2) Consumer pressure

on the purse high


The last two weeks’ economic updates by the Central Bank have continuously highlighted the upward trend on the weekly commodity prices be it rice, lentils, sugar, sprats, cowpea or canned fish. The logic being that when the exchange rate is under pressure then there is no option but costs increasing.

March inflation hit an increase of 7.3% with core inflation also increasing by 7.3% vs. 7.1 in February which is not healthy. If one understands the typical progression of consumer behaviour, the use of items like shampoos, sanitary napkins for instance is linked to the quality of life of citizen and if one is reducing the frequency of use or moving out of the category like what is happening now in Sri Lanka are strong vibes of an economy heading for trouble times.

Given this background, one will have to find creative ways of adding value to a customer so that business volumes can be achieved. On a separate note one will have to continuously change the product portfolio of a company so that one can ensure that a company’s product is included to the consumer basket.


3) Handling public sector corruption

In today’s world, a public sector organisation has three economies at play. The business economy, political economy and the corruption economy. Many of us thought that with the Yahapalana Government there will be more focus on the business economy with the corruption economy being non-existent, however the reality is that the lines are more blurred and the private sector is grappling to understand how to work with the public sector.

In the next one year the skew will only increase given the local government elections that are scheduled later during the year. My advice was very single-minded. Play the game absolutely straight unless one wants to end up giving evidence at FCID, Presidential Commission or the Bribery Unit which are not pleasant experiences as is the general ethos.


4) Do not use the media to talk to Government

A key pick up from the apparel, IT/BPO industry and mobile sectors are that the private sector does not use the media to communicate policy issues of industry anomalies. They ensure that the industry gets together even with the cut-throat competition that exists in the marketplace and cohesively meets the public sector technocrats and thereafter the political hierarchy so that any issue does not become a political weapon in a Coalition Government. This also requires the new skill of engaging the public sector on a continuous basis and influencing policy reforms. 


5) Tourism needs a positioning strategy 

Focusing on the key strategic sectors I first focused on the tourism industry. This industry strongly require a positing strategy, which has been the call of the private sector for the last decade. Fortunately the segmentation and targeting is clear but for some reason positing the industry to compete with the likes of other island destinations like Maldives, Seychelles or Mauritius leaving aside Malaysia, Thailand or Singapore has not achieved much success.

Once again the way out is not to enter a political war on the media but supporting the public sector using the World Bank and such organisations like McKenzie which is acting as the catalyst for making this happen with a strong marketing campaign. But a word of caution is that private sector must not be involved in the corruption economy at any cost which is why this project has not moved in the last 10 years.


6) Exports need innovation

Latest research from the Harvard Development Centre on Sri Lanka has revealed that the export industry has launched only seven new product categories globally in the last 15 years (2000-2015 time period) which is the reason for Sri Lanka exports to be registering just 10.3 billion dollars recording a -2.2% performance in 2016.

Apparently, more aggressive countries like Thailand has launched as much as 70 new products generating $21.6 billion dollars into the country whilst more aggressive countries like China has launched 76 new products, generating a straddling $331.6 billion dollars by way of export revenue which tells us the challenge that countries like Sri Lanka must address even though the World Bank ranks Sri Lanka as the best performing in the ‘Doing Business’ ranking for South Asia. This must be addressed by the new age CEO was my view in the years to come linking closely to the university system of Sri Lanka.


7) Sri Lanka will be freer

The latest research by the Heritage Foundation and Dow Jones and Company state that Sri Lanka’s economic freedom is registering 59.9 which in comparison to the global average is termed ‘mostly unfree’ as per the 2016 Economic Freedom indicator. What needs to be noted is that from the repressed situation in 2015, the 2016 Sri Lanka performance is in the correction direction and hopefully by 2017 we can move to a rating of 70 which is essentially ‘Free’. This will support the GSP stipulations and also drive further integration with world economies. This means that the CEO of tomorrow will have to keep a close watch on the opportunities globally by being close to the policymakers.


8) Top 3 national issues

AC Nielsen research report states that the top three issues of the country are the economy, politics and corruption. If we examine what ails the economy of the country similar to the last 10 years there are many factors that will emerge such as shrinking global markets, debt payment issues, etc. But the issues faced politically are very worrying given that on a daily basis there are protest campaigns which is in essence the agitation of the different segments of people.

Many thought that the Yahapalanaya promise would eradicate corruption but as I said sadly the breadth and scope has only increased; I guess in the next nine months it will only increase further, given the provincial government elections being planned. This also inhibits private sector participation with the public sector which the new age CEO must monitor before stepping into public sector boards.


9) Top 3 consumer issues

From a consumer point of view the key three issues are political stability, increasing utility bills and increasing costs of children’s education. Sadly one cannot see a breakthrough on these fronts given that according to last week’s Central Bank Economic Report, the Colombo Consumer Price Index increased to 6.8% from the 5.5% in January 2017 vs last year which means that the cost of the basket of goods is increasing.

Annual average inflation increased 4.6% in February 2017 from the 4.3% registered in 2017. The CCPI core inflation that reflects the underlying inflation in the economy increased 7.1% in February 2017 from the 7% in January which means it’s on an upward trend which is worrying. The annual average CCPI core inflation increased to 5% in February 2017 from the 4.7% in January which reflects the heart of the problem to a typical household of Sri Lanka which needs the attention of the young CEO of today and how creatively demand can be managed.


10) SL brand will be

$ 100 billion


The good news is that Sri Lanka as a nation brand will become 100 billion this year with the above performance of Economic Freedom touching 70 hopefully. The challenge is if the election agenda will hamper this performance in 2017 and 2018 but the GDP also touching 100 billion dollars means that Sri Lanka can attract better quality tourists and better quality export markets whilst FDI will also get directed to Sri Lanka. 


Way forward

There can be many more challenges for the new age CEO after passing out of the MBA that includes higher taxes at corporate level and cost of capital increasing and the continuous change in policies that is a nightmare to the business world. But the real challenge is how a typical MBA programme can churn out a graduate who can make a difference to Sri Lanka.

(The author is an award winning marketer by profession and served 17 years in top British and American multinationals in brand marketing and general management whilst he has the unique experience of serving the public sector as Chairman of three public institutions in exports, tourism and retail chain and the international public sector via the United Nations for five years.)


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By a special correspondent-

Sri Lanka is in the grip of a severe epidemic of Dengue fever and Dengue haemorrhagic fever. The epidemic did not happen over a short period. Dengue has been in Sri Lanka since 1962. However, it was not a major public health problem. The disease was progressing at a very slow rate. Since about 2004, the numbers of cases have started going uprated dramatically since about 2008.

There have been great efforts to stop the spread of dengue in the country for several decades with singular lack of success, with the ever increasing spread of the decease as seen in the graph below. It is therefore evident that the approach to the problem and the means adopted are questionable, including the highly questionable proposals of large scale use of chemicals recently advocated and adopted.

See Graph 1

In recent years, there has been a National Dengue Control programme involving most government departments, the police and even the armed forces, coordinated at the highest level. However, all these efforts have been directed towards the elimination of the mosquitoes and not finding the means of controlling and eliminating the root cause, which is the Dengue Virus.

See Graph 2

BI = No of positive containers/No of premises inspected x 100

As the blue line in Graph 2 shows, their efforts have not been in vain, when reviewed only by the success in reducing the mosquitoes. The Breteau Index (BI) which is an index of the presence of mosquito breeding sites, has continued to fall until 2012. But during the same period the dengue cases have continued to rise (red line).

However, the same strategy to control dengue is continued to be followed today because;

=there appears to be no viable alternative and

*it is the recommended strategy; namely to reduce and eradicate aedes mosquito breeding sites.

See Graph 3

Should we continue with this strategy?

As Graph 3 shows, every year, since 2012, the annual cases have been going up. Although there have been periods of high and low incidence of cases, the pattern has been the same every year. In addition to the ongoing routine programme of dengue control, special 3, 5 or 7 day eradication programmes are also instituted periodically. We can use the pattern of dengue incidence during the past five years to test whether the special eradication programmes have any effect.

See Graph 4

Graph 4 shows in blue the pattern of average dengue cases during the years 2002 – 2015. The red line indicates what happened in 2016. The dates on the horizontal axis (29th Mar., 15th Jun. etc.) are for 2016 and special programmes for eradication of breeding sites started thereon. The reader can seeif the special programmes have been successful or not, in 2016, from the way the red line has moved with the blue line in spite of the special programmes.

It is therefore time to institute an alternative method of control or even eradicating dengue from Sri Lanka. Before such a strategy is even considered, a certain mindset has to be eliminated as regards the public and bureaucrats. They seem to think the only way dengue can be controlled is to prevent the breeding of aedes mosquitoes".

If one analyses the dengue cases since 2004, some features were observed.

See Graph 5 and 6

See Graph 7

*The more densely populated a district is, the more intensely will the epidemic spread in that district

*The more populated a district is the faster the disease will spread in that district

*The more cases there are in a month the more cases there will be in the next month

These are the features of an infectious disease

Knowing that dengue in Sri Lanka behaves as an infectious disease we can adopt the measures that are traditionally used to control an infectious disease; when there is neither an effective treatment nor an effective vaccine. That measure or strategy is isolation.

Isolation works by preventing the transfer of the disease-causing organism from a sick individual to a healthy individual by whatever means. The transfer may be by touch, sneezing and coughing or by an insect

In epidemiology, there is a concept named Effective Reproductive Rate. (R) What this means is that in infectious disease epidemics, the behaviour or progress of the epidemic depends on, among other things, how many healthy persons a sick individual will pass on the disease to. If the sick person infects only one other person (R=1), the disease will continue to affect the community but will not become an epidemic. If the sick person (on average) passes on the disease to no one (R<1 but="" disappear.="" disease="" hand="" healthy="" if="" infects="" more="" on="" one="" other="" person="" sick="" slowly="" surely="" than="" the="" will="">1), there will be an epidemic.

This, in effect, means that in order to stop the epidemic (of dengue or any other disease), we do not have to isolate every case. Graph 6 shows (in theory), what would happen if we reduced the average number of healthy people thaHow to eradicate Dengue virus from Sri Lankat a dengue patien

t infects. As the graph shows, how soon we eradicate dengue will depend on how effective we are in isolating dengue patients. (50% isolation will eliminate dengue in 6 generations or 4 months).

See Graph 8

This naturally raises the question; how do we isolate dengue patients? We do not actually "isolate" a dengue patient in the traditional sense. We isolate the dengue patient from mosquito bites.

One would notice that what is suggested is quite a radical departure from the accepted dogma. If we are to adopt the strategy proposed, two things are essential.

=There must be very strong commitment at the highest level to the new strategy.

=There is a need to mount an intensive health education campaign.

Some basic misconceptions have to be corrected. For example, that dengue is acquired from mosquitoes. Dengue is actually acquired from a dengue patient; the mosquito only "transports" the virus. All campaign literature must display the image of a dengue virus and not a mosquito.

Undoubtedly, there will be many who will object to the proposed solution. Some will say that what is proposed is not practicable. I should like to ask them what the aim of the present strategy is. It is aimed at preventing mosquito breeding? The final aim of the present strategy is also to prevent mosquitoes biting dengue patients. There is no harm done if aedes mosquitoes bite healthy people, unless of course the mosquitoes has bitten a dengue patient previously.

Only a little reflection is necessary to realise what a roundabout and wasteful method we employ to control dengue. Take the Colombo District as an example. There are 2,000,000 people there. Every month about 800 cases are reported from Colombo. When one infected mosquito bites a person (2,000,000 – 800) some 1,999,200 could be bitten by non-infected mosquitoes. What this means is that in order to prevent one mosquito biting a dengue patient we have to prevent the birth of (2,000,000/800) 2,500 mosquitoes.

Another argument that might be advanced is that the cooperation of the public cannot be expected. Once again if we take the Colombo District as an example, there are approximately 500,000 households there. What the authorities are now asking the public to do is keep these 500,000 premises free of mosquitoes breeding. What I am asking is to look after 800 patients. Which is easier? A further difficulty is that people find it difficult to eliminate all breeding sites from houses and gardens because some breeding sites are either inaccessible or hidden e. g. on the roof, in tree hollows and underground. Dengue -patients on the other hand are easily identified because of fever.

Finally, if evidence is required to prove that it is not mosquitoes that cause dengue epidemics, rather than individual dengue cases, the next graph from Singapore is sufficient:

Dengue and Dengue Haemorrhagic Fever Singapore 1966 - 2005

(Bowman LR, Donegan S, McCall PJ (2016) Is Dengue Vector Control Deficient in Effectiveness or Evidence?: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases 10(3): e0004551. doi: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0004551)

Premises index = premises with breeding sites/total premises inspected x 100

When there were plenty of mosquito breeding ( premises index of 50 in 1966) there were fewer than 50 cases of dengue per 100,000. However, when the premises index was brought down to about 2 by 2005, there were 300 dengue cases per 100,000 population.

Even in Singapore, the authorities have now realised that control of mosquito breeding alone is not sufficient to eradicate dengue. From 2016 there is an additional bit of advice to people.

"You should apply insect repellent in the following situations:■ 

*You are a confirmed or suspected dengue patient, having a fever. Fever in dengue patients coincide with the presence of dengue virus in their blood, which could be inadvertently transmitted to family members and neighbours via Aedes mosquitoes.

■ *A family member or neighbour has contracted dengue.

*Your neighbourhood has been declared a dengue cluster. Click here for the list of active clusters. Use of repellent can minimise chances of being bitten by an infective mosquito.

■ *You are visiting a place that is a declared cluster or has high mosquito population".

(http://www.dengue.gov.sg/subject.asp?id=160)

A Thought Experiment

If the following are true:

*We live in an island

*Dengue is caused by a virus

*The virus cannot lead an independent life outside man or mosquito

*Dengue is transmitted only by the bite of a mosquito.

Then the following will happen:

*If mosquitoes stop biting everybody no new dengue cases will appear after one week

*If mosquitoes stop biting all dengue patients no new dengue cases will appear after 5 weeks

*If mosquitoes stop biting half the dengue patients no new cases will appear after 16 weeks

(This is an abridged version of a larger document. The original document containing the development of the suggested strategy together with the sources of data, references etc. can be found in http://eradicatedengue.blogspot.com) Please email any comments to eradicatedengue@gmail.com

This report has been compiled by a MBBS Qualified Doctor with over 50 years service experience in public health in Sri Lanka and the UK. The data used for the compilation of the detailed report is from publicly available documents.