A most barbaric mindset

The LTTE landmine blast in the Wilpattu wilds which claimed seven civilian lives is a shattering reminder of the Tigers' chilling barbarity and inhumanity. It should help all relevant quarters into recollecting that the Tigers are in a class by themselves in the unleashing of terror. Nothing short of the most stringent sanctions would make them see sense.

In this act of stunning insensitivity we have proof that the LTTE is not considering itself to be bound by any rules of conflict. Such rules are seen as applicable to only the State but not the Tigers who have been breaching every conceivable regulation applicable to conflict situations with utter indifference. Organisations such as the ICRC need to take note of these LTTE anomalies. Are the Tigers going to get away with acts of inhumanity such as these ?

Ideally, global action needs to be taken against ruthless terror outfits such as the LTTE. They cannot be allowed to get away with mass murder and unutterable butchery. There should be a coming together of civilized opinion the world over against the LTTE which is clearly establishing that it would stop at nothing until its goals are met.

Further pontifications by world opinion on such questions would come to nothing. Concerted, drastic and impactful international action needs to be taken against terror groups such as the LTTE.

The world should have, by now, gauged for itself the depths of degradation to which the LTTE has sunk. It is prepared to use any means to further its ends. It would not matter if the means thus used are women, children, infants or pregnant mothers. Anybody or anything seems to suffice. Is not the LTTE deriding world opinion through such inhumanity ?

Is not the LTTE acting on the assumption that the world would stand idly by as it commits the most heinous of crimes ? It is up to the international community to prove to the Tigers that they are totally wrong.

Fortunately, for Sri Lanka, the State has made it abundantly clear that it is for a negotiated settlement. Eloquent expression was given to this pledge when Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera told Parliament recently that the Government's first, second and third priority was negotiating an end to our conflict. In contrast, the LTTE has not even remotely suggested that it is committed to a political settlement. Who is keeping Sri Lanka on the boil should be clear from this contrast.

The State would be doing its utmost to take Sri Lanka along the path of a negotiated peace but it requires the active cooperation of the LTTE to make this dream a reality. The evidence thus far is that the LTTE is implacably opposed to this approach to ending our conflict.

Western democracies in particular, which do not tolerate lawless elements on their soil, should adopt the same line of approach to the LTTE. The Tigers' hostile mindset should be broken and they should be jolted into realising that there is no alternative to negotiating an end to the conflict.

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Law's delays

Colombo High Judge I.M. Abeyratne presiding over the Royal Park murder trial has made a very pertinent observation which should engage the attention of the country's legal establishment.

The Judge said that in Singapore if a lawyer requests for a postponement of a case he is slapped a fine of 500 dollars and if he repeats this the penalty would be 1000 dollars.

He said this in the context of frequent postponements requested by Defence Counsel in the Royal Park murder case. He noted that in Singapore a case is completed and sentencing carried out all within one year.

Those familiar with the Hulftsdorp scene are only too aware of the various ruses adopted by members of the legal fraternity to obtain fresh dates, with judges too more often than not readily complying.

The victims in these instances are the poor innocent litigants who often travel miles from far off places enduring severe hardship to obtain legal redress to some pressing matter. Crafty lawyers are only too ready to exploit the ignorance of these innocent souls. The fresh dates granted by court could be several months into the future resulting in much trauma to the already harassed litigant. Such postponements only add to the current woes of the court administration heavily burdened with a backlog of cases.

There are many lawyers who are inclined to obtain postponements at the drop of a hat. In most instances this is based on monetary considerations.

What is needed is an effective mechanism in our judicial system to summarily deal with those whose conduct will only serve to tarnish the legal profession and sully the reputation of other eminent members of legal fraternity.

Assessment fostering creativity and open minded thinking in higher education

In 1920s, Leta Hollingworth, a pioneer in the field of psychology, highlighted a similar point by inferring that children who possess intellectual quotients (IQs) in the range of 120-145 find, comparatively, little difficulty in the usual education culture, while those with intellectual capacities above this level struggle to survive in non-conducive environments.

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Hail Norochcholai! Hail the Chief!

One of the most significant steps taken by the present President shunning the inaction of both Chandrika Kumaratunga and Ranil Wickremasinghe was the firm decision to go ahead with the Norochcholai coal power plant.

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