Daily News Online

DateLine Monday, 26 March 2007

News Bar »

Breaking News: Two explosion near SL Air Force Base Katunayake at around 0100 a.m. ....           Political: Troops continue humanitarian operations ...          Financial: State aiming to meet labour market needs ...          Sports: “Beef up security for us” says SA Manager ....

Home

 | SHARE MARKET  | EXCHANGE RATE  | TRADING  | PICTURE GALLERY  | ARCHIVES | 

dailynews
 ONLINE


OTHER PUBLICATIONS


OTHER LINKS

Marriage Proposals
Classified
Government Gazette

Future leaders, rich and poor children

The United States sponsored programme titled ‘Future leaders’ conference continues to irk rustics like us because unlike most other educational programmes, this one exclusively caters for a small, privileged band of students, the vast majority of whom attend expensive international schools and whose parents are affluent enough to afford travel and other costs of a US visit.

Concerns raised by me and a couple of others through the columns of the national press urging a change in the selection process - so long as you call it ‘Future leaders’ or at least a change in the programme title - so long as the present system remains unchanged - apparently go unheeded perhaps with the underlying thinking that ‘poor children are poor because they are poor, so who cares?’

No one would grumble USA (or any other country for that matter) hosting a programme for our children with the aim of admitting them to their universities and other tertiary educational institutions.

In fact, in the context of limited local opportunities in certain fields of higher education, it is a welcome thing.

But our grouse is this. Why gift the tag of ‘Future leaders’ to a small group of children, whose selection for participation in USA programme is determined, foremost among other things, by their parents’ purchasing power, be it local private education, foreign education or even air tickets and warm clothes?

Call them successful candidates or any such thing, nobody would grumble as after all these are also our children.

But please refrain from calling them ‘Future leaders’. Other thing being equal, if it is, the parents’ economic power that determines who is to be called a future leader - pardon me my US friends - such usage is totally unacceptable.

To those who feel with me on this issue I make a fervent call. Let’s get together design and implement a programme to breed our own home-grown future leaders, through a Sri Lanka future leaders initiative.

In such an attempt, our stress should be on selected bright children from poor families and under-privileged schools. Our aim should be nurturing their qualities and skills to be patriotic leaders of the future with undivided loyalty towards the Motherland. In this regard a proposal is being drafted in consultation with a few concerned parties.

I do hope that the ever-smiling Mr. Blake, the US Ambassador will take note of this shortcoming. He perhaps is well aware that the US Democratic Presidential hopeful Barrak Obama was raised with food stamps during part of his childhood.

Mr. Obama is lucky that he was not born a Sri Lankan to a ‘Samurdhi’ (our equivalent of US food stamps) family with no chance to all to be called a future leader under a US-sponsored programme.

Y. W. GUNAWARDANE – Rajagiriya

******************

I will break your face - Diplomat?

Reference the above titled news item published in the Daily News on March 22(Thursday) by Dushy Ranetunge, we have received the following responses from our readers:

I

As a citizen of this country, I feel very sad and offended by the hawkish behaviour of this diplomat. Whether he is a diplomat from Iraq, UK or USA, if they do not respect the people of this country they should be shown their door out. In this case, he has gone too far by threatening a sale’s girl in her own shop.

The President should without delay order the diplomat to leave the country and also take up this issue with the Government of Iraq and seek compensation for the girl as she has suffered pain of mind and humiliation.

The diplomat or the Iraqi embassy should immediately render an apology to the people of Sri Lanka for belittling the country as a ‘sick country’. Further the Sri Lankan who endorsed the view of the Iraqi diplomat also should be taken to task for disrespecting his own country unpatriotically by saying ‘yes’.

It is time for Sri Lanka to treat its own citizens with dignity and respect. If this has happened in our neighbouring countries such as Pakistan or India, the diplomat would have not gone out without a bruised face.

SEYED ZAFARULLAH KHAN – Pakistan via email

********************

II

What next? Earlier it was something about a journalist (Mohan), now a sadistic Iraqi is calling our country ‘sick Sri Lanka’! Why is he allowed to stay in our country after this episode? May be he thinks that we treat our Sri Lankan women the way they treat their own.

The Iraqi women have no freedom at all. What he tried to do (break a female’s face) is happening all the time in his country Iraq.

The Iraqis are non compassionate, unruly and violent beings. If at all they are issued with a visa to enter Sri Lanka, the first requirement should be to attend a class to learn about the Sri Lankan culture. Shame on those who sided the foreigner. Yes I agree, many Sri Lankans bow their heads to foreigners. That is why Sri Lanka is going to the dogs now.

DILHARA ABAYASEKARA - via email

*********************

III

I would really appreciate Dushy Ranetunge to bring this story to all readers. I think it’s a shame on the people that they did not stand for our mother country.

I am so glad still we have people like you doing the right thing.

DHAMMIKA AMARASEKERA - via email

****************

IV

The Iraqi diplomat’s insult and the SLC entourage for the Cricket World Cup, permit me to take both the above subjects in one letter.

1. Sri Lankans in the Middle East is treated shabilly by most Mid-Eastern people.

That is because we allow them to do this to us and we, as a nation are divided along ethnic lines, so how can we stand against foreign ‘diplomats’ even Iraqis whose land is a pathetice place and whose lifestyle is one of subservience to the US forces!

(2) There are several thousand Indian, Bangla deshi, Pakistani as well as visitors from England, Scotland, Ireland etc. watching their respective teams at play. But you can count the number of Sri Lankans witnessing the on-going matches in the Carribean. And all these are those living in Canada and the US. Why not the SLC and the well-healed private sector not sponsor and charter an aircraft to fly a plane-load of ordinary Sri Lankans who only need a good yelling voice for these matches? Instead, they prefer to treat themselves!

This is the malady of our country, greed and selfishness.

KUMARA SOYSA - via email

EMAIL |   PRINTABLE VIEW | FEEDBACK

Gamin Gamata - Presidential Community & Welfare Service
www.lankapola.com
www.srilankans.com
www.topjobs.lk
www.greenfieldlanka.com
www.buyabans.com
Villa Lavinia - Luxury Home for the Senior Generation
www.news.lk
www.defence.lk
www.helpheroes.lk/
www.peaceinsrilanka.org
www.army.lk

| News | Editorial | Financial | Features | Political | Security | Sport | World | Letters | Obituaries | News Feed |

Produced by Lake House Copyright © 2006 The Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Ltd.

Comments and suggestions to : Web Editor