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DateLine Wednesday, 1 April 2009

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Liberalization and the poor

Economic liberalization, when it was introduced in the late 1970s in Sri Lanka, was cited as a panacea for all ills and a magic formula for success. Thirty years down the road, we have experienced both the good and the bad of economic liberalization.

Sri Lanka too was caught in a whirl of liberalization sweeping the world at that time, where unbridled capitalism was the order of the day. The private sector was duly (and correctly) identified as the engine of growth, many State enterprises were privatized, floodgates were opened to cheap imports of almost everything to the detriment of local products and many financial regulation were relaxed to the greatest possible extent.

Now even the rich Western economies, leave alone Third World economies, have realized the folly of following such economic systems. The world’s closely-knit financial system has virtually collapsed, wiping some countries off the economic map. Nationalization, previously a dirty word in the West, is in vogue as countries try to resurrect their moribund economies. They may not use the same word, but State intervention is increasingly being resorted to in the exercise of reviving failed economies.

Indeed, all over the world it is the poor who had been the hardest hit as a result of economic liberalization and the consequent fall of economies. Now a leading economist has warned that South Asia, which aspires to become an economic hub, needs to be wary of the impact of liberalization on the poor.

Liberalization could result in medium to long term unemployment in certain uncompetitive sectors says Executive Director, IPS Dr. Saman Kalegama. It is thus important to strike a compromise between the medium term hazards of increased unemployment as well as the longer term benefits of increased competitiveness.

Compromise is the key word in economic regulation. South Asian countries have been accused of over regulating their economies, but events elsewhere demonstrate that a measure of regulation is essential for the healthy growth of an economy. The financial authorities need not go to extremes, but there has to be a balance in order to safeguard the marginalized sections of society.

States cannot abandon welfare and subsidy measures at once. They have a social obligation to fulfill. For example, total liberalization of the health sector would be a major blow for the poorer segments of society.

The ideal scenario is to be able to reap the benefits of economic liberalization while minimizing any harmful effects. True, the long term objective should be minimizing the rich-poor gap in society but the under privileged segments must be protected during that process.


Colombo’s TB shame

Another World Tuberculosis Day (March 24) has come and gone, this time with the slogan ‘I am stopping TB’ but the dreaded disease shows no sign of disappearing soon here or anywhere else in the world. The statistics from the World Health Organization are alarming - one person somewhere in the world is infected with the TB bacilli every second while nearly one third of the world’s population has the bacilli, though only a certain percentage develop full-blown symptoms.

One would think that such diseases are not reported from Colombo, which has the best health facilities in the country and a relatively knowledgeable population with easy access to media.

Unfortunately, the biggest number of TB deaths is reported from the capital and its environs. Twenty percent of the country’s TB patients are from Colombo. This is another one of Colombo’s dark secrets, as the city already leads in terms of underworld murders, other crime, accidents and many other diseases.

Several reasons could be attributed to this development. TB is spread mainly through the air and the high population in the city (think crowded offices, buses, roads) is ideal for the bacilli to move from person to person. Diseases thrive in Colombo’s polluted and squalid conditions. Most persons in the City lead very busy lives and tend to dismiss early symptoms of TB as a minor cough or affliction.

In the end, there are many unnecessary deaths in Colombo alone as a result of TB, which is a preventable and controllable disease. This is a waste of precious lives. The media should be used extensively to spread the message that early checks can control TB. Skin or blood testing for TB is simple and effective and medication (a long course of antibiotics) is widely available. Vaccination (BCG) is another effective strategy, though there is no 100 percent guarantee that a vaccinated person would not get TB.

In the case of Colombo, City Fathers, health authorities and residents’ representatives must get together to devise ways and means of addressing concerns such as TB and dengue which are a blot on a city that aspires to become a leading economic hub in the region.

Sri Lankans are sharper

Agriculture Minister Hemakumara Nanayakkara says the people at the recently concluded North Western and Central Provincial Council elections have fully endorsed the Government’s efforts to finish the war and measures taken to develop the country and the economy. In an interview with the Daily News Minister Nanayakkara dwells on the current political and security situation in the country and the prospects for development

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Settlement of motor third party claims

It is most unethical on the part of the insurance companies to shirk their responsibility in this manner when there is concrete evidence that their client is responsible for the damage. If they have satisfactory evidence that their insured is at fault and the 'third party' is innocent, there is nothing to prevent the insurer of vehicle at fault of compensate both parties

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Negative side of artificial fertilizer

The vital environmental hazards that stem out from the modern agricultural system is pesticide, fungicides, weedicides solutions. The intensive cultivation and green revolution has pest control as one of the important technologies to achieve their target.

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Europeans and their tribes

The tenth session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva has come to a close without the anticipated assault on the Sri Lankan state. This has been on the cards for quite some time, beginning with the motion against Sri Lanka that had been put forward three years ago.

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