Abuse of state property

With election fever building up in the  NCP, the government candidates are reportedly having a field day with the use of state property for electioneering.

The UNP is now ready to move for a writ of mandamus in court against the Chief Secretary of the North Central Province (NCP) in a bid to prevent the illegal acts.

According to local reports, the government's NCP candidates are using official vehicles with garage number plates in Kekirawa and Kalawewa.

"If the government ministers could use official vehicles with garage number plates, the UNP too would follow suit as all parliamentarians irrespective of their portfolios are entitled to the same privileges. If the government sets a bad example, the same pattern can be observed by others also," said UNP legislator Ranjith Aluvihare.

 He said that over 20 vehicles with garage numbers were plying in and around Kekirawa and all of them were government vehicles. All departmental heads including chairmen and directors are travelling in these vehicles. Besides vehicles, circuit bungalows were also being occupied by UPFA supporters, he alleged.

Blaming the Kekirawa Police for inaction, Aluvihare said that the UNP has complained to the Elections Commissioner against the abuse of public property during the election campaign and warned that the party would take legal action to obtain a writ of mandamus against the NCP Chief Secretary.

I am undefeatable - Maheepala

Oozing with confidence and calling himself an 'undefeatable' candidate is government's Sabaragamuwa chief ministerial aspirant Maheepala Herath.

 While paying a glowing tribute to late Prime Minister Sirimavo Bandaranaike for appointing him as organiser for the Rambukkana electorate way back in 1993, Herath said that irrespective of the mounted campaigns and colourful candidates 'imported' from elsewhere, he was undefeatable and would secure a second term without a problem.

Never failed

"After being appointed as the Rambukkana organiser, I was given an opportunity to show my ability at the 1994 general election and that's when I got elected to parliament. From then onwards I have never failed in my attempts and would not at the forthcoming Sabaragamuwa Provincial Council election as well," boasted Herath.

According to Herath he was not involved in any community service when he was young but later seeing how the underprivileged people in the neighborhood were harassed by certain local politicians, he wanted to enter politics and serve the people who did not have a voice.

"I was a government servant before becoming a politician. When I felt that the time was right for me to change my job and do community service, I entered politics. I never looked back since then," he notes.

Recalling as to how he climbed up the political ladder during the past 15 years Herath further said it was due to his sheer commitment.

Elevated

"First I was elected to parliament in 1994 and in 1998, I was appointed deputy minister for housing, construction and urban development by President Chandrika Kumaratunga. And in 2000, she elevated me to cabinet rank and gave me the rural industrial development portfolio," added Herath.

According to Herath he was able to initiate a special irrigation scheme for the Mawanella, Kegalle, Rambukkana and Aranayake electorates from his decentralised budge - something he considers a significant milestone in his political career.

"As deputy for housing and construction, I managed to initiate a 15,000 housing project and was able to construct 8,574 houses," Herath explained.

Speaking on how he helped to bring the traditional handicraft industry into what it is now Herath said that it was he who established handicraft villages in the country.

"With the help of the then tourism minister, the handicraft business flourished and we managed to get  international recognition that our traditional handicrafts richly deserved," says Herath.

Education neglected in Sabaragamuwa

By Mandana Ismail Abeywickrema

Teachers and students of Sabaragamuwa, a province consisting of the Ratnapura and Kegalle Districts are hampered by a severe lack of facilities. That has made the province perform below potential when it comes to education.

Apart from a few schools in the urban areas, the schools scattered in the rural areas are faced with many drawbacks - the lack of basic infrastructure facilities, lack of teachers, great distances to travel, children suffering from malnutrition due to poverty and the time lost for studies due to frequent natural disasters.

Although the lack of facilities plague most of the rural schools, the schools that lack most of the basic facilities are located in the estate sector. Some of the schools in the sector lack electricity and clean drinking water. Children have to walk for miles on slippery slopes and cross waterways to reach their schools that are indeed a sorry sight.

High level of poverty

Schools in Embilipitiya too are affected largely due to the high level of poverty prevalent in the area. These students are also affected by malnutrition, according to education authorities.

However, even if the parents manage to send their children to school amidst great difficulties, there is a lack of teachers for key subjects like science, math and English.

Schools in every education zone in the province are faced with issues that need the authorities' attention.

The Sabaragamuwa Province is divided into seven education zones - Kegalle, Mawanella, Dehiowita, Ratnapura, Balangoda, Embilipitiya and Nivitigala.

The schools are categorised as Type 1A/B (schools with science, arts and commerce classes for A/Levels), Type 1C (schools only arts and commerce classes for A/Levels), Type 2 (schools that have classes from grades 1 to 8) and Type 3 (schools with only primary classes). One thousand one hundred schools in the province have been categorised into these types. (See box)

With a student population of 368,000, it is indeed sad for Sabaragamuwa to find only 22,000 teachers.

Sabaragamuwa Provincial Secretary, Ceylon Teacher Services Union (CTSU), M. J. Wijeratne told The Sunday Leader that the provincial education sector was rife with many issues from irregularities in the appointment and transfer of teachers, shortage of teachers, lack of basic infrastructure facilities and even school textbooks.

Textbooks not received

According to Wijeratne, several schools in the province are yet to receive textbooks for Grades 7, 9 and 11 even seven months into the year. Rural schools are reported to be the most affected in this regard.

"Some of the schools have not yet received the science and math textbooks," he said.

He also added that teachers have not been provided with the guidelines on covering the syllabus' as well. Interestingly, Wijeratne said that the authorities have requested the teachers to download the guidelines from the internet. "That too is a problem as only three main schools in the Ratnapura District have internet facilities," he said.

According to him, the delay in issuing the guidelines to the teachers has caused a problem in preparing the term test papers. "The teachers don't know how to form the test papers without the help of the guidelines," he said.

The irregularities in teacher transfers and appointments have also caused a shortage of teachers in the province.

Irregular transfers

Wijeratne explained that the inter zonal and inter district teacher transfers that were to be completed by January 1 are still continuing amidst many irregularities. He says that the provincial education ministry was making teacher transfers even after the provincial council was dissolved.

"Most of the transfers are heavily politicised and therefore the rule that obligates teachers to serve in difficult areas for a period of three years has been violated. Teachers with political backing working in difficult areas have been given transfers to main schools," he alleged.

This, Wijeratne says, has led to a shortage of teachers in most of the schools in the interior areas of the province. "There have been 2,500 graduates employed as teachers and they need to be first sent to the difficult areas, but it does not happen," he lamented.

He also noted that most of the appointments of science and graduate teachers are made to the main schools in urban areas creating an excess in those schools while the schools in the difficult areas are being thus deprived.

The lack of teachers has had a severe impact on the schools situated in the estate sector in the province.

Wijeratne said that the estate sector schools lacked close to 1,500-2,000 teachers for important subjects like math, science, Tamil and English. However, he noted that the authorities instead of making 368 volunteer teachers who are currently serving in the schools permanent, are looking at employing other teachers.

"There are many issues faced by the teachers," he said.

The 2005/4 circular issued in May 2004 outlines the promotions that are to be granted to the teachers. However, Wijeratne says that no promotions have been made in line with the circular and the teachers in the province are to be paid arrears amounting to Rs. 280 million. "Even the payment to be made to teachers for leave not taken has not been made and the arrears amount to Rs. 60 million," he said.

Distress loans minimal

Another injustice faced by the teachers as pointed out by Wijeratne is the minimal amount granted as distress loans to the teachers in Sabaragamuwa. "The distress loan is to be an amount equivalent to a teacher's 10 months salary but the amount allocated to each teacher amounts to a mere Rs.50,000," he said.

Whatever the outcome of the forthcoming Sabaragamuwa Provincial Council election, authorities need to pay more attention to the needs of the future generation of the country. And there is many a need to be addressed in the education sector in this bountiful province.

Classification of schools

There are 1,100 schools in the Sabaragamuwa Province from Type 1A/B to Type 3. Listed below is the breakdown of schools according to the respective category in the province.

Type 1A/B schools - 49 (Sinhala) and 6 (Tamil)

Type 1C - 170 (Sinhala) and 27 (Tamil)

Type 2 - 447 (Sinhala) and 48 (Tamil)

Story of an abused maid

Fathima Rihan, 20 years of age came from Galle to Dubai to work as a house-maid. Fathima had been in the Safeway House for one month with no news about her case.

Fathima Rihan, 20 years of age came from Galle to Dubai to work as a housemaid. Fathima had been in the Safeway House for one month with no news about her case.

Fathima came to Dubai through an agent in order to find money for her ailing parents.

"I came to work for one family but they asked me to work for the daughter-in-law as well. The daughter-in-law was pregnant and began hitting me from the first day.

"She woke me up at 4 am to start work and wouldn't give me food at the end of my work. Her mother took pity on me and gave me food when she could. When I couldn't take it anymore I went to the police who called the agents. The agents promised they will put me in a better house and took me to a second house and things were the same there. In the second house I worked for two weeks with daily abuse, with no water or food and one day the young wife burnt my arm in two places. That day I ran away to the consulate.

"Now things are worse for me because I have been here for one month and I have not been told anything about my case. No news whatsoever, whether they have contacted my agents or not. I wait everyday for news and my parents must be helpless without my support. A month has gone by with nothing happening. It's maddening to go on like this and I don't know for how many more months I can go on like this."

The supervisor talking of the women said that the number accommodated at Safeway House is 'high' and they find it difficult to accommodate them all.

These women who have suffered mentally and physically are now having to put up with the worse kind of fear - the fear of the unknown. When they will be out is anybody's guess; will it be one month? Or if they are lucky, three?

But seven months of nothingness is a punishment no one should have to endure. We now turn to officials and ask 'how long before these 40 pleas begin to attract enough attention in order to stimulate action?'

Salvation after seven months

Deepthika Liyanage, 24 years old,

has been in Safeway House for seven months before the consulate in Dubai sorted her case. Deepthika was leaving on the day of the interview and shared her story with us.

"This is not my first experience working as a maid overseas. I was in Lebanon and Oman and am able to speak Arabic and Hindi. So I don't have a problem speaking with, or understanding what my employers ask of me.

"I only paid Rs.1500 and the rest was covered by the employers. After two weeks with this Emirati family I was asked to cook for the extended family as well, totalling up to 25 people. I woke up at 4 am and went to sleep at 1 am, the next morning.  When I complained she hit me with a spoon and it got more physical from there.

"I ran away to the police station where the agent came and got me. They beat me up till I was bruised and said they will put me in a body bag if I try to run away. I was locked up in a room with two other Filipino girls for three days and given a glass of milk a day. During the toilet break I pushed passed the female agent and ran to the highway and kept running till a taxi stopped and got me to the consulate.