Where SRI LANKA is heading? FUTA and general public.
I was really shocked to see the hatred towards university lecturers in the form of online comments in an e-newspaper. Some even called for the lecturers to even go to some other country if they don't like the way things are here. That shocked me to the core. I am not defending the strike or the situation it ended on.... But the hatred is immense and if I am not mistaken alarming. Is it the fact that the person commented don't know that its these qualified people who teach their kids when (or if) they get into the university? Or they just don't care?
Its amazing that the same person could not see why these few educated people hang around indefinitely underpaid and constantly harassed by stupid politicians and bureaucrats!!! And if the general public is dumb enough to compare the necessity of these people to the same level as needing clerks in an office, then by definition we are a doomed nation beyond repair. Then it would be few masters student and graduates who ll be teaching in few years in our unis and later on it ll be a sub set of the same students who would have to teach themselves. Of course, the business class and the politicians will send their kids to foreign unis and pay with your tax money. Then they (like Malaka Silva) can come back and become the education minister. Is that what we want to see happen to our beloved country? We boast to the rest of the world about our high literacy and the intellect we provide through our unis... But then we might have to modify that to accommodate for the mass idiots as well!!!
Akila Mike.
Indeed..
ReplyDeleteIts sad that SLkns dont see the value of education. sadly, if a person can write his/her name, its considered good enough for literacy. Such is how SLkn literacy is high, not because of secondary & tertiary education.
ReplyDeleteOn one hand its sad to see that the professors had to get down to the roads, but then again, I am happy to see something happening and the blunt refusal to compromise for the sake of future generations.
~Noe Prins~
So true! By any chance are you considering coming back to 'serve' the public and the govt which does not care the hardships people go through to obtain the 'qualification' to be a senior lecturer in Sri Lanka?
ReplyDeleteComing back was my plan... Now I have to pay I am seriously considering it... Its one thing to undersell yourself...its another to do so while been treated like the scum of the earth.
DeleteSince I'm also a graduate from a local university, personally I know what kind of level of expertise is these lecturers bring to the table. They are so specialized in their respective fields and the senior professors and they train their secondary level too. Some lecturers even take the trouble to train the undergraduate student when they do lectures. But unfortunately the government wasn’t looking after this mammoth asset what we have here. Luckily for everyone, these are the only people who remain here to give their valuable time for the benefit of the younger generations. They haven’t left the mother land in order to serve a foreign country, like who thought they value only money than returning a favor back where they benefited from the “FREE EDUCATION”. It is the responsibility of the government to pay a sufficient salary not just to live, but they can afford to enjoy as well. The government has ran away from their responsibility and they have pushed the lecturers to a position with no other option than moving to an strike, in order to pay themselves with the increasing cost of living.
ReplyDeleteWith all these, there are lecturers who are extremely knowledgeable, but yet they lack in soft skills like presentation skills, talking in English. These things have let the status of the lecturer’s community down to a certain degree and the level of confidence & faith of the students for them. So in this point of view it is unfair to give a salary increment to “ALL” the lecturers, but yet we can’t give only to a certain group. But senior professors & senior lecturers have a huge responsibility to not just select students who have a 1st class degree in their specialized and just make them lecturers. They should design training programs or send them for training, who lacks in communication skills, so they are equipped enough to deliver quality lecture sessions. And hopefully it will at least justify the increment what they fought for. They should do a better job, because they get paid not from the minister’s money. They get it from the taxes what we pay for the government. So there might be a right for them to protest and get a salary increment, but they should also keep in their mind they owe the people in this land to do their job. At the end of the day the future of Sri Lanka get affected and crushed from all of this. Think if your child, your brother is about to enter the university or is in university. Will you go for a strike? Will you do protesting? People who are financially strong enough will send their kids abroad and teach them. But what about the kid whose father is a poor labourer, who only earn about 3000/- per month and have to feed about 4 members in the family. They barely have money even to eat 3 meals per day. Can they send their kids abroad to learn in a foreign university and can they pay the fee in $ or £? No, they can’t and they have no other option. Sometimes they even have to sacrifice a main meal to save money to send the child to a Government University. So this message to all the university lecturers & to the government. Please don’t play with the future of Sri Lanka. These are the generations, who have the capability to produce even Albert Einsteins, Aiesec Newtons and in past they had.
I admire your passionate reply in this regard Charith. You have pretty good points about what both parties should have done. But the view seems to be a bit too idealistic. In my view, no one really owes the country for their education. The reason for my argument is as follows.
DeleteLike in any other bilateral relationship, the govt and the student are also bound by the same principles. Yes, people do pay for free education. But the students themselves have also earned it at uni level. They have proved that they are the best or the cream of the country. Majority of these students will join a private company after graduation... and they enjoy a descent salary with other medical and fuel benefits etc... They don't seem to owe anything to the country! Then a very small percentage of that would be able to come with good academic standings and get scholarships from foreign universities. When they go to those countries, what they see is a system which values education and is willing to pay for it. They still continue education for another 5-6 years and get a PhD. Majority of them will stay in those countries and live a life of many luxuries, while a handful will return to their motherland. Those who return will find their peers (who went into industry) at managerial level positions with substantial incomes. Then that few have to live their life with a crap of a salary and people say they owe their country?
Now that's the attitude people in SL have to get out of. Educated people are a resource and there s so many ways they can make money...but when they give all up and come home, they get loaded with a debt. For a fact, students in Canada are considered to be the poorest among society but still gets paid a hell of a lot more than a uni lecturer. Don't get me wrong.. I am not saying that SL need to match the salary a PhD holder makes here, but be more considerate to bestow them to a better condition.
Dear Akila, Nice seeing your blog.
ReplyDeleteThe point that you were raising is exactly what I was most feared from the beginning of this strike and now it is happening in reality.
Have a close eye on Lal Kantha's strikes, Sarath Fonseka, Hirunika, Major who was assaulted by Malaka Silva, many journalists who were either disappeared, assaulted or killed and soon the Secretary of the Judicial Services who were assaulted etc. etc.
All of them were at the receiving end at one stage. Then the system was so clever that all those victims were either bought or put into the wrong end so that the public started scolding at the victim instead of the culprit. Now you can add Lecturers also into above list.
When the system has so much money they can buy everything.......... opposition, legal system, media etc.
One good example is Hugo Chavez. For many Sri Lankans he is a hero. How do our people know about Chavez; just looking at portrays of media. I have several Venezuelan students and also have talked to many Venezuelans. They hate him and give many examples to show that he has ruined the country. So how does he emerge as a hero... ....
Robing the public money Chavez has become a billionaire. he had all the problems at the beginning but now he is well off. As per my students, now this guy has bought everyone who has gone against him. Even Directors of CNN, BBC etc. They suspect him even bought USA president and CIA Head.
Now back to Sri Lanka. Lecturers have done a big mistake from the very beginning by taking 6% into their list of demands. Very popular demand for attracting masses, but I figured out from the very beginning that this is beyond the mandate of Dons.
There is no argument that SL academics get peanuts compared to what those get in many other countries. However, for majority of SL public Rs. 80,000 is a huge amount and the system could easily show that Dons are very unreasonable asking for a hike. Don't forget that all Media in Sri Lanka are now in their hands.
Under such circumstances, I could sense that the strike will end up in this manner. As I was anticipating, the system could finally make the University Academics appear as "Bunch of Jokers" if not as "Villains".
It is hurting and painful for me as I am also a part of that bunch.
Now don't ask me what academics should do instead..........!!!!!!!
THE MONSTER HAS ALREADY BEEN CREATED. EITHER YOU GET EATEN ALIVE OR DELAY THE INEVITABLE BY SEEKING A COVER............OR?
Sadly, I have to agree with you in most of these points aiya. Frankly have to state the fact that I didn't see this happening to the country until the late symptoms were present.
DeleteI spoke to some academics in Sri Lanka and from what I heard, they actually proved the very point of the strike (as per the salary) in a different way. They had to stop the strike because they couldn't sustain it beyond 100 days, due to financial pressure. That certainly proves a point to me.
As to counter these thugs, what are the options we have? Don't wanna see what happened when we were very little (late 80's).
All I could see is, that these kinds of issues were happening not only now, but even when there was a war... But at that time, our main focus was to resolve the war... Now that is done and dusted and the public have time to think about something other than war...
ReplyDeleteAs Everyone know this Government is full of powerful thugs... So first they try to fulfill themselves before thinking of others. If someone stand against them then their's and their loved ones lives are threatened and there's no other option other than to get away from them.
As of my understanding, 30 years ago... due to this same attitude of the Government, they seeded a Prabaharan., but lately that person's goals might have changed due to his likeness to the power and other things as politicians...
Now what is going to happen is 99% educated ppl will start to think of migrating and go towards where their education is respected and give them and their family a good life... their eager to serve their own country will drop to 0% or if they still try to work around the politician to make a good country, they will get bullied and get frustrated and this might lead to rise of another likes Prabaharan against these Politicians...
Coz as of now Their is no law and order maintained in the country, those who do things against the law and ministers and their family members, the police or armed forces are helpless, as the President lives in totally different world, as he hasnt come across these things are happening... what else we can expect to happen?
Akila, you or any of you all who reads the blogs might disagree with me... But this is the view that I am seeing and I hope there will be some revolution in our country to resolve the issues and make the country really a Pearl of Indian Ocean and every individual born in SL wanted to come back to SL and live their lives happily.
I can see your frustration and see what you mean by a revolution. The main problem in Sri Lanka is the boneless chicken opposition in my view. Would certainly restrain myself from dragging the country back to the late 80's.
DeleteWell said machang. It is true that uni lectures won't get paid enough and universities in SL won't get enough funding from government. Here in Aus, gov pay universities to conduct more research and universities do get encourage to do reseach because of that. However this does not happens in SL. The blaim should go to narrow minded politicians.
ReplyDeleteAbout FUTA actions, I am totally agreeing with their issues which they have pointed, including the fact SL unis need more gov funds. Presuring gov to get more funds for SL unis was the main reason that uni students helped FUTA. Also keep in your mind that two young students gave their lives for the cause. But look what happened . Soon after gov agreed to increase uni lecturers sallary, they forgot the other issue, which students are standing up for. At the end two valuable lives went to waste because of the action by these oppotunistic lecturers. Now I do not see a difference between idiot politicians and opotunistic FUTA.
Sahan
Sahan, thanks for sharing your ideas on this matter. I haven't read a lot about this from media which I now believe are like FOX news in USA. But I consulted someone I trust at Moratuwa university regarding this matter. What he told me was that FUTA rejected this letter, which was the last offer the government made. FUTA just couldn't survive through this strike with financial issues as they saw nothing on the horizon from the side of the govt. So they just gave up after a while cos they have to feed families as well. The media seems to be spinning this story in a different way to make us believe FUTA agreed to this. Correct me if I am wrong in this conclusion. I just don't believe any media network in SL.
DeleteUnions here in Canada are bloody rich and powerful. They take a share of the salary every month from all members. Then when a strike comes around, they can outlast any govt. Not saying we should have the same in SL. But thats the contrast.