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Prof. Malavige complains of vaccine apartheid

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By Rathindra Kuruwita

Developed countries were hoarding close to 4.5 billion doses of Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca vaccines and those vaccines would expire soon, Prof.  Neelika Malavige of the Department of Immunology and Molecular Medicine, University of Sri Jayewardenepura, said on Monday delivering the 16th Sujatha Jayawardena Memorial Oration.

Prof. Malavige said that 1.7 billion Pfizer and Moderna doses each and 1.1 billion AstraZeneca vaccines were being hoarded and most of those would be wasted soon.

“These developed nations must share these vaccines at a time when billions of people are vulnerable,” she said.

Commenting on restrictions imposed by Europe and the USA on those vaccinated with Sinopharm, Professor Malavige said that for Europe, Chinese tourists were extremely important and that it would be interesting to see what the Europeans could do once travel restrictions were lifted.

Prof.  Malavige said that countries should exercise ceaseless vigilance when dealing with COVID-19 and learn from the mistakes other nations had made.

“Countries that were congratulating themselves for handling the pandemic well like Vietnam, are seeing a surge. On Sunday (29), there were around 13,000 new cases and over 300 deaths in Vietnam. Everyone makes mistakes, but we need to learn and move forward. It is important to be proactive, not reactive,” she said.

Sri Lanka had hitherto been reactive in dealing with the virus. The authorities and the public took drastic measures when the number of cases and deaths were high, however, overall, there had not been a strategy, she said.

“We had tamashas in April, when we had detected the Alpha variant in the country. We took measures too late and saw a rapid surge.

Then we went into a lockdown and during the lockdown we detected the delta variant in Colombo. What you must realise is that the University of Sri Jayewardenepura does limited number gene sequencing. So if we found one, it’s safe to assume that there are hundreds or even thousands in the community. Then we relaxed restrictions in June, but there are questions as to whether we did this scientifically. We soon saw significant surges and now we are in lockdown again,” she said.

Prof. Malavige said that Sri Lanka needed to plan, anticipate and act swiftly to control the spread of COVID-19. Sri Lanka had a number of experts in modelling in all fields and the government should reach out to experts in all relevant fields and come up with an effective strategy. She said that since it was a social and economic issue as well as a health issue, a multi-disciplinary approach should be taken with expert modelers from sociology and finance consulted.

Prof.  Malavige also spoke of the need for data. It was not hard to collect data and Sri Lanka had many experts in that field.

“Think of dengue. We get outbreaks and when we see outbreaks, we take steps to curb them. We need data to know when and where COVID clusters emerge, allocate resources and control these. We need accurate data to educate the people and win their trust,” she said.

Sri Lanka had good vaccine coverage and that 99% of Sri Lankan children were vaccinated, which was higher than even the most advanced nations.  “This has been achieved by continuous and effective communication. Vaccination is the long term solution for COVID and Sri Lanka needs to have a proper public education program. Vaccination can only be successful by empowering the public and community engagement”, she said.

“In recent years, we see viruses transmitted from animals to humans. As human interactions with wild animals, deforestation and climate change intensified, we will see more such transmissions. Therefore, environmental and animal health too must be considered to protect human health in the future” Prof. Malavige urged.

 



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Voter apathy grows as never before: PAFFREL

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Public’s interest in the upcoming Provincial Council elections remains low, according to the People’s Action for Free and Fair Elections (PAFFREL).

PAFFREL Executive Director Rohana Hettiarachchi told The Island that there was an urgent need to encourage voter participation, noting that a higher voter turnout is essential for a functioning democracy.

Hettiarachchi said that the current level of political campaigning has been relatively subdued, with fewer aggressive or violent activities than seen in previous elections—a trend he described as a positive development.

He, however, stressed that local councils play a vital role in the lives of citizens, from birth- to death-related services, and also contribute to the legislative process. As such, voters must understand their importance and engage in the electoral process.

Despite the peaceful nature of the campaign so far, PAFFREL has received 20 complaints regarding the misuse of state resources and 15 complaints related to physical assaults. Hettiarachchi, however, added that no major incidents have been reported to date.

By Chaminda Silva

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Many foreign diplomats witness sacred relic exposition on first day

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A group of 44 diplomats, including those from Vietnam, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Nepal, the Netherlands, India, Myanmar, Palestine, France, New Zealand, Cuba, Egypt, Japan, the United Kingdom, Thailand, Canada and South Korea, headed to Kandy, by train, yesterday morning, to witness the sacred relic exposition.

The group travelled to Kandy in a special observation saloon of a train that departed from the Colombo Fort Railway Station around 7:00 am.

The ‘Sri Dalada Vandanawa’, a special exposition of the Sacred Tooth Relic, commenced yesterday (18), and will continue till 27 April.

President Anura Kumara Disanayake, along with the ambassadors, high commissioners and other diplomats, participated in the inaugural event.

“This initiative aims to convey a message to Sri Lanka’s friendly nations that the country is recovering economically, overcoming previous challenges, and fostering national harmony. The event also seeks to strengthen international support for Sri Lanka,” the PMD said.

Yesterday (18), on the opening day, the public had the opportunity to pay homage to the Sacred Tooth Relic from 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm From today (19) onwards, it will open for public veneration, daily from 12:00 noon to 5:00 pm.

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Ahungalla shooting ordered from Dubai for failure to carry out contract killing

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Police investigations have revealed that the shooting of a 27-year-old man in Ahungalla on Thursday night was a revenge attack. The motive is said to be his failure to carry out a contract killing assigned by a prominent underworld gang leader currently hiding in Dubai.

The 27-year-old victim, who was seriously injured in the attack, is currently receiving treatment at the Balapitiya Hospital. Investigations have further revealed that the attack was ordered by an underworld figure, known as “Abrew,” who is reportedly hiding in Dubai.

It has come to light that Abrew had given the young man a contract to kill a rival. However, since the contract was not carried out, the attack is believed to have been an act of retaliation.On the night of 17 April, around 9:48 pm, the young man received a phone call from an individual who instructed him to come and collect a packet of ice (a term commonly used to refer to crystal meth).

Accordingly, the 27-year-old arrived near the Revatha Primary School, in Balapitiya, Ahungalla in a three-wheeler. At that location, a hired gunman, who had arrived in another three-wheeler, fired three shots at him and fled the scene.

Despite being injured by one of the bullets hitting him, the young man managed to reach the Ahungalla Police Station in the same three-wheeler he had come in. Police officers then arranged for him to be admitted to Balapitiya Hospital for treatment.

By Hemantha Randunu

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