Daily News Editorial

Vesak in the time of COVID-19

Pandemic notwithstanding, Sri Lanka’s cultural life being such, already thoughts are focusing on the celebration of Vesak, the most sacred day of the calendar for Buddhists around the world. The dispassionate pragmatism that is a characteristic of the Dhamma, however, enables us to conceive of and practice the celebration of this sacred moment in accordance with the realities of life around us.

There is no distraction by fond desires for the biggest pandal, or the most colourful lanterns or the most attended Dan Sal. We are too aware of the ominous ambience of our national and global context today to be carried away by our inclinations to flamboyance and the flaunt of pietism.

As at yesterday evening, with nine more infection detections, the total number of positive cases in the country reached 674. The spread of the contagion has been fast in recent weeks and has reached several parts of the island beyond the original ‘hotspots’ of the Western Province and, the Puttalam and Kandy districts.

Nevertheless, the most dangerous concentrations of the virus remain in the metropolitan urban areas because of the population densities and rapid mass transit of people both of which are the prime modes of the deadly contagion. It is the rapidity of the virus transmission that is of the greatest concern because of the threat of over-burdening the medical care system. Once the medical response capacity is overwhelmed, there will be nothing to halt the disease from striking deep into the population.

What with the experience of curfew regimes across the island as well as the news reports of the global COVID-19 devastation even among the most affluent and best-equipped countries, no one wants things to get worse. While some selfish individuals may complain about movement restrictions and lack of entertainment, the vast majority of Sri Lankans have too much of a sense of community responsibility to behave carelessly.

Vesak normally means the gathering of vast crowds to view the festive décor and lavish installations on one hand, involving the transit of literally hundreds of thousands of people both in the main metro areas as well as in provinces. On the other hand, even rural communities see gatherings of people in temples and market places.

Usually, by now, the wooden frames of pandals are already being erected with the colourful scene panels and wiring to follow in the build-up to Vesak Day due on May 7. Pavement stalls would be selling Vesak cards and lanterns. In many rural homes the raw materials for lantern-making would be readied for that fun-filled Vesak-eve family chore.

Local temples would be teeming with activity in preparations for the Sil, Bana, and Bhavana programmes and selected public areas would be readied for Bhakthi Gee and street-side dramas of the Buddha’s life.

But into our third month of the deadly pandemic, we know full well that none of this can and should happen, at least nowhere near the usual scale of things. Piety there will be, but it has to be in the smallest possible gatherings and preferably in the quiet privacy of our homes or local neighbourhoods. Certainly, the faithful community will light lanterns in their homes and local temples, but we cannot and should not traipse the roads to view them en masse.

The Ministry of Health and Indigenous Medical Services has issued a set of guidelines to be followed by the public and the Maha Sangha in the observance of Vesak this year. The instructions have been issued in order to safeguard the populace from the COVID-19 epidemic.

The Ministry’s communique urges the public to engage in ‘Aamisa’ and ‘Prathipaththi’ Pooja centred around the home as much as possible while maintaining social distancing. Temples are encouraged to use public address systems to broadcast Pirith chanting and Bana rather than attract large crowds into temple precincts or public areas.

Most news channels are broadcasting this Ministry advisory and the public are expected to familiarise themselves with this guidance.

Buddhists throughout the world will be observing the Vesak Festival in a similarly moderate manner. The United Nations’ International Vesak Festival programme has already been cancelled, with the intended host country, Thailand, announcing the cancellation in early March.

Most likely, Buddhist charities will focus on special programmes of support for pandemic affected sections of the population such as low income groups whose livelihoods have been abruptly suspended. There are many such neighbourhoods with whole families rendered destitute due to this.

Rather than the usual millions gifted for lavish Vesak décor, perhaps the Daana (alms) could be in the form of food supplies and other domestic essentials for these pandemic-affected fellow Sri Lankans.

In all, the observance of Vesak this year will be historic for its special practice of piety in a time of a pandemic.

The Island Editorial

Their lives are also precious

Gratitude is something rare in this country. The outbreak of Covid-19, and the fear it instilled in everyone, made the public realise the value of the much-maligned public health workers, who, unhesitatingly, took up the challenge of curbing the spread of the disease. When the battle began, they did not even have proper protective gear. They have received high praise for serving in a high-risk environment, and even come to be known as suwa viruvo (health sector heroes), but, sadly, not enough is being done to ensure their safety. Praise cannot protect these people who are risking their lives.

Public Health Inspectors (PHIs), who are leading the ongoing anti-Covid-19 operations, from the front, have expressed grave concern about their own safety. The PHIs, engaged in controlling the disease at Banaranaike Mawatha, Colombo, have threatened to stop their good work because the health authorities have refused to test them for Covid-19. It defies comprehension why their request has not been granted.

All vendors, at the Peliyagoda fish market, were tested for Covid-19, recently, following the detection of a single coronavirus infection among those who had visited the place. Hundreds of PCR tests were conducted there, and rightly so. That is the way to prevent cluster infections. Thankfully, none of them tested positive for Covid-19. But the PHIs, who helped detect dozens of patients, have not been tested! Are we to conclude that the health authorities consider the lives of fish vendors more precious than those of the PHIs and other health workers? Everything possible must be done to ensure the safety of PHIs. That is the least the country can do for them.

A large number of coronavirus infections have been detected in some areas, and all health workers, and the military and police personnel serving in those red zones must be tested for the virus, regularly. They run the risk of contracting the disease, and there is also the danger of others who associate with them getting infected.

The protesting PHIs have told this newspaper that a heath official informed them that they would be tested only if they developed Covid-19 symptoms. This unnamed official seems unaware that there are many asymptomatic Covid-19 carriers and only tests can help detect them. Let Health Minister Pavithra Wanniaracchi, and Director General of Health Services, Dr. Anil Jasinghe, be urged to order an inquiry into the PHIs’ compliant and ensure that they are tested immediately.

It may be recalled that some Navy personnel contracted Covid-19, after taking into custody a group of drug addicts and sending them for quarantine. They were not tested immediately afterwards. The disease spread to scores of naval ratings, and all of them are currently under quarantine. Some of them are said to be asymptomatic. All the military personnel on leave have been ordered to return to their camps, as a result. This problem wouldn’t have arisen if the armed forces and police personnel, engaged in anti-Covid-19 operations, had been tested for the disease and provided with proper protective gear. The same goes for all health workers.

What would be the situation if hundreds of those who battle the virus happened to be quarantined? Many doctors and nurses are among those who have died of Covid-19, in other countries. We must learn from their experience and take all precautions to avert such a situation.

It is incumbent upon the government to ensure the safety of all those engaged in the country’s war on coronavirus. They are risking their own lives and those of their family members. They must not be demoralized.