More ‘campus jokes’

July 24, 2012, 7:21 pm , the island


Having read the campus jokes 1 and 11, I was reminded of this episode which happened way back in mid nineteen sixties. I was an engineering student then at the Colombo campus studying Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics for the first engineering exam along with the Science students preparing for their General Science Qualifying exam. There were about 150 Engineering students in our batch and another 150 in the Science batch making a pretty big total of over 300 students to follow lectures.

Dr. Valentine Joseph, who used to come to the campus in an old rickety bicycle was our beloved Mathematics lecturer and the lectures were held at KG (King George’s) hall, being fairly big could accommodate all 300 of us rather comfortably. In those good old days, overhead projectors, Magi boards etc. were unheard of and the lecturers had to use the black board fitted on to the wall.

One day, almost at the beginning of the course, when Dr. Joseph was delivering a lecture, a hand went up from way behind and when inquired the student rather timidly said "Sir, I can’t see your handwriting." Dr. Joseph looked at him and got down from the stage and walked slowly all the way up to him, bent down and had a good look at the black board and said "I can’t see the board even, man!" and went back and continued with the lecture.

R . Arambewela
Colombo

Z score and university admissions

July 24, 2012, 12:00 pm, the island


By Nalin de Silva

The much-awaited new Z scores were released by the Department of Examinations over the weekend and it appears that many students who repeated the examination have been left on the street as a result. Their ranks have come down both country-wise and district-wise and as a result some students who would have been admitted to the universities under the old Z scores would be left out. The UGC is unable to intervene at present as the old Z scores have been cancelled as a result of a Supreme Court decision. In an article published in The Sunday Island of July 22, Dr. H. D. Goonetilleke of the Open University has shown that the percentage of repeaters who would be admitted to the universities under the new Z scores would be reduced roughly from about 55 to about 25. Since those who repeated the examination for the second time would not get an opportunity to sit the examination again it is a pity that those who would have been admitted on the previous Z scores (so called pooled scheme) would find themselves outside the university. Some of them would have ended up as western medical practitioners and engineers. These students and their parents have no option but to go before the Supreme Court and as I had mentioned in an article in Irida Divaina we are in for a series of court cases over university admissions. One of the tables given by Dr. Goonetilleke in The Sunday Island is reproduced below.

What many people including teacher trade union leaders and human rights campaigners in their rush to criticize the government and gain political mileage either forgot or failed to understand was that final admissions to the universities had to be based on a single list and not two lists. This is not only according to a previous decision of the Supreme Court but also happens to be the only available practical course of action that could be followed.

It is to the credit of the UGC that it understood the problem early and took action in the form of appointing a committee of university lecturers and professors who had specialized in statistics to advise the commission on the preparation of a common list. The committee came out with a formula to pool the two populations namely those of students who sat the examination in the new syllabus and of those who sat in the old syllabus. The first timers sat the new syllabus question papers while the repeaters sat the papers set in the old syllabus. The formula recommended by the committee of experts was accepted by the UGC that probably advised the Department of Examinations to calculate the Z scores in each subject and the mean Z scores of the students after pooling the two populations according to the formula. The teacher trade unions and the human rights groups organized a campaign to blame the ministers concerned for adopting a method that was not resorted to in 2001 when there were two populations of students who sat for papers in new syllabus and old syllabus. They were eager to criticize the ministers and the government for political reasons and blamed the ministers for adopting a so called new method, when the latter were not involved in the process. However there was a difference in 2011, which again escaped the minds of some journalists with party loyalties as well as the teacher trade unionists and other parties, as the number of subjects was reduced from four to three in the new syllabus. In addition subjects such as Pure Mathematics, Applied Mathematics, Botany and Zoology that were tested under the old syllabus were not found under the new syllabus. Instead new subjects such as Combined Mathematics and Biology had replaced those subjects. Thus, it was not possible to pool the populations in each subject as the subjects were different under the new syllabus and old syllabus at least in some cases. Hence I presume that the pooling was done not only after calculating the Z scores but also after finding the mean Z scores of the students. It has to be emphasized that it was a pooling of two populations and the students were selected to the universities from the list of pooled mean Z scores. Without pooling students cannot be selected in each stream as one has to find ultimately a way of ordering the Z scores on one list.

There are different ways of pooling and the method adopted by the UGC on the recommendation of the committee of experts was to pool and then calculate Z scores in each subject and compute the mean Z scores of students while in 2001 Prof. R. O. Thattil and others recommended the calculation of the Z scores in each subject separately for the new syllabus and old syllabus and find the mean Z scores of students first and then pool to prepare a common list from which admissions were made. In 2001, there would have been a reason for adopting the method of Prof. Thattil and others—it has to be remembered that Prof. Thattil only introduced the Z score standardization to Sri Lanka and not derived the Z score formula as some people believe—as the subjects were not common in the two syllabi. In 2011, there was no such problem and the UGC has to be commended for appointing a committee of experts to find other ways of pooling. I do not agree with the committee of experts on the formula suggested by them as it is not correct but I agree with the committee and the UGC that the pooling should have been done BEFORE Z scores were calculated.

As I have argued many times in the newspapers pooling after calculating the Z scores assumes that the Z scores in different subjects are equivalent. In the case of different subjects such as Combined Mathematics and Chemistry perhaps the Sri Lankan experts have not struck a formula to scale the marks in different subjects, though this was practised in some schools in the fifties and before, and we may excuse them for their unawareness. However, when the subjects are the same in the old and the new syllabi they could have easily derived a formula to pool the two populations even if no such formula is found in a text book or in a research paper published in a peer reviewed journal which are sought after by the Sri Lankan academics, without resorting to a formula that is not correct.

In any event there is a problem with finding the Z scores of students in each subject first. I am not sure whether the committee of experts or Prof. Thattil, who is also supposed to be an expert, has taken this aspect into consideration. A distribution of Z scores is already what is known as a normal distribution, with a mean of zero and standard deviation of one and it is not possible to pool two such distributions with weights attached to them to come out with a unique weighted pooled normal distribution. Using a little bit of Algebra taught in schools, let us assume that we have two distributions of Z scores given by z1 and z2 and let us construct another distribution formed with weights a1 and a2 attached to the two distributions respectively. Then the new distribution is given by a1 z1 + a2 z2. It is easy to show that the mean of the new distribution is also zero. However, there are no unique values for a1 and a2 that make the standard deviation of the new distribution equal to one. a1 = 1 and a2 =1 is only one such solution and it is arbitrary as one cannot impose conditions to arrive at this particular solution, except that the Z scores are equivalent which is the assumption that Prof. Thattil has made. It is not the case as the students in the new syllabus and the old syllabus clearly constitute two different populations not only with respect to question papers, but also with respect to their attitudes, experience, preparedness etc. That is the reason for the selection of about 55% of the students to the universities from the repeaters. The moment one considers the Z scores of the two groups to be equivalent the percentages of students admitted to the universities from the repeaters drop drastically and I would not be surprised if hundreds of repeat students and their parents go to courts thus delaying the whole process of admission to the universities not only this year but also in the years to come.

VCs ask for letters from striking dons if they need July salary

FUTA won’t succumb to pressure - Devasiri

July 23, 2012, 10:06 pm 

by Dasun Edirisinghe, the island

 University teachers who have been on an all out strike since July 04 have been told by the vice chancellors of their respective universities, that if they want their July salaries, they have to submit letter stating that they have not been on strike.

President of the Federation of University Teachers’ Associations (FUTA) Dr. Nirmal Ranjith Devasiri told The Island that the striking dons would not submit such letters.

He said that they would continue with the strikedemanding the allocation of six percent of the GDP for the education sector, consulting them when taking decision relating to the higher education sector and a pay hike.

"Presidential Secretary Lalith Weeratunga, too, has taken us for a ride," Dr. Devasiri said, adding that Weeratunga had not invited them to talks as promised after two rounds of discussion held at the Presidential Secretariat two weeks ago.

Dr. Devasiri said that Public Affairs and Public Relations Minister Mervyn Silva had wanted to meet them, but the FUTA membership had not endorsed such a meeting.

The Island made several attempts to contact the Chairman of the University Grants Commission (UGC) Prof. Gamini Samaranayake but to no avail.

FUTA – Mervyn meeting to break deadlock

By Damith Wickremasekara, the sundaytimes

The Federation of University Teachers Association (FUTA), disappointed over the outcome of the negotiations with a committee headed by President’s Secretary Lalith Weeratunga, has agreed to a meeting with Public Relations Minister Mervyn Silva to find a solution.

This was after the minister has sought an appointment with the members of the FUTA to discuss the demands of the academics. “The minister called me last Thursday and said he wanted to meet us in his capacity as Public Relations Minister and we have agreed to meet him tomorrow at the Colombo University,” FUTA President Dr. Nirmal Devasiri told the Sunday Times.

He said the academics had decided to meet the minister as the previous attempts to resolve the issue including at a meeting with the President’s Secretary Lalith Weeratunga also failed to bring about any results. He said that even Higher Education Minister S.B. Dissanayake had failed to resolve the issues of the academics.

“We will be trying to find out what Minister Silva could do to resolve the issues,” he said. Minister Silva told the Sunday Times that he would try his best to resolve the issues of the academics. “As the Public Relations Minister I decided to intervene as the strike has crippled the functions of the universities. I am not a person who promises things which I cannot do,” he said. Depending on the demands he would be able to take the matter up with the President, Mr. Silva said.

Among the demands of the academics has been a demand for a salary increase and an increase of the budgetary allocations for education.

Abuse, intimidation, violence and the Kalama Sutta

NOTEBOOK OF A NOBODY

July 20, 2012, 6:46 pm , the island

by Shanie

"I do not agree with what you have to say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it."

- Voltaire (1694-1778)

"Go, go, go, said the bird: human kind

cannot bear very much reality.

Time past and time future

What might have been and what has been

point to one end, which is always present."

- T S Eliot (1888-1965)

The first quote has been attributed to Francois-Marie Arouet (who wrote under the pen name Voltaire) as a classic affirmation of one of the pillars of democracy – the right to freedom of expression. Voltaire was one of the leading figures of the French Enlightenment in pre-revolutionary France and emerged as one of the stoutest defenders of civil liberties. He would not compromise on what he believed to be right. This was of course not acceptable to the corrupt and authoritarian regime at that time in France. He was in prison without trial and spent several periods of exile. His first exile was in Britain after which he wrote a series of Letters which were published as ‘Lettres Philosophique’. In these letters, he praised the constitutional monarchy in Britain and the respect in that country for democracy, tolerance and human rights. These letters were taken as criticism of the absolute monarchy in France, his books burnt and Voltaire was again forced to flee. But as he stated in the above quote, till his death he defended the right to free speech, even if he disapproved of what was being written by others. Unfortunately, Voltaire died a decade before the revolution that overthrew the monarchy

Eliot’s poem is a philosophical one. But the meaning of it is best captured by a critic who wrote after her own daughter’s death: ‘There is another reality out there. There must be. It is a reality in which my daughter exists. I search for this reality. I catch fleeting glimpses as it rushes past the kitchen window or runs across the backyard. If I could only peek behind me fast enough, I could catch that other reality. It can’t be that far away.

‘This place here, where I live, does not seem real. It is a reality in which I wait for the ‘other’ to appear. I bide my time by going to work, taking my sons places, doing ‘normal’ things that ‘normal’ people do but I am simply waiting. I am not taking part in these events. I am a bystander to the action. I am one of the spectators. I am waiting for the time to pass so that eventually I, too, enter that other reality.

‘There was another reality once. It was the reality in which Clea existed. It was the one where I had three happy children who played together and fought together; where the photos we took of them showed unrestrained happiness. It was the one where their father was involved in their lives and it was the one where I was involved in their lives as well. I know it exists but I can’t find it.’

The Reality in Sri Lanka today

The two quotes are relevant to our situation in Sri Lanka today. We have come to a critical situation where our people cannot afford to ignore the reality and pretend that the law and order situation will someday revert to normalcy, or hope that someone else will take the lead to ensure a return to normalcy. Many feel impotent to take the lead themselves; so they shut their eyes and plug their ears for fear of treading on the toes of the powerful. That has been happening in the North and East for several decades. If you did not shut your eyes and plug your ears and dared to speak up about human rights you were either subject to violence and death or you had to seek sanctuary elsewhere. Today the LTTE has disappeared but reality remains the same not only for the people in the North and East but in many parts of the country as well.

What else are we to make of the outburst, the threats and intimidation of the editor of the Sunday Leader. Many may perhaps not approve of the standards of journalism practised by this editor. But like Voltaire, even if we do not agree with her journalistic positions, we have to defend her right to hold those positions, however wrong we may hold them to be. In the latest act of intimidation, the Defence Secretary has shamelessly used expletives and used threats about physically eliminating her. He cannot now take cover saying that he only said the "people", not he, would do so. The citizens of this country only know too well that the "people" who killed this editor’s predecessor, Lasantha Wickrematunge, still roam free.

As this column has stated before, although he is President’s brother, as Defence Secretary, Gotabhaya Rajapaksa is a public servant. As a public servant he cannot be exempt from the rules governing other public servants or being subject to the disciplinary procedures of the Public Services Commission. This column advised that he should take a leaf from the book of Lalith Weeratunge, President’s Secretary and another public servant handpicked by the President. The latter maintains in his actions and speech the dignity that is required of anyone dealing with people. Instead, in his speech and actions, Gotabhya Rajapaksa seems to be following his soul-mate, the much despised politician from Kelaniya. Gotabhaya’s conduct is totally unacceptable and it is surprising that President Mahinda Rajapaksa, a grass roots politician who knows the consequences of such conduct on the public mind, is unable or unwilling to control his brother.

Taking a principled stand

This is not the first time that journalists, trade unionists, human rights activists and indeed any outspoken critic of the powerful have been subject to abuse, violence, and even death. A few weeks ago, the President of FUTA, Dr Nirmal Ranjith Dewasiri was at the receiving end of abuse and threats. Despite the apologists for the abusers from even among journalists, these threats and uncouth language will continue unless the civil society and more importantly the religious leaders take an uncompromising stand for democratic rights for all our people. It is reported that the Venerable Mahanayake of the Malwatte Chapter returned a new luxury car that had been sent as a gift to him from the government. How many of our religious leaders, of all faith persuasions, will have the courage and the strength of character to do so. Indeed, we do not know how many of them have already been offered such gifts and accepted them. Now, with the Provincial Council elections fixed for 8th September, we will once again probably have gifts, among other things, in the form of a round of dinner parties with drinks thrown in to opinion-makers, journalists and public officials in the three affected Provinces. How many will have the strength of character to decline these invitations on ethical grounds? It is futile for someone to say that he or she will accept the dinner invitation but that it would not influence the way they vote which would be done in secret. No one who accepts a bribe can plead that he accepted it as a legitimate gift that was not going to sway his or her decision. No reasonable person or a reasonable Court of law will accept such a plea.

The myth of a free election

It was not very long ago that country’s judicial system would have voided an election on the ground that bribery or undue inducement was offered by a candidate or on behalf of a candidate to the elector. But that seems to be now a thing of the past. The Elections Commissioner has himself lamented that the 18th Amendment to the Constitution (shamelessly passed by members of the current Parliament) has taken away many of the powers that were vested in his office to ensure a free and fair election. The senior members of the SLFP and MEP, of the old Left or the dead Left (as Kumar David calls them) who contributed to the passing of the 18th Amendment will, with their tails between their legs, be silent on all the governance issues and tamely and unconvincingly speak about a foreign conspiracy backed by the Tamil diaspora and therefore the need to vote for the UPFA candidates. How long is the country going to tolerate such diversions to avoid reality?

The leadership of the main opposition party is as dead as the dead Left. It is only Sarath Fonseka who has shown much political maturity and wisdom with the statements he has been making since his release from prison. In such a situation, one wonders if the spokesperson of the UNP was being hilarious or if he was making an ass of himself when he asked Fonseka to disband his political movement and join the UNP. Now that Fonseka and his group are not contesting the election, he should lead a protest movement, not on behalf of any political party, but a movement to persuade the electorate to lodge a protest vote against corruption and mismanagement and for a return to the rule of law and justice.

The Kalama Sutra

Any successful political leader, however knowledgeable or experienced he or she may be, needs a team of advisors who will provide him with the necessary resources on the diverse range of subjects that will call for a decision or a comment from the leader. A wise leader will both be careful in the choice of his advisors and also have the discernment to use the advice he receives in the best possible way.

This is why Gautama Buddha propounded what has come to be known as the Kalama Sutra when he visited the Kingdom of Kosala. He told the Kalama people: Do not accept a thing merely because it happens to be traditional, and so on. You should reject a thing when you know for yourself that a thing is harmful and will bring misery to yourself and to others. On the other hand, when a person is not greedy, nor malicious, nor deluded; that is to say is liberal, kindly and wise they will be to his own profit and happiness. And by being liberal, kindly and wise, by becoming self-controlled and refraining from immoral acts of killing and so forth, they will be doing so for their own and for the others’ profit and happiness.

UCG Chief faces contempt charge

Z-score recalculationOrdered to be present in Supreme Court to show cause 

July 19, 2012, 11:09 pm 

By Chitra Weerarathne, the island

The Chairman of the University Grants Commission Prof. Gamini Samaranayake was yesterday directed by the Supreme Court to present himself before Court on Monday, July 23, 2012 to show cause as to why contempt proceedings should not be instituted against him for not taking any effective and meaningful steps to release the Z-scores of candidates who sat the GCE A/L examination in August 2011, in compliance with the Supreme Court judgment dated June 29, 2012, without any delay.

The Registrar of the Court was directed to inform the Chairman of the UGC to be present, before a Supreme Court Bench comprising the Chief Justice Dr. Shirani Bandaranayake, Justice N. G. Amaratunga and Justice K. Sripavan.

Senior State Counsel Nevin Pulle told the Court yesterday that the Commissioner of Examinations had received from the UGC on July 13, 2012, the date and the recent formula for the Z-score, taking the new syllabus and the old syllabus as different populations. He added that the Commissioner General of Examinations had taken the necessary steps and would re-calculate the Z-scores and re-issue the results before July 25, 2012.

In this matter, a motion was filed by a group of students on July 13, 2012 complaining to the Court that there was a delay on the part of the UGC as regards the implementation of the Supreme Court order that the Z-scores be recalculated with the two syllabi taken as two separate populations.

Faiz Mustapha PC, who appeared for the UGC, said that a committee of experts had sat on eleven working days to discuss the recalculation issue of the Z-scores. By July 13, 2012 they had provided the necessary details to the Commissioner General of Examinations.

J. C. Weliamuna, appearing for the petitioner, said that the authorities on June 26, 2012 had held a press conference claiming that there was a doubt as to who should do the recalculation.

Chief Justice: That day should have been spent on the job assigned to them according to the judgment.

Justice K. Sripavan: The judgment is crystal clear that directions were given to the UGC to abide by the Universities Act Section 15 as amended and to commence the work pertaining to the re-issue of fresh Z-scores without delay.

The Bench comprised the Chief Justice Dr. Shirani Bandaranayake, Justice N. G. Amaratunga and Justice K. Sripavan.

The role  of State  universities

July 18, 2012, 12:00 pm , the island

A SAARC writers’ conference was held at the University of Peradeniya on August 25, 2005. I was a third-year student in the English Department at that time. This conference left a permanent mark in me for two reasons. The first reason is tied to the day on which the conference was held. It was the day on which the late Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar, a politician with brains and a heart and probably the best diplomat the country has ever had, was gunned down. It was a black day in that sense. The second reason is tied to the conference theme, which was "Recognising Commonalities and Celebrating Differences". This conference theme resonated well, I thought, with the role expected of state universities, especially of the social sciences and humanities departments of those universities.

Universities, especially state universities, have a historical legacy of creating and protecting environments conducive to free thinking. They have always been sites of intellectual struggle, struggles aimed at making unheard voices heard. Dissension and criticism have always been the primary principles defining their modus operandi. The constant search for alternatives, a task that universities have historically been endowed with, makes it absolutely necessary to criticise the existing order with a view to creating space for alternative understandings of the realities governing human existence. Universities have always been a platform for dissenting voices. Being the Sri Lankan institutions that have inherited this historical legacy, the Sri Lankan state universities are expected to protect and uphold what the legacy stands for.

Given this historical legacy, the idea that universities are not being "productive", a charge that is increasingly levelled at Sri Lankan state universities, especially at their social sciences and humanities departments, indicates a complete misunderstanding of the role of the state universities. This allegation requires us to revisit the notion of productivity. In the current world order, which is predominantly defined by global capitalism, productivity appears to mean being able to produce immediate and tangible results. This conception of productivity conveniently brands any form of activity that does not produce immediate and tangible results as unproductive. The dominant capitalist mindset fails to understand that universities are engaged in a different kind of productive process, a process that produces ideas. Ideas, by virtue of the fact that they are neither immediate nor tangible, do not fall within the capitalist interpretation of productivity.

The capitalist interpretation of productivity requires universities to focus on developing a selected set of skills in students and producing graduates with a marketable value. It places employability over the critical thinking capacity as the primary virtue of the graduates. It views ideas as useless and dangerous products. It promotes conformity, while demonising dissension, difference, and criticism. In short, it violates almost all the fundamental principles of the concept of ‘university’.

As institutions trapped in the capitalist world order, universities have to empower their students with the necessary skills for them to survive in the market economy. However, this does not mean that the universities should change their trajectory and abandon the important role that history has endowed them with Universities should continue to create space for free thinking, provide platforms for dissenting voices, and establish and uphold criticism as the way to finding alternatives. Their primary focus should continue to be producing intellectuals who can think critically and aim at changing society, rather than producing skilled workers who can only perform a predefined role assigned to them by the system. The ongoing trade union action launched by university lecturers is important mainly because its main aim is to protect and uphold this historic role.

Nandaka Maduranga

Kalugampitiya

Reform of university education

July 18, 2012, 12:00 pm , the island

The Government has been compelled to take notice of the agitation by the University staff. Their demands not only relate to their remuneration but include outlawing private universities. One demand is that the educational budget should be 6 percent of GDP. These learned men should have examined the budget before making such a ludicrous demand. Only 20% of the budget is available for the government to spend at its discretion. The balance 80% is more or less fixed since they go to fund the salaries and pensions of government employees and to pay interest on the National Debt which is escalating beyond any control each year. There are also other demands on the budget like health and subsidies for fertilizer etc. So this demand is not only impossible to implement, but is also not desirable considering the other demands on the budget which are equally important for public welfare.

As far as I know there is no other country in the world which gives completely free university education to all students.  University education allows graduates who qualify to earn much higher incomes than the large majority of the people. Should the majority who are poorer subsidize those who would be well off in 3-4 years time because of university education? I think it is unfair. In other countries university students are required to pay fees but are assisted with student loans which are interest free. These loans are recovered from them after they are employed. Such a scheme should be introduced particularly for the medical and engineering graduates. The students should be given loans which would go as fees to the universities. This will enable the universities to pay higher salaries for the lecturers and university staff. This will enable the university authorities to improve the quality of the university education. This to my mind is perhaps the only way to improve the quality of university education. It is of course not necessary to charge the high level of fees levied by private higher educational institutes.

As for private universities   they should be encouraged by granting them tax free status and legal recognition. We may be able to attract well known foreign universities to establish campuses locally as the universities in Britain did in China (University of Nottingham educates Chinese in English medium). It is only through competition that public sector universities can improve the quality of university education. If the Government does not take bold decisions to levy fees and pay more to university lecturers our universities are doomed. University education has an important role to play in economic development.

R.M.B Senanayake

FUTA strike continues

July 18, 2012, 10:49 pm 

by Dasun Edirisinghe, the island

University teachers were disappointed that Presidential Secretary Lalith Weeratunga had not called them for the third round of discussions, which was earlier scheduled to be held on Monday or Tuesday evening, at the Presidential Secretariat.

President of the Federation of University Teachers Associations (FUTA) Dr. Nirmal Ranjith Devasiri said that their strike was continuing as the government authorities had failed to address their demands so far.

Dr. Devasiri said that FUTA executive committee decided to boycott the GCE (A/L) paper marking if the government does not provide an acceptable solution to their demands before September.

"President Mahinda Rajapaksa proposed to appoint a presidential commission to investigate our problems," he said adding that the FUTA executive committee had rejected that proposal too.

He said that there was no need to appoint new commissions as all relevant officials, including those in the Higher Education Ministry, University Grants Commission, Treasury, Finance Ministry, National Salaries and Cadre Commission and the Presidential Secretary were well aware of their problems as it was a longstanding affair.

The senior academic said that this time they would not end the strike until government provides a permanent solution.

JVP takes up Uni. teachers’ battle

July 18, 2012, 10:25 pm 

By Saman Indrajith, the island

The Higher Education Minister must not allow the ongoing crisis in universities to aggravate further and must take immediate action to find answers for the grievances of university teachers, the JVP demanded in Parliament yesterday.

JVP Parliamentary Group Leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake, making a special statement, said that the university teachers were on a strike with four demands which were reasonable and those demands should be granted to sort out the current crisis situation in universities.

Dissnayake said the first and the foremost demand of the university teachers was for an allocation of six percent of the Gross Domestic Product for education. The government which boasts of converting this county into the Miracle of Asia has been pruning down the allocation for education since 2005. It has been cut down by 50 percent.

The total allocation for education in 2005 was 3.5 percent of the GDP. In 2011 the corresponding figure was 1.86 percent. This had placed the university system in difficulty. The teachers have expressed their willingness to shelve their demand for a pay hike, if the government agrees to increase the GDP allocation for country’s education system, he said.

Their second demand was to stop political influence in the education sector. The recent examples of ministers messing up with the country’s education system could be cited to justify their demand. The education sector must be free of government influence.

The university teachers also demand that they must be consulted in preparing the national policy on education. Any responsible government should do so without waiting till the academics ask them to do so because they are stakeholders in the country’s education and without their contribution no success could be expected in any programme implemented in the education sector, he added.

The fourth demand put forward by the university academics was to provide a solution to their salary problem. Even the higher education minister had once accepted, in this assembly, that the demand for a better salary from the university teachers was reasonable. The country’s university system needs at least 5,800 academics but has only 4,200, a shortage of 1600. Many academics have left the country. Therefore, the onus is on the government to increase the salaries of those who remained here to prevent their following the example set by their colleagues to find greener pastures in foreign universities, the JVPer said.

Higher Education Minister S. B. Dissanayake, responding to the issues raised by JVP MP, said that the pay hike demanded by the university teachers was not reasonable at all.

The Minister said that the current salaries being paid to the university teachers were sufficient as they had been given an increment recently.