World of Opinion
On the investigation into assassination of former Lebanese prime minister: The international investigation into the assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Al-Hariri has entered its final phase. Within a matter of weeks the findings of the enquiry will be made public. It is not a question of whether or not senior Syrian officials will be implicated in the bombing of Al-Hariri’s motorcade in Beirut.
It is no secret that they will be. Nor is it a question of who and when: the names of at least some of those involved have been bandied around the international press and a tentative date has been set for the enquiry to disclose its findings.
The question today is what Arab countries – and for that matter Turkey and Iran – can do to help Syria contain the fallout from the mess in which it has landed itself. Should Syria come under the kind of pressure that causes its regime to implode then the entire region will face the prospect of being swept up in the resulting chaos.
Arab governments understand – or should – that with ongoing violence in Iraq and the Palestinian territories, not to mention Sudan, and potentially explosive points of tension in Turkey, Iran and elsewhere, the region cannot afford any more unrest.
It is up to the Arabs, Iran and Turkey to tell the US and Israel that they are not willing to condone any attempt to impose harsh sanctions against Syria, let alone tolerate another bout of military adventurism in the region.
On smoking bans:
If the speculation is accurate, it looks as if Northern Ireland will follow the Republic by imposing a total ban on smoking in pubs, clubs and restaurants, in response to public demand. There would be widespread disappointment if next week’s announcement fell short of an outright prohibition in enclosed public premises.
The choice was whether or not to confine the ban to places where food was being served, but Health Minister Shaun Woodward would be advised to listen to the voice of the people, as well as health experts and many trade unions.
In a consultation exercise earlier this year, 91% out of 71,000 respondents wanted a comprehensive ban and, if anything, opinion is hardening in its favour.
People have seen the results of the ban in the Republic, where fears of widespread breaches of the law or boycotts have not been realised. Pubs are more attractive to the non-smoking majority, tourism has barely been affected and staff have welcomed a much healthier working environment.
All governments want to promote better health, if only to cut down on illness and premature death, and curbs on smoking are some of the most effective remedies.
High taxes have helped, although they increase the supply of smuggled cigarettes, but the Republic has shown the world that a ban on smoking can not only be acceptable, but popular.
Statistics show that the numbers of smokers in the Republic is falling, from one in three adults in 1998 to one in four today.
While a fifth of 15-18-year-olds are smokers, many will give up – as Mr Woodward has – because of the trouble of finding somewhere to indulge their habit,
In a province which already has more than its share of health problems, the logic of reducing risks to a minimum is irrefutable.
Smoke, if you will, but do it at home, outside preferably, remembering the effect on others.
On rise of AIDS in South Africa:
The steady increase in HIV infection rates in Gauteng shows that South Africa’s HIV/Aids prevention campaign is not working.
In numerous surveys, adults report that they know how HIV is transmitted: through unprotected sex. Yet people are not changing their sexual habits to safeguard themselves from infection.
Why not?
Perhaps it is time to take a new look at the mainstay messages of prevention, the ABC of Abstain, Be faithful and Condomise.
In this country, few organisations seem prepared to tackle the hot potato of sexual fidelity.
Yet Uganda has shown that HIV testing, which presumably makes a person face up to their past indiscretions as well as take responsibility for their HIV status, can encourage people to cut down on their sexual partners.
Condomise has been the government’s firm favourite.
But surveys show that people use condoms infrequently, usually with one-night-stands, and stop using them if they’ve been with a person for a while. The risk of HIV infection is relatively low on a one-night-stand.
The real danger lies with a regular partner who is already infected or becomes infected.
Prevention is better than cure, but South Africans seem reluctant to take responsibility. We need to work together to make it socially unacceptable not to practise safe sex.
On men and their health:
American writer P. J. O’Rourke once said: “There is one thing women can never take away from men. We die sooner.” This should come as no surprise to anyone who has cast even a cursory glance over health statistics. As the most recent Victorian Population Health Survey shows, male lifestyle decisions place them at greater health risk than females. In an age when takeaway food has become a regular choice for those too busy (or incompetent) to prepare healthy meals, only 3.6 per cent of men were found to eat the recommended five servings of vegetables each day. Sex Discrimination Commissioner Pru Goward blames traditional views about masculinity for men’s poorer health. While there may be some truth in this, it is no excuse. The time has long passed when men could rely on stay-at-home wives and mothers to feed them properly, make their medical appointments and ensure they exercised.
A man’s health is his own responsibility and deserves at least the same attention he lavishes on his car – proper daily care, regular servicing and careful diagnostic testing to ensure optimum performance. Great gains have been made in changing public attitudes to smoking, drink-driving and speed – all threats to public health. There should be no reason that a boy born in 2000 should be expected to live to be 77, while a girl born the same year can expect to reach 82.
On anti-terrorism programs:
In case you missed it, the government just wrapped up a monthlong nationwide anti-terrorism program with the slogan: “We won’t allow the Beslan tragedy to be repeated!” The highlight of the program was a forum called “A Future Without Terrorism. No Future for Terrorism,” which featured a fiery speech by Aslanbek Aslakhanov, who serves as President Vladimir Putin’s adviser on the North Caucasus. The schools were “not doing their part to help tackle the biggest challenge facing the state and society: counteracting terrorism,” he said.
There’s another little problem, however – providing security for our schools and kindergartens. In Orenburg, people decided to take matters into their own hands. Orenburg Deputy Mayor Lyudmila Marchenko told Itar-Tass that “over the course of a month, local residents, organizations, businesses and private firms deposited money into a special account.” In the end, Orenburg raised 1.33 million rubles “to acquire additional equipment and to install alarm systems,” Marchenko said.
Hang on. That means that Orenburg’s schools currently have no alarm systems or “additional equipment,” and it’s unlikely that Orenburg is an exception. So where is all the money going that has been allocated in the federal budget for security, prevention and the war on terrorism?
In 2004, after the tragedy in Beslan, we were told that the 2005 federal budget would contain a record 3 billion rubles to fund these activities.
So why isn’t a major city like Orenburg seeing any of this money? There’s no way to find out. This section of the budget is secret. The Audit Chamber recently completed its investigation of public funds allocated for the war on terrorism, and judging by its silence you’d have to assume the money was spent properly – to conduct monthlong nationwide programs and adjust the school curriculum, apparently.