The Sri Lankan ethnic conflict - Should India intervene or not ?

Disclaimer : Views expressed in this blog are mine

Part I : Defining the problem

This week I am reading a piece by a leading scholar on Ethics in International Affairs , Terry Nardin . It is titled "The Moral Basis of Humanitarian Intervention" . It's an awesome work that can serve as a preliminary standard with which we decide on whether humanitarian intervention is required or not before we base our policy prescriptions on various other political , social and moral factors. In this article I aim to use Terry's piece as a kind of rationalist model to decide if India should intervene in the Sri Lankan ethnic crisis at this point in time as demanded by various political parties in Tamlinadu.

Before we embark on this exercise , let us first try to find out what the principle impediment to intervention could be . This is quite often cited by Sri Lanka and other political actors in the region. Sovereignity . The norm of soverignity is the the force that justifies non-intervention. Whatever happens inside Sri Lankan borders is an internal matter . Sovereignity is enshrined in the UN Charter . But so is the protection of human rights ? Here comes the providential question : Should India intervene to protect the rights of the displaced and oppresed Tamils or should it respect Sri Lanka's sovereignity and stand back idly ?

The above question has been troubling me ever since the Honorable Chief Minister Karunanidhi issued an ultimatum to the Congress Government by asking his MPs holding cabinet ministership at the centre to send post-dated resignations signaling the first step before withdrawing support for the government at the centre . It must be borne in mind that Tamilnadu has 40 members in parliament all of whom belong to the DMK party headed by Chief Minister Karunanidhi . The support of the Dravidian party is therefore necessary at least until the forthcoming elections .

As to why CM Karunanidhi supports the Tamil issue is quite obvious . He maybe a genuine sympathiser of the Tamil cause in Sri Lanka . But I suspect there could be something more.The Tamil identity has been one of the prime movers of the Dravidian movement . With the election year around , it does make sense to rally the people around a nationalist cause , isn't it ? It is simple , but powerful politics . A Tamil identity is something that every man , womand and child born in Tamlinadu shares . By portraying himself and his party as supporters of the Tamil cause , the veteran has played a perfect ploy . Vijayakanth , Vaiko and Jaya are not far behind !

Why am I talking about all this ? To build the context that the true intent of the politicians in Tamilndau does not seem to be to rally behind the Tamils at this moment of suffering for them . It seems to be far from just that . A gross politicization that has got no relevance to humanitarian consideration . But the garb of this politicization is humanitarian intervention to save the plight of the Tamils .This is what is putting the Indian centre at a fix .

How do we explain the Indian responses in this context ? Are they right ? Coming up in Part-II .. Stay tuned

Green Idea of the Day 8 - Energy Efficient bulbs

Compact fluorescents lamps(CFL's) emit the same light as classic incandescents but use 75% or 80% less electricity. They not only help reduce your electricity bill, but also last much longer!

The US department of energy(http://www.eere.energy.gov/consumer/your_home/lighting_daylighting/index.cfm/mytopic=12060) says that CFL's last upto 10 times longer than classic incandescents and use just one fourth of the energy!

Priced at less than $3, here is a product with incredible energy saving potential! It seems costly compared to the $0.50 incandescent bulb, but given its energy savings and long life, the CFL saves money in the long run!

A CFL may not give the best results with all fixtures and in all situations(bedroom/dining room/study table etc). Its important to choose the right bulb and the fixture to ensure the performance and life of a CFL.

http://www.edf.org/page.cfm?tagid=609 and http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=cfls.pr_cfls has some tips to select energy efficient bulbs.

Green Idea of the Day 7 - Flush it Green!

Yep! Toilets have turned hi-tech and eco-friendly by reducing the water used per flush.

By U.S. federal decree, new toilets must flush with no more than 1.6 gallons of water(see http://www.toiletology.com/low-flow.shtml). But several new models feature dual-flush buttons that let you opt for a mighty 1.6-gallon whoosh or a gentle .8-gallon splash. Also available are models that use less than 1.6 gallons(Flushmate IV). Next time you install a toilet, make sure you think about low consumption toilets.

Green Idea Of the Day 6- Using Cold Water Setting on Washing Machines

Contributor : dhivya

Dhivya says:-

"When using the washing machine, choose the cold water setting rather than the hot water setting. This saves energy and cuts down on your bills a bit.

I actually googled this idea and found that this simple switch can cut down 80% of the energy used for laundry!"

Green Idea Of the Day 5 - Save Printer Paper!

A lot of companies have recognized the importance of this and are advising employees to avoid printing emails unless necessary..
Some other simple ways to reduce Printing & the paper used are :-
a)Print only what you need - we don't need all the 20 pages of a document, if we are just going to read the first 10..
When printing for personal use you can try to avoid printing title pages - its an entire page with nothing but the title on it. We don't get any content out of it do we? :D Skipping those rarely read appendix sections can also save some pages. These are just some ideas and all of them may not apply to you. The point is - please avoid printing unnecessary pages.
b)As far as possible(especially if its for personal use) - try to take DOUBLE SIDED print outs. A whopping 50% reduction in paper usage with just one click of the mouse! Just remember to check Print Properties before clicking that "OK button"..
c)Select images wisely - Pictures are an important aid for reading but choosing them carefully not only saves paper, but also valuable printer ink!
d)Reduce Font Size - If you have no reading problems, font size 10-12 should be easy to read for you. Especially while copying content(yeah Ctrl-C Ctrl-V) from web-pages or copying content from multiple sources and printing, this can help reduce the pages needed.
e)Carrying & maintaining a small notepad/scratchpad - There are times when we want a person's name or address or things like that - we don't need to print an entire page for one line of text do we? What did people do, before the days of the printer? Thats right - they Wrote It Down! Maintaining a scratch pad is one way to do this.
A pocket scratch pad is even better and can also serve you as an organizer to remind you of things to be done for the day..
If you don't want to carry a scratch pad around, use your mobile phone to make notes. A lot of mobile phones allow you to maintain notes or atleast set reminders/alarms.

Pheww...Thats all I have for today.. Please let me know if you have more ideas to save paper or if you have any other Green ideas!

Green Idea Of the Day 4 - Avoid Plastic Bags

Contributor : filarial
I avoid plastic bags in super markets and when buying a limited number of items that I can carry with something called hands

Green Idea Of the Day 3 - Switch off laptops

Contributor:- Dhivya

Switch off those laptops- dont just put them in standby. When leaving work, atleast switch off your monitors. Switch off the air conditioning when you leave home...

I used to live in an apartment where all utilities (including electricity were paid) so me and my roomies would never switch off anything in the house. And that's a big no-no when it comes to conserving energy.