#Corona Curfew

[bopinion]

2024 / 33

Aperçu of the week

“All we have to do is call our opponent a communist or a socialist or someone who will destroy our country.”

(Donald Trump. We'll see about that...)

Bad News of the Week

Since the end of the coronavirus pandemic - although there hasn't actually been one - I've been waiting for its successor in a slightly anxious mood. Another rapidly infecting virus that spreads worldwide, is potentially deadly and, above all, restricts all our lives again. Now it's here: Mpox. For the first time since Corona, the WHO (World Health Organization of the United Nations) has declared the highest alert level, a “public health emergency of international concern”. Because of the virus that was previously called “Monkey Pox”. Discovered in Congo at the end of 2023, it has now also broken out in Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and Kenya.

The initial figures spoke of 14,000 suspected cases. Based on the usual 50% rate and the reported 500 deaths, this means that one in twelve people who become infected will die. That's a lot. So it's certainly a virus that should be taken seriously. One day later, it was reported that the first case in Europe had emerged in Sweden. Then the first three in Asia in Pakistan. It's the usual pattern: on the one hand, every infectious disease spreads faster and more uncontrollably in times of international travel. On the other hand, specific cases are only discovered when they are specifically sought or tested for. So the numbers will now quickly go through the roof. Because the spread is already more advanced than we know.

What will happen now? What will the states do? How will society react this time? And above all: what have we learned? There is a lot of talk in Germany about the need to come to terms with everything that has happened around COVID. Also to learn from the mistakes. There is a lot of need for clarification - for example with regard to the procurement of masks, the closure of schools, compulsory vaccination, curfews and unequal treatment in the retail sector. And what has happened since (drum roll please!): Nothing. What applies to politics also applies in private life. Some friends turned out to be conspiracy theorists, others were law and order hardliners, most were simply irritated and unsettled. There were even rifts right through families. Rifts that still exist.

And now we could all be facing the same situation, just as ill-prepared. And if Mpox doesn't develop into a pandemic, perhaps swine fever will spread to humans. Or bird flu. Or something else entirely, be it from the South American jungle or from the secret laboratory of some deep state. Or a revenant from the past spreads again - cholera still exists after all and first cases of polio are reported from Gaza. No, I'm not panicking. But I do have one or two worries. After all, humanity has shown itself more than once to be incapable of learning from the past. I would love to be wrong about that.

Good News of the Week

Venezuela is not giving up. It is wonderful to see how the people are fighting for democracy, no longer wanting to put up with the corruption of their “elites” and finally wanting to have a perspective worth living in. Just under a month ago, elections were held in the Latin American country, which could actually live in prosperity and peace but is suffering from dramatic economic decline, inflation and poverty since years. Or as investigative journalist Sebastiana Barráez says in the news magazine Der Spiegel: “Maduro has couped!”

Initially, the state electoral authority declared President Nicolás Maduro Moro, who has been clinging to power since 2013, the winner without providing any evidence - as is actually required by the constitution. The opposition has now had access to more than 80 percent of the printed protocols of the individual polling stations and has made them public. According to these, their candidate Edmundo González won with around 67 percent of the vote - compared to 30 percent for the incumbent head of government. So did Maduro commit electoral fraud? It looks like it.

The United Nations and the Carter Center had sent election observers to Venezuela. They have now criticized the election authority's actions and declared that the official result was not achieved democratically. The panel of experts speaks of an “unprecedented process in recent electoral history”. No wonder that most Latin American countries as well as the USA and Europe did not recognize the “official result”. And Maduro? He doesn't give a damn. The despot has further intensified the repression against the population with the help of the military, the National Guard and other state organs loyal to him. According to the independent rights organization Foro Penal, over 2,000 people have been arrested since the election. These include opposition politicians. And journalists. That speaks a clear language.

According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, the US government has now offered Maduro and close associates of the regime an amnesty if they relinquish power. I wish the Venezuelans would keep up the pressure. And the international stage too. Until Madura and his clan really abdicate. Because then the country, which has already been abandoned by 20% of its population in recent years, could return to better times. In a survey conducted by the Gallup polling institute in December 2012, the country's inhabitants were among the happiest people on earth. It would be nice if this vague memory could become reality again.

Personal happy moment of the week

“Your application for an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) has been approved. You are now authorized to travel to Canada by air.” Nothing more to add here. Taking off this sunday. Boy am I excited...

I couldn't care less...

...about the discussion that Germany “only” came 10th in the medal table at the Summer Olympics in Paris - behind hosts France and Great Britain, even though their populations are smaller. “What does it take for more medals?” asks the Tagesschau news channel. That is of little interest to me. Much more important is the charisma of athletes as figures of identification for a nation, the role model function for children, the motivation to surpass oneself. After all, it's not for nothing that the Olympic motto is “Taking part is everything”. In that sense, Eddie the Eagle really did fly.

It's fine with me...

...that the Democrats' party conference is now turning into a coronation mass. Because the most important decisions have been made: Presidential candidate and his (better in this case “her”) running mate. Normally, I would now say that political program content should not be completely secondary. But I don't care about that at the moment. The main thing is momentum. The main thing is optimism. The main thing is not to go back. The main thing is that Donald Jessica Trump doesn't triumph in November. Harris Walz!

As I write this...

...we're trying to catch a mouse. Apparently it was raining too hard outside and it wanted to get out into the dry. Now she's hiding behind a bookshelf and is afraid of us - even though we want to rescue her and set her free. Update: we've got her and she's fine. Second update: there seems to be another one...

Post Scriptum

It's good when someone doesn't look away but points. Even if it's about Israel committing an injustice. After all, you are then almost reflexively vilified as an Anti-Semite. In this respect, I am pleased that the European Union is showing more and more backbone in this regard. In this case, I am not referring to the maltreated Gaza Strip, but to the West Bank, where the Palestinian population is suffering more and more from brutal attacks by militant Israeli settlers - who can be sure of the backing of Benjamin Netanyahu's increasingly right-wing extremist government.

Once again, there have been attacks by extremist Israeli settlers on the population of the West Bank. And now EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell has had enough. He will “present a proposal for EU sanctions against the supporters of the violent settlers, including some members of the Israeli government”. Including the government! That's a bombshell. I very much hope that he finds the necessary support for this. Because this massive problem is currently all too easily overlooked in the great shadow of Gaza.

[hakobert]

Let’s get started with a #BreakingNews 🚁💨 The #SEC approves the #NYSE options trading on spot #BitcoinETFs. Greatissimo!

[houseofbreadpakoda]

Lately I kinda wanna go back to 2020. Brush online classes under the carpet. Watch films all day long. Try to learn a new language by watching interviews. Use google translate when there's no subtitles. Learn new rap verses. Perform them to my audience, while jumping all around my bed. (Try to) Cook new shitt. Fail. Let my mother complete the dish. Learn new hat tricks. Google wikihow to use a bo staff. Nah nah, wikihow to make a bo staff. Paint stupid stuff. Put on tattoos with henna. Beg my mom to watch Bahubali with me for the thousandth time. Listen to my mom rant about how her money plant is giving up on her. Reassure her that at least her philodendron is growing well. Custom make RCB merch. Yell "ee sala cup namde!" Every time De Villers hits a six even though it's only two others in the house. Impulsively chop off my hair to one fourth of it's length. Scream "go corona go" during the Jantha Curfew.

[wmufranniefabray]

TITLE: Late Night Conversations DATE: A few days before the blackout took place. Late, late at night. TAGGING: Cody { @wmucody } and Frannie { @wmufranniefabray } SUMMARY: Cody and Frannie bump into each other, while slightly drunk, and clear the air.

Frannie:

Spinning. A whirlwind of tequila shots, flashing lights, dots of laughter and a brief, momentary pause in the bathroom where dissociation had filled Frannie’s mind. Numb. Echoes of the music were still pounding in her head as she stood outside of the pizza takeaway restaurant, conveniently still open, clutching a barely touched bottle of water. Her friends had gone home hours ago and the time on her mobile signalled that this was a far cry from her usual, scheduled curfew for herself. This was so unlike Frannie that it felt exciting, her body still giddy from anticipation from the night passed. The Uber would be here soon, hopefully, but for now, she was mildly entertained just sitting on the side of the sidewalk, eyes staring straight up at the sky. Completely transfixed.

Cody:

"Whoa," Cody mumbled, his words slurred slightly as a result of the multiple bottles of Corona he threw down during the night. His foot slid off the kerb slightly forcing him to hold himself up properly. Maybe he had taken it too far tonight. But that would suggest that there were nights that he didn't take it too far. If he was being totally honest with himself, he couldn't remember the last time his night didn't end up with him staying out when everyone else had went home. Pizza, then bed. He repeated the plan of action to keep him focusing on walking a straight line. As he was about to wait in line, he turned to see who was around him. Maybe there was another adventure lurking in the late night which meant he could convince himself not to go home. However, his eyes caught the blonde hair perched down on the sidewalk. He'd recognise that hair and they mannerisms anywhere.

Nah, he thought to himself. They hadn't been in contact since that night in his dorm room, where everything had collapsed around him. Tapping his foot repeatedly off the ground, Cody sucked his teeth as he fought the urge to approach Frannie. What if she's not okay? She is sitting herself. Convincing himself that it was the right thing to make sure she was okay due to how late it was at night, Cody turned on his heels and approached Frannie. His hands stuffed in his pocket to hide any form of nerves. "Frannie, you okay?"

Frannie:

The music playing over and over and over in her mind was interrupted, slightly, by a familiar voice and she looked up in an instant. No. She squinted, almost drunkenly convinced her eyes must be deceiving her because there no way.. And yet, perhaps blame it on the fact that she had downed seven shots within thirty seconds after an ill-timed dare, but Frannie couldn’t help but feel relieved to see a familiar face. A friendly face? Not entirely. She couldn’t tell - Cody’s face was extraordinarily hard to read. A smile began to creep across her lips almost instantly, as if it was a habit by now to greet Cody with a grin. “Hey there, Castor!” Her voice was light, only slightly slurred. “I’m fine. More than fine. Maybe -“ she hiccuped, placing her hand over her lips with a small giggle. “- How are you, groovy scooby?”

A second passed, before Frannie remembered what had happened between the two of them, and she narrowed her eyes slightly, still staring up at Cody. Confusion began to pass across her features. Why was Cody even speaking to her still? Weren’t they meant to be sworn enemies? Her eyebrows furrowed together into a frown. “You’re talking to me now?”

Cody:

Cody's body relaxed as Frannie grinned. Phew.Phase one of not being told to fuck off was completed. "Theiaaaaaaa," Cody replied, dragging out the word, his way of conveying his openness to the situation they currently had found themself in. "I'm groovy." Her warm welcome prompted him to take a seat next to her, causing a slight tumble while he was lowering himself down the kerb. The weight of himself, and all the beer he had consumed, was too heavy to balance without some sort of assistance. He placed his two hands to the back slightly, asserting more of his body weight on to them.

He cocked his head, narrowing his eyes to gain a clearer perspective of Frannie. A sudden lump gained in his throat as he was now faced with the consequences of his previous words. As Frannie left so suddenly, Cody allowed himself to block out their sour conversation. "Can't say I'm not surprised you never threw that bottle of water off me, either."

Frannie:

Castor and Theia. The familiarity of their relatively new nicknames was a welcome surprise. A smirk began to form across Frannie’s lips as she watched Cody attempting to try to sit down, slightly amused. “Falling over again?” She teased, grinning, turning the positioning of her body so that she was facing Cody properly. He looked almost as bad as she was when it came to looking drunk. “Out of ten, how groovy would you say that you’re feeling? And you’ve ‘gotta be totally, completely truthfully honest. Pinky swear.”

Trying to comprehend anything right now felt like way too much, especially this. Their previous conversation had been replaying on her mind more times than she would have liked to have admitted. It stung. Everything about the situation stung and aches and hurt. And a part of her felt gutted at how it had all blown up in the way that it had. She gave a small shrug at Cody’s answer, passing him the water bottle as her sign of surrender. “I don’t want to fight with you.” She admitted quietly, her words still slurred, swallowing the lump that had formed in the back of her throat and inwardly despising how honest the alcohol intake would force her to be. Words were slipping freely. Way more free than normal. “Please don’t fight with me. If you’re going to do that I’ll just sit somewhere else.” Her eyes glanced across the road, trying to find another location that she could run to in case of a problem, scanning back and forth between different places before eventually landing back on Cody again with a small giggle. “Why did the biologist break up with the physicist?”

Cody:

He rolled his eyes at the falling comment. A brief moment of nostalgia rushed over his body as he was reminded of the first conversation they had, about him falling off his skateboard due to a damned fly. It was as if Cody blinked his eyes and they went from a fun, flirtatious duo to a cold, harsh dynamic. "Pinky swear I feel like super groovy, like the type of groovy that makes you wanna not go home".

His lips curled at the end, holding in a small laughter as he knew even though Frannie was coming across as humourous, it was a genuine concern that they could argue. "I'm not here to fight. I got my white flag waving," Cody reassured her, using his right hand to mimic the motion of waving a flag. "I don't know, why did the biologist break up with the physicist?" He asked, playing along with the joke. For a moment he felt time rewind to when they first met, as if they were back telling jokes just for the sole reason of making the other smile.

Frannie:

A small voice whispered that this momentary glimpse of normality between the two of them couldn’t last forever, but Frannie felt too tired to feel the anger or the sadness or the irritation towards the man sitting beside her. Besides, the night was still young! Thoughts were whizzing in and out of her brain, so much so that Frannie leaned back, holding her arms back behind her so she could lean more easily. Another hiccup sprang free from her lips, followed by another giggle. “I’ve got a new home!” She told Cody, digging into her pocket and excitedly retrieving her keys that she had been given. “It’s very pretty! I’m going to make some kind of science lab inside my bedroom.”

There was a relief that washed over her at Cody’s words. He didn’t want to fight, thankfully. Not now, at least, or not tonight. “That’s a relief.” She responded with a tentative smile. “Are you still angry at me?” She asked, looking across to Cody and giving a small, semi-playful pout. Part of her knew asking these questions might cause another argument or irritate Cody further, but she just couldn’t help the words from falling out of her lips. “They had no chemistry. Duh!” There were many, many more pick-up lines that Frannie could have chosen from. Being surrounded by numerous, nerdy biology students all day everyday had its perks - in this case, terrible jokes.

Cody:

Cody cleared his throat, nodding. A small amount of tequila regurgitated up into his mouth forcing him to gulp hard, his face turning sour at the taste. He could swear that it didn't taste that bad in the midst of the club but maybe the music, the atmosphere, the adrenaline drowned out the taste. "Oh," He responded, using what seemed like his last ounce of brain power to focus onto the keys that were dangling in front of him. "God, please make sure there are no fire hazards. The last thing we need is a fire catastrophe".

Frannie's question swirled around Cody's drunken thoughts. Was he still angry? He definitely didn't feel it at this moment in time. He was feeling rather comfortable with the conversation between them since it seemed somewhat amicable. "No, I'm not angry," Cody finally said, slurring his words slightly. His anger was never really directed towards Frannie but more so towards himself. For thinking that there was any potential in his ability to progress something romantic. His anger was more specifically pointed towards how he acted in response to Frannie simply telling the truth. The urge to lay everything flat out in front of them was overpowering, but to let his defence down like that wasn't something he found easy.

"Duuuuuh," Cody laughed, his head tilting backwards to look at the dark sky. The clouds in the air blocked the stars sparkling through. A wild feeling of resonation drew Cody into a deeper thought. His guard was the cloud, and his potential to live fully was the stars struggling to shine through. Without the cloud, the guard, then the stars, he, would live up to their full potential.

"I hope things with Sam are going well," Cody disclosed. His eyes finally returning to Frannie's eye line. "Like truly."

Frannie:

The lack of response or enthusiasm to her science lab idea made her eyebrows furrow slightly in mock outrage. It was the coolest idea she had ever had?! Why couldn’t Cody see that? Drunkenly, she let out a small giggle. “Pfffffffft.” She slurred her words, rolling her eyes playfully. “The only fire hazard here is how hot I am.” Pausing, Frannie attempted to sit up a little straighter from when she was sitting, but ended up slipping slightly on the ground. “Stacey’s favourite colour is the same as yours.” She muttered to herself, admitting defeat and leaning back against her arms again. She allowed her eyes to swarm up to the sky above her, feeling herself begin to feel increasingly more dizzy.

It was a relief to hear that Cody wasn’t angry at her. It had felt like he was, at times, but perhaps that was her guilty conscience speaking. “What are you feeling then?” She asked, raising an eyebrow across at him. “You can talk to me, you know.” There was some kind of barrier between the two of them - an invisible guard or tower or block. Whatever it was, it made it feel almost impossible to open up. To be honest. To let all unspoken melodies play or run free. “Because it made me sad that we’re like this now.” She indicated between the gap between the two of them with her fingers.

The pause was a welcomed one. Her gaze followed Cody’s direction, up to the sky and her eyes fluttered closed momentarily. She was tired. Of thinking, of worrying, of organising, of planning… just tired. Her eyes opened and landed on the clouds above the two of them, lingering slightly on the view in front of her before her eyes fluttered to a close again, only opening now when Cody spoke again.

It was a surprise. One that she had never seen coming. “Thank you.” She replied quietly, meeting his gaze. “I hope so, too. Part of me is a little nervous I’ll mess it up.”

Cody:

Cody scoffed playfully at Frannie’s fire hazard comment. Of course she was right. Frannie had a way about her that tempted Cody’s honour of never going after a taken girl. His eyes couldn’t help but wander over her figure, like it had done many times before. A routine that he was getting oh so used to before it was taken away from him. He decided to ignore the comment as he couldn’t find a way to reply in a respectful manner to the girl’s new dating situation. “Oh, does she? Good woman,” Cody replied, somewhat smugly. It wasn’t something that he would admit but the thought of leaving such an imprint on Frannie where she was reminded of him through conversations with others, well, it made him satisfied.

The hesitant feeling suffocated Cody’s want to unravel his toughest thoughts and lay them down bare in front of Frannie for the first time, and even the first time for himself. He was used to blocking his thoughts out. It was always a problem that Cody dealt with from a young age. Whenever there was any form of rational thinking to be done, he felt a physical barrier form in the front of his head - this later made a small bit of sense to him when he was taught that a person’s rational thinking and cognitive function happened in the prefrontal cortex which was located at the anterior section of the brain.

“I’m okay,” Cody responded. His mouth fell open as if to say more but it closed again. Biting down firmly on his bottom lip, Cody outweighed the pros and cons of opening up fully. Really, what else did he have to lose here? It was surely the perfect time to do it. When they were both in an intoxicated state where it’s known for honest thoughts to be spoken from the heart, rather than a strategic brain. “I never did use they notes that you seen written down, by the way. I was never going to use them.” He turned his head to look in the opposite direction of Frannie, focusing on the idle cars sitting in their designated parking spaces. “I’m just a visual learned and I only wrote them down to understand you better”.

A nervous laugh dropped out his mouth. “You won’t mess it up, Theia. You know not to repeat Orpheus’ mistakes”.

Frannie:

It struck her then. In amidst Cody’s scoff and the way he skilfully ignored her comment, Frannie knew that she needed to make this right. Call her sudden decision a tad on the dramatic side, but the alcohol currently racing through her body fuelled a new-found determination to make this better. She hadn’t expected this kind of conversation to be taking place between them - especially so soon after the last time they had seen each other - and yet, here they were. Talking. Being relatively okay. Glimpses of returning back to how they had previously acted together were starting to return. And it gave her a small glimmer of hope that one day they could build a friendship from this.

Her eyes regarded Cody, watching silently as he spoke. Each word that fell from his lips felt like it revealed a new layer of… whatever this was. And she couldn’t help her eyes widening, only slightly, at his confession. Thankfully, Cody’s gaze had turned away from hers. He hadn’t used the notes? Confusion swarmed her features as her eyebrows furrowed together, trying to make sense of this new piece of information.

An overwhelmingly loud silence filled the air between the two of them before Frannie finally swallowed, clearing her throat. “Oh.” She mumbled, running a hand through her hair and letting her gaze fall to the ground. Her brain quickly ran through how irritated and rude she had been to Cody because of what she believed to be the truth. Why had he let her believe that? “So you did keep your word.” It was a statement more than a question.

Pausing from speaking, Frannie started to sway in her seat on the ground. Back and forth and back and forth. Dizziness was filling her whole body, making her feel unsteady. “Can I ask why you never corrected me?”

Being called Theia again made Frannie twist her head again to look at Cody, her eyebrow raising in surprise. “I’m really sorry, you know.” She told him quietly.

Cody:

His head turned at Frannie's obvious shock at his admission. "Yup." He sucked his teeth, a slight nodding motion with his head. He did keep his promise, and still to this day he had kept it. Although his reputation precedes him, he wasn't one to go about spilling personal secrets about someone who was dear to his heart.

Cody shrugged his shoulders at her question. How could he explain to someone else the feelings that he could not possibly comprehend within himself? It seemed daft. To try and rationalise something that he couldn't understand. "The thought of you hating me was easier than to deal with the thought of not having you, I guess," Cody replied, a slowness in the pace of his voice. The thoughts in his head were scrambling more than ever before at this conversation.

"You don't need to be sorry. You done what's best for you regardless, and I think that's really admirable." He leaned into Frannie, giving her a playful nudge. The seriousness of the conversation seemed to have drained all drunken feelings out his body. But he was glad it happened, to have everything out in the open. So that maybe, just maybe, they could move past this.

Frannie:

Staring ahead now at the passers-by, tumbling and trudging along the road in front of them, Frannie swallowed again and released another shaky breath. In a way, she understood. And she cursed herself now for never questioning why or challenging Cody more. Her guilt and pride over the situation had meant it was easier to hate him, and believe him to be a “bad guy”, than questioning why. Her eyes fluttered to a close, only briefly, wanting to stop the influx of thoughts now beginning to spin and weave their way into her mind. “And for me, it was easier to hate you than question why you seemingly had a personality transplant.” Frannie spoke quietly, guilt lacing her tone, still facing forwards and keeping her eyes locked on the road ahead. “I wish I hadn’t just blindly believed you.” The more time passed, the foggier and heavier her brain was feeling. It was only when Cody playfully nudged her that she jolted, slightly, waking up from her momentary daze. She felt awful. Dizziness was overwhelming her features, making any kind of sight feel blurry and smudged. “We’ll be okay?” She asked, turning in her seat and facing Cody again.

Cody:

"Kinda scary how alike we are?" He questioned, his eyes moving to fixate on the building opposite of them. Cody had repeated that night in his head over and over, thinking of things he could have done differently, how he, as a person, absolutely sabotages everything good in his life. It sucked, obviously, that Frannie had went for Sam. But it didn't mean that their connection had to end in a platonic sense. He had seen it as a way out. Before they had the chance to become closer and his true self would be shown. His true self that he questions endlessly. Is he no good?

"We'll be okay," Cody assured her, his eyes darting back to Frannie's. Softly smiling, he held up his pinky finger in front of them both. His hands somewhat shaky from all the partying. From being open to someone. An act he had only performed a handful of times. "I promise."

[arclantis-blog]

Hunger Grips COVID-Ravaged India; GFA World Responds

WILLS POINT, TX — India’s devastating “second wave” of COVID-19 is overshadowing another deadly tsunami of suffering — rampant hunger.

Global humanitarian agency Gospel for Asia (GFA World) reports growing desperation across India as it supports efforts to feed those facing starvation amid the pandemic’s continuing onslaught. The Texas-based organization has helped feed hundreds of thousands since the pandemic began.

“As COVID-19 ravages India, we’re seeing hunger on a massive scale,” said Bishop Danny Punnose, vice president of Gospel for Asia (GFA World), spotlighting the accelerating crisis on World Hunger Day, May 28.

In the nation’s pandemic hotspots, so-called “corona curfews” and lockdowns make it very difficult to get groceries — even if people have cash to spend.

‘Deep Silence’ Everywhere

“Markets are closed… no shopkeepers are willing to open their shops. People are struggling to get grocery items. (There’s) deep silence at all places,” local relief workers reported.

In India’s densely populated Uttar Pradesh state, local church members are going door-to-door, delivering free meals to COVID-impacted families in strict quarantine.

Many day laborers — among the poorest of the poor — have lost their jobs because of the pandemic, have no source of income, and no other way to get food.

HUNGER’S DEEP SILENCE: On World Hunger Day, May 28, Texas-based humanitarian agency Gospel for Asia (GFA World) reports growing desperation in India as it supports efforts to help thousands starving in “deep silence” amid the pandemic’s continuing onslaught.

Click here, to read more about this article.

Click here, to read more blogs in GFANews from Gospel for Asia.

[subodha002-nibm213-adam]

Unemployment

Courses of unemployment

Almost all economies strive to achieve a speed economic growth while reducing the poverty, minimizing inequality, introducing new technology and abating the unemployment rate. Here, the unemployment is most challengeable in the economy. None of economy can zero their unemployment rate in the economy. However, economies can address to the root courses of unemployment and take actions to increase employment rate. The unemployment of an economy may rise from the labour supply or demand level. Some of major reasons for the unemployment of Sri Lanka have discussed below.  

•      Skills mismatch

In the contemporary business world, the technology and the skills are rapidly changed. Nowadays, many economies are suffering from skills mismatch between the job requirement and the employee skill set. Here, the economy has the employment opportunities, but the workforce has not adequate or requires set of skills to perform the prevailing employments. Further, this reason can be extended more by identifying vertical mismatch and horizontal mismatch. In Sri Lankan economy it is common these types vertical and horizontal mismatches due to the insufficient workforce to higher value-added jobs. Many privet sector business leaders identified the reason for this mismatch is the weaknesses of the system of higher education system of Sri Lanka. They are complaining that the content and the quality of the prevailing education are weak to inculcate the modern skills, aptitude, and job orientation in the labour force.  

•      Economic recession  

Economic stability and the growth directly impact to the employment rate of the economy. In the period of economic recession, the economy has to shrink its business operations, and this will lead to increase the unemployment rate in the economy.  

•      Waiting for queue

Sri Lankan people more prefer to have a government sector job than the privet sector job due to the job security and the after-retirement benefits. Thus, people wait in a queue for government jobs even though they receive privet sector jobs.  

•      Factor market distortion  

Factor market distortions affected by strict labour laws, influence of union and low labour productivity. Normally, labour is more expensive than the machinery (capital) for which various incentives are given to promote industrialization. However, this scenario is true only in the case of unskilled labourers since those labour can be substantiable with machinery. In other hand, it is not true for skilled labour since machineries and skill labour are complementary and as a result, capital intensity increases employment generation for skilled labour.

•      Lack of innovations  

Research and development are a key consideration in the economic growth and the development. The prescribed ratio with regard to research and development for developing country is 1% of country’s GDP. In Sri Lanka’s ratio is only approximately 0.1% and this is also mainly related to the public sector. As a result, business expansions are highly limited resulting in less employment generation.

          Unemployment with covid 19

The COVID 19 new corona virus pandemic emerged in China 2019 as a health crisis and morphed into a global economic crisis with a drastic impact on the public health, commercial activities, employment, and the trade. The International Labour Organization identified the criticalness of this pandemic and it described the COVID pandemic as the worst global crisis since the Second World War. The pandemic adversely affects to the almost all industries not only in Sri Lankan economy but also in the global economy. When it comes to the Sri Lankan context, the country was frequently imposed the curfew and lockdown to prevent the spread of Corona virus in the first quarter in 2020. The country placed curfew and lockdown strictly for the period of 52 days from 11th March 2020 with the first COVID case reported. Many Sri Lankan employees lost their jobs in immediate after the lockdown and curfew. Statistics shows the total number of jobs in the economy tight by 160,996 in the first quarter of 2020 (Mel & Perera, 2020). The actions like lockdown, curfew, closure of airports, and other preventive actions were impacted to the unemployment matrix of the country while increasing the quarter rate up to 5.7% from 4.5% of the last quarter (Department of Census and Statistics, 2020). Declining industrial production, manufacturing and service sectors remarkably contracted due to COVID pandemic and damaged to the revenue stream of the companies. This directly impacted to the increment of the unemployment rate in Sri Lanka. By looking at the past 10 years’ statistics, Sri Lanka reported less than 5% rate of unemployment in every quarter except the quarter 3 in 2019, following to the Easter Sunday attack. The curfew continued for more than 40 days and into the 2nd quarter before being lifted on 11th of May 2020. The impact of this situation to the Sri Lankan unemployment could be quite sever, given that 24.8% of employed labour force report themselves as being daily wage earners.  

The concepts of economic growth and the unemployment interconnected and a drastic impact of COVID pandemic was happened to the economic growth of Sri Lanka. A significant decline in economic activities and product and service demand will lead to more retrenchments. The effect is more cruelly felt by unprotected employees. At Present, more than 1.7 million temporary workers in the private sector are at the risk of facing drastic wage cuts and layoffs. In the coming months more job losses can be seen due to the negative outcome of COVID 19 while increasing the unemployment rate of Sri Lankan economy.  

Recommendation

1.      Human capital development.

On of the most successful solution for unemployment in any economy is uplifting the knowledge, skills, and the experiences of its people so that, it makes a qualified employee to the prevailing job market. Furthermore, some components of the education system in Sri Lanka need to be renewed definitely by giving pupils the vocational education, entrepreneurship skills. Currently, some industries are having a large skills gap because, the employees are not potential and not competent enough to perform the particular jobs.  

2.      Expansion of Employment exchanges.

Th economy should increase the exchangeability of its employments which employees can easily switch with different employment by making employment opportunities in the economy. Further, there should be a proper mechanism to share information about employment opportunities with the job seekers.  

3.      Encourage self-employment.  

After the school or the university education all most all persons try to find jobs in privet or government sector. Few of them tern to start up a self-employment. Thus, the Sri Lankan education system should include the entrepreneurship education in the syllabus that help to reduce the unemployment in Sri Lankan economy.  

4.      Attention on income protection rather than job protection.

Many economies tend to protect the jobs rather than protect the income flows of people. But the COVID 19 pandemic is a wake-up call for Sri Lanka, revealing the importance of the flexibility of the labour market and the need to move towards income protection, rather than job protection. The government could facilitate permanent employment in the private sector by introducing strategic protective measures to safeguard workers’ rights and benefits, such as unemployment insurance and universal pension schemes.

5.      Remake the labour market policies.

It is also vital to implement active labour market policies to support re-employment. The government should take measures to re-skill unemployed workers, as it is the key to their transition to new employment in booming sectors. Such programmes should be more work-oriented and focus on skills that are in high demand. 

[ikuwentomosablog]

Ang Kuwento ni Jenine

Ako at ang aking mga kapatid ay lumaki kasama ang aming second cousin na si Jenine na para na rin naming ate.  Sa isang punto, nagpasya siyang lumipat sa Thailand para magtrabaho at maghanap ng mas magandang oportunidad sa buhay. Bilang isang solong anak sa kanyang mga magulang, nais ni Ate Jenine na suportahan ang kanyang mga magulang sa pananalapi. Sa kanyang paglipat ay nakakuha siya ng magandang trabaho sa isang hotel sa Bangkok, Thailand.

Nananatiling nagtatrabaho si Ate Jenine sa Bangkok noong nagsisimulang kumalat ang corona virus sa unang bahagi ng taong 2020. Nang tanungin kung ano ang kanyang mga karanasan sa Bangkok sa gitna ng pandemya, inihambing niya ang kanyang karanasan sa Thailand at sa Pilipinas. Nabanggit niya na hindi tulad dito sa Pilipinas, malaya silang nakakalabas basta nakasuot ng face mask at sinusunod ang mga curfew. Naaalala ko noong mga araw na hindi basta-basta nakakalabas ang mga tao sa kanilang mga tahanan at isang tao lang sa bawat pamilya ang maaaring lumabas. Para kay Ate Jenine, mas mahigpit ang COVID-19 protocols sa Pilipinas kaysa sa Thailand.

Sa kalagitnaan ng taong 2020, maingat niyang napagdesisyunan na bumalik sa Pilipinas para alagaan ang kanyang mga magulang. May edad na ang kanyang mga magulang at nag-aalala siya sa kanilang kalusugan. Sa kasalukuyan, siya ay nagtatrabaho bilang online tutor at ngayon ay ikakasal na sa susunod na taon.

[globalhappenings]

Judgment of the Federal Administrative Court: Corona curfew in Bavaria was disproportionate

The Saxon contact restrictions in the early phase of the corona pandemic were lawful, but the strict curfew imposed in Bavaria at the time was not. The Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig decided on Tuesday. It was the first time that the highest German administrative court dealt with the Corona rules. The judgments are likely to point the way for other pending cases. The federal judges had…

[badpunzandshit]

[himachaltreveller]

How do Vaccines💉 Work

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[hakobert]

LIVE ⚽️ Halbzeit in der #AllianzArena München: Der #FCBayern führt 2:0 gegen #VflWolfsburg und natürlich ist wieder einmal der offizielle Krypto Partner #Bitpanda dabei. Sowohl mit einem Promotionstand als auch mit der digitalen #Werbung am Eingang!

[androgynoustreewinner]

how is recent covid-19 corona virus situations and the vaccine updates?

[everythingshouldbereality]

COVID curfew extended till May 17 in J&K

COVID curfew extended till May 17 in J&K

Image Source : PTI/ REPRESENTATIONAL. COVID curfew extended till May 17 in J&K. The Jammu and Kashmir Administration on Sunday extended till May 17 the curfew imposed across the union territory to curb the spread of coronavirus. The curfew was earlier scheduled to end on Monday. “The curfew will be strict except for a few essential services,” the Department of Information and Public Relations…

[thatweirdaustralian]

The Premier of Victoria tweeted these traffic cam pics at 8:30pm last night. That’s 30 minutes after Melbourne’s 8pm - 5am curfew started for the first time.

Stage 4 lockdowns are in effect. The daily cases are jumping between 300 - 700 (the worst it’s been for Australia, i know that pales in comparison to other countries)

Stay home.

Wear a mask.

[thinksomenoise]

"Social distancing" is the perfect example for how even within an intense global crisis, people will always find fancy buzzwords for everything.

[parichaytimes]

कोरोना कर्फ्यू में छूट: यूपी में अब रात 11 बजे तक खुल सकेंगी दुकानें व बाजार, सुबह 6 बजे तक प्रभावी रहेगी बंदी

कोरोना कर्फ्यू में छूट: यूपी में अब रात 11 बजे तक खुल सकेंगी दुकानें व बाजार, सुबह 6 बजे तक प्रभावी रहेगी बंदी

सार UP Covid Curfew News: यूपी में कोरोना की नियंत्रित स्थिति को देखते हुए रात्रिकालीन कर्फ्यू में एक घंटे की छूट दी गई है। अब रात 11 बजे तक दुकानें व बाजार खुल सकेंगे। मुख्यमंत्री योगी आदित्यनाथ। – फोटो : amar ujala ख़बर सुनें ख़बर सुनें उत्तर प्रदेश में कोरोना की नियंत्रित स्थिति को देखते हुए बाजारों व दुकानों के रात 11 बजे तक खुलने की अनुमति दी गई है। वहीं, रात्रिकालीन कर्फ्यू रात्रि 11…