Some Critical Notes on Sri Lankan Muslim Religious Identity Formation, Conservatism, and Violent Extremism

A new wave of attacks by Sinhala-Buddhist extremist elements against the Muslim community in Sri Lanka started following the brutal end of the ethnic civil war between the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and the Sinhala-Buddhist-dominated Sri Lanka security forces in 2009. Easter Sunday terrorist attacks in 2019 by some Muslims polarized Sri Lanka and contributed to the compromise of the country’s security. Sri Lankan Muslims often claim they are a peaceful community and thus have no serious interests in violent mobilization. But the evidence would basically contradict Muslims’ claim of a peace-loving community. The Easter Sunday terrorist attacks did not take place in any vacuum. This paper will situate some key developments in the violent mobilization of Sri Lanka during the war against the LTTE. The primary goal of such an attempt is to read the growing religious conservative and violent trends among Muslims between 1977 and 2009. In understanding the growing religious conservative trends, an understanding is attempted to situate a later propensity for violence within the community that would manifest itself with the 2019 Easter Sunday attacks. Interviews were conducted with members of the Islamic Dawah organizations and Muslim youth who were formerly associated with violent groups in the Eastern Province to understand the ground reality. The period of 1977–2009 is important as the rise of religious conservatist influences in Sri Lanka mirrors the global transnational influences of Iran and Middle East Petro Dollars, especially Saudi Arabia. The article draws mainly on secondary sources. But to gain a better understanding of the ground reality, we spoke to a few Eastern Muslims between July 2016 and September 2021 at regular intervals.

Quality Assurance (QA) Assessment for Malaria Rapid Diagnostic Test in Ngoma District, Eastern Province of Rwanda: A cross-sectional prospective study.

Background Currently, malaria rapid diagnostic tests (mRDTs) are increasingly used for the diagnosis of malaria, particularly in communities where microscopy-based diagnosis is not practical. However, the diagnostic accuracy of mRDTs performed by community health workers (CHWs) remains unknown. This study was conducted to determine the accuracy of mRDT results performed by CHWs in Ngoma district, eastern province of Rwanda. Method This was a cross sectional prospective study. A total of 420 blood samples of patients self-reported to CHWs for malaria diagnosis were collected and analyzed by CHWs using mRDT, and quality control tests were performed by using microscopy as a reference test. The study was conducted from 22 April to 08 July 2021. Results Among the 420 patients, 234 (55.71%) were females, and 186 (44.29%) were males. Malaria test positivity was 2.62% by using mRDT and 1.67% by using microscopic tests. The sensitivity and specificity of mRDT were 85.71% and 98.78%, respectively. The negative predictive value, positive predictive value and accuracy of mRDTs were 99.75%, 54.54% and 98.57%, respectively. The sensitivity of mRDT was below the WHO recommended sensitivity (>95%), although the specificity (98.78%) was within the WHO recommended specificity (>=90). There was substantial agreement between the mRDT and malaria microscopic test results, k=0.642. Conclusion mRDTs continue to be an appropriate choice for malaria diagnosis in the absence of microscopy.

Medidas corporales y estimación de peso vivo en bucerros predestete en la provincia de Granma, Cuba

La investigación se realizó en la oriental provincia de Granma, área que destaca por sus resultados científicos relacionados con el comportamiento productivo de la especie bubalina en Cuba. El objetivo fue estimar el peso vivo a través de medidas corporales en bucerros desde el nacimiento hasta los ocho meses de edad. Se registraron datos de 1 302 animales, hembras y machos nacidos de 120 búfalas de la raza Buffalypso en el período 2008 a 2015, las medidas corporales: alto de la cruz (AC), longitud del cuerpo (LC), perímetro torácico (PT), perímetro abdominal (PA), ancho de la pelvis (AP), largo de la pelvis (LP) y ancho del tórax (AT) fueron medidas con cinta métrica en cm. Mientras el peso vivo (PV) fue determinado con plataforma digital, todas las maniobras se hicieron cada 30 días. Los modelos predictivos utilizados fueron: Quetélet, PV = (PT)2 (longitud de cuerpo) (87,5); Crevat, PV= (PT) (Longitud del cuerpo) (PA) (80) y Correa, PV= (PT)2(Longitud del cuerpo)/ 300. Los resultados comparativos por sexo arrojaron diferencias altamente significativas (P<0,001) para el PA y diferencias significativas (P<0,05) para el PT, PV, LP y LC a favor de los machos. EL modelo que mostró mejor ajuste (r2=0,96, P>0,001) combinó tres variables (PT, PA y LC), aunque el perímetro torácico solo mostró parámetros elevados (r2=0,94, P>0,001). Finalmente se concluye que las elevadas correlaciones entre las medidas corporales y el peso vivo, demuestran que las variables estudiadas pueden por si solas o combinadas explicar el comportamiento del peso vivo, pero la ecuación de predicción del PV (kg) a través de PT (cm) propuesta atribuye mayores ventajas para la práctica del pesaje. The research was carried out in the eastern province of Granma, an area that stands out for its scientific results related to the productive behavior of the buffalo species in Cuba. The objective was to estimate live weight through body measurements in calves from birth to eight months of age. Data were recorded on 1 302 animals, females and males born to 120 buffaloes of the Buffalypso breed in the period 2008 to 2015, body measurements: height at the withers (AC), body length (LC), thoracic perimeter (PT) , abdominal perimeter (PA), pelvic width (AP), pelvic length (LP) and chest width (AT) were measured with a tape measure in cm. While the live weight (PV) was determined with a digital platform, all the maneuvers were done every 30 days. The predictive models used were: Quetélet, PV = (PT) 2 (body length) (87.5); Crevat, PV = (PT) (Body length) (PA) (80) and Correa, PV = (PT) 2 (Body length) / 300. The comparative results by sex yielded highly significant differences (P <0.001) for the PA and significant differences (P <0.05) for the PT, PV, LP and LC in favor of males. The model that showed the best fit (r2 = 0.96, P> 0.001) combined three variables (PT, PA and LC), although the thoracic perimeter only showed elevated parameters (r2 = 0.94, P> 0.001). Finally, it is concluded that the high correlations between body measurements and live weight show that the variables studied can, alone or in combination, explain the behavior of live weight, but the prediction equation of LW (kg) through PT (cm ) proposal attributes greater advantages to the practice of weighing.

The Effect of Obesity, Hypertension and Diabetes on Health-related Quality of Life among the Elderly in Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province

Aims: This study explores the cumulative effects of cardiovascular risk factors on the health-related quality of life (HRQL) among the elderly. Study Design: Our study comprises a cross-sectional design. Place and Duration of Study: The Nov 2021 population-based research represents the Saudi Eastern Province population aged 60 years and above. Methodology: Information was collected through home-based personal interviews using a structured questionnaire on the participants' health. The participants provided informed verbal consent. On each scale of the SF-36 questionnaire, multiple linear regression examined the relationships between obesity, hypertension, diabetes and HRQL after adjusting for sociodemographic data and lifestyle factors. Results: Diabetes and hypertension registered the worst HRQL among males on all the scales (‒53.8 to ‒22.0 points according to the scale) in the two-factor cluster and male clusters except social functioning and role-emotional. Obesity and diabetes registered the worst HRQL on all the scales (–24.4 to –40.4 points according to the scale) in the two-factor female cluster except physical functioning, bodily pain and general health, and on all scales in female clusters except physical functioning, bodily pain, general health, social functioning and role-emotional. Conclusion: Our study shows that obesity, hypertension and diabetes (as separate factors and in combination) negatively affect HRQL.