Journal week 10

Sri Lanka farmers protest Sri Lanka’s decision to ban imports of chemical fertilizers has now led to protests by farmers. In May, the ban was introduced for environmental reasons; however, the farming industry went into crisis because of it. For weeks, thousands of farmers protested after the Sri Lankan government announced that it wanted to move towards 100% organic agriculture, as it was more sustainable and environmentally friendly. Many farmers argue that the move will hurt the industry and harm the country’s food amount. Almost two thirds of Sri Lanka’s population depends on agriculture, and the industry is 7% of the country’s GDP. Early monsoon season usually means the start of planting for rice farmers across the country; however, this year, many are planting less than usual as they wait for the government’s assistance to shift to organic farming. The Ministry of Agriculture acknowledged that the shift has been shaky; however, various industries of the society support it. North and South Korea conflict North and South Korea are technically still at war since the fighting in the 1950s ended. However, it could all change very soon, with South Korea´s outgoing president Moon Jae-in leading the call to officially end the conflict. As the Korean war slowly stopped in 1953, South Korean leaders refused to sign the armistice with military commanders from the North, which left the peninsula divided. Moon wants a peace agreement on the Korean peninsula before his time as president ends in 2022. In a speech to the United Nations in September, he repeated the idea, and he called for a political declaration that the Korean war was over. North Korean officials responded to Moon´s proposals with interest; however, they called them premature. International experts suggest that while a peace agreement is certainly possible, it can only be made after North Korea agrees to denuclearization. Responding to the news of protests from Sri Lankan farmers, I am saddened because the policies made by Sri Lanka are very good and courageous but unfortunately Sri Lanka does not take active steps in anticipating the impact of their policies. Meanwhile, I am also happy with the desire for peace between South Korea and North Korea. I am a person who strongly supports peace. I hope that North Korea will soon agree to the peace agreement. After I got and used the new vocabulary from these news, I feel that I have gotten a very significant improvement from before I did my journal week assignment. I am interested in finding other vocabulary independently and practicing it so that my English skills are getting better.