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| Sunday, 13 July 2003 |
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Gold medal to rescuer who gave his life Lasantha Buddhika was adjudged the champion of bravery among Sri Lankans during the year 2002. He died in his act of gallantry and his father accepted the gold medal for Civilian Bravery Awards 2002, organised by the Foundation for Civilian Bravery (Sri Lanka FCBSL). Lasantha (25) a garment factory worker and Karate instructor attempted to save a village vendor Ranjani Hemalatha and her child from a gang of armed men. Lasantha succumbed to his injuries at a tiny village in Elpitiya. But Ranjani survives, Lasantha never knew that he had got through his entrance examination to the Law College. Forty other Sri Lankans received their awards for their acts of civilian bravery during year 2002, at the presentation, made last week. One among the winners was Sunday Observer journalist, Neomi Kodikara, who carried away the Media Appreciation Award. Neomi, wrote: "They are not in the calibre of the nimble Achilles, the greatest of all Greek warriors. Nor can one equal their might and skill to that of Arjun's. They don't have the vigour and fierceness of a Samurai who passionately fights for a hero's diadem either. Yet, they are gallants in their own right and are worthy of heroic haloes." Some of the speakers at the ceremony said that in a country which has been at war for 20 years and where service personnel continue to pay with their lives in the national venture for peace, servicemen and women should also be similarly honoured. FCBSL which held its 10th annual awards presentation is affiliated to other international counterparts as Carnegie Hero Fund Commission, USA, Royal Humane Society of New South Wales, Australia, Carnegie Hero Fund Trust, Scotland, Liverpool Shipwreck and Humane Society, UK, and others in Sweden and Switzerland. Attorney General, K. C. Kamalasabeyson, who was chief guest on the occasion, said that despite Sri Lanka's background of religious values, the nation is transforming into a battlefield and the change and decay seen around us are coated with violence and greed. Human life has lost its value. Contract killings are rampant. Our life style is changing fast and we live in fear, he said. "In the midst of such chaos", the Attorney General said, that it is important for us as a community to stand up together and propagate the noble human qualities that would enrich the human mind. For, a civilised society cannot survive in a vacuum, he said. It could not exist in the midst of violence. For a society to be civilized it is important that the human race must understand itself, its strengths and weaknesses its capabilities and limitations. It must cultivate the noble thought that a human being has a collective responsibility with others to protect and cherish one another, even if it involves strangers. In that context, the winners, are men and women of calibre, who kindle the flame of love for one another. |
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